I do not own Witcher or any of the characters.
Too Far
"We're fucked."
"Well...maybe she'll have calmed a bit?" Regis offered.
Eldin gave him a flat, unimpressed look. "I see your sense of humor still needs work."
"Yes...well...even I must admit, Dettlaff's actions were highly inappropriate, reprehensible, even," Regis said.
Eldin nodded in silence.
"Are you upset?" Regis asked.
"I'm afraid," Eldin said. "A peaceful solution is the only way to avoid risking Dettlaff killing Aralyn and Renfri. And now, with Dettlaff hiding from us, and Syanna locked away somewhere only Anna knows how to find her, that peaceful solution is slipping further and further away. And the moment Dettlaff attacks Beauclair, my hands will be tied. I'll be obligated by both the Witcher code and my own morals to kill him."
Regis nodded. "I understand. I had hoped we could find him as well, but..."
They'd spent five days searching for Dettlaff, but had had no luck. Their time limit for Dettlaff's ultimatum had expired. Unless Anna brought them to Syanna immediately, which was beyond unlikely, they weren't going to be able to stop Dettlaff's attack.
"Her Most Illustrious Grace awaits the gentlemen," a guard informed them as they reached the palace.
He turned, leading them through the palace to a balcony where Anna waited, along with Damien, Aralyn, and Renfri. Aralyn and Renfri both ran forward to greet Eldin with a kiss, and Eldin hummed interestedly as Renfri pulled away, Renfri grinning instantly.
"Your grace, the population demands she be punished!" Palmerin was arguing with Anna. "Syanna has committed terrible crimes! Spilt so much blood! They-"
"Another word, Palmerin, and I shall spill even more blood," Anna warned. "Yours." As Palmerin bowed and backed away, Anna turned to several nobles who were gathered off to the side, apparently all demanding Syanna's head. "I repeat for the last time, Syanna is responsible for the death of many, true...but she is also my sister. We are bound by blood, and by a shared childhood. I shall not allow her to be lynched."
"Your Grace, I fear the masses might rise," Palmerin warned, "storm the prison, pitchforks and torches in-hand."
"Let them storm," Anna said calmly. They will not find her there. Syanna is hidden away in a safe place. She shall await trial there until we have rid ourselves of this accursed vampire." She turned to Eldin and the others. "Which, to judge by your miens, has not yet come to pass."
"We did what we could, but-" Eldin began.
Anna waved her hand as she snapped, "My patience is at an end, Witcher! Where is he!? Where is Dettlaff!?"
"Hidden, Your Grace," Eldin said. "A Higher Vampire that does not wish to be found won't be, even by the best of trackers, be they Witcher or even other Higher Vampires. Incidentally, the second vampire whose cooperation I had also tried to help find Dettlaff, but even he was unsuccessful."
Anna let out a long sigh. "At times, I hunt foxes. Do you know how it works? The Ducal Huntsman releases the hounds. They catch the fox's scent, chase the animal down, and lead the battue to it, all within an hour. You, Witcher, have had more than a week. The aid of my most excellent knights. Yet you have tracked absolutely nothing down. I've begun to suspect maybe my beagles might have done a better job."
Eldin's eyes narrowed slightly. "Then perhaps Your Grace should have sent a beagle, instead of a Witcher, after the vampire."
Anna was taken aback for a moment. "You tread on thin ice, Witcher. Very thin. Wisdom demands you choose your words more cautiously."
"And wisdom demands you listen to what I have to say!" Eldin snapped back at her. "You hired me because of my expertise-"
"No!" Anna snapped. "I sent for Geralt! It was never my intention to hire you!"
"Anna," Renfri said. "Please, listen to him."
Several people looked between Anna and Renfri but said nothing, and after a moment, Anna nodded.
"We couldn't find Dettlaff because Dettlaff didn't want to be found," Eldin said. "Higher vampires can turn invisible, fly, or transform into smoke. If they don't want to be found, they can't be. Dettlaff will only reveal himself if we bring Syanna to meet him. I can promise to protect her, but I can also promise that without her with us, we will never find Dettlaff. Now, Dettlaff has promised to attack tonight if Syanna doesn't go to meet him. Which means we have no time left. The only chance to end this peacefully is to take Syanna to meet with him."
