In the forested countryside of Ukraine, there were many dirt paths kept visible by the feet of wandering travelers. Most of them branched off to empty, patted-down clearings with nothing more than the odd wildflower; and it was a good thing at that, for there were a great number of beasts in the woods that did not wish to be seen. They lived in the dying branches of the trees and behind the scraggly brush, far past the gazes of any human eye.
There was no doubt that they were there. If they couldn't be heard darting across the old birch trees in the dead quiet of night, they were sure to be lingering on the lips of townsfolk who were as old as the woods themselves. Word spread quickly in such small towns, and talk of monsters was as normal as the weather.
The ones who doubted were the outsiders. The town of Sine Anima attracted a great number of them. The tourists came from across globe, hoping to catch a glimpse of a cryptid like in the folklore of their childhood, but it was never often that they stayed; the town was far too plain for their tastes, and the monsters all too well hidden. Discouragement was a fantastic deviation from the truth. The locals would watch them pack up their expensive luggage cases and roll them into the muck as they trudged their way back to their battered rental cars. Whatever secrets the town was hiding were kept well under the wraps by the prickly arms of bushes and the hanging ivy. The outsiders never saw, and so they never believed.
Elizabeth should have doubted, and left.
—-
Elizabeth awoke to the warm, sticky breath of that Thing brush against her cheek. It had a prevailing scent of rot soaked in men's cologne, strengthening as it puffed heaving, struggled breaths against her skin. She felt her heartbeat plummet and cease, then kick back into a rapid panic in her throat. Her skin turned cold and clammy, hot tears brimmed in her eyes, and her muscles seized as she crept her hand up to touch the arm that was draped over her side. There was no response to her touch, and she let out the frozen air in her lungs in a sigh of relief. With trembling fingers, she lifted the arm ever so slightly and began to squirm her way out from underneath it.
Elizabeth pressed her forearms against the cold cave ground and dragged her legs away, back to herself, underneath her torso where she could pull herself up into a crawl. Goose flesh prickled up on her skin as they lost contact with the Thing behind her, draining them of all heat. It had been the worst night of her life, cowering next to that malformed monster, but had she been even a foot further away, she would've froze. The woman didn't dare look back at the Thing. She had to keep moving forward.
What waited for her at the mouth of the cave was something all too familiar, and yet completely unrecognizable.
The Thing the arm belonged to shuddered. Its bony wrist curled inward, and pulled her back in. Elizabeth fell flat on her stomach. The cold stone ground sent a shock up her spine, and she jolted back up onto her knees. The hand that held her retracted, and the beast it belonged to looked up.
Its limbs were slender and spindly; they were poles against its shrunken body, and Elizabeth had first remarked that they looked like tree branches, but now all she could see was the unforgiving body of a spider. Its ribs were as broad and barren as a xylophone, and its ugly pink pajama shirt clung to its chest like plastic wrap to the bones of a chicken. Each bone in its spine protruded out like mountains across a plain. But quite objectively, its worst feature was its mangled face. What small semblances of humanity it had were lost among the Frankensteined features. Where a mouth should have been, there was only a wall of flesh, but a set of dog jaws erupted from its right cheek. Each tooth was sharpened to a sliver, built to rend and tear. With every clap of its maw, the plates of its skull rocked about over its head. One leering eye stared down at Elizabeth across a stretched and crooked nose.
Elizabeth could feel the emptiness lingering behind that dull, frosted eye. It darted across her body, up and across her collarbones, down her chest and pelvis, then back to her eyes. It studied her fear. It snorted one quick, short breath into its mashed, jagged nose, and clambered to its hands and knees. The movements it made were staggered and uneasy, like walking on broken bones. At first glance, it looked like a discarded toy, with its legs bent backwards below the knee and jutting out in odd directions. With every pained, skull-splitting step, it curled its gnarled fingers into the rugged stone earth. A sudden realization shot through Elizabeth's spine, and she scuttled backwards until her shoulderblades smacked into the icy cave walls.
