Chapter II: The infection Begins
Day 1, Status: Dormant Infection, Flu
November 30, 2018
Currently Infected: 1
11:00AM
Jump City General Hospital, Emergency Wing
A man is lying down on the hospital bed, sniffling and sneezing. The doctors diagnosed his ailment what was thought to be a flu. Two of them walked into the room wearing lab coats and latex gloves. "This makes no sense at all. The flu season wasn't supposed to kick off until early December." Said one of them. "That's what my thoughts are exactly, yet look at him, sniffling and sneezing with a high fever of at least 118 degrees." Said the other. They couldn't believe the man before them was sick with a flu case. "On the bright side, we only have one case of the flu so far. Being it only late in November, It might be awhile before anymore are sick." The first doctor assumed. "Fingers crossed we don't get too much more befor Flu season officially starts." The second doctor hoped. Just then, a nurse came in with a worried look on her face. "Doctors..." she started. That caused the doctors to turn their attention to her. "We got four more people in the emergency entrance, sniffling, sneezing and running high fevers." "Oh boy, sounds like more flu cases for this hospital to handle. Do we have the antibiotics and vaccines to handle this year's flu season?" The second doctor asked. "Let's hope so. Five cases are bad enough as it is." The first doctor said
11:30AM
Currently infected: 13
Titans Tower
"Titans, emergency meeting, now!" Robin called his subordinates to the main room. When the other Titans entered, they see their leader in a concerned state. Everyone stood silent for a bit, then Starfire broke the silence. "Is this because of the mysterious flu cases in the Jump City General Hospital we all heard about?" Robin turned his head towards the other Titans. "At least you guys aren't the only one." Robin kept a concerned look on his face. "I just got a call from the head of the Jump City General Hospital. He said his staff have their hands full with at least 13 people sick with flu." "Flu? That doesn't make any sense!" Beast Boy decided to speak up. Cyborg, Starfire and Raven agreed. "I know! Flu season was not supposed to begin at all until at least sometime early December, but somehow some people turned up sick with that." Robin stated. "Ok Titans, let's all calm down for a moment." Starfire assured. "As I learned from years on your planet, the flu is not as likely to kill their host as Trigon himself would. It may spread from host to host, but it's not very lethal." "You're right Star." Raven praised Starfire. "My father would very likely kill a lot of humans, but the flu is nothing compared to his evil power." Cyborg then added something about the flu. "Well, the flu will make you sniffle and sneeze, it will give you a high fever, but it all wouldn't likely kill a person." Beast Boy gave his thoughts on the flu. "Some variants of the flu are even from certain animals. Bird flu is a little serious." "There's also the matter of a possible quarantine in the hospital if any more people show up there with the flu." Robin said. "Ok, let's all think for a moment. Yes, the flu hit people earlier than we thought, catching many medical experts off guard, and at least one person will die from it, but it will not be a lot." "Vaccinations are very important, wether you like it or lump it." Raven said. "Can't have us getting it, although, being half demon, it's not likely I'll get it. Cyborg is half human, half robot, so he is not gonna be able to catch the flu anytime soon. And you, Robin, have a resistant body from all that training with Batman. Starfire and Beast Boy, however, have never been exposed to the flu themselves." Everyone else was worried while Raven kept a serious face. "Ok, everyone, there's no need to be scared of the flu." Robin stated. "Even With Starfire coming from a planet where the flu is unknown to her people, and Beast Boy spending time in the forest before his superhero days, we can fix that quite easily." The Titans stood for a bit, then chattered in agreement.
