Chapter Nine: Same City, Different Day
Spring 1274, two days later
Pont Vanis, Kingdom of Kovir and Poviss
Royal Palace
Triss and Damien followed the chamberlain into the official office of King Tancred. He opened the door, and they followed into the room; the ceiling was vaulted, and the room itself was filled with books and documents, and dozens of maps were on the walls. In the center of the room was a table, and behind that, a chair, large, with golden outlines. In that chair sat King Tancred, scribbling intensely onto some paper. He saw the couple enter the room, and put down his quill and rose. The couple paused, and bowed appropriately. The king nodded and walked towards them.
"I appreciate your timeliness in arrival." The king smiled. From the small windows in the ceiling, it was clear that it was midday. "I have summoned the two of you here because I require an important task, but one that I must keep secret. No one else is to know what exactly will happen. Is that understood?" The two nodded. The king looked directly at Damien.
"While I can require Miss Merigold to do something on royal decree, I cannot for a witcher. If you wish to participate, I will need you to sign off on a few documents agreeing that you will listen to my word for the duration of this mission. If not, the chamberlain can escort you back to the antechamber."
"That will not be needed, Your Majesty. I will agree to participate in this mission, as long as I know what it is that I am signing away." The king smiled in the corner of his mouth at that remark. With that, he picked up a sheet on his desk and handed it to Damien. It detailed that for the duration of the mission, he would be seen as a contractor for the Kingdom of Kovir and Poviss, and any attempt to circumvent or compromise the mission in any way would be seen as high treason and punishable by execution. Damien read it over and saw no real issue.
"When this mission is completed, I will be free from this agreement, correct?"
"Correct. I simply need to be certain about your loyalty to Kovir if I am to trust you with the information I am about to give you." Damien nodded, and after getting a supportive nod from Triss, signed off on the agreement.
"Very well. Onto the contract, so to speak. You both know who Carlos Varese is, correct?" Triss nodded knowingly, but Damien was confused. Triss explained, "He's one of the two remaining crime lords of the city of Novigrad, the other being the King of Beggars."
The king nodded. "Yes, and even Mister Bedlam can hardly be seen as a crime lord now, considering how much he deals with Nilfgaard. But that is beside the point. Varese has become the largest black market trader of arms in the city. The Black Ones hate him, the Novigrad traders fear him, and he has something, and someone, who will be very important to Kovir. Do either of you know who Hattori is?" To that, Damien nodded, but Triss looked confused. It was Damien's turn to explain, "He's an elf in Novigrad, one of the best blacksmiths I've ever met. He can design like no one else."
"Yes, and he used to be under the protection of Mister Bedlam. He was contracted by Kovir to build certain designs for crossbows and catapults." The king looked to Triss, and saw that she understood what he was talking about. "There are others you may speak with about the details, but the important thing is that Varese seized the shop, stole the designs, and kidnapped Hattori about a week ago. We need those designs back; they are experimental, still not in use, but I do not under any circumstances want them falling into the hands of our enemies." With that, he looked up to the map directly across from him, which was updated to show the last of Nilfgaard's advances; Temeria, Aedirn, Novigrad, and Redania. For the first time in history, Nilfgaard and Kovir shared a border. True, it was a small border, on the Braa River between Talgar and the Arcsea, but it was border.
"Damien, you have proven yourself an excellent tracker. Miss Merigold, you have immense knowledge of the city and its underworld. Bring me Hattori's designs, and if possible, Hattori himself. You are to tell no one else the exact nature of your visit; officially, you are on a diplomatic visit to see Duke Morvran Voorhis, Lord of the City, and to recruit mages for the Corps. You will receive an official ship, funding, and will be staying in Novigrad for a fortnight. I request communication by megascope every other day until this is over. You leave tonight. Is that clear?"
The couple took everything in, and nodded in unison. "Yes Your Majesty."
Two days later…
Novigrad Docks, City of Novigrad, Empire of Nilfgaard
As the schooner docked in the harbor, Triss looked around. It was around midday, and cities docks were as busy if not busier than Triss had recalled. She reflected on what had changed in the last year and a half of Nilfgaardian rule.
The Church of Eternal Fire had been forced out of the city; she had heard of the violent riots and destruction in its aftermath, and the ensuing military takeover of the city. It had since been removed, and "civilian" rule had been restored, under a former general. Voorhis was the official head of the city, who took advice from the Council of Elders but acted on his own will and answered only to the Emperor himself. The religious fervor had died down since; gone were the pyres, and church sponsored pogroms. Discrimination was still rampant, she had heard, but it wasn't open and encouraged. Mages and nonhumans could live in the city, but few did. The stigma remained strong, and those who wanted safety turned to Vizima and Gors Velen rather than Oxenfurt and Novigrad.
