SCP-214-FR-A-04 and SCP-214-FR-A-07, respectfully from above and below
Item #: SCP-214-FR
Threat Level: None (Previously white ●)
Object Class: Neutralised (previously Keter)
Special Containment Procedures: Having been neutralised, SCP-214-FR does not necessitate any more containment measures. Nevertheless, any account reminiscent of SCP-214-FR must be examined by a committee of experts and submitted to the O5 council if deemed significant. The logging of any specimen of Sequoiadendron giganteum must be reported to the Foundation so that an agent to be infiltrated immediately in the lumber company to have a swift and appropriate response in case of a reappearance of the object.
The 8 remaining dead specimens of SCP-214-FR-A are kept at the biology department of Site-Aleph and are available after a demand is submitted to the conservationist. The recordings of SCP-214-FR-B are available for download on the Foundation's intranet to any personnel. Listening to these files is often prescribed to victims of post-traumatic stress disorder thanks to their appeasing virtues. Broadcasting the files is also allowed in break rooms but must be stopped in case of emergency so as to not impact personnel's reactivity.
SCP-214-FR is currently confined at the Site-He, formerly known as Bexton Gulch, specifically in the former town park. At least fifty personnel must at all times be present in said park to keep SCP-214-FR contained. Said personnel is mostly comprised of D-class but any Foundation member is allowed to access the area outside of their work hours. Even though the likelihood of an altercation is minimal, the presence of so many D-class in the area justifies the presence of at least twenty armed guards at all times with them.
In case of a breach, the MTF Lambda-8 "Madame Butterfly" must be deployed to quickly localise SCP-214-FR. As soon as the swarm is localised, a party of at least 70 personnel will be deployed nearby to lure it closer. The party will then return to Site-He at a maximum speed of 10 km/h to always be in sight of SCP-214-FR.
19/08/1961 update: Marksmen must be deployed at the critical posts mentioned in Tactical file 214-D to protect Site-He from any outside incursion.
28/09/1961 update: Following the events of the so-called "Night of ashes", the security of Site-He is to be increased. Thus, a 5 meters tall perimeter wall including watch towers is to be built around Site-He. Moreover, air defence batteries are to be set according to Tactical file 214-E. Furthermore, the guard contingent affected to the protection of Site-He is to be doubled in the next two months. Finally, three M26 Pershing tanks are to be deployed on site as soon as possible to respond to a possible large-scale attack in the near future.
Description: SCP-214-FR-A was a swarm of anomalous butterflies similar to Danaus plexipus of around █000 individuals. The main difference with other specimens of the species is the coloration of the wings, which are purple instead of orange. Most of the body is also slightly transparent, letting around 30% of visible light pass through. To this day, no specimen of SCP-214-FR-A has ever been seen feeding nor showing signs of malnutrition. Likewise, no mating has ever been reported and no egg, caterpillar, or chrysalid has ever been attributed to SCP-214-FR-A with certainty. Furthermore, the swarm switches between migration and rest phases following a seemingly random pattern (the minimum for a resting period being 26 minutes and the maximum 1 year, 4 months, and 12 days). During a phase switch, the whole colony stops or starts moving at the same time, suggesting a form of communication between the individuals.
Moreover, all individuals of SCP-214-FR-A constantly emit a wide variety of sounds audible by humans. These are usually considered by listeners as very pleasant music, designated SCP-214-FR-B. It has been shown that said sounds have numerous benefits for human subjects, including:
- Significant sleep improvement
- Stress reduction
- Increase in pain tolerance
- Focus improvement
- Creativity increase
- A feeling of bliss
- Mental faculties increase
- Memorisation improvement
- Aggressivity decrease
- Metapsychic capacities increase of ██ %
Each specimen emits an average noise level of around ██ dB, which is about 100 dB for SCP-214-FR-A as a whole, about the power of a jackhammer. Even though such an amount should cause damage to listeners, no alterations have ever been observed on any subject exposed to SCP-214-FR-B no matter the duration or distance from the colony. Furthermore, signs of habituation have yet to be seen among test subjects, although most of them show a strong desire to be exposed again to SCP-214-FR. Moreover, recordings of SCP-214-FR-B do not exhibit the anomalous properties of SCP-214-FR-B, despite still being considered very pleasant to listen to.
