Wildfire Virus (2024)

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Wildfire virus is a contagious disease that creates zombies in AMC's The Walking Dead Television Universe. The virus originated from la Biomédicine DDMI in France and was discovered by the Center for Disease Control on April 16, 2010. The disease quickly spread worldwide and was declared a pandemic on August 25, 2010. The outbreak caused the collapse of society, which resulted in the end of modern civilization and the near extinction of the human species.

The virus initially transmits through airborne particles and possibly direct contact. Following death, Wildfire reactivates the hindbrain and resurrects deceased hosts into mindless, aggressive vectors for the virus. Zombies will attempt to devour any living beings; spreading the active agent through bites, scratches, and other forms of contamination. The active agent results in an infection that causes death within 48 hours and subsequent resurrection. Due to the high infection and mortality rate, the planet was overrun by reanimated hosts.

Cause[]

Wildfire is initially a latent viral infection that spreads via airborne transmission. After a person has become infected with the inactive virus, it will become active when the host ceases all biological functions. Following death from any method, except extreme head trauma, the infected host will reanimate as the virus reactivates the hindbrain and preserves most of its bodily functions to slow the decaying process.

A deceased host can reanimate anywhere from three minutes to eight hours after death. As the hindbrain begins to reactivate, violent and ravenous images invade the brain's thought process. Deceased hosts that died with violent thoughts and adrenaline have markedly shorter resurrection times compared to those who died in a weaker state.^[1] Sex, age, race, and body mass have been theorized to affect the resurrection times, as well.

Due to the hindbrain, such as the brainstem and cerebellum, being the sole part that is reactivated; it causes zombies to regain sensory input and movement, but deprives them of higher brain function. Zombies will act on a mindless, animal instinct and aggression to feed; and will kill and devour any living or recently deceased beings that are still fresh. They have no sense of self or control.

Transmission[]

Inactive[]

Wildfire initially spreads via airborne transmission, possibly direct contact or waterborne, with a 99.9% infection rate. A viral latent infection, Wildfire results in the host becoming an asymptomatic carrier. It spreads throughout the blood and concentrates in the central nervous system. Due to the time period from when the virus was first discovered to when the planet was overrun with zombies, it's possible there is a clinical latency period that lasts several weeks or months before a person can be resurrected by the virus.

Active[]

Once a deceased host is reanimated, its bodily fluids contain an active agent of Wildfire - namely blood and saliva. Infection of the active agent is transmissible through biting, scratching, or contaminating an open wound. Upon entering the bloodstream of a healthy individual, the active agent will spread and invade the brain like meningitis and cause a cytokine storm. The adrenal glands hemorrhage, resulting in the brain and major organs to shut down, followed by death. Once the active agent spreads, it has a near 100% mortality rate.

The time from infection to death varies depending on the severity, placement, and number of infection sites - as well as other possible conditions such as the reanimated age of the zombie and blood loss. Ultimately, infection kills a healthy individual within 48 hours after exposure. Ingesting the active agent or exposure to the eyes can cause a serious, but many times treatable, infection, although this is suggested to simply be an illness caused by the bacteria that is present in the corpse rather than the virus itself. Similarly, contaminating a water source with infected blood can result in cholera when ingested.

Signs and Symptoms[]

The initial Wildfire infection is asymptomatic. An active infection following a bite, scratch, or contamination of an open wound displays the following symptoms after it has spread in a healthy individual:

• Dizziness
• Weakness and fatigue
• Fever
• Delirium/hallucinations
• Chills
• Nausea/vomiting
• Pale skin
• Dilated pupils
• Soreness
• Fluid discharge
• Spontaneous aggression or anger
• Fainting
• Dehydration
• Hemoptysis (coughing up blood)
• Internal hemorrhaging
• Organ failure

Variants[]

There are many variants of Wildfire. Some are believed to be of particular importance due to their potential for increased virulence or reduced effectiveness of defenses against them. Aside from the French variant, it is unknown what causes the physiological differences in those affected by the variant strains. Those reanimated with a variant can have increased speed, agility, strength, aggression, and problem-solving intelligence than their original counterparts. Incidents have been recorded of zombies being able to climb walls, open doors, and interact with objects. These particular hosts have been dubbed "climbers" by survivors. Other forms of variants who return to places they remember are referred to as "roamers", as they also display recognition of people, places, and objects from when they were alive. The most common form of variants seen are referred to as "lurkers", who enter a state of dormancy until alerted by an external presence.

