Present Day
United States Army Medical Research Institute
of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID)
Ft. Detrick,Maryland
Inside the United States Medical Research Institute in Maryland, members who work there do their job as usual of studying diseases of other sicknesses. As well in many ways of studying them to find new ways of making a cure.
1 member pressed his thumb on a scanner to the doors of a Virology section. Which is the study of viruses.
Each sickness has a level of risk of how dangerous it can be.
BIOSAFETY LEVEL 1
Miniimal biohazard. Study of low risk infectious
agents: Pneumococcus, Salmonella.
Pneumococcus is a type of streptococcus bacteria. The bacteria spread through contact with people who are ill or by healthy people who carry the bacteria in the back of their nose. Pneumococcal infections can be mild or severe.
Salmonella is a common bacterial disease that affects the intestinal tract. Salmonella bacteria typically live in animal and human intestines and are shed through feces. Humans becomes infected most frequently through contaminated water or food. Salmonella is non-fatal, but can be life-threatening if entered in the bloodstream.
The members in the lab went over their charts and through microscopes of the infectious levels.
And 1 member, an elderly woman exits the lab and went down the hall into the BL2 hall.
BIOSAFETY LEVEL 2
Moderate biohazard. Infectious agents: Hepatitis,
Lyme Disease,Influenza.
In a lab of the biosafety level 2, members wore masks for protection.
Hepatitis is an inflammation of the liver. And Hepatitis B is a serious liver infection that is easily preventable by a vaccine.
Lyme Disease is mainly caused by an infectious disease caused by the Borrelia bacterial which spread by ticks. The most common sign of infection is an expanding area of redness on the skin, known as erythema migrans, that appears at the site of the tick bite about a week after it occurred. Mainly caused in Deer Ticks.
Influenza: or commonly known as the flu, is a viral infection that attacks the respiratory system. Including the nose, throat and lungs. And sometimes kill people those with weaken immune systems. In the US, more than 3 million cases occur each year.
Then 1 member leaves the lab and removes his mask as he walks off. And other members in another lab continue their work.
1 member then opens a door and enters a room of the BL3.
BIOSAFETY LEVEL 3
High biohazard. Multiple vaccination required.
Infectiousagents: Anthrax, Typhus, H.I.V.
In the Level 3 lab, members wore breathing masks and suits for protection as these level of infectious hazards are very serious.
Anthrax is a serious bacterial disease of sheep and cattle, typically affecting the skin and lungs. It can be transmitted to humans, causing severe skin ulceration.
Typhus is an infectious disease caused by rickettsiae, characterize by a purple rash, headaches, fever, and usually delirium, and historically a cause of high mortality during wars and famines. There are several forms, transmitted by vectors such as lice, ticks, mites, and rat fleas.
H.I.V. stands for human immunodeficiency virus. It harms the immune system by destroying the white blood cells that fight infection. This puts someone at risk for serious infections and certain cancers.
As they worked, a member removes her mask opens the door to leave. And in a room on the other hall side, were a few cages holding different species of monkeys. Since some cures of diseases are tested sometimes on animals before being used on humans.
1 member went over a doorway, and placed his hand on a scanner, and the doors opened as he enters inside. He then heads down a walkway leading to a highly secured room. And then did a scanner test of a BL4 room.
He then opened the door and enters inside.
BIOSAFETY LEVEL 4
Extreme biohazard. Maximum security.
Infectious agents: Ebola, Lassa, Hanta viruses.
Level 4 members are at highest risk, as they wore heavy containment suits.
Highly virulent. No known cures or vaccines.
Ebola is a viral haemorrhagic fever of humans and other primates caused by ebolaviruses. Signs and symptoms typically start between 2 days and 3 days after contracting the virus with a fever, sore throat, muscular pain and headaches. Ebola is also fatal, but some people do survive, and is mainly a West African virus.
Lassa is a type of hemorrhagic fever that cause fever, weakness, headache, vomiting, and muscle pain.
Hanta viruses are normally cause infection in rodents, but do not cause disease in them.
In a section, 2 members, a man and woman, were getting suited up before entering the main room to start working. And they need to make sure it's on properly, because even 1 small mishap can lead to dire trouble.
Once they made sure their suits were secured, they then entered a small chamber as they waited a few moments.
"Isn't this your last day?" He asked.
"Yeah." The woman replied.
A buzzer was heard he then opened the door to the room and hooked on their air-hoses and got to work.