Item #: SCP-XXXX
Object Class: Euclid
Special Containment Procedures: Foundation webcrawlers must monitor all forms of social media for any signs of SCP-XXXX, including video sharing platforms, cloud databases, and chat forums. Links, URLs, and advertisements relating to SCP-XXXX are to be neutralized via RR-113 protocols. All leads to ATF are to be logged for future reference.
Individuals affected by SCP-XXXX are to be administered Class-B amnestics under the condition that they are Stage 3 or prior. Individuals in Stages 4 and 5 are to be administered Class-A amnestics. Predatory individuals in Stage 6 are to be terminated. Any individuals experiencing undiscovered stages following Stage 6 are to be apprehended and brought to Site-990 for testing.
Description: SCP-XXXX is a memetic agent that induces a compulsion in humans to consume products, media, and content relating to various fanbases (detailed below) under the false identity as a fan website. SCP-XXXX is known to have originated from the amateur entrepreneurial group "Apply The Future", henceforth referred to as "ATF". (See Record Log-08/16 and proceeding logs)
ATF's current interests have become involved with the anthropomorphic animal enthusiast community, more commonly referred to as the "furry fandom". Previous interests affected by the memetic agent include ██████-brand comic books, animated shows produced by ██████ █████████, and [REDACTED].
As of 07/05/201█, SCP-XXXX has adapted to become an infohazard styled as a furry fandom-centric website. Content from the website has a memetic effect identical to the site itself.
The current form of SCP-XXXX affects an individual in six stages, and may only affect individuals with no prior involvement in the furry fandom. It should be noted that SCP-XXXX evolves from a compulsive memetic to a mind-affecting agent past Stage 4.
Stage 1: Upon being exposed to SCP-XXXX, affected individuals will display a peaked interest in anthropomorphic characters in mainstream media, including but not limited to brand mascots, animated cartoons and games, and cereal box art. Compulsive effects of SCP-XXXX are relatively mild during this stage, and SCP-XXXX has been reversed with no side effects in 82% of Stage 1 cases.
The first individuals found to be affected by Stage 1 were discovered on 8/11/██. Shortly after, Foundation webcrawlers uncovered the recorded log history of a chatroom utilized by ATF.
The conversations within Record Log-08/16 are assumed to have occurred 5 days following the initial creation of SCP-XXXX.
olliefox: I sold 18 shirts today
olliefox: the ones with Ollie on them!!!
MPerry: Weird how we have to literally mind control people to buy shirts with your eyebleed fox sona on it.
Dylan99: dont be a dickhole perry
MPerry: Honestly, I was having no trouble with commissions before this.
Dylan99: thats not even the point of this
Dylan99: you know he doesnt have any friends
Dylan99: hes a furry
SnakAttak: We're all furries
Dylan99: literally only ollie is actually a furry
SnakAttak: Haha, you right I'm not touching that junk with a 10ft pole
olliefox: but I thought perry was a furry???
MPerry: No, but they'll drop thousands of dollars on anything even remotely uh
MPerry: foxy.
olliefox: LOL
Thotticusprime: that was ASTOUNDINGLY bad
MPerry: Can't deny it.
Thotticusprime: hasn't one of your guys already bought like 6 fursuits
olliefox: not from me. I think that was from someone else??
olliefox: why?
Thotticusprime: idk
Thotticusprime: you know he's gonna go bankrupt right
olliefox: yeah but it's not that bad because like
olliefox: he'll probably just try to wear them to work or something lmao
olliefox: what's he gonna do kill someone with his fursuit??
SnakAttak: We had people running around in speedos karate-chopping each other in the neck last time like 12 people died
olliefox: okay yeah but that was last time
olliefox: furries are soft
Dylan99: not really
olliefox: ??
