Chapter 7

2073 a.d.

Room Mates

Béla burst into her father's lab on the great ship, driven by a feeling of anxiety and dread. She had stayed away for almost a week, as she had agreed. During that time, she'd spent most of her time between exercising and sleeping in the huge cargo bay and bathing in the communal baths. For food, when someone noticed the princess was in the communal baths, crewmembers would suddenly start showing up with pieces of fruit and pastries, insisting that they share their food with her.

One intrepid admirer had even gone to the mighty Regent's forbidden laboratory and asked him for meat to bring to her. Watching the princess actually consume it had made him sick, so Béla had glowed her gratitude at him and finished her gourmet feast in the seclusion of her personal shower at the far end of the baths.

As a race of telepaths, the entire ship's complement was aware of her situation. As the Regent's daughter and the newest member of the community, Princess Béla was, in fact, the favorite topic of conversation amongst the passengers and crew. Her emotional broadcasts could be easily overheard by anyone, even without eavesdropping on her, as she hadn't learned how to control her shielding, yet. In addition, her ability to pick up stray thoughts made it impossible to keep secrets from her, which is why she was surprised one day to find that Elaine wasn't in the lab.

About an hour before she entered the lab, Béla felt Elaine go to sleep, exhausted from her morning's exercise. Then, for the first time in a week, the link she had with Elaine had been severed. It was so gradual that Béla didn't notice it fading, and then it was gone. That was when she anxiously headed for the lab.

"Where's Elaine?" she demanded of her father as she burst through the lab door. Sibilius turned and looked down at Béla's thin, underfed frame.

"You haven't been eating, again, child," he gently admonished her, completely ignoring her rude outburst.

Sibilius reached into the cooler and handed Béla a package of meat. His mind was completely blocked from her. She realized the new Praetor was assisting him with his shielding.

'All right, ' she thought, both annoyed and amused at his apparent defensiveness. 'You can keep your thoughts to yourself if you want, and I won't raid your mind. But you're broadcasting your emotions, Father, and I know what you're feeling... '

From what he was radiating, he was very pleased and feeling smug about something! Béla's curiosity overrode her earlier upset.

Her father began; "As Regent, it has been brought to my attention that my daughter, the 'Princess Béla', has been living homeless in the cargo hold. I realize that I was remiss in not assigning you quarters when I assigned housing for the rest of my creations, so I will take you to your assigned quarters now.

"It is unfortunate," he continued, "but you will have to share your quarters, as living space is limited. But, at least, you won't have to sit and freeze in the cargo hold. In addition, you will have your own bed and cooler, which is already stocked with the fruits, vegetables and meat that you have previously indicated you prefer."

'Shared quarters?' Béla thought, feeling uncertain about her new living arrangement. 'Well, at least I'll have somewhere to eat ... Wait! What if I get a Viragoan for a roommate instead of one of my sisters in a Drone body? Will I still have to hide when I eat?'

As they proceeded down the corridor, Béla became aware of an electronic field ahead of her, similar to the one in the 'rehab' center in Deimos. In the next moment, they were walking alongside the wall from which the electronic field emanated. It was so strong that it tickled inside her head and made her hair itch like it was standing on end. Her father stopped at a door in that wall.

"This will be your new quarters. The silencing field surrounding your quarters will give you the privacy you require..." he said as he opened the door.

Béla froze in delight as the sliding door revealed a pair of bright blue eyes just on the other side, gleefully staring right into hers.

Elaine was inside! Her mind blasted into Béla's with overjoyed exhilaration, incidentally flooding the entire ship with psychic energy. Béla could scarcely contain herself and hugged her father, radiating gratitude and joy. Then Elaine pulled her into the room and slid the door shut in her father's face. The silence in Sibilius' head was immediate and very welcome.

'Well! The shielding actually works!' he thought, chuckling to himself and feeling relief that, for once, he didn't feel his daughter's inquiring mind in the back of his head.

Sibilius turned and walked, almost skipping, back to his lab. The next birthing was definitely going to be less exciting. He looked forward to it. If he birthed two at a time, he could pair them off together. In that manner, he was less likely to end up with a pile of thirty horny hybrids all together at one time, each one radiating sex at full volume throughout the ship.

He sighed, realizing that he was going to need more shielded rooms.