"I do not wish to have a peaceful resolution!" Anna snapped. "I want you to kill him!"
"AND I WANT ARALYN AND RENFRI TO SURVIVE!" Eldin thundered, then calmed himself slightly, though he was no more polite when he continued. "If it comes to a fight, and he attacks them, they will die! I don't even know if I can beat him! But you, like all humans, have decided that only you deserve to be protected! That anyone who isn't a human is a thing that deserves to be destroyed! He was in love with Syanna! He thought she was kidnapped and being tortured! He thought she was going to be killed! Name me one human who's considered a good person but who wouldn't go to the same lengths for someone they love!"
Anna stared at him in silence. However, just as she opened her mouth to respond, a guard staggered up the stairs nearby, panting and clutching at a claw wound in his abdomen, blood coating his face and leaking from the wound. As he stumbled and fell, Eldin's blood ran cold, his entire body going numb at once.
"Your Grace!" the guard gasped out. "Vampires!"
"Where!?" Renfri asked urgently.
"Everywhere!" the guard gasped out. "They've attacked the city! Captain de la Tour defends the square near the boat landing...but...so many lives lost!"
As if on cue, a warning bell finally began to toll, and as the sleeping residents of Beauclair stirred, the screams and panic began. Anna ran to the edge of the balcony, staring down at a city in flames, but Eldin turned to Regis, Eldin's eyes watering. It was too late. His choice had been stolen.
"I'm so sorry," Eldin breathed.
Regis grit his teeth, bowing his head, then growled loudly before it turned into a sigh. "If I can convince him to call off his attack and to leave the city, will you stay your hand? Will you spare him?"
"I..." Eldin hesitated. "Maybe. Do you think you can?"
"I can only promise to try," Regis stated.
"Then we'll cross that bridge when we come to it," Eldin said.
"Witcher!" Anna said urgently, speaking quickly. "I hired you to slay vampires, so go and slay them! This time, I'll have no excuses! Palmerin, you-"
She stopped as a helmet crashed to the ground at her feet, a spray of blood just behind it. All of them spun as a wet crunch rang out, then stared at the corpse of a guard and the Bruxa that currently had her teeth sunk into his throat. She raised her head, snarling, and Eldin, Aralyn, and Renfri drew their swords at once.
"Regis, Palmerin, get her out of here!" Eldin snapped instantly. "Everyone else, run!"
Several guards moved to attack the Bruxa instantly, only for Eldin to throw them aside with a weak Aard blast. The Bruxa lunged at them, only to vanish a split second before Aralyn's sword flashed through the space she'd occupied a moment before. Eldin, Renfri, and Aralyn all spread out, tense and ready to strike, and watched the world around them carefully.
Eldin reached into his satchel and pulled out an elixir and a silver dust grenade, lighting the grenade as he drained the elixir. Then, as his face paled and dark veins spread through it, he spun, hurling the grenade toward Renfri. She held her breath instantly, diving forward, and a moment later, the grenade exploded, forcing the Bruxa to appear. Instantly, it shrieked, lunging at Eldin, who spun around her, slashing at her back. The Bruxa deflected the strike with her claws, then Aralyn's with her other hand's. Renfri charged, but before she could reach it, the Bruxa shrieked, visible rings of sound racing outward from her mouth. Renfri's arm snapped up, a Quen barrier forming around her and defending her from the attack.
Eldin and Aralyn both slashed again, but the Bruxa leapt into the air, evading both strikes, then slashed at them. Both deflected the strike with their swords, but before either could react, the Bruxa shrieked again, blasting both away. Renfri charged, only for the Bruxa to deflect her slash, then slash back at her, forcing her to leap away, only barely evading the Bruxa's claws. Then, the Bruxa had wheeled around and was pursuing Aralyn with a single-minded ferocity. Aralyn wove and danced aside from slash after slash, striking back when she could, but the Bruxa was too fast, and Aralyn couldn't land a strike. Then, her claws managed to catch Aralyn's sword and sent it spinning away. The Bruxa shrieked victoriously, lunging, only for Aralyn to drop, twirling under a slash as she reached back, drawing her daggers.
