The Witcher 3: Through the Worlds
Chapter 2: Revelation
Narrator: After careful investigation, Dominik determined that the monster that had been killing the villagers of Claywitch was a type of vampire. That night he had a close encounter with the beast, it broke into his room at the inn and tried to end his investigation. Thankfully he was saved, when the beast tried to remove his silver swallow pendant, that was gifted to him by his long-lost love Cirilla Fiona Ellen Riannon.
The sun had finally come up, and he felt his eyes begin to somehow get even heavier. He fumbled for a few moments and managed to get himself dressed back into his armor. The plate on his shoulders felt particularly heavy, he would need to invest in something lighter soon. He had always wanted a set of the armor Geralt always wore, if he wasn't terrified of going back to Kaer Morhen he would have gone to get a set for himself earlier. However, he couldn't go back to the Witcher stronghold without remembering all the time he spent there, with Ciri, and then to realize that she wouldn't be there again. He was sure to take everything from his room, with the lock now non-existent he didn't want to risk his stuff getting stolen. He strapped his longsword across his back along with his pack, before heading down to the bar of the inn.
The inn was empty, only occupied by a grey tabby cat and the old woman Hulda cleaning a mug. She looked up at him with a smile as he passed.
"Ah Master Witcher, are you alright lad? Nightmares get to you. Doesn't look like you slept a wink." She told him.
He nodded his head, "You could say that… didn't anyone come to my room last night? Or come asking for me?" He asked her.
The old woman thought for a moment before shaking her head, "Can't say I saw nobody no, at least not while I was awake. I'd head straight over to Alayna, like I told you yesterday one swig of her potions you'll be just fine."
He nodded, wondering how nobody could possibly see someone go through the busiest building in the town without being seen. Whatever type of vampire it was, was magical, and could move at great speeds, possibly enough to be not be seen.
He nodded to the old woman, "Thank you, I'll be sure to do that. Old man told me she bought out the old barn near the graveyard?"
Hulda nodded her head, "Aye she has an old hut near, but the barn is where she has most of her supplies. She has some workers she'd hired to tend fields and harvest her ingredients can't miss them."
He thanked the woman for her help and exited the building. The village was absolutely bustling. People walked through the streets carrying large sacks of grain and bustles of wheat over their shoulders. Kids ran along the streets chasing dogs and cats, while laughing and playing games. It seemed to him like the perfect little village. He couldn't sense any animosity and wondered how a creature so foul such as a vampire could infiltrate a place like this. He needed to kill the creature, and his biggest priority was now seeing the bodies, and completing the vampire oil. He'd need to lure the creature out of hiding somehow, or find its lair, most vampires had one.
He reached the old barn and was greeted by large fields of different flowers, and herbs. A crew of about eight men were tilling the fields, carefully picking and carrying bushels and baskets of herbs to and from the barn. He noticed the graveyard a few yards to the east, and he felt his bones chill. Graveyards could give a vampire a whole entire feeding ground.
He was about to walk toward the entrance to the barn to find this alchemist, when a tall mountain of a man stepped in his way.
"Can I help you?" He said in a deep voice.
Dominik looked up at the man, the size of his biceps probably equaled two of his own. His fat wrinkly neck was creased as the sun seemed to reflect off his bald head. He was the first person he had met in the village who didn't seem particularly pleasant. That was only further iterated to him by the giant woodsman axe on his back.
"I'm here to see Alayna, I need to see the bodies of the recent victims," He told the mountain man.
"Lady Alayna is busy you'll need to come back later." He said to him.
After what happened to him the previous night, and with the current lack of sleep he had, he wasn't in a particularly good mood.
"I need to see her now, tell her I'm investigating the deaths, I need too-."
"And I told you, she's busy. You'll just have to come back." He said no budging from his place.
Sighing he met the man's beady brown eyes, "I need to see the bodies if you want any hope for your village, now out of my way," He said with his arms crossed and eyes narrowed.
The mountain of a man chuckled, "Ha or else what? The lady is busy, nobody will disturb her."
"My patience is thinning; I suggest moving out of the way," He said, his hands itching to draw his blade.
The man laughed again and put a hand on the handle of his axe, "Haha, I'll crush you into two pieces little man."
"You'll have to get ahold of me first…" Dom said reaching for the hilt of his blade.
He thought he would be in for a fight. At that particular moment he thought he'd end up ruining the fields of herbs and staining them with blood. However, before he could do something, he would probably regret later a voice broke the tension between the two.
"Stand down Boras, it's quite alright," A soothing honeyed voice said.
From behind the giant man a woman stepped forward. Her fiery orange hair was tied above her head. Soon he realized it wasn't a normal woman, but an elven one, her ears sharply pointed upwards. She wore a dress of blue silk, without anything on her feet. She walked with such regal grace he almost had the urge to bow to her. However, he had a good feeling he knew who it was.
"You're Alayna I presume?" He asked, taking his hand off the hilt of his blade.
She smiled so sweetly that Dom almost felt himself bowing to her whim, she gestured for him to follow, "I've been expecting you Master Witcher. Come, I know why you've came here."
He dealt with the glares of Boras the brute and the other men as he walked by the alchemist towards the barn.
"Quite the merry band you have here…" He said to her.
She chuckled, "Well I must have someone to help me tend my fields. They simply… offered a helping hand and I paid them."
He rolled his eyes, "I'm sure they offered help out of the pure kindness of their hearts."
The woman laughed again and smiled, "No matter the reason I am thankful for their help. Now come, I hear you want to examine the bodies?"
"Yes, Johan and Johanka. I heard that for days before their deaths Johan had been coming for nightmare potions?" He asked the alchemist.
The two of them entered the barn. The stables were strewn with different kinds of herbs, fungi and stacked with other materials. A desk with a mortar, pestle and other tomes stood in the middle. Alayna closed on of the books and as she was, Dom took notice to the bandages wrapped around her left hand. She locked eyes with him when he noticed and quickly retracted it back into her dress.
"Silly me, left my hand out over the fire for too long," She said with a laugh, "To answer your question yes. Poor Johan and Johanka the two of them both suffered many sleepless nights before they were killed. Here come with me to the bodies."
He took note of the wrapping on her hand. An alchemist who mistakenly held her hand over a fire. It seemed very unlikely to him. He made sure to keep focused on his medallion, it wasn't vibrating in any form. No magic was around, so he couldn't be sure the alchemist had anything to do with anything. Even if she was a secret mage, he would have felt some kind of magical presence. She led him out the back of the barn and into the graveyard just east of the building. Two fresh graves had just been dug and on two cots, lay poor Johan and Johanka.
"Here they are, just had my lads dig a grave, kept them here for you to examine." She said, standing next to the two cots.
He looked over the two bodies and they were just how Mikel had explained to him. He leaned down to poor Johan. The man's body was completely white, his eyes bulging out of his head, dried out. Johanka looked the same, her skin pale white, her black hair marred with grime. Both of their faces were still contorted in fear.
"Old man told me the attack was about two weeks ago?" He asked the woman.
She nodded and came over towards him, light brushing her fingers across his shoulder as she came to look with him.
"Yes, third pair to suffer this fate." She said sadly, "Very noble of you to volunteer to save this village."
He looked down the bodies of the pair. It truly seemed as if nothing had slice or tried to attack them. The bodies were simply pale. He knew however if a vampire wanted to suck the blood from the pair there had to be at least one point of entry.
"I'm a Witcher, it's my job." He said as he ran his hand down the arm of Johanka.
Alayna chuckled and rested her hand on his shoulder, "Oh you may be able to say that to these villagers. I know however, you aren't a true Witcher."
He stopped and looked up at her, "You don't know anything about me." He told her before looking at the bodies again.
She smiled sweetly at him, "Oh I know quite a few things. I don't doubt your abilities, but I can tell… you haven't undergone the Witcher mutations… why?"
"I don't see how that's any of your business," He told her, examining near Johan's neck.
He sighed when he found no signs of any wounds near their necks.
Alayna chuckled, "I'm merely making conversation. Come now, a question for a question?"
He sighed and looked back at the woman, her dark brown eyes dancing with amusement. "Fine, people have been telling me about the nightmare problem, what's in these potions you've been giving them?"
"See, not so hard. A simple concoction to induce a deep dreamless sleep. Chamomile, and a few other herbs is simple enough," She told him.
"Chamomile and herbs aren't enough to induce a deep sleep, so I'll ask again, what are you giving these people?" He asked, slightly more aggressively.
She shook her head with a smirk, "Oh no, that's not how this little game works, it's my turn to ask the question. Now… tell me why you didn't undergo the Witcher mutations?"
He bit his tongue again; he was hoping that the woman wouldn't be difficult. However, he needed more information out of her, and the ingredients to make his blade oil.
He sighed again, "Something happened. There was someone who I was supposed to go undergo the trial with, someone… close to me. They vanished, spent years looking for them, never got back around to taking the trials," He told the woman.
She gave him an amused look, "Again, not so hard right? Now go on, a question for me?"
He looked back down at the bodies of Johan and Johanka, and very faintly noticed something he hadn't seen before.
"The villagers aren't around, so tell me. Any magical abilities? An elven woman in the middle of nowhere, have to think it's a perfect place for a mage in these times," He said leaning down again.
The woman chuckled, "Curious man, aren't you? To answer your question yes, but only to a small degree, the potions I give the villagers are harmless, grant them dreamless sleeps after nightmares."
He tucked the bit of information away, there was no way his medallion wouldn't have sensed her magic. He leaned down and examined the wrist of Johan. Very faintly, so much so that he had to squint and narrow his eyes, were two small black dots on his wrist. He moved over to Johanka and sure enough he saw the same.
"Did you see this before?" He asked the woman.
"Oh no, no, no we're still playing our little game, it's my turn for a question, Master Dominik," She told him with a smirk again.
"I don't have time for your damn games, I have work to do!" He said with irritation.
She tsked at him and came over slowly running her hand along his collar bone, "Now Master Witcher, you seem to have fallen under the nightmares yourself. I'll brew you something up but come now. You need only answer my questions, and I'll tell you everything I can, even give you a nice discount on some herbs."
He wanted to leave the area then, but he knew in his gut he needed the alchemist. He remembered how Geralt used to tell him sometimes on the Path you'll meet people who anger you, but if it means getting the contract fulfilled you must power through it.
So, Dominik sighed and nodded, "Fine, what would you like to ask?"
She smiled again and circled him, trailing her finger along his shoulder, "See, not hard is it? Now… have you ever been in love Master Dominik?"
He felt as if he was going to bite through his tongue, but nodded his head, "Yes, a long time ago."
"Interesting… now, what would you like to ask me?" She said with a sultry smile.
He shook his head to focus, "How long has it been between attacks exactly?"
She took a few steps around Johan and Johanka's bodies and ran her fingers along them, "About two to three weeks…my turn now."
He looked closely again at the wrists of Johan and Johanka. Two small black dots on the inside of the wrists. He looked down to his gloves hands and pulled back the part covering his right wrist. His eyes widened when on the inside of his right wrist, he noticed that two black dots were smoldering. They were both so small and insignificant seeming, that he didn't noticed it earlier when he put his gloves on. The realization dawned on him.
The vampire left these marks on their next target, gave them nightmares, then went in for the kill.
"But why doesn't it-." He started to ask himself.
He was cut off by a hot breath running down his shoulder. The alchemist was uncomfortably close now. He felt a tingling in the back of his neck, he turned and met the alchemist's large brown eyes. She leaned up close to his ears.
"Have you… ever been with a woman Master Witcher?" She whispered slowly into his ear.
He shot backwards almost stumbling over the mound of dirt, "I don't see how that's any of your business!" He nearly shouted, pointing his gloves finger at the woman.
She laughed and threw her fiery orange hair behind her back, "Oh come now, the whole town is buzzing about Dominik of Cintra, the Witcher who will save us. Come now, perhaps I ask because I find you quite handsome."
He scoffed and narrowed his eyes, "No, I haven't and as flattered as I am, I must be going. I need a few ingredients, do you have any dog tallow, and ducal water?"
She smiled at him and nodded her head, "But of course, I'll even give them to you on the house… if you'll indulge me in one more question that is."
He knew he needed to get out of there. He had all the information he needed. He simply needed to brew his oil, before setting out that night to find the vampires lair. It had to be somewhere close in the area, and he was awfully eager to get away from the alchemist who rubbed him the wrong way. He nodded his head, deciding that if free ingredients meant answering one more question, he could stomach it.
She smiled at him and looked into his emerald eyes, hands on her hips, "Last question then… what was her name? What was the name of the one woman who managed to capture your heart?"
He felt the silver swallow tremble around his neck as he sighed, "Cirilla… her name was Cirilla."
The answer seemed to make the woman's eyes light up like a lighthouse, as if she was excited to hear the answer. Her reaction should have worried him; however, he was so eager to leave that he didn't care. The alchemist nodded and gave him a small bow.
"Thank you for playing my little game Master Witcher, follow me I'll have the ingredients right in the barn." She said with another small bow.
He didn't say anything and followed behind her blue dress. Her bare feet left imprints in the mud as they entered the barn. He felt the insides of his stomach churning like a whirlpool. He didn't know why all of a sudden, he had to be reminded so much of Ciri the last two days. He dreamed of her almost every night, so that wasn't out of the ordinary. However, he had been asked about her, and to mention her names, the swallow pendant had saved him. He wondered if destiny, or the universe was trying to tell him something. No, he shoved the thought from his head. He didn't want to get his hopes up again, besides he had nobody left.
Geralt and Yennefer had both died in Rivia like he almost had. He hadn't seen Triss since she saved him in Rivia, and the two parted after he was healed. The long scar across his chest ached as he remembered the day. He knew that she was royal advisor to King Foltest of Temaria, however he knew Temaria was in the middle of bloody conflict, and Foltest was dead, he didn't know if she could help him.
No, he had nobody to help him search for her. He would himself as he did for so many years, but he had no solid evidence she was alive, and he did not wish to get his hopes up only to have them smashed again.
After finally entering the barn he stopped behind Alayna, who smiled curtly and opened her arms walking to the front door of the barn.
"Danara! How are you feeling dear?" She exclaimed.
The young woman he had met last night, Mikel wife Danara smiled at the alchemist and embraced her in a hug. The woman tossed her brown hair back behind her shoulder and Dom realized that she must had been even further along in her pregnancy then he thought. Her stomach was round, but she still seemed to be in good spirits. When she saw him, she smiled and held out her hand to him.
"Dominik! It's so good to see you again." She said happily shaking his hand.
He nodded to her, "And you, how are you feeling?"
"As well as I can feel," She said happily before turning to the orange haired alchemist, "Alayna I've come to see if you have any more of that potion you gave me. We ran out last night and the nightmares returned."
Dom titled his head as Alayna happily nodded and reached under her desk. The alchemist revealed a drawer filled to the brim with white potions and pulled one out, handing it to Danara with a smile.
"Of course, dear, if you need anything else please don't hesitate to come to me. So lucky, you pregnant, Mikel just being promoted to foreman. The two of you must feel so lucky." She said with a small bow.
"Aye we really are," The pregnant woman smiled and bowed back before turning to him, "Good luck again Master Dominik. I hope after you contract is fulfilled; you'll stay a while."
"I'll think on it, be sure to stay safe." He said to her, smiling as best he could despite his fatigue and unease.
Danara smiled at him before leaving the barn, heading back towards the village. Alayna turned to him with a smile of her own. She gestured towards a stack of old crates in the corner of the barn.
"Everything you need will be there Witcher, good luck… and be sure to visit me again." She said to him in a slow cold tone.
He nodded to her uneasily, "Thank you for… your help."
The woman walked back out into the fields of herbs where her workers all stopped and bow low to her as if she was a queen. He shook off his unease and took in a deep breath. The fatigue he felt was starting to really affect him. He hadn't had a rough night's sleep like that in years, and he had slept in some very uncomfortable positions. The swallow always gave him pleasant dreams, and when he got to see Ciri in his dreams, he knew he would sleep well.
However, he knew he couldn't put his own personal comfort above the contract. He walked over to the crates and sighed, looking down at the dangling swallow.
"Well, I have all the pieces. Let's see if we can put this puzzle, together shall we?" He said to the pendant.
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The night came quicker then he anticipated. He had made his campfire just off the main road into the city, he didn't want the villagers or more importantly the vampire to see what he was doing. He managed to get a fire roaring and asking Hulda to borrow a pot to brew his oil was easy enough. He was waiting for it to boil, as he sat on the ground beneath the stars, the swallow pendant dangling in his hands. He sighed and looked at the pot boiling over the fire.
"I hope Uncle Vesimer would be proud, seems I paid attention after all," He said holding the pendant back up, "If you paid half as much attention to me as you did to Ciri you'd already be the greatest Witcher to ever live!" He said doing his best Uncle Vesimer impression.
He laughed to himself and looked back at the pendant. He saw her face in the pendant when he looked at it. It was as real as everything around him. Her sparkling green eyes, the freckles across her nose, her lips over his, her head resting against him as the fire roared in their cave. He took in a shaky breath and held the pendant to his chest.
"Are you out there? Is that why everything's been reminding me of you lately? If you're out there… why you haven't you come to find me?" He asked, looking up at the stars.
That was the main reason he believed her dead. They had promised each other that night, they would always try to find each other. He did everything he could after recovering from Rivia, but every trail he searched for, for almost a year ended up going cold. He didn't care if she was in another world, he had to believe if she was alive, she'd come to find him. He still asked every mage he came across what they knew of traveling between worlds, and the Elder Blood. Nothing ever helped.
"After this… I'll go find Triss. She'll help me, I'll pick up the trail again… I promise," He said looking at the clusters of stars above him.
He heard a bubbling and looked back down at the pot of oil. It was nearly done, so he removed a glass flask from his bag and prepared to pour it once it had boiled enough. He looked over at the village houses, illuminated by the torch lights outside their houses and in the town square. He turned his head back down to the swallow.
"But first, I have a vampire to kill. If only I could figure out where it will strike next…" He said slowly.
He looked at the small black dots on his wrist, the part of him where the beast had entered the nightmares into his system. He carefully lifted the pot off the fire and gently held it over the uncorked glass phial.
"Two to three weeks between attacks, the last one was about two weeks now… the next attack has to be soon," He said as he slowly tilted the pot and began to pour its blue contents into the phial.
"All the targets, young married couples, something good had just happened to them…" He kept thinking as he finished pouring.
He reached over to his blade and pulled out the long Witcher style steel sword. It was the kind he preferred, sleek and simple with a brown leather-bound grip, a straight cross-guard. He laid his blade out in-front of him and slowly twirled the blue oil in the phial to distill it.
"It marks its targets, causes them nightmares. Then it uses magic to break silently into their house, and leaves behind a smell of lavender… to cover its tracks," He said slowly as he leaned the phial over his blade.
He carefully poured the oil onto his blade and a pleasant hissing sound came from the blade as it was imbued with the vampire killing liquid. As he did this, he saw the black dots on his wrist again, and he looked up into the distance, at the large barn, and graveyard. The gears in his brain began to churn and he stood up, holding the blade in his hands as the fire crackled below him.
"And who do they all go to, to help heal these nightmares…" He said slowly.
A series of images ran through his head. The swallow pendant flown off his neck onto the floor, the fiend hadn't known it was silver. The bandage on Alayna's hand, claiming it was from a burn. He remembered how interested she was in knowing that he for sure hadn't undergone mutations.
"I'm pregnant, I don't have a broken leg," He heard Danara say in her head.
"I had just been promoted to foreman you see, it's perfect with the baby on the way," Mikel had told him in the inn.
"So lucky, you pregnant, Mikel just being promoted to foreman. The two of you must feel so blessed," Alayna had told them.
His head shot back towards the village, where he saw the lights of the houses slowly starting to be put out.
"Fuck," He said before kicking dirt onto the fire and taking off in a run towards the houses.
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He moved as fast as his legs could move him, his armor clanking around him. His blade almost cut open a few drunk men walking back from the inn, but he kept his eyes fixed on the inn. He remembered Danara had said it was a few houses down so after he passed it, he ran to each house shaking the doorknobs, and found the first few locked. A few villagers came outside to see the commotion he had caused, but soon he found one of the houses with the candles inside still lit. He went to open the door and as soon as he tried to turn the knob the scent of lavender hit his nose and he knew he had found the right house.
"FUCK!" He yelled trying with everything he had to kick the door in.
He had seen the lock was blasted off, but some kind of magical barrier was keeping him from getting it open.
"MIKEL," He screamed throwing the weight of his shoulder into the door, without it budging.
He looked into the window and saw nothing except a normal house, but he knew it had to be an illusion. A few villagers had gathered around and were watching him with horror however he knew he couldn't worry about them right now. Two people were about to be murdered, and he couldn't let it happen. He took a few steps back and with a running start launching himself through the window of the house.
He felt himself crash through the building knocked over a table and slamming into a bookshelf.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHH," He heard a woman scream as he stumbled up to his feet fumbling for his sword.
When he looked up the vision, what he saw terrified him. Danara was curled into a ball up on the headboard of her bed, Mikel next to her his face pale and arm bleeding. Above him was a wrinkly, pale vampire, long flowing fiery orange hair ran from her head down her naked leathery skin. Her head shot up from Mikel's arm and her large brown eyes widened as she roared with the blood of Mikel dripping down her fangs. He didn't wait for the opportunity to speak, he reared his sword back and launched it towards the creature, the longsword sailed through the room, but just before it could sink into the thing it dashed away so fast that he couldn't even see it. He heard some townspeople scream, he ran over to his sword, picking it up with a curse.
"FUCK," He yelled, turning to see Danara cowered against the head of her bed in fear.
"Are you all right," He asked walking over to her and kneeling next to her.
She quickly nodded then looked over to her husband, "MIKEL!" She yelled crawling over to him.
He ran over to the miller's side and examined him. He had certainly lost a lot of blood, but it seemed he had gotten there just in time. He pulled his sack off his bag and reached into it, rummaging through a selection of potions, and pulled out a vile of red liquid. He pulled the cork out and held it up to the man's mouth, he was unconscious but alive, he forced the mixture down his throat and Danara looked at him with pleading eyes.
"Will he be all right," She asked him frantically.
"Should be, I gave him something to get his blood flowing. He's lost a lot of it, make sure he keeps drinking, and don't let him even think of moving," He stressed to her stuffing the phial down into his bag and standing up.
He picked up his blade as he heard Danara let out a shaky breath, "D…Dominik, it was Alayna she-."
"She's an Alp, I can't believe I was too stupid to realize," He said finally piecing together why he couldn't find anything in the bestiary.
"An Alp?" Danara asked, looking between him and her husband.
He nodded to confirm. He was disappointed in himself, Alp's were extremely rare, but he still should have been able to figure it out sooner.
"An old, and very rare species of vampire. They produce toxins that give people nightmares, and feed of their fear. Soon as the targets unsuspecting they go in and suck them dry," He explained to the woman, hefting his blade onto his shoulder.
Danara shook her head and shook like a leaf in the wind, "She… she would have killed us both if… if not for you. Sucked us of all our blood like Johan and Johanka. We're forever in your debt," She said to him.
He shook his head, "Don't thank me for anything yet. I need to go and kill her you stay here and take care of him. Tell all the other villagers to stay in their houses, and if they have anything silver to keep it close at hand, silver harms it," He instructed her.
She slowly nodded her head, "Yes sir, but please when this is my husband and I, we owe you our lives."
He nodded to the woman before running out of the house. He burst through the crowd of people that had gathered around the house towards the graveyard. He heard in the distance Danara barking out orders to the people, repeating what he had told her. His blood began to race. Alp's were some of the oldest and most dangerous forms of vampires on the Continent. He had to be careful, they moved at inhuman speeds, and had immense strength. For a normal Witcher who had undergone mutations, it would more than likely have been a trivial matter. Geralt would have chugged a potion, brandished his silver sword and gone toe to toe with the thing until he chopped it in two.
He however wasn't like other Witcher's. He wasn't even a real one. He still couldn't stop. He needed to rid these people of this fiend or else its next victim's blood would be on his hands. He approached the barn and slowed his pace. He got to the fields and was getting ready to dash into the barn towards the graveyard when the barn door swung open. The mountain of a man, Boras came rushing out along with six other men with swords brandished and the next thing he knew he was surrounded.
Three men were to his right, three to his left, and big Boras in front of him.
He knew Boras would come at him first, he could spin and pirouette his way around Boras easily enough, but he knew his movements had to be perfect if he was going to not be overwhelmed and killed. He slowly formed his plan of attack in his head, his spins and movements would have to be perfect.
"Out of my way, now." He said in a deep demanding voice, wanting to try and negotiate first.
Boras brandished his woodsman axe from his belt and smacked it in his hands, "Lady Alayna had ordered us to kill any intruders at this hour."
"Your lady is an Alp! A vampire you, idiots! Let me through, now." He demanded again.
Boras raised his axe over his shoulder, "Lady Alayna said you'd try to trick us, we won't let you harm her." He said brandishing his axe forward.
"You're enthralled… should have guessed." He said, taking in a deep breath, and readying his blade in hand.
Without another word Boras lunged forward with an overhead strike. He knew he needed to take the big one down early or else he would be swarmed. He side stepped the strike and went to slash through his hand, but the big guy was ready and much swifter then he appeared. He lifted his axe back and slashed from the side, he parried the strike to the left knocking him off balance and with his momentum spun forward and slashed his blade diagonally down the man's chest. The lout wasn't wearing armor, so the strike sliced right through his beefy skin.
Boras roared in pain and fell to his knees, but as he did swung his meaty arm right through Dom's legs and he fell into the mud. Right after he swung the axe down on him, and just before it impaled into his chest, he raised his sword, grabbing the edge and holding it up with both hands. He caught the axe right under its head, and using all the strength he could, flicked the weapon out of the larger man's hand before rolling up to his knees bringing his blade straight up into Boras's gut. He got to his feet and leveled his blade towards the other six men. Boras slumped to the ground in a pool of blood. The exchange had only been a matter of seconds, so the other men finally charged, and the fight was in full swing.
The first one perfectly telegraphed his strike, he raised his blade to block, knocking away the man's sword before executing a perfect pirouette and bringing his blade across the man's stomach. None of them were wearing armor, so the slash went right through the man. The second came swinging wildly, he parried a thrust before grabbing the man's flailing wrist and tossing him to his right, directly into the path of two more advancing men, knocking them off balance.
Two more came straight for him from both sides, he knocked away another overhead strike, sending the man off balance before spinning to his left and catching another's blade on his cross guard, he pushed his opponents blade upwards, ducked underneath and brought his blade across the man killing him in an instant. He parried a blow from the first man he had knocked off balance again, before side-stepping a thrust, grabbing the man's wrist and maneuvering his blade to slice the man's sword hand clean off.
Three were dead, three more remained. He cursed himself for not thinking of making any bombs before he came, it would have ended the fight there. The last three men recovered, and all surrounded him, he switched to a reverse grip on his blade, the exact he begged Eskel to teach him in Kaer Morhen. One charged forward and he knocked the strike aside, spinning and using his momentum to slice his blade across the back of the man's neck. The next two came charging at the same moment and he backed up, knocking one's blade aside before parrying a series of strikes from the other man. He finally ended one of them with a block that effortlessly transitioned into a spin and allowed him to stab his blade through the man's leg which brought him to the ground and gave him the perfect opportunity to slash his blade across the man's throat.
Only one remained and Dom determined whatever enthrallment the men were under had to have been powerful since the last man still charged. With a simple side-step and parry of the man's blade he pirouetted around and slashed his blade across the man's back, ending the fight.
He stood in the field of growing herbs; blood soaked the earth as he watched the bodies bleed. He took a minute to catch his breath, before examining his blade. He could still see it imbued with the vampire oil, so he turned and took in a deep steadying breath. He reached a hand around the swallow, squeezing it for luck, before slowly making his way into the barn.
He walked through the barn with his sword raised, and exited the other side, only a few steps later he was in the graveyard. The headstones were illuminated by a few candles and the moonlight.
"I knew you would come Witcher, and I am oh so glad you did," A sweet voice said, piercing the air like a knife.
From behind the tree Alayna emerged, her fiery orange hair down around her shoulder, as she wore nothing but the same revealing blue dress, she wore that day.
"Enough talk spare me the pleasantries. You're going to die; you won't harm anymore people in this village," He said in a deep voice, holding his blade close to his face and leveling it towards her.
She chuckled and looked down at her bare feet, taking a few steps back and forth, "Oh but I do so love talking to you. I was surprised how honest you were with me earlier. I've seen into your mind, Dominik of Cintra."
"I said that's enough! You don't know me vampire," He said circling, with his sword still raised.
She tilted her head and smiled, "Oh but I do young Witcher," She said with a coy smile.
She continued to walk in a circle with him, she twisted her fingers around her orange curls.
"Cirilla Fiona Elen Riannon." She said in her honey smooth voice.
He had heard enough, he lunged forward trying to go for a thrust that was strong enough to kill any man or monster. However, Alayna disappeared in a flash and he heard a tsk coming from behind him.
"My oh my, you must really love her for you to get so angry at her mere mention," She said shaking her head.
"You don't deserve to speak her name," He yelled going for another strike, coming up with the same result.
He heard her tsk behind him again and he whirled around. "Zireael, the Lady of Space and Time, Lady of Worlds, The Lion Cub of Cintra. Oh yes, I know who she is."
He felt himself freeze, the blade stayed leveled towards the creature, he didn't dare take his eyes off her. He didn't want to indulge her, she was probably lying, but the words left his mouth before he could stop himself.
"What do you know about Ciri!?" He demanded of her.
She chuckled and smiled beautifully at him, "Now we are getting somewhere. Promise to hear me out Witcher, and I'll tell you all I know about the Lion Cub of Cintra, the woman you still love."
Every instinct in his body told him to run through the bitch at that moment. The mention of Ciri, the little spark of hope that had manifested in him earlier was now bursting like a bomb in his heart.
He took in a shaky breath but kept his sword leveled, "Talk, and get to the point."
She nodded to him and bowed, before looking up at him with a smile, "I am not of this world Dominik of Cintra. I was not born on the continent; I was turned into what you see here today in my world… I am one of the Aen Elle."
She stopped speaking, looking at him to gage his reaction, he shrugged his shoulder and held out his sword, "Is that supposed to mean something too me?"
She chuckled lightly and shook her head, "How silly of me, I forget you have no way of knowing. My people are from another world, a perfect elven world, I assume you know of the power Zireael possesses?"
"Of course, I know. She has the power to open portals, use powerful magic, something with her blood," He told her, remembering what he and Ciri had eavesdropped on in Kaer Morhen.
She doubled over and laughed at him, "Haha, oh the ignorance of humans. Yes, she can open portals, but not just any portals, Zireael has the power to open portals to different worlds, and my world of the Aen Elle, happens to be one of the ones she visited, came just before I was cursed, a beautiful young lady… for a human."
"What…" He said his sword slightly dipping, "You… you saw her?"
She smirked and nodded her head, "Oh yes I did. Our king took quite the interest in her, and the power of Lara Dorren, the Elder Blood inside of her. A damn shame she escaped, even more surprising that Eredin and his Hunt have yet to capture her."
He almost dropped his sword to the ground, he fumbled for a second to try and regain his stance, but the words had sliced through his heart like a hot knife.
"She… she's alive? No, you have to be lying. How do you know?" He demanded from her inching his blade closer to her throat.
She chuckled and took a step backwards, "It happened the last few days before I was turned into what I am now, Eredin had just taken over the throne of the Aen Elle. Our world is dying, and he and his hunt decreed they'd save us all. He wants to invade this world, but to do that he needs power, enough power to open enough portals for thousands of Aen Elle, and to do so…" She said letting him infer the rest.
This time the point of his blade did dip into the dirt below him, as he reached around his neck to squeeze the swallow pendant, "And to do that he needs Ciri, and her power."
"And he will get it, it's inevitable," She said coyly.
He felt a new fire run through his body, he raised his blade again, this time inches from the woman's throat, "He won't, not if I have anything to say about it. I'll kill Eredin and anyone that tries to harm Ciri, I'll find her, and I'll protect her!"
The elf chuckled and took a step away from his blade, "Yes, yes, how very noble of you. I could… help you in that endeavor."
"What are you talking about!? You're not getting out of this alive! I won't let you terrorize this village anymore," He shouted, shifting his stance and readying for a fight.
She tsked at him again and gazed right into his eyes, "Again so hasty young Witcher. I speak the truth. I've seen your dreams, I know your deepest desires, your deepest fears. I have the magic of the Aen Elle, I can open portals to anywhere, to anyone, all I would need is a sample of something that once belonged to them," She said looking around his neck.
He looked down at the silver swallow dangling from his neck, then back to the fiery haired woman.
She nodded her head, "Oh yes, with your pendant I can open you a portal, one that would lead you right to your lost love. You would be reunited once again."
He sneered, "I assume you wouldn't do this out of the kindness of your heart?"
She laughed again and shook her head, "Where would the fun in that be? I do require something for this help, and it is quite simple."
The vampire took a step closer to him, "All you have to do… is leave. Tell the villagers I am slain, leave the village and as soon as you are out of sight, I'll open you a portal right to your dear Cirilla. Then you can go and try to stop Eredin and his Hunt, he'll kill you eventually, but at least you'll get to see Zireael again."
"You think I would just let you terrorize and kill more innocent people!?" He shouted at her.
She shook her head, "No… but I think the thought of seeing your beloved Cirilla, reuniting with her, being able to protect her again… outweighs all for you."
She took a few more steps closer to him and he backed up, keeping his blade leveled, she looked down the steel blade, watching her reflection in the metal. She met his green eyes with her brown ones, the eyes of a monster.
"You blame yourself. You think you could have stopped her from going to Aretuza. If only she had listened, if only Geralt and Yennefer had listened to you and not taken her there. If only… you could have protected her from all the men who wanted to rape her, impregnate her for her blood…" She said slowly circling him, "She was still wearing the bronze ring around her neck when she visited my world. You haven't even seen her since you were what… 14? She's grown into such a beautiful young woman. I know you would like to see her. I can make that happen… all you need to do… is walk away."
He felt as if the ground was trying to swallow his feet. The sword in his hands felt as if it had gained a hundred pounds. If she was telling the truth, which there was no reason she would be, he could see her again. In a matter of hours, he could be back by her side. The two of them could go back to Kaer Morhen, get help from Vesemir, and find friends who would help them fight. They could defeat the hunt and finally after all the years apart the two could finally set out on the path, or maybe they could settle down quietly in the countryside, hunt monsters for fun and finally properly be together. He could finally have her in his arms again, hold her, kiss her, sit by a fire with her head on his shoulder again.
But what would the cost be? What would she say if she figured out what he did to see her? What would Geralt, or Yennefer, the second set of parents he had been blessed with had thought of what he was even contemplating? He looked down at his reflection on the blade, and suddenly he saw himself and Ciri, both at 14 years old. He then saw his reflection now, the brown scruff around his chin and face he would have to shave soon, his unruly unkept head of brown hair, would Ciri still find him handsome? He wondered what she looked like now, how much more beautiful had she gotten?
He sighed and felt the swallow tremble around his neck, he looked up into the brown eyes of the creature he had come to kill.
He sighed, preparing himself for what he was about to do, "A flattering offer… really is. You're right… I've always blamed myself. I could have tried harder, convinced Geralt to not let her go, or searched harder. I love her, miss her more than anything."
"And with only one small, easy task… you can see her again," She said in the honeyed voice.
He sighed and raised his sword, "Aye I could, but… Ciri would never forgive me. Besides… I think I'll manage to find her on my own…"
He swung around slashing his blade with purpose, and just barely nicked the woman's face before she hissed and disappeared in a flash. He spun around and saw the door to the barn flapping open. He raised his blade, gripping the swallow pendant again.
"Just one monster to kill… then I'll find you," He said quietly, before slowly moving to the barn, his sword raised.
XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX
He slowly opened the door to the barn, and when he did, he heard the creaking of old wood. His sword was leveled as he circled the barn, trying to keep his eyes on the upper levels. The blue oil seemed to glint in the moonlight off his blade. He heard a creak behind him and whirled around, just in time to roll out of the way of the attack.
"You have failed Witcher!" He heard the cackling as leaves from the ground whipped up behind him.
He whirled around again and swung his blade upwards, but Alayna ducked and swung on of her monstrous claws down towards him. He leaped back and tried to lunge again, but she dashed away again, so fast he couldn't even track where she went. He heard cackling come from all around him. He angled his sword upwards but couldn't pinpoint the location the voice was coming from.
He heard a whoosh of leaves swirl up behind him and he spun around, just missing the beast.
"Eredin will reward me if I can bring him too you. He'll lift my curse!" He heard her shout as he heard the movement behind him again.
He went to whirl around for a strike, but he didn't have the super-natural speed of a real Witcher. He felt claws rake against his shoulder, and a roar as Alayna passed by him.
"GAHHHHHHH!" He yelled holding his right shoulder, forcing himself to lower his sword.
"With you in his custody, Eredin will finally be able to lure the girl out of hiding," She hissed through the night sky.
He scoffed and painfully raised his sword again, "You're a fool if you think Ciri would be dumb enough to fall for that!"
He heard a demonic cackle, and Alayna's sweet honeyed voice was changed to that of a true vampire, "Hahaha but she already has once child. After Eredin kidnapped your dear Yennefer, and stole away Geralt of Rivia, that girl came to save them, she escaped his grasp then, but he won't let her slip through his fingers again," She screeched in amusement, before he heard another whoosh and saw her standing across from him again.
"Besides, if she loves you even half as much as you love her, well… they say love makes all of us do stupid things," She said with a laugh.
He felt his sword tip lower, "Geralt and Yennefer died in Rivia, I couldn't save them!" He yelled.
Her large fangs curled her lips into a crooked smile, "Oh the arrogance, do you truly know nothing of the ones you claim to love?"
"What are you-." But he didn't finish his sentence before the beast charged.
She dashed towards him so fast he almost didn't react, she slashed down towards his chest, but he just managed to raise his blade to deflect her claws. He heard a loud hissing sound as she reared back wailing in pain, the oil had done its job and was affecting her. He had her on the back foot and finally slow, so he thrust forward with another strike, but she had recovered from the oil. She dashed around behind him and he felt claws racking across his back before he swirled around swinging his blade down and chopping off one of her hands.
Her wailing of pain made him stumble, and he couldn't stop her when she lunged forward, gripping her claw around his neck. Her jaw and fangs were right near his neck, but with every bit of strength he had he pushed forward gripping her up by her own neck and slamming her into the ground, he brought his blade around to stab downwards but just before his blade could end the fight, she dashed off again. He retracted his blade from the ground and before he could even turn around, he felt her leap up onto his back, her fangs sinking into his shoulder.
"AHHHHHHHHH!" He yelled reaching his hands around and slamming her back onto the ground.
He felt blood start to gush from his shoulder, as he felt a cold chill run through his body. He saw the thing standing across from him, he went to take a step forward one hand holding his blade, and the other holding onto the gushing wound. He tried to take a step forward towards her, but he couldn't feel his legs move. He fell down to his knees first, where his sword clanged to the ground, before falling forward into the dirt. He rolled himself onto his back and felt the blood seeping down his body under his armor. He was taking long deep breath to try and control his breathing.
He looked and saw Alayna come towards him in the moonlight, her scraggily orange hair flowing down her pale wrinkly leather body. She smiled and in her brown eyes he saw amusement, he could see his own blood dripping down her fangs.
"Eredin will lift my curse, and with you he can finally find Zireael. It will be such a shock for her to find you after all these years… but for you just too be dead!" She screeched bringing her claws down to finally end him.
He saw everything flash before his eyes in that moment, his father, his mother, his younger sister, Ciri, Geralt, Yennefer, Triss, Vesemir, everyone. He had failed again, that was going to be the last thing he thought.
The claw came inches from his face when a new voice pierced the air.
"Fier'endeal," A loud booming voice yelled in what he recognized as Elder Speech.
Alayna's claw stopped inches from his face, her whole body completely frozen in place. Her eyes were frozen in a look of delight as her long tongue was in the middle of licking his blood off her fangs. He didn't take the time to wait for anything else to happen, he summoned the last bit of his strength, he reached for his blade and lifted himself up, plunging it right into her heart. His momentum carried him so far forward he tumbled forward and fell back onto the dirt, he looked up and saw his blade sticking out of the steaming, now dead body of Alayna who was reverting back to her original form.
He sighed in relief but still felt the wounds all over his body, particularly his shoulder bleeding. He wouldn't last much longer without treatment. He needed to get himself up. The monster was dead, it was time to go find Ciri now. He tried to get up, but the pain across his back and shoulder, combined with the fatigue he felt wasn't helping. He slumped back onto the ground, looking up at the ceiling of the barn.
"Ciri… Ciri…" He whispered, feeling the swallow tremble around his neck.
He was trying to think of anything he could do when a new scent attacked his nose. It was a smell he knew so particularly well.
Lilac and gooseberries.
"Dominik!" He heard his name yelled.
He turned his head and he truly thought that he was delirious and seeing visions before he died. The raven locks, and beautiful violet eyes, the black and white outfit.
"Yennefer…?" He whispered.
She knelt down next to him and shook her head, gently taking his head and looking deep into his eyes. She chuckled and smiled, with the look of worry still on her face.
"Yes, it's me. Look how handsome you've gotten…" She said, running a hand down his cheek.
He felt himself getting weaker and weaker, he gripped her arm and squeezed as hard as he could muster.
"Yen… Ciri… Ciri she's-." He tried to get out.
"Shhhh," She said holding a finger to his mouth gently, "I know. We'll talk more later, for now, sleep. We can talk more when you wake."
Before he could protest anything, she pressed a finger to his forehead, as soon as she did his eyes closed, and he drifted into a dreamless sleep.
XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX
He didn't have any dreams which slightly upset him. His dreams were one of the few places he could see her. The first thing he felt when he came to was pain coursing down through his entire body. He opened his eyes and looked up at the ceiling of his room at the inn. He struggled but managed to get himself to sit up. He looked around the room and saw his blade leaning against the table along with the rest of his things. He was beginning to think that maybe it was all a dream, maybe he had killed Alayna and the villagers came and found him. Yennefer wasn't there, she couldn't have been, she was dead.
The voices coming from outside the door made him realize it was true.
"I told you, I'm his mother!" He heard the voice of Yennefer say.
"You're a bit young to be his mother, you're practically the same age!" He heard the voice of old Hulda say.
"I'm a sorceress, I adopted him many years ago. I've come all this way to find him, I'd appreciate it if you'd stop questioning me!" He heard the sorceress hiss.
"Alright, you'd best watch yourself though. We owe that man our lives, we won't let harm come to him!" Hulda scolded.
He sighed in relief. No matter what was happening at least he knew for a fact he had killed the Alp. He saved the people of the village that had been so kind to him. He was ashamed at how tempted he was to take the deal Alayna had been offering. He could possibly be with Ciri at that moment. However, he knew that she would never look at him the same if he sacrificed a village just to see her. He looked down at his neck and saw his Witcher medallion and the silver swallow still hung over his scarred chest. He sighed and gripped his hands around the swallow, just as the door opened.
Yennefer walked into his room, and she looked just as he remembered her. He knew she was a sorceress so she naturally would always look like that, however after thinking she had been dead for so long, he couldn't help but think she may have looked slightly different. She sighed in exasperation before looking at him with her violet eyes, and when she did her face relaxed and she smiled.
"You've grown so much…" She said coming and sitting on the bed next to him.
She reached over and gingerly grabbed his hands, he looked at her his mouth still agape. He truly couldn't believe she was here, the last thing he saw before passing out in Rivia was Geralt and Yennefer lying dead. Now, she was there in front of him, the woman who had become a second mother after he lost his first.
"I… I thought you were dead. For almost two years I thought you've been dead!" He said, his chest filling up with warmth.
She smiled and ran a hand down his face, "There's much I have to tell you child but first, come here give me a hug."
He almost felt himself moved to tears, he threw his arms around the sorceress's neck and hugged her close. The powerful smell of lilac and gooseberries was overpowering but he had come to love it over the years. He held her as tight as he could, if what he learned from the Alp was true, Yennefer would be the best person to help him find Ciri.
The two pulled back at she smiled sweetly at him, looking down at the swallow he still wore, gently lifting it in her hands.
"So, you still wear it, does the nightmare charm still work?" She asked him.
He nodded his head, "Yes it does. But Yen, I learned something from that vampire. She said Ciri is alive! She's alive but she's being chased by the Wild Hunt, we need to find her somehow we need to-."
"Dom, I know, but first I need to-." She started, but he was too enraptured by what he was saying.
"The Alp she… she used to be one of the Aen Elle. Yen she… she told me she could've opened a portal right to Ciri for me, I could've been with her right now but… but she said I'd have to let her have the village…" He said in a low tone, feeling the necklace tremble around his neck.
He looked into the sorceress's bright violet eyes, "Yen did I… did I make the right choice? Please tell me there's another way we can find Ciri between the worlds," He begged her.
Yennefer sighed and looked at him with her violet eyes, "Yes, there is. But first Dominik… I need to tell you some things. I'm happy you were so glad to see me because… well you may not be very happy with me after I tell you all of this."
He tilted his head at her, and felt his stomach churn like a tornado, "What are you talking about?"
She sighed and looked him in the eyes, "It's time I told you what… really happened during, before and after Rivia…"
And so, Yennefer told him. She told him, everything that had happened after he was struck down. She told him how she instructed Triss to get him away, to save him while she went after Geralt. He learned however after her and Geralt were struck down… it was Ciri who had saved them and brought them to Malus Island where they were healed, before traveling to a different world. She told him how after this, the Wild Hunt kidnapped her in an attempt to lure Ciri out of hiding, but before Ciri could do anything Geralt intervened and traded his life for hers. For months he learned Geralt rode with the Wild Hunt, before Ciri had come back to save him. Ciri had managed to save Geralt and left him outside the woods of Kaer Morhen with no memory.
After hearing what Yennefer had to say, Dominik felt his blood run cold. Yennefer and Geralt had known when they got ahold of him and asked him to come to Rivia… that Ciri was alive. He had thought for years at that point his search for her was hopeless, but still refused to give up. Had he known that Ciri was going to meet them in Rivia, he would have gotten there sooner, he would have ridden his horse dead to get there.
He looked into Yennefer's violet eyes, and felt fire burning up inside his throat, "You knew… you and Geralt both knew. You knew she was alive, but you didn't tell me," He yelled tossing the blanket off him and trying to stand up.
His attempt to stand didn't go well and his legs shook, causing him to fall to his knees, where Yennefer came over to try and help him stand.
"Don't," He said when she tried to help him stand. She took a step back and he managed to rise to his feet himself, gripping the swallow pendant.
He turned to Yennefer, trying to control his anger, "You knew Ciri was alive when you sent the message to me, asking me to come to Rivia, you didn't think to mention Ciri, who I'd been looking for… for YEARS at that point was there!?"
Yennefer shook her head and let out a sad sigh, "I admit, we should have told you. You deserved to know; however, you must realize Dominik at the time she had just gotten back. She had spent years traveling between worlds trying to find her way back, and so many people wanted to get their hands on her."
He shook his head, "You don't think I know that? I had been to almost every part of the continent to search for her, I almost gave up hope. Years I spent, asking every mage I found what they knew of travel between worlds, I searched everywhere. Finally, after Rivia… I started to think I'd never see her again but… this whole time you knew she was alive!"
He was angry, almost yelling at this point, but Yennefer was not deterred, "You don't realize child that we didn't want to risk anyone finding out. What if the letter to you, telling you to come to Rivia had mentioned Ciri was alive, and it fell into the wrong hands somehow?"
She waited for his answer, but continued when he didn't have one for her, "Exactly, the Wild Hunt, Nilfgaard, Vilgefortz, basically every king in the land, they all wanted to get their hands on Ciri. No, we couldn't risk the knowledge of where she was going to be getting out."
He ran a hand through his unruly brown hair and sighed, leaning over and using the window to support him. He realized what she said was true, too many people wanted Ciri. In the end she was trying to keep her safe, and if he had to be left in the dark for Ciri's safety then he knew it was worth it. He turned to Yennefer and sighed.
"Fine, I guess you have a point. What happened after she finally got back to our world, don't leave anything out," He asked her.
Yennefer nodded and gestured for him to sit across from her, which he did.
"She told me after escaping the Aen Elle, she finally landed back on the continent. She heard how I was captured by Vilgefortz, so she came to Strygga castle, trying to give herself to him in exchange for me," She informed him.
"Sounds like her…" he said longingly.
She nodded and continued, "Vilgefortz however had no intention of letting either of us go. He wanted to impregnate Ciri, in order to gain access to her Elder Blood."
He slammed his fist against the bed and shot to his feet, "If I ever get my hands on that man… I'm going to kill him. If you and Geralt had listened to me, maybe Ciri would be here now! If you hadn't taken her to that damn magic school, she could be here now," He said, finally raising his voice to a yell.
Yennefer gave him a stern look, "Be reasonable Dominik, if she hadn't learned how to control her powers it could have killed her!"
"I don't care about her damn powers! She had you, and Triss, what did she need to go to Aretuza for!? If she hadn't gone there she would've been safe, Geralt, Eskel, Lambert, ME, I could have protected her, she could've protected herself," He said, feeling his blood begin to boil.
Yennefer took a moment to gather herself before sighing and looked down for a moment. She met his eyes, "I know you blame yourself. You think that you could have saved her, prevented her from going through all that happened to her. You believe that you didn't try hard enough, that you could have done more… I know you too well child."
He felt his balled-up fists begin to tremble. Everything Yennefer said was true. He did blame himself, he always wondered in his mind, if he had only tried harder to convince Yennefer and Geralt to not send her away. He felt his eyes begin to get wet, and he took a shaky breath, managing to meet Yennefer's eyes.
Her violet eyes had a look of sadness in them before she continued, "Geralt and I… we made more than a few mistakes concerning you and Ciri. Separating the two of you was one of them. I'm sorry for that, truly I am."
He saw her eyes beaming at him, yearning for his forgiveness. It was the kind of look he had never seen on Yennefer's face before. He wanted to remain angry, shout more about how unfair it all was. He knew if he had stayed with Ciri through it all, he could have saved her, the two of them could have fought off anything that tried to take her or harm them. However, he knew it wasn't the time to be feeling sorry for himself. He needed to act, he needed to find her.
He shook his head and gave his adoptive mother a hug, "It's all right… I… I've just always loved her, I still do."
She pulled back, and smirked at him, letting out a small laugh, "Ha, oh my dear I've always known. Geralt too, we always knew the feelings you had for each other."
He looked at her, his face suddenly hot, "You… you knew that we-."
She laughed again and smiled at him, "Of course we did. The two of you were children, did a horrible job of hiding it. Geralt told me how one time he walked into the library, where the two of you were supposed to be studying, but instead he found you studying the inside of each other's mouths, another time-."
He raised his hands, "Okay, I get your point, no need to go on. You were telling me what happened after she got back to our world?"
She laughed again, and the two of them sat back down on the bed where she continued the story, "Like I said Vilgefortz had no intention of letting us go. Thankfully Geralt arrived and rescued us. After that I was summoned to Vengerberg, I left Geralt with Ciri. It was before I left that we sent the letter to you, telling you to come to Rivia."
"I remember, I was in Vizima when I got it. Nearly killed my horse I rode so hard, I thought Geralt had a lead on Ciri. Turns out he had more than a lead it seems. Why wasn't she there when I got there though? I remember rushing to try and save Geralt, we managed to fight off a few before we got separated. Got cut across the chest in an alleyway, would've died if Triss hadn't found me," He reminded her, remembering the feeling of being so close to death.
Yennefer nodded to reaffirm what he said, "Yes, that's because Ciri arrived later with Triss and I. The Lodge of Sorceresses summoned Ciri to Vengerberg as well, I didn't want to bring her, but they would've found a way to get her there one way or another, I knew that, so she came with me there and Geralt set out for Rivia."
"The Lodge of Sorceresses?"
She sighed, "The Lodge is… a society of the most powerful sorceresses on the continent. Triss and I are members, along with Phillipa Eilhart, Kiera Metz amongst others, we're scattered now, most of us are wanted in the Northern Realms, but that's a story for another day."
He cared little for what this society was, he was more concerned with another thing she had mentioned, "And what exactly did your Lodge want with Ciri?"'
Yennefer shifted uneasily and he knew he wouldn't like the answer, "The Lodge they… wanted to send Ciri to Kovir, to marry and have a child with the Kings son,"
Dominik knew he wouldn't like the answer. He sighed deeply, trying to control himself. He didn't want to get mad at Yennefer again so soon after finally realizing she was alive. He managed to keep his voice steady, but he imagined his eyes gave away how agitated he was.
"You know Yen, I'm getting really sick of hearing how many people tried to 'impregnate' Ciri. She's a human being, not just some breeding machine! If I learn that ANYONE has done anything of the like to her I'm going to-."
"Relax child, we didn't force her into anything. Besides, she was shooting the idea down before we could even finish explaining it. I assume that had something to do with you… wouldn't let go of that ring," She told him, a small smile on her face, "After she learned we sent a message for you to go to Rivia, the girl was ecstatic. Blushed right up when we told her you were still looking for her," She told him, causing his face to feel hot.
He felt the inside of his stomach do a flip, his eyes softened, and this gave Yennefer the okay to continue, "After this there was some dispute on whether to let her leave or not, but eventually she did. Her, Triss and I got to Rivia, but when we did Geralt had fallen and you were nowhere to be found. I sent Triss to find you, while I tried to save Geralt. I used up too much energy and passed out, after that… well Ciri got us out of there and to Malus Island, after I awoke that was the last, I saw of Ciri. After that like I told you, I was kidnapped by the Hunt and Geralt rescued me, before being rescued himself by Ciri, and that's the last any of us have seen of her."
He looked down and found he was fiddling with the silver swallow pendant again, the news that Ciri was alive… it had been what he wanted to hear for years. He had never stopped searching for her when he could, but he was starting to slowly give up hope that he could ever find her. He knew she was out there now however, and he was going to find her. He would kill Eredin, and every member of the Wild Hunt to do so, and he wouldn't stop until he either succeeded or he was dead.
He looked directly into Yennefer's eyes, "Yen did she… did she say anything about me? Gods I… I haven't seen her in so long, 8 years. I've never stopped thinking about her."
She reached a hand over and placed it on his shoulder, "She… she did. She told me to tell you… to tell you she's sorry. Sorry that she hasn't come to find you like the two of you promised, she didn't want to bring the Wild Hunt down on you."
He would have fought the entire Wild Hunt with his bare hands for her. He took in a shaky sigh, trying to will the pain out of his body. He gingerly stood up from the bed, this time allowing Yennefer to help him. He walked over to the desk in his room where his armor had been laid across the table. He ran his hand over the scabbard of his sword that also lay there. He turned around and looked at Yennefer.
"I'm going to find her Yen. I don't care if I have to fight the entire Wild Hunt by myself… I'm going to find her," He said, turning to the sorceress.
Yennefer nodded to him, "Good I'm glad you said that… because that's why I'm here. We're going to find Ciri."
For the first time in what felt like a long time he genuinely smiled, he nodded to the sorceress and went about trying to put his armor on, but a pang of pain ran through his body. Yennefer came over and helped him up after he almost fell.
"Easy, you're still in bad shape after that fight with the Alp."
"I never properly thanked you for that, I'd be dead if not for you Yen," He said smiling at her.
She smiled and nodded, "It was no problem. I disposed of the Alp, the entire village is in your debt, many of them have been checking on you, leaving you coin and flowers."
He shook his head right away, "I don't want any coin or anything from them. If I hadn't come here, I wouldn't have learned about Ciri, that's payment enough. So, I never asked, how did you find me, and any ideas on where to start our search?"
Yennefer fidgeted nervously, "Well as for finding you, being able to teleport was easy enough. I knew you'd be somewhere in the North that wasn't under Nilfgaard control. As for any leads, well… you may also not be too, happy to hear how I got them."
He shook his head right away, "If they help us find Ciri, I don't care how you got them."
She tilted her head, "These you might. You see for the last few months… I've been working in the court in Vizima… for Nilfgaard."
He fumbled his armor that he had just been trying to lift, "You WHAT!?"
"Now hear me out Dominik-."
"NO! The black ones!? They murdered my entire family! They burned my home to the ground, men, women, children, elderly, everyone in Cintra was murdered! What interest do they even have in Ciri to have leads on her!? Do they want to 'impregnate' her so they can have a child with Elder Blood to help them conquer the continent," He said, and he found himself screaming again.
Yennefer shook her head, "Don't speak like that to me Dominik. There's… one more thing you should know before we begin this search, something important."
He shook his head, "I don't care what the Black Ones want with her, we'll use their leads to find Ciri, and after that we take her away somewhere safe."
Yennefer seemed to have trouble finding words, which was very rare for her he knew. She sighed, "I don't care what we do once we find her as long as she's safe but Dominik you need to know… you know the Emperor of Nilfgaard? Emyr Van Emrys?"
He scoffed, "Of course I do, that bastard led the raid on Cintra."
She looked genuinely upset at what she had to tell him but managed to meet his green eyes with her violet ones, "Dominik something we learned just after Ciri got back is that… the Emperor he… he's Ciri's father."
XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX
He decided not to wear his armor out of the town. He wore only a white cloth shirt that was freshly washed and smelled like fresh cotton. The new shirt, and his brown leather trousers were what he was leaving in. His armor was packed away on his horse Clop, but he made sure to keep his sword around his back. Yennefer had explained the complicated backstory of how the Emperor of Nilfgaard was in fact Ciri's father. If the Emperor truly wanted, he and Geralt to find his daughter like he told Yennefer, he knew it couldn't be for any good reasons. After some convincing from Yennefer, he decided he would go along with her plan. He trusted her, they would use the Emperor's leads on Ciri to find her, and then they'd kill Eredin and the Wild Hunt, along with anyone else who wanted to get their hands on her.
"Are you ready to head out? Our escort is only a mile out, didn't want to scare the villagers… or have you attack them by bringing them with me," Yennefer said, climbing up to the back of her large brown gelding.
He nodded his head to her, "I'm ready… it's time to go find her Clop," He said stroking his horses white coat.
He was about to raise himself up onto Clop's back, when he heard his name being yelled.
"DOMINIK," A man's voice yelled to him, back towards the road into Claywitch.
He turned around and saw Mikel walking towards him. He turned back to Yennefer who was looking at him, "Go on ahead, I'll be right behind you."
The sorceress nodded to him and rode off on her gelding. He patted Clop's neck again before turning to Mikel, who was slowly making his way towards him. The man was alive, that was an accomplishment itself. He was still pale, but it was apparent he had enough strength to be around walking. His black beard and head of black hair were both unruly and unkept. He expected a man that had been so close to death to not be in such high spirits, but when he finally caught up with him, he smiled ear to ear.
"Aye, I'm glad I caught up with you Master Dominik," He said taking in deep breaths to steady himself.
"Mikel, what are you doing here, I'm glad to see you up but you should be resting. The Alp did quite a number on you," He told the man with an amused tone.
Mikel stood straight up and laughed with a smile, "Ha, from what I hear she did quite a number on you as well."
He looked down at his now scarred shoulder wrapped in a bandage and laughed, "Ha you got that right. How're you feeling? And how's Danara?"
"We're both alive… and that's thanks to you. I was hoping you'd stay for a few days, I'd love to have a few drinks, play a hand of Gwent with you," He said with a smile.
Dominik laughed and nodded, "On a normal occasion I would but… something has come up, something important."
"Anything we can give you any help with," He asked sincerely.
Dom shook his head, but kept his smile, "Not this time. Remember how I told you… the woman I loved wasn't around anymore? Well, she's been seen, she's… being hunted by some dangerous people. I'm going to save her; I wouldn't want to drag you or anyone into it."
The miller nodded in understanding, "Aye none of us are really good in a fight, but… should you ever need a place to rest your head, to come and relax or get supplies… you'll always find a place in Claywitch."
Dom felt a warm chill run through himself. He hadn't had anywhere like that since Kaer Morhen. After he separated from Geralt to conduct his own search for Ciri, he hadn't had a real place he could call home. Home was wherever Yennefer, Triss, Geralt and Ciri were. He knew that would be true to this day, when he found Ciri he would be home. However, it warmed his heart to know he always would have Claywitch.
"I… I'm honored, really. Good luck Mikel… and be sure to give Danara my best, along with Hulda, old Alesky and everyone else," He told the miller.
He nodded and looked at him with a smile, "Aye I'll be sure too. One last thing Dominik… I wish to thank you. Me, my wife… and now my child would all be dead if not for you. I know you haven't accepted any coin from anyone but… I'd like to thank you somehow."
Dominik shook his head and held up his hand, "No need, it's enough to know you're all safe."
Mikel shook his head, "I won't hear none of that now. You saved my entire family, and I wish to reward you. I don't have much in the way of coin or goods but… I can offer you one thing. I hereby offer you Dominik of Cintra, the Law of Surprise."
He felt his eyes widen. The Law of Surprise wasn't something anyone just went around offering. It could be an extra crop, a new horse, or in cases like Geralt, a child. He shook his head to the man.
"Mikel, truly I promise there's no need. I didn't do it for a reward, I was simply-."
"I know, I believe that you did do this out of the kindness of your heart. However, I must insist, please accept. We owe you our lives, you said you'd do anything for the one you love. I would as well, but I'd also do anything to repay the ones who saves them," He said with genuine appreciation.
Dominik sighed and finally nodded, "Alright, I accept. I invoke the Law of Surprise, give me that which you have, but do not yet know."
Mikel held out his hand, and Dominik shook it, sealing the deal. Mikel smiled and gave him a small bow, "Thank you again… me, my wife, and my child will all live thanks to you Dominik of Cintra. I should probably be getting back now, Danara is due to give birth any moment."
He nodded and gave the miller a smile, "Congratulations again, give her my best."
Mikel smiled back, "Aye I will. Oh, there was one more thing I meant to tell you. Danara and I we decided, that if our child is a boy like some midwives expect we… we decided that we're going to name him Dominik, after the man who without, he wouldn't be alive."
Dominik laughed a little and let out a genuine smile, "I… I'm honored truly, thank you, but what if the midwives are wrong and you have a girl," He said meaning it as a joke.
Mikel scratched his black beard for a moment, pondering his question, "Aye we… we haven't thought of that actually," He said, before meeting his gaze, "If you don't mind my asking what… what's her name, the name of the woman you love, the one you're going to save?"
He felt himself stiffen a small bit, but managed to find his voice, "Cirilla, her names Cirilla Fiona Elen Riannon. Ciri, that's what we call her though."
The miller nodded, not inquiring any further, which he appreciated, "Aye, that's truly a beautiful name. That'll be her name then, that's what we'll name them, if it's a boy Dominik, if it's a girl… Cirilla Fiona Symanski," He said with pride, and a smile.
He could feel the warmth well up in his heart, he almost felt tears in his eyes as he went in to shake the man's hand once more, "Thank you Mikel… and good luck, to you, your wife, and your child."
He man smiled and let go of his hand, "No, thank you Dominik of Cintra… for my life, and that of my family. Be sure to come back now after you've found your Cirilla, I know Danara and I would love too to meet her. Plus, you need to come claim your Law of Surprise. Goodbye… Dominik, and good luck."
He nodded to the man with a smile one last time, and turned to walk back to his village, to his wife. Dominik sighed, and looked down at the silver swallow pendant dangling behind his Witcher medallion, he gingerly grabbed it in his hands and sighed with a smile.
"You hear that? The two of us got friends to meet," He said turning back to Clop, he gently stroked the great horses snout, "Well Clop, let's get going. It's time to find Ciri, but first… lets go find Geralt of Rivia."
A/N: Chapter two is down, and we have our first reunion! I hope this answer's some of the questions you guys had in the first chapter. What do you guys think? Let me know in a review! We'll have lots more Yennefer and Dom next chapter, along with finally seeing Geralt!
Also, I wanna quickly point out I know in the Witcher 3 game, there is a village in Velen called Claywich, this village is NOT that village. I'll be honest I forgot that village existed in the game xD This Claywitch is just north of Novigrad and Oxenfurt, near the Redania and Temaria border. Just wanted to clarify.