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June 12th, 2007
He left the room. He closed the door. He pushed it out of his mind. No reason to stress about it now. As if he didn't have enough on his plate as it is… As if he hasn't experienced this before… Well, nothing quite like this… But he almost felt as if he had. Even after so many years of working with human anomalies, Chris didn't feel like this job was getting any easier for him.
"It'll get better, you'll see," his colleagues used to tell him. He hasn't heard that in a long time now. Everyone assumed that Dr. Christopher Erwick was the expert when it came to in dealing with girls hunted by demons. That blindfolded and at one AM, he could write a motivational letter that would make all the literate anomalies in his care light up with joy and volunteer to be studied.
In a way, he had nothing to complain about… He came to the Foundation as a complete rookie. After the first week, he decided to quit, but a colleague talked him out of it. Chris used to be a nobody, a total loser… But now, he was getting paid well for a job he was good at. A job that, with the good will of fate, he even enjoyed. If he was lucky, he'd soon be the wing's lead researcher. Site-91 only had three wings, and the one Erwick worked in, the humanoid one, was by far the largest.
Yet his heart pounded every time he left a room after talking to one of the subjects. Today it was SCP-023-CS… Simonne… The poor girl had died a week ago when she was attacked by a black shape-shifting entity. An entity that's sitting in a holding cell 30 meters below Chris's office right now. An entity that will attack again sooner or later and most likely kill the girl again…
And a week later, Chris will get a request to conduct an interview so he can ask poor Simonne if it hurt or something… Because what else is he supposed to ask her? What do you want to talk about with a person who regularly dies a painful death every few months? Should he ask her about her favorite color? How is she liking the Foundation so far? Or should he just straight up ask her if he can go fuck himself? Because that was the topic of today's conversation… Not that he was surprised. He'd want to be alone in her shoes, too…
He glanced at the watch on his wrist, a reminder of two things. That there was a real world behind those white walls, and that with his salary he could get a new, working one already. The shorter hand on the watch hadn't worked in almost half a year. Of course, Dr. Erwick would most like to run out now, when he has nothing else on his agenda, start his Octavia in the garage and drive to the nearest shop to get a new one. In fact, he had to stop himself from even considering such a thing, because there's no way he could. He's out of luck.
On the way to the office, he wondered where his life had gone so wrong… Up until his arrival at the Foundation, he had been a perfectly ordinary man, fresh out of college, drinking coffee and sometimes spending too much time with his books. So how is it that almost ten years later he's a psychologist for people with paranormal abilities who can't even go into town because he's caught a paranormal parasite somewhere?
He didn't understand it himself… Is was… five? Maybe six months since Dr. Erwick was put under constant observation for possible symptoms. Best of all, no one knew about it but him. Management decided that for some reason it was best to keep it quiet. Chris has been with the Foundation long enough to know that asking questions is both his daily routine and something he has to avoid at all costs. The only difference being who he was talking to. Either way, it was getting very weird having to constantly ask someone to bring him something from the town. Luckily, he could always blame it on being busy.
A pleasant surprise awaited him outside the office. Dr. Ike stood there, leaning back in his knitted sweater, and as soon as he saw Erwick approach, he gave him a thumbs-up with a smile. At least someone was having a good day…
"Hey Chris, how did the interview go?" Erwick gestured that he'd rather not discuss it. "Never mind, I've got something to clear up your mind. Are you still quitting your job for the day?"
Chris nodded and watched as Ike revealed what was behind his back. It was a bottle of whiskey. Maybe tonight wouldn't have to be a write-off yet…
He Who Fights with Monsters…
August 4th, 2007
"Another hard day at work?" Chris looked up from his tray of food to the person who asked him. The cafeteria was nearly empty at three o'clock in the afternoon, so it was no surprise that Doctor Vávra had chosen his table.
"Something like that…" He shuddered at the memory of how furious Simmone had been when he'd spoken to her.
