1981.

The first infected subject has been implemented. Spencer couldn't help but feel pride. The virus is suspected to only be capable of infecting about 90 percent of the world population. On this aspect Spencer is disappointed. His desire to rid the world of corruption seemed to have dragged down to a crawl, but the promise of at least that much would still be an achievement.

Birkin came bounding out of the labs early with a new report and a phone call to tell Spencer the news. He'd created the first Hunter. Spencer couldn't help but also congratulate on the Ashford's behalf. Alexander's daughter Alexia, now 10, was appointed Senior Researcher for Umbrella. With this comes a daring rivalry that will sprout between her and Birkin. He views her as competition.

-x-

[Wesker's Report]

Alexia-1:

Monday- 1981.7.27

On this day, a 10 year old girl was assigned as chief scientist to Umbrella's Antarctic Laboratory. Her name was Alexia Ashford. At the time, I was 21 years old and Birkin was 19.

In our Arklay Laboratory, that damn rumor of Alexia in Antarctica monopolized the topics of the researchers. For my older colleagues who'd been in Umbrella for many years, it was because the name of the 'Ashford family' was a legend.

For a long time, those incompetent old men would always say this when research came to a deadlock.

"If only Dr. Edward was still alive."

To be sure, Edward Ashford was one of the discoverers of the Progenitor Virus and was possibly a great scientist who laid the foundation for the T-Virus Project. But he died shortly after Umbrella was founded. Thirteen years had already passed since his death.

What could we expect from the Ashford family now?

In truth, thirteen years after Edward's death the Antarctic Laboratory established by his son had achieved no results. His granddaughter Alexia's intellect was nothing special!

However, after this day, the scum that had failed to kill themselves, our subordinates, had begun to say this.

"If only Alexia was here."

Only ignorant people who could only judge men with blood in a prestigious family would feel so anxious.

Because those guys had such thinking, they were underlings who couldn't move without someone else's instructions and had one foot in the grave! ...However, I was still sensible.

If I, a chief, became angry, then T-Virus development in the Arklay Laboratory would be delayed even more. Success was not possible if I couldn't judge any situation calmly.

Then I thought as follows.

If I treated the notables of the old days well, research results were achieved. Their old bodies could die at any moment, appropriate for dangerous experiments.

If all human resources are reasonably available, could I stand on top of mankind?

But the problem was Birkin.

His reaction to the Alexia rumor was miserable.

Although it didn't come directly from his mouth, for Birkin, he must have been proud of having been the youngest chief at 16 years old before. His pride was shattered into pieces by a 10 year old girl. He was born a genius and this would be his first taste of the feeling of defeat.

He was unable to accept the younger girl of a prestigious family.

No research results had been raised yet at the mercy of human issues.

In other words, he was still a child. However, it was necessary to have Birkin recover himself mentally somehow or other, even if he was inexperienced.

In the past three years, our research was contained to the second stage.

At this point in time, the T-Virus had been stabilized for the production of a Bio Organic Weapon nicknamed 'Zombie'. However, 100% influence on genes wasn't possible due to the virus. It was because there is a delicate difference in genes according to the person, and there is what's called compatibility.

Approximately 10% of humans would escape development of symptoms even if infected by a Zombie. It wouldn't help to just continue gene research. If we had made 90% of humans show symptoms, it should have been enough for a weapon, but Spencer's idea seemed to be different.

Our boss expected an independent weapon which could exterminate 100% of humans, 'that's it'. But for what exactly?

Originally the merit of a biological weapon was that it could be developed cheaply.

However, the Bio Organic Weapons we were researching had begun to become extremely expensive.

If Spencer wanted to make money normally, he wouldn't choose this path.

It should have been profitable enough if it was combined with conventional weapon systems. But it wasn't profitable to continue researching a 'stand-alone extermination weapon'. Even ignoring profit, why continue this research? I understood the aim in the 'monopoly of the entire military industry' by changing the concept of war, but...

I still don't understand Spencer's true intentions.

Away from Spencer's true goal, at that time, Birkin devised a Bio Organic Weapon which emphasized combat abilities. It was to create 'them' by incorporating not only the genetic manipulation of the T-Virus, but also the genetic information of other creatures.

A 'Bio Organic Weapon for combat', later called 'Hunter', which exterminates humans who escape the onset of infection or possess anti-virus weapons and equipment.

However, the experiment had to be interrupted for a while.

It was to protect the test subjects from Birkin.

With his meaningless hast, Birkin began to take erratic actions against Alexia.

He stayed at the laboratory 24 hours a day and repeated experiments on unplanned ideas.

Using the other researchers, I extracted as many organic samples as possible before the test subjects died, but we couldn't catch up with his speed. The director replenished the test subjects as if nothing had happened, and they died in no time.

That was hell.

But only one survived in that hell, the female test subject.

She was already 28 years old. She had spent another fourteen years at this laboratory.

There couldn't have been any thinking ability as a human due to the Progenitor Virus injection fourteen years ago, but if her mind remained, 'death' was probably the end she desired.

But she kept growing.

Why could only she continue living like this? The experimental data from the other test subjects was no different at all. There was still much time required before we could solve this mystery.

Date Unknown.

Birkin's Notes:

The virus itself was amazing. When injected with this subjects show submissive traits and respond to a given command, but only one, not chosen by the person who infected them. the command they abide by is simple: spread. Expand the virus, give it to others. The only bad trait about the virus is that it left the victim rather.. hungry and eager for meat. They can't distinguish morals and cannibalism is something they delve into, eating whatever is around them. Spencer selected a name for these creatures, one very fitting. Codename Zombies.

They aren't essentially their name's component, but similar. Cannibals that still retain human knowledge, but their humanity is locked beneath the command they follow. They are basically puppets, controlled by a will not their own, unable to free themselves. They are slaves to the virus.

They are to be Spencer's legacy, a world controlled once that nasty side-effect was corrected. The world could not thrive on it's own. They would destroy themselves. With the T-Virus war would be eradicated and the existence of mankind could grow under guiding fingers. They would survive.. We just had to keep working on this virus, make it perfect.

Unlike real zombies (or story versions) these infected people didn't decay. They didn't run on instincts, didn't eat to survive, weren't soulless. They weren't revived lurkers who shambled around on broken, half eaten limbs. Though they couldn't use the reaches of their full human abilities they could still function quite nicely. Some could run, most couldn't, few could speak though they mostly moaned and staggered around.

Everyone assumed this virus was the cause of the effects in the subjects. The virus was a front. The real truth to this reality, this project, was the use of the Apple of Eden, an artifact older than humanity. The one Spencer possessed was cracked and wouldn't properly respond. Hence the inability to control the 'zombies'. Studies showed that a new side effect was starting to occur. The extended use of the apple did indeed give a dark life to the infected.. It drove them mad and soon they did become shambling nightmares. It amplified the virus, making zombies a reality.

It was only a matter of time before they couldn't be contained and they spread.

1982.

It has come to Spencer's attention that Alexia went a bit off the deep end. One of his 'spies' he placed in the Antarctica facility reported that Alexia had infected her father Alexander with the help of her brother with a variant of the T-Virus she calls T-Veronica. The effects didn't start to show until awhile later. Not much of true importance came with this passing year.