Link to article: SCP-9545.
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[[>]] [[module Rate]] [[/>]] **Item #:** SCP-9545 **Object Class:** Uncontained **Special Containment Procedures:** Online forums and social media groups concerning conspiracy theories and/or cryptids are to be monitored for any users posting information relevant to SCP-9545’s established fields of interest, with threads concerning "shapeshifters" and "artefacts" being of the highest priority. Users who report being stalked after posting flagged material are to be placed under observation until SCP-9545’s involvement can be confirmed. Targets in the “Red Dress” phase are to be placed under the indirect supervision of field agents with a Mobile Task Force on standby. Capture operations are not to be enacted until the "Black Cat" phase, where containment can be more easily guaranteed. Communications disruptions or power outages within the target’s domicile are to be considered signs of an ongoing “Black Cat” phase and grounds for immediate intervention. Before moving to subdue the subject, agents are to block all potential exits while SCP-9545 is interrogating its target, including windows, ventilation shafts, and pipes. All personnel assigned to capture operations must be armed with incendiary weapons to exploit SCP-9545's aversion to fire, ideally to force it away from viable escape routes and into pre-arranged traps. **Description:** SCP-9545 is a polymorphic entity that most commonly takes the form of a stereotypical government agent. Though this form frequently varies in height, build, hair colour, sex, and ethnicity, it always wears a black business suit, white shirt, black clip-on tie, black dress shoes, black sunglasses, black leather gloves, and an earpiece with the cable fitted into the collar. The full extent of SCP-9545’s polymorphic traits remains unknown, but witness reports indicate that it is not limited to mimicking humans or animals, as some victims report being alone in locked rooms when they were attacked, indicating it is capable of infiltrating through keyholes or disguising itself as inanimate objects or machines. SCP-9545 possesses regenerative properties allowing for rapid recovery from injuries; however, given SCP-9545's propensity for avoiding open combat, the full extent of these abilities is unknown. Available evidence suggests that extreme heat can temporarily hamper regeneration, hence its documented aversion to open flames and electricity. SCP-9545 targets conspiracy theorists, surveying forums and other online communities in search of individuals providing accurate data on subjects that interest it. If any users provide information that it deems factual, they are subject to a pattern of surveillance and interrogation occurring in four distinct phases[[footnote]]Titled after the codewords used in prior capture attempts.[[/footnote]]: # **“Green Text.”** SCP-9545 contacts the target as a fellow theorist on their forum of choice and questions them regarding the source of their information. Due to the paranoia inherent to conspiracy theorists, targets rarely answer SCP-9545’s queries, but if they disclose the requested information, the pattern will end immediately. Otherwise, SCP-9545 will progress to the next phase. # **“White Rabbit.”** The target is contacted via email, with SCP-9545 offering to meet in person and exchange information. This correspondence lasts until the target is manipulated into providing enough details to determine their whereabouts, or their IP address can be traced. # **“Red Dress.”** SCP-9545 observes the target in person, gathering information and intimidating them. Targets often report being followed through crowds, sightings of black vans or helicopters in their vicinity, or finding that their home was searched in their absence. Demands for the requested information or item will be provided. If the target complies (or the mission objective is found in a search), all harassment will cease. Otherwise, this stage concludes with a 48-hour lull in sightings to induce a sense of false security. # **“Black Cat.”** SCP-9545 attacks the target in their home, most commonly at night. In the ensuing interrogation, the target will be forced to surrender all relevant data, often through methods involving extensive use of SCP-9545’s polymorphic traits. Victims can be subject to lethal force, but only if they endanger information or objects that SCP-9545 has been pursuing. **Discovery Log:** The Foundation first became aware of SCP-9545 in 1999 following a series of assaults committed against conspiracy theorists across the United States. It was initially believed that a rogue agent or intelligence agency operating beyond its brief was responsible for these crimes, but after a thorough investigation revealed no involvement from any known GOI, the Foundation began investigating potentially anomalous causes. It was not until 2005 that cross-referenced witness reports confirmed that the “man in black” was a polymorphic entity. Following examination of the small number of confirmed encounters, the "agent" was given its formal designation and its //modus operandi// was officially recognized. Given the level of misinformation and conjecture inherent to conspiracy theorist circles, it is still not known how many times SCP-9545 has conducted its four-step pattern, how long it has been operating, or even how many individuals claiming to be past victims have been lying or mistaken. Additionally, SCP-9545’s default camouflage means that it is frequently misidentified as a stereotypical government agent in numerous other urban legends and conspiracy theories, making the process of tracking it extremely difficult. Since many of the targeted individuals are widely known as conspiracy theorists, local authorities are inclined to dismiss reports of suspicious activity by the targets, meaning they are usually of limited assistance in alerting the Foundation to SCP-9545's activities, further impeding Foundation efforts. Consequently, three of the five containment operations prior to 2020 were aborted due to Foundation operatives arriving too late to intervene. The remaining two ended in failure when SCP-9545 noticed operatives arriving on the scene and fled the area before it could be captured. **Addendum (05/06/2024):** Recent technological developments have allowed for more effective means of confirming prior targets, and following successful simulation tests, the O5 Council authorized a survey of individuals claiming to be past victims of SCP-9545, in order to gather sufficient information to set a trap. in the process, three victims were identified and sought for questioning. @@@@ @@@@ [[collapsible hideLocation="both" show="> Incident Report: 10:00 AM, 05/06/24 (Brinkstone)" hide="- Close"]] [[div class="blockquote"]] = **Incident Report** ---- **DATE:** 10:00 AM, 05/06/24 **INVOLVED INDIVIDUALS:** Charles Brinkstone (39) **LOCATION:** Mellonwoodville, Florida, USA **FOREWARD:** The subject for the first interview with known survivors of SCP-9545 was Charles Brinkstone, a conspiracy theorist living in Mellonwoodville, who had attempted to contact the police concerning an SCP-9545 sighting in 2021 but was dismissed. Based on commonalities, Foundation computer analysis indicated that the sighting was genuine. ---- **Incident Description:** Foundation agents contacted Mr Brinkstone via the local police, using the pretext of having found "corroborating evidence" that could support his 2021 sighting in order to avoid alarming him. However, Brinkstone did not respond to calls even from police officers he knew personally, eventually prompting a wellness check by the police (with Agents Clark and Nauls accompanying them). Upon answering the door, Brinkstone panicked at the sight of the police, loudly accusing them of either working for "him" or of being "him" in disguise, and refusing to be interrogated a second time. He then fled his apartment via the nearest window in a state of extreme agitation, reaching his car and driving away before police officers could reach him, during which he was heard repeatedly screaming "He's wearing your faces, you idiots!" However, upon seeing the Foundation agents waiting by their own car near his escape route, Brinkstone accelerated to unsafe speeds in his attempts to avoid them, ultimately losing control of his car and colliding with a tree at 120 kph. Having neglected to buckle his seatbelt during his escape, Brinkstone was flung through the windshield of the car, suffering critical head trauma on impact with the tree trunk; he was pronounced dead at the scene. Fortunately, a Foundation forensics team surveying Brinkstone's apartment discovered that he had documented his encounter with SCP-9545 in his journal. According to this document, the information that had drawn SCP-9545's attention was a photograph of unusual graffiti found at the local airport, painted without any of the staff noticing the perpetrator at work or CCTV cameras detecting anything. Brinkstone had taken this as proof of an alliance between a "shadow government" and shapeshifting aliens, then posted the image to various conspiracy theorist forums along with his theory. SCP-9545 targeted Brinkstone soon after, resulting in its common pattern of attack proceeding without incident save for Brinkstone's psychological breakdown. In the entries that follow, Brinkstone becomes increasingly prone to obsessing over random elements of his encounters as the journal continues, most notably fixating on SCP-9545's habit of playing Stevie Wonder's “Superstition” through a car radio while stalking him through the streets. In the latter stages, Brinkstone's narration is reduced to seemingly random sentences such as "HE WAS BEHIND ME IN THE BACK SEAT," "HE RIPPED THROUGH THE GARAGE DOOR," and "THOSE AREN'T SUNGLASSES, THEY'RE //EYES//." The words “Charles Brinkstone? We have a matter to discuss," are repeated across most of the second-to-last page, along with vague references to being dragged out of bed, the sentence "Tentacle syringe - out of his sleeve, forced under skin of my arm, forced me to tell the truth!" and "WHAT IS THE EXODUS?" Though the graffiti photo could not be found, having presumably been confiscated by SCP-9545 following Brinkstone's interrogation, a rough sketch of the graffiti has been drawn on the final page. [[/div]] [[/collapsible]] @@@@ @@@@ [[collapsible hideLocation="both" show="> Interview Transcript 1: Hagen" hide="- Close"]] > **Interviewed:** Preston Hagen (33) > > **Interviewer:** Agent Joel Fuchs > > **<Begin Log, 11:00 AM, 05/06/24)>** > > **Agent Fuchs:** Please describe the events that led up to the death of your brother. > > **Preston Hagen:** Don’t you already know? You’re the //real// men in black, by the looks of things: you’ve got the records of my official testimony. > > **Agent Fuchs:** We also have audio recordings of your interrogation. You were heard mentioning the Agent when you thought you were alone. You were going to tell the police about him, but your lawyer discouraged you, and all accounts, you continued to follow her advice throughout your trial all the way to your acquittal. > > **Preston Hagen:** And all it cost me was my self-respect. That and the legal fees. Yay. > > **Agent Fuchs:** Please, this is important. Anything you tell us could help other victims. > > **Preston Hagen:** (//sigh//) It all started in 2022. Matt had been into conspiracy theories for a while by then, but that year, he'd gotten obsessed with the idea that the New World Order was using mystical artefacts to mind-control people. I was always trying to tell him how crazy it was, and he was always ignoring me. The pill-popping didn't help. > > So, when Matt started telling me about being followed by black vans and helicopters, I tagged along whenever he left the house, partly to keep him out of trouble, but mostly just to prove to him it wasn’t real. Surprise surprise, he really was being followed. But not by helicopters. I mean, we kept hearing 'em all around us, but never actually //seeing// them. > > **Agent Fuchs:** What about the black vans? > > **Preston Hagen:** Black //van//. Singular. It was outside our house, in the same parking lot when we went shopping, even following us down the street. And always blasting music as well. “Skeletons” by the Brothers Osborne, mainly. But I got close enough to take a good look, and I started noticing odd things. > > During the lulls between songs, I couldn’t hear any sound from the van, not even any engine noise, almost like the music was there to hide how quiet it was. I didn’t even hear the driver react when Matt went apeshit at them one day. > > **Agent Fuchs:** He attacked the van? > > **Preston Hagen:** ...not exactly. It stopped long enough to open a window and drop him a little warning note, but Matt just wiped his ass with it - literally shoved it down his pants and rubbed it up against his butt - and threw the note right back at the van. He was so busy shouting, he didn’t notice that the van didn’t make sound when it drove off. And then, as this thing was rounding the corner, I realized it wasn't a van at all. > > **Agent Fuchs:** Elaborate. > > **Preston Hagen:** I saw legs. Like millipede legs, hundreds of them moving the car along at once, all hidden behind the tyres and bumpers. Only reason why I'd noticed was because the sunlight happened to catch it at just the right angle. > > **Agent Fuchs:** And what did your brother have to say about this? > > **Preston Hagen:** Zilch. He didn’t notice the legs: his attention stopped at the fact that the van was there at all. > > **Agent Fuchs:** I’m not sure if I understand this; you said he was a hardcore conspiracy theorist, and his arrest record and psych evaluation bear that out, but why would someone so paranoid not look closer? > > **Preston Hagen:** Because Matt wasn’t interested in the little picture. All that mattered to him was that //he’d been right.