"I heard that the girl almost threw you against the wall," Vávra said, intrigued. It was true, Chris pushed her harder this time and she got really pissed. Of course she regretted it very quickly, but the truth was that for that brief moment when he lost control of his body… Chris was scared. He was really scared, which was something he often heard colleagues from larger Sites talk about. Site-91 is a small Site, there's almost nothing that could be described as outright dangerous. There wasn't a single Keter-class SCP in all of Site-91, and the local staff, including Chris, weren't used to the fact that speaking the wrong words might cost them their life.
Chris just nodded and let Vávra sit across from him. The two doctors' plates were hardly tempting, but after a full day of conducting experiments or, in Erwick's case, chatting with unwilling subjects, both men were quite hungry.
"What about that other thing over there?" Chris asked Dr. Vávra in return.
"The demon?"
"It's not a demon. There is no such thing."
"So sorry, I didn't want to say hostile polymorphic entity, or SCP-023-Ω-CS… Anyway, it's growing again. Last night, the order came through to expose SCP- well, the girl… To expose her to the entity."
"But… that will kill her." Erwick remarked coldly. He knew it would happen sooner or later…
"Yeah, well, she's kind of immortal, isn't she?"
Chris nodded reluctantly after a moment.
"Whatever… There was nothing urgent about the request. And we still have some time before the thing in the basement gets too big, like last time."
Chris remained silent. He considered his options.
"I'm not saying we're not trying. Of course, we're doing everything we can to eliminate the thing so nothing has to happen… It's just…"
"You're asking me not to tell her."
"On the contrary. I thought… If you could convince her to try and destroy it again."
"It didn't work last time."
"Last time she was alone. What if we could help her this time?"
Erwick was lost in thought. He could feel his mind racing with various ideas that he was sure the research team had already thought of, but he couldn't help himself… It was an interesting thought.
"I'll let you run it through your head. Let me know as soon as you can, but there's no need to rush. By the end of the month would be fine, what do you think?"
Idea after idea, like colored blocks on a decorative wall in ancient Rome, formed a mosaic, and slowly but surely a clear picture was being pieced together. Inspiration flowed through his veins… And somewhere deep inside him, a plan was born.
August 28th, 2007
Everything went according to plan. At eight o'clock in the morning, Doctors Erwick, Vávra, and Ike met to make another attempt to destroy SCP-023-Ω-CS, or as the Site lab staff called it, "the black bastard." Half an hour after this meeting, at which the next course of action was agreed upon and the entire plan was gone over again, the three members dispersed to begin preparations.
While Dr. Vávra was in the basement arranging for the two necessary subjects to meet in Test Room 14, Dr. Ike went to his own lab for a prototype experimental rifle that should theoretically be able to injure the subject. Dr. Erwick's task, unlike those of his colleagues, was far more complex. He had to once again confront an angry telekinetic entity and convince her to trust him.
Now he stood at the door of the interrogation room, convincing himself that he wasn't making a mistake. He closed his eyes, exhaled, and opened the door. The first thing that greeted him was the angry face of the girl sitting on the metal chair by the desk. He tried to smile at her, but his facial muscles failed him, so he just sat down across from her.
"Why am I here? Our next meeting isn't for another week." Simmone asked immediately, without looking him in the eye or somehow indicating that she was speaking directly to him.
"Hello, Simmone." He managed to say hello. Simonne made no response to his gesture. "I'm here with an offer."
She looked at him with obvious indignation on her face. "An offer of what, freedom? I doubt it."
"I'm afraid I can't guarantee anything like that, but in a way… Yes."
Simone's brows furrowed in a mixture of confusion, surprise, and doubt. "What do you mean?"
"I mean that we're going to try to destroy SCP-023-Ω-CS. But we're going to need you to do it." Erwick went over the relatively simple plan again in theory in his mind, and had to keep reminding himself that if anything went wrong, someone would probably lose their life. He wasn't comforted by the thought that, at best, it would be Simonne. He didn't wish death on anyone.
