Emberblight

A powerful curse caused by the magical fires of the Ifrits. Anyone burned by this fire can suffer from emberblight. This curse slowly kills those affected over the course of a few days. The curse is quickly visible as small embers appear in the victim's hair, eyes, mouth, under their fingernails and toenails, and slowly burn away the flesh. The burn leaves only ashes and eventually burns the entire body.
The embers cannot be extinguished by water or cold. These only slow it down slightly, but the cold can ease the pain. Many victims will choose to commit suicide to escape the excruciating pain these embers cause.

Transmission

Emberblight is transmitted by the mystical fires of the Ifrits. Any creature that receives a deep enough burn from these fires will suffer this curse, but even a simple first-degree burn can transmit the emberblight. Normal fire does not cause this, but if normal fire comes into contact with these mystical fires, the emberblight will quickly spread to the entire fire, infecting it with the curse. emberblight is not transmitted between creatures, even if they come into direct contact with the embers.

Symptoms

Any creature cursed by emberblight will begin to show symptoms within hours of first contact. It usually begins with pain in the burn wound and then spreads to the eyes, mouth, and ligaments or other weak body parts. On a plant, it would first affect the leaves, root tips, and small twigs. Over a few days, the embers spread and turn the body to ash. Few survive more than a week.

Treatment

There is no known cure for Emberlight. Cold and water can ease the pain and slightly slow the glow, but will not stop the curse. A Magic-Suppression Array can suppress the effect while the person is inside the array, but will not stop it. Very powerful mages are able to break this curse and extinguish the embers.

Historical Outbreaks

One of the largest recorded outbreaks was during the Adirondack Forest Fires in 1908. The blaze killed more than fifty thousand dryads over a large area of the Adirondacks. It also killed several hundred humans and therians. These fires were caused by an Ifris summoned by a contracted wizard. This sorcerer was hired by a lumber magnate who wanted to get rid of a grove of dryads that were preventing his company from cutting down their grove. However, the sorcerer quickly lost control of the fires and in combination with other wildfires that were started during this time. The conditions were perfect for a massive wildfire, as it was a winter with little snowfall and a long drought in the spring.
This massive fire had a massive impact on both the supernatural and mundane worlds. The mundane world has implemented policies and preventative measures to reduce the chances of such fires. In the supernatural world, the Dryads began to organize more seriously, forming the Dryad Wilderness Federation of the Adirondack Mountains a few years after the disaster. Other affected supernatural settlements and communities have also taken protective measures.

Type

Demonic Curse

Affected Species

Any