Resident Evil Recall: Necropolis
Chapter One: No One Listened
In the spring of 1998, an investigation was launched into the rash of bizarre killings that were being reported throughout the Arklay Mountains, just outside of Raccoon City. Instead of the RPD's S.T.A.R.S. unit, this 'Task Force Arklay' consisted of a of Officers and Detectives who were dedicated to the apprehension of those responsible, before any more lives could be claimed as part of the so called 'Cannibal Murders'.
Returning only days after the investigation began, the team brought back outlandish stories about an unkillable giant in the forest, dozens of flesh-hungry 'zombies' on the top floor of a hotel, and a hidden facility where ungodly experiments were being conducted on unwilling human subjects. However, every scrap of physical evidence had been destroyed in the process, leaving them with nothing but their word.
Instead of even beginning to investigate their claims, RPD Chief Brian Irons and Raccoon City Mayor Michael Warren denounced the Task Force all together, instead focusing on the 'disgraceful' price that had been paid in damage and casualties: A private residence had been burned to the ground, the top five floors of The Arklay Resort, a popular tourist attraction, had been incinerated in a gas explosion, and a historic mining site collapsed beyond salvage.
As for human casualties, the guests on the top floor of The Arklay resort perished in the explosion, with the Manager of the resort being shot after the fact. The Arklay County Sheriff was also killed in a shootout, along with all of his Deputies, reportedly after detaining two members of the task force, while the Arklay County Commissioner was reportedly killed during the mine collapse.
Task Force Arklay, itself, was not without casualties, either. Officer Kendra Ashwood, the team's Tech Specialist, suffered blunt force trauma to her head as well as several broken bones during what the others claim was an attack. She was airlifted to Raccoon City Hospital, and released after a week of observation, making her one of the lucky ones to avoid prosecution. Detective Janet Carver, on the other hand, one of the teams Investigators, was reportedly also killed in the mine collapse.
The team's final casualty was Detective Lieutenant Tobias Liquid, head of the RPD's Homicide Division, and leader of Task Force Arklay. He survived, but the Doctor's report indicated that he must have been attacked by some kind of large animal, given the wounds on his body, and the Toxicology report sited severe exposure to an unknown chemical agent as the reason for his long-term coma.
The remaining Task Force members; Detective Sergeant Francis McGee, Officer Adrian Lopez, and Officer Avan Chambers, given that they had nothing to substantiate their claims, were left to take the blunt of the city's wrath. McGee chose to resign from the RPD in lieu of taking on such a hopeless case, but Lopez and Chambers were spared based on their Rookie status, and even offered positions on a newly formed S.T.A.R.S. team.
Chambers jumped at the opportunity to salvage his career, and signed a non-disclosure agreement, but Lopez refused to stay silent about what had happened. He was jailed after assaulting chief Irons, but then vanished from his cell. Nothing came of the investigation after that, and the files were sealed, leaving Task Force Arklay to take the fall as a bunch of loose cannons who got out of control.
Over the next few months, the members of Task Force Arklay left Raccoon City, leaving only their still comatose leader to face prosecution if he ever woke up. Then in the summer of that same year, a new investigation was launched into the Cannibal Murders, this time by the Special Tactics and Rescue Service, who believed that they had pinpointed the location of those responsible.
As if history were repeating itself, the S.T.A.R.S. team came back with heavy casualties; having completely destroyed a historic estate, and telling unbelievable stories about zombies and horrific experiments. Just like before, the team was discredited for not only lack of physical evidence, but for poor judgement in the field, finding themselves suspended until a review of their conduct was completed, resulting with S.T.A.R.S. officially being disbanded.
Aside for a few stragglers, the survivors of Alpha and Bravo teams left the city as well, mostly to pursue their own continued investigations into Umbrella, the corporation that they claimed was responsible, and the people of Raccoon City quickly forgot about what was headline news for a few weeks. No one listened, no one cared, and for a while life returned to normal… until the beginning of September, when the price for their inaction was revealed.
No one had listened, no one had investigated, and no one had cared. Maybe the people were selfish, maybe they were frightened of Umbrella, or maybe they just never watched the news or read a newspaper. Either way, a terrifying yet simple situation that could have been contained if the people had acted back then, had now become a nightmare that appeared to have no solution at all.
Beginning with a few frantic calls to the police, describing attackers that were remarkably similar to the Cannibal Murders, only this time inside the city, the situation quickly escalated. Entire zones of the city were blockaded in order to contain what the news reported to be major riots and violent activity, but the truth was much worse. The deranged 'zombies' that had been reported by both Task Force Arklay and S.T.A.R.S., were on the loose… and growing in number.
With the people starting to realize what was happening around them, a mass exodus was started, made up of thousands of people trying to get themselves and their families out of Raccoon City through the south, which hadn't yet been barricaded, but this was stopped by both direct action to keep the city contained, as well as more and more people becoming victims of this Cannibal Outbreak… only to rise again a short time later.
After an intense struggle to hold onto the city, the RPD, as well as a mercenary force sent in by Umbrella under the guise of helping the 'people', were completely overrun. Previously established 'safe zones' and other attempts by the survivors to construct shelters were thwarted both by attacks, and by attempts to help those who had been bitten, only to suffer the consequences for doing the right thing.
Soon the majority of Raccoon City was quiet, aside from random groaning of the shambling creatures, or the screams that occurred when they stumbled upon one of the few survivors. But among the zombies and the nearly impossible struggle just to survive, rumors began to circulate of things wandering the empty streets… things that were even worse than the zombies, if the remaining people could believe such a statement.
Unfortunately, the most heavily infested areas of the city were toward the south, where the people had tried to evacuate, and thereby drawing the zombies right to them. This also meant that several roads into the city had been left not barricaded, allowing unsuspecting motorists or travelers to freely enter a place that for most of them would be their death, stopping at a gas station, only to be surrounded the monsters, or walking into a restaurant, to discover that they themselves were on the menu.
News broadcasts and other communication from within the city was quickly disabled, either from no one left to run them, or sabotage from unknown persons, leaving those living elsewhere no way of knowing what was going on, and leaving those trapped inside with no way to know when help was coming… or if it was coming at all. Still, a few brave souls managed to sneak or fight their way out of the city, although many more perished during the attempt.
The awful truth was that Raccoon City had been abandoned, and the few survivors within left for dead. No help was coming, and even basic supplies such as food and water were becoming scarce, let alone medicine. Medicine could still be found at the hospital, but no one was going to try to make it there… but if they had, they might have found an abandoned, comatose patient lying inside one of the rooms…
His name was Detective Lieutenant Tobias Liquid, head of RPD Homicide Division, leader of Task Force Arklay, and quite possibly the sole survivor of the RPD itself… and also just about to wake up.