Welcome to Site-333: Atlantic City


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If you're listening to this, it means you fucked up — badly.

People don't transfer to Site-333: they don't come here on research projects, to complete training seminars, or to consult experts in their field.

No, folk wash up at Site-333. Either you had one really big fuckup, and you know what it was, so they sent you out here — out of sight, out of mind — or your entire career has been a series of fuck ups, in which case you'll be right at home.

Let me set the stage:

At Site-43, they're "Subverting Common Practice;" at Site-333 no one cares what you're doing.

Folks at Site-120 "Fight Fire With Fire;" Site-333 hasn't passed a fire safety inspection since 1962.

In Sloth's Pit, stories come to life; in Atlantic City, dreams come to die.


Was it always like this?

Short answer: yes and no. Long answer: does it matter?




Secure Facility Dossier:

Site-333 — USNJAC

Nx-36 — "Atlantic City" — Briar


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Site-333 [center-left] — Tickets for self-guided lighthouse tours available for purchase.


General Information

Site Function: Site-333 was initially founded to investigate the reported claims of a "rapture" occurring throughout Atlantic City, New Jersey, from 1952-1953. While these rumours were substantiated, the limited effect this event had on the local civilian populations was deemed non-threatening to the veil. Atlantic City was henceforth designated Nexus-36, due to ongoing low-level anomalous phenomena.

Since its conception, Site-333 has been repeatedly downsized, with numerous proposals for its dissolution. Such requests have so far been overruled by representatives of the O4 Council, who have expressed hesitation regarding the relocation of Site-333 staff to nearby facilities.

As such, Site-333 remains active, functioning as a general-purpose, low-cost containment facility for low-risk, low-threat anomalies and pseudo-anomalous phenomena.

Site-333 also holds a museum dedicated to the Jersey Devil and includes an additional tourist attraction in the form of a lighthouse offering a panoramic view of the Nexus. Tourist revenue from these attractions contributes the majority of Site-333's annual funding.


Nexus-36: During the years 1952-1953, a continuous eschatological event occurred within Atlantic City (view Selected History: The New Jersey Rapture for more information), resulting in visual and auditory phenomena and the sudden demanifestation of human individuals. Accounts of affected persons identify them as upstanding citizens: pleasant, friendly, generous, and kind; a total of 23 individuals within Atlantic City experienced this spontaneous demanifestation.

Since 1953, background Akiva radiation within Atlantic City has dropped to near 0, the frequency and intensity of "unfortunate" events have significantly increased (from a previously elevated baseline), and individuals who remain within the city's border from 48-72 hours declare a notable increase in feelings of despair, hopelessness, distrust of other individuals, and general apathy towards the human condition.

Notably, individuals indicate that the former emotional effects are not experienced while within Atlantic City's casinos, until exiting the premises — at which point they are experienced suddenly, at a significantly higher order of magnitude. Site-333 researchers are divided on whether this is an anomalous or mundane phenomenon.

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Nx-36 — Atlantic City.


Memo: Occupational Safety & Health at Site-333



A reminder: the SCP Foundation is a covert, international organization, and thus not under the jurisdiction of any individual geopolitical state, regardless of the nationality of Foundation personnel or their location of employment.

As such, we have no legal obligation to adhere to guidelines and regulations established by the United States Department of Labour's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

Additionally, due to recent budget reallocations, Site-333 personnel will no longer be receiving coverage for workplace-related injuries, illnesses, disabilities, or fatalities as part of their Goldbaker-Reinz insurance package.

The bean counters over there said this was "a bad idea," but we at Site-333 believe in personal responsibility and freedoms, hence why this decision has been made on your behalf.

We are implementing a new system to report any perceived dangers, unsafe working conditions, or dissatisfaction with recent administrative changes. Complaints may be issued via an anonymous suggestion box.

To ensure confidentiality, this box will be located within my office, on my desk.

Remember: it is your responsibility to keep Site-333 safe and healthy.

Vincent Bohart,
Director of Site-333


Selected History

Background — Atlantic City: Incorporated in 1854 along the coast of New Jersey, Atlantic City established itself as a notable resort city for the United States' Eastern Seaboard. In addition to its boardwalk, fairground, and assortment of casinos, Atlantic City is notable for hosting the Miss America beauty pageant and inspiring the U.S. version of the board game Monopoly — both of which have been assigned provisional anomaly designations, pending funding approval, due to their presumed relation to Nx-36's anomalous effects.

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Documentation of Chicago Spirit Railroad Smuggling Operation within Atlantic City — Derailed.

During the Prohibition Era, Atlantic City was largely under the control of the paracrime syndicate, the Chicago Spirit, which capitalized on the market for illegal alcohol and gambling. By 1935, the organization had largely pulled away from its affairs within the city, citing a general unpleasantness of its clientele and operational fatigue due to repeated misplaced and delayed shipments, apathetic employees, and general dissatisfaction with the lack of substantial profit.

Their exit from the city was followed by an increase in sporadic crime, endemic poverty, and independent government corruption during the mid-1930s, continuing through until 1950. Business owners with anomalous contacts attempted to renegotiate contracts with the Spirit for protection or more regular business, but many requests went unanswered and unacknowledged.


The New Jersey Rapture: On August 24th, 1952, Emella Murphy demanifested while shopping along the boardwalk, with an accompanying fanfare of incorporeal trumpets.

The event was briefly noted in local newspapers but failed to gain widespread attention amongst the general public. Emella Murphy lived a predominantly isolated life, having converted the grounds of her residential property into a sanctuary for migratory birds and insects; a choice that made her largely unpopular with neighbours.

Over the following 6 months, several other demanifestations were noted, totalling 23 people, all of whom had precisely undertaken work benefiting the local community, ecology, or culture. Similar to Emella, their disappearance went largely unknowledged.

An exception to this was the disappearance of Michael Inswater, which occurred within the crowded Church of Saint Mary's Grace on November 23rd, 1952. Michael had been collecting alms when he demanifested, subsequently spilling the collected donations onto the church floor. Following the initial surprise and accompanying scuffle to collect the "free" money, a theological debate ensued regarding why certain individuals had not been selected "by God." This debate escalated into a brawl. Containment of the belligerents led to a police investigation, revealing that the Reverend had been regularly embezzling money; this case was subsequently dropped due to corruption within the local criminal justice system.

By early 1953, the anomalous event had ceased. The Foundation's response team was several months late but chose to remain within Atlantic City to monitor subsequent developments in the situation.


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Previous location of Site-333, circa 1975.

Site-333: Following the decision of Foundation personnel to establish a permanent site in Atlantic City — informed in part by repeated train delays and cancellations — relevant personnel issued the request to found Site-333. The request was misfiled and processed as though applying for temporary, emergency office space for Foundation employees, in the event of short-term unsuitabilities of on-site bureaucratic facilities. As such, a small series of rooms were leased along the pier in a former office of a defunct amusement park.

Site-333 personnel remained at that location for several years without the error ever being noticed by the Foundation's administration. During this time, numerous concerns and complaints were filed due to the presence of unpleasant odours, frequent flooding of the washrooms, and inconsistencies in the electrical wiring which resulted in both periods of blackouts and random activations of the fire alarm system. Due to poor mailing practices, most of these complaints did not reach the proper individuals.

The choice of site personnel to deactivate the fire alarm system resulted in a minor incident when — due to poor containment of an anomalous substance — the building's asbestos insulation caught fire. Site-333 personnel managed to evacuate with only minor injuries, predominantly caused by the incorrectly displayed fire exits which directed individuals to an exterior, suspended balcony whose fire escape had been removed previously.

Foundation employees were then moved to the "Lucky Star Diner," which was converted into a temporary, interim office space. Site-333 was stationed at the location for a period of 12 years before the structure was purchased for the instalment of a seaside minigolf lot; construction is still ongoing.

The current locale of Site-333 has served admirably for the small administrative, research, and containment teams stationed there. While the site is far from innocuous, assessments of the local populace show a general disinterest in the facility, as well as its employees' personal lives. Currently, Site-333 hosts a museum dedicated to the local cryptid, the Jersey Devil, in addition to the view offered from the attached lighthouse.

In 2019, Site-333 Director, Vincent Bohart contacted Director House of Foundation Site-666, requesting that the two facilities solidify their relationship as "sister sites." When no response was received from Director House, their consent to the agreement was inferred. A small ceremony was held at Site-333; no invitees from Site-666 were in attendance.


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Site-333 Employee Break Room — typical scene as depicted by part-time intern, Kikunai.


Notable Individuals — Q&A:

Tony Catalano: Site-333 Department Head — Accounting & Tourism.

Q: Can you tell me a little about yourself?

Tony Catalano — A: Sure, uh. I'm Tony. Been working at Site-333 for, gosh 30 years now? Uhhh, spent most of that time in accounting. In accounting and tourism now.

To be clear, those aren't two separate things. The department was renamed "Accounting & Tourism." Funny story that. Uh, when the previous Site Director retired back in… jeez, was that 03? Anyway, Vincent started funnelling their pension into the Site's funding. It helped out a lot around here! We named the new AC unit after the old man. Shame it kicked the can shortly after the old director did. That's when the Foundation caught onto the scheme and we needed to find a way to bring in some extra cash. The lighthouse was right there, so Vincent thought "why not charge people to come up?" We cleared out the surveillance equipment, Akiva monitors, mass-amnestic distribution systems, deactivated the emergency backup lamp, and have just been charging folk to take a look-see. Works great, and it's kept our books in the black for years.

Well, at least it's kept us from going too far in the red.

We're still pretty far in though.


Leonora Morales: Site-333 (Anomalous) Wildlife Specialist

Q: What sort of research are you engaged in?

Leonora Morales — A: I've been trying for a research grant on some of the local birds: seagulls mostly. I walk on the beaches in the mornings and while they've always been littered with trash, I've started noticing something out of place.

Flocks of seagulls just standing around, surrounded by cigarette butts. Like I mean, just mounds of them. The birds must be going through a pack a day, each. And those things aren't cheap, so they've got to be getting them from somewhere. I've been trying to get a video camera set up to keep an eye on them, but apparently the one we have runs on Super-8 film stock, and that all got ruined in the flood last July.

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Atlantic City seagull with cigarette butt, presumably post-smoking.


Noah Patel: Cryptozoologist & Museum Curator

Q: How did you come to find yourself at Site-333?

Noah Patel — A: I was actually born here, in South Jersey. You could say Atlantic City's in my blood. You know, come to think of it, I don't think I've ever been out of state. Never seen much of a reason, I suppose. Jersey Devil's here and I gotta stick close by if I want to catch it.

My expertise really came in handy with the museum, I had collected most of the paraphernalia myself, so having a place to show it was pretty cool. Most of the time I don't mind dealing with tourists. Although every now and then some smart-ass comes in wanting to disprove the 'myth.' It's hard bitting my tongue, given that I can't start talking about how Goat Man's real, or the Loch Ness Monster, or the chupacabra, dobhar-chú, ningen, the Squonk, you know… all of them.

Jersey Devil's real too. I know it.

There was one time I nearly did leave, come to think of it. Paige Harper saw the archival research I had been doing on the Devil and invited me to join her team, she was doing some Ficto-Critical research on Vampires. She actually came here to visit for a bit, really cool person, we got along pretty well. Heard she went on to win some sort of major Foundation award for her work.

They actually screened the ceremony. They all looked so happy, and proud. I know I've headed that way myself, just need to crack the Jersey Devil thing.


Associated Anomalies & Field Reports


Proposed:

  • SCP-8666: The Jersey Devil — Insufficient Evidence for Classification
  • SCP-8271: Smoking Seagulls — Insufficient Evidence for Classification

Note: Proposed Anomalies Were Last Reviewed: March, 12th, 2018.

Verified:

Note: Additional Items Re-Classified in Log of Anomalous Items & Log of Extranormal Events.

Incident Reports & Private Complaint Forms:

Do NOT forward to Human Resources, Ethics Committee, or the International Labour Organization!


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View of Atlantic City. The volleyball tournament had been cancelled due to an abnormal presence of hookworms on the beach.





Well, that's that. Welcome to Site-333. You'll catch on to how things go here pretty quickly. Chances are, won't be much of a change for most of you getting passed onto us. Going to establish this off the bat, if there's a problem with your office, I don't want to hear about it; a little black mold never hurt anyone.

Now, onto the fun part. We've put together a little welcome to Atlantic City package you can pick up on your way out — it's not all bad! There's a free round of minigolf, on us, a buffet ticket to Ceasers, and even a little pouch of saltwater taffy.

Don't worry about the expiration date, it's just sugar anyway.

Before we go. They say good things come in threes, so I'm going to leave you with a fourth.


When luck looks to Site-666, the house always wins; when Site-333 catches her eye, you always lose.

This is Vincent Bohart, Director of Site-333, signing off.



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