Plilt & DrGrimoire
The yaka didn't always have silver fur.
Here's my Wanderer's Library Authorpage!
— Plilt
Plilt did most of the hard work on this, but ants are really, really cool and if this gets more than 25 upvotes I'm getting one tattooed on my body.
If you like this, you'd probably also like SCP 8352: Little Havana Syndrome!
— DrGrimoire
Item #: SCP-9663
Object Class: Euclid
Special Containment Procedures: A 1-kilometer radius containment zone around SCP-9663 is to be cordoned off behind a heavy-duty barbed wire fence. A single gate to this fence is to be constructed, with a gatehouse staffed by six rangers, hired by Foundation assets within South African National Parks (SANParks) as Level 0 personnel and informed that the fence protects a scientifically valuable but potentially invasive tree population. Every day, the entire perimeter of the fence is to be inspected for damage, and repairs are to be made as needed. The stationed rangers are also to monitor any new growth of SCP-9663 stems, and prune growth outside of the original extent of the anomaly.
Any individuals found within the containment zone without authorization are to be amnesticized and returned to the entrance of South Africa's Kruger National Park. Any rangers that see SCP-9663 endemics will be interviewed and amnesticized if necessary.
A segment of SCP-9663.
Description: SCP-9663 is an anomalous Vachellia erioloba (camelthorn tree), located within South Africa's Kruger National Park. Unlike other instances of this species, the anomaly takes the form of a clonal colony, and forms a single multi-stem tree which covers an area of at least 6.2 hectares within the park, with the appearance of a dense wood of unique individual trees.
SCP-9663's roots are capable of breaching into other worlds through an unknown mechanism. As such, the full size of the anomaly is unknown, though the earliest possible origin for the camelthorn acacia and the observed growth rate indicate a maximum size of 10,000 km2. Some sections of the colony may have been separated from the main body, making it impossible to determine its full extent. Only a small fraction of the worlds the anomaly extends to are known to the Foundation, and much of this information has been gathered from interrogations and intercepted communications of the Foundation's enemies.
SCP-9663 domatia on fresh twig, not yet colonized by SCP-9663-1.
As with other specimens of the camelthorn acacia, SCP-9663 produces swollen-thorn domatia to house mutualistic ant colonies, collectively classified as SCP-9663-1. Unlike other colonies of their species, SCP-9663-1 colonies not only defend SCP-9663 against herbivores, but also attack competing plants, pollinate the individual trees which comprise the anomaly, and travel far from the tree to hunt for prey.
All known SCP-9663-1 colonies display two properties not commonly found in ants associated with plants. Firstly, they are all supercolonies; in over two hundred hours of exploration into SCP-9663, ants of the same species have never been observed to fight each other. Different SCP-9663-1 species have been observed on rare occasions to go to war over resources, particularly on worlds with unusually resource-poor conditions, but such interactions are rare. SCP-9663 appears to have many different niches for ant species, limiting competition between them.
Secondly, all SCP-9663-1 instances make extensive use of tunnels that follow alongside the path of SCP-9663's roots, even otherwise arboreal species. These tunnels are capable of breaching into other worlds just as the roots of SCP-9663 are. It is unknown if this is a property of SCP-9663 or SCP-9663-1. Aside from these two properties, SCP-9663-1 species have not been observed to have any other unusual traits, and under laboratory conditions no SCP-9663-1 instances have been observed to construct such tunnels.
In addition to ants, many myrmecophiles are only found associated with SCP-9663 and use the tunnels to pass between worlds. Each group of species observed has been given a subcategorization under SCP-9663, categorized in Addendum 9663-2. The most commonly observed groups are mites, beetles, and threadsnakes. However, these myrmecophiles are extremely taxonomically diverse, including two species of bird, several species of killifish, an entirely endemic genus of spiders, and many extrauniversal taxa not similar to any Earthly form of life. None of these myrmecophiles have any documented anomalous traits.
The age of SCP-9663 is not known with certainty. No preserved remains of the trees or any associated organisms have been located, so radiometric dating is not possible. Rock art, dated to the 1st millenium CE and attributed to the San people, has been found in the area, including paintings depicting black clouds emerging from the trees to envelop humanoid figures holding axes, potentially representing instances of ant swarms attacking attempted tree fellers. Other paintings have been found with depictions of creatures unlike those found in any other San art, including six- and ten-limbed animals, suggesting that the San may have encountered life from other worlds which traveled through the anomaly.
The oldest historical records of the anomaly come from 1867 and were written by the Dutch botanist Ruud Abels. Abels noted the size and exact position of the anomaly, but did not realize its true nature and believed it to be nothing but an unusually dense grove of acacia. As far as the Foundation has been able to determine, no other entities or organizations have determined the true nature of the anomaly.
Initial Discovery: SCP-9663 first came to the Foundation's attention in 2011, following reports of impossibly-large swarms of ants attacking safari goers in Kruger National Park. Interviews with the guides and tourists indicated that the attacks began following an accident in which a safari jeep collided with a camelthorn tree (now identified as a part of the anomaly), felling it. According to all reports, within a few minutes of the tree's felling, large numbers of winged ants began swarming the area, biting and stinging all present. The group was able to escape by running approximately half a mile away from the anomaly, a distance at which the attacks ceased.
Initial surveys of the site established the presence of several species of ants undescribed by science, all of which were found to be traveling using tunnels constructed around and within the root system of the tree. The felled tree itself was found to have numerous swollen-thorn domatia, inhabited by three distinct undescribed species of ants. The site was quarantined and all non-Foundation parties amnesticized, and investigation of the anomaly commenced shortly thereafter.
This preliminary investigation revealed the existence of extensive tunnel systems alongside the anomaly's roots, with an average diameter of 22 cm. Initial boroscopy was unable to determine the extent of the tunnels, but did confirm the presence of anomalous mycorrhizal symbionts among the tree roots. A research team was dispatched to investigate further.
