by Megan Duncan
Chapter 7
I woke up with a start and felt disoriented by the light that was flowing through an open window. Even though I was exceedingly tired, something seemed to draw my attention to the shaft of light that seeped into the room.
As I pulled apart the curtains, the brightness of the day’s last rays nearly blinded me. It was sunset and the crimson skyline burned brightly on the horizon. As my eyes adjusted, I realized that this would be the very last sunset I would ever see. A small wave of sadness tore at my heart over this small, but significant loss. I always thought that sunsets and sunrises were some of the most beautiful acts of nature and I could never see them again.
I pulled off my socks and lifted myself up into the window. I hung my legs over the edge, savoring the last moments of the sun’s warmth. My skin was soaking it up like a sponge and I sighed in pleasurable content as the sky darkened until something caught the corner of my eye.
A large tree stood atop a small hillside not far from the palace; and just under the tree, I again saw the figure of the man I saw before in the garden. He was watching me.
Normally, the sight of a man spying on me would be terrifying and I would immediately retreat to my room promptly, after flipping him the bird; but there was something about this man’s presence that seemed to draw me to him. I thought he might be charming me, trying to lure me to him, but he was too far away for that to work. There was some other type of connection, a deep pull in my heart that was unrecognizable.
I watched him as he took confident steps toward the palace, yet still kept far enough away that I couldn’t determine his features. In that moment, I so badly wished I had the enhanced eyesight of a vampire, so I could see his face. I studied what I could, and hoped I would see him again and possibly recognize my silent admirer from afar.
He stopped a couple hundred yards away from the palace. I could tell his skin was a perfect golden tan and his hair was cut short and light brown. The longer we stared at each other, the more I sensed that he had the same dominating presence of a vampire; but how could that be? He was standing in the fading light of day. I suppressed the urge to call out to him and finally say something, but he took off. He wasn’t quite as fast as Robin or Dmitry, but definitely faster than any human. Who, or what, was he?
I waited a short while longer to see if he would come back, and when he didn’t, I closed up the window securely and crawled back into bed with Louie. When sleep refused to come, I decided to start the night early and enjoy my last couple hours of privacy before my whole world was turned upside down.
I expected Robin would be the first to arrive in my room once the sun had finally set and the night descended, but she didn’t. Instead, three servants entered and began to prepare me. The transformation seemed to be much more formal and ceremonial than I originally thought. I was required to clean my body thoroughly and dress in a specific garment for the occasion.
They dressed me in a sheer, white dress made of some sort of shimmering, mesh cloth. It reminded me of the Grecian togas I had seen women wearing in some of the tapestries that hung throughout the palace. One of the servants braided my hair and with small white ribbons woven through. I watched them work in the mirror and I felt as if I were being preened for some sort of wedding. Imagining I was a tortured princess, I pretended I was being forced into an arranged marriage by my evil parents. I giggled quietly to myself, which only seemed to annoy the servants.
When I was nearly complete, all but one of the servants left my room. The last one dabbed some drops of fragrant perfume on my body at various locations. As she rubbed it onto my neck and my wrists I could smell the delicate scent of eucalyptus drifting throughout the room.
“What is that?” I asked.
“Eucalyptus and lavender, Princess,” she said. “It is meant to help soothe you throughout the transformation. They are two of the most favorite scents of vampires. Do you not approve of them?”
“Oh yes, I like them very much. Thank you.” I worried that I offended her and realized that although I had not been changed yet, the servants were instructed to treat me as if I already were their royal princess.
Shortly after, Robin’s mom arrived in my room and I saw that she was attired in an outfit similar to mine. She smiled warmly at me. I had to think for a moment, trying to remember her name. “Mara, it sure is good to see you,” I said with a smile.
“Oh, Claire, you look beautiful,” Mara said as she entered my sitting room. The servant bowed to her and quickly exited. “Are you ready?”
“Uh…” Although I was confident that I wanted to go through with it, I was still a bit scared.
“Come, child,” Mara held her hand out to me and I took it hesitantly. I took a deep breath as she led me out of my room.
I was a bit startled to see that the entire palace was dark with the exception of a single row of candles that illuminated the hallway. As we made our way, hand-in-hand, I saw vampires and humans lining the hallways, each one bowing to me as I made my way past them. Even Ana and Luka bowed, although nowhere near as deeply as everyone else. I was certain I could almost sense their hatred toward me, especially Ana as her eyes pierced mine.
I recognized Robin and Dmitry’s bowed heads and smiled broadly. I know was probably against protocol, but I let my fingers brush the tops of their heads gently as I walked by as a silent acknowledgement of their presence.
I realized that the candlelight was silhouetting our bodies through the sheer fabric, displaying a shadowy image of our figures as we walked. Surprisingly, I didn’t feel self-conscious, but strangely at peace, as if I were part of some beautifully spiritual moment; and I delighted in the feeling of tranquility it was giving me.
We followed the candles, which led us to a large room. Just as we entered, I saw the top of a light brown-haired head that made my heart stop and my steps nearly falter. I wanted to stop and pull this man up, to finally see his face up close, but Mara’s grip on my hand was secure and she pulled me forward as if she hadn’t even noticed my pause.
