Chapter 22

"Is that really all you want to know?"

Michael shrugged, "Well, godlike beings seem to be limited in what they can tell me about him. They act like he'd show up and beat the hell out of them if they did. So you seemed like good middle ground."

Able laughed, "Well, you're definitely an apostle of Order, that's for sure. I've met several of them throughout the years. Hell, the foundation has one of their own. Although he's not as much fun as you are."

"So do you know what Order's whole deal is? Because there doesn't seem to be much information on him."

"Well I know he has sway over where you kind gets sent, although it is somewhat limited."

His grin widened, "I can relate to the man. He leaves the weak's survival up to chance in the hopes it makes them strong, and takes a firm hand in guiding the growth of the strong."

Well this isn't sounding good. It seems like Orders cherry picking where to send people who interested him.

Wait?

"GODDAMNIT!"

Able quirked his head in confusion.

"The hide in a corner and cry strategy was the right one! That's how he lived so long!"

Michael took a moment to calm himself.

"Anything else I should know?"

Able paused for a second in though, pretty much ignoring the basketball sized hole in his side.

"Oh yeah! One apostle I'd met complained of the battle's Order forced them to partake in against their own kind. I didn't really understand the complaint though. It sounds quite enjoyable."

"What do you mean by 'own kind'? Do you mean dimension hoppers?"

"Sure, I suppose."

Fuck, the Tommy he'd fought back in the forest had been hard enough to kill. If that becomes a recurring event it could get bad."

"Anything else?"

"What do I look like to you, a scholar? You're lucky to get that much out of me."

"The only reason you remember anything about them is because you fought them, isn't it?"

Able averted his eyes.

"Well, thanks for the information. Do me a favor and don't make the next guy work so hard to get it. Also can you call off the kill squad watching me from the woods. I've run out of Shy Guys to throw at them."

Able chuckled, "To the victor go the spoils."

With that Michael recalled his troops and left Able alone on the forest floor.

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The shift took Michael back to his world roughly four hours after his fight with Able had ended.

Well at least the timing was convenient for this one.

Michael looked around and found himself once again standing in the woods near the foundation.

With a sigh, he started walking. He'd taken the chip out of his neck, so the foundation likely had no idea he was even back. No convoy was coming to pick him up this time.

He could just up and leave, but as tested in the previous dimension this group was far too good at tracking down people.

Besides, the foundation isn't really a prison. Well it kinda is, but it's like one of those prison's that have tennis courts. Or maybe like a cheap hotel. One that gives me grenades.

Regardless, Michael continued his walk back. If he wanted to escape from the foundation later he could. He was probably near the top of the list for hard to contain SCP's.

Just combining his dimension traveling abilities with any amount of physical strength made him extremely difficult to keep locked away.

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Forty minutes passed before Michael could see the foundation off in the distance, but something was strange.

He could see guards running around the outside of the facility, as several helicopters flew overhead towards the building.

"Well that can't be good. I should probably go check that out."

With that, Michael kicked off the ground, cracks spreading along the earth from the force of his steps.

In no time at all he was in front of the facility where most of the faculty seemed to be in complete panic.

Michael grabbed a random scientist and pulled him aside, "What's going on here?"

"Oh, you're Michael right? We've had a site wide power outage. All the cell doors have been opened!"

"Wait, the doors just open up when the power go's out?"

"What, no are you stupid? Of course they don't all open when the power's out, someone obviously tampered with the system."

Michael restrained himself from smacking the guy upside the head when suddenly several gunshots went off behind Michael.

He quickly pivoted around and aimed with his shotgun.

A guy wearing khakis and a button down shirt was nonchalantly walking amongst the foundation members, lazily firing a pistol at anyone who happened to get close to him.

The man had a bored expression on his face and slicked back hair.

The staff didn't even seem to notice the man firing shots point blank into their faces. It's like they didn't even seem to care he was there.

Michael charged toward the man, firing a slug into the guy's chest that knocked him clean on his ass.

When he reached the man he pointed his shotgun down towards his head. The man had a look of abject shock on his face. He'd clearly not expected anyone to actually attack him, and weirdly enough the guy didn't look hurt in the slightest bit from the shot to the chest.

What the hells up with this guy?

Michael tore the pistol from the man's hands and gripped him by the neck, lifting him in the air before slamming him back into the ground.

Michael sensed the status of the man's body, and there was no actual damage done from this attack. This man was definitely an SCP.

"Wait, wait! Can you actually see me, like for real?"

Michael ignored him and tied the man's hands and feet using zip ties before dragging him over to one of his infected soldiers.

"Watch over this asshole."

Michael walked back over to the Scientist he'd been talking to.

"I think I just caught one of your escaped SCPs."

"What the hell are you talking about, why did you just fire your weapon into a crowd!"

Michael looked around and noticed several guards pointing rifles towards him. They seemed to be hesitating, likely because most of them had read his file.

Michael held his hands up non threateningly and slowly placed his shotgun on the floor.

"Easy now, let's not do something you'll regret. What's with all the hostility?"

"You fired a weapon into a crowd of foundation members, and from the looks of it several of them are dead."

…

"Oh, I get it."

Michael pointed towards the man he captured.

"That was him."

"Your soldiers are an extension of yourself, that's not an excuse."

"What, no. Do y'all actually not see the dude I just tied up. Y'all practically watched him kill those guys."

The scientist took a closer look at the man Michael had detained, before releasing a gasp, "Dear lord, did you actually zip tie a baby?"

Michael looked back towards the forty something year old he'd tied up, he could literally hear him swearing and threatening to kill his soldier right at that moment.

"Are you actually being serious right now?. It was him, he's probably some sort of mind altering SCP. Now I'm going to need you to tell me everything that escaped from containment so I can actually go deal with it."

The scientist didn't seem to believe him, but soon a higher ranking member of the foundation quickly pushed their way towards Michael.

"What's all this about?"

Michael piped up, "These guys are being influenced by a mind altering SCP."

"No we're not, he's zip-tying babies!"

Michael sighed, "Do you even hear yourself right now!"

The foundation leader took a look at Michael's prisoner.

"What the hell, why did you zip tie a puppy?"

...

"You know what. I'm done with this conversation."

Michael ordered his soldiers to bury the guy somewhere deep underground, he'd probably come get him later. Assuming the guy was completely indestructible, he should be fine without oxygen.

The staff we're far too on edge around Michael right now, so he decided he'd just go into the facility with limited information. There was no sense in trying to talk rationally to someone incapable of doing so. He'd probably find someone down there who was less insane.

Hell, they were all still yelling at him for burying the puppy/baby.

Michael ignored them and quickly stole a keycard from a dead scientist and walked to the front gate.

I guess I should go see how fucked up this place is.

With that he opened the main door and entered the facility.