Item #: 9622
Object Class: Ticonderoga
Special Containment Procedures: SCP-9622 is largely self contained by its own nature. Suppression of knowledge related to the anomaly can be accomplished by Foundation Webcrawlers through updating key phrase search algorithms to include items indicative of its contents having appeared in the dreams of civilians. Posts flagged in such a way are then suppressed in public search algorithms to minimize spread and copies of all iterations thereof are saved to a directory within the larger database of the Department of Oneirology.
Because of the frequency of false positives, it is necessary an analyst from the Department of Oneirology review this directory on a monthly basis to curate them. This has been incorporated into the Department's standard monthly reviewal process for the database as a whole.
Description: SCP-9622 is a recurrent dream experienced by residents of northern areas of the American state of Ohio. No pattern has been established between subjects with all residents of the affected area seeming equally likely to experience the anomaly. Memories of it are notably non-anomalous and will fade at a rate comparable to mundane dreams.
What is known of SCP-9622’s events has been pieced together through the use of mnestics and analysis by the Department of Oneirology. It should be noted that any statement regarding this subject is not definitive, as portions may be contaminated by mundane dreams had within similar timespans and the work of Foundation Oneirologists is prone to error.
The dream consists of different, vaguely connected scenes taking place over a period between July 22nd and August 10th of 1986. Subjects report attending and competing within the Camp Perry National Matches hosted by the Civilian Marksmanship Program. In the latter case, specifically within the category of the National Trophy Individual Rifle Match. The exact score acquired has varied between subjects, whether this is a result of the anomaly itself or errors in data collection remains undetermined. A given subject's aggregate score will always fall within a range of 480-485 and 8-15x. This places the subject within the top 40% of competitors for the event that year and additionally results in them receiving a silver trophy at its conclusion. Nonetheless, subjects report having felt significantly distraught and agitated with their performance.
For most subjects, the entirety of SCP-9622 will consist of only these events. In rarer cases, the dream has expanded to showcase scenes of interactions with other event goers and civilians from around the area. These individuals appear continuously distorted so as to be blurry and drained of color. Subjects report being uncomfortable around them, but they are unable to place exactly why this is the case. Subjects will avoid interaction with them and will give no reply to attempts by these individuals to make conversation. In at least three cases, a subject has reported individuals identified as "other jar heads" attempting to converse with them.
Addendum 9622-A: In September of 2027, the Department of Oneirology submitted a research plan subsequently approved by both the Ethics Committee and O5 Council. They were to identify individuals who recently experienced SCP-9622 and subject them to a chemical regiment including both agnostics and mnestics. It was hypothesized this would allow for more in-depth exploration of the anomaly by placing subjects into a state closely approximating REM-related neurological activity but in which they would remain lucid enough to communicate with, whereafter they could be administered specific keywords to guide dream expression towards recreating SCP-9622. By January of the following year two dozen subjects were identified as having experienced the anomaly within the timeframe between the initial proposal and the end of the regiment's testing on D-class personnel.
Results of the research were found to be inconclusive. Insights into the nature of SCP-9622 were more minor than anticipated and difficult to corroborate with the small data pool available. Some minor complications also occurred with civilian test subjects related to expression of underlying psychological disorders. While these issues were quickly resolved, it has been decided all future applications of the procedure on non-D-class be postponed until a safer formulation and keyword system may be devised by the Department of Oneirology.
A selection of interview logs from these test subjects chosen for highlighting some key aspects of SCP-9622 have been appended here. As was necessary, prior to testing subjects were led to believe that the supplied chemical regiment constituted an experimental chemo-psychiatric treatment, sleep aid, or other form of mundane clinical trial, depending on which it was deemed the subject would be more likely to agree to at the direction of healthcare providers.
