Lycanus

First, evil,

the original definition of evil falls under the 2nd and 3rd definitions listed in dictionary.com

"harmful, injurious"

"characterized or accompanied by misfortune or suffering; unfortunate; disasterous"

evil did not originally indicate a moral issue

it simply meant something that was bad for you

under those definitions, yes, the shark is evil, as is the plague, the door you stub your toe on, the dog that ate your tax returns and anything else that causes suffering to you or others.

also, under that definition, we are evil in regards to other animals

eventually, the primary meaning moved to the one that is listed first in dictionary.com

"morally wrong or bad; immoral; wicked"

at this point, evil became specifically tied to a choice to do bad things

now, under that definition, a shark is incapable of evil for the fact that it is incapable of morality (as far as we know),

likewise, a simple machine is also incapable of evil

the sentinels, for instance, in the X-Man comics, are not evil

spreading out from that, however, limiting evil to actions taken against your own kind is counter to the overall perception and connotation of most of the English speaking world (and I'd dare say a large proportion of the Western world)

In fact, the intolerance of those who are different is considered a marker of an evil personality.

the perception that something being simply a machine is not enough to disqualify one as evil

after all, animals are simply biological machines

a simple animal is incapable of morality and therefore incapable of evil (save that older, original meaning as stated previously)

likewise the simple machines we have in reality are also incapable of evil

to say that a machine is either programmed to be that way or else malfunctioning is shortsighted.

human beings have programming as well...we just call it instinct and habit

a machine complex enough to have Free Will is able to ignore that programming in the same way that we can ignore instinct and habit (even if, most of the time, we don't)

once Free Will enters the picture, the potential for the modern definition of evil comes into being

the matter is still complex, however

let's look at vampires and robots since those are two of the main topics

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robots

the robots/programs in the Matrix were not evil overall. The majority were soldiers in a war. They were doing their duty and that was about it. Most were not overtly cruel to the humans they chased.

Smith, on the other hand, was evil as he was motivated by hatred rather than duty and he took joy in his tasks.

the Sentinels, as stated, are not evil just because they kill people and mutants...they are simply weapons, they have no Free Will

Ultron, however, is evil because he is not being forced down his path by someone else's programming. He is complex enough to have free will and has chosen to hate organics.

To say that "he's not evil because he's malfunctioning" is an oversimplification. An evil human is also malfunctioning

in fact, you could say that evil is a matter of malfunctioning by choice as adverse malfunctioning by design defect or damage

As to vampires

sometimes I like vampires, sometimes I think they're overdone

the essential trait that defines a vampire is the drinking of blood, anything beyond that is getting into specific variations

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now, as to vampire stories, these days we have two varieties of vampires: supernatural and biological


biological vampires are not inherently anymore evil than any other race

they have a biological necessity for drinking blood for some reason

either they are a race or they are a mutation/diseased variant of human

assuming they retain a free will, they are still capable of evil, however

the vampires of underworld, for example, have laws to protect humans from their own activities (there is mention of feeding on animals) and then later there is the development of the synthetic blood pack

the majority of them have no interest in humans, simply avoid contact with them

there are evil characters amongst the vampires, Craven, Victor(arguable) and Marcus(arguable), but that evil has nothing to do with their dietary requirements

Craven's evil is the petty kind, the sort caused by jealousy, ambition and cowardice, Craven is actually the most evil out of the characters as he is about the only one that has no redeeming motivations to his desire for power

Marcus did not start out evil, his motive was to control and protect his brother, but many of his actions in the second movie are unecessary and pushed by ambition and a recent thirst for power and control, however, his evil is still small and seems to be more madness than deliberate evil

Of the villains, Victor is the one who is hardest to say is truly evil or not...on the one hand, Craven states that he had to clean up after Victor's messes when Victor broke his own laws to slaw humans...on the other hand, we learn that he specifically killed those humans to keep secret the location of William's prison, which in the day and age the act was made was not an uncommon behavior for a noble...if he's going to kill them anyway, might as well feed on them...there is also his fear of the creation of a werewolf/vampire hybrid and the threat it may pose to the vampire species...intolerance of this sort is considered evil by modern concerns (fantasy races like these are often used as a metaphor for real life racial hatreds and racial hatreds are considered evil)...however, it becomes more justified when dealing with the creation of a new species....

what it comes down to with Victor, I feel he's evil because of the racism...minus the racism it depends on whether some statements by him or Craven are lies or not...and he is thus in a big question mark

the Daybreaker vampires, on the other hand, are not evil, they are seeking survival. they are, however, diseased and ultimately unhealthy....it is stated that they have created a synthetic blood source at the end, but it is unknown how long that would have been effective...in any regard, it would seem that the race would be doomed to a dwindling due to accidental deaths if they managed to erradicate humanity, as such, while not evil, it was still necessary to eliminate the disease so that the species of humanity could continue to evolve

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As to supernatural vampires, this is a whole other kettle of fish

people make the mistake of looking at supernatural vampires with the perception of scientific, biological means.

when the source of the vampirism is supernatural, the various traits are symptoms of a moral decay

in the myths and old stories, the master vampire becomes a vampire deliberately...the implications of Dracula are that he was a student of the occult in life and made a deal with the devil that resulted in his power

the weaknesses and abilities of the vampire are reflections of his soul...if he were not evil, he would not have these abilties...

