The Fadeplague

Nature: The Fadeplague is a rare, devastating virus that attacks both physical and energetic systems, causing a gradual "fading" of energy and vitality in those infected. Practitioners and regular individuals alike can contract Fadeplague, but it’s particularly severe in practitioners, as it drains energy directly from their Lines. The disease spreads subtly, often going unnoticed until its effects become severe, making it both feared and difficult to contain.

Symptoms and Progression

1. Energy Drain:
2. In its early stages, the Fadeplague drains small amounts of energy from the Lines, leading to fatigue, reduced Resonance Capacity, and weakened abilities in Threads.
3. Practitioners experience sporadic “energy flickers,” where their powers briefly vanish, leading to moments of intense disorientation and vulnerability.
4. Vitality Loss:
5. As the infection progresses, the virus begins leeching life force from the host, causing physical weakness, rapid aging in some cases, and deterioration of mental stability.
6. Infected individuals experience bouts of memory loss, confusion, and even hallucinations, leading them to appear as though they are “fading” from reality.
7. The Fading:
8. In advanced stages, the virus fully consumes the Lines, permanently severing the practitioner’s connection to Energetics and resulting in a condition known as “The Fading.”
9. In this state, the infected lose all abilities, and physical symptoms intensify, often resulting in death. Those who survive The Fading emerge as “Fades”—individuals permanently cut off from Energetics, forever weakened.

Transmission

• Energetic Contact: Fadeplague spreads primarily through energetic contact, making it highly contagious in combat or training scenarios where energy flows are actively exchanged.
• Contaminated Environments: Infected Echo Points and sanctuaries can act as hotspots, with the virus lingering in the air, affecting any who pass through.

Countermeasures and Treatment

1. Energy Purification Rites:
2. Only early-stage Fadeplague infections can be managed through purification rites conducted in Core Sanctuaries. These involve energy purges to cleanse the virus from the Lines, though the process is risky and painful.
3. Core Crystal Stabilization:
4. Practitioners can wear purified Core Crystals to slow the virus’s progression by stabilizing their Lines. However, crystals require frequent purification, as they quickly become contaminated when exposed to the virus.
5. Isolation Chambers:
6. Special chambers within the Core Sanctuaries are used to quarantine infected individuals. These chambers emit low levels of purified energy to contain and weaken the virus.

Long-Term Effects

Those who survive the Fadeplague without reaching The Fading are often left with severely weakened Lines, experiencing permanent reduction in Resonance Capacity. Surviving practitioners are known as “Touched by the Fade,” seen as marked by the disease, and often need to use energy stabilization artifacts for life. In rare cases, Fades experience lingering psychological effects, including disconnection from reality, paranoia, and energy hallucinations.

Religious Interpretation

The Order sees the Fadeplague as a test of humility and balance, often interpreted as a warning from the Core to practice restraint in Energetics. Many followers believe that the virus originates from disturbances within the Core itself, due to disrespectful or excessive energy use. Some followers view those touched by the Fadeplague as having been "reminded" of their human limits, marking them as both tragic figures and vessels of divine instruction.