Item #: EA-022

Object Class: Hazardous + Obscure

Name: Ink

Containment: EA-022 is to be held inside a reinforced 3m x 3m x 5m containment chamber located within Outpost Nu. The anomaly is to be placed within a transparent, airtight glass container situated on a pedestal in the centre of the chamber. The containment cell is to be lit at all times with low ambient lighting to allow uninterrupted visual monitoring. The entrance to the chamber must be guarded at all times by two Arcane Securing Unit operatives, and all scheduled testing requires the presence of at least two Researchers, one Arcane Documenter, and one Junior Site Response Unit member. Unauthorised access to EA-022's chamber is strictly prohibited.

Profile: EA-022 is a puddle of opaque, pitch-black ink, lacking distinguishable features, patterns, or movement when unprovoked. The substance appears inert under normal observation and has no fixed volume, maintaining an irregular but shallow pool-like shape at rest. Despite its benign appearance, EA-022 displays highly adaptive mimetic properties triggered by the presence of living beings or other anomalies within its containment area.

When an entity enters the containment cell, EA-022 becomes active and begins to change form, growing into a highly accurate mimicry of the subject. This includes physical appearance, vocal tone, speech patterns, and behavioural mannerisms. The process begins subtly—typically through surface ripples and rudimentary shapes—and becomes increasingly refined with prolonged exposure. EA-022 does not initiate interaction beyond imitation, but its duplications are precise enough to confuse even experienced observers.

The anomaly's most concerning property manifests when it is exposed to other anomalous entities. In such cases, EA-022 has been observed replicating not only their form but also their abilities, often with disturbing accuracy. This mimetic adaptation appears to be instantaneous in some instances, and cumulative in others, suggesting EA-022 may "learn" and retain traits over time. The nature of this learning process remains under active study.

Attempts to extract samples from EA-022 have proven fruitless, as any removed portion reverts to inert liquid and rapidly evaporates. No known method has succeeded in disrupting or neutralizing its adaptive properties. EA-022 does not communicate, nor has it shown signs of sentience, but its reactions to stimuli indicate a complex internal mechanism that has yet to be understood.