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Chapter 245 - Alexander’s flashback -240

 

While the mutants and the Sentinels continued their little war, and the Foundation slowly expanded its reach inside the world of SCP-7995. Outside the SCP, the Foundation still had much else work to do.

 

While inside 7955, the situation might be one of life and death, outside, it was nothing but normal business. It wasn't considered something important, nor something urgent. Sure the possibility of using the world for their own gain was tempting, but they had time on their side.

 

While the Foundation wanted to save human lives, the leadership wasn't about to go out of their way and invest too much in saving another world, even more so since there was a risk of them saving another race and causing an SK-Class Dominance Shift Scenario with the mutants taking over.

 

Still, for one person, the mutants held a special interest, and luckily, for the people of SCP-7995, that person was Alexander Ricci, O5-1 of the Foundation.

 

Back in the real world, back in New York, back in SITE-009, Alexander hadn't been doing anything while his personnel worked away inside 7995.

 

Alexander had been following the investigation closely, having daily reports sent to him by the members of Alpha-1. He had sent in quite a few important assets, such as Bruce Banner and the white tiger amulet, all things he didn't want to lose. So that was yet another reason to keep and eye on things.

 

But in truth, the real reason was his knowledge of the mutants, who should have been in his world as well but, for some reason, weren't. He was currently having another few teams investigate whatever other Marvel people exist in that other world.

 

It was difficult to find much information since the Sentinels seem to have destroyed most data centers. This means that the Internet is down, and the information stored on it is mostly gone.

 

So everything had to be investigated the old way, by sending people in to look for clues. Which wasn't easy considering that the world was filled with killer robots seeking out every human to end them.

 

But while there wasn't much luck on that front just yet, the same couldn't be said for the mutants.

 

He almost couldn't believe the luck of running into all the main mutants all at once, or maybe it was misfortune, as it did limit what they could do around two of the most powerful mind readers in the world.

 

The only good thing was that it seemed they weren't quite so desperate that they were willing to kill to option information just yet; after all, the Foundation had many ways to protect its secrets, but for non-vital members, death was the best.

 

Alexander himself had more than just the earring to protect him; that was just one of the ways his mind was made into a fortress, but such measures were expensive and only used on class 5 personnel.

 

Though even without those two, just Magneto alone was a troublesome foe, his ability was incredible, and his power allowed him to make decent use of his mutation.

 

Given that currently, some of the main firepower of the Foundation came in the form of the new generation of vibrating suits, he doubted they could do much to someone like the master of magnetism.

 

No, the mutants were dangerous for sure, though if he could not just harness the power of the X-gene but also that of the sentinel, the ability to copy and negate such powers, he likely had much less to fear.

 

That was just one of his many ongoing projects after discovering SCP-7995.

 

Alexander still had many other projects that didn't concern that particular SCP object, he had plenty of other Objects out there to worry about, and many other things in general.

 

For one, a few dangerous SCP objects remained out in the wild, which included the latest summoning.

 

One of them is none other than SCP-343, also known as God. There were plenty of horrible evil gods in the Foundation universe and many more gods in the Marvel universe.

 

But SCP-343 was suspected of being the God of the Bible, so the possible creator of the entire world and humanity itself. While there were some doubts as to whether those were entirely accurate, there were still plenty of impressive things that might be connected to SCP-343.

 

For one, there was SCP-001, and while that designation was used for plenty of Objects and events, there was one true first ever found and contained SCP.

 

[Flashback]

 

Alexander stood in his chambers, his tent, while luxurious, but it wasn't truly enough to show off his wealth and the power he held. Every day his empire grew in size and scale, his army unstoppable and his own genius more than enough to guide them from victory to victory.

 

It would only be a matter of time before he would conquer the rest of the world itself, taking everything as his own, spreading civilisation to every corner of the world, and forging an everlasting empire.

 

He stood looking over some maps his scouts had made based on what they had observed. He needed to plot the route ahead of them, as to not guide them into any positions where they might face problems.

 

"Your men celebrate your latest victory, and yet here you are all alone, working without a rest. If you keep working like that, without time for rest, you won't live long enough to stabilize your new territory." A voice suddenly called out, startling Alexander.

 

His sword was in his hand before the man finished his words, and only the fact that this person hadn't taken advantage of sneaking in to attack him was keeping Alexander from attacking. "Who are you!?"

 

The other man just laughed, and Alexander took the chance to look him over. He seemed to be of Semitic descent, his olive skin a stark contrast to his own much lighter tone. Yet he couldn't help but notice that this man didn't look like some assassin.

 

No, the robe on his body seemed to be made of material no less valuable than what his own clothing was made of. There were also plenty of jewels all over the man, making him look more of a king than even he himself.

