If you've met her, you'll never forget her!
{$caption}
Item#: 9810
Level3
Containment Class:
keter
Secondary Class:
none
Disruption Class:
ekhi
Risk Class:
warning
Sample of fungal overgrowth found at a structure destroyed by SCP-9810.
Special Containment Procedures:
Due to a common interest in fully containing SCP-9810 so as to preserve normalcy in the region, the Foundation and other signatories to the Southern United States Extranormal Organization Cooperation Treaty (SUSEOCT) have agreed to engage in a scheme of cooperation through the sharing of labor, information, and resources. Region 352 Director Kate McTiriss has been designated as the Foundation’s representative and point of contact with respect to this sub-agreement; all relevant communications from outside parties must be forwarded to her.
Under the terms of the sub-agreement, the Foundation’s primary responsibility is the examination of SCP-9810 incident sites. To this end, MTF-Omega-24 (“Buzzards”) has been assigned to investigate these sites for clues regarding the nature of SCP-9810 and SCP-9810-A. Researchers in the Department of Mycology are to support these efforts through their analysis of samples collected from the field.
Due to their likely role in instigating SCP-9810 events, the individual designated as SCP-9810-A must be apprehended as soon as possible.
Description:
SCP-9810 is a reoccurring phenomenon across the southeastern United States in which various evangelical Protestant churches have succumbed to rapid-onset structural rot. In all cases, this rot has resulted in the total collapse of the building and the deaths of all individuals inside. As every collapse has occurred during the middle of a Sunday service, each incident has resulted in considerable fatalities.
Sample of Xylaria polymorpha “fingers” found at an incident site.
This rot is evidently fungal in nature; churches destroyed by SCP-9810 can be identified by the excessive fungal overgrowth found encompassing the entirety of the ruins after the fact. Consistently among this overgrowth are myriad different species of fungus, both native and non-native to the region, including species that would not ordinarily thrive in the conditions of the surrounding environment. The species appearing with considerably greater frequency than any other, however, is the fungus known as dead man’s fingers.
Fungus specimens at incident sites are often observed expelling large clouds of spores into the surrounding area. These spores are believed to possess mild psychotropic properties if inhaled, though basic filtration technology is sufficient to protect those present from experiencing such effects. Of note, investigators have discovered that the overall quantity of spores in the air around incident sites, as well as the general airborne moisture, are both so excessive as to quickly suffocate any open flames in the vicinity. Researchers have theorized that this may be a possible defense mechanism, as fungal samples removed from these sites have proved to be highly flammable.
All destroyed churches thus far have been located in isolated rural areas. The remains of those deceased individuals inside the structures at the time of collapse appear to have undergone rapid decay; investigators have rarely discovered any tissue other than bone. Such bones are typically found scattered all across the ruins, with bones belonging to singular individuals located great distances from one another.
SCP-9810-A, also known as PoI-970, is the individual believed to be responsible for the occurrence of SCP-9810 events. Their identity is currently the subject of investigation.
Addendum 9810-01:
Upon the enactment of the SCP-9810 sub-agreement, Director McTiriss assigned MTF-Omega-24 operative Gwen Burrows, a veteran agent based out of Site-88, as the lead agent responsible for investigating SCP-9810 incident sites. While normally operating alone, in mid-October of 2022, Director McTiriss informed Agent Burrows that she would be joined by the newly hired Junior Agent George Chatterjee. Below is a transcript of their first joint investigation, which took place at Incident Site 08, the ruins of the Springhill Baptist Church near Oak Grove, Florida.
Video Log — 2022/10/21
[Note: Transcript sourced from footage captured by Agent Burrows’ and Agent Chatterjee’s body cameras.]
Image of the road near Incident Site 08.
<Begin Log>
[Agent Burrows is leaning against her car, a thermos of coffee in her hand. She’s standing alongside a desolate stretch of dirt road, flanked by oak trees draped in Spanish moss on either side. In the distance, another car slowly approaches, coming to a stop behind Agent Burrows’ car. Agent Chatterjee steps out of the vehicle and walks towards Agent Burrows.]
Burrows: You must be Chatterjee. You’re late, you know.
Chatterjee: Sorry, my GPS got mixed up. Had me take a right a while back when I should’ve taken a left.
[There is a short pause.]
Chatterjee: Oh, I didn’t realize there’d be another junior agent here. Do you know if Agent Burrows has arrived yet?
Burrows: What are you talking about? Is this some weird kind of flattery you’re playing or something?
[Chatterjee goes stiff in realization.]
Chatterjee: Shoot— sorry, I got mixed up, and—
[Burrows sips her coffee.]
Burrows: Don’t worry about it, kid. We’ll just chalk it up to first day jitters, whatever that was.
[Chatterjee nods as he lets out a sigh.]
Chatterjee: Thanks…
[He begins to look around. The air is still and silent.]
Chatterjee: We really are in the middle of nowhere, aren’t we.
[Burrows takes a sip from her coffee.]
Burrows: That’s just part of the job. Lots of poking around in places where no normal person would ever think to go.
Chatterjee: Fair enough.
[Burrows gestures towards the forest.]
Burrows: Let’s get moving. Ortiz is waiting just ahead.
[The two walk away from the road and into the trees. After a moment, a man in a suit comes into view. It is Agent Barry Ortiz, an investigator with the FBI’s Unusual Incidents Unit. Ortiz takes a drag from his cigarette as Burrows and Chatterjee approach.]
Ortiz: Looks like the newbie finally showed up.
[Burrows nods.]
Burrows: Got himself lost on the way over, but he’s here now.
Chatterjee: Sorry again.
[Burrows shrugs.]
Burrows: Not like the mold’s going anywhere. Isn’t that right, Ortiz?
Ortiz: Not as far as I can tell.
[He points off at the ruined church in the distance. The structure has been reduced to little more than a pile of lumber and rubble, all covered in the thick layer of vibrantly colored fungal overgrowth.]
Ortiz: This is about as close as I can get before the spores become a problem. A couple more steps and I probably wouldn’t have been able to light my cigarette.
Burrows: Well, that’s why we’re here.
Ortiz: That’s right.
[Burrows points at the ruins ahead.]
Burrows: So, what’s the story with this place then?
Ortiz: Pretty much the same as the others. Small congregation with an extremely, uh, conservative disposition. Sermons were apparently very much of the ‘fire and brimstone’ variety.
Burrows: Not so big on the whole ‘love thy neighbor’ thing, I’m guessing.
Ortiz: I wouldn’t count on it.
Burrows: Did the Horizon guys have anything to say about this one?
Ortiz: Yeah, apparently this place was at least on their radar, but they figured it was best to leave them alone. The congregation here didn’t exactly hold all the Abrahamic religions in equal regard, you could say.
Burrows: Figures.
[She turns to Chatterjee.]
Burrows: Ready to get your hands dirty?
Chatterjee: I guess.
[Burrows takes another sip from her thermos.]
Burrows: Fantastic. Get your respirator on and let’s get to work.
[The two of them withdraw their respirator masks from their coats and fasten them over their faces. Burrows hands the thermos over to Ortiz.]
Burrows: Hold this for me. We’re gonna be a minute.
Ortiz: Best of luck, Burrows. Bring me an extra respirator next time, so I can help out too.
Burrows: We’ll see.
[The pair begin to make their way to the ruined church.]
Burrows: So, what’s your deal, kid? How’d you end up at the Foundation?
Chatterjee: My uncle’s a senior researcher at a site up north. Been working there since before I was born. He approached me about joining up with the Foundation last year when I was finishing up college.
Burrows: I see. You’re a nepotism hire then.
Chatterjee: What? No. I work hard. And I did well in my entry exams and everything.
Burrows: I’m sure. And I guess you managed to leverage those impressive scores towards an esteemed position within the Buzzards. The ‘bottom-feeders’ of the task force world.
Chatterjee: I… I promise I’m taking this job seriously. I want to do the best that I can as an agent for this force.
Burrows: Well, this case seems like a great opportunity to show us what you can do.
[The two have arrived at the heap of rubble that was once ostensibly a church. The entire structure is covered in a layer of fungi. Numerous fingers can be seen poking out from the overgrowth.]
Chatterjee: What now?
Burrows: Let’s start you off with just taking pictures. As many as you can, but focus on capturing the different types of fungi. I’ll poke around and collect some samples for Mycology. Let me know if you see anything that looks off.
Chatterjee: I mean, this whole place looks pretty off already.
Burrows: Save the snark till you’ve proven yourself a little more, kid.
Chatterjee: Sorry.
[The two adorn gloves and get to work. Chatterjee takes pictures of the ruins from various angles with his camera. Burrows uses a knife to slice off samples of different fungi, inserting them into individual plastic pouches for later examination.]
Chatterjee: Agent Burrows, I think I’ve found something.
Burrows: What is it?
Clathrus ruber specimens found at Incident Site 08.
