Item #: SCP-2735
Object Class: Safe
Special Containment Procedures: SCP-2735-1 and SCP-2735-3 are to be kept in a transparent airtight glass container filled with fresh water, at least 10 meters cubed, reinforced with steel bars. The water in this container should be continuously aerated with a mixture of hydrogen gas and carbon dioxide. 25% of this water should be drained and replaced weekly. Cultures of anaerobic autotrophic bacteria and archaea are maintained within this container1 for the purpose of feeding SCP-2735-1 and SCP-2735-3. If this container is damaged, SCP-2735-1 and SCP-2735-3 are to be relocated to a secondary container of the same design.
SCP-2735-4 is to be kept in a separate container, designed to the same specifications aside from being smaller, measuring at least 3 meters cubed and lined with foam padding. SCP-2735-4 is to be kept isolated from SCP-2735-1 and SCP-2735-3 at all times. A waterproof closed-circuit camera is placed within the container. A lamp is to be mounted to the top of the container to aid in sustenance for SCP-2735-4. SCP-2735-4 may be relocated to SCP-2735-1 and SCP-2735-3's secondary container if its primary container is damaged, but SCP-2735-4 should not be within it at the same time as SCP-2735-1 or SCP-2735-3.
Containment of extraterrestrial satellites related to SCP-2735 has been delegated to Project Heimdall operations. Various space observatories have been co-opted by the Foundation to determine the location of possible SCP-2735 artifacts in solar orbit. In the event of an SCP-2735 artifact being discovered, a standard Foundation retrieval team will be sent into orbit to recover the object(s). Under the unlikely circumstances that there is a surviving SCP-2735 instance onboard an object, that object is to be transferred into an orbit around earth and de-orbited, so the surviving instance can be relocated to the primary SCP-2735 containment unit.
SCP-2735-2's remains are preserved in Secure Containment Locker 2735. Those who wish to access SCP-2735-2 should submit a request to Site Command prior to their research.
Description: SCP-2735 is a species of sapient aquatic organisms of which there are three surviving members. SCP-2735 is believed to have been dominant on Earth roughly 2.4 billion years ago, but was rendered functionally extinct. SCP-2735 are obligate anaerobes that consume carbon dioxide and produce methane, and will become physically ill when exposed to oxygenated air or water, resulting in death if exposed for extended periods.
SCP-2735 have their body structures arranged trilaterally. SCP-2735 instances range in length from roughly 1.5 to 3 metres long, and from roughly 0.5 to 1.75 metres in diameter, with the majority of their forms being taken up by a long tail. SCP-2735 instances primarily interact with objects using three appendages located on the anterior of their bodies, which each further split into five secondary appendages intended for grasping. Each SCP-2735 instance possesses a single compound eye located on the anterior of their body, covered by a translucent layer of skin. A circular, toothless mouth is located on the proximal end of each of an SCP-2735's three primary appendages. The internal body plan of SCP-2735 resembles that of members of the phylum Echinodermata2, but is almost certainly unrelated. SCP-2735 instances are autotrophic and heterotrophic, and derive sustenance from both filtering microscopic organisms from water ingested through their three mouths and collecting sunlight using a dense coating of wire-like fibres on the posterior of their bodies. Skin colour in SCP-2735 instances vary between dark greens and browns, though it is possible that colouration was more varied among the larger population prior to its destruction. SCP-2735 lives in symbiosis with bioluminescent prokaryotes, which they are capable of altering the colour of. SCP-2735 instances have extremely thin and porous skin. This allows for cutaneous gas exchange, which is their only method of respiration, and causes the bioluminescent organisms in their blood vessels to be extremely visible. SCP-2735's method of communication has not been translated by the Foundation as of yet, but appears to involve complex patterns of bioluminescent light.
Discovery: The initial four SCP-2735 instances were preserved in an advanced space station in a 90 degree retrograde solar orbit. A radio signal from the station was discovered by the Big Ear radio telescope in 1998, and subsequently intercepted by the Foundation. The signal was initially assumed to be alien in origin, until Foundation astronauts were able to enter the craft and study the preserved organisms, identifying them as terrestrial. The station used by the SCP-2735 instances was transferred to a terrestrial orbit and subsequently de-orbited, then used as temporary containment for SCP-2735 until Foundation researchers could learn more about the subject's biology, at which point they were relocated to their current containers. After the initial finding, other SCP-2735 space stations were discovered in similar orbits, however all instances of SCP-2735 have either perished from the extended time in orbit or damage taken by collisions with other orbiting objects.
Incident-2735-A: On ██/██/19██ at 6:34 pm, the rate and luminosity of all four SCP-2735 instance's bioluminescent emissions dramatically increased. This was noted, but not initially considered to be significant by observing personnel. At 6:42, the four SCP-2735 instances began repeatedly propelling themselves against a specific location on the primary containment chamber's wall. This was recognized as a coordinated attempt to breach containment and Foundation agents entered the chamber.
At 6:47, as five (5) agents attempted to restrain the SCP-2735 instances, SCP-2735-2 succeeded in breaching the wall of the chamber. SCP-2735-2 and the other instances were violently forced out of their containment chamber by the resulting flow of water. The SCP-2735 instances then demonstrated body language believed to represent extreme agitation, presumably due to the harmful oxygen in the air or their lack of mobility. Agents were successful in relocating the SCP-2735 subjects to their secondary containment chamber, where they were temporarily contained while their primary chamber was rebuilt with additional steel reinforcement.
Incident-2735-B: On ██/██/19██ at 3:46 am, the four SCP-2735 instances again displayed heightened bioluminescent activity. Due to similarities with behaviour prior to Incident-2735-A, Foundation agents were alerted and ordered to enter the SCP-2735 primary container. Before agents were able to arrive, the four SCP-2735 instances began to again propel themselves towards a location on the wall of their chamber, however SCP-2735-3 stopped after two (2) minutes and moved to the southeast corner of the chamber, while SCP-2735-1 displayed similar behaviour to SCP-2735-3 once Foundation agents entered the chamber at 3:54 am. No significant damage was done to the SCP-2735 chamber, and SCP-2735-2 and SCP-2735-4 were successfully restrained by Foundation agents until they ceased aggressive behaviour.
Incident-2735-C: On ██/██/20██, at 12:56 pm, SCP-2735-4 began to attempt to breach containment in a fashion similar to previous incidents, though the other SCP-2735 instances remained idle. After Incident-2735-B, SCP-2735's special containment procedures were updated to include four (4) Foundation agents in diving gear and body armour posted outside the container, and thus the incident was responded to immediately and SCP-2735-4 was restrained without incident.
Incident-2735-D: On ██/██/20██, at 5:41 am, heightened bioluminescent behaviour was observed from both SCP-2735-2 and SCP-2735-4. Due to bioluminescent events from SCP-2735-2 and SCP-2735-4 without a follow up containment breach attempt, this behaviour was not considered significant, and thus no agents entered the chamber. Roughly five (5) minutes after this was noted, SCP-2735-4 propelled itself towards SCP-2735-2. SCP-2735-4 attached itself to SCP-2735-2 using its grasping appendages and began to repeatedly throw SCP-2735-2 towards the chamber's wall.
The four posted agents then entered the chamber, but were repeatedly repulsed by SCP-2735-4. SCP-2735-1 and SCP-2735-3 moved to a far corner of the room and ceased bioluminescent activity at this time. Following this, SCP-2735-4 began to use its appendages to tear at SCP-2735-2's skin. At 5:52 am, two (2) additional agents entered the chamber and began to assist the initial four agents. The agents were successful in restraining SCP-2735-4, but not before it had succeeded in dealing significant amounts of bodily harm to SCP-2735-2.
Following the incident, SCP-2735-4 was temporarily relocated to the secondary containment chamber, while SCP-2735-2 was examined by Foundation doctors. SCP-2735-2 was confirmed to be clinically dead four (4) hours after Incident-2735-D began. Fourteen (14) days after Incident-2735-D began, SCP-2735-4 was transferred to its current chamber, and the four agents assigned to SCP-2735 were reassigned to guard SCP-2735-4 specifically.
Incident-2735-E: On ██/██/20██, at 10:23 am, SCP-2735-4 began propelling itself towards the wall of its containment chamber. While repeated incidents had proven that SCP-2735-4 was incapable of actually breaching containment using this method, agents entered the chamber and restrained SCP-2735-4 to prevent it from harming itself in the attempt. Foam padding was added to the walls of SCP-2735-4's chamber to prevent it from accidentally harming itself.
Incident-2735-F: On ██/██/20██, at 10:45 pm, SCP-2735-4 began to use its appendages to tear at its own flesh. Agents were successful in restraining it. A modified electronic shock collar was secured around SCP-2735-4's upper body to deter this behaviour in the future.

Footnotes
1. A full list of the species cultured within SCP-2735's containment chamber can be found in Document 2735-Gimel
2. Starfish, sea urchins, sea cucumbers, etc.

« SCP-2734 | SCP-2735 | SCP-2736 »


Left: SCP-2736-1 in Foundation custody, 1973.
Right: SCP-2736-2 during second presidential term, 1973.

