Chapter Three

Chapter three of 'The Occurance Of Black'.

 

     "Lay down Stacy," Dr. Reynolds spoke calmly as Stacy lay her head gently onto the white pillow of the hospital bed. The citizens of Still Caverns had apparently dismissed his response of Stacy being tired from over working as truth. Still he knew not how much longer he could hide the happenings in the hospital. It was only a matter of time.

     Dr. Reynolds dreamed wearily of the past few days he had worked at Still Caverns Community Hospital. He had known upon leaving Boston that his stay would be an unpleasant one- but he did not expect something as threatening, let alone demoralizing, as this. Never before had he even heard of a 'Still Caverns' as it were.

     It had been a little over a week since he was introduced with a new strand of a flu-like substance, pictures of its bacterial strands had been sent to him via computer by a colleague of his own. Never before had he seen anything so intrigueing in his work. He had only arrived at the age of thirty the month before, but already he was considered one of the best in his line of work- that was still living at that day and time. He took great pride in being a virologist, and in doing so he had left the day after he was shown the strand, making his way to the plague center in Atlanta, Georgia. This would be the same center that was overrun with 'Captain Tripps' in Stephen King's 'The Stand', but that is a different tale, one belonging unto my mental list of favorite works. I highly recomend it, but this is not a tale to promote any ideals or works, only to entertain, so I shall presently continue.
     Upon arriving and joining his colleague in the study of this recently discovered atrocity, Dr. Reynolds was shocked to find the virus itself had been relocated to a location presently entitled 'the hotspot' by the military (those who knew of this new sickness, which were very few), the original name being Still Caverns, which I stated Dr. Reynolds had no recollection of ever knowing the existence of such a place- as most peoples have not. He was also stunned at the symptoms that proceeded upon the victoms. He was able to see these symptoms first hand on his own colleague, a Dr. Steven Charles. The time it chose to invade his body was unknown, but the time spanning from first symptoms until death was around two days.
     Having witnessed the last agonizing days of his friend's life, he was very aware of the dangers of studying this particular virus. However, his desire to avenge his friend through keeping this from overtaking society, along with his natural desire to overcome the challenge this presented, fueled him to find a cure- no matter how dangerous it may be. He read all the files his colleague had produced while encompassing himself in the mysteries of this virus.
     The virus (referred to by his colleague-and henced named in memory of him as the 'Black Widow' of all viral infections-as 'Black') was shown as observed in Dr. Charles' case to cause similar symptoms as the venom of the Black Widow spider caused when injected into a person. Upon reading these documents, he collected his belongings and was escorted by train to Still Caverns, with the citizens thereof under the impression of him being a new surgeon for the many patients of their hospital. The Still Caverns' residents were in full knowledge of their hospital being a last resort for most patients and rarely approached the subject. Therefore, Dr. Reynolds' arrival was not a topic of gossip as most small townsfolk would accept it.
     The symptoms, I suppose I should mention, are as follows. Upon recieving the virus, (which was usually upon contact with an infected host, as the virus was not generally carried by an uninfected specimen) the patient would usually experience abdominal pain usually followed by nausea and vomiting. Weakness and tremor seemed to follow, commonly mistaken by the infected as the flu or a 'Stomach bug' by the nausea and other symptoms described here. In some cases, faintness, dizziness, chest pains, and even respiratory difficulties had resulted but seeing as this happening in only three of the eleven cases (resulting in eleven deaths) recorded, it did not seem to be a concrete symptom. The symptom used in identifying this virus was the blood loss resulting from the eyes. In every case, the final symptom was the 'weeping of blood' as classified in Steven's reports.
     As Dr. Reynolds arrived in Still Caverns, he was lost in awe at the lacking of size the town portrayed, both in population as well as geographically. The town itself had survived on its abundance of coal until it was found to have been 'gutted' of the precious resource. The town was on the verge of collapse until the government built the hospital in the midst of the town. Looking for a desolate place to place 'incurable' cases for further study and treatments, congress agreed upon Still Caverns as the area of choice, both for its small population and for its geographical attributes. Still Caverns was located in a valley surrounded by insurpassable mountains upon all sides, with one side having a railroad route submergd within one of the more ideal mountains. With no roadway and no area for an airport (the government not wishing to draw attention of air traffic as it were), the town was only accessible by train. The inhabitants thereof withdrew a check from the government, dispersed through the hospital unto the public. The town was under document signed by each individual (for there were few) to withold the knowledge of the governments business there, and any accusations were quickly dismissed as payments being sent for coal from Still Caverns to be distributed within the company. Unbeknownst to those not of Still Caverns or the select few government officials, Still Caverns was named for its now empty coal mines.
     Dr. Reynolds recalled all of this in an instant, but as he expected, it brought him no relief. "And why should it?" He thought to himself. He had lost his colleague and he was now losing Stacy. He had met her only the day before, but still he felt responsible for her well-being, seeing as he was decifering a cure to this madness.
     After tending to Stacy, he frantically labored for a cure, all the while keeping watch and caring for the patients accompanying Stacy (which now was fourteen). All of the fourteen patients had arrived at Still Caverns for one reason or another but had contracted Black from the patient Reynolds had originally meant to study. Despite all who were in agony from Black, Stacy and the original patient, a Mr. Bill Shry, were Reynolds main choices of study due to the fact they had no other underlying illnesses. That didn't mean he cared for them more than the others...did it? Even if he did, he supposed a cure would contribute to the wellness of all mankind, and considering the higher percentage of obtaining a cure from the study of Stacy or Shry, would it then be wrong to show them better care for the good of mankind? These thoughts he pondered for but a moment before refocusing on his work. In an hour he would have to replinish his patients with another sedative. "At least I can give them some form of relief," he thought bitterly.
     As he lost himself in the labor of constructing a cure, his patients behind him slept on, lost to the world in their individual hospital beds. Unbeknownst to them, death proceeded its dark grip steadily upon them. A few lay silently still as if death had visited early, with only the rise and fall of their chest and the random facial expression of pain appearing suddenly and fleeing as quickly as it had came to prove otherwise. A few stirred in their sleep, but never awoke as the sedative remained to keep its prisoner. Meanwhile, all continued to dream of seemingly random things...as tears of red continued to trickle down.

Author's Note

Thank you for reading.