Nine glasses of champagne and a technical team.

rating: +3+x

Both doctors, William T. Falcone and Steffano González, were observing a test subject from behind a large pane of glass in a room similar to the interrogation rooms.

—And… How are you doing with the research on memetic agents? You know, for that "project"?

—Well… fortunately the last few D-Classes I've been working with have responded more favorably since that one time that-

—He had a massive epileptic seizure, followed by a psychotic break on one of the guys, didn't he? -Dr. González interrupted him.

—Yes, that's just it. -Falcone answered.

William Falcone is a young doctor specialized in the field of conventional and paranormal psychology. Despite his young age, he already had previous experience as a consultant on projects involving experimental para-technology and that was a key component that prompted his joining Steffano's team for the development of a new para-technological device. He generally tended to be very introverted, but that is something he has struggled with for a long time to achieve optimal performance in his field within The Foundation.

—Easy, easy. Call me when you're done, I'll let you work in peace.

—Okay, thanks for stopping by. -The doctor smiled and waved goodbye.

Steffano González patted his companion on the back twice and slowly left the room.

After leaving the room, he walked for a few minutes through the corridors of Site-34, lost in thought, and probably wading through future work.

He was reaching the Site's central dining room, when he suddenly received a call from Dr. William.

—What the-" He pulled the phone out of his pocket, looking at the screen with a frown. -Oh. Smart son of a bitch.

And he burst out laughing.


After walking for quite a while, Steffano approached a dark wooden door that dwelled at the end of corridor 97 from Site-34. On the other side he could hear drilling noises and something similar to… Pneumatic pistons?

He knocked on the door, tapping on it and waiting for a moment. When he didn't receive an answer, he didn't wait any longer and directly opened the door, taking a few steps forward.

—I'm sorry I barged in like that, it's just that you didn't answer and…

—STAY THERE, WATCH OUT! Wait a second, shit. Let me finish this," the bald guy with the padlock beard waved one of his arms at him. In the other arm he had a kind of mechanical prosthesis, quite noisy. —Ah, Steffano, it's you. Look at this, you'll love it.

Then, the arm began to make charging noises, to light up completely in a purple color, to make some kind of glyphs in the air and to launch a lightning that almost burned a piece of a nearby desk.

—Well… I almost broke my only desk.

Steffano burst out laughing and looked straight at him as he pulled himself together. Román Santarrosa was in charge of the hardest parts of the esoteric elements of the device. A tough guy of Argentinean origin, over time he became an essential companion within the Foundation for all personnel who needed help with the hardcore esoteric stuff, thus becoming a valuable resource for all who worked with him.

For this reason, when Steffano started the C.T.S.N.M. project, he immediately thought of recruiting him. His talent at work and his efficiency in the subject made him a perfect candidate for the job.

—What about the "job"? -Steffano González answered.

The bald guy stared at him for a few seconds. Then he looked at his arm. He lifted up a small cover of a mechanical part and handed him an orange plate with a ribbon that read "Santarrosa" in black.

—This monster was designed just for what you asked for. -And you'd better do wonders with it, skinny guy.

—Amazing, thank you.

And González left the office.


A few days later, Steffano González was writing a report in his office, sitting in front of his computer. It was already past his departure time, but he decided to stay a few extra hours so that he could leave early another time.

As he was finishing the pending work, a notification sound interrupted his line of concentration.

—Oh. At this time?

He directed the computer cursor to the notification and double-clicked on it. It was an email from researcher Amaro Mondragón.

"The pieces you asked me for a few weeks ago are ready." Said the first email that arrived.

Excited, Steffano replied.

"Great! I'll be right over to pick them up, I was just getting out of work."

"No."

—Oh. -The doctor was surprised at such a response. - Well, maybe it's late.

Amaro Mondragón had never stood out for being a very sociable person, but that lack was completely overcome by a fantastic virtue: he was a genius. An engineer and mathematician, he managed to enter the Foundation at a very early age, far surpassing the expectations of all those around him in his social environment. He always managed to be above average, leaping above the minimum competencies that the academies demanded of him, but over time he developed a socialization problem that keeps him always working in his safe space.

His work in the robotics department made him an easy prey for Steffano, he knew that if he wanted the best of the best he had to look for it. But… It was a bit complicated, at least at first.

"Is everything all right?"

"Yes. I'm going to leave it in the production office in a black box with your name on it. Bye."

