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SCP-3123: Insult To Injury

Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words… now that's what killed me.

Author: Captain Kirby

SCPs

SCP Number
Rating

SCP-3393
1308

Captain Kirby's Proposal
819

SCP-4514
670

SCP-3448
622

SCP-5552
598

SCP-3844
534

SCP-3388
492

SCP-3866
447

SCP-5003
442

SCP-3305
411

SCP-3449
388

SCP-4877
387

SCP-4321
351

SCP-016-J
281

SCP-7100
277

SCP-3123
239

SCP-3393-EX
229

SPC-1057
223

SCP-3511
211

SCP-6007
200

SCP-3633
193

SCP-4925
192

SCP-4479
189

SCP-3767
174

SCP-4316
166

SCP-4775
143

SCP-4034
139

SCP-5877
118

SCP-5448
111

SCP-3650
103

SCP-3203
70

SCP-5779
63

SCP-3405
55

SCP-3481
52

Tales

Title
Rating

The Nuclear Option
548

Impossible-To-Destroy Reptile
492

In The Clutches Of Life
397

Numbers, Like Stories, Never Die
335

The Tombstone of Alto Clef
264

Tales of the Ethics Committee: 5 Reasons The Foundation Wants A Robot Army
235

Excerpts From The Societal Census Programme ΩK-Class Report
233

With The Reaper On Retirement
230

Do You Remember Funerals?
174

From The Clutches Of Life
155

Where Death Used To Live
151

Project Damnerung
148

Hello, My Name Isn't
146

Don't Get Used To It
143

The Many Portraits Of Jack Bright
140

Group Date
140

Monochrome
132

Hundred-Year Favor
125

Even The Most Masked Of Men Become Themselves Behind Closed Doors
113

You Have 18 Unread Messages
102

Everyday Is Somebody's Birthday
97

The Shape of a Noose
76

A Failed Two Weeks Notice
69

Pink Cracks in a Digital Wall
66

'Til Death Do Us Part
65

Rocks And Trees Are Not Good Company
64

Tears of a Neon God
57

Poky And Pal Scheme Together
55

A Eulogy In 11/8 Time
53

Carnivores
53

Is Anybody Home?
53

Poky And Pal Arm Themselves
49

Virtue
46

When It Rains, It Pours
45

God-Knows-Where
39

I Felt Numb
39

It's A Nice Day Out
38

Attempts To Salvage Thought
36

I Am Wonderful
33

Outrun
29

They Are Not Laughing With You
28

What Is There To Do With A Pot Of Gold?
27

Containment's A Beach
22

GOI Formats

Title
Rating

Captain Kirby's Proposal, Or Something
191

My Head Is On Fire And I'm (Not) Ok
102

Project Proposals 2004-013/2014-114/2024-072: "Losing Your Cool"
71

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SCP-2419 - The Laughing Men by The Great Hippo

Put them in a hole, then fill that hole with concrete. Better still: Throw them back into the incinerator where you found them.

I doubt they'll even care.

SCP-3088 - Law of the Land by Mortos

SCP-3088 is the town of Cullen, Nebraska, and the area contained within the town limits. SCP-3088 is subject to an alteration of reality in which any law, bylaw or town ordinance passed by a legally empowered individual becomes an immutable law of reality itself.

Towin's Pine Street.

Item #: SCP-3123

Object Class: Euclid

Special Containment Procedures: All civilians who enter the municipality of Towin are to be monitored by onsite Foundation personnel. Should civilians be exposed to SCP-3123, they are to be amnesticized, and released with an appropriate cover story.

Only personnel who have been screened for good behavior may be allowed near Towin. Any personnel working on SCP-3123 who require disciplinary action for poor conduct are to be immediately reassigned. Any attempts to provoke the inhabitants of Towin are prohibited.

Description: SCP-3123 is a phenomenon that occurs in the town of Towin, CO, where individuals will be spontaneously injured after causing emotional distress, or acting in emotionally abusive patterns toward another individual. The severity of the injury is correlated to the severity of emotional distress caused. This injury will manifest only if the distressed victim perceives a discrete individual to be responsible for their distress.

Towin has a population of roughly 4000, and is located 30 kilometers from the next nearest population center. It is surrounded on all sides by mountains, which hinder any effort to enter or leave. The inhabitants of Towin (who understand the existence of, and are affected by SCP-3123) have very little interaction with civilians outside of the municipality, as a consequence of their geographical isolation. However, Towin still managed to cultivate a reputation for being highly hospitable before containment. It is believed that this reputation is an indirect consequence of SCP-3123.

When asked about their views on the anomaly, most inhabitants note that the phenomenon has always been a part of their lives, and have not bothered to question it. When asked about why they stayed in Towin, inhabitants cited their family's history living in the town and the close-knit community.

