After the battle plans had been laid out, the last tasks given and thoughts shared, Yennefer waited until the last of the group had broken away, and went in search of Geralt.
"I need Foglets if I'm going to be making invisibility amulets. Care for a hunt?"
Geralt nodded at Eskel who he was talking to, and the latter went away to join the others outside.
"I was going to be helping Eskel and Letho with the traps. It will take some time.
"Why don't you ask Kain and Ciri. Kain is as capable a witcher as any of us, as it turns out, and Ciri will be happy to be of at least some use, which might spare us some complaints and sulking later."
"I don't want to keep you." She really didn't. There wasn't really any time to waste. "I'll ask them, but for now, you haven't filled me in on the details of what went on with the trial. I know the end was happy. He's alive and we don't have a corpse to clear away. But uh, is that it?"
"I'm not sure he'd be executed right away had the outcome been sadder," he admitted. "He told us his story. The Cat Witcher he killed didn't finish the contract properly - killed the griffin female and cubs and not the male - and the griffin killed two people as a result. In vengeance.
"Gwyncath, or Kain, had a… I don't know, some kind of a connection to the beast at the moment of battle. He read it all from there and killed the other witcher under the influence of what he saw and felt." Geralt shrugged. "I wouldn't believe it much, but I had you happen to me once with a vengeance of yours you directed with my hand.
"Vesemir ruled it as forgivable crime under the circumstances. All but Lambert voted in favor. He's unhappy with letting the Cat go."
"And you?" she asked, not really interested in anyone else's interpretation, stepping closer to him. She hadn't forgotten about what she made him do back then, she'd needed him, and he'd done it more efficiently that she ever could have. "How do you feel about what's happened? Do you agree with Vesemir or Lambert?"
He gave it a thought, glancing under his feet as he did.
"I understood his reasoning. Being a half-blood, he ought to have some abilities he might not always be able to predict or fully control. It's possible.
"I voted along with Vesemir. Like others did. Lambert was alone.
"And I didn't do it for Ciri. Not really. I did it because some sort of gut feeling inclines me to believe him.
"I remember him back from the Tournament. It still feels impossible, but I think I do now. He was one of their best, but he also fought fairly. Not all other Cats did."
Not for a second did she think Ciri had anything to do with his decision to spare the boy. Or his vote. He'd been pretty determined to drag him onto the trail podium and despite what she'd intended before, he'd still gone ahead and done it. Because that's who he was and always had been. A good man, with a good heart and superior code of honor.
Yennefer took another step toward him. "What do you think about him in this fight? You believe we can trust him?"
"If bits and glimpses of what I remember are true, he's as much a witcher as any of us are. He's a good addition as a sword.
"As for trust…" He regarded her closely. "What do you mean? You felt something to make you doubt?"
She'd never met a witcher who wasn't proficient with a sword, so the fact that they had an additional combatant worked in their favor. "No, nothing like that or even close to it. Then again, I literally spent five minutes with the boy. I just wanted to know your take on him since you were so worried before."
"It's Ciri who's involved here, so I'll always be worried, you know that. And my take on him is not yet complete. It's still in the works." Geralt smirked subtly and added, "You might want to figure out your own."
"I trust you judgement," she said without a hints hesitation. She raised a hand to his shoulder, always needing to touch, always wanting to touch, as if the idea of parting again was like a torture. "But I will certainly spend some time pecking at his brain, making sure he doesn't have nefarious plans for our girl. Have you spoken to her?"
Geralt had to smile at her intentions. 'Our girl', however, still sounded strange coming from her.
"We had no time - Vesemir called the council immediately."
"You should make some," she suggested gently. "We don't know what's going to happen beyond this moment, who'll survive this battle and what words will be left unspoken."
Geralt smiled appreciatively. "I know. I shall. And thank you. For everything."
"You don't have to thank me," she said, removing her hand from his shoulder. "It's what we do. What we'll always do."
A smile of warm appreciation stroked over his mouth. "You will ask them yourself, or you want me to?"
"You should do it."
Ciri needed him now more than ever. Even if she wasn't aware of it herself.
"Let them know that when they're ready to go, I'll meet them at the gate."
With that, Yennefer left him to it and walked over to Keira to make a final check of her wounds.
Geralt found her in her old room, on the cot and staring at the ceiling. Seemingly impassive, she was boiling inside, he guessed as much.
He leaned against the wall, his arms folded, eyeing her. "I'm sorry, Ciri. I really am. But there is not so much I can do to change things or strategies for this, you know that."
Ciri didn't look at him the moment he entered, worried she might cry. Which would do neither of them any good.
"I know," she said almost automatically, letting her eyes roam the ceiling still.
"Forgive me," he said suddenly, detaching from the wall to approach and settle next to her legs. "I've been searching for you for so long, and you've been away and on the run, with all those horrors happening to you and no one there to help or even comfort… Ciri, there wasn't a day in my life since you'd been gone when I didn't wish to be there where I belonged – between you and all of those things you can't even tell me about. I failed the very purpose I had. I couldn't protect you when you needed it most."
She couldn't resist looking at him now. She moved her legs slightly to give him better space, hands resting on her stomach. "You think that was your purpose, Geralt?" she asked with a small smile. "I disagree. I think your purpose, where I was concerned, was to teach me what I needed to know in order to survive. And you did. There is no failure on your part."
Geralt gave a hem with the smallest of smiles – a sad one – and shook his head slightly, staring down at his hands. "My purpose was to always be there for you and with you. It's what I promised you. It's not about what I had to teach you or what you had to learn from me. It was about what I vowed to you. I couldn't keep it. And I would give anything to go back and change that."
Ciri sat up to face him, regarding him with an almost parental sternness. "It was not your intention for us to become separated. Any more than it was mine. It was not your fault. The world just… got in the way, as it always does. Put the guilt away. You do not deserve to carry it."
"Sometimes I thought I was wrong to take you from that trader's family," he mused. "What if you stayed there… Maybe all this horror could have been avoided for you. You'd lead a peaceful life. Without being hunter like a rare breeding horse. It's not fair."
"They would have found me sooner or later." She shrugged. "And I would not have experienced the happiness you and the others gave me at Kaer Morhen." Her gaze found her hands as well. "Besides, I would have spent every day longing for you. And I certainly would not have understood your reasoning for leaving me behind.
"We've all had a hard past but… I do not wish to change it. It has made me who I am and I think, given the chance to experience something other than running and hiding, you might like who I have become. I hope so. I hope to make you proud."
"Ciri," he said with a soft, tender kind of reprimand, turning to look her in the eye. "I've always been proud of you. Even back at Brokilon… How brave you always were, how determined. That determination is certainly something to be proud of, for both your grandmother and me. I've never had a day without feeling pride for you since early on.
"You haven't given me any reason to not be since we reunited. You've become so strong and ready to make your own decisions and be responsible for them. Even with Gwyncath. You're not afraid to help people and protect what you believe is right. I admire that. Truly. Even if I don't always agree or see the same thing you do. I still admire you. Everything about you. I always have. I always will."
