Item#: 5958

Containment Class: keter

Secondary Class: none

Disruption Class: keneq

Risk Class: warning

Artistic depiction of Historical Incident 5958-1. Rightmost individual depicted is believed to be SCP-5958, while all others are instances of SCP-5958-1 .

Special Containment Procedures: All government photographic records that the Foundation has access to are to be periodically scanned for individuals matching the description of SCP-5958. In the event of a confirmed location, Mobile Task Force Zeta-18 ("Rabble Rousers") are to be dispatched to the area with orders to capture and contain SCP-5958. MTF Zeta-18 are equipped with long-range tranquilizing equipment, and are not to approach within thirty meters of SCP-5958.

All other children within the area of an SCP-5958 sighting are to be considered potential hostiles, and care is to be taken by personnel to avoid arousing their suspicions when pursuing SCP-5958. Any confirmed instances of SCP-5958-1 are to be brought into containment and held until their anomalous effects abate. In cases where SCP-5958-1 instances must be terminated in the fields, cover stories are to be arranged on a case-by-case basis.

Mobile Task Force Beta-18 ("Clean Sweep") is permanently assigned to cover-up duty following SCP-5958 appearances. Depending on the level of casualties once the initial situation is resolved, this team is to recontextualize said deaths and distribute a suitable level of amnestics en-masse. Any evidence of the SCP-5958 appearance prior to this correction is to be tracked down and destroyed. Management and obfuscation of SCP-5958 sightings prior to the year 1900 is under the purview of the Historical Department, which will operate separately in this regard.

In the event that SCP-5958 is successfully captured, it is to be transported to Installation-92, where subsequent containment procedures have already been prepared. This file will be updated at that time.

Description: SCP-5958 is an entity bearing the appearance of a prepubescent human of ambiguous sex and age, which is believed to have existed since at least the year 1212.

Although the fact that SCP-5958 has not yet been brought into custody prevents full investigation of its biology and greater nature, records from previous sightings have provided some information on its identifying characteristics. SCP-5958, regardless of which identity it is currently operating under, has been observed to possess long blonde hair and golden eyes. Typically, it will assume the identity of a runaway child or orphan, presumably in order to justify its lack of family members to those it interacts with.

SCP-5958 possesses significant psionic1 abilities, having demonstrated the ability to lift objects of up to 4500lbs at a range believed to be up to twenty-five meters. The most common use of this is attack or defense via throwing surrounding objects at extreme speeds, but SCP-5958 has also demonstrated the capacity for finer manipulation — such as directly puppeteering the bodies of nearby individuals and making fine adjustments to their internal biology, usually for the purposes of inflicting pain or bodily harm.

Since its original appearance in 1212, SCP-5958 has repeatedly appeared in various locations around the world — with a significant amount of casualties invariably following, both as a result of its own behaviour and the behaviour of SCP-5958-1 instances. This human suffering appears to be the primary objective behind its behaviour, as it has not been observed to pursue any other goals during its appearances.

When SCP-5958 appears in an area, it will often attempt to ingratiate itself with the local child population, often presenting itself as a friend or playmate when children are in an area outside of adult observation. In the majority of cases, the other children will reciprocate this attention, and — over the course of several weeks — become instances of SCP-5958-1.

SCP-5958-1 is the collective designation for any individual under the age of thirteen who has fallen under the influence of SCP-5958. The only physical marker of this change is a slight yellowing of iris colour, which increases in intensity the longer they remain in proximity to SCP-5958. Regardless of the state of this visual indicator, instances of SCP-5958-1 experience the same anomalous changes:

A strong sense of loyalty towards both SCP-5958 and other children.

A strong antipathy towards any individual over the age of thirteen, regardless of prior relationship.

A significantly reduced level of empathy towards others.

Development of sadistic tendencies, exclusively aimed at individuals over the age of thirteen.

Development of psionic prowess comparable to SCP-5958's own, barring a lack of fine manipulation capability.

Note that pre-existing personality traits will be retained during this process, and an SCP-5958-1 instance will lose its anomalous properties and return to its previous state if separated from SCP-5958 for an extensive length of time. However, in the majority of cases where this has occurred, the instance has suffered from severe trauma as a result of actions they have taken while under SCP-5958's influence.

