Chapter Text
Steve wasn’t shocked. PIC was always the more gung ho person when it comes to fighting(Even if he doesn't admit it). Steve was more partial to just explore or overall just entertain folks. Oh well it’d be heartless not to help them.
The anomalous green eyed man was at the very least glad both him and his old pal could raise PIC’s mood. The guitar was a plus as well to help raise the poor guy’s morale. Even if the sudden noises also reawakened PIC’s fighting spirit that was dampened in the past few years. Especially after PIC’s accident a few years ago. Especially after the incident a day ago.
“Alright, Steve look I’m sorry for being moody with you. I should have guided you like the fourth in command should… With that being said I know that you know this place decently. BUT! That does not mean you should be wandering around constantly looking, touching and especially playing with weird shit!” PIC snap at the anomaly. At this point they were halfway through the white hallway. The screams were still there but the source has yet to be found.
Steve was trailing behind the chase with PIC. However, the blond didn’t waste any energy rolling his eyes at his friend. “Did Lynda exaggerate my vacation? Come on, I wasn't being that reckless.” Steve said while fidgeting with his newly acquired flash light.
“Oh? So this “vacation” you had back at the SCP Foundation didn’t involve you requesting to talk to a monster that's known for eating people mid conversation?” PICs bluntly asked.
That silences the teleporter. At this point both men ran out of the odd hallway and into a broad area. There were a few lighted areas in the overall shadowy place. The low fog across the room set up a familiar off feeling that the Backrooms were known for. The gray and damp room was roughly the size of a high school gym(maybe even bigger). Then they saw the cause of the screams.
Steve was mentally counting the poor colorful looking folks. There were only two in total. One was wearing very flashy clothing that matched his blazing fire red hair. His face was covered in various piercings. He also had a ponytail goatee? The only dull thing about him was his grayish blue eyes. In contrast there was a woman who had long dark blue hair. She wore what looked to be a school uniform with a skirt that was as blue as her hair and eyes. She also had a pink tie on her chest. Both looked horrified as they were getting chased by various beasts.
“Hey! You two! Go to lighted areas and they'll keep you safe!” PIC shouted at the panicking duo. Steve also shined the light on them to keep them safe.
The pair briefly looked at PICs, a little skeptical. They immediately made up their mind and ran to a seemingly safe and lit area. Oddly enough the two teens(or young adults?) stayed as far away from each other as the small lit area could allow. The beasts didn’t follow them. As if the light was a force field to these creatures.
Steve let out a sign of relief as he ran to the blue haired girl (she was closer to the hallway). She seemingly flinched when she saw him. “H-Hey there! Don’t worry! There's a safe spot near here free of these dog things. Just come with us-”
Steve’s attempt to help the poor girl was lost as the light protecting them went out. Steve immediately had his eyes bolt around the foggy room for light and the familiar hallway. With the Backrooms, sometimes (ok usually) the placement of things changes. Mercifully, Steve managed to find the passage to safety… on the other side of the room.
“Crap…Okay! Uh, look, all we need to do is run towards that passage and we’ll be safe.” Steve frantically waves his arm to their haven as he ran to a light area near the hallway.
“O-Okay!” The blue head quickly followed Steve. Steve kept on flashing his light to the lit area, like an opening through the dark and beasts.
Unfortunately for the dimension hopper, he was so focused on saving this stranger he forgot about the red head and PICs. He also forgot that as the two walked, they were vulnerable on the back and sides. This fact was only known to him when he heard a loud scream as he was greeted with the dark silhouette of a hound lunging at them at the side. Its yellowish teeth were visible through its black and stringy hair.
Welp this was underwhelming. Looks like they failed at surviving this place within the first few days. But hey! Some wanderers couldn’t even make it within the first hour so-
Steve’s train of thought was cut short as a bottle of almond water flying at record speed hit the beast before it could get a bite on them. The creature fell to the concrete ground. It whimpered as the contents of the bottle trickled down its gray skin.
That was more than enough to cause the pathetic mutt to scamper off as it screamed in pain. All Steve could do was look up to see the man who saved him. It was none other than the fiery redhead wearing the white and flashy jacket. He was still in the throwing pose.
PIC was right next to the red head and was pouring a circle of almond water around them. Thus, making the beasts not go anywhere near them.
“Yo Sayaka! Did any of those bastards hurt ya!?” The red head shouted to the blue haired lady (Sayaka?).
