Per 
August, 2002
"It's fucking cold." Milo's staticky voice said into Black's ear.
"You're a Dixie." Black said into his radio. "Northern Canada isn't exactly your natural habitat."
He lowered his radio and leaned back into the uncomfortable tree stand. No one told him what it was that had breached, only that it was causing the higherups to flip out. When Albany planted his ass in the tree, he had told Black to keep an eye out for 'large' creatures. When Black asked him to specify, he only repeated the word 'large.'
He had gotten used to jumping head first into god knows what with jack-shit instructions in the 3 and a half years since his first mission. Miraculously, the scar on his face remained the only permanent bit of damage to him.
He gazed up at the night sky. No clouds dared breakup the infinite number of stars that dotted the sky. A large, full moon illuminated the landscape below. It truly was a beautiful sight.
If only I were here under different circumstances.
A shadow passed by the moon. Black stared as the object, slightly darker then the sky around it, moved through the air. Judging by the size and speed, it was most likely a jet of some kind. Just then, balls of fire billowed above the tree line. A second and a half later, the booms of a distant explosion reached Black's ears.
"Bombing run?" Black said into his radio.
"Aye." Albany replied. "Nu-7's arrived with manpower, artillery, armor, 'nd air support."
"Nu-7 huh?" Evans said through the mic. "You guys ever help them before?"
Agent Evans was the newest member of Delta-4 ("Minutemen"). Being deployed only two weeks ago, he still had that dedication and spirit all rookies had. Always the first to whatever form of transportation they were taking, always the straightest standing when at attention, always the first out of bed and doing their daily routine, always ran when walking would've sufficed.
Hell, the last mission was one of the very few to include a debrief, and Evans was the first there. It was cute.
"Once." Milo said. "It didn't end well."
"We won't be working with Nu-7 tonight." Albany said.
"Huh?" Black said, confused. It was, after all, the job of Delta-4 to provide backup to the task forces on duty.
"Don't go getting your hopes up." Albany continued. "We've been assigned to aid a different task force tonight."
"A different task force?" Milo asked. "Who?"
"Wish I knew…" Albany replied. "Jax will let us know when we get back to camp. Nu-7 agents have been sent to relieve you. Return to where we set up shop once they get to you. Albany out."
Black slouched in his stand.
"HEY!" A voice below him called. He looked down. Two agents donning Nu-7 uniforms were starring up at him. "You the D4 agent we were sent to relieve?"
"Depends." Black shouted in reply. "Are you the Nu-7 agents sent to relieve me?"
"Yes sir we are." The other agent said.
Black nodded. Twisting and turning, he made his way out of the stand and towards the ground.
"Good luck gentlemen." He said when he landed on the ground. He turned so the moon was to his left, then began walking towards camp.
Anyone who's walked through a forest can tell you how loud your steps can be. The crunching of leaves and snapping of dead sticks causes more noise then one would give credit for. Sneaking up behind someone is not an easy task.
So Black was caught off guard when he felt a hand push his back and his foot trip on an extended leg. He let out a gasp as he fell to the ground. The sound of plastic hitting stone echoed through the woods when he landed flat on his face.
He rolled onto his back and looked up a Milo. He couldn't see her face through the helmet, but he could only imagine the most smug mug she'd ever flashed.
"Ah shit…" Milo said, reaching a hand out to Black. "Told ya to watch out for SCP-2700-J instances. Bastards like tripping people."
"Bastard indeed." He said, taking Milo's hand. She pulled him to his feet. "One of these days I'm gonna find that skip and shove the barrel of your sniper up it's ass."
"Oh you are now?" Milo said as the two of them resumed walking. "And how do you plan on acquiring said rifle?"
"I'll just sneak into your room at night and still it."
"Like hell you are. I'll set up landmines and blow us both to kingdom come before you lay a finger on my baby."
They continued their trek in silence. For several minutes, only the sound of crunching leaves and snapping twigs echoed through the forest.
"BLACK! MILO!" The two turned to the energetic voice behind them. Evans was running through the woods, trying to catch up. A fast walking Brain followed suite. "There you guys are. Hey, what do you think Colonel meant he said aid another task force?"
"I think…" Milo said, stopping so the two agents could catch up. "He meant we're going to be aiding another task force."
"I know THAT. But like, which task force?"
Black shrugged. "Probably something specialized. If whatever breached is too much for Hammer fucking Down, then I doubt we're cleared to know much."
The four agents continued their pace south. Silence once again fell over them. This silence was broken by the sound of honking. The agents turned, and a jeep with Nu-7's logo pulled up beside them.
"Evening beautiful." Rigby said. "Wanna burn some rubber with this jeep I stole and get ourselves a nice romantic dinner afterwards?"
"I'd rather pleasure myself with broken glass." Milo retorted.
"I was talking to the cutie with the scar." He pointed at Black.
"My feelings are the same as hers" Black responded.
"Didn't enjoy it last time Agent Milo?" Albany, whom Black just noticed was in the passenger seat, snickered.
"I don't remember last time." She replied.
About a month ago, Delta-4 had done exceptionally well on an exceptionally successful mission. They had celebrated by spending the night in the Site-47 bar. At some point, Milo had challenge Albany to a drinking competition. Albany, being the 6'7 260 pound Scotsman he was, was perfectly sober by the time Milo was stumbling around.
Thinking Albany couldn't take much more, Rigby had decided to take Milo's place. Both Milo and Rigby were completely wasted by the time they returned to their dorms. Albany was sober as a child, Black didn't drink (he never did), Evans hadn't been deployed yet, and Brian never showed up.
