The Grey Death

At the turn of the century, peace reigned across the Continent, the first time in living memory. Monsters still roamed the land and tensions remained as always, but there was no war, no major division of the land, no crusade against one race or the other. Empress Cirilla of Nilfgaard had achieved what no one else had in centuries and brought harmony and prosperity to the land.

Ciri herself had been they very picture of health and strength throughout her reign, whether thanks to her Elder Blood or her own will was not to say. However, in her later years, a chronic cough began to develop in her, one which not even the foremost physicians of the Continent could explain. Nevertheless, it affected her little as she went about her duties as normal, but became more severe over time, to the point where one night years later and well into her middle age, in a fit of coughing she expelled her own blood. She was rushed to her her bed where her symptoms began to quickly worsen, but with little that could be done for her. Her affliction was like none ever seen, and any conventional methods of treating it failed time and time again.

Nilfgaard began preparations for her replacement and successor should it come to that, yet while her condition worsened, she clung to life through sheer will and was adamant that whatever her affliction, she would not abandon her people and her duties while she yet had breath in her body. It was thought the worst of the matter until dire news reached the ears of Nilfgaard's seniority; the illness had seemingly spread among the populace. More and more cases were reported every day, with a rising number of fatalities of those claimed by it. And even worse and unheard of, reports came that it was not just ordinary citizens who were suffering, but also Mages and even Witchers, who were supposedly immune to disease.

An Epidemic was called across the Continent as the mystery illness tore through the land, striking its victims at random with no pattern, not seeming to work by contagion or association. Dubbed 'The Grey Death' due to the pale complexion it caused in those who fell to it, it began to overtake the casualties from the recent Catriona Plague, causing many to believe that it was some form of Divine punishment and was being spread by non-humans and Mages alike, threatening to break the peace across the land that Ciri had worked so hard to attain. Medical professionals were still baffled by the cause and nothing subjective was concluded of it, leaving hope in the hands of Mages, those who were once again becoming feared and despised.....

## Symptoms

The Grey Death can be identified in the population by three stages that it follows:

### **Stage 1: Lethargy & Pallor**

The first recognised symptom of a sufferer of the Grey Death is a persistent and chronic cough. The cough first develops as a minor ailment with no impairment to the victim's health or ability to carry out everyday tasks.

The victim can recover from this, but if not, they will continue to develop a more severe cough, resulting in difficulty with conducting normal activities and suffering from breathing difficulties. The chronic cough will eventually end up in the victim coughing blood, a definite sign of the approach of Stage 2 symptoms. However, as to when a victim starts coughing up blood will depend from person to person and on the victims own strength and willpower. A weak and sickly individual may succumb to the Grey Death within weeks, whereas a strong and willful person may not fall victim to the later stages of the cough for years, or even decades.

### **Stage 2: Sores & Fevers**

The second stage of the Grey Death is a much clearer sign of the affliction. The victim quickly becomes covered in boils and scab like bruises across their body, though primarily on the face. As well as unsightly, these marks are also extremely painful to the touch and cause near-constant pain and irritation to the victim. While the pain can be relived by traditional means, the sores themselves cannot be, as of yet, successfully treated or removed, and any attempt to do so causes immense agony to the victim, still leaving their skin horribly scarred.

As time progresses, more of the body will be covered in these sores, first of all emanating from the face, but can spread to cover the torso and various limbs.

As with the previous symptom, the longevity of the sores depends on the victim, with some becoming overc ome in days, and others in years.

### **Stage 3: Coma**

The final symptom of the Grey Death, and the ultimate sign that the victim will be taken by the affliction. Once they have been overcome by the sores, the victim will fall into a deep coma, being unable to be roused under any means.

While some may only be in the coma for a short while, others can fall into the coma and a vegetative state for years upon end before the victim finally succumbs to death. As the process can take such widening lengths of time, many families who have had a loved one lost to the coma have chosen to give them a mercy killing, rather than let them endure years of theoretical undeath.