Glittering Gold
rating: +3+x
Item: Glittering Gold
Size: 2.4 m tall
Type: Statue
Living: No
Sentient: Yes
Potential/Current Hazards: Difficulty to perform neutralization in the event of betrayal. See Report.
Location: Base 2

Usage

UPDATE 14/12/18: The following item is currently not being deployed until further notice. View Appendix 03.

The item is to clear out locations where a significant amount of enemy combatants are present. Operatives are to remain on standby until the item gives the all clear. The area is to then be secured. Personnel are advised to use the item as a shield when in its vicinity during combat situations. It may be deployed alongside other assets from within the Sapient Statues Unit.

Subjects converted by Glittering Gold are to be housed at Base 2. Their flakes of gold are to be collected from them daily. Enemy combatants fully turned into solid pieces of gold are to be melted down into bars along with the flakes.

When not deployed it is to be kept in a standard chamber with multiple mirrors. Personnel are to compliment its appearance during their interactions. In the event it becomes hostile, Base 2 is to be locked down and evacuated. Operatives are to avoid combat with the item. Non-organic entities within the Insurgency are to be deployed to subdue it. Automated sentry turrets triggered by motion sensors are to be activated. Depending on the circumstances, complete neutralization will be performed by melting it if it is possible.

Report

Glittering Gold is a sapient statue made of solid 24-karat gold. It is 2.4 m tall and weighs around 460 kg. The head is a completely smooth surface with no facial features. There are no orifices or markings present anywhere on its body. Despite the lack of features it is still able to react to its surroundings through sight and sound. The item is able to communicate with personnel through speech by unknown means. Its voice emanates from where a mouth should be at a volume around 60 dB.

Interactions with the item have found it to be narcissistic, regularly admiring its own reflection whenever possible. Cooperation with the item is achieved through compliments from personnel, and by granting it access to mirrors. It is assigned as a member of the Sapient Statues Unit, and performed effectively with other items.

Its main anomalous attribute is the inability of sentient organisms to deliberately inflict harm on it directly or indirectly. Affected subjects describe it as a physical inability rather than psychological. Other actions can still be carried out by them, but they are effectively rendered defenseless against the item.

It has dispatched opponents by using firearms, melee weapons, or without anything. The statue exhibits extraordinary agility and strength when in combat. It is able to punch at a force of approximately 8,000 newtons, and move objects in excess of 1,500 kg. The speed that it can travel up to is around 5 m/s when rushing toward enemy threats. The durability of the item is not fully known due to inability to test it. It is likely to be the same strength as regular gold.

afra.jpg

Gamma field agent Afra Nazari demonstrating Glittering Gold's physical effect. Agent was later reverted back to normal.

Another ability the statue possesses is transfiguring subjects through physical contact, which occurs at its discretion. It can fully convert the organic mass of an individual into solid gold, neutralizing them in the process. Other times it can instead cause a thin layer of gold similar to foil to form over the skin. It easily flakes off from the subject when they move, but no physical harm is caused by it. Damages to the layer are slowly regenerated, which is exploited for financial gain by regularly harvesting the golden flakes. The alteration is reversible except for those fully converted into gold.

On 02/12/2011, the statue was recovered from an excavation site in India. It was covered in plaster engraved with thaumaturgical symbols. The plaster was broken to discover the item, which immediately began to animate. Three workers were injured before communication was established.

Appendix 01: The following is the transcript of an interview with the item Glittering Gold. It was questioned by Dr. Matthew Clark.

[BEGIN LOG]

Item is admiring its reflection with a mirror as Dr. Clark speaks to it.

Dr. Clark: Who are you? I don't think we have asked for your name yet.

Glittering Gold: No name. I never cared for it, but others have called me by many things.

Dr. Clark: Such as?

Glittering Gold: There was Midas. That was my favorite, but you can call me by whatever you please. I find them all flattering.

Dr. Clark: Midas? By any chance you are from Greece?

Glittering Gold: No but I have been there twice before I started to travel east.

Dr. Clark: Okay. Why were you traveling? Is there any particular reason why you ended up in India?

Glittering Gold: Not really. I wanted to show off my shiny self to the people across the land. They would marvel and seek riches from me. The attention was wonderful.

Dr. Clark: I can see why. You are a marvelous specimen.

Glittering Gold: Oh thank you. I know I am.

Dr. Clark: Anyway, can you explain to us why people can't hurt you? Is it psychic in nature?

Glittering Gold: Isn't it obvious? I'm just beautiful. See how the light makes me shine? Who can bring themselves to ruin such a sight?

Dr. Clark: I guess nobody.

Glittering Gold: Exactly. There is no one that doesn't love the sight of gold.

Dr. Clark: So where did you come from?

Glittering Gold: I don't know since I never cared about that. The first thing I remember was seeing my beautiful self for the first time in a pool of water. I am all I need. No other beauty can ever match me.

Dr. Clark: One last question. How did you end up in that plaster we found you in?

Glittering Gold: The work of desperate fools who could not strike me. In the end I outshined them.

