"Memories of Times Past" by Fabricio de Bardales
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| Registered Phenomena Code: 711 Containment Rating: Alpha (Utility) Lethality Rating: Red |
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Containment Protocols: RPC-711 is kept atop a lead pedestal in Site-068's Alpha-level containment vault as an anomalous suppressor. Gold tubes (12mm x 2mm) are spread around the vault next to containment lockers and wired to Groves1 counters. While RPC-711's properties are enough to neutralize any sporadic anomalous activity in the vault, manual removal of anomalies may be required should any enter a "passive" state (indicated by an internal count of ~71 Vi on nearby tubes).
If RPC-711 reaches a critical Vi of ~140, a gold-lined sheet will be remotely lowered over the statue. Containment personnel must then remove all anomalies from the vault and into auxiliary cells. Anomalies will only be returned to their designated lockers once aberrations have ceased occurring and ambient Vi returns to base levels.
Description: RPC-711 is a marble statue made by Fabricio Olavarria de Bardales, a deceased Spanish sculptor and Accademia della Vera Arte alumnus. The statue depicts two people embracing; a female sculpted in Carrara and a male in Nero Marquina. The female head and male hands of the sculpture have both been removed by blunt force. An elegy can be found etched onto the back of both figures:
Llora el corazon y falta aliento,
Weeps the heart and gasps for breath,
al evocar tu palida faz,
recalling your pale, wistful face,
que nunca supe teñir de sueños.
in which dreams I couldn't paint.
"La realidad es nuestro lienzo,"
"Reality is our canvas," yes,
pero jamas logre esculpirte paz
but never could I carve you peace
viendo desvanecer esos ojos risueños.
watching those blissful eyes grow faint.
Cuán presto la memoria se entierra;
How swift the memories fade;
y cada antaña alegria
and each old delight
arde mas que la primera.
burns hotter than the last.
Mas contra el lienzo declaro guerra
But against the canvas I raise my blade
que comparta conmigo la miseria
to share in this endless night
de una realidad gris y sincera.
the grey loneliness of the past.
En ti siempre halle el amor,
In you, I've always found love fairer,
inclusive cuando de mi cariño
even when of my care
ya ni te acordabas.
you'd no recall.
En aquellas noches de temor,
In those nights of terror,
cuando, temblando como un niño,
when, with child-like despair,
a mi lado te acostabas;
at my side you'd fall;
mas fui inutil en tu socorro.
yet my aid was all but vagrancy.
La plata, la ciencia, la magia;
Money, science, witchcraft;
con nada pude salvarte.
with nothing I could delay your fate.
Y llore en tu perfume olor a cloro;
And I wept in your chlorine fragrancy;
durante la noche—una hemorragia.
in the night—a haemorrhage.
Ida, la mas hermosa obra de arte.
Life's greatest painting turned a blank slate.
RPC-711 is inert unless in the presence of anomalies or anomalously-altered spaces. When in the presence of an active anomaly, RPC-711 will create an area of altered reality around the anomaly such that its effects are nullified. This area will continue to exist until the offending anomaly is removed from the vicinity, destroyed or otherwise deactivated. Exposure to multiple active anomalies or passively active anomalies will lead to the creation of aberrations.2
Discovery: RPC-711 was the main art piece displayed at the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao's "2024 Exhibit of Spanish Art & History" hosted on the 21st of June in Biscay, Spain. It was advertised as the long-awaited return of famous sculptor Fabricio “Grajilla” Olavarria de Bardales following a decade-long retirement. 748 people, including well-known critics and artists, attended the afternoon exhibition, which was televised by local news channels.
As an annual opportunity for anomalous artists to share their works with the greater public, several dozen low-level anomalous artworks were previously approved by the Ministry of Paranormal Defence and Regulation for safe display. RPC-711 was not included in this list. It is unknown whether or not Bardales was aware of the exponential increase of his sculpture's area of effect in such a crowded space and with more than three dozen passive anomalies.
The incident following RPC-711's unveiling resulted in, accounting for Authority and MPDR personnel, 489 casualties, 132 injuries, and 36 missing persons.3 It is believed the area of effect could have expanded beyond the museum if not for the combined efforts of MPDR and Authority assets in evacuation after anomalous activity in the area was confirmed.
