SCP-4908 : Story of my Life

SCP-4908 is an Oculus Rift Virtual Reality System headset and associated controller. In terms of standard function and connectivity, it appears to be non-anomalous in all conducted tests. Its anomalous properties activate when it is placed on a human subject meeting two specific criteria. Namely, the subject must:

• Be above the age of 18
• Bear responsibility, or feel as though they bear responsibility, for the death of another human (or humans) (designated SCP-4908-1 for the sake of reference)

Subjects meeting this criteria, after donning the headset, will view a title card for a video game called Story of my Life, followed by a menu with three options: Play, Options, and Re-Do. Only the Play button is functional. Upon selecting this option using the controller, different outcomes will occur, depending on whether the subject is or is not responsible for the death of an SCP-4908-1 instance. Regardless of the outcome, the sequence of events will last several seconds, during which both the headset and the subject themselves are immobilized by an undetectable force. Upon completion of the sequence, the subject will then be able to remove the headset.

If they bear direct responsibility for the death of an SCP-4908-1 instance, the following will occur:

• From the subject's perspective, they will suddenly be inhabiting the body of their past self, exactly 24 hours prior to SCP-4908-1's death.
• They are largely free to act as they wish, except that they are incapable of killing SCP-4908-1. In all cases of a subject attempting to kill SCP-4908-1, a variety of circumstances, ranging from probabilistic anomalies to XK-Class Scenarios to the subject entering into sudden cardiac arrest, will prevent SCP-4908-1's death at the subject's hands. In all cases, the subject will play out the remainder of a life from the starting point until the subject's death.
• Upon their death, a black screen will appear with the option Try Again? highlighted. In all cases, if the person does not choose within 30 seconds, the button will depress as if selected, and the person will again be transported to the moment 24 hours prior to SCP-4908-1's death.
• This sequence will repeat itself for an indeterminate number of times, differing from subject to subject. After an unknown set of criteria are met, the post-death screen will include the options Try Again? and I Understand Now. Unlike with prior instances, the choice will not automatically be selected after 30 seconds. Upon selection of the second option, subjects will regain consciousness and be able to remove the headset.

If they do not bear responsibility for the death of an SCP-4908-1 instance, but feel as though they bear responsibility, the following will occur:

• From the subject's perspective, they will suddenly be inhabiting the body of their past self, exactly 24 hours prior to SCP-4908-1's death.
• They are able to act as they wish, but in every sequence generated, SCP-4908-1 will die either via the original cause of death, or within a 7-day period of the original death. If the SCP-4908-1 instance does not experience the original cause of death, a number of different scenarios will play out, inevitably resulting in SCP-4908-1's death. Scenarios have ranged from various K-Class scenarios to more mundane mechanisms, such as a fatal fall down a staircase.
• After the death of SCP-4908-1, the subject will continue until their own death, upon which they will experience the Try Again? screen. As with the other outcome, subjects are forced to select the Try Again? option.
• This sequence will repeat itself for an indeterminate number of times, differing from subject to subject. After an unknown set of criteria are met, the post-death screen will include the options Try Again? and I Understand Now. As in the first scenario, the choice will not automatically be selected after 30 seconds. Upon selection of the second option, subjects will regain consciousness and be able to remove the headset.

Subject: D-571283

Criteria Met: 19 year old male. Responsible for the murder of an adolescent boy, █████ ██████, by strangulation.

Length of Test (Reported/estimated instance count): 1 second (37 instances)

Results: Subject wept for roughly 10 minutes and repeatedly spoke the phrases, "I'm so sorry, █████," "I can never make this right," and "I wish I could change it." After being returned to his cell, he asked for painting supplies. Despite no prior art knowledge, the subject displayed proficiency with several styles, notably including the cognitohazardous works of anartist and POI-432 ████████.1 Three months after testing, he volunteered for exploration of a Keter-class spatial anomaly and was fatally injured by its inhabitants.

Subject: D-098172

Criteria Met: 28 year old male. Feels responsible for the death of his younger sister. Questioning revealed that he introduced her to codeine syrup during their adolescence, later leading to an opioid addiction and fatal overdose three years prior to his arrest.

Length of Test (Reported/estimated instance count): 8 seconds (Est. 750 instances)

Results: Subject sat on the floor and cried for approximately 2 minutes, before then hugging Researcher Rigaud, present in the room, and thanking him for the experience. Pre-test psychological evaluations indicated the subject suffered from symptoms broadly matching PTSD, triggered by thoughts of his sister. Post-test, the subject reported feeling contentment and "at ease" regarding his sister's death, having attained an understanding of her ultimate responsibility for her own actions, as well as his part in having enabled her. Psychiatrist notes indicate that the subject has dissociated himself from a sense of responsibility for her death.

Subject: D-481712

Criteria Met: 32 year old male. Responsible for the stalking and serial murders of several collegiate females at ██████████ University. Recruited by the Foundation for the purpose of testing SCP-4908 on sociopathic individuals.2

Length of Test (Reported/estimated instance count): 3 minutes (Est. 45,000+ instances)

Results: At 1 minute 37 seconds, EEG3 recordings displayed significantly elevated electrical activity. At 2 minutes 19 seconds, the subject began seizing and fell to the floor.4 At 3 minutes, SCP-4908 suddenly fell off the subject's head. EEG recordings recorded a total cessation of electrical activity, and the subject was pronounced dead at the scene.

Subject: D-243817

Criteria Met: 38 year old male. Responsible for the 2019 bombing of a Sunni mosque in ██████████, Afghanistan, resulting in 23 fatalities and 57 injuries. Rendered by the FBI Unusual Incidents Unit into Foundation custody to test SCP-4908's effects on a person responsible for a mass casualty scenario.

Length of Test (Reported/estimated instance count): 21 seconds (Est. 4,720 instances)

Results: Subject asked researchers present which way faced eastward, and upon their reply, knelt and prayed silently for approximately 7 minutes before standing again. Prior to testing, he was hostile and non-cooperative towards CIA, FBI UIU, and Foundation personnel during transfer and holding. After the experience, he described a newfound interest in aiding the Foundation's mission of protecting humanity, and psychological evaluations indicate he has been deradicalized. He has since been fully cooperative with the Foundation, using his knowledge of and connections to Islamist extremist groups to assist the Foundation in neutralizing GOIs -███ and -███ and recovering SCP-████.

Subject: Dr. █████████

Criteria Met: 49 year old male, Level 3-████ researcher and Foundation physician. Feels responsible for the death of his 15 year old daughter. One year prior to testing, she ruptured her appendix — due to the presence of an extensively drug-resistant strain of S.aureus, last-line antibiotics were ineffective, and she rapidly entered into septic shock and died before Dr. █████████'s emergency petition for use of SCP-427's curative properties could be reviewed and approved.

Length of Test (Reported/estimated instance count): 2 seconds (89 instances)

Results: Dr. █████████ reported complete resolution of his symptoms of psychological trauma. Prior to testing, he had expressed feeling guilt and culpability for his daughter's death, noting that he had neglected his family in search of a promotion, and had recently declined a research position with the SCP-427 team that would have allowed him to authorize emergency uses. Post-test counseling sessions indicate that he no longer views his self-described failures as a father and as a researcher as the ultimate cause of his daughter's death. An application for use of SCP-4908 on Dr. █████████'s wife, who he indicates is suffering from similar trauma, is pending approval.

Subject: D-987124

Criteria Met: 25 year old female. Responsible for the deaths of a family of four, including two children ages 5 and 7, due to a head-on collision caused by driving while intoxicated.

Length of Test (Reported/estimated instance count): 4 seconds (218 instances)

Results: The subject immediately entered cardiac arrest after removal of SCP-4908, believed to be due to stress-induced cardiomyopathy. Despite personnel's best efforts at resuscitation, the subject suffered severe brain damage and required mechanical ventilation support to sustain their life. Apart from instances of spontaneous crying, no signs of neural function were noted, and subject was terminated two weeks later.