Locations: Site-██, Germany; Site-17, United States of America; Site-██, Poland
Date: 11th March 2022 - 28th March 2022
Your POV:
After an unsuccessful attempt of destroying the machine with nuclear bombs, we decided to stay in Germany for some time in order to prepare an operation of securing the machine as soon as possible. We knew, that society couldn't find out about this, and we had to find a way to hide the machine lying in the nuclear crater without anyone noticing it.
Our greatest enemy was time. If we waited for too long, people would take photos and this would reveal the truth about Foundation's existance. At the same time we were unable to do it immidiately due to enormous heat in the center of explosion and deadly radiation dose in the nearest area.
Thankfully O5s found a solution to this problem in no time. They decided to use a machine, which allows to move things to different universes. Cain told us that they tried to use it after SCP-PL-106 drew a number 1 in order to move it away from us but due to its anomalous properties it didn't work. They sent few of their people into another universe, where they would backfill the area near this machine with soil, and then move it to our universe in order to hide the machine from people's eyes.
It took them some time, but eventually they received a signal to transfer the soil between universes and go back from a safe place. Surprisingly it worked and despite drones taking photos from safe distance, nobody found out about the machine and almost everyone thought that it was a terrorist attack and not a planned action.
Governments also did a good job at hiding the truth. They immidiately started an investigation and after that blamed a completly fake anarchist organization. People believed them which meant, that officially Foundation didn't have anything in common with that and people were unaware of its existance.
However it didn't matter how long we would hide it, everyone would die if we left it alone. We had less than four months to find a way to destroy it and we had to ask 343 for help, so after few days we decided to go back to USA. I wanted to take another helicopter which would take us there, but Olivia decided to try and teleport us there, and before we were able to react, the entire world around us began spinning and few seconds later we landed on a floor in Site-17.
Despite the fact that I didn't have a motion sickness, I felt butterflies in my stomach and I wanted to throw up. I started coughing but thankfully my breakfast didn't leave my body, but as it turned out, not everyone was this lucky. Olivia lost consciousness after teleporting, Cain, Abel and Myung-Ok started vomiting while Iris was lying on the floor with a completly pale face, and I knew that neither of us wanted to do that again.
It took us few minutes before we started feeling better and went in the direction of SCP-343's cell. Scientists weren't afraid of us which was a completly different reaction than I expected, but despite that they were still looking at us wherever we went. O5 council most likely told them everything about our mission, but I knew that most of them didn't trust us. I expected that, especially after Abel's confession. They were afraid of him and everyone else, because they knew what Abel or Olivia could do if they wanted to kill them.
After few minutes of walking through different corridors and ignoring everyone in the facility looking at us, we arrived at 343's containment chamber. Olivia approached the door and together with us stepped inside, in order to find a way to find a new way of saving the world.
Having crossed the door we found ourselves in a vast workshop filled with countless scultpures and paintings hanging on walls. Many of them presented different scenarios of humanity's future. There was an image of powerful intergalactic empire, where people didn't have to worry about their problems, because technology was able to solve anything. Somewhere else I spotted a picture, where everyone lived in wealth and social problems were solved immidiately. But at the same time I saw a scultpure, where the entire planet was covered in dead bodies and nuclear fallout killed almost every living being. Countless possibilities how our world could change in the future were here, but none of them would become a reality if we wouldn't succeed. I was walking from one art piece to another, wondering how our story would look like, when I somebody grabbed my shoulder and said with a calm voice:
- Do you like them?
- I do, but I don't know what to say about them, because I am speechless. - I responded with a slightly scared voice.
- Do not be afraid, but be aware, that these scenarios are true in different realities. Apocalypses, unifications, anarchy, economic growth, all of them happened somewhere and it was humanity who caused them.
- What about our future? Do we have a chance for something better than getting annihilated by this machine?
- Come and sit with us, and you will find out.
Having said that, he went in a direction of a wooden table, where everyone else was sitting already. I sat on a chair next to Olivia and Abel, while 343 fetched us few cups, a tea pot filled with green nectare and gave it to us. Its taste couldn't be described by any words known to humanity, it was a mixture of ambrosia and regular tea, but it couldn't be compared to anything known to us on Earth.
- Since you are here, I wanted to congratulate all of you. - He said with a smile on his face. - You earned few weeks before everything gets turned into a black hole.
- And you promised to help us with saving the world if we manage to do that successfully. - Cain responded without hesitation.
- I did, you are not mistaken, but I am surprised you haven't figured it out yourselves.
- We nuked this thing with four bombs and it survived undamaged, I have no idea what else we can do. - Olivia said while looking down with a sad expression.
