Vampyre History

[Photo by Sergiu Valena, courtesy of Unsplash]
== The History of the Vampyre Race - An Introduction ==
Vampyres, a genetic variant of humans who underwent genetic mutations due to a viral infection, are proud, intelligent, and storied in name. Although some individuals like Kilkovf Strevieg and organizations like the Pyrates tainted the overall positive influence on Vampyres' contributions to the state of the world, the history of the Vampyre race is steeped in a rich culture that has been influenced by figures and events well-known across time. 
The origins of Vampyres within the Sorrowverse can be linked directly to The First Infection, an incident in 1686 between the Creature and Sonya, Kara, and Valterius. While the Creature's origins are largely unknown and its existence predated the event, the attack resulted in Sonya and Kara becoming the first known Vampyres after the Creature's bites infected the girls with the first known variant of the Vampyre Virus. Since no reliable records of the Creature existed prior to this time, journals kept by the trio began to document the first recorded events in Vampyre history. Their actions after the attack shaped the nature of the world itself, largely through involuntary involvement with what would become historical events. 
Although The Legacy of Sorrow series arguably brings the timeline to a close, the general concept of 'history' in the context of Vampyres is open-ended, and will continue to grow as new novels, comics, compendiums, and other forms of media expand upon the world they built and bring new stories to light. More information about the Phases (time periods) of the Sorrowverse can be found here. 
== Links to Detailed Historical Resources ==
While the primary sources of information for Vampyre-related events exists within the novels and related works, a list of important sources from the Fandom Wiki can be found below, including an in-progress timeline of the complete record for Vampyre History. Some of these may include information that was cut from the books for the sake of brevity, and all links may contain spoilers. 
* The Official Sorrowverse Timeline - The abridged, timeline of important events and their descriptions sorted by ascending year
* A Brief History of Vampyres - The Fandom page for the upcoming Sorrowverse compendium project
* The First Infection
* The Vampyre War
* The Outbreak
* The Battle at Washington, D.C.
* The Epilogues
== The Sorrowverse and Real-world History ==
(Special thanks to the Massachusetts Historical Society and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum for providing remote research aid during the COVID-19 pandemic and in the following years. Please continue to support these societies through their linked websites).
Sorrow contains several references to history in Kara's origins, to include the Oregon Trail, the Salem Witch Trials, and the Global War on Terror. Jalix's involvement with the military during the Global War on Terror in Afghanistan directly links Kara and Jalix's first encounter, as well as Sonya's amnesia-inducing injury and later implications of Kilkovf's involvement with terrorist organizations for financial gain. Few parallels are drawn between traditional vampire mythology and the Vampyre sociology of the Sorrowverse due to the series' unique take on the concept.
Affliction has a direct flashback scene to the former Nazi prison camp Dachau, and was written after research and investigation into true historical accounts. The events within the chapter take place during World War II, and attempt to follow true history as much as reasonably possible. Out of respect for survivors and victims of the Holocaust, descriptions were as close as possible to the living conditions and layout of the camp itself, with Sonya directly referencing the disdain she had for the treatment of its prisoners and the impossibility of the camp's destruction during their mission. The layout of the camp and its descriptions were taken directly from archived photography, satellite images of the existing land, and academic texts.
Desolation and Despair lack significant divestment into historical accounts, primarily due to the establishment of events in the two previous novels. After the ending of Sorrow, the timeline tends toward a structure built on the events of the previous books and mentioned events.
==Pop Culture References==
The Sorrowverse contains several references to popular culture, inferring heavily that most of humanity was unaffected by the conflict until the events in Desolation. Most pop culture within the Sorrowverse stems from the author's contribution as a nod to inspirational material or often-enjoyed media. As "Easter Eggs," they can be found across all four books and include quotes from certain characters. A few examples are below:"Never tell me the odds." - Jalix, referencing Han Solo from "Star Wars"
"Shenanigans? I don't see any shenanigans here." -Violet, referring to the Broken Lizard film "Super Troopers"
"Just a scratch? Your arm's off." -Valterius, referencing the film "Monty Python and the Holy Grail"
==Spinoffs/Continuity==
The Sorrowverse is considered to have an open timeline; while the epilogues of Despair are to be considered the end of known events for the series, the Starlight phase continues the timeline forward without an end date. In a 2024 interview, the author teased the possibility of adding to the series with a collection of short stories that cover gaps of time between books, and would add historical accounts of events prior to Affliction. His reference to a Legacy's Shadows entry are yet to be confirmed, and no plans exist to begin the project in 2024. A trilogy continuing after the events of Despair has also been teased and was briefly referred to as "The Starlight Trilogy" in a 2023 interview that has since been unpublished.