Dawn of a New Day

by Mariano, NIck

  Taylor had long since lost conscientious, but several hours later, he came to and felt a strong urge to strike out at someone. A nurse entered the room and while she was taking his temperature, Taylor suddenly grabbed her and as he pulled her toward the bed began to bite into her arm and rip a piece of flesh from it. He sat there in bed with blood running down his face and thought to himself that, “Whatever he was eating really tasted good.” He lunged at the nurse again but her loud screams alerted the staff and nearby security, who responded in force. Taylor by now had managed to get out of bed and actually felt a newfound strength. He charged the now bleeding nurse and again grabbed her. This time he bit long and hard into her neck and severed her carotid artery causing almost instant death. When the security officer entered the room and saw what was happening he immediately drew his weapon and shot Taylor dead. The doctors quickly converged on the room, which was immediately isolated, and tried to rationalize what had just taken place. As they examined the room, the nurse and Taylor, they were again startled when Taylor suddenly opened his eyes and began to stand. Both the doctors and security personnel knew this couldn’t be happening, as it appeared that Taylor had been shot right through his heart. Nonetheless, he was now starting to stand again while making a sort of growling sound. He was almost standing upright when a security officer shot him again, this time through his head. That seemed to do the job as Taylor immediately sank to the floor. Everyone stood there in complete amazement.

  Back at the JW Marriott, Alex was beginning to feel poorly and had developed a cough similar to her traveling companion.

  Halfway around the world in North Carolina, Harold Strauss was also not feeling his best and besides a nagging cough he had recently developed, he now had some small eruptions coming up on his arms, legs and neck. He wondered if this was the result of the vapor that had escaped from the canister brought up from the U-756. He tried to contact Agent Taylor but only got his voice mail, which stated that he would be out of the office for the next several days.

  The telephone rang in the Office of the FBI Resident Agent at the Federal Building in Wilmington, NC. A message played back to the caller advising him that Special Agent Taylor was not available and that they should leave a message. The box that Taylor had placed in the safe room appeared normal, however, a slight vapor had begun to escape from a canister. The vapor rose in the room and would have dissipated shortly, however, the building’s air conditioning suddenly kicked on and the vapor was transported into the AC duct and sent throughout the Federal Building, where several employees worked Friday afternoon before a long weekend.

  Meanwhile, the FBI Legatt at the American Embassy in KL telephoned his headquarters in Washington, D.C. and conveyed the course of events as best that he could reconstruct them. FBI Headquarters would in turn notify the CDC in Atlanta, Georgia, and request their assistance on behalf of the Government of Malaysia.

