“How?” asked Karina, stepping into the discussion. “Don’t get me wrong, Reece. I’m glad you were able to rescue us. But how did you?”

“It’s a little hard to explain,” said Reece. “It started after I was sucked into the ground and found the fragment chamber. I merged a large fragment with the main part of the nightcore. There’s a spirit attached to the core that seems to get more cohesive each time another piece of the nightcore is added to the whole. His name is Chippo and he’s a Furdian or weresquirrel. I guess they died out long ago. Anyways, Chippo can talk to me now, and had a few pointers on how to use my abilities. Those tips helped me come up with a plan. Plus, holding the nightcore in my hands enhances my power.”

“All right,” said Aika. “So, how did you free the vampires and Sora? You’ve been gone for almost a month and the moment you get back; they turn on Hargrove. That’s some trick.”

“Wait… a month! What are you talking about?” demanded Reece. “I’ve been getting the nightcore fragments. I don’t know how long I was down there, but it couldn’t have been for more than a few hours, maybe a day, max.”

“She’s not lying, Reece,” answered Karina. “You’ve been gone for over three weeks. The commander was starting to get antsy. It took all of us to convince him that this was normal.”

“How do you mean?” asked Reece.

“Well,” cut in Pasha. “When we were in the temple in Mexico, I never mentioned anything, but we had been down there nearly four days. I saw it on the Phoenix’s computer.”

“Well, Jupiter’s cock,” swore Reece. “Time must work differently in the chambers. Good to know. What now?”

“Well, Aika and I need to eat,” said Karina. “Then you won’t have to explain your plan with the vampires to me. I’ll see it with my thoughts.”

“Ahh, fair enough,” said Reece as he offered up his throat.

Karina dug in and sated her thirst on Reece’s blood, pressing her body against his as she fed. She was careful not to take too much. Aika needed some too. Moving aside, Aika took her place, pressing her breasts against Reece’s side as she used Karina’s puncture wounds to take her share of the man’s blood. While she drank, Karina explained Reece’s plan as she had seen it through their blood link to the rest of the group.

“Chippo, the uh...ghost, explained to Reece that he can gauge an enemies’ power by concentrating on it. That way he will know in advance if he’d win a battle of wills or not,” explained Karina. “He can also tell how amenable they would be to a suggestion or two. Once he had divided up the vampires and Sora by this criterion, it was a simple matter of battling each of them, one at a time. The battles were easy for him, not just because of the nightcore, but because he had studied their minds beforehand and knew just how to defeat them. That’s pretty much it.”

“Okay,” questioned Pasha. “How long before these vamps and Sora break his hold over them?”

“He has already released them,” explained Karina. “The woman, Sora, was under the effects of the serum. The changes it makes to the mind, happen to be changes that Reece can now undo. Also, all these vampires were proud solitary creatures long before being enthralled and collared by Hargrove. All the vampires that are left were decent before Hargrove or Rogers or whatever else he calls himself got ahold of them.”

Some of the vampires nodded at that, though they all seemed to be slowly waking from a bad dream. Reece thought that probably wasn’t too far from the truth. While Reece considered the vampires’ plight, Aika pulled off him and healed his neck wound with her blood. The whole mission had been touch-and-go, but they had retrieved the nightcore, defeated and killed another clone, and even made some potential allies. Although, finding out that they had lost almost a month was a hard pill to swallow. Reece looked over to where the vampires had congregated.

“First, let’s get those shock collars off of you,” he said.

“Wait a moment,” said Sora, jumping into the conversation for the first time. “I want to apologize for my actions. I know it was the serum, but it all still felt like I was the one making the decisions to do all the horrible things that I did. And the things I said...” She noticeably paled at the thought before trying to change the subject to something less upsetting. “Also, one thing is bothering me. How are there two nightcores?”

“First, you have nothing to apologize for,” said Reece. “Whether you believe it or not, you were under the effects of the serum. The same serum you saved me from. As for the nightcore, yours was a fake. You see, Nephi and Masika can manipulate obsidian like clay. That’s how they gained entry for me into the antechamber below the sand. We just used that ability to forge a nightcore. We couldn’t afford to get to the antechamber without it. It is part of the ritual to regain the pieces. Now, if you don’t mind, we have some former prisoners to free from their shock collars.”

“Are you sure that’s wise?” asked Aika, not wanting to have to tangle with them again.

“Wise or not,” replied Reece. “It’s the right thing to do, and I believe they won’t be a threat.”

