Chapter Summaries

Zhou Ze woke in the Anomaly Containment Facility, where D-class personnel were treated as experimental subjects, and shared breakfast with his unsettling roommate Old Yang. A guard summoned him for work, warning him that his lavish breakfast was his last supper.

• Zhou Ze got up in his windowless cell and reflected on his life as D-class personnel at the Anomaly Containment Facility.
• Old Yang ate something bloody while claiming it was beef sashimi, then revealed he had brought back flesh from the neighboring D-class personnel after an experiment.
• Zhou Ze realized his elaborate breakfast was his last supper as a guard called D-87465 out for work.

Zhou Ze was assigned to a second experiment involving the ambiguously classified E-566, the Game Box, and learned its deadly color-based rules before being forced into the containment chamber. As the chamber door closed, the doctor called Major Lu Fei to his office.

• Zhou Ze joined two other Class-D personnel as Major Lu Fei warned them to obey orders and atone for their crimes.
• Guards escorted the three Class-D personnel to the containment area and stopped them outside E-566, the Game Box.
• A doctor instructed them to keep moving in red light, remain still in blue light, and avoid green light, warning that disobedience would be fatal.
• Major Lu Fei quietly told Zhou Ze to stay calm and pay attention to what he saw.
• The guards forced Zhou Ze and the other Class-D personnel into the chamber, and the doctor summoned Major Lu Fei to his office.

Zhou Ze and two Class D personnel entered a lethal containment-chamber game in which colored light screens tested their speed and reactions. Zhou Ze and the burly man survived the first two rounds, but the thin man was killed by the red and blue screens.

• Zhou Ze entered the containment chamber after Old Yang warned him that the experiment was dangerous and promised to warn him if things went wrong.
• The game began, and Zhou Ze warned the two Class D personnel not to touch the green light screens as they ran ahead of them.
• The three participants passed the first round when the green screens disappeared just before reaching the fallen thin man.
• Zhou Ze worked out the rules for the red and blue screens and charged through the red light, with the burly man following him.
• The thin man hesitated, was struck by both screens, and melted into a skeleton.

Zhou Ze survived the containment chamber’s escalating light-screen game after Old Yang warned him to get down, while the burly man was killed by a barrage of green beams. An alarm then sounded in the monitoring room, prompting Dai Yong'an and Kane to rush into action.

• The chamber’s voice increased the game’s difficulty, and the burly man stumbled before throwing a rib at the central box.
• The box fired a green beam at the burly man, and his attack enraged the voice and accelerated all three light screens.
• Old Yang warned Zhou Ze to get down and close his eyes, allowing him to lie beneath the deadly green beams.
• The beams killed the burly man, leaving Zhou Ze alone beside his remains as the box began flashing.
• Dai Yong'an and Kane watched Zhou Ze survive on the surveillance screen until an alarm sounded and they hurried to respond.

Zhou Ze survived the game box’s black-light attack with Old Yang’s help, but the blast released something strange into the facility. As guards questioned Zhou Ze, a pair of red shoes walked toward them on their own.

• Old Yang told Zhou Ze to roll right, and Zhou Ze followed his directions to survive the game box’s sweeping black beams.
• After the attack ended, Old Yang warned Zhou Ze that something strange had escaped and told him to leave and pretend to be unconscious if necessary.
• Zhou Ze left the damaged chamber and met the two armed guards, who questioned him about what had happened and how he survived.
• The guards and Zhou Ze heard approaching footsteps and saw a pair of empty red leather shoes moving toward them through the corridor.

Zhou Ze survived a containment breach by pretending to be unconscious while the Red Shoes passed him by. After the escaped subjects were recaptured, he was found by combat personnel and given Class-A Amnestics, leaving his memories at risk.

• Zhou Ze feigned a faint as the facility announced breaches involving E-981, E-152, and E-471 and ordered an emergency lockdown.
• The guards left Zhou Ze behind, and he heard distant gunfire, a scream, and a heavy impact before the area fell silent.
• The Red Shoes approached Zhou Ze, who glimpsed them worn by a grotesque body assembled from human remains, but they eventually walked away.
• Zhou Ze woke to find combat personnel around him and spotted Old Yang hiding nearby.
• A squad leader reported Zhou Ze as the sole survivor, and an unseen authority ordered Class-A Amnestics administered to him.
• A combatant sprayed Zhou Ze with the amnestic, and Zhou Ze lost consciousness fearing he would lose his memories.

