#COVID !9 | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

halorvic · 3 months

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The danger is clear and present: COVID isn’t merely a respiratory illness; it’s a multi-dimensional threat impacting brain function, attacking almost all of the body’s organs, producing elevated risks of all kinds, and weakening our ability to fight off other diseases. Reinfections are thought to produce cumulative risks, and Long COVID is on the rise. Unfortunately, Long COVID is now being considered a long-term chronic illness — something many people will never fully recover from. Dr. Phillip Alvelda, a former program manager in DARPA’s Biological Technologies Office that pioneered the synthetic biology industry and the development of mRNA vaccine technology, is the founder of Medio Labs, a COVID diagnostic testing company. He has stepped forward as a strong critic of government COVID management, accusing health agencies of inadequacy and even deception. Alvelda is pushing for accountability and immediate action to tackle Long COVID and fend off future pandemics with stronger public health strategies. Contrary to public belief, he warns, COVID is not like the flu. New variants evolve much faster, making annual shots inadequate. He believes that if things continue as they are, with new COVID variants emerging and reinfections happening rapidly, the majority of Americans may eventually grapple with some form of Long COVID. Let’s repeat that: At the current rate of infection, most Americans may get Long COVID.

[...]

LP: A recent JAMA study found that US adults with Long COVID are more prone to depression and anxiety – and they’re struggling to afford treatment. Given the virus’s impact on the brain, I guess the link to mental health issues isn’t surprising. PA: There are all kinds of weird things going on that could be related to COVID’s cognitive effects. I’ll give you an example. We’ve noticed since the start of the pandemic that accidents are increasing. A report published by TRIP, a transportation research nonprofit, found that traffic fatalities in California increased by 22% from 2019 to 2022. They also found the likelihood of being killed in a traffic crash increased by 28% over that period. Other data, like studies from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, came to similar conclusions, reporting that traffic fatalities hit a 16-year high across the country in 2021. The TRIP report also looked at traffic fatalities on a national level and found that traffic fatalities increased by 19%. LP: What role might COVID play? PA: Research points to the various ways COVID attacks the brain. Some people who have been infected have suffered motor control damage, and that could be a factor in car crashes. News is beginning to emerge about other ways COVID impacts driving. For example, in Ireland, a driver’s COVID-related brain fog was linked to a crash that killed an elderly couple. Damage from COVID could be affecting people who are flying our planes, too. We’ve had pilots that had to quit because they couldn’t control the airplanes anymore. We know that medical events among U.S. military pilots were shown to have risen over 1,700% from 2019 to 2022, which the Pentagon attributes to the virus.

[...]

LP: You’ve criticized the track record of the CDC and the WHO – particularly their stubborn denial that COVID is airborne. PA: They knew the dangers of airborne transmission but refused to admit it for too long. They were warned repeatedly by scientists who studied aerosols. They instituted protections for themselves and for their kids against airborne transmission, but they didn’t tell the rest of us to do that.

[...]

LP: How would you grade Biden on how he’s handled the pandemic? PA: I’d give him an F. In some ways, he fails worse than Trump because more people have actually died from COVID on his watch than on Trump’s, though blame has to be shared with Republican governors and legislators who picked ideological fights opposing things like responsible masking, testing, vaccination, and ventilation improvements for partisan reasons. Biden’s administration has continued to promote the false idea that the vaccine is all that is needed, perpetuating the notion that the pandemic is over and you don’t need to do anything about it. Biden stopped the funding for surveillance and he stopped the funding for renewing vaccine advancement research. Trump allowed 400,000 people to die unnecessarily. The Biden administration policies have allowed more than 800,000 to 900,000 and counting.

[...]

LP: The situation with bird flu is certainly getting more concerning with the CDC confirming that a third person in the U.S. has tested positive after being exposed to infected cows. PA: Unfortunately, we’re repeating many of the same mistakes because we now know that the bird flu has made the jump to several species. The most important one now, of course, is the dairy cows. The dairy farmers have been refusing to let the government come in and inspect and test the cows. A team from Ohio State tested milk from a supermarket and found that 50% of the milk they tested was positive for bird flu viral particles.

[...]

PA: There’s a serious risk now in allowing the virus to freely evolve within the cow population. Each cow acts as a breeding ground for countless genetic mutations, potentially leading to strains capable of jumping to other species. If any of those countless genetic experiments within each cow prove successful in developing a strain transmissible to humans, we could face another pandemic – only this one could have a 58% death rate. Did you see the movie “Contagion?” It was remarkably accurate in its apocalyptic nature. And that virus only had a 20% death rate. If the bird flu makes the jump to human-to-human transition with even half of its current lethality, that would be disastrous.

