Aryna broke the link and started looking out of the window on her side. She glanced at Allison. Then around the interior of the armored transport.

“We did not have things like this on my world, we had Tylaran, four-legged mammals with a horn. They would pull carriages. How do you power these?”

Allison glanced toward the rear.

“Micro-fusion reactors. We have civilian vehicles that run off batteries. The military just doesn’t trust batteries to do the job. But this does have batteries, the micro-fusion reactor charges them. That way if the reactor goes offline it still has some range left.”

Aryna looked out at the vast farmlands and the habitation prefab’s.

“I am confused. The limited access I had to Alliance-net let me see vast cities of metal and stone. With many bright lights and holograms. Is there no city here?”

Allison shook her head.

“No, people leave Sol System and move to colonies to get away from the domes. We have several commerce complexes. Besides the Colony Defense Forces base, those are the biggest structures.”

Aryna motion to a prefab habitation.

“They all look the same.”

Allison nodded.

“They are manufactured in the asteroid belt in Sol System and dropped from space. Thrusters slow their descent then they auto-deploy. We have robots that level the land ahead of time. It takes about a week to deploy a colony big enough to sustain ten thousand of us. Provided they have the prefab habitation, barn and other units. They also drop farming robots from space. Manufacturing facilities come later. The corporations have it down to a science.”

Aryna smiled at Allison.

“Are you a student of such things?”

Allison shook her head.

“No, the corps love to brag about their prowess. We have to watch these stupid holos that are basically hour-long advertisements thinly veiled as education videos. We get them at least once a week.”

Aryna shifted so she could look directly at Allison.

“Corp?”

“Corps are business, they’re like… a person, but made up of a bunch of people? They have shareholders who invest so they can make profit…”

Aryna quirked her head to the side.

“Why?”

“To make credits of course they make the Galaxies turn…”

“Oh, interesting. We had nothing like that.”

“You didn’t have businesses on your world?”

Aryna shook her head.

“No, we did not have currency as you would consider it. We grew our homes from the land. Same with our ships. People did what they were skilled at. We didn’t really have hunger or starvation. Our lifespans make it, so we do not have any hope of overpopulating a world.”

Aryna sighed.

“Made it…”

Allison patted Aryna’s hand.

“Don’t think about it, you can’t change the past.”

The transport pulled into the paved lane leading up to Allison’s home. Aryna looked it over.

“This is larger than the others.”

“My parents were well off on Earth. My mom is the leader of this colony, and my father is the leader of the Colony’s Defense Forces. Like I said, money makes the galaxies turn.”

They got out of the transport. Allison walked beside Aryna towards the front door. She stopped about ten feet out. Aryna took a few steps before she realized Allison wasn’t beside her. Aryna turned to her.

“Is something the matter? Do you need help?”

Allison closed her eyes and rubbed the bridge of her nose between her thumb and index finger.

“No, I’m just not looking forward to seeing my mom. We haven’t seen each other in person since I rescued you. I didn’t make it home last night.”

Aryna smiled.

“Surely you are looking forward to seeing her then?”

Allison shook her head.

“Not really. Look, my mom… she’s a lot. A bit overprotective. Probably going to be upset I volunteered us to host you. So, like this could go one of two ways, one, she keeps her cool because we have a guest, or two she will explode and tell me everything I did wrong yesterday. Either way she’s going to be pissed. So just find my dad, he’s the Captain from the base. I know you’ve met him because he probably met you and Bit thinking it was me.”

Aryna nodded. Allison continued once she had that confirmation.

“Just find my dad, get him to show you your room, close the door and get some sleep.”

“Oh, we don’t sleep. We meditate on our memories. It is how we keep them organized.”

Allison shrugged.

“Whatever, just stay out of the way until mom has gotten whatever she’s going to be pissed about out of her system. I knew it was coming the moment I decided to rescue you and your ship. At this point I’m just delaying the inevitable. And uh, look, there is something else I need to tell you so you’re not weirded out.”

“What is it?”

Allison took a deep breath. She was still trying to process what Maria and the Doctor had told her.