However, despite its potential regarding the Foundation's objectives, SCP-214-FR is mostly unusable due to the impossibility of safely containing SCP-214-FR-A in the long run. Indeed, specimens of SCP-214-FR-A have the property of being able to pass through any material known to us to this day. Thus, the whereabouts of the swarm are virtually uncontrollable. Moreover, it seems SCP-214-FR-A will always tend to move to populated areas, seemingly to have SCP-214-FR-B heard by as many people as possible. The motives of such behaviour are unknown as of yet, since no communication seems possible with the swarm as far as we know. Nonetheless, it has been shown that SCP-214-FR-A has a sensitivity to insecticides comparable to regular specimens of Danaus plexipus, especially dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT).
SCP-214-FR was discovered on 15/08/1960 in Sequoia National Park during the lumbering of a large specimen of Sequoiadendron giganteum. Witnesses report that the tree's trunk was hollow and SCP-214-FR-A came out of it as soon as it fell on the ground. The Foundation learnt the event 5 hours after the fact but it took two more days to track down the swarm. Indeed, it had flown for ███ km from the lumber site and it took the testimony of a child having heard a strange music in the woods to find it and set up a perimeter around the object. However, it was passed through by the swarm without any struggle mere hours later. On 20/08/1960, it had gone beyond the borders of the park. Two days later, a containment team took advantage of an idle phase of the swarm to build, in one night, a one-meter thick concrete chamber around it thanks to SCP-███. Unfortunately, SCP-214-FR-A was able to pass through its walls without struggle the next morning. The process was repeated 8 additional times with as little success. Given those failures and the tendency of the object to seek human contact, the Foundation's scientists ended up theorising that SCP-214-FR-A is actually drawn to population centres. Once this fact was settled, the anomaly was finally located near the small town of Bexton Gulch (now He-site) which is soon evacuated, claiming a seismic hazard in the area. The current containment procedures have been able to keep the entity in the area so far.
Update: On 30/01/1962, per the Bagotville Treaty (see Addendum 214-6), the area occupied by SCP-214-FR-A was sprayed with DDT. The entire swarm of SCP-214-FR-A was terminated, their body becoming tangible after their death. A dozen specimens were kept to be stuffed, the rest being incinerated. The object class of SCP-214-FR has been changed from "Keter" to "Neutralised".
Addendum 214-1: A few weeks after the initial containment of SCP-214-FR-A, the External Affairs Department received a letter from the PSYCHE Division of the Global Occult Coalition intended for the department head.
Dear sir,
According to our sources, it seems the SCP Foundation currently has in its possession a group of entities designated as SCP-214-FR, currently contained in the ghost town of Bexton Gulch. Due to the properties of these creatures, the Council has doubts regarding your capacity to keep this anomaly under control in the long term. Thus, the existence of the object puts in peril the secret of paranormal phenomena and our activities in general. We recommend the destruction of the swarm for obvious security reasons. We hope you will make the right choice.
Sincerely,
John O'Connor
Global Occult Coalition ambassador
Addendum 214-2: Answer sent back by the DAE.
Secure. Contain. Protect.
Dear Sir,
We thank you for the interest you are taking in our activities. Nevertheless, we would like to remind you that espionage between our two organisations is forbidden by the 1946 pact but we do not doubt that, knowing your ineffable honesty, the Coalition has obtained these informations through the most honourable ways. Furthermore, the Pact also states that, if both parties pledge a thorough collaboration in case of a major crisis, each of the organisations remains independent and this is without a doubt an internal matter of the Foundation that does not concern the Coalition in any way. Our specialists are relentlessly working to find a way to permanently contain SCP-214-FR and we are making progress with each passing day. At this pace, we hope to find a satisfactory solution within two years. Thus, there is no reason for concern, we have everything under control.
