Chap. 287 Quarantine

Chap. 287 Quarantine

By day two at his former home, K’ndar found himself going insane from idleness. No one, it seemed, wanted to tell him what to do or even if he SHOULD do something.

He drained a mug of hot klah, contemplating the early morning sunrise. The crisp air held just enough of a bite to make him happy to have a good sweater on.

Raventh and Rath were rising from their impromptu beds in an unused paddock.

Well, perhaps not unused, he thought, seeing the cattle on the far side, huddled as far from the dragons as possible, and appearing to resent being usurped by a pair of dragons. He couldn’t tell from this distance, but there was something odd about two of them.

How many mornings did I stand here, in this precise spot, scanning the horizon before getting to work?

He heard the clatter of kitchenware behind him. The cothold’s cook staff were getting breakfast rolling. The cavern converted to kitchen had once been his whole family’s home, from Hanliss, his father to Glyena when she was just a toddler. With the release from Thread, his brothers and the hands had done a lot of building. The bunk he’d slept in last night, for instance, was one of about a dozen for the hands. It was like living in the Weyrling barracks again, but this time without classes.

“But I will help,” he thought. “Can’t be seen as the lazy boy who returns home.”

He went back into the kitchen to drop off the empty mug.

“Got any cookies?” he asked the woman wearing a flour dusted apron. She came up to him, reached up and pinched his cheek.

“Cookies? Haven’t changed a bit, have you? No, I’m wrong. Look at you, Kandar, all grown up, tall as a redtree.”

He laughed. So did she. He had no idea what her real name was. She’d been Cooky for as long as he’d been alive. Despite officially being ‘just an employee”, Cooky, her husband and grown sons, were considered members of the family. So much so that on the occasions when she’d catch him as a boy, nicking a fresh cookie, she gave him a swat on the behind with a broom, just like Daryat would have done.

He smiled, “But not too grown up to enjoy your breakfasts,” he said.

“That’ll be on in a little while. Your friend there, B’rost? He was in here at first light, took up one o’ my tables with all his stuff. What’s he doing here?”

“I’ll move him, but remember, he helped me take Sandriss and Liana and Natty up to Healer Hall. He’s a journeyman healer, ma’am.”

Her face fell. “Oh, K’ndar, what’s going on with her? It’s a virus? Poor tot, she’s such a sweet little girl. Her mum and dad would be devastated if she dies.”

“I know. I don’t know a thing about the virus. That’s why they have to be up north, at the Healer Hall. The healers there have a better chance of helping Nattana. It’s why me and B’rost have to stay here, just like all of us here, we’ve possibly been exposed to the virus. They don’t want it spreading.”

“We’re all pulling for her,” Cooky said.

“I am, too.” He gave her a hug and then approached B’rost.

“Morning, bluey, you’re hard at work early.” He couldn’t remember B’rost getting up so early. I must have really been out of it, he thought, even being in the bachelor’s quarters.

“Aye. I couldn’t sleep, K’ndar, not with that big man at the other end, snoring. I think he shook the rafters, and it was just you and me and him in that cavern. The acoustics! But the bright sparks at Healer Hall want me to start doing contact tracing. That’s where I talk to everyone who’s here.I have to take metrics, that means, I take everyone’s temperature, blood pressure, they’d like blood samples, to try and catch this virus and defeat it before it blows up.”

“What IS it, B’rost? And, by the way, Cooky wants you to move, breakfast will be up shortly and they don’t have the number of tables like we do at the Weyr, or Landing.”

“Um, okay.” He began to pack up the maps, a datalink, a large form. K’ndar saw his family’s names on it, along with boxes for data.

“Give me a hand? Also, I need to know the names, ages, gender of all your hands here. I’m going to have to start taking everyone’s temperature, every day. Where can I work? And what time does breakfast start, apparently you horse people start work at the crack of dawn.”

“From last to first, breakfast starts at 6 and don’t be late. We herdsman eat a lot in a short amount of time, although you and I can dawdle if we like. But that means we help with KP. Which I don’t mind, honestly, you can go back to this after breakfast, but I’ll be Cooky’s KP and then come out here to muck stalls. It’ll keep me busy. Follow me, I can find you a place out of the way for your stuff. Give me that big pack, can you carry the rest? “

B’rost nodded. K’ndar led the way to the cavern/barn’s office. While it wasn’t fancy, it was well lit. A chorus of whinnies welcomed them. He made a studious attempt at avoiding equine eyes. They’d happily have two breakfasts if he supplied it.

“Don’t dump the pack, K’ndar, it’s got breakable stuff in it.”

He placed the pack gingerly on a stone bench. “Like what?”

“Glass tubes to hold blood. I’ll be taking samples from everyone, and then, unless they change their minds, I’ll do a touch and go at Healer Hall to drop the samples off.”

“What is this virus, B’rost? Is it the plague? Firehead? Everyone has been vaccinated for those.”

“Phew. Horses. Cows are much better smelling,” B’rost said, placing his work on a table K’ndar hastily cleared.

K’ndar shrugged. “Anytime I smell horse, I’m happy.”

“What is it?” B’rost shrugged. “I have no idea. Nor does Healer Hall. It’s new. I think. We’re lucky, us Pern folk, that the Ancients, to include the animals! were cured of all sorts of ugly diseases, before they ever set foot on a starship. K’ndar, you can’t imagine how many diseases there were on Earth. Hundreds. Thousands. Genetic diseases, parasitical, viral, bacterial. Some insect borne, some they caught from animals, some they passed on to animals, most passed solely from human to human. The saying was people died from one of two things, bad genes or bad luck.

