Unveiling the Confinement: The Frustration of Pierce
"However, speaking of which, that creature with the codename SCP-096 does look quite ugly. That unknown hacker is also quite powerful. They managed to directly invade my computer and delete all the video footage of SCP-096. Too bad, I was planning to keep it for myself."
Skye expressed her disappointment.
Boom!
A loud crash resounded.
A pair of colorless, slender arms forcefully tore open the door of the RV.
This sudden turn of events left Skye at a loss.
Lying on the bed, Skye let out a sharp scream upon seeing the culprit behind all of this.
"Ah!!!"
It's real!
The rumors on the internet turned out to be true.
SCP-096 actually kills anyone who sees its face.
Terrified, Skye watched as SCP-096 approached closer and closer.
She wanted to run away but couldn't move her legs.
Natasha, who was standing some distance away, didn't dare to look at Skye's situation. Instead, she turned her head and quipped, "Looks like we arrived just in time!"
"Indeed! If we were a bit later, we would only be collecting her corpse."
Noah shared the sentiment.
As they say, it's better to arrive early than to arrive at the right time.
Originally, Noah was troubled about how to contain SCP-096. Well, here's an opportunity, isn't it?
"Notify the Foundation and have them send a Mobile Task Force. You wait for reinforcements. You can't handle SCP-096 on your own."
Noah quickly made operational arrangements.
Natasha nodded, took her handgun, and without looking back, turned to evacuate the surrounding civilians.
Natasha didn't think she could be of much help to Noah by staying here. Besides, SCP-096's capabilities were too unbelievable. If she accidentally saw its face, she might end up getting herself killed.
After sending Black Widow away, Noah took immediate action.
Summoning his carnivorous ivy, Noah controlled it to engulf SCP-096.
Just as SCP-096 was about to kill Skye after tearing open the door of the RV, it was entangled by the vines. Then, Noah commanded the vines to fling SCP-096 away.
The anesthetic effect of the carnivorous ivy seemed to have little effect on SCP-096.
Although SCP-096 was flung away, it quickly climbed back up from the ground and charged at Noah, the real culprit.
Because Noah had already seen its face!
"So, this is what SCP-096 looks like? It's indeed quite ugly, no wonder it hides from people!"
After Noah finished his sarcastic comment, he quickly controlled the carnivorous ivy vines to form a green wall.
Confronted with the obstacle of the green wall, SCP-096 charged with both hands in front of its head and directly shattered the wall formed by the carnivorous ivy. It continued to rush towards Noah with undiminished momentum.
Seeing this situation, Noah knew that with his current strength, it was impossible to contain the enemy by force.
"It seems I need to restrict its movements!"
With that thought in mind, Noah summoned the carnivorous ivy beneath SCP-096's feet.
Caught in the grip of the carnivorous ivy's entwining vines around its legs, SCP-096 struggled and tried to free itself from their restraint.
However, the carnivorous ivy grew rapidly. Just as some vines were severed, new ones grew endlessly as if there was no end.
SCP-096 was temporarily bound by these continuously growing vines and couldn't break free for the time being.
Seeing this scene, Noah shouted at the stunned Skye, "What are you doing just standing there, foolish woman? Run!"
Noah yelled, then ran towards a nearby building.
Snapping out of her daze, Skye looked at Noah running toward the building and finally overcame her fear.
"Wait for me!"
After screaming, Skye quickly followed.
In Skye's heart, Noah was her only lifeline. She didn't care about anything else.
After the two entered the building, Noah looked at the panting Skye and said, "Congratulations! In the time to come, you will be hunted down and killed by SCP-096. How about that? Exciting, isn't it?"
Still catching her breath, Skye's whole demeanor changed upon hearing Noah's sarcasm.
"Exciting? Right now, all I feel is fear."
Skye gave Noah a resentful look.
If she had known that taking this job would lead to being hunted by a monster, she would never have come to New York, let alone Hell's Kitchen!
"By the way, I have some good news for you. The leader of your organization was killed by SCP-096 last night. There are probably only a handful of survivors from the Rising Tide organization. Congratulations, you're one of the survivors too!"
Skye: "..."
