Extreme Measures

On the edge of Lake Baikal, thousands of kilometres distant. Yang Xue approached a patient in a hospital bed while wearing a protective gear and administered an injection of a reagent into the patient's arm. The patient yelled in agony as his limbs continued to tremble, but he was unable to move because his entire body was attached to the hospital bed.

After 30 minutes, the screaming changed to groaning. Ten more minutes passed before the patient eventually slept off. Throughout this period, Yang Xue consistently watched the patient's response and made sure the patient wouldn't return before leaving the room.

She removed her protective equipment and sat in the dressing room chair, appearing a little worn out. She had been brought here by the headquarters after she and Zhang Jue had become separated at Site-17.

This was Area-114 of the Foundation, which had only one purpose: to study the virus SCP-610 (The Flesh That Hates). This virus is extremely potent, similar to SCP-217. People who are infected with this virus initially experience epidermal symptoms that resemble scar tissue, and over time, the scar tissue spreads throughout the entire body.

The scar tissue will then begin to mutate, usually in a random direction. The majority of the time, they develop extra limbs like hands and feet, and their heads usually develop deformities. As their bodies keep growing and giving birth to fleshy tissues, they will eventually lose their ability to be recognized as creatures formed of flesh and blood.

This virus initially only spread to regions like southern Siberia and the northern shore of Lake Baikal. However, it has now reached Lake Baikal's whole environs. Although SCP-610 has actually been there for a while, it has been under tight control ever since the Foundation learned about it.

It has recently abruptly flared up again for no apparent reason, and it even has a propensity to spiral out of control. The infection was said to have spread to Arcadia, the city that was the closest to this location.

She pictured the once-thriving little town of Chlamydia, which is now a deserted metropolis. I wonder if Arcadia will experience the same fate.

Her days were devoted trying to figure out how to cope with SCP-610, but she made very little headway. After all, she had no immediate path to solving the issue that so many researchers had failed to solve.

She was unlike Zhang Jue, who typically didn't need to be on the front lines of fight, but she could sense that the foundation was having trouble this particular time. She had been in this location for nearly a month when multiple MTF squads began to occupy the area. But after a few days, several of the new faces she had met disappeared.

Yang Xue was aware of their sacrifice. Some even forgot to return the identifying nameplate for the Foundation. Yang Xue rubbed her forehead. Although she was unaware of what had taken place in Arcadia, it was obvious that the situation was considerably more perilous than it had been in Chlamydia.

If numerous MTF units weren't able to defeat the enemy, the Foundation would undoubtedly need to resort to unorthodox tactics. She shouldn't have given a damn about this, though.

Yang Xue shook her head and forced herself to battle SCP-610 and keep fighting. A man obstructed her at the door as she was about to exit the dressing room.

"Miss Yang Xue, you look stunning today." His voice was incredibly alluring, and he gently raised the corner of his mouth.

Elio Angelo was the leader of the Foundation's current operator, and he went by that name. It was claimed that everything he stood for was likewise an O5.

Yang Xue moved away from him and took a step back. "I'm still used to being addressed as Dr. Yang or Researcher Yang, please excuse me, Mr. Angelo."

Yang Xue didn't express a preference for the title "Dr. Yang," but only one person could have it, and that person wasn't present.

"That is not an unreasonable request." Angelo gave a small smile and extended his hand to stroke Yang Xue's face.

"Mr. Angelo, as the leader of this operation, you should have more important things to do than to humiliate your subordinates here." said Yang Xue, cocking her head and glaring at him.

Angelo's hand paused in the air and then made a circle as he was startled by Yang Xue's stare. "I've heard that you and Advisor Zhang Jue Zhang get along well, Miss Yang."

Angelo grinned, shifted the subject, and asked a question in a declarative manner. His eyes lit up with excitement at the mention of Zhang Jue's name, like a beast that has captured its prey.

"I'm sorry, but I don't really know him." Yang Xue refuted it, saying, "Mr. Angelo, pardon me; if you have nothing more, I'm going to work. We're just colleagues working at a site, just as you and I are now."

"Be my guest." Angelo quickly turned, leaving a narrow opening for Yang Xue to simply walk through.

As he passed past him, Yang Xue had a serene expression. He instantly lifted his hand as he passed by Angelo. He was entirely disregarded by Yang Xue, who strolled right by. He laughed and then narrowed his eyes until after Yang Xue vanished around the corner of the corridor.

"I can't wait to see you, Zhang Jue, even the women around you are so fascinating!"

Yang Xue moved swiftly along the hallway while wearing a slight pallor. Even though Angelo was silent just now, his mental energy is not insignificant. He harbored a great deal of animosity toward Zhang Jue, she could tell.

Without understanding why, she immediately hid the truth from Zhang Jue and refused to give him any information. It was impossible to know how he was doing. He could presumably only take a break in name after becoming a Foundation Star.

As Yang Xue was considering something, she unexpectedly heard a call. "Doctor Yang,"

Yang Xue remembered that the American researcher in the research group appeared to be named Kadeer as he turned around and turned to face him. Although they belonged to the same study group, Yang Xue and he did not come into contact because their research interests were different.

"What can I do for you, researcher Kadeer?" Yang Xue enquired.

Before speaking to Yang Xue, Kadeer checked to make sure no one else was present. "Dr. Yang, Mr. Lei Shan has a message for me to bring to you." she said.

Kadeer, the researcher, turned out to be a spokesperson for Leshan. Although Yang Xue's company was tremendously successful, she had limited interaction with the Foundation's top executives due to her uncle Yang Wenbai's purposeful protection of her.

It wasn't until Zhang Jue arrived that things started to change, but even then, she still didn't know many people—Lei Shan was one of them. O5-secretary 6's Lei Shan is modest and polite, and she is likely inspired by Confucianism.

Yang Xue encountered him during the SCP-071-1 incident. But after that, they seldom ever speak to one another. Each is ultimately in a separate circle. Lei Shan is being prepared to succeed O5, although Yang Xue is still a long way off. She couldn't fathom why he would seek her out for Lei Shan.

"Dr. Yang, Mr. Lei Shan directed me to warn you that if Angelo doesn't arrange for you to escape Area-114 within three days, then create an excuse to leave here." Kadeer remarked after making sure everything was safe.

Make a reason to leave?

"Why?" asked Yang Xue, frowning.

"Arcadia City is poised to spiral out of hand, and the Foundation will take drastic action. This location is too close to Arcadia, therefore it might be impacted." Kadeer said.

"What extreme measure?" Yang Xue paused for a moment before asking a question she shouldn't have.

"According to Mr. Lei Shan, the Foundation had intended to send a nuclear bomb here just three days later." Kadeer said as he turned to look around.