In this section, include field notes, anecdotes, 
stories that you have to tell and stories that 
others have to tell. Note if it's something you 
saw yourself and sign your name/title/initials. Put 
stories and notes in attached or linked 
documents if the article is getting too long. Short 
is okay too, if you don't know much other 
information to put here; other collaborators can 


add more material later!2 —I.J. 


Additionally, refer the reader to other catalogued 
works, including leaked documents from 
organizations associated with the paranormal, 
and transcribed sections of Library books. — 
QR. 


Doubt 


An important aspect of knowledge is knowing 
what knowledge you do not possess, or knowing 
reasons to doubt what you think you know. Here 
the article author(s) should note what they do 
not know, or reasons to doubt any of the 
information they have provided. —Q.R. 


Also, other authors may add their points of view 
on the subject (subject to community curation!) 
or contradict information provided above. If you 
don't agree with the summary, or want to 
contradict what information is provided above, 
go for it. Make sure your contradictory opinions 
are supported! —I.J. 


1. Footnotes may be used liberally, and will automatically 
be displayed at the bottom of the document. Annotations 
may be made this way as well. 

2. Also, footnote annotations are still a good thing! 


Please note that this particular documentation style incorporates 
magical elements taken from formats used by the Archivists of the 
Wanderers' Library, notably from documents released for patron use 


by Jericho Benalsh, 7th Chief Archivist of the Library (such as A 
Treatise Upon Those Of Knowledge and Lost 
Wanderers). 


As these magical elements provide certain aetherial protections, we 
encourage Hand members to consider making use of this style. 
While there are several competing documentation styles already in 
popular usage, this style is ideal for publicly accessible information, 
for it should lead to less harm if the information falls into the hands 
of those who wish malice upon the writers and subjects of our 
pieces. 


Remember to add additional seals for information that is particularly 
sensitive to vulnerable parties, but try to hide as little as possible. 
We have a responsibility to all to tell as much as we know, even to 
our enemies. Only by the light of knowledge may even the worst of 
us finally step out of the darkness of cruelty and fear. 


—M.S. 


SCP FOUNDATION 
INTRODUCTORY FILE 
ON GROUP OF 
INTEREST 
ALPHA-019, 
"SERPENT'S HAND" 


The Serpent's Hand is 
a small but formidable 
organization which 
seems to be growing at 
a rapid rate, and is 
responsible for a 
number of security 
breaches. 


The group embraces 
the use and existence 
of paranormal items, 
and in particular 
embraces humanoid 
and sapient SCP 
objects. The Serpent's 
Hand has been highly 
vocal in criticizing the 
containment and 
destruction of these 
SCPs, especially those 
which are not 
particularly destructive. 


At least one hundred 
and seventy-seven 
individuals belonging to 
the Serpent's Hand 
have been identified, of 
which several dozen 
have taken part in raids 
on Foundation facilities, 
many of whom used 
anomalous items for 
infiltration purposes. 


The total number of 
members belonging to 
this organization is 
unknown, as is their 
level of technology, 
number of possible 
SCPs held, or total level 
of threat. It is clear they 
are highly coordinated 
and often dangerous. 
Their numbers appear 
to be increasing faster 
as more anomalies 


The first string was received at 13:00 on / / (the day of the item's 
creation) and sent four minutes later: it consisted only of the 
characters "test". With successive operations, signal quality has 
declined dramatically. String 1 was transmitted perfectly, reading 
precisely "test" both when sent and when received. String 16, when 
sent, also read precisely "test"; when received, it consisted of the 
characters "t$3s‘f@" followed by 5 kB of meaningless noise. 
Additionally, over the course of testing, four strings were received 
which were never sent, and which consist demonstrably (p < 
0.0001) of nothing but noise. 


String 17 was detected [DATA REDACTED] ten years after the 
object's construction. It consists of 347 characters, either heavily 
encrypted or [DATA REDACTED]. Within the first fifty characters, 
however, is sufficient data to establish (p ) that it will be 
sent by a duly-authorized agent of the SCP Foundation. Its date of 
origin is unknown: to date, it has not yet been sent. 


Since String 17 will necessarily be sent, and since it is known [DATA 
REDACTED] to be sent by an agent of the Foundation, the survival 
of the SCP Foundation and of humanity in general is guaranteed at 
least until such time as String 17 is transmitted. Transmission of 
String 17 must therefore be postponed at all costs. The above 
containment procedures are calculated to ensure that it will not be 
sent until such a time as the SCP Foundation is too weak to enforce 
them, in which case the Foundation will have already de facto 
ceased to exist. 


Note: SCP-7117 is an insurance policy, of sorts. Until we send String 
17, we know we have to survive any crisis — otherwise that string is 
a BL-class predestination paradox. Once it's sent, we no longer 
have that guarantee. Yes, we'll have to fail at some point: we did 
receive String 17, after all. But the longer we postpone it, the longer 
we know we can survive. Stop that signal, people — our continued 
existence may just depend on it. — Dr. P 


« SCP-710 | SCP-711 | SCP-712 » 


appear in the world. 