Chatterjee: Some weird red mushroom. It’s round overall, but it’s also got, like, a lattice or a mesh shape to it. Looks almost like a basket.
Burrows: Sounds like Clathrus ruber to me. It’s weird-looking, sure, but ultimately pretty innocuous.
Chatterjee: Okay, but… it looks like there’s something inside it. Pretty sure it’s a bone.
Burrows: Well, that’s certainly a little more interesting.
[Burrows makes her way towards Chatterjee. She kneels down next to him and uses her knife to cut through the specimen. She reaches through and withdraws the object inside. It is covered in a thick, dark gleba that sticks to Burrows’ gloves.]
Chatterjee: A jawbone. From a human.
Burrows: Could be from one of our parishioners.
Chatterjee: But it’s just one bone. Where’s the rest of the skeleton?
Burrows: If I were to guess, probably scattered all over the place.
[Burrows stands up again. Chatterjee promptly follows suit.]
Chatterjee: So, whatever’s doing this isn’t just tearing down buildings on top of their occupants. It’s also ripping these people apart and scattering the pieces in every direction. Only for all these molds and mushrooms to then grow up around them.
Burrows: That’s the gist, yeah.
Chatterjee: Hmm… so you think these people were killed before or after getting torn to shreds?
Burrows: In my experience, you can usually count on it being the more gruesome possibility.
Chatterjee: Either way, it must have been rough. Probably felt like going through hell.
[Both agents become deathly still. There is another noise in the air around them. A faint, muffled voice, somewhere among the wreckage.]
[It’s laughing.]
Burrows: What the…?
[Burrows signals for Chatterjee to follow. They slowly walk through the ruins, following the voice to its point of origin.]
[They come to a stop in front of a large piece of sheet metal. Whatever is laughing is under the object. That pair draw their sidearms and aim down at the source of the noise. Burrows gives Chatterjee a nod before kicking the metal to the side.]
[Below is an old man, lying prone on the dirt, with his bottom half pinned to the ground under a wooden beam. The man looks up at the agents. His face is covered in blood and caved in on one side.]
[The man smiles at them.]
Injured Man: Welcome, friends!
Chatterjee: What?
Injured Man: It’s a wonderful day, isn’t it!
Burrows: How so? What happened here?
Injured Man: What happened? Why, we were blessed by our resplendent savior, she who came to work her miracles on us, despite our sinful nature.
Burrows: Miracles, huh? What exactly did she do?
[The man laughs.]
Injured Man: The greatest thing that’s ever happened to us.
Injured Man: She showed us love.
Chatterjee: Love?
[The man continues to laugh, which is interrupted by a sudden spat of coughing. He digs his fingers into the dirt as he spits up a viscous black substance similar in appearance to the gleba. His body starts to spasm before eventually going limp. He collapses on the ground, becoming completely still.]
Chatterjee: Is he dead? What do we do now—
[Burrows shushes him. Her eyes are fixed on the trees in the distance. Faintly visible through the thick fog, standing amid the foliage, is a humanoid silhouette.]
[Burrows stares at the figure, her hands tightly wrapped around her sidearm. The figure appears to be looking back at her. Burrows begins to open her mouth to say something, but before the words get out, the figure turns and disappears into the forest.]
Burrows: Wait here, kid.
[Burrows breaks out into a run, leaving the ruins behind as she bolts into the woods. She weaves through the trees in pursuit of the figure, occasionally catching a fleeting glimpse, but after a minute, she comes to a stop. She has somehow arrived back to where Ortiz has been waiting.]
[Ortiz takes another drag from his cigarette.]
Ortiz: What happened to you?
Burrows: Did you see anyone run by here?
[Ortiz shakes his head.]
Ortiz: Just you. Where’s the newbie?
Chatterjee: Right here.
[Chatterjee approaches the pair.]
Chatterjee: You just took off. What did you see out there?
[Burrows scans her surroundings one more time before reluctantly stowing her sidearm.]
Burrows: Not sure. Not yet, at least.
Burrows: But it looks like whatever’s been happening to these churches, there’s someone who’s behind it.
<End Log>
Subsequent investigation confirmed the man’s death and identified him as Milton Groff, a member of the Springhill Baptist Church. Despite a thorough search of the area, the individual spotted by Agent Burrows (subsequently designated SCP-9810-A) could not be located.
Addendum 9810-02:
On 2022/10/24, Agent Burrows received word from a contact regarding a possible lead on the SCP-9810 investigation. She and Agent Chatterjee proceeded to Pensacola, Florida to follow up with them.
Video Log — 2022/10/24
Okaloosa Country Club, Pensacola, Florida.
<Begin Log>
[Agents Burrows and Chatterjee exit the car. They have just parked in the front lot at the Okaloosa Country Club, located within Pensacola, Florida. The pair make their way to the main entrance.]
Chatterjee: Looks like a nice place. Is your contact a member here?
Burrows: Works here, actually. She’s the manager.
Chatterjee: Really? What’s the manager of a country club doing getting involved in anomalous affairs? I can’t imagine the Foundation being okay with that.
Burrows: Well, the Foundation doesn’t have much of a choice, seeing how this whole club is owned by another member organization to the SUSEOCT agreement.
Chatterjee: Oh. I suppose that makes sense. Which organization is it?
[Burrows takes a sip of her coffee.]
Burrows: Marshall, Carter, and Dark.
[Chatterjee stops in his tracks.]
Chatterjee: You serious? Marshall, Carter, and Dark?
Burows: Is that a problem?
Chatterjee: I mean— I’ve heard things. Messed up stuff like them exploiting and mangling anomalies for profit. Or torturing Foundation agents, also for profit. Fuck, someone even told me about them throwing cannibal dinner parties.
[Burrows shrugs.]
Burrows: What can I say? None of that really matters much in our corner of the world. They signed that cooperation treaty for the Gulf Coast region just like we did, and by some miracle, they’ve actually been good about honoring it ever since — occasional hiccups aside.
Chatterjee: Maybe so. Still hard to see myself becoming friends with them or anything.
Burrows: Then don’t. No reason you have to be BFF’s because of that treaty. But once you’ve been in this line of work as long as I have, you’ll eventually begin to appreciate having allies wherever you can find them, as imperfect as they might be.
[Burrows takes a sip of coffee.]
Burrows: Though I will concede that the cannibal dinner parties are pretty fucking weird.
[The pair walk through the main entrance and into a spacious and opulent lobby. Standing before them is a dark-haired woman in professional attire. Her eyes are entirely pitch black.]
[The woman nods at them politely.]
Woman: Good morning, Gwen. It’s been far too long.
Burrows: Good to see you too, Moira.
[Burrows turns to Chatterjee.]
Burrows: Agent Chatterjee, this is Moira Edison. Manager of the Okaloosa Country Club and a SUSEOCT representative on behalf of Marshall, Carter, and Dark Ltd.
Chatterjee: Uh, hello.
[Burrows turns back to Edison.]
Burrows: And the kid next to me, Moira, is Agent George Chatterjee. A recent addition to the Buzzards.
[Edison smiles and nods.]
Edison: Ah, a greenhorn, so to speak. A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Agent Chatterjee. I hope Agent Burrows hasn’t been too hard on you.
Chatterjee: No, she’s been good. I’ve been learning a lot from her.
[Edison chuckles.]
Edison: My, what a diplomatic response. Gwen, make sure you take care of this one. It’s not often your superiors decide to assign you a partner.
Burrows: I’ll do what I can.
[She takes another sip of coffee.]
Burrows: So, what’s this about a lead? You guys actually find something about who’s behind these attacks?
Edison: Walk with me. I’ll explain on the way.
[The agents begin to follow Edison through the club’s interior and out the back door to a recreational pavilion.]
Edison: It really has been too long since I’ve seen you, Gwen. I take it your work has kept you extraordinarily busy.
Burrows: You know how it goes. There’s never really a shortage of weird shit crawling out of the woodwork around here.
Edison: Well, you’re always welcome to come here if you ever need to relax a little. I can get you a membership any time.
Burrows: Never been much for relaxing, unfortunately.
Edison: Yes, I know too well how you like to ‘burn the midnight oil.’
Chatterjee: Sounds like you’ve known each other for a while.
[Edison laughs.]
Edison: Oh, we’ve been friends for years. Since before I became manager of this establishment, and Burrows was still a novice agent working her way around a firearm.
[Chatterjee tilts his head to the side.]
Chatterjee: Really? That long? I… uh… never mind.
Edison: Seems the rookie’s catching on to the importance of biting one’s tongue.
Burrows: Definitely one of the more important skills an agent can learn.
Edison: Though he still could stand to practice subtlety a little more. He looks like he’s been biting his tongue about something since the moment you both walked through the front door.
Burrows: Probably has something to do with his less-than-favorable opinions about your employer.
[Chatterjee’s eyes go wide.]
Chatterjee: What are you doing?
