The Blood Pond | SCP-354

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The second I picked up the knife to be exact. But it turns out I was wrong. I got my cabin by the water after all, nestled in the heart of the woods, far from civilization, right next to a peaceful pond. Although I wasn't exactly alone out here, and a 20-foot concrete wall separated me from the water. Oh, and the pond wasn't always peaceful. The water looked like human blood, and, occasionally, it let loose a horrifying monster that it was my job to secure or kill, depending on my orders. So, it wasn't exactly the quiet life I was looking for. But it sure as hell beat staring at four walls all day every day. I was never cut out for a simple life. Most of my bunkmates are like me, but a few of them don't deserve to be here. One of them is a fresh-faced 19-year-old named Jeremy. The worst thing he ever did was set fire to an empty building. It wasn't his fault there happened to be a few squatters in there. Then there's Road. Yeah, the guy committed a few felonies and a few people got in the way. But he's a great guy at heart. He always welcomes the newbies. Assuring them they'll be fine. He never tells them they're usually the first ones to go. One batch wasn't even here for a week before we were attacked by a creature the size of a bear with razor-sharp spikes. Luckily, that one never even made it over the fence. Those men cheered like they'd been saved, but they were dead within the month. Some kind of levitating sphere directed radiation at us, and they weren't smart enough to get out of the way. One of the coats managed to hit it with the sledgehammer, and it exploded. The coat received a medal. We received six new recruits. Among them was Ravi. He was quiet, but when you looked and it was deep brown eyes, it felt like he could see your soul. That creeped out some of the guys, but I took an immediate liking to him. He reminded me of my best friend when I was a child. I hadn't seen Lucas since elementary school, but he'd always worn that same look. He didn't take a genius to figure out that Ravi had seen some shit. There was a permanent shadow on his face, and the only smiles he gave were the ones where his lips turned up slightly, and that's it. He never said it, but I could tell he needed a friend. We usually had campfires at night, and Ravi sat on his own, close enough to feel the heat of the fire, but far enough to hide the darkness in his eyes. One night, I sat down beside him on the log without saying anything. I figured he would talk if he wanted to, and he would send me away if he wanted to. He glanced at me and remained silent for a while, staring into the flames like they held the secret to life. I imagine this is what summer camp must have felt like. He finally said, his voice soft and soothing. I smiled. I know what you mean. Sitting around a campfire, joking around, it almost feels like I'm ten again. Camp Agawam didn't exactly have the murderers and monsters, though. That's new. The corner of his lips lifted, then he turned solemn. Did you ever imagine you would be here? Depends on what you mean by here. Did I think I would ever be a prisoner of a fucked up organization, forced to defend a camp from monsters? No. Did I think I would end up somewhere bad? I might have had an inkling. You? I don't know how any of this happened. One minute. Everything was fine. Next thing I know, I've got blood all over my hands and I'm being shipped here. You were one of the good kids then? He nodded. I was. Sometimes I kid myself into thinking I still am. Hey, I jostled his knee with mine and looked him straight in his depthless eyes. Whatever you were is not who you are, Ravi. Whatever you've done is in the past. We've all made mistakes. We've all done something to get here. But that doesn't matter now. Now you can be whoever you want to be. It's time to move forward instead of looking backward. It was the same speech Road gave me when I arrived. And it seemed to work on Ravi. His shoulders relaxed as if a weight had been lifted. Maybe you're right. He said quietly. We sat in silence for a while, listening to the crickets and the guys laughing at the edge of the fire. What do you think is in there? I didn't have to look up to know what Ravi meant. He was staring at the concrete wall like he could see through it. Last time it was a radioactive sphere. He nodded as if that was a perfectly normal answer. But where does it come from? I don't ask Ravi. I just fight whatever comes out and pray that I survive. He grunted in response. We spent most of our days cleaning and doing odd jobs for coats. We were never permitted to leave area 354 of course. The perimeter was surrounded by barbed wire fences and watch posts with only one checkpoint to get in or out. I watched a guy try to escape once. He was shot before he could even get across the fence. I didn't feel sorry for him. The dumb bastard added coming. Our orange jumpsuits make up a lot of the room. Our orange jumpsuits make us stand out day and night. And he hadn't even gotten his muddy to hide the color. Idiot. Most of us didn't even talk about escaping. Partly because we knew it was impossible. And partly because some of us enjoyed this life. Like I said, it was better than staring at walls all day. When the alarm went off, we had to be ready. It didn't matter what we were doing. We had to leave the job unfinished and head