The girl considered what he said for a moment. The idea of being free of the thing, even if she was still going to be locked up here, tempted her. One usually lost hope after such a long time, but she had a tough root. After all, she had been through hell a few times.
"All right," she said at last, "I'll do what I can to get rid of this thing, but first you have to do something."
"Of course, what do you want?"
Simonne stood up from her chair and shook the doctor's hand. She suddenly looked much older. "You have to promise you won't kill me in the process."
Chris hesitated. If he didn't, Simonne would die. Could she still trust him then? And did he trust his colleagues and his plan enough to put the life and trust of the person in front of him on the line?
"I promise."
…Should Look to it That He Himself Does Not Become a Monster.
August 29th, 2007
"Why don't you start by telling me what made you do it?"
Director Slavík adjusted his tie and leaned back in his chair. Dr. Christopher Erwick, a Level 3 researcher, looked absently around the office decorated with diplomas, photographs, several foundation posters, and golf trophies. Anything to avoid having to answer for endangering several people's health.
"Sir, with all due respect, no one was hurt and the termination went well."
The Site Director looked Chris over, ran a look of satisfaction over his face, then sighed deeply. "Chris, you know very well that Site-91 rarely has anything going on. Threats to the lives of employees are not on my daily list of things to deal with."
Chris's eyes stopped on a photograph. It was of himself when he was 14 years old. Back then, Chris was just a kid and knew no more about the Foundation's concerns than the average civilian. The photo was taken by his mother on a trip to the mountains. Dr. Erwick smiled when he saw that his uncle had the photo in his office. "I'm sorry, but everything worked out. After all, a little bit of risk is what we do here."
"Not in Site-91." Slavík looked at the papers in front of him. "Do you know how much paperwork this is going to be?"
"Yes, I'm sorry, but we accomplished what was asked of us." Chris looked at the golf trophy from the 2005 Foundation Charity Tournament. Second place.
"You have achieved what the O5 Council wanted you to do. I don't like the idea that they wanted us to term the SCP facility." There was something like regret in his voice, and Chris didn't let that get to him.
He raised his voice. "That thing would have killed Simonne!"
His uncle looked at him with an interested expression in his eyes, as if he were examining him. "Chris, it's not about what happened. My point is that the order came from above."
Chris didn't understand what he meant.
"For the past few years, the O5 Council hasn't had proper oversight of our operations. Of course, officially they still have the final say on everything, but Site-91 isn't important in their eyes. Or at least it wasn't until recently."
Foundation Policy. Power struggles. Chris could never understand why those things mattered so much. Sometimes he was glad he was just a psychologist.
Director Slavík sighed. "It's not that I want to blame you for anything. You've done a good job, but if something goes wrong and the O5 Council intervenes… My hands will be tied."
They both sat silent and speechless for a moment. Slavík finally spoke.
"Why did you even take the SCP-023-CS case?"
Chris didn't know what to say. "Um… because it's my job?"
"Are you sure it has nothing to do with anything else?" His uncle always looked like a cat waiting outside a mouse hole when he asked personal questions.
Chris knew what he meant. He had been avoiding confrontation about his problem for some time now. One day he just woke up to find he had a parasite, but not just any parasite. An anomalous parasite that looks like a human and is sitting in a humanoid containment wing a few corridors away right now. And, of course, it can't be removed. "It doesn't. Anything else?"
Another sigh. "You can go. Just be careful."
September 4th, 2007
It's been a week since the incident.
Dr. Christopher Erwick was sitting in his office when he learned that Simonne had woken up. Without hesitation, he got up and hurried to the infirmary. As he ran, the events of the day of the SCP-023-Ω-CS termination replayed themselves vividly.