After waking from a fourteen-hour unconscious spell, Zhou Ze learned from Old Yang that changing fate carried a cost and that someone else might pay for his good luck. When staff summoned him, Zhou Ze pretended not to remember the last experiment and feared what awaited him.

• Zhou Ze woke in his room and asked Old Yang how long he had been unconscious after the Class-A memory wipe.
• Old Yang explained that memories shaped a person, said Zhou Ze had been unconscious for fourteen hours, and ate raw beef paste.
• Zhou Ze asked what Old Yang meant by the trouble they had caused, and Old Yang described fate's gifts as coming with a price.
• Zhou Ze guessed that his good luck might require someone else to suffer bad luck, and Old Yang confirmed the idea.
• Old Yang warned Zhou Ze to pretend his memories of the last experiment had been erased as staff approached.
• A staff member ordered D-87465 out of his room, and Zhou Ze acted frightened and asked whether it was time to work and whether he could eat first.

Zhou Ze was escorted from the D-class dormitory to a temporary interrogation room, where he met Wang Lei, a psychological counselor at Site-17. He remained wary as she invited him to talk, unsure whether the facility suspected him of something.

• A young guard handcuffed Zhou Ze and escorted him from the dormitory, while Zhou worried he might be taken to his execution.
• Zhou noticed the busy, sunlit corridors and city view as the guard led him through a normal-looking area of the facility.
• The guard brought Zhou to temporary interrogation room 3 and told him he was only responsible for the escort.
• Wang Lei introduced herself as a psychological counselor and invited Zhou to sit and chat.
• Zhou complimented Wang Lei but stayed cautious, wondering whether Site-17 had sent her to learn what he knew.

During a counseling session, Zhou Ze discovered his file said he had become Class D after killing a burglar who attacked his younger sister, rather than being a death row inmate. Wang Lei defended the Anomaly Containment Facility’s mission and its deadly experiments as necessary to protect humanity, leaving Zhou Ze with only her wish that he survive.

• Zhou Ze saw his file and realized it described a case unlike his own past killing, so he stayed quiet to avoid revealing himself.
• Wang Lei explained that the Facility recruited people with relatively minor crimes as Class D personnel and argued that its secret work protected humanity from anomalous threats.
• Zhou Ze challenged Wang Lei over the Facility’s treatment of Class D personnel and human experiments, while she used the trolley problem to defend sacrifices made for the world’s survival.
• Wang Lei said Zhou Ze’s calm state was unusual and suggested that some experiments required Class D personnel to be in specific psychological states.
• Wang Lei could offer Zhou Ze no advice beyond wishing that he lived to see another sunrise.

Zhou Ze was escorted from the interrogation room while Old Yang taunted him about enjoying danger, though the young guard could not see Old Yang. Meanwhile, Dai Yong'an questioned Major Lu Fei about his connection to D-87465 and the incident, then hinted that Lu Fei's interest in the D-class warranted further investigation.

• Zhou Ze stepped out of the interrogation room in shackles and caught his first sunlight since arriving in this world.
• Old Yang appeared along Zhou Ze's route and suggested that he enjoyed risking his life, but Zhou Ze's young guard saw only him reacting strangely.
• Dai Yong'an met with Major Lu Fei and questioned his transfer to Site-17 and his sympathy toward D-87465.
• Lu Fei denied breaking rules or engineering the incident and criticized Dai Yong'an for wiping D-87465's memory.
• Dai Yong'an said Lu Fei was too idealistic to have planned the mass-casualty incident, then warned that his unusual interest in D-87465 deserved scrutiny.

Lu Fei considered Dai Yong'an's proposal to assess D-87465 in exchange for research access, while Zhou Ze spent yard time reflecting on life among the Class-D personnel. The chapter left Lu Fei and Dai Yong'an heading to discuss their partnership as Zhou Ze spoke with a fellow inmate.

