Disclaimer: I own nothing but my original characters and works; all other characters and worlds belong to their respective owners. I'm just playing with them.
Betad by Malcolm Tent, Marethyu, Priapus, Mike God of Lore, Beans
The Guild of Gamers: The Warlock
Chapter 07: War Council
– Triss Merigold –
The chance to truly relax without the hunters being a constant threat was a true blessing, and she hadn't realised just how tightly wound she had been until she took a long soak in the fancy bath of Lucas' castle.
During the past months of sneaking around, taking whatever jobs she could to try to pay for her growing group of mages, she'd had little time for relaxation. Having to look over her shoulder every single moment of the day, convinced that Templars or Hunters would grab her at any given moment, meant that being truly safe for the first time since Loc Muinne was a true luxury.
There had already been some squabbling among the mages, some of whom found the idea of being given a house in the quaint little village a distance from the castle insulting. It was ridiculous, but after Lucas had just pulled them out of Novigrad, some of them had the gall to complain that they'd been given a free house instead of a room at the far fancier castle. Many of the mages had been in positions of power before the hunts began, and they wanted that back now that they were safe and away from Radovid. Naturally, Philippa had torn them to pieces and made it clear that Albion had no place for deadweights or parasites.
That wasn't even mentioning the fact that on the very first night, a sorcerer had wandered into the mists after Lucas had specifically told them that the mists were dangerous. Lucas just sighed and headed into the mists himself, bringing the idiot back two hours later. They claimed they'd seen their wife calling to them from the mists, but their wife had been burnt at the stake weeks ago.
The idiot had been in his twenties when he went into the mists; Lucas had dragged him out as an old man. He couldn't remember anything from his time with the Fey, but he hadn't been artificially aged. He had experienced a lifetime out there with the Fey, and he wouldn't be getting it back.
Spotting Lucas speaking to his fairy familiar in a language he called Sylvan, she approached him with a soft smile. Despite any of the issues that had arisen from their presence in Albion, she was extremely grateful for his help.
"Good evening, Miss Merigold," Lucas said without turning around, switching back to that unknown language for a moment before he turned around. "How are you this evening?"
"Good, very good. Our time in Novigrad didn't leave me with much time to just relax, and while I wouldn't say I'm friends with Philippa, it's damn good to see some of my Lodge sisters again," Triss explained, moving up next to him as she looked out into the land that the Raven Queen had granted Lucas.
The view was honestly amazing, reminding her of her time in Kaer Morhen, though with fewer mountains. Albion was sitting high up in the hills, with a river running through the castle itself, leading down into a series of waterfalls that went down to the village, and then into the forests.
The fairy said something in its language, making Lucas chuckle briefly.
"I can imagine. It was impressive that you managed to remain in Novigrad for so long. More so that you managed to save so many others in the process," Lucas praised, making her smile. "Bella was just delivering a scouting report. I think she discovered a way to increase our odds against Deireadh prison."
Triss frowned, reminding herself that while she was taking long baths and walks around Albion, Shaela had been captured by the hunters. She'd seen Philippa discussing the plans to attack Deireadh prison with Margarita, but such an attack was incredibly risky.
"Oh?" Triss said, curious about what his familiar had found out.
"Luck is on our side once again. The Templars stationed above Deireadh are expecting another shipment of Lyrium. Radovid has been pushing them harder than expected, and their supplies are running low. Attacking the prison directly is risky, but attacking the transport and cutting off their supply is another matter entirely," Lucas explained, making her eyes widen. She could see why Bella looked so smug about her discovery.
The Templars had anti-magic abilities, but the process of granting them their powers made them all addicted to Lyrium, and they used it to enhance their abilities. She was almost certain that whoever had created the Templars had stolen the secrets of Witcher mutations to do it, but that wasn't the point right now.
"How did Bella find that out?" Triss asked, making Lucas hum.
"A mixture of Fey magic and Raven playing games, I suspect. This is a little too convenient, but it's also not a lie," Lucas admitted. "Still, even if Raven is playing her games, she wouldn't interfere in my quest, so we can trust that the information is true, at the very least."
Triss didn't really know what to say to that.
"Still, attacking a transport won't be easy. They'll be defending their Lyrium well," Triss warned, making Lucas nod.
