Site Gemini had been under construction for two years, and as the day of our first research project approached, my nerves were on edge.

Not over the nature of the tests, they would be in well-controlled environments.

Every possible precaution would be taken, and there wasn't a single test to be performed that wouldn't be signed

off from the highest ranks of the foundation.

No.

I was nervous because, after years as the head of research at Site 28, I had been promoted

to Site Director of a brand new installation.

I had proposed the construction of a new site to study potential interactions between anomalies.

I was initially denied approval for this new installation.

I accepted that the foundation's resources were needed elsewhere.

Then the black envelope arrived.

A red confidential stamp marked the front, announcing that the facility's

division had broken ground on site Gemini. My proposal was accepted after all. The foundation

largely allowed me to staff the building with researchers of my choice. A short letter

at the back of the envelope informed me the 05

Council would expect a request for my first research project six months before facility completion,

but I already knew which two I wanted.

SCP 1226 and SCP 2816. 1226 is an oil painting of a nuclear detonation above a massive city. The detail

was remarkable from the scans I had seen. It was as horrifying to look at as it was breathtaking

to study. You could only look at it through pictures, though. Looking at it directly had a terrible

effect. Anyone who looked directly at the painting itself would go through a violent and painful

physical and mental metamorphosis. Their stature and muscles would increase rapidly

...