A planet with a mix of deathworlders and havenworlders, one of the few planets to have such a mixed colony, is struck by an unusual virus. For the havenworlders, it's painful, it makes them very, very sick, but it is survivable, mostly. Though there have been casualties and other side-effects. For the deathworlders, it's just as painful, but worse, the virus is mostly fatal if contracted. And the survivors are usually in very bad shape. The disease is also, unfortunately, extremely contagious between the two populations. And, contrary to what some conspiracy people are trying to spread, it's a natural virus, native to their world.
The entire planet is under quarantine, and it's a race against the clock to save as many as possible. But some who are starting to panic with the rumors it could escape off-world are considering a very unpalatable solution indeed. Abandon the colony, scorch all that's there, and label the planet uninhabitable due to its virology. Now it comes down to who can be saved, or will fear get its way? -- Anon Guest
The good news was that there was a ninety percent survival rate with moderate medical intervention. The bad news was the close to hundred percent infection rate, and the panic surrounding that. There was nothing like a pandemic to create an equal pandemic of panic amongst the populace. What was odd was the difference between the Havenworlders and the Humans who were suffering. The Humans, usually steadfast and patently unkillable, were dying from the disease. Well. Complications from the disease. They were the ones who needed more severe medical intervention. They were the ones for whom early diagnosis made the difference.
Humans had been through this sort of thing before. The instant that the virus proved to be deadlier for them than anyone else, they initiated severe protocols. Neighbourhoods, then houses, then family members were isolated behind barriers and sterile environments. The knowledge of how it spread was as vital as the knowledge of how to defeat it. So far, the best option for Humanity was to avoid catching it in the first place.
The Havenworlders sharing the planet with them were paranoid. If the disease killed Deathworlders, then what hope did they have? The news that it used the Humans' "kill or cure" immune system against them did not hearten the S'sithans facing the disease. Many feared death. More feared spreading the plague to the remainder of the Galactic Alliance.
The shared colony of Bigger Bognor was shut off from the Alliance. Supplies came down to the planet by automated drone. Experts came in apocalypse-rated livesuits and special, sterile habitats to live in whilst they worked. Delivery systems for the colonists also arrived by automated drones. Hospitals there became a series of airlocks to prevent anything spreading anywhere. The Humans knew every method to stop a disease from spreading and they were going to use them.
The S'sithans, far less effected by the virus, were pondering the incineration option. Burn the entire world and everything on it, including the colony and the colonists. They saw it as a noble sacrifice for the greater good, and was a guarantee to eliminate the virus natural to the planet. Fortunately for the colony, the colonists, and the greater portion of the Galactic Alliance, calmer heads prevailed.
Those who methodically isolated the cause, farmed the virus in laboratory conditions, and created the vaccine. Then created versions of the vaccine. Finally, they encoded a new variant of the immunoflu that would provide the most effective barrier against the disease - herd immunity.
It took them months, but they did it. Months of working on the cure whilst others worked their hearts to pieces in their attempts to save the suffering. No warriors in history ever fought so hard for so long. No heroes ever expected no further reward but the simple fact that the colony would survive.
How did the Humans celebrate the fact that their colony was not blown to smithereens? Fireworks, of course.
[Image (c) Can Stock Photo / Catmando]
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