“You’ll do.” With that, he grabbed her, slung her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes and headed back toward his ship.
Taking me some place private to ravish me? It was too much to hope that he’d fallen instantly in love with her on sight and realized the rest of eternity would be worse than hell without her. Still, could it possibly be a completely bad thing that he had swept her off her feet and was carrying her away like a heroine in a vampire novel? Her heart beat rapidly in her chest and heat crawled slowly through her body at the thought of what he might do.
This is it! She thought as he carried her up the ramp, as they entered the dark cavern of the ship. He shouted something over his shoulder to his men, who were quick to run in after him, carrying their own burdens. The ramp slid up and the door hissed closed, plunging them in darkness. All told, by Mai’s mental calculations, the vampires had only been on Earth for ten minutes before picking up and leaving.
It would have been a great time to look around at the ship’s interior. If she’d been able to see in pitch blackness.
“Where are we going?” She heard a grunt, but could not tell if it had come from the vampire that held her, or one of the others. Mai had just decided to try again when one of her fellow captors, to her right, started screaming shrilly. This went on several minutes, the woman’s captor laughing, with no one else seeming to care.
“Shut up already! If he was going to eat you, he’d have done it already.” I think. It made sense, didn’t it?
“Who’s there?” the woman’s voice bordered on hysteria. Mai contemplated being silent, but decided that would probably set the fool off again and she had no interest in listening to that.
“My name’s Mai.”
“Mai? I’m scared! I don’t belong here. I don’t deserve this! It’s not fair! Let me go! Let go of me you monster--” Mai heard a thud and the woman become suddenly quiet. She was actually a little glad. As though she’s the most important person here or something! I have friends who would gladly take her place. They would have likely fought tooth and nail to take her place. And mine. Were they watching everything on TV? Did they see the vampires? She felt more than a little smug, having done everything she could to convince them to come with her. I bet there’re kicking themselves now. She knew deep down that she should feel sorry for the woman, but it was hard to care about an insane voice in the darkness, and she could tell that fear had driven the woman mad. Or maybe I’m the mad one for not being scared? It was not something she wanted to think about.
Mai was startled out of her thoughts by a sudden hiss. Before she could even wonder at its meaning, she was thrown through the air. She had time for one tiny squeak of dismay before she landed with a bounce in a heap on a bed.
“Ow! Damn it! You made me bite my tongue!”
Mai gingerly sat up, unable to keep her balance in the dark.
“Stay where you are.” The voice was deep and masculine, sending a shiver through her spine.
“Can’t you--”
A hiss told her it was already too late to ask for a light. What now? It did not seem to fit that prisoners on vampire ships would get their own bed room, so this had to be his bed, right? Assuming that they were wrong about vampires sleeping in coffins? Were they really coffins, or space pods? That would make a lot of sense.... More importantly, he wouldn’t bring her into his own room unless he had ... plans ... would he?
So, he had to go do some captain stuff. When he gets back, he’ll seduce me. He’s just the type that hates to be interrupted, that’s all. It made sense of a kind. Satisfied she had solved the mystery of his disappearance, Mai made up her mind to beat him to the punch. She carefully pulled off her clothes, folding them and dropping them over the side of the bed. That done, she crawled around until she found what she assumed to be a pillow, and lay down. Carefully draping her hair around herself and splaying it across the pillow for a nice effect, she posed and awaited his return. She lay in that same awkward position for what seemed to be hours, knowing that if she moved, he would choose that exact moment to come back in. It was little wonder she dozed off.
Chapter Two
Satisfied that the blood and grime was at last washed away, Xavion stepped out of the ionizer and dressed. He was not at all surprised to find that none of his crew was outside awaiting their turn, but it irritated the hell out of him. Even though bathing after a raid had always been a standing order, there was little he could do to change their nature. He was disgusted that they didn’t mind living in dried blood like animals, but not surprised. Sighing heavily, he followed the corridor to the rec. room where the sounds of a brewing argument filtered to him through the walls, assuring him that he was headed in the right direction to find his crew.
“Damn it, I want to see if they get off the island!”
“They’ll never get off the damned island as long as that idiot Gilligan’s alive.”
“How can you know that? They have to get off eventually! Maybe they’ll kill him and then escape. That’s what I’d do!”
“I’m gonna kill both of you if you don’t shut the hell up! I was here first. I’m watching the stooges. If you want to watch something else, you’ll have to wait your damned turn.”
The door slid open at Xavion’s approach.
“What I want to know is why the hell my crew is sitting around watching that crap.” He waved at the screen. “ ... When they were supposed to be waiting their turn at the ionizer? Or did you forget that was one of the requirements for joining my ship?”
Vasili and Romand swore under their breaths, leaping to their feet and rushing through the door in a race down the hall.
“Warwic, clean up this mess. Morto, turn on Cops before you go.”
“Hey! I thought you said--” Warwic cowed at the glare he received.
“Aside from being the captain, I am clean.”
Sulking, Warwic hastily rubbed cleaner into several blood spots. When his task was complete, he left to wait his turn in line at the head.
“Xavion...?” Morto started hesitantly.
Looking over at his first mate, not at all surprised at his failure to follow an order, Xavion sighed.
“You’re still here?”
“I wanted to ask you something,” Morto said defensively. “Out of their hearing,” he said, gesturing toward the door.
“Yes?”
“You know how you said that that guy you knew, what was his name ... Dracule. How you said he crash landed on this planet?”
“What about him?”
“Well, I was wondering. I mean, if it’s true, that whole bit about his ship crashing here, wouldn’t they have come out to meet us? You’d think they’d be the rulers by now, right?”
Shrugging, Xavion turned to stare blankly at the screen, no longer able to enjoy the action. There was always the possibility that the crew had been unable, or even unwilling, to come see them. It seemed more plausible that they were dead or in hiding, though.
“You know there was no love lost between Dracule and myself....”
Morto nodded. “The man was a bastard by all accounts. If he’s dead ... well, all the better for it. I’d just like to know what happened, that’s all.”
Although he hated to admit it, Xavion was curious about that himself.
“Why not ask your little captive? There’s always the chance these ... humans have a legend about him. Vampyrians are rather memorable.” The thought of that fool Dracule becoming a legend anywhere brought a bad taste to his mouth.
“My snack?” Morto blanched. “She’s, uh, not really the type you can actually have a decent conversation with. I tried. She just sat down on the floor and screamed. I couldn’t take it.”
“I’ll ask my own, then. She’s been ... strangely calm.”
“You’d better do it in a hurry. I haven’t seen Kadira since we left that rock. You know what that means.”
“Yes.” He’s already started in on his latest victim. Probably playing with it first. He w
as still disgusted that Kadira had managed to make it through the raid alive. Not that there seemed to have been risk involved in fighting the humans. They had tried to put up a fight, but there was no way they could have decapitated anyone without swords, and they no longer seemed to use them. The raid had been a disappointment all around.
Morto stood. “I think I’ll go check on my snack. That bastard will eat her before I get the chance at her knowing him. Hell, I hope I catch him in the act. Finally get the chance to try his ass for thievery. The screamer really wouldn’t be too high a price to pay for that kind of satisfaction.” With that, Morto turned and left.
Xavion stood, as well, returning swiftly to his cabin. Kadira had not stolen from him yet, but he had not exactly had the opportunity before, and he knew it was only a matter of time, particularly if his plan worked out.
The scent of desire hit him like a wall as he entered. He was vaguely surprised to find his captive still alive and even more surprised to see that she was writhing, completely naked, on his bed. Instantly suspicious, he inspected the cabin, assuring himself that nothing had been tampered with. Finally, he moved closer for a better look, and peered down at the woman curiously. When she opened her eyes, though, he could see no sign that she was on drugs.
Why is she doing that?
As puzzling as the behavior was, Xavion found it strangely erotic, particularly in light of the fact that she was beautiful. His cock hardened in response to her soft moans. The longer he stood and watched her, the stronger his desire to touch her, to taste her, grew. Finally, unable to resist the temptation, he lifted a hand and brushed his fingertips against one of her erect nipples, drawing a moan from her parted lips. The sound closed around his chest like vice. The heat of her flesh against his fingertips sent a wave of need through him.
For several moments, he wavered, fighting the urge to yield to the heat that beckoned while the reasons not to clamored dimly at the back of his mind.
Finally reason won out and Xavion backed away from the bed, turned his back on the painfully beautiful body and sat at his desk, looking blankly at the screen. His member throbbed painfully, the scent of her desire affecting him more strongly than that of any Vampyrian woman he had ever had, but he fought against both.
She’s part of my trap, he reminded himself. Nothing more. It’s madness even to consider it for a moment. Desire leads to attachment and I can’t afford to get attached.
It was difficult to calm his blood, knowing she was still behind him, smelling the desire that fed his own, but at last his blood ceased to pound in his temples and in his cock, and it obeyed his command. Having gained control, he composed his thoughts.
Talking was that last thing he was interested in at the moment, but he needed the distraction. Moreover, he was genuinely curious to know what had happened to the others, regardless of his distaste for the man who’d led them.
"Your name is Mai, isn't it?" He heard her in-drawn breath and knew he had heard her right in the corridor. The sudden silence behind him was a relief. He knew he’d distracted her from her determination to seduce him for her thrashing ceased. “Have you ever heard a tale of someone like us? A vampyrian by the name of Dracule?”
“Do you mean Dracula? I’ve heard of him. Hell, who hasn’t? He’s only the most famous vampire of all!”
Bastardized names. Could she really be talking about the same man?
“What do you know of him?” He heard her sit up, felt her looking in his direction, though he knew she could not see him in the dark.
“He killed a lot of people. Liked impaling them. Made a lot of vampires.”
Surprise went through him. Xavion almost turned at that, but he resisted the urge with an effort. Definitely him. More slowly, the rest of her words sank in and he realized their significance. Humans can be turned? There were those who theorized that many species could conceivably be, but he had never heard of anyone actually succeeding.
“Are you sure?”
“About what?”
“His ... infecting others? Changing them into ‘vampires?”
