by Jeff Schanz
Source of Vampyrism and Feeding.
A vampyre’s blood is the only known source for the affliction. A small amount ingested is not usually powerful enough to cause the chain reaction needed to “turn” a subject.
Feeding from an animal will not “turn” it. It will not harm the animal other than to make it sluggish from the sudden decrease in blood. Full recovery of the animal usually occurs in a short time, as it would be for any human giving blood at a hospital. The worst-case scenario for the animal would be that the vampyre becomes too lost in its hunger and drains too much blood, possibly killing the animal. This happens more often with Undead vampyres than Living ones. The damage done by the fangs is minimal, and the enzymes from the vampyre’s mouth also aid in rapid healing of the affected area. Typically, minutes after feeding, the animal no longer feels the injury.
Most known cases of vampyrism are voluntary. It is not easy to accidentally become a vampyre.
Additional Effects.
Heightened senses are a typical side effect of a vampyre’s blood energy. Hearing, eyesight, and sense of smell are all increased. There is also a greater capacity to interpret and absorb energy waves, auras, and brainwaves. The result is something similar to “mind-reading,” but closer to mind “feeling,” like empathy but heightened. The ability can be cultivated and improved through training, however it is not consistent with all vampyres.
THE UNDEAD:
An Undead vampyre is a Living vampyre whose human body has become deceased. One cannot be an Undead vampyre without first being a Living vampyre, even if only for a short time.
As described earlier, the simulacra effect remains after the body has died. It animates the body since the body is no longer an organism itself. It is more like a machine that the simulacra can operate. As with any corpse, the body will eventually deteriorate, but the vampyre’s blood energy delays the deterioration for the same amount of time as mentioned in the longevity of Living vampyres. There is no known way to resurrect a dead body and afflict it with vampyrism. The condition must exist prior to death.
Brain.
As with all cells of a corpse, the brain cells no longer grow, expand, or absorb anything new. They retain whatever they had when the brain was living, but the memories will disappear over time with the deterioration of the cells. Similar to Alzheimer’s patients, time will eventually reduce the brain’s ability to recall both long-term and short-term memories. Unlike Alzheimer’s, the Undead vampyre retains at its core the ability to survive at its most basic level, becoming a mindless animal that knows only to feed, rest, and survive. Identity, family associations, and any kind of conscience and morals will no longer exist in the dead brain cells. Typically, vampyres perish before the entirety of that happens, but there have been cases where Undead vampyres have lost all memories and identity, yet persist terrorizing the population as mindless craven creatures. It is the author’s opinion that the horrifying legends of vampyres are resultant from these creatures.
Projection and Fine Motor Ability.
My hypothesis is that the simulacra energy combines with what is believed to be the human soul. This remains unproven for obvious reasons. The combination creates a kind of tactile spirit that can attract outside energy and elements to it, and attach itself to those elements to become a separate physical entity. For the purposes of this book, we will call it “the essence.” The essence remains conjoined at least in part to the deceased body and keeps up the body’s functionality as it did when it was a Living vampyre. But the body cannot replenish itself or repair itself. There is also no need for breathing or heart beating. Long ago, Undead bodies were buried in this condition, with the body in the casket underground, while the essence projected itself outward to roam free.
Projection is the process of the essence becoming a free-moving entity outside of the body, attracting elements and gathering material to appear as a fully formed physical being. The essence is at its most efficient form projected outside the Undead corpse as it has less stress and labor to move unwilling dead muscles, organs, and joints. But the essence must remain attached to the Undead body in part or it will expire much as a human soul will expire once the human body is dead. The essence is derived directly from the blood energy and soul (hypothesized) which holds the blueprint to what the body was like, and that blueprint typically dictates the projection body. However, with effort, Undead vampyres have been known to alter their projections to more desired or appealing shapes. Many vampyres project themselves as they wish to be seen. In some instances, that involves being more intimidating, and in others, it involves appearing more aesthetically pleasing. Some shapes can be practical like wings, or claws, and can make vampyres fly or better protect themselves. Other alterations have included becoming shapes like wolves or similarly sized animals. I have not found an instance where a projection's mass was radically different than the size of the vampyre's body. For instance, becoming the size and shape of a bat is a myth, although bat features on projections are common, albeit more human-sized. Extensions like wings seem to be an exception to the body mass rule and are commonly adopted.
Projection and Sun.
Projected bodies suffer the same shortcomings from the sun’s radiation as Living bodies. We established that the essence magnifies the radiation, and that persists in the projection. The material surrounding the essence will burn and chemically alter, as would skin. The essence itself will be damaged, as well. Indirect light can be tolerated, assuming the UV is reduced on the reflection or refraction. That holds true for Living vampyres, as well.
Projections do not typically cast shadows, appear in photographs, or are visible in mirror reflections. The science of the effect is not entirely understood except that a projection is closer to a hologram than a real physical being. Light-emitting and light-reflecting particles that comprise the projection cancel each other out and result in a kind of reflective and photosensitive transparency. Though a projection is perfectly visible to human eyes, and is as tactilely real-feeling as a real body, the factors of mirrors and cameras will raise suspicions about projections, and identify an Undead vampyre who may want to remain anonymous.