Once a large number of SCP-5958-1 instances have been assembled, SCP-5958 will generally prompt them to take part in a mass demonstration of their newfound abilities, often resulting in high casualties among the local adult population. SCP-5958 will generally abandon the SCP-5958-1 instances at some point during this process, presumably to avoid the authorities that will inevitably respond.

Historical Incident 5958-1

The first known appearance of SCP-5958 occurred in the year 1212, and led to the event referred to in history as the Children's Crusade.

During this first appearance, SCP-5958 took on the moniker of 'Stephen of Cloyes' and claimed to be a shepherd boy who had received a vision from Christ, ordering it to lead a crusade to retake the Holy Land. Under this pretext, SCP-5958 amassed a large number of followers — the majority being children who later became SCP-5958-1 instances — and led them across the country of France, devastating numerous communities as it passed through them.

Following an attempt on the life of King Phillip II, mercenaries led by the Vatican's Secretorum Camerus Prophetias2 conducted a series of attacks on SCP-5958 and its followers. During this conflict, Girolamo Gallo — a member of the Secretorum Camerus Prophetias dispatched to the region — was assigned to act as a scout against SCP-5958's entourage prior to attacks. He later wrote of the experience in his personal journal3:

The devil-boy of Cloyes only left his tent when the sun came down — although the children that followed him had been reveling long before. They had just returned from ransacking the village of Aiffres, and many of the villagers had been stolen away in the process — floating above the youthful crowd as if held there by invisible string.

This Stephen of Cloyes looked from each of these unfortunates to another, his face beatific, and as he did their bodies twisted and split like branches snapped in half, their insides spilling down like rain. The children pranced and danced long into the night in that downpour, and their laughter was unending.

As I prepared to leave my position in the undergrowth, the devil-boy looked at me — and I felt the fear of God — but he only smiled and nodded towards the floating carcasses as if showing me his good work. I fled for my life immediately.

When I hear the sound of children's laughter now, my heart no longer feels peace, but a great horror that never fades. I recall the golden eyes of Stephen of Cloyes.

The majority of the SCP-5958-1 instances following SCP-5958 were killed during the attacks conducted by the Secretorum Camerus Prophetias, and those that were not scattered and fled — either expiring in the wilderness or losing their anomalous properties and fading out of recorded history. Several members of the Secretorum Camerus Prophetias claimed to have slain SCP-5958 following their return to the Vatican, but it is believed these reports are false due to contradictory details.

It is speculated that SCP-5958 made several appearances around the world over the following years, but these incidents have not yet been confirmed due to lack of historical documentation.

The next confirmed appearance of SCP-5958 was in the year 1284, in the German town of Hamelin. Evidence suggests that, over the course of several weeks, SCP-5958 converted the majority of the town's child population into instances of SCP-5958-1 and led them into an armed revolt against the town's adult population. This led to massive casualties among both groups.

Following this event, SCP-5958 adopted the pattern of appearances that has continued to this day.

Incident 5958-1

Photograph retrieved from Mark Grierson's phone, believed to depict SCP-5958. File was named 'Anna'.

The most prominent appearance of SCP-5958 in the modern day occurred on March 8th, 2013, and became known to the public as the Grierson Murder. While evidence of the anomalous factors that contributed to this event has been successfully expunged from public record, full obfuscation was not possible due to the involved family's prominence in society, along with immediate widespread reporting of the crime.

The two individuals implicated in the crime — Mark Grierson, 11, and Lucas Grierson, 12 — are believed to have come into contact with SCP-5958 several weeks prior. In this case, SCP-5958 was known to the pair as 'Anna', and they frequently met up with the entity at the local park after school. During this time, they became instances of SCP-5958-1.

It is unknown whether the Grierson Murder was something that SCP-5958 specifically instructed the pair to carry out, or if it simply followed from the behavioral changes brought about by becoming SCP-5958-1 instances.

On the evening of 08/03/2018, Mark and Lucas Grierson's parents, actors Harry and Philomena Grierson, left their home for an anniversary dinner. They hired neighbor Susan Stone, 18, to babysit their two sons during this time. Stone had looked after the children numerous times previously, and was considered a close friend of the family.

