Path of Totality

He watched the news channel in horror. More people – no – specifically, children from birth to prepubescent ages were dying worldwide. He hovered over his computer as he intently keyed in different search parameters. He sought data on the distribution pattern of this strange new illness that suddenly appeared only months ago. He finally found an animated representation of the data from all the nations’ health organizations as well as WHO, World Health Organization, on what was being called a plague. He watched as the image of the flattened world at first had pinpoint spots of red at each of the major cities then blossomed outward to eventually meet the others in the same land mass. The final result, excluding Antarctica, was a totally red world. Blood red. To him it looked as if it were dripping blood.

He knew this was not the distribution of a naturally occurring pandemic. The pattern was frighteningly familiar, as he had worked out the exact data on a theoretical distribution system for a beneficial biologic less than a year before.

He dropped his face into his hands and groaned a guttural cry from his heart and spirit. He suddenly suspected where this virus had come from.

As he forced himself to take deep, cleansing breaths to re-center his mind and thoughts, he felt his frantic heartbeat slow down to a more normal rhythm. Absent-mindedly, he rubbed his grey- and black-whiskered cheeks and chin. Even though he was usually a stickler for a clean-cut, professional appearance, he hadn’t even noticed his disheveled state as of late. This crisis had taken his life and everyone else’s and thrown them into a cruel blender of circumstance.

He suddenly sat back in his chair. “It can’t be. It would be affecting the wrong age,” he declared, feeling he jumped the gun on thinking he knew what was going on. “Anyway, he promised he was done with it. That it wouldn’t happen. I told him that what he was seeking was playing God, that it was unnatural.”

He had a sudden thought. He, the King of Tech, could find and do anything if it had to do with technology. He was a multi-billionaire because of it and had been living a wonderful life with his family. His beautiful children, all whom had grown into adults he was proud of, had gifted him with grandchildren who were his joy. Grandchildren, all who greeted him with open arms and bright smiles.

“Used to,” he groaned again as tears filled his eyes. “Nothing saved them. None of my fortune could save them.” The memories of each one of them dying were indelible in his mind. How he had to comfort their grieving parents as his heart broke over and over again.

He dashed tears from his eyes as he pulled his thoughts from his grandchildren. He had to know what happened. He had to know what killed them and the rest of the children. He keyed in a new search and used whatever he could to hack into any data source to find it.

Soon, he had his answer. He stared at the screen as he clenched and unclenched his fists on top of his desk. The faces of his grandchildren flashed before his eyes. Smiling, innocent, their amazing simplistic view of the world…He slammed his fists on the desk, nearly annihilating his keyboard. They are gone, gone, he cried in his heart and mind. They are lost forever! And he killed them!