The event, recorded by various media sources, was covered as a large-scale biochemical attack from an unknown terrorist cell. Casualties not explainable by the cover-up were discretely disposed of and then added to the "missing" body count. Surviving civilians were administered Class G-1 amnestics. The museum was closed to the public until the MPDR successfully transported and contained the anomaly in their facility. Fabricio was found dead, resting against RPC-711. Following autopsy revealed the cause of death to be a seizure. Blisters found around his torso, arms and legs appear to be unrelated to the effects of RPC-711.
Despite several attempts by the Ministry to bring Academy officials to a UNAAC hearing for compliance in terrorism (unrelated to the nature of the cover-up story), no clear motive for Fabricio's actions has been identified, and records corroborate the Academy's claims of no official contact with and from the artist in over a decade. Insider information regarding Fabricio has similarly failed to shed light into the nature of the attack.
Addendum: Investigation and Requisition of Assets: Txatxo Kaia Kaia, 1, 48280 Lekeitio, Biscay, Spain
BARDALES' RESIDENCE AND STUDY DATE: 07/16/2024 LOCATION: "MAR AZUL" APARTMENTS # ITEM AMOUNT 1 CROSSES (WOOD, METAL) 17, 8 2 ROD OF ASCLEPIUS (METAL) (UNFINISHED) 6 3 ILLEGAL STIMULANTS, VARIED ~800gs TOTAL 4 NOROTROPICS, HOMEMADE4 ~100gs TOTAL 5 FEMALE BUST (MARBLE) (UNFINISHED/BROKEN)5 26 6 POTTED PLANTS, VARIED 18 7 PAINTINGS, VARIED (WATERCOLOR)6 27 8 PAINTINGS, VARIED (BLOOD)7 27 9 POETRY, VARIED (FINISHED, UNFINISHED)8 8, 48 10 LETTERS (RETURNED)9 35 11 FULL BODY STATUES (MARBLE)10 5 Access to the third floor of Bardales' residence proved impossible upon first arrival. Attempts to near the second floor stairway resulted in dizziness, confusion and the development of first to second degree burns. Fire proximity suits and low-level norotropic drugs were requisitioned from Site-068 to continue the investigation.
After securing the equipment, a small team breached into the upper floor study and found approximately 17 replicas of RPC-711 in different stages of completion or scattered onto the ground in pieces. Despite showing no clear signs of damage, all statues registered temperatures of over 43°C.
Several books on esoterica were found in the room, including "Contra Malum et Infirmum", a manuscript published in the 16th century by former members of the Auctorias. The tome describes the creation of various rituals and amulets to ward off anomalies and anomaly-borne sicknesses.
A framed pictured of Bardales and his wife on their wedding day was found in the study desk, most likely used as a sculpting reference.
Addendum: Containment Failure - August 12th, 2024
Incident Report: Shattered Visage
| Anomalies Involved: | RPC-711 | Failure to activate emergency protocols. |
| Incident Type: | Snowball/Killzone | Cascading anomalous activation. |
| Incident Location: | Site-068 | Alpha-level containment vault |
| Cause of Incident: | Faulty early-warning system | Electrical Maintenance Crew A3 |
| Status: | Resolved | Anomaly has been neutralized. |
REPORT DESCRIPTION:
During regular maintenance of Site-068's Alpha-level containment vault by EMC-A3, personnel failed to follow procedure and remove RPC-711 from the area before disconnecting all electronics. At some point during electrical maintenance, one or more of the Lesser Objects housed in the vault entered a passive state, triggering RPC-711's properties. Over the three hours it took for EMC-A3 to finish electrical repairs, the automatic alert and emergency systems for RPC-711 had been rendered useless from Groves overexposure. In the ensuing hours, Site-068's infrastructure and personnel were severely harmed until the neutralization of the anomaly.
EVENTS TRANSPIRED:
08:00 AM: RPC-711 rests at its usual pedestal in the vault. A single LO had been removed 22 minutes prior as a result of entering a passive state. Gold rods appear visually inert, signifying an ambient Vi of less than 13.
08:31 AM: EMC-A3 enters the vault and proceeds to disconnect all electronics, but not before manually lowering the emergency gold-lined sheet over RPC-711.
09:45 AM: As EMC-A3 continues to recalibrate the vault's electronics, a few golden rods can be seen faintly shimmering. This indicates an ambient Vi of over 80. Mild disturbances in the camera feed indicate the presence of aberrations in the area.
