The Crimson Plague

"It's **the Crimson Plague**. It's the plague that spread years ago in Astraea, killing millions. Including the best friend I've liked." - Xylon to Kellan about the Crimson Plague in *VIII: Strength*

## DESCRIPTION

Prior to the events of The Arcana, **The Crimson Plague** was a pandemic plague that swept through almost every continent in Astraea- Belvoire, included- killing many people. Its name is derived from its defining symptom, which is the intense reddening of the sclera of the eyes. Infected individuals often pass away within days or weeks, with rare exceptions where they may live for a month. The plague started when Lucio Damaris made a deal with the Devil to help him kill his parents in order to become the Warlocks' leader.

## B**Λ**CKGROUND

When he was only 14, Lucio Damaris is next in line to the throne of being the Warlocks' leader, after his parents that were once knights of Aerith. Lucio became power-hungry and didn't want to wait longer before he was the leader of the Warlocks, so he made a deal with the Devil to help kill his parents without anyone knowing it was Lucio's doing. The Devil produced the **fire beetles**, which would then be the source of the Crimson Plague after their massive population outbreak.

All infected people are taken to the Lazarette, a remote island from Belvoire, where they were taken care of by the plague doctors. Sapphire's father, **Dr. Sigmund Chauvera**, tried to formulate a cure, although the majority of the people still died and was left buried and cremated in the Lazarette. **Kieran** and **Faeryn Xalvador**, along with their son, Kellan, volunteered to help the infected, but Xylon Lozano and his family insisted to run away to another part of the world, or to Earth, even, just to escape the plague. After an argument between Kellan and Xylon, Xylon leaves with his family, leaving Kellan behind. Kellan's parents soon die from the plague, then eventually, himself, and the three of them were shipped off to the Lazarette to be cremated like the other plague victims. When they got back, Xylon learned about Kellan's death and planned to bring him back to life by making a deal with **Death** to give him the vessel of **the Fool** in exchange for a part of Xylon's heart.

When Lucio's parents died from plague, the plague's spread halted, ending the pandemic in Astraea even without the mass production of Dr. Chauvera's cure. The Devil wanted Lucio to give him the heart of the archmage in exchange for the plague he created, though if he fails to hunt the archmage down for five years, the Devil will take Lucio's heart instead.

## SYMPTOMS

Like what its name implies, the scleras of the people infected by the Crimson Plague turn into crimson; the brighter and more prominent the color is, the more infected the person is by the plague. In later stages, the area surrounding the eyes also becomes a sickly red shade and bright red veins appear around the eyes, making it appear as if the eyes are crying blood. The shade of red and veins are more prominent in the face, shoulders, the fingertips, waist and thighs, knees, and tips of the toes. The infected would also have a nasty cough and appear sweaty and gaunt. The Crimson Plague would also make the infected person lose their ability to breathe properly, making their hearts beat quicker than usual and their voice croaky and raspy.

## TRIVI**Λ**S

* The Crimson Plague is inspired by the Coronavirus and the Black Plague. The writers turned to sore eyes for symptoms.
	+ **Kath Aguinaldo** admits cringing just imagining how bad the symptoms are- with **Austin Dy** saying the infected would look like malnourished red zombies.
* In its earlier developmental stages, Indirah Alnazar was the first main character to have been infected by the plague and was cured, though her eyes will retain the reddish-pink hue. This would then be the reason why she would change her eye color to hot pink to disguise the fact that she had been infected. Eventually, because Sapphire Chauvera's father is a doctor, the writers also planned for Sapphire to contract the plague, but both versions were scrapped for unknown reasons.
	+ Indirah disguising her plagued eyes using magic would be the inspiration for the writers to give unnatural eye colors to pure-blood mages just to differentiate them from everyone else.
* It is the first time that a **LUNA** project has a sickness or event that is considered to be an antagonist.
* The Crimson Plague's tarot card is the Tower, though it isn't considered to be its *Patron Arcana* as it is an event, not human- it therefore couldn't be the Tower's beneficiary. Despite this, fire beetles are depicted on the Tower's tarot card.