“I’m part vampire.”

Aryna quirked one of her silver eyebrows.

“I do not understand.”

Allison bit her lower lip gently. The sentence was going to sound so damn weird.

“Apparently, I need to drink blood. Don’t worry, we have synthetic blood for vampires… Just thought you should know.”

Aryna laughed, it was as musical as ever.

“Oh, is that all? You are no different than the Spirin then. Well at least in diet. They did have six legs and two arms and over half their body was covered in chitin.”

Allison pointed at a spider web that shimmered in the light from one of the light posts that lined the walk.

“Like… spider people?”

Aryna looked closer at the web.

“Why yes, only much larger. They used an organic webbing that looked very similar to that, except it was much thicker.”

Allison was about to say something else when she noticed light streaming from the open front door. She saw her mom’s silhouette. She swallowed hard then looked at Aryna.

“We should go inside. There are blood drinking flying insects here that carry a bacteria. We have medication for it but you’ll wish you were dead. They’ll be out in a few minutes.”

Apiyo stepped aside and closed the door. She crossed her arms and looked Allison up and down. Allison’s father recognized the look his wife was giving all too well. He spoke.

“Tearyna, please let me show you to your room.”

This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

Aryna glanced at Allison who nodded. Allison’s mother grabbed Allison in a tight hug. Allison flinched from the pain in her wound. Apiyo tugged on Allison’s uniform top, pulling it out of her skirt. She lifted it and pointed at the synth-skin patch.

“What is this? You’re injured? They have you walking around injured?”

Allison tried to push her mother’s hand away.

“Its fine mom.”

Apiyo didn’t believe that for a moment. She checked the back and saw another patch of synth-skin.

“What did this to you?”

Allison shook her head.

“Mom, I can’t. It’s classified. It’s nothing serious.

Her mother pulled the skin-weave off and looked at the injury.

“Nothing serious! It went right through you and it’s an inch wide! What madness are you involved in?”

Allison pushed her mother’s hand away and reapplied the patch.

“Nothing to worry about mom. I was told there was a delivery of stuff for me?”

Her mother pulled a bottle of Synth-O from one of the cabinets and put it down in front of Allison.

“Blood? They delivered blood? For a transfusion.”

Allison shook her head.

“No mom.”

Allison picked up the bottle and read it. If the President was right, this would make her feel better almost immediately. She popped the cap. The metallic smell of blood wafted out of the bottle. She picked the bottle up and pressed it to her lips. She closed her eyes and drank as much of it down as she could in one gulp. She expected to vomit it up, but it tasted so good. She quickly finished the bottle. Apiyo was staring at Allison who licked her lips. She felt points on her incisors. She rushed to the microwave and lifted her upper lip. As Maria had predicted, she had fangs they were wickedly sharp looking and curved so she could close her mouth.

“Allison, what did they do to you child? Please tell me what is going on.”

Apiyo cupped Allison’s cheeks in her hands and gasped when the fangs sunk back into her daughter’s gums.

“Mom, they didn’t do anything, it’s just… some vampire blood got into my Genesis pod’s supply. It made me part vampire. It’s completely normal. I talked to a vampire tonight and she told me this was going to happen.”

Apiyo looked her daughter over.

“You seem paler than usual. Did they turn you?”

Allison pulled away from her mother and held her hands out in front of her.

“Mom! No! I lost some blood! I’m fine! You never listen!”

Her mother tried to reach out and hug her. Allison shoved her away with a lot more strength than she expected and shouted.

“Don’t touch me!”

Her mother stumbled backwards and caught herself with the kitchen sink. Her hand smashed through a glass. She glanced at the blood as it began to mar the stainless steel of the sink. Then she looked at Allison. Her eyes went wide. Allison caught a glimpse of her reflection out of the corner of her eye. Her fangs were out, and her eyes had a soft golden glow to them. The teenager’s nose twitched as the scent of fresh blood filled it. Her eyes focused onto the sink, then Allison’s hands went to her mouth, and she rushed off to her room. Apiyo watched her go.

