Part 16: - DS, a bomb!

Happy 4th for you Americans in the audience, and for everyone my side of the border, happy belated Canada Day. Let's celebrate this occasion by being entirely unpatriotic.

16 - DS, a bomb!

(Music: On the Cutting Edge of Medicine.)





"..This operation is amazing. Your focused concentration is.. simple unbelievable."

"Is that the video of our GUILT procedure the other day?"

"I had my secretary transfer it to an HDV media card. Watching this in slow motion actually reveals quite a bit... Anyway, have a seat. There's an event I'd like you to attend."

"Hm, okay."



"I need your signature for this."

"...Victor, we're in the middle of a meeting..."

"Yeah, well, this will only take a second."

"Victor Niguel, age 26: Head of the Caduceus research division. He's responsible for a lot of Caduceus's medical technology."

"This is that petition we went over yesterday. There are no changes. ...Huh? Who's the new guy?"

"This is Derek Stiles, from Hope Hospital. ...He's hardly new. You need to get out of that laboratory more often."

"Ohhh. He's that Healing Touch guy. I'm Victor from R&D. How's it going?"

"It's going well. Nice to meet you."

"How's this, Victor?"

"...Looks good to me. Okay, see you later."



"I apologize for the interruption. Let's discuss your trip. Our International Conference will be held in Angeles Bay this month. Topics will be focused on the recent issue of medical terrorism. Dr. Stiles, I'd like you to attend as a representative of Caduceus USA. I'd also like you to speak about the strains of GUILT you've operated on, and the procedures involved. Can you do that?"

"Well, I haven't really been here that long... I'm sure some of the others could do a better job..."

"We're also showing footage of your operations. I'd prefer that you were there to explain the surguries, step by step. Dr. Myers will be going, so I'll ask her to translate for you, as well. Have fun, Derek!"



"...Once again, that was Dr. Stiles of Caduceus USA."



"No problem. I think the video footage really got their attention. You could've loosened up a little out there, though. You've never spoken to a big group like that, have you?"

"I'm usually too busy just helping patients... even if I had time for meetings, I'd probably fall asleep. So, yeah... that was my first presentation."

"Yeah, a lot of doctors are that way, but you should still schedule time to attend conferences. It's the only way to keep up on the latest technology, you know? Being a doctor is like being a lifelong student."

"Dr. Kasal used to say the same thing-- all doctors are students."

"...Good ol' Greg, huh? Now he was one heck of a public speaker. He was confident, threw in some jokes, never had stage fright... I remember staying up all night helping him make slides. ...Nevermind. That's all in the past, now, anyway."

"Sounds like you guys were close."

"It... wasn't like that. He was a great guy, so I always did what I could to help out."

"Really..."

"What's that supposed to mean?!"

"Hear that? I think they're starting the next presentation."

"...That concludes the disease treatment workshop."

Good thing they weren't listening to that one!

"Next, we'll have an update on the fight against medical terrorism. Speaking on this topic is Langston Miller, Chief of Caduceus Europe."



"As well all know, medical terrorism poses a serious threat to all people in the world today. Disease reports have doubled in the past year alone. Unfortunately, the motivation behind this epidemic is still unknown. But, we have received confirmation that the group responsible calls themselves 'Delphi.'"

"Delphi... The Greek Oracle?"

"The messages we've received from them have been cryptic, at best. Their philosophy and demands are still a mystery. Are they related to other terrorist cells? We're not sure. For all we know, they could be a fanatical cult. But, whoever they are, we know that they're hostile and organized."

These references are oh so subtle, aren't they? Anyway, this is Dr. Miller. He was American in the Japanese version, known as Dr. Lewis Willer. It's easy to tell because dark haired Americans don't exist in Japanese fiction.

"We believe there may be additional clues hidden in the strange letters that arrived shortly before each GUILT operation."

"...We received one of those."

"Medicine has advanced quickly since the advent of genetic engineering. But, as GUILT has shown us, disease can evolve just as fast. The ramifications of medical terrorism are grave, indeed. And, it's going to take our best minds to find a way to stop it. ...Though, we may finally have somewhere for them to start looking. We're received news of an abandoned Delphi research facility... It seems they entered a small African village, possibly by posing as the NPO."

I think what they meant to say here was "posing as an NPO - a Non-Profit Organization. This is a real problem, which you can read more about at the UN website here.

"I'm afraid they were using the townspeople to develop GUILT."

"Bastards."

"The town was destroyed and the facility was abandoned. But, I'm sure there's something there that might lead us to Delphi. I propose that Caduceus send a research team to Africa. Supplies and manpower will need to be approved by each division. I hope to have your co-operation."



(Silence.)



"Well, a lot happened over the last year, so I was expecting that. I will not enjoy writing this summary report, though."





"What's going on here?!"

"The shutters are dropping! Is there a fire?!"

PA Speakers: "...You doctors are your temporary cures are worthless. If you would all just die, maybe people could finally stop living."

"What the hell?"

"What is this thing?!"