Sincerely,
Isabelle Wolf
Head of the External affairs department, SCP Foundation
P.S.: If you were to honour us with another epistle, please remember your interlocutor is a "Madam" and not a "Sir".
Addendum 214-3: Answer recieved a week later.
Dear Madam,
We are not putting in doubt the skills of your specialists. However, it appears difficult for us to contain an anomaly of this scale in the long term. Furthermore, I would like to remind you that the Coalition is currently fighting on several fronts to keep these areas under the control of democratic powers. Thus, we are in dire need of the resources we allocated to the Foundation to help you reconstruct after the war. Regrettably, we might have to withdraw some of these material, financial, or human resources to keep the Coalition running, even though it may unfortunately alter your operations. Nonetheless, a gesture on your part may favor the continuation of these aides and thus keep normal operability.
Hoping you will make the right choice,
John O'Connor
Global Occult Coalition Ambassador
P.S.: If you keep going on that path despite this, we might have to take measures that may be harmful to our future relationship.
In response to this letter, marksmen have been deployed on the rooves of buildings in He-site and the possibility of adding armoured vehicles is being studied.
Addendum 214-4: Report of the 26/09/1961 event, also known as "Night of ashes"
25/09/1961 16:30 [LOCAL TIME]
Bell UH-1 Iroquois helicopters without markings fly over the He-site and disappear before any radio contact can be established. The Site is placed under yellow alert.
25/09/1961 18:47 [LOCAL TIME]
Movements are reported in the woods near Site-He. Even though no traces of any hostile group have been found in the area, the alert level goes to orange.
25/09/1961 20:15 [LOCAL TIME]
Rumours about a possible attack from the GOC spread among the men. Paranoia is even more prevalent due to the recent reports of the Coalition beginning to use anomalous weapons in its military operations. Physicians report that the guards are particularly worried about the current situation.
25/09/1961 22:48 [LOCAL TIME]
Radars detect a plane flying at a high altitude above the He-site despite the no-fly zone. Several guards report having seen paratroopers coming down from the sky but no traces of an airborne operation could be found in the woods. The alert level is changed from orange to red.
26/09/1961 00:00 [LOCAL TIME]
SCP-214-FR-A stops emitting SCP-214-FR-B. Site-He is completely silent. The Site is completely silent. Fits of hysteria are reported among less experienced personnel.
26/09/1961 00:14 [LOCAL TIME]
Movements are spotted on west Maple Street by one of the marksmen posted on the roof of the town's former drugstore. By reflex, he shoots down the target without summation or asking for permission from his officer. Later examination would reveal that it was a woman in her thirties wearing a GOC uniform and was only armed with a Colt M1911 handgun. The main hypothesis is that it was one of the paratroopers deployed in the area who was detached from her unit and lost her weapon in the confusion. The threat level is changed from red to black. Reinforcements are sent from Site-He-██ but won't arrive until early morning.
26/09/1961 00:32 [LOCAL TIME]
Shooting starts at the North and South ends of Main Street. Four guards die in the fight. An explosion happens at the angle between Lincoln Avenue and Liberty Road, its origin still unknown to this day. The onsite radio control room is blown up by the detonation, killing eight personnel members, five of whom were unarmed. In the commotion a grenade is mistakenly thrown inside the town's church by a guard, starting a fire that would spread to the surrounding buildings.
26/09/1961 04:21 [LOCAL TIME]
Shots abruptly stop. No bodies having been found and due to the pitch-black night, it is hard to estimate the number of attackers but the number of bullet impacts and cartridge cases indicates a group of around 20 heavily armed people equipped with American gear. The fire still isn't contained and continues spreading among the town.
