3. Claire
Caraçari. Northern Amazon Region -July 18th.
Caraçari was a bigger town than Claire had expected. The woman had been in the region before as an agent for TerraSave. At that time, she'd come fully on humanitarian work, so she'd mostly visited the smaller native villages in the forested area.
Caraçari was not the largest city she'd been to, but it had considerable size, considering the region's situation. TerraSave had a Med Research center in town, which was, exactly, where Claire and her team established their headquarters. The advantage of being under the WHO's wing and being a distinguished former member of TerraSave was that the local group seemed so biased that they made their stay unfairly comfortable. It made Claire feel a little guilty.
Saya and Wallace were mostly on office duty, running tests and analyzing data, but Dhriti and Claire did all the fieldwork. As an epidemiologist, Dhriti had taken it upon herself to speak to the locals while Claire assessed the damage.
"God, the mortality rate is over the numbers," Claire sighed, looking at the scene.
At least a dozen cows lay dead at the shoreline of the river. Blood dripped from their orifices, giving the whole picture a disturbing look and the smell. Oh, the smell.
After so many years of dealing with zombies and viral agents, Claire thought her stomach had developed immunity to revolting images and smells. However, she got proven wrong when she felt the wave of nausea hit her at the scent of death and decay that lingered over the dead animals.
"Well, I guess this leaves no doubt that this is indeed a hemorrhagic fever," Claire sighed, blinking to push away her blurry sight. She was starting to feel queasy again. She blamed it on the hazmat suit she was wearing and the unholy heat. "mucosal bleeding is an obvious sign. The question is, who is causing it?"
"Well, you are the scientist," Carlos replied. "Don't ask me."
"It's a rhetorical question," Claire said, shaking her head.
The woman rose to her feet, the movement causing her to lose her balance a little and stagger. Carlos automatically took her arm to steady her and looked at her with a frown.
"You ok, Red?" Carlos asked. "I know this is important, but you've been working the whole morning under the sun, and these sauna outfits are not exactly healthy. I don't want you to suffer from heat shock."
"Yeah, maybe I should freshen up a bit and maybe drink something. I'm feeling sick," Claire admitted. "Can we get one of these corpses to the center? I would like to perform a necropsy on the body. Take some tissue for pathology and stuff."
"Sure, whatever you need."
Carlos spoke to one of the local members of TerraSave, giving him instructions about moving the corpses. In the meantime, Claire made her way to another area under the shade and far enough from the putrid smell so that she could pull down her mask. The wave of fresh air made her feel a lot better, but the woman still felt squeamish. She felt the mild headache forming and rubbed her temples with discomfort.
"You're looking pale," Carlos said, handing her a bottle of water.
"Do I? Or you're just suggesting I need a tan?"
"Well, I wouldn't say no to a tan," Carlos snickered. "But you are looking pale and sick."
"I'm sunstroke and probably dehydrated," Claire said, gulping the water. "Aside from that, maybe I need another dose of my serum."
"Well, this weather can hit people hard," Carlos admitted. "I just don't want your family getting it at me for not taking proper care of a lady."
"Since when are you scared about that?"
"Well, I know Redfield. He'd love to punch me, and with your husband added to the equation, I might be on the losing side."
"You don't even know Leon," Claire laughed.
"I don't need to know him. He is a husband. I know how they are."
"Oh, really? With whom have you been messing to know that?"
"What happens in town stays in town."
Claire laughed, but that made her feel dizzy again.
"Let's get back. I'm seriously thinking I am heat-stroked."
"Oh, tell you. The hazmat suits aren't helping either. Even I feel queasy under this sun."
The air conditioning in the lab felt welcomed. After taking a dose of the DNA serum that she was now taking as a chronic treatment to cope with the effects of Mobius's experiments, Claire felt considerably better. It was strange that the usual dose was not working as well as it should. But then again, it might have been all the fault of environmental factors. The heat put her body under stress, and that caused her body to consume DNA faster than regular.
"Someone looks like shit," Wallace scoffed. "What happened to you?"
"Global warming," Claire replied. "Temperatures outside are disgustingly hot."
"Well, I don't envy you, considering you have to wear the hazmat suit, too," Saya replied. The woman handed her a cold bottle, "Take some electrolytes. You need them."
"Considering how much I am sweating, what I need is a bath," Claire sighed. "What do we have from yesterday's samples?"
"Nothing conclusive," Saya sighed, reading the notes on the notepad. "Cytokines are high, which suggest inflammation, lymphocytes, and eosinophils are high, so definitely infection. Diminished amounts of platelets."
"Generic hemorrhagic fever signs," Claire sighed."According to the locals, the animals showed anomalous behavior before they died."
"Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy?" Saya suggested.
"BSE doesn't include bleeding," Claire replied, shaking her head. "Though we can't discard an emergent disease. If our problem is a prion, it might become a tricky task. Did we isolate any viral particles from the samples?"
"None," Saya sighed. "We've had no luck with the blood. We need a body with tissue."
