Beyond The Depths: Foreigners - SCP Foundation

Series Archive » North Star » Chapter 1 » Beyond The Depths: Foreigners

He didn't remember if he had dreamt or not. All Black remembered was being ripped back into consciousness by a searing pain in his temple. He shot up into a sitting position, clutching his head.

The hell? He thought. What happened?

He tried thinking back, but it was difficult remembering right now.

I was deployed up north. Canada, that's it. And we were dealing with some kind of creatures. The only thing I can recall is them being really big. Then we went down into a cave, where we engaged a bigger creature. Evans ended up…

The memories crashed into him like a tidal wave. All at once, he remembered everything. The cave, the spider, Omega-7… and the pool.

Shit.

Black opened his eyes, much to his head's protest. The room he was in was longer than it was wide. It was dark, with the only light being some kind of cylinder on the ceiling that dully emitted a blue tint. The floor and walls seemed to be made of dark metal, thought he had no idea what.

He looked down, and noticed that he was laying on a bed. The legs and frame were thin, and the slats were thick enough to trick Black into thinking it was a full bottom. It reminded him of a bed you'd find at a mental ward. There was also no pillow or blanket.

The entire room suddenly rocked, as if he was in the back of a truck that just hit a pothole. The movement went right into Black's gut, making him queasy. That queasiness turned into full on nausea as he felt a warm substance make its way up his throat.

Black reached up to remove his helmet, only to find it wasn't there. Leaning over the bed, he emptied the contents of his stomach. Cold sweat ran down his face as he spat to get the bitter taste out of his mouth. He laid back down on his 'bed,' again grabbing his temple.

It wasn't just his head that was hurting. Every part of him felt… off. As if he was in the middle of a particularly nasty flu. Black shivered as he realized how cold he was. He tried warming up by hugging himself, but all attempts to heat up seemed to make him colder.

Black laid there in a fever-like state. His mind saw incoherent colors and images that couldn't even begin to be described. All he could do was lay there, feeling the slight rocking of the room and listening to the muttering sound.

Wait…

Someone was faintly whispering. Was it in his head? Black decided to open his eyes and force himself to look around one more time. That's when he noticed something he missed before.

Laying across from him on an identical bed was SCP-105. Its back was to him, but Black could tell it was curled into a ball, hugging itself.

"105?" He called out weakly. His stomach turned as he spoke, threating to empty itself again. Perhaps it was better to keep quiet. Black grabbed the bedframe and slowly swung his legs over the side.

Getting to his feet was hard, staying on them was even harder. He wobbled as his legs threatened to give out from under him. After staying still to gain balance, Black took a step forward. A shaky, unstable step, but a step.

Then he took another step. Then another. Then another. Then-

The room violently shook again, and he fell on his left shoulder. Black let out a gasp as his head and stomach swam, and his joints and muscles ached. Breathing became a chore as he tried to recollect himself.

He looked up at 105. The jolt must've cause it to roll over some, as it was now partially facing him. Black was able to get a good look at it.

Its eyes were closed, and its face was in a pained expression. Sweat was pouring down its sickly green face. It was clearly both unconscious and ill. By the looks of it, far iller than he was. Despite this, its mouth was moving, if subtilty, whispering something Black couldn't make out.

He turned and crawled back to his bed. Grabbing the edge, he pulled himself up into a sitting position. Leaning against the frame was all he could do, listening to 105 and feeling the soft rocking of the room.

So we were moving. Black thought as he felt the room slow to a stop.

Though still intense, the aching had subsided some. He was able to look around without his joints and brain screaming.

Heavy footsteps echoed from an unidentifiable place. It sounded like they were coming from outside the room, though Black couldn't pinpoint the exact direction. He listened closely, trying to hear it over 105's rambling. The footsteps were somehow quieter than the anomaly.

There was a rushing sound, like running water or wind against leaves, and the entirety of the furthest wall folded open.

Standing in the now open doorway were three tall, thin, humanoid entities. They had orange skin, large black eyes, and a mouth with no lips, only teeth (it reminded Black of a skeleton's). They had no hair, but oddly enough, seemed to be wearing some kind of blue plastic armor around their arms, legs, and torso.

