We hung in a low orbit around the moon, I don’t think Brandy, or I felt safe until we put some distance between the violence and us. Gnos was so clear above the clouds you could make out cities of lights between long stretches of green, on the main vampire planet. Brandy was explaining everything that had happened, and Captain Guthrapali was annoyed after we explained ourselves, “Really? This was supposed to be a vacation to see your mother, Ela. Not a dangerous mission to steal blood from vampires. Brandy, I expect better from you, Ela is one of our most valuable military assets. Vacation or not, you are not to risk her life.” The captain mulled it over for a moment. “Fine, I’ll send the guards over.”

“It’s not like the vampires are permitted to kill prey in the hunting grounds, and with a team at our backs the work would go much faster” Brandy nearly whined.

“If I bring my guards it will seem like an incursion team against the vampires from a military power. By using the hunting grounds, we avoid that. We don’t want to incite a political incident by hunting vampires in public. The last thing we need is vampire warships going after The Lancet. So long as we don’t kill vampires or wear ackbahts the vampires are not allowed to kill us. Still, I don’t want Brandy to go.” I didn’t add how I intended to have us all wearing the ackbahts to encourage combat.

“Brandy isn’t essential to the team; she can wait with the ship.” Guthrapali said not caring either way whether Brandy went.

“I’m going,” Brandy said, offended.

Captain Guthrapali ended the transmission and the ship returned to quiet.

The planet Gnos was a hovering emerald just out of our reach. Our ship was floating a distance from the planet while we waited for the reinforcements to arrive.

 I caressed Brandy’s cheek. "This time you should wait in the ship. I've got this. What if the captain calls with something important?"

Brandy shoved my hand away from her face. Her eyes were sharp points ready to stab. I didn’t know what to say to calm her, so I said nothing. Her rage filled silence was cutting. We passed the time doing the bare minimum to keep the ship operational and keep ourselves fed. The way that Brandy ignored me made me feel like the world had stopped. It was a relief when my guards arrived half a cycle later.

When the guards arrived both ships landed on Gnos in the dock just outside the hunting grounds. The dock was surrounded by a clear field with trees edging the border between the dock and the entrance to the hunting grounds. Beth was the first to walk off the ship. Her hair was a rivulet of tight curls. Beth’s suit was as tight as a second skin on her generous curves. I tried my best not to stare at her beauty. Eddy was the next to walk off the ship. His sense of humor came out in the way he appraised the surroundings with his gaze. He looked for and found humor in everything. Shelya walked out with Eliphor, the Gorgot stayed “quiet” with her limbs stuck to the sides of her body. Shelya made a comment to her that led to her limbs going up in fluid waves. Steve was the last to exit, his serious nature belied by his smile. Beth saluted Brandy, “Lieutenant Beth reporting for duty.” The rest of the guards saluted and introduced themselves.

Beth crossed her arms beneath her generous breasts. “These hunting grounds, how dangerous are they?” 

“It’s not dangerous at all. It’s seen as a normal activity. You will even be paid for participating in the grounds. Did you all bring the portable coolers I asked you to bring?”

“Yes,” Beth said for the team.

The team also held their weapons at the ready which meant they’d have to get ackbahts at the hunting grounds. Captain Guthrapali would surely be pissed once she found out. Scorching pain seared across my arm and I managed to suppress a hiss.

I checked to make sure I had the syringes I needed. I did and I also strapped a portable cooler to my back. This would be my first-time hunting vampires in the hunting grounds. I was excited by the prospect. 

We started walking to the hunting grounds, the sky was overcast gray hiding the suns from view. Brandy was stubbornly walking with our group. No protests on my end would get her to stay behind. I knew without a shadow of a doubt our group would have to wear ackbahts and I didn’t want her risking her life, the rest of them were expendable and I was getting my powers back. 

“Listen up,” I said to the whole group, “We are about to enter the hunting grounds. So, I’m going to teach you how to hunt vampires. First off, we don’t need them dead just incapacitated. We only need a small sample of their blood. Vampires love plunging from above to attack prey. Keep your wits about you. I suggest moving about in groups rather than separating one by one. The biggest weakness of a vampire is their overconfidence. If one of us is bait, they will take it even if they know it’s a trap. Just be sure to shoot them before they strike. Vampires are faster, stronger, and more agile than you, but true vampires won’t be using energy weapons. They find it beneath them. You should have the advantage if you keep your eyes peeled for their stealth tactics. Especially because the vampires usually hunt alone.”

When we reached the hunting grounds there were attendants standing at the gates. There was a separate entrance for prey from the hunters. 

The attendant dressed in red robes held out his hand palm face up, “Welcome to the hunting grounds. Prey is most appreciated here. When you exit you will receive 5000 credits a head. That is if you make it out alive, if not would you like to designate next of kin?”

