Amen. Mr. Kal-El was hailed as great—he was the very first "volunteer" of the T-Virus experiment in the Las Vegas base.
Andrei sneered, "Send it to the designated quarantine sector."
"Yes, sir."
Such matters were naturally handled by specialized lab assistants. Security staff didn't have the ability to manage this kind of work—if they got infected by accident, the consequences would be catastrophic.
Las Vegas had become a world detached from Umbrella itself. The entire base, slowly but surely, was reshaped under Jon's influence. Practically everyone in the facility had already been injected with the R-1 human enhancement serum. Even the researchers had received it. With such power, it was doubtful even a formal military assault could break through.
The White Queen occasionally reported intelligence to Dr. Isaacs, but sadly for him, he only knew what Jon allowed him to know.
"Jon, you truly won't join the Cryo-Sleep Project?" Isaacs asked one last time. If Jon died in the upcoming Purge Plan, it would be a massive loss.
"Doctor, it's unnecessary. I'm very safe here."
Seeing Jon unmoved, Isaacs no longer pressed the matter.
"The company's plan is already in motion. Most of the board has entered the Cryo-Sleep Program. The cloning project has also begun. I'll be frozen as well. From now on, company affairs will be handled by Wesker—but he won't have the same level of clearance as you."
In other words, the Las Vegas base was already hidden away.
Every time Isaacs thought of his work, he became feverish with zeal. To him, he was emulating God—bringing forth a new Great Flood for humanity. Who else could claim such a thing? Only him.
Jon stayed silent. The arrogant often perished by their own hubris.
"When you awaken, a new era will already be in our hands, Doctor."
Isaacs's expression burned with fervor. "Of course, Jon. This is the new age we will create."
Jon only watched coldly. Even if Isaacs entered cryo-sleep, he had not revealed his exact location. In the original plotline, his chamber was hidden beneath the Hive. But this was reality—whether it would follow the script was uncertain.
…
March 15th, 2002.
The Purge Plan was launched on schedule. Beforehand, Umbrella's executives and their allied government officials had all retreated into underground bunkers, entering cryo-sleep to avoid the T-Virus outbreak.
The Cloning Project had already been set in motion. Countless clones, each implanted with their originals' memories, walked out of Umbrella facilities to resume their duties, as if nothing had changed. No one noticed the faint wrongness in those once-familiar colleagues and neighbors.
Raccoon City, outskirts.
Alice carried on as usual. Umbrella bases were always top-secret—even government branches didn't know of them. She had little real work on her hands.
Yet recently, she had been persuaded. Using her internal clearance and passcodes, she agreed to enter the Hive and steal a T-Virus sample. That evidence, once leaked, could expose Umbrella's illegal human experimentation.
The organization that contacted her promised—if she succeeded—Umbrella would fall.
Poor Alice had no idea how much a T-Virus vial could fetch on the black market.
Spence, meanwhile, moved in haste. Today, he crossed into a restricted sector he normally had no access to. With Alice's codes, he unlocked sealed doors one by one, finally reaching the chamber where the virus was stored. He stuffed vials into his bag—and smashed one before leaving.
And so, the crisis began.
The shattered vial released a luminous blue fluid. It vaporized instantly, carried into the air circulation system, spreading throughout the Hive.
…
Beep—beep—beep!
On the Hive's security monitors, red markers flared one after another. The system quickly pinpointed the anomaly in the storage room. Sirens wailed through the facility. The Red Queen, ever watchful, had detected the breach. Her core directives instantly engaged.
"What's going on?"
In a laboratory, researchers looked up in alarm. Sirens in a place like this could never mean anything good. Since joining Umbrella, none of them had ever witnessed such an alert. Even fire drills were always pre-announced.
"Maybe it's just a fire alarm… it should stop soon… I think…"
No one knew the truth.
"Shit."
Sprinklers burst open, dousing the lab in torrents of water.
"Damn it! Cover the computers! Protect the test equipment!" A female researcher cursed.
"Stop yelling—I'm working on it! But what the hell is happening?"
