Per 
Item #: SCP-5118
Object Class: Safe
Special Containment Procedures: SCP-5118 is to be kept in a specialized lock box that is lined with elemental manganese. This box is designed to fit into a specialized compartment that allows for the interior of Break Room D to be exposed to the object's anomalous effect through the remote removal of the box's manganese lid (see Addendum 5118-A for a more in-depth description of the testing environment). All testing of the object will be done under the supervision of Dr. West.
Description: SCP-5118 is a small, pentagonal lens with a metal rim and a single crack on its surface. The metal and glass components seem to be non-anomalous materials, though testing of the object’s makeup has been prohibited by order of Dr West.1 Looking through the lens does not trigger any anomalous phenomena.
SCP-5118’s anomalous property affects all cognizant beings in a range of 5 meters around the object. Beings within this range experience alterations to their mental state that ultimately result in the increased tendency to form mental connections between different ideas. These connections, while often appearing absurd or nonsensical to outside observers, lead the affected individual to draw correct, factual conclusions much of the time. It is suspected that this particular effect arises from some change in subconscious perception, the mechanics of which are not fully understood.
The mental state that SCP-5118 induces is also marked by a number of side effects. Due to their unpredictable nature, personnel assigned to researching the object are to avoid exposure. The most common side effects include:
- Racing, disorganized thoughts
- Exacerbated onset of certain extreme emotional states such as panic, laughter, or rage
- Other side effects arising from the coincidental formation of various metaphysical constructs (see Addendum 5118-B)
SCP-5118's area of effect is unhindered by the vast majority of materials. Only the pure elemental forms of boron, manganese, cesium, and [DATA EXPUNGED]2 are able to block the effect. The area of effect can not go around objects comprised of these elements, acting as though it is emitted by SCP-5118 and extends outwards in all directions.
Subjects exposed to the object experience a quick onset of its anomalous effect, though the growth in intensity slows significantly after about 5 minutes of exposure. Upon leaving SCP-5118's range, the effect slowly diminishes, disappearing entirely over the course of 2 minutes.
Dr. West has submitted the following commentary to be included in this file:
Imagine your thoughts inside your head as a sea of floating objects. Each object represents an idea, and whenever two objects bump into each other, a mental connection is formed. 5118 causes those ideas to move around faster and faster, colliding more and more frequently. This also results in the formation of connections that wouldn’t otherwise happen or even be possible. How said connections manage to be truthful ones so often instead of complete nonsense is quite the mystery, though. My allegory doesn't account for it. I believe that there’s some real Thaumiel-tier potential with this one, but I can only be sure after more testing…
- Dr. West
Addendum 5118-A - Testing Environment: Testing of SCP-5118 is to be considered a medium-level priority. D-Class that are not currently being tested may be freely used upon request by Dr West. No personnel aside from D-Class are to be tested, and it is recommended that personnel assigned to the object avoid exposure to its effect.
Break Room D is immediately adjacent to Observation Room 5118. As described in the containment procedures above, personnel stationed in Observation Room 5118 are able to remotely allow SCP-5118’s effect to spread to the interior of Break Room D, while the hidden cameras and recording devices in the room allow for the viewing and documentation of results.
D-Class are to be tested by being sent into Break Room D with instructions to complete various tasks. Mundane, unobjectionable tasks requiring some level of thought are most efficient in terms of compliance and results.
Addendum 5118-B - Test Logs: Below are transcripts of some of the more notable tests of SCP-5118. More commentary from Dr. West is also included.
Test 1
Instructions: D-11063 (selected for affinity towards creative expression) was given a notebook and pencil and told to do with them what she pleased. Subject was exposed to the effect of SCP-5118 for the duration of the test.
Results
[00:00] - D-11063 begins sketching a peaceful nature scene.
[00:52] - Subject pauses briefly as if deep in thought.
[00:57] - Subject erases part of the sketch.
[01:05] - Giving up on erasing her work, D-11063 begins restoring the erased portions, but using a drastically different, more abstract art style. She then continues filling out the scene using this new style.
[01:45] - Pauses again before erasing a small portion and hurriedly drawing a canine creature (later identified as her dog, "King") in an attempt to add it to the piece.
[01:55] - Before finishing, subject scribbles a harsh line over the creature, and then immediately shifts her attention to adding something resembling a swarm of bees flying through the air. Subject is visibly frustrated at this point.
[02:33] - Subject abruptly begins writing in the very middle of the drawing, only getting down a few words before turning the page and continuing to write. She stops after writing the following: “dog is King named because not bee because he is a STAR and he is he is noth hthwi fifgh” [sic].
[02:46] - Subject audibly sighs and starts creating a design beneath the writing that quickly develops recursive, fractal qualities.
