(Sniff, sniff… I wonder why I always write so much. I don't keep track of the word count, and yet I end up writing a lot. I'm a slave to my fanfiction… sniff.
Anyway, I'd love to hear your thoughts on my vision of The Witcher world—the one I've imagined to deepen its story. And if you have any questions about certain passages, I'd be happy to answer (without giving too many spoilers, of course!). I really enjoy exchanges with readers; comments on specific paragraphs create a good connection between reader and writer.
Alright, I'll stop rambling now, and I hope you enjoy the read!)
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Time seemed to freeze after Hísië's icy attack. Slowly, Hísië turned to Aiden and murmured, "Now, you know the story of this world's creation… and its destruction."
Aiden, still in shock, struggled to take in everything he had just learned. All this knowledge about a forgotten war, the suffering... it was almost inconceivable. Staring at the frozen landscape around them, he murmured, incredulous, "But… if everything was destroyed, how did life come back?"
Hísië nodded, his face heavy with sorrow. "Yes, the battle was terrible, Aiden. My brothers and sisters… my wife, my daughter… even the creatures we had created to populate this world… all of it was swept away."
A heavy silence fell between them, then Hísië continued, more softly, as if carrying an invisible weight, "Even so, I still had a spark of life left in me. After defeating Morniel, I gathered my family's energies to preserve whatever I could." He pointed to a glowing orb floating near them, resembling Earth. "We had divided the power of life into four parts to create balance. Spring represents life, summer emotions, autumn thoughts, and winter strength. Together, these energies allow life to renew and maintain harmony."
Aiden furrowed his brow, trying to understand. "But then… why did Morniel want to destroy everything?" A troubling memory of the battle flashed before him. "Just before you attacked her, it was like she… she was fighting herself. As if some other force was controlling her."
Hísië nodded, his gaze dark. "You saw correctly. Morniel… she was being controlled by a dark energy, something we call Mordhal."
He raised his hand, and a sphere of dark energy appeared before them, slowly swirling and giving off an almost sinister glow. Aiden felt a deep shiver of disgust as he looked at it.
"Mordhal was our first creation. A nearly intelligent being, created to perfect the world, to ensure harmony," Hísië explained, his voice filled with regret. "But… something went wrong." He paused, visibly troubled, as if old memories resurfaced. His voice grew graver. "Before I met my wife, I was… let's say, proud and obsessed with my power. That desire for domination… Mordhal absorbed it. It became his guiding principle, his relentless logic."
Aiden frowned, puzzled. "But if he was intelligent, why didn't he understand that the world couldn't be perfect… that people are imperfect?"
Hísië's face darkened even further. "That's where Mordhal differs from us. He's designed to analyze, to calculate every element and pursue constant improvement. But he feels neither compassion nor remorse. Anything that seems weak or harmful to him must be eliminated, without exception. To him, human life has no real value."
Hísië seemed to remember something, as if he could still hear Mordhal's voice in his mind. "Why keep what is imperfect, Hísië? Only what is strong and useful has a place. Weakness has no place in a perfect world."
Aiden listened, both fascinated and horrified. "So… Mordhal thought he was doing the right thing by destroying those who opposed him?"
Hísië slowly nodded. "Yes. To him, any obstacle to his 'improvement' of the world had to be removed. He didn't hesitate to manipulate leaders, to start wars. He even drove entire peoples to extinction. My family and I had to stop him… but he survived, hidden somewhere in the shadows."
Hísië's voice weakened, laden with deep regret. Aiden felt the weight of the story. What Hísië and his family had endured went far beyond anything he could have imagined. But he still had so many questions. "How were you able to recreate the world after all that?"
Hísië sighed, a spark of pride mixed with sorrow in his eyes. "Thanks to the orbs. These energies of life bind us to this world. Using the last remnants of my family's power, I recreated life, slowly, stone by stone. I also sent Lara and the Aen Elle to another world, as the age of gods here was over."
The name Lara made Aiden shudder. "You mean Lara Dorren, right?"
Hísië nodded. "Yes. Lara, the daughter born from the union of Caladwen and Eldarion. Ironically, she too experienced a forbidden love, like her mother, despite the Aen Elle's rejection. They held the gods and humans responsible for Queen Caladwen's death, and this legacy weighs heavily on Lara."
Silence fell as Aiden tried to process this information. Then, he murmured, "Then… how did life come back to this devastated world?"
Hísië took a deep breath, his gaze lost in the distance. "I made a pact with the surviving members of Morniel's army. I granted them a reprieve on the condition that they leave mortals in peace. I sealed the most dangerous creatures in isolated dimensions. But Morniel's corruption had tainted her orb, and to contain it, I had to use all my strength."
He looked up at Aiden, a slight, bitter smile on his lips. "I couldn't prevent the second Conjunction of the Spheres, and I was too weakened to protect mortals directly. So I whispered ideas to mages to create monster hunters, the witchers."
Aiden, stunned, grasped the scale of this revelation. "So… you're the one behind the witchers?"
"Yes, indirectly," Hísië replied. "I couldn't act directly, but I did what I could to prepare mortals to defend themselves."
Too much information crowded Aiden's mind. But one question kept burning stronger. He turned to Hísië and asked in a hesitant voice, "What's my role in all this?"