"D-Don't-! It- ...It's a bomb!"

(Music: Emergency!)

"There's a bomb!"

"AAAAAAHHHH!"

"B-bomb?! C'mon, Cybil! We have to get outta here!"

"Damn it! There's no way out! We're going to die! Someone help us!"

"...Sounds like it's over here. Follow me, Dr. Stiles."

"Wh-What?! But, that's where the bomb is!"

"That's the point."

"What are you going to do? We have to run... There's nowhere to go, but..."



"If you're going to die anyway, what difference does it make?! Be a man!"

"...Y-Yes ma'am!"

"You're going to dismantle the bomb. I'll be your assistant."

"What?! I can't do that!"

"So you'd rather do nothing? Are you going to sit here and cry for help like everyone else? Tch... screw that! If this doesn't work, at least we can say we tried."

"I... ...I'm ready."

"Give us some room! Set up a barricade with the desks and tables. Everyone take cover! ...Okay, Dr. Stiles. There's no turning back now."



The best patient profile screen in the game, bar none. Just as Delphi mailed Caduceus a bomb, the terrorist cult Aum Shinrikyo mailed a bomb to the governor of Tokyo, as well as placed cyanide bombs in metro toilets months after the "failed" sarin attack. We'll go more into detail about Aum in a minute.

"Okay, you'll need to follow my instructions carefully, got it?"

"Aren't you scared?!"

"Of course. But, why should a doctor be afraid? I'm sure you've been in worse situations than this. We hold patient's lives in the palms of our hands, you know... One mistake, and you have to watch them die. What could be more frightening than that?"

"Uh, I guess... You've brave, Dr. Myers..."

"Ha! They don't call me the Iron Vixen for nothing!"

"That's what Tyler said. ...He comes up with some weird nicknames."

"Actually, that started back during my days on the police force. I was in the crime lab, you know. Even though I was just a novice investigator, I was still stronger than all the guys!"

"So, you were really a police officer?"

LESS CHATTER MORE TIME BOMB DISMANTLING.

"That's right. And, I dated a guy on the bomb squad... So, trust me on this one."



Due to Derek's lack of confidence, we don't get a dice-throwing pose this time around. This screen is also voiced by Yuri Lowenthal, back when nobody knew who Yuri Lowenthal was, in Second Opinion as he stutters through the line.

(Watch this operation: Mission 3-6, S Rank.)

(Music: Code Blue)



This "operation" is all investigative. Despite Cybil's help, it's mostly up to you to discover how to stop the bomb. You will be unprepared, but take it slow. Should you fail, it will blow up in your face and everything will fade to white, scaring the shit out of you.

"This bomb design is archaic. The trigger device is a pair of small water tanks. We'll have to find a way to deal with those tanks before moving on. Dismantling it shouldn't be too hard... Well, it's possible, anyway. Ready to go? We shouldn't waste any more time. Let's get down to business!"

You need to have the foresight to select the magnification tool before the game will proceed.



Speaking of voice actors, Cybil is also voiced by Wendee Lee not doing her Wendee Lee voice. You can hardly tell she, Angie and Mary have the same actress.

"Okay, let's check it out. Magnify the lower right water tank."

You are actually not required to start there, you can just zoom in and back out and continue as normal, but we will. Despite what the timer might have you believe, you do NOT have ten minutes to complete this operation unless you stop the trigger device, first. It's more like three.



"...The bomb explodes. This gimmick's been around since ancient Rome."

I'd try to validate that information, but you have to be conscious of what you Google these days. Someone less paranoid or knowledgable on the subject can report back to me.


There you go!

"It's also a timer. See--the water flows slowly from left to right... when the left tank empties and the right one is full, it explodes. We might be able to work around this using the drain. Let's try it out. Suck water out of the right tank, but keep it in the tube."



This part will be confusing because you must think outside the box. You have to drag the stylus DOWN the flume instead of up. It might seem simple when explained to you, but a lot of players tend to blank under pressure. In case you were wondering, yes, if you suck water from the left tank to the right tank, the bomb will explode.



"The water level is constantly changing. Keep an eye on it."

Unless you really need the full ten minutes, forget about it.

"So, that takes care of the trigger. Let's move on to the explosive. Stop magnification so we can see the entire bomb."



"I assume those silver boxes are supposed to ignite the explosives. They're not operating right now... either they failed, or it's a trap. But, if that changes, it would cause the dynamite to explode. Let's take care of the dynamite before that can happen. Here, magnify the area around the dynamite.."



"See that yellow part at the end of the dynamite? That's the detonator. Basically, if the detonator's gone, the bomb shouldn't explode. If we disable the explosives, the igniter is probably useless. So, we just need to pull the detonator on each stick of dynamite. ...And, that's how to dismantle this bomb. Not so bad, is it?"

Needless to say, nothing is ever that simple in Trauma Center.



"Okay. Pull each one out, carefully."

Should you miss once, Cybil will yell at you. Too many times, and bye bye cruel world.

