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⚠️ Content warning: This article references the following topics:

Memory Loss

Grief

An Ill Child

Motor Vehicle Accident

SCP-7081, For Memory's Sake by AstersQuill and illusorymoon

⚠️ content warning

Item#: 7081

Containment Class: euclid

Secondary Class: none

Disruption Class: vlam

Risk Class: caution

Assigned Site

Site-270

Site Director

Dr. Ashlynn Gasco

Research Head

Senior Researcher Irving Tremel

Assigned MTF

MTF Zeta-8 "Nine Lives"

Assigned Site

Site-270

Site Director

Dr. Ashlynn Gasco

Research Head

Senior Researcher Irving Tremel

Assigned MTF

MTF Zeta-8 "Nine Lives"

Special Containment Procedures:

SCP-7081 is to be contained within a standard anomalous humanoid containment cell within Site-270. All items created by SCP-7081, referred to as SCP-7081-1 through 27, are to be contained within standard anomalous item containers.

All non-essential items are to be removed from SCP-7081's containment cell to avoid the creation of additional anomalous items. Outside of testing, SCP-7081 is to be denied all requests to interact with the already constructed items. Following Addendum 3, SCP-7081 is to work in collaboration with Site-270 research personnel to reverse the effects of the anomalous items. Collaboration is to be supervised by a field agent from MTF Zeta-8 "Nine Lives." Outside of research, SCP-7081 is to be provided with limited access to Site recreational resources, and is to attend weekly appointments with Site Psychologist Dr. Atkinson.

Description:

SCP-7081 is a white male of average build and height. Prior to containment, SCP-7081 worked as a toymaker in the town of Saugatuck, Michigan, and lived alone with Evelyn Campbell, his middle-aged mother suffering from severe Early-Onset Alzheimer's.

The anomalous items created by SCP-7081 take the appearance of different types of toys. When an individual possessing memories of Evelyn Campbell interacts with an item, those memories, as well as other positive core memories, will begin to transfer to the item. Presently, SCP-7081 is unaffected by this process.

Discovery:

The Foundation first became aware of the anomalous nature of SCP-7081 after approximately twenty members of the Saugatuck community were reported to be suffering from memory and motor decline. When it was determined that these cases were of a potentially anomalous nature, MTF Zeta-8 "Nine Lives"1 was dispatched to investigate the town. The task force, accompanied by Senior Researcher Tremel and his assistant Junior Researcher Casper, set up a small provisional site nearby under the cover of a traveling clinic.

One of the field agents was given SCP-7081-4, a small hand-carved horse, as payment for treating one of the affected individuals at the clinic during the investigation. Throughout the remainder of the day, the agent reported an intense feeling of nausea that was relieved when she separated herself from the item.

Under the guise of health and safety inspectors, two field agents investigated the toy store, recovering an item manifest, schematics, as well as five undelivered anomalous items. SCP-7081 and his mother were transported to the clinic for medical examination, and the remaining anomalous items were contained through a faux product recall. The affected individuals began to show an improvement in nausea-related symptoms following their separation from the items, but were still unable to recall both short and long-term memories. Three members of the community were monitored under intensive care.

Addendum 1

SCP-7081 Case Files

Case 1

Case 2

Case 3

Name: Cassidy Marsh

Age: 23

Relation to SCP-7081: Works as a barista in the town's coffee shop.

Effects of Exposure: Dehydration due to vomiting, fever, minor atrophy of the tissue surrounding the Hippocampus.

Additional Notes: According to a manifest belonging to SCP-7081, Mx. Marsh received SCP-7081-20 (a custom-made mechanical finch) from their partner for an anniversary. The item was in Marsh's possession for approximately two months and was stored on their car's dashboard. Two weeks prior to the arrival of MTF Zeta-8, Mx. Marsh and their partner were injured in a motor vehicle incident believed to be caused by prolonged exposure to SCP-7081-20, which was recovered from the crash. A text log was recovered by local law enforcement following the accident:

Ira💚

pspspspsps

babe?

sorry! Sage and I were just closing up

it's all good. feeling any better?

i feel more nauseous now than at work. i'll be fine though

you should really have sage drive. im worried about you

babe i'll be fine don't worry i'll be home soon

I love you

i love you too…

wait did you remember to bring home some cake pops?