Ciri swallowed, feeling those damn tears prickle at her eyes. She forced her gaze off of him, but took one of his hands in hers. "Promise me something," she asked, then quickly amended. "Promise me two somethings.
"One – promise you will return to me after this battle. That you will not die and leave me all alone."
Geralt had to smile, despite the lump in his throat. He covered her hand with his and squeezed a little. "I never lied to you, Ciri. I won't start now – we don't know what's gonna happen out there once it starts. But what I can promise you is that I'll do anything in my power and beyond to come back to you."
"That is what I ask," she nodded. "And there is something else. Should you, any of you, against all odds, slay Eredin tonight… Try to ensure no one destroys the body before I can see? Because I am not certain I will be able to believe him truly dead until I see it with my own eyes."
He nodded. "I understand. Don't worry, if he dies – you will make sure of it. I promise."
She squeezed his hand, closed her eyes and rested her head on his shoulder. "Thank you."
The Witcher hugged her to him, enjoying her being close to him, in the flesh, being real for once. He still couldn't shake the deeply-rooted fear that she could be gone in a cloud of mist, or he could wake up and find that all to be a dream and Ciri still gone so far away from him.
"I've something to ask you, as well," he said. "Yennefer needs some components for her amulets. She requests foglets. Think you and Kain could see if there are any around here?"
Ciri wrapped her arms around him in return and squeezed him slightly to accentuate the teasing in her tone of voice. "Trust me to take on a foglet, do you?"
Geralt chuckled. "I trust that if Kain fails to protect you against a foglet or two, I'll be sure to make him regret it."
Ciri snorted and got to her feet, satisfied she had something to do and wouldn't just sit here and twiddle her thumbs. "We will take care of it. Which parts does she need?"
He got up, as well. "She said she'd meet you at the gates. You can ask her yourself. Get to the armory, though, and pick up a silver sword for yourself. You'll need it."
"Yes, sir." She squeezed his hand one last time, then made for the armory to do as told. She lingered there just long enough to pick up a silver weapon and to spot one of her old tiny swords hanging on the wall like a momentum. She smiled; the witchers were so sappy.
Kain was nowhere to be seen in the main hall, so she headed out to the upper courtyard, hoping to find him as quickly as possible while avoiding Avallac'h in the process.
Keira had assured Yennefer she was fine but made no attempt to apologize for pushing her too far. Yen didn't care to press her for one, heading toward the entrance to wait on Ciri and Kain to catch up once Geralt had passed along the message.
Kain made his way outside once the council was over, slowly getting reacquainted with the keep as he moved down the stairs heading for the outer courtyard.
The raven-haired sorceress was strolling there. She saw him and began to walk toward him.
"Something you want?" he asked when they met in the middle.
Geralt must not have spoken to him yet. She nodded. "I was thinking that you, Ciri and I should head out to hunt foglets. Up for it?"
He peered at her, dumbfounded. "And we're doing it, because?"
"Because what else have you been assigned to do?" Not that it mattered. Yennefer needed it done.
Ciri found both Kain and Yennefer out in the courtyard. She approached them while fastening the silver sword to her back, catching snippets of their conversation. "Which parts do we need?"
"I'll dissect and take what I need." Yennefer glanced between the two. "You fine with it?"
"Sure, for as long as I find a willing horse to not carry that stinking thing on my own back." Kain narrowed his eyes at her. "You need just one, right?"
"We'll take Roach. She's used to carrying trash," Ciri said, gesturing for him to follow her down towards the stables.
Yennefer trailed behind them, following them to the stables, watching the way they communicated with one another. "You'll be fine to do this on your own?"
Strolling after Ciri, Kain sighed and kept quiet. Let her deal with her own worried family. He had lost all habit for that a long time ago.
"Taking on a foglet?" Ciri gave Yennefer a smirk over her shoulder. "I should think so, yes."
Of course not what Yennefer meant but the sorceress let her have this since she'd already been rallying against them "grown-ups" smothering her far too much. "If you can, make sure you can get two or more." She could always use the extra supply, anyway. "And keep your eyes open out there – even a whisper of a frost and you go. Understood?"
"I always do," Ciri responded honestly, leading Roach out for Kain and borrowing Eskel's horse, Scorpion, for herself. "And two it is."
She climbed into the saddle, took hold of the reins and glanced over at Kain.
"Ready?"
Kain stroked a hand along the horse's neck. The mare looked at him with a bit of wonder - his energy didn't resemble her rider's.
He unclasped the belt beneath the mare's belly and took the saddle off, leaving it at the stable rack. He hopped on and took the reins, sending her into a trot ahead.
Yennefer ambled from the stable toward the wall, appearing on top of it sometime later, studying the last glimpses of their heads until they'd disappeared from her view.
"What are you going to fasten the foglets to now?" Ciri asked conversationally as they trotted beside one another, gesturing whenever they needed to make a turn. "Or do you expect me to strap them both to my body?"
Kain pointed at her saddle where a roll of rope clapped onto it. "That would do."
He trotted down the road, looking around to recall the locations of the swampy areas foglets liked, then sent the mare into gallop.
Ciri was about to object he take the lead considering they were on her home turf this time. But the objection died in her throat once she remembered he had spent quite a lot of time here, as well. He probably knew perfectly well where to find the foglets.
It wasn't long until they reached an area where the ground was soft and wet and the air around them misty with supernatural fog. She slipped off Scorpion, aware most horses did not enjoy coming in close contact with foglets or other beasts of their kind, and drew her silver sword.
He slipped off the horse's back, and it immediately trotted away to what she perceived as a safe distance. It knew what was probably coming and didn't see any point in approving.
"You know foglets aren't fond of daylight, do you?" he smirked and pointed a finger at the almost cloudless sky with bright sun in the middle. "We need to find a cave where they hide."
"There's a mine up ahead," she gestured with a nod of her head. "Vesemir told me it was used for the school forge once upon a time."
She started that way, waiting until he was beside her before she spoke again.
"So… you knew Vesemir when he was young?"
"Of course not," he scoffed, following her. "He was younger then, not by that much, though. He was already an instructor."
"What was he like? Was he fun?" She loved Vesemir but she had never exactly considered him loose and playful. He was more of a loving but stern uncle.
"Not much different from now," Kain said. "He was a firm and strong-minded instructor for the Wolves, but for those of us who came around for Summer Camp or joined trainings he was a breath of fresh air after our own mentors that didn't cut us any slack ever."
"So you're saying the Wolves were more lenient?" She pushed a few branches aside as they made their way up a small hill. It wasn't long until they spied the mine entrance, dark and ominous. Perfect.
"Not all of them, but most seemed like that to us who were used to harsher trainings."
"I used to carry a Cat medallion. Had it for a few years before I lost it while fleeing the Hunt."
He peered at her with interest. "How come? Had a friend who died?"
"I killed a man who had taken a liking to killing witchers. He kept the medallions as trophies. There was a Wolf, a Cat, and a Griffin." She shifted the sword in her hand as they entered the mine, squinting slightly due to the darkness.
Kain made no response to that – there wasn't anything wise to say to that, and since they already came to the mine, he was trying to keep quiet. He slowed down as they crept through the cave, letting himself probe the energy.
