Truth From Lies
Jamie McMorrow
Over the years, many myths have been developed about a bloodsucking race of beings called vampires. Everyone's heard about them, the creatures of the night that stalk the humans, always looking out for their next meal. Among the most famous are Dracula, Lestat, Louis de Point du Lac, and the beautiful Carmilla. Over the years, the myths have changed from "the seventh son of a seventh son" or "pregnant women during times of plague" to "those bitten by another vampire." Some authors have gone far enough to create "vegetarian" vampires ((ie: Edward Cullen)) who, for whatever reason, choose to feast upon animals rather than humans, and even "vegan" vampires ((ie: Morning McCobb)), who drink a soy-based blood substitute. Still, throughout the modernization of vampires, some of these myths have been altered so drastically that the creatures they create can no longer be called "vampires," even taking into mind that there are different "species" of vampires.
First, what comes to mind when the word "vampire" is spoken? In modern day times, there are many different mental pictures this could bring up. For some it's the Dracula type, wearing capes and saying " I vant to svuck your blood!" For others, it's the charming Edward Cullen, drinking the blood of mountain lions to protect the human he's in love with. Still, others may think of David, the leader of the Lost Boys, Vladimir Tod, half-vampire who struggles to survive in a world of vampire customs and laws that his vampire father and human mother tried protecting him against. Then there's the stereotypical angsty bloodsucker who regrets what he is and tries making things right, which is a trend possibly made famous by the TV series spinoff of Buffy, dubbed "Angel." All of these vary in weaknesses and strengths, and yet most of them are still "true" vampires.
The first stereotype one must break through is that not all vampires drink blood. Some much prefer the life force or soul of their prey. They can be equally as appetizing, though not nearly as commonly used as food because they can be much more difficult to obtain. However, drinking blood is the most famous. The phrase "the blood is the life" was made famous in Bram Stoker's Dracula, uttered by Dracula's presumable "drudge" Renfield as he licks blood from the floor. Some people find the drinking of blood symbolic in religion, as Deuteronomy 12:23 reads "Only be sure you do not eat the blood, for the blood is the life; and you may not eat the life with the flesh."
Another surprising fact is that not all vampires fear sunlight. Once again, most do. In Anne Rice's novels, Claudia and her caretaker are executed by other vampires with the use of sunlight. Also in Anne Rice's novels, flying into the sunlight is a much preferred form of suicide. The detective of Forever Knight, Nick Knight, often found himself sleeping in the trunk of his car if the daybreak found him far from his home. Some theorize that this fear of sunlight is caused by contrast—a vampire has no beating heart and, as such, is cold as ice. However, on the flip side, Morning McCobb of Brian Meehl's Suck It Up explains that sunlight only harms those afraid of it. Taking the right classes and with the right mentality, one learns not to fear the sun and, as such, is no longer harmed. Some vampires, even Dracula, can appear in sunlight and suffer to permanent side effects. Dracula's powers are only slightly diminished, making him a little bit weaker than if he stood in the dark. In Whitley Strieber's novel The Hunger, the vampires can face the sunlight with no side effects, giving them the ability to fit among humans even better.
Once a vampire is slain, most people assume that what's done is done. This isn't always the case. Almost directly related to the sunlight aversion is the love for the moon. The moon rarely plays any part in vampire novels or movies, but in some cases, the full moon can help play a part in resurrecting a slain vampire. This example can be shown in The Vampyre, where Lord Ruthven is resurrected after his corpse is exposed the first rays of the moon after his death. Carmilla is also rejuvenated. Morning McCobb, after being turned into a pile of ash at the hands of an attempted slayer, is rejuvenated with "the blood of a virgin who's lost her heart to love." The ashes came together and reform Morning, with the only side effect being that the girls dreams and desires become his own for a short time while his DNA reasserts itself over hers. He has no recollection of the incident at first, instead seeing it come back as haunting flashbacks. Still, there are some vampires who won't come back after being slain, if it's done right. If it's done wrong, there's a good chance that the vampire will just heal him or herself, as most vampires have the ability to heal extremely quickly.
The number one way to get rid of a vampire is always a stake through the heart. Some vampires have the garlic aversion, while some don't. Max, the father of the lost boys in the 1980's vampire film, proves that not all vampires are allergic to garlic by stating "I love garlic." Again in The Lost Boys, Paul states "Garlic doesn't work, boys." However, in Vladimir Tod and most older vampire movies and novels, the bloodsuckers cannot stand to be around Italian foods. In the days of olden, whenever vampire activities were suspected within an area, garlic seemed to be a favorite. They would even stuff garlic in the mouths of dead victims of assumed vampires.
Another common assumption is that vampires cannot swim. Most vampires cannot drown, though some vampires cannot swim. Being carried in ships of other forms of transportation usually works in the case of a vampire who is H2O-intolerant. Holy water, on the other hand, is often very dangerous to vampires. There are some vampires who can stand it ((Once again, Vladimir Tod comes to mind as one of the most modern vampires)), while other vampires simply cannot be around it. Paul, one of the lost boys, faces his final death after being shoved into a bathtub full of holy water, as it disintegrated his flesh the same way acid would burn away a human's. Holy water is often sprinkled around windows or doorways in order to prevent a vampire from entering the building. Other religious symbols, such as the cross, crucifix, and Eucharist wafers, are very much the same. Some vampires who have a sense of humor wear crosses on necklaces. Some vampires can stand the Bible, some can't. It depends upon, once again, the type of vampires. More modern vampires have no problem seeing the Bible in most cases, while older vampires often do. Vampires who are even older than Christianity have no problem with it—if they were around before the Bible, why would they suddenly develop a fear of it? Walking into churches, once again, is the same.
