To The Vastness of Eternity - SCP Foundation

A man stood at the window, looking out over a world that had grown cold and barren. The streets were empty, and the dim lights flickered weakly. Where once a vast city had teemed with life, now only cobblestone pavements and the occasional bird remained, swiftly silenced by the surrounding stillness. It was perfect. Silent.

From the corner of his eye, he watched as the first of many trucks began to leave the building he was standing in. The citizens of this city were safer in their homes. It was better that way. They would be provided with everything they needed: food, shelter, electricity. A small smile crept onto his lips. Under his guidance, they had achieved everything. They had finally earned the recognition they deserved. They had proven they weren’t just some joke to the world. Who was laughing now?

Suddenly, a heavy thud sounded behind him. He turned away from the window, his pupils dilating in shock. His bodyguard had collapsed, dead. From the shadowed doorway, a figure emerged—darkness itself seemed to cling to it. The figure was draped in a black suit, polished dress shoes, and a bowler hat. Its face, though familiar in form, was devoid of detail. The man knew there were features, but even as he squinted, they remained unknown, hidden as if by some trick of the light.

The figure casually patted down its clothes, like someone brushing off dust after a long day, and stepped over the lifeless body of the guard.

"Director of the UIU, I presume?" The figure's voice was unnervingly calm, though it didn’t bother to look directly at him. "Well, no, I know who you are. 'Presume' wouldn’t be the right word."

The man retreated instinctively, but soon found himself pressed against the cold glass wall he'd been gazing through moments ago. A primal fear began to stir in him, something deep and long dormant. The figure continued forward.

"You know," the figure began again, "it took some time getting in here." The man’s breath quickened. No, it couldn’t end like this—not after everything he’d done. "Though, in the end, I suppose it was worth it."

The man’s hand shot into his overcoat, desperately reaching for his gun, but his fingers found only empty space. Panic surged through him as his eyes darted up to see the figure calmly holding the very weapon he’d been grabbing for.

"Surprised they let someone like you join their club," the figure remarked, and the man clenched his fists reflexively as his weapon clattered to the floor.

"P-please…" the director stammered, his voice barely more than a whisper. "I—"

"I know why you did this," the figure interrupted smoothly. "I'm not here to judge you. I'm simply here to set the world right. And unfortunately, you’re the first step in that process. Think of it as your sins finally catching up to you."

The figure now stood just inches away.

"This won’t hurt," it said softly, raising a finger to its lips in a shushing gesture. "So don’t scream."

The man wanted to run, wanted to fight back, but his body betrayed him. He felt paralyzed, gripped by an innate fear, overwhelming terror. His muscles locked as the figure placed a hand on his head, forcing him to meet its empty gaze.

"Relax," the figure whispered. "I’m just going to show you what comes next."

And in that moment, the man saw everything. He saw the future—not just one future, but all futures. Every possibility, every impossibility, stretched out before him in endless variations. He watched the universe die and be reborn, again and again and again. He saw himself die countless times. He saw into the mind of a being made of nothingness. His mind shattered under the weight of it all, and he couldn’t stop the scream that tore from his throat.

No one came to his aid as the director of the UIU slumped to the ground, lifeless. His body was intact, but his mind had been utterly destroyed. The figure kicked the body once before turning back toward the shadows from which it had emerged.

It had gone as expected. No human mind was meant to glimpse the vastness of eternity. The sheer weight of that knowledge was enough to break anyone.

With a final glance, the figure stepped over the guard's body once more, crossed a name off of a list, and vanished into the darkness. Nobody could survive that.

Who Am I to Look into a Mirror? »