Haven

by Leann Kusmiez-Arndt

"You can't! I won't let you! No!"
"Yes I can and I have,"Liander declared emphatically.
"No,you can't mean that. I have to remain me,Victoria Arnette. You can't have given me your infernal disease. When did you do it? Did you do it like a coward as I slept? Is that when you made me one of your kind? Was it during the long cold sleep?
"One of your kind,Victoria was it so wrong to gift you with immortality?"
"Just because you vampires found that vampirism is a viral disorder and not some evil plan,you seem to think that it is acceptable to go spreading your disease like a gift!"
"Victoria,I love you and I want to be near you always,"Liander stammered. "Think of the possibilities. Now that mankind has reached the stars we have all the universe at our feet and we don't have to travel it in cold sleep."
"Li,you know that I'm Catholic and the position of the pope on vampirism. If you're a vampire you can't attain Heaven."
"Darling Vicki,we can attain heaven here,in each others arms."
"I don't know about this Li. It's not as if I can go back to what I was. We discussed this before we made our plans to journey to Haven. You claimed that you wouldn't interfere with my cold sleep. You claimed that you'd never infect me against my wishes."
"Vicki,dearest,I know what I claimed. I was afraid to lose you. This was the only way I could guarantee you being mine. I didn't want to lose you to your god."
"Isn't that what started the killings in the first place Li?
It had started shortly after the medical community came forward with the cure for AIDS. It was overlooked in the hoopla surrounding the discovery that the cure was found by finding the vampire virus. By finding the cure for the worst disease of the twentieth century,man discovered the worst disease of the twenty first century. Oddly enough, nobody seemed that surprised that the literary vampire was a reality.
The media was unable to place the blame for the death squads that followed on any one group or individual. The squads were composed of religious types,bigots,and joe average. However,they all had one thing in common. They all hated vampires.
These death squads,as they became known,didn't begin where you'd expect. They didn't begin in the slums and dark corners of cities. They weren't formed of gang members. No,the death squads began in Suburbia;where Hank would borrow Larry's lawnmower and Larry would wonder if Hank wanted more . The squads started a massacre. Soon,if your skin was too pale,or you were seen after dark,you were flamed or staked. That was the social climate when Li and Vicki found love.
"Li,remember when we met,before we'd even heard of Haven?"
"Yes Victoria,I remember. It was in South Bend,Indiana. That death squad of Notre Dame students and professors was after me."
"That was when I was just a Saint Mary's college student. Do you remember Li? You were found out because you only took night classes and at their frat parties you never drank beer or much of anything else."
"Vicki,do you remember how I hid on the Saint Mary's campus,in that bus terminal,and how you found me?"
"Yes Li,I remember. If it hadn't been for my life long love of horror novels,I would've helped them flame you."
As Li and Vicki gazed into each others eyes the ships captain burst into the room.
"Captain Deitrich,is there a problem,what's going on,"asked Liander.
"Well Mr.Liander,I'm observing the cold sleep chamber through the monitor and I see my mortal passengers sleeping safe and sound. I scan the chamber and there is Ms.Arnette,standing in a corner talking with you."
"I can explain Ms. Arnette's awake state. We are in love and because I was worried for her life in cold sleep,I transformed her. She has no more need of cold sleep Captain.'
"You infected her,in other words,Mr.Liander. Since you did so while she was under cold sleep,you infected her without her consent and that is a crime punishable by death."
"Please let me speak for myself Captain,"Vicki declared. "I love this man. I have loved him since the moment we met,when I saved his life. You can't kill him for loving me too much."
"I will do what I have to do Ms. Arnette. I must abide by the rules. You are well aware that the rules,the vampire extinction laws,were created to protect mortals and vampires. "Security,"Captain Deitrich called,"You're needed in Cold Sleep Chamber One,immediately!"

A short time later, Victoria Arnette was sitting alone,on Li's bed, in his abandoned cabin. The ship security had come and dragged Li away to the isolation cabin. She knew that she'd be unable to do anything for Li. The vampire extinction laws were very specific in outlining the punishment for law breaking. The laws had needed to be specific. It was the only way the death squads could be stopped. The squads had to have proof in writing that this vampire disease would be kept in check. When President Goldberg,the nation's first woman president,announced in her first press conference that the laws had passed,the nation went wild with jubilation. The death squads threw down their stakes,mallets,and flame throwers,and danced in the streets. Li would be taken out of the isolation cabin and released into space. If the ship had landed on Haven when his crime was discovered, he would've been taken out of the ship at dawn and incinerated by flame thrower. If only Li had waited until they'd reached Haven and begun their home. It seemed like yesterday,when they'd met,fallen in love,and made their plans to be among the few who'd settle Haven.

"Hey Vicki,wait up,"Mary,Vicki's best friend rushed up to her. "You know that guy Li,that pale guy with the black pony tail,they say he is a vampire and they are going to flame him!"
It was a warm sunny day,rare for a March day on Saint Mary's campus,and certainly not the type of day to talk about flaming a hunk like Li.
"Oh,so what if he is pale. That is no reason to flame a guy as cute as Li,"Vicki admonished Mary.
"Vicki,a couple of the guys said they saw him making out with this girl in the library and he wasn't kissing her neck,he was biting it."
"Sure Mary,ever since the truth behind the vampire stories came out everyone,even President Goldberg,has been thought to be a vampire. Okay,Li is a vampire. You expect me to watch him get flamed? Have fun watching a beautiful man get turned into burnt toast. I'm going to hop the bus out to U.P. mall."
Vicki turned away from Mary and started walking to the nearest bus shelter. Li,who was hiding behind the shelter bench,saw her heading his way,started to fervently pray for the power of invisibility.
Li wasn't quite sure how he'd gotten into this mess in the first place. Vampirism had treated him fairly well since he'd caught it back in 1964. He'd been a student then. He was a student now. He looked the same. He had long,midnight black hair that he wore in a pony tail,ice blue eyes,and a slim,dancers body. He was very pale but so were a lot of mortals. His appearance and his life as a perennial student had never gotten him into trouble before. Sure,he did nibble on a girl in the library. She asked him to bite her. She didn't have to go running to her football player boyfriend. Now Miss snooty,Victoria Arnette was heading his way. She'd be bound and determined to turn him into that death squad.
Vicki wasn't thinking about death squads. Vicki was pondering the possibility of purchasing new shoes for her birthday. As she got within half a block of the bus shelter she spotted Li cowering behind the shelter bench.
"Is that you Mr. Bertram Liander? I see you hiding there! You better come out from behind there and face the music like a real man would!"
"Vicki,please don't call me Bertram. You know that I much prefer my last name or just plain Li."
"Mr. Liander I am not about to call a vampire by a nickname,"Vicki fumed.
Li looked at this woman that he'd always thought of as Miss Snotty and marveled at her indignant beauty. There she stood,long straight blond hair blowing behind her like a cape. Her slate blue eyes were flashing. Those rosebud lips of hers were curled up into a sneer. Her five feet and eight inches seemed tiny when compared to his six feet and one. He thought she was the most beautiful creature that he ever laid eyes on.
"What are you staring at with your mouth hanging open like a puppy dog? You know that I can see your fangs,don't you? "Vicki nearly jumped up and down in her fury.
"I'm looking at you Vicki. I want to memorize your face,your figure,your voice. If I go to hell when I die my memories of you will feel like heaven."
With words of devotion Li won Vicki's heart. She would spend the rest of her life protecting his. Thinking about Li's devotion and her own devotion to him brought Vicki back to herself and Li's empty cabin.

"It can't end like this,I won't let it,"Vicki spoke to the air. "I remember when we first learned about Haven and how we'd settle there and be safe from hate. It can't end like this!"
Vicki and Li had left the bus shelter and gone back to Vicki's apartment. They both were afraid that this love they'd discovered between them would end much too soon. Li plopped down on Vicki's sofa and picked up that days South Bend Tribune.
"Vicki,did you catch this headline on todays paper? Colony ship heading to new planet,Haven. Vampires and mortals will colonize world."
"What are you talking about? "Vicki had gone into her kitchen looking for a drink to settle her nerves.
"It says here that in order to escape persecution and extermination by the death squads,vampires and mortals alike are fleeing to planet Haven. Despite the vampire extinction laws that are expected to pass soon,the first colony ship to Haven will launch Thursday. Mortals will spend the ten year journey in cold sleep while vampires act as the ship crew."
"Oh Li,I know that what has started between us is as fresh and new as a newborn babe and just as fragile but we have to be on that ship."
"Vicki,do you mean it? I have some experience crewing a ship. I wouldn't mind a ten year stint if it would mean freedom from the death squads and freedom from persecution."
"I do mean it Li. However,we can only do this if we can agree on a few things. I don't want you to infect me ever. I like to think of myself as a good catholic. Our pope has taken a stand against vampirism. She has declared that vampires can never attain Heaven."
"I swear on my very life Victoria, that I will never infect you or anyone else against their will. I never have done so and I never will."
"Li,could you please tell me how you were infected?"
"Vicki,dearest,I'll tell you anything you want to know. It was before Dr. Regan had discovered the AIDS cure and the vampire virus. It was 1964. I was a grad student at Notre Dame when a visiting professor came to my art history class. She was stunning. She had flowing red hair,green eyes and a porcelain complexion. I was instantly in lust.
She smiled fetchingly at me all through my lecture. I was so aroused that it became increasingly difficult to continue speaking. Honestly Vicki,I wanted to mate with her,not make love or have sex,mate like wild beasts.
Needless to say,I let the class go early. As soon as the last student was out of sight I rushed over to her and threw her to the ground. Sometime during the frenzy of wanting to posses her,our clothing seemed to melt away. I proceeded to ride her hard. Under other circumstances I'd have looked at what we did as rape. Just as I reached my peak I felt a sharp pain in my throat. She had buried fangs in my neck and started to drink. I don't know if it was shock,blood loss,or a combination of both,but I passed out. I later woke up, naked ,on the lecture hall floor in the state I'm in now. I never saw her again."
"Li,that's incredible. How in the world did you survive this long? I can't begin to imagine it. You must have been so afraid. You must have always been a man of great courage.'
"Vicki,if I hadn't met you,I'd be dead now. I wouldn't have survived this long. If you're such a good catholic,I have to ask,what caused you to help me?"
Well Li,most of all,it was your beautiful words and the way that you gazed into my eyes. It didn't hurt that you're a very handsome man. However,I think that the real reason for my helping you is that ever since I'd been a little girl I've been reading horror novels. When Dr. Regan discovered that vampirism was a reality,well,secretly I was thrilled. I guess that my heart and soul were left open for you."
Vicki and Li soon left her apartment and headed to the nearby spaceport in Chicago to sign up for the colony ship. Li had to sign an employment contract that'd basically make him an indentured servant for the course of the journey. Vicki had to sign an agreement stating that she'd accept cryogenic cold sleep and not sue the parent company of the expedition.