?

you asked me to get cake pops?

for my brother? i told you before you left this morning that he'd be coming in to visit

i'll go out tmrw to pick some up it's okay

just make sure you get back safe yeah?

Name: Percy Coleman

Age: 67

Relation to SCP-7081: Neighbor and Family Friend.

Effects of Exposure: Muscle Stiffness, fatigue, mild long-term memory loss.

Additional Notes: It is believed that Mr. Coleman was among the first to be affected by SCP-7081 due to the severity of his symptoms. SCP-7081-2, a collection of wooden trains, was collected from Mr. Coleman's office. A note believed to be addressed to SCP-7081 was found at the toy store pinned near his workbench. The note reads:

Dear Rhys,

I wanted to write and thank you for the generous gift. You continue to outdo yourself and it has been an honor watching your mastery of toy-making grow. I remember when you were just a boy and you and I used to watch the trains pass. Those were good times. Do you still have that stopwatch I gave you? It was a gift from my father, and his father before him. You never seem to visit these days, and it seems in my old age it is becoming much harder for me to visit you as well. I’m sorry I can’t be there for you and your mother like you have been there for me in these recent years. Please tell Evelyn that you both are in my prayers.

Sincerely,

Percy

SCP-7081-1

Name: Luca Esposito

Age: 6

Relation to SCP-7081: Former student of SCP-7081's mother.

Effects of Exposure: Craniocerebral trauma sustained after passing out, a minor decline in motor, social, and language skills.

Additional Notes: SCP-7081-1, a cloth teddy bear, was gifted to Luca following a visit to SCP-7081's mother. Possession of SCP-7081-1 was transferred to Mr. Esposito following Mrs. Campbell's premature retirement from the school. SCP-7081-1 remained at Mr. Esposito's bedside during treatment and was swapped out for a non-anomalous replica following containment.

Addendum 2

SCP-7081 Interview Log

Interviewed: SCP-7081

Interviewer: Senior Researcher Tremel and Junior Researcher Casper

Myriad Clinic, Saugatuck, Michigan; 1/10/2013, 9:37am

«Begin Log»

<Senior Researcher Tremel and Junior Researcher Casper enter the room containing SCP-7081 and Field Agent Weaver. SCP-7081 is seen with his hands over his head but comes to attention when the pair take their seats. Junior Researcher Casper places three files and a tape recorder on the table and presses ‘record’.>

Tremel: Greetings, sir. My name is Dr. Tremel, and this is my assistant Nurse Casper. We are in charge of your mother's care. Would you mind stating your name and age for the record?

SCP-7081: My, uh - my name is Rhys. Rhys Campbell. I'm twenty-five. Am I… under arrest for something?

Tremel: No, Rhys, not at all. We just wanted to ask you some questions about the recent hospitalizations. Have you experienced any nausea recently? Any difficulty remembering anything?

SCP-7081: No, but I know a lot of people who have though.

<SCP-7081 shuffles in his seat.>

Tremel: Perhaps we can talk about some of these people?

<Tremel opens the three file folders.>

Tremel: For the record, we will now be consulting the case files. Do you know a Cassidy Marsh?

SCP-7081: The barista right? Yeah, we graduated high school together.

Tremel: How about a Percy Coleman? Luca Esposito? Do these names sound familiar to you as well?

SCP-7081: Yes, he's like a father to me and Luca is… wait.

Tremel: Mx. Marsh, Mr. Coleman, and Mr. Esposito are all here at the clinic, yes.

SCP-7081: That's… terrible. Is it possible for me to see them? Do they know my mother's here?

Tremel: The three of them have been in various states of consciousness for about a week now. All of them with consistent symptoms of nausea and memory loss.

SCP-7081: Why are you telling me this? Isn't this breaking medical law?

<Tremel slides the folders over to Casper.>

Tremel: One of our staff today had an intense bout of nausea when interacting with a toy made at your store. She was tasked with handling our medication here. Luckily someone noticed what pills they were giving a patient before treating them.

