The Fading Curse

There are two modes of contracting the horrific curse known as "Fading," though the Angelic strain was eradicated in the 30th era by Lord Judicator.   1: Overuse of a "Talisman of Rebirth"   2: Being fully Drained by an Angel or Wraith.

This deadly curse is caused when the soul is completely drained of its Light or Darkness.

The infected's body slowly becomes more and more ethereal before completely fading. The appearance of this ethereal state depends on which strain of the curse they have contracted. The infected will also no longer need to eat or sleep, but they will become highly sensitive to whichever element they are lacking. Unfortunately for them, they will yearn for the element that they are sensitive to. Exposure to large amounts of light for Wraiths or darkness for Angels will cause extreme pain and accelerate the rate of the body's degradation.

The infected can slow their degradation and even restore their body to a certain extent by feeding off of others, but the cure is almost impossible to obtain. The Elemental Lords, Celestial and Oblivion are the only two beings who can absolve this curse.

This curse first grants the infected a pseudo state of immortality, but drains the soul to nothing and destroys it. This is one of the only ways to destroy a soul.

This curse will actually cure the infected of all other ailments and doesn't leave any form of residue.

No human is immune.

The Veil is imbued with an advanced form of the Wraith strain of the curse. The Forsaken are also carriers of the curse, but cannot be found wandering the wild. The only other carriers are the infected themselves.

The only method of prevention that works indefinitely is extermination. The infected can be destroyed, which may be necessary if no cure can be found.

Adventurers are the most likely to contract this condition, as most others have no use for talismans of rebirth. The curse is incredibly rare outside of the Shadowlands.

The Angel incident occurred in the twelfth era, when the curses were still new. The Archdeacon of the Truthseeker order discovered a spell to drain the Shadow from human souls and so purify them. This resulted in the chosen few gaining angelic appearance and apparent immortality. By the time they discovered the truth, it was too late. The entire order was destroyed by the Moonlit Watch, who discovered this horror and joined forces with the Phoenix Knights to destroy the tainted Wizards. The Order was re-founded at the start of the thirteenth era. There was a small resurgence at the beginning of the thirtieth era, but the Elemental of Fire, Lord Judicator, put them down with characteristically brutal efficiency. It is believed that the Wraith strain was created by the Chaos Taint

Wraiths are usually hunted and killed on sight, while Angels are given more chance to find a cure.