Long-term salvation

Deep nuclear reactors, dry docks, and almost non-stop assembly line manufacturing plants have become the cornerstones of Aperture Technology's glorious past, as well as its lifeline for survival in times of adversity.

Nearly a thousand researchers are scattered across different labs, conducting long-planned research or upgrading and simplifying existing research products to make them more adaptable to the ideas of the new owners of Aperture Technology.

Of course, today is a special day. Except for those who are in key positions and cannot leave, most of the Aperture Technology employees have gathered in the hall. They stand in the suspended corridors, laboratories with large floor-to-ceiling windows, or somewhere else, waiting for Kevin Johnson to bring the mysterious new boss.

Even the pure white robots of various models were lined up neatly. The rows of red sensor lights made Rhodes think that he was being taken to the execution ground, ready to be shot in line. In those broken memories, Chell, controlled by Rhodes, was often killed by the concentrated fire of these little creatures.

Wait, does Cher exist in this world?

Before Rhodes could figure out what was going on, Kevin, who had stopped the SSK, grabbed Rhodes. If Kevin didn't look so thin, Rhodes even suspected that he would lift himself up in front of the Aperture Technology employees like the baboon elder lifted Simba.

After taking the microphone from the person next to him, Carvin Johnson enthusiastically introduced to the employees:

"Everyone, this is the prophet, savior, and leader who will lead us forward! My best friend and worst enemy, Rhodes!!!"

“…” The employees whispered to each other, with obvious suspicion and confusion on their faces.

"This is the person who will fund the company's research projects and pay you in the future. It's him who brought Labor's manufacturing blueprints and the projector," Caroline's voice rang out over the radio. It seemed that she was organizing the employees behind the scenes... and taking care of Calvin's childish whims. But it must be said that this lady's words were indeed very useful -

The crowd erupted in cheers. Men and women wished each other well, clapped their hands vigorously, and rejoiced over the upcoming new research projects and salary increases.

"Commander Rhodes, we respect and love you!!"

"Kaven is dead, Rhodes is in power!"

"I'm going to study parallel universe travel!"

"No, let's get some neurotoxin first. I'll need it for my experiment!"

"..."

"BOSS! BOSS! BOSS!"

The roaring sound like a tsunami made Rhodes think that he was standing in a mental hospital composed of a group of crazy people. He turned his head woodenly and saw Calvin Johnson standing with his hands on his hips, angrily retorting to the group of employees who said he was dead.

Damn, this group of people has been purified, right? The normal people had already run away in the past two years, and only these singing and dancing psychos were willing to stay and accompany Calvin Johnson on his crazy journey.

"It's come to this... Yuuka, go check where these people's funds are going. I'm going to cut those useless projects and send those idiots who waste money as experimental subjects."

The cheers stopped abruptly.

The employees of Aperture Technology quickly ran back to their positions and began to sort through the bills and destroy evidence.

Chapter 134: The Psychopaths of Aperture Technology

"It looks like you've learned how to deal with them."

Caroline appeared out of nowhere and said to Rhodes, who could only give her a helpless look:

"I'm exhausted, ma'am. If I stay here all day, I'll shorten my life."

"It's not that serious," Caroline forced a smile. She was holding a folder and stuffed it into Yuuka's hand. The girl took it, looked at it for a few seconds, and nodded slightly.

"The financial audit report of Aperture Technologies is very detailed, but I still need to see the original, ma'am."

"Of course, I'm ready. Then this..."

"Hayase Yuuka," the girl smiled, as bright as a flower, "You can just call me 'Yuuka'. I'm Sensei's financial director, that's it!"

"In that case, please go in, both of you," Caroline's expression relaxed - she had been worried that Kevin's weird welcome ceremony would make Rod angry, but the latter didn't seem to care... although his face didn't look very good.

After reviewing her plans for the day, Caroline stepped forward, directing the way for Rhode and the others. "Mr. Carvin and I have carefully designed a tour route. After the tour, we can conduct the financial audit directly in the conference room. This is a great opportunity for you to see that Aperture Technology is definitely not wasting money and resources."

"That's exactly what I meant, ma'am."