Speaking of entering the building, some vampires must be invited into a building. If they aren't invited, they cannot enter. Period. Other vampires can walk in freely and face no side effects. Then there is the rare case of the vampire who can walk in, but if they are invited then any suspicious slayers have no way of proving the vampire of being one of the undead. This is shown in one of my favorite examples, The Lost Boys. Once Max is invited into the house, he can see his reflection in the mirror and isn't endangered by holy water. His way of explaining it was, "You never invite a vampire into your house, you silly boys. It renders you powerless."
Some of you may have heard the rumor that seeds can be used to slow down a vampire. The common theory is that vampires become so obsessed with counting each and every seed that they continue with this until morning, when they must run. Seeds, the most common being mustard and poppy, are then placed at windows and doorways to keep vampires out. As is the case with most modern vampires, this is no longer true. We have evolved.
Salt is another one that I would go far enough to say doesn't bother 90% of vampires anymore, and I personally can't see why it would. I do know, however, that I am one of the few that can't stand salt. I don't know why this is. If you put a line of salt in front of me, I would have to find a way around it. Salt would be also be sprinkled at windows and doorways. It does not harm me in any way—I simply cannot cross it.
The majority of vampires cannot see their reflections in mirrors. To some, this makes them increasingly jealous and angry of humans who can, and some go on mirror-smashing rampages. The rare vampire who can see their reflection chooses not to because, as Morning McCobb so bitterly put it, "Nothing ever changes." Michael, one of the victims of the lost boys, may or may not be a vampire who can see his reflection: When he looks into his brother Sam's mirror, his reflection exists but is extremely pale and translucent, making him appear like a ghost, and you can see Sam's hand behind Michael. However, it could also be argued that the reason Michael's image in the mirror is the way it is is due to the fact that he is only a half-vampire.
Some vampires bleed, others don't. I would be the bleeding type. The bleeding type can still bleed, but never die from loss of blood because a vampires body would heal too quickly to allow this. Others don't bleed, though it's unknown whether or not they have blood within their veins. The bleeding type can often share their blood with other vampires to make them more powerful. If needed, they can also drink their own blood when they cannot go out and get it fresh "from the source" as the characters of The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod would say.
Now that we've discussed weaknesses, you're probably wondering what vampires have on their side. One common myth is that vampires are impervious to age. This myth is, in fact, not a myth. Vampires do not age. Ever. Some vampires are thousands of years old, but could pass for a 25 year old. It's something humans always envy, especially women over the age of 30. However, this could be a downside. In Suck It Up, Portia Dredful makes Morning McCobb promise to let her lose a few pounds before he turns her into a vampire, because "Nothing ever changes" and she's afraid of being overweight forever. Short vampires never grow taller, long hair can never be cut, and short hair can never grow out. Claudia demonstrated this in Interview With A Vampire. Angry with herself, she cut all of her hair off, then turned to show it off. When she turned back around, it was all still there. However, as I personally have found out, it is possibly to dye it. However, it will never return to it's natural color without being dyed back.
Not all vampires go around wearing caps and tuxedos. Vampires have to dress like they belong in the current era, in order to avoid suspicion. Some, like myself, dye our hair. Others keep their appearance natural, but wear modern clothes. I've met vampires from 1905 who wore Abercrombie and Fitch.
All vampires heal extremely fast. Most have superhuman strength, speed, and senses. Some have better hearing and noses than dogs. Some vampires can levitate, while others can simply flat-out fly, and others are stuck on the ground. A few vampires have the ability to shape shift. Dracula could shape shift into mist, allowing him to get in places through cracks and crevices. My friend, who doesn't want his name in this, can shape shift as well, but he keeps showing off to a minimum. Some vampires, as stated previously, can be resurrected. Some vampires are capable of hypnotism, and others of telepathy. My anonymous friend is capable of both, I believe, and I am only capable of the latter, for an example of the different 'species' of vampires. Dracula was capable of scaling walls just like Spiderman, but as far as I'm aware he is the only one. The very rare vampire can control the weather, which comes in handy to those of us who don't sleep.
That brings us to another point—the debate over sleep. Some vampires sleep in coffins, though they are becoming increasingly rare as of late. Some vampires can sleep in normal beds, while some don't sleep at all. The clan I belong in doesn't sleep, and instead we have to pass the time with the curtains closed throughout the day, waiting for the sun to set. We can go out on cloudy days, but at the first sign of sunlight we run.
Reproduction—at one point, thought to be impossible. However, half-vampires, as my clan recently found out, do exist. And they are becoming increasingly popular with the decrease of morals in the world. Even with all the time in the world to do research and two half-vampires living with us, so little is known about this race that I won't go into much detail. I will say that it requires a male vampire and a human female every time, as a female vampire no longer has functional reproductive organs ((Did I seriously just say "reproductive organs?" I feel so professional.)) Always, the abilities and weaknesses of the half-vampire depend upon those of the father.