She'd had her steel dagger's blade replaced by an identical silver blade by the same blacksmith who'd made Renfri's swords. The dagger was now identical to Aralyn's original silver dagger, and both of them now bore the same protection spell as Eldin and Aralyn's sword.
As Aralyn finished her spin, now in a low crouch, and as the Bruxa's arms flashed over her, crossing, she lunged. One arm slashed overhead, the dagger blade upward, and the other slashed diagonally from the bottom left. Both strikes found their mark, both of the Bruxa's arms spinning away as a gash opened across her torso. Then, Aralyn rose, twirling and stepping lightly around the Bruxa, her daggers flashing over and over as blood scattered into the air and splattered across the floor. Finally, Aralyn stepped away, allowing the Bruxa's mutilated, fileted corpse to crash to the ground.
"I forgot how scary you are with those," Renfri commented.
"Why do you think I don't piss her off?" Eldin snorted, walking over to Aralyn with her sword as Aralyn used a rag to wipe the blood from her daggers blades, then sheathed them, accepting the sword.
"It seems I misjudged Eldin's reasoning for exactly why only he can fight Dettlaff and live," Regis mused. "You're more skilled with a blade than he is, but without being able to drink his elixirs and decoctions, you can't defeat Dettlaff."
Aralyn nodded. "Only Eldin can win."
Regis nodded. "There's only one way to end this, peacefully or otherwise. We must first draw Eldin out."
"With Syanna," Eldin nodded. "We'll have to find her first."
"Damien knows," Renfri said. "Among the many things Anna and I discussed while lying naked in bed together was Syanna's fate. Anna wouldn't tell me where Syanna was, but she let it slip that Damien was the only person who knew while I had her distracted."
"There you go, then," Regis nodded. "We can go and find Damien, and then-"
"Hold on," Eldin said, Regis frowning as he turned back to him. "Syanna won't be safe if we take her to him, not anymore. Is there any other way to draw Dettlaff out?"
Regis hesitated. "One. But it is...to call it dangerous would be simply a scandalous understatement. You see, somewhere nearby lives an unusual denizen. One of the Unseen. Ancient and powerful vampires, among the oldest and strongest."
"Compared to Dettlaff," Eldin said.
"Dettlaff is but a child," Regis said. "The Unseen would slaughter Dettlaff before he could blink."
"I see," Eldin nodded. "And what does this Unseen have to do with anything?"
"Toussaint is this Unseen Elder's territory," Regis explained. "All vampires owe him fealty while they're here. He need but say the word, designate a time and place, and Dettlaff will be forced to appear."
Eldin considered for a long few seconds. "And I'm guessing that this Unseen Elder doesn't take kindly to unwanted guests or unexpected visitors?"
"They typically do not, no," Regis shook his head.
"Then we won't disturb him," Eldin decided. "Let him remain unseen. We'll force Damien to tell us how to find Syanna."
Regis nodded, breathing a sigh of relief, and they all turned, running from the palace. As they did, Eldin passed Renfri an elixir, the decoction he'd made from the Albino Basilisk that gave accelerated healing, and the decoction he'd made from the Cockatrice that Voleth Meir had summoned to Kaer Morhen, which gave enhanced strength, speed, more durable bones, and telescopic vision. Eldin himself refrained from drinking any yet, knowing he'd likely need as many as possible to kill Dettlaff. He also wanted to have the Albino Basilisk decoction, but he wanted to know Renfri would live more.
As they ran, a Fleder suddenly exploded to the ground in front of them from the underside of an arch up ahead, shrieking and leaping at them. All four of them dodged aside from the vampire, and as it passed, three swords tore through it, cutting it to pieces without anyone breaking their stride. A second leapt over the cliff to their right, only for Regis to catch it and hurl it into the ground in front of Eldin, whose sword swept its head off as he passed it.