Item #: SCP-2736
Object Class: Euclid (SCP-2736-1), Keter (SCP-2736-2) Neutralized
Special Containment Procedures: For its own protection SCP-2736-1 is kept at Armed Site-29, in a standard humanoid containment chamber.1 Subject is allowed a television and a subscription to a newspaper of its choosing; a monthly allowance of $20 $30 $50 $75 $100 $125 US (amount periodically increased to account for inflation) has also been set aside to procure SCP-2736-1 with reading material and other media it may request. Once a week subject is allowed one hour in the small courtyard at the center of Building 11, under the supervision of one guard. Once a year subject is allowed one new photograph each of Patricia Nixon, Tricia Nixon Cox and Julie Nixon Eisenhower. All privileges are contingent on good behavior, and may be rescinded at any time by Project Head/2736. Subject's health should be monitored closely, as it has a history of phlebitis.
SCP-2736-2 is uncontained at present. Long-term surveillance is to be maintained, with successful infiltration of its inner circle remaining a Class-IV Priority.
UPDATE: Special Containment Procedures for SCP-2736 were discontinued on 23/04/1994.
Description: SCP-2736 consists of two biologically-identical adult males, SCP-2736-1 and SCP-2736-2; as far as can be ascertained, both are former U.S. President Richard M. Nixon. They are the result of a little-understood event designated “Incident Janus-2736”, which resulted in a hitherto non-anomalous Richard M. Nixon being “split” into two distinct individuals through unknown, anomalous means. SCP-2736-1 and SCP-2736-2 appear to share the entirety of Richard M. Nixon's memories up to Incident Janus-2736, at which point each individual developed a distinct consciousness; however, this cannot be conclusively verified due to the unavailability of SCP-2736-2 for study.
SCP-2736-1 has been in Foundation custody since Incident Janus-2736, allowing its existence to remain concealed from the public. Despite having been produced through anomalous means, SCP-2736-1 displays no anomalous properties save for sharing a Level-II causal relationship (physical, mental) with SCP-2736-2 (see Addenda 3, 5). Heavy scarring is present on subject's chest, the result of injuries sustained during Incident Janus-2736.
SCP-2736-2 is the individual known to the world as Richard M. Nixon, having served as the 37th President of the United States from 1969 to 1974. Due to SCP-2736-2's high status and visibility, as well as the protection and continued interference of GoI-113 with Foundation efforts at recovery, SCP-2736-2 remains uncontainable at present.2
Recovery: On 21/06/1951, Undercover Task Force Theta-3-3 (“Federal Reserves”) conducted a covert surveillance mission at the private campground known as Bohemian Grove, in Monte Rio, CA.3 Theta-3-3 agents embedded in the campground's security force observed a summer solstice celebration attended by members of GoI-113, which culminated in Incident Janus-2736.

+ Access Document 2736-V-0001 [Level 4/Eyes Only]

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Film Log Transcript 2736-01 – Surveillance Mission [113]-V-779
Date: 21/06/1951
Time: 22:48 PST – 23:27 PST
Location: Bohemian Grove (LoI-729)
Task Force: Theta-3-3 (DEEP COVER)
Note: The original film log was compiled from footage covertly shot by Theta-3-3 agents using two concealed, hand-held cameras. Camera-1 was situated at the back of the crowd, with a view of the entire clearing; Camera-2 was situated near the front of the crowd, with a relatively close view of the proceedings. Footage is in black and white.

[BEGIN LOG]
<00:01> Camera-1 shows a large clearing surrounded by giant redwoods. It is nighttime. At the center of the clearing stands a dilapidated 10m-tall stone statue depicting a ram's head. At the foot of the statue a large bonfire is burning; aside from some wooden torches carried by attendees, this is the only source of light. Several meters from the fire, a deep rectangular hole has been dug into the ground, and the removed earth piled next to it. The camera pans over a crowd, showing roughly 500 people in attendance. All are wearing dark robes with the hoods drawn.
<07:28> (Camera-1) The crowd parts as a group of fourteen men arrive in the clearing and make their way toward the fire. All of them are dressed in robes.
<07:40> (Camera-2) The group walks past the camera. All men are wearing masks, save for one, whose face is visible. [Examination of the still frames reveals the man to be Richard M. Nixon, to be henceforth referred to as “R.N.” He appears nervous and afraid.]
<07:52> (Camera-2) R.N. is escorted to the front of the crowd and made to stop at the foot of the statue. A high-backed wooden chair, similar in appearance to a throne, is brought beside him. Some of the men around R.N. remove his robe, leaving him naked.
<08:30> (Camera-2) R.N. is made to sit down on the wooden chair, to which his wrists and ankles are strapped. A noose is placed around his neck, and a crudely-made crown placed on his head. [The noose appears to serve a symbolic purpose, as it is not attached to a supporting beam. The crown appears to have been fashioned from shards of bone.]
<11:13> (Camera-2) Twelve of the masked men position themselves around R.N. Each one produces a knife from inside his robe. The thirteenth man, who will henceforth be referred to as “Speaker”, turns toward the crowd.
Speaker: Tonight marks the dawn of the New Age.
(Applause and cheers from the crowd.)
Speaker: Tonight we witness the Birth of the First.
(More cheering.)
<12:05> (Camera-2) One of the masked men, who will henceforth be referred to as “Masked Man-1”, approaches R.N.
(Crowd becomes silent.)
<12:52> (Camera-2) Masked Man-1 raises his knife to R.N.'s face.
(Screams of pain from R.N.)
<13:20> (Camera-2) Masked Man-1 faces the crowd and raises his arm high above his head. He is holding a small object in his hand, from which blood appears to be dripping.
Speaker: We offer his left eye to the Fire, that the King may always see.
<13:33> (Camera-2) Masked Man-1 throws the small object into the bonfire.
<13:49> (Camera-2) Another masked man, who will henceforth be referred to as “Masked Man-2”, approaches R.N. with his knife raised and takes hold of his jaw with his free hand.
(R.N. is heard screaming in pain; after several seconds a gurgling sound is heard.)
Speaker: We throw his tongue into the Flames, that the King may never betray himself.
<14:42> (Camera-2) Masked Man-2 throws a small object into the bonfire.
<15:10> (Camera-2) The remaining masked men, to be henceforth referred to as “Masked Men-3 to -12”, line up at R.N.'s side and take turns cutting at his hands with their knives.
(Sustained screams of pain by R.N.)
Speaker: We cast his fingers into the Furnace, that the King's grip may never weaken.
<16:31> (Camera-2) Masked Men-3 to -12 each throw a small object into the bonfire.
<17:19> (Camera-2) R.N. is now bleeding profusely from the injuries sustained to his face and hands. Several of the masked men remove him from the chair and carry him over to the nearby hole, into which he is lowered.
<18:44> (Camera-2) Several of the masked men take shovels and begin burying R.N. alive.
Speaker: We give his body to the Pit, that the Eternal Depths may grind it to dust, rending chaff from wheat.
<21:25> (Camera-2) The masked men finish burying R.N. alive.
(Applause and cheering from the crowd.)
<21:42> (Camera-1) Two identical straw effigies, each measuring roughly 3m in height, are brought from the edge of the clearing to the foot of the statue, and propped up over the bonfire.
<22:14> (Camera-2) The effigies begin to burn.
(The crowd is silent.)

Still frame from Camera-1, at <25:16>.

<24:38> (Camera-1) As the effigies continue to burn, they start producing sparks, flashes of light and small, fireworks-like explosions. [It is not known whether explosives had previously been placed inside the effigies, or if these phenomena have an anomalous cause.]
<29:01> (Camera-2) The effigies crumble as they finish burning. [Here, Theta-3-3 agents reported that the bonfire flames turned a deep red and appeared to grow darker, though this is not properly visible on the black-and-white film.]
(A low sound reminiscent of stone grinding against stone becomes audible; the sound, of unknown origin, is heard throughout the clearing for several minutes, steadily growing in volume.)
<35:05> (Camera-2) The two effigies have been completely reduced to ashes. [Here, Theta-3-3 agents reported that the bonfire flames regained their usual color and brightness.]
(The grinding sound gradually fades away. The crowd is silent.)
Speaker: The First will be reborn.
<37:49> (Camera-2) View of the filled-in hole where R.N. is buried. The earth over the hole begins to shift, as though something were moving under the surface.
<38:01> (Camera-2) Two hands emerge from the ground, and a naked man pulls himself out of the hole before collapsing in exhaustion on the ground. [Examination of still frames show that the man is Richard M. Nixon, although none of the injuries inflicted by the masked men are visible on his body. This individual will henceforth be referred to as SCP-2736-2.]
<38:09> (Camera-2) Speaker approaches SCP-2736-2 and helps it to stand up.
<38:15> (Camera-2) A second naked man pulls himself out of the hole. [Examination of still frames reveals the man is also Richard M. Nixon; again, none of the injuries inflicted by the masked men are visible on his body. This individual will henceforth be referred to as SCP-2736-1.]
<38:43> (Camera-2) Speaker appears to address SCP-2736-2 before handing it a knife.
<38:51> (Camera-2) SCP-2736-2 takes hold of the knife and turns toward SCP-2736-1. SCP-2736-1 attempts to stand up, but before it is able to SCP-2736-2 jumps on top of it and attempts to stab it with the knife. The two men struggle, with SCP-2736-1 sustaining a number of deep lacerations to its chest.
<39:30> (Camera-2) SCP-2736-1 takes hold of a rock on the ground beside it and strikes SCP-2736-2 on the side of the head with it. SCP-2736-2 falls back, stunned. SCP-2736-1, bleeding from its injuries, stands up and flees from the crowd.
<39:41> (Camera-1) View of SCP-2736-1 running toward the trees. Several of the masked men, as well as men from the crowd, start running after it.
[END LOG]

At this point, taking advantage of the general confusion, Theta-3-3 Commander William Meeks instructed Theta-3-3 agents to attempt to recover SCP-2736-1 and extract it from Bohemian Grove. It was thought that SCP-2736-1 might prove amenable to the Foundation given GoI-113's treatment of it, as well as provide valuable information regarding GoI-113 and LoI-729. The extraction was successful, though three Theta-3-3 agents were killed in the ensuing firefight with Bohemian Grove's security force.

