[Chapter Size: 2000 Words.]
Third Person POV
Skellige.
...
...
An urgent meeting had been formed in Mousesack's laboratory, the place filled with many of his belongings — from his cauldron to stuffed animals — now once again inside the castle. Mousesack stood at the table in front of them, tapping his finger on it in an irritating manner as he appeared deep in thought.
"What you're telling me is troubling, Madara," Mousesack murmured, looking at Madara, while Ciri sat beside the Uchiha.
"I have no desire to be surprised by anything that guy might pull at our wedding. That's why we need to eliminate him now," Madara said calmly.
"I know... and I see everyone here agrees," Mousesack replied, following Madara's line of thought.
Beside him, Geralt stood restlessly with crossed arms, while Yennefer sat next to him with an analytical look directed at the conversation.
There was another woman — if she could even be called that — since Madara had introduced her as a vampire, Eleanor, whom he had just brought to the castle. He and she had entered in secret, and the two had secretly met in Mousesack's laboratory, summoning Ciri and the others through his raven.
"Madara is right... We must hunt him down like an animal..." Everyone understood why Vilgefortz was so dangerous, but the vampire's voice carried pure hatred — she even seemed to know the sorcerer better than anyone.
Madara hadn't said much about her past, but he gave a brief summary that they had once worked together and that he would now be working with her personally.
"He was the one who manipulated that man into attacking Cintra..." Ciri couldn't help but murmur, a certain hidden anger in her tone. Her comment was heard, and Yennefer looked at her, as did Geralt and Mousesack.
"That man?" Yennefer raised an eyebrow, asking who she was referring to.
Ciri seemed to hesitate as soon as the sorceress asked.
"There's no reason to hide it anymore. She's talking about Emhyr, the emperor. He's Ciri's biological father," Madara responded calmly, raising everyone's eyebrows — without exception and immediately.
"What are you saying, Madara?!" Geralt was the first to ask, stunned.
Madara knew this wouldn't be easy to swallow and looked at the witcher. "He's the man you helped marry Pavetta. Duny... or should I say, Emhyr, the man you saw that night and the emperor — they're the same person."
The room fell completely silent the moment his words left his mouth, leaving especially Geralt at a loss upon hearing the revelation.
"Duny was the man Pavetta fell in love with, and on the same night you lifted his curse, you invoked the Law of Surprise, and Pavetta vomited for being pregnant the next moment. Right then, you tied Ciri's destiny," Madara said, waiting for the witcher to absorb his words.
"You're saying Emperor Emhyr was that man?!" Geralt couldn't believe it, even with Madara confirming the obvious. Even Yennefer remained silent, her face motionless as she looked at Ciri, who seemed restrained — until Madara placed his hand on her shoulder, giving her a sad smile.
"Thank you..." Ciri nodded, content with the affection.
"It can't be... Emhyr?" Mousesack murmured, stammering.
"You know... I'm sure Queen Calanthe knew about it the whole time. And if you're going to ask me how I know that, I won't answer. I've already explained it to Ciri, and I only need her approval. If you're going to question me... you won't get any answers," Madara said calmly to everyone.
This would be a private matter. No one else said anything. Only the vampire might speak of it outside that room, but she didn't seem to have any reason to betray them.
"Well, in any case, Emhyr isn't important right now. We'll deal with him in the future. Even if he is Ciri's biological father, don't expect any mercy from me. Not even from you, Ciri. Your father destroyed Cintra," Madara said as a warning, while she pressed her lips together but nodded.
"Anyway, let's deal with Vilgefortz first, one of the men responsible for the war. He fought for the North to maintain appearances. As you can see, he always sought and desired Ciri's power... It's no wonder he was searching for her all the time, which is why I had to try eliminating him before the final battle... That mage was conducting experiments on young girls, mutilating them, like what happened to Eleanor's daughter. But I know Eleanor has information about some of his labs where he conducted more of those experiments. Her daughter wasn't the only one who suffered." Madara spoke and almost growled with rage knowing those experiments were solely aimed at capturing Ciri, to mutilate her.
"I swear... I'll do everything I can to stop more girls from suffering, like what happened to my daughter..." the vampire spoke again, growling in fury.
"Yes, you're right. Still, I can't help but feel extreme rage knowing he was also whispering in the Nilfgaardian emperor's ear to attack the North..." Yennefer said.
"Not just that... But he also killed Pavetta and tried to kidnap Ciri when she was a child, years before I appeared in Cintra." Madara said, while Ciri trembled beside him.
"That bastard..." Geralt was filled with anger. He now also understood why Madara had spoken of the experiments on young girls after saying that mage was after the power of Elder Blood.
"I don't care if he's my biological father. Geralt, you're my father. From the moment the Law of Surprise bound us," Ciri said, looking at the witcher. At that moment, Geralt nodded.
Though Geralt's face showed no change, maintaining his stoic demeanor, there was a visible glimmer of emotion in his yellow eyes.
Yennefer said nothing, while Mousesack merely sighed. "Either way, let's focus on Vilgefortz," the druid said, as everyone nodded.
"Well, in any case, we need to start combing the entire island. I want to send clones everywhere, even to the smaller islands, to try and uncover any hideouts. However, I know that won't be enough. That's why I'll need help," Madara continued, looking at Mousesack.
"You know... First, I want you to get in touch with all the druids on the island. We need to extract any information we can. You keep control over them, right?" he asked, while Mousesack nodded.
"Yes. They should all report to me. I can reach out to them," Mousesack said.
"You must do it discreetly. Also, don't doubt that Vilgefortz may have influence over some of them," Madara said and looked at Eleanor, expecting her to add something.
"I was just about to say that," Eleanor said. "Don't trust your men directly. I've been investigating that bastard for years. I know he already had a lot of influence in Skellige, even among some druids here, long before his fall in the war."
"Can you tell me their names?" Mousesack asked, somewhat concerned.
"I can write them down. I know the names of two," she said.
"That's good. It would be wise for you to investigate those druids directly and what kind of relationship they have with our enemy. It would be good to take Geralt along — I'm sure he can be quite useful in that kind of mission." Madara paused and continued.
"Also, Yennefer, it would be interesting if you reached out to some of your mage contacts and tried to gather information. I want everyone to act like they'll only move after the wedding. If any information leaks, I want him to still think I'm distracted, that we're just trying to enjoy the last days before we get married."
"Does everyone understand?" Madara asked, his voice firm.
"Yes, we can do that, and I believe no one disagrees with your requests," Mousesack said.
"Wait... and what about you, Ciri, and the vampire — I mean, Eleanor — what are you going to do?" Geralt asked, wanting to know.
"Eleanor has been investigating Vilgefortz for over a year here in Skellige. She found some of his bases and was defeated when she tried to enter. We're going to raid the ones she found tonight, both here and others she couldn't reach."
"From what we know... Vilgefortz is after a very powerful artifact in Skellige. I can only think of one that could be used to restore his power. I intend to try to find an entrance to that place," Madara said, as doubt appeared on their faces. But he continued, looking directly at Mousesack.
"Tell me, Mousesack... Have you ever heard of the Sunstone? Or Solar Stone? It's inside the largest mountain to the north. If Vilgefortz is after it, it will be even easier to find him."
"That... should be a legend," Mousesack murmured, thoughtful upon hearing Madara's information.
"That stone..." Ciri murmured too, knowing what it was about. She knew what it meant. Those visions Madara had about the game that Geralt and a blind Philippa once pursued, while they discussed the future of that Ciri... the Ciri from that world... With Philippa saying she wanted to be by her side along with the other sorceresses, for she would become the Empress of Nilfgaard. Which only made everything even more bizarre for this Ciri.
"Well... in any case, we'll begin today. We still have the late afternoon and evening. I'd like to find a way to make it seem like we're still at the castle, but at the same time, ensure no one comes looking for us. Can you handle that, Mousesack? After all, I bet King Bran will want our presence in the hall," Madara said.
"Of course. Let me speak with him and explain a bit of the situation. He'll understand perfectly," the druid replied, pausing while everyone in the hall remained silent, waiting to begin their tasks.
"Either way, you've left this old man quite surprised tonight..." Mousesack said with a smile to Madara. "I like the way you are now, Madara. You've become a great leader. You can even command old folks like us. You know exactly how to place us where we need to be. I'm sure you'll be the greatest king this continent has ever seen, when that day comes." Mousesack stood, but Madara said nothing. Ciri just smiled.
Yennefer wore the same smile. Geralt stood facing forward, and like him, Eleanor said nothing.
"Where are we going?" Ciri couldn't help but ask.
"Well, first we'll go to the place where Eleanor attacked. If there were mages there, it must be important. Though I doubt we'll find anyone now. After all, he probably knows you survived, right? And likely cleared out any of his research from there," Madara said, knowing the vampire had been hiding, trying to recover, and only appeared publicly to speak with him at the banquet.
"Alright. I've already marked it on the map for you, as you asked," Eleanor said, handing him the scroll with several marked points, just as he had ordered — she marked every hideout she knew.
Everyone began to prepare at that moment. Ciri and the vampire followed Madara through one of Mousesack's secret passages, exiting through one of the castle's openings as the breeze began to shift with the onset of night.
"Well... looks like it's better to just jump straight to our hideout. Ciri, you can take us there," Madara remarked to himself, while Ciri grabbed Madara's and Eleanor's arms, slightly distrustful of the vampire. She hadn't warmed up to the woman since Madara brought her to the meeting, but she trusted him — and eventually relented.
They all began to glow and appeared in the pair's hideout.
"I don't want to show up glowing in the middle of the night, and it'd be better to conserve some energy. That's why Totó will be useful," Madara said as he grabbed one of his scrolls and summoned a larger version to carry three people.
The griffin wouldn't be too happy about it, but he knew it was necessary.
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