Feeling lost, Skye grabbed Noah's arm, teary-eyed, and pleaded, "What should we do? How can I possibly survive being hunted by this kind of monster? Should we seek help from the authorities? Or should we turn ourselves in?"
"You go if you want! I, on the other hand, am a law-abiding citizen."
Noah scoffed at her.
Taking advantage of Skye's current state of panic and anxiety, Noah seized the opportunity to recruit her, saying, "And the authorities may not be able to protect you. The only ones who can save you now are the organization behind me!"
Upon hearing this, Skye regained her composure instantly and looked at Noah warily.
With her intelligence back in control, Skye questioned, "You suddenly came out to save me just to make me join your organization, right?"
"Otherwise? Did you really think that the 'hero saves the damsel' plot from the movies would happen in real life?"
Noah looked at Skye with a strange gaze and countered.
Feeling a bit embarrassed, Skye had indeed thought that Noah was a hero saving her. Who would have thought that this so-called hero saving the damsel had planned it all along?
Looking at Skye's embarrassment, Noah sneered, "Do you think you still have a choice now?"
Upon hearing those words, Skye felt as if she had been doused with cold water, her heart turning icy.
Yes!
Does she still have a choice now?
Either be killed by SCP-096 or join the organization behind Noah for a sliver of a chance at survival.
With her family still missing, Skye made a decision in an instant.
She hadn't found her parents yet. She hadn't asked them why they had abandoned her. She couldn't be killed here, especially not at the hands of that monster.
Skye tightly held Noah's right arm, her eyes filled with tears, and pleaded, "As long as you can save me, no matter what organization you're with, I'm willing to join."
"Very well! Welcome to the Foundation."
Noah smiled and extended his right hand.
Skye didn't dare to refuse and quickly reached out, lightly shaking his hand.
"Now let's run to the rooftop. I'll have a helicopter waiting there to pick you up."
Soon, the two made it to the rooftop, while SCP-096 had completely broken free from the vine restraints.
Standing on the rooftop, looking down at the freed SCP-096, Skye anxiously urged, "What do we do now? It has broken free. When is the helicopter you mentioned coming?"
Before Skye could finish her sentence, the sound of a helicopter flying overhead echoed from above, and a rope ladder was thrown down.
"You go up first!"
Noah handed the rope ladder to Skye.
Holding the ladder, Skye looked at Noah and asked, "Aren't you coming with me?"
"I have to hold it back here, and besides... there's no time."
Noah's words had barely faded when SCP-096 climbed up to the rooftop.
Continuing to run aggressively toward the two.
Noah, upon seeing this, quipped, "It can climb walls too? Even Spider-Man would shake his head at this!"
There was hardly any difference in SCP-096's abilities. Currently, no known means on Earth could stop its pursuit. Even if people were to hide in enclosed basements, SCP-096 could dig three feet underground to find and kill them.
"Commander, MTF 'The Sightless' has arrived. They will briefly apprehend SCP-096, and then we'll use the metal containment box to secure it."
Dr. S46's anxious voice came through the earpiece.
"By the way, Coulson has also arrived. I've instructed him to clear the area for you. Now you can go all out."
Hearing the report from Dr. S46, Noah looked at SCP-096 intently.
What would he gain after containing SCP-096?
The speed of SCP-096? Or something else?
Thinking about it made Noah excited, and without moral qualms, he launched his assault.
Taking out the Potion of Unbridled Growth from the system space, Noah poured it all onto SCP-307.
After absorbing the growth potion, the vines of SCP-307 quickly expanded. In less than two minutes, the carnivorous ivy spread across the entire rooftop, with the thickness of the vines reaching that of a utility pole.
096 was suppressed by the overwhelming vines. Soon, it was wrapped up by the medicated carnivorous ivy into a massive cocoon.
"This should buy us some time, right?"
Noah looked at the entangled SCP-096 and let out a sigh of relief.
Fortunately, SCP-096 lacked intelligence; otherwise, there would be no way to restrain it repeatedly.
It should be noted that SCP-096's speed is close to that of sound. If SCP-096 wants to evade, it can even dodge bullets. The fact that the vines of SCP-307 managed to wrap around SCP-096 was already quite astonishing.