• Dai Yong'an offered Lu Fei research opportunities to interact with D-87465 in exchange for objective psychological assessments, while keeping his research plans secret.
• Lu Fei warned Dai Yong'an and questioned the risks, but after considering the difficulty of saving a Class-D personnel member, he agreed to discuss the proposal.
• Zhou Ze entered the monitored yard with the other Class-D personnel and chose a quiet corner instead of using the exercise equipment.
• Zhou Ze spoke with a gaunt Class-D personnel member, who said he had been there only a few days and had been imprisoned for drugs and dealing.

Zhou Ze listened to a fellow Class-D inmate describe how drug addiction and his daughter’s illness had ruined his life, then was targeted by three bullies. After Zhou Ze instinctively dislocated one man’s wrist, the bullies called for the guards, who shot all three dead and left Zhou Ze splattered with blood.

• A frail Class-D inmate told Zhou Ze that he had become addicted to drugs and regretted being unable to see his sick daughter.
• Three burly Class-D inmates bullied a thin prisoner, then chose Zhou Ze and his frail companion as their next targets.
• The frail inmate escaped to sit beside a guard, while Zhou Ze was blocked by the three bullies.
• Zhou Ze instinctively dodged the leader’s shove and dislocated his wrist.
• The three bullies falsely accused Zhou Ze of attacking them and called for a guard.
• A guard fired three shots, killing the bullies as Zhou Ze hit the floor and was splashed with their blood.

Zhou Ze followed Major Lu Fei out of the recreation area and was taken to the Area A cafeteria, where Lu Fei offered little explanation for why he had intervened. Their meal was interrupted by Zhu Qian, the half-cat known as Number-529, who was allowed to roam freely around the Site.

• Lu Fei ordered Zhou Ze to come with him after three Class-D Personnel were shot dead, and a security captain challenged the unusual transfer.
• Lu Fei invoked Dr. Dai Yong'an's orders, dismissed his escorts, and told Zhou Ze they were going to eat.
• At the cafeteria, Zhou Ze questioned Lu Fei about his intentions, but Lu Fei told him to eat and did not answer whether he knew him.
• Zhu Qian, a gray-striped cat missing her rear half, approached Zhou Ze, and Lu Fei identified her as Number-529.

Zhou Ze learned about the harmless contained anomaly Zhu Qian while dining with Lu Fei, who then arranged five days of special training for him. The chapter ended with Zhou Ze accepting the training, uncertain what would happen afterward but recognizing that Lu Fei did not want him to die.

• Lu Fei explained that contained anomalies were not necessarily dangerous and that Zhu Qian, a half-cat with her rear half missing, could roam certain areas of the Site.
• Zhou Ze petted Zhu Qian, who enjoyed his attention and curled up on his lap.
• Shi Yaming greeted Lu Fei in the cafeteria, and Lu Fei told Zhou Ze that Shi had once been his trainee.
• Lu Fei told Zhou Ze he would receive five days of training in place of his usual Class-D duties, including physical conditioning and basic instruction.
• Zhou Ze inferred that Lu Fei was trying to prevent his death, then agreed to undergo training despite not knowing what would follow.

Zhou Ze questioned why people at the Anomaly Containment Facility had treated him kindly, while Dai Yong'an discussed his plans to weaponize SCP-239. The chapter ended with Kane warning that SCP-239 was a reality-bending young god who could put the world at risk.

• Zhou Ze considered the people who had helped him and wondered whether their kindness was a coincidence or an illusion.
• Dai Yong'an told Kane that the Facility faced mounting pressure to experiment on anomalies and that he had accepted support from the Kings.
• Dai Yong'an said he was assessing Zhou Ze, a Class-D survivor whose composure and judgment had impressed him.
• Dai Yong'an revealed that he and two colleagues had already awakened SCP-239 and planned to use her to capture and contain other anomalies.
• Kane condemned the experiment and called SCP-239 an Apex-Class reality-bending entity, while Dai Yong'an insisted the O5 Council had approved the plan.