Jason came out just in time to be knocked aside in his daughter’s rush to her room. He looked at Apiyo with a scowl. He stalked into the kitchen. His voice was a harsh whisper.

“I warned you Apiyo! I warned you she was going through a difficult time. Why do you do that? Why must you pressure her?”

Apiyo didn’t look at her husband. She was pulling small pieces of glass out of her palm and dropping them into the sink. Tears were forming at the bottom of her eyes and she just shook her head. Then she got mad and wiped them away with her good hand.

“She is my daughter husband and I will not have her avoiding my questions! Why are you being so protective of her?”

Jason gasped when he saw his wife’s bleeding palm. He rushed off for the first aid kit and returned. He tugged Apiyo to the kitchen table and laid out a clean dish cloth. He pointed at a kitchen chair.

“Sit woman.”

Apiyo sat down. Jason washed his hands then returned and motioned towards the cloth.

“Hand.”

Apiyo laid her still bleeding hand on the cloth. Jason started to clean the wound. Swabbing up the excess blood and using tweezers to remove a few small shards of glass. He shook his head as he did it.

“The two of you are so stubborn. So much alike. So prideful.”

Apiyo took his dressing down in stride. She winced when he sprayed the bacteriophage solution on the injury. He continued.

“If I hadn’t signed the adoption papers and she wasn’t so white I’d never guess you weren’t her biological mother.”

He dabbed up the excess spray and pulled out the wound sealing foam. He gently spread it on the wound and made sure it got into the wound proper. Apiyo relaxed as the local anesthetic that was included in the foam kicked in. Jason looked up at her face. Apiyo met his gaze. She could see fear in his eyes.

“What is scaring you so much?”

He shook his head and looked back down at her hand. He pulled out a patch of synthetic skin and laid it across the cut. The patch shifted from generic grey to match her dark skin tone. She opened and closed her hand. He started gathering up the first aid supplies and putting them back in the kit. Apiyo grabbed his hand.

“Jason, talk to me.”

He closed his eyes and sighed, he whispered softly.

“My love, there are things you do not know about Allison and how she came to be with us. Things you’re putting at risk.”

Apiyo’s eyes narrowed.

“What did you do?”

He snapped the first aid kit closed. He rubbed his forehead and looked anywhere but into Apiyo’s eyes. She grabbed his arms.

“Jason, what did you do?”

He closed his eyes and faced the ceiling. He sighed heavily and he pulled Apiyo in for a tight hug. She hugged him back.

“You were so distraught when we lost the twins to Lazarus Syndrome… then we didn’t get picked in the child lottery.”

Apiyo broke the embrace and stepped back from him.

“What? We were picked.”

Jason shook his head.

“No, my love, we were not. I… started looking for other ways to adopt, non-official ways.”

Apiyo gasped.

“You wouldn’t… Are you telling me you let us adopt a trafficked child?”

Jason held up his hands.

“No, no… You were so depressed. I was scared for you. I would have done anything to give you a child. Paid any price. But no, she… came to me.”

Apiyo narrowed her eyes.

“Who came to you? Did you cheat on me?”

Jason shook his head.

“No! No. A vampire. I had to… make a promise. That as all she asked for.”

Apiyo started to shake her head.

“They are dead they cannot have children.”

“They can, there is a procedure. They are not her children. She would not tell me who the real parents were. Just that she acted as a surrogate and that their parents died.”

“There were two?”

He nodded. She looked at him in confusion, she could not understand why he would rob her of a chance at a second child. Why would he agree to separate twins? After what she had gone through, what she had lost.

“Why wouldn’t you take both? Why would you agree to something so monstrous?”

She turned away and put her face into her hands as she began to choke up. Memories of a long-lost twin sister started welling up. He put his hand on her shoulder, and she pulled away.

“My love, I… just wanted to make you happy.”

She turned to him; Her face was moist with tears.

“What did you promise her?”

“That I would tell no one where she came from. That we would never try to find out who her biological parents were. That I would never let her try. That she would be safe and she would be loved.”

