The Pegacorn Contagion

Deres' legacy doomed to extinction...
For thousands of years since Deres' day when he first bred the progeny of mighty Unor and the feather-winged pegasids, Pegacorns have been integral to Thangien society both as steeds, war mounts, and friends. Because the powers inerited through their divine unicorn ancestry allowed them to thwart attacks by Thunthen invaders, they proved an increasing threat to the Daggur Clan's plans for expansion and conquest. After the Battle of Banguk and the loss of his father to the pesky Ander Vai-Stel-Vethu, Mal Daggur decided he had enough of Thangien's feathery steeds and schemed in secret to snuff out the proud creatures once and for all. He stealthily seeded the atmosphere with a plague specially crafted by his most cunning geneticists, hoping the local Pegacorn population would die off completely. Thangiens believed it the work of Phitdaitiarona and prayed to their gods to save the beautiful creatures. Eyurodin, Lady of Flames and Goddess of the Forge, would not be thwarted by such a craven act and bent her divine skill to creating new bodies for the living spirits. Pegacorns live on as mechanical Pegasi, but as long as the contagion remains active on the planet, there is no hope of reintroducing the majestic hybrids.

Transmission & Vectors

How the contagion spreads remains a mystery to this day. It is strongly suspected to be airborne, but how it can remain viable after well over two years under the beating heat of the Twin Suns is unknown. There is suspicion there are hidden mechanisms planted throughout Kundain that regularly pump tiny amounts of the contagion into the air, but the roaming freelanders have not come across such devices. A virus would not survive the bitter cold of the Northern Ring nor the baking heat of the Basek du Rhakka.
Suspicion falls upon the Eastern Jungle and the Southern Salt, but the Jungle is still under interdict by authority of the Watch-Rider, forbidding exploration, and the Salt so unfathomably vast and confusing, explorers wouldn't know where to look. It does not seem to be transmitted via physical contact or bodily fluids. A small population of healthy Pegacorns remains in seclusion in a sealed environment beneath Mazzan, and periodically an older specimen is selected and brought outside as a test. Within hours, the specimen invariably falls ill and must be mechanically converted, sadly confirming the contagion remains active and viable.

Causes

Initially thought a curse levied by the Goddess of Wickedness, the contagion was actually introduced by the Thunthen under Mal Daggur's command. It seems most prevalent throughout Kundain.

Symptoms

Much like Chronic Wasting Disease encountered on the Oldworld, the contagion seems to first target motor control and balance before spreading into the muscle tissue. Loss of appetite is followed by aggresive atrophy, inflamed joints, loss of fur and feathers, and ultimately death.

Treatment

To date there remains no cure. Because of the Genesis Plague, any and all research into genetics has been permanently banned. Homeopathic treatments provided by the Traedeskaton and Mazzan failed to yield results other than prolonging the inevitable. Even the divine nature of their unicorn DNA is not enough to protect a Pegacorn from suffering. Mechanical conversion through Eyurodin's divine arts currently remains the only way to negate the deterioration caused by the contagion, and only the Lady of Flames knows the specifics behind the process.
With the arrival and induction of minor gods Janxilio, Goddess of Science, and Tanjanira, Goddess of Medicine, there is renewed hope since as gods they would be exempt from any bans regarding research into genetics.

Prognosis

Even though it has been a brief few years since the outbreak of the contagion, there is an increasing fear that by the time a cure is manufactured and distributed, the surviving Pegacorn population will have become too small and no longer genetically viable. If the species were to be recreated, it would require a unicorn of comparative singular strength and intelligence to Unor from thousands of years ago. It is doubtful that even a unicorn of such stature as he would still be alive, and to date no comparative specimens have been encountered in the wilds of Kundain or the garden of Tirmutua.

Sequela

Even though mechanical conversion protects them from death, Pegacorns have specific needs that must be satisfied lest they go mad. To that end, Eyurodin crafted their bodies to afford them all the abilities they knew in life such as eating, sleeping, and even scratching an itch.

Affected Groups

Neither pegasids nor unicorns seem affected by the contagion, leading many to believe it is keyed specifically to shared genetics between the two species. The disease does not seem to affect other non-equine species such as kirya, tree bears, gherfen, vitreelas, sttanavoseni, or Pei monkeys.

