LiterallyMechanical

Ethics Committee Inquest, by LiterallyMechanical

For the rest of my work, check out LiterallyMechanical's Author Page

A few of my favorites:

SCP-4170 — The Dark

SCP-3163 — The Almanack

SCP-4357 — Slimelord

From the Office of the Ethics Committee

Draft and review packet for document SCP-5236

SEALED to the Ethics Committee under Article III of the Foundational Mandate

Level-E5 clearance required for access

Level-O5 clearance may be accepted by petition on a case-by-case basis.

SCP-5236-DRAFT-01

ECR-5236-01

SCP-5236-DRAFT-02

INQ-5236

SCP-5236

Provisional Document: Special Containment Procedure

Ethics Committee Approval

DENIED

Author(s): Senior Researcher Lee Corbett

Revision #: 1

Item #: SCP-5236

Object Class: Safe

Special Containment Procedures: SCP-5236 is to be contained in situ, as relocation of the anomaly has proved to be highly impractical. Laboratory S19-12B has been cleared of all research materials and reconfigured into a containment cell/observation area. A standard blast enclosure has been constructed around SCP-5236, monitored both internally and externally for thermal, optical, and audio emissions.

Description: SCP-5236 is an unstructured discontinuity in Einsteinian spacetime, encompassing a roughly 2 x 2 x 2 x 2 meter 4-polytope of disordered space. The rapidly-shifting four-dimensional topology of SCP-5236 is inhospitable to ordinary matter, causing destructive malformations to instruments inserted through the boundary layer. While safe transit into or out of SCP-5236 is impossible with presently available technology, visible light is able to escape the interior, albeit heavily distorted.

SCP-5236 is located in a room in the Site-19 Chemistry and Chemical Biology Department, formerly designated as Laboratory S19-12B. The three-dimensional volume of the discontinuity surrounds the space formerly occupied by a portion of a laboratory bench, a desk chair, and the bodily remains of Senior Technician Sasha Elliot1, all of which are intermittently visible through its rapidly-shifting surface topology. As SCP-5236 is spatiotemporally fixed to the reference frame of Senior Technician Elliot, and there is no known method by which her remains could be transported to a standard containment chamber, Laboratory S19-12B has been repurposed for containment of SCP-5236.

SCP-5236 manifested at 10:29 PM MST on the evening of 03-02-2023, as documented in Incident Report 5236-A. Though Senior Technician Elliot was alone at the time of the incident, the event was captured on video by the Site-19 CCTV system.

Incident Report 5236-A, as documented by the Site-19 CCTV system on 03-02-2023

7:00 PM — S19-12B: Senior Technician Sasha Elliot and Junior Technician James Wnoroski are present, engaged in materials analysis and research.

7:16 PM — S19-12B: Junior Technician Wnoroski closes his workstation and departs the laboratory. He subsequently exits the building.

8:25 PM — Hallway 12: Senior Technician Elliot departs the laboratory and proceeds to the nearby women's restroom. Senior Technician Elliot is subsequently out of view of the Site-19 CCTV system for six minutes.

8:31 PM — Hallway 12: Senior Technician Elliot leaves the women's restroom and returns to S19-12B. She appears agitated, and her movements are erratic.

9:38 PM — S19-12B: Senior Technician Elliot falls asleep at her workstation after a prolonged period of inactivity. Her sleep is restless.

9:55 PM — S19-12B: Senior Technician Elliot abruptly awakens. She is observed to scream, and falls out of her desk chair. Senior Technician Elliot makes several failed attempts to regain her footing over the next 34 minutes.

10:29 PM — S19-12B: Senior Technician Elliot exhibits signs of a grand mal seizure for 13 seconds. A bright flash of light overwhelms the optics of the Site-19 CCTV system for an additional 4 seconds. By the time visibility is restored, SCP-5236 has manifested in the space previously occupied by the technician.

