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“The Chinese have hacked the Stream before. We could be looking at false data, fake videos.”
    “I know. What should we do, sir?”
    Paulson thought for a second. This could very well be a planned strike from the Chinese against the U.S. and the entire world, something they’d been planning for years. The hack on the Stream a few years ago could have simply been a test for the larger attack. Inoculate their leaders and citizens, then spread this virus all over the world, killing everyone, leaving the entire planet to themselves.
    “I have the nuclear football here. Ready ,” Paulson said emphatically.“If it comes to that.”
    “We should be prepared for all contingencies,” Rowan said, nodding. “Right now we need to continue gathering data about what’s happening around the world and what the virus is doing.”
    “Let’s bring Bellany back on.”
    Paulson quickly briefed the doctor about the origin of the virus in the meteor cloud, but he was careful not to reveal anything about their speculations concerning China.
    “Incredible,” Bellany said, eyes wide. “But theoretically possible. I’m a microbiologist, and I’ve seen species of viruses survive in extreme conditions for long periods in a spore-like state. When a more hospitable environment presents itself, the microbes become active. Other, larger, organisms can survive droughts for decades and then come back to life when it rains again.”
    He leaned close to the camera.
    “Also, if what you say is true, that this virus originated in the meteor cloud, that would explain the degree of saturation in the atmosphere. This is truly an incredible virus.”
    Paulson grunted. He knew how these scientist types could get all gushy over their organisms, even the deadly ones.
    “Yes, Doctor, it’s an incredible killing machine that spreads with the wind. How the hell do we stop it?”
    “Let me start by explaining the nature of the virus,” Bellany said. “It seems that it attacks only human cells. No plants or other animal species are being affected.”
    Paulson had guessed that to be the case. So whoever was left standing would have access to all of earth’s resources.
    Bellany cued up a video feed of the virus.
    “One of the robotics units was able to conduct a preliminary autopsy on one of our scientists. Here’s what happened inside his body.”
    The video showed a microscopic view of the victim’s blood and from what Paulson could tell, it looked like a warzone. Cell matter and debris were scattered everywhere.
    “As you can see, cells from all over the body have been destroyed from the inside out.” Bellany circled and enlarged one area of the video. “The nanovirus enters a cell, replicates itself using the cell’s DNA, and then bursts out to do the same damage to the next cell. This is typical of any virus, but this one is able to replicate at an astounding rate, faster than any virus we’ve ever seen.”
    Paulson could see the virus inside one of the cells, a metal and organic killer capable of ripping through human blood cells , devouring their host from the inside out.
    “But the mechanical parts, how are they reproduced?” Rowan asked.
    “It appears to use the iron present in the blood as well as naturally based carbon to create its mechanical parts,” Bellany answered. “All the nanoviruses then work together to destroy the host from the inside out. Each creature . . . ”
    Both Paulson and Rowan scrunched their eyes up and frowned when Bellany referred to the virus as a creature.
    “ . . . is also equipped with its own microscopic atomic memory cell and chemical power source, like a battery. You can see that here.” He pointed to a spot inside the nanovirus.
    “The technological components built into this virus are beyond anything we’re capable of, even at the most forward-thinking research facilities. The processor memory on this thing is incredible. It’s engineered and controlled on an atomic level and looks to be even