He sensed some presence deeper in the cave. At least one creature was taking refuge here.
Ciri patted Kain on the shoulder to get his attention, and gestured with her fingers in a silent question: Attack inside or draw them out?
He gestured to get deeper inside – they wouldn't get out before it was nightfall. He showed her one finger: There's just one in there.
Ciri nodded and followed behind him when he moved ahead, both on silent feet. She couldn't see every creek and corner of the mine but she could see his hair easily enough, allowing her to maneuver the dark space without running into major obstacles.
It wasn't long before they heard the hissing and growling of a creature, sounding an awful lot like the one they were looking for. It had gotten colder, too, almost like a fine mist of water was spraying their faces.
It was almost pitch black inside the cave, and a part of him wondered how Ciri was faring behind. Especially how she would do when the creature attacked.
They didn't have to wait for long: the smell was suggesting they had come to the right place. It was too dark for human eyes, but when Kain tuned into colors and energy, he saw the outline of the creature.
It was a foglet, all right, but not as big as they could get – this one was barely to his chest. It was pissed. And scared. Kain saw the muddy colors shift around him as he dashed. His invisibility provided no advantage with Kain – he saw the creature through different senses. But Ciri saw nothing and was pointing her sword every which way, almost nicking Kain in the process.
"Go a bit back where some light gets in and see that it doesn't flee," he said, waiting for the foglet's fear to strike the top chord in his brain so it would panic and fight.
The creature caught on to Ciri's flawed sight and dashed for her first. Kain put his sword between her and the foglet's body. The silver cut across his middle; the creature hissed and turned to mist again, dashing to pick another angle of attack.
Well, this was pointless. In the dark, all Ciri could see were the rare glints bouncing off their swords from tiny cracks in the ceiling. She heard the foglet, though, and sensed his foul presence.
Not in the same way Kain did, apparently, for he was still able to fight the creature.
She did as told and stepped back the way they had come, into the semi-light. She heard a scuffle between them up ahead and then silence. Had Kain finished it off? "Kai–"
She squeaked in surprise when the creature appeared out of the mist before her, thrusting her sword forward, more from a primal reaction than actual intention. It pierced the foglet's abdomen and he screeched in fury, rapidly exploding into a cloud of mist again. "Heading your way!" she warned.
Oh, he knew. He saw the creature's panic flowing freely and coiling around his outlined figure in dirty-red mist as it dashed to Kain with a pained screech.
Kain swayed his sword, catching the foglet across the middle and pushing him further into the cave, and as the creature prepared to strike again, Kain threw a hand toward it, and a brightly orange breath of flame gusted to it, engulfed and turned it into a screaming and dashing torch. Kain ran the sword through the foglet's chest and doused the flame with a wave of his hand, worried that it could damage whatever the sorceress needed to get from the body.
The creature slumped down, burnt and steaming.
Kain turned to Ciri. "Bring the rope?"
Ciri nodded, assuming he'd see, and sheathed her sword. Scorpion and Roach came to her once signaled with a whistle, trusting enough to understand she would not have recalled them in the heat of a battle. Snagging the rope off Scorpion's saddle, she quickly returned to the cave and to Kain who was standing by the fallen creature. Or so she assumed. The stench was a good indicator. "We'll need another."
Kain took the rope and fastened it to the creature's legs. "We'll have to check some other cave, then."
He nudged her toward the entrance and dragged the dead foglet behind him by the rope.
The horses weren't happy – especially the one assigned to Kain. Roach neighed, jumped away and skipped sideways, kicking her hinder legs.
"A perfect horse for a witcher," Kain said, giving Ciri an ironic eye.
She grinned. "Horses tend to give Geralt a lot of trouble. It's hilarious."
Together they managed to lift the charred foglet onto Scorpion's back, and Kain fastened it with the rope.
"Should be a few smaller caves up the hill. Can't guarantee there will be any foglets there, but it is worth a try!"
"Definitely, unless your sorceress can be satisfied with just one trophy." Kain hopped onto the skittish mare's back and gestured for Ciri to lead the way.
"She said two. She means two." Ciri climbed into the saddle and steered Scorpion in the right direction, eventually finding a path that took them towards the mountain range.
They rode in silence, and Kain enjoyed all of it: the scenery, the familiarity, the sun on his face and a short pause that allowed them to briefly forget about what was coming. His mare was trying to race the opponent, which led him to believe Geralt had been using her to earn some coin that way more than enough time to teach her the routine.
They left the mounts to graze and approached the caves on foot. Kain tried to sense anything, creeping closer. There were strange signals. More than one. Or two. Or three…
"Nekkers." He turned to her, trying to speak very quietly. "There is a bunch there, but I don't think there are any foglets around here."
Ciri sighed and turned, considering the path further down the mountain. It wasn't as though they had extra time to spend. The Hunt would be here in a few hours if Avallac'h's calculations were correct. "I know of one more possibility. If we find none there we head back with just the one. We do not want to be caught outside the keep when Eredin comes."
They left the horses where they were and turned down a mild slope, then another climb up towards the east side of the mountain.
Kain began to follow her, and then stopped as an idea came to him all of a sudden.
"I think I know where I can ask about it," he said. "The trolls must know. Those that live around the altar where the witchers charged their medallions. Know the way?"
Ciri blinked and paused, turning on the spot to make a mark of their current location. "I believe so, yes. You've got a report with mountain trolls? They're not thrilled about our kind."
She pointed him in the direction of their horses anyway, because they would need them.
"They're nice creatures, unless rabid or utterly wild," he said, and whistled for the mare. They both came, and he saw Geralt's mount eyeball him with almost human suspicion. It was as if she only stuck around because another horse did and she wasn't feeling left alone in her discomforts.
Kain did remember the route, as well, and it took them about fifteen minutes to get to the mountains ridge where the passage started.
They couldn't get too close because the caves were surrounded by a vast swampy lake shore, and drowners roamed aplenty.
"Too bad a drowner's not good enough," he murmured, drawing his sword. The mare skipped away as if on cue.
"Find one with tiny legs she might not know the difference," Ciri teased, drawing her sword as well as they descended on the swamp. It was easier together, taking out the gatherings of drowners that shuffled their way whenever they spotted them, and they got through without any major injuries. Ciri suspected her new armor helped a bit, as well. "I'll leave you to handle the conversation," Ciri said, wiping drowner blood and innards off her sword on a patch of moss as they climbed the mountainside. "I'm not terribly great at first impressions, I think." Mostly because said impressions usually meant a sword to the face. She had not met a great deal of good people on her journeys.
"You think," Kain scoffed softly, recalling her catching his eye for the first time, waving her sword around at Griffin.
They entered the caves, and they were slightly better lit than the one they found the foglet earlier. It was easier for Ciri to navigate, and it put some pep into her step. Halfway through, he noticed a small passage leading sideways. He didn't remember ever venturing that way, and showed it to Ciri.
"Let's try here. I sense something… maybe we won't need the trolls."
"As you say, White Kitten," she whispered, following him through the small passageway, hand ready at her sword in case she should need it.
Kain hissed, both annoyed and amused. "Better be slip of the tongue there, princess."