straight to the pond. There were punishments for those who took too long to arrive. I was with Ravi when he heard the alarm for the first time. I've seen all kinds of reactions to the blaring sound. From complete panic to naive courage. Ravi remained calm. And when he turned to me, he wore an interesting expression. It took me a moment to recognize it as curiosity. He dropped the mop and rolled up his sleeves. Should we go? Of course we should go. I responded, throwing my sponge next to the mop. While I was excited to get out of bathroom cleaning duty, I dreaded facing whatever the pond had for us that day. It was only a matter of time before it spat out something we couldn't defeat. We headed straight for the Class D Armory, which only carried tasers and tranquilizer guns, because they didn't trust us with real weapons. And marched to the concrete wall. Something large loomed above it. It was still covered in the red muck from the pond, so it was hard to make out what it was. But it was huge. About 15 feet tall. Definitely the biggest thing we'd faced so far. Ravi's eyes went wide. What is that? He spoke not with the terror of most new recruits, but with awe. As if he beheld a glorious angel, rather than a terrifying monster. Who cares Ravi, shoot it! I responded as I raised my gun and aimed at the creature. Ravi remained still. His eyes transfixed on the thing. But it didn't matter anyways. The monster seemed impervious to tranquilizer darts, and taser probes for that matter. It stood on two legs and let out a horrifying roar, revealing scaly skin and sharp claws like an alligator. Yet, its figure was vaguely human. When it jumped off the wall, it landed in a crouch not too far from us. Shit, shit, shit! I said as I backed away. The guards arrived then, and started shooting rounds of bullets. But whatever the thing was made of, it was strong stuff. The bullets simply bounced off like nerf pellets. The creature roared again, and swiped the nearest guard right into the concrete wall. He slammed into it with a sickening crunch. Ravi gasped, but his eyes sparkled in fascination. Ravi, get back! I shouted as the creature turned in our direction. Its eyes were yellow like a cat's. It opened its mouth to reveal two layers of pointed teeth. That could easily kill a man. Ravi remained still. With a groan, I tossed aside the useless gun and grabbed his arm, pulling him roughly behind me. Thankfully, he didn't resist, as we put distance between ourselves and the monster. The guards circled it, until its back was against the concrete. My jaw dropped as it leaped over them and ran across the grounds. Ravi ripped his arm free and began following it. I waited half a second before running after him. Ravi, what are you doing? Stop! But he ignored me and kept running. He was in surprisingly good shape, considering how thin he was. But the creature was much faster. Gunshots rang all around the grounds, but it kept running, never breaking pace. When it reached the barbed wire fence, it leaped over it with ease. Ravi finally stopped then. I paused beside him, gasping for breath. What? I panted. The hell was that? Wasn't it beautiful? Not the creature, Ravi. You! What were you thinking? Do you have a death wish? Is that it? He blinked and finally looked at me. Did you see how I had jumped? That was amazing. I shook my head in disbelief. Ravi, that thing almost killed us. But it didn't. But it could have. But it didn't. He repeated, I'm not doing this with you. I groaned as I lay on the ground to catch my breath. He sat beside me, and we watched the guards race past the checkpoint. Guns bared. Their expressions were grim, and for good reason. I couldn't imagine how much trouble they would be in for letting the creature escape. Since prisoners were required to knock it out instead of harming it, we couldn't be blamed. It was a small mercy for being on the front lines with children's toys. Aaron? I grunted in response. Do you think you're a monster? What? I craned my neck to look at him. Why would you ask that? He shrugged. Because of what you did? How do you know what I did? I don't. But you must have done something bad to end up here. Yeah, I guess. I thought back to the moment I grabbed the knife. My blood was boiling, my vision red. But it was crystal clear when I opened the door and found them together. I can't say that I lost my mind because I didn't. I knew exactly what I was doing when I plunged the knife into his flesh. After that, I relished the sound of her screams as I stabbed again and again. I had the choice to let her go, but I couldn't. I stalked her to the front door and attacked her before she could open it. I didn't use the knife on her. I tossed it aside and used my bare hands instead. It felt more intimate, more vengeful. I could have stopped squeezing the second she passed out. I could have let her wake up, but I didn't let go until she was gone. Did that make me a monster? Or did they? After all, none of it would have happened if they hadn't betrayed me like that. Finally, I shook my head. No, I'm not a monster. I did what I had to do and I don't regret it. What makes a monster then? Is it looks? Is it origins? Or something else? I knew where he was going with that, and I didn't have the patience or energy for it. First you sent me running across the grounds, and now you pose philosophical questions at me. Here's something else, Ravi. So I've been