Addendum 9663-1: Structure
Currently mapped higher-order structure of SCP-9663. Note that <1% of known tunnels have been explored. Suffices and prefixes are omitted from labels.
SCP-9663 forms a higher-dimensional structure through its breaches into numerous other dimensions, exoplanets, and branes, alongside more esoteric forms of alternate realities, all collectively referred to as "worlds". Some of these worlds were previously known to the Foundation or other Groups of Interest (GoIs), while others were only identified during exploration of the anomaly; nonetheless, the connection to numerous known alternate worlds obviated their classification as a part of SCP-9663.
Connections between component worlds are mediated by the roots of SCP-9663, with higher-density clusters of roots developing around worlds with high concentrations of natural resources, connecting them to a greater number of other worlds. This is theorized to be an emergent structure of the anomaly, rather than an anomalous characteristic, as similar patterns have been observed in non-anomalous colonial organisms such as slime molds. Earth, despite being the presumed origin of the anomaly, has a relatively low number of connections when compared to other discovered worlds, suggesting that the anomaly is substantially more widespread elsewhere.
While conditions on worlds with SCP-9663 instances vary dramatically, no world has yet been found which does not meet the following criteria:
- Atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration between 100 and 1000 parts per million (ppm).
- Atmospheric nitrogen (N2) concentration between 67% and 83%.
- Atmospheric oxygen (O2) concentration between 10% and 30%.
- Annual rainfall between 150 and 1000 mm/year-equivalent.
- Average temperature between 9 °C and 22 °C.
- Gravity between .5 and 1.5 g (4.9 and 14.7 m/s2).
- Day length of between 6 and 36 hours.
Addendum 9663-2: Ecology
The ecological community associated with SCP-9663 is characterized by high endemicism, widespread fossorial adaptations, and multiple coexisting biota. While the section of the anomaly on any given world is mostly inhabited by indigenous species, an average of 30% of lifeforms do not originate from the world in question. On Earth, this percentage is smaller, at 15%; this is likely due to the anomaly originating from Earth.
Most species endemic to SCP-9663 are widely distributed across the multi-world structure of anomaly (see attached logs at the end of this addendum). There are few geographic barriers to migration and the climate is similar across all of the Wood. However, there are some exceptions. For example, annual killifish of the genus Nothobranchius (SCP-9663-2) are adapted to heavy seasonal monsoon cycles. During most of the year, their eggs are desiccated but hatch soon after temporary pools form following the rains. Floods have washed their eggs through the ant tunnels and spread them to other worlds, but many of the worlds connected to Earth through SCP-9663 do not have the same monsoon cycle as Kruger National Park. These worlds have acted as a barrier to their expansion, even to worlds with the appropriate seasonal cycles. The patterns of distribution of the SCP-9663-2 as well as certain other endemic species have allowed Foundation biogeographers to more accurately map out SCP-9663 than if the only sources of information were boroscope and snakebot logs.
Despite the presence of many non-native species, invasive events that can be attributed to SCP-9663 are few. SCP-████ and SCP-████ may be invasives that traveled to Earth using the anomaly, and many species have colonized W-EL-5A68T-SH/F/FDGH by traveling through the anomaly's tunnel system. However, in general the ability to disperse through SCP-9663 seems to make species poorer competitors. Foundation ecologists hypothesize that this is because of the well-known trade-off between generalist and specialist species. Species that range throughout much of the anomaly are hypergeneralists. They must be able to adapt to dramatically changing diel patterns, atmospheric compositions, microbiomes, and environmental toxins, among other factors. Ecological modeling indicates that single isolated populations of SCP-9663 endemics, with no outside immigration and an inability to access resources from other worlds, would quickly go extinct. In comparison, even generalists that are restricted to one world are specialized for that world.
Partial Log of Discovered Species:
- SCP-9663-1-7: Pollinator Ant
- SCP-9663-1-9: Camelthorn Harvester Ant
- SCP-9663-1-15: Camelthorn Driver Ant
- SCP-9663-1-27: Lily Ant
- SCP-9663-2: Annual Killifish
- SCP-9663-3: Extremophile Mycorrhizal Symbionts
- SCP-9663-5-1: Blood Lily
- SCP-9663-6-2: Sheengrass
- SCP-9663-12-2: Green-Winged Bee Eater
- SCP-9663-18-1: Red-Sided Batwing
- SCP-9663-42-1: Golden-Throated Tunneler
Pollinator ants gathering nectar.
Common Name: Pollinator ant
Scientific Name: Crematogaster anthophilus
World of Origin: Earth
Notes: Feeds on flower petals, nectar, and pollen, the latter of which tends to stick to it and be transferred to other flowers. Main pollinator of SCP-9663 flowers, but often found on other species. Appears to require a wide range of species for optimal nutrition and so is highly mobile, moving between worlds as well as plants. This ensures high genetic connectivity for endemic plants.
Common Name: Camelthorn harvester ant
Scientific Name: Messor vachelliaphilus
World of Origin: Earth
Notes: Feeds almost entirely on camelthorn seeds. Nests harvest seeds from adjacent worlds, dispersing seeds between worlds. Also primary dispersal agent for other plant species of SCP-9663. Sister species to M. capensis.
Common Name: Camelthorn driver ant
Scientific Name: Myrmecsilva melanocephalus
World of Origin: Ravelwoods
Notes: Initially misidentified as a member of Dorylus. Later investigation indicated origin world is the Ravelwoods. Exceptionally large, with workers typically 5-8 cm in length. Has book lungs, like all Ravelwoods ants. Does not make use of swollen-thorn domatia but has subterranean nests. Tends to swarm larger herbivores that disturb their mounds.
