Tutwater

Item #: SCP-952

Object Class: Keter

Special Containment Procedures:

Description: SCP-952 is an anomalous biological condition which affects live nonhuman births in southern Europe and the Maghreb region of northern Africa, with particular abundance in regions bordering the Mediterranean Sea. Since the establishment of containment procedures, the proportion of susceptible births affected by SCP-952 is roughly 2.0 × 10-9, or 1 in 5,000,000 births in captivity—data is yet insufficient to determine a more precise frequency. Incidents of SCP-952 are only known to occur in captivity and among the offspring of pets and livestock, as no sightings of SCP-952-associated symptoms or strain-determinant progeny (SDP) have been reported in the wild (see Addendum 952.1). SCP-952 has been observed to affect no more than one child in a litter, and affected animals always appear outwardly female.

Symptoms of SCP-952 are present at birth. Affected animals are characterized by physiological deformities that do not correlate with any documented medical conditions endemic to any species. These deformities include:

  • A significantly broadened pelvic bone, from a minimum of 1.25 times estimated baseline breadth to an as-yet-undetermined maximum (not believed to exceed 2.75 times). Dermal elasticity, fur patterns, and muscle/fat distribution are also altered from species baseline to facilitate altered skeletal structure.
  • The presence of [REDACTED] hermaphroditic structures, allowing affected animals to self-fertilize. The nature of these structures varies drastically and is inconsistent even within species, but these structures are never outwardly visible, and can only be detected with autopsy or veterinary analysis.
  • Anomalous durability of the female reproductive organs, such that surgical de-sexing is effectively impossible without fatally harming the affected animal.
  • A significantly malformed cardiac system, including the expansion of both atria of the heart, as well as the horizontal translation of the interventricular septum, such that the ventral terminus of the heart runs parallel to the spinal cord. This malformation will not negatively impact cardiopulmonary function of the affected animal, and serves no clear purpose in conjunction with other alterations—research is ongoing.

SCP-952 is categorized into four strains, individually designated SCP-952-Alpha, -Beta, -Gamma, and -Delta. While these individual strains are indistinguishable at birth, and exhibit identical symptoms, they are differentiated by traits of the offspring produced by the affected animal. Offspring of SCP-952-affected animals are referred to as strain-determinant progeny (SDP). Upon reaching developmental maturity, affected animals will invariably self-fertilize and adopt protective sedentary behaviors to ensure the safety of their prenatal offspring.

Addendum 952.1: Variation in SDP between strains

Animals affected by strain SCP-952-Alpha will produce Alpha offspring.