Keeping the item in hand | walked to the other end of the airlock, 
swiping it once more to open the second door. It was then that | 
remembered where | was, and with a feeling of nostalgia and a 
wave of memories, | look around the familiar interior of the hangar- 
like room and the sole device it housed: a colossal half-sphere 
constructed of steel and painted 


Present Day 
The feeling of grime within my shoes hauls me out of my trance. 


Countless trees surround me, their roots descending beneath the 
swamp mud. There are no meaningful details to be seen beyond 


dark silhouettes, the dim moonlight blocked by the thick canopy 
above. This swamp should be close to the sight, the foul smell of the 
gases being familiar, but without knowledge of landmarks or 
direction certainty couldn't be achieved. There is nothing to do but 
wander aimlessly between the trunks, hoping that fate will intervene 
in my favour. 


A brief flash of light signals that fate may indeed be on my side, and 
with all the remaining energy that can be mustered | charge towards 
it. Cold dollops of soaked earth splatter across my back, and putrid 
gases rise in my wake as the ground is disturbed by my feet. A 
chainlink fence comes into sight ahead, separating the border 
between the swamp and a cleared field. At the center is a compound 
made of concrete, and a familiar one at that. 


I’ve made it. I’m safe. 


The front gate of Site-17 is a long walk from here, even longer from 
there back inwards to the site. Nearby is a large tree with a branch 
spanning the space between the trunk and the fence — this should 
be enough to get in. After several minutes of clambering up and 
along the branch, | have jumped down and landed on the other side 
of the barbed wire-topped fence. 


Approaching the large bulkhead serving as the entry, someone 
behind me shouts something too faint to be heard. It couldn’t be me 
they are shouting about, as | am no stranger to this site or its 
security. The gate doesn’t open before me as it hasn’t been 
instructed to do so yet, but | have the power to issue the command. 
The small item in my pocket once more does its magical work as it is 
swiped through the nearby card reader, and the oversized doors 
part before me. On the other side is the familiar face of one of my 
closest friends, a security guard stationed here at the site who has 
obviously been awaiting my return. 


He twitches slightly. There is a sudden pain in my chest as 
something collides with it, its force enough to make me stagger 
back, fast enough for me to not see it hit me. 


My friend holds a rifle in his hands, aimed at my chest. 


| don’t understand. 


Numbness overcomes me as | lose control of my arms and legs, 
forcing me to kneel before falling to my side. My mind struggles to 
comprehend its rapid loss of control, instigated by my friend firing his 
gun at me without provocation. As he approaches the details on his 
face become more apparent; He is astoundingly similar to my friend, 
but there isn’t enough age in his face, he’s too young. My friend 
looks almost as old as myself, but this child is obviously no older 
than thirty at most. 


Kneeling down, he plucks the shot from my chest. 
Unable to turn my head, all | see of it is the small plume 
of red feathers. 


Thoughts become foggy again as they had earlier... today? 


Aries is beautiful tonight. 


Present Day 


On / /1969, an unidentified individual attempted to gain 
access to the interior of Site-17. The individual was of 
advanced age (estimated to be between sixty to eighty 
years old) and utilised an anomalous item in order to 
open the primary gate of Site-17. The individual was 
terminated by security at the gate to prevent further 
incursion, and is believed to be a lone assailant. 


The anomalous item recovered is pending SCP 
classification. 


Individual was tranquilised and relocated as 
instructed by SCP-990. Recorded as KIA in all 
documents until further instruction. 


/ 120 


On / /20 , ScP-196 notified staff of its familiarity with 
the workings of SCP-2367, offering to assist assigned 
staff in correcting the inherent dangers of the anomaly. 
SCP-196 was granted temporary E-Class status to 
operate with the anomaly. 


SCP-196 utilised SCP-2367 in order to escape 
containment and displace itself to the year 1969, fulfilling 
the circumstances under which it was first encountered 
by Site-17 security. SCP-196 is declared Neutralized. 


Prior to escaping containment, SCP-196 acquired 
SCP-005 in order to access SCP-2367 due to a fault in 
its temporary access pass. SCP-005 has since been 
recovered from [DATA EXPUNGED] and is now stored 
at Site-10. 


From: 05-6 

To: O5 Command 

Subject: Project Charon 

Message: 

Operation ALEXANDER SOLUTION has fulfilled its 
objectives. SCP-196 was deceived into believing an 
attempt to kidnap it was imminent. The anomaly believed 
that the temporal displacement capabilities of SCP-2367 
was restricted to a two-week timeframe. 


Staff assigned to SCP-2367 primed the anomaly to 
displace SCP-196 to / /1969, enabling the completion 
of it's causal loop. Any staff assigned to SCP-2367 that 
were aware of the deception of SCP-196 have been 
amnestized and cannot recall their involvement. All staff 
unaware of Operation ALEXANDER SOLUTION believe 
that SCP-196 escaped containment of its own volition. 


