SCP-8480

Link to article: SCP-8480.

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++++ NOTICE FROM THE FOUNDATION DEPARTMENT OF ABNORMAL PARAPSYCHOLOGY

The following file is restricted to Site-80-P, to ensure patient confidentiality.

-- Dr. Allyana Weiss, Lead Researcher, Anomalous Childhood Development Specialty
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**Intake Interview -- Video Log**
**Date:** September 25th, 2023
**Psychiatrist:** Dr. Allyana Weiss
**Subject:** Emily Curtis, 20, designated SCP-8480-A

-----

<START RECORDING>

//Security footage shows the interior of Interrogation Room P-15. The room has been staged to look like a therapist's office. Dr. Weiss sits behind a desk with her clipboard; across from her, SCP-8480-A sits cross-legged, looking at the floor. Their right hand is bandaged, showing partial blood staining -- the concentration of which is centered on the tip of SCP-8480-A's index finger.//

**Dr. Weiss:** Hey there Emily. Have you been holding up well? Making any friends?

**SCP-8480-A:** What?

**Dr. Weiss:** It's okay, I'm here to be your friend!

**SCP-8480-A:** Really? I can't believe that you thought that would work on me.

//Dr. Weiss pauses, a flash of realization. She blushes. SCP-8480-A rolls their eyes.//

**Dr. Weiss:** Oh god. Sorry. I've been talking to 8-year-olds all morning. Let's start over?

//SCP-8480-A snorts.//

**SCP-8480-A:** Sure. So when can I go home?

**Dr. Weiss:** When you've had a bit of a chance to breathe. Now, I do have to ask you some questions--

//SCP-8480-A rolls their eyes and looks out the window in the interview room.//

**SCP-8480-A:** Of course you do. Fine. 

**Dr. Weiss:** Can you tell me your name?

**SCP-8480-A:** Em.

//SCP-8480-A stares at the bloody finger, wrapped in gauze. They bite their lip, tearing at the skin. Shivering, they drop their hand by their side.//

**SCP-8480-A:** Just ask me what you really care about.

**Dr. Weiss:** What do you think I care about?

//SCP-8480-A lays back on the couch and stares at the ceiling.//

**SCP-8480-A:** Why I snapped. Obviously. It's not like the other times, this time was-- nevermind.

//Dr. Weiss pauses, writing notes.//

**Dr. Weiss:** Why don't we just start with what happened. You were at school, for a test?

**SCP-8480-A:** An exam.

**Dr. Weiss:** Right, a test. How were you feeling?

**SCP-8480-A:** Anxious, I guess? I wasn't ready for the exam. I just... I needed more time.

**Dr. Weiss:** Tell me more about the test.

//SCP-8480-A hesitates. They turn to face Dr. Weiss, chewing the nail on their thumb.//

**SCP-8480-A:** I had to pass this //exam//, you know?

**Dr. Weiss:** You were failing out?

**SCP-8480-A:** What? No. I'm not a bad student, I just get overwhelmed, and end up missing class. Sure, I mean, I wasn't doing great but, well... it meant that the exam was my only hope. We were all gathered in the test room, desks in perfect lines, perfect students all ready to ace the exam; and then there was me, and I was fucked.

//SCP-8480-A realizes they have been biting their nails. They violently throw their hand down, hitting their thigh. They wince.//

**SCP-8480-A:** Sorry. Bad habit.

**Dr. Weiss:** It's okay. Why were you 'fucked', to use your phrasing?

**SCP-8480-A:** My head was throbbing, and I couldn't focus.

**Dr. Weiss:** Just a small headache? That shouldn't have been an issue.

**SCP-8480-A:** Really? I've been having migraines ever since I started college, and they've only gotten worse and worse. I can almost feel the headaches in my entire body, you know? So when I looked at the exam, and my head started to swim, I panicked. But I had to pass, so I started writing.

**Dr. Weiss:** Okay. So you were writing the exam, how did the incident occur?

**SCP-8480-A:** The 'incident'? God, you're worse than my last therapist. I don't know why they wouldn't let me finish writing.

**Dr. Weiss:** Why did they stop you?

//SCP-8480-A returns to biting their left thumbnail.//

**SCP-8480-A:** So I was writing my test, and I couldn't think. Whenever it gets like that, I know I bite my nails. It's just... it helps me cope. It lets me focus. So I'm biting my nails while trying to complete the essay portion; I start to hear people around me muttering, but between the exam and my headache, it was just noise. It's //all// just noise, you know?

//Dr. Weiss nods, giving SCP-8480-A a slight smile.//

**SCP-8480-A:** I get to the end, and my brain shuts down. It's screaming in pain, yelling at me that I don't know what the fuck I'm doing -- I'm pushing through, biting the skin around my nails. The controlled pain helps, and I don't even pay much attention while I chew; I have to finish this essay or my parents would kill me. That's when people started talking around me.

**Dr. Weiss:** In the exam?

**SCP-8480-A:** Yeah, I guess. I didn't look up, I couldn't waste any more time. And then this girl behind me screams.

**Dr. Weiss:** She screamed?

**SCP-8480-A:** Top of her lungs.

**Dr. Weiss:** What did you do?

**SCP-8480-A:** I kept writing. And then the proctors came over, and started yammering, like //fuck// if it wasn't already hard to keep my thoughts straight. So I told them to just let me finish writing this sentence, and then I could talk, but they demanded it. And then one of them touched me on the shoulder-- he fucking grabbed me. So I spun, and pushed him away. I think I yelled at him too, I can't remember.

