The COVID-19 epidemic ended in November 2020 with the development of the vaccine. People went back to their normal routine lives. Even though there was a population reduction of 20% the remaining people continued their lives as if nothing had happened. They took off their masks and stopped washing their hands after going out. They did not learn from their mistakes. In the January 2021, a new illness emerged. The patients had very high fever and severe sore throat and sneezing. At first, doctors believed it to be a severe form of flu. The extreme fever caused severe brain damage and death.The cases kept on increasing in number. Scientists discuss a new type of influenza to be involved. It was different from the known influenza viruses. They named it Inflenza D (H3N3) commonly known as the death flu. Only one in a hundered patients survived. Even the ones who survived had health issues later on. Some died within a few months after being completely cured of the death flu. By 2023 all the doctors and scientists had died. There was no one left to develop a vaccine. No one to run hospitals and make medicines. Masks did not help. The virus had spread even more rapidly than COVID 19. Every single molecule of air had been laden with the death flu. There was no escape. People called upon their gods and demons to protect them, but nothing worked. By 2030 almost all of humanity had ended, except for those who survived the death flu. This is the story of those who survive. They are humanity's last hope for survival. They are mostly weak children with various health issues. They banded together in small groups in order to survive. The older, healthier children look out for the weaker younger ones. The lillies are one such group. Their leader is Nadie. She is a strong 14 year old girl. The death flu had made her slightly deaf and farsighted. She hunts animals for the group. She is everyone's favourite person. Rue is 12 years old. She has no stamina, and faints whenever she tries to go along with Nadie to help her. She remains indoors and looks after the others. Tiny (pronounced as Tini) is a 13 year old boy and his sister is a 9 year old girl named Molly. They both have a neurological condition. Tiny is Rue's best friend. He is always there to keep her company. They enjoy teasing each other and fight like brother and sister. Rue and Molly play with dolls together and Rue teaches little Molly new things. When Molly isn't playing or eating, she would follow Nadie. Rue and Molly fight over Nadie's love. One day, Rue heard a baby call her in her dreams. When she woke up, she couldn't hear any cries. She still went outside and found a very tiny baby outside. He is as tiny as Thubelina. A few days ago she had heard from Nadie that a girl had died after giving birth to a tiny baby. No one knew how a tiny baby got out of his own shelter and found his way to the Lilies' shelter and survived without food. Rue instantly fell in love with him and treated him like her own son. Nadie had cautioned her against it. "He's too small, just like a little squirrel. We can't take care of him." she said. Rue promised to look after him as her own baby. She named him Alvin. She soon became overprotective. She kept him away from Molly and Tiny. She feared that they might step over him because he's too small and they are too mischievous. She stayed with him in the place where they stored food. When he was old enough to eat solid food, Rue gave him a tiny piece of meat. He almost choked on it. He was saved by Allen (16 years old) who was in the Rose group. He was a frequent visitor. Everyone loved him except Rue. She envied his closeness to Nadie.
She constantly feared for Alvin's life. Alvin loved Rue a lot. He followed her wherever she went by crawling after her. He was so small, all he could see was her shoes. One unfortunate day, Rue was more nervous than she usually was. She let Nadie into their room to play with baby Alvin. Nadie did not lock the door. Rue was worried about letting the others near the baby so she had to lock the door. She kept the baby in his bed next to Nadie and told her to look after him while she locks the door. She stood on her toes to reach the lock which was high up. She took a sigh of relief and relaxed her feet. She felt something or rather someone under her foot followed by a loud painful scream. She unlocked the door and ran out "I killed him! I killed my own baby! No this isn't happening. I've killed my boy!" she whispered. She could still hear his screams from the store room. "What am I even doing here running away. First I killed him and now I'm not even there with him. I'm horrible. I wish I had died instead." She went back inside. "Where did you go? He's injured badly. I don't think he'll survive." Nadie said.
"I.. I don't know. But I'm here now. Let me see him" Rue said. Tears did not allow her to see properly. She could not bare to look at her baby in that condition. His screams pierced her ears like bullets. She gave him back to Nadie. She failed to be a good mother, she failed to protect him she thought. "Why did you not look after him when I was locking the door? I told you to." she asked Nadie. "I didn't know this could happen. I was just admiring his love for you. He looked so cute coming after you with his tiny legs. I'm sorry. I wish I had been more cautious. Why did you have to lock the door anyway?" Nadie said. "Because I didn't want this to happen. I thought Tiny and Molly might... Just forget it, it doesn't matter who's responsible for killing him. It won't bring him back. Nothing will." Rue said. "Why am I blaming Nadie anyway" Rue thought to herself "after all I'm his mother. I was supposed to protect him not Nadie. It's all my fault. I shouldn't have given her the responsibility of looking after my baby. He was my baby, he loved me not Nadie. I didn't deserve his love. No one has ever loved me like him. His love was pure and unconditional. No other human is capable of such pure love. And now he hates me and there is no reason for him not to" she thought. "I bet he hates me now." she said to Nadie. "I don't think so. He still loves you. He will always love you and so will you. He might survive this. Let's wait and see. Don't loose hope just yet." Nadie said. She gave the baby to Rue and he held her finger lovingly. Even in all that pain, he still loved her. "You're right, he won't die. I won't let him. The power of my love will save him. You know how a kiss can bring a princess back." She gently kissed him. She smiled and cried at the same time. "You know what, let's just take him to a doctor. I bet he'll save him." She said.
"But there are no doctors left. There's nothing we can do except wait." Nadie said.
Rue's smile faded away. She kept baby Alvin in his bed sat next to him. Molly and Tiny came and sat next to them. No one could sleep that day. The baby continued to cry. "Should we put him to sleep? My poor baby is suffering and I don't think he'll survive." Rue asked Nadie. "He might just survive. Besides, can you actually do it? I know I can't. How are we even supposed to do it painlessly without the lethal injections doctors used to use." Nadie said. "Cut his head maybe.. no! That's too awful. Why did I even think of it. As if killing him once wasn't enough." Rue said. "Oh dear, don't blame yourself. It wasn't your fault. You wouldn't purposefully do it, right?"
Nadie said.
"But it doesn't matter what my intentions are, the fact is that I did kill him. And nothing you say is ever going to change that. I killed him. Everyone I love dies. Stay away from me everyone before I kill you too. Everyone I loved before the death flu died. I'm not going to love anyone anymore. I might kill them." Rue said.
"You give yourself too much credit. You can't kill people by loving them. Don't be silly. You don't have supernatural abilities to kill people close to you silly girl." Nadie said.
"But I did."
Next morning, baby Alvin stopped crying.
"Is he ok? He's not crying. Maybe he healed. or maybe he died?" Rue said. Nadie checked him. He had died. They burried him outside. Even if no one would blame Rue for baby Alvin's death, she will never forgive herself. "I wish an elephant would crush me when I get old. I don't deserve to die yet. I deserve to suffer till my last breath because I killed my baby. The only one who truly loved me." Rue thought to herself.
... to be continued
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