chapter 36
Chapter 6. The price of a name (1)
The 8th National Military Police Special Mission Medical Company
The special mission building is old and shabby, but there is no place as ‘dismal’ as the medical company.
Because of the trees.
Two large zelkova trees, which should only be at the entrance of the village, surround the building, so neither the sun nor the wind comes in well. Only the dampness and coolness of an old man’s breath fills the inside and outside of the building.
It is dark even in broad daylight, but on foggy or rainy days, the darkness and humidity reached its peak. The feeling of seeing an old house half-submerged in a swamp that was cursed. Not only the corporal, but even the officers go around the building of the medical company on such days.
Usually, military ghost stories are entangled in buildings like this. The ghost story gets fatter, more dramatized, and more frightening as it goes through the mouths of the sentry who stands guard and the executive who tries to make fun of the new recruit.
Perhaps ghost stories are a human defense mechanism against fear. A ghost story is a story. Stories should have cause and effect, and should be easily understandable to anyone.
Of course, understanding doesn’t mean the fear goes away. Fear is an instinct, an emotion, and a realm of the heart, not a realm of thought.
Rather, understanding fear is a process of accepting it into oneself rather than expelling it far away. It is to refine from the unknown to the familiar, from the familiar to the common.
Like the monster dolls I played with as a child, until they had no effect on people.
Not only the members of the medical company, but also the officers and soldiers dispatched from the 8th National Military Police are well aware of that reason.
Thirty-five people were rescued from Lambert. All of them are housed in solitary confinement in the medical company building. This is to check whether zombification is in progress or not.
For that reason, they had to undergo individual isolation for more than three weeks, physical examinations in the morning and evening, and tests. If you see something strange in the numbers, a close inspection is done, which is tedious and inconvenient.
“Wow. This is a machine I only saw in my undergraduate days, but you still use it?”
It was fortunate that most of the inmates were doctors and nurses from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. They knew better than anyone about the ‘quarantine guidelines’ and responded cooperatively to the military’s investigation.
But they are also people who feel emotions. I couldn’t like life like a prison cell. So they turned their attention to the old facilities of the military and to the regular visitors.
“I can’t help it. An organization called the military is a group that loves the latest and cutting-edge technology more than anyone else, but does not use unverified items even if they die.”
“I think there is something wrong with the words. If it’s proven enough to be verified, doesn’t that mean it’s not new?”
“That’s why everyone doesn’t want to be a soldier. I wouldn’t have done it if I hadn’t received the scholarship.”
Thirty-five doctors and nurses who are locked up with nothing to do. 8 The National Military Police did not miss this opportunity.
An order was given to all military surgeons, nurse officers, and medics belonging to the military police to support the “Special mission medical company.”
For that reason, the military surgeons and medics were put in a position where they had to have their rough hands examined by none other than a ‘doctor patient’. It was an order because it sounded nice, but in fact it was like free training.
“No, hey. Medic. I’ve said it more than once. Is it just tight?”
“I was afraid it would hurt… “
“Yumma, a lump sum is the best for pain! Just press! Ahhh! Okay! Tie it tight like this! Tight! Okay? Tight! Harder! Aagh!”
Of course, not all conversations went like this.
“Does the military get paid properly? We only pay basic salary. I just don’t need money, so I’d like a food coupon.”
“We are opposites. They only give food coupons. Do you want to go to the black market and sell it or something?”
There were also those who lamented about the joys and sorrows of public officials,
“Hey, can I go outside and call you?”
“Send it by letter. They say phone censorship is severe these days.”
There are people who meet unexpected fate.
Only the military did not enter. Soldiers and officers belonging to the investigative world also went in and investigated what the hell they had been through.
Of course, it’s a good word, but the truth is, ‘You must be very concerned. Were you very surprised? What have you been through? Can you tell me?’
They were not criminals, but civilians who were about to be sold into slavery, so there was no reason for the military to treat them harshly.
The testimonies of those who were rescued were largely consistent. Suddenly, the driver took a wrong road instead of a safe road, and after a brief skirmish with the gang, they were all taken prisoner and locked in an apple warehouse.
It was animosity towards the nameless ‘that bastard’, the last member of the Lambert gang who wore the jumper of the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“If I see that bastard again, I will turn him into a zombie. That she was hit by the butt and left her chin incontinent. Ah. Ouch.”