SCP-3123 was discovered by the Foundation in 1968 when Agent DuBlon stopped to rest in Towin during a vacation road trip. During his stay, DuBlon experienced a spontaneous concussion. Unable to determine the cause of the injury, DuBlon reported the experience to the Foundation.

Addendum SCP-3123-A:

Below is a sample of logged injuries caused by SCP-3123. For the full log please contact the senior researcher in charge of SCP-3123.

Year
Name of Victim (Age)
Injury
Cause/Notes

1968
Daniel Hedler (63)
Forced removal of two teeth (both molars)
Injury occurred after Hedler offended Joshua Chubra by using a racist slur.

1973
Gabriel Ernst (32)
Broken femur
Injury occurred after Ernst insulted the recently deceased father of Tyler Brown.

1975
Heidi Yent (29)
Forced removal of the nails on both index fingers
Injury occurred after Yent made repeated comments about the weight of Erica Dutnam. Yent claimed later that this was a joke, and was not intended to offend.

1984
Danica Slentler (37)
Hair ripped from the scalp
Injury occurred after Slentler turned down Eric Tellur's invitation to join him for a movie date.

1989
Helen Terith (17)
Concussion
Injury occurred after Terith performed poorly on a test in school. When asked about the injury, Terith blamed herself.

While manifestations during experiments still occur as expected, natural manifestations have decreased since SCP-3123's observational period 34 years ago. As of this writing, approximately one manifestation a year needs treatment from Foundation medical personnel1.

Addendum SCP-3123-B: On 12/14/1989, Foundation personnel discovered a section of forest on the outskirts of Towin with slips of paper taped to some of the trees. Of the slips recovered, only 15% contained writing in a legible state. Microphones and cameras were hidden throughout the area for future surveillance. Below is a partial list of recovered slips:

I'm Alice Felucia, and I hurt my family after they did not let me go sledding with my friends. I was sick, and they were looking out for me. I apologize to all my friends and family for my wrongdoing.

I am Evan Eldebar, and I hurt my friends while we were playing. I thought they were making fun of me, however it was obvious that they were joking. I am sorry, Jeremy, Tyler and Dave. I hope you can walk again someday. I apologize to all my friends and family for my wrongdoing.

My name is Daniel Shou, and I hurt my teacher after I did poorly on a test. This was the fifth time this month this has happened. I am sorry Mrs. Delilah. I apologize to all my friends and family for my wrongdoing.

I’m Patricia Sarlo, and I hurt my parents after we got in a fight. They got mad at me, which in turn made me upset with them. So we hurt each other. And we hurt each other. And we hurt each other. And we hurt each other. I apologize to all my friends and family for my wrongdoing.

I am Tristan Dourly, and I've hurt myself every day for the past month. It felt good. I say something mean, and I get cut. I liked it. I did it a lot. I apologize to all my friends and family for my wrongdoing.

I am Winston Shou, and I hurt the entire town. But I did it because they took away my little brother. I cannot forgive them, but maybe they can forgive me. I apologize to all my friends and family for my wrongdoing.

Addendum SCP-3123-C: On 4/3/1990, Agent Tennison, stationed in Towin, reported a mass manifestation of SCP-3123. All students and teachers at the Towin elementary school received lacerations on their bodies at the same time. This occurred during the school’s annual “Field Day” event.

The following night, the cameras planted in the area described in Addendum SCP-3123-B spotted a group of three Towin inhabitants. The men carried the body of a young child, which they buried next to a tree without a slip of paper. When they finished, the men taped a slip to the tree. Microphones picked up the following conversation from the men as they dug the grave:

TI-1: It's such a damn shame.

TI-2: Would you prefer she stick around and break your leg one day?

TI-1: No, I wouldn't. But still. She's so young.

TI-2: They're always young. It's harder to pick out unstable ones when they get older.

TI-1: But have we even tried that?

TI-2: I don't know. This is just what we do. If there wasn't reason for it, don't you think we would've come up with a better idea?

TI-1: I… I guess you're right. But—

TI-3: Jimmy, I know this is your first shift, but you need to stop talking. You're slowing us down. I don't dig these graves because I enjoy it.

TI-2: Right.

TI-1: Sorry.

[silence]

TI-1: Her parents looked so calm, though.

TI-3: They always look like that.

The Foundation recovered the body, and the slip:

My name is Judy Grant, and I hurt my classmates and teachers after my class lost during field day. I really wanted to win, but I should not have gotten upset at my teammates. Hopefully, we can win next year. I apologize to all my friends and family for my wrongdoing.

Footnotes

1. Dramatically lower compared to the 478 treatments needed during the first year of containment.