Chapter 156 - Awakening Ceremony

Three hours later.

Rebecca's lashes fluttered. She regained her consciousness back.​​

She was about to open her eyes when she felt her world is moving... then awareness dawned on her that she was on board a moving vehicle!

Did they start traveling already? Oh, no!

She opened her eyes right away and was shocked to see where she is!

Whaaaat the hell! She's lying inside a gold-plated crystal coffin with holes in every corner.

Shiit! They put her inside the coffin! She was about to move her hand to push the cover away but she can't move her arm and the rest of her body! She can move her head though, that's the only part of her body that she can move freely - the rest are frozen! What the hell is going on?

Damn! They put her to sleep first and then confined her inside the coffin!

Nooooooooo!

How can she escape with her condition like this? How!?

She looked around the carriage... she's not alone! She saw the vampire couple sitting nearby.

So they put her to sleep and confined her inside the coffin to make sure that she can't find an opportunity to escape! That must be the reason why!

This is maddening!

She felt devastated inside. How can she escape now if she can't even move her arms and can't leave the coffin, and worst, the vampire couple are guarding the coffin!

She's really down on her luck!

Tears sprang from her eyes. She felt so powerless and hopeless!

Out of the corner of Sylvia's eyes, she saw Laura already awake. She edges towards the coffin, opened the lid, and noticed the girl's eyes, shimmering with tears. "Why are you crying?" she asked worriedly.

"Mother, why did you put me inside this coffin!?" she asked indignantly.

Sylvia saw the angry expression on Laura's face. "Shh, calm down! This is to ensure that nothing could go wrong during the Awakening Ceremony. You might be tempted to escape and we can't allow something like that to happen. This is a very important event and vampires from far away places are attending the ceremony to witness the rise of the King of Vampires! I can't allow even a small thing to destroy what my husband and I work so hard to achieve. I hope you understand this arrangement dear. Don't worry, this is just a temporary setup. Everything will return to normal after the ceremony," she assured her.

Rebecca broke into a sob. "Mother, please, get me out of this coffin! I'm scared of dying!" she said hopelessly trying to arouse pity from the vampire woman's emotional side.

Sylvia produces a handkerchief in her hand and began wiping the tears from Laura's face. "Shh...daughter...stop crying...you are ruining your makeup," she said.

"I won't stop crying until you get me out from this coffin!" she threatened her.

Sylvia shrugged. "Okay fine, cry as much as you want, I will just retouch your makeup later," she said and put the lid back on the coffin. She rejoined her husband in the corner.

Rebecca looked at the couple vehemently.

Damn! She underestimated them!

She continues weeping due to her hopelessness. If her situation continues to be like this until they reached their destination then she's dead meat.

There's no hope for her escape 'coz until now she's still wearing the gold necklace that is suppressing her power.

She released a deep sigh.

What can she do now besides crying?

Was she stupid in refusing Corbin's help?

Maybe if she accepts Corbin's help she had a better chance of escaping his clutches than this vampire couple?

But it's too late now for regrets, she's heading to her painful ending and no one can save her this time.

A few minutes later, her tears subsided. She realized that even if she cries a river, no one can change her fate, unless, Graven and his men can locate her whereabouts at the last minute before the Awakening Ceremony started.

That looks even impossible right now!

Hours passed by.

Rebecca stared at the ceiling of the carriage wishing she can dig a hole and vanished from the coffin... just her wishful thinking.

She closed her eyes waiting for the break of dawn. She's not entirely hopeless yet, maybe they will unfreeze her when it's already time to feed her breakfast. If that happens - she will escape no matter what the consequences will be!

She's desperate to flee! It's either stay and die or die trying to escape, the outcome will still be the same.

A few hours later.

Midnight.

The carriage finally stopped moving.

Rebecca's brows furrowed. Huh? Why they were stopping?

A few minutes later, Sylvia spoke while looking at the coffin. "We finally arrived, my dear!" she said.

Rebecca finally understood that the vampire woman was lying all long making her believe that the whole journey will take one day to complete, while the truth is... the venue of the ceremony was just a few hour's rides from the mansion.

Sylvia opened the cover of the coffin and began retouching Laura's makeup. "Don't worry, all this will end soon after the ceremony. You will no longer be confined inside the coffin," she said calmly.

A few minutes later.

The carriage's door opened.

The vampire couple exited and addressed the men wearing black hooded cape waiting outside.

"Are the guests already inside?" Zalvo asked.

"Yes, my lord!" the leader of the men in black cape replied.

"Is the perimeter around the area well secured?" Zalvo asked again.