One of the creatures pointed to Black and made a deep clicking sound. The other two began walking towards him. They reached down and grabbed him by the arms. He took note of their eight fingered hands.

Black attempted to protest, but found himself still too weak to do much. The creatures lifted him to his feet, helping him keep balance. They made more clicking noises as they began moving out of the room. Black's feet dragged against the floor as the creatures practically carried him out.

The brightness of the next room forced him to shut his eyes. His head felt like it was split open as the bright white lights pierced his eyelids. They took a few lefts, they took a few rights. Eventually they came to a stop, and Black felt himself get laid down on something.

Something… soft? Like a proper bed. It was still too bright for Black to look around, so instead he relied on his ears. He heard the footsteps of those two creatures fade away. Less than a second later, more steps came, moving to his left. This was followed by more clicking.

He heard one of the creatures make their way over to Black, stopping right next to him. An eight fingered hand gripped his arm, and forcibly yet gently moved it over. His hand landed on something spherical, and a light tingle ran into his fingers, through his arm, and into the back of his head.

"Do you understand me?" A voice said.

"What?" Black said in shock, or at least in as much shock as he could muster. "I mean… yes but… how… where are…"

"Easy… easy…" The voice soothed. "Don't worry. You are in safe, friendly hands."

Well that's a little reassuring.

"Could you…" Black started. "Could you maybe dim these lights? My head feels like… it's exploding."

There was a clicking noise, and the white light dulled after a few seconds. Black opened his eyes slowly and turned his head, looking around.

They were in a dark gray room that seemed to be made of marble or granite. Light was being faintly illuminated from the corners of the room, though Black couldn't identify an actual source. It was a similar size and shape to the room he had woken up in.

Kneeling next to him was one of those humanoid creatures, only this one was wearing what looked like white clothe instead of blue plastic. Their eight fingered hand was reaching down and touching the same spherical object Black was touching. It was glass, with lightning flashing on the inside to where their fingers were. It reminded Black of a plasma globe he had seen as a kid. In fact, it looked EXACTLY like a plasma globe.

How could something so familiar be in a place so foreign?

He looked around some more. Two more of those creatures were standing in the room, both in the plastic armor Black remembered them in.

The room itself was was relatively bare, with the only furnishing being a long, thin couch in the center of the room, along with 2 smaller chairs and a weirdly shaped table.

SCP-105 was laying on a bed across from Black, still sweaty and with pain on its face. Unlike the one in the other room, this one was furnished with a thin mattress, a decent sized pillow, and a long blanket (all of which where blue). He looked down, and saw that he was laying on an identical bed.

Black laid his head on the soft pillow and closed his eyes. His brain still felt like it was three times larger than his skull, and his muscles still ached. Not as much as they had, but enough to deter him from doing much.

"You are ill, yes?" The creature asked.

"Y… yeah." Black replied.

"Drink this, it will restore your strength."

He opened his eyes. The creature was holding a brown bowl. Where they got it was beyond him.

Black's hand wavered as he tried reaching for it, and the creature eventually had to help maneuver it. He pressed his lips against the bowl and tipped it.

Inside the bowl was a black liquid. For a second, he hesitated to pour it into his mouth, but a shot of pain through his temples made him push his concerns aside.

The liquid was warm and bitter, like whiskey. Black closed his eyes as he felt it go down his throat and into his stomach. He half expected to hurl it back up, but was pleasantly surprised when he felt his insides calm. Same went for his head, which quickly went numb.

"You will temporarily lose feeling in parts of you anatomy. They will return with time."

Black blinked a few times, relishing in his quickly evaporating pain. He blew air out of his mouth and looked up at the humanoid.

"I have some questions." He said hoarsely. It was weird, he should be panicking right now, or at least anxious. Yet he felt completely calm, as if he had just completed an important task and was now laying peacefully in bed.

"I'm sure you do." The creature replied. "We too have many things to ask. However, that is going to have to wait. You and your companion are in no condition for an interview."

"I'm feeling fine." Black tried sitting up, but stopped and flinched when a pain shot through his chest.

"The restoration elixir does not fully return your strength immediately. What you need is rest."

"I can't rest." He replied, though he laid back down. "There's people who need me."

"I assure you, you will do them no good in your condition. Rest up, regain yourself, and we will discuss everything with you." The creature stood. "All your questions will be answered in due time."