"Your taboo includes lesser Vampires?" Eldin asked.
"It does," Regis nodded. "I can fight them, but not kill them."
Eldin nodded just as Guillaume bounced past them at a corner in the path, a Katakan leaping after him. Renfri instantly blasted Eldin in the back with Aard, and Eldin yelped in surprise, then flipped, splitting the Katakan across the torso as he passed over it. Its upper body bounced over Guillaume, and its lower body rolled to a stop just shy of him as Eldin drove his sword into the ground, skidding to a stop.
"Witcher!" Guillaume gasped. "I feared you were still searching for the Beast!"
"Fortunately, no," Eldin shook his head. "Regis, go and help where you can. Let me worry about finding Syanna."
Regis nodded. "When you have found her, whisper a word to the crows, and I shall find you."
Eldin nodded, and Regis turned, running back toward the palace so that he could travel the way he'd need to once he was out of Guillaume's line of sight. Guillaume stood, and Eldin sent him back to the palace to help guard Anna. Finally, they reached the bridge from the palace to the rest of the city, crossing it just as a group of terrified civilians crossed it running in the other direction. At the far end of the bridge, a street was filled with burning debris, probably intended to limit the vampires' movement, only for an Ekimmara to leap over the debris, passing directly through the flames before tearing into the guards gathered there.
Renfri charged forward, the Cockatrice decoction allowing her to easily race ahead of the others, reaching the Ekimmara after only its second slash, three guards having died of the eight. The Ekimmara roared, lunging for Renfri, only for her to duck into a move somewhere between lunge and leap, slashing the Ekimmara down the front, killing it instantly.
"Thank you, Witcher!" one of the surviving guards gasped out.
As Eldin and Aralyn joined Renfri, they all looked around. There was hardly a building not on fire, and fires dotted the streets and squares around them as well. Eldin swallowed hard.
"We have to split up," Aralyn said gravely.
"I was afraid you'd say that," Eldin sighed. "Be careful, please. Both of you."
"We will be," Aralyn promised, kissing him.
"You be careful, too," Renfri ordered him, kissing him. "We'll meet in the square by the boat landing."
Aralyn nodded, kissing Renfri. Then, they all turned, sprinting in a different direction. A Fleder shrieked as it leapt at Eldin, but he ducked, eyes narrowing as he saw an Alp racing through the sky toward him also. Eldin's blade split the Fleder, killing it just before he formed a Quen barrier, blocking the Alp's shriek. A second later, he dropped the barrier just in time to sidestep the Alp's claws, his blade splitting it diagonally across the torso. He continued through the city, slaughtering any vampires he met. He refrained from using his mask, however, as he saved civilians and guards every few minutes. After five minutes, a Bruxa got the drop on him with a shriek, and the fight lasted nearly five minutes before he managed to drive his sword through its heart. A few minutes later, a pair of Alps fought him together, leading to a nearly ten minute fight.
He saved a pair of knights whose names he didn't know from a group of five Garkains and three Fleders, he was ambushed by three Ekimmaras, he caught a pair of feeding Bruxae by surprise, decapitating both of them before they could react, he passed through a square where several humans were looting and promptly died trying to fight him.
Finally, he reached the square where they'd been told Damien had last been seen at the same time as Aralyn and Renfri. Both were bore the signs of having been wounded, Renfri having gashes in her armor on her right bicep and the left side of her abdomen and Aralyn across the front of her left thigh and her back, but Renfri's Albino Basilisk decoction had healed her wounds, and Aralyn had healed her own wounds. All three smiled at each other, only to immediately dive forward into identical rolls, dodging a trio of Garkains as they exploded to the ground. As all three moved to stand with each other, facing outboard, more than a dozen vampires stalked into the city. Garkains, Fleders, Ekimmaras, and Katakans. Eldin narrowed his eyes, raising his sword to his chest as Renfri and Aralyn did the same. As they waited for the tension in the air to snap, starting the bloodbath, a pair of Alps landed on opposite sides of the square, and a pair of Bruxae shrieked above them, not attacking, but announcing their presence as they circled the square in their massive, bat forms.