Common Name: Lily ant
Scientific Name: Myrmecsilva liliumphilus
World of Origin: Ravelwoods
Notes: Smaller than related species. Enlarged jaws, with prominent stingers. Close mutualistic relationship with blood lily—clears open areas of competing plants and aggressively attacks animal life. Does not appear capable of distinguishing camelthorn driver ants from other members of the colony and will allow them to carry off entire broods as well as the queen.
Currently unnamed killifish species first located on Hethar.
Common Name: Annual killifish
Scientific Name: Nothobranchius sp.
World of Origin: Earth
Notes: Believed to be descended from N. orthonotus. Distributed widely across most worlds surveyed. Genetic testing indicates multiple speciation events over the past five thousand years, likely due to poor population connectivity and climatic variability. Species are visibly distinct, with different coloration in adult males. One of the best index species used to determine SCP-9663's higher-order structure.
Common Name: Extremophile mycorrhizal symbionts
Scientific Name: Gigaspora sp.
World of Origin: Earth Unknown
Notes: Several unique species of mycorrhizal fungus within the Gigaspora genus have been observed with substantially higher halide tolerance than Earth-native species, as well as unusually-high heat and cold tolerances. While provisionally classified as part of Biota Terra, recent genetic analysis indicates these species originated on worlds distant from Earth, with spores potentially being carried by ants through SCP-9663's root network. Reclassification under the new genus Pseudogigaspora is under consideration.
Common Name: Blood lily
Scientific Name: Pseudolilium formicaphilus
World of Origin: Ravelwoods
Notes: Has a symbiotic relationship with the lily ant. Grows poorly if not fertilized by the corpses of the species' prey. Bright orange flowers with scarlet speckles.
Common Name: Sheengrass
Scientific Name: Silvagramen iridescens
World of Origin: Ravelwoods
Notes: Mildly iridescent; can be distinguished from non-endemic relatives by silvery tint. Extremely tough and resistant to grazers, but the seeds are readily eaten by many granivores. Clumping habit. Common on slightly wetter worlds.
Common Name: Green-winged bee eater
Scientific Name: Merops viridoptera
World of Origin: Earth
Notes: Sister species of white-fronted bee-eater (Merops bullockoides). Reliant on cliff banks to nest, unlike SCP-9663-18-1. Less complex social structure and smaller colony size than other Merops species.
Common Name: Red-sided batwing
Scientific Name: Pseudochiroptera erythrolatus
World of Origin: W-TM-39T4R-S
Notes: Hexapodal, furred mammal-analogue believed to originate on extremely distal world from Earth. Middle two limbs modified into batlike wings also used for thermoregulation. Brightly colored. Feeds on insects. Fills same niche as green-winged bee-eater (SCP-9663-12-2); they are never found in the same world and act as a barrier to each other's colonization. Useful index species. Nests in burrows.
Common Name: Golden-throated tunneler
Scientific Name: Fossor flavigula
World of Origin: W-TM-39T4R-S
Notes: Hexapodal mammal-analogue. Elongated with a long, narrow muzzle. Patches of golden fur on throat used in breeding displays. Feeds on a variety of small vertebrate prey as well as ant larvae. Genetic analysis indicates distant relative of SCP-9663-18-1.
Exploration Logs:
Collapse Log
Exploration Video Log Transcript
Date: 5/3/2011
Subject: SCP-9663
Team Lead: Dr. Enzokuhle Dlamini
Team Members: Jacob Jacobs, Miané Young
Garter-model snakebot, without attached optical fiber.
Opening Note: Initial surveys of SCP-9663 did not find proof of non-Terran species, leading to uncertainty over its exact nature. An accelerated evolutionary effect similar to SCP-1585 was initially suspected. However, genetic analysis and dissections of the camelthorn driver ant revealed that it was not related to any known organism. Dr. Dlamini suspected an extrauniversal origin for the species and organized an unmanned expedition into the tunnels. This expedition was conducted using a Garter-model snakebot remote operated vehicle, originally used by MTF Zeta-9 (“Mole Rats”).
[BEGIN LOG]
Dlamini: Sound off.
Jacobs: Snakebot is ready to go.
Young: Sensor readings show no errors.
Dlamini: Good. Let's see what we're dealing with. Jacob, please have the snakebot enter the tunnel.
The snakebot begins to crawl into one of the larger tunnels. Communication is maintained by optical fiber. Inside, illuminated by LED, the tunnel is seen to be swarming with ants of various species. Camelthorn harvester ants and pollinator ants are both identified, as are Matabele ants, a species of specialist termite raiders widely distributed in Africa. Some small roots protrude into the tunnel. No other forms of life can be seen.
Young: I'm reading an increase in carbon dioxide levels, but it's slight. Could just be that we're in an ant tunnel.
Dlamini: It's likely. Keep an eye on the gravimeter just in case.
Several more minutes pass. The snakebot moves slowly through the ant tunnel, stopping for several minutes to observe an ant mimicking spider. After the spider enters a side tunnel, forward motion is resumed.
Young: There! Slight decrease in gravity. We are currently at 0.97 g.
Jacobs: No visual change—no portal or anything, and the soil looks similar to me. Dr. Dlamini?
Dr. Dlamini brings up the feed, rewinding thirty seconds.
Dlamini: There's nothing sudden, Jacob. But this soil looks redder than the soil from the initial footage. The transition may be gradual rather than sudden.
The snakebot continues traveling down the tunnel, gravity dropping gradually to 0.95 g_. Eventually, light is seen from the end of the tunnel. Three minutes later, the snakebot emerges into a grove of SCP-9663. The camera is initially obscured by iridescent grass, but Jacobs has the snakebot rear up for a better view of its surroundings._
The SCP-9663 grove is centered within a grassy glade. The grove is small enough that the other side is easily seen from the snakebot's current position. Several hundred meters from the grove is the treeline of a dense forest. The trees are exceptionally tall and have twisting branches and trunks. The herbaceous plants have colorful leaves and many species are iridescent.