The passage was very narrow, and his shoulders barely fit; but then suddenly he stopped grazing the rocky walls with his sword, and there was a cave ahead with a drop. He stopped, scanning the darkness, and sensed something familiar. It could be a foglet resting somewhere in the depth. But to find out, they had to jump down.
He went first.
Ciri had expected hard rocky ground and braced herself for the impact when she was embraced by a body of water. It was cold but not deep, probably a collection of the droplets clinging to the mountain walls over the years. Her feet found the ground quickly enough and she waded behind Kain until they pulled themselves up onto a ledge.
For the next few seconds they had to keep their heads down as they progressed, until the rocks overhead came to an end and they were once more in an open space. "Feel anything?"
"Yes, it's there, and it knows we're coming. It might try to flee – if there is another chamber on the other side, any tunnel to run into."
"Let's hope he is hungry for a fight then," she whispered. "Or just plain hungry."
She let Kain move in front of her, only because he had a clearer view of what was going on ahead of them. Like before she heard the faint growling of a beast and felt the air grow noticeably colder.
They found the creature when it was indeed seeking where to sneak away to. It wasn't fully in the mood for a fight, but when cornered, it felt threatened and angry enough to turn into mist and skirt around them in search of a weak side for an attack. And just like in the fight before this one, it noticed Ciri's blind spots.
It gave Kain an opportunity to set it on fire while it dashed around him and toward her. It screeched, thrown off its course by panic, long and thin arms flailing, which gave them an opportunity to strike. While patches of fire dances over its skin, Ciri could see where to stick her blade. Kain gave her the chance to claim a victory.
Kain's fire helped immensely and when the creature rushed for her with flames alight on its skin, Ciri twirled her blade and thrust it forward, into its abdomen and up, piercing its heart and holding firm until it gave a final shriek and collapsed. Only then did she withdraw her sword.
"Think we'll be able to find another exit?" she asked, sheathing her sword and brushing her hair away from her face, taking hold of the creature's arms so they could haul it out together. "Not sure we will be able to go out the way we came in. Unless you've hidden a set of wings from me all this time?"
"We'll get out the way this thing wanted to," he grabbed the legs she left for him and they went for the passage almost invisible among the rocks.
It was narrow and snaked like a serpentine, but then they caught a shift of air, and it led them out... half a mile away from where their horses waited.
By the time they reached the wooden bridge of the castle, the sun had begun its decline.
They got off the horses and untied their prizes from the saddle, hauling them up the stairs to the keep. "Yen?" Ciri called, searching for the sorceress in question. "Where do you want them?"
They dragged the bodies into the keep and toward the table used for dissection at times. They put one on it and left the other on the floor.
"She might be in the lab," Kain said.
"It is possible," she said, wincing at the stench of death that became so much more intense now they were inside. "I'll go find her."
While Ciri and their newest witcher had gone off in search of the requested creature, Yennefer had gone to help Keira and Vesemir with the side of the keep that need repairing.
It wasn't easy work and by the time they'd returned the sorceresses still hadn't finished, doubting that they'd ever be able to get it into the shape it deserved before The Wild Hunt showed up on their door.
But it would hold at least for a while as was necessary.
Yennefer walked into the keep behind the two.
"I'm right here," she said, walking up behind her, carefully touching a hand to Ciri's back, moving to inspect the two foglets spread out on the table. "You weren't gone too long, didn't give you much of a hassle?"
"No more than usual," she told Yennefer, briefly eyeing Kain as he headed outside again. "Biggest difficulty was finding them."
"That's what they're known for," Yennefer reasoned agreeably, gifting her an affectionate smile. She scanned Ciri slowly to make sure she hadn't been hurt. "I better get to work."
Yennefer went in search of one of the larger knives.
"Do me a favor, go into my magic's trunk in my room and bring me a couple jars."
"Sure." Ciri didn't delay, heading for the stairs at once, passing a scowling Avallac'h, as well as Eskel and Lambert who were discussing potions and bombs.
Once in Yennefer's room, Ciri sank to her knees in front of the chest, rummaging around until she found sufficient with jars that would hold whatever it was Yen extracted from the foglets.
Ciri made use of her washbasin before she headed back down again, taking extra care to clean her hands and rid herself of the foglet smell.
"Will these do?" Ciri asked, placing the armful of jars on the table beside her a few minutes later.
Yennefer shoved one of the creatures off the table and brought her knife down onto the remaining body multiple times, severing his limbs. She was in the midst of reaching into its slim body cavity to remove the one organ that gave it the power to camouflage itself when Ciri returned.
"Perfect." Yennefer gestured with her less busy hand for Ciri to find a place on the corner of the table to put them. "Fingers in one. Eyes in another. Take the tongue as well."
"Gross," Ciri muttered, but did as Yen said, anyway, using a pair of tongs this time to portion up the foglet's innards.
Yennefer freed up the magical item of its body and carefully slipped it into one of the jars, a smile on her face as she watched Ciri complete her own task. "Not any more gross then when you slay them, right?"
Although Yen knew there was a vast difference. They rarely stuck around to clean up the mess. And what a mess it had been. For a rather average-sized creature it bled a hell of a lot and was sticking the place up.
Yennefer pushed aside the remains of the first into the wooden crate she'd readied earlier and moved to lift the second onto the table to repeat the severing and the removal of the final gland.
"Huge difference. I don't generally harvest organs. I hack, slash, and move on."
"You should. They can be quite useful," Yennefer jested. If you didn't know how to utilize them, they were as useful as a drowner.
It was strange seeing Yen like this, the woman who would chide Ciri for holding a fork in the wrong hand, wrist deep in guts and blood. "Do you… do this often?"
Yennefer dropped the last gland into the jar and set its head and hands closer to her before sweeping the remaining body onto the remains of the previous. "As often as I have to. Which isn't that regularly. But as I'm sure you learnt today, these guys aren't the easiest to come by. I'm taking advantage." Act that could be looked as a positivity, considering none of them might survive the battle going forward.
"Lucky girl," Ciri teased, putting the lids on the jars. "I expect I am to haul them out of here again now?"
"You might want to get your little suitor to help you with that." They hadn't exactly been the easiest to move around and piled on like that in pieces wasn't going to make the trip any easier unless she wanted to make multiple ones. "Think they'll forgive us for the smell?" The stench of death even thicker than it was before.
Suitor?
Ciri blanched.
What the hell did that mean? Did people think…? Oh, Kain was going to run away as quickly as possible.
Her look of trepidation hadn't gone unnoticed for Yennefer's keen eye. So Ciri didn't see the boy in a romantic light or one of a physical interest? Maybe, given what she'd told Yennefer, she just didn't understand her feelings or his, for that matter. Yennefer would have to watch them more closely.
"Oh, uh, I'm sure the witchers won't notice," Ciri said. "They smell like death most of the time themselves."
She took hold of some of the loose pieces that were easy to carry, dropping them in an empty crate before recruiting Eskel's help with the rest. Together they pushed the crate outside and maneuvered down the stairs.
Yennefer gathered up her jars, wrinkling her nose at the mess they were making and how dirty her hands were, and started up to her bedroom to get started on the amulets.
She had managed six amulets in total, one of which she planned to give Ciri. Triss offered to give her another with which to defend herself or launch an attack, but Yennefer liked the idea of her being able to flee, of being able to disappear unseen if it came down to it.
Yennefer hadn't thought about it during their discussion around the table, but it had come to her after Ciri's insistence to be part of the battle and to be able to see what was going on.
She wanted Ciri at her best and less inclined to feeling left out or babied.
Yennefer tucked the amulets into a velvet pouch and headed back into the main keep, clothes changed from those she'd stained with blood and the stench of death in search of Geralt.
Geralt was at the table studying the scheme of the fortress and making a mental list of things he had done and checked so far. He had to figure out what they could have missed, if anything.
Yennefer's footfalls pulled his eyes from the map and to her as she approached. He looked at her with question.
Yennefer let her gaze linger on his back admiringly as she approached him from behind, moving to stand beside him to take a glimpse of the schematics and what she'd have to cover.
"How's the preparations coming? Everything going accordingly?"
"It feels exactly as it is: we have a few hours to prepare for an army of hell. And even a full week wouldn't cut it. But we're managing at least something, and every little something counts." He regarded her. "What about you?"
"Your invisibility amulets are ready." She raised the hand holding the velvet pouch so that he could see. "But I need a place to charge them. Somewhere powerful. With a lot of energy."
Geralt took the pouch, weighing it in his hand pensively. "Thank you. I'll see what we can do."
He considered her, pocketing the pouch.
"I hope you spared some strength for that shield of yours. It feels like a hell of a strain. You sure you can do this and be all right?"
Yennefer assumed she's be going with him to complete the job, but when he'd pocketed them, she guessed not. It didn't matter, there was probably still more work needed to be done on the wall.
"Does it actually matter? As long as we end this nightmare for Ciri – I'll do it at any cost."
She smiled thought to let him know she wasn't planning any suicide missions.
"I'll be fine, though. What about you? How's the wound? Healed completely?"
"It has," he smiled subtly. "Sooner with your help, so thank you once again, Yennefer."
"Anytime. All the time." She inched in closer to his side. "Don't suppose there's been any changes in your memory?"
Geralt gave a slightly sad smile. "Do you think I wouldn't have told you?"
"Is there actual time for that? How would you even know?" She mimicked his smile but hers was without tell-tale sadness. "Worth checking."
She grabbed the front of his armor, raised herself up on her toes and pressed a quick kiss to his lips.
"Who are you going to take with you to get the amulets done? Where are you going to go?"
Geralt didn't know what would answer her question of how he would know. He dared hope that he would, but how and when and if… those were unknown.
He reciprocated the kiss, however, and shrugged. "It's the same place we charged your phylactery. Not far from here. I'll send Kain. If he tamed a griffin, he'll surely befriend the trolls."
"Perfect."
The part that baffled her was that he remembered that. Did that mean she'd been around in his newest world to help him find Ciri? The only change being that they—in his world—didn't love one another? Or he didn't love her?
"What do you take from his relationship with Ciri? Do you think they're physically attracted to one another?"
A frown traveled through his face. "Frankly, I've no idea so far what's going on there aside from Ciri's attraction to him due to age and appearance. She feels some sort of kinship and follows it. Growing up among us adult witchers she had no peers to interact with. And then she was gone… and hardly she discovered too many people to even trust, let alone relate to, as she puts it. He's just… new. She doesn't say much about it other than trust and being able to relate to."
"Is he attracted to her, you think?" He'd spent a tad more time with them than she had. Individually and together.
"I truly don't know," Geralt sighed, thinking about it. "He does like her, but to what extent, I do not know. He looks at her differently than she looks at him, and I thought it was due to witcher mutations, but then he said he had not been subjected to it. I haven't been seeing them together much, almost at all."
Guess that left them both with a lot of questions.
"I guess we'll see how it plays out after this battle." Yennefer could begin to feel the tension in the air, as if The Wild Hunt were already close. "You should get to those amulets as soon as you can."
"I'll do it now." He stroked a finger along her cheek, smiling, and went for the door. He guessed to find Kain in the yard with the others.
They were filling the crates along the walls with newly made bombs when the Witcher arrived. Even Ciri was helping.
"These amulets Yennefer made for the forest hunting party need to be charged," Geralt said, producing the pouch, and handed it to Kain. "I assume you know where it is."
"You assume right," he nodded, pocketing it.
"I'll go, too." Lambert approached from behind them. "My legs need some workout after hours in the lab. Come on, Cat, the sun won't wait for us."
Ciri eyed Geralt and then Lambert, flabbergasted as to why the Witcher would choose to send Kain, and concerned that Lambert had some sort of nefarious plan to murder him out in the woods.
Kain turned to Ciri. "Give me your bracelet. I want to try to restore it."
She slowly undid her bracelet and handed it to him. "I expect both of you back," she told them, Lambert more than Kain, shooting him a warning glower.
Kain put the bracelet away, as well, and followed Lambert out of the gates on foot, jogging to keep up.
Ciri looked to Geralt, partially teasing but also worried. "You didn't send Lambert into the woods to kill him, right?"
Geralt scoffed. "I wasn't planning on asking Lambert to go at all. It was his initiative."
Ciri winced. "That worries me even more."
"You don't seriously believe he'll do anything after the trial is done," he reprimanded.
Ciri shrugged. "I love Lambert, but one thing he always told me? Rules are meant to be broken."
"He won't," Eskel said. "Lambert won't do anything harsh now when the battle is near. He might be upset, but he doesn't kill without reason."
"I hope so," she said thoughtfully, watching the gate they had just exited.
Growling, the ogre stomped his thick feet and swung fist, slamming it into where Kain stood. He rolled away, retreating, and the creature's bulk completely blocked the way outside where Lambert snuck away earlier.
Kain concentrated, backing away slowly. It wasn't easy to do on the run. The ogre's mind was a hard nut to crack. Kain rolled away from under another strike of his foot and backed away further, attempting to focus once again.
One thing was clear: it was impossible to do both the fight and the power. They were two opposites.
"Well then…" he muttered and stopped moving, closing his eyes.
He felt it, the strings of energy around him snaking through the rocks and earth and air; he felt the waters of life force within his body... Almost there...
Kain stared up at the ogre an instant before that giant fist would fall upon him. The ogre froze, staring back, catching up on the vibes. It took a long moment, but then he suddenly lost interest and, grumbling, retreated into the depth of the cave.
"I thought you fell asleep back there," Lambert said, detaching from the huge boulder he was leaning against waiting. "What took you so long, oh famed Gwyncath?"
"Witcherses two, no more walk."
They turned to see two trolls approach.
"Well, it's getting better," Lambert commented, folding his arms and stepping back. "I'll pass on this bullshit."
"This mountain trolly mountain," one of the trolls reasoned.
"Troll mountain," the other one corrected.
"Oh…" the first troll glanced at his peer, pondered. "Aye…" and turned to the men: "This troll mountain."
"We merely need to use the witcher altar up ahead," Kain said, ignoring Lambert's glee. "Your mountain stays yours. We pass to altar, and then we walk away. You stay and live here as before. Deal?"