Watching the temporarily restrained SCP-096, Noah asked through the communication channel, "What should I do next?"
"My containment plan is as follows: MTF 'The Sightless' will be responsible for capturing SCP-096 briefly, then we will use a metal cryogenic containment box to confine it."
Hearing this, Noah questioned, "Are you sure a regular metal box can contain SCP-096?"
Dr. S46 explained, "It's a cryogenic metal box with an internal freezing system. The temperature can go as low as minus 200 degrees. Once SCP-096 is inside, it will be frozen."
"Are you sure freezing will work on SCP-096? According to SCP-307's
feedback, SCP-096 doesn't have body heat."
Noah still had some concerns.
Dr. S46 confidently chuckled, "Without body heat, wouldn't it freeze even faster?"
Upon hearing this, Noah had an epiphany.
Indeed, for such specialized matters, they should be left to the professionals.
Noah didn't dwell on it any longer.
After all, he was just an amateur in this field. It was a big taboo for an amateur to command an expert.
Soon, MTF 'The Sightless' arrived on the scene.
"Captain, you can retreat now. Once the metal box arrives, please stand on top of it. Since you saw SCP-096's face, SCP-096 should consider you as a target to pursue. We need a decoy."
"So... I've become the decoy?"
Noah felt somewhat helpless. He hadn't expected to encounter SCP-096 before coming here. If it weren't for the sudden incident, he definitely wouldn't have seen SCP-096's appearance.
"Never mind, a decoy is a decoy!"
Noah slid down using the carnivorous ivy and reached the ground.
Just as Noah slid down, SCP-096 finally broke free from the carnivorous ivy's restraints. It watched Noah move further away, then leaped down from the 20th floor.
"Boom!"
The sound of a heavy object hitting the ground echoed.
096's thin legs didn't break, but its joints dislocated. Nevertheless, SCP-096 continued to crawl on the ground using its hands.
Quickly recovering, SCP-096 stood up again and continued chasing Noah as if nothing had happened.
The MTF 'The Sightless' team that arrived at the scene also launched their attack at this moment.
To SCP-096, the members of MTF 'The Sightless' were invisible.
No matter how MTF 'The Sightless' attacked SCP-096, it didn't fight back but continued moving toward Noah's location.
Sensing that SCP-096 never stopped advancing, the team leader of MTF 'The Sightless' immediately ordered, "Break SCP-096's legs and then throw it into the metal box!"
MTF 'The Sightless' was a group of specially trained blind individuals. Although they couldn't see with their eyes, with the advanced black technology earpieces they wore, their perception capabilities were enhanced to an unimaginable level, even comparable to the echolocation of bats.
This containment operation had no audience, not even Coulson, who had always been eager to gather intelligence, came to join in the excitement.
Only a fool or a warrior would dare to watch after knowing SCP-096's killing pattern.
The people of S.H.I.E.L.D. were clearly neither warriors nor fools.
As the sole spectator of this battle, Skye was undoubtedly fortunate.
He was lucky enough to witness the entire containment process of the Foundation and the extraordinary achievements of the Sightless, a team of mortals defying the extraordinary.
SCPs were not terrifying.
It was humanity that deserved to be feared!
Skye felt that his beliefs, cultivated over the past few decades, had been shattered today.
The mysterious young man who could manipulate plants not only had a special temperament but was also extremely powerful. Most importantly, he was devilishly handsome.
The bizarre creature, with a height of 2 meters and slender limbs, could easily tear apart metal with its bare hands. What was even more lethal was that if anything unexpected happened today, Skye might end up being pursued by this thing in the future...
"Isn't it said that anyone who sees it will be hunted down? Why do those agents seem invisible in front of that creature?" Skye murmured to himself, watching the battlefield below from above.
The driver, wearing sunglasses, didn't dare to look at the battle below and teased, "Little girl, don't lean out too far, or you might fall."
"MTF 'The Sightless' specializes in dealing with invisible SCPs. They are all blind, so they won't be attacked by SCP-096. Moreover, each of them has the top physical qualities among humans. They are the elite of MTFs."
Skye listened and twitched the corners of her mouth, feeling speechless.
This monster...
Is it really that easy to deal with?