During the Trials, French scientists in la Biomédicine DDMI experimented with cardiac plaques as a host-medium for steroidal therapies to jump-start the circulatory system in the hopes of short-circuiting the brain, or possibly regaining function to cause nerve confusion, as way of activating systems to work against reanimation. This experiment caused a new variant. The virology is mostly the same. However, the resurrection time is significantly accelerated to less than one minute. While the main virus is known to have a three minute resurrection time, most people reanimate at least one hour after death. This variant also causes extreme agility, aggression, strength, and problem-solving intelligence.

Another variant seen only in France is burners, which are walkers that have developed acidic blood. Their mere touch can burn a survivor and, according to the nuns of the Abbey of Saint Bernadette, cauterization is the best way to treat such a wound. Otherwise, it will continue to spread independently, and it can cause the loss of limbs and life even in survivors who would otherwise have not perished from a similar encounter with a regular walker. However, their blood does not appear to be acidic enough to damage or destroy the weapons used on them, meaning that they can be killed without survivors risking destroying their main means of defense against zombies.

While variants are fairly rare in the United States aside from the occasional roamer or lurker, they are much more common in France with one survivor noting that the burner variant is "just one kind" of zombie in France.

Diagnosis[]

The only known diagnosis for Wildfire is a blood test. Due to the infection rate, it's assumed the entire human population is infected. The diagnosis for the active infection is observation of symptoms and signs of infection. Usual signs of infection are bite marks, fingernail scratches, or contaminated wounds.

Prevention[]

Following death, the deceased's brain must be penetrated or destroyed as soon as possible to prevent reanimation, eliminating the risk of contamination and exposure. Additional precautions include placing a critical or deceased patient in restraints and relocating them to a separate, secured room. When neutralizing zombies, the only method is extreme head trauma; which causes the host to permanently die. While dangerous to attempt, the removal of the zombie's teeth and arms can cause them to enter a docile state, rendering them harmless.

In the event of infestation, camouflage is a means of survival and escape. A zombie's senses remain somewhat intact, but decay overtime. They can detect behaviors and characteristics that separate them from the living; and can also detect fast movements, light, loud sounds, smell, and physical sensations. The safest and most sanitary method of camouflage is wearing the skin of zombies after it has been tanned and leathered. Covering oneself in the fluids of a zombie can result in producing a similar odor, as smell is their main method of detecting the living. Dressing in their blood and viscera is one option - although the blood can dry or be washed off, and can sometimes cause an infection if exposed to orifices. Mud is also another option, although it may not be as effective and has the same risks of losing its odor. Tethering zombies after they have been rendered docile is viable, but is very dangerous to attempt. Regardless of the method, one must also maintain a similar behavior, such as shuffling and low sounds. Moving too fast or making too much noise can cause detection from zombies despite being camouflaged.

Treatment[]

There is no known cure for Wildfire. For the active infection, radiotherapy is the main form of treatment. Radiation weakens the infection and allows the body's immune system to fight it. However, the patient risks radiation poisoning due to the amount needed to stop the infection. It's possible there may also be a genetic factor for the survival of those treated with radiation, although it is currently unknown. Otherwise, antibiotics are ineffective against the infection. Certain medicines can alleviate symptoms for palliative care and can extend the lifespan, although no one survives past 48 hours after exposure. An alternative treatment is amputation if infection is on the limb. The process has minutes before the infection spreads throughout the body.

History[]

It is believed the Wildfire Virus was created in France, originating from la Biomédicine DDMI by the Primrose Team. A conversation between one of the scientists from Violet Team and a vigilante reveals that the lab created the virus for experimental purposes. Wildfire was discovered by the Center for Disease Control on 16 April 2010. While recorded incidents were initially scarce, cases were eventually discovered by the public within four months. Media outlets reported on a virus that caused aggression and cannibalism, while others reported on incidents of dead people coming back to life. Many civilians dismissed these stories as sensationalist hype.