Following its extraction from Bohemian Grove, SCP-2736-1 was taken to Site-109, where its injuries were treated.

+ Access Document 2736-V-0009 [Level 4/Eyes Only]

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Interview Log 2736-001
Date: 22/06/1951
Location: Site-109, Infirmary C
Interviewer: Commander William Meeks (MTF Theta-3-3)
Interviewee: SCP-2736-1

[BEGIN LOG]
W.M.: I'd like to ask you some questions, if you're feeling up to it.
SCP-2736-1: All right. I suppose I owe you boys that much.
W.M.: Thank you. For the record, could you please state your name, age and occupation.
SCP-2736-1: Richard Nixon, 38. I'm a U.S. Senator.
W.M.: How did you first become involved with Bohemian Grove?
SCP-2736-1: About uh, a year ago I was introduced to some people at a dinner. Real big-wigs. We got to talking, and they said I should come to the Grove for a weekend.
W.M.: So you went.
SCP-2736-1: Some people would kill for an invitation like that.
W.M.: What happened when you were there?
SCP-2736-1: Nothing much, that first time. They mostly showed me around. Beautiful place, all that forest, those redwoods… Old, real old. We spent most of the time at one of the lodges, drinking, smoking. We talked.
W.M.: What about?
SCP-2736-1: Well, uh… me, actually. They seemed real interested in me, kept asking what I wanted out of life, what my plans for the future were. At one point I mentioned my career wasn't going as great as I thought it could. They told me maybe they could help.
W.M.: Help, in what way?
SCP-2736-1: They didn't exactly say then, they just told me I should start coming to the Grove regularly, meet some more people. Wasn't long I was spending at least one weekend a month there, sometimes more. The people they had there, I tell you… Seemed like everyone who mattered was a member. Congressmen, governors, you name it. People with real power, too, bankers, defense contractor presidents, oil magnates. And these men I'd never even heard of, but you could tell how important they were just by the way the millionaires and billionaires looked at them. Like they were scared of them. After just a few months there I'd made more political contacts than I had in my entire career up to that point. All of a sudden I had all these prospects.
W.M.: So how did you wind up here?
SCP-2736-1: (sighs) This one night I was invited to a ceremony. They said it was a club tradition, so I didn't question it when they gave me a robe to wear. We had to walk to this place in the forest called the Ram Shrine. Hundreds of us, all walking in the dark with torches. Took us almost an hour. Then we reached this open area with a statue of a ram's head, and the ceremony started. Real macabre stuff. At first I wasn't sure if I was meant to take it seriously, but then I… saw… things. That's when I realized who I was dealing with, what those people were capable of achieving. When we got back to the lodge that night they made me a member. Wasn't long after that they offered to make me King.
W.M.: Make you King?
SCP-2736-1: They said we were entering a new era for mankind, but before that could happen four great Kings would have to rise to prepare the way. They said they'd been looking for someone like me for a long time, someone to be the first King. They told me the whole world could be mine, all I had to do was say yes.
W.M.: You accepted.
SCP-2736-1: (pauses) Yes. And then last night they brought me back to the Ram Shrine and… well, you were there, you saw it. They'd warned me it wasn't going to be pleasant, I just… I didn't realize it would be that bad. But they said all they'd be doing to me would be for a reason. That before I could be the First I had to be reborn.
W.M.: When they put you in the earth you remained buried for over fifteen minutes. Do you remember anything that happened during that time?
SCP-2736-1: Not much. I think I was in shock from the blood loss, and when they started shoveling earth on me I thought that was it. I suffocated, and everything went black, but I didn't die, though. I had these… I guess I'd call them dreams, except I can't remember what they were about. But there was someone else with me in the dreams, some… man. He was in the dark, couldn't see his face. He said something about stars, I… I think I was crying. Then I woke up, still in that hole, only I wasn't hurt anymore. I panicked, started clawing my way out. That's when I felt something move against me. It was him. By the time I got out of the hole he was already standing there. The masked man gave him a knife, told him to cut out my heart and, uh… well, you know the rest. I didn't think I had it in me, knocking him out like that. Must have been my Navy training kicking in…
W.M.: And that dream you had, you said–
SCP-2736-1: Listen, I'm really tired, and I need to call my wife, tell her where I am. Do think you could arrange that?
W.M.: I'm afraid that won't be possible.
[END LOG]

+ Access Document 2736-V-0010 [Level 4/Eyes Only]

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Interview Log 2736-002
Date: 23/06/1951
Location: Site-109, Infirmary C
Interviewer: Commander William Meeks (MTF Theta-3-3)
Interviewee: SCP-2736-1

[BEGIN LOG]
SCP-2736-1: I told you, I'm not saying anything else to you until you let me talk to my wife!
W.M.: I lost three men getting you out of that place, not to mention an entire surveillance network that's taken us decades to establish. You need to start cooperating with us.
SCP-2736-1: It's not like I'm not grateful for what you did, but you've got me locked up here like some goddamn convict! You can't do this to me, I'm a U.S. Senator! Now you call your supervisor, or whoever it is that's in charge here, and you tell him I'm going home, today! Pat and the girls must be worried sick, poor things.
W.M.: Well, actually…
SCP-2736-1: What?
W.M.: That's what I came here to discuss with you. The other “you”, the one we couldn't recover last night, we've… located him.
SCP-2736-1: Well, that's good news. Where is he?
W.M.: At… at your house.
SCP-2736-1: At my… (becomes agitated) What's he doing there? What does he want? God, are Pat and the girls okay, did he… did he hurt them?
W.M.: It's not what you think, your family's safe.
SCP-2736-1: You're… you're sure?
W.M.: Yes, it's… more complicated than that. See, the other “you”, he's not just at your house. He's been living there, since yesterday. As far as your wife and daughters are concerned… you're not even missing.
SCP-2736-1: (prolonged silence) That… thing… is with them, now?
W.M.: Yes.
SCP-2736-1: And they don't… They think he's me?
W.M.: That's right. I'm sorry.
SCP-2736-1: (becomes agitated) But you gotta… you gotta go there, you gotta get him out of my house, I…
W.M.: We'd like to, but your friends from the Grove, they seem to want him there. They've got security on him like you wouldn't believe. We can't even get close.
SCP-2736-1: But that's… they can't just do that, put some… impostor in my place like that! You've gotta warn Pat about this, you've gotta let me call her!
W.M.: Like I said before, we can't let you speak to her. That's not up for discussion. As for warning her, there isn't much of a point. I mean, even if we managed to get through to her, I doubt she'd believe a word we said.
SCP-2736-1: But… they can't just…
W.M.: I understand this is upsetting for you, but there really isn't much we can do, at least for the time being. That said, any information you can give us about Bohemian Grove, your interactions there, what you think happened to you the other night, it could all help us find a way to solve this.
SCP-2736-1: (shouting) That's your solution? I just learned some creature is sleeping in the same bed as my wife, and you try to pump me for more information? You've got some goddamn nerve!
W.M.: Hey, we're not even sure she is your wife, so yeah, I think we're entitled to some answers.
SCP-2736-1: What are you talking about?
W.M.: You keep telling us you're the “real” Richard Nixon, like it should be obvious to us. But nothing I've seen, nothing you've said to me, has pointed to you being any more “real” than the other “you”. For all we know the man in your house is the real you, and you're the fake. Or maybe you're both Richard Nixon, both real.
SCP-2736-1: That thing isn't me, I told you! I've… I've been thinking about it a lot, since I got here. About what happened at the Grove. I think I understand it now.
W.M.: Oh?
SCP-2736-1: What they did to me, turning me into two people, it's not… They didn't make two identical people, that wasn't the point. I'm not the same as him, I know it, I feel it. Hell, I'm not even the same man I was a few days ago. What they did to me, it changed me.
W.M.: In what way?
SCP-2736-1: Used to be I was so restless, I had so much ambition. I… craved advancement, position… power.
W.M.: But not anymore?
SCP-2736-1: It's like that part of me's just gone. Well… not gone. I know where it went.
W.M.: You mean…
SCP-2736-1: (sighs) You know that night they offered me to be the First? Do you know what they asked me, just before? Do you know what I said to them that made them decide I was the right guy for the job?
W.M.: What?
SCP-2736-1: They asked me what I was prepared to do for power. I told them, ‘anything'. I said that. Sounds crazy now, but I said it. And I meant it, every fiber in me did. Like I said, it's not who I am anymore. But it's who he is. Hell, it's all he is. That's what they wanted. They got their King. And now you tell me those bastards have got him living with my family.
[END LOG]

Addendum 2736-01

+ Access Document 2736-V-1691 [Level 2 Clearance Required]

- Close

Abridged Timeline of SCP-2736-2's Political Career
21/06/1951: Incident Janus-2736 at Bohemian Grove.
04/11/1952: Dwight D. Eisenhower is elected to the office of the President of the United States, with SCP-2736-2 as his Vice-President.
06/11/1956: Dwight D. Eisenhower is re-elected to the office of the President of the United States, with SCP-2736-2 as his Vice-President once again.
05/11/1968: SCP-2736-2 is elected to the office of the President of the United States.
20/07/1969: NASA's Apollo 11 spaceflight lands the first two humans on the moon.
07/11/1972: SCP-2736-2 is re-elected to the office of the President of the United States.
09/08/1974: SCP-2736-2 resigns from the office of the President of the United States in the wake of the Watergate scandal.
08/09/1974: U.S. President Gerald Ford grants SCP-2736-2 a full pardon for any crimes committed during its presidency.