His companions nodded, deferring to his decision. One by one, they released the collars as quickly and painlessly as they could, following the same method they had used on Ceria those many months ago. The vampires were relieved to be freed from servitude and none of them made any threatening moves. With that unpleasant task completed, Reece felt it was time to go.

“I don’t suppose any of you need a ride, do you?” he asked. “We’ve got a carrier off the coast; a few hours ride on a Sand Skimmer from here. We could definitely use all the allies we can get, but it’s up to you.”

Most of the vampires turned him down. He had been careful not to use his influence on them. He wanted them to come along of their own free will. They had had enough mental captivity. In the end, three vampires stepped forward, apparently deciding to join them, two males and a female. They were all thin and pale with orangish-red hair and freckles, traits that showed them to be related. The males had the thin bodies of youth with very little facial hair, while the female looked slightly older, having the hips and breasts of a young woman. While their hair color was an odd look for a vampire and was somewhat off-putting on the males, it gave the female an exotic and enchanting Celtic look.

“Welcome to the resistance. I’m Reece Danielson, and these are my companions; Aika, Karina, Bjorn, Angel, Ciera, Masika, Nephi, and Pasha,” he said as he indicated each of his companions in turn.

“And I am Nisha,” replied the woman. “These are my brothers, Rik and Dre. Yes, we were all turned during the same attack. A vampire on a blood binge murdered my entire village. We three were the only survivors, such as we are. Don’t worry though. It was a long time ago.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” said Reece as he shook each of their hands.

He found their skin to be ice-cold, especially the girl’s slender hand. Reece figured that these vampires needed to feed, and the sooner the better. Reece frowned. He knew it would be just like Commander Rogers to treat his subordinates this way. Just another despicable thing to add to the litany of wrongs the man had committed in pursuit of his perfect world. Regardless, he was already feeding Karina and Aika once every couple of days. It wasn’t a big deal, but he didn’t think he could support three more. He determined to give Nisha some blood since she was clearly in the worst shape of the three. After that, they would make some inquiries in the community and find suitable partners for them.

“Nisha? Are you thirsty?” he asked cautiously.

She scrutinized him through her lashes, her pupils dilated. Reece quickly noticed that her breathing was shallow, and she kept biting her lower lip while she wrung her hands together. It was like fear, desire, worry, and guilt all projected from her body one after the other until she put her head down and shook it. Karina walked up to her and whispered into her ear. She glanced up at the lilitu, her eyes going wide. Then she looked back at Reece and nodded.

“Okay,” she agreed. “I will accept your generous offer.”

Reece bared his neck for her. He had no fear, even though he was already a little light-headed. If she lost control of her hunger, Karina and Aika would be there to pull her off him. He only had to wait a moment. Nisha rushed him, sniffed his neck twice, paused a moment, then bite into his flesh. He was surprised at her gentleness at first. She pressed her body into his and her sucking became feverish.

Just as Karina reached for her and Aika moved to her other side, she broke herself free all on her own. She reluctantly let him go, looking into his eyes as she pulled away, licking the blood from her lips. She bit her thumb and rubbed it onto Reece’s wound. For the second time in the last few minutes, he could feel it knit up almost instantly.

Looking at her again, Reece had trouble swallowing. Where her features were striking before, she was now radiant. Somehow, her red eyes had turned an almost impossibly brilliant green. Her red hair darkened to a deep red and had become full-bodied and lustrous. Reece had no worries that she would be able to find herself a suitable companion. Being a man, he couldn’t help but notice the hard nipples capping her perky breasts as they tried to stab through the flimsy button-down shirt she wore. Reece could almost feel her lust, the desire both primal and powerful.

He felt more than saw Aika and Karina pull in closer to him, claiming their territory. Seeing this, the woman backed off and turned away. She turned back momentarily, but then thought better of it and went back to her brothers. Reece sighed in relief before chuckling inwardly. There was no way in Hades that he was going to get involved with another woman, especially a vampire. The thought caused a shiver to go up his spine, and not in a good way.

By the time everything had been sorted out, Reece and his companions had been at it for over twenty hours. The vampires took them to the underground bunker that had been built beneath the scattered buildings near the pyramid for rest. Calling it a bunker did it a disservice.

It was more like an underground mansion, complete with all the furnishings. The bunker was filled with expensive tapestries, plush couches, ottomans, and other ornate furniture, some Reece had never even heard of before. It was clear that important and wealthy people must have resided here for a time. There were enough bedrooms complete with king-sized beds in the place that everyone could have their own. Then they found the pillow room, named for all the pillows of every shape and size that lay strewn about the room. It even sported two hot tubs and a swimming pool. It was lit by numerous colored skylights that gave the appearance of the daytime sky. Someone had spared no expense.

