Lady Dhampir
Chapter 255

Milena was invited into the main study. It was a large square room with a table at the center, around which the three other sisters were all bent over. Unlike what one would expect from refined noble ladies, they were all wearing pants and large leather aprons stained with all sorts of disgusting matter. Milena grimaced as soon as the horrid smell of death reached her nose. She knew the sisters' love for science knew no bounds, but their ability to ignore how disgusting the body was astonished her above anything else. They had pinned the hands and feet of the wendigo to the table like a lab rat, and had already opened its chest, pulling the organs out on the table. Seeing this, Milena realized there wasn't much more about that thing that remained as human. "Thank you for the present, Grand Princess," said Kalliope as a greeting. "I haven't received such a nice subject in a while..."

"One of those things almost murdered me, and bit my brother," Milena retorted coldly. "He's sick, Lady Kalliope. Very sick. I hope to replace out what we can about those things as soon as possible."

The young Marquess who had been so happy and excited just minutes ago calmed down instantly. She probably had quickly understood what was at stake. Even if she didn't, Milena's furious tone spoke volumes. Her brother's situation was now one of life and death, no less. She needed answers as quickly as possible, or the worst could happen. The three sisters exchanged quick glances before all eyes naturally went to Kalliope, the eldest, for her to take over and explain.

"We haven't had much time since we received this thing, but we're doing our very best," she said.

"Do you think its bite could potentially turn a healthy vampire into... one of those?"

"Yes. We're actually pretty sure of it now."

A chill went down Milena's spine while Kalliope pointed at the Wendigo's barren fangs. They all looked sharp but incredibly dirty, strangely spaced as if the jaw had grown, and a b****y brown color.

"Their fangs are coated in a poison that's very akin to their blood. We believe it's the secret of how vampires have been transformed; vampire blood and wendigo blood are very similar, from what we've been able to analyze so far. Hence why the combination of two vampires' blood makes such a horrible creature, and so on."

"So... that's why vampires are transformed by another vampire's blood?"

"Most likely," nodded Genia. "We believe it could also explain the infertility between vampire couples. Vampire blood is most likely not made to be mixed with its own, while human blood contains none of the agents that could create both the sterility problem and the wendigos."

"So... Wendigos are the result of some mutation?...But vampire women have given birth to vampires? How come the babies are always normal?"

"Their vampire blood is mixed with human blood, which might neutralize the problem in the womb. It could also simply be that vampires of the same family are immune to each other in some way. We need to do further examination to confirm." "Then... What of my brother? Do we have some sort of remedy?" Asked Milena, impatient.

The sisters exchanged glances, visibly unsure. Finally, the youngest, Euphoria, shyly raised her hand.

"From what you've told us," she said. "It seems that your Highness' unique composition might just be the improbable answer to this blood issue. Forgive my rudeness, but... vampires have drunk my Lady's blood before, right?" "Yes."

"Often?" Insisted Kalliope, with a serious expression on. "And regular doses?"

"My husband's fed on me multiple times," Milena retorted, getting annoyed. "Not a lot, but often enough."

"Well then," resumed Euphoria. "Since His Highness never turned into a Wendigo or suffered any kind of effect, and you're not subject to... a sterile issue with His Highness Prince Rayan either, it seems there's something in my Lady's blood that will keep the vampire partner's blood from reacting to yours."

"Euphoria's theory is the most likely," nodded Kalliope. "The fact that you're a Dhampir means your vampire blood is... special, or the combination with my Lady's parents created some sort of balance that allowed both to coexist. In most cases, human blood will overpower the vampire one, hence why vampire children are rarer even amongst vampire-human couples. However, in my lady's case, neither of them took the other. Which means there is something in your blood that neutralizes the vampire side without completely muting it. It's very complex, and honestly, we might need ten more years to understand the phenomenon, but in any case, the beginning of the solution is in my Lady's blood."

"I don't have ten years!" Milena shouted. "My brother might turn into one of those creatures by tomorrow. Draw all you want of my blood, but I want something tangible today. How come those vampires were transformed so quickly too? It took days for a vampire to transform before, but those people were visibly transformed almost overnight!"

"It's most probable that two vampires' blood won't react right away to each other," said Genia. "Otherwise, s****l interaction would also be an issue. However, from our previous observations of the first Wendigo creations we know, it took quite a large dose of vampire blood to transform the victim into a Wendigo. Yet now, it's clear Wendigos turn vampires into one of them much quicker."

"Most likely," said Kalliope. "The Wendigo is already a mutation from two different vampires' bloods, so whoever they bite receives two different vampires' bites at once. It's hard for their system to fight it off in such a case. Either they receive a combination of two vampire's blood, or it is about receiving a blood that's already been corrupted. It's like they receive a poison, instead of one of the ingredients that's going to turn their blood into one. There's no way for the vampire's blood to fight it off, hence they are bound to transform, and even-..."