During investigation of Incident 5236-A, illegal narcotics were discovered in Senior Technician Elliot's Foundation-issued laptop bag. Junior Technician Wnoroski admitted that he was aware of Sasha Elliot's ongoing drug abuse, yet chose not to notify his superiors. He further testified that Elliot made a habit of working late at night, unsupervised, in contravention of the Foundation's safety policies against solo laboratory work. Junior Technician Wnoroski has been reprimanded by the Internal Security Department.

Footnotes

1. See Incident Report 5236-A.

Ethics Committee Review for SCP Database Entry

Document #: SCP-5236-DRAFT-01

Proposal Status: Denied

Ethics Committee Review: The underlying cause of SCP-5236's manifestation has not been elucidated in the draft proposal. If the origin is unknown, this must be made explicitly clear. Mention of illegal narcotics implies a causal relationship between their presence and SCP-5236, but insufficient information is given.

Special Containment Procedures must describe whatever measures are necessary to prevent further instances of SCP-5236 from manifesting in the future.

Provisional Document: Special Containment Procedure

Ethics Committee Approval

DENIED

Author's Note: Containment procedures updated to indicate response to hypothetical further manifestations of SCP-5236, in the unlikely event that any arise. References to unsanctioned activities of Technicians Elliot and Wnoroski have been removed, to avoid confusion and over-saturation with unnecessary information.

Author(s): Senior Researcher Lee Corbett

Revision #: 2

Item #: SCP-5236

Object Class: Safe

Special Containment Procedures: SCP-5236 is to be contained in situ, as relocation of the anomaly has proved to be highly impractical. Laboratory S19-12B has been cleared of all research materials and reconfigured into a containment cell/observation area. A standard blast enclosure has been constructed around SCP-5236, monitored both internally and externally for thermal, optical, and audio emissions.

Similar containment procedures are to be implemented in the event that any further instances of SCP-5236 manifest in the future.

Description: SCP-5236 is an unstructured discontinuity in Einsteinian spacetime, encompassing a roughly 2 x 2 x 2 x 2 meter 4-polytope of disordered space. The rapidly-shifting four-dimensional topology of SCP-5236 is inhospitable to ordinary matter, causing destructive malformations to instruments inserted through the boundary layer. While safe transit into or out of SCP-5236 is impossible with presently available technology, visible light is able to escape the interior, albeit heavily distorted.

SCP-5236 is located in a room in the Site-19 Chemistry and Chemical Biology Department, formerly designated as Laboratory S19-12B. The three-dimensional volume of the discontinuity surrounds the space formerly occupied by a portion of a laboratory bench, a desk chair, and the bodily remains of Senior Technician Sasha Elliot1, all of which are intermittently visible through its rapidly-shifting surface topology. As SCP-5236 is spatiotemporally fixed to the reference frame of Senior Technician Elliot, and there is no known method by which her remains could be transported to a standard containment chamber, Laboratory S19-12B has been repurposed for containment of SCP-5236.

SCP-5236 manifested at 10:29 PM MST on the evening of 03/02/2023, as documented in Incident Report 5236-A. Though Senior Technician Elliot was alone at the time of the incident, the event was captured on video by the Site-19 CCTV system.

Incident Report 5236-A, as documented by the Site-19 CCTV system

7:00 PM — S19-12B: Senior Technician Sasha Elliot and Junior Technician James Wnoroski are present, engaged in materials analysis and research.

7:16 PM — S19-12B: Junior Technician Wnoroski closes his workstation and departs the laboratory. He subsequently exits the building.

8:25 PM — Hallway 12: Senior Technician Elliot departs the laboratory and proceeds to the nearby women's restroom. Senior Technician Elliot is subsequently out of view of the Site-19 CCTV system for six minutes.

8:31 PM — Hallway 12: Senior Technician Elliot leaves the women's restroom and returns to S19-12B. She appears agitated, and her movements are erratic.

9:38 PM — S19-12B: Senior Technician Elliot falls asleep at her workstation after a prolonged period of inactivity. Her sleep is restless.

9:55 PM — S19-12B: Senior Technician Elliot abruptly awakens. She is observed to scream, and falls out of her desk chair. Senior Technician Elliot makes several failed attempts to regain her footing over the next 34 minutes.