A Black scientist's face darkened. As though realizing something, he dashed to the door and keyed in his password. But the usual click of an unlocking mechanism never came. The door didn't respond at all.
"It's not opening!"
"What? This isn't the time to panic over a door! If this equipment is ruined, months of work will be wasted!"
The man kicked the door furiously before snapping, "Equipment? If we can't get out, we're going to die here!"
"What do you mean?"
"I mean this place is sealed! Do you want to drown in this room?"
"What?!"
Panic spread. All thoughts of experiments vanished. Researchers rushed to the door, punching in codes to no avail. They grabbed tools, smashing windows—clang, clang, clang—but the glass held.
Water poured faster from above. The lab space filled. Screams rose. Drowning was inevitable.
This scene played out across the Hive.
Umbrella's labs were all isolated modules. The Red Queen had triggered full lockdown. No one had sufficient clearance to override it. For all of them, only one fate remained—death.
Gas filled sealed rooms. Scientists collapsed into unconsciousness, never to wake again. Perhaps it was mercy.
But Spence's plan faltered. According to his design, he should already be aboard the underground train to the surface. Instead, the defense protocols overwhelmed him, knocking him unconscious inside the tram.
[Probe Program Initiated]
[Commencing Wake-Up Protocol for Task Force]
The Red Queen's control room pulsed with commands. In another facility, an Umbrella strike team received orders. To them, this was just another mission.
They had no idea what awaited them.
[Test Subjects Activated — Observation Protocol Online]
It was but one of countless Umbrella projects.
At one exit of the Hive, Alice and Spence were posted as guards. Now, only Alice remained—half-conscious from the Red Queen's gas, waking groggily in the shower.
"Where am I? Why does this place feel… familiar?"
And why did her body feel so strange—so incomplete?
Alice's mind swirled. Maybe this was her home. But why couldn't she remember anything?
The more she looked around, the stronger the déjà vu grew. Opening a drawer, she found it crammed with weapons. Fear crawled up her spine.
What kind of life had she been living?
Suddenly, a shadow lunged from the darkness, gripping her waist and dragging her into the villa.
"No—who are you?! Let me go!"
She struggled wildly, terror clawing her throat.
"Wait, don't panic! I'm a cop—I'm here investigating—"
Matt didn't finish. The window shattered, a round object rolling across the floor.
A flashbang.
BOOM!
The blast roared. Both Alice and Matt clutched their heads, dropping to the floor.
Crash, crash, crash! Windows shattered one after another. Heavy boots stormed in.
Matt forced his eyes open, and dread clenched his chest. He knew who they were.
Umbrella's strike team.
"Check his ID. Why is he here?" The squad leader barked, seizing Alice and slamming her against the wall.
Report.
Alice only stared blankly.
"I said—report, soldier!" the leader growled.
"Captain, the Hive's defense system has been triggered. They may still be suffering side effects," another operative explained, glancing at his terminal.
The captain considered this and released her.
"Captain, I can't trace this man's identity. Do I kill him?" Rain asked coldly, her weapon leveled at Matt.
"Wait! I'm new to the local precinct! Maybe they haven't filed my profile yet!" Matt shouted, raising his hands.
The captain nodded slightly. "The precinct has been short-staffed. That's possible."
"Are you kidding? A cop, here? Boss, what do we do with him?" Rain sneered, finger tense on the trigger.
"Take them both below."
Alice was dazed. Who were these people? Why was this "cop" in her house? Why did her house even have an arsenal hidden inside?
"Wait—what do you mean by defense system?" she demanded.
"The Hive's defense is controlled by a central AI—the Red Queen. It releases neurotoxic gas. Inhaling it causes temporary memory loss."
"How long does it last?"
"Depends on the subject. Hours, days… weeks."
Meanwhile, Umbrella's operations chief in Raccoon City had already sealed the entire city with defensive walls—an immense barricade constructed at impossible speed.
"Have all the systems been activated?" Cain asked.
"Yes, sir. Everything is live."
"Then let's see how our test subjects perform."
On the screen before him, Alice's group was already moving—every step broadcast, every heartbeat observed.