Plague Doctor

Translator: Lonelytree

‘Hmm, I better not…’ Wu Siyu came to a decision quickly. The unknown force was like an unfamiliar plate of meat. It could be fabulously cooked but they might be human meat.

‘I am not to claw on the ground, make any sound or resist, but they did not say I could not move my body…’ She studied her five colleagues and the clouds of locusts that slowly approached. She suddenly stood on her two feet and waved her paws to make a sign. ‘If words cannot transmit my meaning, I wonder if body language can or not?’ She formed common tactical signs among Special Mobile Force and Action Department. ‘Danger ahead! Retreat! Retreat!’

To ensure that her signs were not treated as a taunt, Wu Siyu even used her claws to make a heart. ‘That should be enough, right?’ The five agents were confused but they seemed to recognize her hand gestures…

It was quite hard for Wu Siyu to maintain this pose. She signed for them to retreat again and then patted her tummy. She mimicked the Zoogs. Due to her constant interaction with Lucky, she was very good at this. She hoped that that would help clarify her identity, or at least send the message that, ‘Even though Wu Simiao might have been corrupted by darkness, the corruption is not complete, there is a part of her conscious self that is still struggling.’

“Retreat, retreat!” Wu Siyu signed that command again and again. The locusts were close before her eyes. In her desperation, she mimicked a drinking pose. ‘Elder Tong, you old drunkard, is this not clear enough for you?!’

Finally, the five Action Department members moved and they retreated in unison. The leader shouted, “If you mean well, please enter the iron cage on your own.” Once the five of them exited the border, Wu Siyu could not see them anymore. It was like they were wiped out of existence. She gave a meow of relief. She had succeeded…

She realized the problem should be the words she had clawed out, but she could not tell what was wrong with them. However, she suspected that it was her cat’s body or this mutated area itself that caused her the inability to use language normally. Thankfully, body language still worked. ‘Is it because verbal and written language can be imbued with power but body language cannot?’ As these thoughts crossed her mind, the locust crossed the border. It was then that Wu Siyu realized, ‘Shouldn’t I be more worried about my personal safety? Hmm… do locusts feed on cats?’

The locusts had the appearance of ants. Some were as big as one’s fist but others were as small as a fly. They were all ashen grey in color and had black spots on their bodies. They exuded presence of death. The two light red antennae twitched continuously. It was as if she was hit by a tsunami or caught in a sandstorm. The horde of locusts swarmed into the mutated area. The previously empty space buzzed with insectoid activity. Suddenly finding herself in the midst of an insect ocean, Wu Siyu curled up into a ball. She closed her eyes and used her paws to lower her head. ‘Please don’t eat me… Cat’s flesh is not appetizing… or at least I believe so…’

The locusts did not eat her, in fact, they did not even touch her. They all flew by her. However, the locusts did show intense malice. They attached themselves to every object within the area and swallowed up everything. In just the blink of an eye, the iron cage from Phecda was nibbled into nothingness. Even the cleansing stone and electric shock devices were disintegrated in their maws. Some of the locusts died from poisoning and shock and their brethren flew forward to ingest these fallen members. They took away the tree stumps, the paved street, the electric poles, the buildings… And even the drone in the sky. Despite their varied material, none of them survived the locust swarm.

Another change was the soil on the ground. It turned blacker, and more like the soil from the wasteland. Suddenly, it dawned on Wu Siyu the reason why the wasteland would look that way. It was more than the nuclear explosion. Nuclear explosions would leave behind some trace at least. Now she realized those traces had all been consumed by these locusts. The plants, the minerals, the stones, the cement… they were all consumed. But why did the iron cage and the dead body inside it remained?

She contemplated for a while before turning around. Using his feline speed and grace, she closed the 10 metres distance in only a few seconds. She crossed the border, left the mutated area and returned to the wasteland. No gunshots were heard. She did lose some fur, but there was no wound or pain. As Wu Siyu turned back to study the mutated area, the locusts were still swarming around. She saw the locust swarm that stretched down the horizon and she could confirm that every inch of the 70 cubic km mutated area should be covered by locusts by now. This was no 5th explosion but it was still not a good development either. If this locust swarm migrated to earth… it would cause a more devastating effect than radioactive substance leakage. Radiation poisoning at least had a pollution range, one only needed to evacuate from the affected range, but these locusts would destroy everything.

Wu Siyu stopped to watch for a while before she continued on her journey. She knew she shan’t stay in the mutated area. Phecda would figure out a way to deal with these locusts, and the most likely solution was carpet bombing. Technically, the explosion would not affect the wasteland beyond the border of the mutated area but even so Wu Siyu was not going to stay to watch the destruction.

The locusts came from the wasteland so there had to be something to be found here. That was probably the reason why she was sent here. But why through her painting, and why must she assume this feline form?

‘At the end of the day, the responsibility is mine…’ Under the blanket of night sky, Wu Siyu picked up the pace. Along the wasteland, the number of locusts was astronomical. There was no way they could be reasonably wiped out. Even a carpet bombing wouldn’t kill all of them, furthermore, what was preventing them from consuming the missiles?!

With these thoughts bouncing in her mind, she returned to that fated locale. She looked down the distance. The iron pole was still standing there and the cage hung from it. A kneeling human body with exposed bone was trapped inside it. Everything was the same as it was. The locust swarm flew past it like the thing was not there. In essence, they treated the thing like they treated her. ‘Does this mean that there is some kind of connection between my current state and this dead body?’

“Hello??” Wu Siyu shouted at the iron cage, but of course, it was in the sound of a meow. “Who are you? I’m not going any closer. I’ll just sit right here. Was it you who summoned me to this world? Are you really dead?”

Perhaps it was her synaesthesia or her instinct, something told her the body was not really dead. Just as she finished, suddenly the body inside the cage moved and lifted its head.