10:29 PM — S19-12B: Senior Technician Elliot exhibits signs of a grand mal seizure for 13 seconds. A bright flash of light overwhelms the optics of the Site-19 CCTV system for an additional 4 seconds. By the time visibility is restored, SCP-5236 has manifested in the space previously occupied by the technician.

During investigation of Incident 5236-A, illegal narcotics were discovered in Senior Technician Elliot's Foundation-issued laptop bag. Junior Technician Wnoroski admitted that he was aware of Sasha Elliot's ongoing drug abuse, yet chose not to notify his superiors. He further testified that Elliot made a habit of working late at night, unsupervised, in contravention of the Foundation's safety policies against solo laboratory work. Junior Technician Wnoroski has been reprimanded by the Internal Security Department.

Footnotes

1. See Incident Report 5236-A.

ETHICS COMMITTEE INQUEST

WHEREBY suspicion of malfeasance among Foundation staff has been established in the proposed Special Containment Procedures of a provisional SCP Database document, the Office of the Ethics Committee has established a formal inquest.

THE MANDATE OF THE ETHICS COMMITTEE IS IN EFFECT

Under the Foundational Mandate, the Ethics Committee is granted final arbitration on the wording, implementation, and revision of any and all Special Containment Procedures. In the matter of SCP-5236, the Ethics Committee invokes Article III, Section VII of the Mandate, Unrestricted Powers of Deposition. All testimonies are sealed to Level-E5. Level-O5 access may be granted by petition to the Ethics Committee.

Does the black moon howl?

Inquest Testimony and Analysis

Ethics Committee Investigator: E5-2

► Testimony of Senior Researcher Lee Corbett

▼ Testimony of Senior Researcher Lee Corbett

E5-2: —This recorder switched on, it's— okay, there we go. Ahem. This is Mallory Gleason, Ethics Committee. Please state your name and title, for the record.

S.R. Corbett: Doctor Lee Corbett. Senior Researcher and Director, Chemistry and Chemical Biology Department.

E5-2: Great! Thanks. Okay, first of all, sorry to bring you in on short notice like this. We'd like to get 5236 approved as soon as possible, and these things are always done faster in person.

S.R. Corbett: It's quite alright. I'm happy to get the matter squared away quickly. This isn't the first time things have gotten caught up in Ethics. I do have another meeting at three, though, so I apologize if I have to cut things short.

E5-2: That should be plenty of time. This is more of a formality than anything — much faster than bouncing a million memos back and forth. We're cleared for Level-3 information, unrestricted, so you can speak freely.

S.R. Corbett: Huh, okay. Go on.

E5-2: You are the sole author of this document, correct? The provisional draft for SCP-5236.

S.R. Corbett: That's right.

E5-2: SCP-5236 is a spatiotemporal rift, not a biological or chemical anomaly. Now, I'm not a physicist, but from what I understand, that sort of thing wouldn't normally be in your department.

S.R. Corbett: Well, it's an unusual situation. The skip literally is in my department, one of my old labs. I did a lot of the early investigation and cleanup, and started drafting the document as I did so.

E5-2: Ah, sure.

S.R. Corbett: It was such a tragedy. Just… horrible. It felt only fitting that I at least write up the incident report. The math isn't exactly the most complicated thing in the world, either, so I decided to keep going and take care of the full document. I'm more than capable of doing a bit of advanced topology. It wasn't much trouble.

E5-2: I'll take your word for it. This stuff is beyond me. Did you consult with anybody in the Extranormal Physics Department, though?

S.R. Corbett: We didn't need to. I assure you, it's far simpler than you'd think. Once you have a good grasp of linear algebra, the rest falls into place.

E5-2: If you say so! I've never had a head for numbers. Does the black moon howl?

S.R. Corbett: The clouds hush her cries. Is there anything else?

E5-2: That's all for now. I might have more questions later, but I see that it's almost three, and—

S.R. Corbett: Yes, I do need to get going. Please let me know if you need anything else.

E5-2: Will do! Have a good one.

