| Fiend | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| |||
| Naming | |||
| Others | Mental Vampire Thought-Monster | ||
| Binomen | N/A | ||
| Morphology | |||
| Body type | Brain-like | ||
| Intelligence | |||
| Sentience | Sentient | ||
| Sapience | Semi-sapient | ||
| Aggressivity | Extreme | ||
| Ecology | |||
| Place of origin | Winthrop, Manitoba, Canada | ||
| Diet | Neural tissue Atomic radiation | ||
| Locomotion | Crawling | ||
| Status | EX | ||
| Behind the Scenes | |||
| Universe | The Thought-Monster Fiend Without a Face | ||
| Created by | Amelia Reynolds Long | ||
Mental Vampires, also called Fiends, are a strange form of life inadvertently created by Professor Walgate in Winthrop, Manitoba, while conducting experiments on thought materialization.
Initially interested in the viability of separating one's consciousness from one's physical frame to perform feats such as telekinesis, Walgate discovered that a sufficient amount of energy (eventually provided by an atomic plant in a nearby air base) would allow him to create life itself with his mind. In an attempt to design a beneficial life form, he envisioned something like a human brain which could operate on its own without the limitation of a human body. Unfortunately, the aptly nicknamed Fiends turned out to be predatory and uncontrollable, seeking out human victims to feed on their brains and nervous tissues, much to the horror of their creator.
Biology[]
Like thought itself, the Fiends were originally invisible. However, they became visible after absorbing large amounts of radiation. Their appearance, as envisioned by Walgate, is similar to a brain with a pair of mobile stalks, branched nerves and a spinal cord. They can crawl over the ground, climb trees and leap over considerable distances. Their favored tactic is to jump on their victims' necks and strangle them while perforating their skulls to suck out the victim's brain and spinal cord. In some cases, they only absorb the victim's intellect, leaving the victim alive as a mindless idiot.
Despite originating as thoughts brought to life, the Fiends are nevertheless physical creatures and can be killed by conventional means such as blades or bullets.
By feeding on brains and keeping themselves alive by absorbing radiation from the atomic plant, the Fiends thrived and multiplied. However, when the power plant was destroyed, they died instantly and their bodies quickly dissolved and vanished.
Appearances[]
- "The Thought-Monster", by Amelia Reynolds Long (1930)
- Fiend Without a Face (1958)
Notes[]
- In the original story, "The Thought-Monster", there was only one creature and its appearance wasn't described, other than that it had tentacles.