Later that day, at a house a phone rang.
"Oh, come on now. It's almost over." A voice said.
The phone continues ringing.
"Almost over. That's it. Atta boy. Doesn't that feel good, Lewis? Doesn't that feel good? Oh, you're such a good boy. Yes. Right? Come on."
In a bathroom, a man named Sam Daniel was finishing giving his 2 dogs a bath.
"Sam, are you there? Pick up the phone if you're there."
"Okay, Lewis, you stay here." Sam said.
"We got a situation in Zaire."
"Okay?" Sam gently pours water on Lewis' head washing the soap.
"It doesn't look good at all."
"You guys stay there." Sam said. "I'll be right back."
"Hemorrhagic fever..."
"Henry, Lewis... Stay there." Sam said as he walks out of the bathroom walking over to his desk to grab his phone.
"We picked up a satellite replay from Cairo."
As Sam nears his phone, Lewis then hops out from the tub.
"I said stay. No!" Sam said and picks up the phone.
"Sam?"
"Hi, Billy. What's up?" Sam said.
"Looks like we have a level 4, Sam."
"How many dead?" Sam asked.
"Don't know. There aren't any numbers yet."
"What do you think it is?" Sam asked.
"Too early to say. The World Health Organization is preparing a team but I want you there first. I'm taking you off Hanta and flying to Zaire."
"Okay, let me get my crew together." Sam said. "I'll get back to you. Bye-bye."
Sam placed his phone down, and turns to Henry and Lewis.
"I can't believe this." Sam scolded gently. "You're wet, right? You guys are wet."
Henry and Lewis were laying on the couch.
"Which 1 disobeyed me first?" Sam questioned. "Lewis, it was you, wasn't it? You guys are busted. You look very guilty."
After cleaning up, Sam opens the car door letting them out.
"Come on. Lewis, come on." Sam said as Henry rushed out.
The 2 dogs barked as Sam closed the car door and heads up to a recent sold house grabbing a newspaper and got to the door.
"Get down." Sam said.
He then rings the doorbell as the door soon opened and reveals a woman named Robby who was his ex-wife.
"How you doing?" Sam asked.
"Hey, boys. Hey." Robby greeted Henry and Lewis. "How you doing, guys? How you doing, guys? What are you doing? Where are... You miss me?" She hugs Lewis. "Come here. Come here. Who wants some breakfast?"
And Henry and Lewis rushed off somewhere in the house as she turns to Sam.
"Your paper." Sam said holding it out.
"You here to get your stuff?" Robby asked grabbing the paper. "Come on, boys." She heads to the kitchen. "Bagels, huh? Who wants bagels?"
Sam looked around at some of the packed boxes.
"Who wants some breakfast?" Robby said. "Who wants some breakfast? Yeah! I've got you."
"I've, uh, I've got to go away." Sam said.
"Where?" Robby asked.
"Zaire." Sam answered. "They think there's been some cases of hemorrhagic fever in a village there."
"Casey goin'?" Robby asked.
"Yeah." Sam replied. "And Jaffe. The whole crew. Most of it."
Robby turns to him. "So you want me to take the dogs?"
"It'll just be 4 days." Sam said.
"Okay, but I am going to Atlanta on Friday so if you're late, the dogs go with me to Atlanta." Robby said.
"Fair enough." Sam said.
"Come on." Robby said walking off.
"What are you gonna be doing at CDC?" Sam asked.
"Working BL4." Robby answered. "Same as you."
"My job." Sam said.
"Well, I'd like to think of it as my job." Robby said. "And I won't have the Pentagon breathing down my neck."
"This is mine." Sam said holding a mug.
"Take it." Robby said. "And the rest of your stuff is in the boxes in there."
Sam walked over to where the boxes were.
"Uh, I can hang on to it till you come back or... whatever." Robby offered.
Sam placed the mug down, and looked through some photos when they were together. And then he brought a picture frame when they were at an African school.
"You know that you're giving me all the pictures of us." Sam said.
"Yeah." Robby said. "You can keep 'em."
Sam then placed the frame down. "You keep 'em." And he placed the photos down as well.
"I don't want 'em, Sam." Robby said.
"Well, I don't want 'em either, Robby." Sam said walking off.
"Thursday." Robby said.
Sam then walks out of the house and closed the door.
At a grassy field in Montana, a large aircraft shaped like a Box Turtle with a teal/aqua green color rests on the field as a group of 5 people were on a study of one of it's dig sites called Jack's Birthday Site, a bone bed located along Badger Creek in Glacier County.
