Larry Bullman

Larry A. Bullman was a research director assigned to Delta Labs Sector 2B on Mars. He was the first to theorize that the mysterious Soul Cube was a weapon. He made an audio report documenting these findings. Dr. Betruger, however, was skeptical (or claimed to be skeptical) about Bullman's theory. Two days later, Bullman received a message disguised as a Martian Buddy Spam email. The message warned Bullman that Betruger was planning to use the Soul Cube for his own purposes. The message urged Dr. Bullman not to let Betruger take possession of the Cube. It is unknown if Bullman ever saw this message (as it had been disguised as spam) or if he took it seriously. In any case, Betruger managed to get hold of the Soul Cube, which he subsequently took into Hell shortly before the demonic invasion. Bullman was likely killed in the attack since the player never meets him in the game.

Also not known is the identity of the person who sent Bullman the warning. It may have been Ian McCormick or Pierce Rogers since both had also been studying the Soul Cube and were suspicious of Betruger. Alternatively, it may have been a character that was never mentioned or heard of in the game.

Soul Cube as a Weapon
''Uh, this is the audio log of research director Larry Bullman, October 19th, 2145. I've been examining the glyphs on the cube sharped artifact which some are calling the Soul Cube and combined with previous research data it is my conclusion the device is some sort of weapon. If the power fluctuations would stop long enough for me to get the linguistic CPU online then I am sure my theory would be verified.''

''You know, I'll take this opportunity to lodge yet another complaint about the continual power problems. Living in this god forsaken base is bad enough without having to watch the lights flicker constantly, it's just well, never mind, back to the task at hand.''

''What I've deciphered so far is a bit, I must say, disturbing. It seems that when one has possession of the artifact, if one inflicts damage or possibly kills another being, it extracts power from that event somehow and once a certain threshold has been reached, the artifact has the ability to kill anything you attack with it. How you attack with it I'm frankly not certain, indicating that the artifact is autonomous in some way.''

''To date I have only deciphered about um, two thirds, give or take of the markings but my initial glance at the rest of them indicates it harbors some far greater power. As you know, at this time we have not seen any reaction from the cube and it has withstood any scanning, abrasion or other test beyond picking it up and examining it. I suspect like the civilization that constructed it, its capabilities are diminished to the point of being useful only as a paperweight. End of log.''

RE: Soul Cube as a Weapon (10-20-2145)
Dr. Bullman, ''I received your report and I find it rather perplexing. Given how little we know about this object I cannot imagine how you've come to such a bizarre conclusion, let alone any conclusion at all. Send me all your notes for immediate review.''

''In the meantime, for your own sake, do not share these findings with anyone else. I would hate people to think one of my highly regarded scientists is prone to flights of fantasy.''

-Malcolm Betruger

You may be a winner! (10-22-2145)
Dr. Bullman, ''I hope you will find this e-mail. I have hidden my true name and address by disguising this email. He may be reading your messages.''

''Your boss (I will not mention his name) is far more dangerous than you can imagine. I believe he is using you and corrupting your work.''

''I believe your findings are correct and he knows it. He wants to hide the findings from the UAC and use the object for himself. I don't know why yet, but I will find out.''

''Do what you can to stall him. Do not let him take possession of the object!''

Volunteer today (11-01-2145)
''The UAC Mars facility is looking for volunteers. We would like to encourage people from your team to help in the following areas:''

''Safety committee: Work with teams to update and inform UAC staff on the importance of safety on Mars. Check placement of Health Packs around facilities. Plan events for safety awareness month. Commitment here will earn volunteers 5 extra credits per month.''

''Research assistants: Delta Labs is looking for individuals to help with our exciting break-through work. Projects vary, see research coordinator for more information. Health test and liability waiver will be required. Commitment here will earn volunteers 25 extra credits per month.''

For more information about any of these opportunities or to post an opening in your department, please see Sierra Olson, Volunteer Coordinator, in UAC HR.

It is a weapon! (11-14-2145)
Larry, ''You were correct, the Soul Cube is a weapon. I've translated the glyphs and now I understand how it works!''

''The Soul Cube must be charged before it can be used. The souls within it must sense at least five deaths before the spiritual potentiality matrix reaches positronic astriction. Based on our interpretation of the glyphs, the Cube has a way of acknowledging its readiness for action, but it's unclear how this happens. More importantly, we still don't know what will happen when it's released.''

''This has gone way beyond the purview of Mars station or even the UAC. We can't trust Betruger, he's gone mad! I'm preparing a report to send to the highest authorities on Earth.''

Good luck and God help us. Ian