  THE STREETS OF WILMINGTON, NC

  Harold Strauss awoke early in the morning and his condition had not improved despite taking his usual cough medicines the night before. His throat was sore, he had a nagging cough and when he climbed out of bed he saw that he had black and blue sores starting to erupt on his arms. Later in the day when he took a shower he saw that his entire body was beginning to get the same sores as his arms. He knew this was no normal illness and his mind flashed back to the other day in his office when the mysterious canister dispersed its vapor into the room. What could have been in that vial? What he did know was that he better get to the hospital, as whatever this was, it wasn’t anything good. He quickly dressed and drove to the New Hanover Regional Medical Center where he decided to forego the normal appointment route and go directly to the Emergency Entrance. Once the nurse saw him she immediately contacted the duty physician, who decided this could be something contagious and had Strauss placed in an isolation room. A quick examination by the admitting doctor revealed swollen lymph nodes, sore throat, and black and blue bruises over the entire body, some of which appeared to be oozing fluids of some sort. The doctor’s initial prognosis was the plague, as just yesterday a young girl out west had been diagnosed with the plague after an infected flea bit her. He contained the room and all personnel entering the room were required to wear special suits and masks to prevent being contaminated. He also decided to call the CDC, as notification of such cases was required by all hospitals. Just as in the case of Special Agent Taylor, the hospital began a series of antibiotics and saline drips to help reduce the infection. Strauss was scared and still didn’t feel very good despite the care he was receiving. As the day wore on he began to feel irritated and strange thoughts swept through his mind. He thought he was being held captive and that he had to escape his confines. When all hospital personnel had vacated the room, Strauss pulled out the IV lines and made a dash for freedom. Dressed only in a hospital gown he raced down the hall and actually felt a quick surge of energy. Halfway down the hall a nurse spotted him and shouted for him to stop. Strauss continued his dash for freedom and finally a security officer confronted him and said he had to return to his room. Strauss lunged for the officer and before he knew what his mind was registering, he grabbed the officer and bit him in the face, ripping his nose off in one bite. The officer screamed in pain and Strauss continued his run for freedom. A nurse appeared in the hall and Strauss stopped and eyed the pretty woman before he grabbed her and bit hard and deep in her throat, ripping a large chunk of fresh and bone from her. The nurse sank to the floor and Strauss stopped and decided to feast for a moment. He knelt and began to bite and chew pieces of the young nurse who had since passed out. Meanwhile the hospital’s security personnel had been alerted and were responding to the area in force. When they arrived they saw Strauss still kneeling and eating the young nurse. They shouted for him to stop but he merely smiled and suddenly stood and made a lunge for the nearest security officer. The officer wasn’t expecting this and so was caught off guard. He tried to fight off Strauss; however, Strauss felt renewed strength and began to bite the officer on the arms and face. Finally, one of the other officers withdrew his 9mm pistol and fired at Strauss hitting him three times in the chest. Strauss sunk to the floor while the security officer lay on the floor bleeding and screaming in pain. The hospital staff quickly attended to him while others tried to revive the injured nurse and security officer but it was determined that she was beyond help. For the moment everyone ignored Strauss since they were sure that he had been killed by the three shots to his chest. Five minutes passed while staff attended the wounded when suddenly Strauss appeared to be rejuvenated and slowly began to stand up and turn to the attending hospital staff. He moved slowly toward them when finally a security officer unleashed three more shots to his chest, which appeared to have no effect on Strauss. He finally fired three more shots to Strauss’ head, which brought him down instantly. Everyone stood in amazement and thought they were watching some horror movie where the zombies take over the world and start killing people. The original attending physician called the CDC back and said that they better get some people up to Wilmington immediately as something they couldn’t explain had just happened.

  Howard Mathews, a chemical/biological specialist and the day’s duty officer, received the call to the CDC. When he heard the chain of events that had taken place in Wilmington his mind flashed back several months to similar events that had occurred in upstate New York. He had been part of the first responders to New York and, after several weeks of investigation, it was determined that the virus used by ISIS terrorists had been developed by the Germans toward the end of World War II. This information remained highly classified and the actual cause of the virus was never made public. From what he had just heard it seemed like the super virus had reoccurred, with one major exception, people didn’t come back to life after they were shot in New York. The only explanation he could think of was that the virus had somehow mutated and was different from the New York strain. He also knew that only a few days before the CDC had been con
tacted by a hospital and the American Embassy in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, reporting a very similar incident. He knew this was not good, as it would appear that the virus had somehow crossed the ocean to other parts of the world. He immediately contacted his supervisor who instructed him to activate the CDC’s Global Rapid Response Teams and get them moving ASAP to both Wilmington and Malaysia.

  MEANWHILE IN ASIA

  The City of Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia and several neighboring cities and countries were currently experiencing one of the worst eco-disasters on the planet. For several years the farmers in Indonesia would burn their palm oil trees yearly to make ready for the next growing season. Surrounding countries became subjected to sickening air pollution and smog as a result. In 2015, one of the worst cases of this pollution spread its way through the countries of Indonesia, Malaysia and even as far as Singapore. The fires produced thick and highly toxic smog that resulted in a staggering number of respiratory illnesses throughout the region. Over a half a million were affected by the haze and at least 19 deaths were already reported. The fires released more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere than all the contamination caused by fossil fuel and gas emissions in the entire United States for one year. Many scientists said that 2015 was a particularly bad year because the El Nino weather system had exacerbated weather conditions, which resulted in countries having unseasonably very dry weather. People in many of the cities were reduced to wearing surgical masks whenever they walked outside to keep from being affected. Many of the respiratory conditions progressed quickly and turned into full cases of pneumonia. Hospitals were overrun with new cases everyday.

