[Chapter Size: 2500 Words.]
Third Person POV
Northern kingdoms.
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The ship approached the main island of Skellige. It halted before getting too close to the bustling port, where several Skellige ships, some of them destroyed, were docked—likely survivors of the battle between the Skellige ships commanded by East and those of Nilfgaard along the coast.
"It seems we've arrived without encountering those southern bastards, Witcher. Now, I expect my payment as we agreed." A man approached Geralt at that moment. He was a pirate, the captain of the only ship Geralt could hire after giving away all the savings he had accumulated over the years. He had no other choice, as it was the only way to navigate these dangerous waters. Geralt nodded as he handed a sack to the pirate. The man checked the sack and nodded.
"I'm not setting foot on the island, as I'm wanted by those damned Skelligers. So, I'll leave a boat for you. I'm heading back to the continent, but don't forget to send a message from me to them. They should know who I am from this distance; tell those bastards to shove those axes they're so proud of right up their asses!" The pirate spoke, grinning with a few missing teeth, and Geralt just nodded.
Soon after, they lowered a boat, and Geralt followed, descending on a rope ladder before starting to row toward the island as they noticed his presence approaching the port.
A man was organizing things at the port when some others approached him to inform him of what was happening.
"Hey, Crach, those damned looters came into our waters again, but they're leaving now and left a boat behind. The one coming over is a Witcher, rowing towards us." The men reported to Crach an Craite, a respected man in this kingdom.
Crach immediately looked with narrowed eyes. "A Witcher," he murmured as he moved forward, setting aside what he was doing, and went to one of the ships to take a closer look. He reached the edge and observed the approaching boat, seeing a man with white hair rowing toward them, his yellow eyes visible.
"Hey, don't attack! I know him. Let him come." He immediately gave the order, and everyone nodded in agreement. Meanwhile, Geralt arrived with Crach already waiting for him with crossed arms, and Geralt sighed as he got close enough to speak.
"Well, it's not the best way to arrive on this island, but it's also not the worst," Geralt murmured as he stepped out of the boat, leaving the oars behind.
"It's good to see you, Geralt. It's been a long time. Why, amidst all the chaos on the continent, do you come to Skellige?" Crach asked.
"I was in Cintra. You know... How are things in Skellige?" Geralt replied, while Crach raised an eyebrow.
"You were there? I heard it was terrible. The only survivor was Mousesack, who showed up here all injured and exhausted. The man is depressed; I've never seen him like that, which is perfectly normal after he also came from Cintra with the city taken... And Skellige is in a delicate situation. Even though the Nilfgaardians are in much smaller numbers than initially in the east, positioning their troops to mark other kingdoms, we're without a king after Eist fell at sea... we can't even give him a proper burial... Now we need to choose a new king," Crach murmured.
"Yes... I knew him a little; it's a shame..." Geralt murmured, but didn't dwell on it. "Can I see the Druid? I was in Cintra and encountered Madara... Or a clone of him, I don't know." Geralt replied, still confused, as Madara had claimed to be just a clone of the original, which was quite strange to him. "The boy told me they would come here with Cirilla if possible. Before heading north, I thought I'd stop here first... Are they here?" he asked.
"Calanthe's granddaughter? No, she hasn't appeared here," Crach said. "Mousesack asked us to be on the lookout for her and this boy named Madara; Eist always spoke of him during his visits," Crach commented as Geralt sighed in disappointment.
Seeing this, Crach returned to the Witcher's question. "I can still take you to Mousesack. Follow me," Crach said.
Geralt nodded before being escorted to the palace. As they got closer, they were approached by two children.
"Father, let's kill those damn Nilfgaardians! I'm ready, put me on one of the ships, and I'll go to Cintra!!" The teenager exclaimed, seeming brave with an axe larger than himself.
"Father, I can help too. I can show the strength of my axe!" The girl, who was the same age as the boy, with red hair, exclaimed.
As both of them shouted, making the group pause, Geralt looked at them with interest before turning back to Crach. "Your children have grown a lot, Crach," he murmured beside him.