"Okay…"

The doctor stretched out in the chair and vociferated.

—It must be very difficult to carry such a genius.


Dr. Diego Lagos was sitting in the dining room of the facility where he worked. In front of him stood Steffano González. They had been discussing for a while about the memetic effects that the mask had to face, and looking for alternative solutions to overcome the inconveniences that could arise.

Diego Lagos obtained his degree in psychology at a young age, specializing in the effects of memetic agents on the psyche. With his degree as a memeticist, he decided to pursue a postgraduate degree in anti-memetics, thus becoming an outstanding doctor with expertise in the field of anti-memetics. However, in a situation of irreverent irony, he was affected by an anomaly which memetically affected his face, an anomaly that reflected an echinoderm instead of his real person. This resulted in Lagos' strong conviction and attachment to his work as a doctor specializing (ironically) in anti-memetics.

—And these were the conclusive results of my research. I hope you find them useful. -Diego Lagos dragged a folder full of reports with images signed by himself.

—Thank you doctor. I am very grateful for your collaboration with the project. -Steffano González lifted the folder and put it in a bag he had with him.

—You know that if this mask is effective I'm going to… Well… Are they going to be able to see your face? I mean, your real face. Not that huge star.

—Uh… Yes, sir.

—You don't have anything against that? -No, sir.

—No, sir. It's a little uncomfortable, but… I think there are more important things we should fight for.

Steffano made an approving grimace and stretched out his fist to bump them.

—Thank you, Steffano. Said the star-headed young man.


Steffano knocked on a huge oak door in Sector-03 of the Site-34 facility, which was carved with runes reminiscent of Norse ones, among other similar sigils.

—Go ahead. -can be heard from the other side.

Upon entering, you find that all the lights are off, save for a pair of candles softly illuminating a room. There, in the candlelight, shone a man with long flowing golden hair, and a prominent beard that reached almost to his stomach in length. He was Richard Dunwich, a renowned thaumaturge within The Foundation.

His extravagant beard along with his dazzling hair was something that set him apart from the staff. However, his fame did not come from his appearance, but from his working experience. His work as an esoteric consultant and former member of the G.O.C. made him a tough nut to crack, a man full of mythical stories and experiences which you could spend hours drinking and listening to without getting bored.

—I hope I'm not disturbing you. -Steffano said as he slowly approached.

-No, don't worry. You come at a good time, mate.

That's good to hear.

Richard Dunwich was reading a book, and around him were other books floating lightly.

—Do you have any idea when it will be finished?

—Are you talking about my part of the project or the project in general? -Dunwich had the ability to recognize immediately what he was referring to. He always managed to have a special connection with some of his colleagues, a connection that more than once came in handy on the battlefield.

—Just your thing. -Steffano folded his arms and leaned against a nearby counter.

The man slowly sat up and looked at Steffano for a few seconds as he grimaced. He walked over to some very delicate looking wooden crates and nodded to the vacuum as he opened them one by one. From the drawers, he took out a set of papyrus which he read carefully before folding them and tying them with a small red ribbon. Then he handed it to Steffano and smiled.

—There you go, in a few days I will stop by your office to do a toast. said the long-haired man.

— Fantastic. Take care, brother. I would stay and chat some more but… I'm tired, I've been coordinating everything for days to make it go as well as possible. And I still can't be sure that it will be perfect. -answered the other.

—Steffano… We have already talked about this. You know that not everything always has to be perfect.

—Yes, I'm sorry.

—Take it easy, go get some rest. -Dunwich responded before patting him on the back.


The facilities where they worked used to become monotonous. Time passed quickly when there was nothing to do, but very slowly whenever there was important work to be done. Not only that, but the people also changed. Anxiety and stress were noticeable in difficult times, and the pressure moved things in people's attitudes and hearts. It was to be expected, understanding the responsibilities that a Foundation employee would have.

And for that very reason, every minute of rest had to be made worthwhile.

Dr. González was in his office watching videos on the net. It was one of those days when there was not much to do, and he decided to waste his time on the Internet. At one point, the door to his office began to bang loudly. The doctor, confused, got up from his desk and slowly approached the door to open it.

As he opened it, a guy in biosafety overalls equipped with a huge gas mask greeted him on the other side.

—Hello? -he said, confused.

The man on the other side simply stood there for a few seconds.

—Do you need-.

Suddenly, the man stretched out one of his arms, carrying a dark bag of considerable size, which he handed to the doctor.