She stopped talking upon noticing Milena's pale expression. The Grand Princess looked about to faint, but they all knew it was mostly horror about what she was hearing. Under the table, Genia kicked her sister's leg, a bit annoyed at Kalliope's lack of delicacy. "So you're saying, my brother's transformation can't be reversed?" Milena finally muttered. "Most likely not," nodded Kalliope.

"But you might be able to cure him," quickly said Euphoria. "My Lady's blood is key to a solution we can work to replace. If you fed him right away, as you mentioned, there's still hope. You might have stopped or delayed the transformation." Milena sighed. She knew the sisters were scientists, and wouldn't lie or minimize the facts to comfort her. Still, she had hoped for better news. Perhaps it was already too late for Raphael, but no matter what, she knew she'd hang on to hope until the very last

moment.

"... My husband and I found out that White Ones are also created in a similar way," Milena declared. "The White Ones are created by using my blood to stop a transformation into a Wendigo, and somehow, the victim turns into a White One like the Saint or the Oracle. ...Does that make any sense to you?"

"How come we didn't know this before?" Muttered Genia, shocked.

"Because that was confidential information," sighed Milena. "We got this piece of information at a high cost, and as you can imagine, our enemy has very limited sources of dhampir blood. Yet, pretty much each new White One's apparition was preceded by an event where I suffered a blood loss. When I was kidnapped, as a child, it is most likely that I was used in a similar way to create more Wendigos or White Ones."

After a few seconds of silence, in which the sisters exchanged shocked glances, Euphoria suddenly jumped to grab a notebook, and began furiously taking notes. Milena sighed, and crossed her arms. It made no sense to conceal this fact anymore, at least not to the Sevira sisters.

"We believe whoever tried to create the White Ones also used Dhampir children among commoners, k********g or buying them off to use them. I was protected because I was nobility, but there might have been victims we didn't know about. While investigating, we found out about a heavy offer on the Black Market for dhampir children."

"....This changes a lot of things," muttered Kalliope.

"Indeed," said Genia. "We might need to consider even more unknowns than we thought, and it complicates things. If there were more dhampir children that were found and used, the success rate to create a White One might be much lower." "The survival rate of the specimen as well," added her sister. "We might need to look at the records of all vampires who were reported missing in the last fifty years. Perhaps even more were killed in those experiences!"

"It's impossible," sighed Milena. "There's too much to consider! Just one vampire body offers so much blood, having only ten vampire's blood would be..."

"From what we've seen and experimented so far, they cannot use several vampires' blood to poison one," said Kalliope. "It causes the vampire who is given blood to die right away. They can use one vampire's blood to donate to several, but because it requires so much blood and they can't donate different bloods, it is most likely they even used one vampire's blood to contaminate another."

Milena frowned.

"... Are you saying you've tried doing it as well?"

"Yes," Kalliope answered without hesitation. "Ever since my Lady put us on this matter and the paper was published, my sisters and I have been working on experimenting with the creation of Wendigos. Please be assured, though. All of the vampire blood used came from volunteers or criminals."

"We also tried the experiment out with the donors' bodies, on an experimental level," added Genia. "To minimize the risks and losses."

Milena didn't like this, but she had enough interest in science to know this was all for the sake of progress. Moreover, the Sevira sisters were noblewomen; they wouldn't have done something unlawful or immoral. She sighed, and nodded.

"... Fine, then. Just do what it takes to get us answers as quickly as possible. But you're saying, you have no guarantee to know how much of my blood my brother needs?"

"All vampires have reacted differently to vampire blood, my Lady," said Kalliope. "It seems some were easier to contaminate than others, and some had some resistance to the foreign blood. It might just be the same for the way they would react to dhampir blood. Sadly, we lack the elements to have more conclusive results."

"What do you need?"

"Your blood would be very helpful," said Genia. "If we could have a sample from a White One, we might also be able to make tremendous progress in the discovery of how Wendigo transformations can be neutralized, perhaps even synthesize a cure..."

Just as she finished her sentence, Blanche stepped forward, and under their eyes, shape-shifted from a white wolf to a large bear, taking almost all the space in the room. The sisters' jaws dropped simultaneously. Euphoria even stepped forward, her eyes sparkling with interest.

"My Lady's wolf is... a White One?" She muttered in awe.

"She is. It is a secret from the public though. A lot of people might suspect her real nature, but aside from the people most close to me, Blanche usually avoids shape-shifting in front of people. She almost only ever appears in public as a wolf or a cat, but she can take the appearance of pretty much any animal creature she's seen before. There are a few she's been unable to transform into, but it's extremely rare." "Any animal?" Repeated Kalliope, furrowing her brows.

Milena knew the oldest sister had probably caught on to what it meant, that Blanche also had a human appearance, if she wanted to. However, she politely kept herself from prying too much.