Trolls thought about it, hard. The first one shook his head: "You witcherses thing one say, thing two do."
"Thing three do, sometime," his friend added, nodding.
Kain unstrapped the sword from his back and lay it down on the grass before them. They looked at it and exchanged glances.
"I leave the witcher sword with you as a promise that the altar is all I need. I will take it back before I leave."
They pondered some more, scratched their heads.
"Yous leaves sharp backclubs, yous passes," the first agreed. "Fair do goes."
"Fair do, aye," the second nodded. "But witcherses two backclubs leaves. Or deal no go."
Kain shot Lambert a look; Lambert rolled his eyes and unbuckled his sword belt.
"Gotta admit you're way too good with all the nasty shits," Lambert said as they jogged toward the Circle. "Even better than Geralt. Then again, Geralt never killed any brother over a rabid beast."
Kain refused to discuss it all over and kept his mouth shut.
The Circle was as he remembered it. It hummed with magic, reverberating even within his Cat medallion. His fingertips were prickling with the energy flowing around over the stony altar. He lit the braziers and placed the amulets in line on the flat stone. Then produced the bracelet, twirling it in his hands a bit, probing. Once he felt the string of power within, he held it between his palms, eyes closing, mutely asking for the power to be restored to its natural state. He held onto it for a bit, then placed it among the amulets and stepped back, almost bumping into Lambert. He was curiously observing the table over Kain's shoulder.
"What's that?"
"Ask Ciri. It's her trinket."
"Ah," he sneered. "Does Geralt know you exchange trinkets?"
Kain looked him in the eye with a calm cold. "What is your problem, Lambert? That your friend died but not by my hand, and the one I killed you had no place to avenge? If it's eating you that much, then go ahead and restore the justice, why don't you?" He held his arms apart, backing away until his heels felt the edge of the cliff. Small rocks and pebbles rolled off and fell down below. "You tell them I fell. Just like that. Shit happens even to the best of us, why not me today? Just a bad day to be in the mountains."
Lambert's mouth was sneering, but his eyes were shaper than their swords. "Wanna know my problem? I'll tell you. It's how the famed White Cat is not as clean a white we thought. How both Dirk and Aiden trusted you, and had it been Aiden with you that day, he'd be dead just the same."
"Absolutely," Kain said without skipping a beat, deadpan. "Had it be Geralt with me that day, or you, for that matter, or anyone, really, even Vesemir – they'd be dead, because I couldn't make the other choice after what I saw and felt. Yes, Lambert, my connection to the beast swept away my witcher judgement, but hey, I'll never even try to justify what I did. I came here for the trial and I was prepared to take either outcome. I know what I did. I will never forget it, you can be sure of it. If it's not enough for you – deal the blow."
"You think I won't?" he squinted, and stood before Kain with a hunting knife. The braziers flames filled the blade with orange glare. "Think it matters to me that they accepted you? Think it matters than you had a place here before I did? Think any of it actually fucking matters to me?"
"I don't care if it does or not. If you're hurt so much that Aiden didn't keep you as close as you did him and never trusted you the way you trusted him and thought it was mutual – you can try and deal your justice and see if the pain goes away. I don't blame you – betrayal stings the most. So try to heal it. See if you can."
He put the blade to Kain's throat, his eyes like two circles of silvery glow locked on the Cat's, the blade pressing tightly and drawing beads of blood. His lips a tight line, twitching.
"It's not you, Lambert," Kain murmured, holding his glare. "It's never been you. It's Aiden. And Dirk. And each of them. So many of them Cats. It's their mutations, the way they were, the way they chose to be. If it were you – Geralt, Eskel, Coen – none of them would stand proudly beside you. But they do. Even I do. Because my choices were different, nor were they ever pre-conditioned with Cat-School mutagens."
"Shut up," Lambert hissed; the blade pressing harder.
"He couldn't be what you thought he was. Not because of you, but because of him. It's the ultimate truth you need to know. Take it or leave it – it's your choice."
"Zireael, a word," Avallac'h's voice cut through the silence. Ciri shot Geralt a "duty calls" kind of look and pushed away from the crate she'd been busy stocking, making her way up to the elf who stood upon one of the few patches of grass in the upper courtyard.
She merely raised one eyebrow in inquiry.
"We must make a plan amongst ourselves," he said, peering down at her.
She frowned. "We already have. And though I'm not exactly fond of said plan–"
"Not with them," he interrupted. "You and I."
"What do you mean?"
"If the witchers and their merry band of scoundrels fail in keeping Eredin's forces out of the keep, if they enter the castle, we must leave everyone behind and flee. You will take us to a world where Eredin cannot follow. Not–" he pointed out quickly, "the world with the flying ships and metal people. I did not care for that. The dh'oines were basically fornicating in the streets. No, somewhere else will do. We will need to regroup."
She blinked up at him. "What are you talking about? I am not leaving my people behind."
Avallac'h almost rolled his eyes. She could tell he was tempted. "Did you not listen? If they fail, Zireael. It will mean their death. Nothing to be done about that."
She looked to her feet, swallowing in discomfort at that thought. "They won't fail."
"Of course not." It didn't sound as if he truly believed it. "But just in case, you will stay close to me at all times, Zireael. I demand it."
Ciri did not really have the energy to fight him on it. It would not matter, anyway.
She nodded and moved back to Geralt and Eskel to help with the last few crates.
Lambert strolled back into the courtyard just as they'd finished, and it did not take her long to realize Kain was not with him.
"Where is he?" she demanded with a concerned frown, approaching Lambert.
She felt Geralt and Eskel at her back.
Lambert barely spared her a glance, lifting one shoulder in a careless shrug. "He's slow," he said simply, his voice a low growl.
"Is he coming?"
"How the heck should I know. I ain't his babysitter." He shouldered his way past her and Ciri stared at his retreating back, her gaze briefly drifting to Geralt and Eskel before she ran for the gate, crossing the small drawbridge to see if there was any sign of Kain coming up the road.
"Witchers others much fast goes," one of the trolls shared when Kain was strapping his sword on. "Circle witcherses scared them makes."
"He thought he saw a ghost," Kain commented. "He'll be fine. Eventually."
The trolls laughed. "Ah witcherses funny things does," the other troll said. "Monster kills then ghosts scared gets and runs. Ghosts monsters, witcherses not knows? Witcherses stupid now gets. Old days no stupid witcherses."
"All witchers are different," Kain said and waved. "Thank you for the pass."
"Oh," the first troll said, "witcherses no thanks gives. Yous witcherses truth says, witcherses no same is."
The ogre in the cave was sleeping peacefully – this time there was no one to wake him with a rock to the head. Kain snuck past him and set on his way back.
Kain was nowhere to be seen. What on earth? Had Lambert really done something to him?
Ciri moved away from the drawbridge and further down the graveled dirt road, trying to sense for him even if it had been an ability that appeared to come automatically in the past.
After a while, she did feel something. A pull. Her feet picked up speed and she let it guide her.
He ran back, saving the time they could all use before the sun inevitably crept over the horizon. Somewhere in the middle of the road, almost at the river, he met Ciri that seemed to have ran to meet him.
