Crystalrot

Crystalrot is caused by the inhalation or ingestion of gemstones or gemstone dust within the lower caves of Aversia. It is most common in the Deep Run, however is also known to infect the arcamite around leylines, or even the simplest of gemstones such as rubies, sapphires, ect. Not every single gemstone or mineral will houses the virus, however it is capable of spreading between veins of crystal or even ores depending on their nature. Due to this, miners are often found to contract the virus early on should they not take the necessary precautions to protect themselves. Crystalrot has a high infection and contagion rate. Most with the virus often wear masks to prevent it spreading to others, while those who hold the virus in the later stage need to fully cover themselves for the same reason. Crystalrot fundamentally weakens the host's shell from an early stage, causing the host's skin to be like glass, easily shattered. If one was to be afflicted with Crystalrot for long enough, they would note that their eyesight begins to fade, as the virus officially takes over the host, as it expands through the host’s body, effectively turning them into a living, breathing, and moving crystal.

Dwarves have the highest level of resistance to this infection due to their filtered lungs; Sylvan are generally unaffected.

Treatment

Crystalrot is not something that can be simply treated with magic or even divine influence. Instead, crystalrot must be removed mundanely, and surgically. Alchemy will aggravate the infection, causing it to rapidly spread, however some alchemists have found that inducing this rapid growth will spread the infection too thin to sustain itself within its host. Effectively killing the virus from the inside.

Spread

Crystalrot is highly contagious. This contagious nature is due to the crystals infection of the lungs, causing the victim to breathe out small crystal particles that freely drift from person to person. In later stages, the skin holds the same property, flaking into particles to cause a wider spread.

Symptoms

• First Sept (1 OOC day): The virus will take hold of the host, either by entering in the lungs, or ingestion. No true symptoms will present itself at this stage.

• Second Sept (2 OOC days): After (24 OOC hours) have passed, the infected will begin to cough and hack violently. This is the stage where the contagion becomes rather high, as crystal particles follow in wake of the infected’s breathing. Their body will slowly become more and more rigid in movement, as they grow lethargic overnight.

• First Mense (1 OOC week): Over the course of the mense, the infected will feel sharp pains in their chest and stomach, even their throat in the most severe cases. At the seventh sept, along with their skin beginning to flake, the infected will find their skin forming odd, crystal-like veined patterns. The flaking at this stage is not severe enough to pass on the virus.

• Second Mense (2 OOC weeks): If one was to hold the virus for two menses, they would find their skin now becoming punctured with deep purple and blood red crystals, spanning all across their body. Their skin at this stage is equally as contagious as their breath. The vision of the infected is slowly clouded, but not gone. These crystals have also actively barred the infected (should they be a mage, runecrafter, or feymarked) from casting any spells that exceed three mana. The infected is considered terminal and beyond curing at this rate.

• Third Mense (3 OOC weeks): Along with the prior symptoms, the infected at this stage has essentially become a living, moving crystal. Though the coughing will halt at this stage, effectively taking away the pain, this is due to the lack of the need to breathe. Their skin has lost all coloration, their body is extremely weak to blunt force and damage. The eyes of the infected are entirely made of crystal, appearing as a paler version of their natural eye color. Their vision has returned, however it would seem as if the infected was looking through a piece of shattered glass, making it difficult for them to have any hand-eye coordination. The infected holds heightened hearing, though they are sensitive to vibration. Their sense of smell and taste has disappeared, where their sense of touch is near numbed.

The World of Aethius • The Multiverse of Aethier