- A.9622-A-1
Interviewed: Sophia Hertner
Interviewer: Dr. Elago
Foreword: Subject was a 17-year-old female who had been a resident of the Plymouth village for 13 years prior to experiencing SCP-9622. Was subsequently identified by webcrawlers following the discovery of posts bearing key phrases related to the anomaly on her Reddit and Discord accounts. Noted to have some background in competitive ball sports but had no knowledge of firearm handling or related activities. Psychological profile exhibited no signs of notable mental illness aside from slight levels of anxiety considered typical for age group.
<Begin Log>
Dr. Elago: How's your vision? Can you see still?
Hertner: Yeah, yeah, I can see. It’s getting really bright though, did you guys do something to the lights? It feels like you're shining a flashlight into my eyes…
Dr. Elago: We can turn them down, give me a moment.
[LOGS OMITTED]
Dr. Elago: Better?
Hertner: Yessssss, much, much much much… What… God, what is that?
Dr. Elago: Don't worry about it. I'm gonna read from my list again, ok? I just want you to listen to the whole thing. Just like last time, focus on the words as they come to you, and when I'm done I want you to tell me the first events that come to mind.
Hertner: Okay. Lay em on me.
Dr. Elago: White-tail. Drive. Reform. Train. Buckeye. Cardinal. Insurgent. Rifle. Amphibian. Mud. Alone. Gulf. Polk. Erie. Pacific. Cold. East.
[5 minutes of silence occurs at this point.]
Dr. Elago: Hertner? Still with me? Lethargy is a possible symptom; you need to tell us if you feel you're dozing off.
Hertner: [slurring] I'm f-fine. Just… thinking. Trying to… Feels odd.
Dr. Elago: What does?
Hertner: I remember something, but it feels so… ephemeral? Is that the word? I read that in a book recently, it was by Sanderson, it was really go-
Dr. Elago: Focus Hertner. Where were you in '86? We can't get lost in the weeds now.
Hertner: Right… Riiiight… I feel woozy. Uhm, I think, I was up north. Right short of Illinois, near Toledo?
Dr. Elago: In Camp Perry?
Hertner: Where?
Dr. Elago: Don't worry about it. How did you get up there?
Hertner: I-… I drove. I remember the drive so well. Felt like I'd done it a dozen times. [mumbling] But, but I don't have a car- how could I hav-
Dr. Elago: Do you remember anything from the drive? Did you talk to anyone?
Hertner: No. No, definitely not.
Dr. Elago: Why not? Surely you must have wanted to say something to someone after so long on the road. It gets lonely out there, doesn't it?
Hertner: I… I guess, but; there was nothing to talk about with… those, people.
Dr. Elago: What people?
Hertner: You know. Those people. The kind that don't listen. They just look past you. You can tell them all the most fantastical stories and pour your heart out to them and they'll just talk over you like they haven't skipped a beat. Ain't nothing to them. Nothing to talk to. Nothing that would care.
Dr. Elago: I see. Did you stop at all?
Hertner: At a-a few places. Some malls, some gas stations. That beautiful little coffee shop in Chattanooga, what was it called again? God, you think they still serve the little cinnamon drinks they had then? Or that, that one tailor in Lexington I got… I got…
[Ms. Hertner begins to tear up and attempts to sit up from her bed in the medical office. She is looking around and appears disoriented.]
Dr. Elago: Whoever you're looking for they're not here Hertner. It's just us. Were they in the car with you?
Hertner: No. No, they weren't… I was alone. I bought a dress. I can't- I can't remember who for though. It was a pretty little dress, too.
Dr. Elago: Anything else from the drive?
Hertner: I cleaned my gun. Every stop, just before bed.
Dr. Elago: Describe the process of that, what gun was it?
Hertner: Colt AR-15. It was a bitch to get- s-sorry about the cursing. Something about patents I don't know, not many people were manufacturing them. I got one, though. Had a little pin behind the receiver you pushed out the right to let you pivot the whole barrel down so you could access and pull out the internals. Bolt, trigger, connecter on the stock. I got it down really fast, 40 seconds. I was proud of that.