The Serpent's Hand 
came to Foundation 
attention after 
encounters with the 
individual known as 
L.S., who seems to be 
a leader within the 
Serpent's Hand, and is 
personally responsible 
for two security 
breaches in Foundation 
sites. 


L.S.'s first breach 
resulted in the theft of 
SCP-268, an artifact 
that the Foundation had 
recovered during a raid 
of a Chaos Insurgency 
facility. The Foundation 
first learned of the 
Serpent's Hand after 
L.S.'s second breach of 
Foundation security 
(see Security Breach 
Incident X23/Site-19). 


The identity of L.S. has 
yet to be conclusively 
verified, though 
evidence points to the 
person of interest 
known as the Black 
Queen (see linked 
files). 


For a long time, the 
Foundation had very 
little information about 


the Serpent's Hand. 
Existing information 
was received mostly 
through leaks from 
Global Occult Coalition 
intelligence, and was 
limited or incomplete in 
nature. GOC 
intelligence did not 
seem to reflect the 
current status of the 
group, despite clear 
inside information. 


A breakthrough was 
made with the 
Foundation's discovery 
of the Wanderers' 
Library, an anomalous 
extradimensional 
location accessed 
through portals 
(referred to as "Ways") 
found in many different 
parts of the world. The 
Serpent's Hand seems 
primarily based from 
this location, though 
they have no direct 
control over it. 


Direct assaults on the 
Library have so far 
proven unfeasible, even 
when entrance could be 
found. Foundation 
agents presently do not 
seem to be able to 
access the Library 
without making use of 


anomalous methods, 
and even then with 
near-zero success rate. 
Foundation agents are 
attacked on sight by 
anomalous entities 
upon successful 
entrance. 


This also seems to be 
the case for GOC 
agents (though some 
are merely escorted 
out, while others are 
killed immediately). The 
GOC seems to have 
some access to the 
Library through 
intermediaries, 
however. Foundation 
efforts to infiltrate the 
Wanderers’ Library are 
Ongoing. 


Mobile Task Force 
Tau-9 ("Bookworms") 
has been assigned to 
specialize in the 
investigation, tracking, 
acquisition, and 
containment of 
individuals and artifacts 
related to the Serpent's 
Hand and the 
Wanderer's Library. 
Due to the general 
necessity of non- 
anomalous containment 
methods and other 
difficulties, progress 


has so far been slow, 
though many identified 
Hand individuals are 
presently under 
surveillance. 


The Serpent's Hand 
seems to be extremely 
active in the general 
paranormal community. 
They have a high level 
of interest in the Global 
Occult Coalition (who 
they call "The 
Bookburners") and the 
SCP Foundation itself 
(referred to as "The 
Jailors" or "Jailers"), 
regarding both with 
animosity. 


The Hand's relationship 
with the GOC is 
particularly hostile; 
most recorded cases of 
unprovoked violence by 
Serpent's Hand 
members have been 
against GOC agents. 
The Serpent's Hand 
seem estranged from 
the GOC's 108 member 
organizations, despite 
similarities in focus on 
thaumotology and other 
occultic practices, anda 
number of shared 
methods. 


This situation seems to 


be due to the GOC 
policy of destroying 
most anomalous 
entities which are non- 
human in origin or 
which they cannot 
efficiently control. 
Additionally, the GOC 
treats Hand members 
as enemy agents to be 
engaged or killed on 
sight. The Foundation 
seem to be the focus of 
less anger from the 
Serpent's Hand due to 
Foundation policy of 
containing and not 
destroying most 
anomalous entities; 
however, Hand 
animosity towards the 
Foundation is still high. 


The Hand has 
unfriendly relations with 
the Chaos Insurgency 
(who they call "The 
Madmen") and middling 
relations with the Office 
for the Reclamation of 
Islamic Artifacts 
(sometimes hostile, 
sometimes cooperative; 
see files on House 
Afseneh) and the 
Horizon Initiative. 


The Hand seems to 
have neutral-to-friendly 
relations with the 


Manna Charitable 
Foundation, and is 
tolerant of non-violent 
Fifthist Church and 
Church of the Broken 
God members. 


A few members of the 
Hand seem to be also 
members of "Are We 
Cool Yet?" though they 
seem to be among the 
more pacifist members 
of that collective; a 
number of non-AWCY 
anomalous artists 
("anartists") have been 
identified in the Hand's 
ranks as well. 


The Hand seems to 
have occasional 
interactions with agents 
of Marshall, Carter, and 
Dark (whom they call 
"The Merchants") within 
the Wanderers’ Library, 
though these seem 
neutral rather than 
friendly. Outside the 
Library, Hand members 
have clashed with 
MC&D agents on 
several known 
occasions. 


Hand raids on 
Foundation facilities 
have been steadily 
increasing in number, 


as has their ability to 
evade capture and to 
successfully "liberate" 
SCP items. Formerly, 
the GOC seemed to be 
able to keep Hand 
numbers in check, but 
this no longer seems to 
be the case. 