Dr. Clark: Who were they? What can you tell us about them?

Glittering Gold: Just jealous nobodies afraid of everything. They were not even worth thinking about.

Dr. Clark: I don't have any further questions, but thank you for agreeing to the interview. We appreciate your presence here at the Insurgency. It's an honor.

Glittering Gold: You are welcome. Come by whenever you want to see something beautiful.

[END LOG]

Note: An investigation into the group that imprisoned the item before its discovery is underway. Hopefully we can replicate what they did to form a containment procedure against it for whenever the need arises.

- Dr. Matthew Clark

Appendix 02: Transcript of a test conducted to find a way to circumvent Glittering Gold's anomalous defense. The test subject was former Sigma operative ████ ███████ (#█████) as part of his sentence until the date of his public execution.

[BEGIN LOG]

Glittering Gold is admiring itself with a handheld mirror while standing in the test chamber. The subject enters the chamber while wearing an electric collar. A table is nearby with a 9mm pistol possessing a single rubber bullet. The gun is picked up by the subject as instructed.

Test Coordinator: [Speaks through an intercom speaker] Are you ready to begin the test?

Glittering Gold: [Still observing its own reflection] Yes, but this is still pointless. No one can ever hurt me, not even scuff my glorious shine.

Test Coordinator: Please try to shoot the entity, ████.

Subject: Is that it? Okay then.

The subject aims the gun at the item while it continues to look at itself. He struggles to pull the trigger.

Subject: Fuck! I can't do it.

Test Coordinator: Keep trying.

The statue starts to tap its left foot.

Glittering Gold: Any day now.

Test Coordinator: Pull the trigger or you will receive a shock.

Subject: I can't! I'm trying to shoot but my hand doesn't do it.

The subject is then shocked by the collar. The voltage does not cause the subject to fire the gun while it was pointed at the statue.

Subject: What the hell!

Glittering Gold: [Laughs] So futile.

Test Coordinator: Try again.

Subject again attempts to shoot Glittering Gold but fails to perform the action. Additional shocks are administeted with no results.

Glittering Gold: Are we finished?

The statue discards the mirror, and quickly approaches the subject. It lifts him up by the neck with one arm. Gun is accidentally fired at the wall as the subject tries to escape its grasp.

Glittering Gold: I'll take that.

The item proceeds to take away the pistol, and crumble it up in its other hand. The pieces are then dropped to the floor as the subject continues to struggle.

Test Coordinator: That is enough! This test is over. Please release the subject.

Glittering Gold: Finished? I was just about to get to the fun part.

Test Coordinator: Wait!

The statue proceeds to slam down its fist into the subject's head. Glittering Gold then tosses the corpse to the wall which splatters on impact.

Test Coordinator: Damn it! I told you to let him go!

Glittering Gold: In a way, I did.

[END LOG]

The results of the test revealed that harming the object through involuntary proxy was not possible. Automated turrets are considered for use against the entity.

Appendix 03: Field Report

Field Report

Filing Operative: Cpt. Chris Watterson

Date: 13/12/18

Objective: Securing an ORIA1 warehouse located in Yemen.

Involved Personnel:

  • Special Ops Sigma-08
  • Glittering Gold (Sapient Statues Unit)

Report: We arrived at the dropped off, and surrounded the area. Sharpshooters were set up on a couple of nearby rooftops before Glittering Gold was cleared to enter the building.

We waited as instructed while listening to gunshots and screams for around 6 minutes. We did shoot a few enemy operatives that tried to escape.

Things got silent for a while, and we saw Glittering Gold signaling us from a window while covered in blood. All of us then moved to secure the building. Inside the place was a bloodbath.

Limbs and organs were all over the place. Plenty had their faces caved in. Only eight were lucky to be turned into gold. We did not expect any survivors as we began to sweep the building.

While we were in the eastern wing, someone that was hiding tried to run away. Operative Alfedo Gonzalez fired his weapon. He killed the target but a bullet ricocheted off something, hitting Glittering Gold. It was coming from around a corner, and was struck at the side of its left arm.

We were all quiet for a while. It said nothing while it looked at its arm for a few seconds. We didn't see any damage to it, but it looked toward the direction of Gonzalez. Next thing we knew, it speared Gonzalez through the gut with its arm before tearing him in half.

I ordered my men to retreat but the item did not pursue us. It just stood over the body. After a while it just walked out of the warehouse to wait for extraction with no further casualties.

This incident have made my men nervous. I can't blame them. The thing easily tore Gonzalez apart, and it can do the same to the rest of us whenever it wants to. We don't have any leverage over it.

I like to request that my team no longer be deployed with the item in the future. I also recommend that we invest into a neutralization procedure that will lead to the least casualties as soon as possible.

The item was remotely examined shortly after it was returned to Base 2. A depression measuring approximately 2.5 cm was observed. Preemptive neutralization of Glittering Gold is awaiting the approval of Alpha Command. It is being kept monitored by security personnel until further notice.

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