told, he murmured. I sat up and clapped him on the shoulder. Come on, let's get back to that bathroom before the coats stink it up again. Ravi nodded and trudged beside me, occasionally looking backward at the fence. All talk of monsters was soon forgotten as we returned to scrubbing and mopping grime off the old tiles. Stop clear of the gap. Another morning, another reminder there's a gap to be careful of, but maybe it's time to bridge the one between your nine to five and your dream of living life on your own terms. At HSBC, we know ambition looks different to everyone. Whether it's retiring early or leaving more for your family, we can help because when it comes to unlocking your money's potential, we know wealth. Search HSBC Wealth Today, HSBC UK, opening up a world of opportunity. HSBC UK current account holders only. The next morning, as we sat around picnic tables eating breakfast, a truck rolled through, towing a trailer containing the body of the creature. It was crusted with blood and missing an eyeball. Its mouth was still open, showing bloody teeth and a lolling pink tongue. A group of specially armed men in black uniforms walked behind it, looking exhausted but proud. I slid my gaze to Ravi. He frowned at the sight. But didn't look away until the trailer was long gone. When he met my stare, his eyes were forlorn. I opened my mouth to speak, but he shook his head and left the table. I didn't tell anybody else about Ravi and the way he seemed to idolize the creatures and objects that came out of the pond. He was isolated enough, and I didn't want him to be teased. Or worse. We'd lost a lot of good men to those entities. If someone was found sympathizing with them, things wouldn't go well for them. So I stayed quiet. Nobody else seemed to notice Ravi's reaction to the gruesome procession. Things carried on as normal for a while until the next alarm sounded. Some real shit went down that day, but I'm not allowed to talk about it. Let's just say that Ravi's interest in the pond was even more peaked after that. The concrete wall had been severely damaged, and we spent weeks repairing it. All of us stayed the fuck away from the pond, but not Ravi. One night, I woke up to take a piss and found bloody footprints leading to Ravi's bed. My heart stopped in my chest as I rushed to the bunk. Ravi? Ravi, what happened? Are you okay? He mumbled something and turned over. I shook him harder and pulled the blankets from his grasp. Were you bleeding? He finally sat up, his eyes heavy with sleep. Who's bleeding? What are you talking about? I looked at the blood trail again. It ended where Ravi's boots sat under the bed. Dread settled in my stomach. For fuck's sake, Ravi, did you go to the pond? Quiet down. He hissed. If you don't want anybody to know, you shouldn't have left a trail through the fucking cabin. He leaned over the bed and cursed. What were you thinking, Ravi? Why would you go there? He sighed. I don't know. I just had to. You're absolutely nuts. You know that? Clean this up before someone else sees. I returned to my warm bed as he hefted himself up and began scrubbing the floor. I figured he'd learned his lesson that night, that he'd seen what he needed to and would stay away from now on. But that was based on the assumption that Ravi had a measure of sanity left. I never woke up to another bloody trail. But I saw the signs. Wet grass clung to the bottom of his boots. Red stains appeared on the tips of his fingers. And he looked more and more tired every morning. I didn't ask what he was doing out there every night. I didn't want to know. God only knows why, but it kept his spirits high. And there's something to be said for that in this kind of hell. Ravi was one determined deso be. So I let him be and just told him to be careful. His bed was empty one night when the alarm sounded throughout the camp. We had all been tense lately, worried there would be a breakout before we could finish the fence. Now it had arrived and we knew it would be bad. I stared at Ravi's empty bunk as I laced up my boots. My heart hammering against my rib cage. A part of me thought maybe he had simply gone to the bathroom. That was the same part that it told me years ago that my girlfriend wasn't. Cheating. That was the part that lived in a fantasy world where I was married with children and not stuck in a prison trying to defeat monsters. The other part, the one that recognized where and who I was. The part that knew my best friend was too friendly with my girlfriend. That part knew exactly where Ravi was. I shared a glance with Rode and his nod told me he knew it too. I never asked how long he knew about Ravi sneaking out. But I shouldn't have been surprised. Rode knew everything about everybody. That's how he took such good care of us. He clapped a reassuring hand on my shoulder before leaving the cabin. My mind spun in a million different directions. You could never predict what was going to come out of that pond. But I was trying. Everything that we had faced so far was deadly. But maybe Ravi would get lucky. Maybe whatever it was wouldn't even see him. I forced myself to follow protocol and grab my tranquilizer gun, pushing my terrified thoughts to the back of my mind. We charged to the wall as one, just like we had many times before. But this time was different. Before we could spread out and surround the wall, the alarm quieted. We stopped in our tracks