The crips sound of footsteps rang across the neatly-tiled street as a beautiful woman emerged from her house in Gildorf. She was wearing a black, lacy dress, and the frills were adorned with small decorations. Her dress clung closely to her skin, showing her beautiful curves.
A gust of sea breeze blew from the west, caressing her fiery-red hair, and her hair brushed across her perfect, albeit listless face. Elegantly and quickly, she walked, the pearl necklace and obsidian talisman she wore glimmering under the sun. The merchants, florists, and even the pedestrians stared at her with admiration in their eyes, but she paid them no heed as she walked across the bustling street, a frown furrowing her eyebrows.
Her eyes were vacant, bereft of any emotion, and she had the air of a person so lonely, this world could walk ahead, and she would be left behind. She was a stark contrast to the street around her that was brimming with life. The woman went north, where the bridge leading to the Temple Isle was.
The bridge had the perfect scenery. Anyone who came here could see the beautiful houses in the trade district and the resplendent temple standing atop the island. Beneath them was the boundless sea, where ships sailed. The sun hung over the horizon, burning the skies with red hot flames.
However, there were a few beggars lying around the bridge. Bedlam's men would only beg in remote corners. They would never step into the heart of the city, or the guards of Eternal Fire would give them a beating. But today, there were people kneeling around the bridge. The old, the children, and the women, all begging for money. All were gaunt, like they hadn't eaten in days.
"Please, have mercy, good sir! Fair lady, please!" A woman with a mud-caked face banged her head against the ground, her tattered clothes shivering along with her. A red mark appeared on her head, and blood started to trickle. Her voice was weak, like she would die at any given moment. "Please, we just need some coins to eat. We'll starve to death!"
The look on Coral's face did not change, and the woman shouted with what little was left of her strength, "The Nilfgaardian bastards invaded our kingdom, took our houses and coins away, and killed our family! Please, help us. Freya, Eternal Fire, please, have mercy on us poor Cintrans."
The woman took a deep breath, and sadness flashed in her eyes. She then clutched her chest. The man she loved went missing after that battle, and his whereabouts were still unknown. She didn't stop walking, but the woman brushed her hand across the air, and the pearl necklace she wore gleamed with magic.
To the beggars' disbelief, a few crowns suddenly appeared before them, and delight overtook their hearts.
"Praise the Eternal Fire!"
"Praise be to Freya!"
The beggars picked up the coins and rushed into the slums to purchase their food. The bland 'food' given by the church could barely fill their bellies up.
***
The woman stood outside the temple for a while. Everywhere she looked, be it the pillars, the fountain, or even the plaza, tents took up every inch of the land, and within it were the refugees from a war-torn Cintra.
At the suggestion of Chappelle and Gawain, Novigrad and the northern kingdoms generously took in some of the refugees, but it wasn't enough. Most of the Cintrans were still roaming the land, surviving the elements and living without a place they could call home.
***
The woman came to a hidden cave behind a weed-filled path. She stood before the innermost wall and waved her hand. The wall disappeared like a mirage, revealing another path with crackling braziers flanking its sides. She went into it and dispelled all illusions and traps. Halfway through, she came to a dry fountain and patted the gargoyle like it was her pet, then she stepped into a lab.
Lights illuminated every corner of this laboratory that was big enough to house a hundred people. The lab was split into three different compartments, each for a distinct use. One was for everyday life, one was for experiments, and the last was for item storage. The lab was filled with all kinds of containers, beakers, a big oven, and one operating theater.
The woman looked at the two residents in the lab. One was a man with a balding head. He had a mousy face, and his goatee was clumped up and tied together. The man's extraordinarily small eyes were bloodshot, and dark circles hung heavy under them. He was now smacking the back of his head, looking frustrated.
Standing beside him was a woman with maroon hair tied behind her head, and her blue eyes were filled with confusion.
"Triss, Kalkstein," said Lytta nervously like she was a patient waiting for the doctor's checkup results. "Any progress?"
"Sorry, Coral." Triss hung her head low and tugged on the hem of her clothing. "I can't remember anything. Everything that happened in the castle was a blur. I remember a few cloaked men surrounding Roy, and then… nothing. They fought, but I don't remember what they talked about. It's like my memory was deleted."
