ã€ŠElder Blood Witcherã€‹


 1 Being X?

    In a realm of vast endless white there lays a man who has his face firmly planted into the floor, he reaches down and pushes himself up while blood streams down from his nose.

    ??? "Did anyone catch the number of that truck?"

    He attempts to wipe his nose with the sleeve of his shirt but realises he is completely naked, surprised at this he observes his surroundings and slowly his face pales.

    ??? "Ok, either I''m in limbo or this is what being in a coma feels like?"

    ??? "Wrong on both counts Mr Ludvig"

    He looks to his right and sees a mass of multicoloured light that shifts and ripples as it floats there, the now named Reima Ludvig stands and tries to look presentable despite the blood on his face and genitals on full display.

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    Reima "Err, so I didn''t die then?"

    ??? "No you are most indisputably dead."

    Feeling rather shocked by this revelation he scratches the back of his head and ponders what he was doing a few minutes ago.

    *Flashback*

    Reima and a couple other people are sat in a smokey room with a coffee table covered in bottles of alcohol of all kinds, someone takes a puff from what looks like a self rolled cigarette.

    Groupie number 1 "Yo Reima, how is it going with that girl, errr Cassandra?"

    Reima "She dumped me because she wanted me to be her sugar daddy, obviously if i had that kinda money I wouldn''t be barking up her tree!"

    Groupie number 2 "Hahaha, did you see her showing off her tits on facebook yesterday? You missed out bro."

    Reima "Yeah I guess... lets not talk about that skank anymore yeah?"

    Groupie number 1 "Bro you seem like you need to chill, puff one of these and it''ll make your day..."

    Reima who had a vague idea on what they were smoking was rather nervous to see what kinda of effects it would have on a first timer like himself.

    Reima "Alright, pass it then..."

    They hand it over to him and he proceeds to cough and splutter and a few minutes later his world slows down and becomes "chill", after a night of drinking and smoking a trashed and dizzy Reima starts to walk home...

    Reima lives in london and currently in 2017 Sadiq Khan is rabidly pushing for multiculturalism and integration of immigrants and asylum seekers... Due to this crime is rampant and the police are having to take drastic action to catch the new wave of moped criminals...

    Unfortunately for Reima a criminal on a moped is being pursued by two police vans, in the dead of night with no reflective material or lights near he is not seen. The moped who is carrying a flat screen tv managed to smash Reima in the face with said TV completely destroying it and Reima''s face.

    Somehow in a miracle event Reima survives this with 4k shards still stuck in his face... That is until the pursuing Police vans turn Reima''s body into paste as they grind and smash him as they pass.

    *Flashback End*

    Reima "Expect the police to provide justice they said... Keep me safe they said" He says as he grinds his teeth.

    The orb of light speaks again "Yes, it seems to me like spotting a junkie in pitch darkness at high speed is an easy task..."

    Reima "Am I being sarked on by a floating rainbow testicle? You got something to say you ephemeral bean bag?"

    ...

    ...

    Reima scratches his stubble and speaks "Sorry, dying wasn''t really a goal of mine... Do you have a name?"

    ??? "You can call me being X"

    Reima "Like that god from the saga of-"

    Being X "No, not like that clown. I do not require brainless ideologs to gather power, I am powerful enough without outside interference."

    Reima "Yeah that''s great Dr X but I''m dead and I assume your gonna send me to heaven or hell right?"

    Being X "No, I am not the one who oversees that part of the cycle. I was reading a novel about a god that grants people wishes and decided to try it out, to see if it seems as pointless as I thought it was."

    ... Reima "So your like an Otaku or something?"

    Being X "It''s something to do, as long as humans produce content I will be content. I would suggest its a better past time than some of my colleagues who torture souls for fun."

    Reima "It does sound fine when you put it like that I guess."

    Being X ripples as it gets to the point "I will grant you three wishes Mr Ludvig, please be as specific as possible to avoid genie-like mishaps."

    Reima sits on the floor to think about his wishes, obviously he could just wish to be Saitama level power and Rofl stomp chumps like it''s going out of fashion. But is that what he wants? Being so powerful from a weak and undisciplined human seems like it would be boring pretty quick. Not only that but eventually he would start to abuse such power, unless he sealed himself away to prevent him interacting with the world.

    What about becoming a Shounen protagonist? Stupid, Kinda check? Weak to strong, check...

    No, Anime is kinda its own troupe now.

    He starts to think over media that he has consumed throughout his life time, most of it is western aside from those ported over, he remembers playing the Witcher 3 a year ago and wondering what it would be like to be a Witcher... Obviously he wasn''t going to pack his bags and do that stupid Witcher training programme they started in Europe.

    As someone who lives in the relatively peaceful 2000''s Reima has absolutely no combat experience and would need to be trained from the ground up.

    Reima sighs and focuses, he wants to be free, to be free he has to be strong. To be strong he has to be adept in combat... Unless he cheats with wishes. To do this he will pick somewhere that has magic, and a relatively low power level so he doesn''t instantly get vaporised... But the thing Reima wants the most is experience... An adventure, to meet new interesting people.

    Reima "Alright, I have decided... But before I choose I have some questions."

    Being X doesn''t reply and just continues floating there.

    Reima "What worlds is Ciri from the Witcher able to access?"

    Being X ripples "The being known as Cirilla Fiona Elen Riannon due to the genetic mutation known as Elder Blood is able to randomly jump from world to world, she has no control over her destination and can randomly appear in any universe, Fiction or not."

    Reima "How can the Wild hunt follow her through worlds?"

    Being X "The group of Elves known as the wild hunt can trace the elder blood through the minute fractures she creates through space and reality as she travels, special magic allows them to send small groups to capture her."

    Reima "Will the Elder blood effect the Witcher trials in the School of the wolf?"

    Being X "The Elder Blood was created from ancient Elven mages, it was an attempt to create the most superior magic race in existence. The person who was given the Elder Blood procreated with Humans and so the Elves lost control over it. Due to it being an artificial genetic modification it will likely make the person going through other genetic modification extremely adaptable, even beyond the resistance of the one known as Geralt of Rivia."

    Reima "So I would become like a super Witcher or something?"

    Being X "I do not know, but you would likely survive the trials if you took this route, although the Wild hunt would pursue you as they do Cirilla Fiona Elen Riannon."

    Reima grins "Ok, for my first wish I want a pure Elder Blood bloodline that is immune to all forms of observation, tracking and trapping, I would also like to be able to control the destination of my world travelling." Reima speaks out loud in one breath going over what he said to makesure he didn''t slip or forget anything.

    ...

    Being X "Pure Elder Blood bloodline is originally Elven, are you sure?"

    Reima smacks his head, do they even let elves become Witchers? "Ok Pure Elder Blood bloodline that happens to be human?"

    Being X "You are lucky I am an amicable person. What is your next wish?"

    Reima "Ok, for my second wish I would like a very fast mastery over everything..."

    Being X "Can you elaborate please?"

    Reima "I would like the ability to learn anything extremely quickly, not instant mastery because that takes the effort out of literally everything.

    Being X "This can be done, next and last wish."

    Reima scratches his chin and wonders what he needs to be effective in any world he travels to, he remembers that X men dude who could adapt to anything but still somehow managed to die.

    "I would like a body that will adapt and evolve to suit anything I could need..."

    Being X "Your first wish is already an essentially low level version of this... Are you sure?"

    Reima "Really? How does that work... Ciri didn''t seem that competent to be honest."

    Being X "Cirilla Fiona Elen Riannon''s bloodline and genetic trait was weakened due to being a distant descendant of the original. But she gained abilities that she needed to suit her environment, her training with Geralt of Rivia allowed her to quickly dash and teleport due to her speed not nearly being close to a Witcher who had gone through their trials, her body also became stronger and faster than most humans alive.

    Reima "Huh, cool I guess... Ok can I have all three Haki from Onepiece?"

    Being X "Haki is the result of someone training their soul for combat, so unless you let me tinker around with your soul I cannot grant you this. Although I can start you on the path."

    Reima "I guess it''s better than nothing and I don''t have anything else I want aside from one of those bags of holding... but I can make due, and if I''m really desperate I can just pay a visit to a realm with them present."

    The glowing rainbow beanbag ripples as it confirms one more time the wishes of Reima

    "A pure Elder Blood bloodline that can''t be tracked trapped or observed that allows you to choose your destination and also happens to be human, The ability to learn anything extremely quickly and access to all three Haki from the realm of Onepiece. Is all of that correct?"

    Reima "Yes."

    As soon as he confirms it Reima is surrounded by light and enveloped, his 5.10 foot body slowly shrinks down to 3.9 feet tall, the light disperses revealing a child with white-grey hair, bright green almost glowing eyes and a thin physique.

    Being X ripples in amusement "You look rather adorable now when compared to your junkie appearance"

    Reima looks up and glares at Being X "Is there a reason you turned me into a child beach ball-san?"

    Being X "Witcher trainees start 5 to 8 years old, although I would enjoy seeing a 18 yearold man being man handled by already trained children."

    Reima sighs and almost face palms himself at his error that almost destroyed his plans.

    Being X "Is there anything else you wish to ask, this will most likely be the last time we meet."

    Reima "Yeah, what''s your real name?"

    Being X stops rippling and the colours fade a muffled noise comes from it.

    Reima "Sorry what was that?"

    Being X "Im"

    Reima "Im?

    Being X "It''s Jim okay?, even super powerful being don''t get to pick their names!"

    Reima snorts and gives an almost Aqua smirk but manages to hold it in. "This has been pleasant Jim but I don''t suppose you can assist me in getting my journey started?"

    Without saying anything Reima vanishes in a flash and Jim is left alone again.

    "I still do not see the point of granting wishes... It seemed rather pointless."

    Jim goes back into his Otaku room and spends 500 thousand years re watching Naruto and getting angry at Boruto.

 2 Meeting Geral

    On the outskirts of Mirfield a village south of Kaer Morhen a dim light flashes and a young white haired boy falls into the canopy of the forest.

    Reima "Shhiiiieeeetttttt!"

    Reima who had just finished talking to Jim (Being X) falls through the tree, branches, leaves and thorns causing scratches and cuts on the way down.

    *Thunk*

    He hits the floor and is covered in mud, luckily it seems Being X pitied him and gave him a jerkin made of some suspicious leather or hide and some leather trousers. Cursing himself and trying to keep the mud out of his wounds Reima looks up and realises a sword is being pointed in his face.

    "You, what were you doing in the trees?" A gruff voice speaks.

    Looking past the metal he spots the white mane of hair that can only belong to one man, Geralt of Rivia. Reima takes a breath and tries to get into a child''s mindset.

    "I was running from people Sir, I''m sorry if i startled you!"

    Geralt looks around trying to tell if this is some sort of ambush, he pulls his sort away as he doesn''t spot anything and his amulet is still.

    "Who was chasing you?"

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    "I took some bread but they caught me... I don''t have anywhere else to go, please don''t send me back Sir!"

    Geralt sheaths his sword and pulls the child up out of the mud, he walks to Roach his faithful horse companion and strokes his mane.

    Reima has no idea how he is going to convince Geralt to take him to Kaer Morhen, another issue he didn''t think about is the timeline. They had stopped making Witcher by the time Witcher 3 rolled around so this will be difficult.

    He brushes the mud off his trousers and pulls his bare feet out and tries to start the tear factory,

    "Sniff, Sir it''s cold out here... I''m an orphan, please don''t leave me alone" Trying to act like a pathetic 7 year old is pretty hard!

    Geralt still thinks something is off but decides he can''t leave a barely clothed child in the forest teeming with monsters alone, "I''ll take you back to Mirfield, be quick I need to be somewhere."

    Reima panics and decides to change tactics.

    "Wow your eyes! Your a monster hunter aren''t you!?!"

    "Yes."

    He picks up the boy and puts him on the back of Roach as the boy starts chattering.

    "I wish I could fight monsters... Mother would still be alive."

    Geralt stills, "You want to be a Witcher?"

    Reima brightly smiles, "Yes sir!"

    Geralt turns his head and rubs his stubble, he was on his way back to complete the first trials since Vesemir became Grand master of the School of the Wolf. Usually they only took kids that they earn through the Law of surprise, the practise where if someone saves your life they can evoke the Law of surprise. It''s a rule where you give them the first thing that you don''t expect to be there when you get home... This includes children.

    But due to the massacre that happened that wiped out most of the Witchers they have had to increase this batches numbers from orphans and slaves. Having this child literally dropped onto his lap seemed like a gift in disguise.

    "Are you sure? The path of a Witcher is a lonely and painful one... Only the most dedicated can even hope to survive the trials."

    Reima looks into his cat-like eyes and affirms his belief "I can be a Monster hunter Sir. Ill show you!" Geralts lack of response doesn''t dissuade his determination.

    "Alright, just know that if you lose your nerve you will be sent straight back. I won''t tell you what happens if you wish to leave during the trials but know that you won''t like it."

    Geralts steers Roach around and starts heading to Kaer Morhen.

    Reima talks to Geralt about innocuous things and trying to figure out where he is on the timeline.

    "Sir have you ever received a surprise?"

    "Not yet" The gruff voice replies. Ok so he hasn''t met Ciri yet and the fact that Geralt is taking me to Kaer Morhen means that they haven''t stopped the trials yet.

    "Sir you haven''t told me your name yet... I''m Reima Ludvig nice too meet you!"

    "Geralt of Rivia."

    "How long have you been a Monster hunter Mr-"

    "Shh" Geralt pushes his gloved finger into Reima''s face causing him to shut up, in the distance we can hear moving water. Reimas hearing isn''t as good as Geralts but thinks it''s most likely the low level creatures that populate almost every water source in the Witcher... Drowners.

    "Be quiet and stay on Roach" he gets off and approaches where the water is.

    Reima wants to go with but decides that as a 7 yearold he would probably be torn apart.

    Geralt approaches the bushes overlooking the stream, he can hear splashing and growling. The sun is setting and dusk is approaching giving him perfect cover to observe the Drowners.

    Two Drowners are on land devouring a horse and what should be it''s rider, two is easy enough but there is bound to be more nearby.

    Drawing the crossbow from his back and placing a Yrden trap sign in front of him, he shoots the closest one revealing himself and backs back into the bush.

    The two screech and start sprinting at his last location one with a bolt poking from its chest.

    The trap springs impaling one and slowing the other, Geralt does an overhead chop and decapitates the slowed one he starts spinning and cuts the impaled Drowner in two.

    More splashing and screeching approaches from further down the stream revealing three more. Geralt block one clawed hand and counters cutting it from the shoulder while the two others try to leap onto him, he rolls away and casts Igni enveloping them in flames.

    Guttural screaming and rolling the flesh melts from their bones and they perish, He turns to the final one armed Drowner as it backs away.

    It starts to run towards the water, its stump spurting dark red fluids as Geralt reloads his crossbow and shoots it in the back of the head.

    "Should be a nest nearby... Not my problem" He states as he collects the tongues and heads back to Roach.

 3 Kaer Morhen

    Reima spots Geralt coming back after the sound of combat had stopped.

    "Did you slay the monsters?"

    "Yes."

    "What were they?"

    "Drowners."

    He lightly kicks Roach as they start travelling again, Reima decides to try and settle the debate on where Drowners actually come from once and for all.

    "Sir, where do Drowners come from?"

    Geralt raises an eyebrow at his inquisitive charge but decides it''s better to learn earlier than later.

    "If a male corpse is left in water for a long time, it becomes a Drowner..."

    Reima had read in the past that Drowners bred within the nests located around the world, apparently it''s similar to some Necrophages who come from bodies that are not burned nor buried.

    They continue travelling until Reima can barely see ahead and Geralt decides to camp. They travel off the road a few metres and tie Roach to a tree, Geralt pulls out a single sleeping bag and throws it to Reima.

    "Sleep."

    "Thank you Mr Geralt."

    Geralt gathers branches and dry leaves and uses Igni to start a camp fire.

    Reima "Are you going to sleep?"

    Geralt "I''ll be fine, go to sleep."

    He goes to Roach and takes a pouch from which he grabs a handful of salt, which he proceeds to spread around to circle their camp site. After all is done Geralt drops to his knees and starts to meditate.

    Birds tweet and chitter as dawn approaches and lights up the damp dark forest. Geralt still sitting in the same spot and position stops meditating and looks to Reima.

    "Get up, we will arrive today."

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    Reima rubs his eyes and gets out of the sleeping bag shivering at the chilled air, "Yes Sir."

    He helps Geralt pack up and they continue travelling, as they go he tries to bring up different subjects and engage Geralt but only receives brief responses cutting dialogue short.

    After what Reima assumes is 4 hours he spots an old looking castle in the distance, like a grey dilapidated of lord of the rings white keep. As they get closer Reima can see the discarded bones and damaged walls from what he believes is the last massacre.

    "Mr Geralt, did someone attack the castle?"

    "Yes... Thousands of peasants in a frenzy attacked the Kaer Morhen while I was on the path, killed everyone and left Vesemir for dead."

    "How did they get inside?"

    "I don''t know."

    They approach the gates of the keep and while it seems more lively than in the Witcher 3, Reima can still spot blood not yet cleaned from the stones.

    The gates are already opened and they make they''re way inside.

    Inside they approach the courtyard and see around 20 children from ages 5-8 with 5 Witchers keeping watch over them, Reima can spot Eskel, Lambert, Vesemir and 2 Witchers he doesn''t know.

    Geralt approaches Vesemir and clasps hands.

    "Master Vesemir"

    "Now, now Geralt... We are past that, did your journey go well?"

    "Took of few contracts, not much. When I received word of your attempt on the trials I had to be present."

    Vesemir looks past Geralt and spots Reima.

    Lambert "Hey Geralt, that kid yours? I can see the resemblance... Although Yen might have something to say about it."

    Geralt grimaces and firmly stats "I picked the kid up on the way, he wants to be a Witcher."

    Eyes drift onto Reima observing everything about him, Vesemir is the first to speak.

    "So lad, you want to be a Witcher? Why?"

    Reima turns the child dial up to 11 and speaks "I want to be a cool Monster hunter like Mr Geralt and protect people!"

    Amusement is the main emotion from the chuckling Witchers.

    Eskel "We should probably get started Vesemir."

    Vesemir "Yes, everyone is present so we shouldn''t dawdle. Line up with the others lad and we will start."

    Reima nods and approaches the other recruits, most of them are wearing dirty ragged clothing but some are wearing what look to be fine clothes worn by nobles. All of the children in front of him are male and look nervous.

    He stands at the end of the line facing the Witcher.

    "Hey, I''m Reidun" A brown haired gaunt child introduces himself to Reima.

    "I''m Reima, nice to meet you Reidun."

    Vesemir "Silence" The group of children stop talking and look to Vesemir.

    "You are all here for one reason and one reason only, to become a Witcher... Although I do not like to admit it, most of you will not survive the trials... Those of you that do will never be able to have children but will be stronger than any human alive, we will not force you to become a Witcher but you will have to make a choice now. This is the last chance you will get, the only way to leave after is being dead or becoming a Witcher."

    Vesemirs words shake the resolve of some of the kids but Reima remains confident.

    "If any of you have doubts, speak them now..."

    Vesemir stands there with a grave look on his face... 1 minute... 2 minutes, and the first child speaks up.

    "I want to go home! I don''t want to be a Witcher" He states as he starts sobbing.

    Vesemir looks behind him at Lambert who proceeds to usher the sobbing child away from the group.

    Three more after the first child end up refusing leaving a still rather large group left.

    Vesemir gives a grandfatherly smile "You will be given a room to rest and meet your peers, they will be your brothers for hopefully a long time. Eskel please escort them to their quarters, we will start the trials tomorrow."

 4 Becoming a Vegan Monk...

    Lambert escorted the recruits to a room in the 2nd floor of Kaer Morhen and pointed to the rows of bunk beds lined up against the wall.

    "Alright kids, home sweet home. You will be given your last normal meal in an hour after you get yourselves comfortable..."

    The recruits found partners to bunk with and made sure everything was fine, Reima bunked with Reidun the most familiar boy out of the group.

    Reima "So how did you end up here?"

    Reidun "I''m an orphan and tried to steal from one of the Witchers... Eskel I think his name was?"

    Reima "Either you weren''t paying attention or you are really unlucky... But this is a chance to make a new life for yourself, while being a Witcher isn''t glamorous it can''t be said that they are poor."

    Reidun nods his head and they continue chatting.

    They also meet some of the other recruits, Theun, Erik, Emerens and Jacob on either side of their bunk. Theun has darker skin and is slightly taller than Reima, Erik looks like a traditional Nord from Skyrim with his broad jaw and ginger hair, Emerens looks like a posh swedish person and Jacob looks the most boring out of everyone with his brown hair and normal face.

    Jacob "So have you guys heard about what trials are done here?"

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    Reima "I only know that they change your body to be not entirely human..."

    The other boys look leering at becoming some sort of mutant but don''t add anything else.

    Lambert comes through the doors and gets the recruits to collect a plate that has bread, cheese and a small amount of dried meat.

    "I would suggest you savour it as this will be the most pleasant meal you will have for around a year. Eat up, we will begin training in around 30 minutes."

    Reima''s group sit on the side of their beds and slowly eat their meals. The cheese is a lot stronger than any cheese Reima had eaten before, the bread was slightly stale and the meat was as tough as old boots.

    "If this is the best meal I''m gonna eat here I might just jump off the tower." he snarks

    Reidun "I don''t know about you but this is pretty good..."

    Jacob "Yeah, the best meal I''ve had in a few seasons."

    Erik nods to their statements while Reima tries to choke down the food. His fragile modern day taste buds protesting the whole time.

    After their meal they are lead into the court yard where all the Witchers have wooden swords and loose thin clothing. Vesemir walks in front of the recruits and introduces Geralt, Lambert, Eskel, Aubry and Frank. Aubry has dark red hair and noticeably less scars than Frank who''s head looks like it was shoved into a meat grinder and had a black hairball spat onto it.

    Vesemir "You will be trained in physical combat with all kinds of weapons including swords, spears, axes and even bare handed. Physical training will be done in the mornings at dawn and in the evenings, in between these sessions you will be studying with me or Eskel on monsters, herbs, potions and anything you might come across during your lifetime as a Witcher... This includes some rituals, folklore and basic medical knowledge. You will also be on a diet of wild mushrooms, herbs and whatever else I can pull out of the ground... This is all you need to know for up to a year depending on how your training goes."

    The recruits nod as they listen to Vesemir

    Vesemir "Now, we will start with basic forms that the school of the wolf uses. This will be different to any martial discipline you might have learned elsewhere, mainly due to us not fighting humans but fighting monsters. You will split off into groups and watch us demonstrate forms, footwork and posture. Any questions?"

    No one speaks up, the around 20 recruits split off to the different Witchers while picking up wooden weapons from the racks, Reimas heads to Vesemir due to him being the most knowledgeable and well learned Witcher present.

    The group spends around 30 minutes demonstrating each form and explaining the uses of each in different situations, after that they allow the recruits to attempt the forms while correcting them when they do one incorrectly.

    Vesemir stands back with Geralt as this is happening and observes those with talent and spot two who exceed the group by far, Reimas and another boy called Arie. "We have some good seeds for these trials, perhaps the revival of the school is not far in sight."

    Geralt nods with his arms crossed. "I remember you saying some of the knowledge of the trials was lost... Did you recover it?"

    Vesemir grunts "No, but I believe the trials I concocted will work. The techniques that were lost improves the rate of survival... I think they were used to reduced the toxins from the second trial but decreased the strength of the mutations, I can only hope my efforts are not in vain."

    Vesemir shakes his head to rid himself of doubt as a wooden sword comes flying from the recruits...

    Vesemir "I know your all excited but I have no idea how a weapon can go flying from form practise!"

    The recruit who lost his sword made the walk of shame with his head down to collect his wayward sword... "Sorry Grand master Vesemir..."

    Vesemir slaps him on the back "Get back to practise and focus!"

    He turns to the almost grinning Geralt "Shouldn''t you be teaching? Well go ahead."

    Geralt shrugs and walks to correct the footwork of the closest recruit.

    "Feet further apart, what are you a ballerina!?!"

 5 Not so magic mushrooms...

    Reima goes through the forms he observed from Vesemir, he finds it easy to seamlessly shift through various footwork placements, posture and stance. He watches as his peers slowly think about their actions and position themselves with great contemplation.

    Eventually they are taught how to swing a sword, how to fix blade alignment and apply force correctly, after causing an audible swish through the air and fixing his stance he looks to Geralt who was watching close by.

    "How is it Sir?"

    "Good, you have talent... Be careful not to get lazy."

    After the session everyone is directed to the library where Vesemir begins to give a lecture on types of creatures that exist such as Necrophages, Relicts and Spectres.

    "Now who knows where I could find a Ghoul?"

    one or two students put their hands up but Theun ends up answering.

    Theun "A Graveyard?"

    Vesemir "Yes that''s right. Although now days most battlefields will be covered in them if corpses are left and not burned."

    Vesemir also gives a basic idea on Potions, Oils and Bombs that Witchers sometimes make use of.

    "Alright, we are almost done... But there is one last topic I think we should discuss. Do you know what Signs are?"

    No one speaks up so Reima decides to answer.

    "It''s magic that Witchers sometimes use Sir..."

    Recognition lights up in a few recruits eyes.

    Vesemir "Yes, Although we are not Mages or sorcerers, the Witcher trials enable us to use a limited form of magic called Signs. The kinda of Signs we use are Aard: A telekinetic blast that can destroy walls of knocks foes off balance, Igni: A blast of flame that ignites those it''s used on, Yrden: A trap that slows or damages those that cross it, Quen: A shield that protects someone from all perceived harm, Axii: A form of mind manipulation can be utilised in a number of ways and Heliotrop: An obscure Sign that in it''s basic form allows someone to block one strike be it an extremely powerful magic attack or a pebble being thrown from a child..."

    Vesemir "You will not be learning about Signs until after most of your trials are done but knowledge is always valuable and you should seek it if you can."

    After the lecture was over Vesemir escorted us back to our room and gave us a small amount of Herbs, weird looking mushrooms and some unidentified plant matter.

    "This will be your meals for the foreseeable future, not only is it used to cleanse your system but also to bring you closer to earth and nature. As the trials are Druidic of nature you will need to be as close to nature as possible. You decide how much you eat but we will not assist you with more meals if you choose that path."

    Reima looks down at some sort of blue stem in his bowl and takes a bite. VILE!

    "Cough!! Cough! What is this!"

    He looks around at his friends trying to suppress their gag reflexes and swallow the foliage.

    Geralt looks on amused from the door with Lambert trying to chat his ear of. Reima approaches them.

    Reima "Any tips on getting this stuff down Sir?"

    Geralt "Don''t chew, just swallow..."

    Lambert "A rule for any man at a whore house, am I right Geralt hahaha!" He nudges Geralt with his elbow and receives one to the solar plexus.

    Reima shakes his head and follows Geralts advice by shaping a small amount of the herbs into a compact ball and swallowing it like a pill. While it is a lot more pleasant, it''s not something he would ever choose to eat if he had the chance.

    Lambert "Alright, once your done, get to sleep as we start early tomorrow." He states this while placing a single bucket next to each bed.

    Reima "Sir what are those for?"

    Lambert "You will know later..." He says sagely... Or as sagely a Lambert can sound.

    The recruits all jump into bed, some leaving scraps of herbs in their bowls and some looking rather uncomfortable.

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    Reidun "Night Reima"

    Reima "Night Reidun"

    4 Hours later...

    "BLUUURRRGGHH"

    Reima jumps at the sound of projectile vomiting from a few beds down, luckily the recruit seems to have used the bucket placed at the bed side... Looking at Reidun he seems to be feeling the same way, Reima himself feels absolutely fine if rather peckish.

    "BLuurrgghh.. Uhhh I wanna die..." The moans from the other side of the room trouble those trying to sleep...

    Reima "Can you do that quietly please? Or quieter than you currently are...

    ??? "Can you shut your mou-Blurrrgghhhh, uhhh"

    Reima tries to ignore the pained sounds of vomiting and slowly drifts back to sleep.

    In the morning Reima wakes up and smells the absolutely stinking room and quickly hops out of bed, he walks to the window and opens it while spying those who seemed to be having trouble... A child whos name he recalls is Arie, poor guy doesn''t seem to take well too the diet...

    And so another day starts with training forms for the recruits with two exceptions being Reima and Arie who are beginning footwork and dodge practise... Arie who looks like a typical noble although with the recruits clothing being a stained white shirt with leather pants he looks rather less impressive than Reima would expect. Arie seems to have had prior sword training outside of the school and is adapting quickly if you exclude his bodies rejection of some of the Herbs.

    Geralt took them to the side to teach them more advanced techniques due to their progress.

    After practise they were giving another small serving of wild herbs and mushrooms and quickly went to attend Vesemirs lecture. After which they were given a brake so they can socialise with each other and had their last physical training session of the day.

 6 A night about the town

    For the last session of the day Eskel decided to have them sparring to get some real experience, Reima was partnered with Arie due to them being at a similar level.

    Arie stood at 4.3 feet tall with blonde hair and an average physique, Reima would guess that he is around 8 years old.

    They stood opposite each other wooden swords in-hand.

    Reima "You ready?"

    Arie "Definitely" He grins and flourishes his weapon.

    Eksel "Begin."

    Arie runs towards Reima executing a stabbing thrust, Reima backs away pushing his opponents blade away to the side. Arie continues his momentum and performs a spinning slash, seeing this Reima dashes foward and crashes into Arie mid spin, splaying him across the floor. He tries to get up but has a wooden sword pointed at his neck.

    Eskel "Enough."

    Reima helps Arie get up not bothering to comment on his growing face.

    Eskel looks at Arie and asks "Why do you think you lost?"

    Arie "I wasn''t fast enough at performing the technique."

    Eksel "Wrong. Tell me, where did you learn to spin during combat?"

    Arie "I watched Master Aubry do it during a combat practise."

    Eskel "... Tell me, do you know the purpose of spinning used by us?"

    Arie shakes his head. "I assumed it was to perform more powerful attacks."

    Eskel "That is one of the uses but the main reason that we incorporate spins while fighting is to observe the surroundings... For instance, if you were fighting a group of Ghouls and need to quickly check the others actions. These techniques are only used by Witchers because of their enhanced reflexes, sight and speed... And they only work in one on one duels against normal humans or foes that are significantly slower."

    Aries eyes light up in realisation and Reima nods his head finally understanding why Geralt kept twirling in Witcher 3, "I thought it just looked cool..."

    Eskel smirks "That too... Alright, lets continue."

    2 Months later

    During the time Reima was training and being subjugated to a horrific diet it seems some recruits couldn''t keep up... One recruit died of an overdose of toxins, grey veins covered his body and face causing him to evacuate his stomach and bowels. He died a slow and agonising death. We held a vigil due to our lost comrade. One recruit tried to escape due to him feeling like he would starve to death, he was cut down before he even left the keep. Another recruit tried to steal food but was caught and denied even the herbs and mushrooms for a week, he didn''t last and died in his sleep.

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    During the two months Reima started to train his teleportation abilities and Haki during breaks, he managed to flash a few feet at a time but was exhausted after 20 minutes of this. He was also able to cover a single finger in Armament haki, not a huge achievement but it''s still progress. His solitary breaks were noticed by the other recruits and the Witchers but they assumed he was mourning his lost brothers.

    He didn''t slack with his Witcher training either, learning just about every technique they could teach him. Obviously learning them is only half the battle due to it not being muscle memory yet, and that only comes with extended use and experience. Vesemir''s lectures had become much more specific talking about what herbs did what and how you could tell what monster is which, along with how to slay them.

    Reima honestly didn''t think there was all that much to learn about the hundreds of variations of monsters that roam around. An example of this being the Wights and the extinct species of spotted Wight Geralt encounters during his travels, variants like this are everywhere and Vesemir is teaching us even the extinct and unheard of species so we are prepared.

    Other than that Reima got to know his friends and brothers a little more, learning where they come from, their dreams and ambitions... Their regrets. Reima knew it was unlikely all of them would survive but he hoped that they would pull through.

    Another thing to note is the diet and activities we are being forced through, this is the first trial and I have no idea how most of us are still standing. The amount of calories we are consuming is far far less than the calories we are burning, Vesemir said it''s something to do with nature but I don''t entirely buy that.

    During our time in Kaer Morhen the Witchers sometimes leave to take contracts to keep the populace happy, sometimes they take one or two recruits to watch a real confrontation. Arie and Reima were taken by Geralt, he ended up laying a trap for what he assumed was a Night wraith. Recently bandits had kidnapped a newly wed woman and had raped and murdered her, along with the times of the attacks and states of the bodies, Geralt had concluded it to be a Night wraith.

    The skeletal looking maidenhead floated from the local graveyard towards a wood cutters shack which housed a small family.

    Geralt "Stay back while I deal with her, keep your silver swords in hand just in case she slips past."

    They both nod in affirmation as the Wraith triggers Geralts Yrden, he leaps out with surprising speed towards the Night wraith who tries to blink away but can''t due to the trap. It lashing out with sharp claws but it''s arm ends up being sliced causing it to cry out in pain due to the Spectre oil applied to Geralts blade. He lashes out again with a powerful swipe towards it''s neck decapitating it.

    Arie and Reima look on in awe at the ease Geralt dispatched the creature with.

    "Are all monsters that easy to deal with?" Arie asks

    Geralt "With proper preparation and a good plan most creatures are easy prey... The only time you should find yourself in is unexpected threats or powerful being like Elder Vampires or Djinn''s."

    Reima "Have you ever fought either of them?"

    Geralt "No and if you ever meet an Elder Vampire you should run as far as you can without looking back... Even if you manage to slay one by some sort of miracle, it will come back and tear you apart. Vampires are some of the most difficult creatures Witchers can come across. Not only because some are immortal but because they entrench themselves in society becoming influential and untouchable."

    "Understood Master" Arie and Reima nod at Geralts words and follow him to collect the contract fee.

 7 Trial of the grasses

    3 months later

    The recruits have mostly gotten used to the diet and the training with the exception of those who couldn''t handle the strain on their bodies and perished.

    Recently Vesemir have been seen with a man who wore a patchwork of hides from different monsters and a hood that had antlers and a skull attached. Some sort of druid presumably, idea of learning magic pop up in Reima''s mind but questions and doubts as to why Ciri didn''t learn any magic even from Yennefer. Reima decides he''ll ask but is not confident with his chances.

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    During a break between training Reima manages to catch the Druid without Vesemir.

    "Hello Sir! I''m Reima."

    The Druid raises an eyebrow at the sudden introduction but decides to humour the child.

    "I am Dagobert Sulla, a pleasure to meet your acquaintance young man. Do you need something?"

    Reima "Are you a Wizard?"

    Dagobert "No, I am a simple Druid helping your Grand master with his tasks."

    Reima "Magic is so cool! I wonder if I could learn magic Sir?"

    The question surprises the Druid but he places his hand on the side of Reima''s face with his thumb on his forehead.

    Dagobert "Source" He whispers to himself, "You are very talented young man, but I am sorry to inform you that most magic, especially Druidic magic that I use is only taught through the family. The only exception to this are the organisations such as the Brotherhood of Sorcerers."

    Reimas enthusiasm fades quickly under this revelation "I see, I guess I will have to stick to Witcher Sign magic..."

    Dagobert laughs "Don''t despair, magic is not as rare as some think. Also, a word of warning... If you are under great distress, find a place devoid of life to calm down, the magic instability of those such as yourself is as dangerous to others as it is to you."

    Reima has no idea what hes talking about but assumes it''s some unspoken lore not talked about in the games. He nods anyway and leaves the Druid to his business.

    Another month passes and the trials proceed to the second step, the trials of the grasses.

    Vesemir has us all lined up outside the laboratory, he had us do an extremely rigorous training session to tire us all out for some reason. Standing there with aching muscles Vesemir addresses us.

    Vesemir "You have all done exceedingly well, I did not expect a number this great to complete the first trial, but you have proven yourselves worthy to proceed to the next trial. This trial will mutate your body and increasing your reflexes, hand to eye coordination and a litany of other benefits. For those of you that survive, it is the first true step to becoming a Witcher."

    The nervous recruits were shuffled into a dark room with a number of beds, Geralt, Lambert, Eskel, Aubry and Frank had their weapons drawn were overseeing the trial.

    They had each recruit drink a concoction of foul smelling ingredients and lie on the bed, Reidun lying next to Reima speaks to him in a quiet voice. "We will make it through this right Remia? We will. We will."

    Reima "Just think about what you want to do after you finish the trials... Me? I want a meal that doesn''t consist of leaves and mushrooms..."

    Reidun smirks at that while the Witchers tie each limb of the recruits to their beds.

    Reimas "Is there a point to tying us up?"

    Lambert "This part of the trials is brutal and barbaric, there are only three outcomes to this trial. One, you die of toxin overdose. Two you go berserk and attack everything insight like a mindless monster. Third and most unlikely, you become faster and your reflexes and body are improved."

    Geralt "Well aren''t you just shitting rainbows Lambert. Don''t worry kid, you''ll be fine."

    Reimas nods at Geralt as he starts to feel a bubbling in his stomach, his limbs seize up and pull the ropes tied to the bed taught. A strangled cry escapes Reimas mouth as he loses control of his body, his breathing is erratic and stuttered, his heart beats irregularly. He would have evacuated his bowls if they hadn''t taken concentrated laxatives before the trial.

    If Reimas were to speak of this experience it would be less painful more unbearable creeping fear that he will never regain control of his body.

    During the trial Reima can hear screams and swift cuts of what presumably are the blade of the Witchers.

    Vesemir stands at the side with the Druid Dagobert Sulla watching the trial.

    Dagobert "I do not wish to doubt your abilities but what makes you think this your improvised trials will work?"

    Vesemir "I had a general idea of how they were done... This is my last attempt at ensuring the school of the wolf continues in the future."

    Dagobert "At the cost of these young lives?"

    Vesemir "Hopefully it won''t come to that, I am confident that it will succeed."

    After an hour the effects of the potion finally stop and Reima can open his eyes. He looks about the bloodied room strewn with corpses and seeks to comment to Reidun, who isn''t present in his bed.

    Looking around and at Geralt he speaks in shuddering voice.

    "Geralt, where is Reidun? He should be right here!"

    Geralt looks down in shame and points to Reimas bedside, there lies Reidun with a horrific face of anger and hunger still present... Reima jumps back from the threat but realises that Reidun is missing the lower half of his body. Eyes glazed over, cold to the touch, he must have been one of the first to be cut down.

    "Reidun, it''s over... Mate, you can stop fooling around now..."

    Geralt "I''m sorry."

    Reima''s sobs in his bed as Geralt watches, an unreadable expression on his face.

    Vesemir stands at the side looking over the recruits. He doesn''t speak but just looks at the overwhelming death count, out of the 17 recruits only 3 survived... Those being Reima, Arie and Erik.

    Dagobert "It seems that your confidence was misplaced... I would advise against performing any more trials, you may lose what you have left."

    Vesemir drops to his knees tears threatening to fall from his eyes, the children he looked after for half a year, all dead because of his mistake. A look of determination gradually makes its way onto his face. "No, we can''t stop now... They must complete the rest of the trials.

    Dagobert "Then I will have no part in your folly." He says sternly as he leaves the room."

 8 Aftermath

    Vesemir and the other Witchers sit at a table drinking the alcohol Lambert had been brewing, a sullen atmosphere hanging overthem.

    Lambert "I can''t believe it happened again..." he states breaking the silence. "I thought our trials were horrible and pointless but this... This was a massacre, and you let it happen, Vesemir."

    No one stopped Lambert disrespecting Vesemir due to similar thoughts running through their heads.

    Eskel takes a large swig of his drink, "There are always casualties during the trials Lambert, the only difference this time are the number."

    Lambert "Almost all of them dying during the trial of the grasses is FUCKING INSANE! The survivors have atleast two more trials and you think they won''t also die?" He stands up and looks at the end of the table at Vesemir.

    Lambert "Are you really going to make them continue after what just happened!?!"

    Vesemir "You and I both know that once you begin the trial of the grasses you must complete the trial of the dreams or they will slowly lose control of their bodies." He slumps in his seat nursing his mug.

    Lambert drops into his seat. "So that''s it then huh? Anything to continue the school? If you ask me, the time of Witchers is over. The people hate us and the lords hunt us even despite the monsters ravaging their lands."

    ...

    Vesemir "I hesitate to say but I agree... This will be the last time we will create Witcher, I vow it."

    Lambert "That''s great, I bet those dead kids will appreciate it!"

    Geralt "Enough, Lambert... We are all partly responsible for this."

    Aubry "Aye... For our lost brothers, a toast" He raises his mug followed by the other Witchers.

    Aubry "Let this tragedy never happen again. And those involved rest in peace."

    They continue drinking in relative silence throughout the night.

    Reima after the trial was allowed to spend his time as he wished, he spent it getting used to the increase speed and reflexes produced by the concoction he had drank. He tries to take his mind off of his fallen comrades and the look Reidun had given him before the trial... He had never experienced loss like this before and is unsure what to do about it, for now he tries to focus on other things until he can rationalise it better.

    "Feels like I have been moving through custard til now." Reima''s says waving his hands in front of him.

    He sits and starts to meditate, he remembers what the Druid had said about being a source and is unsure about what it means. He also confirmed that he is capable of magic, when he uses the elder blood abilities like blinking which is what he named from short teleportation, he can feel the magic acting within his body.

    Reima remembers that most other sorcerers need a catalyst to cast spells like Yennefer in the Witcher 3 intro, her necklace lights up when she casts something. Also during the same intro she makes use of a crystal crow skull to summon a deadly creature.

    As opposed to this Reima feels magic flowing freely just waiting to jump out at any second. He would try practising the Signs but is weary of being blown up, once he learns them Reima decides he will try to cross examine how they work to create something else...

    Another thing to note, perhaps due to his increased reflexes observation Haki is more... Fluid? Easier to utilise may be the better way to describe it. Reima feels he might be over analysing the changes he had experienced but decides to leave it alone.

    Reima goes back to see how the others are holding up.

    He approaches the room where Erik is lying face down in his bed still somewhat distraught at the recent events.

    Erik "They killed most of us! They said some wouldn''t survive but that was far from the truth!"

    Reima "They did."

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    Erik rubs his eyes and looks at his last remaining friend, "Hey, we should run... We are faster now, they won''t catch us! If we stay here we will die like the others, like Theun and Jacob, Emerens and.."

    Reima "They would kill us both and you know that, the only way out now is to become a Witcher."

    Erik "But they''re Monsters! You saw what they did to the others, they butchered them like animals!"

    He looks down at his hands "Why did they die and I survive."

    Reima "You were lucky, if you want to make their sacrifice worth something you should strive to survive."

    Erik looks up at Reima "Yeah... Your right, We''ll come out of this alive... We have to..."

    Reima leaves Erik to his contemplation and goes to search for Arie, he hasn''t heard a peep from him since the trial and is unsure how he''s feeling.

    Down in the courtyard Arie is twirling and pirouetting with a sword in hand striking a training dummy. His body slick with sweat and steaming in the chilled air.

    "Arie!" Reima calls out to get his attention, Arie almost jumps as he turns towards him sword still in position.

    Arie "Reima... It''s good that your alive." He almost whispers.

    Reima "You wanna talk about it?" He sits on a stump and waiting patiently.

    ..

    Arie sits next to him and stick the sword in the ground.

    Arie "You know, I thought it would all be fun and games when we arrived at Kaer Morhen. It was fun, fighting you and gaining skill alongside the others. It was only when the first person died after a month that I realised this wasn''t going to end pleasantly..."

    Arie "I wasn''t all that close with the others, the only person I really talk to is you Reima... We are the same and I can respect that, but even seeing a stranger die like that is horrible, let alone an acquaintance."

    Reima nods and continues listening.

    Arie "I heard that the other trials aren''t as deadly as the previous so maybe we will live to see next year."

    Reima "We will, next year all three of us will be Witcher apprentices with skills to match. You have my word."

    Arie smiles but it doesn''t reach his eyes, "Want to test out the changes?"

    Reima nods, "Sure."

 9 Endless dreams

    Reima wakes up the next day and sees that he is the only one present, the Arie and Erik must have left earlier. He ignores the other vacant beds as he heads to the dining room Vesemir requested them to meet up.

    He gets there and sees Arie and Erik already seated waiting for him with Vesemir standing at the head of table.

    "Reima, come and sit." He gestures towards one of the vacant seats on the table. The only other Witchers present are Geralt and Eskel who seem to be making something in the kitchen.

    Vesemir "I am sure you are all weary about the trials but I am sorry to admit that you can''t stop now, I have already set up the Trial of the dreams in the laboratory but we have more pressing matters for now. We will conduct a funeral for those we lost yesterday, afterwards we will continue with the trials... But for now you need to eat your fill due to the amount of strain this trial puts on the body, even if it''s just a bit, it will help."

    Reima can see Eriks fists squeezed so tightly they have gone white.

    Arie "What will we be eating?"

    Vesemir "You will have the pleasure.. Or perhaps displeasure of eating Geralt and Eskels cooking, I don''t know whether they have improved or not over the last time they cooked for me almost half a decade ago." He chuckles receiving glares at Geralt and Eskel who are bringing plates stacked high with eggs, meat and cheese.

    Geralt "Would you like to cook instead my liege" He says sarcastically to Vesemir.

    Eskel "You know what they say, never insult the man who cooks your meals. Eat up kids, trust me, You''ll need it."

    The three young boys proceed to devour everything in site, the terrible tasting wild herbs and mushrooms making what''s prepared taste like ambrosia mixed with happiness.

    An hour passes with the boys squeezing all they can in their stomachs, they finish and sit back with a breath showing their bloated bellies.

    Vesemir "Good?"

    "Good" The three reply simultaneously

    Vesemir leads everyone north east of Kaer Morhen to where Aubry, Lambert and Frank have prepared pyres. To the side 17 cloth wrapped bodies are lain, Vesemir had taught the proper rights earlier in the year, possibly predicting such an outcome beforehand.

    Reima approaches the bodies with a stack of flowers in his arms, followed by Erik and Arie. Reima and Erik trying to stifle their sniffles as they decorate the bodies with flowers they had picked or been given. The Witchers finish preparation and watch on at this sad scene.

    After they had covered their friends in different coloured flowers of all kinds they stepped back and watched on as the Witcher respectfully lifted the bodies onto the pyres.

    Eventually candles were lit and everyone was facing the pyre, Vesemir stepped foward and spoke in some language Remia''s didn''t understand.

    Vesemir "And so we bid farewell to those who faltered on the path." Vesemir spoke those words bitterly or perhaps self mockingly."

    The surrounding Witcher use Igni to light parts of the pyre which caused it to gradually envelop their friends. Erik looks on tears streaming down his face as he said farewell, the others holding up a strong persona and didn''t give a hint of emotion.

    2 hours later

    After the funeral rights were completed the three were lead into the laboratory for the 3rd trial. Three devices that looks suspiciously like torture racks were placed a good distance between each other as a number of bubbling instruments sat at the side.

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    Erik held Reima''s hand as they approached and were given an idea of what would happen.

    Vesemir "This trial, while not as deadly as the last is the one that truly makes one become a Witcher. Unlike the last trial that was relatively painless, this one will leave you conscious as your organs melt, muscles tear and strengthen and your genetic code rewritten."

    Erik shakes as Vesemir describes just what is about to happen to them. Arie shows an emotionless facade but it doesn''t hide the fear in his eyes. Reima who knows that he will survive is weary of the pain and worried about the others.

    They strap each boy into the restraints as they prepare to administer the mutagens.

    Erik "We will be alright... Right Reima?"

    Reima doesn''t know how to respond to a child that may or may not die within the hour...

    Reima "Mmm, we will."

    Erik gives a fearful smile and closes his eyes as the needles pierce his skin. Reima feels like these are larger than those they use for flu shots.

    Reima looks to the side at Eskel who is beside him. "How was it during your trial Mr Eskel?"

    Eskel looks grimly at Reima and speaks quietly. "Painful. You know why they call it the trial of dreams? Because most don''t wake up. Good luck kid."

    Reima was about to retort but feels unimaginable pain rocket through him as what feels like fire and brimstone races through his veins. His body shudders and his legs shake as he involuntarily moans in pain. Erik on his left is howling in pain as he shakes and twitches against the restraints.

    Reima closes his eyes as he feels like they are melting in his eye socket, his muscles make funny noises similar to a rope being strained under enormous weight.

    His bones feel as if they were being hollowed out and filled with lava, he grits his teeth almost making them crack and chip under the pressure.

    Eventually the screaming stops, Reima quietens down and notices Erik has stopped as well. He opens his eyes to find everything blurry, looking to the side where Erik was he sees his humanoid shape still lying on there breathing heavily. Looking around he spots what should be Eskel and asks him to undo his restraints, Eskel does just that and releases him and he falls to the floor.

    He picks himself up with surprising ease and wobbles over to Erik, blinking his eyes to focus a little his breath catches in his throat.

    There lying on the rack Erik previously laid is a misshapen creature with limbs too long to suit it''s body and half it''s face and torso melted and melded to the rack.

    Reima looks at Geralt and Vesemir who looks even more downtrodden at the results.

    Reima "Is this... Erik?"

    They almost jump at the quiet voice.

    Vesemir frowns and nods as he looks at me.

    "R-rre-reim" Erik''s heavily muted form speaks in a whisper.

    Reima "Erik... Do you hurt?" He whispers back.

    Erik struggles to get words out as his melted lips bleed from the effort. "Y-y-ou lied."

    The shock of this statement almost topples Reima over as Geralt catches props him up, tears start flooding down his cheeks and he sobs out. "I did, I''m sorry... Forgive me."

    Erik''s eyes look like the abyss due to the pupil unnaturally expanding, he looks as deeply as he can and gasps out in a final painful breath. "I fo-rgi-ve y-ou" He manages to splutter out before finally slumping into the rack.

    Reima cries into Geralts chest as Arie stumbles up and places his hand on Reima''s shoulder to comfort him.

 10 Mutant but still no Witcher

    Remia despite being very weak and exhausted helped set up the second funeral of the day for Erik, the Witchers were unable to detach his grafted flesh from the rack so they decided to wrap them both up in cloth.

    They held the funeral over the ashes of the previous one and Vesemir gave a similar speech that was more directed at Erik''s personality and origins. After the two days of loss and death Reima felt that his tear ducts were dried out, unable to squeeze out another tear from his sore eyes. Arie stood at his side, the only people left out of the large group were the two of them.

    After all was said and done Reima dragged his body back into his room and collapsed on his bed.

    The next morning felt different when compared to all others, the feeling of loss still present but stifled by the brightness and detail of the world around him. Colours looked like they were more colourful and light looked brighter, he went to grab for the single hand held mirror in the room to inspect the changes to his body and came face to face with deep bright green eyes with a slit replacing the pupil. Cats eyes are adapted to low light conditions so it''s reasonable for this to be a mutation of choice for monster hunters. Reima just stared at himself in the mirror, his white skin seemed much paler than before almost resembling his white hair, his bright green eyes contrasted nicely against everything else and reminded him of Ciri''s. No doubt they would be mistaken as siblings, whether or not Reima is happy at this revelation is another unanswerable question.

    He hears someone shuffling out of bed and turns towards Arie, His blonde hair didn''t change but the yellow cat eyes staring back at him did.

    Reima points the mirror at Arie who''s eyes light up in excitement, "We''re almost there." He grins.

    Reima "I doubt an exhausting couple of days and significant body modification will get us out of practise, plus I feel like I could lift a truck."

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    Arie "A truck?"

    Reima "Never mind that, lets go fight!" He drags him off to the courtyard where an amused Eskel waits.

    Eskel "Alright kids, settle down. I know you''re excited to get started but we should probably start with some warming up."

    He tells us to follow him as he jogs around the outskirts of Kaer Morhen, after 10 minutes he starts to speed up and eventually reach the sprinting speed of a normal person. Reima and Arie haven''t even broken a sweat and continue following him until he leads them both back to the court yard where Geralt is now waiting.

    Eskel "Ok, good that you two don''t seem to have any problems. Now that you have the strength and speed of a Witcher you will be apprenticed by one of us each to give you the skills of a Witcher."

    Geralt "Vesemir decided it was best we chose our apprentices instead of them being assigned, I agree with him. Unlike in other jobs a bond between a Master and Apprentice is almost sacred to Witchers, we give you our backs and we ask that you don''t slip a knife in while we are turned."

    Eskel "I have a similar background to you Arie and have decided to take you on as my Apprentice, if you don''t object?"

    Arie "No Sir, I would be honoured!"

    Eskel "Alright, no ass kissing... Call me Eskel, being called master makes me feel old." Arie nods at his words.

    Reima "And me?"

    Geralt "Well, Lambert wanted to take you on but we decided one loud mouth was enough for now. I offer you a place as my Apprentice, my reputation is bad around most parts so it may follow you if you accept. Well?"

    Reima "I couldn''t ask for a better Master."

    Geralt "You could, whether or not you receive one is another matter." He pats Reima on the back towards a rack of real swords, unlike the wooden ones they had been using to spar with until now.

    Reima "Do I finally get a sword? Cool."

    Geralt "Take a pick of the steel ones here, try the length and weight of them, finding a good match is as hard as forging them. Take in mind you will rapidly grow in height from here on so find one that won''t be too short for you in a year or two."

    Reima nods, "What about a silver sword? I was lent one by Vesemir when we went with you on a contract"

    Geralt "The silver sword is what makes a Witcher, you will be given one once you graduate and retrieve your medallion. They will be custom made to suit you, so you won''t be disappointed.

    Geralt "Now, due to you and Arie being much further ahead in technique and knowledge than we thought possible we have accelerated your training schedules. Ofcourse we can change them back if your not up for it?"

    Reima gives a wide grin at Geralt "Ill beat you eventually old man, count on it."

    Geralt just takes a sword from the rack and drops into a stance, "You''re decades too early to try my Apprentice." Reima takes a similar stance and tries to run at Geralt before dropping to the floor in a pathetic mess surrounded by the Yrden sign.

    Reima "No fair that''s cheating!"

    Geralt''s lips upturn slightly. "Us Witcher are such Scheming swine! I can barely control myself from these cursed tactics." He says in the famous White Wolf monotone sarcasm.

    Reima bickers with Geralt while attempting to get in a strike and failing spectacularly.

    And so Master and Apprentice begin the long road of mastery.

 11 A powerful place.

    Since Geralt became Reima''s mentor he had broadened the scope of training, giving different combat situations from his own previous experience, Geralt also provided his own knowledge and insight on certain monsters. An example of this would be a common weak point for Ghoul anatomy.

    Geralt points to a recently slain Ghoul and starts pointing out he flaws in it''s form.

    "Ghouls are created from deceased humans, you can see this by the way their spine and limbs are shaped. Now, because we know they come from humans we can also find weaknesses common to humans. Look at it and tell me one."

    Reima kneels over the rotting form of the Ghoul, it''s doglike appearance unnerving due to the human face clearly attached to it. "The head?"

    Geralt shrugs "Obviously, but I''m talking about something more fragile."

    Reima "The neck?"

    Geralt nods and explains, "Because a Ghouls spine is the same as a humans, just elongated and twisted, you can put a Ghoul out of commission from a well timed strike to it''s neck. It has the same number of vertebrae as a human, but because the spine has been mutated it is extremely weak to damage."

    Reima "So any strong impact to the spine will likely paralyse them?"

    Geralt nods "They travel in packs, so strike the spine and finish it off after the rest are dealt with."

    He continues to point out the weakness in it''s human like arms and where the vital organs may have shifted during it''s transformation.

    After they burned the corpse they headed back to eat with the others, Reima smiles as he remembers he will hopefully never have to eat those wild herbs again. Reima speaks with Arie when he can but both seemed determined to learn as much as possible and mine everything they can for knowledge, and while Reima is currently ahead in knowledge and combat Arie still remains competitive.

    Geralt had recently been teaching Reima about Signs, their meaning, use and dangers.

    Geralt "One of the trainees in my group had blown his fingers off with a misshapen Aard Sign, the idea of something like that was funny to us before that incident, no one else made the same mistake."

    Geralt explained how the Signs worked and his interpretation of them after they had travelled to a place of power on the mountain near Kaer Morhen.

    "Aard means Force, Direction and Impact. Igni, Fire, Ignite and Burn. Yrden, Trap, Contain, Seal. Quen, Protection, Preservation and Absorption or assimilation depending on how you view it. Axii, Mind, Manipulation and Control. And the hardest Sign that I still don''t have a good grasp on, Heliotrop, Stop, Power and Limitation. I will teach you the basic uses of these Sign but it is up to you to meditate on the meanings they embody."

    Reima nods and kneels next to Geralt looking over the mountain view while surrounded by lit candles that someone seem immune to the strong breeze. Reima feels like he is being drawn into his mind by a surrounding foreign but familiar force. Geralt never mentioned experiencing anything like this but decided to go with the flow.

    He himself still kneeling on the floor but surrounded by hot burning fire. Looking around he sees nothing but pitch blackness and the fire starting to come closer.

    Reima tries not to panic but the thought of burning alive scares him more than he would like to admit. He sits still dreading the searing pain he is about to experience. And then.... Nothing, the fire is lukewarm and climbs up his arm. He plays with it, the fire dancing on his palm while he tries to control it but can''t seem to make it do anything.

    Instead he continues kneeling and starts meditating, fire still enveloping him giving him a dull warmth.

    An unknown amount of time later, Reima is awoken by Geralt shaking his shoulder.

    "You ok? You''ve been meditating for seven hours."

    Reima "Yeah, It felt like something was talking to me..." Geralt raises an eyebrow at this.

    Reima "I think I''ve understood something." He stands and looks over the ledge and slowly forms the Igni Sign with his fingers trying to draw out the familiar warmth.

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    Geralt watches as his protege form a perfect Sign even without instruction and unleashing the largest Igni he has ever seen into the air causing a hot breeze to almost push both of them back.

    Reima looks back at Geralt and is amused to find the most emotive expression Geralt has ever shown him. Eyes wide open with mouth agape, Geralt tries to voice out something but it gets caught...

    They both stand there looking at the embers slowly dispersing from the air.

    Reima "Was it any good?" He says with a smug face.

    Geralt "Have you been taught this before?" he says trying to regain his composure.

    Reima "No... I just felt like that was how Igni should be cast..."

    Geralt shakes his head, "Maybe Vesemir will have some answers, come, we have stayed long enough.

    They start to walk off the alter when Reima notices the Igni inscriptions lightly carved into the stone. "Will we always train Sign at places like this?"

    Geralt nods "Vesemir said that they are more attuned to certain Signs due to the centuries of them being use to train aspiring Witchers." Reima nods realising that places of power aren''t just for temporary buffs like in the games but could help him in gaining further understanding of the Signs.

    Geralt gets back and drops Reima in the kitchen so he can prepare his meals and tries to find Vesemir. He finds him in the library surrounded by books of all sorts and starting to nod off.

    Geralt "Vesemir" He says respectfully trying to wake up the old man.

    Vesemir jolts and looks around as he spots Geralt. "Geralt... What can I do for you?"

    Geralt pulls up a chair and sits opposite him, "I have started training Reima in the uses of Signs."

    Vesemir nods, "Did everything go well?"

    Geralt "Yes, very. While we were meditating up at the place of power he managed to form a perfect Igni sign without my instruction and cast a huge fire."

    Vesemir nods in understanding. "Yes, some people have an aptitude for magic. Take the school of the griffin for example, they only took in people that were around mage level in power. This caused them to be the most powerful users of Signs that has been recorded. I remember when you first started learning Signs, do you not remember the look I gave you when your started casting?"

    Geralts smirk and nods "Like a sailor on a sinking ship." They both laugh as they reminisce on old times past.

 12 Prank Signs...

    As Reima gained further proficiency in the use of Signs he started using them for less than Honourable things.

    One day Reima spotted Eskel and Arie sparring while having a break. Deciding to have a bit of fun he approaches them and fires a weak Aard at the back of Arie causing him to be thrown on top of Eskel, leaving them both lying in a heap on the floor.

    Deciding the missions accomplished he tries to sprint away but is caught by an unamused Geralt.

    "You think that''s funny? Using the techniques we teach you for pranks while disrupting others training?"

    Reima "Sorry Master..." he says bowing him head to Geralt.

    Geralt "I don''t think you''re sorry enough, go clean the latrines." Reima''s face grimaces at the thought of those unhygienic disgraces of toilets.

    Reima "Do I have to?" he moans.

    Geralt Nods "Unless you want to do it for a week?"

    He shakes his head rapidly and runs off.

    An hour later he finds an amused Arie in their living quarters reading a book.

    "Enjoy cleaning?"

    Reima grins "No, but you do." While forming an Axii sign and casting a basic mind manipulation.

    Arie "Ah, yes... I better get to it then." He leaves his book and tries to walk out of the room but is blocked by an angry Geralt who snaps his fingers causing Arie to shake his head in confusion.

    Reima finds himself face down scrubbing the latrines when he comes to, "Huh? Wasn''t I..."

    He remember Geralt beginning to form a Sign and then himself appearing here.

    "GERALT!"

    Said person is watching from the side with Arie and Eksel chuckling. Reima decides to leave it amicably as he was the one at fault, and he would rather not go near the latrines brush in hand again.

    Geralt "Learn your lesson?"

    Reima "Don''t abuse Signs for pranks."

    Geralt shakes his head, "No you can abuse the Sign as much as you want... Just don''t use them on fellow Witchers."

    Reima "Oh... I can do that."

    A year and a half passes as we see Reima celebrating his 9th birthday by playing with the Gwent cards that Geralt had bought him as a gift. Arie is quite good but Reima was never really all that great at Gwent, even in his previous life.

    After losing for the 12th time Reima decides to give up, "You win, either your cheating or I''m a cripple."

    Arie "Or I''m just better than you?"

    Reima "Even if it were true, I''ll never admit it.

    They laugh as they finish up the game and get ready to do their afternoon training session.

    Geralt and Eskel stand in the courtyard, swords drawn.

    Eskel "Alright, we are doing something slightly different to normal and teaming you to up against us. Remember this is not a competition and is for you to learn to work with others."

    They do their stretches and draw their swords, Reima decides to try face Geralt due to Arie having no chance against him.

    They start with Geralt and Eskel going defensive as Reima and Arie attack, Reima swings at Geralt but feints the opposite direction causing him to quickly change his foot position to parry.

    Letting his sword be brushed away he tries a basic front snap kick but almost gets knocked off balance as Geralt dodges and quickly advances.

    Using his momentum Geralt brings down his sword hard attempting to break Reima''s guard but finds his sword deflected to the side by a well timed parry. Reima sees an opening and tries to bash Geralt in the face with the pommel but is kicked in the back by someone.

    Turning he sees Eskel blocking Aries sword with his leg extended, he had slowly made his way over in his blind spot.

    Reima "Arie keep him off my back!"

    Geralt "Concentrate!" he pulls Reima''s focus back to him as he performs a light slash at his sword arm.

    A shallow cut is all he achieves as he pulls back and drops into a different stance. Reima does a pirouette while approaching Geralt to keep and eye on Eskel and Arie, finding them a good distance away he stabs at Geralt. In response Geralt interlocks their blades shifting them both skywards and doing a palm strike to Reima''s chest who almost collapses to the floor wheezing.

    Geralt "Is that all you got?" He taunts as he approaches Reima who is slumped over sword still held infront of him. Reima thinks quickly on how he can beat him and remembers their first fight...

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    Reima pretends to swing his sword one handed at Geralt who looks disappointed and starts to block.

    BOOM

    Geralt is blown through one of the Target dummies by a poweful Aard sign.

    Eskel and Arie stop their fight and stare at Geralt who pushes himself out of the splintered remains of the dummy. They both look to see his reaction but are surprised to see the upturned lips through his pained expression.

    Reima exclaims out loud "Ahh, us dastardly Witchers corrupting the youth with their cruel tactics!"

    Garelt grins as he approaches Reima who is suddenly pinned on the floor by his foot. "Yes but you forget my Apprentice, You''re no Witcher yet."

    Eskel shrugs at Arie who doesn''t know what to make of their almost funny interactions, if he didn''t know any better he would compare them to a Father and Son duo.

 13 Emotionless Witchers

    Geralt had just finished a job contracted by a local village due to some harpies harassing them from a nest in the nearby mountain. It''s around 11 pm and the sun had already set, as he enters the keep and ties Roach up in the stable he spots his Apprentice Reima meditating on a balcony overlooking the courtyard. Geralt still feels conflicted about even having a protege, let alone one as unique as Reima, he picks up anything taught to him extremely quickly and has tremendous magical capabilities. Vesemir had said he reminds him of Geralt when he was younger, the white hair only increasing the number of comparisons.

    Reima seemed like a normal kid most of the time but acts far more mature than usual for someone his age, sometimes when they talk he slips a word that Geralt doesn''t understand... Phone, Computer, Internet, things he speaks of with such familiarity that it can''t be a slip of the tongue. There are also things he shouldn''t know as a nine yearold like sex and how prostitution works, even those who suffer abuse don''t have such an intricate knowledge of such adult matters.

    He continues climbing the stairs to the balcony as he thinks. Another thing to note is that his story when he first met him doesn''t add up, he didn''t have any bruises or marks you would expect of someone being chased and not worrying about their surroundings. Furthermore when he went back to check where he could have come from he didn''t see any marks, footprints or tracks leading to the tree he had fallen out of... The only examples of things like that he had previously heard of were results of magic, more specifically, teleportation.

    Some times Geralt follows Reima when he takes breaks, he cautiously checks his surroundings for spies or intruders just like we taught him, but he hasn''t mastered it just yet.

    The things Reima does surprises and astounds Geralt, magic that shouldn''t be possible without a catalyst or even prior preparation used with relative ease. Blinking from one spot to another in quick blue/green flashes while practising sword techniques makes him wonder about his origins, is he a spy from another country? A genius student from the nearby college? Why become a Witcher with such talent? Geralt intends to answer some of these questions tonight.

    Geralt opens the door leading to the balcony and spots Reima meditating while surrounded by candles, the flames of which seem to be drawn to him as if a breeze is directing them towards him.

    He steps over them and gets on his knees while waiting for Reima to notice him, he had noticed that Reima seemed to take meditation seriously, maybe even more seriously than veteran Witchers... With the magical power that he had previously displayed Geralt would focus on meditation aswell.

    After an hour Reima lifts his head as if breaking from a trance, giving a long breath as if he had been holding it he turns his head to Geralt, "Afternoon Master."

    Geralt "Nice night isn''t it?"

    Reima "It is... But do I have to remind you I''m not a sorceress so you can cut the chat up lines."

    There it is again, an foreign phrase, the same common language but concise and abrupt.

    Geralt "You should listen carefully then, you could learn a thing or two about talking to women."

    Reima "You forgot I am but a nine yearold? I won''t have to worry about that any time soon."

    Geralt "The age of consent is 15, not that much longer before you start looking at girls... The mutagens generally make Witchers more... lascivious."

    Reima "From personal experience I assume?" He says giving Geralt a pointed look.

    Geralt "I used to be young as well... Still am, Yen can attest to that."

    A brief silence deafens them until Geralt speaks.

    Geralt "When we first met... You weren''t being chased were you?"

    ...

    Reima who had thought he was hiding the suspect parts of his story so well managed to keep a stoic face. "No..." Geralt waits for more but He doesn''t elaborate.

    Geralt "Must have been difficult to teleport to there from the college." He states with confidence.

    Reima looking confused replies, "College? No... I was dropped there by an ass hole with a big heart."

    Geralt wants to know more about said ass hole but decides not to pry, "You have impressive magical abilities, where did you learn them?"

    He almost jumps when he hears that, Reima was sure he had done his training in secret... Geralt must have followed him or used some sort of Scrying artefact like that pedo 3rd Hokage. "Ah, you saw that? Well, I''m self taught... I was normal until recently but I discovered the ability to shift myself around and teleport just by willing it. I''m also able to harden parts of my body or weapons to be temporarily almost indestructible."

    Geralt "Hmm, Impressive, abilities like that are uncommon those with talent number even fewer. There is something I want to know though, why did you want to come with me and risk your life to be a Witcher?"

    ...

    Reima lets out a breath, "Well, to be honest. You kind of inspired me to seek such a path, Geralt."

    Geralt raises an eyebrow and feels himself still, "Really? Why?"

    Reima "Well, everyone knows stories about the White Wolf, most positive but I know how people view Witchers. People despise Witchers despite you doing a job no one else is capable of and barely being paid enough to cover materials you used... Even with the tales of the White one they treat you like trash yet they hide behind you and bed when a true threat reveals itself. Your a good person Geralt, I can respect someone who will shoulder others responsibilities and take action. I want to be someone like that, even if I have to crawl through miles of mud or punish those guilty of crimes no human should be capable of." Throughout his monologue Geralt listened quietly and started reflected on his past actions, finding most to be positive and overall improving lives his posture straightens.

    Geralt "You know, It''s weird for someone to actually acknowledge the things I do for once... It feels.. Warm?" Speaking on such a subject is uncomfortable but strangely feels natural to do for the duo.

    They both sit in silence for a while, enjoying the breeze until the candles burn out. They both decide it''s time to get some rest, but before Geralt leaves Reima calls out.

    Reima "I would appreciate what we talked about to remain between us..."

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    Geralt nods "Same here, I hear about this from Lambert and you''re gonna be hanging from your feet by the keep." He gives a joke/warning and stalks off.

 14 Comprehension

    1 Year later

    Geralt could be scene sparring against a 10 yearold Reima at a secluded spot in the mountains, he is about to bring his sword down when Reima suddenly disappears in a turquoise flash and kicks Geralt in the back. He turns around just in time to see Reima vanish again, predicting his position Geralt turns and stabs his sword behind him stopping it just before Reima''s throat.

    Geralt "Don''t always go for the back, it''s predictable."

    Reima had asked Geralt if he could help him train with his innate magic, he agreed. With Geralt''s help short teleportation or blinking has become more fluid and easier to execute mid combat, with the help of his limited observation Haki doing complex manoeuvres mid blink is possible, but still no where near what Ciri shows during her battle with Caranthir from the Wild Hunt.

    He has also been trying to find other uses for the Elder Blood powers, Reima remembers before the fight with Eredin and the rest of the Wild hunt she trained by using what looked like Jedi force powers. He has not been able to replicate this but seeing as she had been taught by Avallac''h who is probably the most knowledgeable able the Elder Blood around. Still he has made some progress in other areas, the Elder Blood feels like a kinda of elementally inclined magic, it feels different to the warmth he feels when he uses Igni or the safety with Quen. One day he tried to imbue the Elder Blood into his Quen sign and was greeted with a turquoise shield instead of yellow that enveloped his body... When testing the shield he found that he provided little to no protection verses blades or anything else he could think of, a number of tests later and he found that his air resistance was significantly decreased allowing him to run faster and perform manoeuvres quicker.

    Eventually through extensive meditation on the subject Reima came to the conclusion that the Elder Blood was a higher form a magic that was attributed closely to Space and Time. He imagines if he put enough power into his Elder Blood Quen shield he could walk through walls or become intangible. He decided not to attempt it due to the possibility of falling through the floor and eventually becoming tangible while miles into the earth... Under the close watch of Geralt he tested imbuing the Elder Blood into other Signs, the result were :

    Igni : Turquoise flames that caused visible ripples in the space near it, causing things caught by it to be what can only be called disintegration. The attributes of Igni, Fire, Ignite and burn shows different effects when combined with Space and Time... The effects are what you would assume if you tried to burn space and time, on what specifically happens to things caught by it will probably remain a mystery.

    Yrden : Turquoise shield that envelopes an area, preventing even Elder Blood teleportation from being used, it also seems to slow down the time of all those caught within. Not terribly useful in a panic due to the longer set up time compared to the normal Yrden.

    Aard : Using it on a rock makes it disappear and reappear metres ahead with massively increased velocity, using it on living beings is difficult for some reason, like they are resistant to the translocation but with enough power it''s possible.

    Axii : Now this one was a surprise, when cast on animals it seems to increase their reflexes and speed. It seems to speed up the time of which the brain operates, it doesn''t cause any strain or stress due to the time being sped up and not just it''s functions. Useful but could prematurely age certain organs quicker than others... Might cause complications.

    Quen : A Turquoise shield that may or may not allow for intangibility, it allows me to almost negate air resistance when cast on myself... I still don''t know when or if the Time aspect of the Elder Blood is going to effect it.

    Heliotrop : Not a Sign I am very adept at yet but Elder Blood doesn''t seem to change it''s ability to block strikes, no effects have been observed but perhaps not enough power is being applied. Funny how Igni is pretty same to test with but Quen and Heliotrop, Signs use for protection are the most dangerous.

    Geralt and Reima talk about the effects of each and ways the can be put to use, Igni might be able to be used against non Corporeal enemies such as Foglets and other similar monsters. Geralt suggests that Reima focuses on fully understanding the Signs and Elder Blood separately before experimenting further, Reima agrees and comments that it would be spectacularly stupid to die because he couldn''t stop his curiosity.

    Geralt "You are progressing so quickly, you might be ready for the path this time next year..." He says with some apprehension in his voice

    Reima "You think I''m almost ready?"

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    Geralt "If you continue at the pace your going, Yeah. Don''t rush it though, learn all you can while you are here."

    Reima nods and as he is rather exhausted due to the large use of his magic they decide to head back and grab some food.

 15 Tension

    When Arie heard the news that Reima might be able to do the last trial in a year he immediately talked about it with his Master, Eskel. He wanted to be equal with Reima and if he had to work twice as hard to do the trial with him, he would.

    And so started the backbreaking training for both the students and the teachers, having to plan out various training scenarios and with the help of Vesemir, educate them on the monsters, herbs and potions they hadn''t learn yet.

    While for Reima it was relatively easy going due to the perks he was given from Being X, Arie was busting his balls just trying to keep him with the rate Reima was learning.

    Reima did feel slightly bad due to his unfair advantage, and even with his learning and comprehension perk Arie managed to barely keep up.

    The Witchers constantly reminded Arie that he didn''t have to do the trial early just to stay with Reima but he wouldn''t hear a word of it.

    A few months later,

    Reima sat at a table with Arie opposite him eating bread with butter, cheese and venison that they had hunted the previous day. Reima''s muscular body that stood at 5.2 feet tall didn''t suit a 10 yearold boy, rather he looked like a 13-14 yearold. A combination of mutagens and rigorous training had increased the rate of growth, the results could also be seen on Arie who looks like a 15 yearold with a lean muscular physique, though with the bags under his eyes Reima could tell he wasn''t getting much sleep.

    Reima "Something wrong mate? You look exhausted..."

    Aria sent a glare at Reima and snapped at him "Who''s fault do you think that is?"

    Reima startled at his sudden change in attitude spoke with subtle confidence, "I don''t know, why don''t you tell me?"

    Arie slams his hands on the table making everything on it jump, "It''s you, you prick!"

    He continues "Everything I do is never good enough! You barely even try and yet you are so much better than me!?! I stay up all night reading ahead on topics and yet you still already know them! Is Master Geralt teaching you something that I''m not?!?!" After his outburst he drops into his seat with a vacant look in his eyes, "We''re supposed to stick together, and yet it feels like your leaving me behind..."

    ...

    Reima rests his chin on his fist, "I''m sorry that you felt that way... No Geralt isn''t teaching me anything different..." Reima thinks back on his Elder Blood training but forgets about it. "You don''t have to kill yourself to catch up to me, I''m willing to wait for you to be ready and we can both do the trial together."

    Arie''s eyes widen at this statement, "You''d do that for me?"

    Reima nods "Yeah, at most I reckon you''d only take is a couple months to be ready. Plus, it''s not a big deal... Maybe I can learn some other stuff not connected to all the Witcher stuff, You think Geralt knows about high society?" He grins.

    Arie grins while wiping his moistening eyes with his shirt sleeve, "Probably, listen, You don''t have to wait long... Ill catch up to you quickly!" They finish their meal and head to training.

    In the courtyard Geralt waits with Eskel and Aubry with a weapons rack packed with various sizes of axes and pole arms.

    Geralt "Alright, you both have been trained in most weapons we have at Kaer Morhen but Aubry here has decided to teach you some Axe tricks he learned while visiting his homeland in Skellige."

    Reima turns his head to Aubry and seems confused "You don''t seem like someone from Skellige?"

    Aubry laughs "That''s why they thew me to the Kaer Morhen like old milk, It''s fine though... They made up by teaching me their techniques, I intend to get back at them by teaching you lads!.... Alright enough gawking take an axe that fits ye and we will get started."

    Reima looks at the axes and finds them all to be polished steel gleaming in the morning light, they each had a maliciously sharp edge and an armour spike on the back end of them. They had various lengths from a single handed short axe to a two handed war axe, he takes a medium sized one that has a similar handle to most wood cutting axes.

    Aubry "Alright, who wants to go first... Just to show I''m not pulling your legs, come at me!"

    Reima looks at the Witcher who''s attitude mimics stereotypical Dwarves and back at Arie who shakes his head in amusement.

    Reima looks at Aubry acroos from him who has a loose single handed grip on the end of the axes handle. Mustering his courage he runs at Aubry and tries to beary the axe in his chest, Aubry intercepts his axe with a parry, handle to handle. Seeing his momentum gone Reima tries to back up but find his leg caught, Aubry had hooked the back spike of the axe around his ankle. The world spins and Reima find Aubrys axe buried into the ground next to his head...

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    Arie claps as Eskel gives a surprised whistle, "Bad luck Reima!"

    Aubry collect his axe and helps Reima up. "You see, the tricks I''m gonna be teachin ye all involve this amazing little spike, you don''t have to use an axe to do them aswell! Anything that has a lip that can be hooked should be able to surprise whatever your fighting... This is less useful on monsters but I can say with confidence you will eventually end up fighting humans."

    He proceed to show the two boys pressure point that can be used against humans, elves and dwarves due to their similar anatomy. The ways he shows them are similar to martial arts Reima had seen in his previous world from locks to bars and throws. Overall it was more interesting from their usually monotonous training they repeat almost everyday.

 16 Preparations

    Reima had just gotten word that Arie was ready for the trial, it was surprising since he was only able to do it for a month or two... Hopefully he hadn''t rushed his training and pestered Eskel into agreeing with this. Reima was now 11 and puberty had hit him like a truck to a brick wall, standing 5''6 feet tall and a body that was slowly becoming more masculine as testosterone is introduced into his hormonal profile, broader shoulders and larger arms included.

    Vesemir had just called them to meet him in the study to discuss their soon to be trial, he meets with Arie who is around 3 inches taller but seems to be retaining his thin form and sit down across from Vesemir in the study.

    Vesemir "There you two are, I heard from Geralt and Eskel that you two are ready to retrieve you medallions... Do you have anything you want to ask before I explain what the trial is?"

    Reima raises his voice "Err, yes Master Vesemir. Weren''t we supposed to receive our medallions are the trial of the grasses?"

    Vesemir smiles and nods "Yes that would be the case if we still had the medallions stored at Kaer Morhen. There is a forge where they used to be created in the mountains north of here, no one alive currently knows the method they used to enchant the medallions but we know there are some medallions that remain in the forge. Actually this brings me right to where I needed, as the trial needs you to retrieve your medallion from the Forge."

    Arie "How do we get there? I doubt we will be given a guide and travelling around the mountains for months in search of some cave without food or water seems rather extreme... Master."

    Vesemir "Well, the route requires you to just head straight north from Kaer Morhen and you will eventually reach the cave where the forge resides, to assist you I had Frank mark trees in the direction you should be going. Now, I won''t stop you from asking advice from the other Witchers but it is up to them to answer or not. You are very valuable to us, not only because you are the last Witchers that will ever be created but because of the relationships we have all forged. For that reason I must request you to make sure you are absolutely ready for this task."

    "We are ready" They both intone.

    Vesemir "Very good, you should know that you will not be allowed to bring anything apart from clothes and a steel dagger."

    Arie "Why not allow us to take swords?"

    Vesemir "Tradition states that you shouldn''t be allowed any weapons at all, we are being lenient allowing you to take daggers as they do not completely count as weapons."

    They both nod and thank Vesemir before they start preparing for the trial the next day.

    Reima goes to talk to Geralt to ask for advice on how he should proceed as Arie does the same with Eskel.

    He finds him meditating at the same balcony they had previously talked at which overlooks the courtyard, as the matter he needs to talk about is rather important he decides to interrupt his deep focus.

    Reima "Master Geralt" he says quietly.

    Geralt with his eyes still closed replies, "Yes, Reima?"

    Reima "We just talked with Vesemir about the trial, he said something about asking you for advice?"

    He opens his eyes and looks at Reima "Yeah, while I haven''t done this particular trial I can tell you the safest way of completing it."

    Reima sits beside him to listen.

    Geralt "The route I would personally take would be to swim over the river itself, the shore lines are covered in Water Hags and Drowners but they only seem to be dragging prey from land into the water to drown them. They will not bother you if you steer well clear of them, the forests around the river that you would otherwise have to travel through have had increased incidents of wild animals attacking other creatures, in my opinion it is likely there is a young Leshen taking up residence deep in the forests. You should also keep in mind that there are no villages anywhere close to your destination, so if you see or hear something or someone, ignore it as it is likely a Foglet."

    Reima sits on his knees memorising Geralts words, "Anything else?"

    Geralt "You should collect enough ingredients for a cat eye''s potion, we haven''t checked the cave the forge is in for years... Anything could have taken up residence inside and you would do well not to get caught out"

    Reima "But we can''t bring anything to create the potion with, no alchemical tools or even bottles to hold it..."

    Geralt "Have I taught you nothing over the years? Cat eye''s is the easiest potion to create, just mash the materials into a paste and hold it in your gums, while this would be seriously toxic for a normal person and more toxic than usual for the potion, you will be fine."

    Reima nods in understanding "Thank you Master, when I get back I want to spar with you one last time before I leave on the path."

    Geralt smiles and pats his back "Don''t worry about it Kid, just makesure not to lose focus and you''ll be fine."

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    Reima gets up to prepare for the trial but as he is leaving Geralt adds one last thing.

    Geralt "Keep an eye on Arie while your out there, He is definitely ready but could do with a couple more months of training... Trust me, having him die senselessly would weigh on you..." He almost whispers the last part.

    Reima nods and continues on his way.

 17 Trial of retrieval begins

    It''s the day of the trial and after a hearty breakfast they were stood outside the walls of Kaer Morhen looking north, the Witchers stood behind them offering some words before they leave.

    Geralt "Good luck."

    Lambert "Both of you better come back or I''ll drag you with my bare hands out of there."

    Eskel "Come back in once piece... Try to stick together and not disturb the creatures out there."

    Vesemir doesn''t say anything and keeps a stoic face.

    Aubry and Frank are off on a contract elsewhere so they aren''t present.

    Reima and Arie stand there in thick leather boots, leather trousers and a white long sleeve shirt... Reima was going bring a jacket of some sort to keep him warm in the cold weather but was persuaded otherwise since his plan included swimming through the lake, being weighed down too much could be a death sentence. Seems like Arie had a similar idea or advice from Eskel.

    The knife they had given them was two steel 8 inches long dagger with a single bladed edge, Arie and Reima had spent most of their night sharpening them. One thing to take note is that they are not silver plated, If they try to kill a monster it''s gonna take a while.

    Reima and Arie looks at each other and fist bump as Vesemir gives them permission to start, Reima sprints into the forest with Arie trailing behind him... He keeps his Observation Haki on high alert looking out for threats, even if it is still relatively close to Kaer Morhen.

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    Eventually they approach the tree line overlooking the lakeside, Arie stops next to him and asks "See anything?"

    Reima looks closer to spot anything prowling the coast but only sees a single Water hag a large distance east from them. He point at it''s direction "Water Hag, steer clear or Drowners are likely to follow."

    Arie nods as they both sprint to the coastline and dive into the water and start swimming towards the long end of the lake. It must be a couple miles at the least so hopefully they can bear the bitingly cold waters until then. Witchers are more durable and resistant to temperatures but swimming through near freezing water is still rather uncomfortable and dangerous.

    After 20 minutes of swimming Reima spots seagulls? and some debris floating atop the water, know this must be a treasure he gets Arie to wait above the waves to keep watch for anything approaching.

    Diving down he spots a small boat wreckage and a crate not far from there, a single Drowner seems to be waiting down there while it gnaws on the crate.

    Reima casts a simple Axii to get it to return to it''s nest and sleep for a couple days, while it was difficult to specify such commands to such a simple creature Reima managed it.

    Still holding onto his breath he swims down to the wreckage and only finds broken bottles, skeletons and destroyed paper. Turning his eyes on what must be the true treasure, the crate.

    Using his knife to push into the gaps of the crate to slowly pry it apart, it suddenly pops open allowing the water to rush into the previously air tight space. Reima thinks to himself that he didn''t expect these kinds of things to exist outside of the Witcher 3.

    On the sand in front of him is a silver sword with green glowing inscriptions, some gems and gold are also present but lacking anything to carry them Reima decides to just take the sword. Gripping the blade between his teeth he makes his way back to Arie who seems very surprised at the sword in his mouth...

    Arie "How on earth did you find that!?!" He says while staying afloat

    Reima "There are always lost treasures to be found. We can talk when we''re on land, lets go!" He puts the silver sword back in his mouth and starts swimming, trying to swim with a great big sword in his mouth blocking some of his actions is difficult but not impossible... He still manages to keep up speed with Arie. As hes swimming Reima thinks of the looks hes gonna get from the Witchers when he tell them how he found the sword.

    Eventually they both approach the shore after a couple of hours of swimming, sword still in mouth Reima observes to see if anything is gonna grab them when they get on land, seeing nothing they both go ahead.

    Arie "Finally out of there, it''s freezing... Still nice find Reima."

    Reima throws the sword at Arie, "Take it, I can protect myself with Signs."

    Arie seems hesitant but accepts, trusting in Reima''s word.

    They look along the coast to find the marked tree that their Masters had talked about, while looking they spot a bear being scratched and sliced by around 15 Drowners,

    Reima "Must be the entire nest, it doesn''t really seem worth it for a large amount of them to die to try feed on the bear..."

    Arie "What if the bear attacked them?"

    Reima thinks back to Geralt telling him about a possible Leshen and agrees, "Geralt thought a Leshen is in these forests, better be careful and not disturb anything sacred looking..."

    They head around the ghastly scene and eventually find a marked tree with an overgrown path next to it.

    Arie "This looks to be it..."

    Reima "Stay focused and keep an eye out the entire time we are in there... I refuse to be the only one returning."

    Arie nods as they both enter, his sword tightly held in his hand and dimly pulsing with the green inscriptions.

 18 Lucky?

    They enter the dark path and deeper into the forest, Reima occasionally looking for a wild Berbercane fruit.. One of the ingredients for a Cat''s eye potion, the other components are Dwarven spirit, a very high percentage alcohol that can be switched with fermenting fruit (Albeit with less effect) and Water essence, a water-like substance acquired from aquatic monsters like Drowners... For this Reima had managed to slip a vial from the storehouse and hide it under his trousers before the trial.

    Reima "Arie, Eskel say anything about potions?"

    Arie "Yes but I didn''t think it was possible without managing to kill a creature..."

    Reima "We''re Witchers, and there is one thing all Witchers have to do... Preparation." As he shows Arie the vial of Water essence."

    Arie smiles "Nice, but it''s only enough for one dose..."

    Reima "We can split it, while it won''t last as long as usual, I doubt we are going to be spending a significant amount of time in the dark."

    The boys continue on while watching out for predators or anything unusual, they both start to notice the Crows that seem to be watching them.

    Reima "Arie, the Leshen has found us..." he whispers to his equally dire looking friend.

    Arie "Should we run?"

    Reima thinks for a second, "We''ve been walking a while and from what I saw we should be close to the mountain path that''s out of the forest... If we run we should make it.

    As they talk more Crows start perching on trees around them, 10, 20, 30...

    Arie "On three?"

    Reima nods, "One, two, Three!" They both start sprinting down the path, Arie chopping at the branches that seem to want to block their path with his sword. Reima jumping over and warning Arie of the roots that have started rapidly growing in an attempt to trip them.

    The birds cawing loudly can''t gather and attack them due to the thick underbrush attacking and simultaneously protecting them.

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    Reima with Observation Haki spots a branch about growing rapidly and about to knock Arie over, he uses Armament Haki and punches the thick branch causing it to explode in a shower of splinters. The impact results in the tree it came from shaking and dropping debris on the path, as Reima was about to hop over it and continue he notes some overly ripe looking fruits next to a familiar fruit he was just looking for, the Berbercane fruit. Taking his shirt off while keeping an eye out for roots and branches Reima lowers the still slightly damp shirt to the ground and scoops some dirty, branches and thankfully the fruits into the makeshift carrier.

    Arie slows down for Reima but gets scratched on his side by a rather vicious looking branch extending out of a gnarled tree.

    Arie "Hurry up!"

    Reima "Go!"

    After receiving this response Arive continues to sprint ahead as Reima follows him, branches targeting Arie change their focus onto Reima who unleashes short blasts of Igni and Haki infused punches to stop they barring his way.

    Eventually he seeds light crawling through the trees and sprints harder and faster before bursting out into a clearing with Arie already sitting on the floor waiting, gasping for breath.

    Reima "Haaa... We made it!"

    The forest continued making haunting sounds as beasts and birds alike make their dissatisfaction known but slowly quietened down as the Leshen cannot extend control outside of it''s domain.

    After a short rest Reima looks at what he had managed to get...

    6 relatively small Berbercane fruits,

    A large amount of overly ripe berries that have started to ferment.

    A bunch of large leaves

    Some sticks and fibres,

    Some dirt that he quickly discards...

    Reima "This should be enough for a primitive potion..."

    Arie "How lucky is that? Fate must be smiling on us both."

    Reima looks at the mountain path that is covered by slate and other minerals as it zigzags up the mountain.

    He looks for a smooth, round and heard mineral and places the fermenting berries on a large slate.

    He mashes them up with the smooth piece of granite is managed to find before adding the Water essence. The mixture slowly turned a dirty blue as he mixes, eventually after 3 minutes of making sure it''s all thoroughly integrated he adds the 6 small Berbercane fruits, the purple fruit causing the mixture to turn a dark grey or purple.

    After Reima confirms that it looks fine he wraps it in a large leaf like some sort of hobbit short cake, he takes some fibres and strings them together like a makeshift twine and wraps the leaf as securely as possible.

    The two boys look down at the small makeshift leaf wrapped package and grin.

    Arie "For what it is, it''s rather impressive work."

    Reima "Yeah well, I learned from the best."

    ...

    Arie "Wait, don''t we have to go back through the forest to get to Kaer Morhen?"

    Reima "Oh for fuck sake! The Leshens already pissed off at us, there has to be another route..."

    Arie "We can try find one higher up. For now lets try and find the forge."

    The two boys slowly make their way up the rocking outcroppings that form the path, they keep an eye out for anything that might be living here like Harpies or Rock Trolls.

    Luckily they find the cave a mile into the mountain unmolested.

    Arie "This it?"

    Reima "Should be, look at the markings." He points at the Quen Signs carved into nearby rocks.

 19 Magic degeneration is weird.

    Reima and Arie stand outside the cave and looking inside, while the Witchers low light vision is excellent the cave twists and turns into pitch blackness...

    Reima gets out the makeshift Cat''s eye potion and gives half of it to Arie, "Rub it into your gums and place some under your tongue." Who nods in response.

    They both administer it and have black veins creeping up their necks as it''s effect kicks in.

    They enter the Cave which looks like it hasn''t seen any activity in decades... There doesn''t seem to be any trace of anything living inside except suspiciously ashes. Perhaps something had burned down inside the forge causing it not to be used anymore...

    They continue inside, ducking under low hanging rocks and they both note that it seems to be getting warmer the deeper they progress.

    Eventually they spot some kind of light, candles maybe? Or maybe the forge is somehow still operational...

    Arie grips his sword as his follows beside Reima, they continue until the cave is brightly lit and as they peek around the corner from the rocky entrance they see a flaming amalgamation of iron and fire. It seems to be resting beside the still operational forge and drawing heat from it.

    The forge seems to have been enchanted... From what Reima knows about certain enchantments is that over a long period of time where no one maintains or corrects the degeneration that comes with all magic, side effects can occur. The result? Something resembling a Fire elemental, It stands almost 9 foot tall and looks like someone glued broken bits of iron together to resemble armour, covered it in gasoline and set it aflame.

    Arie whispers "How are we supposed to get around or kill that thing?"

    Reima examines it closer and finds a Wolf school medallion where a human heart would be, the Ruby eyes glow ominously from the silver necklace. "I think if we destroy its core, the medallion in it''s chest it should be disabled."

    Arie "Are you sure?"

    Reima "Magic is weird, especially enchantments... It''s either that or destroying the forge."

    Arie "Ok, so how do we do this?"

    Reima "Ill distract it, you find a chance to stab it... If that fails backup while I try to destroy the forge."

    Arie nods as he prepares to move out.

    Reima spots a weapons rack with old rusted short swords still placed on it, he runs to it and grabs one and pulls it causing a grinding sound that the Fire elemental notices.

    "Come on you big cunt! You look strong but you seem to be blowing smoke!"

    Some how understanding that it has just been insulted the elemental roars and charges at Reima who dodges and watches it almost destroy the solid granite cave wall.

    "Holy shit!" Reima shouts as he spots Arie sneaking in the dark waiting for a time to strike.

    Reima slashes at it''s leg causing no damage at all and dodges a swing from it''s armoured fist, hair almost getting singed.

    It tries to bring it''s fist down on his head but missed and Reima tries to stab the medallion but it blocks it and grabs the rusty blade, which melts as a result. If Reima was better at Armament Haki he would still have a weapon but the opportunity has past.

    Reima hears Arie give a roar as he charges from the darkness and tries to stab it while it''s attention was on Reima.

    Reima spots that the Fire elemental is more observant of it''s surroundings that a normal one and tries to warn Arie "Wait ARIE STOP!"

    During his lunge to stab the armoured giants arm bends backwards and grabs Aries left arm. Reima tries to use Axii and Aard to try to dislodge it''s grip but fails, Arie shouts in agony as his arm roasts and burns while being crushed in it''s fiery grip. Seeing no other outcome he slams his silver sword just below his elbow taking his forearm clean off. Luckily or unluckily the fire had completely seared the wound close so the blood loss is negligible.

    Reima shouts "You fuck! And decides to reveal his unique Elder blood flames on the giant, his Igni Sign glows blue as Turquoise flames cover it''s right arm and leg causing the magic inside of them to release it''s hold on the iron scraps that comprises it''s form.

    It destroys magic? Reima rapdly thinks and casts uses Quen to block it''s shambling counter attack but still gets thrown a couple meters away.

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    Arie who still has a firm grip on his sword grits his teeth and tries for one more stab. He runs at it and directs all of the pain he''s currently experiencing into the strike and pierces the medallion which explodes as a result sending shards of metal to scratch and wound both boys.

    Arie is unconcious as he lies next to the broken remains of his silver sword, left arm still missing. Reima feels blood drip down from his face but ignores it to try and tend to Aries wounds, large gashes cover his upper body and remaining arm, he tears Aries shirt off of his body and rips it into strips to atleast stop the bleeding. Looking at his face it bears a resemblance to Eskels scars... If they get back it''ll certainly be a story to tell... After using the last of the strips to cover a particularly large gash on his shoulder Reima drops on the floor breathing heavily and losing consciousness due to his wounds.

 20 Fight amongst youngsters

    Reima wakes up with a start and scrambles to push himself off of the cold granite fool, looking around he sees Arie still unconscious and metal shards piercing various blackened wooden crates around the room. The forge still giving off a warm glow that lights the area enough for Reima to properly examine it. He first checks Arie to make sure his makeshift first aid had done enough to save his life.

    His wounds have scabbed over and it looks like he will recover, albeit without his arm. Due to the loss being partly his fault he feels rather guilty. Maybe this world would be able to make a magical bionic arm of some sort? Or if it''s not possible attach a blade to replace his missing arm... Either way it would have to wait until Arie''s awake. Reima examines himself and doesn''t find anything serious except for the pain on his face, he tries to rub it but flinches away from the wound on his cheek as it almost burns with pain, he decides he would check it over when he can.

    While he waits he looks around and sees various thing stored here, rotten food, a varierty of weapons in a variety of different conditions... From pristine to completely rusted through. He also finds a small box that contains 5 Witcher Wolf medallions, taking one Reima wraps it around Arie''s neck which leaves the Wolf''s head proudly resting on his bare chest.

    Reima also takes two more, one for himself and one for Ciri... Not that Geralt will know that until then. He wraps the medallion around his neck and marvels at it, the weight of it more than just it''s heaviness but the emotional weight... Finally he''s got one, he''ll be a Witcher when he returns and receives his silver sword.

    Reima looks at the forge and ponders whether or not to destroy it. He decides it''s better that the other two medallions are protected by a monster, so a true Witcher can take them instead of some thief pawing through ruins. He gathers up all the metal and places it in the forges glowing coals so that another Golem eventually forms.

    After a couple hours of meditation Arie still has not awoken... This is a problem due to them having to travel back through the Leshens forest.

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    Reima decides the he will have to find a route through the thinnest part of the forest or around it... He cautiously drags Arie and rests his head on some scraps of leather before grabbing the rock salt he had found and drawing a line at the entrance of the forge. Reima grabs the best looking Silver weapon he can find which turns out to be a spear, maybe due to lack of silver they only made the spearhead silver and used Ash wood as the shaft. It stands 6 foot in height and should be enough to defend himself with.

    Reima makes his way back through the cave and comes out on the mountain path, it seems to be morning, a couple hours past sunrise. Perfect. He climbs the mountain to get a better look and finds that the forest goes far an wide, almost wraps around the entirety of the mountain... Shit.

    But after looking more closely he finds a spot in the vast trees that seems to have been cut, the tree stumps clearly visible and cutting through the forest like an artist had just painted a line through.

    There''s the exist... But who is stupid enough to cut down a forest with a Leshen inhabiting it?

    Reima decides to scout it out before carrying Arie across it. He heads down the familiar mountain path and approaches the desecrated tree line, looking around he just finds a trail of chopped trees going in a straight line... He cautiously heads inside tightly gripping his spear, as he walks he spots various totems also chopped in two... They look pagan, must have angered the Leshen to have them destroyed.

    Reima spots a small log hut standing amidst the stumps and looks inside, he finds nothing but a broken bed, cobwebs and... A journal? Flipping through the pages it seems to be written by a mage looking for a secluded spot to do experiments, the experiments were... Unsavoury and included necromancy from what Reima can tell. The mage thought he had found his spot due to the ambient magical energy and failed to notice his neighbour... The ink on the last page looks pretty recent, the mage might still be around.

    Slipping the journal in his leather trousers he exits and goes deeper into the path, as he walks he sees signs of lifeless flowers, they''re dead... Looks kinda like when Yennefer used necromancy to talk to that dead guy.

    ...

    Reima keeps walking but fortunately finds the mage... Unfortunately the mage seems to have been strung from the treeline by his intestines, seems like the Leshen wasn''t all that happy at him desecrating the forest. The blood as already dried and the body seems to be on the first stages of decomposition, must have been around a week ago... Thinking about it, the amount of ambient magic is strong enough to even cause his medallion to shake and shudder, it''s almost strong enough to be the centre of the.... Forest...

    Reima quickly looks around and spots a single crow staring at him... He hears something massive shifting amongst the foliage, while he isn''t currently in the forest... It doesn''t mean the Leshen can''t deal with him itself.

    He dives to his left as a wooden clawed hand materialises where he just was. Looking at the aggressor he sees a 9 foot tall Leshen, it''s oaken flesh barely covered by leather strips. It has giant clawed hands and a deer skull with relatively small antlers, must be a young one. Reima thinks he has a chance to end this... Outside of it''s domain where it''s control of it''s beasts reside and it is currently weakened by the loss of it''s totems.

    "I never ment any harm to you creature! But you have forced my hand!" He shouts as he prepares for combat, he uses Quen to provide a buffer in case he makes a mistake.

    Reima also casts a powerful Yrden on the ground that covers around a meter to surround him, the Leshen gives a ghastly roar and disperses into green particles before reforming outside of the Yrden trap and attacking him with a giant swipe.

    Reima manages to dodge the swipe as the Leshen steps into the trap, while it''s movements are effected he pokes the spear at it''s chest causes some sort of sap to drip from the wound.

    It tries to grab the spear but Reima spins it around and scratches it arm for it''s attempt. He steps back and pokes again but uses one hand while it''s distracted to shoot a stream of Igni at it''s face.

    The leshen quickly covers it''s face with it''s arms and backs away due to the searing heat, as it leaves the Yrden trap it disperses again into green particles.

    The trap loses it''s glow as it disperses causing Reima to growl "Shit" As he uses the Elder Blood to teleport two meters in front of him, narrowly avoiding being penetrated from his back through his stomach. Looking back the Leshen disperses again and tries to attack, Reima uses Aard on the ground causing a shock-wave and knocking the Leshen off balance. Reima uses this oppertunity and blinks forward while thrusting the spear at it''s neck, going clear through it''s target.

    The Leshen gives a guttural roar as it sputters to it''s knees an expelling a large amount of sap from it''s wound. It''s dead... Reima decides to make sure of it by slowly cutting it''s head off with his knife.

 21 A tasteful ending to the trial.

    Reima drops on his ass as he looks at the carnage of his previous battle, some trees are on fire, some younger trees snapped completely due to his Aard shock-wave and most importantly, the decapitated Leshen body lying next to him. He grabs some of the debris from the battle and makes some basic rope like material to carry the Leshen head, he let it hang from behind him as he prepares to go up the mountain to retrieve Arie.

    Entering the forge he finds Arie still unconscious where he had left him and flips his body onto his shoulder so he can still use his spear.

    He cautiously makes his way down the mountain path and goes back to where he fought the Leshen, It takes longer than he had expected to traverse the woods despite it being the thinnest path through.

    He eventually breaches the treeline coming to the shore of the lake they had previously swam through, Reima remains on high alert as he surveys what paths he could possibly take... Swimming is a no go due to Arie still being out of commission, the shores around the lake are infested with Water Hags and Drowners and the forests, while the Leshen is dead are still chock full of predators like bears and wolves.

    Reima "Well, I guess this''ll be practise then.." As he looks across the lake, he can barely see the shore opposite him due to the distance but doesn''t spot any enemies nearby.

    Despite being rather drained due to his fight with the Leshen he think he can make it, as he takes a deep breath and crouches down as if hes about to lunch into the lake.

    "GO!" he shouts as he disappears in a Turquoise flash.

    He re materialises with Arie but both are thrown in various directions due to the forces being projected on them. Reima lands on his face causing his wound to flare in pain in a mess but scrambles to make sure Arie didn''t break his neck or something. Thankfully he seems fine, albeit covered in mud.

    He spots his spear nearby and picks it up while shouldering Arie before quickly making his way to Kaer Morhen, the journey took around an hour but felt longer due to the exhaustion of teleporting such a distance with a passenger. He reaches the gate of Kaer Morhen that has been open since he started training here.

    He enters the courtyard and spots Lambert tapping his foot in irritation? He quickly spots the injured boys and rings a bell that Reima hadn''t noticed before.

    Lambert "Is he alright!? What the fuck happened!?" He almost shouts when he sees Arie minus his left arm.

    Reima "Long story... Can you get Vesemir to check on Arie please?" He says as he hands over the injured boy to Lambert

    Lambert "They''re just coming, hold on." as he looks over Arie''s wounds.

    Reima takes a seat on a stump as the Witchers trail out of Kaer Morhen, Vesemir and Eskel jogs to Lambert and they all take Arie inside the keep to look him over.

    Geralt walks over with a woman, black hair, black clothes and Witch amulet? Defnitely Yennefer.

    Geralt "Seems like you made it through, albeit with some injuries." he says looking over Reima.

    Reima inwardly grins and gives a innocent smile while showing them the Leshen head.

    "Father! I have slain a Leshen, are you proud of me?" Geralt shudders and Yennefer''s eyes turn to Reima.

    Yennefer "Haha, Very funny... Lambert and Eskel have been making similar jokes since I arrived... You do bear a striking resemblance though... Tell me Geralt, have you been unfaithful behind my back?"

    Geralt "Obviously not... Do not listen to the jokes of children, that includes Eskel and Lambert in particular." He gives a warning look to Reima as he says this.

    Geralt tries to change topic by talking about the trial "A Leshen though, whether it''s young or not even a seasoned Witcher would have trouble hunting one. Even if you aren''t my son" He sends an imploring look at Yen, "I am impressed with your hunt."

    Reima "Thank you, Master" He sends a grin at Yennefer, "Will you be listening to my tale of my trial... Mother?"

    Yennefer gives a peculiar reaction at being called Mother, "Ill be staying for a few days if that''s what you''re asking, I would love to hear your story."

    Geralt "We should have probably started with introductions.. This is my lover Yennefer of Vengerberg" He makes a gesture towards her. "And this is my Apprentice Reima Ludvig."

    Reima nods "Nice to meet you miss Rivia? Misses Geralt?..."

    Yennefer laughs "Just call me Yennefer or Yen outside of polite company."

    After introductions Reima gets up and leaves his spear with the other weapons. He follows Geralt and Yen into the keep and finds where Arie is being taken care of. Before visiting Arie, Reima quickly wipes himself clean of dirt an get some decent clothes on.

    Arie is in the laboratory being fed various potions by Vesemir as Eskel closely watches.

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    Reima "How is he?" He directs the question at no one in particular but receives an answer from Vesemir. "He seems to be in shock from the loss of his arm, he should recover in a few days, a week at most." Reima gives a sigh in relief at the news.

    Reima "It''s a shame he won''t be awake when I start on my path then..." he notes, he intends to get "Witchering" as fast as possible to prepare for future events.

    Vesemir "Well, nothing else I can do for him now... All we can do is let him rest, Reima I would like to hear of your trial. Shall we get a feast prepared to celebrate you both making it back.

    The rest of the Witchers nod in assent.

    Everyone chipped in and made something unique for the feast, Lambert grilled some ribs over the fire, Eskel got out some pickled vegetables and other foodstuffs, Geralt made enough egg products to last a couple days... And Reima decided to try make some foods from his past life. First he minced up various lean and fatty meats into something resembling minced meat before he used an egg yolk or two to bind it together. He seasoned it with lots of pepper and salt an shaped them into patties.

    Next he found some relatively burger bun shaped bread and toasted them with an iron pan over the fire.

    Thirdly he attempted to recreate mayonnaise, he had previously watched tutorials on how to make it on various cooking channels. He gathered the ingredients, Vegetable oil, egg yolks, vinegar and various seasonings... He couldn''t find any lemons so he used a similar tasting citrus fruit instead.

    Yennefer watches over his shoulder as he starts to fry the patties and assemble the burgers, he gets some milder tasting cheese and melts it over the patties.

    Reima "Tadaa, Cheese burgers!" he says dramatically before bowing to Yennefer.

    Yennefer "They look unique but how do you eat such a thing?"

    Reima head instinctively turns sideways as he replies "You eat it with your hands?"

    Yennefer who seems satisfied by this sits down at the table to wait for everyone to finish.

    Eventually a feast of various food and drink is assembled and everyone starts taking seats around the table. They start tucking into the food, during the meal Lambert discreetly asks for the recipe that he used to make the burgers, Reima tells him but makes him keep it a secret due to the potential profit burgers could make.

 22 Tax collectors past...

    As everyone finishes their meals and had a couple drinks they decide to ask Reima about the trial and how Arie lost his arm.

    Reima told them about swimming through the river and finding a silver sword in a wreckage, Reima makes up a story of them finding a lone Drowner and acquiring Water essense from it. He then tells them of the Leshen infested forest that they had managed to escape and how lucky they were that he managed to find the correct materials to complete a basic Cat''s eye potion.

    Reima "We eventually found the cave and went inside... It seems that the forge had indirectly created some sort of Fire elemental/Golem hybrid?" Yennefer nods as if she understands something. "There wasn''t really a way past it so we tried to fight it, Arie managed to pierce it''s core after losing his arm but it exploded and injured us both." He says tracing his hand on his sore face where a scar has started forming.

    Eskel "Atleast now you look like one of us, seems like having your face shredded is part of being a Witcher." He rubs his the scar his adoptive daughter had given him.

    Reima "It''s a good look on Geralt and Lambert..." They all laugh at Eskel''s expense.

    Geralt "Enough of that, tell us how you managed to kill a Leshen..."

    Lambert "A Leshen? Here?"

    Reima "Not anymore it''s not." As he holds up the head that had been attached at his waist.

    ...

    Vesemir "GOOD HUNT MY BOY! Hahahaha!" He raises his tankard and clinks it with Reima''s.

    After being congratulated Reima continued with his tale.

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    "Arie wouldn''t wake up and with the Leshen already looking for us I doubted we would make it through alive..."

    He then tells the tale of finding the desecrated forest and dead mage and his subsequent battle with the Leshen obviously excluding his use of the Elder Blood.

    Eskel "How did you manage to catch it? I can''t imagine it would wait for you to drive a spear through it..."

    Reima "I knocked it off balance with Aard and sprinted as fast as I could, kinda lucky I guess." He says rubbing the back of his head. He continues,

    "After I had slain it I grabbed Arie and snuck through the forest to get back here..."

    Vesemir "I can''t imagine that was easy, forests beasts must be a frenzy after gaining back their autonomy..."

    Reima "It wasn''t but we made it."

    Eskel "Alright, enough of this depressing talk. To your health!" They all repeat it and toast Reima continue drinking. Yennefer who was thoroughly shitfaced left half way through with Geralt... But Eskel, Lambert and Reima continued drinking even despite his exhaustion.

