 Anatomy of Blood
Much has been speculated on the nature of Vitae and the blood within Kindred, and this treatise hopes to study and explain various properties.
Composition of BloodFirstly, we must remember to separate out the various components of what we define Vitae - which remember means Life, for it is what gives us life. Human blood consists of several substances: plasma, the nutrient liquid; red and white blood cells (haemocytes, corpuscles, phagocytes etc.), various enzymes, and assorted hormones, neurotransmitters, adenosine tri-phosphate and the myriad other biochemical products of the living body. Tied up in all of this is Quintessence, the fifth element of ancient lore, which is life - and this is what is most important to vampires. Quintessence makes up the human avatar, or soul, and so by feeding from Quintessence we are in essence taking a part of their soul, or soul-energy. (See the separate treatise on Avatars for a fuller treatment.) I should note that we also need the water, oxygen and other products for maintenance of the body, but it is the Quintessence which powers the process. It is the living matter which is most important to us, which is why blood is best straight from the artery, because we are feeding from the fresh life force. After leaving the body blood quickly begins to lose its Quintessence as the cells begin to die. It also loses its heat which is necessary to keep the blood alive, but also makes the Kiss a more pleasing experience - feeling the heat of a living being surging through one's flesh. Stored blood loses the individuality of its Avatar quite quickly, especially when mixed with others', and so, as well as its "nutritional value" (to ghoulishly borrow a modern mortal term) being lower, it is also less satisfying. Blood products - plasma, and various separated cells - are of little or no value as a form of sustenance to us, because of the small amounts of Quintessence that are left in them, especially when processed by High Scientific methods.
Vampire DigestionWhat happens to the blood within a Vampire? Kindred dissection is an unpleasant process, usually only carried out on unwilling victims, or the newly dead undead (an amusing term in itself. Perhaps we can call them the Re-deceased?). Kindred intestines differ widely, but essentially have an elaborate membrane system made of collapsed organs, which filters blood directly into the body. As we know, the heart does not pump blood, but Quintessence diffuses about the body by osmosis. (See Decapitation: Heart, Brain and Anatomy.)
Blood Pool, the Soul and DiablerieThe blood pool is a measure of how much Quintessence the body can store, dependant on how powerful is the Black Avatar which is the vampire's "soul". We can visualise the Vampire soul as a tank. (If it is necessary for this imaginative exercise, we can picture one painted black, filled with blood, embellished with lots of little skulls with pointy teeth). This tank is the hole left by the original human avatar, and now taken up by the Black Avatar. When the human died, the tank was emptied, and filled up with the original Vampiric Vitae which made them undead. The holding-capacity of this tank depends entirely on the holding-capacity of the Avatar (or, how big a tank was installed in the hole where the soul once was. I'm enjoying this metaphor). It is almost impossible to increase the size of the tank, giving it a bigger capacity, without replacing the tank with a bigger one - but this is what happens during Diablerie.
Psychometric Gravity of VitaeVitae - the live essence (quintessence) of blood - naturally gravitates towards the soul, and clings closest to it. Following our tank analogy - Vitae (blood containing vampiric quintessence) is heavier, and the more concentrated is its quintessence, the heavier it is (therefore the term, Psychometric Gravity). Hence in our tank, the heavier blood sinks to the bottom and settles out according to weight. In vampires, ghouls and humans this means that the heavier blood - that of vampires, lower generations, and often also that infected with peculiar Vitae scourges - sinks closest to the bottom. As a result, it is the last to leave the body after injury, use or draining. Low generation blood entering a higher generation kindred equates to more blood points not because it has greater volume, but because the Psychometric Gravity is higher. This means that it takes up more space in the host, because it has more energy. In the originator it is one blood-point, even though it has more power - but then, higher energy is usually necessary to power higher disciplines, and to maintain itself at a higher energy level.
DiseasesThere are a number of strange blood diseases which do affect Kindred, and there has been much study and speculation as to their origin. Certainly, some common viruses and bacteria which affect humans affect vampires also, although rarely. But it is strange to note that there are other infections which have little or no affect on humans, except for cold or flu-like symptoms, but have dangerous affects on vampires. Symptoms vary from physical sores to prolonged frenzies, starvation, derangement and self-mutilation - although our Order is interested in these conditions, researchers have been understandably cautious and unwilling to expose themselves to danger.
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