The falling figure of James streaked through the air like a black meteor.
Inside the live broadcast room, the viewers' hearts collectively leapt into their throats. Everyone held their breath as they watched the screen in stunned silence. Even the members of the Mobile Task Force, visible in the footage, stood frozen in place—silent and unmoving like onyx statues.
Two seconds passed.
Then—
BOOM!
The impact reverberated like thunder as James crashed into the ground. The black containment pocket deployed around him instantly, enclosing the entity known as SCP-096.
In that moment, it was as if time itself had stopped.
One second...
Two seconds...
Three seconds...
Three heart-stopping seconds stretched on endlessly, each one feeling like an entire century.
Then—
"SCP-096, contained successfully."
The voice was weak but steady.
James's voice.
Silence fell over the square, blanketing the scene like a shroud. For one breathless second, no one dared move or speak.
And then, as if ignited by those calm words, the entire live broadcast room erupted into a frenzy of cheers and disbelief.
Success?
Had they really done it?
When James's voice echoed across the speakers, many still felt like they were caught in a dream—no, a nightmare. The bodies strewn across the ground, the shattered concrete, the destruction… it all looked too surreal, like something ripped out of a horror film.
Yet it was all real.
Reality finally caught up, and the viewers exploded with emotion.
"FK! FK! F*******K!!! It's finally f*****g over!"
"Oh my god—what did I just watch?!"
"James! It's James again! Always James! He risked his life AGAIN and succeeded AGAIN! This madman!"
"It still feels like a hallucination… Jesus, that was insane!"
Yes—insane was the only word that could truly capture the feeling pulsing through everyone watching.
Even the extraordinary individuals from across multiverses had something to say.
[Extraordinary Chat Group]
[Tony Stark]: Damn, that was wild. Makes fighting terrorists look like a high school field trip.
[Deadpool]: Another unkillable guy? Since when did immortality become a trend?
[Steve Rogers]: Thank god the surveillance system censored 096's face before broadcasting it. I don't want that thing wandering into our world.
[Natasha Romanoff]: What's the big deal? We've got our own version of James here in Marvel. wink
The live feed changed.
James now lay quietly in a hospital bed. Both of his legs were completely encased in thick plaster, a grim reminder of the price he paid for his final dive.
But compared to the alternative—an uncontrolled SCP-096 rampaging through a crowd—this price was bearable. Even generous.
A knock sounded at the hospital room door.
James hadn't even responded before it burst open. A crowd surged inside.
"Woohoo! Look who it is—our hero!" shouted a talkative white man with messy blond hair—Jack.
He charged in with exaggerated flair, followed closely by the rest of the task force team. Ignoring James's visibly exhausted face, Jack pranced over like a puppy, glancing this way and that, poking at James's plastered legs.
"Look at this, people! Just look! What a stingy Foundation! This man saved the world again, and they won't even give him a Foundation Star. Absolute tightwads!" he cried indignantly.
Another team member chimed in, "Yeah! They gave a D-class personnel one once! What gives?"
James's expression froze slightly at that comment.
The live broadcast audience also looked a bit puzzled.
[S.H.I.E.L.D. Headquarters]
Natasha Romanoff couldn't help herself. She burst out laughing.
"Oh, these guys have no idea the last D-class to receive a Foundation Star… was also James. Haha!"
"Outta the way, you punks!"
A gruff voice cut through the chatter.
The instructor stomped into the room, elbowing his way through the crowd. He glared at the group, then turned to James with a faint smile.
"How's the recovery coming along?" he asked.
"The doctor said it'll take over a month," James replied calmly.
Before the instructor could respond, Jack interjected again, clearly riled up.
"We're out there risking our asses on the front lines, and they can't even spare a piece of SCP-500?"
SCP-500?
Nick Fury, who had been observing the feed with increasing interest, perked up. Another anomaly?
He didn't know what SCP-500 was, but from the way the name dropped like a bombshell, it had to be important.
Back on the screen, the instructor let out a smug chuckle. Without a word, he reached into his coat and produced a small, translucent capsule.
"Oh my god, no way—he actually got one!" someone gasped.
The rest of the team erupted in surprise.
"You got approval?! You serious?!" Jack shouted, eyes practically bulging out of his head.
The instructor smirked. "Turns out the old dogs in the Resource Department still owe me a few favors."
With a flourish, he handed the capsule to James.
"Now listen—this is a weakened, low-grade replica of SCP-500. It's not as effective as a high-tier version, but it's more than enough to fix those legs of yours."
Back at S.H.I.E.L.D., Nick Fury's single visible eye widened.
That capsule… was SCP-500?
And it could heal injuries?
He hadn't even known healing anomalies existed in the Foundation's collection. Up until now, he'd thought it was all monsters—like SCP-173, SCP-682, and the nightmare-inducing 096.
But this? This was different. Miraculous, even.
Before James could respond, Jack cried out again, his jealousy peaking.
"Boss! That's so unfair! We were part of the mission too! We got hurt too!"
"Yeah, Boss! Let us try it too! Isn't this the legendary miracle pill?"
Another voice joined in, "It's said this stuff can even bring the dead back to life and regrow limbs—"
"Silence!" barked the instructor, his face darkening.
"You handle three containment breaches in a single month, and I'll apply for the original SCP-500 myself. I'll even let you snack on it like sunflower seeds!"
The room fell instantly silent.
No one dared argue.
The memory of James leaping from a helicopter, throwing himself into the mouth of chaos, was still fresh in everyone's minds. No one wanted that job.
James, meanwhile, said nothing. He simply smiled faintly and took the capsule.
He swallowed it.
Three seconds passed.
Then—
Something incredible happened.
Before the stunned eyes of everyone present, James's legs began to heal.
Bones reformed. Muscle tissue knitted together. Flesh regrew.
In under ten seconds, the injuries that would've taken months to recover from were gone.
He sat up. Whole. Healed. Alive.
At S.H.I.E.L.D., Nick Fury was floored.
"A pill that regenerates shattered limbs in seconds?" he muttered to himself. "What in God's name is this black tech?"
He had always suspected the SCP Foundation possessed powers that defied conventional understanding. But now, his interest was no longer professional curiosity.
It was personal.
If something like SCP-500 could be replicated, distributed, or even integrated into S.H.I.E.L.D. protocols… the possibilities were endless.
And he wasn't alone in thinking so.
Across the live broadcast room, thousands of viewers felt the same way.
Who didn't suffer from illness? Who hadn't feared injury or death?
Now, a tiny capsule promised to erase those fears.
Meanwhile, in a sleek, high-tech lab in New York—
Dr. Curt Connors stared at the screen, eyes wide with revelation. His heart pounded as he watched James's legs regenerate.
"This... this is it!" he whispered.
"This is what I need!"
His mind raced with excitement.
SCP-500. If even a low-tier replica could restore limbs... then the original could revolutionize medicine, society, and even the limits of human biology.
"If I can get this... I can regrow my arm. No more weakness. No more disability. A world without limits!"
Without hesitation, he sat down at his workstation and began inputting a new model.
Gene repair.
Limb regeneration.
Disease reversal.
Human enhancement.
He could see it all now.
But before he could dive deeper, the system pinged.
A new notification had appeared—
[FutureTech Pharmaceuticals has launched joint research initiatives in gene therapy, cancer treatment, limb regeneration, and more.]
His hands trembled as he opened the link.
The age of human limitations... was ending.
And it all started with SCP-500.
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