This Forsaken World

This Forsaken World Chapter 23

This Forsaken World Chapter 23

Commander Devin Crowe

The flight back to the carrier took longer than expected as it was clear the Alliance fleet had left the area. I couldn't fault them for leaving me behind, it was a tactical decision and in the scheme of things risking a few warships for the life of one man was simply inconceivable.

I took the opportunity to talk to my companion as our small squadron made its way through the black void.

"So, whats the Vakkto?" I asked, shifting in the seat so I could move Sally's bag out of the way. Turning to look at me over her shoulder, Sally leaned back against my chest and got comfortable.

"It's a torture method for Nocturnals. They skin you from head to toe, wait for you to heal slowly and once you've recovered they do it again. It's repeated endlessly until you go mad from pain or beg for death. It's the ultimate punishment for my kind." Sighing, Sally smiled as she leaned over and opened her bag to go through it.

"So that thing weighs a ton, whats in it?" I asked, curiosity getting the better of me. I reached out to take a peek and she slapped my hand away.

"Clothes, a few...secret things you'll find out about later and some personal items. Thank you for bringing this with you." The woman seemed satisfied with her bounty and leaned back against me once more.

"Your welcome. That was some great fighting you pulled off back there, remind me never to piss you off." I was surprised when she gave me a hurtful look.

"I would never do that to you. Primarily because your my master but also I've grown quite fond of you and I don't want to break you...yet." A giggle made my stomach flip and I breathed in deeply.

"So what's your squadron? They seem pretty good in a dogfight. Considering I was fighting you when we met I assume we were tangling with them as well?" I asked. Sally shook her head and frowned.

"No, you only faced me and a group of recruits. My job was to train them, we underestimated your fighters and combat experience considering you wiped the floor with us. My squadron was performing bombing runs on the surface when I engaged you. I didn't expect to see them again, I thought they were aboard a different battleship in orbit around your world." Holding up her hand the vampire spread her palm to splay her five fingers.

"I'll cut there names short like you did with mine to make it easier to remember. First, my second in command Vacya. She's almost as good as me in a fighter." Lowering one finger she continued.

"Next is Selena. Cassiva, Osska and Desha. Our squadron name is probably too hard for you to pronounce so in your language we'd be known as Blood Fangs. We're considered one of the elite Nocturnal squadrons. We've got more confirmed kills than any other flight group in the fleet." I whistled in appreciation.

"Here I thought the Reapers were good. Are the squadrons in your fleet made up of six fighters or just yours?" I was interested to know for a strategic standpoint. The more information we had the better we could perform in battle against the Vampires.

"No, most are between twelve to twenty. Since females are so rare six is all we could muster. For every woman there are twenty men in our species. Most vampire women are used for breeding stock, trophies for high ranking individuals or menial task labor such as desk work, blood collectors and stuff like that. It's rare for us to join the military so having a squadron is heavily frowned upon." The conversation seemed to darken Sally's mood and I tried to change the subject.

"Well I'll do everything I can to secure you asylum in our fleet. Our society is very different. Women are treated as equals in most regards and they have full independence. My own Captain is a woman as your aware. She's in direct leadership over hundreds of men to give you some perspective. I'm sure she'll come up with a plan for you and your friends." This brought a smile to Sally's lips and it made me feel good. Her smile made my world light up with a wave of emotions and it was quite pleasant.