The SCP Experience - Jumping at Shadows | SCP-280

Episode Date: September 28, 2022

SCP Foundation KETER class object, SCP-280: Jumping at Shadows This story was derived from https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-280, and is released under Creative Commons Sharealike 3.0. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ Author: Matt Doggett Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/MatthewDoggettAuthor/ Website/Newsletter sign up: matthewdoggettauthor.com New Book Releases: https://www.amazon.com/Matthew-G-Doggett/e/B08FD5378Z DISCLAIMER: This episode contains explicit content. Parental guidance is advised for children under the age of 18. Listen at your own discretion. #thescpexperience #scp #scpfoundation #scpencounters #securecontainprotect #scpstories #scpexplained #whatisscp Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The door shot open, revealing a dark figure that emitted a loud bark. Shana screamed, jumping toward me and clutching my arm. She nearly knocked the camera out of my hand. Simon, who had been hiding in the room, stepped out into the faint light of the hallway, laughing. Simon, cute pig. Shana said, letting go of me to swatter to torment her. She wasn't really angry. She was smiling.

If she didn't like being scared, she wouldn't come with us on our lives. little explorations. Your face, Simon gasped, between laughs. You look so stupid when you're scared. Oh, shut up! Shana said. Then she turned to look up at me. And what about you?

Aren't boyfriends supposed to protect their girlfriends from assholes? Some assholes are just too big to fight, I said, shrugging. We just walked into a house we rented on Scare B&B, a service that specialized in renting out supposedly haunted houses. When we pulled up, Simon immediately jumped out of the rental car and went into the house, using the code the host provided. I knew he tried to scare Shana. It was kind of his thing, yet she never seemed to see it coming. Let's turn on some lights and get settled in, I suggested, still recording with my camera. There was nothing special about the house from the outside.

white with dark blue trim, two stories tall, and surrounded by thick southern woods. It looked like many houses in Mississippi built in the mid-20th century. The reviews on Scare B&B said that there were some strange happenings in the house. Things like doors opening mysteriously, unexplainable creaking sounds, and ghostly whispers at night. But for all I knew, these reviews could have been seated by friends of the hosts. The house hadn't been on the website for very long. In fact, we normally wouldn't visit a house with such a short history of supposed paranormal activity. But there were two things that brought us here.

The first was the latest review, which had been posted just three days before we arrived. The guy who wrote it said that he and his wife had ended up sleeping with all the lights on in the house. They both swore that something had been moving around in the darkness when the lights were off. He even said his wife felt something toucher. While I didn't know this guy personally, I did follow his blog about haunted houses, and I knew he wasn't one to exaggerate or take a bribe from a host. The second thing was the fact that there had been several murders in the surrounding area in the weeks leading up to our arrival. Unexplained murders, no less. I knew that, if nothing else.

We could detail these strange murders while we were here, even if nothing else happened. Even if nothing else happened, it would make for a good episode. But just in case there was a serial killer around, I'd brought my gun, a Sig Sour P-229 pistol. After all, I knew that murderers were much more real than the ghosts we purported to hunt. Our show was all in good fun, but not at the expense of our safety. Shana and I followed Simon around the house as he turned on the lights and spoke to the camera. He was the most charismatic and photogenic of us, and so he did most of the talking, although we all ended up on screen at some point during every episode.

He was always very good at remembering facts about the places we stayed. He didn't even need a script. The place was certainly creaky. The hardwood floors were uneven, and many of the doors were no longer flush with the frames, making them difficult to open and close. The furniture was relatively new, but the house itself was approaching a run-down state. Downstairs was the living room, which led to the dining room, which led to the kitchen at the back of the house. There was a bathroom off the main hallway, just past the stairs.

Upstairs were three small bedrooms and one shared bathroom. Once we were done with the tour portion of the shoot, I put my camera down to help the others bring in our luggage and food. We'd pulled up to the house just after sunset, and the night was now in full swing. The trees around the house were losing their leaves, but they still seemed to block out any starlight. If there was a moon, it wasn't visible yet. Once we got everything inside the house, we made sure the place was locked up tight and relaxed for a minute. The living room had a slightly worn leather couch along with two lazy boy chairs. Shana and I plopped down on the couch while Simon sat in one of the chairs.

My gun was sitting on the coffee table next to my camera. There was a television, but none of us reached to turn it on. We all knew we had work to do. What first? Simon asked. Let's shoot some night vision stuff, I said. Maybe even take a walk around the property. Just remember, don't leave any doors unlocked, not ever.

not even for a minute. Damn, Brian, Simon said. You really think there's a killer lurking around here? I looked over at him. He was always so easygoing, so flippant. His whole persona seemed effortless. His black hair was always perfectly styled. His dark skin was never marred by pimples.

Nervousness and anxiety seemed unknown to him. You didn't read any of the stories about the murders here? I asked, already knowing the answer. Nah, man, he replied. That's your thing. I did. Shana said, blue eyes wide. Brian's right.

