Vampires of Noctra(14)

Each death of one of his crew re-awakened the memories, reminding him of the monstrous events on the night he'd been set the task of destroying

his own family. Men who had been turned zombies by the black magic of the voodoo shape-shifter Zoliel.

He spun away from the memory. The one problem with being vampire was that he couldn't get drunk in the normal way a man would use to numb

the memories of his past. No, to drown the memories for him took the blood of many. To gorge himself on the sweet taste of his crew.

His focus turned to the black beacon of his own ship and stilled as his attention caught the sight of a man with blond hair off to the left, standing

next to the boarding plank. Skye Templeton, holding a blood streaked ax in his hand. Staring at Donté.

"Jupiter!"

"Yes, Cap'n."

"The Templeton lad. Did he fight tonight?"

"Aye, Captain. He was one that helped to keep the bastards from crossing the planks to our ship."

Skye Templeton was still a man of question. Who was he? Donté felt there was more to the young man than he let on. Was he just a shipwrecked

merchant that happened upon the Night Stalker? Or was he a spy sent to kill the vampirate captain? It wouldn't be the first time and Donté

doubted it would be the last.

This fixation on the attractive castaway would likely lead to his own demise. A glimpse into his powerful aura told Donté more than Templeton

probably wanted him to know. And obviously he knew his way around weapons as well as ships which bespoke of the man being more than a

simple merchant.

"The sun is on the rise, Cap'n. We'll see to the remainder of what needs to be done here."

Donté nodded. He'd done little bloodletting tonight and he felt a bit lightheaded. It would probably be best for him to rest and then feed at first

dusk. He hadn't the stomach for more blood tonight.

"Be certain that not a bit of this zombie ship remains. Retrieve the captain's log and have Velvet deliver it to my cabin at dusk."

"Aye, Cap'n."

Donté hadn't partaken of Velvet's blood in some time. Velvet would be a good diversion to help take his mind off tonight's events.

He stepped onto one of the wide planks connecting the ships. He looked down at the swirling sea below. Deep, silent, and churning. He could hear

the slap of the waves as they beat at the wooden hulls. The water itself hypnotized him. What ghostly voices would rise up to bemoan their deadly

fate if he listened close enough? A gust of wind howled as though in answer.

"Cap'n? Are there any other orders?"

Donté shook himself out of the reveries. He looked over his shoulder at Jupiter. "No. That's all. I'll speak with you this evening." He strode across

the wooden plank and jumped onto the deck.

Skye stood before him, studiously watching him with an expression Donté was unable to penetrate. He was too tired to try to decipher the man's

thoughts at the moment. Nor was he in the mood for games or duels.

"Why?" he asked Skye, pointing to the blood and hair-encrusted axe.

Skye shrugged. "It seemed the thing to do at the time."

"Do you know what they are? What they were?"

This time when Skye looked at Donté, the vampire captain saw confusion swirling within the blueness of his pupils. "No. I-I thought--"

Ah, revelation swept through Donté. "The axe was for me, wasn't it?"

Skye looked him square in the eye. "I thought you meant to kill all those people. You're a vampire, what else was I supposed to think?"

"My reputation. They all think the vampires of Noctra sail the seas in search of victims to gorge our thirst. Isn't that right?" Skye's hands tightened

around the axe handle.

"What else are we supposed to think? Vampires trail a heavy reputation of killing in order to appease their hunger."

Donté started at him for a long time. His instincts told him Skye had been sent here to kill him. So why did he hesitate to have done with Templeton

right this minute?

He nodded to the axe. "Well, here you are. And here I am. So why don't you finish the deed you've come here to do?"

"How do you know I was sent to kill you?"

Donté shrugged. "You wouldn't be the first."

"What happened to the others?"

Donté looked back across to the other ship. "A few are now part of my crew. The others," he looked down at the water. "A few have found

everlasting peace or hell, depending on your perspective."

"You're a vampire. You have everlasting life."

Donté watched as Skye swung the axe from his shoulder and dropped it to the deck. Donté looked down at the discarded weapon and almost felt a

twinge of regret. What he wouldn't give to have all of this done and over with. There was so little he found pleasure in any more. So many lovers