SCP-425

Description

SCP-425 appears to be a 1958 Philco Tandem Predicta television set. It was first reported in 1963 by the owner of the unit, █████ ███████. Mrs. ███████ originally contacted the FBI regarding the SCP, stating that it had begun to behave erratically at certain times. She reported to the FBI that her son, █████ ███████, had begun having terrible nightmares and had scratched "∞ = 8" on the left side panel of the television set. Mrs. ███████ further reported that although she had unplugged the set, it continued to broadcast without power at certain times during the day. Embedded Agent ██████ became aware of the situation and brought SCP-425 to the Foundation.

SCP-425 was brought in and studied for six weeks by SCP staff with no conclusive findings. It was initially classed as Safe until 03/24/1963, when it turned on by itself and began "broadcasting." Of the five staff that were in the room at the time, four experienced a shared vision of what they described as "infinity." They also reported hearing an atonal sound that seemed to come from the walls. These four staff members, while somewhat alarmed by the experience, felt a general sense of well-being. They described the feeling as "knowing that there was something else out there beyond us." This description was repeated verbatim by these four staff members, who were separated and interviewed immediately after the event. They were given no time to speak to each other prior to the interview.

The fifth staff member (Subject Zero) provided a differing account of the experience. Subject Zero described a vision of moving extremely quickly through space to the event horizon of a black hole. The vision then took Subject Zero into and through the black hole, at which time he experienced "a crushing sense of oblivion." Subject Zero also described an atonal noise, but reported hearing whispering beyond the noise. Subject Zero was not able to interpret the whispering, but was sure that it was not English nor any other human language. Subject Zero was extremely shaken by this vision and the whispering and reported recurring nightmares for weeks following the event. Extensive psychotherapy assisted Subject Zero to some degree, but he would report having nightmares at least once a month. He also reported that he no longer took comfort in the company of others and felt lonely even with groups of friends. SCP-425 was classed as Euclid at this juncture.

Further study revealed that on the 8th, 16th, and 24th day of each month, SCP-425 broadcasts for a period of eight (8) minutes at some time in the evening, generally between 2000 and 2324. It will broadcast only once during this time. Early study by volunteer staff members resulted in mixed experience. Five staff were placed in the room containing SCP-425 and were asked to watch to see the results. It took fully six months of testing to determine that subjects who were born on the specified dates were susceptible to the negative experience stemming from SCP-425. Of the twenty-three (23) subjects who experienced the "Oblivion" vision, seventeen (17) had results mirroring those of Subject Zero, four (4) requested reclassification and amnesia treatment, one (1) left the site containing SCP-425 and was never seen again, and one (1) reported no ill effects. (See Addendum)

At this point SCP-425 was placed in a Faraday cage and no staff member born on one of the above-noted days has been permitted to access it. While in its enclosure, SCP-425 will turn itself on but will not broadcast. It is assumed that the broadcasts are non-terrestrial in origin, but efforts to pinpoint the source of the transmission have proven fruitless.

Addendum: On 08/08/1971, staff member ███ ██████ had what was described as a grand-mal seizure in the staff canteen. Medical scans showed that Mrs. ██████'s brain had a massive lesion in the shape of a nonagon in her parietal lobe. She was otherwise fit and there was no evidence as to how she suffered this injury. Mrs. ██████ was placed under medical observation. On 08/16/1971, Mrs. ██████ began to speak in an unknown language for a period of 8 minutes. When questioned, she was unable to explain why or what she had said. On 08/24/1971, Mrs. ██████ left her room in the medical wing, walked to the nearest blackboard, and drew an extensive and impressive astronomical map of an unknown region of space. After she completed the map, she collapsed to the floor and died. Autopsy results showed no biological reason for death, and study of her parietal lobe showed that the nonagonal lesion had ceased to exist.