The ANSD/UN Working Group and Plague Eradication Collaborative,
The Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions Special Conference on Human Attributes,
The Dialogue Among Civilizations and Cultures, Enlightened Moderation,
The Informal Meeting of Leaders on Interfaith Dialogue and Cooperation for Peace,
The Islam–Christianity Dialogue,
The Second Moscow World Summit of Religious Leaders Convened to Discuss the Rights of ANSD Victims, and
The Tripartite Forum on Interfaith Cooperation for Peace,
which are all mutually inclusive, reinforcing and interrelated,
Mindful that the cooperative initiatives for practical action in all sectors and levels of society for the promotion of ANSD TOTAL ERADICATION and the subsequent PERPETUATION OF HUMANKIND,
Recognizing the commitment of all religions to peace,
1. Affirms that mutual understanding and inter-religious dialogue constitute important dimensions of an active and definitive world response to Ataxic Neurodegenerative Satiety Deficiency Syndrome, also known as ANSD, also known as zombiism;
2. Takes note with appreciation of the work of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization on inter-religious dialogue in the context of its efforts to promote dialogue among civilizations, cultures and peoples, as well as activities related to a culture of peace, and welcomes its focus on concrete action at the global, regional and subregional levels and its flagship project on the promotion of interfaith dialogue;
3. Recognizes that respect for religious and cultural diversity in an increasingly globalizing world contributes to international cooperation, promotes enhanced dialogue among religions, cultures and civilizations and helps to create an environment conducive to the exchange of human experience;
4. Also recognizes that, despite intolerance and conflicts that are creating a divide across countries and regions and constitute a growing threat to peaceful relations among nations, all cultures, religions and civilizations share a common set of universal values and can all contribute to the enrichment of humankind;
5. Reaffirms the solemn commitment of all States to fulfill their obligations to promote universal respect for, and observance and protection of, all human rights and fundamental freedoms for all in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other instruments relating to human rights and international law; the universal nature of these rights and freedoms are beyond question;
6. Urges States, in compliance with their international obligations, to acknowledge that:
I. Human Beings are from this point forward solely defined as possessing the capacity for:
a. Social Connectedness (attribute “a”), unless absence of or deficiencies in attribute “a” are the result of a medical condition or conditions other than Stage IV ANSD
b. Emotional Recognition of Others as Sentient Beings (attribute “b”), unless absence of or deficiencies in attribute “b” are the result of a medical condition or conditions other than Stage IV ANSD
II. Furthermore, Human Beings afforded protection by all States:
c. Do not threaten via ANSD contagion and Stage IV infection the health of Humanity on both individual and global levels (attribute “c”)
d. Are in all cases considered Human when attributes “a” and “b” are not the result of neurological, psychiatric or other medical conditions in the absence of Stage IV ANSD infection
7. As such, it is acknowledged that:
I. Humans infected with Stage IV ANSD—neurologic changes that promote a-cognitive aggression and cannibalism in the absence of sound recognition of the moral inconsistencies therein as a function of ANSD infection—are NOT HUMAN, and will be from this point forward referred to as:
II. Humanoid or
III. No Longer Human (NLH)
8. As such, it is acknowledged that:
I. The promotion and protection of the rights of persons does not apply to those with Stage IV ANSD
II. The protections afforded human and other biological subjects in the course of medical experimentations are not required for those with Stage IV ANSD
III. All citizens may with impunity destroy Stage IV ANSD Humanoids
9. With Regard to Medical Experiments, it is acknowledged that:
I.Great haste is necessary
II.Current neurobiological evidence suggests a lack of somatosensory input, rendering such actions as general anesthesia unnecessary and time consuming
10. With Regard to the Onset of Death in ANSD Humanoids, it is acknowledged that:
I. Death occurs at the time of ANSD Stage IV infection
II. After Stage IV infection, Humanoids are considered “Animate but Not Living”
III. Appropriate funeral rites and other ceremonies marking the passage of life are permitted whether or not the ANSD Humanoid body is available
11. Simultaneously, it is emphasized that:
I. Needless acts of violence against Stage IV ANSD Humanoids are not ethically, religiously or socially sound
II. It is never ethically, religiously or socially sound to destroy a person who is suspected to have ANSD but lacks signs and symptoms of Stage IV infection
III. Those who engage in such acts are subject to prosecution as afforded by the rights of individual States
12. After which time that a viable ANSD cure emerges, these guidelines will require significant reinterpretation.
APPENDIX IV
This material was discovered on Blum’s private laptop in his quarters at the UN bunkers. The dates suggest this was written in the days preceding his transfer to the island. We have included this material to accentuate the extent to which Blum was scientifically ill prepared to undertake the mission he ended up heading, but nevertheless entirely emotionally capable and willing. Tomorrow’s agenda will undoubtedly include plans for future missions. Blum’s psychological preparations are at least as important as whatever scientific knowledge he brought to the team. His mental and psychological state therefore represent key components of a successful mission. Please read this material with these observations in mind.