    Reima wakes up and finds himself on the wooden floor of Kaer Morhen, his head hurting worse than it did yesterday when he was shot in the face with steel. Holding his head he looks up trying to keep his eyes away from the harsh sunlight. Hes still in the dining room where they had just had the feast, deciding it was best to freshen up before preparing for the day he went to find his room.

    After cleaning himself and dressing in something not soaked through with alcohol he examines himself in the mirror. 5''6 in height with White Hair and Green slitted eyes, same old... Except for the new scars that are now present on his body, due to the explosion he was pierced by many shards of steel making it look like he was stabbed repeatedly, luckily they didn''t go very deep or he would have died. The most notable of his new features is the diagonal scar running from the side of his nose to just where his ear begins making a trail through his sideburn on the right side of his face.

    "Well, atleast I match the others now... What was the saying, scars add character? Scars always tell a good story?.... Whatever, doesn''t really matter after the fact."

    He makes his way to the courtyard same as his old training time. He spots Geralt already their going through forms.

    Reima "Geralt."

    Geralt "Reima. Incase you were wondering, your sword should arrive by today, also you can keep a steel sword of your liking."

    Reima nods and goes to look over the assortment of swords and finds one that looks like a comfortable size, It''s blade is around 45 inches long and has a Wolf shaped pommel with spikes protruding from it. He picks it up and swings it around to get used to it.

    Geralt "Found a blade? You said you wanted to fight me before you leave, and since you plan on leaving tomorrow I should destroy your confidence now... So you don''t get cocky in future."

    Reima spends around 2 hours trying to best Geralt, but without his Elder Blood abilities there is no way for him to even tie with Geralt. They were about to clash again when they hear someone come through the keeps gate.

    ??? "Greetings, I presume you are..." He looks down at the large sheet he seems to be reading off of.

    ??? "Geralt of Rivia."

    Geralt "I am."

    ??? "You ordered a sword of" He looks back down. "Silver plated atop steel. Is that correct?" He says looking very similar to a certain Nilfgaardian tax collector.

    Geralt "Yes I did."

    The merchant? hands a sheet to Geralt along with a quill. "Please sign here... Here... And here."

    Geralt does so and the Merchant hands Geralt a long wooden box and thanks him for his patronage before leaving.

    Reima "Do all merchants talk like that?"

    Geralt "No... Only the ones with a stick up their ass... Here this should be yours."

    Reima takes the box and pries it open, inside he takes out a sheathed sword with a similar pommel to his steel sword. He unsheaths it showing the shiny silver underneath.

    Geralt "I didn''t have it engraved, figured you would like to choose what runes to use on it."

    Reima nods and thanks him before swinging and thrusting the blade to see it''s balance. It''s perfect.

 23 The long path... Literally.

    Before Geralt leaves the courtyard Reima asks that he meet him on the balcony later that night.

    Reima also receives his school of the wolf armour, he puts it on and it looks alright, the short green overcoat similar to Eskels red one with his medallion hanging over the top of it, black finger-less leather gloves to provide ease of using Signs, black leather trousers and hard boiled leather boots with various plated parts to protect the vulnerable areas. It''s a bit large on him but it''s good since he will grow into it, he grabs the modified sheaths and puts both sword behind his back, the handles overlooking his right shoulder.

    Reima "Feels good."

    As there is time before he meets with Geralt he thinks about what his current goals are. He wants to get stronger and aside from gaining experience there isn''t much else he can gain in this world aside from maybe becoming a mage. Reima seriously doubts his ability not to be imprisoned and dissected immediately if anyone found out his Elder Blood, mages are a lot more powerful than shown in the Witcher 3... He remembers one of the Witcher 3''s DLC''s which allow Geralt to improve his mutations in Toussaint, that will be his goal for now... First do a couple contract, get some money together for a horse an supplies before finding the alchemists ruined lab to improve his mutations. After that he will move on to another world were he can gain more knowledge and experience. Reima nods at his basic plan of action.

    A couple hours later Reima sees Geralt waiting on their "Favorite" balcony.

    Geralt "You said you wished to speak with me?"

    Reima nods "You know of my unique abilities right?" Geralt nods in affirmation, "Yeah well, I had a vision. I will not tell you about it for fear of changing the future but I have some things that may help.

    He hands Geralt the extra Wolf medallion and a book.

    Reima "Inside the book are notes on my discoveries of my abilities and hints on how to progress to increased mastery" Inside the book he included his own experiances and things he saw Ciri do in the game.

    Reima "When you find the right person who has similar abilities to me, they will be of help... I must warn you to make them as strong as possible for the trials that they may face.

    Geralt nods with slight apprehension, no doubt he wishes to know what''s gonna happen... It''s a shame I can''t just tell him, it might change his actions and cause them to never meet in the first place.

    As Reima is about to leave the pondering Geralt he finishes by saying, "Also, I would appreciate if you never told anyone... Including those like me of my abilities, you will come to understand how much danger it would present to me." After that he leaves to sleep and prepare for his departure tomorrow.

    Reima wakes up early the next day and prepares all his gear, swords clothing... He grabs a large leather rucksack an stuffs it with food and water for the journey to Ard Carraigh capital of Kaedwen. He''ll look for work there and eventually purchase a horse so he doesn''t have to travel on foot everywhere.

    He has a large breakfast and visits Arie before heading to the courtyard where everyone has gathered to see him off.

    He''s patted on the back by Lambert "Looking like a proper Witcher there Reima."

    Vesemir "Indeed, it feels like only yesterday you had arrived with Geralt. I only hope you had enjoyed some parts of your time here." His eyes turn downward as if thinking about the other boys who had also been present.

    Reima "It''s been difficult, I won''t deny that but I have enjoyed myself almost every day I''ve been here." Hes reminded of his slowly changing mindset, the lazy unmotivated modern day Reima no longer exists.

    Geralt "And after all this, you still couldn''t best me" He says with a jovial smile, something more rare than a compliment from Yennefer.

    Reima clasps Geralt''s arm in a firm shake. "Hate to break it to you Geralt, but this student will surpass his Master."

    After speaking with Geralt he approaches Eskel, "Hey, if... When Arie wakes up can you congratulate him for completing his trial for me?"

    Eskel nods "Yeah, no doubt he would want to thank you for saving his life."

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    Reima shakes his head, "He saved mine as well... Here," He hands Eskel sketches of various dangerous looking arm designs. Some looking rather tame like a 30 inch long silver plated blade extending from the elbow, to prototype''s huge scythe arm blade thing... "To be honest, I''d rather one of these than my actual arm. But don''t tell Arie that."

    Eskel thanks Reima for the gift and wishes him farewell.

    Reima walks towards the gates of Kaer Morhen before giving one last glance at everyone. "Good bye!" He waves as he walks on the long path to Ard Carraigh."

    Vesemir "Remember to come by once in a while!" calls from behind him.

 24 Damsel in distress.

    Reima continues to walk down the road towards Ard Carraigh, as he travels further away from Kaer Morhen the weather and chilly mountain breeze gradually gets warmer.

    Reima "When they said that the path never ends, I didn''t think they ment it literally..."

    He kicks a stray pebble into the bushes off to the side.

    After half a day of walking and nothing happening he decides it''s best to take a break... Before he can find a good spot however a feminine scream for help shouts further down the road.

    Reima runs towards it hand on sword and keeping an eye out for any traps. He finally comes upon a dirty blonde haired? Or a blonde dirty haired women on the floor, her hands on her face.

    He draws his silver sword, this could be an illusion of some sort and Reima would rather not be caught off guard.

    Reima "Miss, are you alright?"

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    ??? "Ah, Sir please help me... A bandit attacked me and took my daughter!" She says semi convincingly, she doesn''t exactly look old enough to have a child, maybe 16-18...

    Reima "Do you know which direction they went in?" He sheaths his silver sword and replaces it with steel.

    ??? "They dragged her off that way! I dread to think the vile things they''re doing to her" She says before she starts sobbing on the floor again...

    Reima looks at the bushes that seem to have been parted recently, from the way she described it there should be drag marks in the dirt... No marks, just armoured boots. He looks at the women and waves his hand, Axii. Tell me who you are and what you''re doing here.

    Teresa "I am Teresa, a member of the three fanged viper bandit group. We are fleeing from bounty hunters and need supplies, we decided to rob people on the road." She says in an emotionless voice before shaking her head and becoming lucid again. "Wait, why would I... You demon! Witchcraft!"

    Reima decides to shut her up before she draws her friends over, Swish!. Her body lies on the floor expelling all of its'' blood, her head resting gently next to it.

    Reima "Atleast I won''t be lacking coin... I''d rather the complete set though."

    He trails around the area that Reima thinks they are hiding in wait to ambush folks, he spots one of them peering past a tree... He can also hear various people moving but can''t pinpoint them.

    Approaching the back of the visible one he waves his hand and directs a power Axii at him. He directs the man to call out to his friends for "drinks" but not before poisoning the small amount of ale they have. He hands the poisonous herbs he had collected on the road while sitting back and watching the fireworks.

    An hour or two passes and Reima goes to check on the camp, everyone is dead or severely weakened and on their last legs. The leader looks at Reima, still alive but shitting and vomiting everywhere.

    ??? "Did you do this, you fuckinn cunn-bluurrghhh, I''ll skin you alive for this!"

    Reima doesn''t say anything and just stabs him in the chest, he squirms ferociously but gives his final breath in the end.

    He searches their camp to find useful items like gems, gold, rope... He find a small amount of gems but it seems they had already spent most of the gold. He then proceeds to cut the heads off and tie them up to hang below his waist, he needed them for the bounty.

    Reima decides it''s time to finally make camp and to make one far away from the corpses, lest Necrophages tear him apart in his sleep.

    He ends up making a camp a couple miles from the bandit camp and surrounding it in salt before cleaning, sharpening and oiling his blades. He uses various herbs to cover the smell of the severed heads but while it stops monsters from smelling them, it doesn''t stop Reima... Nevertheless he drops into his basic sleeping bag and falls asleep.

    The next day Reima is travelling and finally reaches a village, Mirfield? The village Geralt had just left before he found him. Also the village where Geralt showed him and Arie what hunting monsters is actually like.

    He walks through the village confidently, ignoring the hostile glares from the locals before looking at the bounty board... Reima wonder why most villages have these if a fair amount of the locals can''t read... Looking for the three fanged vipers bounty he finds it stamped on the board amidst all the house wife drivel and eternal fire propaganda. "Those wishing to claim the bounty on the Three Fanged Vipers must talk to the garrison commander in Ard Carraigh."

    Reima "Convienent... or not, I have to carry these heads for quite a while if that''s the case. Maybe I can catch a wagon and offer protection... Ill ask at the Inn"

    He looks around for a building that seems larger and more wealthy when compared to the other buildings and look at the sign in front of it. "Drunk Drowner"? There''s gotta be some sorta bad karma for naming your bar like that. Since most of Drowner victims are shitfaced and fall into lakes and rivers.

    He pushes through the doors and the merriment stops as everyone looks at the new comer. Reima admits he might not look very welcoming with two swords, cat eyes and 9 severed heads at his waist, but what can you do.

    He walks to the Inn keeper and sits down on something that resembles a bar stool.

    The inn keeper is a fat man with a large moustache, he seems to have started shaking when I entered.

    Inn keeper "Gr-Greetings master Witcher. Do you need a drink or something similar?"

    Reima doesn''t have a lot of coin and decides to cut to the chase, "I need to get to Ard Carraigh to claim a bounty, is there anyone who would appreciate protection travelling there?"

    The innkeeper stops shaking and starts thinking, he nods his head when he remembers that Tarkson''s about to take grain and taxes to the capital.

    Inn keeper "I might have someone in mind."

 25 "Killing monsters"

    After being told that a man named Tarkson is leaving for the capital soon he decides to go to the stables to talk to him before his departure.

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    A small cart with horses roped to the front of it is almost filled to the brim with grain, and a middle aged man with black hair and thick stubble has a large coin purse attached round his neck It''s weight clear from the way his neck strains away from it.

    Reima "Greeting, are you Tarkson?" He says keeping his hands crossed in front of him in a non hostile manner.

    Tarkson "It is so, what do you want?"

    Reima "I offer protection if you allow me to ride with you to the capital..."

    He eyes Reima up and down, looking from the dangling heads, to the swords and then onto his cat-like eyes.

    Tarkson "Didn''t think they sent out such young Witchers, do they not care for you wellbeing?"

    Reima "They do, but I was so skilled that they let me leave early... Someone like me you would want on a long journey such as this."

    Tarkson thinks it over until finally agreeing, albeit with some conditions. "Alright, but I will not pay ye, I will not feed ye and if you want to take a piss you do it when we rest the horses. I will not wait for ye to shake your prick."

    Reima "Agreed, when do we leave?"

    Tarkson picks up a travel bag from the floor and replies, "Now."

    They both hop on the cart and sit on the coach seat before he shakes the reins slightly to get the horses moving.

    Reima "So, why are you travelling alone without protection? Anything could jump out of the woods, kill your horses and rip you to shreds..."

    Tarkson "Aye, it''s a long story..."

    Reima "Well, I got a couple days so lets hear it.." He says with some mirth.

    Tarkson "Well, the lack of guards is easy to explain.. We canne afford em. And as for why I''m the one going? I have a rather... Significant amount of debts towards the people of Mirfield, no one wants to brave the roads especially with the bandits, monsters and beasts inhabiting them."

    Reima "Are bandits a problem?"

    Tarkson "Aye, tis only gotten worse since the new garrison commander took over."

    Reima "Why, what''s he been doing?"

    Tarkson signs and continues "He''s a good man, they ousted the previous commander because he was corrupt. But since he took over the bandits have become more aggressive."

    Reima is confused at the situation, shouldn''t someone less corrupt help the bandit problem, not make it worse? "Why has the problem gotten worse? Shouldn''t the Commander be doing something about it?"

    Tarkson "That''s the problem, he''s hunting them all down... The bandits and highwaymen flee from the capital raping and pillaging anything that isn''t protected, before they were just gangs selling Fisstech but now they''ve gotten desperate. I honestly thought I would be murdered before I even reach the Capital.

    Reima "Yeah, well, I''ll not allow that to happen my friend."

    Tarkson seems a rather amiable person and doesn''t seem to be gripped by the wave of anti-human propaganda perpetrated by the Eternal fire, and while they are not as popular now as they will be in the future, people just want something or someone to hate and make the scapegoat. Tarkson even asked questions about his training to become a Witcher, he gave vague answers but it seemed to have satisfied him.

    CRACK!

    Suddenly a tree drops onto the road and blocks the path, 8 armed men come running out while pointing their blades at them.

    Bandit leader "Stop there or we''ll feed you to the beasts in the woods!"

    Tarkson is not amused at all... He surprises Reima by standing up and shouting at the bandits. "You scum, you think I''ll lie down while you rob me blind!?! Fuck you!" And he spits at the Bandit leaders face.

    Reima doesn''t know whether to pat him on the back or punch him in the face when he sees this. "For fuck sake" He says to himself before jumping off the cart, sword drawn. He is quickly surrounded and decides to use the Elder Blood abilities.

    Bandit "What now, freak!? What''s the use of two swords if your not gonna use them!?"

    Reima grins "Oh, I''ll use them alright."

    Bandit "Yeah? You and wha arm-UHH!" He tries to finish his insult but finds a blade sticking out of his chest. Reima had vanished and reappeared in a turquoise flash behind him.

    The other bandits, startled start shouting about Witch craft and start charging at Reima.

    Looking at the large group coming towards him Reima unleashes a quick Igni before doing a pirouette and slashing the neck of a bandit not flailing to rid himself of fire. His head quickly twists to the side as the sword passes through his carotid artery, causing a large volume of blood to squirt out.

    Reima continues to turn, twist and dodge while slashing a the confused and frightened bandits... Until none remain.

    He stands there panting covered in blood while looking at the corpses.

    Tarkson "Damn lad, you said you-ere a Witcher but not a man-witch... Ill not pursue this but were something to befall Mirfield I would know who to blame... Also thank ye for saving my life."

    Reima shakes his head at the attitude that most have of magic before attaching 8 additional heads to his collection... It''s getting rather heavy if he does say so himself.

 26 Poor Witchers and big personalities.

    Deciding that it''s not worth burning the bodies they manage to move around the fallen tree and continue on their Journey.

    A couple of days pass peacefully, it seems having a dried blood covered Witcher will put off any would be thieves.

    The hills start becoming larger as they travel until they come across a huge bridge, leading to a large keep surrounded by walls, it sits high upon a hill and overlooks everything for miles. They slowly traverse the bridge and attempt to enter the open gate, before being stopped by a guardsman.

    Guard "Halt, what is your business and do you have any prohibited items to declare?"

    Tarkson "Just, grain good sir."

    The guard nods before checking a random bag, finding nothing but grain he lets them through into the large sprawling city.

    Stores are bustling with people, poor and rich. Market stalls serve street snacks and town criers shout the latest news.

    They reach the stable where Tarkson rests the horses.

    Tarkson "I guess this is farewell Witcher, I don''t suppose I can have you escort me back aswell?"

    Reima shakes his head, "Sorry, I''m going to be quite busy from here on."

    Tarkson nods and they shake hands, before leaving Reima asks for the location of the Garrison commander and is told that he generally resides near the guard house which sits atop the prison.

    Reima thanks Tarkson one last time before leaving to claim the bounties.

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    He finds the guard house and requests to meet with the commander to claim some bounties. The guard shrugs and brings him to a lavish hallway with an equally expensive looking thick wooden door sitting at the end of it. The guardsman uses the knocker and taps three times, before saying loudly. "A Witcher wishes to claim bounties commander."

    "Send him in" A voice calls behind the door.

    Reima opens the door and looks around, it''s an office with gold, gems and artwork scattered around like they were common items. In the middle of the room is a grand black desk with a tall bald man sitting behind it. His face has many scars covering it and his trimmed beard shows signs of grey hairs.

    Reima gives a slight bow and introduces himself, "I am Reima Ludvig, Witcher."

    The commander nods, "I am Indit Sazi, the Garrison commander of Ard Carriagh. You seem to have some bounties you wish to claim..."

    Reima nods and places the heads on the desk with a squelch.

    Indit Sazi "While I appreciate when I said "Bring me their heads"... I did not mean it quite so literally."

    Reima "Well, I was told to bring them to you so, here they are. Some of these are the three fanged viper group, I have no idea on the others though." He says pointing at the heads dirtying the previously immaculate desk.

    Indit Sazi points at the other heads "These seem to be deserters of the recently destroyed Carpenter gang."

    Reima "Forgive me for being blunt, but what is the reward for these bandits?" He says crossing his arms. Indit Sazi opens a draw and pulls out some parchment before looking through them. He lays it down and points to it, "Here 200 Ducats for the Vipers and 80 for the Ex-Carpenters."

    Reima is unsure of how much that is and voices his concern. "Forgive me Sir Sazi but I have just recently left my school and have no idea how much that is worth."

    Indit Sazi "Yes.. I had thought you were young but do they not teach basic economics to Witchers Nowadays?" Reima replies briefly with an apology.

    Indit shakes his head in irritation and pulls out 10 Ducats, "10 Ducats should be enough to rent a room at an average Inn food included."

    Reima "How much would an average horse cost?"

    Indit thinks for a moment before replying "Anywhere from 400 Ducats to 700... Depending on their stance on non-humans such as yourself."

    Reima thanks Indit before taking the 280 Ducats and leaving.

    The guard follows him out of the room and Reima asks where the nearest Inn is, he describes the building that''s called Cud of Harpies... A rather disgusting name but he doesn''t feel the need of the energy to voice his opinion.

    He enters the Inn receiving similar glares to the ones back in Mirfield but strides to the Inn keeper regardless... The Inn keeper is a pale women with a... Large personality. Dragging his eyes away from her magnetising... Presence he requests a room with food and access to a bath. It costs 20 Ducats but having a warm bath to scrub off the dried blood is almost required for Reima at this point. He walks to where the tubs are located and is propositioned by some bath wench to wash his body for him... As much as Reima wants to he refuses and saves the money before undressing and climbing into the steaming bath and starts scrubbing himself clean. He doesn''t leave the tub until it''s dyed a pale red and heads up to his room.

    He sits down at the chair and table tucked into the corner and thinks about his game plan. He needs money but decides he can take it slow as to keep up with his training, his skill with Armament and Observation Haki is almost laughable considering the amount of time hes spent on it. Reima comes to the conclusion that those in the One Piece universe have much more powerful souls than Reima''s average human one, while he does have some idea on how to change that, he doesn''t have the skills or time to attempt it at this time. So overall Reima intends to take contracts until he can afford a horse and supplies while training in his room in his free time. Things like trying to levitate objects with the Elder Blood powers or finally being able to perform that sword swarm attack that Ciri manages in the game. He also intends to try and use Observation Haki to sense the other occupants of the Inn and possible cover objects in Armament Haki.

 27 Going for the Nekk...

    The next day Reima gears up and takes a look a the bounty board in the middle of town, not much mention of monsters apart from some missing people near the bridge that leads into the city, Indit Sazi is rather busy isn''t he... Reima shrugs and decides to take the contract, from the information provided it''s probably an Ogroid of some sort.

    Reima "Some sort of Ogre making it''s home under a bridge... I feel like I''m in a fairy tale.

    He exits the city and goes to the end of the bridge, he looks for large heavy tracks but instead finds around 18 small tracks. Nekkers.

    "Must be a nest nearby for a number this large, how has no one been alerted of this yet?"

    Reima goes back and buys supplies to make a couple grapeshot bombs and some Ogroid Oil.

    By the time he finishes making them it''s noon, Reima decides to set off and get it done before nightfall or anymore people are taken.

    He finds himself back to where the tracks lead from the bridge, He applies the Oil to his blade before following where the tracks lead. The path he follows twists and turns down towards the underside of the massive bridge, the further he goes the more bones, animal scraps and blood stains he spots.

    He reaches a ledge that overlooks the dried up riverbed at the bottom, searching for a small mound he eventually finds what is likely to the be the nest, piles of bones, hide and other inedible things surround the small mound.

    Reima sighs before mentally preparing himself for combat with up to 18 vicious midgets with claws... He casts a Quen shield and approaches, silver sword in hand.

    The Nekkers, presumably noticing presence by his light steps burst from the mound like puss from a wound. After around half are out of the mound they start crawling quickly towards him.

    Now while Nekkers aren''t physically very powerful, their swarming tactics and small sharp claws could render most things dead in seconds.

    Reima almost cuts entirely through the first one that dives at him claws first. The others give a shriek and frenziedly and haphazardly swinging their small arms around them, while some injure each other most get atleast one hit on Reima which makes the Quen shield light up in response.

    He cuts another down bisecting it completely but receives a headbutt that breaks his Quen shield and various cuts and scratches from the following claws.

    He rolls to the side and casts Igni and catches half the group, the other half continues swiping at him, cuts an wounds continue to open as he takes attacks. "What I wouldn''t give for Ciri''s clone attack!"

    He spots a Nekker about to attack him from the back with Observation Haki and performs a desperate stab behind him without looking. He manages to stab it in the heart but dodges away quickly due to it''s friends continued assault.

    Reima gets increasingly more angry as he receives wounds, eventually he losses it and just forgoes defence and starts swinging, whether or not he hit them didn''t matter to him.

    After finally calming down he falls on his arse and breaths heavily while surrounded by the corpses of his foes. "That was close... I need more experience huh... Probably shoulda brought some swallow aswell." He stands haggardly and apathetically drops a grapeshot into the Nekker nest before collecting the right claw from each corpse. He begins to walk back to the city, blood spreading under his clothes creating dark spots.

    He reaches the gates where the guards are curious and worried about his appearance.

    Guard "You fight an army or something Witcher?"

    Reima "Heh, something like that..."

    Guard "Guessing twas you causing explosions under the bridge aswell?"

    Reima "Yeah, a huge monster nest was under the bridge... You''re lucky I turned up or a whole squadron would be required for nest like that."

    The guard nods "We thank you then Witcher, I''ll have a drink to your health later!"

    Reima nods and heads for the Guard house before requesting another audience with Comander Indit Sazi.

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    He enters the room where the Commander waits and drops a sack filled with 18 Nekker claws.

    Reima "You had a Nekker infestation under your bridge... I would like to claim the reward for my troubles" He gestures at his blood stained clothes and claw marks.

    Indit Sazi "Yes, it wouldn''t do for our new Witcher to go hungry..." He checks the bag, confirming what Reima said is true and tosses him a sack of Ducat''s. "300 Ducats for a successful hunt... Thanks for you work, Witcher."

    Reima looks wide eyed at the gold and questions the Commander, "300? That''s about the same as the reward for the two gangs?"

    Indit Sazi looks amused, "Anyone can stab a human if the situation requires it, but it would take a substantial force and equally substantial potential losses to hunt monsters. Just to destroy a... Nekker? nest the size that was under the bridge would require around 30 men, take into account their potential injuries and the odds of actually finding the nest and you would find it to be much larger than 300 Ducats..."

    Reima nods in understanding, "I see, thank you for having me Commander."

    Indit Sazi nods in response and gestures for him to leave.

    Reima visits the herbalist and acquires various herbs that will assist the healing of his wounds and stumbles back into the Inn, he takes a warm bath before applying a herbal paste to his wounds and meditating before he sleeps.

 28 Sure-lock your holmes?

    It''s been a couple weeks since Reima had arrived in Ard Carraigh, where he has become somewhat of a local celebrity. Not only did he clear most monster camps that were harassing travellers and merchants but he is more pleasant than other Witchers that had previously visited the city. Allowing people time to repay their life debts to him or even refusing to take coin at all has garnered him quite a lot of respect amongst the populace. He even heard a bard singing of his exploits against a Water Hag that had almost clawed his throat out.

    Reima was enjoying himself... The harsh looks from people seemed to have softened a little and folks were not as afraid to approach him to ask for help. His constant visits to Commander Indit Sazi has made them rather familiar with each other, to the point where he has even offered him Wine during their last meeting. While people attitudes are improving there are still those who seek to make trouble...

    Thug "Freaks like you should stay in the mountains fucking cats or whatever you do to make more of ya!"

    While eating and drinking in the common room of the Inn three men approached Reima and tried to do something? Reima isn''t really sure what they want except for him to go fuck cats in the mountain or something similar?

    Reima looks at them coldly "I''m sorry, do you need something?" The other patrons of the Inn back away from the nearing conflict.

    Thug 2 "Yeah, we want you gone! The only thing needed is the Eternal fire to protect us!"

    Reima "Yeah? Take your Eternal fire and deal with the Monsters yourselves then. I wonder how you would fare against a Werewolf or a Chort"

    One of the men spits on the floor before replying, "It''ll be as easy as it will be to handle you."

    Reima places the his fork strategically on his plate before replying while using Observation Haki, "Do you wish to try?"

    The first Thug tries to shiv Reima in the back with a dagger but Reima pounds on the plate in front of him, launching the fork behind him and into the thugs face miraculously piercing his eye.

    He gives off a scream before stumbling to the floor holding his eye. His friends pull out their weapons but before they can even swing their blades they find their necks sliced and Reima standing their, dagger in hand. "Man feels great to be a badass..." He walks to the still alive thug with a eating utensil stuck in his eye. "Spare me lord, I wasn''t in my right mind!".

    Before Reima can end his life guards burst into the Inn weapons drawn.

    Guard "Halt! The Commander wishes to see you Witcher!" He states loudly while observing the bloody scene.

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    Reima realises how suspect he looks and tries to think of an excuse... "Errr, they... Fell?" A drop of blood falls loudly to the floor from his dagger. A few snorts can be heard around the Inn while the Guard looks agape at him.

    Guard "Witcher, I am not here to arrest you. The Commander has a job that requires your assistance."

    Reima''s eyes light up as he breaths a sigh in relief, he wipes his bloodied dagger on the downed mans clothes before following the Guard outside while his subordinates deal with the aftermath of the short battle.

    The Guard who has become rather familiar with Reima by now asks him, "It wasn''t you who instigated that conflict was it?"

    Reima replies innocently "Not at all, they were shouting something about the Eternal fire before trying to stab me while I ate."

    The Guard nods "It''d do you well to stay out of trouble Witcher, you''ve become rather popular as of late."

    Reima shakes his head at the dig and they finally reach the Commander opulent office.

    They enter and find two people waiting inside aside from the Commander.

    Indit Sazi "Reima, good for you to show with such haste." He eyes the small blood stains on his clothes, "It''s good you''re already ready for combat since we have a rather delicate job for you. These two are Dagovi Gasreza and Branand Maeg, nobles of Kaedwin who are both currently missing their wives."

    Dagovi is a middle aged man with dark skin and no facial hair, he''s around 5''10 feet tall and rather skinny.

    Branand looks like a typical Norse warrior, around 6ft tall with bulging muscles and full red beard.

    Both nobles look haggard and tired, they look Reima up and down.

    Dagovi "Commander Sazi, I respect your competence but are you sure a fr-Witcher barely old enough to stop drinking milk is going to help us at all!?!

    Branand "I don''t wish to disrespect you Witcher but I think a mage is probably needed for matters such as these."

    Reima "Well, we won''t know until you tell me what the job is, so lets hear it." He says crossing his arms and leaning against the wall.

    Dagovi looks rather put out as he begins, "There had been rumours that a curse that makes women infertile before making them disappear had swept the city... I hadn''t believed them, thought they were the rabble making up stories until my dear Nuci went missing..."

    Branand nods "Same with my Netlize... A year of trying to conceive and then suddenly vanishing, I had thought she would try and end her life in a depressed stupor until Sir Dagovi told a similar story. We determined that it must be some the curse the rumours spoke of."

    Indit looks to Reima along with the others.

    Reima "It could be almost anything causing things that you have described, I think I''ll need to examine frequent places that your wives had visited to get a better picture at what we''re looking at..."

 29 Trouble in paradise

    After having a short discussion with the three about anything weird happening recently Reima with Dagovi for his estate. The large white stone building overlooks the "noble" area of the city, they approaches the gate and quickly pass through and enter the building.

    Reima "So tell me, had Nuci been acting strangely before she vanished?"

    Dagovi "Not at all..." He thinks for a minute as they approach her room, "She did change her preference for Wine though... Along with the fact that she wished to sleep in a separate room, I had assumed she was just depressed at not being able to have a child..."

    Dagovi unlocks the door to the room and they both enter, the first thing Reima notices upon entering the room is the large naked portrait of Nuci Gasreza...

    Reima "Is there a particular reason for this portrait to be here?"

    Dagovi shrugs, "Nuci must have liked the craftsmanship...

    Reima starts looking around the room finding empty wine bottles and scattered plates, not something you would expect from a noble lady. Looking at the bed pillow he finds two kinds of hair, long blonde hair and short black ones.

    Reima "Did your wife dye her hair at all?"

    Dagovi "No, no... That would hardly be allowed for polite society."

    Reima grimaces at the implication of the different hairs present in her bed.

    Reima looks to the side at the big wardrobe, "Is that where she kept her clothes?"

    Dagovi nods as Reima opens it to find many illustrious dresses and formal ware, he shifts the clothes to the side to examine the insides of the wardrobe.

    Reima "Gotcha."

    Dagovi "What have you found?"

    Reima pulls open a hidden section of the wardrobe and reveals a range of male clothing.

    Dagovi looks rather astonished at the discovery and sits down on the bed to recover slightly.

    Reima "Your Wife, may have been cheating on you... I''m sorry." Reima leaves the man who''s holding his face as he sniffles into his hands. Reima decides to have a look around the house to see if he can find anything else.

    After half a day of additional searching Reima doesn''t find much else... Apart from boot marks leading to the bottom of Lady Nuci''s window. Reima Decides to visit Branand Maeg''s estate instead of leaving it til tomorrow, luckily it''s not too far from Dagovi''s residence. Reima hails the gate guard and requests entry, which is approved by Branand himself. He''s greeted by the maids which lead him through the long halls, the house is almost as richly decorated as Dagovi''s and projects an air of superiority.

    Branand Maeg had just finished his meal as he greets Reima.

    Branand "Witcher, have you found anything from your search of Dagovi''s estate?"

    Reima "Yes, but nothing solid. I would like to see you and you''re wife''s room if you would allow..."

    Branand "Ah, I would if we were still sharing a room... Around a year ago she wished to sleep in different rooms... Said she didn''t feel worthy to sleep beside me, I disagreed but she insisted."

    Reima "Strange, Nuci Gasreza had done the same thing before she disappeared..."

    Branand "Think they might be connected?"

    Reima nods "Defnitely."

    They make they''re way to Netlize Maeg''s room and quietly enter, similar to Nuci Gasreza''s room, a giant nude portrait of Netlize Maeg overlooks the room...

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    Reima searches for black hairs that do not match Netlize''s red hair... He finds them. Some sort of serial killer? But that doesn''t explain the infertility.

    Checking the wardrobe he finds a similar hidden attachment with male clothes inside.

    Looking to Branand he says gravely "I think I need to talk to the Commander..."

    Reima and Branand make their way to the Commanders office where they eventually gain entry, inside they see the Indit Sazi and another man having a heated discussion.

    Indit "Reima, quite a convenient time to visit as this man wants to report a curse being put on his beloved."

    Urneld Kezego "Commander, I don''t see why you need to include strangers in our discussion..." He looks at Reima and Branand and gives a slight bow, "I am Urneld Kezego, Baron of Ard Carraigh and Kaedwin."

    Indit "You are mistaken Sir Kezego, I had given our Witcher friend the task of ridding this so called curse from our city."

    Urneld "Is that so..." He sighs before explaining, "My wife and I have recently decided to have another child, I am away from home a lot and wished for her to have someone accompany her... A child would appease her motherly instincts and keep her from staying to another man. We had thought she was with child when she had a bout of morning sickness one day, she eventually even had a slight bulge of her stomach... Then one day I find her laying on a couch legs spread like some drunken soldier, she then tells me that she just needed to lose weight and that we were mistaken... She''s started to request her own room and I feel like I''m losing her..."

    The man seems rather downcast as he explains his troubles.

    Branand looks confused and suspicious of all the similarities between their situations.

    Reima "I think we need to speak with your wife..."

 30 Everyones favourite pastime! Execution.

    Urneld Kezego followed by Reima quickly make their way to his home and where his wife currently resides. They swiftly go through the large double doors and make their way up the stairs where they wait outside of his wife''s brand new room, Urneld is slightly perturbed at how quickly she moved her personal effects from his room.

    Reima observes through the door with Observation Haki and spots a male silhouette inside.

    Urneld calls out to his Wife, "Sweety, Me and my new friend need to have a word with you."

    The silhouette turns around and faces the door before starting to change and shift it''s form.

    Reima realises what this is and immediately kicks in the door, revealing the half shifted form of Ethe, Urnelds wife. Half of her face is an unfamiliar man with black hair and big bushy beard.

    Eventually the Doppler complete it''s shift into Ethe, the only thing that seems out of place is the male clothes still covering her form.

    Urneld stands there mouth agape and eventually faints.

    Reima casts covers the room with a powerful Yrden sign and calls for the guards, they quickly arrive and Reima gives them instructions to retrieve the Garrison Commander with some Dimeritium shackles.

    He looks at the Doppler, "Where are the women you have impersonated?"

    The Doppler gives a laugh that doesn''t match it''s form and speaks in a cacophony of voices, "Last I checked, still where I''d left them..."

    Reima presses it. "Where specifically!"

    The Doppler gives a grin too wide to fit it''s distorted face, "Why... Where else do you dispose of corpses?"

    Reima "So you killed them?"

    Doppler "No, not at all... All of those women live through me, can''t you see?" It says while taking off the male sized jerkin.

    Reima "No, all I can see is an ugly monster."

    The Doppler gives a howl at the insult and tries to lunge at Reima, but is stopped by the Yrden sign.

    "My forms are perfect! DO NOT LIE! I change the very definition of perfection!.. I deserve the life those women had. And so I took it."

    Reima "You could have done anything to become rich as a Doppler... Impersonated Queens and Princesses for those with the coin and the fetish. Instead you do this, impersonating wives of low nobles of Kaedwin.

    After he says this Commander Indit comes striding in, spotting the unconscious Urneld and the trapped Doppler he nods. "This must be the perpetrator?"

    Reima nods, "A Doppler, it killed the women and buried them in the graveyard before replacing them as if nothing had ever happened."

    Doppler "It was a good life too! Getting fucked by their tiny pricks was worth the lavish life! You wouldn''t understand... You''re like us but side with those humans!"

    Reima "There are more of you?" The Doppler quickly shuts up when it realises what it had let slip. Seems the Doppler community is larger than they''d thought.

    Indit "I have no need to hear anymore." He looks at the Doppler, "You will be burned at dawn."

    Reima "Wait..."

    Indit looks to Reima challengingly, "You reject my punishment for this fiend?"

    Reima shakes his head rapidly, "No, I just don''t want the Eternal fire to get a grasp on the populace. Burning those who commit crimes or anyone non-human in particular will rapidly increase the rate that cult spreads."

    Indit thinks it over and eventually accedes, "Very well." He looks at the Doppler who flinches at his glare. "You will be hanged and if that fails, beheaded at dawn." He looks at Reima one last time, "Those punishments are not gripped by a new cult I presume?"

    Reima grins and nods.

    The next day Reima is present in the large crowd looking at the scaffolding that was hastily constructed the night before. Standing atop it is a hooded executioner and Commander Indit Sazi.

    Indit "Yesterday with the help of a Witcher we have apprehended the perpetrator that has been causing infertility and disappearances. The one in question does not have a name but is responsible for their actions all the same." He makes a gesture to the side where the guards are and two of them drag a resisting Doppler who now looks like a short fat man, with black hair and thick beard. He looks around at the crowd and spots Reima and shouts.

    Doppler "You have damned me Witcher! Wherever you go no Doppler will assist you, I ensure it on my father''s father''s father! I declare you enemy of all under the name DOPPLER!"

    Reima calls back up, "What are you? The spokesperson of Dopplers now, you have no such authority so sit their and die quietly!" The crowd cheers at the exchange and Indit looks amused.

    Indit "It seems you''ve had your last words, pray to whatever gods your race worships." He looks to the executioner, "Start by hanging and then stick it''s head on a pike on the bridge. Let all know of the fates of trouble makers in Ard Carraigh!"

    The crowd cheers as the Doppler is strung up and dropped, it''s neck giving a loud pop as it snaps from the weight of it''s fat body.

    After the execution Reima is taken to Indit''s office where three familiar faces wait. Dagovi Gasreza, Branand Maeg and Urneld Kezego sit opposite Indit''s desk.

    Indit looks up from their discussion and calls, "The boy-no, Man of the hour as arrived."

    Everyone present turns towards him with grateful expressions.

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    Indit "We were just discussing your reward for such a swift completion of your task, it had been troubling us for years and you manage to finish it in a day or two? Astounding." The others nods their heads at this.

    Reima "It was nothing... I was lucky to add two and two together.. To be honest I only had a vague idea until I saw the Doppler impersonating Ethe..."

    Branand "Nevertheless, you should be rewarded... Us three have decided to chip in to your reward for easing our grief even slightly, I''d hazard to guess more people would be willing to add more coin but I wish to show my appreciation." He tosses a heavy sack of 500 Ducat''s.

    The other two had similar explanations and also give 500 Ducat''s each... Something tells Reima that it''s not just about appreciation anymore, they seem to be trying to outdo each other.

    The meeting eventually finishes with Indit rewarding 501 Ducat''s, "I hired you, I''ll pay you. I don''t wish to be seen underpaying those doing a fine job." He smiles and gestures towards the door.

    Reima leaves and spends the rest of the day training and in meditation.

 31 A different take on Mutagens.

    A couple days later Reima can be seen levitating a single dagger slowly, his hand glows turquoise as a similar colour outline covers the dagger like a film. It slowly raises in to the air before dropping heavily. Reima sits there with sweat on his brow due to the strain what seems like a simple task.

    Reima "Sigh, eventually this''ll be useful. But until then I have to keep at it." He says to himself quietly as he looks at a small bubbling distillery type machine in the corner of his room. "Almost done..."

    After another half hour he extracts the distillery and revealing a small vial of Doppler Mutagen Reima had managed to acquire a genetic sample before they burned it''s body. In the game mutagens were treated as swappable power-ups that Geralt can use to improve his signs, attack power or endurance. Outside of the game it''s complete different, only a select few unique Witcher can actually use Mutagens without dying or becoming terribly sick. Geralt is one of those few, due to how adaptable his body is and the further experiments he was subjected to he can apply around 12 mutagens before his body starts rejecting them, causing a litany of issues.

    The Mutagens also have different effects from the game, for Geralt they only seem to increase his strength, speed, endurance and his bodies healing properties. The issue here is, for someone with a more adaptable body than Geralt the effects will be rather different... Instead of just increasing physical attributes, the Mutagens can cause mutations of varying strength.

    Vesemir once told of a story of a Witcher who tried to integrate a Warg''s genetic material, he speculates that he is the possible origin of some werewolves.

    Now, unlike the game you can''t just swap out Mutagens you don''t like for those you do. To get rid of Mutagens you need to take a potion that completely flushes your system, thus removing all Mutagens you had effecting you. Also destroying all of them in the process.

    Reima is weary about the possible effects the Doppler Mutagen might have on him but decides to take the risk due to the System Flush potion next to him. He breaths a slow sigh as he empties the vial into a rather vicious looking needle that he had to have custom made from the best blacksmith and craftsman in the city.

    He injects the Mutagen into his neck and waits for the change... Waiting.. Waiting... PAIN!

    Pain shoots through his body as he feels like his skin is crawling and his internal organ are shifting. Dropping onto his bed, he writhes in pain for an hour or two while sweating buckets. Eventually the pain starts to calm an Reima sits up and inspects his body... No noticeable change, he sighs at the possibly useless Mutagen and thinks about what could have gone wrong, as he ponders he notices an unfamiliar sensation coming from the top of his head... Or more likely, his hair.

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    Reima looks at the mirror and spots his normal shoulder length white hair, still tied up into a bun at the back. He notices a few stray strands moving in peculiar ways, he wishes they would stop so he could find what''s changed when suddenly the freeze mid air. He tries again, he wills his hair to move, it does. "If this is all the Mutagen has given than I am thoroughly disappointed." He decides to run a number of tests on himself for a couple hours and eventually comes up with some vague results.

    Reima is able to control the growth and movement of his hair and nails, his body also can heal wounds faster due to it''s new found flexibility. Reima can''t find a single use for his ability to control the hair and nails on his body and sighs, "I''ll just be happy I didn''t turn into a monster or something, the regenerative abilities are pretty useful though."

    Reima has decided to leave soon, he has enough money to buy some new armour, horse and maybe a book about basic magics to read on the journey.

    He thinks about the armour that would be most effective against monsters and decides a long surcoat that covers his ankles and other important tenons. Possibly some plating on the shoulders, wrists and chest to prevent instant death... He visits the blacksmith, who seems rather unhappy to see him due to the extraordinarily difficult task of creating a needle without the specific tools.

    Blacksmith "Whatdeya want lad?"

    Reima "I need some armour made, youknow to stop me being torn apart by monsters... And those dreaded Dopplers." The blacksmith gives a laugh while remembering the title of Doppler slayer the populace had given Reima;

    Blacksmith "Al-rite, what kinda of armour are ye tinking?"

    Reima tells him he needs a leather surcoat that is very damage resistant, with plating that covers, his shoulders, wrists and chest but still allows for maximum flexibility. He also requests that the surcoat be dark green.

    The blacksmith thinks about his request and replies "I can have it done in a week, let me just get your measurements first."

    After all is said and done, Reima pays the blacksmith half now and will pay half once the order is completed.

    He starts looking for a library and finds one that contains almost all kinds of knowledge... Apart from magic. Reima decides to find a horse in a couple of days, no sense in buying one only to stuff it in the stables for a week.

 32 How to do magic for dummies!

    Reima is visiting the Garrison Commanders office after clearing some Ghouls from a local graveyard when he tell him he plans on leaving soon.

    Indit "It''s a shame that you''re leaving, I dare say that the women will flock the streets in protest at your decision..."

    Reima "I''ve neither seen nor heard of said women, so I think it''ll be fine. Also, on a different matter, can you tell me where I would find a book on how to cast basic magic? I don''t really want to visit the college."

    Indits brows raise "Why not? The college is the premier place for magical knowledge and experimentation."

    Reima, "Thats the thing... What do you think they''d do to one of the last Witchers ever created?"

    Indit connects the dots and releases a sigh, "I see. Well, that is a problem then, all magic knowledge in Kaedwin was taken to the college for the safety and strength of the nation... Only some influential people have managed to acquire materials to study for themselves."

    Reima "I see, so it''s impossible then?" He says looking downcast.

    Indit shakes his head and opens his desk draw, "Here, take it. I''ve never once been able to read it, let alone learn from it." He hands him a book that reads on the cover in Elder Speech "Magical spells and formulae for novices."

    Reima takes it cautiously, "Are you sure? This doesn''t seem like it''s legal..."

    Indit gives a laugh and replies jovially, "It is more like a grey area, the law states if you find a book pertaining about magic you will report to the nearest authority and give it. You did not find this book, you were given it by a government official... Ofcourse keeping my name off your lips would be preferable."

    Reima looks gratefully at Indit and clasps his hand before leaving, "Ill see you around Commander."

    As Reima waits for his Armour to be finished he studies the book and quickly realises that the magics used in the Witcher aren''t suited to his style of combat... This is probably why Geralt refused to learn aswell. Most spells require either a long or loud string of Elderspeech words, which are notoriously long winded. During combat when adrenaline is high being stationary for a second or two to cast a spell that would be similar in power to a Sign is almost impossible.

    The book doesn''t even contain useful magic like portals or anti-magic barriers that Yennefer had used against the Wild Hunt... He quickly reads and finishes the book and sums up the spells he had learnt.

    Voice projection : increasing how loud your voice is and how far it can travel.

    Spark : Small electrical charge that zaps opponents, almost never fatal.

    Ember : Small flame, typically used for lighting camp fires.

    Detect : Places a trap that alerts the user if anyone passes or disturbs it.

    Weed removal : After user designates what constitutes a weed it will slowly kill any similar plant in the vicinity.

    and the most advanced spell in the book, Conjure messenger : Conjures a bird the user is most familiar with and transports a message to a specific person.

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    While it does seem like a useful spell, it has a range of around 10 miles... Rendering the spell almost completely useless. Reima wasn''t expecting much due to the book only being used to test who had talent and who didn''t... But he was hoping for more than this... The spells in the Witcher-verse are cast by projecting a magical formulae onto the world while speaking the incantation, it''s all about Will, magical power and imagination. Reima thinks about other more powerful magic systems that he knows of and decides his effort is best spent elsewhere.

    Eventually the time comes where Reima visits the black smith who luckily had just finished his armour.

    Blacksmith "I may have had to make some changes to what you wanted, but I assure you it will be just as effective if not more so..."

    Reima nods, and asks to see the armour.

    They go inside of his shop and see it dressed over a wooden mannequin. The armour is made up of a dark green padded surcoat that goes down to just above the ankles with metal shoulder plating that reminds Reima of the school of the bear armour that Geralt can wear in the Witcher 3, it also has plated elbow guards that allow for maximum flexibility of the arms and wrist. The undershirt is long, black and baggy. The outfit also has what looks like padded leather trousers.

    Blacksmith "I''ve added plating on the underside of most of the surcoat to prevent from impacts, but still granting protection from blades, it may be a bit heavier than you were expectin but I reckon you''ll do fine."

    Reima puts it on and gets comfortable before trying a few manoeuvres and nodding to the black smith, It''s very good. Thank you. He hands the Blacksmith the rest of his pay and leaves the shop in search of a horse. He hears about a horse merchant located outside of the walls of the city and decides to go there as hes leaving. Reima goes back to his Inn before taking one last long bath and falling a sleep.

 33 Brown Paint?

    Today is the day Reima finally leaves Ard Carraigh, after a couple months of clearing out all monsters in the vicinity the populace seems much happier and less worrisome about the future, Reima packs his bags up, equips his armour and bids farewell to the Inn keeper who thanks him for his services to the city. He makes his way to the local herbalist and purchases various things that he may need on his journey, while Witchers are immune to most diseases, poisons still effect them... Maybe even more so than normal people due to their higher metabolism. Reima since his first hunt of the Nekkers under the bridge always carries a Swallow or two with him. He also has a spare Cat''s eye and Golden Oriole (Anti-poison) on hand at all times, paranoid? Perhaps. But he''ll never be caught off guard without options.

    Reima makes his way out of the city while shouldering his heavy travel pack and heads towards the horse merchant that owns a field around a mile away.

    He arrives at the rural looking farmstead and knocks on the door... A young woman answers and Reima asks if he can purchase a horse here, the women goes to fetch her husband.

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    A fat pudgy man arrives, Reima can''t help but notice he seems to be maybe 40 years older than his supposed wife...

    Horse Merchant "Good mornin. The misses said you wished to purchase one of my horses. He eyes Reima, glancing to his wolf head medallion and twin sword on his back. Reima nods.

    Horse Merchant "Well, follow me to the field. They''re grazing so it''ll be a long walk to find a suitable one. He states as if hes unwilling to walk such a distance... From what Reima can see the horses are only a few hundred meters away... Maybe the Merchant needs to lose some weight.

    The Merchant takes him to some male horses before Reima requests a female one, Geralt always stated that the mares were superior in their line of work, it surprised Reima to find out that Roche was female.. The masculine name must have given him the wrong impression.

    Reima eventually spots a good sized brown mare that''s speckled with white spots, the merchant notices his gaze and comments.

    Horse Merchant "That one? Shes quite fierce, tried to have her bred but she nailed my prized stallion on his face with a hoof... "

    Reima grins at the thought, "Seems like my kinda horse."

    They approach the mare but it seems weary of Reima, he tries to get closer but it backs away with a challenging glare.

    Horse Merchant "Seems like she doesn''t like yer... Shall we look at the others?"

    Reima "No, let me try and tame this one for a moment." The Merchant seems confused but lets Reima do what he wishes.

    He swiftly approaches the horse and dodges its rear kick but bounding off the floor and onto it''s back, it neighs and struggles to get him off but with his firm grip on his mane he''s not coming off any time soon. After around 10 minutes the horse tires itself out and begins to calm, seeing this Reima jumps off and moves to its front. It still gives Reima a defiant glare but he returns with his own. Cat-like eyes gaze into the horses own like a predator, the horse shifts its gaze in an act of defeat.

    Reima looks at the merchant, "I''ll take her, can you get the saddle and some saddle bags ready as quickly as possible please?"

    The merchant leaves to bring them as Reima quietly observes the horse...

    Reima "I think I''ll name you... Brown paint?... No.. Browny??? Fuck it, I''ll think of a name later."

    After quickly paying the Merchant and bidding farewell Reima ties his travel pack to it''s back and hops onto the saddle, before leaving towards Aedirn, or more specifically Vengerberg. Reima wants nothing to do with Temeria and wishes to stay far, far away from those crones who literally have an ear everywhere.

    With his travel time significantly reduced he passes various villages while his horse Canters along.

    Eventually with night about to fall he spots a Village in the distance, he decides to see if they have any accommodation, if not he will camp on the outskirts.

    As he gets closer he senses something is wrong as his Medallion slowly vibrates the closer he gets to the Village, he finally spots the black smoke in front of the darkening skyline and starts galloping to see if he can help.

    As he reaches the Village he hears a scream cut short as a crunch follows, leaving his still un-named horse ties to a gate a good distance away he sprints closer, silver sword drawn. When he gets to the Village centre he sees absolute carnage, half burning buildings and bodies of men, women and children left on the floor. Some seem to be half eaten and some seem to have died from huge impacts. a man with a torch and pitchfork sprints towards what seems to have caused all this death and destruction. Reima sprints after him and finally spots the culprit, It''s green scales stop the pitchforks of the remaining Villagers from piercing as it rends them apart with it''s talons... A basilisk seems to have invaded the Village.

 34 And.... THROAT PUNCH!

    The Basilisk seems to have taken a beating from the Villagers, while they cant pierce it''s scales they still managed to bruise it and with it''s weakness to fire they seem to have done a small amount of damage. Reima runs at the Basilisk and blocks it from tearing another man apart before shouting at them, "GET BACK! TEND TO YOUR WOUNDED!"

    This is the first time Reima has had to fight a Draconoid but he feels he stands a decent chance due to his overpowered Ingi sign.

    The Basilisk notices it''s retreating prey and tries to lung for one before receiving a cut along it''s face and successfully taking out it''s right eye.

    It gives a furious roar and swings a claw at Reima who backs away swiftly and tries to enter it''s newly created blind spot.

    It quickly turns around but receives a large gout of flames from Reima''s direction, it quickly backs away from the flames before turning and flying away.

    Reima pants, while the fight wasn''t very long the adrenaline rush at fighting such a like beast gave Reima goose bumps. As the Basilisk flies away some Villagers cheer, while the rest scream and cry while holding their dead.

    A man drags himself infront of Reima who had just sheathed his sword.

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    The man holds out the mauled remains of his son? It''s difficult to tell the gender but the man quickly corrects him. "Master Witcher! Please, avenge my son! My Wife! Slay that Demon who murdered my family!" His wailing was quickly followed by the other Villagers, some demanded him to fight while others wanted him to leave and to "Take all the freaks and monsters with ye!".

    Reima clears his throat loudly, "I am Reima Ludvig! A witcher! If you want me to stray from my journey and hunt the beast then I will require coin for my services!"

    Some of the Villagers seem appalled at the idea of paying him and start verbally abusing him while the grieving ones start scraping some money together.

    One young man approaches him and shouts in his face and spraying spittle everywhere. "The Eternal fire warned us of Non-humans like you! How are we to know that it wasn''t you who brought that beast into the village to demand pay for removing it!" He spits on the ground and tries to rouse the crowd.

    Reima "If you want it dead then pay me, I''m not a charity and I''m certainly not going to assist racists to propagate further" He looks at the young man standing infront of him. "And you better get out of my face! Even someone as stupid as you should know not to anger me."

    The man backs away with a scowl on his face.

    Reima "I didn''t say I would charge you exorbatant fees, I grieve for your lost loved ones as you do, but if I''m to risk my life and spend valuable resources combating the beast, the least I can get is a reward!" He glares at the young racist and points at him, "I don''t stop you getting paid for giving cheap blowjobs in alleyways do I? You should afford me the same courtesy!"

    Young man "Did you just call me a faggot!?! Fuck you Freak!" He tries to swing at Reima who deftly blocks it and punches the man in the throat. He falls on his ass choking and spluttering,

    Reima "Has anyone else got an issue with me getting paid? If so I''ll leave you to deal with it yourselves!"

    The crowd grumbles and eventually gathers 240 Ducats''s, Reima isn''t really interested in the money but the principle. Getting paid for good work is the basics for society to function, if he does the job for free, other folk will expect the same from other Witchers... And we all know how well that''ll end.

    Reima takes the pouch and decides to travel on foot, having his horse killed by a raging Basilisk seems like a waste. Considering he hasn''t even named the damned thing yet it would be a massive waste of resources.

    Looking at the direction that the Basilisk had flown to he looks around to see if it''s wound is still bleeding, gotcha. Small but noticeable drops of blood lead into a marsh not too far away from the village. He follows it while grimacing at his feet getting wet in the bog, he continues travelling in the vague direction for around 10 minutes when a Bilge Hag burst out of the water while flinging what Reima hopes is mud.

    "I haven''t got time... For your shit!" He says as he blinks behind it and severs it''s head from it''s body. He leaves the corpse floating in the shallow bog for the ghouls to eat and continues in the direction of the Basilisk.

    Eventually he finds more drops of blood leading up a hill and out of the marsh, he hears the heavy breathing of the Basilisk and his Medallion almost violently tugs at his neck.

    He finds it resting against a large tree and devouring what looks to be the remains of a Drowner.

    Reima slowly creeps into it''s right blind spot and gets within a few meters of it. He dashes out and extends both hands and forms a double Igni blasting a concentrated stream of flames at it''s face.

    It gives a shrill and pained cry as it tries to cover it''s face, Reima notices it trying to look around but not finding anything... Must have melted it''s other eye with that attack. He watches it try and flail at it''s attacker but fails to notice him appearing above it with a quick blink. Reima drives his sword down into it''s charred face and manages to pierce its brain.

    Leaving the sword in it''s skull Reima sits next to the tree to rest for a moment.

    "I hate marshes."

 35 Booty of the beast...

    Reima carries the severed Basilisk head through the marsh while muttering to himself about how pointless swamps are and why a group of sorcerers haven''t terra-formed them all into lush fields yet...

    He eventually gets back to the village, trophy on shoulder and walks to the village square where all the bodies are gathered. A priest of some religion is praying over them, the solemn silence is broken by the impact of the Basilisk head hitting the floor.

    Reima "Sorry to interrupt, but the job is done."

    Some people cheer, some people cry... But almost all of them are grateful for the Witcher avenging their families.

    He starts heading back to his horse but keeps getting stopped by people thanking and congratulating him for the hunt.

    He spots his horse still in the same place he had left it... Thankfully no-one was foolhardy enough to steal a Witchers horse. He pats its side and tries to think of a name to finally give the horse.

    He starts going through the names of colours but doesn''t find a good one, he then decides to copy someone else''s idea. "I name thee Epona, while I am not a hero, I might be saving a princess in the future... So I''m half worthy of having such a steed." He jokes to himself and suddenly feels slightly depresses no one heard his rather funny quip... "Whatever, lets get moving."

    After shaking the mud out of his boots he hops onto Epona and continues on his journey.

    While some sights in the Witcher are similar to his previous earth, it''s certainly different to see them with your own two eyes, instead of pictures from the internet. He looks to his right to the large mountain range that continues as far as the eye can see, on the other side of the mountain range should be Temeria. Reima decided that travelling travelling through Vengerberg is probably the easiest route, mainly due to it being the hub and jewel for trade in the north. Reima is hoping due to the large trade operations it will be easier and more pleasant to pass through.

    After around a week Reima finally reaches the outskirts of Vengerberg, during his journey he noticed the large number of trade caravans and surprising lack of bandits and monsters... Must have monthly purges to keep the roads safe.

    ??? "Sir! Master Witcher!" A middle aged man calls from the side of the road in-front of a farmstead.

    Reima slows down his speed and stops before him, "Is there something wrong?"

    Hasund "Yes, there is. I''m called Hasund and I own the farm here. I fear a monster has been stealin my animals life force and making them infertile!"

    ...

    Reima "Do you have any evidence for that?"

    Hasund "Aye, at night, noises come from the barn... Gutteral awful noises that I canne quite describe."

    Reima sighs, "Ill take a look, but I''ll need upfront pay."

    Hasund nods and passes a 100 Ducat''s to Reima before going to do his duties.

    Reima ties up Epona and meditates next to it in wait for nightfall.

    Reima is awoken by some kind of sound coming from the barn, Hasund is standing next to him looking over wearily at the source of the noise.

    Reima "That sound... It sounds kinda like a Chort.. But the barns still standing so it can''t be."

    He draws his silver sword and uses Quen to protect himself from any surprise attacks.

    He reaches the large double doors and slowly pushes them open.

    Reima''s heart is pumping hard and releasing adrenaline as he prepares to face the foul beast...

    Inside.. Instead of a monster, he finds a naked man standing on a bucket... And having sex with the horse inside...

    Reima "AHHhh, man your fucking disgusting! Stop right now or I''ll cut it off!"

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    He sheaths his sword and slaps the man hard in the side of the head, causing him to fall off the bucket and land heavily on the floor.

    ??? "I''m sorry Sir! Please don''t hurt me!"

    Reima "We''ll see when I turn you into the owner of this land" The man looks disgruntled at that as Reima drags him towards Hasund...

    Hasund points at them, "What is the meaning of this!" He seems rather angry, probably at the man raping his livestock.

    Reima "I found him fuc-"

    Hasund "UNHAND MY FATHER! I hire you to deal with a monster and you strip my father naked and drag him out here!"

    Reima glares at him angrily, "There was no monster. I found this man.. Your father? Having sex with the Mare inside. I don''t know about you but I have half a mind to castrate him right here."

    Hasund turns pale as he hears Reima''s explination, he looks to his father. "YOU WERE WHAT? What on earth possessed you to do such a thing!?!"

    The older man starts sobbing, "I''m sorry son... It''s just... The mare, she reminded me of your mother!"

    Reima almost burst out laughing at this and tries to guess the reason, "Because of it''s gentle demeanour?"

    The old man replies "No... They both look so like, especially their teeth."

    Reima can''t hold it any longer and start howling with laughter at the obviously deranged man.

    Hasund "Mind you manners, thats my mother your laughing about!"

    Reima just shakes his head while trying to stifle his laughter, "Whatever, I''m keeping the coins... Farewell." Hasund looks like he wants to get the gold back but decides otherwise.

    Reima gets on Epona and starts travelling through the night as he had already rested for a while to investigate the barn.

 36 You gotta be Griffin me?

    Vengerberg, the capital of Aedirn and trading hot spot of the north is a huge city. The uniform stone walls envelop the buildings and provide complete safety to those inside. Reima has Epona trot towards the gate before lining up behind the other traders and merchants trying to gain access inside. He examines the walls and finds many guards dotted along them, keeping an eye on any would be trouble maker.

    Eventually it''s Reima''s turn in the line, the guard speaks to him loudly in a bored tone, "What is the purpose of your visit?"

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    Reima "Restocking supplies and finding temporary accommodation" he states in an equally bored tone.

    The guard nods, "Very well. Go through." Before calling to the next person in the line.

    Reima doesn''t plan on staying in the city long, first he wants to distil the Basilisks genetic material into a suitable mutagen then he wants to repair his armour and weapons for any damage they might have sustained. Lastly stocking up on food due to his supplies being almost empty.

    He leaves Epona in the care of a trustworthy looking stable hand and rents the nearing Inn he can find... He rents a room at the "Rabid Harpie"... The theme of weird monster related names continues... He then sets up the small distillery and places the genetic material inside. He then looks for a blacksmith to check and maintain his gear.

    A couple hours later and Reima has completely restocked his supplies and had his weapons checked over and repaired of any chinks they may have taken. All that''s left to do is wait for the distillery... It will take a couple days to complete so Reima decides to practise his Observation haki to observe the large number of people inside the Inn and outside on the roads. To improve his proficiency he tries to keep track of as many people as possible, when he looses sight of one, he picks another to focus on. A large headache later and he starts on his telekinesis practise, Reima slowly raises a dagger and a stone simultaneously in the air... It''s slow, but it''s improvement. This continues for three days until the distillery seems to have completed it''s task.

    Reima is rather leery of applying this mutagen to himself, the Doppler one made him realise how susceptible he was to large changes to his body... For all he knows taking this could turn him into some kind of lizard-man. To stop this from happening Reima devised a way to test it without risking any harm. He retrieves a clear vial and sheds some skin cells into it with a knife, then he lets a few drops fall onto the cells while observing their change... All seems well until the skin cells start rapidly mutating and forming small green scales. "Failure huh? Good thing I didn''t just jam it into my neck... I doubt I could go anywhere looking like a monster. It''s a shame aswell, I thought I could possibly gain the poison resistance of the Basilisk, but better safe than a mutated lizard monster.

    A day later, Reima leaves to go back on the path towards Lyria. As he travels he slays the various creatures that try to impede him, Drowners, Wolves, Nekkers and even bears... The road is dangerous and seems to have it out for the irritated Witcher. Reima reaches the capital of Lyria... Lyria? He wonders who comes up with these names.. Who apart from Alexander the great names cities after the country they belong to? Regardless, Reima exchanges some Ducat''s for Gulden at the local bank and restocks his supplies before heading out again. He reaches the huge river that he remembers should be the Yaruga? He doesn''t find a bridge so he pays a small vessel to take himself and Epona across. Once on the other side Reima looks at the map he had bought in Ard Carraigh and follows the road to a large valley surrounded by mountains that leads to Toussaint. From what Reima can tell, this path is the only way you can access the country from the north.

    He has Epona start trotting on the well worn path while being shadowed by the high valley walls.

    As he travels through he suddenly hears a birdlike shriek which causes him to look up, blocking the sun is a large winged creatures with a lions body... A Griffin?

    Must want to eat my horse! He quickly looks for cover and finds a small overlooking rock on the valley wall closest to him, It''ll stop from aerial attacks so it will have to do. He has Epona gallop towards the cover before hopping off of her back to face the incoming beast.

    It screeches at the human stupid enough to block it from it''s prey and swoop''s down to pierce it with it''s talons, Reima manages to dodge the attack but not without getting scratched on the arm.

    He looks at his wound as sees some kind of green fluid dripping from it.. "An Arch Griffin?" he mutters before the pain of the poison kicks in, he quickly reaches behind him and takes out a Golden Oriole potion he had brewed a couple weeks ago.

    He downs it in one go before blinking a few meters away to dodge the next flying attack.

    The Griffin doesn''t seem amused at the pests ability to dodge it''s strikes so it tries to land on top of Reima. He quickly rolls away from the falling monster as it hits the floor making it tremble for a moment. He unsheathes his silver sword and takes a low stance while staring down the angry Arch Griffin. He casts Quen to provide a buffer as to not instantly die from a wayward strike and charges the Griffin, who retaliates with a flurry of swipes from it''s talons. With the help of Observation Haki Reima manages to dodge most of the strikes with minimal injuries due to his Quen sign and finally gets an opportunity to get some damage in during the Griffins lull in activity.

    He slashes at the tendon in it''s front leg and manages to severely damage it, causing the Griffin to stumble when it places it''s weight on it.

    Leaning heavily on one side it tries to crush Reima in it''s beak but only manages to chew part of his surcoat.

    He infuses Armament Haki into his fist and punches the Griffin in the face before following up with a stab to it''s throat... The Griffin manages to receive the blade on it''s thick mane which almost nullifies the blow.

    The Griffin, seeing it has now become prey runs away and leaps into the air while trying to spread its wings. But due to the earlier damage to it''s tendon the wing isn''t able to fully extend causing it to crash heavily to the ground.

    Seeing this, Reima blinks in front of it''s dazed face and drives his silver sword through it''s eye socket causing it to instantly drop dead.

    Reima angrily kicks its head before dropping next to it while slowly drinking a Swallow potion, "Piece of shit... Can''t I just go somewhere and not be attacked for once!?!"

    A loud voice echoes further up the Valley path, "Hold it right there!"

 37 Ballads and Bullshi

    Reima leans against the large corpse of the Arch Griffin as an armoured man approaches from the battalion taking aim at the dead Griffin with what looks to be heavy cross bows.

    The man wearing yellow and black colours approaches him with sword drawn.

    "Master Witcher? Is that beast dead?"

    Reima "I don''t know, let me check..." He stands up and punches it in the face, causing its head to shudder briefly... "Seems pretty dead to me!"

    The sheathes his weapon and introduces himself as Matcest Rhent the captain of the battalion.

    Reima "I don''t suppose I''m getting paid for this?"

    Matcest "You will be paid what you deserve... To dishonour you and ourselves with petty thievery and deception will not be tolerated in Toussaint."

    Reima nods and whistles for his horse Epona before collecting some genetic material from the dead Arch-Griffin.

    Captain Rhent wishes to bring the monster around the city of Beauclair to show the populace the threat has been eliminated. He "invites" Reima to show off his kill but doesn''t forget to mention his reward when Reima starts to refuse. He sighs and agrees to accompany the entourage as they shift the Griffins body onto a large wagon with metal plated supports to hold the massive weight. Four large horses pull the cart towards the beautiful sunlit city of Beauclair, even from a few miles away Reima and spot the pristine white palace sitting atop the hill overlooking the rest of the city.

    The populace of the city seem to be preparing for some sort of festival as they cheer for their victory over the Griffin. A few hours of what could only be called showboating Reima receives word that her Duchess Henrietta wishes to speak with him. He is immediately escorted through the city and towards the palace. During the long walk he picks up hushed whispers about the new boy toy the Duchess seems to have picked up while her husband is away.

    They reach the palace where Reima is stripped of his weapons and led inside the huge palace.

    Eventually he reaches a room inside the extravagant palace where he is led inside and left with the two people already sitting down together on a large sofa.

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    One of them is a woman, Duchess Henrietta to be exact, she wears a very extravagant looking dress with jewels liberally coating her entire body. And the man? He has long brown hair topped with a purple beret and a long moustache... He wears a very identifiable purple jewelled outfit. Dandelion seemed to be singing the Duchess a song while playing his lute but stopped the moment he heard the door open. Turning around he looks joyfully at Reima, "Geralt!...." Before looking confused at the person standing in-front of him.

    Henrietta "Is something wrong my flower?" She says is a heavily accented voice... Possible dutch?

    Dandelion "No, my Little Weasel... It''s just that when I heard a white haired Witcher slew a monster not far from here, I was well, expecting someone else..." He takes a sip from his wine that was sat next to the sofa.

    Reima grins at Dandelion, "Ah, you must mean my Father Geralt of Rivia..."

    Dandelion "PFFFTTTT" He sprays the red drink onto the table and furniture earning an irritated glare from Henrietta. "WHAT! But I thought, no I know... But.. I thought Witcher''s were infertile?... May I inquire who your mother is?"

    Reima "Ofcourse. My mother is Yennefer of Vengerberg... I think?"

    Henrietta speaks up at his bait. "You think?"

    Reima "Well, you know how my Father is around sorceresses... I could belong to anyone of them, but I am mostly sure about Yennefer."

    Henrietta nods and decides to change the subject, "So you''re the one who defeated the monster prowling our roads?" Reima nods at her question.

    Henrietta "Then I must thank you most sincerely... You see with the Summer solstice festival coming closer, many people across the lands have to brave the roads. That beast must have saw an opportunity and decided to lay claim to the mountain path."

    Reima "You''re lucky I was there... Your soldiers had the right weapons for the Griffin, but I doubt once their formation was broken they would remain in right mind to fight."

    Henrietta "This is one of the reasons why I decided to reward you personally... The other was my... Bard, wished to meet his friend again... Says hes always good for new ballad ideas."

    Dandelion who seems to have recovered from the shock chimes in, "If you have the time to tell me about your fight with the beast, I would love to write a song about the "White Wolves son saving the summer solstice festival"..."

    Henrietta "I would also like to hear the tale of your harrowing experience..." She rests her head on her arms as she says this rather seductively... Whether she ment it or not he doesn''t know.

    Reima seeing this as an opportunity to cause trouble for Geralt agrees and proceeds to regale them of his confrontation with the Arch Griffin.

 38 Purest fire known to man... Dungeon torches.

    After he had finished Henrietta looked enthralled by is tale.

    Henrietta "Fascinating, and you did this all by yourself? My... As a sixteen year old to achieve such skill is impressive, maybe even unheard of."

    Reima rubs the back of his head, "Actually, I''m eleven years old..."

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    Dandelion who seems to be muttering song lyrics stares at him, "Really? What are they feeding you at Kaer Morhen I wonder..."

    Reima looks a little downtrodden as he replies, "Brutal physical tests, human experimentation and Mutagens..."

    Dandelion feels regretful to have brought it up but his lover saves the conversation.

    Henrietta "I would like to invite you to enjoy the festivities of the Summer Solstice festival that''s being hosted in my city."

    Reima grimaces when he realises the Duke will be returning for the festival aswell... With Henrietta''s relationship with Dandelion being a kind of public secret he would hate to be caught in the cross fire...

    Reima "My apologise Lady Henrietta but I have other more pressing matters that can''t wait." Her facial expression doesn''t change as she replies.

    Henrietta "That is a shame, perhaps once you''re done with your task you will have a proper tour of my city."

    Reima nods gratefully, "Don''t hold you''re breath, but if I find the time I would be glad to see more of your wonderful city." The finish the required courtesies as she points to a large pouch filled with around 600 crowns sat on a nearby dresser and bids him farewell. He sends a small nod to Dandelion and is escorted out of the palace.

    Reima "Now to find that underwater lab" He almost groans when thinking of the amount of effort this task is going to take."

    He starts walking south of Beauclair and finds the undisturbed grave of the professor who created the improved mutagen formula. Reima continues on knowing he''s on the right track, he follows his vague recollection of the lake that contains the elven ruins and eventually stumbles upon a body of water... Unsure whether this is the correct one, Reima strips naked and dives in while being cautious of any nearby Drowners. After an hour of looking around he finds nothing and concludes that this is the wrong area.

    And so a cycle of picking a random lake in the area and diving to try and find something continues for a couple of days... Until.

    Splash, Reima dives headfirst with no expectations, this must have been the hundredth time hes dived in search of these damned ruins with nothing to show for it. Just as hes about to give up, teleport to whoever made this bullshit lying quest and stabbing them in the face, he spots a blue twinkle in his peripheral vision. Turning quickly towards it, he spots the vague silhouette of a large building and something blue pulsing within... Found it!

    Reima quickly equips his gear and makes sure all his potions are secured to his belt before diving towards the structure. Finding the still operational portal he quickly dives through it... And lands face first on some rocks. Gripping his bleeding nose he stands and grumbles about shitty portals.

    Somehow the portal restricts all none-living matters from coming through, otherwise the whole place would be flooded.... Reima questions how it knows to take his clothing with him though.

    He starts walking through the caves while noting the still burning torches scattered around, examining one he finds that it''s just a regular torch... No magic, no special ingredients. Just a forever burning torch... He continues until he finds the spike traps.

    Reima "Nah, fuck this." He states as he blinks past the annoying spike traps... He also unlocks the chest that''s hidden by yet again, more spike traps.

    Inside he finds a couple metal ingots, some Floren coins and best of all a Greater Chernobog runestone. He quickly pulls out his silver sword and pushes the rune stone into it, the rune stone slowly sinks into the blade while leaving glowing red rune markings on the blade.

    Reima swings the sword to test it and feels like it picks up momentum quicker. He leaves the rest of the loot in the chest due to not having any use for it...

    Reima continues to follow the path as it descends and loops round on itself, remember that combat is close he draws his silver sword and applies a Quen shield before he steps into the arena like area. He looks at the two statues either side of him and prepares to counter attack as a magic force field stops him for escaping.

    The panthers statues leap out turning black in the process, they jump at Reima with incredible speed and he only manages to evade the strike by blinking away.

    He quickly uses Yrden on the ground as one of the panthers try to pounce on him, it''s movement is impeded by the Sign and he goes to slash at it''s neck. His strike is interrupted as he parries another strike from his side, the claw coming dangerously close to his neck.

    Knowing that his shield is still active he takes a slash to his body and stabs the attacking panther in the throat. It stops moving and crumbles back to stone dust as he is forced forward by a heavy strike to his back that breaks the Quen shield and leaves a small gash on his armoured shoulder.

    Utilising Observation Haki he dodges the second strike to his back, pirouettes and decapitates it in a swift flurry of moves. He looks down at the piles of stone dust and doesn''t see any loot that can be scavenged. He sheaths his sword and takes a quick breather from his exploration.

 39 Mutating the mutations of Mutagens...

    After recovering briefly Reima heads out of the arena-like area and continues through the hall ways... In one room there is a statue of some unidentifiable person surrounded by candles... Ignoring it he comes across a split in the path, continue forward or head right, Reima remembers that the professor had dropped notes on the right path so decides to check that way first. He reaches some sort of boulder with a doorway just above it, the documents that he finds seem fragmented and don''t provide much information, only that there is another Guardian to fight ahead of him. Reima climbs up the boulder and enters another large round room, he spies the Panther statue in the middle and draws his sword in preparation of it''s obvious assault.

    The statue turns black and leaps at Reima, but with him already being prepared for this exact kind of attack he stabs the sword deep into the Guardians chest, quickly killing it.

    Reima "If they always attack like that this is gonna be a cake walk..."

    He leaves the room and walks foward into a half collapsed floor, on his left is a large pit leading to who knows where.

    Reima "If I remember correctly, there should be switches for a secret entrance here." He looks around at the stone buttons scattered around the room, due to him lacking a cross bow he uses a concentrated Aard blast like the one Geralt uses in the trailer to push them into the walls, eventually opening up the passage. He walks up the stairs and finds the dreaded portal room...

    Reima "I''ll just teleport up to the top.. But why aren''t they on already?"

    CRASH!

    One of the many Gargoyle statues around the room come to life and start lumbering towards Reima.

    Gargoyle "Intruder!! You will not leave here alive!"

    He Blinks away as the Gargoyle tries to jump and crush him with it''s large body.

    As it tries to get up Reima stabs at it with his Silver sword which creates a loud screeching from his sword... "Yeah, I''m not gonna ruin my sword dealing with you.." He then channels the Elder Blood into an Igni sign before plasting it in the face with Turquoise flames. The expression on it''s face changes from angry to horrified as the magic used to power it disperses, rendering the Gargoyle a lifeless statue.

    Reima "Yeah, hows that?" He says as he covers his fist in Armament Haki and punches it''s arm, causes it to shatter. He scoops up the shattered remains of it''s hand and dumps it into the bowl of the alter in the middle of the room, causing the portals to light up.

    Deciding not to mess around anymore he Blinks up directly onto the third floor and tries the portal the statue is facing. He finds himself inside the lab, still brightly lit from the candles and torches scattered around.

    Reima quickly gathers up the notes that might assist him in doing this correctly and places the missing Crystals in their correct spots.

    After a couple hours of listening to the Professor he finds that the machine is already ready to be used... The only thing required are the Centipede egg mutagens. Luckily enough, the professor seemed to be farming them? Or maybe fate wishes to assist Geralt in becoming even more badass. Either way, the Centipedes are in the cave through the hole in the wall. Reima decides it''s not necessary to fight those annoying and possibly high level enemies and just quickly blinks through, steals a couple eggs and blinks back. He was so quick and silent in-fact that the Centipedes didn''t even notice his presence.

    After getting back to the lab, Reima sets up a couple distilleries that are lying around the lab and starts processing the Centipede eggs. He also uses the time waiting for them to finish to Distil the Arch Griffin genetic material he had taken from his most recent hunt.

    Knowing this will take a couple days, he tries for first time to do a long distance teleportation without sight of his destination. After a few practise blinks he channels his power and tries to accurately depict himself standing on the shore not far from the underwater ruins.

    A green glow envelops him as he pops out of existence leaving only shimmering Turquoise particles in his wake.

    On the shore Reima appears a few meters above ground. After a hard landing he recovers and heads back to Beauclair to rent a room at an Inn while waiting for his Mutagens to finish.

    Over the three days of waiting for them to finish, Reima spends his time practising long distance teleporting due to his apprehension of doing it across worlds for the first time. There had been a few mistakes such as teleporting to high, teleporting too low (Luckily only being submerged in water and not dirt), teleporting to the wrong location and Worst of all... Teleporting in the middle of a nest of Drowners and Water hags, he managed to kill a Water Hag before having to teleport away to safety due to taking numerous cuts, scratches and bites.

    After the third day Reima sells his horse Epona to a horse merchant for a good price, stocks up on dried food and water before proceeding to teleport back to the lab.

    The distillery seems to be finished and Reima decides to test and then use the Arch Griffin Mutagen before undergoing the Mutagen Enhancement. While testing it he finds his skin cells reacting fine to it, he tests various other things like, hair, blood, sperm and spit. No horrible irreversible mutations occur to any of the provided materials and so Reima injects himself with the Mutagen and sits down ready for agony...

    After a while of nothing happening he feels a twinge in his muscles, like they were filled with lactic acid and gradually becoming numb. The effects end after an hour or two and he tests the changes to his body. Something Reima desperately wanted was an immunity to poisons, and while he didn''t get an immunity, the Arch Griffin mutagen seems to have made him resistant to most poisons out there.

    He also feels a lot stronger, if He had to put it in numbers he would say around 20-40% stronger than before.

    After a long rest to let the Mutagen stabilise in his body he walks to the back of the Iron-Maiden looking device and puts the Centipede egg Mutagen inside before turning the various valves on the other machines to make them start working. He then takes off all his gear and lays it on the table nearby before entering the machine. "Please work" He mutters as he''s enveloped by green gas as he shuts the doors to the device.

    The experience of being inside is not painful but, more like hes getting a full body massage, especially in his lungs. Like someone is caressing his internal organs. After an hour of just standing there breathing in the gas, he starts to feel light headed. He manages to stay upright until the gas stops flooding the machine and he stumbles out of device groggily.

    He stays knelt on the ground due to him feeling like he''ll vomit if he stands. Reima''s condition gradually improves and he finds the opportunity to test if the experiment had any significant changes.

    The results from his observations are that he has even more increased strength, speed, duration and toxin resistance. His previous Mutagens seems to be reacting well and have even improved as a result. Reima plays around with his hair while thinking how cool it would be to write with it, when he gets the time he vows to practise it. He checks for any new effects and finds that his blood is slightly toxic, if anything that didn''t have resistance were to consume his blood, it would quickly become sick and may even die without medical attention.

    After almost an entire day of closely watching his condition for any side effects Reima decides it is a success. With most of his current goals completed he thinks about where he can go to get strong enough to face down the Wild Hunt... Maybe even save Vesemir. Reima thinks back to all the experiences hes had in Kaer Morhen and decides that no-matter what, he will force a happy ending.

    Reima chooses to let fate decide his destination and concentrates on a place that has enemies with experience, a different way of utilising magic and opportunities for him to learn... Obviously he includes not instantly dying or being unable to escape but with vague parameters like this his subconscious survival instinct also contributes.

    With his eyes closed his body releases more magic than he has ever used before, his entire body glows green as he vanishes from the lab.

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 40 Treading the Plains of Adal

    In a large patch of grass in the middle of large hills that overlook a waterfall that gently carries water to it''s destination, lays a white haired teen. His clothing consists of an armoured surcoat that has

    scale-like plating covering the chest to the thighs but continues to trail down to the ankles providing protection to vulnerable tendons. The shoulders are also plated with steel that continues in segments and ends at leather finger less gloves. The outfit is outlined in green and has extra padding over the chest with a scarf for extra neck protection. The youth on the grass has two swords sheathed on his back and an elaborate medallion that''s shaped like a wolf''s head attached to his neck by a chain.

    Reima "Ugggh, my head..." he messages his temples as he looks around, his slit pupils contract at the sudden change in lighting. Squinting at the sun blaring down at him, Reima looks around and sees pleasant foliage of oak trees and short grass, he stands up and washes his face in the perfectly clear stream. Birds cheep and twitter as they play around the trees surrounding him and small animals scurry from here to there like there is no danger nearby.

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    Reima "Man, this place is a paradise..." He walks up one of the hills and spies a perilous drop followed by an endless forest with a huge sprawling city behind it, he spots the huge tower in the distance and gapes at the monstrous size of it... Even this many miles away it still fills the horizon like a stairway to heaven. "Beautiful."

    He slips back down the hill to his previous resting place and makes sure all of his possessions are still with him. Sword? Check, Armour? Check, Potions? Check. He checks his travelling pack for his distillation equipment and herbs he preserved before he left, still where he left them.

    Reima is still unsure as to what world he had ended up in but decides nothing can come from waiting around, he hefts his pack onto his back and starts down the almost untrodden path. The path is enclosed by small rocky inclines that snakes around until it stops before a village of some sort?

    The buildings are made of some sort of sand stone but still have wooden doors. Two weirdly placed human sized statues stand either side of the entrance further inside, Reima vaguely remembers someplace like this before... He just can''t place his finger on it. He continues walking and the village buildings start becoming more damaged and desolate... He spots a figure in-front of a building.

    Reima "Hey! Are you alright?"

    The figure turns around revealing it''s masked face, the mask has a single eye hole that has cracks spreading across it. The figure doesn''t verbally respond but instead gets into a weird stance...

    It''s only then Reima recognises where he is, Absolver. The failed game that had so much potential but lacked enough content to keep it''s player base... Reima was one of the people that pre-ordered the game and collected almost every item, and while he doesn''t admit it he mostly kept playing to find all cosmetic items to fashion his Character with... His flashbacks of his past life while playing the game are interrupted as the masked individual does a right roundhouse kick to Reima''s face and lands it directly on his cheek.

    While the speed was around an athletic humans level, the technique was comparable to the martial masters of earth.

    Reima quickly retreats as his attacker continues to perform a flurry of blows. While his armour protects against bladed weapons and stabs well, it doesn''t hold up against impact damage for the extra weight he has to carry to be useful...

    After blocking a right jab to his face and the following left round house punch, Reima''s arms feel like they''re gonna bruise later... He tries a straight kick to the masked persons hip and pirouettes to perform a back-fist to it''s masked face. It''s head is thrown back from the impact but it continues as if the pain means nothing to it. It jumps at Reima and tries to do a flying punch to his face but is met a low powered Aard sign that causes it to fall on it''s head, Reima follows it up by stomping on it''s skull with enough force to crush cinder blocks. The attack connects but instead of it''s head being fractured or even crushed, the persons body begins to fade away.... Yellow triangles and squares fold over each other in a mesmerising display as they fade into the air...

    Reima "Man, if my guess is right then I''m only in the tutorial area... And these guys can fuck me up." He clicks his neck and back to release the tension from his recent fight.

    Reima "But, if there is a place to learn combat techniques... Then this is it."

 41 Bright lands of despair.

    After the fight with the masked person, Reima continues through the village, the path leads through a roof of a destroyed hut. Looking around for anything interesting he knocks on a door of a hut that seems to have someone inside... No reply. He knocks again but still receives no reply, listening closer, he hears quiet sobbing and desperate scratching sounds coming from inside. Thinking that someone is in danger he kicks the door open and sees a huddled figure in a shadowy corner of the single room hut.

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    Reima "Hello?" he asks cautiously, in the game there wasn''t anything like this from what he can remember...

    The figure doesn''t seem to hear him but continues scratching something on it''s face. Reima walks up to the figure and turns it around, they''re wearing a mask... The mask has blood all over it, probably from the bloody fingers that seem to be worn down to the bone.

    The person pushes him away and holds it''s head like it''s in pain. It grasps the edges of it''s mask and tries to tear it off, but can''t seem to manage it.

    Reima "I can try and help you, if you let me..." Seeing no reaction from the person he decides to try and pry the mask off. He grips the hair of the person and the masks rim before applying inhuman strength to separate them, he feels something give but he only manages to tear hair from the persons head.. They don''t give any indication of pain and just continue to manically pry and claw at the mask to rid themselves of it...

    Reima "I''m sorry, I don''t think I can do anything for you..." he sadly shakes his head and leaves the hut... Focusing his hearing he hears similar sounds coming from the other huts nearby... "What''s going on here..."

    He continues to walk through the village, it gradually gets more cluttered as he goes. Paths across the top of the buildings provide slight relief from the sun, eventually he comes to a dead end... The path forward is blocked by a 8-9 foot tall shimmering door that seems to be made of stone that''s been folded over itself, his Medallion almost tries to tear itself from his neck as it shakes more than it''s ever done before... Looking closer he sees some sort of map on it with glowing icons, a rectangle that seems to be this door and a path that leads to a glowing white dot... Reima remembers that this is the first "boss" that you have to fight to continue... He could just teleport past it but that would defeat the point of coming here in the first place.

    Reima decides to follow the map and walks up the stairs to the right that lead to the overhead paths... As he''s halfway to the top of the buildings he senses something moving behind him, using Observation Haki he sees a peculiar sight, instead of just a human silhouette the head of the human where the mask is placed seems like a... Portal?

    As hes distracted by this new revaluation the male masked figure lift it''s leg into the air and performs an axe kick towards Reima... Reima manages to move his head out of the way of the vicious attack but receives it on his shoulder. The plating of his armour blocks a good amount of the impact but it still manages to dislocate his left shoulder.

    Reima "Fuck!" he almost shouts as he feels his shoulder pop out of it''s socket, he quickly spins around and back-fists the ambushing enemy but they back away as he tries to follow with a straight kick.

    The figure stands straight in a stance that Reima recognises as Windfall... It''s the evasive martial style that allows practitioners to agilely dodge and evade attacks while delivering quick, technical or complicated attacks that require a high dexterity to utilise properly. He stands straight on with both hands open and showing their palms. His right leg is almost directly behind his left and seems ready to pounce at any moment.

    Reima observes his stance closely as he wishes to incorporate it''s techniques into his own repertoire of known moves.

    The figure slowly approaches Reima, not looking away for a second and seeming to watch his every action. They crouch for a moment before spring up and turning mid air, it''s only when Reima has to dodge the lightning quick foot approaching his face that he recognises the attack... One of less useful techniques that almost no one used, the 360 tornado kick... If you know what to look for and see it coming it''s easy to counter due to it''s low speed and inability to stop once you start it.

    The figure lands correctly but Reima sees an opportunity as they recover, as they plant their feet to the floor he brings his leg up and stomps on the side of the knee. CRACK!

    The impact of the stomp seems to disintegrate the masked man''s knee cap and he falls to the floor with a grunt. Reima follows it up by foot-ball kicking him in his masked face, causing him to explode from his head down in a flash of various shaped particles.

    Reima holds his dislocated arm and groans as he tries to pop it in, causing him to grunt in pain for every failed try. After the forth he manages to force his arm back into it''s rightful place and proceeds to sit for a moment to ingrain the Windfall stance and movements so he can possibly use them later.

 42 Enemy from the past.

    Reima continues onto the roof tops and starts walking while admiring the scenery, he can see around the large village and spots various masked people fighting, resting... Sobbing. Most of the people here look to be in some sort of primal state, they don''t talk and just do one thing absentmindedly. The ones that Reima is irritated by and seeks are the ones that attack anyone that approaches them.

    He spots two people at the edge of the bridge he is walking on, they seem to be watching him, waiting for him.

    Reima "You guys gonna talk to me before attacking?"

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    ??? "We have nothing to say to you, Wanderer."

    Reima "Right.. Why are some of the masked people trying to tear their masks off, even at the expense of their health..."

    ??? "They reject their blessing and wish to end their suffering... They are locked away so we don''t have to gaze upon their shameful visage."

    Reima "Blessing?" The two masked figures, one seeming to be a female and the other is male, take up what looks to be a boxing stance and stops responding to him.

    Reima "Can we just be civil about this? I don''t really want to beat a girl..." He says as he backs away onto the bridge, the walkway he''s standing on is only wide enough for one person so Reima hopes fight them one at a time. The female sprints towards him and sends a couple quick jabs at him, he blocks them with his arms but receives a kick to his stomach, knocking the wind out of him. Using Observation Haki he tries to watch her aura to see what she''s going to do next but fails as he can''t interpret her aura''s fluctuations. As Reima backs away from the kick to his stomach he forms his hand into a Yrden Sign, causing the masked women to slow down slightly. The lowered speed proves to make the fight much more bearable as he can react quicker to her moves, the Woman tries to an upper cut to his face but Reima blocks it with one arm, grabs her shoulder and headbutts her masked face. She stumbles back while shaking her head as he follows up with a sloppy jump kick at her face which causing her to flip over twice before disappearing into yellow particles.

    The make doesn''t seem to mind his partners apparent death and tries to stomp on Reima as he lies on the floor from his previous jump kick. Reima uses Aard to create some distance and stands up while the man recovers...

    ??? "How are you able to use the fold without their blessing!?!"

    Reima "Fold? I don''t know what you''re talking about."

    ??? "Lies, you''re a danger to the guides heretic. Prepare to die." He states this in an angry voice as he charges at Reima, all technique seeming to be forgotten. Without techniques being used Reima is able to dodge the flurry of blows sent his way, seeing nothing to be learnt from this deranged individual Reima grasps his steel swords handle and quickly performs a basic quick slash before sheathing it again.

    The man seeming to not understand what just happened, holds his stomach as particles envelop him.

    Reima "Man, are all of these people crazy religious fanatics or something?"

    As the man fades away Reima notices something on the floor where he was standing, looking closer it seems to be some kind of glowing ball... His Medallion shudders as he moves his hand closer, when he grabs hold of it the ball slowly dissipates as a piece of clothing starts to materialise into what Reima recognises as Uringal Padded Armor from the game... The shirt is damaged and has various tears in it, he can tell the original colour of it seems to be brown, even under all the dirt covering it. Lacking a better place to store it, Reima folds it up and put it into his travelling pack.

    Reima "Man, I wish I could get my hands on a bottomless pouch or something soon... I remember in the game your character didn''t seem to have a limit of the things he could carry... Maybe with enough study I can create my own inventory like magic here."

    Reima continues as the path leads downwards and sees a shortcut back to the shimmering gate, he opens the locked door and continues forward. He walks into an open area that is shadowed by a large building behind him, looking at the far end of the space he spots the individual that had killed Reima many times in the game... Silan. The mask he wears is white with golden decorations on it and two slits where the eyes are. His outfit consists of a short sleeved t-shirt that''s brown in colour and leather pants. He has a red band around his elbow and forehead with sandals protecting his feet.

    Silan "What do we have here? A wanderer trying to access the sacred grounds?"

    Reima responds in a tense voice, irritated by the fact he''s already lost despite this being their first meeting. "What of it?"

    Silan looks closer and seems to glance at his cat-like eyes, "Not human either it seems... What are you?"

    Reima "I''m human if that''s what you''re asking... My previous training caused my physical changes."

    Silan spies the two swords on Reima''s back, "Yes... You don''t seem to be from around here... Tell me, what do you seek in the sacred ruins of Raslan? There isn''t anymore treasure to loot, no secrets for you to find..."

    Reima "Why else would I be here? I wish to test my mettle against strong foes."

    Silan "A respectable purpose, it''s regrettable I cannot let you pass. These grounds are sacred and only to be used for training potential Absolvers."

    Reima "I will get past, and I will leave your crumbled body behind if you force my hand."

    Silan claps his hands like a Sumo wrestler and slightly dips into his hips, his stance remind Reima of the wrestlers on earth... "You will not pass me. My name is Silan, an Absolver of the Guides. May I know of your name before you die?"

    Reima "My name is Reima Ludvig, Remember that while you come back like a damned zombie."

    They both prepare for combat as he say taunts Silan.

 43 Dont touch another mans *****

    Reima decides to start by sending a vicious roundhouse kick at Silan who manages to receive it on his upper arm, after blocking it he grabs the leg and kicks Reima other leg out from under him, causing him to fall onto his side, Silan follows the attack up with a downward axe kick at his prone opponent. Reima who sees this heavy strike heading straight for his head throws himself to the side and creates some distance between the two fighters.

    He looks cautiously at Silan who''s arm has began to swell and bruise from his previous kick.

    Silan "Not bad, but you don''t stand a chance against fold enhanced warriors."

    Reima ignores the taunt and delivers a powerful punch to Silan''s masked face, Silan simply tenses his body and receives the punch on his head. The only reaction Reima receives is white square and triangle particles being absorbed into Silan... Backing up and checking the condition of Silan has Reima realise what he had done... He had used the Khalt martial technique to block the strike and absorb the impact, somehow using the energy absorbed to heal his arm...

    Silan looks at him smugly, or so Reima assumes due to the mask covering his face. "Surprised?"

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    Reima "Shut up and fight."

    Silan dashes towards him and turns around while spreading his arms wide, Reima tries to take advantage of this peculiar move and punches Silan in the face but doesn''t seem to stop his attack.

    Silan who had just finished turning forces all his body weight into his fist and nails Reima, making him sprawl to the floor.

    Reima spits out some blood and turns to Silan, "You''re really starting to piss me off."

    Silan "If you wish to flee, I will not pursue you."

    Reima has had enough of this smug bastard and decides to let rip, he blinks behind Silas a few meters off the ground and axe kicks him on the top of the head, almost instantly breaking his neck.

    Silan who was confused at his opponent vanishing into thin air feels someone almost break his neck and crush his skull and quickly rolls away to prevent further damage.

    Silan "What?!? You lack the blessing! You shouldn''t be able to perform such a feat!"

    Reima looks at him with a shit eating grin, "Surprised?"

    Silan, confused and angry at his opponents response decides to finish him.

    Reima starts fully using Observation Haki to observe the Kahlt technique being used so he can learn to use it in future.

    He does a short ranged blink in his opponents direction and delivers a kick to his stomach, Silan seeing this coming tenses his body and absorbs to hit, and using the energy to heal his injured neck.

    Reima sees him do this and watches as the area of impact is enveloped in white particles before dispersing into his body.

    Silan who had just healed from the strike backs away and uses the Fold technique : Disarm which results in one of Reima''s swords being unsheathed and flung into his hand.

    Reima looks agape at his steel sword being stolen by his enemy and unsheathes his silver one. "You want a sword fight? You''ll get one."

    Silan holds the long sword in one hand and sweeps it near the floor and upwards while turning around. The young Witcher blocks the strike and parries the other that comes over Silan''s shoulder, he knocks the masked man off balance and attempts to cut his wrist by only manages to scratch his forearm.

    Silan points his left hand to the floor which make it feel like Reima has weights attached to him, due to the increased gravity Reima almost gets run through by his stolen sword but manages to use Igni to completely cover Silan in fire.

    His opponent who had shown no pain before starts moaning in pain, as his flesh starts melting like napalm had just hit him. Reima follows this up by blinking behind the burning man and decapitating him.

    With the man''s body dissipating with all the blood he had shed leaving with him, Reima picks up and sheaths his steel sword while complaining about his opponent cheating.

    Reima "Who touches another mans sword... Homosexuals, that''s who."

    He stumbles slightly as he forces his bruised body to move towards the shimmering gate, as he approaches it the gate starts folding in on itself while glowing yellow. Behind the gate he spots another masked man and quickly enters a combat stance.

    ??? "Wait, not all masked people are your enemy..."

    The man wears a golden mask with weird wooden accents on it, a wooden circle is haphazardly attaching to it''s forehead which looks slightly comical. He wears a red shirt with thick shorts and sandals. He holds his hands out with palms showing his friendly intentions.

    Reima relaxes slightly as the man tries to explain himself.

    Talem "I wish to help those who tread this unfortunate path... As long as the Fold doesn''t take you, I will assist you in any way I can."

    Silan who had been revived at an alter a few miles away sneezes as his sexuality is being questioned, "I have to report to the elders, an unknown foreigner uses unique abilities and seeks to invade the sacred city..."

 44 Dont Talem to go away...

    Reima looks Talem and bends his head to the side inquisitively. "What do you gain from helping me?"

    Talem "Hmm, I don''t know... I''ve never really been asked that before. If I had to answer then I would say assisting someone gives a satisfaction and a sense of purpose..." He crosses his arms as he contemplates his own answer.

    Reima "Even someone who doesn''t worship your gods and wishes to explore the ruined city?" He tentatively asks.

    Talem "Ofcourse, no matter country or creed we are all human in the end..." He says questionably as he seems to glace at Reima''s eyes.

    Reima "Yes, we are. My name is Reima by the way." He approaches with his hand out-stretched.

    Talem receives the hand and shakes it with a firm grip. "People call me Talem."

    They both find a spot to sit under the tower that used to hold the shimmering gate.

    Reima "So I have some questions about this land... As you can see, I''m not from around here."

    Talem nods, "Ask away."

    Reima "The people I fought before, they kept mentioning the Fold... What is it?"

    Talem laughs, "Why, Isn''t that the question of a life time!... Well, many people have their own interpretations but for me, the Fold is a universe separate from ours... When I became a Prospect.. A masked warrior hoping to become an Absolver, they had me talk to a spiritual being... A being from the Fold. I handed it the mask you see me now wearing, and it enchanted it, granting me immortality and the ability to utilise the Fold to do supernatural feats."

    Reima "Who are the Guides?"

    Talem "They are a religion that worships an ancient god known as Anlek... I am unsure of what Anlek is the god of but it can''t be good... The Guides say that Raslan, the ruined city was destroyed because the populace forgot about their worship of Anlek." He seems to be holding back a great deal of his opinion on the Guides...

    Reima "You don''t seem to like them all that much..."

    Talem "Yes, what is there to like? They fill your head with verses of their religion and indoctrinate you into it... They make young aspiring warriors don the mask and enter Raslan to hone their skills. What they don''t tell you before you become a Prospect is that you will never be able to take the mask off. You won''t eat, drink or sleep for the rest of your immortal life. I have been here for... Many years, and I have trouble not doubting their words anymore."

    Reima "I know that skilled Prospects eventually become Absolvers... But what do Absolvers actually do?"

    Talem "I don''t know... I''ve never attempted to best Risryn atop the tower of Adal."

    He suddenly stops talking and seems depressed at the subject, a short silence deafens them as Reima stands up. "It''s been nice talking to you Talem, but I should probably get moving through the forest and towards Raslan." He takes a step before stopping, "Actually, if you don''t mind... Could I ask for you assistance?"

    Talem looks up from the ground, "As I said before, I will help if I can."

    Reima "Could teach me how to perform a Windfall dodge or Khalt absorb?"

    He looks confused at Reima''s request, "Without the Fold those arts would be lost on you..."

    Reima shakes his head and casts a small Igni flame to sit upon his hand. "I am adept in supernatural abilities Talem... I doubt this will prove too difficult to pick up."

    He looks in shock at the flame hovering above Reima''s hand, "How is that possible... The Fold isn''t capable of Ignition!"

    Reima "Ill show you mine if you show me yours..." He sends a wink at Talem and immediately feels dirty for doing so.

    Talem quickly agrees and starts him on the basics of Windfall dodging.

    Talem "It''s called Windfall because you move like the wind, and you crash like a Water fall. When performing a Windfall dodge, you channel the Fold to act like an after shadow. Anything that hits the after shadow is slowed significantly, this only works if you perfectly dodge a strike due to the preciseness of the after-shadow." He performs a few quick dodges and Reima observes the black mass-like shadow that trails him perfectly. He watches using Observation Haki and sees the white Fold particles again, the weird thing is that the Fold energy is being channelled from the mask and through the body.

    Reima waves his arm through the air trying to mimic the Fold energy and manages to form a much thinner shadow than Talem''s.

    Talem "It seems you''re a fast learner, now just channel that energy in the way I showed you across your entire body. It should be much easier than specifying a single body part. He watches as Reima jumps causing shadow feet to follow a second after, he dodges swiftly to the side causing a black shadow to copy him.

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    Talem claps when he sees Reima able to perform an adequate Windfall dodge after a couple of hours. "Excellent, when you have time to rest, start meditating on how to improve."

    Reima wipes the sweat off of his forehead, "Alright, I guess it''s my turn... Watch my hand closely."

    He forms an Igni sign and channels magical energy through it causing a fire to burst into life from his hand. "This is called Igni, it means fire, ignite and burn. When you channel energy into a perfectly formed hand Sign you should be able to create fire."

    Talem tries to shape his fingers in the correct way with Reima assisting him, "Make sure the Sign is perfect, while you are immortal I doubt it would be pleasant to have your fingers blown off."

    After an hour of trying to get it to work, Talem gives up. "I don''t know, it''s just not working."

    Reima who was observing with Haki sees what the problem is, "It''s probably because you draw energy from your mask, which is connected to the Fold... I don''t know how it effects Signs so maybe you can experiment on it and see if you can cause anything to happen."

    After teaching each other they notice the sky turn orange and the sun close to setting, Reima decides to catch a small animal in the forest and bids farewell to Talem. "Hopefully our paths with cross again, Reima."

    Reima pats him on the back "I don''t doubt it. See yea later Talem. Remember to polish your mask or whatever you immortals do." Talem nods and enters a deep meditation that seems to draw a large amount of Fold energy to envelop him. Reima continues on the path that leads to the forest and eventually Raslan and sets up a camp a few meters off of the path to sleep.

 45 This is Spart-Raslan!

    The next few days consist of Reima navigating the overgrown path towards Raslan, as he travels he practises using Windfall at random to gain a better understanding of the timing needed. Eventually early in the morning Reima slides down a broken wooden bridge and looks over at the cavern containing a waterfall and river. Walking around the path he spots the main hub in the game, Guidance bridge. The bridge is a place that connects the main areas, it looks to be made from the same materials as the shimmering gate that was in the previous village.

    Reima walks through the entrance and climbs up the stairs before stopping in the doorway, inside he spots a single middle aged man in robes, an alter that hasn''t been activated and a map that has glowing marks on it to indicate important enemies.

    The Guide quickly spots him and looks shocked at his appearance, "Stop, these are sacred grounds wanderer... Return to where you came from!"

    Reima "I don''t give a shit about your religion, you don''t own this city and I will do what I want."

    The Guides mask-less face contorts into a fury filled expression, he runs at Reima and tries to grab him, Reima seeing this as an oppertunity to try out Windfall, dodges to the side causing the Guide to move like hes in slow motion. Reima slaps him in the face for even trying to touch him before inspecting the map.

    Guide "YOU WILL LEAVE!" He shouts as he draws a dagger from his hip and charges again at Reima. Having enough of this farce, he uses Windfall again before picking the Guide up and throwing him off the bridge through the massive triangle shaped balcony. The Guide gives a final shout as he descends and hits the bottom.

    Reima "That felt more cathartic than it should have..." He mutters to himself as he touches the alter, trying to activate it... Nothing happens. After a couple attempts Reima tries channelling magical energy to mimic Fold energy and touches the Alter once again... It shines and sinks into the ground while what could only be described as a fountain of Fold energy is expelled and fades away as it head skywards...

    By using Observation Haki to observe the alter, Reima manages to spy a yellow ore of some sort being used to power it... He remembers that a big plot point that was constantly mentioned was a substance known as Essence.

    After Reima searches around and familiarises himself with his surroundings he heads towards the hunters grounds through one of the exits on the bridge... From what he can remember, the Hunting grounds were the easy and starting zone.... Reima''s current goal is the defeat all the Marked ones in combat and also to beat the two "boss" fights. While he does this he will try and learn as much as possible from the Prospects he comes across.

    Reima starts walking towards the hunting path while experimenting with Fold energy to create shapes and try to distort objects. While walking the path there is an ledge that overlooks a large area. He spots the large forgotten temple that lies in the swamp below and grimaces as he remembers the instant death puddles, they are perhaps more annoying than pits in Darksouls due to the high impact and movement base combat system.. Once mistake means you get your ass kicked into a puddle.

    As he reaches his destination he glances over the large rocks, trees and foliage scattered around. He also spots various bear traps hidden in the grass and questions whether or not they''re meant for humans. He continues walking and comes across a Prospect, the masked woman seems to be banging her head on a tree. Insanity. Reima mutters as he watches her slam her face into the wood.

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    Reima "Yo! Stop what you''re doing and fight me!"

    The Prospect takes notice of him and almost by instinct drops into a combat stance. She approaches Reima as he gets ready to fight and tries to sweep his legs out from under him, he swiftly jumps over it while utilising Windfall causing the masked woman to slow down. Using this opportunity Reima punches at her face before following with a spinning elbow strike, the Woman is knocked off balance and tries to use Forsaken''s martial parry technique but fails the timing which results in her face being exploded by one of Reima''s kicks. As they fade away they leave another yellow orb, picking it up to see what it is Reima finds himself holding two metal bracelets. Even now after they materialised they cause his medallion to vibrate slightly, he stores them in his travel pack and continues forward while keeping an eye out for those glowing stone things that contain items in the game.

    After fighting a couple more Prospects he finds what looks to be a glowing pile of rubble? Maybe when the city collapsed some items where buried so deeply that they weren''t stolen by the subsequent looters.. After digging through the pile he finds a pair of sandals... Thinking that all the things that have either been dropped by Prospects or found in rubble have made his Medallion react he closely observes the sandals with Haki, he finds that they seem to be connected to the Fold somehow.. Feeling curious he makes a small scratch on the wooden Sandal sole which, after a moment begins to repair itself.

    Reima "Cool... This is probably why your clothes aren''t damaged even after sword fights, though I''m unsure how to access the essence shard store in the alters? Whatever, I''ll find out eventually."

 46 The Folded Space

    Reima continues travelling around the Hunting grounds defeating insane Prospects and observing their techniques. The most useful moves He had learned are probably the spinning back kicks, palm strikes and knee strikes. The spinning kicks are especially useful when integrated into the Wolf school style pirouettes, performing a spinning back kick while following with a sword slash is probably the most powerful none-magic technique Reima knows of.

    He had located the entrance to the swamp that contains the forgotten temple and another Marked one. The giant pillars and long stairway were a dead giveaway, it''s almost identical to the way the game portrayed it. Reima decides to deal with the First Marked one Revario before he enters the swamp.

    He spots the top of the willow looking tree that Revario sits under and moans as he sees a large amount of Prospects present on the path towards it.

    He approaches and three Men immediately dash towards him with scampering desperate movements.

    The first one does twists his feet in preparation for some sort of spinning kick, as hes doing that one of the others almost throws itself into a punch at Reima, almost knocking him over with its momentum.

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    Reima blocks the lunging punch and pulls the Prospect towards him and into the path of his allies spin kick. They both fall onto the floor, one due to the impact of the kick on his back and the other due to an awkward landing. The third one tries to grab Reima but receives two jabs and an uppercut to thier face, causing them to back away. Reima spins while using Windfall to dodge an attack he saw coming from behind him with Haki, while one is slowed he sprints towards the one still on the floor and recovering from being kicked.

    He stomps on the back of it''s head like resident evil characters would a box and completely obliterates it''s skull, causing it to fade away into particles.

    Reima gets kicked in the back from masked man who he had uppercut, he brings his arms up to block the other strikes peppering his guard and trying to break it.

    Reima concentrates on his Observation Haki and dodges around five different strikes each from his now two opponents, he manages to dodge an axe kick trying to break his guard and sweeps his leg out from under him. Ducking to avoid the high kick that the other guy had sent, Reima jumps slightly and drops a knee onto the back of the downed mans neck causing him to burst into particles like a Grunt birthday surprise.

    After finishing two of the Prospects, dealing with a single one is almost laughable.