Edison: Don’t fret, Agent Chatterjee. It’s perfectly all right. I won’t deny my employers have a bit of a… reputation. One that’s not always commendatory.
Chatterjee: Oh. Well, if you don’t mind me asking, what was it that made you want to work for an organization like that?
[Edison thinks to herself for a moment.]
Edison: Hmm… if I had to say, I suppose it would be… gratitude.
Chatterjee: Gratitude? Did Marshall, Carter, and Dark help you with something?
Edison: They did more than that. They rescued me. After what felt like an eternity of imprisonment, it was my employers who allowed me to finally escape from a wretched and languid place by bestowing me with a name. And it is out of that gratitude that I will continue to happily offer my services to those who gave me my freedom.
Chatterjee: Uh… I see.
Edison: I imagine Gwen here feels similarly about her own employer on some level, even if she may try to hide it.
Burrows: Watch it, Moira…
Chatterjee: What is she talking about?
[Edison smirks.]
Edison: I apologize, I forgot that Gwen is notoriously tight-lipped about her personal affairs.
Burrows: You know, I think I’m beginning to remember why I let so much time pass without seeing you.
[Edison smiles as she stops in front of a shed.]
Edison: Here we are.
Chatterjee: A shed?
Edison: It’s what’s inside the shed that I want to show you, Agent Chatterjee. Please, follow me.
Chatterjee: I don’t know about this.
Burrows: It’s fine, let’s just get this over with.
[The three enter the shed. Rather than housing any sort of equipment, the interior is largely occupied by a single holding cell. Iron bars separate the three from a huddled shape in the far corner of the room.]
Chatterjee: What is this?
Edison: Just a little sequestered space where we can keep more unruly visitors while we decide what to do with them.
Burrows: So, who’ve you got stowed away here?
[Edison grabs a baton propped up against the wall and strikes it against one of the bars. The shape in the corner stands up, revealing a humanoid figure who begins to shamble over to the group.]
Edison: Some of my people found him yesterday. He was wandering around the outskirts of McKinnon, just south of Oak Grove, rambling on about salvation and such. By the looks of him, it wasn’t hard to assume he was probably there at the Springhill Church when it went down.
[The figure steps out of the shadows as he reaches the bars. Mushrooms can be seen growing out from all over his body, including countless dead man’s fingers. Protruding from his right orbital socket are several long stalked specimens of what appear to be fool’s webcap mushrooms. Black gleba runs downs his face from the socket. No trace of his right eye is visible. The man begins to laugh as he turns to face the group.]
Man: Greetings, friends!
Chatterjee: What the hell…
Burrows: What happened to you?
Man: Why, I’ve been blessed by our savior, young lady! She who removed the fog from our lowly eyes so that we could witness her unconditional love.
Burrows: And who is this savior, exactly? Can you give me a name?
[The man grins, black saliva dripping from his mouth.]
Man: Rosemary.
Burrows: Where can we find this Rosemary?
Man: She will go wherever she is needed. And she will not be found unless she wishes it so.
Burrows: Okay, then tell me why’s she destroying these churches, killing those people? What’s she trying to do here?
Man: All she desires is to share her love with those she deems worthy. So that they may live with her forever in bliss.
Burrows: By tearing them apart and making their bodies rot away?
Man: You misunderstand, our Rosemary would never inflict such harm upon us. My fellow children have merely been freed from their mortal shells so that their souls may transcend to the glory below.
Burrows: Then why are you still here? Wouldn’t you rather be with them?
Man: Ah, but you see, I was chosen to deliver her message to those who pursue her.
Chatterjee: Wait, you mean us?
Man: Rosemary wants you to know that she is not your enemy. That she only wishes to bring love to the world.
Burrows: Okay, sure. Thanks for that. Now we’d really appreciate it if you’d tell us where to find her. I think we’d be able to more effectively work things out face-to-face.
[The man shakes his head.]
Man: I’m sorry. But I’ve already played my part. Now, it is time for me to return to the soil and join my peers in my Rosemary’s embrace.
[The man keels over forward, his hands clenching and digging into the dirt as he hits the ground. His body begins to undergo rapid decomposition. It only takes a moment for him to whither away into little more than a husk.]
Edison: What strange fervor he showed, wouldn’t you say?
[Chatterjee looks at Burrows.]
Chatterjee: What do we do now?
[Burrows takes a sip of her coffee.]
Burrows: Simple. We find Rosemary.
<End Log>
Addendum 9810-03:
Internal Memo — 2022/10/26
To: Kate McTiriss; Director, Region 352
From: Gwen Burrows; Agent, MTF-Omega-24
Director McTiriss,
Got a couple of updates. First, we finally have a name. Moira Edison from MC&D got her hands on a survivor of the Springhill Incident. Told us right before keeling over that the one causing all this goes by the name of Rosemary. I asked Ortiz to look over the records of all the wrecked churches to see if there’s any mention of a Rosemary somewhere. Could be she was a member at one of them.
Second thing — got some results back from Mycology. They ran autopsies on both of our recent victims and found strangely high concentrations of nerve cells in their fingertips. As a reminder, we observed both men digging their fingers into the dirt just before they died. Well, knowing what I know about fungi, I got a little curious, so I asked the Mycology guys to go back to the locations of death and start digging up the dirt.
What do they find at each spot? A massive mycelium network extending out in just about every direction. You know how fungi can send nutrients and electrical signals to one another and even to other species through these networks? Got a feeling something similar may be happening here.
Anyway, the full report is on its way to you. I’ll keep you updated as I go.
Agent Gwen Burrows
Addendum 9810-04:
On 2022/11/06, UIU representatives notified the Foundation of another SCP-9810 event, one that seemingly had only occurred earlier that day. The New Life Fellowship Church near Crestview, Florida had been destroyed. Agents Burrows and Chatterjee were promptly dispatched to the location. Joining them was UIU Agent Barry Ortiz.
Video Log — 2022/11/06
The New Life Fellowship Church prior to its destruction by SCP-9810.
<Begin Log>
[Agents Burrows, Chatterjee, and Ortiz are standing in front of the ruins to the church. All three are wearing respirator masks.]
Ortiz: Guess I need to thank you for finally remembering to bring an extra mask for me.
Burrows: Just make sure to do what I tell you and don’t get in the way.
Chatterjee: Where do you want to start, Agent Burrows?
[Burrows tilts her head as she eyes the ruins.]
Burrows: Seems we’ve had some good luck in that this church hasn’t quite totally collapsed like the others. Let’s go around the perimeter first. I’ll collect samples. Chatterjee will take photos. And Ortiz — just make sure you’re around if we need anything. Once that’s done, we’ll see if we can somehow get inside the part that’s still standing.
Ortiz: Sounds like a plan.
[The three split off into their respective tasks.]
Burrows: By the way, you guys find anything yet connecting our destroyed churches with someone named Rosemary?
Ortiz: Not really. We’ve got the stray Rosemary showing up in membership records here and there over the years, but no one who fits the profile of our perpetrator. For that matter, we still don’t have anything substantial connecting these churches together either.
Burrows: Figures. Until we learn something useful about our Rosemary, there’s not much we can do but scavenge around her handiwork after the fact.
Ortiz: Well, who better to scavenge than a Buzzard?
Chatterjee: Maybe there’s something here that’ll tell us what she’s planning next. Then we can stop her before it happens.
Burrows: That’s kind of wildly optimistic, kid.
Ortiz: Eh, it works for me. I’m honestly getting a little nervous. My brother’s family doesn’t live too far from here. Don’t know what I’d do if I woke up and saw their church was the latest to go down.
[Ortiz shrugs.]
Ortiz: Then again, it’s not like she’s been hitting Catholic churches, so they’re probably in the clear.
Chatterjee: Your brother’s Catholic?
Ortiz: I mean, I’m supposed to be too. Job keeps me busy enough that I haven’t been in a church in a… uh… spiritual sense in a long time.
Chatterjee: Makes sense.
Ortiz: What about you, newbie? Would you consider yourself religiously affiliated?
[Chatterjee shrugs.]
Chatterjee: Not really. My parents weren’t religious, so I just never really grew up with it. Can’t say I have any interest in it now either.
Ortiz: I see.
[There is a pause.]
Chatterjee: What about you, Agent Burrows?
Burrows: I don’t want to talk about it.
Chatterjee: Oh. Sorry.
Ortiz: That’s a line of questioning I wouldn’t advise with Agent Burrows, newbie.
Chatterjee: Okay.
[The three continue to work around the perimeter. Eventually, they come to a door leading into the still-intact portion of what looks to be the church’s sanctuary.]
Burrows: Don’t hear anything inside, but let’s be careful opening the door anyway. Prepare to breach.
[The group splits up to either side of the door, each drawing their sidearms. Agent Burrows leads as they breach the door. They find themselves entering into the church sanctuary, near the front altar. The space is dimly lit, with three rows of pews facing the group. The rest of the sanctuary behind these pews has completely collapsed into rubble.]