Everything was going well until the moment the two subjects met in the laboratory. This time the girl had Dr. Ike's special rifle and several armed guards on her side. When they entered the basement, Dr. Erwick was almost taken aback by the size of the thing they had come to kill. It took the form of a huge shapeless mass and filled almost the entire holding cell. Simmone did not share his fear. She was determined to destroy the thing at any cost, even if it cost her life again.
In the first few seconds after the termination began, it was over. Dr. Ike fired the experimental weapon, hitting the entity squarely in the center, where part of its surface hardened. The black monster, in its shapeless form, was thrown upward, then splashed across the surface of the test room on impact, like a drop of black, viscous water. The legs of Dr. Ike and the security members were caught in the mass, while Simonne managed to avoid the entity. But the containment personnel didn't care about the entity, and was quickly hurled against a nearby wall, where a chunk of the black mass separated and held the doctor and the guards against the wall, whereupon the entity began to form again, this time into a seemingly humanoid form, and made its way towards Simonne.
At this point, Simonne began to panic. Alone again and facing almost certain death, she tried something desperate. Something she'd never been able to do before. She stretched her arms out in front of her, as she did every time she wanted to move her mind about something. The humanoid in front of her stopped. They stood there, both SCP subjects staring at each other, wanting to destroy it. And then the black entity took a step forward, and Simonne took a step back. And again, in slow jerky movements, until Simonne hit the wall behind her.
Erwick wasn't sure what he saw from the control room. There were too many thoughts and concerns on his mind at that moment about the survival of his colleagues and the girl who had trusted him with her life. But he could have sworn the black thing had leapt at Simonne with the ferocity of a predator. Simonne fought back and at one point managed to throw the entity off of her, only for it to quickly rise up and make another lunge. She threw Simonne to the ground, where she held her with her black mass. Erwick will never forget her pleas for help. But none came. Management couldn't risk the lives of the staff, and at that moment, no one was sure if Dr. Ike and the others in the testing room were alive.
The last thing Erwick remembers of that day is the sudden headache that hit everyone in the basement, including himself, and then just waking up in the infirmary with a terrible migraine. It was like a deliverance when he learned that no one on the staff had been permanently hurt. And to his disbelief, Dr. Vávra, who was in the bed next to him, informed him of the outcome of the termination. Successful.
Simonne was alive, but she had fallen into a coma. A week had passed since that terrible day. The doctor was torn from his thoughts when he arrived at the infirmary. It was time to say hello to Simonne.
"Doctor!" Simonne stood at the window in her hospital gown and smiled broadly as Chris came in the door. "It worked!"
Chris couldn't help himself. He felt good, something had finally worked out as planned. "It's good to see you too. Feeling good?"
Simonne stretched on the spot and did a quick spin. Then she took a deep breath and smiled at Chris again. "Yeah. I think I'm more than okay. When can I go?"
Dr. Erwick chuckled lightly. "Well, that's not up to me."
"But we've solved the problem. So when can I leave?" Simonne looked both energetic and bored. Quite different from before the incident. All the fear had gone out of her.
"We… we need to run some tests. What about your abilities? Are you still able to use them?"
Simonne grabbed her neck, there was a pop of a knuckle, and then Erwick felt someone grab his shoulder. He turned around, but no one was there. That's when he realized it was her. He didn't like it. Simonne was smiling, perhaps a little too enthusiastically. "That's it. Finally, no limit."
Erwick felt something wrap around his hand and then felt his right arm lift against his will. "That's enough!" He exclaimed unsteadily. He made eye contact with her. They were different. He couldn't describe it, but her eyes were different.
Simonne let go of him and cracked her knuckles. "Pretty good huh? And I was holding back."
At that moment, someone entered the room. Dr. Erwick looked at the newcomer, Dr. Ike.
"Hello, I'm here to see how you're doing?" Dr. Ike spoke to Simonne, who smiled with satisfaction and grabbed his tie.
"I'm better than I've ever been." She said and kissed Dr. Ike, who absolutely did not expect such a reaction and tried to pull away. Dr. Erwick looked on in confusion as the patient kissed his friend. Finally, Dr. Ike pulled free and looked at Erwick with equal confusion.
