SCP-1112

Shadow Play

Special Containment Procedures

SCP-1112 is to be locked in Containment Cell 1112 at all times. Permission to study SCP-1112 must go through Dr. ██████. As items are fragile, personnel are advised to handle objects with care. No further precautions are necessary.

Description

SCP-1112 is the collective designation for four (4) Han Dynasty-era Chinese shadow puppets dated circa ███ CE. The items are cut from painted leather and stand 30 centimeters (12 in.) tall, typical of the era’s design. Wooden sticks fastened to the joints animate the figures. When not operated, the objects do not exhibit any abnormal properties.

SCP-1112's perceptual effects manifest when the objects are animated between a light source and translucent screen by one or more individuals, as in traditional shadow plays. All members of the play’s audience will perceive individual figures as the silhouettes of deceased, estranged or otherwise unattainable persons in their lives. The silhouette figures 'perform' scenes from their lives that either correspond to a subject's memories or are speculative and metaphorical in nature. No commonalities have been observed across all plays, except that they only include the deceased person(s) as the subject of the scene. Only the silhouettes are visible and will often interact with invisible characters and props (see Experiment Log 1112-1 for documented scenes).

Each figure is archetypal in design and symbolizes a category of interpersonal relationship, such as parental, familial or romantic bonds. The subject perceives each figure as an unattainable person with whom they shared that particular connection. Where no persons in the subject’s life correspond to a figure, the puppet is non-anomalous. Close observation of the silhouettes by subjects have revealed they behave as the real individuals in all aspects, even mirroring nervous tics and gesticulations only the viewer would have been privy to. The silhouettes move with a fluidity and precision that would be impossible with ordinary shadow puppets. The figures, however, do not vocalize.

Note that male figures can be observed as female silhouettes, and vice versa. The list of SCP-1112 items currently includes:

SCP-1112-1: A concubine figure in a traditional gown. Often observed as the individual's dead lover, ex-wife, old flame, or an object of unrequited affection.

SCP-1112-2: An Emperor figure wearing battle armor and brandishing a sword. Observed as the subject’s dead/estranged father or father figure.

SCP-1112-3: An Empress figure in royal wear. Observed as the subject's dead/estranged mother or mother figure.

SCP-1112-4: An ornately adorned ascetic figure with a demonic visage. Observed as a person that has inflicted physical and/or psychological trauma on the subject.

Although there have been no recorded effects of memetic compulsion to animate the items, individuals that do so (hereby referred to as users) become silent until the current ‘play’ is concluded. Looking behind the screen reveals no cause of the figure’s perceptual effects; the users simply operate the puppets according to their desires and ability but are unresponsive to external stimuli. As long as the figures are being moved behind the screen, SCP-1112's effects will manifest. When the user ceases operating the figures, all scenes will conclude together, however varied in nature.

The play users perform is never seen by the audience and has no bearing on the subject matter perceived. The nature and content of the performances is tailored specifically to individual members of the audience, even if other persons are present in room. Content of scenes tends to vary wildly depending on the figures used, the status of the subject’s relationship with the perceived persons, and other psychological predilections. Due to the intimate and emotional subject matter of the performances, understanding the context of documented scenes is dependent on the subject’s interpretation of what are often private, inscrutable, and disturbing revelations into their loved one’s lives.

Recorded plays with only one figure have included scenes depicting the person’s final hours in real time, birth, childhood, traumatic experiences, everyday life, personal triumphs and more esoteric scenes that could not possibly have occurred, but are inferred to be symbolic representations of some aspect of the late person's life. Plays that have included multiple figures have deviated wildly in content, such as the figures holding a roundtable discussion on their opinion of the subject (inferred due to lack of vocalizations), to [DATA EXPUNGED].

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Experiment Log 1112-1

Experiment 1112-001:
Subject: D-12344, middle-aged male with deceased mother
Figures: 1112-2
Reported Description: Subject became increasingly agitated over the duration of the play, and became hostile when questioned by Dr. ██████. Subject was sedated and forcibly contained in a psychiatric holding cell until Dr. ██████ explained the nature of SCP-1112 and was able to coax D-12344 into cooperating. Subject reportedly witnessed a silhouette of his late mother violently assaulted by an invisible assailant for three minutes and thirty four seconds. Scene matched the memory subject had of an identical assault by his mother's then-partner, a ██████ ██████ of Wichita, Kansas. Foundation Agents were able to procure appropriate records from the WPD and found a domestic assault charge from ██/██/████. Attached police report confirmed the sequence of events.

We've established the veracity of the scenes SCP-1112 presents to us, so we know it is either capable of limited omniscience in regards to what it 'performs' for its viewers or that it somehow dredges up old memories. Research is ongoing - Dr. ██████

Experiment 1112-003
Subject: D-13996, middle-aged male with deceased parents
Figures: 1112-2 and 1112-3
Reported Description: Subject described having observed the silhouettes of his mother and father ballroom dancing for nine minutes and fourteen seconds. D-13996 was unaware of the scene ever occurring, and stressed their marriage was generally untroubled. Whether the play event was a re-enactment of a real life occurrence or a metaphorical interpretation of a relationship on the part of the item is as of yet undetermined.

Experiment 1112-013
Subject: D-19564, late-20s female with deceased parents and ex-husband
Figures: 1112-1, -2, and -3
Reported Description: Subject reported to have observed younger silhouettes of mother and father engaged in conversation with ex-husband. At approximately the four minute mark, the ex-husband reportedly placed his arm around the mother's waist, provoking a physical altercation between the two males. Subject's father was apparently knocked unconscious. Play ended on shot of ex-husband and mother in physical embrace. Subject became flustered while recounting the event. Placed in holding cell until conditions improve.

We don't know if the items are deliberately fabricating psychologically harmful content, or if it is simulating some of its subject matter based on real, unquantifiable variables. We just don't know. - Dr. ██████

Experiment 1112-030
Subject: D-13961, middle-aged male with a deceased mother
Figures: 1112-3
Reported Description: Subject observed the silhouette of his mother methodically dismembering itself over the span of an hour. Figure began with rear, progressed to the thighs, stomach, backside, and was amputating its left arm before D-13961 became hostile and testing was halted. The figure appeared to be unaffected despite severe blood loss. D-13961 became extremely unnerved as scene progressed and was placed in a holding cell for the remainder of the day. In a follow-up interview, D-13961 explained his mother had struggled with body dysmorphic disorder. Subject confirmed she had recently expired of natural causes.

Even the most bizarre scenes have some basis in reality. — Dr. ██████

Experiment 1112-032
Subject: D-18431, teenaged male incarcerated for murder
Figures: 1112-4 and 1112-1
Reported Description: 1112-4 reportedly manifested as [REDACTED]. 1112-4 proceeded to 1112-1 huddled on the far side of the screen and [DATA EXPUNGED]. Testing halted when subject broke restraints and assaulted user. Terminated ahead of schedule. First documented instance of a prop item materializing on screen. 1112-4 noted to have felt slightly warm to touch for next hour.