So, here they were, Li in a isolation cabin,and Vicki,isolated in his cabin. She was a vampire now. Li had sworn that he'd never do that to her without her choosing for it to be done. But,despite his oath breaking,she loved him still. Thanks to his choice,she'd love him for an eternity. If the vampire extinction laws had passed before they left they wouldn't have this problem now. That's it! They hadn't passed before they left! That was the solution! She had to tell the captain immediately!
"Captain Deitrich,"Vicki called as she ran out of the the cabin."You don't have to kill Li! I found a way that we can uphold the law and still save him!"
Li was pacing the confines of the isolation cabin. He wondered if it would hurt to be expelled into space. Would he die? Would he float,in agony forever?
"Security,when can I expect my execution,"he walked over to the communications port and asked."Could you at least answer me? I may be a vampire but I'm still human. Please,tell me when it's going to happen. Will my Victoria be forced to watch? She won't be forced to join me,will she! She is innocent and deserves no punishment!"
"Chill Li,"came a voice from the port. "You did the vampire number one no-no. Quit pitying yourself and accept your fate."
Li can hear mumbling coming through the port. It almost sounded like the captain,that Deitrich witch,arguing with security. The mumbling became clear words directed at him.
"Mister Liander,can you hear me? This is Captain Deitrich. We are going to open the security field on the cabin. Please,do not,under any circumstances,rush the opening."
"Why not Captain,are you afraid that I'll infect someone,perhaps one of your security force,before you eject me?"
"Believe me Mister Liander,you don't want to rush the opening."
There was no way that Li could conceivably hide in the isolation cabin. It consisted of a bunk. That was it. It didn't have any facilities for body functions because it had been designed to hold law breaking vampires. The vampire extinction laws apparently made no concension to the comfort of vampires. That was why it also had no sink or similar facility. So,Li simply stood to the side of the security field and prepared himself to do precisely what Captain Deitrich had advised against.

Vicki was overjoyed that she'd been able to convince Captain Deitrich that the vampire extinction laws could not be applied in this situation. In fact,Captain Deitrich had been good enough to arrange for her to surprise Li. She rushed to the isolation cabin with the code she'd need to lift the security field.
Li waited patiently beside the field,ready to fight to the death. He didn't care if it was security or Captain Deitrich. He planned to fight to the death.
As soon as Vicki reached the isolation cabin she entered the code for the security field. She called out to Li even though she knew that he wouldn't be able to hear her. "Li,I'm here. We can have our life!"
The security field seemed to take forever to disintegrate. At the very moment the field fully disintegrated,Vicki stepped through and Li knocked her to the floor,wrapping his hands around her throat.
"I won't let you kill me unless I can take some of you with me!"
Vicki struggled under Li,desperately trying to will him to see her,but unable to speak because of his hands crushing her throat.
"What,Vicki,"Li said,the familiar feeling of her body clearing his vision. "Vicki,it is you! They aren't going to destroy you,are they? He removed his hands,stood up,and helped her to her feet.
Li,dearest,you're not going to die!"
"Vicki! What are you talking about?"
"Well,you're familiar with the vampire extinction laws of course. Do you remember when they passed? We'd just begun our journey and we,the passengers were being prepared for cold sleep. Remember that we signed our contracts before the laws were ratified? Well those contracts,your contract in particular,said that no vampire would lose his,or her,life through the deliberate choice of any of the executive crew members. You told me that this particular clause was in the contract as a safeguard against any vampire becoming territorial and attempting a powerplay."
"Darling,you mean,we can settle Haven?"
"Yes Li,because of a technicality we will have our life together. We will not be persecuted nor will we be hunted by death squads."
But,Vicki,I infected you. I broke my solemn oath. You can't have forgiven me?"
"I have forgiven you Li. I understand your fear now in a way that I couldn't understand before. You simply couldn't bear to lose me. Darling,I never want to lose you."
Li and Vicki wrapped their arms around each other and looked forward to a future that'd become bright with hope.
Captain Deitrich,on the bridge,turned from the cabin monitor,to her crew and said,"We will make land soon on Haven and with luck,our Haven will be heaven for all of us."

This story has been on since the 7th of Feb. 1997.