There will be a short memorial tomorrow morning in honor of Dr. Blum before the meeting commences.
November 10, 2012
I went up above today for the first time in months.
Is this our planet? Our home? Where is this place?
Everything is green, hazy. Windy, and the air smells. I had forgotten about the smell, forgot to bring a mask. I retched a bit but recovered. Wiped my mouth and went for a walk.
You can only go so far on the bunker walls—there are humanoids scattered around the perimeter, all deanimated. Trees without leaves. Bare trunks sway in the wind.
The last human arrived about four months ago. He was floating by himself on a little dinghy; it was painted blue and orange, a lot like the sky used to be. All this gray surrounding his boat. I think we would have missed him if his boat hadn’t been painted.
At that time, there were still humanoids on the island. They were starting to eat whatever moved, whatever was living. Odd how they continued to avoid one another.
The flags above this compound still fly—three flags, actually. There’s Old Glory, one for the UN, and one for the WHO.
But there’ve been a lot of traps out there, too, people flying one or more of these flags to attract survivors, usually for food. This guy trusted us. Had to, I guess.
Good God, what have we become?
This guy, the one in the boat, sat there screaming, paddling with his hands, trying to direct his little boat over the gray dead ocean. Sensors confirmed that he was alive, febrile but still human. A droid picked him up and brought him in. He spoke some island language, not sure we placed it. Spoke a bit of French, too, and he could say thank you in English. Said it a lot. We fed him, gave him a bed, heard him cough, and gave him some Lasix. Got his pH up and his walking improved.
&n
bsp; He changed five days later. Didn’t take the Lasix and tore the pH meter out of his belly. Didn’t trust us. Can’t blame him. Hard to trust anyone healthy. We shot him and tossed his body over the wall. No one knew his religion, so we got the Unitarian folks to say a few words.
That’s what it was like out here four months ago. That’s our world.
That’s the planet we’re trying to save.
November 11, 2012
Why’d I go up there? Why’d I go for that walk? I already knew I’d volunteer. I know Blanca, knew Pittman a little. I already knew I would go.
The transmission was definitely Blanca’s voice. I recognized it right away, even through the static, through the coughs. I knew way before we ran the voice scan.
She’s practical, almost to a fault, and probably sick as hell. She wouldn’t waste energy on a transmission unless she was on to something. She may be the smartest person on Earth right now. I spent some time combing through her old notes, trying to make sense of that message. Lots of work on prions, on the ways they turn evil with acid. Lots of theories on the way it was incorporated in influenza. She wasn’t convinced it was an accident.
But nothing that would help me to make sense of her message. Just notes on influenza, prions, and memories of the Spanish countryside. She missed home. Wrote a lot about shepherds in Andalusia, compared them to the shepherds in Ireland, where all this started.
I had to decide, I guess. Had to decide whether it’s all worth saving.
How could things go so wrong so fast?
I wonder about Sarah and Abe.
I know they’re gone—hard to imagine them still around. Tried to warn Abe, but he said he had a congregation to lead, a responsibility. Then send me the kids, I said. Let them take cover, but his wife refused. There are other worlds, Dad. That’s what he said.
I wonder what world he’s in.
We’ve heard almost nothing from the West Coast. The nukes triggered the faults. Big ones—8.5 and higher. Can’t imagine Sarah made it.
I’m glad Miriam was gone before all this started.
But this place isn’t life, either. Concrete walls, barbed wire. Sometimes the wind is so loud you can hear it even four stories down. You can only watch so many movies, read so many books. There are cockroaches. Really big ones. I guess they have lots to eat.
This is America. A fortified outpost in the South Pacific. They say there are still humans on the mainland, but we’ve stopped our rescue efforts. The Chicago exodus was a nightmare. Helicopters leaving, people hanging on to landing gear. All those families on the tops of buildings. We left clergy behind and some cyanide.
Where would they go? All the islands are overrun, humans living like animals. Africa, Europe, Asia—all barren, wastelands. Antarctica? We can barely keep the water clean here.
But the Crypt also looks like hell. The temperature averages ninety degrees, the humidity constant. Everyone dies there, one way or another.