The battle below had reached its conclusion. Although SCP-096's bones were incredibly tough, its joints were not as sturdy.
With the seamless cooperation of MTF 'The Sightless,' SCP-096 was restrained and eventually placed inside a large metal box.
Once the metal box was sealed, the ultra-low temperature cryogenic gas filled the interior of the box.
The frozen SCP-096 was temporarily contained.
Yes!
Temporarily, that's all!
In fact, nothing on Earth could truly stop SCP-096.
"Commander, I have some bad news."
"SCP-096 is even more elusive than we thought. Unless we change the metal cryogenic box frequently, it may not be effective even if we do."
Dr. S46 explained with a hint of helplessness.
"No problem! Temporarily is enough."
Noah confidently smiled.
He directly put the box in front of him into the containment space.
[Ding~ Congratulations to the host for successfully containing SCP-096!]
[Ding~ Congratulations to the host for receiving a Favor Increase Card x1 (can be used to increase the SCP's favor towards the host, the specific increase depends on the situation and luck when used)]
[Ding~ Congratulations to the host for gaining Super Sensory Perception (can naturally sense when their face is being observed and the location of the observer)]
[Ding~ Congratulations to the host for acquiring 'Mid-Level' Self-Healing Ability (specifically refers to the healing ability of Wolverine in the movies)!]
[Ding~ Congratulations to the host for obtaining Super Strong Skeleton (the bones can resist fire, radiation, and acid).]
[Ding~ Congratulations to the host for gaining control authorization over SCP-096 (the host cannot command SCP-096 to perform actions that go against its rules)]
For example, when the host commands SCP-096 to attack a target, the target must violate SCP-096's attack rules, meaning they must have seen SCP-096's face or the host can command SCP-096 not to attack a certain target, even if the target has seen SCP-096's face.
Note: When SCP-096 appears in reality and doesn't receive any instructions, it will be in a free state and will still attack those who have seen its face.
"Phew!"
Noah let out a sigh of relief.
The matter with SCP-096 had temporarily come to an end.
With complete control authorization over SCP-096, he no longer had to worry about SCP-096 mistakenly killing friendly forces in the future.
After reviewing the list of rewards again, Noah frowned a little dissatisfied.
"Weird! Why didn't I receive SCP-096's speed? These rewards after containment are really random, huh? But my physical abilities seem to have improved a lot, yet the system didn't mention it."
"Is there a bug? Or is this slight enhancement too insignificant for the system to notify?"
Noah speculated in his mind.
But despite the complaints, he still chose to claim the rewards.
Immediately after claiming the rewards, Noah groaned and sat down on the ground, feeling somewhat uncomfortable.
He found himself in a very peculiar visual state.
In this special visual state, Noah realized that he had entered a Third Person view. He saw a group of people sitting in an office, discussing his photo.
Through the logo on the wall, Noah recognized that these people were some high-level members of Hydra.
Then, Noah "saw" a one-eyed pirate holding his photo in a secret room, discussing with five well-dressed elite individuals through a remote video conference.
Noah recognized those people; they were the highest council members of the United Nations, the nominal overseers and leaders of S.H.I.E.L.D.
The most interesting part was that Noah discovered these two meetings did not happen at the same time. The Hydra internal meeting occurred two days ago, while the meeting held by Fury only took place half an hour ago...
Noah found that his super sensory perception was not an ability, but more like some kind of rule-based power.
Regardless of when or where, anyone who had seen his face, his consciousness could accurately descend to that time and observe the scene.
This somewhat rule-based power surprised Noah.
What is this? A pleasant surprise?
Thinking of this, Noah once again connected his consciousness to SCP-096. He wanted to see how many people in this world had seen SCP-096's face.
After one minute...
Noah severed his connection with SCP-096, his face turning dark.
In this world, nearly 400,000 people had seen SCP-096's face.
How messed up was that!
Fortunately, he had a containment space; otherwise, SCP-096 would undoubtedly be classified by the Foundation as a completely uncontrollable project.
The Foundation could control SCP-096 temporarily, but not indefinitely.
Thinking of this, Noah couldn't help but feel a deep respect for the Foundation in the other world.