“I… think I’m fine Leon. W-we need to try to go to that hallway!” Sayaka immediately tugged Steve’s arm to her destination.
“Come on! We have to get out of here!” Desperation grabbed her voice and she let go of Steve’s arm and bolted to the hallway.
Steve instinctively followed her as he shined a light on any gutsy hounds. To Steve’s surprise, Sayaka is very fast and agile. For her, slow and steady was obviously not the best approach to this situation. She decently dodged any beasts that tried to bite or scratch her. And with that she made it to the thankfully lit hallway within seconds.
Steve mercifully was able to make it to the passage of safety as well soon after. He opted to not teleport due to causing more panic which could lead to more accidents.
Steve let out a sigh. “Okay look Sayaka I’m not going to sugar coat this situation. This hallway’s lights might go out. However, I’m not going to abandon my friend or your guy.” Steve paused for a moment to catch his breath.
Steve then rubbed his hands together as he looked at Sayaka. “I believe our best course of action is to stay at the edge of the hallway and make sure PIC and Leon get here as soon as possible.”
Sayaka looked at the path that led to Tom’s Diner and then to the half empty bottle of almond water that Leon threw. She closed her eyes in deep thought.
Steve laid his hand on Sayaka. “Look, worst case scenario, we just keep shining our light on those dogs to keep us safe.”
Sayaka met Steve’s eyes. “Okay, I’ll stay.”
The duo looked at the two remaining men in the death room. Leon was throwing stones at the beasts that dared to come near them. Meanwhile PIC was shining light on any shadowy areas to make sure the coast was clear enough for them to travel. Though the fog did not help (thankfully it appears that the fog isn’t everywhere). Steve used his time to shine his flashlight around the darkened entrance of the hallway just to give PIC and Leon a better chance at escaping.
Steve wanted to cheer the two men on. Leon’s red hair and white jacket kind of reminded him of a baseball and given his fast throws…
Steve started shining his flashlight around Leon and PIC to give them more coverage to move. He then proudly started cheering. “Way to go! Baseball player!”
The redhead’s reaction was the opposite of what Steve wanted. Leon suddenly stopped in his tracks and stared directly at the overweight blond. He looked insulted?
“Wait how the hell-” Leon’s rant was cut short as a hound tackled him. He fell back and disappeared into the foggy ground.
“Oh crap!”
“Leon!”
“You dumbass!” PIC was rolling his eyes as he poured a spare bottle on the ground where Leon disappeared. He then looked directly at the pair in the hallway. “Just stay there guys! I have this covered!”
Suddenly a loud shriek could be heard from the fog. Then the hound scampered away.
From what Steve could see, PIC was able to help Leon back to his feet. The pair both gave eachother “Fuck it” looks and both ran to the hallway.
If Sayaka was fast and agile, then Leon is the master of it. His speed got him here in half the time Sayaka did. PIC was trailing behind. PIC wasn’t the most athletic person but he made up for it by putting his flashlight to use. He shined the light on Leon then when he made it to the lighted hallway PIC used the flashlight to cover himself.
“Alright everyone! Get the fuck out of here! We're heading to the diner then we’ll talk.” Steve felt a hard push on his back as PIC shouted. Also as Steve got a better look at his friend he saw that PIC was wet and smelt of almond water. Huh, not a bad idea…
Leon gave an odd look at PIC. “How is a diner going to help…?”
“Just go!” PIC kept on running.
And with that, the other three followed PIC. All Steve could do was let out a sigh of relief as he saw the neon sign of the diner. Then they see the familiar face of Tom with bags under his eyes.
“Guys! It's so good to see the Portal Masters living up to their name! I’m a bit busy with food prep so can you help these folks settle here?” Tom was currently carrying various empty plates. Huh. Some of the residents here probably wanted desserts. Steve heard Tom gleefully mentioning that he barely has enough ingredients to make a few new “Delectable Sweets”.
And so, with his hands literally filled Tom retreated to his modest “kitchen”. PIC proceeds to look over the group. “ Heh. You guys are new here? Well have a seat and we’ll…help I guess?” Steve sits down with PIC and taps the two sets in front of them.
Steve lightly pushed his partner. “Of course we’re gonna help! I'm an open book and we’ll give you all the juicy details about your new life.”
“Where are we and what do you mean by new life?” Sayaka asked while she sat in her seat along with Leon.
Steve's eyes lit up. “Oh. You Guys are new new.”
“You're in the Backrooms. This place is an odd limbo area that's…outside of reality? It's a bit hard to explain but that's the gist.” PIC shrugged.
