Extinction Level Event (33 page)

"What about our research? Any news?" "None. No
remedies, no new species, no development. Although, there is a huge
discussion going on in the UN, about some plan to re-structure our
entire way of producing food. . . who knows. . " "I have been
watching the news, McCarthy. I wasn't living in a cave this past
month. But that's a discussion for later. I think we should follow
the plan proposed by that Manjak guy, if we can agree on it. . . .
meanwhile, I will get going." Krishnan walks out, managing to catch
an afternoon flight to Washington Dulles. Then an ugly thought
crosses his mind.
What if the Secretary of Defense wanted him
out of the way?
Project Deniability must have had his
approval to be even considered, right?
The thought kept
Krishnan from even remotely enjoying the flight even more than
everything else happening.
Things have only just begun.

UN Headquarters, New York City

In the cavernous hall of the General Assembly, Bao
Feng takes a seat behind the rows of assembled delegates. General
Secretary Albert Haartaagnan had finally decided to address the
global epidemic of EWK-1 and had called a emergency special session
of the general assembly to address the world as a whole. Glancing
behind towards the rear of the hall, Bao takes in the multitudes of
reporters and news crews from over 180 nations gathered, preparing
their cameras for the Secretary General's speech. The majority of
the directors of the UN's organizations and specialized agencies
are present, though as Bao looks around she notices that Trip
Manjak is conspicuously absent. During the last month 'Trip' had
received nearly continual media coverage for his relentless global
travels supporting the fight against the EWK-1 advance and his
personal taking command of all the FAO and WFP efforts around the
world.

Major topics that were expected to be covered in the
address included the global response to the environmental threat
posed by EWK-1; the implications of the effects of the virus for
future generations; and the development of new sustainable measures
to be taken to ensure continued agricultural productivity,
especially in those countries hardest hit by the epizootic. Many
countries were experiencing heightened levels of civil unrest,
social chaos, and general lack of authority due to the perceived
inability of their respective governments to provide for the needs
of their populations.

Bao looks around again. A dozen more delegates and
aides file into the chamber, but Manjak is not amongst them.
Sitting in the rear of the hall, Bao is favored with a view of the
entire assembly, comprising all 192 member states, non-affiliated
members and partially-recognized states sitting to Bao's right, and
directly in front the main podium for the Assembly President,
Secretary General, and speaker. Above the podium is a giant wooden
sculpture of the UN symbol, the world in a wreath of olive branches
symbolizing peace. As she looks towards the podium the President of
the Assembly makes his way towards the podium followed by Albert
Hartaagnaan. The President calls for order over the din of hundreds
of human voices chattering amongst themselves. Bao, despite being a
regular at UN meetings, cannot help but remember her classes from
elementary school in Wuhan, China, where the teacher would
similarly call on the assembled students to quiet down and pay
attention to the front of the room. The President calls for order
again, this time to a much quieter audience. "Ladies and Gentlemen,
I present to you The Secretary General, Albert Hartaagnaan."
Hartaagnaan takes the podium as a hush descends upon the chamber.
Hartaagnan sweeps his gaze across the hundreds of assembled
delegates, taking in the eye of each and every man and woman in the
hall.

"Honorable representatives and delegates of your
countries, Ladies and Gentlemen; my fellow human beings. During the
past six months, we have witnessed an extraordinary event, one
unprecedented in our lifetimes take place here on our planet. We
have all bore witness to this series of events, with mixtures of
despair, anxiety, and hopelessness cloud of vision of the future as
a result of it. We have all broken down, into petty groups defined
by mere lines on a map, and mere names, trying in vain to find stop
the catastrophe from spreading onto our land. We have failed in
that regard."

Hartaagnan takes another look around the hall, now
having all eyes focused on his. his tone drops to a woeful note,
"The terrifying reality that began six months ago started due to
the irregular and immoral secretive actions of a specific member
state, in a unclear and unprovoked attempt to find yet more
destructive ways of sowing malevolence and discontent amongst its
perceived enemies. While this covert program was already in breach
of numerous international protocols and treaties, the governance of
this state failed to provide adequate security to prevent
malcontents from tampering with the biological weapon they had
secretly designed. As a result of this negligence, this weapon had
been released unintentionally upon our unsuspecting planet, putting
the lives of billions in jeopardy." Hartaagnan pauses as general
disorder erupts on the assembly floor, many accusations and a few
less-than-polite words being tossed between the delegates,
particularly in the direction of the American representative.
"Order!", calls out the President in a booming voice. The chatter,
bickering, and arguments dies down as quickly as it had started.
Hartaagnaan begins anew.

