Day 57: Lieutenant General Charles Berg's Office

[das_berg]

Between yesterday's trip to Doyleton and today's visitation hours, it had initially been difficult to find the time to meet with any of the Institute's subjects. However, the administration under General Aguilar had proved themselves efficient in maintaining order while covering its true identity for the sake of the civilians. Given who was in

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[its_the_mileage]

So Project 2911 was a short-term test, not the name of the overarching experiment they were part of. Indy thought he remembered some posts on the bulletin board about ill effects during the night after it'd been announced, but he personally didn't remember anything unusual except a spate of lousy luck (and the fact that they'd answered riddles for a sphinx, of course). He might ask around later out of curiosity, but for now that project was a side issue.

Nothing Berg had said about the purpose of the Institute was out of line with what they'd all already speculated, but still, hearing official confirmation was jarring. And "various backgrounds" was putting it mildly. Indy felt like protesting that compared to the people here with fur and so-called superpowers, there was nothing unusual about him except the ability to tame lions, could he go home now, but sadly it didn't seem like a productive line of discussion.

But they weren't just studying the patients in a controlled environment in a controlled environment, he realized quickly. Landel arguably had been, with his apparent indifference to whether his prisoners lived or died, but the military had made it clear they wanted certain results--success against the absurd obstacles patience faced at night--and they'd implemented this system of ranks and pins to encourage them.

This wasn't a neutral study. Someone wanted something at the end, but what? Supersoldiers, like the Nazis? Some investor's personal benefit? How did they plan to translate the dubious "knowledge" to anything more concrete than satisfaction of their curiosity?

No way to find out but to ask. "And what are you going to do with the results once you have them? What's the point? Who benefits from knowing how we, say, cross a pit of lava?" His tone was deliberately light, but as he held up his burned and bandaged left hand, his frustration was probably evident. Landel might've come up with the death traps on his own, the madman, but there was clearly someone sanctioning it all on the other end. Indy wanted answers about who and why.

[das_berg]

Berg glanced toward the bandage. Obviously, Dr. Jones was referring to his time in the basement's Room of Fire. He could see why some would consider the lower levels a bit out of place when compared with the rest of the Institute, but he hadn't personally designed this facility.

At any rate, it was quite impressive that Dr. Jones managed to venture there and lived, though Berg hadn't expected any less from someone so skilled. He privately wondered how he and his comrades would fare in the Coliseum. There was no use in mentioning it, though. If Dr. Jones continued on his current path, they would find out in due time.

"The military certainly benefits from learning how individuals from different worlds adapt to a high-stress environment," he patiently explained. "Whether we make use of our findings, however, depends on if there's a need for it."

[its_the_mileage]

Indy's eyebrow shot up. "Then why not test us under high-stress conditions the military might actually face? Or does your army fight Zombis on a regular basis?"

He cut himself off. As easy (and tempting) as it'd be to shoot the messenger, Berg hadn't been the one to put this whole show together and he wasn't the one running it now. Indy needed to keep the lieutenant general here talking, not antagonize him.

Apologizing would be taking it a step too far, but he did settle back in his chair and adopt a more conciliatory tone. "Out of curiosity," he said, "is there a need? The Doyleton paper doesn't cover much beyond the annual apple pie-baking contest."

[das_berg]

With how little Dr. Jones knew about this world's state of affairs, Berg very well could have said that they engaged the walking dead in combat quite often, and the man wouldn't have had much evidence to contradict him. That didn't quite touch on what the military was actually dealing with, though, but the point still stood. Of course, he had no intention of sharing more information than necessary, and so the officer chose not to dignify that small outburst with a response.

Instead, he focused on the second, more reasonable question. "Due to the Institute's relative isolation, we see no reason to keep you updated on current events," he responded. "However, I will say that there may eventually be a need for what we're doing. Otherwise, we wouldn't go through the trouble and expense to run a program like this."

The Institute consisted of a wide range of technology, but it wasn't exactly cheap to maintain. Did the subjects honestly believe they did this because they had nothing else to do with their time?

[its_the_mileage]

Indy was about to retort that there was nonetheless value in their being informed citizens, but of course they weren't even close to citizens here. The case for keeping prisoners up to date on world news was a weak one at best.

Privately he wondered if the need was a lot closer and more certain than "eventual" suggested. Berg was right; you didn't go to the trouble of kidnapping people from all over hell on a whim. But it was clear Indy was going to have to get his news from another source. The shift must be close to ending by now.

"Just one more question, Lieutenant General. The patients who're 'released.' From our perspective, there's no common denominator, and they're not all getting killed at night." He leaned forward. "What happens to them?"

[das_berg]

That was an easy question to answer, and one Berg had no problem speaking about. Yet he could understand Dr. Jones' curiosity, particularly considering his position.

"People who've been released have managed to successfully integrate into society," the officer said in a calm, even tone. "They're living normal, productive lives outside of this facility. There's no need to worry about them."

In many ways, it was the same objective as a regular mental institution. Perhaps that was what made their program's cover story so convincing to the outside world. However, he could see why some subjects would be suspicious about that claim. On the other hand, how else could they explain weekly visits from former patients?