"Oh, most certainly. If Bella's information is right, we have time before it reaches Oxenfurt. So, at the very least, we'll have Yennefer and Keira by then, as they're both on their way," Lucas explained. "And, worst comes to worst, we do have a dragon. I'd rather keep Saskia a secret until we strike Deireadh itself, but she's offered her services in the attack."
Ah, right… Yen.
"Is there going to be a problem with you and Yennefer?" Lucas asked, spotting her hesitation.
"Not from me, but Yennefer has never been the most forgiving woman. She won't actively sabotage our efforts, at the very least," Triss explained. Yen was probably going to be furious, given everything, and Triss couldn't really blame her. Of course, if Philippa was right about Lucas' blood, then Yen was probably going to be more focused on finding Ciri than getting revenge for her taking advantage of Geralt's amnesia. "I'll talk to her. I won't say that her anger isn't well-deserved, but this is bigger than us squabbling over a man."
"Must be one hell of a man to have someone like you fighting for him," Lucas teased, making her smile. "Though Phillipa mentioned something about Geralt being 'like catnip to some sorceresses'."
"Ah, Philippa. I can hear the 'lesser' she actually meant instead of 'some'. Still, she isn't wrong. Geralt and Yennefer's relationship has been… tumultuous, to say the least, and they've both gotten around," Triss admitted. "Not that you can talk. Rita speaks very fondly of you, and Morgana can't keep her eyes off you."
"Ha, fair point. Wasn't how I saw this going, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't enjoying it," Lucas admitted. He went to continue before Bella spoke again, getting his attention. Listening to the words, she had to agree with Rita. The language spoken here, Sylvan, shared some linguistic similarities with Elvish. It was not enough for her to understand what Bella was saying, but the pronunciations and structure sounded similar to her admittedly inexperienced ears. She spoke Elvish, true, but she was not a proper linguist and wasn't going to try to decipher the words.
What she did notice was that Lucas seemed incredibly fluent and comfortable speaking in Sylvan. After a short conversation, Bella flew away, and Lucas turned back to her.
"My apologies, Bella pouts if I ignore her. Fey tend to be… emotional creatures, to say the least," Lucas explained, making her chuckle.
Funnily enough, so were sorceresses. If sorceresses were half as dignified as they liked to act, they wouldn't be in this mess. Not that she could talk.
– Yennefer of Vengerberg –
She did like most of her fellow Lodge sisters; she truly did.
Sure, she didn't get along wonderfully with Philippa, but then, did anyone? Philippa was powerful and intelligent, but she almost prided herself on pissing off as many people as possible. Hearing from them after she got her memories back had been a bright spot in a dark time. Geralt was missing, Ciri was being hunted by the Wild Hunt, and mages were being hunted across the Northern Realms. Things were generally bad, so hearing that Margarita, Philippa and Triss were fine and safe was a wonderful thing.
Sure, Philippa was partially responsible for how bad things had gone, and Triss had used Geralt's amnesia to manipulate him and try to muscle her way into his heart, but she didn't want them dead.
"Ugh, how much further is it?" Keira whined as Yennefer took a deep breath to steady herself. If she'd realised just how bad Keira had gotten during her time in Velen, she'd have told Philippa to stuff her megascope up her ass.
Keira had always been a brat, acting like a child despite her age and power. It turned out that spending the time since Loc Muinne hiding in the swamps of Velen as a village witch had not made her personality any better. It had been non-stop whining since Yennefer had arrived. Keira had no real part in the Lodge's schemes, even if she hadn't opposed their plan to assassinate the Kings, and naturally, she was using that as an excuse to blame everyone else for her sorrows.
At least Yen could say she had little part in that, given that she was missing and an amnesiac at the time. Philippa's scheme had barely been in its infancy when the mess in Rivian happened, and she hadn't seen any of her Lodge sisters since, with the exception of Fringilla. It was probably why Emhyr had been willing to accept her innocence in this mess. Ciri had taken her and Geralt away from the riots, and then she had been taken by the Wild Hunt to be used as bait.