"It's well secured, my lord. Our men are stationed outside ready to fight and kill anyone who will create trouble tonight," the leader replied.

"Good! Bring the bride's coffin inside!" he ordered.

"Wait..." Sylvia said and went back inside the carriage. She waved her hand around the coffin putting Laura to sleep, Rebecca's eyes shut off automatically. She reached for the black cloth nearby and wrapped it around the crystal coffin. "She's ready to be taken inside," she informed them and exited.

The men in black cape entered the carriage and brought the crystal coffin out.

"Be careful!" Sylvia shouted.

A few minutes later.

The men in black and the vampire couple entered the venue which is an old manor - located in the deepest part of the forest hidden by the towering trees.

The vampire couple's entourage entered through the secret door on the wall that would take them into the basement of the manor where the ceremony is about to take place.

They went down on the plight of stairs.

They landed on the ground of the basement adorned with lighted candles everywhere, Sylvia took the cloth away and paraded the beautiful sleeping bride for the vampire guests to see.

About five hundred vampire leaders were attending the ceremony, they come from all over the country just to witness this momentous event.

Sylvia and Zalvo paraded the sleeping beauty inside the coffin.

The guests stared with awe at Laura's bewitching beauty inside the coffin. Voices of appreciation erupted from the crowd.

"Simply beautiful and breathtaking beauty!"

"Goddess of loveliness!"

"Such a gorgeous bride!"

"Our Queen is stunning!"

"She is indeed the rightful Queen of the Vampires!"

"Hail to the Queen!"

"Hail to the Queen!"

"Hail to the Queen!"

The crowd chanted excitedly.

The parade finally ended in the makeshift podium.

Zalvo and Sylvia addressed the guests.

"Thank you for coming, my esteemed guests! Tonight we will witness the rise of our new king! With his resurrection, the vampires will reign supreme against all other beings. With the resurrection of King Rhazien through my son's body as his vessel, vampires will rule the world again!" Zalvo announced proudly.

"Hail the King, Hail the Queen!" the crowd chanted over and over again.

"We are now going to bring the bride to the chamber where the body of the king is waiting for resurrection. We will start the Awakening Ceremony in a short while. After the successful ceremony, we will present to you the resurrected King Rhazien a few minutes from now. Stay tuned!" Sylvia said.

The crowd erupted in loud cheers anticipating the resurrection of the notorious and powerful millennium-old King Rhazien.

The vampire couple and the men opened the door to the chamber just behind the podium and brought Laura's coffin inside. The door to the chamber shut off instantly.

To keep the guests entertained, the servants offered wines and refreshments for everyone to enjoy. There were also beautiful vampire women dancers wearing red revealing clothes dancing on the podium serenaded by the exotic sensual music. The dancers' revealing attire shines through amidst the sea of black hooded guests in capes.

The guests chatted noisily among each other.

Meanwhile...

Inside the chamber.

Laura's coffin was placed beside the coffin of a handsome man in his late 20's sleeping peacefully.

Sylvia stared at her son's face, teary-eyed. Her son died mysteriously to give way to the resurrection of the powerful King Rhazien which is her great grandfather. The womanizer King impregnated several vampire women before he fell in love with Princess Rhenephei, and her family was one of his descendants.

Zalvo looked at her wife. "Let's begin the Awakening Ceremony before the guests get bored of waiting," he told her.

"Okay, let's get started..." Sylvia agreed.

Zalvo looked at the men. "Opened the coffins!" he barked his order.

The men in black cape opened the coffin, they placed the covers on the nearby table.

"Give me the knife!" Zalvo ordered.

A servant came forward carrying a golden tray where the sharp knife was placed.

Zalvo picked up the knife and shut his eyes, his mouth starts moving... chanting an ancient incantation meant to wake up the dead... everyone bowed their heads.

A few minutes later the chanting is over.

Zalvo holds the knife firmly with his right hand while holding Laura's hand with the other.

Rebecca's eyes suddenly opened and saw what is about to happen... she was about to scream...

Sylvia immediately waved her right hand at Laura's face rendering her immobile.

Zalvo proceeds to make a tiny cut on Laura's palm.

Rebecca winced inwardly after the sharp knife made contact with her skin and draws blood.

Zalvo placed Laura's hand dripping with fresh blood into the mouth of his son that was held open by his wife.

They watched the delicious smelling blood disappeared into their son's mouth.

The fangs of the vampires present at the ceremony were coming out of their mouths, they were salivating at the fresh blood dripping from the Queen's hand.

Amidst all the excitement...

Rebecca was already dying inside... dreading her incoming doom.