Item #: SCP-1540

Object Class: Euclid

Special Containment Procedures: SCP-1540 is contained in a humanoid containment cell in the H-TL1 Wing of Site-197.

After each 1540-A event the organism must be interviewed to establish its identity and personal history. Transcripts of the interviews and photographic records of the SCP-1540's appearance should be transferred to the Digital Archive of Site-197. Further interviews may be conducted at the discretion of the assigned level 3 researcher.

SCP-1540 instances should not be informed of their nature to avoid unpredictable emotional response. To ensure cooperation with the Foundation personnel, a cover story has been established that explains the necessity of medical testing and quarantine. For further details consult Document 1540-IF04.

Description: SCP-1540 is a humanoid organism recovered in 2001 from Provo, Utah.

Every 29-30 days, SCP-1540 undergoes a 1540-A event. The organism does not possess conscious control over the events, and unless specifically informed may not be aware of them in advance. Upon the start of 1540-A, the organism will experience a severe headache, followed by muscle and bone pain. Forty minutes after the event's onset, the skin of SCP-1540 will begin to secrete large quantities of a viscous white substance. The substance will solidify and expand, forming a semi-transparent cocoon around the organism. Over the next six hours, SCP-1540 will gradually dissolve, and a new body will develop from the resulting material. Once the body is fully formed, the cocoon will rupture, and the new instance of SCP-1540 will emerge.

SCP-1540 instances differ in appearance, gender, and age. None of the instances have exhibited abnormal physiology or other anomalous traits. 1540-A are not ectoentropic in nature, with the organism losing 5-8% of its mass during each event. SCP-1540 typically regains the lost mass via non-anomalous means before the next 1540-A event. The organism's health is not markedly affected by these fluctuations.

SCP-1540 instances display separate unique identities, personalities, and full memories of their previous lives. These memories are internally consistent, and the locations, individuals, and events comprising them generally exist or have occurred in the manner described by SCP-1540. However, all SCP-1540 identities appear to be highly detailed fictional constructs: no records of persons matching these identities have been found, and the individuals whom SCP-1540 identifies as friends or close relatives deny any knowledge of the organism. The information used to construct SCP-1540 identities appears to be an amalgam of abstract facts, depersonalized memories of existing individuals, and fictitious experiences original to the organism. The means by which SCP-1540 obtains this knowledge are unknown.

SCP-1540 was recovered during the investigation into assumed death of Joshua Russell, born 1985. Examination of Russell's house uncovered a collection of occult literature; numerous transcripts recorded by the subject; and a videotape, containing the recording of the subject performing an unknown ritual, and the subsequent 1540-A event. The documents indicate that the subject, along with three associates of similar ages, developed the ritual shown in the recording; the designed goal of the ritual was the transformation of the performer into a "werewolf". The subject's parents were not aware of these activities.

Analysis of the recording revealed discrepancies between the procedure performed by the subject and the version outlined in the recovered literature, including the use of cheaper materials and errors in positioning of auxiliary objects. Attempts to replicate either version of the ritual did not produce anomalous results. The individuals involved in the creation of the ritual were never found, and their current status remains unknown.

Addendum 1540-1: Interview transcript 1540-81/4; 2008-02-25.

Interviewed: David Hawkins

Interviewer: Dr. Joseph Kaminsky

<Begin Log>

Kaminsky: Please state for the record your full name, and clearance.

Hawkins: David Alexander Hawkins, Security Level 3.

Kaminsky: How long have you been working for the Foundation, Mr. Hawkins?

Hawkins: Eleven years.

Kaminsky: And 1540?

Hawkins: Assigned to it two years ago. I am… was the Head Researcher too, for four months now.

Kaminsky: So, you've been… studying it, then?

Hawkins: Yes. I'm a biologist. My group was working on the metamorphic reaction. Isolate, replicate, narrow to individual organs. You have access, you should know the details.

Kaminsky: I'm familiar with the project, yes. Did you have direct contact with the organism during your time there?

Hawkins: No, no, we didn't really need to. We had enough tissue samples, and the skip was always with the shrinks or the in-haz guys anyway.

Kaminsky: I see. Let's talk about what happened four days ago. What do you remember?

Hawkins: It was still Wednesday, early evening. There was a seminar at Sector-07 next day, macroscopic bacterial colonies. I was on a train there. I was reading. Everything was very ordinary. Then… it was very abrupt. One moment I look up in the window, see the Sun, the trees. And then it all just ended. I'm in the cell, naked, and this horrible stench. There is blood and little chunks of… of me, everywhere. I awoke earlier than normal, I think, no one had a chance to clean that mess yet. I sat there for an hour before Noah… before Agent Lanham came, told me that I may have been exposed to some virus… some CDC bullshit… virus, right.

Kaminsky: Do you perceive your earlier memories differently now?

Hawkins: No, no. Nothing has changed, it's all there and there are no seams. I am still me. I keep thinking about it, remembering things. About two months after I was promoted to level two, I figured I'll die one day, in a breach or some accident. I made peace with it. Always thought it would be quick, not like this, sitting here and waiting and not being able to do anything. But then, I never really thought that, did I? I was never promoted, never married, I've been here all this time, in one cell or another, for the the past fifteen years. I… six years ago, when John died… should I still feel anything? I never met him, never worked with him… I don't know anymore. Could we continue another time?

Kaminsky: If you want, certainly.

Hawkins: And… doc? Could I see Sarah again? I know she doesn't remember me anymore. I just wanted to see her one more time.

Kaminsky: I… I'm afraid that's not possible. I'm sorry.

Hawkins: It's alright. I understand.

<End Log>