    After getting the remaining one in a headlock and proceeding to break his neck, Reima decides to take a break at the nearby Alter. Through the hours of constant fighting and exploration Reima had nearly an entire closet of Fold enchanted clothing. Deciding that he either needed to find someplace to store all the drops from the enemies or simply stop collecting anymore, he tries to experiment with the Fold to try and create a space to hold things... If the Protagonist of the game can do it, then he should be able to as well.

    He draws out some Fold energy from the Alter and gathers the shaped particles in his hands, he tries to compress them but nothing happens... After an hour or two of testing he eventually tries to Fold the particles into themselves, it''s a peculiar sensation, almost like hes exercising a new part of his brain... Eventually the particles begin to be sucked into the transparent Folded area that Reima had created. Holding the seemingly gluttonous transparent black hole to the Alter it starts to suck up Fold energy from it, after 30 minutes of draining it the Alter simply disintegrates from existence and his Folded.. Thing? seems sated. Reima doesn''t really know what he had created and pushes a rock into it to see what would happen.

    Sloop!

    A weird sound like someone had pushed something into a thick liquid ripples out of the Folded thing.. After looking at it for a couple of minutes and nothing happening in response to the stone Reima decides to push a tree branch into it to see what it does to organic matter.

    A few seconds later and a pristine looking branch is revealed from the Folded space? After confirming that it wouldn''t kill it instantly Reima sticks the of his finger inside... Feels lukewarm Reima mutters as he slowly pushes the rest of his arm inside. After going in up to his shoulder he wonders where the stone had gone, as the thought enters his mind the stone seemingly appears in his hand.

    Pulling it out and observing it, the stone seems perfectly normal... Reima looks down at the distortion in space that''s barely visible even to a Witcher, if Reima managed to release control over it the only way to find it would be to follow the Medallions reactionary vibrations to it.

    Reima "Wait, isn''t this the bottomless storage from the game?... Oh shit it is! I did it!" He would be jumping up and down in celebration if it weren''t for the Folded space still floating above his hand.

    Reima "Now I just need a way to store this..." As he says this the distortion seems to sink into his palm and disappears. He starts to panic at this but it returns when he thinks about it returning.

    He wipes his brow at his short panic attack and starts shovelling everything apart from his swords into it.

 47 First Marked One : Revario

    After solving his inventory problem Reima gets up and starts heading towards the First Marked one, Revario. Why does Reima know his name? Because this Marked one almost single handedly made him quit playing Absolver. This guy blocks almost every attack, has huge health and as a noob with almost no useful techniques he bends you over and makes you regret life. But now, Finally... It''s different, He''s gonna beat him to death with his own mask!

    He follows the path around until he spots the large tree, under it resting in the shadow is Revario... He sits against it like some protagonist in an anime, his sword pointing out of the ground next to him.

    Reima approaches the smug prick with his golden upside down face mask and calls out to him.

    "Revario! Come fight me like a man!"... The masked man just apathetically looks at Reima and doesn''t say anything.

    Reima "Take your weapons and get up!" He says as he draws his steel long sword.

    Revario seems to huff as he slowly pulls himself off the tree and pulls his sword from the ground. He takes a relaxed stance and stands opposite Reima.

    A silence consumes them as they weight for the other to act, Reima loses his patience at the staring contest and delivers a fast slash to Revario''s neck. In response he performs a Forsaken style parry that causes Reima''s body to seize up and freeze for a moment, using this opportunity, Revario follows up with a stab to his heart.

    Reima''s slit eyes dilate as they observe the approaching blade, DODGE! Reima screams in his mind as he barely avoids a fatal wound with a Windfall dodge. As Revario is slowed due to the after-image Reima tries to feint''s a cut towards his neck but at the last second changes direction and slices at Revario''s vulnerable ankle. Not expecting this Revario is nicked on the ankle but manages to avoid a crippling blow.

    Reima watches as Revario spins around and sends a deadly slash at him, he channels as much Armament Haki into his left fist as possible and punches towards the incoming blade.

    SHATTER!

    The sword in Revario''s hand has it''s blade completely shattered at the impact sending shard-like bullets at him, he receives some cuts and scratches but his mask protects his eyes from the steel fragments.

    Ignoring the fact that his weapon was just destroyed he continues his momentum and straight kicks Reima in the stomach, causing him to be knocked backwards a couple meters away.

    After both combatants get a few breaths they start to engage each-other again. Reima with his sword and Revario with his fists. As they fight Reima discovers how powerful the Forsaken style parries are, being able to completely negate damage and freeze the attacker for a second could potentially end any conflict with someone not prepared for it.

    Reima spends most of the fight using Windfall and dodging the heavy strikes of Revario but is unable to get any lethal strikes in.

    Revario tries to finish the fight by channelling Fold energy and casting earthquake, causing the ground a few meters around them to rumble and become unstable under Reima''s feet. He stumbles as one of his footholds give way, Revario takes advantage of this and performs a flying knee strike that nearly hits Reima in the face. Reima has to utilise his Elder Blood to evade the potentially neck breaking blow and blinks behind Revario while performing an dropping axe kick. The kick lands on Revario''s clavicle and breaks it causing him to stumble backwards, Reima continues by sweeping his legs out from under him and using his sword to pin Revario to the ground. The stab is successful and results in Revario slowly fading away outward from the sword wound.

    Reima "I''m not good enough to fight these guys yet..." He sheathes his sword and takes Revario''s place by sitting beside the willow-like tree.

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    Looking up he spots the orange sky and realises he must have been fighting Revario for a while... He pulls his camping materials out of his Folded space and casts the Detection trap spell around the campsite to stop him being murdered in his sleep. He sets up a basic rabbit snare in the nearby bushes and starts meditating and reflecting on his recent fight. With some practise Reima thinks that he can potentially use the Forsaken style parries while fighting... He would need to observe more uses of the technique to understand the energy flow though. After a couple hours of meditation he hears his snare trap trigger and finds a struggling rabbit... He snaps it''s neck, skins it and removes it''s internal organs before cutting it''s head off and cooking it over the fire.

    He looks over at the loose dirt from his recent fight and spots a glowing yellow orb almost hidden under it.

    He stands while letting the rabbit cook and sees what it is, he picks the orb up and a Golden mask materialises in his hand. "Nice, I''ll hang this up on the wall when I finally build a house... Maybe somewhere around Kaer Morhen would be a nice spot?"

 48 You wouldnt like me when Im Angrel...

    The next day Reima heads into the cave that leads to the swamp. As he walks through the almost pitch-black cave he spots glowing parts of the walls, some sort of ore? His Medallion vibrates as he approaches it and he immediately recognises it... Essence, the stuff that helps power the Alters. Reima tries to chip some of it out and ends up with a handful of essence dust, examining it with haki it seems to radiate Fold energy... He stores it away in his Folded space, maybe he can find a use for it later.

    As he leaves the cave, the orange sky seems to be obscured by the dank bog and overhead trees. The floor has a couple inches of dirty water that irritates his ankles and movement, over in the distance he sees the forgotten temple. Another marked one should be inside of it, also Reima vaguely remembers treasure being left at the top of the building.

    Looking around at the ever present insane Prospects he starts to lure them away and pick them off one by one, not only because it''s easier, but because he can examine their moves and martial styles without worrying about an ambush. The thing that surprises Reima the most about the martial arts in this world are that they all seem to incorporate the Fold in some way or another. Not only that, using Haki he had observed higher level combatants actively using Fold energy to enhance their bodies. They still don''t match up to his genetically modified physical abilities but it is still above human levels.

    After defeating around 34 Prospects he approaches the Alter just outside the giant forbidden temple and sits beside it, pulling out the Essence dust that he had taken earlier he presents it to the alter to see if it does anything. It just ripples at it''s presence and seems to try to absorb it. Refusing to part with this interesting material he puts it back in the Folded space and prepares to face the Marked One inside.

    Walking inside he sees a large man with a stone mask that looks like it''s from a children''s cartoon on his face, he wears plated steel on his legs and has leather armour covering his hands, elbows and shoulders. The rest of his outfit looks like rags that had been dipped in the swamp outside...

    Reima "So... What number power ranger are you then? I''ve already beaten number one."

    Angrel "I am Angrel, Second Marked One... I have been given a single task from Anlek and that is to protect his forgotten temple." He says in deep low growl, he almost sounds like Vin Diesel.

    Reima "I''m Reima, a traveller. You know, I''m rather confused at why you all wish to worship a god that supposedly kills thousands and buries a city just because they forgot him."

    Angrel "I am firm in my beliefs and nothing you say will shake that, come." He drops into a low stance, the same stance that Silan had used, Khalt style.

    Reima "You''re gonna be Angrel when I dumpster you." He grins at his own pun...

    Angrel "I am already Angrel..."

    Reima "ah, you know what? Nevermind." He approaches and does three quick palm strikes towards Angrel''s chest, he doesn''t seem to do anything and allows Reima to strike him. "Is that all you amount to?" He taunts at Reima.

    Reima hops slightly and brings his leg up in a swift kick towards his face, Angrel uses Absorb to negate the blow and counters by unleashing a heavy punch downwards on Reima''s head. It connects causing Reima to quickly back away as blood drips down his face, the attack has rocked him and caused a cut under his hair.

    Angrel ups to ante by channelling Fold energy and creating a shield to surround himself, the white particles envelop his body like a suit of armour as he comes barreling at Reima who uses Windfall to dodge the reckless charge, he punches Angrel but doesn''t manage to pierce the Fold Energy shielding him.

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    Reima "Two can play at that game!" He shouts as he casts Quen to shield himself.

    Angrel "It seems you''re not just a bad fighter." As he turns his body bringing his full weight behind a roundhouse punch, Reima ignores it as it shatters his shield but stops the impact, he concentrates Armament Haki into his fist and strikes the sternum of Angrel, causing his shield to almost instantly shatter and himself to cough blood as he''s thrown away from Reima.

    Angrel doesn''t look amused and lifts a small stone pillar from the floor before trying to smash Reima with it. Reima performs a matrix style dodge to duck under the deadly attack and proceeds to trip Angrel who is off balance from his missed strike, he follows up with an Armament Haki infused axe kick on his skull. Even is Angrel''s skull were made of steel it wouldn''t have resisted being shattered and splattered all over the ruin walls, the large made fades away into particles as Reima takes a seat on his dropped makeshift stone weapon.

    As he rests he spots a drop from Angrel and decides to pick it up to see what it is, what materialises surprises Reima as a stone sword with no edge appears in his hand... It seems to be used for crushing instead of cutting as a normal sword would, it''s very durable but Reima can''t see any use for such a weapon. He looks at the metal rivets that seem to be hammered into it to increase it''s strength and weight before slipping it into his Folded Space.

 49 Fashion swap

    After his fight with Angrel the remaining Prospects that inhabit the top floor of the temple are no more then insects, while they do provide more techniques to learn, compared to Angrel they lack speed, strength and endurance. The only difficulty he experienced is when four tries to ambush him as he was shimmying around the ruined building, after using Aard to throw two off the small balcony the other two were almost easy to dispatch. With each fight Reima feels his familiarity with hand to hand combat, Windfall and battle intuition increase.

    After circling around the building and through the other door that isn''t blocked by rubble Reima starts heading up the stairs, in the game there were wooden planks placed over the holes in the floor that allowed you to progress but here they seem to be missing... Reima ignores the small inconsistency and blinks across the small gaps with ease, looking around he spots a number of glowing orbs and piles of rubble that could hold loot.

    In the first pile of stones he checked he found Angrel''s mask... In the game it was called silly mask and Reima can see why, the bright coloured ribbons spilling out of it''s frog like visage is rather unnerving.

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    Reima "If I keep this up I may end up collecting the whole set..."

    He continues walking and picking up various items, A steel elbow guard here, a jumper with metal plating there. Reima comes across his favourite item yet, a black Shabu guard vest. It''s similar to the jackets on earth without the zipper, it''s bundled sleeves that sit above the elbow and smooth materials make Reima feel nostalgia for earth. He looks down at his already battered armour that is in dire need of repair and decides to use some of these clothes, not only because he wants to dress semi-nostalgically but because they repair themselves over time. Reima doesn''t recall there being a blacksmith anywhere in Raslan, let alone the game, so he decides to store his old Witcher armour in his Folded Space to await repair as he assembles a comfortable outfit.

    He puts on the brown padded uringal vest with FangLi noble pants that provide maximum flexibility and movement. He puts on the old sandals he found a while back and puts the black Shabu guard vest over the top of his shirt. Something different from earth jackets is that the Shabu vest has a small rope connecting the collars, making sure it doesn''t fly around while fighting.

    This is by far the most comfortable outfit Reima has worn since being reincarnated, it''s light and allows for every movement imaginable instead of being restricted slightly by the armoured plates of his Witcher armour.

    After finishing putting on the new outfit he straps his swords on his back and starts heading out of the swamp and towards the forest area that contains the first big boss, the twins.

    He enters the path expecting to see a large wooden tribal village like in the game but only sees jungle trees and foliage...

    He starts to walk again but stops his feet as he notices a bear trap just under it...

    Reima "That was close..." He says as he moves his head to the side subconsciously and barely dodging a dart that was shot from a tree.

    He rolls back and casts Quen to protect against the projectiles while using Observation Haki to spot his ambusher.

    He continues to look around and draws his steel sword in preparation for armed combat, he looks up at a tree and spots the aura of a Prospect on a branch. He sends a small blast of Igni to move them from the tree which surprises them, flustered by the incoming flames they fall off the branch and unluckily for them, onto the bear trap. A feminine yelp of pain is heard as their foot is caught in it.

    They struggle to get free but stop after a while to resign themselves to their fate.

    Reima "So... What did I do to deserve getting shot at?"

    ??? "You trespass on our land!"

    Reima "Oh, this is your land? I don''t see your name written anywhere..."

    ??? "Scum! Blasphemer! Brute!"

    Reima "You just gonna continue until you run out of insult eh?"

    ...

    ??? "Pig! Cat-eye monster!"

    Reima who''s had enough of her verbal abuse slaps her masked face, "Alright, Shutup and tell me where the Twins are or I''ll kill you."

    ??? "Ha! I''m immortal, you can''t kill me!"

    Reima gives a vicious grin, "I can''t kill you, but since you don''t need to eat, sleep or breath... What would happen if I chained you to a rock and tossed you in a river?"

    If her face wasn''t covered by a mask Reima was sure it would be pale as a ghost.

    ??? "You wouldn''t!"

    Reima "I would, now tell me where the twins are or I''ll put you in those swamp puddles instead."

    The woman finally breaks and tell Reima of the rough location of the village, the twins and how many Prospects are protecting them.

    Reima "Thank you for your cooperation. See ya later!"

    He starts walking towards the direction of the village as the girl screams for him to undo the bear trap, Reima decided to leave her stuck in it due to the fact that she will immediately report his presence to whoever directs the tribes forces.

 50 Bird Callers outpos

    Reima can be seen crouching behind some large tropical bushes as he looks over at a couple Prospects keeping watch from a unstable wooden tower, the thing looks like it will collapse any moment but due to their immortality, the masked people standing on it don''t look worried.

    He had decided to try and get rid of a couple Prospects using stealth before shaking the hornets nest.

    He blinks behind the two Prospects as he stabs one through the neck and kicking the other off the tower. They hit the dirt floor below the tower and soundlessly burst into yellow particles, the nearby people don''t seem to notice.

    Due to Reima not knowing where their alters are located and how long it will take for them to re-spawn he starts to pick up the pace, blinking from one Prospect to another, stabbing and slicing until all that''s left is the village centre. It''s made up of multiple collapsed wooden structures surrounding a seemingly bottomless pit, Reima had used the pit while playing Absolver to get rid of some of the swarming enemies but managed to fall in himself a number of times.

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    Looking over at the far end of the village he concentrates his eyes and spots another Marked One, their mask is peculiar and consists of a hood that shadows the face, only revealing glowing eyes... Reima always wondered how it functioned but guessed that the darkness that blocks people viewing the face is it''s own mask. The female Masked One has two other Prospects guarding the entrance towards the half ruined residence she rests in.

    Reima spends a few minutes spotting each and every Prospect and realises that the smallest group consists of two people. He walks behind a wooden building and places a Yrden trap before knocking on the wood a few times to get their attention. The two Prospects hearing towards unusual sounds is excellent due to the centuries they''ve spent in this jungle, they start cautiously walking towards Reima when one of them is caught in the trap, Reima jumps out and almost crushes their neck to dust with a flying kick. They fade away as the second one takes a familiar but infuriating stance, Stagger style. The style consists of moves reminiscent of the drunken brawler back on earth, with awkward twisting movements, fake falls, feints and unconventional strikes. Reima had ranted and raved at this almost broken combat style and the ease of which you could mash buttons and still win competitive PVP fights...

    The Prospect almost trips over itself and delivers a back fist before falling on it''s knee and spinning it''s entire body with his arms outstretched to strike Reima. He had just blocked the back fist when the Prospect started spinning, seeing no way to dodge this strike he decided to do a strike kick at it''s face while tensing against the incoming fists.

    Both combatants back away from the hits they received, Reima goes in for a jab but his opponent uses the Stagger style dodge, which consists of falling out of the way of a strike and using your moment to perform your own attack. After being punched in the chest by the masked man he blocks the following awkward kicks and surprising headbutt, to finish the combo the Prospect falls to the ground before springing up and kicking at Reima''s knee. Remembering this move from the game, Reima jumps slightly while using Windfall to slow his opponent and returns his own stomp onto the attacking leg, he manages to break or dislocate something in the Prospects leg causing them to be unable to fight any longer.

    Reima still high on adrenaline hits the downed man in the chest with a Haki infused palm strike, causing him to explode into particles.

    Reima feels that the Stagger style is easier to deal with here than in the game, not only because of his reflexes but because of the lack of limitations on his movements. He can target certain things here allowing him to completely counter some attacks...

    Reima "It is still really fucking annoying though..." he says as he tries to memorise the styles attacks, not to add them to his own skill set but to think of potential counters for future attacks.

    He continues hunting the Prospect groups, sometimes he is almost overwhelmed by numbers but he brings it back to his favour with a well timed blink strike or Igni sign. He also finds a number of items around the dilapidated village which intrigues him, a small pot that hangs over what looks like an old fireplace is filled to the brim with Essence ore... He dips his finger in it and feels a rush to his head, like he had just absorbed pure energy. It seems like the villagers have found a way to prepare Essence for consumption... What worries Reima though is the sense of power he felt from his brief contact to it, it''s almost addicting. He stores the bowl away into his Folded Space and takes a glance at the other things he found, a few rusted blades, tribal clothing and some wooden fist weapons? You put them on like gauntlets and they act almost like hammers when they hit someone, crushing bone and other defences. Reima thinks maybe he can find a use for these... Or maybe not.

 51 Cargal and Kilnor are... Nomore?

    Reima continues his ambushes until the only Prospects left are the two guards of the Third Marked one, he decides that he will get rid of these foes quickly so he can spend all his energy on Cargal and Kilnor who stay in a ruined wooden house around a mile away from the marked one.

    Unsheathing his steel sword Reima blinks beside a guard mid-swing and behead him before he could even react, the other guard does though and jumps into actions before being burned alive by a stream of Igni. Most Prospects don''t really have a defence against fire, the bosses are able to utilise the Fold more skilfully so their shields would probably negate the entirety of it.

    The last guard drops to his knees smouldering and disapates into Yellow particles.

    Reima doesn''t immediately approach the hooded Marked one, she knows he is there due to the screaming of her previous guards but just waits for his arrival. Reima uses the Elder Blood infused Quen shield to reduce his air resistance and channels Armament Haki into his arm to increase his swing speed. He blinks behind the female Marked one and swings as hard and fast as he can, the marked one somehow dodges away from him as if she knew it was coming and only gets nicked on her arm. Not willing to give up his momentum he continues hard and fast strikes that eventually break her blocks, out of stamina she stumbles as his sword pierces her hooded face immediately making her body dissipate into particles.

    Reima "Right, now just to loot this place and fight the twins..."

    After finding some Forest callers pants and not much else Reima starts walking up the steep hills that eventually will lead to the tower of Adal, before he can start ascending it though, he needs to kill Kuretz and the remaining marked ones. He continues climbing until he finds a wooden tower that looks like it hasn''t been maintained in years, centuries even.

    Knowing this is the place where the Twins will be he prepares himself, not knowing how strong they are compared to the other combatants he has faced thus far.

    As he steps inside he hears two pairs of feet on the wood above, they start descending down the stairs until they can get a good look at Reima. The female Cargal has short brown hair and looks like shes been punched in the face too many times to be attractive. The male Kilnor has short hair and a thick stubble, hes not as big as Angrel but he''s definitely around 6.4ft. What makes Reima most interested in them is their lack of masks... Some how, they don''t need masks to be reborn from the alters.

    Cargal "Brother, it seems like those annoying Guides have sent another one... Shall we sacrifice this one as well?"

    Kilnor "No, sister look. His lack of mask and cat eyes, he''s different."

    Cargal looks closer at him and almost gapes, "It is true! Are you a messenger of the gods?"

    Reima "No, I don''t follow whatever gods you and the Guides claim to exist."

    They both look offended by his response.

    Cargal "The gods are real! They gifted us with immortality so we can claim the essence mines from those heretical Guides!"

    Reima "So the gods granted you immortality? How?"

    Kilnor crosses his arms, "Do not try to explain miracles or misfortune will befall you. If you are not a messenger of the gods, why do you''re eyes resemble theirs?"

    Reima confused asks them to elaborate, there is no way Witchers also exist in this world.

    Cargal "Our god take the form of a panther, they wait in the shadows and protect us."

    Kilnor "Our tribes have been saved a number of times by their warnings."

    Cargal "We dedicate our lives to combat the only enemy that could harm them..."

    Cargal and Kilnor "The Guides." They both say in unison after talking for each other... Reima wishes they would stop the unnerving speech pattern.

    Reima "That''s great and all but I didn''t come here to chat..." He drops into a stance as they seem sad that their supposed messiah wants to claim their heads but they get ready for combat as well.

    They both approach at the same time, their steps mimicking each other and if Reima hears rightly even their heart beats are in sync. Cargal does a quick jab and Kilnor circles round to flank, Reima blocks Cargal''s jab and uses Windfall to dodge Kilnor''s flanking palm strike. He pirouettes around the slowed Kilnor to place him between Cargal and Reima himself, he then kicks hard at Kilnor''s stomach but he uses Khalt to absorb it but doesn''t manage to Absorb the elbow strike following it. Kilnor backs into Cargal due to trying to escape from the strikes Reima is dishing out, Cargal deftly moves past her brother and performs a flying knee that almost breaks Reima''s nose. As she''s dropping down from her knee strike Reima kicks her legs out of the air making her fall on her side.

    Kilnor comes rushing to assist his sister with large sweeping round house strikes which knock Reima off balance, allowing the downed Cargal to sweep his legs from the floor.

    Knowing he''s in deep trouble he blinks away from them as his back touches the floor and a fist is planted where his head would be.

    Reima takes a deep breath while looking at their confused backs, "Man, you guys are tough... But isn''t it a little unfair to fight two on one?"

    Cargal "Nothing is unfair in Love and War."

    Reima "I know this is war but it would be kinda gross if you two included love..."

    The twins stop responding and draw their weapons, Cargal''s looks like an agile short sword and Kilnor''s looks like the stone sword Reima had found previously.

    Reima unsheathes his weapon in response and gets ready for their attack. Kinlor storms forwards slamming his heavy blade downward on Reima who dodges with Windfall, Cargal follows up and tries to shiv Reima multiple times with her short sword but Reima blocks the strikes with a Haki infused fist. He plants his foot down on Kilnor''s stone sword to prevent him going for another strike as he swings his sword at Cargal who blocks it with her short sword but stumbles away at it''s force.

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    Kilnor tries to punch Reima who''s currently standing on his weapon but Reima uses Quen to take the blow and stabs through Kilnor''s Achilles tendon which results in him falling to the floor.

    Cargal "Brother!" She charges in a rage at Reima for injuring her brother which unfortunately for her, makes it easy to predict her desperate strikes.

    Reima twists and ducks under another strike before uses his momentum to cleave her in two. Kilnor who''s still alive but crippled shouts for his sister as she fade away in Yellow particles.

    Kilnor "This is not over, our gods will allow us retribution! No matter how many times you defeat us we will seek revenge!"

    Reima shrugs, "Yeah good luck with that." as he finishes Kilnor off. The only thing he leaves behind is a glowing yellow orb that turns out to be his steel pauldron.

    After the fight Reima decides to make a camp further up the path to avoid them immediately coming back and killing him in his sleep.

 52 Dont Talem about Kuretz...

    After resting Reima immediately starts heading towards the tower of Adal, he thinks over his plan and decides that killing the marked ones inside the tower before heading straight for the Colosseum would be the quickest option. As he''s dispatching wayward Prospects he kicks open a door blocking the path ahead and spots a familiar face... Or mask...

    Talem "Oh, Reima. I didn''t expect you to get here so quickly."

    Reima "You sound like you were expecting me?" He says as he looks at the alter besides Talem.

    Talem "Partially? I suspected you would be fine and even be able to defeat those blasted Twins, I just wanted to see how you''re progress is."

    Reima "Well, it''s going as well as you can hope... I''ll have to Kuretz soon, any hints?"

    Talem nods his head, "I know Kuretz well, friends you could consider us. He''s different from all other Prospects here." Reima raises an eyebrow.

    Reima "How so?"

    Talem "Well, he wasn''t a following of the Guides. I don''t believe the mask he wears initially belonged to him, the blood splatter that he can''t clean from it will attest to that."

    Reima is taken aback at the new information, "He can remove masks?"

    Talem "Perhaps... Perhaps he''s just laughing at my expense, he did say once that the real expert in the Fold sits atop the tower of Adal... He must mean Risryn.

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    Reima nods his head as he listens, "Still, my question remains... Any hints to defeating him?"

    Talem "Yes, I don''t know how but he''s able to control insane Prospects... Some sort of mind manipulation, if you fight him be weary of his puppets."

    Reima "Thanks." He claps Talem on the shoulder as he leaves to find the nearby marked one.

    The tower of Adal''s only light sources are the small Essence lamps and the large windows allowing sunlight through, probably due to their value most of the lamps have been stolen resulting in most of the tower being shrouded in darkness. During the night it is probably impossible to see anything let alone fight, Reima has an advantage in this regard due to his mutations. His low light vision is excellent which allows him to eliminate most insane Prospects one by one, he makes sure to allow them a few moves so he can meditate on them later but he doesn''t dawdle by prolonging a fight.

    One thing that pisses Reima off the most is hard to find things, hidden items, hidden quests and most importantly, Hidden enemies... The marked one in the tower of Adal is by far the most annoying enemy due to their hidden location. It takes Reima a couple of days of constant fighting through the hordes of Prospects to stumble across her location. Once there he makes his displeasure known by tiring her out and beating her black and blue, he sends her back to whatever interdimensional space they dead Prospects go to before re-spawning. While Reima was searching for the annoying Marked one he also found the shimmering door that leads to the essence mines, that allow you to ascend the tower and fight Risryn. Looking at the map that is glowing on the doors surface he sees that he only need to kill two more marked ones and Kuretz for it to open.

    Reima eventually leaves the tower by travelling along the large bridge that seems to be the main entrance, he remember in the game that a path leads directly to the Colosseum from here.

    He travels the path for around half a day during which, you guessed it. More fighting, while the constant fighting is wearing down on his spirit, his physical capabilities are rapidly improving. With each fight he feels himself becoming stronger, more proficient in fighting.

    As he walks through a rickety old wooden bridge he continues forward through a destroyed sand stone hut and stops his feet. Standing on the highest point around Reima observes the complete and utter devastation of the surrounding city. He had just entered the oration quarter, the main place of residence for the majority of the cities civilians.. Or was. The disaster that struck the city left the tower of Adal relatively intact, but this place looks like multiple earthquakes follows by tornado''s had recently passed through. Looking around he spots Prospects just doing their usual thing, fighting and self harming... He also sees a number of stone statues that are probably monuments for those lost in the destruction. Reima spots the Colosseum in the distance and starts descending from the ruined building that somehow are still standing.

    Reima absent-mindedly defeats the Prospects that attempt to stop his progress as he salvages various items from the buildings. Inside some of the more hidden buildings he finds large pots of essence, due to their remote locations they probably haven''t been looted yet. After storing all the interesting loot inside his Folded space Reima eventually reaches the outskirts of the Colosseum, knowing from the game that the Marked one is at the highest point he decides to get rid of them before he fights Kuretz. He stealthy travels up the ruined steps, blinking across gaps that he wouldn''t be able to cross before ending up before the Marked one. Their mask seems a lot wider than all the others he has seen but Reima ignores it as he blinks behind them and Sparta kicks them off the overlooking ledge. They land inside the Colosseum with a thud which draws the attention of the black mask wearing puppets inside. As they scramble towards the area the Marked one had landed a man walks out to see what the commotion is.

    Seeing what must have happened the man looks up to where Reima is revealing his blood stained mask, Kuretz.

 53 Binge drinking with bab-Kuretz

    Reima bristles under Kuretz''s gaze and he decides to confront him, he slowly ascends the small tower to enter the Colosseum''s centre. He approaches the man wearing a ragged jacket that''s plated in various kinds of metals, his collar looks like bear fur and he has weird spikes sprouting from some of his armour.

    Reima "So you''re Kuretz?"

    Kuretz "Thats my name alright, what I want to know is... Who, and what are you?"

    Reima "Reima Ludvig, Witcher and currently, slayer or Prospects."

    Kuretz laughs at this convoluted introduction and points out the flaw in it "I only know one other person besides myself that can actually kill a Prospect. You are not her."

    Reima "Yeah, about that... How are you actually able to remove masks?"

    ...

    Kuretz "How about this, I heard from Talem that you wish to fight Risryn. To get to her you need to defeat me first, how about a deal. You beat me and I''ll tell you."

    Reima "What''s in it for you?"

    Kuretz "Entertainment? I despise the Guides and their constant attempts to steal my secrets, you seem to hold a similar attitude towards them... And with them hunting you even if you didn''t before, you will after." Reima seems surprised that he''s being hunted but thinks about it for a moment and realises he hasn''t exactly been quiet with his recent activities.

    Reima "That sounds agreeable, will you be using your minions?"

    Kuretz "Of course, I never said the fight will be fair hahaha!" He jumps back and commands the five surrounded black masked Prospects to attack Reima.

    Deciding to see if their masks block Axii he uses the Sign on them and commands them to attack Kuretz. It takes more power than usual, possibly due to Kuretz influence but he manages to direct their anger towards their puppeteer.

    Kuretz "What!" He shouts as he dodges the numerous strikes sent at him from his former allies.

    Reima decides to follow up and uses a 360 tornado kick to break Kuretz block, he tries to use the Forsaken style to parry it but is interrupted by a kick in his back by his former puppet, it pushes him in the way of the kick which brutally strikes his face. Uses the force of the strike to retreat he uses Fold energy to create a shield that envelopes his body before crossing his arms and creating blade-like gauntlets made from Fold energy. A Prospect barrels forwards but has it''s neck slash and arm removed by Kuretz who glances at Reima, knowing that Kuretz is keeping him in his sights he commands the other four Prospects to charge to draw his attention. While he''s fighting them off he flanks around while drawing his sword and stabs at Kuretz back, the shield enveloping him trembles for a second before being pierced allowing a deep cut to run along his chest.

    Kuretz responds by gritting his teeth and making his last stance against Reima, he barrels forwards knocking the Prospects out of the way before trying to stab his Fold energy blade into Reima stomach. He simply blinks a few meters above and drives his sword through the front of Kuretz and out of his back.

    Kuretz shudders before slowly dissipating, "Well... Done." he manages to stutter out before he vanishes.

    Reima decapitates his allied puppets before they can resist his control before sitting and starting meditate in the centre of the battle ground. Hopefully Kuretz will keep his end of the deal and return with the information he wants.

    After a couple hours Reima senses movement approaching, Kuretz strolls through the entrance while waving at him.

    Kuretz "That was hilarious! That''s the first time in centuries anyone has taken control of my puppets before! Good one hahaha!"

    Reima "Yeah I guess... It''s a shame I couldn''t see the look on your face."

    Kuretz shakes his head before bringing his hand to his mask, Reima suspects what he''s about to do so fully concentrates his Observation Haki on the Fold energy around his hand.

    With a bit of effort Kuretz manages to tear the mask from his face, revealing his handsome young face. His blonde hair matches his blue eyes making him look like some sort of Aryan.

    Kuretz "I know I''m a good looking guy but do you have to stare so hard?" He chuckles as he plays with the mask in his hands.

    Reima "Considering you just demonstrated a secret technique even the Guides covet, yes, I do need to stare."

    Kuretz shrugs "It''s not even that hard, use the energy to disrupt the masks functions before tearing the sweaty thing off... While I do enjoy the immortality it provides, it does get rather stuffy in it."

    Reima questions the mans insanity, how can he be so happy-go-lucky when he just murdered him.

    Kuretz "I know that look, don''t worry about it... Not the first time I made friend with my killer, that golden masked smug bastard makes it hard to hate him."

    Reima has a lightbulb flash above his head, "Ah, you must mean Talem"

    Kuretz crosses his arms and nods, "So you do know him. Doesn''t surprise me, it''s like he seeks to assist anyone and everyone... Some kind of fetish if you ask me." He continues,

    Kuretz "Hey, It''s been a couple decades since I''ve taken this thing off, I think it''s time to see how my brew is doing..."

    Reima "Brew?"

    Kuretz "Whisky... What''s the hardest part of brewing a good whisky? Time... And immortals have lots of it." He walks inside of the Colosseum with Reima trailing behind, he taps on the wall which shines yellow with essence before opening up and revealing a hidden room with large barrels inside.

    Kuretz "It''s basic, I know but I make do with what I find." he pulls out a tap and pierces the closest barrel with it, he reaches for a wooden mug and turns the tap which reveals the strong smelling golden brown liquid. He hands the mug to Reima before filling his own.

    Reima "You know I''m like eleven years old right?" Kuretz almost faints when he says this.

    Kuretz "I got beat by a brat like you? Man... I must be out of practise..." he downs his mug before coughing at it''s intensity, "Man that''s good shit, go on, drink up... I was drinking at your age so you should be fine, look how I turned out."

    Yeah that''s what I''m worried about Reima mentally replies as he takes a sip. The whisky is a lot harsher than those he remembers back on earth but it''s a change from the stream water he''s had to consume until now.

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 54 Absolver Female Unmasked XXX Rated

    Reima wakes up with a terrible headache, he looks around for something to soothe his parched throat and finds a mug with presumably water in it, he downs it in one gulp and almost vomits at the taste of whisky. He remembers last night, drinking with Kuretz and telling stories to each other about their lives. Kuretz seemed very curious about his unusual eyes and was saddened at the experiments he had to undergo as a child to become a Witcher, Kuretz told of his home in the mountains, a cold desolate place that is almost impossible to survive alone in. His father was the only remaining member of his family after the destruction of Raslan and the subsequent power struggle to gain control over the essence mines. Ofcourse the Guide stopped most conflict by creating Absolvers, immortal warriors used to fight their wars for their god.

    Looking to his right he spies Kuretz faced down the table they had set up, they had ended up naming the barrel of whisky, Essence of booze... They had only dented the large quantity contained inside which had spurred Kuretz to drink more than was advisable. The resulting killer headache he was experiencing is one of the negatives to almost drowning in alcohol. Luckily for Reima his genetically enhanced body flushes out alcohol quickly and will ease the pulsing pain in his skull in around 10-20 minutes.

    After around an hour a groggy Kuretz wakes up and wipes his face, "What day is it?" he asks trying to confirm how long they were drinking.

    Reima "I don''t think we spent more than a single night drinking, if we did then colour me surprised."

    Kuretz "Good, I don''t want another Rakkio incident happening..."

    Reima "Rakkio?"

    Kuretz "I think he created the stagger style people use nowadays..." he says rubbing his temples.

    Reima "Scum."

    Kuretz "He''s an alright guy, if abit absentminded... It''s those who abuse his teachings to fight dishonourably... Like me for instance."

    Reima "Yeah but atleast when you cheat and fight unfairly it''s amusing rather than infuriating."

    They both laugh when they remember their fight in the arena.

    Reima "So, can you show me how you can remove masks again?"

    Kuretz "Why? Want one for yourself?"

    Reima rapidly shakes his head, "I think we should free the Prospects that are slowly going more insane, we both hate the Guides so why wouldn''t you stop them using the Prospects to train their own private army..."

    ...

    Kuretz raises an eyebrow "Youknow kid, I''ve never even thought about it that way... Youknow what, you''re on." He drags Reima out of his secret room and into the centre of the Colosseum, he puts his mask back on before making his hand glow white with Fold particles.

    Kuretz "It''s rather easy if you know how to do it, all you need to do is disrupt the masks functions and disconnect it''s bond to the person... It acts rather like a parasite so if you split the bond you''ll be able to remove it." He demonstrates by concentrating the white glow on his fingers before jamming them under the mask, it fiddles around a bit before getting a grip and pulling it off.

    Kuretz "Easy enough... Now, lets find you someone to practise on." Reima doesn''t question his unwillingness to let Reima test on himself.

    After a day and a half of practising Reima finally manages to pull the mask from a female Prospect, she seems shocked and starts touching her face before sobbing. She hugs Reima legs while trying to say thank you but doesn''t manage to vocalise it through her unused vocal cords.

    Kuretz "Nice one kid... It took me a couple years to actually learn how to do this, for you to do it in a day or two is crazy!" He says as the woman continues to hold Reima like he''s her only life-line.

    Eventually Reima has to explain to the woman that he has a job to do and asks Kuretz whether he can take care of the people he unmasks.

    Kuretz "It''s a big thing you''re asking of me Reima... But I know a few ways to gather plenty of food and water, but before you start removing every mask you come across we might need some help. If you survive Risryn come back here and we can talk about saving the rest."

    Reima nods and leaves to defeat the last Marked one in the Harbour.

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    He travels back through the Oratian quarter while avoiding the Prospects he previously defeated and travels to the Harbour, the ruins of ships are present in the water as Prospects walk aimlessly around. He fights through the ones blocking his path as he finds the Marked one inside of a shipwrecked ruin that somehow made its way on land... Maybe a tsunami carried the boat over here? Reima guesses it was probably the case.

    Looking at the Marked one leaning against the rotten wood he examines them, black wooden tribal mask with white things that resemble teeth and red ribbons sprouting from it''s top. The man wears an outfit that probably belonged to a sailor at one point, he''s barefoot but has tribal-like guards around his ankles.

    Reima examines his surroundings and finds a rusted half broken sword in the ground, deciding to test his improvement with telekinesis he lifts the sword before bringing it back and aiming at the Marked one before trying to shoot it at them.

    The sword shoots at an average speed soundlessly at the unaware man before sinking into their arm, it doesn''t seem fast enough to pierce completely but it''s at least stopped him from using that arm.

    Reima blinks behind the marked one who''s turning towards where the sword was thrown, they try to pull the sword out of their arm but find another one sticking from their chest... Looking behind they see Reima with a grin and his sword stuck firmly in their back.

    Reima "Sorry about this, but I''ll make it up to you later!" The confused man slowly fades to yellow dust as Reima sheaths his sword on his back.

    All the Marked ones are down, what''s left is to ascend the mines and fight Risryn. Reima grins and starts walking towards the bridge that connects to the Hunting Grounds and the Tower of Adal.

 55 Trying to make you see Risryn...

    Once on the bridge Reima heads up the stairs that lead towards the tower, he reaches the alter that Talem was previously resting at and continues until he reaches the shimmering door. The glowing map shows no remaining yellow or red dots meaning that the Marked ones have been defeated and the doors is able to be open. Reima make sure he is prepared for the ascension up the mines and eventually the tower, due to it''s huge structure it might take a couple days to reach Risryn depending on how the paths are.

    The door folds away from his touch to reveal a long hallway lit by Essence, Reima decides to store a relatively large amount of Essence just incase he can make use of it... It is an energy source after all.

    The hall opens out into a mine absolutely chock full of Prospects, a door on his left that probably leads downwards deeper into the mines and on the right a steep incline that leads upwards.

    Reima starts fighting multiple Prospects at once, they seem weaker than the ones outside... They lack the nomal cognitive decision making that made them hard to beat, this has caused them to act on instinct. Most are just sitting beside the Essence deposits trying to get as close as possible to them... The addictive properties of it have probably scrambled their minds.

    Reima doesn''t forget to search for treasure as he ascends, he finds an interesting mask from the game, the Folded mask. It''s made from a number of seperate stone shards that have eyes painted on them... In the game is shrouded your face with mist or smoke and the eyes blinked, perhaps it increases the range of vision? Either way, it''s nothing more than a souvenir for Reima since he doesn''t trust the other Dimensional beings intentions.

    As he gets closer to the top of the mine and into the tower the Prospects start decreasing in number, Reima guesses because most of them kept falling to their deaths... They aren''t the most cautious individuals he had noticed.

    Reima climbs the last steps in the mine and comes to a gold gilded hallway with more steps leading upwards.

    He continues forward past a large gold library and some kind of indoor garden? He looks down the hallway and spots the large gold fence gates that Risryn resides in. Walking to observe inside he spots Risyn, a rather tall female with black hair and the same mask Silan from the tutorial area wore, she wears all black ragged boots, pants and loose robes with what looks like stone or rough metal shoulder pads. Shes fighting a Prospect when Reima looks over, the Prospect seems very skilful but with a well timed Forsaken parry Risryn brutally strikes them in the face. It seems to disorient them but Risryn is just getting started... She picks the Prospect up by their neck with surprising strength and hangs them over the huge drop to the bottom of the tower, grabbing their mask she uses Kuretz technique and removes the mask before dropping them in the hole, permanently killing them.

    After a moment of watching the Prospects body roll and flail down the large pit she turns to face Reima, she twitches slightly in surprise?

    Risryn "You''re a long way from home traveller, what is your purpose here?"

    Reima grins "To stick it to the Guides and save the Prospects from being used as tools of war... A good reason right?"

    Risryn "Foolish, they will send their army of Absolvers against you.. You won''t last."

    Reima "Enough of that, I want to know what you''re purpose of being here is."

    She brushes the dust off of her black robes before replying, "Same as you traveller, to "Stick it to the Guides" As you said... Anyone wishing to become an Absolver will end their permanent end at my hands."

    Reima "I don''t want to question your resolve but isn''t that counter intuitive?"

    Her head turns to the side in a rare expression of emotion, "How so?"

    Reima "You remaining here and killing Prospects is just training the exceptional ones, if you ever get beat the Guides will have a powerful Absolver capable of beating the best... Considering that with immortal soldiers, numbers are rather irrelevant, you''re doing the world a disservice."

    She seems to ponder his words carefully before asking him a question, "What would you do in my stead?"

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    Reima "I would do what I''m doing now, removing Prospects from this sick immoral training ground... I could use your help to protect the ones who don''t wish to put their masks back on when the Absolvers eventually attack. Your skill is known far past this ruined city and it will provide force behind our cause."

    Risryn "The Absolvers are immortal too, you forget..."

    Reima laughs "Are you silly? I just watched you kill an "Immortal" five seconds ago." Risryn looks slightly embarrassed at her mistake.

    Risryn straitens up as she makes her decision, "I will join you, but first you will have to show me your own resolve." She drops into a low Forsaken stance and her whole body starts radiating white Fold particles.

    Reima "shit" he manages to get out as she materialises her sword and almost teleports to his location while trying to stab him.

 56 Providing Absolver-lution

    With Risryn''s massively increased speed which dwarfs Olympic athletes she expertly follows Reima around slashing her rapier like sword at him. Reima is only managing to dodge with Observation haki working over time and Windfall techniques, he''s covered in small scratches from where he had barely escaped death.

    Reima "Going all SuperSaiyan is cheating!"

    Risryn "Stop running and face me!" She shouts with... Joy? Who knew Risryn was a sadist.

    Reima unsheathes his own sword and starts parrying her blade as she lunges at him, her increased speed had made her slightly unable to change direction mid lunge Reima had noted.

    He casts Quen to provide a buffer in case he makes a mistake and continues trading blows with Risryn.

    The masked female during this fight has been surprised at the number of abilities Reima had shown as a normal human, definitely better than all those talent-less Prospects that''d come and bother her on a daily basis.

    Risryn had started using her Forsaken style more seriously as the fight continued, expertly diverting Reima''s blade to the side before performing a quick stab as counter attack. To dodge these quick blows Reima had to blink out of the way with Elder Blood... This seemed to only excite Risryn more as she became faster and more agile.

    Reima decides to place a Yrden trap on the floor to try and slow her, she get''s caught in the trap but it barely slows her. The sudden change in speed allows Reima to finally go on the offensive, he slashes at her wrist by barely makes a flesh wound before performing a spinning back kick, the strike is successful and knocks her weapon out of her hand. In response to this Risryn channels Fold energy and telekinetically rips Reima steel sword from his grip sending it flying toward her. Not allowing his enemy to wield is weapon again he uses the Elder Blood to telekinetically direct the weapon away from her, his powers are not yet strong enough to completely resist her''s but they can disrupt what''s shes trying to do.

    Reima "Youknow, It''s rude for a girl to touch a mans sword without permission!"

    Risryn "I could say the same to you!" she shouts at him clearly not understanding the implications to her statement.

    Reima "What!? That doesn''t even make sense!"

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    She huffs at his response and covers her fists in bladed Fold energy before sprinting at him again. She is a lot more flexible than most other Forsaken users but still manages to deliver heavy fist strikes, the blades cut into his flesh as he blocks. Reima kicks at her waist causing he to jump back and straight into the Yrden trap again, Reima continues with various palm, fist and leg strikes until he gets countered and thoroughly beaten by Risryn. The only thing going for Reima is the fact that her initial speed boost seemed to drain a lot of her stamina, the fight has gone on for around 10 minutes and both of them were exhausted. Reima punches her in the face but receives a kick as she falls to the ground, they both lay on the ground a meter apart breathing heavily.

    Reima "Ha, ha... Whaddya say that we make it a draw?"

    Risryn "Never!"

    She tries to get up but Reima decides to finish this with Igni, he blast a concentrated stream of fire beside her head, singing some loose hairs. She stares at Reima in disbelief as she grumbles something.

    Reima speaks from the floor, "What was that? I didn''t hear you."

    Risryn "It''s a draw... Don''t make me say it again."

    Reima lifts his arms up from his lying spot and gives a half-hearted cheer, Risryn proceeds to take a seat on a white marble bench not far away from him. They rest for a while before Risryn starts asking questions about his plan.

    Risryn "Most of the Prospects are rather insane, even if we take their masks off they will still be unstable."

    Reima "I have Kuretz looking after them in the Colosseum."

    Risryn mutters "That drunk asshole?" but Reima''s hearing still picks it up.

    Reima "He''s alright you know, share a drink with him, tell a few stories and he opens up to you like a whores bedroom... Plus he is the one who created the technique to remove masks, I assume you learnt it from him."

    Risryn gives a snort, "He told you he alone created it? It doesn''t surprise me he wanted to continue inflating his ego."

    Reima "So, I''m guessing you had a hand in it then?"

    Risryn "He was but a child when he wandered into this city, I assisted his development... Unfortunately he doesn''t seem to have grown up at all over the centuries."

    They continue to talk for a couple hours until they are interrupted by an old voice.

    An old man stands at the door way with two Absolvers behind him wearing their trademark cloaks.

    ??? "Ah, Lady Risryn, you have captured the heretic that''s been parading around these sacred ground. We must reward you for your loyalty.

    Risryn "You deserve no loyalty, warmonger."

    Reima "Yo Rin, can we throw this guy off the tower too?"

    She seems to like the idea a lot and nods, "Yes, I believe we shall."

    The ensuing battle was only difficult due to their previous exhausting fight, but a few hours had given them the strength to best these medium level Absolvers, Reima and Risryn tear the masks from their faces showing their pale horrified expressions before they''re gutted by the duo''s blade.

    The old man after witnessing his puppets get butchered starts backing away and getting ready to sprint away, He is blocked off by a sudden materialising Reima who drags him by his thick robes to the ledge of the tower."

    ??? "YOU CAN''T DO THIS, I AM A FOLLOWER OF THE ONE TRUE GOD! GOD WILL PROTECT ME AND DESTROY YOU WITH DIVINE RETRIBUTION!"

    He screams and shouts as Reima teaches Risryn how to play rock paper scissors to decide who gets to toss the old man from the tower.

    Unfortunately Risryn wins and boots the old man so hard that his pelvis is probably firmly in his throat before he drops to his doom.

    Reima "Youknow, I''ll never quite understand religious fanatics..."

    Risryn "There is not much to understand... They believe themselves above others because they know the truth of the world, therefore they must Shepard others in their way of thinking... Be it passively or forcefully.

 57 Ghosts and Gleam

    It''s been half a year since Reima fought Risryn ontop of the Tower of Adal and thing seems to be improving for the Prospects, true to his word Reima had with the help of Risryn, Kuretz and Talem been travelling around the ruined city to unmask the Prospects. With the ones still mentally stable trying to assist their saviours the area around the Colosseum became a hub of activity, it''s close proximity to the docks allowed fish to be caught and shared amongst the still recovering people.

    The ruins around the Colosseum have been patched up as much as possible with the limited materials they had, most Prospects had no experience outside of fighting so it was up to Reima, Talem and Kuretz to teach the basics of hunting, gathering, construction and various other things that the Guide neglecting to teach them. The new village holds around one thousand Prospects, and when considering that these people have been fighting for centuries, it''s unlikely anyone other than the Guides is stupid enough to attack. Reima knew Absolvers would be sent in bulk so he had requested a meeting with the village elders, Kuretz, Risryn, Talem and the first woman he had unmasked Kalini. With them he had formed a small militia made from Prospects that were willing to don the masks and fight again.

    With Risryn as the captain of the 50 man militia they were trained in almost all forms of combat, Risryn personally made sure that each individual member was around a low level Absolver and with her teaching she had managed this in the short time they had. Reima was meditating when it was reported that they were raided by a 10 man team of Absolvers but grinned when he heard Risryn had personally gone to greet them. When Reima had checked on the results he wasn''t surprised to find all 10 impaled around the entrances of the village with their masks torn off and on full display to the surroundings. Needless to say, after this same thing happened three times the Guides stopped sending their puppets to their deaths.

    Reima wasn''t doing nothing during the time the village was being built, he had trained his martial arts with Risryn, Kuretz and Talem, and due to his learning ability his martial prowess soared. If he had to rank himself in martial arts he would say he''s around third in ability, under Risryn and Talem... Reima is unsure how strong Talem actually is but considering Risryn says he was around when she first donned the mask, he''s probably pretty strong.

    With the sacred city of Adal becoming their territory they had to remove the tribal''s that followed Cargal and Kilnor, while it wasn''t possible to kill either of the twins they eventually just locked them in a reinforced stone room before blocking the exit. With both twins chained to either side of the room they couldn''t even kill themselves to escape.

    Now at the present time, Reima can be seen meditating in a basic room with comfortable looking furniture when his door is suddenly knocked on.

    Reima "Come in!" He opens his eyes to observe his guest.

    Talem enters the room, his weird gold mask glinting in the candle light. "Rei, we have a problem."

    Reima "Guides again?" he grins thinking about the creative punishments that he could try.

    Talem shakes his head, "No... I think you better see for yourself."

    He escorts Reima to a part of the village where they had stockpiled Essence to keep people from becoming addicted again. When they enter the room that''s softly glowing yellow from the Essence Reima spots an unusual sight, a ghost like figure covered in Fold energy that makes his medallion shake like a dragons standing infront of him.

    Innara "I am Innara, greetings to you, old young one." it says in a quiet tone that sounds like multiple voices strewn together to mimic human speech.

    Reima "Ah, I think I know what this is about... Does it have something to do with the Essence mines?"

    Innara "Very astute of you, yes, a member of my race is attempting to fuse our two worlds together... If he succeeds all life on this planet will die."

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    Talem "Wait, if you know about this then why do you not stop him?" he crosses his arms and asks sternly

    Innara "With the power of the substance you call Essence, he has taken a physical form. As Etherans we are unable to attack him in this physical state, that is why I must ask for your assistance."

    Talem "What will be required of us?" He asks not really trusting the strange being who''s race assisted in the torture of the Prospects.

    Innara "You will need to descend into the depths of the mines where Arcell dwells, his use of the Fold has created Gleam, a substance almost impervious to harm due to it''s connection to our realm... As long as Arcell lives the gleam will spread throughout the mines and use the Essence inside to fuse the two planes of existence."

    Reima "So, just pop down and kill Arse hole. Seems easy enough."

    Innara "Unfortunately he has an army of corrutped puppets obeying his commands... You will have to fight your way through them."

    Reima nods his head and goes to gather his friends to descend into the mines.

 58 Downfall Dungeon Destruction...

    Reima, Risryn Kuretz and Talem stand before the downward path towards the mines depths, the spiritual being Innara hovers over them and assures them it... She? Will assist them in any way possible.

    Reima "Before we go, I need to thank you guys for coming..." He had previous experience with this dungeon due to running it many times solo in the game, having them assist him would make it easier considering the difficult will not change based on the number of participants like in the game.

    Kuretz "Don''t sweat it... It''s our world this guy wants to destroy too ya-know?" He pats Reima on the back roughly.

    Risryn "This was to be our main duty as Absolvers, before the Guides altered our paths."

    Talem nods at him as they all start stepping down the criss-crossing wooden walk ways that pepper the mine. The Essence mine is a Prospect junkies wet dream, the walls are completely covered in the valuable resource which is probably why so many were lured deeper inside.

    They pass through a couple folded doors before stepping into a large room filled with mine carts and tools, looking around the group sees a number of white stone-like human statues that seems to be under attack from Arcells corrupted Prospects.

    Innara appears behind them and explains, "I created these statues to prevent further spread of Arcells Gleam, they wish to destroy them to increase the rate of corruption."

    Reima "Well, Arse hole is gonna be dead soon but I guess we have to get past these guys anyway." Kuretz snickers at Arcells nickname.

    They all split off and engage different groups of Prospects while they are busy trying to destroy the statues... Needless to say the Prospects didn''t stand a chance, even with their large numbers, the skill and power displayed by the four would awe even the strongest in this world.

    After brushing themselves off and Reima greedily looking for any drops they continue through the next Folded door.

    The next rooms and areas didn''t provide much challenge to the group besides stalling them for a while... Reima ended up finding the chests he was looking for and he took the Essence fragments and stored them within his Folded space.

    The group eventually come across a large arena looking area, a white pillar of Gleam provided by Innara that would heal them if they needed it stands just outside of it. Inside the area are a number of Prospects each wielding various weapons like bladed gauntlets, swords or bo staffs, some have even taken up pick axes to try defend from the invaders.

    The group jump inside of the area and start fighting the 70 or so Prospects that immediately charge at them, since this isn''t a training exercise Reima uses Igni and spews forth a massive torrent of flames that almost incinerates all of them.

    Talem "It''s a shame I''ve not managed to use that peculiar Fold manipulation yet..."

    Risryn perks up as she looks at the devastation "You taught him your techniques? Why have I not heard of this..."

    Reima "Well, Talem was more of an experiment to see if he could use a special kind of energy... I''ll tell you more about it after we''re done here.

    ??? "Oh, don''t stop now.. I would truly hope to hear of your fascinating use of our Energy..." What sounds like many voices speaks at one in a manner similar to Innara.

    They all turn around and see another Ghostly being, instead of Innara''s floating circle that hovers behind her this one has a triangle...

    Reima "Arse hole... I mean Arcell...." He scratches the back of his head at his slip.

    Kuretz nearly coughs up a lung at Reima''s slip and he thinks he can feel Risryn''s grin from under her mask.

    Arcell "My, It doesn''t surprise me that your pathetic race lacks our eloquence... Just mimicking your vocal cords makes me want to srehhsr my Gleam all over the place..."

    The confusing string of words said by Arcell is noticed by everyone but they don''t have time to retort as he materialises a huge hulking man that wears a hood covered by Gleam, his robes go down to his knees and a massive metal pauldron sits on his shoulder. It roars at the group in a berserker like rage.

    Arcell "Have fun with my toy here, I have a rather important task to get to" He says in his weird multifaceted voice before disappearing in a flash of light.

    The group prepare for a difficult battle by dipping into their various stances, Talem and Reima use the Windfall style, Kuretz in the Khalt style and Risryn in the Forsaken style. The man-No, creature charges at Reima first but is easily dodged and slowed by an expert use of Windfall, the others lay on a brutal string of combo''s on it and while it tries to defend it can''t deal with the amount of damage the three ancient masked immortals are pumping out.

    Risryn jumps high into the air to kick it''s face that is around 8ft off the floor, it connects with his Gleam encrusted face which knocks it onto it''s back.

    Reima uses Armament Haki on his foot and stomps on it''s face, crushing the Gleam into it''s skull like shrapnel. It''s body stills as it starts disintegrating into the air.

    Kuretz "That big guy went down easier than I''d thought..."

    Reima "Yeah well, Bigger they are and all that jazz..."

    They approach a giant Gleam barricade that blocks their progress towards a windmill like structure, they could probably just climb over it but Innara flashes into existance and makes the barricade fade away under her power.

    Reima "Are you trying to show off? I''m sure we could have just climbed over it..."

    Innara "Like you mortals I have the thing called pride... Doing nothing to assist you would depress me." It floats in the for a moment for vanishing like Arcell.

    Kuretz "Can inter-dimensional being made from spirit energy get lonely?"

    The others shrug as they continue forward over the bridge.

    They start to hear flowing water as the walk and eventually come across a waterfall flowing in front of some old ruins, they look similar the the architecture of the forgotten ruins in the swamp outside of the Tower of Adal...

    Reima "Another forgotten ruin? No wonder some whack god is angry..."

    Risryn "No... Not forgotten but hidden, the Guides use to talk about their god protecting them from his wrath... This is probably the place they took refuge."

    Reima sighs "It always leads back to the Guides doesn''t it... Someone should just exterminate them already."

    The others nod as the walk into the temple ruins and into another Folded door.

    Inside of the room are large spikes coming from some of the walls and large broken statues of what seems to be people in Guides robes, looking around they find a strange bell and a red Folded door that doesn''t open.

    Reima "To open the door we have to ring the bell, but once rung we''re gonna get rushed but many of them... You guys ready?"

    Risryn materialises her Rapier like sword and nods with the others, Reima touches the bell with Fold energy and it starts ringing itself, causing fluctuation in the air and a loud sounds to bounce around the room. Once rung Prospects start flashing into existence at the corners of the room before charging at them, these people have Gleam encroaching on their bodies much like the large creature Arcell had summoned to attack them earlier. Due to Gleams apparent indestructibility the Prospects are slightly more durable than the others they had faced, but while the Gleam couldn''t be pierced or cut, impact could still travel through them.

    Reima who had just impaled a masked man through the chest with a Haki enhanced fist looks around and sees that almost all of the Prospects have already been dealt with. He pulls his hand out, allowing the Masked man to disappear as he performs a spinning kick on the last remaining one.

    Reima "Easy enough right?"

    Kuretz laughs "I don''t know why you even bothered to ask us for help, this place is a joke!"

    Talem "You speak too soon my friend, we haven''t yet reached Arcell." He says in a stoic voice... Over the months Talem has slowly adopted the wise grandfather persona towards everyone, whether on not he''s doing this on purpose is unknown... Maybe he''s started acting his age?

    The group continue fighting through eight more rooms before they reach some stairs that sit below walls covered in murals and artistry, Risryn and Talem examine them but don''t come to any concrete conclusions on their meaning. As they get to the top of the stairs they look down at another arena like area, Innara being their usual hopeful self has provided another Gleam healing totem.

    They look down into the arena and don''t spot anyone inside, Gleam seems to completely cover this area and the space around them seems to be more unstable. The others look at Reima''s shaking medallion.

    Kuretz "Youknow, I never got round to asking about that thing... What is it?"

    The others nod, wishing to know more about Reima mysterious artifact.

    Reima gentle lifts the medallion in his hand to show them. "I was given it after completing my trials to become a Witcher, the same trials that had killed almost everyone else of my group. It shakes when it senses high levels of magic or monsters..."

    Talem "Magic?"

    Risryn "Monsters?" they both say at the same time before glaring at each other.

    Reima "As I said earlier, I''ll tell you once we finished Arcell."

    They all hope into the arena after preparing for a fight, Arcell appears but doesn''t seem to want to say anything... He materialises a shirtless monk that only wears robe trousers and sandals, the rest of his body is covered in Gleam. The monk stands from his previous meditation and gets into what seems like a modified Windfall stance, it appears before Kuretz who goes flying and hits the nearby wall. It''s movement is similar to Risryn when she powers up...

    Reima "It''s stolen your style Rin!" he grins to himself as Risryn powers herself up and starts going toe to toe against the impostor. Whether Risryn has more experience or her own style is more advanced than the monks, she is definitely stronger than it.

    The monk materialises a Gleam bo staff and tries to jab Risryn, it''s jab is deflected and it tries to Windfall dodge away but Risryn impales the monk through the neck, killing it instantly.

    The group looks at her blankly and Kuretz speaks without speaking. "Is it weird to be turned on right now?" Talem smacks him across the back of the head to appease the fuming Risryn.

    Reima "Alright guys instead of fighting why don''t we call in our makeshift ladder spirit..."

    As he says this Innara appears and destroys the Gleam barrier.

    Innara "Being compared to a ladder, these are dark days indeed." It speaks in a monotone voice before vanishing.

    Talem "Perhaps you shouldn''t bully the powerful inter-dimensional being?"

    Reima "Nah, she''s cool... Probably."

    They approach the Folded gate across the room and when it opens they all gasp... Inside is a walkway made of Gleam that leads to another doorway, but the thing that amazes them is the endless white abyss on all sides... The walkway floats in this space between the doors that seem to lead to nowhere...

    Kuretz "Ok, this is fucked up!"

    Reima "I wonder what kind of power it takes to create something like this... Is this what the other dimension looks like?"

    The cautiously walk to the other door making sure each foothold is secure... Falling into the abyss seems like a worse fate than death, especially to the masked immortals.

    The next room isn''t much different, random pieces of land float around a larger landmass that seems to be the centre of their orbit, a boat drifts past them as they spot a large amount of Gleam encrusted Prospects charging at them. Fed up by the constant stream of these creatures they start throwing them into the abyss, after the corrupted people get a few hundred meters away from the main landmass they start disintegrating before eventually fading to nothingness...

    Kuretz "For the love of whatever gods exist lets get through this without falling into whatever the fuck that is!" he shouts as his nerves almost give way at the weird way reality seems to be acting.

    They continue fighting through many of these weird floating landmasses until they walk through the final folded door, a set of stairs lead to what looks like an arena overlooked by a palace gilded in gold. They prepare themselves as they walk inside and are confronted by Arcell.

    Reima "So Arse hole, got any more minions to sacrifice to us?"

    Arcell maintains his height a few meters above the ground and a grey silhouette slowly materialises out of thin air, Arcells body doesn''t have any defining characteristics apart from the fact that he doesn''t have any... His body is coated in Gleam with shrouds him like a cloak, it floats and fluctuates around him like it''s a living creature.

    Arcell "No, I think you''ve had enough fun..." It says in an eerie voice as the triangle behind it morphs into a black blade that has Gleam covering parts of the guard. Reima recognises it as his previous favoured weapon in the game... In the lore it was stated to be unbreakable due to it existing in both dimensions at once, Reima desperately wants to reclaim his old weapon as he eyes it.

    Arcell powers up with Fold energy before lunging at Reima who dodges with Windfall, it doesn''t seem to slow Arcell when he impacts the shadow but Risryn delivers a heavy kick to his side when he missed his strike. Arcell doesn''t seem to register her kick as he swings his sword at Reima again, in reaction to this Reima draws his steel sword from his back and parries it away, the impact was stronger than a human but compared to a Griffin it was nothing. Arcell gives a weird chime bell sound as Talem kicks down on it''s knee causing it to stumble, angered by the group skill Arcell vanishes before reappearing with three other clones that each use different combat stances. They each power themselves up with bladed Fold energy and shields before charging at each of their designated targets.

    Reima is left alone with Arcell due to him having unique abilities that could catch him off guard. Arcell hovers mid air before spinning towards Reima while slashing rapidly.

    Reima "OH COME ON! That''s not even remotely fair!" He shouts as he uses both normal Quen and Elder blood Infused Quen to increase his speed. Reima ducks under the spinning arc of death and slashes at Arcell''s knee which causes him to stumble and stop his weird attack, Reima uses this oppertunity to slam a Haki enhanced elbow into it''s grey Gleam encrusted face. The strike seems to effect Arcell more than Reima had initially expected as it screams while clutching it''s face... Perhaps Haki''s spiritual elements effects Etherans more than physical strikes? Either way Reima continues hammering Arcell with Haki infused attacks until it backs away. Reima is joined by his friends who seems to have made quick work of the clones, Reima blinks and drives a fierce kick into a surprised Arcell''s chest. It backs off while clutching it''s chest as Innara suddenly appears behind the group, she approaches Arcell who slowly floats off the floor to challenge her.

    Arcell "Will you betray your own kin for some pathetic mortals?"

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    Innara "Yes." She says without hesitation before waving her hand which causes Arcell to shudder and drop to the floor as the Fold energy around him is sucked towards Innara.

    Innara looks at the group, "I thank you for stopping Arcell, his fusing of the realms wouldn''t just have destroyed your world but ours aswell... Arcell was deluded into thinking he was making us more powerful as a single realm... What he didn''t understand was that we only exist as a result of the mental energies created by mortals, once all of you were gone, we would slowly fade aswell."

    The sombre mood is interrupted by Kuretz who hugs all of them tightly together, "WE DID IT! We saved the world..s? Lets get drunk when we get back!"

    Risryn "How do we get back... I''d rather not travel through those broken realms again..."

    Innara "With the death of Arcell the stability of space has improved, I''ll open a wormhole with the remaining energy from Arcell to transport you to your village."

    As shes about to take them away Reima suddenly speaks up, "Wait a sec!!"

    They all look at him confused as he scrambles towards the pile left behind by Arcell''s body, he pushes it all out of the way as he finds Arcell''s sword which is now glowing with a soft yellow, similar to Essence. He also finds a glowing yellow orb which when examined materialises into a large scarf made of rippling Fold energy and Gleam. "Gleam cloak" Reima mutters as he thinks back to one of the items you can acquire from the Essence store in-game. He quickly wraps it around his neck when he remembers that Gleam is indestructible before turning to the group sword in hand.

    Talem points to his new scarf and asks Innara "Is that safe? You said Gleam corrupts beings..."

    Innara "It''s safe, the Gleam was being used by Arcell but now without his influence, it''s just a rather strong artifact."

    Kuretz runs to Reima, "Yo is there any cool loot for me?"

    Reima "First come first serve old man!"

    The others grin under their masks as they watch the man-child and child-man-child squabble with each other.

 59 Leaving Absolver

    After the group had been teleported back to the village Reima was sat down on a table by his friends to explain the various inconsistencies in his powers, knowledge and past. He explains to them about his bodies special constitution that allows him to travel between alternate realities, that his world has an energy called magic which allows people to manipulate the laws of physics.

    Kuretz "So, you''re from another world? That pretty cool!" he says after taking a gulp of alcohol.

    Talem "This is why I''m unable to use your techniques."

    Risryn "But why are you able to use our techniques?" she says while leaning on the table.

    Reima "I don''t know... Maybe my energy is a higher form of your energy? I''m able to mimic Fold energy so it must be something like that." Talem and Risryn nod at his vague answer.

    Reima "So, I never told you guys why I actually came here... I came here to learn martial arts and increase my combat capabilities, there is going to be a large conflict in my world which I need to train for..."

    Risryn "Is there anything we can do to help? You did help save our world, perhaps it''s our chance to repay you."

    Kuretz "I want to see your world Reima! You speak of monsters and magic... Sexy sorceresses? I need to see it!"

    Reima "It won''t be happening for a long time... But I could use your help if you''re willing."

    Talem "What is the conflict you speak of?"

    Reima "Its another race, similar to humans who wish to steal the powers of a special person who''s similar to me. Once they obtain her power they will invade my world and destroy all who oppose them.

    Risryn "Sounds similar to the Guides" She grumbles.

    Reima "Yeah.. I need to leave this world to get stronger... I can still get stronger here but not as fast as I need... I intend to leave tomorrow in-fact."

    ...

    Kuretz "I guess we''ll drink to see you off then!" He gets up and grabs three other mugs before filling them to the brim with his home brewed whisky, he plops them down in-front of everyone as he kicks his legs up on the table.

    Talem uses the techniques taught by Kuretz and Risryn to remove his mask, his face is of a 30 yearold man with short brown hair, stubble and brown eyes.

    The all look to Risryn who''s never removed her mask before...

    She reaches up to clasp her mask before slowly removing it. Kuretz almost chokes on his drink as they behold Risryn''s beautiful face, blue eyes, black hair and Asian face. Her skin looks like it''s been untouched by all the fighting she''s been through, Her lips are pale red, they part as everyone watches them.

    Risryn "Stop staring, lets drink." She holds up her mug to clink with the others.

    "Cheers!" They call out before they start drinking all their troubles away.

    Reima wakes up feeling a similar sensation in his head, why does he let Kuretz talk him into this? He tries to push himself off of the bed but hears a feminine moan as he tries to grasp the sheet...

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    "No..." Reima thinks to himself as he lifts the cover to show a naked Risryn''s already awake face.

    ... "Morning?" He says as he rubs his temples trying to think of a way to escape castration.

    She removes Reima''s hand from her breast, "So early in the morning... You want another round or?"

    Reima "Sorry!" He puts his head on the bed to mimic a Japanese dogeza.

    Risryn "It''s fine... To be honest it''s been a while and I had to choose between you and Kuretz... I still see him as the kid I had raised so, well you already know the answer..." She eyes his muscular teenage body as she gets out of bed to dress herself.

    Risryn "You''re leaving today right? Lets get you ready before we say goodbye."

    Reima nods and quickly gets dressed before following her out... The amused stare from Kuretz releases some of the tension he is feeling for having to leave.

    After he stores a large amount of food, drink (courtesy of Kuretz) and Essence shards Reima is stood in a clearing being watched by the majority of the village, Kuretz, Risryn Talem and Kalini say their goodbyes.

    Kuretz "Don''t take too long to visit Reima... It''ll be boring around here without you."

    Talem "It feels like only yesterday that I met you on the Plains outside of the city, you''ve learned well and I''m proud to have contributed to it." He dips his head towards Reima in respect

    Risryn steps towards him, "I know you feel awkward about last night, but I still consider us friends, Rei."

    Reima hugs Risryn and she steps back with the others, "I''m gonna miss you guys, I''ll come collect you when the conflict happens... It''s a shame I don''t have anything for you to contact me."

    Kuretz "Don''t worry about it, We''re still immortal you know?"

    Reima "Just watch out for the Guides... They will seek the secrets to removing masks, if they learn of the techniques they will wipe you out."

    Talem "We are aware of this, only us four know of the technique... No one else will learn of it."

    Reima nods as his worries are temporarily quelled, "I guess this is it, when I get back tell me how it looks from your end..."

    Reima had been contemplating where to go next to get stronger... His slow training with Haki had been irritating him, he had already come to the conclusion that the One pieces worlds residence have stronger souls than normal, allowing them to fully use Haki. To improve himself more Reima would need to improve his soul somehow, and he only knows of one place to do it.

    He focuses on the world he wishes to travel to before charging up the Elder Blood.

    The others watch as Reima''s body start glowing a bright Turquoise as he suddenly vanishes in a burst of light.

    Risryn looks on as the others talk about what just happened, Kuretz comes behind her and grasps her shoulder. "He''ll be fine..." She nods at his encouragement as they leave to improve the villages defences.

 60 World Intervention.

    This world hop feels weird to Reima, as he was charging up the power to jump into the world a sudden pain on his chest assault him. It felt like someone was branding him and as he jumped he blacked out, not from magical exhaustion but the world itself.

    A 15 yearold appears in a flash of Turquoise light inside of a jail cell, a suspicious flame also quickly flashes into and out of existence as it directs the teenagers destination. Reima is still wearing the outfit he came to like in Absolver, Shabu guard vest with flexible shorts and sandals, His Gleam cloak still sits on his shoulders as it drifts and ripples in response to his movement.

    A few hours later a groan is heard as Reima slowly opens his eyes. "Shit, am I getting rusty or something?" looking around he realises hes in the chosen undead''s cell. "I swear I tried to teleport to firelink shrine..." He looks around until a body comes crashing through the roof, a man, Oscar of Astora in his trademark knight armour looks through the hole at him before being blasted away by a huge hammer.

    Reima looks at the corpse which has a familiar white orb floating above it, grabbing it reveals a key that materialises in his hand. "Huh, Absolver and DarkSouls aren''t that different when I think about it..."

    He uses they key on his cell door before storing it away in his Folded space, the long corridor is covered by many grey skinned emaciated people... They have glowing red circles above their hearts like they had just been branded, remembering the pain in his chest Reima lifts his shirt and sees a similar glowing red circle above his heart. "Dark Sign..." The hallway rumbles and vibrates which draws him out of his thoughts, looking to his right he sees a dark room behind window bars, looking through them Reima sees two huge hulking behemoths that look like they''re made of stone. They carry huge hammers that probably weight a few tons... Asylum demons, Reima didn''t really stay long in the games Asylum which is why he''s surprised by the presence of these two giants. Quickly and quietly he runs through and past the Hollow undeads, up the stairs and through various rooms until he gets to a ladder.

    Once atop the ladder Reima walks into a courtyard with big doors made of some sort of metal, in the middle of the grass is a sword that points out of the earth surrounded by ash... Reima walks towards it and holds his hand over the bonfire, it sizzles as embers come to life as he gets closer until it bursts into flames which causes his medallion to shudder. Sitting next to it Reima feels complete relaxation and calm wash over him, it feels... Right? to sit next to this warmth, he mentally prepares himself for the giant demon on the other side of the doors before getting up and pushing against them. With his Witcher enhanced strength he pushes against the heavy doors which elicits a large metal screeching before they give way and allow him access. As soon as the doors are open Reima sprints to the left side of the large square courtyard to try and run through a slowly rising metal door, he just about gets through before a huge two or three story high stone demon jumps into the middle of the field, its hammer clutched its hands tightly.

    Reima gets past and the door shuts behind him, he continues down a staircase until he finds another bonfire... Deciding to see what would happen Reima grips the sword pierced into the ground and pulls it out, it''s rusty blade releases it''s grip on the ground as it blazes hotly in his hand. Reima steps away from the pile of ashes and tries to start another bonfire in a different place, he pierces the sword into the floor and tries to ignite it... Nothing happens, maybe it needs something else?

    He puts the sword back into it''s rightful place and lights the bonfire before continuing onwards.

    He dodges the arrows shot by the annoying hollow while pulling Arcell''s blade from his Fold Space and slashing it in half, the blade is superbly shard and will never get dull... Reima decides to use it instead of his two other blades that remain on his back for now. Reima comes to the balcony that overlooks the bonfire courtyard and walks up the stairs slightly before rolling out of the way, a large stone boulder comes rolling through and destroys a wall behind him.

    Reima walks inside the newly created hole and look at the man who gave him the key to his cell, Oscar of Astora.

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    Oscar "...Oh, you... You''re no Hollow, eh? Thank goodness... I''m done for, I''m afraid... I''ll die soon, then lose my sanity... I wish to ask something of you... You and I, we''re both Undead... Hear me out, will you?"

    Reima "Just drink your Estus and survive... I''ll hear your story afterwards." He was always confused at why Oscar didn''t just drink one of his five filled Estus flasks to survive...

    Oscar "I failed my first test... I''m not worthy of ringing the bells, I leave my dream to you... Please, don''t deny me this..." He holds out a large flask full of glowing yellow liquid and a key.

    Reima "You don''t need to die here, you will become hollow and stalk these halls until the world ends."

    Oscar "Thou who art Undead, art chosen... In thine exodus from the Undead Asylum, maketh pilgrimage to the land of Ancient Lords... When thou ringeth the Bell of Awakening, the fate of the Undead thou shalt know..." he slowly mutters to himself a few times before fading away, presumably due to his wounds.

    Reima "Man, it''s like the world itself scripted this event" He quietly says as he stores the key and Estus.

 61 Strengthening the Soul

    Reima leaves the room where Oscar was lying and travels up the stairs before killing the many hollows up there, he also deals with the armoured one relatively easily by dodging it''s obvious attacks and stabbing it through it''s open face plate.

    He backs away as he looks at the large fog gate, Reima doesn''t remember there being an explainable reason for these to exist... Perhaps they allow powerful beings to trap their prey?

    Either way Reima intends to go through, jump off the balcony and stab this big demon in the face.

    Placing his hand on the fog it allows him to slowly walk through it, he starts humming the DarkSouls battle music as he runs and leaps off the balcony with Arcell''s sword pointing downwards towards the demon.

    STAB

    The Demon gives a loud roar as it thrashes about with Reima still atop it, he decides that the safest place is probably on top of it so he channels Haki into his fingers before jamming them into it''s stone like skin to create a hand-hold. As it tries to get him off to crush him Reima is continually stabbing at it''s head and neck, with Arcell''s sword which he decides to now call Arcell he pierces it''s stony skin many times for around 5 minutes until it drops to it''s knees and collapsing.

    Reima "Easier than I''d thought..." he says as it''s soul is dragged towards him and into his chest where the Dark Sign is, it feels like an extra mouth that''s slurping on the Demons soul.... Weird.

    Picking up the key that had been dropped from the Demon he uses it to open the large doors that lead out of the Asylum. Walking outside the sky is covered by depressing grey clouds that seem to stop any rays of sunlight escaping towards the surface. Reima decides to see if he can get anything from the bird nest that you''d drop items on, as he approaches something speaks.

    ??? "Want soft, want warm... Give."

    Reima shrugs as he get a small amount of Essence and drops it into the nest.

    ??? "Warm, Soft. Take. After it says this a white orb appears and when Reima inspects it he finds two twinkling titanite.

    Reima "Nice. Thank you bird thing..."

    It doesn''t reply and Reima steps towards the ledge where that giant raven grabs you.

    He stands there tapping his foot until he is grabbed by large talons and taken towards Firelink shrine.

    The bird drops him roughly next to the bonfire and Reima brushes the dust off of himself as he looks to the man sitting nearby.

    Crestfallen Warrior "Well, what do we have here? You must be a new arrival. Let me guess. Fate of the Undead, right? Well, you''re not the first. But there''s no salvation here. You''d have done better to rot in the Undead Asylum¡­ But, too late now."

    Reima "What''s your name?" He asks the apathetic man with some irritation in his voice.

    Crestfallen Warrior "Youknow.. I think I''ve forgotten it, a pity..." Reima continues looking at him trying to tell whether or not he''s lying. "Don''t you have some misbegotten quest to get to? I''d hate to waste your time hehehehe." He starts chuckling out of no where, must''ve gone mad already.

    Reima ignores him and sits at the lit bonfire before trying to increase his level, in the game it was as easy as allocating stats but here he has no idea...

    He mediates next to the fire for a couple of hours before he starts trying to feel the DarkSign, he can feel the souls he had absorbed still inside of it like it''s some sort of container. He tries to draw some out when some knowledge makes it way into his mind, the knowledge pertains on how to use souls to increase his attributes...

    The attributes are :

    Vitality : Determines how healthy the body is which effects how much damage it can receive and still be functional, resistance to diseases and organ efficiency and effectiveness.

    Attunement : Determines how adaptable to magic the body is, how big the Mana pool is and how easy it is to draw out magic.

    Endurance : Determines how much stamina is available, how much weight a body can support and how resistant to bleeding a body is.

    Strength : Determines how much power muscles can generate.

    Dexterity : Determines how fast the senses are, coordination and overall control over muscles.

    Resistance : Determines how resistant to damage the body is, how resistant to poison and other external threats the body may have to deal with.

    Intelligence : Determines the capacity and capabilities of the brain, effects your ability to use sorcery formulas, magic manipulation and other intelligence based activities.

    Faith : Determines your belief in a god which results in the soul manifesting miracles, with enough Faith casting powerful lightning bolts or healing isn''t impossible.

    And the hidden stat, Humanity : With enough humanity the body will become more durable, ability to use chaos and for some reason it increases luck as well.

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    For Reima the best stats to increase would be, Strength, Dexterity, Intelligence and Attunement. Strength and Dexterity to increase his physical capabilities and Intelligence to allow him to cast better spells... One thing he''s wary of is Attunement, his body is already inherently magical due to the Elder Blood and he has no idea how it would effect him...

    He decides to use the souls to upgrade his Strength first, with his Witcher mutations he is currently fast enough to utilise Stronger muscles and quicker speeds.

    To increase your stats with souls you need to concentrate on your goal and Absorb the souls into your own, the reason for this is that your Soul is the template for which your body to grow... Your soul effects you body just as the things your body experiences effects your soul. It''s not like training your muscles to be stronger, it''s like changing the material that composes your muscles to become stronger. Reima''s muscles burn as he increases his Soul level and he starts to meditate to concentrate on the results.

    After 10 minutes Reima opens his eyes and checks his muscles, throwing a few jabs and swinging his sword a couple times he comes to the conclusion that the upgrade in strength is not additive but multiplicative... This means with his enhanced Witcher body his abilities will be many times greater than normal a normal undeads. he looks to the side at a large rock that probably weighs 600kg''s, approaching it he gets a good grip and lifts it... It''s a little difficult to lift it with it''s smooth surface but he raises it above his head with moderate ease. He drops it making the ground shudder slightly as the CrestFallen Warrior looks on astonished.

 62 Black Knight sheds a Tear...StoneRing.

    After increasing his strength Reima decides to introduce himself to the Cleric sat by the elevators before he starts fighting through the undead burg, he walks to he man with dirty blonde hair trimmed into a bowel cut, large armour, and shield and mace.

    Reima "Greetings." he nods at the Cleric.

    Petrus "Hello there. I believe we are not acquainted? I am Petrus of Thorolund. Have you business with us? If not then I''d appreciate you keeping your distance." He tries to say it politely but fails due to the substance of his sentence.

    Reima "Why? Do you have an issue with me?" His slitted eyes glare at Petrus.

    Petrus "I do not wish to converse with those touched by Chaos" He points to Reima''s eyes, "You came to the wrong person to deceive, as I am not as gullible as other Clerics."

    Reima decides it''s not worth dealing with another religious fanatic, especially one who despises his appearance based on unfounded assumptions.

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    Reima''s first goal is to get to Andre the blacksmith so he can restore his Witcher armour to a useable condition, his secondary goals include trying to cut the drakes tail off to acquire the drake sword, freeing the Sorcerer and the Pyromancer and also gathering as much titanite as possible. He nods to himself as he starts heading up the stairs towards the aqueduct? sewer? He dodges the firebombs chucked in his direction before viciously kicking the hollows off of the cliff in retaliation.

    Entering the damp sewer drain that gives off an aweful smell Reima dispatches the rat waiting in ambush before head through and into the Undead Burg.

    He enters and starts killing hollows left and right, they don''t display any skill or intelligence besides using basic weapons and sometimes throwing a bomb so Reima is more than prepared to deal with them. He goes around, destroying the barrels and circling round while collecting the various items scattered around before heading through a the fog gate. The gate leads to a house which Reima quickly loots before ascending to the roof where a massive dragon? No, a massive Wyvern lands on the wall in-front of him causing the structure to shudder under it''s impressive weight. "Your tail is mine dragon!" He shouts as it flies away.

    He walks forward while easily dodging the bolts shot by the cross bow hollows behind various barricades, after dispatching most of them he lights the bonfire and heads towards the Undead Merchant. After killing the knights that guard the stairway covered by boxes and crates he walks down them and looks at the beef jerky like Undead, sitting with his knees crossed presumably waiting for customers?

    Merchant "You looks like you still have your wits about you... I have some interesting trinkets if you''ll have a look, nyehehehehe" Reima doesn''t quite understand why he''s laughing but ignores it.

    Reima "Can I have a look at your wares?"

    The way you trade with souls is a tad disconcerting to Reima, pulling the souls from his Dark Sign and pushing the correct amount into theirs takes more control than he''d thought... Maybe it''s something that gets easier with time.

    He buys the Residence key, Bottomless box, Orange guidance soap stone and a short bow with many arrows. One thing Reima wasn''t expecting was the Repair box... The Merchant said it repairs items in exchange for souls... No expertise needed.

    After thanking the Merchant who comments on how long He''ll last until going hollow Reima goes back to the bonfire before repairing his Witcher armour. After putting on the Mastercraft bear school-like armour he jumps and stretches to make sure it still fits his ever growing height... Strangely enough the Repair box seems to have made it''s size suit Reima, a very useful item indeed.

    The bottomless box, while useful for others is functionally useless for Reima who possesses his Folded Space. He stores it away anyway as it might be useful in future.

    After getting geared up Reima easily cuts down the hollows inside the residences, he even managed to catch a firebomb and throw one back at the hollows overhead. He uses the residence key to loot the chests finding small miscellaneous things that are not of much use but he stores them anyway.

    Before he heads up the stairs where a fire-barrel would be pushed down Reima decides to fight the black knight who has his back facing Reima. Being much more stealthy than the average Undead Reima manages to complete sheath Arcell into the back of the knight causing it to immediately swing it sword behind it.

    Reima ducks the sword and channels Armament Haki into his fist to punch it''s breast plate.

    BANG, a large dent can be seen on it''s armour, the black knight ignores it and downward slashes Reima, he blocks but he finds that the knights strength is equal or may even be higher than his own.

    It''s speed is similar to Risryn without enhancements but it lacks the skill to make use of it, it''s sword slashes are precise and would deal damage but that''s all it seems to do.

    After using WindFall to dodge another slash Reima jams his sword into it''s unprotected neck which causes it to fade away into white dust as he absorbs it''s soul. After killing it Reima picks up the two titanite chunks the knight had dropped before looting the body at the end of the walkway for the Blue Tearstone ring. The ring boosts defence when your on your last legs... Kind of counter intuitive but maybe it''ll be useful he thinks as he slips it on his middle finger.

 63 Sun bros forever.

    After dodging a fire-barrel on the staircase Reima continues into the tower, on the opposite of the entrance is the door that he remembers leads to Havel... A shame he lacks the master key, he climbs the tower and kills a glowing bug-thing? That drops a twinkling titanite, before standing in-front of the fog-gate that leads to the Taurus boss.

    He prepares himself and enters and immediately blinks atop the tower where the archers are shooting from and killing both of them. He sees the Taurus demon jump onto the wall with it''s giant axe readied, the creature looks like a mutated bull who decided to go bi-pedal after someone mashed its face up with a blender... It''s hair looks thick enough to stop basic weapons but Reima doubts it''s effectiveness against Arcell.

    It comes running at the tower where Reima still stands and slams it''s axe into the wall probably hoping he''ll be shaken off. He decides to employ the same stratagy he used against the Asylum demon and leaps off the tower while stabbing his sword into it''s thick neck. It roars as it tries to shake him off but unlike the Asylum demon who''s mobility is lacking this demon immediately tries to crush him with it''s back. It slams backwards onto the wall crushing stone into dust as it lands, Reima had the presence of mind to jump off before hes turned into corned beef. It seems the demon still thinks hes on it''s back and continues thrashing around on it''s back, Reima jumps ontop of it and jams his sword into it''s unprotected throat before jamming his hand into the wound while forming an Igni sign, like Bell against a Minotaur the Taurus demon roars as it''s internal organs are cooked.

    After a couple seconds of streaming fire into it''s wounded neck it starts to dissipate into motes of light. Reima absorbs a large amount of souls.

    After letting himself calm down and readily losing Adrenaline Reima continues through the towers until he reaches the bridge that certain Wyvern loves to cover in fire, before he attempts to avoid being barbecued he goes to visit a peculiar character...

    Walking to the only place that seems to attract sunlight he spots a man wearing a white Tabard over his armour with a sun emblem on the front of it, his bucket helmet shines in the sunlight making it hard to look into his eyes.

    Reima "Greetings, I am Reima Ludvig."

    Solaire didn''t seem to notice Reima due to him staring at the sun, "oh? Oh! A fine day to you fellow Undead! I am Solaire of Astora, have you come to seek your own sun in the birthplace of Lord Gwyn?"

    Reima "I''m unsure what you mean by sun?"

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    Solaire "Why of course you do! The sun tells us the time, direction and even when to sleep... I seek a sun to light my path!"

    Reima "So? A sense of purpose?" he questions not quite sure what Solaire means.

    Solaire laughs "Hahaha! Ofcourse you would understand! If you lack that, the only future fate is going hollow."

    Reima "Ah, I understand" He holds he arm out to shake Solaires, "Then I don''t need to find my sun, as I already have a purpose. Ringing the bells is my first goal."

    Solaire "Ah so we are of similar thoughts! Youknow, these lands are full of unfortunate souls who''ve gone hollow... Why don''t we assist each other? It seems to be that our fates are intertwined!"

    Reima shrugs, "Sure, as long as you''re good with a sword, I don''t mind you accompanying me."

    Solaire "Hahahaha! Jolly good cooperation I say! Oh, before I forget, take this... We may be separated but with this we can help each other out." He hands Reima a white soapstone before preparing his sword and shield for travel.

    They both leave together and Reima tells Solaire to run after the dragon unleashes it''s first wave of fire. They run down the stairs to unlock the shortcut to the bonfire before resting at it. While they rest Solaire has some questions that seem to have been bothering him.

    Solaire "I hope you don''t take this the wrong way Sir Ludvig but are your eyes a result of the Chaos flames?"

    Reima guessed he would be asked this and responds, "No, my eyes are a result of special training which increases combat abilities and reflexes above human levels."

    Solaire "Ah, I must be lucky to have found such a worthy companion! Jolly indeed!"

    After a short rest they climb back up the ladder and under the bridge which reveals a single hollow knight guarding some sort of sewage entrance, Solaire charges ahead while praising the sun and slams his shield into the hollow causing it to fall off the ledge and to it''s death.

    Solaire "Shall we continue? That Dragons tail is making me rather uncomfortable!"

    Reima shakes his head, "There are many things you need to learn Solaire, sit back and watch." he says as he pulls out his bow and arrows. The end of the dragons tail seems calloused and with the lack of nerves it doesn''t seem to feel the multiple arrows pelting it... After the 10th arrow the tail breaks off and Reima uses telekinesis to drag the severed appendage to them as the Dragon finally notices and breaths fire in all directions.

    Solaire "I hate to be a spoiled sport but what as the purpose of such a task?"

    Reima "This." As he carves off the still attached flesh to reveal a sharp bone that seems to have a handle? He pulls the Drake sword out of the flesh before taking dna samples and storing it in his Folded Space.

    Reima "Just got myself a new sword! Hows it look?" He shows it off to Solaire who seems to be trying to reconnect to reality.

    Solaire rubs the back of his helmet "I see, I really didn''t expect such a thing... I''m sure feats such as this will be sung about for decades..." He mutters as he looks over the sword.

    Solaire "It seems to be an impressive weapon... How such a thing grew inside the tail is a mystery that perhaps will never be solved." He says as Reima stores it inside his Folded Space.

 64 Old, Tired Andre.

    After retrieving the Drake sword Reima and Solaire carefully make their way around the tight ledge that leads to the small sewage room. Once they get to the door they are assaulted by many rats, Reima surrounds himself in a Quen shield to stop them knocking him into the abyss and Solaire blocks their strikes with his shield, they both stab and slash at them until there are none left.

    For some reason Solaire doesn''t actually absorb any souls... Perhaps he can''t? or the world rewards a set amount per enemy slain? Reima shakes the thoughts from his head and he loots some humanity from the rat corpses.

    They start climbing the ladder that was on the side of the room when Solaire looks down at him and starts speaking.

    Solaire "So, I''m wondering if there is a story about that pecliar article of clothing."

    Reima assumes he means the Gleam cloak that rests atop his shoulders. "This? It''s one of the only things remaining from someone that tried to destroy the world."

    Solaire "Ah, I suppose I must thank you for saving our world then!" His loud voice echoes throughout the tunnels.

    Reima "Yes.. Saving our world..."

    They reach the top and Reima directs them to the stairs that should lead to a black knight that rests above them. They reach the top and are immediately assaulted by the knight wielding a great sword. It swings wide causing Reima to Use a Haki infused fist to stop it cutting Solaire in two. Seeing this Solaire stabs the knight in it''s knee joint which causes it to stumble.

    After recovering from the impact of the sword Reima stabs at the knights neck which pierces through. After the short fight the black knight vanishes into white light but not before leaving it''s great sword and some more titanite chunks behind.

    Solaire "It really is a shame, the fates of Lord Gwyn''s knights. They deserved better than this." He bows his head low in respect to the fallen knight.

    Reima "I guess, but we''ll provide a mercy by putting them out of their misery." He pats Solaire on the shoulder before descending down the steps again.

    The almost reach the gate when Reima stops their progress suddenly.

    Reima "You see that thing?" He points at the boar.

    Solaire "Yes, It looks rather heavily armoured..."

    Reima nods his head "Exactly, you know where it isn''t armoured?" he shakes his head in response.

    Reima "It''s ass, we must circle around it and stab it in the ass."

    Solaire scoffs at his suggestion "Such a dishonourable tactic is beneath us!"

    Reima "Knights stab dragons in the ass... Why not boars?" his words seem to quell Solaire''s indignation for the moment.

    Reima "You wait behind the door for when I attract it''s attention, once it finds itself unable to turn start stabbing."

    He walks forward while killing the two knights near the door before shouting at the boar, "You giant piece of gammon! Come at me!"

    It prepares to charge as Reima ducks behind the door with Solaire, the boar charges through the gate and finds itself unable to easily move due to the tight space. It tries to back out but finds two swords piercing it''s rear. It makes weird grunting sounds like a dying pig while they stab it until it eventually dies. Reima absorbs the souls and finds a boar helmet where it once stood.

    He stores it away and Solaire glances at him, "I would appreciate if this tale would be forgotten my friend..."

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    Reima nods "I understand, Solaire of Astora, Stabber of pig asses will remain a hidden title." he chuckles as Solaire shudders at the new title.

    They kill the remaining hollows and descend into the only path available, after clearing the room of enemies Reima picks up the mysterious key, the key that unlocks the cell of that golden prick... Needless to say, he won''t be leaving it alive.

    The climb up a ladder and enter the fog-gate which leads to a walkway that''s being patrolled by a knight wielding some sort of rapier type weapon... It stabs at Reima who grabs the blade with a Haki infused hand before snapping it in two... The hollow knight looks at it''s now half sized blade before angrily glancing back at Reima, just in time to spot the sword about to pierce it''s brain.

    After killing the knight Reima takes the knights shield from the corpse behind it and the two undead walk towards the front of the large church.

    Reima "Before we start trying to reach the bell, there''s someone I need to see first."

    Solaire agrees and the both head right, they walk for a short distance before descending into a building, hammering can be heard as they get closer until finally the see him.

    Bulging muscles with a full head of matted grey hair, he''s swinging his hammer at a lump of unrefined metal causing sparks to jump out of it.

    Andre notices his new visitors and exclaims "Ah, someone finally saw fit to visit this old blacksmith, names Andre by the way."

    Reima nods at him "Reima Ludvig and this is Solaire of Astora." he gestures towards Solaire who bows his head briefly.

    Andre wipes some sweat from his brow, "So what can I do for ye?"

    Reima hands him Arcell, "Can you upgrade this at all?"

    Andre examines the weapon for a while before replying, "I''ve never seen some-thin quite like it, I suppose some twinklin tit-nite would do the trick... You got any on ye?"

    He hands Andre two shards of twinkling titanite who immediately begins working on it.

    After an hour Andre stops hammering and hands him Arcell, "It''s as good as I can do without more Tit-nite."

    Reima examines the sword and finds it much sharper and slightly heavier than before, it would probably be more durable if it wasn''t already indestructible. Reima unsheathes his steel and silver sword from his back before handing it to Andre, "Can you do some work on this aswell?"

    Andre "I can only do so much without larger tit-nite and the required embers but I suppose I''ll have a go."

    After Reima has his weapons upgraded Solaire also pays Andre to have a look and improve his own weapons. They thank the old black smith before leaving towards the church.

 65 Charred Gold

    Two undead stand outside the church surrounded by hollow knight corpses, one dressed in peculiar armour with a sun printed on it. The other wearing flexible leather with plated steel affixed, a white cloak on their shoulder rippling in the wind.

    Solaire "That''s quite a large fellow I spy inside..."

    Reima "He''s quite easy, it''s the sorcerer that waits on the second floor that is the problem... I''ll take the sorcerer out and you keep the giant knight busy?"

    Solaire "I like this plan, my sun will shine brighter with each confrontation!"

    Solaire sprints inside and throws a lightning bolt at the 9ft tall knight while Reima follows closely behind and blinks to the second floor behind the Channeler, as he''s about to stab it in the back he gets hit across the back with a broken sword. Stumbling forwards alerts the Channeler to his presence and it teleports to another position on the second floor before charging up magic bolts to shoot at him. Reima who only just now remembered the large group of hollows that assist the spell caster grumbles to himself and casts a large Igni which light the room up and turns them all to ash.

    A spell hits him in the back but instead of the piercing pain that normal projectiles give it feels like an attack directly on his soul, like someone had just sucker punched it somehow...

    He uses Quen which luckily blocks the next soul arrow and teleports behind it again, with no distractions he manages to fully sheath Arcell in it''s back. It quickly disappears as he looks down to see Solaire''s battle and grins as he is about to back-stab it. It also vanishes into dust but the souls go to Reima for some reason?

    After the fight Reima takes the loot from the big knight before also taking the fire-keeper soul from the alter in middle of the room.

    The climb the stairs and Reima asks Solaire to wait by the ladder as he has something he needs to check out...

    Reima fights his way through various knights and eventually finds the cell to a certain golden prick...

    Lautrec "Oh, still human are you? Then I am in luck. Could you help me? As you can see I am stuck, without recourse."

    Reima grins "No, I don''t believe I will..." He says as he starts forming an Igni sign.

    Lautrec gets a bad feeling and tries to move but suddenly feels agonising burning pain, his whole cell has been set aflame and is slowly eating at his body. "AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

    He screams and starts rolling around on the floor but as it''s also on fire, he doesn''t manage to relieve himself. "WHY! WHAT DID I DO TO DESERVE THIS!?!"

    Reima "It''s not what you did, but what you''ll do. Good bye Lautrec." He gives the man another blast of concentrated fire before collecting the 5 humanity, ring of favour and relatively large amount of souls.

    Reima rejoins Solaire he seems confused, "I heard screaming, I trust you didn''t have any trouble?"

    Reima shakes his head "No, just a rat that I had to deal with.. It was disturbingly human-like..."

    Solaire nods "I understand, though why rat''s can reward humanity when defeated We''ll never know."

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    Both undead make their way up the ladder and stand in-front of the fog-gate.

    Reima "Right, there should be two up here.. So try to kill the first one as quick as possible... They also shoot fire occasionally so be cautious."

    Solaire nods as they both drop out of the doorway that for some reason sits a meter above the floor... A massive gargoyle with tail that resembles an axe jumps down and starts growling at them.

    It swings it''s large axe in their vague direction... Reima is unsure what it is trying to achieve...

    Solaire charges up a large lightning bolt before throwing it, it strikes the chest of the gargoyle which makes it stumble back. Taking this chance Reima blinks behind it and slams Arcell down on it''s tail which instantly severs it, he dodging out of the way of it''s flailing hand while not forgetting to store the tail in his Folded Space.

    The Gargoyle breaths fire at Solaire while waving it''s hand behind it to hopefully stop Reima''s advance, He ignores this and jumps onto it''s back while getting a grip of it''s wing, he performs his trademark, stab it until it stops moving technique which results in it''s death before it''s brother can even hit the roof. The second gargoyle starts spitting large flames at Reima who surrounds himself in a Quen shield while Solaire deal with it. He doesn''t have much trouble due to the gargoyle full attention being on burning Reima alive and the undead rather easily beat the gargoyle bosses.

    Solaire "Well done Sir Ludvig! That was some jolly cooperation if I do say so myself!"

    Reima "Yeah, you too Solaire. Shall we ring the bell?"

    He nods as the two ascends to the top of the tower and ring the bell causing it to echo throughout the surroundings.

    Solaire "So... What now?"

    ...

    Reima "Now... We try make our way through the most unpleasant part of Lordran... The sewers..."

 66 Dragon Slayers

    As usual, there is no rest for the undead as the Reima and Solaire immediately start making their way down the church to try and get to the basement key that lies just behind where the boar used to be.

    They get halfway down when a weird man wearing full black robes greets them.

    Oswald "Greetings. I am Oswald of Carim, the pardoner. Thou art a friend. For thee, a warm welcome. Cometh thou to confess? Or to accuse? For indeed all sin is my domain."

    Solaire "Who are you to Absolve the sins of others?" He asks with irritation bleeding into his usually jovial voice.

    Oswald "I am but a humble servant to my Goddess Velka, god of Sin. With her guidance I can help those drenched in sin find Absolution."

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    Reima "Ah, and what do you make of us? Drenched in sin?"

    Oswald looks over Reima for a moment, "You have sinned, but you are not drenched in it... You have a reason for each committed sin, therefore you don''t require Absolution."

    Solaire "And I?" he asks curiously.

    Oswald looks at him, "You are devoid of sin... In-fact you are a very wondrous person... You''ve had a difficult path haven''t you?" he grins at him.

    Solaire "You know not of what you speak! Come Sir Ludvig, I''ve heard enough sanctimonious preaching for today."

    Reima "I''ll join you in a moment, I need to purchase some good for our journey." Solaire nods and climbing down the nearby ladder.

    Oswald "So you have something you wish to purchase?"

    Reima "Yes, give me two purging stones, PoisonBite ring and the BloodBite ring" Oswald hands them over after he transfers the souls and Reima makes his way down to Solaire.

    Solaire is tapping his foot at the bottom of the ladder as if he''s impatient.

    Reima "Something bothering you?"

    Solaire "No... That priest just brings up bad memories, ones I''d rather forget."

    Reima "Well, some jolly cooperation should be good to get your mind off it." He lightly punches Solaire''s armoured shoulder before making his way to the doorway leading to the churches first floor. Solaire grins under his bucket helmet before quickly following Reima.

    Reima quickly goes to the Basement keys location before raising the gate and retracing their steps to the small sewage room under the bridge. After briefly resting at the bonfire Reima decides to upgrade his stats again.

    He has quite a large amount of souls from the various bosses he had killed, he channels them into strength increase it to a much higher value, if Reima had to quantify it in numbers he would say his strength had reached level 99... He feels like he could increase it further but without testing he is rather wary of experimenting on himself. He stands up drawing Solaire''s attention and breaths out a thick breath, almost steam-like as he brings his fist back and lightly punches the castle wall.

    CRACK!

    A large sound rings throughout the room making Solaire jump, the impact of Reima''s fist had caused various lines throughout the structure of the wall. Not only does he feel like he could tear down entire castle walls, the upgrades to Reima''s soul make Haki seems much easier to utilise... He tries using Armament Haki and manage to complete cover his whole arm in the black substance.

    Solaire "My word! I knew you were a talented Sorcerer but that strength is rather ridiculous!"

    Reima clicks his neck and grins "Shall we continue?"

    They make their way up to where the dragon spews fire and after it flies across once they hurriedly make there way past... Until the Dragon lands directly in-front of them.

    Reima "Ha! I''ve wanted to kill you ever since I first laid my eyes upon you!"

    Solaire "Let''s kill this foul beast in the name of Jolly cooperation!" He draws out a huge lightning bolt and throws it in the Dragons face, it manages to pierce a large whole in it''s scales and it spits a torrent of fire as a response.

    The two undead both leap out of the way and charge towards it''s legs, they both chop at them like they''re a thick tree needing to be felled. With Reima''s increased strength every hit results in shards and splinters of scales to be ejected from it''s leg.

    The Dragon raises it''s foot up to try and crush Reima but he back off to directly in-front of it, allowing it to try and bite him. When it tries, he uses WindFall to dodge and channels Armamenet Haki into his arm. He unleashes a devastating punch to it''s face, the impact causes it to be launched onto it''s back causing the bridge to shudder under it''s weight.

    Solaire uses this opportunity to jump onto it''s soft underbelly and unleash a torrents of lightning bolts into it, successfully frying it''s insides. It dies quickly to the onslaught of the two and starts to vanish into motes of light. Reima picks up the dragon scale from the floor and stores it away before congratulating Solaire on a good fight.

 67 A prison of barrels...

    After slaying the Dragon/Wyvern the two Undead make there way down the long ladder that leads into the depths of the Undead burg basement.

    Solaire "Youknow Sir Ludvig, I find it rather confusing how you know what random key opens what lock... How is it you know of these obscure things?"

    Reima "Well, I guess you can consider me a sort of seer... I glimpse into the future at random and acquire knowledge." He lies through his teeth to find a reasonable explanation.

    Solaire "Ah, so our meeting was fate after all! Do you know of anything that pertains to my sun perchance?"

    Reima "I do, but if I tell you, you''ll never find it."

    Solaire "Ah, I understand! Thank you Sir Ludvig."

    The conversation ends as the get to the bottom of the ridiculously long ladder, they continue on through the various walkways until arriving at some sort of residential area... A pack of hollow dogs? Rabid wolves? Attack them but are easily dispatched.

    ??? "Help! Is someone out there?"

    A voice is heard through a door...

    Solaire "Apologise Sir Ludvig but I seem to be hearing ghosts all of a sudden..."

    ??? "Someone help!"

    Reima "No, it''s not ghost... Luckily I have seen this in our future and came prepared." He shows a key to Solaire who nods in understanding.

    Using the residential key, Reima unlocks the door and walks into a room covered in barrels. A man wearing a scholarly outfit is... Stuck inside a barrel? Do the hollows imprison people in barrels or something?

    ??? "Ah, a saviour! Please release me from this dreadful situation..." he says from his barrel....

    Solaire and Reima tip over the barrel which easily breaks as a result...

    Solaire "Such a thing must''ve been easily escaped... How long have you been here?"

    Griggs "I don''t know... I''m a Sorcerer you see and not the most physically capable. My name is Griggs of Vinheim and I was travelling with my mentor Big-hat Logan before we were separated..."

    Solaire "I''ve heard legends of such a man, they say he''s the most accomplished sorcerer every to grace the lands."

    Griggs "Indeed... He left a letter telling me twas too dangerous for me to accompany him... Am I so talent-less that he could find a use for me..." he looks down depressed.

    Reima "No, probably not. Most likely he valued too much to risk your life for his goal, luckily for you I know of his current location." Griggs eyes light up at his words.

    Griggs "Truly? Please tell me so I can assist him on his journey."

    Reima "I''ll not tell you where he is because you will meet your end if you attempt it. Wait at FireLink shrine and I''ll make-sure he makes it there."

    Griggs looks like he wishes to argue but eventually relents, "I will do as you say... Can I learn of my saviours names atleast?"

    Reima "I am Reima Ludvig, and this is Solaire of Astora." They both dip there heads to greet him.

    Griggs "I''ll make my way to FireLink shrine, I wish to thank you further, if you have an interest in learning sorcery I would like to offer my guidance. While I am not as learned as my mentor I can still teach to an adequate level."

    Reima "Thank you, when I find the time I would be glad to learn under you."

    With that the they leave Griggs after telling him the directions to the shrine and continue forwards, deeper into the slum like area.

    The area isn''t too difficult to deal with, with Reima''s enhanced senses they easily destroy any attempted ambushes by the hollow thieves that swarm from the buildings. He doesn''t forget to take the Thief armour set that is hidden inside of one of the houses.

    They continue fighting through the large groups of undead dogs, hollows and thieves until the area starts becoming more.. Mossy? Grassy? It''s hard to tell, they approach the Fog-gate to the Capra demon but Reima decides to open the short cut to the aqueduct/sewage passage that leads back to FireLink shrine. They climb the tower and enter into the damp space when a voice almost makes Solaire jump out of his skin.

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    Female merchant "Hmm, you two still have your senses about you? Then why won''t you buy some of my moss? I need your souls! Vee hee hee!"

    Reima "It seems my friend is eager to buy some" He chuckles at Solaires reaction.

    Solaire "Do not mock me... It was just my impressive reflexes at work." he tries to play it off but it isn''t very convincing.

    Reima turns to the merchant before buying a couple of transient curses, alluring skulls and some Purple moss clumps in preparation for BlightTown.

    Female merchant "Thank you for the souls dearie! Vee hee hee!"

    They leave and unlock the shortcut before travelling back to the fog door that leads to the Capra demon boss fight.

    After a short preparation they enter the gate and stand before a small number of undead dogs and an 8ft tall demon with a cowskull for a head wielding two giant machetes. It runs at them and swings its blades downwards causing Solaire to black with his shield and Reima with Quen. Reima''s shield explodes pushing the demon back but gets mauled by the undead dogs who lunge at him while he recovers. Solaire pushes forwards to distract the demon while Reima tears one of the dogs apart with his bare hands, he ignores the painful bites and cuts the others down with Arcell before turning to assist Solaire.

    Solaire manages to parry one of the Demons strikes which knocks it off balance, Reima blinks behind it and rams Arcell in between it''s vertebrae, paralysed from the waist down the Demon roars at them before Solaire stabs it in the throat. The beast disappears leaving a key to the depths and a large amount of souls which Reima''s Dark Sign greedily devours.

