UNN

Plague in Shiloh

Shiloh (UNN) – Gilboa's capital city was effectively shut down by an unprecedented 12-hour curfew as royal officials attempted to stem the spread of Araunah Plague. The Plague killed tens of thousands of people in the country of Sidon over the past year, but was effectively stanched in Shiloh by the citywide quarantine, according to the Ministry of Health.

"Eight people succumbed to the Plague in Shiloh, which is a tragedy. But the curfew prevented that number from turning into 80,000 overnight" said Health Minister Charles Danforth.

Araunah Plague is a rare disease with no known cure. Highly contagious and nearly always fatal, the Plague is one of the most feared diseases of modern times, and rumors of its spread have caused panic all over the world. Plague is only communicable during a 12-hour cycle, but during that period, a handful of cases can multiply exponentially until thousands are infected.

The Health Minister credited King Silas Benjamin's decision to order a citywide quarantine for saving the nation from a devastating epidemic.

"King Silas acted with steely resolve and made the impossible happen," the Health Minister said. "Had it not been for his quick thinking and confidence in the people's willingness to cooperate, we could have faced a health crisis of unimaginable scale."

The infection appears to have spread by a mother and son who returned from a trip to Sidon, according to Dr. Eileen Vera at Shiloh General Hospital who treated the patients.

"Their symptoms would have normally been dismissed as flu, but the new health care law required us to do a disease panel, and we quickly realized that there was a danger of Araunah Plague infection," Dr. Vera said. Once the patients were identified as potential carriers of the deadly disease, they were placed in isolation, she added.

According to sources in Unity Hall, King Silas was notified of the danger of Plague by the Health Minister and Princess Michelle Benjamin, who visited the infected patients at the hospital.

"Once Plague was confirmed, King Silas ordered a lockdown of the entire city," said Health Minister Danforth. "I told him that would be impossible, but the King responded that he had faith in his people."

Reverend Ephram Samuels joined the King's appeal on national radio asking all residents of Shiloh to stay indoors until the 12-hour period of contagion had passed. In his speech, Rev. Samuels called on the people to stand together at this time of crisis so that "the Angel of Death cannot single us out."

His appeal was met with immediate action. Offices emptied out, restaurants and bars closed, as millions of citizens sequestered themselves indoors to prevent exposure to the disease. Many lit candles in their windows as a sign of solidarity and hope, and the city glowed with the flicker of thousands of lights.

"I have never seen anything like it," said Colin Morris, a police officer at the Forty Seventh Constabulary in downtown Shiloh. "I looked out my window and the streets were empty. I was afraid that there would be panic, looting, but there was nothing. Just silence."

A pall of fear hung over Shiloh until sunrise, at which point the 12-hour window of contagion was deemed to have passed. The Health Ministry announced that it was safe for residents to venture out again, and the city slowly came back to life.

Doctors confirmed that there were only eight fatalities due to the Plague, all men and women who came in contact with the infected patients before the quarantine was implemented. The mother and son died in solitary, and others infected all passed away in their homes, having sacrificed their lives to insure that their neighbors would live.

"We have been a given a new day," King Silas said in a prepared statement released by the Ministry of Information. "Even as we express sorrow for those whose lives were lost to Plague, we raise our voices in gratitude for the steadfastness of our people in the face of a terrible crisis. I have never been as proud of my nation as I am today. We are truly one body, one heart, united under God."