Overproject Whisper

Modified on 2012/02/27 14:55 by Kerrick Categorized as Deathlands, Outlanders, Totality-Concept

   The Totality Concept encompassed a large number of projects, operations, and experiments. This section covers all the ones known to fall under Overproject Whisper.

   Operation Chronos: Chronos was an experiment in time travel using the gateways. Travelling from the present to the past met with limited success, so the scientists bent their energies toward bringing subjects from the past to the present (this was called "trawling"; trawling is a nautical term where a boat lays down a net and floats along, scooping up anything it finds). Even this method was very hit-and-miss; there were several failed attempts (like the famous Judge Crater) before the whitecoats found Doc Tanner. He was the only success of the original program, but others were later successfully trawled or travelled on their own: Michael Brother was a trawl subject (Fury's Pilgrims), and Silas Jamaisvous was sent back in time to 1896, then later returned to Deathlands (Dark Emblem).
   Note: Originally, only certain gateways were used as part of Chronos; they had a separate set of computers that could be used to switch the gateway between matter transference and temporal travel (Pony Soldiers).
   In Dark Emblem, Silas reprogrammed the computers in a redoubt in Puerto Rico to enable time travel, but it is unclear if this is possible for any gateway, or if (more likely) he created a workaround for that specific one. A list of gateways that were used as part of Chronos include: Mohawk redoubt (upper New York state); Chicago; Virginia (exact location unknown); Dulce, New Mexico.

   Project Cerberus: Project Cerberus was centered around development of the mat-trans system, or teleportation. They started with two small metal spheres over a few inches, gradually increasing and expanding over time until they could make a huge chamber that could transport living beings thousands of miles. See the section on gateways for more details on how the process works.

   Project Eurydice: Eurydice was one of several weapons research programs; this one was based in Wizard Island Complex for Scientific Advancement in the middle of Crater Lake, Oregon. Many experimental weapons and power sources were tested here, including the molecular destabilizer (MD) gun. Unlike most other projects, Eurydice continued after the holocaust - the complex was deep enough that it wasn't affected, and the scientists carried on for another hundred years, perfecting weapons systems that they planned to unleash on the world and wipe out the remainder of humanity. The complex, the scientists, and all of their work were destroyed by the companions (Crater Lake).

   Project Persephone: Persephone was dedicated to cryogenics. In the late 20th century, many people of important stature - doctors, scientists, politicians - with incurable diseases or severe injuries were cryogenically preserved in the hope that, one day, the technology would exist to cure them. They could then be revived and carry on their work. Unfortunately, the holocaust ended all that, and the people ended up remaining in stasis indefinitely. Over the years, many pods failed or were destroyed by nukes or earthquakes, but others survived. The companions have found several cryocenters, but very few of those they tried to revive actually survived the process: Rick Ginsberg and Mildred are the most noteworthy.
   There were only a few known cryocenters: California, Texas (destroyed by earthquakes), and Minnesota (the Shelley Cryonic Institute). The Crichton Institute was dedicated to cryonics research and had an entire wing devoted to it, but it is unclear whether or not any people were frozen or stored there.
   Note: This project is not actually named in the books, though it is noted as being "one of the many peripheral projects linked to the Totality Concept" (Ice and Fire).

   Operation Rat King: Rat King was a supersecret project, unknown even to many who had knowledge of the Totality Concept - even Doc Tanner confessed that he had heard nothing of it. It was, in short, a project to create a biocomputer, a combination of mechanical and organic parts. Several humans had their brains hooked up to a supercomputer; their intellects eventually fused into a single hive mind-like construct, which ran endless simulations about a final nuclear exchange. The experiment succeeded - when Ryan and the others find the redoubt holding the Rat King, it's still working - but the computer's predictions were wildly short of reality, and the exchange was so unexpected and quick that no one could take advantage of it in any case (Rat King).

   Project Styx: Little is known about this obscure and highly classified project, except that it was dedicated to weapons research. It is centered in an isolated redoubt in Canada, in a section accessible via a four-mile-long monorail tunnel. The main entrance was guarded by deadly security measures and required C-5 clearance (the gates only required B-12). Among other things, Styx seems to have been devoted to the development of sec hunter droids (Chill Factor).

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