Disclaimer: I own neither Bloodborne or The Witcher. This work is merely fanfiction, and as such, earns me no income whatsoever. Please don't sue me. I'm really poor.
"You want us to secure the west side?"
Geralt nodded seriously to the inquiry of the witch hunter sergeant, arms crossed and straight faced. The sergeant's was as stern as a stone gargoyle's, and turned uglier when he scrunched his face in thought of what Geralt had asked of him.
"But we already have men there guarding the area," argued the sergeant. "If we go there, this side'll be undermanned. The vampire could break through here easily. I've heard what they did to the captain and our men at the academy. Blessed we may be by the Eternal Fire, I doubt it will be enough if it were to come through here. Even if that vampire was injured badly as they say, I'm not sure the boys here could take her down by themselves."
The witcher was a little surprised that the man was more sensible than the other witch hunters he had met with before. It was not uncommon for men with a bit of training and a little experience to overestimate themselves when it comes to fighting monsters. That is until they actually meet one face to face.
"Look," Geralt pointed to the east horizon, "The sun rises from the east, right?"
"…Aye?" nodded the sergeant.
"You've heard that vampires don't like the sun? Well, if a vampire was trying to escape, it would choose the direction away from where the sun comes from. So, the vampire is probably going to escape from the west gate. Given that knowledge, it would be better to secure that side of the city."
"Hmm… I suppose?" the sergeant scratched his head in thought. It sounded logical, but the witcher knew it was all horseshit. "I still think we should keep a few more men here, just to be sure. You won't have to worry, though. I'll have a messenger send for more reinforcements from the garrison. That should help fortify both sides without compromising security."
Geralt would've been impressed with the sergeant's capacity for thinking ahead, if only their plan to escape hadn't been riding on it. Thanks to that, trying to escape from the east gate still remained an arduous task.
"If that's all, witcher, you may leave. I know you're busy trying to track down that blood-sucking monster. Rest assured we'll have things locked up nice and tight around here. She won't be going anywhere." The sergeant called for a messenger, no doubt to deliver his request for backup.
Geralt left without any further conversation. He'd only arise more suspicion if he'd argue to weaken the security again somehow. It looked like escaping with an injured vampire out of the city wasn't going to be any easier than killing one.
"Well, well, well. If it isn't my second favorite witcher?"
Geralt looked up from his muddling thoughts to see a cloaked figure in front of him. Though her face was kept hidden by her cloak, that voice and the smile that came from it was recognizable to him, as well as the scent of herbal mint.
"Keira." His lips curled to a smile. "Didn't think I'd see you here. Weren't you busy handling Lodge business? Thought it was important? Let me guess. You couldn't leave Lambert alone, could you?"
The sorceress removed her hood, shaking her shoulder-length golden hair loose. "To be fair, your current job is also in the interest of the Lodge. Having to check up on you boys just happened to be part of it. And good thing I did, otherwise my poor Lambert would have taken longer to get here."
"Lambert's here?" said Geralt surprised. "Why hasn't he contacted us?"
"He hasn't?" Keira's brow furrowed. "I thought for sure he went out earlier to meet up with you as soon as we arrived here."
"No, he didn't. If he had, we could have really used his help earlier." Geralt wondered where their fellow Witcher ran off to. He hoped he wasn't getting them more trouble. They already had their hands full right now. "How did you guys get here so quickly? Did you set up a long-range portal somewhere?"
"A little secret of mine carefully hidden inside one of my properties here," nodded Keira.
"Great," said Geralt. "How far is it from here?"
"I thought you weren't keen on portals?" curiously asked Keira. "Are you planning to leave so soon? I was hoping to spend a few days shopping here to get some materials."
"I'll tell you all about it on the way to the slums."
Keira sighed. "Honestly, Geralt, do you take all the sorceresses you meet to such charming places? I begin to wonder if Triss may have been the lucky one instead of Yennefer."
"This place is?" Lady Maria inquired of one of the two witch hunter escorts with her.
"The slums, my lady. It is not a place the city is proud to have, but it exists nonetheless. We should avoid this place. The… uh, people here are not generally used to seeing nobility."
"I see…"
Lady Maria observed the decrepit, poorly made buildings that lined the jumbled pathways and hole-ridden roads. The people here looked at them with fear and suspicion, their haggard and malnourished appearance was obvious underneath the tattered clothes they wore. Still, at least the eyes of the people here were not listless. They clung to life even at the poor state they were in.
"My lady, I'm afraid you have the wrong place," said the witch hunter. "The witcher had already said that the vampire took to the west of the city. This place is on the opposite end of it. Perhaps we should meet up with the captain and start from there?"
"No." Maria shook her head. "She is here. I can feel her… presence."
The two witch hunters looked troubled but nodded their acknowledgement. They had only been ordered to escort the noblewoman, so they saw no problems in following. Though both of them did wish that she had chosen someplace a little more safer, since the slums was not a place for a lady, especially a guest of their captain that they were specifically ordered to keep safe from harm.
As they made their way through the confusing and uneven path of the slums, few folk bothered to get in their way. Many simply chose to vacate their path and take refuge to the sides, away from view as they watched the out of place group pass by. Although there were still those that did not shrink from their presence. One such had brazenly tried to squeeze between Maria and the witch hunters.
"Where do you think you're going?!"
One of the witch hunters grabbed the boy before he could run, holding tightly onto his skinny arm. The boy tried to scramble away in fear, but he couldn't shake off the strong grip of the witch hunter.
"You think we don't know any better?!" shouted the witch hunter. He vigorously shook the boy with his hand and heard the small rattle of coins. "I grew up in the slums, boy. I know the tricks here."
The witch hunter reached under the boy's clothing, producing a small pouch. It was Maria's coin purse that she'd been carrying on her belt. He threw the boy to the ground.
The boy backed away in fear.
"P-Please, sir! Mercy!" he said. "I-I was just so hungry!"
"You know the penalty for stealing from a noble?" The witch hunter asked, his face in a frown. He unsheathed his sword and walked over to the boy. "It's better that I deal with you now and save the guards the trouble. It's easier this way for you as well, so keep still. I'll make this quick."
The boy looked to the other people of the slums, but they turned their gazes away from him. It was understood that life in the slums was hard. Everyone there knew this. The boy knew this. He didn't want to die, but so did the others of the slum. So there would be no one he knew that would save him.
"Stop."
A single word resounded in no great volume, yet it's command was absolute. Everyone heard it and the world followed. Lady Maria approached the boy on the ground and the Witch Hunter stepped aside.
"Are you alright?" she asked the frightened child in a gentle tone as she knelt in front of him.
"Please… don't hurt me," he begged. "I… I won't do it again."
"My lady, he is a thief—a criminal," said the witch hunter. "Justice must be brought upon him for what he had done. There is no need to concern yourself with him."
Lady Maria glanced back at him. "There is no justice in killing a hungry child. If you yourself came from such a place as this, then you know this to be true."
"That is…" The witch hunter didn't know how to answer. Once he had left the slums, he had to understand how the wider world worked. Rules and laws that needed to be followed. Both written and unwritten ones.
"Here." Lady Maria held out her hand to the boy. "Give me your hand."
The child, seeing Maria's calm and pale flawless face, hesitantly reached out to her. From her cloak, Maria gave him a piece of bread and pouch full of sweet cherries that had been provisioned for her. The plain bread was none too soft, but the Witch Hunter order had better stock of food than most anyone in the slums could afford, so it was a lot more appetizing than any bread the boy had ever eaten.
"You said you were hungry," smiled Maria. "Eat. I'm afraid this is all that I have for now."
"But…" The boy gulped at the sight of food. He, however, broke his hungry gaze to stare at Maria. "Miss—Lady, I… Is it really alright for me to have this?"
Maria nodded to him. "There's no need to hesitate. Eat to your heart's desire. You will not be punished for doing so."
The boy hesitated for a moment, glancing at the witch hunter behind Maria. He looked rather gruff but sheathed his sword nonetheless and gestured with his head for him to go on and be quick about it. It didn't take the boy even a two minutes before there was nothing left of the food given to him.
"My lady, now that the boy has eaten, we should probably be on our way."
Maria nodded. As much as it pained her to leave the child in such a poor state, they needed to catch the beast that she had allowed to escape.
"Please wait!"
"What is it now, boy?" asked the witch hunter in irritation. "Don't even think of even abusing her lady's kindness. You've already been given your life and a small meal to go with it. Go on and bugger off already."
"I-Is there a reason her ladyship is here?"
Maria gestured the witch hunter to be silent.
"We seek someone that should not be here," she said softly to the boy. "A beast that hides its true face in the guise of a woman. Might perchance you've seen someone as such?"
As it just so happens, the child did knew of someone like that. Whilst the number of people that goes to the slums is not a small number, people who stand out are remembered well by its residents. This pertains to either avoiding said people or targeting them. Whatever the case, the residents of the slums make it a point to remember those that stand out.
"She was with a man," said the boy. "She was hurt, I think? Kept having to lean on him, she did. They're staying at old man Yolden's crappy junkhouse. Heard he got paid a lot for it. Also got paid with a bottle of fancy wine or some such. But I also heard his wife nearly smashed it over his head when she found out. She didn't like him turning down more coin for his drink."
"Where?" asked Maria.
"I can show you, if you'd like?" smiled the boy happily. "It's a bit hard to get there if you don't know the way around."
The boy guided them through the slums, walking deeper through its muddied and cluttered roads, all the while being given a wide berth by the people. The Witch Hunters held a hand tightly on their blades and kept glaring at anyone that dared approach them. They weren't keen on having anyone else get close to Lady Maria.
"That's it!" pointed the boy. "Over there!"
At the far end of the district, they saw a collection of large shacks rather than warehouses that composed of a large section of the slums. Whatever items stored there, they could be sure it wasn't much of anything of value. In truth, most of the items stored there were just junk that had been forgotten. It was also the reason why no one really bothered in stealing anything from there.
"Are you sure?" said the witch hunter guard dubiously. "I know that dark creatures and the like live in ghastly places, but I think even they have standards."
"Sure as can be," said the boy.
The witch hunters didn't seem convinced.
"She is there."
Lady Maria knew it. She could feel the presence of her prey lying somewhere within one of those dilapidated shacks. The scent of her blood lingered even through the putrid smell that seemed to rise from the very grounds of the slums. Maria's own blood literally pulsed in excitement through her veins.
Putting her hand on the boy's shoulder, she said, "Thank you for bringing us here. Now, I want you to go with these men, who will give you a proper meal as a show of our gratitude. I will handle things from here."
"But my lady—!"
"There is no need for your concern," said Maria to the witch hunters. "Know that I cannot fight at my fullest whilst ensuring the child and your safety. Keep him somewhere safe and warm. It is best if you keep others from approaching as well. This is my prey… and I will hunt it alone."
Her voice was soft but firm in its resolve, leaving her witch hunter escorts troubled but ultimately nodding reluctantly to her demand. They left her, going back the way they came. Lady Maria stood all alone in silence. This part of the slums did not seem to have many people. And the few that had been there seemed to have cleared off once she and the Witch Hunters had appeared, leaving no one else but her.
Her and one other person.
"Will you show yourself now?"
For a moment there was nothing, but the sound of shuffled footsteps and a sigh appeared behind Lady Maria. Turning around she saw the man giving her a defeated smile.
"And here I thought I was being careful," he shrugged unabashedly. "Have to give you points for that. Still a long way to go to color me impressed, though."
"And you are?" asked Maria without expression.
The man made a small, exaggerated bow that appeared more mocking than a show of respect.
"Lambert's the name. Professional monster hunter. Though current work seems to have little do with that." He raised his head. "Not really my kind of job, but what can I say? Can't really turn down a friend asking for help. So with that said, I was told to 'negotiate' with you."
"I thought you said you would answer our questions once we agreed to help you?"
"I said I would willingly cooperate provided I receive safe passage out of the city. Am I outside the city walls? No. I am lying in a poor excuse of a bed that's most likely made from a wheat sack and being annoyed to the point of preferring death by an inarticulate Witcher with the manners of a swine."
Regis sighed deeply as he took another sip from his wine cask. The tired vampire couldn't help but shake his head at the arguing witcher and vampire at the corner. It had been an awkward silence at the start—more like the calm before a storm—but once Eskel finally tried to question Orianna, the two had been in a perpetual argument ever since.
Eskel was blunt and not at all happy about talking with a bloodsucking vampire, with the exception of Regis, and Orianna was irritable due to the lingering pain of her recovering wound. This did not make for a pleasant atmosphere. It was already bad enough that they had to stay at the dump where they were in. There were broken pieces of glass, rotting wooden boxes, torn cloths, and moldy slabs of bricks all over the floor. The little room they had managed to make wasn't all that clean either. Dust just covered every inch of the place.
Regis could only hope that Geralt would arrive soon. If not with good news, at least his presence would alleviate the building tension in the room.
"Look, I'm not asking for much. Just tell us what you know of the woman that almost killed you," said Eskel before mumbling quietly to himself, "Who really should have made sure to finish the job."
"And there we go," said Orianna pointedly. "You expect me to help you with an attitude like that? Ha! How boorish. Tell me, aside from Geralt, are all other witchers as without class? I do so hope it's just you."
"If it was any other witchers they wouldn't be here trying to make conversation with a monster in the first place. And I doubt you're gonna like what they'll be offering you instead."
"Oh, so you call this trying to make conversation?" scoffed Orianna. "I've met peasants that made more pleasant dialogue than you do."
Regis hadn't expected to finish his whole cask right there and then, but he really needed something to keep his thoughts sane. He kept thinking that perhaps given a bit more time that the two would actually be able to talk without arguing for at least a minute.
It had been more than two hours since he'd had that thought.
"Then maybe you should find another witcher that you can talk to?" said Eskel testily. "I'm sure it would be easy enough to find one. No? That's right. There ain't no other ones around, so you're stuck with me. Get used to it."
Orianna rolled her eyes. "If only it were so easy. I'd pray take another in a heartbeat."
"Pray all you like, but—"
The witcher's words were cut off as a sudden crash blasted through the wooden walls. Broken pieces of wood and junk scattered from the origin.
Regis coughed through the dusty smoke unsettled by the crash as he tried to find out what had happened. A groan could be heard somewhere under a pile of what appeared to be empty rucksacks that had been hanging from the ceiling.
"Oh man…" A familiar voice sounded from the pile. "What hit me?"
"Lambert?!" exclaimed Eskel in surprise. "What the hell happened?!"
Lambert picked himself up after Regis and Eskel helped remove the smelly rucksacks he was buried under.
"Failure in negotiations is what happened," he answered, pulling out his sword from the pile. "How come no one ever mentioned how tall she was?! Did that just happen to have slipped their minds? She's like a head taller than I am!"
"Who?" asked Regis.
"No…" Orianna trembled with fright. "It's her…."
From the broken down wall that Lambert had gone through, small footsteps could be heard approaching them closer. A figure of a gentleman in leather clothing of intricate and foreign design appeared before them. Wielding two different blades on each hand, the gentleman entered the room.
Stepping nimbly thought the debris with elegance and poise whilst carrying her sharp and deadly instruments at her side, Lady Maria stood before them, staring down at them all with a neutral expression. Her coat swaying slightly as she made her way.
"This hunt shall end here."
