Dalinda

"I sense a man!" Dalinda thought to herself. "I sense a real man!" This was, of course, impossible. On the space colony Iberium, that orbited Titan in the cold darkness of space, there were no men, only Vampires like Dalinda. You see, Iberium is a safe haven for Vampires. No human has ever set foot here. Only one thing could explain her feelings: they were, once again, her imagination. Dalinda sensed a man because she needed a man.

She looked into the mirror gazing at her image (yes, Vampires do reflect light and appear in mirrors quite readily) and inspected herself. To the eye, she looked about twenty years old, with piercing brown eyes and very long straight brown hair. Even before she had been "reborn" a Vampire, men had considered her quite sexy, extremely desirable.

However, none had ever known her. Dalinda had never surrendered herself to the passions she had felt within her, never felt the touch of a man, a passionate kiss. 200 years later, she still remembered the desire she once felt, the fire and curiosity. But now that she is a Vampire, all of that was just a memory, much like an erotic dream.

Dalinda dressed in one of her usual outfits - a long dark purple dress that showed off her tall, thin figure to best advantage. Not that anyone would take advantage of her in a space colony full of Vampires. But she still liked to look sexy, in a gothic sort of way. Perhaps that was why she had been chosen for the "gift" of immortality; she had already looked the part when she as a mortal.

Deep down inside, Dalinda knew why she had these hallucinations of a virile man loose aboard the space colony; it aroused within her some of her lost humanity. Dalinda supposed that all of the Vampires in the space colony tried to keep their humanness alive, in one way or another. They likened themselves to a leper colony; they all had the same vile disease that kept them separate from the rest of humanity. The difference was that Vampires didn't die from their affliction. It was forever a part of them and it would keep kept them close to each other forever as well, Dalinda thought. Like a bad marriage between an old couple, for better or worse, till death do they part.

After she finished putting on her makeup, a little red rouge to the cheeks for color (ha!), she stepped out of her small artist's loft apartment and descended to the streets below. One thing that she had to get used to in a space colony was that streets curved "up," and just a short walk around the circumference would take you right back to where you had started.

Since the space colony orbited Titan, Vampires didn't have to worry about dying from excessive sunlight - the sun being just another star in the sky, only a little brighter. They lived in a world surrounded by perpetual night, sleeping only if they felt the need for it, and living almost "normal" lives. Or as Dalinda liked to say, almost "human" lives.

Dalinda enjoyed the way shadows fell across the building faces, making it appear as though the sun had just set and left behind a slight rosy glow to the horizon. Twilight had always been her favorite time of day as a Vampire on Earth, for it signaled it was time to come out and play, that she was once again safe from the sun's harmful rays.

It was obvious that the other Vampires thought the same way that she did, for aboard this space colony it was always twilight. She supposed that the other space colonies inhabited by mortals are bathed in the glow of perpetual noontime, an artificial sun always ablaze in the sky above. Dalinda had after wondered if this artificial sunlight could harm her.

After a short walk, she arrived at her destination. She was having lunch (dinner?) with some friends at Mime's Cafe. Mime's was a quaint little French Cafe modeled after the ones that were popular in Paris in the early twentieth century. She settled into her usual seat in the booth that was always reserved for her and her friends and waited for them to arrive.

"The usual?" the waiter asked, as he arrived to take her order.

"Yes, please." she replied as she surveyed the room, looking for anyone she might know. Her eyes locked on that of a handsome man's face, who was sitting at the far end of the bar. He had an almost "mortal" look in his eyes, as if he burned from a fire deep within. His face, although pale like the other patrons, had a glow to it that she felt more than saw.

"Your Bloody Mary." the waiter said, sliding a drink in front of her. She shifted her attention back to the waiter and said,

"Thanks" as she handed him her credchit. She then glanced back in the direction of her new found interest only to realize that he was gone.

"Hello, Dalinda!" Jack said and settled down in the seat next to her. Jack had been much older than Dalinda when he had become immortal and was forever locked into looking like he was forty.

"Always the vamp, dressing ghoulish and drinking a Bloody Mary. Has anyone bothered to tell you that the "Goth" look went out of style over 100 years ago?"