In the end, the peace that came with Nilfgaardian rule had done more to assuage people's fears then the church ever could. It still had its supporters, but they grew fewer and fewer by the day in Novigrad, which was booming under the efficient hand of the Black Ones. Witch hunting was banned, but still practiced in small corners of Redania.
Dijkstra's death, and the move of Whoreson Junior/Cyprian Wiley (or Dudu, to a very small group of people) to blue water trading had left a large power vacuum in Novigrad's underworld. One that was filled partially by the weakening of the underworld in general, as the Black Ones weren't as puritanical as the Hierarch was, and by the rise of Carlos "Cleaver" Varese. Francis Bedlam, the King of Beggars, who Triss owed a great deal to, was not as large in the underworld as before; most of what he wanted had come with Nilfgaardian rule, and he was willing to cede most power to Varese. Triss had heard rumors that Bedlam was considering a seat on the Council of Elders, completing his move out of the underworld.
All of this Triss knew, from a combination of diplomats, spy reports and courtly intrigue, but there was much she did not know. Much that laid in store for her in the largest city in the world.
The couple disembarked from the schooner to find their way to the Chameleon, Dandelion's tavern. It proved a much longer walk then Damien had anticipated, and Triss was forced to deal with repeated questions of "is this it" and "are you sure we are going the right way" and "why did he put his tavern on the other end of town."
They finally made their way outside of the Chameleon. They saw close to a dozen patrons, some rich, some poor, guards and merchants and farmers, all drunk off their minds outside the entrance. Standing by the entrance was an old friend of Triss', one she was very glad to see again.
"Triss! Ploughing hells, dinnae know you were in town!" Zoltan was beaming to see Triss, and the two had an awkward hug. Zoltan turned to Damien, and grew a confused look on his face. "This a friend of yours…"
"More than just a friend, Zoltan. Why don't you two chat, and I'll go get Dandelion." She kissed Damien on the cheek before heading inside. Damien decided to take the initiative; it was clear Zoltan was feeling awkward meeting him.
"Damien of Oxenfurt, the Silver Blade of Hengfors. Witcher of the Griffin School." With that, Zoltan scoffed, laughing to himself.
"Witcher aye? Why am I not surprised…but besides that, I'm Zoltan Chivay. Good friend of Dandelion, Triss, and Geralt of Rivia." With that, Damien as well felt awkward. Fortunately, before they were forced to make more small talk, Triss came back through the door and urged them inside. They went inside to find Dandelion and Priscilla waiting for them.
"Welcome to the Chameleon, Damien of Oxenfurt! What do you think of my fine establishment?" With that, Dandelion bowed, and Damien looked around to see the tavern in full view. It was part cabaret, part inn, with dancers and whores and live performances all the same. The inn was full, and the place looked lively.
"Interesting design. I like the theater aesthetic of it all. Feels very fitting, given the owner." With that, Damien looked back to Dandelion, who accepted the compliment with gusto.
"But please, have yourselves something to eat and drink! I'm certain you two are famished after a long voyage. We'll speak later, I have a performance to put on soon!" With that, Dandelion and Priscilla ran off, and Triss and Damien enjoyed a very large amount of food and drink, and when the night drew to an end, finally got some time with Priscilla, Dandelion, and Zoltan. They all took seats at a table on the upper level, with Triss and Damien on one side, Dandelion and Priscilla on the other, and Zoltan resting on a pillar right next to them. Priscilla seemed to be doing better than Triss remembered the last time she was in Novigrad. She could speak fine, but she wasn't fully ready to sing. Supposedly, she wasn't going to be happy singing until she could hit the notes she used to before, so she avoided singing for the most part.
"So Triss, Damien, tell us what brings you here? And how did you two meet? I must know." Dandelion even had a note sheet ready, so he could compose his next ballad on this, as he was certain it would be a tale worth telling.
"Shall I start?" Damien looked to Triss, and she nodded. "So I was dealing with what I thought was a standard monster contract two months ago in Talgar, east of Kovir. Locals reported monsters in the local mines. I figured it would be straightforward, turned out to be anything but. Remember the Crones of Crookback Bog?" The other three nodded. "The one that escaped had holed herself in the mineshafts, and was summoning horrible monsters. She summoned a fiend that knocked me unconscious during a fight. I would have died if Triss here hadn't come to save me." He smiled and Triss, and she picked it up from there.
