The HMS Sanguine slept, but its structure once again showed a twinkling sign of life. It was nothing like the flourishing bright lights from before, more like a shallow dull echo. Secondary Generators were designed to keep the ship’s crucial systems functioning. Somehow, through a miracle or some act of engineering madness, the primary generators were coaxed into spurting out small doses of power. Just enough to lighten the mood and open some recreational facilities. After sitting in his room for hours, waiting patiently for the power to restored, Kyle breathed a sigh of relief once his lights came back on. The captain announced on all intercoms that the ‘leisure show room’ would be opened to all guests, and nourishments were free of charge. It was a decent apology for the lasting blackout, one that Kyle was eager to exploit.

The leisure show was an extravagant gallery room, complete with baristas and dance floors. Podiums were erected throughout, each with an exotic dancer on display. It didn’t take him long to ask for a private audience, especially since it was free of charge. The private room featured a couch that wrapped around the circular walls, with a single small podium at its center. The stripper pole was polished to a pristine shine. A single thick curtain was the only doorway, it was guarded by a bouncer who looked more annoyed than anything else.

“So I heard there was a humie on board,” Kyle heard the exotic dancer speak with only mild interest. The music outside of his private show room would’ve made her voice inaudible, inside the enclosure Kyle found her voice soothing.

“She’s not so bad, kinda cute actually…” He leaned back in the cushion padded lounge seat, there were way too many fluffy pillows. In the center of the private room the girl danced on her pole elegantly. The way she balanced herself, thrusting her chest forward with her arms reaching overhead, had him pitching a tent. The fabric of his shorts was strained, the buttons of his shirt were half open to expose the hairs of his chest which were slabs of muscle.

The woman was short, her arms were lean and her hips shapely. Her sultry uniform exaggerated her curves, especially when she dipped in front of him. The woman’s stage name was pixie, which Kyle found fitting seeing that she sported a short pixie cut. Her dark hair would’ve been gorgeous had she grown it out, or at least that was his opinion.

Kyle pulled out a small wad of singles and handed them to her so that she would stay a while longer. The dancer smiled and giggled as she accepted the crisp wad of dollar bills. Attaching them to her thong was a little too much, but Kyle didn’t complain. He put his hands on the back of his head and leaned back to watch the beautiful creature resume her dance.

“Is she as cute as me?” Pixie asked curiously, she was obviously referring to the human.

Kyle smiled, his personal opinion was no. Rose was far more attractive. He did admire Pixie’s thick thighs and wide hips, and her deep amber eyes tickled the senses. But still, the human was simply in a different league. Kyle kept his cool, his composure remained appropriately fixated on the woman in front of him. He leaned forward and waited until she was on her knees before answering.

“Only in her wildest dreams, but I bet she’s tastier.” It was a mad jest, one that made the vampire stripper grin. He reached out to touch her cheek, he was an inch away before the bouncer interjected.

“No touching!” The bouncers voice was sullen and direct.

Kyle groaned and fell back into his seat. He wondered how the thug outside was able to read his intentions through the thick curtain?

Pixie slid back up the stripper pole in one fluid motion, her fingers wrapping around it as if it were a delicate instrument. “Sorry sweetie, maybe after the show.”

Kyle would’ve like that, but he knew she was only teasing. She probably said that to all her clients. The private show went on for another ten minutes, during which the stiffness of his pants made him uncomfortable. Once she was finished it took him a moment before he could rise from the seat and walk. He thanked her again, offered a healthy tip, and left the curtained room. Outside the music immediately caught him off guard, that and the lights overhead.

He imagined he probably smelled like sweat and shame, his heart was still racing. Kyle wasn’t ready to go back to his room, but he felt awkward being alone. Walking towards the barista Kyle took a moment to scan the room. There were dozens of attractive dancers, along with several other women who gave him tender glances.

However his eyes were instantly drawn to the only human on the ship. A chill ran down his spine, Kyle felt his eyes were somehow drawn to her. It felt almost like a predatory instinct, seeking out and pinpointing the one human in a sea of vampires. How he had picked her out confused him, what was worse was that he couldn’t stop looking at her.

His eyes focused on the auburn haired woman seated near the center of the room, one other vampire was alongside her. Kyle found his throat was suddenly dry…his hands were shaking.

