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Letter recovered from the belongings of Nicola Tesla
My Dear Sir
Roentgen may have intimated to you the interests of our little fraternity - they are diverse, yet specialized and particular; some might say idiosyncratic - and hopefully he has commended to you the benefits which our enterprise may entail upon your own. Indeed it could hardly be expected that your research should not be the subject of our attention, given both its myriad applications and, if you will forgive me for so suggesting, its flowering outside the walls of the garden of common thought.
It is these very characteristics which have given me the hope that we may discover in your esteemed self a fellow adherent to our developing creed. What creed, you may ask? Merely this: that the present century is one of science, as the 18th was of philosophy and the 19th of commerce. Science can prevent the perils of the past, and may offer a resolution to the mysteries of the ages.
Our circle of scholars is dedicated to the advancement of scientific knowledge, challenging the boundaries of what is known and investigating the unknown. Our discourse is conducted by correspondence, and, where circumstances permit, in person in Europe and the United States. Having been forced by circumstance to meet less frequently in recent years, we are eager to reestablish our bonds, and to welcome such new minds to our table as your own.
As such, I am pleased to extend to you our most cordial invitation to a gathering at Keen's Chop House for luncheon on November 18th. Cocktails will be served at midday sharp.
Naturally our meetings are conducted with discretion, so you will understand that no formal reply is required to this missive. Please carry it upon your person when attending on the 18th; it shall be your admission.
In hopeful anticipation of your presence,
Yours faithfully,
[signature unidentified]1
November 1918 - Lunch at Keen's Chop House, New York
O5 Archives - Transcript of interview with O5-6 - 7 April 1950
O5-6: Yes, I remember the Keen's meeting vividly. It was one of our first after the Great War, I believe. A good meal; [O5-3] always brought the best Burgundy over with him. All thirteen of us were there. We had a great deal to catch up on, having not spoken in so long.
I was speaking to [O5-11] about an expedition he was planning to the Ukraine, looking into stories he had heard about a "ghost forest", when [O5-1] stood up to address the table. I was surprised, as our meetings were generally very casual, but [O5-1] was always one for making a show of things.
He spoke about how long it was since we'd met, and how much the world had changed since we'd first started corresponding. He wanted our arrangements to become more formal; to create a new scientific organisation. He was speaking about the war, and about the influenza that followed. We had discussed the prevention of disease before, but this was bigger. [O5-1] wanted to go beyond mere medicine - far beyond. I don't remember exactly what he said, but he was impassioned. He was leaning forward and gripping the edge of the table like he might break it off.
He said that these events - no, he said "these atrocities" - must not be allowed to repeat. He asked us what Science was worth as a tool if it could not prevent them, and what the spirit of Man was worth if he did not dedicate himself to mastery of that tool. He challenged us, told us that we should walk dauntless to the blank wall at the end of life, and that we should break through it. He said - and his eyes caught mine, I'll never forget that look - that even if we couldn't reclaim those souls lost to death's dominion, we could ensure that no more would suffer that fate.
Well, the room was in uproar. Everyone spoke at once, and the debate ran for hours. But [O5-1] would not be gainsaid. He had answers for all our arguments, and slowly he wore us down, convincing us he had the right of it. Tell you the truth, despite our natural contention I think we wanted to be convinced.
We agreed that our organisation would concentrate its research on avenues outside of mainstream science, and that therefore it should operate in secret. Several of us already had substantial collections of curiosities - what we now call anomalies - that could be contributed to the cause.
Perhaps it is hard to understand if you were not in that room, if you did not live through that war. But we knew that the task we had embarked upon was right. Noble, even. We would change not just the world, but human life itself. That day, the Foundation was born. We began to perform miracles.
Index Cards - Foundation files
Date: 12 April 1922
Item #: 006 [Explained]
Object Class: Nepenthe
Security Procedures: The effect of item 006 has been determined to the satisfaction of the research team and the Council, and experimental results are considered reproducible. It has therefore been reclassified as an Explained item. As item 006 is considered beneficial to mankind, Foundation research results are to be submitted using pseudonyms to scientific journals, with the various products of item 006 to be posited as having separate sources. Access to item 006 is to be preserved by any means possible.
Description: Item 006 is an artesian aquifer located in the Kalmyk territory West of the Volga Delta (see map overleaf). Historically the site of a local shrine (currently to the Virgin Mary), the waters are revered by the local populace as producing miracle cures and long life.
Foundation research has determined that the liquid, otherwise composed of unremarkable mineral water, contains several heretofore unknown chemical compounds. Each of these substances has a distinct anti-microbial effect, preventing the contagion and symptoms of diphtheria, whooping cough, tuberculosis and tetanus, respectively. In clinical trials …
Date: 8 August 1927
Item #: 009 [Explained]
Object Class: Nepenthe
Security Procedures: Item 009 has been studied and classified as Explained under Protocol EX-1C. To avoid unnecessary attention on Foundation researchers operating in the broader scientific community, item 009 is to be introduced discreetly into mainstream scientific research unconnected with the Foundation, in such as way as to ensure that its benefits are recognized.
Description: Item 009 is an anomalous fungal species of the genus Penicillium which, when grown under stressed conditions, produces a secondary metabolite with bactericidal effects on Gram-positive bacteria.
Item 009 was discovered by Foundation researchers in …
O5 Archives - Transcript of interview with O5-12 - 4 June 1964
O5-12: Yeah, "Nepenthe" was a pretty common classification, back in the beginning. Anything prolonging, enhancing or protecting life, if I remember it right. We had a bunch of similar categories in those days - most of them got folded up into "Safe" by the mid-fifties.
But to start with, the "Keter" classification was limited to item 001 alone. [O5-1] chose it himself, you know. He had read a lot of Crowley - in "Liber 777" it is associated with death - but I'm not sure that was his reason for choosing it. I like to think that the name "Keter" was based on the Sephiroth: because 001 was beyond comprehension, because it was the crowning purpose of the Foundation.
Over time, the Keter category expanded to other threats to life that did not fit the existing classifications, or were otherwise unfathomable. But it never fit them like it did 001. Death was always at the centre of the Foundation's work - it hovered at the shoulder of every researcher, walked with every field agent, sat opposite every administrator. An army of brilliant minds, gifted people, all striving to contain it.
As we found out, you can't shut death in a box.