Burrows: Looks clear enough. Let’s go.
[The three enter the building, turning on flashlights as they go. Chatterjee points his flashlight at the pews.]
Chatterjee: Shit.
[The pews are filled with decaying corpses. Fungal growths protrude from all over their bodies in similar fashion to the man from the country club. Fingers emerging from the back of the pews appear as if gripping them. The bodies sit with their hands clasped together, as if in prayer, their heads tilted upwards.]
Ortiz: They look pretty serene, all things considered.
Burrows: Look at their feet.
[Burrows takes a step forward, revealing to the camera that all of the deceased parishioners are missing their shoes. Their feet are planted firmly on the floor, similarly ensnared by fingers while also covered in wispy white mycelium fibers.]
Chatterjee: What do you think that mycelium is doing to them? Sapping nutrients or something?
Burrows: The guy at the country club said something about joining the other victims. Plus, there’s the autopsies that found the nerve cells in their extremities.
Chatterjee: Then what, is it sapping their consciousness?
[Burrows shrugs.]
Burrows: It’s probably too soon to say for sure.
Ortiz: Hey, come take a look at this.
[Ortiz is standing at the end of a pew in the second row. The corpse sitting at the end — who appears to be a male adolescent — is grasping a bright red cylindrical object in its hand.]
[Burrows approaches the corpse and pries the object from its grasp.]
Burrows: Looks like a road flare.
Chatterjee: Why’d this guy bring a road flare to a church?
Burrows: Not like it would have done much. Flame would’ve probably been snuffed out right away.
Ortiz: Looks like there’s something printed on the side. Some kind of symbol.
[Burrows rotates the object revealing an insignia resembling a wolf.]
Reproduction of the wolf insignia found on the flare.
Burrows: What’s this supposed to mean?
Ortiz: Not sure, but I’ll hold onto it for now.
[Burrows passes the flare to Ortiz.]
Chatterjee: So, what should we do now?
Burrows: You two continue looking around in here and gather any information that’ll help us identify the victims whose bodies are still intact. I’m gonna head back outside.
Chatterjee: You’re heading back out? Why?
Burrows: I don’t know if you noticed, but our congregation seems to be missing their pastor. I spotted some blood stains near the altar leading out the door. Must have missed it among all the overgrowth when we were out there before, but I might be able to follow it. See if our guy might’ve wandered off away from the church.
Ortiz: Sure thing. Just don’t go too far out.
[Burrows nods and exits back through the door. Scanning the ground, she finds a scant trail of dried blood leading away from the building. Burrows begins to follow; she ends up heading into the trees behind the church.]
[She follows the trail for several minutes before she’s met with the sight of a skeleton. It’s lying prone with one hand outstretched ahead of it. The bones are covered in a thick layer of violet and velvety mold with several stalks of sea anemone fungus interspersed throughout. Once again, several dead man’s fingers are also present, wrapped tightly around individual bones.]
[Burrows kneels down to get a closer look at the body. She prepares to collect samples of the fungus, but a sudden noise causes her to jolt up. Something is moving among the trees ahead of her. Burrows draws her sidearm and cautiously proceeds forward. After approximately a minute she arrives at the edge of a small clearing.]
[Standing in the middle of the clearing is a blonde-haired woman in a plain white dress.]
[The woman smiles at Burrows.]
SCP-9810-A: Hi there, it’s about time we finally met.
Burrows: You must be Rosemary.
SCP-9810-A: And you must be Agent Gwen Burrows. It’s nice to finally talk to one another isn’t it?
Burrows: How do you know my name?
[SCP-9810-A raises her arms.]
SCP-9810-A: It’s a really nice day today, isn’t it, Gwen? The birds are singing, the sun is shining up above, and look—
[She spins in a circle. As she does, a wave of fungal overgrowth explodes in all directions immediately around her.]
SCP-9810-A: —the forest is in bloom!
Burrows: That’s quite the neat trick, Rosemary. How about you come with me so you can tell my bosses exactly how you pulled it off.
[SCP-9810-A smiles.]
SCP-9810-A: Oh, I wish I could, Gwen, but maybe another time. I’m actually pretty busy at the moment. And I’ve got a feeling you will be too, in just a minute or so.
Burrows: What do you mean?
[There is a sound of shouting in the distance. As it gets closer, it becomes clear the voice belongs to Chatterjee.]
[SCP-9810-A turns around and prepares to walk away.]
SCP-9810-A: Until next time, Gwen.
Burrows: Hold on, we’re not—
[Chatterjee stumbles up to Burrows. His clothes are highly disheveled. Blood trickles down the side of his head.]
Chatterjee: Agent Burrows! The church! Another part of the church collapsed. I think I’m okay, but Agent Ortiz is pinned down. He’s hurt pretty bad, I need your help to get him out and—
[He pauses, his eyes fixed on the clearing.]
Chatterjee: Who’s that?
[Burrows turns to match Chatterjee’s gaze. Her eyes catch sight of SCP-9810-A right at the moment she disappears into the trees. Agent Burrows sighs.]
Burrows: Come on, kid. Let’s take care of Ortiz.
[The two begin making their way back to the church.]
Chatterjee: Wait, was that Rosemary? Should we really be letting her go?
Burrows: Reticent as I am to do so, we gotta keep our perspective here. We don’t know what she’s capable of, but we do know a fellow agent has been injured.
Chatterjee: No, you’re right. Let’s get Ortiz. But once we’ve taken care of that, we should come back and—
[The two stop as the church comes into view. The entire structure has gone up in flames.]
Burrows: Shit.
Chatterjee: How? I thought those spores were supposed to stop this from happening.
Burrows: Looks like we’ve come across a loophole.
[Burrows looks into the flames. After a moment, she lets out a long sigh.]
Burrows: Damn it.
[She throws off her suit jacket and tosses it to Chatterjee.]
Burrows: Hold this. I’ll be right back.
Chatterjee: Wait, don’t tell me you’re going in there!
Burrows: Sorry, kid. But if I don’t that oaf is probably gonna burn to death. And I’m not really in the mood for the kind of bullshit UIU paperwork that would follow if I didn’t bust my ass to get him out right now.
Chatterjee: But—
[Chatterjee stands dumbstruck as Burrows bolts into the burning church.]
<End Log>
Because her body camera was attached to her jacket, there is no footage of Agent Burrows inside the church. Agent Chatterjee’s camera, however, recorded Agent Burrows reemerging from the building approximately four minutes later, carrying an unconscious Agent Ortiz.
Agent Ortiz was treated for a fractured clavicle, three fractured ribs, and extensive third-degree burns. The flare had evidently activated as a result of the impact from falling debris during the collapse. Agent Burrows, for her part, was completely unharmed.
Internal Memo — 2022/11/06
To: Gwen Burrows; Agent, MTF-Omega-24
From: George Chatterjee; Junior Agent, MTF-Omega-24
Presently the only known photo of PoI-970.
Agent Burrows,
I’m sorry. I meant to let you know much earlier, but with all the chaos that happened right after the fact, I completely forgot to tell you. When I caught up to you and saw you talking to Rosemary, I kind of instinctively took a picture. Guess all the photos you’ve had me taking paid off a bit back there.
It’s not a great picture or anything, but I figure it’s better than nothing. Hopefully it helps the investigation, even if just a little.
Junior Agent Chatterjee
Addendum 9810-05:
On 2022/11/12 Agents Burrows and Chatterjee travelled to Destin, Florida to meet with a contact regarding the possible origin of the road flare.
Video Log — 2022/11/12
Interior of the meeting location and also a great place to kick back and relax.
<Begin Log>
[Agents Burrows and Chatterjee are walking down a sidewalk adjacent to the beach.]
Chatterjee: This seems like an unnecessary detour. Why are we devoting all this energy to a single road flare?
Burrows: Because so far that flare has been the only thing to overcome those spores and produce a lasting flame at an incident site. Not only that, it got the entire building to burn down, fungus and all.
Chatterjee: So, you think if we figure out what made that flare work, we can turn it around and use it against Rosemary?
Burrows: That’s the idea.
Chatterjee: Okay. Makes sense.
Chatterjee: Who’s our contact, by the way? You’ve been oddly secretive about it.
[Burrows shrugs.]
Burrows: It’s a bit of a sensitive situation. Guy actually was contained for a while, at Site-88. But he eventually managed to escape — something to do with his wife.
Chatterjee: You mean he’s an escaped SCP? Is this really a good idea?
Burrows: Yeah, we’ll be fine. We lucked out in that he actually seems to like us Foundation guys quite a bit, despite the containment. And he hasn’t really caused us any problems since he’s been out. But he’ll check in every once in a while, when he feels like it.
Chatterjee: And we haven’t tried to recapture him?
Burrows: Not that I’m aware of. I wouldn’t say it’s an official stance or anything, but I think the Foundation reached a general consensus that it probably works better for everyone if we just let him be. He’s been around and tends to know an awful lot about a lot of things. At least in my experience.