"Dettlaff has sent us a personal entourage," Aralyn noted.
"That's not a good sign," Renfri mused.
Suddenly, a burning carriage blocking a street off to one side crumbled and sounded the starting bell. With a string of roars, the vampires all charged, and Eldin, Renfri, and Aralyn all shoved their arms outward. Two Aard blasts and Aralyn's more powerful telekinetic force spell exploded through the ranks of the vampires, hurling many of them. Then, all three charged. As Eldin reached the vampires still standing, they all lunged at once, but he moved nearly as fluidly as Aralyn, stepping around strikes and severing arms, legs, torsos, necks. He stabbed a Fleder through the heart, blasted a Garkain into a corner of a wall, breaking its back. He ducked under an Alp's claws, blasted a Bruxa to knock them away before it could reach him. He blocked a pair of Shriek attacks with a Quen barrier, bifurcated a Katakan. An Alp slashed at him and he spun and twirled around them, his sword sweeping around and around him, all but shredding the Alp at the same time as cutting down two Fleders and an Ekimmara. He heard wings flap and pushed off the ground, leaping into the air while spinning, and his sword whipped around and around, carving four slashed across a Bruxa's back as it passed under him, slicing its spine into segments and killing it.
As he landed on his feet, he dropped into a crouch, his sword at his side and sticking up in the air over him, removing the other Bruxa's wing. It crashed to the ground behind Aralyn, and she spun, decapitating it before her sword arced up through a Katakan, then back down through an Ekimmara. Renfri passed behind her, pursuing the other Alp, who was stubbornly evading every swipe and slash of her sword. However, just as the Alp moved to attack, the last Garkain leapt at Renfri from behind, and she leapt over it, flipping backward, and the Garkain slammed into the Alp just before Renfri hurled her sword after both. The sword split the Garkain's head vertically to the throat and the Alp from her left shoulder to her heart. Renfri landed on her feet and instantly leapt forward into a cartwheel, avoiding a Katakan's claws before stopping by her sword and ripping it out of the corpses in tims to kill the last Ekimmara as Aralyn killed the Katakan. And with that, the battle was over.
Eldin sighed, looking around. The signs of whatever battle had driven Damien from the square were all but ruined by the battle they'd just fought. They couldn't investigate the square.
"Now what?" Eldin asked.
"They weren't ready to fight vampires," Renfri considered. "Someone was probably wounded before they retreated, right?"
"They'd have left a blood trail," Aralyn nodded.
Eldin nodded, and the three of them ran from one street to the next, searong for blood. Finally, Renfri found a trail, and Eldin and Aralyn hurried over to them before quickly following the trail. Finally, they found Damien and the rest of his men, every single one gravely wounded, taking shelter just inside of a small shop.
"Aralyn, heal them," Eldin instructed, then turned to Damien, who was bruised and bloodied, and had shallow gashes on the right side of his face from claws, but not seriously wounded like his men. "Damien, you need to tell me where Syanna's being held."
"I cannot," Damien said. "I cannot betray Her Grace's orders."
"Look around!" Eldin snapped, not in the mood to waste time being polite. "You're a good man, Damien, and loyal to a fault, but you're not stupid! So look around! Your men are on Death's door! The city's on fire, and people are dying! If we don't stop this, now, there will be no one left to save! The only way to stop this is to bring Syanna to Dettlaff!"
Damien clenched his fists, gritting his teeth. Finally, he sighed, nodding. "When last I saw Syanna, Her Grace was escorting her to the palace playroom. It's through the central courtyard."
"Playroom?" Renfri asked. "As in, for children, right?"
"That's right," Damien nodded.