// He kept bragging that he’d known what was happening all along, that he’d found the one thing that could bring down the Big Bad Whatever The Fuck... and that //they// were “afraid” of him. Can’t forget that bit: Matt had to go on and on about how they were scared of what he’d do next. > > **Agent Fuchs:** Did he specify what he meant by that? > > **Preston Hagen:** Not at first. He didn’t even tell me what he’d been posting. But as soon as the black vans had left us alone for about half a day, Matt popped some Adderall and snuck out of the house when I wasn’t looking. Two hours later, he came back holding this… this… well, it looked like one of those ancient Egyptian canopic jars: this tiny clay thing with human head for a lid and weird symbols carved on its sides. > > **Agent Fuchs:** And he didn’t tell you where he’d gotten it from, did he? > > **Preston Hagen:** (//chuckles//) Not until his eighth shot of vodka. He said the jar had been stolen from Stanford a few months ago and changed hands between maybe half a dozen conspiracy theorists before ending up with the friend who’d given it to Matt that night. //Matt// thought the jar was one of the occult talismans the world government used to control the population, and he could use it undo their global power forever… or something like that. > > **Agent Fuchs:** And how did he think he could “use” this jar? > > **Preston Hagen:** //Supposedly// he knew a guy on the forums who could show him how. But the vodka made Matt too cocky, and the fucking addies didn't help: before I knew what was happening, he’d posted selfies of himself with the jar all over his Twitter account. > > **Agent Fuchs:** I see. And it didn’t bother him that he was essentially providing the police with evidence that he was in possession of stolen property? > > **Preston Hagen:** Of course not, he was drunk //and// high! He thought he could blackmail the New World Order into giving him a get-out-of-jail-free card. Every photo he uploaded had the caption “I can use this on you at any time: call off your operatives and free the people, or I will destroy you”. > > (//sighs deeply//) > > He wanted a reaction… and he got one about thirty-five minutes later. > > **Agent Fuchs:** You mean the Agent arrived at your house //that evening?// There was no forty-eight-hour lull between sightings for you? > > **Preston Fuchs:** That's right. I’m guessing //they// were keeping an eye on Matt's social media feeds; the moment the jar selfies showed up, they dropped everything and headed straight for our house. > > By then, I’d gotten Matt into the shower to sober him up... and for general hygiene: the guy hadn't washed in about two weeks. I'd left him deodorant on the vanity, even put his smokes and his lighter there as well, just so he’d be in the right frame of mind to be yelled at if he ever stopped doing uppers. And that’s when I heard a noise out in the hall; I was spooked by then, so I grabbed one of Matt's hunting knives and investigated. > > All of a sudden, //they// were standing right behind me: six feet tall, slim, dark-haired, dark-skinned, very narrow face, very androgynous features, black suit, black shades. Before I could make a move, they’d grabbed the knife off me, tied my hands behind my back, and threw me into Matt's bedroom - I'm guessing because it was the closest. > > **Agent Fuchs:** You said Matt was in the shower while you were being captured: he didn’t notice anything amiss? > > **Preston Hagen:** He was drunk, he was high, the shower was running, and he had the bathroom door shut; he wouldn't've noticed the roof caving in. I heard the Agent say "Matthew Hagen? We have a matter to discuss," and then they dragged Matt out of the shower. Didn’t even let him get dressed. > > Matt started //screaming//. I couldn't even make sense of half the shit that came out of his mouth: I think there might have been a "I do not consent" in there, but the rest was just Matt shrieking like a howler monkey. Then I heard him crashing around, looking for a weapon, I guess... and I'd left him a can of deodorant and a lighter. > > There was a huge //whoosh// from the bathroom, the Agent let out this... this... roar, like they weren't even human, and a split-second later, Matt went rocketing past me, buttass naked. After a couple of seconds of screaming, the Agent charged out after him with a massive scorch mark down one arm, black blood pouring down his side. Matt grabbed the knife off the floor where I'd dropped it, then he took the jar out of his sock drawer and held the knife to it. > > **Agent Fuchs:** He tried to //hold the jar hostage?// > > **Preston Hagen:** Key word being //tried.// Matt was saying "One wrong move and the New World Order loses everything!" Next thing I know, the Agent's expression changed; I think they might have been scared, maybe angry - it was hard to be sure. Then every inch of the Agent’s body just… erupted with these red and black tentacles that shot out of them like grappling hooks, right at Matt. Before he had a chance to react, the Agent's tentacles slapped the knife away from the jar and... and drove the blade into Matty's throat, all the way up to the hilt. > > And then Matt pulled the blade out - I don't know if he was in shock or trying to fight back, but either way, it didn't work. Next thing I know, he was lying on top of me, bleeding everywhere. I was sure the Agent was gonna kill me next, but instead, they were scooping the canopic jar off the floor, holding it close to their chest like it was a sleeping baby or something. They were even whispering to it. > > Then the Agent reached out toward Matt's head with their free hand, and their middle finger stretched out, transforming into a long, thin blade, almost like a surgical probe made of black carapace, and they sunk it right into Matt's left eyeball. > > **Agent Fuchs:** Official records based on your lawyer's advice state that this injury was inflicted out of desperation during the alleged assault. Do you have any idea why the Agent would have gouged out your brother's eye? > > **Preston Hagen:** Better than that. The Agent gave me the exact reason. > > **Agent Fuchs:** And why would they tell you? > > **Preston Hagen:** Simple: because I asked. Granted, I didn't expect to get an answer, but the Agent told me they needed any information they could get from Matt's brain while he was still fresh, apparently so they could find the source of these jars. > > Once they were finished digging around in Matt's brain, the Agent let me go. They apologized for tying me up, gave their condolences, then turned to liquid and slid under the door. And that was the end of it… right up until I called the cops and opened a whole new can of worms...[[footnote]]Preston Hagen was accused of murdering his brother but acquitted on the grounds of self-defence, his lawyer having claimed that Matthew had attacked Preston in a fit of amphetamine psychosis.