Emergence Written October 2014

by Cogitator

The Virus

Wildfire would be a very tame word for how the virus spread. Nothing of this magnitude could have been imagined.

Day One

Roy and Betty were about to celebrate their thirty-fifth wedding anniversary. Based in Chicago, Roy was the premier construction contractor in the Midwest. He had built a one-man operation into a multi-billion dollar corporation employing thousands.

Although Roy's business was built primarily from large construction projects, he was a big fan of Habitat for Humanity. He liked the idea of providing housing for the needy. He had been working on a large-scale design that would house thousands. His grandparents had moved to the United States some sixty-odd years before with virtually no money. They had instilled in him a sense of responsibility and respect that drove his decisions.

Betty was a psychologist and one of the most respected developers of children -- especially troubled ones. She convinced Roy to build their home on a few acres so she could spend time with her passion -- gardening. The house was surrounded by gorgeous flower gardens, a Japanese garden, a large hydroponic greenhouse for vegetables and fruit, as well as a variety of fruit trees outside. In one corner of the property, she installed a couple of dozen beehives to interact with her blossoms and provide natural honey to sweeten their meals. Their two grown children, John and Mike and their wives were at their home, making plans for the celebration.

Mike was a master at designing and installing communications systems. A private "gun-for-hire," he commanded huge sums of money for his services. He had been so involved with his work that he hardly ever took time for himself until Maggie came into his life. They had met in New Orleans while working on the same project and had never been apart since. Maggie was pregnant with their first child and absolutely glowing.

John worked as a private software designer for Internet Service Providers. His current project was the installation of an intelligent module that would interact with users and "learn" from the interaction. It operated with a knowledge base similar to human memory and merged new knowledge pieces into that base. Newly married to Samantha, he would not accept any assignment without including her in the travel plans. She was a nurse but put her career on hold to start a family.

Emergence

As John and Mike were exultantly discussing elaborate plans for the anniversary celebration, Roy and Betty were trying to bring them down from the clouds.

"Boys, boys. This should be a more intimate gathering of family and close friends. Ease up on the expenses." Roy says.

"No worries, Dad. We'll limit it to your Top 50. Let's start with your brothers and sisters, OK?" John offers. "I'll start the list."

After several names are chosen:

"Pop, I think I need your reading glasses. My writing is becoming blurry."

"Mine too, son. Something doesn't feel right. Turn the TV on."

All channels had the same report:

"There is a severe emergency happening. We do not know how long we will be on air. People all over the planet are going blind. It is suspected that some virulent organism has mutated and attacks the part of the brain that controls vision. It is small enough to travel through the air, so anyone that breathes will be affected. We suggest to everyone to get home as soon as possible and prepare for the worst."

The screen went blank. Within the hour, the world went dark for the family. Within five days, the human population would be blind.

Chaos

All over the world, people were losing their sight. Panic was immediate. Transportation systems caused the main havoc. With drivers, airline pilots, train engineers and ship captains going blind within a short period of time, crashes and accidents of major proportions occurred everywhere. Within a few hours of the emergence, millions perished around the globe. It was only the beginning.

Many turned to their television, radio or smart phones for information about what was happening. Within the first day, all television and internet communication simply stopped. The talking heads that usually told the community about current events could not see the teleprompter. The writers couldn't write. All radio, television and internet communication ended. The world was "in the dark."

Whereas most of the population would be "taking care of business," on a normal day, there was no busy-ness now other than survival. People who had been blind from birth attempted to go about their busy-ness as usual, but immediately noticed a marked difference -- silence. There was no street noise, no airplane noise, no train horns and no noticeable activity around them; only the sounds of birds chirping and squirrels frolicking. Other than humans, the animal world was not affected.

Roy and Betty were glad their sons were with them. After communication with the outside world was cut off, Roy did not wait to react. (Sight be damned; we can't just sit still!) Having been in construction contracting for as long as he had, he knew what blindness would do to the maintenance and operation of the electrical grid. He had a generator in the basement with plenty of fuel in case of emergency. When Roy built his home on five acres, he hadn't considered the possibility of needing so much acreage, but it would now come in handy.

"John, Mike, it's impossible to know what will happen next, but I'm pretty sure that the electrical grid cannot operate without engineers and maintenance crews. My generator will kick in when that happens, but we have to conserve fuel. Crawl along the baseboard and unplug everything you can find, except for the refrigerator and freezer. Even though we won't be able to cook, we have enough cans and dry goods to last for some time. We had a delivery for the water cooler a couple of days ago, so we have at least a week of water for the six of us. If and when we regain sight, we'll need the food in the fridge and freezer. If we don't regain our sight, humanity will disappear from the planet. Let's plan to see again."

The roads were littered with stopped cars and trucks. The drivers and passengers had no idea what to do other than remain in their vehicles. Some got out of their cars and tried to walk on the road surface while yelling for help at the top of their voice. All that echoed were the cries of others who had done the same thing. There would be no help available.

