Notes Of A Dead Man Sequel (Notes - #3) by Clive Cooper (best contemporary novels .TXT) 📖

across the Dead Sea. I breathed a sigh of relief that my ordeal had come to an end. In the morning, more carrion-haulers would come. I could flag one down and tell him my story, and by day's end I would be back in my flat in Austhaven, and all of this would be nothing more than a thrilling tale of adventure with which to regale my grandchildren. Clearly I had begun to go mad in that grim viridian night among the corpse-fires and imagined the voice of St. Azarius; now that I was safe, I would need to seek Expurgation for those thoughts, but having done that I would never have to speak or think of that blasphemy again. Sighing, I rose from the sink and met my own gaze in the mirror - and as instantly as the earlier relief had swept me, a new revelation came.

 

It is said that in ancient epochs, when the world was closer to the stars, St. Azarius struck a bargain with the gods, that man might not die, but live eternal if they followed His teachings. The Temple has always taught that this life is to come in the hereafter; when we die, our souls depart our bodies, and if we are worthy, then St. Azarius will welcome us into the new world of His making.

 

I know not what negotiations He brokered with the Outer Things, nor what black magicks he authored in those distant ages, but I know now that the immortality He acquired for mankind was not the same immortality that the priests of the Temple had expected Him to deliver. Their vengeance when they realized the truth must have been immense. Perhaps He was the first one doomed to take the Long Walk into the heart of the pit. Perhaps the Dead Sea was built upon Him, that the Temple could hide His disgrace from the world without abolishing the reputation of his Holy Name upon which their power was wrought. I knew now that when I had heard St. Azarius speak to me that night in the Dead Sea, He spoke to me not from some metaphysical world-to-come, but that He was below me in the depths.

 

When I first beheld myself in the mirror, I vomited. What I expelled was not the fresh water I had just consumed, but something far more foul; black and brown, malodorous and syrupy, speckled with bits of graying flesh. In an instant, I recalled the details of my birthday celebration that had previously been denied to me; how I was unceremoniously tossed into the street after last call at the Eel & Castle. How I staggered drunkenly along the cobbles en route to my flat, hollering impolite suggestions at the ladies on the kerb. How I lost my footing on the mist-slicked staircase that lead downward to Earl's Street. How I tumbled twice and bashed my head against an old stone on my way down. How the maidens had screamed for help. How the hospitallers struggled to carry me onto a horse-drawn carriage as my life-blood ran down onto the stone.

 

Be not afraid, the voice spoke again in my head as I peeled the glove off my left hand, taking half of the soggy purple skin with it as I peeled it loose. I promised life eternal to all those who believe. In you the world shall see the fulfillment of my vow. The prophecy has been fulfilled, Dear Reader. The new age is upon us. The time has come to cast aside the false declarations of the Temple, which has denied us the truth of St. Azarius' promise and condemned us all to refuse our true immortality in favor of a false utopia.

All of this I realized as the glove slipped free from my hand and I raised it to the face I saw in the mirror, felt with my own hand the point where my skull had caved in on the cobblestone, where shards of rock and bone had forced their way into my exposed brain, and traced my bony, skeletal finger along the contours of my pure, bare, white and skinless face.

SCP-3997

Item #: SCP-3997

 

Class: Euclid/Keter1

 

Special Containment Procedures: SCP-3997 must be kept in a 6m x 6m x 6m lead cell with a strong bio-electromagnetic current flowing through it. The cell must be checked every ten hours for any holes in the lead where the current could leak out. The current must be coming from a living being, otherwise SCP-3997 will revert back to its unpredictable behavior. Plants seem to work best due to the creation of chlorophyll from the chloroplasts in plant cells. The containment cell must constantly have something living in it. Otherwise, there would be an increased risk of a containment breach happening. Foundation members must also be aware of how close they put the living being to it.

 

Due to Incident 1-4-A, SCP-3997 has been designated its own containment site2 to prevent any further incidents. It is now to be contained in a 6m x 6m x 6m lead cube, along with an abundance of various species of flora and fauna. In the event that a given specimen expires, SCP-3997 is to be supplied with an individual of the same genus A.S.A.P by two D-Class personnel.

 

Description: SCP-3997's physical form is impossible to describe, as its shape is constantly changing. SCP-3997 appears to vibrate rapidly, but no air displacement has ever been detected by air pressure readings from inside it's cell. SCP-3997 has a wide range of anomalous properties at its disposal, most depending heavily on the subject and the circumstances.3 Inscriptions on the walls of the cave where it was found suggest that SCP-3997 is part of something bigger, but this has not been proven by Foundation research as of yet4. More tests will be conducted in the near future to better understand the capabilities of SCP-3997, and how those capabilities can be used to the Foundation’s advantage. SCP-3997 is believed to have other instances. These instances must be located and contained in separate containment cells immediately by the Foundation.