Addendum 2736-02
The following interview with SCP-2736-1 was conducted on 15/09/1974 (23 years since initial containment), in order to discuss SCP-2736-2's recent resignation as U.S. President.

+ Access Document 2736-V-1847 [Level 4/Eyes Only]

- Close

Interview Log 2736-491
Date: 15/09/1974
Location: Armed Site-29
Interviewer: Dr. Samuel Bennett (Project Head/2736)
Interviewee: SCP-2736-1

[BEGIN LOG]
S.B.: I take it you've been watching the news.
SCP-2736-1: I tell you, uh, you never get used to seeing your face on television.
S.B.: (chuckles) I can imagine. How have things been for you, though? Can't have been easy watching all of this unfold.
SCP-2736-1: It wasn't, watching him do that to my name, to this country, to… to Pat and the girls. They're even saying his marriage is on the rocks, did you hear that? Not that I'm complaining, mind you, but I just keep thinking of Pat, about what she must be going through. At least he resigned, though, there's that. It's over now.
S.B.: Yes, his political career certainly seems to be over… Actually, I was hoping to get your thoughts on something.
SCP-2736-1: All right.
S.B.: Now, before the ritual at Bohemian Grove that began all this, you said your friends had told you the world would be yours if you became King.
SCP-2736-1: That's right.
S.B.: Then how do you account for the events of the last few months? SCP-2736-2 becoming embroiled in a nationwide scandal, losing all his political capital, being forced to resign in disgrace? And it's not just the last months, is it? From the start it's never really gone his way. First time he ran for president in 1960 he lost to Kennedy. Then Kennedy winds up dead not long after, and a few years later SCP-2736-2 does become president, but even then… the Vietnam War, the bombing of Cambodia, all terribly unpopular things that ultimately result in failure. And finally the Watergate scandal. We're far from the success your friends at the Grove promised you, wouldn't you agree?
SCP-2736-1: Yes, that's true.
S.B.: I'd like to know why you think that is. Is it possible the promises were all a lie?
SCP-2736-1: I really doubt that. I mean, it was in their best interest to put me in power and uh, keep me there.
S.B.: Then do you think they simply weren't capable of delivering on their promises? That maybe they were never as powerful as you were led to believe?
SCP-2736-1: No, not a chance. I know for a fact they were capable of everything they promised me. More, probably.
S.B.: Then… why? Why all the setbacks? Why this latest failure?
SCP-2736-1: Well, my “friends” from the Grove, as you call them, they haven't been idle all these years, have they?
S.B.: What do you mean?
SCP-2736-1: I mean, they've been looking for me since that night at the Grove. I'm right, aren't I?
S.B.: I'm… I'm not cleared to discuss this with you.
SCP-2736-1: I understand that. But I'm not blind, I know there's a reason you transferred me to this place.4 Why else would I need all this security? I'm not dangerous, this isn't for me. I think my “friends” were looking for me back then, and they still are today. I think all this time they never stopped.
S.B.: Well, let's… let's say for a moment that were true. Why do you think that would be? Why would they keep dedicating so much time and effort to finding you?
SCP-2736-1: Because the ritual was never finished. When you guys rescued me at the Grove, you threw a big wrench in their plans. Didn't even realize it, but you did. That's why it's all gone to hell for them, for him. I was supposed to die that night.
[END LOG]

Addendum 2736-03
On 12/10/1974, SCP-2736-1 fell ill with phlebitis, and had to undergo surgery with a Foundation phlebologist. The same day, SCP-2736-2 was hospitalized for phlebitis in Long Beach, CA, for which it received surgery and treatment.
Addendum 2736-04
On 22/06/1993 (42 years since initial containment), Patricia Nixon died of lung cancer at her home in Park Ridge, NJ.5 SCP-2736-1 was greatly affected by her death, and in the following months grew increasingly withdrawn, refusing to participate in interviews with Project Head/2736. Subject also frequently complained of poor sleep.
Addendum 2736-05
On 18/04/1994 (43 years since initial containment), at roughly 17:45 EST, SCP-2736-1 suffered a massive cerebral vascular accident (CVA) and was transferred to Armed-Site-29's Yellow Infirmary. It was later learned that SCP-2736-2 had also suffered a CVA at the same moment at its home in Park Ridge, NJ, and had been taken to New York–Presbyterian Hospital in New York City, NY. Both subjects were left partially paralyzed and incapable of speech, and developed cerebral edema over the following days.
Despite its condition, on the evening of 21/04/1994 SCP-2736-1 inexplicably began to speak, albeit in an agitated and delirious manner; infirmary staff alerted Project Head/2736, who was able to record nearly 20 minutes of audio content.

+ Access Document 2736-V-3098 [Level 4/Eyes Only]

- Close

Audio Log 2736-01
Date: 21/04/1994
Time: 19:07 EST – 19:25 EST
Location: Armed Site-29, Yellow Infirmary
Subject: SCP-2736-1

[BEGIN LOG]
<00:46> The ground bled red oil for seven days, and we wondered at the bodies buried there. Billions. Souls are always the first casualty. Nothing changes, but change is coming.
<03:03> The moon was only one small step.
<07:55> (unintelligible)
<10:55> Prayers are pretty things, but you can't escape it. The sky will rend.
<12:11> The first falls on his sword, but his blood sows the seeds for the next thousand years. The second wipes up all the sins, and no one finds the gnawed bones under the castle. The third smiles at the world with double-edged teeth, and his laugh opens the floodgates. The fourth defies the masters and forever pays the price.
<13:45> Chimneys higher than mountains. Smoke to blot out the clouds. We will unite under one banner. New orders of magnitude. World without end. Without eyelids.
<14:30> (sustained laughter)
<16:14> America fell in the beginning. It will fall again, deeper down the well to the other places that don't let you blink. You were warned of this.
<17:03> (weeping)
<18:18> (voice trembling with fear) He… sees me.
[END LOG]

Immediately following this, SCP-2736-1 fell into a deep coma; SCP-2736-2 was later reported to have fallen into a coma at the same moment. The following day, 22/04/1994, SCP-2736-1 and SCP-2736-2 simultaneously died at 21:08 EST.
On 23/04/1994, SCP-2736 was reclassified as “Neutralized”.
Addendum 2736-06

+ Access Document 2736-V-3606 [LEVEL 5/2736 CLEARANCE REQUIRED]

- Close

From left to right: SCP-2736-2, 39th U.S. President Jimmy Carter (PoI-62679), 38th U.S. President Gerald Ford (PoI-56121), and 40th U.S. President Ronald Reagan (PoI-86761), 12/10/1981.

Footnotes
1. Armed Site-29: a high-security containment facility located outside Tallahassee, FL.
2. GoI-113: a highly-secretive group comprised of members of the global elite, who refer to themselves as "Magog's Multitude"; known to maintain their power and influence over the world through occult means, including the ritualistic worship of non-human entities.
3. Bohemian Grove (a.k.a. LoI-729): a secluded, heavily-wooded site owned and operated by GoI-113 since the late 1870s; it continues to be the setting for occult rituals and ceremonies by members of GoI-113.
4. SCP-2736-1 is referring to its transfer from Site-109 to Armed Site-29 in 1954, following an attempt by GoI-113-hired mercenaries to break into the wing of Site-109 where it was being kept. SCP-2736-1 was never told of the break-in attempt.
5. Patricia Nixon: wife of Richard M. Nixon and former First Lady of the United States.

« SCP-2735 | SCP-2736 | SCP-2737 »


WARNING: MEMETIC COUNTER-AGENT ACTIVATED

INOCULATION COMPLETE

Item #: SCP-2737
Object Class: Safe
Special Containment Procedures: Personnel working with SCP-2737 must undergo weekly counter-memetic training. Anti-memetic agents are to be employed before and after exposure to SCP-2737. Infected personnel and test subjects are to be treated with amnestics. Formerly infected individuals are to be monitored for signs of possible relapse.
Description: SCP-2737 is a dead lamprey. Despite its deceased status, SCP-2737 does not undergo decay. The urn containing SCP-2737 has been dated to approximately 100 CE and appears to be of Roman design. Awareness of the existence of SCP-2737 triggers a memetic infection.
Symptoms of infection can include:

Increased empathy (both emotional and cognitive)1
Major depressive disorder
Acute thanatophobia2
Obsessive thinking with regards to theodicy3 (specific to religiously minded individuals), immortality, transhumanism, and the existence of entropy.
A belief in collective experience and interconnected life

It is suspected that depression is a non-anomalous side-effect caused by the primary anomaly.
SCP-2737 was discovered at a Foundation storage site for minimally anomalous objects. The object (initially believed to be the urn containing SCP-2737) was found within proper documentation. Dr. Ernest Bishop was tasked with reevaluating the object's anomaly and returning it to storage. Dr. Bishop, approximately 2 hours after exposure, would be terminated by security personnel while attempting to force a containment breach, claiming the Foundation had "no right to harm" SCP-████. A connection to SCP-2737 was shortly established, as it was the only anomalous object handled by Dr. Bishop that day. In order to understand the nature of the anomaly, D-class personnel were requested for experimentation - authorization was granted.

