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Prime universe
(Capcom's primary storyline)


The Spencer Rain incident (tentative) was a viral outbreak perpetrated by a terrorist organisation led by Morpheus D. Duvall. It resulted in the infection and deaths of the entire crew and passenger manifest of Spencer Rain, which itself was destroyed.

Background[]

The Umbrella Corporation used virtually all of their subsidiaries to assist in their bio-weapons development in some manner, and by the 1990s the international industrial giant was using cruise ships to disguise the shipment of B.O.W.s between nations. At least four ships operated in the Atlantic: Queen Dido, Queen Semiramis, Queen Zenobia, and Spencer Rain, with the first three - if not all - being operated by the Umbrella subsidiary, Paraguas Line Company.

While the United States government shut down Umbrella USA, Umbrella's American holding company, in 1998, the trade in bio-weapons continued across the world, including in the mid-Atlantic. Whereas the 'Queen' ships had laboratories for viral research, Spencer Rain was geared towards the shipment, showcasing, and auction of bio-weapons. B.O.W.s were kept in storage crates in the ship's hold, then taken to the auction room for VIP passengers to inspect. Information was kept classified, with crew working in the hold left unaware as to the purpose of the room, the identity of the cargo, and the existence of a secret passageway for passengers' discreet movements.[1] How long Spencer Rain was in operation is unknown, though documents indicate it began continuous voyages in May 2002.[1][2]

Attack[]

On Wednesday 18 September 2002, Duvall's terrorist cell raided Umbrella Europe's Paris Laboratory, stealing three samples of an unidentified t-Virus strain as well as a prototype t+G Virus strain.[3] As Umbrella HQ had already placed an operative, P.T., within the cell, they were quickly made aware the group was bound for Spencer Rain. However, as P.T. was already under suspicion, he was unable to reveal more information, and even their reason for boarding the ship was not known.[4] It is also noted that Umbrella HQ failed to warn Spencer Rain's captain about the possible boarding. Based on his log, there was no suspicious activity reported for two days, and he planned to rally the crew for a party to celebrate their four months of voyage.[2]

Duvall's team made their move on the night of Friday 20 September. Intent on reaching a missile silo near an abandoned Umbrella island facility, they broke into the hold and began releasing the new Hunter Elites and Tyrant 091. Their plan, possibly based on pragmatic concerns, was to use the B.O.W.s to massacre everyone else on the ship so it could be hijacked without the risk of a counter-attack by its security guards. The captain wrote in his log of hearing unusual noises that night, but as the crew reported no unusual activity the alarm was not raised, though he made sure to keep his sidearm with him for protection.[2]

The group launched their attack on Sunday 22 September. Based on the log, the attack was fierce and sudden, with many of the passengers and crew being killed or mutated into Zombies the same day, with the cell taking effective control of the ship almost immediately and cutting off a distress call.[2] Soon after, Duvall turned on his men and had them killed as well, leaving himself the only uninfected survivor. The only member of the cell not killed by him was P.T., who chose to hang himself in his cabin instead.

Government interventions[]

Soon after hijacking the ship, Duvall began making threats to the United States and China, demanding a payment of $5 billion under threat of firing missiles containing t-Virus payloads. Unwilling to give over to such a threat, both countries sent special agents out to apprehend Duvall. While the Chinese sent Fongling, and agent of their Security Ministry, the Americans sent Bruce McGivern, a member of a USSTRATCOM unit specially created for dealing with tackling Umbrella. Duvall quickly captured McGivern, but was seriously injured my a fragmentation grenade thrown by Fongling. Duvall was able to infect himself with the t+G Virus sample he stole, and mutated into a powerful humanoid and escaped the ship after failing to kill McGivern with his new powers. With no one left to navigate the ship, it continued on a collision course with the island and exploded when it crashed into the cliffs. McGivern and Fongling were able to escape.

Perpetrators[]

Morpheus D. Duvall was formerly a high-ranking employee of the Umbrella Corporation. Following the containment failure which necessitated in the destruction of Umbrella U.S.A.'s flagship Arklay Laboratory, Duvall was used as a scapegoat and dismissed. Consequently, he established a bioterrorist organization with ambitions of establishing a state in Africa. A missile silo was built in the mid-Atlantic, with the intention of holding the United States and China at ransom in order to acquire the funding he needed. Samples of the t-Virus and t+G Virus were stolen from Umbrella Paris in order to provide a payload for the warheads.

Sources[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 Resident Evil: Dead Aim (2003), file: "Freight Crewman's Diary".
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Resident Evil: Dead Aim (2003), file: "Ship's Log".
  3. Resident Evil: Dead Aim (2003), file: "Emergency FAX from Paris Branch".
  4. Resident Evil: Dead Aim (2003), file: "Regular Report No. 1162".
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