They were Chris and Martin Kratt, Aviva Corcovado, Koki and Jimmy Z. They are a team called the Wild Kratts.
And it appears they were about to solve a 74 million year old crime scene.
"Can someone explained to me what we're doing again?" Jimmy asked.
"This fossil site seems very interesting." Chris said. "The number of predatory dinosaurs found there seemed to have died at the same time."
"Hmm. Seems like the bones were found on the edge of an ancient stagnant lake." Aviva said looking under a microscope of a sample of dirt.
"There has similar mass killings today among birds." Chris said bringing up a photo of a mass number of dead birds by a water source.
"What happened to them?" Koki asked.
"It appears it was a fast-acting naturally-occurring deadly disease, botulism." Martin explained.
"Botulism?" Jimmy frowned.
"It's caused by bacteria that can thrive in rotting carcasses." Chris explained. "So it's likely that the dinosaurs at the site were victims to this as well."
"Can it affect us?" Jimmy asked.
"Easily." Martin said.
Botulism is rare, but is still deadly. It's one of the most potent poisons on Earth. Less than a millionth of a gram in the bloodstream can kill a human.
And once a carcass is poisoned, it is quickly passed on to any animal that eats it with lethal results.
"Botulism was also showed in this." Chris pressing a few button of the big screen's dashboard.
It then showed a clip of 2011 series Planet Dinosaur ep. 6 The Great Survivors showing a trio of Suskityrannus that were just recently victims of botulism. But also showed that plant eaters like the bizarre Nothronychus are usually safe from such deadly killers.
"Um... didn't we get a call from a military saying they want us to help with a case in Africa?" Koki asked.
"Yeah." Chris replied.
"Maybe we should get going now." Aviva suggested.
At a military base, a Lockhead AC-130 was getting ready for lift-off.
"Okay, I want a turn-up on the mark, lieutenant." Sam ordered.
"Yes, colonel." The soldier saluted.
"Come on, let's move it." Sam said. "Come on, let's go. Let's go!" He walked to the back of the plane.
"Plasma goes int the rig under the right wing." Casey said.
"Casey, where the hell is Jaffe?" Sam asked.
"His wife went into labor." Casey said. "I just put him on leave."
"Who gonna read the tissue samples?" Sam asked.
"Oh, you don't trust me?" Casey joked sounding hurt lifting a crate. "Come on. Alright, fine, you want a hotspot scope-jockey they just sent us out of Walter Reed you can have 'em, but frankly, I am hurt."
"Who cut his orders?" Sam asked.
"The old man himself." Casey replied.
Sam looks over and standing next to a truck was an African American man in his late 50's named Brig. Gen. Billy Ford as he was looking at some papers.
"He hasn't been up this early since Nixon was in office." Casey said.
"I'm gonna tell him you said that." Sam said.
"I'll deny it." Casey said as Sam walks off.
Sam nears Billy as he hands the clipboard to a member.
"Good to see you, sir." Sam saluted.
"Sam." Billy saluted. "Thought if I showed my star around here it might speed things up for you."
"Is it working?" Sam asked.
"No." Billy replied. "Personnel file on your new man. Plus telex traffic to date and satellite photos from the last bird over the area. Sam..."
"Sir?" Sam said.
"Get in, get out." Billy instructed. "Much as I hate having you around here to make my life miserable I really don't wanna lose you to some bug in the field.
Sam nodded understandingly. "1 question, sir."
"Go on." Billy said.
"What have I ever done to male your life miserable, sir?" Sam asked.
"You got up this morning, didn't you?" Billy said.
"Thank you, Billy." Sam said.
"Also, I recently brought in a team to help out." Billy added. "They're specialized in their job. Make sure they get home healthy as well."
"Well do, sir." Sam nodded.
The 2 saluted and Sam walks off.
Shortly later, the AC-130 takes off into the air.
Sometime later into the flight, an African American man named Major. Salt who is recently new was sitting on a chair and looks over to Casey who was laying back on a supply crate humming as he was listening through headphones reading something and eating a candy bar. Casey soon noticed him.
"Hm?" Casey held his candy bar offering him if he wants a bite.
But Salt shook his head.
"Major Salt." Sam called out.
Salt quickly stood out. "Sir, may I say what an honor it is to have this opportunity-"
"Thank you, sit down. Sit down." Sam said. "Well, your background's first-rate. West Point, John Hopkins, helicopter flight school. How many hours have you logged?"