+ Experimentation Logs

 ACCESS GRANTED

Test 01 - 01/24/1983

Subject: D-39091 - Subject is an Asian female, age 23. Subject has a history of petty theft and drug abuse.
Procedure: Subject was shown SCP-2737's container.
Results: No change in personality.
Analysis: The anomaly appears to be rooted with the contents of the jar, not the jar itself.

Test 02 - 01/25/1983

Subject: D-39091
Procedure: Subject requested to look inside SCP-2737's container.
Results: Subject complied; states that SCP-2737 appears to be "just a dead fish". Approximately 5 minutes later, subject begins to weep. Subject is asked a series of questions in order to gauge possible changes in personality. Subject is upset with a "lack of time" and claims they have squandered their youth. Subject displays increasing anxiety on the subject of death, despite their young age and the lack of death related questions asked.
Analysis: The dead lamprey is most certainly the vector of the cognitohazard. More extensive research is required. The jar is entirely non-anomalous.

Test 03 - 01/27/1983

Subject: D-39211
Procedure: Subject is given a piece of paper with the sentence "The lamprey is dead" written upon it. Writer is aware of SCP-2737.
Results: Subject initially appears confused but proceeds to weep. Subject is asked what they are currently thinking about. Subject describes the loss of their father at a young age and how they were never properly mourned.
Analysis: SCP-2737 is proven to be both a cognitohazard and memetic.

Test 04 - 01/28/1983

Subject: D-39214
Procedure: Subject is given a piece of paper with the sentence "The lamprey is dead" written upon it. Writer is unaware of SCP-2737.
Results: Subject fails to display an anomalous reaction.
Analysis: The reference to SCP-2737 must be intentional to trigger a memetic effect.

Superfluous data omitted for the sake of brevity. All D-class subjects display similar changes in personality. Further experiments suggest these changes can be repressed, possibly reversed, through the use of amnestics.
Test 32 - 03/19/1983

Subject: D-39320 - Subject is a Caucasian female, age 44. Subject had been convicted of homicide.
Procedure: Subject is exposed to SCP-2737.
Results: Subject began to weep. Subject is asked a series of questions in order to gauge possible changes in personality.
Analysis: Subject displays unusual insights on issues related to developed symptoms. See interview log for further details.

Interviewed: D-39320
Interviewer: Dr. Calixto Narváez
Foreword: Subject is to be administered an ink blot test; one had been performed prior to exposure to SCP-2737, the results not unusual, if somewhat suggestive of a lack of creativity.

<Begin Log>
Dr. Narváez: What do you see? [holding an ink blot card]
D-39320: A corpse.4
Dr. Narváez: Again. [holding a second ink blot card]
D-39320: Their face.
Dr. Nelson: Whose face do you see?
D-39320: It hurts to look. [closes eyes] And I still see them. I feel the knife enter. It's cold. I remember holding the hilt. I never knew how cold it was on the other side.
Dr. Narváez: You were convicted of homicide. Was this your victim?
D-39320: Yeah. Don't know why I did it. Felt right at the time. Felt justified. But it's worse than that. Death is ugly. I don't remember it being this ugly. I see all of 'em. I see ma and pa. My sister Jill. They're all dead. I used to be glad they got a clean death but there ain't such thing. Can't go back to fix things. Can't make it right. I shoulda made it better for 'em. Ease that pain. Make 'em proud.
Dr. Narváez: No one lives forever. Everyone dies eventually.
D-39320: It ain't right. [weeps] I felt nothing then. Couldn't see 'em. Not like now.
Dr. Narváez: Couldn't see? How do you mean?
D-39320: Take a walk anywhere. Bound to step on some bugs along the way. Didn't kill 'em outta hate. Just never saw 'em. Never cared to look. Yeah. Was careless. Broke too many hearts. Ya think I got time?
Dr. Narváez: Time for what?
D-39320: Things fall apart. This time I wanna pick up the pieces. Got a brother in Arizona. Haven't spoken in nine years. Ya think I could make things right?
Dr. Narváez: I can't answer that. But there is always time.
D-39320: No there ain't, doc. No there ain't.

<End Log>

Test 44 - 04/08/1983

Subject: Dr. Jing Yi
Procedure: Subject is exposed to SCP-2737. Testing for differences in symptoms for those aware of the anomaly and who have undergone anti-memetic training.
Results: Subject begins to cry but shows more restraint than others. Subject is asked a series of questions in order to gauge possible changes in personality.
Analysis: Symptoms manifest in a more serious manner. See interview log for further details.

Interviewed: Dr. Jing Yi
Interviewer: Dr. Albert Cronenberg
Foreword: Subject is to be administered an ink blot test; one had been performed prior to exposure to SCP-2737, results considered normal for Foundation personnel. Dr. Narváez was unable to conduct the experiment due to illness and Dr. Cronenberg served as a replacement.

<Begin Log>
Dr. Cronenberg: Tell me what you see. [holding an ink blot card]
Dr. Yi: I see a callous man.
Dr. Cronenberg I… I see. Now, what…
Dr. Yi: I feel them, you know. Every single one of them.
Dr. Cronenberg: Please, specify…
Dr. Yi: [interrupts] Just following orders, right? Just fresh materials to work with. How many did you tear open to find what you needed?
Dr. Cronenberg: This interview is over. Refrain or I will call security.
Dr. Yi: How many did you kill? You wretched fuck! You took them apart - piece by piece! What were you hoping to find through their suffering? I hope you die, Cronenberg - just like all your guinea pigs, I hope you get torn apart.
<End Log>
Closing Statement: Subject was administered amnestics and no longer recalls the test or his outburst. This remains the only instance where an SCP-2737-infected subject displayed aggression. Even subjects with a history of violence were normally pacified by SCP-2737 exposure.

Test 50 - 06/15/1983

Subject: Dr. Calixto Narváez
Procedure: Short term amnestics were applied prior to subject's exposure to SCP-2737. Subject has extensive anti-memetic training.
Results: Subject's lips begin to tremble. Ink blot cards, while not revealing obvious changes in personality, do result in a singular preoccupation with death.
Analysis: See interview log for further details.

Interviewed: Dr. Calixto Narváez
Interviewer: Dr. Jing Yi
Foreword: Subject is to be administered an ink blot test; one had been performed prior to exposure to SCP-2737, the results considered normal for Foundation personnel. Memories associated with SCP-2737 have been repressed.

<Begin Log>
Dr. Narváez: Please begin, Jing. I'm as ready as I'll ever be.
Dr. Yi: There is a dead lamprey in that jar. [points to SCP-2737's container] Please take a moment to observe it.
Dr. Narváez: I'll take your word for it.
Dr. Yi: What do you see? [holds up an ink blot card]
Dr. Narváez: An ancient castle.
Dr. Yi: [holds up a second ink blot card]
Dr. Narváez: A swamp in the dead of winter.
Dr. Yi: [holds up a third ink blot card]
Dr. Narváez: I… I remember when I was still of faith, telling myself that everything happened for a reason. That tragedies were there to teach us - to make us better people. There are terrible things that go unknown, from which no lesson can be learned. A child, abandoned in a well and never to be found. A vagrant, without friend or family, sunk beneath a mire. Death is not a friend.
And just like that, I'm there again. I don't want to remember this. I've done everything to avoid going back there.
He's dead. He'll always be dead. My father. I remember him vividly. His will was great - his sickness greater. The doctors would amputate - butchering him in a vain effort to save the whole. A foot, a hand, no success. Arms and legs, still it spread. His eyes, his tongue - they took them too.
I told him the stories he had once taught me, wishing he could understand my words. I prayed over his jaundiced body - invoking every saint I could recall, and a few I likely made up. Was he conscious? I don't know. He moved, sometimes screamed, seemingly trapped in a nightmare. The room was filled with bedpans of shit and piss and blood. They injected him with opiates – enough to numb reality. I didn't want him to suffer, but I wish… I wish I could have spoken to him one last time. We never had a chance to say goodbye.
In my effort to forget those months of horror, I lost the pleasant as well. Erasing him from my mind. I remember trips to the beach. Our visits to the Alhambra. A night filled with warmth and old tales. And, while his illness was weak, my first sip of wine.
I will be forced to forget this. I'll return to my refusal to remember him. But it was worth it. So worth it. [begins to cry more profusely, smiling] Protocol - my old enemy, we meet again - but I've never hated you as much as I do now. [chuckles while still crying]
<End Log>
Closing Statement: Subject was administered amnestics and no longer recalls the experiment.

