as you described: powerful and fearsome, yet feral. This is due to the possession of the reanimated corpse by a blood-drinking demon."
"Right," Cora said. "Vampires don't have souls like regular folk."
"A common belief, but only partially accurate. As I said, the vrykolakas is the more common variety of vampire, so it follows that most folklore concerning vampires is primarily influenced by its characteristics and behavior. The vrykolakas has the intelligence level of a high-end mammalian predator, such as a wolf or your American grizzly bear. Smarter than your average cow, but by no means able to reason or strategize. In addition, they are usually solitary, which makes incidents involving them relatively simple to resolve."
"Except when they gang up, like in Denver," Cora said, shifting her weight. "You ain't telling me anything new. If you've got a point, best be getting to it quick."
"Yes, yes, of course," James replied, not skipping a beat. "So, if the vrykolakas is the only kind of vampire in existence, why has the vampire been feared above all other supernatural creatures for so many centuries?"
"I reckon it's because they're scary. Watching a man get his throat torn out by a walking corpse tends to shake most folk up a good bit."
"Quite true, but no more so than watching, say, a werewolf perform the same feat."
"Just say what you're going to say."
"Right. My point is simply that, left to its own devices, the vrykolakas would be no more fearsome than any other creature of the night. So, in order to garner the terrifying reputation the race of vampires possesses, they must have another ace in their hole, so to speak."
"Another kind of vampire?"
"Yes! Exactly!" James exclaimed, holding up a finger.
"Just like you said awhile back." Cora shook her head. "Is all you Brits this prone to gabbing? It's a wonder you all ever get around to anything else."
"I should be glad of the opportunity to learn my trade if I were in your position."
"I would be if I'd learned anything. All you've done is talk my own knowledge at me."
"Establishing context, my dear," James replied. "Without context, any further knowledge is useless at best, dangerous at worst."
"Can't imagine it being no worse than not being shared at all."
"Americans," James said with a hint of exasperation. "I don't know which is worse, your ignorance or your impatience."
"We tend to get impatient when people as can relieve our ignorance take too long to get it done."
"Not exactly the most welcoming attitude for those seeking to share their knowledge and insights with you."
"You know, I think I changed my mind," Cora said. "I think I will throw you off a bridge."
James went pale. "Of course, some might say your impatience possesses a certain roguish charm all its own." Cora glared at him, and he answered with a nervous smile. "I'll get right to it."
"Glad to hear it."
"Of course." He took a breath. "The second type of vampire, and by far the more fearsome, is a creature we call the nosferatu."
"And what do they do?"
"Quite simply, a nosferatu is a vampire whose human soul has been restored to his body."
Cora frowned. "Ain't having a soul a good thing?"
"One would think so, but it's actually quite dreadful. You see, the human soul may be restored, but the creature still possesses all of the characteristics of the vrykolakas, such as enhanced strength, enhanced speed, and the need to consume human blood. It's also theorized that they gain some new powers as a result of this unholy ascension."
"What sort of powers?"
"Transformation, for one thing. Most of the nosferatu recorded in history have had the power to assume other shapes, such as animals. This allows them to move undetected through a population to single out victims."
"I ain't following you," Cora said. "Wouldn't the human soul make them go all soft on killing folk?"
"Initially, yes, and I imagine there are some that never recover from discovering what they are. If any such vampires exist, however, they keep entirely to themselves." He leaned toward her and lowered his voice. "Although, between us, it is my belief that those who can't live with the burden of vampirism simply choose to end their own lives."
"Maybe so, but why are you whispering? You trying to keep it from this snoring sop?" She kicked at Ben's bench.
"My apologies," James replied, sitting upright again and adjusting his hat. "It's just that my theory isn't particularly popular among most vampire scholars."
"There are other vampire scholars? And here I thought only us hunters and