Cackling fills the air, underscored by bolts
of lighting crackling across the sky. A crazed man stands in a grubby lab coat,
one Doctor Viktor Lasarevitsch, whose license to practice medicine and storm-powered reanimation
has long been revoked. The Mad Scientist is surrounded by bubbling
containers, beakers, and flasks overflowing with smoking chemicals strewn around the room. He checks his cracked watch: it’s nearly
time. He darts across the room, passing between
slabs covered in sheets. Underneath are his specimens, each one made
exactly to his specifications (and serving as perfect examples of why the medical and
scientific communities have made efforts to excommunicate Doctor Lasarevitsch). The Scientist eyes the Tesla coils that he
had affixed to the roof through an open skylight that lets in the howling, freezing October
wind and brings the rain from outside pouring through. His makeshift laboratory is already a mess;
he doesn’t care. Checking his watch again, he reaches for a
lever on the wall, waiting with bated breath for the right moment. Any second now, he tells himself, heart drumming
against his ribs. He looks over at his covered creations, almost
with sentiment. He’s worked tirelessly to create them all,
and soon, the power of the storm will course through their veins and compel them to stand. Some were visible out from beneath their sheets:
a patchwork arm made from fingers, a palm, a forearm, and a bicep, all taken from different
cadavers and recycled. Another lies perfectly still on the slab,
arms crossed over its chest. One’s webbed, scale-covered hand is just
poking out from underneath. They, and all the others, were wired up to
the coil, standing on the roof above. The Mad Scientist’s watch beeps: it’s
time. He pulls down on the lever just as a bolt
of lightning rockets through the air, striking the coil on the roof. An enormous shower of sparks erupts from the
ceiling, the lever, spraying over the thin sheets on the slabs, burning holes in some
of them. Electricity flows down the cables and into
each of the bodies. Gradually, they begin to awaken, met by the
sound of more maniacal laughing and triumphant yells from Doctor Lasarevitsch. They’re alive! Before it became the site of an annual anomalous
Anthology of Horrors, SCP-6531 had previously been the manufacturing center for Lasarevitsch
Wearables. Investigations into this company by the SCP
Foundation yielded little in the way of actionable intelligence. All that could be learned about Lasarevitsch
Wearables was that they used to be a small-scale clothing distributor, their specialty being
Halloween costumes and masks, as well as horror-themed streetwear and everyday clothing. Very few business records from Lasarevitsch
Wearables still exist. After falling victim to bankruptcy in December
of 1996, any information about the company, its operations, and distributors all seems
to have been thoroughly and mysteriously expunged. Efforts are still being made to track down
and interview any former employees of the costume-making company to determine if any
of them were aware of any connection between Lasarevitsch Wearables and various known anomalous
Groups of Interest. However, there also exist no records of any
employees who might have worked at the manufacturing centre. Similarly, no costume stores, either smaller
local businesses or larger national chains, have ever reported to have sold costumes or
clothing made by Lasarevitsch Wearables, neither as seasonal items nor all year around. The only thing the Foundation has been able
to ascertain is that Lasarevitsch Wearables fell into bankruptcy approximately ten months
before the first anomalous incident recorded there took place. Still, that knowledge does little to explain
exactly why these incursions manifest there every year, at roughly the same time, on the
same day: October 31st, Halloween. One leading theory among Foundation researchers
is that these anomalous incursions were triggered in the wake of Lasarevitsch Wearables’ bankruptcy
as part of some attempt by Lasarevitsch’s owners to continue the company’s legacy. Alternative explanations have ranged from
the company’s Halloween costumes being anomalously possessed or haunted, now acting as vessels
for demonic entities, deceased spirits, or some otherworldly force. All the Foundation knows for certain is that,
after sundown, every October 31st since 1997, SCP-6531 has been the site of an anomalous
incident involving multiple entities, designated as SCP-6531-1. These entities can vary drastically in terms
of their abilities and appearance but seem to be restricted to only resembling the Halloween
costumes formerly created and sold by Lasarevitsch Wearables. One year, they might appear as vampires; the
following year could see a group of zombies emerging from SCP-6531. Werewolves, ghosts, and multiple instances
of typical depictions of Frankenstein’s Monster have also been documented. Of the few scraps of information regarding
Lasarevitsch Wearables that the Foundation has been able to recover, they have been able
to obtain a complete catalog of the costume company’s inventory to better prepare engagement
countermeasures and containment procedures for each year’s manifestation. All recorded incidents, as well as details
of effective countermeasures are available upon request to all Foundation personnel assigned