She was fairly certain that Emhyr had had his mages pilfer her mind while she was still an amnesiac, which was how he'd learnt of Philippa's scheme. For all her problems with him, Emhyr was not a foolish man. From what she knew, it wouldn't be a leap to realise that Philippa had not been convinced by the others to abandon her plan and was still working on it.
"Not far. We aren't heading to Novigrad itself; too risky," Yennefer replied, calling on her time with a younger Ciri to deal with the brat of a sorceress.
"This 'Albion' had better be as comfortable as Margarita claims. If I have to deal with one more filthy peasant whining at me to heal their sick sheep or change the weather for them, I swear I'll burn this entire Kingdom down myself," Keira continued, not stopping her incessant complaining.
She took it back. An adolescent Ciri was far easier to deal with than Keira Metz, who had been forced to spend some time outside of a castle with no servants to pamper her.
When they finally arrived at the meeting spot, she was almost ready to hand Keira over to Radovid herself, seeing Keira look around impatiently. Keira went to speak, but Yennefer gestured for her to wait as her eyes locked onto a crow that seemed far too attentive, beady red eyes staring into her soul.
It cawed once, and the tree it was resting on started to twist and warp as the trunk parted to form a doorway that leaked a thick mist, a figure stepping out from it.
"Lucas, I take it?" Yennefer asked, making him nod.
"That's right, and you're Yennefer, right? Which would make you Keira Metz. You're earlier than Rita thought you'd be," Lucas answered, making Yennefer hide her annoyance with a smile. Yes, why would she feel the need to speed up this journey?
"Can we get moving? I have seen enough forests for one lifetime, and we are far too close to Novigrad for my comfort," Keira whined. If Yen hadn't sped up, Keira would not have survived this journey.
"Of course. The hunters are rather agitated at the moment, so I don't think we should hang around, even somewhere as discreet as this," Lucas agreed with a soft smile. "I don't know how much Philippa and Rita told you, but we'll be going along the Fey Roads. Whatever you do, do not step from the main path."
"Philippa mentioned a little about them, but not much," Yennefer agreed, heading closer as the crow flew from its perch and landed on Lucas' shoulder. It cawed again, its form shifting as a strange winged being with red leathery skin and horns took its place.
"Thank you, Vlad," Lucas said, getting a reply in a tongue that hurt Yennefer to hear spoken before the creature flew into the fog. "For sorceresses as experienced as you, I doubt the fey will be able to tempt or trick you from the path. They do like their illusions, but their Queen has promised to stop them from doing too much to trick people coming to and from Albion."
Gesturing for them to follow him, Keira wasted no time moving forward as Yen did the same. As they moved through the portal and the tree twisted back to conceal the portal, she reached out with her magic. She'd seen Ciri use her powers countless times, and while Philippa might disagree, she was the best in the Lodge when it came to dealing with the Elder Blood.
There was much of the magic that felt foreign to her, likely the magic of the Fey themselves, but underneath it was something that felt far too familiar. She heard Ciri's voice calling to her from the mist, but Yennefer didn't even glance in their direction, no matter how real it sounded. She caught a glimpse of Geralt in the distance, but again, she didn't let it distract her even as she saw him going to a certain redhead.
Keira and Lucas couldn't hear Triss' moans as the illusions showed her what she already knew to be true, and Yennefer didn't let the fey get to her. She could certainly see why Lucas felt the need to warn them, but she was far too familiar with illusions to fall for any trickery.
Keira moved up, also ignoring the fey as she chatted with Lucas. Did Phillipa realise that she'd given herself competition for the position of Albion's advisor? As bratty as she could be, Keira had once served as Foltest's advisor, and she was rather good at it.
Well, her advice didn't lead to the King hating magic and hunting them like animals, so she was a step above Philippa at any rate.
"You cannot protect her from me forever."
Yennefer paused for just a moment as she heard Eredin's voice in the mists, but again, she continued onwards. The Fey were assholes, weren't they? The fact that they were pulling from her memories was concerning, but her attempts to defend her mind seemed ineffective.
Reaching the end of the path, she stepped through at Lucas' guidance and smiled, seeing Margarita waiting for them.
