Aiolos had revealed these secrets to Luo Shu to help him make informed decisions.
With limited time, if Luo Shu wanted to "make friends," he should avoid the fiercely loyal SCP-3480-2 instances and focus instead on the outsiders.
The so-called "outsiders" were reality benders distinct from SCP-3480-2—individuals captured by Achilles' Heel's field teams from around the world.
These individuals shared one common trait: they had caused trouble.
Had they lived quietly without exploiting their abilities, the Foundation might not have forcibly contained them.
But precisely because of their rebellious nature, the Foundation couldn't trust them, let alone recruit them into Achilles' Heel.
For Luo Shu, however, these were ideal candidates for recruitment.
These outsiders had once lived freely, using their powers for personal gain—only to be dragged into Area-13's dark cells.
Their containment conditions? Just like Jianjia's—a sunless prison.
Did they feel loyalty to the Foundation?
Not at all. If anything, they hated it.
As a wanted fugitive, Luo Shu would find it far easier to win them over.
Luo Shu agreed with Aiolos' suggestion.
While his Persuasion and Divine Persuasion abilities made manipulation possible, his daily usage limits meant he couldn't afford to waste efforts on loyal SCP-3480-2 instances.
It was far more efficient to target the outsiders—enemies of the Foundation were natural allies.
With Aiolos' help, Luo Shu began categorizing the reality benders on Athena's list, excluding SCP-3480-2 instances and focusing solely on the outsiders.
Currently, Area-13 held over a dozen outsider reality benders, all under heavy surveillance.
Unlike Jianjia, who was deemed "misguided," these individuals had armed guards posted outside their cells 24/7, ensuring no funny business.
Some high-risk subjects even wore power-suppressing cuffs, rendering their abilities unusable.
But none of this mattered to Luo Shu.
In his anti-memetic state, guards were irrelevant.
As for cameras? Athena would loop old footage, making his movements undetectable.
The reality benders all wore identical containment jumpsuits—monitoring rooms couldn't distinguish live feeds from recordings, let alone tell individuals apart.
After organizing the list, Luo Shu mapped an optimal route, prioritizing targets based on location.
At the top of the list was a figure labeled:
"Chaos Insurgency - Logistics Captain."
Luo Shu raised an eyebrow. "This guy's really from the Insurgency?"
Aiolos nodded. "Yes. Remember Pandora's Box's recent raid on an Insurgency site? He was captured. Since he's a reality bender, they sent him here."
Luo Shu skimmed the file.
Ability: Object Scaling—the power to compress large objects for easier transport.
No wonder he'd been the Logistics Captain.
This ability would be incredibly useful.
Without hesitation, Luo Shu set off.
Target: "Chaos Insurgency - Logistics Captain."
The Meeting
Minutes later, Luo Shu arrived at Sublevel-4's Euclid Sector, where the cuffed Insurgency officer sat in his cell.
Without restraints, Area-13 couldn't possibly contain him—he could just shrink the door and walk out.
Currently, one of his wrists was locked to a thick chain bolted to the wall, allowing limited movement within the cell.
Luo Shu materialized in front of him, invisible to all but his target.
"Hello! I'm Luo Shu—the Revealer of Truth!"
The sudden appearance startled the man.
"Who the hell—?! I was taking a shit! You nearly scared it back in! If I had my powers, I'd shrink you and flush you down the toilet!"
Clearly, he hadn't heard of Luo Shu—likely due to his non-combat role.
So Luo Shu tried another approach. "Do you know Beta-level agent Waiter? I have his number."
The man frowned. "...Sounds familiar. Wait, are you Insurgency? Here to break me out?"
Luo Shu hesitated. "Well... I'm here to gather intel on Area-13. If there's a chance, I'll get you out. If not, next time."
The man sighed. "Fine. Do your thing. I've been stuck in here—I don't know shit about Area-13."
Surprisingly reasonable.
Luo Shu made a promise. "Let's be friends. I'll do my best to get you out."
"Deal. We're comrades anyway."
With that, the man appeared in The Anomaly Archive:
[Page 104]
[Item Designation: Chaos Insurgency - Logistics Captain]
[Object Class: Euclid/Tier-3 Reality Bender]
[Description: Prisoner from a Chaos Insurgency site.]
[Special Containment Procedures: Must wear power-suppressing cuffs at all times to prevent door scaling.]
[Anomalous Properties: Volume Scaling. Note: Compression does not reduce mass—only molecular spacing. Objects revert when ability ends.]
[Status: Anomalous Friend]
[Interaction Log: Click to Play]
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