Vein Fever
Also known as Blue Vein, Vein Fever is a horrible side effect that comes from drinking too many of The Alchemist's famous blue vials in a short period of time. Like the blue vials themselves, Vein Fever has a wide range of symptoms, and every case's combinations of symptoms appears to be unique. Only one thing stays consistent through all cases of Vein Fever: the victims' veins glow blue and shine through the skin.
Symptoms
Vein Fever's symptoms are hard to define, though there are a few constants - just bear in mind that there are exceptions to nearly all of these rules. Firstly, as mentioned earlier, the victims veins will glow blue. Usually they victim will also experience weakness in the body. Patients commonly report feeling chills, light headedness, and itchiness underneath the skin. It's also very common for people to feel very thirsty while sick with this condition. There are, however, some rarer symptoms that tend to be a touch more-- dramatic. For example, some victims break into violent outrages, trying to claw their way through anything that is put in front of them. Others hallucinate voices that convince them to do strange things to the people around them. Twitching and contorting are also common symptoms of Vein Fever. Generally, it just looks like the victim is being possessed. Every so often, a new case will pop up with an even more bizarre symptom showing. This can be anywhere, from suddenly speaking in a different language, to bubbles coming out of the patient's mouth whenever it opens. While terrifying in the moment, all of these make for great tavern stories. Luckily, most cases of Vein Fever only last about two to three days.History and Treatment
Very little is actually known about Vein Fever. The Alchemist's blue vials have only been available in Distotia for about a year, and already, Distotia has seen a wide variety of cases. It's been concluded that too much of the blue vial's liquid can cause Vein Fever - typically about three vials within 24 hours will do it. That being said, some more unfortunate souls have experienced Vein Fever after only one vial. The first cases were discovered the night of the vial's release. Even though The Alchemist warned everybody of the risk of sickness, people jumped at the opportunity to drink their potions. The blue vial is capable of assigning someone with a random power for a limited amount of time, and those fortunate enough to get enjoyable powers were the first to learn about the consequences of over-drinking. There were about three cases within the first night, then about ten the following week. Unfortunately, not much progress has been made in the way of treatment. All researchers know is that the illness is temporary and not contagious. Often times, patients who are experiencing harsh symptoms will be put in a low light room with a bed for a day or two. In even more extreme situations, the doors are locked in order to contain more violent symptoms. Every major hospital has at least one wing that functions more like a prison for violent illnesses like this, and others like lycanthropy.Case Stories:
Case #1: Robin
Robin had a lucky soul. Every time she traveled to Celesta, she seemed to win herself another grand prize. She got used to it, and wore it as a point of pride. So when blue vials were introduced to the general public during Selunus, she jumped at the opportunity to try her luck with them. Her power was incredible. Robin sprouted wings - granted, only for ten minutes after each flask, but still! How fitting! A Robin that could fly. It was such a beautiful night to fly too. The crystals of Celesta glowed like tiny fluorescent lights. She dived, taught herself tricks, and even tried to carry her friends. Every time her wings folded back in, she'd just drink another flask and wham! They returned. It was well worth the gold. After her fourth flask however, she had no strength left to fly. It felt as if her wings were losing feathers. She bent down to one knee and her vision blurred. Then her friends noticed: her eyes and veins were glowing blue! Breathless, Robin crawled along the floor, begging for another flask. "It'll give me more strength," she said, but her friends were too horrified. She fainted, and woke up the next morning in a tight room with two others who had glowing veins as well. They were in the hospital. These were the first cases of Vein Fever. Luckily, none of them experienced any violent symptoms, and after three days, they were back on their feet. Robin never took a blue vial again.Case #2: Wynonna
Wynonna's mother dropped her candle as she walked into Wynonna's room. The walls were covered in chalk and ink. Tally marks, morbid poems, and gruesome drawings sat in every single corner of the room, all in different handwriting. And at the center of the trashed room, surrounded by blank papers and toppled furniture, was Wynonna, covered in black chalk, and glowing a faint hue of blue. She was asleep, thank the gods. What had happened? Poor Wynonna was only seventeen. Her mother had decided to lock her in her room for sneaking into the potion cabinet. It was impossible for anybody to get in or out of the room, so why were there so many different handwritings on the walls? Wynonna wouldn't have been able to draw half of the things covering those walls. Unless, this had all come to her during an intense episode of Vein Fever. Sure enough, when Wynonna awoke, she cried to her mother. "Leave me alone! There's more work to do. I must satisfy the gods. They're commanding me," she said. Her mother glanced around the room. This was not the work of any sort of god. The writings were fierce and horrid, some of it written in different languages. After calling a linguist (as well as a doctor), they concluded that Wynonna had been hearing voices that commanded her to write poems in Abyssal. Even after her full recovery, Wynonna wasn't quite able to talk to her mother the same way from before the episode. Something about their relationship was broken that day, and her mother fears that she still has demons hiding inside of her.
Type
Magical
Origin
Engineered
Cycle
Short-term
Rarity
Rare
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