  The smog and haze would play a major role in accelerating the spread of the super virus throughout many of the Asian nations that it traveled to. Many people were already in a weakened condition and when they became exposed to the super virus, it took hold in a shorter period of incubation, resulting in higher numbers of infected people. The virus would also morph again with people in the pneumonia stage and the results were frightening. By the time the CDC Global Rapid Response Teams arrived in Asian countries the super virus had already infected over 2,000 people and the number of violent and zombie incidents were on the rise. The CDC decided to inoculate some of the populations with the X554 vaccine, which they knew, could prevent the spread of the super virus, however, the number of people already infected was staggering. They also believed that the virus could have mutated based on accounts they had received about infected people coming back to life after they were reportedly killed by gunfire. Right now X554 was the only thing the CDC had on its shelf and so they began an inoculation program in Malaysia, Korea, Singapore and Indonesia. They tried to trace the passengers who were on the same flight as Special Agent Taylor, as initial investigation revealed that he could have been Patient Zero overseas. It also appeared that Harold Strauss might have been Patient Zero in the U.S.

  As the CDC and government agencies traced passengers on Taylor’s flight they were dismayed to find out that he had flown from the U.S. to Korea on a new Airbus A380, which carried 525 passengers. Taylor’s flight was completely full and so it would take several days to determine who was on that flight and where the final destinations were for the remaining 524 passengers. Many had terminated in Korea and so the Korean Government was busy tracing the hometowns of native Koreans and also the families of any passengers who were of Korean descent. Over 395 passengers had made connections to as many destinations and the airlines and government were busily tracking what airlines they had taken from Korea, any onward connections they may have taken, and their final destinations. It was like trying to find a needle in a haystack.

  The CDC knew that if 50% of the passengers became infected from contact with Agent Taylor or through inhalation of the virus through the plane’s air system, the end result would be a global pandemic of epic proportions. The loss of life would be staggering and once things got rolling it would be like trying to put out a wild fire. The Lead Doctor in KL reported his findings back to CDC Headquarters and found out that a similar Patient Zero had shown up in Wilmington, NC. Initial investigation revealed that the virus could be a super virus produced by the Nazis during World War II and very similar to the New York State terrorist infections. CDC was already working with the FBI, CIA and Homeland Security trying to ascertain whether this was another terrorist attack or if the virus had somehow reappeared in NC through some act of faith.

  A second CDC Team had arrived in Wilmington, NC and after examining Strauss, and the persons bitten by him at the hospital, there was no doubt that they were dealing with the Nazi super virus with one new twist. Infected people, not all, but a percentage of those infected, could come back to life after reportedly being killed. This was a very disconcerting finding since it meant that the virus could spread rapidly once one or two people became infected and it would be a lot more difficult to neutralize the infection.

  Alex Pogue awoke at the JW Marriott and hoped she would feel better today so she could begin her work in Kuala Lumpur. Her throat was still sore and that nagging cough was still there and she was shocked when she looked in a mirror and saw black and blue blotches on her arms and legs. A further examination revealed that her body was almost 80% covered by the unsightly spots. She sat down in disbelief and couldn’t imagine what was happening. She had heard that the Avian Flu was becoming more prevalent in many of the Asian countries; however, she couldn’t imagine how she could have contracted the disease. Had she gotten something from her travel partner, Agent Taylor? He was coughing a lot toward the end of their flight from Atlanta and she was sure some of his germs had drifted her way. She began to feel nauseous and threw up in the bathroom. She also had some strange thoughts popping into her head and she was feeling very hungry despite her condition. She called room service and ordered some coffee and fruit, hoping that some food might help the situation.