We need to be careful. They haven't caught the person or people who've been doing it. And they're pretty nasty murders from what I read. Simon shrugged. Fine, he said. We'll be safe. Stick together and keep the doors locked. But I'm not touching that gun.

I'll take care of. of the gun, I said. I'm the only one who knows how to shoot anyway. Well, let's do it while I still have some charm in the old tank, Simon said, getting up. Okay, I said, standing up. If we're doing exterior with night vision, let's turn off all the lights in here so we can shoot outside without any blooming or streaking. I grabbed my camera off the coffee table, then my pistol, clipping it to my belt easily thanks to the outside the waistband holster. Shana and Simon went around the house, shutting off lights while I got the camera ready.

By the time they were done, the only light on was in the kitchen because we were going to head out the back door. I was still messing with my camera in the living room when someone came into the room and stood nearby. It took me a minute to register that whoever it was hadn't made a noise as they came into the room. Not a single floorboard creaked.

There wasn't even the sound of a footstep. I looked up to see a dark figure standing about three feet away from me. It wasn't much more than a shadow, slightly darker than the room. The shadow had a head and shoulders, much like a human. Suddenly, it rushed toward me. I jumped back, tripping onto, and then falling over the couch as I yelled. The shadow seemed to move through the couch, still coming at me. I hit a button and turned on the built-in light on my camera.

then shined it at the thing. Two bright white eyes suddenly popped up in the head of the shadow, but it stopped coming toward me. In fact, it sped away, disappearing once it was out of the light for my camera. Simon and Shana rushed into the room, drawn by my yell. Simon turned on the light and looked down at me. What happened?

Holy shit. I said, there's something here. There's really something here. Holy goddamn shit. Come on. Shana said. said, Simon already scared me once. That's enough for one night. I'm dead serious, I said, standing up. I didn't know whether to run away screaming or jump for joy. Did you get it on camera?

Simon asked. I shook my head. I hadn't been recording. The three of us stood there in silence for several moments. I was replaying the whole thing over in my head, kicking myself for not hitting record. Simon and Shana were probably wondering if I'd gone insane. Turn off the lights. I said finally. Why? Simon asked. Because that was when it appeared. I think I scared it away with the light on my camera. As I said this, I turned my camera's light off and set it back to night vision mode. Simon turned off the light, plunging us into darkness. There was a faint glow coming through the dining room from the kitchen, but it wasn't much. We stood silently while I recorded, sweeping my camera around. When it wasn't immediately

apparent that the thing would come back, I started narrating. I've just seen something. I began. A dark, shadowy figure that moved toward me. Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera recording at the time. Now that I do, I hope it will... Oh my God! Shana cried. I whipped around toward her, catching the dark shadow emerging from her, through her. It looked just like it had when I'd first seen it, without its bright white eyes. It was heading slowly for Simon, who seemed struck with disbelief. It stretched two incredibly long and spindly black arms out toward him, dark fingers unfolding toward his face.

As its hands got within a few inches of him, he flipped on the lights again. The shadow's eyes emerged again, and it retreated, Heading out into the dark hallway and dissolving until it was no longer visible. What did you turn on the lights for? I asked. Simon shook his head. Before he could answer, we both realized Shana was crying. She was hugging herself, sobbing, looking up at me. I felt it. She said. It was awful. Oh my God, it was awful. I never want to feel that again.

Seeing her like that, I realized that we were dealing with. something that might actually be able to do us harm. But if that was the case, why hadn't it? Why didn't it hurt Shana? I thought about the unsolved murders in the area as I stepped up and hugged my girlfriend with one arm, holding the camera with the other. We need to get the fuck out of here, man, Simon said. His poise broken for the first time since I'd known him.

I didn't like the look at that thing, not at all. Okay, I said. I got it on camera. Even if it was just for a few moments. Let's get our stuff and go. I'll start turning the lights on down here. Shana, why don't you do the same upstairs? Simon, start gathering our stuff. They both agreed, and we split up to do our respective jobs.

I headed straight for the kitchen. I'd seen the breaker box in there earlier. I couldn't help myself. I just wanted a little more footage. Lazzang sur-gillet, Pucance-molyne Pondon We're like

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of 10 dollars Payeighed to pay for responsible The conditions apply. at any time. I didn't think there was much danger. I looked around to make sure no one was there, then flipped the main switch, shutting off all electricity to the house. What happened? I called from the kitchen, putting as much fear in my voice as I could. Upstairs, Shana screamed. In the living

room, Simon cursed. I moved quickly through the completely dark house, using the small screen on my camera to navigate without hitting furniture. I stepped into the living living, room to see Simon there and the shadow ghost right behind him. Did you try the light switch? I asked, holding up the camera to get more footage of the thing. Of course I did, Simon said. He was digging into his pocket for his phone. Upstairs, Shana called my name. I ignored her. Wait, I said. I'll turn on the light on my camera. I reached up slowly, but my eyes were fixed on the screen. The shadow ghost was reaching its long

arms out towards Simon. I wanted to see it go through him, like it did to Shana. But that's not what it did, not even close. It grabbed hold of Simon, one hand on the shoulder, and one on the head. And it ripped. Blood spewed out of my friend's body as his flesh tore near the base of his neck. Bones crunched as his neck broke. And the shadow creature kept going, ripping off his left arm and letting the rest of his body fall to the floor.