[The two approach the entrance to a beachside bar.]
Burrows: All right. He should be waiting for us inside. Let’s go.
Chatterjee: Okay. But one more question before we do.
Burrows: Yeah?
Chatterjee: What’s this guy’s deal that we had him contained in the first place?
Burrows: Oh, right. Yeah, you see, this guy is… well, he’s kind of, sort of a god.
Chatterjee: What?
[Burrows enters the bar and motions for Chatterjee to follow. The interior is colorful with island decor all around. Tropical soft rock can be heard playing on the speakers. Seated at a booth in the corner is an older man clad in a Hawaiian shirt and cowboy hat. Burrows approaches the table.]
Burrows: Good to see you again, Pete.
SCP-2343: Same to you, Gwen. Come on and sit down, the both of you. Take a load off.
An old but still good picture of SCP-2343. Quite the dashing figure, don’t you think?
[The agents sit at the booth while SCP-2343 takes a sip of his drink.]
Burrows: Is that a margarita you’ve got? I wouldn’t have pegged you for the type.
SCP-2343: Well, you know what they say about changes in latitudes. Thought I’d embrace the local culture while I was down here. You fellas want some, by the way?
[He procures two additional glasses of margaritas from beneath the table.]
Burrows: What the hell, sure.
[She takes the glasses and passes one over to Chatterjee.]
Burrows: This is Agent Chatterjee by the way. He’s still new to the Buzzards.
Chatterjee: Hello.
SCP-2343: Yeah, he’s got that nervous look to him, like he’s still pretty wet behind the ears.
[Burrows turns to look at Chatterjee and nods.]
Burrows: Sure, I can see that.
SCP-2343: How do you think this one’s going to end up, in terms of life expectancy?
Burrows: Not sure yet, actually.
Chatterjee: I, uh…
[SCP-2343 laughs.]
SCP-2343: Oh, I’m just fooling with you, son. Don’t you worry about it. Here, maybe a cheeseburger will help take the edge off.
[He lifts a plate holding a cheeseburger and fries from below the table and passes it to Chatterjee.]
Chatterjee: Oh, thanks.
[SCP-2343 takes a sip from his margarita.]
SCP-2343: So, your people gave me the rundown on your latest case. Some mushroom girl’s causing havoc, and there’s this road flare you need help with?
Burrows: Pretty much.
[She withdraws a photo of the wolf insignia and slides it over to SCP-2343.]
Burrows: We found it in the ruins of the most recently destroyed church. Normally the spores in the air are good at extinguishing just about any flame, but this thing was still able to go off. Not just that, it was able to spread and burn the whole building down.
SCP-2343: Interesting…
[SCP-2343 examines the photograph. After a moment, he lets out a light chuckle.]
SCP-2343: Well, you’re in luck, because I actually know what this is.
Chatterjee: You do?
SCP-2343: Yeah, there’s this group I’ve had a couple run-ins with. They seem to specialize in the trafficking of illicit goods. Weapons, drugs, contraband, but all with that special “supernatural” twist. The kind of stuff you folks would normally be locking away.
Burrows: Oh yeah? And who are they?
SCP-2343: Call themselves the Dogtooth-something-or-other. Their leaders mostly talk to each other on the internet in some private channel. Stumbled my way into there a few times while “surfing the web,” as the kids say. This wolf symbol — well, it’s sort of their brand mark that they stamp on all their goods.
Burrows: Huh, okay. I should probably reach out to the GoI specialists at Site-55; hopefully they can get someone in touch with them.
[She pauses.]
Burrows: Unless…
[She leans forward, her eyes on SCP-2343.]
SCP-2343: Yes?
Burrows: Well, you said you’ve been in their private channels already. Any chance you could poke around, see what you can find out about the flare?
[SCP-2343 strokes his chin for a moment.]
SCP-2343: I suppose I could. Proud to say I’ve developed a bit of a rapport with those guys. They might be willing to humor this old fella if I ask nice enough.
[SCP-2343 shrugs.]
SCP-2343: Though I would definitely be going outta my way doing this. It’d be nice to have a little something to motivate me.
Chatterjee: You’re saying you want something in return? Agent Burrows, I don’t know if—
Burrows: You know, Pete. It’s the funniest thing. We had the radio on during the drive over, and I heard an advertisement for some baseball game happening next month. Pensacola Blue Wahoos versus the Biloxi Shuckers.
[SCP-2343 leans forward]
SCP-2343: Oh, really? I heard about that. Charity game, right? Tickets are supposed to be pretty expensive though.
[Burrows grins.]
Burrows: Well, it just so happens that I was able to get my hands on a couple. One of the perks of the job, you see. I know you’re a baseball fan, so maybe we could work something out.
[SCP-2343 smiles.]
SCP-2343: I’d be willing to make a deal, sure. You hand over those tickets, and I’ll see what I can find from those Dogtooth fellas.
Burrows: I appreciate it, Pete.
[SCP-2343 turns his gaze to Chatterjee.]
SCP-2343: You okay there, son? You’ve got a look on your face.
Chatterjee: Oh. Sorry. Guess I’m just a little surprised to see a god excited about Minor League Baseball.
SCP-2343: Well, when you’ve been around long as I have, there comes a point where you realize you’ve had your fill of that sort of religious adulation. Eventually, you just want to move on and do your own thing.
[SCP-2343 takes a sip of his margarita.]
SCP-2343: Besides, there’s a lot of pressure involved in being the object of worship. If you ain’t careful, you might inadvertently direct your followers down a path they shouldn’t be going down. Next thing you know, they’re launching ‘righteous crusades’ that do nothing but spread fear and hate to everyone around them, including each other.
[Burrows nods.]
Burrows: It can really fuck someone up, if they’re unfortunate enough to be on the receiving end of that.
SCP-2343: For sure. And it can be a devil of a thing to overcome. Trauma like that’s the kind of thing that can fester for a long time, turn into something real nasty if left untreated.
[Burrows’ eyes go wide.]
Burrows: Huh.
<End Log>
Addendum 9810-06:
External Memo — 2022/11/12
To: Barry Ortiz; Agent, Unusual Incidents Unit
From: Gwen Burrows; Agent, MTF-Omega-24
Agent Ortiz,
We might have been looking at this all wrong. See if you guys can find records of any incidents in the region at all involving both a destroyed church and someone named Rosemary. Doesn’t have to be connected to any of the current churches. Doesn’t have to be recent either — go however far back you need to go.
Thanks, and get well soon, buddy.
Best wishes to your friend, Burrows. Tell him margaritas are on me next time I’m in town.
Addendum 9810-07:
On 2022/11/13, Agent Burrows received a message on her phone from an individual claiming to be a high-ranking member of the organization described by SCP-2343.
Hey
That weird old guy who keeps showing up in our comm channels told us about you. Normally we’d tell nosey jackasses like you to fuck off, but fortunately for you that weird old guy’s kind of funny, so we’ll humor you just this once. I’m a senior officer with the DOGTOOTH SYNDICATE. No way I’m telling you my real name. Just call me RENARD.
I’ll cut to the chase. Weird old guy said you found a flare with our logo at a church. Checked with the other officers and yeah, we sold it. Some kid got word about your church mushroom problem, wanted something that could burn those mushrooms down if they showed up at his church. Our senior officer FENRIR told him to eat shit but the kid said he’s only going to that church in the first place cause his parents force him to.
Anyway we sold him a flare that wouldn’t go out no matter what. A special manufacture, tube-sealed, 100% authentic will-o’-the-wisp. Little bastards have a body that’s entirely made up of pure fire. Won’t stop burning till its dead. Which means it’ll take a lot more than some fuckass fungus to extinguish their flames.
Now that’s all you’re gonna get from us. You wanna take down that mushroom monster or whatever get yourself something that won’t burn out.
Don’t contact us again. And tell that weird old guy we said hi.
Addendum 9810-08:
Below is the transcript of an incident involving Agents Burrows and Chatterjee that occurred on 2022/11/15.
Incident Log — 2022/11/15
[Note: Incident took place at a public park in Destin, Florida. Agents Burrows and Chatterjee were eating lunch at a park picnic table.]
<Begin Log>
Chatterjee: Any updates from Ortiz yet?
[Burrows shakes her head.]
Burrows: He’s been looking, but it’s really too soon to expect much.
Chatterjee: Fair enough.
[Chatterjee takes a bite of his sandwich.]
Chatterjee: So, you find anything we can use against Rosemary yet? Perpetual flame or whatever it was?
Burrows: I’ve been asking around. Looks like we do have some wisps in containment, but they’re of the endothermic variety, which isn’t much use to us. We got some other creatures entirely composed of fire, but they’re notoriously hostile to pretty much everyone, so we can’t really use them either.
Chatterjee: Figures.