On August 25, 2010, Wildfire was declared a global pandemic by the CDC. The Primrose Team traveled to a conference in Toledo, Ohio in order to aid in fighting the virus. On August 27, 2010, the virus reached cataclysmic levels as the standard mortality rate reanimated and attacked the living - causing civil unrest and the collapse of modern society as a result of massive panic, rioting, looting, widespread blackouts, communication jams, and overwhelmed emergency services. Most countries declared martial law within twenty-four hours in an attempt to contain the spread of the virus. The United States Army Command enacted Operation Cobalt to contain the spread of infection, protect civilians in designated safe-zones, and reoccupy metropolitan areas. Two weeks after the start of the Trials, military safe-zones became overrun. On September 9, 2010, at 0900 PST, the contingency plan of Cobalt, drafted in the event the safe-zones proved difficult to defend, was enacted. All military personnel were ordered to humanely terminate civilian refugees and withdraw from the safe-zones to military bases for further recollection of troops. At 2100 PST, all major urban areas were napalmed. With world governments and militaries dissolved, human civilization effectively collapsed on September 10, 2010. Manhattan was determined to be one of the epicenters and, as a city of a million and a half people, the military destroyed all of the bridges and tunnels leading in and out in an attempt to contain the dead within the city.

In early September, la Biomedicine DDMI was reportedly close to finding a cure. The Violet Team experimented with cardiac plaques to short-circuit the brain rather than allow it to reanimate. This created an adverse variant that massively reduced the resurrection times and increased the aggression, strength, and intelligence of zombies. It quickly spread through Europe. With Primrose Team being in the United States, the work was incomplete. Violet Team was interrupted by vigilantes and were imprisoned for creating Wildfire and its variant. The French were unable to acquire the Primrose Team due to them being in America during the outbreak, and vowed to execute them if found. American virologist Dr. Candace Jenner was bitten when Atlanta and the CDC were overrun. Due to the difficulty of examining dead flesh, Candace elected to have her infection and reanimation be documented for study by her husband, Dr. Edwin Jenner. After her death and reanimation were recorded, Edwin shot Candace in the head and collected her brain samples for study. Edwin lost contact with the French scientists and realized that there was no one else working to fight the virus. On October 26, 2010, Candace's samples were lost in a high-impulse thermobaric (HITs) fuel-air explosive decontamination employed by the CDC's virtual intelligence, Vi, following a corrosive chemical leak. The CDC's gasoline reserves were exhausted, and the facility lost power, causing the CDC to be destroyed in the HIT explosion on October 27, 2010, along with Edwin, to contain the spread of viruses stored in the lab.

In 2014, Alicia Clark contracted the active infection from a walker bite to her arm despite her attempt to stop it through amputation. However, rather than quickly succumbing to the infection, Alicia's body fought it for four months before eventually overcoming it, leaving Alicia as the first known survivor of the active infection. Over the next seven years, June Dorie began work on a treatment to the infection from walker bites. June came to the realization that Alicia's ability to fight off the infection for so long was due to her previous exposure to high levels of radiation. June performed radiotherapy on bite victims brought to her by PADRE. However, while radiotherapy was able to stop the infection, the required levels of radiation to stop it outright were themselves fatal to the patients. As a result, June abandoned her work and fled after dozens of people died in her experiments, which she had been forced to continue by Shrike. June's treatment only worked on the active infection as her patients still reanimated after inevitably dying of radiation poisoning.

In 2020, ten years into the outbreak, Lieutenant Elizabeth Kublek of the CRM tells Hope Bennett that the North American continent and, as far as the CRM can tell, the whole world, are overrun by herds so big that they just break through everything, and run through everything, including whole cities.

Sometime in 2020, one of the scientists from Violet Team returned to la Biomédicine DDMI hoping that Primrose Team had also returned to continue their work in fighting Wildfire, but the facility was still abandoned. After copying and viewing files from hard drives created by Drs. Edwin Jenner and Terry Ellis, the scientist was executed by a vigilante and quickly reanimated after.