“It’s a sadist. Clearly a sadist. I still wake up when I think of that time. At best, they took us out of the warehouse, threw a bunch of keys at them, and said to the walkie-talkie, “The slave has escaped.” Is that a demon or a person?”
“It was a typical ‘perpetrator justifying himself’. ‘I didn’t want to do this, you guys made me this way!’ People like this find all causes outside themselves. They are dissatisfied misfits who cannot have a full social life.”
“No, he even shot at the same gang member? He didn’t shoot everyone to live alone. It’s a psychopath. Very.”
All testimony was recorded as a report under the confirmation of Leticia, an elite officer. Of course, Leticia didn’t forget to add a footnote to ‘that bastard’, ‘estimated to be V’.
“Here is the report. Where has the captain gone?”
The orderly who received the report answered Leticia’s question.
“You are in the special isolation ward.”
“Still?”
“Still. That woman is great too. I’m scared to death being with the captain, but she thinks that woman is still keeping her mouth shut.”
Leticia thought of that woman. Her breasts were large She was big enough to wonder if everyday life would be uncomfortable. She was smaller than the woman, though she was quite large in her guise.
‘Size is not everything. The shape matters.’
While thinking a little strangely, Leticia looked towards her ward.
* * * * *
It looks gloomy and shabby, but in fact the duty company building is solid. It is a thorough building with soundproofing, waterproofing, fire prevention, and even anti-jailbreak measures. Except for the drawbacks that the exterior walls often get moldy and the windows get dirty easily.
The strongest and strongest room among them, this is the room where the most dangerous prisoners are confined. It is a special isolation ward. From the outside, it looks the same as the other hospital rooms, but this room has a very special device installed.
Task Commander Virginia Halford is sitting on a chair in the hospital ward. I could even feel the composure in her figure, with her long, straight legs crossed and her body leaned back.
“There are many ghost stories about this building. But the reality is more than a ghost story. During the war, it was used as a prisoner of war torture chamber. The trees outside covered everything that was happening inside.
After Römer took the plunge, it was used to imprison unstable soldiers, most of whom never saw the light of day. Then the 8th National Gendarmerie took over and was eventually assigned to a special task force.
Looks fine from the outside, doesn’t it? However, this building still retains its old appearance. For example, if you remove the white sheet on the other side of the wall, ‘that room during the war’ will appear. I cleaned up what the former captains had left unmanaged.
I haven’t had a chance to use it since it’s only been a few days since I took office, but maybe… You might be the first.”
Virginia looked at the bed-bound patient.
The bruises on the backs of his arms and hands have subsided, and the gunshot wounds on his back have mostly healed. The bullet deflected and left a fairly long scar, but it was possible to treat without a single scar thanks to the enthusiastic treatment of military doctors and the “Supplies” Of the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“As you may already know, I used some medicine from the vehicle. It was only used for treatment purposes, so it was not embezzlement of civilian supplies. It sounds very effective. It is said that rapid treatment is achieved by raising the regenerative and restorative power of cells to the limit… I thought it was only a dream area, but technology is very convenient.”
Instead, the patient was left with a wound that was not there. As she struggled so much to get out of the hospital room, the military police fired a tranquilizer gun and tied her body to the bed.
Thongs were wrapped around the woman’s wrists, ankles and waist. It is also connected to the bed attached to the wall and floor, so it is so strong that neither humans nor zombies can break it.
Virginia smiled happily.
“So stop your futile resistance. The patients in the other rooms are very cooperative. Our military has no reason to treat you badly.
However, if you come out uncooperative with the investigation, we can’t help it either. Treat me as much as you want to be treated, that’s my policy. But you… It sounds like you want to be treated very, very badly.”
Virginia’s purple eyes widened. They are mad eyes that seem to greedily suck up everything in the world. Her subordinates used to say that the captain looked at it like this.
The patient on the bed looked at those eyes calmly. Contrary to Virginia, there was no light in those eyes. Eyes completely dead, without even life.
“Let Cassandra go.”
“Let me say it again. We need your cooperation. What did you talk about with that V? What kind of conversation did the two of you have in the car? Did they harm or threaten you in any way?”
“Cassandra never betrays you.”
Virginia laughed as she bent her back. Wiping away her tears with her fingertips, she stood up from her chair. She ordered her men, who stood outside the door holding her tranquilizer gun, to turn their backs, and even closed the window attached to her door.
