Solar system diagram in 1846
Item #: SCP-ES-173
Object Class: Euclid
Special Containment Procedures: Around SCP-ES-173, 20 satellites coated with fireproof material resistant to 500ºC will orbit. When a satellite is 8 years old, it must be replaced by another. These satellites manipulate the frequency of light waves, making SCP-ES-173 invisible. For further security, the members of the Foundation infiltrated in NASA and in the main astronomical observatories, must block and sabotage any research or information about SCP-ES-173.
The subject linked to SCP-ES-173 must live at the Site-34 facility. Every time SCP-ES-173 requests a sacrifice, the subject must go to the projection room, where they will watch fictitious films of rituals of Aztec origin in which human sacrifices are practiced.
Every 4 months, news about the existence of the planet Vulcan must be published on Internet portals of questionable credibility. The accounts from which to publish, must have a history of publications related to government conspiracies, urban legends, ufology or similar.
If a recognized scientist or professional in the field begins to theorize seriously about the existence of the planet Vulcan, the subject should be investigated to decide between which of the 2 established ways to proceed. Dr. Feraud is currently in charge of this procedure since the departure of Dr. Magnier (See Annex 173-2).
If the subject can be useful to the Foundation, a process will be started to recruit them. Once the subject is part of the Foundation, they will be asked to provide the results of their research concluding that the planet Vulcan does not exist.
If the subject is of no use to the Foundation, it will proceed in the second way, discrediting the subject. Bringing to light compromising antecedents or questioning their articles, everything necessary so that they are no longer recognized by the scientific community.
Description: SCP-ES-173 is a planet-like creature from space orbiting between mercury and the Sun. The diameter of SCP-ES-173 is estimated to be between 1900 and 2200 km, with an approximate mass of 1.943x10²² kg. It seems that it cannot move and is dragged by the gravitational force, since no variation in its orbit has ever been detected.
Due to its proximity to the Sun, between 0.1321 and 0.1427 AU, could only come into view during solar eclipses. For this reason its existence remains hidden from the rest of the world, although due to its mass, it exerts variations in mercury's orbit and led 19th century scientists to theorize about the existence of a small planet between Mercury and the Sun, which they named Vulcan.
Based on Isaac Newton's Law of Universal Gravitation, Urbain Le Verrier, a renowned French scientist, formulated the first hypothesis about the existence of Vulcan. As a result, hundreds of scientists conducted search expeditions during full solar eclipses.
After Le Verrier's death, the search continued, but all failed. During the full eclipse of 1878, the Foundation sabotaged 2 of the explorations from within, while in 1883, 10 of them had to be intervened. These searches were a threat to SCP-ES-173's concealment.
The Foundation prepared a cover-up with Einstein, using his theory of relativity to explain the anomalous orbit of Mercury and excluding the hypothetical planet Vulcan. In 1915, Einstein announced to the world that Vulcan did not exist and that Mercury's trajectory was a product of the Sun's gravitational force.
The search ceased, but to prevent risks, in 2000 the Foundation sent satellites to manipulate the frequency of SCP-ES-173's light waves, making it invisible.
SCP-ES-173 can communicate with other living beings telepathically, although it communicates only through ideas and feelings. SCP-ES-173 clings to a subject and maintains a communication pathway only with that subject. If the subject dies, it opens the pathway with another nearby subject. It can change subjects at will, it has demonstrated this on 4 occasions, all performed at the request of the Foundation. SCP-ES-173 has expressed through ideas that it feels more comfortable if it always remains linked to the same subject.
Communication with SCP-ES-173 can only be established when it wants to. The results of contacting SCP-ES-173 by the Foundation have been unsuccessful. The longest period without establishing contact has been 4 months. Sooner or later, SCP-ES-173 ends up asking the subject to sacrifice another human being and to do so by emulating an Aztec ritual used for sacrifices to the Sun. Failure to perform the sacrifice would lead to a scenario similar to Incident 173-1.
During the period of the Incident, Dr. Greis was the link to SCP-ES-173.
When the latter asked him for a human sacrifice the subject simply ignored it. He proceeded in this manner for the next two weeks. In the third week SCP-ES-173 began to insist, until it became extremely annoying. The subject began to report malaise, headaches and depression.
On the second month a ritual murder was reported in the village of ████, near Site-34. The murderer claimed to have committed it because of a voice in her head, asking her for a sacrifice. Another 5 people from towns near Site-34, went to the psychiatrist because of a voice in their head demanding the same thing.
Class C amnestics were given to all those involved.
For decades the Foundation had to perform human sacrifices to prevent the recurrence of Incident 173-1, until Dr. Magnier discovered that SCP-ES-173 does not distinguish between a fictional movie and reality. Since then, subjects connected to SCP-ES-173 have only to watch a fictional movie of an Aztec sacrifice to appease it. Sara Luthon is remembered as the last human sacrifice made to SCP-ES-173.
Discovery: The Foundation became aware of their existence after a raid on a cult called "Servants of the Fifth Sun" in 1825. The Servants of the Fifth Sun performed more than 20 human sacrifices before being stopped by the Foundation. The priest of that cult communicated telepathically with SCP-ES-173, which he mistook for the Sun. He was imprisoned and locked in a standard Site-34 humanoid cell.
The priest committed suicide while being held in his containment cell. An hour later, SCP-ES-173 began communicating with a staff member, Doctor Greis who was at the same Site. No connection between the two subjects is apparent. All indications are that SCP-ES-173 chose a nearby person at random.
Interviewee: Doctor Greis
Interviewer: Doctor ████
Introduction: First interview with Doctor Greis after being linked to SCP-ES-173.
<Begin Interview>
Interviewer: How do you communicate with SCP-ES-173?
Doctor Greis: I would not know how to explain it very well….