#sars cov 2 #covid 19 #h5n1 #bird flu #articles #long covid is def a global issue not just for those in the us and most countries aren't doing much better #regardless of how much lower the mortality rate for h5n1 may or may not become if/when it becomes transmissible between humans #having bird flu infect a population the majority of whose immune system has been decimated by sars2 #to the point where the average person seems to have a hard time fighting off the common cold etc...#(see the stats of whooping cough/pertussis and how they're off the CHARTS this yr in the uk and aus compared to previous yrs?#in qld average no of cases was 242 over prev 4 yrs - there have been /3783/ diagnosed as of june 9 this yr and that's just in one state.#there's a severe shortage of meds for kids in aus bc of the demand and some parents visit +10 pharmacies w/o any luck)#well.#let's just say that i miss the days when ph orgs etc adhered to the precautionary principle and were criticised for 'overreacting'#bc nothing overly terrible happened in the end (often thanks to their so-called 'overreaction')#now to simply acknowledge the reality of an obviously worsening situation is to be accused of 'fearmongering'#🤷‍♂️#also putting long covid and bird flu aside for a sec:#one of the wildest things that everyone seems to overlook that conor browne and others on twt have been saying for yrs #is that the effects of the covid pandemic extend far beyond the direct impacts of being infected by the virus itself #we know sars2 rips apart immune system+attacks organs. that in effect makes one more susceptible to other viruses/bacterial infections etc #that in turn creates increased demand for healthcare services for all kinds of carers and medications #modern medicine and technology allows us to provide often effective and necessary treatment for all kinds of ailments #but what if there's not enough to go around? what happens when the demand is so high that it can't be provided fast enough -- or at all?#(that's assuming you can even afford it)#what happens when doctors and nurses and other healthcare workers keep quitting due to burnout from increased patients and/or illness #because they themselves do not live in a separate reality and are not any more sheltered from the effects of constant infection/reinfection #of sars2 and increased susceptibility to other illnesses/diseases than the rest of the world?#this is the 'new normal' that's being cultivated (the effects of which are already blatantly obvious if you're paying attention)#and importantly: it. doesn't. have. to. be. this. way.

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adrift-in-thyme · 7 months

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Febuwhump Day 9: Bees (Wind & Legend)

Ao3

CW for blood and injury and torture

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“Well, isn’t this just so pleasant? When I woke up this morning, I said, ‘You know what I wish? I wish I could spend my day in a cell that smells like sweaty men and thousand-year-old bananas.’”

Wind can’t help but roll his eyes at Legend’s sarcastic drawl. He doesn’t like it either, of course. Being cooped up in the Yiga hideout isn’t how he wants to spend his afternoon either. Time had promised to spar with him and he had been really, really looking forward to it. But there isn’t much they can do about it now.

If the assasins had tied them up with ropes, then they would have escaped hours ago. Wind is no novice when it comes to undoing knots. But chains? Their smithy would be better equipped to handle that sort of thing. And, unfortunately, the Yiga had only gotten the jump on him and Legend.

“What do you think they want anyway?” he asks if only to distract his brother from continuing his lament about his spoiled afternoon.

Legend lets his head fall back against the wall with a pouty clunk.

“The champion, probably. These guys hate his guts.”

Wind cocks his head. From this angle, the pile against the far wall suspiciously resembles human bones.

“Because he’s a hero, right?”

“Yeah. Because he’s a hero.”

“I wonder if they hate all heroes then,” Wind says, thoughtfully. He doesn’t really care, to be honest. But anything to keep from pondering the mysterious objects and substances strewn about the place. “Or if it’s more of a one-person thing. Like they only hate Wild, cause he foiled their evil plans.”

“The first one, to tell you the truth,” comes a voice from the space right in front of them.

Wind jumps, red hot pin pricks traveling down to encase his scalp, neck, and arms. Beside him, Legend goes rigid.

A Yiga assassin bursts into existence in a cloud of red papers. He raises his hands the way Wind and Aryll used to when they were presenting one of their plays to Grandma.

“You know one hero, you know them all,” he drawls. “That’s just the way of things. Which works to our benefit, actually.”

“Oh good,” Legend snaps. “Since you’ve figured out the inner workings of us heroes, you must know that we’d never give anyone up to you. Especially, a brother. So, if you’ll just take these chains off, we’ll be on our way.”

