Ashbreath

Ashbreath is a disorientating respiratory and cognitive condition brought on by ingesting or inhaling spoiled Anakyron Root. While the root is sacred and widely used in Centauric rituals across Tirandhyl, it is also volatile; when left to rot or exposed to direct sunlight during storage, its sap ferments into a sticky, spore-rich sludge known locally as "spirit-mire". Symptoms include dry coughing and shallow breathing, dilated pupils, auditory and visual hallucinations (often involving ancestral figures) and a trance-like state in which sufferers speak in metaphor, song, or incomprehensible rhymes. Traditionally, Ashbreath is seen as both a warning and an opportunity. Unintendd exposure is trated as a spiritual wound - the soul being pulled too close to The Veil without preparation. However deliberate induction is sometimes practised by centauric shamans or death-singers, who use rotten Anakyron Root in carefully measured doses to enter guided spirit-quests. Among everyday herders and root handlers, Ashbreath is a known occupational hazard. Apprentices are trained in proper storage, and most root houses are warded with breath-wards and shade-veils. The Sisters of the Light have treated cases of Ashbreath in both accidental and ritual contexts. Their approach blends herbal remedies, grounding techniques, and soft-lit confinement. While no fatalities are recorded, sufferes have been known to injure themsleves during unmedicated episodes. In folklore, someone with Ashbreath is said to be "riding too close the sky". Whether they come back clearer or cracked dependso n who's guiding the reins. Some clans see it as a gift; a chosen soul being whispered to by the ancestors. Others view it as a curse, believing too many journeys beyond The Veil fray the tether between breath and body. Either way, no one emerges unchanged.