SCP-040-JP There was a cat - object class: safe
Item #: SCP-040-JP
Object Class: Safe
Special Containment Procedures: SCP-040-JP has to be contained within a containment wing
that has been erected to cover the whole area of SCP-040-JP.
The containment wing is under the jurisdiction of Site-8120.
When inside the containment wing, personnel has to be advised to never look inside SCP-040-JP.
If it is needed to look inside SCP-040-JP, it should be done through the camera and not
directly with the naked eye.
If it is necessary to have a direct view, it is advised to use D-class staff.
Do not communicate with personnel who has been exposed to SCP-040-JP.
Description: SCP-040-JP is a well located in the village of █████, in the
██████ prefecture.
It is surrounded by a wooden house, measuring approximately 5 m wide and 4 m long.
The center of the hut houses a stone well presumed to have been built in ancient times,
which descends directly underground.
The well is abnormally deep and multiple probes have failed to determine how deep the well
descends.
Although the hut was originally locked tightly with iron chains and multiple padlocks, they
were successfully broken due to deterioration.
SCP-040-JP was placed into containment by [REDACTED], 1967.
[Warning: After the incident of 040-JP-001 was detected, the following contents are prohibited
for viewing without any memetic countermeasures.
In case of accidental exposure, please contact the site director of Site-8120 and request
amnestics.]
When a person looks into the cabin, they begin shaking, reporting that "there was a cat".
Furthermore, the person will become obsessed with the idea that "the cat is here".
This effect is not apparent in drawings or images; it only occurs when a person views
the inside of the cabin with the naked eye.
A camera image only displays the inside of the hut and the reported cats could not be
confirmed.
Exposure to the target will distort the subject's perception of all domestic cats (scientific
name: Felis silvestris catus).
During interviews with exposed subjects, they reported that any domestic cat seemed to look
like an animal with two human eyes on its face without hair or other features, staring
at them directly when viewed from any direction.
Furthermore, the exposed subjects will begin to report that the "cat" is constantly appearing
in the dark for a few days to several weeks and are constantly paranoid about the eyes
of the "cat".
There seems to be no consistency in the level of darkness required for the "cat" to be reported
and the subjects report that they feel as if they are being constantly watched.
It is not determined why the cat appears to observe the subjects.
The cat looks like this.
According to a survey conducted by Foundation researchers, it was determined that the location
where the "cat" appears is influenced by the position of the subject's ocular lens or the
cornea.
In other words, the sightings occur statistically significantly higher in the subject's peripheral
vision.
This property was demonstrated due to experimentation with D-Class in 19██.
According to the hypothesis proposed by [REDACTED], it is speculated that the dark places in the
large depths of the underground structure inside SCP-040-JP have a clear influence on
this.
[DATA EXPUNGED]
Subjects exposed to SCP-040-JP will actively tell others about the idea that "there is
a cat".
Those who have understood this idea to some extent suffer the same cognitive anomaly as
the subjects who were initially exposed.
It is not known whether the effect is transmitted through a general description or whether a
specific trigger word exists, but it is a cat.
There is a cat.
There are no particular restrictions on the medium necessary to convey that idea, and
it is effective even in all media such as speech, writing, images, and paintings.
Therefore, it is speculated that the subjects themselves are not directly affected, but
carry a memetic anomaly (refer to document [REDACTED]).
It was there.
Affected subjects do not act in a suspicious manner, making it difficult to judge whether
or not the subject is under the influence of the anomaly after passing through the first
stage of exposure.
It was a cat
Thank you
[End of Memetic Hazard.]
Incident Report 040-JP-001: On ██/██/19██, a large-scale memetic disaster occurred in
Site-8120 as a result of this report.
It is believed that the assigned staff and the upper staff were exposed to the memetic
effects of SCP-040-JP at the time of submission of the report.
Exposed personnel was subjected to amnestic treatment or termination.
From this point onwards, memetic countermeasures are to be applied to all subsequent reports.
Footnote 1: Memetic countermeasures are used so that we never repeat this blunder.
Please be sure to perform these procedures before submitting future reports.
Thank you in advance.
—IT Administrator