Item No: SCP-XXXX
Anomaly Class: Euclid
Special Containment Procedures: Designated storage units have been established at Foundation facilities worldwide to hold devices affected by SCP-XXXX. Where possible, each device is to be held in the unit nearest its original location on 2012-05-07. Personnel may submit form 10XXXX to request individual devices be cleared of personal and professional data, and form 11XXXXA to requisition a replacement device of similar specification.
Automated transcription, keywording, and archival of SCP-XXXX is still ongoing.
SCP-XXXX-affected device. Screen redacted for privacy.
Description: SCP-XXXX is an 8 kbps voicemail message delivered simultaneously at 19:20 UTC on 2012-05-07 to the mobile communication devices of all active Foundation staff. SCP-XXXX was delivered only to devices with message storage functionality and an active connection to a cellular network – however, this does include devices on internal networks that were otherwise unable to receive outside messages, precluding the possibility of a non-anomalous broadcast.
The presence of SCP-XXXX within a device represents a minor technical anomaly in itself, in that the message is capable of being stored and accessed regardless of the device’s memory capacity; affected devices are therefore considered components of the larger anomaly and should be contained as such. Copies of SCP-XXXX are non-anomalous, and no lasting anomaly has been observed in devices from which SCP-XXXX has been deleted.
SCP-XXXX is approximately 377,000 hours long (roughly 43 years), and its content consists of a largely unbroken monologue from an elderly male speaker, designated SCP-XXXX-A. SCP-XXXX-A speaks primarily in accented English with a small amount (mostly individual words or idiomatic phrases) in Cypriot Greek. The identity of SCP-XXXX-A is unknown.
Addendum I—Selected excerpts: The following two fragments of SCP-XXXX have been declassified below Level 2 clearance and are provided here for reference. The transcriptions have been translated into English where necessary. Extended excerpts and original-language versions may be requisitioned for research purposes with RAISA authorisation.
Fragment 1, comprising the first 86 seconds of SCP-XXXX:
Did you expect it so soon?
[pause]
If it's over, did you get everything you wanted out of it? Did you make enough money? Did you spend enough time with your family? Did you spend enough time with your friends? Did you fly a kite? Did you fly enough kites?
[pause]
Did you love? Did you get what you wanted out of love? Did you love enough? And if you did, looking back, was it everything you thought it would be? Was it everything you wanted? Those kites, were they the right colour? The right shape? Did you love well? Did you love enough people?[pause]
Did you help enough people? Could you have done more? Should you have done more? Would it have made a difference?
[pause]
Knowing it made no difference, would you change it? Would you do more, if you did it again? Would you do less? Was the time spent flying kites even worth it? Did you even like kites? Do you like them now? Did you enjoy how the sand felt? Did you spend too much time on the beach? On the drive home, did you look out of the window? Is the beach still there? Did you work too hard? Did you spend all your money? Did you honestly think you’d die someday? Did you have children? Did you want to? Does it matter? Does it make a difference? Does any of it matter?
[pause]
Did you finish your ice cream?
Fragment 2, comprising the final 62 seconds of SCP-XXXX:
Are you alone right now? Are you sure? Are you afraid of the moon? Have you looked at the moon recently? Did you spend enough time in reconnaissance? Did you ever write that novel?
[pause]
Did you say what needed to be said? Did they believe you? Did you fool them? Did you fool yourself? When it came down to it, did you pull the trigger?
[pause]
Right here, right now, do you feel okay? Are they feeding you enough? Did you get enough sleep? Was the sleep of a high quality? While you were sleeping, did you miss anything important? Could you disassemble an M16A2 rifle in less than 30 seconds? Could you disarm a bomb? Were you adequately prepared? Did you consider yourself to be an important person?
[pause]
Did you ever want to die for something important?
[pause]
Did you know how long you had left? Did you consider yourself to be a morning person? Did you complete your training? Did you finish your list? Did you honestly think you’d live forever?
[pause]
Did you ever get anything you wanted? Did you want anything you got? Were you happy? Did you help? Did you do the one thing that mattered? Was it enough? Is this it? Is it over? Is it over? Is it over? Is it over? Is it o-
[message ends]
Addendum II: On 2014-12-14, the following 36-second fragment of SCP-XXXX was flagged by automated search as potentially containing unique or relevant text. It occurs at 144,202 hours, 40 minutes, 08 seconds and the surrounding message bears no apparent relevance. Its meaning within the larger context of SCP-XXXX, if any, remains unclear.
Did you listen? Did you listen to the whole thing? Did you hear what you wanted to hear? Did you figure it out? Are you as clever as you think? Were you good enough at puzzles? Did you remember what's important?
[pause]
Did it get away? Can you hear me?
[pause]
Are you listening? Are you still listening? Did you think this would work? Did you read the instructions? Did you eat what you killed?
[pause]
Are you even listening? Are you even listening?
[pause]
Is this what you wanted? Did you pick up the phone?
[pause]
Is it too late?