—Thank you?…

For what felt like an eternity (but was probably only a few seconds), the man in overalls looked him straight in the eyes, breathing heavily.

—Are you all right? -asked González.

—I'm Frederick. -answered the man.

—My God Frederick, you almost scared me to death. Take that shit off your face for a moment.

Dr. Frederick Forbes was one of the few talented and patient people in the facility with the ability to work as an investigator and as an active member of a mobile detachment. With a degree in "philosophy of abnormality" and a chemical engineer, he often roamed the facility looking to help his peers. As long as he doesn't have work to do himself, of course.

—I'm sorry, I was running tests with some potent chemicals and I couldn't take off my mask until I had some oxygen. That's why I decided to drop this off for you that I finished a while ago. Sorry about just now, I wanted to scare you a little.

—You did it.

—Yeah… I still don't understand how something like that can scare you, but eight-legged monsters as tall as a building don't make you feel anything. Anyway, I must get on with the work. Is the meeting time still the same? -Frederick said as he raised an eyebrow.

—Theoretically, and if everything goes as planned, yes. -Steffano answered firmly.

—Fantastic, I can see that, boss. -Frederick put his mask back on and started walking until he got lost at a turn in one of the corridors of the facility.

Steffano closed the door to his office, and carefully opened the bag.

Inside was a prototype for a mask, along with a note that read "Exotic mega-filters for top secret project."

—Thank you, Frederick.

And he smiled.


Weeks later, the meeting room was full once again. In the center of the room, a holographic table displayed a projection of a new prototype, which was the result of months of work among the diverse Site-34 staff. The spontaneous group that Steffano and Richard had assembled now looked like a full-fledged team.

Steffano typed for a few moments on a laptop that sat next to the holographic table.

Well, we are all here. I'll try to be as concise as possible so as not to take up too much of your work time.

All the men in the room nodded.

—The C.T.S.N.M. project has just come to an end. With all the work you have done over the last few months we have created something fantastic. I do not have enough words to thank you all for your collaboration.

Steffano recited the words as if it were a written speech despite being spontaneous. Everyone in the room listened to him attentively, as if he were a speaker.

—I will make a small parenthesis here. I would like to introduce the latest addition to the C.T.S.N.M. project: Agent Ibarra. His experience in the field has been useful to me in testing the mask and determining that it is completely safe.

Agent Ibarra was standing at the side of the room. At her mention, he took a few steps forward and looked at the holographic table.

—After 237 instances of testing, we came to the conclusion that it is 100% effective and performs perfectly.

—Or at least that's what the numbers dictate. -Ibarra replied.

—That's right. -Steffano Gonzalez turned and rummaged through a table behind him, "And so, I would love to announce that I have finally sent the completed prototype to the central department's research and design facility.

Steffano returned to the holographic table and placed nine glasses on it. He then poured a delicate champagne into all of them.

—Boys.

He raised a glass and waited for the rest to take theirs.

—We are done. The project was a success.

Everyone raised their voices. A mixture of jubilation and satisfaction filled the air. Everyone was smiling, hugs and high fives went back and forth. Steffano allowed them to toast for a few more moments, before clearing his throat to ask for the floor.

—Well, to end this meeting, I would like to say the following. -He said, dropping his glass.

—Thanks to researcher William T. Falcone for the analysis of stimulus generation and its optimization for use in humans.

William Falcone was sitting in one of the corners of the room. Hearing the thank you he nodded his head and raised his glass slightly. Steffano turned to look at the next on his list.

—Thanks to specialist Román O. Santarrosa for taking care of the hardest part of the esoteric elements of the device.

—Anytime, champ. -Román replied as he winked at him.

Steffano smiled and looked at Amaro Mondragón, who was standing right in front of him.

—Thanks to researcher Amaro Mondragón for working with the most delicate pieces of the artifact.

—You're welcome, Steffano. It was a pleasure working with you. -Amaro adjusted his glasses and looked down.

—Now Ender would follow, but he's not here right now, he told me he was busy working on something on his helmet. So let's toast to him. -González raised his glass and everyone cheered in unison -Without him, we wouldn't have the optimized interface. He's responsible for the mask being the way it is, so we can't leave him behind. Good! Who was next… Oh, yes!

—Thanks to the young doctor Diego Lagos for his participation with the knowledge about the effective filtering of memetics applied to the device.