"The Crone had captured a local ambassador, so the king urgently needed the problem dealt with. Damien here had never returned, so the king sent me and a few other mages into the mines. We found Damien, nursed him back to health, cleared the mines, fought the Crone, and killed her once and for all. And of course, Damien got his turn to save my life by lifting me from certain death when the crone almost knocked me down the mountain. We realized we had a lot in common, and have been together since." They interlaced their fingers together in a hold, and lifted their held hands for the rest to see.
Dandelion's mouth was agape. Priscilla was smiling, and Zoltan was snickering to himself. Priscilla pipped up first, "It appears you were right, Dandelion my dear. Witchers and sorceresses do have some strange bond." Damien began laughing at that, drawing Dandelion's attention.
"What? It's perfectly reasonable, considering Geralt and Yen and Triss, and Lambert and Keira, and now you and Triss…" Dandelion was defending himself when Damien raised his hand in surrender.
"No, I know. I'm laughing because you're right. The only other actual relationship I ever had was with a mage in service to Kaedwen. She died in the last war, though." He got a bit sullen after that, but smiled afterwards. Dandelion only got more interested after that. "See? Priscilla I am onto something I tell you."
"So we can continue to gossip on, or we could actually catch up. Triss lass, what brings the two of ya here? Novigrad's far from Kovir, and it's still pretty ploughing shite here." Zoltan looked at Triss, who paused, getting a little bit more serious. She glanced around, and said, "We should go somewhere more private." Dandelion escorted them to the Ruby Suite, the largest suite in the inn, currently unoccupied. They closed the door behind them, and Triss cast a silencing spell and a detector charm.
"Officially, we are here on mage recruitment and a diplomatic visit to Duke Voorhis." Damien looked away as he prepared to watch Triss admit the plan. He trusted her, and he trusted her friends, but his worry was endangering them with the knowledge they had. "In reality, though, we are here to retrieve sensitive military information that officially doesn't exist. It's currently in the hands of Cleaver, and we need it back before he does something to it or sells it to Nilfgaard. Will you help us?" The other three were astonished at the news.
"Of course lass, but you know no one plays with Cleaver. Even that Beggar King knows it. The only human he ever feared was Sigi, and that bastard's dead. What do ya plan to do?" Zoltan looked worried; messing with the city's underworld never went well for anyone.
"We need to search the blacksmith Hattori's shop. See if we can find where they took him. He was the one Kovir had contracted, and he got kidnapped by Cleaver recently." Damien watched Zoltan's face as he sighed.
"Aye. He did. Apparently refused to sell to Cleaver's men, so they raided his shop and kidnapped him. I'd recommend Damien go search it tonight; you can hide better under the cover of nightfall."
"Very well. Damien can search the shop tonight. Tomorrow, Zoltan, the two of us have some searching and shopping to do. Dandelion, see what the latest word is on Cleaver. We meet back up here tomorrow at midday." With that, Triss had laid out the first part of their plan. Everyone went to sleep, except for Damien, who walked out onto the lightly trodden streets of late night Novigrad, following only a crudely drawn map and the moonlight.
The next day, slightly past midday…
Triss paced back and forth in the Ruby Suite. Damien had not returned; not even once had he been sighted, either in the Chameleon or in that portion of the city. She hadn't even run into him on her rounds. Fortunately, she had been able to get what she needed; material to make a few different types of bombs, all of which could come in handy during a prison break. She also had been able to find a map of the cities sewers and underground tunnels; although it was slightly outdated, she was able to overlay it with the map of Novigrad to find the main places where Cleaver's gang congregated. But most importantly, she had found the materials needed to make a xenovox. Unfortunately, the one thing it was useful for could not help her right now, as Damien had not returned and gotten one from her.
Her worry was assuaged, however, when she heard the door open and saw Zoltan and Dandelion come in, with Damien right behind them. He was fine, but he was covered in filth, and smelled strongly. Noticing their collective disgust, he responded "Try having a superhuman sense of smell. Think about how that feels. But anyways, we have leads now." He walked up to the map on the table in front of Triss.
"Hattori's shop was looted clean; basically nothing left behind. Fortunately, this meant they left a ton of tracks. One of them was drinking Mahakam spirit when they came in, so I was able to follow the scent. It led to this house," and with that, Damien pointed to one of the larger homes that belonged to Cleaver. "I couldn't get inside, so I went back to the home for some more leads. Found this," and with that, took out a key. "One of the henchdwarves must have dropped it. Not sure what it's used for, but could be useful nonetheless. Finally, followed some henchdwarves into the sewers. Couldn't get as far as I would have liked, but I'm pretty sure Cleaver's keeping the elf, and or his stuff, in this building."