Dylan99: you smell
olliefox: 3: what
Stage 2: Affected individuals will initiate their participation in the furry fandom. Contributions to the community may be made, including the creation of a fictional anthropomorphic animal character designed to represent oneself (a "fursona"), digital and/or traditional art featuring anthropomorphic animals, and forum-based role-playing games involving the aforementioned character(s). Stage 2 individuals are indistinguishable from non-anomalous members of the furry fandom.
Stage 3: Affected individuals will actively seek out internet users who openly share negative views on the furry fandom and introduce them to SCP-XXXX. The spread of SCP-XXXX will increase exponentially when shared by Stage 3 individuals.
Stage 3 individuals' involvement in the furry fandom will rapidly reach levels of obsession.
Notable behaviors of certain Stage 3 individuals have been recorded as following:
- Opening of several dedicated role-playing accounts across several social media platforms
- Purchase of ███ animal costumes averaging at a cost of $██,███
- Introduction of ███ individuals to SCP-XXXX via forum posts
- Attempted creation of a political party concerning the desires of members of the furry fandom, including the right to wear animal costumes in a formal work environment, the proposal of a national animal-themed holiday, and a continued debate between the legalization or banning of "awoo"
- ██ recorded arrests following a raid on a known location for parties involving the furry fandom; charges made include disturbance of the peace, possession and trafficking of drugs, vandalism, and kidnapping
- ██ instances of cult indoctrination at local enthusiast conventions and costume events; cult practices included sacrifice of [REDACTED] in order to "become closer with ██████"; 6 individuals are currently hospitalized for physical and psychological treatment not pertaining directly to SCP-XXXX
About 60% of all known shifts into Stage 3 occurred on 9/25. In the days prior, several more recorded logs were uncovered.
The conversations within Record Log-9/23 are assumed to have occurred 38 days following the initial creation of SCP-XXXX.
Thotticusprime: did you hear about that guy that started a party for furries to vote for
olliefox: oh cool!! like a political party?
Thotticusprime: i thought that was obvious.
SnakAttak: do me a favor and imagine obama in a fursuit
MPerry: No.
SnakAttak: what would his fursona be.
olliefox: a lion!
SnakAttak: for real?
Dylan99: wasn't that party the one that tried to claim furries deserved the inalienable right to wear a fursuit to work?
olliefox: lol that's dumb! i'm sure it was just the anamolus guys
SnakAttak: pwease mistew obama im bwoke because the boss wont wet me weaw my fursuit uwu
olliefox: aw that sounds pretty cute!
olliefox: imagine your own local cafe having furry baristas!
olliefox: or like the IRS so people won't be scared of them
olliefox: actually that might not help
MPerry: I have a mascot phobia.
Dylan99: i really don't like the sound of that
Dylan99: i get that you really like furries, but they just kinda weird me out. sorry dude
olliefox: oh okay
olliefox: do you wanna see my latest t-shirt?
Dylan99: i mean sure
olliefox: www.██████████████████.███/gammablaster-lazer-shirt
Dylan99: that's actually pretty cool
Dylan99: but i'm gonna stick to anime.
Stage 4: Behavioral development devolves in tandem with shifting verbal communication. All recorded instances will assume the role of a prepubescent child for the duration of the stage. Stage 4 individuals will be unable to properly attend to their own needs and require outside assistance in order to maintain sustainable decision making.
Stage 4 induces a complete devotion to the furry fandom and, in all cases, has negatively altered relationships between the affected individuals and their finances, social interactions, employment, familial relations, and living situation. Several interviews with families of affected individuals have revealed that communication between them will cease abruptly upon advancing to Stage 4; further interviews have revealed that individuals past Stage 4 consider the furry community to be their "true" family, and will only maintain communication with those who encourage their behaviors.
Living conditions of Stage 4 individuals have been deemed unfit for any human. Residences undergo a rapid state of delapidation due to the individual's own unwillingness to tend to anything outside of SCP-XXXX, including themselves. Induced behaviors have been noted to fall in line with those of victims of severe hoarding disorders. 55% of Stage 5 individuals have experienced eviction and/or homelessness due to their neglect of both themselves and their place of residency.
