Fungal Cooties

Fungal Cooties is a loose term attributed to the commonly female-only condition of sudden bitterness and dramatic appetite they obtain from a fungal infection. Taken from the source of a dormant fungi (often dismissed more as a plant or flower that it appears like), it is spread wider by other females from gassy expulsions. A pandemic can happen fast, forcing males to flee their loved ones and close friends, and females rampaging to end the 'systemic status quo' of what they perceived to be a hyperbolic male threat. This condition can be very dangerous and devastating to a community.

Transmission & Vectors

Transmissible from spores, often visibly seen as 'pink clouds'. The contagious air works best on the host to be inhaled or from floating into the ears or mouth. Spreads most often from other infected people in a late enough stage to amass a large colony in their gut, and expel it frequently in belching, coughs, or hiccups. However an infection's source is also from a fungal 'plant' that grows, loosely sea anemone with closing and opening 'pedals'. Like an infectious person, it expels pink spores periodically across the air.

Causes

Manufactured mutational fungal plant resembling an anemone-like flower. Initially planted in two-three spots on Cauven by a disruptive zayme biologist, it has since shipped or moved infectious people across numerous planets and universes.

Symptoms

• Irritation towards males. This can vary at different levels, but often comes to terms with concepts and forms expressed loosely by fringe socio-political thinkers, such as concepts of a systemic patriarchy causing cascading issues with their life and customs. Its a common perception for an infected to believe their whole life and world view was mistreated by abusive males, and they must do whatever they can to go on the offensive, or even cause raw chaos to invite a new world order. A common terrible outcome is that females will aim to emasculate males, cut ties with any male relatives, or even find some method to rape or traumatize them. If males are content, the infected is not, even in irrational circumstances.
  
  
• Female 'empowerment'. Akin to the above, they feel invested in their interest in the name of the female sex and a new sense of order for themselves. This often leads to a similar thought to the above, or reinforces it, replacing masculine identity either with that of the female norms, or defying the old female norms in an attempt to bring out a new gender culture they feel is more justified than the patriarchy. In long-term developments, this can lead some cultural customs and norms to deadly extremes, such as ryclin self-consciously hosting selmzi to last as an 'uncompromised strong female' that values breeding asexual parasites above the risks of being with a male of their own kind.
  
  
• Gorging & Weight Gain. The infection slowly works towards spreading with sudden impulses to consume copious amounts of greasy and gassy foods. By the time enough lichen-like material has stuck to their digestive system to mass produce spores, they have eaten enough food to help a bloated sensation and belch the spores back up. This often psychologically ties in with the above condition, insisting they are rebelling against male standards or feeling indebted to their will and cravings to recklessly indulge. Over the course of their first 24 hours, most infected will develop a modestly round pot-belly at the very least, and often worse. For some species like zadran and Lionkin, more fatal issues with the heart or abdominal combustion can occur from giving into this symptom too hard.
  
  
• Pink Gas. The final core common stage of infection that often gets serious roughly one hour after effects. The fungal virus is bedded in enough, and they've been binging to support a lot of gassy expulsion of pink spore-clouds. Other females around them will often fall to infection from this condition.

Treatment

Uncertain pill functions obtained by questionable research, it has been replicated and distributed with effects of seizing and 'uprooting' the fungal growth rooted in a person once ingested or injected. Once working, the person will vomit a stream of dark gray or black gas that seems to be cleaning out the effects. Akin to the infection itself, anyone catching the stream and inhaling will be effected, and more slowly come to a cured conclusion. While this cures the spores, any ill effects left by the impact are there, including most memories. Even the most genuine misandrist hosts will find something they lament about the conditions onset by the virus, and others will have to undergo surgical assistance or heavy exercise to undo certain health problems that can arise from their state.
Short term immunity is had after this state, able to exhale off any spores and refuse another hosting for a short time. However the individual can become re-infected later on, and it is recommended in dire resources of a cure that a cured person leaves a community still infested. Even if infections don't return fast, there is even a danger to their more genuine psyche, forced to commune with and adapt to fungal cootie standards and people that can propagate unhealthy prejudice and poor reasoning.

Affected Groups

The dominant host is a matured female across many sapient races, especially within common bipedal anatomy functions. Essentially if they off-put recognizable feminine hormones of a wide variety, and have a respiratory system and stomach system, they are likely able to be effected. Species exempt from hosting the normal strain of fungal cooties includes k'siiva, zaymes, zeanites, and of course asexual races like mysiloids, etc. However a wide variety from ryclin, tigiren, rylcin, to tekkedan, and many more are all vulnerable.

History

Manufactured on Cauven by a lonely zayme biologist and her friends. She found it interesting that engaged males would cheat on their female partners if the female was agitated and resentful of them, and combined it with her research and pharmacy knowledge to create a potent drugging fungal material that could infect females and turn them against males across society. In theory and somewhat found in effect, males would find out zaymes were still safe and even alluring with open arms.
The virus initially spread to stray hikers, and was reported on as 'frenzied females' or 'female protestors' across minor media outlets. Initial hosts were a ryclin, numerous harpies, and a few women of likely vahamin descent. However it quickly spread and caused chaos, with a broadcasting system hijacked, a CEO of a wider network later infected, and The Feather-Belly Lounge slowly became infested full of crazed harpies and a few visitors that included the female-majority of a small business set dubbed The Drifters. Riots escalated in parts of nearby towns, a police standoff ended in defeat at the feather-belly, all while a suspicious 'social research project' was inviting males to stay with a zayme-run shelter.
New issues were still spreading more abroad. A zayme slipped one of their plants on board a resort starship cruiser, with deliberate effect that sent it spiraling out of control on board. Elsewhere, recently infected people were still in shape to attempt an escape to realms like Atlas, and Kyberus, and a suspicious escort of infested harpies started an outbreak among the closely associated labris trading route and their homeworld. While the spread and virus is still on the move, eventually the source was answered for from a chaotic affront. Strangely convenient pills then came out of the same lab, and a sudden disappearance from many key figures of the initial zayme project followed. Some suspect they went into hiding, while others rumor they were somehow pressured into a 'karmic' vengeful circumstance of being forcefully plumped up - which would trigger a vulnerability known across the surviving zayme strand that reduces their abstract forms into gelatinous syrup mutations, and barely maintain sentient thought. While ironic for their reduction of other females, this speculation remains to be seen as most zayme farms have quite obvious monstrous specimens that are hard to hide.

Type

Fungal

Origin

Engineered

Rarity

Uncommon