With that, Damien pointed to the largest of the houses that belonged to Cleaver, his casino. "I know, because the guards were talking about torturing another nonhuman, and how they felt it was unfair given what he did was so minor."
Triss was amazed at all Damien had been able to figure out in such a short period of time. "So, we can perform hydromancy on the key, find what it opens. We need to scout out the casino, and at some point, raid it. And we need to figure out a way out." With that, she pointed at the sewer map. "Fortunately, I knew Cleaver's base is directly over the sewer lines. We can cause a distraction, enter through the sewers, take Hattori, and leave without causing too much of a mess."
"We'll have to kill his men in the sewer without alerting any guards. I suppose I'll be doing that. If that's the case, I have a blacksmith I need to meet."
"Zoltan, go and scout out the casino tonight with Damien. The two of you need to know if Hattori's in their possession or not. I need to find a fountain to preform hydromancy on this key to. Dandelion?"
Dandelion had been waiting patiently in a very out of person fashion, and quickly said, "Tomorrow Cleaver's hosting a massive celebration to honor the anniversary of the assassination of King Radovid. He's apparently ordered more alcohol for tomorrow then he has for the last month. If that's any indication, his guards will all be drunk off their minds. We have to strike tomorrow. It's our best chance."
"Ploughing hells…We dinnae have much time then." Zoltan was shaking his head.
"Well, what are you waiting for?" Triss exclaimed, and the three men all rushed out the door.
That evening…
Damien and Zoltan entered the casino, finding it relatively full. Damien had cleaned up since midday, and had gotten all of his armor and weapons repaired, as well as buying a new weapon he had been meaning to get. Meanwhile, Triss' xenovox meant that Triss was able to tell him that the house he had originally identified was were the weapons and armor were kept, as that was where the key opened; it messed up their plan slightly, but it could still work. Tentatively, the current plan was to have Dandelion distract the main people in the casino, while Triss infiltrated the armory and Damien and Zoltan infiltrated the casino from the sewers. When it was all said and done, Hattori would be whisked away to the Koviri ship, where he would be kept under protection while Triss and Damien visited Duke Voorhis.
But that whole plan relied on one important aspect. That Damien and Zoltan figure out where Hattori was. And after a few successful rounds of dice poker and some hilariously one sided fist fights, the duo were no closer to figuring out where Hattori was, or if he was even here. They had the lower floor plan down to a tee, and knew every hiding spot on the next level, but couldn't get up to the highest level, as it was blocked off by guards. So Zoltan and Damien decided to do the one thing they could do best, that could distract the guards.
Start a drinking competition.
After around twenty consecutive shots, Damien was removed himself from the running, but not before getting many of the dwarves hammered. Zoltan was still going however, and while he kept the attention, Damien saw an opening up. He took a little bit of white honey, and quickly stumbled up the stairs. The white honey had given him enough clarity to hear what was going on, and he could easily here the sounds of someone struggling against binding in the room at the end, near the window. Damien then identified the place where the sewer entered, and headed down the stairs again before anyone else could find him. Unfortunately, the white honey wore off quickly, and he passed out at the bottom of the stairs.
When he woke up, it was the early hours of the morning, and he was lying next to the wall of the casino outside. Zoltan was sitting next to him, slowly drinking some water. The sun had yet to rise, but it was approaching dawn.
"We should probably 'ead back now. Triss won't be pleased if we arrive after she wakes." Damien nodded to Zoltan's words, and the two stumbled back to the Chameleon, incredibly hungover. They got back, threw up several times, and then passed out again.
Damien woke up to a splash of water on his face. He startled up, and found himself almost completely nude on the floor of the Ruby Suite, with Triss standing in front of him. She was clearly angry, and was holding a bucket that she had used to splash his face with.
"Are you a witcher or a drunken whoremonger? You know today is an incredibly important day, so can you explain why you drank yourself into a stupor?" Triss' words hurt Damien's head, as he was still quite hungover from all the drinking.
"Sorry darling, really, I am, but we needed to distract them, so we started a drinking competition. Had to participate to get them going. Don't worry, though. I know he's in there. He's in the second to last room on the left from the sewer entrance."
"You sure it's him?"
"Yes, he was cursing and struggling in elvish." Triss nodded, her face returning to normal. "Very well." With that, she put away the bucket and gave him a hand to lift him up. Damien got up, went to his satchel, and swallowed an entire bottle of white honey, helping to clear up his hangover. They had a long day ahead of them.
End of Chapter Nine