“Oh. Yeah, I’m sure. They always talk about the harem of beautiful women he changed into vampires.”
“Where is he now?”
“I guess he’s dead.”
“What?” Xavion did turn this time. The woman had pulled his sheets over her body, somehow looking more erotic, now that he knew what virtues she hid, than she had before.
“Well, in Bram Stoker’s book he was killed by a guy named Van Helsing. That’s fictional, though, so it’s based on just a few verifiable facts if any at all. I’ve always been interested in vampires, but I’m really not into that whole research thing. Most people don’t even believe in vampires, but I guess that’s changed by now. There’s always been a few Goths like me and my friends, but most people just think we’re weird.”
“When did it happen?”
“What? Oh, you mean when did he die? Sometime in the Dark Ages I think. A long time ago. At least for us. I guess it really wouldn’t be that long to someone like you.”
“And the others you mentioned?”
“I always assumed they died at the same time. God only knows. I mean, I’ve never heard of anyone getting bitten and drained of their blood, so there probably aren’t any around now. My friends have always been ever hopeful, but I still say if there were any vampires, they wouldn’t be in America or we’d know about it.”
Abruptly, Xavion stood and stalked from the room, more troubled by the answers and their implications than the questions. Troubled, too, by the human who so calmly gave them.
Walking swiftly, he reached Morto just as his first mate entered the corridor looking vaguely ill. The door to his room stood wide. "Well, it's as I feared," he said when he saw Xavion.
"What happened?" Xavion looked past his friend into his room, immediately spotting the blood that covered the walls and floor. He swore under his breath. "That bastard." From the look of the room it was as though Morto's captive had simply been blown up, but they both knew exactly what had happened.
"Nothing much left of her. I wouldn't wish such a death on any creature, even if she never did stop screaming. All the more pity that I didn't catch him in the act. By the gods, I will next time! I'll catch him and I'll--" Morto sputtered in rage.
Morto was as non-violent as any Vampyrian Xavion had ever met, one of the reasons they got along as well as they did, and he despised Kadira all the more for his crimes. The real pity was that there would have to be a next time. According to Vampyrian law, you were only guilty of a crime if you were caught in the act or before you could clean yourself up. As unintelligent as they all considered Kadira, he was still clever enough, or lucky enough, to have gotten away with this same crime over a dozen times already. He grew sloppier each time, but still managed to remain one step ahead of those determined to catch him, and stop him. Xavion felt as though the bastard was mocking them.
"--I'll tear him apart!"
"Have you searched for him yet?"
Morto, still raging, growled and shook his head. "I haven't, but I have a fair idea of where he went."
"The head."
Morto nodded. "Unless the others weren't finished when he got there.”
“Just in case it does us some good, you go to his room. I’ll go to the head. He might not have had the chance to use to ionizer yet.” Turning, Xavion raced down the hall to the head. Not surprisingly, the line to bathe was gone now.
"Kadira!" He hammered on the door with his fist once before the jackal flung it open, shoving past him with a sneer.
"It's all yours."
Xavion glared after him, cursing in frustration.
Chapter Three
“Something I said?” Mai sat in the bed alone, in the dark, waiting for an answer that didn’t come. He’d left again.
She’d been sure he meant to ravish her when he’d come to stand over her, drink her blood, make her a vampire. He’d stared down at her so long she was convinc
ed he wanted her--then he’d just turned and walked away, completely disinterested.
It was embarrassing. Worse, it was frustrating. For the life of her, she could not come up with a good plan to seduce the vampire.
If naked and willing didn’t work, what the hell would?
Hell, would life as a vampire really be any better? Is it even possible to become a vampire? They were so wrong about so many things. Why would they be right about that? What am I doing here?
She already knew the answers to most of that. The truth was Mai had always held life in the highest regard. She had been so afraid of losing it, of dying and leaving nothing at all behind, that she had hardly even begun to live. Psychiatrists couldn’t help her. They told her she suffered from Thanatophobia, that the fear of death she felt was a result of losing her whole family in one fell swoop. There was nothing they could do except give her drugs and the medication was worse in many ways than the fear itself. Sure, after it had finally kicked in she felt like she could do anything at all, but she was also sleeping most of the day, every day.
Hell, how is that making anything better?
While her friends all sympathized with her, they simply could not understand. The truth was, it all made her feel so alone in the world. Fear held her back, but if she didn’t have to worry about it anymore, if she knew that no matter what happened, she would be all right, that she was not likely to die.... If she knew that life would no longer pass her by while she worked up the guts to live it....
“How do you seduce a vampire?” Her mind felt as though it were full of cotton. It’s the dark. It always makes me sleepy. Of course, it had been night time when they’d taken her. She supposed it was her internal clock telling her it was time to sleep. Yawning, Mai lay back and closed her eyes, allowing her mind to drift. She wondered sleepily what the vampire planned to do with her. He didn’t seem interested in her body, a fact made painfully clear by the reaction he had had when she had tried to seduce him, and he had yet to try to bite her. Why take her, in particular? Hell, why take anyone at all as far as that went?
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