Resident Evil: Caliban Cove - Plot Summary

Plot Summary

The novel takes place between the events of the Umbrella Conspiracy (Resident Evil 1) and City of the Dead (Resident Evil 2) & Nemesis (Resident Evil 3) and centers around Rebecca Chambers. After a call from Barry about the Umbrella investigation, she heads to his house where she meets David Trapp, strategist and captain of the STARS Exeter branch.

David informs Rebecca that another incident has occurred at another Umbrella facility, in Caliban Cove, Maine. Just when Chris and Jill come in, David continues his briefing, which includes a list of people involved in or with the Caliban Cove facility. One of the names Rebecca knows as Nicholas Griffith, a former biochemist who had disappeared after being fired from a university.

Umbrella forces, led by STARS members, attack Barry's house. Rebecca takes one out; some others are suspected to be dead. The team takes refuge in Brad "Chickenheart" Vicker's home. After a little talk, Rebecca and David set out and leave on a plane for Exeter.

At Caliban Cove, Dr. Griffith stands atop a lighthouse, musing on his latest and greatest accomplishment: a virus that robs humans of their ability to make decisions, while keeping their intellect; they become efficient servants to whoever orders them. Griffith has already used his new virus on three other scientists at the Cove facility, and none of them can make any decisions outside of what Griffith tells them. Griffith muses that once he gives his "gift" to the wind everyone will be free.

At Exeter, in the home of STARS forensics officer Karen Driver, David briefs his own team, composed of himself, Rebecca, Steve Lopez, John Andrews, and Karen. They set out, collect the equipment they need, and begin the Caliban Cove mission with no STARS backup.

After a botched insertion in which giant bottom-feeders called "Leviathans" attack the squad and force them ashore, the team manages to make its way through the base's grounds, solving riddles that let them progress through the area as well as dealing with Umbrella's newest creation, called "Trisquads," which are essentially zombies who have retained enough intelligence and motor capabilities to use automatic weapons. When Karen Driver is accidentally infected with the T-virus after touching contaminated blood, the others rush through the many caves and underground tunnels searching for the bases' lab, fending off more of Umbrella's biological monstrosities. Steve takes Karen and manages to find the labs, but the two are then taken captive by Griffith. Karen turns into a zombie and kills one of Griffith's servant zombies while Griffith injects a stunned Steve with the T-virus. Under Griffith's orders, Steve lures Rebecca, David, and John into a trap in which John is severely wounded. Griffith then orders Steve to lock Rebecca and David in an airlock chamber and flood it. He then orders Steve to kill himself, which he does. As the chamber floods, Rebecca notices Karen's body and remembers that she carried a WWII "pineapple" fragmentation grenade with her as a good luck charm from her father. David pries the pin out of the ancient explosive and jams it in between the screen door and inside door of the chamber. The resulting explosion forces the outside door to open, allowing Rebecca and David to swim to the surface and to safety. The explosion forces the inside door to blow off its hinges, killing Griffith instantly. On the surface, David and Rebecca are picked up by STARS personnel that Barry Burton has managed to get into contact with. While divers are retrieving the canisters of T-virus in the flooded labs, rescue workers also manage to find John, who, despite his wounds, has survived the explosion and was sucked out through the airlock when the grenade went off. The book ends with John transported to a hospital and Rebecca and David asleep in the light of the coming day.