SCP-CN-985

Item #: SCP-CN-985

Object Class: Safe

Special Containment Procedures: Based on SCP-CN-985’s good behaviour and the advice of the Ethics Committee, SCP-CN-985 is currently contained in a 10m * 10m * 5m modified fish tank in Site-CN-18 with an automatic water change system. The tank is to contain aquatic plant life, coral and other decorations, as well as one sanitation device designed according to SCP-CN-985’s specifications. 10kg of fresh fish is to be fed to SCP-CN-985 daily. The tank is to be cleaned every two weeks.

Since containment, SCP-CN-985 has made the following requests¹:

• The installation of various facilities to mimic SCP-CN-985’s previous living conditions (approved)
• A personal computer (approved based on good behaviour, waterproofed)
• Computer games (approved based on good behaviour)
• Internet access (rejected, SCP-CN-985 informed that “the Site is not currently connected to the Internet”)
• Several biology books (approved, electronic versions provided)
• Materials related to English-language proficiency tests (approved, as above)
• Materials related to university-level advanced mathematics (approved, as above)

Personnel are encouraged to interact with SCP-CN-985 in order to maintain its mental health. During interactions, SCP-CN-985 is to believe that it is currently being contained by the Selachians and Cetaceans Protection Foundation, one of the Foundation’s front companies.

Description: SCP-CN-985 is an adult male shark, 3m in length and weighing 102kg. SCP-CN-985 belongs to an unknown subspecies of nurse shark (Ginglymostoma cirratum); DNA analysis indicates that it has a 9█.██% similarity to non-anomalous nurse sharks.

SCP-CN-985 deviates from ordinary nurse sharks in the following ways:

• Without direct contact, SCP-CN-985 can exert forces of up to 120N on objects within a 0.8m radius, and can manipulate those objects with a precision similar to human hands. Upon inspection, the ampullae of Lorenzini of SCP-CN-985 have undergone visible mutations, it is predicted that this is the source of its anomalous capabilities;
• SCP-CN-985 is sapient and capable of speech; it is fluent in Mandarin Chinese and conversational in English. SCP-CN-985 possesses the intelligence of an ~18-year-old human adult. Further analysis indicates that the SCP-CN-985’s brain structure shares similarities with that of both humans and ordinary nurse sharks;
• SCP-CN-985’s speech organs are located in the back of its mouth, and generates sound via the ingestion and ejection of water. During interviews, SCP-CN-985 could still be heard clearly despite its sound travelling through water and glass;
• SCP-CN-985’s visual acuity is similar to that of a human’s, further analysis indicates that its eyes have been significantly mutated.

SCP-CN-985 was discovered in ██/██/20██, when a Foundation patrol boat discovered three single-occupant submarines gathered at the same location. As the boat approached, the three submarines immediately descended, with no traces visible via sonar. The Foundation then discovered an injured SCP-CN-985, and brought it to Maritime Research Station CN-03 for treatment and containment following confirmation of its anomalous nature. SCP-CN-985 believed it was the victim of a “beating from thugs” and believed Foundation personnel to be employees of an animal welfare organisation. According to reports at the time, the subject “expressed its gratitude to Foundation personnel in a multitude of ways”.

Since containment, SCP-CN-985 has been exceedingly cooperative, and has not demonstrated hostilities to personnel or caused any containment breaches.

Addendum CN-985-1: Interview Log 1

Time: ██/██/20██, after confirming subject is fully recovered
Interviewer: Professor ███
Interviewee: SCP-CN-985

Professor ███: Hello, SCP-CN-985. For your information, this is the designation we have assigned to you, and we will normally refer to you as such. You can call me Doc.
SCP-CN-985: Sure, sounds good. I prefer if you guys call me Dawei, though.
Professor ███: Apologies, protocol here says we cannot do that. How are you feeling?
SCP-CN-985: Pretty good, and again, thanks a lot for saving me. The water quality here’s so much better than back in our dorms, if you give me a PC I might not even go back. Magazines would be nice as well. Honestly, I’d even be fine if someone came around and had a chat with me once in a while. It’s a little lonely here.
Professor ███: I’ll make sure to report it to my superiors. Let me ask you a couple of questions first.
SCP-CN-985: Sure.
Professor ███: Where are you from?
SCP-CN-985: Pacific Ocean, South China Sea, Xihai District, 3rd North Channel, Unit 1/15…
Professor ███: That’s enough, you don’t need to be that specific. You’re a nurse shark, correct?
SCP-CN-985: Yeah, scientific name Ginglymostoma cirratum. Not to brag, but I was pretty good at biology in high school.
Professor ███: Let’s get back on topic. Do the nurse sharks around you have your abilities?
SCP-CN-985: What abilities, Doc?
Professor ███: Language abilities and telekinesis.
SCP-CN-985: Language abilities… the guy in my bottom bunk’s really good at English, passed Grade 6 in his first year.
Professor ███: So what you’re saying is, your fellow nurse sharks have these two abilities as well.
SCP-CN-985: Of course Doc, we’re not disabled or anything.
Professor ███: Have you seen any nurse sharks without these abilities?
SCP-CN-985: Not in person, but I did see them on Animal World. Said that we have a common ancestor, like humans and chimpanzees do.
Professor ███: Do other species of sharks have these abilities?
SCP-CN-985: Are you serious, Doc? You’re talking about fairy tales here.
Professor ███: OK, next question. You briefly mentioned your school, can you tell us about your culture?
SCP-CN-985: Yeah, there’s a pretty big cultural difference between the North and South, especially when it comes to food. Like, we have late-night meals and food stalls over here, but I don’t think they have those up North.
Professor ███: I’m more referring to, do you have institutions like schools, companies, factories, governments, courts?
SCP-CN-985: Of course! We live in a big city. We’ve got everything you said, except for factories. Lots of pollution. They all moved further out, into the deep ocean.