**Dr. Weiss:** What do you remember?

**SCP-8480-A:** Blood. A few flecks, across the top of my exam. I tried to wipe it away and-- and then I tasted it. Copper, acrid in my mouth, dripping down my lips. I saw more blood, and that's when I noticed it dripping down my arm. Then I heard the screaming. All of them, screaming for their lives. My head was throbbing, the room was spinning and I couldn't concentrate on the sentence, so I turned around to see-- it was the proctor. They were standing there, covered in blood, spray covering their face, staring at me in terror. My blood.

//SCP-8480-A shivers.//

**SCP-8480-A:** There was a crack. A sharp jolt of pain that pulled me out of my spiral. That's when I saw my finger. I didn't even feel it. I... I was just biting my nails.

**Dr. Weiss:** You bit off your fingernail?

**SCP-8480-A:** I bit off the tip of my finger. I saw the bone.

**Dr. Weiss:** What happened next?

**SCP-8480-A:** I tried to finish my exam. But then the blood kept dripping onto my page, and when I was trying to clean it up and save my exam-- that's when the paramedics showed up. They dragged me out, and now I'm here.

<END RECORDING>

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**Special Containment Procedures:** All SCP-8480-1 instances are to be isolated and contained within Site-80-P under the guise of prolonged psychiatric care. Bandages, gauze, splints and casts on instances are to be inspected daily, and replaced as needed.

Potential SCP-8480-1 instances are flagged via Foundation crawlers, identifying any individuals under the age of 8 that exhibit symptoms of SCP-8480. These subjects are to be issued a cover diagnosis of 'Extreme OCD tendencies and Severe Anxiety'. When an instance begins to exhibit symptomatic progression, Foundation agents are dispatched to secure the SCP-8480 instance, recommending to their guardians that the SCP-8480-A instance should be involuntarily committed to Foundation Psychiatric facilities for their own safety.

To date, all SCP-8480-1 instances have been remanded to Foundation care, and are to be held under involuntary commitment in perpetuity.

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**Description:** SCP-8480 refers to an anomalous mental disorder that typically manifests in children between the ages of 3 to 14. Infected subjects, SCP-8480-1 instances, exhibit the following symptoms:

* Moderate to Severe Anxiety;
* Headaches/Migraines;
* Moderate to Severe Onychophagia;
* Moderate to Severe Dermatophagia;
* Accelerated cellular regeneration/healing;
* Significantly high pain thresholds, especially in a subject's digits.

SCP-8480 is believed to be triggered when any child experiences extreme, persistent anxiety, or undergoes a traumatic event. While under said mental duress, if the child bites their nails as a coping mechanism, they will be infected with SCP-8480. Subjects will then experience varied rates of symptomatic progression, typically linked to internal and external stressors. Many unidentified instances are believed to survive into adulthood asymptomatically. The majority of instances under the Foundation's care were committed under the age of 15, totaling ██00 contained instances between all facilities.

SCP-8480-A refers to Emily Curtis, 20, an SCP-8480 instance who was significantly older than all other instances when first recovered. It is theorized that additional research interviews with SCP-8480-A have a high probability of identifying the root causes and triggers of SCP-8480, and will help better understand how to mitigate the symptoms of the anomaly.

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**Session #3 -- Video Log**
**Date:** September 28th, 2023
**Psychiatrist:** Dr. Allyana Weiss
**Subject:** SCP-8480-A

-----

<START RECORDING>

//SCP-8480-A is in the interrogation room, shaking their leg. Multiple fingers have gauze covering them. Dr. Weiss is sitting in a chair across from SCP-8480-A. The two sit in silence.//

**SCP-8480-A:** Will you just say something, or can I go?

**Dr. Weiss:** I already told you: you can talk about anything you want, or we can sit in silence for the hour. I don't mind either way.

//Silence.//

**SCP-8480-A:** Ugh. I guess we can talk about... //this//.

//SCP-8480-A gestures at themselves.//

**Dr. Weiss:** What if we start easy? Do you remember the first time you bit your nails?

**SCP-8480-A:** Does anybody?

**Dr. Weiss:** You'd be surprised by what the mind remembers.

**SCP-8480-A:** I remember the shame. The embarrassment. The pain. The countless adults telling me what an awful habit it was, the disgusting taste of the sprays that I ignored -- my mind won't let me forget any of that.

**Dr. Weiss:** It sounds like it was present throughout your life, then. Can you recall a time when it felt the worst?

**SCP-8480-A:** I guess? I... okay, wait, I do remember that I was like, maybe seven or eight. I was in my bedroom, playing by myself, when I heard a loud slam. Like something had just crashed into the side of our house, into my wall, glass breaking -- I ran out of my room to see what was happening.

**Dr. Weiss:** What did you find?

//SCP-8480-A looks away.//

**SCP-8480-A:** I... I don't know. I remember blood. My mom. My dad. Not much else. I ran back into my room, slammed the door and locked it behind me; I saw my mom do it all the time. And then they started yelling at each other.

**Dr. Weiss:** That sounds incredibly difficult to process.

**SCP-8480-A:** Yeah. I just... I remember crying, and when my dad yelled through my wall to 'Shut up!', and I heard a lamp shatter from the other side, I started to hyperventilate an-- and, then, uhh. Sorry.