 

Each finger was adorned with a ring, and he seemed to contain more wisdom than even Alexander's teacher, Aristotle!

 

Rather than answer Alexander's question, the man just spoke his mind, ignoring the sword pointed at him or the fact that with but a shout from Alexander, the greatest army in the world would descend on him.

 

"Alexander III of Marcedon, king of Macedonia, the Pharoah of Egypt, King of Persia, and soon to be King of Asia, a more impressive man I have never stood before, yet, compared to what I have seen… I can't help but be disappointed in how normal you are."

 

Alexander's grip tightened on the hilt of his sword, his eyes narrowing as the mysterious man's words hung in the air like a taunt. He was used to praise—flattery even—but this was different. There was a strange tone in the man's voice, a confidence that bordered on arrogance, as if Alexander's conquests were nothing more than a trivial footnote in history.

 

"Disappointed?" Alexander's voice was cold, calculated. "You stand in the presence of the greatest ruler the world has ever known, and yet you dare to speak of disappointment?"

 

The man smiled, a serene, almost amused expression crossing his face. He took a few steps closer, his hands behind his back, his gaze never leaving Alexander's. "You misunderstand me, great king. It's not your ambition or your achievements that disappoint me. It's your perspective."

 

Alexander's patience was wearing thin. "I ask again—who are you? And why are you here?"

 

The man's smile faded slightly, his tone growing more serious. "You see the world like a king, you have the mind of a great conquer and the heart of a great king, these are good qualities, ones I wish all kings and rulers had. However, the world is so much more then that, It holds terrible secrets not meant for mortal men to see, I wanted to see if you might have the heart to behold those secrets, but I am doubtful now."

 

Alexander's grip tightened further around his sword, though now it wasn't just out of suspicion, but a mix of frustration and curiosity. Who was this man to speak to him in such a way? Yet, the weight of his words carried something profound—something that Alexander couldn't ignore.

 

"I have conquered lands, toppled empires, and bent the world to my will," Alexander said, his voice firm, almost defiant. "There is no secret too great for me, no power beyond my grasp. If you truly know something, then speak it plainly."

 

The man seemed to smirk, something Alexander found infuriating for no reason. "Is that so? But I'm afraid you wouldn't believe my words, a king like yourself would believe nothing but their own eyes."

 

The man extended his hand, gesturing toward the entrance of his tent. "Sit, Alexander. I'll show you something you've never seen. Something that not even your mighty empire could prepare you for."

 

Alexander's brow furrowed, his curiosity overtaking his indignation. He lowered his sword but kept it close, watching the stranger carefully. He wasn't one to back down from a challenge, even one wrapped in riddles. "Speak clearly, I am here commanding my army, A king and commander can't just leave."

 

The man's calm demeanor remained unchanged. "Half a day from here, there is a cave, within the gods have hidden away something, surely your army could extent their rest for another day?"

 

Alexander's grip on his sword tightened once again, his instincts screaming to dismiss the man as nothing more than a charlatan. But the way he spoke, with such calm certainty, intrigued him. The promise of hidden knowledge, secrets left by the gods themselves, gnawed at Alexander's ambition. Could he afford to pass up such an opportunity? No. He was Alexander the Great, conqueror of worlds—he would not let anything escape his grasp.

 

"Half a day," Alexander repeated, his eyes narrowing. "I will allow my men a day's rest. But know this—if you are wasting my time, you will regret ever setting foot in my camp."

 

The man smiled once again, though it was less smug and more... satisfied. "You won't be disappointed, Alexander. I assure you."

 

With that, the man turned and disappeared into the night, leaving Alexander alone with his thoughts. His mind was a storm of questions, but he pushed them aside, focusing on the task ahead. He called for one of his generals and ordered the troops to rest for an extra day. His men wouldn't question it—after all, they had earned a moment's reprieve after their most recent victory.

 

But as dawn approached, Alexander found himself restless, his mind wandering to the strange man and the cave he had spoken of. The sun was barely in the sky when he gathered a small contingent of his most trusted soldiers and set out, following the directions the man had given him.

 

The journey took them through rugged terrain, far from the beaten path, but by midday, they arrived at the mouth of the cave. It was unremarkable at first glance—just another dark, forbidding hole in the rock. But there was something about the air around it, something that sent a shiver down Alexander's spine.

 

"This is it," he muttered to himself as he dismounted his horse. His soldiers stood at attention, awaiting his command, but he waved them off. "Stay here. I will go inside alone."

 

The soldiers exchanged uncertain glances, but none dared to question their king. Alexander unsheathed his sword and made his way into the cave, the darkness swallowing him whole as he ventured deeper inside.