Supernatural Task Force: The Wolf and the Ancient.

Vampire Tipping

Detective Lieutenant David Rigby drove up to the crime scene. There was already a paramedic van at the sight. Dave saw that his aide, Sergeant Andrea Meadow was talking to the paramedics as he drove up in the old BMW he owned.

Andrea's little Toyota Civic was parked to one side. Behind the yellow crime scene tape were a dozen statues that appeared to be people. Three of the statues were laying on the ground, in poses that suggested that they were originally standing.

Dave pulled up and got out of his care. Straightening his suit as he walked to the small group of people talking outside of the crime scene tape. "Sergeant, what is the situation."

"Vamps, sir." Andrea gestured to the statues that resembled people. "It appears that a bunch of kids came over here and found them early this morning. Before the sun had completely cleared the horizon. One of the kids got bit."

Dave ducked under the crime scene tape. He saw the body among the vamps who were frozen by the sun. Despite knowing that the diseased people were frozen by the sunlight, Dave was careful not to get to close. Some might be further along then everyone thought. It wasn't unusual for rogues like these to be playing possum in order to get a little blood.

That would make him infected, which would mean patch treatments until the vampirism was cured. Except that David was immune to the disease, but he didn't want it to be common knowledge. So he would have to endure the patch treatments. Besides that the bites were painful.

The young man laying on the ground was infected. From what Dave could tell, after being bit he must of become paralyzed and fell to the ground. Dave couldn't understand why they paramedics hadn't come in and taken him out. Until Dave realized that the boy was dead, not infected.

"The kids that were with him said they were tipping vampires when one of them turned on the boy there and drained him." Andrea said. "When the one attacked him, they ran off, afraid of getting infected."

"They knew that most of the time a rogue will take just enough blood to hide." Dave mused. "Planned to come back or just called police."

"They came back and found him dead." Andrea said. "Then they called the cops."

"Well, lets get patches on them, then have the vampire pickup truck bring them to the detox center." David looked at the ground. Seeing a mix of footprints. "Too bad no one knew this was a crime scene. Aside from the kids there should be another set of footprints going out from the scene."

Most of the vamps were teenagers, who were the most vulnerable. That and the hormones in the blood provided extra stimulus for vampires. Some teens actually allowed themselves to be infected, despite the public service announcements warning them. There were misconceptions concerning immortality, power, and predatory nature of the vampire that attracted teenagers.

Young vampires spend much of the night trying to get their food, which is blood cells. The disease depletes the blood cells causing a craving for blood. The younger the vampire the stronger the craving. In older vampires the blood craving isn't as strong, their bodies become used to the depleted blood cell count. Sunlight causes paralysis. In addition long term exposure to the disease causes genetic mutation which causes cellular regeneration at an extremely accelerated rate. Lack of blood will make vampires sluggish and they begin to age until they get blood to renew their cells.

Starving young vampires are so concerned with obtaining blood in any quantity that they often end up in the open when the sun comes up. This causes them to slow down and essentially become paralyzed. Making the young vampires targets for a teenage activity of vampire tipping.

Dave found what he was looking for. A single set of tracks leading into the nearby woods. The vamp had totally drained a victim. Starving or not, a vampire never kills a victim these days. Killing brings the vampire hunters like David.

The older vampires tend to be sociopaths. They don't kill because they care too much about their own existence to take the chance on someone like David. Who was on the supernatural task force or STF would find them and take them into custody.

The punishment for killing a mortal was death. Turning a vampire against their will was death. Making unregistered vampires was starvation until the vampire fell into the death sleep. In which they had terrible nightmares they can't wake up from.

In time the starving vampire is given blood and the punishment is over, unless they violate the restriction code again at which time their punishment is death. That was the basic justice code for vampires.

Most vampire infections come from young, new made unregistered vampires who are starving. These young vampires are often captured and given a patch with the cure in it. These are often vampires created by younger vampires who don't care about registration, only getting their blood from their next victim.

After receiving the cure patch the vamps are taken to an isolated place to help them get over their blood withdraws which happens during the cure. Once the vampire detoxes the cure is complete and they no longer have blood desires. Any mutations though the victim retains. This is usually limited to elongated teeth, ears, seeing in the dark, and many other minor changes and abilities.

With a full tank of blood from the kid, Dave doubted that this vampire was any place close. Once the vamp took all of the kid's blood it would have much more energy. At least the energy of a mortal who had stayed up all night, the paralysis wouldn't effect it. Dave wasn't going to find the vamp by himself, and it might still be active if he did. Dave wasn't willing to be bit.

"Get a few uniforms to search the woods. Let them know the thing is still likely to be active." Dave told Andrea. "I want to look over the kids' statements and once the vamps are at detox and are rested I want statements from them too."

Dave went back to the area where the vamps had been. Their statue like bodies had been removed. In the muddy field where they had been lay the body. Undisturbed as the paramedics removed the vamps. Pictures had been taken, they would be on his desk when he got back.

Dave bent over the body and looked for the signs. Before the body could be taken out of sunlight, Dave had to check it. Even drained completely of blood the vamp disease could reanimate the corpse making it a brain damaged blood starved vampire. The most dangerous. It wouldn't stop killing people until it was killed.

To be assured that wouldn't be the case Dave examined the corpse. Afterwards Dave put two bullets into the back of the neck. Severing the spinal cord from the skull. Causing paralysis if the thing reanimated and became of monster.

A stake will also cause a similar paralysis if driven through the heart. Only cutting off the vamp's head, letting the blood drain out of the corpse and burning the whole thing would assure that a vampire was dead. Patches were usually used on vampires to cure them, but the undead monsters like this kid could turn into the patches didn't work.

Somewhere there was a killer vampire. It had killed a kid, when it wasn't necessary or even had a need from hunger. Usually a pint of blood was all one needed. About what was donated during a blood donation. Seldom enough to kill a healthy kid.

This vamp had taken what was needed from the kid, then, no longer starving it continued. It had kept going until it sucked the victim dry of blood. Causing not only death, but the possibility of the corpse reanimating into a monster.

All of the statements were the same. There were ten kids in all, the sun was just coming up, the vamps weren't moving. The kids started tipping the vamps, who would struggle at first then freeze up again. The usual reaction. Vamps prefer to be paralyzed while standing. Something instinctual. If knocked down they tended to struggle a little to stand, but simply don't have the strength.