Black felt his eyes grow heavy, and his breathing slow down. Whatever he was on, it trumped morphine.

"Wait." He said.

"Yes?"

"What should I call you… and your kind?"

The creature remained silent for a moment. "Do you understand ██████?" They finished with a click.

"No." Black replied, too tired to be confused.

"I see. Some are able to. How about Scorn?"

"Scorn?"

"Yes." The creature said. "You may call me Scorn. Do you understand ██████?"

"No." Black's vision began to darken and blur.

"I see, how about ██████?"

"N… no."

"Krekel?"

"Yeah… yeah… I understood, that…"

"Then that is what you can call my kind. Krekel."

Krekel, huh? Sounds Dutch.

"I… feel… exhausted." Black said groggily.

"A side effect of the elixir, and another reason why we will talk at a later-"

His vision turned to black as he again fell asleep.

"Hey baby, how you doing?"

"…"

"Not feeling any better?"

"No."

"Aw, I'm sorry to hear that. I just got Tommy on the bus, he begged to stay home with you."

"I wish he could."

"…"

"…"

"Wow your head is warm. Do you think you could eat?"

"Not really."

"How about drink? They say you should drink plenty of water when your sick."

"Yeah, I'm a little thirsty."

"Good. I'll go grab you some. And how about some soup? That's what Grandma always made when I had the flu."

"Ok."

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"I'm back. Here, I'll help you drink."

"…"

"…"

"…"

"There, feeling any better?"

"Not really."

"Man, you really caught something nasty. Tell you what, I'll let you rest for now, and in a few hours we'll try again. Sound good?"

"…"

"Good. I'm staying home today, so just holler if you need anything. Okay?"

"…"

"Alright. Feel better soon sweetie."

"Mom…"

"Yes Iris?"

"…I love you."

Black gasped as he shot up into a sitting position. Breathing rapidly, he darted his eyes around in a frantic manner. The panic that had been absent earlier was finally showing its face.

How could I have been so stupid?

The room was now empty, save SCP-105, which didn't look any better. Searching the room, his eyes fell on a shallow indent across the room, most likely a door. Black shot to his feet and darted to it.

We need to get out of here NOW.

He looked for a handle or something to open it Nothing. He pressed against the door and pushed. Nothing. He tried everything he could to get the door open. Nothing.

Shit! He was stuck in this room, in an alien world, with creatures that he didn't know the motivations of. Krekel, was it? Ah, no time for that!

He walked over to SCP-105, shaking it.

"105, get up."

It didn't so much as stir, though Black was close enough to hear what it was saying.

"…hshcrittarlirary…"

Complete gibberish. Given its speech, the way it looked, and the fact it was STILL asleep meant it was probably having one hell of a fever dream.

"Dammit." Black hissed, anxiety rapidly growing in him.

Ok. I'm stuck in this room, which means it's probably some kind of prison. Though I will admit I've seen worse.

He eyed the furniture in the center of the room.

Still, I have no idea what these creatures want. Scorn said they were friendly, but that could just be a deception. Healing and comforting me so I'd let my guard down. Speaking of which, problem number two, my items. My backpack, helmet, and guns are gone. Wait, do I still have my knife? Yes I do.

Alright, I could try slashing my way out of here. Shit, but I don't know their physical strength compared to mine. Plus I'm fucked if they have any kind of ranged weapons. And that's not even including the fact I have no idea where I am or how to get out. No, I'm going to need to play nice… for now.

The rushing sound Black had heard earlier returned. He looked back towards the source. Scorn and two of those blue plastic wearing Krekels entered through the now opened door. It remanifested as they stepped through.

In one of Scorn's hand was the plasma globe, a long piece of paper was in the other. They walked up to Black and outstretched the orb.

"It's good to see you feeling better." Scorn said as he touched the object.

"Yeah." Black replied. "So… where the hell am I? What the hell are you? Where the hell is-"

"Calm down -5, all your questions will be answered shortly."

Did they just call me dash five?

Black took some deep breaths, calming himself.

Breath. He thought. Breath.

"How can I understand you?" He finally asked. Scorn tapped one of their fingers on the globe.

"This object here. It allows two parties of different vocabularies to communicate, so long as they're both making contact."

"A translator?"

