The Dragon Plague

Chapter 3

Meanwhile, the news of the infection had spread in the waiting room, and so did the panic. No one could think of anything else, it seemed.

The air was charged with nervous energy.

That day Sophie treated a number of patients. She stitched up a bad cut on an arm, plastered a fractured finger, prescribed medicines without knowing that they would ever be obtained.

She checked on Mr. Verlinden, a man in his seventies who went to the medical centre virtually every week, for real ailments or, more frequently, for diseases that he imagined to have.

That day he was sure he was on the verge of a heart attack, although his electrocardiogram argued the opposite. His problem, Sophie thought, was that he had a vivid imagination and too much free time.

Like many of their elderly patients he preferred to be examined by Sophie rather than Amanda, because she was more patient and listened to him.

Amanda, despite being a brilliant doctor, did not really want to spend time listening to old people's complaints .

"Once you understand what ails them, cut them short," she always warned, "We are the only medical centre in the radius of fifty kilometres, we cannot start providing psychological support too."

Sophie knew she was right, but she always found keeping the hard line difficult. In any case, on a day like that, the presence of Verlinden was almost a welcome distraction.

During the whole day Sophie tried to keep herself busy and not think about the infected which had been found just a few blocks from there.

She washed her hands repeatedly, as if the gesture could keep away the virus.

She knew it wasn't so: the disease was transmitted by contact, even through fabric, and once it had settled on the skin there was nothing left to do.

The incubation lasted about a month, without any discernible symptoms, but it was highly contagious. When the fever began to rise, it was already too late.

Not everyone caught it, however: there had been a long debate about people immune to infection, although many doctors claimed that it was an urban legend. Some said that anyone who came into contact with the pathogen agent became ill, but that did not stop people like her hoping to save themselves.

Maybe she was immune... maybe she shouldn't worry, maybe...

"What are you doing?" Amanda interrupted her, approaching the basin.

"Just washing my hands..." she answered .

Amanda raised an eyebrow: "For a quarter of an hour?"

Sophie didn't answer.

It was stupid, she knew. But she had to do something to reassure herself she is keeping the disease at bay.

Amanda rolled her eyes: "You were tested this very morning. You are not infected."

"I know." She nodded.

Actually, she had come in contact with at least fifty people in the course of the morning.

"Anyway, paranoia is useless."

"I know," Sophie repeated.

"If you are so scared of diseases maybe this is not the right job for you."

"I'm not scared," Sophie interrupted her. "I am just worried because of the dragon plague, like anyone with some common sense."

Amanda sighed: "Put the plastic gloves on, they prevent the passage of the virus."

Sophie shrugged: "Yeah, I always do, but it is not certain they prevent it... some say there is no way to stop the virus, that the gloves and such don't really offer any protection..."

"They do work, don't worry," Amanda assured her, looking smug. "When you're done come to the lab, Lukas has got coffee."

Sophie opened her eyes wide: "Real coffee? Wow."

The ration cards rarely allowed one to purchase luxury products like coffee; while commonly found in the black market, it was quite expensive.

Lukas Bonnet , the lab technician, was in charge of the analyses; he was tall, blond and rather handsome, as many of the patients had noticed.

It was such a pity that his work did not include any contact with the public, Sophie thought, because his presence would be a great advertisement for any commercial enterprise.

"Lukas, have you finished the analyses that I asked you to do yesterday? They are very urgent," the doctor said, entering the lab.

He smiled proudly: "They've been ready since last night!"

"But... why didn't you tell me?"

Lukas' smile faltered: "I haven't thought about it... "

While the technician went to get the papers, Amanda whispered: "Remind me why I hired him?"

Sophie shrugged. "He's ornamental," she said.

"Yeah, there's that," Amanda sighed, "He can't be clever too, it would be unfair."

After accepting the papers from Lukas, Amanda poured out three cups of coffee.

It was strong and dark, and its aroma made Sophie's mouth water.

"Hmm, this is really good," she said after the first sip, "I haven't tasted coffee in years!"

The coffee had an intense, exotic flavour, completely different from the bland lukewarm beverages she was used to. It seemed absurd that there was a time when people drank it every day. Its powerful intensity made her head spin.

"Where did you find it?" she asked.

Lukas smiled: "A gift. The girl who works at my favourite food distribution centre, in the sixth ring, is always so nice to me."

Sophie wasn't surprised.

"So, what do you think about the infected?" Lukas asked. "Do you reckon it got caught?"

Amanda snorted: "This bloody infected again! Isn't there anything else to talk about?"

Lukas looked surprised: "Are you really not worried?"

"I just think that we're worrying more than we should, that's all."

Sophie sloshed the coffee in her cup: "There is no cure and no way to stop the disease. It seems to me that our concern is perfectly justified."

"There are ways to contain the disease..."

"The plastic gloves? And what else? Homeopathy?" Sophie teased her.

The doctor shrugged: "Yes, plastic gloves, for example. It's a virus, and as such it has limits, there are materials in which it can propagate and some in which it can't. I think that there's no point in talking about it as if it were a magical, mighty entity. Such an attitude won't help us combat the epidemic."

"It will not be over while there are still cases of the plague," Lukas said.

"It will not be over until the last dragon is killed," Sophie corrected him.

Dying of the plague was the lesser of two evils: those who survived suffered worse. There was no cure; the few survivors would never go back to what they were before, nor would cease to be contagious.

It was from those damned dragons that the plague had come, bringing with it all this pain and destruction.

If Sophie had to imagine an ideal world, it would have been a world without dragons.

Lukas drank his last sip of coffee. "Come on, Sophie. The police are doing all they can to get all the infected. They have already eliminated most of them."

This much was true: the arrest of an infected these days was ground-breaking enough to be widely broadcasted across all media. Everybody knew, though, that the infected had a network of spies and contacts that helped them in their evil plan to spread the disease across the entire population.

"In any case," Amanda snapped, "living in terror is useless. Take the necessary precautions and try to move on with your life. That's the only way."

Sophie swallowed what was left of her coffee: "I guess it is."