Fiction: Group 3
The Pearl Disease
Sha Tin College, Chan, Cyrus - 11, Fiction: Group 3
n 2014 a catastrophic event occurred, but no one knew who was responsible. I was one of the few
survivors left from the incident. Even though I was very fortunate, it had come with some unfortunate
consequences. I watched as people from my village died from this, being turned into something
uncontrollable. It was the terrible and unforgettable past lay afar, like a dream left behind in the night.
This is how it happened...
I was young at the time owning a splendid rice field. It was the only thing I had that I depended on other
than the fishes my wife caught by the Xiangjiang River in Zhuzhou, Hunan to sell. It was a simple yet
enjoyable lifestyle. The limitless sky was as blue as the Mediterranean Sea. The opulent yellow Sun shone
and its radiant light seeped into the darkest of alleyways along the various streets. However, China became
greedy and misused the environment. Years after years, gradually more smoke billowed out of countless
factory pipes and the wasted metals in the form of sludge were thrown into the sky blue river. Slowly more
and more the ultramarine river turned into a river full of sludge and poisonous toxin. By that time, Hunan
was the largest rice and heavy metal producer in Pearl River Delta.
One day, the Food Safety officials had come to inspect our rice. They took samples of the rice and left. I
crossed my fingers in hope that it would be fine because if it weren’t, it would all be a huge waste. It was
late already as the darkness was swallowing the village bit by bit. I saw a flock of birds fly past; however, they
weren’t flying straight. Flying as if they were drunk; they flew with no control of themselves. They soon
stopped and before they landed on the ground, they were already dead. I wondered to myself “How weird
was that?” I walked back home wondering what was that all about.
When I arrived home, I realized my wife wasn’t back yet. I prepared our dinner and waited patiently. When
she came home she was very quiet. I found it very peculiar since she is usually quite talkative. She quickly
finished and left to bed. I went to bed shortly after as well. Around midnight, I heard loud noises coming
from the toilet. I cautiously got out of bed and turned on the lights. I saw someone holding a kitchen knife
menacingly. It was my wife. She took a few steps in my direction holding the knife as if she wanted to kill
me. I wondered to myself “What’s gotten into her?” She came very close to me and I could hear her every
breath. She suddenly dropped her knife and started shaking violently. She continued convulsing so I took
her to the hospital immediately.
“Doctor Chan, is there anything wrong with her?” I asked worriedly. “She’s had a complicated mixture of
chemicals that seemed to be controlling her movements,” He replied apprehensively, “I think it would be
better if we sent her to the Hunan Research Institute of Chemical Industry to be examined since she’s the
first person to suffer from an unknown disease.” Two men took her away.
I decided to check on the rice. I was completely stunned that most of the rice was black. My mind pondered
on the question as to why it was like this. Was this some sort of prank? Did I do something wrong? These
thoughts whizzed in my mind. All of a sudden the rice trader rushed towards me saying solemnly “I’m sorry
to say but your rice has been tested and is completely inedible.” I knew then something was definitely
wrong. First it was the birds that flew abnormally then my wife being poisoned by a chemical that might be
controlling her. “What was the cause of this” I wondered.
At home I researched some information relating to my wife’s condition. I realized that a similar incident had
occurred in Japan. People walked around the streets with a posture that was highly abnormal. These were
the same things that happened to my wife except she seemed to be under a spell which terrified me. I
decided to inform Mayor Zhang. I forced myself into the governmental offices to meet him. I hoped he
would listen to a lowly farmer like me. “Mr Zhang I have an important matter to discuss with you,” I spoke
nervously, “We must evacuate people from the villages near the rivers. I witnessed several abnormalities and
I
