The Last Sacrifice
Vizima:
The corination of the new Empress Cirilla Fiona Elen Riannon was beautiful in all its spectacles. Emperor Emhyer, present next to the crown that was to be passed down to her estranged daughter. The hall was filled with nobles dressed for the occasion, colorful dresses and tunics, women wearing the finest jewels and rings in the audience that was separated by a line of guards to keep the path of the red carpet clear for Ciri.
Music soon began as Ciri presented herself at the end of the carpet to begin her walk to the crown. She was dressed in a white gown made only for a princess of an empire such as herself. The guards were called to attention and to present arms. Their swords unsheathed and then rested vertically at in the middle of their chests. Ciri began to walk towards the thrown that was to be her own. She looked around as the audience was in awe of her sight, the ashened hair girl that who survived the most severe ordeals of war, treachery, and near death by the wild hunt stood before them to be their empress. She continued to walk, once she ascended to the stairs, she kneeled down to the Emhyer. He smiled with stoic joy and reached for the crown from the pillowed stand. He began to speak: "My people, today is a day great change for Nilfgaard. My daughter, Cirilla, will this day be the becon of a new era for our empire. I have served and done what I could for our great Empire of Nilfgaard, but now, now, the time has come for me to pass this great inheritance to one who has shown leadership, bravery, and compassion to those who passed her and vice versa. Cirilla Fiona Elen Riannon, my prodigal daughter." He then placed the crown on her head and ordered to stand and be presented to the people of which she was to lead. "All hail! Empress Cirilla of Nilfgaard!" The now former emperor commanded to yell. The guards and the people hailed for his command to welcome the new empress.
The banquet hall was filled with foods from all over the lands to offer the greatest delicacies of their availability. The freshest fruits and vegetables from the finest farms, the vineyards provided only their best wines for the occasion, the fattest beasts were slaughtered for the meal, and the bakers provided only their greatest and innovative cakes and deserts to the royals. All were in awe of the meal and proceeded to enjoy the rest of the day in dining and dancing. The finest musicians were provided to create an atmosphere and proper music for ball dancing. It was sight to behold for such an occasion such as the ascension of a new emperor, or empress.
Ciri sat next to her father at the end of the banquet hall, where the banner of Nilfgaard hung over their heads. Trophies of hunts for boars, bears and other assorted beasts lay before them. Along with these trophies was the armor of the Wild Hunt. Picked up after the battle to remind the people of the greatest triumph over magic, that even Nilfgaard can defeat such beings, at least that is what most wanted to believe. The sight of the armor still put Ciri at an uneasy feeling, reminding her of the ordeal she went through and wishes to never go through again. Instead, her father insisted that the armor be placed their for memory sake of the greatest victory over something inhuman and evil. Ciri reluctantly agreed to the placement.
A young man dodged his way to the royal table where the new appointed empress was sitting with her father and entourage. He came bearing a message for Ciri, but was stopped by the guard. "Halt!" yelled the guard to the man. "State your business, and mind you it better be important for such an interruption during the coronation!" The young man looked nervous holding a small note. The young man suddenly built his courage to speak up. "Good sir, I have message for the empress."
"Ah well, just hand it to me and I will see she gets it." The guard put his hand out for the man, but he gave his reason to not give the letter. "I'm sorry sir, but the letter is for her eyes only."
"Well then I won't read it just give it here now!" The guard ordered to the man, which he still refused to do. Ciri saw what the guard was doing and ordered him to escort the man to her. The guard complied and brought the man to her. "Your highness, this man claims he has a message for you. I volunteered to-" Ciri raised her hand to silence the guard.
"The message please." Ciri asked. The man handed it to her and was dismissed. She opened up the letter and read the message. Will meet you in the tower in the West Section. She closed the letter and finished her party.
After all the guests left and the calm settled in. The palace became settled once more but more celebrations were to come for the days to come to welcome Ciri to the throne. The day was grand after the party.
Ciri decided to go to the tower where the message said to go. She arrived there with her nightgown covered by a robe. She waited around for the person to arrive. "So you called me for what?" A low raspy voice called. Ciri recognized the voice. "Hello Letho." She responded. The bald stocky witcher disrobed for there was no need for the guise. He wore his jerkin fashioning two daggers on the front and two swords in the back. She heard of the kingslayer and why he did what he did, which led to many deaths of sorceresses and wizards, along with herbalists and alchemists. She needed him for the assignment. "By the way, congrats on the ascension, sure you'll make a fine empress. That is until someone can afford me." Letho responded. Ciri gave Letho a look of disgust and wondered if she should call the guards. "Just joshing ya', you really became so noble that a smile can't even set in?"