► Analysis and Investigation

▼ Analysis and Investigation

S.R. Corbett: I'm more than capable of doing a bit of advanced topology.

E5-2: A cursory look at Senior Researcher Corbett's authorship shows that he has never written any SCP Database entry on subjects other than chemistry or chemical biology. My consultation with the Extranormal Physics Department confirms that Corbett's description of SCP-5236 bespeaks a marginal understanding of the subject material at best, and borders on sheer technobabble at worst.

E5-2: Does the black moon howl?

S.R. Corbett: The clouds hush her cries.

E5-2: Senior Researcher Corbett's negative reply to the black moon indicates falsehood and deception. Poetic analysis suggests a deliberate lie on Corbett's part, with knowledge of wrongdoing.

E5-2: That's all for now. I might have more questions later, but I see that it's almost three, and—

S.R. Corbett: Yes, I do need to get going.

E5-2: It was 2:43 PM, which would give Senior Researcher Corbett more than enough time to get to his budget meeting. He was just as eager to leave as he'd been to fill the silence. If this was a police interrogation and I were his lawyer, I'd duct tape his mouth shut before he talked himself into a felony conviction.

► Testimony of Junior Technician James Wnoroski

▼ Testimony of Junior Technician James Wnoroski

E5-2: —Testing, one two, testing… okay! And we're rolling. Voice of Mallory Gleason, Ethics Committee. Please state your name and title, for the record.

J.T. Wnoroski: Jim. Uh, James Wnoroski, junior technician.

E5-2: And your department?

J.T. Wnoroski: C.C.B. group. Chemistry and Chemical Biology.

E5-2: There's no need to be so nervous, James. We're just trying to get some containment procedures approved.

J.T. Wnoroski: I mean, I'm just… not sure why I'm here? Like, what else is there to talk about? I already had my Internal Security hearing.

E5-2: Yes, so they tell me, but I'm Ethics Committee, not Security. This isn't a disciplinary hearing, and you're not in any trouble. Any more trouble, I should say. Internal Security already had their way with you, from what I understand.

J.T. Wnoroski: Yeah, I.S. was… uh, well, they had a lot to say. I'm on probation, now.

E5-2: And nothing you say here can jeopardize that. If you don't mind, I'd just like you to tell me about Sasha.

J.T. Wnoroski: What do you want to know?

E5-2: What do you want to tell me?

J.T. Wnoroski: Uh. I don't know.

E5-2: In that case, what don't you want to tell me?

J.T. Wnoroski: What?!

E5-2: Jesus, James, your coffee— calm down. I told you, you're not in trouble, and I mean it. This interview is sealed to E5 clearance. That means only the Ethics Committee can see it, and we don't have any say in disciplinary action. Our whole job is just to approve Special Containment Procedures. Nothing you talk about here will get back to your boss.

J.T. Wnoroski: Doctor Corbett?

E5-2: The man himself. Please, tell me about Sasha.

J.T. Wnoroski: She… she was good. She worked hard. I mean, we all work hard, but when you're a Senior Tech, you're on a whole new level. She practically lived in lab.

E5-2: Was that why she started using?

J.T. Wnoroski: Look, I don't… you gotta understand. We're all pulling seventy, eighty hour weeks, but Sasha was working herself into the ground. The number of samples we have to run is insane— I nearly got fired for taking a sick day, okay? So, yeah, that's why she started using, and I didn't blame her. So you can take your self-righteous—

E5-2: Me neither.

J.T. Wnoroski: What?

E5-2: I don't blame her either. James, I'm not Security. If somebody is high on the job, I'm not interested in punishment. I just want to know why. In other words, I'm not a narc.

J.T. Wnoroski: I mean, you say that, but…

E5-2: I'm not going to pull the good-cop "I'm on your side" routine, because, frankly, this isn't about you. And also because I'm not a cop. James, what was Sasha taking?

J.T. Wnoroski: I already told all this to Internal Security.

E5-2: Not quite. You never actually said what she took.

J.T. Wnoroski: I mean, I answered what they asked.

E5-2: Well, now I'm asking. Humor me.

