Spacespores
CW: Mild Graphic Imagery (Hover to See)
Lurking quietly in the depths of space are spacespores. These deadly bacteria can tolerate the harsh conditions of space, thriving in artificial environments such as spacecrafts and biospheres. Spacespores lay dormant until they wriggle their way into an artificial climate.
Spacespores only become lethal when introduced to water vapour in the atmosphere. In the dry emptiness of space the spores dehydrate, but in cultivated climates, particularly biospheres where water vapour keeps foliage surviving, the spores are able to spread.
This bacteria is known to manifest in damp regions of spacecrafts, especially around lavatories and washrooms. Spacespores are named as such due to their resemblance to the spores of fungi. These bacteria are in an entirely different domain of organisms, Bacteria.
Symptoms
When these spores attach themselves to an organism, typically a person, they immediately embed themselves into their outer layers, such as skin or scales. Spore infested regions will immediately feel itchy, infected unable to relieve the discomfort no matter what. The spores immediately cause a burning sensation that only grows with time. Simple pain-relieving medication can temporarily reduce symptoms.
The pathogen that causes spacespores will continue to multiply and form small, light-green fluffy balls on the infected individual. These balls are typically no larger than two to three centimetres in diameter, but can spread across the whole body.
Spacespores can be so pain-inducing that infected scratch or cut themselves to death upon trying to relieve the itching, request euthanasia, and there have even been reports of people exiting spacecrafts mid-space, a truly agonising death.
Sanitation
Thankfully, spacespore pathogens are easily killed with mid-level or above sanitation. Simply wiping down or sterilising any damp areas once every few days should manage to keep spacespores at bay. Posters are hung up in most space stations with instructions and advice on keeping one's spacecraft clean.
In actuality spacespores are not a common bacteria to be found. It is only when one's spacecraft is neglected that spacespores become a real issue.
Sanitise your Spacecrafts!
Spacespores grow in manky stanky corners of your spacecrafts. Are you manky and stanky? Didn't think so, so start cleaning up after yourself.
Oh, this sounds nasty *shudders*. It's like a nasty mix of shingles and psoriasis. Bleh.
Thank you! It's an awful thing :D