The next short stretch of the journey was remarkably normal. Even Calvin Johnson walked quietly, occasionally adding a few words to Caroline's story about the history of aperture technology. A trace of nostalgia and sadness occasionally flashed across the face of this thin and somewhat harsh old man.

Until a few people stepped into the research area——

Rhodes had just stepped on the research area sign on the floor of the corridor that was used to divide the area when a violent explosion mixed with thick smoke exploded not far in front of him. The slightly pungent smell instantly filled the entire corridor!

Several coughing researchers hunched over and ran out, expertly smashing open the nearby fire extinguisher, pulling out dry powder extinguishers and fire hoses, and dashing into the fire. Researchers from the nearby research area were waving their fists angrily at them, but immediately retreated upon seeing Calvin and Rhodes.

Two more employees rushed over in a six-legged experimental Laboratories, but they got stuck at a corner halfway, and had to ask others to use forklifts and robots to pull it out... The originally orderly corridor was suddenly in chaos, but the researchers at Aperture Technology were very calm about it. Some of them were even in the mood to grab a cup of coffee and watch the fun while drinking.

Looking at this embarrassing scene, Kevin felt a little embarrassed. He turned around and explained to Rhodes:

"Sorry, the professional firefighters familiar with the research area haven't been fully trained yet. Having robots that haven't been fully programmed yet could easily cause problems, so we can only have the researchers do it part-time for now."

Is that the question?! Covering his mouth and nose, Rhode quickly crossed the smoke-filled area, frowning and asking:

"Don't tell me you're just researching various explosives right now."

"How is this possible?!" Kavin's face swelled up like a frilled lizard with its membranes spread out. He said angrily, "Our research on portal guns and propulsion gels is progressing very smoothly—Ratman! Where are you? Come here quickly!"

A young-looking man ran over, his beard unkempt, resembling a withered bush in the wilderness. In his hand, he held a rather heavy gun-shaped device, connected by a thick cable to a power supply that looked like a large mountaineering backpack filled with miscellaneous items. It looked very heavy.

Is this an early stage portal gun?

Rhodes recalled the advertisement about the teleportation gun from Aperture Technology in his broken memories. They planned to use this portable teleportation device to build a simple small quantum tunnel to facilitate people to quickly enter and exit the bathroom.

It is simply a bath product that transcends time!

"Doug Rattman," the man introduced himself. He shook Rhodes' hand eagerly, his face full of gratitude. "I'm a participant in the portal gun and device graphic interaction design project. As you can see, our Aperture Technologies bathroom quick entry and exit device—the portal gun!—is currently under development and has already achieved initial results."

"...What effect?"

"Although it took a while, we still managed to teleport an object from outside into the bathroom," Ratman said proudly. "The object's mass wasn't lost much; it's almost negligible!"

“…Besides quality?”

"It was a little hard to put it together," Ratman admitted frankly. "The monkey was all minced meat."

"Mr. Ratman," Rhodes took a deep breath, "the minced meat can't be pieced together; it can only be shoveled away... However, I'm very optimistic about this research project, Calvin. I'll approve another $7000 million for you to continue the research!"

"Okay, okay, I knew you had a long-term vision! I'm planning to buy some moon rocks to test them."

Hearing Rod's words, Kavin Johnson's face lit up with joy. He waved to let Ratman leave, and the latter quickly ran back to announce the good news to other people in the same project.

Unlike Rhode, who was feeling that the timeline was getting back on track, Yuuka, who had been carefully reading the audit form beside him, was quite troubled. She reached out and pointed at the audit form and said to Rhode:

"You should take a closer look at these research projects. In my opinion, at least half of them should be cut... For example, giving hamsters steroids and watching them fight each other, and having shrimp run on a treadmill."

"Cut it off," Rhode replied expressionlessly. "And by the way, check if those researchers have embezzled funds. If they have, make them cough up the money. If not, they'll just be new experimental subjects."

"Okay!" the girl agreed cheerfully. With her penchant for splitting a penny twice, she clearly detested such waste. "I'll make a table for you first, and then we'll do a secondary screening to prevent valuable research from being eliminated."

