 Item number SCP-741 Object Class Euclid Special Containment Procedures As the object has sunk to an extreme depth and is surrounded by a region of elevated pressure, it is largely isolated from external influence. Nevertheless, periodic monitoring by sonar and or submersible should be conducted to ensure that it has not been tampered with. Russia has actively encouraged the use of foundation-contracted Russian warships, SCP-Sbassisti, and Krasnoyarsk for these purposes. In the event of activity within the exclusion zone surrounding SCP-741, Procedure 353 Koshay is to be enacted. This procedure entails the use of nuclear and conventionally armed RPK-2 Vyuga anti-submarine surface missiles aboard the Krasnoyarsk. Any movement of SCP-741 is to be met immediately with a nuclear strike. All other contacts are to be engaged with conventional warheads. Description SCP-741 is a sunken Soviet submarine. It sank nearby in March 1968. However, the foundation did not take over custody of the vessel until 1999. The submarine itself is a version of the Charlie II class, carrying 8 P120-molicut anti-ship missiles. Prior to sinking, the submarine had been deployed under unusual circumstances, which garnered the attention of Western intelligence agencies. The United States government attempted to recover the vessel in the early 1970s. An operation known as Project W... This was moderately successful, though precisely what it recovered was never disclosed. In the late 1990s, agents within the U.S. government affiliated with P... contacted the foundation with news of a potential Euclid or Keter class object within the wreck. Following negotiations, the foundation took custody of the wreck and has had it under surveillance ever since. The vessel lies on the ocean floor in three pieces. Evidence suggests that the hull was broken apart during the Project W... recovery attempt, and that it was largely intact at the time that it sank, save for a hull just forward of the sail, and another further aft, just below the starboard missile tubes. Debris recovered from this hull indicates that the sub was struck by a P120-molicut anti-ship missile while surfaced. One of the boat's own P120 missiles has been fired. The submarine appears to have sunk due to rapid flooding following the missile strike. No remains of the crew have been found, either within the vessel or in the vicinity, and all emergency escape equipment is untouched. Divers sent to investigate reported anomalous currents, abnormal sea life, moans, unexplained voices, and unintelligible whispering, and the presence of blurry, faintly glowing figures. Sea life in the area has been observed to be unusually aggressive. A diver was seriously injured by a large squid of unknown species, and on two occasions, observations of mercibles have been aggressively approached by sharks and large squid. The wreck is surrounded by an anomalous pressure gradient, extending approximately 250 meters, centered on a point 30 meters after the center of the submarine. Within the affected region, pressure is much greater than is expected for the depth. This is believed to be the reason why Project B could not recover the entire submarine. It has also significantly hampered further salvage and investigation efforts. The extreme pressure differential makes analysis with sonar difficult, as very high amplitudes are required. Special protection is also required for divers to approach the wreck. What records the Foundation has been able to obtain from Russia and the United States about the submarine strongly suggest that it was being used to carry some secret cargo, the nature of which is still unknown. Code words used in the Russian documents imply that the secret cargo did not have anything to do with the typical nuclear or chemical weapons of the day. A mention is made of Project B, a Soviet data expunged. Incident report, I-741C, on SPS Basisti reported a submerged contact approaching SCP-741 from the south at 46 knots. Acoustic signature of the contact did not match any known submarine or torpedo. Contact did not respond to sonobuey drops or active sonar pings. When the contact crossed into the 18 kilometer total underwater exclusion zone, contact was classified hostile. Sonar recorded sounds of an undersea missile launch. Basisti broke away and fired a Type 53 torpedo toward the attacker. Missiles of unknown configuration were observed breaking the water 15 seconds later, flying at an altitude of 1.8 meters at a velocity of 0.92 Mach. No radar emissions were detected from the missiles, and they did not respond to