"Well, a body wasn't exactly an option when you have to carry it in an enclosed space for a 3-hour drive," Carlos said. "We have one on its way now."
"Yeah, if it is a variant of BSE, we will know with histology," Claire nodded.
"So the animals reported by the river?" Wallace asked.
"Share the same symptoms," Claire sighed, crossing her arms and leaning into her chair. "Yeah, mucosal bleedings and visible anemia, same symptomatic frame."
"All of the animals died close to the river," Wallace said. "Isn't that our connection?"
"It might be waterborne," Claire nodded. "But then the disease wouldn't be zoonotic, and we would have a human case by now."
"Maybe it is waterborne, but the water treatment is enough to prevent humans from getting sick," Wallace suggested.
"I saw kids swimming in the river," Claire shrugged. "I don't think it is the water."
"Damn, swimming? Aren't those waters supposed to have piranhas?"
"Yeah, but those are in other areas of the river," Carlos explained. "People's life around her spin around the rivers. If it were the source, a lot of people would be dead."
"My point," Claire said. "I don't think it is in the water."
"Well, we won't know until we check the necropsy," Saya shrugged.
"Yeah," Claire sighed. "Well, I think I'll take a shower. I feel sluggish..."
"Go ahead," Saya said. "By the way, should we decide what's for lunch?"
"Whatever is fine," Claire sighed. "Maybe something light. I still have the death smell caught in my nose."
"I thought that didn't bother you," Wallace said. "I think it's disgusting, but you were cool with it."
"So did I, but it seems I was wrong. Some putrid amines still get me. I'll be back soon."
"Take your time, enjoy your shower..." Saya said, "We are not going anywhere."
Claire walked out of the lab room and headed to the housing area, rubbing the back of her neck. She was getting old, or she was out of fieldwork practice, but she felt exhausted. Her body was sore, and she felt lightheaded.
"Mental note," she mumbled to herself as she watched her image in the mirror. "Genomic mapping."
She hadn't felt like this in a while. The symptoms were not new. In fact, all were symptoms that she knew well and considered, at a certain level, normal. However, the symptoms usually went away after a dose of DNA. It was odd that even after her shot, she was still feeling sick.
The shower helped a little. Even though Claire still felt squeamish, her overall sensation had improved a lot. Maybe everything was just a bad case of insolation.
"Oh, dear...what's that smell?" Claire groaned.
"Sorry, I didn't expect the garlic to be so strong," Wallace apologized.
"That's too much garlic," Claire said, opening the window of the dining room.
"Smells are bothering you?" Saya asked. "Migraine?"
"Most likely," Claire answered, sitting down. "I'm waiting for the phosphenes..."
"Want an analgesic?"
"Maybe later," Claire answered, taking her food. "I'll wait until it becomes unbearable."
"That's masochism," Wallace said.
Claire rolled her eyes and took a bite of her food, and grimaced.
"What?" Saya asked.
"Tastes like death," Claire replied. "Damn corpses, they did mess up with my senses."
"Well, you know what they say. If you can smell it, you can taste it," Saya laughed. "What's the plan for the rest of the day?"
"Necropsy," Claire replied, "If they smell that bad while fresh, I don't want to do it when they're old."
"Fair. After lunch?"
"Do you guys really plan to do it after eating?" Carlos asked.
"The sooner, the better," Claire shrugged. "What are you reading, Carlos? You've been checking that phone very regularly."
"Just keeping an eye on the local situation," Carlos answered. "There had been rumors of bandits terrorizing the nearby area."
"Oooh, bandits," Saya snorted. "Where are we? Wild wild west?"
"Worse than that," Carlos replied. "Drug and weapon dealers. The forest is an excellent hideout, and they have been causing trouble all over the place. I'm just trying to keep an eye on the reports. Wouldn't want them to lay eyes on you."
"What a diligent bodyguard we got, huh?" Saya smirked.
"I'm a gentleman. What can I say?"
Claire rolled her eyes. She ate half of her food and put the rest in the fridge. There was no point in eating it if it tasted like a corpse. She would finish it once her nose had cleared up.
"I doubt that a bunch of drug dealers would be interested in us, but alright," Claire said. "Uh?"
Claire felt her phone ring in her pocket. To her surprise, she'd just received a message from Ingrid. That instantly set an alarm in the young woman's mind and she opened it immediately. Fortunately, the message seemed unrelated to Leon. Ingrid was asking for her help, trying to identify several plants that she'd attached through pictures. It was nothing but an innocent inquiry of botany.
"What?" Saya said.
"Ingrid is asking me for botanical help."
"Hunnigan?" Wallace asked. "She does know you are not a botanist, right?"
"Oh she does. Maybe she wants to make a tropical garden," Claire snickered. "All of these plants are from this area…"
"What a coincidence."
Claire chuckled and quickly typed her answer. She then put the phone back into her pocket.
Anyway, "I'll head to the morgue."
"Alone?" Wallace asked.
"Yes, alone..." Claire snorted. "See you guys later."