[03:43] - D-11063 is retrieved and the test is concluded.Notes: After the effect wore off, D-11063 was questioned regarding what she had created. She did not seem to recognize anything unusual about her behavior during the test or anything she had drawn or written. Upon being asked about the design she drew under the writing, she expressed confusion, claiming that she did not know what the word 'fractal' meant.
Commentary: Many of us were exposed to 5118’s effect before we knew what it did. We’d caught a glimpse of the state it induced. Now, having seen it in such a controlled environment, the anomaly’s boundaries are so much more clear. From what little we already know, however, I think that the way 5118 mingles with factual information will prove to be far more interesting.
Test 2
Instructions: D-15963 (selected for his understanding of basic mathematics, and his unfamiliarity with advanced mathematics) was presented with a math exam and writing implement and told that he would have 1 hour to complete the exam. Questions at the beginning of the exam covered basic concepts, while those closer to the end were far more advanced.
Results
[00:00] - D-15963 sits down and begins working on the first problem. For the first few minutes, he works unimpeded at a normal pace.
[02:07] - Subject’s writing is noticeably faster and sloppier at this point. Upon reaching question 6, he pauses for 2 seconds before skipping to the next problem. It is presumed that D-15963 did not know how to solve question 6, and the quickness with which he skipped it after seeing it is attributed to SCP-5118’s effect.
[05:18] - Subject encounters a problem similar in content to question 6. However, instead of skipping it, he stops and stares at the question for 15 seconds, and then begins writing something in the margins. This writing consists of seemingly random numbers and lines, and spans across the entire right margin of the page. The meaning behind D-15963’s writing has not been determined, although he did answer the question he was on correctly. After doing this, subject immediately goes back and answers question 6. His answer to this question was also correct.
[06:54] - D-15963 continues working through the exam, stopping to write in the margins whenever he encounters a new type of problem. As before, none of the writing has been deciphered as of yet. His work goes on unimpeded for the next thirty minutes.
[37:59] - Subject abruptly stops working, having completed about 70% of the exam. He puts his pencil down and stares at the page he is on before looking up and entering a state of deep concentration. Subject remains in this state for the remainder of the test.
[40:40] - Junior Researcher M██████ requests that the test be prematurely concluded due to concerns about D-15963’s unusual behavior. They are reminded by Dr. West that the unusual behavior caused by SCP-5118 is the singular object of study in this test, and are instructed to wait until the scheduled conclusion time of 1 hour.
[45:03] - No change in D-15963’s behavior is observed. After explaining the situation in more detail to Dr. West, Junior Researcher M██████ gets the go-ahead to retrieve D-15963 and conclude the test. He is entirely complacent with Foundation personnel and returns to his room without incident.Notes: The following day, several on-site staff members reported that D-15963 was acting strangely. According to these reports, his attention span was abnormally short, and he seemed to enter a trance-like state and daydream whenever he could. Personnel who had worked with him frequently in the past confirmed that this was not in character for D-15963. A psychological evaluation performed later that day revealed that D-15963 was infected with SCP-1314. The proper amnestics were applied and he quickly recovered. D-15963 sustained minimal psychological damage from this brief period of infection and he was able to continue testing as usual immediately.
Every question on the math exam that D-15963 managed to complete was answered correctly.
Commentary: I am stunned. 5118 took a high school dropout and made him a math prodigy. I knew it was able to help people find things out when they seemingly shouldn’t be able to, but… D-15963 barely knew what PEMDAS meant before this test and ended up figuring out summation and logarithms. He even managed to conceptualize SCP-1314-A and -B in their entirety, without writing down a single thing about them. The chances of that happening seem incredibly slim to me, so I’m not worried about it occurring again. I’ll put in a request to make testing SCP-5118 a higher priority.3
Test 3
Instructions: D-12401 was given a notebook and writing implement and told to recount the events of her day.
Results
[00:00] - D-12401 appears hesitant and confused. Before entering Break Room D, she had inquired worriedly about the nature of the test. Despite her apparent feelings of suspicion towards Foundation personnel, she sits down and begins to write. Excerpt: “I had the worst backache this morning. You guys gotta fix those bunks, their terrible.” [sic][00:00] - As expected, subject’s writing has become rushed and less legible. Her work loses focus, fixating on tangential topics such as the rumors shared between D-Class. Excerpt: "The others talk a lot about a thing called Keeter Duty. They say it's where they send people they want dead. They die, from the Keeters, and become ghosts. There are always ghosts, tho." [sic]
[00:00] - A few seconds after writing the previous excerpt, D-12401 puts her pencil down and begins looking around the room. Subject is muttering under her breath about "the dust", occasionally raising her voice to complain more audibly about how "dusty" Break Room D is.Notes:
Commentary:
Test 4
Instructions:
Results
[00:00] -Notes:
Commentary:
Test 5
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Results
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Test 6
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Results
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Commentary:
Test 7
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Results
[00:00] -Notes:
Commentary:
Test 8
Instructions:
Results
[00:00] -Notes:
Commentary:
