POV General
Syanna took a few steps forward… then her legs gave out.
She dropped to her knees without even realizing it. Tears streamed freely down her face silent, uncontrollable. Her eyes were empty, trapped in a relentless loop where Aiden's death replayed over and over. The blood. The strangled cry. His body thrown into the lake.
She could barely breathe.
Regis stood frozen for a moment, petrified by the sight. Then something inside him broke.
A raw, animal scream filled with pain and rage tore through the air. His body twisted, his vampiric form bursting free without restraint. A form he had sworn never to use again. A form born of loss.
He had already watched those he loved die.He had sworn to Geralt that he would protect Aiden.And yet…
---
POV Regis
Again…Again…
WHY?WHY DO ALL THOSE I'M MEANT TO PROTECT DIE?!
ARRRRRRR
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POV General
The creature Regis had become lunged at Thúrlas with the fury of a wounded beast.
But Thúrlas… was bored.
With almost insulting ease, he dodged every attack, his body moving with perfect fluidity, like a master correcting the clumsy strikes of an overeager student. Regis's claws tore through the air, gouged the ground, but never touched him.
Then Thúrlas decided he had had enough.
He caught Regis's arm mid-strike.
With a sharp crack, the shoulder gave way. The arm was torn clean off.
Regis's scream echoed across the plain, but his body was already lifted, spun like a top, and hurled into a rock formation. Stone exploded on impact. Despite the pain, despite a regeneration that struggled to keep up, he rose. Staggered. Dropped to his knees. Then, with a growl, forced himself back up.
Rage alone kept him standing.
As he prepared to charge again, a firm hand settled on his shoulder.
Regis froze.
He slowly turned his head.
Dettlaff stood there, one hand gripping Regis, the other keeping Thúrlas in his line of sight.
Thúrlas watched the scene for a moment, then offered a brief smile.
"My friend… it's rare to see you like this."
Regis trembled, fangs still bared."I..."
Dettlaff shook his head."Not with me, Regis. No need for words. The one who just died mattered to you I can see that. But against Thúrlas, raw anger is useless."
He leaned closer.
"Use it. Control it."
Regis fell silent.
Gradually, his breathing slowed. His form stabilized. The beastly traits receded, leaving a more human appearance behind despite torn clothes and a battered body.
Dettlaff then turned to Syanna.
"You must be Syanna. You defeated the other higher vampires."
His gaze lingered on her eyes.
"And that look… you're seeking vengeance. Even if I hate humans, Regis is right. That hatred should be aimed at one being only…"
He didn't finish the sentence.
But Syanna understood.
Behind eyes hollowed by despair, something ignited a cold, determined spark. She wiped her tears, clenched her jaw… and stood up. Slowly. Resolutely. Then she walked toward them.
Regis and Dettlaff exchanged a silent look.
Together, they released their true nature.
Dettlaff's transformation was brutal, monstrous, crushing the air around him.Regis's was nobler, more controlled nothing like the earlier change driven by rage.
Syanna took her place beside them.
Thúrlas watched, amused, an arrogant smile on his lips.
"Done motivating yourselves?"
He shrugged.
"After all, aside from the other witcher I already sent to the bottom of the lake, I'm bored. So let's play a little. I've got eternity to spare."
They attacked together.
Syanna struck first, her shadow stretching like a living blade. Dettlaff lunged from the flank, claws screaming through the air, while Regis attacked head-on precise, disciplined.
Three attacks.Three killing intentions.
Thúrlas smiled… and moved.
His body slid out of reach, as if time itself belonged to him. Syanna's shadow sliced through empty space. Dettlaff's claws collided with Regis's in a spray of bloody sparks.
With a lazy motion, Thúrlas struck.
His fist slammed into Regis's chest. The air exploded. The vampire was thrown back several meters, carving a deep furrow in the ground before crashing into a mound of debris.
Dettlaff roared and attacked again, managing to slash Thúrlas's shoulder. Black blood flowed… then stilled. The wound closed before their eyes.
Thúrlas glanced down at it.
"Interesting…"
He grabbed Dettlaff by the throat and smashed him into the ground. The impact cracked the plain. Syanna unleashed all her power, her shadow raging like an autumn storm.
For an instant, Thúrlas vanished beneath the assault.
An instant only.
A shockwave burst outward, shredding the shadow. Syanna was thrown back, gasping.
Thúrlas reappeared unscathed.
He looked over his wounded opponents, then said with icy amusement:
"You're resilient. Truly."
He tilted his head.
"But do you feel the difference? You fight to avenge. To survive. To fill a void."
A soft laugh escaped him.
"Me? I'm having fun. And after this dance… Toussaint will become my vampiric kingdom. Then this world will follow. No one will stop me."