Hertner: Wire brush scrub, wipe off with some oil rags I kept in my car, then coated much of it in Vaseline. Cheap, and reliable. Good stuff.
Dr. Elago: Any modifications?
Hertner: I had some magnifying scopes. But nothing else. All CMP regulation.
Dr. Elago: Is it really necessary to do that much cleaning ahead of the competition?
[A clattering sound is heard over the audio feed as Ms. Hertner lurches forward.]
Hertner: YES! Of course! I… I'm sorry, I got… I dunno.
Dr. Elago: No need to apologize! Just focus. Let your mind go back to those days. Why did you keep cleaning it?
Hertner: For the, for the competition.
Dr. Elago: What difference would a dirty gun make?
Hertner: A lot! Just a little rust could put you a foot off from 600 out, thanks to friction and heat distribution! Or you get dirt in the trigger, and it jams up during the rapid-fire portion and now you've lost a third of your time having to clear it!
Dr. Elago: So what?
Hertner: It means less points. Or none, even. It’s the difference between gold and lo-… Eh… My head hurts. It's slipping. I can feel it.
Dr. Elago: It's ok, Sophia. One last question, and we can end your portion of the trial.
Hertner: Please.
Dr. Elago: How did cleaning the gun make you feel? Did you feel something bad would happen if you didn't?
Hertner: Hmmmmm… It felt soothing, I guess. It was familiar. Not like the drive was familiar. I knew the drive. I… I understood the gun. How all its internals worked. How it performed. The demands it had. The drive felt so… distant, in comparison. I don't know what would have happened if I didn't. I just had to.
Dr. Elago: Thank you Sophia. You did great. We're going to give you a counter agent, but don't feel afraid to just sleep at this point.
<End Log>
- A.9622-A-2
Interviewed: Mikael Schafer
Interviewer: Dr. Elago
Foreword: Subject was a 27-year-old male who had been a resident of [REDACTED] for 4 years since his assignment to Area ██ as part of containment operations regarding SCP-████. Had alerted Foundation administrative staff to a suspected experience of SCP-9622 in December, though he had been able to convey only minimal details in relation to it. Noted to have little interest in firearms outside of official duties and possessed no personal background in any kind of competitive activity. Diagnosed with PTSD related to a past containment breach he had been present for, but he was being medicated for it and reported minimal symptoms.
<Begin Log>
Schafer: When will I know it's kicked in?
Dr. Elago: Given your counter-memetics training Mr. Schafer you will likely notice the breakdown of reason when the agnostics fully take effect. Combined with the agent ██-█, the hallucinations will hit you very quickly after that. I can only recommend you try to not question it as much as you can.
Schafer: Talking with a lot of confidence about this.
Dr. Elago: We find it helps people not panic.
Schafer: I'd prefer if you were more candid. What's gonna happen if I do?
Dr. Elago: Hmmm… It could lead to a psychotic break as your surface psyche reaches into your id for some grounding. Think of it like digging into the mud of a riverbank to grasp at the tree roots so you don't get swept away. Only, the tree roots are also flowing down the river.
Schafer: Ah, classic, I remember the first time some psychic did that to me. I didn't know we could synthesize that experience now!
Dr. Elago: You can thank Surrealistics. And about 60 million in fun-
Schafer: Oh. Ooooh, yeah you were right. There it is…
[Mr. Schafer stops speaking at this point. He can be heard clicking his tongue repeatedly whilst looking around the room.]
Dr. Elago: Like I said Mr. Schafer, it's best to just let it flow over you.
Schafer: [Still Clicking] Ok. O-K.
Dr. Elago: We also need you to keep talking so we know we're getting the dose right. We triple checked the calculations, but your tolerances may be higher or lower than we anticipated so we may need to make micro adjustments.
Schafer: Lot of little movements about this. All the eddies of the chemicals in the waters. How many D bois you fry trying to get this right?
Dr. Elago: We didn't fry any of them. Too much, anyway… None that weren't death rows already anyway.