“This room. How is it? The ceiling, walls, and floor were all covered with soft mattresses. The lights are white, and there are no windows. It’s a room made to be cut off from all the stimuli in the world. It’s a place for someone with a very complex mind like you.”
“Witch.”
Cassandra glared at Virginia.
“You don’t deserve to hold Cassandra like this. Cassandra is a senior researcher. She is an important figure for Elsa. She won’t be alone.”
“I hope you will.”
Virginia moved closer to the bed. One step. Another step. Cassandra didn’t even flinch. But when Virginia loosened her wrists and ankles, she looked at her with a little puzzled look.
“What are you thinking?”
But Virginia sat back in her chair and crossed her legs. She wiggled for a while and then snapped her fingers.
“Cassandra. It’s Cassandra… That’s a funny name. It’s also a name that suits you. Cassandra Wilson. You work under that name.”
“That’s the name Cassandra came up with.”
“No. The name is given by someone else. No matter how much he decides on his name, it means nothing. Even if a pig calls itself a swan, if everyone in the world calls it a pig, its name is a pig.”
“Cassandra will forge her own destiny. No one can stop it.”
Virginia nodded.
“I have no intention of stopping you either. Instead, we give you a choice. Pick one or the other. One, returning to the Centers for Disease Control in the name of Cassandra Wilson. Another one.”
“… You’re letting Cassandra go.”
“No. She will return to the Centers for Disease Control under a different name.”
Cassandra’s body convulsed. He plugged her ears with her palms. Fear crept into her gloomy eyes.
“Don’t do it. Don’t no. Don’t do it.”
Virginia stood up from her chair. She grabbed Cassandra’s wrist. Strength went into her slender arms.
“I am confident when it comes to strength. Your father’s legacy, I inherited it.”
“Let go of Cassandra!”
“What kind of person’s name is Cassandra? Stupid administration officials would have believed you outright, but the military leaders know your ‘real’ name.”
“Don’t!”
“I will say it again. I’ll give you a choice. One is to return to the Centers for Disease Control in the name of Cassandra Wilson. Then, instead of saying ‘I am’ as I do now, I can say ‘Cassandra’ in the third person heartily.”
Cassandra struggled with her. Virginia effortlessly dodged all those kicks. She lowered her upper body slowly, still holding her wrists. She almost touched Cassandra’s chest.
“Another one is to return to the Centers for Disease Control under your ‘real’ name.”
“Don’t tell me!”
Cassandra tried to hit Virginia with her head. Virginia grabbed her neck and squeezed it. Cassandra resisted, but she lay so long that her body was not strong enough.
“One of the founders of Cybele, a leader in biotechnology, the sole survivor of the Osborn family, which was purged after the war on suspicion of war crimes, and the rightful heir to the legacy. In the name of Ophelia Osborn.”
“Stop it… please… “
“You decided on the name?”
“Ugh… “
“No. That someone else put it on live as intended that’s up to you I have no intention of putting it to the rhythm of a small house play.”
It wasn’t until Cassandra ran her thumb down her cheek that Virginia freed her throat. A white mark was evident on Cassandra’s neck. Cassandra sobbed.
“Think carefully. If you cooperate, we will give you back that much.”
“… Me… let go… You have to believe me… I need to find a counterexample… “
“Is the world going to end because of a virus?”
Cassandra tried to raise her body. But because of the belt tied around her waist, she couldn’t get up.
“Yes, yes. That’s right. If you keep going like this, the Erysicton Protocol will be activated. Everyone is taking the virus too lightly. But I, I can turn it around. If you let me go, if you let me go… I must… !”
“I believe. You.”
But Virginia moved closer to the door. Cassandra, no, Ophelia Osborn, the biotechnologist, bowed her head.
“… If you believe me, why won’t you let me go?”
“Because I believe in the end of the world.”
Ophelia raised her head. His expression was filled with astonishment.
“You.”
A long, white finger pointed at Virginia.
“You… what the hell are you thinking… “
But Virginia just smiles with her head down.
“You take good care of yourself. ‘Cassandra.’ Ms. Hope to be more cooperative next time. If you cooperate in tracking down V… I will return the name of ‘Cassandra’.”
Virginia left the hospital room.