Oortic Poisoning

Sufferers can never again know rest. The oort creeps into your being, settles in under your nails, deep in your guts, and then it dominates your dreams. A waking coma, where the man is dead but the body keeps moving.

Oortic poisoning was a dormant disease, a rare case brought on by dangerous antiques and especially unlucky meteor strikes, until the Oortite rush brought it back in full swing. It has gone from an obscure illness mostly found in the margins of history books, to a specialized field of medicine in the Outer World.
It is an all consuming disease once it sets in, making its sufferers pale and pained, and it tortures them with nightmares and visions until they lose any sense of self. With a better understanding of the Oorts potential effect on the body and mind, it lends a new context to the ancient oortic cults of yore. Who among them were religious fanatics, and who were ill? What was the real difference?

Progression

Stage 1

The immediate effects of oortic poisoning are nausea, fevers and aches as the body attempts to fight off the poisoning. In the throes of this battle, many sufferers report vivid dreams and poor sleep. Those who stay awake speak of light sensitivity and feeling unmoored.

Symptoms

Nausea

Fever

Light Sensitivity

Nightmares

Vertigo

Treatment

Rest can be enough to help the body defeat the poisoning in its early stages. At the specialized care facilities cell culture treatments assist the body in creating immunocytes, and diurectics help the body pass the poisoning.

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Stage 2

Should the poisoning progress, or not be caught in its earlier stage, physical changes will emerge. Sufferers of oortic poisoning become pallid, and their skin turns grey and brittle. Many suffer from sores in their nailbeds or around orifices, and bruise easily.
By this point all sufferers have experienced nightmares, and some may seek to avoid sleeping. Many report waking nightmares, hallucinations, and visions. Many report seeing pale figures in the distance.

Symptoms

Pale and brittle skin

Sores

Hallucinations

Treatment

Chelation therapy may be able to bind the oortic materials and remove it from the body even at this advanced stage, but comes with risks of its own.

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Stage 3

When the blood blackens, Oortic poisoning can no longer be treated. At this stage, many suffer severe amnesia. It is common for them to no longer see themselves as individuals, and instead describe themselves as part of a larger celestial body. Sufferers at this stage often seek out oortic sources, and may even try to poison people around them to bring them into the fold.

Symptoms

Black blood

Amnesia, loss of self

Pilgrimages

Treatment

There is no treatment at this stage. The Far Star Temple offers solace and a home to sufferers, a hospice under cover as a cult.

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Risk Factors

Exposure to Oortic materials
Practicioner of Mysticism
Poor Physical Health

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Astrum Lavé, poisoned by his collection of knives, claimed he could see the stars through any amount of cloud coverage, and even those on the other side of the planet.
His claims were put to the test on several occasions, but never with any real scientific methodology.

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Related Articles

Outer Space
Locations Asteroid Belt ( The Collision Course ) · Oort Cloud Species Deep Space Leviathan · Orbitross · Astroplankton Materials Astrallite · Oortite Technology Crystal Technology · Super Wide Access Network · Spacecraft ( Dragonfly Carrier ) Society Traditions ( Dumplings in Space ) · Organizations ( Sentinel ) · Conditions ( Deep Space Syndrome · Oortic Poisoning )

Symptoms

Visions, pallor, blackened blood

Cause

Exposure to Oortite or other oortic materials

Treatment

Supportive care, chelation therapy