Schafer: I'm not one to judge Elago. What about, uh, those keywords? I was told you'd have those.
Dr. Elago: Usually we wait longer for you to get into the right headspace but if you think you're ready now.
Schafer: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Dr. Elago: Just to reiterate, for the cleanest results we need you to completely surrender to the treatment and the dream.
Schafer: I'm… really trying. It's like a guy is in my face and my body is screaming to punch him square in his nose. But I can't! Shouldn't, at least. Cause too much bickering, too much hassle…
Dr. Elago: Right, and I do commend you for your efforts thus far Schafer.
Schafer: Thank you.
Dr. Elago: Starting on the list.
Dr. Elago: Capital. Cardinal. Recruit. Leave. Isolation. Labor. Canton. Jungle. Pursuit. Liberation. Rifle. White-tail. Clip. Noble. Neglect. Hole.
[A minute of silence occurs, interspersed by slowed clicking]
Schafer: It’s strange walking in these shoes a second time. Leather clogs in a place I've been to a dozen times and feels like a hundred. Over and over. An old rhythm. Routine made second nature…
Dr. Elago: What do you remember, Schafer?
Schafer: I remember, the event grounds. Watching the record get set on the President's 100 between peaking at other matches. Speaking to vendors in the commercial row. Glimpses and fragments but not full conversations. I held some things they offered but… they felt so artificial. They looked so new and clean they were like plastic figurines. Never used to kill. Only to display. Why was I in those stores… why did I even bother?
Dr. Elago: What about your competing? Did you go to shoot?
Schafer: Course. Only good part of that thing, really. I got… I think I got some trophies from years before. '84, '83, '82, '81, all the way back to… '75… I started in '75. What was I doing before then?
[Mr. Schafer freezes for some seconds and begins to wordlessly cry]
Dr. Elago: Schafer? Mikael?
Schafer: Yeah?
Dr. Elago: You're crying. Why?
Schafer: I… I don't know. I can't remember. It’s all so distant. Like it didn't even happen…
Dr. Elago: That's ok. Your trophies, what rank were they?
Schafer: Gold. Only kind that matters at these things. Any less is… What would even be the point of coming if I'd gotten less?
Dr. Elago: And, the shooting? What does that consist of exactly?
Schafer: Don't you already know this?
Dr. Elago: Well, yes, but I want you to describe it. Word choice and the way you present it is important but don't over think it. Just let it flow out as naturally as you can. What is the firing course?
Schafer: Uh, four stages in total, you get some minutes to prepare before each. First is 10 shots slow, standing, 200 yards. Easy.
Dr. Elago: What does preparing consist of?
Schafer: Mostly getting into a comfortable stance and doing some last-minute checks on your gun. Some people fiddle with the sights a bit out there depending on wind and temperature because they can affect trajectory, but I mostly worried about doing that for higher ranges.
Dr. Elago: Do they tell you any of this information up front?
Schafer: Hell, they don't even let you do sighters.
Dr. Elago: Sighters?
Schafer: Practice shots to ensure sighting is aligned correctly. Lower-level competitions give you a few, but not the nationals. Your responsibility to make sure you're sighted in well enough ahead of time. Same with wind speed and temperature. You can infer the first one from these little flags they put next to the targets, but temperature is more finicky. I'd read it in the paper ahead of time, but you don't know till you get out there.
Dr. Elago: Mhm, go on with the shooting course, how well did you do with the first stage?
Schafer: Great, ten or nine each shot. Near dead center on four. It was not my best but was acceptable.
Dr. Elago: And the second stage?
Schafer: Ten shots rapid fire, sitting or kneeling from standing, shooter's choice, and 200 yards again. I was used to sitting. More comfortable to do for so long. The ground was always wet it seemed, and you could feel the water filling your pockets during monsoons, but it was easier to handle the recoil, and your legs wouldn't go dead after too long if you rested your weight right…
Dr. Elago: Uh-huh. How well did you do there?