J.T. Wnoroski: It's… shit, well, it's called "thumper." Like, the rabbit? It's a nootropic, and a stimulant. A mixture of modafinil, methamphetamine, and… something else. I'm not sure what, but it's like nothing I've ever seen. One pill will keep you on your feet all night, and you stay sharp. Focused.

E5-2: You've taken it?

J.T. Wnoroski: Yeah. It works, but you get the craziest nightmares when you come down.

E5-2: Who sold it to you?

J.T. Wnoroski: Sasha did.

E5-2: Was she manufacturing it?

J.T. Wnoroski: No, she bought it. It's a home-pressed pill, no markings.

E5-2: Where'd she get it?

J.T. Wnoroski: Look, this isn't… I don't know. I don't know.

E5-2: Does the black moon howl?

J.T. Wnoroski: The winds crushed our throat. What?

E5-2: Did you know Sasha was going to get high that night?

J.T. Wnoroski: How am I supposed to answer that?

E5-2: That's a fair point.

J.T. Wnoroski: Are we done here?

E5-2: We're done. Please, try and get some rest.

► Analysis and Investigation

▼ Analysis and Investigation

J.T. Wnoroski: It's… shit, well, it's called "thumper." Like, the rabbit? It's a nootropic, and a stimulant. A mixture of modafinil, methamphetamine, and… something else. I'm not sure what, but it's like nothing I've ever seen. One pill will keep you on your feet all night, and you stay sharp. Focused.

E5-2: Site-19 records show technicians in the Chemistry and Chemical Biology Department are working nigh-impossible hours, have statistically improbable numbers of heart attacks and nervous breakdowns, and they're still getting some exemplary work done. This “thumper” sounds a lot like something out of the early studies on mixing Class-X mnestic memory-retention drugs and mundane stimulants. Wnoroski looks like a walking skeleton.

E5-2: Where'd she get it?

J.T. Wnoroski: Look, this isn't… I don't know. I don't know.

E5-2: Does the black moon howl?

J.T. Wnoroski: The winds crushed our throat. What?

E5-2: A strong negative reply to the black moon, indicating a deliberate lie. Poetic analysis (first-person pronoun, violent action against subject) indicates that while Junior Technician Wnoroski is lying about the source of "thumper," his attempt at deception is due to fear of personal reprisal. Something deeper than disciplinary action.

► Testimony of O5-10, collected incidentally

▼ Testimony of O5-10, collected incidentally

O5-10: Mallory. Do you have a moment?

E5-2: Jesus, Lauren, you scared the heck out of me. Knock next time, will you?

O5-10: Apologies. I would have sent you an email, but I figured it would be faster to—

E5-2: Sneak down to my office and ambush me, sure. I have to inform you that you're on camera, by the way. E5 sealed, Ethics Committee only.

O5-10: Right, of course. I don't suppose I could persuade you to come for a walk?

E5-2: Sure! Give me a sec to set up the body cam. I think it's on the bookshelf somewhere.

O5-10: Never mind.

E5-2: Oh for— you might as well sit. You're very good at looming, but my neck is starting to hurt.

O5-10: Very well.

E5-2: For goodness sake, spit it out already. This is about the inquest?

O5-10: This is about the inquest. You have authority over Special Containment Procedures, and only Special Containment Procedures. You're interviewing technicians now? I don't see how there was even an ethical issue in the first place.

E5-2: Is that so?

O5-10: Sasha Elliot didn't survive the incident, and there's nothing unethical about shutting a dead body up in a cell. It's tragic, but ethically— look, can I be honest with you for a moment?

E5-2: Prior evidence suggests that no, you absolutely cannot.

O5-10: Funny. To be frank, we think it's ridiculous that you called an inquest at all. There are more important things on your desk.

E5-2: You squint when you're trying to be subtle, did you know that?

O5-10: Excuse me?

E5-2: Are you serious? How long have we worked together, Lauren? When was the last time you actually managed to strong-arm me into dropping something once I got my teeth in?

O5-10: If I recall correctly, I once managed to convince you not to eat a yoghurt cup that had clearly expired.