…

The darkness had finally lifted after the sun bade farewell. Rose found that the halls were never so dark without power. She had lived through power outages before, but nothing could compare to the darkness of being stranded at sea. She could only imagine how ancient seafarers rode the tides with only candlelight, it must have been frightening. The water was black as oil, the skies covered by a thick blanket of clouds. A drizzle cooled the air with an endless salty smell. Fear draped over Rose’s body like a heavy robe until the secondary power generators were brought online, and a small modicum of energy was restored.

Ever since the ships power outage, the atmosphere itself seemed to change. A silence laid thick in the air, a quiet foreboding against the night. The captain had been adamant that the main generator would be fully restored. Four hours after the initial outage the captain himself alerted the entire ship that all alcoholic beverages, and any other form of pleasure, was free until then. He also ushered everyone to spend time trying to enjoy themselves. And thats how Rose ended up here.

“I can’t believe they have this here…” She wasn’t referring to the fresh drink in her hands, or the sporadic confetti that continued to drizzle from overhead. No, Rose was referring to the stripper pole and incredibly fit dancer in front of her. She did sign up for a singles cruise after all, she just didn’t expect something like this.

It was interesting that of all the clubs, theaters, and restaurants on the HMS Sanguine it was this one that the Captain decided to keep running. Officially it wasn’t known as a Strip Club but as a Leisure Show, which just sounded weird. The club was situated on the upper deck, and overlooked the stern of the ship. The entire wall was one giant glass window that overlooked the ocean tides. Strobe lights lit up the entire club, and multiple large screen TVs fed satellite news feeds along with sporting events. Rose couldn’t help but think that the entire club looked like a man caves wet dream.

Rose sat lazily in her seat and leaned forward onto the table. She was on her fourth shot of vodka and still feeling on edge. She wanted a martini or bloody marry but due to the increase in customers, the servers had to offer simple and quick drinks to handle the growing crowds. Each time she ordered a shot it was brought to her in seconds, she was only given a single slice of lime from the first shot glass. She used what little was left of it to suckle on each time she savored another drink.

Half the Leisure Show featured male dancers, the other half female. Despite the atmosphere none of the dancers were naked, instead they wore trendy jock straps and thin lingerie. The man in front of her was large, boisterous, and completely shaven. His copper skin burned in the glowing limelight as he shot her grinning smiles and spun around solid steel. It was almost as if he was performing only for her, and Rose couldn’t help but feel slightly aroused. She almost forgot it was a vampire she was drooling over.

She leaned forward on the edge of the podium, letting her gown dip enough for him to get a good look down her neckline and cleavage. Just the thought of stirring that massive python in his jock strap excited her. He didn’t even try to hide his gaze as he peered down her exposed shirt and returned a sharp wink. It sent shivers down her spine, the next shot helped soothe her nerves.

“I see you’re finally enjoying yourself,” Kyle Stryx seemed to come out of nowhere? Rose jumped back, elbowing Maggie who was sitting next to her. Rose had brought Maggie here in a desperate attempt to calm her down. Ever since Rebecca was taken away, Maggie was on the warpath. There was a real threat of her going rogue if she didn’t find a way to distract her.

Rose was starting to get a little more comfortable among the vampires, the alcohol was doing its work. That and after being chased around by Rebecca, Kyle and Maggie’s presence wasn’t nearly as terrifying. Kyle didn’t wait for her to reply, instead he sat down next to them both and threw his feet onto the table. In his right hand was a large mug of dark beer.

Rose waved her hand in the air, motioning for the nearest server for another drink. The server didn’t reply, she merely rushed over with a plate full of spirits. Maggie had her arms crossed, she sat back into the couch bearing a stiff attitude. It didn’t take a genius to tell she was frustrated as hell. The alcohol seemed to be helping, Rose had learned the Maggie was definitely not an angry drunk.

The tray the server brought had eight newly filled shot glasses, each with a neatly thin slice of lemon and a touch of salt. Most held clear liquids, but a few had a darker stain floating in the glass. Rose looked over to Maggie as she reached out to grab several glasses. Unlike herself, Maggie still wore her dark bikini underneath a sleeveless black t-shirt. The vampire’s curves were bold and alluring compared to hers, which gave Rose a surge of jealousy. Maggie’s porcelain skin was easy to see, it was odd that she hadn’t tanned yet.