"I only smile at things that make me laugh, that was not one of them." Ciri said to Letho with stiff reprise of a reminder of what his talents consist of. "Now then, were you followed?"
"Don't think so, always know how to cover my tracks?" Letho said
"Good then, now tell me, how much of your witcher training do you remember?" Ciri asked.
"About as much as a brothel owner knows who owes him to his girls." Ciri looked at with confusion for that phrase. "Yes, I recall all. How do you think I was able to survive all this time?"
"Good, now what I am about to ask of you could be rather, unsavory if you will." Letho looked at Ciri with curiosity.
"Have we met?" Letho jested, but Ciri was in no mood for jokes.
"Letho please this is serious!"
"Well then spit it out girl." She gathered the strength to tell him her request.
"Letho, the life of a witcher is dangerous and thankless, this I know. Protecting a world which hates you and sees you as a monster like the ones they are paid to kill. But Letho, do you think witchers are necessary?" Ciri asked Letho. He thought of the question. From the time he become one, all the mixed reactions of hate and thankfulness, of payment and treachery, love and lost and many other pleasantries and hardships of the like. He also thought about being used as a weapon by Lodge only to be sold out, but paid them back by revealing the real intentions of the sorceresses and getting them on the hunted lists of hunters and priests.
"I've had my share of trouble here and there." Letho responded.
"Then would you recommend this life to one?" Ciri asked, Letho began to theorize what she was about to ask.
"I get the feeling this has something to do with witchers in general"
"You could say that. I want to bring the witchers back, a new batch of them." Ciri responded with reluctance. Letho had a hunch of something like this, but not at this scale.
"Well, this is a surprise, what led you to want to do this?" Ciri looked out the tower window to view the landscape. She pondered and came up with an answer for why.
"The world is and always will be filled with monsters, literally and metaphorically. Witchers are the counter measure for those monsters. You, Geralt, Eskel, Vesimir." The name Vesimir brought pain to her after hearing the name of Uncle Vesimir, seeing him die at Kaer Morhen. "Hey, kid, you there?" Ciri got back to reality.
"Sorry, Letho, I called you hear to help me build up the witchers again." Ciri hoped she would hear a sudden agreement from, a hopeless endeavor.
"And why would I do that? Simply because you ordered me?"
"I know you took the job previously to rebuild your School of the Viper by the Lodges offering, also no not because I ordered you too, but that I can pay you and offer you a place and full pardon of your previous trespasses." Ciri's offer was one generous enough to make anyone do her bidding for the bountiful reward. Letho thought of it and made a response.
"The gold sounds nice, if paid annually. The pardon is nice as well, but overall, I can't say yes just like that."
"And why would you refuse? Would you prefer to running for the rest of your life? Being hounded by every kingdom you defaced and put into chaos by murdering their kings? Letho think, this is a chance to do some good for once in your life!"
"Good? You call kidnapping children from their families and off the streets good? You call putting them through life threatening training and painful mutations good? Not to mention that even if they do survive, they will go through torment and possibly put to the stake for simply being freaks? Tell me, Oh wise Empress, how is any of this good?" Ciri understood where Letho was coming from. The witcher life was hard, but she stuck to her decision.
"Letho, the witchers saved me and everyone from the white frost. Witchers will always be needed in this world. One day perhaps, witchers will not be needed. But that day has yet to come, so please, join me in this endeavor." Letho walked toward the other window to contemplate at her request and facts.
"Kaer Morhen you say, anyone else involved in this?" He asked Ciri. She took it as a yes.
"I talked to Eskel before I came here and said if I ever wanted to help rebuild the witchers he was in. I plan on talking to Phillipa and Sile." Ciri explained.
"What about Triss Miragold or Yennifer?" Letho asked.
"Triss has other matters and Yennifer is with Geralt."
"So I take it Geralt isn't involved either."
"He wouldn't be the most supportive of this, so I bothered not to ask. Besides I have no idea where he is.?
"So we got another on board and two that are theorized to help and two who won't help. Any subjects for this neo-witcher project?"
"That's for you and Eskel to find. I want only orphans in this, also there is a condition."
"And what would that be?"
"You and the new witchers will answer only to me when called upon. They may still roam the lands as free agents, but once called upon, they must drop whatever it is they are doing and come to me. They will have protection and funding to keep them going. How they make side money is their errand to run." Leto began to like the idea. Protection, free roaming, independent and economic freedom. Just the condition of him and his apprentices following the Empress bothered him but remembered that she herself trained under the witchers. Perhaps this would be ok.
"Well, Empress, you won my heart. I'm your man." Letho responded. Ciri smiled and looked back to thank him, but he was gone. She was confused but moved on to wake a messenger boy to ride to Kaer Morhen with a message, Letho.