Vampiric Studies: Classical Vampires

Classicals, also known as Classics, are what most people visualize when they think of a Vampire. In movies and literature it is said that Classicals have been 'Brought Across', meaning brought across the threshold of death; or having been 'turned', meaning transformed from a living human into a not living Vampire. This is of course a fictional vampire, real Classical Vampires are NOT dead or undead.

Fictionalized versions of Classicals are the kind of Vampires you see portrayed on 'Forever Knight', and in Ann Rice novels. Dracula, in all of his incarnations, was supposed to be this type of Vampire, purely from Bram Stoker’s imagination.

We all know that Vlad Tepes was given the name of Drakul, which meant Dragon. Vlad's' father was known as The Dragon due to his leading association with an order called The Dragon. Vlad inherits the name, and an 'A' is added, meaning 'Son of', thus Dracula = Son of the Dragon. He may have been a bit mad, but he is still considered quite a hero in his home land.

Another meaning for the word Drakul is 'Devil'... given by the church at the time, for the inhumanity of the acts committed. As you all know, his name -- Vlad, the Impaler -- came about from his impaling both his own people that he felt to be traitors and the soldiers of opposing armies. He impaled them on large stakes. This line of impaled bodies stretched for miles from the battlefield leading into his town. The impaling was done, in an effort to appall and terrorize the attacking armies, despite the fact that they had Vlad vastly out-numbered. Not too surprisingly ... it worked. They felt he was insane. Horrified by the inhumanity, they simply retreated, with Vlad's army close behind in pursuit.

As to Vlad's drinking blood, I personally think he or his men started that story to frighten all who opposed him. However, it was the style of the times to partake of the blood or heart of he whom you had vanquished; providing you believed him to be brave and strong. It was a common practice. It was believed that Vlad made a pact with Satan on the death of his love. That is why Classicals are still believed, in some places, to be servants of the devil and to have come from hell.

The pale, gaunt appearance of Classicals, in film and press, is purely fiction and the beliefs of the day. If you were dead, you lost weight. If you had no blood and were dead or newly dead, you were pale; as in 'Pale as a Corpse', etc. It was once believed a Classical had to drink blood, not only for nourishment but to replenish his blood supply, which he did not have because he was believed to be dead.

A Classic, having fed well, is believed to look quite human; rosy cheeks, bright eyes, etc. But when the blood began to dissipate, the corpse-like appearance returned: sunken eyes, gaunt, drawn and with pale skin. The red or yellow blazing eyes comes from the church view that vampires are Minions of the Devil and are from hell. It was believed that Vampires, Classicals especially, could change to any animal, including: large cats, such as tigers, black leopards and black pumas, as well as dogs, wolves, bats or rats; not to mention fog and smoke. After all, they are Demons and can do anything, can't they? Of course not, but that was church view.

Real Classicals can only be infected by one who is already infected. The ones who claim to be undead (a fictional term) say they are killed by the draining of blood unto death and then revived into the undead state. This is purely fiction.

An actual Classical needs to feed immediately, i.e.: to ingest fresh, living blood to restore health, vigor etc. Young ones - newly infected ones, usually have a hard time dealing with the rush of new emotions, strength and mental capabilities. Most do desperately try to maintain their humanity and it is always a struggle.

The real medical evidence suggests that today’s Classicals are infected by the mixing of bodily fluids or blood with the Parent i.e., the Father or Mother who infected them. (Father or Mother does not mean the biological parent, rather it means the male or female who spread the infection). This causes either a genetic imbalance, because of the mixing of affected DNA, or the effects of enzymes or viruses which slowly affect the changes noticed.

Sometime, long ago, a human was infected with the Inheritor retrovirus containing the mutagen. This human's ability to be infected was due to his or her possibly unique body chemistry, or maybe the specific Inheritor's retrovirus was mutated further. This human became the first Classical Vampire. Old writings even speculated that after this human was infected, he/she became ill, as the altered mutagen tried to adapt to the alien body chemistry. But, instead of dying, the first Classical was born.

The highly volatile nature of the new mutagen meant more blood was necessary. As the old retrovirus mutagen began reshaping, the human's own unique chemistry adapted the mutagen. Thus, a new breed was born. This may account for the difficulty in creating new Classicals. Perhaps it is the rare individual with the correct body chemistry who can be infected.

