“SCP-682 must be destroyed as soon as possible.” So begins the SCP Foundation file on the dreaded
SCP - 682, a highly-intelligent reptilian monster that has - despite the Foundation’s
best efforts - proved impossible to kill. It may not be the most dangerous SCP out there,
considering that some are capable of eliminating entire realities, but it’s one of the most
iconic, and you’ve probably heard tales of the monster that death forgot, and you
know exactly why everyone is so afraid of the so-called “Hard to Kill Reptile”. It’s been subjected to some of the most
deadly weapons and traps the Foundation could devise, and survived attacks from some of
its deadliest fellow SCPs. But before we tell you about the Foundation’s
many failed assassination attempts against the so-called “Hard to Kill Reptile”,
we need a little more groundwork on what this creature even is. The first thing to know about SCP - 682, is
that this thing wants you and everyone you know dead. Unlike some other creatures like SCP - 096
and SCP - 173, which are murderous but exhibit no real higher processing skills, SCP - 682
possesses cunning, advanced reasoning, and even human-level logical intelligence. SCP - 682 can engage you in conversation,
but just talking to the creature calmly and cordially will sometimes cause it to enter
its “rage state” where it becomes even more dangerous and volatile. The beast is perpetually kept in a huge tank
of powerful hydrochloric acid, melting its tissue to prevent it from reaching its full
potential and going on a rampage. The creature’s most terrifying asset, and
the reason it’s proven impossible to terminate thus far, is its incredible adaptability to
any and all external stimuli. 682 is a reactive being, capable of not only
surviving and regenerating from all attacks, but often incorporating those attacks into
its own wide arsenal. In other words, if you’re hoping to kill
this thing, you better kill it on the first hit - cause if you don’t, you better believe
it’s gonna hit you back a hundred times harder. This brings us to the main event: Some of
the SCP Foundation’s most ambitious and frightening attempts to terminate SCP - 682,
or even understand how it could theoretically be terminated. There are quite literally too many unsuccessful
attempts for us to list them all here, so think of this as a highlight reel of the Foundation’s
most prominent failures. 682 was first cross-tested with SCP - 017,
a humanoid shadow-entity shown to be able to consume matter with its shadows and leave
no traces behind. Tests on tissue samples from 682 showed that
SCP - 017 was able to consume said tissues with no adverse effects. However, when SCP - 017 was placed into the
containment chamber with the actual creature, 682 let out a horrific roar that was so loud
it damaged nearby audio equipment. SCP - 017 fled to the corner of the room,
and 682, in its rage state, attempted to breach containment. Agents managed to suppress and remove the
creature, but no meaningful damage was logged. Attempt failed. SCP - 173 - the Killer statue - was later
brought in, hoping that its thus-far impeccable track recording for killing would hold strong. The second that 173 was introduced into the
testing area, 682 retreated to the far wall and began screeching intensely. It was intelligent enough to know what it
was dealing with here. While the researchers and guards expected
an instantaneous reaction, there was actually a stalemate for over six hours as 682 stared
at 173 continuously. Eventually, the tie was broken when Agents
shot out 682’s eyes with high-caliber sniper rifles, breaking the line of sight and causing
173 to attack. Though 682 sustained damage to several parts
of its body while its eyes regenerated, the creature was not killed. It then regenerated a number of eyes all over
its body, covered in a clear, armoured carapace that made them resistant to bullets. The stalemate continued for an additional
twelve hours, as 682 maintained perpetual eye contact. 173 was eventually removed from the containment
unit, and the mission was aborted. Attempt failed. In their desperation, the SCP Foundation resorted
to bringing in another dangerous and seemingly unkillable monster to take on 682: SCP - 096,
also known as The Shy Guy. As astute SCP fans will already know, this
being kills anything that sees its face, with no known exceptions - and when it enters its
attack mode, it’s thought to be quite literally unstoppable. Or, at least, it was. While SCP - 096 was able to destroy 85% of
682’s original body mass during their 27 hour battle, it was left mentally broken - wounded,
and huddled in the corner. To this day, if ever confronted with SCP 682,
the Shy Guy reacts in pure terror, turning away and clawing at his own face. Attempt failed. During a deadly containment breach, SCP - 682
also went head to head organically with another iconic SCP hall-of-famer: SCP - 106, also
known as The Old Man. The Old Man and a shapeshifting, psionic anomaly
known as SCP - 953 broke into 682’s containment cell. The Old Man pulled both of his fellow anomalous
combatants into his pocket dimension to continue the battle on his terms. However, despite losing 67% of his body mass
during the ensuing pocket dimension showdown, 682 still prevailed - with the Old Man eventually
fleeing back to his cell, and 953 being collected and taken away by agents. Once again, SCP - 682 continued to hold the
title. But it wasn’t just cross-testing experiments,
intentional or otherwise. The SCP Foundation’s quest to kill 682 lead
them to a number of more conventional murder methods, all with varying degrees of success. Due to SCP - 682’s highly adaptive abilities,
some methods were discounted from the outset. For example, launching a powerful thermonuclear