Schafer: It was… Fucking. Bad. Several eights. A seven. No centers.
Dr. Elago: You sound agitated.
Schafer: Why shouldn't I be?
Dr. Elago: You did better than most would. That's something to be proud of.
Schafer: Most don't have the training, the experience, the will. I could do better. I knew I could do better! I was cocky, I was lazy! I slipped up and it cost me and- and- it's disgraceful!
Dr. Elago: Ok, ok, I understand. Next stage.
Schafer: Ten shots rapid fire, prone from standing, 300 yards.
Dr. Elago: And when you say, "from standing," what do you mean?
Schafer: When you're commanded to start shooting you transition into a prone position as you fire.
Dr. Elago: While maintaining accuracy?
Schafer: That's the challenge.
Dr. Elago: Sounds difficult.
Schafer: I'd done it a lot. It was almost a reflexive movement by that point. The little adjustments to your aim and the orientation of the gun against your shoulder. How to handle the recoil while also controlling your fall. It's a full body exercise and one of extreme focus.
Dr. Elago: How did you do?
Schafer: [Sighs] Better. Still not good. But I made up a little bit for stage two. It was… disappointing.
Dr. Elago: And the final stage?
Dr. Elago: We just need this last bit Mikael, and we can end the test. Come now, we're just over the hill, it all goes smooth from here. Trust me. Let it flow.
Schafer: 600 yards. I'd made shots from farther. Hit moving targets. Found weak spots in armor. Once hit a man's eye through a peep in his rat hole from that far out. I'd hit that shot a million times. Could SEE it in my head! How it was supposed to go. And I… I just couldn't win. The gun was fine. Everything was adjusted the way it was supposed to be! There was only one explanation! Only ONE possible fault! One broken, useless thing bringing the whole operation down!
[Mr. Schafer breaks down at this point and begins to noticeably sob while muffling himself with his hands.]
Dr. Elago: I think we'll conclude the test here. Thank you Mikael.
[Sobbing remains uninterrupted as Schafer begins to mutter to himself between breaths.]
Schafer: What was it for? What was any of it for? All those years. All that torment… Did anything matter? Or did it just happen?
<End Log>
- A.9622-A-3
Interviewed: Samuel Valusek
Interviewer: Dr. Elago
Foreword: Subject was 73-year-old male who had been a resident of Cleveland or surrounding communities since his medical discharge from the United States Marine Corps in 1974. Had been under intensive medical care for a year prior to experiencing SCP-9622 due to advanced lung cancer making him unable to live independently. Noted to have had extensive knowledge of firearms, military culture, and firearm related sports around the state. Had spent no less than 14 years as an instructor for a Cleveland-based hunting club he was a member of. Psychological profile showed him to be relatively healthy in spite of his condition; though he vocally expressed to Foundation agents he only sought treatment for the peace of mind of his daughter and grandchildren.
<Begin Log>
Valusek: You mind if I smoke?
Dr. Elago: I'm not sure if that's advisable…
Valusek: Come on. Nicotine ain't gonna do anything the herbicide didn't already.
Dr. Elago: I… [sigh] I suppose I really can't stop you Mr. Valusek. Need you calm anyway and if the cigarettes help so be it.
Valusek: Just call me Sam, and thanks.
Dr. Elago: Ok, Sam, increasing your dose. You might notice some visual impairments as this progresses, that's normal.
Valusek: What's this for again? I know you told me but…
Dr. Elago: I understand Sam. This is a sleeping treatment. Should help you not wake up with those horrible coughing fits as frequently. Give you some actual rest at night.
Valusek: Aaaaah, that's nice. And what does this cost?
Dr. Elago: Don't worry about it, VA is footing the bill.
Valusek: VA? Such nice folks there. I wish I could've met more of them when I had the time. I'm sure they would've been a ball to go hog hunting with.
Dr. Elago: I'm… sorry you didn't get the chance, Sam.
