But there’s a twist: as the pathogens die, they release an incredibly powerful toxin that causes the plasma—the transparent liquid component of our blood—to drain into the intestines. From there, it is expelled from the body through explosive diarrhea and projectile vomiting. In severe cases, victims can lose a quarter of the body’s fluid within a few hours. Severe dehydration makes sufferers appear shriveled. Ruptured capillaries turn the skin black and blue. Within a few days of the onset of symptoms, a little more than half of victims would have been dead.
