The Umbral Deluge is a predatory hive-intelligence that seeks to "unify" all life by dissolving the boundaries of individuality. Spreading via hyper-reactive airborne spores, the Deluge slowly takes complete control over a being's physical and mental existence over the course of three distinct stages.
Stage 1 - Visual & Auditory Hallucinations
The Deluge begins its conquest by fracturing a victim’s perception through vivid, harrowing hallucinations. This stage aims to chip away at one's ability to identify true reality and plant dense pockets of self-doubt. Due to the contents of these hallucinations, victims often completely cut contact with every other being and retreat to isolation. In this isolation, the second stage can begin to take hold.
Stage 2 - Spiritual Decoupling
As the infection takes root, it systematically severs the spiritual tether between a soul and its physical vessel. At this point, the victim has lost all personal agency. In Valley's End, this decoupling has left the ancient trees as hollow, unresponsive husks, their spirits cast adrift while the Deluge claims their biomass.
Stage 3 - Physical Mutilation
Once the spirit is silenced, the hivemind triggers rapid, grotesque mutations, reshaping the empty body into a vessel capable of fulfilling whichever duties are currently desired by the hivemind, whether that be a mindless sensory organ, a defensive unit for the collective, or a simple construction grunt.