E5-2: Damn, she's grown a sense of humor. The world must be ending.

O5-10: Mallory, you don't know what you're digging into.

E5-2: Oh, please. I'm not an idiot. Elliot overdosed on a cocktail of stimulants and Class-X mnestics while sitting in a thaumically active research complex. She had a nightmare, and it cracked through the noosphere hard enough to leave an exit wound in spacetime.

O5-10: Well. That does seem possible.

E5-2: Class-X drugs are for remembering things that really, really want to be forgotten, demonic antimemes and cold pattern screamers. Not for daily consumption, even at a low dose. You can't exactly wander down to your friendly neighborhood drug dealer and get a baggie of esoteric super-meth, and you can't exactly walk out of the Site-19 pharmacy with a bottle in your purse either.

O5-10: What are you saying?

E5-2: I'm saying that your Chemistry and Chemical Biology Director is dealing. He can get his hands on the raw precursors to mnestic drugs before they're slated for the pharmacy. I went through a few filing cabinets' worth of old research proposals, and it looks like the CCB Department worked on mnestic no-doz, back in the day. Corbett was a junior researcher on that project. He also entirely blew his interview. I used to think your poker face was bad, for a sociopath, but this guy? Wow.

O5-10: That's a very serious accusation.

E5-2: I'm a very serious person. You can tell because I do things like call a sorceress a sociopath while looking her in the eye. Come on, none of this is difficult detective work. Did you see the 5236 revision he sent back? It was basically a thousand-watt neon sign strobing "IT'S A COVERUP." Not to mention his research staff is terrified of him. Wnoroski all but had a stroke when I brought him up.

O5-10: If Doctor Corbett is manufacturing narcotics, then this is definitely a matter for Internal Security, not the Ethics Committee. The Mandate shouldn't hold.

E5-2: Huh. Does the black moon howl?

O5-10: The stars burn too bright.

E5-2: And there you go. If I have the power to howl and make you sing along…

O5-10: You— I— did you seriously just invoke the black moon on me?

E5-2: I did, and she says you're lying. You know this shouldn't go to Internal Security. That's not my point, though. My point is that it worked. The Mandate holds.

O5-10: I think you might be the only person in the world who actually has the nerve to try that.

E5-2: Does the—

O5-10: Oh for gods' sakes, give it a rest. That was a truthful statement. Please, just… take my word for it.

E5-2: Look, Internal Security had Wnoroski in for a hearing, and never asked what drugs they found in Sasha's bag. They tried to sweep it under the rug before anybody could say the word "mnestics." Given how sloppy Corbett is, there's no way he could have kept his side gig under the radar without help from above. When we're done here, I might need to go pry the truth out of Corbett's brain, but I actually don't get the sense that I.S. is on the take.

O5-10: I should certainly hope not.

E5-2: Yeah. If Internal Security was dirty, they'd have to be doing something way more high-reward than selling arcane stimulants to overworked techs. I.S. is where you want to worry about your Chaos Insurgency sleeper agents, not your drug dealers. Are any of them Chaos Insurgency sleeper agents, by the way?

O5-10: Two of them, yes.

E5-2: Cool. Anyway, it's pretty damn obvious that Internal Security has some compelling reason to look the other way, and you thought this was too far out of the Mandate for the howl to work. It's also true that Corbett's lab has been getting some amazing research done, even though his techs keep having nervous breakdowns and heart attacks. So, is the Council handing out designer drugs to keep technicians perky all night, or are you just turning a blind eye when Corbett does it?

O5-10: Well. How very bold of you.

E5-2: Bingo?

O5-10: Fine. We knew about his side project, and we were keeping I.S. off his back, but it's always been Corbett's operation. Top to bottom. Not ours. Do you really think I'd do that?

E5-2: You? No. I don't think you would, and for that I'm taking you at your word, but I hate that you're just letting it happen. You're a stone-cold witch, Lauren, but I've never once seen you be cruel. Hell, you came down here to intimidate me in person instead of just sending a flunky, and I truly appreciate that. But I don't think the same can be said for the rest of the O5's.