The morgue was nothing more than a small room in the basement of the building. The smell of disinfectant and dead tissue made Claire's stomach churn a little. Coincidentally, her scent was reminiscent of the one they used at Blackwell, and it brought back bad memories.
The corpse of the cow was in worse condition than Claire had anticipated. Most of the internal organs were in a state that she could only describe as "liquefied." It was almost impossible to distinguish them due to the high degradation caused by the excessive inflammation. The cells had collapsed entirely.
"That looks nasty," Saya said. "I am surprised you're bothered by the smell but not by how it looks."
"Well, I don't have such a weak stomach, do I?" Claire snorted. "Looks like a Multiorgan Failure. What do you think?"
"Well, from what I remember, multiorgan failure doesn't leave the organs looking at the grounded meat, but yeah, it looks like it might be sepsis."
"The brain seems to be the only thing in a decent state. What do you think?"
Saya was a neuropsychiatry specialist. The woman had probably seen tons of brains before, so she was the best person to judge the cow's brain.
"Mmm," Saya said. "No signs of inflammation; size and color seem normal, too. Oh, wait..."
"What?"
"Pass me the scalp and the forceps."
Claire did as asked and waited for the woman to talk. Saya worked on the brain carefully. She seemed to be removing something from the brain tissue. It was a tiny, beefy ball.
"Is that... A cyst ?" Claire asked.
"Looks like it," Saya replied. "There are more than one, look."
The medic pointed at several round points distributed around the gray mass.
"Do you think tapeworms are the culprit?" Claire said with a frown. "The symptoms do not coincide."
Cysticercosis is an infection caused by the larvae of the parasite Taenia solium. This infection occurs after a person swallows tapeworm eggs, and usually, the parasite establishes in the digestive tract. However, the parasite can migrate to other tissues of the host, including muscle and brain. When the parasites infect the brain, the host develops neurological symptoms, including meningitis, but aside from that, the disease is more or less asymptomatic.
"No, I don't think it is a tapeworm, but this might be a lead," Saya shrugged. "It could be an emerging parasite or something."
An emerging parasite. That was just what they needed. Claire's expertise was viruses, not parasites! The two women finished their work on the body and returned to the laboratory with several sample vials. When they stepped into the room, they were nicely surprised by Dhriti and Julie, who had only returned from one of the nearby villages.
" I hate this weather," Julie complained.
"You're having a rough time, too?" Claire asked, shaking her head. "I don't remember the weather wearing me out that much the last time I was here."
"The last time you were here," Saya replied, "you had not been infected with a virus that casually causes you to be photosensitive. I'm pretty sure that's why you two are having it this bad..."
"Yeah, maybe," Claire sighed. "What's new? Did you find something, Dhriti?"
The Indian woman sighed. She seemed visibly concerned, and that gave Claire an ominous hunch.
"We may have our first human case," Dhriti said. "A 23 years old woman from a village named Borea, 20 km from here. She is currently in quarantine."
"Oh, shit..." Wallace groaned. "That was quick."
Claire rubbed her face tiredly. That was just what she'd feared. If the disease had jumped to another species, then it was a matter of time for it to spread like fake news. If the pathogen turned out to be a virus, it would start mutating, and then finding an antiviral and a vaccine would be a race against the clock.
"Only one case?" Claire asked.
"Yes, Alan Obares. We put her family under observation, also some people that had anomalous symptoms." Dhriti shrugged. "But she doesn't know how she got infected, and I don't have a nexus yet. But she was never in contact with cattle..."
"Now, that's odd," Wallace replied. "Did she swim?"
"What?" Dhriti asked, puzzled.
"We were theorizing that the cause might have been the river. The pathogen might be waterborne," Claire said.
"I doubt it," Dhriti shrugged. "She recently arrived in town. She was working overseas, Colombia, and got back recently after making a small fortune."
"And she got infected? Here?" Carlos asked with a frown.
"We don't have an incubation time, infection rate, or an organism," Claire said, walking around restlessly. "All we have is speculations based on symptoms."
"That is a problem," Saya said. "How long has she been with symptoms?"
"According to her, she's been feeling sick for a week. The suspicious symptoms didn't show until last night when she began showing severe bleedings. Before that, she thought it was a cold."
"So it starts as a cold?" Wallace asked.
"That could make it viral," Saya shrugged.
"We are speculating," Claire sighed. She checked her watch and frowned. "Saya, can you check on her? Depending on the situation, we might consider moving her or we will need to move there instead."
"Sure."
"I'll send one of my guys with her," Carlos said.
"I was expecting you to offer to escort me," Saya said, faking an offended air.
"Sorry, love," Carlos said, winking at her playfully. "I had strict instructions to stick to Claire."
"Instructions?" Wallace said, "From who?"
"Hopkins," Claire replied, rolling her eyes. "It seems he has been brainwashed by Chris and Leon into thinking I need special protection."
"Well, that's because you have very overprotective men in your family," Dhriti giggled.
"You don't say. Anyway," Claire sighed. "Dhriti, we need to notify the WHO that we have our first human contagion. You know the drill. I'll start on those samples, and let's hope they give us something."