SCP-4205 ⨷ In The Eyes of the Beholder

One of the SCP Foundation's primary aims is to contain the anomalies they discover—secure, contain, and protect. But some forces are so unknowable, so malevolent, that true containment is a fantasy. SCP-4205 is one such force.

Compared to other SCPs, which are mysterious by their very nature, SCP-4205 is an enigma even among enigmas. We don't know what it is, what it wants, or how to stop it. The best anyone can do is follow a few known preventative measures and pray it doesn't set its sights on them.

The scant information we have on SCP-4205 was recorded by Wade Dalitz, a former junior researcher at the Foundation. He wrote the initial report on SCP-4205 at Terminal 4, his work was invaluable in shedding light on what had previously been unknown. Sadly, his knowledge could not save him. The official entry on SCP-4205 was his final act before his death on December 11, 1992.

But before we delve into that entry and Wade's final day, it's important to understand what little we know about SCP-4205.

SCP-4205 is a Keter-class anomaly—highly hostile and extraordinarily difficult to contain. It's described as an amber-colored pair of human-like eyes that appear spontaneously in windows, mirrors, or any glass-like surface. The gaze of SCP-4205 is deadly and inescapable. Like a mythical basilisk, anyone who sees it dies within seconds.

The eyes only appear to people who are alone in a room and never in the presence of more than one person. Beyond that, there is no predicting when or where the eyes will manifest. We don't know if the eyes are part of a corporeal body or if they even exist on our plane of reality. Containment, much less stopping them, is impossible.

This brings us to that fateful day: December 11, 1992—the day the SCP Foundation gained tangible information on the amber eyes, at the cost of one researcher's life.

Wade Dalitz, fresh out of university, was recruited as a junior researcher by Dr. Mark Forsyth, a senior researcher who had been impressed by Wade's keen observational skills and determination to understand the inexplicable. Wade assisted Dr. Forsyth in various projects until, several months later, he was given the opportunity to write his first SCP report—on SCP-4205.

According to Wade's initial entry, he discovered SCP-4205 when he saw the anomaly in a window. However, later reviews of security footage revealed he wasn't the first to see the eyes; he was, however, the first to survive the encounter. This survival puzzled Wade, driving him to frustration as he documented SCP-4205. His rough drafts dissolved into angry rants about his incompetence, and his inability to adjust to his new responsibilities—especially given the volatile nature of the SCP.

As Wade documented the previous encounters with SCP-4205, he noted a disturbing pattern in the victims' deaths. Medical professionals who attempted to revive them found that brain activity ceased far more quickly than in natural deaths. The victims' bodies remained unharmed, but their brains showed massive nerve damage, especially in areas linked to fear, memory, and visual processing. The damage resembled that caused by severe electrical shock or a brutal head injury.

Despite the troubling nature of these discoveries, Wade continued his work. But his mental state began to deteriorate. His once meticulous reports grew erratic, filled with confusion, fear, and anger at his survival. He became obsessed with the question: Why did he survive when so many others hadn't? The question consumed him, leaving him unable to eat, sleep, or think about anything but SCP-4205.

Wade's obsession with the eyes grew, and so did his paranoia. He began to write about seeing the eyes again, even when others could not. He described attempting to touch them, feeling a sensation like static electricity against his skin. His sleep was plagued by violent paralysis, his dreams haunted by the amber eyes.

The only comfort Wade found was in memories of his loved ones—his parents, and a man named Theodore Quail, who he claimed was a Foundation researcher. But later fact-checking revealed no record of Quail at the Foundation. Quail, it seems, was a figure from Wade's past, a long-lost love that Wade clung to as his grip on reality loosened.

As Wade spiraled deeper into madness, he continued to wrestle with the enigma of SCP-4205. What was it? Did it have a body? Why had he survived? And what did it want from him? He began to envy the victims who had died immediately, believing they had escaped the torment that now consumed him.

In the end, Wade's story is not one of survival. Despite what his final entries might suggest, Wade did not survive his encounter with SCP-4205. He spotted the amber eyes in the glass above his terminal monitor while writing his report and died seconds later.

His final thoughts—recorded not by his hands, but by the terminal itself—were a digital echo, a glimpse into the way SCP-4205 kills. In the moments before death, the amber eyes fast-forward a person's mind, feeding on the electrical impulses as it speeds through days' worth of fear and madness in seconds. Death is swift, but the suffering is long.

Wade's death left the Foundation with a grim reminder: No one survives an encounter with SCP-4205. His final moments, documented in the terminal, are the only firsthand account of the anomaly—a gift to the Foundation, paid for with his life.

So, be wary of reflective surfaces. When you look into them, you never know what might be looking back.

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Item #: SCP-4205

Object Class: Safe

Special Containment Procedures: Due to the immaterial nature and relatively recent discovery of SCP-4205, no methods of containing SCP-4205 have been discovered. Sightings of SCP-4205 are to be immediately reported to the site supervisor as well as Junior Researcher Wade Dalitz. All video recordings of SCP-4205 can be saved to the specified archive on the Foundation Database.

Description: SCP-4205 is a pair of amber-colored eyes, appearing primarily within the translucent or semi-translucent pane of any window-like structure. In most cases, when an affected individual views these eyes, brain death will occur quite swiftly. This has been observed in most cases with only one exception to date. An unusual aspect of the deceased victims is that usual postmortem brain activity ceases in a much more rapid manner than usually observed in a natural death.

SCP-4205 was discovered on December 11, 1992, by Junior Researcher Wade Dalitz when he observed SCP-4205 appearing within the reinforced glass between the observation room to interrogation room F99. He later requested the site supervisor, Dr. Mark Forsyth to review surveillance footage of the observation room in which SCP-4205 was observed within the video as well. After further reviews of surveillance footage over the past two years, six other occurrences of SCP-4205 were discovered.