Item #: SCP-4448
Object Class: Safe
Special Containment Procedures: The lake in which SCP-4448 resides is to be surrounded by an electric fence capable of outputting 5000 volts of electricity. A distance of 20 meters must be kept between the fence and the nearest point of the lake. The outside door may only be opened by a valid fingerprint scan and a four digit passcode and must be immediately locked upon both entering and exiting the room.
Description: SCP-4448 is an abnormally large humanoid skeleton with the skull of the extinct elk species Megaloceros giganteus. It stands at 2.5 meters tall and wears a cloak of black feathers which fully conceals its body, exposing only its head. Its antlers measure 3.65 meters from tip to tip and are adorned with various small objects of cultural significance from many parts of the world, including Native American dreamcatchers, Christmas and other holiday ornaments, and tourist keychains. It is fully capable of human speech, despite lacking the necessary organs.
SCP-4448 resides in a lake 0.5 kilometers northeast of ██████, Ireland. If left alone for an extended period of time, SCP-4448 will fall into a state of unconsciousness. When a subject sets foot in the lake, SCP-4448 will emerge from the bottom of the lake up to its shoulders and offer the subject a deal. SCP-4448 will ask the subject for a trinket to add to its collection, and if it is pleased with the subject's offering, it will hang the trinket from its antlers and share a story with the subject. If it denies the subject's offering, the offering will sink to the bottom of the lake and the subject will be asked to leave.
The stories are fable-like in structure, substituting humans for sentient animals, and often end with a clear and present moral. Subjects report feeling a very personal connection to stories told by SCP-4448. These stories are often found to directly connect to a substantial event that has previously occurred in the subject's life. Most subjects report to have learned something from the exchange.
SCP-4448's deal is available only once per subject. It has shown an ability to recognize past subjects many years after the initial deal was made. SCP-4448 may become agitated when approached multiple times by the same subject. If SCP-4448 is provoked, the lake will raise to a temperature of 150 degrees Celsius and dilute to a darkish-red color. This effect typically subsides between 25 and 45 minutes after the subject has left the area.

Addendum 4448-A: The following is an account of a previous exchange between a test subject and SCP-4448.

Subject: Dr. ████ ██████
Supervised By: Dr. ██████████ █████████
Foreword: Dr. ██████ has been struggling in recent years with a form of lung cancer and is unsure as to his own life expectancy, causing him immense stress and worry in recent months. Despite Dr. ██████ never mentioning this fact to SCP-4448, it appeared to already be aware of Dr. ██████'s condition.
<Begin Log>
Dr. ██████: (Stepping into the water)Dr. ██████: (Moving closer) Is this better?Dr. ██████: I accept your deal. (Drapes the silver chain on SCP-4448's antlers)Dr. ██████: Wow, that story was certainly… (Pausing) eye-opening, as you said it would be. I thank you.<End Log>
Closing Statement: Dr. ██████ was deeply moved by the story told by SCP-4448 and even requested to meet with SCP-4448 again, against its wishes. This request was ultimately denied by the Foundation.

Addendum 4448-B: The following is an account of a failed exchange between a subject and SCP-4448.

Subject: Personnel D-1473
Supervised By: Dr. ███████ ██████
Foreword: Personnel D-1473 suffers with an extreme addiction to opioids, including morphine, methodine, and oxycodone. SCP-4448 seems to be fully cognizant of this fact, providing further evidence that SCP-4448 may be capable of intercepting brain activity.
<Begin Log>
Personnel D-1473: (Hesitantly stepping into the lake)Personnel D-1473: Okay… (Slowly treading deeper into the water)Personnel D-1473: Are you talking about the Foundation?Personnel D-1473: (Searching through his pockets) What about… this? (He produces a U.S. 25-cent coin)Personnel D-1473: (Urgently exits the lake as its temperature begins to rise)
<End Log>
Closing Statement: It appears that SCP-4448 is growing increasingly irritable the longer it stays in containment. It is significantly more likely to deny offered trinkets than in previous months. As SCP-4448 has not made any attempt to leave its containment, no changes will be made to its containment procedures.

Addendum 4448-C: The following is an account of SCP-4448's reaction to meeting the same subject twice after having previously made an exchange.

Subject: Dr. ████ ██████
Supervised By: Dr. ███████ ████████████
Foreword: After several denied applications to revisit SCP-4448, Dr. ██████'s application was eventually accepted to test how SCP-4448 will react to previous subjects, especially in its current, irritated state.
<Begin Log>
Dr. ██████: (Stepping into the water) SCP-4448, I have come here today to thank you for the immense help that your story provided for me. I have—Dr. ██████: I do not mean any ill intent, I just merely wish to thank you for—<End Log>
Closing Statement: The rapidly increasing water temperature caused by SCP-4448 led to third-degree burns covering the entirety of Dr. ██████'s body from the waist down. SCP-4448 has been completely unresponsive to any visitors, new or old, for the subsequent days.

Addendum 4448-D: The following is an account of a previous exchange between a test subject and SCP-4448.

Subject: Personnel D-2113
Supervised By: Dr. ████ ██
Foreword: SCP-4448 is fully aware of the rough and rather unstable relationship between Personnel D-2113 and his significant other and even addresses it outright rather than alluding to it as in previous exchanges.
<Begin Log>
Personnel D-2113: Why do I have to get IN the lake? I didn't sign up to get my clothes soaked. I think I—
Dr. ██: We don't have time for your questions. Just do your job so that we can do ours.
Personnel D-2113: (Stepping into the lake) Fine.Personnel D-2113: What sort of deal?Personnel D-2113: How do you know about that? Are you reading my mind?Personnel D-2113: (Digging through pockets) Let's see… (Retrieves a golden stopwatch) What about this?Personnel D-2113: (Sobbing)
<End Log>
Closing Statement: SCP-4448 has returned to its original state and is significantly less likely to grow agitated than in previous weeks. This is most likely due to many subsequent, successful exchanges taking place and a particular liking it has taken to its most recent trinket, Personnel D-2113's stopwatch.

Addendum 4448-E: The following is an account of a previous exchange between a test subject and SCP-4448.

Subject: Personnel D-2449
Supervised By: Dr. ██████ ██████
Foreword: SCP-4448 appears to be cognizant of a significant event that has not yet taken place in Personnel D-2449's life. The extent to SCP-4448's foresight is currently unknown.
<Begin Log>
Personnel D-2449: (Stepping into the lake) Hello? Crazy lake-monster thing?Personnel D-2449: (Startled) Where the hell did you come from?Personnel D-2449: What kinda deal?Personnel D-2449: (Rummaging through pockets) What have we got here..? (Produces a silver dog tag) How about this?Personnel D-2449: Well, that story blows.<End Log>
Closing Statement: Four days after his engagement with SCP-4448, Personnel D-2449 shot and killed a close friend who had secretive sexual relations with Personnel D-2449's significant other. The next day, Personnel D-2449 was beaten to death by members of a gang in ██████, █████ that Personnel D-2449's victim had strong connections to.

« SCP-4447 | SCP-4448 | SCP-4449 »