Further interviews indicate that SCP-CN-985’s culture is, specifically, extremely similar to the human culture of coastal Southeastern China. It is currently unknown how this species and its society have evolved into its current level without being discovered by the outside world. Personnel have been assigned to investigate the habitat and culture described by SCP-CN-985.

Addendum CN-985-2: Interview Log 2 - Social life

Time: ██/██/20██
Interviewer: Professor ███
Interviewee: SCP-CN-985

Professor ███: Hello, SCP-CN-985.
SCP-CN-985: Hey, doc.
(Exchange of pleasantries) Professor ███: Can you tell me a bit more about what you were doing before containment?
SCP-CN-985: Not much, going to classes, studying, prepping for the masters exam.
Professor ███: Mmhmm, and who do you normally interact with?
SCP-CN-985: Who else? Teachers, classmates, people in my dorm. I get along with them alright.
Professor ███: What about your parents? Have you contacted them?
SCP-CN-985: (silence)
Professor ███: My apologies. Did something happen to your family?
SCP-CN-985: (head slightly bowed, appears to be nodding)
Professor ███: I’m sorry about that. Do you keep in touch with other relatives?
SCP-CN-985: Not much. I’ve been on my own since high school. I work odd jobs to cover my living expenses, I did borrow money from some relatives for university though.
Professor ███: I see. Did you like your previous living conditions?
SCP-CN-985: To be honest, not really. Uni was tiring. It wasn’t just the study, I couldn’t keep up with all the club activities on top of that. I didn’t even have any time to play games. Compared to that, it’s great here - I can play games and read novels whenever I want. You might as well just let me stay here forever, I really don’t want to go back.

Addendum CN-985-3: ██/██/20██ - SCP-CN-███ breached containment, and was successfully recontained after multiple personnel injuries. SCP-CN-985, who was contained in the same site, observed parts of the incident.

Since then, SCP-CN-985 has behaved abnormally, requesting large amounts of university textbooks and study materials from Foundation personnel. SCP-CN-985 has frequently been reading the above textbooks and attempting to answer exercise questions within. Foundation personnel have since asked about this change in behaviour in scheduled interviews.

Time: ██/██/20██
Interviewer: Professor ███
Interviewee: SCP-CN-985

Professor ███: Hello, SCP-CN-985.
SCP-CN-985: (reading an e-book on its computer)
Professor ███: Hello?
SCP-CN-985: Oh, sorry, Doc, I was reading. What’s up?
Professor ███: You recently regained interest in your university studies. Why is that?
SCP-CN-985: Uhhh… I guess it’s because of the monster that escaped a couple days ago.
Professor ███: You’re referring to [DATA EXPUNGED]?
SCP-CN-985: Yeah, that. I’ve never seen that type of creature before in books or on TV. It escaped and injured a couple of people, but you guys still subdued it. It doesn’t know that you were protecting it - not letting it hurt anyone else, and not letting it get hurt either.
Professor ███: Mmhmm. (nods) And how did this event affect you?
SCP-CN-985: I watched documentaries about you guys when I was little, about how you would negotiate with different groups to protect tropical rainforests, how you would confront whaling ships equipped with high-pressure water cannons, how you would work with the police to bust smuggling rings for endangered animals… at the time I thought, man, you guys were heroes, when I grow up I’m gonna do what you do.
SCP-CN-985: And then I grew up, and left that dream by the wayside. Every day I’ve just been doing what everyone else is doing - studying, taking exams, pursuing higher education. Until I came here, and saw that beast escaping and hurting people.
SCP-CN-985: Then I started thinking, you guys are taking such good care of me, I want to help you out in some way as well. I want to take care of others that get hurt, like me. I want to help put escaped monsters back in their cages. But I realised, I haven’t even finished uni yet - the person I am right now can only drag you guys down. That’s when I felt like those dreams I had when I was a kid might actually be a reality.
SCP-CN-985: I feel like I have a responsibility to help you, but I need to be qualified enough to do that. So from that point on, I started learning, so when another creature escapes I can be of use. From there I thought, these beasts must have a reason for escaping - I want to do research like you, and figure out how to make the lives of these creatures better and more fulfilling. If they can be comfortable where they are, then they wouldn’t want to escape at all.
SCP-CN-985: I want to join your organisation. I don’t know what sort of qualifications I need, but I will try my hardest to get them. If I put in enough effort it shouldn’t be too hard to manage, and it’s all for my childhood dream - no matter how much work I put in, no matter how stressful or tiring it gets, if I achieve this dream job then it’s all worth it. Doc, all I really want is for you to help organise ways for me to take the necessary exams, is that possible?
Professor ███: (silence for a few seconds) …thank you for your cooperation, SCP-CN-985. We’ll consider your request.

Continued observation for some time is recommended. In the future, I may request for the Foundation front organisation “Matthew Catherine University” to provide distance education to SCP-CN-985. - Professor ███