“ | I am getting very tired of your questions. If you don't stop asking questions, I might have to bite your throat out... Just kidding. | „ |
~ Red |
Dr. Red was a major antagonist to the heroes of the Weaver's Ruby Quest interactive adventure, now complete. At game's beginning, Red is first portrayed as a detached, albeit mentally-unstable, bystander ineffectual to the company of other survivors and to the dangers around him. He discloses little about himself and menaces towards, but not attacking, the protagonists. As the story progress, it's revealed that the abandoned hospital the story takes place had previously been the Metal Glen Institute, a secretive medical facility for experimental practices, where he had been employed as head researcher and diagnostic technician.
As opposed to Filbert, his former college, Red had shown genuine concern for the patients in the facility. While others treated the patients like guinea pigs to, he opted to be as humane as possible in his treatments and later tried to save the remaining patients for the maddening curse. When his plan for an ultimate cure turned into a mutagenic plague, he fell into cycles of hysterical insanity throughout his regeneration until he had met his final end. In his final days, he had helped the heroes to break the curse at last.
He is shown to possess a sort of sophisticated, civilized, and calm attitude (at least when in a good mood) and is normally opt for politeness. Moreover, he is probably best known for his iconic, madman's laugh and furthermore; his morbid sense of humor. Coincidentally, he is often regarded by many for possessing a strong similarity to The Joker due to these traits—this point is even referenced in an instance in which Ruby (under the influence of the "cure") slices open and the right side of Red's mouth in light of The Joker's role in the film The Dark Knight.
Significant Role[]
Red had been a member of the renegade team of doctors and medical researchers in search of a seclusive location to practice their innovative, yet unorthodox, medical experiments to treat blindness. By chance, they had come across an abandoned stone structure standing at the center of a quiet lake, unknown by them to be a former temple for cult worship. The multi sub-tiered structure had numerous spacious rooms, which had already been bared, ideal for easy renovation.
Discovery of the Buried Tomb[]
“ | I knew they would find something down there. In my dreams, I heard them calling me to that place. The strange red growths covering the walls of the forgotten room are like some kind of bizarre [bit missing] clearly organic, and the fact it's survived this long is evidence enough of some powerful. I will have to look into possible medical uses for th-- | „ |
~ One of Red's notes |
Under the direction of the head researcher/chief diagnostics technician, Red, the facility was expanded under the need for additional patient holding space. Others questioned whether the expenditure was actually necessary, though Red was insistent. He later reported in his journal that this decision was influenced by dreams he been experiencing at the time. Before his first attempt at suicide, he also reports his regret of his decision.
Upon excavating its lowest floor, a tomb was discovered containing otherworldly relics, bearing markings of pagan Gods. Rather than being frightened by the appearance of the artifacts or by the implication of past occult activity, Red was not deterred in his explorations but was in fact intrigued by the relics. While others suggested selling the relics for profit or storing out of sight, the researcher argued that they could not yet risk their operation being known and proposed instead to use them to decorate the facility while studying their origins.
Production of "the Cure"[]
Along with the artifacts found in the newly christened Brig, the research team had also uncovered a strange, fleshy mass of organic material surviving in the cold darkness. The organism bore resemblance to a form of alien fungus. Bionic analyses taken of the red fungus shown it to be hyper-responsive to stimuli and possess regenerative properties. Guinea pig tests on patients had also shown those regenerative properties to treat injuries. Considered to be the medicinal discovery of the century, the administrators had instructed that the all practices, labor, and expenses of the institution be devoted to its experimentation and application. Experimentation with the fleshy growth produced a treatment and a line of medication that was soon prescribed to each patient. Unable in their previous, more mundane attempts, the doctors discovered they could finally treat and cure congenital and acquired blindness, along with otherwise incurable or lethal injuries. After several weeks dosage, they found every imperfection from limps to hearing impairment were also cured. Even eating and drinking were soon no longer necessary to live. In a state of fatal grandeur of their own success, the administration became so satisfied with the results, the prescription became, under strict order, mandatory to whole population. Although praised for his successful spearheading, Red did not accept the treatment himself. Seeing the extraordinary healing effects of the treatment to be too successful to be safe, he had realized something was amiss. Mentally connecting the previous hallucinations and voices, which other staff had written off as "somebody's childish pranks", which had persuaded the expansion to the miraculous "cure", Red realized too late that there was some otherworldly force involved.
Noticing Red's neglect of medication, a certain Dr. S had filed a report to the administration and he was then unknowingly both coerced into receiving treatment and put under watch. When he had noticed he no longer required his cane to walk and that his limp was also healed, he slowly became hysterical and was later detained among the other patients.
Decline of the Facility[]
“ | My aggression with Ruby was in vain. Ruby is dead, but there is no permanence. Despite my best efforts, she will not have peace. It's all over now. I was too late. | „ |
~ Red's Journal, November 1 |
Filbert later showed that Red was easily expendable to the staff, and thus soon had him revived and committed to the facility as a patient, himself, and quickly took over his position.
Post-Commitment[]
Following his semi-successful suicide, reanimation, and subsequent incarceration; Red became increasingly paranoid and suspicious of the state of things. He soon began to develop odd, unnatural, and dangerous tendencies—also likely where his iconic laugh started to develop. All the while, the traits he is best known for—the dissonant delight, psychotic behavior, maddened delusion, and odd sense of courtesy—had begun to set in.
Escape from his Cell[]
At some point, he had escaped from his cell and began to sneak about the facility, wreaking havoc; such as tormenting and stalking both Tom and Ruby, and also occasionally aiding them—unbeknownst to them at the time. Red made an especially big impression on Ruby when he musingly-threatened her twice and howled his madman's laugh at the sight of Stitches' mutilated body. (He's often even considered as the antagonist of parts 3-4 of the flash version of Ruby Quest.) Prior to the discovery of Stitches' corpse, Red had requested two quarters from Ruby that she had been carrying.
Second Suicide[]
“ | To ♠ From RED Try AND CATCH ME NOW. |
„ |
~ Red |
During part 4 of Ruby Quest, Red had gone back to his cell, constructing a homemade bomb using Ruby's coins.
Trivia[]
- Red is often depicted in fan art as being sophisticated, dressed in either business casual or fine clothing.
- Similarly to the Maus series of graphic novels, Red's depiction as a fox bears little relevance to the plot but is rather used as symbolism to his craftiness and intimidation. Despite his animal characteristics, he, like the others, may or may not be canonically a human.
- Along with many of the other cast members of Ruby Quest; Red was based on the Animal Crossing series' character, Redd. Redd also being an anthropomorphic fox/kitsune creature, whom made a living off selling illicit items from in his irregularly placed tent, which when offered to anyone and if the person found the item to be fraudulent, would denounce the object on sight. Similar to Red's role in the story, who achieved his recognition by discovering the lost room containing Cjopaze's cursed artifacts; which, at one point, the protagonists had found a note stated that one staff member had disapproved of the others' apparent interest in the artifacts and wondered why they did not just sell them—other than the fact that the facility was not permitted, illegitimate, and secret; congruent to Redd's tent. Furthermore, Redd would always require anyone who wished to enter his tent to answer an odd riddle or phrase; as did Red of Ruby Quest, right before his suicide.