"Hm, this is bad! The trigger device has been activated! When the temperature hits MAX, the explosive will go off! I think you can lower the temperature by using the gel... But we have to shut it off, somehow! Where's it being controlled from?"

This is just a distraction. Don't even think about this and move on.



"We have to shut it down! Something has to be controlling it!"



"If we destroy the microchips, the trigger should deactivate. Follow that pattern - destroy ONLY the chips that connect down below!"

This is a vague order. You want the five chips that connect to the igniters, NOT the dynamite, or else you will die. Good luck figuring that out on your first playthrough!



I was thirteen or so when this game came out. Growing up in the boonies, I was too much of an idiot to know how a circuitboard worked. I had no idea you had to follow the yellow lines to the connection wires and thought that the wires corresponded numerically by chip order, leading to a lot of toasty doctors.



"Wh... What the..?"

The timer begins to flash random numbers.





OH BOY. That is not a random number, you have 15 seconds to do this. The red wires are always random, I got a very easy set this time through. Sometimes all the red wires will be in between two white wires for extra frustration. Hope you have a steady stylus hand, because touch a single pixel on the white wires and kiss your ass goodbye. When you finish, the timer will flash and shut down.



"Whew.. that worked out... Glad that's over. Talk about your bad patients... heh..."

In the video, I S rank the level. As you don't panic and don't miss you should be fine. Though the gold detonators aren't necessary to be taken out to complete the level, you must do it if you value your S rank.



Meafterfinals.png

"At least we're alive, right? S'better than dying, any day. Of course, I knew we'd be fine. It was just a bomb -- no big deal."

(The Iron Vixen, huh? ...I think I get it now.)



"We stopped the bomb, everyone! It's all clear, now!"

"Thank God!"

"...I thought I was going to die!"

"We're alive!"

"Great job in there, Stiles. ...You definitely learned from Greg."

"Heh, same to you, Dr. Myers. You're pretty tough."

"Woohoo!!"

"I can't believe it!"

"Let's hear it for Dr. Stiles!"

"...I think we've found the perfect man for the Africa mission."


... Oh, I almost forgot. I wonder how this mission played in Second Opinion?

From Opendork's Second Opinion LP:


...Nevermind. You don't want to know.


BONUS 3 - The Oracle of Delphi: Aum Supreme Truth.

The villainous organization in Under the Knife, Delphi, is a pseudo-Christian cult who believe modern medicine is destroying the cycle of life and death. Though it is never stated in the story mode, behind the scenes they worship a figurehead who claims to be a Christian Angel. This should come as no surprise to you if you are familiar with Atlus games. What most players do not realize, however, is that Delphi was based off of a very real, very dangerous, cult from the 80's.


(Source)

Aum Shinrikyo ("Universal Religious Truth") was a Japanese cult religion that mixed Buddhism, Hinduism and Christianity. They believed that their leader, Shoko Asahara, was Christ. Aum boomed amongst young intellectuals, claiming that yoga techniques can be used to attain a higher intelligence, better health, and happiness in their monotonous lives. Aum also taught against the "evils" of capitalism, and propagated xenophobia against Americans, Jews, the British - and hatred for Japan's own royal family.

Aum's bio and chemical terrorism began in the late 80's when Asahara had ideas of turning Aum into a government organization. In 1990, Aum spread botulinum toxin around the home of the Japanese royal family, failing to kill any members. They opened research facilities to study the use of botulin, Q fever, anthrax, and cholera for bioterrorism. In 1994, Aum spread sarin gas, a deadly nerve agent absorbed through the skin, near an apartment where supreme court judges lived. Eight people were killed and at least 200 others were injured.

On the morning of March 20, 1995, Aum Shinrikyo sent five members to gas the Tokyo subway - four university graduates and one doctor - with the intent of killing thousands and placing the blame on America. At 8:00 AM, the five members punctured packets of sarin gas on subway trains, seriously injuring over a thousand, giving permanent brain damage to fifty, and killing thirteen people. Fortunately, many of the packets had not been punctured properly, and the gas had not been completely refined. Had the operation gone as planned, it is estimated Aum would have killed over 2,000 commuters that day.

Shoko Asahara was later hunted by police, arrested, and sentenced to death. All five of the Metro perpetrators were caught, four of whom were sentenced to death, and one sentenced to life imprisonment. Four of the five getaway drivers were arrested and sentenced to death, one as recent as within the last month. Now known as Aleph, they have apologized for their past actions.

Delphi and Aum are uncomfortably similar. They are both religious cults that use bioterrorism to further their goals, condemn the modern world, and predict an apocalypse that will kill the unworthy. Like Delphi has property in Africa, Aum did own property in the Australian outback for weapons research. Both their names claim divine understanding. Finally, in Under the Knife 2, Atlus decided it would be a good idea to make Delphi actually gas the Angeles Bay metro with packets of aerosoled GUILT punctured by incognito Delphi members. Just in case this was way too subtle for you.

What other real life incidents concerning Aum will play into the plot of this game? More to come...

Next Time: Samuel L. Jackson references.