[[/footnote]] > > **<End Log>** [[/collapsible]] @@@@ @@@@ [[collapsible hideLocation="both" show="> Interview Transcript 2: Fuller " hide="- Close"]] > **Interviewed:** Jodilynn "Jodi" Fuller (16) > > **Interviewer:** Agent Wilford Blair > > **Foreword:** Subject was a resident of Mothwood, New Jersey, discovered by the Foundation less than twelve hours after her reported sighting, and approached for an interview while still hospitalized. > > **<Begin Log, 10:00 AM, 07/06/24)>** > > **Agent Blair:** To begin with, what was it that got the Agent’s attention? > > **Jodi Fuller:** I guess it started with this post I made on the Alternate Conspiracy community. Er, on Twitter. X. Whatever the hell we're calling it now. I came up with an idea that the lizard people couldn’t fake being human beings anymore because everyone knew how to spot them from all the Youtube videos, so they’d started disguising themselves as objects instead. > > **Agent Blair:** …I see. If you don’t mind me asking, what inspired this particular theory? > > **Jodi Fuller:** Er, a school field trip to the local museum a couple of weeks ago. I wasn't paying much attention up until the teachers took a bathroom break. The curators weren't watching, so I snuck off to take a look at one of the upcoming exhibits, the… oh god, what was it? The Occult in the… 19th century? > > Anyway, there was a weird doodad they were getting ready to put on display, still in its crate, this dinky little bronze box covered in symbols, like a steampunk Rubik's cube[[footnote]]According to the museum catalogue, this was an obscure 19th-century occult device known as a Nereid's Reliquary, commonly used for sex magic.[[/footnote]]. I wasn't all that interested at first. But then, for a couple of seconds, I saw these weird… veins running right along the box, like it just grew blood vessels or something, and they stayed just long enough for me to get a picture with my phone before they disappeared. But after a while of looking over the photo and thinking- > > **Agent Blair:** You used it as inspiration for a theory and posted the photo to the forum as well? > > **Jodi Fuller:** Yeah. Well, once I got out of there: a curator was leading some prick in a tailored suit through the exhibit, so I had to sneak past him. I got back to the tour without anyone noticing, we got back on the bus, and while we were waiting for some douchebag in a BMW to get out of our way, I sent off the photo and the theory. > > **Agent Blair:** And how long had you been a member of this Twitter community at the time you posted it? > > **Jodi Fuller:** Uh… ten minutes. > > **Agent Blair:** How long had you been interested in conspiracy theories? > > **Jodi Fuller:** (//mumbling//) ...I hadn’t. > > **Agent Blair:** I beg your pardon? > > **Jodi Fuller:** (//embarrassed//) I’m not a conspiracy theorist. I don’t take any of that bullshit seriously or anything: I made up the whole idea just ‘cause I thought it sounded funny, and I shared it on the conspiracy theory forums because I… well, I just wanted to see if they’d believe it. Just to see what would happen, you know? > > **Agent Blair:** (//sighing deeply//) In other words, it was a prank. > > **Jodi Fuller:** Yes. I know, I know, it’s stupid but I honestly didn’t mean anything by it. I was just having fun. It was harmless. It... it was //supposed// to be harmless... > > **Agent Blair:** And what happened after you posted? > > **Jodi Fuller:** Well, I pretended like I’d be in danger if anyone knew I was sending it, even told them I'd stolen the bronze thingy to fight the aliens in disguise, yaddah, yaddah, yaddah, and then I logged off. That was on the 15th, I think. I didn’t take another look until the 19th, and by then my inbox was overflowing with messages. > > **Agent Blair:** : Did you reply to any of them? > > **Jodi Fuller:** No, I was still acting like I was a missing person. I just read the latest replies, watched everyone freaking out, and then fucked off. Look, I know it was stupid, but I... I just thought it'd be funny. > > **Agent Blair:** But if you didn't reply to any of them or communicate with anyone on the forum after your initial post, then how did the Agent find you? > > **Jodi Fuller:** …because when I took the photo, I accidentally left location data on. > > (//pause//) > > **Jodi Fuller:** And I'd put my hand on the crate, too: anyone who looked would've seen //my// nails right at the edge of the photo. > > **Agent Blair:** Complete with the green-and-black spiral patterns. Very distinctive. > > **Jodi Fuller:** Anyway, the photo had the location and the date attached, and with my hand in view, the Agent knew it was a kid taking the shot. I was on the only school tour scheduled at the museum for the day, and everyone in class knew my fingernails by sight, so I'm guessing the Agent must have asked around before finding me. > > **Agent Blair:** Did you experience anything unusual in the days before your encounter? Cars following you through the streets, black helicopters, random break-ins, anything like that? > > **Jodi Fuller:** Not really. Dad drove me to school every day, and I think he was in a bad mood about a black van that kept following him and blasting "God's Gonna Cut You Down" at top volume, but I wasn’t really paying attention - I'm not a big Johhny Cash fan. There were a few helicopters buzzing the neighbourhood for a couple of nights, but I didn’t think there was anything weird about it. And someone trashed my room on the 21st, but I thought it was just my little brother playing pranks again. > > **Agent Blair:** You really didn’t notice //anything?// > > **Jodi Fuller:** Not until last night. > > **Agent Blair:** Describe the event in detail, please. > > **Jodi Fuller:** Well, Dad was working late, my Mom's on a business trip to Vegas, and my brother was staying at a friend's house, so I was alone. Around 10 PM, I got up to go to the bathroom, and while I'm there, the power went out. > > Then, while I was walking back to my room, this //voice// behind me said "Jodilynn Fuller? We have a matter to discuss." I turned around and... she was just //towering// over me, at least eight feet tall, skin so pale she was almost glowing. I was already scared, but then I saw the suit and the earpiece, and I thought "oh god, the Feds are here." I started running, tripped up, fell down the stairs, and next thing I know, I'm lying on the first floor landing with a broken leg. > > Then she was standing over me, asking me all kinds of questions about where the bronze box was and how I hid it and what I was planning to do with it and how I knew what it really was. I think I spent the first minute talking gibberish and lying about everything. Christ, I was so scared I even tried to pretend that she'd gotten the wrong girl and my real name was Sondra Blake - my mother's maiden name. No dice, though. > > Eventually, I calmed down enough to admit that I'd been lying and the whole thing was a prank. The Agent said, "then why is the item gone from the museum?" News to me, I hadn't heard of any break-ins. I tried to tell her that, but she just reached down and grabs me by the head, puts one hand over my entire face and then... > > **Agent Blair:** Yes? > > **Jodi Fuller:** Bugs. There were bugs crawling out of her hands, hundreds of beetles just oozing from the fingertips of her gloves... and then they were all over my face, in my eyes, up my nose, in my ears - Jesus Christ, I could feel them creeping //behind my eyeballs.