VAMPIRIC FEEDING, METHODS AND CAUTION
DONOR: A person willingly acting as an energy source whether by blood or psi means.
SIGHT: The ability some individuals have which allows them to see things 'not of the physical'. Can include visions, healers, and basic psychics.
AURA: The surrounding personal energy of a living being.
There are two main types of feeding: blood feeding, and Psi feeding. The need to feed can sometimes be known by unpredictable behavior. Most people will write this off as 'mood swings'. It generally happens when you are in fairly dire need to feed. Another 'symptom' of energy hunger is the feeling of being depleted, drained, tired more often and generally just run down. Sometimes a vampire can become more susceptible to disease and general allergies when their energy level drops significantly. A good healthy 'meal' leaves the vampire feeling energized, more lively and 'awake' feeling than before. Energy manipulation and certain 'talents' may also contribute to faster draining of a vampire's energy level and may increase the regularity requirement of feeding and increase the amount needed.
BLOOD FEEDING
Both bloodletting and blood-drinking can be very hazardous activities, not a game. The risks of disease transmission, infection, permanent scarring or other injury are very high if one is not careful. Sang vamps should only feed when they require it, and should usually require a very small amount during each 'session'.
The first thing you should know is your own blood will not do as a substitute. A vampire can not feed from themselves, as this is a pointless activity and can lead to confusion and prolonged lack of feeding. Further attempting to drain yourself in this fashion can also lead to damage which may become permanent in time.
Many Sang vampires use a Donor as their blood energy source. There are several very important things to know before obtaining a donor or attempting to ingest blood of any sort:
* Make sure your sources are 'consenting adults'
* Make them get tests done before you do anything. Don't ever think 'It' can't happen to you
* Have them (the donor), not you, do the honors if at all possible. It is technically an act of assault and battery to shed someone else's blood. Or have them sign some form of consent - it may not help much if they attempt to accuse you, but at least you will have something in your defence indicating that you did not attack them. Be as sanitary as possible.
* Study Gray's Anatomy. It's got lots of useful color diagrams of the human anatomy. This way, you won't end up maiming or possibly killing someone because the veins, arteries, tendons, muscles, etc. weren't quite where you thought they would be.
* Do not ever take somebody against his or her will, or if he/she seems even the slightest bit unsure as to whether he/she really wants to go through with it. Trust what your intuition is telling you, but don't necessarily rely on it blindly. Have respect for another person's body, as they do to yours.
* Learn First Aid. Know First Aid. Be prepared to use First Aid. The human body is not invincible. It's a good idea to have sterile pads and gauze or other appropriate dressings for wherever you're taking blood from.
Useful and important tests that are recommended your donor take before you accept blood from them are listed below.
1. CBC (complete blood count)
This includes numbers and appearance
of: red blood cells, white blood cells, (plus a differential that breaks the
white blood cells down into types) platelets, hemoglobin and hematocrit (the
oxygen carrying component of red blood cells). The cbc will tell you if the
donor is anemic, in which case you run the risk of making them ill by lowering
their oxygen carrying blood cells. It also can detect viral and bacterial
illness by the deviation of the white blood cells from the norm, and certain
other conditions such as too few, or too many platelets (the clotting cells).
This test is a preliminary that would pick up such conditions as leukemia,
also, although that would have to be confirmed through follow-up testing.
2. CHEM 20 (also called a SMAC, or chemical profile)
Includes electrolytes, kidney function tests, liver function tests, blood glucose, total cholesterol, etc. The chem 20, or smac, will tell you if the donor has certain other conditions such as diabetes, kidney disease, or liver disease (a very important consideration for blood transfers, as hepatitis is spread widely through the use of blood products).
3. VDRL (also know by other names)
This is a blood serum test for sexually transmitted diseases including syphilis, gonorrhea, chlamidia, etc., but excluding HIV. The vrdl is pretty self explanatory. Most of the sexually transmitted diseases can be spread just as rapidly through blood products.
4. HIV or ELISA test, followed by a WESTERN BLOT
Specifically for HIV / AIDS. The elisa, or HIV test, obviously is the main test anyone who is dealing with blood and blood products is concerned about.
One of the very best ways to have these tests run at no cost to you or your donor is to have the donor give blood to the local blood bank first. All these tests are run on any blood donation. If there is anything out of the ordinary with any of them, the blood bank is very quick to tell you that the donation cannot be used and the reason. They may also ask for a family doctor's name to send the results to, if treatment for any condition is warranted. Also remember that these same risks also apply to animal blood donors, and it is recommended that you have any donor animals tested for these and similar blood transferred nasties.
The hunger and need for blood by many Sang vamps can be 'held back' in ways other than bloodletting with a willing donor. Red Gatorade mixed with a little bit of orange juice, beef broth and liquid multivitamins is very nutritious and has a similar taste to blood for those vampires who enjoy the flavour. However, the energy otherwise obtained by the blood drinking can not be obtained from the vitamins and protein in the beef, as if this was the case then one wouldn't really be a vampire at all. This method is purely for aesthetic appeal, or to 'hold off' the hungry feeling until proper access to viable energy is available.