Interviewer: Try. Do you use words? Do you speak its language?
Doctor Greis: No, no. It's more like ideas. Feelings. I feel what it wants and why it wants it. It's complicated to explain this communication. It's very vague, sometimes I find it hard to understand some things, too ambiguous.
Interviewer: What was the first thing it told you? Or, rather, conveyed.
Doctor Greis: It asked me who I was.
Interviewer: How did it do that?
Doctor Greis: It imagined me and I felt the sense of uncertainty. I understood right away that it was asking me "Who are you?"
Interviewer: Did it ask you what you are?
Doctor Greis: Yes, but I'm not quite sure I know.
Interviewer: Explain.
Doctor Greis: I see it to him, it looks like a planet very close to the Sun. It conveys to me that it is like the Sun, but it is not.
Interviewer: I do not understand.
Doctor Greis: It thinks it's like the Sun, it tells me it's like the Sun, but I know it's not.
Interviewer: And what does it want from you?
Doctor Greis: I think affection. It wants to feel loved and… it wants me to kill someone.
<Ending Interview>
Conclusion: After the end of the interview it was decided not to give in to SCP-ES-173's requests, which led to Incident 173-1.
Interviewee: Doctor Greis
Interviewer: Doctor ████
Introduction: First Interview with Dr. Greis after Incident 173-1
<Begin Interview>
Interviewer: How are you feeling?
Doctor Greis: Much better, thank you.
Interviewer: Could you tell us how you were feeling during Incident 173-1?
Dr. Greis: Really terrible. I had a constant headache. SCP-ES-173 was trying to contact me every hour, begging me to make a sacrifice and when I refused, I could feel its frustration and sadness.
Interviewer: Sadness?
Dr. Greis: Yes, it was telling me that it felt rejected, that it no longer cared about it. I asked why and… I think I understand it a little better now. It's all a misunderstanding.
Interviewer: A misunderstanding?
Dr. Greis: Yes. I could see images, maybe memories of you. I was watching an Aztec ritual, they were sacrificing a person to the Sun. I think SCP-ES-173 misunderstood, it thought he was the Sun and that this group of people were sacrificing something important to make it happy. He felt flattered. Since then it communicated with them.
Interviewer: So SCP-ES-173 believes that the sacrifices are a kind of token of affection.
Doctor Greis: Exactly. And more so after seeing how happy everyone in the village was when their God communicated with them.
Interviewer: Another misunderstanding.
Doctor Greis: I think SCP-ES-173 has a crush on us, on humanity.
Interviewer: I understand.
(Pause)
Interviewer: Doctor Greis, because of Incident 173-1, we are going to have to ask SCP-ES-173 to link up with a D-Subject.
Doctor Greis: I understand. I guess it's unavoidable.
Interviewer: Is something wrong?
Doctor Greis: It's nothing. Before I ask you to link up with someone else, may I say a proper goodbye to SCP-ES-173?
Interviewer: Yes, no problem
<Ending Interview>
Addendum 173-1
Dr. Magnier is suffering from depression, which has forced him to take a sick leave from work.
Interviewee: Doctor Feraud
Interviewer: Doctor ████
Introduction: Interview with Dr. Feraud following the leave of Dr. Magnier
<Begin Interview>
Interviewer: How do you see Dr. Magnier?
Dr. Feraud: I've never seen him this bad in his life. He was cheerful, he could still hold his own well and working on something that can be so… stressful.
Interviewer: Why do you think that is?
Doctor Feraud: What could it be?! He discredited his best friend. You made his word no longer worth anything and…
Interviewer: But that was his job. It was not the first time he had to discredit an acquaintance.
Dr. Feraud: But no one had ever committed suicide after that!
Interviewer: That's what I was getting at in the first question. Was it as a result of discrediting your friend or causing someone to commit suicide?
Dr. Feraud: Well…
Interviewer: In the recruitment exams, Dr. Magnier proved to have enough mental stamina even to withstand suicide.
Dr. Feraud: I'm sorry, I don't know how to answer you.
(Pause)
Dr. Feraud: What will happen to Dr. Magnier?
Interviewer: He will be temporarily on leave. Someone will take his place temporarily.
Dr. Feraud: I'm sure they're going to give it to Lars,…
<Ending Interview>
Psychologist: I'm glad to see we're making progress. You've never talked so much about Leduc before.
Dr. Magnier: You were right, I should let him go now. Shall I continue?
Psychologist: Yes, sorry. Go on.
Doctor Magnier: The worst thing was not having to discredit a friend. Nor to do it knowing that he was right. Vulcan does exist. Although it is not a planet, in that he was wrong, but he would have discovered it. He would have been the one to tell the world: Vulcan exists! And it lives! It liveees!! It's a fucking monster!
Psychologist: Then what was it?
Doctor Magnier: Did you know that you had been accepted to recruit him instead of having to discredit him?
Psychologist: How?
Dr. Magnier: I met him one night. I was going to tell him all about it and start the paperwork to recruit him to be part of the team, but…
(Pause)
Dr. Magnier: I'll give you a summary. Leduc made it clear to me that he would do everything possible to prove the existence of Vulcan. He owed it to his ancestor. Apparently Le Verrier was a distant relative of his, it's funny. If I had recruited Leduc, as soon as he knew the truth about SCP-ES-173, he would run to tell the world, he would not have cared about the subsequent consequences. I couldn't recruit him and I knew that if I smeared him like that… I would end his life.
Psychologist: You must remember that you have saved lives, hundreds of them! You were the one who came up with the idea of fooling SCP-ES-173 with movies. You got Sara Luthon to be the last sacrifice made to SCP-ES-173.
Doctor Magnier: My actions condemned Leduc. So no, Sara Luthon is no longer. Leduc has been the last sacrifice, and I was his hangman.