Nicolae and Evilyn stood waiting for me. Tears brimmed in their eyes, threatening to fall down their faces. I was more shocked to see such emotion in Nicolae. Somehow, his posture didn’t seem to match his expression. He was standing triumphantly at the doorway. His stance resembled the pose of many vampire men in paintings throughout the palace, usually towering over their defeated foe. I had to be reading him wrong. He was just as proud as the queen that I accepted and was only moments away from joining their family forever.
They each placed a cold kiss on my forehead, and Evilyn’s tears dripped coldly onto my face. Mara pulled me forward into the room.
The doors were quietly closed behind us as we entered; and the room quickly began to light up brightly, revealing an elegant space covered in marble. A large altar was adorned with a ruby as large as my head. Intricate carvings surrounded the stone.
Beneath that was a tall, white marble platform that Mara guided me to. I walked slowly, feeling the nervousness and fear trickling through me. The windowless room was cold, although the décor was beautiful and obviously meant to be calming. There were vases nearly four feet tall, containing a variety of tropical plants and exotic flowers.
As I reached the narrow steps that led to the platform, I noticed that it was covered with white rose petals. Mara and another vampire helped me onto the table and I immediately closed my eyes. I could feel the cold stone on my skin, but the scent of the flowers were slightly comforting. Desperately trying to distract my thoughts, I could hear the whispers of the vampires as they prepared as well as the noises of what sounded like surgical tools. I tried to focus on the coldness of the room and the sensation of the goose bumps that I was certain had appeared across my flesh.
“Open your eyes, Princess Claire,” Mara whispered as she smiled down at me. Her fangs startled me for a moment and I tried to control my emotions.
“Sorry, I’m just a little scared,” I admitted. I took deep breaths and centered myself.
“There is nothing to fear. Keep your eyes open and focus on the night. It will be your shelter and the stars will be your guide. Let them comfort you as you journey into the realm of the goddess of the night,” Mara said with comfort and confidence.
She stepped away from me and I saw that the ceiling of the room was gone. It was wide open to the sky and revealed the starlit beauty of the night. I felt my mind leaving my body as I stared into the dark blue sky above me. Strange smells filled my nostrils and two of the vampires swirled gold lanterns around me, which had red smoke emanating from them. As I seemed to travel further and further toward the limitless and dark void, I could barely hear the words of the prayer Mara recited.
“Goddess of the night, we call upon thee to accept another daughter into your realm and under your protection. We beg you to grant her peace in this transformation and bless her as you do all your children of the night.”
As Mara’s prayer ended, a sudden shock of piercing pain made me scream out. I lurched forward as it started to build and cried out to Mara, but her face was cold and emotionless. With a swift and powerful movement, she and the other vampires held me down as I struggled and cried.
“You must not struggle. Do you understand?” Mara ordered in a harsh tone that made me whimper at her. All I could do was simply nod my head as tears spilled across my face.
The vampires slowly released me and my body trembled slightly as the pain grew stronger. I could feel warm blood flowing out of my wrists, around my neck and between my legs. It traveled across my skin causing agony and panic to slowly build within me.
I turned to see that each of the six vampires in the room held sharp daggers with hilts that were decorated with large rubies. Their handles, etched in gold, were wrapped delicately in an intricate design like stars of the night sky, with a ruby as the moon, a blood red moon.
Each had used the exceptional speed of a vampire to slice at a major artery, creating deep gashes in my flesh. My life blood was pouring out of me onto the white marble platform and dripping onto the steps below. The sound of it dripping echoed throughout the room. I could feel the sound of it, driving me mad.
Mara came into my vision again, her fangs bared. She peered down at me as she held out a large crystal bowl to each vampire. It was filled with a thick dark liquid that surely had to be blood and I wondered if it was mine. I wanted to sit up and look at it, but I could feel my focus fading and my body growing weak. Each vampire dipped two fingers into the blood and held their fingers above me. When each vampire had their fingers coated, in unison they applied the blood onto my open wounds. Their fingers plunged into my wounds with such great force, I wanted to cry out, but I lacked the air in my lungs to do so. I could only allow more tears to fall down my face in hot streams as I gurgled and moaned.
The amount of pain I felt when they cut into me was nothing compared to the excruciating agony I felt when that blood mixed with mine. My body had been set on fire from within, burning its way through the millions of veins inside me. I found the breath to scream and my howls tore through the night, more frightening than any horror movie. I choked on my own sobs and fought against the vampires as they held me down again, still pressing their fingers into my pulsating, throbbing wounds.
I was certain my skin was boiling and bubbling up in grotesque welts as the immense heat burned through me. I cursed them and vowed I would kill them if they didn’t let me go, yet they remained emotionless as they held me. I then took to pleading and begging for mercy, asking them to kill me and end my misery. They still did not stop. Their fangs bared as they stared at me with dark intensity.
The darkness shadowed my vision as the faces of the vampires started to fade away. I struggled less and less as my body gave way to death, or transformation. I wasn’t certain which, but either was favorable to the immense misery of torture I was feeling.
“Focus, Claire!” Mara ordered as she jerked my head upward to look back into the night sky. I felt her hand sharply strike my face. “Look at the stars and focus on the goddess!”
“I can’t,” I whimpered at her, sounding more pitiful than I had ever in my life or ever would again.
“You must!” she ordered and jerked my head upward again.
I opened my eyes and tried to focus as tears blurred my vision. As I felt myself start to fade again, my eyes locked onto a particularly bright star in the sky, and before I had a moment to think a single thought, my world went black.
~