Seeing that Rhodes and Yuka were quickly changing the fate of their old employees, Kaven couldn't just turn a blind eye. He lowered his voice and explained:

"We can keep the steroids. We're testing different types and dosages of muscle growth drugs that can quickly help someone win the Olympia and then send them packing just as quickly..."

"Those in the bodybuilding circle would buy this kind of drug? Are they idiots?!"

"Only idiots would use drugs, right? And these drugs are very popular with their girlfriends or wives, so sales are pretty good."

What a fucking hell! How come your world can even obtain the power of Nine Dragons in advance?

Rhode opened his mouth, wanted to say something, but swallowed it back and turned to other topics:

"How's your research on the projector I brought back from Japan?"

"About this thing..."

Calvin Johnson was not as flamboyant as before. Instead, he took Rhodes to a secluded place and asked Caroline and Yuka to stand outside and chat. Then he slowly said:

"Caroline and I didn't publicize the otherworldly story within the company—as you requested. At the same time, I personally disassembled the projector and modeled and drew every component. Overall, I believe it's the rock fragments embedded in the outer edge of the mirror that have the effect you mentioned of 'dispelling ghosts,' not the projector itself or the spells on it... Of course, it might have some effect, but I don't understand the mystic."

"I need more samples, Rod, both of the stone ones and of the machines."

"That's not a problem," Rhodes breathed a sigh of relief. "If I find something similar, I'll send it to you quickly."

"I'm not done yet."

Kevin Johnson's face grew tired, and his breathing became heavier, as if the effects of the medication had worn off and the pain from the nerve damage caused by mercury poisoning had returned. After a few breaths, he managed to say:

"It's so rare that I can actually sense danger from this unknown rock. Even holding it in my hand makes me feel a little uncomfortable. It's interesting, but also dangerous, so whatever you do must be done quickly... Caroline, prepare 'Anshining', this damn neuralgia is coming again!"

An Shining?

Rhodes had heard the name of this new anesthetic drug many times, but had never seen it in person. He pondered for a few seconds and asked:

"Can I take a look at this 'Anshining' later?"

"Oh, sure, it's just a medication."

Chapter 135 An Shining

The road to the meeting room was not smooth. The daily life of the psychopaths at Aperture Technology did not change much with the arrival of the new boss, which might be because they quickly dealt with the suspicious bills.

Now, except for those guys who are writing furiously to explain the feasibility of their research projects, everyone else is gradually returning to work, and only various types of robots are running around in the corridor.

The Labor brought by Rhodes has taken root in Aperture Technology and quickly spawned various sub-types, such as the "Goblin Timberjack" that has a giant circular saw and mechanical claws and can cut down trees efficiently... Although it is not known why it is called this name, the company seems to have begun marketing to customers in need.

Before entering the conference room, Rhodes took a look at the giant device under construction in the center of the hall. In the future, an artificial intelligence named "GLaDOS" would be installed there and kill almost everyone in the Aperture Technology underground headquarters. Of course, that was another story.

When Rhodes walked into the conference room, he saw it was filled with piles of documents, but most of them were well kept and clearly classified. There were also several men and women dressed like secretaries in professional suits busying around. After seeing Calvin Johnson and Caroline, they left on their own accord, giving their privacy to the company's top executives.

"I originally thought you would bring an entire audit team. After all, Aperture Technology is a giant company. Even though it's declining, it still has many ongoing projects. Add to that some past records... I'm afraid it will take this young lady a long time to process all of this."

Caroline said with a little embarrassment. She reached out to move some documents aside so that Kevin, who was sitting behind the desk, could show his face, and then took out a metal suitcase that had been prepared earlier.

"If it's just a math problem, Yuuka will definitely have no problem. It's just a financial review, not a very detailed audit." Rhodes smiled and touched the girl's head beside him. The latter smiled silly in return, then patted her cheek, encouraged herself, and dived into the pile of documents.

After taking an amused look at the girl who had entered the working state, Rhodes looked at the suitcase that was slowly opened and emitted a little white cold mist with interest. He saw ten injections neatly arranged in it, and the thin, silky liquid was swirling without any pattern to follow.

Beautiful and mysterious, yet filled with chaos and disorder, as if it is not a product of the real world.