to SCP-6531. The group of SCP-6531-1 entities that manifest
at Halloween can total a maximum of a hundred identical costume creatures. They will never emerge later than midnight
and will immediately dematerialize once dawn arrives on November 1st. Whether this is caused by an aversion to sunlight
or some other anomalous factor that temporally binds their existence to the night of Halloween
is still unknown. These emergences can occur at any time between
sundown and sunrise from any of the there entrances to SCP-6531. There is also no other known limitation to
the amount of emergences that can occur each Halloween. Some years have passed with only a single
group of SCP-6531 entities manifesting; other years have been considerably more challenging
for on-site personnel overseeing containment efforts. Since learning of SCP-6531, the SCP Foundation
has enacted standard regional containment procedures, securing the anomalous manufacturing
centre and the surrounding area. Civilians are barred from entering the former
Lasarevitsch Wearables facility and either turned away or amnesticised if they are found
approaching. Although, at present, nobody has come forward
with relevant information regarding the company, should a civilian present themselves as having
some foreknowledge of Lasarevitsch Wearables, then they are to be detained and interrogated
by Foundation agents on site at SCP-6531. Every Halloween, Mobile Task Force Eta 13
– also known under the codename of the ‘Horror Hosts’ – has been tasked with responding
to the annual manifestation events. These operatives, and them alone, are permitted
to neutralize instances of SCP-6531 in accordance with the effective countermeasures the Foundation
has devised for each different possible type of costume creature that can appear. At present, there exists no way of predetermining
which of the Lasarevitsch Wearables’ costumes will appear ahead of manifestation, meaning
that the Horror Hosts have to be prepared for any and all eventualities ahead of Halloween. Possible countermeasures involve using ultraviolet
lights to eliminate vampires, electro-magnetic pulse grenades to deactivate robots, and explosive
ordinance for undead SCP-6531-1 instances. On the 31st of October 2021, MTF Eta 13 operative
John Plumber reported for his first assignment to the task force’s post overseeing the
containment of SCP-6531. For their own safety, the remainder of Foundation
personnel had been evacuated. The other three hundred and sixty-four days
of the year, they were normally involved in researching the anomalous building, trying
to examine the exact properties of the former Lasarevitsch Wearables’ manufacturing center,
and hoping to determine the actual cause of the annual emergences. But on Halloween, everyone apart from Horror
Hosts One, Two, and Three was granted the treat of a night off. At 7:15, the three members of MTF Eta 13 reported
for one more check-in with SCP Foundation Command ahead of the night’s inevitable
anomalous incursions. Alongside Operative Plumber, their latest
recruit were the other two Hosts, Alfred Snagrod and Wesley Timid, designated as Hosts One
and Two, respectively. Each of them performed their radio checks
with Foundation Control, Host One in position with eyes on the north entrance to SCP-6531. A few feet away, Host Two checked in at the
west entrance, and Host Three did the same, with a clear line of sight to the east entrance. Control issued one more reminder to the trio,
instructing them that they were to call in each emergence of SCP-6531-1 and confirm a
containment method for each one before deploying countermeasures. Host Two, Wesley Timid, welcomed his fellow
Horror Host, letting the newly recruited Plumber know that he could rely on his teammates and
to put out a call over the radio if he needed anything. The first night working at keeping emergences
contained could, by his admission, get a little freaky. Host Plumber was grateful and appreciative
of his new comrade being so welcoming, and Host Timid explained he saw it as passing
along the favor that former agent, Willard Baller, had done for him and Snagrod when
they had first joined the Horror Hosts. Baller had been previously stationed at SCP-6531
until his departure from the Foundation, at which point Host Plumber was assigned as his
replacement. However, when Plumber asked about his predecessor
and why he was no longer an active member of MTF Eta 13, Host Snagrod interjected before
Timid could offer any answers, commanding the other two Hosts to maintain radio silence
and stay alert. Within twenty minutes, the night’s first
recorded emergence took place, witnessed by Host Plumber at the east entrance. He observed a group of undead shambling out
of SCP-6531 in numbers of around a hundred. Startled by the sudden appearance of so many
zombies, the Horror Hosts’ new recruit immediately began preparing explosive ordnance countermeasures,
readying a rotary grenade launcher to thin out the encroaching horde. Immediately, Host Snagrod spoke up over the
radio, commanding Host Plumber to stand down. The courtyard beyond the east entrance had
already been readied for the emergence with the deployment of landmines, something Plumber
got to witness firsthand as some of the decrepit undead stepped their rotten feet in the wrong
spot. A rapid series of explosions lit up the courtyard