    After the fight they sit down and take a rest while sipping their Estus flasks to heal the bites and bruises they had sustained.

 68 Slimey Sewers...

    After a short rest the two continue, the leave the Capra demons boss room and turn lefts, heading down the stairs and eventually to the door that leads to the Depths.

    Reima hands Solaire a Purging stone, just incase he gets cursed somehow before unlocking the door to the large hall containing the butcher.

    Walking down the stairs the two are immediately assaulted by a large group of Hollow undead''s and undead dog''s.

    Solaire takes a position upfront with his shield to block most of the attacks while Reima supports his flanks with blades and Igni. The battle lasts longer than Reima would have thought, probably due to them somehow drawing aggro of every creature in the room, besides the Butcher who looks content to simply chop away at meat of suspicious origins.

    They make their way to the Butcher who finally notices their presence and charges them in a blind rage, it''s large machete and carving knife seeking their flesh and it flails about at them.

    Solaire performs a perfect parry that knocks it off balance before stabbing his sword in it''s chest, it isn''t dead yet it seems and so Reima decapitates it from it''s weakened position.

    Reima loots the area while not forgetting to take the large ember that can be used to further upgrade his weapons before he pulls Solaire along to his next goal.

    ??? "You, yes You! Please help me!"

    Solaire "... Are barrels the modern way of imprisonment?" He says as they both look at the man wearing rags stuck in a barrel, same position as Griggs was in.

    Reima "Its weird isn''t it..."

    ??? "Weird or not you have to free me! I have no wish to be eaten alive!"

    Reima sighs "Fine."

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    He kicks the barrel over causing it to shatter as the ragged man is sprawled across the floor, he looks up at them before standing and bowing deeply.

    Laurentius "I am Laurentius, thank you for freeing me..."

    Reima "I''m Reima."

    Solaire "Solaire of Astora at your service!" He dips his head in greeting.

    Reima "If you need somewhere safe to rest, might I suggest FireLink shrine? The company will be pleasant I assure you."

    Laurentius "Well, I''m not about to doubt the words of my saviour. If you have any wish to learn Pyromancy please come see me again... I wish to reward you with something other than flowery words... Here, take this." He holds a small flame towards Reima before looking to Solaire who shakes his head.

    Reima takes it in his hand, it''s warm but not the burning he''d expect from fire. He closes his left hand which causes the flame to hibernate? inside his flesh?

    Laurentius "Take good care of it, it is apart of myself afterall." He bows towards them before leaving the hall out of the door they had previously opened.

    Solaire "Peculiar fellows we seem to stumble across..." he says as they walk towards the sewer entrance.

    Reima "Yes, but I intend to make use of their services to learn more about Sorcery and Pyromancy... Why don''t you take the opportunity as well?"

    Solaire "Alass it would take a miracle for me to learn Sorcery, I''ve tried it before... And Pyromancy is somewhat taboo where I come from."

    Reima "So you only focus on Miracles then?"

    Solaire "They''ve served me well for decades? Centuries? I''ve not a clue but they have never failed me nonetheless."

    Reima "It''s a shame I don''t have the required faith in the gods to achieve such mastery."

    Solaire "Don''t despair my friend, I''ll cast any miracle you may need! Hahahaha!"

    Reima grumbles, "Thanks" as they stop in-front of rather deep looking water.

    On their left is a glowing orb which catches Solaire''s attention, "Aha! Extra supply for our journey ahead!" He says loudly as he steps over to it.

    Reima "Wait, Solaire don-" his words stop as some kind of slime drops onto Solaire who starts thrashing his weapons about trying to kill it, Reima uses Igni on it which for some reason is large than he''d thought, it blasts out covered Solaire and the slime causing it to sizzle away. Solaire stands there with his armour looking slightly melted from acid and scorched from fire...

    Solaire "What a disgusting beast!" He almost shouts because kneeling on the ground and casting what looks like grand heal.

    After the incident with the slime that will not soon be forgotten the two cautiously makes their way through while keeping their eyes glued on the ceilings. They enter the next hall and shudder as 10 more slimes are attached to the ceiling.

    Solaire "I regret coming down here... The stench is one thing but these enemies are abominations that should''ve been wiped out by Lord Gwyn!"

    Reima "I agree wholeheartedly" He knows how Solaire feels, his first DarkSouls play-through had him die around 20 times to these Slime''s specifically...

    Solaire and Reima spend longer than they should blasting the Slime''s from the ceiling with a combination of lightning and fire.

    They reach a wooden door that is locked and requires the master key to gain entry...

    "Nah, fuck that." Reima says before he kicks the door with a Haki infused foot. The door explodes revealing the bonfire in the next room.

    The two Undead light it before having a short rest.

 69 Saga of the ass stabber continues!

    While Solaire rests, probably to ease his mind after being assaulted by a Slime creature. Reima tries experimenting with the Pyromancy flame he was given, it''s currently hibernating in his hand, but he wills it to come out and, as if it can read his thought it does. His previous Igni''s against the Slime''s were more powerful and less controlled, probably due to the flames presence.

    He tries to make it stretch and form shapes but he ends up burning his hand after concentrating on it too hard... Looks like he''ll need an actual teacher to learn to use this thing. And the Laurentius''s parting words, "It''s apart of myself". If that isn''t ominous he doesn''t know what is.

    After he has the flame hibernating again him and Solaire leave to descend further into the sewers... Reima is dreading it, the stench from up here is already unbearable.

    Reima "You got a miracle that stops this place smelling like shit?"

    Solaire shakes his head gravely, "Sadly not."

    When the reach the actual sewer tunnels they spot an absolutely huge rat! It looks the size of a large van and seems very angry with the two undeads for apparently just existing. Luckily it''s behind thick bars which halts it''s attack on them, they leave through the next door and stumble across around 20 rats eating faeces or something. They seem to hear the two approach as they start creepily scurrying towards them, teeth chattering as they do.

    Despite being knee deep in shit water Solaire decides to launch a lightning bolt at them which deal with the problem while also shocking both undeads. He looks at Reima sheepishly before apologising for overreacting, something tell him that Solaire isn''t good with rats.

    He loots all of the rats dropped humanity before taking the great-axe that someone apparently left down here.

    They circle round the tunnels until they see the giant rat through another set of bars, Reima collects the key lying deep within a pile of waste before they continue. They enter a large spacious area that seems to be some sort of wall? Reima has no idea what it is supposed to defend against so he asks Solaire.

    Solaire "I think this was to be the last defence in the war against the demons of Izalith, if the negotiations between the demons and Lord Gwyn fell through then this would be a good point to defend."

    Reima "Kinda amusing to think about those shiny silver knights wading through shit to fight demons huh?"

    Solaire "Indeed, it must be very amusing to fight for your lord despite the horrible conditions!" He misinterprets Reima''s words which causes his fighting spirit to burn brightly.

    They step onto the wall and dodge a couple of soul arrows shot by a channeler who somehow found it''s way down here.

    Reima blocks the shots with Quen as Solaire charges and slashes at it, having the sense to evade, the channeler teleports a few meters away before unleashing what looks to be a soul spear at Solaire.

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    Reima doesn''t know how well Solaire would receive this attack and so blinks in-front of him, casting the Heliotrope Sign. A ripple appears in the space where he points his hand and the Soul Spear impacts it, the spear disappears and Reima is left standing there with his arm outstretched...

    Reima "Rather anti-climactic..." he mutters as he glances at the channeler who seems shocked at his defence.

    Solaire charges past Reima while shouting "Jolly cooperation!" and finally finishes the annoying channeler.

    They dispatch most of the remaining rats from the wall and collect the loot before stepping back into the sewers, there are a number of passageways but most of them contains trap holes in the floor that drop you directly in-between large groups of basilisks that will probably instantly kill you...

    Luckily Reima knows the path to the correct area, which unfortunately contains the giant rat... They turn right, left and continue. Solaire wants to chase a rat that tries to lead them to a trap but Reima is not having any of it. After they reach the end of the hallway they turn right again and enter the giant rats domain... Probably should have warned Solaire due to the squeak he hears him make when he spots the giant rat...

    Solaire "En-EnGarde you abomination!" he stutters slightly before calming himself and preparing for combat.

    Reima "Don''t worry, we got this." he says to Solaire as they both roll away from the giant rats charge... Rolling is the thing Reima least wanted to do due to the floor being literally covered in shit, but right now it''s rolling in shit or being mauled by a giant rat.

    Solaire casts sunlight blade which covers his sword in lightning before stabbing the giant rats fat behind causing it to shudder and try to turn around.

    Reima slashes at it''s hideous face preventing it from counter attacking Solaire, it tries to shift it''s weight into Reima but finds that he is not moving an inch. Reima flexes his muscles to prevent the rat moving, he grabs a fist full of it''s mangy fur to keep it still for Solaire''s assault. It''s front paw scratches him on his side which causes poison to enter his system but he resists due to him being a Witcher and having resist against poisons due to the Arch-griffin mutagen.

    Reima "Solaire hurry up!" he shouts as he gets clawed again but it''s dirty sewage covered limbs.

    This continues for what feels like forever until the rat finally shudders and stops moving...

    Reima is absolutely covered in scratches from the rat and immediately downs half his Estus flask to try to shut the wounds and not allow any more sewage to come into contact with them.

    Solaire struts up to him with not a single wound...

    Solaire "What a great hunt my friend! We should find another and rid the world of such beasts!"

    Reima "Speak for yourself... You didn''t have to hold it in place while your buddy took his time stabbing it''s ass... I now name thee Slow Rat-ass stabber!"

    He grumbles and tries to wipe himself off from the sewage covering him as Solaire tries to apologise.

 70 Basilisks and Dragons.

    After killing the Giant-rat the two walk forward and look over the large slide that leads further down into the sewers... It looks slick with sh-- Bodily waste, and neither wants to even attempt it...

    Solaire "I know, you''re rather upset with me bu-" He tries to finish his sentence but finds himself hurtling down the slide which drops into another area that''s waist deep in waste...

    Solaire "THIS IS NOT JOLLY AT ALL!" He shouts as his bucket helmet collects faecal matter while sliding.

    Reima "That was satisfying..." he holds his nose and tries to shield his face before following his companion.

    Reima drops into the waist deep sewage and almost vomits at the smell, Solaire looks at him with shit completely covering his helmet.

    Solaire "This... This is not funny." he visibly tries not to gag as he gets a whiff of the surrounding stench. Before he gets a chance to berate Reima a lizard like creature with humongous orange eyes stare at them, it looks similar to a Komodo apart from it''s shiny black scales.

    The two undead don''t move as it slowly waddles closer... Reima during this is freaking out at where they had ended up...

    Another pair of eyes appear behind the creature... Then another, and another...

    Reima "KILL THEM NOW!" he shouts as the creatures throats bulge in preparation to unleash a large amount of cursed mist. Reima knows what these creatures are and casts the most overpowered Igni he has ever attempted... It blasts through the 7 basilisks completely incinerating them as a wall of fire makes it way through the sewer tunnels. Reima can hear the shreaks of other creatures as the wall of fire he had cast reaches them...

    He feels a little drained from casting such a large spell without preparation but is glad neither him nor Solaire are cursed... He hasn''t died yet and has no wish of trying.

    Solaire "My friend, let me make one thing clear before we carry on... If you push me into another pile of shit again I''ll make you wish those creatures had eaten you..."

    Reima "Ok, ok... Sorry about that, but it didn''t matter anyway as we had to slide down to progress."

    Solaire nods at his explanation but is still angry at being pushed, the faecal matter stuck to his helmet only exacerbates things.

    The two travel through the maze like sewers killing all creatures that remain untouched by Reima''s wall of fire... He also collects some DNA from a basilisk corpse than wasn''t incinerated, Reima eventually finds the area that contains the basilisk ambush and after carefully clearing them out picks up the Evil eye ring, it''s a ring that heals you for killing enemies, he puts it on and they make their way back up to the room before the BlightTown gate and go through the first door on their right.

    They walk out and gaze over the open area from the wall again, the stairs on the right trail down until they end at a fog-gate.

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    Reima and Solaire prepare themselves before stepping through and gazing upon the giant monstrosity that crawls out of the hole on the other-side of the room. It''s body is scaly like a dragons but has a giant mouth where it''s torso would be, large fang-like teeth petrude from it''s gaping maw... That''s probably where it gets it''s name from Reima thinks to himself. One thing he didn''t notice when playing the game, a small head of what looks like a snake sticks out from it''s body... It''s beady eyes glare at them as it''s malformed claws drag itself towards them.

    Solaire "What a strange creature... I''d pity it if it weren''t trying to kill us."

    Reima "No, even if it wasn''t trying to kill us... I''d still have it euthanized." Solaire nods at him before getting his shield ready.

    The two advance towards it as they spread out to attack each of it''s flanks, the creature moves sluggishly but turns towards Solaire, "nice" Reima whispers to himself as he runs and starts chopping at it''s tail. Like most bosses in DarkSouls, strong weapons can be obtained by cutting off their tails for some reason. Solaire is at it''s front blocking it''s claw strikes with his shield while throwing lightning bolts when it starts to turn towards Reima.

    CHOP!

    Arcell finally cuts through the tail and the Gaping dragon rolls on the ground in pain almost crushing both undeads. Reima stores the Dragon King Greataxe and the tail in his Folded Space before blinking away as it tries to crush them.

    Once it''s stopped thrashing it jumps high in the air and starts floating? After a moment of floating it tries to drop onto of Reima who uses the Heliotrope Sign to stop the impact before getting some distance from further attacks.

    Solaire isn''t idle while they happens and continues throwing lightning bolts at it causing it to shudder as large gashes and wound litter it''s large body. It tries spitting acid from it''s gaping mouth and manages to clip Solaire on the shoulder with it, it eats through his armour and causes his flesh to sizzle as he takes a swig of his Estus flask to heal the injury.

    Reima tries to channel Armament Haki into his sword but only manages to cover half of it, if it were any other weapon using this half baked Haki to strike would shatter it... Luckily Arcell is indestructible and Reima swings it as hard as he can at it''s spinal cord after jumping at it, the impact of his strike sends him flying backwards but he manages to slice through it.

    It''s legs drop and stop moving, even if it was still able to move them, without the support of the spine they can''t hold it''s body''s weight.

    It makes a gagging groaning sound as Solaire continues to pelt it with lightning bolts. Eventually it''s body stills as it fades away into white dust, Reima absorbs the large amount of souls before looting the humanity and BlightTown key.

    Reima "Nice work Solaire."

    Solaire "Ofcourse!.. Jolly cooperation and all that... Say is there anywhere to clean off this vile substance?" he wipes the acid mixed with waste material off of his mangled shoulder.

    Reima "Youknow, I''m not sure... If we rest at a bonfire it should come right off shouldn''t it?" When an undead rests at a bonfire all injuries, poisons and other ailments disappear. The only exception to this is curses.

    Solaire claps a hand on his helmet, "How could I forget!... Do you mind using your sorcery to get us to one? I''d rather not stay in this state."

    Reima nods and grabs him before teleporting to the last bonfire they rested at.

 71 Hole of DOOM!

    A turquoise flash reveals Solaire and Reima standing next to their last visited bonfire, they sit at it and sigh in relief as a golden wave travels across them removing all the filth they had collected while journeying through the sewers. Solaire''s armour is still half melted and charred but he doesn''t seem to mind much. Reima pulls out a repair kit to fix the large scratches from the Giant rat, he put sit on the ground and channels souls into it until it glows bright white and envelops the armour he wanted repaired, after the glow subsides his now pristine armour is shown.

    Solaire looks over at this surprised, "My friend, do you think I can make use of that artifact? otherwise I''m afraid I''ll have to visit the blacksmith..."

    Reima "Sure, just channel souls into it and it should work. Quite a convenient item i picked up eh?"

    His friend nods as he uses the kit to repair his damaged armour.

    Reima "Say, Solaire... After you''ve found your sun, do you have any other goals?"

    Solaire shuffles abit as if he''s hesitant to answer, "I do, I wish to put my Father out of his misery."

    Reima "Ah, I can help if you need it, just tell me they''re location and we''ll get there eventually." He asks hoping to help his companion out.

    ...

    Solaire "Last I heard he was in the Kiln of the first flame..." He almost whispers his reply.

    Reima "So, a black knight then?"

    Solaire shakes his head and refuses to answer, "I need to reach the Kiln, without your help I''d still be stuck on that infernal bridge getting burned alive by that dragon."

    Reima looks confused when he says that, "That dragon was relatively easy to get rid of though?"

    Solaire "Yes, if you kill it fast enough... An annoying ability I had discovered is that when it''s taken enough damage it heals all wounds received. I thought it would never be slain, that is, until you assisted me. Again, I thank you for your help."

    Reima "Don''t sweat it, we''re sun Bro''s are we not?"

    Solaire laughs "Hahaha! Damn right! Let''s head out, I can feel my blood boiling again, FOR JOLLY COOPERATION HAHA!"

    The two undead quickly make their way back through the sewer until they reach the BlightTown gate, just as Reima''s about to unlock it a nasally voice tries to catch their attention.

    Domhnall "Aye, siwmae. And good day to you. I''m Domhnall of Zena. I''m just, well, a peddler, of sorts."

    Solaire "What on earth could you be peddling in a sewer?" he asks in confusion.

    Domhnall "Well, it might be better to show you..." He drags a small box in-front of them before opening it, it appears to be a bottomless box and Reima''s suspicion is only confirmed when the Merchant pulls out a large great-sword covered in sharp blue crystals.

    Reima "Where did you find that? It looks like something Seath the scaleless might have created."

    Domhnall "Well, I guess I can tell you if you don''t speak of it to anyone else... Most of my wares are acquired from graves."

    Solaire "WHAT! YOU GRAVE ROBBING FIEND, I SHOULD PUT YOU DOWN RIGHT HERE!" he explodes at the Merchant for his dishonourable way of acquiring goods.

    Domhnall "Siwae! Calm down Sir knight! It''s the end of times, the dead will not need them so I might as well make use of them!"

    Reima can hear Solaire''s teeth grinding as he looks ready to attack Domhnall, unfortunately Reima needs this guy alive to aquire certain items, one being the master key.

    Reima pulls Solaire to the side and whispers to him, "Solaire, I hate to tell you this but when I look into the future I see him being useful to us."

    Solaire "Nonsense! How could we ever make use of such a disgusting individual..." he seems to doubt himself at Reima''s words, after all he''s seen his abilities first hand.

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    Reima "He finds various items that prove useful, one being a key that''s used to access a shard of lord Gwyn''s soul."

    Solaire breaths out, "I''ll trust your judgement... But if I see him in the act of defiling a grave then I''ll butcher him where he stands." Reima nods in response and they make their way back over to the Merchant. "Err, yes do you have any pine resin per-chance?"

    Domhnall "Only of the golden variety, good for dragons, not for much else."

    Reima buys a couple before loudly speaking to Solaire making sure the Merchant listens in.

    "I wonder why Merchants choose such poor spots to sell their wares, Firelink shrine is THE hot spot for wayward undead." After saying what he needed to Reima unlocks the gate to BlightTown and looks at the massive hole in the floor.

    They both look over the ledge and see various torches scattered on rickety wooden structures somehow suspended above the seemingly bottomless hole.

    Reima "Remember to constantly watch where your walking, I don''t trust those structures to keep standing under our weight and especially don''t trust something to try knock us off." He hands Solaire a couple purple moss clumps just incase he gets poisoned. Solaire thanks him and they both start descending down the ladder towards BlightTown.

 72 Familiar faces...

    The two undead reach the bottom of the ladder and immediately spot a fat, dirty lumbering thing walking towards them, club in hand. Reima is unsure how it''s weight hasn''t caused the rotten moss covered wood to collapse yet but he''s not going to take any chances. He casts Aard at it which causes it to lose balance and fall of the side of the bridge.

    After dealing with the creature they carry on cautiously walking across the narrow passages, eventually they connect with a outcropping from the wall which makes the structure slightly more stable, despite this small comfort two more fat creatures with clubs come out of the shadows and try whacking them.

    Solaire deflects with his shield before circling round and stabbing it in the back, an additional lightning bolt swiftly puts it down. Reima uses Windfall to side step it''s club before jamming Arcell through it''s throat, he rips it out taking the rest of the creatures neck with it and causing it to disappear into motes of light.

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    As the two walk they spot various different walk ways leading to different areas, they hope they''re on the one that leads to the bell, having to backtrack through this place would be a nightmare.

    Reima hears something scampering in the darkness and gets Solaire to stop for a moment, "Something is following us..." He readies his sword and shield when he hears this and starts looking around cautiously.

    The torches provide some light which allows Reima''s low light vision to see more than Solaire could, although his sight is good in darkness he still doesn''t spot the creature, or creatures making those sounds. They keep getting closer, and closer... They''re almost on top of them now... Reima looks up and spots 5 pairs of beady yellow bloodshot eyes staring at them from what looks like a bridge passing overhead. "ABOVE!" He shouts hoping Solaire takes notice as the creatures spring into action, they drop from their hiding place and try land onto Reima, they hit the floor harshly as he dodges away with Windfall. Solaire has his shield pointing in the air as one lands on it making a bell-like impact sound through out the surroundings.

    One of the creatures back up near a torch to get a sprinting attack on him and Reima finally sees his attacker clearly. It''s body is like that of a normal hollow undead, emaciated beyond belief and having various bones and organs visible through it''s thin skin. This creature has dark, almost black skin instead of the dull grey he would expect, but the biggest difference is it''s head. It resembles the alien elites from Halo, it''s jaw is separated into 4 different parts and has a neck as thick as it''s head. It has no discernible nose or ears either. Reima remembers these things from the game but doesn''t recall them ever having a name.

    The creature sprints at him swinging it''s oversized claws in a frenzy before stepping on a Yrden trap Sign that Reima had placed beforehand. It seems confused as it slowly runs through it and even more perplexed as Arcell pierces it''s alien looking mouth. He pulls his sword free and dodges a stab from a rotten spear that looks to be poisoned, it tries to stab him again but he locks Arcell against it and using his strength, twists the spear around and eventually launching it from the creatures grip. It gives a loud screech before trying to claw him to death, Reima simply waves his sword which severs the creatures arms and then stabs it in where Reima assumes the heart is. It falls to the ground in a heap as Solaire stomps on one of the creatures heads causing it to explode in a gory display.

    Solaire "Anymore?"

    Reima listens for a moment before shaking his head, "No."

    The two makes there way forwards while casually killing the other creatures that try to attack them, Reima dodges a dart being shot by on of those infuriating enemies and gets Solaire to throw a lightning bolt at it, it doesn''t survive.

    The two finally find themselves looking down on the rest of BlightTown, it''s a lot more brightly lit than the previous passages which makes it easier for Solaire. Reima remembers a katana being hidden on nearby, he looks around for a glowing white orb and eventually finds it... In the game you''d need to make a perilous jump and risk your life to obtain it but... Flash!

    Reima teleports next to it and picks it up before flashing back. Solaire looks at him while he inspects the weapon, about 45 inches long with a very sharp curved blade. It has the traditional Japanese shark or ray skin handle wrapping and wavy temper noting the softer back of the single edged weapon.

    Solaire "My friend, you find treasure no matter the location don''t you? Although I''m not familiar with this type of sword..."

    Reima swings it a couple of times to get an idea of it''s weight before storing it in his Folded space, "It''s a good weapon but it can''t beat Arcell."

    Solaire points to the swords on his back, "I think you have enough weapons for now, continue like this and others might think you''re compensating..." Reima huffs at this and they start descending to reach the bonfire that rests on a large stone bridge in the distance.

 73 Dragon dogs?

    The path that leads to the bonfire looks extremely treacherous to Reima, from his current location you''d have to climb down a couple ladders, walk across bridges that Reima swears are swaying and moving and make some tight jumps across almost certain death. All of this while large amounts of weird alien faced creatures and dart shooters try and poison you constantly...

    Reima "I''m starting to think it''s not worth bothering at this point..." He looks over the ledge again and sees two creatures pulling another apart and start eating it''s entrails.

    Solaire "Adventuring isn''t fun all of the time, but it''s the bad parts that build character!" A dart clinks off of his helmet as he finishes, Reima snorts at this skit-like situation.

    Solaire "...Character traits such as not being an adventurer..." he corrects himself as another few darts attempt to breach his shoulder plate. He throws a lightning bolt in the vague direction they''re being shot from but doesn''t seem to hit anything.

    Solaire "Shall we quickly continue?" his voice makes it sound more like a command than a question.

    Reima nods and then climb down another ladder and kicking another wayward creature from the wood structure.

    They make a short jump to reach another platform that doesn''t have a bridge connecting to it, they jump again and successfully land without dying...

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    They reach the bonfire and sit down to rest, while it wasn''t very physically taxing constantly watching your step while listening out for ambushes is mentally exhausting. The two sit and Reima decides to upgrade some stats before he dies and loses all his stored souls.

    He decides to upgrade his intelligence in preparation for learning sorcery, the process is not much different from upgrading his strength, he absorbs the souls and feels a prickling sensation in his head. The effect seems to be immediate as things he had difficulty with before seem rather mundane now. Not only that, the spells he had learned in his home world seem easier to cast, projecting the formulae into reality is slightly faster than before and elvish incantations seem simpler. He leans off of his knees from his meditation stance and looks to Solaire, speaking on souls, his companions inability to absorb souls troubles him...

    Reima "Solaire, I noticed you don''t absorb any souls from our fallen enemies?"

    Solaire "Yes, well the answer to that is that I do take souls from them... I noticed that you didn''t and assumed you didn''t need them."

    Weird, where do the duplicate souls come from? Do the paradoxical cycles the world is repeating cause errors like this?

    Reima "Well, I do as well... Do you have any idea how the souls are duplicating? I haven''t noticed a decrease in their quantity since we teamed up."

    Solaire "I don''t have an answer that would satisfy either of us, perhaps in Seath the Scaleless library would contain some information on this topic?"

    Reima "We''re pretty far off from there, I''ll have a look around to see if I can find anything when we eventually journey there." Solaire nods and they get up to continue through BlightTown.

    The maze-like structure makes even progressing in the correct direction difficult, Reima manages to pick up the Shadow outfit, it''s similar to typical ninja outfits back on earth. It doesn''t seem to provide much protection but allows for maximum flexibility, range of movement and includes shoes that help sneaking. He stores them away as he''s not the most stealth oriented person, especially down in the depths of BlightTown where most creatures rely on sight, rather than smell or hearing.

    Crack!

    The sound of something shattering makes both undead tense up, they realise that Solaire had stepped on a plate with some kind of meat prepared on it... The creatures that live here use all the trash they find, plates, pots, cutlery and basic furniture. If they weren''t such savages that seem to indulge in cannibalism and mindless violence Reima might be tempted to try communicate with them.

    A red dog bum-rushes them but gets kicked in the snout by Solaire, they begin to think it''s not much of a threat but that''s before it starts shooting fire from it''s mouth like a dragon. The flames don''t do any damage to them but the same cannot be said for the wooden bridge they''re standing on. It starts to crack and crumble so they start sprinting to apart of the structure that''s not on fire, ignoring the dog as it tries to chew their ankles.

    They safely reach the other side but Reima gets grabbed by one of the alien looking creatures, it bites into his shoulder with it''s four mandibles and shakes its head like a dog to try cause as much damage as possible, Reima feeling his Gleam cloak get bitten grabs the creature by the neck and throws it towards the flaming bridge. It hits the bridge which collapses under it''s weight and falls into the abyss.

    He looks down and sees the dragon dog still trying to breach his plated leather boots with it''s teeth, he stomps on it''s head causing blood and brain matter to cover his boot. He looks to the side and sees Solaire with his foot on one of the monsters that drop rare titantite, Solaire stabs it and the bug-like creature drops two twinkling titanite. He passes them to Reima due to him not having any use for that specific ore.

 74 Mild Mildred

    As they descend they begin to get glimpses of the swamp below and the various creatures that inhabit it, instead of the humanoid hollows that they''d been dealing with so far, most of the swamp''s creatures were leech or bug-like. Flies, spiders and who knows what else dwells down there attacking any who trespass. The path the two undead tread eventually leads to a large hole in the stone brick wall.

    Before they enter Reima spots a large... Thing? attached to the wall, it has a crab like lower body that sticks to the wall but it elongates into some sort of leech mouth? It''s skin is dry and cracked and oozes a black substance.

    Ignoring the monstrosity not far from them they enter the destroyed wall and the light seems to be sucked away causing Solaire to have difficulties progressing. Reima simply summons his Pyromancer flame before encouraging it to increase it''s size, it provides a good amount of light to the surroundings. Reima lights snuffed out torches as they walk through and dispatch any enemies attempting to impede their progress.

    They take a ladder downwards and see the doorway on the other side of the room, something seems to be blocking it with it''s body. Reima realises it''s that crab-like abomination sitting above the entrance, they approach it and stab it a few times causing it to shudder but not move... Is it stuck here?

    After what seems more stabs than neccecery the creature groans and fades into motes of light, dropping a scroll below it''s previous position.

    Reima approaches it and picks it up before reading the title, Power Within?... Oh, he remembers it being used in the game. If he''s not mistaken it should be a massive speed and damage buff, the negatives are that it slowly drains health when it''s used.

    Reima looks at Solaire "This is a good find."

    Solaire "Yes but I wonder what that creature was doing with a scroll? Reading perhaps?"

    Reima "It didn''t look like it had eyes, so probably not."

    They continue to fight the residence of BlightTown as they try to reach the bottom, they enter a path leading through another wall and realise that it leads to the bottomless hole they''d started at, looking up they can almost see the beginnings of the Depths. They take enter the fog-gate and come out onto another wooden platform with a ladder beside it. They head down the ladder and come face to face with their first chaos creature, it''s body is long and tapers towards it''s tail, red charred skin with spider-like legs. The most notable thing about the creature is it''s face which is completely enveloped in fire. It spits a whip of fire at them which makes them block it, Solaire retaliates with a lightning bolt and it quickly dies from the newly formed hole. They don''t seem that durable which means that can quickly kill them before they start spitting fire everywhere, last thing they need is the whole structure collapsing on them. Reima looks over the side at the swamp and sees giant tree roots running along the area, he only just realises now that this is probably the base of the tree that he saw in Firelink shrine... He knows the area inside of it is called the Great hollow but is unsure about the tree''s actual name... Wouldn''t surprise him if it was called Yggdrasil.

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    Reima and Solaire kill a number of chaos bugs and large blood sucking flies as they travel and get closer to the swamp, Reima stores the wanderer set in his Folded space which causing Solaire to comment that he''s got a hoarding problem. They finally reach the swamp after killing a large number of chaos bugs that tried to ambush them, Reima''s boots sink in the swamp as soon as they land and he immediately feels the poison trying to invade him system, due to his Witcher mutations, arch griffin mutagen and adaptive body he can take it relatively well... But that doesn''t mean Solaire can.

    Reima remembers that a bonfire is near them and gets Solaire to sprint with him towards it. They reach a tunnel that looks like where the sewer ends and finally dumps the waste, inside the find a dead bonfire that springs to life has they approach it. Solaire rests at it which causes the poison to vanish from his system which makes him relax, due to Solaire''s apparent weakness towards poison Reima decides to loot the nearby area alone while he rests, Solaire tries to refuse but Reima tells him he only has a limited supply of Purple moss clumps.

    Leaving Solaire at the bonfire Reima tries to remember where the fire keeper soul was located... He leaves the tunnel and a strange feeling crawls up his neck, looking to the side he sees a glowing red woman wearing rags and a bag over her head sprinting towards him with a huge butcher knife.

    Reima readies Arcell as she does a jumping attack and slams her weapon on top of him, his blade shudder slightly at the force but it isn''t difficult to block, mainly because of his massively increased strength.

    The woman growls and disengages her weapon and tries to bash him with her plank shield, Reima simply dodges with Windfall before stabbing her in the side. Not even a groan is heard when she takes the wound, she seems to just get angrier and starts furiously swinging her weapon around.. Reima decides to end it and parries the weapon knocking her off balance before stabbing Arcell through her throat... She drops to her knees while holding the wound and eventually disappearing.

    Reima looks at the floor and sees the butcher knife she was wielding lying in the swampy waters, he stores it in his Folded space despite having almost no idea what to do with it... Reima follows a rickety path upwards and jumps on the elevator that''s somehow being powered? He looks at it and sees an undead dog running in what looks like a hamster wheel... He''s unsure how it can produce so much force with such a small body but ignores it in favour of finding the fire-keeper soul, while he currently doesn''t have a use for them that doesn''t mean he won''t find one in the future. He refuses to even consider upgrading his Estus flasks due to them probably not working in other worlds.

 75 Quelaag the guilty

    After reaching the top of the elevator Reima hops off and looks around, he spots a familiar looking tunnel above him that should have the fire-keeper soul inside, if his memory is correct.

    He climbs a couple ladder before coming face to face with 6 dart shooters.. While Reima hates them with a passion he decides to finish this quickly... He teleports to the far side of the room and picks up the fire-keeper soul before teleporting back to the swamp.

    "That was easy" he says while examining the humanity warped soul resting in his hand, he stores it away after finding no use for it currently.

    Reima decides to loot the area before confronting the sisters, he walks around the swamp killing leeches and fat boulder throwing hollows while picking up a huge amount of varying size and colour titanite pieces.

    While he''s walking past a pillar is comes across an area that seems distorted... He waves his hand through it and finds nothing unusual, backing up he gets a better picture and remembers this is where Quelana sits... He recalls that you need a powerful Pyromancy flame to actually see her, deciding he''ll meet her eventually he leaves and treks back to Solaire.

    Solaire "You''re back! Are you done hoarding more items you''ll never use?" He says sarcastically.

    Reima "I don''t know what you mean, all of these items are useful... Looks at this butchers... machete? If I ever need to prepare meat then this''ll be very useful!" Solaire shakes his head at Reima''s apparent pleading and they leave the tunnel towards an area almost completely covered in webs.

    They find a cave with many lumps of webs attached the the ceiling... Probably eggs or prey hidden under them?

    They continue deeper into the cave and find some not-quite dead hollows with giant egg sacks on their backs, Solaire wants to put them out of their misery but Reima tells him not to.

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    Reima "They are like this of their own volition, you will understand after this..." He doesn''t know exactly how this is going to go down, but he hopes he can try and talk Quelaag down so he can try help her sister...

    They approach the Fog-gate, "Try follow my lead Solaire, there is another purpose to what we can achieve here." Solaire nods at his words and they enter the large cavern.

    A gentle, almost angelic voice speaks from a hidden part of the area, "More fools who wish to part with their humanity? I thank thee truly." The person is finally revealed when they start heading towards them... A huge mutated spider with flames jutting from it''s body, it''s hairy and has a large amount of eyes plastered on it''s mangled face... Truly an ugly creature, in contrast, a beautiful black haired woman who seems attached from the hip down to the spider. She wields a sword wreathed in chaos flames and smiles as she approaches them.

    Quelaag "Two? Now that''s a change. Are you both ready to die together?" She giggles despite her morbid sentence.

    Solaire "BACK OR I''LL-" he''s about to draw his sword from it''s sheath but Reima places a hand on it''s pommel to stop him.

    Reima "Lady Quelaag, we have no wish to fight you." He says sincerely to her.

    Quelaag "Oh? That''s a shame, because I really want to kill you." She gets closer to them while readying her blade.

    Reima "I know why you collect humanity."

    Quelaag "Yes, because I''m a monster! Now be quiet while I butcher you!" Guilt flashes on her face as she prepares to strike them down.

    Solaire "L-lady, my friend is a seer... Fighting someone who knows the outcome is never a jolly thing!" He tries to reason with her, but Reima''s next words freeze Quelaag.

    Reima "I wish to help your sister." It''s a simple sentence but makes Quelaag stop in her advance, how on earth could he know of her sister? Is he truly a seer as his friend stated?

    Reima "If we fight, you will die. I do not wish to kill such an innocent persons only remaining family, I seek to cure her ails."

    Quelaag "What could you possibly do to help her? I''ve been trying for centuries to heal her but to no avail! Magic is completely useless for what afflicts her!"

    Reima "That is why I will try another method."

    Quelaag weighs the pro''s and con''s on letting them see her sister and finally relents, if what he''s saying is true then perhaps he could actually help her... She won''t have to harvest humanity anymore.

    Quelaag "Very well, I will lead you to her... But know this, if you hurt her in any way, I will tear you apart."

    Reima smiles at her, "I don''t doubt that for a second milady."

    They follow her up the stairs and they spot the bell of awakening, "Ah, a moment please Milady... We also need to ring this bell."

    Quelaag "If you ring it wayward undead will stop trying to reach it... I suppose if you heal my sister it wouldn''t matter, ring it..."

    Reima pulls the leaver that makes the bell ring, the sound echos more than the church bell and seems to reverberate everything near. Afterwards they continue to follow Quelaag who waves her hand at a wall revealing a bonfire with a egg infested hollow protecting it.

    ??? "Oh, mistress! You have returned... The fair lady is saddened when you leave her, please spend more time with her Mistress... Oh, guests? Are these new servants?" he struggles to raise his head to looks at the new arrivals.

    Quelaag grins "Something like that..."

    Eingyi "Ah, we are blessed. I am Eingyi, a humble servant of the fair lady... Please, if you have any humanity give it to her, it seems to ease her suffering..."

    Eingyi crawls out of the way so they can look at Quelaag''s sister, similar to her sister her lower body is attached to a giant white spider that, by the smell, seems to be rotting. Her human body above it is very pale and has black veins visible on her naked chest. Her hair is completely white and she''s slumped over in exhaustion.

    She hears them approach and starts speaking... Reima can''t make out what she''s saying as it seems to be a different language.

    Quelaag speaks to her in English which confuses Reima further, "Worry not sister, we''ll find a way to stop the pain." she says as she rubs her sister cheek.

    Quelaag looks at Reima "Well, you said you could help her?" he nods.

    Reima "I''ll use some techniques that are not known to this land, may I approach your sister and take a sample of her blood?"

 76 So... Wanna play Gwent?

    Reima "I''ll use some techniques that are not known to this land, may I approach your sister and take a sample of her blood?"

    Quelaag "Her blood!?! Do you intend to curse her!?" her voice raises as she accuses him.

    Eingyi "If you try to harm the lady I''ll bite your ankles, so help me!" he says as loud as he can with his raspy voice.

    Solaire "Now, now... I''m sure that''s not what my friend intends... Is it?" he looks at Reima trying while trying to mediate.

    Reima "Of course not! The techniques I intend to use require me to analyse her blood, do any of you know about science?"

    A silence pervades the room...

    Reima "Seriously? No one?"

    Quelaag "What is this science thing you''re talking about? Is it a kind of magical technique I have yet to learn of?" Reima almost caves his own skull in by face palming.

    Reima "Science is the method of discovering the mysteries of the world, through testing, observation and careful analyses people can even journey to the moon."

    Solaire "My friend, what you''re saying is preposterous!"

    Reima "No, it''s probably what Seath the scaleless uses to further his magic." He remembers the experiments conducted on people in Seath''s laboratory while playing the game.

    Quelaag "The lord?"

    Reima nods his head and pulls the mutagen distilling equipment from his Folded space and showing them to the curious group.

    Reima "I''ll put her blood in here and have the machine work on it for a couple of days, once it''s done we''ll be able to see if Mutagens can help or harm her." He assumes she''s perfectly capable of accepting them, chaos by it''s very nature is adaptable and it''d surprise him if she couldn''t.

    Reima "How about this" He hands Quelaag two syringes, "Draw blood from her arm and her spider body and I can begin the process."

    ...

    Quelaag "Fine, but you are not allowed from my sight with the blood, is that clear?"

    Reima "Crystal"

    Reima gets the machine ready as Quelaag speaks to her sister gently before drawing the blood, her human half blood looks normal, but when Quelaag draws from the spider half it looks blackish and tainted. He gets handed the syringe and he empties the contents into some fire resistant vials before putting them in the machine.

    Reima "Now, we wait..." He takes a seat next to Engyi.

    Solaire "So, how long will it take?" the others nod to his question and looks towards Reima.

    Reima shrugs "Around three days to see if I can help, and another three days if we find the correct Mutagen to use."

    Solaire "Forgive me if I sound strange but, what is a Muturgen?"

    Reima "Hmm, it''s basically a concentrated group of DNA strands that are encouraged to integrate with other cells... If injected into someone who''s adaptable, like me for instance, it will confer some of the DNA''s characteristics."

    Quelaag "Have you undergone this process yourself?" she looks into his cat-like eyes.

    Reima "Yes, it may surprise you but I''m still only 12 years old..."

    Solaire snorts before realising it wasn''t a joke, "WHAT! My friend you must stop with this jest!"

    Quelaag "I agree, you are clearly old than you purport."

    Reima shakes his head, "No, I''m not joking... My rapid growth is a result of the Mutagens I was exposed to when I was younger, my eyes aswell. They call people like me Witchers, we are created to hunt monsters for pitiable rewards as the populace seems to hate us, despite running to us and pleading in times of need."

    Quelaag "Humans are hypocrites, although I would like to hear what you consider monsters?" she gives him a glare.

    Reima "Well, it may differ form Witcher to Witcher, but any creature without sapience that is inherently harmful to the ecosystem or nearby sapient races... Obviously, you''re sapient so don''t dwell on it."

    Solaire "Interesting, I seem to learn more about you every day Sir Ludvig."

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    Reima "Well, while we are waiting for the blood to distil, why don''t we play a game?"

    Quelaag "A game? like when children kick balls around for fun?"

    Reima "No, not like that. I mean a card game..." He pulls out his Gwent set that Geralt had bought for him before explaining the basic rules to play.

    Quelaag listens intently as she sits beside her sister and holds her hand, Solaire sits beside Reima and Eingyi as he too listens.

    After explaining the basics he asks Quelaag if she wants to have a game... Usually she would say no but, something about this game makes he unable to refuse?

    They play a short few round while Reima explains things she doesn''t understand, he wins eventually but she seems to have enjoyed herself.

    Solaire "So it''s similar to chess then?"

    Reima "Ah, you guys know of chess?" he asks surprised.

    Solaire "It was a game only played by nobles and lords, it was created to teach strategy and train generals to think ahead."

    Reima "Huh, interesting... Well since I only have two decks worth of cards only two people at a time can play, who wants a go?"

    And so the group took turns playing against each other, due to the limited cards each of the games were similar but they enjoyed it nonetheless, while Solaire was playing against Eingyi, Quelaag speaks to him.

    Quelaag "I sense you hold a flame... If you manage to heal my sister, I''m willing to share my own with you..." Her cheeks blush red slightly as she says this...

    Her words were not ignored by Eingyi who almost drops his cards in surprise. "Mistress will share her flame? Are you sure?" he seems to plead to her.

    Quelaag glares at him, "I have made my decision... If he''s true to his word I''ll keep mine."

    Reima is slightly confused at the weird atmosphere, he knows giving sharing a flame is a very intimate action but, as he already did so with Laurentius it shouldn''t be such a big deal?... Further thinking of the implications of sharing a part of yourself gives Reima goosebumps, does this make him gay now? He vanishes the thought and focuses on Quelaag''s words.

    Reima "I don''t know the implications to such a thing, could you explain further? I would like to know what I''m getting into..."

    Eingyi waves for him to come closer as Quelaag speaks to her sister.

    Eingyi whispers to him, "For old families such as the mistress and fair lady, sharing a flame is similar to being adopted... You''ll become family, such an honour should never be refused!"

    Reima sighs in relief, as he thinks to himself "Lucky this isn''t one of those soul bond troupes... Like, where would I even put it?" He eyes Quelaags spider body...

 77 Learning Pyromancy

    While they wait for the distillation to finish to finish the group try and find things to keep themselves occupied, Solaire seems to be reminiscing with Eingyi about the age of gods and fire, they seem to hold fond memories of the people and prosperous age. Eingyi also mentions that he used to be a famous pyromancer, capable of the strongest spells known. Looking at him now, Reima thinks it''s a waste that he''d let himself be infested like this, the egg sack on his back completely inhibiting all his actions.

    Reima "Eingyi, why do you choose to continue being infested by eggs? You hold the egg Vermifuge do you not?"

    Eingyi "I choose to suffer with our fair lady... I''m sure she''d be happy that we''d remained at her side throughout the centuries."

    Reima "Wouldn''t it be better for you to protect her instead? Forgive me but your not in the most combat worthy state..."

    Eingyi "With the mistress guarding the entrance the lady is safe, anyone managing to defeat her wouldn''t struggle with me." He seems determined to remain as he is... Maybe once Quelaag''s sister can speak again she can talk some sense into them.

    The time spent waiting wasn''t just him idling around though, Quelaag offered to teach him how to cast basic Pyromancies. She showed him how to manipulate the flame without rendering yourself ash in the process, Reima wanted to upgrade his flame as quickly as possible but when he asked her she outright refused.

    Quelaag "You aren''t ready to handle such a strong flame... You wouldn''t last a day before it consumed you." She was right, Reima found it rather difficult to make the flame do what he wants, it was only after a day of learning that he learned his methods were outright wrong.

    Quelaag stated that controlling the flame is a fickle dream and almost impossible, the most powerful pyromancers understand this and prod, provoke and encourage instead. After experimenting a bit Reima found it much easier to handle the flame after this piece of advice. Instead of sorcery which is akin to wielding a sword and swinging it with control and discipline, pyromancy is more like flying a kite and gently pulling it in a certain direction. She tells him of how she herself lays a trail of Mana that the flame follows to form shapes, Reima finds this an ingenious way of countering the flames chaotic nature.

    So instead of before where Reima was trying to shape the flame itself, he carefully controls concentrated Mana in the air to make a shape... He has it take a square shape above his hand, the points on each side are a little dull but it''s amazing progress as Quelaag has stated many times as she watches him train and discover more ways to utilise the fire for himself.

    On the second day Eingyi was teaching Reima some basic Pyromancies while Solaire battled against Quelaag in a game of Gwent, he teaches him he basic fire ball spell and the beginning of fire storm, the radial spell that has fire burst from the ground and incinerate those near. The reason Pyromancy is generally short ranged or thrown projectile is because of the flames instability, extending a Mana trail too far from your person makes it very difficult to control and maintain, the further out it travels the large the amount used. For this reason Pyromancy will never be able to out range sorcery, it''s just not feasible to have such fine control over fire, unless you''re Lord Gwyn or someone similar.

    By the time the distilling process finishes Reima has had his flame upgraded to it''s max level, +15 if you use the games numbers. While not spectacularly powerful at using his flame yet, Reima has shown a ridiculous amount of talent for the subject.

    Solaire "Sir Ludvig, I think it''s been around three days?"

    Reima "Maybe? It''s kind of difficult to know while in a cave... Let me check."

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    He walks over and checks the process and finds it completed, he calls the others over as he shows the the vials. One holds the regular blood from the fair ladies human half, and the other is the spider blood. The human blood looks relatively normal except when Reima looks closer the cells seem to be constantly shifting and adapting... This kind of thing is ridiculous, the rate the the cells are dividing reminds him of cancer cells... Something stops them from completely overtaking her body.

    He looks at the other vial containing an almost pure black substance, he uses his flame to hold behind it to look closer with the assist of the light. The same thing is also present here, extreme adaptivity to anything presented, it seems to have calmed down from it''s initial exposure to pure chaos otherwise the sisters would be fusing with anything they touch.

    Quelaag "Well? What is it?" She asks anxiously.

    Reima "She should be able to survive having Mutagens introduced. In fact, I fear she might take too well to them."

    Quelaag "What does that mean?"

    Reima "It means, whatever creature''s Mutagen we use on her might have a massive effect on her body structure... Say I use a Giants'' DNA, she would probably grow to it''s height within a matter of days."

    Quelaag "It''s fine, as long as you can cure her illness, her form doesn''t particularly matter. If she retains her mind and remembers us it''s worth it."

    Reima sighs "Very well... Now we just have to find a creature that holds extraordinary regenerative abilities... Wait, Solaire remember what you said about the dragon we killed?"

    Solaire "Yes, that beast was definitely able to restore itself... It even regrew eyes and severed limbs."

    Reima "That''s great! We won''t have to go looking for one now." The others smile as they can imagine Quelaag''s sister recovering soon.

    ...

    Reima "Now... Another three days of waiting... Isn''t it just grand..." He says as he remembers that he also has to distil the dragon DNA...

    Solaire "Don''t mind it, I rather like the company we have at present!" He looks at Eingyi and Quelaag, he didn''t seem to mind when he first tried to befriend them, perhaps he''s more open minded then other people when it comes to different races?

 78 8 Trigram leg strikes!

    And so another three days of waiting begins, rather than play Gwent for three days straight Eingyi and Quelaag have started increasing Reima''s Pyromancy training. After learning on his talent for it they tried to teach everything they knew, Eingyi even presented him with the Great Chaos fireball spell... While he wasn''t able to use it so soon it was still a kind gesture that Reima appreciated.

    After one day of learning under them they started to hear guttural agonising screams from deeper into the ruins, Solaire asks who''s making such a sound and Quelaag only replies with "Our brother." She looks solemn as the scream continue throughout the day.

    Solaire "Should we not assist him? He sounds like he''s in great pain..." Quelaag shakes her head at him.

    Quelaag "He''s too far gone, My sister and I managed to escape most of the effects of chaos... Our brother was not so lucky, he was transformed into a gigantic beast that constantly spews lava from his person... At first he was conscious, able to think, barely talk and understand what we said to him... Then due to the massive amount of pain he was in, he lost himself, went mad."

    Solaire "Still, are you sure?" he seems troubled by the beings screams of agony.

    Quelaag "We tried to help, we gave him a ring that temporarily stopped his flesh from burning..." She chuckles as if thinking about a fond, but sad memory "The klutz dropped it into the lava below him."

    The atmosphere after the story is only broken due to the screams.

    Reima "Quelaag, I regret that I have to tell you this but, for us to continue our journey we will need to slay your brother..." Eingyi looks at them in horror.

    Quelaag "I understand... Rather, I wished I had the strength to end his suffering personally... But I''m neither physically nor mentally strong enough for it."

    After a couple hours the screams fade as Quelaag''s brother seems to move away from their location.

    Reima continues training his Pyromancy as they wait, he even spars with Solaire near the bell to keep them on their toes... His fights with Solaire were, lacklustre to put it briefly... While Solaire is a powerful warrior, without using his miracles his swordsman ship is very basic, without utilising his superior speed and strength Reima handily defeats him in a sword fight. He doesn''t seem that put off by it, except the fact that Reima is only 12 yearsold, but even with that he doesn''t seem to mind.

    The interesting part begins when Quelaag decided to spar with him herself, she seemed to think she would absolutely thrash him... While battling against her is rather difficult due to having to block sword strikes and spider bites simultaneously it wasn''t that difficult.

    With Solaire acting as the referee Reima and Quelaag stand opposite each other.

    Quelaag "Are you ready to handed your hide?" she grins at him while wielding her fury blade.

    Reima "I could ask you the same question... Wanna make a bet?" He sends an equally smug grin back at her.

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    Quelaag nods "What are the stakes..."

    Reima materialises Arcell, "My sword for something of equal value... Did I mention it''s indestructible?"

    She eyes the sword with greed before replying "A custom spell I spent decades working on."

    Reima "Deal! The rules, only swordsmanship, no spells."

    Quelaag "Agreed. Sir Solaire, would you give us a signal."

    Solaire nods and after the two combatants set up he shouts, "Start!"

    Quelaag bursts into action and charges at Reima while readying her sword... He sees her large spider body sprinting towards him and almost shits his pants, that''s scary as hell! He manages to remain calm as he parries her first sword strike and dodges the attempted bite of her spider half. She''s fast, her sword swings don''t carry any noticeable form but are very quick, she''s also inhumanly strong, but isn''t quite strong enough to outright beat Reima.

    He kicks the spider in the eye and parries another few strikes from Quelaag, he eventually uses a Windfall dodge to slow her down, she tries to recover from the strike but Reima attempts to jump on her spider body to finish the duel. She makes her spider half rear up like a horse which successfully stops his attack and starts using her long legs to stab at him.

    With the intesity of the battle reaching it''s peak, Reima finds himself dodging a ridiculous number of strikes, slashes and stabs from Quelaag. Again, no technique that can be seen but with the flurry of attacks, any normal person would already be mincemeat. After dodging with Windfall three times in a row which causes Quelaag''s whole body to seize slightly he finally hops onto her spider body and presses his blade against her neck.

    Reima "I win!" Her face looks ugly as she replies.

    Quelaag "No! You cheated... You definitely used magic to slow me!" Her pride won''t let her admit defeat....

    Reima "It''s actually a martial technique I learned a while ago." He doesn''t mention is uses a sort of magic not known to Lordran...

    Quelaag "B-but!"

    Solaire "Milady, Sir Ludvig was victorious... Rather, I find it amusing you complain about unique abilities while using 8 legs to stab at him..." She huffs when she hears him and tosses a scroll towards Reima.

    The scroll reads, Chaos blade... It''s similar to fire enhancement spells you can find in Darksouls 2 and 3, funny how Quelaag had already created such a technique.

    Reima "It was a good fight Quelaag, you had me on the ropes at the end there." He tries to cheer her up but she scuttles back to the cave to complain to her sister... Cute!

 79 Dragonification!

    After another day the distillation process is finally complete, the others look just as excited as Reima does as he retrieves the vial... Before he actually injects the fair lady he has to do a couple tests first.

    He grabs the three day old samples from Quelaag''s sister that are somehow still alive and kicking before dripping the Dragon Mutagen into both of them.

    The black one reacts first and starts sprouting tiny scales inside of it... Pretty big adaption but shouldn''t be too much to handle. He drips some into the red vial and it glows slightly before becoming a brighter more vibrant red... It seems to have more vitality?

    After seeing the results Reima is convinced that it will work and explains his thoughts to the others, Quelaag looks anxious and happy while Eingyi looks like he''s in nirvana.

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    Reima also notes a couple other things that are required for the Fair ladies recovery.

    Reima "Quelaag, you have to convince your sister to stop trying to keep the eggs alive. Most of them are already dead and the remaining ones are sucking such a large amount of souls and humanity from her that she will die even if she''s cured.

    Quelaag nods and starts speaking to her sister, he notices a small frown on the fair ladies face as he sister repeats to her, she needs to let the eggs go more forcefully than last time. Tears drip from her eyes as she moves her head in what seems like a nod.

    Quelaag look to Reima and nods, he approaches her and gives her some humanity before injecting her human half with the Mutagen. She seems to try and scream as it starts mutating her body, Reima remembers just how painful such a process is as he holds her other hand not occupied by Quelaag.

    Her grip on him increases and if he didn''t upgrade his strength she would''ve crushed his hand, her skin wriggles as if thousands of ants are burrowing inside as small red scales begin to form, they start covering her cheeks, elbow''s, wrists, neck and eventually make their way down to her spider half...

    The scales on her skin are thin and not very noticeable when compared to the ones forming on her lower half, the spiders almost rotten flesh seems to tense up as it slowly heals, scales start covering the entire thing making it looks like a cross between a crab and a dragon. She continues to twitch as the changes don''t just effect her skin but her internal organs as well, with the fair lady being a fire keeper, a person who holds an ungodly amount of humanity the mutations also start effecting where it''s stored. Her chest has blackened veins start popping out and looking like they''re going to rupture.

    Reima lets her absorb some more humanity as it generally strengthens the body and allows her to resist to strain.

    Scales slowly cover where the veins are located and they seem to enclose them, stopping them from causing her anymore harm.

    After a couple hours, the fair lady actually manages to voice a tired scream... This might not seem like a big deal but she used to be so weak her vocal cords had stopped working properly, he being able to produce a scream reveals that she is becoming stronger slowly.

    Another couple of hours later and the mutations seem to slowdown and eventually stop... While she looks a lot stronger she also looks significantly different... Her upper half has white scales scattered around haphazardly on her skin and her new eyes have a slit in them, like a lizard. Her spider body is more similar to a white crab with very thick scales covering it''s entire body.

    Quelaag looks at her sister and starts crying. "Queliina are you alright? Speak to me..."

    The now named Queliina nods her head slightly but doesn''t seem strong enough to reply just yet.

    Reima "Give her some time to recover... This process is very painful and exhausting for the body, here, give these to her every couple of hours to help her recovery." He hands Quelaag 5 humanity before sitting down next to Eingyi, while he didn''t have to go through the process himself, it is very exhausting watching someone experience it... It looked similar to how the trial of grasses effected the body which brings back horrific memories.

    Solaire pats him on the shoulder, while looking a the sisters, "What you have done is very noble my friend. Family is the most important thing in life, without it... Well, we might as well go hollow." he looks wistful as he says this.

    Reima nods "I agree, but family doesn''t just have to be blood related... Say, you want a drink? I haven''t drank alcohol since coming to these lands."

    Solaire nods and Reima brings out a bottle of Kuretz whisky and a couple mugs, he hands on to Eingyi and Solaire before pouring them all a drink. Solaire starts to remove his bucket helm and Reima realises he''s never seen his face... He takes the helm off and reveals bright blonde hair with gold? eyes?

    Solaire looks at Reima who''s staring straight into his eyes, "My friend, you are the last person I want to hear commenting on someones eyes..." they laugh and have a toast.

    "To Queliina''s health", they clink the mugs before taking a swig. It''s rather amusing watching Eingyi try and lift his head high enough to drink without pouring it over his head, Solaire coughs before commenting on the drinks harsh taste... And so the three drink while observing the sister slowly recover.

 80 My little sister cant be this cute

    A few hours later after the alcohol had worn off Reima gets up from where he''s sitting and goes to check on Queliina, Quelaag is huddled next to her to comfort her while she rests as he walks up.

    He looks over her and inspects the previously rotting spider that acts as Queliina''s lower half... The scales have overtaken it but the joints look fine so she should still be capable of movement.

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    Quelaag pushes another humanity into her chest to help her recovery... Reima was intrigued when he found out about humanities property to increase the bodies strength, while they were waiting had had discussed it with Quelaag who told of it''s wondrous effect while also warning about abusing it... She mentioned Oolacile when she spoke of overusing humanity, while from what Reima understands Oolacile most of the troubles the land experienced were due to Manus going beserk and trying to reclaim his pendant. But even through that event, humanity still played a large part to it''s destruction due to being part of the original dark soul.

    Reima had actually experimented on creatures using humanity, he infused humanity into a small spider to see it''s effects... Needless to say, humanity is about as bad as chaos when it comes to mutating things... It started turning the spider pure black as it oozed an equally black liquid, it grew eyes all over it''s body while it''s size started to grow at an unprecedented rate. After killing the creature and reclaiming the humanity almost all ideas on using humanity to augment his strength was gone.

    While Reima waited for the fair lady to recover he practised using the combustion pyromancies so he could eventually use the great chaos fireball. Einyi who seemed to still have a hangover also taught him fire-stream, a flame thrower like spell that''s not too dis-similar to his Igni sign.

    Quelaag eventually looked over to him and smiled through her tearful eyes, it seems she believes her sister will recover... "Sir Ludvig, you have helped us in ways you know not... For centuries has my sister been ill, for centuries I''ve had to hunt innocent undead to soothe her pain... You''ve done in a few days what I could not in centuries, for that I thank you." She bows deeply to him and Eingyi soon follows.

    Reima "Don''t think about it too much... I''d help anyone in your situation." he smiles at her.

    She shakes her head "It may be the case, but regardless I wish to reward you... While I''d rather do this is a more... Private spot, I have no wish to leave my sister. Come closer." She''s giving off serious Dere-dere vibes right now... Is it safe to approach without protection?

    Keeping his thoughts to himself he walks towards Quelaag and looks into her vibrant red coloured eyes, she puts her hands on her chest and slowly draws out a large dark red coloured flame and hold it in-front of herself. He can feel the heat emanating from it and almost backs away it it''s intensity, she runs a hand over it and separates a small amount before looking at him. "Present your flame."

    He draws his flame out and reveals the small bright flame and holds it out to her... She pushes the small shard of her flame into it causing them both to shudder, the sensation is peculiar... It feels like shaking hands, duelling tongues and having a in-depth conversation all at once... His flame starts taking on a similar dark red colour before expanding to a slightly smaller size to Quelaag''s flame... It''s difficult to control but with the six straight days of almost constant pyromancy training he manages to restrain it.

    Solaire and Eingyi watch from the side as this happens and Eingyi is describing to Solaire the significance of sharing a flame, just as a bonfire is the manifestation of a fire-keepers soul, the same can be said for pyromancy flames for pyromancers... Sharing souls is not something to be taken lightly, they watch as the Reima''s flame mixes and changes colour and blushes form on both Quelaag and Reima''s faces.

    Reima feels like he''s drawing knowledge from Quelaag''s flame, various topics on pyromancies, family and Izalith before it''s destruction... On Quelana...

    ??? "Br-Brother...?"

    A small voice is heard from the side which causes both Quelaag and himself to turn towards it.

    Queliina is holding her slightly scaled hand towards him as she repeats her words, "Brother"...

    He holds her hand gently as she gives a small smile at the contact, it almost makes his heart melt at how cute she is.

    Reima "I''m here... Sis"

    Quelaag smiles at their interaction as she continues to comfort her sister... The sharing of her flame wasn''t just an experience for Reima... It was the first time she''d ever done such a thing, if this was before the destruction of Izalith her mother would be calling for a wedding as soon as possible, that''s how intimate such an act was. For now, thanking him as her sisters saviour is enough... As if he''d want to marry someone with such a form?

 81 Someone cutting onions?

    After another few days of relaxing with the sisters and seeing Queliina''s condition steadily improve Reima and Solaire decide it''s time they get moving again, much to the dismay of Quelaag who doesn''t seem to want to let them go.

    Quelaag "Surely you can''t believe that linking the flame is the correct course of action?"

    Reima shrugs "I don''t intend to link the flame, but I will slay Gwyn, not just for his soul but for what he''s done to humanity."

    Solaire takes his time to respond "I''ll decide once I''ve accomplished my goal."

    Quelaag looks rather downtrodden, she knows what would happen to them if they managed to light it, even discounting the huge trials ahead of them.

    Reima "Don''t worry, We''ll visit... I''m able to teleport to anyplace I''ve been before." he winks at her.

    She looks taken aback that such sorcery exists, "Truly? Then you must visit as often as you can!"

    Eingyi "Indeed, losing such an ally would be hard on the Fair lady!" His words remind Reima that he almost forgot to say goodbye.

    He walks up to Queliina and holds her hand gently causing her to smile, "Brother"

    Reima "Hey sis, I need to leave for a while..." She squeezes his hand tightly when he says this.

    "Not for long, I just have a couple thing I need to do. Look after your sister for me? You know how she gets when left on her own." Queliina''s frown upturns slightly as she nods.

    After saying goodbye to them Solaire grabs his arm as Reima teleports them straight to the building outside of sens fortress.

    Solaire "I have a question... Why did we not attempt to defeat the witch of Izalith? Surely it was the easier lord soul to acquire?"

    Reima shakes his head, "I''d need to learn some Sorcery to actually have a chance at beating the sisters brother, ceaseless discharge. While I have some pyromancies now, they wouldn''t do much verses a literal pile of living lava."

    Solaire "Then why not stop by Firelink for that sorcerer to teach you, Griggs I think his name was?"

    Reima "Because his master is being held prisoner in this fortress, if I''m going to be taught, I want it to be from the best."

    Solaire nods in understanding "Ah, you truly have this all played out my friend!"

    They don''t bother visiting Andre the blacksmith and instead head straight towards the fortress who''s gate had been lifted due to the ringing of the bells of awakening.

    They enter the massive entrance and are immediately assaulted by a duo of snake men? They have emaciated figures like most other hollows but have very long necks with a snakes head replacing their human one... Could they have been one of Seath''s experiments? They carry curved swords you''d see in ancient Egypt and small bucklers. They charge at them and accidentally trigger one of the many traps of the fortress and are immediately peppered with poison darts... Either they are extremely stupid or have already gone hollow?

    The poison doesn''t seem to effect them as they start swinging their blades at the two undead, Reima decides this is a great chance to finally use pyromancy on something and casts combustion on one of them, the searing heat immediately causes third degree burns and makes it fallback wards before writhing in pain. Effective, he muses to himself as he uses Quelaag''s self made spell, Chaos blade. He runs his pyromancy flames down Arcell causing it to ignite in Dark red flames, luckily for him, the heat doesn''t seem to effect it''s caster and he performs a test slash at the snake man who lets out a pained hiss? scream? Either way Reima finishes it off with a stab to the face.

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    He turns to see Solaire had already killed his foe and was watching him, "Had enough fun yet my friend?" Reima grins and nods, "Just testing out the results of my training."

    Solaire "You''ve become quite adept at controlling fire, It makes me wish I''d taken up my own flame, perhaps that''s the way forward to acquiring my own sun?" He muses more to himself then anything.

    Reima "If you want to learn I''m sure Eingyi and Quelaag would be more than happy to teach you, Perhaps I''d be willing to start you off with my own flame?" He questions, while he and Solaire are good friends he doesn''t think he could do something so intimate as casually as Laurentius did for him.

    Solaire "Your offer is enticing but I wish to think something like this over a bit longer... Using something other than Miracles is a big decision for me..." He mutters the last bit but Reima picks it up regardless.

    Reima "Cheer up, we''ve still got a fortress to conquer!" He slaps him on the arm before walking into the dark room.

    Solaire runs to keep up with his jolly companion.

    Reima walks forwards while thinking that he''d forgotten something? He runs idea through his mind while making noises to jog his memory. "Hmmmm... mmmmph, hmmmmm.... Oh shit, I complete forgot about the Onion bro, Siegmeyer!", Hopefully he''s alright... It would be regretful if such a... Interesting person, were to fall.

 82 Expert adventurer Siegmeyer

    The two start to make their way through the fortress and immediately regret coming here... They look over and see a narrow bridge with huge axe blades swinging back and forth with a snake man at the end stopping people passing through... Below him Reima notes that there are two lightning casting snake men that will most certainly shoot them off the walkway.

    As none of them seem to have noticed their presence yet he gets Solaire to ready a lightning bolt at one while he charges up a powerful Fire orb at the other, with Reima being on the high ground the fireball should just about make it to it''s target.

    He signals Solaire with his fingers, "1, 2 , 3!" They both cast their spells which hit there marks, one snake man crumples to the floor with a hole in it''s chest while the other is slowly incinerated by the fire orb.

    The snake man at the other side of the bridge takes notice and tries to charge at them... Before being impaled and sliced apart by the swinging axe blades...

    Solaire "Not the smartest foes I''ve ever fought... Surely those undead dogs have more sense then these things?"

    Reima doesn''t disagree and the cautiously make there way through the deadly traps, the get to the end of the walkway and head up the stairs which leads to, you guessed it... More traps.

    They kill the lightning bolt throwing snake person at the end and continue their journey. They make it to an area with thick tracks in the stone below them, Solaire seems confused as they can hear massive moving objects close to them and finally understand as they see a snake man brutally crushed and pulverised by a huge stone boulder.

    Instead of making their way up the path to stop the boulders Reima head down to visit where Siegmeyer should have ended up if he''s still alive... They head through the dark path and hear an unusual sound...

    ??? "Hmmmm.... Hmmmmmmm" Reima scoffs as it sounds kind of like the Squidward things in minecraft..

    Solaire "Be cautious, I''ve never heard a beast make such a sound..."

    Reima laughs drawing the attention of the Onion knight sitting on a ledge surrounded by dead snake men.

    Siegmeyer "Mmm¡­mmm¡­ Mm! Oh-hoh! Forgive me.. I was absorbed in thought. I am Siegmeyer of Catarina

    Quite honestly, I have run flat up against a wall¡­ Or, a ball, to be precise¡­ I''m afraid I''m a bit too plump to be outrunning those things so here I sit in quite a pickle. Weighing my options, so to speak! Hah hah hah hah!" He says in a strangely jolly voice, exactly what he says in the game...

    Reima "Why not try and stop the source of the boulders?" he asks the onion knight, trying to find some kind of method in his madness.

    Siegmeyer "Why, don''t you think I''d already tried that? I''m not fast enough to outrun those blasted boulders!"

    Solaire "Perhaps your armour is slowing you down? It doesn''t look the most practical for such a task." He says sincerely.

    Siegmeyer "Oh, another one eh? This is the armour of Catarina! You speak the same mocking words as that sorcerer with the big hat, speaking of impractical attire with a hat three times your size! Hmmph!" he snorts and looks away... Tsundere?

    Solaire "I meant no disrespect Sir Knight, I just wish to assist you in the name of Jolly cooperation!" he dips his head in an apologetic gesture.

    Reima "I for one think it looks rather dashing, wouldn''t you say Solaire?"

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    Solaire "Yes, it would take someone blessed with strength to use such armour."

    Siegmeyer puffs up in pride at their words. "Yes, I am rather strong aren''t I?"

    The atmosphere gets slightly awkward as Siegmeyer starts shifting in to various poses that would show his physical prowess... If he wasn''t wearing armour...

    Reima "Well, I guess we will leave you to ponder a solution... I wonder if we''ll beat you to it."

    Siegmeyer "I highly doubt that, I am a very experienced adventurer.... But I will give you a chance I suppose." He sits back down on the ledge supposedly giving them a fair shot.

    They leave him be and start climbing up the path while dodging boulders. They walk past the fog-gate and enter a room that holds a chest... Inside is the steel-protection ring, Reima puts it on next to the poison-bite ring and feels his physical resistance rise... It''s like an invisible liquid is now covering him and softening blows...

    They loop back and enter the fog-gate coming face to face with many black or silver knight statues... Their purpose? Neither Reima nor Solaire even has a clue.

    Walking past the eerie statues they walk into a hallway with a rather obvious trigger plate that probably activates dart shooters through the holes in the wall... A snake man reveals himself and walks towards them... They simply step back and allow it to trigger the traps and kill itself... Again.

    They continue forward and spot more deep tracks in the stone and see a huge boulder zoom past them into the abyss... As Reima''s nickname isn''t Redfield he doubts he could completely halt one of those without Solaire''s assistance and channelling Haki.

    He focuses on his task and reminiscences on his first time accidentally discovering big hat Logans location... He had just reached the spot where the boulders are being launched and changed it''s direction briefly to provide an easier pathway... He explored the keep and found the boulder had busted through a wall revealing a number of cells, one of which contained the legendary sorcerer.

    Not too long until he starts learning sorcery Reima thinks to himself while grinning.

 83 Geralts worries

    Slash, stab, dodge. Geralt dives out of the way of another claw while he parries the other with his silver sword. The moon dust bomb allowing him to see the sparkling outline of the Bruxa, he casts a small blast of Igni to distract it while approaching via a pirouette, he slashes down on it''s shoulder creating a large gash that starts to smoke and singe due to the vampire oil applied to his blade.

    It screeches and tries to back away but Geralt drops his weight and severs it''s leg in a quick movement.

    It looks back at him with blackened blood streaming from it''s wounds, it''s horrific visage morphing into a beautiful young girls.

    ??? "Please, I don''t mean to harm people... It''s just my nature! Leave me be please!" She pleads and begs while pushing itself away with it''s remaining leg.

    Geralt "No can-do, I''m busy so just stay there and-" CHOP

    He severs it''s head in a clean blow before picking it up by the hair and stuffing it in a bag.

    It''s been a long journey for Geralt, riding straight from Kaer Morhen to Toussaint was a hassle and required him to take Witcher contracts along the way to supplement his coin. His reason for making his way down to this beautiful duchy? His missing apprentice. Yennefer had just left via a portal to meet with some of her sorceress associates when he received what seemed like a quickly scribbled note for Dandelion, it congratulated on his successful birthing on his "son" Reima, and chided him for not telling him sooner... Annoying. The letter was brief but it noted that Dandelion had made a close "Acquaintance" with the Duchess of Toussaint before having to escape from her enraged husband, Typical Dandelion. And that his "Son" had seemingly disappeared from this plane of existence as he had tried to locate him for more ballad ideas. He seems very worried as he even had the Duchess ask all the border, gate and patrol guards whether they had seen him, they all said no which caused the Duchess to claim he was probably killed while fighting some fearsome monster. Naturally Dandelion didn''t believe a word of it, the "Son" of the great white wolf wouldn''t go down so easily, so he quickly penned the message to him to make sure he knew...

    Geralt told the only current resident of Kaer Morhen what was going on before setting off towards Toussaint.

    That sums up what led him here... He''d thoroughly scoured almost every inch of the Duchy while looking for him, hoping that he''d not come across his desecrated corpse in some monster den... While Geralt was not a stranger to death and mourning he felt like finding his Apprentice-no, Son, In such a state would kill him. The time he''d ever felt like this before was in his Witcher training, his childhood friends all dying to the mutations that he''d survived, it left him feeling guilty... Like he shouldn''t have survived.

    He''d been clearing out most of the known monsters and checking their dens for the sword he''d gotten for Reima, luckily or not he''d not found it yet, hopefully he never will.

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    He''s been missing for around a year now, no leads, no clues... He managed to track Reima to some sort of underwater lab, he was definitely here judging by the utterly destroyed guardian protectors that seemed to have been destroyed relatively recently. He looked through the entire place and found not a trace of his missing student... What he did find though, were notes left on how to augment his Witcher mutations, Reima must''ve used them. After reading as much as he could he hunting down the centipedes before performing the procedure on himself and feeling all the stronger for it.

    After leaving the lab and swimming up to the surface he sees boot marks on the shore, the dirt is dried under the sun and they seem to be quite old for tracks... He gets close and his medallion trembles, he bends down to get a better look and the magic in the air feels empowered... It feels like when Reima used his unique magic, except when he trained it in Kaer Morhen the aftereffects were negligable, they disappeared over an hour or two... What caused this must have used a massive amount of power, possible a huge distance "Blink" as Reima used to call it. He releases a breath he didn''t know he was holding and drops on a tree nearby... Hes alive, is all that ran through his mind. He places his hands on his head and closes his eyes, feeling blissful relief that he''d not have to bury him, not have to hold funeral services... Not have to tell Arie.

    Geralt eventually falls asleep by the tree in the warm sunlight for half the day... Until, "Hello? Excuse me?... Hello?"

    Geralt opens his eyes slightly and wincing at the still bright sun, "Ahhhh, Whaddya want?"

    ??? "Are you Geralt of Rivia?"

    Geralt eyes him again, more alert than before. "Depends who''s asking?"

    ??? "King Venzlav of Brugge, that''s who. I am here to deliver a message to Geralt of Rivia, if that''s you then please sign this." He hands a sheet, feather and some ink. Geralt signs the paper with his signature before handing it back to him.

    ??? "Thank you very much, here you are." He hands the letter to Geralt and leaves.

    He quickly skims through the letter and nods to himself, that''s alot-a gold... Just to deliver a message to some Dryads? Easy enough."

 84 Stubborn Logan

    Reima and Solaire get ready to sprint for their lives, a boulder zooms past their face but they decide to wait for the next one... "Almost", they hear it coming... "GO" It rolls past and brushes Reima''s shoulder as they run as fast as they can up the incline before the next boulder crushes them.

    They reach the top as another boulder is placed on the machanism that launches them, It clicks a couple times which means it''s probably gonna go off... Solaire hasn''t made it to safety yet. Quickly Reima leaps at Solaire and blinks them out of the way just before he''s crushed into pulp.

    Solaire "Hah, Thank you!" he breaths out as he watches more boulders get launched down the path...

    Solaire "Who designed this place!?!... And how is this supposed to keep out intruders? Couldn''t they just siege the place and use ladders?"

    Reima ignores his rambling complains and places his hands on the lever that changes the direction that the boulders are launched. He pulls it and make a couple head towards the unfortunate wall which holds Big hat Logan''s cell, they hear a crash off in the distance signalling that it was successful.

    Reima "Come-on, we got a prisoner to free." He changes the boulders direction so they can safely head through.

    They head down the path and see a snake man on the floor with crushed legs in-front of a shattered wall, Solaire puts it out of it''s misery and the enter the room.

    An frail old voice calls out to them as they enter, they look and see a tall skinny man wearing dirty robes and a giant hat.

    Logan "Mm, you two seem quite lucid! A rare thing in these times. I am Logan... I''m a bit cooped up, as you can see. I have a bright idea. Suppose you set me free? I''m old and empty-handed, but I could repay you with my knowledge, and sorcery. This place is melting my mind. The inactivity is repressive!"

    Reima "Sure, but I have a few questions first... How on earth did a sorcerer of your calibre get imprisoned?"

    Logan strokes his white beard that''s just visible under his hat, "I may have misjudged how fast those snake men were... I had just cast my first spell when I was besiege on all sides, needless to say, I''m not the most physically oriented person... Your next question would probably be why I''m stuck here I assume? Well, they seemed to have planned ahead and enchanted this cage to be very magically resistant..."

    Reima nods at his explanation... Still, for someone as smart as Logan to get caught by those idiotic snake men... Something seems out of place. "Ah, I almost forgot to remember, I had recently saved someone name Griggs of Vinheim... Says he''s your apprentice, thought you might like to know he''s waiting for you at Firelink shrine."

    Logan nods his head, "Ah, that foolish student of mine... I hadn''t wanted to bring him to these dreaded lands but he''s quite persuasive when he wants to be..." Reima feels like Logan is smirking under his hat when he says this...

    Logan "I had tried to leave him behind and let him go his own way... I had no idea he''d tried to follow me instead."

    Reima "Well, he''s here now... When he heard you were trapped here he was going to come alone and try to find you, he would have died and eventually gone hollow if I hadn''t convinced him not to."

    Logan "Ah, well I thank you for preventing such a tragedy to befall my student... I don''t suppose you have the key to my cell?" He asks with a hopeful voice.

    Reima shakes his head "Nope."

    Logan rests his head on the bars "Oh, so I''m to remain here..."

    Reima "No, I have my own way of opening locks..."

    He gets Logan to back up while covering his arm in Armament Haki and gripping near where the lock is. He gives it a strong tug which causes the cell to rattle, it doesn''t feel like it could resist him.. Probably due to it rusting away with no maintenance.

    CHINK!

    The cell door and hinges tear off, setting the old man free, he crumples out of the cell and seems to be savouring the ground. "Finally free" he mutters.

    Solaire tries to help him up but he refuses, "I''m not that old yet! He gets to his feet slowly and deliberately before looking at the two undead.

    Logan "Thank you for coming to my rescue, I thought I''d remain in that cell until I went hollow. I am in your debt, if there is anything I can do for you please just ask."

    Reima "Funny you say that, your apprentice had offered to teach me sorcery, I''d appreciate if you could join him in teaching me?"

    Logan "Ofcourse, sharing knowledge is what keeps me going... If I could just get to that place..." He whispers the last part.

    Reima "Eventually We''ll invade that old dragon Seath''s library, if knowledge is what you seek, could you assist us when we decide to go?"

    Logan "Ah, that''s very convenient, I was planning on travelling there on my own... I admit, storming the place without assistance probably isn''t the greatest idea... But I''ll forget about my previous plan, I''ll start heading to Firelink to "reunite" with my apprentice."

    Solaire "Do you need any assistance?"

    Logan "No, no... I''ll not make the same mistake again!" With that said, he just wanders off, staff in hand and spells on his lips.

    After he''s out of sight Solaire comments in a tired tone, "I don''t understand why age makes men stubborn... Knowing of your frailty and still refusing help isn''t the "wise" thing to do."

    Reima "Yes, but maintaining autonomy is important to those who''ve always had it. Would you want pity in your old age?"

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    Solaire "I suppose not..." he mutters.

 85 Big problems

    After freeing Logan the two undead throughly explore the fortress, Reima made sure to collect the Covetous Gold Serpent ring after killing the horrific Mimic lying in wait, Slumbering Dragoncrest ring hidden in a cell. He also doesn''t forget to pick up any titanite lying around waiting to be looted either.

    As they make there way through the fortress one thing becomes apparent, the architect had a fetish for elaborate traps. The place is like a temple in an overenthusiastic Indiana Jones movie, every other tile triggers some sort of dart, boulder, trap door, swinging blade or poison needle trap... And those are only the most common!

    The two finally make it to the roof of the fortress and get a good look around, large amounts of knights patrol the roof while a giant keeps dropping boulders in what should be the boulder trap... How it''s manages to keep the boulders stocked for thousands of years, they will never know. They loot a FlameStone plate ring from a chest after killing a couple knights, they travel up towards a tower and are attack by a hollow wielding a rapier, they wear armour similar to Oscar of Astora and immediately start lunging at them... It''s difficult to avoid it''s stabs due to them being lower on the stairs, Solaire blocks the stabs with his shield and Reima charges up a combustion. He fires it when Solaire parries a rapier strike and the armour starts being char black, the holes in it''s helmet start pouring out with smoke as the internal organs of the hollow "combust". It falls onto it''s back and starts rolling down the stairs as it fades into white particles, leaving behind the rapier it was using.

    Reima "I''m not really a rapier guy... You want it?"

    Solaire shakes his head, "Just hoard it with the others... I''ll stick with my own weapon."

    They enter the room it was protecting and loot a divine blessing potion that seems to almost instantly heal all wounds... And a Rare ring of sacrifice that glows with a variety of colours as he looks at it. Reima briefly wonders what would happen if someone who wasn''t undead used it? Would it save there life? Is the reason is only preserves souls due to undead''s already being dead?

    He''d have to think about this later as they had more to explore.

    They start heading higher and onto a walkway that leads to various lonely towers that might contain something interesting... BOOOOM!

    A huge explosion comes from a wall close to them, "What was that!?!" Solaire exclaims as the look over, what they see is a giant on a nearby roof throwing large bombs at them. It rears back another one and launches it, Reima gets in-front of Solaire and uses the Heliotrope Sign to negate the explosion before they start sprinting towards its location.

    They kill a number of hollow knights and archers as they breach the building that leads to the infuriating Giant and clear out the room. They look at the staircase that the giant is probably waiting for they to come through, they prepare themselves, Solaire covers his blade in lightning while Reima uses Quelaag''s chaos blade enhancement to cover his. They head up and Reima uses Quen to prevent instantly getting stomped like a bug, they reach the top of the roof and see the giant standing there with a bomb in it''s hand... It seems to laugh at them as it throws one point blank at them, they both leap out of the way managing to dodge the large explosion that follows and start approaching the Giant. It stands around 15ft tall with metal pieces covering it''s body, mimicking armour, it swings it''s arm at Reima, he dodges but watches as it trails past him and shatters the stone wall behind him... "Don''t wanna get hit by that..."

    He stabs at it''s ankle with Arcell which makes it stumble, a lightning bolt from Solaire makes it almost lose it''s balance, it leans on a nearby wall to keep itself up but is hit by another lightning bolt and an additional fire orb that explodes in it''s face.

    It roars in fury as third degree burns start becoming visible on it''s thick skin. It seems to go beserk and starts swinging it''s arms in there direction, almost hitting Solaire with one. Reima sees a large hand about to pound his position but blinks out of the way just in time, he stabs it''s fat fingers for the attempt.

    It''s roars get louder and more hoarse as the battle rages on, the roof of the building they''re standing on looks nothing like before, all the bombs that were stored have been knocked off the edge into the abyss below, the walls to the nearby rooms had been crushed into dust by the raging Giant and footprints are littering every surface.

    The Giant finally seems to reach exhaustion from it''s actions and crouches down to catch a breath... Obviously, the two undead won''t miss such an opportunity. Reima uses large amount of magic into an Igni sign which is empowered by the pyromancer flame. The fire explodes from his hand and envelopes the Giant, the flame seems to match Reima''s irritation at how long the Giant has lasted and stick to it''s skin like napalm. It screams and thrashes around while completely covered in fire, the lightning bolts thrown by Solaire only add insult to it''s injuries. Finally, the Giant seems to miss-step which causes it to fall off the tower, into the abyss below.

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    A large amount of souls fly up after a minute and Reima''s dark Sign greedily absorbs them.

    Reima "Man, if Giant''s are all like that, why didn''t they just take over the planet?"

    Solaire "Lord Gwyn subjugated them before that could happen my friend..."

    Reima breaths a sigh, "It was a rhetorical question." he brushes the dust from his armour and starts digging the rubble to where the stairs are located.

 86 Regretful Merchan

    After trying to dig out the buried entrance for an hour, Reima gets annoyed and decides to just teleport them back to the walkway where they were previously assaulted.

    They appear in a flash of turquoise particles and after landing semi-roughly continue to the lonely tower ahead of them.

    The walk into the dark room and spot another knight standing in the corner, it''s armour is made from thick black plates and seems very heavy... They ready for combat until it starts speaking to them.

    ??? "Ah, who''re you?"... The two just look at him blankly which seems to irritate him. "Alright, stop staring... I''m a Warr... Used to be a Warrior, I''m now but a humble merchant." His voice sounds a couple levels lower in tone than it should be.

    Crestfallen Merchant "So, now that I''ve explained myself, buy something or piss-off." He swears at them with some bite in his voice.

    Solaire is knocked from his surprise and apologises "Ah, forgive me Sir Knight... I just never expected to find anyone else in this god-forsaken fortress."

    Crestfallen Merchant "Yeah? Well.. It''s not like anything actually matters anyway..." His mood seems to swing quickly, he''s probably on the verge of going hollow.

    Reima steps up, "Actually, I would like to purchase some things from you."

    The merchant seems surprised but presents his wares to him anyway, most of what he sells are Green blossoms that rapidly regenerate stamina and black fire bombs... He also has a small collection of titanite of various sizes and colours, Reima buys all of them before glacing over the rings containing a yellow and blue gem. The Thunder StonePlate ring and the Spell StonePlate ring, Reima is running out of fingers to equip rings but buys them anyway, never know when they could come in handy... Definitely not hoarding them. The two rings provide resistances against thunder and Sorcery respectively.

    Reima''s currently equipped rings are the poison-bite ring, ring of steel protection, blue Tearstone ring and ring of the evil eye. He takes off the poison-bite ring and equips his newly acquired Slumbering Dragoncrest ring which renders all unintentional sound mute, he also equips the gold covetous serpent ring that supposedly raises his luck. He has two fingers left that aren''t currently being used... Obviously he equips the Spell StonePlate ring along with the brother Thunder variant.

    Solaire and the merchant watch Reima slowly and deliberately pull out various rings before giving a pondering expression and swapping out some of the ring on his fingers... If they knew of the existence of pimps, they would equate Reima''s current fashion to one of them. After he''s done he looks up at them with a satisfied expression that confuses the merchant but only makes Solaire sigh.

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    Solaire "Are you done my friend? We still have a rather intimidating looking Iron Giant to deal with..."

    Crestfallen merchant "You intend to fight that thing? Ha! Good luck! I''ve been crushed more times than I can count by it."

    Reima sends a smug grin at him, "Perhaps your just not skilful enough to overcome this trial. Doesn''t surprise me, you look better as a merchant to me." He can hear the merchant gritting his teeth as he finishes the sentence.

    Solaire "Don''t be a spoiled sport Sir Ludvig, He tried his best, can''t you see?" He tries to comfort the merchant but only belittles him more.

    Eventually the veins on his forehead almost burst as he shouts at them, "ALRIGHT! I''LL SHOW YOU BOTH! I AM STILL WORTHY OF MY STEEL!" He draws his sword and picks up a massive tower shield before heading to the fog-door not far from their location.

    Reima doesn''t actually know how well the Knight will do... Maybe he''s like one of those hidden bad-asses that play it cool until they need to?

    The two get ready and follow the knight after he''d sprinted through the fog-gate and sucessfully awakening the almost 25ft tall Iron Giant, it''s black metal hand grasps a huge axe and starts stomping towards the merchant.

    "HAHAHA! IT''S PAYBACK FOR ALL MY PREVIOUS LOSSES!" He screams and slams his sword onto it''s foot... Not even denting the metal. He looks like he wants to retort but is launched into the sky like team rocket by the Giant other foot. Reima is expecting him to shout "Blasting off again", but assumes he''s not able to with his intestines being vomited from his mouth as he flies off into the distance.

    Reima "I blame you for this..." He looks at his friend who seems shocked at the merchants quick demise.

    Solaire shakes his head, "He should have used that large shield atleast..." He seems to want to say more but notices the Iron Giants attention being drawn to them.

    Reima "Look alive, maybe it''s weak to lightning?" He muses to his friend before sprinting off to get some distance from him.

    Solaire hears this and immediately starts forming lightning bolts in his hand and launching them at it... The Giant shudders slightly as the electricity makes it''s way through it''s metallic body.

    It doesn''t give a sound by slams it''s axe into the ground causing the fortress to shudder and a shock wave to shoot towards Solaire, he blocks it with his shield but the impact was huge.

 87 A Giant... But better!

    After blocking the shock wave Solaire''s hands feel numb, the power behind it was awesome and terrible! Getting hit by the axe is a straight death sentence, he charges another lightning bolt and throws it while Reima chucks a Fire orb at it''s face.... It''s heat is enough to slightly melt the Iron that makes up the Golem but doesn''t seem to do significant damage.

    The Golem sweeps it''s arm at Reima who has to Blink behind it to dodge the devastating strike, BOOM! The impact of it''s arm almost disintegrates the stone brick roof of the fortress. A lightning bolt flies from Solaire and strikes it''s arm joint, causing it to vibrate and shake violently for a moment.

    Reima figures the joints to be the weak points of it''s anatomy and starts targeting them with fire, he channels fire into his sword while casting Chaos blade before he throws another Fire orb at it''s knee joint. It strikes true and causes the metal to glow red for a moment and deform slightly, if he continues this the Golem will have issues moving on that leg at all. The Golem seems smarter than the Snake men and uses it''s arm to block the strikes on it''s knee before raising it''s axe to strike at Reima. Naturally, he books it and only leaves his shadow to take the hit from the heavy axe... The Golem tries to pull the axe from the ground by finds itself unable to move as quickly as before. In-fact Reima had used Windfall to slow it''s speed so he could get another couple of shots at it''s knee before the ever present counter attack crushes him. After throwing a couple more Fire orbs which causes even more damage he back up while being support by Solaire''s lightning miracles.

    The Golem stumbles forwards after trying to put weight on it''s half melted joint by uses the momentum of it''s fall to try and crush the ant throwing lightning at it. Solaire who had just charged another bolt didn''t expect such tactics from a mindless Golem and finds himself unable to dodge as it comes crashing towards him. He closes his eyes and waits for the painful death about to claim him but only hears a small impact followed by creaking... Opening one eye he sees his companions with the right side of his body completely black and holding back the fist with shaking and strained movements.

    Reima "DUDE GET OUTTA THE WAY!" he shouts at Solaire who just seems to be gawking at him struggling to restrain it''s attack... He had seen Solaire in mortal peril and manages to channel Haki into his right side to protect him... While it''s inefficient, it''s the only way he can actually block it due to him not being completely able to cover himself in Armament Haki yet.

    Solaire is knocked form his stupor and leaps to get away, Reima''s grip slips and he finds himself being forced into the wall behind him by the Iron fist. The impact crushes some bones and makes him spit blood, but he''s still alive somehow... Probably due to his half-ass''d Armament Haki.

    Solaire who''d just seen his friend get crushed by the Golem becomes enraged, he dives under the Golem and starts charging up lightning storms beneath it.

    The Golem despite being unable to feel emotion seems smug? He pulls it''s fist back expecting to see a red pile of mince meat but instead see''s a still alive Reima. It rears it''s fist back for another strike but finds itself paralysed by the huge amounts of currents running through it. It''s joints contract causing it to fall backwards allowing Solaire to sprint to Reima''s side, despite them both being undead, it''s still not an easy thing seeing a comrade die. He pulls out the divine blessing potion they''d found earlier and pours it into Reima''s mouth.

    Reima who was half unconscious feels a large surge of energy entering him and repairing all his injuries... He assumes it must be Solaire and confirms it by look at him through his fuzzy vision. It clears up allowing him to see Solaire''s bucket helm and a divine blessing being poured into his mouth... In the backround he sees the Golem getting back on it''s feet before turning in their direction... SHIT!

    Despite not being completely healed yet Reima knocks the potion away and teleports them both a few meters away, to dodge the shock wave sent by the Golem.

    Reima "Fuck!" The sudden movements cause some injuries to pulse painfully but he bites his lip and forces himself up to confront the Golem.

    He remembers how he''d dealt with the Fire Golem back on his last trial with Arie and starts forming a larger than normal Fire Orb... He then starts channelling His unique ElderBlood energy into it causing it to change from a bright orange colour to a Turquoise one. Solaire is surprised at the power being emitted by it and it only seems to be increasing, the Golem also seems to have noticed it and starts wobbly walking towards them.

    Reima pours all of his reserves into the Elder blood enhanced fire, causing the skin on his hand and arm to slowly burn off, the Golem is almost upon them as he holds the flame in-front of himself and allows it to somehow fire at the Golem like a bullet.

    The fire that looks suspiciously like a spirit bomb breaks the sound barrier and hits the Golem in the chest successfully stopping it''s advance... The blue flame sticks to it''s chest for a moment before seeming to start imploding on itself... Reima recognises this kind of reaction and grabs Solaire with his good hand and teleports them into the room that held the Fog-gate.

    Solaire "Sir Ludvig, Wha-" His words are cut off, BOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

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    A huge explosion shakes the entire roof of the fortress and seems to cause the ambient magic in the air to shake in it''s presence.

    A sensation similar to a heatwave envelops them as Reima gives up the last of his energy to form a Quen sign to shield them both...

 88 Anor Londo Tourism

    Solaire holds his shield over his now unconscious friend who''d used the last of his reserves to protect them from the explosion he''d launched at their foe... He''s unsure how to feel at such destructive power, He''s unsure if even his Father ever had the capability to cause such a reaction... His friend is a complete mystery, a strong warrior, magic user and seer? He suspects that Reima is still keeping secrets, but hopes he''ll trust him enough to reveal them in future. Not to mention he said he''s only twelve years old? He gets a cold sweat thinking about his potential and how strong he could be in a couple years time...

    He continues to keep watch even as thousands of souls from what seems to be the snake men killed in the explosion rush into Reima''s Dark Sign, Solaire looks over Reima''s thoroughly roasted arm and starts pouring Estus over it along with the remnants of the divine blessing that''d he''d managed to keep hold of. The flesh on his arm starts to slowly recover but not at the rate that Solaire would wish.

    He stays and keeps watch over his friend for what seems like days, eventually he notices Reima''s eyes beginning to flicker...

    Reima "Ahh, my head... What the fuck happened?" he mutters, before memories starts rushing back to him. He immediately tries to sit up fearing that they''d still be in battle but Solaire pushes him back down.

    Solaire "Stop and relax... The foe is defeated... Along with every other enemy in this fortress." Mirth fills his voice as he speaks the last part.

    Reima "Ah... You exterminated the fortress while I was out? Good job."

    Solaire "No, you misunderstand... Your attack killed everything present in the fortress except us." He chuckles at Reima''s shocked face. "Why are you so surprised? You seemed to expect it enough to cast a shield over us."

    Reima "Ah, that... I was just worried about how much magic I had pushed into it..."

    Solaire "Good thing you did... We would be charred corpses if you hadn''t." Reima sighs and tries to move his arm, Ouch! Looking down he sees the still blackened skin and complains to Solaire.

    Reima "Why didn''t you use Estus or miracles on me before I woke up?"

    Solaire "Alas, none of my methods would work to help your arm recover... But think of this as an opportunity!" Reima replies in a tired voice "For what?"

    Solaire grins under his bucket helm, "To train your left hand!"

    Reima lets out an undignified sound "uhhhgh, I''ll just go learn sorcery with Logan while I recover..." He states as he gets up with his friends assistance.

    Solaire escorts him to the roof where they battled the Golem, finding all the stone to be partially melted and a rather large lump of Iron in the middle... It seems that his attack had melted it completely... He approaches it and his medallion starts vibrating in it''s presence... He runs his left hand over it and feels magic pulsing through it. It seems with the destruction of the Golems enchantments and his unique magic''s properties the Iron has been infused with magic... Figuring this could be used for something he opens his Folded space as large as it can go and covering the Iron ball/puddle causing it to vanish from the world.

    Solaire scratches his helmet, "How large is that magic you used anyway... It doesn''t seem to have a limit of what it can store... Why not store the fortress?"

    Reima "First, Who''d want this shitty deathtrap fortress. Two, It costs exponentially more magic the larger you make it''s entrance... Just getting the Iron inside without destabilising the Folded space cost half of my current reserves."

    Solaire "So how do you plan on getting it out?"

    ...

    Reima "I hadn''t thought of that yet..." He makes a mental note to experiment on this topic later... Having a large amount of magic metal being unused is a huge waste of resources.

    They continue looking around until they spot a small ring of light on the floor, recognising this Reima decides to go to Anor Londo first and then teleport back to Firelink to learn sorceries while his arm heals.

    He approaches and touched it with his foot causing shadows to appear in the air above them.

    Solaire "Don''t attack these creatures, they just intend to take us to our destination." He says confusing Reima, had Solaire been through here before?

    Pale naked winged demons carrying spears swoops down and grab each of Reima''s arms, "OUCH! Watch the arm you cunt!" He complains as it tries to grip his shoulder instead to stop the abuse getting thrown at it. Solaire simply holds his arms out to praise the sun and allowing the creatures to lift him by his hands, the demons carry the both of them up high and approach the huge wall in the distance. As they get closer Reima admires the view, they get high enough to peer over the wall and see a beautiful city basking in the now visible sun. It reminds Reima of Toussaint with it''s various hills and mountains having building constructed on them with bridges connecting them. It''s architecture looks similar to European designs from earth except with extremely clean polished stone instead of bricks.

    The Demons start lowering in the air and roughly drop them on a part of the wall that has a large walkway leading to the glorious looking city. Reima rubs his arm before looking to Solaire, "I don''t know what you intend to do, but for some reason this injury needs to heal on it''s own. I''m going to train sorcery with Logan and his apprentice Griggs."

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    Solaire "Ah, I intend to explore the city, It''s quite nostalgic to be back here I must admit."

    Reima "Ah, with your black knight father?"

    Solaire huffs, "Knight.... Indeed."

    Reima nods and prepares to leave for Firelink before Solaire stops him.

    Solaire "Ah, if you need assistance just write my name on the ground with the white soap stone I''d given you."

    Reima "You can summon specific people?" This surprises Reima as he''d had no idea.

    Solaire "You must be familiar with them and on friendly terms to be able to... Try it now so you get the hang of it..."

    Reima retrieves the white soap stone and uses his blackened right hand to write his name on the ground... The sign glows Turquoise causing Reima to halt, he must''ve accidentally channelled ElderBlood magic into it with his shot nerves... Solaire doesn''t seem to notice and accepts the summon sign causing him to disappear... SHIT!

    He begins to panic but hears a voice behind him, Solaire is standing there without the signature phantom glow...

    Solaire "Well this is a surprise? Why am I not a phantom?" He seems as confused as Reima.

    Reima "I may have accidentally modified the sign..." He looks away embarrassed...

    Solaire laughs uproariously, "HAHAHA! My friend, you''ve done something not even that insane dragon could do! Teleportation with the signs!" He rapidly claps Reima on the back due to this discovery.

 89 Long, Looong, Maaaaaaaaaaaaannnnnnnn.

    After bidding farewell to Solaire and watching his figure disappear into the depths of Anor Londo, Reima flares his Elder Blood magic and teleports to Firelink shrine.

    Griggs of Vinheim had been waiting for his strange eye''d rescuer to save his master, it''d been a couple weeks he thinks? It''s kind of hard to tell due to the time of day almost never changing. He spends his time going over the lessons his master had taught him, all the years he''d toiled under him to gain some sort of recognition... Then, simply thrown away when the going gets tough.

    Ofcourse he doesn''t blame his master, it''s his own weakness that allow this to happen. Big Hat Logan''s thirst for knowledge was legendary throughout the lands, and even when he became undead he thought it a chance to discover the secrets of the mad dragon Seath. Grigg''s kept reminiscing and admiring his master until he spots a familiar figure coming down the steps that lead into the Undead Burg... Their huge hat that definitely isn''t practical causes his eyes to widen.

    Griggs "Master! You''ve returned!" He finds himself on the verge of tears as he hears his voice.

    Logan sighs at his students enthusiasm, "Indeed, I''m back.... Would you mind not rubbing your snot into my robes?" He shoo''s his apprentice away with his foot when he tries to hug him.

    Grigg''s not being deterred continues to sniffle into his masters robes, "Thank you for returning master!"

    A vein appears on Logan''s head and he''s about to burst until a flash of Turquoise light reveals his Savior, come to think of it, he''d never asked for his name. He looks closer and see''s Reima''s right arm covered in scraps of armour and charred black.

    Griggs "Sir Ludvig! I thank thee for your help." He stops harassing Logan and deeply bows towards Reima.

    Reima who''d just arrived at Firelink shrine immediately spotted the rather... Intimate mentor and student. Grigg''s thanks him and he scratches the back of his head in response, he had promised so of course he''d help... Plus, it wasn''t just for Grigg''s sake. "Ah, how are you two doing?" He looks to Logan, "The journey wasn''t too hard was it?"

    The old man replies, "Just some hollows, nothing too difficult to deal with... Oh, yes! You''d said you wanted to learn some Sorcery previously... Have you come to learn?"

    Reima is about to give an affirmative nod but is interrupted by almost thunderous snoring...

    ??? "ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ"

    He looks around and only see''s laurentius fiddling with a small flame between his fingers near a tree and the CrestFallen warrior with his hands over his ears in his usual spot.

    Reima asks Logan and Grigg''s to wait a moment while he tries to stop this annoying snoring, the duo go back and start bickering with each other again.

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    He walks over to Laurentius, "Yo, Laurentius, you got any Pyromancies that work on giant snakes?" He looks up an finally notices Reima''s presence before gaping at him.

    Laurentius "My word! Your flame... It''s... Amazing! It feels almost primal, please, could you tell me where you acquired such a thing?"

    Reima sighs as he knew this was coming... Somehow Laurentius can sense his Ascended flame? He remembers that in the game if you tell him where to go, he''ll get lost and go hollow... As he''d previously helped him out He''d rather that outcome not happen.

    Reima "I can''t tell you where it is because it''s too dangerous for you."

    Laurentius stands up angrily, "What! Even after I shared my flame with you, you deny me this?"

    Reima waves his hands in a apologetic gesture, "No, no. I don''t mean it like that, I meant to say when I visit them again I''ll bring you along." He seems mollified at this but still grumbles to himself as he sits down.

    Laurentius ".... Oh, your question? Well, fire works with just about everything... Launch a fireball at it and it''ll stop it sleeping for sure." He grins at Reima.

    Reima shrugs and leaves to deal with this god-damn snoring, he walks up the shrine and walks into the ankle high water... The ripples spread and the floor starts to rumble at the snores stop. The floor erupts scattering the water in all direction before draining down the newly created hole.

    A very long neck sticks from the ground and is topped with one of the most ugly faces he''s ever seen... It''s pale wrinkly skin, large mouth with human-like teeth protruding from it''s mouth along with dark orange eyes make Reima shudder.

    He slowly regains his confidence and squares up to the Primordial serpent, "Yo baldy! Shut the fuck up, I don''t care if you''re sleeping. Go deeper into that hole you came from!" His shouts echoe throughout the shrine as the Serpent''s eyes widen at the sudden abuse he''s being subjected to.

    He shakes his head thinking the chosen undead must have misunderstood him, "Greetings, I am the Primordial serpent KingSeeker Frampt. You''ve rang both bel-"

    Reima "Yeah no help from you, you giant penis who''s head looks even uglier!" While not necessary Reima always hated this stupid snake-thing, he remembers when he''d accidentally given his Chloranthy Ring to it... It ate it, basically ruining his characters build.

    Frampt "My apologise if I have offended you in some way... As the Undead who''s successful rang both bells of awakening you must be the chosen. I wish to elucidate your fate... Do you seek such enlightenment?"

    Reima "Nope" He says briefly before turning around and starting to walk away.... He stops for a moment giving Frampt hope he''d change his mind. "Oh by the way, if you start snoring again I''ll find where you neck ends and your ass begins." He makes a fisting action that causes a shiver to run up Frampts never ending spine.

 90 Meeting the churches "honourable" expedition

    After threatening the snake Reima hears a group bickering near the elevators, going to investigate he finds three more people aside from Petrus.

    Reima approaches them, "Greetings. Welcome to our humble.. Community?" he scratches the back of his head when he thinks of a way to describe the shrine.

    The three people look towards him with caution, two are men who wear similar armour to Petrus and hold the same weapons, mace and shield. One has blonde hair while the other wears a helm that complete obscures sight of the top of his head.

    Vince "Ah, a fine day to you. I am Vince of Thorolund." The one with blonde hair speaks.

    Nico "Nico of Thorolund"

    Reima looks to the last person, a young woman wearing white priest garbs who seems rather shy, she backs up when he looks at her causing Vince and Nico to tense up and prepare for combat.

    Reima "Ah, sorry. I mean no harm... I just wish to introduce myself, I am Reima Ludvig... An undead much like yourselves." He gestures with his good hand to his heart, where the dark sign is carved into his skin.

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    They look at him with pitying looks, the girl speaks up behind the two men.

    Reah "I am Reah of Thorolund... We''re on a mission to find the writ of kindling for the way of white... Would you know where we could Acquire such a thing?" She asks hopefully before sending a glance over him and spotting his charred arm. "Oh, my goodness! Your arm, it''s injured!" He gently nudges Nico out of the way so she can look at his arm closer. "Milady..." He protests at her bold actions before being stopped by Vince.

    Reima notices her worry for him and holds his arm out for her to appraise... While he think if Solaire couldn''t heal it then neither could she, perhaps she has a special talent?

    Reima "It got injured in a fight..."

    Petrus "Must''ve gotten burned by a hollow''s torch, rather pathetic way to get injured I must say."

    Reima doesn''t comment on Petrus taunt as lady Reah tries a grand heal miracle that does nothing.

    Reah "How... That was my strongest healing spell..." She seems to lose all her confidence at his still injured arm.

    Reima "Don''t mind it, it seems it will need to heal naturally, the flames that caused the wound were not natural."

    Vince "To resist gods healing, such blasphemous flames must be eradicated. After we''ve found the writ of kindling we must locate them. Sir Ludvig, where did you get burned?"

    Sensing a crusade about to raid his anus he decides to not tell them the origins of the flames... "I''ve already slain the creature that caused the burns, do not worry."

    The others breath a sigh in relief... It seems something that negates their faith is one of the scarier things to them.

    Reima "I thank you for trying anyway, Miss Reah. I would suggest your quest is a doomed one, but I doubt that would sway you... I only hope, in your darkest moments you find something else to hold on to." He lays some seeds to try and convert this young woman away from his poisonous religion, he knows of her future and intends to try save her from her ultimate fate.

    Nico "I''d suggest you keep your mouth shut on matters you know not." he folds his arms as he tries to act menacingly, it seems Petrus had already told them of him. Being a Demon-spawn he''s surprised the Reah had tried to heal him... Such innocence will not last in these lands.

    Reima leaves the group alone and returns to Logan and Griggs.

    Logan "It seems you''ve sorted out that annoying Serpent... I heard you from here, not many men are brave enough to insult such a being."

    Griggs "Are you sure it was ok to talk to it like that? Those being are well known to be conniving deceivers... I''d watch my back if I were you..."

    Reima "It''s fine... So, shall we get started learning Sorcery?" Logan''s eyes light up at this.

    Logan "Ofcourse, take a seat." He points at the grassy ground and gestures for him to sit... Griggs follows his instructions despite having heard his lessons hundreds of times before.

    Logan "So, before I start I''d like to ask you a question... What is Sorcery?"

    ...

    Reima ponders the question and thinks on the spells he already knows from the Witcher world... Projecting formula''s on reality to cause effects, strong will, magic and magic sensitivity is required for such a thing to work... But at it''s base, what is it? Mana manipulation?

    Reima takes a shot in the dark "Mana manipulation?"

    Logan "Correct, Sorcery is essentially just shaping magical energy or Mana into pre-made shapes that cause different effects. Observe." He holds his staff out and a blue ball slowly coalesces into what looks like a soul arrow.

    Logan "This is a soul arrow, you use a pre-made formulae to gather Mana and then add additional layers to cause different effects... For this I''ll make it a straight projectile." The blue ball launches into the distance and pierces a stone wall causing no visible damage.

    Logan "While, I make it look rather easy, just getting to the point of gathering enough ambient Mana to a single point takes months of work... I don''t expect you to start casting actual spells for a while."

 91 Crystal clear applications

    After watching Logan''s demonstration it doesn''t seem that complicated... It''s slightly different to how Pyromancy works due to not having the complexity that Sorcery spells do, for instance, you can''t direct a fireball after it''s thrown... Any magic you apply to it will be used as fuel and make the spell harder hitting, while this is good for some things it also makes it rather terrible for long distance attacks and delicate formulae. Maybe Lord Gwyn and the Witch of Izalith was able to form Pyromancy Formulae with their almost perfect control of fire?

    Reima is handed a small catalyst which acts like kind of like a wand from Harry Potter, Reima suspects that catalysts are necessary due to humans flesh not being magical. Logan says that magic is drawn from the soul and is channelled through the Catalyst to cast spells, due to the Elder Blood his flesh and blood is very close to magic. So much that those swamp witches would betray the Wild hunt just to devour Ciri, the only thing that could probably come close to his bodies magical potential would be the heart of a ancient true dragon or something similar, while most of his theories are based on novels and myths from earth, some of them must be true due to the worlds he is hopping around having significant influence from it.

    After only a day Reima manages to form a small glowing ball on his fingertip, Griggs sees this an shouts for Logan to come see, they both get close to him and inspect it with worship in their eyes.

