Keffir's Rot (Ke fear)

A plague of the Sormok, Keffir's Rot afflicts those who brush against the Keffiri plant found along the banks of the Tordor where it flows out of the mountains without thick clothing. The fungal spores of the plant hook into flesh; injecting a mild numbing toxin. If not removed quickly, the fungus slowly works it's way deeper into flesh. Once buried, it begins the Rot.

Transmission & Vectors

Contact through the Keffiri Plant

Symptoms

Once the Rot begins, swelling at the site of infection will begin within a day; becoming increasingly painful. Left untreated, fungal spores pass through the bloodstream and continuing to cause inflammation and further swelling. It often takes only a few days to infect an entire person. Weakness is common. Flesh takes on a squishy watery consistency and it isn't uncommon for digits to begin to blacken and fall out. Triangular fronds piercing through skin is common in late stages.

Eyes often take on a greenish hue in the whites. Vision often blurs. Disorientation follows swiftly. A desire to be near water becomes almost overwhelming.

Death can overtake the infected after as little a week or as long as three weeks; after which a new Keffiri Plant will burst forth from the corpse.

Treatment

Dehydration is the most effective method of combating the rot. Without moisture, the fungal spores quickly die. This has clear and dangerous repercussions for the host though. Most will not survive such treatment. More effective are the elixirs of the Sun priests in the city of Ssaras, if one can find one in time.

Prognosis

Stage 1: Swelling of contacted skin. Can be confused with a particularly reactive insect bite at this point. Those familiar will know to check for an off-putting minty smell emanating from the affected area.
Stage 2: Discoloration and spread swelling. Inflammation of joints and muscles. General weakness. A green cast to the whites of eyes.
Stage 3: The blackening and possible loss of digits and an overwhelming desire to be near water. Squishy, watery flesh is common. Blurry vision and disorientation.
  Stage 4: Fronds poke through the skin. Death is almost certain.

Hosts & Carriers

The frogmen of Sormok are seemingly immune to the effects of the Rot; often wrapping their weapons in the plant in order to add an extra dose of misery to those that escape their hunts.

Stranger still are those who achieve a symbiosis with the Rot; becoming it's priests.

Prevention

Thick clothing often impedes the spores which will dry out and die within a few hours once away from the main body of the Keffiri Plant.

Cultural Reception

Those who leave the Sormok with visible signs of the Rot are often ostracized. At best, they are kept from liquids and directed towards Sun priests who may or may not help the infected on the priest's whim. The smallest of settlements will often force the victim into a pit where they will be set alight; lest the noxious plant burst forth.

Type

Fungal

Rarity

Rare