“And her sister?”

Jason sighed and still couldn’t look into his wife’s eyes. He knew the hurt he would see there.

“Brother and it was never an option. Never an option…”

He repeated it to himself, maybe he could make it true.

“Did you even ask?”

He closed his eyes.

“No, you do not understand, my love. This vampire. She is not someone you ask things of, she is dangerous. She is very old. She gave me Allison and told me to leave. She was so small, so perfect. I knew she was what you needed. What if I pressed her and she turned me away?”

Apiyo shook her head. She was so angry she was shaking. She pointed to the door.

“You need to leave this house.”

Jason went to say something, but Apiyo raised her hand in front of her and shook her head. Her tone left no room for discussion.

“Don’t even try. Just leave. Now. Before I say something I regret.”

Jason hung his head and nodded. He made his way into the garage. Apiyo watched his headlights vanish into Eden Prime’s night. She walked to her room and pulled an ancient photo album out of a drawer in her nightstand. She opened it and moved through several pages to a photo of her and her twin sister. Tears dripped down her face. The photo was a thousand years old, preserved in ice for a millennia but for her it had only been twenty-eight years. The void was still there in her chest. Her eyes shifted to a photo of her mother. She remembered how contentious her relationship with her had been.

Her gaze shifted to a small holo-projector. She put the preserved album aside and picked up the projector. She powered it on. An image of her and Allison appeared. They were hugging. Allison was in her white dress uniform. They were standing in front of Allison’s starfighter. The pair were smiling and laughing. Allison’s AI companion had just made a joke. Apiyo smiled.

Since the moment Jason had placed their adopted daughter in her arms, Allison had become her entire world. She had wanted a child so badly. She thanked God that day for the precious gift. Not her husband, not the System’s Alliance government. Allison was a blessing. She realized it did not matter how the child reached her. Allison was her daughter and always would be, no matter what her origins were. She sighed and put the holo down.

She moved to Allison’s room and knocked on the door gently. She received no answer. She put her hand on the scanner beside it and the door slid open. Allison’s room was a mess, clothes were everywhere. Apiyo sighed. She’d hoped the summer of military service would have gotten her daughter to a point where she was more organized and less chaotic. Allison had at least changed out of her uniform before bed. Apiyo shook her head and picked up the uniform skirt, and top putting them on a hanger. She hooked it onto a bar in her daughter’s walk in closet. She picked up the dirty underwear and civilian clothes and tossed them into a basket. Their robot maid would deal with it when they got her back from maintenance. This would normally be something the robot would do.

Apiyo felt a cold breeze and realized Allison had left her window open. The anti-insect screen kept flashing as the night insects of Eden Prime flew against it trying to get access to the blood inside. She tapped the control beside it and the window hissed when it shut. She pulled one of Allison’s numerous blankets up over her daughter’s shoulders, Allison snuggled into the blanket. Apiyo smiled at her daughter. She was still the same little girl after all.

Apiyo drifted to her office. It was late. She should have been going over the debriefing she’d received as part of the colony defense planning meeting earlier in the evening. However, she was more concerned about something else at the moment. The recent revelations from her husband, and Allison’s changes. She tapped her computer and established a neural link via wifi through her net-jack, the first cybernetic enhancement she had purchased.

Her avatar formed in her home construct. Her personal virtual intelligence appeared. He was an image of her first teenage crush, a character from a show. He was a handsome white man with quite a bit of black stubble. He smiled and spoke.

“What do you desire?”

Apiyo always got a bit of a chill when he said it.

“Please start a search for ancient vampires with golden irises. Who their associates are and any histories on them. Do the same for Maria Aurelius.”

The VI smiled at her.

“Official channels, or something more… shall we say, risqué?”

Apiyo gave a small giggle. If only her husband knew what the VI was based on, he would be so upset. She motioned towards the non-government access port.

“Unofficial channels only. Use the discretionary fund if you need to. I’ll start searching on my own.”

Apiyo willed her consciousness and her avatar out into the Alliance-net.