"Would it be alright if we drew some blood from her?" Asked Euphoria, excited.

Milena glanced at Blanche. Her companion had most likely shape-shifted in front of the four sisters as an answer already. She nodded, petting the bear's fluffy ear.

"Yes. But Blanche's real nature has to be kept a secret from everyone. I do not want her to be put at risk."

"Of course!"

While Euphoria drew blood from the groaning bear, Genia turned to Milena.

"My Lady, if we are to conduct more experiences, we might need to draw some blood from you as well. I'm sorry to ask you this when you're already tired, but..."

"Let's just get it done and over with," sighed Milena.

Just like that, she was invited to sit comfortably in a chair, while Genia drew a few blood samples from her. Despite their love for science, the sisters weren't greedy or inconsiderate; they only took ten small tubes. They got a bit more from Blanche, but most likely because her current size already allowed this much.

"Can I ask my Lady how... your relationship with your companion came to be?" Asked Kalliope.

"When my father found me after I was kidnapped, Blanche happened to be caged too. We believe she was an animal used as an experiment, and her transformation occurred as a mistake, created from my own blood."

"...My Lady, are you sure she wasn't a vampire to begin with?"

All sisters suddenly exchanged glances, leaving Milena confused, and a bit flustered. From their reaction, she had missed something, and it wasn't usual for her to get behind in a conversation.

"Pretty sure," she nodded. "Blanche doesn't have most of a vampire or even a human's reasoning, moral or social cues. Her skills, cognitive abilities and reactions are always closer to those of an animal than human, even after many years of mostly interacting with me and my family rather than other animals. Although she is able to turn into a human, she wouldn't be able to pass for a normal person, and her language is still at the level of a young child, even though she's about as old as I am. She has none of those issues with any other appearance she can take. She hates it too. Everything I've seen points to that she was an animal, to begin with. Most likely something like a wolf."

"An animal experimented on with vampire blood?" Frowned Kalliope. "That's... interesting."

"There were wendigos with us," muttered Milena. "I couldn't know what those things were at the time, but there were definitely wendigos. She could have been bitten or injected with their blood to test it, and could have drunk from mine as well, unexpectedly turning into a white one... She has no memory from before her transformation though, so there's no way to know for sure."

"It's definitely new and very important information, my Lady. It might even be our biggest clue. It means whatever Blanche was before she met my Lady, her initial body could have held a resistance to wendigo blood. However, it could also mean that animals can be contaminated in the same way..."

"Wait, what?"

Kalliope nodded.

"If my Lady's Blanche got turned into a White One, doesn't that mean she somehow received Wendigo blood as a common animal and survived it long enough to transform? From what we now know, she wouldn't have transformed simply from receiving my lady's blood, so there has to be something that happened to her from receiving the wendigo blood. She might not have completely transformed or had any visible changes to her original nature, but there was definitely something that happened, inside her body, that made her carry the Wendigo blood, thus why she eventually turned into a White One. It could have only been luck in the timing that she drank your blood soon enough, but from what my Lady explained, it doesn't seem so." "...I thought Blanche was in that Lab by mistake," muttered Milena. "I thought she had either been turned into a White One only by consuming my blood, or somehow got experimented on and just turned like this..."

Milena was shocked. She had never questioned Blanche on being a White One much because she only seemed like one of several White Ones that shared the same circumstances: the consumption of vampire blood, a transformation and the injection of Dhampir blood. The more they had learned about White Ones and Wendigo, the more it made sense, except for Blanche. If the Sevira sisters were right and only the mix of two different vampire bloods could turn one into a Wendigo, how come Blanche, who was originally an animal, could have turned into a White One? Consuming Milena's blood was one thing, but she shouldn't have had the capacity to transform in the first place if she wasn't a vampire. That meant she had received Wendigo's blood, and survived long enough to have Millie's blood turn her into a white one. Kalliope was right. Those who had captured Milena and had experimented on Blanche could have missed her transformation into a White One, but it was unlikely. Why would they have wasted dhampir blood on a wolf that had no symptoms of transformation into a Wendigo? Unless, Blanche taking some of Milena's blood wasn't planned in the first place, or had been a lost experiment; either way, she wasn't meant to be transformed. "The latter is more likely, my Lady."

"Neither of us remembers what happened to us in that lab," sighed Milena. "We were too young."

"It doesn't really matter then. However, the most important piece of information is that my Lady's companion was once an animal, and was able to turn into a white one. Which means..."

"They can use animals," grunted Milena, who had finally understood. "Even if they aren't turned into Wendigos, animals can carry the blood of one, and potentially contaminate vampires." Now, she knew how the enemy had managed to contaminate so many vampire soldiers without Wendigos being reported or spotted beforehand in the Emerald Forest.