Biohazard:
Raccoon City, a peaceful self-contained mountain community, is suddenly the site of barbaric and grisly homicides, resonating from the surrounding Arklay forest area. Bizarre and outlandish reports begin to become the usual; reports of families and hikers being attacked by 'mad men' and 'rabid dogs'. The corpses, littered about the forest, are being found mutilated beyond recognition… The victims were apparently eaten.
As the town of Raccoon, once guarded from the horrors of the outside world, begins to lose faith, the Special Tactics and Rescue Squad (S.T.A.R.S) are sent in to investigate the strange goings-on. After finding a derelict mansion that they believe to be connected to the murders, Bravo team loses contact. Now it's up to Alpha team to find and rescue their compatriots, and put an end to the mysterious case that has since blanketed fear over the citizens of Raccoon City.
Each lurking horror they survive will bring the S.T.A.R.S one step closer to the residing evil; they will soon know the true meaning of fear…
Enter the survival horror.
Prologue
The air, balmy with solstice and typical of a night in July, washed over Aster's skin and plastered his pealing hair atop his skull, the fresh scent of pine resonating from the many saplings around, filling his nostrils. The forest about him flew past at speed, a blur, the trees slowly merging into one another, forming a single great entity, a malevolent entity, mocking him in his desperate, yet futile, attempt at escape.
Aster had always pushed himself to be the best. He had never faltered when he had been told to do something that proved a challenge or all-together impossible; he practically thrived on challenge, always trying to go beyond the boundaries, boundaries most men scarce dream tangible, or even dare to think about. No matter how hard an errand he took on seemed, Aster had always pulled though, his countless years of research proof of this. So despite knowing it was an almost impossible task, he kept running, ignoring the forests continuous attempts to taunt him.
As he ran it became increasingly more difficult to ignore the forest's deep and intimidating glare, which seethed with malice and threatened to swallow him whole if he so much as swerved from his course. His attempt at escape seemed more and more futile; He could hear the forest whispering, betraying his position to his pursuers.
He had to keep going, he could not let them bury his work – his life's work - or his colleagues and, although he was bound to be held accountable for his perhaps unethical activities, he would rather feel the harsh hand of an advocate of justice than let his employers re-write his very existence. But eventually, Aster became light headed and, despite his body's newly released adrenaline, began to slow down considerably, his breathing punctured. Behind he could hear the sound of brushing feet against high grass accumulate – they were closing in.
The forest – which had previously manifested itself as a single entity - now split itself into many smaller, yet in no way less threatening, entities which swiftly surrounded Aster, enclosing any possible escape routes. This did little to hinder his retreat – he bound head on into the repressive forest with what little energy his body could muster. However, he was, at this point, practically asleep, with the blood gone from his brain coursing an intensifying delirium. He no longer had any sense of direction and was now, as opposed to running, wading this way and that with his arms dragging by his side like a common monkey might.
It seemed incredibly odd to Aster now, after collecting his ever fading memories in whatever manner his confused and failing brain could, that just several days ago he had been contently observing various micro-organic life forms that humans had shared residence on Earth for generations, confident in his superiority over all living matter - small or otherwise. Now he was running from the very people he had admired and had worked for.
It was then that he felt the hot, searing and wet sensation just below his calf and, after one last desperate leap at escape, came crashing down to the forests hard and unforgiving terrain floor. He shifted onto his back staring up at his pursuers, all the while pushing his body away from them, inch at a time. He did not have to struggle much longer, however, as another bullet soon made its course straight though his fore-head, spaying his once superior brain matter across the ground, becoming equal with those laboratory organisms he had studied and lived with for so many weeks. Aster had always strived to be the best of the best and had never given up on anything he had set his mind to. This was his first - and his last – failure.