She looked squarely into Jack's handsome face, her eyes narrowing just a bit. "This may come as a bit of a shock to you, Jack, but perhaps I dress like a Vampire because I am a Vampire. At least I'm not a Vampire running around disguised as a mountain climber!" she replied.

Jack looked at her, a bit of anger flickering in his eyes, and said, "It wasn't my choice to become immortal. I loved mountain climbing before the "accident" and I always will. Someday, I'll build a mountain in space, a mountain just for the Vampires to climb. That's why I truly exist! For that momentous event!"

She peered at Jack, and for a brief moment wondered what it would have been like to sleep with him before he had become a Vampire, to feel him deep inside her.

"Jack, the truth is that you have had this dream of yours for over 100 years; when are you going to act on it? We could sit here for weeks, literally, and talk about our dreams, our chance to regain some of our lost humanity. Some of us act on them while others just let time drift by, forever. Why don't you at least go to some of the colony worlds that the more adventurous Vampires call home? On one of those you could climb mountains all night long - you could almost lead a human life."

Jack looked at her in surprise and replied: "Not a bad idea, really. I could head for one of the colony worlds like Tirine for example, an incredibly rugged planet waiting for someone like myself to conquer it."

By this time, the little lunch club had grown to include many. All of them were ordering "food" that wasn't food really, but blood cleverly designed by high tech laboratories to resemble thousands of different meals, each of which could easily fool a mortal into thinking that it was the real thing. Dalinda, being the "Goth," stuck to the traditional, a taste she had acquired while on Earth.

This lunch group could meet for weeks or even months, and sometimes did. Dalinda had started to bore of the entire affair, the talk of dreams that were never attempted and the longing for their lost mortal lives, which were forever out of their grasp.

She glanced around the cafe and found nothing to stimulate her waning interest - no fire in anyone's eyes, no passion in anyone's hearts. Everyone in the room was dead, including herself. She then looked at Jack, tried once again to imagine what it would be like to be intimate with him, to feel his touch, his kiss.

"Jack, remind me to tell you about my dream sometime, my wild fantasy to recapture some of my lost humanity."

As she rose from her seat, she smiled at him, then left the cafe. She knew that the group would still be there months, even years later, or as sad as it was to consider, probably centuries later. As for her, she had work to do. Dalinda had always loved art and easily earned enough money as an artist to support herself in a comfortable fashion.

As she walked down the sidewalk surrounded by perpetual twilight, something seemed different to her, a sensation of something almost alive. Looking around, she noticed a handsome man ahead of her, standing casually on the street corner, as if waiting for someone. She recognized him as the same man she had seen in the cafe earlier. He was older looking than she, about thirty, dressed in a business suit and wore his hair short. Once again, despite the pale skin typical of a Vampire, he seemed to breathe with an almost mortal fire. Her gaze locked upon his and she returned his intense stare.

"I was told that you paint portraits." he said.

"That's right," she replied. As she steadily held his eyes, old memories stirred within her and desires began to awaken as from a deep sleep.

"Good. I'm David James and I've admired your work for years while living on Earth. I'm here because I want you to immortalize me."

She narrowed her eyes as she gazed into his, realizing for the first time what he was; her heart constricted as she thought about the risks he had taken to come to the space colony.

"Do you know what I am?" she asked him.

"Yes, and I'm also aware of where I am. I came armed with a UV Laser, and I'm not afraid to use it," he said and he patted a slight bulge in his jacket, all the while smiling at Dalinda.

She continued to return his gaze. Still smiling, she said, "Don't worry, you won't have to use that weapon here. There are no predator Vampires living in this space colony because there is usually nothing to prey upon. All predator Vampires that come here quickly move on, to far greener pastures. So, now, let me get this straight. You want me to make you immortal?"

He laughed suddenly, replying. "No, not that... I don't want you to make me immortal, I simply want you to immortalize me in a painting. You're the best painter in your style, painting with such feeling, so blue and yet with hope amid the despair. I want you to study me and then paint what you feel."