"Something happened?" he asked, stopping in front of her.
Ciri came to a halt once he came into view, torn between annoyance and relief. "Lambert came back alone. I thought… I feared… He's got a really bad temper."
"He's just hurt, it takes time to get over it," he said, continuing his way toward the keep.
"Sure," she agreed, in a better mood now she knew he wasn't dead. "He pushed me off a chair when I was eleven. For stealing a sausage off his plate during dinner. He's vengeful, I tell you."
Kain smiled a little. "The question here is why you would steal from another one's plate."
"I was a growing girl!"
"And no one knew to feed you better?"
She shrugged, hiding a smirk. "I had a wolfish hunger. Problem was, so did Lambert."
"And there was absolutely nothing to hunt around here," he said ironically and began to jog when the keep's bridge came into view. "So both of you had to fight over sausages."
"You see how protective those men are of me?" she asked, jogging along with little effort. "As if they would ever let me outside the keep without supervision. I might break a nail."
"I can see that," he said. "The whole mob of witchers crowding you as we speak."
He slowed to a stroll as they entered the courtyard and turned to her, holding out the bracelet.
"I hope it fixed it. But I'm not the one to tell."
"I meant at age eleven," she said, gently nudging him before coming to a full stop, eyeing the bracelet he handed her. "Thank you. Whether it works or not, I appreciate it. I shall call for her after… Well, you know. If there is an after."
"There is certainly an after for you," he said seriously. "Your elf will make sure of that, and so should you. Don't grant the Hunt an easy win. Or any win, if you can."
"It's not really me I'm worried about," she confessed, making her way back up to the castle. People were starting to ready themselves. The tension in the air was palpable.
"I know. But worry robs you of strength. You will need the latter until the fight is done. Don't lose it to worry. You can hardly change much of what's to come. And even if you can – worry has nothing to do with anything at all."
He saw Geralt raising a hand in a brief gesture from the top landing, and jogged toward the stairs.
Easier said than done. Everyone she loved and cared about in the world was right here, risking death. She would never stop worry.
She followed Kain up the steps where they reunited with Geralt. "Anything else that needs to be done?"
"Only to be prepared to move out," Geralt said. "Everybody's back in the keep now – all trapping pits are ready in the woods, all bombs are made, all swords distributed. The wall repaired as much as it could have been, Triss and Keira went to take their posts on the walls. Yennefer is waiting for you, Ciri, before she goes to her tower. Go." He pulled her to him and kissed her forehead. "I'll see you in a bit before I go."
"All right," she said, squeezing him gently before turning to Kain. She hugged him, too. "Be safe. Don't do anything heroic."
She released him before he could respond and stepped inside in search of Yennefer.
"We're moving out shortly," Geralt told him when Ciri walked away.
The Cat nodded and produced the pouch with amulets. Geralt took it, pulled one out and handed to him. Then gave him a pensive eye.
"With no mutation, how's your healing? Sight, smell without potions?"
"I compensate with my own abilities. I can see in the dark, but differently. I can see colors, magic, I can fight in pitch black. Healing is also coming from magic practices."
"Who taught you?"
"Druids raised me."
"I see." He thought about it, his eyes narrowing pensively. "Dryads don't favor witchers. It makes sense now why they let you stay."
A slight wince swept through Kain's face. "Not like they killed you on sight, either."
Geralt seemed surprised. "They told you about me? Who, the queen?"
"Her daughter, mostly."
Something snuck through his eyes, a sort of melancholy. "You knew Morénn?"
"I did. I left right after she died in the battle on the border."
A few emotions passed through the Witcher's frowning face, and then some kind of understanding settled there. He merely nodded and jerked his chin toward the keep. "I'll check where our team is, and we can go." He went on through the doors.
Kain pocketed the amulet and leisurely began to descend the stairs heading to the stables.
Geralt had informed her that all they had left to do was to wait, to expect the inevitable attack and to reenergize while they had the opportunity to do so. Which is why—before anyone else—Yennefer headed up to her acclaimed space a level or two above the courtyard and their would-be battle field where she was able to spread her magic evenly.
When Ciri found her, the sorceress was seated on the ground amongst the stone and weeds that had grown up there, hands resting in her lap, doing a poor job of trying to meditate.
"Getting ready to head inside?"
"Mhmm," Ciri said sourly, hating the reminder of how she was to do nothing except cower and hide in fear while brave knights fought for her life. Like a damned princess. "How are you doing? Anything you need?"
"Don't look so aggrieved, Ciri," Yennefer murmured sympathetically, reading the look on her face without needing to dart into her head for confirmation. "You've nothing to prove."
She rose gracefully off the ground, swiping the dust from her backside.
"You've been eluding The Wild Hunt for two years with very little back up and what you've achieved has been inestimable. We're simply helping you lighten the load and ending this chapter."
She took a gentle hold of Ciri's shoulders, sweeping her ashen hair behind her ear.
"You've done enough. All you need to do is make sure that you remain safe and to remember to run if for whatever reason we aren't able to hold them off long enough. Don't hesitate. Don't give them what they want. All right?"
It had never been about proving something to them. It was about facing her fear. Her nightmares. Of overcoming it. Hidden behind an army of others, Ciri could do no such thing. The fear would remain forever. No matter who won.
But she nodded, nonetheless, staring into Yen's violet eyes. People said they were cold. Ciri had never seen anything but warmth there. "Fine," she said, reaching out to affectionately tug on one of her curls. "Promise me you won't die."
"I can't promise you that, my sweet Ciri. I don't ever want you to think me a liar," she said, encircling her arms around the girl, drawing her against her chest like she had done many times when Ciri was a child and feared Yen might never get to do again. "But know that I will try, that I will do whatever it takes to keep them off you and to protect what remains of our family."
"If you and Geralt die, I die." And for once Ciri wasn't being literal. She would want to die, though. She would not want to go on. How could she? "So you best come back to me," she whispered into the fragrant raven hair, inhaling the scent that meant safety and comfort.
"Always," the sorceress promised. She only hoped that whatever lay in wait for her in the end of their lives would allow her that chance – at least to say goodbye.
Yen held onto her a few greedy seconds longer, and then gently pulled back, peering into her eyes, feeling that no matter the gruesome outcome, that it was worth it. Geralt had given her so much in her life that even she wasn't aware of, but this girl, she'd fulfilled it with a part that had been stolen from her, that the sorceress had fought years for and never dreamed conceivable.
"Thank you for being my daughter. For being who you are."
She pressed a kiss to Ciri's forehead, savoring the last few moments they had together, using it as a means to imbue herself with added strength.
"Now go, get inside and stay out of sight for as long as you possibly can."
Ciri felt herself go misty-eyed and knew Yen would not approve. She'd always chided Ciri whenever she cried as a child.
She nodded and withdrew. "I love you." Then she headed back inside and made her way down to the first floor where those who had yet to take their positions outside were waiting, including Avallac'h.
Ciri headed straight for Geralt and wrapped her arms around his waist, tucking her head beneath his chin.
He wrapped his arms around her and closed his eyes, savoring the moment to carry it within his heart for the remaining time he had.