"Yes." Scorn made a motion with their face. "It… is not perfect, as you heard earlier, but it's reliable enough to utilize."

Black nodded. "Ok, next question, who are you?"

"Scorn, and my race is called Krekel."

"No…" Black said shaking his head. "I mean… let me rephrase. WHERE am I?"

"Ah, for that I advise you sit. Come join me." Scorn turned and walked over to the couch. Black followed.

The two sat down. It was surprisingly comfy, given how thin it was.

"Before I start." Scorn said. "I would like to know your desired reference."

"Uh…" Black began. "My what?"

"Your desired reference, what you want to be called."

"You mean like my name?"

"Precisely."

Black stopped and thought for a moment.

"Agent Black." He eventually said.

"Agent Black." Scorn repeated as they began scratching their hand on the parchment.

"And what is your colleague's desired reference?"

He again stopped and thought. No matter what situation I'm in, I can't break protocol.

"SCP-105."

Scorn stared at Black. "Sorry, SCP?"

"Yeah, why?"

Scorn continued to stare at him, then slowly looked down and scratched the paper.

"So now that we know what to call you and your colleague, it's time I ask some questions of my own."

"Well, hold on now." Black interrupted. "You said you were going to tell me who you guys are, unless you run the show around here."

Scorn looked up at him. Black didn't know if it was the eyes or the skeleton mouth, but they looked unliving. Cold.

"Apologies. As I'm sure you've been able to conclude, you and your colleague do not belong here." They motioned to Black and 105. "You two are what we call abnormals, things that can't be explained. We are an organization that studies abnormals such as yourselves."

No… they're not…

"If the general public were to discover your existence it would spark chaos and disarray. Our job is to prevent that, and to better understand that which cannot be understood. And if required, contain such abnormals."

Black couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"…and what exactly do you call yourself?" He asked skeptically.

"The SCP Foundation, but you can just call us the Foundation."

-5 Interview Log

Interviewer: Specialist Scorn

Interviewee: Agent Black (classified as -5)

<Begin Log>

S. Scorn: Explain to me the events that lead you to manifesting on [DATA CORRUPT].

Agent Black: Sorry, on what?

S. Scorn: In our reality.

Agent Black remains silent.

S. Scorn: You do remember what happened before, do you?

Agent Black: Yeah I do, it's just…

Agent Black goes silent for approximately 7 seconds.

Agent Black: Me and SCP-105 were exploring a cave system we found when… wait… do you know what a cave is?

S. Scorn: Yes.

Agent Black: Ok good. Anyways, we were exploring this cave we found, when we stumbled across a pool. Do you know what that is? A pool?

S. Scorn: Yes, we know what pools are. I will let you know if you say something foreign to my vocabulary.

Agent Black: Alright. So we came across this pool. The reason it intrigued us was because it was a green color. Pools in our world… don't look like that.

S. Scorn: It was an abnormal?

Agent Black: Seemed so, that's why we were so fascinated by it. We ended up getting too close and fell in. Then, well, we ended up here.

S. Scorn: I see. So you two fell into a green pool in your world, and ended up traveling to this world?

Agent Black: Yeah, or at least that's what I remember.

S. Scorn.: That is… very interesting.

S. Scorn goes silent for 13 seconds.

Agent Black: What's so interesting?

S. Scorn: I will need to speak with my superiors after this interview. Tell me, why were you and SCP-105 doing exploring the cave?

Agent Black remains silent.

S. Scorn: Agent Black?

Agent Black: Sorry. We were just, you know, exploring. It's what me and 105 do… together.

S. Scorn: Very well. Onto the next question, are you familiar with these creatures?

S. Scorn slides a picture of -1, -2, and -3 to Agent Black. Agent Black spends 2 seconds looking over the images.

Agent Black: (tapping parchment) The giant spider, beetle, and centipede? Oh yeah, I've seen these before.

S. Scorn: You have? Excellent! Even though I wasn't able to understand what you called them, the fact that you know ABOUT them will hopefully help us tremendously. What can you tell us about them?

Agent Black: Well, they're anomalous in my world. Er, abnormal. We saw one crawl into the green pool I was talking about before we fell in. Given everything in front of me, I'm guessing those things have been harassing you?

