Special Containment Procedures: The Chant

Item #: SCP-XXX13

Clearance Level: 2/Restricted

Object Class: Keter

Disruption Class: 4/Ekhi

Risk Class: 4/Danger

Special Containment Procedures: Between ten and twenty instances of SCP-XXX13-A are to be kept at Armed Biological Containment Area-14 in individual high threat biological containment cells equipped with sound-proofing of no less than 90 STC and anti-parautilitarian thaumatological wards of no less or more than Rank 5 (more extreme measures are detrimental to the health of instances). No effort should be made to prevent instances from vocalizing within containment. The cells do not need accommodations for feeding, bedding, or waste disposal. 

Instances of a variety of different types, particularly instances of SCP-XXX13-A4-1, A4-2, and A4-3, are to be kept in containment when possible for testing purposes. See Document XXX13.94-31/6/21 for advanced containment procedures for each type of A4 instance and specific quantities requested. 

Cells are to be inspected for damage and deterioration twice a month and repaired as necessary. When personnel need to enter containment cells they are to wear earplugs with an STC rating of no less than 120. No personnel are to spend more than one-hour of accumulated time exposed directly to soundwaves emitted by SCP-XXX13-A, and if possible only D-Class personnel are to directly interact with instances. Any personnel making direct contact with instances are to be screened for memetic exposure and thumatological irregularities immediately after contact is ceased, and both a Class-B amnestic and a Class-32X Counter-meme Panel applied to any personnel demonstrating signs of infection. 

Any uncontained instances of SCP-XXX13-A are to be neutralized with extreme prejudice by agents with top-of-the-line hearing protection and thaumatogically warded equipment. Until an MTF geared specifically to handle SCP-XXX13-A infestations can be formed, MTF-Psi-9 ("Abyss Gazers") should lead any offensives against SCP-XXX13-A infestations. Standard weaponry seems to be sufficient to terminate instances, though instances are resilient and will require more rounds to eliminate than an equivalent human, so Psi-9 and any supporting agents are approved to use all standard Psi-9 paraweaponry against SCP-XXX13-A. Any infected EVE-loci in the area are to be cleansed of SCP-XXX13 influence and locked down by Foundation thaumatologists, or, if one is unavailable, any available friendly instances of SCP-XXX11-A. 

Researchers believe that a critical mass of SCP-XXX13-a could lead to runaway expansion of SCP-XXX13, leading to an EK-class Extinction of Humanity scenario.

Testing with SCP-XXX13 must be approved by staff with level 4/XXX13 clearance. Testing should be focused on neutralization of SCP-XXX13’s cognito-hazardous nature, preventing or curing SCP-XXX13 infection, and more effectively destroy SCP-XXX13-A instances. 

Description: Known colloquially in the criminal underworld and among agents as “The Chant,” SCP-XXX13 is an entity believed to be a sentient, pathological, self-sustaining thaumatological ritual of extra-dimensional or -universal origin, hosted by and physically composed of human carriers which continually recite the words composing the ritual. The entity is capable of growing via memetic infection of new carriers. Any exposure of human persons, partial or complete, to any portion of SCP-XXX13 in order risks infection with and eventual possession by the entity. 

The contents of SCP-XXX13 largely use the second person, addressing the listener, and is a string of only loosely related sentences of unclear meaning. These sentences are heard in the hearer’s native language. The contents describe a number of paradoxes, graphic references to injury, disease, self-harm, and assault, along with a number of other phrases and sentences with little to no semantic meaning. This makes it easy to disguise in background noise or pass off the chanting of the freshly infected as the ranting of a homeless person. Listeners describe the content as “disturbing,” “haunting,” and “gross.” 

Infection progresses in 4 stages, the last two of which are only reached by some of those infected. Instances of SCP-XXX13-A2-4 seem to derive subsistence only when allowed vocal expression and only through vocal expression of SCP-XXX13. Instances do not appear to require food or rest or to excrete waste. It is believed that instances of SCP-XXX13-A2, A3, and A4 are corpses animated by SCP-XXX13.

