Ad Astra Per Aspera—Through Hardship to the Stars.
If the SCP-5000 Why? canon was a blend of cosmic agnosticism and sci-fi horror, the world standing before him was a brilliant fusion of space opera and cyberpunk.
Around the year 2040, severely impacted by frequent Lethe anomalous events on Earth, the Foundation determined that remaining on their home planet would inevitably lead to human extinction.
Having already mastered faster-than-light travel, the Foundation made the resolute decision to lead those who had not succumbed to Lethe—those who could still be saved—to abandon Earth and flee the planet.
During the evacuation, the Veil that concealed the anomalous world from civilian society shattered completely. The Foundation's existence became public knowledge, fully exposed to humanity.
Because of this exposure, mankind began using thaumaturgy, applied metaphysics, and other previously classified anomalous technologies to explore the cosmos.
The shift brought unprecedented convenience.
In a brief span, human footprints expanded across the entire solar system. Leveraging anomalous tech, they terraformed Mars, Venus, Europa, Neptune, and other bodies into habitable worlds at extraordinary speed.
Yet, certain secrets remained guarded far from the public eye.
Beyond the permitted colonies, the Department of Extra-Solar Activities launched FTL fleets far out from Neptune toward the depths of space.
Alien territories, war, and terror existed out there—threats unlike anything previously imagined. Beyond a single galactic arm lay a milky way brimming with wonders.
With expansion through the cosmos, the old normal was no longer necessary. Ruthless and expansive, society leaned further than ever toward scientific and corporate models.
As Earth receded into the background, a new world arose.
No Veil. No homeworld.
Only the vast cosmos.
The anomaly that forced the Foundation into this exit was the Lethe Event Adam had witnessed firsthand—an anomaly causing specific groups of people or concepts to randomly suffer absolute memory erasure on Earth.
This erasure was not simple memory loss; it completely wiped cognitive concepts from the mind.
For instance, people could fail to recognize companion animals they had lived with for years, unable to name a cat or a dog.
In other cases, people experienced systemic amnesia regarding technology—or even forgot how to breathe.
Worse, it hit conceptual frameworks. When people randomly forgot the concept that murder is illegal, entire regions instantly devolved into mass violence.
The individuals walking through ruined cities with smiles on their faces were the left-behind remnants—those lost deep within Lethe, beyond all salvation.
The Foundation had tried to preserve the crumbling Veil. They deployed every anomalous measure at their disposal to pull society back from the brink of collapse.
However, Lethe events occurred with increasing frequency and coverage, spreading like accelerating cancer cells.
In the end, they were forced to abandon their home planet.
"Has so much time passed already?"
Adam pressed his temples, figuring out his next move.
Truthfully, he had not expected the time flow of the Foundation universe to diverge so drastically. This gap was not just a shift in people and circumstances—the entire stage had been swapped out.
Still, he accepted it quickly.
Time progression between different universes lacked a unified standard. The Emperor's bridge landing him back in this precise universe was proof of solid technology; as for the exact timeframe, that had always been a draw of the lottery.
Adam reached a prompt decision.
He was a Reality Warper approaching Level 5. While the upper power ceiling of this canon was significantly higher than the SCP-5000 setting, the timeline placed him around 2041—humanity on Earth was not entirely extinct, and the Foundation had not yet developed the absurdly high tech of its later era.
He could afford to be bold.
"Alright then. Let's begin."
With a soft murmur, Adam vanished from the void.
His movement differed from standard teleportation—it resembled someone taking a pen and shifting a point's coordinates directly across a page.
He opened his eyes.
Before him hung a planet far bluer than Earth: Neptune.
As the most tightly controlled planet in the solar system, Neptune hosted immense Foundation resources, including Area-11 and several core technology bases.
More importantly, the Foundation's extra-solar exploration initiative had originated here.
Following the creation of the Lang distortion engine, FTL vessels returning to the solar system were dragged into the nearest major gravity well upon arrival—which, for ships returning to the solar system's edge, was always Neptune.
It served as the hub, the bridgehead, and the gateway to the stars.
In Warhammer terms, this was the solar system's Mandeville point. Controlling it meant holding the key to the entire star system.
Adam took a deep breath—a force of habit, as his body required no oxygen in the void.
Blocking environmental hazards and deploying an anti-memetic barrier, Adam prepared to slip quietly into Neptune to locate the Foundation's top authority as planned.
Then, his footsteps ground to a sudden halt.
Adam whipped his head around.
At the edge of his perception, a craft materialized out of thin air.
Its speed defied conventional propulsion, skipping acceleration entirely as if jumping directly from a hidden dimension.
More concerningly, the craft's systems had shielded it from the detection of a Level 4 Reality Warper. He had failed to sense its approach entirely.
The craft's design differed from the FTL fleets orbiting Neptune. Smaller and sleeker, it resembled a shuttle built for atmospheric flight.
A quiet, cyan trail flowed from its engine exhausts, lingering in the void like a tail feather.
It flew straight toward him.
Adam remained still.
Floating in place, he watched the craft come to a smooth stop before him.
The hatch opened.
A face identical to the one from his previous encounter appeared inside.
The Councilor stood by the doorway in a tailored black uniform, the three-arrow insignia pinned to his collar. He looked unchanged from their farewell, as though time had left no mark on him.
The Councilor smiled, raising a hand to wave at Adam in the void.
"Long time no see, Savior," he said casually, like bumping into an old friend on the street.
"How have you been lately?"