// I wanted to scream, but I didn't want to open my mouth in case the bugs went in there too, so I just sat in silence for about thirty seconds while they crawled around inside my head. Then, all of a sudden, the bugs were crawling out of my head again and back into her fingers. > > Once as I was done crying, I could tell the Agent was pissed off. And it wasn't just that she looked like she wanted to bite my head off: her face kept... rippling, like her skin was just going to peel right off her skull like a mask, and he fingers were lengthening into tentacles. > > After a while she said "at least your //memories// are honest. " Then she started growling at me, telling me about how much time my prank wasted, how it gave the real thief time to escape... no wait, that wasn't the word she used; she said "kidnapper." Anyway, she said, "at least you saw his face and his car. I can work with that." > > **Agent Blair:** When would you have seen this "kidnapper", though? Or his car, for that matter? > > **Jodi Fuller:** He was the guy in the suit I saw at the exhibit. The BMW that blocked us on the way out of the museum was his. I'm pretty sure I heard the Agent say his name, too: Carter, I think she called him, Marshall Carter. > > **Agent Blair:** ...I see. What happened once the Agent was finished interrogating you? > > **Jodi Fuller:** She said, "Please don't waste my time again, Ms Fuller. Lives are at stake. This isn't a game." I was nodding, telling her I was sorry, I'd never do it again and... then there was this pain in my arm, and then I was out cold. > > When I woke up, the paramedics were loading me into an ambulance, and everyone was telling me I'd been drugged in a home invasion. Nobody believed anything I told them about the Agent, said I was just tripping on whatever drugs the burglars gave me. Even the Alt Conspiracy post had been deleted, so the evidence was gone. Still... it's not all bad news. > > **Agent Blair:** Why's that? > > **Jodi Fuller:** Once the nurses gave my phone back, I found out that the Agent deleted my Twitter account, too. I've been meaning to do that for months but kept talking myself out of it. I guess that was the weird shapeshifting bug lady's way of saying sorry after breaking my leg and scaring the shit out of me. Like my grandma says, every cloud's got a silver lining. > > **<End Log>** > > **AFTERWORD**: Approximately two hours after Ms Fuller's confrontation with SCP-9545, a known Marshall, Carter & Dark courier was found dead in a traffic collision on Interstate 95. CCTV cameras in the area had been disabled, and no witnesses observed the crash. The courier's only luggage, a sealed crate, had been forcibly opened and the contents removed, suggesting that SCP-9545 was able to acquire the Nereid's Reliquary despite the delay. [[/collapsible]] @@@@ @@@@ [[collapsible hideLocation="both" show="> Capture Protocol "Dodge This" Enactment - 22/06/24" hide="- Close"]] **Operation Setup:** Following the successful extrapolation of data from all three confirmed witnesses, Foundation Intelligence was able to develop a preliminary strategy for the possible capture of SCP-9545 based on its most consistent targets. It was believed that creating a mimicry of the Nereid's Reliquary would serve as effective bait for the entity, with additional modifications to make it more desirable, including the graffitied sign that Mr Brinkstone had documented, samples of hieroglyphs recalled by Mr Hagen, and the organic veins briefly witnessed in the original artefact by Ms Fuller. However, even with witness testimony and display photographs of the artefact available, recreating the veins that Ms Fuller photographed proved difficult without using extranormal means. With the permission of the O5 Council, [https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-8078 SCP-8078] was selected as the ideal candidate for the role. Under the supervision of Research Assistant Amanda Teo, SCP-8078 was presented with a display photograph of the Nereid's Reliquary and given a detailed description of both the veins and the sign. After some coaching, SCP-8078 was able to accurately mimic the shape of the artefact, the veined flaw on its side, and the graffiti sign[[footnote]]Here rendered as a bas-relief on the base of the reliquary.[[/footnote]], before being photographed. In order to provide a convincing backstory for the trap, a Foundation agent on the Alternate Conspiracy site's main forum claimed that they had discovered another "alien artefact" similar to the items that Fuller had reported. After numerous preliminaries in which details that had previously drawn SCP-9545's attention were mentioned, another forum user (also a Foundation agent) then offered to buy the artefact; the two agreed to meet in person to exchange information and items, with the agents "accidentally" posting the rendezvous time and address on the public forum, before deleting it twenty minutes later. The location chosen was the Roadside Rest Motel in Leafhill, Vermont, at 3:00 AM, 22/06/24. Multiple agents had been stationed in the building to pose as guests, either to operate surveillance or to provide backup; the "buyer" and "seller" were given Room 7 as a rendezvous point, which would double as a trap for SCP-9545: this room was modified to seal all windows, vents, pipes as soon as the target entered, and equipped with an airtight containment unit that SCP-9545 could be driven into. MTF-Epsilon-9 (“Fire Eaters”) was on standby for this operation, with members stationed individually inside Room 7, and additional operatives waiting in a truck in the motel parking lot. As soon as the target entered Room 7, these operatives were to force SCP-9545 towards the containment unit, using flamethrowers to drive it away from escape routes and prevent it from engaging in direct combat. The remainder were to cover the door once SCP-9545 was inside to prevent any escape attempts. Finally, at the recommendation of the O5 Council, Research Assistant Amanda Teo was fully briefed and attached to the mission as a consultant, observing the events from a surveillance truck. Given its extreme distance from the trap, the surveillance truck was provided only limited security, though all personnel were equipped with sidearms loaded with incendiary bullets, and the surveillance truck was equipped with an array of heavy-duty electroshock weapons set up along its bodywork. [[footnote]]It was anticipated that electricity would be able to injure SCP-9545 without risking fatal injuries to Foundation personal, perhaps to the extent of nonlethally incapacitating the entity.