Young: If only we'd been able to get one of the better models. We could be gathering samples right now.
Dlamini: Once they see this, they'll have to give us better equipment.
Jacobs continues to pilot the snakebot, recording footage of the plant life. Insects are numerous, resembling groups native to Earth but visually distinct from all Terran species. Young notes that the humidity is higher than in Kruger, while the temperature is lower. No signs of sapient life are observed.
The snakebot is piloted into a rearing position on the edge of the grove and the camera is panned to survey the landscape in more detail, with no obscuring vegetation. Later analysis of the footage gives estimates for tree height ranging from 200 to 350 meters. As the camera pans back over previously surveyed areas, slight changes in the forest are visible, but the exploration team does not notice them at the time.
Jacobs: Not seeing any bird life. Not even any of the bee-eaters so far, and we saw the green-wingeds entering some of the tunnels.
Dlamini: Odd. Perhaps the grove simply isn't very hospitable to them so there aren't very many. We're not receiving audio.
Jacobs directs the snakebot back into the interior of the grove, attempting to locate additional wildlife. Additional insects are found, as are two reptiles and various SCP-9663 endemics. Like the insects, the reptiles closely resemble known groups (agamids and geckos) but are visually distinct from all known Terran species.
After half an hour, a column of camelthorn driver ants is found hunting. At Dlamini's direction, Jacobs pilots the snakebot to a safe viewing distance and observes their behavior. Captured prey is swiftly dismembered, but rather than immediately returning all food to the nest a previously unknown caste of the species sprays the more brightly-colored insects with an unknown substance. Observation continues for an hour.
Three hours after mission start, the snakebot's battery reaches 20% and it begins to be piloted back to base.
Jacobs: This is taking too long.
Dlamini: There should be more than enough battery to retrieve the snakebot. And if not, we can use the optical fiber as a tether.
Jacobs: No, I mean it's taking longer than it should. I reached this side of the grove in two minutes after the last time I passed the tunnel entrance. It's taken five to return there.
Young: The gravimeter shows the same read-outs, and if space was warping it should be showing up on diagnostics.
Jacobs: Maybe that's not what's going on, but something is off here.
Dlamini: SCP-9663's grove on Earth is Euclidean. It's possible that wherever the snakebot went isn't. Try to pilot the probe back using what battery remains. We can attempt to determine what's going on after we have our probe back.
The probe is retrieved without incident. It takes three times as long to reach the tunnel entrance as it did to reach the grove's border, but does not take longer to return to Earth once the snakebot has entered the tunnel.
[END LOG]
Closing Note: SCP-9663 was redesignated a medium-priority subject for research. Dr. Dlamini's second request for a Hognose-model snakebot was denied, but the SCP-9663 research team was permitted to modify the snakebot with additional sensors, an aspirator with five sample capsules, and a power cable.
Analysis of video data indicates the world the snakebot traveled to may be the known parallel world W-L37RK ("the Ravelwoods"), an inherently anomalous forested reality only known through captured Serpent's Hand documents and SCP-1326.
Collapse LogCollapse Log
Exploration Video Log Transcript
Date: 5/11/2011
Subject: SCP-9663
Team Lead: Dr. Enzokuhle Dlamini
Team Members: Jacob Jacobs, Miané Young
Opening Note: Given the improvement in the snakebot's capabilities, a follow-up expedition to the same tunnel as before was organized.
[BEGIN LOG]
Dlamini: [tensely] Be careful going in. I'm worried about some of the peripherals we attached.
Jacobs: Will do.
Young: All sensor readings within expected values, and I'm receiving no errors.
Jacobs begins to pilot the snakebot into the tunnel. He has to proceed much more slowly to avoid catching the snakebot's protruding peripherals on the walls of the tunnel. Towards the end of the tunnel, Jacobs samples some of the soil from the tunnel wall. Later analysis shows it to be a nutrient-poor red soil, with a slightly higher than normal cobalt content.
After emerging, Jacobs once again has the snakebot rear up and pan to give a 360 degree view of its surroundings. The SCP-9663 grove is the same as during the last expedition, but the glade has significantly more exposed rocks and a small creek is running through it. The foliage of the forest is darker and appears to possess a different texture, but it is difficult to make out more detail given the camera's resolution.
Jacobs: What the fuck.
Young: Temperature and humidity are both way lower than they should be.
Dlamini: How low?
Young: 10 degrees.
Dlamini: It's like teleportation, but too much of the groundcover there is the same. Only the trees and the landscape changed…
Young: I'm getting weird readings off the compass. The magnetic field here is weak, and it's shifting constantly. The new gravimeter is showing changing values too. It's so minor you wouldn't be able to feel it, but it's there.
Jacobs begins surveying the grove of SCP-9663. In addition to the plant life not changing, the animal life is broadly similar. Several previously observed species are not observed, and new species are observed, but this is likely due to chance.
Jacobs: Dr. Dlamini, what do you want me to prioritize for sampling?
Dlamini: [quietly] Four capsules left… [normal volume] Try for as many different orders as you can. One of each. No ants. We need to get a better idea of what this world is really like. We can hardly rely on the suspect data we've got now.
Jacobs: Will do.
Jacobs maneuvers the snakebot to aspirate a nearby spider, then continues exploration. While the snakebot does not leave the vicinity of the tunnel, over the next several hours two other organisms are collected—a large caterpillar feeding on sheengrass and a beetle amongst the leaf litter. However, far more unsuccessful attempts at sampling are made. Most animal are highly evasive, easily escaping the snakebot's aspirator.
Jacobs: Sorry, Doctor. The machine's just not agile enough.
