Biosphere 4 'popped' to become a sealed environment by the year 2000, and Russell began the second phase of his project, to create Synths. This became his singular project, to the point where he almost eradicated the rainforest biodome due to a fungal outbreak. In 1993, Russell shared his research regarding the Synth4 plants to his colleague, Sarah Parish, and asked for her help with the research. However, in 1995, he became too accustomed to the quick feedback loop of the biodome, and let the latest variant - Synth8 - be planted into the Biodome despite warnings from Sarah regarding their instability. After discovering that the Synths began attacking their babies within the growth chamber, Russell feared that he should have heeded Sarah's warnings though noted that oxygen could kill the strongest of Synths. He pumps oxygen in killing his creations, and he fears what he has unleashed. In the lead-up to the 10th anniversary of the Biosphere 4, Russell sent Devlin his proposed speech which pushed environmental issues. This angered Devlin who noted that he owned the project and Russell, and that it was seen as "his baby" at Subtech, so he would reassert his power if need be. In 1996, Devlin emailed Russell about workers arriving to construct a leisure resort complex in the advanced evolution biodome called Club Eden, which Russell was not happy about due to putting an end to his Synth experiments. When Devlin sent Russell a blackmailing video detailing how Russell had orchestrated an assassination of a colleague, Russell noted that Biosphere 4 was his home and that he would do anything in his power to protect it. The act of welding is turning oxygen into as the workers began to notice a change in the ecosystem, causing the air to become unfit to breathe and making them suffer from respiratory issues or exhaustion. The workers began hearing and seeing weird things (the Synths), and Russell begins making trips to the biodome, spraying fire extinguishers to lure out the Synths. Devlin instigates a policy where if the project wasn't completed, the workers would be sealed inside the dome. Devlin also disconnects power from the biodome to the main control centre so Russell can't interfere. On December 10, 1997, the biodome wired up to the terminal so they could regulate their own atmosphere, taking the power away from Russell. Soon enough, a worker is killed