Dalinda scrutinized David. He was handsome and looked almost vampirish, as if he wanted to be like a Vampire. It had to be a disguise to keep his activity here a secret. She wondered how he looked without the costume.

Strangely enough, as they stood talking, none of the other Vampires noticed him, much less tried to prey upon him. She, too, felt no urge to taste his blood, to sink her teeth into his warm exposed flesh.

Dalinda guessed that years upon years of easy living softened you, or perhaps all the other Vampires aboard the station were like she, filled with an aversion to killing for no reason. It seemed their one true passion was the need to search constantly for their human soul.

"David, when I paint, I paint only what I feel inside. It's my way of dealing with what it is that I have become, what I will always be, what can never be cured. Come to my loft sometime and I'll paint you from the darkness of the inhuman soul, so cold and full of despair that in the centuries to come your great-grandchildren will wonder about you - that is if that's what you want, what you truly desire."

Reaching into her handbag, she pulled out one of her cards and handing it to him said, "Here's my card. If you want you can stop by later today, let's say in two hours, and we'll start your painting. It will be expensive, but worth it".

She then turned away and continued walking back to her loft apartment, considering how the day's agenda had been permanently changed. When she got home, she changed from her purple dress to a more comfortable outfit, one less gothic, more feminine and quite revealing.

David arrived a couple of hours later and appeared a bit nervous at entering the domain of a Vampire.

"Come in," she said, "I don't bite... not hard, anyway."

"How do you want to start?" David asked, glancing around the room, his eyes finally settling on her, with a pleasant look.

"We can start with you removing your clothes and sitting on that stool in the light," she said, pointing to a small stool that was placed in the middle of the room under a bright red light.

"You'll make an excellent subject for painting, far better than the boring models I normally use."

Removing his clothes, David revealed his body for Dalinda to admire. She had never seen a nude man before, and the sight excited her. There he was, closer than she had ever dreamed - a living, breathing man.

She slowly walked toward him and when near enough, ran her fingers across his hairy chest. Her short black Japanese robe parted slightly to expose some of her pale flesh. His flesh felt warm to her touch and Dalinda felt stirrings of desire and passion deep inside her and she started to be overwhelmed by its intensity.

She kissed him. Not the kiss of eternal life, which she had given many times to as many mortals. No, this was a passionate kiss, one that burned with fire, and her lips quivered with her desire. David began to respond to her touch, feeling the passion that consumed her. She slid to the floor, pulling him to her and when he was on top of her, she cast aside the skimpy robe.

As their bodies melted together, his hot flesh ignited desires within her that she had never known and her skin seem to come alive where his fingertips stroked the softness of her. Her breath, which she realized she had been holding since their lips had sought and found each other, burst forth. As she gasped in the next breath, the scent of him filled her nostrils and she breathed him into her lungs. Her passion, which had been locked away long ago in a deep, dark prison of her heart, came rushing out from its lonely place and escaped from her throat, expelling itself as a low, sensual moan.

The trembling of her body both surprised and pleased her. As David's lips tenderly kissed flesh never touched by another and then brushed her cheek as he lowered his head to suckle her breasts, she struggled with the innate urge to sink her teeth into his neck. Immediately, she pushed her animalistic urge away by telling herself "No, no, no... this time I'll derive more pleasure by giving myself to this man instead of taking from him something that isn't mine to have." The thought of having him as an eternal lover also came to her, but she somehow knew that to take control of his destiny would kill the magic between them.

His hands, firm yet tender, massaged the area just below her rib cage, gently squeezing her tingling flesh. She allowed him to explore the body many had longed to possess and finally, letting herself be swept away by her desires, she eagerly gave herself to him.

Basking in the red glow of the light above them, David entered her. For a brief instant, she felt pain; then far off in the distance she felt a stranger sensation, a sensation similar to the feeling she experienced on Earth when she fed on a mortal's blood. However, what she was feeling with David was different. This feeling began to overwhelm her - consume her, until it totally enveloped her. Dalinda was brought back to the present as David glanced at her and stood up.

