SCP-3000: Anantashesha Part 1
Item #: SCP-3000
Object Class: Thaumiel
Special Containment Procedures: The area containing SCP-3000, currently a region of the Bay of Bengal roughly 300 km in diameter, is to be routinely patrolled by Foundation naval vessels. Under no circumstances are civilians allowed to attempt deep sea exploration or diving efforts in the quarantined area. Individuals believed to have contacted SCP-3000 are to be contained, quarantined, and processed at Site-151. Individuals affected by the anomalous properties of SCP-3000 are to be held in containment indefinitely.
The Foundation submarine SPCF Eremita is to monitor the location of the foremost section of SCP-3000, currently located within the Ganges Fan, roughly 0.7 km beneath the bay. The Eremita is tasked with carrying out the Aztak Protocol, and staffing regulations onboard the vessel are subject to the guidelines of that protocol. For a full description of the Aztak Protocol, see Addendum 3000.2.
There is currently no known cure for exposure to SCP-3000; as such, affected individuals should be contained and quarantined for further evaluation. Individuals stationed aboard the SCPF Eremita are not permitted to leave the vessel except for the purposes of carrying out the necessary procedures of the Aztak Protocol. Individuals who leave the vessel without proper authorization are to be considered lost.
Under no circumstances should any individual interact with SCP-3000 without authorization.
Description: SCP-3000 is a massive, aquatic, serpentine entity strongly resembling a giant moray eel (Gymnothorax javanicus). The full length of SCP-3000 is impossible to determine, but is hypothesized to be between 600 and 900 kilometers. The head of SCP-3000 measures roughly 2.5 m in diameter, and sections of the body proper are as large as 10 m in diameter.
SCP-3000 is typically a sedentary creature, only moving its head in response to certain stimuli or during feeding. The majority of its body is located in and around the Ganges Fan, and rarely move at all.
SCP-3000 is carnivorous, and despite its sedentary nature is capable of moving quickly to dispatch prey. Despite its size, it is hypothesized that SCP-3000 does not require sustenance to maintain its biological functions. While SCP-3000 excretes a thin layer of a viscous, dark grey substance classified as Y-909 (See Addendum 3000.2 below) through its skin as it consumes prey, the end result of its digestive processes is currently unknown.
SCP-3000 is a Class VIII cognitohazard entity; direct observation of SCP-3000 may cause severe mental alterations in viewers. Individuals who directly observe SCP-3000, as well as any individuals within an uncertain distance of SCP-3000, experience inexplicable head pain, paranoia, general fear and panic, and memory loss or alteration. The following is a log from Site 151's historical records, written by Dr. Eugene Getts, about initial discovery of SCP-3000 and the effects felt therein:
...the unease was felt throughout the entire crew as we descended on the first night. Whether this was due to our uncertainty at what we would discover, or something more sinister, I would not speculate. As we continued to descend, Williams began sweating profusely. When asked about it, he could not respond, stating that he thought he was missing something he could not deduce. As our descent continued, he began to act more and more erratically, at one point addressing myself as "Darlene" and expressing uncertainty as to the tasks he was assigned to handle.
Similar feelings were expressed by other members of the crew, but Williams felt it the most. His memetic resistance was by far the lowest of all of us, but he was a biologist, not a memeticist. When we finally came into contact with the entity, he began whimpering and had to be sedated. I remember him muttering the "no" over and over again, as if in disbelief. He went silent after a while as we approached its head, and when I looked back at him something had gone from his eyes. He did not even so much as blink as we made our final descent.
At around 0940 hours, we first observed the head of the entity. The unease was palpable now; several other crew members complained of feeling "hazy" and being uncertain of what they were suppose to be doing. Captain Ritter, ever the man's man, wrote it all off as nitrogen intoxication and forced them to continue approaching the entity.
