Exocels (Cold Fear)
The Exocels are parasites that feature in Cold Fear.
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History
The origin of the Exocels was not known except that they lived deep beneath the Earth for an unknown number of years; whether they were a native species or an alien one was never explained. In the 20th century, a branch of the Russian Mafia led by Dmitri Yusupov established an oil drilling platform as a base of operations deep in the sea. Called the Star of Sakhalin, during drilling the creatures that were later called Exocels emerged onto the surface where they reached the platform. Yusupov had a number of scientists such as Doctor Kamsky study the creatures in order to find a means of controlling them. Others such as Pavel Bakharev were also involved in the study but he quickly discovered that Kamsky wanted to use the creatures as a means of developing biological weapons from the Exocels. This proved to be a profitable business as each prototype alone was worth 150,000 USD. However, as time went on, the patience of the Russian Mafia cartel went thin and Yusopov began strongarming Viktor to work for him. This act eventually drove Viktor insane and he decided to unleash the Exocels on not only the platforms but one of their ships called the Eastern Spirit as well. Thus, began a period of infection and deaths as the parasites used their hosts to either kill uninfected humans or use them for infestation.
During this time, CIA agent Barnett learnt of the Exocels and their presence on the Eastern Spirit and decided to seize a sample of the creatures in hopes of getting a profit through researching them. Thus, he dispatched a SEAL team to investigate the ship but all its members were killed much to Barnett's dismay. Later, howevr, the United States Coast Guard got involved and boarded the ship. Similar to the earlier SEAL team, its members were killed except for one lone individual by the name of Tom Hansen and Barnett decided to use the Coast Guard to achieve his goals. During this time, Hansen fought the Exocels along with their hosts onboard the Eastern Spirit and later on the Star of Sakhalin where he succeeded in ending the menace the creatures posed to the world.
The Exocel parasitic entities initiated their initial documented outbreak after being unearthed during subterranean drilling operations beneath an oil rig, leading to their containment and subsequent weaponisation inside a research facility. Following a deliberate breach of isolation protocols, the free-roaming organisms spread through the facility and onto a nearby transport vessel, targeting both living and deceased human subjects for biological takeover. The parasites forced entry into the mouths of their targets, dissolving into a microscopic cellular form before reforming directly around the host's brain and spinal column to override all motor functions and terminate normal cognitive processes. Operating through these reanimated human shells, the organisms compelled their hosts to display extreme, non-verbal aggression, utilizing firearms and blunt weapons to systematically hunt down and neutralize uninfected security personnel and investigating military squads. When an infected carrier sustained fatal physical damage, the internal parasite actively decoupled from the compromised tissue and ejected itself from the host's facial or cranial cavity to locate and infect a new target. The collective population maintained this offensive loop across both maritime structures, attempting to expand their infection vector to the mainland until localized thermal and ballistic countermeasures permanently neutralized the primary biological strains.
Overview
In appearance, the Exocels were a non-terrestrial species of parasitic invertebrates that bore a distinct, structural resemblance to a cross between a large marine crustacean and an aggressive, multi-limbed arachnid. The core of the organism consisted of a dense, bulbous, and translucent central carapace exhibiting a mottled, dark greyish-blue or bruised purple coloration, with internal organs and pulsating biological fluids partially visible beneath the slippery, wet chitinous shell. Extending symmetrically from the lateral sides of this main body mass were multiple pairs of jointed, insectoid legs tipped with sharp, hooked pincers that allowed the creature to rapidly scurry, leap, and anchor itself to organic tissue with immense physical force. The anterior region of the parasite lacked a traditional facial structure or eyes, instead featuring a centralized, highly muscular, and elongated proboscis tube lined with micro-teeth designed to forcibly enter a host's oral cavity. The posterior end of the entity tapered down into several thin, highly flexible, and whip-like neural tentacles that actively twitched to sense environmental vibrations and heat signatures. When inside a human host, the organism shrank or elongated its elastic muscle structures to completely envelop the human brain stem, while its external legs remained folded tightly until a host's skull fractured, causing the sharp appendages to burst outward through the facial tissue.
A specimen of this species appeared as a small animal sized creature with a light brownish skin stone with a flexible shaped body. Its legs resembled tentacles of which it possessed five such appendages that were able to shoot out and latch onto distant locations. When not doing so, it used them as legs to move about its environment in its relentless search for host bodies. When finding one; either dead or alive, the Exocel simply used its appendages to force its way into the hosts mouth whereupon it commandeered the body. Dead specimens were instantly under the control of the Exocel and displayed zombie-like behaviour with a single minded purpose as they ruthlessly as well as bloodily attacked any non-infected individuals. A living host eventually succumbed to the creatures control.
The Exocel parasites possessed the biological capability to instantly reanimate both living and completely deceased human bodies by forcibly entering the oral cavity and wrapping their neural appendages around the host's brain stem. Upon securing this neural connection, the organisms exerted absolute mechanical control over the host's musculoskeletal system, bypassing the need for vital organ function and allowing the host body to move dynamically even after sustaining catastrophic, otherwise fatal trauma to the chest, torso, or limbs. The species demonstrated high physical agility and leaping abilities in their unattached state, using their muscular, jointed limbs to launch themselves across several meters to strike a prospective target's face. When piloting a host, the parasites preserved the host's pre-existing motor skills, granting them the ability to sprint, scale ladders, and accurately aim and fire military-grade firearms against uninfected individuals. The organisms also exhibited an advanced cellular regeneration capability that constantly repaired damaged host tissue, which rendered the controlled bodies entirely immune to standard ballistic wounds unless the parasite itself was directly destroyed via a high-impact headshot or incinerated with fire. Furthermore, the creatures possessed a unique detachment skill, allowing them to violently burst out of a critically compromised host skull to escape and immediately seek out a fresh biological replacement.
Initially, infection was irreversible though an antidote was eventually developed that allowed for killing of the parasite whilst it was within its host body. Furthermore, when its host was killed, sometimes the parasite jettisoned from the dead body and attempted to take its killer as a new host. Other times, a host that had been repeatedly shot and seemingly killed could be reanimated by the Exocel making them very dangerous creatures as an apparently dead host could instantly spring back to life.
Hosts
- Viktor Kamsky :
- Dmitri Yusupov :
- Yuri Anischenko :
Notes
- The Exocels were created by Jerome Snyder Reneaum and Darkworks where they featured in the setting of the Cold Fear universe.
Appearances
- Cold Fear:
