Calvin Lucien leads the Killsquad team through
mud and freezing rain. In front of them looms the fortress of Baron
Leeman Hoadley, the Eighth Overseer. The team has already been through a lot: from
breaking the Overseer Council’s deal with death by eliminating O5-13, to using the Spear
of the Non-Believer to kill the god like Archivist, O5-10. The hunting of Overseers has taken a toll
on the Killsquad. O5-12 almost killed Adam, and Olivia was stuck
in what seemed like an endless mind game with O5-11. The first five Overseers were eliminated,
but the words that the Ninth Overseer spoke to Calvin Lucien before she died still run
through his mind: are you afraid of death? Now the Killsquad is about to infiltrate one
of the most heavily guarded facilities in the world to eliminate the Eighth Overseer. Upon reaching the castle the team is surprised
to find the structure in ruin. No one is supposed to know the location of
O5-8 though. The fortress was supposed to be practically
impregnable. They storm the castle of O5-8 all the same. The journal Calvin possesses that contains
information about the members of the SCP Foundation’s powerful O5 Council identifies him as a former
industrialist named Baron Leeman Hoadley. With his vast wealth, Hoadley funded the Foundation
at the start and was considered the unofficial leader of the council in its early days with
immense control over the actions of the organization. The Killsquad makes their way through the
dimly lit hallways of the castle. As they turn the corner they are surprised
to find the charred remains of Baron Leeman Hoadley’s bodyguards. It seems that someone or something has gotten
to Hoadley before they could. The team makes their way to the main chamber
and breaches the door. Laying by a still lit fireplace is O5-8. The Killsquad scan the room to make sure the
killer isn’t still in there with them. Adam walks over to the body and examines it. He quickly realizes that Hoadley hasn’t
been murdered at all. He sees that Barron Hoadley’s body has been
drastically modified using anomalous technology. The Overseer used his immortality to modify
almost every part of his body to make himself stronger. Unfortunately for Baron Hoadley, when the
Overseers’ deal with death was broken by Calvin, the modifications to his body slowly
tore him apart. His regular body could no longer support all
of the modifications, and what once made him practically invincible became the very thing
that destroyed him. The team leaves the castle and crosses O5-8
off of their list. On their way out Adam pulls Calvin aside. He has the feeling that Anthony hasn’t been
completely honest with the rest of the team. He had the feeling that Antony was hiding
something from them. Calvin had had similar thoughts recently. He pushes Anthony for more information about
his past and Anthony reveals that he’s over one hundred years old. The vial of water from the Fountain of Youth
that Calvin has was not the only one. Early in his career with the Insurgency he
had confiscated other vials from a Foundation site. His squad drank the water and it extended
their lives. He asks Calvin what he plans on doing with
his water from the fountain. “I’m going to destroy it,” Calvin tells
him. Anthony agrees with this plan. Once you drink from the fountain of youth
you may extend your life, but a part of you dies at the same time. “Vibrancy of the senses disappears, leading
to a seemingly shallow life.” If Anthony could go back and do it again,
he never would have drank the water. Calvin receives intel from the Insurgency
that the Seventh Overseer is in a small town in Cambodia. The Killsquad makes their way to the village
and surveys the area, hoping to get a glimpse at the Overseer who is code named Green. As the team conducts reconsiance, Anthony
tells them he thinks this mission is a setup. It is too remote, and there are so many unknown
variables. But, Calvin is convinced that this might be
their only chance to kill Green. Since Green arrived in the area there has
been nonstop chaos. She has destabilized the local governments
and now the area is in all out war. The team weaves through narrow passageways
between houses and buildings, trying to make their way to the central compound where Green
is located. Suddenly a mob starts to form. They are getting closer and closer to the
team. In a quick decision to avoid being seen, Calvin
orders everyone into a nearby building. Before Anthony can follow, the mob rounds
the corner. They spot Anthony and he’s forced to flee. Calvin, Olivia, and Adam watch as the mob
chases after Anthony, but they have to keep moving. Calvin knows that Anthony can take care of
himself, and they are too close to their goal to stop now. Calvin slowly opens the front door of the
house they are hiding in and peers out. The coast looks clear, so he signals Olivia
and Adam to follow him. Before they can step out into the street,
a gas canister enters through the cracked doorway. The room fills with sleeping gas and the team
passes out. When they awake, they are tied up in a large
room with marble vaulted ceilings. O5-7 is standing in front of Calvin. She smiles wickedly while holding a knife. She compliments Calvin on what he and his
team have been able to do so far. No one believed they could pull off even a
fraction of what they have. But now she has an offer for Calvin. She points towards Adam and Olivia and tells
Calvin he must choose one of them to die. If he doesn’t, she’ll kill the leader
of the rioters and plunge another part of the country into chaos. “Screw you” is Calvin’s response. “Very well,” utters Green. “Have it your way.” She assassinates the leader being held in
her compound, then turns back to Calvin. She now threatens to torture his team until
