Hmmm just gonna spit this headcanon out in text post form since A. I don't think I could exposit it well enough in image form and B. It's not actually textually/thematically substantiated and I don't like actually staking my stuff on just vibes alone*
But anyway. I'd say it's pretty evident that all the islanders forgot their names, right? King obviously. Because why the hell else would he do that, but also Siffrin No Middle Names No Last Name.
They're 'pretty sure' they've 'always' been 'Just Siffrin' 'as long as they can remember'. It's a pretty cruel twist of the knife to say that they don't even get to keep their birth name as a memento, which is why I'm saying as such.
My utterly unsubstantiated claim is I think it'd be cute to say that Sisyphus *is* the name Siffrin initially picked, assuming the myth of King Sisyphus is recontextualised as idk, just a play or something in the setting. But I like the idea of Siffrin going 'oh shit 🫵 he's just like me fr' at a tortured fictional character long before the irony kicks in.
As for how Sisyphus -> Siffrin. I think that chronic mumbler and emotional doormat Sif just did not correct people who misheard the name during their time travelling, and went through enough places with incompatible phonologies (pronounceable sounds in the language) without ever really writing it down that it just got kinda. Changed until it was unrecognisable, and Siffrin just went with it until the earlier pronunciations slipped out of their swiss-cheese brain. And they just kinda don't remember any of that.
Also, something something the horrid realisation that Siffrin also named themselves after a King. Just not as blatantly.
*(though I think there's something here about Siffrin, a guy from a belief system that seems to thoroughly disincentivise autonomy and self-motivated choice continuously having their hand forced to make changes/choices they don't want but have no choice but to... It's not solid enough to really back this up tbh, but it informs it.)
Anyway.
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The catalyst
Recovered Black Mesa documents from the experiment, #2 of ____
(Pg. 1)
Stage Two: Resonance Cascade Simulation (RCS)
Section 2: Resonance Cascade Simulation
The Resonance Cascade Simulation (RCS) is a revolutionary advancement in Black Mesa’s incident prevention/preparation technology, where a replica of multiple wings of Black Mesa’s main facility were constructed to give the appearance of the real facility. Here is where the rest of the test will take place, as soon as the simulated Resonance Cascade Catalyst is complete. We hope that this experiment will prepare us in case of a real Resonance Cascade event, and thus can potentially prevent one entirely.
Dr. Freeman is to be put in the RCS as soon as the Catalyst is complete and he is sufficiently unconscious. It is crucial to place him under anesthesia to not cause alarm as he is moved from the real Black Mesa Facility into the replica. (REMINDER: it is of UTMOST IMPORTANCE that Freeman is to be unaware of the test taking place, as to make this simulation as accurate as possible. Failure to comply with this rule will result in career termination.) It is to be noted that despite the simulated AMS failure being in a controlled environment, there is room for error and potentially even injury in the case of Dr. Freeman being within the chamber as it happens. However we believe the HEV suit will be enough to protect him throughout the process.
To make the RCS even more realistic, we have contained multiple species from multiple expeditions to [CENSORED TEXT] within the testing facility. Though it is to be noted that certain species remain too great of a liability to keep within the same facility as the subject. We hope these specimens will help make the cross-dimensional-travel of anomalies more predictable in the case of a real Resonance Cascade event happening, and more importantly, teaching us how to deal with, and/or dispose of these specimens.
Notes: Freeman is a smart man. Hiding the true nature of this test is for his own good.
Conclusion of section:
Power AMS to 105% to begin simulated AMS failure scenario
Begin RCS
(Pg. 2)
INCIDENT LOG: #40
TIME OF INCIDENT: 10:24 AM, December 13th, 1998
CAUSE OF INCIDENT: Technical Malfunction
PERSON(S) INVOLVED IN INCIDENT: Gordon Freeman
INCIDENT TYPE: Workplace Injury/death
DESCRIPTION OF INCIDENT:
At approximately 10:24 AM MST, a malfunction occurred involving the Anti Mass Spectrometer, where a stray beam struck Dr. Gordon Freeman between the lower Thoracic and Lumbar sections of his spinal cord. Due to this area being primarily the HEV’s visible undersuit rather than an armored section, it proved to not be enough to withstand the entirety of the shock. Freeman Suffered near instantaneous lower body paralysis, along with heart failure. Freeman also underwent convulsions, restricting his ability to remove himself from the situation. When the AMS had reached a state of stabilization, allowing personnel to enter the chamber, they found Freeman unresponsive aside from minor erratic muscle spasms. They found that his lower back was severely damaged, along with the HEV undersuit.
