POV Aiden I got up, aching all over a landing that rough is never pleasant.
Straightening up, I stared at my hands, unsure.
“Did I… teleport?” My mare’s whinny snapped me out of my daze.
I walked over to her, stroking her gently.
“It’s okay, it’s okay, that was just a little surprise, girl.” She nuzzled against me, and I smiled faintly as she got back on her feet.
But before I could even catch my breath, I saw a massive fireball sail over the castle and slam into a wall.
I understood immediately: Nilfgaard was attacking the capital.
But how?
No time to think it over.
I shouted urgently: “Stay here, girl, I’ll be back!” Then I took off running through the castle, searching for the queen and Ciri.
— POV Calanthe I watched through the window as Nilfgaard’s army laid siege to my city.
My servants, Ciri, and Mousesack stood beside me.
Mousesack said, uncertain: “We still have no word from the army at the Nazair border.
Unfortunately, the worst we feared has happened: Nilfgaard threw its main force at the Mettina border, where we’d only left a small garrison.
They were wiped out.” I sighed softly it looked like my plan would finally have to be carried out.
I looked at Ciri, fists clenched, staring at the burning capital with rage and hatred in her eyes.
Even though it pained me to say it, I answered calmly: “Ciri, keep watching.
That, unfortunately, is the face of the defeated, and there’s nothing we can do about it.” Ciri cried out, furious: “But why attack the people?!” I rested my hand gently on her hair, smiling.
“I know you find it unfair.
But the defeated don’t get a say.” Then I turned to Mousesack.
“Any news of Aiden?” He shook his head, sadly.
“None.
As I told you, not a single word from the Nazair border.
All I can do is pray he’s sti…” “Don’t finish that word, Uncle Mousesack!” Ciri shouted.
“He’s alive, I know it!” She murmured: “I can feel it.” Just as I was about to tell Mousesack to leave, the door burst open: Aiden, still in his armor, covered in blood and sweat.
— POV Aiden I was breathing hard.
Seeing Mousesack’s relieved smile, Queen Calanthe, and Ciri, I let out a sigh of relief myself.
Before I could say a word, Ciri rushed toward me and threw her arms around me.
“I knew it!” I smiled softly, stroking her hair.
Calanthe stepped closer and asked, calm: “What’s the situation at the Nazair border?” I stayed silent for a moment, fists clenched, then answered: “We were winning when the main army got hit by spells.
The mages have dropped their neutrality.” Mousesack, furious, said: “I knew those damned sorcerers would be nothing but trouble.
I’ll need to have a word with the Chapter about this!” Calanthe raised a hand to calm Mousesack, then looked at me, unnervingly calm.
“Just as I thought.
Commander Albert kept his word.
Now it’s your turn to act, Aiden.
Keep your promise.” Those words left me uneasy.
Mousesack sighed and started getting ready to leave.
“I’ll go grab my things from my tower.” He walked out.
Ciri, still in my arms, asked, not quite understanding yet: “A promise?
What’s going on?” Calanthe looked me straight in the eye.
“Aiden.” She sighed softly.
“I know this is hard, terribly hard, but… you cannot stop the inevitable.” She walked to the window, gazing at the capital in flames.
“We’ve lost.
Nilfgaard outsmarted us, and our so-called allies did nothing to help.
From this day forward, I will be the last queen of the Cintra of 1263.” She turned to me.
“Aiden, I have named you servant to Princess Ciri.” I clenched my fists, head bowed.
Ciri, beginning to understand, tried to pull free from my arms but I held her.
She asked, more and more scared and upset: “What… what’s happening?
Aiden?
Grandma?” Calanthe acted as if she hadn’t heard Ciri’s voice, and went on: “Aiden, from this day forward, I name you Aiden of Cintra, honorary knight of Ciri.
And here is your one and only order the only thing I will ever ask of you: protect Ciri.
Protect Cintra’s future.” Ciri kept struggling to break free from my arms, her tears coming harder as she understood.
Calanthe came closer, knelt to our level, and pressed her forehead against mine, then against Ciri’s a gesture that froze us both in place.
She said softly: “Forgive me.
I wish I could have given you both the future where you’d have grown up together, safe.
But I have failed, as a grandmother.” She looked at me with gentleness, while I kept my head bowed, fists clenched: “You are exceptional, Aiden.
You are full of talent, and I know you will become one of the major players in this world.