Dlamini: Not your fault, Jacobs. This model was never designed for what we're doing with it. It does seem that the fauna here is faster than on Earth, though. Have the snakebot go down a different tunnel. You might have more luck on another world.
Jacobs directs the snakebot into a somewhat smaller tunnel. Unlike in the tunnel between Earth and W-L37RK, a major change in soil color is visible after approximately three meters of travel. After an additional two meters of travel, small peripheral tunnel entrances along the sides and roof of the main tunnel become visible, with an average diameter of around four millimeters. Small black ants can be seen scurrying between these entrances.
Dlamini: Those look like Lassius ants. But you'd expect the camelthorn harvesters to drive them off…
Jacobs stops driving the snakebot forward.
Jacobs: Should I try and catch one, Doctor?
Dlamini: Best to hold off for now. We can get some on the way out, if we don't find anything more interesting. Keep going, please.
Jacobs resumes driving ahead. After another five meters of tunnel, an entrance appears, with a blue sky visible through it. The snakebot emerges through it, and Jacobs again pilots it to a rearing position, capturing a 360 degree panorama of the surroundings. The glade of camelthorn trees appears to be surrounded by a forest of deciduous trees, visually similar to oaks and maples. These trees appear to be in the process of unfurling new leaves for spring. Young notes that local gravity, temperature, and humidity are all substantially higher than in W-L37RK. World later designated W-EL-4H9PC-S.
Dlamini: It looks like springtime in Europe here. Either we're back on Earth, or this world is much more similar to ours than the last.
Young: Looking at the compass now, it looks like this world has a substantially weaker magnetic field than ours, Doctor. Gravity is at exactly 1 g, though, so I suppose it's possible that's just an effect of the anomaly.
Dlamini: Very strange. Jacob, let's survey the area. Young, let me know if anything changes on the sensors.
Jacobs steers the snakebot in a widening spiral around the tunnel, carefully avoiding any potential snags to the cables. Aside from SCP-9663, the flora present all appear to be non-anomalous species native to southern France. Initially, no non-insect animals are observed, however after roughly fifteen minutes a barn swallow flies overhead. It circles the snakebot several times before landing in front of it. A mouse wearing a rough-spun tunic and what appears to be a wooden helmet is visible on its back, sitting on what appears to be a tiny saddle. At its side is a sword crafted from a nail.
Jacobs: Woah. Doctor, take a look at this!
Dlamini: What is—huh. Well, we're certainly not on Earth. Jacobs, keep the camera fixed on it, and try and give it a bit of distance. I don't want to risk it swinging that nail at our new sensors.
Jacobs: Understood, doctor.
The mouse dismounts its steed and slowly approaches the snakebot, walking on two legs and holding the nail in its right forepaw. As it approaches, Jacobs slowly backs the snakebot away, maintaining a separation of roughly one meter. After a few minutes of this, the mouse turns and runs back toward its mount, taking off once again.
Dlamini: [muttering] If only we had a Hognose, we could've tried to capture that mouse. I wonder what it could've told us. [normal volume] Resume the search. Maybe we can find something else worth bringing back.
After an additional five hours of searching, the team captured a beetle, which was found to be genetically similar to Alphitobius laevigatus_, or the black fungus beetle. Following the collection of this specimen, the decision was made to collect a sample of the ants at the tunnel entrance and return. This was accomplished without incident. In later testing, it was discovered that this beetle was capable of basic problem-solving, roughly equivalent to the capabilities of a goat or sheep._
[END LOG]
Closing Note: Dr. Dlamini's third request for a Hognose-model snakebot was denied due to budgetary reasons.
Collapse LogCollapse Log
Exploration Video Log Transcript
Date: 6/26/2011
Subject: SCP-9663
Team Lead: Dr. Enzokuhle Dlamini
Team Members: Jacob Jacobs, Miané Young
Opening Note:
[BEGIN LOG]
Jacobs: All systems on my end are good.
Young: Same.
Dlamini: [drumming his fingers on the desk] Enter.
Jacobs pilots the snakebot into an unexplored tunnel. It is tighter than previous tunnels, and the snakebot's peripherals catch on the tunnel walls.
Jacobs: [wincing slightly] Miané, is the thermometer still working?
Young: … Looks to be.
Dlamini: Careful, Jacobs.
Jacobs: [quickly] Yes, doctor.
Jacobs continues maneuvering the snakebot, managing to avoid damaging it further, even as plastic and metal becomes increasingly common embedded into the walls of the tunnel.
Young: Carbon dioxide levels are spiking. 400 ppm… no, 450 ppm. Much higher concentration than an ant colony should produce. I'm also reading sulfur oxides. Air quality on the other side is very poor. If the scale went to 11, it would be that.
The snakebot emerges from the tunnel into an abandoned industrial area, stretching as far as the snakebot's camera can see. The bare concrete surfaces of decaying factories have been colonized by hardier lichens and mosses. Grass and wildflowers are beginning to grow from cracks in the asphalt. However, pollution is still extensive. Smog limits visibility to approximately three kilometers. Abundant scrap metal and plastic litters the ground.
Young: Gravity is 1.1 g.
Jacobs pans the camera, examining the snakebot's surroundings. Only three stems of SCP-9663 are present, growing from some of the larger gaps in the asphalt. They are thin and sickly, with yellowed leaves. Based off observed growth rates, they are likely no older than five years of age. Clumps of sheengrass and early secessional Terran wildflowers are scattered around the stems.
Dlamini: [muttering to himself] It wasn't evacuated in an orderly fashion. No blast craters or signs of burning, so war's unlikely. Could be disease. Or an anomaly? [louder] We'll need to put the snakebot through decontamination when it gets back. Take soil samples when convenient, Jacobs.
As Jacobs continues to pan the camera, an enormous tree of unknown species comes into view, approximately two kilometers away. Its upper branches reach into the cloud layer and the sky around it is clear of haze. Unknown flying organisms can be made out as faint specks.