As far as infecting children and babies ...

As for babies, I think it is not done for several reasons. One is practicality. An adolescent or baby Vampyre is a pointless creation. But mostly because it is impossible. It is believed testosterone or estrogen levels are needed as catalyst for the retrovirus to infect. Children, before the onset of puberty, lack the appropriate levels.

Classicals, like Inheritors, must ingest blood. It is a biological need, not a psychological one. The criticism here is that blood cannot be digested through the human stomach and broken down into proteins and other nourishments. This is indeed true and a medical fact. It is one of the chief reasons why the existence of vampires is disbelieved, as such. However, the point to remember here, is that blood is not broken down into its nutrients in the 'normal human stomach'. Those persons with what medicine calls today, 'The Physical Vampire Condition' do break down the substances. We are not speaking of Porphyria, the illness, here just yet.

The Physical Vampire Condition is the term for today's real Classicals, Inheritors, Nighttimers and Genetics. If these people do not ingest blood for real food ... nourishment ... they get progressively weaker, feel ill, experience aches and pains. Even though real Vampires can and do eat regular food as well, if they do not ingest blood, persons with the Physical Vampire Condition will die without blood transfusions. It is a VERY SERIOUS MATTER.

Attributes And Problems

Almost all true Vampires have the same or quite similar problems, including sensitivity, in varying degrees, to light and sun; even indoor lighting and the lights in night clubs. Some blister very badly, some deeply burn, some pass out, others suffer heat stroke. Most have Day-Glare Blindness, similar to humans who experience snow blindness or night blindness. Most CAN go out into the day, but really would rather not. All tend to feel ill and weak during the day and better and stronger as darkness descends.

Porphyria is a blood disease which manifests itself in the paling of the skin, a red rash about the mouth and nose, and rendering its' victims very hard to wake by day. This was also a cause of the legends. We all know about relatives nailing dead bodies into coffins to keep them from rising and spreading the illness which killed them in the first place. This is how STAKING began. Mostly those who died without a known reason, or died of consumption, now called TB, were staked in such a manner.

Children who died before baptism were staked as well, as it was believed that they were doomed and going straight to hell where the devil made them into little demons. I am sure some parents feel exactly this way about their little darlings today as well, without them dying. (According to modern beliefs of most Christian churches, children who die before baptism are considered innocents and favored by God, because they are innocent of mans' sins. This view has changed since early times when it was believed that any unbaptized soul who died was directly scooped up by the devil. But such is now no longer considered a reality)

In truth, real Vampires try to live as normal a lifestyle as they can. And most real Vampires keep away from humans and human affairs, as much as they are able.

Ahem ... now we get into touchy realms. Real feeding is mostly by bite, but not in the neck. With the nerves, muscles and veins it is really dangerous if you do not know what you are doing. The reason for the fictional biting of the neck originated with the true belief that the carotid artery in the neck, where the pulse is normally taken (as opposed to the radial pulse, in the wrist) is the direct arterial link to the heart. It is not a vein, but an artery.

For the youngest and newly infected ones, they have a condition called 'New Blood' or 'New Bloods'. The surge of developing senses is overwhelming after being infected. The power and temptation to do something to take advantage -- JUST BECAUSE YOU CAN -- is very strong.

With sudden surges of strength and psychic ability, many young ones (newly infected vampires) go a little crazy until things level out in their brains and bodies. That is why a newly infected real Vampire is never left alone but constantly guided into the world he has just entered.

Classical Vampires all have the same problems and strengths, but Inheritors do not have these problems. Immortal and Eternal. There is really no such thing as immortal. All Vampires can die. Their lives, their existence (whatever you wish to call it) can end. If you drop a safe on a Vampire from a tall building he will probably die.

But Vampires do tend to survive bad injuries, regenerate and re-grow some organs and limbs, as well as teeth. It takes huge amounts of fresh, living blood to keep a severely injured Vampire alive -- in other words, lots of donors. This is true for all Vampires, Classicals and Inheritors alike.

And now I am going to let you all in on a private joke of sorts. Within the world of the Classical there is an in joke, probably begun by the Inheritors, anyway they began calling the Classicals 'Pales.'

Why?