26/09/1961 06:00 [LOCAL TIME]
Sunrise. SCP-214-FR-A leaves the perimeter {sans que qui que ce soit puisse y faire quelque chose. L'incendie s'est étendu aux bois environnant.}
26/09/1961 06:38 [LOCAL TIME]
Reinforcements arrive from Site-He-██. The blaze is fought with civilian Tracker S-2FT airtankers sent by CAL FIRE. Anti-aircraft guns are deployed in the areas spared by the fire or having already been burnt.
26/09/1961 09:20 [LOCAL TIME]
As the fire is finally contained and beginning to be put out, another Bell UH-1 Iroquois similar to those that flew over Site-He the previous day comes in from the southeast. It manages to avoid the AA gun fire in extremis, unlike one air tanker stricken by mistake. The plane crashes in the forest, killing its two crew members.
26/09/1961 11:37 [LOCAL TIME]
Fire officially put out.
28/09/1961 23:00 [LOCAL TIME]
SCP-214-FR-A is confined once again despite the damages inflicted on Site-He.
| Victims record |
| Details |
Victim toll |
| Death by shooting |
4 |
| Death in the explosion of the Radio command post |
8 |
| Death in the fire |
27 |
| Intruders taken down by marksmen |
1 |
| Crewmembers of Tracker S-2FT who died in the crash |
2 |
| Other civilians |
3 |
| Missing |
5 |
| Total: |
49 |
Conclusion: According to the latest report, 57 personnel members were injured during the firefights, the fire, or the commotion. The GOC would later declare about the incident that it was only an exercise of Assault team 832 "Nightcrows" in the nearby forests. The medic designated as "Blue Raven" would have been separated from her team by strong side winds and got lost in the woods. The armed response of the GOC team would only be the consequence of her being shot by one of Site-He's marksmen.
Addendum 214-5: Summary of the events that arose between September 1961 and January 1962
Date: 18/10/1961
Location: Site-Aleph
Description: Two F-4 Phantom II showing GOC markings make a low altitude pass by over Site-He-Aleph. It is the first appearance of these aircraft, proving that the GOC now has at its disposition third-generation fighter-bombers, a combat capacity far above the Foundation’s since we didn't see the point of acquiring a fighting air force after its near-total destruction during the Seventh Occult War. The GOC claims a navigation mistake to explain the flyover.
Date: 21/10/1961
Location: Site-Beth
Description: Same event as previously, except that a third fighter suddenly appeared out of nowhere between the two without being detected by the radar. It is assumed the GOC has used anomalous ways to hide the fighters. Same explanations from the GOC.
Date: [DATA EXPUNGED]
Location: [DATA EXPUNGED]
Description: [DATA EXPUNGED]
Date: 02/11/1961
Location: Site-Aleph
Description: Beginning of the deployment of Operation Thunderbird with the aim of installing one or several nuclear warheads in each main site to quickly neutralise any threat in the case of a massive containment breach. The GOC accuses the Foundation of wanting to use atomic weapons with hostile intentions in the future.
Date: [DATA EXPUNGED]
Location: [DATA EXPUNGED]
Description: [DATA EXPUNGED]
Date: [DATA EXPUNGED]
Location: [DATA EXPUNGED]
Description: [DATA EXPUNGED]
Date: 24/11/1961
Location: In Ecker nuclear test facility, French Algeria
Description: The presence of Foundation agents during the underground nuclear test Agate by the French army is unveiled by the GOC. New accusations regarding potential hostile use of nuclear weapons.
Date: 01/12/1961
Location: SCP-███, SCP-███-FR, SCP-███-DE and SCP-████ containment facilities
Description: GOC troops helping Foundation personnel to contain the previously cited objects since the 1946 Treaty are called back with their equipment to their original bases. The justification given is an urgent need for men and hardware on an unknown front. Troops usually affected at other less crucial Foundation sites are deployed in an emergency to compensate for this sudden lack of manpower.