O5-10: I can't say I disagree.

E5-2: That's… honest of you. You don't sound particularly heartbroken that I uncovered your sinister plot.

O5-10: It was never my plot, sinister or otherwise.

E5-2: Right, right. I bet it was Three's idea, or the twins', maybe. O5-3 came out of CCB, and this plays right into Seven and Eight’s fetish for ruthless optimization.

O5-10: Correct on all three counts. This was O5-3's directive, with support from both O5-7 and O5-8. That was a very clever deduction, Mallory. You claim it's not difficult detective work, and yet nobody else had put all of it together.

E5-2: You're just… admitting it?!

O5-10: I am. This is an official inquest, after all. We’re supposed to cooperate and speak truthfully. So, truthfully, I can say you did an admirable job of gloating yourself right into some very embarrassing information about some very dangerous people. Good thing this recording is E5-sealed. Of course, if I were to petition to release it to the O5 Council, it would certainly raise eyebrows if you refused.

E5-2: Ugh. You're the worst.

O5-10: And I don't appreciate having the black moon invoked on me so frivolously. I'm fond of you, Mallory, but that was insulting. You have a bad habit of overstepping. Don't do it again, and I won't let on to the rest of the Council just how good a detective you are.

E5-2: Okay, okay, you've made your point. Well played. I'm sorry about the geas, and let's leave it at that.

O5-10: Hm. That's not quite good enough. In return for the insult, I'm also invoking the Writ of Recompense. You owe me a favor in kind, to be fulfilled at a later date.

E5-2: Oof. Gods spare me from clever O5's.

O5-10: I'll put in a good word. Regardless, I'm not sure what you intend to do with the inquest from here. The Ethics Committee only has authority over Special Containment Procedures and research protocols, not discipline. I'm honestly surprised that whatever leaps of logic you're taking are sound enough to keep the Mandate in effect.

E5-2: Go back and re-read the first Ethics Committee Review doc. 'Special Containment Procedures must describe whatever measures are necessary to prevent further instances of SCP-5236 from manifesting in the future.'

O5-10: Oh. Oh. Well played by you as well, Mallory.

E5-2: Thanks. That really means a lot, coming from you.

► Analysis and Investigation

▼ Analysis and Investigation

O5-10: I'm fond of you, Mallory, but that was insulting. You have a bad habit of overstepping. Don't do it again, and I won't let on to the rest of the Council just how good a detective you are.

E5-2: Okay, okay, you've made your point. Well played. I'm sorry about the geas, and let's leave it at that.

O5-10: Hm. That's not quite good enough. In return for the insult, I'm also invoking the Writ of Recompense.

E5-2: Note to self: stop getting so casual with the sidhe. She has a solid case for claiming Recompense under the Old Law. I'm probably going to be dragged into some inane O5 infighting and get myself cursed. Dammit. I'll have to get her a box of that tea she likes, or maybe an infant to devour. Uh, that last one was a joke.

O5-10: Oh. Oh. Well played by you as well, Mallory.

E5-2: Thanks. That really means a lot, coming from you.

E5-2: On the record, I wish to note that these are both truthful statements.

Final Draft: Special Containment Procedure

Ethics Committee Approval

APPROVED

Author's Note:

The full name of the deceased is redacted. New protocols for mitigating further events are implemented, and a clarified description of Incident 5236-A is added.

Author(s): E5-2 (final draft), Senior Researcher Lee Corbett (initial drafts)

Revision #: Final

Item #: SCP-5236

Object Class: Safe

Special Containment Procedures: SCP-5236 is to be contained in situ, as relocation of the anomaly has proved to be highly impractical. Laboratory S19-12B has been cleared of all research materials and reconfigured into a containment cell/observation area. A standard blast enclosure has been constructed around SCP-5236, monitored both internally and externally for thermal, optical, and audio emissions.

Audits of employee schedules and work hours are to be conducted on a quarterly basis, coupled with a random selection of anonymized surveys from employees working more than 50 hours per week. Laboratories found to be over-working employees beyond a 50 hour work week on a regular basis are to be investigated for abusive working conditions. Employees are forbidden from working more than 60 hours in any 7 day period, and are forbidden from working more than 13 sequential days without a day off.