brighter than any seasonal Halloween decorations, pieces of zombies scattering everywhere as
each of them was splattered almost instantly. Plumber radioed Control, informing them that
the night’s first emergence had been dealt with, leaving behind quite the mess. Another twenty minutes passed before the next
emergence of new SCP-6531-1 instances. This time Host Snagrod, at the north entrance
of the manufacturing centre, observed a trio of figures dressed in historical period clothing. It was clear that they were a group of European
vampires, meaning Snagrod had only a few moments to act. Given their abilities to turn into bats or
travel at speeds nearly imperceptible to the human eye, if these vampires weren’t neutralized
quickly, they’d be free to wreak havoc, no doubt attacking civilians and draining
them of their blood. Fortunately, Host Snagrod had enough prior
experience of manifestations like this and had just the countermeasure prepared: birdseed. Radioing Foundation Control to confirm his
plan, they gave him the command to engage, and the MTF operative hurled open bags of
birdseed in the vampires’ direction, causing it to scatter in all directions. Much to Host Plumber’s confusion, this seemed
to stop the three vampires in their tracks, as they became fixated on the seed strewn
over the ground before them. But they were trapped, standing still long
enough for Host Snagrod to activate a series of ultraviolet lights. As the lamps came on, the vampires screamed
vulgarities in Romanian before exploding, making soft popping sounds as they were immolated. Still baffled by the strategy, Plumber asked
what the birdseed had been for. Snagrod, being slightly more forthcoming when
it came to sharing containment tactics, explained that European mythology describes vampires
as having a form of arithmomania. This is often an expression of obsessive-compulsive
disorder wherein individuals feel a strong compulsion to count their actions or any objects
within their immediate surroundings. Using birdseed, Snagrod successfully used
this counting compulsion to force the vampires to stay in one place while counting every
seed. Thirteen minutes past eight, just short of
twenty minutes after the previous incident, another emergence began. This time, approximately two dozen skeletons
began striding out of the east entrance, some of them armed with swords and axes. Once again, Host Plumber braced himself for
a direct fight against the undead, but before he could engage, Snagrod intervened once more,
telling him to stand down. No sooner had he said this did Plumber see
why: the moment that the oncoming skeleton army stepped outside of the boundary of SCP-6531,
they all fell apart. Host Timid chimed in and pointed out that
these bony creatures had no muscles, tendons or any of the other bodily material that keeps
bones together, meaning there was nothing for the Horror Hosts to do but let them disassemble. Plumber noticed that the various skulls now
strewn about the courtyard were vibrating, their teeth still chattering. Timid was quick to assure him they would likely
shut up after about half an hour, although it did little to make it seem less messed
up. Only eleven minutes later, Host Timid witnessed
the first emergence from his post of the night. Out of the west entrance, a group of three
robots were marching into view, moving slowly, but each armed with hefty, futuristic-looking
weaponry. Snagrod asked if they were sporting any visible
shielding, but Timid replied, saying they looked to be old-school, retro robots. He told Control he was readying an electromagnetic
pulse grenade to take the three anomalous automatons out, but then stopped, claiming
he wanted to try an alternative. He leaped out in front of the three robots
and yelled at them, ‘this statement is a lie’. Immediately, the robots opened fire, prompting
Control to ask Timid to report his status. All three of the robots had completely missed
him; he already knew that, given they were older models, their shots weren’t being
aided by any guidance system. The safest spot for him to stand was directly
in front of their guns. Over the radio, Snagrod urged Timid, trying
to state a logical paradox in order to confuse the robots was pointless, and instructed him
to just arm and launch the EMP grenade. Laughing, clearly not taking much of this
seriously, Timid tried again and asked the robots the confusing question of ‘Does the
set of all sets that don't contain themselves contain itself?’ Not waiting to see how the three machines
reacted, Host Snagrod invoked what he referred to as the ‘Baller Clause.’ Despite protesting that the robots probably
wouldn’t hit him, Timid eventually did as instructed and launched the grenade, instantly
deactivating all three of the robotic SCP-6531-1 instances. Plumber chimed in to ask about the aforementioned
Clause, and Snagrod explained. Since the Horror Hosts had been assigned to
SCP-6531 for quite some time, they were afforded considerable leeway by Foundation Control
when it came to addressing each of the costume creatures’ emergences. If, at any point, one of the trio felt another
of their teammates was being reckless, jeopardizing the mission or their own safety, then they
could invoke the Baller Clause. Which Plumber was quick to notice seemed to
