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I realize that this is a particularly controversial
topic - after all, the accepted beliefs in the vampire community is that there
is no choice to whether or not a person is a vampire. I
requested, and received, permission to reprint the updated version of this article
here for completeness as it is part of the online community's history. ~Sphynx
click here to see a rebuttal
to this article
FORWARD
The most interesting thing about the following document is not the information
itself, but how people have reacted to the information.
For the average person, the reaction to the document is much the same as
the reaction to the idea of real vampirism -- they consider the idea delusional,
and do not give it serious credence.
To high level mages and psychics, this document presents nothing unbelievable,
and in many cases, nothing new. They have either seen this phenomenon before,
or they have seen things which are similar enough that the described phenomena
are not surprising.
The most violent reaction comes from the vampyrs themselves. The vast majority
refuse to grant this explanation any credence at all, preferring to embrace
other theories such as a viral cause, or a genetic cause.
The vehement rejection of this documents suggests that either they find
this notion terribly repugnant -- perhaps it is not romantic enough? --
or they find it frightening. Most vampyrs feel secure that they will be
as they are forever, and most do not want to change that. The notion that
someone might come along and take it away from them must be extremely alarming.
As well, the choice implied here is one that many vampyrs do not want to
have to make...they are far more secure believing they have no choice.
In any case, the result of this is that the audience at which this document
was targeted -- the audience that it was intended to benefit -- are the
people who are most likely to reject it completely. Ironically, there are
a fair and growing number of vampyrs who are not happy as they are, and
most will never think to consider the possibility that they aren't stuck
that way.
NOTES
For the scholarly, the following should not be considered a formal research
paper, but rather the results of a very long informal study of a specific
type of vampirism. Put together over a period of about thirteen years (as
of 2004), this account is the result of many informal discussions (and formal
discussions) with vampyrs on and off-line. The reason for the investigation
was so that I, the author, could discover the cause and details of my own
type of vampirism, which knowledge eventually gave me the ability to rid
myself of it. My reasons for doing so were personal, and I do not imply
that it cannot benefit anyone to be a vampyr. I hope, however, that those
who are as I was will find this account to be helpful to them, and to give
them back something that many of them never had before -- the choice of
whether or not to be a vampyr.
ABOUT THE SYMBIONT
The thing that makes a person a vampyr is essentially a symbiotic, psychic
"life form" - a spirit entity. If you feed it, it grows more powerful,
and changes you more. If you do not, it grows weaker, and feeds off you.
This symbiont appears as a coherent and separate bundle of energy which is
located in the middle of the chest, over the heart. It appears to be approximately
the size of a fist from the outside, but is quite compact, and may expand
to a much larger size if outside of a person. When you astrally project, the
symbiont may travel with you, remaining with the astral body, but this is
not always the case.
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Aura graphic:
The illustration to the right shows an artist's rendering of the general "appearance"
of the aura of a person who carries a vampyr symbiont. The different colors
shown represent different types of energy. Blue is psi energy, which is produced
by the nervous system. Yellow is Life energy, which is apparently produced by
the soul. Purple is Faith energy - not all persons produce this energy, and
its absence does not indicate an absence of faith, only of energy production
of this type. Red is Veil energy.
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Symbiont:
The illustration to the right is an artists rendering of the approximate appearance
of the entity. The symbiont's energy mixture is a homogeneous mix of life and
veil energies, although that was difficult to illustrate. Psi and Faith energies
dissipate outward -- the Life energy center radiates. Homogenized energy mixtures
are exceptionally rare, and the mixing of Veil energy with anything else is
likewise tremendously uncommon.
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Psi-Hazard:
This entity has been given classified as a psi-hazard rating of 7 (out of 10).
Click here for hazard symbol
explanation
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This symbiont is comprised of two types of energy -- life energy, and Veil
energy. The Veil, or "Boundary", is a metaphysical membrane which
separates this "universe" from "another place". Things
on the other side of the Veil are all comprised of the same type of energy.
Sometimes the Veil is breached, and entities from that place enter this one
-- more often than not, their interactions with life here have harmful results,
not necessarily through any malice on their part, but because of their extremely
alien nature. The Veil is best left unbreached -- most entities from this
reality will work together, even with traditional enemies, to repair a breach
in the Veil and fight off Veil entities. This may be part of the reason why
vampyrs are treated so oddly by spirit entities. Persons most likely to encounter,
work with, or create/alter Veil energy entities and constructs are various
types of mages, and possibly druids. It has been suggested by a mage friend
of mine that the symbiont was originally created by a mage, as an experiment
-- there is nothing to rule out this possibility -- if this is true, then
the creation was done a very long time ago, as no evidence of programming
remains. However, since Veil energy is highly mutagenic, perhaps it "evolved"
more quickly. This entity is NOT a 'Veil entity'...it is a hybrid.
