Short stories

Virus

What can be more terrifying than death? The fact of not being totally dead, if you know what this is about. From wandering on earth without a purpose… and glassy eyes and moaning all the time… Always stand without being aware of what surrounds you.

When there is no more room in hell, the dead will walk the Earth.

* * * * *

In the early sixties, the small town of Forest prospered greatly due to its coal mine. Almost everyone was working or occupied a job directly or indirectly related with the mine. Everything was interconnected in the city. The people knew everyone. The crime rate was only a small percentage across the country. In short, life flowed peacefully.

Unfortunately, everything changed when the prosperity of the mine decreased during the eighties. An economic crisis forced the company to cut some positions, from bosses to little workers. Although profits weren’t very high, the owners of the mining company refused to close it completely. In a major earthquake, a crack dug in the wall of the deepest galleries. This had the effect of revealing the presence of a viscous substance of unknown origin. They discovered it was in fact organic. They decided to use this material. Galleries underwent significant changes. The entire complex – underground and surface offices – was transformed into a research center. New jobs were created and the city quickly became a great metropolis.

During the research, the organic slime showed them some of its healing properties. The most common forms of cancer would be treated with special injections made in the laboratory. Patients flocked to undergo the necessary treatment for their next healing.

The city lived again.

A horrible incident occurred inside the city. A former patient whom doctors had previously given only two months to live was home when she had a sudden illness. Blood trickled from her mouth. Nobody dared to approach her. What happened to her? A researcher with over twenty years of experience couldn’t explain what was happening. The patient was placed in isolation in order to be observed and tested again. In solitary confinement, she began to scream and tear her hair while frantically clawing her face. When the medical staff tried to approach her, her aggressive rate increased drastically. So she was strap on a bed. She died two hours after admission.

An autopsy was performed on the body on the recently deceased to understand what happened. The treatment worked very well. The first mistake was made: the body should have been burned and not studied.

* * * * *

They deepened their research about the mixture found at the scene of the tragedy. There was something inside of the mixture: the liquid found in the wall of the mine transferred in contact with human DNA, changing into a virus that didn’t seem contagious. Forensic examined the remains of the crew. One of the researchers was suffering from ordinary influenza virus. In any way, the virus came in contact with the liquid, making it very unstable. The company choose to hide it from all employees…  Not wanting to create a wave of panic, they said during a press conference that the researchers had perished in a fire accidentally triggered. Under secrecy, the new virus was isolated by a small team to study it more carefully. A second tragedy took place within this new team of researchers. It was the last to occur within the complex…

* * * * *

“Carl?” Margaret launched. “What are you doing?”

“Your combination!” Bill exclaimed, pointing at the gloved finger stained with blood. “What did you do?”

Carl groaned, blood dripping from his chin. He suddenly turned, spraying his colleagues with his blood. Then he fell to the ground.

“Call emergency!” Bill ordered, kneeling near Carl. “He had a heart attack!”

“Is he dead?” Margaret asked.

Bill didn’t have time to answer. Carl opened his eyes again – a glassy white covered with a milky white veil – and he grabbed the forearm and pulled it to his lips, teeth prominently showing.

“My God!” Margaret screamed.

Blood spurted when Bill was savagely bitten by Carl. Margaret rushed to the door, but in her panic, she had completely forgotten the access code. She frantically began to bang the door, asking someone to come and open it. She knew she was wasting her time. Nobody heard her because their laboratory was isolated. She turned to the console at the right of the door to press the emergency button. An alarm system was activated inside the complex. Other employees looked at each other, not knowing if it was a fire drill or a real emergency. Security officers threw a sudden gaze on the screens to detect where the alert came from. They saw with horror that the laboratory furthest in the complex was on alert. On the screen, they could see a woman hammered against the door. There were bodies on the ground, lying in a pool of blood. They had to send an emergency team to clean up as soon as possible. They contacted the central office to inform them of the situation. The response that followed left them puzzled: the complete evacuation of the complex was not necessary because not justified, but the cleaning staff was a priority.

“They are not serious!” one of the guards muttered. “There’s blood everywhere!”

A small team of four men was sent to the scene in a hurry. The glass door was smeared with blood. The men looked at each other before slowly insert the magnetic card into the slot to open the door. Aside from the blood, the room seamed empty. One of the men contacted by radio the security station of the complex.

“Do you see someone in the lab?”

“There’s no one? Yet they were still there a few minutes before you entered… I don’t understand…”

He frowned, scanning the screens. He saw absolutely no one else in the room except the team sent.  He was about to ask them to leave when he saw movement from the corner of his eye.

“Get the hell out of there!” the security guard screamed.

But it was too late. What had once been Carl jumped on one of the agents, screaming wildly. He pulled him and bit him, snatching a large flap of flesh. The blood spurted from the wound while the agent was trying to get rid of him. His colleagues tried to rescue him, but Bill and Margaret came upon them, ready to bite. In the control room, the officers tried to prevent access to the lab, but the creatures had already fled after massacred all the cleaning crew. The alert was given again, but received the same answer. They couldn’t believe what they were hearing! When the big bosses would wake up and admit that there was an emergency? On the screen, a long bloody trail covered the floor of the once pristine corridor.

* * * * *

An important meeting was held to announce the news to all employees. Surprise and consternation could be read on their faces. They knew about the company’s difficulties, but they didn’t think that would happen just as quickly. A disgruntled employee decided to make a ruckus to show his anger. Others joined him. The result was catastrophic for everyone. While they attacked the underground laboratories of biological and bacteriological research, a massive fire broke out, causing a spectacular explosion. Recalcitrant were killed on the spot, but the other employees present at the meeting met a very painful and slow death.

And the viscous liquid had a particular reaction.

Emergency services rushed to the scene to try to contain and extinguish the large fire that was still raging in the building surface. The heat was unbearable. The flames were burning everything in its path, spreading a foul smell. Firefighters did their best to control the fire while paramedics stood ready to respond to the discovery of a body or a survivor.

* * * * *

Everything happened very quickly. No connection with a terrorist attack. I used to work for this company. Now, it doesn’t matter anymore. It’s very dangerous to keep secrets. In less than twelve hours, there wasn’t much left of the little town I grew up. But since it’s a virus, things didn’t stop there. As a horrible contagious disease, the horror spread everywhere, scattering terror. Not only in Forest: everywhere. The army tried to stop the spread by a large household: burn and kill all those who have been bitten or looked very sick. The strategy didn’t work. Many innocent people were killed.

The deadliest viruses on Earth was released and managed to destroy almost all the human race. And all because of a simple heart attack. It’s therefore true to say that things can change with a single heart beat.

THE END