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Item #: SCP-3018

Object Class: Safe

Special Containment Procedures: The forested area in Massif Central, France that contains SCP-3018 is to be surrounded by a large fence and kept as a nature conservatory, barred to the public. Ultrasound emitters releasing frequencies between 38-44 kHz1 should be laid at regular intervals on the fence to keep SCP-3018 within the enclosure. Site-31 Maintenance Staff should check for broken emitters every four days, to ensure no gaps in containment. Site-31 employees may apply - via a form given to personnel of clearance 3/3018 or higher - to spend a night within the containment zone, as it is known to greatly improve morale.

Description: SCP-3018 is the designation for an anomalous species of wood-boring beetles, indigenous to a small section of forest in Massif Central, France. SCP-3018 are members of the Hylotrupes genus. Instances of SCP-3018 appear to be social and travel in swarms, which focus on one tree at a time. Instead of boring through said trees, SCP-3018 will "carve" intricate patterns onto the side of the trunk without killing it (except during Alban-C events). Patterns are in the style of Celtic knots.

SCP-3018 swarms may adorn their carvings with fresh flowers2 and leaves3, and will replace wilting flowers and dead leaves on the patterns with new ones. SCP-3018 enter torpor on these patterns at night (between 20:00 and 8:00), and will be hostile to beings that intend to harm any carved trees. However, SCP-3018 will adorn animals or people who lay next to these trees with flowers and leaves before entering torpor.

SCP-3018 has multiple annual events, designated Alban Events. These are allowed to take place, because they are deemed harmless. The reason for these events is unknown.

Alban Events

Alban-A | December 21 / 22: All instances of SCP-3018 will meet at a seemingly random point within the forest. One swarm will bring a collection of between five and ten sticks. As soon as all instances are gathered, a small swarm will emerge from the crowd to "dance" (fly up and fall repeatedly) above the sticks. Other instances circle the sticks. The dancing swarm will switch with SCP-3018 instances in the crowd at irregular intervals, so that eventually all instances will have danced at least once. This event starts at sunset (about 17:00), and lasts until dawn (about 8:45).

Alban-B | March 21: Instances of SCP-3018 will search for pine cones from Scots Pine trees. Swarms will accumulate around pine cones, and dig the ground out from under them. Once a pine cone is in a small hole (between 8 and 12 cm deep), the swarm will pile dirt on top of it. SCP-3018 instances will adorn these dirt piles with one to three flowers before trying to find another pine cone. This behavior begins at sunrise (about 7:00), and ends around noon (12:00).

Alban-C | June 21: All swarms of SCP-3018 will gather around a single tree in the forest, and begin to devour it. At an indeterminate time in the process, all SCP-3018 instances will transition to picking all the leaves off of the tree and arranging them into an ornate Celtic knot surrounding the tree. Once this action is done, all SCP-3018 instances will stay on the pattern of leaves, while continuing to flap their wings. This creates a low hum. This event begins at noon (about 12:00) and lasts for three to five hours.

Alban-D | September 20 / 21 / 22: All SCP-3018 instances remain in torpor. Approximately 25% of the SCP-3018 population die during this event. Cause of death is unknown. Afterwards, on the morning of the 22nd, swarms will gather dead SCP-3018 instances and place them within the tree from the previous Alban-C event. This event begins at torpor on the 20th (at about 20:00) and ends the morning of the 22nd (at about 10:00).

Addendum | Discovery of Shrine

On December 19th, 1998, personnel on leave within the enclosure noticed an unusual behavior displayed by SCP-3018. A large group of SCP-3018 was entering torpor in a circle around a noticeable lump in the ground, instead of on the carved trees. Further investigation yielded a small domed roof made of limestone.

GPR (Ground Penetrating Radar) revealed a cylindrical structure 4.5 meters long, 4.5 meters wide and 6 meters tall, along with five human skeletons. An excavation began January 2nd, 1999, which unearthed the full structure. It appeared to be a shrine, with a roof held up by four pillars, and a basin on a pedestal in the middle. The bottom of the basin was carved with a Celtic knot, and was heavily discolored from chitin and dried human blood. Each pillar had a sconce containing a candle, and smoke stains suggest that three of the four candles had been lit. The five human skeletons were found to be adult females with silver rings on their fingers. Four of the bodies were found with arrowheads near or inside their skeletons. Two of the skulls suffered heavy impact trauma. The fifth body was positioned by the shrine's basin, accompanied by a sacrificial dagger, dusted with a translucent green material. The skeleton showed five broken ribs, and damage done to the orbital bones, likely from a blade.

SCP-3018 now hold Alban-A events exclusively on the basin within the shrine, and will enter torpor on it at night. SCP-3018 will regularly collect around the figure at the base of the shrine, and adorn it with flowers.

Footnotes

1. A frequency that repels insects.

2. Most often martagon lily (Lilium martagon), luzule nivale (Luzula nivea), and calamint with large flowers (Calamintha grandiflora).

3. All from Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) trees.