Three Days of Night (3 page)

Chapter Two

“Show me the rain, Aries.”

One of my favorite things to do was come to the theatre and stand out in the rain. So few planets had rainstorms that weren’t toxic in some way. Storms were a thing of beauty to me, mesmerizing in their simplicity.

I tilted back my head and let the soft rain hit my face. The landscape of planet Velka had long since faded away, replaced with a lush forest, the likes of which I had not seen since leaving Earth. Thunder rumbled in the distance and I felt better already.

“You are lonely,” Aries said. It was an observation, not a question.

“Yes.”

“Shall I join you in some form?”

I smiled. “Pick one you think I would like and watch the storm with me.”

Morgan appeared beside me and I couldn’t hide my surprise.

“Your thoughts are filled with him,” he said, speaking with Aries’ voice. “I hope my choice does not offend you.”

I shook my head and took him by the hand. “No. You chose well. I
have
been thinking a lot about Morgan lately.”

He turned his face to the storm as well and I turned to watch him. The soft shushing sound of rain through the trees was like a lullaby, echoing in the background as I watched his clothes become saturated. He was wearing a dark sleeveless shirt and form fitting pants. They clung to him even more as the rain fell harder. Boy did Aries ever make the right choice.

“Why are you lonely?” he asked.

I squeezed his hand tighter. Even if he was only a simulation I felt I needed comfort to answer the question. If I was honest with myself, my loneliness was about much more than an empty bed.

“I haven’t seen another vampire in seventy-five years.”

“Your kind flourished after The Fall of Man. What happened? My memory banks are short on information during that period.”

“Well, after mankind nearly destroyed itself, monsters came into power. The only problem with that was we needed them to survive.”

“But you could consume animal or synthetic blood as well.”

“It’s not just that. There are few races that can become vampires. We are all technically dead, so we can’t reproduce. We also couldn’t feed from or turn the remaining humans without risking the annihilation of their race. Our numbers quickly diminished. Even though Earth and mankind are doing well now, vampires never quite recovered.”

“Your planet continued to develop technologically.”

“Just because humans nearly wiped each other out doesn’t mean technology went down the toilet. We’re monsters, not barbarians.”

Aries laughed right on cue. It was something he’d picked up from observing our behavior. His reactions were so genuine it was creepy sometimes.

“I was born during man’s transition back into power. There wasn’t another war or anything like that. Humans just started to occupy more public offices until they were once more the majority. This happened mostly because of elder vampires dying out or killing each other in petty feuds. Power struggles aren’t just a plague of the human race.”

“What do the elders have to do with it?” he asked.

“Not every vampire has the ability to turn someone. Most can’t stop just before the moment of death and end up draining their victim dry. Without those who could multiply our numbers, we were a statistic waiting to happen.”

“Ah. I will update my memory.”

He looked down at me then and smiled with Morgan’s smile.

“Morgan also likes to watch the rain.”

“Really? I never knew that.”

As I looked at him standing there, looking just like Morgan, I could no longer resist.

“Aries, I’ve got a memory I’d like to relive.”

“As you wish.”

*****

Aries’ memory banks had just been updated when my communicator went off.

“Shit. I thought I turned it off.”

I pulled the sleek black communicator from my pocket and pressed the call button. An image of Nix, King of the Velkans, appeared before me. He started speaking gibberish and I held up a hand to stop him.

“Translation please, Aries.”

“I must speak with you at once,” Nix said.

“This is my private line. How the fuck did you get these coordinates?”

Nix smiled, flashing fang. It was not a pleasant sight.

“No need to be hostile, my goddess.”

“I am not your goddess and you haven’t even seen hostile yet. How many times do I have to tell you I am not interested?”

“Enough that I listen, I suppose.”

“It was a rhetorical question, Nix. What do you want?”

“Well, my flame-haired deity, I have reason to believe you may be in danger.”

I removed the sensor ring and placed it on the table. Looks like I’d have to relive my night with Morgan another time.

“You always think I’m in danger. Everyone is not out to get me,
just you
. I’m ending this transmission. Do not call me again.”

I smoothed down the front of my black bodysuit and returned the slender communicator to my hip pocket.

“Sorry, Aries. We’ll continue another time.”

When I left the theatre I saw Dark Dream floating down the hall toward me. No one knew what he looked like beneath his flowing black robes. None of us had ever even seen his face. He was completely covered from head to toe. The only thing any of us could agree on as far as Dark Dream was concerned was that he is definitely
not
human. What I
do
know for sure is that he bathes because he has borrowed some of my towels before.

“Crimson, your presence is requested on the bridge.” He also never calls anyone by their real name. Pisses me the hell off. “Night Hawk says it’s urgent.”

“Lead the way.”

As I followed the dark ghostly figure up the hall I asked, “Where is Death? I need his help with something. Nix managed to get my private—”

“It’s about Dr. Death,” Dark Dream interrupted.

“What is about him?”

He sighed, a creepy vibrating sort of sound. “The reason Night Hawk wishes to see you.”

When I entered the bridge, everyone was gathered around the Holo Screen, including Bob. An image of our ship landing on Ti’al was being broadcast.

“What station is this? Is this the news?” I asked.

“I think we’re picking up a Monial news channel. Aries, can you translate what they’re saying?” Ash said.

He moved closer to the screen and ran a hand through his short dark hair, a sign that he was frustrated.