//SCP-8480-A begins to chew on their knuckle, the skin red and raw.//

**Dr. Weiss:** It's okay. You don't have to keep going if you don--

**SCP-8480-A:** I want to.

**Dr. Weiss:** Okay.

**SCP-8480-A:** You know when a kid is crying? Like that kind of disgusting, slobbery, unbound emotions that you don't know how to process yet, and it's just flying everywhere? And I was alone, trying to figure out why I was feeling bad, let alone why my dad yelled at me. I shouldn't have left my room, it was my fault. My head felt like it was filling up with oil, coating everything and just making it feel hopeless. My stomach was in knots-- and again, he yelled at me. I screamed for help and then--

//SCP-8480-A exhales three times in quick succession. When they open their mouth, their lip is bloodied, the surface of the skin ripped apart. They do not notice, and continue biting on their knuckle. It has also begun to bleed, and bone is partially visible. Dr. Weiss does not intervene.//

**SCP-8480-A:** Sorry, I just... there's a reason I try and forget. I heard my mom scream, trying to stop him, but he didn't listen. I heard the heavy footsteps, the familiar sounds of my nightmares. I heard him try the door handle, shaking the frame, demanding that I unlock it. He was threatening to break it, knock it down, show me how to shut up and listen to my father, saying I was 'lucky' he didn't take my door away.

**Dr. Weiss:** What did you do?

**SCP-8480-A:** At first, I didn't know what to do; you know when you just have so many emotions, they need to come out? I started to freak out -- I think it was a panic attack, thinking back to it... sorry, I'm... yeah. So my mind is screaming that I'm a failure, my dad is pounding on the door and I know I'm going to get in trouble and I-- I bit my tongue. Not intentionally, just by accident. And... it helped. As the pain throbbed on my tongue, I felt the pain in my head go down. Turns out biting my nails, ripping at the edges of my fingers, it all helped. The piercing intensity of the hurt -- I used it to focus. I centered myself around my pain, calmed myself through the overwhelming feelings; gives me... it helps me breathe.

//SCP-8480-A shakes their head.//

**SCP-8480-A:** I stopped crying after that. I learned what a mistake it was to be myself. I... that was the first time I remember me using pain to stop my... my mind, my anxiety, my everything.

//SCP-8480-A cries in silence, face neutral, with tears pouring down. They are struggling to focus; SCP-8480-A pinches the bandaged finger, flinching and regaining control of their breathing.//

**Dr. Weiss:** Are you okay? Do we need to take a break?

**SCP-8480-A:** I... I don't know.

<END RECORDING>

[[/div]]

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**Addendum 1:** Symptomatic Progression

SCP-8480-1 instances will experience a number of symptoms as the anomalous influence increases. The rate of progression is unknown, but movement between stages is believed to be linked to experiencing additional traumatic or stressful experiences. SCP-8480 infections can be grouped into the following stages:

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++ __**Stage 1: Onset**__
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SCP-8480 can be contracted at any point before an individual's adolescence, with identified subjects having a median age of 9. While SCP-8480 infection is believed to be possible as early as 3 months, diagnosis is difficult due to the fact that infants lack teeth; instead common indicators are sucking on fingers, or otherwise gumming their limbs. Regardless of age, upon infection, all SCP-8480-1 instances begin to exhibit the following symptoms within 2-3 days of the inciting incident.

[[include :scp-wiki:component:image-block name=16346_lores_crop.jpg|caption=Youngest recorded SCP-8480-1 instance, ~6 months old, exhibiting Stage 1's symptoms |width=300px]]

* Instances will begin to experience low to moderate anxiety during the majority of their days, unless already at those levels.
* Instances will begin to feel the anxiety manifesting as light pains in the stomach, or head -- commonly diagnosed as a 'tummy ache' or 'headache', given the subjects' ages.
* Instances will develop numerous maladaptive coping mechanisms, ranging from picking at skin, pulling their hair, and biting their fingernails. Subjects have stated that, of these, biting their nails provides the most 'relief'.
* Instances will begin to believe that there is something inherently wrong with them, that is unable to be fixed. It is unknown if this is a symptom, or a side-effect.

While there are exceptions, SCP-8480-1 instances will move into Stage 2 within approximately 6 months to 1 year from initial onset.
[[/tab]]
[[tab Case Study]]
**Therapist:** Dr. Allyana Weiss
**Subject:** SCP-8480-CA16 (Mikey, 7)
**Notes:** SCP-8480-CA16 was recovered recently from a private daycare in Southern California. SCP-8480-CA16 displays symptoms typical of a Stage 1 infection.
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<START RECORDING>

**Dr. Weiss:** How are you today, Mikey? Did you have fun in the group room earlier?

//SCP-8480-CA16 has their hand in their mouth, a slightly pink drool dripping down.//

**SCP-8480-CA16:** We played with Legos and I got to build a house, but then Stumpy ran over and knocked down my--

**Dr. Weiss:** Stumpy? That's not a very nice thing to call somebody. Do you mean Jordan?

**SCP-8480-CA16:** Nuh-uh, his name is Stumpy! That's what all the other kids say, and umm, they say that they're... they said my name was Stubs and it's not, it's Mikey!

**Dr. Weiss:** I know that Mikey. You know, other kids only say that because they're scared like you are.

//SCP-8480-CA16 takes their hand out of their mouth. They have bitten their nail far enough that the skin is bleeding underneath. They begin to draw on the floor with their fingertip.//

**SCP-8480-CA16:** I want my mommy. Mommy didn't call me a scaredy-cat, she...

**Dr. Weiss:** Mikey, you know you can't see your mother anymore. We've talked about thi--

**SCP-8480-CA16:** I want to see her! Why won't you let me go home to my mommy?

**Dr. Weiss:** Mikey, your mommy isn't safe. We want to help you, okay? Do you think you can just talk to me for a bit longer? Tell me about what you're drawing.

