Echo Bite

Echo Bite occurs when an Echo sits in a human's shadow and feeds on their energy. They can move through shadows with each, so "spreading" is merely determined by who the Echo targets.

Early-stage symptoms include the feeling of being followed, mild fatigue, increased appetite, and a low mood.   Mid-stage symptoms include paranoia, exhaustion, complete loss of appetite, soreness, depression, anxiety, and extreme drowsiness.   Late-stage symptoms include blacking out, a catatonic state, visual and auditory hallucinations of the Echo's memories, extreme paranoia, extreme weakness, and all-over pain.

The only treatment to get rid of Echo Bite is to make sure the human is not still being feasted on by an Echo, and then to get as much sleep and non-stressful rest as possible. Sometimes therapy can be required for some late-stage symptoms, as it's common to develop faint auditory hallucinations, paranoia, and fatigue at this point, sometimes that can last for the rest of the human's life.

A human who's been chosen to be consumed by an Echo will begin feeling symptoms slowly. The first symptom to occur is usually a low mood and slightly increased appetite, followed by slowly worsening fatigue and the feeling that they are being followed. This is the early stage, and can last from several hours to three days. Echoes that continue eating after the full early-stage symptoms begin showing are often starving, or planning on possessing the human entirely. Recovery at this point is quite easy; one only needs to rest or nap for a few hours and they are often recharged and back to normal, though they might still have an increased appetite for the rest of the day.   In the middle stage, the low mood and the feeling of someone following them turns into full on depression, anxiety, and paranoia. At this point victims are usually averse to eating and only want to sleep, as they are suffering from extreme exhaustion and all-over soreness. This middle stage can last up to several hours, and recovery from this point can take a few days of resting and a stress-free environment before the paranoia, depression, and anxiety begin to fade. If the victim already suffers from one of these conditions, an Echo Bite of this stage can make them permanently worsened. Echoes that continue to eat past this point are seeking to possess the human they are feasting from.   The late-stage is the beginning of Echo possession. The victim suffers from long black-outs and states of catatonia where they are unresponsive to most stimuli. Victims begin experiencing extreme paranoia, to the point they may mistrust people they are very close to. They begin to have visual and auditory hallucinations of the feeding Echo's own memories, and can suffer from suicidal thoughts and attempts, as well as panic attacks. Severe exhaustion often consumes them at this point and they are unable to move much when they are conscious and aware enough to do so. Soreness becomes a deep, all-over pain. This stage lasts up to two or three hours. Recovery from this stage is incredibly difficult, as the Echo has begun to integrate itself into the human's body and push the human's soul out. It takes a powerful mage to get rid of an Echo at this point, and a very skilled one to treat the Echo Bite. It's not uncommon for humans that survive past this point to develop paranoia, depression, anxiety, faint auditory or visual hallucinations, or PTSD from the experience.   Past this point, if the Echo has not been removed, the victim will fall unconscious and become unresponsive. They will awaken in an hour, cough up their soul, and the Echo will now have successfully possessed the body. At this point, a door to exit the Wildes appears, and though Echoes have a choice whether to open it or not, they always do eventually.

Late-stage Echo Bite can leave victims with minor paranoia, depression, anxiety, and fatigue. Very rarely they may continue experiencing faint auditory or even visual hallucinations, though auditory is much more common. Victims of Echo Bite, even if they recover quickly, may be at more of a risk for conditions such as paranoia, depression, OCD, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts and behaviors.

Humans of all ages, body types, genders, etc. are targeted by Echoes, though humans that are in the best physical shape, the healthiest, and around the ages of 20-35 are more desirable targets.

Echoes cannot touch direct sunlight and can only travel through touching shadows, so the best form of prevention is to keep your own shadow in the sunlight at all times, not touching any other. However, this is incredibly difficult to live this way, especially in the Wildes where most of it is overgrown and sunlight barely filters through. Preventions can be bought from Mages of any sort in the form of protection charms. More rarely, a human can be marked by a stronger cryptid, which will often frighten Echoes away from that human.

Many species in the Wildes are often disgusted by Echoes feeding on humans, as Echoes are considered parasitic pests and a waste of space. Most entities will be disappointed and disgusted upon finding a human with Echo Bite, much with the same way one might regard milk that's been found entirely solid. If the entity wants to use the human for something, they will often rid of the human of the Echo and wait for them to recover from Echo Bite before doing so.