"Are we in big trouble?"
For the first time, the audience watching the live feed saw O5-10's face twist with visible irritation. She didn't waste time explaining. Without another word, she pulled James aside, handed him a thick containment file, and left.
On the cover were the words:
[Project Name: Valley Harbor]
[Item #: SCP-1936]
[Object Class: Euclid]
The live broadcast chat erupted.
"Euclid class? That doesn't sound too bad."
"Why would a Euclid-class SCP make an O5 so anxious?"
The shock came not from the classification, but from O5-10's reaction.
---
S.H.I.E.L.D. Headquarters
"Valley Harbor?" Natasha Romanoff muttered, narrowing her eyes at the screen. "Could this be another terrain-based anomaly?"
Nick Fury shook his head, his expression grave. "Have you forgotten what Zyn mentioned earlier?"
Natasha glanced at him. "A town with… repeated anomalous accidents?"
Fury exhaled slowly. "Yes. And now I fear those accidents are happening again, all in the same place."
The thought triggered an unwelcome memory: the incident with Dr. Clef and the goddess's child. The unease in Fury's gut grew heavier.
---
Containment File: SCP-1936
[Special Containment Procedures]
SCP-1936 is to be surrounded by a two-meter-high electric fence and patrolled at all times.
The anomaly covers a circular area with a diameter of 1 kilometer.
Surveillance cameras will monitor all blind spots.
No personnel from MTF-840 are permitted to enter SCP-1936 without explicit clearance. Permission depends on recent anomalous activity.
Area-37 has been constructed on the outskirts of the town to serve as a research and containment hub. Items retrieved will undergo initial testing before transfer to long-term sites.
The audience frowned. A small anomaly, only one kilometer in range. Why would this be considered such a severe threat? What did the O5s know that the file wasn't revealing?
The next section made the atmosphere grow heavier.
[Additional Procedures]
Corpses recovered from SCP-1936 must be placed in strict quarantine. If deemed hazardous, they are to be incinerated immediately.
If any living entities are discovered inside SCP-1936, exploration teams must evacuate at once. MTF Zeta-29 ("Mad Mountaineers") will handle recovery.
Nick Fury's one eye went wide.
"Living entities? Inside? But…" His voice faltered. He had assumed Valley Harbor was abandoned, all its residents long dead. But the wording suggested otherwise.
Then realization hit him, and his jaw tightened. "No… if they're alive, they're no longer what they once were."
---
Description of SCP-1936
SCP-1936 refers to Valley Harbor, a small town in New England.
Over several days, it suffered multiple anomalous disasters.
During the event, the entire town was engulfed by an abnormal gas (designated SCP-1936-1), which rendered observation and entry impossible.
After the gas dissipated, the town's dimensional state had changed. Buildings became topologically abnormal, twisted in impossible geometries.
No survivors were found. Bodies of townspeople were scattered throughout, many dead by apparent suicide.
Several corpses displayed anomalous traits.
The live audience shuddered. Stark muttered under his breath at the file's wording: "Dimensional state… topological anomaly…"
His eyes darted to Rhodes. Both men spoke in unison:
"SCP-1983."
The kaleidoscope-like spatial distortion, the warped structures—it was the same nightmare. And back then, James had nearly died neutralizing SCP-1983.
---
Anomalous Discoveries
The file continued:
1. Organs functioning as radio transmitters, broadcasting up to six miles. Nearby, a small plant was discovered that emitted constant flames.
2. A human torso fused into a wall. Explorers noted it shifted position slightly, oozing blood from a wound 15 cm above it.
3. An elderly male corpse with eye sockets gouged out. Ash spewed endlessly from his orifices.
4. Rows of corpses lined up along a street. Their flesh, skin, and bone had been removed through incisions on the forehead. Burn marks surrounded the wounds.
The chat exploded in horror.
"HELL NO!"
"A torso stuck in a wall?! What is this nightmare?"
"Even for the SCP Foundation, this is sick…"
It became clear why the file didn't say "living humans," but "living biological entities." Whatever remained inside Valley Harbor was no longer human.
---
More Anomalies
The file wasn't finished.
At 19:42 daily, several floating torsos manifested near the Johnson Public Library. They drifted southwest, mimicking a desperate escape, before vanishing after three minutes.
The corpse of a young woman floated mid-air indefinitely, immune to gravity or outside interference.
Even Natasha Romanoff, hardened assassin, paled at the mental image. "Flying torsos…? God…"
Fury's silence said everything. The O5's urgency now made sense.
---
On-Site
When James appeared again, he was already standing outside Valley Harbor.
At first glance, the town looked peaceful—European-style attics, cobblestone streets, quaint architecture. Under normal circumstances, it could have been a charming tourist destination.
But now, under the dimming sun, it was nothing but a mass grave.
Foundation agents had cordoned off the area with long yellow tape. Beyond it, the town sat quiet, like a corpse under glass.
Doctors, researchers, and military officers huddled together, debating the next move.
A colonel argued, "We must send both drones and human explorers. Without boots on the ground, we'll never know what's inside."
A scientist pushed back, "The bodies recovered were all from the edges. We have no data from the town's center. Entering recklessly could be suicide."
The colonel slammed his hand on the table. "Every day we delay, information leaks. The O5 Council already has concerns. I'll answer to the Ethics Committee myself if things go wrong."
The plan was set: an exploration team would enter SCP-1936.
---
A Warning from a Survivor
"James!"
A voice called out. James turned to see a figure emerge from the crowd—Victor Hale.
Victor rushed over, clapping James on the shoulder. His face lit with relief. "I knew O5-10 would call you in. When she shows up personally, it always means the situation's dire."
James shook his head. "I'm only here to assist. She already denied my request to enter the anomaly."
Victor froze, then his eyes widened. "Wait. You were actually considering going inside?"
James said nothing.
Victor pulled him aside, lit a cigarette with trembling hands, and whispered, "Promise me you won't. That place isn't just dangerous—it's something worse."
His gaze grew distant, haunted. "I've been inside before. The corpses we dragged out? I thought I'd seen horror in this line of work. But Valley Harbor…" His voice cracked.
"It wasn't a battlefield. It wasn't even a massacre. It was hell. A hell that should never exist in the human world."
Victor took another long drag, exhaling smoke as though it could carry his fear away. "We didn't fight enemies inside. There weren't any. The entire town was already dead."
He clutched James's arm tightly. "You're a doctor. Do what doctors do. Heal. Help. But don't walk into that place."
James looked past him toward the quiet town. Bathed in the dying light of sunset, Valley Harbor sat still and silent. Not a bird sang. Not a breath stirred.
The audience in the live broadcast could only stare, goosebumps rising on their skin.
Because even through the screen, they understood—
This was not a place for the living. This was a realm of the dead. A hell that should not exist in the world of men.
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