Jacob zooms the camera, focusing on the tree. The flying organisms cannot be identified at this distance, but they display flocking behavior. The camera can make out individual tree leaves, but only barely; their shape cannot be resolved. The wind is blowing towards the southeast and in the wake of the tree the air is pure. Several rivers descend from top of the tree to the base, frequently breaking into waterfalls.
Young: I suppose that's what did this.
The camera pans over one of the buildings near the base of the tree. An indistinct symbol is visible, taking up one of the sides of the larger buildings. As Jacobs focuses the camera, it resolves into view. It is the snake tree symbol of the Serpent's Hand. For several seconds, the research tent is quiet.
Young: The Hand isn't supposed to be capable of something like this.
Dlamini: We don't know what happened here or if the Hand even did this. It's just… graffiti. Jacobs, head closer to the tree, we need the data.
Jacobs: [uncertainly] Yes, sir.
Jacobs pilots the snakebot towards the tree. Progress is slow, with the relatively flat terrain inhibiting movement. After approximately thirty minutes, several mostly skeletonized corpses are visible, partially trapped under concrete rebar and torn scrap metal. All are cybernetically augmented and are later identified as Overseers and Foremen of the Factory. Sheengrass tussocks grow around them, where the soil is bare.
Dlamini: Harvester ants got here quickly. Those look like older tussocks. Not much lichen on the rock or asphalt… probably still too much pollution. I'm surprised the Ravelwoods plants are handling it so well.
The snakebot makes its way towards the corpses and begins inspecting them.
Dlamini: Jacobs, don't. There's rebar there, the cables could catch.
Jacobs: Doctor, this could concern a GoI. Don't we have to?
Young: Yeah.
Dlamini: Jacobs, I'm in charge of this expedition. While I'll include this in our report to regional command, I deem investigating this an unacceptable hazard to our equipment, and it's irrelevant to our task of investigating SCP-9663's ecology. Please take a soil sample and then continue to move towards the tree. We can investigate this on a later expedition if we need to; they're not going anywhere.
Jacobs: [doubtful] Yes, doctor.
Jacobs zooms the camera and briefly scans over the corpses before taking a soil sample using the aspirator. Dlamini drums his fingers somewhat impatiently, but does not comment. After taking the soil sample, Jacobs resumes his path towards the tree.
Young: The air is purer here. Air pollution levels are dropping. [glances over at the video feed] Despite us being upwind of the tree. We're in band 8.
Dlamini: Interesting. That could be an anomalous effect, or just diffusion of the pure air near the tree.
After several hours, the snakebot is halfway to the tree. Increasing quantities of rubble and scrap make it difficult for the snakebot to maneuver safely. Additional soil samples are gathered, as is one water sample. All observed organisms are SCP-9663 endemics, aside from the tree and several species of ants. Despite the distance from the SCP-9663 stems, biodiversity is much higher near the tree. Its roots have exposed large areas of soil where sheengrass and small bushes grow and species such as golden-throated tunnelers and green-winged bee-eaters are observed. Flocks of the latter were the flying organisms previously observed on camera.
While trying to examine a killifish tentatively identified as belonging to a previously identified species, Jacobs accidentally catches the power cable on a protruding piece of rebar. As he realizes his mistake, the snakebot loses its balance and falls.
Dlamini: Jacob!
Jacobs: Fucking shit!
Young: We just got a power loss!
Jacobs regains control of the snakebot before it falls into a patch of mud. He maneuvers to a more stable location.
Dlamini: [quickly] Jacobs, check the optical fiber.
Jacobs: [checking] It's not at imminent risk. Miané, how am I on power?
Young: [after several seconds] You should have enough to get back. If you hurry.
Dlamini: Do so. We can't risk trying to retrieve using the optical fiber.
Over the next several hours, the team takes turns piloting the snakebot and manage to reach the entry tunnel. While the snakebot loses power before reaching Earth, the team is able to use a snake hook to retrieve the snakebot.
[END LOG]
Closing Note: World designated W-EL-5A68T-SH/F/FDGH. Analysis of the soil sample after the mission was over showed high concentrations of heavy metals, many times higher than safe levels. High levels of persistent organic pollutants were also present. At the time Dr. Dlamini filed his report, W-EL-5A68T-SH/F/FDGH was not flagged for follow-up expeditions regarding the Serpent's Hand's or Factory's presence.
Dr. Dlamini noted that Technician Jacobs was not at fault for the damage to the snakebot.
Collapse LogCollapse Log
Exploration Video Log Transcript
Date: 7/13/2011
Subject: SCP-9663
Team Lead: Dr. Enzokuhle Dlamini
Team Members: Jacob Jacobs, Miané Young
Opening Note: After replacing several circuit boards damaged by saltwater on W-EL-9TB30, the SCP-9663 research team attempted a survey of an unexplored tunnel located in W-EL-5A68T-SH/F/FDGH.
[BEGIN LOG]
Jacobs: Camera and servos are good.
Young: Sensors are all working perfectly. Even the new thermal imager.
Dlamini: Excellent. Jacobs, head in.
Jacobs pilots the snakebot into the tunnel leading to W-EL-5A68T-SH/F/FDGH. While at several points peripherals catch on the sides of the tunnel, the research team has ruggedized the snakebot over the past two months. No damage is inflicted upon the snakebot, though the team grimaces at several points. Upon arriving in W-EL-5A68T-SH/F/FDGH, Jacobs briefly rears up the snakebot to pan the camera.
Dlamini: Doing better than the last time. I see new growth.
Young: A bit warmer, too. Do you think it's summer, or do you think it's the smog in the upper atmosphere clearing?
Dlamini: We should be able to find out soon.