be named after his suspiciously ‘retired’ predecessor, Willard Baller. The next emergence didn’t occur until just
over an hour later, at 9:29. Once again, Plumber was on the receiving side
of a group of SCP-6531-1 instances, all of them scaled humanoids with fins. Yet again, he was ready to enact countermeasures
and told to stand by, with Timid even remarking that Host Plumber seemed to have beginner's
luck. The moment that the half-fish creatures emerged
from the building, they dropped and began flopping around on the ground, rendered harmless
thanks to asphyxiation, since none of them were underwater. Plumber was still unsettled by having to watch
the fishy humanoids’ bodies flop around, slowly dying. Compared to the skulls, this seemed to be
much worse. A full hour and a half passed before Plumber
witnessed his next emergence, sighting six people brandishing various dangerous melee
weapons, ranging from knives and axes to chainsaws. According to Snagrod, these were slashers
and could be dealt with by using standard ammunition. However, when Plumber opened fire, the six
approaching slashers seemed to keep coming. Timid pointed out that these were likely sequel
slashers, making them slightly more robust. Upping the countermeasures to explosives,
Plumber armed a single grenade and hurled it towards the slashers. All of them were caught in the blast, rendering
them neutralized. As Plumber declared the emergence contained,
Timid pointed out to not take his eyes off the bodies – as in slasher movies, not seeing
the body could mean that the slasher survived. Judging by the disconnected heads and limbs
left in the area, Plumber told him it was safe to withdraw that particular concern. Ten minutes later, at a quarter past eleven,
the next emergence occurred. A group of ectoplasmic entities emerged from
SCP-6531’s west entrance. These were, as Timid observed, the goopy kind
of ghosts. Radioing Control for assistance, he asked
if the Spenglers had been properly checked. Still learning the lingo on the job, Host
Plumber asked what Timid was referring to by Spenglers. This was the nickname given to a series of
large vacuum devices set up around each entrance by Foundation technicians, specially designed
to capture ephemeral entities. Upon activating, within minutes, there were
no ghosts left; the latest of the night’s emergences having been successfully contained. The next came almost half an hour later, as
three hairy humanoid entities in ripped clothing emerged. Plumber readied himself to engage using incendiary
rounds, only for Snagrod to tell him that there was no need. Timid pointed out that the ground in front
of the werewolves was covered in a veritable meat buffet, thanks to the leftover slasher
and fishmen remains. Normally, the arrival of werewolves this late
on Halloween meant that all the creatures would want to do was eat and would likely
fall asleep shortly after, until the sunrise caused them to dematerialize. Although they could be disposed of easily,
the werewolves posed no threat, but could be interesting to observe. Doing so was even something of a tradition
among the Horror Hosts that baller had started. As Plumber watched the group of werewolves,
he noticed one picking up the discarded bones from the skeletons and throwing it for another
to chase after. With the werewolves eventually falling asleep,
and no further signs of any anomalous activity, the annual emergences at SCP-6531 had come
to a close. Control dispatched clean-up and auxiliary
containment crews to the site to take care of the mess left behind, while a transport
was sent to pick up the three members of the Horror Hosts. Timid suggested the three of them enjoy a
nightcap of pumpkin vodka back at base, and while he was happy to join, Plumber felt the
need to ask a question that had been bothering him. It was bout Baller, former Host Three of MTF
Eta 13. Plumber had noticed that his new teammates
seemed sentimental about their former comrade, not to mention the Baller Clause being invoked
whenever one of them was being reckless. Although Plumber had made it through his first
Halloween at SCP-6531, he’d been concerned that his predecessor had died at this post. But both Timid and Snagrod explained that
they were only sentimental about Baller because they liked him so much, he’d been a good
friend to them. He had only left the Foundation after receiving
a publishing deal for a series of horror novels. Relieved that this job wasn’t likely to
cost him his life, Plumber then asked why the Baller Clause was named after him. Barely holding back laughter, Timid explained
that a few years prior, Baller had attempted to train one of the werewolves that had emerged
from SCP-6531. The encounter led to an embarrassing encounter
between Baller and a six-foot-tall wolf creature being caught on security cameras. Fortunately, Timid pointed out, not everything
involving the SCP Foundation resulted in blood and pain. Occasionally, they could be nicer than expected,
with personnel able to do their jobs and go home safely, living their lives without the
risk of being killed by anomalies. With that, the three Foundation operatives
headed off together to enjoy what was left of their Halloween. Check out the Dr. Bob Patreon and become a
junior researcher today! Now go and watch another entry from the files
of Dr. Bob, like SCP-6096 – Blanket Ghost!