Karina walked up next to Reece and smiled at him, raising her eyebrows twice in rapid succession, indicating what she thought the room must have been designed for. As they explored, it became apparent that it had been some rich sheik’s survivalist bunker, complete with a harem sex room filled with pillows. Karina had guessed right.

Once they had explored the place, making sure it was safe, they all grabbed a room and retired. After closing and locking the door to his chosen bedchamber, Reece stripped down and crawled into the bed, pulling a sheet over himself while stretching his tired and sore body out to explore every corner of the massive bed. He was glad that the Order had kept things cleaned and in good repair. At least they were good for something, he thought as he drifted off to sleep.

The dream came quickly and easily. Reece sat up in a treehouse, one that he had helped his grandpa build when he was just a boy. A glass of lemonade was in his hand, the sweat of humidity beading up on its outside. He took a long drink of the refreshing cool liquid, reminded of the last dream where he had done so. This time, however, was different. Across the treehouse from him sat a tiny wild-looking man dressed in rags. He couldn’t have been much over thirty centimeters tall.

“Greetings Reece,” said the tiny man with a familiar voice.

“Chippo?” inquired Reece.

“In the flesh!” he exclaimed happily. “Well, not really, I guess. But not to worry. I’ve been busy while you’ve been asleep.”

“Busy, how?” asked Reece, suddenly intrigued.

“I’ve compiled a small list of where the rest of the nightcore fragments are located,” answered the odd little man, or Furdian. “Now that I am more complete, I’ve been able to access the nightcore’s essence better and use it to feel out the places where the fragments rest.”

“Oh, do tell,” said Reece.

Chippo rubbed his hands together happily as he began to relate the whereabouts of the nightcore’s wayward pieces...

By the time Reece awoke, he had the locations of every missing fragment of the nightcore. It faded quickly, but he knew that Chippo would remind him. He was feeling much more optimistic about their chances and was smiling widely as he opened his eyes.

His smile faltered as he found himself with some company, even after locking the door. Karina was curled up on his right, while Aika lay next to him on his left. Pasha had her arm draped over Aika as well. Reece just shook his head and chuckled. At least they hadn’t woken him up. He knew he had needed his sleep after feeding three women his blood. In fact, their proximity had somehow energized him. Maybe it was his heritage, like Ciera’s. She got her energy from sex.

“Am I any different?” he thought.

Crawling out of bed, Reece prepared for the day. They needed to travel back to the carrier and report in, debriefing everyone on their encounter and their new companions. After that, Reece wanted to go after the next piece of the nightcore. He’d lay out all the locations and together, they would decide how to tackle the retrieval missions.

Everyone else joined him shortly and they found a decent cache of supplies - food, water, and various other useful goods. They packed as much of it into their Sand Skimmers as they could fit and prepared to head back to the landing vessel.

Down one Sand Skimmer and up three passengers, the group doubled up on the vehicles on the way back to the coast where their landing vessel awaited their return. Karina rode with Reece while Aika rode with Pasha. One of the vampire brothers, Rik, rode with Nephi and Dre, the other brother, rode with Angel. Naeva and Ciera rode together too. Masika was the only one that rode alone.

Bjorn was driving his Sand Skimmer back with Nisha wrapping her pale but deceptively strong arms tightly around his waist. Reece didn’t think he’d ever seen the big man’s face that red before. He hoped there wouldn’t be any issues when they got back. Bjorn had become serious with Ulla, the berserker maiden they had met in the frozen Norwegian complex. Reece had enough troubles of his own on that front to worry about the big man’s love life any longer. He quietly wished the man luck.

The ride back was thankfully uneventful. Karina didn’t say a word. She just snuggled up next to Reece, pressing her small body into his. Reece could almost feel the love she had for him through her touch. It was a pleasant thought as they passed the hours traveling through the dunes, bridge, jungle, and back to the ocean.

The landing craft was right where they had left it and after they loaded the Sand Skimmers, the return journey off the coast passed harmlessly. Reece enjoyed the wetness of the sea spray that rained down on them all. It was a relief from the dryness of the sandy desert they had just spent so much time in. Reece could only imagine how his companions, who had spent a few extra weeks there, felt now. Looking over, he chucked to himself while watching them all bask in the misty spray that wet and cooled their bodies. When they got back to the carrier, he saw several showers in their future.