The snakebot is piloted into the unexplored tunnel. The soil gradually dries and becomes more reddish. No artificial materials are observed after the first hundred centimeters. Air pollution and carbon dioxide levels drop dramatically, with Young calling out lowered numbers approximately once a minute.
After ten minutes, the snakebot emerges into a grassland. The snakebot is on the edge of the SCP-9663 grove, and panning the camera back towards the grove indicates that it is one of the larger groves observed so far. Most of the grasses surrounding the grove are green, but some patches are reddish. Scattered trees are visible across the plains, with flowers in many colors. Panning the camera, golden-throated tunnelers and red-sided batwings are visible amongst the SCP-9663 grove, as well as several other species of batwing and a variety of bird-analogues.
In the distance are a herd of grazing animals. Zooming the camera reveals that they are black and white equinoid organisms, with six legs and four eyes.
Stormclouds are visible to the west. The sun is low in the sky; later spectral analysis indicates that the star is a blue giant. On the horizon is a gas giant with a prominent set of rings.
Young: Temperature is 30 degrees. Humidity is 84%. Virtually no air pollution. Air pressure is a bit on the low side, though. Either we're high elevation or this planet—
Jacob: I think it's a moon.
Young: —or this moon has a thinner atmosphere than Earth does. Gravity is the same as Earth's.
Dlamini: Something to check if we can ever get a weather balloon there. Jacobs, see if you can get any feathers from the other batwing species in the aspirator.
Jacobs moves the snakebot in a spiral around the exit point, aspirating several feathers as well as several small leaves and a soil sample. These are all kept in the same chamber. During this time, Jacobs records audiovisual data of different batwing species for later ethological analysis. The team discusses minor details regarding different species' behavior amongst themselves; for a complete transcript consult RAISA.
After completing the initial survey, Jacobs begins to pilot the snakebot out of the grove. Tall grass limits visibility, but the team is able to collect better footage of the equinoids and additional plant and insect-analogue samples.
Two hours and fifteen minutes after mission start, red fabric is briefly visible through the grass towards the southwest.
Jacobs: Thought I saw something. I'm going to try and climb to a better vantage point. Miané, can you rewind and try to figure out what that was?
Jacobs moves towards a nearby bush and starts piloting the snakebot up the trunk, careful to avoid looping the optical fiber or power cable over anything. Young reviews the footage.
Young: It looked almost like a sail.
Simplified model of vehicle. Platforms, bladders, and sails have been left out to better show gait pattern.
The snakebot reaches a meter above ground level. Jacobs pans the camera back towards the southwest, bringing what appears to be a vehicle made of a complex array of wooden rods, sails, and cloth bladders into view. The vehicle is approximately one hundred meters away and is roughly two dozen meters long and ten meters tall. The bladders alternately inflate and deflate, rapidly driving the vehicle's many legs over the terrain. Covered platforms are placed irregularly throughout the vehicle's structure. It is on a path approaching the snakebot.
Dlamini: Oh, this is amazing. [pauses] We can't approach too closely, but Young, can you try to boost the gain?
The vehicle comes to a stop as Jacobs zooms the camera in, about thirty meters away. A large spider drops from one platform near the front of the vehicle and begins inspecting the vehicle. Three hexapodal vulpinoids with reflective silver fur clamber out from a platform near the side and start harvesting the reddish grass and hunting golden-throated tunnelers. The four entities converse with each other. Later audio analysis indicates that the two species are speaking different languages, but do not appear to have any difficulties in understanding each other's speech.
Three minutes later, six smaller hexapodal vulpinoids leave the vehicle. Unlike the first three, these do not have reflective fur nor do their middle limbs end in hands, so they are believed to be a separate species. They begin running around the vehicle and playing with each other, occasionally drawing snarls from the first three vulpinoids when they interrupt the work.
One of the smaller vulpinoids approaches the bush the snakebot is on.
Jacobs: Doctor?
Dlamini: Keep still; this can't move fast enough to get away. Maybe it won't notice the probe.
After urinating on the bush, the vulpinoid spots the snakebot and begins sniffing it. The team waits to see if it leaves. It does not, jumping up to try and grab the snakebot with its teeth. While the first lunge misses, it comes dangerously close to biting down on the snakebot. The nearby sapients do not appear to notice.
Jacobs: Okay, we're going.
Jacobs drops the snakebot to the ground. While the impact jars the probe, it is still functional and the vulpinoid is startled. Jacobs begins piloting the snakebot back towards the grove.
Young: Why not head for the bush?
Jacobs: Because I'm worried it'll chew the cables.
Despite the team having previously improved the snakebot's speed, Jacobs is unable to move far enough away from the vulpinoid before it pounces. It grasps the snakebot in its jaws and begins shaking it. The camera's field of vision moves rapidly, rendering interpretation difficult.
Dlamini: Damn it!
Jacobs: [sighs] I'm going to start autoretrieval.
Young: Thermometer, humidimeter, and microphone are all throwing up error signals.
Jacobs activates the winch system and begins pulling the snakebot back by the power cable. However, retrieval speed is slower than expected, likely due to the vulpinoid bracing itself.
Jacobs: [resigned] I think it's playing tug-of-war.
Suddenly, the snakebot is dropped. The camera captures footage of the vulpinoid running back towards the vehicle before hitting the ground. The impact leaves the camera nonfunctional.
Young: And we just lost the aspirator.
Jacobs: Goddammit!
For several minutes, the team is silent. While no more data is being recorded from the probe, they do not turn off the audio recorder in the research tent.
Young: Doctor? How's our budget looking?
Dlamini: Bad. I'm sorry. The last upgrades… I've been paying out of pocket for some of the parts. We can probably get basic functionality back. And we can probably get a new camera and microphone. But the aspirator system…
Jacobs: Isn't the next requisition cycle coming up?