Another alternative is rare steaks and other meat, still juicy. Blood from a rare/medium-rare steak is not the same as fresh, but it will keep you from going completely mad. A word of caution: Don't cook hamburger or ground meat rare or less-cooked than a very good medium-rare, unless at a restaurant where a professional cook can manage it without the risks. There's the chance of it having E. coli, which is a surface bacteria, and might not get killed in a hamburger/ground meat if it's not cooked fully. E. coli gets eliminated when cooked, so if it IS present on a steak or something of that nature, then it won't be on the inside, just the surface and will be destroyed and safe to consume.
PSI FEEDING
Much less risk than pure blood feeding, but it can be slightly more difficult to 'master'. The aim here is to gain outside energy, either free roaming or held within something else, such as a living being (animal, human body, plant). Many psi vampires can accomplish this automatically, without their own knowledge or control, but others find it difficult to accomplish for even a small session of feeding.
Firstly, you must know what you are gaining the energy from. This is not in the sense of wether human or animal, but in the non-physical aspect of your target(s). For example, attempting to psi feed from a depressed, angsty or psychically 'broken' person can result in 'tainted' energy that will do you very little good, and could make you feel worse for the effort. Usually people with 'sight' can single out these kinds of undesirable energy, but for most psi feeders, it's all the same and gathered in without second thought. Through practise though, you will learn to tell the difference between 'good' energy and 'bad' energy, and siphon out the bad before it can do harm. This is also true for blood feeders, as the energy within the blood will carry the same undesirable effects, even if the donor is 'clean' in all medical ways.
The best method of Psi feeding is to place yourself in a crowd, or visit a crowded place. Usually shopping malls, amusement parks and sporting arenas are good examples. There you can simply sit in a quiet place and soak up the amounts of free form energy that is naturally given of by the human body during any kind of action. So for this method, you will not even have to actually take from anyone. This is especially good for 'newly awakened' psi vampires, as it will help them to learn how to manipulate free energy before attempting to harness it from something else. Visualization works extremely well here. If you have particularly strong perception you may even be able to 'feel' the energy around you, thus making it easier to envision it gathering around you, and soaking in.
Another method used by most psi, is using small energy manipulation to 'extend the aura' in order to gain access to the energy within another's surrounding aura presence. This can be done by visualizing 'straws' or tendrils of varying thickness and size, reaching towards the targeted energy presence, and siphoning the energy back into your own self. Always use caution that you make the feed transition ONE WAY, so as not to accidentally bleed off the energy you're gathering back into the other person. This can take some time to get working efficiently, and there is a need for control as to how much or how long you spend taking from any one particular entity.
A similar method to the tendril, is the engulfing of the entire energy source by your 'shadow self' otherwise known as a projection of your astral self made up of your aura energies, in much the same way as the tendrils and straws were formed. Some vampires use a visualization of themselves reaching inside the energy source and extracting the energy required right from the soul itself. Again caution and control needs to be established so as not to leave any damage, or any 'evidence' that you have been there. Some forms of psi feeding can be later detected by 'sight' or other rituals well after the vampire has finished with them.
Another thing to be careful about is another person's shielding. If you attempt to feed from a shielded person, several things may happen. If it's a very simple shield, you may just 'hit a brick wall' and gain no access. However, if it happens to be someone adept in shielding you might be in for more of a shock, ranging from backlash into draining your own energy, to actual inner damage that will take you a long time of feeding and manipulation to heal.
Another easy way of feeding is to become an energy 'sponge'. A lot of automatic psi feeders practise this method without realizing it. they become a virtual 'black hole' of energy. Anyone not shielded around them will suffer varying degrees of energy loss, including other vampires. Not only do you gather any free standing energy, but when this is depleted, you will begin siphoning off from others around you. For some this type of feeding is only during intense depletion times, and seems to stop or back off after the needed level of energy is reached. However, for a lot of others the feeding is continual, despite how much energy has already been gained. This can sometimes result in an 'energy high' where a vampire may feel 'buzzed' or hyperactive for no particular reason or all of a sudden. These types of psi feeders can be dangerous to newly awakened vampires or those who haven't yet managed to acquire shielding or secure methods of energy feeding yet.
A favoured method between partners is the close contact feeding, often sexual psi feeders practise this method most. Any close contact, or even a 'love' biting over the neck, wrist, or any other prominent vein can achieve the 'link' required to gain the energy. Visualization of the 'fangs' drawing into the vein and sucking the energy through the blood and up each fang, much as a venomous snake's fang is hollow for the venom. Some vampires can feel a tingling in their 'fangs' during this feeding. Often this method is associated with partners or close friends, as the experience can be extremely pleasurable and relaxing with a talented feeder.
Some 'older' vampires, or those with natural talent have the ability to give energy as well as take it. Mostly this is used in healing situations or in giving aide to a newly awakened vampire or struggling feeder.
Above all caution should always be used for both feeding types and all methods. What you take in non-physically is the same as what you take in through food. Some is good for you, some bad. Also remember that vampiric feeding is NO substitute for food or liquid. Always maintain a healthy diet and take care of yourself. Healthy vampires will find that their energy depletion is significantly less than an unhealthy vamp.
OmniShift and it's contents © "Raksha" RJ Boettcher, unless otherwise stated. Do Not reproduce in whole or part any of the material within without express permission of the author/artist/creator. Unless otherwise stated.