 

Recovery Log: SCP-3997 was found in a cave under a small and isolated village in [REDACTED], after reports from some of the locals being “unable to find a sufficient sacrifice to please Them”. They were supposedly [DATA EXPUNGED] by unknown means as a result. When the remaining locals were asked about “Them”, they took the on-site Foundation agents down into the cave where SCP-3997 was found. Ancient hieroglyphics that were presumably █000 years old were found on the cave walls. They appeared to be Egyptian, despite their location not being anywhere near Egypt. Foundation translators were called in to decipher them. Once deciphered, it said, “The undying protectors that are our Deities. They have granted us protection and safety, in exchange for a soul annually. Once together, They will rain judgement upon reality. Fate is in Their hands, then.”

T-057-OC425/3997 -█/██/20██

 

Subject: 1 (One) potted opuntia polyacantha.
Procedure: Subject was placed 0.5 meters away from SCP-3997.

Results: The movement of SCP-3997 gradually slowed until it ceased abruptly one minute after exposure.
Note: This was the first test conducted on SCP-3997. It is how we found out how to contain it.

Subjects: 2 (Two) D-Class personnel.

Procedure: Subjects were introduced into SCP-3997's containment cell.
Results: Subjects began hallucinating featureless silhouettes shortly after SCP-3997 started vibrating rapidly. Hallucinations persisted for the next 24 hours until the subjects ceased movement entirely.

Note: Those two Class Ds haven't moved since… -Dr. Smith

Subjects: 3 (Three) canines and 2 (Two) felines.

Procedure: Subjects were introduced into SCP-3997's containment cell.
Results: Upon entering the containment chamber of SCP-3997, the subjects vanished instantly without a trace. Several minutes later, a pool of blood, innards and the subject’s cadavers materialized in the shape of a pentagram around SCP-3997. SCP-3997 was colored a crimson red during this period.

 

Note: WHO THE ████ WOULD DO SOMETHING LIKE THIS!? -Dr. Smith

These tests show just a few of the many anomalous properties of SCP-3997. -Dr. Smith

Incident Report 3997-4-A: SCP-3997 caused a containment breach in Site 19 on ██████, by releasing an E.M.P (Electromagnetic Pulse) composed of all the electromagnetism that SCP-3997 was exposed to prior to the breach. The E.M.P fried the technology that was containing all other SCP objects in SCP-3997's vicinity. Epsilon-11 ("Nine-Tailed Fox") was called in to re-contain the lost SCPs, along with SCP-3997. Oddly, SCP-3997 remained motionless throughout the breach. Tests have proven dangerous due to the unpredictability of SCP-3997, and thus have been restricted. Further testing of SCP-3997 has been prohibited by O5-Command until more is known about it. The above was stated before we knew how to properly contain SCP-3997. Tests are now allowed to be conducted under the supervision of level 5 personnel. Detailed explanations of the conducted tests are found in Test Log T-057-OC425/3997.

Footnotes1. Only in the event that all instances of SCP-3997 assemble.2. Site 27.3. See Test Log T-057-OC425/3997.4. See Recovery Log.

SCP-3012

Item #: SCP-3012

Object Class: Safe

 

Special Containment Procedures: SCP-3012 is not a hostile organism and he will not attack unless you aggravate him. SCP-3018 is secured in a 1.6 metres by a 1.8 metres ordinary dog cage. The cage contains a large dog bed, two average tennis balls and a goat's rib. The containment cell where the dog cage is placed is 5 metres by 3 metres and SCP-3012 is welcome to leave its dog cage as it wishes. The room however must always be locked but any SCP agents or SCP officials may enter if they have been told to do so by the SCP foundation.

 

Description: SCP-3012 is a canine-like organism who was located in ██████, Puerto Rico. SCP officials theorise it to be the organism associated with the urban legend "Chupacabra". The urban legend is about a canine-like organism who slaughters and consumes livestock, particularly goats. Sightings of SCP-3012 otherwise known as "Chupacabra" have been in such places as New Mexico, Puerto Rico and The Southern States of America.

 

SCP-3012 has the head of what is similar to a male Whippets but the skull has different bone structure to that of a regular male whippet. The head and snout of SCP-3012 appear to be wider than the average male Whippets though. The torso of SCP-3012 is that of a male Whippets apart from the fact there is no tail and 10 bones in the torso are structured differently