Dlamini: Yeah, but you know they're not giving us anything. We're technically researching a Euclid-class, but it's not really an active containment risk. No money for us. We're not working with a Keter-class, or something we can reverse engineer, or on something GoI-related… [trails off]
Dlamini: I know how to get us more funding.
[END LOG]
Closing Note: World designated W-TM-39T4R-S. Dr. Dlamini requested a Hognose-model snakebot for a fourth time, citing the clear Serpent's Hand presence and potential dramatic increase in their capabilities shown from Exploration Log 9663-7.
Collapse Log
On 7/15/2011, Commander John Mercer of MTF Tau-9 ("Bookworms") requested that testing be conducted on using SCP-786 in conjunction with SCP-9663 to insert teams of Tau-9 operatives into worlds with Serpent's Hand activity. This request was approved by O5-3. Given the sensitive nature of this testing, Dr. Dlamini and his team were reassigned to investigate other anomalies, with shifts in budgetary priorities being given as a cover story. Due to scheduling conflicts and other ongoing investigations, MTF Tau-9 was unable to begin testing until 6/15/2016.
Collapse Report
On 6/18/2016, Tau-9 operatives using a prototype Mamba-model snakebot confirmed that the world Dr. Dlamini described in Exploration Log 1 was in fact W-L37RK ("The Ravelwoods"). A five-member fireteam (Fireteam Gulliver) was assembled to act as a forward scouting party into this world, and were inserted by using SCP-786 to reduce their proportions to 1/12 scale, at which size they were able to proceed through the existing tunnel single-file. To reduce the risk of attack by the ants inhabiting the tunnel, the fireteam was equipped with gas masks and the entire tunnel system around the selected entrance flooded with chloropicrin and methyl bromide.
During their transit through the tunnel, the team voiced concern that not all of the ants had died from the fumigation, specifically mentioning that the deeper into the tunnel they passed, the greater the number of ants seemed unaffected. Earth-side Tau-9 control determined that this was likely due to a lack of airflow through the tunnel, and installed a fan over the tunnel entrance to spread the fumigant deeper; they also increased the pesticide concentration. When this still failed to achieve the desired results, one of the supervising researchers suggested pumping the gas through SCP-786 to shrink the pesticide molecules, as smaller gasses disperse faster. On-site command approved this proposal, and the anomaly was placed over the fan at the tunnel entrance.
At the same time, Fireteam Gulliver emerged from the tunnel and encountered specimens of several previously-unknown ant phenotypes. These specimens were universally hostile towards the fireteam, and engaged both by spraying concentrated formic acid in a manner similar to Formica archboldi, and by attempting to bite fireteam members with their mandibles. The fireteam requested backup from the Earth-side team, who removed the fan and replaced the funnel over the entrance, with the intent being to send additional Tau-9 members through to act as fire support.
Before this was possible, numerous SCP-9663-1-15 and -27 instances, no longer blocked by the fan's grate, were able to travel through SCP-786, scaling themselves up by a factor of 12 in the process, and overrunning the Earth-side camp. While these instances eventually expired due to overheating and hypoxia, they remained a threat for roughly 35 minutes after enlargement. Of the eight personnel present at the camp at the time of the incursion, four were killed by the ants within the first minute.
The remaining four personnel evacuated to their nearby vehicles, which, as standard for MTF vehicles, were equipped with armor thick enough to hold the ants off indefinitely. However, in the panic this fact was forgotten, and rather than hunker down and wait for reinforcements from Foundation command, Lt. Lucius Jeffries made the decision to attempt to remove SCP-786 from the tunnel mouth and attempt to stem the tide. By this time, at least 600 enlarged instances of SCP-9663-1-15 and -27 are believed to have been present in the vicinity, along with tens of thousands of non-enlarged instances from nearby tunnels. Arming himself with incendiary grenades, spare canisters of pesticide, and a combat knife, Lt. Jeffries managed to fight his way to the entrance, where he dislodged SCP-786 from the entrance, stopping the flow of enlarged ants through the tunnel and drawing the focus of the swarm to himself.
Unfortunately, by dislodging the anomaly he allowed instances already present to travel through it again. Due to the sheer number of swarming ants in the area, thousands of individual, previously normal-sized instances became enlarged, and at least six previously-enlarged SCP-9663-1-27 instances increased their scale by another factor of 12, reaching body lengths of up to 5 meters. At this size, they presented a substantial threat to the three MTF members still inside of the vehicles. Lt. Jeffries successfully killed two of these enlarged instances with incendiary grenades before succumbing to his wounds, at which point the swarm's attention was drawn to the three remaining MTF members. While Lt. Jeffries had been attempting to stem the tide, these operatives had contacted their superiors in Tau-9, who requested close air support to bombard the swarmed area; this request was denied due to the risk of damaging SCP-9663 and/or SCP-786.
After approximately 4.5 hours, the swarm exhausted itself. Due to their vastly increased metabolic needs and size, the double-enlarged instances collapsed from apparent heat exhaustion before reaching the vehicles, and all three MTF members were recovered with only minor physical injuries. Lt. Jeffries was posthumously awarded the Foundation Cross for exceptional bravery in the line of duty. SCP-786 was recovered and returned to containment at Site 19. The radio used to communicate with Fireteam Gulliver, forgotten by the Earth-side team during the incursion, was badly damaged, but recovered black-box records indicated that the fireteam managed to fight the swarm for at least fifteen minutes, losing at least two members, before retreating into the Ravelwoods; they are considered Missing In Action with a low likelihood of survival.
Collapse Report
Following this incident, MTF Tau-9 ceased all investigation into using SCP-9663 as a method of investigating Serpent's Hand activity across alternate worlds. Exploration of W-L37RK using Mamba-model snakebots is ongoing, with the goal being the recovery of the three MIA Tau-9 operatives.