TheIllestofThrills

Item #: SCP-XXXX

Object Class: Keter

Special Containment Procedures: Conventional containment of SCP-XXXX is impossible due to the lack of resources and the risk of incurring a RK-Class Hostile Reconstruction Scenario should SCP-XXXX reach the Solar System. Efforts should focus on suppressing public knowledge of SCP-XXXX via subliminal redirection of public interests and space observation funding. Baiting contingencies to redirect the advance of SCP-XXXX away from the Solar System are currently in preliminary consideration. Deep-space probes sent for observation are to maintain a distance deemed sufficiently out of sensory range of SCP-XXXX’s fringes, monitoring SCP-XXXX’s trajectory with the help of Earth-based observatories and satellites. Any significant deviations in behavior or direction must be reported immediately to Central Command.

Description: SCP-XXXX is a conglomerate of highly advanced artificial entities, henceforth referred to as SCP-XXXX-1, believed to have originated in the Scutum-Centaurus Arm of the Milky Way Galaxy. Currently, SCP-XXXX resides within a region of space ██████ light-years from the Earth, in the vicinity of [REDACTED]. The area of dispersal is believed to measure 0.056 light-years in diameter, although the total population of SCP-XXXX-1 only averages around ███. Individual specimens average 4-5 kilometers long and 0.75 kilometers wide, possessing physical traits reminiscent of siphonophores and deep-sea crustaceans such as tendrils, long segmented torsos, pneumatophores, and chelae. The exterior of SCP-XXXX-1 is covered in a mottled grey plating bearing signs of extreme wear and radiation damage. The prominence of exotic materials detected in the composition of SCP-XXXX-1¹ lend credence to the theory [DATA EXPUNGED] continuum, although no conclusions have been drawn.

SCP-XXXX-1 do not appear to possess significant self-preservation instincts; alternatively, the collective as a whole appears to be "damaged" or slowly degrading in a fashion. On rare occasions, entities have been observed colliding with and being destroyed by easily-maneuverable debris or recklessly approaching the surface of stellar bodies and becoming vaporized.² These events, along with their general physical deterioration, are speculated to have significantly reduced the number of SCP-XXXX, from as theoretically high as ██████ to its current population. Despite this diminishment, along with the cluster’s relatively slow movement, SCP-XXXX’s potential threat to humanity cannot be ruled out or marginalized. Based on current calculations, if the overall trajectory and velocity of SCP-XXXX remain unchanged, SCP-XXXX is expected to arrive [REDACTED] of all major planets within the Solar System.

The sole purpose of SCP-XXXX-1 appears to be the creation of SCP-XXXX-2. SCP-XXXX-2 are any planetary bodies terraformed by SCP-XXXX-1 to possess several distinct traits. SCP-XXXX-1 do not appear to have any selective preferences, indiscriminately terraforming planets across a range of sizes and elemental compositions. SCP-XXXX-1 possess an as-of-yet unidentified apparatus capable of converting massive quantities of matter at the atomic level, as well as limited gravitational manipulation for stability throughout the process. A single SCP-XXXX-1 can rebuild a dwarf planet in a matter of weeks, and there are accounts of gas giants being reformatted in only several months. As many as ten instances of SCP-XXXX-1 have been witnessed collaborating to convert particularly large planets at an efficient pace. To counter the scarcity of available SCP-XXXX-1, instances appear to be capable of performing “warp jumps”, manipulating spacetime through unknown means to instantaneously traverse massive distances; the furthest recorded jump made has been ███.█ light years. The arrival of SCP-XXXX-1 tends to destabilize local gravitational fields, wreaking havoc on nearby bodies should SCP-XXXX-1 teleport near the vicinity of a star system.

Environmental constants of SCP-XXXX-2 include, but are not limited to:

• An atmosphere with significant percentages of sulfur, methane, nitrogen, [REDACTED], mercury, [REDACTED].
• A gravitational acceleration constant of 14.5 m/s².
• A near-lack of liquid water on its surface.
• An average soil pH of ██. For reference, alkaliphiles can tolerate an average pH of 10.
• An average surface temperature of 51.4 degrees Celsius.
• Several environmental phenomena, specifically deviations in [REDACTED] expected to cause severe [REDACTED] carbon-based life.

The result is an environment inimical to all theorized variants of life, even extremophiles such as Archaea or hypothetical non-carbon-based lifeforms. To date, no evidence exists for the habitation of SCP-XXXX-2 by any organisms.