    Logan "How is this possible? Young Reima! Where is your catalyst?" he looks around and doesn''t see it anywhere.

    The sudden shouting causes Reima to lose concentration which causes the blue ball to dissipate, he glares at the two sorcerers with his predatory eyes making them get goose bumps.

    Logan "I''m sorry but casting magic without a Catalyst is supposedly impossible! You must tell me how you achieved such a thing!"

    Reima shrugs, "Sorry but I have no idea, Perhaps I have a special constitution that allows magic to flow freely?" Logan leans back and caresses his beard while pondering his words... It was theorised that such a thing is possible... But no one has ever been found to be able to do it...

    Logan''s eyes light up again, "Young Reima, I will train you to become the most powerful Sorcerer in these lands! Your magic abilities don''t only allow you to cast without a Catalyst but also present new opportunities to magic..."

    Reima nods his head, "Then I will accept your guidance once more."

    Griggs looks on with jealousy in his eyes at the attention Reima is getting from Logan but can''t seem to work up anger against him, he had saved both himself and his master so having any ill thoughts about him would be most dishonourable. He''s also happy to see his mentor be so excited to discover something new, it didn''t know how long it had been since Logan had smiled.

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    After Logan had discovered Reima''s magical abilities he''d not had a break for two days... He''d been run ragged by Logan trying to teach him all the theories he knew, not just how to cast pre-made spells but also design his own... While it does excite him at the possibilities creating spells presents, it''s not easy... It takes decades or even centuries of work to design a spell, much less have it be effective. Over the two days of work Reima had manged to cast a weak soul arrow, while it might not seem very impressive, being able to cast a soul arrow should take a couple years of training... Needless to say, Logan went ape shit and almost molested Reima for his achievement. A quick chop to the back of the head allowed Reima to take his first break in two days...

    While Logan is "sleeping" he went to visit Laurentius to practise various Pyromancies... He didn''t plan to get rusty just because he was learning Sorcery. Laurentius was very impressed at his progress, this causes him to beg even more for the location to where he had learned... Obviously he told him to continue waiting as he didn''t want him to die yet...

    When Logan awakens he grabs Reima by the back of his armour and drags him back to teach him more, he waves sadly a Laurentius as his boot camp continues...

    Logan decides to tell Reima about crystal... At first Reima is confused but when he hears Logan''s explanation he realises what he means. During Logan''s travels he''d learnt many things, the thing that made him want to find Seath is the spells that came from him, Crystal spells... The basic explanation is this, normal sorcery like soul arrow or homing soulmass only attack the soul... But crystal is different... It''s the solidification of Mana that is still able to be controlled. If you condense Mana enough it becomes solid, crystal... But Formulae that allow such a large concentration of magic are extremely rare. Only looted from Seath''s laboratory in-fact... Logan demonstrated the power of a Crystal soul spear, at first it looked like a regular soul spear, a large few meters long blue light that doesn''t nothing to the wall when it hits... But the crystal variant is different. After the soul spear is formed it starts sprouting crystals, similar to how scales appeared on the fair lady... Logan launched it at the wall causing it to penetrate... The 6 metre crystal spear penetrated a couple feet into solid rock.... Scary. Logan rambles for the rest of the day about how revolutionary crystal is for sorcery and Reima finally understands why he goes mad in Seath''s library... Logan''s already half-way out the door when it comes to sanity.

 92 The Black Spot!

    It''s been a week or two... He thinks? Since he started learning under Big Hat Logan, Reima had been like a sponge, absorbing all knowledge presented to him. Due to his undead constitution he didn''t need to eat, drink or sleep. The only thing he required was rest for his mind occasionally, sadly the only way he could acquire such a thing under Logan''s tutelage was to help him "Sleep" with a gentle thwack to the head. During his breaks Reima rested at the bonfire for a couple hours and decided to upgrade his intelligence to help assist with his training, he reckons he''s at around 75 intelligence at this point... But with every soul he infuses into his own, the more are needed to get an appreciable result, with his upgraded intelligence he finds that he''s able to separate actions and multi-task easier, this massively helps with his Sorcery due to the way you need to channel Mana into formulae.

    His arm is still black, but is healing at a slow rate. It didn''t used to ache since his pain receptors were probably burned away, luckily with his ElderBlood''s adaptivity his body is able to heal damage that would render normal men crippled.

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    Logan''s lessons included spell construction and adaption, demonstrates this with his own self created spell homing crystal spellmass. He said he''d observed how the soul spear changes from it''s normal variant into it''s crystal one and managed to get similar results. While he still hasn''t cracked the mystery of crystal it''s still a massive achievement but Logan seems to think Reima will surpass him eventually. The spells Reima can currently use are Soul arrow, Great Soul arrow, Heavy Soul arrow and magic weapon. The normal Soul arrow spells are relatively easy to cast due to their simple formulae, the ones Reima had trouble with were Heavy soul arrow and Magic weapon... Heavy soul arrow seems similar to it''s regular variant at first glance, only noticeable difference is that it moves slower. But it''s effect and formulae are significantly different, the act of forming a Heavy Soul arrow is coming close to forming crystal... While not quite physical it impacts the soul like a rocket at a tank. Magic weapon was also an issue at first, due to it''s unconventional formulae. Reima was used to offensive spells that had a target, instead the magic weapon spell is essentially covering a weapon with a large soul arrow that retains it''s shape and form... When striking with such a weapon it would attack the soul as well as the damage the weapon would initially do.

    Nevertheless Reima managed to become adept at casting these few spells, he''s also broaching the subject of editing Soul arrow with pyromancy but Logan smacked him on the head for trying something so "Idiotic and brainless"... It seems he''s not as knowledgable about pyromancies as he is about Sorcery. Reima is sure with enough tinkering he create a Flaming Soul arrow...

    Reima also managed to find time to meditate and practise his Haki, he''d been neglecting it since he''s essentially been in constant battles aside from his previous visit to the spider sisters with Solaire. With his increased soul level uses Armament Haki has become significantly easier, he notices this when he used it to stop the Iron Golems punch towards Solaire, he''d managed to cover half his body in the black substance which surprised him, he''d hit a wall back in Kaer Morhen and was only able to cover his hand in it... Such improvements can only be attributed to his more powerful soul.

    Observation Haki has also been gradually improving as his soul level increased, before he only used it as a sort of radar, looking around for enemies where he couldn''t see and especially in his blind spots. The improvements he can actually feel are increased reflexes and awareness of his surroundings, he''s not able to read into aura''s yet due to their seemingly endless complexity but with enough practise he''s hopeful he''ll be able to one day. He looks around at the aura''s of the people in the shrine and one thing becomes apparent, the Dark Sign gets larger depending on how hollow you are... The CrestFallen warrior sitting beside the bonfire has a massive black spot over his heart that only seems to grow with time, Reima expects him to go hollow relatively soon... Everyone else is relatively normal apart from Logan, he had a Dark spot almost as big as the CrestFallen warrior but it seems to be shrinking? Perhaps teaching Reima has given him something, a purpose? He looks down at himself for the first time and finds an insignificant dark spot on his chest... He sighs, he hasn''t been here for centuries like the others so he''s not even close to hollowing, he has a goal which probably helps as well.

    Last but not least he attempts Conquerors Haki... He''d tried to master it in Kaer Morhen but he didn''t even manage to use it, he''d assumed it was for the same reason his Armament Haki was bad, he had a weak soul... His guess seems to have been incorrect as he is still incapable of even mustering the smallest use of it. Perhaps he needs a catalyst of some sort? He remembers that Luffy manifested it while trying to save his brother Ace. Such a story device is annoying Reima, where on earth is he going to find something like that? He''s definitely not going to put his loved ones in danger just to achieve a power.

 93 Magic-bots Son!

    A month later a white haired man can be seen holding his arms out in-front of himself, two men in robes stand behind him looking on excitedly as a large blue shape starts to form. It extends about 5 feet in-front of the young man and slowly forms a tip. The young man, Reima has beads of sweat running down his face and dripping to the floor as the spear finally forms... This is not the end though, as he pours more Mana into it resulting in small shards of Ice? No, crystal to start forming on it''s surface. The two men behind him, Logan and Griggs seem to be hopping up and down like school girls and pointing at him. If you were to look under Logan''s large hat you''d see tears start forming in his eyes that he quickly wipes away to remove the evidence of his emotion.

    Reima''s Soul spear now has small crystals on it''s surface, he tries to increase their size and density but doesn''t manage it and releases the spear into the rocket cliff face next to him, resulting in a large long hole to form as a result.

    Reima "Haaaah, how was that teacher?" He looks behind him at the amazed duo.

    Logan "How was it? IT WAS ASTOUNDING! Casting such a spell took me fifty years, and you managed it in a couple weeks!" His tone confuses Reima, is he angry or happy?

    Griggs "It pains me to say this but, you''ve surpassed me in such a small amount of time..." His scrunched eyebrows tells of his true emotion to Reima''s out of this world talent.

    Throughout this month of training Reima had learned the majority of offensive sorceries that Logan knows.

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    Magic shield : Enchanting an object with the ability to resist magic and making blocking more efficient.

    Great Heavy soul arrow : A more powerful Variant of the Heavy soul arrow spell, the Mana it''s made of is so dense that anymore and it would explode, or start sprouting crystal.

    Homing Soul mass : Unlike in the game where it''d just attack the first enemy it''s able to, this spell and all it''s variants are completely controlled by the caster... This makes it very powerful in combat, blocking a strike and allowing a single soul mass to counter attack could very well be victory in the face of death.

    Soul spear : Essentially just a giant Soul arrow, if someone were to be hit by it and didn''t have a powerful enough soul or magic resistance they would most certainly die.

    And the crystal variants,

    Crystal Soul spear : one of the few sorcerers capable of physical and spiritual damage, being hit by this would be excruciatingly painful if you somehow survived... For a comparison to the type of power it holds, imagine being shot by a tank shell that also targets the soul simultaneously... While it doesn''t fly as quickly as a bullet, it''s damage more than makes up for it.

    Homing Crystal Soulmass : The crystal variant of it''s regular version, as with all Crystal based sorcery it physically damages when it hits, while not as powerful as the Crystal Soul spear, the 5 hovering soulmass are still capable of lethal damage.

    While Reima was training he had noticed that Logan hadn''t created the Crystal magic weapon buff yet, he''d mentioned how creating a Crystal variant of the magic weapon spell would likely be very powerful... Needless to say, Logan locked himself away for a couple days until he haggardly walked up to Reima and shows his crystal covered staff. Reima had managed to get Logan to teach him a few weeks afterwards allowing him to acquire the spell.

    Crystal magic weapon : Enchanting a weapon with crystal, allowing it to enhance physical and spiritual damage, while having a bunch of crystal sprouting from your weapon wouldn''t usually increase it''s effectiveness the spell essentially allows the crystals to only become physical after an injury has been caused... This makes a normal stab extremely deadly as the crystals would destroy the flesh around it and make the injury ten times worse.

    During the month of training Reima''s arm has finally started replacing the blackened flesh, slowly allowing a pink colour to return, although, the worst thing about the injury was the throbbing pain that came from his newly regenerated pain receptors... It was the reaction of the two sisters when he went to visit them...

    FlashBack!

    Reima had just teleported outside of Quelaag''s lair, he''d managed to get his mentor Logan to hole himself up to create a spell he''d remembered from the game. Reima decided to use this free time to visit his "sisters"... Calling them sisters still feels weird, but he had decided to protect them as if they were blood related family. He walks down the webbed lair and enters the previously illusionary wall.

    Inside he spots a man wearing ragged brown robes, from his back he can only see long black hair that''s slightly singed from fire.

    Reima sees a flame in his hand and immediately tackles the man to the ground, ignoring the pain shooting through his still injured arm.

    ??? "OOohff" He hits the ground and gets turned around by Reima.

    Reima "Who are you, do you intend to harm the sisters!" He shouts in his face as rage begins to fill him, how dare he try and hurt those under his protection?

    ??? "Sir please, I would never harm those I serve!" he pleads with tears forming in his eyes at the idea of harming his mistresses.

    Reima isn''t convinced and continues to hold him there until he hears the familiar scuttling of legs covered by a exoskeleton.

    Quelaag "Ah, Reima! You came to visit!" She lifts him off of the intruder and hugs him into her breasts that are for some reason, still uncovered.

    Reima "Stop, I found a suspicious person! Where is Eingyi, I thought he was protecting the entrance!?!"

    Quelaag seems confused and proceeds to look down at the man before laughing, "hahaha! Reima! That is Eingyi!"

    .... "What!"

 94 Angry spider, Scary spider.

    Quelaag "hahaha! Reima! That is Eingyi!"

    ... "What!" Reima shouts confused at the sudden turn of events...

    He wiggles out of Quelaag''s grip and helps Eingyi up, looking closer he has a thick black beard that is also singed, he has brown eyes that weren''t visible before due to his previously hollow condition.

    Reima "What happened? Did you finally use that massive stock of egg vermifuge you had?"

    Eingyi rubs his beard, "Well... After our Fair lady regained her voice, she gave us a rather... Stern talking to. It seems she doesn''t think suffering alongside her is admirable at all"

    Reima "I can see why... It''s stupid." He grimaces at Reima''s words.

    Eingyi "Yes, well... After talking amoungst the rest of the egg bearers we came to the conclusion that not being crippled made it easier to protect the Fair lady..."

    The mentioned person scuttles into the room, she looks much healthier than before, despite the crablike appearance of her lower body and the scales covering small parts of her skin.

    She gives Eingyi a glare, "I hope you understand my feelings on the matter." She says in a gentle voice before looking at Reima. "Brother"

    She slowly walks closer to him before enveloping him in a hug, "You''re so warm, I can feel sisters flame inside you." Quelaag blushes at this but manages to calm herself before anyone sees.

    Reima "I''m glad you''re feeling better... Seeing you suffering like that was heart breaking." He says as he wraps his arms around her thin frame.

    Queliina "Yes, but at the cost of all the eggs..." She looks a little downtrodden as she says this.

    Reima "They were already too far-gone, dying alongside them would have devastated Quelaag, You''re her world you know" He whispers the last part so Quelaag can''t hear it.

    Queliina gives the brightest smile Reima has ever seen since reincarnating, the only other people he''d seen such a smile from were mothers who''d just held their children in their arms for the first time...

    Reima "Ah, I almost forgot... I have a new recruit I''d like to introduce to you all." He ruffles Queliina''s long silver her before letting her go.

    Quelaag "Ah, have we heard of them before?"

    Reima "Probably not, he was the one to first share his flame with me though." He winks at Quelaag who blushes in response. "I''ll be right back" He vanishes in a flash of light before almost immediately reappearing with another person.

    Laurentius "Reima! Would you tell me before whisking me off to some god fors-...." He stops suddenly and looks around at the two towers figures behind him.

    Reima interrupts his thoughts before he starts throwing fire at the sisters. "Laurentius, these are my Sisters, and the people who taught me Pyromancy."

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    Laurentius shakes his head to regain his sense before bowing his head low, "My apologise, I''d never thought Reima''s mentors were such beautiful... Unique women." He glances at there lower bodies for a moment.

    Quelaag nods her head "It''s nice to meet, Laurentius was your name correct? I am known as the Chaos Witch Quelaag, this is my adorable sister Queliina and our servant Eingyi." she gestures to them both.

    Laurentius eyes open wide when he hears Eingyi''s name, "Eingyi? of the great swamp? The famous pyromancer who taught my ancestor?" He looks at Eingyi with worship in his eyes.

    Eingyi "Ah, you know of me? I have taught many in the past, now I am a humble servant of the sisters." He gestures towards his masters.

    Laurentius looks at the spider women and immediately drops to his knees, "Please, allow me to enter your service." he places his head on the floor in a submissive gesture.

    Quelaag looks at Queliina before speaking, "Very well... I''ll put you under Eingyi to learn what you need to, the only current role of servants are to protect my sister here, do you think you can do such a task?"

    Laurentius looks up with tears streaming down his face, "With my life Milady!"

    Quelaag looks satisfied and looks at Reima, "I want to hear about your travels while you were gone." She grabs his arm which causes him to wince, confused she looks closer and sees a black hand, pulling up his sleeve she sees that his entire arm is black. "What on earth happened! I''ve not seen such injuries since mother... You will tell me what happened right now!" It seems that remembering her mother had hit a sore spot...

    Reima "I had used a unique kind of magic to power my flames... It was a life or death moment..."

    Quelaag "You''re undead you idiot! Just die, why cause an injury that would persist through death?!?" She''s almost screeching as she holds him in place by his shoulders.

    Queliina gently caresses his injured arm with a sorrowful look.

    Reima has goosebumps at the raging Witch, "Well I, eerrmm.. Wanted to try it?"... It seems that this was not the right answer as he gets slapped across the face by the irate woman.

    After what seems like an hour of being berated Quelaag slowly calms down and tears start forming in her eyes, "Never do such a thing again. This kind of experimenting resembles what Mother was doing, I don''t think I could take it if such a fate were to befall you as well." She hugs Reima closely, disregarding his puffed up face with hand marks still present.

    Reima "I can''t promise that... But I''ll promise not to do it without you present." This seems to satisfy her as she doesn''t retort, all the while this was happening Eingyi and Laurentius watch on as demon spider slapped Reima while an Angelic one tried to comfort his injury.

    Laurentius looks at Eingyi who''s got a massive grin on his face, "Is this common?"

    Eingyi "No, but I hope it would be." He says cheerfully, "Now, lets see what you currently know about pyromancy."

    FlashBack END!

 95 Na-palm that dude

    Reima smiles when remembering the sisters, while he was having his break with them he managed to get Quelaag to coach him on the use of Great Chaos Fire ball... It''s a lot more "chaotic" (obviously) than a normal fireball due to it being a spell made by the witch of Izalith in her prime, when thrown it deal more damage and releases lava if it hits something... It''s comparable to a napalm bomb, high impact and devastating aftereffects.

    Reima comes back to his senses as he feels someone shaking him, looking around he sees Griggs and Logan looking at him with curious faces.

    Griggs "I wonder what had you smiling like a fool? A woman perhaps?" He chuckles when Reima glares at him.

    Reima "No, I was thinking about Pyromancy and the uses of it." He says while crossing him arms.

    Logan nods "I don''t have much else to teach you for now, it''s best you expand your horizons and gain experience. What is your next goal?"

    Reima "I think I have to visit the Undead Asylum again..." He says thinking about what he needs to do in Anor Londo... To visit "her" he needs the doll to use as a key.

    Both Griggs and Logan seem confused as to why he''d need to return to such a god forsaken place but decide to bid him farewell regardless.

    Logan "I wish you good luck, although... I''d be careful in that place if I were you... After the bells were rung I think I saw units of black knights travelling towards it, presumably to stop anymore undead escaping."

    Griggs nods, "Servants of the gods who cursed us, even now they seek to imprison us."

    Reima turns to grab the Asylum key from the roof of the shrine near the elevator but is interupted mid walk by Logan, "Don''t forget your promise about Seath''s archive!" He waves at them behind him and walks up to the elevator.

    The group of priests that followed the way of white had already departed, maybe they''ll accomplish their task? Probably not.

    He teleports to the top of the roof and picks up the key that for some reason is just lying there... He picks it up and looks at the crow... Originally you''d have to curl yourself into a ball and pretend to be one of it''s eggs? After that the bird would pick up it''s "Egg" and drop it outside of the undead asylum... I feel like the bird knows what you are and is just annoyed by your presence. Luckily, he doesn''t have to do that since he can teleport. Reima vanishes from the roof in a flash of Turquoise light and appears on the ledge that the giant crow had picked him up from a while ago.

    The weather is the exact same from last he''d left... The only difference he can see is the crowd of hollowed undead wielding various weapons and torches standing in front of the open asylum gates.

    Reima wonders what the black knights are doing if they aren''t stopping these undead from escaping? He walks down and decides to try out his Crystal Soul spear on an actual enemy... While it still takes a while to conjure, he''ll get faster with practise. He holds his hands up in-front of him and casts the spell, causing Blue particles to gather and condense before shaping itself into a long spear, after that small crystal shards start sprouting from it''s surface. After completely conjuring the spear he lines it up with as many hollows as he can before launching it.

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    Shoo!

    It pierces the air like a bullet and hits the first undead in the chest... They undead''s body explodes, not managing to retain it''s human shape after having a giant hole created in it. The others behind it are not any luckier, while it doesn''t hit as accurately as the first it still does horrific damage which is definitely lethal. Five out of the twenty in the group drop dead before the battle even starts, Reima tries to wipe the cold sweat from his forehead due to the effects of his spell, flames spark up in his palm as he prepares his other new spell.

    The undead are coming towards him in almost a straight line as he throws the Great Chaos fireball at them... The first one almost liquefies under the immense heat emitted from the fire and has no chance when the lava completely covers it''s body. It looks like it wants to thrash around and scream but is unable to due to it''s muscles and vocal cords already being burned away. The other undead simply try to step over their fallen comrade but stupidly land right in the lava covering the floor. They fall over each other trying to get to Reima and dying for the attempt, Reima walks up with Arcell and stabs the lucky ones that managed to avoid the lava, temporarily ending their lives.

    Reima enters the Asylum after clearing up the escaping undead and looks around where he''d previously killed the asylum demon. He remembers from playing the game that the floor will fall through allowing him to fight the other demon he saw while he was escaping this place. Deciding he wants to loot the place clean before he leaves, he enters the door on his right that leads to the balcony that he''d jumped off to attack the boss.

 96 Oscar, the OG Black Knight.

    Reima looks down the long hallway that used to contain a crossbow wielding undead... Now? A black knight stands menacingly blocking the way with it''s large shield...

    Reima "Are they called black knights because they''re all really tall?" he quips to himself as he approaches it, Arcell already in-hand. He runs his fingers across Arcell causing Crystal to form on it''s surface. The black knight runs towards him while readying it''s shield for impact, when it gets close enough it slams it''s shield across trying to strike Reima who easily dodges it. He looks at the wall that was hit by the shield and notices small fracture lines on it... The black knight continues and brings it''s sword down causing sparks to fly when it misses and hits the floor.

    Reima stomps on it''s sword causing the knight to be unable to pick it up, he can feel it getting annoyed as it drops it''s sword and tries to punch him in the face with it''s thick metal gauntlet.

    Using Windfall to dodge and slow the knight Reima jabs Arcell into it''s knee joint causing it to stumble, taking advantage of this Reima bring his leg up in a round house kick which slams into the knights helmet and knocking it on it''s ass. He continues his assault and brings Arcell stabbing down into it''s visor with both hands piercing it''s skull and rendering it white dust.

    Reima "Whoo, that last time I fought one of them solo was a bit more difficult... Either I''m getting better or this guy was crap." he notices a white glowing ball on the floor, picking it up it morphs into a heavy black shield... Nice.

    After finishing off the knight Reima walks through the familiar corridors and eventually come to the point where Oscar of Astora had died... He suddenly hears a clinking behind him, turning around he sees familiar armour staring at him... Oscar''s hollowed form wielding it''s weapon prepares for combat, "Yo, this is kinda cliche isn''t it? Don''t make me have to kill you." he says when preparing Arcell for combat against him..

    Oscar doesn''t say anything, instead he just lunges at Reima with his sword, it gets parried easily and Oscar receives a hard punch to his helmet causes him to stumble back.

    Reima "You hollow cunt, you try that again and I''ll take your arm!" he shouts at the insane knight.

    The knight slowly rolls towards him as it''s armour is too heavy to be manoeuvrable, it completes it awkward role and tries to slash Reima who uses Armament Haki to stop the damage. "Right" Reima states with finality as he viciously chops at it''s sword wielding arm. Chink! It completely cuts through the armour and severs the arm which drops lifelessly to the floor... Oscar seems confused and looks at it''s arm for a moment.

    Reima "Huh, this seems familiar somehow.." he says as Oscar tries to bash him with his shield... Reima cuts the other arm off which causes another short pause to their combat. Oscar, again, looks down at it''s severed arm and back up at Reima... It runs at him and starts kicking his shins...

    Reima "Stop that... I''ll take your leg... Right!" He swipes upwards removing both legs from the undead who falls on it''s back... How on earth is it still alive?

    Reima "You say it''s a flesh wound and I''m gonna find a way to permanently kill you, I swear to god."

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    Luckily for both of them, it doesn''t say anything... It does try to remove it''s helmet to bite him but he decapitates it before this skit-like situation can go on any longer. He takes the Crest Shield that Oscar had dropped before continuing on.

    He enters the area containing the balcony and Fog-gate and gets assaulted by three hollows who are easily dispatched. He continues on through the door and sees two hollow knight guarding the door at the end... They hold their shields up and approach him, some semblance of tactics seems to remain as they approach him in some kind of formation. One swings it''s sword at him while the other covers it with it''s shield, Reima knocks away the sword and kicks the shield with a Armament Haki front-kick causing the undead to be launched like a bullet into the wall behind it. It''s ally apparently not noticing it''s instant death keeps trying to swing it''s sword while forgetting about it''s shield, apparently you forget about defence when you''re doomed to die forever. Reima grabs it''s sword with a Haki infused hand and crushes the rusty brittle blade like it''s pasta, the undead seems confused as it tries to swing it''s broken blade at him but misjudges the distance... It receives a 360 tornado kick to the face which essentially bends it''s spine into a pretzel before dissipating into white mist.

    After killing the guards Reima uses the key he collected from the room to unlock the gate and walk through, he descends down the stairs and finds the Rusted Iron Ring... It''s use in the game was to help you move through high water like swamps, marshes etc... In reality though the use must be more varied than that? He''ll have to experiment with it at a later date but he suspects it would probably make you amazing a swimming or something... He drops down the half ruined stairs and follows the path back to the area where he''d fought the Asylum demon... He mediates for a couple minutes before preparing to jump on the fragile stone floor and start fighting the Stray Demon.

 97 Demon got back?

    Reima after enchanting his sword with Crystal, eating a healthy dose of Green blossoms and equipping the Flame StonePlate ring jumps onto the stone floor which promptly collpases under his weight... How it didn''t collapse under the previous giant demons, he''ll probably never know. He falls down the hole and heavily lands, he hears deep breathing like he was listening to some weeb masturbate... Looking up he sees the familiar face of the Asylum demon... Except this one has embers drifting from it''s mouth... JUMP! He leaps away and a torrent of fire envelops his previous location.

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    It''s so intense that some of the stones that comprise the floor are melted into lava.

    Reima "Yeah, well two can play at that game!" He shouts and throws a Great Chaos Fireball at it''s face... It seems to hurt it but not as much as he was expecting, it must have some sort of fire resistance. He starts charging up a Crystal Soul spear but is interrupted as it swings it''s giant stone hammer across horizontally, he has to blink away to dodge the wide strike and stabs at it''s ankle causing it to roar and try and sit on Reima... Needless to say, become a demon butt-plug is not on his to-do list so he rolls backwards to avoid it''s unconventional attack.

    It slowly tries to get back up and so Reima slashes it''s mangled stone butt cheek causes deep cuts to form, the demon deciding that sitting down won''t do much drags it''s huge weight around and tries to swing it''s hammer at him again, he ducks under it as it slams into the wall causing the entire asylum to shudder, bricks from above drop down making Reima worried if he''s going to be buried or not.

    While the Demon tries to recover it''s Hammer from the wall Reima leaps a few metres into the air and lands on it''s shoulder before delivering a face shattering kick to it''s monstrous looking teeth, his steel plated leather boots are heavily damaged by it''s teeth but they stay intact as his foot destroys it''s dentistry. The Demons head jolts back as if struck by lightning and holds it''s face in pain, it drops it''s hammer and tries to swat him off which it succeeds at. Reima lands roughly on the floor after escaping it''s flailing arms, it''s beady eyes look at him in extreme angry, it doesn''t seem to appreciate having it''s teeth rearrange down it''s throat... It''s bloody mouth starts to glow orange warning Reima of the incoming danger, he casts a powerful Quen shield before ducking behind some stone debris.

    The whole room heats up tremendously as fire envelops almost everything, Reima watches behind his shield as flames lick the stones around him causing them to deform and glow red, the flames threaten to break his shield as the Demon eventually stops spewing fire. Reima peaks over the debris to check the situation and sees it still glaring at him, although by the movement of it''s chest, it seems to be out of breath.

    Taking advantage of this Reima blinks below it and slams Arcell into it''s knee cap causing it to try to stomp him with it''s hammer, he blinks behind it''s other leg and stabs the back of it''s knee causing it to finally drop to it''s knees, it''s legs no longer being able to support it''s massive weight. Deciding it''s time to try finish this he leaps up to it''s shoulder again and tries to stab it in the eye, it bring a hand up to try an block it but he blinks to the other shoulder and successfully removes an eye.

    It roars and falls to it''s back as Reima maintains his grip before making his way to it''s chest, it''s stubby arms try to reach him but it doesn''t manage to... It starts charging up a flame attack again but recognises a familiar blue shape hovering above it''s chest... Reima had just finished conjuring a Crystal Soul Spear and was preparing to launch it into it''s heart, he looks at the panicking demon with a grin before allowing the Spear to strike.

    Shoo!

    It makes it''s way through it''s stony skin and pierces it''s heart, it releases a feeble groan as it starts to fade away into white mist. Reima absorbs a large quantity of soul and spots some loot on the ground, after wiping the sweat of off his brow he picks up the slab of titanite giving a bright smile while he does so. This should be enough to upgrade his armour, well, it depends on whether or not Andre wants to. He shakes his head, the only thing keeping Andre from going hollow is his love of

    smithing, of course he''ll upgrade his armour for him.

    Reima brushes the ash and dust off of his clothes before making his way through the corridors that lead back to his previous holding cell, he finds two black knights guarding the hallway leading to it... Are they looking for him? He keeps out of sight and conjures another Crystal Soul Spear with the help of the slumbering dragoncrest ring and manages to kill both with one spell. One drops it''s sword which seems too large to be used with one hand, he "hoards" it with the rest of his stash and approaches his cell. Looking down he sees a glowing orb hovering above a corpse that wasn''t here before, it morphs into a doll... The doll he needs to enter a certain painting.

 98 Amore in Anor Londo?

    After retrieving the peculiar doll Reima channels his ElderBlood magic and vanishes from the asylum, he reappears on the wall of Anor Londo where he''d seen off Solaire. The sun feels warm on his face... Despite knowing it''s just an illusion created by Gwyn''s son Gwyndolin, funny how he''s actually the only god remaining in these "lands of the gods". Reima looks down at the sprawling city, what he hadn''t noticed in the game is the miles of buildings surrounding Anor Londo, this must be the "noble" area where the gods reside, the lower part must be where the common people along with the worshippers live. Thinking about it logically there must be full infrastructure for a society to operate... That means... A bank or treasury exists. A huge grin forms on Reima''s face, if it does exist, then he will drain it dry of resources... For the good of the lands ofcourse. Nodding his head at his basic plan he starts descending the winding stairway towards where the brass armoured fire keeper tends to her flame. He continues until he reaches a building guarded by giant armoured knights wielding shields and spears, they aren''t hostile but.. A souls a soul.

    The Giant doesn''t seem to notice Reima enchanting his Sword with Crystal Magic weapon, he also doesn''t notice a large Crystal Spear forming a few metres away and pointing directly at it''s face... It doesn''t notice when it''s head disintegrates under the massive impact of said spear.

    Reima just looks blankly at the slowly fading away corpse of the giant... He was expecting it to atleast try to dodge the spell, is it hollow or just stupid? He shakes his head and peeks into the room to see if the other two knights that seem to be guarding a statue are hostile.. They''re not.

    He walks into the room and sees a chest behind one of the giant... I need this. A thought flashes through his mind. He goes to the end of the room so that he gets a good angle that isn''t blocked by one of their large shields, again he conjures a Crystal Soul spear and fires it at the head of the Giant knight. It explodes in an amusing display of blood and gore before fading away, it''s friend seems to have noticed by the way it''s stomping towards him. It''s 8-9ft tall with gold armour that shines in the orange sunlight, it swings it''s massive halberd in an attempt to cut Reima in two, he blinks away from the strike and behind the giant. It looks around confused until it feels a sharp pain in it''s leg, looking down it sees a weird glowing sword covered in Crystals impaled through it''s leg armour. The sword is pulled out viciously allowing the Crystals to rend the flesh of the leg causing the Giant to stumble onto one knee. It tries to get up as it''s weapons are useless in it''s current position due to their massive size and length... Reima knows of the weakness of such weapons and blinks above it''s head before using his falling momentum to chop at it''s neck, it completely servers the grey skin and it''s large head falls to the floor causing dust to fly up. It''s body fades away as Reima looks on disappointing.

    Reima "They are more like show pieces than actual guards..." He looks at the large statue of Lord Gwyn? He guesses it''s probably based on him due to the large beard, he doubts Gwynevere grew facial hair in this timeline... He opens the chest next to the statue which reveals a Demon titanite, probably the most valuable due to it''s ability to upgrade boss weapons.

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    He stores the Titanite and exits the building before taking the first entrance on his left that leads to the fire keeper. Walking down into the building that only seems to be lit from the bonfire he sees a woman leaning again the far wall wearing what seems like brass armour.

    ??? "Well, you are a rare visitor. Welcome to the lost city of Anor Londo, chosen Undead. If you seek Lord Gwyn''s old keep, exit here and head straight yonder. If you are the chosen one, a revelation shall visit thee.¡­ What follow thereafter, depends upon you¡­" She speaks in a stoic dull feminine tone, repeating exactly what she says in the game... Reima knows she''s a servant of the DarkMoon Covenant that hunts "Sinners" and "Blasphemers" in Gwyndolin''s name, She actually tries to kill you if you reveal that Gwnevere had actually abandoned Anor Londo long ago. The only thing he can think to describe her as is a blind follower.

    Reima looks at her revealing his cat-like eyes which causes her back to straighten, "Greetings FireKeeper... My name is Reima Ludvig, may I know yours?" He politely bows to her in a polite gesture.

    She seems confused by the question as if she''s never be asked that before, "I.. I don''t have name. You can refer to me as Keeper if you wish."

    He nods, while analysing her... No name, must''ve been complete indoctrination by Gwyndolin... I haven''t decided whether I should kill that cross-dressing brat yet... It depends if I can unearth any key information.

    Reima "Pleasure to meet you, Keeper. I hope we keep our relations amicable" He smiles at her before sitting down and resting at the bonfire.

 99 Another Tail with a tale to tell...

    After resting at the bonfire Reima bids farewell to "Keeper" before leaving, he looks at the two paths ahead and decides to loot the building on the left first before heading to the palace that holds the painting. He walks down the tiled path and enters the room that has another statue guarding by two Giant knights... He follows the same procedure as last time, blasting the first in the face with a Crystal Souls spear and getting ready for the counter attack by it''s surviving friend. He dodging the downward chop of the halberd before deciding to see how strong his Armament Haki actually is... He channels Haki into his arm which covers it in a black substance before leaping at the giant and punching it''s large shield.

    DANG!

    An almost bell-like sound rings out across the surroundings as the Giant Knight is sent skidding back before colliding with Gwyn''s statue behind it. The statue crumbles slightly under the weight of the Giant Knight who picks itself out of it, it''s arm that was holding the shield seems slightly... Bent? After it pulls itself out it''s shield drops to the floor as it''s arm lifelessly droops to it''s side. This is a lot better than what Reima was expecting from his blocked blow. The Knight doesn''t seem deterred by it''s crippling injury and slowly sweeps it''s Halberd horizontally, Reima ducks while using Windfall causing it''s recovery of it''s weapon to be tremendously slow Reima jumps up again and gives anotehr Haki infused punch which collides to it''s face... Needless to say, it dissipates into white dust after flipping a couple times and completely crushing the statue of Gwyn? No looking closer at the remains it seems to be a statue of Smough, the executioner and if his lore is correct, a cannibal.

    Reima looks greedily at the two chests beside the debris and starts opening them... One contains some twinkling titanite, the other contains a-AHHHHH! The chest comes alive and starts biting into his torso with large segmented bone-like teeth, piercing his armour and inflicting horrific wounds to his torso.

    Reima casts a large combustion pyromancy into it''s insides which burns both of them, the mimic screeches and promptly dies from the fire while Reima is slightly burned... He managed to avoid most of his flames damage due to his Flame StonePlate ring that he''d previously equipped. He downs half of his Estus Flask to heal the still bleeding puncture wounds that that bloody mimic had created. He grumbles as the wounds slowly close, he picks up the dropped Crystal Halberd and stores it away into his Folded space, brushing himself off he leaves the room still mumbling about Mimics.

    He walks to the small tower-like structure that overlooks the rest of the city and steps in the middle of it, he hears grinding as the platform he''s standing on starts descending like an elevator. It stops and Reima continues down the nearby steps, he exits the building and comes face to face with a gargoyle, it looks like it''s in better condition than the ones that guarded the church bell... It charges at him on all fours, it''s axe-like tail swinging wildly. It jumps up intending to crush him but Reima casts a strong Aard at it which stops it short, he ducks until it''s claw strike before jabbing Arcell into it''s armpit, it doesn''t seem to notice as it spin while using it''s tail to try and chop at him. As it comes closer Reima steps into it''s body so he isn''t in the path of the axe head, he chops down with Arcell and successfully severs yet another tail... He stores it away into his Folded space as the Gargoyle writhes around in pain at the loss of it''s tail.

    Reima sees a golden opportunity and football kicks it''s downed face with Armament Haki causing it''s entire body to go sliding across the long walk way. The stone that comprises it''s face seems to crumble and fracture as it tries to stand and look at him, an additional Fireball finishes the suffering creature off. It drops a helmet and it''s halberd which both get stored in his Folded space for safe keeping.

    Reima looks around and remembers that the path ahead is through the window to the palace on his left. In-front of him is the large turning walkway that''s apparently raised for now. While he could just teleport up there and skip the whole roof situation Reima would rather get rid of some of the Painting Guardians first... He''d rather not get hoarded by however many are actually in there.

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    He drops onto the lower part of the walkway and collects the demon titanite hidden in the nearby chest, he cautiously places a foot on the thin tiled walkway? He doesn''t know what this is supposed to be called but it definitely wasn''t intended to be stepped on. He gets to the end and drops onto the balcony which has a shattered window that Reima quickly enters through.

    He steps up and looks over the banister, the room is giant, less like a palace and more like a great hall, on one end of the room is a huge black and white painting depicting a snowy land with a long rickety bridge. He admires it for a moment but is interrupted as a figure drops from the roof while trying to stab him, his Observation Haki comes to his aid as he spins and viciously kicks the white figure out of the air and onto the floor far below.. Apparently alerting all the other Painting guardians.. Fuck!

 100 These uniforms look like a certain clans...

    Looking down at the huge drop and ant-like Guardians that seem to be swarming to try and get to the roof to kill him, he leans his head to the side to dodge a knife that whizzes through the air, he looks around for the perpetrator and sees it on the thin wood supporting the roof. He looks the to the side and see''s a ladder which he promptly climbs to kill it. He gets to the top and almost get''s stabbed in the back by another Painting Guardian, he turns and strikes it''s wrist with his palm causing it to drop it''s sword, he follow up with a upward palm strike to it''s face that break it''s neck due to the amount of force used. He dodges another dagger thrown from the rafters and glares at the repeat offender before quickly shooting a Soul arrow at it with a flick of his hand. It gets hit and seems to have a heart attack before falling off and plummeting to the ground. He spots a glowing orb on the chandelier hanging from a chain and remembers that it''s some kind of sorcery... He steps on to the thin wood rafters confidently, due to his training in Kaer Morhen he has excellent balance... Reima almost feels at home while doing swift acrobatic dodges to avoid the numerous daggers being thrown at him by the swarming Painting Guardians. He makes his way across while occasionally sending a Soul arrow to try and reduce their numbers.

    He reaches the chandelier and swiftly cuts it with Arcell causing it to fall to the ground and kill a couple more Guardians... Unlike in the game where their numbers were in double digits, here there seem to be hundreds of them... More keep coming out from hiding places and assisting with the ranged assault, occasionally a brave one tries to attack him on the rafters before being kicked off or instantly killed. They are skilled, but they haven''t gone through the trials that Reima has, they seem to have a simple form of martial arts, small twists of the blades, spins and flips to disorient their opponent... Perhaps if they were taught a proper discipline they might be better suited to fighting him. He dodges a couple move daggers before sprinting to the end of the room which seems to hold a giant statue of Gwynevere and two silver knights, he drops off the rafters and lands onto a Painting Guarding who was mid throw, his foot crushes it''s skull due to it wearing basically no armour. The Three other Guardians surround him and try to stab at him, Reima draws his Steel sword from his back and dual wields it with Arcell in his right hand. He blocks two swords with his own before kicking the third guardian away causing it to stumble backwards, he then shoves the two others with his blades before performing a pirouette while slashing the two closest to him. They go down with red trails across their necks, the last one tries to cartwheel towards him and slash but is stopped when Reima catches it''s hand after storing Arcell and crushes it with his strength alone. The Guarding gives weak punches to his chest that doesn''t hurt him at all, Reima laughs and headbutts it as hard as he can, shattering it''s face and spine from the impact. The balcony is clear as the only way up to his position is via the rotating walkway that is currently unavailable to them.

    Reima walks out of the large building and steps onto the tiled path that leads to the rotating walkway and jogs to the large revolving lever, he gets a strong grip and starts pushing against it, it squeaks as if it''s a rusty gear but he easily turns the walkway, it lowers and connects the path so he can access the main palace that contains Gwnevere, the lord vessel and the two true gods of this land... Ornstein and Smough. Reima shakes his head from the memories that border on PTSD, he has goosebumps due to him remembers how many times he had actually died to the duo... He prepares to push againt the lever while trying to forget that part of his past life. Reima turns the walkway again while casually ignoring the monstrous screeching of the Gargoyle that isn''t able to reach him. The walkway reaches the bottom and almost sixty Painting Guardians start streaming through the small door of the palace to attack him... He sends a regular Soul Spear at them which does devastating damage due to their formation, almost twenty five are instantly killed as the rest continue sprinting at him. He gets Arcell and his Steel sword ready by enchanting them both with Crystal, he slashes his first attacker in two while deflecting a dagger with his other sword, he backs up to avoid a lunging stab before flick kicking the offending Guardian in the face, it falls on it''s back knocked out or dead from the impact. The others surround him and Reima starts making use of his blink ability... He blinks behind one and stabs it, vanishing before the others can counter attack before repeating this a couple more times... Blinking so many times in such short succession is tiring but he continues this until most of them are dead or critically injured, they don''t seem to be able to predict or counter attack him in anyway as their numbers are reduced to a couple men. The few remaining look at him without fear, and continue their assault Reima crosses both blades during a strike, cutting an X into it''s flesh before using a reverse grip to block the last two men left. After blocking them he twists and flicks his swords, cutting the wrists of his attackers before sweeping his swords across their throats, ending their lives.

    Reima "Haah!" He pants as he''s surrounded by a large amount of corpses, small white orbs floats above some. He wipes the sweat from his brow before sipping his Estus to heal the minor nicks he had taken in the fight... Despite his massive strength and speed advantages against them, their numbers were definitely intimidating... The fact that their bodies have remained means that they aren''t undead either... After resting for a while Reima stands and collects all of the dropped loot from the Guardians, a few Painting Guardian swords that look like curved swords with thick square points... Reima doesn''t know the point of such a weapon design but he stores them anyway, he also finds a shit-ton of throwing daggers.

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    Reima "I wonder why so many people are needed to guard a painting? It''s not like she is trying to escape is it?"

 101 Inside the Painting

    After a relatively long rest Reima get''s up and walks into the great hall that is now devoid of guards, the sunlight continues to shine through the windows onto the statue of Gwenevere and the painting. He walks up to the now fallen and shattered chandelier and loots the body that was lying across it, the orb morphs into a thin sheet of parchment detailing how to cast Great magic weapon. He stores it away for later and continues to walk through the hall, in one corner he can hear something impacting metal and flesh, looking over it seems to be the last Painting Guardian stabbing a large corpse wearing heavy black armour... It hasn''t disappeared so the person wasn''t undead, he slashes the back of the Guardians neck instantly killing it before looting the black iron armour... He won''t be needing it any longer.

    After doing everything he intended to do, Reima looks at the painting before sprinting at it, after gaining enough speed he jumps head first into it... And sprawls to the floor after colliding with the hard surface... "Ouuuch" He rubs his head and glares at the painting, "Why did I not go through?" he mumbles to himself, He walks up and places his hand on the painting like you do in the game. Again nothing happens... An idea pops into his head as he takes the doll out and grips it while touching the painting. Ripples appear and suck him into it, taking him into the Painted World of Ariamis.

    Reima feels a chill as wind prickles his skin, opening his eyes he finds himself on the rickety, almost collapsing rope bridge depicted in the painting... The high winds blow the bridge causing it to sway side to side, he looks behind him and sees that the wood leading to the other side is broken, not allowing anything to leave. In the distance he sees a large fort atop a mountain, the bridge is attached to the bottom and is connected to a path that leads further into the winding steps.

    The cold doesn''t really bother Reima, he "grew up" in Kaer Morhen, which is not the warmest place around. He cautiously walks across the wooden bridge oping that the wood stays intact under his feet.

    After getting to the end of the bridge he starts ascending the steps, covering his face so the snow doesn''t blow into his eyes. He gets to the top where a bonfire is somehow lit but hears the twang of a bowstring, dodging to the side he sees a hollow on the wall of the fort shooting at him, not just one though, dragging his gaze across the rest he sees a large number of archers apparently ready for his visit... The fort kind of resembles Kaer Morhen, in that it is almost collapsing, every brick comprising it''s structure is damaged in some way, he almost laughs as the floor collapses under a hollow trying to shoot at him.

    He quickly dodges the arrows haphazardly shot by them and brushes his hand over the bonfire to light it, he then channels Haki into his legs to launch him up and onto the wall of the attacking hollows. They don''t put up much of a challenge as he sweeps his sword through their flesh like butter, they try to swing their bows at him but it does nothing to stop his slaughter.

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    After finishing off the last of the bowman he looks around at the towers above him, one thing he definitely needs to acquire is the Dark Ember, it''s the opposite of the Divine ember in that it deal massive damage to everything with a soul, especially lords and gods. Reima plans to enchant his steel sword with the Dark Ember and his Silver one with the Divine one, the divine ember makes your weapon deal extra damage to those with no souls or warped souls... So everything from undead skeletons to werewolves, it probably works against Relicts considering they are more like forces of nature instead of actual living being... Though this might be different if it were before the conjunction of the spheres.

    He looks down at the courtyard that contains the revolving statue, it is surrounding by a large amount of fleshy amalgamations of multiple beings, their skin has turned red for some reason. They all wield small metal shields and long spears, they are in a formation that makes Reima think they are protecting the statue.

    He shakes his head and enters the building atop the wall and comes face to face with a grotesque mass of bloating dark red flesh... It wields a torch and seems to be conjuring a fireball to throw at him, he moves his body slightly to dodge it while he examines it''s form. It''s body is like a normal hollow, except for the tumour like growth sprouting from it''s neck, back and shoulders, Reima remembers that if you kill them in the game without fire they explode and infect you with the toxic debuff... Needless to say Reima sprayed it with enough flame to cremate someone. It''s body flops to the floor without exploding, he gives it a wide berth while walking around it while looting the room of everything that is and isn''t nailed down... Reima nods to himself, "I remember seeing some nice furniture in Anor Londo...".

 102 Three birds one guy...

    Reima contiues to walk through the decrpit rooms, the wood comprising the floor is weak and rotten, it''s only emphasised by his foot going through the floor boards, alerting those in the room below of his presence. He pulls his foot out in time to punch the giant white rat hurtling towards his face, it gives out a weak squeal as it collapses to the floor and dropping a humanity for his trouble. He looks towards the stairs and sees another couple toxic bloating hollows waddling up the stairs, he tosses a Great Chaos Fireball at them that causes lava to roll down the stairs and incinerate anything else trying to attack him... He''s slightly worried that the wood would ignite from the fire but finds that it''s so damp and rotten that not even lava could light it.

    He eventually finds himself outside on the wall again and looks at a long bridge with a "Dead" dragon laying across it... He decides to ignore it for now as he''ll deal with it eventually. Looking to his left he sees the entrance to a seemingly roman inspired tower, he walks inside and sees... Bird women? Women birds? They half the lower body a women complete with all the "Organs..." that one would have, their upper body resembles a crow or raven, instead of arms they have large black wings and instead of humans heads they have beady eyes, beaks and feathers... One spots him and starts squawking at him, unfortunately he doesn''t know how to talk to birds... Literally and figuratively, it runs down the steps that encircle the inside of the tower before swinging it''s wing at him, it''s power is nothing to scoff at as it would probably break a few bones on contact. He backup while minding his step on the stairs while materialising Arcell, it brings it''s wings back and jumps at him, it tries to sit down on his shoulders but he frantically dodges out of the way... Having "That" rub against him as it tries to peck his eyes out would not be a fun experience.

    He slashes it''s torso but finds that it''s skin is a lot tougher than the normal hollow''s he fights against, looking closer it''s wings have metallic shimmer as well. It tries to strike him with it''s wing again but is blocked by Arcell, causing a metallic "Clank" to ring out. He senses with Observation Haki that two more are flying towards him from the top of the tower, he shoves his opponent away and brutally stamps on it''s knee cap causing it to invert, it falls to the ground giving a pained squeak as it''s friends land either side of him, blocking all exits. He casts Quen to protect from any wayward strikes and starts defending from both attackers, using Armament Haki on his hand to block one wing while using Arcell to block the others. The one standing higher on the stairs next to it''s crippled companion rears it''s wings back, indicating it''s going for that infamous grab attack. Reima is prepared and dodges under it before performing a pirouette and severing it''s spinal cord. It stumbles as it losing control of it''s limbs and plummets to the floor below, all while it''s companion squawk in fury at him. He boots the crippled on still lying on the stairs off to join it''s fallen friend before laying his predatory eyes on the last one.

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    It seems to shudder under the weight of his glare before taking off to the skies, somehow flying away on it''s weird arm wings...

    Reima looks up at it''s pale ass as it escapes, "The laws of Aerodynamics are being spit on..." He says as it bobbles up and down in a weird flight pattern. He shakes his head and acends to the highest point before looting the Red Soapstone, why did he take it? Not even Reima knows, it''s not like he intends to invade people.

    He looks down at the fort and sees a large frozen huddling man that kinda resembles Andre... Bingo, he blinks down to it before snapping his arm to reveal the Dark Ember in his grasp he takes it and gets goosebumps on his skin as he examines it. It''s like a black hole, absorbing all light, Reima''s medallion goes crazy at it''s presence. He stores it away, intending to gift it to Andre so he can eventually upgrade his weaponry. There are only a few things left to do before visiting "Her", he hops down the building and eventually finds the entrance point to the sewers, he looks down the ladder and into the darkness... The smell coming from it is comparable to the depths, he wonders whether he can just skip this. Deciding he''d rather kick the door down than wade through shit while fighting those bloody wheel skeletons, Reima blinks down into the courtyard where the Jelly Spartans all turns their attention to him. One throws it''s spear at Reima, he catches it and throws it back instantly killing the creature, he finds it amusing that they refuse to throw anything else at him.

    He throws a couple Great Chaos Fireballs at them and silently watches as they groan and moan in pain as they all slowly burn to death... Rather morbid yes, but Reima would rather die than be an amorphous mass made from many different people.

    After finishing them all off and "Stealing" their souls Reima walks up to the statue that revolves when you press the switch in the sewers... "Nah, fuck that!" He shouts as he gets a firm grip on it and starts manually turning it, the mechanism is too heavy for him despite he already huge strength making him have to utilise Armament Haki. It slowly starts turning under the enormous force Reima is putting on it before locking into place after being completely turned around. A click is heard as the gates that lead to "Her" swing open and reveal the path ahead.

 103 Introductions to fluff

    After "gently" opening the gates, Reima decides to deal with the dragon first and foremost, in the game it''s just an immobile enemy but here, he doesn''t know if it''ll try kill him from behind. He makes his way back through he fort and finds himself back on top of the bridge where the "dead" dragon lays, he looks closely at it and sees it''s rotting corpse is missing scales and has infested and infect wounds completely covering it, it''s head is missing it''s eyes but it can probably still see, similarly to how undead skeletons do.

    He enchants Arcell with Chaos Blade, assuming that fire would do more damage to an undead than Crystal would, he approaches and picks up blood shield before poking the dragon in the face with the flaming Arcell, it raises it''s head up and roars before using it''s front legs to drag it towards him... It''s lower body separates from the rest of it as it tries to bite him, Reima continues to back up until it''s unable to go any further. While it can''t physically attack him it''s still able to use a dragon signature breath attack, it takes a deep breath and remain prepares to be blasted with searing flames... Instead a cloud of purple poison mist erupts from it''s throat and slowly makes it''s way towards him. He casts Aard at it completely dissipating it and allowing the blizzard winds to blow the rest away. It doesn''t seem detterred by it''s failed attack and tries again... It still does nothing.

    Reima is a bit put out at fighting his first actual dragon, he gets slightly depressed the more Fireballs impact it, until it slowly dissapates into white dust and awarding him with a dragon scale...

    Reima "Man that was shit, the only other actual dragons that should exist aside from that is Seath the scaleless and the everlasting dragon, one of those you can''t even kill." he grumbles to himself as he makes his way back to the statue and through the gate towards Her majestic fluff.

    Looking down the long path Reima can see hollows banging away at the Fog-Gate, trying to gain access for some reason? It seems if you don''t have a strong enough soul you can''t even go through them. He kills the hollows blocking his path including a large steel armoured knight, it tries to sprint at him in it''s heavy armour but is instantly killed by a conjured Crystal Soul spear. Reima picks up it''s dropped armour and tower shield before making his way to the Fog-Gate, he smacks his cheeks, brushes his hair and checks his breath while psyching himself up, "You got this. Confidence."

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    He steps through the Fog-Gate unarmed and gazes upon the only other occupant of the room, she''s 8-9 feet tall and wears a furry white dress that matches her pale skin and long white hair. Her eyes surprise Reima as they almost match his own, bright green with a snake-like pupil. While a little different from his own it''s still surprising. Briefly glancing over her he sees small horns jutting from her forehead and a long furry white tail poking from her dress. She stands in the middle of the room wielding a giant scythe in a noble posture. She doesn''t say anything and just observes his actions.

    He steps up while showing he isn''t holding anything, "Greetings Milady, I am Reima Ludvig. May you do me the pleasure of introducing yourself?" He tries to mimic the way Geralt had to act in his stories of speaking with nobles.

    A white eyebrow on her face raises at his introduction, looking closer he can see small white scales on her brow and neck... Similar to Queliina''s actually.

    Priscilla "Mine own name wouldst beest Priscilla." She leans forward slightly while keeping a tight grip on her weapon. She continues in a gentle tone, "One of us, thou art not. If thou hast misstepped into this world, plunge down from the plank, and hurry home.If thou seekest I, thine desires shall be requited not." She repeats her familiar line from the game.

    Reima "What makes you say I am not one of you? I don''t belong to the world outside, does that mean I have a place here?"

    Priscilla''s eyes soften when she hears he doesn''t belong outside but still insists he returns. "It matters not. This land is peaceful, its inhabitants kind, but thou dost not belong."

    Reima cannot help but scoff, "Kind? I don''t know who you''re referring to because I had to fight through an army of hollows, a dragon and bird people just to get here, the "exit". Besides, if they are so kind and peaceful, why are you in here, wielding a weapon?"

    Priscilla shuffles uncomfortably before anxiously stating, "To protecteth myself from people outside... Mine own Mother assisted having me putteth here, disowned and abandoned, I remaineth here."

    Reima considers her parentage, logically the only dragon close enough to the lord of Anor Londo would be Seath... And based on the statue overlooking the painting I would assume that her mother is Gwenevere, Lord Gwyn''s hatred of dragons was well known... Perhaps having a half-breed grand daughter was too much for him, Reima also vaguely remembers something about them fearing her power?

    Reima also picks up her trying to change the topic, "I empathise with you Milady, but that doesn''t answer my question... Why are you not with these "Kind and peaceful" Inhabitants, and instead reside here... Wielding a weapon and preparing for combat. You can''t have a lot of visitors due to me having the only key inside."

    Priscilla says in a shaky voice, "I doth not have to answer thy questions, Thou does''t not know of true loneliness, pain." She barely gets out the last part of the sentence.

    Reima sits on the floor a comfortable distance away from her, "You assume you know about me Lady Priscilla, would it surprise you to know that people refer to me as freak when they see me? Look at me in disgust because of what I am... Probably similar to your situation, no?"

 104 Cats?

    "You assume you know about me Lady Priscilla, would it surprise you to know that people refer to me as freak when they see me? Look at me in disgust because of what I am... Probably similar to your situation, no?" He says while sitting and patiently waiting for her answer.

    Priscilla''s eyes look into his to try tell if he''s lying or not, what he had just described was what she had experienced all her life. Mother abandoning her, never knowing her father and grandfather''s hatred of her... She always wondered what she had done wrong, the only person that''d ever shown her kindness was her uncle, or brother as she''d used to call him.

    Reima patiently waits for while but realises she isn''t likely to reply, figuring that he''d have to get her out of her own shell before they could converse he proposes an idea.

    Reima "Ok, how bout this. Let''s play a game, I''ll answer one of your questions and you''ll answer mine, Tit for tat." He slowly says while smiling at the girl.

    She seems to mull over the idea before finally answering, "Thou must speaketh the sooth if I am to participate."

    Reima "Sooth?"

    Priscilla "Not lie." She says abruptly.

    Reima "Ah, I can do that." He scratches the back of his head and chuckles.

    Priscilla "Then allow me to start. What is thy purpose here?" She watches him closely with her predatory eyes to try spot any lies.

    Reima "Well, my presence in this world as well as the outside world is to get stronger. My reason for entering the painting is, well, you." She stiffens at this revelation.

    Priscilla "Why dost tho-" She tries to ask another question but Reima cuts her off.

    Reima "Ah ah ah, I believe it''s my turn?" He says in a jovial voice, seeing her grit her teeth and remaining silent Reima continues. "What is your favourite colour?" A grin reaches the corners of his mouth as he asks such an innocuous question.

    She seems confused by the question, then after thinking a moment she seems to be thinking of an answer to it... Probably didn''t have a preference before now.

    Priscilla "Green? Yes... Green, liketh the clothing brother used to wear." She smiles and nods to herself in reminiscence before turning her eyes back on Reima. "Why dost thou seeketh me?"

    Reima rests his elbow on his knee before gently placing his head atop it, "I heard tales of a pale girl, abandoned by those she cared about... After a while of searching I found the key to this realm, I wished to save you, like a knight does for a princess..."

    Priscilla bristles "I needeth not thy pity, mine own placement in this world is punishment for being an abomination." she says in a dull tone, as if she''s trying to convince herself instead of him.

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    Reima "You''re not an abomination, freak or monster. You''re unique yes, but that''s ok. Would you call me a freak for having strange eyes?" he says trying to calm her, hundreds if not thousands of years of self conditioning and loneliness has probably caused her to make some wrong conclusions.

    She sighs as she hears him, he previous bubbling anger settling down, she thinks of his question... Is he a freak? If so, what''s wrong with that?

    Priscilla "No, I supposeth not... I believe it''s thy turn to asketh." She replies slowly hoping to talk more with this strange man.

    Reima "Do you have any hobbies?"

    ...

    Priscilla "I know not what thou speaketh... Couldst thy pardon me?" She asks confused, what on earth was a hobby?

    Reima "Ah, sorry. What do you do for fun? It must be awfully boring in here." he corrects himself.

    Priscilla "Hmmm, at which hour I am not under assault I practise with mine own weapon..." She seems to still be thinking.

    Reima "Anything else?"

    Priscilla "When I was young I would draweth shapes in the snow." She seems to frown while remembering hard times.

    Reima tries to cheer her up by drawing a hello kitty in the snow, she curiously watches his actions as he slowly traces out the familiar cartoon cat.

    Priscilla "What is that?" she asks genuinely confused. "It doest not resemble a crow or dragon?"

    He''s confused at the implication of such a statement... "It''s an interpretation of a cat, I personally think it''s rather cute." She leans her head to the side when she hears what it is, "What is a cat?"

    Reima''s heart melts at this, she doesn''t know that animals other than crows or dragons exist? He goes on to explain what a cat is, what it looks like, how they behave and other miscellaneous things like the feel of their fur. Priscilla listens on enraptured by his tales of THE "Cat", she never knew such a wondrous creature existed... Halfway through she''d put her scythe on the floor next to her as she sits opposite Reima.

    After his tale is over she seems to grumble something, with his sharp ears he manages to pick it up, "I want a cat."

    ...

    Reima "I believe it''s your turn to ask me a question?" He draws her out of her thoughts to continue playing this "game".

 105 Heart and Sol....

    Reima "I believe it''s your turn to ask me a question?"

    She nods before gaining a pink tint to her cheeks while finding something particularly interesting on the ground, "Tell me of thy homeland."

    Reima immediately thinks of earth but shakes his head, Kaer Morhen on the continent is his home now. "Well the land my home is in is unlike the outside of this place. It''s fairly cold and occasionally snows, the people suffer but work together nonetheless... It isn''t cursed like this land either, humans aren''t doomed to continuously die until they go insane. I grew up in in a place called Kaer Morhen, It''s a castle inhabited by humans with special abilities called Witchers, they''re like me, freaky eyes and all." He goes on to explain the lands surrounding Kaer Morhen, the mountains, monsters and interesting places. He tells her tales of Geralt of Rivia his mentor, about Lampert, Eskel, Vesemir, Aubry and Frank, About the children he has grown up with and had unforunately perished. He had just finished speaking of Reidun''s last moments when he hears sniffling. Looking up he finds Priscilla with streaks of tears running down her cheeks, all the while keeping a stoic face. She reaches up and touches the wetness on her cheeks and frowns... She hadn''t cried since they banished her brother, why is she so effected by Reima''s experiences?

    She feels someone caressing her shoulder, forcing herself not to flinch away from the sudden contact she looks to her left and sees her "guest" having trouble reaching up to rub her shoulder.

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    She giggles, laughs at the fact that this little man can''t even comfort her properly.

    Reima had walked over and sat beside her while trying to rub her shoulder to comfort her... While he probably could have done it standing, Priscilla is way to tall for him to do this without embarrassing himself... The fact that the tear-stained face of Priscilla now giggled at him like he''d just told the funniest joke annoyed him slightly.

    Reima "Oi! Laughing at a man who''s trying to comfort you isn''t nice Y''know!" He says, still rubbing her... Elbow?"

    She works out the laughter eventually to Reima''s chagrin and looks down at him while using her sleeve to wipe her face. "Apologise Sir Ludvig, I haven''t a clue what came over me... Wouldst it be more comfortable if I were smaller?"

    ...

    Reima "You can do that?" He asks slightly surprised...

    Priscilla nods, "If mine mother is capable of it, then I am too." She seems to concentrate for a moment before slowly losing height, her scythe apparently magically resizes to fit her aswell, soon Reima is sat beside a now 6ft tall Priscilla.

    Reima "Your mother is capable of this?" he asks, come to think of it, Gwenevere is the only lord/god that is massively out of size, Gwyn and Gwyndolin are both relatively normal sized...

    Priscilla almost scoffs, "She wouldst love to intimidate mortals by growing enormous, Her husband kept praising her ability... I mastered it... I thought they''d be proud. Instead they grew fearful, not at mine changing size but the other ability I''d acquired." She holds up a hand and a black writhing substance appears above it. Her frown while telling the story disappears as she looks into her conjuration.

    Reima "What''s it do? Why were they scared?" He asks, curious of this peculiar magic.

    Priscilla "I overheard them, they said it kills souls." She says stoically, glancing at him to check his reaction.

    Reima ponders, killing isn''t that impressive but, killing souls, extinguishing an existence. That is powerful, when killing a lord generally their killer would acquire their soul and gain power, continuing their legacy in a way. But if you destroy the soul, power is lost... It''s like permanently taking energy from the world, if such an ability were to be overused during thousands of years the world would eventually be destroyed. Reima almost shivers at the prospect, he looks at her and smiles, not letting his churning emotions show.

    Reima "It reminds me of one of my own abilities." He raises his hand and lets his pyromancy flame absorb a minuscule amount of Elder Blood magic, making it turn turquoise in colour.

    Priscilla crushes the black writhing magic in her hand and tries to get a closer look at Reima''s flame. "It''s beautiful." She says as she can feel the large power contained within.

    Reima "It is isn''t it? See, we''re not so different... The people of my world fear me for this ability too. It allows me to go wherever I want, no one can stop me... I could even return here without the key." He says remembers the doll. He cancels the flame and retrieves the doll from his folded space. "Is this yours?"

    Priscilla''s eyes widen as small droplets start forming, "Sol." She gently lifts the dirty humanoid doll from his hands before hugging it against her chest. "I thank thee, It was the last thing brother gave to me, before they banished him."

    Reima "Sol?"

    Priscilla nods, "I named her after him, Solaire was his name." Reima''s eyes widen comically at this... No way!

 106 Becoming the "Dragon Warrior!"

    Priscilla "I named her after him, Solaire was his name."

    ...

    Reima "D-did you just say Solaire?"

    Priscilla nods, "Yes, why... Is something wrong?"

    Reima "My travelling companion and friend''s name is Solaire..." His answer surprises her, it must some sort of coincidence...

    Priscilla "Describe him to me..."

    Reima "Blonde hair, yellow eyes, broad jaw and always-"

    Priscilla "Smiling." A lone tear made it''s way down her cheek, "Brother." Reima takes this chance to properly comfort her this time... He will not be laughed at again.

    She sits there silently for a while before turning towards him, "Bring him here." She asks earnestly.

    Reima thinks for a moment, he could just use the summon sight to bring him here... But where''s the fun in that? If you meeting doesn''t pan out as expected she''d probably just shut herself away in the painting...

    Reima "How about this, You come with me... And we find him together?"

    Priscilla shakes her head firmly, "No... I-I still have to protect this world."

    Reima scoffs causing her to frown briefly, "Priscilla, the doll is the only key inside... The other inhabitants are safe regardless of your actions. So, tell me, what do YOU want to do."

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    She stands while grabbing her scythe after coming to her conclusion, "I want to find my brother." Reima smiles at this, before trying to calm her excitement. "Hold your horses... It''s dangerous out there, I need to make sure you''re ready."

    Priscilla "What? Thou wouldst doubt mine abilities?" She says in a slightly raised voice.

    Reima "I don''t doubt that you''re strong, it''s just that being strong isn''t enough. You have to follow my orders to the letter."

    Priscilla "Dost thou think you can challenge me?" She says, adopting her stoic persona again.

    Reima "How about this? If I beat you, you listen to me. If you beat me I listen to you."

    She nods before growing to 7ft tall and readying her scythe in a straight backed stance... Reima doubts that she''d had any combat training whatsoever, maybe he should take some time before they leave to teach her some basic footwork and techniques? She has her feet spaced closely together as if she''s preparing to do ballet or something, she draws back her scythe while telegraphing her attack. She swings it at him trying to behead him, knowing that an undead would eventually return.

    Reima easily ducks under the strike before barrelling into her, knocking her out of her weak stance and onto her butt.

    She looks up at him with a frown before fading from view... If she did this anywhere to anyone else it would be difficult to combat, but due to her steps being tracked in the snow and Reima having Observation Haki she''s quickly found from her invisibility.

    She swings her scythe again but finds her strike being parried away, Reima had quickly stepped forward and performed a palm strike to the shaft preventing the weapon from completing it''s full attack arc. He then quickly taps her foot that''s trying to retreat causing her to crumple to the floor.

    Reima "Your footwork is awful, strikes are easily dodged and you seem wholly under prepared for combat."

    She grumbles, silently agreeing with him... Everything she knew was self taught... The only opponents she had were the mindless hollows that went down with one strike.

    Priscilla "Help me then, train me in combat." She almost pleads to him.

    Reima nods, "I was going to even if you didn''t want it... Stand up."

    She stands and awaits his instruction, she had seen how easily he fended off her strikes.

    Reima "Spread your feet further apart and bend your knee slightly... Too far, feet should be around shoulder width... Good. Change your grip on your weapon", She shifts her hands up and down the Scythe confusedly. Reima walks up and places her hands on the correct starting points, he notes how soft they are as he steps back. "When you were wielding the scythe against me you were too stiff. With long weapons like spears, halberds, bo staff''s or even scythes, the key is movement. Due to the weapon being strongest at a certain distance, people will try and get closer to gain an advantage. You prevent this with careful footwork, spacing and control of your weapon... Shrink down and pass me it for a moment."

    She does as he asks and hands him the scythe, he backs up and twirls it, never keeping the same grip on it as he moves through various strikes, feints and even kicks. He finishes the demonstration by jabbing the butt of the scythe forward. Priscilla looks on amazed, she''d never even thought of such things while plainly swinging it. "Teach me" these words unconsciously slip out when he finishes.

    He grins before getting closer with her and handed back the scythe, "Ok, don''t start twirling it around now... That takes some real practise not to stab yourself... Trust me on this." he grimaces as he remembers Vesemir applying poultices to his newly opened butt hole.

    And so, the Witcher starts mentoring the Dragon on basic combat forms and movements, she absorbs it like a sponge, with her familiarity with the scythe she slowly manages to get the hang of the movements... During couple weeks he spent teaching her, they would take occasional breaks where he would share the food and non-alcoholic drinks with her. He''d also gifted her some proper boots and trousers so she wouldn''t have to walk around bare-foot. Obviously she had to shrink to 6ft tall to fit into them but she didn''t seem to mind.

 107 Take the leap

    After a couples weeks of teaching Priscilla basic combat techniques, tactics and things to look out for she became relatively competent at fighting. With her inquisitiveness and good comprehension she was able to understand most of what Reima was trying to teach her. While she wasn''t going to be instantly unbeatable in combat, she wouldn''t be a hazard to herself and Reima.

    They had just wrapped up one last duel to test if she was ready, Priscilla was breathing heavily against the unfazed Reima. She seems a little put out that she still couldn''t make him go all out, not realizing that her progress slightly scared Reima, with her unique "death" magic as they had began to call it she had huge potential in the future. They both sit down next to each other and Reima offers her some dried meat, while they both didn''t require food, it was still enjoyable to chew on something and sate their taste buds once in a while.

    Reima "I think you''re ready... I would offer you a drink in celebration but that honour goes to when we meet Solaire." he grins at her confused expression.

    Priscilla "What is so special about a drinketh?"

    Reima "It''s alcohol, it''s more of a rite of passage for people coming of age. While you are more than old enough, I think it would be enjoyable to have Solaire be present."

    She nods and stands, "Thee hast said I''m ready... Let''s elope!"

    He nods, ignoring the other meaning of "Elope", "Alright we can take the skydiving exit or I can just teleport us out."

    She shakes her head excitedly, "I wisheth to jump, I hath always wanted to do it!"

    He grabs her hand as they approach the edge of the abyss... It''s a lot scarier up close than in the game...

    Reima "Ok, I''ll count down to-" He is interrupted as Priscilla flings herself off the cliff, dragging him with her. "SHIIIEEEEEEEEEE!" "WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" She gives a joyful scream as they plummet to the bottom. The world suddenly goes black.

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    Both are killed by the fall, thus ending this tale... Is what Reima had started to think, he can still feel her hand in his grip, opening his eyes he realises he''s sitting just outside the painting in Anor Londo.

    He looks to his side and sees the still smiling Priscilla next to him...

    Priscilla "We must do it again!"... "No." His dull voice cuts down her excitement like a scythe to wheat.

    Reima "That was terrifying... Besides, we have a mission to accomplish!" He stands and helps her up. He notes that she''s looking around with cautious and excitement, being trapped for centuries in a wasteland probably has that effect on people.

    Reima "Alright, I know the basic directions of where we need to go, but there are many enemies ahead... If I tell you to do something, you must follow my orders. If you don''t we might be trapped in a bad situation." She nods at his words before readying her scythe, her hold on it gives Reima confidence that his lessons hadn''t been ignored.

    He brings her to the doorway that still has the now rotting corpses of the Painting Guardians... The sun beats down on them causing Priscilla to shield her eyes, "Amazing, It hast been so long since I''ve witnessed the sun"...

    Reima "Unfortunately, the sun is an illusion created by your other uncle, Gwyndolin." he notices her furrow her brows at his name. "Something wrong?" He asks in concern.

    Priscilla "No... He was one of the main voices wanting Mine own imprisonment, I do not doubt he was somewhat responsible for brothers banishment as well."

    Reima "Why''d you say that?"

    Priscilla "Uncle had discovered Mine close relationship with brother, I heard their argument over me. He threatened brother with banishment before leaving... It is my fault he was banished."

    Reima shakes his head and starts walking towards the revolving elevator, "No, I think it was something else. Either way, if you hate Gwyndolin enough... Do you want to kill him?"

    Priscilla "I... I do not know." she grips her Scythe tightly.

    Reima "He''s one stairway away, it wouldn''t be hard to end his life." He says with confidence. He knows that Gwyndolin is far down the elevator and behind an illusionary wall, he didn''t really have a reason to fight Gwyndolin... But if Milady fluff wishes it, he will.

    Priscilla stands there for a moment trying to make a decision, the person partially responsible for her and her brothers suffering, doesn''t she deserve some vengeance?... She shakes her head and decides to talk with her brother first, perhaps there is another side to this story?

    Reima nods as she wants to speak with Solaire before making a decision, they step over the rotting corpses and onto the elevator. Reima tells her to get ready for combat as he had left a very angry gargoyle waiting for him on the path ahead. He grabs the lever and starts rotating the pathway upwards.

    Priscilla wobbles on her feet as the wondrous mechanism moves the entire structure upwards, she doesn''t remember something so amazing when she was a child... Perhaps they built it after imprisoning her? It continues to rotate until it reaching the top revealing a massive palace behind a very angry gargoyle.

    Reima "Stop staring and get ready to fight!" He snaps her out of her reverie which causes he to drop into a low agile stance.

 108 Mercy?

    The gargoyle runs towards them on all fours, similarly to the other one Reima had killed before entering the Painting. He decides to act as support for Priscilla, after all this is going to be her first real battle against a worthy opponent.

    Priscilla''s legs tense as she waits for the right moment to dodge, it gets close enough that she can feel the wind from it''s charge and she steps to the side, dodging it''s haphazard bite while swiping her Scythe across it''s stony face. The weapon scrapes a long line into across it''s animal like visage, blinding one of it''s eyes, she remembers what Reima had said about taking advantages as they come and proceeds to move into it''s newly made blind spot.

    The gargoyle tries to keep her in sight but has to turn it''s entire body due to missing an eye. She keeps moving forcing it to turn faster, eventually it stumbles over it''s own leg and Prisclla dashes forwards while spinning and sweeping her scythe upwards, taking off a foot in a very well placed strike. It groans at her and tries to stands on it''s stump leg, she continues to move into it''s blind spot which enrages it. it rolls sideways intending to crush her, it''s sudden movements surprised her enough that she''s unable to dodge... She closes her eyes and waits for the impact...

    BANG!... She doesn''t feel it hit her, despite hearing the impact.

    "Never close your eyes against an attacking opponent." She opens her eyes and sees Reima with a black substance covering his foot blocking the large body of the Gargoyle. He pushes it away slightly before kicking it a couple meters away from them.

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    Reima "Stop gawking, the battle''s not finished." he states before silently retreating into the background.

    She comes to her senses when she hears the Gargoyle begin to move towards her again. It torso is slightly crumbling due to Reima''s kick but it isn''t dead quite yet.

    She sprints towards it with small quick steps and her scythe trailing behind her, preparing to strike.

    The Gargoyle sees he approaching and sparks start appearing from it''s mouth, it breaths in deeply before unleashing a stream of fire at her. Priscilla''s eyes narrow as she hadn''t been expecting this, she throws herself to the side, rolling once before continuing to sprint into it''s blind spot. The gargoyle tries to direct the flames at her but can''t turn fast enough due to it''s stump leg.

    She gets to the back of the creature and uses all of her momentum to swing her scythe at it''s flailing tail. She cuts through it easily but continues to spin with the strike before attacking again at the base of it''s wing. She cuts through it causing the Gargoyle to crumble on it''s front while releasing a large groan, it lays there still... Priscilla approaches the front and sends a pitying look at it, she prepares to sever it''s head to end it''s suffering when it leaps at her in a last ditch attack... "Again" She thinks irritated that she''d fallen for another surprise attack. Luckily her ever present mentor crushes the things skull in a vicious stomp, it fades away into white particles only leaving the annoyed and slightly shamed Priscilla...

    Reima rubs the back of his head. "Don''t mind it... Showing mercy is a sign of compassion, just remember that our enemies don''t deserve any. If we are fighting them, then it''s probably that they are the aggressors, don''t hold back or you give them a chance to hurt your loved ones or yourself." He comforts her, he used to have a similar mindset to her back in Kaer Morhen...

    Flashback! Mentions of r.ape ahead, continue at thy own peril!

    He was against killing, he had made it clear to Vesemir and Geralt that he thought people deserved a second chance... His determination was dashed when he was taken with Geralt on a contract, young women and children were being abducted and the villagers assumed it was a monster. They weren''t wrong. When they''d tracked the "monsters" camp they had found the captured people... They were locked in cages, well most of them were. They looked around and heard terrible pleading screams coming from a large tent close to the cages. He had dashes into it not realising what this place was, inside the women... Children were being "assaulted" by men, they seemed to be nobles from nearby lands. One was sweating over a young girl, around eight years old... Reima was enraged, he had never been so angry before. How dare these people commit such horrific crimes? He drew the sword he''d been lent and started butchering every one he saw. When he was finally done with his slaughter Geralt tried to comfort him.

    Geralt "I didn''t want you to see this, Vesemir thought we should open your eyes before we send you out into the world... I''m sorry." Reima doesn''t say anything in reply as he sobs into Geralt''s chest, still covered in the blood of evil men.

    Flashback end!

    Needless to say, he doesn''t think some people deserve second chances any longer. He had adopted Geralt''s pragmatic attitude towards "Monsters", if killing one means stopping the suffering of many then it''s worth it. Reima had realised suffering was everywhere, there was no real way to stop it aside from being god and taking away free will... But, he could help those he came across.

 109 Pale naked demons...

    The two catch their breaths for a moment for continuing forward, Priscilla still seems put out at her failure but Reima makes sure to reinforce her confidence... After all, Geralt had done the same thing for him in the past.

    They walk up to the huge stairway, it''s separated into three segments, on the sides, the steps were human sized, but in the middle it looks like they were designed for giant... Probably because they were. When they almost reach the top they peek over and see two giant knights, Reima explains to Priscilla how to approach them and what to watch out for. He emphasises that she should in no circumstances try to block their strikes. He starts the fight by instantly killing one by exploding it''s head with a Crystal Soul spear, it''s partner notices this and starts moving towards them, Priscilla dashes into combat but stop short to avoid being slammed by the blade of it''s halberd. While it''s recovering it''s weapon she gets close and pirouettes like how Reima had taught her, she swings her blade at it''s ankle while using the momentum of her spin. A spray of blood trails behind her scythes blade as it easily slices through the armour and ankle of the knight, with it''s Achilles tendon severed the knight drops onto one knee. It looks up at it''s attacker by finds the world spinning. Priscilla had just decapitated the knight and shakes her weapon clean of it''s blood as it vanishes into white motes of light.

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    Reima claps, "Well done! You''re improving." She sends a bright smile at the praise but tries to remain stoic, unfortunately her tail gives away her jubilant mood.

    He looks up at the large door that remains closed, he could probably just kick it open, same with the gate of the left that leads to the giant blacksmith but decides to take the long path as they are looking for Solaire.

    They head right, through some doors and by some fences that prevent you falling into the abyss below the massive palace. They head down some stairs and spot a couple of pale winged demons wielding spears, they look similar to the ones that flew himself and Solaire to these lands. Instead of letting Priscilla go on alone he walks towards them with her by his side, he doesn''t have much experience against these enemies and will not let an accident happen.

    The two demons approach, stalking towards them while pointing their spears menacingly towards them. Priscilla spins her weapon to psych herself up for battle as the demons approach, a spear is jabbed in her direct but she parries it to the side with the shaft of her Scythe, a Fireball collides with her opponent allowing her an easy attack. She jabs the butt of her weapon at the arm holding the spear before spinning it upwards and piercing the bottom of the demons skull. It shrieks and abruptly dies.

    Over on Reima''s side he had just thrown a quick fireball towards Priscilla''s enemy before dodging a spear aiming for his jugular, the demon is slowed due to his Windfall after-shadow. Reima dashes forward and gets a grip on the demons neck and arm holding it''s weapon. He channels Armament Haki into his arms and tries to tear the Demon apart... The only thing he achieves is dislocating it''s arm and giving horrific bruises to its neck, it chokes and gurgles under his grip and tries to claw at him. Deciding to stop messing around he grips it''s neck with both hands and crushes it. "It feels weird to be so strong." He mutters as he watches the demon fade away, he looks further down the path and sees three more demons... Remembering this place from the game he looks up at the wall and spots two archers wielding huge bows, he doubts even the worlds strongest human could pull such a ridiculously huge bow strong. Unfortunately for him, these enemies weren''t humans, they were silver knights under the employ of Lord Gwyn. They silver armour shimmers in the orange sunlight making Reima rather jealous of their extravagant armour, he shakes his head as he vows to steal the set hidden in the palace. He remembers the the thing silver plates they comprise the armour aren''t made for physical defence, but magical defence. The knights originally fought against dragons, hence the armours high fire and magic resistance.

    He''s pulled from his thoughts as Priscilla asks if they should continue, he nods to her and he conjures and shoots a couple Heavy Soul arrows at the demons, heavily damaging them and drawing their attention.

    The walkway is narrow making it difficult for them to all charge at him, unfortunately for him, this isn''t a game... And they have wings. They leap off the edge of the platform and flap their wings a couple times, allowing them to fly towards the duo. Reima fires a couple Soul arrows but only knocks a single one out of the sky and into the abyss, they start dropping altitude an speeding towards them with spears ready. Reima casts a Quen shield before using Aard to change the direction of their attack. One lands a few meters away from them but the other tries to stab Priscilla, Reima is worried for a moment but notices the focused look on her face. The demon gets close and stabs at her, she shift slightly barely dodging the spear before cleaving the Demon completely in half. The two halves of the demon bounce off the edge into the abyss by the impact, Reima watches with mouth agape at Priscilla''s sudden skill but hears lightning being conjured. Looking to the remaining demon he sees it thrusting it''s spear towards him, unleashing a small lightning bolt. It impacts his shield but doesn''t break it, deciding he''s had enough of these things he casts a Soul Spear at it. It dodges it but realises another is heading towards it''s torso, the spear impacts and implodes the demon causes blood to spatter everywhere before it disappears into white mist.

 110 Residential area

    With the demons dead the only remaining obstacles are the two GreatBow Wielding silver knights.

    Reima "Stay here while I deal with them, I doubt your dress would block something that pierces dragon scales."

    She nods as she watches Reima peek his head from the pillar they were hiding behind, she hears a loud twang and then BANG! A almost spear length arrow is piercing where Reima''s head was previously. He laughs nervously at this ridiculous accuracy, "Err yeah, don''t stick your head out under any circumstances."

    After giving a final warning Reima dives out from cover and starts sprinting up the walkway, unlike in the game where the knights just shoot your current location, these guys prodict your movement. Reima has to dodge and weave while focusing entirely on Observation Haki to avoid being speared. When he eventually reaches the end of the walkway and steps onto the ledge where the knights are located he has to do short blinks to dodge the point blank shots. One of the arrows shot from behind Reima actually hits the knight in front of him, piercing it''s chest and throwing it from the ledge and into the abyss. After having one killed by friendly fire Reima finds it relatively easy to approach the seemingly uncaring knight, he pushes the bow so it stops pointing at him before kicking it off the ledge. Afterwards he looks around to make sure no threats remain, "Priscilla! Its clear!" He shouts in her direction, she cautiously makes her way up the walk way and wobbles a bit on the ledge... Is she afraid of heights? She didn''t seem to be when she jumped off a cliff...

    They trail round the palace wall until they spot a balcony below them, dropping down they find that the door is a Fog-gate. Reima remembers that this leads inside of the residential area of the palace, it contains the bedrooms and spiralling staircases that eventually lead to Ornstein and Smough, then Gwenevere. He steps through and looks to the first door on the left, that should be the bonfire and where Solaire is resting in the game... He walks up and open it, peeking through he looks around and doesn''t spot Solaire anywhere. Reima sighs, not knowing where on earth Solaire might be... Well, if life gives you lemons, you steal all their furniture... After he lights the bonfire he begins storing all the fine tables and chairs in the room.

    Priscilla "Are thy sure thee shouldst be stealing?" She says confused, why would Reima need so much furniture?

    Reima "Well, one man''s trash is another man''s treasure. The gods have abandoned these lands, why leave the riches they couldn''t carry in their dash to escape?"

    Priscilla nods, "I supposeth thee is correct." She says while fingering a silver goblet.

    They both rest at the bonfire for a while, Reima decides to use his loose souls to upgrade his intelligence to a higher degree, he puts most of his souls into it and manages to get it''s level to 80? He''s kind of under due to the vague feeling of "fullness", if he had a status board it would be so much easier.

    Reima "I hope you don''t mind but there is one thing I must do while we''re here."

    Priscilla leans her head to the side, curious in his sudden task. "What might that be?"

    Reima grins "There is some armour made from your ancestors scales."

    She fingers the scales on her face, "Dost they maketh good armour?"

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    Reima shakes hi head, "Not scales like yours, thick scales from the giants beasts that spew fire... Your father is unique in that he doesn''t have any scales."

    Priscilla "Thou knoweth mine Father?"

    He nods, "I do, he''s sequestered himself away in his laboratory doing horrible experiments on innocents. His goal? To acquire the scales his brothers had."

    She looks down, saddened that both her parents turned out to be horrible individuals.

    Reima "I will have to slay Seath, your father eventually. Do you want to assist in such a task?"

    Priscilla looks into his eyes, green meets green as she ponders. "Kin slaying is not frowned upon now-days?"

    Reima shakes his head, "I''m not an expert on it but, regardless of your blood ties with someone, if they''re evil then they must be vanquished."

    She nods, taking in her "Mentors" words seriously. "I shall thinketh on this topic further."

    After an hour or two of warming themselves by the bonfire they start sweeping through the halls and rooms of the residential areas. The silver knights are usually alone which results in easy kills or Reima having Priscilla fight them to gain experience. He makes sure to check every fireplace for illusions, he knows Havel''s armour is located behind one and will not miss what is likely to be the best armour from this world.

    After an hour of wondering the halls and clearing out silver knights, stealing furniture and opening chests. Reima finds a room containing many scrolls, some are blank but some are plans for additional architecture to the city. Realising most of the important building are located on these pieces of parchment he starts doggedly going through them, he would get Priscilla to help but she can''t read English, or common speech as she calls it. After going through three boxes he finally finds what he''s looking for, he slams the parchment on a spare table before spreading it out. The top of the parchment in bold letters states "Imperial bank of Anor Londo", Reima can''t hold his smile back any longer and starts laughing. Priscilla see''s his peculiar reaction and tries to snap him out of it by nudging his shoulder, shes confused as he finds herself in his arms and dancing around the room... Finding nothing wrong with this she starts trying to perform the only dance she was taught, the waltz... Obviously Reima is unaware of her intentions and just continues twirling her around until he calms down.

 111 Priscillas scales.

    After his outburst ends Reima lets go of Priscilla and apologises, she shakes her head and states she enjoyed the dance and performs a curtsy to him.

    Reima "I was lost in my excitement, I have found the general location of the bank of Anor Londo. Since the gods abandoned this city quickly and didn''t manage to take many things, the bank must be left untouched. It says in the plans that they had the bridge to it demolished to stop looters, the only way into it is by way of the Pale demons we fought previously.

    Priscilla "But, if we killed them how wouldst thy gain access?" she asks curious.

    Reima "Since the bank is on a lower level of the city, I could probably teleport there... I have no idea what other protections it would have, the scrolls don''t contain traps, keys and unit placements... Enough of this, the bank isn''t going anywhere, lets find Solaire and then I can make an attempt."

    He says to her, as hes about to exit he sees Priscilla tapping the fireplace with her Scythe, "I doubt the illusion is here-" The wall fades away revealing a dark damp staircase... "Great job Priscilla!" She blushes slightly and tries to hide her face as her tail wiggles from side to side. They enter and go down a couple levels before stepping into an almost pitch black room. Reima can see fine but lights up his Pyromancy flame so Priscilla can see where she''s going.

    In the corner of the room they spot five chests, Priscilla hopping over to them excitedly and tries to open a chest. Before she can manage to even touch it Reima shouts at her, "STOP!!!!!!" His shout echoes throughout the room and causes her to go stiff.

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    Priscilla looks at him, nervous at what could make him shout like that.

    Reima "Step away from the chest... Don''t touch anything." She does as he says and he tosses a Great Chaos fireball at it. It hits and the Chest opens it''s lid revealing a long tongue and many vicious looking teeth. Priscilla is stunned by the sudden turn of events and gets pushed backwards as the Chest leaps at her head first with mouth agape.

    Reima summons the Black Knights Greatsword from his Folded space and jams it vertically into the mimics mouth, preventing it from biting down on him. He uses Arcell to sever it''s long stick like leg which causes it to fall onto it''s side. He throws a fireball on it to finally finish it off causing it to vanish into white light. It drops a club that glows a malicious looking purple, he puts it away into his Folded space and goes to check on the still stiff Priscilla.

    Reima "Are you alright?"

    She nods her head slowly, "I was surprised!"

    Reima "Yeah well, don''t go near any chests without preparing for combat... The gods of this place have a sick trap fetish or something... You should have seen the fortress Me and Solaire had to go through to get here." He says while walking over to the other chests, he gives them a good kick to check for mimics before opening them. Inside it he finds the huge Dragon tooth that Havel used as a weapon and his armour set, it is a VERY heavy set of armour comprised of dragon scales and what seems to be titanite chains and chain mail... Needless to say, if he were to put this on he''d be almost impervious to damage, the only thing that could possible pierce it would be lightning, due to it being the dragons weakness. He stores it away in his Folded space, he doesn''t put it on due to how movement based his combat style is. If he can''t move then most of his attacks would be useless, he suspects his teleportation would take longer to cast with significantly heavier armour as well.

    Priscilla sees him storing away the armour and looks at it closely before he does so, she runs her delicate hands across it''s rough surface before comparing her own scales to it. Reima looks on amused at her antics before storing it away.

    Reima "Do you want to put the armour on?" he says out loud, not thinking that she''d actually agree.

    Priscilla smiles brightly at him, "Can I!?!"... He''s confused for a moment before huffing, "Fine, It should fit someone around 6ft tall anyway. He says unsealing it and handing it to her. She tries putting the heavy breastplate on first but finds it difficult to do over her dress... She starts to take it off not minding that Reima is present, "Wah! What are you doing?"

    Priscilla "Taking my dress off... The armour won''t fit over it." she states, looking at Reima like he''s a simpleton.

    Reima "Wait for a moment." He asks her, she obviously hasn''t been taught about modesty... He pulls out a white Tear trapper under top which resembles a white t-shirt from earth and a pair of black Orate Keeper pants. The outfit looks vaguely like white t-shirt paired with black jogging bottoms... While it doesn''t suit her appearance, it isn''t meant to.

    He hands it to her and turns around, asking her to tell him when she''s finished changing. After a few minutes of listening to the shuffling behind him he hears her, "Done." Turning around he sees her relatively large breasts trying to escape the t-shirt while her tail hangs over the Pants. She points to the breastplate with an excited look, He huffs and first gets her to put on the titanite chain mail, afterwards lifting the heavy breastplate onto her shoulders. She seems to struggle slightly to adjust to the weight but eventually she stops shaking, he then hands her the gloves and helps her put on the boots before helping attach the shoulder guards to the breastplate... After finally placing the helmet on her head she looks, rather intimidating... A 6ft tall figure wearing Havel''s dragon scale armour and wielding a Scythe.

 112 Strongest Fluff

    He looks at her for a moment before commenting, "Is it comfortable?"

    She doesn''t answer and slowly moves her arms, legs and head to get adjusted to it''s weight.

    Priscilla "Having your own scales is tiring." She says blankly, the only way he can tell her mood is by looking at her tail which pokes out the back of the armour.

    Reima "You think you can fight in it?" He asks curiously, while she is a lot stronger than a normal human, this armour isn''t something you can just throw on and start jumping around in.

    Priscilla "I do not know... It feels familiar, like I''ve gained something I was missing." she answers in vague voice.

    He picks up her discarded dress and stores it away, in case she wants it in future... He spends an hour running her through basic movements and checking her stamina, perhaps due to being half god and half dragon she''s able to move around pretty easily in it. While she says it''s fun to have it on he can see she''s slightly uncomfortable wearing such a heavy and confining outfit, perhaps she''ll get bored of it and take it off eventually... Might as well let her have some fun.

    Reima "Alright, lets keep moving... If you want to take it off just tell me, I''ve got your dress stored for you." She mumbles a thank you before stomping up the stairs in the heavy armour.

    They continue to scour the residential area and looting everything they come across, paintings, luxurious beds and furniture... Even the fancy pots that Reima for some reason feels the need to smash. They head upstairs and sees a few chests scattered around, Priscilla approaches them and immediately slams her Scythe through the top of it''s lid. It comes alive and thrashes at her but dies soon after. They enter through doors that lead to balcony which overlook large enemies like a titanite demon, they kill the silver knight guarding it before picking up the soul left on the body propped against the wall.

    Eventually they reach a staircase that winds up into the roof, stepping out and into the sunlight a large number of silver knights prepare to fight them, a couple wield dragon slayer great bows and start preparing to fire them at the duo. Reima immediately blinks behind them and starts slashing away with Arcell while Priscilla fends off three of them with her Scythe, he isn''t worried about her to due the protecting provided by the armour. Even if she''s on the floor exhausted it would take a while for them to break through it or find a weak spot.

    After Reima stabbed the first bowman the others stopped aiming and started swinging them towards him, like makeshift staves. They don''t seem to have any technique which allows him close the distance and start targeting the weak points in their armour, one crumbles to the ground clutching it''s severed throat while another losing all feeling in their arm due to a slashed tendon. He almost expertly takes the knights apart piece by piece, when he''s done they finally fade away into dust.

    He takes a look at Priscilla and sees her easily fending off their attacks while countering attacking between her defence. She blocks a sword with the shaft of her weapon before twisting it and allowing her scythes blade to pierce the knights wrist. She doesn''t notice a knight come up behind her and gets banged on the back by it''s sword, it doesn''t manage to pierce the thick dragon scale armour but the impact is still felt.

    She tries to pirouette away but finds it difficult in the heavy armour resulting in her taking another glancing blow. If Reima could see into the helmet he would see her getting irritated by the movement constricting armour, she eventually just stops defending, allowing the weapons to strike the armour while jamming the scythe blade into their armour like a brute.

    After she''s finished them off she quickly approaches Reima and states with certainty, "I want my dress back." He nods while grinning and proceeds to help her take the armour off.

    Reima "I thought you were enjoying the armour?" he asks sarcastically to the fluff.

    Priscilla lifts the helmet off of her head and chucks it at him, "I was... T''would do better as an art piece than for combat!"

    Reima "Tell that to the guy who wore it, "the legendary Havel"... Apparently he was working with the dragons so Gwyn banished him." She doesn''t seem to be listening as she struggles to get the armour off. "Alright, alright, let me get it off you."

    He helps her get the shoulder guards off before lifting the plate mail off of her... Unfortunately bra''s don''t exist in dark souls so when her shirt is caught by the armour Reima gets an eye full of soft white marshmallows... "Glorious!" he unconsciously lets out as Priscilla pulls the shift back down.

    Priscilla "Is something wrong?" she asks confused, her mentor seems to have a trail of blood dripping down from his nose. "Were you injured?" she asks grasping his face and looking around for any injuries.

    Reima shakes his head and pulls away, "No, I think I saw nirvana but I must''ve been mistaken. Apologise for worrying you." he says as he gingerly pats her on the head, her tail increasing it''s WPM or (Wags per minute).

    Reima "Keep those clothes on under your dress, they are enchanted to self repair so they should provide with some "protection"." She nods as he hands her the soft white furry dress which she slides over her head.

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 113 Silver armaments

    After finally clothing the adorable dragon Reima looks around the roof where the battle had just taken place, he sees white orbs lying around where the bodies used to be, picking one up reveals a silver straight sword, slightly longer than his own. He inspects the weapon and finds that it isn''t silver plated like the ones they make in his previous world, this one is all silver. Originally you would have to plate a steel sword with it, silver isn''t a very strong material meaning that if you made a sword entirely out of silver then it''d break in a few uses, not to mention that it oxidises over time and eventually causes damage... This wouldn''t be a problem if you oiled it regularly but that combined with the metals unsuitability makes it an nonviable material. He swings it a couple times and feels that it''s heavier than his own, as well as slightly longer coming to 55 inches long... Reima doesn''t really know whether he wants to swap this for his current blade, his silver sword has been slightly upgraded by Andre and has runes that increase it''s damage... But this has more potential, especially if he enchants it with divine, he shakes his head and puts it away in his Folded Space, maybe when he gathers more materials he''ll swap his weapons out. He goes around and picks up the rest of the orbs that morph into various pikes, shields, greatswords and spears, all also happen to be silver.

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    He looks at the two exits, one should lead to the room with the taxidermied dragon heads along with a full suit of silver knight armour, Reima starts salivating at this thought... Or a room which contains Siegmeyer who''s for some reason being imprisoned by some silver knights, Reima decides he''ll save him before heading forward and looking for Solaire. They walk down the winding stairway and step into a room that should house Siegmeyer... Instead they just find some chairs and pots that Reima gratefully stea-Cough, stores. Looking around he can see signs a relatively recent battle, scuff marks on the door, small drops of blood on the floor. The silver knight that were supposed to be present seem to have fled or been killed, Siegmeyer must''ve escaped himself or acquired help.

    Reima "Looks like he managed to escape without help." he says to himself more than his companion.

    Priscilla "Was thou looking for someone?" she asks confused.

    Reima "Ah, I kinda have seer abilities. I have knowledge of the future which I''ll make use of to help us and others." She looks at him with suspicion. "Truly?"

    Reima nods, "Yeah, Solaire will tell you about all the stuff I shouldn''t know about." He grins thinking of Solaire''s reaction to Priscilla. She nods at his answer as they backtrack to the roof and head through the only other unexplored path.

    They head down the long, long... Long winding stairway that seems to lead directly to the ground floor, they step through a hallway that contains a number of doors and a stairway at the end, Reima takes the first door on his right to stea-Cough! Store, the silver knight armour.

    Priscilla "Art thou injured? Thy seems to be coughing an awful lot?"

    Reima shakes his head, "No... I seem to have acquired a tick."

    Prisclla "Tick?" She mumbles not knowing what that is. Reima ignores it and steps into the room containing many taxidermied dragon heads, looking over the banister he sees a Silver knight who looks back at him... It starts charging up the stairs waving it''s pike and shield as it does so. Reima parries the swipe of it''s pike before kicking it''s shield with Armament Haki... Despite it''s inhuman strength the silver knight get thrown into the wall behind it, it''s dented shield and mangled arm would''ve dropped to the ground were they not still barely attached to the body. Reima dashes forward and delivers a brutal palm strike to the centre of it''s breastplate where it''s solar plexus would be... Unfortunately he overestimated the silver armours effectiveness and completely penetrates it''s chest with his hand. Blood spatters on Reima face as the silver knight holds his arm, attempted to remove it but not having the strength to do so. He imagines this would be horrific to watch, and then realises Prisclla is directly behind him... He quickly unsheaths his arm allowing the silver knight to drop to the floor and start fading away, the blood on his arm starts slowly disappearing as well, but not quick enough for Priscilla not to notice.

    Priscilla eyes his arm, his previous techniques were useful... This one seemed very effective... "Can thou perhaps teach me this technique?" She asks innocently, immediately Reima has visions of a blood Priscilla smiling as she tears people apart with her bare hands... "N-no, it wouldn''t suit your combat style.", She nods sadly at this missed oppertunity before looking about curiously at her ancestors stuffed heads. She wonders out loud "Is this to be mine fate?"

    Reima hears this and replies while checking whether or not the chest in the middle of the room is going to bite him, "Of course not, and if they try they''ll see what our unique abilities can do. Ain''t that right Cilla?" She smiles in response and nods.

    Reima idly wonders whether or not he should stor-Cough! Steal, these heads... He decides even asking this would ruin the nice mood they''ve got between them.

 114 Crippled by a cripple

    After checking the chests for mimics and taking the armour they unlock the door that leads to the previous bonfire before heading back up the stairs and entering the room directly opposite the door. They peek their heads through and see a church room? Pews line the room and face an alter of some sort... But that''s not what draws the duo''s attention, in the middle of the room is a massive beast, it''s missing it''s head, left arm and left leg... It wields a giant spear that has a weird tip which is shaped in a circular pattern, it''s whole body seems to be comprised of a metallic material that glistens under the sunlight that shines through the window. He looks at his companion and stuffs something into her hand, she opens it and sees a gold ring... "This dost not seem an appropriate time for a proposal." She states blankly.

    Reima shakes it head and whispers "No, this ring will protect you from death if we make a mistake." he says knowing full well that she''s not undead, if she dies then she''s gone for good.

    Priscilla "Ah, forgive my mistake." she bows slightly... And accidentally knocks over a nearby pot... "For fu-" CRASH!

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    The titanite demon leaps in the direction of the sound and completely obliterates the already shattered pot. It doesn''t seem to be able to see so it attacks anything it hears, he slips his slumbering dragoncrest ring into her hand as well before sprinting inside to get its attention.

    Reima "Yo you brainless cunt, You''re already missing an arm and a leg, wouldn''t surprise me if you were d.ickless aswell!" It responds by launching a lightning bolt from it''s spear at him, he dodges it but the lightning skips across the floor and proceed to climb the wall before dissipating, "The fuck?" he was too absorbed in watching the almost alive lightning and gets smacked across the room with the shaft of it''s spear... He looks on, lying atop the shattered wooden alter that he''d landed on.

    Reima "Ahh, fuck that hurt!" he moans before realising the demon is attracted by sound... Sheet! he thinks before blinking a few meters away, before being peppered by the shrapnel launched by the completely obliterated wooden alter. He feels slightly shamed that he''s having such a hard time against a foe who''s literally crippled, he retrieves Arcell from his Folded space before enchanting it with Crystal magic weapon. The noise of Crystals sprouting from the blade like an wind chime makes the demon leap again, Reima is prepared this time and blinks a small distance away before slamming Arcell onto it''s tail, it takes a good chunk out of it but doesn''t seem to affect the demon in any way. Priscilla is not doing nothing while all of this takes place, she had been approaching silently with the help of the ring Reima had given her. As Reima attacks it''s tail she had sent a strong attack to it''s only remaining arm, hoping to disable it, her Scythe slices through it but only takes a massive chunk out of it''s bicep.

    The demon feels the damage being done and stabs it''s spear into the ground before casting a radial lightning attack, it lights up the area and blasts the duo away, luckily due the slumbering dragoncrest ring given to Priscilla the demon doesn''t hear the pew being shattered by her body. It does however hear Reima''s bruised body hitting the nearby wall like a fleshy bean bag, it recovers it''s spear and thrusts at his location. Reima sees this and barely dodges with the use of Observation Haki along with Windfall, his after-shadow barely slows the demon down but he pirouettes and chops down on it''s already damaged bicep, successfully severing it''s arm. He grabs it and stores it away, hoping that it won''t fade away with the rest of it''s body when it''s killed. With the loss of it''s remaining arm the demon is almost completely useless, the only thing it seems to be able to do is kick with it''s remaining foot... Needless to say, the battle swiftly ends after a few minutes of chopping at it''s defenceless body.

    He releases a breath and sits down on the only remaining pew left, he looks at Prisclla who seems to be slightly embarrassed at her earlier error...

    Reima "I hope you know how much easier that fight would''ve been if I was allowed time to cast spells?"

    She nods, "Apologise." she doesn''t seem to bow this time, causing Reima to grin... She''s probably worried about knocking something else over. He looks over to where the titanite demon previously was and sees a golden orb on the ground, picking it up reveals a large piece of demon titanite... Reima''s gathered a good amount of this certain material so far, perhaps he should try acquire a boss weapon? He remembers the weapon he previously used in the game, Greatsword of Artorias. Reima immediately stops this train of thought due to the soul required to make it, Sif''s soul... The thought of killing such a large floof makes him irritated, no he won''t acquire that weapon this time. In-fact, what if he gave Sif Artorias soul? That girl that you originally give it to can go suck a lemon, Sif is his true companion and deserves to mourn properly. He nods, making sure to make a mental note of this decision.

 115 A Giant acquaintance

    They leave the room after a short rest and start heading to the end of the hallway, the stairway leads up and into a massive hall, bigger than the one that held the Painting of Ariamis. There are massive pillars holding up the roof with numerous staircases leading each and every way, the ground floor seems to be checkered with fancy tiles and many patrolling giant guards. Reima vaguely remembers this area and wishes to visit the giant blacksmith before doing anything else.

    He grips Priscilla''s hand who''s awed by this wondrous feat of architecture and pulls her up the stairs, he follows the path around the top path overlooking the rest of the hall and proceeds down a doorway on the left, they walk down it and eventually start hearing a metallic tapping. Priscilla doesn''t know what this sound is but Reima distinctly remembers the Giant blacksmith using an almost comically small hammer to craft items with. They enter a room and see a huge almost green skinned man leaning over a small forge and tapping at a piece of metal, he notices them and asks in a hoarse voice.

    Giant blacksmith "Who are you? Forge your weapons?"

    Priscilla manages to come to her senses before him and introduces herself, "Greetings large one, I am Priscilla. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

    The giant nods his head at her polite greeting, "hmmmhh, want forge? I can, am strong."

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    Reima steps forward, "Actually, can you tell me what makes this weapon so durable?" He hands the giant the silver straight sword, being entirely made of silver and being so strong makes him question his knowledge of the metal.

    The Giant gently takes the sword from his grasp and glances over it... He hands it back, probably because he''s the one who crafted all the weapons and armour of the silver knights. "Silv''a n Titatite, very good, strong." he gets straight back to hammer a small piece of black metal.

    Ah, so it''s a mix of silver and titanite then? Reima remembers that the Giant actually sells twinkling titanite and decides to fully upgrade the silver straight sword and start using it... Hopefully he can get the giant to create or modify a sheath to fit comfortably on his back.

    Reima "Can you improve this weapon as much as possible?" He hands the sword back along with some twinkling titanite, the Giant nods, "Need more titatite, have. Want buy?" Reima agrees and the Giant sets to work, Reima will get it enchanted with divine once he acquires the ember from the forest... He will leave it until he needs to descend into grave lord Nito''s domain though. He looks to Priscilla, "Do you want your weapon upgraded as well?"

    She shakes her head, "Brother gaveth me this weapon, said it''s already the best it can be."

    The duo spend some time conversing with each other while having the Giant give advice about the various things they wish to have upgraded. After having the Giant create another sheath for his new silver sword he gets him to max out Arcell as well, he decides to not enchant it with anything. Any enchantment would make him unable to cast and spell enhancements on it in future, he also asks about whether or not it''s possible to upgrade his Witcher armour. The Giant glanced over it and stated that it''d need some demon titanite and a couple slabs to actually make it usable, Reima is confused at this huge price and asks why, the Giant says that it''d have to completely remake the armour due to the standard steel it''s made from being too weak... Hah, to think standard steel is too weak in this world. On another hand, it is very impressed by his Gleam cloak and asks to examine it, he agrees and the jubilant giant almost vibrates off of his seat in excitement. It hums contendedly while testing the flexibility, durability and elasticity of the rippling material, he eventually hands it back, "Weird, not like metal, not like cloth... Not like anything. Can have material?" Reima gets what he''s asking and hands him a small amount of Essence, not enough to get addicted to but enough to test on.

    A wave of emotion hits Reima who''s immediately hugged with one hand by the giant, who knew it would be so excited to test a different material... It seems to think for a moment before opening the chest behind it, it sticks it''s hand inside and presents something small to Reima... A ring? Hawks ring.

    Reima knows the origins of this ring and tries to refuse it, "I can''t accept this, isn''t it a sort of heirloom?" The giant continues to push the ring towards him, "Friend, take." Eventually Reima is forced to accept the ring from the over eager giant... He looks at it for a moment before storing it, he''ll have to test out it''s enchantments later, right now he''s on a mission... Although he has been sidetracked a rather large amount so far. He checks his equipment, the max upgraded Arcell which makes him feel anxious at the sharpness of it''s edge, new silver sword sheathed on his back. The sheath that the giant had made is black and reinforced with titanite preventing most things from damaging it. They thank the jolly green giant before heading back to the huge hall, where they will have to fight Orstein and Smough.

 116 Reunion

    The duo travel back to the hall and start descending the stairs towards the giant knights, Reima had recovered his Slumbering Dragoncrest ring back from Priscilla and was circling round the Giants to get a sneak attack on one, he waits at the top of a platform one level away from the bottom and starts conjuring a Crystal Soul spear. He fires it at the nearest Giant knight who immediately raises it''s shield to block it, it slides a meter back due to the impact but doesn''t seem any worse for wear... It looks up to where he''d fired the projectile and starts stomping up the stairs towards him, Priscilla is on a higher level so if he can lure it towards himself a little more she''d be able to attack it''s flank.