"Yes, but they are still too young to enter a war," Crach commented, looking sternly at the children as if disapproving of their behavior, while they seemed determined to fight. "Before anything else, let me introduce you. This is a friend of your father's, Geralt of Rivia." He said, introducing the Witcher. The two teenagers looked at him curiously.
"The Witcher from the stories?" the boy murmured.
"Well, anyway, we have to continue. I'll talk to you later. Just behave, understood?" he requested and began walking towards the castle gate, followed by Geralt, as they entered one of the rooms, specifically Mousesack's.
"Look, Geralt, our friend in this room is not well, so let's take it easy," he said. Geralt nodded, but the voice behind the door interrupted them.
"I'm not made of glass either, Crach, but tell Geralt to come in immediately," Mousesack's voice echoed, and the man sighed before opening the door, allowing Geralt to enter the room. Inside, he saw Mousesack sitting calmly, looking out the window through his desk filled with papers.
"It's been a long time since I last saw you, Geralt," Mousesack said, as it had been more than six years since he had last seen the Witcher, ever since he had brought the princess after rescuing her from the forest of Cintra and first warned about Madara.
"It has been a long time indeed, Mousesack... You look more worn out than the last time," Geralt murmured, and the man indeed looked that way, with a tired and quite sad expression.
"Well, you can imagine how one feels after seeing so much death and destruction, even seeing the one you served being left behind. I didn't even witness Calanthe's death, nor do I know how she died," Mousesack murmured, and although Geralt had heard that she had thrown herself from the tower from some of the guards while hiding that night after the fall of Cintra, he ended up not saying it, as it wouldn't help now.
"I take it you're looking for Madara, right? Did you know he was coming here?" Mousesack asked.
"Yes, I found him after I entered the castle, but he had already fled with the princess. He told me that his original had done it and said that the one I encountered was just a clone," Geralt replied.
"He does have that kind of ability... quite useful if you can multiply yourself... but hearing that is good, at least she managed to escape, as you know," Mousesack murmured, somewhat relieved, before continuing. "I even had hope that he would come here, but that didn't happen. He probably chose to go north," he added, recalling Madara's words and his plan to escape.
"Yes, it seems I will have to go back there," Geralt murmured, but he also had another question about the boy. "Tell me, this Madara... is he trustworthy?" he finally asked, as he needed to know more about the one he and Yennefer had seen in a vision, a vision that spoke of the future of this world. Geralt didn't know what kind of power Madara would have to claim he would change the world.
Mousesack just smiled. "The boy is powerful, arrogant, silent, direct, but he's one of the few people I trust with my life," Mousesack admitted. "He has always been involved in various situations in Cintra, from uncovering schemes in the city to catching traitors and fighting a Witcher and surviving as just a child, and if that's not enough, he can influence the outcome of a war. He had everything to become someone great in Cintra, but unfortunately, things don't go as we want," Mousesack murmured as Geralt and Crach raised their eyebrows.
"Eist always said that this Madara would become the greatest warrior in the world and would be unbeatable. He asked that even after his death, Skellige should remain his friends," Crach added.
Geralt spoke again, wanting to know more about the boy's abilities. "The boy... what kind of power does he have? What can he do?" he asked.
"Madara defies all norms, Geralt. I wouldn't know for sure. Even the wisest of my druid friends who inhabit these islands wouldn't know anything about the boy," Mousesack replied with an enigmatic tone, but decided to answer more cautiously as he noticed Geralt looking dissatisfied with his riddles.
"I don't know very well, Geralt, but the boy is special, very special. Understand that he doesn't use our magic system based on the energy of chaos; he derives from a completely different energy of this world. But he's a good boy, so treat him well, and he will repay you in his own way. Otherwise... well, all the people he has killed know very well how he deals with his enemies, and no one was left alive, no matter where that person was or who they were... He nearly killed the former king of Sodden..." Mousesack commented.
"I see," Geralt murmured, with a more understanding response.