Calvin makes a choice of who to kill. Green slashes Adam’s cheek with her knife
as Calvin screams for Green to leave his team alone and torture him instead. Green just smiles. “I am going to enjoy killing your friends
while you watch, as you have killed so many of my Overseers on the council.” She reaches up in the air with the knife above
Adam’s head. Before she can plunge the knife through his
skull a bullet passes through her hand, causing her to drop the knife. Anthony kneels on a rooftop across the courtyard,
smoking sniper rifle still pointed at Green who runs. Calvin uses the dropped knife to cut his ropes
and chases after Green. He follows her to the roof where he watches
as she boards a helicopter. The aircraft lifts off as Anthony fires at
it from his original position, but does no serious damage. In the plaza below the mob that had separated
the team earlier becomes restless. There is complete chaos and someone fires
a rocket at the fleeing helicopter. The rocket hits the tail of the aircraft,
sending it crashing into the plaza full of rioters below as the crowd flees from the
scene. Calvin makes his way towards the wreckage
and reaches the wreckage at the same time Anthony does. Calvin looks at him, smiles, and thanks him
for saving his life. Anthony smiles back but before he can say
anything, a gunshot rings out and a bullet rips through his neck. Calvin turns to see where it came from and
is horrified to see the burning body of O5-8. Her skin has been charred black, but in her
burnt hand she holds a gun. What’s left of her lips curl back in a sinister
grin as she fires again and hits Anthony in the chest. He falls to the ground. Calvin runs to him and pulls his gun out to
shoot O5-8, but she is already dead. Calvin holds his dying teammate as blood pours
out of his neck and chest. But Calvin can stop this. He pulls out the vial of water from the Fountain
of Youth. “No,” winces Anthony. “I have lived long enough. Thank you my friend, I will see you in whatever
lies beyond this life.” Anthony’s chest rises then falls, it does
not rise again. Olivia and Adam round the corner to see Calvin
holding the lifeless body of their teammate, tears flowing from his eyes. The team holds a small ceremony and burial
for Anthony, but they are only halfway through their mission, and can’t stop now. They fly back to the United States where an
undercover Insurgency agent named Kowalski informs them that O5-6 is already aware they
are after him. This Overseer is code named The American because
he has the power of the entire U.S. Military at his fingertips. The Killsquad scouts the base where The American
is located. Kowalski warns them of a crate that was recently
brought to the base from Site-19. The American showed great interest in whatever
was in the container. The group sets up a camp on a hill overlooking
the base. As the sun slowly rises the next day, the
Killsquad is spotted by a drone and forced to hop in their Jeep and try to run. They make their way down the hill, finding
themselves in the valley below with no clear exit. In front of them lands a helicopter as humvees
roar into the canyon behind them. The team is surrounded. A Jeep pulls up and O5-6 steps out. He introduces himself as Rufus King, member
of the Overseer Council, but an American citizen first and foremost. All he really wants is to protect the country
he loves. “Thanks to you, I have lost my immortality
and can no longer effectively protect the United States anymore,” the American says
to Calvin. “But I am willing to make a deal… your
freedom for the Spear of the Non-Believer. Rumor has it that you have the spear in your
possession, and you used it to kill the Archivist. If you give me the spear I will let you go.” “No,” replies Calvin. “I will never give an Overseer the means
to cause more destruction. The spear stays with us.” “Very well,” the American says with a
frown. “Then I suppose my only other option is
to take it from you, but not without giving you a fair chance. Run Calvin Lucien. Run as fast as you can, I will be coming for
you.” The American turns and walks towards the container
from Site-19, which is being lowered from a helicopter hovering above them. Calvin sprints back to the Jeep with the other
members of his team. As they drive away they hear a horrible, guttural,
screech from whatever was inside the container. After a few moments the army begins to pursue
them, out in front of the military force is O5-6 riding SCP-682. He is using a black whip to urge the creature
forward, and they’re gaining on the Killsquad… fast. A row of vehicles pulls up beside The American
and SCP-682, then something strange happens. A man appears in front of the oncoming forces
led by the American. The man’s skin bulges and seems to be moving
from within. The skin of the man sloughs from his body. The infection that is SCP-610 erupts out of
him and onto the soldiers in a nearby Jeep. SCP-610 begins to infect and consume everyone
around it. Suddenly, there are thousands of instances
of SCP-610 coming from the mountain side, flooding into the valley. They close in around the army and O5-6. The American begins fighting off the flesh
eating creatures from the back of SCP-682, but he becomes overwhelmed. He can no longer focus on pursuing Calvin
and his team. From the back of the Jeep Olivia pulls out
her rifle. She aims and fires. The bullet hits The American in the chest. He is flung off the back of SCP-682 and engulfed
in a sea of SCP-610 creatures. The Killsquad continues to drive, trying to
put as much distance between themselves and the SCP-610 infestation as possible. But then Calvin suddenly slams on the breaks. Standing in front of them is a man in a black