Four days into Zhou Ze’s training, Lu Fei explained that the exercises were meant to prepare him to survive long enough to prove his worth and join the Anomaly Containment Facility. As Zhou Ze faced a dangerous experiment the next day, Lu Fei’s only advice was to stay alive.

• Shi Yaming accompanied Zhou Ze to the training grounds and asked about his relationship with Lu Fei.
• Lu Fei told Zhou Ze that his recent basic training had no practical purpose and that survival was his first priority.
• Lu Fei revealed that his rejected training plan had been to force Zhou Ze to fight Class-D prisoners to the death.
• Lu Fei warned Zhou Ze that joining the facility would eventually force him to make life-and-death decisions.
• Zhou Ze asked about the next day’s experiment, and Lu Fei warned that the subject was extremely dangerous and told him to stay alive.

At Site-17, Dai Yong'an and Kane reviewed their plan for an experiment involving SCP-239 and D-87465 after Dai briefly sensed something was wrong. They concluded the plan was sound, and Dai prepared to proceed with the experiment.

• Kane worried that he was shedding fur, while Dai Yong'an focused on paperwork for the day's experiment.
• Dai Yong'an felt uneasy about the experiment and asked Kane to review the procedure with him.
• Kane recapped SCP-239's abilities, containment history, and recent awakening under revised suppression measures.
• Dai Yong'an explained the experiment's goals and why an emotionally stable Class-D candidate unfamiliar with SCP-239's abilities was needed.
• Dai Yong'an cited Supervisor Wang Lei's and Major Lu Fei's favorable assessments of D-87465 and concluded the experimental plan was sound.

Zhou Ze was taken to a heavily secured containment chamber and briefed on strict rules for an experiment with a powerful subject. He learned that he would pose as a wizard’s apprentice visiting a young witch named Alice, and had twenty minutes to memorize the role.

• Zhou Ze arrived at the experiment site, where armed guards, researchers, and a sealed metal wall awaited him.
• Researchers scanned Zhou Ze and gave him a headset through which he received rules for interacting with the subject.
• Zhou Ze repeated the rules and considered whether breaking them might serve Lu Fei’s plans.
• A researcher handed Zhou Ze a role sheet describing him as Archwizard Clive’s apprentice visiting Alice, a powerful young witch.
• Zhou Ze read the role sheet and was dumbfounded by its references to magic, wizards, and Alice.

Zhou Ze entered the containment chamber posing as a magic apprentice and met Alice, a frail girl living in a cottage-like room. He tried to reassure her about her progress controlling her magic, but her claim that she had not used magic for over two weeks was not covered in his briefing.

• Zhou Ze read instructions for posing as an apprentice and assessing Alice’s mental state and control of her abilities.
• He entered the chamber, passed through a realistic projected landscape, and was reminded to follow his assigned identity and rules.
• Zhou Ze entered the cottage and found Alice in a childlike bedroom, receiving an IV and unable to stand.
• Alice welcomed Zhou Ze and asked him to thank Lord Clive for sending company.
• Zhou Ze told Alice that Clive believed she could control her power, and Alice said she had not used magic for over two weeks.
• Alice invited Zhou Ze to sit, and he nervously took the room’s small sofa.

Zhou Ze tried to comfort Alice by telling her stories, while the researchers monitoring them realized that her reality-warping abilities might turn stories into real events. The chapter left Dai Yong'an fearing that Zhou Ze’s story about Santa Claus had created a new anomalous individual.

• Alice told Zhou Ze that Lord Clive had forbidden her from using her immense power and threatened to kill her and imprison her soul if she used it deliberately again.
• Zhou Ze changed the subject and offered to tell Alice a story, and she eagerly agreed.
• Dai Yong'an tried to stop Zhou Ze through his earpiece, but the signal and surveillance feed failed.
• Dai Yong'an and Kane concluded that Alice’s wishes could not be stopped and discussed how her mind might blur the line between stories and reality.
• Kane told Dai Yong'an that Zhou Ze had begun a second story about Santa Claus, and Dai Yong'an worried it might create a new anomalous individual with magic.