On the other side of the room Diego Lagos nodded shyly, then raised his glass and took a drink from it.

—Well, we're down to our last ones….. Thanks to Dr. Frederick F. López for showing me the best layout of the components in the interface, as well as the creation of hyperfilters for the gas mask. You have no idea how much work you saved the whole team with your optimizations.

—I'm glad to have been of help. And I'm sorry about your office, next time I'll be better dressed.

Everyone in the room burst out laughing. Probably because of the double meaning of the sentence.

—Hey, it's not what you think! -Frederick shouted to his colleagues.

—Easy, easy. -Steffano laughed lightly and looked at the last person to be named.

—Finally, thanks to Prelator Richard Dunwich for the schematic patterns and EVE pattern detection designed exclusively for the device. And thank you for being with me during my crises, it has not been an easy time.

—Indeed, it hasn't been. For anyone, I would say. -Dunwich replied.

Everyone in the room nodded.

—I see… Let's see, let's see, let's not lose our spirits, it's time to celebrate! -Steffano shouted before turning off the projection table and putting some music on a nearby laptop.

The rest of the evening passed normally, everyone celebrated the success of the project, and most likely, the success of many other things that happened over the months. The C.T.S.N.M. team was probably here to stay, and this was just the beginning of something much bigger. Now all that was left was to rest a bit, and wait for time to decide what the next step would be.

Or at least that's the way it should have been.

Emergencies do not knock on the door.

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Steffano, González
Site-34, module 21.
███████████
Telephone: ███████████
███████████@SCPES.com

███████████, ███████████.
███████████, module 324.
Paratechnology and R&D Department.
moc.PCS|MAETD.R#moc.PCS|MAETD.R

United States of America, April 21, ████.


Dear Research+Design Department.

Given the need for the analysis of SCP-ES-███, the Site 34 R&D Dept. has designed and deployed a prototype sensory isolator for use in memetic and cognito-hazardous threat environments, called "Cognito-Threatening Stimulus Neutralization Module."

Remote analysis of memes has been unsuccessful with SCP-ES-███, and to better understand its effects, more human interaction with it is needed, but suppressing its adverse effects proved to be more complicated than usual in this line of work. Therefore, this device seeks to be a tool to facilitate the study of such anomalies while maintaining the human perspective, as analysis with artificial intelligences often generates unwanted filters on certain stimuli

The C.T.S.N.M. contemplates several components that process each of the primary senses, and decomposes them into individual signals, devoid of any perceptible abstract meaning, and then from them, recomposes stimuli using natural language processors and neural networks for the emulation of filtered images of the cognitive-hazardous stimuli, allowing the operatives to interact with them in a safer way. These components are coupled into a lightweight, damage-resistant carbon fiber mask.


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Among the technical characteristics of the C.T.S.N.M. device are:

  • Presence of a dual polarized display. This display is of an opaque black color on the external side, composed of miniaturized micro-LEDs completely customizable. This tool can be useful to assign personal identifications to the wearer in operations. Moreover, the display is coated with a high-density glass to avoid breakage or shattering of the LEDs.
  • A high-resolution camera system in "dragonfly eye" configuration, in charge of recomposing the images by means of a processor included in the device interface, overriding the possible memory triggers of various anomalies. The camera is designed to capture alternating images in rapid succession to be then recomposed by the interface.
  • Multilayer filtering systems for olfaction. These filters were designed to be compact, with superior functionality to conventional industrial filters. (Thanks to our chemical experts)
  • An acoustic filtering system, developed from research with SCP-ES-002 (Result: Fully functional. 0% of personnel were incapacitated after exposure).
  • High definition audio/video remote feedback system.
  • Monitoring of environmental variables, such as temperature, pressure, reality level, probabilistic manipulation and EVE meters, based on COLLICULUS sensors used by the Coalition.

In addition, this device is trained daily via a private ethernet/LAN connection at our facility. It has a software that can be updated through computers. This makes it a device capable of keeping up with the needs that may arise in the future.

We believe that with this device we can create an effective isolation layer to improve field analysis of anomalies of this nature, which could drive the development of the field of memetics, although the prototype still requires a more thorough phase of review and testing. This is why we are requesting a meeting to discuss equipment and resources dedicated to the improvement of the device.

The performance of the entire team behind the device has been extremely prolific in its development. A big thank you to the team responsible for the development of C.T.S.N.M.

Without further ado, best regards.


Dr. Steffano “SEAMS” González.

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