Keira, for all her whining, stopped dead in her tracks at the sight of the large elven-style castle and majestic surroundings,
"It has been far too long, Rita," Yennefer admitted, giving her Lodge sister a smile. Out of all the Lodge members, Rita was the one she liked the most. It wasn't even that they were close, but Margarita really only cared about her students, not about getting involved in the endless politics or squabbles.
Margarita gave her a soft embrace, welcoming her to Albion as Keira looked around. Still, how long had it been since this many Lodge members had been in one place? Not just meeting up for an event, but actually living in the same location?
This was almost certainly going to go poorly. She was almost surprised that Philippa wasn't here to try and establish her dominance from the start. As she caught up with Margarita, she gave Lucas a grateful smile as he was promptly abducted by Keira, who was demanding a tour. He just gave her a simple nod back, a smile on his face.
Lucas had the Elder Blood; she was sure of it. It didn't manifest like Ciri's, or perhaps it had, and the Raven Queen had managed to help him control it and manifest his powers in a different way, but he undeniably had Elder Blood.
And that would change a lot.
– Morgana –
"You do realise how unreasonable you are being? The fact that you threw away your virginity on a fling was bad enough but as the last surviving heir of King Foltest-" Philippa started, making Morgana scowl.
"In case you've forgotten, Temeria is currently being torn to pieces by Radovid and Emhyr, neither of whom will be willing to just hand it back over because I'm alive," Morgana pointed out, a glare in her eyes. "But I swear to whatever God is listening, if you demand I give up my relationship with Lucas for the sake of your ambitions one more time, I will personally head to Nilfgaard and relinquish 'my' throne to Emperor Emhyr."
Philippa had been back for all of a day before the scolding and lessons had started again. Not to mention, Philippa was already beginning to plan who she would marry Morgana off to, but for the first time in her life, Morgana wasn't having it.
Philippa didn't respond for a moment, but Morgana could see how offended the older witch was at her back talk.
"As I said, you are being entirely too unreasonable. We are talking about the fate of a Kingdom and all the mages within it. Would you really endanger all of that for the sake of your lusts?" Philippa sighed, using that condescending tone as she talked down to her.
"Lucas himself is going to be the King of Albion, isn't he? I'm sure having a royal wife would legitimise his new Kingdom. Plus, create an unbreakable alliance between Temeria, should we even manage to reclaim it, and Albion," Morgana countered.
"True, but it is inefficient. An alliance can be easily created between the two without marrying you to him. It would be far smarter to use you to arrange an alliance with another Kingdom, like Kovir or even Redania, once Radovid has been dealt with and someone else takes the throne, and then have Lucas marry someone else to form another alliance, such as Duchess Anna Henrietta," Philippa sighed, a frown on her lips.
Toussaint? Philippa wanted to make an alliance with a duchy that was under the control of Nilfgaard? Was she already planning Emhyr's death? Could this bitch not function without scheming? It seemed like a daily need for her, as important as eating or sleeping.
"I don't care if it isn't efficient for your plans. Lucas is my saviour, our saviour. I'm not going to break up with him to marry some Kovir noble," Morgana swore. "Besides, given how enthusiastic Lucas was, I may already be carrying his child. Any alliance would be dead in the water if I started showing long before whoever you planned to hitch me to could get more than a chaste kiss."
She hadn't gone through a lot of the rituals and transformations that most sorceresses did. They couldn't risk making her barren, even if it had meant that her admittedly already impressive magical talent hadn't blossomed quite as much. It also meant that she wouldn't enjoy the extended lifespan that most sorceresses did and that her looks were not enhanced by her magic. Thankfully, she didn't need help in that department.
Philippa stared at her in annoyance, an impressive feat given her blindness, arms folded as she tapped her finger against her arm.
"You let him finish inside you? Of course you did," Philippa sighed, frustration clear on her face.
"Honestly, Philippa, you're being far too harsh on her," someone said, making Morgana turn as Philippa let out a sound of annoyance. "Hello again, Morgana. I'm glad you got out of Aretuza safely."
Keira gave her a smile, even as she made a face at Philippa. It was a little mean, but it did put a smile on Morgana's face.
"Hello again, Keira," Morgana replied with a soft smile. Keira had kept an eye on her on her father's behalf. She rarely got to meet her father, but Foltest kept a close eye on her, and while Keira had been his advisor, she'd kept in contact with her on his behalf.
