The Vampire Nightmare

Chapter 5

The entire campus fell silent.

Everyone stared at the sky.

The moon hung above Raven Hollow like a wound opening across the heavens. Its pale surface slowly darkened until it glowed a deep, unsettling crimson.

A terrified scream broke the silence.

"It's the end of the world!"

Students scattered in every direction.

Some dropped to their knees.

Others pulled out their phones, filming the impossible sight above them.

I couldn't move.

The crimson moon looked exactly like the one from my nightmares.

"No..." I whispered.

"It's happening."

Cassian stepped closer to me.

"We have to leave. Now."

I looked at him.

"Tell me what's going on."

"I will."

"When?"

"As soon as you're safe."

I laughed bitterly.

"Safe? You expect me to believe anywhere is safe after... this?"

He didn't answer.

Because he couldn't.

A thunderous c***k split the air.

The ground beneath us trembled again.

A glowing circle of crimson symbols appeared beneath my feet.

The symbols weren't English.

Yet somehow...

I could read them.

"The Blood Queen has awakened."

My breath caught.

"No..."

The glowing symbols spread across the courtyard like veins.

Students screamed as they watched them crawl over the pavement.

Lily grabbed my arm.

"Aria, what are they saying?"

I hesitated.

"I... I don't know."

I couldn't tell her the truth.

I barely believed it myself.

Darius chuckled.

"It has begun."

Cassian's eyes flashed with anger.

"You planned this."

"For centuries."

The crimson symbols erupted into pillars of light.

The air shimmered.

Then the world around us... changed.

The university disappeared.

The students vanished.

The noise of the city faded into silence.

I blinked.

We were no longer standing on campus.

Instead, we stood in the middle of an ancient forest.

Towering black trees stretched toward the blood-red sky.

Silver mist curled around their roots.

The air smelled of rain and roses.

I spun in a slow circle.

"What... where are we?"

Cassian answered quietly.

"The Veil Forest."

"The border between the human world and Noctis."

My heart sank.

"So this is real."

"Yes."

I swallowed hard.

"I'm not dreaming."

"No."

A twig snapped somewhere behind us.

Cassian instantly stepped in front of me.

"Stay close."

Several figures emerged from the trees.

They wore black armor engraved with silver wolves.

Each carried a gleaming sword.

Their eyes glowed crimson.

One of them removed his helmet.

He looked no older than thirty, with dark hair tied at the back of his neck.

The moment he saw Cassian, he dropped to one knee.

"My King."

The others immediately followed.

Cassian nodded once.

"Rise."

The man obeyed before turning to me.

The instant our eyes met...

His expression filled with disbelief.

"It can't be."

He slowly lowered his head.

"My Queen."

The word echoed through the forest.

Every soldier knelt before me.

I took an uneasy step backward.

"Please..."

"I'm not anyone's queen."

Before anyone could respond, a haunting howl echoed through the trees.

Then another.

And another.

The soldiers' expressions hardened.

One of them looked toward the darkness.

"They've found us."

Cassian drew a black sword from his side.

Its crimson runes flared to life.

"Battle positions."

The soldiers formed a protective circle around me.

My pulse raced.

"What found us?"

No one answered.

The growling came closer.

Golden eyes appeared between the trees.

Then dozens more.

Massive wolf-like creatures with black fur and glowing red markings stepped out of the shadows.

Each was larger than a horse.

Their teeth gleamed like polished ivory.

The leader bared its fangs.

Then, to my horror...

It spoke.

"Hand over the Blood Queen..."

"...or everyone here dies."