SCP: North Star: Beyond the Depths

Chapter 4: For the Present

December, 2001

"Cold?" Black said with a smirk.

Milo shot him a 'what the hell do you think' look as she blew into her cusped hands. White puff billowed out of her mouth as she was forced to breath in the icy air.

"Didn't think it'd be 30 and snowing in fucking Arizona." She replied.

Albany had woken them up early that morning. Everyone assumed he did so because it was Christmas, only for them to find out they were needed south.

Apparently a snow storm had manifested over Phoenix. At first the Foundation assumed the storm itself was the anomaly, then they took a closer look. Using a type of satellite scan Black would never understand, they discovered that the storm was being sustained by an individual.

A reality bender.

The Foundation had tracked them to a suburb on the outskirts of the city. Delta-4 had been tasked with establishing a perimeter and isolating the area. Now Black, Milo, Jaxon, Albany, Brian, and Jenkins stood in the snow, awaiting reinforcements.

"Any word from the bender catchers?" Albany asked the newly promoted Major.

Jaxon raised a radio to her face. "Squad leaders, any sign of Upsilon-6?"

"Negative, Ma'am."

"Nope."

"No Ma'am."

She lowered the device and shrugged. "Last time I checked they were 20 minutes out, haven't got a clue where they are."

"Figures." Albany huffed.

A gust of wind blew against the agents. Milo shivered and pulled the kevlar closer to her face.

"Could be worse." Jaxon said, turning. "You could be stuck in a downed helicopter with the snow 4 feet deep and temperatures in the negative 20s."

Albany laughed. "Christmas of '96, right?"

Jaxon nodded. "Me, James, and a few other agents were called out to North Dakota to deal with an anomalous viral outbreak; right in the middle of the worst blizzard that area had seen in decades too. Our heli ended up crashing somewhere in the countryside."

"Me and Jax were stuck in that freezer box for 6 hours before we got dug out." Albany continued. "We were the only survivors. Had to huddle for warmth."

Bet they both enjoyed that very much.

Black turned to Milo.

"We could huddle like they did." He suggested.

"I'd rather freeze." She replied. Black smirked again. "How aren't you cold?"

"Raised in Delaware." He said, pointing to himself. "This is tropical to me."

"Major." A female said voice said through the radio. "Upsilon-6 has arrived at checkpoint Gamma."

"Copy. On our way." Jaxon replied, turning to the agents. "Jenkins, Brian, you two stay here and keep watch. The rest of you, follow me."

An unmarked, black van greeted the agents as they rounded the sidewalk. Standing out side of it was a man wearing the standard Upsilon-6 uniform.

"In here." He said, pointing to the back of the truck.

Black, Milo, Albany, and Jaxon stepped around the side and peered into the cabin. Three agents were standing over a small table in the center of the truck. On the walls were monitors that displayed various maps of the Phoenix area. One, Black noticed, was a meteorological map.