    It stomps up the stairs and spots Reima standing there with Arcell already in-hand. It thrusts it''s halberd forward at him, taking a large step to increase it''s attacks power. Reima simply uses Windfall to dodge it, he uses Armament Haki and grabs the shaft before pulling the giant towards him, due to the large step it had previously taken it''s knocked slightly off balance by the sudden force directing it forwards, it tries to remove Reima by slamming it''s large shield into him but feels a sharp pain in it''s side. Turning it''s head it sees a large gash in it''s armour that is slowly weeping blood from the wound, it spots the offending weapon attacking again, it stabs into the previous wound and seems to puncture a lung. It''s completely forgotten about Reima due to the onslaught happening at it''s rear, a big mistake for sure. Reima blinks above it and kicks it in the face with a Haki infused foot, it''s knocked completely off balance and falls off the platform below them creating a large sound from the impact.

    Reima receives a large amount of souls meaning that it''d died from the fall, he laughs and holds up his hand to high five Priscilla... She looks at him confused and starts holding his hand in hers.

    Reima "No... While this is lovely I was trying for something else... Here, hold your hand face up. Yes like that." He slaps her hand with his creating a crisp clapping sound, she seems surprised at this but giggles anyway. "These customs are peculiar, dost I have to learneth all of them?"

    Reima shakes his head, "No, but it''s more fun this way. Wouldn''t you agree?" He holds his hand out again and receives a gentle slap across it. She nods and turns her attention to the remaining giant knight.

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    Reima sees her look and starts heading to the ground floor, the giant is immediately attracted by his presence and starts stomping towards him... He sees the Fog-gate behind it up some stairs, he thinks he sees two familiar figures sitting outside of it but focuses back on the upcoming battle. He conjures some Homing Crystal Soul mass due to his Soul spear not working previously, Priscilla spins and turns invisible before heading around it to attack it''s unprotected flank. The knight doesn''t notice that an intruder had just disappeared and keeps it''s glare directed on Reima. It briskly walks up to Reima and sweeps it''s Halberd across in a linear fashion, while these guys wear the same armour as the previous Giant knights, they seem to be much tougher and more experienced... Perhaps this is because we are so close to Gwenevere, or her illusion if you want to be accurate. Reima ducks under it''s swipe while utilising Windfall slowing it briefly and allowing him a free strike, he approaches and tries for his trademark knee stab but is intercepted by it''s shield in a quick and skilled shift of it''s weight. It''s almost scary how quickly it had moved while under the effect of Windfall, perhaps the mass of the target lessens the effect of the after-shadow slow? Either way, it didn''t work and Reima is in melee range to a giant armoured warrior. After it fends off Reima''s stab it shifts it''s shield forward to crash him, he dodges the bash and the followup stab while releasing two of the five Crystal Soul mass at it''s unprotected arm wielding the shield. He can see it''s arm tremble when it''s hit by the soul mass but it remains it''s tight grip on it''s shield. The giant suddenly stumbles forwards, assuming it was Priscilla Reima takes the change to jam Arcell into it''s knee joint. He would continue but the lightning bolt brutally striking the giants back confuses him for a moment, allowing his gaze to drift to the side he sees an onion? and a warrior bathed in sunlight by the nearby window. The warrior throws another lightning bolt which successfully ends the Giant knights suffering, it falls to the floor causing a small tremble but this isn''t noticed by Reima or Priscilla. They gaze at their guests for a moment before realising who they are... Siegmeyere and... Solaire?

    Priscilla had already dropped her Scythe to the floor and frown herself at the Sunlight warrior while shouting "BROTHER!"

 117 Solaires nightmares.

    After Solaire had separated with his jolly companion he had journeyed down the familiar path ways, he remembers running through this area when he was a child, his father always used to scold him for not acting as his nobility would suggest, needless to say he didn''t listen. What was the point of life if you didn''t enjoy it to the fullest? He reminisces about his family, his sister Gwenevere the seductive wench who''d play with men across the land. His brother Gwyndolin who''d obey fathers every word despite being given the shameful name of Dark Sun Gwyndolin, father constantly belittled his younger brother for being inferior to himself... That was until his niece was born, his sister apparently didn''t just lay with men, she had lain with a dragon, Solaire guessed it was Seath as he''d be the only dragon present in Anor Londo due to him being the only surviving one that they know of. His niece was adorable and made him smile every time she endearingly called him brother, while he was much older than her he''d let her call him brother due to the adorable pout she''d give when he rebutted her. Solaires stride suddenly becomes less confident, he remembers the day he''d been banished. After witnessing the abuse they''d constantly subject his adorable niece to he''d gone to find anyone related to dragons that''d be able to take care of her, she didn''t need to stay with an abusive family who''d started to fear her abilities... Solaire started to fear aswell when he heard of her unique abilities, but the fear wasn''t directed at her, but for her... He had no doubt that his family would start plotting against her to stop any threat to their "noble" lineage, while he was looking for someone to take care of her he''d acquired the services of a famous knight named Havel. He''d not received a noble position from his father which caused the knight''s loyalty to fade with every promotion his peers gained. Despite being one of the most effective dragon slayers he''d received almost no rewards, commendations or even recognition. For this reason he''d accepted the task to try contact the remaining dragons for him, this didn''t last long as Havel was caught in the act and imprisoned by his previous friends.

    By this time this had happened Solaire was on his last legs, he''d ventured all around the lands trying to find a single dragon intelligent enough to take care of his niece, one day in a drunken stupor he''d fallen into the great hollow tree and ended up at a lake, the only land visible was an ashen beach. A huge hydra poked it''s head out of the water and tried to attack him, it wasn''t very effective. He wasn''t a god for no reason, he unleashed a huge torrent of lightning at the beast which heavily damaged it and scared it off. After venturing around these seemingly unexplored lands he''d found it. A huge dragon that seems to have been petrified due to it''s inactivity, he''d just prepared for combat when he heard a voice in his head.

    Everlasting dragon "Young one, do you seek protection?"

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    Solaire shakes his head, he''d finally found a sentient dragon. He kneels on the floor in a show of great humility and respect, "Great dragon, I have someone precious to me who needs your protection. You are the only one who''d be able to protect her against those who wish to harm her... I beg thee, please." He pleads to the dragon in a loud voice, keeping his head low in respect.

    Everlasting dragon "Take her here, take this stone as a sign of our mutual respect." it seems to agree as a piece of one of it''s huge horns drop to the floor. Solaire picks it up and feels a warm feeling moving up his arm, it''s comforting.

    After acquiring the dragon stone he''d attached it to a chain and starting wearing it around his neck and under his armour, the warmth it provided him gave him hope for his niece. That hope was dashed when he''d returned to Anor Londo to find a public execution with many civilians surrounding it... Atop the wooden scaffolding was his Father holding a fiery blade, the person being executed? His niece, he ran and confronted his father "FATHER! STOP! WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING TO OUR FAMILY?!"

    His father slowly turned his gaze to his son, disappointment and disgust visible on his face. "This abomination is no family of mine, nor of yours. If you do no wish to be severely punished you will stand aside."

    Solaire draws his sunlight straight sword which crackles with electricity, "I REFUSE! LET HER GO NOW!" he looks around and sees the crowd booing at him and shouting to execute the monster, he sees his sister sitting on the side kissing another stranger. Anger boils inside him as he shoots lightning at Lord Gwyn, it dissipates before it reaches him but the shock from the crowd remains.

    Gwyn grits his teeth, "UNFILIAL BRAT! I WILL TAKE WHAT I GAVE YOU, LET THIS LESSON BE KNOWN TO ALL WHO''D GO AGAINST ME!" He points his blade at Solaire and starts tearing energy from his body, the crackling lightning slowly flows to Gwyn''s blade, shrinking Solaire from 10ft to around 6ft. The shock of having his power stolen makes him drop to his knee''s, unable to move. He looks up as blood pours from his mouth, eyes and ears. He can barely make out his father raising his sword an bringing it down of Priscilla''s head. "NOOOOOO!"

    SLICE!

    Solaire almost stumbles as he relives the memory, he can feel the tears streaming down his face and dripping out of his helmet. "Father, I will end you."

 118 Before the storm

    Solaire had journeyed through Anor Londo, killing all enemies that he came across. He wondered what had happened to Gwenevere or Gwyndolin, he shakes his head, it doesn''t really matter in the end. He had travelled through and rescued a Knight from caterina from capture who''d taken a liking to him, they starting travelling together, his impressions on Siegmeyer? Clumsy, whimsical and fiercely loyal. He had barely helped the knight but Solaire knew he''d put his life on the line for him. It seems his luck is finally with him, such good travelling companions he seems to find.

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    They had managed to breach into the palace and snuck round the giant knights to fight the captains he used to be familiar with. He had battled them with Siegmeyer but they couldn''t seem to even touch the duo, Smough''s huge strength would knock them off balance while Ornstein would finish them off with his movements that Solaire could barely see. Without his god-hood he was outmatched by the duo and after many deaths it became abundantly clear that he''d need further assistance.

    The duo had almost lost hope when they heard someone fightning the Giant knights behind them he saw flashes of blue which immediately reminded him of Reima who was training in Sorcery, could his luck truly be that good? He seemed to be having minor trouble against the knight so Solaire assisted him by throwing a few lightning bolts at it''s back. The knight was swiftly killed when he was attacked by something? He was about to throw whatever had jumped at him off when he''d heard a familiar voice cry "Brother", his movements stiffened as he tried to look at the white ball of fluff attached to him. He could make out the small horns on it''s forehead, when he saw green slitted eyes looking at him he felt his heart stop, "Priscilla?" he croaked out in a hoarse voice.

    He holds her tightly as if she''d disappear if he let go, "Th-this can''t be! I saw you..."

    Priscilla has tears running down her cheeks as she tries to push her face deeper into the crook of his neck, his armour not affecting her at all. Solaire manages to free himself of his helmet and doesn''t hear it clatter to the floor as he looks closer at his nieces face, he kisses her forehead and cheeks until they go red. She giggles through her tears as she he does this, "Brother, I''ve missed you so much!"

    Reima approaches Siegmeyer and they both grasp each others forearms in greeting, "Yo Sieg, you and Solaire have fun without me?"

    Siegmeyer "Aye! He''s a wonderful companion, I regret not following you through they dreadful fortress!... But it seems we''ve both lost our companions now." He sends an amused look at the still cuddling duo, Reima shrugs his shoulders "Eh, let them have their moment... They probably haven''t seen each other for centuries."

    After everyone calms down they all approach the wall atop the stairs and near the Fog-Gate and sit down. Priscilla hasn''t let go of Solaire since she had jumped at him, Reima smiles at their amusing interactions and starts the conversation.

    Reima "So, what have you two been up to while I was gone?" he asks curiously.

    Solaire continues to hold his nieces hand and starts going through the journey up until now, they had taken almost the exact same path as Reima had, apart from visiting the blacksmith that is.

    Solaire "You have no idea how many times we''ve failed to get past executioner Smough and captain Ornstein. They''ve only grown in skill last I met them..." He lets slip of his previous relations with them.

    Reima "Ah, you knew them then?" he says slyly, at this point he knows of Solaire''s general origin. He''s just playing around with him to see if he''ll keep up the act.

    Solaire rubs the back of his head "Ah... Well, I have something to admit Sir Ludvig, I''ve not entirely been truthful to you about my past." he looks apprehensive to tell him.

    Reima waves his had as if he''s waving Solaire''s concerns away. "Well your sister has told me all about you, could you make me a doll like hers?" He asks sarcastically and grins.

    Solaire "Oh, oh. You want one? It''ll be difficult to acquire the materials but for my friends I can do it." He says earnestly which makes Reima feel like an ass.

    Reima shakes his head "Forget it, if you have materials make another one for Priscilla, her old one is slightly ragged at this point." She pulls out the doll and shows Solaire a smile ever present on her face.

    Solaire takes it gently and marvels, "You''ve kept it all this time?"

    She shakes her head, "No but Reima found her for me" Solaire sends a grateful look to him.

    Solaire "So... Forgive me if this sound rude but, I saw you die Priscilla... Executed by Father."

    Priscilla shakes her head, "Uncle Gwyndolin created an illusion of me and made me watch as Grand Father banished you. I''m sorry!"

    Solaire''s brows furrow, "I see, if I find him I''ll end his miserable life." He says in a low angry tone.

    Reima "Ah, I can help you there... I know his current location." He gets goosebumps as he sees a vicious smile on Solaire''s face...

    Solaire "Well, that''s mighty jolly is it not?"

 119 Smough smash!

    The group continue to talk about what they''d been doing before the subject of the Painted world of Ariamis is brought up, Solaire is very interested in this "land" that had held his niece prisoner for so long. As Solaire goes to enquire more about it Reima stands.

    Reima "Alright, we can talk later... Right now we have two giant dudes to kill, do you guys need anything to prepare?"

    Siegmeyer gets up, slowly followed by Solaire who has a dragon still attached to his arm.

    Reima "Priscilla, don''t you want to show Solaire how strong you''ve gotten?" He tries to motivate the girl who''s unwilling to let go of her brothers arm.

    Her pout turns into a smile as she lets go and retrieves her Scythe from the floor, she twirls in a skilful display for Solaire.

    Reima "Alright, lets see how this will go... I''ll take Ornstein and you guys take fatso... Good?"

    Siegmeyer shakes his head "I do not wish to be crushed again, you take "fatty" and I''ll take Ornstein."

    Solaire nods, "I''d rather not be crushed by someones arse cheeks."

    Reima retorts quickly, "And you think I do?"

    ...

    The trio burst out laughing and Reima gets them to decide through rock paper scissors, winner fights Ornstein. He plays against Solaire... and loses, then he plays against Siegmeyer and quietly uses Axii to make him choose rock, when they show their hands Siegmeyer had thrown a rock, he wins!... He looks at his own hand and sees them shaped like scissors... Fuck!

    He looks down in self pity and confirms, "I''ll fight fatso, you guys get Ornstein."

    As they prepare to walk through the Fog-Gate he remembers something, "Ah Priscilla, do not put yourself in danger. We are undead and will come back, you are not... That ring of sacrifice only works once before it breaks so keep that in mind." he says with deadly seriousness.

    Solaire "Do not worry Sir Ludvig, I''ll keep an eye on her." Reima nods and they step through after making pre-battle preparations, eating green blossoms, Crystal Magic enhancement and all.

    As soon as Reima steps foot in the large hall held up by many pillars he is almost stabbed with a spear, it brushes past his face and severs loose white hairs. He spins and performs a spinning back kick which knocks his attacker backwards. Looking at them they wear extravagant golden armour which has a red plume coming from it''s lion shaped helm, the large metal skirt that protects his legs has a tattered red material lining it. He wields a large spear that has a cross guard just under where the blade is, presumably this was used to drive it further in dragon scales. Ornstein looks at Reima and gives a slight nod before dropping into a low stance, whether or not he''s hollow or insane remains to be seen.

    The others had stepped through behind him and had seen this small bout, behind Ornstein a large shadow appears and is lit up by sunlight streaming through a window. It''s helmet looks like a chubby face but the rest of it''s armour is so large that the only way to describe it would be morbidly obese. It wields a giant hammer that doesn''t look practical to wield at all, Smough hovers over them feeling just as his job entails, an executioner.

    Siegmeyer, Solaire and Priscilla all prepare for combat and start moving to the right side of the room, Reima remembers that he has to fight "fatso" so he channels Haki into his legs and shoots towards the huge figure like a bullet. Arcell is out and covered with Crystals as he attempts to drive it through the wide golden chest-plate, Ornstein tries to stop his leap but is struck by lightning which draws his attention away.

    Smough bring up his hammers shaft and receives the blade on it, causing a dull metallic ring ot reverberate throughout the room. He easily pushes Reima away due to him being mid air, he uses the momentum to do a back flip and lands delicately on his feet, the Slumbering Dragoncrest ring inhibiting the sound of the impact.

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    He catches flashes of lightning in his peripheral vision but can''t tell if it''s Ornstein''s of Solaire''s, he shakes his head and focuses on the tub of lard in front of him.

    Reima "Yo fatty, you ever consider jogging? I''m surprised your cholesterol hasn''t killed you yet." He''s about to continue insulting him but has to dodge a deadly downward swing of his hammer. He tries to get in close but Smough just leaps backwards while sweeping his hammer in-front of himself, preventing Reima from even getting a strike in.

    He starts conjuring a Crystal Soul spear but has to jump backwards due to Smough interupting it... He seems to have fought Sorcerers in the past, how about fire then? He quickly brings out his flame and throws a Great Chaos fireball at him, the projectile is slow but Smough had approached to try interrupt him again. The fireball hits him directly on his bloated stomach which causes the giant man to quickly try brush the lava off, this only causes him to burn his hand. He looks at Reima and releases a nasally roar, enraged at actually being injured by this ant!

 120 Stolen valour!

    While Reima somehow launched himself at the almost 11ft tall Smough the others were having a difficult time dealing with Ornstein, his speed is ridiculous and makes even Priscilla seem slow. Luckily with Solaire acting as Vanguard, Siegmeyer behind him with his Zwei-hander and Priscilla attacking it''s flanks they managed to not die yet.

    The ground rumbles due to Reima''s battle with Smough but it doesn''t shift their focus away from their opponent. Ornstein dashes forward, almost sliding as he tries to stab Solaire, the spear is knocked away by a skilful parry as Solaire didn''t think his shield could take the attack. The spear isn''t Ornstein''s only attack though as he delivers a quick punch to Solaire bucket helm which knocks him to the floor, Siegmeyer comes to assist and swings his greatsword in a deadly arc forcing Ornstein to back up quickly, right into the path of the invisible Priscilla who swings her Scythe at his Achilles tendon just like how Reima taught her, Ornstein who somehow sensed the attack deflected her scythe with the shaft of his spear before kicking her in the stomach, launching her away before she vanishes back into her invisibility.

    As he does this Solaire throws a lightning bolt at the knight captain but they raise their fist and catche it, shocking Siegmeyer and himself. "What on earth!?!" Siegmeyer gets out as Ornstein throws his own lightning bolt at him, he raises his spiked buckler but the impact and electrical discharge causes him to be thrown to the floor. Ornstein sees this and jumps in the air, intent on spearing Siegmeyer like a fish, he quickly descends but he knocked away by Solaire charging with his shield. He pulls the bruised Siegmeyer up and raises his shield again. Priscilla appears behind him, leaning over slightly, seems like the kick she received earlier broke a rib?

    They prepare to fight again but a familiar figure is launched into their opponent sending them both sprawling to the ground.

    Reima "Ah, fuck!" He shouts as he realises he''d just landed atop Ornstein, he grabs the shaft of the golden spear and covers his hand in Armament Haki to resist the lightning attempting to shock him. He uses all his strength to pull Ornstein into the path of the oncoming hammer heading straight for him. Ornstein takes most of the impact as both are launched to the other side of the room, leaving a startled group of four behind.

    Siegmeyer looks on but suddenly realises, "HEY, YOU TOOK OUR OPPONENT!" he shouts as he looks at a furious Smough stomping towards them.

    With Reima he''d just hit the wall with his new buddy Ornstein and both take a moment to recover, while he''d not received the full impact it still bloody hurt! He looks at his opponent standing opposite him and quickly casts a fireball followed up by a soul arrow, Ornstein easily dodges them but finds Reima already on top of him and swinging Arcell. He deflects with the shaft of his spear but is unable to gain enough distance to attack him, Reima keeps a close distance with Ornstein and continues to pummels him with small scratches, punches and kicks. His armour looks battered after a couple minutes of this, Ornstein tries to kick him away but find his leg locked and twisted causing him to fall to his knee, Reima follows this up with an Haki empowered Elbow strike to his face knocking his helmet completely off. The golden helmet clatters to the floor and slides away as Reima gets a good look at his face, black hair, gold eyes... Nothing else to note as his face looks complete average, Reima doesn''t know how to feel about this... Should he be happy that the man who tormented him in his past life isn''t a Raiju? Or sad that he''s about to kill a guy who makes himself look handsome? The thoughts quickly disappear as lightning encompasses Ornstein and forces Reima away.

    The two look at each other and know that this will be the final blow. The golden armoured super saiyan on one side, with the white haired Ken Kaneki rip off on the other. Reima channels Armament Haki into his legs and right arm while casting the power-within pyromancy which causes his power to almost double, at the cost of his health. He glows a dull red as he wields his Crystal covered weapon and leaps at Ornstein, intent on slicing him in half, his opponent does the same and tries to pierce his heart.

    The two finish the strike and end up in each-others previous location, looking away from each-other.

    Reima "Man, fuck this trou-Blarrgh" He falls on his knees cradling a hole now present on his abdomen. He looks back to check on his opponent but finds him in two pieces on the floor, his torso and lower body completely separated. Reima looks at Smough''s position and downs his Estus flask quickly to prevent him from stealing his soul and powering up. He gets to Ornstein''s body and places his hand over it allowing for quicker transfer of his soul, Smough seems to be so enraged that he doesn''t notice this happen. He checks on the others to see if they are doing alright but doesn''t spot Priscilla anyway, she must be invisible he silently hopes.

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 121 Angry Dragon > Angry Fatty

    After Reima stole their opponent the slightly battered trio come face to face with an angry fat giant, he swings his hammer in the air before bringing it down on a pillar, completely destroying it and launching stone shards at them. They duck behind Solaire''s shield which stops most of the damage but they still receive many small cuts and bruises, Siegmeyer shouts at them "We need to put this guy down, before he brings the whole building down on us!"

    Solaire and Priscilla nod, he throws a lightning bolt at Smough trying to draw his attention while Priscilla turns invisible to try and attack a weak point in his armour.

    Smough steps forward and brings his hammer down on Solaire who barely dodges it, Siegmeyer attempts to grab the hammer to prevent it being used but has his entire body lifted by the angry Smough, one swing of the hammer launches Siegmeyer through a nearby pillar, breaking many bones in the process.

    Solaire can only watch as his companion is tossed away like trash, he throws a lightning bolt at the charred stomach of Smough but it only seem to make him angry, He takes a step towards him while preparing his hammer but stumbles. Solaire looks at his feet to see what happened but sees large cuts and gauges in Smough''s golden armour forming, Priscilla must be swinging away at his legs.

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    Solaire waves his sword in the air and shouts "Look at me you fat, yellow belly cannibal, who''s only redeeming qualities are that you provide shade!" Ofcourse, Solaire isn''t adept in the art of insults, but he seemingly gets his point across as Smough completely ignores the pain in his legs and brings his hammer down on Solaire. He doesn''t manage to dodge but brings his shield up to protect himself... He''s slammed down causing his internal organs to rupture and all air in his lungs to evacuate, Priscilla seeing this continues to swing her scythe, harder and faster than before, unconsciously infusing "death" magic into the Scythe enshrouding it in black mist. It seems very effective as Smough immediately drops onto his disproportionately small legs and has to support himself with his arms, dropping his hammer in the process. She finishes slicing his legs and moves onto his arms, a few swings renders them unable to move... She continues what can only be called dissection for a few minutes before finally bringing the blade down on the fatso''s neck, killing him instantly.

    She takes a breath before dropping her weapon and running over to the injured Solaire, she shifts the hammer that''s still resting on his body over to find his somehow still breathing body. She reaches to his belt and pulls out his Estus and starts dripping it down his gullet, Solaire seems to choke as he coughs up the Estus and not managing to swallow it. Reima appears behind her and shakes his head which causes her to panic, despite his undead status.

    Reima "I''m sorry."

    Priscilla "He is still alive, do something!" she pleads.

    Reima "No, I''m not sorry about that..." He sighs, take the Estus from her hand and takes a large swig. She seems to want to protest as he drinks the life saving fluid but is confused as he takes Solaire''s helmet off.

    This is not gay Reima repeats in his mind before he delivers the Estus orally... He doesn''t know if this is the correct method but he''d rather kiss a dude than see Priscilla cry... Or kiss her own brother, but that''s another matter entirely. He tries to massage Solaire''s throat and after a minute is headbutted but said man.

    Solaire raises himself up gently while looking horrified, "Sir Ludvig! Please explain yourself!"

    Reima spits on the floor and wipes his lips with his sleeve, "You weren''t swallowing the Estus so I had to help you... You owe me big time."

    Solaire looks pained "Me? Owe you!?! You should owe me, you stole my first kiss after all!"

    Reima''s eyes open wide, WHAT IS THIS TROUPE CLICHE BS! GIVE ME A HOT GIRL INSTEAD OF THIS IKEMAN! "I refuse! How about we never speak of this again?" Solaire silently nods as Priscilla giggles at the side while providing Solaire with a lap pillow... So jealous!

    ...

    They look around realising their missing a member, Reima stands up and checks the area where Siegmeyer was thrown but only finds a bloodstain... Suddenly an onion shaped figure appears in the doorway.

    Siegmeyer "I am back!" He looks at them while raising a fist in victory... For some reason?

    Reima "Where did you go?"

    Siegmeyer "Ah, that? I died of course!" He laughs away the fact that he had just died like it was nothing... It seems this isn''t uncommon for him.

    Reima shakes his head at the lackadaisical man before looking around for loot, he doesn''t find anything else apart from the leo ring he''d acquired from Ornstein. From what he remembers it increases piercing damage done and counter damage, the former isn''t all that useful due to Reima only uses swords but most of his attacks are counters in one form or another. He puts on the ring and replaces his Stoneplate ring with it, who needs defence when you deal a ton of damage right?

    After everyone heals up a bit they walk around the outskirts of the room and eventually find the elevator... While he would be excited to meet Solaire''s sister, from what he''s heard she''s one of if not already the biggest THOT in this world. He will admire her bazooka''s from a distance but that will be all... Until he shoots a Soul spear through her illusionary body before stealing her couch.

 122 End of the thicc era

    The party step into the elevator which rises as a result and start walking up some stairs and to some large ornate double doors at the end of the room.

    Reima steps forward "I guess I''ll do the honours." and pushes the bronze doors open, revealing a dim room with a huge woman lounging on a couch placed in the middle. Her "Personality" is the first thing noticeable, Reima glances behind him to see his companions reactions. Siegemeyer seems to be in shock, his onion shaped helmet''s visor pointing directly at Gwnevere''s chest. Solaire is holding Priscilla''s hand tightly before noticing Siegmeyer''s gaze and cuffs him on the back of his head.

    Siegemeyer "Oi! What was that for!"

    Solaire "First, that''s my sister and Priscilla''s mother... Second, it''s an illusion, third she''d devour you like a hot-cake."

    Siegemeyer waits a moment before replying, "So, err... How does one go about being devoured?" he receives another slap as Reima walks up to the giant woman.

    Gwynevere "Thou hast journey''d far, and overcome much, chosen Undead. Come hither, child¡­"

    Reima "Yo, just give me the bowl so I can get outta here." he holds his hands out waiting for it.

    Gwynevere "O chosen Undead. I am Gwynevere. Daughter of Lord Gwyn; and Queen of Sunlight?. Since the day Father his form did obscureth, I have await''d thee."

    Reima groans, "I know, give me the lord bowl!" The illusion doesn''t even respond to him gradually getting more irritated. After a minute of just staring the woman down to the amusement of his companions a huge bowl finally drops into his hands.

    Gwynevere "I bequeath the Lordvessel to thee. And beseech thee. Succeed Lord Gwyn, and inheriteth the Fire of our world. Thou shall endeth this eternal twilight, and avert further Undead sacrifices."

    He ignores her boring scrpited dialogue and turns to his friends, "So, we got a couple choices now... I kinda want that couch" He points to the huge gold couch with velvet cushions and fabric. "If I remove the illusion we will be under constant attack from Gwyndolin''s "Police force", seeing as you intend to kill him it won''t be much of a problem."... "Also, I have a bank that I need to rob."

    Solaire just shrugs, "I think we should remove this poor imitation." Priscilla nods, while she doesn''t have good memories of her mother the fact that Gwyndolin knows her anatomy so well is rather unnerving...

    Siegemeyer "I think you should leave me with her for... An hour or two? Just so we can say goodbye..."

    Reima shakes his head at the onions antics and throws a rock at Gwynevere''s head, it passes through the illusion and she gives an awkward moan before disappearing.

    Suddenly a thundering voice is heard as the sun dims and allows darkness to envelop the city.

    Gwnydolin "Thou that tarnisheth the Godmother''s image. I am Gwyndolin. And thy transgression shall not go unpunished. Thou shalt perish in the twilight of Anor Londo."

    Reima scoffs, "Yeah, how about you go fuck yourself, you cross dressing douche!" He shouts at the sky and assumes the brat had heard him. He looks around and sees a slightly glowing ring that the illusion had dropped, it''s the ring of the sun princess.. He remembers that it boosts miracles making it essentially useless for Reima, he tosses it to Solaire who thanks Reima, turning his gaze to the lard couch he salivates, the amount of gold used in it''s construction could probably destabilise the gold markets on earth. He channels a large amount of magic into his Folded Space which envelops the couch in white geometrically shaped particles. The only person surprised by this is Siegmeyer but aside from gasping he doesn''t say anything.

    The group starts backtracking while fighting off groups of DarkMoon soldiers, most are about as strong as an above average human but with the parties strength they are swiftly dealt with. Reima makes sure to "collect" the things he''d not managed to in the past, the main item is the Dragon Slayers great bow... This item is probably the most unique weapon in this world, he can''t think of any other places having something like this, a ballista slightly resembles it sure, but a hand-drawn bow used against dragons? The only exceptions would probably be the Monster hunter series.

    They reach a bonfire and sit down to rest as Reima turns to them, "So, what do you guys intend to do now? I can take you down to the sisters while I go rai-cough, make a transaction at the bank."

    Siegmeyer "I''ll continue adventuring, I''ve no idea where to go but that''s the fun part hahahah!"

    Solaire "I think I want to spend some time catching up with Priscilla... Could you take us to the sisters?"

    Reima nods, "Alright, see you later Siegmeyer" He fist bumps the onion knight before grasping Solaire and Priscilla''s hands.

    A flash of turquoise light signals their exit and the reappear outside the sisters cave, Reima decides not to visit just yet... He wishes to finish with the bank and then take a rest with them before dealing with Ceaseless discharge.

    Solaire "Are you not going in with us?"

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    Reima shakes his head, "I need to do a couple things first, you go on ahead... Ah, wait, take these to them for me." He hands Solaire large cushions that he''d previously looted, he assumes it''d be more comfortable sitting on these instead of the floor or webbing.

 123 Heist?

    Reima vanishes from outside the cave and reappears in the now dark and gloomy Anor Londo, his currently location is just outside of the palace gates. He''s about to go to where the pale demons are to find the bank when he hears an angry female voice behind him.

    Keeper shouts as she sprints at him with weapons drawn "How dare you produce a blade upon a deity? How did you ever get this far?"

    Reima draws Arcell and easily intercepts her attack, he locks their blades before flicking his wrist and send her sword clattering to the ground a couple meters away. He holds her at sword point and replies, "Your "deity" was an illusion created by the Dark sun Gwyndolin. I know this because I had Gwynever''s daughter by my side as I dispelled the illusion."

    Keeper growls, "You lie." Reima shakes his head, in annoyance and amusement. "Alright, I''ll give you a couple choices since I''m feeling charitable..." He remembers the couch he stole and feels a need to give something back to the community, "Piss off and I won''t butcher you like an animal, or die." his cat-like eyes drill into her helmet after he gives her options.

    She seems to be battling over her loyalty to the Dark Moon covenant and her self preservation... She''s a firekeeper therefore not undead, she won''t come back after she''s slain.

    Keeper makes her decision, "I''ll die before I betr-" Her declaration is cut off as blood streams from her slit throat. She holds the wound and drops to her knee''s, she gives pained helpless grunts as she slowly drops to the floor, dead.

    Reima "I feel slightly bad..." He thinks he should have at least let her finish her sentence... He looks down and see''s her soul on the floor, like most other fire-keeper souls it pulsates with a huge amount of humanity, slowly warping it from the inside out. He stores it and continues on his merry way.

    He goes to where the demons had previously attacked him and Priscilla before looking over the edge of the platforms, he pulls out the blueprints for the city and tries to align the known structures to the unknown ones. He curses himself at killing Gwynevere and making spotting this bloody bank harder, his low light vision is only so good... After around an hour of looking while referencing the map he sees a building with the remains of a bridge that used to connect it, he knows that they had destroyed all entrances to the bank to stop looting and realises this is the place. After finally finding the location he tries to judge the distance he''d have to teleport, Reima would say it''s a couple miles away, and it''s at a much lower altitude to his current location. The place he wants to teleport to is just outside some large golden gates that would lead to the shattered bridge, he concentrates for a moment before visualising himself at that place. He imagines seeing that location as if he were already standing there, due to the distance and unfamiliarity with his destination he tries to teleport a few meters off the ground to prevent teleport inside of the stone floor. Flash! he vanishes into bright blue particles.

    Reima appears about two stories above his destination and shouts curses until he hits the bottom, he lands on his back but isn''t severely injured. He hasn''t inherited Geralt''s weakness of relatively small heights... Reima almost laughs when he thinks back to Geralt refusing to shimmy down a mountain path with him, no matter what he says, he attributes his refusal to his inability to fall small distances without instantaneously dying... Or atleast that''s what Reima likes to think. His musing is interrupted as he comes face to face with a large angry gargoyles and a small army of Silver knights... He looks behind them and sees the entrance to the bank being blocked by glowing golden bars, if Reima had to guess he would say that they were magic resistant...

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    The Gargoyle sprints at him while the Silver knights stay in the back to protect the riches of their formerly glorious kingdom. Reima looks on in mild terror as he realises he''s pretty boned if the situation doesn''t change... He blinks behind the silver knights and runs to the bars while trying to kick through them.

    CLANK! The sound alerts the confused enemies who turn around and see Reima nursing his almost broken foot, "HOW STRONG IS THIS METAL!?!?" he shouts in agony, his foot feels as if he''d just stood on a mountain of salty lemon covered lego''s. Hearing what should be the Gargoyle unhesitatingly tear through the Silver knights to attack him he gets an idea... He vanishes into turquoise light and reappears... Behind the bars.

    The Gargoyle slams on them to get to him but doesn''t even make a dent, the silver knights push their arms through to try and grab him to no avail.

    Reima chuckles as he remembers that Dark Souls has no form of teleportation aside from bonfire hopping with the lord vessel. "Thanks for the warm welcome but I''ve come to collect the overdue tax... You guys have been committing tax evasion for centuries, so I must do my civic duty!" he waves at the enraged enemies and strolls into the extravagant ornate hallways.

 124 Heist!!!

    Reima strolls through a large gold plated hallway that eventually opens up into what seems like a reception? Many desks with glowing gold bars that''d protect the tellers surround the room, Reima hadn''t thought that it would be like an actual bank and more like at treasury... Apparently he was wrong as he can see small slots where you''d pass gold coins or cheques through, there are named doors, one with exit on it and another with "vaults"... Needless to say he attempts to find the vaults, he pushes the door open and comes almost walks into a large metallic black thing? He touches it and it feels like cold metal, he looks up and realises he''s feeling something leg... The being bends over to look at him and Reima see''s it''s horned face... A whole undamaged titanite demon... Fuck!

    Reima immediately runs through it''s legs and into the large room that looks suspiciously like the room he''d fought Ornstein and Smough in, the demon now aware of the intruder swings it''s spear and smashes through a pillar trying to get at him... The room rumbles as the heavy demon stomps through it, it''s tail giving a metallic sound as it taps against the floor, Reima continues running until the floor underneath him gives way and reveals some sort of lava trap... He starts falling in and almost hits the bottom when he blinks to the other side of the pit he''d just fallen in... He feels like a certain plumber as he recovers before trying to lure the giant demon into the trap, it keeps trying to walk around it as Reima mirrors his movements to keep far, far away. The demon launches lightning from it''s spear at him, "Two can play at this game!" Reima mumbles as he starts firing Crystal Soul spears at it while maintaining a good distance away from it. The spears deal a good amount of damage as his small size allows him to dodge the onslaught of lightning being launched at him.

    After around twenty Crystal Soul spears the demon roars at it''s inability to catch him as it back up to gain some distance before it starts sprinting at the pit, fully intent on jumping over it. It throws it''s spear at Reima to distract him before making a giant leap across. barely clearing it before skidding to a stop and looking down menacingly on Reima, who gives a small chuckles and blinks to the other side of the pit but not before storing it''s large spear in his Folded Space.

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    He laughs loudly once safely across and proceeds to taunt the enraged demon, "What idiot thought it''d be a good idea to design a trap directly under where they fight?!? It''s like a giant stupid turtle designed this place! But hey, look on the bright side! Atleast you have all your limbs unlike your brothers!"

    It''d apparently had enough as it starts to prepare another running leap across the trap... But this time Reima fully expects it, the demon jumps and isn''t stopped by his Aard blast... He tries to think of something to stop it in it''s tracks and grins, the demon gives a vicious roar as it prepares to stomp on the intruding ant... As he''s almost safely on the other side of the pit an expensive wooden chair collides with it''s head, it barely does anything to stop it''s momentum but it spots a large pile of furniture with Reima behind it... He casts an overpowered Aard which causes the pile of furniture to be launched at it, finally slowly it''s speed and causing it to fall into the lava below.

    Reima looks at the destroyed furniture and feels an ache in his heart, while he still has mountains of exquisite furniture left he still feels regretful at the loss. He watches the demo thrash and sink into the lava... It only gets waist deep before it starts scraping at the tough stone walls to try escape, the lava doesn''t seem to be damage it all that much and Reima just decides to shoot Crystal Soul spear at it until it eventually dies...

    Half an hour later Reima finally is rid of the demon, he almost cried as he saw the demon titanite sink below the lava but encourages himself with the hope of finding something better inside of this building.

    He goes through a door and into a loooong hallway which has many large golden doors on each side of it, at the end of the hallway he sees a substantially large one that seems to be more heavily decorated than the ones previously.

    He tries to push open the first one but finds it''s sealed by some kind of magic... He remembers the properties of his "unique" flames and carefully lights a turquoise flame above his hand, he pushes it into the door which lights up as if it was covered in gasoline before losing it''s magic glow. He pushes against it again to see if it''s open or not, he almost falls inside as the doors swing open with ease, looking around he sees a name displayed prominently in front of many ornate chests and a large pile of gold, it says "Ornstein"... he leaves and quickly opens another further up the hall to confirm his suspicion, another name, "Gwyndolin"... JACKPOT! It seems like the vaults belonged to prominent members of Anor Londo''s society, he drools as he imagines the riches inside.

 125 Rich get richer

    Anor Londo, city of gods and bastion of humanity where deities watch proudly from their palaces sitting above the clouds. A place where great architecture and riches are abundant, a place that''s currently having almost everything stolen by teenager who somehow managed to gain entry to one of the most fortified places in the world. Reima had spent some time going from vault to vault, starting from the lower tier members like Smough and some silver knight captain who''d been slain by demons, his vault remains for his family to access... Or it would if Reima hadn''t stolen everything inside, most of what he''d found inside of it was gold coins, old armour, trinkets and paintings presumably of the captain and his family.

    Smough''s vault was rather disturbing... While it had the typical chests full of coins, it also had what seemed to be a drying rack of human meat. Most common of which seemed to be from children, Reima doesn''t really know the full story of the sick executioner but he''s proud that he''d ended the life of the one responsible of what''s inside here. He burns the bodies and destroyed the jars that were pickling some eye balls and other unidentifiable organs, before saying a prayer and leaving to the opposite vault. The next one seemed to be Havel''s... Reima can only tell due to examining the scratched off nameplate for a couple minutes, the room is empty. It seems that Gwyn had all his assets seized when he was found colluding with dragons, an unfortunate fate for a loyal knight.

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    Some of the other vaults seemed to be for major noble names, Reima doesn''t recognise any of them but the piles of gold coins made him respect their "hustle". The things that were most different when compared to the vaults belonging to the knights is that the nobles seemed to have collected many pieces of fine art, amazing paintings, pottery, statues, jewellery and clothing all were found in abundance... The thing that surprised him the most was the small displays which had tags calling them "God''s metal", of course the things displayed were varying sizes and colours of titanite, one even had a white slab sitting on a golden pedestal. It must''ve been the prized possession of this particular noble... And now it belongs to Reima, he leaves a small note saying sorry with a sad stick man just in-case the noble stills lives and somehow gets inside this place.

    After collecting a large amount of crafting materials that will certainly be enough to upgrade his armour he looks at the gold doors instead of the previous bronze and gold gilded ones, it seems that the pure gold ones belonged to the gods... Reima would try and steal the doors too but after an hour attempting to remove it from it''s hinges he gave up.

    Reima enters the lowest value vault belonging to a god, he pushes the doors open and sees a name he''d not thought he would see here, Seath... He thought the dragon would hoard all his treasure in his archives but he must''ve guessed wrong, he looks around and sees towering bookshelves inside, if Logan saw this he''d have a heart attack. Reima skims through a ragged one left on the floor and realises they are notes for creating "scales" which ended up leading to Crystal Sorceries, he sees a few pedestals dotted around the room with books gilded in silver and Crystal? He opens one and finds a sorcery that causes a Crystal shard to shoot up from the ground to impale whatever the target was. Reima excitedly stores all the books before looking at the huge book cases, his Folded Space wouldn''t be able to store such large objects and so he leans them forward slightly while readying his Folded Space... The books starts sliding out of the book shelf and falling directly into his Folded Space, after an hour he had completely stolen every book. He looks around and realises there are still a couple things left. He walks over to the chest and opens it after kicking it a few times, inside he finds a large amount of Crystal weapons... They aren''t really good for all that much, while they are strong and deal a lot of damage their durability is so low that he wouldn''t be surprised if they shattered upon impact with something. He stores them anyway and moves on to the next chest, inside he finds a single doll covered in Crystal... He picks it up and finds that it resembles Sol, Priscilla''s doll quite a lot, perhaps Seath knew of his daughters existence?

    Reima finishes up ransacking Seath''s vault and moves onto the next, which happens to belong to a certain cross dresser... He glances around the prestine room and sees a large amount of dresses, Reima idly wonders whether Quelina or Priscilla would appreciate them since they look rather cute and comfortable. He stores them away instead of burning them as there is no point in burning good clothes, he finds a good amount of gold but an even greater amount of silver... It seems the Dark Suns affinity with silver wasn''t a lie, the thing Reima appreciates the most is the apparent pureness of the metals contained inside the bank, that have to be at least 99% pure since he can bend the gold relatively easily. Reima scours the room and finds some Dark Moon emblems but not much else, he does find some books but they aren''t legible at all, perhaps an illusions is overlayed atop them? Maybe they contain insight in Gwyndolin''s unique illusion magic.

 126 Transposing a full vault into an empty one.

    Reima leaves the vault belonging to Gwnydolin and enters a vault that has four marking on it''s door. Inside he sees four name plaques scratched out but all the items inside still seem to be present, if he had to guess Reima would say it belongs to the four kings who''d been corrupted by humanity. First thing he sees is a large table in the middle of the room with a huge amount of paperwork atop it, reading a few pages reveals that most of these are taxes and tributes to Lord Gwyn... It seems the four kings had to pay increasingly substantial amounts for every undead caught inside their cities borders, it seems crazy seeing as anyone who''s human has the potential to become undead, it doesn''t seem right that they should be punished for something unavoidable. Despite this the kings continued to pay, Reima assumes this is when Dark Wraiths controlled by Kaathe started appearing and when offered a chance to overthrow Gwyn the kings took it. Reima remembers how they looked in the game, it seems that the life drain spell taught by Kaathe stole humanity as well, after absorbing more than there bodies could handle it likely started mutating them into their current unrecognisable forms. He checks the ornate chests and finds a small amount of gold, probably all that remained after Gwyn essentially stole it.

    He leaves relatively empty handed and enters the next vault, Gwyneveres. Inside he finds a large amount of dresses that seem to grow or shrink to match your current size, Reima immediately stores all of them thinking of Priscilla''s happy face when he gifts them to her... He decides not to tell her that they belonged to her mother, He doesn''t know how she''d react to that fact. He also finds a huge amount of jewellery and gold, he takes it all and looks at the small bookshelf hidden in the corner of the room. Taking a book out and skimming through some pages he realises that these are miracles, sunlight spear, soothing sunlight, bountiful sunlight and more seems to be present. A shame Reima isn''t able to use them, he decides to gift them to Solaire... Perhaps he can use them despite losing his divinity? Reima opens the last chest present and finds some white glowing shields, they are metal kite shields that seem to resist curses and the dark... He stores them and moves onto the next vault.

    The vaults door seems to have some dents in it? Thinking about the placements of the doors this one must''ve belonged to Gwyn''s favoured child, Solaire. He chuckles at the fist mark left dented in it and enters the room, the entirety of the room is charred black, it seems that Gwyn decided his son no longer deserved his wealth... An evil petty man for sure, but he doesn''t do anything halfway.

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    He exits and stands face to face with the last door, It glows brighter than the others and seems to be more extravagant and ornate than anyone else''s. Must be compensating for something Reima chuckles as he riffs to himself, he slowly lets another turquoise flame eat the enchantments placed on the door. Eventually the doors glow dims are the blue flames quickly spread across it, Reima tries to open the door but doesn''t manage to with one arm, he tries two and still can''t manage it... He uses Armament Haki on his leg and kicks it making the door shudder and move slightly. He sighs and continues kicking the door full pelt until it finally allows Reima entry. He peeks inside and is almost blinded by the amount of gold stored inside, he closes his eyes and lets them adjust to the disproportionate brightness when compared to the other rooms. A huge mountain of gold coins towers on one side of the room while a huge amount of chests stand at the other, Reima almost shits himself when he considers that some of them may be mimics. First things first, take what you can before doing anything risky... Like walking into a sea of mimics. It takes about an hour to store all the gold coins away into his Folded Space, if this amount was released all at once on earth the price of gold would plummet, silver would literally be more valuable than gold... Atleast for a short while.

    After storing all the gold Reima realises that something was buried under the gold, after "excavating" it he sees a small waist high pedestal with some sort of bowl atop it... This is looking like some Indiana Jones trap shit so Reima walks towards the chests after deciding to check the bowl later. After kicking almost all of the chests to make sure he wasn''t about to be torn apart by mimics he opens them revealing various valuable materials... Needless to say, Reima won''t have to worry about titanite any longer, he literally has a kingdoms worth in his Folded Space now. Reima doesn''t really know how to feel as he opens another chest that contains five titanite slabs, this is one of many which contained a rediculous amount of "God Metal", yeah Gwyn is worshipped as "god" in these lands but it''s kinda crazy to consider most of the titanite present in Dark Souls was contained inside his own vault.

    Reima also finds many sets of expensive looking clothing, one would say they were... Fit for a king? Hearing no one but himself laugh at his stupid joke Reima continues to look the vast amount of chests before turning and heading towards the bowl, he approaches it and sees a tiny inscription on it''s side, it reads "The Great God Gwyn''s personal Transposing Kiln"... Oh shit! This is probably the best thing he could have found, period!

 127 Is it Christmas?

    After finding the Transposing Kiln Reima looks around for a little while longer and checks for illusionary walls or secret passages... He doesn''t find any, perhaps the gods thought this place was impenetrable? He guesses it probably was if one couldn''t just teleport inside and bypass the majority of the defences. Reima leaves Gwyn''s vault, his greed satiated for once, he walks past the looked vaults, Ornstein''s, Smough''s, Artorias''s, Gough''s, Ciaran and some other names he doesn''t recognise from the game. It''s a shame the didn''t store extra sets of armour inside, Reima could''ve started cosplaying as them before entering their boss fights, for some reason the idea amuses Reima more than it should have. Reima spends another couple hours just wandering around the bank searching for any other valuables, unfortunately he doesn''t find anything except parchments detailing how much the populace paid in taxes and where it''s stored, Reima gets excited for a moment but realises that the taxes were immediately stored in Lord Gwyn''s vault... He mourns the fact that the bank probably has a lot less than it should due to the state of the kingdom, with a huge amount of humanity turning into undead''s it isn''t surprising that the kingdom was slowly losing money over the centuries. Reima is just happy he made it before some other like-minded chap had a similar idea. Having enough of this pristine place he decides to teleport to the sisters cave, hopefully he won''t get scolded too harshly for not visiting with Solaire.

    1 hour later :

    Reima "Ouuuuch! Please stop!" He pleads as he has his cheeks stretched and pinched by an angry lady attached atop a giant fiery spider demon.

    Quelaag "I''ll teach you to ignore us! Take this!" She twists his cheeks causing a strange high pitched sound to escape his lips. Over at the side Eingyi with his apprentice Laurentius, Solaire, Priscilla and Quelina watch as Reima receives his punishment.

    Reima looks at them and pleads "Get this demon off me!" The others shrug before answering "You brought this upon yourself."

    Reima''s punishment finally ends and he can be seen sitting on the floor pouting, "I was going to give you guys some gifts but if this is how I''m going to be treated I''ll forget about it!" He mock huffs and turns away. Immediately Quelina and Priscilla seem worried that they''d hurt his feelings and try to smother him in affection, unfortunately Quelaag and Solaire know this is a ploy to gain sympathy and stop the two similar sisters from coddling him.

    Reima sees these two betrayers stop the his angels and pulls out two dresses, one that used to belong to Gwyndolin and is bright white with silver ornaments attached to it, making it look like a comfortable, nobles attire. The other dress belonged to Gwynevere and is a pale blue colour but shimmers in the light, it seems to be made of velvet or silk, against it''s decorated with gold ornaments shaped in an imitation of the sun. He lays them atop a table that''d been put there by Eingyi to help Laurentius study pyromancy scrolls.

    Reima "It''s a shame you guys don''t want them, this dress seems to be enchanted to calm and comfort nearby people, and this one can change shape according the the wearers size. He gives a sly smile before glancing innocently at Quelina and Priscilla.

    The two innocent girls can''t hold back anymore and launch themselves at the dresses, destroying the table in the process, Quelina immediately puts the dress over her head and slips into it, allowing the bottom to comfortably rest on her scaly lower half. Priscilla seems to have the same idea as she removes her fluffy white dress in a flash and slips into her mothers Pale blue one, Eingyi and Laurentius blush slightly when they catch sight of Priscilla''s large breasts that are briefly revealed when she removes the shirt Reima had given her. Solaire drills holes in the back of their heads with his glare which causes them to talk about how interesting their previous lesson was.

    Quelaag looks on semi-enviously at her sisters new dress, after the sisters had put them on they go to their respective sibling with joyful expressions, "How does it look" they repeat as if they were children who''d just had their first hair cut. Quelaag and Solaire pet their heads and try to gain control of the bubbling excitement exuding from the duo, a voice catches Quelaag''s attention.

    Reima "Ah, if you don''t mind, I have a dress for you as well, Milady" he hands her a dark red slim silk dress that has slits in it''s side that were originally made to show off a woman''s legs... For Quelaag it only allows the dress to comfortable cover part of her lower bodies mangled appearance, luckily the dress seems to be slighly fire resistant as it hasn''t immediately burst into flames upon being put on... This is probably the reason she has never worn clothes before. Quelaag immediately hugs him, funnily enough being the first person to actually thank him for the gift, realising their mistake the two sisters follow up with "Thank you" just after Quelaag is done with her "too long" hug.

    Reima turns to Solaire, "Yo, as an apology for violating your mouth you can have these." He hands Solaire the miracles he had stolen from Gwynevere''s vault.

    He looks down at them and recognises where they''re from, he doesn''t comment on it and decides to thank Reima for being considerate anyway.

    Eingyi and Laurentius look at him with what Reima would describe as "the ugliest puppy eyes he''d ever seen".

    Reima "You''re grown men, you look at me like that again and I''ll file for harassment." He states in a blunt tone before tossing them a red titanite slab each. Each men immediately recognise the heavy item in their hands and start profusely thanking Reima, he waves them away to enjoy their gift, he''s not in the business of acting like god to fuel his own ego.

    After the gifts were given out an awkward atmosphere envelopes the small residence as each person apologises for not getting Reima anything, the girls give him a kiss on the cheek but when the men try to do the same they receive a quick Haki infused foot to the stomach.

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 128 Guilty conscience

    Reima settles down for the day and relaxes in the company of the happy group, while Reima was away Priscilla and Quelina seemed to have become good friends, apparently the two adorable beings are similar enough to become quick buddies and different enough to share their different interests. While Priscilla''s hobby of "training" and "waiting" didn''t immediately enthral the young spider as soon as she started showing off the showy scythe moves Reima had taught her Quelina immediately begged her sister for a similar weapon. Quelaag was rather hesitant about her sister learning martial arts but relented when Reima tossed a wooden staff to her, while it would hurt if she made a mistake it wouldn''t be instantly fatal. After two days Reima offered to take her out for some practical combat experience, when she heard that she''d have to kill something she immediately refused. Reima agreed, if her "tender" heart wasn''t willing to kill a mindless monster then she deffinitely wouldn''t be able to defend herself against a human.

    While Quelina refused his offer Priscilla cut into their conversation and so they immediately went on a rampage that wiped out the majority of the swamps inhabitants, while there would still be a wayward monster every now and then the population has been drastically cut down. On their way back Reima actually spotted a figure sitting by a pillar.. Quelana seems to be sobbing silently in her dark dirty robes, the current most powerful and knowledgeable pyromancer alive looking so weak and vulnerable while still making Reima''s senses scream danger. He decides to talk to the sisters about what to do with her.

    He reaches the cave and requests to speak with Quelaag and Quelina in private before sitting them both down in-front of him while wearing a serious face.

    Reima "So, I''ve got a problem that will affect you and I need your take on the situation, that ok?" He says crossing his arms.

    Quelina looks confused and her sister speaks for the both of them, "What is it?"

    Reima looks at them and begins to speak in a stoic voice, "I''ve discovered Quelana''s location, what is your relationship with her and would you want to meet her again?" Their eyes widen as he mentions Quelana''s name.

    Quelina "Have you really found her? We thought she had died fighting against Gwyn." Says stutteringly. Quelaag continues for her, "Where is she? Is she sane?"

    Reima waits for them to finish their tirade of questions and finally replies, "I don''t know what she''s doing or what her motive is but she''s literally waiting outside this cave, I''m planning on dragging her here so you guys can sort out whatever problems she''s having... Is that ok with you guys?"

    They nod, "Can we come with you?"

    Reima "No, I have no idea what her reaction to you would be... Let me take the heat so you can cool her down." Quelaag gives him a funny look while caressing her lower body which happens to literally be on fire.

    After leaving the cave he stomps through the poisonous swamp, collecting a large quanitity of sludge in his boots while he walks. He reaches the pillar and looks down on the woman that seems to be mourning, she almost jumps out of her skin when she suddenly spots a figure standing over her. Looking up she spots his cat-like green eyes glaring at her, realising that the person doesn''t wish to harm her she stops charging her Pyromancy flame and begins to speak to him.

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    Quelana "You can see me? You have peculiar eyes, are you a demon perhaps? No... You are undead, the one who rang the bells." She speaks, more to herself than Reima and comes to her own conclusion.

    Reima "I did ring the bells, but I am her-"

    Quelana "Do you wish to learn Pyromancies? Your flame is strangely familiar to me, I can sense it''s strength from here."

    Reima tries to explain his presence again, "I am here to bri-"

    Quelana "Facinating! I can sense the chaos from you, an-"

    Reima has a vein appear on his forehead and finally interrupts her, "Your sisters wish to see you, I will bring you to them." He says with finality.

    The red eyes peering through the hood open wide and she tries to stand quickly, "No, I will not see them like that. I will not twist my memories of them with those pitiful insane existences."

    Reima is slightly confused, where did she hear that Quelaag and Quelina were insane? "I''m not following you... Quelaag personally asked me to return you to them."

    Quelana "Lies! I myself personally saw her tearing apart undead''s that had entered her domain. My sister would never commit such violent acts on nothing but a whim!"

    Reima "Perhaps if you observed a bit longer you''d see that she didn''t do it on a whim, Quelina was sick and needing a constant supply of humanity just to stay alive. Where were you when they needed help? Crying here and feeling sorry for yourself?" His eyes peer into her soul as he continues "You make me sick to even consider being related to someone as selfish as you." Every rhetorical question felt like an impact to Quelana''s chest, her feeling of loss slowly turning into guilt as she realises her initial assumption had been wrong.

    Reima holds his hand out, "I personally don''t even want to talk with you any longer, but I will bring you to the sisters so they can judge you themselves."

    She slowly reaches for his hand and is pulled up, despite the terrible guilt she is currently feeling she wishes to lay her eyes upon her beloved family again.

 129 Fiery tempers and cold shoulders

    Reima drags the hesitant Quelana back to the cave instead of teleporting her, to allow her to think of her next actions without immediately being berated. They walk down the twisting web covered cave and greet Eingyi before entering the private section of the cave they had requisitioned from the rest of the chaos covenant. Quelana stops just outside and begins to mutter encouraging words to herself before briskly following him inside, Quelaag and Quelina look at her wide eyed and Quelana closes her eyes preparing herself to be burned or hit... She feels a pair of arms wrap around her, she opens her eyes and sees a tearful Quelina hugging her tightly, some sharp scales of her lower body pokes her but she can only feel the warmth of her younger sisters arms.

    Quelina "You''re alive!" She says hoarsely before turning to Quelaag, "I knew Lana was stronger than Gwyn''s army!"

    Quelana grimaces as she hears this and tries to respond, "Ah, actually I never fought th-"

    Quelaag looks at her with a scowl, "I had hoped you had died..." The atmosphere immediately turns tense, "If you had I wouldn''t have to remember how you ran from battle." the flames covering her lower body intensify as she continues "And yet from what I''ve heard you''ve been moping just outside of here for centuries? Why!?"

    Quelana "I''m sorry!-" Her reply is stopped as she''s smothered by a white spider, Quelina sends a pleading look to her sister, "Quelaag, we haven''t seen her for a long time... Perhaps we should forget the past and begin to connect with each other again.. Like family?"

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    Reima can see that Quelaag wants to shout and scream at her Quelana''s betrayal but is momentarily quelled by Quelina''s intervention.

    Quelaag "Fine, but I refuse to be family with a betrayer!" She begins to leave and Reima follows after he while sending a encouraging look to the tearful younger sister.

    After leaving she throws her arms into the air in exacerbation, "The nerve of her? She''s sorry? How does that make up for the centuries where I had to care for Quelina alone!?!" She turns to Reima, "Well? Isn''t it rather disgusting that she had wallowed in self pity instead of assisting in helping when Quelina was sick?" She asks him while retaining her vicious look.

    Reima "I don''t like what she did and yes, I think it''s deplorable but how would she know of Quelina''s condition if she was hidden by an illusionary wall?"

    The question stumps the angry spider who turns her irritation on him instead, "Why are you defending her! She deserves everything I said to her."

    Reima "I agree. But if you care about Quelina at all then you should try to come to some kind of agreement, I''d hate to see her caught between you fighting with Quelana." He says, mentally noting that he also wishes to learn her Pyromancies.

    While Quelaag can see reason in Reima''s calm responses she refuses to be calmed so easily, "Fine, be like that! I''m need to kill something." She scuttles out of the cave and towards Blight Town, presumably to wipe out the already dwindling population of monsters.

    Solaire walks up behind him and rests his hand on Reima''s shoulder, "Trouble in paradise?"... Wait a second, where did Solaire learn that phrase? He ignores niggling question and sighs, "Yeah, you can say that... I would ask you for advice but I can tell your just as clueless as I am when it comes to women." The duo laughs which attracts Priscilla who joins in despite not knowing the context.

    Reima keeps a close eye on the interactions between Quelana and Quelina, at first the older sister seems rather reluctant to express her feelings but the adorable albino spider manages to go through her tough exterior. Quelana breaks down crying on her shoulder and Reima decides to leave them to it while trying to stay out of Quelaag''s warpath. He decides to learn a couple more Pyromancies from Eingyi to pass the time, he gets given the scrolls for Poison mist and Toxic mist and sits down outside to read and test them.

    The poison mist pyromancy releases a purple mist that invades the bloodstream of anyone who inhales it, the damage depends on the creature and its susceptibility to poison. Reima reads through it a couple times before using his flame to expel a pale purple mist in-front of himself, the incorrect colour and small amount means that he''d miscast it somehow. He realises that he''d not put enough mana into it and pushes enough mana to cast a Crystal Soul spear into it, a large cloud erupts from his flame and floats down through the huge roots that cover the nearby lands. He nods appreciatively before casting it another couple of times to get the muscle memory forming, afterwards he opens the toxic mist scroll and while it looks basically the same the effects are fundamentally different. It immediately starts corroding any organic material that it comes across, if he put enough mana into the spell he''s sure it would melt a normal human into sludge in a matter of moments... Scary!

    As he starts to roll the scrolls into their original shape he sees a slightly calmer Quelaag slowly walking towards the cave entrance from the swamp. He waves at her but receives a cold shoulder in return... He sighs, why are females so complicated?

 130 Chaotic feelings?

    The next day Reima can be found eating some dried meat with Solaire and Priscilla while Quelina and Quelana slowly converse nearby, it would almost be a perfect "morning"? if not for the screaming giant not far away from their location, Ceaseless discharge, the sisters brother seems to have returned for round two of his self imposed screaming contest... Laughs aside Reima feels sad for the pitiful fellow who''s likely been screaming like this for centuries, he doesn''t know whether he''d stay sane through the pain were he in the same situation.

    He hasn''t seen Quelaag since yesterday and worries she might do something stupid, the conversation between Solaire and Priscilla on what a dog looks like is interrupted by a loud explosion near the demon ruins. Reima hops up and quickly arrives to the hot area and sees Quelaag staring at what seems to be the remains of a boulder. Nearby servants of the chaos covenant clap at the impressive display, the angry spider notices him arrive and huffs while turning away.

    Reima "Yo, I know you saw me, stop acting like a child and lets have a rational discussion."

    Quelaag "Do you need something? I was just practising my spells, would you care to leave me to concentrate?"

    Reima "Your mad at Quelana, not me... Or perhaps you should return that dress if you hate me so much." He points at the red dress that she hasn''t removed since she was gifted it.

    She looks like she wants to retort but can''t due to him being correct, she''s just letting her frustration out on him as he''s an easy target... Or atleast he was until he threatened her dress.

    The nearby Servants of Chaos decide to move further away to allow the two some privacy, after everyone had left she Quelaag looks at Reima and questions, "How do you suggest I should act towards someone whom I despise?"

    Reima "I don''t really care, act how you want as long as it doesn''t affect Quelina. Surely you''re willing to quell your petty resentment for your younger sisters sake, did you see them earlier? She hasn''t stopped talking to Quelana since she''d arrived." He feels like he''s trying to talk a painter out of painting when she''s in this kind of mood.

    Hearing his words she doesn''t reply and thinks over whether or not her pride would allow her to ignore Quelana''s slight to her and her family, sure her apology for her actions in the war seemed sincere but is that really good enough for a crime that would traditionally result in execution? Obviously they don''t live in Izalith any longer so the laws there don''t apply but this line of thinking only makes her angrier when she links Izalith''s subsequent fall to Quelana''s abandonment of the battlefield... The sisters were the most powerful Pyromancers around and massively helped with the war efforts, as Gwyn''s children weren''t willing to travel so far down to assist their troops they were slowly gaining ground, then Quelana abandoned the battlefield and allowing her troops to fall prey to an ambush while searching for her. She has seen her flee but didn''t mention it to Quelina as a dead sister is better than a malicious one.

    She hears a cough from Reima which draws her from her thoughts, "So, are you willing to make a small sacrifice for Quelina?" He repeats her earlier question. Despite the resentment still bubbling under her other turbid emotions she gives a small almost unnoticeable nod that she herself is surprised by.

    Reima "Good, I''m not saying that you have to like her, only that you shouldn''t be at each others throats while Quelina is present... And who knows, maybe you''ll come to understand each other?" He adds the last part as an afterthought and she scoffs.

    He leads the reluctant spider to her sisters before leaving them to sort it out themselves... Reima is not a councillor or a psychologist, while he''d like to be able to help further he''d probably just be invading their privacy. He ignores the continual screams of ceaseless discharge while making a mental note to talk to the sisters about him after they''ve sorted themselves out. Deciding he wants to work out the irritation that he had built up while talking to Quelaag he goes to find the chaos servants to "train" with them. He passes by Solaire and Priscilla who decide to watch him as there isn''t really much to do down here, he walks to hot rocky area and finds the group of Pyromancers practising low level fireballs in various combat situations... He doesn''t think the guy juggling them is being serious but perhaps it trains his control? He tries to ignore it but Priscilla excitedly runs over to him to observe how he does it, he gets a sour feeling and decides to try one up this guy who''s stealing the albino dragon''s attention away.

    The trio spend the rest of the day having a laugh while messing around with the Pyromancers who seem very happy to host one of their fair ladies close friends, Reima only manages to juggle three small fireballs by the end of the day. He looks over and sees Solaire and a young chaos servant throwing Lightning bolts and fireball respectively, they seem to be having fun as they are laughing uproariously as they do so.

    Alas, he never managed to beat the mysterious fire juggler who had Priscilla clapping louder for every fireball added to the large quantity he was already juggling. He decides to just let it be and sits next to her to observe how he controls so many individual flames at once.

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 131 Lava is in the air

    Reima spends a couple days just relaxing in the sisters "home", while Quelaag and Quelana seemed to have come to some sort of agreement he can still hear the former muttering venomous insults under her breath. The topic of when they would put Ceaseless Discharge came up and caused a multitude of people to voice their opinions, Quelina wanted to find a cure, Quelaag and Quelana both wanted him to be put to rest and some chaos servants wanted to worship him as a god. After some long "heated" discussions they finally agreed that it''d be almost impossible to cure him as they hadn''t even started being able to help return the sisters to human forms. Not to mention Reima said that''s it''s impossible for him to progress to their mother without stopping him spewing lava everywhere.

    Once they all agreed on how they would approach the problem Solaire immediately volunteered himself to help Reima battle it, obviously he agreed as Solaire is a competent warrior. He looks to the sisters and finds none of them willing to attempt to murder their brother, it''s probably a good thing seeing as their Pyromancies probably wouldn''t work against a literal being made from lava. They''d just completed their selection of who''s going when Priscilla spoke up, "I wouldst like to battle as well..." all eyes turned to her and then to Solaire who immediately refused stating it''s "too dangerous", she immediately started to pout while saying they had fought Ornstein and Smough together, this isn''t any different than that."

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    Reima chimes in, "I think you''ll find that it is very different... Ceaseless discharge is as large as a building and is comprised of lava, one wrong move and you''ll be killed instantly. That isn''t a problem for us undead, but you wouldn''t come back like we would."

    She crosses her arms and sits down while glaring at them, Solaire feels bad but he''d rather have a an angry niece than a dead one.

    They had just starting making preparations a few days in advance to fight the towering being and were discussing strategies in the demon ruins when a white figure accidentally falls from where they were apparently hiding from... The now visible Priscilla looks sheepishly at them, Solaire immediately steps forward to reprimand her "I''ve told you already, I will not take you into battle against that thing!"

    Priscilla "Please brother, I just wish to be helpful." She uses her puppy dog eyes at max strength to whittle down his defences but he doesn''t seem to budge...

    Reima "Err, I think I might have a suggestion." The two turn to him, He summons a huge bow and a couple large arrows form his folded space and easily tosses them to Priscilla. "If you''re able to pull this bow string and aim accurately you can cover us from a distance...This is as close as I''m willing to let you get."

    Her eyes shimmer as she attempts to figure out how to use the bow... After struggling for a minute or two Solaire steps up and grabs it from her hands, "Let me help you... First you plant it in the floor like this." He stabs thee spear-like bottom of the bow into the charred ground and glancing at her. "Then you place your fingers like this, and use all of the muscles in your back to pull... Make sure your feet are placed like this so you can aim accurately with every arrow" He finishes his demonstration by letting the empty bow string go and creating a large twang. Priscilla was watching closely and approaches to try mimic Solaire''s movements, he moves her limbs slightly to get her into a correct position and she practises pulling the string a couple times... He can see sweat start to bead on he forehead after a couple tries... Whether this is from the lava nearby or the effort she''s having to exert Reima can''t really tell.

    Finally they get to the point where Solaire hands her an almost spear-length arrow, she struggles to hold it in between her fingers but eventually manages it and starts aiming towards the sturdy stone wall leading out of the demon ruins. She lets go of the string releasing the great arrow which impales itself deeply inside of the stone... While being no where near close to the target they''d set for her.

    Reima leaves them to continue practising and goes back inside to check on the others, he gets pulled aside by Quelana who thanks him for curing Quelina, he asks her whether she would be willing to teach him her personally created Pyromancies and she readily agrees. He doesn''t know how much time he spent under her tutelage but by the time she was done he had learned Fire whip, Great combustion and Fire storm. The hardest of which was easily Fire Storm due to it''s unique way of casting, generally you''d use mana to manipulate your Pyromancy flame but instead you had to channel it into the ground to cause pillars of fire to erupt from weaknesses in the material below... It''s not all that different from a gas pipe explosion if you exclude the giant pillar of fire that follows it.

 132 Big brother

    During the preparations Reima went round to each sisters to see if they had tips for him, Quelina shook her head sadly and apologised and so Reima went to see if Quelaag had anything to add. He finds her grooming her long legs with a rag and wiping what looks like charcoal from them.

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    Reima "Yo, Quelaag, Is there anything I should probably knew before I confront your brother?" He questions, minding his tone when speaking of their relation.

    She looks at him and seems to ponder for a moment, "I remember when he was first mutated into that form, he''d always be in pain but the most painful was apparently his head... It wasn''t covered in lava like the rest of his body but it was always "Sore". I think his head is probably the least mutated of his body and is likely where you should strike." Reima nods and thanks her, she sends a small smile and continues brushing her legs down.

    Reima leaves to finds Quelana an then repeats his previous question.

    Quelana "I don''t really know... Quelina said something about them enshrining the robes I''d left behind as a memorial for me, apparently brother watches over the small shrine and attacks anyone who would dare disturb it." She looks down probably reminiscing about her brother, "If you need to get his attention quickly just do something to the shrine... While it would be disrespectful if I were dead that is obviously not the case, I give you permission to desecrate my grave." She says the last part sarcastically.

    Reima "You promise to not haunt me afterwards? Not that I''d mind such a beautiful ghost following me around." He teases her and he thinks he can see a blush from without her hood. She seems to shrink away further into the cave leaving Reima alone, seems like she''s rather shy to compliments.

    Reima relays all the information he''d found to Solaire and Priscilla who seems to still be practising her aim at the rubble that resembles the wall they were previously using... Reima decides not to say that she''d be hard pressed to miss such a big target as he''d likely receive a slap in response.

    Solaire "It''s rather morbid isn''t it, planning what essentially amounts to the murder of your brother... The sisters don''t seem to be taking it too badly, apart from the younger one of-course."

    Reima shrugs, "They''ve been listening to him scream in agony for centuries... I think they''ve come to terms with what must happen... Besides, aren''t you planning something similar?"

    Solaire gives a grim laugh, "Hahaha, I guess you''re right."

    Around a day later a large group can be found standing just outside the entrance to the demon ruins. The chaos servants, Eingyi, Laurentius, the sisters, Solaire, Priscilla and Reima are all present.

    The trio who volunteered to battle with Ceaseless discharge is already suited up, Solaire and Reima with their usual armour and already enchanted weaponry, Reima had enchanted Solaire''s shield with his sorcery while they wait for Priscilla to dress. She''s wearing large brown robes that have been enchanted to resist fire, she has a huge Quiver that holds a large number of great arrows along with her scythe strapped to her back, she has the dragon slayers Greatbow in her arms as well.

    The others wish them luck as they hear the screams and moans of the giant figure constantly spewing lava from it''s body.

    Reima "Alright, remember the game plan, Priscilla stay on the bridge and move back if you see it approaching you. Solaire for the love of god don''t try and block a hit directly, It''d be like trying to block a waterfall but with lava, try stay back and throw lightning bolts at it while I distract it... Any questions?"

    Solaire "What should we do if you are killed?"

    Reima "Retreat immediately, it''s not worth putting Priscilla in danger to save the few minutes it would take for me to come back." They duo nod at him, Priscilla stabs the bow into the bridge, the sharp spear point easily piercing the stone and allowing stability for the user.

    Reima and Solaire walks across the bridge and enter the Fog-Gate before walking towards the shrine. The towering figure of Ceaseless discharge makes them sweat by just being in his presence due to the heat he''s giving off, Reima has already equipped the flame stoneplate ring to alleviate some of the damage he might take. He sends a look to Solaire he gets as far away from the huge being while also keeping a line of sight, Ceaseless discharge watches them curiously while moaning in pain, it''s many eyes looking directly at Reima as he approaches Quelana''s shrine... He grabs the robes and stores them in his Folded Space after casting Homing Crystal Soulmass and preparing a large Crystal Soul spear. Ceaseless discharge immediately becomes enraged at his actions and starts bubbling in fury, a lightning bolt followed by a Crystal Soul spear and a huge great arrow all hit his head simultaneously causing the huge being to shudder and use one of it''s many lava tentacles to cover it''s face in response. Reima sends a thumbs up to Solaire before running to the edge of the cliff and firing a few Soul arrow to get it''s attention, he ducks under a wayward tentacle that reacts to the sorceries being fire at it. As it swings past him drops of lava sizzle when they hit the charred ground beneath him causing Reima to gulp loudly, as an undead he can''t gain any permanent wounds but that doesn''t stop the fear of being burned alive by lava.

 133 Fluff MVP

    Ceaseless discharge peeks through its tentacles to try spot it''s attackers and sees one just below it trying to fire blue arrows at it''s face. The insane mass of lava immediately starts moving every tentacle to attack the ant sized creature, four tentacles swipes horizontally in an attempt to grab it while another two try to crush it like a bug.

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    The Ant or "Reima" as he''s commonly referred as has to blink away to avoid the rediculous amount of tentacles trying to attack him, not only is it the quantity that''s making it very difficult it''s the attack angles the being is using... Without Observation Haki being used he''d already be a pancake due to it''s almost intelligently placed strikes, he continues to fire Soul arrows at it to distract it from his allies, he highly doubts either of them would even come close to dodging the onslaught of strikes.

    The blue arrow hits it seemingly causing no damage as another lightning bolt whizzing through the air and connects with Ceaseless discharge''s face, it is immediately followed by a great arrow that misses it''s mark and hits it''s shoulder that''s covered in lava. Reima can faintly hear a cures spoken from a gentle voice but he must be imaging it, another tentacle slams down next to him after he had side stepped it with Windfall. Reima ignores the sweat dripping profusely from his face as he slams the Crystal enchanted Arcell onto the tentacle almost severing it completely were he not interrupted by another tentacle that nearly took his head off. He feels a searing pain in his shoulder and glances at it and spotting a small bit of lava that''d apparently dropped from a tentacle and burned it''s way through his armour, he ignores it for now as he has to blink away from another undodgeable combination of attacks. Were Reima able to fly or manipulate gravity he might be able to dodge them without using his cheat-like teleportation but he''s unlikely to find such complicated magic in this land where magical control comes second to strength.

    After a small while of being pelted with many different projectiles Ceaseless discharges vomits a huge quantity of lava onto the platform that Reima and Solaire were standing on, they immediately retreat to wait for the lava to slowly make it''s way off and into the burning lake below. Another great arrow hits the large being as the two are moving and it draws it''s attention towards the person who had fired it, Priscilla. It begins to stomp towards her but Reima and Solaire immediately try to change it''s trajectery by firing large amount of lightning bolts and Crystal Soul spears. The huge creature stumbles back and almost falls over into the lake of lava when it''s impacted by the projectiles fire from the angry duo. It seems that Solaire had fire a few Sunlight spears as well, Reima looks over to see him panting, he probably isn''t used to casting those yet which caused him to use a lot of his Magical power. Reima keeps firing Soul arrows at regular intervals to keep the boss''s attention on him as he walks on the now searingly hot ground that was temporarily covered by lava. He can feel his boot melt and burn slightly as he accidentally stepped in a small puddle of lava that was left behind. He curses and scrapes it on the ground as if he''d just stepped in dog-shit which only causes the lava to destroy more of his boot, his irritated actions are stopped as a roar of pain and anger alerts him to Ceaseless discharge''s assault. It tries to swing a tentacle horizontally at him but Reima jumps in the air and severs it, causing droplets of lava to cover his armour and a few to land in his hair... He shouts as his hair immediately ignites causing the pristine white to char black as he quickly pours a small amount of Estus on it, the liquid soothes the wound and returns his hairs colour back to normal, just in time to see the world around himself spinning... No, he''s the one spinning, a large black mark scars his armour as he''s thrown through the air and heavily impacting a stone wall behind him, his vision blurs for a moment before quickly returning to full clarity as a golden glow surrounds his body. He looks to Solaire who looks exhausted from the healing miracle he''d just cast on Reima, it seems like he''d been smacked by a tentacle in response to him severing one. He looks over and sees the heavily damaged being spewing lava from it''s missing tentacle, Reima gets up slowly and continues firing Crystal Soul spears at it... One hits it''s heavily damaged face and causes the top black layer to be blasted off revealing the glowing white wound beneath it, he''s about to target it with another Spear when a great arrow pierces the weak spot and exits the back of the monsters head, causing it to shudder for a moment before dropping heavily to the floor as if it''s strings had just been cut.

    He thanks whatever deities are out there and sits down feeling thoroughly exhausted from the battle, he feels a huge amount of souls enter him confirming the death of the enemy. He looks to the side and sees Solaire with his helmet placed at his side looking equally haggard... They hear the pitter patter of some quick light steps which is revealed to be Priscilla, who sprints at them before leaping on them both before hugging them. "We did it!" she shouts joyfully, "I thought I was in trouble for a moment but we pulled it off eventually!", she giggles in between her babbling recital of the recent battle that she seemingly forgot they were present in. The duo just give a tired sigh and praise her for her excellent marksmanship.

 134 Alcohol makes everything better

    A small rest later and the victorious trio look over the edge that overlooked the lava lake, even from here they can see the lake slowly but surely draining downstream. Without Ceaseless Discharge constantly adding more lava the lake will eventually drain completely, in the game it happens almost instantaneously but here it''ll probably take a while due to Lava''s high viscosity. Reima his two friends on the back, "Good fight guys, that could have gone a lot worse than it did." He idly runs his hand through his air, still getting phantom pains from having lava dropped in it.

    Priscilla "Was mine archery satisfactory?" she asks in her peculiar speaking mannerism... He should tell Solaire to try coach her on speaking normally.

    Solaire "It was, I''m surprised you''ve come to so far in such short time... Although you did miss a couple." He receieves a pout when he points out her failed shots.

    Reima "If it felt right then we can try get the Giant blacksmith to make you one, I''m sure he''d be happy to." She nods in response to his question.

    Reima "Alright, I think we should get back. The others must''ve noticed the screaming is gone, try be sympathetic to the sisters..." He asks them, hoping that they wouldn''t say something uncouth.

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    Solaire "Don''t worry my friend, we''ll mourn with them then throw a jolly good party... Do you still have drinks left if you don''t mind my asking?"

    Reima grins, "I definitely do, why? Hoping to get jollied?" They both laugh and the confused Priscilla just looks on at them.

    They make their way back through the ruins and past the chaos servants bowing their heads low in respect to their strength and in mourning for their lost "master/god", they enter and find the three sisters sitting in the main cave, Quelina is crying into Quelaag''s shoulder while Quelana pats her on the back while whispering reassuring words.

    Reima "We''re back..." He gets their attention.

    Quelaag is the first to speak, "Thank you Reima for stopping his painful existence... You two as well, no doubt you played as large a role as Reima." She looks at Priscilla and Solaire with respect.

    Quelina doesn''t say anything but Quelana speaks for her, "Words can not portray my gratitude for what you''ve done, I''m sure Lina agrees when we thank you for doing what we could not."

    Reima shakes his head, "Don''t mind it... I''m only helping out my sisters, right?" Quelaag grins at this through her sore eyes.

    The group along with the large contingent of the Chaos servants hold a ceremonial "burial" for Ceaseless Discharge or Quenall as he was called before undergoing the chaos mutations. Reima thinks it lasted for around 12-24 hours but he isn''t sure due to being unable to tell the time here... After the "burial" Reima breaks out a couple barrels of Kuretz whisky along with a small pile of dried meats. Almost everyone gets involved... Even Quelina and Priscilla who refused to not drink with everyone, the change of atmosphere was a bit jarring, going from burial to party but the alcohol helped the transition. Reima had to make clear to everyone to keep the flames away from the barrels as the alcohol would literally ignite and explode if they did, especially in a place as hot as this. Reima broke out the Gwent cards for people to play, Solaire had no problem on coaching the around forty Chaos servants on how to play. Reima sat beside the sisters and Prisclla and told stories of his travels through Absolver and his home Kaer Morhen, he didn''t tell them they were specifically in other worlds but if they were listening properly they could probably guess. He was telling the story of how he first met Kuretz, the man who made this Alcohol which they fondly named Essence of booze before a spectacularly tipsy Priscilla started cuddling him... It seems she''s the grabby kind of drunk, this is part of the reason he didn''t want her to drink as you never know how they''d act unless you''ve seen it before.

    Reima in his slightly drunken state just sighs and continues telling stories, he even started telling them of the technologies on earth, they called him out for lying but the sly grin on his face made them think he might be telling the truth... All through this Priscilla got increasingly "intimate" Reima having to move her hands positioning to prevent an angry Solaire from spearing him, as he kept drinking his dulled senses didn''t allow him to see the glaring Quelaag who didn''t seem amused at all when looking at the half dragon resting her large breasts atop his head, drink still in hand.

    He only found out that Quelaag is an angry, jealous drunk when she gave her drink to Quelana and pounced on top of Reima and Priscilla... The subsequent "wrestling match" would be described for a long time afterwards by a grinning Quelina much to the displeasure of Quelaag and amusement of Priscilla.

    The next day Reima finds himself under what seems to be a massive heavy pillow? He tries to move it but hears a moan from a familiar voice... He realises that he is under the spider body of Quelaag and tries to quickly find an exit before she wakes up, he manages to crawl out only to come face to face with Quelina being smothered by Priscilla''s breasts... Both still asleep. Over in the corner he can see Quelana with a scowl on her face while she rubs her temples, "I''ll never drink again..." she says hoarsely.

    Reima "You want some water or something?" She nods and he retrieves a flask of water from his Folded space before giving it to her. She thanks him and starts downing it quickly.

    Reima "So errrr, nothing untoward happened last night right?"

    Her scowl morphs into a grin "No, why? You want something to happen?" She nudges her head towards the beautiful women sleeping nearby.

    Reima blushes and stutters out, "N-no. I''m a gentleman, through and through."

    She shakes her head, "Right. Whatever you say."

 135 The truth! Shall set you free!!!

    Reima ignores Quelana''s teasing and remembers something, he gets out the gold hemmed robes that were on the alter that Ceaseless discharge was looking over.

    Reima "Before I forget, these are yours are they not?" he hands them over.

    Quelana nods and takes them into her arms, "Thank you... Pardon me but I''d like to change into these, they are much cleaner than my current attire as you can see." She gets up and walks out, maybe ten minutes later walking back out with her hood down, finally revealing her face to Reima. She has long black hair tied into a bun with pale white skin only contrasted by her bright red lips... She''s very beautiful, he can see the resemblance between her sisters and her as it seems their family is blessed with good looks. She spins around letting the gold hemmed black robs flutter slightly, "How do they look" she asks in teasing tone.

    Reima "Beautiful." He states simply trying to get a reaction out of her and is successful as her entire face seems to go bright pink... Too easy.

    They continue to converse for a short while until the others start waking up, Priscilla apologises to Quelina for drooling on her but Quelina apolgises for the same thing, they both giggle disturbing Quelaag who seems to be confused at the loss of her human pillow and scowls when she seems him talking with her bitch sister... I''m in the dog house now Reima thinks to himself as he sees this reaction, he''s about to try calm her down when a drowsy Solaire stumbles in holding slightly sticky Gwent cards...

    Solaire "I am truly sorry my friend but ones of those clumsy drunkards spilt something on your cards." He presents them to Reima apologetically. He sighs, lucky these things are unlike the cards on earth and are semi-water proof... This also makes them rather expensive which is why it''s so hard to build a deck with them.

    Reima "Don''t mind it, they aren''t actually damaged so they should be fine." He''s amused when Solaire releases a breath, apparently relieved he wasn''t angry at them. What he doesn''t know is that Solaire wasn''t scared of his reaction but the servants were... They knew his close relation to the sisters and had seen his skill first hand, they didn''t need him taking his anger out on them.

    Reima sits up straight and addresses the room, "Well since most of you are here I think I should talk to you guys about my plans for the future."

    Everyone turns their attention to him. "You said before that you''d have to kill our mother, the witch of Izalith?" Quelina speaks up.

    Reima nods, "Yes that''s what I intend to do... But that isn''t the only thing, once I''ve gathered all of the lord souls I don''t intend on linking the first flame." Solaire is shocked speechless at this but the others not so much.

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    Reima "Once lord Gwyn is dead the world will likely start deteriorating until everything is destroyed... Luckily this isn''t a fate we all have to follow, most of you know already that I''m a seer." Quelana looks at him suspiciously as she hadn''t heard about this before.

    Reima continues, "But that isn''t my only ability. I am able to travel between worlds, as some of you have already guessed, I wasn''t born in this one." Quelaag and Solaire nod at this. "Once I''ve linked the flame the world will probably take a couple hundred years to actually be destroyed but I will have to leave after that, I plan to return around a year after I leave to offer you guys "salvation" as some would call it... A place in my world to live, I don''t need an answer now, or even in a year. So just think about it for when the time comes." He lets silence rein after his speech as he stands up and heads to the demon ruins to check the current level of the lava lake. Solaire sees this and follows him leaving the confused, bewildered and slightly scared room to their thoughts.

    Outside Solaire had just caught up with Reima and begins questioning him.

    Solaire "My friend, how long have you been planning this?" he asks anxiously.

    Reima shrugs, "Since I first arrived in this world... My main goal is to gain power but I''ve met such great people already, why wouldn''t I offer the chance to live past this worlds limits."

    Solaire nods, "Yes but what about the world? These lands surely deserve to exist... Your plans essentially condemn them for eternity." "No." Reima immediately says.

    Reima "You wouldn''t have noticed but the world has been stuck in an endless cycle until now, only dark exists, pygmies find fire becoming lords, they rein until the fire starts to fade... Then Gwyn''s incarnation links the fire to humanity dooming humans, eventually an undead refusing the link the flame resulting in darkness... And then the cycle continues, what I plan to do is remove fire from the equation and allow the world to move in a different direction, change will happen no matter what and I''d like to give this world a chance to stop stagnating." The information stumps Solaire, Reima had never lied to him before. Could what he''s saying be truthful or is he making up lies as a means to an end...

    After a couple minutes of thinking Solaire looks Reima dead in the eyes... "I''ll trust you my friend, but I will be there with you fighting my father, and if you betray me, Priscilla and everyone else I''ll be at the forefront to exact vengeance." Reima laughs and punched his in the shoulder, "I expect nothing less from my sun bro."

 137 ReEmber me...

    The two undead start walking around the blisteringly hot lake bed to find the chaos ember, luckily the taurus demon''s seemed to be the only ones inhabiting this area otherwise Solaire would probably drag him out and leave the ember... Eventually they spot the Chaos ember semi-hidden atop some lava that''s glowing a harsh red and orange, Reima doesn''t really know how he''s going to get this but navigates to the opposite side of it and uses Aard to try and push it onto some dry land. It splashes lava almost everywhere making Solaire and himself almost shit their pants, the ember is pushed directly next to some traversable land, covering his hand in Armament Haki Reima retrieves it and shakes off any lava still clinging to it.

    Solaire "Was it truly worth the effort?" he says giving a sigh.

    Reima just nods and then points to the corner of the lake that has a familiar demon hiding near it, it looks like the Capra demon that was protecting the path to the depths... Either they couldn''t be bothered to create more demons or these are the races most numerous to these lands.

    Reima "That''s the way forward, remember to watch your step, I''m not going to dive into a lake of lava to try get you out..." He gives a grim look to Solaire who retorts, "Likewise my friend."

    They get to the demon and easily kill it with a lightning bolt and a Soul arrow, instead of charred lake bed they were walking on the path forward seems to be the ruins of Izalith, the architecture reminds Reima of Aztec buildings from earth... Obviously the Aztecs didn''t have demon guarding their properties and lakes of lava to create lighting but potato, tomato''s...

    They look towards the path and see stairs leading to a large doorway enshrouded in a gold fog, Reima doesn''t really know why the fog is gold but guesses he''ll find out when they get there.

    They fight through many Capra demons who seem to be more skilful with their two huge machetes than the one protecting the Depths, it doesn''t matter though as Solaire and Reima cut them down regardless. Once they''ve reached the stairs a fat statue with a snakes head seems to come to life and start spewing fire at them, Reima simply kicks it with a Haki infused foot which launches it off of the platform and into the fiery abyss below. The two loop around and kill what seems to be a giant centipede that reveals a bonfire in it''s previous location, they sit down at it and rest for a while... The battles are harder than any other area they had previously been to but they are gradually getting more proficient at fighting, their teamwork is improving quickly as well. By now Reima''s melee combat strength could dwarf any martial artist from earth, his skills forged through constant battles makes him a scary opponent to face, not to mention his physical capabilities which are heads and shoulders above even Geralt with his special Witcher mutations. He looks into the fire and realises he has quite a lot of souls stored up and decides to allocate them to his intelligence again, he absorbs the souls and uses the energy to increase his soul level, raising his intelligence to what he can only guess is 99. Afterwards he doesn''t really feel any different, apart from the ever present ache and itch during the process, he casts a Soul arrow at a nearby wall and notes that it feels almost effortless to cast such a low level Sorcery... Even his Sign strength seems to have increased along with this as his understanding had improved along with his mental capabilities. Reima doesn''t really know what he wants to upgrade next, should he do Dexterity or Attunement? He shakes his head and decides to choose whatever picks his fancy when the time comes.

    After a longer than normal rest due to Reima upgrading his soul level the duo get up and start descending the stairs towards the large doorway, only to be stopped by a larger than normal Taurus demon who''s charging up the stairs towards them. Reima is scared slightly due to the way the bridge is shaking, thinking the bridge might collapse he launches two Crystal Soul spears in succession which both strike true, killing the large creature before it even reaches them.

    Solaire "Impressive..." he mutters after witnessing such quick conjuration, He''d only seen Seath the scaleless cast sorceries in such a manner.

    Reima shrugs at his seemingly unintentional praise and observes the stairs to check if the demon has done any lasting damage to it, after looking closely it seems perfectly fine... It seems to have been created by and for demons to be running up and down it. They reach the bottom and are ambushed by another Taurus demon along with a centipede monster that doesn''t seem able to actually reach them... Instead just hovering just outside of the hole it had made, waiting for them to approach.

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    They swiftly deal with the Taurus demon like the others that''d come before it before turning their glare to the centipede who seems to shudder slightly under their predatory gazes.

    Reima instead of approaching the doorway to Izalith takes a detour to the path on the left, Solaire looks on confused and he simply says "Flame ember." which makes a reluctant Solaire quickly follow behind.

 138 Demon Fart-Sage...

    Reima vaguely remembers the side path and prepares a Crystal Soul spear which silently hovers over his left hand in preparation for the incoming ambush, he''s found that it''s much easier to retain conjurations after upgrading his intelligence... With enough practise perhaps he can conjure multiple spears at once? His thoughts are interrupted as the ground shakes revealing five centipedes that block him and Solaire on both sides, stupidly they still seem to be not in range to strike allowing himself and Solaire to blast them to high heaven, or hell given their current location. The only thing Reima actually likes about these things is that they drop red titanite shards after they die, he stores them away before walking to the desiccated corpse almost falling off the cliff into the lava below, a glowing white orb hovers above it. Reima grabs the loot which reveals a bright red ember, different from the dark red of the chaos ember, he momentarily thinks about the various blacksmiths in Lordran... Andre obviously, he should be able to infuse weapon with divine and occult, giant blacksmith who''s able to enchant Crystal, lightning and create boss weapons under certain circumstances... That skeleton dude in Nito''s realm who''s able to utilise the chaos and fire embers, and last but not least that guy from Vinheim who''s locked in a cage in New Londo, he should be able to enchant weapons with magic? Reima isn''t really sure as he didn''t interact with that blacksmith in the games a lot. Solaire nudges him, "Stop day dreaming, we''ve got a mission to accomplish."

    After acquiring the large flame ember the two go back to the doorway which seems a lot more ominous with the gold fog covering it... Reima takes a deep breath and steps through it with no problem and waits on the other side for Solaire, he hears a curse and someone being thrown to the floor, trying not to let a grin spread across his face he steps back through to find Solaire sprawled out on the floor...

    Reima "What''s wrong?"

    Solaire "I don''t seem to be able to traverse that Fog-gate... What could be the problem?"

    ...

    Reima "Ahhh... Oh, I''m really stupid aren''t I!" his friend looks at him confused.

    Solaire "What do you mean? Is the Fog related to you in some way?" Reima just nods.

    Reima "Wait here, I''ll be back in a flash." he says before vanishing into turquoise particles leaving the man momentarily alone in demon infested lands.

    Reima appears in Firelink shrine and in-front of a giant snoring snake... Reima just ignores the annoying primordial serpent and jumps into the pit where the rest of it''s body supposedly is, he lands on the floor with a grunt but his momentum seems to have been stopped by something. He looks around at the dim, dark room and sees a large stone door with an alter sitting before it. He approaches it and hears an angry voice behind him.

    Frampt "You sorry fool¡­ You could not be the Chosen one. Enough¡­ I shall slumber, until I am awakened again¡­" he says before slowly disappearing into the darkness.

    Reima grins, if his plan goes off correctly then there won''t ever be another Chosen one. He places the lord vessel on top of the alter which causes the ground to vibrate slightly, he doesn''t give it another look and teleports back to Solaire.

    Reima had left a few moments ago and he thinks about sitting down to wait when the golden fog suddenly starts dispersing, he hadn''t expected Reima to be so quick about resolving this issue... A flash of light indicates his friends arrival and they quickly start walking towards their destination again. A path on the right side of the hall covered by roots, which leads to a shortcut to Izalith, Reima decides to activate it after defeating the boss behind the Fog-gate in front of them. The duo enchants their weapons before eating a couple green blossoms to boost their stamina. They enter revealing a dark room only lit by a huge fiery demon that''s lumbering towards them, it reminds Reima of the demons guarding he undead asylum... Again he thinks it''s either a re-skin or chaos isn''t all that chaotic as it seems to create a certain types of demons instead of randomly mutating everything... Perhaps the Witch of Izalith has some degree of control over what the bed of chaos creates? He receives a punch of the shoulder by Solaire who''s holding a lightning bolt.

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    Solaire "Do you have to do this every time we fight a large opponent?"

    Reima "What do you mean?" He asks without any degree of worry about the 2-3 story tall demon crushing numerous roots and branches while it approaches them.

    Solaire "You start daydreaming as soon as you lay your eyes upon a powerful enemy, please do it after we''ve defeated it... I''d rather not be crushed into paste as you admired it''s good looks" He says sarcastically.

    Reima nods, realising he had been doing this quite a lot... He starts conjuring Soul spears to throw at ti as Pyromancy likely wouldn''t work against it. They hit the creature but it''s stony skin seems to deflect most of the damage, even Solaire''s lightning doesn''t seem to do much, the creature points it flaming spear towards them, Reima grabs Solaire and casts Quen to shield them as an explosion compasses everything around them. It has the same annoying moves as the demon inside the prison, even the "fart" magic that he remembers vividly from the game... It seems to create combustible gas which ignites causing a different kind of explosions compared to other pyromancies.

 139 Sun Bros mortality.

    Reima releases his Quen shield which somehow managed to hold up against the huge explosion that seemed to cause a mini earthquake, it''s probably because the explosion wasn''t directed anywhere and just causes minimal damage to the surroundings. He looks up at the fiery demons face and thinks he sees a grin when it points it''s staff at them again, hoping his theory is correct Reima casts a strong Aard sign at it hoping to blow the combustible gas away from them. It works apparently as an explosion enshrouds the demon who wasn''t expecting a counter attack like this, telekinesis or similar abilities don''t seem to exist in Dark Souls excluding the force miracle obviously. The demons magic must''ve been unblockable until now which is why it looks so surprised. A lightning bolt digs into it''s forehead making it shudder under the powerful electricity effecting it''s body, Reima doesn''t do nothing as this is happening and launches a Crystal Soul spear at it''s knees, trying to get it to lose balance or even fall over. A large chunk of it''s kneecap is destroyed by his spell but it doesn''t seem to slow the demon down at all, it realises it''s trademark magic won''t be useful against them and starts using traditional Pyromancies. It waves it''s weapon in-front of itself and casts a dark fiery length of flame that resembles a Chaos flame whip, it moves towards them in a nonlinear pattern and tries to wrap Reima up to burn him alive. He blinks out of it''s range but has to repeat his action to dodge a Chaos fireball that''d just landed at his previous location, a lightning bolt strikes the demon again but it seems more intent on throwing pyromancies at Reima than actually defending itself.

    It seems to channel something in it''s spear before piercing the floor... Realising what this is Reima grabs Solaire and teleports to some branches high up off the floor, they both look down and see huge dark flames encompassing the hallway that is their battle ground. Solaire looks at him "Can you do that as well?" he seems shocked at the powerful pyromancies.

    Reima "Kinda, just a little weaker than whatever that is." he would laugh at Solaire''s shocked mumbling if they weren''t currently in a battle. The demon doesn''t know where it''s prey had gone, that is until it feels horrific pain on it''s back and shoulders, Reima and Solaire had just dropped from the roof and landed on the creatures fiery body to deliver a dropping attack... These attacks seem to be very effective against all types of demons, the fire-sage gives a roar and channels it''s energy to cause an explosion to encompass it''s body, throwing the duo a few meters away and off of it''s back.

    Reima who''d experienced this before immediately starts casting Soul spears at it''s already damage knee hoping to bring it down for an easy kill. Solaire who''s experience of being thrown large distances doesn''t equal Reima''s flops to the ground harshly causing his armour to make loud clinking noises as he skids across the floor.

    Reima''s spears knock another piece of stony scales from it''s knee revealing the soft flesh beneath, he''s about to cast another when the fire-sage starts spewing fire from it''s mouth towards him. He tries to get out of the way but the torrent of fire follows him wherever he tries to escape, not wanting to leave Solaire to be burned alive he casts another Quen shield and hopes that it''ll be strong enough to survive the assault. He can feel his shield starting to give way but the flames luckily end just before that can happen, a recovered Solaire launches a lightning bolt at the injured knee which pierces the flesh and causes it''s whole body to convulse. It falls to one knee with both hands on the floor to keep upright, this allows Reima to go to town on it as he starts swinging and stabbing Arcell into it''s joints, hoping to get it to relinquish it''s grip on it''s weapon. He''s successful as he severs it''s fat fingers from it''s hand before moving towards it''s face which had dropped low in pain.

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    The fight ends abruptly when a Crystal covered sword pierces it''s eye and renders it''s brain mush. It''s body starts dispersing, leaving behind a staff called the demon catalyst... It resembles the demons spear except it''s at an acceptable size now, Reima doesn''t really need Catalysts to cast spells but they would make conjuring slightly easier. He stores it away as the demons large soul is absorbed into the Dark Sign on his chest. He and Solaire sit down on one of the only remaining roots nearby to catch their breath.

    Solaire "If a demon is this strong how strong is the Witch of Izalith?" he asks, a grim look overtaking his features.

    Reima chuckles darkly, "You''d actually be surprised..." he decides to leave the surprise for Solaire. The Witch of Izalith''s form is intimidating... Until you realise it''s merely a construct, alas he''ll have to wait until the battle to see Solaire''s face.

    The duo compose themselves and backtrack to open the shortcut to Izalith, Reima remembers the bugs down here that lead to Solaire''s demise... They reach the bottom of the staircase and see many disgusting mutated bugs which they easily kill, the door at the end of the hallway is closed but slowly slides open at Reima''s approach... He guesses Quelaag sharing her flame had given him access to this place. Once it''s open they see a red light piercing the darkness.

    Solaire "Ah... It''s beautiful..." he says in a strange voice.

    Reima gives a vicious punch to Solaire''s face. "What on earth was that for!"

    Reima gives him a harsh look, "You know you die here right?" Solaire is confused at this, "What?"

    Reima "You, you allow yourself to be enslaved by a creature in this tunnel and eventually are slain after going insane." He says flatly. "Luckily, I''m here... I won''t allow you to stupidly walk to your demise like you have many, many times before."

    ...

    Solaire breaks the momentary silence, "I see... Thank you for preventing such a fate my friend, I have no idea what my nieces reaction would be if I suddenly disappeared again. Even if I did, I have no doubt you would take good care of her, you are an honourable man after all." he says sincerely.

    Reima can feel the raw emotion from his words and decides to not retort at being honourable... Someone who literally robs a kingdom cannot be described as such.

 141 Silver Sun Bro

    Reima keeps an eye out as he keeps applying more water to his injured friends armour, he has a divine blessing ready to go but if he heals Solaire while he''s still wearing the armour he''ll just get burned again. The armour is almost cooled when he spots some sort of horrific abomination shuffling towards them... It has eyes in all directions with tube like legs and two arms that resemble tentacles, it has one mouth that comprises it''s entire top half with razor sharp teeth that look less for chewing and more for shredding, it doesn''t look practical at all as the only way you could actually be eaten is by jumping in it. Those arms don''t look strong enough to actually throw someone high enough to eat. Reima remembers that these things were called chaos something? To be honest it''s the most suitable creature to be related to chaos as it''s form serves no discernible function, completely random and, chaotic.

    A Crystal Soul spear tears throw one of it''s many eyes and out of it''s back, instantly killing it... Wow, Reima thinks to himself, he had thought it would''ve been harder due to it''s intimidating appearance. After completely cooling Solaire''s armour he speaks to him. "Are you able to cast a great heal or something? It''d be a poor decision to waste such a valuable potion if you can solve this yourself."

    He doesn''t move but just states that he''s in too much pain to concentrate on casting it, Reima sighs and begins to slowly drip the priceless potion into his friends mouth, his burned skin immediately peels off to reveal the pristine white underneath. After a short moment to gather his composure he makes a grim face.

    Solaire "I need to change into some other armour... I''ve currently got melted flesh as a new addition to my armour, this is the most disgusting thing I''ve ever experienced. And we''ve waded through shit in the sewers." Reima gets a sour feeling in his stomach as he imagines it, Solaire begins to take off his armour and as Reima looks through his Folded space to find something that''d fit him... He reluctantly hands Solaire the silver knight armour set as it''s probably got a good enough fire resistance.

    Solaire thanks him before taking off all of his clothes, including his underwear that seems to be dyed completely red and black with blood and flesh before putting the armour on commando style.

    Reima "Come on dude, I still want to use that armour in the future."

    Solaire moves his arm while testing the armours flexibility, "It''s too bad that it''ll smell like my sweaty testicles then." he says while chuckling. He hands Reima back the helmet as the visor isn''t the right size and blocks his vision. Reima is rather surprised at how dashing Solaire looks with his average length golden hair, almost glowing yellow eyes and shining silver armour. He looks like a prince from those fairy tales... Maybe because he actually is a prince?

    He picks up his shield which seems to have cooled into a shape which makes the grip almost unusable, "Ah, sorry to be a bother but can you lend me a shield as well?" Reima groans and pulls out the knight shield.

    Solaire "Ah, that''s almost perfect. It''s a shame my shields is such a state..." He looks sadly at it, Reima wonders whether he remembers that it''s easily repairable at a bonfire. He stores the discarded armour and shield into his Folded space and looks at his newly equipped friend. "You good to go?"

    Solaire nods and flashes a sparkling white smile...

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    The duo start making their way through Izalith, killing anything they come across, Reima doesn''t forget to loot anything that isn''t and is nailed down either... He''s stolen a multitude of stone furniture that had some how survived the bed of chaos''s creation, they accidently fall into some kind of... Sewer? But find a couple chests containing Red titanite slabs which makes it all worth while. When they finally begin to approach what looks like the central area of the city they are attacked a familiar robed figure, someone who resembles Quelana and wears almost the same robe throws Fireballs at the duo. They split up and easily flank the obviously insane women, they hold her down and try to converse with her, to get her to see reason but like most other hollows she does nothing but try to attack them.

    Reima shakes his head at Solaire "We''ll tell the sisters of her when we get back, I don''t think we can do anything for her."

    Solaire agrees puts his foot on her chest and decapitates the woman, killing her instantly. As an undead she''ll come back to this location eventually, as is the fate of all humans in this current world. Reima looks to the side and sees the Fog-Gate that he remembers leads to the Witch of Izalith, bed of chaos. He tells this to Solaire and requests to explore a bit longer before confronting the Lord. Luckily for him he actually finds something useful, the Pyromancy Chaos Flame whip. An upgraded version of Flame whip which burns hotter, lasts longer but requires more magic. He excidely pushes it into Solaire''s face who mumbles about there being no sorceries, Reima holds himself back from commenting about this being the literal epicentre of all powerful Pyromancies... Didn''t he give Solaire some powerful spells from his sisters vault? Greedy git.

 142 First Lord Soul

    The two find themselves staring at the Fog-Gate leading to the bed of Chaos, Reima had explained the basic strategy that he remembers from the game, sprint to the glowing orbs on either side of the main body and destroy them to gain access to the Witches true body... While the plan likely won''t be as simple as that, nothing ever is. Solaire enchants his weapon with sunlight blade, making it crackle with lightning while Reima does the same with Arcell his Crystal enchantments covering the gleam blade. They eat a large amount of green blossoms and step through the gate, the fall onto a large stone slide that''s a few hundred meters long... The longer they slide the hotter it seems to get, Reima is relatively fine due to his Flame Stoneplate ring but Solaire feels as if his skin will start burning off if this keeps up, they continue to slide and occasionally crash into roots and branches that are growing from the walls until they reach the bottom... "Fuck" Reima mutters as he gazes at the small army of demons in-front of him, why are there other enemies here? Wasn''t it just the boss present here in the game?... Unknown to Reima Dark Souls had to dull down the difficulty of this fight due to players being unable to complete it, along with this being the birth place of demons which is why so many are congregated here... Most of the demons present are young or here to prey to their creator.

    The bed of chaos sits behind them burning ferociously, it''s comprised of large roots and branches from the great hollow tree that the Chaos flame seems to have taken control of. Large conjured arms of fire rest on the floor until it notices the duo''s presence, seeing the shift in mood the around fifty other demons of various shapes and sizes turn around and gaze towards Reima and Solaire.

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    Silence...

    One demon suddenly roars and runs towards Reima, the average height of the demons present is 10ft which makes it rather intimidating as the black skinned humanoid tries to kick Reima. He dodges with windfall and severs the leg below the knee, the demons screams of pain and terror officially igniting the battle. The fire arms of the bed of chaos haphazardly wave in their general direction, killing a few demons in the process. Solaire seems to be dealing with the demons attacking them rather easily, Reima decides to try and destroy the actual boss. He blinks to one side of the large room and spots the glowing pulsating orb which contains the remains of one of the daughters of the Witch of Izalith who tried to help her control the Chaos. He tries to get closer but has to blink away as a huge burst of chaos fire explodes from the bed of chaos, it seems to be try to prevent him from destroying whatever is allowing it to control it''s power.

    He decides to grab the bull by it''s horns and blinks directly above the orb and falls into it, he cuts away the branches that''d grown to cover what seems to be the desiccated corpse of one of Quelaag''s sisters. They seems to be clutching a charred black staff that''s channelling some kind of energy into where their mother is located, muttering a quick prayer he cuts down her frail form which results in an explosion that heavily burns him. He lands near the entrance of the room and looks at the bed of chaos and sees it losing control of the flame, perhaps the Witch isn''t trying to create demons but they are a bi-product of expelling chaotic energy to prevent a large explosion? That would explain the explosion from losing control momentarily, the arms swing wildly around the room killing more demons as it goes... Some of the floor start collapsing which would greatly annoy Reima, had he not been able to teleport.

    He spots Solaire laughing while cutting down numerous demons in a frenzy, Reima will have to tease him about this later, but first he need to put an end to this boss. He blinks on top of the other orb but is slapped out of the air, he manages to spot the attack with Observation Haki and blocks with Armament Haki but he still lands painfully on a demon who''s instantly killed from the impact. Giving an annoyed grunt Reima attempts to blink again, but instead of on top of the orb he appears just outside of it on the ground. He leaps inside just fast enough to have the orb block the fire from encompassing him, it seems while these help restrain the fire they also block out any interference from the Chaos flame.

    He covers himself in Armament Haki and cuts down the desiccated woman inside while preparing for a larger explosion than before. He''s blown away by just that, a huge explosion of dark fire that covers most of the demons in napalm like liquid fire. Solaire is also partially burned by managed to get his shield up in time to avoid most of the damage. By the time Reima gets to his feet again almost all the floor in the room is destroyed, leaving Solaire still fighting the remaining demons on one of the remaining platforms. Finally getting to this point Reima blinks onto the large root that leads deeper inside of the bed of chaos, the temperature only gets hotter as he desperately chops through the branches that block his path... He fears that he''ll die from the heat before he accomplishes his mission, he bites his lip when he feels his skin start roasting his blood sizzling as it''s exposed to the air. He has to utilise Observation Haki to see as if he opens his eyes they will likely melt from their sockets, he finally reaches the centre which holds a 3ft fat hairy bug which glows a menacing dark red. He''s about to chop down on it with Arcell when he hears a whisper, "I''m sorry.". His world goes white as he feels his sword pierce the creature that used to be the Witch of Izalith.

