As Luo Shu soared toward France, "God" descended into the depths of Site-33.
His purpose wasn't just Anomalous Item-5237's sudden deactivation.
Frankly, he couldn't care less about the O5 Council's safety.
His focus was Luo Shu.
When the O5 reported the meme bomb's failure, his first thought was:
He's been here.
Soon, more evidence surfaced:
Anomalous Item-2737 (Dead Lamprey) had rotted overnight.
Anomalous Item-1446 (Metaphysical Graffiti) was tampered with—a backup carpet incinerated, the anomaly neutralized.
First-wave audits uncovered these. The second wave revealed dozens more:
Anomalous Item-782 (The New You)
Anomalous Item-2080-3 (London Cabbie's Guide)
Anomalous Item-4022 (The Vast Nothing)
Anomalous Item-868 (Mnemonic Hazard)
Some losses were benign. Others, like the mnemonic hazard's erasure, crippled Foundation operations.
The cause was obvious to "God":
Anti-meme seals.
He'd seen it before.
Anomalous Item-████ (Tree of Destruction), deployed against a prior "Truth-Seeker", had been sealed.
The SMS Meme used against Luo Shu? Also sealed.
He's grown bold. Raiding my stronghold.
Because Site-33 was his stronghold.
Remember:
"God" appeared at Site-17 as an English gentleman, his quarters steeped in medieval aesthetics.
Abel (SCP-076), his enforcer, was first contained in England.
"God" ruled from the New World, but Site-33—the heart of memetic containment—was his true foundation.
He'd never imagined someone would dare strike here.
Even the Chaos Insurgency avoided it.
Most anomalies let you run. Memes infect you the moment you know them.
Only two beings were immune:
Luo Shu.
And "God."
The Keter Vault
"God" ignored the Safe/Euclid losses, heading straight for Sublevel-5:
Keter-Class Memetic Storage.
Each meme here could end the world.
The SMS Meme he'd used against Luo Shu? Stolen from this vault.
(No one else knew. Those who did were dead or infected.)
Had Luo Shu not triggered alarms at Item-5237's unit, he might've breached this floor.
Now, "God" verified the vault's integrity—then made a decision.
He stopped before a reinforced chamber, hesitating.
What lay inside was apocalyptically potent.
But compared to a Truth-Seeker's threat, global carnage was acceptable.
He entered.
The Lance That Pierced the Divine
On a wooden stand rested a twin-bladed spear, its shaft spiraled from folded steel.
Its name echoed through scripture and myth:
The Spear of Longinus.
The Holy Lance.
Legend claimed it pierced Christ's side, its tip anointed with divine blood that healed the blind centurion Longinus.
After the Resurrection, it became a relic—shattered into three, housed in Vienna, Rome, and Glastonbury.
Lies.
The true lance had always been here.
And it was a meme.
Memetic Longinus.
A soul-killing weapon.
"God" lifted it, murmuring:
"Old friend. Last time I wielded you was against that 'Jesus' Truth-Seeker."
"The fool tried to create a 'God' in Jerusalem to oppose me."
"This world tolerates no gods. It's ours**."
"Now— find him. "
The lance vanished.
Global Trigger
Across the planet, billions of believers—Christian, Muslim, Jewish—felt a presence manifest in their minds.
Memetic Longinus.
I think, therefore I am.
You know me, so I exist.
You know me, so you bear me**.
Each became a potential vessel. The moment Luo Shu neared them, the meme would strike.
Beachhead Massacre
Luo Shu landed at Dunkirk after an hour's flight.
As his feet touched sand, the beachgoers froze—then sprinted toward him.
"God," still in the vault, smiled.
"Found you."
Luo Shu activated Unobservable—too late.
A sprinting Black man locked eyes with him.
The victim dropped dead, his lifeforce morphing into the lance—plunging into Luo Shu's psyche.