The Yiga chuckles. He squats down in front of Legend, leaning forward so that his face is inches from the veteran’s.

“I like you,” he hisses. “You have spirit. It’ll be fun to make you scream.”

Legend pales, though he manages to keep a scowl on his face. The Yiga digs his fingers into the hero’s shoulder and hauls him to his feet. Wind’s stomach lurches.

“Don’t hurt him!” He shouts, scrambling up. He wishes he had his sword and shield, his boomerang — something to get them free. “He doesn’t know anything!”

It’s a hopeless attempt and he knows it. But it still feels like a punch in the gut when the Yiga throws back his head and laughs.

“Oh, he knows things, I’m certain of it. You both do.”

He shoves Legend toward the door, then grabs Wind by the ear and pushes him in the same direction. Wind sends him a blistering scowl, which he pointedly ignores.

“Walk, you two,” he growls, shoving his sickle into Legend’s back. Exchanging an exasperated glance, the heroes stumble forward.

The assassin forces them down a set of stairs and into the main room. A small group of other Yiga awaits, formed in a semi-circle towards the middle of the floor. They spread out as their companion nears, allowing them room to enter their little huddle. Wind can practically see their sadistic grins shining from beneath their masks.

For all their comic obsession with bananas, these guys give him the creeps.

One of them grasps him by the shoulders as he walks forward and yanks him to a standstill. He stumbles, lifting his head just in time to see the original assassin practically drag Legend into the center his Yiga companions have made.

The veteran trips over a bump in the floor and tries to catch himself. But the assassin delivers a swift kick to his shins that sends him sprawling.

“Vet!”

Wind lurches forward, fighting to reach him. His captor holds him fast, however. And he can do nothing but watch as Legend picks himself up, face pale and eyes glinting.

No sooner has he gotten to his feet than he is back on his knees, gloved fingers holding him down and in place.

“I will now ask you a question,” one of the Yiga purrs, stepping forward on cat’s feet. “And I hope, for your friend’s sake, to only have to ask it once. Where is the Hero of the Wilds?”

Wind catches Legend’s gaze from across the room and holds it.

I’m sorry.

Amethyst irises darken in determined resolve. Pale lips press tighter as he nods once, short and quick.

“You know what to do, sailor,” he calls.

He does. Wind takes a deep breath. He does know what to do. But it’s gonna take everything he’s got to do it.

“I don’t know,” he says. “And if I did, I wouldn’t tell you.”

He can tell even through his mask that the assassin holding Legend has narrowed his eyes. In the next second, a sickle gleams. It swoops down like a graceful gull, heading straight for Legend’s middle. Wind doesn’t even have time to scream out a warning.

It slices through tunic and flesh and keeps going, ravenous for more. But the Yiga won’t allow it to satiate its appetite. He yanks it out. Blood splatters the floor. Beneath the overhead lights, it looks similar to the rubies Wild likes to collect.

Legend’s eyes go wide. He chokes, a cry begging to break from between bloodied lips.

“No!” Wind screams, jerking to get free. But a dagger finds his neck and abruptly, he stills.

Cackles echo around the room as Legend sags in his captor’s grip. His face is deathly pale now. When he raises his eyes to Wind’s, however, that fierceness is still within them.

“You see the pain that your friend is enduring,” the assassin hisses, tilting his head. His grip on Legend tightens and a low whine emanates from the veteran. “So, spill it, boy, before it gets much worse for him. We know that you know the answer. Where is Link?”

“Maybe you weren’t listening before, because I told you I don’t know where he is!” Wind retorts. It’s a battle to keep his voice steady, but he manages. Contrary to what some of the heroes think, this isn’t his first time facing the enemy.

…though it is his first time watching a brother be tortured. That’s an experience he could have done without, thanks very much.

The assassin motions. One of the Yiga moves. Quick as a flash, he zips forward, and brings his weapon screaming across Legend’s cheek. His skin splits open, a gleeful crimson smile beneath his left eye.

Something between a growl and a half-scream bursts out of Legend. He curls in on himself, bound hands clasped into fists. His breath comes in tight little gasps that make Wind’s chest tight.

“Every time you refuse to cooperate, we will create a new mark on him,” the assassin snaps. “So, I suggest you start talking. Unless, of course, you’re enjoying this as much as I am.”

“You bunch of sadistic idiots,” Legend croaks. “Did you not hear him? He doesn’t know anything.”