Day 2, Status: Dormant infection, flu
December 1st, 2018
9:45AM
Currently infected: 48
Jump City Streets
The Titans decided to walk around town today. Even though the General Hospital got more cases of the flu than yesterday, the Titans decided to enjoy a beautiful day in the snow. No one committing any crimes makes the day more relaxing. Robin managed to have Starfire and Beast Boy vaccinated for the flu this season, but concerns were growing with the team over the flu. "Hey guys, is it just me, or are more people going to get sick with flu over time?" "It's just you, Beast Boy. Everyone is likely to get vaccinated, there's no way they can get sick." Raven reassured. "And even if they do catch it, will they still get sick?" "Titans, relax. There's no way we can get sick with the flu, and even if—" Robin was interrupted by his communicator receiving a call. Robin picked it up and answered the incoming call. It was the General Hospital head. "Titans..." he said "as I previously expained, there are patients of the flu in our hospital. Our Emergency wing is filled with flu patients from across the city. Now we have one less. Unfortunately, the reason for that is, that person has just passed away from the flu." The Titans were not as shocked, as they expected this. "We are in the process of cremating the body right now. Once—" the head recieved a call from the mayor of Jump City. "I'll have to take this, hold on a second."
Only three minutes passed and the head called back. He told the Titans the mayor of the city wants to meet with them in his office.
11:30AM
Currently infected: 59
Death toll: 1
Jump City Hall
The Titans have arrived at the mayor's office. He was expecting them. "Have a seat, Titans, you'll need to hear what I have to say on the situation." The Titans took their seats in front of the mayor. "Now then... Robin, I take it you are already aware of what is going on in this city, as well as the rest of you?" "Yes, mayor, I am aware that flu season started earlier than we thought." Robin said, in a serious tone. The other Titans agreed. "We also received word that the General Hospital has reported the first flu-related death this season." "Of course you have." The mayor said. "As far as you guys are concerned, the flu has killed people all over the world in the past. We don't know what the estimated death toll will be this season." The mayor stopped for a moment, then spoke once more. "You haven't touched anymore dollar bills, have you? I couldn't bear to see you five get sick from it as well... then again, with Robin's intense training, Cyborg being half machine, and Raven being half demon, I doubt that would be the case. But Starfire and Beast Boy did get their vaccinations recently, right?" "We did get the vaccinations, Mr. Mayor." Starfire assured the mayor she and Beast Boy would be fine. The mayor stood in a brief silence, which he immediately broke. "Is it alright if I tell you guys a story about a viral outbreak from 2016?" "If it helps with what is to come, sure." Raven Said. The other Titans shook their heads in agreement. "Very well. Let me start from the beginning..."
It all started Black Friday of 2016 in New York City. People flocked from all over the city to Times Square for some serious bargain hunting. Retailers in the area called this their biggest sale record in history. However, a day later, people started to get sick from the same flu we are experiencing right now. The hospitals in New York had cases all over. Hand sanitizer and soap was a neccessity. But the flu was just the tip of the iceberg. There were unconfirmed reports of a smallpox outbreak in central Manhattan as National Guard units convered in a hospital there. Whatever went on there, it was more deaths than AIDS, and there were more than Ebola. There were not enough vaccines for the people. That turned the outbreak into a panic situation. That caused New York, an entire American city, to be locked down. There were no trains and the bridges were closed. There was widespread looting all over the city. Prisoners took control of the Detention Facility on Rikers Island. The American government had no resources available, causing them to intiate a protocol known as Directive 51, a protocol which an attempt to establish government in a time of chaos is made. This lead to a team of Elite, Highly-classed agents to enter the fray. They were simply known as... The Division.
When the mayor wrapped up his story, Beast Boy spoke up. "Wait, so what happened In New York could be happening in Jump City right now?" "Yes, Beast Boy. That might be the case." Robin decided to say something. "Smallpox is a very serious danger. The death toll throughout history is approximately 500 billion. The last of it was supposed to be stored in a scientific facility for research purposes." Starfire said something about this as well. "I am unaware of this Smallpox. If it has killed many humans through history and is not extinct, then—" just then, the mayor got a call from the head of the hospital. "Hold that thought, everyone." He answered the call. The head spoke nervously. "Mayor, are the Titans still in your office?" "Yes, Mr. Tomas, what's all the panic? More people dead, I assume?" "Yes, but the reason is worse. Their bodies have a lot of bumps on them." The mayor started to look concerned. "Tomas, you don't mean..." "Yes, Mayor, this could be a Smallpox outbreak." The Titans gasped in fear. They couldn't believe what happened in New York is happening in Jump City now.