"Calm down, Lytta. Her memory loss is more than what it seems." Kalkstein pinched his beard. "This is nothing like a hypnotic suggestion. She was fed a special kind of drug that exacerbated her condition. It's not possible for her to regain her memory anytime soon."
"But can Roy afford to wait?" Lytta leaned back on a bench, looking defeated, and she held the hem of her dress tightly. "It's been two months. We have no clues, and the research yields nothing." Lytta held onto hope in the beginning, then she was hysterical, and then she started losing hope, and now despair was starting to set in. "If he's still alive, he could've told Gryphon to give us the news. No divination would work on him. Gawain and Chappelle sent their men to look for him, but they found nothing!" she roared. "Why isn't he coming back? He knows there's a lot of people waiting for him! Worried for him!"
Triss trembled, and she pursed her lips, a hint of fear flashing in her eyes. She then shook her head and approached Lytta, then she held Lytta's hand and stared into her listless eyes. "He's alive somewhere, trust me."
Being with Lytta these days had changed Triss a little. She was afraid of the aloof, irascible, and hostile sorceress at first, but now she acknowledged and pitied the sorceress a little. Lytta's longing for Roy exceeded Triss' expectations. She wouldn't go a moment without thinking about it, unlike her colleague, who would change partners every two weeks.
Compared to her, Triss' infatuation that stemmed from gratitude and her… needs was childish. She was a woman, and she knew women. Slowly but surely, she found a way to get along with Lytta. As long as she didn't show too much concern toward Roy, things would be fine. "If they really wanted to get rid of Roy, they could've killed me instead of getting rid of my memory. This must mean they want something from Roy, and they don't want to risk a falling out just yet. Roy must have his reasons to stay out of contact."
Lytta was silent for a moment. "I hope so."
"Ladies, you shouldn't worry so much for a lad. Men are nothing compared to the vast sea of knowledge and experiments," Kalkstein blabbered. "Magic is what we sorcerers should strive for. Love and thrills are nothing but small excitements in our lives. Just when you two are finally acting like professionals too. You should keep it up and leap into the sea of experiments with me."
The ladies shot the alchemist looks of disdain.
"Do not give me that look. Being single is not a crime." Kalkstein was angry at first, then he chuckled. "Fine, I was kidding. Of course he's worth your time. He's young and filled with energy. I do not think he'll leave his lovely lover behind. He's coming back soon, you'll see," the alchemist guessed. "And perhaps he brings gifts."
The ladies calmed down a bit.
"Now let's not just talk about Roy. What about the kids?" The alchemist asked with anticipation, "Did they show any discomfort?"
A hint of light flared in Lytta's eyes. "They're healthy. The Trials went well. The modified version of the Trials is much safer than the traditional version, but the downside is that the mutation's effect is about twenty to thirty percent weaker than the regular Trial. The new witcher apprentices are all slightly weaker than Carl."
The trio did their best. After all, the original recipe was the culmination of a hundred years of work done between dozens of sorcerers. They had only been working on it for a year, so the improvements were still small. If they wanted safety, they must sacrifice efficacy.
"The fact that the children passed the Trial without a hitch is the biggest breakthrough of all. Those idiot men were looking at us like we were gods."
Kalkstein plucked a strand of hair out of his already thin hair. Why do they drag me into that crowd?
"There are more than sixteen witchers who have passed the Trial. Letho, Lambert, and Coen have gone through their second mutation, and that's a miracle. If Roy saw that…"
Kalkstein quickly changed the subject. "He's going to reward you." Hearing that name made him queasy. "You mentioned Coen? He said he'd join the battle of Sodden Hill? So he survived?"
After Nilfgaard took over Cintra, the knight of the organization was already incensed. When he saw how the Southerners crossed Yaruga and tried to invade Sodden and killed innocents along the way, no longer could he sit still. In his naivete, he wanted to join the army in Vizima and battle the invaders. Perhaps he too wanted to search for clues of Erland on the battlefield. It took the collective effort of all the witchers to persuade him to take Acamuthorm as his student before he would quash the idea of joining the army. Coen wasn't Roy after all, and he could never escape the battlefield that easily.