Stage 5: Affected individuals will suffer the delusion that they themselves are an anthropomorphic character, and will perpetuate this delusion by any means necessary. Rejection from the non-anomalous fandom initiates at this stage, and affected individuals will band together. Notable behaviors of certain Stage 5 individuals have been recorded as following:
- Failed intercourse between a Stage 5 individual and █ predatory animals at the ██████████ zoo in Indiana, resulting in injuries to those present
- The termination of Annabelle Y█████ at █████ ████ Factory, following a hostage situation involving █ employees as she proclaimed herself to be "the real ███████ the Leopard"
- ██ suicides by falling impact, specifically by Stage 5 individuals identified with winged organisms
- ████ deaths from heat-related illnesses, 96% of which occurred while affected individuals were in animal costume(s)
- ██ deaths by firearm, followed by the outlawing of animal costumes in 13 parks
The following logs were recovered following the Annabelle Y█████ incident.
The conversations within Record Log-10/15 are assumed to have occurred 60 days following the initial creation of SCP-XXXX.
MPerry: Has anyone heard from Dylan lately?
SnakAttak: nah
olliefox: oh!!! he just showed me his fursona last week! :D
olliefox: he was excited and I think he's a red panda
SnakAttak: lol bs
olliefox: ???
olliefox: its not bs here
olliefox: [brownierp_04_dylan99.jpg]
olliefox: his name is Brownie!!!
SnakAttak: LOL BS
olliefox: no its not
olliefox: :(
olliefox: why don't u guys like my art
MPerry: Ollie, we like your art. We just don't like furries.
MPerry: At all.
MPerry: Like seriously why do you think we let you make this site for yourself? To make other friends
MPerry: We like you because you can make supernatural advertisements.
MPerry: All of your websites you've ever made drag people into them
MPerry: and then those people are used up in 2 months
MPerry: staggering around as empty shells of themselves
MPerry: someone ate a baby last week, Ollie.
MPerry: SOMEONE ATE A GODDAMN BABY.
olliefox: but I only know how to start it not how it stops
MPerry: YOU are personally responsible for that jackass eating someone's innocent human baby
MPerry: Do you understand what you've done
MPerry: you've literally created a race of idiot maneaters
MPerry: These aren't even people anymore, Ollie, they're inhuman. You're out of the group.
MPerry: Idiot vigilantes are one thing. Idiot monsters are way worse.
olliefox: [██████_logo_04banner.jpg]
MPerry: What the hell is that?
Stage 6: Affected individuals will undergo a total loss of higher cognitive functions and regress to instinctual behaviors displayed by the source animal of their personal character. All signs of prior personality will be destroyed by SCP-XXXX. However, affected individuals will continue to possess human speech, albeit characterized by childlike pronunciations and heightened pitch. All test results have yielded that the speech uttered by affected individuals can be likened to animal vocalizations, instead of processed human speech.
Predatory Stage 6 individuals are highly aggressive towards both affected and unaffected individuals, and kill indiscriminately. To date, no Stage 6 individual has shown recognition of those whom they have shared relationships with.
The conversations within Record Log-██ are assumed to have occurred 234 days following the initial creation of SCP-XXXX.
Record Log-██ is the last chatroom interaction between members of ATF, prior to Stage 4 progression of (most) members.
olliefox: hi everybody!!!
Thotticusprime: hi!!! :3
SnakAttak: :D
MPerry: Ugh.
olliefox: aw perry what's wrong 3:
MPerry: You're all terrible.
olliefox: omg
olliefox: honestly you're so dark and brooding
olliefox: lmao
Dylan99: *waves paws @MPerry*
olliefox: @Dylan99 this isn't the rp channel
Dylan99: :P
MPerry: I should've left months ago.
MPerry: I hate this channel, and I hate you.
MPerry: You've made my life a living hell.