The intentional fault in the E-Class identification card 
provided to SCP-196 necessitated the use of SCP-005-1 
to access SCP-2367, as expected. This resulted in the 
item being displaced to / /1969 and enabled it to be 
recovered from SCP-196 when first encountered. 


SCP-005-2 (the instance of SCP-005 recovered from the 
first encounter with SCP-196, and by extension the 
future iteration of SCP-005-1) is henceforth classified 
Safe, and designated as SCP-005. SCP-005-2 is 
classified Decommissioned/Neutralized, and is to be 
expunged from all records. 


Integrity of the Architect has been ensured. 


CLASSIFIED BY ORDER OF O5 
COMMAND—AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL 
ONLY 


+ Addendum 961-2: Recovery Report 


SCP-961 was recovered when a standard sweep of radio 
frequencies typically used by SCP-877 detected a 
transmission emanating from an uninhabited wooded 
areanear __, Arkansas. Mobile units responding to the 
transmission located a wooden box containing SCP-961; 
the wood of the box contained unknown metallic 
fragments and was fitted with a device similar to 
SCP-877. Writing on the box indicates it was being used 
for shipment via an unknown delivery service called 
"PTS" or "Phitransimun Combine"; its origin was a 
location called "Alexandria of Forests" and its destination 
was labeled as "Novo Scipius of Waters". A note was 
found inside the box, written in a language approximating 
both Cherokee and Latin, with syntactic traces of Greek 
and Nahuatl included. Translated, the note reads as 
follows: 


TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN, 


PRODUCT UNSATISFACTORY. 

THE PRESENCE OF NUMEROUS 
INACCURACIES 

IS UNACCEPTABLE. 

FIRST INACCURACY NOTED AT 207 B.E. 
AT METAURO RIVER. 

MOST EVENTS INCORRECT 
AFTERWARDS. 

PLEASE IDENTIFY [illegible] ENTITY 
INFLUENCING EVENTS. 


RETURNING FOR FULL REFUND. 


[illegible signature], DEAN, HISTORY DEPT. 


The Kids Aren't All Right 


It's not dangerous to spend time outside in the summer. 


Clouds are always leering from the edge of the sky. Don't look at 
them. The sundown pond is so clean and white. The light slides 
cleanly across the surface, diffused and woozy. Reeds poke out 
around the lips of the earth, but we're paying no mind to them. 
Leaping into the water, a young man hurls himself from a mottled 
wooden dock. It craters underneath him and splashes hundreds of 
droplets into the air. He is my friend. Before he comes up, I'm 
leaping in myself. 


| can see his body in the water. 


Crashing through the surface, the bubbles feel like a bullet storm 
driving itself through my skin. Instantly numb, | open my eyes and 
for a moment | am blinded, the sheer cold compressing my shocked 
retinas. Dim light peeks from above me, distorted and swirling. 
Kicking upwards, there is a sheet of glass affixed before the surface. 


| do not see any bodies in the water. 


Ice is sharp and the wind is cold, struggling felt useless until it 
worked. Throat burning as cold air rushes in and hot puke boils out. 
If the dock wasn't here | would be sliding into the water, bloody 
reflective tile has no traction. Splintering wood digs into my skin. 
There's nobody breathing here with me. A motionless husk floats 
gently underneath some stained ice. 


| do not recognize the body in the water. 


Daylight has evaporated beneath a wave of clouds. The trees aren't 
growing anymore. Dead and rotting, there's snow piling up between 
them like barricades. Shivering is all that | Know now. Closing my 
eyes so ice stops coming. It's being dead closer to me now. They all 
are. 


| do not recognize the bodies in the water. 


Even when the sun started shining again there was no getting out 
from under the cold. Crystals collect in my eyes every time | can't 
settle into my rest. Telling whether it's day or night isn't exercising 
thought. Knowing only what they know. Seeing through their eyes 
and wearing their skin squeezing out eyes and bones. There's holes 
water slows and flows through because it can't get more broken 
than this. 


So many keep coming to look. They never recognize their bodies in 
the water. 


The King Is Dead 


“...Please be seated. Let's get to business, | Know you are all busy, 
and | appreciate all of you taking time out...” 


“Cut it, Three.” 


“...Very well. | think we all know the issue at hand. What with the 
recent...unpleasantness that occurred during our military 
disentanglement...” 


“Oh yes, unpleasantness is just the word | would use. You know, 
because a near-total shutdown of all sites due to a military 
intervention is...” 


“May | continue, Eight? ... Thank you. As | was saying, recent events 
have caused a...relaxing of protocol. Many of our sites have had to 
act in near-total isolation from any major command structure, and 
administrative decisions have been falling to staff members who 
would not be in any sort of command position under normal 
circumstances. We've managed to set major sections back to 
normal, and Site Security is now under our sole jurisdiction.” 