I wonder how they successfully contained this thing?
After all, its nature is that it won't stop until it kills everyone who has seen its face.
Originally, Noah had planned to let SCP-096 go out and do some work.
Now, he had completely abandoned that idea.
Noah didn't consider himself a good person, but he wasn't so depraved as to sacrifice the lives of 400,000 people just to become stronger.
"But then again, with over 400,000 people knowing about SCP-096, it's no wonder my legendary value has been increasing so quickly," Noah suddenly realized.
SCP-096 and SCP-173 were complete opposites.
If he regarded SCP-096 and SCP-173 as two employees under his command, SCP-096 would be the kind of employee with great skills who could bring significant profits to the company but also pose great risks. On the other hand, SCP-173 was a completely laid-back employee who didn't perform well but was obedient.
Approaching 600,000 in legendary value, of which 590,000 was probably earned by SCP-096, the remaining 10,000 couldn't all be attributed to SCP-173.
Thinking about this, Noah felt a tinge of bitterness.
What's going on here?
The troublemakers are too good at causing trouble.
The non-troublemakers are too quiet.
Noah, who resented SCP-173 for not being more proactive, asked through the microphone, "Doctor, don't tell me SCP-173 hasn't left the underground warehouse of Site-173 these days."
The doctor honestly replied, "No, SCP-173 has been under our supervision the whole time. It has never left Site-173 or caused any disturbances outside."
Noah: "..."
I knew it...
"Send someone to contain SCP-173, and let our people handle the aftermath," Noah decided to give up on hoping that "quiet otaku" SCP-173 would contribute to his legendary value.
Rather than leaving it there wasting away, it would be better to contain it early and contribute to his own strength.
"SCP-173, you're so disappointing! Why did you choose to appear in a secluded underground warehouse? At the very least, you're an artwork. Why didn't you run off to a museum?"
Noah thought with bitterness.
Deciding to digest the rewards he received, Noah didn't linger any longer.
......
"My name is Dr. Zola. I used to be a human, but now I am nothing but streams of data..
Alexander Pierce is a very outstanding successor, or at least I thought so until today.
Dr. Zola looked at the excited Pierce and earnestly advised, "Pierce, give it up. The Project Insight plan for SCP-096 is simply unfeasible."
This guy had gone mad, actually suggesting giving up the Insight plan and fully executing the SCP-096 weapon plan.
The so-called SCP-096 weapon plan used SCP-096's photograph as the core, serving as a remote control to command SCP-096 to eliminate political enemies with pinpoint precision.
At first glance, it seemed like it could work.
But there were too many flaws in it.
"According to my calculations, there are over 400,000 people globally who have seen SCP-096's face. It can only eliminate a maximum of 6,000 people in a day. Even if we assume it creates two eyewitnesses every time it kills someone, and the cycle continues, when will you be able to have precise control over when SCP-096 launches attacks on your designated targets?"
"That's not a problem. Even if it doubles, it's just a year's time. Besides, how could there be eyewitnesses every time? You underestimate SCP-096."
"You overlooked one thing: during that year, more people who see SCP-096's face will be born. Let's assume that SCP-096 kills one person, and there are two eyewitnesses. If this cycle continues, when will you be able to have precise control over SCP-096's attacks on those who oppose us?"
"This issue is not significant. We'll just wait longer. Ten days make 60,000, and 100 days make 600,000. We only need half a year! SCP-096 will become our exclusive weapon."
"I..."
Just as the two were arguing, Pierce's satellite phone suddenly rang.
Interrupted, Pierce wasn't angry but answered the call.
"Sir! Coulson has transmitted the latest intelligence about the Foundation. SCP-096 was contained by the Foundation half an hour ago."
"What the hell?"
Upon hearing this, Pierce burst out a curse, then angrily demanded, "Didn't Coulson say that nothing on Earth could stop SCP-096? How did the Foundation contain it?"
"Apologies, Sir. We don't have the specific details. We only know that the Foundation has indeed successfully contained SCP-096. Coulson has taken care of the follow-up matters through the connections of S.H.I.E.L.D. I believe this intelligence should be accurate."
Pierce: "..."
After hanging up the phone silently, Pierce looked perplexed at Dr. Zola on the screen.