suit and bow tie. He introduces himself as Blackbird, the Fifth
Overseer. According to the journal his actual name is
Mortimer J. Denning Von Kronecker. He stands in front of the Jeep with a menacing
grin. “You have been causing a lot of trouble,”
he says looking at Calvin. Olivia swings her gun around. “Please my dear, that won’t help you,”
Von Kronecker says. He pulls out a knife and stabs himself through
the neck. He falls to the ground apparently dead. There is a gust of wind, a whiff of ozone,
and an identical copy, and still very much alive, Von Kronecker lands next to his own
dead body. “See what I mean,” he says. Olivia lowers her rifle. “Come with me; I have something to show
you,” the Blackbird beccons. Seeing no other option Calvin, Olivia, and
Adam exit the Jeep and follow the Blackbird. As they walk, the world changes around them. The desert mountains fade away into blackness
and they find themselves in a near-apocalyptic London. “Ah, it’s good to be home,” the Blackbird
says as they emerge onto a cobblestone street. “You cannot stop the Overseers plans, however,
I can give you an alternative. Let’s see if any of you will take it.” In front of each Killsquad member appears
a door. They have an uncontrollable urge to open their
respective door and walk through. The Blackbird stands smiling as he watches
Calvin, Olivia, and Adam enter each of their portals. Adam enters his door and looks around. He is in Portland. His parents walk into the room. In this universe his family has been granted
asylum. Adam never has to interact with any SCPs or
the Foundation. He is free to live a normal life. From the kitchen comes Calvin wearing an apron. He is holding a steaming pot. Adam locks eyes with Calvin who smiles at
him. The Blackbird whispers into Adam’s ear,
“in this reality both of your parents and siblings are still alive. Also, the man you love loves you back, you
and Calvin could be married if you stayed here, wouldn’t that be nice?” Olivia enters her door. She is on the deck of a yacht. At the bow sits an easel with art supplies. The man that Olivia once loved walks across
the deck towards her. The Blackbird looms over her, “in this reality
you didn’t accidentally kill him. This could be your happily ever after. Wouldn’t that be nice?” Calvin steps through his door. He is in a grassy clearing near a lake. The Blackbird hisses in Calvin’s ear, “I’m
giving you the opportunity to save your mother this time Calvin. You were just a scared little boy, but in
this reality you can be brave. You can actually save your mother from her
fate.” “No!” Calvin screams. “This isn’t real!” The Blackbird cackles. Calvin looks away from the lake and towards
the treeline. Hidden in the shadows he can just barely make
out a hooded figure. Calvin walks towards it. The Blackbird follows, he is screaming at
the person in the treeline. “I was only trying to help!” The hooded figure reaches out and hands Calvin
a metal tube. He opens it to find a set of eyeglasses inside. Calvin puts them on and turns to look at the
Blackbird. He steps back in horror. The glasses have revealed the true form of
the Blackbird. He is a winged, pseudo-avian, monstrosity
full of rage. The mysterious hooded figure directs Calvin
to open the tube again. Inside is an interdimensional fishing line
made by Dr. Wondertainment, and white wiffle ball bat. Calvin grabs the fishing line and wraps it
around O5-5’s leg. The Blackbird flies into the air trying to
get away from Calvin, but Calvin wraps the other end of the fishing line around his arm. The Blackbird begins to jump from dimension
to dimension trying to get rid of Calvin. They appear on the deck of SCP-455, in Site-19
where SCP-682 walks freely, in the dead world of SCP-2935. Every time they stop in a new dimension, Calvin
takes the opportunity to attack the Blackbird with the bat. And it seems that he is slowly weakening the
monster. They finally land at the bottom of a Deepwell
Foundation containment site, where the Darkbody that is SCP-001 is contained. Standing in front of the containment field
is Alison Chao, The Black Queen, whose sole mission is to destroy the Foundation. “You!” cries the Blackbird. “You are the one who has been helping Lucien!” The Black Queen nods her head. “Yes, I have been helping Calvin Lucien
to eliminate you and the other Overseers. The Foundation must fall.” “You are nothing! You cannot stop me! I am The Black King!” screams O5-5. Alison Chao sighs. She pushes a button on the panel next to her,
shutting down the array containing the Darkbody. Out of the cloud of dust appears SCP-001,
a massive black creature who seemed to absorb all light. “No! Stop!” shrieks the Blackbird. SCP-001 does not move, but the room begins
to shake. The Blackbird continues to scream as his body
folds in on itself until he is reduced to a single superheated point, and then blinks
out of existence. Alison Chao then reactivates the containment
array, sealing 001 away once again. “I will return you to your reality along
with your friends,” says the Black Queen. “But perhaps our paths shall cross again
Calvin Lucien.” There is a bright flash of light and Calvin
finds himself on a private jet sitting next to Olivia and Adam. They are all shaken, but the Blackbird is
dead. O5-5 has been eliminated. The three members of the team sit silently,
still pondering what might have been if they stayed in the alternate realities. Suddenly, the phone on the plane begins to
ring, breaking the silence. Calvin picks it up. On the other line is the Fourth Overseer. He has contacted Calvin to discuss surrendering
to the Insurgency. Unfortunately, things do not always go as
planned. Calvin Lucien is about to make the most difficult
and dangerous decision of his life.