Beth turned to Ela, “I thought you said this would be safe.”

Before Ela could answer, an attendant was holding the ackbaht up for everyone to see, it was a red circle that contained many circles of different colors swirling within it, “This symbol marks you for death. All of you must wear it if you intend to enter the grounds with those guns.” 

The whole team extended their hand and the attendants had to open a chest filled with ackbahts to give each member one. Brandy and the crew glared at me with ice in their eyes.

“I just knew this was going to be risky. There is no way that hunting vampires would be easy.” Eddy said while donning his ackbaht.

 I took an ackbaht, which caused the attendants to stare at me. After all, vampires were hunters not prey. We all took the path for prey into the hunting grounds. Wooden frames with symbols lining the path marked the entrance tunnel. There were vines growing all along the path. When we reached the exit, we came upon a cluster of trees so tall we had to tilt our heads far back to see the tops. This was my first time entering the grounds as prey. My hands trembled as I grabbed my gun out of it’s holster. Who knew how long the crew would last and Brandy was at risk. I didn’t like this plan at all, but it was the only one I had.

There was a sign warning entrants that this was the hunting grounds for vampires and that capture and loss of blood was likely. I laughed knowing the sign wasn't intended for vampires-but today it was. In order to find the vampires, we searched for prey inside the grounds. I waited by a Gorgot. Their blood was a slimy green substance that tasted like apples. The Gorgot was sliding through the brush, his tentacles waving in the air. The Gorgot was green with purple marks over it’s skin. A vampire appeared in the trees above the Gorgot. I waited until she dropped down. I leapt out of the canopy and landed on the female. I immediately stuck a needle into her jugular to drain her blood. She flailed around growling as I held onto her back. I detached the needle and stuck it in the cooler.

"Thank you," I said before running back into the bushes. The rest of the crew including Brandy had been watching from a distance. They allowed me to take the lead in the hunt.

I stumbled across a male that was feeding on a human. I snuck up behind the male vampire and inserted the syringe in his neck. He stopped sucking blood and turned around. I took the syringe back and apologized for interrupting his meal.

"Give me my blood back."

"No, I need it for medical purposes."

He hissed and looked at my cooler where the blood was.

"Your human is getting away and I have a deadly blood virus that will kill you if you drink my blood." I pointed to the human sneaking off towards the canopy of trees. The male looked me up and down and decided to turn around and run after the human. I left the area set on getting one more blood sample. My guards and Brandy followed me as I walked through the trees. We had our eyes on the trees above us just in case.

I caught the smell of blood in the air, which had to be a lot for me to catch it with my diminished abilities. I followed the strong scent and found a vampire gorging on a woman who had long gashes down her legs. I snuck up behind the vampire and plunged the syringe into his neck. He immediately let go of the woman. Her blond hair cascading around her pale face. Her hair was the same white blond as Brandy's. She was knocked out. 

The vampire hissed at me, "Why did you take my blood?"

"I need it for a procedure, I'm sick."

"So you figured you'd hunt the hunters. I could kill you right here and be within my rights for what you have done."

"But you won't because I had the gall to hunt my own kind. I've earned your blood."

The male vampire filled the syringe with his blood. He then pulled it out of his neck.

He handed it to me,"May the blood help you." He picked up the blonde woman once more and drank her blood.

"She's lost too much blood." I said, concerned. If she died, he would be in trouble. The vampire waved me off.

"She was registered as a suicide hunt. She is wearing the ackbaht." He pulled out the circular symbol from out of her shirt. It hung on a necklace made of rope. Most of the prey were on the grounds to make money. Some treated it as a way to die. I turned away from them, feeling sorry for the girl who was about to die. Surprised that I cared. I wanted to help the girl, but I had too many problems to handle as it was.

I made my way towards the exit. I nearly had enough blood. I was about ten meters from the exit when a clutch of vampires jumped in front of the door. I was shocked to see they were the same vampires from the station. There were five of them. I felt my vulnerability. Uneasy I balled up my fists and watched the vampires with suspicion.

“We were watching surveillance of the hunting grounds when we spotted you and your crew. We decided to pursue you as you wear the ackbaht. We are more than happy to fulfill your wish.”

“We were forced to wear the ackbaht since we carry guns. None of us wishes to die.”

“I don’t care,” a skinny male fledgling said.

He came up to me with a knife. I caught his wrist and pressed his pressure point, so the knife fell out of his grasp. He hit my arm causing the bone to crack. I punched him in the nose. A loud cracking sound resounded, and he fell back on the ground in pain.

