Bruce's mind was still reeling from the discovery of SCP-4885's nature and the tragic fate of Oliver Bell. The reality of what his friend had faced was beginning to sink in. Oliver had somehow stumbled upon the location of SCP-4885 and had doomed himself and SITE-160 as a result.
As Bruce delved deeper into the investigation, he uncovered the specifics of how Oliver had learned about SCP-4885. He found a record in the archives detailing Oliver's activities in the days leading up to the catastrophe. Oliver had been monitoring various security feeds, a habit of his, when he noticed something unusual on one of the screens.
Hydra agents were engaged in a fierce battle with a humanoid figure inside their office. Curious and concerned, Oliver had quickly written a description of what he was seeing into the Foundation's database, triggering an automatic alert.
[Warning! Search matched to SCP-4885 Keter class object!] [If you are aware of the location of said Object, immediately activate protocol Zeta-12B14: Blackcurtain] [Execute protocol?]
Oliver had pressed confirm, unknowingly sealing his fate. The subsequent messages had left no room for doubt.
[To know where object 4885 is means you will die; no Foundation measures can save you; if you are still alive, you are urged to perform self-liquidation to avoid a class 3 death.]
The alarms had started blaring, and the site was thrown into chaos. Bruce could picture the scene vividly now: Oliver's shock, his desperate activation of the protocol, and finally, his tragic decision to end his life rather than face the horrific consequences of his knowledge.
Bruce sat back, overwhelmed by a wave of grief and guilt. He felt the need to reach out, to connect with someone who could offer comfort. He picked up his phone and dialed Lena's number.
"Lena, it's Bruce," he said when she answered.
"Bruce, what's wrong? You sound terrible," Lena replied, her voice full of concern.
"It's Oliver. He...he's gone," Bruce managed to say, his voice choked with emotion. "He saw something he wasn't supposed to. SCP-4885. It led to the destruction of SITE-160. He...he killed himself."
"Oh my God, Bruce," Lena whispered. "I'm so sorry. I can't imagine what you're going through."
"I just...I don't know how to process this," Bruce said, his voice breaking. "He was my best friend. And now I have to figure out how to deal with this SCP. It's so dangerous, Lena. I don't even know where to start."
"You'll find a way, Bruce," Lena said gently. "You're one of the smartest, most determined people I know. And you're not alone. You've got me, and you've got the Foundation. We'll get through this together."
Bruce took a deep breath, her words bringing a measure of comfort. "Thank you, Lena. I needed to hear that."
"Anytime, Bruce. Just take it one step at a time. And remember, Oliver would want you to keep going, to find a way to stop this thing."
"I will," Bruce said, a renewed determination in his voice. "For Oliver. For everyone."
After ending the call, Bruce felt a little more centered, ready to dive back into the work. He knew it wouldn't be easy, but he had to find a way to neutralize SCP-4885. Oliver's sacrifice had to mean something. And with Lena's support, he felt just a bit more hopeful about the daunting task ahead.
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[SITE-009]
Alexander dusted off his hands as he finished passing off the task of neutralizing SCP-4885 onto Banner. It might not have been the kindest move, to make use of his grief like that. But Alexander desired the end of this object's continued threat.
Not just because it was a massive threat, since if it entered an area of civilization, it would kill and kill and kill until there was nothing left to kill, and it was highly likely that its rather slow means of killing would mean the news could spread.
Letting more people know where it was and, as such, dooming them to death. This would make the SCP object spread further and wider.
This was the reason SITE-160 had to go. This would mean that even if SCP-1885 could survive, which wasn't even certain, it would still have been removed, and the power of a nuclear blast would have been enough to throw a human-sized object flying far away.
Banner would first have to get containment up and working, and then check if the entity was even still alive, if it was, he would then have to find out what could kill it if the SCP had even been at SITE-160 at all.
It was such an annoying object. How could you deal with something if you couldn't even know where it was? Well, the current protocol might be the answer. Have nukes go off where it might be without anyone knowing why.
It was risky and expensive, but such an object was dangerous to the extreme. Even more so than the shy guy. Since knowing where he was located was perfectly safe, which made containment far simpler.
"Though problems just keep coming, don't they?" He couldn't help but groan, as not only was there still a massive mess caused by SCP-4885 left to deal with, but it might also include a less stable Banner since he had lost his best friend.
It shouldn't have happened; Alexander had done his best to keep SITE-160 as safe as possible, even though Lena Morris Bruce had claimed to have been protected on her other missions.
Yet at least Banner seemed stable enough, something he had felt the need to confirm in person, even showing off his true self just to see what it might do to Banner.
And that was just the tip of the iceberg. O5-2 had gone and bagged himself a fucking Skrull, and now that was another annoying playing on the table that needed to be dealt with. Something which wouldn't be easy.
In the best-case scenario, he could find something inside Shield using his agents there, including Romanoff, who was ranked highly enough and trusted by many other than Fury, to find some dirt. If that wasn't possible, it would be difficult to uncover them in the short term.
Alexander rubbed his temples, feeling the weight of the multiple crises bearing down on him. The threat posed by SCP-4885 wasn't something he could just ignore. But neither was the risk of a Skrull infiltration. But it was something that needed to be dealt with swiftly.
Personally, Alexander wanted SCP-4885 dealt with the most since that would allow him to fully use Soloman's wisdom and locate all other SCPs instantly.
