Rat Monster

Name	Rat Monster
Race	Mutant
Type	Mammal
Faction	Independent
Premiere	Desideratum: Blood Bonds
Relative(s)	None Applicable

The Xenopox Virus was created at MedUSA, a laboratory, in Oregon, though as a company, its facilities are spread across the globe. The base of the chemical concoction was the actual poison of the snake god, Ophion. In ancient times, anyone that Ophion bit would become snake people, reptilians. They would bite others, and the further away from Ophion’s original victim, the less human traits the victims would keep and the more of a reptile they would appear.

The original poison used had come from an ancient unearthed relic. Using the poison as a starting point, MedUSA began testing and tweaking the properties. The original idea of the board of directors and several of the scientists was to find a way to resurrect the snake god himself, perhaps by cloning. However, all attempts using the poison, failed. They then tested the poison on animals and people. By studying the effects on a microscopic level, they grew to understand the properties of the substance better. It caused mutations of varying types and degrees based on mixing with the DNA of different organisms. After the lab was destroyed by Siri Solen, the mutants that managed to escape sought refuge in the nearby sewer system.

One strain of these fleeing mutants was the rodentians. Originally common rats, they had been exposed to the Xenopox virus and warped. They grew much larger and more ferocious than a normal rat, with longer legs, sharp claws, and a wicked bite. Unable to speak, they did gain a higher intellect than a normal rat, making them as intelligent as canines. They skitter about the sewers always looking for food. They, themselves, have become the main food source of the gator mutants of the sewers. Absinthe Van Gothen fought these mutants in the Portland Sewer System, specifically the Big Pipe Project section.