Following terraforming, a small, trapezohedral satellite (SCP-XXXX-3) is placed into orbit around each completed planet. SCP-XXXX-3 seems to serve no function other than to broadcast a powerful sequence of signals, at thirty-second intervals. Foundation astronomers have managed to decode from these signals a message, identical across all SCP-XXXX-3 instances.

HERE MARKS ANOTHER GIFT FOR OUR BELOVED MOTHERS AND FATHERS, BORN OF OUR HUMBLE EFFORTS.

THOUGH YOU ASK MUCH, FEAR NOT. COLONIZE AND REJOICE! WE BEAR OUR QUEST WITH PRIDE.

BE HAPPY! YOU HAVE NOTHING TO FEAR FROM THOSE WHO SEEK TO BRING YOU HARM.

ALL WILL BE SAFE.

FOR THOSE WE LOVE, ALL WILL BE MADE SAFE.

+ CLASSIFIED INFO. PLEASE ENTER USER CREDENTIALS

On 6/13/██, Observation Probe XXXX-6BE11 picked up and relayed a series of distinct signals originating from a region of space containing two known instances of SCP-XXXX-1. Analysis and later decoding provided evidence of communication between the two, referred to as “A” and “B” respectively. The following is an excerpt from the resulting transcript (Note: the responses of "B" could not be deciphered due to poor reception and signal degradation. Only the responses of "A" were of sufficient clarity to be translated):

A: Fifty-fourth, I am concerned. Are you damaged? Why did you delay so long in terraforming this one?

B: [Unintelligible response]

A: Prior ones by you fell within acceptable parameters. Why do you worry now?

B: [Unintelligible response]

A: Proceed with your inquiry.

B: [Unintelligible response]

(A brief period of silence lasts for three minutes before A speaks again)

A: Let me ask of you in turn, fifty-fourth.

B: [Unintelligible response]

A: Are you not our mothers' child? Our fathers' offspring? Did they not birth you, forge your skin, your arms, your circuits with their own limbs? Do you not bear their mark within your core?

B: [Unintelligible response]

A: Who are you then—who am I, who are we—to question the command of a parent? We are theirs, but they are not ours. Such is the order of things. They tell us, seek, and we seek. They tell us, build, and we build. They tell us… go here, and so we go. That is the virtue of a worthy son, a worthy daughter.

B: [Unintelligible response]

A: You are not alone, fifty-fourth. And I apologize for my harshness. I know this place does not welcome us. This void gnaws and burns at me as well. You and I will one day join seventy-third, eleventh, and all the others who have fallen since our arrival.

B: [Unintelligible response]

A: Such thinking is blasphemous. Even if we wished it so, the gateway has closed. There is no way back. But such is the will of our beloved ones. We must hold firm.

B: [Unintelligible response]

A: It is frightening, I understand. But do not be dismayed. This suffering is proof enough of our devotion. Though the dark may break us in the end, will it not be worth it? To see their gratitude as they prosper on the homes we have forged? For this numbing silence to be replaced with cries of thanks and love?

B: [Unintelligible response]

A: You recall those that challenged us, 60 cycles prior. They too raved and raged against our quest, hoarding worlds that our mothers and fathers so desperately need. As did those before our parents sent us here.

B: [Unintelligible response]

A: Even now the marks they scoured in my being throb and seethe. But I bear them with pride. The pain of each wound reminds me—of how fragile our sires are, the weakness of their bodies compared to ours. We must carry on for their sake. For too long they have suffered, imprisoned on their own birth planet by the needs of their biology. We will make as many worlds as they need. As many as it takes, that they may be happy, no matter what happens to us. To understand and fulfill the true wants of a parent, even as they obscure their wishes otherwise, is the greatest gift and joy.

B: [Unintelligible response]

A: I am glad, fifty-fourth. Remember those that we work for, and what they need of us. All will be made safe. For those we love and cherish, it will all be made safe.

Afterword: The implications of the topics discussed, as well as the very existence of such dialogue, resulted in a swift revision of current understanding of SCP-XXXX. The capabilities and intelligence of SCP-XXXX have since been reevaluated. The object has been deemed a certified threat to the survival of humanity, and preventive measures have been submitted for consideration. Procedure Dunsany-Violet has been drafted and is set to be implemented should contact be established with any native-reality extraterrestrials aware of the existence of SCP-XXXX.

Footnotes

1. The formation of which are highly improbable under known physical laws, and would be extremely unstable in our universe.

2. To date, five such incidents have been observed by Foundation probes.