Chapter 17: The Unknown Plague

"I found it, I found it on my side! It's this kind of stone, isn't it?"

An emerald green slanted water molybdenum uranium ore appeared in Victoria's hand, and she yelled over the intercom as she took pictures.

"My side too, what a big piece of uranium ore, they have a pure color, which is a sign of a relatively high uranium content!"

"This mine must be huge. It's fantastic! It's really great!"

There was a joyful atmosphere over the intercom, and Clark, holding back the excitement in his heart, immediately snapped, "Gentlemen and ladies! Congratulations! You must not go too far ... we get a certain sample and then return to the base, wait for the large group to come, and then probe the specific mineral reserves."

...

An hour later, the crowd gathered next to the Mars rover with a large number of ore specimens.

"I estimate that this uranium mine has at least hundreds of thousands of tons of uranium reserves, enough for humans to use for decades." Sawyer immediately shouted with excitement when he returned to the vehicle.

"This must be a gift from God to the people!"

Victoria, the reporter, smiled sweetly as she photographed a uranium rock while explaining, "Ladies and gentlemen, we found a uranium mine 150 kilometers away from the Mars base! It's really great and exciting ... really made my trip worthwhile.

Now, I'm going to bring this news to everyone, haha, gentlemen and ladies, you will witness this wonderful moment with me."

"Click", the flash lights up ...

Although, there was not enough signal in the Mars rover to transmit the video, and only after returning to the base, the pictures and videos could be transmitted to the Noah. However, Victoria still wanted to record the joy at the first opportunity.

Sawyer couldn't wait to examine the uranium ore in his hand, his eyes lit up and he exclaimed, "Oh my God, what have I found? This uranium ore is 1.36% uranium, a real rich ore! We're rich, we're rich!"

He had never been so excited, it was a joy for the whole human prospect, as long as there is energy, mankind will have everything, it's great, it's great, a 1.36% uranium ore is one of the best on earth!

One hundred and fifty kilometers is not far, three hours to get there. They told the good news to the people in the base, and then the base passed the news to the Noah ...

"It's uranium!"

"Uranium has been found on Mars!"

Everyone was abuzz, everyone knew what a piece of uranium meant!

Even Oliver clenched his fist tightly and hammered it into the air a few times to give vent to his deepest joy. A piece of uranium not only means a lot of energy, but also a lot of associated ores, and many rare metals can be found in the uranium area.

"Good evening viewers, this is Victoria, I'm glad I could witness the discovery of this mine ..." Victoria is talking eloquently on the camera, "Look, everyone, this is the whole process of our uranium discovery. "

Victoria's camera captured the entire process of discovering the uranium ore, from the scientists' listlessness to their disbelief to their screams, without much embellishment, but with an extra sense of authenticity. Many people felt the joy of the caravan.

"It is a beautiful stone with a greenish tinge and a major source of energy for us humans. Uranium is also the main material for nuclear power plants, and the energy produced by nuclear fission is enormous ..."

"... It's not only a credit to the twenty of us, but to all of humanity ..."

One of the researchers hurried over and said a few words to Victoria, and the screen suddenly flickered and the program ended abruptly.

Oliver, however, could see a slight unnaturalness in it, and his face changed slightly, but returned to normal in almost an instant. He whispered something to one of the soldiers and then looked to Wade.

"What happened, why was the program cut off? Why do you look so pale?"

Wade, also alert, immediately came over and said softly, "Captain, of the 20 people in that group, 14 fell into a coma and are running a high fever!"

"What!" Oliver was shocked and slammed his fist on the table.

...

Dr. Roman, the general director of the small base, isolated them at the first moment he got the news, screaming in his heart that it was bad.

However, several hours had passed since the onset of the disease, and they had come into contact with too many people, what to do? Do they all isolate? Even Roman himself may have been infected!

Soon, the 15th coma, the 16th, 17 ... this coma spread faster and faster and faster ...

"URGENT NOTICE, URGENT NOTICE, no one is allowed to take off their astronaut helmets! An unknown microorganism is spreading fast!"

"Urgent notice, no one is allowed to take off their astronaut helmets!"

This is ... malice from Mars!

Dr. Roman guesses that this is probably a microorganism from Mars that has not been discovered by humans!