"Okay," Eldin nodded, quickly writing out the recipe for Vampire Oil. "Now listen closely. For the lesser vampires, the ones who don't look human, you'll want silver. Have anyone who knows how to make oils make as much of this as they can, gallons of it. It'll cause any vampire you can cut with a blade coated in it intense pain, should be enough to drive them off, in large enough quantities. For the Bruxae and Alps, the ones that look like women, or giant bats if they're transformed, you'll need bombs filled with silver shavings. It'll force them to turn visible if they try to turn invisible, and the silver can hurt them as shrapnel. You won't be able to kill all of the vampires, but it'll allow you to drive them off if they try and attack you while you retreat to your barracks and protect any civilians taking shelter there."
Damien nodded. "Thank you, Witcher."
"Here," Aralyn said, handing him her original sword, the one she'd wielded when she'd first started traveling with Eldin. "Slashes only, and I'll be back for it once we've settled everything."
Damien nodded, thanking her, and Eldin and the others turned, hurrying back through the city to the palace, killing more than a dozen more vampires on the way. Just shy of the palace, Regis rejoined them.
"You're going back to the palace?" Regis asked.
"Syanna's in a playroom there," Aralyn explained.
Regis nodded. "Alright. Let's hurry."
"How is Dettlaff able to command lesser vampires?" Eldin asked as he felt the effects of his elixir wear off.
"Dettlaff is exceptional," Regis explained. "He's able to bend them to his will, command them with his mind. This attack will only end when he calls them off or dies."
Eldin nodded just as they reached the courtyard Damien had directed them to, only for a Fleder to tackle Eldin. Before it could kill him, Regis kicked it, sending it bouncing away. Then, as it rose, Aralyn and Renfri reached it, killing it easily. Eldin sighed in a mixture of exasperation and relief. Then, he pushed himself up, retrieved his sword, and crossed the courtyard to the only door, only to find it locked.
"Regis, think you can get this open?" Eldin asked.
"Of course," Regis nodded, transforming into smoke and passing under the door before unlocking and opening it from the inside.
Eldin thanked him as they all entered, and they headed up the stairs inside to a room with various toys spread around. There was a tea party set up, a wooden duck with the wings broken off, a broken music box that would only play the first few notes of its song correctly, then played the rest wrong, making the music sound haunting. Finally, Eldin picked up a journal, skimming through it before frowning as he stopped.
"Property of Isabelle de Roquefort, Court Governess," Eldin read. "Notes from when the two were little."
"I'm not sure it will help, but I suppose there's no harm in leafing through them," Regis mused.
"It might not help find Syanna, but it may help..." Renfri trailed off, glancing at Eldin, who smirked, nodding.
Renfri wanted to save Syanna. Eldin had known she would from the moment they'd learned that Syanna was a victim of the supposed Curse of Black Sun. It was personal to Renfri, because it was reminding her of herself.
"Syanna gave me a drawing today..." Eldin read.
"Charming," Regis said.
"...of freshly decapitated bosies covered in blood," Eldin finished.
"Perhaps not so much," Regis retracted his statement.
"I asked why ever she would draw such a thing," Eldin continued. "Her Highness claimed it was a rendering of nightmares which have plagued her for as long as she can remember. Syanna does wake up screaming nearly every night, save when she shares a bed with Anarietta."
"I had those, too," Renfri said, suddenly pale. "It's the Curse of Black Sun. It doesn't make us inherently evil, but it does bring terrible nightmares."
"When did the dreams stop?" Eldin asked.
"When I started traveling with you two," Renfri said. "Even at first, it was the first time I ever felt safe."
Eldin smiled, Aralyn taking Renfri's hand and squeezing it affectionately.
"The girls quarreled today," Eldin continued on a new entry. "I must note rather sadly that they did not behave as befits future ladies. The incident devolved into fisticuffs. Anna Henrietta was first to strike her sister. Syanna gave back as good as she'd gotten. By the time I separated them, Anarietta had lost two teeth. She ran off to complain to her parents. His Grace the Duke refused to believe my version of events. He laid all the blame on Syanna and vowed to punish the little one harshly. Anarietta did her best to have he sister's sentence commuted, but the Duke and Duchess proved unbending."
Regis clicked his tongue. "Once you're labelled a black sheep, it's so hard to shed that reputation."