Prevention

The sealed environment beneath Mazzan has numerous safeguards and a closed air circulation system that is constantly purified through use of complex filters and ultraviolet sanitization. Multiple airlocks exist to ensure the contagion does not reach the paddock. As long as the contagion remains airborne, the population kept within will never see the Twin Suns again.

Epidemiology

Lonesteaders first noticed something amiss in the local herds near the Winding White and alerted Master Breeder Dar Dar Vanes, Norin. Instead of risking further contamination by bringing sickly Pegacorns directly to Mazzan, he dispatched attendants abroad to examine patients on site. When Pegacorns within the walls began falling ill, he realized the contagion was airborne and immediately ordered the breeding habitat beneath the complex converted into a sealed environment to house healthy specimens. Because symptoms appeared immediately, they were able to sequester a bare dozen pegacorns. Reports started first in the Lonesteads before moving inward into the city proper. Wild Pegacorns out on Kundain had no chance for treatment.

History

Events of Aftermath

Chi Chi Lina, Danae's stasis crash lands literally in the team's backyard in Ch. 5 "Pegasus' Torment. After some hiccups with communication, she manages to convey what happened to the Pegacorn and her mission to find Pegasus. In Ch. 11 "Eurbasadur" it is revealed that the contagion outbreak occurred a mere two years prior to her arrival, but that by the time she returned to Thanged, most of the Pegacorns had been saved via mechanical conversion.
Omitted Content

There was a scene in the original draft "Trip to Thanged" where Yulie and Tanya are shown the sealed paddock containing the last healthy Pegacorns. Yulie laments that they must remain locked away for their own safety and that they will never be able to roam free.

"They...they're also...warriors...and they were friends with...these creatures?"

"Pegacorn," The woman said and tapped the drawing of the creature and a person offering food to it in a gesture of friendship.

"They were their mounts in battle...and friends until death..." The drawings showed a person riding the "Pegacorn" into battle. "Then something happened...the creatures grew sick," she said as she studied the drawing of a Pegacorn kneeling, head thrown back, mouth open in screams of agony, and hard black bolts radiating from its body. "A disease, a plague began wiping them out, one by one...They would have died...but the people...wanted to save them. None of their medicines worked,

"They wouldn't give up. They...created new bodies?...for the creatures' souls to inhabit, so they would continue to live, and their friendship with the people would endure..." Mia's eyes widened when she saw the next frame. "Something interfered..." Mia's brow furrowed when she saw the drawing of a large creature with thick claws and a shell full of spikes on its back.

— Aftermath Ch. 5

PegacornContagion.jpg

Pegacorn Suffering by Mardrena

Made with Realistic Paint Studio

Events of Spacequake

In Ch. 11 "Challenge of Roth", new gods are introduced and offered positions in the pantheon as minor gods. Their combined expertise may bring new hope to saving the species, but their divine labors have only just begun.

Cultural Reception

Thangiens had gotten used to facing the Thunthen out on the battlefield with the Dragon-men's bluster being driven back each time. They never imagined they would stoop to such a foul tactic and initially blamed the Empress of Night, who has long schemed against the people. Only after Mal Daggur's attack on the newly-converted Pegasus and the facilitated outbreak of Weeping Death did the people realize the true extent of Mal Daggur's meddling.

"Whether some malice of Phitdaitiarona, or some wicked treachery of the Thunthen, the Pegacorn fell ill." Danae turned her gaze downward, remembering seeing many of the beautiful creatures, some of which she had known since birth, wasting away from the incurable agony. "We of Thanged do not fear death, but seeing the Pegacorn suffer wounded us far worse than any blade. Our Queens would not allow such proud creatures to die such painful deaths, and neither would we."

— Aftermath Ch. 5

Skybolt Sunhammer, Original Form by Mardrena

Type

Genetic

Origin

Engineered

Cycle

Chronic, Acquired

Rarity

Common

"You must keep in mind that the Pegasi are not merely machines, but living creatures bound within bodies of metal. If we did not allow them such a simple luxury as eating, they would have died from madness rather than the disease which destroyed their Pegacorn bodies."-Chi Chi Lina, Danae

— Aftermath Ch.11

Unicorn Wall Sigil by Mardrena