Burrows: I do have one possible lead from the GoI guys. Some friends up north have been caring for a fiery little creature. It’s currently at the center of a minor ‘situation’ at the moment, but we might be able to get our hands on it for a bit if things work out.
Chatterjee: Oh. Well, that’s good.
[There is a pause.]
Chatterjee: Kind of fucked that such a big lead came from a dead teen who didn’t even want to be there.
[Another pause.]
Burrows: Yeah.
[The two continue eating in silence for a moment.]
Burrows: By the way, how’ve you been acclimatizing to the job? You feel you’ve been getting a handle on things?
[Chatterjee shrugs.]
Chatterjee: Sort of? Honestly, I’m still trying to wrap my head around a lot of it.
Burrows: How so?
Chatterjee: Well, last year, when I first learned about the Foundation, it was like the world became so much bigger than I thought it was. Felt like that sense of childhood wonder had found its way back to me.
Burrows: Sure.
Chatterjee: But since I’ve started working, all that wondrous stuff has turned out to be just so… ordinary, you know? I mean, I’ve met creatures I thought only existed in fairy tales, but it turns out they’re running country clubs and relaxing in beach bars. I’m not sure how I feel about it.
Burrows: That’s fair. But I guess, at the end of the day, those gods and monsters hiding among us are really just people like you and me. No reason to build them up so much.
Chatterjee: Okay, but… I don’t know if it sounds crazy, but I’m a little worried that, if I’m working at a place where we can easily put the fantastical in a box, how do I keep myself from losing that sense of wonder altogether? Make sure that, twenty years from now, I’m not just going through the motions while circling the drain?
[There is a pause.]
Burrows: I don’t know, maybe you just need to find something you can keep your eyes fixed upon. Some big goal that you can chase after, day after day. And if you ever reach that target, just pick a new goal and start chasing that. After enough time, maybe you’ll be like me, where the job itself is enough to push you out of bed and get you moving each day.
Chatterjee: You think so?
Burrows: Sure, it’s worked for me for years, and I think—
[She pauses.]
Burrows: Well, I’d like to think that’s enough for me.
Chatterjee: Okay. That kind of makes sense. Thanks.
[Burrows shrugs.]
Burrows: No problem, kid.
[There is a pause.]
Chatterjee: Actually, while we’re here, you mind if I ask you something?
Burrows: Sure, go ahead.
Chatterjee: Right, I’ve been wondering, I keep hearing how you’ve been an agent for a long time, but you barely look any older than I—
[Chatterjee’s phone begins to vibrate. He holds it up to look at the screen.]
Chatterjee: Oh, it’s my mom. I’m very sorry. I’ve got to take this. I’ll be right back.
Burrows: Sure.
[Chatterjee stands up and walks away as Burrows continues to eat her lunch alone. After a moment, however, a woman approaches the table and sits down opposite Burrows.]
SCP-9810-A: Hello again, Gwen.
Burrows: Shit.
SCP-9810-A: Sorry to drop in like this, it’s just that I’ve been wanting to talk to you for a while now.
Burrows: I’m not sure the feeling’s mutual, Rosemary.
[SCP-9810-A smiles.]
SCP-9810-A: Oh, come on, it’ll be fun! Besides, I’m sure it would be very productive for your investigation to have a conversation with your prime suspect.
Burrows: What would be even more productive is if I incapacitated that prime suspect and took her in right now.
[SCP-9810-A rests her face on her right hand.]
SCP-9810-A: Maybe so. But I’m not sure that would be a very smart idea in such a public place.
[A ring of mushrooms begins to rapidly grow around the picnic table. The pale-green color of the pilei give away their identity as death cap mushrooms.]
SCP-9810-A: I mean, imagine if some innocent family got caught up in the confrontation. Found some really nasty toxic fungus suddenly growing under their skin or behind their eyeballs. That’d be terrible, wouldn’t it?
[Burrows sighs.]
Burrows: What do you want, Rosemary?
[SCP-9810-A smiles again.]
SCP-9810-A: I just want to get to know you better, that’s all. Really, I’ve been fascinated with you since the very first time you showed up to examine my handiwork.
Burrows: Believe me, I’m not that interesting.
SCP-9810-A: Oh, don’t sell yourself short. You’re actually quite captivating. I mean, you’ve been doggedly investigating the deaths of people who had dedicated their entire lives to the propagation of hate. Hatred to those who didn’t look the right way or talk the right way or… show their love to the right people.
Burrows: What are you getting at?
SCP-9810-A: They ostracize people, making them into outcasts, all while preaching how righteous they are. It’s all a hideous farce, and frankly I finally got sick of it enough to do something about it.
Burrows: And that ‘something’ has been causing a lot of problems.
[She looks into Burrows’ eyes and smiles.]
SCP-9810-A: You’re so steadfast in your convictions, aren’t you? But what’s really interesting is that, despite those convictions — your dedication to ensuring that no more of these ugly hypocrites get hurt — you’re actually a lot like me.
Burrows: What are you talking about?
SCP-9810-A: Every step you take, every heartbeat that reverberates through your body — when you’re out among those ruins, I can feel it. The webs I weave below the soil, that connect me to my creations, I can sense what they sense, feel what they feel.
Burrows: Bullshit.
[SCP-9810-A nods.]
SCP-9810-A: I’m not lying. I pick up on everything. Like your conversation with your junior partner about his uncle up north.
[She grins.]
SCP-9810-A: Or that spike in your heart rate the very first time you laid eyes on me.
[Burrows’ eyes go wide.]
Burrows: What the fu—
SCP-9810-A: And so I promise I’m not lying when I say that every single second you’ve been out there chasing me, I’ve been able to feel every ounce of anger and resentment that you carry deep within you.
[Fungi of all varieties begin to slowly bloom up from the ground in the pair’s vicinity. On the table, fingers begin to sprout out from the wood. A group of fingers arranged in a line gently wrap themselves around Burrows’ right hand.]
SCP-9810-A: You know what it’s like, don’t you? You had to grow up with those people and suffer under their obtuse hatred. And they made an outcast out of you just like they did to me. For no other reason than being born the way you were. You don’t want to admit it, but there’s a part of you that feels just a tinge of satisfaction every time you see a corpse or a skeleton, because after all this time, these people are finally getting a taste of the pain they’ve gleefully inflicted on so many others.
SCP-9810-A: Seeing them hurt, it makes you happy.
[There is a long pause. After a moment, Burrows wrests her hand free from the fingers.]
Burrows: Whatever my personal feelings about the victims may be, they don’t change the fact that I have a job to do, and I’m going to do it.
SCP-9810-A: Your dedication is admirable, but you don’t have to do this. Imagine what you and I could accomplish together. We could wipe out the hatred infesting the world we live in. Snuff it out for good and allow a more loving world to grow in its place.
SCP-9810-A: After all, I know you have your own talents that you like to keep close to your chest. You haven’t told your junior partner, but I know.
[Burrows tenses slightly, but quickly composes herself.]
Burrows: Look, at the risk of flattening your whole philosophical worldview into something wholly reductive, what you’re doing isn’t helping anyone. It’s just meeting hate with more hate.
SCP-9810-A: Oh, but you misunderstand. I’m acting not out of hate but out of kindness. By sharing my love with them, I cause love in turn to sprout up from their hearts and fill their souls.
Burrows: You really believe you’re showing them love?
SCP-9810-A: I’m showing them the kind of love they deserve. And letting them live in it.
[A pause.]
SCP-9810-A: I know you’ve been working hard, so I’m going to throw you a bone. Next week, I’m hitting my biggest congregation yet. You’ll probably want to prepare. And maybe take the time before then to think about our little conversation.
[SCP-9810-A stands up and begins to walk away. She turns back to look at Burrows and smiles.]
SCP-9810-A: Until next time, Gwen.
[In another moment, she’s gone.]
[Burrows sits in still silence for several more minutes. Eventually, Chatterjee returns, stopping in his tracks upon seeing the overgrowth surrounding the picnic table.]
Chatterjee: Agent Burrows?
[A pause.]
Burrows: Fuck.
<End Log>
Agents were unable to ascertain SCP-9810-A’s whereabouts after leaving Agent Burrows’ vicinity. As such, focus instead quickly shifted to predicting where SCP-9810-A would appear next.
Addendum 9810-09:
External Memo — 2022/11/23
To: Gwen Burrows; Agent, MTF-Omega-24
From: Barry Ortiz; Agent, Unusual Incidents Unit
Burrows,
Looks like your instructions paid off. We finally found something about our suspect. 12 years ago, the Holy Grace First Baptist Church near Muscogee, Florida burned to the ground with one Rosemary Parker trapped inside. Records say she was part of a “young adult bible study group” who were the only ones present at the time. According to the Horizon guys, the church was notoriously conservative much like the ones we’ve been investigating now.
Incidentally, a couple weeks before the fire, Ms. Parker had publicly come out on social media. Comments from her church buddies weren’t exactly supportive.