Date: [DATA EXPUNGED]
Location: [DATA EXPUNGED]
Description: [DATA EXPUNGED]
Date: [DATA EXPUNGED]
Location: [DATA EXPUNGED]
Description: [DATA EXPUNGED]
Date: 18/01/1962
Location: Southern Pacific
Description: An unidentified submarine is detected near SCP-930. Depth charges are deployed in order to neutralise the supposed threat. It is not known if the manœuvre succeeded since no debris or oil spill could be identified with certainty.
Date: 21/01/1962
Location: Area Mem
Description: At dawn a fleet of ships flying the GOC ensign followed by the aircraft carrier[DATA EXPUNGED] of the US Navy form a blockade around Area Mem. According to the GOC, it is a security measure to protect its fleet so they don't get the same fate as the Ring of Solomon, a submarine that was allegedly sunk without summation by Foundation ships in the Southern Pacific.
Date: 23/01/1962
Location: Republic of the Congo
Description: A GOC facility is attacked by an unknown armed group, supposed to be the Chaos Insurgency. Ten agents die and the anomalies EDC-███-████-█████ and EDC-█2█-███-██████ are lost. Since the GOC doesn't recognise the CI as an entity distinct from the Foundation, the latter is accused of the attack. The likelihood of a conflict able to degenerate into an Eighth Occult War is at its peak.
Addendum 214-6: With the growing menace of a major conflict, two delegations from the GOC and the Foundation meet on 25/01/1962 at the CFB Bagotville airbase in Quebec, considered as neutral terrain by both parties. The negotiations last for 8 days and end with the Treaty of Bagotville (also called the Butterfly agreement) allowing to de-escalate the crisis.
- The GOC agrees to cease the blockade of the Area Mem
- The Foundation pledges to never use nuclear weapons with other goals than the security of their sites. As a token of good faith, half of the warheads are ceded to the GOC.
- The GOC officially recognizes the Chaos Insurgency as distinct from the Foundation.
- The GOC pledges to switch off the anomalous camouflage of their aircraft when flying over Foundation facilities.
- Creation of a neutral observation committee to mediate future disagreements.
- The Foundation pledges to reform its global strategy to not need GOC support to contain the anomalies under its rule.
- The Foundation pledges to never ally with other groups of interest against the GOC. However, they reserve the right to ask for the help of the US Armed Forces if deemed necessary.
- The Foundation makes formal apologies for the murder of agent "Blue Raven" and the destruction of the submarine Ring of Solomon. They pledge to pay reparations amounting to [DATA EXPUNGED].
- The Foundation pledges to follow the GOC's sound advice by destroying the anomaly known under the number SCP-214-FR, without which the concerned crisis would have never occured [sic].
Addendum 214-7: On 31/01/1962, the body of Dr. Fitzgerald, entomologist previously in charge of the containment of SCP-214-FR, is found in his office at He-site. The autopsy has shown that he shot himself with a sidearm stolen from Site-He's armoury. A letter hand-written on regulation Foundation mail paper was discovered next to the body.
Secure. Contain. Protect.
To whoever will read this letter.
It's with a heavy heart that I have put an end to the existence of an entire species. I watched them as they tried to escape the toxic gases. I watched them as their tiny bodies were shaken by spasms as death came to pick them. I watched them as they were carried in trucks to the incinerators where they would vanish forever. What remains of them now? Nothing but ashes, some corpses neatly kept in place by needles and a few recordings that will never do justice to the heavenly melodies these creatures of God were able to play. These animals did not have any other goal than to relieve mankind with their songs and how did we thank them? A puff of chemicals and straight to the crematorium! These creatures were the purest and greatest thing on this grey, cold Earth and we burnt them to the last one. It has been a true honour to work for the Foundation during all these years but I will not bear living with such a horrible crime on my mind.
I am leaving this bleak Earth without any regret.
P.S.: Please find someone to take care of the stick bugs in the terrarium in my office. Enough beings have already died pointlessly by our fault.
Skeledenn