Damage to the HEV suit was minimal, though holes caused by the shock needed to be repaired. The protective cover over the Life Support Module was damaged, and unable to be reattached. However, the Life Support Module is still intact and functioning as expected.
Freeman appears to be healing despite tremendous damage. The HEV suit took most of the hit, allowing Freeman to heal relatively without problem. Due to the HEV’s extraordinary biomatter repair technology, Freeman’s heartbeat has returned, along with stable brain activity and nervous system control, meaning he is no longer paralyzed. (It is to be noted that he awoke during examination, but was quickly put under anesthesia to prevent further pain, any potential alterations to the test results, and any further mental strain from the resurrection.)
Planned initial Termination was going to be three (3) hours after the RCS had begun, however due to this horrible oversight from the engineers in the Lambda team, the first test had taken place prematurely. However, Freeman appears to have healed completely from this incident. This is promising.
FOLLOW UP ACTION(S):
Monitor possible HEV malfunctions
Monitor Freeman’s physical health and recovery from this incident
Resume test as initially planned without further delay.
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MarriageToxin Profiles Vol.1
Haven’t seen these in English yet, so I’m posting them! Taken from the Japanese manga releases. Translated by myself. Sorry for the image quality;;
Gero Hikaru
DOB: November 24th
Blood Type: A
Heir to the "poison user" Gero family. The type to have many copies of the same clothes. Keeps a large number of work tools under his coat. If the room he lives in isn’t constantly clean, he feels unsettled. On nights after something rough happened, he cleans public toilets and other places until they’re better than new. Due to that, rumors of an urban legend “the Midnight Cleaner” have begun to spread throughout one portion of the city.
Amount of money spent on DIY candy kits per month: approx. 200,000 yen
*(approx. $1,500 USD )
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*TL Notes: Here’s Gero! Starting off strong with the main character.
Blood types are included in almost every profile in this series. In Japan, blood types are actually considered pretty important for determining one’s personality and romantic compatibility. It’s similar to Western astrology with star signs. For more detailed information, search google or read here. In Gero’s case, Blood Type A is actually the most statistically common in Japan (40% of the population) so that makes him a relatively normal guy. According to one article, “people with blood type A are known to be highly-organized, particularly precise, and pay much attention to details. They are diplomatic and friendly in nature, so you won’t have a hard time approaching them. They seek harmony among other people, but they sometimes prefer to be alone because of their sensitive nature.” Checks out overall.
The DIY candy kits money is…far too much. Gero please what are you doing. Upon searching, a single package is like, $3.90 USD. So, $1500/$4 = 375 kits per month. That’s 93 per week. That’s 13 per day. Gero is the personification of that one dril “spend less on candles. no.” tweet.
--
Kinosaki Mei
DOB: May 18th
Blood Type: AB
A marriage swindler. Capable of winning-over any partner within 30 seconds. The possessor of an outstanding "mix-and-match" fashion coordination technique. On days off, ends up lounging around inside the house all day. After a long life in abject poverty, will eat anything. Once survived for 3 weeks based only off of gorging food on dates. Living space is small, and strewn with clutter. Is hiding a big secret.
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*TL Notes: The original text actually manages to avoid using any pronouns for Kinosaki. Given how Japanese is structured, it’s possible to sometimes drop a subject/object/pronoun entirely, without compromising the sentence. Unfortunately in English that’s much harder to manage, and often ends up sounding like you’re suspiciously trying to avoid the words. I tried to compromise here by arranging the text around. Just know that in the official text, they avoid giving any specific he/she gender markers for Kinosaki as of current.
For Blood Type: “This blood type is the combination of the precise qualities of A types and the free-spiritedness of B types. Given that it’s a rare blood type, people with this type are often perceived as geniuses or [eccentric]. They can be unpredictable and curious. People who belong to the AB type usually jump around from one activity to another, depending on their mood and situation. They chase ideal dreams and pursue learning and knowledge in a wide range of fields. They are calm and rational but have a complicated personality.” Again, checks out for a swindler known for changing to handle any situation.
…Yes the final line does say “a big secret”. Uh.
EDIT: Chapter 54 sheds new light on this line! Perhaps it’s not a dirty joke after all, but something far more tragic. 👀
More coming soon!
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