Beth, Eddy, and Shelya all burst forward to fight the remaining vampires. They pulled out their guns and shot lasers at them. Some of the vampires flinched. We’d been lucky to make it through the hunting grounds unscathed thus far. I had oversold how safe it was. Now standing face to face with a group of vampires we had the bad draw of the hand. Eliphor joined the fray by attacking a female with her tentacles. The vampire was swinging in the air hissing trying to find a way to bite the Gorgot without success. I’d never seen a Gorgot in combat. Eliphor was swinging her many arms to keep the vampires at a distance. Beth took the opportunity to shoot one male with the gun set to kill. He went from attempting to attack Eliphor to focusing on Beth. The wound in his side from the laser oozed blood. Beth shot him again. He kept walking towards her. Eddy flanked the vampire brute and shot the vampire in the head. He slowed down some but was still coming.

Steve shot the vampire brute in the head twice more; he stopped walking and fell where he was dead. Steve, Beth, and Eddy cheered until another vampire focused on them. With two vampires left standing our odds were minutely better. Unable to touch the Gorgot, the vampires converged on me. A male death wing descended upon me with his claws out ready to slice. Shelya met his strike with claws of his own. Shelya exclaimed in pain when the claws pierced his skin. He hissed and threw hit after hit; the vampire didn’t show any signs of pain.

“No Shelya, don’t engage in hand-to-hand combat. Use your gun!” I cried. Shelya thought he was getting practice in vampire combat with me, but he hadn't. I'd not been up to snuff in a long time. I fought like a human. Shelya began to realize his error as the vampire got in two strikes past his blocks. Shelya was bleeding from long gashes and tried to retreat. The vampire gave him no quarter, continuing his attack while taking momentary glances my way. They were both moving closer to me. Brandy was by my side in a heartbeat and began shooting her laser gun at the vampire attacking Shelya. After missing a few headshots, she cursed. The vampire was moving too fast to hit his head. 

Beth and Eddy were fighting the other vampire that stopped attacking Eliphor. They had shot all possible lasers set to kill with little luck. The vampire was bleeding but still walking up to them. They got into a battle stance and holstered their guns. The vampire laughed as she danced into their fighting circle confident enough to challenge them both at the same time. Beth grabbed a branch from the ground and faced the vampire with it. She regretted not bringing her bo staff. The Vampire laughed and approached Beth first. As soon as Beth struck out with the stick, the vampire caught it and snapped it in two.

“You’re kidding right?” She said in Standard her thick accent nearly butchered the words past recognition.

Beth grimaced when her new weapon was destroyed. She had no illusions as to what would happen if she fought the vampire fist to fist.

The second vampire was still attempting to free herself from Eliphor’s grasp. The vampire whose nose I broke got up and limped over to Eliphor attempting to save the other vampire from her tentacles. Instead, he ended up caught in another set of tentacles waving in the air as Eliphor gyrated her tentacles around. The male with the broken nose struck his claws out at Eliphor’s tentacles that were holding the female. She wavered and dropped her.

The female ran towards me and pulled a sword from her back. I dodged her attack and struck out at her sword arm, normally I would have broken her arm, but instead she just kept lunging at me. She cried out and hit me. The crunch of my ribs told me they’d been broken again, in addition to my side being sliced open. I hit her in the head hard enough that she almost passed out. The vampire wavered in her spot and geared up to run at me, but Brandy shot her in the head twice. While Steve shot her from behind. Add that to her concussion and she blacked out. Now one of the last vampires we had left was attacking Eddy and Beth. Beth had two broken arms and at this point was dodging to save her life. Eddy pulled out his gun and was shooting the vampire in the head. 

Shelya screamed and fell to the ground after a strike from the male he was fighting. I rushed over not thinking of my weakness and stood face to face with the male.

“You’re not hurting him anymore, deal with me.” I put my fists up and nearly jumped when a laser blast went off right next to my head aimed at the male vampire. He was shot in the neck. He coughed up blood and hissed. His glare was for the person behind me, I assumed it was Brandy.

“No, your fight is with me.” I held my fists at the ready as another shot soared past my head at his own. He shook off the pain and rushed over to my side. He grabbed my head, and I knew he was going to snap my neck. A laser strike skimmed my face and landed directly on his nose. We both fell together on the ground. My wound was bleeding and the heavy vampire on top of me made me feel stuck. I was glad I wasn’t dead.

“Ela, are you okay?” Brandy knelt beside me and helped move the body off me.

“Yes, I’m still alive. We have to help Eddy and Beth.” I took Brandy’s hand up to stand and headed over to the three fighting. Beth resorted to using kicks to keep the vampire at bay. Eddy was using his left arm as his right was broken. It was clear the vampire they were fighting was playing with them. Slowly but surely breaking parts and causing them the most amount of pain before taking them out. Brandy took aim and fired at the vampire, hitting her dead center. There was a risk that the laser rounds could hit Beth or Eddy, but Brandy knew it was the only way to successfully put down the vampire. Brandy smiled past the sweat and grime that covered her face. Her smile made me feel proud, that’s my girlfriend.