 143 Was it all a dream?

    A sixteen yearold Reima wakes up with a start, his head pounding from what feels like a migraine, looking around he sees a familiar room that has all the necessities a teenager could want, a tv, bed, console and computer sit in different parts of the room. He immediately feels a rush of nostalgia and incongruity to suddenly appearing here after slaying the Bed of chaos, he realises that the tv is on and it displays two big words, Dark Souls... It''s currently on the title screen of the game, his headache intensifies as he tries to comprehend his situation, hopefully this is nothing but one of those cliche dream sequences... Right?

    ??? "Reima! Breakfast is ready!" his stomach drops at the voice, its so familiar yet he can''t put a name to it. He gets up, accidentally knocking the controller next to him off of the chair and onto the floor. The game fades away as the tv turns off and Reima makes his way down the hallway then the stairs, the familiar the house so familiar he could walk through it blindfolded.

    He reaches the dining room where four plates have been set out, he sits at one and starts eating when a tall woman comes through the door. He turns to her and almost throws his plate when he sees her face, it looks... Fuzzy? Like someone had morphed all the colours together, the only recognisable features would be the blue eyes and dirty blonde hair.

    ??? "You''re finally up! I thought you''d be playing that damn game all day again. It''s a weekday so school''s on remember?"

    Reima "Ah... Yeah, sorry." he says, unsure of his relationship with this person. He starts picking at his eggs, beans and toast while running his mind through all of his memories, he deffinitely feels like he knows this person... The way she acts feels like how a moth-Ah...

    A man walks through the door and sits down next to Reima, he grabs the hot cup of coffee and downs it. Reima relaxes slightly as he looks at the mans normal face, clean shaven with short brown hair and a stern face.

    Reima "Err, morning dad." he says awkwardly. Running the mans identity through his head, Arnold Ludvig, banker and his father.

    Arnold nods at Reima while chewing some food before swallowing and talking to what could only be his mother.

    Arnold "Thank you dear, Your cooking is excellent as always."

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    ??? "Yeah, yeah, you have work remember? Hop hop." She shews him away as he rapidly pulls his suit jacket on and makes his way out the door while saying goodbye to them.

    Reima looks at the only remaining plate for a moment... Is there someone else? He looks at the blurry faced woman and asks, "Is there a guest coming? We seem to have an extra plate prepared." he says cautiously, unsure if he''s forgotten someone else.

    She turns her head and looks at it, "Huh... That''s strange, I thought. No, I must''ve made a mistake." She stutters weirdly before affirming that she was wrong.

    Reima "Ah, I''ll go get dressed for school then." She waves him away as she collects the dishes.

    He quickly makes his way upstairs and starts checking the bedrooms, the master bedroom that belongs to his parents, his bedroom and... One that''s unaccounted for. He tries to open it but finds it locked, he unconsciously forms an Aard sign with his fingers but it doesn''t do anything. He goes to his room that''s the neighbour of the locked one and looks out the window, the familiar town of London greets him but he disregards it as he looks at the houses wall to find a foothold. He carefully shimmies his way to the window of the locked room and peers inside.

    Dark, almost completely black... The only things visible inside are what the light of the morning sun shines upon, he sees pale pink colours and a teddy bear sat on the floor looking at him, it''s slightly unnerving but he tries to open the window anyway. It''s not locked and he climbs inside, the air feels cold... Stale? He opens the curtains to illuminate the room before turning around, something moved. He sees the teddy bear sitting on the bed surrounded by drawing in crayon, he gets closer to take a better look and sees drawing of this house? And four people standing outside holding hands, what seems to be him, with dad, a woman and a little blonde girl. He gets a pang of pain in his head as he starts massaging his temples to alleviate it, no this is wrong. Did I have a sister? I don''t remember! The room begins to rumble as the stuffed bears eyes begin to rapidly dart around the room, he hears whispers and quiet sobs of a young girl. He runs for the door and opens it, finding it unlocked before shutting it loudly behind him.

    ... This is fucked, really, really fucked. He retreats to his bedroom while ignoring the confused shouts from the woman downstairs, "Please don''t be real, this has to be a dream." He thinks, almost trying to will the world to change... The TV suddenly turns on revealing the Dark Souls title screen again, he calms himself and sits back in the chair while grabbing the XBOX controller. "It''s like that movie Inception, just gotta wake up... Right?" He clicks continue and opens character select and almost cheers when he sees his body, Slit green eyes, white hair and almost fifteen years old. He hesitates for a second before closing his eyes and pressing enter.

 144 Stupid dream sequence over!

    Reima shoots up from his prone position desperately gulping in air, the headache from earlier still present but slowly fading away.

    Solaire seems to be sitting at his side, "Oh? You''re awake, you''ve been out for a couple hours... Don''t tell me this is the first time dying?"

    Reima tries to compose himself but gives Solaire a pleading look, "I-I, I think I forgot my Mum, and I might have had a sister? I think..."

    Solaire pats his back, "The first is always the worst. I still can''t recall the name of my mother, luckily I have centuries of memories to act as sacrifices to protect the precious ones."

    Reima "This happens every time?... How can you bare it?" He asks sincerely.

    Solaire ponders for a moment before replying, "Just don''t think about what you''ve possibly lost and think about what''s at stake. I heard that only the strong willed survive a couple decades of constantly dying. If you want a permanent solution then just don''t die." He says the last part sarcastically.

    Still processing this rather world changing information Reima looks down at the floor when he suddenly spots something glowing brightly in his hand, a dark red flame with a pure white nucleus burns brightly in his grasp... Is this the Witch of Izalith''s soul? It''s smaller than he had expected, he says before finally sensing the immense energy contained within it.

    Reima looks around and realises their still within the kiln where the fought the bed of chaos, almost all the floor has collapsed and they sit beside a bonfire that had somehow appeared after the death of the bug-like creature.

    He stores away the soul into his Folded Space and tries to relax by the bonfire, the calming warmth washes over him but he still can''t stop trying to remember his mothers face. The only thing he can recall is her blue eyes and dirty blonde hair, that is all he will remember until he somehow gets back to his world or dies in this life.

    Solaire "Don''t worry my friend, we will make new memories that are so jolly that you''d be hard pressed to forget them!" he laughs while running an extremely dry cloth over his sword to clean it.

    Reima notices Solaire''s armour is not doing so great, the previously shining silver is charred in many places, making it resemble the black knight armour. "Shall I repair out gear?" Solaire nods and allows Reima to channel enough souls into his repair kit to bring all their equipment back to peak condition. "Ok, so... I guess we have to go back to the sisters... They''re gonna be so mad, I kind of don''t want to go back right now..." Solaire nods and replies, "Yes but if we leave them waiting any longer they''ll probably come down here to search for us."

    Reima "We still got Seath, Nito and the Four Kings to go before we can face Lord Gwyn, we can''t be expected to keep running from them just to keep them from harms way."

    Solaire "Yes, but we can''t stop them caring about us can we? No matter the trials we face they will try to assist us, be it pushes us forward or pulling us up."

    Reima "Yes but that''s not the point, we need a way to make sure they won''t follow us into extremely dangerous area, like the catacombs of Nito for example." Solaire nods and agree with him, "I suggest we just tell them our thoughts and feeling on the matter, that''s the most likely thing to work for them."

    After a long discussion the two undead decide to teleport back to the sisters via the bonfire by utilising the lord vessel, they fade away into orange smoke as they start re-materialising at their destination... The two hear a shout and are immediately attacked, Solaire receives a boot to the face by a certain half-dragon while Reima is being crushed by Quelaag''s breasts as she angrily reprimands them for using them as a baby sitter.

    Priscilla "BROTHER! You said you wouldn''t leave me!" She says as he hammers his armour, that kick to the face really did a number on him. "I didn''t leave! We just had a mission to do that was too difficult to bring you along!" he pleads.

    Priscilla "Liar! You just didn''t care enough to bring me!" she says with shimmering eyes.

    Reima manages to free his face from his soft prison and tries to safe his buddy from his Nieces wrath, "It''s no lie Priscilla, we literally both died even after we killed the Witch of Izalith!". After he says this slightly louder than he should have the area goes quiet, the sisters who were helping Quelaag berate him instantly stop and look at him with wide eyes.

    Quelana "You manged to stop mother? How? You must''ve have fought through an army of demons to even get close!"

    Reima tries to scratch the back of his head but can''t due to Quelaag still restraining his arms, "Yeah, it was no easy task... I had to help Solaire pull his melting metal armour from his burned flesh, it wasn''t fun at all."

    Solaire grimaces as he hears Reima mention that and Priscilla''s mood immediately goes from Yandere to Deredere, Angry to sobbing little sister as she listens to the horrific ways her brother was injured. She apologises while holding him close, Solaire makes a mental note to buy Reima drink when he gets the chance.

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 145 Compromising positions.

    After a short reunion that leads into, you guessed it, another party... Reima decided to limit the amount of drinks given out this time as he''d rather not get shit faced at a celebration for killing the Sisters mother... While it seems crude to have any kind of celebration the sisters insisted on it which led to the current situation.

    The next day Reima and Solaire approach everyone and let their thoughts known about what they must do and what they would like the girl to do while their gone, Reima makes it very clear that Priscilla is to stay with the sisters. She can train her martial skills, magic or even start learning Pyromancy, the only thing she''s forbidden from doing is following himself and Solaire.

    Quelaag and Quelana agree with them as they are more mature than Quelina or Priscilla when it comes to rational thinking, sending Priscilla with them just to appease her would be stupid and reckless, not to mention very selfish. Solaire ends up spending the day appeasing his niece, feeding her dried meat while rubbing her head, it''s a very cute sight were it not for the girl constantly pleading to take her with them. While this happens Reima talks with the sisters about his plans and decides to study one of the books he had "found" in Seath''s vault, the cover doesn''t say anything but it describes a similar method to forming a Crystal Soul spear, only smaller. Amusingly enough the scaleless dragon named it Crystal Soul Arrow, very creative. Essentially it''s just a reworked Heavy Soul arrow that has a formulae stable enough to allow Crystals to form, he learns it in around a day as he is rather familiar with Crystal magic by now.

    The next day after Solaire had left a chubby satisfied looking Priscilla on one of Reima''s "Requisitioned" beds they get together and prepare to say good bye to the sisters.

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    Reima "Don''t worry about us, hopefully it won''t take long." he says reassuringly.

    Quelana "You''re leaving us to fight literal gods and you say it won''t take long? Either you''re ego is showing or your lying." she says sarcastically.

    He shrugs, "Already dealt with one "god" what''s a couple more at this point?"

    Quelana reluctantly acknowledges the truth of his words "Touche''"

    Reima "You guys take care of little Lina now" He looks at her, "You won''t be lonely without big bro will you?" She blushes and tries to hide her face. "No, just go!" he chuckles at her panicked response.

    He finally turns to look at Quelaag, "You''re leaving again huh? Bet you expecting me to be sad about it." she crosses her arms and turns away while huffing. "Well I''m not! So you better come back soon and try not to do something stupid."

    Reima "Tsundere..." She glares at him, while she doesn''t know what that phrase means it annoys her for some reason.

    Solaire walks up to him after saying his own farewell to the sisters, Eingyi, laurentius and the rest of his acquaintances in the chaos covenant. The duo disappear via Reima''s teleportation and appear in Firelink shrine, he hasn''t forgotten his promise to a certain mad Sorcerer.

    They walk towards the corner where the master and apprentice usually reside and find them... Engaging in some sort of intimate tongue ritual, they both back away slowly confused and slightly amused.

    Solaire "I thought it was taboo for Teachers to seduce their students?" he asks with a weird look on his face.

    Reima shrugs, "I highly doubt Logan initiated this... Grigg''s kinda of reminds me of Smithers from the simpsons..." He says making Solaire even more confused. "Whats the simpsons? Some group of warriors I haven''t heard about?"

    Reima shakes his head, "No... Nevermind, it''d be too hard to explain."

    They two wait an hour before trying again only to find the two still wrestling tongues... How on earth are they going for so long?

    Reima gets fed up and loudly claps his hands, jolting the couple from their activity.

    Logan "Oh, who''s that?" He looks behind him and sees Reima, "Oh my filial student, you''ve returned!"

    Reima gives him a weird look, "If this is what you do to your students then I resign." he says semi-seriously.

    Logan looks confused for a moment before realising his current state, "Ah, no.. This"

    Griggs speaks up to help Logan out, "I''m sorry you had to witness that... I couldn''t hold myself back any longer, if I stared at his beard without doing anything any longer I''d have gone hollow."

    Reima who''s trying to block out his words only catches the end of his explanation, "I don''t care about the state of your anus, look... I''m here to collect you to raid Seath''s archives... If you''d both rather clap against each other like some sort of depraved robot boxing then I''ll leave you alone."

    Solaire "Robot?" Reima just ignores his confusion and begins to walk towards the bonfire to get the intimate duo to hurry up.

    Logan "Ah, stop! I''m coming, just let me compose myself for a moment!" Griggs dutifully helps him gather his scattered personal affects that''d been tossed haphazardly to the floor... Reima notes that his big hat seems pointier than last time they''d met.

    After another hour of waiting for the extremely slow duo they sit themselves beside the bonfire, awkwardly looking away from each other, this tension between the two is irritating Reima more than it should... If it''s going to be like this the entire journey then he''d rather not bring them at all.

    Reima "I''m going to teleport us to Anor Londo where we''ll make our way to Seath''s archives... I''d say grab me but I''d rather not touch you guys right now, hold Solaire instead." His friend looks like he''s about to protest but the two immediately place they hands on his shoulder.

    They immediately vanish from Firelink shrine, leaving it completely empty as it''s last residents disappear.

 147 If youre not laughing, Youre Crystallin

    The elevator reaches the top and reveals many disfigured mutated hollows wielding crystal weapons and armour, it seems as if Seath either experimented on them or the Primordial Crystal is more dangerous than initially thought. Solaire and Reima prepare for battle but are confused when the two Sorcerers don''t seem to be moving, apparently they''re giggling to each other at finally reaching the biggest stockpile of knowledge in this world. These two might be insane after all?

    Reima kicks away a Hollow who had almost his entire body corrupted and encrusted with Crystals, while it''s not aesthetically pleasing it does seem to provide a good amount of protection against Slash damage. Solaire''s sword bites into the shoulder of the hollow but it''s momentum is stopped by a Crystal embedded in it''s chest, the shield provided by Reima proves to be effectively at blunt force trauma as the hollow''s neck tries to bend 180¡ã from the force of Solaire''s smack to it''s head.

    The two sorcerers realise that they are in combat when they hear the loud snap of the hollows neck, the start firing Sorceries at the enemies but they don''t seem too effective against their Crystal enhanced bodies. They think to themselves how lucky they are they didn''t attempt this raid alone, if they had to battle through an army of magically resistant enemies they''d likely not last long.

    Reima had just stabbed another hollow in the eye after deflecting it''s haphazard blow when he sees a large golden monster approaching from the stairs, it seems to be the golden crystal golem that shouldn''t be in this location yet... It slams it''s arm on the floor making golden crystals burst underneath his feet, Reima quickly casts Quen which repells them but his shield is quickly destroyed. The others don''t seem to be injured so he starts charging a Great Chaos fireball before throwing it at the lumbering mass of crystals, it hits it''s chest and explodes causing it to back away due to the impact before thrashing around due to the napalm like lava, apparently Pyromancy is effective against what essentially is Crystallised mana as it uses the magic as fuel to continue burning. The Crystal Golem is slowly enveloped by fire and slams itself into the nearby wall shattering part of it''s arm, causing shards of burning Crystal to be flung across the room. Reima is amused at it''s large reaction to the fire and casts Aard to prevent the shards from hitting him or his party members. The shards are redirected and hit the attacking hollows, causing a few to drop dead instantly.

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    He hears Logan grumble about uncivilised fire brutes before he summons multiple Heavy Soul arrows to finish the rest of the visible enemies off.

    Reima "If the boars weren''t a warm enough welcome then I guess this is..." he says before spotting a glowing gold orb where the Golem had died, he picks it up and finds the broken pendant, the same prendant needed to go back in time to Oolacile to obtain the Dark Soul. He stores it away while thanking whatever is allowing him the skip the steps you had to take in the game, usually you''d have to kill the hydra and rescue Princess Dusk for the Golden Golem to spawn. Apparently that''s not required any longer, which is a boon to Reima as he doesn''t have to go on a treasure hunt just to access certain areas.

    The two Sorcerers skip up the stairs and into the huge room with towering book cases filled to the brim with knowledge. Logan almost gets stabbed in the back as he tries to pull a tome from the nearby bookcase without checking for enemies. Reima had been keeping an eye on the two due to their peculiar actions since arriving, after slamming the sneaky crystal hollow into a fine dust he grabs Logan''s shoulder. "Look at me! First eliminate the enemies, then you can look at the books!" He says harshly to the old man who starts looking around the room, he seems to try to warn Reima of something when a Soul arrow beats him to it.

    It hits Reima in the back, dealing no physical damage but dealing a good portion of damage directly to his soul. He stumbles forwards and knocks Logan over while quickly casting a Quen shield, he does not want to be hit by that again... It''s like being punched in the liver except directly on your brain. The person responsible for the soul arrow is dancing while waving it''s staff in the air, it looks like the channeller that was present in the undead burg church. Reima''s about to retaliate with his own spell when a lightning bolt pierces it''s chest causing it to drop to the floor, a smoking hole where it''s heart would be.

    Solaire shouts at him, "Come on my friend! Jolly battles don''t fight themselves!" he says as he uses his swords pommel to slam into another hollow''s head. Reima can only chuckle at his companions attitude, if he weren''t in a library surrounded by many priceless flammable tomes he''d start incinerating anything and everything in sight, unfortunately the only ranged options he currently has available are Sorceries. He starts launching a multitude of spells that are as varied as Soul arrows to Crystal Soul spears for the really annoying enemies.

 148 Not dying today!

    The group keep on battling through the white marble room, Reima thinks he can hear a pained whimper every time he accidentally damages something inside the room. He guesses it''s probably Logan or Grigg''s, as they''re the only one who care enough about this place to be physically affected when he destroyed something that could contain priceless knowledge, to be honest he wouldn''t be surprised to have spells cast at his back due to their over-the-top reactions.

    They''d just finished off another Channeller when the room suddenly goes silent, they look around and realise all the enemies on this and the second floor are dead. Not a moment passes before Grigg''s and Logan start tearing the bookshelves apart trying to find information on magic or anything related to it. Solaire and Reima don''t really know what to do at this, do they just leave them to their research and try to clear out the archives themselves? The only option Reima can think of is trying a very, very overpowered Axii... And even that probably wouldn''t work as they''re minds are magically protected due to their studies in sorcery and strong souls. They go up the second floor and start looting anything that was dropped, Solaire''s about open a chest when Reima stops him and slams his foot on the wooden container, it shudders and opens revealing many large teeth... One dissected Mimic later and they pick up the dropped Crystal Knight shield, Reima hands it to Solaire who gives back the regular Knight shield... With it being enhanced by Crystals it''s slightly magically resistant and bound to be very useful in their fight against Seath. They reach the elevator that''d lead to the unbeatable boss fight where you''d have to die and Reima decides he''d rather not lose anymore memories and teleport''s himself and Solaire to the next visible floor, leaving the Mentor and his student to on their own in the first floor.

    One they appear on the next balcony they are immediately assault by many spells, Solaire blocks them with his shield and Reima casts a couple Crystal Soul spears at the multiple Channellers targeting them. They seem smarter than the previous ones as they teleport away to another balcony, dodging his spells and casting their own. Solaire isn''t able to block anymore as a large number of Crystal hollows have started to converge on them, the revolving stairways are rotated to allow access to them. Reima ducks under another spell and teleports to the offending caster, they seem surprised when Arcell pierces their back and revealing itself from their chest... They seem even more surprised when Reima removes his sword, picks the almost dead channeller up like Darth Vader and throws him to the first floor, almost hitting Grigg''s as it heavily hits the ground. Seeing this, the other channeller immediately start casting spells at him, ignoring Solaire who''s tearing through the large number of Crystal Hollows while laughing uproariously.

    Reima remembers Logan''s reaction to him damaging the books, he takes a book from a nearby bookcase and throws it at one of the Channellers, it immediately abandons spell casting and tries to carefully catch the book, not realising a Crystal Soul spear is quickly approaching him from behind the book. It destroys the book as it creates a large hole in the Channellers stomach, surprisingly it seems more troubled by the books destruction than it''s fatal wound.

    The duo continue to fight the seemingly never ending Spell casters and crystal grunt soldiers, about maybe an hour or two later they''ve finally killed everything that was attacking them. Reima doesn''t look anyworse for wear due to most of the damage he had taken being Magical, Solaire however has many scuffs and marks on his silver armour, despite his skill with sword and shield he still managed to take many hits. Reima had spent most of his time killing the Channellers who seem to keep arriving through the various entrances of the room, they don''t have any time to rest for fear of more enemies arriving. They continue to explore the room until they come across a bonfire on a balcony that over looks Anor Londo in the distance.

    They sit down and Reima decides to spend his souls to upgrade his Dexterity, just in-case he dies and loses the majority of what he''s earned. He absorbs the stored souls and allows his nervous system to be upgraded, Reima can feel a prickling feeling in his eyes as well, he assumes this has something to due with his visual perception, or how effectively he can spot something moving quickly. He upgrades his Dexterity to what he thinks is 5-7? Not a lot but he''s currently got two level 99 stats which makes it much more difficult to improve his soul level. Reima leaves Solaire at the bonfire and tries looking around the room, he vaguely recalls there being a secret entrance behind the book shelves, he''s not about to destroy many priceless documents and magical research just to find a shortcut to their goal. Unfortunately he doesn''t seem to be able to locate it, he even tries to see if his medallion would react to any magical presences. As soon as he attempts it though, his medallion goes crazy, it seems the high volume of Crystals present in the archive are making the ambient magic much higher than normal. While his medallion would eventually get used to the higher than normal presence of magic Reima doesn''t think it''ll actually help at all, after all he''s pretty sure the shortcut is moved mechanically....

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 149 Empty maze.

    The two undead start ascending the maze-like library after their short rest, with most enemies already being eliminated the only difficult part is trying to find where they actually need to go... With the many revolving staircases leading to many different floors, door and dead ends it takes Reima and Solaire around three hours to reach the top where a Crystal hollow waits to shoot arrows at them. One lightning bolt later and the two spot the ladder on the side of the platform and slide down it, entering the secret room holding what seems to be many important documents as well as the switch to open the book case shortcut.

    Solaire opens the shortcut while Reima checks the many chests lying around the room, one containing the Crystal Ember, while Reima doesn''t think he''ll ever need to enchant a weapon with this particular ember due to having a sorcerery that already does that maybe it''ll be helpful for others? Crystal weaponry could theoretically increase someones magically capability, this is shown when Logan is corrupted by Crystal in the game and his staff is "upgraded" by being enveloped by Crystals. Reima gives the final suspicious looking chest a kick which makes it shudder and jump into action, this definitely isn''t the first mimic Reima has killed so he immediately thrusts Arcell into it''s mouth, piercing something important as it starts fading away and leaves an enchanted falchion for his troubles.

    Reima looks around the room and spots another switch sitting next to a weird part of the floor, metal instead of wooden planks. He pulls it and the metal separates revealing an intricate staircase held together by some sort of mechanism, if only they had continued making technology like this, maybe they''d have found a solution to the fading fire that doesn''t include burning your self to death. They walk down the steps, killing the lone Crystal hollow attempting to ambush them, half the room is entirely taken by huge mechanical gears and machinery giving Reima strong steampunk vibes due to the large brass gears. He opens the chest directly underneath the stairs and finds a large amount of Prism stones, he groans when he remembers what these are for, the only other part of Dark Souls he might hate more than Blight Town is that bloody Crystal cave... Invisible platforms that are hard enough to spot with the assistance of the falling particles, he hopes that he''ll be able to traverse it a lot easier with his teleportation capabilities.

    Solaire walks through the Fog-Gate and Reima follows, they end up on a raised platform that overlooks a large forest, with a huge cave entrance on the far end completely covered in Crystals. Reima''s Medallion shakes violently for a moment before going silent... Perhaps it overloaded on the ambient magic present? You''d deffinitely never encounter such a place back in the Witcher world. Numerous Crystal Golem''s are scattered throughout the forest, some hiding, some resting and some throwing themselves against tree''s, rocks and the floor. Reima spots a glint of gold in his vision, when he focuses on it he sees a larger than normal Golden Crystal Golem... Is there something important inside of it? He''ll have to check, no point leaving something important behind because he''s feeling lazy.

    Reima nudges Solaire''s shoulder to get his attention, "Yo, you see that?" He points to the Gold Crystal Golem, He nods "Yes, is there something special about it, aside from it''s colouration?"

    Reima "There is, but we''ll have to destroy it to find out." He climbs onto the nearby ladder and starts sliding to the grassy ground below, quickly followed by Solaire.

    Once they reach the ground they are immediately noticed by a nearby Crystal Golem, Reima throws a fireball at it which causes the being to ignite and start rolling around on the ground in attempt to extinguish the flames. Their apparent weakness to fire is probably the most amusing thing about these creatures, Reima wonders why the entire Crystal cave hasn''t gone up in flames if these things are so flammable? He knows his Crystal Soul spears aren''t flammable but that''s probably because they''re so condensed... Perhaps if the Crystal is dense enough it''s not likely to catch fire. He''s drawn out of his thoughts by a glare from Solaire who seems annoyed at him day dreaming "again".

    They slowly make their way through the forest towards the Golden Golem, taking out the nearby enemies efficiently, one by one. Reima is pretty good in these forest conditions, his experience back in Absolver assassinating the Bird Callers tribe means that he''s got more than enough familiarity to make up for Solaire''s bumbling steps, eventually the make it their objective, instead of the 8ft regular blue crystal golems this one is 15ft and slightly wider than it''s brethren. The Sunbro''s nod to each other, knowing the plan instinctively due to them doing it so many times in the past, they charge up their respective range attacks and launch them at the enemy before splitting up to flank the now enraged creature. The lightning from Solaire impacts it''s body but Crystals don''t seem very conductive as it only takes a chunk out of it''s chest, Reima''s Crystal Soul spear however blasted it''s arm off like it was glass. Solaire remembering the previous Golden Golem''s lethal shards raises his shield in time to prevent being blinded by the wayward shards. After blocking he grabs the blade of his sword to use a technque called "half-swording", he uses the blade as a handle and slams the pommel of the blade like a hammer into it''s knee, the attack crushes it which causes it to fall to the floor. Reima isn''t idle as he dashes forward and delivers a harsh Haki infused kick to it''s downed head, the blow proves fatal as it''s entire body falls apart and to the floor in a rather unspectacular manner... That is until they see a figure stand up from the rubble, their familiar Onion armour looking as pristine as ever.

    Reima/Solaire "Siegmeyer?"

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 150 Female Onion?

    Reima/Solaire "Siegmeyer?" they both asked simultaneously in a confused tone.

    The onion armoured figure carefully stands, they rub they onion shaped helmet before an unfamiliar female voice talks through the visor, "Nay, I am Sieglinde of Caterina, Daughter of Siegmeyer." she takes off her helmet after stating her name, revealing her bright red hair, freckles and brown eyes.

    Sieglinde continues to rub her gauntlet covered hand through her scruffy long red hair, "How long have I been trapped inside of that thing?"

    Solaire "That depends, when did you get trapped?" he asks, after the fall of New Londo keeping time has been a forgotten luxury, how can you keep the time when the weather doesn''t change, when you don''t age? There were a couple people who let meat spoil or crops grow to tell the time but Solaire was not one of those people.

    sieglinde "Ah, I was... Trying to find my father, Siegmeyer, you said his name earlier, do you know of him?" The duo nod at her question, Reima almost smacks himself in the face... He''d forgotten Siegmeyer! Again!?! In the game you have to save him another two times, one where he''s trapped in the poisonous swamp and slowly dying, another where he''s sitting above many mutated Chaos creatures...

    Reima shakes his head at his mistake, Siegmeyer isn''t that forgettable is he? "I think I might know you''re fathers location... Though, we have a rather important quest to attend to for the moment."

    Her eyes widen before dimming slightly when he says they have something important to do, "What is your task? If it''s honourable I wouldn''t mind assisting you."

    Solaire crosses his arms, "We are to slay the Scaleless dragon Seath, to stop his mad lust for power and immortality."

    Reima adds "Not to mention reclaiming the shard of Lord Gwyn''s soul that he was gifted."

    Sieglinde "Such a task, I''d be honoured to accompany you both." she requests eagerly.

    The sunbro''s glance at each other and immediately come to an agreement, she''s undead so there''s not worry about having Siegmeyer''s daughter perish in their care... Plus such an experience might prove useful to her in later ventures. Reima nods, "Ok but I must let you know, this isn''t going to be easy... I have no doubt we''ll die many times just trying to reach that bloody dragon, that''s without mentioning he''s immortal until we destroy the Primordial crystal."

    Sieglinde puts her helmet back on before cracking her knuckles through her metal gauntlets, "Killing an immortal dragon after venturing through an extremely perilous area... Easy enough!"... Huh, she seems to have inherited some of Siegmeyer''s recklessness.

    They start walking through the forest, they allow Sieglinde to battle with a couple Crystal golems to see her combat abilities, she doesn''t wield a Zwei-hander like her father, probably due to not having the strength to wield such a weapon one handed. Instead she''s got a lighter weapon called a bastard sword, it''s essentially a long sword with a handle that allows for a two handed grip, she uses this along with a spiked buckler that seems to be given to all warriors of Catarina. She''s... Fine at fighting, not anything spectacular mind you, she''s barely got edge alignment for her weapon down but Reima suspects any advanced techniques would allude her. He thinks that warriors of Catarina are given basic training before improving their skills in live combat, this would support Siegmeyer''s wishy washy skill in the short time he''d fought with him, he was very good at doing basic attacks but didn''t even attempt advanced manoeuvres... He almost scoffs when he remembers the Onion armoured man being thrown straight through a stone pillar for trying to hold down Smough''s weapon.

    Reima "Just try and intercept attacks that me or Solaire aren''t able to block or counter, I think that''ll be the best formation we can do without doing drills."

    Solaire agrees while Sieglinde looks slightly put out at being placed in a supportive role, she doesn''t argue as watching either of her two rescuers fight is very humbling, not only are they formidable warriors but they can use magic as if it''s another limb.

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    They eventually reach the entrance of the cave after battling through the many Crystalline protectors, one of the biggest things to note is the tree''s that have been completely turned into crystal... All the organic material that comprises them being replaced, Reima has no doubts that if left to it''s own devices the Primordial crystal will corrupt everything it comes into contact with... While he''s curious what a Crystal Anor Londo would look like he''d probably be hard pressed to battle an army of Crystal corrupted silver knights, giants, demons and if he''s unlucky Gwyndolin.

    They take tentative steps onto the crystal floor and then onto the large Crystal pillar that leads deeper into the cave. It''s slightly slippery which causes Reima no small deal of grief, he decides to employ the mountain climbers safety precautions and links a chain through each of their belts. If one were to fall of the other could jump off the other side and then slowly recover, or even just pull them straight back up. The group looks over the edge and through the thick blue mist that''s ever present in the cave, they spot many larger than normal blue Crystal golems along with butterfly like creatures that sometimes flutter through the large cave.

    Reima "Don''t catch the attention of the flying things, if we need to kill one it''ll be by a coordinated strike, if not they''ll constantly be harassing us while we fight off those Crystal giants."

    Sieglinde nods confidently, despite the fact she''s tightly gripping the chain linking them while constantly holding her shield up in preparation for an attack.

 151 Siegmeyer indirectly strikes again!

    The group cautiously makes their way down the large crystal which rests on a previously stone outcropping, now though it''s just comprised of what looks like petrified crystal? It''s curious how the corruption affects different materials. They come across a 12ft Crystal golem that blocks a narrow path, battling here is very, very difficult... The brute force generated by the Golem is massive and not being able to dodge due to the limited space makes them have to block every strike, Reima spams Quen after every received strike, he highly doubts his two companions capabilities at blocking this creatures attacks without being flung from their narrow platform.

    Suddenly he hears a "I''VE GOT THIS!", before he can even tell what''s happening he sees Sieglinde throwing herself into the Golem, knocking it off the perilous edge, but not before falling off herself. Luckily the chain still connecting them enables them to save the brainless woman.

    Reima slams his fist on top of her onion helmet, "Are you completely insane! You could''ve gotten all of us killed you bloody idiot!" She shrinks away from him before straitening her back, "I defeated it though! No harm done."

    Solaire "At the expense of potentially your life and ours, It''s not jolly cooperation if you cause all of your allies to die due to your brash actions. I believe that if you continue to act like this then we must part ways, better a useless companion than a detrimental one I say." Reima nods and looks at her, "You will have to go if you continue to act so recklessly."

    She lowers her head in response, "No... I''ll stick to the plan, Apologise." Reima can''t really tell if she''s being honest but he swears to god if she tries that again he''ll cut the chain.

    After scolding Sieghilde they start making good progress throughout the cave, killing almost everything they come across. The moonlight butterflies aren''t all that annoying when completely obliterated by a barrage of magic and lightning, although it was rather amusing when Sieglinde tried to assist them with her composite bow... Her arrows didn''t even fly straight and acted as if gravity was ten times the strength.

    One thing that almost made Reima quit in irritation is the invisible platforms, unlike in the games the particles that reveal the platforms are sporadic and completely random... Luckily he still has the Prism stones that he''d recovered from the chest, he tosses them on he platform and finds that they stick... This makes them very useful as they don''t just roll off like he had assumed they would. Of course practical problems require practical solutions, he remembers he has almost an entire castles quantity of sheets, he tosses them instead of the prism stones as they cover the invisible platforms completely, not leaving them guessing on how wide it is and fearing that it mind abruptly end in a sheer drop. Reima doesn''t forget to collect the sheet after confirming the path, they might be needed in the future after all.

    Sieglinde "Sir Solaire, may I enquire where Sir Reima acquired so many sheets?"

    Solaire scoffs, "Would you believe me if I said he robbed Anor Londo of all it''s furniture?"

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    ...

    "No." She dully states as she watches her foot placements on the invisible platforms. Solaire continues, "Whether or not you believe it, it''s true... I also suspect he stole the kingdoms treasury while he was at it." She seems shocked at this revelation, how could her saviour commit such a dishonourable act?

    Sieglinde "You approve of his actions?" she asks suspiciously,

    Solaire nods slowly, "After the gods abandoned Anor Londo it became free for anyone with the strength to take it... As the son of Lord Gwyn I don''t mind his actions at all." Her foot steps stop mid stride as she hears him reveal his heritage. She''s about to retort when she feels the chain connected them pull he forward, she quickly follows the duo and tries interrogating Solaire but doesn''t receive any answer aside from "I''d rather forget about that" or "That''s none of your business.", she eventually stops asking and intends to bring this up again in the future.

    Finally, after almost half a day of cautiously watching every step and slowly whittling down every enemy that reach what seems to be the bottom of the cave. The blue mist doesn''t seem as thick at this level... Perhaps the mist is the way the corruption spreads? The idea that his lung may be turning into crystal makes him shudder but he realises he''s still got many purging stones on hand, with the way some of the bodies scattered around here are frozen mid step it resembles the process of petrification. He hands a purging stone to Sieglinde as Solaire still has the couple he''d given him when they entered the depths, they look around and spot what seem to be huge clams with feet? He''s about to approach one when he sees it pick up a petrified person in it''s mouth and eat it in one gulp...

    Reima "Yeah, fuck this." he states with finality as he starts launching pyromancies at these creepy as fuck creatures. The group kill the around thirty clam-like creatures, one thing to note is they don''t disappear after death, instead their mouths open revealing a large amount of twinkling titanite inside... Is this the process of how it''s made? If so he feels the need to dump the huge quantity of the substance sitting in his Folded Space.

    After completely ridding the world of these creepy bastards Reima spots a bright glowing light in the distance, he signals his two companions to follow closely and starts approaching it after equipping his Magic Stoneplate ring. He almost gets a good look at it when an enraged roar echoes throughout the cave, a huge white figure smashes through many of the pillars above them before landing harshly causing the ground the tremble. The huge pale dragon looks down at the intruders and speaks in an echoing guttural voice "Pathetic mortals, immortality belongs to the dragons and always will. For your arrogance I will personally wipe your existence from these lands!"

 152 Seathing in rage...

    The group looks up at the angry monologuing dragon, it seems that he had some sort of detection around the cave and the Primordial crystal... Not really surprising considering that it literally provides immortality. Seath''s body is more mutated than Reima had initially thought, his upper body is pale and emaciated with his ribs being clearly visible, his colourful prismatic wings look more akin to an insects than a dragons. He stands at around 25ft, if you can call whatever he''s doing standing... His lower body seems to have been the most affected by the crystal corruption as he no longer has any legs, instead he has tentacle like protrusions extending from his hardened crystallised pelvic area.

    Reima "Man, if being immortal means I have to look like THAT, then no thanks!" He shouts at the dragon, shocking Sieglinde who''s almost wet herself at the sheer power emanating from their foe. Even Reima''s medallion which was slowly adapting to the massive amounts of ambient magic in the air is pulling on his neck in response to the dragons presence.

    Seath looks at the ant who''just insulted his glorious appearance, he chuckles while replying "Is that so? It will be a pleasure to experiment on you and your pathetic friends."

    Solaire steps up "Do you not recognise me dragon!?!"

    The pale dragon looks at him for a moment, "Ah, one of Lord Gwyn''s mistakes. Tell me, did the death of that abominable crossbreed anger you?" If dragons could sneer, Seath would be doing it.

    Solaire, thoroughly enraged at the dragon speaking ill of his own daughter throws a larger than normal Sunlight spear at the dragon, hitting it in the chest but not leaving any visible wounds.

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    Seath roars at him "FOOL, I AM IMMORTAL!" before spewing a blue mist across the floor of the cave, Reima casts Aard to try give them a bit of space but the temporarily stopped mist is pushed aside as more tries envelop them. Reima seeing no other way to deal with this grabs his two companions and casts a powerful Quen shield to surround them.

    Seath glowers from above, looking at the mist covered floor, certain of their demise. He grins as he thinks about the experiments he could conduct on one of Gwyn''s spawn, he still hadn''t forgiven that idiotic man for executing such a unique specimen. The mist gradually disappears revealing a glowing orange orb protecting the three ants. He only notices them when a Crystal Soul spear shatters on his chest... He looks blankly for a moment before laughing uproariously, "Fool! You think you can harm me with my own spells!? Ridiculous!"

    Reima frowns as his spell easily shatters when it impacts the dragons skin... It was a stupid attempt now that he thinks about it, Seath literally created Sorceries, if that wasn''t enough he still needs to find a way to get to the Primordial crystal without being crushed. Seath raises a hand and numerous Crystal Soul arrows explode forth in an attempt to completely wipe out the group. Sieglinde tries to shield herself with his buckler but the arrows are so numerous that she can''t block them all, her armour is heavily damaged as they impacts her like a never ending combo. Solaire holds up slightly better than her, due to his experience and magically resistant shield he blocks the majority of arrows targeting him. Once the attack is over he enchants his weapon with Sunlight blade before running to Sieglinde to try and help her recover.

    Reima isn''t idle while this happens, with most arrows being directed at Solaire he easily dodges the few sent to him, he knows that Pyromancy is probably the most effective thing against Seath but unless he can throw something directly into the dragons mouth the battle will continue for a long time, he isn''t sure he has the reserves to battle for that long while casting powerful Pyromancies. He tosses a Fireball at Seath''s chest and watches it explode on his pale skin... Once the smoke subsides he sees a scorched mark on his chest that heals almost instantaneously, good news? It can damage him... Bad news? He''s still currently immortal. Looking past the dragon Reima can barely see the bright light being emitted by the Primordial crystal, large sharp shards of revolving crystals surround it, acting like a grinder to anything that even attempts to come close... Even in this situation he salivates at the idea of stealing it for himself, in the game you had to destroy it but this isn''t a game anymore.

    Reima starts circling around, hoping that the dragon keeps his focus on Solaire who is currently throwing another lightning bolt at the large dragon. Seath slams his hand on the floor which results in many large crystals piercing the ground in an attempt to impale Solaire, said person jumps in the air while defending below him which somehow blocks a large crystal from penetrating his legs. The impact does unfortunately send him flying a couple meters away, Sieglinde however is not so lucky. Due to her prone form she isn''t able to get up quickly enough, despite the quick healing Solaire had provided. She is stabbed in her left calf, thigh an side, she gives out a pained scream as she''s impaled. Reima seeing this can only grit his teeth and keep moving, even if he could help her what then? He needs to destroy the thing providing the damned scaleless dragon immortality.

 153 Outmatched Sorceries

    Reima leaps over the wayward crystalline tentacle, land quietly with the assistance of his Slumbering dragoncrest ring. He eyes the dragons tail momentarily remembering the Moonlight greatsword before shaking his head and focussing on his shining objective. He channels haki into his legs a shatters the sharp revolving crystals blocking his path, the act finally drawing the dragons attention, Seath finally sees the mortal trying to steal his prize and becomes enraged. He gives a roar that causes all the ground surrounding him to immediately be rended apart by 5-10ft long crystal spears extending from the ground. Reima manages to hop over the defences to escape the radial attack and grasps the Primordial crystal, his meddallion starts heating up and slowly gaining a red colour as she holds this small gem in his hand... Seath is going crazy but is somehow lucid enough to not crush Reima along with the Artifact, instead he''s casting many radial attacks that are dealing more damage to Solaire and Sieglinde than Reima... The witcher looks at the crystal in his hand and tries to store it away into his Folded space... It resists, he puts more mana into it but instead of being stored away it starts sprouting small crystals on his skin, he panics and throws it away causing it to shatter on the floor... A horrific terrified roar echoes behind him as he blinks back towards Solaire and Sieglinde to dodge the pale hand that''d just crushed his previous location.

    Reima sighs, "No immortality for me I guess..." he glances over to Solaire who''s dragging a heavily injured Sieglinde away, he would try draw attention to himself if the dragon wasn''t already fully intent on exterminating him.

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    Seath seems to have completely lost his marbles as he roars again "ROAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAR!!!!!" It echoes through the cave, shattering smaller Crystal structures at the harsh sound waves bounce about. Reima feels like his ear drums had burst as he covers his head with his hands. He only realises he''s being attacked when his Observation Haki alerts him to danger like some knockoff spidey senses, he blinks to the side as a white breath envelops his previous location, causing huge crystals to form rapidly in its wake. Reima throws a Great Chaos fireball into Seath''s chest, it detonates causes painful looking blisters to form on the pale skin, it doesn''t regenerate as the Primordial crystal is destroyed. The dragon itself gives a pained roar, but waves it''s arm in air causing huge Crystal boulders to form and start orbiting around him, they look like a roided up version of homing Crystal Soul mass.... They seemed to have finally detecting him as they shoot towards his location like meteorites, a blue mist follows them as they collide with the now vacant floor and explode into a dark blue fog that slowly settles onto the floor below. Reima guesses that the fog is likely to petrify him if he''s caught by it, he blinks again to dodge another boulder... This continues until Seath runs out of ammo, unfortunately for Reima the father of all Sorceries isn''t so easily exhausted as the dragon makes a gesture with his hands, a light blue beam fires at him looking suspiciously like the Soul Stream spell from Dark Souls 3. It hits him after he casts Quen and covers himself in Armament Haki.

    The spell feels like he just got sprayed with a high pressure hose as he rockets him to the cave wall and heavily damages him, first shattering his shield and slowly eroding away the black armour surrounding him. He collapses to the floor after the spell ends, physically nothing wrong but his soul feels like it just got torn asunder, it feels like every pain receptor in his body is simultaneously firing, causing his body to shudder and twitch while he tries to gain his composure. Seath doesn''t stop his assault though, immediately summoning ten Crystal Soul spears to shoot towards his downed opponent. Reima braces himself for another death, idly wondering who he''ll forget this time... That is until a silver wall covers his vision.

    Solaire "Don''t worry my friend! I''ll block this with strength to spare!" he says, confidence emanating from his very being.

    Reima struggles to stand up to prevent Solaire taking the extremely powerful attack, but he doesn''t budge instead Solaire pushes him to the side and takes the first Spear on his shield, he holds but two more hit him causing him to stumble slightly, Reima can only watch as the other 7 knocks his shield to the side and penetrate his armour, destroying his heart, lung and any other organs that were unlucky enough to be in the way of Seath''s attack. Solaire drops to his knees and sends a glance to Reima before vanishing into mist, that fucking dragon killed Solaire!

    The dragon regains some of his composure after killing the spawn of Gwyn and looks at the remaining ant who''s struggling to stand. "For destroying something so precious I will torment you for ETERNITY!"

    Reima coughs before glaring at the dragon with his green slitted eyes, "Ha! Can''t be for eternity since you aren''t immortal anymore, what a shitty fake dragon! HAHA-cough!" he taunts the dragon and apparently gets the desired effect as the beast starts slithering? towards him, he down all of his Estus to try and heal his injured soul before standing up straight and gripping Arcell tightly. He needs to hold the it down to be able to do any damage to it, he cant cast Pyromancies at it while being assaulted by a torrent of spells... As if a lightbulb appeared above his head a plan comes to mind, it''s not likely to work but it''s probably his only chance to escape dying and having Seath trap his body for experimentation.

 154 Moonlight Greatest-Great sword...

    The dragon approaches Reima and attempts to grab him, thinking he''s still too weakened to move. He feels something in his large hand, he looks down and sees... A wooden table? He growls and crushes it before feeling a large presence above him, his eyes widen as he sees it but it''s too late to try and escape.

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    Reima managed to dodge Seath''s grip by utilising the elemental nations trademark "Kawarimi no Jutsu" He blinks out of the way of the dragons hand but not before leaving a table to give him some time to complete his plan. He teleports to the roof of the cave overlooking Seath and briefly rests on a Crystal outcropping while opening his Folded space... He channels as much magic as possible to extract his desired object, the remains of the Huge Iron Golem that protected Sen''s fortress. The pile of metal weighs hundreds if not thousands of tons, it''s that weight that is heading straight for the pale dragon below. He breaths heavily as he drops the iron from his Folded Space, retrieving such a large amount so quickly had rapidly used up his reserves but now isn''t the time to dawdle. He waits until the metal almost hits Seath when he teleports over the dragon tail while retrieving a weapon he had acquired earlier in his journey.

    Reima "YOU WANTED DRAGON SCALES? HAVE SOME THEN!" he shouts as his slams the huge Dragon king greataxe onto Seath''s tail, easily severing it and drawing the pale dragons attention enough to allow the falling metal to land directly on top of him. The huge impact makes the cave shudder as it''s owner is crushed under tons of metal, still alive somehow. Reima looks down at his Dragon Greataxe only to find it''s handle completely snapped in half due to the impact of his strike. Reima stores it away and quickly recovers the severed tail of Seath, not only for the Moonlight Greatsword that lies inside but also for the DNA that can be used in Mutagens. Afterwards he looks towards the struggling pinned Seath and limps over to his head where a particularly large piece of Iron rests on his neck.

    Reima "That''s for Solaire you cunt dragon." he spits as he retrieves Arcell and pierces the dragons eye, deeply enough to penetrate the brain, Seath who was muttering curses and how he''ll personally eat Reima and his family immediately stops and his entire body relaxes. He begins to fade away as Reima absorbs his soul, he materialises it over his hand and sees that it''s completely corrupted by Crystals... If even his soul was corrupted Reima is glad it was destroyed, he hobbles over to the metal and slowly but surely store it back into his Folded Space.

    After half an hour of retrieving the magical metal he spots a glowing golden orb where Seath had died, picking it up reveals what seems like a quarter of an extremely powerful soul. Gwyn''s soul to be exact. It writhes in his grip and the empty space where the rest of the soul would be is pulled towards a certain direction, thinking of where it could be pointing he realises it''s towards Firelink shrine... It probably wants to become whole with the rest of the other scattered pieces.

    Reima spots a Crystal covering something in the middle of the room and gives it a light kick, shattering it and revealing a bonfire beneath it. He sits down and immediately feels the wounds on his soul recover, he decides to rest here until his companions makes it back down here, he has no idea where Sieglinde is and if he knows Solaire then he''s already on his way down the cave to continue the fight. As he waits he retrieves the tail he had severed from Seath and starts digging through it with a dagger, he eventually hit''s something hard and opens the surgical like cut he had made to the tail revealing a light blue metal blade with a golden hilt and handle. The blade is around 5ft long, when combined with it''s handle it''s slightly taller than Reima, standing at 6ft tall. The width of the blade is ridiculous if compared to any functional sword on earth, when he grips the handle the entire blade start glowing a dull blue with particles shining around it. It''s a very powerful weapon which was even the case in the game, he still wonders how such a weapon had actually formed inside of the dragon tail... Perhaps all the experimentation has amounted to something, this weapon.

    He stands while gripping the sword in one hand and gives it a swing, as he does a blue trail shoots from the blade and strikes the nearby wall, gauging a portion of it out... This is cool he thinks to himself as he starts running through various forms with it, launching a variety of blue shapes from the blade as he does so. He''s strong enough to wield it in one hand but it''s so thick that some techniques might not work with it, regardless he will be adding it to his quickly growing arsenal... Perhaps they should call him a BladeMaster or something similar? He does seem to have a habit of collecting powerful Artifacts. He''s about to continue when he hears metal scraping the floor, turning to face the sound he sees Sieglinde crawling towards him on the belly of her Onion armour... Whopps? He may have forgotten that she was injured in all the excitement...

    Reima "You''re alive? That''s great news!" he says, giving a guilty looking smile to the heavily injured woman.

    Sieglinde "Sir Reima..." She mutters in a bitter tone, "You wouldn''t happen to be resting here while I drag myself back into battle to assist you?"

    Reima... "Err of course not, that would be really horrible... What kind of person would do such a thing." he states as if rehearsing from a script.

    ...

    Sieglinde "Oh, of course... I shouldn''t have suspected your intentions Sir Reima, could you perhaps help me out please?" she accepts easily... Only one word comes to Reima''s mind as he hears her, Gullible.

 155 Gough Coaugh, get that dough...

    Sieglinde and Reima rest beside the bonfire while waiting for Solaire to return to them, he thinks that he should send Sieglinde off with Solaire back into the Blight Town swamps to search for Siegmeyer while he journeys to Oolacile. While it isn''t really required of him to defeat Manus he gets the feeling he might need to acquire something from there... That and he wishes to try and save Sif, if what he thinks is going to happen actually happens then he will need to be on good terms with Sif, otherwise there will be nothing he can do to save him.

    Sieglinde "If you don''t mind me asking, how did you meet Solaire?" She asks out of the blue.

    Reima leans back and tries to remember, it was a while ago but he isn''t quite sure how long ago it actually was... "I met him in the Undead burg, on a bridge being protected by a "Dragon" he does quotation marks with his fingers when he says dragon, "We''ve been all around these lands together, from the top of Anor Londo to the dark depths of the ruined city of Izalith. To be honest I''m not sure how I would''ve done without his assistance." He says sincerely.

    Sieglinde nods, "So you two are close then? Are you perhaps... Together?" Reima immediately scoffs at this. "No, definitely not."

    Solaire speaks from behind the duo, "Ah, I''ve been rejected it seems" he says while chuckling.

    Reima stands up and heavily grasps Solaire''s forearm, "Yo your back... Thanks for, youknow, dying for me." he says semi-sarcastically.

    Solaire returns a firm grasp, "It''s no matter at all, after all we''re all jolly undead. Besides I suspect I wouldn''t be able to finish the scaleless beast on my own, better to just let you handle it! hahahaha!"

    Sieglinde chimes in, "It''s still impressive... How did you defeat him on your own?"

    Reima shrugs, "I cheated... Although one of my weapons got damaged as a result." He shows them the snapped handle of the Dragon king Greataxe. "I remember this, it''s from that fake mouth dragon in those sewers if I''m not mistaken?" Solaire inquires.

    Reima nods, "I''m still debating whether or not to have it upgraded, dragon scales are a rare resource despite having a literal kingdoms worth of wealth to my name."

    They group idly continue to talk beside the bonfire until the discussion comes to Siegmeyer, the mans daughter is very insistent to try find him right away, Solaire agrees but Reima decides to tell them what he plans to do.

    Reima "There is a task I need to complete before we start hunting the lord souls again, can I send you with Sieglinde to find Siegmeyer?"

    Solaire looks slightly hesitant but agrees regardless, "If you think it''s the best course of action my friend." Reima nods in response, "Alright, Sieglinde hold onto me otherwise you might lose something."

    The two grab him as he teleports them all to the sewer bonfire in Blight Towns swamp, immediately the stench hits the three causing them to cough and sneeze.

    Solaire "On second thoughts, can I come with you instead? I''d rather not be wading through shit again." He almost pleads to Reima.

    Reima shakes his head before grinning, "No can do... You already agreed to this, oh, before I leave do you still have enough purple moss? You will need enough for yourself, Sieglinde and Siegmeyer."

    He shakes his head and Reima passes him a large sack full of the stuff, before asking if there is anything else they needed.

    Solaire "I would like you to give me a message for the sisters... I don''t think they''ll let you off so easily this time, this is the third time you''ve come by without visiting?"

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    Reima grimaces, "No... I''ll leave it up to you, please try and persuade them not to beat me..." His friend nods, Reima tells them that Siegmeyer should be somewhere inside of the swamp and wishes them good luck before teleporting to the Giant blacksmith in Anor Londo.

    The Giant isn''t even slightly fazed by his sudden appearance and just asks him slowly, "Smith something?" Reima nods and pulls out a couple of regular Titanite slabs, chunks and shards before taking his Witcher armour off and laying them to the side. "I need these upgraded", he points to the armour and thinks for a moment before pulling out the Moonlight Greatsword, "And this as well."

    The Giant looks over the armour and nods, before taking a closer look at the glowing blue great sword.

    Reima "So I''m guessing that''ll need twinkling titanite?" he states matter of-factly.

    The giant shakes his head, "No no... Scale of dragon, need."... Wait what? This sword looks entirely made from twinkling titanite, other than it coming from a dragon why would it be upgraded by Dragon scales...

    He sighs and pulls out a large bundle of dragon scales before handing it to the Giant... "Fine, I hope it''ll be worth it..."

    The Giant nods his head excitedly, "Good, nice good sword... Will be."

    ... "Yeah, ok Yoda... Actually come to think of it, do you have a name?" he asks the Giant.

    It freezes for a moment before nodding , he points to himself, "Coaugh"

    Reima "Coaugh... Like Gough?" Coaugh nods, "You, friend, already."

    Reima doesn''t really know what that means... He was already friends? Or he know Gough before?... Weird. Reima sits at the side in his "Absolver gear" while he waits for Coaugh to remake his armour and upgrade the Moonlight Greatsword.

    After a couple hours of watching the Giant hammer the relatively tiny anvil with his mini hammer he looks over to Reima expectantly.

    Coaugh "Done."

 156 Another one?

    The Giant holds up his almost unrecognisable armour, the previously brown and green armour with steel plating seems to be gone, replaced with this. The brown leather that previously made up the majority of the armour has been replaced with some kind of scales? It''s hard to tell due to their Dark green colour and small size, they''re flexible but still seem extremely strong, expecially with the black metal lining that Reima assumes in titanite running through them. The steel plating that had used to be on the shoulders, arms, wrist, chest and legs is no longer there, replaced by black metal. Reima glaces down at the legs and sees the same metal also plating it, along with small fine segments of chainmail reinforcing the skirt-like leg protection. All in all it looks similar but different, and Reima can already tell it''s much, much stronger than his previous set.

    He thanks Coaugh and starts equipping all the gear again, trying to see if anything is different... It isn''t, which only shows the skill and craftsmanship of Coaugh.

    Immediately after getting comfortable he has a shining blue Great Sword thrust into his face, it seems Coaugh is just as excited as he is about his new weapon. Visually it doesn''t look any different but he can tell as he grasps the handle that it''s significantly more powerful, Coaugh sets up a heavily armoured dummy on the other side of the room before sitting back down at his forge to watch him. Reima lightly swings the blade which causes a bright blue wave to sever the lower body of the dummy... Nice.

    Reima "Thank you my friend, I appreciate the work you''ve done."

    Coaugh nods, "Am blacksmith, does make." before focusing back down on a piece of metal Reima swears he''s been hammering since he first arrived... He vanishes and appears back in Firelink shrine, the place still empty, not even that big bastards snoring would make it feel lively.

    He walks towards the Undead burg and kills the wayward undead that''d found their way here before jumping off and onto the lower part of the bridge, which houses a certain annoying merchant.

    Domnall "Aye, Siwmae you''ve returned... I hope it wasn''t only for little ole me?"

    Reima "No... I just wish to see your wares."

    Domnall "Aye Siwmae, such a lonely existence is this... Oh well, here''s what I''ve found so far." He starts laying various things on the ground, the things that draw Reima''s attention is the Master key, Ornstein''s armour and Smough''s armour. He buys the first two but refuses to even touch Smough''s, who knows what that fat piece of shit did while wearing it.

    Reima transfers the souls to the merchant before quickly leaving.

    Domnall "Aye! Siwmae!!! Visit me soon please?" he says half-jokingly, Reima only now realising that with Firelink shrine being empty, no one is around to purchase his wares. He chuckles as he hears the merchant calling from behind him. He vanishes and reappears in the tower that the Taurus demon jumps off early in his journey. Using the master key he unlocks the door and starts descending the tower, Reima only now realising how tall it actually is after a couple minutes of walking doing the spiralling staircase. When he does eventually reach the bottom he sees a familiar figure guarding the doorway that leads to the Darkroot basin, Havel starts sprinting up the stairs while preparing to slam the large Dragon tooth in his hand on Reima... He doesn''t manage to though as Reima simply kicks him off the stairs and he falls heavily to the floor below, a loud impact sounds through the tower as his armour is very heavy. Feeling only pity and respect for the man Reima launches a barrage of Crystal Soul spears at him which proptly ends his life before he can get halfway back up the stairs. He doesn''t forget to take Havel''s ring as his opponent fades away.

    Reima unlocks the door and steps into the dark grassy area known as Darkroot Basin... Even from here he can spot the massive Hydra in the distance, in between them is a large amount of Crystal Golem''s that''d somehow come here? He doesn''t care why or how they got here and just start burning them alive with Pyromancies, the damp foliage around here being resistant enough to fire to allow him the privilege. He kills all the regular ones before spotting a Large Golden one hidden amongst some trees... A few Chaos fireballs later and it drops down dead... Revealing a young woman. She looks up at him from the floor and her eyes widen, "Savior?"

    ...

    Reima confusedly states "Err, you must be mistaking me for someone else."

    Dusk "Nonsense, do you not recognise me Sir Ludvig? it is I, Dusk!"

    ...

    Reima "Wait what? How do you know my name?" he asks, somehow more confused than before.

    Dusk "You had told me after the harrowing defeat of the monster of the abyss, Manus. It seems fate has brought us together once more." She looks at him shyly, "Perhaps you have reconsidered my offer?"

    ...

    Reima gets flashbacks to the random cliche accidental marriage acceptance, "Yeah... Fuck this." He grabs her by the scruff of her neck, she doesn''t struggle surprisingly and they teleport from the Basin into a familiar cave.

    Quelaag, "Your back! Did you slay Seath?" she asks, only noticing the peculiarly dressed woman behind him.

    Reima "Yes, but I don''t really have the time or patience to muddle my way through this... So, I''ll drop her on you instead." He says gently pushes Dusk onto Quelaag, he notes her horrified expression before giving an aggravating smirk, "Ciao!" he disappears immediately after, leaving a confused group behind.

    Quelaag just looks at the pale fearful Dusk and sighs, "So another one huh? What is your name?"

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    Dusk tries to remain composed but only manages to stutter out, "D-Dusk, Princess of O-Oolacile."

 157 HydrNah...

    Reima returns to the Basin, dreading the beat down he''ll receive when he returns to the sisters. Perhaps dropping another random girl on them is ill advised? In the game Dusk only appears via summoning signs, obviously that isn''t the case here... Also the way she knew him, probably due to the time travel BS, hopefully Dusk can get comfortable in this time period. He''ll probably have to take her along when he evacuates the occupants of this world, leaving a young girl like that to die for simply being annoying would leave a bad taste in his mouth, not to mention the Sorceries she''s able to teach him. He vaguely remembers them and is confused at how they managed to create those effects with this worlds magic, most, if not all of it is meant for combat in some way or another. Their light manipulation spells that are able bend light around an object, making it invisible, this added with their ability to project light makes them rather unique in the Dark Souls universe.

    He would continue on this line of thought were it not for the Hydra shooting high pressure water at him from it''s lakes in the distance. He easily dodges them due to the distance and start blinking in a zigzag pattern while sprinting towards it to dodge the majority of the projectiles. He slips on the Prisoners chain ring to allow for efficient movement in the water before blinking in the shallow part of the lake to combat the Hydra, it''s many heads hiss at him as if it were a snake instead of a dragon. He tries to spot it''s main body but can only see where it''s heads extend from, he dodges a couple more projectiles and fire some Sorceries in return, his Crystal Soul spear completely piercing one of the heads and eliminating it. The others don''t even take notice at the death of one of their own and launch at him in an attempted to eat him whole, he dodges while utilising Windfall and retrieves his Moonlight GreatSword before slamming it directly onto one of the heads necks... It severs it instantly but the blue trails of light that project from the sword completely rend another head into a bloody mist, completely out of Reima expectations. He gets a cold sweat, gotta be careful swinging this thing with allies around, don''t want to have to scrape their bodies off the floor after getting too excited during a battle...

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    After a couple more engagements Reima eventually cuts down the Hydra''s last head, making the rest of the creature fade away while providing him with a large amount of souls and surprisingly a ring. It''s gold with a green gem inlaid in it, he remembers it''s called the Dusk Crown Ring, it''s relation to Dusk? He has no idea... He''ll try and return it to her when he gets the chance, but for now he needs to travel to Oolacile. He cautiously makes his way around the side of the lake until he finds a dead end with a large black distortion hovering above the lake, he spots a white glowing orb on a corpse nearby and picks it up before being grabbed by Manus''s demon vagina hand. He finds the clothes that Dusk seemed to be wearing. Why and how? Reima isn''t quite sure, maybe it''s just a spare set of clothing that was left here? No that sounds ridiculous. Hes brutally torn from his mutterings as a huge black hand grabs him from the distortion, it shakes it fiercely and he feels like he''s going to vomit if this continues any longer. Thankfully after a couple more shakes he is dragged into the distortion which promptly implodes afterwards.

    Reima wakes up in a dark cave, only lit by the bonfire resting in the middle of it. Roots crawl along the walls haphazardly but don''t intrude upon the bonfire''s territory. He rubs his head, not knowing when or how long he was knocked unconscious... Maybe travelling through time is a lot more taxing than Doctor who makes it out to be. He looks around and vaguely remembers this place from the game... If he''s not mistaken there''s a boss immediately outside of this place. He looks at the bonfire and decides to upgrade his dexterity further before possibly losing his souls, Reima isn''t really sure what to expect from this place as even the famed Artorias was corrupted by the Abyss brought forth by Manus. He isn''t sure how susceptible he is to the corruption either due to his unique constitution brought about by the Elder Blood and Witcher mutagens... Hopefully he''s immune, if not he''ll need to kill Manus quickly before he loses himself. Reima absorbs the stored souls and directs them to upgrade his dexterity again, the familiar sensation envelops his body stronger than before. He''d guess he''d around 37 dexterity at this point? It''s hard to quantify such a vague statistic numerically.

    He stands up and shakes his limbs to get a proper feel before walking towards the exit of the cave, he sees the Fog-Gate and starts enchanting Arcell with Crystall and chewing on a healthy dose of Green blossoms in preparation for the boss fight.

 158 The good kind of magic mushrooms...

    After stepping through the Fog-Gate Reima comes face to face`with sort of Chimera? The front half of the creature resembles a lion, with a thick white mane and glowing red eyes, it''s back proudly displays a large set of white wings that''d belong to an eagle with another smaller set adjacent to them, probably to provide better control when flying. It''s rear resembles a goat or cow, with cloven hoofs and a long scorpions tail standing upright as if it''s going to strike at any minute. It''s actual height is only around 6.5ft with it''s length being something similar, it rears onto it''s Goat-like legs and stamps into the floor creating a wave of high powered water to be shot at him. Reima leaps out of the way fast enough to see the creature take off and start flying around the arena like alcove they''re standing in, fortunately for Reima he has a lot of experience in dealing with these sorts of enemies, his Witcher training in Kaer Morhen even taught some of the strategies to him. He starts the manoeuvre as muscle memory starts to take over, he raises his hand casting an Igni when the Chimera tries to swoop down to pounce on him. The flame startles the creature which slows it''s descent just enough for Reima to draw the Silver sword from his back, a flash of metal is the only sign that the creature had just been attacked, that and the red line that''s formed on the Chimera''s neck. It backs away as the wound starts weeping blood, it looks up which opens the clean cut further revealing it''s arteries to open air. It tries to cast some sort of lightning attack but isn''t able to as it''s wound becomes worse with every movement, eventually the blood dyes the entirety of the shallow water their standing in red as it finally lies down for the last time.

    Reima looks down at the creatures now fading away body only to widen his eyes soon after it disappears, "Shit! I forgot to cut it''s tail!!!!" he leans over as if he''s in pain at the realisation of the lost loot, how could he be so foolish!... This doesn''t last long as he remembers the pathetic weapon the creature actually drops, some sort of stupid looking whip that isn''t practical in the least.

    After mourning his "significant loss" Reima steps through the exit of the Alcove into some ruins gently lit by the morning sunlight he sits at the bonfire when he notices some movement in the corner of his eye, looking over he sees a... Giant mushroom with eyes.

    The Giant mushroom looks at him and blinks slowly before starting to talk?

    Elizabeth "Well, look at this one From what far-away age hast thou come? Thy Scent is very human, indeed¡­But, not intolerable¡­ Thy may refer to me as Elizabeth, I am the Guardian of this humble sanctuary, however long it lasts..."

    ...

    Reima "Yo, I didn''t happen to eat some magic mushrooms on the way here did I?"

    The mushroom chuckles in it''s weird voice that resembles an old lady, "No, I should hope not... Although I am told my flesh is delicious and rejuvenating."

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    Reima thinks for a moment the viability of cutting this weird creature down like a tree and preparing a big stew... Elizabeth notices his glare and responds, "Ah, humans... The greed is felt wherever they go... Before you devour me, would you do me the honour of listening to my last request?"

    Reima look sheepishly at the mushroom for a moment, "Err, I don''t intend to eat you... I apologise if I have offended you in any way."

    Elizabeth just blinks her white eyes at him before continuing, "My charge hast been kidnapped by the beast of the abyss, I am unable to retrieve her for rather obvious reasons... But, you look like a strong warrior, I can see it in your eyes." Reima cuts in, "I''m guessing you want me to rescue them."

    Elizabeth bends her fungal body in what resembles a nod, "I would be willing to part with my flesh an even life should you will it, I only beg of thee to save the princess... Save Dusk."

    Reima sighs, "Keep your flesh to yourself... I''ve never been a fan of mushrooms anyway." He states, the creature losing all hope at his response. "But, I always intended to save her... It''s a bad habit of mine to stick my nose into trouble when I see it."

    Elizabeth regains her vitality, "Truly? I thank thou in advance, I hold every hope you will prevail in saving her." she says so sincerely Reima begins to ponder whether or not she was human at some point. He gives a stern nod at her before walking through the path directly on her right. He travels for a couple of minutes through the woodland path until he comes across a stone bridge, it looks relatively ok to travel across but that doesn''t mean much in the world of man-eating chests and gemstone insects. He tentatively walks across, focusing at every moment on blinking away if the bridge isn''t as stable as he thought, he makes it across and feels rather stupid for being so paranoid. That is until he spots around one hundred red eyes in the dark forest before him...

 159 Borne with blood on your hands?

    He stifles an unmanly scream when a large amount of undead wielding pitchforks sprint out of the shade provided by the large trees in an attempt to spear him. This might''ve worked on someone else but not Reima, someone who has battled through armies of demons, undead and monsters. He forms an Igni sign while channelling his pyromancy flame to unleash a wall of fire at the approaching undead''s, it envelops them burning most to ashes in mere moments, the heat of his flames apparent to all present. The only survivors are heavily armoured tall stone warriors that seemed to have mingled amongst the regular undead, they don''t prove a challenge however as a few Crystal Soul spears pierce their armour and rending their internal organs a red pulp. They stagger before falling over, their souls quickly absorbed by Reima''s Dark Sign.

    Reima continues slaughtering the denizens of the forest in a brutal massacre that would have been spoken of for ages, had everyone who could''ve told the story not been murdered as well. Reima had just blocked a stone knights large hammer with a Haki infused hand before severing it''s head when a large black dragon heavily lands on the bridge in-front of him... It glares at him with it''s two black eyes, the red gem on it''s fore-head more drawing his attention than any other part of it''s body. He gives him the dragon equivalent of a sneer before jumping off and flying away... The encounter had shaken Reima slightly, he had not met a dragon with such a potent aura before, even his medallion could sense it even though it was a fair distance away. He recomposes himself while thinking of ways to fight such a beast in their eventual battle.

    He gets back on the path, noting the large almost bottomless pits that are apparently very common in this area, something else to note is a very dark blue substance that seems to be crawling its way up from the pits. It reminds Reima of the creep from Starcraft, he nudges it with his boot and finds it''s texture is almost phlegm like... He grimaces and scrapes the remaining goop off of his boot and onto the grass nearby, he knows it''s likely the spread of the Abyss but it''s still pretty disgusting visually and tactiley. Although he''s not at risk of wasting time due to literally travelling to the past he still loots anything he comes across.

    Eventually as he approaches the large collosium that he assumes holds Artorias he stumbles across a peculiarly dressed man leaning against a wall beside a bridge... He glaces up and notices Reima immediately, as if he''d been waiting for him. Reima remembers the mans name from the game... He''d personally been killed by him many times, the person Reima would compare him to would be "Trusty" Patches, a kind persona hiding malicious intentions. The man wears a black trench coat, white face-mask paired with a top hat and Victorian era clothes underneath it all, Reima can see the glint of metal in the mans belt, probably a hidden throwing knife?

    Chester "Strange... I''ve never encountered a Cat-eyed human before, let me guess... Snatched by a shadowy limb, and dragged off to distant lands from the past?" he says amused with his arms crossed.

    Reima "Nope, I was born and raised here." he says hoping his distraction would sway the mans inevitable death by his hands.

    Chester "Really? Because I''ve also never seen an article of clothing like that around here either." he says while pointing a Reima''s Gleam cloak which still sits faithfully on his shoulders.

    Reima shrugs, "It''s from my ancestors, I''d keep your hands to yourself otherwise you''ll find me to be more ruthless than I appear." His eyes dig into the man.

    Chester just raises his arms in fake protest, Reima can easily spot a hidden dagger, even if the man hides it impeccably well. "I don''t have any intentions towards you my compatriot... How could you think such a-" he cuts his sentence short and tries to stab Reima in the face with an ornate looking dagger, Reima smirks as he easily blocks the strike with his forearm and twists Chester''s wrist, forcing the weapon from his grip. Chester spins and tries to sweep his legs, Reima backs up to dodge it while retrieving Arcell from his Folded Space, he looks at Chester who draws a thin sword, he grabs the handle and snaps it into two causing sparks to fly towards him. Without any time to spare he lunges at Reima, who dodges the first stab and ducks under the following slash, "Weird weapon you''ve got there Chester, you wouldn''t happen to belong to a place called Yharnam would you?"

    The shock caused by Reima''s sudden question causes him to falter slightly, allowing him to gut the dishonourable betrayer like fish. He pierces the mans heart, grips the handle with both hands and forces it downwards, opening up his entire abdomen and allowing his organs to spill out onto the floor.

    Reima smiles at the man who doesn''t seem to be fading away. "Don''t worry, I''m sure this terrible dream will be over soon." he says with no small amount of irony.

    Chester slides his mask off and reveals his beastly looking face, "Haaaa, very... Funny...." his body goes limp, dead. Reima grins and takes the two swords from the ground and tries to figure out the mechanism that causes them to click together... After some fiddling he slides on into the other while causing a metallic click to sound out, he can see a small trigger that releases the tension which allows the blades to separate. "Thanks Chester, you''ve truly proven to be a good friend." he says as he kicks the bloody body covered in it''s own internal organs off the nearby cliff.

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 160 Abyss Walker Artorias

    Reima stores away the vicious looking machete like blade and approaches the Fog-Gate that leads into the Colosseum, he enchants Arcell with the Chaos Blade pyromancy before eating a heavy helping of Green blossoms. Taking a deep breath he steps through and glances around the heavily corrupted area, the tentacle like Abyssal goop appears to have started enveloping the entire Colosseum. His eyes are drawn to the centre of the room where a knight covered in the same Abyssal Phlegm stands, he wears dirty metal armour with a heavily damaged chain mail skirt that apparently used to protect his legs, around his neck and shoulders is a blue cloth-like material that has various thing written on it in white. The knights left arm hangs loosely at his side, bending at disturbing angles while the other wields a heavy looking sword, also coated in the black substance. He seems to have been resting before Reima arrived and starts standing up, black slime dripping from his visor onto the floor and creating a disgusting looking rot patch on the floor.

    Artorias stands up to his full 6.2ft height and convulses as if he''s having a seizure, he gurgles as if he''s trying to scream while drowning. His body snaps backwards in an unnatural position before slowly returning back to his original posture while focusing on Reima''s location. The once honourable knight eyes Reima up like he''s one of the Abyss corrupted creatures he vowed to destroy, he tightly grips his Great sword and lunges at Reima, leaving a trail of Abyssal goop as he travels. Reima dodges out of the way swiftly, watching his step on the slippery areas of black goop covering the floor as he goes, in response to the attack he slashes the fiery Arcell at Artorias who performs a back-flip to avoid the strike.

    The two opponents eye each other, Reima is honestly surprised at the knights speed... He''s probably on Ornstein''s level or higher, probably being restrained or boosted by his corruption, it''s hard to tell as the Abyss seems to have mixed results on people. The two suddenly leap towards each other, Reima deflecting each one of Artorias''s heavy strikes with Arcell while trying to counter attack when he gets the chance. If an outsider were watching them it''d seem like a fight from Dragonball Z as their movements are too quick to see accurately, Artorias is fiercely swinging his Great sword with one arm as if it''s a toothpick, his weird attack patterns and body breaking flexibility cause Reima to have a hard time predicting what attack is going to come next. The knight backs up before jumping in the air and performing a front-flip while bringing his heavy weapon down upon Reima, said person uses Windfall to pirouette away while slashes Artorias chest, leaving a deep gash in his armour and flesh.

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    The two once again back away from each other, Reima breathing heavily while Artorias just continues to gurgle as more black goop escapes from his visor, the man stabs his weapon into the floor and looks down at his wound before dragging a hand across it... Blood? No, it''s not blood that''s seeping through. It''s the same black goop that has infested the land around them. He grabs his head after seeing it and gives a terrifying scream, a black mist surrounds him and flows into every orifice of his body, empowering him as well as taking the last of his sanity.

    Artorias "Ahhrrrrrrggghhh! N-no! NO!" he gives one final scream as he drops to his knees, Reima watches from the other side of the room, unsure as to what just happened... The knight straightens his back from his slumped over position and grasps the handle of his sword while pulling himself to his feet. As he touches the blade tentacles of black goop attach themselves to it before hardening into an blue tinted obsidian-like material.

    Reima prepares to strike down the knight when he suddenly has to dodge, his Observation Haki proving very useful at detecting danger. His make-shift Matrix dodge means he has to move quickly to avoid the sword quickly descending upon him, intent on cutting him in half. He twists and brings Arcell in-front of himself to block the strike but almost coughs blood when he receives it, it''s so strong that he almost lets the attack through his guard... Black droplets fall from the blade onto his face, he feels his skin twitch as it tries to dig through and gain access to his internal organs like it had Artorias. Reima forces Artorias off of him momentarily with all his strength before blinking a couple of metres away to safety. It doesn''t last long as Artorias slides along the floor like it''s ice to stab at him, Reima thinking he needs a distraction throws Arcell at Artorias who easily twists his body to dodge it... That was a mistake as Reima had retrieved his Moonlight Greatsword from his Folded Space and blinked forwards while trying to stab his opponent. Artorias having just dodged Arcell flying through the air isn''t able to avoid the strike, the blue blade pierces his chest but Reima continues to run forwards and eventually pierces the wall with Artorias being carried on the blade the entire way. The knight drops his sword as he raises his head to look at Reima, he thinks he can see a small nod from the man before he starts fading away into white mist. Reima receives his horrifically humanity corrupted soul and stores it away before giving a small prayer for the man''s next life.

 163 Manus not hot...

    After excitedly stuffing the scrolls into his Folded Space Reima keeps fighting through the humanity sprites while descending deeper into the cavern, after taking a small detour for a White titanite slab he can now see the Fog-Gate... His medallion shudders ominously as he stands a few meters away from the Father of the Abyss and owner of the Dark Soul. He wreaths Arcell in Chaos Flames before eating an unhealthy amount of Green Blossoms, he feels hyped up and not just from the ill advised dosage of herbs but also for the upcoming battle. He tugs on his Gleam Cloak as if it were a lucky items before stepping through the Fog-Gate and immediately seeing numerous red eyes in the darkness... Loud thudding sounds out as it''s large body becomes visible from the darkness, the 15ft body of the creature is completely black with huge horns erupting from it''s skin in every which way imaginable... Small red eyes decorate it''s horns and skin while funnily enough not being present on the creatures actual face, which looks horrific in it''s own way. It''s face looks emaciated with large inhuman teeth sticking out and forming a wide grin. It appears to be leaning over as it''s legs are thinner than they should be for holding up such a large body, but it apparently makes up for it as it''s right arm is proportionate to the rest of it''s body while holding a large dark wooden staff in it''s hand which it topped with some sort of axe head. Probably the most noticeable thing about the creatures anatomy though is the left arm which is huge and somehow not even connected to the body... It has black mist coming from the part that should be connected as it moves about in a manner defying physics.

    Without any time to spare the creature known as Manus leaps at Reima, so quickly that he barely has enough time to blink away. Even so Manus immediately launches his large left hand towards Reima, and even despite being initially out of range the arm detaches and stretches while successfully surprising Reima with a heavy punch to the chest. It launches him away and into the darkness, his Armament Haki barely cushioning the blow... How the hell did his arm stretch in the first place! He quickly gets up as he can hear Manus charging him again, as he becomes visible Reima blinks behind him and slices into one of the large creatures legs causing it to give an inhuman scream while retaliation by slamming it''s limbs on everything around it, Reima watches from a distance having just barely escaped it''s small temper tantrum but becomes more alert as black mist begins to form on Manus''s staff... It''s a mage too!?! Reima mentally screams as he barely dodging a barrage of Dark magic orbs being shot at him, having felt the spell once before from the creatures in the Oolacile township he is not willing to be hit again.

    After dodging all the spells it seems that Manus is charging up another one, Reima blinks forward and slams the sword into it''s side, leaving a large scorched gash along it''s black skin. The flames seeming to be very effective against it. He''s about to strike again when he''s launched away by a magic blast emitted by the insane creature, it roars again while slamming everything near it, the shards of what it smashes being a deadly attack in itself. Reima casts Flame Whip at the creature which entangles it''s right staff wielding arm, it roars at him and tries to punch him again with it''s large left arm, he blinks away which leaves the Flame Whip still attached and burning it''s right arm, although it won''t last much longer due to it no longer being provided Mana.

    Reima has to blink a couple more times as Manus keeps launching Dark magic at him when he appears, another blink which places him behind the creature allows him to stab into it''s leg, hopefully crippling it''s movement. Fortunately the attack does injure it''s leg but to compensate Manus starts using it''s left arm to fling itself at Reima while simultaneously casting spells with it''s right... He tries to stop this by chopping at the staff being used to cast the spells but he isn''t able to deal any damage to it, despite delivering many clean heavy blows against it.

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    After 30 minutes of back and forth fighting, constant blinking and spells being flung everywhere Reima starts to slow down. He would eat some more Green Blossoms to give himself an extra boost but Manus won''t allow him any time to rest as his seemingly endless assault gets closer and closer to pinning him down and finishing him. Reima back up and tosses a couple Great Chaos Fireballs into the air before blinking away again, hoping the pyromancy will provide a big enough distraction for him to try and finish the fight. The Fireballs explode as they rain down on Manus, covering him in extremely hot lava causing him to scream and thrash around, Reima uses this opportunity to attempt to finally kill the creature. He blinks above Manus, being weary of his extremely sharp horns before making use of his momentum and delivering a heavy slash to it''s neck... Only to be stopped by another horn that has randomly grown amongst the others. "Shit." he says as he''s smashed away again by the creatures left hand. He rolls backwards along with the force to try alleviate some of the impact, it helps as he only seems to have broken a couple ribs from the vicious strike.

    He looks up at Manus who''s still thrashing around due to the lava covering him and sighs, "It''s gonna be like this then huh?". He reluctantly starts flinging more Great Chaos Fireballs at Manus, despite his large magical reserves he starts feeling the strain after the 50th fireball that only adds more lava to the newly forming puddle underneath the creature. Manus doesn''t look like a monster of darkness any longer due to the brightly glowing lava covering every inch of it''s form, it''s screams grow hoarse as it struggles to thrash around much longer. It casts every spell it can think of to try and get the pain to go away but it has no effect, the last thing the creature ever feels is searingly hot pain, and a sense of loss for it''s stolen item.

    Manus starts fading away, taking some of the lava covering it with him as he goes, which is fortunate as a young woman''s figure appears where he had just disappeared... Atleast she won''t be cold surrounded by lava, Reima muses to himself as he approaches her. As he gets closer he gets a good look at her face, short dirty blonde hair with the same dress she was wearing before... He flicks the weird ornament she''s wearing on her head which causes her eyes to open, "W-where am I?"

 164 Princesses Hero...

    Dusk "W-where am i?" she stutters out while on the floor shaking.

    Reima calmly states "You''re in the Abyss Milady."

    ...

    Dusk "H-how did I get here?.. I was j-just visiting a bakery w-when an arm grabbed me... W-w-was I kidnapped?"

    Reima just shrugs while trying to help her to her feet, "It appears so, but don''t worry, your kidnapper is no more." he says while showing the large pitch black soul in his hand. Unlike most other souls it lacks any other colour than black and blue, even the Fire keeper souls he had collected had a white centre signifying their own ego. Reima considers absorbing the soul for a moment before banishing the thought from his head, if Artorias had fallen just from the presence of it how would he do being directly influenced by it? Not well he assumes.

    He stores the soul away and allows her to wrap her arm around his neck and shoulder to stabilise herself. She fearfully looks around the pitch black area that slowly seems to be getting lighter, probably due to Manus being killed.

    Dusk "M-may I know my rescuers name?" she asks while trying to stifle her involuntary shaking.

    "Reima Ludvig, Witcher." he states bluntly, trying to get her calm enough to be able to teleport away.

    She leans forwards slightly and almost loses her balance before anxiously speaking, "I am Dusk, princess of Oolacile... Apologies, you probably already know that."

    Reima "Don''t mind it, your friend Elizabeth asked me to retrieve you."

    Dusk gives a small smile, "Yes, she must be extremely worried about me. Perhaps we should start heading back? I can''t imagine it''s an easy journey." Reima grins at this, "Well, you guessed wrong Milady. Hold on tight." he says as they vanish from the Abyss and appear in the Colosseum that he had fought Artorias in. Dusk almost falls on her face but Reima had expected this and easily catches her, she looks up at him from his arms and blushes while turning her head away...

    They separate and Dusk begins to stutter again, not from being cold and exhausted like before but being nervous? "Sir Reima, is there any chance you have heard of those old tales... The ones where the hero rescues the princess?", Reima stifle the urge to moan in mental anguish, "I have but in the stories the Princess still had a kingdom, for now you''re royalty without any subjects."

    Dusk loses her smile momentarily but she finds a way to plaster another one on her face, "That may be the case, but perhaps the hero will help her create another kingdom? Obviously, a Queen needs her King." she says while trying to be as seductive as a nervous wreck of a twenty year old can be...

    "I''m sorry bu-" his refusal is cut short when they hear a bark coming from the Colosseum''s entrance, turning around they spot Ciaran and Sif heading towards them.

    Ciaran "How on earth did you get here so quickly? Did you fail in defeating the Abyss creature?" she asks worried at what he might say, Her hurried questioning only made more grave by Sif''s whimpers.

    Reima shakes his head, "No. Manus was defeated and the Abyss has started to retreat, I was just having a... Discussion with the princess here." he gestures to the slightly put out Dusk beside him.

    Ciaran approaches her before slapping her chest above her heart with her clenched fist while bowing slightly, "Princess, it''s an honour to finally meet you, it''s relieving to hear of the Dark ones defeat but Lord Gwyn questions how this all came about."

    Reima kneels next to Sif while patting his head as an apparently serious discussions seems to have started...

    Dusk "I''m sorry but all I know is that we were expanding the prisons under the keep, a large explosion sounded out before I was snatched away. I have no idea how this catastrophe had happened." She seems to tear up at the end.

    Ciaran "Be that as it may, I''ll need to take you to Anor Londo for further inquiries." she states matter of factly, not letting any emotion show on her covered face.

    Dusk seems to know vaguely about what will happen to her, she shrinks into herself as she nods to Ciaran.

    Ciaran looks at Reima, "I would like you to accompany me to Anor Londo to give you version of events here." she adds on almost as an after thought.

    Reima immediately shakes his head, "I cannot do that, I still need to rid these lands of that big black dragon known as Kalameet" He dips his head closer and whispers to Ciaran, "I fear I wouldn''t be able to restrain myself were I to witness Dusk''s fate..."

    She looks shocked at his indirect accusation and sputters in a small rage, "How dare you say such a thing towards Lord Gwyn! His honourable being would never deliver an unjust sentence."

    Reima shakes his head in disappointment, he already knows what''ll happen to Dusk as he literally saves her from one of Seath''s Golem in the future. She will probably be given to Seath for experimentation, he would try to stop such a thing happening but doing so would lead to a paradox of some sort. "Form your own unbias opinion after witnessing it. Differences aside, do you know the location of Gough? I may need his assistance in battling the dragon."

    She returns to her normal stoic persona and scoffs, "That big blind idiot? He wouldn''t help me save Artorias, let alone strike down a dragon he was originally brought in to deal with... He was so adamant at being left alone that he locked the door in my face and threw away the key."

    Reima bring out the crest key they had found while journeying through Oolacile and shows it to her, "This the key?" she gapes at him, "Yes... How on earth did you find it?"

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    Reima shrugs, "I''m lucky I guess."

 165 Hawkeye Gough not as good as Hawkeye Though...

    Reima looks at the group, "So you''ll be travelling back to Anor Londo then?"

    Ciaran nods, "Indeed, while it pains me to leave Artorias like this I will have them construct a grave a man of his stature deserves."

    Reima "You should let Elizabeth know that you''re safe Dusk, I guess this''ll be where we part ways then."

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    Dusk "Sir Reima!" She squeaks out, "Do not leave me alone, please accompany me!" she almost pleads to him.

    Reima "I''m sorry, but I have other duties to attend to... We will meet in the future though, so don''t keep me waiting long." he says with some amusement.

    The group start heading towards Anor Londo leaving Reima alone in the Colosseum, he immediately starts heading up and towards the tower that Gough resides on. He approaches the door and can already hear someone carving wood, unlocking the door he walks up and spots the giant named Gough. He seems to hear Reima''s footsteps and begins speaking, "Hm? A visitor, have we? Thou must be the one who freed Artorias. An old friend he was, and thanks to thee... He left this world with honour intact... And here I am, retired and blind. Of little help to thee, I am afraid."

    Reima "Greeting Gough, I''ve just returned from destroying the origin of the Abyss... I was actually hoping for your assistance with Kalameet."

    The Giant seems so surprised at his words that he accidentally cuts through the block of wood he was carving and cuts his hand. "Ooohhh, Are you speaking the truth?" he questions while rubbing his cut hand.

    Reima "I am, I was asked to rescue a princess the creature had kidnapped, unfortunately living happily ever after isn''t one of my rewards" he quips.

    Gough chuckles, "If it were I would''ve had a go at the creature myself. Still, to your question on whether I can assist against Kalameet... The answer would be no."

    Confused, Reima pushes the giant to explain himself, "Why? I know you are still able to loose arrows accurately, despite your blindness... Is it too much to ask for some assistance in bringing it down permanently?"

    Gough nods, "Unfortunately I am retired, I had left my ring with an old friend which would''ve improved the odds some but even with it, I doubt my ability to strike true."

    Reima pulls out the Hawk ring that he had acquired from the Giant blacksmith in Anor Londo and hands it to Gough, "Is this the ring? A friend gave it to me after I gave him an extremely rare mineral."

    The giant rolls it around in his hand before the ring expands until it''s able to comfortably fit around his finger. "Huh, never thought my habit of bribing the fellow to make me more arrows would come back to bite me like this, a hunk of titanite always had him excited. What did you give him to have acquired this?" he asks curiously.

    Reima "A mineral not seen before in this world." he states bluntly, Gough chuckles "At-least he valued my ring enough to trade it for something so unique, you know what? Never let it be known that Hawkeye Gough was a coward!" he drops his wood carving and stand up while haphazardly reaching for a massive ornate wooden bow propped at the side.

    He picks it up along with an arrow, and starts listening for Kalameet, "A friend of Coaugh is a friend of mine. Let us celebrate our triumphs or burn to death trying!" he says as he starts drawing his bow towards the black shadow in the distance, after a suspenseful couple of seconds he unleashes the huge arrow towards the shadow...

    ...

    It''s almost there!

    ...

    ...

    ...

    The arrow approaches the black dragon at super sonic speeds, it gets closer, and closer until it''s about to pierce it''s chest!... And flies completely past the dragon...

    Gough "Did I hit it?" he asks as Reima face palms himself hard enough to cause bruises, "NO YOU DIDN''T! AH SHIT! IT''S COMING RIGHT FOR US!" He shouts, heart beating fast as he panics.

    Gough quickly grabs another arrow and slowly draws it at Kalameet gets closer to the Colosseum, it''s around a mile away when it unleashes it towards the giant black lizard.

    Reima unconciously holds his breath as he watches the arrow fly towards the dragon, Gough''s skill is displayed as it strikes the dragons wing, causing it to crash through the Colosseum wall and landing in the area where he''d fought Artorias.

    Gough "A truer shot was never loosed" he says with pride as the building shakes as the enraged dragon tries to break out of the Colosseum it now finds itself trapped in.

    Reima "It would''ve been much cooler if you had hit the first shot" he says as he starts heading towards the arena to fight the dragon.

    The giant raises his voice at Reima as he leaves, "When you tell tales of this, don''t mention the first shot!" he said anxious at his reputation going down the toilet.

    Reima approaches the entrance to the arena which is now a newly created Fog-Gate, he has no idea how he''s going to fight this thing in such a constrained space, but he''ll give it a try anyway... Luckily the bonfire is nearby in-case it becomes a battle of attrition.

    He does all the pre-battle preparation while enchanting Arcell with Crystal and stuffing Green blossoms down his throat before stepping through the Fog-Gate.

 166 Kala-meet Death...

    Reima steps through the Fog-Gate and gazes upon the black dragon currently trying to climb out of the building through the hole it had made, it''s wing not being usable due to the large arrow piecing it. Kalameet''s body is extremely large with thick black scales covering almost every inch of it''s body, its undamaged wing looks old and tattered as if it''s been around for centuries and it''s back is covered in deadly looking spines sticking out from it''s back. The head flairs out in an unorganised manner, the only identifiable thing in the mess is the two large horns extending from it''s head, Reima glances from it''s small black eyes to the large red gem on it''s forehead and feels drawn towards it, as if he must touch it for some reason.

    He shakes those thoughts away as he must focus on the fight, luckily due to his Slumbering Dragoncrest ring the dragon hasn''t noticed his presence yet. He spies the tail dangling right in front of him as the dragon tries to escape the building... He can''t stop himself as his body channels Haki into his arms and brutally swings Arcell at it''s tail, easily crushing the scales and severing it before storing it away into his Folded Space. Kalameet falls off the wall onto his back due to the sudden attack, almost crushing Reima in the process, it gives out terrifying roars that''d give any normal person a heart attack. It puffs out black and white flames as it angrily looks around for the person who had injured it, after not seeing anyone it tries to stand up but as soon as it tries it feels a sharp pain in it''s previously uninjured wing.

    Reima is finally spotted as it stabs Arcell into the joint of the wing in an attempt to completely cripple it''s mobility, he jumps off after confirming that the dragon wouldn''t be flying again for quite some time. He suddenly has to blink high up onto the wall to dodge the large torrent of black and white flames shot by Kalameet, the dragon seems confused at it''s prey''s sudden disappearance which allows Reima to leap off and try a dropping attack on the unaware dragon. He retrieves the Moonlight Greatsword from his Folded space and prepares to stab both it and Arcell into the dragon.

    Reima only gives a shout as he lands and deeply stabs the two weapons into the back of Kalameet, mindfully landing a good distance away from the sharp spines on the dragons back. The two weapons become makeshift hand holds as the dragons roars and bucks around like an angry bull to dislodge him from it''s back. After 10 minutes of this the dragon seems to have had enough as it tries to roll over to crush him, stupidly forgetting the two swords still penetrating it''s back. Reima is forced off but leaves his weapons sheathed in the dragons back as it rolls over and accidently forces them deeper into it''s flesh. They are forced so deeply the only part visible is their hilt and handles, Reima gets some distance and starts firing Crystal Soul spears at the dragon while it spews fire all around it in retaliation to the brutal pain it feels in it''s back, the crystal enchantment on Arcell only making the wound much, much worse.

    Eventually the red gem on the dragons head glows ominously as Reima feels some sort of suction pulling him towards the dragon, it slowly gets stronger until he''s barely able to hold onto the nearby wall. With some quick thinking Reima unseals a bunch of random weapons from his Folded Space, which immediately launch towards the dragon, some shattering into shards of metal on it''s hard scales, others like the Blade of mercy he had taken from Chester, Drake sword, Greatsword Server and more pierce the thin scales on the dragons neck drawing thick globules of black blood to drip to the arena floor. The dragon is momentarily stunned at the sudden damage it took as a result of it''s own attack which gives Reima an opportunity to try and finish this.

    Reima retrieves the huge, heavy Demon''s great hammer and has to channel Armament Haki to even be able to use it, he quickly starts spinning it, once it''s picked up enough speed he blinks in-front of the dragons head allowing the momentum of the hammer to slam into the red jewel which promptly shatters into a million pieces.

    The gem unleashes a shock wave that blasts Reima away as it''s destroyed, unfortunately it also brutally forces the weapons piercing the dragons neck to be ripped out, opening large gaping wounds which spew forth with a huge amount of black blood. It tries to spit some more Black and white flames before it drops heavily to the floor which is not a couple inches deep in black blood.

    The dragon starts fading away into white mist, taking the blood flooding the floor with it as the only things left in the room are Reima with his discarded weapons. He looks at his hand which now holds the whispy black and white soul of the dragon and stores it away before picking up the weapons he''d used to counter the dragons telekinetic attack.

    After retrieving his weapons Reima rests at the nearby bonfire while examining the tail he had severed from the dragon, he''d finally found a true dragon that wasn''t horribly mutated like Seath which he can possibly get some strong mutagens from, he can still attempt it with Seath''s tail/tentacle but he''ll be thoroughly testing it before attempting to integrate it within himself. He digs through the black dragons tail to find the Obsidian Greatsword, a large weapon that shines in the sun like black glass but has the weight of wrought iron. It''s very sharp despite it''s heavy weight, Reima intends to upgrade it with his remaining dragon scales as it''ll probably be a very effective backup weapon if his others fail to work.

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 167 Changes?

    After slaying the dragon Reima travels back to Gough to let him know of the beasts demise. The Colosseum and tower seemed to have been massively damaged by their fight but they still stand regardless.

    Reima reaches the Gough''s tower and walks up the stairs to see the Giant no longer carving but instead leaning over in the thinker pose while mumbling something. "Yo Gough, I killed Kalameet."

    Gough lifts his head up from his day dreaming and nods slowly, "Congratulations, it seems humanity has a legend amongst them, Lord Gwyn''s blessing upon you." he says with no small deal of respect.

    "I was tasked to deal with the dragon but was unable to, thus I remained here to keep watch... It seems my retirement will have to be cut short. Ah... I suppose I should reward you for assisting me in this task, I honestly didn''t believe you capable of succeeding." he says as he reaches around to his Great Bow along with a large stack of arrows, he plops them down in front of Reima and gives him an expectant look.

    Reima shrugs and touches the huge Great Bow that''s twice his size, once his fingers connect the bow seems to shine momentarily before shrinking down to a still rather large 7ft, the arrows follow suit and Reima is left with a powerful bow that''s just the right size for his use. "Are you sure? I can''t imagine you can come out of retirement without a weapon?" he asks curiously.

    Gough places his elbow on his knee and answers, "I don''t intend to fight of course, my blindness has seen to that... But perhaps I can train some talented individuals in the art of archery and marksmanship."

    Reima nods, "In that case you should probably hurry, you might catch up with Ciaran as she''s also returning."

    Gough stands and prepares to leave, as he''s about to go Reima adds one last thing, "Ah, tell Coaugh I said hi... Even know he doesn''t know of me yet." The giant nods as if he understands, Reima isn''t sure whether he does though.

    After Gough leaves Reima is left on his own... How does he get back to his own time? Crap. There should really be an instructions manual for this shit... He decides to go back to the sanctuary bonfire where he''d woken up to see if he can find any clues to return to his own time. He teleports back into the cave but finds something peculiar about the bonfire. The fire is black? This has gotta be a sign of some sort he thinks, just as the thought crosses his mind the black fire quickly expands covering everything in the small room, Reima is consumed and everything goes black.

    Reima jolts awake as he feels cool water beneath him, quickly getting up and shaking himself off he realises he''s back where the hand had grabbed him. "I''m back" he mutters, not really expecting to have done everything he needed to in Oolacile so quickly, he thinks it only took a couple days to kill Artorias, Manus and Kalameet. Not bad if you think about how powerful they all actually were... His thoughts drift to Ciaran and Sif, "I wonder if nothing has changed? Will Sif still be in the graveyard?... I''m close enough to it, Might as well check." he nods confirming his decision and starts climbing up the nearby ladder that leads to the Darkroot forest above, while he''s there he might as well recover the divine ember, he''ll need it to descend into Nito''s domain anyway.

    Eventually he finds himself standing in front of the large metal gate that leads into the graveyard that they presumebly created for Artorias. As much as he hates being "disrespectful" to the dead Reima needs the Artorias covenant ring to be able to kill the four kings in the Abyss. Why he didn''t need such an item while fightning Manus? It''s probably because the Abyss hadn''t completely taken over the material realm yet, this was probably also why Manus didn''t curb stomp him into nothingness.

    The gate seems almost holy as he approaches it with white particles dancing in front of the door that seems to glow with an ephemeral light. Reima pushes against the heavy doors and they open out into a large area with a 10ft gravestone standing in the middle surrounded by weapons of every kind, Reima would take them if they were not all severely rusted and worn... He doubts they could be repaired even with souls.

    Walking over to the grave stone he sees a large white tail sticking out from behind it... It must be tragically hard for a giant wolf to stay hidden after all.

    Reima asks wearily "Sif?"

    He sees two large white ears perk up over the grave as an almost 11 feet tall, 22 feet long white wolf cautiously walks around the grave. Sif lays his golden eyes on Reima and the tension surrounding the beast is immediately lost, he walks towards Reima revealing the rest of his bod... The one thing he didn''t expect was the feminine figure riding Sif''s back.

    The person seems to be wearing a pristine female version of Artorias signature armour, she''s wielding his Purging Greatshield that was used to protect Sif in the abyss and an uncorrupted version of Artorias Great sword.

    ??? "You''ve returned... It''s been..." she chuckles, "I''ve actually lost count." she sheaths her weapons and reaches up to her helmet before removing it. There sitting atop Sif is Ciaran, her face now visible to Reima, the only difference now is that he can see her Golden eyes.

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    Ciaran "How has life been for you, Sir Ludvig?" she asks sincerely, tapping Sif on the side and directing him to lay beside Reima. "To be honest, I''ve just travelled back through time to now... So for me it''s only been a couple hours so I saw you leave for Anor Londo."

    ...

    Ciaran''s face twitches, "Well... That''s a surprise."

 168 Ciaran, Artorias Cosplayer and Wolf Rider.

    After a quick explanation Ciaran seems to have composed herself... Despite not losing her composure in the first place.

    Ciaran "So you came to Oolacile from the future to save the past? And this doesn''t cause an anomaly in any way?"

    Reima shrugs, "I don''t really know... But it all worked out in the end didn''t it? You know, aside from the world coming to an end."

    Ciaran gives a sigh as Sif whimpers slightly, "If only that were true... You were right." she whispers the last part, her pride barely allowing her to admit this lackadaisical buffoon has predicted what would happen. "Sorry?" he asks, wanting to hear the stoic woman admit he was right again.

    Ciaran "You were right! Lord Gwyn gave the princess to Seath and she was never seen again, the guilty I feel for being responsible for her death has plagued me for so long."

    Reima struggles to stop his amusement from showing, "You know, I already killed Seath... And Princess Dusk is alive and well, being cared for by my close friends." His words immediately causing Ciaran to have an awed reaction. "Y-you did what!".

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    Reima leans into Sif''s soft fur, "Yeah, killed the Witch of Izalith too. Last on my list is Nito, the four kings and finally Gywn himself... And maybe his son."

    Ciaran''s brain seems to have stopped functioning momentarily, it seems the shock of finding out this man could quite possible be one of the most powerful being around has left her questioning reality.

    ...

    After finding a moment to collect her thoughts she replies, "Do you intend to link the flame?"

    Reima scoffs, "Pfft, no way! Burning to death until the age of darkness doesn''t sound fun at all... Actually I would like to give you and your companion here an offer, salvation from this quickly collapsing world." He gives her the basic explanation on what he plans to do after killing Gwyn, telling her that he''d made the same offer to his friends and family that reside in these lands, he states that if she wants to life through the Apocalypse all she has to do is meet him when he calls for everyone with his "Special" summoning sign. After that he''ll take them to his world that isn''t likely to end any time soon... He hopes.

    Ciaran leans back heavily into Sif after listening to Reima''s monologue and quietly replies, "Could you perhaps give me some time to come to a decision?"

    Reima nods, "Of course... I should also let you know that I might require your assistance in fighting off some otherworldly race that wish to harm my friends, maybe you could consider this me claiming the favour for honouring Artorias and saving the world?" he says half sarcastically.

    She huffs, "You jest to much Sir Ludvig... But I''ll think of it further.". "Ah, also. I need a ring called Artorias Covenant to access the abyss and kill the four kings. are you in possession of it?"

    Ciaran nods and tosses it towards him, "Don''t disappoint me and die, understand?"

    Reima nods while getting up to leave, "Yes ma''am" he states dutifully before heading back into the forest to try and find the crest door... While he won''t be able to open it, who says he can''t just climb or teleport around it...

    While trekking through the thick foliage he''s attacked numerous times by what seem to be bandits? One of them is partially see through, a result of the fog ring he muses as he cuts the man down. The bandits come in all shapes and sizes, Sorcerers, Pyromancers, Rogues, Warriors, you name it. Though, despite their variety and large numbers they don''t even manage to scratch Reima, with his Observation Haki and large arsenal of weapons and magic he doesn''t find it difficult at all to eliminate all who block his path.

    Reima teleports on top of the Crest door blocking his path and hops down before walks into the pathway that leads to the Moonlight Butterfly. Random creatures made from stone or tree''s try to block his path but are easily cut down, the only thing to take note of was the Stone giants ability to massively slow him temporarily. This would''ve made fighting the other creatures streaming forth towards him difficult to deal with were he not able to teleport, rendering the movement debuff useless.

    Reaching the tower that the Butterfly resides on after literally cutting his way through the hostile forest Reima starts climbing it, he goes up a couple stories until he finds himself looking at another Fog-Gate... He decides to just go bare handed due to him most likely not getting a chance to get in melee range with the flying creature. He steps through and immediately has to dodge a couple large blue bolts shot at him from an apparently angry Butterfly? What did he do to offend it!?! Dodging a couple more bolts he starts to retaliate with his own Sorceries, shooting a couple Crystal Soul arrows that deal significant damage to the Moonlight Butterflies wings. It still manages to barely keep it''s altitude but doesn''t manage to fire anymore sorceries due to it concentrating on keeping airborne... This just leaves Reima free to keep making pot shots at it which, after five more minutes eventually brings it down. It fades away giving Reima it''s blue/green tinted soul and a couple blue titanite chunks.

    Not wasting anymore time Reima briskly walks to the top of the tower and finds a familiar stone statue huddling another ember, he snaps it''s arm off like he had in the Painted world and retrieves the divine ember... Now all he needs to do is get his weapon enchanted and he''ll be ready to delve into Nito''s domain.

 169 Fluff Promise to Fluff...

    After retrieving the Divine ember Reima remembers that Solaire had wanted to accompany him into Nito''s domain... He''ll probably need a divine weapon as well then. Reima teleports to the floor above where the blacksmith Andre resides and slowly makes his way down the stairs, "Yo Andre! I''m back."

    The man in question raises hairy chin in Reima''s direction and nods at him, "Aye, welcome back. I don''t suppose you got somethin ya need craftin?"

    Reima grins, "Actually, I''ve got a couple gifts for you." he retrieves the divine ember and occult ember and hands them over.

    Andre "Aw, ye shouldn'' have." he says sincerely as he inspects his gifts, his eyes open wide at the two incredibly rare embers... Not even Lord Gwyn could produce one from his vaults, Reima would know. "Where did ye find these pieces?" he asks.

    Reima shrugs, "The dark one in a lost world used to imprison an innocent half dragon, the shiny one was stored atop a tower guarded by a giant magical butterfly."

    ... Andre gives Reima a blank look as if he doesn''t believe him, he sighs. "Eh, Thank ye fur the gift I suppose..."

    Reima "Could I get some things upgraded? If you have the time..."

    Andre just nods, Reima hands over his Silver straight sword and requests it to be enchanted with the divine ember. He ponders for a moment before deciding to swap out his original steel sword with the black knight sword, while it''s the same length as his previous one it''s width is much larger, making regular humans unable to wield it with one hand... Obviously Reima isn''t "Normal" anymore so he can easily swing it around as if it were a rapier. He has Andre modify the Sheath so it can fit comfortably on his back beside his Silver Knight straight sword. He also doesn''t forget to get Andre to enchant it with occult, making it extremely deadly to those with uncorrupted souls... This includes Humans, Elves, Gods and even regular animals, it probably works on most humanoid races that aren''t extremely evil or something similar.

    Reima also gets Andre to upgrade the Obsidian Greatsword that he''d acquired from Kalameet to it''s max level, enabling him to have it ready for battle should he need it''s peculiar ability to release black and white flames, their difference when compared to normal flames? Reima hasn''t quite figured it out yet.

    Thinking of Solaire he gets a spare sword divinely enchanted, just incase his friend doesn''t have anything similar. After a day or two of idly watching Andre slam his hammer on metal and muttering quick inaudible incantations over the various embers Reima receives his weapons. The Obsidian Greatsword looks no different from before so he just puts it to the side to examine the others, he looks at his Silver sword and marvels at the small golden glow it''s giving off, it feels almost serene to be around... He sheaths it on his back and looks at the Black Knights sword, the handle and hilt are still the menacing black but the blade is surrounded in an ominous purple mist... He moves the swords around and the mist follows, taking a deep breath and gritting his teeth he makes a small cut on his arm to see the enchantments effects. He immediately regrets it as his skin begins to rot around the cut, the beginning of necrosis begins to slowly spread visibly through his veins, he quickly takes a couple gulps of Estus which heals the necrosis but Reima is slightly shaken by the swords effects... If a normal person was cut and didn''t die soon after they''d have to lose a limb to stop being immediately effected by gangrene. He carefully sheaths it and stores away the spare divine sword that he had made for Solaire before thanking Andre and leaving.

    After resting at the bonfire and refilling his Estus Reima decides to return to the sisters cave, to retrieve Solaire and see how Dusk is doing. He vanishes and reappears ontop of someones game of Gwent... He looks down and sees that he''s standing on some cards carefully placed on the floor, he''s immediately pushed off of the cards and recieves a harsh glare from the two people who were playing... Quelina and Priscilla looks at him with visible irritation.

    Reima holds his hands up in an attempt to pacify the angry spider and dragon, "Hold on, it was an accident... You guys know I always teleport on that exact location!" His words don''t seem to affect their mood, he''s seemingly saved when a jubilant Dusk walks out from the side and speaks on his behalf.

    Dusk "Ah, Lina, Cilla, Sir Reima didn''t mean any harm... Maybe you could let him off this one time?" she bows to them as if she''s apologising for him.

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    Priscilla huffs and looks at him, "Were these not your cards I would''ve thrown them at you... It also seems that Sister Quelaag wanted to speak with you." as soon as Reima hears this alarm bells go off in his head. "Err, no thanks... I think I''ll just collect Solaire and leave... Have you seen him around?"

