Summary: Alexia Ashford graduates from university at the age of ten. Alexander Ashford and Anthony Campbell discuss her future job as chief researcher at the Antarctic base.

I

Alexander and Anthony had their third cup of tea.

"Research assistant in Bonn. A renewal of her previous internship contract." Anthony scribbled on the paper with his platinum pen. "Unless you can think of something better."

Alexander stroked his beard thoughtfully.

"I'm not going to Raccoon City and I'm not going to Paris."

"What if they find out? Falsifying an employment contract is easy. But then, how will you justify Alexia's absence? They could call the police."

Alexander smiled sardonically.

"I've been there."

Anthony tucked the platinum pen inside his jacket.

"Why are you always so difficult? What are you supposed to do in Antarctica?" Alexander looked sideways at Anthony. "Why don't you stay home?"

"I can't. I can't work anywhere else but Antarctica. That's where the lab is."

Anthony put his glasses back on. Alexander approached him.

"We must get back to my father's research. We've invested too much money in this, and we've just signed a sales contract with the Department of Defense." He sounded calm and firm. "I can't give up."

Anthony sighed in defeat.

"Your father's got us in a lot of trouble. So, what do you propose? What do you want to do?"

"Give me a couple of years. Convene the Circle before I leave at the end of the summer. I'll try an idea."

Anthony took a sip from his cup.

"What idea?" he asked with interest.

Alexander shifted back in his chair.

"A new virus."

"Like the Progenitor?"

"Different. And better."

"And I suppose Alexia will be the one to develop this new virus? And when she does, what happens next?"

Alexander began to swirl his teacup without finishing it.

"I might rethink my partnership with Spencer." Alexander held Anthony's gaze.

The red-haired man increased his attention.

"You mean leaving Umbrella? I thought you wouldn't say such a thing out of love for your father."

"My father loved the Progenitor, not the company. The company is nothing more than a front. A means to cover expenses and make a profit. The virus was the only thing that mattered to him; it's the only thing that matters. The plan... If we had this new virus, we could mobilize the Circle to put it into circulation. I own half of the Progenitor. The Stairway of the Sun patent was signed by my father and Spencer. He couldn't sue me. And... I'm sure it would be to his advantage if I left, and he kept the whole company.

"Are you sure? Spencer's good, but he's not as good as we are. We're a dynasty and he's a self-made man with no heirs. Without our support, Spencer will have a hard time getting the company back on its feet, mainly because all the profit from the exit would go to us."

"It's not about that. It's not about the money."

"So?"

"Pride."

Anthony laughed.

"Spencer's not just going to let me walk away," Alexander continued. "He needs me in front of him to remind himself how good he is. To reassert his power. My father was better than him, and because I'm not the same, he feels powerful. We need a good excuse to break the association with minimal collateral damage. Besides, I'm not leaving Umbrella empty-handed. That would be stupid."

Anthony finished his tea.

"I understand your position."

"Tony, I need that employment contract. I'll pay someone to take care of the problem you mention."

Anthony glanced at the papers on the coffee table.

"What would Alexia's job be?"

"Chief researcher."

"And will this new virus be public knowledge?"

"Secret, for the moment."

"Yeah..." He sighed. "I hope your plan really works because, if it fails, you're going to get us all in a lot of trouble. I don't want Alexia to end up like your father."

"She won't."

"What about your mother? What does she think about that?"

"She flatly refuses."

"It's understandable."

"I'll convince her."

Anthony stopped fiddling with the papers.

"Great-great-grandfather Rupert was right. Better we wait in the castle than try our luck on the battlefield again. But you're great-great-grandmother Veronica's son. You Ashfords are all about action, aren't you?"

"We're not going to sit around vegetating in a castle while the rest of the world spins endlessly. Without the crown, all we have left is hegemony."

Anthony shrugged.

II

Flashes. Cheers. Noise. Crowds. She took the podium in a cap and gown. The crowd fell silent. She swallowed, paralyzed with fear. The speech was concise and forceful. The president and professors applauded behind her. Flashes. The reporters repeated the same questions. What do you intend to do after your degree? Are you going to work at Umbrella? What was your secret to graduating so young? She hid her nauseating discomfort with a fake smile and answered with empty words. She satisfied the insistent reporters and they left. Adults milled around her. Despite her short stature, she stood out as an outsider to the natural laws that governed the space. During dinner with university officials, she escaped to the bathroom and vomited. No one noticed. Her father kept smiling and chatting with everyone. But no one talked to her. She didn't exist. In the minds of those old men and women, she didn't exist. She was an award, she thought. An exceptional diploma. A front page in the newspaper. A picture on the wall. She left the dining room pretending to go back to the bathroom and left. She hid in the garden outside. Sitting on the edge of a potted plant, she began to look for a glimmer of joy. And there it was. A row of ants.

She had graduated in physical biology and chemistry with a major in virology. Adults assumed she would be as brilliant a scientist as her grandfather Edward. But she liked insects. During the last two years, she discovered her fascination with entomology. She wanted to specialize in the latter, but her father insisted that she would have time after graduating. However, there was a sudden change of plans. In her scarce leisure time, she discovered an article about a little-documented plant and ant species. For some reason, the two species were living together in symbiosis, and the reason for their coexistence was unknown. At first, she was inclined to take this small discovery as a mere curiosity. Then her perspective changed when she turned to the plant and the ant for one of her experiments. It turned out that the symbiosis between the two species could be due to a parasite or a virus. Alexander bought some samples. A Latin American scientist handed them to him. The possibility of a new project.

At first, she was happy. Seeing all her passions converge into one thing contributed far more to the successful completion of her university degree than the insubstantial encouragement she received from family and acquaintances. So, she focused on what made her happy, which was the first emotion she had experienced since starting university.

Her grandmother noticed. On the few occasions she travelled to the United States, she noticed that Alexia barely made any effort to make an expression. Alexander put it down to her usual expressionlessness, but Elizabeth contradicted him. Her behavior was strange. She spent the day locked in her study or room, always alone, and only spoke when she had to answer a question. She appeared sad and tired. Elizabeth wanted to know the reason for her attitude, but Alexia lied. She didn't want anyone to know how she was really feeling, not even her grandmother. Because no one understood her, and no one would help her. She could only depend on herself.

Elizabeth regretted her obvious change from a lively, energetic child to a listless, withdrawn one. Alexia hid the pain of the comment and locked herself in her room. She opened the first book she could find and began to study.

Senior year was different. Her father and Spencer hired her for six months as a research assistant at Umbrella's headquarters in Bonn. It was there that she rediscovered happiness. She used the six months to formalize her research project and, sure enough, she discovered a retrovirus embedded in the genes of the queen ant. Alexander urged her not to reveal the results. She didn't care about her father's secrecy. She was happy. Happy to research what she liked and happy to work for herself and without constant adult supervision. Although she was not allowed to take on too much responsibility to avoid legal problems, Alexia led her own research team for the short six months. She recounted the experience to her brother, whom she had not seen in person since she started university. She missed him. But they were different, and she could not afford to be emotionally dependent on anyone, not even her brother.

She finished her work as an intern and graduated at the top of her class. A week before the ceremony, Alexander and Anthony met with her to sign a forged employment contract. Research assistant in Bonn. Chief researcher at Umbrella Pharmaceuticals' Antarctic base.