"I love you, Ciri. I won't let them take you away again."
"And I won't let them take you from me," she promised, voice muffled against his armor. "I love you."
"Please, try to stay out of trouble," he asked in a quiet voice. "If something goes wrong, use your power and make sure they can't catch you."
"I promise to be as careful as I can," she whispered. "And to follow my instincts." She pulled away a little to gently touch his face, smiling. "We're going to be alright. There is no other option."
Geralt returned her smile and tried to make it reassuring. "We'll do all we can to make it so, Ciri. I promise you as much. And always remember how proud I am of you. Of everything about you."
He planted another long kiss to her forehead, then let go and started toward the front doors. He was sure the hunting party was waiting in the stables.
She watched him to, barely restraining the urge to run after him and cling to his legs like she did as a child.
She swallowed and felt Avallac'h's long fingers grasp her shoulder. "Come sit down," he said calmly.
She shook her head. "No. Outside until they breach, remember?" She turned and headed back for the stairs that would carry her up to the higher levels of the keep.
It was with heavy heart that Geralt walked away from Ciri – once again, it felt like a betrayal. As if someone threw him back in time, and he was walking away leaving her to scream his name into his back. He cast a glance back at her – something he couldn't help – before he exited.
As he strolled down the stairs and across the inner yard, he spotted the defenders of the keep all in their designated posts. Yennefer watching the landscape from the tower; Triss walking along the wall, watchful and worried; Vesemir was smearing oil over his blade and nodded as Geralt passed. Eskel was practicing in the outer courtyard, fencing all by himself. The Druid, Hjalmar with his few men and Zoltan all stood together, Roche and Ves to the side of them, discussing some last details. Geralt's team of four was at the stables waiting for him. Letho, Lambert, Coen and Kain stood next to the horses.
He gave out their amulets, and they set out. The sun was setting, hiding away behind the mountains and forests. And as they breathed out, steam clouded the air before their mouths.
So it began.
Geralt looked back over his shoulder as they rode across the bridge, and saw Yennefer's shield steadily expanding, covering more and more ground to envelop the keep.
They rode faster toward the woods.
Avallac'h caught her again before Ciri could make it to the stairs, arms wrapping around her from behind in a most uncharacteristic Avallac'h way. "We are staying here, Zireael."
"You can stay wherever you want, but I am going outside," she argued, squirming in the Elf's embrace.
He seemed not to notice and all but dragged her back into the main room, the tips of her boots scraping along the floor in a, quite frankly, humiliating manner.
"Avallac'h! You can't do this. I need to see what is happening!"
"Calm yourself," he answered and came to a halt with them both before one of the few looking-glasses in the castle. He unwound one arm from around her to touch its reflective surface, uttering something in Elder Speech she struggled to truly comprehend. But the meaning became clear soon enough.
As though a window had opened up before them, the looking glass allowed them a good view of the courtyard outside, and she felt some of the tension drain from her shoulders.
He let her go before long but remained behind her, his gaze as eager as hers to witness what was happening outside.
"Remind me to thank Yen," Lambert said as they dismounted and watched from an elevation in the woods how the barrier expanded and covered the whole keep. "This spell is truly something."
"Takes an incredible amount of power," Kain said. "She won't be able to maintain it for long without damaging herself."
"Let's not waste her time, then," Geralt said. "Let's go."
They clasped the belts with bombs around their waists and activated Yennefer's amulets, becoming no more than distortions of air.
"Remember, don't come too close to hounds and don't engage in battle unless necessary," Geralt instructed. "Our job is to close the portals."
The sky darkened immensely as if a hurricane was coming. The ground shook and the wind became so strong they barely stayed standing. And then they saw the first group of Riders approaching from the other side of the river crossing the path leading to the keep.
"Here we go," Lambert muttered and made to go, but Geralt caught him by the arm.
"No. Do not engage and let Triss show what she can do."
The team of Knights began to cross the river when it seemed the very sky rained fire upon them. When the smoke dissipated, the witchers saw their burnt bodies, steam coming from their charred armor.
Lambert whistled quietly. "If any of you ever feel like I'm about to piss off Merigold, make sure to whack me upside the head."
"The portals," Geralt reminded. "Let's go."
They crossed the river and jogged into the woods.
Every hit from the outside of the barrier was like an internal punch, making Yennefer want to fold in on herself, to have the power that was exploding outside of her consume her.
They weren't even that deep into the battle yet.
She gritted her teeth, tipping her head skyward, peering through the barrier as if to seek help from the Gods, to have them infuse her with the strength she knew she had, that she always believed she had.
They had to split up eventually when it became clear there were more portals than they could handle while traveling in one bunch. Lambert, Coen and Letho decided to cover the closest part of the woods while Geralt and Kain went further, hurrying as much as they could considering the hounds lurking around and running ahead of their parties. Geralt decided to not engage any fights until absolutely necessary – the portals were the main focus.
Random fire attacks were still booming around the forest landing on the groups of Knights venturing too close to the river – the last possible border where Triss Merigold could clearly see her targets from her vantage point.
Geralt surprised Kain with a very decent aim for someone who didn't use much of crossbows or bows in his fights. They covered about a dozen portals in the outer line of the woods, and it became clear to them why the ground was shaking when the attack began.
"They must be using something truly grand in power to make so many breaches possible," Kain said while they waited for another group to pass by, keeping their distance. "It must be something big, some power source to open the passages and let through so many fighters."
"I'm sure there are things at their disposal we can't even guess about," Geralt responded. "Which makes our chances slimmer by comparison."
The Cat smirked. "Don't know precisely what your instructors were teaching you Wolves, but ours used to recite endlessly how half of the battle's success is picking the battleground and knowing its tricks."
Geralt glanced at him with an unwitting, amused sneer. "I recall something similar, all right. But for us it was mostly versatile skills in the close fight."
"I remember."
They came out of the shrubbery as the last of the Knights was far enough, and looked around to spot any possible new portals. There were none too close.
"They're all moving toward the keep," Kain said. "We can't leave them all to Triss – magic is draining, I know that, and she's going to be spent by the time they breach inside, and they will, we all know that. We have to try and take out as many as we can here."
"Yes, we all know that," Geralt said. "But how do you suggest we take on an army like that? Including the hounds – in case heavily armored knights don't seem like an issue to you."
"You have your signs, Geralt. I have my ways. We have to do it. All five of us – we're the last fence the keep has. The last."
The Witcher pondered for a moment, glancing ahead at the keep and the portals flashing and closing ahead while the other three scouts worked. Then he nodded. "All right, I see the point. We can die inside just the same, but it better have some bigger impact out here. Let's go see where the guys are. Lone wolves die while pack survives."
They took an arch of a route to avoid most troops on their way back closer to the keep.
Avallac'h and Ciri watched the looking glass intently. There were no enemies visible to them from their vantage point as of yet, but Ciri could tell they were close. Why else would Triss be hurling fireball after fireball down into the woods outside the keep?
They were yet to see a signal from Geralt and his group, and Ciri prayed that meant they were just busy closing portals and disposing of the Riders as they came through, and that they were not too injured to call for Triss' reinforcements.