It was one of the signs that her father cared for her, even if he rarely got to show it. He'd often send 'anonymous' gifts to the school for her, only to ruin his anonymity by having Keira make sure that she liked it.
"I hardly think expecting a Princess not to jump into bed with the first man who protects her is 'being harsh'," Philippa countered before she visibly winced. "We shall discuss this more later; it seems our host has need of me."
Without saying goodbye, Philippa marched past Keira with a scowl on her face as Keira watched with narrowed eyes.
"Ah, her master cracked the whip? I have to wonder how Philippa managed to anger the Raven Queen so quickly," Keira said with a smirk on her lips. "Ah, well. Sucks to be her."
The fact that Lucas literally owned Philippa was common knowledge, thanks to Saskia's mockery. It made the fact that Philippa was still trying to break them up even more ridiculous. Keira just shrugged carelessly, pulling Morgana into a tight hug.
"So, you and Lucas, huh?" Keira asked with a growing grin and a mischievous look on her face. After facing Philippa's disapproval, Keira's teasing was more welcome even as Morgana felt her cheeks starting to heat up.
– Philippa Eilhart –
"I appreciate the willingness, but I want to keep you as a surprise for the attack on the prison itself," Lucas replied to Saskia's casual offer to just burn the transport to ash. "Well, I want to keep Saesenthessis a surprise so they don't start to move siege weapons capable of hurting you to the prison. An extra blade would be more than welcome."
"True, most don't realise that the dragon that attacked Loc Muinne was me. Not to mention that most people believe that I was slain by Geralt," Saskia agreed with a frown as they examined the map of the area.
Despite her annoyance at being summoned like this, she was glad that Lucas wanted her advice during the planning phase. His familiar had done well to ferret out this information.
"With this many powerful sorceresses in one place, we should have little trouble dealing with the Templars themselves," Triss pointed out. Triss and Yennefer were standing noticeably distant from one another.
"I don't plan to leave any survivors, but if multiple Lodge members are seen in one place, Radovid will undoubtedly send reinforcements to the area," Lucas countered, making Triss nod.
"And they'd be stationed at Deireadh prison. We'd make our next task harder instead of easier," Triss agreed.
"Then we simply need to make sure that magic isn't blamed on the transport's attack. There are Scoia'tael in the forests; perhaps we can find a way to aim them at the transport? Ensorcelling them would not be hard," Philippa suggested, ignoring the glare on Saskia's face.
Saskia was the last person she had ensorceled, but that had been far harder due to her true nature; controlling some idiotic elves would not be nearly as difficult. Of course, Saskia was doubly angry, given that much of her support had come from the non-humans.
Saskia had never truly approved of the Scoi'tael because of their violent actions, but she was far too affected by the suffering of the non-human races.
"The Scoi'tael wouldn't be able to take on the Templars. Witch Hunters? Sure, most of them are barely better than well-armed thugs. The Templars are knights, heavily armoured knights at that," Saskia countered.
"Obviously. I didn't expect the Scoi'tael to survive; I merely meant that they would make a good cover. Leaving the dead elves and those they managed to slay at the battle site while taking the ones that were clearly killed by magic, not blades or arrows, would push the blame onto the Scoia'tael while also making it seem like they had a bigger presence in the area," Philippa explained. "Radovid is a petty, vengeful man. If he hears his Templars and Witch Hunters are being slain by Scoia'tael, he will turn his forces upon them and give us an opening."
Her explanation didn't make Saskia any happier, but then Saskia would oppose any plan she suggested. Saskia went to speak again, anger clear on her face at the idea of Philippa using someone else as her pawn, but Lucas cut in with a raised hand.
"If Radovid is how you claim, then he'll not accept it when his men can't find any more Scoia'tael in the woods. I suspect he'll turn his wrath onto the non-humans in Novigrad and Oxenfurt, regardless of their connections to the Scoia'tael," Lucas explained, making Saskia nod, her glare only growing. "Raven tasked me with ending the oppression of the elves. I don't think pushing a mad king into slaughtering his elven subjects is a good first move. We're going to need commoners for Albion, and I imagine that when the Hunters run out of mages to hunt, they'll turn their attention to the non-humans, along with herbalists and anyone else remotely magic-adjacent. Many of them will be willing to leave Redania behind to join us, but not if they hear we've been using elves as bait."
