Wolf Fever

A disease that the Northern Forest Elves strongly associate with the Werewolf immigrants.

Transmission & Vectors

It can be caught from being close to infected people, but also from sharing objects like cookware, clothing, or blankets. In general, everything that was touched by an infected person should be handled carefully.

Symptoms

In the early stages, the affected person will experience nausea and a loss of appetite, along with dry skin and dizziness. After one or two days, they will suffer from a high body temperature, be prone to throwing up, and spend a lot of time sleeping uneasily.

Treatment

The key to survival is keeping the patient from starving or drying out. A preferred method is to feed them soups rich in vegetables and protein. Certain plants, such as Seru'kaul, are also known to reduce the nausea.
The dry skin is likely to crack open, and if those tiny wounds are not cared for properly, they may end up festering and accelerating the patient's demise. The fever itself can be eased by wrapping the head and limbs in fabric that was drenched in cold water.

Prognosis

Patients will become weaker with every day as their body fails to keep food or drink inside. If they survive the first week, the symptoms will slowly start to fade, but reaching that point is difficult if they don't have access to proper care.

Sequela

Survivors generally need several months to return to their full health, and they will continue to suffer from digestive problems for some time. The damage to their skin can leave scar tissue if it was not treated properly.

Prevention

The best known way to prevent spreading is via Air or Water magic. Both help to keep the disease-laden environment separate from that of the healthy people. For obvious reasons, this approach is only available to the Elven population, but not to the Werewolves who are naturally unable to manipulate these Elements.
Werewolves typically limit their contact to infected people via mundane means. They avoid going near them, and caregivers protect themselves by wearing gloves and tying pieces of fabric around their lower face. Any object that is likely to carry the disease is cleaned as thoroughly as possible.
Nowadays, general education also stresses the importance of washing fruit and vegetables or handling raw meat with care. It has been observed that the disease is less common among people who eat pickled, smoked, or very spicy food. However, scholars are still arguing whether these methods actually prevent it from spreading or simply co-occur with a wealthier living standard.
People who survive Wolf Fever are unlikely to catch the disease again, and if they do, their symptoms are typically less severe. This acquired immunity is common among medical practitioners or family members who took care of affected people.

History

Social Divide

The first recorded outbreak happened in late 1274. Over the course of several months, the epidemic spread across the northern half of Vin'alor and wiped out large portions of the workforce. As a consequence, the prices for food or everyday services increased rapidly, making them even less accessible to the poor and causing former middle-class citizens to fall into poverty themselves.
Not only the divide between the rich and the poor grew during that time. Among the first to fall sick were the Werewolf immigrants from Norithana, who were typically workers with low income and little access to healthcare. Many Elves were quick to blame them for the epidemic and use it as justification to avoid interacting with them. Hence, the name "Wolf Fever" was born.

Slavery

Many larger cities began to rely on slavery in order to solve the labor shortage. Surrounding villages were systematically raided, and their able-bodied inhabitants were forced to work for nothing more than limited food and a roof over their head. On the flipside, this was often an improvement over their present living conditions. Several historical documents mention people that voluntarily sold themselves and their families into servitude, seeing it as their only way to survive.

In recent years

Several more epidemics followed in the decade afterwards. Overall, sanitary conditions improved with every wave as people learned more about the disease. Medical practicioners gained valuable insights, and people began recommending home remedies to their friends and neighbors.
Today, outbreaks are usually limited to the poorest districts of a settlement. However, since the mortality rate remains fairly high, they are still taken seriously and the authorities err on the side of caution.
Trouble in Ter'enur

This caution also applies to false alarms. One example occurred in the town of Ter'enur in 1376, when most students and teachers of a primary school started suffering from nausea and dry skin. The neighborhood was immediately placed under strict quarantine.
However, none of the affected people developed the characteristic fever, and further investigations revealed an alternative explanation. As it turned out, large amounts of Virbu'kryn roots and Drog'mor leaves had been dropped into the school's well - two plants known to cause very similar symptoms after consumption.
There was not enough evidence to determine the perpetrator, but many locals suspected a Wolfblood boy who attended that same school.

"Well... that chant was getting old."

— Lex remembering his school days

Elvish Name

Vol'fibir

Wolfish Name

Mek svanka
(literally, "dirt weakness")

Type

Viral

Origin

Natural

Cycle

Short-term

Rarity

Uncommon

by Kathrin Janowski

by Kathrin Janowski

"The breath or juices of the sick must not mix with those of the healthy."

— common advice for caregivers

by Kathrin Janowski

Do not play with the wolf pups,
they will be your demise.
They make you loose your supper
and later on your life.

First you will stumble, then you'll burn,
tear open will your skin.
You'll melt away in merely days -
so keep to your own kin.

— a popular rhyme
taught to Elven children