Drunk out of their minds, the two of them decided to hobble into the same dorm. They woke up the next morning naked, in the same bed, and suffering a massive hangover. Neither of them were able to recall the night before.
"What happened last time?" Evans asked. Black glanced over at Milo, who returned the look.
"We'll explain when after the mission." Rigby said as the agents climbed into the seats.
With that, the jeep began moving back towards the camp.
"Hey, uh, Rigby…" Evans said after a few minutes. "…you didn't actually steal this, right?"
"It still amazes me how the Foundation's able to set all this up in such little time." Albany said as they drove over a hill.
What was once just a single tent acting as Delta-4's command post now resembled an entire military base. Temporary buildings and garages were erected all over the outskirts of the woods. Hundreds of agents and researchers rushed along, doing whatever it was they were tasked to do.
"Pull in over here." Albany said, pointing to a large tent off the the left. Jaxon was standing outside of the tent, her helmet tucked under her arm. Rigby pulled up beside the tent, and the group jumped out of the vehicle.
"Major." Albany said, saluting.
"Colonel." She replied, returning the gesture.
"Where's the rest of Delta-4." Black asked.
"Aiding Nu-7."
"I thought we were going to support another MTF." Milo said, confused.
"You are. The rest aren't." Jaxon said.
"And what exactly is this task force?" Rigby asked.
"Follow me." Jaxson said. She turned and walked into the tent. The rest followed suite.
Several agents were seated along rows of chairs in the tent. On the further side was a large map of the area. Red circles and arrows were littered all over it.
"James, you're with me. The rest of you, take a seat." Jaxon said, pointing towards the row of vacant chairs to their left. The group walked over, sat down, and took their helmets off. She and Albany walked towards two agents standing in front of the crowd. One had dark brown yet graying hair, the other was dirty blond.
Black looked around at the agents. He took note of how unusual they all seemed. First, their uniforms were all black. Usually MTF arms and legs were colored, Delta-4 being dark blue. Second, their MTF insignia was unfamiliar to Black. Delta-4 had aided several task forces in the past, and by month 8, he had all but memorized every task force logo.
The agents in question all had their helmets removed. Some were talking to each other, some were checking their equipment, some had glanced at the new agents, some were just staring into space. Despite their uniforms, they all seemed like normal MTF agents. All except 2.
The first was an tall, olive skinned man who's body was covered in tattoos (which Black couldn't even begin to identify). He had long black hair, and a large bulky collar was strapped around his neck. He was the only one, besides the two agents up front, not sitting. He eyed the Delta-4 agents as they sat. Black felt his insides grow hot when they made eye contact. He decided not to hold it for long.
The other was a women sitting near the front, and seemed to be holding a conversation with an agent with a laptop. She had blonde hair, and an old polaroid camera was wrapped around her neck. She wasn't wearing a full-black tactical suit like the rest of them, but her attire was still somewhat appropriate. She turned and glanced at the Delta-4 agents. Black was able to get a good look at her facial features.
"Is that a fucking kid?" Milo said into his ear.
"I was thinking the same thing." He replied. Black was by no means one of those age gurus who could tell you how old you were down to the month, but this women… girl… couldn't have been older then 18, maybe even 16.
What's a kid doing on MTF?
"Who the hell are these guys?" Rigby asked.
"Maybe they're black ops." Evans said. Black turned to him. His ginger hair was like a beacon on his head. "I mean, come on. Full black uniforms. MTF logo no one recognizes. It's like every stereotypical black ops team ever."
"They're Omega-7." Brian said. The entirety of Delta-4 turned to him. As far as they were aware, this was the first he had spoken this month.
"…and you know this how?" Milo asked. Brian shrugged.
"Never heard of them." Rigby said. "What do they specialize in?"
"The use of anomalous humanoids in the field."
They uses humanoid SCPs? Black thought. He had had a few run-ins with humanoid SCPs during his time on MTF. They weren't exactly the type you recruited into MTF, let alone use them in the field.
"Wait, they USE anomalies?" Evans said in surprise. Brian nodded.
"You know which SCPs?" Milo said. Brian shook his head.
"Do you at least know what they're called?" Rigby asked.
"They call themselves Pandora's Box."
"Fitting." Rigby said nodding.
Jaxon, Albany, and the two 'Pandora's Box' agents turned towards the crowd.
"Delta-4." Jaxon bellowed. The quiet conversations ceased as the agents looked forward. "We will be having the pleasure of working with Omega-7 this evening." She pointed towards the agent with the graying hair. "This is Major Richards. He will be debriefing us on the situation we find ourselves in."
The Major stepped forward. "2 hours ago the O5 received a distress signal from Area-354. The on-site personal reported the manifestation of a large arachnid like entity. It has been designated SCP-354-11-A. It was virtually bulletproof, and damage caused to the containment area by 354-10 allowed it to escape the zone of control."
He turned and pointed to one of the circles on the map. "Foundation personnel tracked the entity to this cave system here. That cave system wasn't there 3 hours ago, which means one of three things. Either 11-A has reality bending properties, the cave is itself an anomaly that manifested the same time as 11-A, or Foundation cartographers are really bad at their jobs."
There was some light chuckling amongst some of the agents.
Explain 11-A and other instances, introduce Iris and Able abilities, Black and Evans assigned to Team Iris; rest assigned to Team Able
"How do they expect you to drive these through the woods?" Evans said.
"There are some back roads which lead to the cave." Rigby replied.
"Convenient."
"I know, right?"
Black, Rigby, and Evans made their way to the transport truck that sat dormant in front of the tent. Team Iris had already made their way into the back of the vehicle.