MPerry: This entire group is practically a hivemind.
MPerry: You've taken my life's work, my income, and most importantly, what little social life I had where I was able to share the things I could do.
MPerry: There's only one thing that's keeping me from killing myself at this point.
olliefox: ?
MPerry: My fursuit is in transit.
MPerry: :3
The following log is a video transcript of a raid carried out by MTF-S-88 ("Animal Control") on the residence of Michael Perry in ████████, Oklahoma, identified by the Foundation as ATF member "MPerry". Footage was recovered from the bodycam of S-88-November.
[BEGIN LOG]
November: Ready to sound off.
November: This is November, reporting in to command on behalf of MTF-868-S.
Bravo: Sierra-88-Bravo, checking in. Over.
Charlie: Sierra-88-Charlie, checking in. Over.
November: We're at the derelict house on the corner of Lakeview and Charlemagne. Time is 1900 hours. I can't see any movement from the windows. There's a couple of packages here, looks like they've gone untouched. All are addressed to Perry.
[November kicks into the door. It gives way with ease. Gags are audible from Bravo as they enter the house. Grime cakes the walls and windows, dimming incoming light. Bravo and Charlie turn on their flashlights.]
Bravo: God, it reeks. I can smell the mold in the walls.
Charlie: No signs of life in the living room. Proceeding into the kitchen.
Charlie: Can you smell that?
Bravo: What?
[MTF-S-88 enters the kitchen. The counters and table are littered with discarded food and prescription pill bottles. November nudges a puddle of crushed packets of cake mix and milk with the barrel of his gun. The puddle is lifted from the table, having solidified over time. Charlie motions to a window directly across from the overflowing table. It has been smeared with an unidentifiable substance.]
Charlie: That's dog shit. It's been sitting here for a while. I can smell it past the rotting fridge.
November: And they're saying someone lives in all this filth.
Bravo: What was the stage designation of Perry, sir?
November: They told me four. I'm beginning to think that was a lie.
[MTF-S-88 navigates into the hallway with caution. They are notably slowed by the piling debris as they approach what is assumed to be Perry's bedroom. November knocks heavily on the door.]
November: Hello, Mister Perry? Are you home?
Perry: Heh… Hewwo?
Bravo: Shit, he's in there.
November: Mister Perry, we're going to ask you to lay on the ground with your hands up. Do not make any sudden movements. Failure to comply can and will get you shot.
Perry: Hi! Fwiends, come pway wiff me!
Charlie: Sir, I don't think he understands.
November: Let's hope to God he does.
[MTF-S-88 breaks down the door and rushes into the room. The room is pitch black, and the majority of the surfaces are covered in bodily fluids and mold. The remnants of Perry's computer are dangling off of the desk, now encrusted with unidentifiable substances. The mattress from Perry's bed is shredded, and the bed frame splintered. Perry himself is barely visible behind piles of rotting food, soiled clothes, and destroyed furry paraphernalia. He is curled against the corner of the wall, wearing a grimy sweater and the torn threads of a costume tail. His hair is greasy and unkempt, and his eyes are bloodshot. Light from a flashlight shines onto him. He hisses and crawls to his hands and feet. MTF-S-88 train their guns onto him. Despite his circumstances, Perry wears a large grin and wide eyes.]
Perry: Hewwo! What awe you doing?
November: Put your hands in the air where we can see them.
[Perry crawls forward. He is now visibly shaking, but his expression has remained the same. MTF-S-88.]
November: Sir, comply or we will be forced to shoot you!
Perry: Pwease hewp me, mistew powice man! Pwease hewp!
Charlie: What the hell —
Perry: Pwease, hewp me!
[Perry abruptly lunges at November and tackles him to the ground. Bravo and Charlie turn and immediately open fire on Perry. The camera lens cracks, and the recording footage turns black. Perry's voice can be heard giggling distinctly among the gunfire, as well as wet squelching noises.]
[END LOG]