Philippa went to speak, but he wasn't finished, and with a gesture, he silenced her. As if the peasants would ever find out that they were behind it. If anything, starting a racial cleansing would make recruiting easier for them. Saskia was clearly pleased by her suggestion being shot down, practically preening.
"But that does give me an idea," Lucas continued. "I've been having my familiars subtly explore the area, and Vlad found something in Crow's Perch. There's a contract out for a monster they just call the Shrieker. Whatever it is, it has claimed many lives already, and the area it hunts isn't too far from the path the Templars will be taking. Could you control a monster to attack the transport?"
Philippa paused, rubbing her chin for a moment. Monsters were not easy to control, especially powerful ones. It was possible, but it had taken a lot of preparation to control Saskia.
She went to speak before she felt something, her connection to Lucas letting her sense as the Raven Queen reached out to Lucas. Lucas himself seemed to zone out for a moment, as did Saskia, but they regained their senses quickly. Lucas turned to Vlad and said something in Infernal with a grin on his lips.
"Never mind, I can control the monster. Still, what is dangerous to a peasant with a pitchfork might not threaten a well-defended templar transport. Why settle for one monster when I can have many?" Lucas said with a grin on his face. "Bella, see what else you can find in the area. Saskia, I might need your help subduing the monsters to enthral them."
His other familiar gave him a mock salute, flying away. Saskia nodded, far more at peace with the idea of enslaving monsters than intelligent beings.
– Lucas Hall –
[Enthral - Lesser]
Through your pact with the Archfey, you've gained the power to enthral mortals and monsters alike. When you defeat someone with a weak enough will, you can choose to enthral their minds and make them serve you.
As the first 'war council' comes to an end, I mentally command Philippa to wait a moment. Triss and Yennefer managed to cooperate enough to share some ideas and suggestions, even if you could cut the tension between them with a knife.
Apparently, they used to be good friends, but obviously, things are a little tense at the moment.
"You need me, your majesty?" Philippa asks, her tone clipped as I roll my eyes.
"Again, save that until Albion is more than just a bunch of mages hiding away from the hunts," I say, turning to her as I look away from the map. "I understand that you're trying to do what you think is best for all mages, but I will only warn you once. Do not interfere in my relationships, Philippa. Whatever happens between Morgana and I is between us."
Philippa pauses at that, a frown crossing her face as she crosses her arms. It took literally one day for her to start meddling. Saskia's suggestion of setting her on fire looks more promising every day.
– Philippa Eilhart –
"You realise that you're making things harder for yourself, Albion, Temeria and quite literally everyone else involved by pursuing this relationship?" Philippa pointed out. "If it is a matter of lust, you have Margarita and Felicia to handle such things. Instead, you slept with the one person that would have long-standing consequences."
"Morgana made her own decision, and she doesn't need you scolding her for it. And I certainly have no interest in you meddling in my relationships," Lucas countered. "Remember your place, Eilhart, or I will remind you."
For just a moment, he yanked on the mental chain that bound her to him, making her scowl at him.
"As you command, Your Majesty," Philippa replied, her tone sickly sweet.
"You know Saskia suggested that I should turn you into a royal concubine. Well, her exact words were that I should put you on your knees and put your lying mouth to better use," Lucas snorted.
"I'm sure she did. Has it occurred to her that she is also at your mercy?" Philippa scoffed back.
"It has. In her own words, she prefers dwarves for lovers, but she's willing to make an exception if I want to call her to my bed. Apparently, her time at Raven's court was a rather debaucherous one, and she's grown fond of not sleeping alone," Lucas replied with a deadpan tone.
Given that Raven had ordered her to make sure that Lucas engaged in more debauchery, it was unsurprising to hear that Saskia had gotten used to such things.
"If you must sleep with Morgana, do try not to finish inside her. Or take Saskia up on her offer instead of sleeping with the next queen of Temeria," Philippa sighed. "I would genuinely rather you take Saskia's… advice and make me see to your needs than risk you impregnating Morgana. Having a bastard born out of wedlock would look bad on both of you, even if you were to later marry, as Morgana is clearly hoping."