A silence filled the room at that moment, as Geralt had his own way and Mousesack was feeling a bit depressed. Then Crach broke the silence. "Well, you must be tired," he addressed Geralt. "I'll arrange a room in the castle for you. After all, you're a friend of Skellige. We'll meet later to talk," Crach said, finally leaving the room as Geralt began another conversation with Mousesack about the invasion.
Geralt spent the night in the castle, still thinking about what he should do. Perhaps it would be better to go to Kaer Morhen and wait for them to arrive there. After all, Mousesack here had stated that he could easily reach the mountains in the north with the girl.
The next day, Geralt and Crach, along with his children, were talking about the naval battle on the coast of Cintra when Mousesack approached. "Geralt, Yennefer is in contact with me. She wants to speak with you," he said. Geralt quickly stood up and headed to Mousesack's laboratory. When he found the woman in the magic mirror, she seemed relieved to see him there.
"Yennefer," Geralt greeted her with an indifferent tone.
"Are you okay? Listen, Geralt," she began, "Madara and Princess Ciri are already on the move to the north and are advancing through northern Verden," she said, as he nodded, satisfied to know this, as it gave him a path to follow.
"That's good... I can then head north and try to track them..." he said without responding to her first question.
"Listen to one more thing, Geralt. The princess and Madara are being hunted, but everyone has lost contact with them. They probably did something," she said.
"Hunted by whom?" Geralt narrowed his eyes, while she almost wanted to laugh at the situation, but it was too serious for that.
"The girl is the only heir to the throne of Cintra. The whole north is after her. However, no one has succeeded. Even Tissaia, who sent 15 mages to rescue her, was surprised when only 5 of them returned. Geralt, Madara eliminated two-thirds of the group. The boy is 13 years old and can already take down nearly a dozen mages, if not more," she said, while Geralt raised an eyebrow. That was indeed a bit terrifying, even for him.
"I'll prepare to meet them," Geralt replied.
"Before that... there's something else as well..." Yennefer hadn't finished. "A group of mages went to the Hills of Sodden, and I can't contact any of them anymore. But listen, Geralt, I would like you to go there. After all, I found out that Nilfgaard already knows about it and is preparing a trap. There are many familiar faces in the group, but I don't want Triss to die," she said, as she couldn't afford to teleport there herself, as she could be caught by Nilfgaardian mages. "You, on the other hand, have a much better chance of stopping them..." she spoke with a look that was almost pleading, and Geralt softened his heart a bit for this woman he had feelings for.
"Alright, I'll check it out," he said finally. Yennefer nodded gratefully.
"And if you find Madara... You're going to Kaer Morhen too, right? I expect a message from you when that happens. After all, I wish to see the children..." she said, and Geralt nodded.
As soon as the magic mirror was turned off, Geralt approached Mousesack and explained the situation.
"Well, that's a long distance. They must be close to the location by now... You'll never get there in time by ship. The only way would be through a portal. I can take you to a nearby place, where you'll have to run to catch up with them in the next few weeks," Mousesack said.
Geralt had to squint his eyes at the mention of the word "portal," but, with no other choice, he sighed. "Alright, please take me to them," he said, and Mousesack nodded.
"Then, get ready. I'll be waiting for you in the laboratory," Mousesack said and left. Geralt returned to the others as he began to say his goodbyes.
"Good luck, Geralt," Crach said, wishing his old friend well, as he had to return to preparing to choose a new king and ready himself for Nilfgaard's attacks once more.
Thus, he returned to the laboratory, where Mousesack opened a portal. "Good luck, Geralt. Take care of those kids and send me a message as soon as you can; I'll help in any way I can," he said before finishing. "I don't know what the future holds, but I'm sure they will be important," Mousesack said as Geralt simply nodded and stepped into the portal, returning to the continent and heading towards the Hills of Sodden.
After vomiting for half an hour after passing through the portal into a dense forest, Geralt prepared for the next stage of his journey.
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Like it or not, Geralt is Yennefer's simp.