SCP-684
The Caretaken
Underwater photograph of SCP-684-1. Size of spheres reflects approximately one week of growth. A sample of SCP-684's surface can also be seen.
Special Containment Procedures
As SCP-684 is too large and massive to relocate, much less fully contain in any orthodox sense, HotBox procedures are in effect. If SCP-684 is judged to have expanded beyond the coordinates of [COORDINATES REDACTED], containment is said to have failed, and HotBox borders are to enact standard deterrent methodologies1.
No staff living on the surface of SCP-684 are allowed to know the true nature of SCP-684. This specific file is not to reach any observation post studying SCP-684.
Description
SCP-684 is a massive object (assumed to be a living creature) found on the seafloor of the Indian Ocean. It is irregular in shape, with the center of its mass located at approximately ██.██, -███.██. From that center mass, SCP-684 extends approximately 70 km outward, maintaining an average height above seafloor of 12 m.
The outward 'skin' of SCP-684 is dark brown, with a rough, grainy texture. There is a slight 'give' when pressure is applied to its surface. From time to time, small sections of SCP-684's surface will dimly glow a faint blue, yellow, or pink hue. These lights tend to move in the direction of SCP-684's center mass, or to six slowly-pulsating sphincters that are believed to be mouth analogues.
History: Upon discovery of SCP-684 in 19██, the Foundation attempted to place a prefabricated research outpost near SCP-684. Due to ocean currents, the post landed on the surface of SCP-684 instead. As the outpost structure was undamaged by said misplacement, O5-█ authorized the deployment of Researcher █. ██████ to the post, later dubbed Station Alpha.
Three days later, Station Alpha was seen (via long-range underwater video) being enveloped and destroyed by a localized undulation of SCP-684's mass. When a recovery mission arrived twenty-four hours later, Station Alpha was found completely intact. When entered, Researcher ██████ was interviewed as having no memory of any SCP-684 disturbance, although expressing slight annoyance that Station Alpha "hadn't yet gotten that rover I was promised". When questioned, ██████ offered up a Foundation printout, citing orders to use an underwater rover to push animal carcasses to SCP-684's sphincters.
Off-site analysis of both Researcher ██████ and sections of Station Alpha were discovered to be elaborate copies of their original selves. During this off-site analysis, Station Alpha was seen 'regrowing', complete with another copy of Researcher ██████. This 'new' copy had no memory of the earlier copy's actions or memories.
It is currently theorized that SCP-684 assimilates and reproduces stations, and their crew, for tasks related to its survival and self maintenance. Each station is capable of issuing orders to its pseudo-crew in ways that mimic the originals, so that all assimilated crewmembers treat the orders as legitimate2. These orders are phrased in such a way that the crew believes its actions are intended to 'contain' SCP-684, leading to no doubts among the assimilated crew that anything is amiss. It would seem that SCP-684 deliberately takes the effort to ensure that station crew, despite being fabricated, are kept in good mental and physical health, ignorant about their true nature or purpose.
To test and confirm said hypothesis, the Foundation has placed five more prefabricated stations on the surface of SCP-684. In short order, each of these stations and their crews (listed below) have all been assimilated and refabricated by SCP-684. Each one does not know about the others; the designations are exclusively for Foundation use.
Addendum-1 Stations
Below are the location and duties of all five stations currently placed on SCP-684. For ease of understanding, False Ordered Task is a brief synopsis of the actions each station believes the Foundation has ordered them to do in order to contain SCP-684 (or at least keep it in a stable state), and Assumed Actual Role is what the Foundation believes the station's actual role to SCP-684 is.
| Station Designation | Location | Crew | False Ordered Task | Assumed Actual Role |
| Alpha | ██.██, -███.██ | Six | Push corrupted sealife carcasses to extraplanar disposal facility (SCP-684) | Transport of carcasses to 'mouths' of SCP-684 |
| Beta | ██.██, ███.██ | Twelve | Contain and destroy "toxic non-newtonian fluid" emanating from SCP-684 | Waste removal / hygiene |
| Gamma | ██.██, -███.██ | [DATA REDACTED] | [DATA REDACTED] | Immune system |
| Delta | ██.██, ███.██ | Four | Scouting and marking suitable locations for new SCP-684 observation posts3 | Demarcating SCP-684-1 growing locations |
| Iota | ██.██, -███.██ | Twenty-Four | Collect and ship SCP-684-1 to Stable One4 | Unknown, potential benefit and reward for caretaking SCP-684 |
Underwater photograph of SCP-684-1. Size of spheres reflects approximately one week of growth. A sample of SCP-684's surface can also be seen.
Station Iota is currently the least understood station, owing to its task of harvesting SCP-684-1. SCP-684-1 takes the shape of small (2 cm to 8 cm) spheres of varying color, which bud off the skin of SCP-684. Any given nodule reaches full size in three weeks, remaining attached for a week before disconnecting from SCP-684 and being carried off by ocean currents. SCP-684-1 has been seen as a supplementary source of nutrition for the entire food pyramid surrounding SCP-684. Examination of sea life that consistently feeds on SCP-684-1 shows increases in size, general health, and overall increased fitness. Human consumption of 684-1 has not yet been approved, but many Foundation researchers believe that SCP-684 grows SCP-684-1 in way of recompense for absorbing and refabricating its 'caretakers'.
Addendum-2 Interviews and Communication
Transmission 684-JH9-4
Transmission 684-AZ48-1