While I write the next chapter.......

.....try this out.

It's the revised first chapter of my new SCP/Serpent's Hand fic.

Well, technically, this is the prologue.

And no, it's not a female MC. Sarasvarti will be an important character later on. MC will be a guy.

Tell me what you think though.

____________________

25 years ago.

A facility outside Chennai.

Kalki looked out helplessly into the world as the tear in space expanded. Then some more. And some more. He hadn't seen this coming. He couldn't have seen this coming.

Suddenly with a peal of thunder and a crackle and pop, a building appeared in the middle of the cold, white deserts of Ladakh. It's walls were cracked, leaking a black ooze, it's foundation rusted and worn, and it's signature revealed exactly what he had feared. It was from another world. But that's not where the problems ended. It's only where they began. Inside the facility he could sense beings of enormous power. Power he knew. Power he had felt before. For a moment he was confused. Contrary to what most believed, he was not omniscient. That was never the intention.

Almost on instinct his gaze shifted to somewhere else, inside a small facility. A group of people were milling about wordlessly, enacting a strange ritual.

Procedure 420-Perinaldo.

Yes. Kalki felt relieved. It was contained.

Another flit of his gaze. Another part of the world. A massive glowing figure wielding a blazing sword. He stood watch, guarding the gates to his lord's garden ever faithfully.

Then he looked back at the facility and didn't recognize the third creature. Or the fourth. Or the fifth. They were not native. More invaders. More problems.

Problems. So many of them. With his divya drishti, divine sight granted to it by the great Sage Vyasa, he could see everything. Ride winds of change, pluck the strings of fate, peer into the river of time and across the vast holy cosmos. And it was not a gift, but a burden. A great responsibility entrusted to him by Lord Parshurama himself. And now as he watched the tears in the fabric of space appear one after another, he felt so utterly helpless. From one small tear, a being emerged. A demon. Rakshasa. Small, fleshy and red. It wielded a little black thorn as it's spear and it's big, bulbous eyes scanned the surroundings curiously. It hobbled out on chubby little feet and touched the cold sand, sniffed the air. And then returned.

A scout. There would be more. And then, an invasion.

He knew. He always knew.

Back again inside the facility he made one last attempt to stop it all.

In the deepest part of the facility that had magically appeared in this world, he could faintly see the source of all these problems.

A machine, tall and stout, pulsing with a power strong enough to end the world. Beside it lay the body of a woman in the familiar MTF garb he had come to know all these years.

Red of hair and pale and fair, she lay there, gun in hand, fighting till her last breath as she laughed madly. Hollis, her nametag read. A hero for her world, a disaster for his.

Kalki reached out with his power and tried to further read her mind. To know how it all happened. But suddenly a great force bore down upon him.

A god!

Kalki retreated from her mind, injured but not broken.

Fair enough. If he couldn't affect her, he would at least stop the great machine that was bringing these disasters. Perhaps send them away once more as Hollis had done for her world.

But no matter how much he tried, his power couldn't reach the machine. It fell just short of it, as if there was an infinity of distance between it and him.

He tried other methods. Falling debris, the many leaches littering the halls, the ventilation system, the power station. But nothing worked.

And now more demons were coming.

Kalki despaired. Even with his might, even with the power of the Vaishnavastra he could not defend against them all. He felt history change. Shift subtly. Once. Twice. Thrice. Then ten times. Then twenty. And then some more. Ripples echoed through the river of time. He saw a woman with a mysterious artifact running around like a headless chicken, from time to time. Every iteration she tried so desperately to do what was right. To stop it all. But the end came nevertheless. Foolish, brave little girl. Kalki sympathized. In the end however, he saw that the ripples she had made in the river of time accumulated, one after another, drop after drop, action after action. Beings of great power appeared one after the other, great defenders of humanity born of her efforts.

But he knew. He always knew.

It was fruitless.

In the distant moons, he saw the ever lying giant rumble, the strange vessel it harboured twinkling as it assessed the situation, awaiting orders. Orders it didn't yet know, would never come.

