T-minus 24 days to DEADLINE.: seanan

T-minus 24 days to DEADLINE.

[NOTE: I am a few days behind, due to the convention I attended this past weekend. So I'll be posting several of these today. Sorry about the spam.]

The lower stratosphere. June 12th, 2014.

Freed from its secure lab environment, Alpha-RC007 floated serene and unaware on the air currents of the stratosphere. It did not enjoy freedom; it did not abhor freedom; it did not feel anything, not even the cool breezes holding it aloft. In the absence of a living host, the hybrid virus was inert, waiting for something to come along and shock it into a semblance of life.

On the ground, far away, Dr. Alexander Kellis was weeping without shame over the destruction of his lab, and making dire predictions about what could happen now that his creation was loose in the world. Like Dr. Frankenstein before him, he had created with only the best of intentions, and now found himself facing an uncertain future. His lover tried to soothe him, and was rebuffed by a grief too vast and raw to be put into words.

Alpha-RC007—colloquially known as "the Kellis cure"—did not grieve, or love, or worry about the future. Alpha-RC007 only drifted.

The capsid structure of Alpha-RC007 was superficially identical to the structure of the common rhinovirus, being composed of viral proteins locking together to form an icosahedron. The binding proteins, however, were more closely related to the coronavirus ancestors of the hybrid, creating a series of keys against which no natural immune system could lock itself. The five viral proteins forming the capsid structure were equally mismatched: two from one family, two from the other, and the fifth...

The fifth was purely a credit to the man who constructed it, and had nothing of Nature's handiwork in its construction. It was a tiny protein, smaller even than the diminutive VP4 which made the rhinovirus so infectious, and formed a ring of Velcro-like hooks around the outside of the icosahedron. That little hook was the key to Alpha-RC007's universal infection rate. By latching on and refusing to be dislodged, the virus could take as much time as it needed to find a way to properly colonize its host. Once inside, the other specially tailored traits would have their opportunity to shine. All the man-made protein had to do was buy the time to make it past the walls.

The wind currents eddied around the tiny viral particles, allowing them to drop somewhat lower in the stratosphere. Here, a flock of geese was taking advantage of the air currents at the very edge of the atmospheric layer, their honks sounding through the thin air like car alarms. One, banking to adjust her course, raised a wing just a few inches higher, tilting herself hard to the right and letting her feathers brush through the upper currents.

As her feathers swept through the air, they collected dust and pollen...and a few particles of Alpha-RC007. The hooks on the outside of the virus promptly latched onto the goose's wing, not aware, only reacting to the change in their environment. This was not a suitable host, and so the bulk of the virus remained inert, waiting, letting itself be carried along by its unwitting escort back down to the planet's surface.

Honking loudly, the geese flew on. In the air currents above them, the rest of the viral particles freed from Dr. Alexander Kellis's lab drifted, waiting for their own escorts to come along, scoop them up, and allow them to freely roam the waiting Earth. There is nothing so patient, in this world or any other, as a virus searching for a host.

***

We're looking at clear skies here in the Midwest, with temperatures spiking to a new high for this summer—so grab your sunscreen and plan to spend another lazy weekend staying out of the sun! Pollen counts are projected to be low...

When will you Rise?

deakat

May 9 2011, 18:59:25 UTC 6 years ago

New comment

Spam is generally unwanted. These are so very much wanted. Thank you!

May 9 2011, 19:00:53 UTC 6 years ago

.. and therefore, do not meet my definition of spam (I forgot to add). <3

fullcontactmuse

6 years ago

lyssabard

May 9 2011, 18:59:38 UTC 6 years ago

This is so not spam. This is awesomeness.
I'll just be here in the corner, clicking refresh like a madwoman. ;)

Thank you for writing these--they are keeping me barely contained for Deadline.

Michael Thomas Magpuyo

May 9 2011, 19:00:59 UTC 6 years ago

Holy hell. When did descriptions of floating viruses began to seem so scary?

jane_dark

May 9 2011, 19:01:54 UTC 6 years ago

You are so awesome for doing these, and doubly so for having them even for the weekend days. I wasn't counting on that at all. Thank you for making my Monday better.

myuki_chan

May 9 2011, 19:04:01 UTC 6 years ago

I do not count these as spam, only bits of awesome-ness in my day. :D And today I'll get multiple ones!

eclectic_writer

May 9 2011, 19:06:45 UTC 6 years ago

I've been lurking so far but I really am enjoying these webisodes. :-D

May 9 2011, 19:07:20 UTC 6 years ago

I have to agree with the above commentor. These are very much wanted. And if they are spam, I'd like some toast and eggs over-easy to go with 'em. :)

emmasee100

May 9 2011, 19:09:32 UTC 6 years ago

Extra Feed snippets are not spam. They are a delight.

May 9 2011, 19:10:44 UTC 6 years ago

Oh, and did anyone else start to consider what geese weigh?

Deleted comment

May 9 2011, 20:17:31 UTC 6 years ago

Nope. Sorry.

cflute

janegodzilla

May 9 2011, 19:39:39 UTC 6 years ago

There is nothing so patient, in this world or any other, as a virus searching for a host.

Oh geez, this line gave me CHILLS. These snippets are delightful and I love them.

Cynical Nymph

May 9 2011, 19:40:36 UTC 6 years ago

Yeah, I have to agree that your definition of "spam" may be off by as much as 100%.

*refresh refresh refresh*

wyldirishtric

May 9 2011, 20:25:36 UTC 6 years ago

I absolutely love these little snippets! I agree with everyone else, totally not spam in my opinion. :D

Thank you so very much for posting them!

May 9 2011, 20:53:20 UTC 6 years ago

I do SO <3 Seanan McGuire's spam! I do SO <3 them SamIAm! I will read them in a house! I will read them with a mouse. I will read them in a box! I will read them with a fox! I will read them here or there! I will read them anywhere! I will read them with my eyes! I <3 the words "When will YOU rise?"

spectralbovine

May 9 2011, 21:15:30 UTC 6 years ago

FUCKING GEESE.

firebirdgrrl

May 9 2011, 21:54:33 UTC 6 years ago Edited: May 9 2011, 21:56:43 UTC

This is not spam, this is fucking filet mignon:) Rock on!
(and oooh zombie geese!)

ETA: Well, I guess not zombie geese because of the host business but more like unwitting biological warfare geese.

May 9 2011, 22:31:29 UTC 6 years ago

Newsflesh vignettes = not spam.

Virus floatiness = scaaaawwwy.

Birds are immune to KA. I know I must've seen a discussion on this somewhere -- are reptiles?

Also: Thank you.