Drabbles and Containment by A Forum User

Containment Part 16

Sean POV

There was elation in my heart when I first saw her, but when I looked in her eyes I knew that she was not the same kindred spirit that I knew so long ago. Her face was harder and the emerald eyes that I could lose myself in for hours were now dull and lifeless. The first glance of recognition showed a spark, but then when she focused her glaze on me I could feel the hatred. I knew that I deserved it. While Owen gave the final word, we both made the decision to send her away.

The team moved into the lab after herding the remainder of the infected back into the cages. It seems like it is an inhumane way to treat someone, but exactly what rights to the undead have? The entire country has had to struggle with the realization that killing an infected person was often more humane then letting them roam free.

The rebel forces that occupied the camp that we are located in are either dead or in cages in the same area of the infected. With the exception of Raven, Axel's team is patrolling the perimeter of the camp while we are treating our injured. Owen is dehydrated, has a fractured rib and bruises. Silas has a broken arm, broken ribs, bruising and infected gashes on his body. I set the arm, gave him antibiotics and pain killers. He will be out of commission for a while, but I am expecting a full recovery. I also had to give Ben a sedative. When he walked in the lab and saw Sang in a cage, he went nuts and would not listen to anyone when we told him that it was for her own protection as well as ours.

That brings us back to the discussion on what we are going to do about Sang. When Raven realized that Sang was infected, he knocked her unconscious, brought her to the lab and placed her on a gurney in one of the holding cages. Everyone in the Academy knows that we have an antidote for the infection, but we also know that it is not always successful. While there is a limited supply, that is not the driving force behind any hesitation to give the antidote to Sang. I will give her as many doses necessary if we think that is can be administered safely. The side effects are the issue. Gabriel and I are trying to explain this to my brothers.

I look at everyone and say, "I realize that everyone wants to give Sang the antidote, but we have to wait for her bloodwork which should be finished within the next hour. There a several issues that we need to take into consideration."

North cuts me off and says, "I know that you have your protocols, but this is not a nameless patient. This is Sang. We owe it to her to give her the supply that you have. She was infected while saving you, that should override any protocol as to whether she deserves it or not."

Gabriel looks at him and says, "North is not about whether she deserves to get a dose. It is whether her body can handle the dose. This is not like giving someone a pain shot, or an antibiotic. It causes molecular changes to her body and if she does not have certain markers it will not work. Hell, even if she has the markers, the effect on the brain is something that we cannot always predict. I have had patients that survived the treatment, but then went into a coma and they have been in vegetative state for the last eighteen months. We have patients that have developed neurological disorders that caused them to be in a constant state of pain that is so intense no pain medication can relieve. I also have patients that awoke in a state of irreversible amnesia. Yes, they are alive, but what kind of a life is it? It is not a life that I would wish on myself or anyone that I care about. That is why we have the protocols in place. That is why the medical data is evaluated by a team that has not seen the patient. They don't know anything about them except for the test results because if you put a face to the decision then it will haunt you. You want to give the treatment to patient in hopes that it will work for them, but the truth is that sometimes the outcome is worse than if we had just allowed the person to die their second death. "Gabriel is visibly shaking when he finishes speaking.