The original mythological connection to the Undead myth. A vampire was either dead and just stayed that way or, Undead, given some unholy life by Lucifer. Of course, if you where dead, you where pale, hence the name. Today most Inheritors still refer to Classicals as 'Pales' and many Classicals have taken or adopted the title as their own.

It is the 'in' joke of most real Vamp communities. But we must remember, Classicals are not undead, but are living beings.

Another in joke, is the term used to distinguish extremely old Classical Vampires. Who are believed to have lived so long in time that they have gone insane.

The age of these vampires is unknown, but believed to be older than the oldest Inheritor. The term for this type of vampire is Gaunt. Again, a play on old films and books.

The ancient vampires, such as portrayed in the film Nosferatu, are very old and very ugly, unlike the Classicals portrayed in Dracula films by Bela Lugosi and Christopher Lee who were more seductive and romantic figures.

The age of gaunts is not readily known, it is said they live exceptionally long, thousands of years. But there is no vampiric record, either by Inheritors or Classicals, of what age one might reach.

The extreme age, you might say, is likened to older humans who have Alzheimers and were in past days thought of as being demented or insane. Gaunts are believed to be insane and exceptionally strong.

There are several vampire communities, in New York City, who believe there to be at least one Gaunt living deep beneath the subway tunnels of Manhattan. Whether or not this is Urban Legend, I do not know.

Letters from a Classical

And now we have a new addition to this class. Something I never thought would happen. A Classical, i.e. Pale, and I have been corresponding for several years. Though, like most of the Classicals, he usually was reluctant in discussing the war or anything else. Since he knew both an Inheritor official and a high-ranking Classical had asked everyone to no longer include me in conversations of this sort.

But once in a while, someone gets tired of holding in his opinion and in very recent letters between this Classical and I he told me how HE felt. All I can say is he is a very close 'Unnamed Reliable Source.'

Please note: To help you read these letters more clearly the questions I’ve asked, my letters are in BLUE and his are in RED.

I am afraid I can be no help to you for the website you speak of, but if I could perhaps give a bit of advice on the information contained therein. Remember that all information, unless experienced first hand, has two additional and different possible scenarios as the one you are presented with. I found in reviewing the site that the work, while the intent seems to present an unbiased approach to some of the types of vampires that exist today, weighs heavily one sided with that of the true borne mentality and justification system.

You are absolutely right about the site being somewhat partisan. There is a reason for it. The first is, like you, no Classical, i.e. Pale, wants to share their side or their politics with a non-Classical.

Once, about 4 years ago, against everybody's advice I invited a Classical who was involved in the civil war to come to our boards to tell his side of it. He could not have come there without my invitation. But I wanted everybody to hear his side because I somewhat sympathized with him. Once he had made his way onto the boards, a stupid human challenged him to prove he was real. Well, you must know the law. He was going to find her and kill her to prove he was real, and he would have had every right under the law to do so. He could not be stopped by legal vampiric law. At least that's what he threatened to do. He also threatened to harm me and to harm C., if N didn't do exactly as he asked. In other words, he blackmailed N. into doing something which undoubtedly changed the course of the war. Because of that many bornes have died. And as with Nighttimers, are on the verge of extinction. Which will leave an unbalanced world and humans in peril.

There are many points in the Classical's case I agree with. That's why I asked this Classical to speak at our forum. What I got in return for my trust were threats and blackmail. You also should remember that Nighttimers ARE bornes, and although I do sympathize with many Classical points about the negative aspects of politics and commerce that Classicals face, and the often overwhelming elitist attitude of bornes, My only contact with a Classical, other than you, was to be used. Now, I can't totally blame him for this, using me I mean. I actually felt it would happen. And I was warned it would happen. I just did not realize people's lives would be at stake. The person in question, actually told me he had used me. He said the war was a chess game and I was a pawn. Pawns are expendable, and made to be used, to sacrifice. He also said, N and his forces would never win this war because N refused to sacrifice his pawns. And was influenced too much by non-vampire friendships. He also said 'the ends justify the means, any means to get what you need' this Classical needed N to do something he refused to do, so instead of coming onto the boards to honestly tell his side of the events and win human support and perhaps vampire support. My invitation to him brought disaster, because as of now it looks like his predictions were correct. And this is only one reason the site is somewhat partisan.

