The Blackwell Courier - Issue #2 . . . July 14th ((2011))
Deviating Disease Detained to Dalaran
By Tobbes S. Blackwell
A biological frontline opening marked the days of last June, when outbreaks of a unique and evolving disease began indiscriminately afflicting Azerothians on 6/1. As the contagion progressed, common symptoms by 6/7 were coughing, sneezing, fever, chills, aches and pains, nausea, vomiting, and strong hallucinations. By 6/9, it was requested “that all involved parties and infected individuals be transported to Dalaran to be quarantined and monitored” read a flier propagated by the Dalaran Center for Disease Control. The DCDC’s request was a response “due to the overwhelming number of ill being brought to the cathedral,” Mariius Ahnaran said, whose guild the White Sigil had a participatory role in triage efforts for the sick.
This massive quarantine in Dalaran’s public facilities became the new front for fighting this epidemic, as brave doctors, nurses, healers, and magi alike saw the troubled patients through their still worsening conditions. By 6/13 a new symptom causing magic users to forget their spells appeared and two days following in 6/15, the DCDC reported “it has changed and now manifests itself as the actual spell going awry,” where incantations erratically result in a different spell from the one intended.
Fortunately, these incidents only had to be controlled for 48 hours before Mariius Ahnaran, Lord Salarous De’fairwyrn, and Archmage Tanirus Dal’ron all returned from Winterspring with a cure as well as answers. A final DCDC report read that the disease originated from an artifact which was “originally designed as a weapon to use against arcane users of ancient Kal'dorei society.” This information came from the account of several deciphered tablets, which went on to detail how the artifact had the undesirable consequence of targeting all mana users rather than the heretical arcane magi of that time. As a result, the Kal’dorei creators locked the artifact away for future perfecting and recorded a concoction in case an outbreak was ever to occur – the cure which swiftly brought last month’s disaster to an end.
Today for most of us, this nightmare is but a lingering past shadow. For others, it has been a momentous historical event that shows just what can be accomplished when the Horde and Alliance cooperate with other neutral factions toward facing a common adversity. There will be time to cover such speculations in next month's issue, but for now I will close by sharing photographs of the early quarantine brought into color by the Mage Quarter's most experience spectromancers. Many of these images speak enough on their own, and some time should be taken to consider the very real personal hardship that went on behind this story.
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| Triage goes on in the beer gardens behind 'A Hero's Welcome' Tavern. |
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| Personal safety cannot be stressed enough... |
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| ...when doctors scurry to tend to collapsing patients... |
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| ...and getting a moment of solace becomes a rare luxury. |
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The hallways leading to the beer gardens are restricted and monitored vigilantly.
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Medics wearing white masks and gowns become the new face of this epidemic's front line.
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| Three leaders each direct their efforts toward coordinating efforts of the triage and speaking with emissaries of important factions. (From left to right: Vandrin, Kamaris, and Kialthos). |
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| Stormwind has shown special attention toward its many infected citizens now quarantined in Dalaran. |
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Relations with the local Kirin Tor seem especially tenuous during the crisis.
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| Even the enigmatic Blood Elves, sent as ambassadors from the Aldor and Scryers, are perplexed by this event. |
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| Meanwhile, due to 'The Filthy Animal' being declared unsanitary for hospitalization, Horde patients are treated at 'The Legerdemain Lounge.' |
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| The upstairs lounge of Legerdemain's is similarly packed with infected seeking treatment. |
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A notably eccentric patient... seeks a way to pass the time.
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| What few beds are available are used for the most severe of cases. |
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| Each race of The Horde can share fellowship in this immense trial. |
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| Hushed discussions can be heard from outside and downstairs from the waiting lounge, where men and women anxiously discuss the health of their dear friends. |
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Even the Forsaken and death knights of Archerus have been touched by this recent tragedy. |