At last the antennaed man’s voice became clear. “Apparently the people of Ti’al took the Harsh Reality’s emergency landing as sign from their god. Those we interviewed said they had been praying to Hiim just moments before they received a transmission, asking for permission to land.”

“I don’t understand,” Morgan said.

I hadn’t realized he was standing so close behind me. When just his nearness made me wet, I was grateful I hadn’t consumed enough blood that I could blush.

“We helped them defeat the Barrakans and they think that’s an answered prayer?” Morgan asked.

“No, it’s more than that,” Ash said. “Listen.”

The reporter continued, “The crew is now being hailed as not only heroes, but
super
heroes. The Ti’al general we spoke with said that the ongoing war with Barrakan forces would not have ended any time soon if not for their help. He said and I quote, ‘Their abilities are beyond that of any I have seen. If they do not possess super powers, then what would you call it?’”

Ash turned the channel and a Ti’al reporter said, “Thanks to The Night Shift, we have been saved.”

“The Night Shift?” Morgan said from beside me. “Is that what they’re calling us?”

“Holy shit.” I walked over and put my hand on Ash’s shoulder. “Please tell me this is a bad joke.”

“Not even
my
sense of humor is this bad,” Morgan said.

“It would appear that your false identities as mercenaries are now being used as your superhero titles,” Aries added.

Ash sighed heavily. “I just needed to assess the damage from that fucking asteroid field.”

He clicked off the Holo Screen. “This is ridiculous. We’re not superheroes, we’re
mercenaries
.”

Morgan laughed, but not like he was really amused.

“In their defense, you
do
have a lot of strange abilities,” Bob said. His thick British accent seemed to lend credence to his words. But I’m sure that was only my imagination.

“Morgan is descended from elemental wizards, he has the ability to control lightning. Considering that most people believe wizards to be extinct, I’d say that’s pretty extraordinary.”

Morgan inclined his head slightly, acknowledging the android’s point. Then, Bob turned to me.

“And you, darling, you’re a vampire. Now that
is
rare. You must seem like a super-being to these people.” He turned to the dark figure at his other side. “Dark Dream, no offense, but nobody knows what you are.”

The wraith-like Dark Dream laughed and it gave me chills. Obviously, he wasn’t about to tell anybody what he was. I think he preferred for them to wonder.

“Ash, since you’re the only one who is completely human, I’d guess it’s your suit that threw them off.”

Ash nodded his agreement, but seemed reluctant to do so.

“As for Dr. Death, all of my analyses show that he
is
some type of super-being. There are no records of anything like him as far back as I have researched. At least for the last five hundred years … he’s unprecedented.”

I looked around, then turned back to Ash.

“Where is he? Where’s D?”

That’s my nickname for Dr. Death. I’ve known him longer than the rest of the team. And Bob is right, he
is
unprecedented. I found him on a battlefield about twenty years ago. He was completely naked and everyone around him was dead. He had just annihilated an entire army, but he had no idea why he was there. He has no memory of who he is, or where he’s from. The unfortunate name “Dr. Death” just kind of stuck.

I’ve never even seen anyone who looked like him. He is around six-foot-two, and very well built. He looks like a marble statue and I’m not just talking about his figure. His skin looks like white marble with pale gray veins running through it. Combine that with his long white hair and glowing blue eyes and you’ve got a real show stopper. He is absolutely beautiful. He is also the most deadly thing I have ever encountered. He has abilities that have not even begun to be realized. I hope most of them never are. My guess is, he’s a weapon of some sort. If he ended up in the wrong hands, galaxies might be destroyed.

Right now, I really wanted to know where he was.

I could sense a sun somewhere outside.

“Have we arrived at Icknar for supplies?” I asked.

“About that,” Ash said. “The jump drive didn’t quite make it to Icknar. However, we do need to refuel and someone needed to go down to get supplies.”

Well, D was more than capable of gathering supplies. But there was obviously something Ash wasn’t telling me.

“Where have we stopped?” I asked.

Ash looked to Morgan as if seeking guidance before answering my question. He ran a hand through his hair again.

“Tarnak.”

“Fucking
Tarnak
?!” I turned to Morgan and slapped his arm. “I asked you about the sex slave thing!”

He threw up his hands in a helpless gesture and offered me only a smile in response.

Tarnak was a planet originally colonized by cyborgs. It had grown into a planet-wide market place. They traded everything on Tarnak, and I mean
everything.
Their biggest seller? Sex slaves.

Okay, I had to get a grip. This was Ash’s ship, which technically made him the captain. Even if we did used to date, that didn’t give me the right to be a flat out asshole without understanding the situation first.

“Why did you send him out alone on Tarnak?” I asked as calmly as possible.

“We were hailed by their guards. They asked if we had come to trade. I said no, we had come to buy supplies.”

Ash was obviously reluctant to go further. When I moved toward him he rose and turned his back.

“And?” I prompted.

“And they said that in that case we would have to pay a toll to use their port. They said the fee could either be paid in currency … or in flesh.”

I gasped and turned him to face me. “You
didn’t
?”

He smiled just a little. “No, I didn’t.

“Death offered to pay the toll while we waited in line to dock. Someone had to go down before we got close to their shields.”

“Yes, their shields interfere with my concentration,” Dark Dream said. “And since Icarus is still in need of repairs, it is our only option for going on planet until we can make port.”

Icarus is our small shuttle craft. Ashton has been rebuilding it from scratch and it’s still at least a few months away from being functional.