"You know, your flesh was slightly cold at first, but it seemed to warm up a little after a while. I hope that warmth inspires your artistic genius."

"Believe me... it will." she replied as she got up from the floor and headed toward the bathroom. Standing in front of the mirror, she noticed a strange blue fluid running down her leg to form in a small blue pool on the floor. Android Sex lubricant! How could that possibly be? The only explanation was that all her memories were implants and she was, in reality a sex android and that David was a paying customer!

"David, dear – how much did you pay to fuck me?" She asked.

"2000 dollars – and you were worth every penny! Tirine is the best whorehouse in the galaxy!!!!" David responds, slamming the door behind him as he leaves.

Dalinda looks at her reflection in the mirror and realizes that sex androids reflect light and Vampires don't. She feels her silicone flesh, so pliable, yet completely realistic looking and knows that if "they" ever figure out that she know what she really is they would erase all her memories. She dresses and decides that it's time to find out whom her "pimp" is and how to deal with him.....

Dalinda dressed in a bright red crushed velvet evening gown, and accessorized it with contrasting black gloves and black fish net stockings. This dress was low cut and revealed an ample portion of her pale white flesh. The sides of the long, flowing skirt were split open to tempt onlookers with her insanely long shapely legs. After she added a little red rouge to her cheeks to detail her finely chiseled silicone cheekbones, Dalinda felt ready for a night out on the town finding out who her pimp really was.

Dalinda gathered her purse and a short, black velvet cape and left her loft to make her way to another area of the space colony. Dalinda knew now that Iberium was nothing more than a large whorehouse full of sex androids like herself. The area to which she was headed was the Americanized section and in it there was a little town perfected to resemble the Chicago of the 1930's.

When she reached the monorail station, she entered the monorail that traveled to Little Chicago, found a solitary seat, and relaxed for the long journey ahead. True, she could just use her vampiric powers to arrive in Little Chicago instantaneously, but tonight Dalinda wanted to enjoy the scenic route, to experience the space colony unfolding around her.

She closed her eyes as the monorail departed Little Paris. It was filled to the brim with "Vampires" wanting to enjoy a relaxed trip to Little Chicago just like Dalinda herself. She though about how it really must be, customers from Earth who came to Iberium to enjoy the latest in electronic android sex. All the sex androids like Dalinda had implanted memories so that they would live their fantasies out in a realistic fashion. For Dalinda to really act like a female vampire who hadn't had sex in 200 years, implanted memories of 200 years of vampire life would do the trick quite nicely. That program would also have to contain the right hooks for her "customer" – in this case David so that she would feel true love for him, or a least lust. These thoughts however weren't making Dalinda feel any better. She tried hard to relax and to vanquish these disturbing thoughts. As she succeeded, her mind drifted elsewhere....to implanted Vampire memories of events that never really happened...

Dalinda remembered the day she became kindred almost like it was yesterday. As a mortal, she had always been a "Goth," dressing in black, wearing black makeup, and listening to Gothic music while smoking clove cigarettes. However, despite all this, Dalinda never actually believed that Vampires really existed; she just liked pretending to be one, dressing up and playing the part, and thoroughly enjoyed being counted as one of the more sophisticated among the Vampire sub-culture of Los Angeles.

That all changed one night when she and her friends were having a rather a wild evening at the "Cat Walk," a very popular club in Los Angeles. This club was located in the basement of a large high rise building in the down town district. It catered exclusively to the Goth's style and taste, pampering them with black walls, black lights, purple velvet furniture and tarot card readings. Dalinda had just turned twenty and while her friends mingled, she lounged on one of the purple couches while waiting to have her fortune read. She relaxed and closed her eyes, sipping from a rather large Bloody Mary.

Dalinda loved the loud sensual music that pounded throughout the club, and as she sat there and let her body fill with the rhythm, she felt elated with the knowledge that she only had one more year before she could drink in a "real" club. The Cat Walk was an underground club, and was open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. It sold alcoholic and drugged drinks to anyone who had the cash to buy them. Since the club only allowed regulars and the friends of regulars as patrons, the chances of being busted by LA's finest were slim.