In the middle of the room was a large coffin. Many bottles of blood were placed all around it. The wood was engraved with a lot of images, symbols, and text. In general, everything was very culturally rich in the room.
There were a lot of artifacts, swords, and books. Arja saw piles of books everywhere on the floor. It looked like the bedroom of a teenager.
She was surprised to understand that her vision had increased as she could read the titles in little letters from afar without moving.
Altraya smiled at her, she was very excited, and she started to dance in the room.
"Arja, I am so happy, welcome home sister."
Arja tried to speak but her voice was broken and she couldn't form proper words. Altraya didn't let her in the silence.
"I will explain everything to you but first we need to calm you. We don't want an accident."
She laughed as she took a bottle from a shelf and she gave it to Arja. When she opened it Arja smelled the scent of blood. The old, dusty, iron smell of blood from a lost bottle in a cave... Surprisingly Arja didn't wait before drinking all the content, she couldn't resist it and she felt so better after it. The dizziness disappeared and her vision became better. Her mind was much clearer and she could now sense things around her. She could finally speak with a very low and hoarse voice.
"What am I Altraya? What did you do to me?"
Altraya sat in front of her, she joined her hands on her chest with big round eyes.
"I am sorry Arja, I killed you by accident. I didn't realize it was you."
Arja closed the bottle but broke it by accident. Altraya shook her hands in front of Arja to try to appease her.
"No no no, promise me you won't get angry. If you do, I will run away!"
After this Arja tried to shut up her mouth, the girl in front of her was not the Altraya she knew. She didn't age, she didn't get more mature but somehow, she became less... Less human, without speaking about her half-mist body, it was something about her consciousness, she was deeply different and terrifying.
"I will try to explain. We are kind of undead. But not really, we have a kind of life. But not really too. We don't age, we don't die, and we don't know fatigue or anything else. We can drink and eat but only for fun. But if we drink blood, we become extremely strong!"
Arja opened her mouth with stupefaction. She couldn't believe Altraya was saying all these things. She couldn't believe she was now a part of the plague she fought all her life. She controlled her voice and took a deep breath before speaking.
"Are you telling me that you made me a servant of the Shadows master? That we are undead, the same as the ones who destroyed our home?"
Altraya smiled and placed her hand above Arja's hands.
"Oh no don't worry, we are not the same kind. We have nothing to do with them!"
Arja felt relieved for a moment. The pressure in her throat started to disappear slowly. She didn't understand everything, but as long as she was not related to the Shadows master and his white puppet, everything was more or less ok.
"Do you remember the creature in the white cloak? His name is Miroïr. He is resting in the coffin there. He is a kind of a father as he created me, so it's like a grandpa for you I guess? hahaha."
Altraya was truly laughing, she looked happy. Arja stood up screaming.
"What!?"
She was about to massacre Altraya before she remembered she was not physical. Then she turned to the coffin and opened it so violently that she broke the cover on the wall behind it.
As Altraya said, the creature was there, laying with closed eyes. Arja screamed in rage, she shouted all kinds of insults she knew and punched him in the face. Before her fist could touch him she was stopped by a kind of invisible shield that propelled her onto the ceiling with force. She fell on the floor, the impact made a large noise and she yelled with rage again when she stood up.
"Why I cannot smash anybody in the end! Are you joking?!"
To pass her nerves she demolished a column. Altraya came to her.
"They have countless years of existence, we are no match for them Arja. Also please, listen to me. There is a misunderstanding. Miroïr stopped the army of his brother, they are the total opposite. Since we share the same blood now we can go to see him together. Are you ready to meet him? He is cool, you will see!"
Arja watched Altraya with true hate. She punched another bloc of stone.
"Good! Since anyway I cannot do anything else, let's meet this bastard."
Altraya laughed very hard.
"Oh Arja, you changed a lot. You are much more alive while dead than alive."
Arja watched her with rage, Altraya looked very proud of her joke, then she took a piece of fabric and placed it on the floor. She invited Arja to sit in front of her. She opened her mouth wide and bit her wrist deeply. Altraya's blood fell on the fabric, and a fire suddenly appeared.
The fire was not burning but that was impressive. Arja closed her eyes. When she opened them, she found herself in the same room.
The column was not demolished anymore and in front of her, she could see the pale figure of the albino creature. Miroïr was standing with crossed arms reading a book. He raised his head and turned himself when he heard Altraya. He was about to salute her politely before he realized Arja was with her. He dropped the book from his hands.
"Arja?! Why is Arja there?! Altraya what did you do?!"
Arja muttered.
"I asked her the same question, what the hell did she do?"
Miroïr took her hands in his and examined the wound in her wrist. Altraya seemed very happy.
"Oh no no no, this is not good. Altraya it's very wrong. I asked you to watch the swamps, this should have never happened."
Altraya turned herself to Arja.
"Miroir never wanted to transform me. To avoid any accidents and that I wouldn't pass on our blood to someone else he asked me to stay in the swamp, over time my body became integrated and I lost half of myself. It's funny that whatever happened, it still happened. Isn't that right Miroir?"
Arja and he had a little feeling that she did it on purpose at this moment.
"Oh no no no no, you cannot be. You cannot exist. Jäwell will be furious."
Arja never heard this name before.
"Who is that? Why should I be scared of him?"
Miroïr had a severe expression.
"Jäwell is my brother, he is the Shadows master. The one who killed your father and tried to eliminate your lineage. We are now the same family."
Then they all kept the silence for a while, all except Altraya giggling and laughing, proud of herself.