Due to the presence of a home security system in the Grierson household, video recordings of the ensuing events are available — this system did not record audio, however. The following is an extract from the relevant portion of said log:

[BEGIN RECORDING]

18:12: Mark, Lucas and Susan are sat in the living room, watching television. Susan is sat on one side of the couch, while Mark and Lucas are sat on the opposite end — they appear to be making a conscious effort to maintain space between themselves and Susan. Susan glances at the two boys, looking confused, but does not comment.

18:15: Mark leans towards Lucas and appears to whisper something into his ear. Lucas looks towards Susan, then nods. Following this, Lucas then gets up from the couch, says something to Susan — who nods — and then proceeds to leave the room.

18:16: Lucas enters the family garage and begins rummaging around in a box of miscellaneous affects.

18:17: Mark walks into the kitchen and pours himself a glass of Coke, spilling some of it in the process. He also retrieves a box of matches from a high drawer via use of a chair. He then returns to the living room and sits down on the couch. Susan says something to him, but he appears to ignore her.

18:19: Lucas retrieves a wooden baseball bat from the box and proceeds back towards the living room.

18:20: Lucas enters the living room, baseball bat in hand, and begins sneaking up behind Susan.

18:21: Susan says something and begins getting up from the couch. Lucas swings the baseball bat towards her head as she gets up, but misses. Appearing alarmed, Susan whirls around and snatches the bat from his hands, pointing a finger towards him as she scolds him. Mark glances towards Susan.

18:22: Susan suddenly goes flying into the far wall with such force that cracks are left in its surface. The light fixture on the ceiling sways slightly from residual force. After floating in place for a moment, Susan falls away from the wall, unconscious.

18:23: Mark gets up from the couch, looks towards Lucas, and says something to him. Lucas moves behind the television and begins unplugging the cabling.

18:24: Mark proceeds towards the garage, retrieves a bucket, and places it next to the fuel tank of the family's second car. Lucas retrieves the cabling from behind the television and uses it to bind Susan's arms and legs.

18:25: A large hole suddenly appears in the vehicle's fuel tank — presumably through application of psionic force — and fuel begins spilling out into the bucket. Mark kneels down and holds the bucket steady as it is filled.

18:27: Susan begins to recover consciousness, and visibly panics and protests when she becomes aware of her situation. Lucas, appearing irritated, tears up a cushion from the couch and uses a strip of it as a makeshift gag to silence her.

18:28: Mark stands up and takes the bucket, allowing the remaining fuel to spill onto the ground as he proceeds back towards the living room.

18:29: After returning to the living room, Mark briefly speaks with Lucas, and then points in the direction of the backyard. Susan visibly thrashes against her restraints, but is ignored.

18:30: Mark, Lucas and Susan move towards the backyard — Susan being transported via psionic force used by one or both of the brothers. Once outside, they place Susan on the grass. Lucas pours the bucket of fuel onto Susan.

18:31: When Mark takes the box of matches from his pocket, Susan's struggling visibly increases in fervor. Neither Mark nor Lucas acknowledge this.

18:32: Lucas takes a match from Mark, lights it, and throws it at Susan. She quickly catches alight and begins burning alive. Lucas points towards her as she burns, smiles at Mark, and says something. Mark nods.

18:33: Mark and Lucas observe the burning Susan.

18:34: Mark and Lucas continue to observe the burning Susan. Mark appears to grow bored, hands the remaining matches to Lucas, and heads back inside.

18:35: Lucas sits down in a deckchair and continues to observe the burning Susan — who is barely visible at this point due to significant amounts of smoke. Lights in other houses in the area are beginning to turn on.

18:36: Mark goes upstairs to his room, turns on his computer, and begins playing the video game Minecraft. As he plays, the burning Susan is clearly visible and presumably audible through the window next to him. He does not take notice of this, and plays without interruption.

18:37: Lucas appears to have fallen asleep in his deckchair. A shadow is visible on the grass, indicating someone is standing just out of sight of the camera.

18:38: Susan writhes on the grass.