When we were within fifty meters, the entity turned slowly to look at us. Even now, as I recall watching this thing coil around in the darkness, I can still hear Williams, barking like a mad dog in the rear of the vessel. Screaming and flailing, shouting about how he could see it in his head. Perkins and Harrison tried to restrain him, but he got free and smashed his face in against one of the portholes. He hit it so hard he cracked the inner layer of the glass. The damage was bad enough that we had to surface.
We tried to give Williams medical attention, but he was too far gone at that point. He had pulped himself against the glass, and despite the trauma, he still spoke briefly as he lay dying. Nobody recorded it, we didn't think to at the time. But I remember it well enough. He said, "There's nothing, nothing, nothing." By the time we had reached the surface several hours later, Williams was dead. At the time, I didn't think much about what he had said. Just the ravings of a man gone mad by the depths, I figured. I didn't know any better.
But even now, I can still see the eyes of the creature. I can see it hanging there in the darkness, illuminated by a light I cannot source. And I feel the lingering dread that Williams must have felt that night in the submersible, as he was overcome by whatever void that foul thing slithered out of.
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Discovery: SCP-3000 was discovered in 1971, shortly after two Bangladeshi fishing boats and fifteen fishermen were reported missing after drifting near the Indian coast. As the country of Bangladesh had only been recently established at the time and had been subject to significant political persecution on the part of Pakistan, this incident received high profile media attention due to fears that it was a result of foreign aggression. Local coastal dispatch units could not locate the missing boats, fueling further media hysteria.
Foundation researchers stationed in Calcutta (now Kolkata) drew similarities between this disappearance and another incident two years earlier. A thorough search aided Mariotte - Pashler Counters revealed the location of the two boats, as well as an unknown, previously undiscovered mass deep below the surface of the Bay of Bengal. Further investigation by Foundation divers discovered the existence of SCP-3000.
The area was quickly secured, and current containment procedures were put in place in April of 1972; the Aztak Protocol was adapted in October of 1998.
Addendum 3000.1: Initial Contact Log
Note: The following is the transcript of audio logs during deep - sea diver contact with SCP-3000. Until this point, no Foundation diver had come within 300m of SCP-3000. Divers were tasked with assessing the creature, and determining the source of the thick, grey fluid that had been observed floating around its head.
Dive team was composed of three members of MTF Orion-9 "Kingfishers", lead by MTF O-9 Alpha. Launch point was through the airlock of the Foundation submarine SCPF Stravinsky. All members were equipped with high - pressure suits, as well as front - facing headlamps. Additionally, a tether was connected to MTF O-9 Alpha, which was then connected in a "T" shape out to both Bravo and Foxtrot.
[BEGIN LOG]
Alpha: Alright, command. We're situated in the airlock, and ready to roll.
Command: Confirmed. Go ahead and sound off.
Alpha: Orion-9 Alpha, check.
Bravo: Orion-9 Bravo, check.
Command: Alright, men - we're in position about 500m from the head of this creature. Make sure your tethers are on good and tight, we don't want any of you getting separated out there.
Bravo: What's visibility like down here today, command?
Command: Standby.
Command: About three meters.
Foxtrot: So it's dark as fuck. Got it.
Bravo: Why are we so far out?
Command: The size of this thing is hard to comprehend, and it's wrapped up in itself in several places. We can't get too close because there's too much body there. The entity hasn't moved in three weeks.
Foxtrot: At all?
Command: Affirmative. It moves slightly with the currents down here, but nothing more than that. If it weren't for the head movement that was observed by the first submersible team. We probably wouldn't know if it was alive or not.
Foxtrot: That's reassuring.
Alpha: Alright, tethers are tight. Flood the chamber.
Command: Confirmed.
Rushing water is heard as the airlock chamber floods. No other sound is heard for several minutes. After some time, the rushing water stops.
Alpha: You both good?
Bravo: I'm good.
Foxtrot: It's fucking cold.
Alpha: Hopefully, we won't be out for long then. Turn on your lights, boys. Here we go.