An official Foundation "Good Samaritan" amnesty policy for medical emergencies is to be drafted by the Ethics Committee. Any employee who in good faith reports a medical emergency resulting from the use of illicit narcotics is not to face disciplinary action, even in cases where the reporting employee had prior knowledge of drug use. Disciplinary action is to be taken only when the reporting employee provided said narcotics, or was otherwise engaged in illicit activities.

Addiction treatment and management policies are to be drafted by the Ethics Committee. A program for esoteric drug rehabilitation is to be established at the Foundation. Rehabilitation is to be offered free of charge to current and former Foundation employees, particularly in cases where their term of employment was terminated due to esoteric drug use.

Laboratory Directors or senior personnel of any rank found to be encouraging drug use among their employees, whether implicitly or explicitly, are to face severe and immediate disciplinary action.

Description: SCP-5236 is an unstructured discontinuity in Einsteinian spacetime, encompassing a roughly 2 x 2 x 2 x 2 meter 4-polytope of disordered space. The rapidly-shifting four-dimensional topology of SCP-5236 is inhospitable to ordinary matter, causing destructive malformations to instruments inserted through the boundary layer. While safe transit into or out of SCP-5236 is impossible with presently available technology, visible light is able to escape the interior, albeit heavily distorted.

SCP-5236 is located in a room in the Site-19 Chemistry and Chemical Biology Department, formerly designated as Laboratory S19-12B. The three-dimensional volume of the discontinuity surrounds the space formerly occupied by a portion of a laboratory bench, a desk chair, and the bodily remains of Senior Technician █████ E█████1, all of which are intermittently visible through its rapidly-shifting surface topology. As SCP-5236 is spatiotemporally fixed to the reference frame of Senior Technician E█████, and there is no known method by which her remains could be transported to a standard containment chamber, Laboratory S19-12B has been repurposed for containment of SCP-5236.

SCP-5236 manifested at 10:29 PM MST on the evening of 03/02/2023, as documented in Incident Report 5236-A. Though Senior Technician E█████ was alone at the time of the incident, the event was captured on video by the Site-19 CCTV system.

Investigation of Incident 5236-A indicates that Senior Technician E█████ experienced a fatal overdose of methamphetamine and mnestic drugs, the combination of which caused a physical manifestation of psychic trauma. For a full description of the symptoms of stimulant/mnestic overdose, emergency treatment protocols, and the Foundation's "Good Samaritan" amnesty policy, please see the 2023-q2 edition of the Foundation Employee Handbook.

Incident Report 5236-A, as documented by the Site-19 CCTV system

7:00 PM — S19-12B: Senior Technician █████ E█████ and Junior Technician █████ W███████ are present, engaged in materials analysis and research.

7:16 PM — S19-12B: Junior Technician W██████ closes his workstation and departs the laboratory. He subsequently exits the building.

8:25 PM — Hallway 12: Senior Technician E█████ departs the laboratory and proceeds to the nearby women's restroom. Senior Technician E█████ is subsequently out of view of the Site-19 CCTV system for six minutes.

8:31 PM — Hallway 12: Senior Technician E█████ leaves the women's restroom and returns to S19-12B. She appears agitated, and her movements are erratic.

9:38 PM — S19-12B: Senior Technician E█████ falls asleep at her workstation after a prolonged period of inactivity. Her sleep is restless.

9:55 PM — S19-12B: Senior Technician E█████ abruptly awakens. She is observed to scream, and falls out of her desk chair. Senior Technician E█████ makes several failed attempts to regain her footing over the next 34 minutes.

10:29 PM — S19-12B: Senior Technician E█████ exhibits signs of a grand mal seizure for 13 seconds. A bright flash of light overwhelms the optics of the Site-19 CCTV system for an additional 4 seconds. By the time visibility is restored, SCP-5236 has manifested in the space previously occupied by the technician.

Footnotes

1. See Incident Report 5236-A.