Supernatural Species - Vampires
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Supernatural Species of the Dark World - Vampires

Vampires are magically reanimated dead humans (although they prefer the term "undead") which are inhabited by the spirits of the deceased person and who closely resemble the living human they were before their transformation. Anatomically and physiology, their bodies remain in the exact same state they were in prior to their death, allowing them to function normally and blend in with the human world while also possessing enhanced supernatural abilities and the addition of their true face. All vampires are sires and descendants of an Original Vampire known a sire bloodline or blood link.

By nature, vampires are monstrous. They have the capacity to be predatory creatures; beast-like and more savage than what their human appearance suggests. When provoked, they will growl, hiss, snarl, and curl their lips back to bare their fangs as a sign of aggression.

While many vampires maintain their human personalities post transformation, it is in their nature to be cruel and violent, and regardless of their own morals and kindness, they will resort to such acts when necessary; for their own survival or to protect someone they care about. Vampires will also go to great lengths to retrieve answers and results, anything from bribery to torturing the victim they are interrogating. They are dehumanized to some degree, causing them to be indifferent in the face of death and violence and with the never-ending tensions between witches and werewolves/hybrids, tragedies always seem follow vampires everywhere they go regardless of their best efforts to avoid it.

Vampires are also inherently selfish and consider themselves to be superior above other beings, especially humans, due to the fact that they see themselves as being at the top of the proverbial food chain. When it comes to feeding directly from the vein, many vampires implement the "catch, eat, erase" method, which involves grabbing or cornering a human, quickly feed from them, and then compel them to forget what happened, allowing the human to carry on with the rest of their day. This demonstration isn't so much for the human's benefit as it is a dedication of avoiding messy situations as a result of unnecessary violence and cruelty in order to prevent public exposure of themselves and their kind. Some vampires will kill their prey outright if they so wish and/or is deemed necessary, in which case the victim's body is immediately and efficiently disposed of. 

The majority of the human world is not aware of the existence of vampires and other supernatural beings, other than being nothing more than fictional beings from movies, television shows, and Dracula novels. Most vampires want to keep it this way, and because they are immortal and do not age, many of them live out their lives as nomads who periodically move around from place to place. Some will take on different identities every so many years as a means to coexist with the human world, while others prefer to live anonymously and will only travel out of boredom. Any humans who are aware of the supernatural world are only in-the-know as being a close, trusted friend or family member to a vampire. The attitudes of vampires towards humans vary from individual to individual; some see humans as only food, servants, and/or entertainment, some just regard them as insignificant, while others are more compassionate, remembering that they too were once human themselves.

Vampires, unlike werewolves, are loners for the most part and live by their own code. There is no international or nation-based vampire authority or government with the exception of a few exclusive organizations and the thriving vampire based community in New Orleans, Louisiana which the Mikaelsons have rule of. Age plays the biggest role as far as status symbols go; the older a vampire is, the more bragging rights they have due to being more stronger and powerful both physically and mentally alongside their knowledge, experiences and influences of historical events. Because the Mikaelsons are over 1000-years-old and are Original vampires, they are considered to be the most powerful supernatural creatures on Earth.

Blood is the main component in a vampire's diet, be it human, animal, or vampire blood, although human blood is the preferred choice as it is more compatible to their nourishment.

There are two theories behind why vampires crave human blood; According to Rebekah Mikaelson, her mother Esther used the blood of a doppelganger as a catalyst to the process that made her husband and children into the first vampires. According to Atticus Shane (an eccentric college professor whose main study was the supernatural who hasn't been heard from since), the actual reason is because human blood has an incredible amount of life force, and therefor is the key to immortality, which is why vampires along with true immortals such as Silas and Amara need to drink it in order to maintain their eternal life. Aside from it tasting blood and satisfying their never ending thirst, human blood also heightens a vampire's supernatural abilities, making them stronger, faster, and able to heal much faster than those who haven't fed for a considerable amount of time and those who choose to feed on animal blood. The longer a vampire abstains from human blood, the more they start to turn feral and unable to resist feeding on whomever they encounter and if they've been without blood for so long to the point of risking desecration, they can even develop ripper-like tendencies, losing all sense of their humanity and rationality. In the event that a vampire has reached desecration and is in a mummified state, but not permanently dead, blood from any living source can revive them.