missile at the creature was soundly rejected by O5 Command - on the premise that, if the
creature wasn’t destroyed and evolved to the point where it could shrug off nukes,
humanity would be pretty much done for. Other ideas were abandoned just for being
too ridiculous - such as one researcher’s suggestion to fly the creature through the
air and drop it from a considerable height, hoping to kill it with the high-altitude impact. I’m not sure we even need to tell you why
that’s a terrible idea. But, during the experiments on SCP - 682,
the studies ranged from honest to incompetent to straight-up evil. One guest researcher fed two small, innocent
children to the creature, just to see what would happen. He was then himself fed to the creature for
his sadistic behaviour, which was viewed as getting in the way of his professional conduct. After all, the Foundation is meant to be cold,
not cruel. It was SCP - 682 that had the monopoly on
cruelty. Memetic Kill agents were a resounding failure. They attempted to dismember 682 with a powerful
laser, only to have the creature develop reflective surfaces that displaced the beam and caused
catastrophic damage to the area around it. They attempted to kill the creature by sucking
all the air out of its containment facility and creating a vacuum, but it expelled a dangerous
gaseous compound that reacted violently and exploded when air was once again introduced
into the room. The Foundation used high-precision blades
to slice SCP - 682 into approximately 12,000 pieces then separated these pieces. Unsurprisingly by this point, this attempt
also failed. The 12,000 pieces reformed a short while later
into the fully operational killing machine we all know and fear. In one particularly frightening display of
intelligence and adaptability, the Foundation attempted to kill 682 with extreme heat, but
it shielded itself by developing a secondary carapace composed of solid helium. When personnel entered the room following
the failed attempt on the creature’s life, it shattered its helium carapace into deadly
shards that fired around the room and shredded all Foundation personnel in attendance. It’d set a trap, and that trap had been
wildly successful. The creature’s ability to adapt to seemingly
any offensive is unparalleled, to the point where Foundation staff have no idea how to
classify this creature - whether it’s organic, inorganic, or even alive at all based on any
definitions we could understand. At every turn, the creature just raised more
questions. What is it? Is it possible to destroy it at all by any
means? Who was even trying to kill who here? Because it certainly seemed like SCP - 682
had a masterful K/D ratio by now. More extreme feats of cross-testing continued
in the Foundation’s growing desperation to eliminate this monster. SCP - 162, which is a hypnotic ball of sharp
objects, hooks, and high-tension fishing line, was introduced to 682’s containment cell. The hooks latched onto the creature and tore
huge portions off, including its entire lower jaw and one of its limbs. However, 682 was still able to breach containment,
kill eleven people, and badly wound 86 others. It regenerated its severe injuries in no time. The beast was even taken to the domain of
The Gate Guardian, one of the proposals for SCP - 001. The Guardian has a flaming sword hotter than
the sun, capable of destroying its targets on an atomic level. Naturally, SCP - 682 survived and regenerated. Perhaps the most fascinating cross-test of
all was between 682 and SCP - 053, who manifests as a kind, innocent little girl with the unfortunate
condition of causing homicidal tendencies in all who come into contact with her for
more than ten minutes. The people with these tendencies would then
attempt to harm the girl, but would immediately drop dead shortly after, leaving the girl
intact. The researchers present anticipated two possible
outcomes here: The optimistic outcome, in which 682 entered a rage state, attacked 053,
and died for good. And the realistic outcome, in which 682 attacked
053, possibly experienced some minor injury or nothing at all, and 053 had to be removed
from the containment cell. But that didn’t happen. What did occur was considerably more shocking
than any kind of violence. When 053 entered 682’s containment chamber,
the monster became uncharacteristically docile. Researchers and staff were baffled, and watched
with amazement as 053 approached the terrifying, immortal, mass-murdering monster...and began
to play with it. 682 even allowed 053 to draw on its face with
crayons. Researchers thought they must’ve been dreaming,
seeing this surreal display play out. 053 even appeared to have affection for this
unkillable misanthrope. It was a single act in defiance of everything
they thought they knew. When Foundation personnel entered the containment
cell to separate the two, 682 went ballistic and killed multiple guards. 053 also wept, sad at being separated from
her new friend. To this day, despite further testing, the
Foundation has no idea how or why this happened. Like many details surrounding SCP - 682, it’s
shrouded in deeply frustrating mystery. And so the tale of SCP - 682 continues, in
spite of the Foundation’s best efforts. The monster continues to breach containment
and slaughter with some regularity, taking out its seemingly limitless hatred for not
only human beings, but anything that dares draw breath. Nobody knows where exactly the creature is
from, what its true nature is, or why its ability to adapt and regenerate far exceeds
any known organism on this planet. Perhaps one day, through enough research and
cross testing, we can someday answer these questions with scientific precision, but until
then, we only have one answer: Hatred never dies.