"Regardless and irrespective of the causes and
sources of this catastrophe, the fact remains that it is now all
over the world. This is not a problem for one, or two, or ten
nations to resolve- rather, it is one that the world must face as a
whole. Each and every one of us is currently, or will be affected
by the apparent extinction of the earthworms sooner or later. This
is an extinction level event that will seep down to touch us all,
and as such we must band together as brothers to put aside our
differences and make real groundwork against the forthcoming
consequences." Utter silence reigns in the deathly still hall as
the audience holds its breath, waiting on Hartaagnan's every word.
All the news and media of the world over focus on the General
Secretary's grim face as he continues speaking:

"The lowly earthworm as we know it is nearly an
extinct species at the moment, and all those species on the planet,
including us
, that are conjoined with it in the fragile
balance of the global ecosystem are in danger as well. That fragile
balance has been terribly unbalanced, even more so than the damage
we have wrought on it for the past hundred years. Our forests are
dying, our savannahs are drying up, and our farmland is a fraction
of what it used to be in quality and quantity. Many species of
animals, from the Monarch Butterfly to the Golden Eagle, which were
not in danger before are now at risk. Worst still, the multitudes
of plants that comprise our diverse biospheres across the globe,
from Indonesia to India to Panama, are equally if not more so at
risk of extinction. The potential gene pool, as well as the
medicinal and nutritional qualities of these flora may be lost to
us forever."

"Friends, Humans, Countrymen of all the nations of
the world. . . . we are facing a global crossroads. . . an
extinction level event.
It is possible that we, as a race, .
. as a species, may also be dragged down the maelstrom before us.
If we are to survive this, it will take the willing and voluntary
collaborative effort of every government, every organization, every
state, and every individual- only together can we steer our world
past this catastrophe and head once again for a brighter future. I
implore you to put aside your petty differences and insignificant
bickering and join together so that we can get a clear and concise
consensus on the path that we must take -to preserve ourselves as a
species. There is no turning back, there is no staying in place, we
must go forward together and as one. Only then will we
survive."

Hartaagnaan pauses for effect before continuing. "It
is my great honor to now introduce to you our new Director for the
Food and Agricultural Organization, Dr. Trevor Manjak, who has been
one of our most instrumental and pivotal figures in this struggle
since its discovery."

Hartaagnaan steps away from the podium, while Manjak
stands up from a chair he was sitting in nearby and walks to the
podium. The two men shake hands to hundreds of cameras in the
background before Manjak takes the podium.

"Normally, I would begin by saying
'Good
Evening'
. That would not seem appropriate today since, as we
all know, it is not a
good
evening." This remark serves in
purpose in lifting up, if ever so slightly, the somber and heavy
weight that had descended upon the chamber . "As you all well know,
we are facing a grave threat, an existential threat to be precise.
The FAO, working in conjunction with governments and agencies
around the world, has come together with a plan to ensure the
continued adequate supply of food to sustain the
current
world population. By
current
, we mean the 6,5 billion of us
that are on the planet right now. We can no longer afford to
continue our population growth with such a limited resource base,
especially with the gruesome conditions imposed upon us during
these last six months. "

"Agriculture, throughout human history, has revolved
and evolved from the basics of farming. Using the soil to grow and
cultivate crops for consumption. However, this process, on which
all of us are dependent upon for survival, is now declining across
our world because of the worms' extinction. Soil nutrients,
processes, and general health that is maintained by the earthworms
will no longer be able to be maintained."