S. Scorn: Yes. I'm not sure how much information I can share with you, but I can confirm that we have been dealing with these for a long time. Anything to help us neutralize them would be appreciated. Do you know where they came from?

Agent Black points to the picture of -2.

Agent Black: There was a bigger version of this one that birthed all the others. That's all I know.

S. Scorn: I see. Like I said, I will need to speak with my superiors before divulging more information to you, but what you have said so far will make for a strong case. You may be of great value to us.

Agent Black remains silent.

S. Scorn: This concludes our interview. Thank you for your cooperation.

S. Scorn stands to leave the room, but stops.

S. Scorn: Oh, before I leave, I'd like to mention that we gave SCP-105 a serving of the restoration elixir. Unfortunately, it did not work. We ar-

Agent Black: (interrupting) What do you mean it didn't work?

S. Scorn: SCP-105 is far iller than you were, meaning it will take a stronger dosage to fully revive it. It will take time to obtain, however. In the meantime, please keep observation on it. Simply knock on the door if you are in need of anything. I will return with Special Object 1134 if you do so.

Agent Black: Special Object?

S. Scorn: Apologies. We refer to abnormals as Special Objects.

S. Scorn grabs Special Object 1134 and exists the room.

<End Log>

"Hey Iy, I'm back from work. Feeling any better?"

"…"

"No? Geez. Did you eat anything today?"

"Mom gave me some soup earlier."

"That's good. At least you got something in your system."

"…"

"Your Uncle asked about you at work, wanted to know how you're doing."

"Tell him poor."

"Man, I'm sorry Iy. Do you think it was something you ate, or someone at school gave it to you? Wasn't one of your friends JUST out with something similar?"

"I don't know. Maybe. I really don't want to talk right now."

"…Ok, I'll let you rest some more. Though Mom tells me you've been sleeping all day. I'm starting to get worried."

"…"

"…"

"…"

"Welp, let me know if you need anything. Love you."

"Dad…"

"Yes Iy?"

"…I love you."

Black had lost track of how long he had spent pacing the room. After Scorn had left, there wasn't anything for him to do besides wander around. The initial panic he felt had faded, which allowed him to ponder his situation clearly.

Logically, there has to be a way back. He thought. Somehow, those 354-11 instances got to our world FROM here. Which means somewhere, there's another portal that would take me and 105 home.

Black glanced at 105. It had only gotten worse as time went on.

Assuming it makes it.

It really was a shame. Black could tell 105 was feeling terrible. He secretly hoped the fever dream it was having was mind fucking it to the point of not even realizing it was in pain. Still, its breathing had grown ragged, and the expression on its face grew more painful. Black couldn't help but feel a little bit-

No. He scolded himself. I don't 'feel sorry' for it. If anything, I feel sorry that the Foundation won't be able to utilize a valuable asset. Yeah, that's why I want it to get better. Black shook his head. Don't humanize it.

The door opened with a rush. Black turned to see a Krekel in blue armor enter the room. In their hands was a silver bowl, filled with what he assumed was the stronger dosage.

The Krekel clicked before entering the room. Walking over to 105, they opened its mouth and forced it to drink. After the bowl was empty, they turned to Black, clicked again, and left the room.

And just like that, he was alone. He turned to 105.

Hopefully this works.

105 didn't move. Black sighed, then sat down on his bed.

"Hi Iris!"

"Tom… …my?"

"Yep, I'm back!"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"Mom said I'm not allowed to touch you, so don't tell her ok?"

"…"

"Your friends asked about you at school today. I told them you were in the middle of a bad flu. They all hope you get better!"

"…"

"I went to your teachers and asked them if there was any homework. Mrs Chris says you need to finish your reading log by the time you get back. Mr White said there was a division paper, but he'll give you that when you feel better."

"…"

"Mrs Lia said there was no social studies homework since you had a test today. Oh, but Mrs Farset does have some science homework she wants done. It's in my backpack, I'll bring it to you later."

"…"

"Oh, I almost forgot. Mom wanted me to give you some more of this soup. Here, I'll help you eat!"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"There you go. Feeling better?"

"…"

"…"

"…a little."

"YAY! Ok, I'm gonna go downstairs and watch some TV. Let me know when you feel better so we can play in the yard. It isn't going to stay nice out forever!"