All members of the dive team exit the airlock. There is a low mechanical sound as the airlock closes behind them. A muffled click is heard, and the Stravinsky activates its aft floodlights.
Foxtrot: Hey Alpha, I uh — maybe this is a bad time to ask, but I can't remember how to turn on my lamp, and–
Alpha: Your lamp is on, Foxtrot.
Foxtrot: It — what? (Pauses) What did you call me?
Alpha: Your designation, Mulhaney. Foxtrot.
Bravo: I'm Foxtrot, boss.
Alpha: Hang on, what are you talking about?
Foxtrot: I don't understand what you mean by "designation".
Alpha: It's your goddamn call sign, Bravo! What do you mean—
Bravo: Who's Bravo?
Alpha: I — uh, shit, hang on. I was going to say something. Barry*, are you still there?
Command: Standby. (Pauses) Go for command.
Alpha: Hey, we're having a little trouble out here. I'm not sure who... we seem to have some confusion over designations, and I'm not sure where we're going.
Foxtrot: Where exactly are we?
Bravo: God, do you — do you guys feel that? I've just got an awful headache, it's like needling in my brain, something...
Command: Dive team, be advised that we believe you may be experiencing some detrimental cognitive effects. Keep moving forward, and we'll give you more information as we receive it.
Alpha: Noted. Command, be advised that Foxtrot has a...uh...terrible headache. I think... are we going in the right direction? We can't see out here.
Command: You are roughly 150m from the head of the entity, Alpha. You should be getting a visual soon.
Bravo: Command, I don't see anything, where are we?
Alpha: Where are we?
Command: We're almost there, Alpha - dive team, be advised, we're picking up movement from the entity on radar.
Alpha: I — Barry, I don't see anything down here. What are we suppose to be looking–
Foxtrot: All... All I can see is darkness. There's a chill, foul wind blowing, pushing me towards a brink I can't see–
Alpha: Shut up, shut up, shut up – Command, Bravo is unresponsive, requesting immediate cessation of mission–
Bravo: Wait a second–
Foxtrot: – on the edge of nothingness, inches from oblivion. There's a... there's a sickness in my mind that I know can't be cured. Beyond me is only blackness, and a single pair of dark eyes–
Alpha: What? What are you saying?
Command: Dive team, we're going to pull you back in immediately. We have reason to believe that–
Alpha: Barry? Is that you? How can it be? I shoveled the dirt during your–
Bravo: I can hear something over there, Alpha, your light, get your fucking–
Foxtrot: – silence, only silence, my consciousness coming undone and only and only and only–
Command: Dive team, something is moving toward you, repeat, something is moving toward you, prepare to return to–
Alpha: Ah, this is shit. I can't see. How far are we from the–
Bravo: It's right there! It's right there! Fuck! What are you both doing? Fuck!
Foxtrot: – and only the eel remains.
Radio silence for twenty seconds.
Command: Alpha?
Radio silence for thirteen seconds.
Command: Alpha? Bravo? Foxtrot? Do any of you hear us?
Bravo: (Unintelligible)
Command: Oh, thank God -- Bravo, you need to speak up, we can't–
Bravo: Shhhhhhhhh.
Radio silence for ten seconds.
Command: Something has bound up the winch between you and us, we can't–
Alpha: It's opening its mouth.
Bravo: It's so dark, there's — ah–
Foxtrot: Where am I? What–
Alpha: Barry? How can it be? I shoveled dirt–
Bravo: Mulhaney... swim, get away, there's only darkness, swim–
Foxtrot: Only–
There is suddenly tension in the tether attached to the Stravinsky. O-9 Foxtrot's radio goes silent. There is the sound of a struggle through the other two radios.
Command: Foxtrot? Foxtrot? Alpha? Bravo? Talk to me, stay calm, what happened?
Bravo: It ate him, fuck, he's gone, it took him whole, he—goddamnit, Alpha, what are you doing?
Alpha: Alpha?