“With all due respect, Three, we know this already. Please get to the 
point, sir.” 


“...One major hub site, our primary staff facility, and two of our major 
humanoid SCP-class item storage facilities have come under the 
sole administrative control of one Doctor Kondraki. During his period 
of command, the total number of security infractions, information 
leaks, misuse of resources, and containment breach events for his 
area have exceeded the sum total of all the infractions and security 
events of the whole Foundation for the past five years.” 


“While under normal conditions, this would result in immediate 
termination, this has proven...difficult to do. Doctor Kondraki 
appears to command a level of respect and fear that could cause a 


minor rebellion in his commanded sites in the event of his hostile 
removal. He also has an uncanny knack for avoiding danger and 
near-certain death. Even in the event of non-terminal retirement, 
Marshall, Carter and Dark has made motions that lead us to believe 
that they would recruit or capture Doctor Kondraki.” 


“So, what you're saying is that we may have a second Insurgency 
brewing?” 


“Oh for fuck's sake, you know that whole thing is a goddamn cover 
for-” 


“| am not saying anything of the kind, and | would remind everyone 
that we are in polite company. What | am saying is that we need to 
mobilize a deep operative. Someone who can cause Doctor 
Kondraki's death in a way that will leave no trace of foul play, and be 
absolutely exempt from suspicion. Someone who can act with total 
focus on the mission. Someone tried, tested, and sure of success.” 


“The thing about that is, everyone's deployed currently. Who do we 
have on-site there who could carry out the order?” 


“| Know just the person.” 


“Hey Cleffy!” 
“Hey Draki, how'd the test go?” 
“Oh man, it was great...we had a D-Class turn into vapor!” 


Doctor Clef nodded, the motion always causing a slight, 
disconcerting blur around the edges of his head. His flickering smile 
widened as he continued to walk past Doctor Kondraki. “Sounds like 
a blast. | gotta run for the moment, but I'll catch up with you a bit 
later.” 


Doctor Kondraki laughed, cracking his knuckles, “Ahh, no big deal... 
I'm going for a nap in the office anyway.” He strode away, whistling 
as a small cluster of butterflies suddenly appeared from a wall and 
started to follow him. 


Had he turned, he would have seen Doctor Clef staring at his 
receding form, his face pinched in what could almost be called 
regret...if not for the smile. 


Kondraki was on top of the goddamn world. He'd managed to shift 
all his research duties off to Bright and Iceberg, and he even had 
most of his actual administrative duties farmed out to terrified, hard- 
working cube slaves. He hadn't even heard from the bigwigs at 
central command for weeks...it seemed like he'd finally gotten 
through to them that his methods, however brutal, worked. SCP-408 
flitted ahead of him, the small swarm of butterflies flickering colors 
seemingly at random as he reached his office door. 


He strode in, tossing his beaten-up ball cap onto an awaiting hook, 
and started over to his desk. He was nearly seated before he 
noticed Doctor Gears standing near the right side of the desk, folder 
in hand. He stumbled in mid-step, the SCP-408 swarm flickering 
around him, ready to decoy at a moment's notice. “Jesus, Gears! 
Fucking say hi or something, | could have shot you!” 


Gears nodded slightly, holding out the folder. “Duly noted. | will 
attempt to be more conspicuous about my presence in the future. 
There has been a development with SCP-408 that you need to be 
made aware of immediately.” 


Doctor Kondraki took the folder grudgingly, muttering as he sat and 
flipped through the folder. He stopped two pages in, and rocked 
forward in his chair at the half-way point. “The hell do they mean 
third lifestage'’? SCP-408 has NEVER given any indication of that!” 


“Why has this even become an issue? We've know about his 
instability for ages, but just sat on our hands.” 


“Doctor Kondraki has a unique bond with SCP-408, one that The 
Foundation found intriguing. It turns out a mild chemical imbalance 
has given Doctor Kondraki a pheromone signature that has a mildly 
hypnotic effect on SCP-408.” 


“Hence why they follow him about all the bloody time.” 


“Exactly, Six. Initially we were unable to find the precise chemical 
signature, but we have recently cracked it and found it rather easy to 
synthesize. We should be able to roll out a prototype treatment 
spray to some Mobile Task Forces within the year. With this 
development, Doctor Kondraki's continued existence has been 
deemed...less than paramount.” 


“That still leaves us with the problem of “King of the Boooterflies” 
Kondraki. Those things never leave him alone for a second.” 


“We already have that situation in hand. A report about a ‘third life 
stage’ that may be a Keter-level threat will be issued to all sites. Any 
and all SCP-408 will be collected and contained without exception. 
Kondraki will comply, or be held before the Review Board. Once 
SCP-408 has been properly contained, stage two will be engaged.” 


“| still question that, by the way. He's bound to catch on, | mean your 
so-called ‘special agent' has been on more or less desk duty for 
some time now. Plus, Kondraki is bound to suspect something.”