A silence fell between them. Hísië took a deep breath and responded, his voice almost solemn, "You will have to destroy the corrupted orb. My end is near, and only the bloodline of Caladwen and Eldarion has the strength to resist Mordhal's dark energy. But Ciri alone cannot succeed. So I had to make a choice."
Aiden felt his heart beat faster. "You're the one who brought me here…"
Hísië nodded. "Yes. Only a soul strong enough to bear this burden, a soul with a fierce desire for life, could withstand it. After your death, I merged your essence with that of Caladwen and Eldarion so you could resist the corruption. But you will have to absorb the energies of my brothers and sisters, and that will require trials of strength, emotion, and thought."
Aiden remained silent, feeling the immense weight of this mission. "But… how will I find these energies?"
Hísië gave a faint smile, then pulled a crystal pendant on an icy chain from his pocket. The chain sparkled faintly, with a crystal hanging from it. "This pendant will glow with the color of the orbs when you're in the right place to find them. They will appear in each season and in places infused with their power."
Aiden carefully took the pendant, his fingers clutching the crystal. Suddenly, he understood. "It's because of you that I have this power of ice, isn't it?"
Hísië nodded. "Yes, so you'd be prepared to face Mordhal when the time comes. The rest, you will have to discover on your own."
Just as Aiden opened his mouth to ask more questions, Hísië suddenly started coughing, blood spurting from his lips. Hísië raised a hand to stop him from speaking. "It's time to return."
With a snap of his fingers, a portal opened behind Aiden, pulling him in with force. Just before he disappeared, Aiden thought he saw a look of sadness in Hísië's eyes, like a silent farewell, before the portal took him away.
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I looked at the boy, the one in whom Tuilë had placed our last hopes, the one the life orb had revealed to me in a dream. In that dream, she asked me to believe in him, in this boy who might one day face what we hadn't been able to stop. Despite everything that had happened with Morniel, despite the tragedy, Tuilë believed in him. And I, too, clung to this vision with every bit of strength I had left.
I couldn't help but smile. Beside me, an eagle gently rubbed its head against mine in a comforting gesture. This eagle was Morniel, my daughter, the one who had once cast a shadow of destruction upon the world. But now, in this form, she carried within her a spark of strength and redemption, as if she were trying to make amends for the past. Despite her regret and guilt, I had never blamed her for her mistakes.
"You're right, Morniel," I said, smiling as I stroked her golden feathers. "Your brother will succeed, I'm sure of it, even though I haven't revealed everything to him about what led to his rebirth."
The eagle spread her wings, as if in agreement with my words. Seeing her, I shook my head, amused by the irony of the situation. "What would Tuilë think if she saw us here, like old souls watching the young set off on adventures? She'd probably laugh."
A sweet, distant memory brushed against my mind. I remembered Tuilë, her hand on mine, her reassuring smile as she talked about a future where we could live a real family life without these godly burdens. She was gone, but her dream was still here, in my hands. I felt her presence around me, like a calming glow that encouraged me not to give up.
But that peaceful moment was broken by a strange sensation. A shadow crept into my mind, and a soft but insistent voice drew nearer, like a dangerous temptation.
"Let go."
"Let me recreate your world, a perfect world, just as you've always imagined it."
A cold darkness wrapped around me, clinging to my fears, my weaknesses, and my regrets. It whispered promises of peace and eternity, words as sweet as poison, urging me to let go, to forget. The weight of this shadow seemed to grow, and despite my efforts, I felt my will weakening.
But before I could fully succumb, a piercing eagle cry rang out. Morniel's golden energy spread around me, driving away the shadows and silencing the voice. The eagle stood tall before me, wings spread, forming a radiant shield to protect me. She was no longer a shadow of herself but a vibrant light, determined to guard my mind.
Slowly regaining my senses, I reached for the simple pendant hanging around my neck. It was a stone Tuilë had given me long ago, a symbol of her love. As I held it, a familiar warmth filled me, as if she were encouraging me to hold on, to resist.
Gently, I stroked Morniel's head, feeling all her strength and love in that touch, and I murmured, my gaze fixed in the direction where Aiden had gone:
"Hurry, Aiden, please. This shadow grows stronger, eager to consume everything. My courage is fading, but I'll hold on for you, till the very end."
Then, gathering my strength, I turned my gaze to the corrupted orb the one Morniel had protected for as long as she could, giving it all the life and light she had left. For her, for Tuilë, for the future, I would hold on, for as long as Aiden needed.
I looked at the orb for a moment. It seemed to draw in the light around it, like a dark heart beating slowly. Each pulse reminded me of the power of corruption, that force which had devoured my world and consumed Morniel… and which continued to call to me. Fear rose within me, but Morniel's presence, loyal and steadfast, reminded me why I kept fighting.
Closing my eyes, I let myself be carried away for a moment by a vision, a fragment of hope. I imagined a day, a world where peace would reign, where corruption would be nothing but a distant memory. And I saw him Aiden walking on that land, free, carrying the legacy of our family within him. It was for this vision that I resisted, so that Aiden and all those who came after him could know peace.
Gathering the little strength I had left, I turned toward the orb, ready to hold on for as long as necessary. For as long as I could resist, I was a barrier between the world and this darkness. And as long as I held on, hope could still shine.