The people behind Marshall, Carter, and Dark Ltd. Had worked hard to make a save list of guests, ensuring that any that might have some kind of connection with the SCP Foundation was kept away.
This did mean that many rather wealthy clients had been kept away from their latest event, though there wasn't much they could do, they had to ensure that there wasn't another accident.
However, no matter how hard they tried to keep the Foundation out, they could never have guessed that the Foundation they knew was very very different then they remembered.
Since the Foundation was still lacking in members of the O5 council, the members that were around were able to act with far greater freedom than normally. Which was why O5-3, the director of finance, could do almost anything he wanted to expand.
One of the first thing O5-3 had done after being summoned into this new world, was to take over Blackstone. Securing their trillion dollars in assets. Sure, they weren't really his just yet, but he could now use them petty much like he wanted, investing in other companies he owned, allowing him to profit immensely.
So, when Marshall, Carter, and Dark Ltd reached out and sent Blackstone an invitation, he had naturally found out about it.
For all their attempts at keeping the Foundation in the dark, they had still failed and allowed the Foundation both knowledge of the event, and a way inside.
Naturally, O5-3 was never going on go there himself, it was far too risky, and he wouldn't even be able to use Tau-5 as his bodyguards like O5-1 had done. Using one of the most powerful assets for something like that was nearly impossible to do.
Maybe once it had just been O5-1 and O5-2 around, but now? No way; too many others around to veto his requests, and using them as guards just wasn't a good enough reason to convince the others.
So instead he would just have to send someone inside, and take things in a different direction then O5-1 had done. He had been far too careless, made too big a splash, even pushing his current fake identity into the spotlight.
No, O5-3 found the entire thing foolish, far too risky. No, it was better to control things from the shadows, to not alert Marshall, Carter, and Dark Ltd of the Foundation's involvement if possible. After all, losing the ability to get invited wasn't something he could allow.
Many interesting objects found themselves in their hands, and getting a front row seat to their auctions was priceless. So yes, O5-3 didn't want to risk that, which was why he had to be careful.
He could send someone, of those that had been smart enough to acknowledge the change in leadership, those were the people that were expected to show up.
Sending someone else might cause suspicion to land on them, yet O5-3 was troubled by the fact that those people knew little about the Foundation and even less about SCP objects.
Thankfully, it hadn't come to that, it had required O5-3 to have to reach out and borrow an SCP object from O5-1's personal vault, but with SCP-034, the Obsidian Ritual Knife he was able to overcome all and any difficulties.
After all, that knife was able to allow anyone to take on the appearance of someone else. By cutting the skin of a person using the blade and placing that skin on someone else, they would transform into the skinned person.
The more skin used, the longer the transformation. And the transformation was deep; be it fingerprints or DNA, everything matched the person they were copying; it was a foolproof method of infiltration.
So, rather than having to put poor Harlan through a crash cause of learning about SCP objects, it was far easier to just send in a Foundation operative to take care of things.
And as such, the Blackstone representative had been a Foundation agent from the start, planted to keep track of who got their hands on SCP objects so they could go get them after the fact and to ensure that any object too dangerous was instead acquired by the Foundation.
------------------------
The agent, posing as Harlan Brune of Blackstone, allowed himself a rare moment of satisfaction as he glanced at the secured case containing SCP-662, the Butler's Hand Bell. Alongside it sat SCP-738, the Devil's Deal Desk, and SCP-268, the Cap of Neglect. Each artifact had been won through carefully calculated bids, all thanks to the nearly bottomless coffers that O5-3 had directed his way.
As the agent took a measured breath, he considered his remaining tasks. O5-3 had outlined them with precision: avoid raising suspicion, monitor who won other items, and, if possible, manipulate the bidding to either inflate prices for rival organizations or undercut items of strategic interest for the Foundation.
The rest of the night had been tense. Several influential attendees—the oil prince, the tech CEOs, and even some state-backed officials—had bid aggressively on items with barely veiled ambitions. Yet, even among them, the carefully controlled bids from Blackstone's "representative" had subtly directed the auction's pace, pushing up prices for objects that seemed like tools for private power or influence.
The Foundation's interests, however, lay not in financial gain but in containment and control. Every anomaly in the world that fell outside their reach was a potential threat. While some items like SCP-1230, A Hero is Born, which had gone to Justin Hammer, weren't very dangerous, they did threaten the ignorance that the Foundation promoted.
And others like SCP-1025, the Encyclopedia of Diseases, won by a high-stakes hedge fund operator from Europe who seemed to grasp the object's potential but not its full danger. The Foundation would eventually find ways to recover them to ensure that the danger of the object wasn't unleashed onto the world.
As the final gavel fell, signaling the end of the night, the agent received a subtle vibration on his watch—a coded message from O5-3. The extraction team was in place. He had only to hold his position and await instructions for when he could safely leave the premises, carrying with him the newly acquired artifacts.
Around him, the guests had begun murmuring among themselves, forming clusters to exchange thoughts on the evening's auction. But, ever the silent observer, the agent knew his role was only half complete. He scanned the room, committing faces and gestures to memory. These were the individuals who would eventually become targets for further operations if they retained items of high risk.
As he waited, the auctioneer approached, his expression as polished and unreadable as ever.
"Mr. Brune," he began, offering a slight nod. "A successful evening, I trust?"
The agent adopted Harlan's characteristic half-smile. "Very. Blackstone is most pleased to have participated in such an exclusive affair."
The auctioneer's gaze lingered for a second longer, as though gauging the sincerity behind the words, before he nodded again. "We'll ensure these acquisitions reach you safely. Marshall, Carter, and Dark Ltd. prides itself on customer satisfaction."
The agent inclined his head. "I trust you will."
As the auctioneer drifted back into the crowd, the agent's calm veneer remained unbroken, though inside, he felt the weight of his mission's success. Each SCP object he had won was now safeguarded under Foundation control. Those that hadn't been secured tonight, like the Encyclopedia of Diseases and A Hero is Born, were officially logged and monitored for follow-up. The night had been a success.
Just then, a figure caught his attention—a woman in a sleek, dark dress who had been eyeing him from across the room. She moved with an air of practiced elegance, clearly someone of influence. The agent felt a twinge of caution. Was she part of Marshall, Carter, and Dark Ltd., perhaps an additional layer of their security, sensing something off about him?
Feigning indifference, he let her approach. She smiled faintly as she drew near.
"Mr. Brune," she said, her voice laced with curiosity, "I couldn't help but notice your success tonight. Blackstone's… resources must be formidable to secure such prized artifacts."
The agent returned her smile, keeping his tone light. "Blackstone believes in long-term investments," he replied smoothly. "And tonight presented an unusual opportunity."
Her gaze lingered, a flicker of something unreadable passing through her eyes. "Indeed," she replied, before tilting her head thoughtfully. "Perhaps we'll cross paths again in the future."
With that, she turned and disappeared into the crowd, leaving the agent with a lingering sense of unease. He reminded himself of O5-3's directive: remain vigilant, gather intel, and most importantly, avoid any actions that could blow his cover.
The extraction signal blinked once more on his watch. He made his way to the exit, nodding politely at those who acknowledged him, maintaining Harlan's air of easy confidence. Once outside, he spotted the Foundation's unmarked vehicle parked discreetly at the edge of the lot, and he slipped inside without a word. The driver, another Foundation operative, nodded and pulled away, leaving the venue behind.