//SCP-8480-CA16 begins to bite their other fingers, but nods in assent.//

<END RECORDING>
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++ __**Stage 2: Stasis**__
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SCP-8480-1 instances entering Stage 2 of SCP-8480 will continue to experience the same symptoms as above, as well as the following:

[[include :scp-wiki:component:image-block name=bandage_crop.jpg|caption= SCP-8480 instance in Stage 2 receiving medical care; image discovered in Foundation archives. |width=300px|align=left]]

* Instances will become dependent on their maladaptive coping mechanisms to regulate their emotions. Attempts to dissuade this behavior through medical, psychological, or therapeutic intervention have no impact.
* Instances will begin to further increase their reliance on onychophagia and dematophagia as the only consistent methods of regulating their emotional states; this often leads to SCP-8480-1 instances bleeding as a result.

SCP-8480-1 instances are believed to be able to remain in this stage for an indefinite period, with SCP-8480-A being the oldest discovered instance, having transitioned into the third stage just prior to intake. For an SCP-8480-1 instance to move into Stage 3, they must experience a significant and prolonged period of stress, anxiety, and traumatic experiences. The exact trigger changes on an individual basis, and there is no way to predict what will trigger Stage 3.
[[/tab]]
[[tab Case Study]]
**Therapist:** Dr. Allyana Weiss
**Subject:** SCP-8480-MD27 (Lana, 12)
**Notes:** SCP-8480-MD27 was admitted to Site-80-P two years ago, following a report by their middle school teacher, after they began bleeding in class during 'Bring Your Parent to School Day'. SCP-8480-MD27 is a prototypical example of Stage 2.
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[[div class="blockquote"]]
<START RECORDING>

//SCP-8480-MD27 sits on their bed in their containment chamber, curled in a fetal position. They rock themselves back and forth, as Dr. Weiss enters.//

**SCP-8480-MD27:** <//Quietly.//> God please if you can hear me, please fix me. Let me go home to my mom and dad, I can promise I'll be good again. Save me God, please I just...

**Dr. Weiss:** Hey there, I'm Dr. Weiss and--

//Dr. Weiss pauses, as SCP-8480-MD27 does not respond. As Dr. Weiss approaches, SCP-8480-MD27 freezes.//

**SCP-8480-MD27:** Stop! No, please, no. Just -- don't come any closer, please go //away//, I can't stop myself, please, please, please leave me alone. Please just... please don't, I--

//SCP-8480-MD27 begins to clutch their head while rocking, as they start to groan.//

**Dr. Weiss:** I know the pain hurts, I know it does. You know, other people like you bite their nails, do you--

//SCP-8480-MD27 stops groaning, and covers their mouth, hyperventilating.//

**SCP-8480-MD27:** I can't, no I can't, I can't bite, I-- my dad-- my daddy says that biting is dirty and that I'm going to make God sad. Why won't God stop crying? I asked Mrs. Sally in Sunday school, and she told me that the angels are always watching. Mrs. Sally said they hate sinners. I think the angels don't like me.

**Dr. Weiss:** The angels don't like you?

**SCP-8480-MD27:** They tell me that I'm a bad girl. I know it's a sin. That's what Mrs. Sally said, and my dad told me that when I bite my nails, I show the world how wrong and rotten I am. I want to stop bleeding. I want to be a good girl, I do. But the devil won't let me, he won't, he won't, he won't, he won't, he wants me to bleed. He tells me to be bad. He tells me that I... that I'm a monster.

//SCP-8480-MD27 rips a deep gouge into the skin off of their palm, blood pouring out, bone snapping through, their ligaments twitching. They begin to cry.//

**SCP-8480-MD27:** I'm sorry God, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm bad, I know, I know, I'm sorry, I...

//Dr. Weiss pauses, stepping away from the instance. They place a finger on their earpiece.//

**Dr. Weiss:** Could I get a medical team to MD27's containment chamber?

<END RECORDING>
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[[div class="blockquote"]]
**Session #10 -- Video Log**
**Date:** October 8th, 2023
**Psychiatrist:** Dr. Allyana Weiss
**Subject:** SCP-8480-A

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<START RECORDING>

**Dr. Weiss:** I hear you caused //quite// a stir in group today.

**SCP-8480-A:** Ugh. You heard?

**Dr. Weiss:** You started a feeding frenzy, you know that?

**SCP-8480-A:** A what?

**Dr. Weiss:** I know we've been working through your traumas, and I know that what you did helps your mental pain, but--

**SCP-8480-A:** But what?

**Dr. Weiss:** You can't bite your fingers in front of the kids.

//Silence.//

**SCP-8480-A:** This is bullshit -- I didn't do anything wro--

**Dr. Weiss:** Emily, that is enough. Listen to me.

//SCP-8480-A freezes. Their expression flashes to neutral, as blood begins to trickle out of the corner of their mouth.//

**Dr. Weiss:** You're the oldest one here and all the other kids look up to you, whether you like it or not, so we expect that you--

**SCP-8480-A:** That I what? That I'm suddenly the magic miracle cure that everybody else needed? And if you can save //just// me, just special little me, then you can look like a big hero who saved a girl from biting her nails. You're going to have to force me to stop. I need the relief.

//SCP-8480-A grabs their head in pain, opening their mouth. Blood begins to freely flow, a large gouge missing from their bottom lip. They bite on their right thumb, as a crunch can be heard on the recording.//

**SCP-8480-A:** <//Sighing in relief, as they chew on a chunk of flesh.//> So-- sorry. I just...

**Dr. Weiss:** Emily, do you know what a maladaptive coping mechanism is?

**SCP-8480-A:** I've heard the other doctors mention it, but they clam up when I ask questions.

**Dr. Weiss:** Simply put, when anybody feels bad or stressed, we all want that feeling to stop. Whatever you do that helps relieve that pressure is a coping mechanism. 

