The Blood Plague

The end of the classical bronze age of Taurien and Damamalian cultures followed one another closely and spread across the whole of the Kuan inner seas region. A multitude of afflictions shattering each society one by one and plunging almost all into the troubled Age of Shadows from roughly T: 3800 to 5010. It is generally held that the first catastrophe was the rise of the unliving Deadlords and the collapse of Damamalia. The Taurien States accepted fleeing survivors and refugees, as did human settlements to the west and north. But Deadlord servants crept in as well, taking captive or killing the Titans where they sought shelter. Then came the Blood Plague that swept over the Taurien Republics and all lands with equiform species. Humans suffered the loss of almost all horses in the central region east of the Inner Sea. They believed the plague to have been introduced by Centaur traders and settlers that established a millennia long prejudice that lingers on the eastern shores of the inner sea to this day.
The plague devastated the Republics and cut the Centaurs population in half within a month. Cities were abandoned and trade collapsed. In some places the Damamalian refugees were blamed. In others the presence of Deadlords was cited as bringing the plague. Humans fled while the Minotaur brought their skills to battle the plague, spirits and maintain order. Bahku largely fled and returned to traditional tribal lives, fearing the plague generally but seeing the unnatural bleeding as unclean and corrupting. The Moon People Excellent and Splendid offered aid but found no cures and blamed the plague on the evil god Khizech.

Transmission & Vectors

Minotaur warriors and spiritualists claimed the cause was malign Blood Spirits. Certainly the plague signs were similar to Blood Magic in more advanced stages. How it was spread: by curses, insect bites or other opportunities for spirits to enter or cast spells upon the victims was unknown for months. Likewise it is unknown if it was created by Kwee* Night Path which is a corrupted and destructive reflection of Centaur Honor and Minotaur Glory Path, corrupted individuals or Bloodmages. Blood spirits themselves may have been summoned by the bleeding caused by the plague, thereby confusing causes and consequences. Some conjectured that it was brought by the refugee Titans of Damamalia or was created by the Deadlords of Damamilia to destroy the old kingdom's main rivals. The exact source remains a mystery.

Symptoms

The first stages were similar to many illnesses. Fever and dizziness. Nausea. Victims developed bruises. Vomiting, frequently with blood or bloody urine or diarrhea. By day 3-5 it was observed that wounds did not heal without magical aid. Within days bleeding from nose, eyes, ears rectum and privates developed. Fom this point most afflicted died within a day or two. As many as 75% of the population was lost. Beyond this, the amount of blood present in towns and cities summoned Blood Spirits and gave rise to large numbers of Blood Mages. In the Taurien lands Minotaurs vigilantly and gloriously battled the spirits and the corrupted Blood Mages. In human lands Blood Mages became a wide spread threat.

Treatment

Healing reduced bleeding and helped to heal wounds. However, it was ineffective in curing diseases. Exorcism or spirit destruction failed to resolve the threat and Blood Spirits mutiplied with the blood lost by victims. Rituals to dispel curses successfully broke the plague's grip and allowed other healing methods to cure the afflicted. It was also discovered that the curse was spread by touch and remained dormant on touched items, or nonequine-type species until fresh victims encountered them.
These discoveries allowed the control of the plague and eventual resolution. It also fixed the theory that the plague had been sent by some power as a weapon specifically against the Centaurs.

Affected Groups

The Blood Plague struck Centaurs primarily, horses and to a lesser degree hippogriffs and other equid type creatures.  It was devastating to the Taurien republics and human war and trade that relied on horses for transport and cavalry in their militaries.