Efforts to neutralize the 
Serpent's Hand ina 
more permanent 
fashion are ongoing. 


Welcome. 


To anyone willing or 
able to read this: This 
is for you. 


We are the Serpent's 
Hand. 


We are a movement, 
unified by a common 
belief: 


That humanity and all 
the other peoples of the 
known worlds do not 
deserve to be kept in 
darkness and 
ignorance. 


The Serpent's Hand 
doesn't coordinate as a 
group. We are a loose 


collection of splinters. 
Our enemies tend to 
misunderstand this — 
for instance, the 
Foundation's obsession 
with L.S., a person 
most of us have never 
met. Or the Serpent's 
Nest, with their shifting 
identities. Yes, they are 
all leaders, because 
they are people we 
respect, people we 
take advice from, and 
some of us will follow 
their plans. But they 
aren't all of us. 


There's no special way 
to join the Hand. There 
are no secret rituals 
done in basements or 
closets. We hold no 
elections for our 
leaders. If you want to 
become a member of 
the Serpent's Hand, all 
you have to do is 
decide you are a 
member of the 
Serpent's Hand. 


Most of us are ordinary 
people, though our 
enemies do not 
understand this. We 
are ordinary people 
who embrace the 
anomalous, the 
supernatural, the 


ethereal. We oppose its 
suppression. How can 
we not? Our friends, 
family members, and 
sometimes we 
ourselves fall outside of 
the bounds of 
normalcy. Every single 
one of us has 
experienced the 
anomalous. We are the 
things in heaven and 
earth that were not 
dreamt of in your 
philosophy. 


To the heralds of 
traditional power such 
as the SCP 
Foundation, the Global 
Occult Coalition, and 
most world 
governments, the 
anomalous is a slowly 
spreading poison, 
threatening to destroy 
everything civilization 
has worked so hard to 
create. 


But anomalous people 
are people, and the 
anomalous itself is not 
a threat merely for 
existing. Yes, it 
presents danger, but so 
do germs and meteors 
and forest fires. 
Suppressing 
knowledge of 


something will only 
make it more 
dangerous, and keep 
all of us huddling, 
frightened, in the dark. 


When normalcy starts 
hurting the people who 
have to live under it, to 
try to cure a ‘poison’, 
normalcy is itself the 
poison. 


The SCP Foundation 
and the Global Occult 
Coalition are playing 
the role now that the 
Catholic Church played 
when they imprisoned 
Galileo for discovering 
that the world revolved 
around the sun. Their 
practices and beliefs 
are the death of 
knowledge, the death 
of science, the death of 
light. 


Take the Wanderers’ 
Library as an example, 
the place where the 
Serpent's Hand makes 
its home. The Library is 
the largest repository of 
knowledge the worlds 
have ever seen, the 
Holy Grail for those 
seeking to understand 
the preternatural. And 
yet, both the SCP 


SCP-712: The Impossible Colors 


Item #: SCP-712 
Object Class: Safe 


Special Containment Procedures: The light-generating apparatus 
designated SCP-712-1 is stored fully assembled in a secure storage 
room at Research Site-14. The room's air is to be HEPA filtered and 
anyone entering must wear a clean room suit to minimize 
introduction of dust that could interfere with the optics of SCP-712-1. 
Anyone making adjustments to the components of SCP-712-1 must 
wear non-powdered nitrile gloves; latex gloves are not permitted as 
Dr. is severely allergic. The vibration-absorbing base of 
SCP-712-1 is attached securely to a 1.5 meter high table that is 
securely bolted to the floor of the room. The layout of this secure 
storage room is an "L" shape with the apparatus aimed at the far 
wall perpendicular to the door. No video recording devices are 
permitted in the room and all cameras viewing the entrance are to 
be fitted with one Wratten #90 filter and one linear polarizing filter 
with the axis of polarization oriented horizontally. 


The emitting lens of SCP-712-1 is aimed at the rear wall and optical 
targets should be kept behind the apparatus except during testing. A 
SWNT forest panel is in place in front of the emitting lens of 
SCP-712-1 as a component of the fail-secure system. The rear wall 
of the room is tiled with SWNT Forest light absorbing panels. 10 
(ten) standard 300 watt metal halide floodlights are aimed at the 
target wall and are to be turned on no less than one hour before 
SCP-712-1 is connected to a power supply to ensure that the color 
temperature has stabilized at 5000 K. These floodlights are 
shuttered as a component of the fail-secure system. 


A fail secure system is installed in the room. During operation, the 
floodlights will be shuttered and the panel in front of the emitting lens 
will retract. The researcher conducting an experiment must maintain 
constant pressure on a thumbswitch, and a bite plate will detect jaw 


Foundation and the 
Global Occult Coalition 
have been thrown out 
of this place that 
welcomes all. Why? 
Because they tried to 
destroy it, or take it for 
themselves so no one 
else could have it. 
Because of this, they 
are condemned to 
blunder in the dark.