Bravo: Cut the fucking tether, Alpha! It's pulling us in!
Alpha: Who?
Bravo: Fuck!
Alpha: (Silence) Ah—
Total radio silence for thirty seconds. Tether attached to Stravinsky is pulled free from its moorings and disappears.
Command: Alpha, Bravo, do you copy?
Bravo: This is Bravo, I'm... I'm floating in the dark. I can see shapes moving through the fog, but they're hard to make out. I cut my tether, Alpha wouldn't – I think he's gone. I don't see his light anymore.
Command: Acknowledged. We're coming to–
Bravo: Hang on, just let me think for a second... cognition, this thing, it doesn't work around it. Your brain can't form thought, (Static) it hurts, it's like dying, and–
Command: Bravo, do you have eyes on the entity?
Bravo: It's in my head, guys. Coiled up in there like a snake, and something about it is... caustic. (Pauses) I can see it, just in front of me. It's not doing anything, it's... it isn't moving. Just hanging there, with its mouth open. I think it's finished eating. (Pauses) That fluid is seeping through the skin around its head, about a meter back. Just looking at this stuff is making me... like the room is spinning. I feel nauseous. My head isn't working right. (Laughter) There's an abortion under the floorboards, and another in the si-- wait, this is wrong, that wasn't me. Who said that?
Bravo: My... I'm going to collect a sample, hang on.
Command: Bravo, we're going to send out a crew to get you, just hold on.
Bravo: Oh no, don't do that. Not... you have to be trained to not feel the things I'm feeling, otherwise it will get into you. Maybe it will anyway, who knows. It feels like the end of the world down here, fellas. My heart is really going off the charts, and I think I'm dying. Just – (Pauses) I got a sample. I'll attach it to one of those balloons and let it float up. You'll be able to get it later. Don't spend too much time around that stuff, it... it doesn't... your mind... it... (Quick, heavy breathing)
Command: Bravo?
Bravo: I think I'm dying. I'm dying, I know I'm dying, this is it. I just want to get away from here. You know, it occurs to me... (laughs quietly) don't send anyone else out here. It's so dark.
Command: Bravo?
Over the next half hour, SCPF Stravinsky attempted to approach O-9 Bravo, with no success. Command continued to attempt to communicate with O-9 Bravo, but Bravo grew increasingly unintelligible, before going completely silent. Bravo stayed active over the next three days, and intermittent breathing could be heard until the radio ceased functioning.
*O-9 Alpha is believed to have been addressing a former member of the command team assigned to SCP-3000, Barry Hughes, who had passed away two years prior.
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Addendum 3000.2: Aztak Protocol
This protocol dictates certain interactions with a CLASS VIII COGNITOHAZARDOUS
ENTITY, SCP-3000, and as such is LEVEL 5/3000 CLASSIFIED
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Preface: The following protocol was developed in conjunction with researchers from Site-29 and Site-50, as well as researchers stationed at Site-151. Some sections may have been redacted to remove material above this classification. Adherence to this protocol is required for all personnel assigned to Site-151, as well as all personnel assigned to the SCPF Eremita.
Abstract: The 151-AZTAK PROTOCOL has been developed and implemented to create a strategy for the management of Y-909 chemical compound excreted by SCP-3000.
Protocol Information: The Y-909 compound, originally discovered by the late Dr. Adam Hollister, is a critical component in several modern and experimental amnestic compounds. Specifically, the following amnestics now contain a refined version of the Y-909 compound:
Class-A (2016 variant)
Class-D (2016 variant)
Class-E (2016 variant)
Class-X (2017 variant)
Class-XX (2017 variant)
[REDACTED]
[REDACTED]
Aztak-Class Experimental Compound
Foster-Class Experimental Compound
Ellipse-Class Experimental Compound
The inclusion of the Y-909 compound has shown a marked increase in the stability and long-term effectiveness of the aforementioned amnestics. Overall, amnestics utilizing Y-909 break down 78% slower than their standard counterparts at room temperature.
