The Power Of Radiation 7 A New Job And A Dark Reality

The fact that the hospital has an actual building and is not based in the VR world was one of the deciding factors for Mark when deciding to work here. Mark's only thought now is the fact of how Carl has screwed him on purpose with misleading language for his own reasons. Carl smiles wryly, as he slightly shakes his head after hearing Mark's question on the contract. "You really think we would let a F rank college graduate, straight out the gate, start working on even our F and E rank patients with almost no practical training or real experience working at a hospital like our own?" Carl says. "I don't know if I should like your confidence or be appalled at your naivety at yourself, your qualifications and this hospital." Carl says scathingly. "The reason that is in the contract is mostly to prevent lawsuits on our end in case you, for some odd reason, never are able to learn and advance in the hospital's hierarchy. The real start of your journey to becoming even a decent doctor will start one room over; if you want you can sign the contract at the end of the day today after seeing our plan for you."

Mark begrudgingly glances once more at the legal monstrosity that is his new job contract and accepts Carl's offer of extension with the thought that 'If they really leave me no way out there are still other less lucrative options I can choose from.' Mark then proceeds to follow the neatly dressed business man to the room next door which is labeled "Testing" with a less s.h.i.+ny bronze plaque which has clearly seen better days.

Carl then opens the door and beckons Mark inside where Mark is shocked almost out of his mind. The many b.l.o.o.d.y and mangled corpses surrounding the evil satanic altar with a floating, red and glowing caduceus stands in its disfigured and horrifying glory in the direct center of the room covered in the smell of blood and rot! The gruesome scene puts Mark into a state of shock and disbelief as he slowly looks toward his HR director with a growing sense of horror to see a peculiar scene. Mr. Schaffenhauser is rolling around on the floor that is covered with mangled organs and blood, laughing his heart out at Mark's understandable reaction to the room. As Mark continues to glare at Carl, Carl wipes the tears from his eyes and says "This is going to be your new reality!". Mark's shock slowly fades away as Carl presses a remote from his pocket which dims the now understood to be hologram from the center of the room revealing a set of 3 almost state of the art VR capsules with many extra sensor's than the ones Mark is used to.

After slightly recovering from his shock, Mark is told about the training process which most hospital employees must go through in order to become a full-fledged doctor at the Hospital Geneva. The first phase of the plan as told by Carl is a stint in the VR capsules for the next month and a half in order for Mark to fully learn and understand the gravity of his new position and the responsibilities that it comes with. The hospital along with many other hospitals across the world have set up a dedicated server consisting of multiple alternate realities some similar to the modern world and others much more exotic for one explicit purpose. For people to get hurt, injured and sick in these new realities and be forcefully teleported to the closest "Doctor's City" where they are then treated by the new trainees who gain hands on experience at no possible cost other than bits of code from the VR system as compared to hurting or killing a real breathing patient who walks into the many different hospitals.

Mark is intrigued by the amount of effort that must have gone into making this situation possible and how profitable in terms of efficiency to have many doctors train this way. With a long sigh, which he directs at his now past hopes of actually starting to help real patients at the hospital; Mark asks the most important question he can think of right now. "When do I start?" Carl smiles in a greasy way that Mark is becoming all too familiar with, as he replies, "After you sign your new employment contract of course." Mark gives himself a small smirk and a chuckle as he thinks 'Well at least I can start tomorrow, and hopefully be accepted soon as impress them so much that they have to move me along to the next step before the month and a half is over.' Mark then with a firm determination signs his working life away under the watchful eye of Carl Schaffenhauser, known inside the hospital as someone to avoid at all costs. even more than the last extreme patient who spontaneously combusted because of a misdiagnosis.

Mark goes home later that day, after calibrating the VR capsule and then proceeds to lock the door to his new apartment. He quickly thinks if he was right to sign the contract so quickly even after knowing the training schedule of 12 hour days inside the capsule with his vitals monitored was going to be his new future for the next few months. Mark then glances at the familiar star scape outside his window, wondering if he really can make a difference in the Doctor's City or if he will be like the many others and be thrown away with the brand of having a chance at success and wasting it. The stars seem to glow brighter as Mark does his daily training of switching between the types of radiation he can control, as he takes just a small sense of satisfaction at how there is at least one thing in this crazy world he can control and that it and only it truly belongs to him.