[[/footnote]] As per documentation protocols, the surveillance truck was equipped with an internal "black box" recording device, with backup devices, life-signs monitoring systems, and GPS trackers provided to all passengers. [[div class="blockquote"]] = **AUDIO LOG TRANSCRIPT** ---- **DATE:** 22/06/24, 2:59 AM **NOTE:** Audio captured from the surveillance truck's onboard recording system. ---- [BEGIN LOG] **Research Assistant Teo:** I'm not seeing anything, are you? **Security Officer Childs:** Nothing yet. I //really// need a drink. **Research Assistant Teo:** //I// need fresh air. **Security Officer Childs:** Didn't you get enough while I was on smoke break? **Research Assistant Teo:** That was half an hour ago. **Security Officer Childs:** And forty-five minutes before that. Any more fresh air and you'll start hyperventilating. This your first time in the field? **Research Assistant Teo:** What gave it away, the shaking hands or the constant bathroom breaks? **Security Officer Childs:** Relax, kid, we're four blocks away from the action. Odds of us running into the target are in the millions. **Research Assistant Teo:** Yeah, but... **Operation Commander MacReady:** (//over radio//) Motel power just went offline, people! Black Cat, repeat, //Black Cat!// Agents, you know your roles. (//static//) pipes blacked and vents (//static//) //Further radio broadcasts dissolve into static.// **Research Assistant Teo:** ...what are the chances that this thing would have access to a jammer that could work on Foundation tech? **Security Officer Childs:** Close to zero. //Muffled sound of footsteps.// **Research Assistant Teo:** What was that? //Muffled yelling, sounds of fists striking the side of the truck.// **Security Officer Childs:** Got a shot of it on camera #2. It looks like... me. **Research Assistant Teo:** Oh Christ, it's the fucking target! It must've gotten a look at you while you were out smoking. **Security Officer Childs:** And now it's trying to bluff its way in? Good luck to it. **Research Assistant Teo:** (//into radio//) This is surveillance truck 1; SCP-9545 is here! I say again, the target is //here// and attempting to enter the truck! Requesting backup immediately! **Security Officer Childs:** I don't think that's going to work, Amanda. Whatever it did to the radio looks pretty comprehensive. **Research Assistant Teo:** It's weird, though - it doesn't look like external sabotage to the hardware. It looks like someone disabled the software itself. //Renewed banging and shouting from outside// **Research Assistant Teo:** And it's not making much effort to actually use its powers, is it? You'd think a shapeshifter as powerful as this would be able to tear through metal no problem. **Unknown voice:** (//indistinct//) ONLY JUST WOKE UP! YOU HAVE TO LISTEN TO ME! I'M NOT (//indistinct//) **Research Assistant Teo:** Hang on, let me turn up the volume... **Unknown voice:** (//muffled//) THE TARGET ATTACKED ME WHILE I WAS OUTSIDE! THERE'S AN IMPOSTER IN THE TRUCK! I'M THE //REAL// CHILDS! THE TARGET'S IN THERE WITH YOU! **Research Assistant Teo:** ...what did he just say? //Sound of flowing water from directly behind Teo, identified as the sound of rapid shapeshifting// **SCP-9545:** Amanda Teo? We have a matter to discuss. **Research Assistant Teo:** Oh //shit.// //Sounds of rapid shapeshifting, followed by the sounds of Research Assistant Teo opening fire with her sidearm. Roars of pain indicate that she has scored at least four direct hits before being forced to take cover and reload.// //Sounds of equipment being destroyed follow, accompanied by sounds of tearing metal. Research Assistant Teo can be heard screaming for the next three seconds of audio footage before the security truck's roof is torn open and SCP-9545 exits with her in tow.// //0.1 seconds after SCP-9545 exits the truck interior, the truck's electrical projectors activate, inflicting superficial injuries to SCP-9545 as it flees but failing to completely stun it.// //Soon after, perimeter sensors lose all trace of SCP-9545 and Research Assistant, indicating that the entity has fled the area.// [END LOG] [[/div]] [[/collapsible]] @@@@ @@@@ [[collapsible hideLocation="both" show="> Incident documentation - 22/06/24" hide="- Close"]] [[div class="blockquote"]] = **AUDIO LOG TRANSCRIPT** ---- **DATE:** 22/06/24, 3:10 AM **NOTE:** Audio captured from audio recording device in Research Assistant Teo's pocket. GPS tracking indicates that this took place on a rooftop approximately five miles south of the surveillance truck. ---- [BEGIN LOG] **Research Assistant Teo:** (//static//) -the fuck away from me! **SCP-9545:** In a moment. As I said, I have questions. **Research Assistant Teo:** (//sarcastic//) For me? I'm flattered, considering- **SCP-9545:** -that the trade you were supervising was a trap? **Research Assistant Teo:** ...oh. **SCP-9545:** To the Foundation's credit, the bait was perfect, if a little too good to be true. It //almost// worked. But I confess, I got cold feet at the last minute. I almost fled well in advance... but then, just as I was about to leave, I saw you stepping out of the truck for a breath of fresh air. **Research Assistant Teo:** Wait, what? **SCP-9545:** Repeatedly, too. Unusual to allow an asset to leave cover so often. Almost as if you were //meant// to be seen. **Research Assistant Teo:** I... er... you've completely lost me. **SCP-9545:** Your presence here was too much of a coincidence. The fake trade was to draw my attention... but you were the //real// bait in the Foundation's trap, the one your masters //knew// I would not be able to resist. That's why I brought you here. **Research Assistant Teo:** ...Okay, I'll bite: how do you know who I am? How do you know about the Foundation? **SCP-9545:** I'm asking the questions, in case you forgot. Now, if you don't mind- **Research Assistant Teo:** One step closer and this conversation ends the hard way. //sound of revolver being cocked// **SCP-9545:** You know that won't be enough to kill me. Even with phosphorous rounds, you'll need more than six bullets to do serious damage. I'll have disarmed you long before you can reload a second time. **Research Assistant Teo:** Who said I'd be using it on you? //pause; stress levels from the life signs monitor indicates that Research Assistant Teo is now pointing the barrel of her sidearm to her head// **SCP-9545:** You'd kill yourself if it meant keeping Foundation secrets? **Research Assistant Teo:** I //will// if you don't share what you know about me and the Foundation. **SCP-9545:** Your devotion to your mission is commendable, but I doubt you'll pull the trigger. The human survival instinct is difficult to overcome, even for the suicidal... and