"Don't you get it? Now, finally, nothing is stopping me from living life to the fullest. I can do whatever I want." Her eyes went completely black, and SCP-023-CS she looked out of the window of her room in the infirmary.
Erwick and Ike looked at each other blankly. It was clear to both of them that something was wrong. The girl in front of them was not the same as the one Erwick had been talking to every week for the past few months. And apparently she was dangerous, of that Erwick was certain. He didn't think there could be such a drastic change in her personality. She was right about one thing. She was free now.
Without speaking, the two doctors agreed that it was too dangerous to leave Simonne conscious. Fortunately, they both knew a few tricks.
Do you think I can't hear you? echoed in both doctors' heads at once.
Simonne was still looking out the window, but she was actually looking at Dr. Erwick's reflection.
How about we really test the limits of my abilities?
And When You Gaze Long Into the Abyss …
4th January, 2007
(eight months earlier)
"I have a what?" He didn't know how to respond, he didn't even understand what he had just been told.
"SCP-3623. It is an anomalous parasitic entity that feeds on the host's energy-" Before the researcher could continue, Dr. Erwick interrupted.
"No, no, no. How did this happen? What happened to me?" They didn't understand him, nobody understood him.
"Dr. Erwick, we are well aware that you are in a difficult position." The researcher sitting across from him was not losing patience. Chris also always prided himself on being able to keep his cool during interviews.
"A difficult position? That woman is going to suck the energy out of me and I'm supposed to be fine!" He stood up from his chair and then sat down again, realizing how stupid this whole thing was. The whole situation was weird. Erwick had heard of dozens, if not hundreds of cases where someone had contracted a memetic virus, lost their mind over a sound that didn't exist, or been injured during one of many containment breaches.
But he never thought it would happen to him. Not here, not at Site-91. Nothing ever happens to anyone at Site-91.
"Dr. Erwick," the medical researcher spoke again after a pause, "we're not quite sure yet how far-reaching the effects of SCP-3623 might be on its hos-" he paused, "-on you. But we do know that your connection should not pose any threat to you or other personnel in the Site."
Chris tried to calm himself. That's what his parents always told him. Calm down, breathe out, and always be nice. It's funny how a person can quickly forget manners when emotions get the better of them.
"Okay, so how can I get rid of it?"
"I'm afraid we can't get rid of SCP-3623-13. Such an action would result in negative consequences. On the contrary, we need to make sure the subject stays within five kilometers of you at all times."
Erwick wanted to argue that he wanted to get rid of the parasitic connection, not the person he was connected to. Only then he learned that they couldn't move away from each other, and he immediately realized the main point. "Wait, I won't be able to leave the Site?"
The researcher glanced down at his notes as if looking for something to help him escape the conversation. "I'm sorry, Dr. Erwick, but I don't think there's anything that can be done. I can only give you my recommendation."
"And that is?"
"I think a meeting with SCP-3623-13 might help you."
Dr. Christopher Erwick, the Level 3 researcher, absently rose from his chair and walked to the door. He paused before reaching for the handle and speaking. "Respectfully, no thanks."
June 12th, 2007
It was dark outside, and the office was lit only by the dim light from a lamp, accompanied by the fleeting light from the corridor coming through the semi-transparent door. Chris sat in his comfortable office chair, staring absently at the ceiling. He clutched a glass of whiskey in one hand and absently clicked a pen in the other. In the other chair, not as comfortable as the first, sat his longtime friend, Dr. Ike, also with a glass of whiskey and an open file in his lap.
"So, this girl has telekinetic powers…"
Erwick nodded.
"And those abilities are getting stronger all the time…"
Erwick nodded again.
"Until her death, I mean… That's a rather unpleasant idea. What if she decided to use her powers to escape. Does Site-91 even have the equipment to do something like that?"