“What the crap!? How did me and my classmate end up here?” Leon said with a look of bewilderment.
This time Steve gave the answer with a grimace. “Typically it happens by random chance? Sometimes it can happen when you trip and fall. That can cause you to glitch through reality. It's called no clipping. We got here because of…” The sigh from PIC was so loud that Steve could practically see the man’s annoyed face without looking. “Ah, nevermind. How about you guys?“ Steve said with a forced smile.
“Umm. All w-we remember is going to our first day at Hope's Peak. Both Leon and I started to feel dizzy when we got to the entrance…. And woke up near where you found us.” Sayaka said in a shaking voice.
PIC’s eyes, for a moment, lit up in recognition. “I…nevermind.” Then PIC immediately looked down on the table. Oddly looking dazed as he does so.
“Again, what do you mean by new life?” Sayaka said with a much more stern tone.
“Yeah, I mean to be honest with ya this whole place is really mega crappy. Even this “safezone” gives me the creeps.” Leon said with air quotes. This caused PIC to glare at Leon. Steve himself was fighting the urge to tell Leon off. Like the jerk just blatantly insult his friend’s life’s work! But, there were bigger fish to fry.
Steve didn’t want to be the one to tell them. But with PIC’s silence, it looks like he will be the bearer of bad news. Steve grimly looked to the side, not meeting the girl’s eyes. “I…from what I heard there isn’t really a way to leave the Backrooms without dying terribly. But hey! There’s a first time for everything!”
The two gasps of horror were deafening. Sayaka started hugging herself and started mumbling. “No no no no no no… I can’t leave them. Not after everything I- no.” The mumbling turned into light sobs.
Leon gave a glare that rivals PIC at his nastiest. A vein was visible on his forehead. His face turned to a shade of red that almost complemented his fire-like hair.
“H-Hey it's okay! You guys are lucky enough to end up in a level where there's people. There's multiple friendly and safe areas where you can stay. Heck you can even live well and comfortably for the rest of your life!” Steve shouted as fast as he could.
“The hell!? There has to be a way to get out this shit hole!” Leon briefly glanced at the bluenette, his eyes for a second, furrowed in concern. He then looked up with his rage returning “How did you get here anyway? I saw how you started acting all dodgy and shit.” His eyes fell on PIC.
PIC in turn sighed and explained their whole situation. He tells the tragic story of the most powerful organization(The SCP Foundation) in the real world and how they lost their way. He told them about how their desperation led them to trying to destroy the realm of fiction. PIC went into detail about the naïve and reckless group called the G.A.W…. And how they tried to help fiction…Of course PIC didn’t mention the naïve and reckless part. Nor did he mention the certain aspects of their group that they would take to their grave to keep secret.
“When the foundation attacked us, we had no choice but to go into that damn broken portal. Now, we're here. Did that answer all your questions, Sherlock?” PIC proceeded to take a deep breath after his long speech.
Sayaka was the first to speak. “I-that's impossible. How can so much happen under our noses? You have to be lying.”
“I have some solid proof.” Steve, as always, responds in the most flashy way possible. By teleporting with his glowing tattoo on his hand. Steve then promptly takes off his shirt to reveal another tattoo. This tattoo was a simple collection of letters and numbers on his chest, SCP-507. There were also many scares of all shapes and sizes all over his exposed body. PIC couldn’t help but flinch at the sight.
“I am one of the anomalies the SCP foundation tried to contain. Also don’t call me what the foundation labeled me as.” At this point Steve promptly put his Captain America T-Shirt back on.
“WAIT A DAMN SECOND!” PIC was frothing at the mouth. “Steve, Buddy, why didn’t you just teleport those two out of the corridor!?”
Steve blinked and gave a blank stare to PIC “Oh I sorta forgot. Also I didn’t really want to terrify these two. I mean if I teleported then they would try to run away from us.”
Before PIC could retort Steve's defense, Sayaka spoke slightly louder than a whisper.
Sayaka seemed taken aback and then regained her lost composure. “Since you built a portal to end up here…T-Then is it possible for us to come with you when you find a way to get back to the real world?”
PIC responded while rubbing his temples. “We’re planning to go to a very safe and populated Backrooms area. You two can come with us. But, what we are planning to do is very dangerous. So, it's up to you to decide if you all wanna stay there or come with us. If you do decide to stay with us we might be able to send you back home. ”
At that point in the next 30 minutes, Steve went on a long tangent about their next destination. He told the troubled duo how “safe” and “cool” level 11 was. Steve went on and on about the vast buildings and resources. He also went on and on about the peaceful creatures and people who live relatively good lives there.