18:40: Susan ceases movement. The shadow leaves the frame.

[END RECORDING]

Local authorities arrived shortly after, alerted by neighbours who spotted the smoke, and apprehended Mark and Lucas Grierson. Susan Stone was declared dead at the scene by paramedics.

Journalists — also alerted by a neighbor — arrived shortly after at the same time as Harry and Philomena Grierson. Details of the crime, with anomalous aspects fortunately not yet discovered, were broadcast on national news that same night. Shortly after, MTF Beta-18 were able to infiltrate the ensuing investigation and remove evidence of anomalous phenomena.

Both Mark and Lucas Grierson remain in the prison system to this day, having been transferred there from juvenile detention after turning eighteen. SCP-5958 could not be located following the Grierson Murder, and is believed to have left the area immediately after it occurred.

Incident 5958-2

On 03/11/2020, evidence of SCP-5958's presence was found in Dustal, Russia, following the discovery that all police officers at the local station had been killed over the course of half an hour. Inspection of the scene showed the causes of death as a mixture of exsanguination, strangulation, blunt force trauma, bodily detonation, and self-inflicted gunshot wounds.

Records recovered from the station revealed that, earlier that night, one of the officers assigned to the station — one Aleksei Orlov — had picked up a suspected runaway child while out on patrol and brought them back to the station. This child is believed to have been SCP-5958, and the following recovered recording was an interview conducted shortly before the massacre:

[BEGIN RECORDING]

Aleksei Orlov: Got something warm for you. Drink up.

SCP-5958: Thanks… you're nice, Mr. Orlov.

Aleksei Orlov: (laughs) Well, I try to be. It's important to be nice to people, you know? You too. It's not a good thing — to run away like that.

SCP-5958: I-I didn't… I just…

Aleksei Orlov: Hey, hey, it's okay. Lots of kids run away from home. Nobody's mad at you, we just want to get you back where you belong. It's cold outside, you could catch your death. Where do you live? Do you know your home address?

SCP-5958: I, um… I've lived in a bunch of different places…

Aleksei Orlov: Your family moves around a lot?

SCP-5958: Yeah. All the time. Do you have a family, Mr. Orlov?

Aleksei Orlov: Everybody has some kind of family. I — um. Did I tell you my name? Have we met before?

(Pause.)

SCP-5958: You said it when we met. Don't you remember?

Aleksei Orlov: Right, right. Sorry. (laughs) It's these late-night shifts, you know. It's way past both our bedtimes.

SCP-5958: (laughs) How many people do you have in your family? Do you have any kids?

Aleksei Orlov: Look who's curious. Come on, Miss, we're talking about you right now. What address does your family live at? Do you have a home number we could call your parents at?

SCP-5958: Do you have any kids?

Aleksei Orlov: (sighs) Yes, a daughter around your age. Now can you please just answer the question?

SCP-5958: Do you beat your kid?

(Pause.)

Aleksei Orlov: (quietly) Let's not get cheeky now, okay?

SCP-5958: (giggles) Why? Are you mad? You're mad, aren't you? You just have that kind of face that makes you look like you beat your kid. Do you punch her in the face? Do you kick her in the stomach? Hey, hey, why aren't you answering? Why are you so mad?

(Sounds of footsteps heading towards the door. They suddenly stop.)

Aleksei Orlov: (choking sounds)

SCP-5958: Hey, hey, what's wrong? You look so mad, but you aren't doing anything. Why'd you stop moving?

Aleksei Orlov: (choking sounds)

(Sounds of cracking.)

SCP-5958: Hey, why are you floating like that? That's so weird. You're so weird. Are your arms meant to bend that way? What's wrong? (mockingly) Huh? Huh? Huh? Huh? Huh? What's your phone number, huh, what's your fucking phone number?

(Loud snapping noise. Sounds of choking cease. Pause.)

(Sound of footsteps, moving towards the door. Sound of door opening. Sound of multiple gunshots.)

(Pause.)

(Sound of laughter.)

[END RECORDING]

Footnotes

1. Remote manipulation of matter using the mind.

2. Known Foundation precursor group.

3. Updated for purposes of legibility. Original text available upon request from the Historical Department.