NIKOLAS POV
I woke up to the sound of the village alarm blaring in my ears. I triedly gets out of bed and stumbled to the town square, where everyone was gathered. The newly turned 20 year olds, including my friend Luca, were all lined up in front of the village elders.
Stumbling into the line, Luca caught my eyes and gave me a nervous smile. I returned the gesture, trying to reassure him that everything would be okay. Just as the village elder was about to speak, a sleek black car entered our small village.
It was unlike any vehicle I had ever seen before , the surface of the car gleamed in the sunlight, and the engine purred like a beautiful beast .
The car came to a stop in front of the village elder, and a tall imposing figure emerged from the driver's side. He was dressed in a tailored black suit, his eyes hidden behind the dark sunglasses that he was wearing. He is a vampire.
"Good morning, villagers," he said, his voice dripping with confidence. "I am here to chose from the newly turned 20 year olds. They have been summoned by the Vampire King himself."
The villagers gasped, and Luca grabbed my arm, his eyes wide with fear.
"What's going on?" he whispered to me.
"I don't know and I don't like it ," I replied
The vampire begin to walk down the line, inspecting each of us with a serious eye."And who might you be?" he asked stopping in front of me.
"I'm Niko," I replied, trying to keep my voice steady and my eyes down .
He nodded his expression unreadable. "Well, Niko, it seems you and your friends are in luck. The Vampire King has requested your presence at the palace and You will be leaving immediately."As he spoke, several burly men came out from the car, their eyes fixed menacingly on us.
"What's going on?" I demanded, trying to keep my fear in check.
The vampire smiles, his sharp teeth shining in the sunlight. "You will find out soon enough human ,Now, let's get moving."
"I want to tell my father goodbye," I said trying to sound calm despite the panic that is rising inside me but before I could even take a step towards Thorne, who was hurrying towards me with a worried expression, I am grabbed from behind and pushed into the car.
"Hey, what the hell ?" I shouted struggling against the strong hands that was holding me, Luca who had been standing beside me, was also shoved into the car, his eyes wide with fear.
"Niko, I'm sorry!" Thorne yelled, trying to reach us but the other vampires blocked his path.
"You can't interfere with the King's orders," A vampire sneered his eyes changing to red as he looks at Thorne with malice.
The car door slammed shut behind us as I caught a glimpse of Thorne's face with his hands grasping at the air while a vampire is holding him back with his neck .
"Father!" I shouted pounding on the window, but the car is already moving, speeding away from the village.
Luca grabbed my arm, his voice shaking. "Niko, what's going to happen to us?"
I try to reassure him but my own heart was racing with fear. We were being taken to the Vampire King's palace, and I had no idea what lay ahead of us .
The vampire, who had introduced himself as Zaire, smiled at us,. "You will find out soon enough, human. But for now, let's just say you are in for a treat."
I glared at him, trying to hide my fear. "What do you want from us?"
Zaire chuckled. "Oh, you are barve but don't worry you will find out soon enough what you are going to be used as "
The car continued to speed through the winding roads, I saw glimpses of the passing landscape. We were heading deeper into the heart of the forest, the trees are growing taller and darker with every mile we pass by .
Luca leans in close, his voice barely audible. "Niko, I'm scared."
I wrapped my arm around him, trying to offer what little comfort I could. "Me too, Luca. But I promise that we will face whatever comes next together." The car suddenly swerved, taking a sharp turn into a hidden path. The trees grew more closer, casting deep shadows that seemed to swallow us whole.
"We're here," Zaire announced, his voice filled with excitement.
As the car came to a stop, I caught a glimpse of a towering castle in the distance. The walls are painted in a beautiful color of black and the he windows were like empty eyes staring back at us.
Arriving at the castle, I could not deny the fact that the castle is beautiful from the walls that towers above us with a combination of black, red, and gold that seemed to shimmer in the fading light. But my wonder was short lived as a rough hand pushed me out of the car.
"Move it!" a vampire snarled,
"I'm moving," I replied, trying to keep my tone neutral.
But the vampire didn't seem to like my response. "Oh, so you have a mouth to talk," he sneered, baring his teeth at me "Why don't I just drain you right here?"