launched chaff or flares. Both missiles were engaged by Basisti's 3K95 Kinzal surface-to-air missiles and Kastan point defense systems and were destroyed at 1,800 meters and 210 meters from impact. Afterward, hostiles could be heard engaging in evasive maneuvers, followed by four closely spaced explosions and the sound of a submarine disintegrating. The identity and intentions of the attacker have not yet been determined. In light of this incident, the acoustic sensor net should be expanded and additional patrol and defense assets acquired. Acquisition of undersea retaliatory capability advised. Addendum 741B Further analysis of the sonar recordings taken by SCP-S Basisti during incident I-741C has revealed, anomalous acoustic signatures not consistent with any known form of propulsion, including magnetohydrodynamic drive. Anomalous transients reminiscent of r- are also audible during the breakup of the unknown attacker. SCP-741A An interview conducted between Foundation Researcher Name Withheld and an American intelligence agent working for relevant portion transcribed below. SCP Researcher Why did you decide to come forward? The US government sat on this information for 30 years. American Agent You've seen those reports. Project work for f**k's sake. We knew that part too. While the directors didn't make the connections beyond me. That and the stuff the r- pulled up? Yeah. The other part you don't hear about is what some of the research team died of. Data expunged doesn't naturally do that. And the crewmen we buried? Just uniforms. Also, the nuclear device we recovered wasn't a missile or torpedo warhead. It was a demolition charge. Does that make any sense? After all those clues, I had to come forward. While the director it didn't, is something I can't fully explain. SCP Researcher Wait, the sub was sent out unmanned. But if so, Agent, interrupting, no, not unmanned. There were no bodies, but personal effects were everywhere, along with uniforms. There was some blood, human before you ask, on one of the torpedoes, and a bit of skin, where somebody probably crushed his hand loading the thing. Just no bodies left. When I first looked into all this, I had no clue what the hell had gone on down there. But I started putting things together. SCP Researcher A Soviet weapons program. Some kind of biological agent. After what you said about data expunged. Agent. Shake's head. No, no, it wasn't that. I thought maybe it could have been. So I dialed up some of my contacts at Biopreparat. A spy's ended up owing each other favors after a while. And they denied it. Fahemintly. Not your usual cover up or s**t either. They clearly stated that whatever the f**k was carrying, it wasn't theirs. They wanted no part of it. Sounded like it was gonna puke when I mentioned f**k. And doctor, do you have any idea what it takes to make a bioweapons researcher sick? SCP Researcher. I can guess. Agent. Now, that wasn't what really bugged me though. What really kept me awake at night was the KGB files that fell into our hands. They mentioned a covert op by the Soviet military against an internal unnamed faction to get rid of terrifying weapons that even the Soviet Union can't safely control. They wanted to lose it, whatever it was, or maybe fob it off onto the US. Of course, that all came to light right before the iron curtain fell. And given the atmosphere at the time, it was practically impossible to convince the directors that they weren't talking about nukes. And even once I did, they still didn't think this was worthy of action. I mean, the world will probably have me hanged for treason if they ever find me, but it was worth the risk. And by what I can gather, it sounds like Russia thinks so too. Loaning you have the Pacific Fleet and all. See also. Incident report I-741A. Incident report I-741A. SCP involved. SCP-741. Date. Location. Preamble. Two previous dives to the site of SCP-741 have reported numerous anomalous findings, including the artifact SCP-741-1 inside the reactor. A third dive has been arranged to investigate the anomalies outside the submarine itself. Divers are based off the icebreaker Yamal. Ostensibly, they are investigating the possibility of lost torpedo or missile warheads from K-141 Kursk. Even their cover mission is classified to minimize questioning. A 40 kilometer exclusion zone has been established around the site via Securite Calls. No civil shipping is in the area. Audio logs. Log begins at 0937. A 27. Yamal control. Have the sub-insight now. Yamal control. Acknowledged A 27. A 26. A 27. Get a look at that. A 29. What