PIC basically tries to summarize Steve's broad statements. “So, yeah if you all come with us, at the very least, you’ll be in one of the best possible levels you can be-”
“Wait! Guys! Oh shit!” Tom bursts open the kitchen door. Well that's surprising. Tom initially gave PIC a very optimistic and lax vibe to the young adult. So, seeing him hyperventilating with a look of horror on his face was off putting to say the least.
He glared daggers at Steve. “What creatures attacked these two?!”
Steve only looked at his old friend. Steve was confused, then he shared Tom’s horrified face. Oh no. How could he be so stupid! Tom literally warned Steve about those dog things like two hours ago. No… not dog things they were called…
And in a hush tone, Steve muttered “H-hounds…”
Tom frantically turned to the group. “Has anyone been bitten by the hounds!”
“W-why the hell are you asking this?!” The red head frantically jumped out of his seat with beads of sweat dancing across his face.
Tom looked the teen directly in his eyes. “If you get bitten by a hound, you turn into one.”
The poor guy's eyes widened to the size of plates. “Well, what the hell are you looking at me for!? I wasn’t bitten!” His face turned into a dirty sneer. Though Steve couldn’t help but notice the punk's eyes, for a brief second, looked down.
The group of four stayed stunned like a deer in headlights for at least a minute. A mass of guilt formed in Steve's stomach. Why did he forget such a crucial detail and why didn’t he take this rescue more seriously. Crap it’s his fault if one of these two gets turned into one of those freaks. OH GO-
Steve's downward spiral was interrupted as Tom shook his head. Then a massive blush came to his face. “ Wait. Wait. I just realized something. The symptoms appear about five minutes after you're bitten. None of you folks showed symptoms for at least over 30 minutes. You're all good.” He awkwardly scratched at his stubble as he looked down at the floor. “Sorry for razzling you up.”
The immediate panic turned to relief.
Tom's face was filled with guilt. “Uh… So I still need to prepare the desserts. I’ll give you all some of uh… what's left for a consolidation.” Then Tom stiffly shuffles away from the group as he retreats to his kitchen. Then there was silence.
Steve, as always, breaks the silence. “Hey! I just realized we didn’t tell you folks our names or properly introduce each other. I mean if we’re traveling together we might as well know a bit about ourselves.” Steve was currently praying to whatever deity out there that his transition was smooth enough to make everyone ignore that incident.
“I’ll go first. Like I said before, DO NOT call me 507 or SCP-507. I go by Steve, Guy, Tommy, Bruto, Houdini, and Grabnok the Destroyer.” Steve sweetly smiled as he looked over to PIC.
PIC rolled his eyes in second hand embarrassment. “I go by PIC. Yes I know they're odd names but we like to keep a secretive profile. Plus we like these nicknames, they're dope as hell!”
“Um ok…? My name is Sayaka Maizono. I’m the Ultimate Pop Idol.” Sayaka stated while looking down.
“Ultimate? What's that? It sounds cool!” Steve asked intrigued. Steve looked to see PIC’s output, and was confused to see PICs eyes widen. However PIC then adopted a more dazed experience yet again. Steve decided not to comment on this and ask him about it later.
“It’s a title for people who go to Hope's Peak. It means that you specialize in a specific field.” Sayaka stated. As she talked, her stiff posture seemed to relax a little bit.
“Oh! So that means you're a good singer.” Steve commented with a less forced smile. Huh, that's good to know. They at least had common ground.
“You know…” Steve continued his smile as he leaned to PIC’s side. The teleporter lightly elbowed his friend. “We have a musically talented person here! In fact, PIC literally was playing music here around forty minutes ago.”
PIC blushed heavily as he rolled his eyes. “I uh…”
“Woah! You were the one who played that!?” Leon, surprisingly, shared Steve’s enthusiasm.
“Yeah, it's just to raise up morale and shit.” PIC didn’t meet anyone’s eyes.
“Hey! Maybe you can join my future band. Just not as a lead singer. Ok?” The redhead said with a wink that you can practically hear.
PIC raised his brow. “I’m flattered but it's just a hobby. Like we’ve mentioned before, I am too busy trying to save a shit ton of realities. Besides, going off by how you’re talking, you might be an ultimate musician so you don’t need an amateur like me.”