**SCP-8480-A:** Like biting.

**Dr. Weiss:** Exactly. However, the biting is what we call a maladaptive coping mechanism. What it means is that you were put in a very hard situation, underwent extreme trauma, and without a model of how to cope, you developed your own methods. Those methods, biting, ripping, chewing -- those are temporary.

**SCP-8480-A:** You... you don't get it. It's everywhere. Every second. Every moment. Every breath, every step, everything that I do in my entire life. I am always in pain. I am always terrified. I feel my fucking skin crawling back up my bones, like it's taunting me to rip it off again. It's wrong, and I... do you know why everybody has every finger bandaged? It's because we can't bear to look at them. We can't live in a world where our nails will //always// grow back.

//SCP-8480-A tightens their hands into fists, reopening wounds. Blood begins to seep through the gauze.//

**SCP-8480-A:** We feel like fucking monsters. Not because we 'eat our own fingers', not because you have us locked up in boxes, not even because some of the assholes you let work here say it to our faces. We feel like monsters because our body is wrong. We are wrong. And we're just trying to... trying to correct that. Trying to... Sorry. I just... I'm so fucking tired of feeling like this every day.

//Dr. Weiss reaches across, offering a tissue to SCP-8480-A. They refuse, wiping their tears with their bloodied hands, leaving streaks of red across their face.//

**Dr. Weiss:** You know the thing about maladaptive coping mechanisms?

**SCP-8480-A:** Hmm?

**Dr. Weiss:** The worst part is that they work. You're right, it does give you relief, and that's valid. But look at yourself, you are clearly very emotional just talking about it. Do you really want to spend the rest of your life like this?

**SCP-8480-A:** Do I... Do I even have a choice?

//Dr. Weiss does not respond.//

<END RECORDING>

[[/div]]

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[[=]]
++ __**Stage 3: Complete Infection**__
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[[tabview]]
[[tab Symptoms]]
SCP-8480-1 instances that reach Stage 3 are unable to be helped beyond mitigation of symptoms and involuntary reduction of self-inflicted injuries. In Stage 3, all previous symptoms are heightened, ranging from moderate to severe levels, with the addition of the following anomalous effects:

[[include :scp-wiki:component:image-block name=Cast_of_an_Unidentified_Child's_Left_Hand_and_Forearm_(all_fingers_missing)_saam_1968.155.159.jpg|caption=Cast of unidentified SCP-8480 instance, post-mortem, displaying missing digits.|width=300px]]

* The skin and muscles in the fingers and hands of SCP-8480-1 instances will soften, becoming easier to rend.
* When an instance bites their finger, nailbeds or hand, SCP-8480 creates nerve-blockers and triggers the production of endorphins within the brain. This results in the reduction of pain felt by the instance, as said endorphins create a momentary sensation of pleasure.
* Subjects' teeth will harden, allowing them to bite through not only flesh, but bone as well.
* Instances will begin to exhibit enhanced cellular regeneration, causing an accelerated regeneration of tissue.
* Subjects will progress to compulsively consuming all flesh and fingernails surrounding the bones of their fingers. Due to their enhanced healing rates, this results in the subject continually requiring that they consume their own flesh, to avoid extreme emotional distress.
* Subjects universally express the fear that they are broken, and that they do not view themselves as human. This extends to losing a desire to eat anything other than their own body, be active, or engage in any activities.

While research is underway to determine how SCP-8480 could be cured or neutralized, at this time, there is no cure for SCP-8480. An SCP-8480-1 instance will continue to experience these symptoms until total biological death.
[[/tab]]
[[tab Case Study]]
**Therapist:** Dr. Allyana Weiss
**Subject:** SCP-8480-NY48 (Jordan, 15)
**Notes:** SCP-8480-NY48 has been in Foundation containment for 8 years, and is one of the most advanced cases of SCP-8480 in containment. Subject was the primary example of Stage 3 symptoms prior to the location of SCP-8480-A.
-----
[[div class="blockquote"]]
<START RECORDING>

//SCP-8480-NY48 is in a therapy room, restrained with leather straps.//

**Dr. Weiss:** How are you feeling Jordan? Ready to try again?

**SCP-8480-NY48:** Let me move my arm again, and sure. Maybe.

**Dr. Weiss:** I'm afraid we both know that we can't do that, Jordan.

**SCP-8480-NY48:** I've changed, I'm better. I'm not a monster anymore. You can trust me. I've been here so long, please, I just want to go home. It's okay, I won't tell anybody, I won't even talk about you or this place. I'll just go home, play games with my friends and--

**Dr. Weiss:** Jordan, you know it's not safe for you to leave. You're a danger to yourself, and going home will just make it worse. You will just hurt yourself again an--

**SCP-8480-NY48:** You're hurting me. You are all hurting me. Look at me, really, fucking look at me. Is this helping? Do you really think that the two of us sitting together, talking, me telling you //all// about how mommy and daddy made me feel unloved and that's why I hate myself, do you think that makes me //better//?

**Dr. Weiss:** Jordan, you have to want to be helpe--

**SCP-8480-NY48:** I don't want to be helped! I'm fine, okay? No matter what you say, I know that I am not a monster, it's just that nothing helps but biting. It doesn't hurt. Just... please. Let me bite. I promise, I'll stop after one finger, I just need to feel it rip, to stop it from coming back. Please doc, please just let me out.