But he knew. Kalki always knew. And he felt ever so helpless to stop it all. Countless struggles, countless fates shifted. But the end comes, and none can stop it. They can only rebuild. And in time what was once lost could perhaps be renewed. A second chance for the world.

An idea struck.

Yes! Kalki felt a glimmer of hope.

The board had been set. The pieces were in their places. They just needed a catalyst. Just one. Just one more ripple to change this grim fate.

There had to be a way.

With all his power he searched, endlessly, sifting through all possibilities, all actions taken and forgotten, all possible futures, all possible entities. There was little time. Until in his haste, he looked in the wrong place. At the wrong time.

And as he did, he knew. This was the end for him. The entity knew. He could feel his insides lurch.

But the heavens were quite like the foundation, cold but never cruel. Just and fair. He trusted in the gods.

And he finally knew what he had to do. With his last will, his last strands of power, he realized what must be done to stop the coming tide. To fight the end with the end. The invaders with another one. A subtle shift. A small change.

Kalki exerted his power. Probability shifted, reality realigned.

In New York, a woman tripped on a sidewalk, spilling her coffee onto a man. In Beijing, a traffic sign turned from red to green causing an accident that would forever change one man's destiny. In a secret facility, hidden in the mountains, a one turned to a zero. The butterfly flapped it's wings and a storm call was sent rumbling across the multiverse.

Across time and space, in a distant world, a new Way opened.

The last hope of a dying world.

And Kalki despaired quietly.

[Kalki] : Forgive me Lord Parshurama. For I have failed you. For I have failed in my duties.

[pl%default] : What is happening, Kalki?

[Kalki] : Forgive me. Forgive me. Forgive me. Forgive me. Forgive me.

[pl%default] : Kalki, answer me.

[Kalki] : The end of the Kali Yuga is upon us. Lord Mahakal shall descend. He shall bring with him the three serpents of the past, the present and the future. All shall bow before him and witness his splendor. The Nataraja shall dance upon the world. Destruction will precede creation. And through his kindness the world will be born anew. I only lament that I will not live to witness the sun rise upon a new Sata Yuga. Forgive me, Lord Parshurama. Forgive me.

.

The MTF soldiers saluted Site Director Iyer as he walked in.

"Director Iyer. I was just about to call for you."

"What's the status of SCP-2820, Dr. Krishnamoorthy? Make it quick. I have to take my daughter to her recital today."

"I think it's best you cancel that. It's not looking good, sir. At 12:46 hours, the machine suddenly began to malfunction. The feed on the screen jumped from one image to another. We couldn't make any sense of it. All attempts to converse with it have resulted in incoherent ramblings."

"And just twenty minutes ago, it began to seep a clear liquid from somewhere. We haven't yet been able to identify where it is coming from but something seems to be moving inside the machine, sir." Agent Aggrawal reported.

"Did you take note of all these so-called ramblings?"

"Yes sir." Dr. Krishnamoorthy pulled them up on the screen.

Director Iyer leaned in closer as he looked through the details, his gaze turned grim.

This was a prophecy. He could barely make it out but he was certain of this.

[SCP-2820

The Vaishnavastra.

Object Class : Keter

Description: SCP-2820 is a directed-energy weapon operated by a modified Prometheus Labs artificial intelligence designated as "Kalki". The main body of the weapon resembles a multi-stage coilgun mortar; however, a satellite dish with an antenna has been mounted to the front and the rear has been modified to fit a large semispherical apparatus. Attempts to open the apparatus have been unsuccessful. Mounted on the back of this apparatus is a monitor and terminal. The AI is able to receive and can respond to user input through the terminal. The monitor continually displays real-time satellite footage of a random person (the target) somewhere in the world, all of whom have been found to be anomalous in some way.