"It was fortunate he didn't go." Triss shuddered at the mention of that battle. "Or he might never have come back."
One month ago, the shocking Battle of Sodden Hill broke out just like Roy had predicted, though five months earlier than he said. After Nilfgaard took over Cintra, they quickly defeated the allied army on Yaruga's south coast and conquered Upper Sodden.
Temeria, Redania, Kaedwen, Aedirn, and most northern kingdoms quickly came together and formed an alliance, battling the southern army at Sodden Hill before they could cross. This was the most violent war over the last one hundred years. More than a hundred thousand soldiers were involved.
The armies fought over the span of days, covering the hill with mountains of corpses, and the surrounding land became scorched earth.
"Honestly, I have Roy to thank for this." Triss held her hair, looking glum. "I only managed to escape because he told me not to go, or I would have died like the other sorcerers." He saved me twice, and I couldn't even help him once.
"He told me not to go as well. I took a two-year leave from Aretuza and the brotherhood for that, and I escaped the war." Lytta smiled. "We were the casualties he predicted." There was excitement in her voice.
"But only eight sorcerers died instead of fourteen. Four more escaped their fate."
The battle took a great toll on the alliance. Rumors said that the blood that flowed from the hill dyed the river crimson for two months. While the armies were fighting, groups of sorcerers jumped in and duked it out on the hill. However, five of the Nilfgaardian sorcerers were killed in Marnadal. They were outnumbered, and their fate was already sealed when they came to battle.
In the end, the northern kingdoms' brotherhood suffered eight deaths, and the people of the north named their resting place as Hill of the Eight. Nilfgaard sustained sixteen sorcerer deaths. The victory of the north wrested the triumph of the war from the hands of fate. The Nilfgaardians left the bodies of their fallen comrades behind and retreated to Yaruga's south coast.
***
Since both sides had sustained heavy losses, the war came to a halt. Only small groups were roaming the range from Upper Sodden to Cintra, but they could do no harm.
"The South won't attack for a while now." Coral looked relaxed. "They might sign a truce not long after this."
Triss was glad, and she heaved a sigh, a hint of guilt filling her heart. Her home was invaded, and yet she was trapped in Novigrad, trying to revive her memories and find out where Roy had gone to. Thanks to that, she escaped the war, but she had also betrayed her job as a royal consultant. For some reason, she never contacted the brotherhood or Vizima's royal council. Foltest, Keira, and Fercart probably thought she had died in Cintra, and Triss had no idea how to explain things to them.
***
"Wait, since I came out of this whole ordeal alive…" Coral twirled her hair, and she mused. "I can end my 'experiment' soon and return to the brotherhood, then I can ask them to help me find Roy."
"I do not think that's a good idea." Kalkstein swirled a tube filled with green liquid, and bubbles formed on the surface. "The one who took him away might just be part of the brotherhood. You don't want to alert them to anything and expose the whole orphanage."
"Why do you think that? Who do you think would do that?" Coral looked at him coldly.
"Vilgefortz of Roggeveen. If we want to base our suspicions on power levels and tactics alone, he's the prime suspect. He could have taken the lad without anyone knowing."
Coral looked at the alchemist. "Roy and Vilgefortz had never met. There's no possible reason for him to do this, even though he is standing out a lot lately."
Vilgefortz was a powerful sorcerer in the north. Young, handsome, talented, powerful, and had mastery over a multitude of powerful spells. He was one of the members managing the brotherhood. He was the one to suggest the formation of a support team and led the sorcerers to victory against Nilfgaard's spellcasters.
After that battle, his name was known throughout the north, making him the one who gained the most out of this war. Still, he did risk his life for this, and Coral didn't think he would kidnap Roy.
"If we don't ask for their help, it'll be hard to find him." She frowned.
"Give it a month. Trust him. He always comes through, doesn't he? He predicted the war, and he might've predicted his disappearance as well," Kalkstein said. "Two months isn't too long, and stop worrying about him. You keep worrying and you'll get old soon. Just think about happy things and watch over the kids. And the plants. Protect his home."
