Sumith Prasad
Since the premiere of Apple TV+’s science fiction series ‘Severance,’ the numbers refined by Lumon Industries’ Macrodata Refinement (MDR) division have been nothing but puzzling. Mark Scout and his colleague complete their work without any broader knowledge concerning these numbers, which adds to the mystery behind them. The first episode of the second season reveals that the file Mark has been working on, “Cold Harbor,” is directly connected to the fate of his wife, Gemma. The final episode of the installment further opens a window into the truth behind the MDR numbers through Harmony Cobel, who has managed the severed floor for a considerable while! SPOILERS AHEAD.
Mark Scout’s Numbers Create Gemma’s Different Innies
In the ninth episode of the second season of ‘Severance,’ Harmony Cobel and Devon Scout-Hale try to convince Mark Scout’s innie to save Gemma from the hands of the heads of Lumon Industries. The former severed floor manager even earns his trust or attention by revealing that his files formed Gemma’s different innies or personas, which are shown in the seventh episode of the sophomore installment. Since joining Lumon, Mark has refined the numbers in twenty-five different files based on the emotional reactions the digits stir in him. These reactions divide the collected numbers into four categories: WO, DR, FC, and MA.
These categories represent Woe, Dread, Frolic, and Malice, the tempers that form the personality of an individual as per the understanding and teachings of Kier Eagan. Based on the emotional reactions these numbers create in Mark, the division among the categories also changes while working on each file, creating different ratios of tempers. This refined data collected from each file creates a persona or innie for Gemma, which exists in the respective room named after the document. In other words, Mark’s work transforms numbers into emotions that shape the nature of his wife.
The reason behind the creation of different personas through these numbers is explained by the nature of the tests/experiments Gemma is involved in. The Lumon officials behind the mysterious project want her to be engaged in the same without her experiences in the other rooms affecting her judgment. Since Mark is the individual who has the strongest relationship with her, he must have been chosen as the refiner who can lead Lumon to a remarkable achievement. What ‘Severance’ hasn’t explicitly revealed is how the numbers trigger an emotional response in the refiners. Possibly, the numbers are processed by the severance chip inside the employees’ brains, creating reactions toward the same.
Severance Season 2 Does Not Reveal What the Numbers Mean for Other Refiners
Harmony Cobel’s explanation concerning Mark Scout’s numbers raises an important question: what do the numbers mean for his fellow employees such as Dylan G., Irving B., and Helly R.? From what ‘Severance’ has revealed so far, none of the three has a loved one locked up inside Lumon Industries for them to create innies for their respective relatives. Therefore, Harmony’s words do not outrightly help us unravel the mystery behind the numbers. Still, we can theorize that these employees also contribute to forming different personas not explicitly shown in the science fiction series.
These personas must be used in experiments involving people who do not have any connection with employees like Dylan or Irving. That can be why Mark is deemed special, even though Dylan is often portrayed as a better refiner. The protagonist’s uniqueness and significance likely lay in his relationship with Gemma, making Cold Harbor a landmark in the history of the company. The creations or contributions of other employees like Dylan and Irving must have been even used to create the innies of other workers on the same floor, ranging from the people in the Optics and Design (O&D) division to the strange figures Mark and Helly meet in the Mammalians Nurturable department.
Lumon is home to experiments of varying kinds. The entire severed floor forms one big experiment, just like the tests of Gemma. There can be even more “labs” where company officials meddle with the minds or personalities of their “test subjects.” One thing that is common in all of these experiments is the existence of innies, which are created based on the numbers refined by the workers of the MDR department not only in the Lumon headquarters but also in the branches of the company worldwide.
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