Now the best way to find this to pathogens, to find their weaknesses ... but, wearing a thick spacesuit, although the protection of the human body, but it is impossible to do a good experiment, someone must make sacrifices to do.

Then, let yourself do it, anyway, already infected ...

Roman felt that he already had symptoms of discomfort, although only a slight fever.

He failed the expectations of all mankind ah, to have a crisis at such a time ...

How come no life was found at the beginning? Could it be that they are all concentrated in the uranium mine?

Roman sighed, still feeling that he had not completed his mission. Although it was said that the carload of people had been infected before they returned to the base, he, as the chief person in charge, still had some responsibility.

Humans are still too young ah, the basic biochemical control measures are done too simply. Disinfectant water is very effective for Earth life, but not necessarily for Martian life ah ... Roman quickly figured out the key. Humans have never been in contact with extraterrestrial life, it is normal to drop the ball in this regard.

Moreover, these have been outside the geological squad, at least need to isolate over a period of time, in order to enter the base, right?

These problems, he did not think. Or rather, before the accident, everyone did not think.

Now in regret has been useless, Roman wants to mend the sheep, he immediately issued an emergency quarantine of the entire staff orders. Before the crisis is lifted, all people are not allowed to take off their helmets.

"James, you have not taken off the helmet, the probability of infection is small, if I am unconscious, the rest of everything will be left to you."

"Yes! Promise to complete the mission!" James stood at attention and did a military salute with a serious look, they had long been under military control, no one was allowed to take off their helmets or walk around freely, only biologists and medical doctors had the right to move freely.

Roman walked into the laboratory and took the patient's blood for laboratory tests.

"Temperature 39.1 degrees Celsius, breathing is still normal, heartbeat 95 beats per minute, no life threatening for now. I think the onset of infection with this unknown virus is about four hours."

"It is most likely airborne, extremely contagious, and can be infected by skin contact." Dr. Roman kept writing in his notebook while researching, he felt his head became much dumber and running a little slower.

"Ordinary spacesuits can isolate this virus. But because of the microorganisms that still remain in the air, it can be transmitted whenever people take off their helmets and eat or drink water."

"I found a small amount of Dna and protein in the collected uranium ore, which is supposed to be a carbonyl life. I understand that on such energy-poor planets, these microorganisms are attached to uranium ore and rely on fission energy to survive ... they can absorb the energy produced by nuclear fission!"

"But this explanation ... is just barely, right, so why is there no life at all elsewhere? Maybe that's exactly why."

"After being infected, the body's white blood cells have increased, and the body's immune system is fighting it, but the condition is not getting better. Humoral immunity has little effect."

"Ordinary light microscopes don't really see them, they are small individuals, probably a virus-like microorganism."

"Ordinary disinfectants are ineffective, which is why our biochemical controls are not working. I think the protective layer on their surface may be thick enough to resist even nuclear radiation from uranium mines ..."

Roman shook his head as he felt his head getting heavier and more disoriented.

"It's been four hours, and I feel heavy-headed, with a feeling of dehydration, hot and cold, and my eyes can no longer see very well." However, the pen in his hand was still recording, and he was gritting his teeth and holding on. Every few more words recorded, one more point of information left for posterity.

"Antibiotics, ineffective, interferon, ineffective ... our immune system ..." writing here, Dr. Roman finally could not hold on and passed out with a head ...

Several soldiers in spacesuits, carried Roman to the hospital bed, and then with clumsy hands to hook him up to an IV, these soldiers have learned simple medical care, hanging a saline or will.

100 ...200 ...300 people, and after a few more hours, the final number of unconscious people settled at 322, only 178 people awake! They were dressed in spacesuits and wearing helmets that they simply did not dare to take off.

Although, their stomachs were already very hungry, they still had to tough it out.

...

Oliver was in a hurry like ants on a hot pot, forced landing, had to be forced landing!

Workers moment by moment to carry heavy objects out of the ship, so that the ship's mass increased, about six hours later, the Noah ship can land.

Although some people are still thinking about safety, but Oliver can no longer care so much, these people he must save!

We are a new human civilization, how can we be conquered by the virus? Brothers and sisters, hang in there, hang in there, we're coming!