SCP-1536
Doppelgängers
SCP-1536-1 in inactive state following Test 1536-20
Special Containment Procedures
Inactive SCP-1536 instances should be contained in standard locked storage boxes in Sector 37 of Site 19. Instances of SCP-1536 may only be activated for testing purposes; active state instances of SCP-1536 may be stored in containment quarters appropriate to their current form. Once testing is completed, instances of SCP-1536 must be returned to inactive state for long-term storage.
Update: As of ██/██/20██ (Incident 1536-γ), all testing of SCP-1536 is to be suspended until further notice, and no new objects shall be exposed to SCP-1536. Identifying and containing additional instances, especially any which may be present in or around Foundation facilities, is considered an Epsilon-level priority.
Description
Inactive SCP-1536 instances are brown ovoids 35 centimetres in length and 15 centimetres in diameter composed of a number of previously unknown compounds analogous to common terrestrial biochemicals. The outer 'skin' of SCP-1536 resembles chitin, and the interior is a homogeneous colloid similar to intra-cellular fluid. Two appendages similar in appearance to arthropod legs emerge from either side of the main body.
When in inactive state, instances of SCP-1536 will slowly drag themselves around their containment areas, and have on occasion been observed making scraping motions against containment walls; these have not left any mark whatever on the steel of standard containers. Inactive instances of SCP-1536 do not appear to require any form of sustenance.
An instance of SCP-1536 will enter its active state when presented with direct line-of-sight on a sufficiently complex moving object. Through an unknown means, the instance of SCP-1536 will entirely alter its composition and appearance to exactly match the object with which it has been presented, a process which always takes just over 3 seconds.
The criteria SCP-1536 use to judge whether to replicate an object is not known: moving pictures on a screen have not been replicated, but moving inanimate objects such as wind-up toys have been replicated. SCP-1536 will always replicate members of the animal kingdom. If presented with multiple replicable objects, SCP-1536 will replicate the object with closest proximity to its geometric centre.
After replicating, SCP-1536 will be unable to replicate another object for a period of time just over 16 minutes in length. Once this recovery phase is over, if presented with a new replicable object, an instance of SCP-1536 will immediately change to replicate the new object.
SCP-1536 instances in an active state have the same life requirements (if applicable) as the original object, but may, if sustained, remain in this state indefinitely. Once an SCP-1536 instance has replicated an object, it is identical in every measurable aspect to the original. This includes DNA, skin markings such as coat pattern and fingerprints, and memories and personality. See interview logs for information on experience of human subjects.
Active SCP-1536 instances will react precisely as the object which they have replicated to all stimuli, and will suffer damage or wounding as normal. However, if it is completely incapacitated (or killed, if an animal has been replicated), an instance of SCP-1536 will return to its inactive state, and be unable to replicate again for approximately 16 minutes. The process of returning to inactive state lasts exactly the same time as transition to active state. Damage dealt to the replicated form may still be present in the inactive state, but will gradually disappear during the recovery phase. Once the recovery phase is over, the instance of SCP-1536 will then replicate as normal if exposed to a new object.