Steve took the next shot and pierced her head. The vampire changed direction and gazed straight at Steve who began unloading laser shot after shot into the vampire. She made it to me and struck my head. I’m sorry Brandy. The world went black. 

 

When my eyes next opened, I was in an office laying on a couch. A vampire sat behind the desk, the cooler next to them.

“Ah I see you’re awake,” The vampire patted down his suit. He stood up, his silver hair and golden eyes striking. His face was all angles in the right places. His cheekbones were prominent. 

“Where am I?” I asked around the blood in my mouth.

“I’m the director of the hunting grounds, you’re in my office. I’m disturbed by what we found on you, Ela Suryava.” He opened the cooler and pulled out a syringe of blood. His hands were smooth, blemish free, and clean.

I coughed and turned on my side, only to hiss from the pain in my ribs. I laid flat on my back.

“I need that blood to fix my DNA.” The director’s eyes went wide.

“So, you are doing this to repair your DNA. Hunted your own kind just so you can be whole again?”

“Yes, now please let me go. My team must be worried about me.”

“Do you mean Brandy and your crew?” I took a sharp breath worried that he knew who my crew was.

“They told me why you were here, I didn’t believe them. But did you know they were telling the truth? Why on Gnos would you hunt your own kind?”

“Vampires don’t donate blood for each other. I’d have to hope enough vampires died and the blood preserved so I could get the procedure done.”

“Okay, but the hunting grounds aren't for vampires to hunt vampires. You violated those sacred grounds by taking this blood.”

“I did what I must to survive. There’s nothing in the laws surrounding the hunting grounds that stipulates vampires can’t hunt other vampires.”

“We tended to your wounds. You can thank me for that later.”

“There won’t be a later, because I’m going to leave here with those syringes, and I won’t be back.” I managed to sit up despite the pain. I walked up to the director and grabbed the cooler.

“If you’ll excuse me, director, I’ll be on my way.”

“Fine you can go, but don’t come back to the hunting grounds for a while. You’re not welcome here. Hunting vampires in the hunting grounds is bad for business.”

I nodded my head, “Where is Brandy?”

“She is in the waiting room.”

“Thank you for letting me leave.”

The director opened the door for me, “Just get out. But if you do find more mortals who are interested in coming to the hunting grounds please do send them my way. I’ll give you a finders fee.”

I walked down the hall and found the waiting room. I opened the door. The crew had splints and bandages. Beth had her arms in casts, she gave me the evil eye. Apparently, they had been helped too, which made sense anything to ensure they have repeat entrants. Prey wasn’t easy to come by. Brandy walked over to me and threw her arms around me. She was covered in dirt and grime, but still beautiful as ever. Her platinum blonde hair was done back in a messy braid. Brandy’s gray eyes focused on me as she pulled away from our embrace.

“I thought I lost you.”

I held up the cooler, “I got the blood I needed.”

“But was it worth it?” Brandy gently held my face. I winced from the cut on my face. 

“What happened after I passed out?”

“Steve killed that bitch that struck you out. Then we took some blood from the vampires we fought. After that we rushed through the exit. We didn’t want to face off anyone else.”

“That’s it?” I asked, hardly believing our luck.

“We had to drag you out. The crew is also pretty pissed at you. You essentially tricked them into risking their lives for you.”

“Yeah, I know.” I nearly laughed. To think I had to use humans to get my vampirism back. A tiny thread of guilt struck a chord within me.

“No, not good enough. You owe them a serious apology and me for that matter.”

“I’m sorry,” I said, looking Brandy straight in the eyes.

“You need to do better than that,” Brandy said, crossing her arms.

Eddy interrupted, “We almost died. Beth broke both of her arms!”

Steve responded, “You almost died Ela. I was always going to get away fine of course. I can kill my way out of anything.”

“You’re right Brandy,” I stepped aside so everyone could see me, “Look what I did was wrong, and I know it. I’m sorry. I put you all at risk and nearly got us killed. Nothing is worth that price, not even my vampirism. My desire to be whole again clouded my judgment. Yet again I must apologize it was wrong of me to do what I did. I promise to be better and try to make this up to every one of you, not Steve.” I pointed at Steve, and he scoffed. I ended my apology with a humble bow to everyone else.

“Whatever Ela, you know you like me.” Steve said, his arms crossed.

Brandy stood between me and Steve, “Enough, it’s time to get our crew some medical attention. We’re headed back to the ship and hitting up a doctor.“

“I have to make another lengthy report to the captain and probably get screamed at -- thank you Ela for that.” Brandy grabbed my hand despite her anger and dragged me with her in the direction of the ship.