Kikerosi's Disease

Madness and Despair

We tried sailing north of the Renflow, but Sailor's Grave lived up to its name. As our ship entered the strange clouds of murky brownish green gas, the members of the crew began to change. After three days we noticed that one of the sailors couldn't even remember his own name or that he had a wife and three children back home.
— Demetrios Kikerosi

Ever since the Treaty of Toffin, troublemakers and ambitious sailors have attempted to sail along the shores of the ruins of the Imperium of Qerthéllnaval, searching for survivors and the wealthy country's long-lost treasures. All who've sailed along those cursed shores have gone missing. All except for Demetrios Kikerosi, who in 1109 AA returned to tell the tale.

Cause

Area covered by the gas according to the Dé Aniés Labill Theory.
The large, seemingly neverending, cloud of murky gas that hovers over the sea, is the likely cause of the condition. According to Kikerosi, the cloud came from the mainland and moved east along with the wind.

There are several theories regarding the origin of the toxic cloud. The most widely-accepted theory claims that the fumes are coming from the ruins of Dé Aniés Labill. What's causing it and why it's giving people the condition has remained a mystery.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
I told the Captain to turn the ship around. He seemed confused, and now that I think about it, he probably didn't even know who I was or why we were there in the first place.
— Demetrios Kikerosi

 

Symptoms

Early Signs

If a person who's been near the gas starts forgetting important memories, appears confused, or seems different in terms of their personality, then there's a high probability that they've got Kikerosi's Disease. For some, the early signs never manifest. They may instead suffer the full effects of the disease suddenly overnight.

Utter Madness

After around six days the afflicted will snap. They will lose their humanity and turn into wild creatures with an insatiable desire to devour living flesh. If they are unable to find food, then they might resort to self-cannibalism. Some of the victims have committed suicide after losing their minds, but the cause of this has remained unclear.

As the situation escalated, I jumped overboard to escape a couple of them. Once I had regained my strength, I started going back south. On the way, I encountered more of them. The lost sailors who were foolish enough to sail into Sailor's Grave.
— Demetrios Kikerosi
Type
Chemical Compound
Origin
Natural
Rarity
Unique

The Escape

Demetrios Kikerosi had escaped when he saw the mainland in the distance through the gas. He jumped overboard and swam to shore. Once he had reached land, he rested for a few hours. After he had regained his strength, Kikerosi used the position of the sun to travel south. Once he was out of the gas, he foraged for food but found the land desolate.

For weeks he travelled malnourished until finally reaching the Renflow. A patrol from the Principality of Vell spotted him and helped Kikerosi cross the river. The local Lord then arrested and interrogated him until his physicians put him in quarantine.

Kikerosi's Resistance

Kikerosi, although resistant to the disease, eventually succumbed to its effects after staying in quarantine for over a month. According to the team of physicians who were observing him, he changed overnight.

The local Lord wanted to put him out of his misery, but the physicians insisted on continuing the observation. They claimed that Kikerosi was already dead and that the man in the cell who was gnawing on his own fingers and bashing his head against the wall was no longer human.

The observations continued for another two days. On the third day as one of the physicians went to check on him, he found the subject lying on the ground in a pool of blood. One of his eyes was horrendously injured and there was a massive open crack in his forehead and a splatter of blood on the wall.

After closely inspecting the body, they saw signs of Vitaemancism. This led to the theory that people with Vitaemancism are somewhat resistant to the effects of the disease, but without a cure, they will still die.


Cover image: Among the Sierra Nevada, California by Albert Bierstadt
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