'The Virus' - A True Pandemic

7

Chris Pike: epidemiologist

It sounded a lot cooler in Chris's head than in real life now that he actually worked the job.

Chris Pike had always been average. Average at school, average at college, average at university, average in life, average in everything. But he was the kind of person who wasn't happy with average. He wanted more. His sheer aim and objective in life were to surpass his limits of being average, step out of his comfort zone and to finally make his mark – in society and the world at large; which is why when he was offered a full scholarship and a job offer at one of the top medical bodies in the world, without even stopping to think about what he actually wanted in life or taking a minute to think about if this was what he really wanted, he immediately obliged.

And thus began Chris's life as an epidemiologist.

Least to say, he was not happy with his decisions. He had been so obsessed and provoked with making his mark on the world, to finally be recognized and to emancipate from within the average society which constricted him of any further developments, that he had no idea what he had just signed up for.

However, even though Chris wasn't one of the top epidemiologists in the world, one couldn't say that he was the worst of them – he wasn't.

He was average.

"Sir?" a scared looking young man in a lab coat knocked on his office door peeking inside like a child. "They're waiting for you," he informed.

"I'm not going," Pike replied flatly, focusing on his work and making quick short notes.

"But, sir-"

"I'm working!" Pike retaliated in sudden anger. "Make up an excuse and get them out of here!" and that was it. The young man decided that arguing further on the subject would be like banging his head against a wall. If Pike said he wasn't coming then he wasn't coming. Period.

A few days before the top epidemiologists of the world had contracted the virus and had died in a matter of hours. Immediately, Chris was promoted to the most prestigious of positions anyone could reach in his profession. Not because he deserved it, he knew he didn't because he was still only average, but because there was no one else left to hand over the position to.

They were either all dead, infected or buried deep into the ground.

Chris could feel the pressure pounding on him. He could almost taste the dissatisfaction of his bosses who expected him to outline the ratio of the pandemic and to point them towards the next most likely infected city or state so that the UN could issue warrants for lockdowns and quarantine and try and get the infection rate to a minimum.

But Chris was way in over his head and he was aware of that. This was never his field to begin with, even then he had somehow managed to hold his own for so long. But now it was just impossible...especially under such tidings. Yet, Pike was the kind of person who never ran away from a fight. He was the kind of person would go in convinced that he was going to be punched and for him, that was still a better alternative than turning his back around and running away like a coward.

That was the only reason that he had stuck to this job for so long, the only reason that he was still here in this office trying to figure out what to do next. It hadn't been easy, no doubt. The entire world was plunged into a pandemic that drove every nation to the brink of extinction. Almost half the population of the world was infected, a quarter was already dead and buried and the remaining half were trying all they could not to be infected and die as the rest did. Pike and his team were doing all they could to try and stop this disease or virus from spreading and infecting the remaining population.

But it wasn't going well. Not well at all.

More than half of his lab members had been infected and were on leave. The remaining were reluctant and hesitant to keep working but Pike had somehow convinced them to show up for as long as they had the stomach to. He knew it wasn't long until they too would leave and try to flee the city. Although, where would they go?

Pike made himself a strong cup of coffee and took a quick sip. His office looked like a trash can: empty packets of chips dominated the better part of his working table while the remaining half was covered with empty food packets and takeout. Even his office dustbin was swarming with rubbish and crumpled papers. Just looking at this mess gave him a headache.

Right then his eyes drifted towards the file that Dr. Forrester had left for him – highlighting his personal account and explaining to Chris what – according to him – this pandemic truly was and what it constituted of.

Chris had great respect for the doctor. He knew him on a personal level and he appreciated all his hard work and efforts for the scientific society. However, after reading what he had sent him Chris felt like they were not the words of a Nobel Prize-winning physicist but the ravings of a mad man who felt guilty of everything that he had done in his life and in order to make up for his mistakes he had constructed this fictional story in his mind so that he could convince himself that his shortcomings were not his fault.

"Pike?" this time it was no young man trying to pretend to be a scientist. It was Stacy Parker, an average virologist – like him – who had been promoted to the highest of ranks because there was no one else left to promote.

"Yes? Come in," Pike answered, closing his files and giving her his full attention – hoping that this time, unlike the last, she had some good news.

"I've sent you an email, open it," she cleared away the empty packets of chips on the chair and sat down apprehensively – knowing that what she had was only going to complicate the current situation more than it already was. But there was nothing else she could do.

Perhaps there was nothing anyone could do...

"What am I looking at?" Pike questioned.

"Nothing," Stacy replied.

Pike tried to conceal his frustration at this idiocy but his face clearly portrayed to Stacy that he felt like exploding.

"Is this a joke?"

"No," Stacy immediately interjected. From her serious tone Pike could affirm that she, in fact, was not kidding.

"Ok look, Stacy, I've had a long week just tell me what you want-"

"This is the sample we took from those who were infected," Stacy replied.

Pike looked closer at the image on his computer screen. "How can that be?" his question was more of rhetoric. "There's nothing-"

"Exactly!" Stacy remarked. "No sign of the virus or any sort of disease in the blood or body tissue or cells or anywhere else. Basically it's like the organism was never infected to begin with."

"But you said-"

"I know what I said, Chris,"

"So what does this mean?"

Stacy looked at him impassively. "Perhaps the virus has mutated into a different sort of a compound which we are not able to identify. Perhaps it leaves the system once the organism is dead. I don't know Chris, it could be anything."

Pike slammed his hand on his table and a bunch of files fell on the ground scattering around.

"How are we supposed to-"

"I don't know," Stacy said – understanding what his friend was trying to communicate.

Pike stood up and stared out the office window looking at the havoc ensuing on the streets. Stacy understood that this was the part where she was supposed to leave. So, without saying or doing anything else she silently stood up and exited the office.

Chris knew that Stacy would continue to look, continue to try and find out something that could aid them. But deep down he knew that it was going to be of no use.

And just like that, Chris heard doctor Forrester's voice echoing inside his head: 

"This is the first wave, there are two more to come...the world is going to end..."