Why did it turn out like this?
He was supposed to be the luckiest one, on the verge of success...
Why did it turn out like this?
Wasn't SCP-096 invincible?
Why did it get contained so easily?
The usually refined Pierce couldn't help but curse angrily, "Damn it! So much for invincible SCP-096! It fell into the hands of humans!"
Dr. Zola, seeing the situation, couldn't help but feel a sense of relief.
Without SCP-096, maybe this guy's intelligence would return to normal?
"It seems like the SCP-096 weapon plan is a failure. What about the Insight plan? Should we stop?"
Dr. Zola asked gleefully on the side.
"The Insight plan continues!" Pierce declared before leaving the secret base with a dark expression.
This turn of events came too quickly, and he didn't have the face to stay with Dr. Zola any longer.
However, Pierce certainly wouldn't give up on his plans so easily.
"The Foundation!"
"So what if it got contained? As long as I eliminate the Foundation, take over everything they have, SCP-096 will still be my weapon!"
"It's too early to talk about winning or losing!"
Pierce thought with unwavering determination.
This was also the advantage of almost all villains—they were relentless and willing to sacrifice everything for their ultimate plans.
Pierce had made up his mind. After returning, he would gather all the strength of Hydra and execute the Parasite plan.
Pierce firmly believed that as long as he didn't deliberately obstruct S.H.I.E.L.D. in secret, the united S.H.I.E.L.D. would definitely crush the Foundation!
After returning to the mansion, Noah had the butler arrange a guest room for Skye.
Once everything was settled, Noah locked himself in his bedroom and took stock of today's rewards.
Setting aside the others for now, he needed to figure out how the "Favor Card" worked.
Did it randomly increase the goodwill of a specific SCP?
"System, does the Favor card have any effect on higher-dimensional divine entities?" Noah asked cautiously.
[Ding~ Yes! The stronger the SCP, the weaker the effect of the Favor card!]
That's good then. The strength doesn't matter; as long as it's useful.
Noah felt relieved.
At the same time, he had a plan in mind.
He would work hard to accumulate Favor cards in the early stages. Once he had accumulated thousands or tens of thousands of them, he would summon a higher-dimensional SCP with divine properties and use the Favor cards to maximize their goodwill.
He didn't believe that after maximizing the goodwill, he wouldn't be able to persuade those higher-dimensional beings to willingly be contained.
After tallying the rewards, Noah looked at the remaining legendary value, eager to try it out.
Since he didn't have enough to summon SCP-662, the Butler's Bell, he decided to try the random draw.
After all, with SCP-173 and SCP-096 being contained, he had some free time on his hands.
After much contemplation, Noah finally decided to take a two-day break.
The past few days had made him restless, so he needed these two days to rest and adjust his mindset.
...
After playing poker with Natasha all night, Noah woke up the next day feeling refreshed. Suddenly, he heard the sound of the system's notification.
[Ding~ Congratulations to the host for successfully containing SCP-173 - The Sculpture!]
[Ding~ Congratulations to the host for obtaining control over SCP-173 - The Sculpture.]
[Ding~ Congratulations to the host for obtaining a Favor card x1.]
...
"That's it?"
Noah frowned.
SCP-173's speed in accumulating legendary value was already lacking, given that it was just a sculpture. It was unlikely that it would go out and cause emotional disturbances to harvest emotions.
But the containment reward was also given so stingily.
SCP-096 and SCP-307 had at least four types of containment rewards, right?
But when it came to SCP-173, they only gave two.
If it weren't for the set of Favor cards, he would have to discuss it with the system today.
After venting his frustrations about the rewards, Noah remembered another important point.
It seemed that the system's judgment of successful containment wasn't about being contained in his containment space, but rather the ability to control them long-term.
This could be considered good news.
After all, many higher-dimensional divine entities might not be willing to enter the containment space. When the time came, if an agreement could be reached, it might still be considered a successful containment.
Lost in his thoughts, Noah felt a pair of arms wrap around him from behind.
"Sir, I believe you need special training. Luckily, my physical condition is stronger than an average woman's. Otherwise, you might have injured someone last night."
Natasha spoke cautiously.