Black Star: Diamond by Marteeka Karland cover art by Bryan Keller ISBN (13): 978-1-59596-629-2 Genre(s): Futuristic, Sci-Fi Theme(s): Ménage, Bisexual and More, Vampires Length: Novella (12k - 28k words) "So, what does a vampire do when he can't get blood or sex, hum?" Of all the situations Diamond expected to find herself in after escaping the Hand of God on Graves Station and the explosion outside the Black Star, being vampire fodder was the last. She should have expected it, but she'd done her best to steer clear of Viktor and hadn't realized how far gone he was. Now, it might be too late to salvage his sanity. Or his life. Still, she owed it to the people of the Black Star and the Sword Breaker -- including Viktor -- to do what she could. Without them, she'd still be on that hellhole of a space station. Or dead. Yes. She'd help Viktor even if it meant her very life. She owed it to him.

Viktor was apparently deep in a blood lust caused by denying himself all the pleasures of the flesh vampires were meant to indulge in. Diamond would bet her life he hadn't had blood or sex in many standard months, far longer than any vampire could safely endure.

"You have exactly two heartbeats to get the hell out of here." Viktor's voice was husky, gravelly. Deadly. His eyes glowed red in a blood rage she'd never seen the like of. If she didn't do as he asked -- even giving her the option of flight had to have represented the last of his control -- he would very likely kill her. A vampire in the grip of this kind of torture was never a gentle lover. They were as vicious in taking blood as they were in taking their pleasure. Often, their chosen prey didn't survive. It was why vampires rarely mated outside their own species. It was why Captain Singh was making all possible speed to Viktor's home world.

"I can't, Viktor." She gave him a smile she suspected looked suspiciously like a sneer. "If I don't help you, I'm damned to the seventh pit of hell."

"What makes you think a puny human like you could possibly help me?" Spit flew from his mouth as he barked his reply. His disgust was clear. It was obvious he wanted nothing to do with humans on this subject.

"Nothing. Only that you need blood and sex. If you don't, you're dead."

He hissed. "You know nothing!" He slashed a hand through the air in an animated gesture. "Not having blood or sex won't kill me, only drive me insane. I can't be sure it hasn't already. You should leave before I drain you dry, human." The last word was said with more contempt than even men with the Hand of God had ever used in reference to her. He said it like she was so far beneath him, he'd as soon squash her like a bug instead of have to converse with her.

She bared her teeth to him. A show of contempt, herself. "Perhaps being deprived of the two things vampires crave more than anything else won't actually be your death, but if you go mad and start killing, the captain will be forced to terminate you. I seriously doubt even a vampire of your stature could withstand the entire ship's complement, not to mention the Black Star herself."

He tilted his head, and the light in his eyes dimmed minutely. "What do you know of the Black Star?" Apparently, his curiosity stemmed the madness for a while.

"Only what Phoebe told me. That the ship is sentient, and that you've formed a link with her. I also know that Phoebe and I have some kind of tracking device implanted deep inside our brains that the Black Star is trying to devise a way to remove."

Viktor's eyes flashed once before dimming again. "For someone facing either major brain surgery or more encounters with a cult group like the Hand of God, you don't sound too worried."

"Of course not." She sniffed. "I'd welcome the chance to kill more of those bastards. As to the other --" She shrugged. "-- whatever is meant to be will be. It made my decision to confront you all the easier. If I'm going to die --" She got up on her knees on the bed where she'd been waiting for him and unzipped her uniform all the way down to a few inches below her navel and shrugged out of it completely. "-- I'll damned well choose how. And I guarantee it won't have anything to do with those sons of bitches in the Hand of God."

When Viktor's eyes glowed blood red with lust and the need for blood once more, Diamond sat back on the bed with her legs spread. She watched him carefully as his chest heaved and he clenched his fists with the effort to hold himself back. Picking up the tube of lubrigel lying on the table by the bed, she shoved the tip inside her cunt and squeezed. "Well? I'm not leaving. Come fuck me."