Hearts Fever

Causes

Heart's Core

A large crystalline orb is hidden within the heart of Hearts. To seek it out is to invoke the ire of the sprites who call the mountain home.

It is unclear for what purpose, but it had been a past rite for men to attempt to find, and simply bare witness to the orb, then find their way back home. Those who successfully returned wore coloured rings on their chest with no other common denomination among them, other than having found the mysterious orb.

Symptoms

The most unique symptom, and what classifies hearts fever as a painted disease, are the pink and pale blue rings that radiate from the center of the person's heart.

Lifelong breathlessness seems to be the main drawback to this beautification. It is an unpleasant sensation of uncomfortable, rapid or difficult breathing.

The first generations to have contracted the disease reported feeling puffed, short of breath or winded; with a tightness of the chest and pain while breathing. These feelings become lesser and lesser the symptoms make their way through their successive descendents. This includes the yellow skin pigmentation.

Treatment

There are some breathing control techniques that can help to reduce breathlessness:

• Relaxed, Deep Breathing: Breathe in gently through the nose and breathe out through the nose and mouth.
• Paced Breathing: Rhythmic breathing in conjuction with your steps at a speed you find comfortable.
• Controlled Breathing: This involves using your diaphragm and lower chest muscles to relax your upper chest and shoulder muscles.

Arrange every day items to ensure they are easy to reach. Different comfortable seating and standing positions are recommended when you feel breathless. Different positions suit different people:

• When standing up, lean from the hips with your forearms resting on something at a comfortable height.
• When standing or walking, put your hands on your hips or at your sides.
• When sitting, lean forward, rest your forearms on your knees on the arms of a chair or on a table.

Affected Groups

The Tinged themselves do not place any extra beauty standards on the yellowish pigments that occur naturally on most of their bodies.
In fact, greater desire is placed on the colour green as it is a permanent sign of the salt baths taken in the brine, while yellow is more a sign of the labour class who do not have the luxury of such training.

Cultural Reception

Painted Diseases

These are a category of disease that leave coloured markings on the victims, most of which are transferable to the later descendants of the infected. These people who are painted blue, yellow, white or otherwise patterned are considered exotic by some. Though most of them kill, those who survived are considered a either as a decorative slave commodity or desirable breeding stock.

Type

Neurological

Origin

Alien

Rarity

Extremely Rare