I never could have imagined what vile creatures existed until my guide took me, in my Haz-Mat suit, on a tour of The Swamp.
Apparently, these creatures had lived there for a long time and had been only recently exposed to the rest of the world, who until then had suspected of their presence but did not know of their actual existence.
The exposure to foul odors, hydrocarbon mists, rank layers of putrid mud, and slimy decomposing matter within the morass had served to alter the composition of these creatures who had, decade upon decade, wandered in. Once in, the conditions had so affected them that they could not make their way out again for outside of The Swamp they found that they wouldn't be able to live. Their makeup now was such that they could only 'live' within The Swamp, albeit in the wretched manner that they had come to know as 'life'.
Herein we must give credit to The Media, who over many years bravely sent members deep into the stagnant backwaters to relay back to us what grew in there, and how it grew, for The Swamp had been growing larger and larger and no one from the outside could ascertain with any certainty the cause(s).
Blue? That’s the hue I saw in there!
Kristian Piatek- Unsplash.com
Hideous anomalies greeted them inside, creatures with tentacles and many arms. The very air was toxic and affected the journalist's mental and reasoning abilites. Some went unconscious. Many were carried out after only short exposure. But, despite the hardships, rudimentary maps were created. Trails and paths were carved out and clearly marked that led ones in and quickly out. (It was by following one such trail that my guide had been able to give me my tour, which had taken us through the relatively safe 'green zone').
Further exploration was in this manner established, but only for those with strong constitutions. 'Twas not an endeavor for the faint of heart, for hearts could close in a place like this.
The findings of what existed within The Swamp, when they were revealed, were deemed ridiculous and preposterous by some, who claimed that no such creatures could possibly exist. But, the evidence showed so, and more and more evidence accumulated over time.
Sound bites, videos, documents, and audio recordings were made or gathered of the creatures and sent to researchers a good distance away, where they were studied under safe conditions. Mounting evidence proved that in highly toxic environments mutations could be regularly expected. Organisms could rapidly adjust to threats affecting their health and vitality by some sort of unknown method of resilience, one that was unique to this base ecosystem. The news was extraordinarily alarming.
Some said the way to halt the creeping malaise was to drain The Swamp but what region or municipality wanted to deal with the wastewater, full of contaminants, that was highly unlikely to be made pure by any method known to science? Perhaps containment would be better, they argued. Vehemently.
A Wall became the agreed-upon solution and though funding it called for bipartisan agreement, the urgency of the situation made members reach across the aisles and one of the greatest construction projects of the twenty first century was undertaken. Construction took less time that expected and was likened to the building of The Three Gorges Dam in the amount of material, equipment, and manpower expended.
The Wall now stands as testament to those thoughtful leaders of days gone by, who saw a looming danger and curtailed it.
Scientists say that 'twas the flow of money coming in that made The Swamp, and once that flow was diverted as part of the construction of The Wall, the writing was on ‘the wall’, so to speak. Eventually The Swamp and all that is within it will die, they say.
Be that as it may, it raises no moral quandries in those safe outside The Wall, for it was determined that for the greater whole to survive, some species would have to be given up to extinction.