It’s Your Choice

It happened sometime before you were born, when it was reported all over the world that people were having difficulty breathing. It hardly registered alarm at first, it was after all a common symptom in any of the respiratory conditions. But this time it was not a symptom of something but rather the condition itself; people were finding it harder to breathe.

Scientists finally identified the cause to be the earth’s atmosphere, which was dramatically changing. They discovered, for reasons still unknown, some people were respiring a composition of air different from others. They developed a test to identify people with this condition and discovered there were far more than expected, almost half of the world’s population. Scientists also confirmed it was the main driver behind the changing earth’s atmosphere. Most alarming of all, this new atmosphere was lethal to people without the condition. It would in effect, result in half the world’s population killing the other half simply by drawing breath.

The questions far outnumbered the answers, such as how did so many people developed it so quickly? It was not contagious as far as scientists could tell. They seemed to be “chosen” at random, from all genders, race, age, religion and wealth. It was a painfully egalitarian condition.

The wider public understandably had trouble accepting the news once it was finally released. They quickly tried to classify the people with and without the condition, with terms that ranged from genuine attempts for objective differentiation to downright vicious labelling. Eventually they settled upon the terms “afflicted” for those with the condition and “unafflicted” for those without.

When it soon became clear that there was no “cure” for the condition or a way to stop the atmosphere from changing, at least not in the estimated timeframe, the conversation quickly shifted towards whom was to blame. Perhaps unsurprisingly the unafflicted were among the first to point the finger, accusing the afflicted to be “pseudo humans” or cursed. Mass testing for the condition stopped since no one wanted to be labelled under the “wrong” camp. Although the number of afflicted and unafflicted were equal, there remained pockets of unequal distributions in different areas.

The desire to continue identifying the afflicted was greatest in regions where the unafflicted were the majority. Governments of these places were pressed to either forcibly label the afflicted, or to issue certificates to those who were not. The stigma and risks of violence that resulted forced many of the afflicted to take extraordinary measures to expunge any records of having the condition. Those with the means were able to do so or at least put-up adequate defense against violence. But the vast majority had to give up the life as they knew to go into hiding. Unsavoury elements took full advantage of the situation, from human smuggling to selling counterfeit certificates of being unafflicted. For a time, it was worse to be an afflicted than a convicted criminal.

But the sheer number of the afflicted meant it was not possible to simply drive them all underground to be forgotten. Furthermore, the earth’s atmosphere changing remained a reality and ticking time bomb for the unafflicted. The afflicted themselves began to push back against their oppressors. Anger soon turned towards the unafflicted, especially in areas where they were the minority. There was no evidence to show that the condition was a result of any particular lifestyle, it was truly circumstances of an act of God or nature. So why should the afflicted be blamed?

Those with a religious flavor on either side suggested the other were being punished for their sins. Some of the afflicted argued that perhaps they were part of the evolutionary process and thus had a better case of “inheriting” the new world, backed by the fact that the earth’s atmosphere was altering to accommodate them. Powerful and influential people on both sides actively fought to control the narrative of the situation. Public opinion and blame swung back and forth between the two sides for weeks.

The changes in the earth’s atmosphere soon claimed its first few victims. The more vulnerable ones among the unafflicted were the first to develop serious conditions that required medical attention. But soon even the relatively healthy ones started to succumb. The initial reactions came as a surprise however, the rhetoric and fiery speeches gave way to heartwarming acts of kindness. Ordinary people pitched in to help by donating supplies and volunteering at medical shelters. Experts from all over the world finally started serious and practical attempts to solve the crisis. One of which was to build a dome, named sanctuary domes, which artificially mimicked the earth’s atmosphere the unafflicted could breathe in. It was unanimously supported by all sides and resulted in perhaps the quickest engineering feat for disasters in history. Though regarded as a stopgap before a sturdier solution was found, it nevertheless remained a welcomed change in attitude.

Unfortunately, the burst of goodwill was rather short lived. Despite the change in attitudes and pragmatic steps, the unafflicted’s conditions continued to worsen. Soon, deaths were reported worldwide and increasing at an alarming pace. The sanctuary domes that were initially widely praised soon became symbols of inequality and discrimination as the masses scrambled for a place.

Among the more bizarre developments were the record number of lawsuits filed. From lawsuits by the unafflicted over the loss of their loved ones to lawsuits among themselves for the unfair ways some used to secure a place in the sanctuary domes. Crime and violence ticked up all over the world and tensions between the afflicted and unafflicted finally reached its boiling point. What came next was the inevitable, outright war. The unafflicted became convinced the only solution to the existential threat they faced was the complete eradication of the afflicted. It was termed a global war of survival and for the first time in human history, political and cultural lines were no longer the reasons why people fought.

Then, just as quickly as the war began, it ended abruptly. People strangely awakened to the madness of their actions, realizing that beneath the labels of afflicted and unafflicted were their family members, friends and loved ones. Parents could no more harm their own children than they could, even for their own survival. Brothers, sisters, husbands and wives, were among the afflicted and unafflicted alike, slaughtering each other was hardly the solution to their collective grief.

The peace that ensued saw the survivors coping in different ways. Some of the unafflicted made peace with the situation and would rather die than trade the lives of their loved ones for their own. The sanctuary domes worked better than expected but they came with a painful side effect of separating loved ones. And while the fighting stopped, the threat of violence never truly went away. Some factions among the unafflicted continued to believe that eliminating the afflicted was their only viable course of action. Those who felt the same were also present among the afflicted, who saw coexistence an impossibility at this stage.

By now, you would have no doubt heard of a plan for the unafflicted to leave the planet to colonize another. Being involved with the initiative, I could tell you it is a risky endeavor, and the odds of success might be marginal better than if you stayed. But if you do stay, it would likely be a sure death though no one really knows when it will come. It remains your choice whether to leave or stay, but know our love will go with you anywhere and always.