The effects of Stage 1 (SCP-XXX13-A1) infection are subtle, leading to mental deterioration and the tendency to mutter or sing part of or the entirety of SCP-XXX13 on an increasingly regular basis. Infection of this stage can result from less than one-hour cumulative exposure to any portion of SCP-XXX13 longer than seven words, in order, in a written or audible format. Stage 1 infection can be reversed with a regime of Class-D amnestics, a Class-32X-27D antimemetic panel, and a 21-day quarantine within a rank 5 thaumatological containment circle.

Stage 2 infection (SCP-XXX13-A2) is clearly anomalous, and the point of no return; Stage 2 infection seems to be accompanied by brain death, and if SCP-XXX13’s influence is cut off it results in the death and disintegration of the instance into glowing orange sparks. An SCP-XXX13-A2 instance which takes any damage to an essential organ similarly disintegrates. Instances hang in the air at a variable height, doing nothing but chanting SCP-XXX13 at a loud volume. Exposure to five or more SCP-XXX13-A2 for more than a cumulated 5 minutes without protective sound-cancelling equipment has so far guaranteed infection by the SCP-XXX13. Along with floating in the air, SCP-XXX13-A2 instances’ eyes begin to glow with a glowing orange energy of a thaumatogical nature (designated SCP-XXX13-B). In stage 2 individuals SCP-XXX13-B is dim. 

At Stage 3 infection (SCP-XXX13-A3) it becomes clear the infected has passed, as the skulls of the infected are entirely filled with SCP-XXX13-B at an increased luminosity compared to SCP-XXX13-A2, and those whose features are not obscured like this appear much like corpses. SCP-XXX13-A3 instances in all cases have proven to be hostile to human life, and seem to be possessed with the combat skills, training, and tactical cooridination they possessed pre-infection. 

Stage 4 infections (SCP-XXX13-A4-X) produce a variety of “advanced” forms of infected, those with anomalous powers in life. Different instances of SCP-XXX13-A4-X possess different anomalous abilities, including thamatological, reality-bending, parautilitarian, and advanced combat training and powerful armor and weaponry combined with defensive capabilities. SCP-XXX13-A4 instances usually glow a bright orange-yellow throughout their bodies when utilizing anomalous abilities. 

SCP-XXX13 only seems to be interested in infesting or killing any human it encounters and propagating its own continual recitation. It has also proven capable of infecting a variety of sapient species and SPCs--of particular concern is SCP-1000.

Several instances of SCP-XXX39-A4-X are worth noting in particular. 

SCP-XXX13-A4-1 instances have been dramatically altered, their heads “unfolded” into a shape somewhat like that of cauliflower and somewhat like that of a rose, and their entire torso opened to the air, the interior seeming to be entirely filled with the orange energy endemic to SCP-XXX13-A-2 through A-4. SCP-XXX13-A4-1 instances are capable of refracting light around themselves, becoming effectively invisible with the exception of hard to notice distortions in the air around their location. In this state, they close on a victim to the range of two meters, at which point they become invisible and “spray” the victim with SCP-XXX13-B, causing severe burns, similar to those one would expect from exposure to Ultraviolet Radiation with a UV index of 25 for five minutes.  

SCP-XXX13-A4-2 instances still appear fully human, if somewhat desiccated. They are capable of flight, including the ability to hover in place and almost perfect maneuverability. Instances have powerful telekinetic abilities. They typically use these abilities to launch objects or pieces of the surrounding landscape/architecture at uninfected victims. They are further capable of flying at a very high speed and striking the ground with telekinetically enhanced force, causing an impact with a similar radius and force to that a standard wrecking ball is capable of. 

SCP-XXX13-A4-3 instances also have powerful telekinetic abilities. Like SCP-XXX13-A4-2 instances, they use these abilities to weaponize the environment, flinging objects and pieces of the landscape at uninfected targets. Instead of flight, however, SCP-XXX13-A-3 instances instead also use their telekinetic abilities to gather more objects and pieces of the landscape and cause these objects to circle themselves in quantities sufficient to prevent most small arms fire from reaching them and provide substantial protection against even explosives and high momentum objects.