The Neptune (development code: "FI-03") series of B.O.W.s were mutated sharks, created specifically to test the effects of the experimental t-Virus on sea creatures.[2] It was named after the Roman God of the Sea, referencing the great white sharkWP's reputation as the "King of the Seas".[3]
The Neptune project began early on in the Arklay Laboratory's research into animal bioweapons. As their test subjects they transported several adult great white sharks and infected them with the α strain. The research team was disappointed with the results, with little significant change. Much of the research team moved on to other projects and most of the subjects were disposed of. A female was left for continued research when it was discovered she was pregnant. The staff monitored her carry twelve pups, but ten died soon after hatching. The remaining two survived and were subject to further study into the possibility of creating self-fertilising B.O.W.s as an alternative to cloning.[4][excerpt 1]
Mansion Incident and Raccoon City
During the viral outbreak in the Arklay Laboratory, a mother Neptune and her spawn were inadvertently released from their water tanks by a scientist, who had suddenly "gone mad" and destroyed the tanks, badly flooding the entire Aqua Ring.[5] These sharks were later killed when the entire aquatic lab was drained, exposing them to the air. With only minimal enhancements to their bodies, they lacked any deserving mutation to survive.[6]
Several Neptunes were discovered in the Circular River during the 1998 Raccoon City Destruction Incident and attempted to prey on people at the jetty adjacent to Raccoon City; how these sharks made their way into the river is unknown. They were presumably killed when Raccoon City was destroyed.[7][excerpt 2]
Legacy
Umbrella was disappointed with the creation of Neptune. The t-Virus did not significantly improve the already impressive strength of ordinary great whites, and they were still helpless out of the water.[2] Despite these setbacks however, Umbrella began producing its earlier models on a large scale at its Caucasus Laboratory regardless of quality, and had at least three in captivity at the time it fell to an outbreak in 2003.[8]