There was little point in trying to arrange a marriage before Morgana had the crown, as things were too unpredictable, and it wasn't like it would be official in any way that mattered if they just declared the pair married.
"Seriously, you'd rather I call you to my bed than sleep with Morgana?" Lucas asked, making her mentally roll her eyes.
"Do not expect me to be enthusiastic about matters, but I am no blushing virgin. Unlike Saskia, I do prefer humans, but I also prefer the fairer sex. I am at your command, Your Majesty, however, you wish to make use of my services," Philippa replied, her tone bland. She could feel his disbelief through the bond they shared, but she just sighed and reached up.
With two short movements, she pushed the straps of her dress down and let it fall, barely held up by her waist as she exposed her breasts to him. "I can sense your doubt. Would you like me to bend over the table and prove it? I understand that I am difficult to get along with, but I do want what is best for Albion. Don't mistake me being willing to point out when you're making matters worse as a lack of commitment to your cause. If it stops you from accidentally knocking up Morgana, years before she is mentally ready for children, then I will personally see to your needs as often as you desire."
Lucas didn't respond for a moment, but she could feel his arousal. He tested her, one hand moving up and cupping her breast as she just patiently let him grope her.
"I thought sorceresses were infertile?" Lucas asked, making her shake her head.
"You're mostly right, but Morgana did not go through many of the rituals and enhancements most Aretuza sorceresses do. Her magical potential has suffered for it, but she was naturally gifted, so she has ended up a decent sorceress regardless," Philippa explained, even as he continued to grope her breasts. "I imagine that Morgana forgot to mention that, in the heat of the moment."
If she weren't royalty, Morgana could have been a powerhouse on the scale of Sabrina Glevissig or Yennefer, but instead, she was merely above average.
"Would you like to move this to a bedroom, or do you just plan to molest me all day?" Philippa asked, her tone bland as she felt his hands move back.
"No, not right now, anyway," Lucas said, watching her fix her dress. She had convinced him, and her insight into his emotions made this far easier. "I will not stop my relationship with Morgana, but I'll be more careful about where I finish. Raven gave me a power that lets me control my fertility, but to be perfectly honest, sabotaging it also seems like the kind of thing she'd find funny."
Philippa actually snorted at that, knowing from her brief meeting with the Raven Queen that he was probably right.
"Then I shall continue preparing for the attacks. Even if we use monsters, this won't be that easy," Philippa warned, making him nod in agreement before he paused. She felt his embarrassment as he audibly agreed, realising that she couldn't see him nod. "Good day, your Majesty."
Despite him repeatedly telling her not to call him that, she felt the shiver of pleasure that ran through him every time she did. It was why he never made it an actual order, enjoying the feeling of authority that came with it, even when she was using it mockingly.
As gallant as he tried to be, Lucas was a man like any other, with two patrons whispering in his ear and tempting him to sin and debauchery. It was why she needed to be his advisor because every plan they had would fall to pieces if he went too far into sin.
They didn't need another Radovid, let alone one who had strange and unique powers at his fingertips.
— Bonus Scene — Yennefer of Vengerberg
"You wanted to see me, Yennefer?" Lucas asked, making her nod as she turned to him with a small smile. Unlike Keira, she'd spent her recent time in the Emperor's court, which was admittedly a very gilded prison, but even she could admit that Albion was far nicer than Nilfgaard.
"I did, though I have to admit I didn't expect you to come so soon given how busy you are," Yennefer admitted, turning to face him. Dressed in just a silky black nightgown, she put down the comb.
It was clear she was fresh out of the bath, and Lucas couldn't quite stop the appreciative look, but she didn't mind. She'd timed this perfectly, after all. Everything she heard about Lucas told her that he was a diligent person; when she asked to speak with him privately, she could guess that he'd come to meet her quickly.
Beauty was just as much a weapon as her magic, and she saw as he watched a droplet of water escape her still-wet hair and land on her chest, trailing down into her cleavage.
"I can come back later if you'd prefer," Lucas said, forcing his eyes back up.
"Oh, no. Don't get me wrong. I am thankful you came so quickly. I was just surprised," Yennefer said, gesturing for him to sit on the bed of the extravagant guest room she'd been given.