"And it added to the stress and lonliness already caused by her nightmares," Renfri reasoned, eyes staring a thousand miles away seeing her own past.
"Today I accompanied the girls for the first time to the Land of a Thousand Fables," Eldin read, frowning. "We spent half the day there. First we played with Thumbelina, then with Barbarossa, who proved quite the charmer for a brigand and pirate."
"I'm beginning to suspect Isabelle de Roquefort wrote in her diary after taking a powerful hallucinogenic," Regis scoffed. "Cannabis rudelaris, for instance, or-"
Eldin shushed him. "Don't interrupt story time, Grampa Regis."
Regis frowned, then smirked, rolling his eyes. "Carry on then."
Eldin smirked. "I tip my cap to Master Artorius Vigo for his achievement. He has proved he has no equal in the arcane arts."
"Wait," Regis frowned. "Artorius was the court mage here, a specialist in illusions. Which means..."
"Regis, last warning," Eldin smirked. "Stop interrupting or you'll take a timeout in the corner."
Regis rolled his eyes.
"The girls told me if I ever wished to visit alone, I need but crack open 'The Land of a Thousand Fables' and utter out loud the incantation 'Expecto Ludum!'"
"A book as the key to an illusion," Regis realized. "My, my, this grows more interesting by the minute."
Eldin turned the page and narrowed his eyes dangerously. "Mages sent by the Conclave arrived today. They came to examine Syanna. I cannot know what conclusions they drew, but His Grace now seems clearly upset."
"That'll be when she was diagnosed with the Curse of the Black Sun," Regis understood.
"Yeah," Eldin nodded. "Diagnosed with a fake curse." He took a slow breath before continuing to read. "I dared to ask the duke what would become of the girl. He did not reply." He turned to the next entry. "I tutored the girls in Nilfgaardian today. Syanna applies herself so, though she has great difficulty memorizing vocabulary. Lady Anarietta seems more gifted in this regard, yet also prone to impish behavior. When she thought me out of earshot, she called me a 'bloede kusse.' She and Syanna laughed so hard they almost choked." Eldin frowned. "'Bloede' is 'damned' or 'cursed', but what is 'kusse'?"
"In the melodious tongue of our none too friendly neighbors to the south, the word describes the many-petaled flower that blooms in thst place we so unmelodiously call...the crotch," Regis said, Renfri snorting.
Eldin shook his head, setting the journal aside. "So, Syanna is supposed to be here, and the only thing in that journal that is possible is that illusion of the Land of a Thousand Fables."
"But if it were only an illusion, she'd be here," Renfri reasoned.
"Which means that it's not a simple illusion," Aralyn determined. "It's a magical space. An isolated dimension inside of the book." She gestured at the journal. "She's literally inside of the Land of a Thousand Fables."
"Then let's find it," Eldin said.
The only place they hadn't checked was a wardrobe, but it was locked. He hummed, looking around, and noticed a painting of a house hanging slightly askew. He crossed the room, taking the painting from the wall, and found a golden armoir key behind it. He took the key and replaced the painting, then walked over to the wardrobe, unlocking it and opening the doors. Inside was a large book, a pair of clasps binding the book closed, and the words "THE LAND OF A THOUSAND FABLES" printed across the top.
Eldin lifted the storybook, and his medallion wobbled, its chain clinking softly. He nodded, holding the book up and glancing at the others. They all nodded, and Eldin grunted in effort as he ripped the book open, breaking the clasps. He glanced at the others again, then looked down at the book.
"It's blank," Eldin reported.
Renfri and Aralyn both stepped around beside him, each reaching out to the book, Aralyn holding the front cover and Renfri the back, Eldin holding a hand under the spin as he flipped through the pages quickly.
"Might be part of the spell," Renfri offered.
Eldin glanced at both of the girls, both nodding, before all three chanted, "Expecto Ludum," together. Shining, golden writing formed on the pages, then floated toward them. For a moment, the three of them stared at the pages. Then, there was a blinding, flash of golden light, and the playroom was gone.
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