Agalin

Deep within the mountains dividing the east from the west, spores had been trapped since before the Silent Age. Quietly sleeping and biding their time in the dark pores of the earth, the Year of Tremors finally brought them to the surface of the earth on the back of a lost miner trapped within a long lost cavern.

Agalin is a deadly fungal infection caused by the spores they're named after. Due to its surfacing in the busy trade region of southern Nalidin, one infection quickly turned to an epidemic impacting most of the continent and costing the lives of millions. Only the northern continent, being isolated in comparison to the others, was spared from the withering sickness.

Symptoms and Timeline

Day One: agalin spores enter their new host, usually through nose or mouth. After entrance, they seek to attach themselves within the lungs and the respiratory tract. There, the microscopic spores pierce the inner lining with narrow, vine-like roots through which they leech nutrients from the host's body. Symptoms may range from nothing to a mild cough caused by irritation from the spores.

Days 2-5: the spores have taken root, feeding off of nutrients in the host's blood and causing regular symptoms of coughing and tiredness. Nearby humans and animals may be infected.

Days 6-10: Slow spread of a netwok built up by the spores. Paleness, bloody cough, headaches and nausea accompany anemia, endless hunger and symptoms of malnutrition.

Days 11-20: Agalin spores have taken over much of their host. Black, fungal web may appear under the skin as well as within the mouth, nose, ears, etc. Paralysis has robbed the host of most of their physical abilities, making them bedbound as the spores consume their host alive. Death usually follows within the next week.

Afterward: Corpses infected with agalin spores are dangerous to any nearby human and animal. In dry weather, new spores may rise akin to a cloud from the dead and be spread through wind. Otherwise any contact with the "marble-skinned" dead may result in an infection.

Pronunciation: /ˌagaˈlin/
Alternative names: the Withering Sickness, Marbleskin

Transmission: ingestion of spores