"To counter this, we are proposing the World
Agriculture Stabilization Resolution, Number 1555, which mandates
all member states to introduce a radical new food production system
based primarily on vertical farming and hydroponics. Hydroponics
and Aeroponics, the methods of growing produce without the use of
soil, will have to be increased worldwide by thousands of
percentage points in order to sustain our population. Conventional
farming is no longer an option. Nor will the deforestation of
forests and subsequent expansion of farmland be an adequate
solution. Rather, the usage of innovative new technologies is the
only viable solution to this catastrophe."

"Governments will individually manage and fund their
respective projects for developing national aeroponic and
hydroponic farming; however, the United Nations Security Council in
conjunction with the FAO will mandate quotas based upon national
resource consumption and population of the respective countries.
The UN will also help organize transnational engineering,
construction, and planning teams for countries that do not have the
necessary workforce for these projects. Timetables for the
implementation of the Stabilization Resolution will revolve in
periods of two years, and it is hoped that progress will commence
as quickly and efficiently as possible to alleviate further pain
and suffering."

Manjak pauses again, taking a good look around the
chamber, seeing mixed reactions on the faces of the hundreds of
delegates, and making sure to make eye contact with his fastened
audience before continuing his speech.

"A worldwide shift to aeroponic and hydroponic
farming will do nothing to alleviate the loss of hundreds of
species worldwide that are affected by their ecosystem disruption.
However, to preserve the huge gene pool that many of our
rainforests, jungles, and other biodiversity hotspots represent,
the governments of Brazil, Ecuador, Peru, Indonesia, and India,
have already agreed to a gene bank program which will store the
genetic information of all the world's species for future
generations. We are currently working to first invite all
megadiverse
countries to become involved in the program, and
then the rest of the world. The program with the United Nations
will also entail the extensive collection and categorization of
numerous species in controlled greenhouse and zoological
environments. These agreements will supplement previous agreements
outlined in the Convention on Biological Diversity and the
Cartagena Protocols on Biosafety."

"Resolution 1555, due to the special nature of the
case, is to be voted on by the General Assembly in order to be
binding for all member states. The Security Council has nominally
approved the Resolution, and it has already been approved by the
FAO. In order to be binding, Resolution 1555 will need a
supermajority here in the General Assembly."

"I urge each and every one of you to merely remember
one thing when voting on this Resolution-
we are all in this
together
. If one of you follows up a plan and your neighbor
does not, an imbalance is created. If some of us pool resources
together while others do not, inequality is generated. With the
potential future of our species at stake here, please vote for the
best interests of everyone as a whole, with no preference for
localities or miniscule differences. That is all."

The usual applause after a speech is given after
Manjak makes it clear that he has concluded, although the tone is
quieter and even more caliginous than possibly ever in the history
of the assembly's meetings. The President takes the podium again,
stating, "I shall now put to the vote draft Resolution 1555. Please
keep in mind that we will be using electronic voting as opposed to
a show of hands for this vote".

The representatives speak through their headsets,
retranslating the speech from English to dozens of other languages
as some of them try to go over Hartaagnaan and Manjak's speeches
over again. Most representatives, however, will have already
received instructions on voting procedures by their respective
governments. At the front of the great hall, Manjak sits
impatiently with himself, hoping that most the governments follow
logic and vote a clear
YES
to the resolution. A large, new
screen behind Manjak, but easily visible to the rest of the hall,
turns on, ready to display voting results to the representatives,
the media, and the world beyond. After ten minutes of short
reconsideration by the assembly, the President calls for the vote
to begin. Tallies start lining up on the giant screen, with green Y
representing affirmatives; red N for negatives, and a white A for
abstention. The tally starts to take count. Surprising Bao, red
tallies manage to keep up with green tallies in numbers during the
first minute. After 100 tallies, Bao notices Manjak and the
Secretary-General start to look worried. Several countries even
abstain, which strikes Bao as something completely illogical at
this stage. The system does not count abstentions as votes due to
the "present and voting" system of vote counting, which only counts
'Yeses' and 'No's'. Another minute later 150 votes are counted, the
ratio is now 72:70 in favor of
Yes
. It ends shortly
thereafter with 93:80 vote ratio, which becomes readily apparent
that it is not enough for the supermajority necessary for it to be
binding to all countries. The President throws a strongly
disappointing glance in Manjak and Hartaagnaan's direction before
looking back forward to address the assembly.