“Bon appetite,” Maggie tried to hide her inner frustration. She had anchored all eight glasses on the small table in front of them.

“Thanks I guess,” Rose downed one of the new shots and brought her attention back to the grown man stretching on the stage before her. She wondered if those muscles were real or the product of steroids? If so, she hoped they didn’t cause any unwanted side affects.

Kyle waited until he was finished with half his mug before trying to break Rose’s attention, “So this is what helps you relax? Strippers and alcohol? Who would’ve guessed?” He clearly didn’t notice that Maggie was also equally transfixed.

Rose bit her lip in annoyance before speaking, “And I guess following random humans around helps you relax?”

“You’d think getting chased by one vampire would be enough for her to learn not to antagonize?” Maggie chimed in. Rose couldn’t tell if she was joking or annoyed.

Rose did her best to ignore them both. She took several more shots, one after another, to shove any latent fear down in her gut. Thankfully the pair didn’t say anything else while the show went on.

After a couple minutes it finally ended but not before the dancer returned one final glance toward Rose. The way he looked at her made her stomach quiver. A young woman quickly took his place, something that didn’t excite Rose nearly as much.

Her vision was starting to blur, making it difficult to grab her next shot glass. Her fingers wrapped around the cool edges of one toward the edge of the table, one that seemed different than the rest. Her inebriated state barely noticed any difference as she brought the shot glass to her lips. The smell of alcohol was mixed with another metallic flavor, one which she couldn’t place. It wasn’t until she slammed the drink down that she noticed thatMaggie was looking at her in alarm.

“Oh…” Maggie paused, “That was for me.”

Rose shrugged, “Hand me another.” Her voice was slurred.

“Wait…you like that?” Maggie asked clearly confused.

Rose couldn’t differentiate the shock in Maggie’s tone. She brushed her hair from her eyes and leaned forward onto the damp table. She was getting annoyed and struggled to find another glass. “I said hand me another please, its the least you can do.”

Maggie stood up, “What do you mean its the least I can do!”

“She has a point,” Kyle leaned towards her and placed a hand on Rose’s shoulder, “We do kind of owe her one. She’s on vacation too, and I’m sure getting chased by vampires wasn’t on her mind.”

Maggie grunted and crossed her arms again. “She shouldn’t be here in the first place, its her fault Reby’s in the dungeon.”

“I’d hardly call it a dungeon babe,” Kyle scoffed.

Maggie glared at him with a pair of frenzied eyes, “Don’t call me babe!”

Spontaneously Rose started laughing. At first to herself but then toward the both of them, “I shouldn’t be here? Nah…” She snorted in between sentences, “You shouldn’t be here. None of y’all should be here. You should all get off my ship!”

Maggie and Kyle just watched her laughing in stunned disbelief. “Fuck I think we broke her,” Maggie replied sarcastically.

“I had no idea she had a southern accent?” Kyle interjected but couldn’t stop her from railing on.

“This is my ship! These playboys belong to me! All this belongs to me!” Rose couldn’t stop laughing as she cried out, “I’m the fucking queen of the sea!”

The lights suddenly changed shade and focused on the pole toward the center of the room. Even with the limited power the stage shined. A voice echoed on the loudspeaker, “Greetings valued customers! Please sit back and enjoy the amazing Sophia Fame LaRue!”

Rose watched as a young and feisty creature emerged, seemingly out of nowhere, onto her stage. Her dark curly brown hair was short to reveal a broad forehead and pair of small ears. She had a narrow chin, strong cheekbones, and healthy warm skin. She was clad in dainty lingerie with lace stockings, and playfully tugged a chain linked to a brace around her neck. The crowd cheered and whistled as the young woman strutted around the dance floor.

Just as Sophia spun around the long silver pole, Rose had downed all the remaining shots and blissfully jumped out of her seat. Fear was buried to the point of non-existence, what was left in its wake was drunken idiocy. As Sophia lured the eyes of the crowd, reaching to the small clasp toward the center of her bra, she was pushed aside. Rose shoved the beautiful vampire onto the floor and grabbed hold of the stripper pole with clumsy fingers. The world was her stage, and she cried out at the top of her lungs, “I’m the fucking queen!” Her proclamation was one of many rapidly guttering statements before she blacked out.