T-Veronica
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The Tyrant-Veronica Virus (also known as T-Alexia) is a fictional biological agent in Resident Evil Code: Veronica and the central focus of the game's storyline.
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[edit] History
T-Veronica was created by child prodigy Alexia Ashford in 1983 by combining the Progenitor Virus (or Mother Virus) with an ancient virus extracted from ant queens and plants. The virus was named after Veronica Ashford, the first clan master of the Ashford family, from whom Alexia was cloned; although the virus is also referred as the T-Alexia after its creator.
[edit] Experimentation
Alexia first used T-Veronica on her father, Alexander, against his will to test the virus' efficiency. Alexander suffered severe loss of brain cells and necrosis of much of his flesh, turning into a mindless creature. Thus, the experiment was deemed a failure and the creature that was once Alexander was locked in the Antarctic Facility.
Alexia determined that in order for a host to accept the T-Veronica strain, it must be kept in cryogenic sleep for a long period while the virus incubated. Alexia implanted the virus into her own body and put herself in cryogenic sleep for fifteen years. In 1998, Alexia awoke, her body having accepted the virus with no deterioration of her intelligence. In her first mutated form, she keeps a humanoid figure (with a different appearance), but is stronger and gains the ability to turn her blood into flames because of the fact they had flammable chemicals in them. In her second mutation, she resembles a giant queen ant and gains the ability to reproduce imperfect larvae. In her third and final form, she becomes a flying insect similar to a dragonfly with four wings on her back.
[edit] Effects
The T-Veronica virus, much like its predecessor, the T-Virus, is a mutagenic pathogen with necrotic properties when invading a host in an uncontrolled manner. However, such infected creatures exhibit a slightly more advanced intellect than T-Virus hosts (i.e. they have more complicated instincts beyond "move" and "eat", as opposed to zombies), and they tend to exhibit insectile characteristics, such as insect-like limbs and poison glands. However, when applied in a controlled manner (as Alexia Ashford did on herself), the virus is completely assimilated by the host without destroying any cognitive functions, effectively creating a powerful mutant with intact intellect. Alexia showed no signs of diminished intellect or personality changes after her cryogenic sleep, while still exhibiting dramatic physical enhancements, such as increased strength, and the ability to produce caustic, flammable blood from her body, which she could spray on victims as a weapon.
Lesser creatures resulting from T-Veronica virus exposure also exhibit a sort of "hive mind", becoming subservient to higher intellect hosts, as evidenced by Alexia's control over the huge T-Veronica virus worms released after her sleep, as well as the different insects spawned by her subsequently. This is probably a side effect of the virus's origin as being spliced from the Progenitor Virus and ant DNA. In this manner, the T-Veronica virus, although of completely different origin, exhibits similar characteristics to Las Plagas, Las Plagas infected beings were all subservient to Osmund Saddler, who'd be the "queen ant" of the Plagas, as it were.
Alexia also apparently had the ability to mutate form at will, switching into a subhuman form to face Albert Wesker. This would seem to indicate that the T-Veronica virus either grants the host control over his/her own form or is reactive to the host's mood, perhaps being sensitive to hormonal signals.
Although not specified anywhere in-game, the T-Veronica virus is apparently more stable in terms of transmission than both the T- and G-Virus. While T-Veronica mutants can reproduce (as evidenced by Alexia's creation of many subservient insects), they apparently cannot infect other creatures. The T-Veronica virus seems to be only transmittable through direct injection.
Nevertheless, it seems apparent that the carrier can "fight" the infection of the T-Veronica virus by an immense effort of will, as seen with Steve Burnside, an effort that can go as far as partially reverting the cascade effect noted in his specific case, and restoring sanity and sentience to the carrier. Even so, the extent and cause of this reversal have yet to be seen. In Steve's case, even after reverting to a partially human shape, he still bears marks of the mutation the virus caused on him. Thus, it may be that this is indeed a proof that the T-Veronica virus gives their carriers the ability to control their bodies' mutations, to a certain extent.
