The anti-cure is a compound developed by Peng Wu to shield the Red Flu from the cure developed by Dr. Rachel Scott. By dispersing it over countries before the arrival of the cure, Peng is able to use it to commit genocide against Asia.
Background[]
According to Doc Rios, the active ingredient in the anti-cure is a specially designed Lectin that binds to the glycoproteins in the Red Flu. The Lectin can create a coating that shields the virus from the effects of the antibody that Dr. Rachel Scott's cure produces. As a result, the virus looks bulkier under a microscope. Just six anti-cure missiles are enough to wipe out a country the size of Japan.
Anyone who already has the cure is safe as the Lectin must already be in the bloodstream in order to render the cure ineffective. Even if a woman is pregnant, the anti-cure won't affect their baby in the womb as seen with Kyoko and her son Kaito who was successfully administered the cure after birth.
A temporary treatment is shown to be the blood of a cured person who does not have the anti-cure in their systems being transfused into those affected. This alleviates the effects of the virus on Takehaya and his people for awhile. However, there is no way to permanently reverse the damage that the anti-cure causes, rendering the virus ultimately fatal to everyone who the anti-cure was used upon, and the blood transfusions become less effective over time.
Events of The Last Ship[]
Early History[]
The anti-cure is created by Peng Wu and his scientists as a means of committing genocide against the rest of Asia, leaving China as the sole power in the region. Peng smuggles the anti-cure around Asia using smuggling vessels marked with a black circle, designating them as to not be targeted by pirates.
Before the arrival of the cure, Peng spreads the anti-cure over Vietnam and Japan using missiles. Kyoko notices a strange green mist that comes in the night after the anti-cure hits Japan while Jesse spots some of the missiles being moved the day that her brother dies in Vietnam. As a result, once the people go forth to spread the contagious cure, they instead spread both it and the Red Flu which wipes out both Vietnam and Japan. Unaware of the truth, Takehaya becomes convinced that the Americans had given them a fake cure and becomes vengeful against them. Once the people have all been wiped out, Peng moves in to destroy all traces of their cultures.
Season 3[]
While delirious, Kyoko tells Sasha Cooper of a strange green mist that she saw come at night. (“In the Dark”)
After rebuilding Dr. Rachel Scott's lab, Doc Rios discovers the strange bulkiness of the virus in Takehaya and Kyoko's blood, but he is unable to explain it. The USS Nathan James raids a smuggler ship marked with the black circle heading to Taiwan and discover a missile hidden amongst the cocaine that the MSS was having smuggled. Jesse recognizes the missile as being identical to the ones she saw being moved the day her brother died. One of the pellets inside, when inadvertently triggered, releases a strange green mist which Sasha realizes is what Kyoko was talking about. Studying it, Rios determines the anti-cure's nature and reassures the crew that, having been given the cure before being exposed to the mist, they are safe. However, both Kyoko and Takehaya are doomed to die of the virus as the anti-cure's effects can't be reversed. With the smuggler ship having been heading to Taiwan, Jesse seeing the missiles near Vietnam and Kyoko having seen the mist in Japan, the crew realizes that Peng is using the anti-cure to commit genocide against Asia. After hearing about Lau Hu's failure to kill Wu Ming, Peng orders the operation against Korea to be executed immediately. (“Sea Change”)
Captain Tom Chandler reports to President Howard Oliver about the anti-cure, stating that a country the size of Japan could be wiped out with only six of these weapons, but they don't know how many there are. Based on the intel given to them by the smuggler, the Nathan James determines that the anti-cure was either picked up or manufactured on Paraiso, a small island that had acted as a US Army forward operating base during World War II. Having been mothballed in the 1950's, it was previously believed to have been uninhabited. Oliver agrees to give Chandler the USS Shackelton and the USS Hayward and orders him to go to Paraiso, find the source of the anti-cure and tie it to Peng. On Paraiso, Vulture Team, Chandler and Sasha find a population from several countries drawn by the promise of safety from the Red Flu and enslaved to work in the munitions factory. However, Peng has already emptied out the factory and Sasha determines that the missiles are intended for Korea. The Navy tracks the CNS Sea Dragon heading for Korea, but Allison Shaw warns Peng who attacks the three ships with a land battery, sinking the Shackelton and badly damaging the Hayward which has to be abandoned. Although damaged, the Nathan James is able to destroy the Sea Dragon, preventing the use of the anti-cure on Korea. (“Paradise”)
As Peng goes to the Japenese National Archives to destroy the Japenese culture, the Nathan James and Takehaya's forces attack him, killing Peng, seizing the CNS Henan and eliminating Peng's other destroyer. In the aftermath, Chandler tells Takehaya that Cobra Team had found a payload of anti-cure missiles on the Henan which, according to the crew, is the last of it. With the last of the anti-cure having been found and destroyed, the rest of Asia is safe from Peng's genocide. However, Takehaya and Kyoko are still doomed to die of the virus and choose to remain on Japanese soil to die while Takehaya's people will raise his newborn son Kaito who was successfully given the cure. (“Legacy”)