The whole thing took less than five seconds. Panic flooded my veins. I turned on the light on the camera. But instead of retreating, like it had done the other times, the creature through Simon severed arm at me, knocking the camera out of my hand. It skittered away from me as warm blood splashed my face. I stumbled backward and tripped over one of the lazy boys.

Shana! I screamed, scrambling up. I didn't know where the thing had gone. What's happening? Shana screamed from upstairs. Get your phone out. I called. Your flashlight.

I located my face. my camera through the darkness. It had come to rest facing a wall. I moved toward it, but the shadow appeared in front of me, reaching out with its ghostly arms. There was no hesitation. I turned to run toward the hallway and then to the staircase. But I forgot that Simon's body was there, and I tripped over it. The shadow monster grabbed my right leg and snapped it at the ankle. I screamed as pain like no other shot through me, amplified by the sheer terror I felt. Suddenly, There was a bright light shining on me, and I felt the camera let go of my shattered ankle. Shana was halfway down the stairs, shining her phone's flashlight through the living room doorway.

What the fuck? She screamed, seeing Simon at my feet, the pool of blood spreading around him. I lurched up and hopped on my left leg. My jeans soaked in Simon's blood. Keep shining it on us! I shouted. Get to the car! I hopped outside, propelled by adrenaline, while Shana helped me along.

still shining her light around us. I dug the keys out of my pocket and handed them to her, taking her phone so she could focus on driving. We got into the rental car, and I kept the light on us. Turn on the interior lights, I said as Shana threw the car into reverse.

I don't know how! Neither did I. I reached up and pressed on the lights, feeling them for a switch. No luck. Shana turned the car around and sped down the long dirt driveway. We hadn't gone far when she screamed.

It's in the back! I turned in my seat to see the shadow monster in the very back of the SUV. I shined the flashlight back at it. Instead of retreating, it seemed to duck behind the back seat. Still shining the light, I pulled my pistol out and pointed it back. I couldn't see the thing any longer. As we turned off the driveway and onto a paved road, the flashlight timed out, shutting off.

I shook the phone, because that was how I turned on the flashlight on my phone. But Shana's was different. How do you turn this thing on? I asked, turning and handing it to her. She took it and looked down to mess with it. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the figure materialize in the back seat. I pointed my pistol back and pulled the trigger, shooting at point blank three times. The bullets passed right through it.

Of course they did. Shana screamed at the loud shots and dropped her phone. The Shadow Monster reached through her seat and snapped her neck. Just like that. The SUV slued to one side as Shaneas hands dropped off the wheel. I reached out to take control, but it was already too late. Before I could get my hand on the steering wheel, we crashed head on into a tree. The only reason I'm even alive today is because of that crash.

You see, I wasn't wearing my seatbelt. I went right through the windshield and came to rest, directly in the circle of light, cast by the right headlight. Sure, I broke a lot of bones. but I'm still alive, unlike Shana and Simon. That thing, whatever it was, sat just outside the circle of light watching me, waiting for the headlight to go out. And when a police cruiser showed up and shined a spotlight down on me,

the shadow disappeared. I haven't seen it since, and I hope I never see it again. SCP-280 is a black human-shaped mass with two large white eyes on the head and two hands with very long and thin fingers. No feet or legs are visible, as the lower portion of the body appears to fade away several centimeters from the ground. SCP-280 appears to be wholly composed of matter that can gain or lose corporeal form. This matter is very black, with only the eyes showing any other color.

The eyes are non-functioning, and only appear when SCP-280 is retreating, appearing to be used like eye spots on some insects. SCP 280 is very strong and has been observed pulling apart steel with its hands, showing no sign of stress. SCP 280 will move slowly toward any human beings and attempt to attack them. When close enough, it will use its hands to pull and tear at the subject, causing massive physical trauma.

The attack will generally continue until the death of the subject, at which point SCP 280 will expose its eyes, lose corporeal form, and move to the next human. If no humans are present, it will move and ball up against a wall or other structure until a human being is again present. SCP 280 will retreat slowly from light, exposing its eyes in the direction of the light or at any nearby humans. If the surrounding area becomes fully illuminated, or there is a very bright burst of light, light.

SCP-280 will fade away and reappear in another area, then continue its attack on any nearby humans.