Another Yiga rushes forward. And this time Legend screams. A large gash runs across his arms and chest, cleaning separating the collar of his tunic from the rest. Blood oozes from it, only worsened from his weak attempts to pull away.

Wind feels his breakfast rise into his throat. Desperately, he drags his attention from his brother, even as blood runs down Legend’s body and drips onto the floor, even as he drags in wheezing breaths between clenched teeth, scream tapering off into a whine.

He has to find them a way out of here before it’s too late. And there must be one, there must be…

A small disk of gold glitters not far from where he kneels. In the rush of fear and fight for bravery, Wind hadn’t noticed it. But now it holds his gaze.

Legend has used something like this before, he realizes with a spark of hope.

“Tell us where he is!”

It is another assassin now, pushing forward and shoving the previous one aside. He reaches out and clamps his hand around Legend’s throat. The veteran chokes, face flushing and breaths gurgling.

“Tell us or we break his skinny, little neck!”

“Not yet! We still need him!”

“Well, the kid isn’t talking. This’ll make him real chatty.”

Slowly, carefully, Wind stretches out his leg. His foot connects with the hard object and he begins dragging it towards him.

Little by little it comes. And still Legend gasps. Still, he struggles, trying to tear at his captor’s skin, to kick at them, to escape. Still, his blood drifts away to pool beneath him.

“I can’t tell you!” Wind shouts, even as the hope within him grows and blossoms into something larger. Almost. He almost has it.

“I don’t know!”

Two more agonizing seconds tick past. Legend’s face is completely red now, eyes bulging as he tries and fails to fill his lungs with air.

Panic whirs in Wind’s ears, making him lightheaded. But the disk is within his reach. Gnawing his lip, Wind nudges it into his palm.

He doesn’t spare a moment to look down at the designs etched upon it, doesn’t give their attackers even that long to realize that he has found a way out. He takes a deep breath and feeds some magic into it.

It heats in his grasp, hungrily taking the power he offers and turning it into something useful. Something mighty and fierce and…

Wind’s eyes widen as a hoard of small flying things catapult out of his palm. The room fills with a deafening buzz as their wings beat together, propelling them towards their targets. Screams and shouts of terror quickly follow.

The Yiga scramble back, desperate to evade the stingers outstretched to pierce their skin. But they are not even close to as fast as the bees.

For that is what they are. A swarm of furious, yet very courageous bees.

The Yiga’s hand leaves his shoulder, the dagger falls to the floor. Seconds later, his chains fall with it, unlocked by the crafty bees. They buzz happily at him as Wind leaps to his feet, a triumphant shout on his lips and a thankful grin on his face.

The room is chaos. The Yiga try to fend off the vicious insects, swiping at them with windcleavers and sickles and daggers. But their weapons are useless against them. Even when they manage to strike down one, one hundred more appear, each angrier than the last. But never once do they harm Wind.

They part as he rushes to Legend and the only thing he feels is the wind of their wings.

“Why didn’t you tell me you had a bee medallion?” He cries, grinning. “This is the coolest thing ever, vet!”

Legend looks up at him as the sailor drops down beside him. He lies in a pool of his own blood, eyes half-lidded and skin as pale as a redead. But he manages a small smirk.

“Never needed to,” he croaks. “Never thought I’d use i-it again. ‘Sides one of you would wanna borrow it.”

Wind reaches out to rest a hand on Legend’s arm. All his joviality is gone now at the sight of him, replaced instead by horror and sorrow.

“‘M sorry, Legend,” he says, sudden tears flooding his eyes. Roughly, he brushes them away. “I’m sorry they hurt you.”

Legend’s hand encloses his. He tries not to focus on the dampness of his fingers, or the crimson that smudges against his skin.

“You did good, sailor,” the veteran whispers, breath hitching on the last word. “You did real-really good.”

Wind smiles through his tears. “Well, I’m gonna do even better.”

He squeezes Legend’s hand and gets to his feet. Their pouches and weapons are propped against the far wall. Squaring his shoulders, he breaks into a run, headed toward them. With luck, one of them will have a fairy or potion remaining.

“I’m gonna get us both out of here.”

#I could’ve sworn there was a bee medallion in alttp #turns out i mixed up the good bee with the medallions that DO exist in the game #that’s what I get for trusting my memories of a game I played while sick with covid XD #anyway just pretend he like…made one of something #*or*#anyway #sorry this is late #febuwhump 2024 #febuwhump day 9 #blood tw #injury tw #torture tw #linked universe #linkeduniverse fic #whump #angst #trin writes #lu legend #lu wind

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