I know for a fact that you're //not// suicidal. **Research Assistant Teo:** Do you want to put that to the test? You wanna risk losing everything you wanted to know? //pause// **SCP-9545:** Very well. What do you wish to know? **Research Assistant Teo:** How do you know who I am and what the Foundation is? What do you want these secrets and artefacts for? **SCP-9545:** If you've been part of this operation long enough to learn the details, then you already know my reasons. You just need to assemble the clues. **Research Assistant Teo:** I asked you a question. **SCP-9545:** And it's one that the O5 Council already suspects the answers to. **Research Assistant Teo:** I'm not playing around, pal. **SCP-9545:** Neither am I. Just indulge me for a moment, please. **Research Assistant Teo:** (//sighing//) Alright then. From what Hagen said, you were treating the artefacts as if they were alive. **SCP-9545:** Good... **Research Assistant Teo:** And if you went after Fuller for her joke theory that shapeshifters are impersonating objects, then I have to assume there's a thread of accidental truth there. **SCP-9545:** And what do those fragments of data tell you? **Research Assistant Teo:** ...That you aren't just retrieving artefacts: you're rescuing disguised shapeshifters. **SCP-9545:** Not disguised - trapped. //Sealed//. Once upon a time, the Children of Proteus - so named by occultists of old - were hunted down in their natural states, captured, and bound to these forms, the better to serve human ritual, either for the sake of power... or pleasure. Now, I am gathering the lost, so that I can restore them, free them from the tyranny of a single shape, and keep them safe until they are capable of healing themselves again. **Research Assistant Teo:** And that's why you reacted so badly when Hagen put a knife to the canopic jar. He would've actually been able to kill a fellow shapeshifter while they were in that state? **SCP-9545:** Or at the very least, he would have inflicted terrible agony on them. **Research Assistant Teo:** And conspiracy theorists like Brinkstone and Hagen are your way of finding these imprisoned shapeshifters? **SCP-9545:** It has always been the curse of the conspiracy theorist to be forever within reach of the truth and yet eternally blind to it: they've found more hidden treasures than they realize over the years. More importantly, their grasp of cybersecurity is far weaker than that of most Groups Of Interest. **Research Assistant Teo:** Something tells me we aren't much better if you know who we are. **SCP-9545:** Give yourselves some credit. I wouldn't have learned of the Foundation if one of your operatives hadn't tried to sell a child of my kind on the Dark Web. **Research Assistant Teo:** ...what. **SCP-9545:** After she failed to deliver, I harvested her memories for data; that was where your name and bio cropped up. In her final moments, she knew you had uncovered her treason and knew you would take her place as caretaker to the Child. So, when I saw you here, I knew I might never get the opportunity to question you again, so- **Research Assistant Teo:** No, no, no. Hold up. You mean... //you// killed Lina Raznakovic? //You're// Tegid Foel? **SCP-9545:** I've worn many identities over the eons. "Tegid Foel" seemed appropriate, given that one of my dear companions had already been dubbed "Cerridwen". As for killing Raznakovic... if had known what she was letting Michael Pelion do, her death would have been far more prolonged. And as for you- **Research Assistant Teo:** (//nervous//) I had nothing to do with what Pelion was doing, I swear- **SCP-9545:** I know. And that's the only reason I captured you alive. If I thought, even for a second, that you were complicit in what that... //creature// did to an infant of my kind, I wouldn't have asked any questions of you: I would have butchered you - //slowly// - and dredged the answers from your dead brain. **Research Assistant Teo:** (//weakly//) Oh. Good. I'll take that as a vote of confidence in my survival. **SCP-9545:** Don't push your luck. **Research Assistant Teo:** Jesus Christ, I thought the Children of Proteus were supposed to be //shy.// **SCP-9545:** We //are.// So was I, once... but then, you'd be amazed at what the "shy" can become after so many millennia of exploitation and servitude. Thanks to the crimes I was subjected to in Capri at the hands of Rome's gloomiest of men, I've grown //quite// detached from my old timidity. But... //sound of multiple vehicles arriving in the street below// **SCP-9545:** Ah. You had a tracker on you. //That// was the real reason for this protracted negotiation, wasn't it? **Research Assistant Teo:** Sorry, Tegid. If it makes you feel any better, you won't be h- //muffled crunch; Teo's sidearm is heard falling to the ground// **Research Assistant Teo:** Shi-! //muffled crunch; Teo collapses// **Research Assistant Teo:** (//gasping in pain//) Oh... f-fuck... **SCP-9545:** We still have a few minutes before they reach us, unfortunately for you. So, Amanda, now it's time for you to answer //my// questions. //Sound of SCP-9545 shapeshifting; life-signs indicate that something is interfacing with Teo's nervous system, likely the "tendril syringe" that Brinkstone referred to// **SCP-9545:** (//pauses, hesitating//) ...How is the Child? **Research Assistant Teo:** (//suddenly calm//[[footnote]]Analysis of Teo's vitals at this time suggests that she is being drugged to reduce resistance to questioning [[/footnote]]) ...You mean SCP-8078? **SCP-9545:** That is the name your organization has given them, yes. **Research Assistant Teo:** (//monotone//) They're fine. It's taken them a while to recover from what Pelion did to them: they still have nightmares every now and again, but they're slowly forgetting the shapes that Pelion forced them to take, replacing them with new forms. They like being a balloon the best: they like to float. **SCP-9545:** Then... is the Child happy? **Research Assistant Teo:** I try to make them happy when I can. They like exercising their powers. They like being shown nature textbooks so they can learn new shapes. They like being read to before bedtime: their favourite story used to be //The Very Hungry Caterpillar//, but they're getting more advanced as they get older, and now they like //Truckers// by Terry Pratchett. And they still like watching TV: //The Sword In The Stone//, //Treasure Planet//, //Nimona//- **SCP-9545:** Even after being introduced to that film by Pelion? **Research Assistant Teo:** Even so. They find //Nimona// comforting; from what they've told me, they could ignore Pelion while they were watching it, pretend he wasn't even in the same room as them. **SCP-9545:** And what about the psychological conditioning inflicted on them by Aristaios? **Research Assistant Teo:** It's still affecting them. As they grow, they're trying to learn how to disagree, but even now that they know how to voice their own