ABLS

The Office of Applied Biochemistry and Life Sciences (ABLS) was the research and development agency responsible for the development of Caphiria's offensive biological warfare program during the Occidental Cold War. ABLS was organized under the Office of Advanced Research and Development (ORAD), which makes up part of the Department of Civilian Defense.

At its peak operation, ABLS consisted of five major military-focused research institutes, numerous design & instrument-making facilities, three pilot plants, five dual-use production plants, and employed 40,000 personnel. ABLS pursued major offensive R&D programs which genetically engineered microbial strains to be resistant to an array of antibiotics. In addition, bacterial agents were created with the ability to produce various peptides, yielding songs with wholly new and unexpected pathogenic properties.

Due to its size and political importance, ABLS began to emerge as a significant influence in the civil biopharmaceutical sector during the late 20th century, as it controlled the domestic production of vaccines, antibiotics, and other essential medicines. When ABLS was dissolved in 1979, it was divested of control of all R&D institutes and manufacturing facilities, and its operations were privatized, forming several pharmaceutical companies which exist today.

Establishment
Initial interest in biological warfare came at the start of the 20th century after the events of the First Great War. Caphiria began conducting tests with the toxin ricin in 1919 and formed the Research Center of Virology (known as the RCV1 program) in 1929 to further research and study biological weapons. However, it would not be until the late 1940s, when the RCV1 program began genetic engineering projects such as the creation of viruses that manufacture toxins as well as research on bioregulators and various peptides that function in the nervous system that Caphiria's biological weapons program started to formalize. By the time the Occidental Cold War began in 1953, many politicians in Caphiria had already successfully argued that the development of biological weapons was necessary. In 1955, The RCV1 program was replaced by the Applied Biochemistry Program, which became Caphiria's first iteration of its formal biological weapons program. The ABP quickly progressed into a practical, military-driven research and production program covered in controversy and secrecy; its R&D and production projects were, from the very outset, subject to extraordinary levels of secrecy and compartmentalization. The ABP had numerous teams and offices, such as the Office of Virus Preparations, Epidemic Prevention Unit, the Water Purification Department, and more. Caphiria would hire scientists from the Far East, like Ming Pak from Daxia, to oversee its projects.

By 1960, the Applied Biochemistry Program was a massive and far-reaching endeavor: it incorporated no less than 40 facilities operating in 15 different cities and had control of the domestic production of vaccines, antibiotics, and other essential medicines. The ABP also pursued offensive research, development, and production of biological agents under the guise of legitimate civil biotechnology research. It conducted its secret activities at numerous sites across the Imperium and employed 15-20,000 people. The ABP also began conducting covert biological warfare research on human test subjects.

On 1 February 1964, the Department of Civilian Defense consolidated its various biological weapons programs under the Office of Applied Biochemistry and Life Sciences. ABLS, as it was known, was under the purview of the Office of Advanced Research and Development, which meant that it was shielded from public scrutiny as tensions from the Cold War escalated.

Operations
ABLS was a system of nominally civilian research and design institutes, pilot plants, and dual-use manufacturing facilities located across the Imperium, in which a small army of scientists and technicians worked on bacterial and viral pathogens to develop a new generation of biological weapons.

Project Vindicta
Project Vindicta was a clandestine operation conducted by ABLS. The project, which remains shrouded in secrecy, was reportedly focused on the development of advanced biological weaponry. Project Vindicta was created and led by Zaharalam Cespi, a prominent figure within the Caphiric Fascist Party. The project was reportedly conducted in a secure, undisclosed location, away from the main ABLS facilities. The project team consisted of a select group of scientists and researchers, handpicked for their expertise in various fields including genetics, microbiology, and synthetic biology.

The project was a multifaceted endeavor, involving several distinct but interconnected areas of focus. One of the primary objectives of Project Vindicta was the enhancement of existing pathogens. Under the guidance of Cespi, the team used advanced gene-editing tools to manipulate the DNA of various viruses and bacteria. The goal was to increase their virulence, making them more deadly, or to increase their resistance to known treatments, making them harder to combat. This aspect of the project raised significant ethical concerns, as it involved the deliberate enhancement of disease-causing organisms. Parallel to the pathogen enhancement efforts, another team within Project Vindicta, led by Iagilbericco Solazzinius, focused on the creation of entirely new biological weapons. This team used techniques from the emerging field of synthetic biology to design and build new life forms. These organisms were engineered to be harmful, potentially causing disease or disrupting ecosystems in targeted areas. The creation of such organisms represented a significant escalation in the potential destructiveness of biological weapons. The project also sought to develop strategies for initiating and controlling outbreaks of the diseases caused by their biological weapons. This involved the development of "trigger" mechanisms that could activate or deactivate the pathogen, potentially allowing the team to start or stop an outbreak at will. The project also explored methods for directing the spread of the pathogen, potentially allowing for the targeted infection of specific populations or areas.

Project Vindicta has been linked to several alleged atrocities, although the ABLS has never officially acknowledged the project's existence or its alleged actions.