For all these reasons, Undead vampyres usually stay resting and hidden, especially during daylight. But there is no specific time limitation to their projection, accepting the risks. Energy is eventually depleted, which requires blood and rest to recharge.
Bodies at Rest.
Sleeping in something confining like a coffin is a common way to recover the energy properties, and store energy for future projections. Coffins are not required, any secluded space will suffice, but as it was tradition before, and is still a good way to avoid any invasion of privacy, there is a tendency to use coffins.
Perishing.
The projections are not living organisms and do not harm easily. Projectiles and weapons affect them little. But Undead bodies are fragile. An Undead body can be destroyed and the essence will lose its identity, and dissipate as would any human soul from a dead body. Occasionally, an Undead body will benefit from an infusion of plasma, or blood, to lubricate and hydrate it, making it easier to move around, but for the most part, Undead vampyres prefer to keep their corpse bodies at rest and hidden. The preference is both for safety, and because projections have exceptional abilities that corpse bodies lack. An animated corpse body is as awkward and ungainly as an elderly human’s.
Cures.
There is no known cure or reversal agent for vampyrism. Curing an Undead vampyre would not be possible by the very nature that the body is a corpse only animated by the vampyrism. Should vampyrism be removed, the body would simply be a corpse, and disintegrate like any other corpse. But in Living vampyres, the body is still very much alive and may have hope of eventual recovery. Unfortunately, the chemical and molecular alterations to the body are assumed permanent.
However, this author believes there is hope for the future. Since the vampyric affliction drastically alters th
e cells of the body in an extraordinarily short time, it seems reasonable that there could be some similar drastic reaction achievable, with enough research and experiments, that could return the cells to their original human form.
The author has undertaken a mission to discover a cure, or reversal, for vampyrism. Work continues toward this goal.
CHAPTER 15
Brandt had lost track of time. There was more to read if he wished to go back and delve into Lia’s detailed findings, but he didn’t think he could process more clinical information. Despite reading only the summaries, he felt like he was now a vampyre expert. If he retained half of what he read, he still might be the most knowledgeable human in the world on vampyrism.
He had already accepted the fact that Lia and Viktor were vampyres. After reading the book, he had a new appreciation for everything Lia and her father had been through. And he understood why they had isolated themselves on an island, far away from persecution.
He didn’t get why the word “vampyre” was spelled with a “y” instead of an “i,” but it was Lia’s affliction, and if she decided it was spelled with a “y,” he could respect that.
After reading the Undead portion of the book, he wondered how much deterioration had happened to Viktor since he died. It just then hit Brandt: Viktor had invited him to dinner, and neither Viktor nor his daughter normally ate food. Memory slip up? Possibly. Or maybe Brandt was the main course.
Drop it bud. You know better now. He did. Just a bad coping joke. He no longer felt threatened or worried about being on an island with vampyres.
Ok, not entirely true. Viktor still worried him a little. Especially if Viktor forgot how to refrain from blood urges. How long had Viktor been undead? How much had he deteriorated? Brandt assumed Viktor still knew who Lia was, and probably cared for her, and seemed to retain his human manners for the most part, but that didn’t mean Viktor couldn’t lapse into a more savage form at any moment. And if he did, Brandt knew of nothing that would stop the man-beast.
Brandt wasn’t giving in to any kind of fear. He had survived Hell already. There wasn’t much left to be afraid of. Whatever was going to happen was going to happen. God still had control of both Brandt and the game board.
In ten minutes he was back in his cave. He had work to do on the boat and finally had tools and materials to work with.
Earlier that morning he had been assaulted by killers. Those killers were killed by a better killer. That killer was an Undead vampyre. Since then, Brandt read a book that explained most everything he could want to know about vampyres, and he was now a vampyre expert. He had the tools to fix his boat and get home. And soon he would be going to dinner with the aforementioned vampyre. A dinner that would likely have no food served, and might have an accidentally hostile vampyre with an identity crisis. Helluva day. Might be a helluva night.
Brandt stood at the front door. There was some anxiety entering the house this time, even though he had been in it just a few hours earlier. This time they would be expecting him. He didn’t think that Lia and Viktor were a conscious threat to him anymore, and he no longer doubted their intentions, even though he would still prefer to be cautious. Slow steps. But Viktor's condition might be a wildcard. There was very little Brandt couldn't normally handle. He was strong, in great shape (minus some sore ribs and bruising), and was experienced in self-defense, and had taken human life on multiple occasions, sometimes in hand-to-hand combat. With a sidearm attached to one side of his belt and a bowie knife on the other, he was well-armed, and in any other situation, he would be considered a badass. But against a killing machine like Viktor who may or may not be in his right mind? Brandt was meekly standing in front of a door wishing he didn't have to go in.
Sense of dread aside, this was an old-fashioned family, actually an old family, and it would be rude to simply let himself in while they were home. Brandt knocked on the door.