He vanished.
Syanna didn't even have time to react.
A hand closed around her throat, lifting her violently off the ground. Pain exploded through her body. She was hurled toward the lake, slammed into the earth. A foot pinned her down, crushing the air from her lungs.
A crushing weight pressed into her back.
Thúrlas stepped on her, forcing her into the ground. He bent down and picked up Aiden's broken sword, still stained with blood.
"I'll send you to join him," he murmured with amusement."Give him my regards."
He raised the blade, ready to plunge it into her heart…
Sparks burst into the air.
The impact boomed like thunder.The sword shattered, fragments flying in all directions.
At the same moment, a scream ripped through the air.
Thúrlas's foot was severed at the ankle, torn from his leg and hurled away in a spray of black blood. He staggered back violently, unbalanced, leaving a dark trail across the cracked earth.
He froze for a fraction of a second.
Something was wrong.
The air felt different. Heavier. Colder.
From the lake, a silhouette slowly rose.
First an indistinct, dripping shape. Then shoulders. A torso. A head. Water streamed down his body.
Aiden.
He stepped fully out of the water and onto the shore, leaving dark footprints behind. In his hand, Aerondight shone with an ancient light, almost alive, pulsing softly like a heart.
Something tightened in Thúrlas's chest.
For the first time in centuries… his heart raced.
Fear?No… anticipation.Or maybe both.
"So you're not dead, witcher…" he breathed, his smile slightly strained.
Aiden didn't answer.
He simply turned away, knelt beside Syanna, and placed a steady hand on her shoulder. His movement was calm. Controlled. As if the world around them no longer existed.
Then he stood.
And Thúrlas attacked.
Space warped.
Aiden vanished from his sight.
A crushing impact struck Thúrlas's shoulder, followed by pain so violent he didn't even have time to scream. Then another. And another.
When he finally managed to retreat, his arms fell heavily to the ground severed cleanly at the shoulders.
Blood erupted.
Thúrlas staggered back, panting, his eyes searching for Aiden but unable to track him.
He was too fast.
Not just fast precise. Calculated. Every movement was a perfect response, every strike anticipating the next.
Thúrlas managed to land a blow. A claw tore across Aiden's side.
But before the pain could even register, two strikes answered back. The air split apart. The ground cracked beneath their feet. Trees were sliced clean through, reduced to splinters.
For the first time in centuries…
Thúrlas was retreating.
A brutal impact pierced his chest. Aerondight drove in to the hilt, the blade's light flooding his body.
He looked up.
Aiden was already moving.
The blade traced a silver arc.
His head left his shoulders.
The body collapsed heavily, kicking up a cloud of dust and ash.
Silence fell.
Aiden stood still for a moment, his breathing slightly heavier. Then he sheathed Aerondight and turned toward Syanna.
---
POV Syanna
He was really back…
I couldn't hold back my tears anymore.
Aiden caught me before I could collapse. I clung to him, as if my entire body would shatter if he let go.
"I…" My voice shook. "I saw you die…"
Aiden rested his forehead against mine."I know."
His fingers tightened gently in my hair."I'm sorry I let you believe that. Forgive me, Syanna. I never wanted this. Seeing you cry breaks me."
I burst into sobs, weakly hitting his chest."Idiot…" I whispered. "Don't ever do that again. Seeing you impaled… seeing your blood… I… I never want to see that again."
He held me tighter.
"I promise."
I looked up at him, eyes still full of tears, but a smile slowly formed."You'd better… or I'll take Ganon for myself. She's a good mare."
Aiden laughed softly."We'll see. But I don't think Ganon would follow you. She loves me too much to leave. Sorry, my dear."
He kissed my forehead.
And for the first time in a long while, I was truly happy.
---
POV General
A laugh rose.
Low. Slow. Twisted.
Thúrlas moved.
First, his fingers clenched into the earth, sinking deep into the ground. Then his torso straightened, his shoulders snapping back into place with a sickening crack. He picked up his own head and, with chilling calm, set it back on his shoulders.
A moment passed.
His body began to change.
Muscles tightened, growing denser, more massive. His skin split in places, leaking a dark red glow, like molten blood beneath flesh. A heavy, suffocating aura spread from him, warping the air and bending the land beneath his feet.
The ground trembled.
Behind him, slowly, the moon changed.
It was no longer an ordinary moon.
It was red.Drenched in blood.
Thúrlas spread his arms wide, palms open, as if welcoming the world itself. His smile was no longer playful...
it was hungry.
His scarlet eyes locked onto Aiden.
"There it is…" he murmured.Then, louder:"Ready for round two, witcher?"
Silence crushed down on them.
This time, it wasn't a dance.
It was a promised execution.