SCP-2820 eliminates its targets through a highly convoluted sequence of apparently unrelated events: at least once every twenty-four hours, the monitor will display the message "FIRING: CLEAR AREA" for thirty seconds, before a blue flash of light is emitted from the antenna. SCP-2820 will then focus on a new target. Within twenty-four hours of firing, the initial target will invariably be killed by the culmination of a nonlinear system formed by a series of coincidental occurrences (commonly known as the "butterfly effect"), at which time SCP-2820 will fire again.

Notably, eyewitness testimonies in the aftermath of the target's death consistently mention the appearance of a chimpanzee in a trench coat. Video recordings and forensic investigations into the aftermath of SCP-2820 kills indicate that the chimpanzee does not actually exist; it is purely a perceptual phenomenon resulting from the aforementioned nonlinear system. The occurrences that produce the nonlinear system are not anomalous themselves (ranging from slipping on ice to purchasing cough medicine), though exact replication of these events is tedious, difficult, and resource-intensive.

SCP-2820 was initially recovered on ██/██/██, from an abandoned Prometheus Labs facility near Varanasi, India, shortly before firing and eliminating Known Target 58.]

Site director Iyer thought for a moment before he ordered.

"Print them out for me. I need to inform the O5 command. This could be disastrous. And seal the containment chamber. I want a security detail on this room 24/7."

Dr. Krishnamoorthy and Agent Aggrawal nodded.

As Dr. Krishnamoorthy worked on printing the entire discussion out while Agent Aggrawal called up some MTF members to go inside and stand guard.

Receiving the papers, he stuffed them in his briefcase and made to leave when suddenly-

"Bwergh!" A MTF soldier dry heaved.

"Are you okay?" Agent Aggrawal asked.

"Yes sir. I'm-Bwergh!" He fell to his knees.

"What's happening?" Agent Aggrawal looked inside the chamber and saw SCP-2820 covered in a thin layer of the clear liquid as small letters began appearing on it. No, those weren't letters, they were pictures. Little illustrations. And was that-

Agent Aggrawal's eyes went wide.

"Director Iyer, Krishnamoorthy, run. Don't look at us. Don't think about us. Just run! Now! There has been a containment breach!" He slammed the emergency buzzer and shut the door to the containment chamber with urgency.

Sirens rang and red lights flashed across the entire facility, signalling a containment breach as an emergency call was sent to the O5 council instantly. Boots thumped on the ground as the MTF rushed in for support. But what they didn't know was that were only dooming themselves.

"Run!" Were his last words. And they made Director Iyer's blood run cold.

No. This can't be happening. Not today!

His daughter was in the front business they ran as a cover, waiting for him upstairs. In a split second he had to make a decision. Do his duty or protect his daughter. He didn't have to ponder over it for long.

All the screens in the room suddenly flickered and the feed changed to the SCP logo with the accompanying music.

"The following is a message composed via consensus of the O5 Council.

For those who are not currently aware of our existence, we represent the organization known as the SCP Foundation. Our mission centers around the containment and study of anomalous objects, entities and other assorted phenomena. This mission was the focus of our organization for more than one-hundred years. We secure, contain and protect. We die in the dark so you may live in the light.

Due to circumstances outside of our control, this directive has now changed. In alliance with the United Nations, the Global Occult Coalition and the various world governments we are now forced to come into the light to warn you of the coming ADK-class complete anomalous destabilization, broken masquerade scenario. As a lot of might have noticed, the sky has turned red and holes in reality have appeared within it. Various extradimensional anomalous entities are invading as we speak. All civilians are advised to immediately make their way to a secure location, government bunker or the nearest foundation facility. This is not a drill. I repeat, this is not a drill. The world is at an end. Your lives are in danger. For your own sakes, for the sake of humanity and the future, please proceed to the the nearest secure shelter. A list of the same will be provided now."

The screen flashed with a slow moving list of locations as Director Iyer's stomach dropped.

"Is this how it all ends?" He whispered to himself, a hand over his mouth.

"No. I can't let it end this way. Not for my daughter."

He looked back up at the list of locations and noted one down as his eyes shone with resolve.