  CDC Headquarters in Atlanta decided to notify the White House and Department of Homeland Security to advise them that they could be facing another outbreak of the Super Virus that was encountered in the ISIS’ Attacks earlier that year. After a lengthy teleconference call it was agreed that the CDC would activate its Health Alert Network that was their primary method to notify the public about urgent health issues. Although they didn’t get into the particulars of the virus outbreak they did advise travelers to reconsider travel to Asian countries because of a possible new virus outbreak there. The Alert was also shared with federal, state, territorial and city partners and the full particulars of the outbreaks were passed on to them with the stipulation that the contents of this message was to be treated as classified and highly controlled. The message went on to say that the virus appeared to be similar to the New York State outbreaks following attacks by ISIS, however, infected persons could return to life even if they are shot and appeared to have been killed. The message also said that the CDC and Homeland Security were not sure if this was another ISIS or terrorist attack. Offices were asked to include the CDC and DHS in all communications that were sent. Police authorities were also advised to treat infected persons with extreme care and caution as incidents of unprovoked attacks had already been reported.

  CDC also contacted the FAA and requested that all flights to and from Asia be temporarily suspended until the nature of the virus could be fully determined. Several of the U.S. operated airlines suspended flights for a period of three days citing a new outbreak of the Avian Flu. Many of the foreign flag airlines, however, continued to run flights between the U.S. and points in Asia.

  Additional Global Rapid Response Teams were dispatched to Korea, Indonesia, and Singapore, after it was determined that the majority of the passengers on the flight with Agent Taylor, now designated Patient Zero, went on primarily to these countries. Health and Public Security services throughout Asia were alerted to the possibility of a Super Virus outbreak and incidents were passed on as they occurred in real time. Stockpiled supplies of the government’s X554 vaccine were distributed to key cities in
the U.S. and overseas and the drug companies responsible for its manufacture were pressed into service by the government to begin manufacturing new supplies as rapidly as possible. Persons in Wilmington were advised that an Asian virus could have made it’s way to that city and that they should go to their nearest hospital to be inoculated.

  Alex Pogue ate her breakfast that room service delivered and still felt like hell so she decided to call her local contact and say she was taking a sick day. She went back to bed and would never awake from her sleep.

  WHAT WAS ONCE FUNNY

  What was once funny and a joke among the employees of the CDC wasn’t too funny anymore. For years the CDC had posted a graphic novel on its website, cdc.org, entitled “Preparedness 101: Zombie Pandemic.” Readers could follow Todd, Julie, and their dog Max as a strange new disease began spreading and turning people into zombies. Little did they know that one day their crazy web site about emergency preparedness would be a reality. Now people were actually surfing the Internet and trying to find real information about what to do during this actual pandemic. What had been amusing was now a good starting point for people in combatting the infectees who roamed the streets by their homes.

  THE INVESTIGATION CONTINUES

  Harold Mathews flew up to Wilmington to join the Global Rapid Response Team already there. He was briefed by the Team Leader and agreed with their findings that this was in fact a strain of the Nazi Super Virus that had been used in New York State. The big question remained, “How did this virus make its way to Wilmington?”

  John Magee, captain of the dive boat who took his friends, Gary and Reed to the U-756, read the morning’s paper and saw an article about his friend Harold Strauss being killed by hospital security personnel the day before and that it was suspected that he may have been infected by some mysterious virus. Magee thought that this was too coincidental since he had seen the contents of the box that had been retrieved from the U-756. Could the box’s contents have something to do with his friend’s demise? The article went on to say that anyone with possible information should call a 24-hour CDC Hotline. Magee called the CDC and was patched through to Harold Mathews who requested that Magee pay him a visit.