From what little I’ve learned of your past, you are not a mere commoner, as you believe.
There is far too much darkness buried in your history.
Find out where you come from I’m certain it will help you enormously.
But despite all this, I’m counting on you to keep living, and to protect what matters to you most and my granddaughter.” Then she turned, with tenderness, to Ciri, in tears: “Ciri, my little lioness.
You will always be my most fearless granddaughter, the strongest in spirit.
But I love you.
Your mother loves you.
And we will always be by your side.
Know this, my dear granddaughter: you are brilliant, incredible, and above all, gifted always keep being yourself.” Ciri broke down sobbing, repeating, “Grandma, no!” over and over.
Calanthe straightened up and said, in a calm voice: “Aiden, in the name of your queen, I order you to take the princess and flee this castle.
Run, in the name of your promise and of this order.” I gritted my teeth and held Calanthe’s gaze.
“I swear it, Your Majesty.
I will protect Ciri, and I will find a way to rebuild Cintra alongside her.” Then I pulled Ciri, thrashing hysterically, into my arms.
I couldn’t hear anything anymore except her sobs and screams, as if my ears had filtered out everything else the whole world had shrunk down to that one sound.
Everything else was silence.
— POV Calanthe Watching the two of them ride away, I let a single tear slip, which I wiped away quickly with the back of my hand, murmuring: “Stay safe, children, and be strong.
A goodbye doesn’t always have to mean an end.” Then I spotted that servant the one I’d long known to be a Nilfgaardian spy quietly trying to follow the two children.
Without a moment’s hesitation, I drew my sword and slit his throat.
The spy, startled, clutched his neck and collapsed to the floor, dead, as my handmaidens cried out in shock before I calmed them with a single look.
I stared coldly at the corpse.
“Thank you for your service, dear spy.
Thanks to you, Nilfgaard’s army is about to have quite the explosive send-off.” — POV Mousesack As I hurriedly gathered my things to go join the two children, a whistle in the air made me react on pure instinct: I spun around and drove my staff into the ground, summoning a wall of thick thorns that just barely absorbed a bolt of fire meant to burn me to ash.
The scorched wood crackled from the heat.
I looked up toward the shattered window and saw Vilgefortz, hovering in midair, his own staff still smoking.
“Vilgefortz.
So you’re the one working with Emhyr?” He descended slowly, unhurried, a smile on his lips.
“Oh, Mousesack, you really think I’m the only one?
No, don’t worry.
But yes, I am one of those chasing the same goal: the famous Princess Cirilla.” Without waiting for a reply, he swept his staff through the air an invisible blade of wind tore through the room, ripping away part of the wall behind me.
I dropped and rolled to dodge it, then struck back with a sharp gesture: the roots of the great oak planted beneath my tower years ago burst through the stone floor and closed around his legs like claws.
Vilgefortz grimaced, caught off guard despite himself, and had to slice through the roots with a blade-sharp spell before they crushed him entirely.
A deep gash already ran along his forearm, blood dripping onto the flagstones.
I seized that second of distraction to hurl a burst of raw energy straight at his chest it hit him full force, throwing him against the far wall, a pained groan escaping him.
I stared at him coldly.
“So he’s still obsessed with his daughter, huh.” Vilgefortz slowly straightened, one hand pressed to his ribs, still smiling despite the pain.
“Honestly, I don’t care about that.
What interests me is what she carries within her her true bloodline.” I frowned, about to ask what he meant, but he raised his staff one last time, and this time an entire fireball engulfed half the room, forcing me to raise one final wall of interlocking branches to keep from being burned to ash on the spot.
The wood ignited instantly, but held just long enough to shield me.
Through the flames, I saw him retreat toward the shattered window, breathing hard, part of his mage’s robe scorched black.
“Well, I don’t have time for this.
I’ve got a princess to catch.
Farewell, Mousesack don’t worry, I’ll tell the Conclave you died with dignity, killed by some soldier or a doppler, whatever, I’ll come up with something.” One last fireball burst from his staff, hurtling straight at me the biggest of the entire fight.
— POV Aiden As I was hoisting Ciri onto my mare, Mousesack’s tower exploded in a deafening blast, sending chunks of stone crashing to the ground.
Ciri screamed: “Uncle Mousesack!” I clenched my teeth, watching flashes of a magical duel in the distance.
I wanted to rush over and help, but I felt a magical presence faintly slip into my mind Mousesack’s voice echoed in my head: “Aiden, run!