Lytta held the pearl necklace hanging from her neck. That was the first gift he gave her.
Kalkstein smiled and handed Triss another bottle of that green liquid. "Drink this and see if you can remember more."
"Yes."
***
Time went by, and soon it was night. A meteor darted through the skies of Novigrad, lighting up the darkening sky for a moment. Lytta was on her way back home, and she closed her eyes, holding her hands close to her chest, then she muttered something to the meteor. Please, let him come back safe and sound. I will take any punishment for him. No, I'll sacrifice a hundred years of my life for him. She heaved a sigh, and the sigh trickled into silence.
The sorceress was not one to trust in superstitions like this. Only ignorant children would do that, but Roy's prolonged disappearance had pushed her to the brink of desperation. She then trudged back home and walked up the stairs.
She clapped her hands, and the magical lamp hanging overhead lit up, shining on a spacious and luxurious living space. The dressing table was filled with all kinds of makeup products, the cabinet was huge, there was a storage chest lying around, and her purple bed had a feather blanket covering it, while curtains surrounded it.
The sorceress kicked her heels off and strode ahead, then she sank into her bed, burying her nose into her neatly-folded blanket. Suddenly, she turned around, her eyes sparkling. Then she placed her hands against her nose. "I can't believe I'm tasting his scent." It's been two months since he left. There's no way this is happening. No matter how much I miss him, I can’t be hallucinating. "Perhaps Kalkstein's right. I should calm down a little."
But the more she told herself that, the more she turned around and rolled on her bed, trying to calm herself down. But suddenly, she stared at the ceiling, and her eyes went wide, then her face fell. "Wait a minute. I didn't fold my blanket before I left!"
"Reset." A sigh came from underneath her bed.
Lytta quickly attacked her bed, smashing it into pieces. And then a surge of magic draped over the room.
Time started to rewind, the countless feathers picked up by the invisible hands of time, reassembling them into a perfect blanket. Things went back to how they were before, and silence fell upon the room, as if that blast earlier was just a dream.
Confusion flashed in Coral's eyes. She knew something was off, but she couldn't remember what it was. But then, a familiar smell caught her attention. She sniffed the air and chuckled. "I can't believe I'm tasting his scent." It's been two months since he left. There's no way this is happening.
Unlike last time, she heard the mewls of a cat coming from outside. Lytta walked over barefoot, and a fat orange cat was sitting beside the pots of blossoming purple roses on the windowsill, meowing at her.
"I know it's spring, but you're still barely a grown cat. Do you know what that urge is like?" Lytta could never resist anything cute. The melancholy in her heart was healed a little, and she picked the cat up, but then she noticed something. The cat was hiding a letter underneath its belly. And a rose too.
The cat broke free of her hold and leapt down to the windowsill, swaying its tail. It pointed at the letter with its paw, telling her to continue.
Lytta looked into the night sky, the stars suddenly brightening up, and it lit up her cold, dark heart. Her eyelashes fluttered, and with trembling hands, she picked up the rose and letter.
I failed to say goodbye
But as I turn around, I wipe away the tears
Streaming down your cheeks
The handwriting wasn't beautiful, but it was touchingly familiar.
As fate pulled me away
On my fingers I count
The days remaining until my return
Two months went by
Only two
Yet my heart flutters
My mind snaps
As it tries to remember
To recall what it has forgotten
To remember the thing it is missing.
Tears glistened in the sorceress' eyes. She felt someone coming up to her, and like a drunken woman, she fell into his embrace. It was warm. If this is a dream, please let me stay here for a while longer.
The voice she had missed so much whispered, "Even in another world, I yearned for but one wish. To stand here with you, in my embrace."
She felt someone wrapping his arms around her hips, and his lips kissed her neck, his breath traveling down her nape. A gust of wind blew into her room, and her hair brushed against the man's face.
She turned around, and she saw the face of the very man she had been yearning to see once more. It was a little different, but her heart fluttered all the same.
"I'm back, Coral." Roy smiled at her gently and picked her up in his arms.
***
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