I swallowed hard trying not to show my fear. "I'm just trying to cooperate," I said,
The vampire laughed a cold heartless sound. "You think cooperating will save you? You are nothing but a mere mortal, a snack for us."
Luca, who had been quiet until now, spoke up. "Leave him alone," he said his voice shaking.
The vampire turned to him, his eyes flashing with anger. "And what will you do, little boy? Try to protect him?"
I pushed Luca behind me trying to shield him. "Don't touch him," I growled sounding braver than I felt.
The vampire laughed again.but this time, there was a hint of admiration in his eyes. "You have a spirit, I will give you that," he said. "But it won't save you. Come on, let's get you two to the hall for processing."
we were dragged towards the hall our footsteps echoing off the stone wall . The vampire accompanying us, whose name was Zaire, seemed to take pleasure in our discomfort.
"Welcome to the Vampire King's collection," he had said his voice dripping with sarcasm. "You will be joining the others soon enough."
We turned a corner, and I saw them. Fifteen girls and twelve boys, all humans like us, joined together in a large hall. They looked just as scared and confused as we are.
"Ah, great, Zaire" A vampire said his eyes gleaming with excitement. "You are just in time for the processing ."
" I won't miss it , James ." Zaire said approaching , the humans parted way revealing a long table filled with food. But it was clear that we weren't here to eat.
"Sixteen boys now," one of the girls whispered, her eyes fixed on us. "We are the sixteenth." I thought because am only seeing twelve .
Luca grabbed my arms again his eyes wide with fear. "What's going to happen to us, Niko?"
I tried to reassure him but before I could even speak, a voice boomed from the shadows.
"Welcome, humans. I see we have new additions to our little collection."
A shadow appear from the darkness, it's red eyes fixed on us. "I trust you are all comfortable because You will be staying here for a while , and my name is lord cadoc of Europe"
As he spoke, the humans around us began to murmur, their voices laced with fear and uncertainty. I knew we had to be careful.
"Begin the processing," he said his voice cold and lifeless.
James stepped forward "Let's start with the newcomers," he said his eyes fixed on us.
I watched in horror as the vampire, who introduced himself as lord cadoc , held out a small, historical cup and a gleaming silver blade. "The process is simple," he said, his voice devoid of emotion. "You will slice your palm open and fill this cup with your blood."
Luca was pushed forward first, "No, please,. Niko" he begged, but James just smiled.
"Don't worry, it's just a little blood," he said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "You will hardly feel it."
Luca's eyes met mine, and I saw the terror in there. I tried to reassure him with a nod, but I was scared too.
James collected the blade from Lord cadoc and handed the blade to Luca who hesitated as his hand is shaking. "Do it," Zaire growled, his patience wearing thin.
Luca took a deep breath and sliced his palm open, wincing in pain. Blood flowed from the wound, and James held out the cup to catch it.
"Good boy," he said,voice sarcastic. "Now, it is your friends turn."
"I'm sorry," I whispered to Luca , before slicing my own palm open , wave of pain shot through my hand as I sliced it open, and I felt dizziness wash over me. But that was nothing compared to the reaction of the vampires around us.
As my blood flowed into the cup, their eyes turned a deep, blood red color, The guards, Zaire , James and even Lord cadoc , all of them seemed to be mesmerized by the sight of my blood.
"Ah, the sweet scent of human blood," James whispered.The other vampires began to murmur, their voices filled with excitement. "Yes, the blood of the innocent is always the sweetest." Lord cadoc of Europe said.
I felt a shiver run down my spine as they gazed at me with an unnerving hunger. Luca grabbed my arm, his eyes wide with fear.
"Niko, what's happening?" he whispered.
I shake my head, while telling him. "I don't know, but I think we need to get out of here."
James eyes snapped back to normal, and he smiled. "Not yet, my dear humans. The process is far from over."
He took the cup from me and held it up, admiring the blood. "This will be used for the Vampire King's ritual. And soon, you will be nothing but mere vessels for our kind."
"What ritual?" I thought, "What do they plan to do with us?"
But before I could ask any questions, lord cadoc stepped forward. "Enough for now. Take them to their quarters."
As the guards led us away, I caught the sight of the vampires still gazing at us with that unsettling hunger. I knew we had to escape, and fast before we are used as a sacrifice for the vampire King.