Chris sipped some of his glass. "It's just that she doesn't want to use her powers. I think she somehow subconsciously associates them with the other entity and is afraid of them. So far, she's only resorted to using her abilities when she's experiencing strong emotions, and that's usually fear."
Ike set his empty glass down on the table and looked at Erwick, who returned his gaze. "But what if we can somehow miraculously get rid of the creature. What then? We'll be left with a powerful telekinetic without a single thing stopping her from using her powers. Without fear."
Erwick took another sip, but found his glass already empty. He looked at the bottle on the table for a moment, then refilled it. He gestured for Ike to refill his as well, but he declined and continued. "You know, Chris, I think that to some extent, as bad as it may seem, this monster is actually beneficial."
At this Erwick set the bottle on the table again, but wasn't paying attention and instead the bottle fell to the floor where it shattered with a loud crash. Fortunately, it was already empty. The two doctors immediately got up to start cleaning up the shards.
"Sorry, I guess I drank more than I should have," said Erwick, who had just grabbed a handy broom and dustpan from behind a cupboard. "But back to what you said. Do you really think it's good for her to be in constant contact with some monster that wants to kill her?"
Ike, meanwhile, was trying to look around for projectiles that might fly away. "Well, it was more of a thought. But yeah, maybe it's a good thing it's limited to some extent. Power corrupts people and all that, especially power that would allow her to do whatever she wants."
Chris thought about it and almost angrily said: "Maybe, but if we stripped her of her powers as well, then she could get out of here and live a normal life. That's worth it, isn't it?"
Ike looked at his best friend. Was he going to confront him now? Maybe this wasn't the right time. No, Ike would wait until Chris wanted to tell him himself. Until then, he'd help him clean up the shards.
"Shouldn't I turn the light on?"
…The Abyss Also Gazes Into You.
September 4th, 2007
(The Present)
Erwick's reflection in the window cracked as the glass shattered with a gentle movement of Simone's hand. Both doctors instinctively covered their faces and the more agile Ike rushed to the wall where he smashed the protective glass of the alarm button with his bare hand. An alarm siren rang through the building, accompanied by red lights in the corridors. SCP-023-CS turned to Ike and used his abilities to throw him against the wall. Dr. Erwick tried to pick up the heavy hospital IV holder, but it twisted in front of him and ripped out of his hands. A resonating voice echoed in their heads.
I will not be locked in a cell again!
At that moment, two members of site security entered the room with weapons at the ready. They fired three times, but all the bullets stopped in front of Simonne, who then threw the two men into the hallway and exited the infirmary after them.
Dr. Ike tried to get up, but the pain would not allow him to do so. He had many small wounds from the glass shards and his left arm was visibly aching. Dr. Erwick rushed to his aid. "Are you all right?"
Ike cleared his throat and his smile twisted in pain. "Do I look okay?" He tried to laugh. "Chris, listen, we need to lock down the building. They can't-" he coughed, "they can't get out of the site."
"Wait here, you'll be fine." Erwick ran out of the room to correct his mistake. He headed for the security station at the end of the floor. No sooner had he run in the door than Agent Majer pointed his nine millimeter pistol at him.
Erwick raised his hands above his head, but Majer lowered his gun and half-shouted. "What the hell is going on out there?"
"Containtment breach. I'll explain later. We need to lock down the building." Erwick walked past him to a security console with many buttons and monitors. He noticed immediately that several of the cameras were not working. Specifically the cameras from sickbay down the west corridor towards the humanoid wing.
Majer tucked his weapon back in and walked over to the keypad to give the command to lock down the Site. "Now tell me what happened."
"SCP-023-CS, the girl with the telekinesis, got out. I don't know what happened, she just went crazy and-" Erwick's voice broke. It was his fault, but he couldn't deal with that right now. Action had to be taken. "If you can, send someone to sickbay, Dr. Ike is hurt. And order the rest of the security detail not to attack the subject."
Agent Majer stopped abruptly. "Doctor, with all due respect, don't tell me how to do my job." He pulled out his radio to give the order and motioned for Erwick to leave the room and get somewhere safe. The last thing Erwick heard was an order not to attack the subject directly and wait for reinforcements. If nothing else, Agent Majer knew how to walk in his line of work.
Site-91 shook as SCP-023-CS made its way through the security station at the entrance to the humanoid containment wing. Three members of the Site's Security Department were injured, but miraculously no one died. A long corridor full of doors, numbers and locks now opened up in front of her. Full of people the Foundation was holding against their will.
Simonne reached her hand out in front of her and clenched her fist. Metal doors creaked across the corridor, lights flashed, and when Simonne jerked her hand, everything went out and there was a clatter. A second later, the red backup lights came on, illuminating the pile of ripped open doors.
Nothing happened for a moment, and then the sound of the ventilation being turned on began to come from each cell in turn. No one was coming out. Simonne figured that the sleeping gas triggers had probably gone off. She immediately created a bubble of air around herself and rushed to the nearest cell where the gas had not yet had time to fill the room.
The cell was almost identical to the one where Simonne spent her last five months. The walls were blank, there was a bed in one corner and a small bathroom in the other. A few open books were laying on the floor. Whoever lived here was a bookworm, apparently. With a swing of her hand, Simmone blocked the gas outlet on the ceiling and looked around the room more carefully this time. A woman was crouching under the bed, even though it clearly wasn't the best hiding place.
"Don't be scared. I'm getting out of here, are you coming with me?" Simonne asked, reaching out for her hand. The woman seemed to think about it for a few seconds, then awkwardly climbed out from under the bed when Simonne lifted it up with one hand.
"So," she started doubtfully, "Are we running away? Why me of all people?" She was a lot taller than Simonne. She had ginger hair and was wearing the same orange clothes that Simonne always used to. It was hard for a person to not feel like a prisoner in this place.
Simonne didn't answer. Instead, she stepped out into the hallway to take a look at the other cells. All the other subjects were fast asleep already. The woman hesitatingly followed her out the door, where she stopped to check that the hallway really was empty. "I don't think this is a good idea." She said when she made eye contact with the camera above her cell door.
Simonne was surprised. "You're joking, right? Of course it is a good idea. Don't you want to be free?"
The woman didn't know how to answer. "Of course I would love to see the outside world, but-" she stuttered, "-but I can't leave."
"Why can't you leave? Is anything keeping you here?" Simonne snapped at her, with an almost outraged tone in her voice. The woman noticed that her eyes were now close to being completely dark.
"No," she managed after a while, "nothing is keeping me here apart from the steel doors, magnetic locks and armed security. But I won't leave, because-"
She stopped mid-sentence, as they both heard hurried footsteps approaching them. Soon enough, Dr. Erwick emerged from the corridor, still in his lab coat, trying to catch his breath. Both women stared at him with an uncertain expression. Erwick looked at Simonne, then absently turned his gaze to the other woman as his mind was flooded with questions.
"You don't want to do this." He finally managed to say. The air around Simonne was vibrating. The corridor's reinforced walls shook as if the building was caught in an intense earthquake. What was really happening was much more horrifying though. With her now completely dark eyes, she was inspecting the very essence of his being, inside and out. It wasn't a pleasant feeling, but nothing about this situation was really pleasant anyway. Her expression in that moment was indescribable. If he had to try, he would say that she looked tortured. They met regularly for the last few months and she was always irritated, but he had never seen her in this state before.
"And what do you think you can do to stop me, Doctor?" Without taking an eye off him, she grabbed the air and a hidden gun slipped out from under Erwick's belt. He got it along the way there to prepare for the worst, but he wasn't even sure if he could bring himself to use it, let alone whether it would actually work. The handgun flew through the air into Simonne's hand, and she mockingly tossed it down the corridor, making the other woman jump aside.