In February 2022, June Dorie was recaptured by Padre's soldiers and forced to resume her work on a treatment to the active infection. Shrike had Finch bitten as incentive and prepared to bring in new test subjects for June's research. With less than a week of radiotherapy, Finch was completely treated for his infection - making him the second known person to survive a bite. However, Shrike believed that a genetic factor contributed to Alicia and Finch's survival. With Alicia's mother, Madison Clark, in their custody, Shrike hoped to understand why Alicia survived by experimenting on Madison. The intervention of Mo allowed June to overpower her and Madison's captors, capture Shrike, and escape. Although Shrike recaptured the two women and intended to force June to resume her experiments once again, they were rescued by Daniel Salazar and his group, putting a final end to the experiments. However, it is later discovered that the effects of the treatment were only temporary on Finch because June hadn't used enough radiation to stop the infection completely, afraid that it would kill Finch. Under June's direction, Mo tries a higher dose of the treatment on Grace who already has terminal cancer from radiation exposure, meaning that being given a lethal level of radiation for treatment won't matter. However, it doesn't work, either because the level still wasn't enough or because it was already too late which is a possibility as Grace was barely still alive when Mo tried treating her. Grace ultimately succumbs to the infection while June begins trying to find a way to get her cure to work on Finch who starts dying of his returned infection. However, Finch later succumbs to the infection as well.

In April 2022, climber variants concentrated within the state of Ohio and were able to climb the walls and overrun the Commonwealth. The climbers used tools to break down the city's defenses. While many survivors had seen some traits of the variants before, the sheer number of variants within the herd was uncommon to the residents of the Commonwealth and considered them too dangerous to lead away, resorting to destroying the Estates with explosives in order to destroy the herd completely. This was the first known time that American survivors had encountered variants in such numbers since the early days of the outbreak when variants such as climbers were a little more common and seen in herds in overrun cities such as Atlanta. Previously, survivors were used to occasional variants such as roamers or lurkers, and were so caught off guard by the climbers that a small group had initially thought that a single climber that they had encountered was a human in a walker mask. This lone encounter with a variant was shortly before the battle at the Commonwealth with the larger concentration of variants.

Following the events at the Commonwealth, Daryl Dixon was captured in America and taken by ship to France, although he escaped along the way. The organization known as Power of the Living were revealed to be collecting test subjects from at least North America and possibly the rest of the world, although the purpose of their research has yet to be revealed. In France, Daryl learned of the existence of walker variants such as burners that did not exist in the former United States of America and that variants were far more common there.

Research[]

Wildfire was created by la Biomédicine DDMI in France for unknown experimental purposes. It was discovered in April 2010 by the Center for Disease Control in the United States of America. Since then, research on the virus was done leading up to and during the Trials. The scientists at the CDC were unaware of the virus's true nature and origin. Meanwhile, the scientists of la Biomédicine DDMI attempted to fight against the virus by using cardiac plaques in order to jump-start the circulatory system for the brain to divert and confuse the reanimation process. However, this led to a variant which drastically reduced the reanimation time and increased the intelligence and aggression of its host. Both la Biomédicine DDMI and the Center for Disease Control lost contact in October 2010. La Biomédicine DDMI was invaded by a group of vigilantes, and the scientists there were imprisoned. The Center for Disease Control was overrun and mostly abandoned, and eventually destroyed two months after the Trials occurred by its own A.I. following the loss of power in an effort to contain biological hazards.

After the Trials began and fall of human civilization, the Civic Republic of Philadelphia began researching the virus in order to cure the disease, eliminate the zombies as a mobile active threat, and delay or possibly even prevent the reanimation process altogether. This process continued to be studied by the Civic Republic throughout 2020. The other members of the Alliance of the Three from Portland, Oregon; Omaha, Nebraska and the Campus Colony were also working towards finding a cure, which culminated in a science exchange program with scientists sent to the Civic Republic Research Facility in Ithaca, New York to form a united scientific front. Most test subjects were compiled of living survivors outside the Alliance who were intentionally infected and trafficked by a contracted party in exchange for supplies. Other tests subjects were pulled from the Civic Republic Health and Welfare Center.

