SCP-3288
The Aristocrats
Object Class: Esoteric
![](https://the-scp.foundation/temp/scp-3288.jpg)
Leopold I, painted by Guido Cagnacci (1657-1658)
Special Containment Procedures
An SCP-3288 population no less than twenty nor greater than thirty individuals is to be maintained at Humanoid Containment Site-282. Each SCP-3288 must be contained within individual containment units; behavioral studies that require SCP-3288 to SCP-3288 contact are to be conducted with the utmost caution. SCP-3288 are to be terminated where encountered and disposed of per hazardous waste protocols.
It is imperative that SCP-3288 infestations undergo thorough destruction or containment, as a single uncontained instance of SCP-3288 has the potential to trigger an SK-class dominance shift scenario within the next century, if not sooner.
Description
SCP-3288 designates a highly predatory species or subspecies of the genus Homo (Homo anthropophagus). SCP-3288 display a number of abnormal characteristics and behaviors that distinguish them from the baseline species. The most common deviations include:
- Acute hyperdontia1 and macrodontia2; an instance of SCP-3288 has teeth approximately six times the size of normal adult teeth with more than sixty teeth unevenly distributed over six distinct rows, requiring jaws much larger than that of baseline humans (see below)
- Gross mandibular prognathism3
- Fluctuating facial asymmetry
- Dolichostenomelia4 of the arms; an instance of SCP-3288 commonly has arms more than twice the length of a baseline human of similar height
- Arachnodactyly5 and polydactyly6
- Kyphosis7
- Abnormal muscle strength despite having the appearance of severe emaciation
- Albinism
- Superior low-light vision8 and heterochromia iridum (specifically complete heterochromia);9 the eyes are notably reflective and their colors range from blue, red, purple, and yellow
- A reliance on both bipedal and quadrupedal locomotion
- Abnormally rapid physical growth and development; this results in a 2 to 3 week gestation period with sexual maturity being reached within 16 to 20 months
- Gottschall-Gärtner syndrome10, primarily manifesting on the hands and fingers
- Alopecia universalis11
- Acute photophobia; direct exposure to sunlight will result in both physical and psychological damage
- Mental instability primarily characterized by delusions of grandeur and malignant narcissism
- An addiction to human flesh that takes on biological and psychological components
These abnormalities are primarily the result of excessive inbreeding but without the increased chance for certain recessive or deleterious traits, especially those related to infertility, higher infant and child mortality, and loss of immune function. These detrimental traits have not been only negated but inversely amplified, resulting in longer lifespans, increased resistance to disease, and anomalously high levels of fertility.
The Foundation became aware of SCP-3288 while investigating reports of unexplained disappearances in Vienna. It was discovered that these incidents occurred in close proximity to sewer holes and access tunnels and primarily targeted the most vulnerable of the population such as prostitutes, unsupervised children, transients, and inebriated or otherwise indisposed individuals.
Agents Cyril Novak and Diana Fischer were dispatched to Vienna in order to determine whether or not a number of unexplained disappearances were of an anomalous nature. Interviews with law enforcement and government officials revealed that human remains belonging to three individuals had been recovered but that this information was not released to the public due to concerns of causing further panic. These remains were promptly confiscated and delivered to Humanoid Containment Site-282 in Graz.
Autopsies were performed by Dr. Felix Gärtner, who noted that the remains (Cadavers A12, B13, and C14) displayed no injuries corresponding with a human attacker and compared the deceased to victims of hyena attacks. Dr. Gärtner concluded that all sustained injuries were caused by a mix of teeth, claws, and raw physical strength. Bite marks were found to coincide with human teeth despite their abnormal size (approximately six times the size of normal adult teeth) and number (more than sixty teeth unevenly distributed over six distinct rows), requiring jaws much larger than that of baseline humans. Further analysis revealed unique patterns among the bite marks, suggesting that there existed more than one source.
The entities responsible for these deaths were classified as anomalous and received the SCP-3288 designation. Mobile Task Force Sigma-6 ("Hellsingers") was ordered to patrol the Leopoldstadt District while incognito, the district having seen the highest number of recorded disappearances. Operatives are instructed to target SCP-3288 with tracking darts and to refrain from lethal force.
Field Logs:
A number of significant documents were recovered from SCP-3288-1, allowing the Foundation to develop a better understanding of SCP-3288. The following excerpts have been translated from their original German and are arranged in chronological order. Footnotes have been provided in order to frame these documents within their historical and cultural context.
Later entries by Leopold I are increasingly frenzied and illegible, suggesting a deteriorating mental state until his death in 1705. It appears that he eventually had success, resulting in the creation of SCP-3288 (albeit with unintended consequences) via the introduction of an anomalous gene into the family bloodline. This gene allows human DNA to resist certain deleterious conditions associated with inbreeding.
The House of Habsburg continued its practice of inbreeding, accelerating the development of mutations. Those with significant deformities were hidden from the public, the Habsburg monarchs eventually creating vast vaults to house them. The vault dwelling Habsburgs continued to breed, eventually developing mutations which vastly increased their rate of reproduction (in turn increasing the chances of entirely new mutations).
Those who more closely resembled baseline humans remained on the surface while those sent below continued to adapt to subterranean life. DNA analysis has revealed that consanguinity grew increasingly more extreme over the years, further indicating that incest between parent and child or brother and sister had become the norm among SCP-3288 by the 19th century.
It appears that the Habsburg monarchs went to great lengths to provide their vault dwelling kin with a lifestyle just as extravagant as those above. Documents reveal the steady delivery of food, wine, and entertainment; over time these requests become eccentric23 and strange24 - and eventually depraved.25 All evidence suggests that these requests were met. It is unknown how long SCP-3288 have survived without outside assistance. One document appears to imply that the Great Plague of 1738 led to the delivery of a significant amount of "feed".
One document of singular importance contains a list of vaults similar to SCP-3288-1. The Foundation has used this information to locate and neutralize SCP-3288 hives but the document itself has been the cause of concern, half of it illegible due to mold related damage. This means that at least half of these vaults cannot be located and will continue to be a significant threat to the public.
Addendum 09/23/2016: There are a growing number of reports describing violent sexual assaults and acts of cannibalism throughout Central Europe. Closer analysis of these attacks has led the Foundation to conclude that SCP-3288 are responsible for the violence. Due to the widespread nature of these incidents, it is feared that multiple undiscovered SCP-3288 vaults have been breached.
An instance of SCP-3288 was recently captured at the Black Forest in Germany. Tracked to a derelict hunting lodge by MTF Sigma-6, the entity was successfully secured and contained with operatives suffering only minor casualties. Nine bound women were discovered in the basement; only one was still alive and the cadavers displayed ruptured lower abdomens he abdomen and evidence of partial cannibalization.26
The survivor was dirty, malnourished, and her lower abdomen was heavily swollen and visibly throbbing. The woman screamed to the operatives, pleading that they "Get these things out of [her]", along with various expletives and religious invocations. She received medical evacuation via helicopter but crashed approximately five minutes into its flight. Four fetuses were discovered among the wreckage; though heavily charred, all displayed mutations associated with SCP-3288.
The recently captured instance of SCP-3288 was interrogated. A transcript is provided in the following collapsible: