The Witcher: Through the Worlds

by TheWitcherDom

This bards tale begins in the village of Claywitch. Where the Young Wolf, Dominik of Cintra, has accepted a contract from the local village elder. For years the young Witcher has traveled the continent, running from the ghosts of his failed past all while looking for his long lost love, Cirilla Fiona Ellen Riannon (Ciri x OC, rated M for language, violence, future sexual content)

92. The End VII (Child of the Elder Blood)

The Witcher: Through the Worlds

Chapter 92: The End VII (Child of The Elder Blood)

Narrator: Victory! The final battle of the forces of the continent against the Wild Hunt was thought over, after Dominik and his sister Bella slew Eredin-King of the Hunt- aboard his ship the Nagalfar. After Dominik and Bella killed the King, the forces of the Hunt were in immediate retreat and the day was seemingly won. However, Dominik and Bella, reunited with Geralt, Yennefer and the great dragons Borch and Kilgarrah, discovered the threat to their world was still ever present. Emhyr Var Emrys marches on the army of exhausted survivors, while the elven sage Avallac'h has brought the apocalypse itself to the continent. In order to sacrifice Ciri, the sage opened the portal to the White Frost, which is said to be what will bring about the destruction of all worlds. Dominik and Geralt raced with Bella and Yennefer to the tower to save her… but in the end Ciri entered the portal to face the moment of her destiny. Meanwhile, Avallac'h finally made his attempt on Dominik's life, thankfully however Bella, Geralt and Yennefer were there to save him. Bella- seeing the sage attempting to flee- gave chase, to finally bring the conflict to an end.

Bella had no idea why Avallac'h had only teleported down to the beach below the tower and not to another world, but she wasn't going to spend too much time wondering. She was still grappled with the sage as they fell into the snow, she tumbled and dropped her sword. The weight of the fall made her bones crack, but she heard Avallac'h yell out as well when they both rolled apart.

At least he's hurt too…. She thought, groaning as she felt her magic erratic around her, urging her to give it direction.

She didn't have time to think, to give it any direction, because over the wind Avallach's voice shouted.

"YOU ARE A FOOL GIRL! A FOOL LIKE THE REST TO THINK YOU CAN STAND AGAINST ME! I WILL HAVE WHAT IS MINE!"

Bella heard the spell and recognized it. She whirled up and across the beach from her the sage had fired a blast of ice. It ripped up the snowy beach and raced towards Bella, who cursed as she slammed both her hands into the ground with magic shooting up around her.

"PELIA SHELENALL!" Her magic exploded with light around her, and the snow from the beach responded to her commands. It shot upwards and formed a shield around her. The ice slammed into it, and Bella stumbled back, but after the spell had past, she was still alive.

For how long though…. She didn't know if she could stand toe to toe with Avallac'h, and even if she managed too somehow defeat him, what would happen when that Nilfgaardian army finally arrived? Or worse, what if one of their own soldiers hadn't heard news that she had turned against the Hunt and they attacked her as well? Out to her right, the icy plains, the shipwreck was abuzz. Bella could sense portals opening, and the Nagalfar sat in the bay, quiet for what Bella assumed was the first time in its existence. None of the riders knew how to pilot it, the remaining navigators would help them retreat.

They had won, but as she looked at the sage across from her, she had no idea what he'd do next. He was slowly losing control, Bella knew magic and power could corrupt, and it was happening in front of her now.

Avallac'h was radiating with power like a star. Magic churned violently around him, his own personal shield. His staff was alight with power at the tip while his sword was slick and glittering in the light. Bella looked like a meek novice next to the sage but was certainly in better condition. She could still see the wound that ran across his face. Dominik had nearly cut the skin off. Half the sage's cheek was hanging on by bits of skin, flapping in the wind while his right eye was nothing but a bloody socket.

Bella was still outmatched, and she knew it.

It doesn't matter… you need to do this. She couldn't make excuses; she couldn't let the sage escape. If he did, if Ciri somehow survived he'd be back for her, he'd be back for Dominik, and possibly even for Bella herself. No, she couldn't run, she couldn't dig her head in the sand and let someone else do it. She needed to protect her brother, Ciri, and all the people that were there now, even the Nilfgaardians, nobody deserved the fate that would await them if Avallac'h turned his fury on them. More importantly, he couldn't be allowed to get away with what he'd done.

Protect those who cannot protect themselves, her father used to tell her and Dominik. A knight protects those who've been forgotten, even those that they hate, so long as it's right.

Bella had wanted that, to be a knight. To travel to the south, further North, see the Korath Desert, the Palace of Beauclair, Lan Exeter, Zerrikania, she wanted to see them all, and protect people there. Her father had multiple female knights, her mother had been one of the best warriors in Cintra before she retired, Queen Calanthe always led her armies from the front. Bella had wanted to be like them, to help people, it had all come back now, her mind was so clear. She wanted to protect people, her purpose, her wish for life had come back.

She had been so innocent back then.

But how many innocents did I kill? How many helpless did I kill? Hundreds? Thousands? She thought, pulling her sword from her back. I am a monster, no matter what they say, I know what I've done they don't… I can't be that girl again. I can't be her if I want to beat him now.

No, she couldn't be herself if she wanted to deal with the sage now. Two people lived inside her, one controlled the light, her mind, while the other had been buried deep down, along with her abilities, her magic.

Bella herself had just been reborn, she was shy, timid, afraid of what was going to happen after the battle, that she would never outlive what she'd done. No, Bella couldn't beat Avallac'h.

But perhaps Baelen could.

She shifted her feet, her sword leveled out towards the sage, as the howling wind and distant sound of moving troops echoed in the background. Bella looked at the sage, feeling that seething rage, that inner darkness that was buried deep within herself. It slowly trickled up her stomach, into her chest, and as she breathed out, her magic turned to a deep, dark blue around her.

Channel your anger! Your hatred and fear focus it into your magic! Use it, and you will have more power at your fingertips then you could ever imagine. Caranthir had been many things, but one thing he'd done, was show Bella how to channel her rage, even if most of the time it had been directed at the Navigator himself.

He tried to kill Dominik, sacrificed Ciri… he could have told Dominik sooner, I could have been saved sooner. All the worlds he helped see fall… all he's done… it will never happen again.

Avallac'h saw the display she was putting on, saw the magic swirling into thick, churning mist around Bella, and the sage laughed, his voice amplified across the beach.

"BAHA! You think you can stand against me girl!? Even Eredin feared me!" He said, pointing his sword out towards her. "You are like your repugnant brother! CHILDREN! Children playing at games you stand no chance at winning! I will crush you beneath my boot as Eredin did for years! FIRST YOU! THEN YOUR BROTHER!"

Bella didn't say anything at first. She slowly pointed her swords tip out towards the Nagalfar. "Why don't you go ask Eredin how powerful I am? If you can scrape the bits of his brain off the deck of the Nagalfar that is."

The sage laughed at her again. "BAH! Eredin was weak! Only he would fall beneath the blade of pitiful humans. You are nothing girl! You were always nothing compared to your brother, compared to the ELDER BLOOD!"

"I'LL SHOW YOU NOTHING YOU SICK BASTARD!" Bella felt herself erupt, Baelen taking over her as she erupted with the blue light and dashed forward.

"AS I SAID! FIRST YOU!" The sage said, twirling his staff back up towards her. "AND THEN I WILL KILL YOUR ARROGANT BROHTER AS WELL! YOUR LINE ENDS TODAY!"

"WE'LL SEE!"

Bella leapt as she closed the distance to the sage, spinning and coming down to cleave him in half. Her body was incased with the magic as usual, her arms and legs moving at mutant speeds. She thought that the sage would simply stay there for a moment, but before her blade could cut him through Avallac'h vanished and Bella's sword cut down into the mound of snow on the beach.

"I THOUGHT YOU WOULD BE BETTER THAN THIS!" Avallac'h had appeared behind her, a distance away with his magic swirling around him. "ANGREL SAVERE CALITAD!"

A wall of pour magic shot from the sage's hands. It sped towards Bella and she cursed, slinging her sword back in the sheath on her back and shooting her hands back up as well.

"COEL ANGARAL TORA SHUL!"

Fire erupted from her fingertips. It slammed forward into the ice and crashed into it with a giant explosion. Smoke shot upwards but Bella kept the spell active. Fire burst from her hands, and Avallac'h pressed his magic at her, the streams of ice and fire replicants of what was happening in the sky earlier with Borch and Kilgarrah.

Bella could feel the prickling heat traveling up her arms. Fire magic was hard, and if she used it too much, she'd burn herself out. However, Avallac'h gave her no choice, she cursed and turned her hand into a fist, and dove to the side, a stream of ice shooting out behind her. She rolled up to her knees, just as Avallac'h ended his spell and turned on her again.

"DOMA YOL TOR SHUL!" She shouted the spell and fire sprang from her fists, but also erupted from the sky above her. Portals opened and stones awash with fire came down on Avallac'h like a storm. The tempest, the rage and anger inside Bella funneled out into her hands, into every single inch of fire that came from her. It fueled her, and she could feel the visceral, primal anger that she had always felt fighting as Baelen back to her now.

She wanted to kill. She wanted to rip Avallac'h limb from limb and bury him beneath a mountain of flaming boulders. It was no less then he deserved, he tried to kill her brother, may very well have killed Ciri, and would be back to murder them again.

He was a monster, and while she was one herself, she'd rid the world of it.

The sage looked up at the flaming tempest coming down for him and simply looked annoyed.

"PITIFUL!" The sage shouted out, raising his staff to the falling stones. "TEREAL CRYNVAEL ANAY!"

A stream of magic shot up from his staff. It slammed into one of the flaming boulders before coming down to form a shield around the sage, before all the boulders Bella had brought down crashed to the beach around them.

Bella was too stunned at how effortlessly the sage deflected her attack, to realize what she was doing next. He shouted out again and his shield dropped out around him. The magic that made it up was sucked back into the sage's staff, and he effortlessly spun tossing it back towards Bella like a bolt fired from a ballista.

Her eyes widened and she yelled again as she shot up her own shield. It wasn't nearly as big as Avallach's and after the spell slammed into it, Bella got sent falling backwards. She didn't take the full force of the attack, but it was enough to ignite a stabbing pain in her chest.

But the pain only made her angrier, and the angrier she got, the more violently her magic churned.

She was Baelen, and she was foolish to ever think anything else. She looked at Avallach's smug grin and realized how much she wanted to see him bleed. The thought of it consumed her, washed over her, drove her and as she rose to her feet, she looked to her right and saw the mountain that Avallach was standing near.

"HELIO CRYNTED RUEL!" She reached her hand out and her magic shot toward the mountain. It slammed into a chunk of it the sound erupting through the island, and the ensuing crackling caused more boulders and snow to avalanche down towards the beach.

She closed her fists and chunks of rock from the mountainside itself ripped free and spinning she slammed the torrent of stones back down towards the sage. Avallac'h himself seemed stunned at first, one stone nearly smashing into him before he flicked his staff upwards and raised another shield. However, this time Bella didn't relent. She was a storm, a storm of magic, hatred and anger. Anger that was directed at the sage before her.

This was who she was. She was Baelen. Why shouldn't she embrace it? She wouldn't ever be able to gain anything by being Bella. Who would love her? Her brother? No, he didn't know the truth of the monster she'd become. How could someone else stomach the things she'd done, the monster she'd turned into, if she couldn't herself? Did she want to be a meek? Begging the people around her to forgive her for the rest of her life when she knew that it would never happen?

Or did she want power like this?

Baelen, Bella. It would always be two sides of the same coin, no matter how much she wished it wouldn't… so why not embrace it?

One stone slammed through Avallach's shield, breaking it and the sage leapt out of the way of the last one that came shooting towards him. It smacked into ground leaving a crater and Belal cursed when she realized there was more rocks left. She looked over towards the mountain and ripped chunks of it out with her magic again.

Avallac'h spun and shouted. "YOUR PETTY TRICKS ARE FUTILE GIRL!"

The stone came toward Avallac'h who- dropping both his staff and sword-shot his hands upwards. All the storm of stones she had brought down were caught up in Avallach's magic. The sage spun and shot them out towards Bella. The chunks of the mountain came shooting towards her, and Bella this time was prepared. Feeling the power of her anger, the power of Baelen inside her, she raised another magic shield, before firing another blast of magic towards the sage.

And for what felt like hours Bella did just that. She shot spells, she deflected them, going toe to toe with the sage as they threw fire, ice and pieces of the earth at one another. Power surged through her, Baelen was in control, and Bella could feel that personality taking control. She wanted to murder the sage, she was to kill him and bury him twenty feet down in the earth. This was power, what Eredin had always told her she would one day achieve. He had created the weapon, and now as that weapon-Bella-was going to use it to slaughter Avallac'h and the rest of the Aen Elle for what they did to her.

However, despite the power she felt herself throwing forward Avallac'h met each of it with ease. She picked up a mound of snow, revealing the gravely ground of the beach beneath them and spinning to get momentum, launched the pile towards the glowing sage.

Avallac'h spun with his staff alight. The snow that was about to slam into him stopped mid-air and as the sage spun it shot back towards Bella.

She yelled as it slammed into her and knocked her into the ground. She was buried and suffocating and struggled to move. The snow had bits of rock, dirt and stone, one almost slammed into her head.

"YOU ARE A FOOL GIRL!" She heard the sage yell from outside the snow. "THIS PATHETIC DISPLAY WILL NOT SAVE YOU, OR YOUR BROTHER!"

Bella could feel her magic warming her blood, and growling she felt her eyes glow with a new brightness. She held both hands to the snow, and soon bursts of fire erupted from her hands and the snow soon became soft enough for her to burst out of. Coughing she struggled and pulled herself from the mound, tumbling back down to the beach. Her body ached as the dark blue swirls of magic had gone to work trying to rejuvenate her. She groaned and crawled to her feet, her boots and greaves nearly charred but she soon got to her knees to see out across the graveyard of ships.

The army was returning to the shore, she could hear them see them and wash of relief ran over her.

If I can hold him off… just hold him off until-.

"WHY WON'T YOU DIE GIRL!"

Bella spun back around and rolled out of the way as Avallac'h had leapt and struck down towards her with his sword. It struck the stone beneath her, and Bella was quickly able to get back to her feet. She saw the sage up-close again, half his face still flapping in the violent wind, but despite the injury he cackled as he advanced on Bella again.

She moved and dodged out of the way of both the sage's staff and sword. He moved and spun with such precision, the magic spurring him on to move faster.

But Bella's rage drove her on. She nearly bit through her lip as she saw the magic around her. It had turned deep, deep blue, almost black as with every swing of the sage's sword and staff, she could see the things they had done. She could see the worlds the Aen Elle had destroyed, the worlds they burned to the ground, the hundreds of thousands of people they slaughtered.

She had been there with them. They created her, turned her into what she was now. Even if she could have stopped herself, she'd never forget the things she saw. It wouldn't make things right by killing them all, but it would give her purpose. That was what she was now, she was Baelen, a tool, a weapon, a killer. The sooner she accepted that the better.

"I had what was mine stolen from me!" Avallac'h yelled, swinging his staff towards her. The flap of skin on his cheek had almost blown completely off his head. "I WILL HAVE RETRIBUTION!"

Bella ducked under the next sword strike and rolled away. She looked over and saw where she had dropped Coram. Remembering what Dominik had done in the fights earlier, she reached out her hands and her magic surged forward. It wrapped itself around the sword, and it flew back to her hand.

She caught it and spun, catching Avallach's blade on hers just before it could cleave her in half. The sage's eyes widened at first, before they focused and tried to press down. Bella smirked, close range… this is where I'll get him.

She sprang to her feet, pushing Avallach's blade away and spinning to strike at the sages back. He disappeared in a puff of frost before she could hit him, and when he struck at her from behind Bella saw it coming. She spun back around and parried, locking blades with the sage again.

"She was never yours," Bella hissed, pressing against the sage's blade, gritting her teeth and trying to bring it into the sage's chest. "You were owed nothing! I'm going to kill you, and then every single one of you I can get my hands on!"

Avallac'h laughed again, disengaging and firing his hand out with magic before Bella before she could move. She got sent flying backwards onto her back into the snow again. Cursing she leapt back to her feet and leveled her sword.

The sage twirled his blade, pointing it at her. "You think you can stand up against us girl? You're nothing compared to the power I wield! Even your brother would have been a more worthy foe then you, but it matters not! You'll both die here, and finally I will have what should have been mine!"

"You sound like a whining child," Bella said, letting the magic settle around her, its color still a dark blue, almost black. "It's no wonder that she left you, if I had to deal with your incessant bitching, I'd do the same."

Her words had the desire affect. Avallac'h growled and shook his head. "Come then girl! Face the slow, painful death your ancestor deserved!"

He lunged forward, sword and staff in hand and came down on Bella with new vigor. Her power surging through her limbs she was able to parry and engage. She could feel the storm erupting, it was devastating, crushing and powerful within her as she moved to defend the sage's attacks and launch her own. Her sword didn't cut through Avallach's staff, as he kept it alight with magic as well as his blade, meeting Bella's sword that was coaxed in the dark blue haze.

The sage was good, shockingly good. Bella had no idea how much it had to do with the magic spurring him on, but she struggled to match the speed and precisions of his attacks. With each attack she had parried, she felt the storm grow larger, larger, larger until the magic around her was nearly black. Why couldn't she break through?

Two weapons against one, simple math. She grinded her teeth and lashed out with new vigor. She struck and knocked Avallach's staff out of the way and tried to roll under his arm to his back, but before she could he took his sword and struck down near her legs. It swept Bella off her feet and onto her back. She looked up just as the sage's blade was coming down for her. Rolling to the side she came up to her knees and cut upwards. Her blade sliced into Avallach's hand, and the sage cried out, dropping his blade and for a moment Bella thought she made progress. Before she could celebrate, or attack again, the sages staff struck down and into her chest.

Discarding her armor turned out to be an even bigger mistake then she thought. Her chest felt like it was imploding in on itself. Crying out the whole time she flew back, slamming into a dead fallen tree. With a sickening crunch she could feel her back explode as well, and if not for the magic healing her, going to work to mend her bones she would have been dead.

Avallac'h wasn't finished, with a yell he leapt towards her again, bringing his sword down and it was all Bella could do to teleport away in a puff of frost before the sage's staff slammed into the tree.

"YOU WERE FOOLISH GIRL!" She could hear the sage yelling as she stumbled on her feet.

Her eyes shot up just to see the staff coming at her again. Limply she brought Coram up to block, but she was knocked off balance by the attacks force. Her body was imploding in on itself, her breathing was becoming stalled, her chest feeling like a giant stake was sticking out of it. Everything came back to her, the power she had once felt was slowly fading away, and as the sage advanced on her again, she was barely able to raise her blade.

"YOU HAD NO HOPE FROM THE START!" He yelled, advancing and swinging his staff towards her, attacking from two directions at once. "YOU ARE NOTHING WITHOUT EREDIN TO CODDLE YOU GIRL AND THAT IS HOW YOU WILL ALWAYS REMAIN!"

Bella leaned back, the sages staff passed over her nose and she lunged forward, trying to cut her sword across the sages' side. Avallac'h was ready, he spun back around and caught her sword hand with his. He squeezed her wrist and Bella could feel bones crack, she screamed and looked up to see the sage, half of his face bloody and destroyed grin down at her. It sent shivers down Bella's spine. Panic built up in her and before she could do anything about it, magic burst from Avallach's eyes, and the sage threw her aside like ragdoll.

Her bones crunching under her weight again, she yelled as she landed near the water, her sword fell from her hands and it felt like she was dead weight. She still could see the magic around her, it had turned back to a light, white-blue.

Is it true? Am… am I nothing, no matter who I am? Baelen, Commander of the Wild Hunt, or Bella of Cintra… what if either way, she was weak? Avallac'h had been toying with her, even when the storm had erupted inside of her, she had never stood a chance. Eredin's brains lay sprayed across the deck of the Nagalfar… had she really been nothing without him? Even with Eivor and Anora on this very island, what had she been? What was her purpose now? She was a monster, a murderer, if she couldn't do this… what could she possibly do?

Get up Baelen… use your anger, your power, and crush all those who oppose you. Kill… it's what you were meant to do. The voice in her head wasn't her own.

I'm part of you now… and I always will be. Eredin's words were still lingered in the back of her mind… would she ever be rid of them? Or was this… truly who she'd always be.

It doesn't matter! You need to get up, you need to! Come on Bella fucking-.

"GAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Her entire body, her very cells felt like they had burst into flames. She screamed from the back of her throat and spun back around to writhe in the dirt near the water. She looked up towards the bay and tried to crawl into the water, her skin prickling like every single piece of skin had been set aflame. It ran through her body, and she twisted, rolled, did everything she could to try and make the fire go out, but as she was, she felt her body go stiff. She screamed, it echoed throughout the bay, throughout the entire island, as she couldn't move. Her body was sprawled out over the beach, her arms and legs stuck out as each part of her body continued to erupt.

It got worse and worse, the feeling on her skin hotter and hotter. She saw no flames, nothing except the glow of bright magic around her, not her own magic. Her own was nowhere to be seen, it was as if the magic that held her in place had snuffed it out, killed it, and now Bella was stuck to suffer, no magic, nothing to aid her. All she could do was lay there on the ground, all she could do was suffer the torture, the feeling that her insides were about to explode. She screamed, but nobody came, she begged out for help, but nobody heard her. Nothing happened. Her brother was unconscious, Geralt and Yennefer had no idea where she had gone… nobody was coming, Bella was left to suffer.

Just like she had for most of her life.

"I expected better from Eredin and Caranthir's pupil," Avallach's voice hit her ears through her screams. Her eyes shot open, the burning still spreading throughout her body. She saw Avallach walk over to her side, his hand spewing the magic that had surrounded and was slowly destroying Bella now, Bella almost laughed through the screams.

Now she knew where Caranthir had learned this method of torture.

Bella looked up at the sage, his flap of skin from his cheek hanging limply from the side, his old eyeball gone, half his face covered in blood. Only one pale, demonic eye looked down at her. His face twisted, and the creature above her smiled, squeezing his fist tighter together, and Bella felt her skin erupt again, a punishment she had endured so many times over the last two years.

"I will never understand what Eredin saw in you girl…. His arrogance knew no bounds," He said, squeezing tighter, Bella's screams seeming to spur him on. "To train one with your blood, to allow you into our ranks. Disgusting."

He squeezed harder, and Belal felt herself go limp as she screamed. She didn't even have the power to tighten her muscles, to make a fist, to even scream after a while. All she could do was squeeze her eyes shut as she lay sprawled, not wanting to give the sage the satisfaction of seeing her tears.

"I am finished with coddling you humans. You are nothing but weak, inferior beings. You, your incorrigible brother, Zireael. We should have wiped you out the moment what was mine was stolen from me," The sage said, reveling in the magic around him. He shook his head, a look of disgust in his one good eye. "Your efforts today prove that…. Now… you will suffer, you will scream, until your annoying brother hears you… and comes to save you. I will kill him, and I will kill you… it will be quicker if you cooperate… Baelen."

Bella's skin was in flames, not real flames but to stop another scream she bit her tongue. No! Don't let him see you like this… if you die… you do it as you.

A single gust of cold air brushed across her face, and biting her tongue, pushing through the pain, she opened her eyes.

"Don't. CALL ME THAT!" Bella screamed and felt a surge of energy wash over her. For a moment, her limbs weren't on fire, and she could see her own magic bubbling back up around her.

Avallac'h squeezed and growled. "YOU ARE NOTHING GIRL! YOU ARE-."

Bella yelled and she broke through the sage's spell. Her left hand shot forward and a burst of magic shot towards Avallac'h. Shocked that Bella had broken control, he didn't have time to react and the burst slammed into him. It sent the sage shooting backwards, where he fell into the shallows of the bay and Bella fell on her back to the ground with a thud, and right away she groaned as the last of her magic had been spent.

How long had she been fighting? The sun was down, the only light that of the fires left behind by the Nilfgaardians, and the fire out in the bay. The moon was full, and casted a glow out over the sea, and it hurt Bella's eyes as she looked up. She tried to move, but each time she did, she felt one of the dozens of cuts or wounds she had received that day finally flare up. Her magic only healed so much. She was bleeding, her skin still tingled, and gods did her head hurt.

With more difficulty than she'd ever experienced, she got up to her hands and knees.

And she heard the blade a fraction too late.

"WHY WON'T YOU DIE GIRL!?" The sword in Avallach's hand whistled as it swept through the night air. Bella looked up and saw it, she leaned back, but not before it dug into her shoulder and cut down to her chest.

She screamed, pain, and hot blood shot from her shoulder and trickled down her chest as she fell. The wound was deep, and again her body felt like it was on fire. She pressed her hand over it and rolled on the ground again, but before she could do anything else, she was kicked. The sages boot slammed into her side, and all the air in Bella expelled from her. The sages magic illuminated his face, the bloody mess of one eye was glaring down at her, fury built up inside it as he kicked again.

"You are as stubborn as your ancestor! AS REPUGNANT AS YOUR BROTHER!" Avallac'h yelled, before he shot his hand down and sized Bella by the throat. With his magic he lifted her with ease, and held her up off the ground, squeezing his callused hands around her throat.

Bella tried to kick at him, but her legs were limp, no magic to help her, no energy left, she was bleeding, she was tired, and she felt beaten.

No… humiliated. She tried to claw at the sage's face, then his hand around her throat as he squeezed but to no avail. She kept on trying to pull away his hand, but with each effort Avallac'h squeezed harder. Bella looked and saw the annoyed, aggravated, enraged look on her face.

"I will not wait for him… I will kill you here, as Eredin should have done," He said, shaking his head, spitting down towards the ground. "You're not fit to have received the training given to you. Zireael will die, you will die, your brother will die… and I will see it so."

Black spots danced in Bella's vision. She tried to suck in more breath, but she couldn't. She pulled, trying again to yank his hand away, do something, but it was useless. Her life was slowly being taken from her, sucked from her, and all she could do was hand there limply.

Maybe this is for the best… after everything… maybe this is what I deserve.

She just wished she could have told her brother a few more things… like that she loved him, and how thankful she was he never gave up on her.

Avallac'h squeezed again, shaking his head. "It is as I said… today, your despicable line ends…. As it deserves-."

"ARGHHHH COME HERE YA UGLY BASTARD!"

A blur shot from Avallach's right, from the direction of the bay. Something massive slammed into the sage. He yelled as Bella heard armor clunking, it smashed into Avallac'h and the sage dropped her to ground.

She gasped for air as she hit the ground, falling to all fours before rolling to her back. Pain shot through every inch of her body; she felt the pain from her shoulder come back. It stung and she yelled, rolling to the ground as she grabbed it, it also finally gave her a view of who had come to save her. Footsteps started echoing in her ears, multiple voices, but one rang over them as Bella located Avallac'h-still swirling with magic- being slammed into the ground by the largest man Bella had ever seen, one she recognized.

"OHOHO! I'VE BEEN WAITING WEEKS TO DO THAT!" Faram of Undvik yelled, throwing Avallac'h like he was a ragdoll across the beach. "THAT'S FOR BEING AN ARROGANT PRICK, AND FOR BEING SO GOD DAMN ANNOYING THE LAST FEW WEEKS!"

Faram hadn't even drew his sword. The massive witcher had an excited look on his face. After a moment he pulled steel from his back and twirled as he stalked towards the sage.

"Dom and Ciri told me about the sick things you been doing in your lab!" He said, firing his hand forward. Avallac'h growled and yelled out again as Aard slammed into him and knocked him back again. Faram didn't stop stalking towards him. "You're a sick, twisted little fucker aren't ya? Can't handle rejection, so you spend hundreds of years stalking her children, you think that's romantic you sick fuck? It's not! And your experiment on my friends ends today!"

"YOU KNOW NOTHING YOU LUMBEIRNG OAF!" The sage screamed, his magic slightly dimmer, but still radiating as he shot to his feet. "I AM MORE POWERFUL THAN YOU COULD EVER HOPE-."

A blast of fire shot from the left. Avallac'h barely had time to raise a shield, before another blur, this time a figure in glowing gold and green armor cut through the night. Bella recognized George of Toussaint, the griffin witcher slashed his steel towards the sage. Avallac'h raised his staff to block, but George spun off the parry and fired his hand forward. Aard shot from the griffin witcher, and it knocked the sage's staff away.

"SURROUND HIM! MOVE NOW!" George yelled out to the night, and the dozens of shuffling feet Bella heard got closer.

Avallac'h spun and soon found himself being surrounded by dozens of men and women clad in plate. George kept his gaze trained on the sage, but Faram turned and saw Bella writhing in pain on the ground. His eyes widened and he turned away from Bella, cupping his hands to his mouth.

"AYE! GOLDILOCKS WE FOUND HER!" He yelled before turning back to Avallac'h with George. Bella could make out the men and women forming a ring around Avallac'h. Some had spears or swords, others had bows and crossbows aimed, as the sage spun around rapidly, his magic dimming as he growled and waved his blade in an arc.

Bella's head pounded, her body ached, and she could barely think. Found… found her? Were… were they looking for me? Why… why would they-.

"ANTON! It is her!" A voice rang much closer to Bella, and before she knew it she felt herself being turned on her back, her head in a lap. "Thank the gods you're alright, I heard you screaming, we saw the magic and rushed back here."

A flush of blonde curls cascaded down Freya's shoulders towards Bella's chest. She held Bella steady, pressing her hand down onto her shoulder, her icy blue eyes trained on the wound.

Bella's head was a blur, she could barely think, barely see. Her magic was slowly swirling around her, but it was barely visible, it was working to try and heal her, but moving at such a flow rate.

I'm dead….

"I… I'm going… I'm going to die…" She croaked out, the tears, tears that had been building up, but she had been pushing back finally, slowly, starting to fall down her cheeks.

Freya turned her eyes back down at her. Her one hand stayed planted on Bella's wound, the other was gently placed on her forehead, before it fixed Bella's frazzled hair back behind her.

She shook her head, her eyes not leaving Bella's. "I'm not going to let you die. You're going to be fine I'll make sure of it. Ask your brother how many times I've sewed him back together, this is nothing. Nobody else is dying today, I'll fix you I promise."

"Be… because I'm… I'm Dom's sister…" Bella said, croaking the words out, the tears falling onto her neck and Freya's hand. She shook her head with pain. "I… I'm a monster."

"You are not a monster," Freya said, pulling a potion off her bandolier with one hand, applying more pressure with the other. Her eyes were pretty, very pretty, pale, icy blue, and when they looked at Bella… she almost felt safe. "And I'm doing this because you are a good person. One who's sick and needs to be healed. That's what I was put on this world to do, to heal people. ANTON! SOMEBODY GET ME FIRE! GET ME A FLAME!"

Her words washed over Bella, and the cold, darkness that had been circulating around in her chest, was almost beginning to lift. Had she really meant that?

She… certainly doesn't seem like one to exaggerate. Everything hurt, but somehow, Bella found herself believing Freya as she sat above her. The blonde cursed when nobody responded to her. She looked down tilted Bella's head back, pouring the potion down her throat, and right away she felt a cool, warm feeling wash over her chest. She blinked, and her vision returned, just as Freya cursed again, pressing on Bella's shoulder wound.

"DAMMIT! FARAM, SOMEBODY GET ME A DAMN FLAME!"

"A LITTLE BUSY GOLDILOCKS!" The Bear Witcher yelled back.

Bella looked over as multiple men and women were containing Avallac'h, who had tried to fight back. However, even the sage wasn't a match for that many soldiers, along with two witchers. He went to strike down a knight, but Faram knocked his sword away and punched across his jaw. Avallac'h stumbled with his staff, and George advanced with two more soldier at his side. George engaged in an intense melee with the sage, who was quickly attacked and cut from both sides by the soldiers, before yelling and blasting them back with a force of magic.

George, however, was able to get a Quen shield up. After the magic slammed into it and exploded back, the Griffin Witcher lunged forward. Avallac'h dodged and leapt to the side but was met by another blade. The sage yelled as the broadsword cut deep into Avallach's arm before an armored fist slammed into his bleeding cheek.

"THAT IS FOR LAYING YOUR FILTHY HANDS ON ALL THREE OF THEM!" Bella recognized the voice and the Cintran coat of arms down his armor.

Dominik had told her Anton was alive but could scarcely believe it even after seeing the man on the battlefield. He was wrinkled and old, but still stood tall and strong over the sage, who cursed as he rose to his feet, waving his staff in an arc at the advancing soldiers.

Bella watched from Freya's lap, as the blonde momentarily let go of her shoulder, cutting a piece of her tunic off with a knife. She went to work pressing the fabric down on Bella's wound. She winced at the pain but watched as Avallac'h growled and shook his head.

"You… you may have won this day… but I promise," The sage said, spitting blood to the ground as he shook his head, "this will not be the last any of you pathetic creatures will see of me…."

"FIRE NOW!" Anton yelled, lunging forward as magic erupted from the sage's feet.

Arrows and crossbow bolts were loosed, but they all found the dirt of the beach, as a ring of magic exploded around where Avallac'h had been standing. A large puff of frosty wind was left where the sage had been standing and save for the groaning of wounded men being carried to shore, the beach was completely silent.

Bella knew that was going to happen. Eredin stood till the end, unable to accept the fact he had been defeated. His arrogance had gotten him killed. Avallac'h was arrogant as well, but not to the degree Eredin was, he understood the value of a strategic retreat.

Yes… it was well and truly over now. Eredin, Caranthir, Imlerith… all dead. Avallac'h had escaped, but Bella knew it would be some time before he made any plans.

They had done it… they had done what Bella thought was impossible.

But she still could feel herself slowly dying. She broke the silence with a groan, as the stabbing pain from her shoulder had traveled down her chest, throughout her body, her magic and the effects of Freya's potion trying to keep her stable. They were working somewhat, but Bella could feel her breathing getting shallower, quicker, each breath like a knife pricking at her heart.

"FAN OUT! I want a perimeter warn me for any signs of that Black Army!" Anton's voice yelled, and it was followed by many 'yes sirs' before she heard footsteps rushing out around them.

"YOU HEARD THE MAN!" Faram's voice yelled next. "Barnabas! Light the signal, they'll bring the ship around and we can get off this fucking rock!"

"AYE CAPTAIN! WHAT A BATTLE IT WAS!" An old excitable voice yelled.

Bella tried to look around, figure out where everyone was going, but she felt a warm, soothing hand on her cheek.

Freya gently turned her head to look up at her. "Bella listen, you need to focus on me okay? You can't pass out, not yet! Focus on me, focus on the sound of my voice!"

Bella wanted to close her eyes, to keep them shut. She was tired, exhausted, depleted. However, Freya spoke with such vigor, such assuredness that Bella listened. She looked up at Freya, who was now picking up large chunks of snow, and placing them over Bella's wounds. She placed some over the fabric she put over Bella's shoulder. It was freezing, but compared to the seething heat, the stabbing unbearable heat that shot through his arm it was soothing. She let out a relaxed breath, sinking into Freya's lap.

The blonde smiled at her. "I made sure the snow was clean. It's not bad at all, you'll be better in no time. Dom will tell you eventually. When I first met him, his shoulder was damn near split in half and I still helped him."

"You… you're good…" Bella croaked out, not looking away from Freya like the blonde instructed. "Really… really good… and nice."

She was delirious, she could feel it, but she found looking and talking to Freya did help. Especially when she saw how flustered the blonde got. Her face went red, as she laughed nervously and nodded.

"I… I guess I am," She said, quickly looking back up away from her. A look of relief washed over her face as she nodded. "Anton!"

"Gods… gods it's true, he wasn't lying," The older voice was followed by the clunking of armor.

She looked to her left, and a pair of old, wise grey eyes looked back down at her. Her memories coming back were still a bit hazy, but she knew that Anton didn't look much different from when she knew him in Cintra. The old man seemed on the verge of tears as he placed his helmet next to his sword on the beach.

He seemed afraid to touch her, but soon settled for holding and squeezing Bella's hand.

"I… I am so… so sorry I didn't find you," He said, a tear finally coming down his old, wrinkly face. He squeezed her hand harder and didn't look away from her. "I won't let you all down again… not like last time."

"Anton, we need to let her rest," Freya said, before looking back down at Bella. "But… first Bella… we need to know. Do you know where Dominik, Ciri, Geralt and Yennefer are?"

Bella's head pounded, and she could feel herself drifting. "T…tower…. Dom… un… unconscious…. Ciri… g…gone… portal…"

She blinked more, and couldn't see the reaction from them both, but could hear Anton yell.

"FARAM! GEORGE! They're at the tower! One of you head over and make sure they're okay, bring some of my men with you!"

"I will go! I shall return soon, you three with me!" She heard the accented voice of George of Toussaint, but that was when she closed her eyes.

Blackness all around, a slowly fading heartbeat in her ears.

"NO! BELLA!" Freya shook her, and Bella's eyes shot open to see the blonde crying. She shook her head and her tears fell onto Bella's face. "Don't close your eyes! Don't! I won't lose anyone else you hear me!? DAMMIT I NEED FIRE-."

"FREYA!" A new voice hit Bella's ears, one she didn't recognize, but above her, Freya did.

The blonde didn't move, but she smiled as Anton let go of her hand and someone else replaced her.

"Triss! Thank the gods you're here, she needs help! Magic help!" Freya said, shaking her head. "Where are the other sorceresses!?"

The new person, a beautiful, slender woman in a yellow and green top shook her head. She had pale, forest green eyes, and fiery red hair…. Triss Merigold. She recognized the sorceress now from the visions and dreams of her brother she used to have. The sorceress had helped raise him; Bella hoped it meant the woman wouldn't want her dead.

They… they should all want me dead but… but they don't… all this because I'm Dominik's sister?

Triss scoffed. "All of them teleported back to Novigrad then who knows where."

"Can't say I'm surprised…" Freya said, a hint of disgust in her voice.

Triss nodded. "Neither am I…" she looked down at Bella, her eyes soft, "so you're Bella… my names Triss, a friend of your brothers…. Gods, she looked just like him."

Before Freya responded, Triss held her hand out over Bella, saying words in Elder Speech. Magic spurted from the sorceress's hand, and it enveloped around Bella a cooling feeling reaching over her. More importantly, it seemed to revigorated her own magic. It returned and nudged at Bella like a pet wanting attention. Bella obliged, she couldn't move much still, but set it to work trying to mend her wounds.

Freya breathed a sigh of relief looking up to Triss. "She does… but Triss…. Geralt, Yen, Dominik and… and Ciri went up to the tower. She… she said Ciri's gone."

Triss kept the spell over Bella but looked up, her eyes widened. "And Dominik!?"

"Unconscious…" Freya said. "Geralt and Yen are with him, we're waiting for him to get back before we leave."

Bella wanted to say something. She could see the distress in their eyes. The truth was, they didn't know if Ciri would come back. The chance was slim… very slim, but there was one. And if there was one, Dominik would wait at that portal until she came back.

But she could barely form words, and before she could, Anton came back up to them, with Faram at his side.

The Bear Witcher knelt and smiled at her. "AHA! You gave him quite the walloping before we got here didn't you lassie! Oh, and don't get me STARTED on Eredin! Could barely recognize the fuckers body!"

Bella's body tingled for a moment, the magic turning darker, before she realized, she was too tired to even remember her fight with Eredin. Triss's eyes went wide as she casted the spell over Bella, looking up at Faram and Anton.

"They… they did it? He's really dead then?" She said, looking out over the graveyard of ships.

Anton nodded, a prideful look on his face as he held his helmet under his arm. "She and Dominik boarded the ship yes. We found Eredin's corpse, Faram tossed it over the side, and after that, they were on the run."

"The mighty King of the Wild Hunt!" Faram laughed, sliding his sword to his back. "Dead, headless at the bottom of our fucking ocean! Poetic justice it is!"

"Can't say I disagree," Freya said. Bella even managed a small smile, as the blonde's one hand was on her chest, the other holding the back of her head in place. She looked and smiled down at her. "You're a hero Bella."

A hero. If only they knew. That was one thing she'd never be.

But still, she couldn't help but smile with them.

Anton nodded and knelt next to her. "That she is. Now, we should get moving. Faram how soon before your ship-."

"SIR! SIR ANTON! BLACK ONES! BLACK ONES COMING OVER THE HILL!" The voice carried over the wind and it sent the remaining knights into a frenzy.

Faram turned and pulled steel from his back, waving it up around him. "FORM UP! NOW! WE ONLY NEED TO HOLD THEM FOR BIT!"

Anton cursed and looked down at Bella, then to Freya and Triss. "Can you move her!?"

"We should be able to," Freya said, looking up to Triss. "Can you keep the spell active while we carry her and…."

Her voice, and Triss's response were all tuned out. As all Bella could hear, was the echoing of armored footsteps, the pounding of her brain banging against her skull. Above them, the clouds were rolling over the moon, and she could only see Freya and Triss's face by firelight, which side the flames were coming from, she had no idea. Freya said something that was muffled, but when her and Triss lifted Bella up to her feet, threading her arms over their shoulder to support her, all the noise came back.

She heard men yelling out orders, she couldn't make an accurate count obviously, but she guessed only about 45-50 men and women remained, and all of them formed up into ranks with their weapons pointed up towards the coming hill. Faram ran up and down the line, moving and shoving them into position, along with rag-tag sailor looking types, who all were seemingly giddy at the thought of fighting more. Her mind was still abuzz, as Freya said something to her, but it was lost on the wind, she and Triss pulled Bella behind the line, and Bella finally saw up the hill.

Black banners, a golden sun, fire, corpses around them.

Her worst nightmare. It was all happening again. She could see dozens upon dozens, possibly hundreds of soldiers as Kilgarrah and Broch had told them earlier, marching down the hill, finally stopping and in perfect motion, Bella saw weapons lowered.

"Make your choice you southern pricks! What's it going to be!?" Faram yelled, as Bella looked and saw Faram in front of a small cluster of men. Freya and Triss had set her down on an old fallen tree, and it gave Bella the perfect view.

Faram stood in front of a beleaguered looking troop of Nilfgaardian soldiers. Bella counted at least fifteen, all with the marks of battle on them.

The men that were unfrozen… the ones the Nilfgaardians on the shore left behind. She remembered all of them unfreezing after Caranthir had been killed, and they hadn't run, hadn't retreated, they stayed and fought.

And that's what they did then. A few of them nodded and fell into line with the rest of Anton's knights, all dressed in plate or leather, bearing the Cintran coat of arms somewhere on their person.

Anton himself nodded, walking along the line with Faram, his broadsword up. "DON'T LET THEM RATTLE YOU! YOU ALL STOOD AGAINST GODS HERE TODAY AND WON! WON WHILE THAT COWARD OF AN EMPEROR RAN! EACH OF YOU IS WORTH A HUNDRED OF THOSE MEN!"

"Commander!" A young woman shouted; a bow pointed up the hill. "Two riders! White flag in hand, should I shoot!?"

"Hold! Keep arrows nocked, fire on my command!" Anton said, looking to Faram and waving forward. "Faram, with me!"

Bella's body was there, but her spirit felt like it was slowly leaving. She was so, so tired, and now… would she have to fight again? She'd waited years to kill Nilfgaardians. She could even remember before the battle, her rage at seeing the Black Fleet, that was the one thing she didn't regret in her entire time as Baelen, destroying that fleet, that symbol of the Emperor's power.

She slumped, her eyes nearly closing again, but Freya caught her, and held onto her. The blonde whispered some things to her, probably some story. Triss on her other side casted a spell still, and along with her own magic it worked to mend her wounds, but it would take some time before it fixed her fatigue.

Bella wanted to listen to what Freya was saying, but she couldn't hear her whispering as she was too fixated on watching Faram and Anton. The witcher and the old knight stepped in front of their lines, which looked the size of an insect, compared to the mass of soldiers and riders in black and gold plate above the hill.

Two men approached, both on horses, one tall, a helmet that obviously indicated he was in command, and another holding a white flag.

Freya squeezed onto her harder, and Bella felt a surge of warmth run up her arm, up her chest. She looked and watched as from atop his armored horse, the commander of the black ones sneered at the soldiers gathered in the Cintran colors, before his eyes fell to the small cluster of Nilfgaardians who still stood with them.

"Traitors…" He said, his accent a thick Nilfgaardian one. "Do you know the price for desertion? For treason? You will be hung for your treachery; you've betrayed your Emperor."

One of the men, a lanky man holding a sword stepped up, spitting forward at the man. "It is the Emperor who is the who betrayed us! He fled, like the rest of you fled, saving yourselves while we fought the enemy! He fled like a coward!"

A large cheer of agreement went up from behind him, but it was slowly being tuned out, as Bella's head continued to pound, white spots dancing in her vision like small insects.

The Captain sneered again and shook his head. "The Emperor was merely conserving his forces, for the rest of his campaign on the Skellige Isles. This island shall be the first of his conquest and is claimed in the name of the Empire of Nilfgaard…. You there! You command these men!?"

Anton was the target of the man's gaze. The old knight spat at the feet of the commander's horse. "I do. And as their commander I offer you and that snake Emhyr, one chance to leave this island now. Leave, and me and my men won't kill every one of yours."

Faram scoffed next to Anton. "And where is that degenerate fuck anyway? Too much of a coward to fight, and too much of a coward to come negotiate himself!?" The Bear Witcher smirked and turned to his soldiers behind him. "He's probably back in his tent! Stroking one out to the thought of all the little girls he can try to force to marry him next!"

Faram made a lewd gesture near his crotch, causing the entirety of the soldiers gathered to burst out laughing. Freya and Triss, who were still trying to keep Bella conscious also managed a scoffing laugh as well. Clearly there was a deeper joke behind what Faram said, but she wasn't informed of it.

The commander's face went bright red as he shook his head, pointing at them all like they were children who needed scolding.

"You will not speak ill of the Emperor! He will soon be ruler of this and all land!" He said, before turning to Anton. "You would allow your men to insult their betters? Especially when that better, has you outnumbered by multiple hundreds?"

Anton spat again towards the man, only infuriating him further. "Again, you seem to be under the impression my friend, that you hold the advantage in this situation. You do not. As for letting my men insult their betters? Of course not, I've taught my men to treat everyone they meet with the upmost respect, so long as they deserve it. I am beyond proud of them for it… so I don't really see your issue, seeing as your Emperor, is like the muck beneath my boots."

"Smelly, disgusting, an annoyance," Faram cut in, "and long outstaying its welcome in a place where it shouldn't be."

"ONE MORE WORD!" The commander said, drawing out his blade and pointing it towards them. "One more word and our force marches! You will be drug before the Emperor, and he personally shall decide on your punishment, he is worth more than every man-."

"Have you not heard my friend?" Anton cut the man off, his voice growing more forceful. "Have you not heard of the despicable things your Emperor has done!? Ha! Of course you haven't heard, I'd assume he'd want not want anyone to know. Your 'glorious' Emperor, tried to abduct, rape and force his own daughter to marry him!"

"He's got some fuckin nerve saying he's above us after that!" Faram said, stepping forward, and making the man's horse buck. "She was a fuckin child, his own child! But no, anything to wet his knob, he and all of you who follow him, make me sick!"

Triss's eyes shot to Freya across from Bella. "They know? How did they figure it out?"

Freya slowly nodded, disgust in her eyes. "Ciri told Faram, George and I. Said she was sick of hiding it, thought it would be help cripple Emhyr if more people knew."

"That's a good plan," Triss said, looking back down at Bella, her hand still glowing. "I bet not a lot of people will want to follow the 'glorious' Emperor after this gets out…"

Bella's head spun… but she wasn't surprised. It was perfectly on course with what she would assume out of the Emperor. She had looked evil in its eye, been evil herself, she knew it when she saw it.

Wincing, she grabbed into her shoulder, and nearly fell back off Freya, but the blonde swiftly caught her. It felt like her very soul was leaving her body, and when Freya looked down and saw the glossed back look in Bella's eyes a look of panic grew in her own.

"Her pupils are dilating, she has a concussion, we need to get her out of here," She said, cursing as she looked back out towards the bay. "Everything I need is on the ship, where the hell-."

"Lies!" The commander of the Black Ones shouted. "That is nothing but a disgusting lie, told by his majesty's enemies! You should pray to any gods you hold too, that he was generous enough, to send us to offer you terms! My force on the hill, could come down and crush you in minutes!"

Bella looked up over the hill. She even spotted a ballista amongst the men. Kilgarrah had said he'd seen at least a thousand. She watched them all move around the hill, horses, spears, halberds, that fucking golden sun she'd seen in her nightmares for years upon years.

She wanted to get angry, wanted to get on her feet, to bring hell down on them. She wasn't some helpless, scared little girl anymore that they could capture and take everything from.

Only she was helpless then, and she was reminded of that when she tried to rise. Her legs crumbled beneath her, and she fell back into the arms off Triss and Freya again.

Everything hurt, she bled, and the black spots dancing in her vision only got worse. In her head, a rush of pain pinged inside her skull. Her gaze had drifted up to the tower, the black spots getting larger, larger, larger,

"D…Dom… Dominik…" She said, as Freya helped sit her back down, her back leaning up against a fallen tree, Triss on her opposite side. "I… I need to… need to go and-."

"George will handle it, we'll be okay," Freya said, her voice soft, reassuring.

Bella heard the clunking off armor, and looked to the knights of Cintra, ones who had just fought to their breaking point against self-proclaimed gods. They all looked exhausted yet stood their ground.

She then looked up to the fresh, plentiful Nilfgaardian troops. Those black and gold banners were going to descend upon her again and kill all the new people she was just starting to form attachments with. She was going to have everything ripped from her again.

I… I can't let it happen… not again I… I have to do something.

"It's the truth, whether you want to believe it or not," Anton said, and Bella saw him wave his hand dismissively. "Either way, we will not bend to the whims of a man who had wrought so much destruction upon the continent, who's murdered thousands of innocents for his own personal satisfaction!"

A loud cheer went up from the exhausted soldiers, and the commander on horseback scoffed.

"Who are you that you command these men!" The commander demanded, pointing towards Anton's chest. "I will remind you; you wear the colors of the Kingdom of Cintra, which is a vassal state of the Empire! It is under the direct rulership, of his majesty, through the lawful-."

"MY NAME!" Anton yelled, cutting the man off, his voice now alight with a new fury as he slammed his fist to his chest. "Is Sir Robert Anton! Loyal servant to the last rightful Queen of Cintra, my cousin Calanthe Fiona Riannon, and her granddaughter Princess Cirilla WHO SACRIFICED HER LIFE FOR US TODAY!"

The words had brought another silent tear down Anton's cheek, and next to her, she heard Freya sob. Bella looked up, and saw the blonde was looking back up at the tower as well. Bella's own gaze followed, her heart dropping to her stomach. If anyone can survive… it's Ciri.

Anton shook his head his grip tightening on his broadsword. "I was under the command, of the greatest knight, that Cintra-no, the CONTINENT- has ever known in Sir Gregory of Cintra!"

Her father. What would he think if he saw the monster that his little girl had turned in to?

"He, and all the people your Emperor had murdered in Cintra all had more meaning than your pathetic excuse of a ruler," Anton said, slamming the tip of his sword into the dirt beneath him. "We will not bow to him! ALL of those people will one day be avenged!"

"Bold words!" The commander shouted back. "For a man commanding under a hundred men, against an army of a thousand! I recommend you take the Emperor's offer and escape with your miserable lives!"

Faram laughed, his steel sword glistening in the moonlight. "And what would that be? Does he wanna send one of our women to stroke on his knob? I'm afraid he'd find them all a little old for his tastes!"

Another laugh went up from the men and women behind him, but the commander simply shook his head.

"No… for the price of TWO lives, the Emperor is prepared to let ALL men here, even you deserters go free from here. You must surrender to us, the son of Sir Gregory of Cintra, Dominik!" The man yelled out; his face twisted in anger at the prospect. Bella could barely keep her eyes open now. She was so… so tired, she wanted to see her brother, wanted to see Ciri again, Kilgarrah, she simply wanted to sleep.

But then, the Nilfgaardian commander turned his eyes on her.

"And… surrender us that girl," He said, his face contorted in a snarl as he looked over at Bella. "That… commander of the Wild Hunt. Deliver us them both… and you shall be allowed to go free, all of you."

I could save them all… I can do something…. After everything she had done, all the people she had killed… she could save a few now. It would never make up for everything… but she already felt like she was dying, why not do something with what she had left?

She only sat a few meters away from the lines of men, so the commander could see her laying up against the tree. Next to her, Triss went stiff, inching closer to her, grabbing onto her as if she were ready to teleport with her as she cast her spell. Bella was going to get up, try and get to her feet, but before she could, Freya shot to her feet next to her.

"NO! OVER MY DEAD BODY!" She screamed, as a sword was slung from her back, pointed out towards the commander and his companion bearing the white flag.

Bella felt as if she had been struck by a bolt of lightning. She shot up to a sitting position away from Triss, looking at Freya standing in front of her. "Freya! What are you-."

"You would throw away the chance to save every life here girl!?" The commander said, turning his horse, and cantering it towards Bella. "All for someone, who rode atop that dragon, and murdered hundreds-."

Freya was quick, she reached to her back the minute the commanders horse move. She pulled a silver dagger out a sheath there and threw it with expert precision. It zipped through the night and landed in front of the commander's horse, making the animal buck back with a whinny, throwing the commander of its back before it ran away back towards the army.

Bella looked up and saw Freya's face. The moon illuminated her murderous eyes, as she leveled her sword. "Take another step towards her and I'll cut your fucking balls off!"

I was just trying to kill every man and woman here… only a few hours ago. It was all she could think off in her dazed state. Tears welled up in her eyes. More of the solider began to file out around Freya, their spears, swords of shield leveled with the blonde, as Anton and Faram made their way next to her.

Every single one of them, standing in front of her. Protecting her.

Faram spat towards the commander as he scrambled to his feet. "Aye, goldilocks is right. You so much as lay a finger on her, I'll rip your fucking arms off, then beat your emperor to death with'em!"

"You are all fools!" The man yelled, standing next to the second soldier, climbing on the back of the other man's horse. "She murdered hundreds of us! Hundreds of your own men! If you do not surrender you will die! This backwater island shall be your graves!"

Anton looked back at Bella through the mass of soldiers gathered around her and smiled at her. After I killed dozens of his men… hundreds of others… why do they all think I deserve this protection, when I know I don't.

The old knight turned back to the two Nilfgaardians and shook his head. "Once again, you are mistaken my friend. You do not hold the power here. You all have… I'd say a few more minutes, before our reinforcements arrive. If you care about the lives of your men, I'd suggest you leave… now."

"No… no… let… let me…" Bella tried to sit up again, but her shoulder exploded with pain, and Triss had to pull her back as she groaned.

She couldn't let them fight, not again, not while she could prevent it. She needed to do good with the small amount of life she could feel left inside her body.

"Let… let me… no… don't…" She croaked out, only to be gently pulled back by Triss again.

The red-haired sorceress looked down at her, and just like the rest, they smiled at her, even if she didn't deserve it. "It's alright, Freya told me what their plan was, we'll be alright."

Plan? Freya had been next to Bella the whole time, and she couldn't recall anything. Had she really been that out of it? Either way, the panic built up inside her, as she looked up and saw Anton still standing confidently with the rest of his soldiers.

"Last chance… leave now, and you will survive," He said, each word slowly dripping from his mouth.

The commander sneered again, through the slits of his helmet, he narrowed his eyes down at Anton. "You are a foolish old man! The Emperor shall see you all quartered! We shall march and-."

The commander was cut off, cut off by an earth shattering, air piercing roar. Every single solider on both sides went silent, and Bella could swear she saw Anton smirk.

One roar was followed by another, deeper, louder, and both echoed throughout the beach.

The commander shook as he looked up into the sky. The light from the moon was covered, and two massive black shadows descended to the earth. One slammed into the beach, a massive cluster of white scales, amber gold eyes full of old power and wisdom. Kilgarrah roared again as he landed on all fours, only meters behind the commander on the horse the great white dragon's neck extended. The commander and his man's horse bucked up, knocking the two off it before the creature ran away. As they fell, Kilgarrah leaned his head towards the two men and roared again right in the faces of both men who covered and tripped over themselves trying to leap back.

"MEN! CHARGE! CHARGE AND KILL THE BEAST WHILE IT'S GROUNDED!" The commander tried to shout orders, but Kilgarrah's roar drowned the words out.

The earth shook again, as a flash of gold scales flew overhead, launching a blast of fire into the ground, melting all the snow and setting part of the forest ablaze. Borch landed, shaking the ground again, however he landed right in front of the Nilfgaardian army. A volley of arrows launched towards him, but he knocked them away with his wing, before turning and launching another burst of fire towards the ballista they had brought, along with the line of other artillery, before turning and roaring at the line of now horrified Nilfgaardian soldiers. He launched a blast of fire into the rank, and they scrambled, screaming as some of them burned and died. It was only one blast, and it was enough.

Bella watched in amazement as the Nilfgaardians on the hill turned, and ran, ran back towards whatever encampment they had set up.

And when Borch turned back towards the commander and his frightened soldier, roaring like Kilgarrah, Bella swore the man soiled himself.

She laid there with Triss next to her, dazed, nearly unconscious. All of them had just saved her life, she was ready to give it up, but for some reason they had all saved her. Over the hill, the Nilfgaardian force was in chaos. Some brave-or foolish- men tried to jab pikes up towards Borch, but they stood no chance against the beast. Borch would roar and blast fire, sweep them away with his wings, and soon, the commander of the forces was on the ground with his other soldier, scrambling as Kilgarrah inched closer and closer to him.

"You… you despicable nordlings…" The man said, his entire body shaking as he back up towards the hill away from the dragon. "The… the Emperor-."

"Will one day soon face justice for what he did to Cintra, to the elves, and to every innocent village he burned to the ground," Anton said, walking in front of Kilgarrah, who kept growling and glaring at the man. Anton shook his head and looked down at the commander. "Now… leave, and tell your Emperor, that just like the Wild Hunt here today, his tyranny will soon come to an end."

The commander somehow, bravely stood up with his companion. "You will all burn nordlings! You need the Empire! We shall have-."

Kilgarrah roared again, his mouth only meters away from snapping up the commander in his jaws, and the moment he stopped, the man turned and ran.

"RETREAT! RETREAT BACK TO THE CAMP! TELL THE EMPEROR TO PREPARE HIS EMERGENCY SHIP!"

"The emergency ship…" Kilgarrah's deep voice echoed, a hint of amusement in it, "along with the rest of those reinforcements are at the bottom of the sea…."

At his words, all the men on the hill stopped trying in vain to attack Borch turned and ran. Borch launched fire into the air, and it only made them run faster. Bella couldn't distantly see the commander making it to the hill, and in front of her, every single soldier in front of her laughed.

She watched as Faram stepped in front and looked back to them all, laughing like a madman. "BAHAHA! LOOK AT THE GLORIOUS EMPIRE RUN! WE DID IT LADS AND LASSIES!"

"Captain! The ship has finally arrived!" One man yelled out, and the cheer only got louder.

As Bella looked and saw the smiling faces, they were almost alien to her. How could so many people be celebrating right now? How could they so easily celebrate, smile when she was laying right there in their midst? Surely, she had been the one to murder dozens of their friends, their relatives. Were any from Skellige… did any have relatives from the village she raided?

The black spots were becoming larger again, and her magic combined with Triss's only served to make her eyes flutter again.

She had survived… if she were being honest with herself, she thought she'd perish that entire time. She'd been speaking about a new life, a new chance… but now, what would she even do? Travel with her brother, trying to fill the hole Ciri left? She loved her brother yes, but could she really travel with him, wake up and see him every day after what she had tried to do to him? Would she simply be known as 'Dominik of Cintra's' sister, and then when asked where she'd been his whole life, Dominik would have to defend her? Did she even deserve to have a brother like that?

What would he do when she woke up in the middle of the night, seeing the thousands of faces, who's life she'd ended prematurely? He'd do what Dominik always did and focused on the good she did.

But it was like their father always told them, one act of good, no matter how good it was, couldn't wipe out years of bad.

"How's she holding up?" She heard someone say. She blinked and managed to see Freya, she fell to her knees next to Bella again and looked to Triss.

Triss on her other side nodded. "She's stable, her magic's coming back… but you need to do something about her shoulder."

"I'll handle it, Faram will help me get her back to the ship I have everything there."

"Are you sure you don't need any other help?" Triss asked.

Freya shook her head. "No I'll be alright, I've handled worse as you know."

"What about the Black Ones?"

She looked over to Kilgarrah who had taken off into the air with Borch. "Kilgarrah and Borch are going to keep us covered till we get to Ard Skellig, if Emhyr has any surprises they'll see them."

"And Cerys? Hjalmar and… and Crach's body?" Triss said again, standing up as her magic faded.

Bella winced as soon as Triss's magic let up, pain shooting up her arm. However, Freya quickly covered her wound, her pretty, reassuring eyes looking down at her.

"Kilgarrah and Borch made sure all their forces got back to Aard Skellig," She said, shaking her head and sighing. "It's over…. We just need Dominik, Geralt and Yen."

Triss nodded. "I saw George on his way back, I'll teleport up to that tower, and tell them what's going on. Make sure that… they come back."

Bella was exhausted, and she found herself unable to bare it, but the one consistent question stayed in her mind.

Was it even possible for someone like her… one someone who terrorized worlds, killed thousands… even worthy to have Freya's help? To have the help, the care that all of her brother's friends had shown her?

She was too tired to even think deeper on it, as each thought was like a spike being hammered into her skull.

"Go do that… thanks Triss," Freya said, looking behind her. "Faram! Get over here you smelly bastard and help me!"

Bella coughed, and Freya turned back to her. Pretty didn't do her eyes justice, they were breathtaking.

"You'll be alright, I'll make sure of it I promise," She said, reaching and pulled Bella's arm over her shoulder. "You're part of this family now, don't forget that."

Faram came over seconds later and didn't even bother trying to get Bella's arm over his massive shoulder. He picked Bella up, his hands under her knees like she weighed nothing. Freya fretted over her, making sure Faram was gentle and not rocking her too much. Bella found herself looking down at her, much more frequently than she would have wanted, but Freya's words bounced around in her head.

Family… do I even deserve another one of those? And… what would my old ones say if they knew what I did with the life they gave me…

Two families, two sets of parents… a woman that Bella was sure she loved. All had died for her, died so that she could live… and this was what she'd done?

Bella heard Faram slosh into the water, and Freya's voice still frantically ordering him about.

In the eyes of some, she'd accomplished a lot that day… she'd gotten her brother back, supposedly a new family.

But I don't deserve it… and I don't know if I ever will.

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

Dominik woke up when he was almost impaled by a spike of ice. It shattered mere inches from his head, and he shot up to a sitting position. He groaned as all the aches came back to him. It was dark outside the tower, and somehow the upper part of his armor had been taken off, and it lay a few meters away from him against a pillar with both his swords and crossbow.

What happened… dammit how long was I out, he thought, looking up at the position of the moon. It was full, and high up in the sky which was filled with stars. It was much, much later then when he remembered last being awake. It had to be early in the morning, and from how his bones ached, he could tell he had been sleeping on the stone floor for quite some time. He had slept in worse positions before, but in that moment, he felt completely, and utterly drained, more so than he ever had in his life, and not just in terms of his body.

He groaned again as pain shot up through his chest. "What… what happened where… where…."

Then he looked up across the chamber, and saw the room, the room where the portal had been.

"CIRI!" He couldn't remember much after she had disappeared, all he could remember was seeing her disappear, feeling like his chest had been ripped open by a leshen.

Avallac'h had tried to kill him, he cut the sage across his eye and blasted him across the room, hopefully killing him. After that… he couldn't remember much.

But he didn't care about any of it now.

"Dammit…" He groaned as his legs trembled. Getting to his feet, he tried to walk towards the room, but only made it a few steps before tripping to his hands and knees, right in front of a roaring fire, what he thought was a rabbit on a makeshift spit.

"Wh… what?" He said, before a sharp stabbing pain beat through his head. "DAMMIT!"

He tumbled over onto his side, as he could remember more, Bella and Geralt had jumped in front of Avallac'h, after the sage had gotten up. Bella had fought him, pushed him through a portal, and then he had passed out.

But he was alone now. Nobody was around him. Alone. Only his own painful thoughts. The darkness clouding his mind and bubbling up through his chest like a slowly working poison, that would slowly break him down, eat at him, gnaw at him until he was nothing but an empty husk again. It had been his worst nightmare.

And even after all the fighting, the suffering… he was back in the same spot.

"No…no no no no…." He crawled back to his hands and knees. The swallow and his medallion hung in his vision. His hands shook, and the shortness of breath came back, his eyes stung.

Before long, he was crying. His bare hands dug into the stone, into the snow, they dug and clawed as he wanted something to grab, something to strangle, something to inflict pain on. He dug his fingers until his nails broke, till his hands were raw, small pricks of pain shooting up his arms. It wasn't enough, no matter how much he sobbed, no matter how much pain he felt, nothing made it go away, nothing replaced the gaping hole that was in the middle of his chest.

"I let it happen again…" He sobbed, his trembling hands going back around the swallow again. "I… I thought I did everything right… I said… I promised… I promised… fuck… fucking FUCK!"

He slammed his hand into the ground, and he heard a sickening crack, but he didn't feel anything. No magic was around him, he couldn't think, let alone control magic.

Besides… the pain made him forget, even if it was only for a few seconds.

He punched the ground again and screamed, each punch harder and harder, his fingers cracked, blood dripped down his palms. Each time he punched he heard a crack, his hands went numb which only made him do it more, more, more and more he didn't want to stop. He couldn't go back, he couldn't go back to how it was before, he couldn't have really failed, really lost her again. This time was supposed to have been different, and with each punch of the stone below him his lungs felt like they were about to burst as they screamed.

"DAMMIT WHY! WHY!? WHY ME!? WHY HER!? DAMMIT!"

He eventually stopped punching and sobbed, looking down at his trembling hands, covered in blood and black bruises. He couldn't move them, couldn't bend them, but they were still numb from cold despite the fire in front of him. No amount of pain he caused himself blocked out the pain from his gaping, ripped open chest, the void of swirling blackness clouded around his heart.

He was used to failing the people he loved… but now, it had lost him the one he loved most. Was he doomed to forever be too weak to protect people? Why couldn't he have been the one the Hunt was after, why couldn't it have been him?

It wasn't fair… but that didn't mean he wasn't weak.

"DOM!"

He shot his glance over to the right and saw Geralt standing in the moonlight. He had sticks if firewood in his arms and was still dressed in his armor. His silver hair blew behind him, and when he saw Dominik and his bleeding hands, he dropped it and rushed over to him.

"Dammit Dom what did you do," He said falling to his knees next to him. "Did you just wake up?"

Dominik didn't answer, all he could do was meet Geralt's eyes feeling his body tremble like his hands. The tears slowly fell, and Geralt sighed, his eyes softening.

Dominik wanted to cry more, fall into Geralt's arms like he was a child, but the questions all came flooding back to his mind, as Geralt reached into his pocket and pulled out a small wrap of cloth. It looked like the medical cloth Freya used, and as Dominik sat there, falling onto his ass by the fire-his eyes not leaving where the portal had been- Geralt wrapped them slowly around his trembling hands.

"How… how long was I out?" Dominik said, his voice rough and course.

"A few hours, about 2am now," Geralt said, wrapping the bandages up his right wrist. "You were drained, more than Yen's ever seen. Gave us quite the scare, you and Bella both."

"Bella!" He said, his heart lurching to his throat, how could he have not asked about her first? "Is she alright? I saw her fighting Avallac'h and she-."

"She's fine, don't worry," He said, tightening the bandages. "Triss teleported up here, told us what happened. Her and Avallac'h fought for a bit. He… he did a number on her. She was weak from the fight with Eredin. Freya, Faram, George and Anton got to her. Freya's taking care of her on Faram's ship."

"And Avallac'h? Please, tell me one of them fucking killed him," He said, hoping for some good news at least.

Geralt's gaze indicated he wasn't getting what he wanted. "They almost did, but he teleported before they could. Haven't seen him since."

"Doesn't that worry you?"

Geralt shook his head. "No… he was in pretty bad shape. And now, with the number of forces they lost here, it'll be a while before they regroup and could try anything. Besides… he got what he wanted. Yen doesn't think we'll have to worry about him, not for a while at least."

Dominik was numb, and the news didn't change that. It was just another thing he had failed at… he couldn't even take down the person who forced her away. And now, he would have to look over his shoulder, waiting for Avallac'h to drop from the sky to try and kill him.

And he still didn't have Ciri.

But he only found himself caring about that.

"What about Yen? Where's she?" He asked, as Geralt finished wrapping the bandages around his opposite hand.

Geralt sighed, falling to sit next to Dominik. "I convinced her to teleport to Faram's ship to get some sleep… she'll join us again soon. Had to pry her away from you."

"And she didn't insist on me going? Sounds like something she'd do."

Geralt shook his head. "No… neither of us were going to. Because we knew you'd just come back anyway."

He didn't say anything back, and neither of them said anything for several minutes. All they did was sit, and stare at where the portal had closed. Geralt was good at knowing when to talk, and when not to talk. He didn't offer words of encouragement, he didn't try to make him feel better, he didn't tell him it wasn't his fault. It was because he knew, none of those words were going to make Dominik feel better, nothing would.

He only had one thing that didn't keep himself from leaping off the side of the cliffs.

I'm going to enter that portal… and I will come back, her voice bobbed around in his head. And when I do… it'll finally be me… you… and Fiona.

She had promised, and that promise was all he had left of her, that and the swallow.

It was more than he had last time.

He looked at Geralt, who's gaze had finally drifted to him. "You'll wait with me?"

Geralt nodded, reaching and pulling the haunch of rabbit he had been cooking off the makeshift spit on the fire.

He looked back to Dominik and smiled. "As long as it takes."

"The last time she left me through a portal…" He said, looking back up where she had been last, "I didn't see her again… for eight years. We may be here a while."

"If there is any way back… Ciri's the one who'll find it," He said, offering him the rabbit. "Hungry? Like you said, we may be here a while."

Dominik hesitated, but took it, sucking in a shaky breath before wiping the damp tears with his other hands. He looked down at the swallow, before taking a bite, and trying to let his stomach settle.

It wouldn't, he'd probably throw all of this up in a couple of minutes, but he didn't care.

He was either going to stay and see her again there… or he'd die there.

At least he wouldn't be alone.

"Everyone else is okay? Freya, Faram, George?" He asked, before his breath caught. "Did… did they manage to get Crach's body?"

Geralt nodded, a grim smile on his face. "They did… everyone's alive. You know, soldiers are already telling stories of you killing Eredin. They're calling you a hero."

"I never would have killed Eredin without Bella," He said right away. "She's just as much of a hero as I am."

"Won't deny that. Dandelion's going to have a field day when he hears," Geralt said, a small smirk coming to his lips. "And when Ciri comes back, it'll be even better."

He didn't respond, he didn't dare say it aloud. Sighing he looked back towards the room where she had last been.

And where she will be again… she promised.

After she did get back… they'd finally be able to rest.

"I'll die here before I leave…" He said under his breath, before looking up to meet Geralt's eyes again. "So… think you can finally teach me how to meditate?"

At least he's still alive… at least their all still alive. He looked up to where she had last been again. You did it princess… you saved us all… now… now please… save yourself.

Geralt smiled, and slowly nodded. "Yeah, come on I'll show you. We'll build an entire village on the side of this mountain if we have too."

Dominik didn't smile, he could only nod. No matter what happened around him, no matter how long it took, he'd wait in that spot.

Because just like always, love was worth it. Ciri was worth it.

He'd been waiting for a life with her for eleven years… he could wait a bit longer.

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

Ciri thought she knew cold. She had no idea how dreadfully wrong she was until she reappeared.

Wind howled, it shot past her ears, and a bright blinding light was in front of her. Her sword nearly flew off her back, her loose bun of ashen locks came loose, and her hair blew back behind her. The cold attacked her skin, she could feel the air on the back of her neck sticking up and turning to ice. She nearly fell backwards at first, but after a few steps steadied herself, bring her hand up to shield the wind in vain.

Please… please don't make me watch you walk through another portal…. Don't do this to me… please. I can't do it without you… I can't. I've never begged for anything in my life, but… please… please don't do this.

I made Dominik cry… I tore him apart, she thought, the guilt eating at her insides.

She opened her eyes and saw it. The source of the prophecy that had shaped and defined her life since the moment she was born, the source of her power, the source of all the pain she had endured. All of it, every hurt, every lesson, every cut, bruise, scrape, fight and heartbreak had been preparing her for this exact moment.

And she froze.

She didn't know exactly what she expected the source of the White Frost to look like, but when she opened her eyes, she was somehow surprised. It was nothing, but a ball of sheer, bright white light, it spun and the colossal winds, the tempest of snow and ice emanated from it. This was what was destroying her world, which would destroy every world if she weren't strong enough now.

How can I do that… when I can't even take a step forward?

Ciri tried to call upon her own magic to help her, but each time she tried to concentrate she was nearly knocked back. It didn't help either that she felt a gaping, ripped hole in the middle of her chest that had been left by what she had to do. Why hadn't she simply told Dominik that she could fully control her powers? Why did she had to hurt him, destroy him and Geralt like she had?

Because Avallac'h couldn't know… and…. She managed to peak at the blinding ball of light. And because I control my powers yes but… but do I even know how to use them to defeat this?

Suddenly, she felt like she had made a horrible mistake. I promised Dominik… Geralt… I promised them I'd be back… am I going to break another promise?

She went to take a step forward, but like a leaf in a windstorm she was blown back, almost falling into the snow, into the endless white void of nothingness behind her. How long had she been there? It had only been a few minutes for her, but how long had it been back home? Were Dominik and Geralt still waiting at the tower days later?

She stood up again, the cold attacking her body from head to toe, and finally after finding her footing she managed to lower her hand and look at what she had to face.

The orb of light seemed to glow fiercer in her presence, as if it were calling her for a duel, for a challenge of might and will.

Nothing could have prepared me for this…. She thought, stumbling like she was drunk as she tried to step forward. Her knees buckled and the wind almost knocked her to the ground, she had to press her hand into the snow to steady herself, as she looked up to see the ring blow back towards her face. It blew around her neck, and Ciri heard a distinct snap.

"NO!" She screamed over the wind, whirling around and just before it could fly off her neck she reached out and grabbed the chain before it could get away.

Fighting against the wind she pulled it to her chest and squeezed it, turning back to where the orb containing her last obstacle was. All she had survived, and was she really going to let a glowing ball of light stop her.

She looked down at the bronze clutched in her hand. Her entire body felt naked without it on her neck. She had taken it off so few times over the years, it was like a part of her skin. It had been part of the reason she was able to move on through her years alone. That ring reminded her that Geralt, Yennefer, Dominik and the one time in her life she had been genuinely happy was real, and not some figment of her imagination.

It had given her strength then… like it did now.

She squeezed it tight as her hands shook and her eyes shot up towards the White Frost.

I won't let you defeat me… you've been lingering over me for my entire life! Well, here I am! I have a promise to keep, and I won't let you keep me from it!

She took a step forward. She was Cirilla of Cintra, granddaughter to the greatest Queen the North had ever known, descended from one of the most powerful beings the cosmos had ever seen. The Aen Hel Ichear, the Elder Blood was hers. It didn't belong to the Aen Elle or Avallac'h, it was hers, and she commanded it. She was a Witcher, she was a warrior, she saved people, protected ones who couldn't protect themselves. As much as she hated it from the moment, she heard the damn prophecy, this was her destiny, and she was going to conquer it her way.

"You WON'T beat me!" She yelled, grunting through the struggle, as she took a step forward, her hand still clasped around the ring in her hands. She wasn't alone, no matter how worried Dominik had been she knew he his concerns about her going alone were misguided.

He was with her; he had never left in the first place. They were all with her.

A new strength surged through her, and Ciri found herself finally able to walk. The closer she got the colder it was, the more her legs yelled at her to stop, to turn back and not go on, but that was when Ciri finally felt her power begin to surge back through her. It appeared in white-blue wisps, and with each step she took they intensified, and miraculously they began shot out behind her, and she could hear voices, voices she recognized, voices of the ones she recognized most and the moments they were from played back in Ciri's mind like a play she was watching on stage.

"OHO! It is on now; I'm going to completely thrash the both of you!" It was her, in Kaer Morhen's courtyard, the day of that snowball fight. She couldn't remember being happier than she was in those few minutes.

"Oh, great now I gotta beat the both of you?" Geralt had said. He had been smiling too. Ciri loved it when he smiled.

"Hey, no fair! You both have two completely working legs!" She could remember Dominik's smile the most vividly. He had the most adorable smile, she loved it, especially the one he got whenever she walked into a room, or the goofy one he got after she kissed him. Even when he had been limping, walking on one leg, still using crutches, no was trying to make sure she was happy.

She loved him for that, loved him more then she could possibly describe. It was how she survived mentally for her earlier years. He loved her for her, and not the power deep within her blood, or because she was the one destined to be where she was now to save them all.

Dominik didn't care how she got back, whether she failed or succeeded then. He just wanted her, he loved Ciri for herself.

And I'll be damned if I let this take me from him! She took more steps forward, the White Frost getting closer. It's intense cold tried harder to get her to move, to knock her back, to freeze her whole, but Ciri kept hearing the voices and seeing the memories in her head as her magic got brighter.

"You're welcome… Ciri, I love you. I love you now, I loved you before… and I'm going to love you for a long, long time…" She heard Dominik and could see clear as day the image of him in their cave that very night. Both of them naked, her makeup running down her cheeks in tears. He stood in front of her tall, handsome, his arms around her and her melting into them, fitting into them like they had been tailor made for her.

Gods I ruined that romantic night, didn't I? We were going to finally have sex and I had to go and cry, I should have told him earlier…. A small smile came to her lips, along with a tingling sensation running up her stomach. Well… we more than made up for it in Novigrad. That stupid… brave, loyal, handsome… stupid boy really waited for me, what did I do to deserve that?

If she had asked Dominik that question, she'd get an hour-long rant from him about all the reasons he loved her, and why he was the one who didn't deserve her. He did over the top, cheesy, corny, loving things like that for her all the time. She loved his awkward compliments, his jokes that translated into compliments for her, no matter how bad they were. Or when he caught him staring at her, smiling out the corner of her eye when he though she wasn't looking. She loved the small things he did, like rubbing her back when she was worried, picking her a flower he saw off the side of the road, winking at her in the middle of dinner, randomly coming up and hugging her from behind. Some people may have found it a bit childish, like they were still a pair of lovestruck kids… but Ciri loved every little thing.

It was what made Dominik, Dominik, and Ciri loved that about him. He was her stupid, sweet, brave, loyal boy… no… man, that was what he was now. However, despite this, he still found ways to keep that boyish excitement whenever she was with him. She had missed it when she was gone.

He had always been better at big affectionate gestures then she was. He would give her the greatest gifts, and while she got slightly better the previous few weeks, she still had a long way to go. He deserved the world; they deserved the world together.

They would have it, and maybe as the years went on, she'd get better at those types of gestures. She already had a few ideas brewing in her mind she thought he'd love.

I'll do them all for him… and I'm going to be with him… for a long, long time…. She thought, looking up towards the White Frost again.

"YOU WON'T TAKE ME FROM HIM! FROM ANY OF THEM!" She yelled defiantly again, as she took more steps forward, closer and closer towards that swirling light as she could feel her strength surging again, as she still saw the memories going through her head.

"Oh no you don't!" She could see Dominik vividly in her mind, see his smile, hear him laughing as snow fell around him.

"Haha-HEY! That's no-. Ahaha-. That's not fair!" It was Fiona then, she could see her, see her vividly in her mind, hear her joyful laugh as well. Dominik's child surprise-no… their child surprise. Ciri missed that girl.

"Lesson number one of witchering, nobody ever fights fair!" Dominik laughed, spinning the girl on his shoulder. Fiona looked up over at Ciri, and she could remember the pure elation she had felt that day all over again.

"Ahahaha! Ciri! Ciri get him!" She kept laughing trying to yank him into a pile of snow. He eventually picked Ciri up herself and dumped them both into the pile.

Her boots trudged through snow now, the closer she got the higher it got. It was nearly up to her knees as she got closer, but with each memory, each thought of the reasons she needed to get back and of the memories she already made it helped her move forward. She needed to not only keep her promise to her family, but there was Fiona as well. Ciri knew Dominik was nervous about being a sort of father figure to the girl, raising her so that she wouldn't have to face the things they did, and giving her the life that they always wanted themselves, the life the girl deserved as well. Her and Dominik would train her powers, to make sure nobody else tried to take her and abuse them as they did to Ciri.

I miss her dreadfully… I wonder if she's been practicing the kata's we showed her. Surely, she has… and I will live to see how good she got.

Dominik and she had shown Fiona at least a dozen warm-up exercises, stretches and kata forms to practice with her practice swords of quarterstaff while they were gone. If her first meeting with Fiona was anything for Ciri to go off, she knew the girl was probably even practicing at that very moment… waiting for her and Dominik.

And I won't be taken from that!

Her magic exploded around her, finally she could feel it coursing through her veins, she looked up again at the White Frost as she got closer and closer. The snow got higher, the winds tried to blow her back, but for the first time, truly in her life she felt in control. This was her choice; this was her life and her story. Her story wouldn't be over after this, it'd have many, many more chapters to go, and this was only the end of the first.

She saw more memories flash into her mind. There was a time, when this had terrified her, when the prophecy terrified her, her magic, the looming threat, everything had terrified her at one point, but now, she wasn't afraid. After everything she had been through, there was nothing that would stop her from going out after this and living her life.

She saw all of them in Novigrad, her, Dominik, Geralt and Yennefer having dinner, going to that party the last night after she had confronted the Lodge of Sorceresses. Geralt and Yennefer believed in her, her true parents believed in her. Ciri never really knew Pavetta, but while she loved her birth mother with everything she had, she was ready to finally live that life she always wanted, Geralt, Yennefer… and Dominik. Yes, her and Dominik would go off alone, they may not see the two for a couple weeks or months at a time..., but they were a family, so they'd always find their way back to one another… like they would now.

Ciri had felt so impowered that last night in Novigrad, going to the Lodge and telling them exactly how she felt, no longer a meek child like she was before. That night, her and Dominik had made love for the first time, and it was one of the greatest feelings in the world, she felt like they were truly one now, truly a loving couple that was ready to devote their lives to one another. She had many more plans for romantic nights like that, many, many more. She wouldn't leave him, she'd get back.

And when she walked through that portal back to him, she'd see that goofy smile he always got on his face when she was near… and she'd kiss him like she never had before and tell him how sorry she was.

They'd face down threats together, she didn't know what became of Avallac'h, but if the sage tried anything else, if Emhyr or anyone tried anything they'd be ready to beat them back. The image of them destroying, ransacking and burning Avallach's lab ripped through her mind. It was so satisfying, so enthralling to finally let her anger loose. She would never leave them all again, the people who knew her better than anyone else… the only ones to truly understand her.

Geralt had told them, that he'd go on the Path with the two of them when it was over… when they all finally set out. That had been her dream, the three of them saving people, helping people, doing what witchers do. It had been her destiny since she was born, they were both her destiny from the moment she was born. She couldn't imagine her life without them, and she knew they couldn't imagine their lives without her. She could remember every single lonely night she had spent in the last eight years… she wouldn't go back to that.

She had been through hell, been beaten, raped, attacked, captured and tortured… and while she didn't show it, she still had so much pain deep inside her. It took a long time for people to truly heal from their traumas, especially the ones she and Dominik had experienced. It would be a long time before she would call herself truly… truly okay. She still had occasional nightmares, or bouts of anxiety remembering what had happened… but she was strong, and she had Geralt, Yen… and Dominik, who was always right there to hold her if she needed.

It would be a while before they were both fine… but the important part was, they were going to heal together.

Where you go… I go from this point on… no matter what….

She looked up, the snow up to her thighs. The White Frost was so close that she could reach out to touch it. Its light was blinding, its winds trying with everything they had to blow her back.

But she was in control. She and Dominik would get their happy ending, and after she got back… they'd finally get to rest.

This is for you Geralt… Yen, Bella, Freya, Faram, George, Anton, Hjalmar, Cerys, Crach… she thought, reaching up and grabbing the ring, which like always made her worried melt away… because he was always with her.

She could see him in her mind then, as vividly as if he were right next to her.

And… most importantly for you… my stupid… stupid, brave… loving boy. We'll get our happy ending… one that we deserve, and maybe… maybe we can finally get some fucking sleep.

Ciri in the face of the force that was fated to destroy every world across the cosmos… smiled, Dominik always had that effect on her, even now.

And when she reached out her hand, she exploded with light.

A/N: And just like that everybody… the final battle of Undvik is over. The climax of the Witcher 3 has come, and it's gone. Now… after 92 chapters, over 2 million words, a lot of long nights, dozens of ups downs rewrites and rearranges…. This story is officially ONE chapter away from being done. Fun Fact, this story EASILY could have been 100 chapters if I hadn't combined some chapters or cut some out. Don't worry, most of what I cut will be done in short stories and other content but in the end… I am so SO happy with what I've put out, and the journey these characters some of who I love that already exist and some who I created have gone on. As you all know we have one more chapter to go… what will happen with Emhyr? What about Bella? It will be a shorter chapter, but one which will hopefully wrap this all up in a nice bow, and saturate your tastes for what's to come.

Most of this chapter was the massive fight with Bella and Avallac'h, and what happens after. As I've said multiple times, Bella is one of my favorite characters that I've wrote, and we are going to see MUCH more of her in future short story books and sequels. In this fight against Avallac'h she was outmatched, but don't worry, she'll get a chance to prove herself one day, that's all I'll say xD I have so many short story ideas, and sequel ideas I cant wait to tell you all about.

After that, we get a bit of interactions with Bella and our hansa, her new family as Freya puts it. I wanted to give you all a real sense of where her heads at, and it's understandably pretty frazzled right now. We'll see what's up with her and what she does next chapter… I can't wait to see what you all think and where you all think she'll go. Please, let me know in a review what you wanna see of Bella in the future, and what you thought of her parts so far!

After that, we get a small part with Dominik… and see how numb he is. You can only take so much pain before it pushes us over the edge. Thankfully… Ciri promised him.

And then the last part with Ciri… that was so satisfying to write. Ciri is my favorite fictional character of all time, her strength to get through all the torture she went through in the books, to fight through it all and escape… it made me fall in love with her. In the game, they changed a few thing about her which really annoyed me (looking at you the whole 'suddenly completely okay with being friends with Avallach despite what he did *Rolling eyes emoji*) but in the end it really captured the playful, powerful, sweet essence of who Ciri was, and to get to write this whole story with her… well it was so so amazing, and writing her ending and facing her destiny I couldn't wait for…. And I cant wait to write her and Dominik more.

NOW I wanna quickly talk about sequels. You can see ALL the sequels and side content ill be writing for this story if you click my profile and read the bio! However, I wanna announce, after this I will be writing the first sequel, 'The Great Northern Gambit: The First Push" for a description go read the blob in my bio about it!

For that be sure to FOLLOW MY PERSONAL PROFILE! I'll of course post an update here when chapter 1 of that goes out, but if you want it right away follow my profile so you're notified! The last chapter of this story will be out relatively fast so be ready! I can't wait for it to begin!

Finally as always if you really like this story, and you wanna see real, drawn FanArt of Dominik and Ciri, Bella, Faram, George, Freya, along with other cool witcher stuff go follow the Instagram page I made for this story!

dominik_of_cintra

Go follow that username on Instagram if you wanna see all the AMAZING fanart I've gotten for this story, or if you wanna ask any questions! I'll also always post snippets of chapters, and post when I first update there! So please go check out the amazing art!

SO, I normally don't BEG for reviews, but since we're at the end I wanna know if you're willing to write one, when you discovered this story : ) how many chapters were out, what was your favorite part or moment, favorite Dominik and Ciri moment, what are you looking forward too next, just tell me what you think in the smallest or longest review you'd like : ) I can't stress how much I appreciate all who read, even if you didn't like it xD

As usual, thank you all so much, be sure to follow and favorite the story AND MY OWN PERSONAL PROFILE! So that you can be notified when I update the FINAL chapter of this massive story. Stay safe everyone, and I'll see you all soon!