SCP-7081: Look, I'm not sure what you're implying but-

<Tremel motions towards Weaver. The agent stands up and places a wooden horse on the table. SCP-7081 flinches.>

Tremel: The act is up. I encourage you to start cooperating now so those people have a chance to live again.

<SCP-7081 puts his hands over his head and places his forehead on the table.>

SCP-7081: I didn't mean to hurt anyone, please –

<A noise akin to hiccuping can be heard.>

SCP-7081: I didn't mean to hurt anyone, ok?

Tremel: You have my assurance that nothing will happen to you, just as long as you tell me what happened. Does that sound reasonable?

<SCP-7081 nods.>

Tremel: Thank you. Now, how long have you been a toymaker?

SCP-7081: I've been apprenticing since I was in diapers. My father used to own the shop and taught me everything I know.

Tremel: And is your father still around?

<SCP-7081 reaches into his jacket pocket and pulls out a stopwatch. He awkwardly thumbs the ornate surface.>

SCP-7081: He's…gone. When I was fourteen he had an argument with my mom and he left without a word. No note, no calls, nothing.

<SCP-7081 pauses.>

Tremel: Did he give you that stopwatch?

SCP-7081: He would never give me something this nice. He barely wanted to transfer his “gift” to me before my mother insisted that he teach me. He didn’t explain the full circumstance of it, if you will. We were better off without him.

Tremel: What exactly is this “gift” that he gave to you? Was it the shop, your skills..?

<SCP-7081 turns around and lifts up his shirt revealing a birthmark shaped as the Nordic Rune Dagaz2.>

Tremel: …I see.

Tremel: Why don't we circle back to where we started? For the record, we will be discussing the photo attached to Case File 3. What can you tell me about the bear?

SCP-7081: Mr. Furball? I think he was the first toy that I am actually proud of. My father left some schematics behind but they were in some language I couldn't understand3. I redid his entire design and spent months attempting to translate it. The final product was something that looked like a teddy bear so I wasn’t upset with it. The kids in my mom's class ended up loving it regardless.

Tremel: We were able to recover those schematics, yes. Doesn't it seem a bit odd that a stuffed bear would have an amethyst crystal in it?

SCP-7081: Cassidy was explaining to my mom a while back that, apparently, the crystal can help with psychic ‘power’. I’m pretty sure they meant it in a way that was more like mental ability, though. She had half a geode of it as a gift from Cassidy, so I just chipped some pieces off and put them in the toys. I was hoping it could retain some of the happy memories or something.

Senior Researcher Tremel: And how long ago did you give your mom the bear?

SCP-7081: She's had it for about nine years now. She always seems to glow when she's near it. I'm glad it meant so much to her.

<A sigh can be heard from the recording.>

Tremel: I think we've come to our conclusion here.

SCP-7081: Oh? How so?

Tremel: Casper?

Casper: We collected a manifest from your workshop and everyone who either ordered a toy or was gifted one has been presenting with symptoms of memory loss and nausea. One of our workers experienced intense nausea while the item was in her possession but showed no signs of memory loss. This means she either wasn't around it long enough to experience any effects or…

<SCP-7081 covers his face with his hands.>

SCP-7081: Everyone who had custom-ordered an item knew my mom…

<SCP-7081 groans.>

SCP-7081: She was practically handing out flyers to people and encouraging them to order from me. I was overwhelmed by the orders at first but as I saw my mother's condition worsen I knew I had to at least try to do something to preserve her memories.

Tremel: And you saw it best to do this by taking other people's memories?

SCP-7081: That wasn’t my intent. These items were meant to hold happy memories of my mother.

Tremel: When did your mother start to experience memory issues, might I ask?

SCP-7081: Give or take around nine years…

<End Log>

Closing Statement: SCP-7081 was unable to continue the interview and was moved to a temporary holding cell in the clinic. Senior Researcher Tremel and Junior Researcher Casper declared the investigation over and preparations were made to move SCP-7081 and its associated items to Site-270.

