Fate worse than death *SPOILERS*

[Froge]

The slowly WAU'ifying people throughout the game look like they're heavily suffering. Their skin's all scabby, they're covered in WAU tentacles, but they all look like they are still conscious and breathing (though in a raspy way). This does not include people like Amy who are clearly mostly human.

Are these people actually being kept conscious by the WAU's attempts to recreate them? And if so, do you think any of them are capable of thinking a coherent thought, like "kill me now", or do they just exist in constant turmoil?

And, assuming that the underwater factories still persist for several thousands of years, are all of them just going to sit there and suffer for thousands of years until the whole place shuts down (if ever)?