I’ll buy you time!
You need to get away from the capital, now.
Don’t worry about me, I’ll survive.
Let’s meet at Kaer Morhen.
Go!” Then the contact cut off.
I saw the flashes of magic intensify in the distance, and murmured weakly: “Don’t die, Mousesack.” I climbed onto my mare and shouted “Hyah!”, racing out of the capital with Ciri, ignoring the screams, the soldiers, the slaughter all around us.
Ciri cried against my back, but I couldn’t slow down or look back.
By the time we finally reached the plain, far enough from the burning capital, I slowed down.
Ciri stared at the blazing city too, fists clenched, murmuring weakly: “Grandma… Uncle Mousesack…” For once, I didn’t know how to comfort her I didn’t even know how to comfort myself.
But it seemed like even the queen, on her end, had already seen this coming.
— POV Calanthe I sighed, understanding that Mousesack likely wouldn’t be able to reach them in time.
Through the window, I watched Aiden’s horse ride away from the capital with Ciri which made me smile.
I murmured: “Live well, children.” Then I turned to my handmaidens, who had stayed with me until the end, and said calmly: “Drink the potion.” They nodded sadly and each drank their cup, collapsing to the floor, dead within moments.
I walked to the window, threw it open, grabbed a torch, and surveyed Nilfgaard’s army, along with its command, gathered before my castle gates.
The enemy commander shouted: “Queen of Cintra!
By order of Emperor Emhyr var Emreis, surrender, and Cintra will be spared!” I smiled faintly and shouted back: “Is your dear emperor watching this very moment, Commander?” He frowned.
“His Majesty is indeed watching, from the heights.
Don’t keep him waiting any longer, Queen Calanthe.” My smile widened further.
I turned my gaze toward the distant hills where the emperor stood that bastard and signaled to one of my soldiers to open a hatch leading to the sewers.
I held my torch up before everyone, my soldiers kneeling in silence.
The enemy commander began to sense something was wrong.
I smiled.
“Then, in honor of our dear emperor, I’ll give him an explosive send-off one worthy of a Lioness!” I let the torch fall into the sewers.
A trail of flame spread instantly, like a fuse racing through the whole underground network.
The vast army massed in the capital had no idea what was happening but the commander understood.
He tried to order a retreat, but it was already too late.
My last thought was: My dear daughter, I’m coming to join you.
My foolish husband, I’m coming to drink with you.
— POV Aiden A colossal explosion tore through the entire capital an enormous blaze, thick smoke, a shockwave so powerful it reached us and beyond, accompanied by a deafening roar.
Calming my mare, I stared at the explosion, heart pounding: the queen had done something insane.
The whole capital had been leveled, an enormous crater at its center but Nilfgaard’s main army had been wiped out in the blast.
Ciri cried her heart out, but said with fierce resolve: “Grandma!
I’ll make you proud!
Watch me with Aiden by my side we’ll avenge you.” I smiled softly, resting my hand on her hair.
“That’s right.
We’ll avenge them.
But for now, Kaer Morhen.” She looked at me, worried.
“Do you think Uncle Mousesack is…” I shook my head.
“I’m sure he isn’t.
He’s probably alive.” I was worried about him too, but for now, our safety came first.
Just as I was about to spur my mare back into a gallop, a man appeared on his own horse two swords strapped to his back, a scar across his face, cat-like eyes freezing us both in place.
The man gazed at the distant explosion, sighed sadly, and murmured: “So, you decided to go out like that?
May you rest in peace, Calanthe.” Then he turned to me, glanced at Ciri with a faint smile, and said: “It’s been a while, Ciri.” Ciri, still in shock, exclaimed: “Geralt!” — POV Vilgefortz I pressed a hand to my chest, still aching that damned druid had actually managed to skewer me with his branches, despite his own wounds.
That’s exactly why he’s one of the candidates to lead the Druidic Order.
I sighed, gazing at the smoke in the distance, an amused smile on my lips.
“So, the Lioness decided to go up in smoke?
Clever.” I glanced toward the emperor’s camp, easily picturing his face twisted with hatred toward Calanthe she’d just completely upended his plans.
But for now, that mattered little to me.
I needed to find the princess, and settle my score with that blasted druid who’d survived.
I smiled, amused.
“We’ll meet again, Mousesack.
And you won’t stop me from getting my hands on the princess for my plans.”