The novel coronavirus, soon known as COVID-19, began in a single province in China. No one thought much of it at the time. Just another flu virus going around. It spread fast, going global in a matter of months and quickly proving to be far more deadly than anyone had expected. Even those who survived infection were left permanently scarred in one way or another. Measures were put in place to slow the spread and mitigate the damage, but governments were cocky. They believed they could go back to normal far sooner than they should. Then the second wave hit. Then the third. They prioritized their economy over the lives of their people, and so it carried on.