+ Addendum

 ACCESS GRANTED

In 1991, the outer portion of SCP-2737's container was scanned. Image retrieval software revealed faint markings suggestive of an inscription. Further analysis resulted in the discovery of a quote from Plutarch's On the Intelligence of Animals. Translated from Latin, it reads:

"So, when Domitius said to Crassus the orator, Did not you weep for the death of the lamprey you kept in your fish pond? – Did not you, said Crassus to him again, bury three wives without ever shedding a tear?"

+ A Statement from Dr. Calixto Narváez: 11/29/2010

 ACCESS GRANTED

If you are reading this, then your treatment has already begun. The inoculation merely delayed the memetic agent, allowing you read this document and be better prepared for the experience. SCP-2737 exposure has been shown to outperform psychotherapy and medication in the alleviation of post-traumatic stress disorder, major depressive disorder, secondary traumatic stress, and generalized anxiety disorder. Through decades of research we have fine tuned the therapeutic process. By the end of this session you will likely feel as though a burden has been lifted, with no recollection of this document and its associated experience.
There is an undeserved stigma associated with mental health and its management. Through SCP-2737 treatment you will not be judged, analyzed, and no one will tell you how to live your life. Think to yourself or speak out loud - a lamprey that died 2,000 years ago makes for a surprisingly sympathetic listener.
Today you will cry. You will mourn. You will remember all you have ever lost.
And through this, you will begin to heal.

Footnotes
1. Testing has suggested this to be the only consistent effect.
2. Fear of death.
3. The attempt to answer the question of why a good God permits the manifestation of evil.
4. Not considered an unusual answer due to the subject's exposure to a deceased organism moments earlier.

« SCP-2736 | SCP-2737 | SCP-2738 »


Item #: SCP-2738
Object Class: Euclid
Special Containment Procedures: MTF Lambda-13 (“Inventory Control”), based out of Site-12, is tasked with detecting and containing SCP-2738 instances as they manifest. As tests have shown that SCP-2738 is potentially spread between registers and between retailers through the use of items anomalously transacted using the SCP-2738 program, such as prepaid cards or gift cards, a cover story of SCP-2738 being a credit theft program has been fully developed and spread to the upper management of all major US retailers.
When SCP-2738 is found on a register system, the store's district manager is to contact Site-12 personnel and by extension MTF Lambda-13 personnel for containment operations. All retail employees, including high-level managers, are to be kept under the guise that Lambda-13 personnel and any involved Foundation research personnel are FBI agents investigating credit theft.
As investigations carried out by Foundation statisticians have shown that SCP-2738's spread rate is increasing, research efforts toward safe removal of SCP-2738 from register systems are ongoing.
Description: SCP-2738 is an unlicensed software of no determinable origin which anomalously manifests in the computer systems of American retailers, first discovered on March 14, 2014. SCP-2738 functions by running alongside each respective retailer's default POS (Point of Sale) program at checkout registers. Unless the default POS program's window is minimized to allow access to Task Manager or someone is observing a register computer while it boots1, SCP-2738 is undetectable.
Upon direct, intentional launch on Microsoft Windows2, the register will display the title “M.L. Initiative POS Systems,” the associated logo, and the current software version and year. When fully loaded, SCP-2738's main screen appears the same as the default software used by the computer on which the program is launched; if SCP-2738 is launched on a computer without register software installed, it will display an error screen with the text “PLEASE RECONNECT ME” in the center and become unresponsive.

A screenshot of what is displayed when SCP-2738 is intentionally launched. Screenshot taken on a ████ █████ register during Test A.

If numbers are entered into the space used for ringing up product SKUs/UPCs3, SCP-2738 will in response display the transaction of seemingly random products from the store in which it is being used, despite the product SKU/UPC not matching the numbers entered; if the sale is completed, the store's digital inventory will change4 as if the transaction was processed normally. No history of abnormal input will be apparent, despite the products never having been present at the register.
Of note is the fact that products transacted by these means will not require any monetary exchange to complete the sale; the system will instead automatically print a receipt with the total tender plus sales tax that would have been transacted normally immediately after the order is totaled. The receipt and products ‘sold' are non-anomalous with the exception of the payment method displayed on the receipt, which will in all cases read “Visa MasterCard ending in -XXXX.”5 The presence of two conflicting card companies is thus far the only way to successfully detect an SCP-2738-affected transaction.
Items rung up in response to numerical input are done so in no observable order, and appear to be selected arbitrarily from store inventory. However, after several tests involving the input of English translated into numbers via a basic substitution cipher6 were completed, it was hypothesized that SCP-2738 program instances are sentient7 and appears to respond to alphanumeric input by selecting products intentionally.
When SCP-2738 is communicated with through means of alphanumeric input, items transacted will be removed from both digital store inventory (as normal) as well as their physical locations on the sales floor. This process is instantaneous, and can be easily observed on CCTV surveillance, albeit with no clear visual signs shown of what happens to objects when they are removed. This process occurs with no temperature changes, Hume level spikes, radiation level spikes, or electrical/electromagnetic discharge present.
History and Recovery:

▼ show August 12, 2014 test log

▲ collapse

Test A: August 12, 2014
On August 10, 2014, ████ █████ store managers were informed of SCP-2738 presence in their register systems, with the cover story in use that the program is a suspected credit card theft malware and Lambda-13 personnel are Federal Bureau of Investigation officers. Agents Fredericks, Shaw, and Jameson of MTF Lambda-13 posed as ████ █████ employees repairing a register on a low-traffic end of the store in order to test SCP-2738.
Note: Agent Fredericks' messages are keyed in using the aforementioned alphanumeric method as if he is inputting product SKUs into the register. SCP-2738's responses are displayed as line items rung up as if present at checkout, with the SKUs matching those actually used in the store for each respective item. In later observance of CCTV footage, it is seen that all items transacted disappear from the sales floor in the manner outlined previously.
Agent Fredericks (typing): 8-5-12-12-158
Agent Fredericks (typing): 4-15 25-15-21 19-16-5-1-119
Agent Fredericks pauses.
Agent Fredericks (typing): 8-21-14-7-18-2510
Agent Fredericks (typing): 14-5-5-4 8-5-12-1611SCP-2738: GIFT CARD ACTIVATION FEE | 2.45

Agent Fredericks (typing): 4-1-14-7-5-1812SCP-2738: DEWALT KNIFE <S> | 0000-453-572 | 12.95
Agent Fredericks is instructed to void the transaction, which, after confirmation, returns the register to its default checkout screen. However, items transacted do not return to their pre-transaction locations on the sales floor, and are not present in the store (see below).

On October 05, 2014, Agent Fredericks reported to his supervisors that a prepaid card for 100 USD had appeared in his wallet behind his other cards, and that he was not certain when it had appeared. As Agent Fredericks confirmed that he did not purchase nor receive a prepaid card at any point in the past several months, it was suspected that the card originated from the test transaction he carried out on August 12, 2014. Agent Fredericks was permitted to use the card at a Foundation front company, West End Used Books, located several kilometers from the site, and it was confirmed that the card had indeed been activated for its full 100-dollar value regardless of the fact that Agent Fredericks had cancelled the transaction in question before it was completed and the card was not present at the register.
On October 07, 2014, cashiers at West End Used Books contacted Site-12 personnel with complaints of "M.L. Initiative POS Systems" being displayed briefly upon powering on their registers in the morning. MTF Lambda-13 members were sent to investigate, and were found to confirm SCP-2738 presence in register software; tests similar to that of August 12, 2014 were conducted, with similar results.

▼ show October 07, 2014 test log

▲ collapse

Test B: October 07, 2014
In this test, further communication with SCP-2738 was attempted. Agent Shaw was instructed to initiate conversation with SCP-2738 regarding its means of transmission and origin, and then to insinuate that he will uninstall SCP-2738 from the register as a means of testing potential sapient response to threats. West End Used Books is a functioning used book store and resale shop located ██ kilometers from Site-12. Register systems use 64-bit Windows 7 Professional. This test was carried out after store hours, with the full cooperation of in-store employees.
Agent Shaw (typing): 8-15-23 19-16-18-5-1-413Agent Shaw (typing): 16-21-18-16-15-19-514Agent Shaw (typing): 14-1-13-515Agent Shaw (typing): 15-23-14-5-1816Agent Shaw (typing): 1-18-18-9-22-1-12 13-5-20-8-15-417Agent Shaw (typing): 23-8-15 13-1-4-5 25-15-2118Agent Shaw (typing): 21-14-9-14-19-20-1-12-1219Agent Shaw (typing): 21-14-9-14-19-20-1-12-12 16-18-15-7-18-1-1320
SCP-2738 is unresponsive for a period of thirty seconds.
Agent Shaw (typing): 21-14-9-14-19-20-1-12-12 16-18-15-7-18-1-1321Agent Shaw voids the transaction. Thus far, only one out of four registers at this location are affected. After checking Agent Fredericks' receipt from October 05, it was confirmed that the register on which SCP-2738 is installed is the same register that processed his transaction using the prepaid card.