Addendum 3

SCP-7081 Project Icarus

To: ten.PiCS|ocsaGA#ten.PiCS|ocsaGA

From: ten.PiCS|lemerTI#ten.PiCS|lemerTI

Subject: Project Icarus

Greetings, Site Director.

My team and I have been hard at work trying to neutralize the effect that SCP-7081 has created, but we are simply lacking the minds and technology to decode these schematics. I believe it would be beneficial to allow SCP-7081 to work in collaboration with us to reverse the effects. SCP-7081 presumably has insight into the creation process that we simply do not possess.

During his intake to the site, I had Dr. Willem run a full body examination which came back clean. I am awaiting a psych screen from Dr. Atkinson as well as your go-ahead.

-Senior Researcher Tremel

To: ten.PiCS|lemerTI#ten.PiCS|lemerTI

From: ten.PiCS|ocsaGA#ten.PiCS|ocsaGA

Subject: Re: Project Icarus

Senior Researcher.

Due to the number of resources we are currently dedicating to Project Stargazer, allocating more assets to this case may be difficult. As I'm sure you've seen, SCP-7081 has been emotionally volatile while in containment - even if you may deem it useful, SCP-7081 having unlimited access to his materials would be counterintuitive. If you truly believe that this will work, have Dr. Atkinson provide approval on SCP-7081's psych screen before anything. If SCP-7081 consents to work as a part of your team and proper restrictions are put in place, perhaps we can talk about implementing Project Icarus.

Best,

Site Director Gasco

Following this exchange, SCP-7081's psychological evaluation was delivered to Senior Researcher Tremel and Site Director Gasco from Dr. Atkinson4. Director Gasco approved the project with the stipulation that SCP-7081 would regularly attend appointments with psych staff. SCP-7081 agreed with Senior Researcher Tremel's proposal and was added to the Project Icarus team as a junior researcher.

Addendum 4

SCP-7081 3/12/2013

Two months following the initial containment of SCP-7081, a way to reverse the anomalous properties of the items was discovered. Using SCP-7081-23, an item that was never delivered to its recipient, the team implanted fake memories of Evelyn Campbell into D-7522. Initial tests revealed that D-7522 was unable to remember a majority of the implanted memories after daily exposure to the item for twenty days.

In collaboration with the Site's BABEL Team, SCP-7081 was able to create a reversal phrase that deactivated the memetic effect of SCP-7081-23. D-7522 was treated for nausea-related symptoms and Class C Amnestics were administered to remove the memories, before being returned to his cell. He was granted five luxury meal vouchers for volunteering.

On 3/10/2013, SCP-7081 and Senior Researcher Tremel returned to Saugatuck disguised as clinic staff conducting follow-up care. While Senior Researcher Tremel spoke to the affected individuals, SCP-7081 reversed the anomalous properties of the items, effectively neutralizing their effect. The remaining individuals were treated accordingly, and the anomalous items were returned to Site-270 for disposal. An interview was conducted following the return.

Interviewed: SCP-7081

Interviewers: Dr. Katrina Atkinson and Senior Researcher Irving Tremel

Site-270, Meadville, Pennsylvania; 3/11/2013, 6:28 pm

«Begin Log»

<Senior Researcher Tremel enters Dr. Atkinson’s office. SCP-7081 and Dr. Atkinson are already present in the room sitting at a table. Senior Researcher Tremel positions a chair at the head of the table, produces a tape recorder from his pocket, and presses ‘record.’>

Dr. Atkinson: It's been quite an eventful couple of days, Rhys. How are you feeling?

SCP-7081: I don't think I have been happier since I've been here. I can't believe I was actually able to do that.

Dr. Atkinson: We are all very proud of you, Rhys - both the Project Icarus team and myself.

SCP-7081: Does this mean I’ll be able to go home soon? There's so much I need to talk to my mom about –

Senior Researcher Tremel: I'm sorry, Rhys. That just… isn't possible for us to do.

SCP-7081: What do you mean? I did everything you asked me to do. I reversed the effect. Can’t I live a normal life now?