Not that he didn't understand the risks the Skrulls posed; they were dangerous and could cause much damage, though thankfully, he didn't believe they could copy superpowers, meaning that the highest powers within the Foundation were safe.
After all, other than the Ethics committee, the rest of the rank 5 personnel were all heavily enhanced, well beyond what it should be possible for the Skrulls to mimic. However, it would require new confirmation protocols.
Not to mention, all other personnel needed some way to be verified as well; thankfully, this massive task hadn't been assigned to him, and he would do his utmost to ensure that it stayed out of his hands.
He had plenty on his hands already, the first of which was getting in touch with Shield infiltrators and having them snoop around for anything about Skrulls. However, Fury was likely keeping knowledge of such things to himself, which would make it a challenge to find anything.
What they really needed was to find a live one and have it lead them to others, make a map of their locations, expand the surveillance until they had all of them under observation, and then strike with extreme and overwhelming force.
"Too bad Ghost is already busy, or this could be something he could be kept busy with." Alexander mumbled before sighing once again, finding himself crushed under the weight of the work ahead of him.
It had been a long time since he had been this busy; for a long while, the Foundation only had to deal with a few SCP objects here and there, nothing like this, which kept even the O5 council busy all day and night.
"Not to mention that I soon have to summon another two, while still got plenty of others out there." He cursed under his breath. "Enough work, time to a break." He finally said and returned to the surface where he spent the rest of his day by the pool with a glass of wine, just ignoring the many tasks he still had to do.
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[Kamar-Taj]
The Ancient One moved through the bustling streets of a city, her senses attuned to the subtle shifts in the fabric of reality. Something felt off, a disturbance that tugged at her awareness. She followed the thread of unease through the winding alleys until she arrived at a nondescript, weathered building.
The building seemed ordinary at first glance, but as she approached, she noticed an ancient door hidden in the shadows. The door was covered in dust and inscribed with unfamiliar runes. Extending her hand, she let her magic flow into the door's seal. It swung open with a creak, revealing a shimmering portal within.
Without hesitation, she stepped through, emerging into a vast, otherworldly landscape dominated by seven colossal pillars. Each pillar was adorned with intricate carvings and bound with powerful enchantments.
"Fascinating," she murmured, her eyes narrowing as she examined the pillars. Dark energy pulsed from within, growing stronger with each passing moment. Her knowledge of ancient magics told her these pillars were part of a powerful containment spell.
Raising her hands, she cast a series of incantations to analyze the enchantments. Visions flooded her mind: a demon, an entity of unimaginable power known as the Devourer of Worlds, chained deep beneath the pillars. The seals were failing, their power waning with each passing moment.
"This cannot be allowed to continue," she said to herself, determination filling her voice. She needed to see the entity for herself, to understand the true extent of the threat.
Channeling her magic, she teleported to the base of the pillars, descending through layers of protective wards and barriers. The descent was dizzying, each layer of magic growing darker and more oppressive. Finally, she emerged in a cavernous chamber, standing before the massive form of the Devourer of Worlds.
The demon was bound by chains, made of an unknown, clearly magical metal, its eyes glowing with hatred and hunger. It sensed her presence and roared, straining against its bonds.
"You shall not break free," she declared, her voice echoing through the chamber. Moving closer, she examined the chains and ancient runes that powered them. The seals were failing, their power waning.
Using her vast magical knowledge, she began to weave a complex spell, strengthening the bonds and reinforcing the seals. Pouring her energy into the runes, she chanted in a language forgotten by time. The demon howled in rage, but its struggles grew weaker as the magic took hold.
Panting from the exertion, she knew this was only a temporary solution. The demon's power was too great for her to contain alone indefinitely. This wasn't any weaker than something like the lords of hell.
The fact that something like this was imprisoned was interesting. If she could learn the method by which it was done, it would prove a permanent solution to many other more dangerous beings. Even the lord of the Dark Dimension might be dealt with like this.
The demon seemed to have fallen asleep, likely only her sudden appearance had woken him, and even without her effort its clear that it wouldn't be able to break free on his own, not just yet at least.
The chains were growing weak. A few of them seemed ready to snap at any moment. In fact, as she inspected them closely, she couldn't help but feel they should be snapped already. Yet they seemed to have been fixed… yet clearly not very well.
All but one of them wouldn't last more than a year… maybe two at most. Even her efforts hadn't done more than add a few days onto that. However, she also noticed that as long as even a single chain remained, the demon wouldn't be able to free itself.
All seven or just one, the demon would remain, unable to free itself, yet even the one chain that was the strongest wouldn't last more than a few decades before finally giving way. Now the ancient one was no stranger to demons like this.
In fact, she knew pretty much everyone by name at this point, which was why a totally new one appearing was suspicious, and she instantly connected it with the SCP Foundation. It would seem that she would need to make another visit to one of their facilities to see if they knew about this demon.
The Ancient One considered her options. The demon before her was a powerful entity, and while she had temporarily reinforced its bonds, the seals were failing. This required a more permanent solution, and she knew she couldn't handle this alone.
She teleported back to the surface, emerging once again into the bustling city streets. Drawing her cloak tighter around herself, she made her way to a quiet alley and conjured a portal to the nearest SCP Foundation site.
A/N
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