Elderpurge

Eko woke in the night to the sound of grunting. He looked around, letting his eyes adjust to the darkness. There was a figure in the corner. It was crying with pain. Eko got up and ran over. He put his hands on the figure's shoulder. It was wet. A firefly went past his hand, showing its colour. It wasn't water. Blood. The figure was still. That was when he knew. Elderpurge had taken father Tsottekh

The Elderpurge is the final life stage of orcs. It is a natural biological process that lasts for 1-2 days and results in a bloody death.

Causes

Elderpurge is caused by the complete simultaneous necrosis of the cells of orcs. It occurs after around 50 years of age, give or take a few months. It is also possible to artificially induce it with certain substances, which is used as a terrifying method of execution in Syndal.

Symptoms

Elderpurge manifests itself through constant bleeding, wounds appearing outside and inside of the body as cells slowly die. Muscles waste away, bones disintegrate, and neurons crumple. The body destroys itself remarkably quickly, death occurring to as long as two days to as little as five hours.

Prognosis

There is no treatment for Elderpurge. All will die a few days after contracting it.

Affected Groups

All orcs contract Elderpurge eventually. However, some clans tend to have it earlier than others, ranging from around 45 to 60 years of age.

Cultural Reception

Elderpurge is deeply engrained within orcish culture, a more bloody equivalent to death by old age.

Type

Physiological

Origin

Natural

Rarity

Common

Affected Species

• Orcs

The life stages of orcs aren't quite the same as humans. When they die, they go out... interestingly. None can escape the Elderpurge