Sometimes the actual position of the symbiont is lower than the heart (mid-chest
region), possibly even as low as the solar plexus -- in which case the aforementioned
symptoms would be felt in that area, instead of the heart region. Vampyrs
appear to have more instinctive control over the empathic faculty than most
humans, being able to dampen the input or shut it down to avoid overload.
Other psychic talents may also be awakened, including anything from improved
psychic "senses" such as clairvoyance and clairaudience to more
uncommon talents such as psychokinesis. However, typical symbiont entities
are very psi-sensitive, so may suppress higher level psi abilities, and reduce
psi production.
EFFECTS OF THE SYMBIONT ON THE HOST
Some of the changes that the symbiont generally makes in its "partner"
are, starting with the physical, a faster rate of healing, increased strength,
stamina and speed, improved night vision, and improvement in other senses.
Negative physical changes include sensitivity to sunlight, and possible glandular
problems such as lupus or diabetes. The majority of the changes the symbiont
makes are associated with the nervous system. Most vampyrs prefer a higher
or lower room temperature than humans, by at least 10 degrees, often more.
This may or may not be significant, as most vampyrs appear to be innately
psychic, and innate psychics likewise tend to abnormal temperature preferences.
Abstaining from feeding on lifeforce/blood often results in memory problems,
and aggravation of any detrimental physical conditions, such as the aforementioned
lupus. Depressed immune system and listlessness or depression generally result
as well. This can continue for years, but it has generally been found that
eventually the symbiont will influence a dramatic increase in hunger over
a fairly short period of time -- what occurs if the vampyr does not feed at
that point is unknown. It has been reported that a vampyr, under the stimulus
of extreme loss, pain or suffering, emotional trauma, or starvation, may enter
into a state of psychosis in which, for a period of days or even as long as
a month, they will become berserkers, hunting and killing for blood. The beginning
of this state allows some self-control, but it progresses to a true berserker
state in which the vampyr will attack anything for blood -- vision becomes
reddened, and senses become heightened, strength and other physical capabilities
may increase. This is a rare occurrence, and a very dangerous one for both
the vampyr and the people around him/her. This cannot
be confirmed, as only a few individuals have stated it, and none reported
to have witnessed it in others.
Many vampyrs have reported changes in their perception
of taste when they first acquire the symbiont, reporting that foods tasted
different to them, and they had to form new opinion on which foods they liked
and disliked. As well, some vampyrs have reported a "bad taste in their
mouth", which they cannot eradicate. On an interesting side note, I have
read a small account in a textbook on abnormal psychology which describes
a severely paranoid man who bludgeoned his wife to death because he believed
she was trying to infect him with cancer. (See footnote)
This seems totally unrelated to vampyrism, yet there was a very interesting
part of this story which caught my attention. On the list of reasons the man
gave for believing his wife was trying to kill him was the following: for
the past several months, food tasted different to him, and there was a bad
taste in his mouth. In addition, he had pain in his chest.
This raises some interesting questions on the universality of these symptoms.
If this man was NOT turned, then another possible explanation is that possessions
work in a similar fashion to the vampyr symbiont, and perhaps this man was
possessed. It is also possible that chemical changes interfering with the
function of his nervous system (including the brain, obviously), caused his
condition of paranoia, and produced these symptoms, which parallel vampyrism
symptoms only because both involve changes to the nervous system. This is
all pure speculation, but I thought that I would include it for the sake of
interest.
Psychological effects are a slow restructuring of the instincts, resulting
in gradual personality change (Not for the worse, merely different), and a
resulting "rebuilding from the ground up" of learned moral and ethical
standards. In some few individuals, a very strong symbiont may cause dementia,
but this has not been confirmed. Some entities may have the capability of
influencing their host emotionally--inspiring fear of situations which might
put the entity in danger, for example.
Psychical changes include a repatterning of the energy bodies and the way
in which the psychical and physical bodies work together in the life energy
cycle. Lifeforce energy is absorbed in the heart region (or wherever the symbiont
has positioned itself), and distributed to the rest of the body from there.
The symbiont's profound influence in the region of the solar plexus energy
center, which is the emotional center of the energy bodies almost invariably
awakens the empathic ability, and occasionally telepathic ability. In addition,
this area is very sensitive to damage, and most vampyrs will feel some pain
or pressure in this area if they are overloaded or drained psychically. This
sensation is often referred up to the chest area. As well, the symbiont itself
may cause pain in the chest region by affecting the nerves there if it is
"uncomfortable".