A crewmember gestured in a manner of respect to the Regent as he approached. 'Quiet, isn't it, Sir.' They both suppressed a grin as they passed each other.

Elaine pulled Béla into the room and shoved the door shut as she spun around. All the background noise in Béla's head created by all the minds on the great ship suddenly ceased. The only mind she could hear was Elaine's.

Loud and clear!

Elaine bombarded her with images of what she wanted them to do together. Béla's body responded so quickly that she actually felt frightened for a moment. Then they were together on the bed. It only took a second for Béla to shed her sarong; two vampires in heat, kissing, licking, biting and sucking. The feedback from their sexual appetites was more erotic and intense than anything either of them had ever experienced before.

Béla had never been bitten by another of her own kind until now. In their torrid frenzy to join together, each sister found herself on the other's neck; Elaine's sharp teeth sunk deeply into Béla's throat and Béla's teeth deep in the side of Elaine's neck.

They sucked each other's blood while they clawed deep furrows into each other's flesh. Still they couldn't get close enough. Béla furiously humped her flaming pelvis against Elaine's hip while repeatedly ramming her right thigh up between Elaine's satin smooth legs, pounding Elaine's vulva as they squirmed and writhed together, doing their best to mash themselves into a single, orgasmic ... mess ... of copulating girls on a bed.

One long, constant, mind-ripping orgasm roared through their bodies and minds, becoming amplified beyond either's ability to experience it. Béla dug her nails deep into Elaine's ribs, tearing her flesh down to the bone. Elaine had her hands gripping Béla's waist. As she came, her nails tore fresh gashes around Béla's torso, digging in deeply, almost reaching Béla's central core.

They both passed out in the blood-soaked bed, their wounds healing quietly as they slept.

Béla woke up first, feeling dizzy and weak and lying halfway on top of Elaine. Everything was covered with sticky, half-clotted blood, including the two sisters. She could feel Elaine's sleeping mind, radiating love and sexual satisfaction even as she slept.

'So this is what Father meant about 'feedback', ' Béla thought to herself as she crawled off her new lover and staggered to her feet.

She could hardly wait to do it again.

'But, we'd better feed first, on something besides each other... '

This was the most energy she'd put into sex for a long time and she seriously needed nourishment. Elaine's blood was good, but Elaine had taken as much as Béla had. Maybe more – the vein she got was bigger. Béla had felt her blood spurting into Elaine's hot, hungry mouth, while she'd had to suck for hers.

Her feet slipped on the sticky floor. Becoming more conscious, Béla wondered how they were going to clean themselves up. Or even clean up the bloody mess they'd made.

She looked around their quarters. There didn't seem to be any plumbing. Béla didn't want to go out in the corridor looking like she just fought the Cossacks and lost. (That really happened. She didn't actually fight them, but she managed to get herself raped and murdered by them.) Heading for the cooler, she decided to wait for Elaine to wake up and see if she had any ideas.

'Any other ideas, ' she thought as she staggered toward the cooler.

'Any different ideas other than what she's had so far, ' she thought, amending her original thought.

Something was amplifying her emotions beyond her control.

'Fuck it! I'll go for any idea she has, ' Béla decided excitedly, 'especially about sex!'

Béla reached the cooler. Raising the lid, she rummaged around in it, picking out a few fruits and a meat pack. She staggered back to the bed with her hard-won booty. As she dropped her goodies onto the bed next to Elaine, she felt Elaine dream for a few seconds as she began to wake up.

Elaine opened her eyes and gazed at her blood-soaked lover. She smiled and radiated love at her.

"Wow. I love that pain-separation trick," Elaine murmured, smiling sleepily and stretching her arms over her head to display her sexy, stretched-out, blood-streaked body. "Daddy said that you have an incredible tolerance for pain. He doesn't understand how you can take the punishment he's seen you take. He thinks, perhaps, that you're addicted to pain and self-flagellation."

Béla smiled. The manner in which she was able to 'experience' pain was definitely addictive, but not for the reasons Father believed.

"I have never, ever fucked that hard!" Elaine continued as she picked up a piece of fruit off the bed.

"Oh, then you've never met your sister, Melinda?" Béla asked, cattily.

"Well, I know Melinda, but only as a drone," Elaine said. "Why, what's she like?"

"She likes to set you on fire and ram hot pokers up your ass," Béla explained cattily.