A vampire's acute sense of taste allows them to detect if a human has consumed alcohol or has taken drugs or been drugged, because their blood will have an unclean and chemical aftertaste. Although aside from an unappealing taste, a human's alcohol/drug-infused blood will not adversely affect the vampire in turn who feeds on them with the exception of vervain or poisons of a supernatural/dark magic nature. In rare cases should a vampire consume blood from another vampire who has been bitten by a werewolf, the wolf-venom in the one who was bitten will also effect the other who fed from them.

Blood sharing, which is the act of vampires feeding on each other, is considered to be an intimate act and is not to be taken lightly. The possible reason behind this, is because when a vampire feeds from a vampire and vice versa, they can feel each others power, which in turns brings the two closer together, creating a strong bond.   

When the revived human first wakes up, they will be in transition. During this time, the person is mostly still human, as they will not have access to any of the advantages or be susceptible to the disadvantages of vampires--they can still walk in the sun and enter into homes without an invitation. In order to complete their transition, the new vampire must drink a significant amount of human blood-at least a sip's worth. If the transition is not completed within 24 hours, the person will ultimately die, which allows them enough time to make the choice.

Powers and Abilities

Super Senses: Vampires have very heightened senses, especially in smell, hearing, and vision that greatly surpass a human's ability and other supernatural beings such as werewolves. They can hear whispered conversations, conversations happening from a distance, behind walls and closed doors, and on the phone. A vampire can chose to tune out those ambient noises when they feel it isn't unnecessary, which can leave them vulnerable to an attack if distracted. Vampires can smell things such as perfumes, burning, and even blood from several feet away. Their range of vision is wider, longer, and they can see in total darkness. These abilities grow stronger with age and experience.

Super Durability: Vampires can take on a great deal of physical force and trauma without being slowed down. Their tolerance to physical attacks and durability strengths over time, which means newer vampires can be susceptible to human-level-strength attacks. Attacks with weapons, whether it be firearms, knives/swords, or dark objects can stun and temporarily hinder any vampire, but it doesn't take long for them to bounce back, even with wooden bullets and stakes so long as they are not hit in the heart or the head.

Accelerated Healing: With most bodily damage, such as open wounds from cuts and stabs, gunshot wounds, broken bones, and torso/mid-body impalements, vampires can quickly and easily heal and regenerate new tissue so long as they maintain a regular diet of human blood. Vampires who choose to consume animal blood will still heal on their own, but for more severe injuries, they will not heal as quickly without consuming human blood.

The Power to Heal Others: Vampire's blood can heal most injuries, including severe ones, of humans and werewolves. The exception to this is that their blood cannot grow back limbs/extremities or heal terminal illnesses such as cancers/tumors, nor can their blood bring someone back to life post dead-however, if a human has vampire blood in their system before they die, they will come back to life in transition to becoming a vampire.

Immortality: Vampires stop aging after they've been turned, and will live forever until they are killed or choose to end their own lives. Their immortality makes them immune to human illnesses, diseases, viruses, and infections.

Mind Compulsion: A vampire can manipulate the minds of humans, controlling their thoughts, emotions, behaviors, as well as erase or alter memories. However, there is a sort of hierarchy in this ability; Original vampires can compel humans, vampire descendants, doppelgangers, untriggered werewolves, and werewolf-vampire hybrids. Descendant vampires, as weaker forms, cannot compel other vampires, triggered wolves, or hybrids. No vampires of any level can compel witches, true immortals, or hunters, and Original vampires cannot compel other Originals.

Telepathy: With practice and experience, vampires have a limited form of telepathy that allows them to enter the minds of humans, and with more effort the minds of younger/weakened vampires, witches, werewolves, and other supernatural beings. The forms of telepathy generally used are dream manipulation and illusion, and sending out distress calls with their minds.

Weakness

Desecration: A vampire who abstains, denied blood, or otherwise unable to feed on blood for an extended amount of a time (generally days/weeks depending on their age), will dry up, causing them to eventually desecrate and mummify. The sensation is often described as their veins burning or feeling like sandpaper rubbing together, as a vampire's veins will begin to harden, causing their muscles to stiffen. A vampire's bodily temperature will also become cold and they lose some of their complexion, making them appear anemic or not well. Witches can use magic to desecrate a vampire.  

Sunlight: Ultraviolet rays from the sun and other strong light sources burn vampires on contact, and prolong exposure will cause them to burst into flames and ultimately die. Some vampires wear a piece of jewelry; usually a ring, necklace, or bracelet with a blue lapis lazuli stone affixed to it that has been enchanted with a specific protection spell from a witch for a specific vampire. Vampires must wear or a least be holding onto the lapis lazuli stone at all times in order to be allowed to go outside and walk around during daylight.

Invitation: A vampire cannot enter a home without an invitation by a human, witch, or werewolf's home. If a vampire should somehow find themselves inside a home they were not invited into, it was cause them to suffer extreme disorientation and suffocation until they eventually desecrate. A human does not necessarily have to be physically living in the home in order to be in control of specific vampires he or she chooses to grant an invitation or to keep out, as long as the deed/legal ownership papers are in their name or the family name. Once an invitation is granted, however, it cannot be revoked and the vampire can now come and go as he or she pleases.

Magic: Vampires are susceptible to the powers of a witchcraft. Common attacks can include inflicting excruciating painful aneurysms or muscle spasms, telepathically throwing them, breaking their bones, snapping their necks, or ripping their hearts out from their chest. Dark objects and enchanted weapons made by witches/warlocks can also be used against vampires. Siphoners, witches who rely on drawing power from enchanted objects/supernatural beings in order to fuel their use of witchcraft, can siphon power from a vampire.

Physical Trauma: Minor injuries such as gunshot wounds, stab wounds, and broken bones will slow a vampire down for a moment's time, but not for very long. They will heal in seconds as long as they have not been weakened with vervain or from a werewolf bite. Breaking a vampire's neck will temporarily kill a vampire, leaving them unconscious for a short time without a pulse. This is not a permanent death though.

Poisons: There are various poisons, either created by witchcraft or science, that have been known to harm a vampire, or harm/kill a human in such a way that not even vampire blood can heal.

Vervain: Vervain is a flowering plant, usually purple or blue in color, and it can come in other forms such as herbs, perfumes, and extracts. If it comes into contact with a vampire's skin, it will burn them. If ingested and injected into a vampire, it will cause them to become severally sick and feverish, weaken them to the point of unconsciousness, and hinder their healing abilities. If a human or untriggered werewolf consumes vervain or wears it anywhere on their person, it can protect them from a vampire's compulsion. Vampires can build a resistance by sipping small amounts of diluted vervain in order to reduce its effects as well as to protect themselves from being compelled by Original/Immortally turned vampires. However, a potent/highly concentrated amount (usually in the form of an extract) will still knock out any vampire, even an Original.

Werewolf Bite: A werewolf bite is lethal to a vampire. The death is slow and agonizing, causing the vampire to suffer from sickness and growing weakness, hallucinations, dementia, and rabid behavior until it eventually kills them. There are only two known cures; Klaus's hybrid blood or a scientifically created serum.

Wood: Wounding a vampire with a wooden weapon such as a stake or bullets with incapacitate them. If the wooden weapon remains embedded/impaled in their body, the wound will not heal, and even when removed, their healing time is slightly hindered. If a vampire is hit or stabbed in the heart with a wooden weapon, it will instantly and permanently kill them.

Original Vampire Bloodline: All vampires who were turned by other vampires are linked to the life of an original vampire through a sire blood line. Regardless of how many times removed, if an original vampire dies, all of their sires and descendants of those sires will die as well. This can happen in a matter of minutes or hours depending on how far the original vampire's sired blood line goes.

Other Means To Kill A Vampire: Decapitation, heart extraction, fire.

Other Things to Know

Enhanced Emotions: Vampires experience feelings and emotions like love, sadness, happiness, anger, and fear at a magnified level, allowing them to live life more intensely.

Emotion Control: Vampires who feel overwhelmed by negative feelings such as sadness, depression, fear, guilt, or anger have the ability to "turn off" those emotions-often referred to as their "humanity switch," which also effects their ability to love or express empathy or compassion. Without their humanity, a vampire can kill and feed from humans without remorse and take on any opponent without fear. A vampire without his or her humanity will be more calculating and direct, making them more unrecognizable as the person they truly are. A vampire can chose to turn their humanity back on, however it's usually with much resistance due to the fact that the aftereffect is very difficult, because everything they were feeling prior to switching off along with the guilt and shame of all the horrible things they may have done to innocent people and loved ones comes flooding back all at once and with increased intensity.

All vampires will turn their humanity off at least once in their lifetime as a way to deal with tragic moments, such as the loss of a loved one. However, this is an ability that actually fades over time.

Sire Bonds: Although it rarely happens, some vampires will experience a supernatural sense of loyalty to the vampire who turned them if they felt strong romantic type feelings for that person prior to being turned. A sire bond is almost like compulsion, as the sired vampire will go above and beyond to do whatever their sire asks of them, even if they don't want to or don't like the person. The only surefire way to break a sire bond is for the sired vampire to switch off their humanity.

The Cure: A witch of the Traveler subculture era by the name of Qetsiyah was the first to have created the immortality spell and the cure for it. The cure was meant for Silas, who he along with his love interest Amara were the first true immortals ever, however the cure also works for vampirism as vampires are considered to be immortals. When a vampire takes the cure, he or she will revert back to being a mortal human. Once taken, the cure will prevent the person from returning to immortality, causing them to reject vampire blood when they try to ingest it. Additionally, that person's blood will become the cure, as the cure will stay in their system until it is drained from them, making them a target to any vampire who wants to be human again (or hybrid who wants to be a normal werewolf).

When a vampire takes the cure to become mortal again, there are no other real changes aside from being human. However, should a vampire feed from them and drain that person of their cure-laced blood, the years they spent as an undead, unaging vampire will soon catch up with them. In the case of much older vampires (100 years or older), they can age so quickly that they will die within weeks or months. There is a possible theory here, that when a person has had the cure drained from their system, they can return to immortality if they wish. The reasoning behind this theory, is that the cure acts as a shield while it is still in their blood, hence why their bodies will not allow them to ingest vampire blood. But if the cure has been stripped from them, there's nothing anymore special in their blood (with the exception of doppelgangers) that would keep that person from becoming a vampire again.

At this time, there is no longer a cure available to vampirism. The last of the cure, which Bonnie Bennett had retrieved from the 1994 prison realm she was trapped in for a period of time, was taken by Elena Gilbert, who is currently under a sleeping beauty spell and will not wake up until Bonnie, who she islinked to, dies. There is a possibly that another cure can be created, but this would require a very powerful and experienced witch who has access to Qetsiyah's grimoire.

Cancer: A vampire cannot cure a human from cancer. The reason for this is because normal, healthy cells die after a time where as cancer cells do not. Cancer cells do not die-not without medical intervention. They constantly grow and reproduce, therefor vampire blood only serves to accelerate the process.  And if the cancerous human dies and transforms into a vampire, the cells will also be immortalized and continue to grow at greater stages even beyond the final stage that would typically mean death, causing the now aforementioned vampire to suffer excruciating pain for the rest of their eternal life-so unspeakable that they usually wind up committing suicide.

Unsired Vampires: In very rare cases, there are a select few of vampires/hybrids who are considered unsired for one reason or another, but always of a supernatural circumstance-kind of like a loophole in the supernatural world. However, this does not make them Originals, and so the same limitations will still apply to them as regular vampires. Examples; Any vampire who was brought back from "the other side" that died along the sired-bloodline of a fallen Original (i.e.: Finn and Kol), Hayley Marshall who was turned hybrid as a result of dying with her daughter's blood inside her (more on this in another blog), and all of the vampires of Klaus Mikaelson's bloodline who have been unsired from Davina Claire's unlinking spell.

