The irony was painfully plain to see - Bettians were well-known for their compassion for dumb animals, and yet it had been that compassion that made the situation worse. Any other government would have taken drastic steps to halt the virus in its tracks, but the mere sight of large blazing piles of dead aroras would have started mass riots without fail. As one journalist wrote, "What's the point of slaughtering those innocent creatures simply because they carry a virus? There are plenty of humans with it too - are we going to slaughter them as well?" At its height, over 75% of the population were taken ill. Millions of people were killed - most notably her predecessor the second president of Bettia - and billions more would have been at risk if the disease ever caught hold outside the borders.
Therefore, the Bettian Grand Shura had taken the only option available - quarantine. All of Bettia's borders were sealed (and their puppets Northern Bettia too, just for the sake of it), all planes were grounded, all trains were halted. Foreign diplomats and nationals who weren't affected by the disease were politely asked to leave for their own safety - indeed the only diplomatic contact Bettia had had with her neighbours was on WA business, and that was done online (thankfully the Arora Flu virus hadn't figured out how to spread itself online). Participation in international sports was immediately halted and many domestic competitions were badly affected, mostly due to the fact that most of Bettia's sportsmen and women weren't well enough to play. The plan had largely worked, with relatively few cases reported abroad.
The country had lived in isolation for twelve years now and had coped surprisingly well, not like the Northern Bettians. There, the military government's tight grip had loosened so much that the nation had essentially split into a number of self-governing tribal provinces and city-states. A national government was still in place, but was national in name only. Thankfully, the military strength of each of the provinces was more or less equal and it was that equal distribution of power that kept things in check, but the situation was delicate to say the least.
Back at home, Hanabi Brooks had had a tougher time of it than most other presidents. She had inherited a nation falling apart at the seams at the hands of a microscopic killer, but halfway into her five-year term the end of the ordeal was in sight at last thanks to a vaccine finally being isolated. It had taken many years of 24-hour shifts to produce enough for the country's population of nine billion people and countless aroras, but it had worked and now the president sat at her desk fiddling with her favourite blue hijab, waiting for the news she had waited so long to hear.
Eventually Hamid bin Safwan, Shura representative of Al-Maghrib province and Minister of Health, entered her large office. He held a thin report in his hand, but the half-grin on his face told her all she needed to know.
"It's good news," she said, sighing with relief.
"Yes, the Arora Flu is under control to such a degree that we can declare the epidemic over. We can finally lift this damn quarantine!"
Hanabi slumped back in her chair and offered a quick prayer of thanks. "At last. Now we can get this country back on track."
"Yep. We've already entered teams into the next World Cup and World Bowl tournys, so that'll help get the people's morale up. We've started a major education campaign to get our health system fully staffed once again. International flights are resuming, and we're working on a massive tourist campaign which we hope will get visitor numbers back up to what they once were."
"Good, that'll help the economy, especially on the south coast. I guess the only thing left to do is to send out telegrams to our friends and neighbours and invite their diplomats back. Those empty embassies are costing a fortune in mothballs!"
My dear esteemed neighbours
As I'm sure you are aware, we had to take the unfortunate step of closing our doors to the world due to circumstances beyond our control, but now those doors are open once again. Therefore, we cordially invite the nations of the world to establish a diplomatic presence in our nation and request that we may do the same in yours.
A new chapter has began in our nation's history, and we wish for as many countries to be a part of it.
Yours sincerely
Hanabi Brooks
President, the Blessed Realm of Bettia