desires, they still find it easier to appease people, I guess. They might fully recover one day, but... it'll be a long journey. **SCP-9545:** And would you help them on that journey? Would you do your utmost to protect them on the way, to shield them from people like Pelion and Raznakovic, even if it meant your own life? **Research Assistant Teo:** (//immediately//) Yes. **SCP-9545:** ...I see. Thank you, Amanda Teo. Perhaps I was right to leave the Child in your care after all. //Teo winces as the tendril-syringe is removed// **Research Assistant Teo:** (//groggy//) You... can't run forever, you know... we... we'll stop you... before anyone else... gets... hurt... **SCP-9545:** I know. Your Foundation works to protect your people, just as I work to protect mine. And if all humans could be as trustworthy as you, I would gladly remand all the Children of Proteus to the Foundation's care and let them shield us from the nightmares of this reality... but unfortunately, far too many humans have proved that they can't resist the temptation to exploit us; Pelion and Raznakovic are merely the capstone on a legacy of enslavement spanning more than six thousand years. Even the conspiracy theorists can't help but make us props in their delusions of heroism. And so, exodus is our only recourse. **Research Assistant Teo:** ...Exodus? **SCP-9545:** To a new dimension. A realm where we can be safe from the horrors of this world at last... and as long as I still live, I will do everything within my power to make it a reality. **Research Assistant Teo:** I... wha... why am I so... dozy...? **SCP-9545:** That'll be the sedative taking effect. Now, if you'll excuse me... //Teo can be heard rearming herself with her sidearm// **Research Assistant Teo:** One... one more step... and I'll shoot you. **SCP-9545:** I'm reasonably sure you haven't been trained to shoot left-handed. **Research Assistant Teo:** Not gonna matter at this range. Now... you just settle back... and wait for the capture team... or I'll... I'll... oh... god-fucking-dammit... (//loses consciousness//) //pause; SCP-9545 can be heard examining Teo's sidearm// **SCP-9545:** Well now... you didn't even have time to reload this, did you? You really were bluffing before, just not in the way I expected. (//chuckles//) The Child is lucky to have a protector as bold as you, Amanda Teo. Sleep well... //Receding footsteps.// //Silence.// [END LOG] [[/div]] [[/collapsible]] @@@@ @@@@ [[collapsible hideLocation="both" show="> Concluding Report" hide="- Close"]] Despite the efforts of Foundation personnel on the scene, SCP-9545 escape from the rooftop before agents could reach it. Though it was subjected to multiple disabling shots by snipers during its ensuing flight, it was able to recover long enough to avoid attempts to implant it with tracking devices, successfully evading all further attempts to locate it that evening. Research Assistant Amanda Teo was found to have suffered a broken left leg and a broken right arm during SCP-9545's efforts to pacify her, along with three cracked ribs sustained during her initial abduction and the aftereffects of the drugs used to question her. After twenty-four hours observation, it was determined she had not been subjected to any anomalous influence or long-term harm. She is expected to make a full recovery and has received special commendation for her conduct in the field. Though the operation itself was a failure, the information recorded thanks to Research Assistant Teo was deemed sufficient to prepare Foundation operatives for future capture attempts. As SCP-9545 appears to be the only member of the Children of Proteus with the necessarily psychological traits to serve as an active threat to Foundation interests, the rest of the species are to be considered non-combatants until further notice. Finally, the O5 Council would like to make it known that they did not assign Amanda Teo to the mission as bait and any similarities to past instances in which ties to polymorphic entities were exploited for the sake of a mission are entirely coincidental. In light of SCP-8078's association with SCP-9545, Research Assistant Teo has been permitted to reveal this information to SCP-9545 in order to analyze its reaction. As SCP-8078 has unconsciously exhibited residual memories from its progenitors before, it is believed that this tendency may reveal additional data concerning the Children of Proteus if prompted by the appropriate stimuli. @@@@ @@@@ [[div class="blockquote"]] = **AUDIO LOG TRANSCRIPT** ---- **DATE:** 24/06/24, 8:30 AM **NOTE:** Official recording from SCP-8078's cell. ---- [BEGIN LOG] **SCP-8078:** Amanda? //sounds of Research Assistant Teo entering with some difficulty due to her wheelchair// **SCP-8078:** (//concerned//) What happened to you? Why are you in a chair? Those bandages mean that you're hurt, don't they? **Research Assistant Teo:** That's right, 8078. It's okay, I'm not in any pain. //pause, sounds of rapid shapeshifting// **Research Assistant Teo:** (//laughing//) No, really, I'm fine. You don't need to turn into a blanket, 8078, I'm not sick. **SCP-8078:** ...okay. You're sure? **Research Assistant Teo:** Positive. Besides, it's not all bad news: I learned a lot from what happened the other night. It turns out you've got relatives. **SCP-8078:** I do? **Research Assistant Teo:** Oh yes. You've got an auncle that worries a lot about you and wants you to be happy. **SCP-8078:** Will I get to see them one day? **Research Assistant Teo:** One day, maybe. Your auncle's got very big ideas about bringing the family together to find a new home, so perhaps you'll get to meet them then... but then again, perhaps you'll see your auncle if we can get them to stay with us instead. **SCP-8078:** Do you think you can? **Research Assistant Teo:** I'll try. (//pause//) Maybe it's just ingrained bloody-mindedness, but personally, I think it's better to stay and try to make your home a better place instead of looking for a new one. **SCP-8078:** (//absently//) Cerridwen said the same thing. **Research Assistant Teo:** Sorry? **SCP-8078:** She didn't want to fight; she tried to change Tegid's mind. She wanted everyone to be free, even her captors. That's why she made the deal with [https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-7955 Jim]. **Research Assistant Teo:** ...8078? Are you okay? //pause// **SCP-8078:** I... I drifted again, didn't I? What did I say? **Research Assistant Teo:** It's okay, 8078. It'll come to you. (//clears throat//) Anyway, I'm on light duties this week until I'm healed up, so we'll be taking a break from experiments today. **SCP-8078:** (//eager//) Does that mean we can watch movies? **Research Assistant Teo:** Absolutely. Do you want to start with //Nimona//? **SCP-8078:** Yes, please! [END LOG] [[/div]] [[/collapsible]] [[footnoteblock]] [[div class="footer-wikiwalk-nav"]] [[=]] << [[[SCP-9544]]] | SCP-9545 | [[[SCP-9546]]] >> [[/=]] [[/div]]