Fuck the foundation. His daughter was more important.

"Krishnamoorthy. Take over command. I have to consult the O5 council." He lied as he rushed out of the facility and to the paper mill they ran as a cover. Inside his fake office, his 8 year old daughter sat reading a book.

"Sarasvarti! Come!" He grabbed her by the hand.

"Appa! It hurts!" She cried.

"Shush. We need to leave. Get home."

"But my recital-"

"Your recital is cancelled. Come now." He wrapped her up in his arms and he raced to his car.

"Appa the sky is bleeding!" She pointed up.

"Don't look at it. It's okay. Appa will save you."

"Appa?" She looked at his worried face and felt a sliver of fear creep into her heart.

Director Iyer threw her into the car and tumbled in himself as they escaped the facility and entered the main road. The highway was packed, vehicles were piled up and people could be heard shouting expletives at each other.

"Shit!" He grunted, looking for any way out of here.

Suddenly, the sky above the highway cracked, a red liquid oozing from it.

"No! Nononono!" Director Iyer slammed his hand on the steering wheel in frustration. Then it all changed for the worse. The red ooze bulged and popped, as it pooled to the ground and from within one clawed hand emerged. Scales of green and orange with flaming hair at the elbows. It pushed against the road as the entity lifted itself out. A hulking behemoth, nearly ten feet tall. It had fire in it's eyes and saber-like teeth jutting out from it's wide square jawed mouth. Four black horns curled out from it's head and three twisted leathery wing unfurled from it's back. It stood on two hooved feet, a whip of flaming embers in it's hand as it bellowed out in laughter.

"Rakshasa!" Someone in the crowd cried out as women shrieked in fear.

And then, pandemonium ensued.

The demon swung its whip, tearing through man and machine alike as it went on a killing spree.

"Appa!" Sarasvarti cried as she shrunk in fear, tears flowing from her eyes.

"Dammit, why here?!" Director Iyer cursed as he took out his standard issue para-tech pistol.

"Sarasvarti." He pulled her out from the car kicking and screaming as he handed her his bag, his Level 4 clearance pass and the piece of paper with the location of the safehouse on it. He gave her one last hug, as he caressed her back, calming her down.

"Take this. Run. Don't look back." He leaned in and kissed her forehead.

"Appa loves you. Appa just has to stop the big bad Rakshasa. Then I will come for you okay? So go. Run and hide. Don't make a sound. And....if I don't return, go to the address mentioned on the paper, okay?"

"Appa please-"

"Sarasvarti. Be a good girl." He held back his own tears as he wiped hers, "You're a smart girl right? You can find the address. Go to the address. Show them my card. They will keep you safe. Go now. Run!" Sarasvarti hesitated but the demon came ever closer. She looked at it and felt her knees go weak as she stumbled back.

Director Iyer finally had enough and pushed her.

"Run! Now!" Sarasvarti nodded through her tears her legs shaking as she made a mad dash out of the traffic and into the forest.

Director Iyer saw his daughter disappear into the forest and sighed in relief. Now he just needed to lure the demon away from her. He gripped his pistol tight as he strode forward, aiming it at the demon's eye.

Bang!

The bullet shot through the eye of the demon as it cried out in pain. With one good eye it looked all around for its assailant, roaring wildly.

"Hey! Ugly! Come at me!" He shot at the demon but the bullets just bounced off hard, rock-like skin, varely leaving a dent in it.

It roared as it spotted him and charged at him, the ground shaking with each step it took and Director Iyer ran in the opposite direction, weaving between cars leading him away.

He didn't get far though. Not two hundred meters out, the demon caught up. And with a single swipe of its whip, cleaved through Director Iyer.

As he lay on the ground, time seemed to slow down for the Director. His life flashed before his eyes and he muttered his last words.

"Be safe, Sarasvarti. Be saf-"

The demon stomped on him mid sentence, squashing him to a fine paste.

And thus the world ended on that fateful day.