- My child, out of all people, you should be the one who knows what to do.
- But what can I ...
At this moment all of us realised, that we had the most powerful weapon with us all this time. Olivia could bend reality whenether she wanted to, and her abilities greatly surpassed energy released by those four bombs.
- I... I shouldn't do that, it is too dangerous for everyone... - She said with hesitation.
- You are the one who will find a way to solve this problem. Your powers could be used in multiple different ways, but it is your choice how you are going to use them.
- Are you sure? Maybe there is somebody else who can do it instead of me...
- Do not hesitate Olivia. You have to face your fears and release full potential of your powers.
She stood up and started walking around the room with consternation visible on her face. I didn't know why she was hesitating about destroying this thing, but deep in my heart I hoped that she will make the right decision. After three minutes of struggling with her feelings, she looked at 343 and said, that she will do that, as long as it doesn't make an impact on everyone else. He smiled once again and said:
- You made a correct choice Olivia. I am aware that you don't know what nuclear radiation is and how to erase it, and because of that I would like to ask you to wait with your actions until 28th March, as it will be the day when level of radioactive contamination will drop to a safe for life amount. From that day, you will be able to do whatever you want, but don't use nuclear bombs again, as it won't give you better results than what you received the last time.
- I will remember about that, thank you.
Having said that she sat on a chair again and started drinking the tea with us. We were happy that she would be able to help us, but at the same time I was mad at myself for not realising, that she could have done that immidiately while we have been preparing the nukes. We could have avoided all problems with journalists trying to find the truth despite having an official version, because even though many people belived that it was a terrorist attack, some of them tried to find a connection betweem terrorists and governments, but until now none of them succeeded.
At the same time I was worried about Olivia, because for some reason she was afraid of using her full potential. I was aware that she was a powerful reality bender, and her powers were limited only to her imagination, but I did not know how powerful she was. Somewhere in my mind I had a feeling, that Olivia could accidentally destroy the entire worlds instead of saving it, and that is why she was hesitating.
After one hour we left 343's cell and went into our rooms, where officially we were supposed to keep searching for a way to destroy SCP-PL-106, but in reality we were waiting for the 28th March. The next four days felt like they took over a month, but when the day finally started, I went to Olivia's room and asked her, if she was ready to do her job. She took a sip of water, grabbed my hand and told me to close my eyes. I did as she said and immidiately realised why it was a good idea. The entire world began spinning around us, and when we landed I knew that she teleported us somewhere. This time I felt a bit better, but Olivia lost consciousness once again, and I had to bring her to a helicopter myself. We were in another facility and from there we got transported to the ruins of place which we destroyed.
Thankfully nobody was there, because due to timezone differences it was approximately 1 a.m. in this place, but we had to work quickly in order to hide our work. Olivia raised her hand and caused the soil which was covering the machine to rise up and fall down few meters away. We looked at the machine, which was currently displaying a number "293" with a hope to end this once and for all. I looked at Olivia who was hesitating, approached her and said:
- Everything will be fine, you can do this.
- I am just afraid of the consequences, because I don't want to destroy the entire reality by accident.
- Even if that happens, it will be a small price for annihilating this machine. Even if all of us die during this, at least we will be able to save other civilizations from this fate.
- I don't want to kill everyone though...
- You won't, trust me.
Having said that I hugged her, hoping to cheer her up. She hugged me back while reality around us began glitching. Things were appearings and dissapearing at the same time, weather in the radius of few meters went crazy, while Olivia started crying. After few seconds she released me, looked at the machine and said:
- Okay... Here we go...
She indicated at it while everything around her started melting. The machine started glowing, while its parts were slowly dissapearing, and brightness from it quickly forced me to close my eyes and cover my face with hands. After few seconds everything was over, and I opened my eyes to see the same machine in an unharmed condition, while Olivia was crying one meter away from it.
- I... I failed, I am not strong enough...
- It is alright Olivia, maybe we need a different approach to this thing?
- You do not understand... I thought that since I have a power to destroy the entire universe, then I could use them for a greater good, but it turns out that I am just a failure...
Having said that she covered the machine in soil once again and looked at the ground with sadness in eyes.
- How can you say that Olivia? You are not...
- Grab my hand Y/N...
- B-But why?
- Just do it, let me show you something.
I approached her slowly and grabbed her hand. Immidiately I felt the entire reality around me collapsed while I was getting pulled out of it, and when we landed, all I could see was a destroyed world covered in lava with broken reality, where things which should not take place were completly normal. Olivia materialized two chairs and told me to sit on one, while she did the same with another one.
- Let me tell you a story Y/N... A story I never told anyone else...