//Silence.//

**Dr. Weiss:** I'd like to talk about why biting helps you feel better, especially with last session, I felt that we were really getting somewhere.

**SCP-8480-NY48:** You did? <//Laughing.//> I don't remember that. I remember you saying that we were finally talking about the important parts, but I was in so much pain, I don't even remember what I said. I made it up so that you would let me go, and then I could go back to my room and actually help myself. You know, with what actually works for me?

**Dr. Weiss:** Jordan, I am not going to help you hurt yourself. We want to help you get better.

**SCP-8480-NY48:** It's too late, we both know that.

<END RECORDING>
[[/div]]
[[/tab]]
[[/tabview]]
[[/div]]

-----

**Addendum 2:** SCP-8480-A Incident

In the week following SCP-8480-A's last therapeutic session, they declined further treatment and refused to leave their room. During this time, SCP-8480-A rejected all food, and was seen chewing their nails at a significantly reduced rate. On October 17th, 2023, the following footage was captured.

[[div class="blockquote"]]
**SCP-8480-A Containment Chamber -- Security Footage**
**Date:** October 17th, 2023
**Time:** 21:46:00

**//Note: SCP-8480-A was the only individual present in the room during the time of recording.//**

-----

<START RECORDING>

//SCP-8480-A stands in their containment room, staring at themselves in a mirror. Their clothes are dirty, stained with blood; their hair hangs in a messy nest behind them. The lights are all off, and they are silent, panting, rhythmically chewing their index finger's knuckle, white bone visible. The bone scratches against their teeth, a constant grinding noise present throughout the video. Their eyes are blood-shot.//

**SCP-8480-A:** I feel like an idiot. Talking to yourself is what crazy people do.

//SCP-8480-A tears a chunk of their nail off, but spits it onto the ground.//

**SCP-8480-A:** Fuck. Not again. <//Muttering.//> Dr. Weiss said that it could be good. You know, talk to myself, have a conversation, maybe a bit of growth? Acceptance?

//SCP-8480-A snorts as they chew on their cheek.//

**SCP-8480-A:** When has talking ever fixed anything? When was the last time something //other// than biting worked?

//SCP-8480-A stares at their bloody stumps and misshapen fingers. They begin to pace their small chamber, shaking as they do. They slowly bring their hand closer to their mouth.//

**SCP-8480-A:** No. I... I can't change this. I don't want to.

//SCP-8480-A bites on their palm, ripping the skin up their thumb.//

**SCP-8480-A:** I know that it's wrong, I know that I could be healthier, and maybe even start working on being better but...

//SCP-8480-A chews, as blood leaks from the corner of their mouth.//

**SCP-8480-A:** But it's easy. It's easier to just keep biting.

//SCP-8480-A stares at a small pool of blood on the floor. They watch as blood runs down their hand, dripping into the pool.//

**SCP-8480-A:** It's safe. It's familiar. It's always worked, right?

//SCP-8480-A returns to slowly gnawing on their knuckle.//

**SCP-8480-A:** It makes me feel better.

//SCP-8480-A sneers.//

**SCP-8480-A:** Sure. But so did my bedroom. And the house. Fuck, even Dad used to feel safe.

//SCP-8480-A grasps their right wrist with their left hand.//

**SCP-8480-A:** Dad didn't know, he didn't mean it.

//SCP-8480-A manages to pull their right hand away from their mouth -- sinews stretching and snapping as they do.//

**SCP-8480-A:** You don't know that. You can't know what goes on in the minds of monsters.

//SCP-8480-A attempts to bite their nails through their handwraps.//

**SCP-8480-A:** Stop. I don't have to listen to y--

//SCP-8480-A tries to hit their hand away. It doesn't work.//

**SCP-8480-A:** You do. You do need to listen to me. You know why? Because you're a fucking coward. You're a goddamn coward, and you're too scared to quit.

//Silence. Blood coats SCP-8480-A's mouth and hand now.//

**SCP-8480-A:** I bite because it makes me feel better.

//SCP-8480-A wipes their hand across the mirror, leaving a streak of blood.//

**SCP-8480-A:** You bite because it's easy. It's a fucking cop-out and you know it.

//SCP-8480-A closes their eyes, struggling, before they return to chewing on their hand, teeth crunching bone.//

**SCP-8480-A:** You think I like this? You think I like hurting every day, feeling like my skin is screaming to be ripped off, begging for the relief of death? You think anybody fucking enjoys what I put myself through, just to be able to focus for a single minute? You know why we don't eat anything but ourselves? We don't want to. We're always full.

//SCP-8480-A cries, their tears mixing with the blood on their face.//

**SCP-8480-A:** So? If you don't like it, just stop.

//SCP-8480-A continues chewing.//

**SCP-8480-A:** You know this, I can't stop or the pain will--

//SCP-8480-A slows down, before ceasing to chew their knuckle. They drop it to their side, hanging limply.//

//Silence.//

**SCP-8480-A:** Nothing I do will stop it.

//SCP-8480-A stares at their hand, seeing the bandages stained dark red.//

**SCP-8480-A:** How can you be sure?

//SCP-8480-A stares at the mirror for the next minute in silence. They do not move their hands.//

**SCP-8480-A:** Maybe... Maybe I can't know.

//SCP-8480-A smiles.//

**SCP-8480-A:** Exactly. So?

//The smile disappears.//

**SCP-8480-A:** It doesn't change the fact that I'm a monster.

//SCP-8480-A raises their hand, as if to bite, chewing on the frayed edges of the gauze.//

**SCP-8480-A:** We are not a monster. We are not broken.

//SCP-8480-A spits a strand of bloodied gauze onto the mirror.//

**SCP-8480-A:** Are you joking? I'm a monster. I've known this since I was young, you've known it since you were young. We're both a fucking monster, and we can't keep denying it.