PASSING ON OR ACQUIRING THE SYMBIONT
The symbiont is not impossible to influence -- a nudge of uncontrolled power
when it is passed on, for example, can alter it. This is why "bloodlines"
have the differences they have, and why some lines show negative effects and
deterioration. It is possible that, in the past, stricter control of who the
symbiont was passed to, as well as a more formal procedure for doing so, prevented
the deterioration that is becoming apparent today, as well as the uncontrolled
proliferation of these entities.
Known ways in which the symbiont can be passed on include the traditional
exchange of blood with a vampyr, as well as working in a magickal coven or
partnership with vampyr, being fed from, either astrally or physically, and
possibly through a sexual encounter. Anything which involves and intimate
exchange of energies between a vampyr and a human can pass the symbiont's
offspring on. Not all humans appear to be susceptible to this, however. It
is unknown what factors need to be present for a person to be able to host
a symbiont, but the majority, if not all, hosts appear to be innate psis.
Exact details on how the symbiont may be picked up are missing -- there are
those born with it, or who acquire it without apparent contact in their early
to mid teens, and the method of transference to these individuals is still
unknown. The entities may be capable of moving from person to person on their
own.
In those who were born vampyrs, the symbiont appears to be more well integrated,
and the individuals are, of course, not as conscious of it as those who were
turned, though they seem as capable as turned vampyrs of perceiving it if
they have the talents that allow them to do so. So far I have found that roughly
two thirds of the vampyrs I have contacted claim they were born that way.
This is a puzzle that still needs to be worked out. The vast majority of those
who claim they were born vampyrs are certain that neither of their parents
is vampyr. It is possible that in cases where at least one parent was a vampyr,
the entities were passed to them in the womb, and thus have integrated more
completely with their developing nervous system.
When a person first acquires the vampyr symbiont, for the first year the
"symptoms" or traits will fluctuate wildly, becoming very strong,
then fading away to almost nothing, repeatedly over a varying length of time.
After the first year, this fluctuation becomes less marked, although it does
still seem to be present in older vampyrs, on a subdued level. For those born
vampyrs, the traits are usually subdued by definitely present in childhood,
and are kicked up to a higher level during the vampyr's teen years, resulting
in a pattern similar to the first year of a vampyr who was turned, though
perhaps not as traumatic. This may also be the case with vampyrs who were
turned in childhood.
NEW DEVELOPMENTS
We've recently encountered a variant of the above entity which has some very
formidable adaptations. This version of the symbiont is psi-resistant, and
is generally carried by vamps who take both blood/life energy and psi from
others. The overall effect is that the individuals who have these seem far
more stable energetically, and have no reduction in their psi capabilities.
How much this entity may improve their psi abilities, if it does, is unknown,
but it does not appear to reduce them the way the typical symbiont entity
does.
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Variant:
Approximate appearance of entity.
Because Veil and Life energy interact so severely, the entity's pattern needs
to be kept separate from the psi, while it still retains the ability to use
it. So this entity has a layer of pure Veil acting like a shield to separate
the psi from its normal Life/Veil mix. This acts like an annihilation barrier,
something like the way a water droplet would be protected from touching a hot
skillet by a barrier of vapor.
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This variant poses some real problems if someone were to wish to remove it.
The one encountered was at least semi-intelligent, and its other capabilities
are unknown.
So, what if I don't want this thing
in me anymore?
(Comments from everyone are welcomed, particularly if you have experiences
that contradict or reinforce any of the above).
-- -- Original version Shadowalker, c.1997
-- -- Revised by Shadowalker/Winged Wolf, 2004.
Footnote:
Abnormal Psychology And Modern Life: 6th Edition. James C. Coleman, University
of California at Los Angeles; James N. Butcher, University of Minnesota; Robert
C. Carson, Duke University. Copyright 1980, 1972, 1964: Scott, Foreman, and
Company. Chapter 12/The Schizophrenias and Paranoia, Page 430. [back
to paragraph]
This article is presented as part of an ongoing effort to present other views outside of, as well as within, the online vampire community. Those of us who consider ourselves vampiric don't always look at things from the same viewpoint due to our life experiences. As such, the views and opinions contained in this article are entirely those of the author(s), and may not necessarily be shared by SphynxCatVP. The webmaster is not under obligation to update or otherwise keep current the contents of this article. Most importantly, only you can decide for yourself whether this article or any of the author(s) other views are useful or applicable to you - you are responsible for using your own reasoning and judgement, so judge wisely.
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