Senior Researcher Tremel: While you did reverse the effect on the items, you yourself still exhibit anomalous properties. Some of the members of BABEL tried to use the activation phrase to create a similar effect, but were unsuccessful.

SCP-7081: There will be people looking for me though, right? I can't just drop off the face of the Earth like I didn't exist at all?

Dr. Atkinson: I understand that this is going to be difficult for you. I know it was for me when I was first asked to work here. However, I consider this job ‘worth it’ if you will because it allows me to help out people like you.

SCP-7081: This isn't fair, I didn't ask for this! I… I worked so hard to fix everything!

Dr. Atkinson: I know, Rhys, and I am deeply sorry that you had to be thrown into this.

Senior Researcher Tremel: Arrangements have been made to provide care and support to your mother, this I can promise you. Unfortunately, all we can do is provide for your mother in your absence.

SCP-7081: And if I refuse?

Senior Researcher Tremel: You'll be kept at this site regardless of your cooperation. You will still be able to enjoy the same amenities that were provided to you in your early containment. However, you'll remain here as long as you're alive or show anomalous properties.

SCP-7081: Why of all people is this happening to me?

Dr. Atkinson: We’re not entirely sure of the full extent of your anomalous nature. We cannot risk letting this happen again whether you mean for it to or not.

SCP-7081: And what do you mean for ‘as long as I’m alive’? Am I going to die down here? Wherever the fuck down here is.

Dr. Atkinson: We don’t plan on harming you in any way if that’s your concern. It’s not easy having to tell someone that they are going to be kept here for something that they were born with. This isn’t a punishment for something that you can’t control. We aren’t doing this to hurt you. However, it is for the greater good of everyone you have come in contact with that you remain here.

<SCP-7081 pauses and thinks for a moment and sighs.>

SCP-7081: Fine. Can I at least ask for one more thing?

Dr. Atkinson: Sure, Rhys. What is it?

SCP-7081: Just let my mother know that I'm okay. I'm all she has left and I don't want her to think I abandoned her too.

Senior Researcher Tremel: Sure. We can set that up for you and I’ll notify you if we get anything back.

<End Log>

To: moc.liamg|puosllebpmacsm#moc.liamg|puosllebpmacsm

From: gro.ymedacaledomhcinum|noissimda#gro.ymedacaledomhcinum|noissimda

Subject: Congratulations Apprentice Rhys Campbell!

Greetings Mrs. Campbell,

It is our honor to notify you that your son, Rhys Campbell, has been selected for an apprenticeship and further mastery of toy-making at the Munich Model Academy. Rhys has provided us with a portfolio of exceptional pieces and has shown an enthusiastic drive to participate in our program. He has voiced to us his dreams of making truly immersive toys during our interview process. Mr. Campbell has decided to spend his summers in Zambia creating toys out of recycled materials. We look forward to having Mr. Campbell in our program.

Best,

Dean Adler Zimmerman

This is an automated email, please do not reply to this message.

To: gro.ymedacaledomhcinum|noissimda#gro.ymedacaledomhcinum|noissimda

From: moc.liamg|puosllebpmacsm#moc.liamg|puosllebpmacsm

Subject: Re: Congratulations Apprentice Rhys Campbell!

Greetings Dean Adler!

I had no idea that Rhys was applying to something like this. Please let him know that I am proud of him for what he's done and I wish him the best! Thank you once again for the email and for accepting my little boy.

From a proud mother,

Evelyn Campbell

To: moc.liamg|puosllebpmacsm#moc.liamg|puosllebpmacsm

From: gro.ymedacaledomhcinum|noissimda#gro.ymedacaledomhcinum|noissimda

Subject: Re: Congratulations Apprentice Rhys Campbell!

This message has been automatically redirected. This is an automated email, please do not reply to this message.

Footnotes

1. A task force with the mission of the containment and recovery of memory-based anomalies.

2. Translates to “day”; represents awakening, enlightenment, realization, bold change, and transformation of something into its opposite.

3. Later recognized by the Site-270 BABEL Team, a team of linguists, as a blend of Enochian and Nordic characters

4. Site-270's Head of Psychology.

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