//SCP-8480-A balls what remains of their fists, blood trickling out.//

**SCP-8480-A:** Aren't you tired of being a monster? Have you considered that, just maybe, //we're// not a monster? That it's just somebody else's hateful words, other people's insults, a voice in our head that was was forced on us, driven in when they hurt us. A lie.

//SCP-8480-A grabs at their chest, bunching their gown in their fist. They wince.//

**SCP-8480-A:** But I feel it in my fucking soul! I know I'm a monster.

//SCP-8480-A shakes their head.//

**SCP-8480-A:** What if that's a lie? Would you really deny us that? Deny the chance to grow, to heal, to start moving on? Can you truly deny the fact that we are human, not a monster?

//SCP-8480-A freezes.//

**SCP-8480-A:** I'm not denying anythi--

//SCP-8480-A sneers.//

**SCP-8480-A:** You deny it every time you take a bite. Each time you swallow an ounce of flesh. Each nail, each bone shard, each bite of us that 'frees us'? That's denial. You are just playing the monster.

//SCP-8480-A throws their hands to their sides, palms facing the mirror. The skin is in a state of mid-healing, torn skin covering itself.//

**SCP-8480-A:** So? What the fuck am I supposed to do?

//SCP-8480-A shrugs.//

**SCP-8480-A:** What if we didn't bite our fingers?

//SCP-8480-A rolls their eyes.//

**SCP-8480-A:** Sure, right. You say that like it won't drive me insane with the pain.

//SCP-8480-A glares at the mirror, shaking as they try to calm their breathing. It is unsuccessful.//

**SCP-8480-A:** Will you just shut the fuck up and listen to me for a second?

**SCP-8480-A:** //<Silence.>//

**SCP-8480-A:** Weiss is right. She tells you all the time, we are stronger than we think. Look at our lives. Our family. Our parents. The shit we went through? But we survived. We made it. We--

**SCP-8480-A:** We're stronger than this.

//SCP-8480-A stares at the knuckle bone peeking through their skin.//

**SCP-8480-A:** We have spent years running from this, hiding in every blood drop, delving deeper and deeper into the twisted knots of flesh that grow back, chasing after a dream of 'normalcy.' The people around us, our 'family', the doctors here -- they cast us as the monster.

//SCP-8480-A begins to hyperventilate.//

**SCP-8480-A:** I can't--

**SCP-8480-A:** You're right. To them, we will always be a fucking monster. Who else would cause that much suffering, just to stop a little headache?

//SCP-8480-A snorts.//

**SCP-8480-A:** Okay, so? What do you suggest we do?

//SCP-8480-A turns, looking at their own eyes in the mirror.//

**SCP-8480-A:** We move on. We //start// to heal. It's not like we're fixed but... if we own this, if we make it part of us, if we weaponize it? Slowly, but surely -- we can start getting better.

**SCP-8480-A:** You... you think so?

**SCP-8480-A:** It's not going to change overnight, but... is this working? Is this all we are? We're more than just blood, flesh, bone, the pain -- we are //Emily//. It has always been a part of us. The monster inside, the victim, the thing that they have feared for fucking years. They have always been afraid of //us//. So? Fuck them. We live, we survive -- in //spite// of them. We fucking try. Why did we ever listen to them? There is no one way to be fucking normal, normal is a myth. There is no monster, there never was.

//SCP-8480-A looks down, and sees the pool of blood they stand in. They shiver.//

**SCP-8480-A:** But they will always see a monster.

//SCP-8480-A returns their gaze to the mirror, staring at themselves intensely.//

**SCP-8480-A:** So? Let them see a monster. Who cares if we never change their minds, we know the truth; we are no more monstrous than they are.

<END RECORDING>
[[/div]]

Immediately following Incident SCP-8480-A, the anomaly sat in silence on their bed, staring at their hands. SCP-8480-A's hands visibly swelled, especially on each finger; SCP-8480-A appeared to be smiling as they did.

One hour later, the subject began to rip at their hand dressings, removing them and throwing the torn gauze on the floor. The subject's hands appeared red and raw, however; beginning at the first knuckle -- a black chitinous growth had erupted through the skin, covering it in totality, terminating in a sharp, jagged point. SCP-8480-A expressed glee in reaction, flexing their newly grown anomalous appendages.

Moments later, the feed from their cell was lost, as SCP-8480-A utilized their anomalous mutations to escape containment, injuring three Foundation security members in the process. As of October 17th, 2024, they are still missing and considered a threat to safety and normalcy; their neutralization is considered high priority.

-----
**Addendum 4:** Updated SCP-8480 File

Following SCP-8480-A's breach of containment, the file was revised to include updated containment procedures, and to include a new stage of SCP-8480's progression.