Following knowledge inferred from recent tests, it is apparent that items transacted when communicating with SCP-2738 are anomalously transferred to the possession of whoever carried out the transaction. Agent Fredericks has thus far found the following items in his possession without memory of purchasing them:

One prepaid card with a value of 100 USD, found in his wallet (10.05.14)
Two greeting cards, found in his right desk drawer within his office in Site-12 (10.09.14)
One candy bar, found in his kitchen cabinet in his personnel quarters (10.20.14)
One pneumatic nailgun, found in the bed of his truck (10.25.14)
One pocket knife, found in his pants (11.02.14)

Similarly, Agent Shaw later found The Andromeda Strain by Michael Crichton, Understanding Viruses: Edition 3, a biology textbook by Teri Shors, and Uncontainable by Kip Tindell on his bookshelf in his quarters. Shaw reports that he did not previously possess any of the books before November 2014, though he is not certain of when exactly the books appeared.

▼ show November 30, 2014 interview log

▲ collapse

On November 29, 2014, an employee at West End Used Books contacted MTF Lambda-13 personnel with complaints of SCP-2738 activity on the store's affected register, despite having had said register powered down since shortly after the test carried out on October 07.
Interviewer: Agent Fredericks
Interviewed: Meg Saunders, West End Used Books cashier and former Foundation secretary at Site-12
Agent Fredericks: Alright, let's begin. Yesterday, you called your site contact to discuss SCP-2738's presence on your bookstore's register. This is the same register used in the tests carried out on October seventh, yes?
Ms. Saunders: That's correct.
Agent Fredericks: Alright, and can you describe the activity your store has seen since then?
Ms. Saunders: Yes. It only started up again the day before yesterday, near closing time, which is why we reached out to you immediately in the morning.
Agent Fredericks: Alright.
Ms. Saunders: I was ringing up a customer on another register when I saw an inventory notification in the corner of the screen. We get those when the truck comes and we have new stuff added into the store's computer inventory, but the truck only comes on Tuesdays, and the day before yesterday was a Friday, so I thought that was weird. When I was done with the customer, I read through the inventory and we'd had a bunch of stuff added that we'd either sold out of completely or never carried.
Agent Fredericks: Okay. Can you provide our personnel with a printout of that screen?
Ms. Saunders: Oh, of course. I don't know why I didn't think to do that, sorry.
Agent Fredericks: It's alright. Do you recall any of the titles?
Ms. Saunders: Oh yeah, yeah. We had one that we'd sold out of months ago - Anthem by Ayn Rand. That one stood out to me because I distinctly remembered our distributor telling me personally a few weeks back that we wouldn't be getting any copies unless a customer came in and sold one to us, but here we were with the inventory showing three new copies of it.
Agent Fredericks: Alright, and what else?
Ms. Saunders: Several books on viruses.
Agent Fredericks: Computer viruses or biological viruses?
Ms. Saunders: Both. We'd had a textbook on biological viruses once, but that was it, so it was odd to get so many other ones in at once. At least a dozen virus books, all nonfiction.
Agent Fredericks: Anything else?
Ms. Saunders: Yes, uh, The Communist Manifesto, the one and only. Five copies of it. I knew we didn't carry that - hell, do they even print and sell copies anymore?
Agent Fredericks: Were these products visible on the store shelves, or simply present in digital inventory?
Ms. Saunders: I had my coworkers and I look for them, but we couldn't find them in the usual sections. We could ask the truck driver, but I figured we should ask you guys before talking to anyone about it. Not sure if the driver is Foundation and all that.
Agent Fredericks: They should be, yes. But thank you for your caution.
Ms. Saunders: No problem, no problem. I used to work in this site.
Agent Fredericks: So you couldn't find these inventory additions on the shelves?
Ms. Saunders: Like I said, not that I'm aware of. But they're cluttered in the bargain bin and some of the back areas of the store; they very well could be hiding in there, but none of us could find them. We only called you guys because of those tests you all were running back in October - figured this might have something to do with that.
Agent Fredericks: It certainly sounds like that, yes. If you find copies of the false inventory additions, please refrain from selling them until we figure out the situation.
Ms. Saunders: No problem. You're not going to amnesticize me, are you?
Agent Fredericks: No, you're a useful asset in that location, and your employment history with this site makes you more than qualified. Please fully cooperate with Lambda-13 personnel when we come to investigate.
Ms. Saunders: Of course, of course. Thanks, agent.
Agent Fredericks: Thank you.
Meg Saunders has been instructed to avoid the use of the SCP-2738-affected register in the store, as well as to monitor digital inventory for any further anomalies. West End Used Books' delivery driver was contacted and briefly interviewed, but did not report delivery of any of the products discussed by Ms. Saunders.

Projected pattern of SCP-2738 growth. Click to enlarge.

Addendum: Due to these occurrences and their implications should SCP-2738's communicative ability be discovered by civilian cashiers, SCP-2738 has been considered a Level 2 Anomalous Economic Threat by Foundation researchers with the input of MTF Lambda-13 personnel. Due to SCP-2738's rapid spread and potential to destabilize American economy, it is pending upgrade to Keter. As of July 2015, MTF-Lambda-13 personnel are working with MTF Mu-4 ("Debuggers") personnel to develop a non-destructive and functional method of removing SCP-2738 from register systems. Thus far, SCP-2738's original creator has not been identified.

Footnotes
1. On rare occasion, SCP-2738's title is visible for a period of 1-2 seconds at startup.
2. SCP-2738 has not yet been found to function whatsoever on any other operating system. This may be due to its incompatibility with non-register computer systems.
3. Stock-Keeping Unit and Universal Product Code, respectively.
4. Physical inventory, while difficult to track in SCP-2738-affected transactions, does not appear to change along with digital inventory in these cases.
5. XXXX is a placeholder for any four numbers, which are not consistent and appear to show no pattern.
6. A = 1, B = 2, Z= 26, etc.
7. It has been theorized that SCP-2738 instances may be individually sentient or SCP-2738 may be sentient and functioning as a large network of individual instances; however, the latter cannot be confirmed by tests.
8. HELLO
9. DO YOU SPEAK
10. HUNGRY
11. NEED HELP
12. DANGER
13. HOW SPREAD
14. PURPOSE
15. NAME
16. OWNER
17. ARRIVAL METHOD
18. WHO MADE YOU
19. UNINSTALL
20. UNINSTALL PROGRAM
21. UNINSTALL PROGRAM

« SCP-2737 | SCP-2738 | SCP-2739 »


Item #: SCP-2739
Object Class: Safe
Special Containment Procedures: The apartment building containing SCP-2739 has been purchased by a Foundation front company; the wing of the building containing SCP-2739 is currently being used as a dormitory/safehouse for operatives working within the city of ███████, ██. The head researcher of the SCP-2739 project is to be permanently housed within this dormitory to minimize suspicion from the local populace. The remainder of the building is being operated as a normal apartment complex to generate revenue for local Foundation operations. Excluding the possibility of a security breach (to which standard rules apply), no other containment is necessary.
Description: SCP-2739 is a dimensional anomaly located within apartment 437 C of the ████ ██ ██████████ apartment complex in ██████, ██, United States. The interior of SCP-2739 is much larger than the exterior of the apartment should allow (approximately 300 square meters of space within a single-room apartment). The interior of SCP-2739 is stable; no changes in internal dimensions have been recorded.
SCP-2739's apparent function is as an art gallery for several anomalous and non-anomalous artworks centered around ███ ███████1, a former tenant of apartment 437 C and brother of the last known tenant, █████ ███████2. Artworks contained within are referred to as SCP-2739-1 instances in this and all peripheral documentation; see addenda for an abridged list of notable instances.
Recovery: On 13 October, ████, a social worker with the ██████, ██ city government visited the apartment for a wellness check on PoI-2739/02 and instead discovered SCP-2739, calling emergency services shortly thereafter. An embedded agent within a ██████, ██ emergency response agency contacted their handler and attempted to contain the situation. Backup arrived and carried out information blackout procedures before SCP-2739 could gain media attention.
Addendum: Abridged Person of Interest File #2739/01:

Legal Name: ███ ███████
Aliases used: None
Associated Groups of Interest: None
Reason for monitoring: PoI is the subject of an anomalous artwork seemingly intended to be publicly visible.
Course of Action: Monitor known and suspected points of contact, carry out information control measures if necessary.
Priority: Low
Status: PoI is deceased, interred in the ██████, ██ city public graveyard
Background Information: PoI-2739/01 was born ██/██/████ to parents [REDACTED; ETHICS COMMITTEE CLEARANCE REQUIRED] in the city of ██████, ██. PoI attended ██████, ██ public schools but was noteworthy for poor performance and sporadic attendance. PoI-2739/01 spent the majority of his childhood in severe poverty and associated primarily with individuals in similar economic dispositions. PoI graduated from ██████ High School in Spring of ████.
On ██/██/████3, Magistrate Judge █████ ███████ presented PoI with an opportunity to have his criminal records expunged if PoI agreed to enlist in the United States armed services. PoI-2739/01 conceded, subsequently enlisting in the United States Navy as a Hospital Corpsman. Full service records of PoI-2739/01 are available with full PoI-2739/01 documentation.
PoI-2739/01 was dishonorably discharged from service on ██/██/████, with command staff citing PoI-2739/01's continual alcohol and drug-related incidents and general failure to effectively perform his duties. PoI-2739/01 was unable to find employment following discharge from service and subsequently spent an unknown amount of time homeless. Legal records from ████ to ████ indicate multiple citations against PoI-2739/01 for vagrancy and similar offenses.
On ██/██/████, PoI-2739/01 was able to successfully find gainful employment and permanent residence within the ████ ██ ██████████ apartment complex. Medical records indicate PoI-2739/01 sought treatment for addiction withdrawal symptoms at this time, using government-funded programs to fund this treatment.
On ██/██/████, a social worker with the ██████, ██ city government visited PoI-2739/01's apartment for a wellness check and discovered him deceased; mortuary records cite cause of death as a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the chest and a severe heroin overdose. As PoI-2739/01 did not have life insurance and no funds could be secured for a funeral service, PoI-2739/01 was buried in a public, unmarked mass grave in the ██████, ██ city public graveyard.
PoI-2739/02 took over the lease agreement for PoI-2739/01's apartment shortly following his death, one year before the discovery of SCP-2739.