"Did you really think you could just shoot me?" Chris felt pressure building up on his chest. Simonne grasped him firmly, but didn't hurt him yet. "I don't want to hurt you, I don't want to hurt anyone, but you just aren't giving me any choice. Tell them to stay back!" In his peripheral vision he saw a few site security agents approaching. This made him feel uneasy. Just as he was about to shout the order at them, he noticed the woman standing behind Simonne gesturing at him. He couldn't understand sign language, but he understood that he was supposed to keep talking to Simonne. She wanted him to distract her.
"Simonne, listen to me. You can't do this, you know this is wrong."
"I can! And I will… I spent all my life scared… of everything around me. But not anymore. I won't let anyone hold me down! And if the price for freedom is hurting a few of you along the way, then so be it." Erwick gasped. The invisible grip around his body was getting tighter. Fear clouded his mind just like the first time he felt Simonne's power. A Foundation job wasn't always easy, but for him, it was almost always safe. But even his luck had to run out eventually…
Just then a gunshot was heard and Erwick fell to the ground. He could breathe again, but his whole body was weak and he was barely able to grasp the situation. With considerable effort, he forced himself to look up. Simonne was laying on the floor and her hospital gown was soaking with blood. The ginger-haired woman in an orange jumpsuit was bending over her. A gun was laying on the floor.
The last thing that Christopher Erwick saw were the armed Task Force agents rushing in to secure the situation. And then everything went dark.
September 8th, 2007
The interrogation room doors opened. A young woman looked up from the table and her eyes met those of Dr. Christopher Erwick. "Good morning," she greeted him.
Surprised, Erwick replied: "Morning." He dropped a stack of papers on the table along with a small object wrapped in paper. "My name is-"
"Chris. Erwick, I think," she said, immediately apologizing with her eyes for interrupting him. Chris didn't mind though, he liked it when other people took the initiative during a conversation.
"That's correct. How would like me to call you?"
She spoke in a cold tone: "My name is Mady, but everyone calls me SCP-3623-13 here, pick one." Erwick knew very well that the woman in front of him was his 'anomalous parasite'. When they first told him, he was angry, confused, and he aimed all those emotions against SCP-3623-13. He drowned himself in work, trying not to think about the fact that he can never leave the site again, or being so tired because his 'parasite' drained him of energy again. And on the lonely nights when he sat in his office with a drink, he blamed SCP-3623-13 for all of this. But after 3623-13 saved his life, he realized that nothing in life was completely one-sided.
"Mady is a nice name." Chris grabbed the small item and handed it to the woman sitting across from him. "I brought something for you, Mady. A gift of gratitude."
Mady laid her palms on her chest. "Gratitude for what? Shooting that girl?"
"No… I wanted to thank you for your patience."
Erwick opened the paper folder. The front side was labeled SCP-3623. "I don't think we've been properly introduced, but I am actually-"
"My 'host'?" Erwick thought he saw something almost resembling a smile on her face, and was surprised by how well she handled this situation again. It took him months to mentally prepare for this talk.
"Yes. Your Host."
Silence took over the room, but it wasn't awkward silence. It was the moment of peace that Chris desperately needed. After a while, Mady spoke again: "So, what happened to her?"
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SCP-023-CS
SCP-023-CS
Object #: SCP-023-CS
Object Class: Euclid Keter
Special Containment Procedures: SCP-023-CS is temporarily being held in a containment cell in Site-91's Humanoid Wing. SCP-023-CS is to be kept in a medically induced coma until further notice. If the subject begins to wake up, the Site Director is to be contacted immediately.
Description: SCP-023-CS is a woman of European descent who identifies herself as Simonne Varco. The subject is a very capable telekinetic and has shown aggressive and unstable behavior. Since the subject has previously attempted escape (see September 4th 2007 Incident Report), it has been kept in a medically induced coma ever since its recontainment. The subject's observed telekinetic abilities pose a Level 6 threat.