She hoped Lucas understood that he was going to have to pry Keira out of hers. After her time in Velen, Keira was likely here to stay. Of course that had already pushed Keira to start scheming to become Lucas' advisor, but she couldn't care less about that little competition.
"So, what did you need? Your message said you needed my help with something," Lucas asked, sitting down as she turned the chair to face him. She was well aware that her long, bare legs were on full display, and the gown was open enough to give him a good look at her cleavage.
"I do. My daughter is missing and being hunted by some very dangerous people. I have spent months exhausting every magical avenue I can think of to find her, but I believe that you are the key," Yennefer admitted frankly. "What do you know of the Wild Hunt?"
Lucas went to respond before he paused. She'd quickly learnt that this meant one of his patrons was talking to him mentally. She waited patiently, though she continued combing her hair as she did. If the movement caused her gown to part slightly, that was entirely accidental.
"They're elves from another world, fleeing its death," Lucas said, making her nod. She was unsurprised that the Raven Queen was familiar with them. "That's the polite version of what Raven said, anyway. She did assure me that they don't count towards my mission to help the elves of this world, and I should feel free to murder them for sport."
"Lovely. The Wild Hunt kidnapped me to use as bait to draw out my adopted daughter, Ciri. In truth, I still don't remember much of my time with them, but what I know is that if they get their hands on Ciri, it will be her end," Yennefer explained.
"But you think I also have the Elder Blood, the same power they're hunting Ciri for," Lucas continued, making her pause. "Margarita and Philippa discussed the source of my powers several times, and Bella makes a very good spy."
"I imagine Margarita was planning to tell you at some point; she's always been bad at keeping secrets. I'm not surprised Philippa never bothered to bring up her suspicions about your heritage, though," Yennefer admitted easily. "Yes. I have seen Ciri's powers in action countless times, and while your magic feels different in some ways, there is an undeniable similarity between you two. Yours is far subtler and more controlled, so you aren't quite the beacon that Ciri is. Anytime she uses her powers, the Hunt soon follows."
"But if they found out about me, they'd target me as well," Lucas continued, focused despite the view she was giving him. "You want to use my blood to find Ciri because if you're right, then we'd be distantly related."
"It's less the relation and more the power in your blood, but yes. For so long, we've thought Ciri was the last of the Elder Blood and the focus of Ithlinne's Prophecy until Margarita found you. Well, I suppose you found her," Yennefer corrected. After he had to deal with Philippa, she decided that the best way to approach this was blunt honesty. Lucas was not an unreasonable person, after all.
"Ithlinne's Prophecy? What is that, and why is Raven laughing at me?" Lucas asked, sighing deeply. It must be interesting to have such an ancient and legendary figure inside your head, but it wasn't an experience that Yennefer had any interest in trying out.
"I can explain it in far greater detail later, but the short version is that the world is doomed to an ice age and that a child of the Elder Blood will be the one to save us. There are various interpretations, but the elven one says that all humans will die and only the elves will live. The more modern interpretation disagrees," Yennefer explained, watching him sigh and run his hand through his hair. "Philippa thinks that the Raven Queen believes that you are that child, while I still think it is Ciri since the Prophecy mentions a swallow-"
"I am going to kill Raven," Lucas groaned, cutting her off as she blinked. "There's always something with this woman. It's just a knightly title, Lucas; it doesn't really mean anything."
Yennefer felt her lips twitch as Lucas muttered to himself.
"When I accepted a role in Raven's court, she essentially made me a noble of the Winter Court. One of her knights. She even kindly picked out my House name and emblem for me, leaving me some armour and a shield in my bedroom," Lucas groaned, closing his eyes as his casual clothes were replaced with a set of finely crafted silver armour.
On his breast, a house emblem stood proudly, a silver swallow flying against a black background. Yennefer's lips twitched at his frustration, even as her heart soared with happiness. If the prophecy truly could mean either of them, she intended to make sure that it wasn't Ciri. Her daughter deserved to be free to make her own choices, not bound to a throne or prophecy.
"I think the important lesson here is something I thought I already knew," Lucas sighed, his ears now pointed and his skin more fair. "Never trust a fey."