Variant Alpha was an antidote to the bacteria mutation common to the Kathol Rift, developed by Doctor Vin Emil. Variant Alpha was heavily mutated strain, run through several million generations in only a few weeks. The result was a strain that was ten percent more voracious. Due to the two strains sharing basic genetic information, and the dominant nature of Alpha which would allow the bacteria to live longer if it did not eat so much, it would advance the mutation to the Alpha stage within a few hours.