the hell? A 27. Very odd. I'm taking some photos. A 30. That's not the only weird thing either. Take a look at that hole. Did you see something move? A 26. Probably just a giant isopod. They're everywhere down here. Maybe a spider crab. A 30. You're right. I'm just twitchy. Yamal control. Your go for active ops. Say again. Sonar and lights are go. A 27. Keep cool. Light them up. A 29. I'm lit. Moving toward the starboard side breach now. No evidence of change since last survey. Wait, there's something glowing inside the hole. I'm moving closer to investigate. A 30. Be careful. Watch the radiation. A 27. At normal background levels back here. Still, that does look like Cherenkov radiation. A 26. Beta emitter? A hunk of thorium or something? Yamal control. A 29. Your neutron counters beginning to register something. 40. 50 counts per second. Not much, but it's neutrons. Unknown voice. Vasily Evgeny, can you hear me? A 29. What the flying hell is that? A 30, are you seeing this? A 30. Oh my God. A 26. Is that a person? Not possible. Just not damned possible. A 27. Everybody check nitrogen levels. This must be nitrogen narcosis. A 29. All of us? Unknown voice. Help me. It's getting hard to breathe. A 29. It's gone. This doesn't make any sense. Yamal control. What was that? Who else is talking here? A 27. I can't explain it. We just saw, well, something here. A 26. I guess that's why they call it Euclid. Some things you just can't get used to. Addendum. Previous dives have recorded unintelligible mumbling and strange lights. But this was the first time any intelligible speech has been recorded. Log resumes. At 0959. A 30. Guys, we've got a visitor. A 29. Squid. A 26. Huh, weird. Keep your distance. A 27. That's a bloody big one. He must be what? Five, almost six meters? A 26. Near to that, yeah. Still, never heard of one attacking somebody. A 27. Noted. Continue investigation. A 29. Check out that weird husk down there. A 30. Look at that shell. See if you can get me some closer photos. It's familiar somehow. A 26. I'm going to swim up forward and check out the torpedo tubes. A 27. Roger. Yamal control. How big is that shell? From the photos you beamed us, a marine biologist thinks it's a... If you can haul that shell up here, we'd like to have a look. Just be careful, data expunged. A 27. 30, 29. Can you attach a haul cable to that shell? A 30. Can do. The divers work in silence for about five minutes. A 26. Curious bastard, aren't you? A 27. Huh? A 26. That squids over here. A 27. 26. What happened? A 30. I see blood. A 27. Yamal, reel him in. Reel him in. Yamal control. We have him. What's going on? A 27. 26 has been attacked. Yamal control. We're going to have to give him decompression time. A 27. Don't bother. That squids giving chase. Good Lord, it's attacking again. It's tearing into pieces. Get him aboard now or he'll die. Yamal control. Roger, maximum winch speed now. Prepping the hyperbaric chamber. Get yourselves out of there fast too. A 30. I see something else moving. A 27. Another squid. A 29. I don't think so. Don't know what the hell that was. Didn't get a good look at it. A 27. Lights off. Full abort. Prepare to surface. A 29. Roger. A 30. Roger. Yamal control. Start your ascent. We'll take in slack. A 27. Do you have him? Yamal control. We've got him. He's alive, but unconscious. They're prepping for emergency surgery now. Those bites are pretty bad. Addendum. Yamal successfully recovered all four divers along with the shell. Analysis of the shell shows remarkable similarity with extinct orthocotic nautiloids. The shell was devoid of tissue, but was not fossilized. The significance of this finding is still being investigated. Diver A 26 remains in critical condition after the loss of a limb, an exposure to venom of unknown composition. A 26's camera was destroyed, but most of the photos were transmitted to Yamal via the fiber optic ethernet link. Photos of the ghostly phenomenon remain classified and have been sent to for further study along with Geiger and neutron counter readings from the same time. Future dive missions have not been ruled out since squid are not known to attack humans normally, much less without provocation. It is considered probable that some other phenomenon is at work here. Future divers will be warned to treat all potentially dangerous sea life as an immediate hazard and take appropriate precautions. End Incident Report I-741A. Lesson complete. If you missed the previous orientation, go watch SCP-740, the Hindenburg photograph, right now. Or for the complete course, watch this playlist.