Anyway, Horizon also just got back to us about how all the members of this bible study group — they went their separate ways after the church burned down. And here’s the real kicker. Every church that’s been hit so far has had one of those guys present, either as a member or as staff. Right now, we’ve got only one survivor left. One Megan McNulty, a senior pastor at that one megachurch in Pensacola — the Eternal Glory Fellowship Church. Looks like they’re having some big regional conference this weekend with a super-sized mega-service that Sunday, the 27th.
If our resurrected Rosemary’s gonna hit anywhere this week, it’s gotta be there.
Barry
Based on this information, the Foundation and the UIU set up a combined task force to surround and fortify the Eternal Glory Fellowship Church so that they could be prepared for SCP-9810-A’s arrival on Sunday, Nov. 27.
It was on Friday, Nov. 25, however, that SCP-9810-A arrived at the church.
Addendum 9810-10:
Below is a transcript of the footage captured by the various surveillance cameras located within the Eternal Glory Fellowship Church on the day of SCP-9810-A’s arrival. At this time, the building was hosting a regional conference with the leadership of various affiliated churches in attendance.
Video Log — 2022/11/25
The Eternal Glory Fellowship Church.
<Begin Log>
[A shot of a hallway within the church; a pair of double doors leading outside are visible at the far end. From this door, a dark substance can be seen spreading out along the walls, floor, and ceiling of the hallway. Two men can be seen exiting a restroom. They quickly stop upon noticing the mold, quietly watching it as it spreads.]
[After a moment, the double doors fly open and SCP-9810-A walks through with a smile on her face. The two men call out to her, with one stepping forward to speak with her directly while pointing at the mold on the wall.]
[SCP-9810-A places her hand atop the closer man’s head but does not otherwise acknowledge him as she walks past. The man stands still for a moment, before keeling over. He screams as fingers begin to erupt out of his back. The second man sees this and attempts to flee, but he is snagged by a multitude of fingers emerging from the floor. SCP-9810-A briefly places her hand on his head as well. The man clutches the side of his face as she continues down the hallway. He lets out a scream as his skull splits open and long-stalked mushrooms can be seen sprouting from the exposed brain matter.]
[The screams draw out additional conference attendees from adjoining rooms as SCP-9810-A proceeds through the church. SCP-9810-A immobilizes and places her hand on each of them in turn. Some fall to the ground and are quickly overcome beneath the overgrowth subsuming the floor; others find themselves torn apart as the growth taking place within them rapidly exceeds the volume of their bodies. A few of them, however, remain standing despite the fungi growing out of them. They begin to follow SCP-9810 as she continues through the church, shambling over the floor as they faintly chant words of praise and adulation.]
[SCP-9810-A eventually reaches the doors to the main sanctuary, flinging them open. Seated inside are the senior leaders of the Eternal Glory Fellowship Church as well as those of the visiting congregations. Included among these individuals is Senior Pastor Megan McNulty. SCP-9810-A gingerly steps into the sanctuary as the overgrowth and “followers” both pour in from behind her.]
[The sanctuary crowd begin to panic with most attempting to flee. SCP-9810-A grins as she raises her arms; in an instant, a massive bloom of rot spreads out to encompass most of the sanctuary floor, twisting and contorting the bodies of those caught in its wake.]
[SCP-9810-A soon reaches the back of the sanctuary, where McNulty has been ensnared in a mound of fingers. The color drains from McNulty’s face as she sees SCP-9810-A approach.]
McNulty: You…
SCP-9810-A: Hello, Megan.
McNulty: What devilry is this? Did you crawl back from Hell, I thought—
SCP-9810-A: Oh, shut up.
[A mass of fingers clamp McNulty’s mouth shut.]
SCP-9810-A: I’m so looking forward to finally—
Burrows: Stop!
[Agents Burrows and Chatterjee enter into view from behind SCP-9810-A. Their sidearms are both drawn and aimed at the subject.]
Burrows: Rosemary Parker, I am ordering you to stop.
[SCP-9810-A closes her eyes and smiles.]
SCP-9810-A: Sounds like somebody did their homework. I’m happy you’re here, Gwen. For a while, I was worried you and your friends were set to wait until Sunday.
Burrows: What can I say, we were in the area when the kid suddenly got a bad feeling in his gut.
Chatterjee: I just thought we should check in.
SCP-9810-A: Well, your junior partner has some wonderful intuition.
Burrows: Come on, Rosemary. You don’t have to do this.
[SCP-9810-A turns around.]
SCP-9810-A: No, but I want to do it. The world will be better off once these people are removed from polite society.
Burrows: Not if you do it like this. You’re just… creating chaos. Getting bystanders caught in the crossfire and leaving those remaining to pick up the pieces. Now I’m going to tell you one more time to stop.
[SCP-9810-A holds up both her hands.]
SCP-9810-A: Gwen, you know I can’t do that. I need to finish what I started and—
[Burrows fires into SCP-9810-A several times. With every shot, large chunks of flesh are blown off SCP-9810-A’s body. Her body drops to the ground once Burrows ceases firing.]
[Burrows and Chatterjee step towards the corpse. It does not bleed. In fact, there is no indication of blood, internal organs, or bone visible at all beneath the skin. There is only flesh-colored tissue, the same tone as the skin.]
[Burrows looks to the side. There is movement from beneath the overgrowth. Something begins to grow rapidly, white in color and gradually taking on a spheroid shape. The mass quickly grows to a height of about 1.5 m, at which point, something starts pushing out from inside — the shape of two hands can be seen attempting to pierce through the outer membrane. In another moment, they break through. SCP-9810-A, drenched in viscous fluid, tears through the universal veil as she steps towards the two agents.]
Burrows: Shit.
SCP-9810-A: Okay, I’ll admit, that one got me. But it’s clear that this isn’t the ideal environment for open dialogue. Why don’t we pick this up later at my place?
Burrows: I’d really rather just finish this here, Rosemary.
[SCP-9810-A shakes her head. Masses of fingers begin to grow out of the floor and start grasping at both agents.]
Chatterjee: Agent Burrows?
SCP-9810-A: Sorry, Gwen, but you’ll have to come see me if you want this to stop. You’ll know where to find me.
[The fungi continue to accumulate around the two, ensnaring them both.]
SCP-9810-A: I’ll need to take some collateral, obviously, to make sure you show up. And of course you’ll need to come alone. I’ll feel the footsteps of anyone you might try to bring with you.
Burrows: Stop this, Rosemary.
[SCP-9810-A stands directly in front of Burrows with a smile on her face as she rips off her respirator mask. With a wink, she holds her hand up and blows Burrows a kiss. A gust of spores billow out of her mouth as she does so, which quickly move to envelop Burrows’ face.]
Burrows: Rose…
[Burrows passes out. Rosemary turns to look into the nearest camera and gives a cheerful wave shortly before the signal cuts out.]
<End Log>
Reinforcements arrived at the scene shortly after to find Agent Burrows unconscious on the floor of the sanctuary. Furthermore, Agent Chatterjee, along with SCP-9810-A, were both missing. Nearby Agent Burrows was the corpse of Megan McNulty, whose head was missing; the majority of the lower nervous system additionally had been gouged out from the rest of the body.
Out of all the people present in the building, Agent Burrows was the sole survivor.
Addendum 9810-11:
Internal Memo — 2022/11/25
To: Gwen Burrows; Agent, MTF-Omega-24
From: Kate McTiriss; Director, Region 352
Agent Burrows,
I just heard back from Site-55. Your request has been approved. Assuming the asset’s training has been adequate, you are authorized to proceed with the operation.
Good luck, Agent. Don’t be reckless.
Director McTiriss
Addendum 9810-12:
Video Log — 2022/11/25
<Begin Log>
[Agent Burrows is standing at the edge of a large clearing in the middle of a forest. The aged and charred ruins of a long-destroyed structure lie just ahead of her.]
[She is just outside Muscogee, Florida, looking at the remains of what had once been known as the Holy Grace First Baptist Church.]
[She takes a long sip of her coffee.]
Burrows: Fuck it.
[She tosses the cup behind her and turns to her right to face a massive oak tree. At the base of the tree is a large hole leading deep into the earth. Burrows sighs as she puts on her respirator mask before carefully lowering herself into the darkness below.]
[She lands on a patch of soft clay. Her body camera adjusts to the reduced light, revealing a dank tunnel, the walls lined with a layer of velvety mold. Burrows draws her sidearm, switching on the flashlight, and proceeds down the tunnel.]
[As she walks, light murmurs are faintly audible from all sides — quiet whispers intermixed with occasional sounds of laughter. No source to these voices is visible.]
Ischnoderma resinosum specimens found growing from the tunnel wall.
[She continues through the tunnel, observing the gradual variations in the fungi surrounding her as she moves. At one point, light-brown fungi resembling late fall polypores can be seen growing out from the wall of the tunnel to her left. The polypores become increasingly smaller and whiter in color until they eventually become indistinguishable from human teeth.]