Pregnancies: Vampires cannot become pregnant and impregnate a human being. However, a female vampire's womb can carry a baby in such was the case with Caroline Forbs, who carried the twins of Alaric Saltzman and Jo Parker. The twins were magically transferred from Josette to Caroline by a spell chanted by the dying Gemini witches in order to continue the survival of their coven. The Gemini coven members chose Caroline, figuring that a vampire who consumes a consistent diet of both blood and regular human food would function physiology as a normal human, therefore should be able to carry the babies to full term, and additionally, her super durability as a vampire would serve to keep the twins safe and protected.

Rippers: A ripper is a feral vampire who cannot control his or her bloodlust. They are ruthless, violent predators who feed and then kill their victims in the most gruesome, inhuman fashion. Their victims are generally left mutilated, with their head and/or other body parts dismembered and torn to shreds. Although some murders of rippers are unintentional, because they get a blinding adrenaline rush every time they feed.

Augustine Vampires: A term that was once generally used to refer to any vampire who was captured and made a test subject to the many experiments carried out by the Augustine Society. Now it's a term used to describe vampires who have been infected with Augustine Blood, or more commonly known as the Ripper Virus. Augustine Blood was a chemical compound consisting of genetically modified blood, that when injected, would turn a vampire who cannibalizes on their own kind.

Augustine Vampires are unable to control their urge to feed on vampires, and become rabid and beast-like just by the sight and smell of vampire blood, hence why it is referred to as the Ripper Virus. Damon Salvatore so far was the only Augustine Vampire who, with the help of his former friend Lorenzo "Enzo" St. John, who was able to figure out a way to keep his urges under some control by feeding every so many hours. He has since been cured by an antidote created by the Travelers.

Enhanced Augustine Vampires: Using the same chemical compound, but laced with a werewolf venom extract that is more lethal. Vampires who are infected suffer from a few of the same symptoms as they would if bitten by a werewolf; hallucinations, rabid-behavior, nose bleeds, and coughing up blood. It is not known whether or not regularly feeding on vampire blood would elevate the symptoms or if they would just get worse anyway, eventually killing them like werewolf venom generally would. The only person to be affected by the enhanced ripper virus was Elena Gilbert, who along with Damon was cured by the antidote.

Common Myths

Garlic: The vampire's supposed repulsion towards garlic was a fabricated lie, similar to how werewolves are not actually immune to silver. This myth was presumably started to hide the fact that vampires are actually vulnerable to vervain.

Holy Items: The myth that vampires could be harmed using holy artefacts like crosses, blessed ground, and holy water may have circulated from the belief that they are unholy creatures originating from Hell and in league with the Devil when in fact, they are not. Vampires are not demons-they are products of dark magic.

Mirrors/Photographs: The myth that vampires did not cast a reflection may have come from the belief that vampires do not have souls.

Soulless: The belief that vampires are soulless beings may have stemmed from their ability to shut down their humanity, causing them to block out their emotions and behave without remorse or regret, giving off the impression that they have no conscience and by extension, lack a soul.

Shapeshifting: The origin of the myth that vampires had the power to morph into a bat, wolf, rat, or a cloud of mist is unknown. It may be the result of a mistake of perception between vampires and werewolves. Or it may even be related to Silas, who has the ability to cast psychic illusions to appear as anyone he chooses.

Lack of a Pulse: Although vampires are reanimated corpses, they still have beating hearts and a need for oxygen. If a vampire is unable to breath for a period of time, they will die just as a human would, however it is not a permanent death and they will revive. In less than favourable circumstances such as drowning, it is usually a torturous pattern of dying, coming back to life to only die again from lack of air.

Sleeping In Coffins: Unless they are being laid to rest for a period of time, vampires who choose to follow a regular sleep schedule will generally do so in normal, human beds.

Human Food Consumption: Vampires can eat normal human food, even though it does nothing for them. Many chose to do so out of habit, to blend in socially, and/or to help curve their cravings for blood.

Drugs and Alcohol Have No Effect on Vampires: Vampires can become intoxicated/altered by alcohol and recreational drugs such as marijuana, however they do have a much higher tolerance and the effects don't last as long due to their rapidly regenerating cells. In fact, many vampires drink alcohol every day, particularly spirits such as whisky, rum, or vodka, as it is said to also help curve their blood cravings as well as to keep their blood circulation stimulated-which in turn keeps their body and flesh relatively warm.