A gravelly, commanding voice came immediately from inside. “Enter.”
Brandt entered. Most things looked as they had before, except for a few obvious differences. The candles in the sconces and in the candelabra on the table were all lit. The long, slender table had been cleaned of dust and something like a bowl of fruit was placed at its center. Viktor sat at one end. He made a subtle motion with his hand for Brandt to come all the way inside, so Brandt crossed the room and took a seat at the side of the table. The table length was such that even seated in the middle, Brant was still ten feet from Viktor. Brandt wanted to seem unthreatening, armed as he was, so he sat straight, hands folded in his lap, and tried to appear like a mild-mannered guest.
Viktor looked vastly different than he had that morning. Had something happened? His face was far older looking than the last time Brandt had seen him. The lines and wrinkles were deep and pronounced, and there were liver spots and other skin blemishes. Skin sagged off his jaw and there was a wattle under his chin. Viktor’s eyes were sunk deep into their sockets and had none of the same fire and ice that had been there that morning. He had been pale before, but now he was almost corpse blue, essentially looking like what he was: death warmed over. A plastic line of tubing was attached to Viktor, its connection point somewhere hidden beneath his clothing. That line began at a plastic pouch of blood hanging from a metal IV stand. Viktor hung his head and sagged over the table, all pretense of intimidation gone, nothing left but an elderly man trying to sit upright. Brandt was confused. Viktor was the most impressive, awe-inspiring thing Brandt had ever seen just hours ago. How could this man, who had been the ultimate weapon that morning, had torn apart men with a single swipe of his hand, soared like a hawk, and had moved with snake-strike speed, be the same broken rest-home candidate that sat before Brandt now?
Viktor lifted his head ponderously, and said, “Welcome to my home, Mr. Dekker.”
“Thank you,” said Brandt. Besides being strangely formal, it seemed doubly strange being welcomed to somewhere Brandt had already spent half a week. Viktor had brought him here days ago, so it wasn’t like Brandt’s presence was new. Trying to roll with it, Brandt said, “And it’s gracious of you to invite me to dinner.” Damn it. He had meant to avoid the word “dinner” if it wasn’t re-mentioned by Viktor or Lia. Considering that neither of them normally ate, he was wondering if the invitation was a slip up on Viktor’s part, and reminding Viktor might be uncomfortable, especially if there was no actual dinner prepared. Who was going to prepare it? And where was Lia?
That question was answered a moment later as Lia emerged from somewhere behind the kitchen. She glide-walked as she always did and came to Viktor’s side. She smiled politely and made a subtle head bow to Brandt. Brandt returned the smile and declined his head as his own bow gesture.
I guess we’re playing the formal game.
Brandt realized he should stand up in a formal occasion when a lady enters the room, then hastily stood, nearly knocking over his chair. Do I kiss her hand, or just bow? Damn it, I don’t remember this stuff. He clasped his hands behind his back and bent his torso in an exaggerated bow. When he looked back up, Lia appeared to be holding back her amusement. But she said nothing.
Viktor’s response was a nod and a wave of his hand like Brandt’s gesture was both expected and unnecessary. Brandt was about to sit back down when Viktor made a finger-wiggle motion to Brandt. It took a half-second to interpret the gesture. Viktor simply wanted a more intimate word. Brandt stood back up and walked over to Viktor.
“Mr. Dekker. Please sit next to me. I am an old man and my voice no longer carries well.”
It did this morning. Brandt smiled and moved his chair closer to Viktor’s right. Viktor acknowledged this with another simple nod. Lia turned and went into the kitchen.
Viktor turned slowly to his right and flicked his hand in the air, addressing Lia, but not looking at her. “My dear, please inform the staff that they may serve at their convenience.”
Lia didn’t look up, answering, “Yes, Papa.” She never paused f
rom whatever she was doing.
Staff?
Viktor seemed to think that nothing was amiss and turned to Brandt with a very formal smile. “Your injuries have healed?” he asked.
Brandt recalled being asked the same question that morning. Not a good sign. “Yes, sir. For the most part, they have.”
“Good,” said Viktor. An extended silence hung over the men before Viktor spoke again. “Do you plan to leave the island soon?”
Viktor couldn't have known that the sloop had been rigged to blow by the assassins. Brandt tried to explain. “Well, sir, the last time you saw the sloop it was in one piece, but there was a complication. The men that came here had rigged it with explosives and a timer. It blew a hole in the hull. And unfortunately, it's not fixable.” Brandt was searching for the right words to follow that when he noticed Viktor's blank look. The elderly man was still waiting on some yes or no answer for his question, and the long explanation confused him. Whatever had happened between morning and now had affected his memory and mental capacity. Brandt took a moment, then rebooted his answer entirely. “No sir, not yet.”
Viktor smiled politely and seemed satisfied. Lia, on the other hand, was noticeably startled. She looked up and caught Brandt’s eye. It seemed unintentional, and when she noticed that he was meeting her stare, she quickly dropped her gaze back to her work.