[Burrows lifts her hand and cautiously prods at one of the “teeth.” Upon doing so, she’s met with a gentle moan from somewhere within the wall, causing her to jump back.]
Burrows: Fuck.
[She resumes her trek down the tunnel, ignoring the continuing variations in fungi as she goes. She steps through a patch of Clathrus ruber that twitch with the frequency and rhythm of a heart beat. A cluster of earth star fungi in the wall watch her walk by. When she turns to look at them, she catches one of them blinking. All the while, the fingers protrude from all sides of the tunnel with increasing frequency as she proceeds, subtly oscillating back and forth.]
A Geastrum velutinum specimen found in the tunnels.
[Finally, she reaches a large open chamber. On the far side she can see two faint figures, one slumped over and kneeling on the ground, the other significantly further back and seemingly hanging from the wall. Both figures are completely still. Burrows raises her sidearm and takes a step forward, only to stop once more as something wet drips onto her from above.]
[Looking up, she sees that all over the chamber’s ceiling are strange hanging growths that do not match any known variety of fungus — though their long, narrow shape with a bulbous protrusion at the lower end give the impression of stalked sporangiophores. Burrows raises her flashlight at the ceiling and takes a step back as the light reveals the growths to be human in nature — the stalks resembling spinal columns stripped bare with skinless human heads forming the bulbous ends. Standing still, Burrows realizes the murmurs and laughter are coming from these suspended heads. Their speech is incomprehensible, but their faces are frozen in beaming smiles. The flashlight focuses in on one face in particular, where through the laughter, dark-colored tears can be seen forming from the eyes, which slowly build and drop down to the ground in front of Burrows.]
Burrows: Fuck all of this.
[Burrows lowers the flashlight and continues to walk towards the two figures. As she gets closer, it becomes clear that the kneeling figure on the ground is Agent Chatterjee. He is ensnared by countless fingers and appears to be unconscious.]
[She rushes towards him and begins tearing away at the fingers.]
Burrows: All right, wake up, kid.
[Chatterjee appears to slowly come to and begins muttering.]
Chatterjee: Wall…
Burrows: What?
Chatterjee: The wall…
[Burrows brushes away the last of the fingers from Chatterjee and helps him up. She slowly walks the two of them towards the far wall. Before them is the second figure, revealed to be a heavily charred and decayed human corpse. Its limbs are spread out and the body itself is wrapped in a multitude of white mycelium filaments. Burrows lowers Chatterjee to a seated position and approaches the corpse; as she does so a voice can be heard behind her.]
SCP-9810-A: They confronted me that night. Told me I was an affront to God. They hurled all sorts of insults at me, insisted I was in league with the devil, and demanded I repent from my sinful ways. I got fed up, tried to leave, but one of them grabbed at me just as I was about to go down the stairs. I lost my balance, and then everything went black.
[Burrows turns around to see SCP-9810-A walking toward her.]
SCP-9810-A: Cowards that they were, they decided they would rather burn down the whole building than allow anyone to find out what actually happened to me.
Burrows: And how did you come back as… whatever you are now?
[SCP-9810-A shrugs.]
SCP-9810-A: No idea. Genuinely. But I figured I’d been given an opportunity. To get back at the bastards who killed me and ensure that no one else would ever again have to go through what I did.
Burrows: By turning them into those… things above us?
SCP-9810-A: They’re living in an eternal, chemically-induced bliss now. It may not be the kind of bliss they wanted, but hey, everyone’s gotta deal with the cards they’ve been dealt. What’s important is that they’ve been excised from the rest of the world, along with all their hate.
Burrows: This is a pretty fucked up way to eliminate hate, Rosemary.
SCP-9810-A: All the more reason you should be here with me. I know you’re like me, in more ways than one. Is there really anyone out there who understands you — truly knows you — like I do?
[There is a pause.]
Burrows: Even if I do go with you, you’ll just keep doing this, won’t you. Sowing pain and carnage everywhere you go.
SCP-9810-A: Not sure I’d use those exact words, but that’s the general idea.
[Burrows lets out a long sigh.]
Burrows: Well, shit. Guess I’ve just got to kill you then.
[She withdraws a pager from her jacket, pressing a button before stowing it again.]
[SCP-9810-A tilts her head.]
SCP-9810-A: Kill me? How exactly do you plan to do that?
Burrows: Oh, it’s okay, I brought backup to burn this place to ashes.
[SCP-9810-A smiles.]
SCP-9810-A: Is this some kind of joke? You know my mycelium network can feel every footstep in just about every direction. There’s no one else down here but you, me, and the junior agent.
Burrows: Are you sure about that?
[SCP-9810-A begins to sweat an amber-colored fluid.]
SCP-9810-A: Wait… how? I feel heat. Burning. Even with my spores— what are you doing?
[Burrows shrugs.]
Burrows: I followed up on this road flare we found at one of your churches, learned how a creature made entirely out of fire could overpower those spores and burn through your fungi. I talked to our GoI guys, and it turns out some of our friends in Oregon had run into some issues with a friendly little will-o’-the-wisp they’d been taking care of.
SCP-9810-A: A wisp?
Burrows: A feu-follet specifically, out of Louisiana. Our guys were able to take care of their situation and were about to return the little fella, but I asked if we could borrow her for a quick job before they did. Turns out Yvette is a smart little girl, so it only took a couple days of training before she learned how to follow a little ways behind me and wait for my signal to light everything up. Plus, she floats, so — you know — no footsteps.
[SCP-9810-A looks back towards the tunnel, where smoke can be seen beginning to pour out.]
SCP-9810-A: You wouldn’t…
[Burrows returns to Chatterjee and helps him back to his feet.]
Chatterjee: Thanks, Burrows…
Burrows: Look Rosemary, I’m genuinely very sorry about what happened to you. And I hate that you have to go out like this. But I just can’t sit back and let you continue this deranged revenge plot you’ve got going on. That’s not how you remove hate from the world.
[SCP-9810-A stumbles slightly as fire begins to pour into the chamber. The suspended heads can be heard screaming as they’re subsumed by the flames.]
SCP-9810-A: Gwen…
[Burrows hoists Chatterjee over her shoulder.]
Burrows: Goodbye, Rosemary. If you do somehow come back like you did before, maybe we can try all this again.
[The flames reach SCP-9810-A, swallowing her entirely. A burning hand can be seen reaching out from the fire, falling limp just as the video cuts out.]
<End Log>
Backup forces arrived shortly after. A sweep of the underground tunnels found all fungal specimens within had been destroyed. Rosemary Parker’s remains had been reduced to bones; they were promptly taken into Foundation custody and have since remained inert.
Agents Burrows and Chatterjee, along with the feu-follet Yvette, were discovered above-ground 120 m away. All were found to be in good condition upon examination and were brought back to Site-88. When asked at the scene how Burrows was able to escape the fire without her or Chatterjee suffering any burns, Burrows responded that it was “none of their fucking business.”
Internal Memo — 2022/11/26
To: Gwen Burrows; Agent, MTF-Omega-24
From: George Chatterjee; Junior Agent, MTF-Omega-24
Agent Burrows,
Wanted to say thank you for going out of your way to rescue me. And for looking out for me all this time, if we’re being honest. I learned a lot during this case. Think I’ve also got a better handle on how I feel about things.
Though I guess the both of us should probably find out what to chase after next.
Junior Agent Chatterjee
After a month of no further activity from SCP-9810-A, SCP-9810 was ultimately reclassified as Neutralized.
Addendum 9810-13:
External Memo — 2023/01/05
To: Gwen Burrows; Agent, MTF-Omega-24
From: Moira Edison; Okaloosa Country Club, Pensacola, Florida
Gwen,
Congratulations once again on resolving the Rosemary situation. I’m sure the Foundation handlers you feel indebted to are quite pleased with your performance.
I did want to let you know about an interesting encounter at the club earlier today. A woman came by the front desk with a small package addressed to you. Asked if I could hand it over next time you came by. Of course, I couldn’t resist taking a quick look inside — I know you’ll forgive my indiscretion.
Well, inside the box was a lovely, bright-red toadstool, along with a note jotted onto a small card. I’ve copied its contents for your convenience below.
You might be right about how I was doing things. Gonna go out and see the world. Try to excise that hate in a more effective and precise way.
You’re welcome to tag along.
I’ll leave it up to you how to respond.
Good luck,
Moira
Internal Memo — 2023/01/05
To: Gwen Burrows; Agent, MTF-Omega-24
From: Kate McTiriss; Director, Region 352
Agent Burrows,
After some deliberation, your request has been approved. You and Agent Chatterjee are hereby authorized to lead the investigation into PoI-970, i.e., Rosemary Parker. You are free to pursue her wherever she goes at your own discretion and using whatever methods you deem necessary, within reason.
After all, nobody knows her like you.
Director McTiriss