[[div class="tabQuote"]]
[[=]]
++ __**Stage 4: Reclamation**__
[[/=]]
[[tabview]]
[[tab Symptoms]]

An SCP-8480-1 instance is believed to enter Stage 4 following a period of extended self-reflection. This progression is believed to be triggered by the acceptance of the instance's past traumas that caused the initial onset, and only occurs when subjects cease constant consumption of their fingernails and surrounding tissues. In Stage 4, the subject will exhibit the following symptoms:

[[include :scp-wiki:component:image-block name=Rasguños_del_oso_de_anteojos.jpg|caption=Scratches left by SCP-8480-A, Stage 4. Adult hand for scale. |width=300px]]

* SCP-8480-1 instances will cease to feel any pain; it is unknown if this is physiological or psychological.
* Instances will experience decreased anxiety levels, reduced to minor or negligible. It is unknown whether this is anomalous or not.
* While SCP-8480-1 instances in Stage 4 do not experience compulsive onychophagia and dematophagia, subjects still exhibit alternative maladaptive coping mechanisms, alongside other signs of psychological distress.
* Subjects will develop black chitinous growths in place of their fingernails, each one capable of shearing through metal, stone and organic material.
* Subjects exhibit increased strength, endurance, and a heightened metabolism.
* Subjects also display significantly heightened hostility towards Foundation staff, and refuse containment.

Due to the difficulty in containing SCP-8480-1 instances that reach Stage 4, and the potential threat they pose to normalcy, containment procedures have been revised in full. Based on the newly discovered information, all earlier treatments are paused indefinitely.
[[/tab]]
[[tab Case Study]]

> **For Case Study, refer to associated documentation regarding SCP-8480-A. All future research or experiments regarding SCP-8480's progression are to be directly approved by the Director of Site-80-P, Dr. Allyana Weiss.**
> 
> **Under no circumstances should additional instances be allowed to progress to this stage.**

[[/tab]]
[[/tabview]]
[[/div]]

-----

__**Updated Special Containment Procedures:**__

All SCP-8480-1 instances are to be isolated and contained within Site-80-P, under the guise of prolonged psychiatric care. Bandages, gauze, splints and casts are only to be issued to instances on request.

Any potential SCP-8480-1 instance is to be placed in a simulated traumatic experience after identification, unbeknownst to them or their guardians. If symptoms progress following the traumatic incident, the instance is taken into Foundation custody.

Under no circumstances are any Foundation staff to provide counselling, support, or mental health treatment for SCP-8480-1 instances. They are no longer prevented from maladaptive auto-cannibalism, as their self-inflicted consumption appears to prevent progression to Stage 4. As a result, SCP-8480-1 instances only require food and water once monthly, and are to remain in solitary confinement at all other times, in perpetuity.

SCP-8480-A is to be neutralized on sight, with their remains returned to Site-80-P for further research.

-----
[[=]]
[[module rate]]

<< [[[SCP-8479]]] | SCP-8480 | [[[SCP-8481]]] >>

[[include :scp-wiki:fragment:scp-anthology-2024-earthworm
| previous-url = https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-8986
| previous-title = Automatonophobia
| next-url = https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-8724
| next-title = Kenophobia
| hub-url = https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-anthology-2024
| hub-title = Anthology 2024
]]

[[include :scp-wiki:component:license-box]]
=====
> **Filename:** 17968_lores_edit.jpg
> **Author:** CDC
> **License:** Public Domain
> **Source Link:** https://phil.cdc.gov/Details.aspx?pid=17968
> **Additional Notes:** Image was modified and cropped.
=====
> **Filename:** 16346_lores_crop.jpg
> **Author:** CDC
> **License:** Public Domain
> **Source Link:** https://phil.cdc.gov/Details.aspx?pid=16346
> **Additional Notes:** Image was cropped.
=====
> **Filename:** bandage_crop.jpg
> **Name:** Bandage_on_injured_finger_in_Hospital._Hood_Rubber_Co.%2C_Cambridge._LOC_nclc.05176
> **Author:** Library of Congress
> **License:** Public Domain
> **Source Link:** https://commons.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bandage_on_injured_finger_in_Hospital._Hood_Rubber_Co.,_Cambridge._LOC_nclc.05176.jpg
> **Additional Notes:** Image was cropped.
=====
> **Filename:** Cast_of_an_Unidentified_Child's_Left_Hand_and_Forearm_(all_fingers_missing)_saam_1968.155.159.jpg
> **Author:** Hiram Powers
> **License:** CC0 1.0
> **Source Link:** https://commons.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cast_of_an_Unidentified_Child's_Left_Hand_and_Forearm_(all_fingers_missing)_saam_1968.155.159.jpg
=====
> **Filename:** Rasguños_del_oso_de_anteojos.jpg
> **Author:** carlos herney caceres martinez
> **License:** CC-BY-SA 4.0
> **Source Link:** https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rasgu%C3%B1os_del_oso_de_anteojos.jpg
=====
> **Filename:** 473979858_c02810d200_c.jpg
> **Name:** deadly fingers
> **Author:** mockney_piers
> **License:** CC BY-NC 2.0
> **Source Link:** https://flic.kr/p/HTgGw
=====
[[include :scp-wiki:component:license-box-end]]
[[/=]]

[[module css]]
.tabQuote {
    padding: 0.5em;
    background-color: var(--darker-color);
    border: 3px solid var(--accent-color);
    border-top-left-radius: 20px;
    border-top-right-radius: 20px;
    border-bottom-left-radius: 10px;
    border-bottom-right-radius: 0px;
}

.earthworm__hub a {
    color: var(--off-white) !important;
}

.earthworm__hub a:visited {
    color: var(--off-white) !important;
}

.earthworm--anth24 .earthworm__hub::after {
    background-color: color-mix(in srgb, rgb(50, 140, 140) 10%, currentColor 75%);
}

@media (min-width: 850px), (min-width: 550px) and (max-width: 768px) {
  .earthworm {
    margin-left:-1.8em;
  }
}

[[/module]]

SCP-8480

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