But I can’t stay here. I can’t stand the fluorescent light anymore. I hate the bunks. The mattresses smell like bleach. And I hate the whole military thing. How can I be a captain? Captain of what? People salute me in the hall and I forget to salute back. Not even sure I know how to salute. They stand there waiting, like it still matters. We don’t even have a brig. That’s what outside the walls is for.
I am Stanley Blum. Captain Stanley Blum, division leader of the Administrative Corps of the ANSD Working Group.
And I can’t even tell my mother I got promoted.
I’ve given this lots of thought and I want people to know.
I volunteer. I’ll go. I know I won’t come back, but I’ll go. Why in this world wouldn’t I?
APPENDIX V
The following documents were found on the hard drive of a personal computer in the air lock of a badly damaged yacht moored off the coast of southwest Greenland. The ship was deserted, with no signs of recent life or humanoids aboard, and these documents are the printed remains of all that was salvageable from a highly encrypted set of communications. We have included them here as they came to the attention of our investigators after we began searching all encrypted digital communications for terms that might suggest classified communications regarding ANSD. So far, there are over four thousand documents and we will continue the process of screening this material before bringing them to our working group for analysis. We have no knowledge of any of the names or possible code names below. As Blum had concluded that the ANSD pathogen is manufactured, we will continue to follow all leads.
To: [email protected]
From: KFC
Subject: movement?
Agreed.
Markets will initially fail.
Our failure to capitalize on the last bubble was a colossal fuckup, and my ass still hurts from where Adrian chewed me a new one. Shit, we created the bubble—we could have done better.
But this is really big. Lots of moving parts. I’m just not comfortable making the call until I get approval from The Gate. Where the fuck has he been. Apparently even Adrian doesn’t know.
Hope you and the family are well. Thanks for the birthday photos. Was that nanny dating anyone? I’m just asking. Sharon’s getting pretty, by the way—you better keep an eye on her :)
Listen. Get back to me.
K
* * *
To: Adrian
From: [email protected]
Subject: KFC
A—
Heard from K. He’s got cold feet, I guess, or there’s something you’re not telling me. I gotta manage him, so can u let me know whether this thing has gotten more complicated? Hasn’t the vaccine production started? We had 100% response with the baboons, didn’t we? If we did, then what’s K all twitchy about? He keeps talking about moving parts.
I ran the projections again, this time adjusting for 50% resistance. I ran them for airborne and water vectors.
Adrian, we can’t miss. Market’ll plunge—no flights, no work, nothing really for the first month or so. That’s when we place our options. I figure, with the hedges we’ve grown, those puts should yield 200, maybe 400 million in the first week.
Then, with the start-ups and ancillary investments, an additional billion or more.
Talk to the Gate. This looks good for us. I don’t want to miss out.
Me
* * *
To: [email protected]
From: Adrian
Subject: re: KFC
Jesus, I got grandkids now. I’m done. Leave the Gate out. He’s crazy, talking like one of those televangelists. Let’s ride the market through. The company has soft enough cushions.
Hey, I shot 4 under yesterday. 4 under! Couldn’t do that with a fever and cough, now, could I?
Relax. Spend more time with your kids. They grow up fast.
My love to your mom.
A
* * *
To: KFC
From: [email protected]
Subject: re: movement?
Adrian’s out for now, but that doesn’t mean we should stop. We’re all VPs, and no one made him king. What’re you worried about? What could go wrong?
I’ll try to find the Gate. I think I read somewhere that he was shark fishing in the North Sea… Can you believe that? Talk about irony! I guess he can think like them. Adrian says he sounds a little nutty these days, but I want to talk to him directly. I’ll get back to you as soon as I reach him. Don’t make any calls until then. We don’t want this out till we’re ready.
And, yes, Sharon’s a cutie. Doesn’t get it from her old man, but she takes after Gloria, I guess.
Oh, and the nanny has a temper, but you should see her on our cameras when she thinks she’s alone in the house. There are perks to being a family man…
Anyway, I’ll get back to you as soon as I know more. Don’t worry about Adrian. He’ll change his mind once he gets home from visiting his grandkids. He always does.
Go on a date or something. Get laid. It’ll take your mind off all this money.
Me
* * *
To: [email protected]
From: KFC
Subject: re: re: movement?
I don’t give a damn about the money anymore. I saw the lab, ran some more projections. Too many goddamn variables.
M, don’t do this thing. Think of Sharon.
K
APPENDIX VI
GUTIERREZ’S PRIVATE JOURNAL (TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH—A LETTER TO THE PASTOR OF HER CHILDHOOD PARISH)
Dearest Father Benito:
The Zombie Autopsies: Secret Notebooks from the Apocalypse Page 10