10:39 AM: EMC-A3 finishes vault maintenance and reconnects all electronics. Automated warning systems fail to signify critical ambient Vi as all gold rods have turned opaque, signifying their transition to lead from Groves overexposure.
10:42 AM: EMC-A3 leaves the vault and activates the return pulley system for the gold-lined sheet. Minor visual anomalies are seen around several LOs before quickly dissipating.
10:45 AM: The strings holding the gold-lined sheet, which has turned to lead as well, break. The pane of lead falls over RPC-711, chipping off the male's left ear. The pane falls sideways and tumbles several of the LO stands into the ground, activating them.
10:58 AM: Visual aberrations are now clearly visible all around RPC-711. Aberrations have neutralized several LOs as well as damaged the surrounding infrastructure. The lead rods in the vault have begun to melt from Groves overexposure.
11:12 AM: Groves detectors in the upper areas of Site-068 have activated. Minor aberrations are shown to appear in the hallways of Sector 1 and 2, as well as the common area. ASF units are immediately dispatched to locate the source of the aberrations.
11:33 AM: In the time it took for ASF personnel to pinpoint Alpha-level containment vault as the source of aberrations, major aberrations have already begun to manifest in the entirety of the underground sector of Site-068. Various officers are harmed (or otherwise terminated) attempting to enter the area.
11:40 AM: ASF units in the upper floors lead personnel outside awaiting medical and military backup in the event of an attack by a hostile GoI. Several researchers, officers, engineers, and accountants suffer from amputations and/or internal bleeding as a result of spatial anomalies.
11:51 AM: Protocol Laboratories 6H caves in on itself following an explosion of unknown origins, although most likely the result of an aberration. This explosion is followed by a chemical fire spreading from Research Area 5 across Sector 2 and down.
11:58 AM: Site-068's Officer Garcia Funes is seen entering the chemical storage unit of Sector 2 before retrieving and subsequently ingesting a lethal dose of Oniritryptin. After a short detour to the maintenance closet, Officer Funes returns to the Alpha-level containment vault wielding a sledgehammer.
12:01 AM: Officer Garcia Funes rushes into the vault and towards RPC-711. RPC-711 is shown to consider the lack of Anopticin in humans an anomaly, as Officer Funes is shortly surrounded in a layer of distorted reality, allowing free traversal of the area without the risk of aberrations.
12:02 AM: Upon approaching 2.4 meters from RPC-711, Officer Garcia Funes winds back before throwing the sledgehammer at the statue. The sledgehammer hits the female figure in the chest area, breaking it and causing the statue to collapse.
12:04 AM: Aberrations cease appearing and the molten lead quickly solidifies, signifying a sharp drop in ambient Groves. Officer Garcia Funes stands still for ~4 seconds before collapsing onto the ground.11
DEDUCTIONS:
Personnel Casualties:
- Authority Security Force:
- 6 Personnel left with internal bleeding
- 8 Personnel terminated via aberrations
- 1 Personnel terminated via drug-induced stroke
- General staff:
- 12 Research personnel suffering from minor to major amputation via aberrations
- 4 Research personnel terminated via aberrations
- 3 Maintenance Personnel terminated as a result of aberration-damaged infrastructure
Assets Compromised:
- 24 LOs neutralized via aberrations
- RPC-711 neutralized via blunt force trauma
- Alpha-level containment vault's infrastructure
- Site-068's electrical infrastructure
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
Director Mauricio Aquinas, Regional Director Arnold Denton, and AET-711 are awaiting a formal hearing at UNAAC on charges of gross negligence in the management of anomalies for utilitarian purposes. These charges pertain to the failure to implement adequate recontainment protocols in the event of remote systems becoming inoperable and the absence of a preliminary assessment of worst-case scenarios concerning the use of RPC-711 as a containment device. The remains of RPC-711 have been transferred to MPDR custody for analysis of any residual anomalous properties before its reclassification as Neutralized.
Upon further inspection of the vault's security feed, Electrical Maintenance Crew A3 has failed to follow proper security protocols regarding RPC-711 for over two months. EMC-A3 has been relieved of their duties and are awaiting future disciplinary actions at the behest of regional command. Until further notice, Site-068's Alpha-level containment vault will be repurposed as a general storage hangar.
A (symbolic) funerary service in honour of Officer Garcia Funes and all personnel lost during the incident will be held the 21st of August in Site-068's general armoury. The cremated physical remains of all terminated personnel have been stored in hazardous material lockers until further notice.