and exchanged confused glances. Most of the men looked relieved, but some of them remained wary, including me. I strained my ears for any sound of the monster. All I heard were human voices coming from the damaged part of the wall. Rode nodded his head in that direction. Let's go. The rest of us followed him. Guns and tasers at the ready just in case. A group of guards stopped us before we could get there. Stand down. The threat has been neutralized. A beefy man told us. Some of the guys simply sighed and walked away. But others of us knew better. There was no way the guards could have dealt with any kind of threat that quickly. Especially with the wall down. Not to mention, their glances were shifty, and they seemed too calm for guards who had just neutralized a terrifying threat. Unless it wasn't terrifying. Maybe this time it wasn't a horrific monster or entity intent on destruction. Maybe this time it was docile. I wouldn't have been surprised if Ravi had even befriended the thing. I finally lowered my tranquilizer, relief coursing through me. Everything's okay. I whispered. A guard grunted. Pretty much. Another guard looked away in the direction of a crowd gathered beside the wall. I tried to meet their eyes, but none of them would look directly at us. My relief vanished instantly, my heart speeding up. I shoved past the guards and ignored their cries of protest. Road was right on my heels, along with a few other guys. My palms were slick against the gun in my hands. My feet, like lead as I forced myself to face whatever I would find. A crowd had formed at the edge of the wall, a mix of guards and coats. Some of them looked up as we approached, and two of the guards stepped forward. You were told to stand down. We don't need you for this. Go back to your cabin. Surely you can give us a peek at this thing. It woke us up in the middle of the night after all. Road said. He kept his voice light, but I could hear the note of panic in it. The guards shook their heads. But at that moment, the crowd shifted, and I had a clear view of the body on the ground. Those boots perpetually stained with blood water. The hands that could hold a gun, but not pull a trigger. The eyes that had once held so much depth, now cold and lifeless. I spoke the words as if in a dream. They shot Ravi. I looked at Road, at the guards in front of us, at the coats, staring down with vague curiosity. The motherfucker shot Ravi. The guard held up his gun defensively. He came from the pond. I stared at him, my blood boiling in my veins. Before I could think, I grabbed the gun and threw it as far away as I could. He was a man. The guard stepped closer until his breath was hot on my face. Don't kid yourself. He gestured to the group of prisoners around me. You're all monsters. You're lucky we don't shoot the rest of you and get it over with. Ravi was a good man. If that were true, he wouldn't have ended up here. I took a step back and bawled my fist. But before I could swing, a shot rang out. The guard's mouth fell open, and he dropped to his knees, blood pouring from the wound in his chest. Road lowered the gun and spoke in a loud, clear voice. We decide who we are, not you. Jeremy raised his taser with a whoop of agreement. You don't own us! A pulsing light lit up the night as Jeremy let loose on the guard closest to him. He was rewarded with a shot in the head. I watched in horror as his head blew apart, as if in slow motion, blood and brain matter pouring all over us. A scream sounded from the wall, and some of the coats went running, their white coats flapping behind them. A few of the other prisoners followed, eager to get as far from the commotion as possible. The rest of us fought. We traded tasers and tranquilizers for gunshots on the bank of the blood pond, body after body, falling like Ravi's. No one seemed to care that it was an unfair fight. No one seemed to care how things were going to end. It was too late for that. Just like it was too late for Ravi. Just like it was too late for Jeremy. When I ran out of tranquilizer darts, I threw down my gun and raised my fists. I ignored the pain when the first bullet sliced my leg. After the second, my punches were slower and weaker, but I kept getting in hits. A punch here, a jab to the jaw here. None of it would make any difference in the long run, but I didn't care. I was doing it for Ravi. I didn't stop even when the emergency alarm sounded, and the backup guards arrived. I kept thrashing when three of them piled on top of me. I spat at their shoes as they pulled me to my knees and pointed a gun at my temple. I met the eyes of my killer as he pulled the trigger. I watched from above as they threw our bodies in the blood bond. It was only a matter of time before we rose again. SCP-354 is a pool of red liquid discovered in Northern Canada. The liquid is of a consistency similar to that of human blood, hence the colloquial name blood bond, but is not of a biological nature. The pool does not have definite banks. Soil mixes with the liquid until, at a certain point, there is more soil than liquid, and the ground is mostly solid. The liquid becomes denser as one descends deeper into the pool. If the pool has a bottom, it has yet to be reached. Periodically, entities emerge from the pool and attempt to escape from the enclosure. Thus far, nearly all creatures emerging from SCP-354 have been extremely hostile and highly dangerous.