Leon smiled with all the cockyness of the world as he spoke. “ Actually, I am-” He then flinched and looked at Sayaka who gave him a perplexed look. “-not the ultimate musician. I’m the-” his sentence was interrupted with his own sigh. He looked up to the ceiling with his posture slumping over as he did so.
“I’m Leon Kuwata, the Ultimate Baseball Star.” Leon’s sigh turned into a childish pout.
“Oh! That's cool! There is no shame in that. Why do you look like you hate it?” Steve asked. Why would Leon not like his talent? His athletic skill certainly came in handy.
Leon’s arms hit the table with his mini rant. “Where the hell do I begin? I have to work my ass in the heat while being covered in sweat and dirt. Everyone in my team keeps on telling me to shave off most of my hair and wear the blandest shit possible.” Leon crossed his arms. “Like, do I need to go on?”
“Yeah I feel ya when it comes to heat and style. As an indoor guy, weather has been the bane of my existence. Also dress codes in general suck ass.” PIC nodded.
“That's why I’m following my true passion! A punk rock star. I give off that vibe…” Leon’s energetic composure faded as his eyes squinted at Steve. “Right?” His eyes never left Steve.
Why was he being judgy all of a sudden? Oh, wait? Was this because-?
“Yeah I can see it. Several of my friends have a similar look and vibe to your style.” PIC calmly stated. He’s seemingly warming up to the musician wannabe.
“Ditto! I can definitely see it too!” Steve quickly commented.
“Awesome! Yeah, besides the mad skills I showed out there, there’s no way you could have known that I was a baseball star.” A smug yet forced grin formed on his face.
“Well I kinda also assumed you were a baseball star due to your color choice.” Steve said with a grimace.
“Wait! The hell do you mean by that fatty?!” Leon shouted with a mouth agape.
Steve noticed PIC’s eye twitch at Leon’s statement. Welp, time to respond as fast as lightning before things get dirty!
“Well given your red hair, the red skull on your shirt, and the white jacket- I -they're the same colors as a baseball.” Steve meekly spoke.
The expression on Leon’s face was equivalent of him finding out he was a fictional character and said character was killed off in a very fucked up way. In other words, his jaw fell to the floor. PIC’s rage has now been replaced by mild amusement. Sayaka and PIC lightly chuckled to themselves as the revelation unfolded.
Leon heavily sighed. “Oh what the f-!”
“Hey there guys!”
Tom was back with a small tray of cookies. “Again, so sorry for causing such a panic. There's still a handful of cookies left for you folks.”
Steve looked around and saw the other wanderers in the diner. Most if not all of them were in the process of eating the cookies. The younger girl and teen boy had several with them. Dang Tom really was such a saint. He really hopes he can amount to him.
“Hey these ain’t half bad!” The red head already had one of the chocolate chip cookies in his mouth. With that, PIC and Sayaka also joined in on eating the sweets. Though Sayaka only took a small piece of the cookie to eat.
“It’s all good Tom! In fact, you should tell us the other ways we can turn into beasts and get hurt.” Steve’e tone shifted into something more grim.
“T-There's more ways?” Sayaka gasped.
“The hounds are unfortunately just the tip of the iceberg I’m afraid.” Tom said while rubbing the temples of his forehead.
“For instance, you constantly have to keep yourself physically fit and mentally healthy. If you don’t you’ll be at risk of turning into a wretch or an insanity respectively.” Tom’s more stern face returned.
Steve hit an epiphany. “We're getting a shipment of supplies soon so physically we’ll be fine. However, mentally we should figure out ways to keep each other sane.”
“Oh! How about you help me with my music? Given the stuff you played, you and I clearly share tastes. It can help distract us from the bullshit.” Leon said with eyes beaming toward PIC.
“Okay? That's an idea? I mean obviously we can’t do it near any place that monsters can hear.” Then PIC’s eyes closed tightly in deep thought.
“Actually you know what? I have a better idea. You two can stay here and Tom can fill you in on the dangers and workings of this place. Meanwhile Houdini and I will look for the perfect place to no clip to Level 11.” PIC’s eyes trailed to Tom as if waiting for his approval.
“That sounds good to me. You two know your way here decently and given that no clip method you showed me, all four of you will be at the safest level in no time.” Tom then left to his kitchen and came back to give them a new bag of almond water and an empty bag.
“Alrighty then see ya soon!” Steve shouted as he and PIC left the diner yet again in hopes of finding their ticket out of here.