the vampire does not show in a mirror because he has no soul and the reflection in a silvered mirror is representative of the soul

the vampire is killed by ash wood staked through the heart because it is a spiritual wood that bridges the gap between spirit and flesh and spiking it through the heart forces the vampire to remember that it is dead and does not belong here

the vampire is likewise killed by the sun, silver and running water because these things purify the soul or spirit

the vampire becomes a wolf because he is at heart a beast

the vampire becomes a mist because it's existence is a fragile illusion

the vampire drinks blood because it is greedy to have what others have

the vampire has mind control and creates servants because he desires to enforce his will on others and that desire is so strong as to be made manifest

the requirement of an invitation is actually a blanket one applied to most supernatural entities in European myth...angels and faerie also have to be invited into a building in order to have any ability to affect you for good or ill within your own home...probably representative of the fact that morality has to be willfully chosen....it doesn't just happen

the master vampire's supernatural abilities exist because of the fact that he is evil

servitor vampires are not evil in and of themselves but are extensions of the master vampire, the servitors have no free will...they are essentially extra bodies for his/her mind

that's the thing with the supernatural...there is no biological need...everything is a reflection of the state of the being's soul or lack there of...

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very few things truly are evil

sociopaths are not evil, not all sociopaths become serial killers or criminals, however, they are a malfunctioning "sick" individual that has a harder time avoiding evil paths because of their malfunction. They lack empathy and the ability to connect with others....which is one of the key traits we have to guide moral choices.

a master vampire of the supernatural variety is flat out evil...they wouldn't have become what they are if they weren't evil to begin with

a servitor supernatural vampire is not evil, they have no choice, they are enslaved by the master

a biological vampire that is a stable species is evil, good or neither on the same scale as a human

a biological vampire that is a parasitic or diseased type is not evil, but could be monstrous

a simple robot is not evil, they have no choice

a true AI robot with free will is evil, good or neither on the same scale as a human

the argument that attacks various things not your own kind being not evil breaks down dependent on what you qualify as "your own kind"

there are numerous cases in past and present where "your own kind" is specifically limited to one's own race, religion or ethnicity.

other people have broadened "your own kind" to include anything animal or even anything that lives

in my case, "my own kind" encompasses sentience...if it is sentient, it is "my own kind"...anything else is a tool, pet or food

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Horror does not need evil....the very best horror stories have nothing to do with evil

Horror stories are stories where the characters discover truths about the world that obliterate everything that they thought was true.

The Eye is a horror story, but none of the ghosts or entities within it are evil (ignore the American version where the shadow figures are given snarly faces simply because of some simple minded moron's need for there to be something evil in the movie) only one is really even hostile. In fact, the only danger from the ghosts comes from a misunderstanding of the ghost's nature or a lack of understanding in how to deal with things.

Horror does not even really need a supernatural element, only psychological.

Likewise, action/adventure doesn't need evil

The Daybreaker vampires are not evil, but they are flawed and monstrous and need to be taken care of.

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As to my view on vampires...depends

Dracula is evil...any attempt to do Dracula as a misunderstood monster (Coppola) just turns my stomach...he chose to be what he is, it wasn't forced on him

otherwise...they are either monsters that need to be destroyed (Daybreakers) or else just that world's fantasy race (Underworld)

I use vampires sort of myself in stories, but not planning on making them main elements

in Bystander, as part of a way to confirm that the magical age was a set of other superbeings several thousand years back, I plan to have a side character in the form of a vampire who will eventually die of cancer and making the statement that the 70s, 80s and 90s killed almost all the vampires due to the ozone layer weakening and the ones that survived died within the next forty years due to various cancers (fast healing would ignore the cancer until it got serious and then forget about it before getting rid of it completely so that the cancer would continuously spread and eventually one flare up would overwhelm the system) and converted vampires dying due to lack of instruction on how to control themselves (resulting in madness and death).

Most of the old monsters have been assimilated and recognized as what the setting calls "peaks" and recognized as a "new" development. Having the "last" vampire as a major supporting character and then killing them with something like cancer just felt like a good way of, first, confirming that "peaks" have been around a long time and, second, ground out the mythological world into the superhuman metaphysics of the setting. Making vampires "normal" is a good way of making people see anything magical as normal.

I'm probably going to use that as a gateway to some of the ancient history/magic of the setting after dealing with the various intelligence community factions

We have auras that only operate in combat, how about the reverse so we can get the sort of flutter of leaves or doves while posing before or after a fight

One of my characters is a cosplayer and I'm looking for suggestions for future costumes.

It's not something I need immediately, for one thing, I just traded out two costumes, but just to keep in mind for future costume changes.

This is the character and her current list of costumes:



Yes, she's a thirty-something wererat ex-assassin who's into cosplay.

She is very much a running joke of mine that started off as a Punisher/The Bride parody...(hence the name Castle Rat)...as well as a parody of Lydia McKracken from Gold Digger.

She is BS/SR, but I'm thinking of doing a second character for her using other weapon sets...

In fact, think I'll do a pre-hero stalker character with Dual Blades...

one wonders why wormhole isn't in this list

Wormhole: heaviest stun in the game, place the baddies where you want them, and my brother found that if you mass-immob or hold them first, that they don't bounce.


Even as the heaviest stun in the game, the main aspect here though is "I choose where the battle happens."

This is a sequence from one of my short stories connected to my Zodiacs book: