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Add The Sadness and Joy

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{{Short Story
|title = The Sadness & Joy
|cover = Or-Else-The-Light-PB.jpg
|anthology = Or Else The Light
|published = 2020
|pages = 8 pages
|library = https://scottsigler.com/book/or-else-the-light/
}}
{{TOCleft}}
[[The Sadness & Joy]] is the third story in the ''V. Invadens'' storyline that runs through the books of the [[Dystopia Triptych]]. It was published in 2020 in the anthology [[Or Else The Light]].

==Summary==
Bolstered by a new immunity to the Primitive’s only threat against them, the Enlightened have again reached dominance on Earth, controlling 91% of the world’s population. As the Enlightened send the virus out into space, they plan to completely eradicate all remaining Unenlightened and Primitives.

==Setting==
Seventeen years after the destruction of the first round of spacecraft being built to spread The Love to other planets, the second wave of ships is ready to send tens of thousands of naturally-born Enlightened out into space to bring the virus to new worlds. The Enlightened have come up with their own biological weapon: Enterobacteriaceae Sekhmet, a modified strain of bubonic plague that goes dormant when it encounters hormones secreted by the Enlightened. The Enlightened plan to infect themselves, then spread the disease to all Unenlightened who attack.

==Plot==
Jade bids farewell to her 17-year old son Trevor, who will work in the command crew of The Stalwart II, one of four ships that will spread The Love throughout the universe. Though emotionally stunted by The Love, Jade feels regret and sadness that she will never see Trevor again. She leaves the crew to board their vessel and prepares to make a worldwide address.

In the address, she indicates how the dominance of Earth’s population is over 90%, and all resistance is about to be eliminated with the new biological weapon developed by the Englightened that will destroy all Unenlightened. WIthout access to medicine and hospitals, the Primitives will succumb to the ravages of the bubonic plague and completely die out, or be afraid to venture into populated areas for fear of becoming infected.

After her status update, Jade relinquishes the podium and audience to General Ognyan, who outlines the planned military strategy for deploying the weaponized bubonic plague. As a parting shot, she warns any Unenlightened watching that this is their last chance to join the Enlightened and surrender to The Love, or else die a horrible death, infecting and killing everyone they care about. After Ognyan finishes his outline, Jade begins the conversation anew, directing everyone’s attention to the new global economy’s directive to fund and construct the next 200 starfaring vessels to spread The Love.

==Characters==
*[[Jade]], an Enlightened PR representative
*[[Trevor]], Jade's naturally-born Enlightened son and part of the command crew of ''The Stalwart II''
*[[Rostov]], the Enlightened lead engineer working on ''The Stalwart II''
*General Ognyan, the Enlightened military leader who coordinates combatting the insurgency and resistance of the Primitives and Unenlightened
*Jakub, the Enlightened Director of South America, who seeks assurance that the weaponized bubonic plague will not infect the Enlightened.

==The Viruses==
===The Love===
''[[The Love (virus)|The Love]]'' refers to the virulent pathogen that traveled to Earth from the sixth planet in the chain of infected worlds. Infection with ''The Love'' manifests physiologically in a number of ways:
* Different colored fronds grow from the temples of human heads. The different colors represent different strains that categorize ''The Enlightened'' into working groups suited to their innate talents.
* Emotions are suppressed and viewed with suspicion, as regression or counter-infection typically manifests first with emotion
* The ability to sense when other ''Enlightened'' are nearby

===V. Invadens===
''[[V. Invadens (virus)|V. Invadens]]'' refers to the weaponized amoeba ''viridiraptor invadens''. V. Invadens was developed by ''The Unenlightened'' to combat the ''The Love'' physiologically. ''V. Invadens'' attacks the bridge cells that connect the brain to the temple fronds, effectively severing the groupmind connection and regressing The Enlightened to the state of a ''Primitive'', which typically manifests with anger and fury from having been oppressed by ''The Love''.

===E. Sekhmet===
''E. Sekhmet'' refers to the weaponized strain of bubonic plague known as ''enterobacteriaceae sekhmet.'' It is used by The Enlightened to eliminate the Unenlightened and Primitives that continue to resist ''[[The Love (virus)|The Love]]''. The Enlightened secrete a hormone that prevents ''E. Sekhmet'' from affecting them, while leaving the Unenlightened completely vulnerable.

{{Scott Sigler Short Stories}}

[[Category:Short Stories]]

@@ Line 14: / Line 14: @@
 ==Setting==
-Seventeen years after the destruction of the first round of spacecraft being built to spread The Love to other planets, the second wave of ships is ready to send tens of thousands of naturally-born Enlightened out into space to bring the virus to new worlds. The Enlightened have come up with their own biological weapon: Enterobacteriaceae Sekhmet, a modified strain of bubonic plague that goes dormant when it encounters hormones secreted by the Enlightened. The Enlightened plan to infect themselves, then spread the disease to all Unenlightened who attack.
+Seventeen years after the destruction of the first round of spacecraft being built to spread ''The Love'' to other planets, the second wave of ships is ready to send tens of thousands of naturally-born Enlightened out into space to bring the virus to new worlds. The Enlightened have come up with their own biological weapon: Enterobacteriaceae Sekhmet, a modified strain of bubonic plague that goes dormant when it encounters hormones secreted by the Enlightened. The Enlightened plan to infect themselves, then spread the disease to all Unenlightened who attack.
 ==Plot==
-Jade bids farewell to her 17-year old son Trevor, who will work in the command crew of The Stalwart II, one of four ships that will spread The Love throughout the universe. Though emotionally stunted by The Love, Jade feels regret and sadness that she will never see Trevor again. She leaves the crew to board their vessel and prepares to make a worldwide address.
+Jade bids farewell to her 17-year old son Trevor, who will work in the command crew of The Stalwart II, one of four ships that will spread ''The Love'' throughout the universe. Though emotionally stunted by ''The Love'', Jade feels regret and sadness that she will never see Trevor again. She leaves the crew to board their vessel and prepares to make a worldwide address.
-In the address, she indicates how the dominance of Earth’s population is over 90%, and all resistance is about to be eliminated with the new biological weapon developed by the Englightened that will destroy all Unenlightened. WIthout access to medicine and hospitals, the Primitives will succumb to the ravages of the bubonic plague and completely die out, or be afraid to venture into populated areas for fear of becoming infected.
+In the address, she indicates how the dominance of Earth’s population is over 90%, and all resistance is about to be eliminated with the new biological weapon developed by the Englightened that will destroy all Unenlightened. Without access to medicine and hospitals, the Primitives will succumb to the ravages of the bubonic plague and completely die out, or be afraid to venture into populated areas for fear of becoming infected.
 After her status update, Jade relinquishes the podium and audience to General Ognyan, who outlines the planned military strategy for deploying the weaponized bubonic plague. As a parting shot, she warns any Unenlightened watching that this is their last chance to join the Enlightened and surrender to The Love, or else die a horrible death, infecting and killing everyone they care about. After Ognyan finishes his outline, Jade begins the conversation anew, directing everyone’s attention to the new global economy’s directive to fund and construct the next 200 starfaring vessels to spread The Love.

The Sadness & Joy - Revision history

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BigJohn: Add The Sadness and Joy