Many Sentients argue the existence of vampires, and whether they should be considered Mystics or Fables. Vampires were originally considered Fables until 2,067 AE, when an incident in the Felinic Gallamor caused their re-categorisation into Mystics. However, the incident was not very well-documented and has been the cause for a lot of arguments over the years and, with the lack of other proven vampire attacks and the old documents being re-examined by scholars, there came arguments about whether the incident in the Gallamor was due to real vampires, or a cult of fanatics. Because of the lack of modern reports, vampires were re-categorised again in 8,583 AE and put back into the Fables category.
Vampires are believed to be a person infected with a magical virus that targets the brain and causes a ravenous addiction to blood and flesh. Those infected with vampirism have a sensitivity to sunlight, a resistance to telepathy and mind-reading, and find themselves able to harness their physical strength better than the uninfected.
Vampires form groups of infected people called covens, ranging from in the tens, to in the thousands. Each group has a head vampire referred to as a “monarch.” Monarchs are the only contagious vampires in a group, and are the soul infecter of all their subordinate vampires. They have a psychic connection to all people they infect and are able to speak directly into their brain, and often know how to cause severe discomfort or pain if their orders are not followed.
There are rumours that if the leader of a coven is killed or dies of natural causes, there is the chance for the vampires they infected to recover from the virus. It is said that if they do not feed for a month after the death of their monarch, their body will be able to fight off the infection and they will recover. However, if they feed after the death of their monarch, they will become a monarch, themselves, and become contagious.
It is also thought that that some vampires have been able to quell their addictions and leave their covens to blend into society and live normal lives; though this has never been proven as nobody has ever publicly admitted to being a vampire and all known accusations have been disproven.
There are arguments as to whether or not the virus stops the ageing process and gives vampires extended lifespans. The general consensus by most who claim to have come into contact with vampires is that it does not.
Demrefor 