"This drug was invented by Dr. Paul von Landry and his colleagues at Charles Associates Pharmaceuticals (Pfizer & Erhart)," Carvin Johnson frowned. He was enduring nerve pain and was talking to Rhodes to distract himself. "I think it was released on... December 25, 1988? It's quite a coincidence... It was quickly adopted because of its better anesthetic effect and lower addictiveness."

"Are there no side effects?" Rhodes asked. He saw Caroline putting the medicine into the syringe and piercing it into Carvin Johnson's neck. After the latter sighed with satisfaction, he slowly said:

"Every injection or dose is accompanied by a short-lived, faint visual distortion. Haha, just like eating poisonous mushrooms. The duration varies from person to person. Mine is a little longer than others, perhaps because I'm older and not in good health. At least that's what the potion instructions explain."

Hearing this, Rhode, feeling a little uneasy, took out his all-seeing eye mask and put it on. He carefully observed the remaining potions in the box:

【Anshining (injection)】

Description: A potent opioid analgesic that acts directly on the central nervous system, altering the body's perception of pain. The main ingredient is the parasitic vine "Chiprachaca," found in the catacombs of the ancient Inca civilization in South America. The plant's name in the ancient Inca language means "wine that intoxicates the sun god."

It's a very long description, and it seems that the description is incomplete... Although it is suspicious, it doesn't seem to be related to the other world.

There are so many strange things in this world, and not all of them are necessarily related to the other world.

"What's wrong, Rhodes?" Caroline noticed the man's expression and eye mask. Knowing his abilities, she couldn't help but feel a little uneasy. "Is there something wrong with this potion?"

"No... I can't see it now, I just have a hunch," Rhodes shook his head. He put away the blindfold and reached out to gently touch the outer layer of Anshining's potion. The latter was frozen, giving his fingers a hint of coldness in return - there was nothing strange, nor was it a bone-chilling feeling. It was just that the liquid was showing a chaotic yet graceful luster under the light, but if you look at it for a little longer, you will feel that the luster is a bit disgusting.

"It's best to use less of this stuff in the future." Rhodes hesitated for a few seconds before removing his finger. "Don't trust things of unknown origin. Besides, this drug was released to the market too quickly. It seems other pharmaceutical companies, like Umbrella, are also promoting it."

South America? I need to investigate it when I have time in the future... Rhodes suddenly remembered that there was a director named "Crysto Armitage" on the board of directors. He was born in Brazil and came to the United States with his father in his early years. Now he is in charge of the investigation of the other world events in Central and South America.

"Since you said so, I'll just use it less in the future."

Hearing Rhodes' words, Carvin Johnson smiled. He coughed a few times, drank the warm water brought by Caroline, and said with a smile:

"I'm still looking forward to the day when Aperture Technologies, in your hands, becomes even more powerful than Atlas Corporation."

"...Your two companies may very well merge in the future."

"What?! Damn it, Caroline! If the two companies start merging after I die, then add this idiot's name to the list of mercury shower curtains!"

Seeing Calvin's pain subsiding and his face becoming rosy, Caroline's expression gradually relaxed. She half-jokingly asked Rhodes:

"What color shower curtain do you want?"

"Pure gold, with a bloody human skull on top."

"That's really good taste. For that, I forgive your disrespectful words just now, Rod." Carvin Johnson nodded, as if the anger just now had never happened. He then turned around and looked at his deputy:

"Caroline! We're going to develop a smart alarm clock in the shape of a floating human skull, with both video recording and sound capabilities! Hmm... I've even thought of the slogan: 'Your life is like a candle in the wind, don't waste your last round in the arena of life!' Damn, I think this thing will be a big hit!"

Rhodes: "...you better think of something good."

Just as Rhode was about to wait for Yuxiang to finish her work, he heard someone knocking on the conference room door. Then a secretary walked in with a satellite phone. After looking around, he came up to Rhode and said respectfully:

"It's an emergency call for you from Arkham, Massachusetts."

Arkham? Hill House or Army Without Borders?

Feeling a little uneasy, Rhodes picked up the phone and heard Marian's voice: