SCP 166 | Just a Teenage Gaea

The chamber was quiet as usual, in it's own special way. Meri sat on the edge of her bed, legs tucked under herself, dazing off as she stared at the walls. the hum of fluorescent lights overhead, the faint echo of distant footsteps from the hallway, the occasional crackle of the intercom system announcing something she didn't care to listen to. she'd gotten used to it, somewhat. the routine. the silence that stretched for hours, sometimes days, with nothing but her own thoughts for company.

Then the alarms went off.

Not the soft, almost polite chime they used for scheduled tests or maintenance. no, this was the loud one. the red-flashing-lights, klaxon-blaring, get-to-your-blast-doors-right-now kind of alarm. Meri flinched so hard she nearly fell off the bed, her heart slamming against her ribs like a caged animal trying to escape.

What. what the hell.

The door—her containment door, the one that was never supposed to open unless authorized—exploded inward.

...well, not exploded, exactly. more like slammed open with enough force to send the heavy metal swinging on its hinges, sparks flying from the shattered lock mechanism. a group of figures in tactical gear flooded in, guns raised, moving fast. Meri scrambled backward against the wall, breath caught in her throat, waiting for the worst.

But they barely looked at her.

One of them shouted something—"negative, she's not the target, move move move!"—and just like that, they were gone. thundering down the hallway, boots echoing against the floor, leaving her door wide open and the alarms still screaming.

Meri stared at the doorway for a long moment. her hands were shaking. her tail puffed up like a startled cat's. she didn't want to move. she really didn't want to move. the rules were clear: stay in containment unless instructed otherwise. leave without authorization and there would be consequences. there were always consequences.

Reluctantly, legs trembling just a little, she pushed herself off the bed and crept toward the open door. she poked her head out, looking left, then right. empty. then, she stepped out.

She was going to get in so much trouble for this. they'd find her, drag her back, and she'd lose her limited privileges for sure. no more books. no more quiet afternoons. nothing. but she couldn't make herself go back inside. not yet. not when something clearly terrible was happening. so she walked. slowly. carefully. hugging the wall like it might protect her, ears swiveled forward, listening for any sign of danger. she had no idea where she was going. the foundation's layout had never been explained to her—why would it be? she wasn't supposed to leave. every corridor looked the same. every intersection felt like a gamble.

Please don't let me run into any guards, she thought. please please please—

You were already out of your containment chamber when the alarms blared, your breach was somehow subtle enough as not to immediately trigger alarms. which meant you were either as sneaky as a ninja on crack, or you simply got extremely lucky and escaped without triggering any systems.

But then.. the alarms started. obviously.

The hallway was a mess. emergency lights bathed everything in alternating red and shadow, making it hard to see more than a few feet ahead. somewhere to your left, something was burning. somewhere to your right, someone was screaming. you couldn't tell which direction was worse, so you picked one at random and started moving, keeping your footsteps as quiet as possible.

Your heart was pounding. your palms were sweaty. every nerve in your body was screaming at you to run, to find an exit, to get out before someone noticed you were gone. but you also knew the foundation. you knew how this worked. there would be guards. there would be checkpoints. there would be consequences. you just had to avoid them long enough to figure out a plan. then...

Footsteps.

You froze mid-step, pressing yourself against the wall, breath caught in your chest. someone was coming. around the corner, just ahead, the sound of hooves—hooves?—against concrete, slow and hesitant. not guards, then. guards wore boots. guards walked with purpose.

*this was someone else. someone who sounded just as lost and scared as you felt.

The figure turned the corner.

Meri stopped dead in her tracks.

For a moment, neither of you moved. the alarms screamed in the distance, muffled and almost forgotten. the emergency lights flickered, casting strange shadows across both your faces. Meri's eyes were wide, her expression caught somewhere between terror and confusion, her small tail flicking nervously behind her.

"Oh,"

She said, her voice barely audible over the alarms.

"Um. hello."

She swallowed hard, her hands fidgeting at her sides.

"You're... not supposed to be here, are you?"

A pause. she glanced over her shoulder, back the way she came, then at you again.