"85, sir." Salt confirmed.
"Married?" Sam questioned.
"Yes, sir." Salt confirmed.
"Good luck." Sam said. "You've never been in the field?"
"No, sir." Salt replied. "But I'm fully trained and highly motivated, sir."
"No, no, I'm talking about landing in a hot zone." Sam corrected. "It's a unique situation. Have you ever seen the effects of hemorrhagic fever?"
"No, sir." Salt replied.
"Allow me, sir." Casey said. "Major."
"Yes, major." Salt said.
"When the patient first gets the virus he complains of flu-like symptoms." Casey explained. "And in 2 or 3 days, pink lesions begin to appear all over his body, along with small pustules that soon erupt with the blood and pus. A kind of milky substance-"
"These particular lesions become full-blown they fell like mush to the touch." Salt said. "There's vomiting, diarrhea, bleeding in the nose, ears, gums. The eyes hemorrhage, the internal organs shut down. They liquefy."
"That's very good, major." Sam said.
Jimmy nervously gulped.
"Uh, we've read that in a book too but in about 16 hours you are about to see it." Sam said.
"In the flesh, so to speak." Casey added.
"I feel confident that I can handle anything we encounter, sir." Salt said. "If just 1 of us panics it puts us all in danger."
"And he's under direct orders not to die out there." Casey said. "And that's one set of orders he's actually planning on following."
The next day, a Bell UH-1 Iroquois followed by a Bell-206 flew over a river of a dense rainforest with a nearby waterfall as they flew over the landscape.
On a hilltop, an elder tribesman was doing some kind of worship as he looks seeing the helicopters nearby.
And the 2 helicopters near the ground as begin to land.
Motaba River Valley, Zaire
The helicopters begin to land as they were near a village, and the team climbed out as they were in containment suits as they begin to head out. And soon, Sam, Casey, Salt and the Wild Kratts enter the village as they saw a number of bodies laid out and a small flame occurring.
And they looked around the village as nearby behind a tree as a wooden structure with burnt bodies as they were burnt to the bone.
"That must be it." Casey said.
Ahead of them was a hut as they begin to approach it.
The door then opens as Sam, Casey and Salt enter inside as the Wild Kratts waited outside for safety reasons. And they looked around as many people inside were sick.
As they looked, Salt was starting to look nervous as his inexperience was beginning to show. And a baby cry was heard as he pulls back a curtain revealing a sick pair and 4 year old boy crying as his shirt had a few blood stains.
Then Salt's fear of inexperience started to get the better of him his started gasping. And then suddenly he started retching as Casey soon saw him.
"He's losing it." Casey said.
Sam quickly turns to him.
Salt struggles to breathe straight as he was trying to remove his helmet.
"No. No. Just hang on." Casey said trying to hold him still.
"Keep his helmet on." Sam said.
"Don't take your helmet off." Casey said.
"I can't breathe!" Salt said.
"Keep your helmet... Casey. Keep his helmet on." Sam said.
Casey struggled to stop Salt from removing his helmet.
"Keep his helmet on!" Sam said a man behind him enters the hut. "Don't let him expose himself, Casey."
But Salt manages to get his helmet removed as he started coughing.
"Goddamn it. Isolate him." Sam angrily said. "Isolate him."
"Don't worry." a man's voice said as Sam turns to him. "It's not airborne."
Casey helps Salt away.
"Sam Daniels, USAMRIID." Sam introduced.
"Benjamin Iwabi." The man introduced himself. "We've been expecting you."
"We came as soon as we could." Sam said.
"Not soon enough." Benjamin said. "The village is dead."
Soon, Sam followed Benjamin.
"Do you know the incubation period?" Sam asked.
"No." Benjamin replied. "But it kills in 2 or 3 days. The mortality rate is 100%."
"Jesus." Sam said in disbelief. "Could an infected person have gotten out of the village?"
"If he did, he'd be dead or dying in the jungle." Benjamin said. "And it's 50 miles to the nearest village."
"First case? Patient 0?" Sam inquired.
"A young man called Murazo worked with a white man to build a-a road into Kinshasa." Benjamin explained. "And when he returned, he was sick."
"I see." Sam said.
"And he drank from this well." Benjamin gestured to a well. "From there, it spread through the entire village."
"Did you identify the carrier?" Sam asked. "The host?"
"No. When we arrived, the boy was incoherent." Benjamin said. "He died, uh, 2 hours later."
