SCP-1409
The Whalesong Beacon
Spectrogram of vocalisations recorded in SCP-1409-1.
Special Containment Procedures
All recording devices containing copies of SCP-1409 are held in a secure storage compartment at Storage Site-07 when not used for testing purposes. Permission to use SCP-1409 for testing purposes must be requested from the current Level-2 staff member responsible for supervision of SCP-1409. Agents and researchers assigned to SCP-1409 are required to possess a valid form of Open Water Diving certification.
During testing, any device being used to play SCP-1409 must be contained in a soundproofed room, and no devices capable of recording sounds are to be allowed in the room save for the device being used to play SCP-1409. Staff are not allowed to enter any area in which SCP-1409 is being played unless they are wearing noise-cancelling headphones.
Individuals affected by SCP-1409 are to be detained immediately. Subjects affiliated with the Foundation are to be held in custody in standard containment cells for valuable non-anomalous human beings. Minimal possible force is to be used to prevent escape attempts. Individuals exposed to SCP-1409 not otherwise of interest to the Foundation who do not possess any diving ability may be terminated.
At the first possible opportunity, SCP-1409-affected individuals with a direct connection to the Foundation are to be transported to Point 1409-Alpha. Individuals are to be assisted in diving to Point-1409-Alpha by no less than 2 divers in possession of a valid civilian Master Scuba Diver qualification, or equivalent. Foundation staff who have been affected by SCP-1409 and have followed this protocol are to be placed under psychiatric observation before they may be returned to duty.
Point 1409-Alpha is monitored by a Foundation-owned vessel staffed by members of Mobile Task Force Gamma-6 ("Deep Feeders"). Any vessels approaching Point 1409-Alpha are to be monitored and their crews apprehended if they show signs of being affected by SCP-1409, or attempt to access Point 1409-Alpha directly. Any persons found to have been affected by SCP-1409 are to be taken into custody.
Description
SCP-1409 is a series of 4 recordings, made by hydrophones located in the southern Atlantic Ocean. They are simultaneous recordings of a single set of vocalisations, made by a male Humpback Whale (Megaptera novaeangliae). The vocalisations last for 19 minutes and 34 seconds, and have been determined by testing to be the active part of the recording.
Individuals who listen to the vocalisations report that they hear a human voice singing in an unknown language in place of the actual content of the recording. While the meaning of the song cannot be made out, each listener believes that the voice is directly addressing them, and some assert that the singer sounds ‘sad’ or ‘lonely’. Listeners are also unable to determine the gender of the singer.
If an individual listens to SCP-1409 for a certain period of time, the primary property of SCP-1409 comes into effect. Initially, listeners begin to identify strongly with the ‘singer’ of SCP-1409, and show a marked and unusual ability to remember the song. Affected individuals will not, however, be able to recreate the song themselves, claiming any attempt to do so, or even to hum the tune, sounds ‘wrong’. The amount of time spent listening to SCP-1409 before it has an effect on the listener appears to vary depending on the individual and the section of the recording in question.
Over a length of time, which varies significantly between individuals, affected subjects will begin to experience a strong desire to travel to Point 1409-Alpha. Point 1409-Alpha is an area comprising approximately 40 cubic metres of water, located roughly 20 metres below the surface of the water in the Atlantic Ocean, at ██°██’██” West , ██°██’██” North. Examination of records kept by [DATA EXPUNGED], the research institute responsible for the maintenance of the hydrophones which made the recording, indicate that this location was the origin point of SCP-1409, and that shortly after it was recorded, an unusual convergence of aquatic wildlife was noted at the location.
Individuals affected by SCP-1409 will attempt to reach Point 1409-Alpha by any means available to them, although most are reluctant to resort to acts they personally find immoral or distasteful. In cases where no adequate transportation is available, subjects will attempt to reach a coastline and swim towards Point 1409-Alpha, invariably resulting in exhaustion and drowning. It is not known how affected subjects are able to locate Point 1409-Alpha, but subjects report they are able to sense whether they are moving towards it or not. Amnestics have no effect on this compulsion.
If a subject affected by SCP-1409 successfully reaches Point 1409-Alpha, they invariably experience shock and feelings of betrayal, claiming that they were led to believe there was a person or object at SCP-1409 of great value, although they cannot explain the precise nature of the promised object. Subjects express distrust or hatred of the singer in the SCP-1409 recording, and some experience depression. However, after this point the direct effect of SCP-1409 on the subject apparently ceases.
SCP-1409 is able to affect individuals who are aware of its properties, and individuals who have previously been exposed and have successfully reached Point 1409-Alpha. Such individuals maintain either they, or previous SCP-1409 subjects, failed to find the object of value at Point 1409-Alpha due to a lack of effort or mistake on their part.
Addendum 1409-1 On ██/██/████, a small research vessel operating in the Atlantic was found abandoned and severely damaged, apparently by a storm. Evidence found aboard the vessel indicates that a whale song with similar properties to the SCP-1409 was recorded by the vessel, although damage to monitoring equipment incurred during the storm has rendered the recording unintelligible. The events that occurred following the recording are unknown, though it is believed all on board perished attempting to reach the origin point, leaving the boat unattended during a storm.
As a result of this incident, it is presently hypothesized that SCP-1409's properties stem from the anomalous nature of the whale that originally made the vocalisations, rather than the vocalisations themselves. Although this is not currently confirmed, Agents are advised to monitor unusual hydrophone recordings made in the Atlantic Ocean within 3000km of Point 1409-Alpha. Mobile Task Force Theta-5 ("The Bigger Boat") have been informed of the possibility of such a whale existing and tasked with locating it should another SCP-1409 event occur. The theoretical humpback whale which created SCP-1409 is designated SCP-1409-A for provisional purposes.