How can you expect me to give information about the 'other' side if no one will tell me? The Classical I speak of forbid anyone from telling me anything after this incident. Over it I lost a friend, got a young girl almost killed, got myself and C. (who is himself a Classical) into a lot of danger. All because I tried to give a Classical a platform from which to air his views.

I speak for no others but myself. I have my own views, values, interpretations of law and so forth.

Having just said such, I can tell you that every pale also shares this exact same view towards everything in this life cycle. I imagine your friend C. would agree. Truth be told, I do not care for the war, the ways of olde, or the elitist attitudes of anyone. When it comes right down to it, pales have had to fight and claw their way to any goal they desired. It is likely never given to them and in most situations, we do not live in packs or with the one who created us; which as you know is the direct opposite of true bornes. If you would allow for an analogy, pales are the black sheep of the vampire race; the ones who seemingly cause the most problems, etc.

Regardless of laws set forth, most pales are not interested in joining the debate. Most simply do not care if anyone believes or sympathizes with them. Most do not need to be accepted or admired or befriended for such acts. Most have little interact with humans, save for a small few they choose to tolerate.

Pale numbers vastly outweigh those of the true borne, as I am certain you know, and yet there is still war. To simplify matters to a most basic form and say that this is a war between some seventy or so bornes against thousands of pales seems a bit absurd does it not? The fact is, if there was such misgivings across the board from one species to the next, they would all be gone by now, do you not agree? While information may be hard in forthcoming from all sides to you, I ask that you only look at what lays before you now.

Start not with facts and historical data, but from your experiences with your friend C., or other pales. In seeing the individual, you will have in your grasp the beginnings of it all.

If this is accurate, why are they still fighting the war, if they do not care for such matters as pertain to the war? And the main issue of the war, the domination of the human race by vampires, economically, politically, and basically only as an on-going food source.

This is the lesser of two evils my friend. The fact is, to be quite honest, there are some. a good many, who disagree with the actions of the whole. Many want change, but at what price leaves a bad taste for most.

There is war; indeed, I think you would be surprised to see how chaotic it is within this species. It is why there is no progress... but I digress.

I cannot tell you how many times I have heard the 'on-going food source' debate. It is a pile of rubbish. Another fact taken out of skew for the benefit of another. We are not monsters. Like all people across this turning stone, we want a fair share; we want what everyone else already has. I have many friends, who are unlike myself, some of whom I cherish most deeply.

This is a wonderment to me. Because even though Bornes have given me reasons, I don't understand why Pales haven't won outright. And that's just the problem, I AM looking at what's before me. I can't bring forth discretionary information if no one will give it to me because of the orders of only two men. One Classical and one Borne.

It is nothing more than a strategic plan, if you ask me. One does not take out the self-described hero; least they want to make him a martyr, yes?

There are so many lines in this twisted rope that many do not understand.

I have. That is why I'm in trouble with the Bornes and many of my own kind that are left. For having an affinity and sympathy for the Pale outlook on these matters. And what do we learn from, if we do not learn from history?

History has come, and it will pass once more, still these issues will stand. It is nature, survival of the fittest. Once this war and our species have died and been long forgotten, another will stand in its place.

Harmony, Peace, Hope. these are things which lay within those who will come a millennium after all of us have gone. Sad. I would enjoy nothing more that the opportunity to visit a friend, sit and talk for an afternoon. Perhaps the next time around... May the days between keep you well.

Feed well, everyone,
As ever,
Catherene NightPoe

The next class in the series is The Inheritor Vampire. Click on the link below to enter the world of ...
The Inheritor Vampires

1.	~ Introduction ~	11.	Sexual Vampires
2.	Classical Vampires	12.	Parent's Page
3.	Inheritor Vampires	13.	Historical Vampires
4.	Night ~ Timers	14.	Myth Origins
5.	Genetic Vampires	15.	Myths Continued
6.	Psi ~ Vampires	16.	Native American Myth
7.	~ Bloodists ~	17.	The Prophecies
8.	Medical Reality	18.	Knights Templar
9.	Real Hunters	19.	~ F. A. Q. ~
10.	Real Predators	20.	Acknowledgments
	Teacher's Lounge