"Oh." Sam said.
"He couldn't tell us how he got it." Benjamin said.
Sam then noticed the man on the hilltop as he was chanting out in a foreign language.
"He's not sick." Sam said.
Benjamin turns to him. "He's a local juju man. Witch doctor." He explained. "He stayed in his cave a whole week.
"I'd like to talk to him too." Sam said.
"No, he talks to me." Benjamin said. "You see, he believe that the gods were awoken from their sleep by the men cutting down the trees where no man should be. And the gods got angry. This... is a punishment."
Sometime later, the 2 helicopters begin to take off and left the village.
In a clearing some distance from the village, monkeys screeched in the trees as the helicopters flew overhead.
Later, they were back in the AC-130 heading home as they begin to work out the sickness.
"Alarmingly high fatality." Sam said.
"Check." Aviva said.
"All localized within a 3 mile radius." Sam stated looking over at Salt. "Incubation period short, appears contained."
Casey typed everything on a laptop.
"Hmm. Almost sound like Ebola." Chris said. "But, I don't think it's that."
"Alarmingly. Casey, you didn't put alarmingly." Sam said.
"It's an adverb, Sam." Casey said. "It's a lazy tool of a weak mind. Period. Done.
"I wanna add this." Sam said. "Billy... this is the scariest son of a bitch I've ever seen."
"And you know I've seen a lot." Casey remarked.
"Fine. Fax it to Ford's house." Sam said.
Sam then got up and heads over to Salt.
"Sorry, sir." Salt apologized as Sam sat next to him.
"It's alright." Sam assured.
"I've never seen anything like it before." Salt said still looking shaken up. "I put the team in danger, sir."
"We're still here." Salt said.
Salt breathed heavily. "I got scared, sir."
"You know, fear gets a bad rap, Salt." Sam said. "I don't want anybody working with me who isn't scared. Okay?"
"Well, then I'm your man, sir." Salt said smiling.
Sam smiled and patted his back.
Back in the African forests, a clan of monkeys wanders among the forest floor looking for something to eat.
As 1 wanders into a small clearing, a net trap suddenly sets off and catching the monkey.
Late at night, the AC-130 finally returns to home base and lands on the runway.
Later, Sam met up with Billy at his place as a party occurred.
"Sam, I sent you the fax 6 hours ago-" Sam said.
"Sam, I am not going to issue an alert." Billy said.
"I don't wanna bust up your party, sir but you gotta issue an alert." Sam said.
"You said it was contained." Billy remarked.
"I said containment was probable." Sam reminded. "You should be monitoring the airports, you gotta-"
"Sam. Do you remember 2014?" Billy questioned.
"Yeah." Sam nodded.
"You found 2 lousy cases of Congo fever in Nairobi and we put a note in every American kid's lunchbox." Billy said. "You remember that?"
"Yeah, I was wrong." Sam replied.
"You were wrong." Billy said.
"Uh-huh."
"W-What about 2017? Lassa fever?"
"I was wrong."
Wrong again."
"Yup."
"But you're right about this?" Billy inquired.
"No, I could be wrong-"
"Yet you waltz into my party smelling like dirty socks snatch me away from Senator Rosales whom I need not remind you, Sam is head of the Senate Arms Services subcommittee which is in charge of our fucking budget." Billy said.
"Forget Ebola. Forget Lassa." Sam said. "This bug kills so fast, Billy. You could be dead in-"
"Keep your voice down." Billy said. "Now, that is exactly my point, Sam. It is the very lethality of this virus which is working for us here. These unfortunate people don't live long enough to spread the goddamn thing around. So you're right, it is contained."
"I hope so." Sam said.
Author's Note:
Here's to my 1st Rated-M story, and likely the only 1.
And I saw the new In Search of the Easter Bunny episode of Wild Kratts. And that the Snowshoe Hare Power Suit finally makes an appearance after 7 years since Snow Runners first aired.
And I'm guessing this explained of the Jackrabbit Power Suit from Spots in the Desert.
And 13 days before the Wild Kratts special Amazin' Amazon Adventure arrives. Showing macaws, Capybaras, Giant Otters, an adult Black Jaguar for the first time, and even Poison Dart Frogs. Even a Giant Otter Power Suit, which is actually more like the River Otter version but with a longer tail.
I hope it will show a Green Anaconda.
And note for Dinoman: I'm aware that White-headed Capuchins are only in Central American.