They had a chance to shed much of that when they decided to emigrate. They didn’t bring anything from Earth, and they were all vaccinated against to any of the diseases that may have been on Vulcan or Aldebaran 4. Add to that we’re here on a planet where mammals didn’t evolve. So most of the endemic bugs here don’t affect us.”

“What about plague? That killed of a bunch of people. And firehead?”

“Plague and firehead were, are, bacterial diseases. We can control those with phages. We seldom see firehead anymore now that everyone is vaccinated. I don’t think anyone has seen plague in hundreds of years, but there’s no reason to think it’s gone. It was here before we ever got here. What species of Pern native it usually lives in, we have no idea. It’s why we’re routinely vaccinated for it, even if it’s never been seen in our lifetimes. This thing is a virus and they mutate all the time. It’s like a thief with a stolen key ring, it’s going to try every key it has on the lock to see if one works.”

He dusted his hands. “The fact that, in the few cases seen so far, are all in children is telling. Maybe us adults have had it without symptoms, and we’ve developed an immunity. We mustn’t get too complacent, this virus might just be testing the waters, it’s an opening gambit. The immune system is complicated and I’d be lying if I said I understood it. But it’s safe to assume that if you’ve grown to adulthood without being killed by a bacterium or a virus, it’s because your immune system has defeated a lot of those things without you even knowing it. Whereas kids, especially little ‘uns like Nattana, are still building their immune systems. It’s a proven fact that having lots of animals around, especially horses and dogs, contributes to a strong immune system.

In Healer school, we were told about the colonists. When they got off the starships, which were sterile environments, the first year everyone was sneezing, itching, their immune systems challgenged by the new environment and all the things in it. It took weeks for their immune system to adapt. Same thing with their animals, in fact, there were a lot of creatures brought here that just couldn’t adapt. They died out.”

“Huh. So mucking out stalls from the time I could carry a fork did me a good turn?”

“Aye, it did.” B’rost’s datalink suddenly lit up.

“All stations, all stations. This is Healer Hall. All stations, respond.”

B’rost touched the datalink gingerly. “I’m still learning how to use this thing,” he said. “Shards, it wants my location. Does this cothold have a name?”

“Um, no. It’s just The Cothold Where I Grew Up.”

“That won’t do. How ‘bout Singing Waters Hold, cothold Mardriss. He’s cotholder, right?”

“Yes.”

He touched a button and said “B’rost here, Singing Waters Hold, cothold Mardriss.”

They waited. “What’s taking them so long?” K’ndar said.

“I think it’s waiting until all the datalinks they handed out respond. There’s a lot of healers out there with datalinks these days,” B’rost said. “I have a feeling they’ll turn out to be lifesavers.” Finally the datalink spoke.

“All stations, this is Healer Hall. A new virus has been detected. At this time all victims have been children below the age of five. As of 1200 hours yesterday, there have been six fatalities.

A preliminary list of symptoms follows this alert.

Without consulting the Council of Six, Healer Hall has invoked a planet wide quarantine. Upon consultation with the Council, this may change. You will be notified.

At this time, Landing, the Observatories on Western Continent, all Halls, all ports, both fresh and seawater, all seaholds, all Crafthalls, Holds, Weyrs, all Runner stations, all individual holdings and residences, all cotholds; are on lockdown. If you can, notify those who are holdless, are Wanderers, or are otherwise disassociated with any residence.

No one is to travel from their current location, by any means: dragon, ship, horseback, wagon, or foot travel. People who are en route, for instance, walking between one Hold to another, may continue but must stop their journey at the first place they come upon and stay there until further notice.

All ships at sea are to dock at their original destination, offload cargo and then remain in port until further notice. All ships currently in port are to remain in port. If there are dolphins at your location, contact them and inform them of the situation. Ask them to report any dolphin deaths to you and to Tillek. Dragonriders may fly but are to remain wherever they may be weyred at this time. In an emergency, dragonriders may transport patients to Healer Hall, or transport emergency supplies, but if in contact with an infected person, the dragonrider must then report to his or her healer and then quarantine for two weeks separate from others. Report any patients with the symptoms listed below this notification. Report any person who dies of what you suspect is the disease. Report if any mammalian livestock show symptoms or die. Palliative care is indicated for all victims, human or animal.

If your area has an active case or a fatality from this virus, begin contact tracing. Report all new cases. Turn in data every evening at 1800 hours. If you know of a healer who has no datalink, please attempt to contact them in whatever means available without exposing yourself, if possible.

Do not attempt to restrain anyone who breaks quarantine or otherwise is unwilling to obey the quarantine. Do identify them as best as you can and report them to Healer Hall.

This quarantine is in place for fourteen days unless lifted earlier.

Please read the symptoms and then submit all questions, cases and requests.”

They both looked at the datalink, dumbfounded.

“Well,” K’ndar said, his heart sinking, “She didn’t make it.”

B’rost shook his head. “Not necessarily, K’ndar. They may have gotten another patient after we left. Remember, we took her there at what,1000 hours? And wouldn’t Sandriss have sent you a message via fire lizard? What I have to do, now, is the grunt work of contact tracing after I test everyone here. Tell me if any of your livestock are sick. After breakfast, I’ll go talk to Mardriss.”

He remembered hearing a baby crying in the Hall. And yes, of course, Sand would have sent a message. He felt better. “Do you need a hand? Can I help?“

“Thank you, K’ndar, but no, thank you. You’d only be underfoot. I’ll call you if I need you, but for now, let me do my job.”

“Thanks,” K’ndar said, gratefully, “I’m much better at mucking stalls.”