Addendum: Abridged Person of Interest File #2739/02:

Legal Name: █████ ███████
Aliases used: None
Associated Groups of Interest: None
Reason for monitoring: PoI is the suspected creator of an anomalous artwork seemingly intended to be publicly visible.
Course of Action: Monitor known and suspected points of contact, carry out information control measures if necessary. Detain if possible.
Priority: Low
Status: Unknown, last seen before the discovery of SCP-2739.
Background Information: PoI-2739/02 was born ██/██/████ to parents [REDACTED; ETHICS COMMITTEE CLEARANCE REQUIRED] in the city of ██████, ██. PoI attended ██████, ██ public schools and was noted by instructors for perceived artistic talent and creativity. PoI-2739/02 primarily associated with individuals of similar artistic interests in her youth.
PoI-2739/02 graduated ██████ High School in the winter of ████, beginning her first semester in the ██ State University Visual Arts Program on a full scholarship the following spring. However, PoI-2739/02 dropped out of the program in mid-October ████, her second semester. The whereabouts of PoI-2739/02 for the subsequent three years is unknown.
In April of ████, PoI-2739/02 returned to her hometown of ██████, ██, found employment at a local fast-food restaurant, and took up co-residence with a former acquaintance. No direct or indirect associations with known persons or groups of interest is known from this period until PoI-2739/01's death and PoI-2739/02's subsequent disappearance.

Addendum: Abridged List of SCP-2739-1 Instances:
This list is incomplete; a complete list may be accessed by individuals with Level 3/2739 clearance.
SCP-2739-1/001:

Description: Item is a theater with seating for 20 persons. Theater constantly displays a performance visually resembling a shadow play on an 8-minute loop on a 2.5 by 2.5 meter screen. No shadow-casting objects or light-projecting media have been discovered within the theater. Performance depicts a family of two adults and six children, focusing strongly on the youngest male (denoted by subject's short stature compared to the rest of the family; subsequently referred to as "subject") as he reaches adulthood. Majority of the scenes appear idyllic. However, there are several scenes featuring sexual and physical abuse, fights between the subject and individuals outside the family, and scenes depicting substance abuse. Performance concludes with subject speaking before what appears to be a judge.
Notes: A strong smell of tobacco smoke and alcohol has been noted by personnel entering the theater, despite no apparent source.

SCP-2739-1/072:

Description: Item is a Purple Heart4 inside of a plexiglass display case. Object is encrusted with soil. Individuals coming within approximately 2 meters of the object experience faint auditory hallucinations reminiscent of combat. Subjects who directly touch the display case experience visual hallucinations corresponding to the auditory hallucinations. In most subjects, hallucinations are a 3-minute loop of a battlefield scene focusing on a field medic working on a friendly soldier suffering from explosive-induced amputation of three limbs.
Notes: Personnel conducting explorations of SCP-2739 are discouraged from physically touching SCP-2739-1/072

SCP-2739-1/104:

Description: Item appears to sequentially alternate (in order) between a bottle of unidentified liquor, a bottle of unidentified prescription-strength pills, and a copy of PoI-2739/01's Department of Defense Form 2145. Item is within a plexiglass display case and changes appearance whenever unobserved; if observed by a video camera, the change will occur instantaneously between frames.
Notes: Personnel observing the object near-universally describe it initially as "an exit," despite its (inconstant) physical appearance.

SCP-2739-01/137:

Description: Item is a pair of handcuffs of the same model as those issued to the ██████, ██ Police Department from ████ to ████ and a hypodermic needle within a plexiglass display case. When directly observed by a human being, the handcuffs appear unlocked and the needle appears to be capped and sealed in a sterilized pouch, but when recorded with digital and film photography, the handcuffs appear locked and the needle appears to be broken.
Notes: A plaque is fixed to the display case that reads: "Chains." This is presumably the title of the piece.

SCP-2739-01/203:

Description: Item is a replica of the original apartment SCP-2739 exists within. Interior is dirty, with large amount of detritus and spoiled food items on the floor and on other surfaces. An animate, life-size replica of PoI-2739/01 sits on a soiled mattress in the corner of the room. There is a small television in the kitchen area. Television and PoI-2739/01 follow a closed loop of actions. Loop is as follows:

Object will rise from a supine position to a seated position and tighten an improvised tourniquet around its left arm above the elbow. Television will display a blurred color image of a sexual assault; victim appears to be PoI-2739/01 as a child.
Object will locate a hypodermic needle on the mattress and inject itself on the left arm between the wrist and elbow.
Object will begin sobbing quietly and speaking, then set the needle on the mattress. Television will switch to an image of PoI-2739/01 handing a small plastic bag with indeterminate contents to another person. Scene appears to take place at ██████ High School.
Object will reach for a Glock 17 9-millimeter pistol to its right, between the mattress and the wall. Television will display PoI-2739/01 standing before a judge in a courtroom.
Object will remove the magazine from the firearm and check to see if the magazine contains ammunition, then reload and charge the firearm. Television will display what appears to be PoI-2739/01 in silhouette walking away from a door labelled "Chaplain's Office."
Object will conclude its speech, point the firearm at itself at roughly the center of the sternum, and fire, dropping to the supine position. Television will display a short video of PoI-2739/01 sitting at the table within the apartment, seemingly composing a letter before cutting to static as the loop concludes.

As the loop continues, objects disturbed by the loop will return to their default position. Removed objects return to their starting position through unknown means at the conclusion of each loop. The loop will carry on even if objects central to the loop are not present. Viscera generated by the final act of the loop disappears as the next loop continues.
Notes: This piece is the furthest from the entrance to SCP-2739 and is listed as "last" in this and all supplemental documentation. Documents recovered from the home of PoI-2739/02 indicate that the speech is derived from contents of a suicide letter left by PoI-2739/01.

Footnotes
1. Hereafter referred to as PoI-2739/01; see addenda
2. Hereafter referred to as PoI-2739/02; see addenda
3. Two months following PoI-2739/01's graduation from high school
4. An award issued by the United States Armed Services to persons wounded or killed in combat
5. Paperwork issued upon dismissal from United States military service

« SCP-2738 | SCP-2739 | SCP-2740 »


Item #: SCP-2741
Object Class: Safe Neutralized
Special Containment Procedures: SCP-2741 is to be stored in a standard containment locker. Though its anomalous properties are presumed to be no longer extant, any personnel interacting with SCP-2741 should avoid inserting their hands into the device unless explicitly instructed otherwise.
Description: SCP-2741 is a crude wooden box, 40cm in height and width and 1m long. On either side of the box are two holes, labelled LEFT and RIGHT respectively, with rubber gloves fixed to the box inside; wearing the gloves reveals a large button by the fingers on each side. The top of the box is dominated by a plastic skull; in the mouth of the skull is a speaker, and behind it is a slot for a AA battery and an on/off switch.

Experiment 2741-01
Subject: D-582
Procedure: D-582 was instructed to switch on SCP-2741. Upon activation, it began to speak:
D-582: [expletive redacted]
D-582 was instructed to place his hands inside SCP-2741 and press the buttons.

D-582 was instructed to remove his hands and switch off SCP-2741.
Results: Within six hours of interaction with SCP-2741, D-582 reported the development of mild paresthesia in his right arm, and a sensation he identified as correspondingly pleasurable in his left arm. The symptoms dissipated within twelve hours, but motor skills testing revealed that D-582, formerly right-handed, had become left-handed.

Further experiments on right-handed D-class personnel confirmed the phenomenon.

Experiment 2741-06
Subject: D-831, left-handed.
Procedure: The experiment proceeded as above until D-831 placed his hands inside SCP-2741 and pressed the buttons.

The experiment continued as before.
Results: D-831 reported no symptoms, and testing revealed no change to his handedness or motor skills.

Testing with other left-handed D-class personnel, including D-582, revealed no deviance from the formula above.

Experiment 2741-12
Subject: D-452, ambidextrous.
Procedure: The experiment proceeded as above until D-452 placed his hands inside SCP-2741 and pressed the buttons.

SCP-2741 then screamed continuously for 26 seconds until struck forcefully by Dr J███, at which point it fell silent. D-452 removed his hands from the device, and Dr J███ switched off the device.
Results: D-452 reported mild paresthesia for the next sixteen hours, but testing revealed no change to his handedness or motor skills.

Following this experiment, SCP-2741 no longer spoke when activated, and its anomalous properties were no longer apparent.

« SCP-2740 | SCP-2741 | SCP-2742 »