Chapter 79
Her smile faded as she probed deeper into the echoes of the room. The scrying revealed everything—Gray's calculated steps, his confrontation with Grindelwald, and the methodical execution of the rest. She paused, her gaze lingering on the speech Gray had given before the battle began. "Oh," she murmured to herself, her tone edged with satisfaction, "that will is seeping through. I knew I was right. The more we press him, the more he reverts back to his true form. And the sooner we can get back to the prime timeline and stop this multiversal nonsense."
Her gaze fell on Grindelwald's lifeless body, and for a brief moment, a flicker of nostalgia crossed her otherwise impassive face. "Time was simpler back then," she mused. "I only had to monitor one universe. Now there are thousands, and I can barely track one measly child." The thought both amused and infuriated her.
Turning on her heel, Althea began to leave, her presence still making the air crackle faintly with energy. The room seemed to shake, reality itself rippling subtly as if reacting to her frustration. Before stepping through a portal that materialized before her, she gave a final order: "Also, drop him in the resurrection chamber and wipe his memories. I want order restored now."
"As Merlin wills," her subordinates chanted in unison, their voices trembling with both awe and fear.
As the last of her words echoed in the ruined chamber, Althea vanished into the rift, leaving the fanatics to carry out her orders. They moved with practiced efficiency, lifting Grindelwald's corpse and preparing the chamber for its next grim task. The magic circles Gray had left behind flickered ominously, but none dared to question or hesitate. For them, Althea's command was absolute, her will as unassailable as fate itself, before leaving she stared into a batch of shadows as she sighted before saying, "stop pretending to be a shadow you mad thing" as suddenly, the shadow opened its eyes that it suddenly had, as the shadow suddenly chucklled madly, putting the fear of god in some of the mages present.
-scene changing-
Meanwhile, Gray stepped out of the rift into an icy world where a blizzard blew fiercely. He stopped, letting the icy wind hit his face as he took a deep breath. The dimensional rift behind him closed, dimming the surrounding area as its light dissipated. He thought, "It's quite weird how unreliable the information is in the rift before you enter it, but it does make sense, given that it's a portal to a different unknown world." This meant he had to cast another Visionus Temporis, allowing him to see what he might encounter on this journey. Although this took the fun out of exploration, Gray wasn't here for leisure. He was gathering ingredients for his most powerful creation yet. After a moment of foresight, a smile crossed his face as he thought, "Indeed, the last ingredient is here." However, his smile faded when he realized, "I can't see the future past acquiring the dew of this world."
Suddenly, the cold steel of a sword touched his neck, and Gray opened his eyes. "Who are you?" demanded a voice belonging to a girl. Gray groaned internally, recognizing her from his visions. "Cirilla Fiona Riannon, the Lion Cub of Cintra—or just Ciri, the main protagonist of this world," he mused. The thought alone made him sigh as she continued. "I asked a question! Who are you, and why did you come out of a dimensional rift?" she repeated, her tone sharp. Gray turned to face her, observing a girl about a year older than him with bright white hair and alabaster skin. She wore medieval-style trousers and a shirt, wielding a sword. From his foresight, he knew Ciri possessed Elder Blood, granting her control over space and time, as well as magical prowess taught by Yennefer and swordsmanship trained by Geralt of Rivia. Gray foresaw that he would meet both of her mentors, and he wasn't looking forward to it as the sin of solace appeared behind her, "why not not just finish her" he asked. After the battle with Trigon, Gray had little patience for others, his singular focus on his goals overshadowing everything else.
Ciri pressed the sword harder against Gray's neck, expecting to draw blood, but it was as though the blade struck an unyielding metal. The sword refused to cut his skin. Gray sighed silently, still refusing to speak. He moved the blade aside , prompting Ciri to swing her sword at him out of pure spite. Before the strike could land, Gray bit down on the sword, shattering it into pieces, "now you are acting like a lion" sin of solace said with a smile but gray still ignored him. Shock spread across Ciri's face as she looked at the hilt of her broken weapon. When she looked up, Gray's imposing figure loomed over her, his expression a terrifying scowl. Fear gripped her, and she screamed—a scream that carried ancient power, shaking the very fabric of space and creating ripples in the river of time.
The ground beneath them cracked and splintered, snow scattered violently as Gray sighed again. He took out his staff and planted it into the ground, releasing an immense wave of magic. The magic countered the effects of Ciri's scream, silencing its disturbances. He muttered to himself, "Although I don't want to do it, her screams attract monsters, and some of them could be quite useful. Too bad she can't control it yet—if she could, I would have asked her to summon more." As Ciri's scream subsided, she opened her eyes to find herself alone. The only evidence of Gray's presence was the disturbed snow and splintered ground where he had stood.
Moments later, a portal opened, and an older woman with black hair and a purple dress stepped through. Yennefer kneeled next to Ciri, concern evident in her expression. "Ciri, what's wrong?" she asked gently. Ciri sat silently for a moment before responding, "I was training when suddenly a rift opened, and a man came through." She hesitated before hugging Yennefer tightly. "He bit my sword and shattered it into pieces before I could react," she said, her voice trembling. Yennefer glanced at the remnants of the broken sword before Ciri continued, "And he was a mage. A powerful one—a very powerful one." Yennefer stayed with Ciri, comforting her until she finally calmed down.
-scene change-
After apparating away from Ciri and Yennefer, whom Gray knew would come, he began walking toward a very old—no, a very ancient—mountain. It was so ancient that it was the first formation on this continent, and it would be the birthplace of Gray's final ingredient and his temporary residence for the foreseeable future. The mountain loomed large, an imposing figure against the icy horizon, and Gray knew it needed to be secured. Without hesitation, he began his work. First, he used his powers to protrude colossal icebergs from the ground, their jagged edges forming an impenetrable barrier around the mountain's base. This would ensure that no monsters inside could escape and that no intruders could approach. Yet, even as he admired his work, he sighed and thought, Well, it's not like this will stop Ciri.
Once the mountain was fully encased, Gray constructed an enormous castle of ice atop it. The structure gleamed under the faint sunlight, complete with intricate furniture crafted from frost and glassy ice. As he worked, Gray drilled a deep hole into the heart of the mountain, unleashing pure chaos that began to seep out. Anticipating this, he quickly contained it, using runes and magic to reinforce the barriers. Standing over the newly formed hole, he peered down into a vast cavern where a pool of white, shimmering liquid swirled in a violent cyclone. At the center of this maelstrom, something powerful began to take form—his final ingredient. Knowing it would take time to materialize, Gray resolved to secure the area further, ensuring that no one could disturb his work.