One of the achievements at the Civic Republic Research Center, brought about by Dr. Leopold Bennett, was successfully fusing a biorecorder to the brain stem of a host, which in turn provided the scientists with troves of useful data, including behavioral patters that indicate the virus' responses to certain stimuli. With the assistance of Dr. T. Brooks Ellis and Hope Bennett, the scientists began infecting the dead with strains of fungi grown on necrotic flesh, specifically yeast. By modifying existing fungi, it accelerated the dead's rate of decay and neutralized them as active and mobile threats. Dr. Lyla Belshaw developed a chlorine gas with an intra-cerebral injection of algae-derived chemical extracts that delayed the time between death and reanimation to eight hours. Chlorine gas is lethal to inhale and was later used as a chemical weapon of mass destruction against the Civic Republic's own allies of Omaha and Campus Colony to eliminate stretched resources and to ensure martial law over the Civic Republic's citizens.

In 2014, Alicia Clark was bitten on the arm by a walker. Despite amputating it, the infection spread. However, Alicia managed to fight off the infection and overcame it after four months. After joining PADRE, Alicia's friend June Dorie had to treat Hannah, who had been bitten on the back by a walker during a supply-run. June believed Alicia's survival was attributed to radiation as Alicia had been exposed to high levels of radiation years before while fighting a radioactive walker. Hannah survived the infection but died from radiation poisoning. Padre employed June to administer radiotherapy on people after they were intentionally infected. Although the radiation managed to stop the infection itself, the patients died from radiation poisoning due to the levels required to stop it outright. The unethical experiments caused June to flee PADRE. In 2022, June was forced to renew the experiments after being captured by PADRE. Shrike intentionally infected Finch, the son of June's friends Dwight and Sherry, to encourage her to continue the experiments. Shrike claimed that June was close to perfecting her potential cure before she quit. June later told Madison Clark that Finch is responding to the radiation treatment, although not even a week had passed yet. June also told Madison that Shrike believed there to be a genetic reason that Alicia survived along with the radiation exposure, something that Madison may have shared. However, while anything was possible, the fact that Finch was responding to the treatment put this theory into question. It was later discovered that the effects of the treatment were only temporary on Finch because June hadn't used enough radiation to stop the infection completely, afraid that it would kill Finch. Under June's direction, Mo tries a higher dose of the treatment on Grace who already has terminal cancer from radiation exposure, meaning that being given a lethal level of radiation for treatment won't matter. However, it doesn't work, either because the level still wasn't enough or because it was already too late which is a possibility as Grace was barely still alive when Mo tried treating her. Grace ultimately succumbs to the infection while June begins trying to find a way to get her cure to work on Finch who starts dying of his returned infection. Finch would later succumb to his returned infection.

In 2023, the organization known as Power of the Living appeared to be conducting experiments of their own on the Wildfire Virus, but for unknown reasons and to unknown purposes. To this end, the Power of the Living spent three years preparing a ship to collect test subjects from at least America and possibly the rest of the world. One test subject captured by the Power of the Living or their allies was Daryl Dixon who managed to escape captivity, instigate a mutiny, destroy much of the Power of the Living's research, and flee overboard. By the time that the ship arrived in Le Havre, Normandy, the other five test subjects were walkers, and Dr. Lafleur reported to Genet that some of them may still be useful for the Power of the Living's research.

Gallery[]

Trivia[]

• Wildfire's name was revealed in the episode "Wildfire", as Dr. Edwin Jenner discusses its timeline from when it was discovered by the CDC to when it became a global pandemic.
• According to Dr. Jenner, the Wildfire Virus was discovered four months prior to becoming a global pandemic. Given that there weren't many recorded incidents up until the Trials, it's possible that the virus was originally spread person-to-person direct contact, such as water droplets. It then later became airborne, which potentially is what led the CDC to declare it a global outbreak. It's also possible that the incubation period from infection to being able to reanimate takes several months.
• Glen Mazzara elaborated on Shane becoming a zombie in "Better Angels" much faster than Amy, and not getting bit: "We worked hard to make sure that revelation landed. We knew what we were doing there. We knew it would land a punch. We've never had a main character become a zombie to this extent. Those [rapid flashes of zombie mayhem] represent the storm in Shane's brain to some extent … Amy was a weaker character. Shane is in a murderous rage … he's going to reanimate quicker. There's just more life in that zombie, believe it or not. We do have internal rules for that."^[1]

References[]