Valusek: Such is life. Glad to have gotten to meet you, though, doctor…
Dr. Elago: Elago.
Valusek: E-la-go. Hm. Handsome name.
Dr. Elago: Thank you, Sam. If you don't mind. I have some words here I'm gonna read off. I want you to just listen to them as they come by and tell me how they affect your mood when I'm done. One of the potential side effects of the treatment is a level of heightened emotional volatility and sensitivity to vocal stimulation. It has to do with how it affects brain chemistry and neuron communication. We need to rule that out as a serious symptom before it potentially impairs you.
Valusek: I don't know what half that means, but you're the doctor. Go ahead.
Dr. Elago: Great. Starting.
Dr. Elago: West. Mississippi. Polk. Drive. Caliber. Acquisition. Return. Isolation. Magnolia. Face. Contempt. Ford. Seek. Adjustment. Superior. Illusion.
[There is a three-minute period of silence as Mr. Valusek can be heard taking a long drag of his cigarette.]
Valusek: What's that… word. It’s on the tip of my tongue. When you think of old times and it makes your belly turn in knots.
Dr. Elago: Nostalgia?
Valusek: Hmmm, close, but I feel there's something else. Maybe something I heard abroad back in the day? I don't know. It just doesn't fit.
Dr. Elago: Are you saying you remember something?
Valusek: [humming] Not my memory. I've seen mine so often. Someone else's… Maybe I read it in a book or saw it on a show… or the news.
Dr. Elago: Could you describe this memory?
Valusek: It's spotty. Full o' holes in all the wrong spots. There's a drive, down from Ohio. Lotta anger. Lotta sorrow. Lotta reminiscing.
Dr. Elago: Did the car stop anywhere?
Valusek: There's flashes. Food, gas, people; but just fleeting periphery to the steering wheel and thinking.
Dr. Elago: What was being thought about?
Valusek: … Was anyone in your family in the military Elago?
Dr. Elago: No but I have close friends who were. We speak often of those times.
Valusek: Have any of them ever talked about what it’s like the first stretch after you're out?
Dr. Elago: Can't say they have, no.
Valusek: It's… painful, in a lot of ways. You spend so many years getting so used to a certain way of things. Ways of talking, sleeping, keeping look out for the enemy and your bunk mates, and of course you have all these skills they teach you. How to shoot, how to properly wrap your equipment so it doesn’t eat away at your joints, how to cook your pig slop with these implements so you don't give away your position, how to listen for the sounds of footsteps over heavy rainfall, on and on and on. And then they shove you out in the cold. Put you on the street with a pension and a little letter of recognition and the last thing it feels they tell you is "get to work."
Valusek: Suddenly it’s all different. Suddenly the ground's out from under ya and you got to learn to find your footing again.
Dr. Elago: Is it like that for all of them?
Valusek: Some, like me, have it easier. Maybe it's brain chemistry or something, but it’s just easier. Some, never really adjust. They get stuck in that military way of thinking. Of danger and worry. It’s hard for them to slow down and to relax. Then they start to fixate. They start to convince themselves it's some failing on their part. Look for ways to fix it. For something to fight against. They almost never win out. Not like that.
Dr. Elago: I'm sorry Sam. It must have been hard.
Valusek: I didn't have it as bad as others. As bad as this guy did. I wish I could've been there for him. I've met a lot of other vets. Each of them struggles in their own ways. All of them are just full to burst with feelings they need someone to hear.
Dr. Elago: What else do you remember?
Valusek: I remember a little home in the prairie. It was quiet, dusty, and had holes in the ceiling with buckets beneath them. Some time passed there. Maybe days or weeks, hard to tell. Lot of time stripping, inspecting, cleaning, firing. Over and over and over. A thousand, two thousand shots, more than I could count. Never improving, enough.
Dr. Elago: How did it end?
[There is a moment of silence. Mr. Valusek can be heard putting out his cigarette into an ash tray.]
Valusek: Just another shot.
<End Log>