Additionally, individuals administered an amnestic regimen utilizing Y-909 show a marked increase in suggestibility, memory clearance, and a significant decrease in additional side-effects (such as nausea, vomitting, bowel distress, blurred vision, headaches, insomnia, heart damage, and others). Individuals treated with these amnestics expressed significantly fewer intrusive memories as those without Y-909, with some individuals exposed to experimental compounds expressing no intrusive memories whatsoever, even at the 5 and 10 year mark.
Due to the effectiveness of these treatments with the addition of Y-909, the continued inclusion of this compound is essential to modern Foundation amnestic application. Reliance on the continued use of Y-909 necessitates its collection for the foreseeable future, as a synthetic version of the compound has not yet been discovered.
As such, this protocol dictates the way this compound is collected off of SCP-3000 and the way personnel are to interact with SCP-3000. Below is a brief framework of the procedure and detailed information can be found in the full Aztak brief:
Members of MTF-Epsilon-20 "Night Fishermen" are to prepare a subject for deliverance to the feeding site. One individual D-Class subject is to be administered a sedative and equipped with a high-pressure diving suit. The subject is then to be tethered to an underwater ROV within the aft airlock. The airlock is to be flooded and the subject is to be towed by the ROV towards the feeding site. Upon reaching the feeding site, the ROV is to disconnect its tether and return to the Eremita.
Throughout this stage, the SCPF Eremita should monitor SCP-3000's position and adjust course if the entity begins to move away from the feeding site. Mission command will provide additional instructions during this phase if necessary.
Personnel onboard the SCPF Eremita are to monitor SCP-3000 during feeding sessions. During this time, no personnel are permitted to leave the Eremita without authorization from mission command.
At a point after the total consumption of prey, SCP-3000 will begin to excrete Y-909 near the foremost section of its body.
Specialized teams of deep-sea divers are to exit the SCPF Eremita through the aft airlock and approach SCP-3000. Collection of Y-909 must take place during SCP-3000's "digestive" period, which is currently believed to be roughly two and a half hours after consumption of prey. Teams must return to launch craft before the end of this period. During this period, the typical effects of SCP-3000 are less severe, though Command should continue to monitor these teams for damage to their cognition.
After collection of Y-909 is complete, personnel are to transfer the collected substance to secure containers before returning to the surface. The mission administrator onboard the Eremita is to monitor the substance throughout transport.
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Addendum 3000.3: SCP-682 Termination Log from Experiment Log T-98816-OC108/682
Item #: Y-909
Tissue Test Record: Overriden by O5-Command
Termination Test Record: A small amount (1g) of unrefined Y-909 was added to the hydrochloric acid used to contain SCP-682. Within a few minutes, SCP-682 showed a small, but noticeable decrease in it resistance to the acid. A solution with a 1:4 dilution ratio was introduced next, upon which SCP-682 began to shriek in pain and anguish as the acid dissolved its body, losing an estimated 70% of its total mass. After a period of just over ten hours, SCP-682 began to regenerate its lost limbs and had returned to 100% functionality.
Notes: Interesting. If SCP-682's regenerative capabilities have a mnemonic component, would repeated exposure remove them entirely? What about exposure to [REDACTED]? Further testing is required. - Dr. Ramachandra
Addendum: Note from O5-2: Proposal to move SCP-682 to the Ganges Fan denied.
Aside from the astronomical cost of moving the thing halfway across the world and nearly a kilometer under the ocean, aside from the unfathomable difficulty of preventing either or both entities from breaching containment, we can't possibly know how SCP-682 and SCP-3000 would interact. What if it grows to the same size as SCP-3000? What if it learns to replicate the eel's amnestic properties, or worse yet, amplify them? We simply have no idea what would happen if these two highly dangerous, highly unpredictable entities were introduced to one another and no way to test any theories safely or reliably.
Periodic addition of Y-909 to SCP-682's containment area will be taken under consideration.