Hospitals were useless with blinded doctors and nurses. It would not be long before those in need of care would perish. Business ended. All movement stopped. Other than the moans and cries of despair, the world was silent.

Day Two

Sleep was impossible the first day. After the reality of blindness sank into the minds of the newly sightless, a realignment of values occurred. Everyday activities taken for granted became hugely important to consider. Eating, drinking and purging were now monumental undertakings. Those fortunate enough to be in familiar surroundings were able to grope their way from memory. Those stranded on the highways were in for a more gruesome experience.

The virus had a five-day incubation period so the population was not blinded in the same moment. Australian scientists had some time to isolate the virus before going blind. Some remote areas in the Pacific Ocean, the polar ice caps and the Amazonian forest were spared, as well. Hardest hit were the densely populated areas.

The virus could only be seen by the most powerful electron microscopes. It traveled in the air and infected any person who breathed. It would enter the lungs and use the blood stream to eventually lodge a colony in the part of the brain controlling sight. It was not known yet if it would run its course or cause permanent damage.

Survival became uppermost in people's minds, followed by the suicide of many. Those who had been programmed to slavishly depend on the ruling class were the most despondent and the quickest to turn to suicide as the solution to their dilemma. It became very apparent that the economic structure built upon greed and power would no longer exist. There would be no money in the future -- if there was to be a future for humanity.

The generator started.

"Family, the power grid just went down. That's going to cause some issues. I hope nobody is caught in an elevator. We'll run the generator for a while and turn it off every hour for a couple of hours. We have to conserve fuel. At least it's springtime. If it was January, I don't know how many people would freeze to death."

"Betty, do you think you can gather some fruit for us from your green house?"

"Of course, I can. I know where everything is located. John, Mike, let's hold hands and go. There is some rope near the entrance that can tether us, as well as some bags I use to harvest. As I walk through the paths, I'll let you know where you can feel the fruit. It may take a while, but we can gather a good supply that way. There's also some radishes and tomatoes that are ripe enough. We'll gather some after we pass through the fruit trees."

The deaths mounted.

The world no longer existed for the survivors -- not as they knew it. Without sight, only the imagination was operating. People were forced to think about how they possibly could survive without public services, without an economic system, without electricity, without transportation, etc. Virtually all survivors set about reviewing their lives in silence. They knew that this experience, if they lived through it, would change a lot of things on the planet.

The Middle East conflicts could not continue. Weapons were useless. The thought of launching the nuclear arsenal crossed the minds of the superpowers, but they thought better of it. The ruling class no longer had any power. The stranglehold of politics and religion on impressionable minds would have to be released. Assault rifles have about as much metal as a sword and their future, if any, was to become plowshares. One benefit of being blind is the inability to see country borders.

Carnivorous predators in the wild sensed the hopelessness and helplessness of humans. They would soon feast like never before. In the cities, rats began staying out of the sewers during daylight, rather than wait until nightfall. In New York, Wall Street honchos who dived out of windows when they realized their lives had been wasted provided nourishment for the army of rats.

By the end of the second day, more gruesome events. The most excruciating pain felt and the highest rate of murder/suicide occurred in families with small children. Mothers were torn apart by the screams of pain and discomfort from their children. Fathers could not provide solace. Decisions were made to end the pain of the entire family. For millions, it seemed to be the right thing to do.

If someone was not in a group with familiar surroundings, hopes for survival were slim to none. All over the world, small groups huddled together awaiting their fate. Sanitation was becoming a problem. No daily bath or shower, limited access to toilets and grooming without sight was impossible. People began to grope their way outside to relieve themselves, rather than use indoor facilities. Flies were having a field day, as well as cockroaches and other insects.

Sleep was still difficult except for brief nodding off. Waking up to the same nightmare was cruel. It would continue.

Day Three

Maggie was having a nightmare. She opened her eyes -- darkness.

"Mike, is our baby going to die?"

"No, honey. All viruses have a limited life span. We're as prepared as we can be to weather this calamity, thanks to Dad. It's just unknown how long it will take. We should be happy to have our family around us."

"I love you very much, Mike."

Roy called out to John and Mike:

"Boys, we need to evaluate the situation. There is no returning to the civilization of yesterday. We must start thinking about how we will create the next generation. We cannot plan anything based on death. Since the power grid failed, I know the infrastructure has collapsed. Where we go from here depends upon the regaining of our sight. We must stay alive until that happens or accept that we will remain blind and die a slow death. I choose life."

"Regardless of the length of time this takes, there will be a severe loss of life. The longer it takes, the greater the loss. We are very fortunate in comparison with millions, if not billions, of others. Exposure, dehydration and suicide are already at work. Even those who survive and regain sight will have to struggle for their lives for some time to come."

No one knew what time it was. Some idea of night and day was had by walking outside and feeling the sunlight or lack of it. The day of the week also faded. (Is it Tuesday or Wednesday?) It didn't matter. It would be Today from now on.

"Family, it is probable that this event will cause the rebirth of humanity.

Write A Review