"Tommy…"

"Yes Iris?"

"…I love you."

"I love you too!"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"Don't tell Mom I hugged you twice."

"Tommy…"

"Yeah?"

"I…"

"Tommy… I…"

Black practically whiplashed himself turning to SCP-105.

It spoke.

"…I miss you Tommy."

He jumped to his feet and moved to 105's bedside.

"SCP-105?" Black said.

"SCP-105?"

What? Iris thought. How does he know that na-… number?

"…Tommy?"

"You able to wake up 105?"

That isn't Tommy's voice.

Iris hadn't opened her eyes all day. The throbbing in her head discouraged her from doing so. She had kept them closed when her Mom fed her soup. She had kept them closed when her Dad kissed her forehead. She had kept them closed while Tommy hugged her.

But that couldn't be Tommy next to her. Tommy had been gone for a long time. And that couldn't have been her Mom and Dad earlier. They thought she was dead. And this couldn't be her own bed, in her own room, in her own home. She had been taken away from all of that.

Iris suddenly became very aware of her surroundings. She was cold, both externally and from chills. But she was also hot from the raging fever that was making her head explode. Her mouth was dry, making her thirsty. But her stomach also swam, making her want to vomit. Every ounce of muscle ached.

If there was a hell, then this is what the damned were feeling.

Where am I?

Reluctantly, she slowly opened her eyes.

Standing above her was a man in a tactical kevlar uniform. He had jet black hair, a 5 o'clock shadow, and a scar that ran from the center of his eyebrows to the bottom of his left cheek. Sewn onto his chest were the letters 'SCP.'

"…Tommy?"

There that Tommy is again. Black thought. At least it's coming to.

"You able to wake up 105?" He said. He didn't expect a verbal response, but was hoping for a physical one, which he got.

SCP-105 stirred, squinting its eyes open.

"Wha..?" It closed its mouth before finishing its sentence. Its eyes widened slightly as it leaned over the bedframe. A yellowish-green liquid poured out its mouth.

"I threw up too. Must be a side effect to jumping realities." Black said as 105 heaved.

It spat a few times, getting the remaining bile out of its mouth. "We're… in another… dimension?" It said hoarsely.

"Yeah." Black replied. "I'll fill you in when you're ready."

105 coughed heavily, then laid back down on the bed. "Everything… hurts…"

"Feels like the flu, right?"

105 nodded slightly. "I'm… exhausted…"

"It's the medicine they gave you." Black said.

It closed its eyes, its breathing was already starting to slow.

"I'm… also… cold…"

Black agreed. Although he had been able to ignore it, he too was feeling a little chilly. At first he thought it was just because of his illness, but it persisted even after he felt normal.

I should ask them about that.

105's breaths were soft and deep now. It was looking much better. The green on its face had disappeared, and its expression was more neutral than pain.

"You asleep?"

It didn't respond.

Black looked down at the yellow puddle on the floor that was already starting to smell. He got up and knocked on the door. It opened a few minutes later, and Scorn entered the room with the plasma globe in hand.

"You needed something?" They asked when Black touched the orb.

"A few things. First, I'd like to inform you that SCP-105 woke up. It seems that stronger dose worked."

"Oh excellent!" Scorn exclaimed. "And I'm assuming they're back in a state of comatose?"

Comatose?

"I don't know about THAT, but it's asleep."

"Same thing." They replied.

Black shook his head, choosing to ignore the grammar difference.

"Second, 105 threw up like I did. Could I get something to clean it?"

Scorn made a motion with their hand. "One of our sanitation personnel will clean it. In the mean time, I have some fantastic news! I spoke with my superiors, and they have granted you level 2 recreation!"

"Which means?" Black replied.

"So long you are in the presence of a Foundation personnel, you are free to leave your room and go to sectioned off areas of the facility. Tell me, have you consumed any sustenance since you arrived?"

"Sustenance? Like food?"

"Yes."

"Besides that medicine you gave me, no." Black said. Now that they mentioned it, he was feeling hungry. Surprising, considering how recently he had thrown up.

"Excellent! I shall escort you to the depository then. Please, follow me."

Scorn turned and began walking out of the room. Black took one last glance at 105, now asleep on its bed, before following Scorn down the alien hallway.

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