    Priscilla''s brows furrow, "He''s training with the Chaos Servants in the demon ruins... Are you going to take him on another adventure?" she sends an imploring look at him.

    Reima nods, "Yes... Don''t look at me like that, you know it''s far too dangerous to bring you." Her puppy eyes intensify, making Reima feel guilty about stealing her "brother" away again, "I''ll make it up to you later ok? I will absolutely not take you to fight a god but I''ll bring you to see a... Wolf? Later." he says, coming up with a quick excuse.

    Priscilla looks at him confused, "What''s a Wolf?"

    Reima grins, "It''s like a cat but bigger and tougher." he can see by the excited look on her face he''s got her.

    The pale spider chimes in, "Ah, could I come as well? I''ve always wanted to pet an animal." he nods, if this carries on he''ll have to bring the entire Chaos covenant as well.

 171 Begone with you!

    Reima makes sure to loot the graveyard before they start heading down to the Catacombs, finding a pristine looking Zwei-hander much to Solaire''s amusement and irritation at his friends bad habit.

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    They make their way down into the catacombs and immediately have to use the Cast Light sorcery to illuminate their path... While Reima is able to see in low light areas, pitch blackness still makes him unable to see more than a few meters ahead. The light travels through the darkness and allows them to see almost an army of skeletons heading straight for them...

    Solaire "Isn''t this just grand my friend!" he happily says as he dives blade first into the hoard of skeletons, easily destroying many with each swipe of his sword, Reima spots a cloaked skeleton in the far corner of the large room trying to revive the undead, but being unable to due to their divine weapons. He blinks forward while sending a Haki infused fist to it''s skull, shattering it completely along with the wall behind it.

    After Solaire cleans up the other skeletons he comes over to Reima and looks through the newly made hole and almost grimaces. They look through the hole and into what seems to be a large long cavern with multiple stone bridges zigzagging across the perilous drop into complete darkness, what makes them both dread actually going down their is the thousands of undead travelling across the bridges in an attempt to get to them... Apparently punching a hole through a wall will get their attention alright, Reima notes that the long lines of armed skeletons seem more uniformed than the group they''d just fought. Maybe Nito knows they''re coming?

    Solaire raises his shield as an arrow wheezes by and slams into it, they''re in range and are taking pot shots at them... The duo back away from the wall and head down the path which leads to a bonfire and a large stone door which seems to be opened by the large switch nearby. They could just leave it closed and not have to deal with the army of skeletons but "Where''s the fun in that?" as Solaire had said.

    Reima opens it while Solaire readies his shield for the veritable onslaught about to breach through the doors, once open hundreds of red eyes are visible and charge through the open door like a tidal wave, were it not for Solaire''s strength and skill he''d be instantly trampled by the hoards of skeletons. Reima assists Solaire by waving his sword at them and like a light sabre it slices the fragile undead apart like butter, this helps slightly to alleviate the burden on Solaire who''s barely holding them back, scratches becoming prominent on his silver armour. He backs up quickly and casts a spell that causes a golden circle to explode from him and envelop both Sun-Bro''s, Reima feels the small wounds he''d taken stitch themselves back together and can see Solaire''s armour losing the scratches it''d obtained... What?

    He doesn''t have time to question the logic of such a spell when a dozen glowing red heads fly out from nowhere and start shaking nearby. Reima uses Aard to knock them away and into the group of skeletons as they explode, dealing a large amount of damage to their allies. Many skeletons were knocked off of the bridge from the explosion and fall into the abyss below.

    The armies of skeletons seem to never end, Reima guesses there is probably more enemies here than in all of Oolacile. They lose track of time as they continue to cut, crush, slice and stab through the groups of undead, they do however find many items that''ll be useful in the future. This includes a skull lantern specifically enchanted to resist Nito''s death domains darkness, a Miracle called Tranquil walk of peace that Solaire hides away in his pouch and luckily the Dark Seance ring that they needed to confront Gywndolin. The ring was hidden away behind a wall that Solaire had been knocked through, quite lucky considering Reima didn''t really have any idea where it was supposed to be.

    They continue down the cavern, cutting down some of the remaining skeletons that hadn''t followed the rest of them, idly dodging the statues that''d shoot out spear-like blades at anyone who''d dare walk past them. Eventually the duo find themselves nearing the bottom of the cavern, they accidentally walk on some fragile floor and fall into a long hallway that has some peculiar noises coming from it. The clicking of metal stops as something approaches them, it''s a large skeleton wearing a helmet and wielding a large hammer... Solaire readies his sword for more combat but Reima just nudges him while giving a meaningful look.

    The skeleton slams his hammer onto a nearby wall, "You''re spoiling my focus! Begone with you." it says and stomps back to it''s forge at the end of the hallway.

    Reima quickly catches up to it and begins trying to talk to it, "Greetings, I am Reima Ludvig and this is my companion Solaire, may I ask for your name?" he asks politely.

    The skeleton turns to him and spits a hoarse "No." before turning around and continuing his work.

    ...

 172 Wheel skeletons? Vamos!

    ...

    Solaire struggles to hold back his chuckles at his friends instant rejection. Reima ignores his friend and retrieves the large flame ember from his Folded Space before holding it up to catch the skeletons attention. This does the trick as the hammering stops as it''s eyes are drawn towards it, "What''ve you got there? A large flame ember from New londo?"

    Reima shakes his head, "This is the only one in existence, I found it in the ruins of Izalith."

    The skeleton grabs his hand and shakes it vigorously "Names Vamos, nice ta''meetcha... You wouldn''t happen to be willing to part with that ember? Not many left that could use it properly."

    Reima nods and hands it over, causing the skeletons teeth to chatter, "Actually I also have this" he grabs the Chaos ember and shows it to Vamos who seems very surprised.

    Vamos "Such a strong aura! This definitely came from Izalith... You weren''t lyin were ya?"

    Reima "Of course not. Me and my friend here had to fight through hoards of demons to acquire that, be thankful I''m willing to part with it." he says as he tosses it to Vamos who overreacts and hurriedly tries to catch it out of the air. "Be careful with that! Never know what might damage something as delicate as this!" he says quickly.

    He puts the ember next to his anvil and tests it out by enchanting a small knife with Chaos flames, dark red fire bursts from the blade and Vamos seems to have a satisfied expression on his bony face. "Did you need something crafted?" he asks.

    Reima looks at Solaire who shakes his head, "No but I''d like to ask your relation with Gravelord Nito?"

    Vamos "Lord Nito eh? Well, I was the person who made all of his armies weapons... Every piece of steel that you see being wielded down here is one of my own creations."

    Reima "That''s interesting but not really what I had in mind... What I meant to ask is whether or not you still serve him?" he asks, wondering if Vamos was gonna stand up and slam his hammer on their heads.

    The skeleton quickly shakes his head, "No, not anymore... Ole''Nito seems to have lost it after that pin-person stole the writ of kindling, he was so enraged he expelled me for trying to calm him." he gives a sour look and suddenly shouts, "WE''LL SEE WHO CRAFTS YOUR ARMIES WEAPONS THEN YOU BIG BONY BASTARD!" he directs seemingly at nothing.

    Reima "So you wouldn''t mind if me and my friend killed Nito?" he asks quickly but casually, not letting his seriousness show on his voice.

    Vamos "Wha? Hahahahahahahahahaha! You think you can best Ole''Nito!?!? hahahahahah!" he bursts into laughter much to Reima''s displeasure and Solaire''s amusement. "Hahahaha! That''s the funniest thing I''ve heard in centuries! I still remember that paladin from the church instantly being crushed, hahahaha!" His laughter gradually dies off and he looks at the duo again... "Wait you''re serious?"

    Reima "Yeah... We''ve already killed the Bed of Chaos, Seath and I personally killed Manus, father of the Abyss and owner of the Dark Soul." he states confidently, Solaire looking curiously at Reima, he hadn''t known about Manus until now.

    Vamos whistles, "That''s quite a resume, if you''re not pulling my leg then you might be alright... But I warn you, Lord Nito won''t be beaten by conventional attacks. I shan''t say anymore for fear of his retaliation. " Reima nods, "Thanks for the advice... There was something else as well I''d hoped to let you know about." He tells Vamos of the worlds impending destruction and gives him the option of coming with Reima to his own world in the future to avoid it. He doesn''t forget to mention that he''d also hoped to bring three other legendary blacksmiths, as soon as he mentions this Vamos seems to have instantly been for it. Apparently he''s pretty competitive.

    The duo leave the Skeleton blacksmith to his devices as they exit out of the hole he''d made when they had arrived. The hole leads into a large opening that seems to be the bottom of the cavern they''d been descending. Reima reminisces about his time here in the game, it was treacherous and difficult to get here but he''d managed it... Only to... "Shit" he looks to the side and sees many skeletons with wheels seemingly embedded into their bodies, they take notice of the duo and start rolling towards them.

    Reima "Fuck this! I''m not dealing with you cunts again." he says as he overpowers an Igni sign, blasting the skeletons with Dark red flames that seem to burn with anger. After the fire subsides all that''s left is brittle bone shards and ashes, even without their divine weapons these skeletons definitely won''t reanimate again.

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    Solaire pats his friend on the shoulder, "It''s fine my friend... I fear rats, you fear wheels, we''ll deal with them together." he says sarcastically.

    Reima "Yeah, yeah very funny. I don''t think you noticed but I incinerated those guys, unlike a certain someone who squealed at the sight of a giant rat." he gives Solaire a pointed look. Said person just looks away, remembering his girly terrified shout as that big furry rodent look at them.

    Solaire "What''s not to be scared of? They eat everything and anyone, their fur is weird and patchy, they spread disease quickly and the way they skitter about freaks me out!" he says defensively.

    Reima ignores his companion trying to justify his fear before moving towards a large entrance into what seems like a large stone casket?

 173 Solaire MVP?

    Reima and Solaire cautiously look at the huge stone coffin that peeks out of the ground, lid ajar allowing them to spy into the dimly lit room inside. While it''s hard to see they manage to spot a black figure working over a table while surrounded by a large pile of books, Pinwheel. Reima doesn''t know much about the person, or people that make up the being known as Pinwheel but he vaguely remembers it has something to do with necromancy and trying to bring someone back from death.

    The black cloaked figure doesn''t seem to notice their heads poking through the roof behind him, Reima looks at Solaire. "We''re gonna have to fight this thing." His friend replies surprised, "Why? He looks harmless."

    Reima just shrugs, "Wait until he turns around, then you''ll see." he says as they enchant their weaponry and jump into the coffin.

    They land with a splash into shallow water that seems to have collected on the floor, Reima''s ring snuffing all sound of his impact but Solaire''s is still audible. The black figure turns abruptly revealing three masks moving independently... They each depict different things, one of the mother, son and father. The masks looks at each other before three pairs of arms? Sprout from the figures cloak and start glowing orange on the ends of them.

    Reima really wants to recover those books without setting fire to them, so he immediately jumps into action, charing at Pinwheel while swinging his Fiery divine silver sword at it. Pinwheel spins as this happens and seems to disappear momentarily... This is until four identical figures appear out of no where and start hurling Sorceries at Reima and Solaire, the latter bringing up his Crystal knights shield to block most of the magical damage. Once he blocks a couple he charges a Sunlight spear and throws it towards one of the Pinwheels, it strikes true and creates a large singed hole where it''d hit... Unfortunately the injured Pinwheel isn''t quite dead yet.

    Reima blinks away as three Pinwheels start firing various spells at him, the hardest to dodge being the Homing Soul mass that all of them seem to be favouring... He manages to slice what he thinks is a clone on it''s chest, cutting the black robe open and revealing a horrific mishmash of flesh, he gets an eye full of what looks like female breasts mixed with a young boys face. He manages to stop himself throwing up and stabs at the sickening sight, intending to end the boys suffering. He pierces forehead of the child causing the figure to fade away, unfortunately it appears to have been a clone, he dodges to the side as more Sorceries are launched at him.

    Solaire isn''t fairing as well as Reima, his limited mobility against a creature able to easily float around him as limited him to Miracles. While this doesn''t render him completely useless after his first successful lightning bolt the Pinwheel seems to have created counter measures against it. Every time he attempts to throw another the creature fires a stream of fire towards him, making him dodge and preventing him from forming the lightning bolt completely. His shields ability to negate magic is helping immensely however, especially when combined with his magically resistant silver armour he''s not going to be put down any time soon. He sees from his peripheral vision that his companion had slain one of the figures already, making Solaire feel slightly inadequate for having trouble dealing with a single one. He shakes his head and decides to prove himself worthy of his companion and leaps under Pinwheel, the creature seems confused at this but attempts to launch another stream of fire at Solaire as it sees him charging some kind of spell... This is blocked however when Solaire raises his shield above him and continues charging it, after another moment he slams his brightly glowing fist on the floor which causes many lightning bolts to form out of the air and slam down on everything around him. This obviously includes Pinwheel who''s struck many times as it is currently in the focal point of the spell.

    Reima notices the light show going off where Solaire is and idly wonders how much he is actually holding back? He looks at his enemies that seem to have started to fade away? It seems that Solaire''s opponent was the real one. He walks over to his slightly battered companion and notices a wispy red symbol coalescing in the air, he grabs it and looks closer only then realising that this is the writ of kindling, the thing the enables you to upgrade the bonfire''s at the cost of humanity. He wonders if it has any other uses but he pulled from his thoughts by Solaire, he stores the strange object and looks over to his friend.

    Solaire "Good battle my friend! Now that''s what I call Jolly cooperation!" he says clapping Reima on the shoulder.

    Reima "You got the real one, nice spell by the way, I''m still wondering why you hadn''t used it in our earlier battles though."

    Solaire sends a bright smile at Reima, white teeth fully on display and somehow sparkling? "I had only designed this technique recently, I admit it''s not very creative but It''s certainly effective!"

    Reima nods, "You got any more surprises?"

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    Solaire frowns, "I hope not... If I were to use "that" technique we''d have to be in a dire situation indeed." Reima isn''t really sure what "that" is but he''s looking forward to seeing it.

 174 Dark Darkness of Dark Intentions about Darkness...

    After finishes their short discussion Reima turns his gaze to the piles of books stacked high on one side of the room, he approaches and almost falls over into the shallow water as he picks up whatever he''d just kicked... It''s a mask, the one Pinwheel was wearing that depicted the father, in the game it raises the amount of weight you can carry when worn but... Reima is hesitant to touch something that was in-contact with Pinwheels deformed body, instead he stores it away, maybe he can melt it down and make a lamp or something?

    He walks over to the table Pinwheel was working on and finds a skeleton that has an ominous black glow around it, looking around for a clue as to what this actually is he sees an open book next to the skeleton depicting a ritual that''ll give a semblance of life to an inanimate object, or most commonly used, a corpse. He looks at the books title and sees that it''s called "Necromancy, not just for perverts."... Either this is a joke or Necromancers have a serious PR problem. He stores the book away after jabbing the skeleton with his divinely enchanted sword and starts looking through the rest of the books. Most seem to relate to reviving a deceased person and theories on how to permanently bring them back, he skims through some of the book titles, "Soul storage", "The Dark Sign, is it worth it?", "Moddling your homunculus how YOU want."... Reima looks at another book titled "Is it immoral to make love to the dead?" before he finally loses his patience, he stores them all into his Folded Space before angrily kicking the table over, "What is wrong with these people!".

    Solaire had stopped helping him look through them the moment Necromancy was mentioned, he had however heard Reima muttering the titles of the books as he skimmed past them. He didn''t know whether to be horrified or amused at the casual titles of books teaching dark magic.

    Reima "I''ll look through them later, when I can stomach looking through the more... Egregious ones." Solaire just nods as he walks around the room trying to find an exit, he starts getting frustrated but he eventually finds a ladder that seems to be hidden in the wall. They climb up it and are immediately engulfed in darkness, Solaire tries to light a torch but the dark seems to form hands before enveloping the flame and snuffing it out.

    Solaire "I hope you''ve got something for this... Fighting unknown enemies in the dark is not my preferred method."

    Reima nods and casts an overpowered light spell that illuminates the surroundings, the darkness tries to snuff it out but as soon as it comes close it''s burned away. This isn''t all good news however as while they can see their enemies now, they can also be seen in return. They look around the huge underground cavern and spot Giant skeletons wielding large weapons, some upright while others on all fours, acting like animals despite their humanoid appearance. The duo is wary of fighting these Giant skeletons due to the paths being very narrow and being the only thing stopping them from falling into the bottomless abyss below.

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    Reima "Take this for now, hopefully we aren''t flung off of these platforms." he says as he hands Solaire Havel''s shield, the Silver SunBro takes it and immediately feels the weight of it. Despite being quite strong himself he has to sheath his sword and hold the shield up with both hands.

    Solaire "Are you sure this is necessary?" he asks hoping to be given the Crystal shield back.

    Reima "It''s this or hoping these giant skeletons aren''t strong enough to just pick us up and throw us." he says blankly. Solaire sighs and reluctantly nods before starting to walk forwards towards the first Giant skeleton that''s wielding a huge scimitar, no doubt courtesy of Vamos. It sprints it them disregarding its own safety on the narrow naturally forming stone bridge and tries to crush Solaire with it''s weapon. The man in question gives a small shout and hefts the "Dragon Scale" shield up to block the strike, Solaire expects to be knocked away by the powerful looking swing but is confused when he feels something akin to a light punch instead... He peeks over the large shield and sees that the Giant skeleton''s strike seems to have been deflected, so well in-fact that''s on the verge of losing it''s balance and flying off into the abyss below. He doesn''t wait for Reima to do anything and slams Havel''s shield into the Giant hip, causing it to finally fall off, Solaire nods in satisfaction. "It seems you were right my friend, although this shield reminds me of someone..."

    Reima just pats him on the shoulder, "No time to dally, we''ve still got... 76 more Giants to kill." he says after doing a quick head-count on the visible enemies. Hearing the number Solaire almost loses his own balance, "Seventy six! Are you sure?" he says trying to concentrate his vision at the dimly lit targets.

    Reima shrugs, "At minimum" this short statement causes Solaire''s shoulders to slump, while he does love combat this is more akin to a weighted exercise routine, less a rush of adrenaline and more anxiety about plummeting to his death.

 175 You can always trust me.

    The duo continue to battle through the the Giant skeletons, Solaire taking the blows with Havel''s shield and Reima casting spells from behind him. While the spells aren''t able to permanently kill them, it didn''t prevent gravity working properly and dragging the large bones into the abyss below, rendering the enemies essentially dead. They progressed but Solaire found himself staring at a tomb with Reima behind him encouraging him to slide down it to the barely visible floor below...

    Solaire hefts his shield, "I refuse! There is surely a better option than risking my hide for this-this deathtrap!"

    Reima "There isn''t another way... Don''t make me push you again." he threatens. "You wouldn''t" is heard before a grown mans terrified screams are echoed through out the cave.

    Reima follows his companion down the slippery tomb only to get punched in the face by a fuming Solaire. "Cutthroat traitorous imbecile! I warned you not to do that again!" he shouts, the embarrassed blush on his face from his earlier screams extremely visible.

    Reima gets up and rubs his face, "I hate to rain on your parade but look behind you." Solaire glances backwards expected to be attacked... Only to see four more tombs on their path forwards. Solaire visibly pales, "Who designed this! I''ll flay them alive!" he says loudly, trying to cover up his dread at having to slide down more of them.

    Reima lets Solaire freak out a bit longer before intervening, "Youknow, I can probably just teleport us across..." he barely gets the words out as he gets punched again... "Why didn''t you do so before pushing me down here!"

    Again getting up and rubbing his nose, "I thought it''d be funny... Which it was." he says sending a large grin at Solaire who quickly loses his anger, "I''ll get you back for this." he states with finality as he grabs Reima''s shoulder, intent on getting teleported across.

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    After getting across the duo continue battling through skeletons until Reima comes across a familiar area, he looks behind them at a large stone coffins reminiscent of Pinwheels domain, the Large Divine ember should be inside... Reima gets Solaire to go first with Havel''s shield and as soon as they drop inside they are assaulted by fifteen Giant skeletons, Solaire goes up front and Reima enchants the shield with the Magic Shield sorcery to assist him in defending against the large numbers of enemies.

    While Solaire is tanking the hits he starts wildly shooting Crystal Soul spears at the Giants, not to kill them but to disable them for an easier execution later. Solaire''s shield is pounded on relentlessly as each Giant struggles past each other to get in their own strikes, while the shield redirects most of the impacts it still all adds up and he''s slowly being pushed back. Fortuntaly the Giants being grouped together allows Reima''s spells to pierce multiple at a time, making them burst into a shower of splintered bones. He approaches the reforming skeletons and taps them with his Silver sword to completely kill them. After all enemies are eliminated Reima goes to the end of the room where a huddled petrified blacksmith sits, his hands gripping the ember like the other similar statues. Again he snaps off the arm and stores the brightly glowing ember before they both head out of there and continue forwards.

    They find a bonfire which they quickly rest at to ensure their progress isn''t forgotten once they die, eventually Reima finds someone who he''s been itching to see. A bald man wielding a shield and spear smiles at them while standing near a sheer cliff decorated by shimmering prism stones.

    Trusty Patches "Greetings, I am good ole'' trusted Patches, I''m what you might call a treasure hunter of sorts but... Well I''ve found myself in a spot of trouble." he points at the cliff, "See that? I followed these stones and they''ve led me to treasure many times before... But I''m not brave enough to look myself, I''m afraid of heights you see."

    Reima grins and nods, "That''s a problem isn''t it, I''m willing to help you out so if you could show me where specifically you need to look that''d be fine."

    Trusty ole'' Patches returns a similar grin and approaches the cliff before pointing at the vague direction that the Prism stones are heading, "I think it''s arou-" he only gets that far as Reima kicks him into the pit harshly, Solaire is slightly perturbed by this but doesn''t comment for now as the bald man falls into the pit below before landing heavily.

    Patches "Ouch! What on earth was that for!" he shouts from below the cliff, audibly hurt from his fall.

    Reima "I was just helping you acquire treasure, see? You''re able to reach it now!" he says with mirth while looking down at Patches who is barely visible.

    ...

    Suddenly the bald man bursts out into laughter, "You really got me didn''t ya! You''re a smart one, not like those damned clerics! But you better watch your back, from one thief, to another."

    Reima shakes his head, leaving loose ends like this doesn''t appeal to him at all as he jumps over the edge, blade pointing directly at Patches. "Wha-!" he gives out a shout as Reima surprises him with a sword through the heart, if that weren''t enough the impact of Reima landing on him had crushed most of the bones in his upper body.

    Reima gets up close to his face as blood dribbles out of Patches mouth, "Oh, sorry.. I slipped! Not to worry though, you can always trust me, we''re friends after all?" he says, letting the irritation from his past interactions become audible.

    Patches can only give out a pained hoarse groan as he fades away.

 176 A Clerics Luck

    Flashback!

    A group of four make their way through the Giant tombs, walking each step with caution due to the pitch blackness making them unable to see more than a few inches in-front of their own faces. The only woman of the group Rhea of Thorolund had been having the worst time she could imagine, having already been killed multiple times by the seemingly endless hoards of the undead... The only reason they had made it down here is because of her powerful miracles that she''d been granted by god. Her other companions Vince, Nico and Petrus are average warriors in her opinion, definitely not one of the legendary knights that fought under Lord Gwyn but not complete novices either. They had barely been able to defend her against the groups of skeletons, especially so against the occasional arrow that got shot at them. She sighs, how many times had she been sliced open, stabbed, blown up, crushed and shot? She doesn''t remember, all she knows is that the quest must be completed.

    The exhausted group kept walking until one of the clerics spots something, "Stop" Vince whispers, "Do you see that?" he says, reaching into the darkness to try and direct his companions to the strange bald man barely lit in the distance.

    Nico "Aye, could it be a person? Or another undead?"

    Vince shrugs, unseen in the darkness "Either way, we must check it out... It might just be a clue to the writ of kindling.". The group head towards the bald man who perks up at the sight of them...

    Good ole'' trusty Patches raises his hand in a friendly gesture, "Clerics? What might you be doing in this god forsaken place?"

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    Rhea steps forward, the Prism stones laid around barely providing enough vision to be seen. "I am Rhea of Thorolund, my companions and I seek the Writ of Kindling." she says, receiving a nudge and furious glare from the rest of the group. Was she not supposed to reveal their mission?

    Patches "Forgive me, I''ve not introduced myself... I am Trusty Patches, I had gotten lost and unfortunately found myself here. Although, the Writ of Kindling did you say?" he asks recieving a nod and a smile from Rhea, "Well I think I might know where it is." he says recieving disbelieving looks from the group.

    Petrus "I highly doubt that... Do you even know what it looks like?" he asks curious as he doesn''t know either.

    Patches frowns and scoffs,"Of course I do, I wouldn''t send you away in search of an item that might not exist."

    Petrus "Ah, if that''s the case you wouldn''t mind describing it for us then?" he asks sneering at the bald man.

    Patches "Of course, It''s about this large." he says spreading he hands about a foot apart, "It''s circular, blue and has a skull on it." he says with confidence.

    The group nods at this, they weren''t told what the Writ actually looks like and this Patches seems to know what he''s talking about, Vince speaks up, "So do you know it''s location?"

    Patches nods and points towards a nearby cliff, "I think it''s down there, I had actually been trying to get down there to look but I''m afraid of heights you see."

    Vince steps closer to the cliff and looks over, only to be booted off and into the darkness below, Patches stands there triumphantly with a vicious grin on his face, "You damn Clerics, always so high and mighty... Well I''ll show you what you deserve!" he says readying his shield and spear.

    Nico growls at this, how dare he do that to Vince! He''s about to lunge at the bald man when hes kicked off the cliff by someone else, he glances at the person as he quickly falls, betrayal and despair masking his face as he sees Petrus grinning back at him.

    Rhea being shocked at this sudden turn of events cautiously backs up to the cliff as Patches and Petrus nod at each other and approach.

    Petrus "Well well well, funny situation we have found ourselves in isn''t it? My lady." he spits, "Think your so high and mighty being of a noble lineage, you know as well as me that they just wanted rid of us!"

    Rhea "No, I refuse to believe that." she says calmly, shivering at the eyes Petrus and Patches were sending at her.

    Patches chuckles, "I never thought I''d find a Cleric I''d like, but I guess anything possible. Hahahah!" he says as he watches Petrus attempt to grab Rhea, only for her to get closer to the cliff.

    Petrus scowls, "Stay where you are, I''ll show you there are worse thing than death!" he reaches again only to have the young woman fall backwards, off the cliff and into the abyss below. "Damn."

    Patches "Don''t worry friend, they won''t ever be leaving that pit... It''s completely infested hehehehehe" Petrus shakes his head and starts briskly walking towards the exit of the tomb, content that no one will find out about his treachery.

    Flashback end.

    Rhea of Thorolund had found herself in another dire situation, worse than she had ever been in. She''d fortunately or unfortunately survived the plummet to the floor below and found Vince and Nico fighting off huge towering abominations, worm-like creatures made up of many fused skeletons, with arms sprouting from random parts of it''s body, wielding swords and bows alike. While the duo was fighting valiantly they were not the abominations opponent, they were barely beating back the first enemy when another one explodes out of the ground, sealing their fate. Rhea did not know what hell was like, but if she had to guess, this was it. Despite being a loyal Cleric for the majority of her life she apparently deserved to be damned down here, constantly being ripped apart by horrific abominations. Vince and Nico had hollowed quickly, leaving her the only sane one left... That wasn''t likely to last much longer, as she had been feeling her emotions dulling, her body becoming more frail with each death, she''d even forgotten why they had come down to this place. She had no idea why she kept coming back to life down here, there wasn''t a bonfire to facilitate it... Perhaps this really is hell she muses, having her arms gripped again and having her body horrifically torn into halves. After coming back again, something felt different... She''d holed herself up in a crevice near where they''d originally been kicked down here, familair words coming to her mind giving her a small hope, "I only hope, in your darkest moments you find something else to hold on to."... She idly wondered what the Cat-eyed man was doing at this moment, perhaps it was foolish to hope to be rescued...

 178 Legend of Warcraft returns...

    Reima picks the girl up and teleports back to Solaire who''s surprised at the new addition to their party. "May I inquire on the girls identity?" he asks from his seated position.

    Reima shrugs, "Rhea of Thorolund, ex-member of the way of white... "

    Solaire "Do I want to hear how she managed to find herself down here?" He receives a brief answer, "Not unless you want to kill that man called Petrus."

    Solaire shakes his head, he''ll ask the girl later once they''ve completed their quest. "Are you going to take her to the sisters or bring her along?" he asks but receives an answer from the person herself, "I wish to accompany my Saviour, I''m well versed in supportive miracles and healing... Please don''t leave me behind."... Reima remembers two other women saying that exact line, he shrugs, she''s undead so maybe the experience will help her become more confident? Right now she''s a inch away from a mental break down. He''s especially worried about her apparent fanaticism for him. "Sure, but remember to let me or my friend Solaire here take the front-line... Actually, could you lend her that spare sword?" he asks his friend while pointing at the sword he had lent to him previously.

    Solaire nods, "Here you are milady, now everything is prepared for some Jolly cooperation!"

    Reima fist bumps Solaire while renewing his Light spell, he lets Rhea have a couple sips of his Estus flask to get her energy up before they start moving deeper into the cavern yet again.

    The formation remains relatively the same, Solaire in front with Havel''s shield, Rhea behind him with the spare Silver sword and Reima protecting the flank against anything that may slip past. The first thing they notice however is Rhea''s lack of skill while swinging her sword... She''d almost clipped Solaire in the back while they were fighting off the Quadrupedal Giant Humanoid skeletons, unlike the ones wielding weapons these are much more aggressive, charging head first into Solaire, the impact causing him to be dragged backwards, only maintaining the front-line with the help of the legendary shield. This could not be allowed to continue so they taught Rhea how to stab from behind Solaire to assist him, instead of wildly swinging and endangering not only Reima and Solaire, but Herself as well.

    However, even if she did injure Solaire it would have been fine due to her ridiculous talent in the healing arts, a small healing miracle usually only heals external damage but in the hands of Rhea it can almost completely heal any wound they might''ve sustained. Truly she is an excellent edition to their party, if this were in another world where people weren''t cursed with immortality she''d probably be hailed as a Prophet of some sort by the church. Her interactions with Solaire are strangely amusing to Reima, the venom laced words she utters when speaking about Lord Gwyn and his spawn almost cause him to laugh out loud. Solaire can only continue to stand there and listen as she accidentally insults him to his face.

    Eventually the trio find themselves out of the darkness and standing on a path that''s seemingly carved into a mountain, with light being readily available they look over the cliff and see an almost bottomless drop to the floor below.

    Reima makes small talk as they keep walking. "Nice view." he says as he observes the distant landscape, funnily enough he thinks he spots Ash lake from here, the lake that holds the EverLasting Dragon that allows you to enter the dragon covenant. "Indeed it is my friend." Solaire adds as Rhea looks on with a single tear running down her face, she honestly never thought she''d see natural sunlight again. The touching moment doesn''t last long as they''re interrupted, a red figure appearse wielding a strange shield and a giant hammer... Rhea seems to recognise him as she shouts a name in surprise, "Paladin Leeroy!"

    Reima asks in surprise, "Jenkins?", Rhea stops him, "No my Lor-Cough, Sir Reima... Leeroy, the church said he went hollow while trying to recover the Writ of Kindling... They must''ve lied again though." she says bitterly.

    The man called Leeroy speaks up, "Halt, I cannot allow you to progress any further. Lord Nito has done nothing to anger Lord Gwyn, why does he seek his death?"

    ...

    Reima "You haven''t heard? Gwyn linked the first flame by using his own soul as fuel, we''re here on our own volition."

    ... "I see." Leeroy says as he runs some kind of cloth charm over his hammer, causing it to glow brightly. "Nevertheless, I cannot allow you entry. My honour forbids it."

    Reima snorts and starts conjuring a Crystal Soul spear, "Yeah well your honour can go do one douche."

    Solaire drops Havel''s shield to the side and retrieves the Crystal knight shield from his back while drawing his sword. "Do not listen to my companion, It''s an honour to face you Sir Leeroy."

    Rhea can only stand there in shock as her two companions immediately challenge this legend of the church, it is said that Leeroy was the most talented warrior they had ever had... She shakes her head and starts preparing some supportive Miracles, if the history of the church is correct then they might have some trouble.

    The paladin roars while charging at them, "LEEEEEROOOOYYYYYYYYY JJJJJJUUUSSTT-" he''s cut off after successfully dodging the Crystal Soul spear, Reima casts Aard at the floor below him causing Leeroy to slip... Solaire isn''t slow as he plunges his sword into the paladins unprotected neck, instantly killing him...

    The group look down at the dropped items, shock, amusement and irritation effecting each of them.

    Rhea "H-h-how... This was said to be the most fierce warrior the church had ever produced..."

    Solaire "What a shameful display after those arrogant words."

    Reima "Pfft, typical Leeroy." he chuckles as he picks up the items he had dropped, a Divinely enchanted great hammer called Grant and a heavily enchanted shield called Sactus. Reima stores grant and gives Sactus to Solaire to swap with his Crystal Knight shield. He suspects the shield will improve his miracles and make him last longer in combat, he''d have to take a closer look at it to confirm that theory though.

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 179 More skeletons, who wouldve guessed?

    The death of Leeroy seems to have been a big shock to Rhea, that or the almost comical way he had died. Either way they head into the nearby cave entrance further up the path, Reima recasts his Light spell and the trio are greeted with an almost sandstone colour cave with a large pit nearby and many stalactites hanging from the ceiling. The group don''t get a lot of time to admire the scenery however as Solaire parries a couple large arrows being shot from the darkness ahead of them, Reima''s spell isn''t able to move aside from hovering above him... He gets an idea and covers his hand in Armament Haki while trying to grasp it, he feels as if he''s got a hold of it and throws it at where the arrow was shot from. The ball of light is thrown into the darkness and light up the path ahead, revealing a giant skeleton wielding a bow as well as a couple wielding heavy looking shields. The ball of light that was just thrown seems to gain control of trajectory and quickly hovers back to Reima, reverting to it''s rightful place above his head.

    Reima wasn''t idle though, as the light reveals their enemies he casts a Crystal Soul spear at the archer, it hits and scatters it''s bones everywhere making it unable to fight for a few short moments. Solaire sees this and runs ahead no longer fearing being sniped from afar, Rhea tries to keep up to him but isn''t fast or strong enough to keep his sprinting pace. Reima quickly passes her as the best thing to do for now is clear out the enemies before anymore can appear, Solaire had just severed a shield wielding skeletons leg below the knee while Reima blinks behind another and decapitates it leaving only a few left.

    The duo destroy the rest of them only to hear a feminine scream from behind, turning they see Rhea on the floor shuffling backwards away from another towering abomination, she has tears running down as face as she shakes her head while muttering "No, n-no not again!". Solaire launches a Sunlight Spear at the tower of skeletons before Reima blinks in-front of Rhea and slices it in half like he had done previously. He sighs, wondering what could make her act like this towards those towering skeletons? Solaire helps the girl up as she tries to regain her composure.

    Reima "Look, if you can''t go any further I will take you somewhere safe." She shakes her head at his, "I-I''m sorry, I over reacted. I really hate those monsters." Reima looks at Solaire and shrugs, "Ok, I guess."

    The group enter another cave-like entrance and see many skeletons that seem to be praying? Reima gives them a nudge with his foot causing it to collapse and turn to dust... He''s brought from his thoughts as Solaire pulls him aside, a soul arrow whizzes by his head causing him to get goosebumps, they look at the direction where the spell was shot and see many beings that look like Pinwheel? Are they clones of some sort or just copy-cats? Reima blinks forward and starts cutting them down like chaff, unfortunately these are not the only enemies present. Solaire and Rhea are left behind on the previous platform as almost forty child sized skeletons start emerging from the shallow water on a lower floor. A single swipe from Solaire easily kills one but the rest move, not allowing him to kill more than one at a time, as they slowly start to surround and flank him they start turning their attention onto Rhea. As the skeletons approach her she tries to jab at them with her Silver sword but they dodge and seem to chuckle at her as their skulls make clicking and chattering sounds.

    Eventually she loses her nerve and starts channelling a Miracle, the skeletons try to stop her but she''s finished before they can interfere. A shock-wave impacts them and causes their small bodies to be brutally thrown at the nearby walls, shattering their fragile forms and causing bone fragments to fly everywhere. Solaire loses his balance momentarily due to the spell accidentally hitting him in the back but he just rolls forward with it helping him deal with the impact.

    Reima who had almost finished with the Pinwheel clones senses something shooting at him at high speeds, he performs a flip and kicks it, only now realising it''s a mini skeleton that somehow had shot itself towards him. The unfortunate skeleton shatters in to thousands of bone shards as Reima looks over to his companions, only to find them almost finished with their enemies. He blinks over and helps them deal with the rest of the annoying things, afterwards they all hop over a small hole and come face to face with a large wooden barricade of some kind... Reima casts Aard at it and successfully destroys it, they go forwards and see a Fog-Gate blocking their path, the Fog-Gate to GraveLord Nito.

    Rhea stops the group for a moment and starts casting many helpful Miracles, increasing the parties Strength, Speed, Resilience and Health Regeneration. Solaire casts Sunlight Sword and Reima uses Chaos Blade to enhance his own weapon, he also distributes a healthy helping of Green Blossoms to everyone.

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    Reima "You guys ready?"

    Solaire and Rhea nod and the group walk through the Fog-Gate before jumping into the dark hole leading to Nito.

 180 Solaire MVP!!!!!

    After jumping in the group feel like they have made a huge mistake, not scouting what lays below the hole had led them into jumping into a huge group of angry skeletons. The rooms around them in a lot darker then the previous cave and makes it feel similar to the half formed abyss he had fought Manus in. Solaire and Reima start trying to keep the skeletons away from Rhea as she tries to cast Debuff''s on the group, most don''t seem to work but one causes the skeletons to become slower, their movement, swing speed and reaction time are all dulled, making the battle significantly easier for the Sun-Bro''s. That is, until Nito notices their presence... A almost 20ft mass of many individual skeletons morphed into one relatively humanoid body with a large black, smoke-like cloak writhing around his form, Reima hesitates as he sees the being in front of him. He feels... Fear? He hadn''t been this scared for quite some time, last he had felt this was early on in his training when he was face to face with a Water-Hag, luckily Geralt intervened but it had still frightened him... Afterwards he had worked on desensitising himself to most things, but the fear he was feeling towards Nito felt almost primal.

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    Solaire "Don''t despair my friend, fight with Jolly cooperation!" he roars as he cleaves through another four skeletons. Reima nods and starts casting Sorceries at Nito, his Crystal Soul spear shoots towards Nito but is easily stopped by the writhing cloak enveloping him... Confused at his Sorceries apparent uselessness against this foe he throws a Great Chaos fireball that is also smothered like a weak candle flame by the cloak.

    Nito points bony fingers towards the floor and Reima realises what this is, "GUYS, DODGE!" he shouts, Solaire and Rhea don''t doubt his words and immediately throw themselves to the side, barely dodging the huge swords piercing from the ground. Nito seeing this clenches his fist and waves it in-front of him causing a black wave to shoot out and hit the group, launching them away as well as heavily damaging his own army.

    Rhea and Solaire seem to be relatively ok due to only receiving the outskirts of the attack, Reima however is barely able to avoid injury by covering himself in Armament Haki and rolling off the momentum. He senses something behind him and dodges uses Windfall before performing a 360 tornado kick which knocks the skull off of the giant skeleton behind him. He tries to go back to combat Nito but more giant skeletons try to attack him, as he''s fighting these enemies Solaire goes to confront Nito who''s attention is drawn to Rhea.

    He bashes his Sunlight Straight sword on his Sanctus shield, "I will face you in Honourable combat! As my friend says, You''re boned good sir!" Nito turns his gaze on Solaire, whether or not the horrible pun had caused this only Nito would know. The GraveLord raises his large curved sword and slams it down on Solaire he barely side steps it, ignoring the shards of stone that cause many cuts on his face. He steps forward and delivers a powerful step to Nito''s skeletal form, he''s so close that the cloak of darkness can''t stop the attack like all the others and it roars in anger as the divine sword is jammed into one of the many skulls that litters his body. Unforuntaely for Solaire his sword is gripped by the many undead comprising Nito''s form preventing his escape as the Lord of death hovers closer to him and envelops him in the cloak. He can feel his skin start to rot as his life-force is drained out of him and he realises he has to use his trump card... Ignoring the pain he places his hand on his chest which starts glowing a pale gold colour, it gets brighter and brighter until he''s finally ready to cast the spell.

    Solaire "FACE THE WRATH OF GODS!" he shouts as his body slowly rots from the inside, the spell expands like an explosion, Nito who''s body was covering Solaire takes the entire impact from the holy wave. The effect is immediate at the cloak of darkness seems to instantly disappear leaving Nito naked and vulnerable, Solaire having most of his body covered in green and black skin drops to his knees as he feels his internal organs shut down, the rot rapidly spreading through his blood stream.

    Rhea who had been running away from the army of skeletons and occasionally casting the Force miracle runs to his side as Nito backs away while clutching his bony face. She tries quickly casting a few healing spells but it doesn''t have any noticeable effects, she sighs in defeat as Solaire, once again dies in battle and fades away.

    Reima had noticed the large shock-wave and the resulting damage on Nito, this is the chance they needed, while unfortunate that Solaire had died casting the spell it isn''t as if this hasn''t happened before? His clumsy heroism has already saved Reima many times. Ignoring the few remaining Giant skeletons he blinks over to Nito who''s still clutching his face and making strange echoing sounds. He stabs his Silver sword into Nito''s chest, the weapons yet again being gripped tightly by the numerous skeletons comprising his form. Reima ignores this and leave it inside Nito, letting the divine enchantment deal it''s damage while he retrieves Grant, leeroy''s Great Hammer from his Folded Space. Even holding it briefly he can feel it trying to absorb his mana, he doesn''t resist and gets ready to slam the weapon on Nito''s head. Channelling Armament Haki into his legs and arms, he leaps up and slams Grant onto the vulnerable GraveLord''s head as the hammer finally absorbs enough mana. It lights up and causes it''s own shock-wave, similar to the one Solaire had cast, only weaker. This combined with the impact from the Divine hammer completely crushes Nito''s skull, continuing downwards and crushing the Lord''s neck, clavicle and chest until it finally stops.

    Rhea stops running after noticing all the nearby undead dropping dead and the darkness covering the room slowly receding. She drops onto her knees panting heavily due to her having to run away constantly from the army of skeletons.

 181 The Forgotten Fire Keeper

    Reima observes the Lord Soul of Nito in his hand, like the other Lord Souls it''s significantly larger and more tangible then other souls, surprisingly it doesn''t look like it came from the Lord of Death... It glows orange and white like a regular flame, looking more like Gwyn''s Soul shard than the Witch of Izalith''s dark red soul. He stores it away while thinking about Nito''s cloak of darkness that negated most of his attacks, he salivates at the thought of acquiring it but unfortunately his rough plans won''t allow such a thing. It''s probably possible with the Transposing Kiln he''d stolen from Gwyn but again, not feasible with his current plans. He picks up the exhausted Rhea in a bridal carry and takes her to the bonfire that had appeared after Nito''s death, sitting down they wait for the man of the hour to return. Reima tries to make small talk with the young woman but she seems even more enamoured with him after they had killed Nito, every question he asks her is returned with "I''m sorry Lord, this humble servant''s only interesting is serving you." or "What''s my favourite food? My preferences are decided by you my Lord."... It''s really creepy in all honesty. Thankfully he''s saved as a Hero clad in Silver approaches the bonfire and sits down next to him.

    Solaire "I''ve returned! Well done on finishing that blighter off my friend!" Reima grins and fist bumps him, "I guess, but if you didn''t blast him point blank with that spell we''d all probably be wiped out. Good show!"

    Rhea just watches this interaction while warming herself by the fire, happily humming in contentment at her new purpose... To serve Lord Reima with all her being. Reima''s brow twitches and he stands up, "Alright... There''s one last thing to do, I''m sorry but I have to do it alone."Solaire immediately objects, "What do you mean? Are you trying to sacrifice yourself on some kind of valiant mission?"

    ...

    Reima sheepishly shakes his head, "No... It''s just there''s only one ring that''ll allow you to traverse the Abyss. Sorry that it''s not heroic enough... I guess?"

    Solaire chuckles and waves it off, not everyone is as willing to blow themselves up to kill an enemy as he is...

    Reima "So, I think you should take Rhea to the sisters and have her meet everyone." He pulls his friend closer and starts whispering, "She seems to have been through some rather traumatic experiences, perhaps you could consult with her? I know that man Petrus has something to do with it so maybe you can... Well, youknow." He drags his thumb across his neck in a meaningful gesture. Solaire picks up on it and nods, "That will be decided depending on the severity of his actions."

    Reima nods, "If you think he deserves something worse than dying, maybe you should allow Priscilla to accompany you... She had a unique ability that might prove useful."

    Solaire nods, confused about why he''d never heard of this before.

    Reima teleports to Firelink shrine, grinning at the fact that he''d escaped Quelaag''s wrath by avoiding bringing Rhea himself... That is, unless Solaire snitches on him, oh, now he''s paranoid...

    He rests at the bonfire to mentally recover the rather exhausting fight against Nito before trying to remember the route to New Londo, where the Abyss has had a resurgence. From what he remembers, the city was flooded after Dark Wraiths invaded and killed the majority of the cities citizens. This is surprising as most people in New Londo were undead and could not be killed... But the Dark Wraiths had an ability that stole humanity and effectively increased the rate that people went hollow, the Dark Hand. This technique seems very, very useful. Especially if he''s unable to steal souls outside of this world, if what he''s heard about it is correct then he''d be able to use the Dark Hand as a substitute for passively stealing souls.

    He shakes his head from these thoughts, it''ll be a while til he''d actually need this ability after all. He walks down the steps and... Oh, shit, he forgot about this Fire Keeper who''s imprisoned here. He looks through the bars into the dark hole and sees the cloaked woman her legs bent awkward angles, obviously broken.

    Reima "Hello?"

    ...

    "Hello?" he asks again but receives no response, he reaches through the bars to nudge her but she leans away, apparently not wishing to be touched by him... He gets an idea and pushes his Estus flask through the bars towards her. She seems confused at first, waiting for him to present something else but he doesn''t... Reima makes drinking gestures towards her and she finally realises what he wants her to do, she hesitates at first, her hand cradles the flask as if it''s a sacred item before she finally takes a swig. And another, and a few more until it''s completely empty. She lets out a breath as white mist coalesces in her mouth, as if it''s regenerating an internal organ. She pushes the Estus back through the bars but still doesn''t speak... "Alright, fine." he says and goes back to the bonfire to refill it, he then returns and hands the now full flask back to her. He doesn''t notice any reaction from her apart from the small smile that''s gradually becoming more prominent on her face.

    Reima continues giving her his flask and refilling it three more times until she pushes the flask away...

    ... "T-thank, you." a rough, hoarse voice is whispered from her lips, Reima sighs in relief. He was beginning to think her injuries were permanent, at least he can start making reparations for forgetting her down here, even if she doesn''t know of his mistake in the first place.

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 182 The sad origins of Anastacia of Astora

    ??? "T-thank you."

    Hearing this Reima feels even worse about forgetting that she even existed... He grips the metal bars that imprison her intent on tearing the cell open and giving her freedom.

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    ??? "W-wait! Forgive me for speaking my thoughts but I am to be imprisoned here until the final embers burn out." She says as if she honestly believes what she''s saying... Who would imprison someone here basically until the world ends, ah, of-course it''s Gwyn again.

    Reima kneels down to her level and slowly asks, "What''s you''re name and who sentenced you here?".

    The young woman looks up revealing locks of blonde hair and dark green eyes flecked with small black spots, the result of being a Fire Keeper Reima muses. "This lowly one is referred to as A-A-Anastacia of Astora... I-I was imprisoned here by Lord G-Gwyn''s retainers, I was impure so I had to serve... I''m sorry if I''ve offended you, I''ll continue to tend to the fire, I will take any punishment I have earned." she says sincerely and with hands clasped together in prayer.

    Reima shakes his head, thinking of all the ways he could butcher that arrogant douche Gwyn. "Don''t worry Anastacia you haven''t offended me in the slightest, I wish to free you and take you somewhere safe... Your duty to the gods has been fulfilled."

    Her eyes open wide, as he presses, "M-my duty to the gods is to be a lifetime of service, I c-cant leave..."

    It seems he isn''t going to get anywhere like this, he ignores her shocked and worried words of protest as he grips the bars and channels Armament Haki into his arms before bending them open. Reima does this until a person Anastacia''s size could fit through. "Climb out, I promise, your role is over. Now it''s up to me to finish what Gwyn started." he says while signalling her to climb out.

    Anastacia of Astora can''t comprehend her current situation... (Flashback!) She once served the way of white before she was found to have special abilities, her Miracles never worked but she was able to imbue some sort of black energy into elderly people that prolonged their life span. It was only after the people she treated got cursed with the Dark Sign and became undead that the church shipped her off to Anor Londo to be judged by the gods. While the city was bright, opulent and rested above the clouds she couldn''t admire it as she was in a cage and constantly on display. The common people would throw whatever they had on hand at her, buckets of waste and refuse, rotten fruits and rocks number only a few. She had thought her prayers to the gods were finally answered when she was presented to Lord Gwyn, Princess Gwynevere and the Knight Captain that was armoured in gold and wielding a large spear. The Silver knight who was ordering the giant that was pulling her cage saluted and almost shouted, "Knight Bertrand presenting Anastacia of Astora!" he pulls out a parchment with writing too small for her to read. "Her crimes include, spreading the Dark Sign willingly and knowingly, conspiracy to commit treason and blasphemous diatribes against the Gods!"

    Lord Gwyn seems to smile atop his golden throne, "And what say the convicted? Do you admit your guilt or do you deny the allegations towards you."

    Anastacia looks up at him determined to be set free, "My Lord I am true to my faith and haven''t strayed from the path of enlightenment, I have never spoken a single Blasphemous word and the only intentions I have towards Anor Londo are pure, prayers for the gods to continue the golden age they have ushered... I admit, the people I treated were cursed but I had not known that would be the result of my intervention, I beg of thee to have mercy!" she says clearly and confidently before bowing deeply, feeling secure that the gods are just and will see reason.

    Gwynevere speaks up from her prone position, "If anything she''s got a mouth on her despite being impure." Anastacia looks up from her bow confused, "Don''t act like you haven''t an idea of what you actually are... Sickening Humanity flows through you, part of the Dark Soul you have inherited. It''s you and your kind that have caused the Dark Sign to appear." She says eloquently despite knowing it was her Father Gwyn that linked the fire causing the Dark Sign to appear... But they must have scape-goats to keep the peasants devoted.

    Anastacia wishes to dispute this but is jabbed in the side by the blunt side of a spear, the knight glaring at her viciously, "Do not talk over the Princess, lest you be executed immediately."

    Gwyn raises his hand causing the Knight to back off, "I''ve come to a decision, I find you guilty of all crimes. You will be imprisoned under Firelink shrine to tend for a fire with your impure powers, this will be your duty until the flames finally die out or your impure powers are cured by the fire.

    (Flashback end)

    And so she had been imprisoned here for... Who knows how long, the only thing that told her of times passing is the erosion of stone by the wind, that is until now. This peculiar man donned in a strange white cloak, white hair and enthralling Green eyes attempting to free her, she can''t accept this can she? What if she''s caught! The man bends the bars open and her resistance finally stops, she crawls out of her cell and finally feels the dim sun on her face, breathing out a sigh she drops back onto her knee''s due to not walking for centuries. The man helps her up and supports her before introducing himself, "I am Reima Ludvig, a Witcher. It''s a pleasure to make your acquaintance Anastacia of Astora, I want to show you my family. Are you fine with that?"

    She nods hesitantly, such kindness. Do I really deserve this? Her thoughts are interrupted when the scenery around them suddenly changes, looking around she spots two women, one with the lower body of a spider and the other a crab. She starts hyperventilating in fear as the spider scowls at her but is calmed when the man called Reima rubs her head.

 183 Harem troubles?

    Quelaag is not having a fun day, not only is she having trouble learning her Mothers own self created Pyromancy but Reima''s companion Solaire had dropped by another woman, it''s as if he''s trying to create a harem with all the damsels he''s saving. The thought that her and her sister were also saved never even crosses her mind as he venomously goes over her meeting with the Cleric. The first thing she had said when meeting them is "Demons! Sir Solaire we must purge them in Lord Reima''s name!"... She was thoroughly rebuffed by Solaire who calmed but bluntly stated their familial status to Reima, after that her attitude underwent a complete 180¡ã and she started flattering them and trying to tend to their every need afterwards... If she wanted someone to act like a servant she''d ask the Chaos Covenant, while it''s impressive that Reima was able to convert a young priestess and place himself as God it''s also slightly unnerving the extend at which the young woman''s faith seems to go... Quelaag swears she had seen a mini stone statue outside depicted Reima slaying GraveLord Nito, after that she has gotten Priscilla, Dusk and her sister Quelina to try straighten her out... Only to find them giggling and agreeing with some of her points! After that debacle she had gone to burn some steam off by "sparring" against some of the Chaos servants and while they do indeed worship her that causes them to basically throw every fight.

    A couple hours later Quelaag is still fuming and being told to relax by her adorable sister... She gets pampered for an hour and she gradually calms down... "WHAT!" she shouts as a flash of turquoise light reveals Reima holding ANOTHER woman in a bridal carry. Quelina seems to sense the impending explosion and hugs her sister to stop her pounding Reima into the ground, burning the remains and spreading the ashes over the dried up lava river.

    Reima turns around and looks at his two "sisters", he smiles at Quelina but as he sees Quelaag he almost shits his pants... Her spider abdomen burns furiously with red fire as she scowls with a furious expression, he can see her small flickers of flame appearing around her hands while smoke seems to literally be coming out from her ears.

    Reima notices Anastacia start to panic and quickly rubs her head to reassure her, only to her Quelaag grinding her teeth while glaring at him. "Err, hello my wonderful Sisters... It seems I''ve found another person who needs your gentle touch to heal her trauma, as you both are so cute, adorable, sexy and good at... at..." he trails off when it appears that his compliments are going in one ear and out the other...

    He stops talking and walks into the other room, bringing Anastacia with him, behind him he hears Quelaag scream and start punching things while being calmed by Quelina.

    Anastacia "I-If I''m too much trouble I can go elsewhere, please don''t force yourself to care for me." she says quietly.

    Reima shakes his head at her, "It''s not you my sister is mad at, it''s me... Although I don''t really know why." He spots some faces he really wanted to see and quickly approaches, "Hey guys, I''ve got someone I''d like you to meet." He says drawing the attention of Solaire, Priscilla, Rhea, Eingyi, Quelana and Dusk. Solaire immediately bursts into laughter quickly followed by Priscilla, Eingyi and Quelana. "Hahahaha! My friend! Rescued another have you! Please tell me Lady Quelaag''s reaction!"

    Reima looks down sheepishly, "She err, looked like she wanted to kill me... I think Quelina was physically restraining her." More laughter is heard after his response.

    Quelana "So, are you forming a harem or no? It''s kind of hard to tell at this point." shes says resting a finger on her chin. Dusk adds, "As my future king many Consorts are of-course expected." this draws some confused eyes but Rhea nods as if agreeing to her statement.

    Reima can''t believe that his friends would suggest something like that, he''s especially confused at the weird agreement between Dusk and Rhea. "I am not forming a harem! What do you expect me to do? Leave behind anyone that needs help because Quelaag has some sort of aversion to new people?"

    Quelana "I''m not saying that at all, it''s just that if you worm your way into a maidens heart you better take responsibility. I don''t know if you had noticed but saving someone is an excellent way to break the ice."

    Reima just sighs and gently places Anastacia next to Priscilla on the fine wood furniture that he''d previously left here. "This is Anastacia of Astora, I found her locked up beneath Firelink shrine, courtesy of your father." he sends a pointed look to Solaire. "She''s a Fire Keeper like Quelina so she has great potential for the future, please treat her well." he says while bowing his head slightly.

    Anastacia looks at everyone gathered, she''s slightly confused when she hears him refer to someones father but hesitantly introduces herself anyway. "H-hello, please treat me well... If there''s anything I can do for you please tell me."

    Quelana blinks before hugging the girl, "Oh, aren''t you just adorable!" Anastacia seems to panic at the sudden close contact but gradually calms down as Quelana rubs her head while squeezing her.

    Solaire bows deeply to her, "Pleasure to meet you Milady, I am Solaire, son of the wretched god Gwyn... I apologise for any wrong that''s been committed against you by my family, if there is anything I can do to atone for their sins please let me know."

    Priscilla rubs his shoulder, "Brother it''s not your fault." She looks at Anastacia and her eyes soften, "I am Priscilla, Daughter of Seath and Gwynevere. I do hope we can become close friends in future."

    Anastacia "I-I wasn''t aware Lord Gwyn had grandchildren..."

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    Priscilla scoffs, "Yes, he made sure of that by imprisoning me. Our situation is not all that different, we both have suffered under that horrible man."

    Eingyi steps up and performs a foreign bow, "I am Eingyi, humble servant of the Sisters of Chaos and Master Pyromancer. If you wish to learn to defend yourself I would be glad to tutor you." he says receiving a small smile from the Fire Keeper. Next up is Dusk who dips her head slightly, "I am Dusk Princess of Oolacile and Consort of our saviour."

    Reima interrupts her "I don''t remember agreeing to that... And what''s a Consort?" This question receives chuckles but no response...

    Quelana doesn''t stop hugging Anastacia but rests her chin on her head, "I am Quelana, daughter of the Witch of Izalith. It''s ever so nice to have another little sister!" Her words cause many of the young females around them to grimace.

    Priscilla "I''m not your sister, if you try to touch my tail again you''ll feel a dragons wrath." she says irritated.

    Quelana "It was only once, I swear I won''t do it again... Unless you ask me to." She receives another scowl "Never."

 184 Pair of Trash-Tier Boots.

    The group continue to chat comfortably, Solaire pulls Reima and Priscilla aside to speak privately. He glances over to Anastacia and sees she''s gradually becoming less tense and more comfortable while answering questions from Quelana.

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    He walks over to Solaire and sits down across from him, "Is something wrong?"

    Solaire has a funny look on his face as he replies, "That would be a yes, and a no... You see, I talked with young Rhea about that Petrus fellow and what I heard... Angered me. From what she said the man didn''t intend to just kill her... For someone so vile to still live is an travesty and an insult to the morals of every just man and woman."

    Reima nods, "That''s not all Solaire, I know of Rhea''s future had we saved her but left her to her own devices... Petrus has a lot to answer for."

    Priscilla speaks up from beside Solaire, "Apologies but I fail to see why I am needed?"

    Reima grins widely, "Remember your "Unique ability"? I think we''ve found a test subject."

    Later when the trio find time to get away from everyone unnoticed Reima teleports them to Firelink shrine where he assumes Petrus is still waiting. They travel up the stairs and find the blonde haired Bowl-cut Cleric, he watches them approach and is wary of Priscilla, "Brought another freak with you? Begone, I do not wish to discourse with vile beings such as yourselves." he says and tries to walk past them to exit. Only to be stopped by Reima who hold out his arm to block his path. "You won''t be going anywhere Petrus, we''ve heard of your crimes and intend to grant absolution... Only problem is that we aren''t related to Velka at all, so... We''ll have to do it our own way." he says and grabs Petrus neck and raising him off the ground. Solaire comes round and takes the man''s mace, shield and charm. Reima drops him to the floor and stomps on the his leg creating a loud crack that echoes throughout the shrines ruins.

    Petrus screams in pain as he feels his leg''s shatter, "S-Stop! Please spare me! I do not know what you''ve heard but their all lies!"

    Solaire frowns, "You say Rhea is lying? Pathetic." when he hears that Rhea is still alive and had apparently sent these thugs to deal with him he starts shouting in anger.

    Petrus "So that vile little bitch sent you to kill me? Well guess what! I''m undead! I can''t die! Damn her. I swear I''ll hunt her down an-" his other leg is shattered by Reima who has a sadistic smile on his face that reminds Solaire of the time he butchered that armoured boar... "Oh don''t worry, we found a way to negate your immortality... I only hope it''s as painful as it sounds..." he says but starts thinking of other ways to torture this man, he retrieves the Transposing Kiln and ponders whether or not to test it out on the man before giving whatever remains to Priscilla... Eventually his curiosity gets the better of him and Reima decides to tor-Cough! Punish the man a little longer before attempting it.

    Priscilla sits back with Solaire and watches Reima instrumentally take Petrus apart, piece by piece. "Brother, is something wrong with Reima?" she asks slightly unnerved by the dramatic change from her master to this...

    Solaire "It depends on what you mean by wrong... He is extremely angry at the Cleric, as am I but I don''t think myself capable of... That." She nods, "His suffering will end soon."

    They see Reima finally snap the mans neck and take hold of his soul before jamming it into a stone bowl inscribed with many runes. Reima lets the Kiln absorbs some of his stored souls to allow for the transformation to take place, his theory on what he knows from Dark Souls 3 and the vague notes from Gwyn''s study is that the origin soul will form into something that most represents the person it belonged to. The Kiln glows gold and takes a couple minutes as the runes glow, it only takes around 1000 souls for the transformation to take place but perhaps it''s linked with the souls strength... Eventually the white wispy soul coalesces into some... Boots? His medallion shakes as he holds them and he tries to sense what enchantment they seem to have.

    Solaire and Priscilla are brought out of their discussion on what Reima is doing when he starts laughing. "Hahahaha! It fits so well! hahaha!

    Solaire "What''s so funny my friend?" he asks concerned.

    Reima shows him a pair of leather boots that don''t look special at all. "These boots are enchanted to increase the rate you can run away, hahaha! They definitely suit that coward Petrus!... And while I would "Love" to keep hold of these, I believe it''s time for Priscilla to do some testing of her own. he says while handing her the boots.

    She takes them and lays them down on the floor before closing her eyes and concentrating, a black writhing miasma slowly starts being emitted by her hands and envelops the boots, causing them to slowly break down and disappear. The trio swear they can hear a male scream as the boots finally cease existing. Priscilla wipes a droplet of sweat off of her brow, "It''s a lot harder completely destroying a soul than I''d thought..."... She turns her eyes to Reima, "When did thou become able to transfigure souls?"

    Reima shrugs, "I''m still learning but this Transposing Kiln makes it rather easy, provided you have enough souls to act as a catalyst." She nods in understanding as the trio grips his shoulder and teleport back to the Chaos Covenant.

 186 Ghost-Buster Ingward...

    After confirming Armament Haki''s affects against Ghosts he crushes the Transient Curse causing his body to glow a pale white momentarily. The curse allows all of his regular weapons to be able to strike effectively against Ghosts, drawing his Divine Silver sword he enchants it with Chaos Blade causing it to burst into Dark red flames. Reima was previously surprised that you could overlay two buffs on the same weapon but logically why wouldn''t you be able to? Obviously combining Divine and Occult wouldn''t work as they are opposing forces, a similar thing happens when trying to overlay Chaos Blade over the Crystal enchantment, fire would slowly burn away the Crystal''s while using them as fuel.

    Reima treads through the shallow water, warily watching each and every step as he tries to find the location of that damned Fire Keepers soul, the one that is only accessible by crossing an extremely thin cat-walk hidden under murky water and surrounded by Ghosts. He eventually finds the area, not because Reima had remembered it''s location but because of the sheer number of Ghosts floating around the golden orb sitting on the ground a few meters away. Of-course as soon as he approached them they all noticed his presence, the around twenty five ghosts float through the ruined stone walls and pillars while readying their sickles to strike at him. Ducking under a whip like swing that passes through the nearby stone walls as if they weren''t there he raises his hand to intercept the chain causing the sickle to fly back around and stab the Ghost in the chest, she gives a unearthly scream and lunges at him while swinging her other sickle. Reima flourishes his Silver Sword causing fiery lines to trail through the air as he bisects the enraged Ghost, he grins but doesn''t have much time to admire his clean kill as three more Ghosts phase through the wall. He casts Quen to deflect the multiple Sickles flying at him while channelling Armament Haki into his fist, the Ghosts back through the wall behind them to get away from his sudden aggression but this matters not as his fist collides with the wall. A huge impact echoes across the sunken city as the large shattered remains of the wall fly into the water below, apparently the strike had also killed the retreating Ghosts, whether or not this was from force of his punch or the shards of stone Reima doesn''t know but it was effective nonetheless.

    After demolishing the wall he has to back away as some of the stone floor gives way and sinks into the depths below. A snap kick crushes the head of another Ghost as he flies through many different sword techniques, some learned from Absolver, some from the school of the Wolf but all seem effective as he easily cuts down the large group of Ghostly women. After cleaning up the majority of them Reima blinks across the thin Cat-walk and picks up the Fire Keeper soul before storing it in his Folded Space.

    He continues to battle through the many Ghosts inhabiting the ruined city, occasionally utilising his Pyromancies and Sorceries for those that fly out of his reach. He doesn''t forget to crush another transient curse as he progresses either, suddenly being unable to deal a killing blow could possibly lead to serious injuries, and while he''s functionally immortal, dying isn''t on his To-do list.

    While carving his way through a church-like building Reima finds himself on the roof of the building face to face with a man wearing tattered red robes and a metal mask completely covering his face, he wields a large dagger and a spear-like Sorcery catalyst... "Greetings" he says to Reima, warily gripping his weapon.

    Reima nods, "Reima Ludvig, Witcher and apparently now Ghost-Buster."

    The man''s head bends to the side in confusion, "Ghost-Buster?" he shakes his head, "Forgive me, I am Ingward of New Lodno. Previously under the employ of the Four kings that used to rule here. That is, until they were corrupted by that damned Serpant Kaathe."

    Reima "What was your position?"

    Ingward "Head Sorcerer, researcher and now Master of the Seal that keeps the Dark Wraiths at bay." he says succinctly.

    Reima is somewhat confused at why the Dark Wraiths are so feared... "What''s the big deal about the Dark Wraiths anyway, surely a big enough assault from Gwyn would''ve dealt with them handily."

    Ingward laughs, "Clearly you''ve never fought one, the only way to describe them would be, Vicious. They''re extremely swift, only matched by their equally as scary strength. But, one thing sets them apart from other powerful warriors... The Dark Hand, a technique used to drain the soul and humanity forcefully from someone."

    Reima shrugs, "That''s all? Just don''t get grabbed and it''ll be an easy win." he says disregarding the mans fear for the Dark Wraiths.

    He sighs, "If only it were that easy, my deceased compatriots called my theories mad but I suspect that the Dark Wraiths are linked telepathically. This would explain their extremely coordinated assaults and movements that a regular person wouldn''t be able to attempt, let alone perform."

    Reima looks at him, slit eyes drawing Ingwards attention. "I''m not a regular human, I need to kill the Four kings and I know you have the key to open the flood gates... If you doubt my prowess then let me show you my trophies." he says as he presents The souls of the Witch of Izalith, Nito, Seath and Gwyn''s soul shard.

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    Ignward makes a weird sound, as he looks at them, "I-It''s true, Apologies for the disrespect I have shown thus far... Here, finally someone has come to end the machinations of Kaathe."

 187 Dark Wraiths gonna Wraith.

    Ingward hands over the key to the Flood Gates and Reima thanks him, as he''s about to walk away he remembers that this guy is actually a Merchant in game... "Oh, by the way, got any Sorcerery scrolls you''d be willing to part with? Not for free of-course."

    Ingward nods, "Apologies but I have only one scroll on my person, it''s a spell that was used to try and resist the Dark Hand but it didn''t end up working... It was however effective at resisting curses, an area of magic I''m quite adept in."

    Reima nods and transfers the requested amount of souls before stowing the parchment into his Folded Space, "Thank you, trust that I''ll kill the Four Kings." Ingward bows in response and watches Reima leave. "Hopefully he he''ll succeed, or I fear that the world will quickly be overtaken by those fiends.

    After leaving the roof of the church Reima quickly makes his way across the ruined walls towards the giant lever next to the huge flood gates, using key Seal key to unlock the door to access it he pushes the lever with all his strength. The large metal and stone contraption slowly budges open, only becoming easier as the water seeks to rush through the gates. After fully opening the gates Reima watches the water slowly decrease in height, revealing the lower ruins of the city, the rotten smell only becoming more prominent as he spots various piles of corpses that have just been left there... In the distance he can see Black cloaked figures wearing armour that reminds him of the wild hunt, metal armour resembling bones, skeleton rib cage and skull mask only deepens the comparison. They had seemed to be hibernating, prone on the ground... Once the water washes away they immediately get to their feet and start looking for what Reima assumes is more humanity to steal. Nearby is a staircase that leads into some wooden shacks that seemed to have been haphazardly built for some reason or another... He renews the Chaos Blade enchantment on his Silver Sword as he cautiously walks past the ridiculous number of corpses left scattered amidst the ruined city.

    His Observation Haki flares and he quickly dodges right, the glint of black metal passing by his previous location alerting him to his attacker. He backs up and sees the black cloaked figure that''d ambushed him, no visible skin is shown under the metallic skeletal armour. It''s weapon is a thick black sword with what seems like small Abyssal tentacles clinging to the blades handle, the Dark Wraith growls under it''s mask and straightens it''s back while holding the sword pointing down at the floor by it''s side... Reima isn''t sure what the stance is supposed to do but doesn''t argue as he stabs at it''s left shoulder, the place furthest away from it''s only means of defence, only for the Dark Wraith to raise it''s left hand and project a red force field to stop the blow... I thought the Dark Hand only stole souls? How is it able to defend against strikes!?! he mentally screams as the Dark Wraiths sword sweeps upwards in an attempt to cut his overextended arm off. Reima isn''t able to pull his arm back fast enough and so he backhands the sword away with his offhand while channelling Armament Haki. The two back off in preparation for another strike but Reima swaps tactics and casts a Crystal Soul spear before blinking to the Dark Wraiths side, luckily it side steps the large blue crystalline spear only to be disarmed, or dis-legged as Reima severs the animalistic warriors leg and arm in a surprise attack.

    Even without it''s two limbs the Dark Wraith doesn''t seem phased as he reaches towards Reima with it''s hand glowing dark red, he doesn''t risk himself as he severs the creatures remaining hand before piercing it in the neck, finally killing it.

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    ...

    This is wrong... How are these creatures so much stronger than the knights in Anor Londo?... Suddenly an idea pops into his head, he drops his fist into his palm, it must be the humanity! His previous experiments had shown Humanities ability to mutate things but one thing he hadn''t taken notice of was the increased strength and durability afterwards... He''d assumed it was a result of the mutations but apparently it''s just another effect of humanity, this explains why humanity also increases various resistances, especially physical, elemental and curse resistance.

    He''ll have to experiment further when he finds time but for now he has Four Kings that need killing. The subsequent battles between Reima and the Dark Wraiths allowed him to gain an understanding of their combat style... While their initial stance reminds him of noble duels their attacks and techniques are more reminiscent of a predators attack, meant for a quick kill and disregarding all defence aside from the obvious Dark Hand shield their able to project. A weakness that Reima had happily exploited is their stiff footwork, simply dashing side to side completely throws off their balance, and while this would be easy to counter as all you had to do was ignore the obvious bait attempt, the Dark Wraiths apparently lack the intelligence for this.

    Reima walks into a dark room after killing a couple more Dark Wraiths, unfortunately things are never easy as he''s surrounded by three Dark Wraiths and a large slime creature?... Crap.

 189 Ultra Instinct?

    It''s been a couple minutes since Reima had jumped into the abyss, and it''s been a couple minutes of straight falling... He doesn''t know how far beneath the earth hes actually fallen but by the speed and amount of time he''d guess it''s almost certainly hit double digits in the amount of miles he''s travelled. Obviously, as the name suggest, everything around him is pitch black, no colour anywhere apart from Reima himself... In-fact light is present but there is literally nothing to reflect off of, creating a seemingly endless expanse of nothingness around him. Air resistance gradually stops and Reima isn''t really sure if he''s still falling or not, that is until he lands on his head, thankfully somehow not instantly crushing his skull, neck and spine... Getting up he realises he can''t see the floor, he can feel it but it''s completely see through or invisible, hard to tell as everything around him is still pitch black.

    A large roar echoes throughout the space as a huge man covered in grey scales that envelop the entire left side of his body, the origin of the scales seems to be from his heart, or Dark Sign as Reima''s theory on Humanity overdose suggests. The ex-king of New Londo has long white hair trailing to it''s lower back with large white horns sprouting from it''s head, it''s around 25ft and wields a huge grey sword that looks like it was made from the same scales covering it''s user.

    Reima starts sprinting towards it, becoming slightly disorientated as the invisible floor makes it difficult to judge the distance between him and his foe. It''s only through his Observation Haki that he realises he''s in striking distance and leaps out of the way of the Abyssal creatures downward slash. As it recovers from it''s unskilled overextended attack Reima rapidly approaches and stabs at the creatures torso... Only to deal minimal damage against the King''s thick scales, he scowls and quickly dodges the glowing hand trying to grab him, assuming it to be a stronger version of the Dark Hand.

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    After avoid another strike he contemplates on the more effective strategy from here on out, the scales are too thick for a regular strike to pierce and the only place not covered in them is the King''s face, Reima highly doubts that the colossal creature wouldn''t be able to defend itself against such predictable attacks but he''s left with no other option apart from testing if his spells work... He''ll move on to that if he''s unable to access it''s head, Reima is incredibly wary at blinking of teleporting of any sort due to the disorientating area they''re battling in. The abyss doesn''t have any land marks and the floor is completely invisible, blinking around here in the heat of battle is likely to result in him being split in half or losing a body part.

    After deciding what he''s going to do Reima waits for another strike before dodging and leaping with all his strength towards the kings neck, the creature tries to back away so Reima falls short and land below it''s collar bone. He grips the scales that seem to provide a nice hand-hold and throws himself higher, this isn''t ignored however as the King tries to grab Reima out of the air with another glowing hand. He manages to avoid this by slashing it but the force of his attack knocks him away, causing him to growl in irritation. Flames manifest in his hand as if reacting to his rising temper and he throws a Chaos Fireball at the humanity infested creature. It hits and coats the scales on it''s chest in lava but doesn''t seem to do all that much apart from pissing the king off...

    Reima''s about to conjure a Crystal Soul Spear but is blasted in the back with Dark Magic by another King that apparently materialised behind him... This is bad, he didn''t manage to kill the first king quick enough, allowing the second to spawn causing him to be outnumbered. He spits on the floor and watches as his red tinged saliva rapidly disappears downwards as if the floor wasn''t there. He doesn''t have time to ponder on the complex nature of the abyss as he''s forced to dodge a flurry of strikes made from both kings swords... Luckily he''d upgraded his dexterity otherwise he''d be mincemeat by now, figuring he won''t last if another king appears to assist the other two he sheaths his Silver sword on his back and retrieves Arcell from his Folded Space... He then attempts to cover it in the Chaos Blade except he channels a small amount of Elder Blood magic into it, he didn''t attempt this with his other weapons as they''d probably melt, disintegrate, lose their enchantments or any other weird effect as a result of the unpredictable flames. His weapon is covered in ominous Turquoise flames and Reima thinks he can see the space around his weapon rippling, maybe the abyss is being used to fuel the flames as he can no longer feel the pull of his own mana to keep the enchantment active... He pushes his left hand forward and drops into the familiar Wolf School stance, the two kings glaring at his fiery blade with... Apprehension?

 191 Just Kaathe one up

    Reima continues dragging himself to the salvation the bonfire would provide, hopefully it would return his severed arm as well he hopes. As he''s almost reach it a deep and noble voice speaks from behind him.

    ""Greetings Undead Warrior, I am the Primordial Serpent Darkstalker Kaathe. I can guide thee, and illuminate the truth." Just as it''s about to continue speaking Reima chokes out "Look... I''m in quite a state right now, could you piss off until later?"

    He hears an affronted huff, "Very well, I will return." and the presence disappears. Obviously Reima knows who Kaathe is, he''s from the same race that Kingseeker Frampt was, both manipulate you in the game to achieve different things depending on who you side with. Frampt would have you burn yourself to death to keep the Age of Fire and properity going, as was Lord Gwyn''s wish. Kaathe on the other hand would have you become a Dark Lord and bring the Age of Fire to an end, to do this you''d presumably just have to not link the fire and prevent anyone powerful enough to try in your stead. Both eventually lead to the world resetting the cycle and continuing in an endless loop, Reima had thought of this extensively and the only ways he can think of to stop the cycle is either have Priscilla completely destroy the Lord Souls, preventing them from being reincarnated in another cycle, or remove the lord souls entirely... To another world outside of this ones influence perhaps? The thought almost brings a smile to his face but even a single twitch of his face brings serious pain to his injured body.

    Eventually he rolls onto his back directly next to the bonfire, raising his hand over it to light it and begin his healing. It bursts into flames and he can immediately feel the soothing energy tending to his wounds, particles of light slowly gather around the stump where his left arm used to be and the flesh around it starts rapidly growing. He continuously refills his Estus while drinking it to speed up his recovery, he doesn''t know how long this goes on for but once he''s completely healed the Primordial Serpant appears before him again, neck sticking 10ft out of the dark abyss below.

    Kaathe "Greetings again, it seems you''ve recovered enough to have a rational discussion."

    Reima doesn''t react and stays in the prone position on his back, "Yeah, did you need something?"

    Kaathe either doesn''t notice his disrepectful attitude and posture or just doesn''t mention it. He coughs as if clearing his throat and begins again, "Undead Warrior, conqueror of the Four Kings, do you wish to know the truth? The truth of men?" he states ominously.

    Reima "Depends on what the truth is."

    Kaathe bends it''s giant neck in what seems to be a nod, "You will find out in time, you''ve already placed Gwyn''s lord vessel and triumphed over all those with the strength to power it... You''re destiny of taking the mantle of the Dark Lord draws near... Only then will I tell you of the truth of this world, and indeed men."

    Reima already knows what Kaathe wants, but he''s going to have to play along if he''ll get the thing he wants, the Dark Hand. "If I''m to become the Dark Lord then I''ll need servants. What value are you to me? Why shouldn''t I kill you like the rest?"

    The Serpant releases a snorting laugh, "SNRKK haha Snrrkk! Unfortunately I''m not among the beings capable of dying, you''re disposition fits a Dark Lord perfectly however. I''ll gift you with the same thing I''d gifted the Four Kings, I only hope you can utilise it without succumbing to the same madness." The Serpant appears to be hawking up a massive loogie, fortunately instead of a disgusting nasally fluid it spits out a scroll instead, somehow it''s in pristine condition... As if it was stored in a separate space. Reima shrugs and mutters a small thanks before storing the Dark Hand technique away.

    Kaathe "I will be awaiting news of Gwyn''s defeat, do not disappoint me, Dark Lord." he says with authority before sinking into he Abyss below.

    After speaking with the serpent Reima looks over the Four Kings souls, obviously there is four of them but he can detect a small link between them, as if they''re soul bound or something similar. Each of the souls looks like Artorias but worse, more similar to Manus except for the insignificant white that reveals the King''s true origins. He stores them away for future use and pulls out the new Soul shard of Gwyn that he''d retrieved, it looks like a puzzle piece that''d connect together with the one he''d claimed from Seath. He retrieves it and like magnets the shards snap together and refuse to be separated again, he gives an uncaring shrug before storing it with the rest of his loot.

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    Reima rests for a while longer before standing, he flexes his new left arm to test for any inconsistencies but finds none, it''s as if he had never lost it in the first place... Once thing he does do however is fix his battered armour with the repair kit, it takes more souls than usual to fully repair due to the higher quality and large damage it''d sustained but if Reima lacks anything currently, it''s not souls. Afterwards he prepares to teleport back home to the sisters, Solaire will be happy to know they''re fight with Lord Gwyn is quickly approaching.

    He teleports to the Chaos Covenant caves only to hear sounds of combat and spells throughout the area, no... Someone''s invaded Quelaag''s domain.

 192 Defending Whats Mine.

    He rushes past the bell of enlightenment and down the stairs, spotting a dark blue phantom clashing blades with a Pyromancer of the Chaos Covenant, jumping from his raised position on the stairs he lands heavily on the back on the Dark Blue phantom who shouts in pain and surprise. The Pyromancer nods to him before sprinting back into the caves, probably to assist with the rest of the invaders.

    Reima kicks away the phantoms weapon before delivering a powerful punch to their stomach, they groan as he repeats before finally stopping, "Who sent you! Why are you here!" he shouts in his face.

    The blue phantom chuckles, "Why, to wipe out infidels and monsters of course. Why else would the Dark Moon lay it''s eye upon such pathetic beings."

    Reima''s brows furrow, Gwyndolin it seems, isn''t staying idle. "I''ll look forward to tearing your masters tongue from his mouth. Let him speak then!" he says as he punches down with a Haki infused fist, completely obliterating the mans head.

    After killing the phantom Reima rushes into the caves, hoping that no one''s gotten killed. First thing he sees upon entering the first chamber is Priscilla waving her scythe that has the blade enveloped in a writhing black substance at anyone who gets close, every hit on the phantoms appears to cause them immeasurable pain, leaving them easy targets for the Chaos Servants fending off the around twenty invaders. Not leaving anything to chance Reima barrels over the phantoms shield wall, dodging the spears being thrust at him as he passes, he brings out his Obsidian Blade, channels Mana into it before slamming it against the floor, unleashing a wave of black fire in the middle of the invaders group.

    Unfortunately the majority of them appear to have high fire resistance, they''d obviously prepared extensively to attack the Covenant of Pyromancers. The impact of the fire still causes chaos in the ranks of the phantoms, regardless of the damage done allowing his allies to deal a few fatal blows against the panicking enemies. He crushes an armoured warriors ribs with a round house kick before rolling over to Priscilla, "Do you know where everyone else is?!" he asks, semi-frantically.

    She replies calmly but quickly, "Brother took everyone not combat ready to the lowest chamber for protection, the sisters are likely to be assisting him."

    Reima "Thanks, don''t do anything stupid or I''ll tell Solaire!" he says while running over through the tunnels.

    He encounters a few wayward phantoms checking the walls for secret passages or illusions but cuts them down quickly, the invaders will likely not last much longer due to us having the home-ground advantage, with most members being undead we''ve essentially got never ending reinforcements. This however only makes the situation more dire as they''re likely to either be looking for the sisters, due to them being some of the only beings capable of dying within this place.

    Reima finally gets to the entrance to the lower caves, the web that used to obscure the entrance has been burnt and torn away causing him to quicken his pace. He finally reaches the large chamber and finds all the furniture he had left there upturned with many sorcerers launching spells at them, he spots Dusk standing and launching a spell over the scattered furniture before dropping back into cover. He''s behind the sorcerers and sees Solaire standing proudly in-front of what looks to be forty enemies blocking their path with his Sunlight Sword and Sanctus Shield. Behind him is Quelaag and Quelana launches huge torrents of flame at a large group of lightly armoured enemies that''d snuck past Solaire, with his improved eyesight he can see Quelina and Rhea trying to assist everyone with miracles while Eingyi tries keeping the invaders away from his masters by spewing toxic clouds in their path.

    Reima shouts while cleaving the first unaware Sorcerer in half, "Don''t fuck with me! Once I''m done with you I''ll kill Gwyndolin as well!" this taunt definitely appears to grab their attention as the majority of the phantoms turn their sights upon him, some even changing from their initial goal of killing the Daughters of Chaos.

    The battle turns chaotic as Reima continues viciously slicing through the flanks of the large group of invaders while Solaire acts as an anvil to his hammer, everything is only made more disorganised by the many Pyromancies and wayward clouds of toxic mist floating among the groups of phantoms, dissolving their lungs and causing terrible pain and panic. Solaire summons a lightning storm amidst the crowd as Reima uses his own Fire storm to finish off any stupid enough to remain.

    After the battle is finished and the only people left are Reima and his friends Quelaag immediately calls for a meeting between the entire covenant. Eingyi runs off to gather everyone as Reima mourns for his lost furniture, despite the fact he''s still got more stored away then all of Sweden.

    Reima looks to his friends, "Are you all alright? No ones injured?" he says as he checks everyone''s condition.

    Rhea "No my Lo-Sir Reima. Sir Solaire had quickly directed us away when the first invader breached the caves."

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    Everyone is led to the Demon ruins so Quelaag, Quelana, Quelina and Eingyi can identify what had actually happened and if there is any way to prevent it again. Reima sits at the front of the group with Solaire, Priscilla, Dusk, Rhea and Anastacia, preparing to listen to what the sisters have to say to the covenant.

 193 The Planning Stage.

    Quelaag steps forward and the Covenant quietens under her gaze, "We''ve been attacked, this much is obvious. However the manner in which we were attacked is highly suspicious! How did the enemy know of which areas were most vulnerable? How did they know of our hidden passages? How did they know of our primary weapon, Pyromancy?" She lets the words linger until finally shouting, "We have a spy amongst us! Do not start searching now as we''ve already identified them, it''s clear from their absence that they were never loyal in the first place and have committed the biggest sin of betraying your family!" She spits as her face twists into an angry scowl, the discovery of a spy threatens the very foundation of their covenant. Luckily the spy had escaped instead of staying undercover, the amount of mistrust that''d spread would be devastating to the tight-nit group.

    Eingyi steps forward solemnly, "It pains me greatly to say that our previous companion Laurentius has betrayed us." The fifty Chaos Servants immediately start insulting the betrayers name, mother, father and strangely enough his hygiene...

    Quelaag "You will all continue increasing your skill in Pyromancy, but we''ve decided that we must not be conceited in thinking that''s all we need to beat off the invaders. Any of you that is proficient in weapons will be highly rewarded if you were to spread that knowledge, while you train we will be working to find the faction responsible and retaliating!" The crowd excitedly starts leaves as a few Chaos Servants take charge and start discussing different martial styles, leaving Reima and the others to discuss what had actually happened.

    After everyone goes back to the caves, Reima sets out some new furniture to replace the old ones that were unfortunately destroyed in the battle. "So, Laurentius betrayed us huh?" he states, confused at this outcome.

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    Quelaag, "It was a surprise to find out but it''s the only conclusion that''d explain the enemies prior knowledge and his current absence."

    Reima can hear a small growl come from Priscilla, "He should die." she says with finality.

    He nods, "I agree, though I feel partly responsible for bringing him here."

    Solaire pats him on the shoulder, "Do not despair my friend, my brother machinations no doubt spread far and wide... What else would he be doing with that Dark Moon covenant of his."

    Quelana raises her hand for a moment stopping any further discussion, "Hold on a moment, do you mean you''re brother is responsible? Gwyndolin son of Gwyn?" Solaire and Reima nod at this.

    Quelaag crosses her arms, "Well that answers one question, the other would be where his covenant''s base of operations is located."

    Reima grins at this while retrieving the Dark Moon Seance ring that he''d acquired in the Catacombs, "We know of his location, and we have the key to his quarters." he says sliding the ring to the middle of the table.

    Rhea perks up, "Of course his holiness would already have all the answers." Dusk nods along with her.

    Reima looks to Solaire and Priscilla, "We might as well nip this problem in the bud, have you decided whether not Priscilla is going to accompany us?"

    He has a tired look on his face and is about to refuse when a pale hand grasps his shoulder, "Of course, we''ve already discussed my inclusion extensively." Priscilla says with a cheerful smile on her face.

    Quelaag chimes in, "Will you require some Chaos Servants to assist you?"

    With the amount of people attacking them today their number is at minimum around one hundred people, with that many people and the addition of Gwyndolin they''ll most likely run into trouble...

    Solaire "We''ve probably got a good amount of time before they can attack again... The artifacts they use to project phantoms are called Blue Eye Orbs, usually they take about a week to recover."

    Quelana questions him further, "How do these Orbs function?"

    Solaire "They are used to attack without risking death, each Orb can project one phantom that takes the form of the user, it is essentially a clone of that person and has the same capabilities and physical attributes. The person using the Orb is rendered immobile while controlling a phantom."

    Quelana adds her owns thoughts, "So if we can attack as they''re using the Orbs we''ll have a huge advantage?"

    Solaire nods, "That would be a devastating assault if timed correctly, no doubt they intend to send another wave of phantoms to attack us once the Orbs are fully charged. Though I have no idea when next they intend to attack."

    Reima shrugs, "Why not just position a large group of Chaos Servants in Anor Londo while I stay here and wait for the attack? Once it begins I''ll teleport to the away team and begin our own attack."

    Quelaag nods contemplatively, "We''d barricade the entrances until Reima returns, thus protecting ourselves as our own assault gets into position... It''s a fine plan albeit slightly risky."

    Quelana "I think this is our best course of action. Once the ring leader is eliminated the rest will be easy to drive off."

    Everyone agrees to the strategy and Eingyi runs off to start organising a team to be ready for the assault around a week later.

    Reima rests his feet against the table while sipping some whisky, Solaire sits next to him nursing his own cup. "Ah, I got so caught up in all the trouble that I almost forgot..." He shows Solaire Gwyn''s soul shard. "We''re finally ready to fight Gwyn."

    Solaire''s eyes widen as he starts laughing, he clinks his cup to Reima''s causing him to lose some whisky, "You''re full of surprises aren''t you my friend! They say every cloud has it''s silver lining, this must be it!"

    Reima nods, "Once we''re done with Gwnydolin we''ll start preparing... Until then, cheers!" he says as he takes another swig.

 194 Another training montage

    And so the week of blistering training began for the Chaos Covenant, not that anyone was complaining of course, the feelings of betrayal were still fresh in the Pyromancers memories as they drove their bodies and minds to learn new styles of combat. Solaire happily helped out with their training, focusing on giving them lessons on basic forms of swordplay. With his assistance the Pyromancers quickly became capable of swinging a weapon properly, unlike before where they only used Pyromancy in combat situations. With most of the Chaos Servants being centuries old at the lowest estimate they quickly adapted to a style of combat Solaire coined as a PyreBlade''s, the name was quickly picked up by the over enthusiastic Servants.

    There are some however that didn''t take to single handed swords at all, this didn''t sway Solaire in training them though. He says he got the idea from when Reima forced him to use Havel''s shield in the Tomb of the giants and watching the Pyromancers train the Iron Flesh spell. The spell turns your skin and flesh into iron, making the caster incredibly resistant to all damage, there is a downside however as they also become very heavy and immobile. After combining the two ideas a front line tank as Reima had called it was born, the name that''d be coined for these people was the Flame Guard, they only numbered ten people and were outfitted with heavy steel armour that completely enveloped their bodies along with large tower shields that were taller than they are. Solaire wanted to make sure there wasn''t any week points and fitted them all out with thick visors that significantly limited their vision, even with all that they were still capable of casting their Pyromancies, only wielding a shield and having a free hand dedicated to spells made them a very difficult opponent to put down.

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    After counting there were 20 PyreBlade''s and 10 Flame Guard, the remaining 20 Chaos Servants didn''t pick up any weapons in the small amount of time they were given and instead were told to dedicate their time mastering Area of effect spells like Great Chaos Fireball, FireStorm, Flame Whip and area denial spells like Poison and Toxic mist. Reima had even managed to get Quelaag to distribute her personal Chaos Blade spell to the PyreBlade''s to increase their combat effectiveness, of course he had to part with a comfortable chair from his stockpile but it was a good trade all in all.

    Priscilla also tried distributing her limited martial knowledge with mixed results, if Reima had to describe it in a few words he''d call her a terrible teacher... She''d teach the correct things but was unable to explain why you''d do it, in what situation you''d do it in and where it didn''t apply. For instance having a high guard to block attacks from above, from say a pike or something similar. She''d be unable to explain why that particular guard was more effective than a low guard. Even with Solaire''s encouragement she didn''t last more than a day teaching, Reima had encouraged her to spar with the Chaos Servants instead, to improve their technique as well as her own in preparation for the battle drawing ever closer.

    Reima wasn''t idle during the week either, he''d decided that they''d need to scout Anor Londo to find a suitable spot to hide their assault team, they were unaware whether or not the city was being patrolled by Dark Moon knights and couldn''t allow themselves to walk into a trap. For this Reima had consulted with Dusk as he knew she had various spells that included invisibility, she''d gladly taught him Hidden body and Hidden weapon. The one thing that had confused Reima was that these two spells were seperated, meaning that if you used Hidden body your weapon would still be visible... Same scenario for Hidden weapon, you''d still be standing there looking as if you were holding an invisible object.

    Dusk had explained that magical detection wasn''t uncommon in Oolacile, instead assassins would dress like regular civilians and cast Hidden weapon. Afterwards they''d walk up to their target, stab them a couple times and walk away, it was rather effective due to the inaccuracy of magical detection at the time. If you wore a magical amulet it''d cause your entire body to register as magical, this caused anyone using Hidden weapon to look like any other civilian.

    Reima had then asked the reason for Hidden body was separate, Dusk shrugged and said the only time she''d seen it used was in theatrical plays depicting ghosts, while a rather amusing use of the spell Reima thought it was extremely wasteful. He had suggested to Dusk that they simply combine the spell as it would be easier to use for scouting Anor Londo, she agreed and they spent the next 2-3 days trying to combine the spell Formulae together. As Reima was unfamiliar with the spells from Oolacile Dusk had done most of the work, it''d actually surprised Reima at how talented she was at spell crafting. The Princess had just shrugged and said "It was a requirement for Royalty" when asked about it.

    Other than learning the newly combined spell that they''d called "Invisibility" Reima had been looking through some of the spell tomes that he''d "Acquired" from Seath''s vault. He''d only read and practise one spell throughout the week however due to it''s complexity compared to say a Soul Arrow, It was called Impaling Crystal and caused a large crystal shard to erupt from beneath an enemy and "Impale" then, hence the name. Reima had compared it to how FireStorm functioned, excluding the randomness of the pillars of fire.

 195 Sneaking through Anor Londo

    It wasn''t just the guys training for the coming battle however, Rhea had immediately started training Anastacia in using Miracles as soon as she had arrived. Her talent was unconventional but clear, she''d been unable to use anything besides the highest level spells, it was a strange phenomonon as Anastacia was completely useless at low level casting but when it came to large area of effect healing spells she picked it up extremely quickly. This was all a shock to the person in question as she''d previously been told that she was completely useless at using miracles, this new finding further distanced herself away from the church and the gods it had served under. Quelina had also join in the lessons as she was apparently extremely capable at casting Miracles, as was the case for most other Fire Keepers. Even despite Anastacia''s small fear of Quelina and her mutated lower half that currently resembles a crab, the gentle girl had quickly wormed her way into her heart, they quickly formed a tight friendship between each other and the trio was almost never seen without one another.

    Quelina wasn''t the only one determined to improve, her other sisters were also caught in the mood, Quelaag had been extremely distraught at her perceived poor performance when they were attacked. She bemoaned the fact that her spells were made almost useless by the extremely high Fire resistance that the invaders had had, this had caused her to be out sparring against the Chaos Servants with her own weapon. She hadn''t really improved after the week of training but Reima had suggested she use her mutated lower half to her advantage, her legs being covered in an extremely hard exoskeleton happen to make perfect spears. Thus began the weirdest martial techniques Reima had ever devised. With Quelaag making use of her eight legs she was able to defend and attack in almost every direction, where as before she''d simply flail her legs hoping to deal some damage, now she''d tactically place her strikes to knock her opponents off balance before striking the weak points. Quelana had been amused while watching until Reima had her go up against her sister, maybe this was a bad idea due to the animosity Quelaag still held for her but he had to admit, it was extremely funny watching Quelana run away from her sister screaming bloody murder as Quelaag quickly scuttled behind her.

    Everything was quickly coming together as the week progressed, Reima had even dropped off the Very Large Ember while having Andre make the Chaos Servants equipment. He hadn''t forgotten to get his and Solaire''s equipment upgraded with Andre''s new ember, he had even given them upgrades for free as thanks for the extremely rare ember.

    Soon it was the fifth day, two days away from Solaire''s prediction of when the Blue Eye Orbs would be usable. Reima had quickly cast Invisibility on himself before teleporting to Anor Londo to scout it out and survey the area.

    He teleports where the FireKeeper used to reside, before he killed her obviously and walks up the stairs to the twilight of Anor Londo. Even without the sun the city is still very beautiful Reima muses as he walks to the elevator and is taken down. Immediately upon exiting the elevator Reima spots numerous Dark Moon knights in various positions keeping watch, it seems Gwyndolin expects a counter attack, he''s not incorrect but it''s foolish to assume we''d have no magical way of bypassing his guards. Regardless Reima sneaks past them, Invisibility and Slumbering DragonCrest ring proving an incredibly potent combination as he wanders around trying to find a spot he could reasonably hide a large group of heavily armoured men. To his dismay even the great hall housing the painting of Ariamis and palace have many people patrolling them, he could find an area further away from Gwyndolin''s shrine under Gwyn''s tomb but that''d defeat the point of a surprise attack.

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    Even after hours of looking he can''t find an area free of guards, even the secret room that had hidden Havel''s armour was being watched. Eventually Reima''s anger at their plan falling apart gets the better of him and he decides to leave before he alerts anyone to his presence, he walks into a shadowy area of the Great hall and prepares to teleport away until the large Painting that used to imprison Priscilla catches his eye... Wait a moment, couldn''t he just hide the troops inside the painting? When you jump of the cliff you are teleported back inside the Great hall and are extremely close to Gwyndolin''s domain... Reima nods to himself and thinks over anything that could foil this strategy, unless Gwyndolin has guards stationed inside the painting which is very, very unlikely due to Priscilla having the only key inside this plan can''t fail. Reima grins, the prison in which he''d hidden Priscilla away for centuries would be his downfall, ironic? Maybe, but still extremely satisfying.

    He teleports back and explains his findings to the group at home, while the idea of hiding within the Painted world of Ariamis doesn''t go over well with Priscilla she quickly warms up to the idea as it''s their only means of attack. They go over who''s actually going to go with Reima and they decide that they''ll bring all 20 of the PyreBlade''s, all 10 of the Flame Guard and 10 regular Pyromancers behind them to assist. Ofcourse Solaire and Priscilla are coming but Eingyi is going to act as the general for the small assault team they have gathered, he''s the highest rank in the covenant aside from the sisters and has the most experience in battle as a previously infamous Pyromancer.

 196 Infiltration is easy with Magic!

    On the last day before the Blue Eye Orbs should be ready Reima teleports everyone to the Painted world of Ariamis, he drops his passengers in the tower where the ledge leading outside is before teleporting back to pick up the rest. Reima is kind of wary of leaving the sisters alone with only 10 pyromancers to protect them but they allay his worries but completely sealing the cave system but destroying the entrances, It''d probably take a couple days to dig the heavy rubble out of the way to gain access which is definitely enough time to wipe out the Dark Moon Covenant.

    While the group waits for the next day Reima and Solaire drill the Chaos Servants in basic formations, having the heavy Flame Guard in the front line with the PyreBlade''s around the sides, ready to advance or flank anyone engaging the front-line. Of course the regular Pyromancers will remain at the back-line supporting from the rear, Eingyi is also turning out to be a massive help in this task, he reminds Reima of a stereotypical task master or military Sargent when shouting commands. With the Flame Guards large shields they also train in various spells that''d work well with their defensive combat style, only two spells actually seem to work well however, those are Great Combustion and it''s weaker variant along with Fire Surge, a spell that Reima had found in the Painted world itself before distributing it among the Chaos Covenant. Both would devastate any melee fight and don''t need to worry about being vulnerable during casting due to their quick cast times and armoured bodies during Iron Flesh.

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    The PyreBlade''s were taught to be more agile then the Flame Guard, due to their lighter armour and lack of shields they are more susceptible to taking damage, most of this will hopefully be avoided with strong formations and teamwork. With the Pyromancers at the back trying to control battles with Area of effect spells that will attempt to sow Chaos in enemy groups and Eingyi giving commands Reima has high hopes for the battles to come.

    Obviously Solaire will be in the front-line but Reima and Priscilla''s abilities suit a flanking style better, with her ability to go invisible and Reima''s teleportation capabilities it''s highly unlikely they''ll even be noticed, let alone take damage. Even despite this Reima makes sure Priscilla had at least two rings of sacrifice on at all times, can never be too careful when thinking about someones safety after all.

    Soon the next time arrives and Reima tells everyone to prepare as he teleports away, back to the demon ruins to watch for any Dark Moon phantoms. Luckily their prediction isn''t way off as halfway through the day he spots about 100 phantoms sneakily approaching the now destroyed entrances. He immediately teleports back to the assault team in the painted world and gets everyone to wait a couple minutes after he goes in to follow, he casts Invisiblity and teleports into the Great hall to see if there are any patrols in or around this area. There are but they obviously don''t see Reima, the group has around six people and he''ll need to get rid of them before the Chaos Servants arrive, leaving the panting isn''t quick or easy as you''re likely to be disorientated after being transported to Anor Londo. This is the reason he went ahead as being caught off guard like that would prove a fatal mistake in their attack.

    Reima approaches the group from the back, judging by their clothing the three a the front are knights of some sort, one in the middle seems to be a priest from the robes and talisman hanging on her belt. The two at the back are in thick grey robes and wielding wooden staves that have some kind of runes carved into them, they obviously don''t have any protective enchantments as Arcell easily behead both of them. They drop to the ground, only alerting the cleric that something is wrong, they don''t get the chance to say anything as Reima''s hand covers her mouth, his Slumbering Dragoncrest ring dulling all attempts to call for help. All she sees in her last moments are his green slit eyes glaring at her.

    He manages to kill one of the knights but due to their close proximity he''s finally been seen by the two remaining men, they raise their shields and draw their swords before dropping into a basic stance. It''s unfortunate that his Invisibility spell dispels itself when he attacks or takes damage, this one was of the problems when trying to combine Hidden body and Hidden weapon, the former doesn''t last through combat like the latter but when combined together they both dispel at the same time. It doesn''t seem to matter in this situation as he''s confident in dealing with these two but it''s something to look into in the future.

    The first knight gives a shout and swings his sword at Reima as the second follows up trying to bash him with his shield. Reima easily deflects the sword and punches the shield with a Haki enhanced fist causing the second knight to be knocked away by the vicious impact and sprawls to the floor in a heap. The first knight seems shocked at his strength but tries for another attack regardless, his stab never had a chance to reach it''s intended mark as Reima''s sword finds it''s way into the mans throat. Giving a choked gasp the man falls to the floor and disappears. He then briskly walks over to the other downed knight who''s arm appears to be broken and grins at him, Reima thinks he can smell the scent of piss as the man cowers beneath him... Reima is about to torture the man for information but is unable to as the Chaos Servants arrive with Solaire, Priscilla and Eingyi. They all fall to the ground in a heap, uninjured but disorientated. He kills the knight and goes to help the others up as they''ll quickly need to leave before the other patrols turn up.

 197 Dragon Assassin?

    Despite the sun no longer being present in Anor Londo Reima can still see perfectly fine, his low light vision makes the rays of the moon seem like midday. After helping Priscilla to her feet he walks over to the door leading to the moving platform, peaking his head out he spots around 20 people guarding the mechanism to move it up and down, this is a problem as if they spot Reima and his group they''ll raise the platform out of their reach... This isn''t likely to stop their advance as Reima can still teleport but it''ll likely alert all the surrounding guards to their presence.

    Solaire walks up behind him and asks, "Is it clear?"

    Reima shakes his head, "No, they''ll raise the platform as soon as they see us... From there it''s just defending the staircase leading to the lever from us, a very difficult position to breach especially with our heavy Flame Guard... Being behind them as they''re knocked down the stairs would probably crush everyone in their path."

    Solaire "So what do you suggest? Can you not just use your teleportation abilities and prevent them from raising it?"

    Reima shakes his head yet again, "It might work but I don''t think I could keep them off the switch for long, maybe I could cover it in lava? But I doubt that will stop them as they''ll most likely have high fire resistance... Huh, I have an idea, go grab Priscilla." Solaire nods and brings her to him, an excited and expectant look is plastered on her face.

    Reima pulls out a small hand mirror and barely allows it to reveal whats around the corner, "See that? There is one man leaning on the lever, ready to pull it... He needs to die first and then we can progress."

    Priscilla nods, "Now?", Reima signals Eingyi to ready up the Chaos Servants. "Take out the one on the lever then get out quickly... We''ll cover the entire area in Toxic Mist and deal with anyone trying to escape. We''ll be waiting on you so take your time and be careful." he says as he walks over to Eingyi to explain the plan. Solaire pats his Niece on the head and ruffles her hair, "You got what you wanted, prove to us we don''t need to worry for your safety.". The Half-Dragon in question just closes her eyes and enjoys the contact while giving an affirmative "Enn".

    Soon Priscilla vanishes into white particles as everyone waits for her to reach the target, the Flame Guard are ready to block the door leading to the great hall while the Pyromancers are mentally preparing to cast Toxic Mist on the stairs and then the rest of the platform.

    ...

    ...

    They continue to wait until a choked cough followed by a small splat is heard, knowing this to be the signal the Pyromancers step into the doorway and immediately start casting Toxic Mist on the stairs to stop anyone running down to Gwyndolin''s hidden chambers, after sealing that exit they start to completely cover the platform with the highly toxic cloud of Dark Purple smoke. It''d cause chaos enough if it only impaired their vision however that isn''t it''s only function, any soft flesh that isn''t protected such as, say the eyes, immediately start being eaten away by the highly corrosive mist. Only eight Dark Moon Knights manage to escape to the only exit, which just so happens to be the Great Hall where the Flame Guard are now stationed. A few of the uninjured ones sprint towards the blockade in a vain attempt to breach it, unfortunately for them the Flame Guard had already cast Iron Flesh and were comparable to a stone wall. The panicking guards slam shoulder first into the tower shields of the Flame Guard, however this only shatters every bone in their arms and shoulder. They fall to the ground screaming in pain while shouting for their slower companions to help... This doesn''t last long as the Flame Guard reveal their fiery palms which shoot fierce streams of fire onto their downed opponents, the screams become louder for a moment before finally ceasing.

    Only four Dark Moon knight remain and so the Flame Guards open their blockade for Reima and Solaire to step through, the formers boot crunching on the charred remains of those foolish enough to challenge the Iron Flesh infused Flame Guard in a contest of strength and endurance. Priscilla becomes visible beside Solaire and flicks the the blade of her scythe to remove the blood still present, apparently some of these Dark Moon knights aren''t even undead.

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    Priscilla "Did I do well brother?", Solaire nods and rubs her head before drawing his Sunlight Straight Sword and pointing it at the remaining guards. "You have been soundly defeated, allow yourselves to be executed or attempt to fight back and receive the same treatment as your allies." he says gesturing his sword at the charred corpses.

    A guard who looks like a Cleric steps forward, the only thing visible through his hood is a large black beard, "Ha! Lord Gwyndolin promised us salvation, we do not fear death heretic!" he says but his words don''t match the grave faces of those behind him.

    Solaire raises a brow and looks the the other three, "Very well, if that is you''re choice. Engarde!" he says as he prepares to strike them down. One of the guards behind the cleric seem to lose their nerve and immediately drop to their knees, "Please spare me, I know nothing of the salvation they promise! Plea-" He''s cut off when the bearded cleric severs the arteries in his neck with a curved ceremonial knife. He whispers as he looks into the begging mans eyes, "You will be silent and die, for that is the will of Lord Gwyn.".

 198 Execution Stage

    Reima just watches this drama as it happens, finally after the man stabs his own ally he speaks up, "Yo! Can we stop with this Lannister shit before we all gain an interest in incest? You''re all dead regardless of what you do so hurry up."

    The bearded cleric quickly turns around and looks at Reima, "Ah yes, the Cat-eye''d one Gwyndolin spoke of... It will be an honour to bring you his head!"

    ...

    Everyone on Reima''s side laughs, what is this simpleton smoking? He''s one man versus their forty and he thinks he can kill one of their best fighters? Even Priscilla has a small grin on her face as they laugh at this ridiculous cleric. The cleric doesn''t seem fazed as he stands there still wielding the blood curved dagger he''d kill his own with, "Laugh all you want, for it''s the last thing you''ll do!" he says as he sprints at Reima while raising the dagger in preparation to stab him. Reima stops Solaire intervening and decides to test out his new Sorcery, closing his eyes for a moment to conjure to Formulae he raises his left hand before striking the ground. The cleric stops where he stands and starts mocking Reima assuming he''d failed his spell, "Ha! The day is mine! Long live Gwy-" he''s cut off as a large crystal explodes from the ground and pierces the man where his testicles would be, this isn''t the end however as the spell continues through his body and out the side of his neck.

    The man moans in agony as he''s raises off 5ft off the ground, impaled for everyone around to see. Reima has a sadistic grin spread across his face as he realises something, the spear had for some reason only pierced non-vital organs as it ravaged it''s way through the mans body... It''s highly probably he''ll continue to live for an hour or two more.

    He twists on his heel and gives a thumbs up to the slightly disconcerted crowd, they''d known Reima to be rather brutal in combat but this is more akin to torture. "Well our job is done here, lets move on shall we?" he says as he casually decapitates the remaining two cowering guards. Priscilla gives Solaire a look but he only shrugs, already used to Reima''s spontaneous brutality.

    After the Toxic Mist clears up with the aid of Reima''s Aard sign they walk onto the platform in formation, carefully stepping over the rotten and incomplete bodies caused by the Toxic cloud. Priscilla turns invisible and scouts the stairs and entrance towards Gwyn''s tomb to make sure they''re not spotted before they can begin their attack. She walks into the large chamber housing a large statue of Gwyn and a bonfire in the middle, no one is currently present and she doesn''t see any other passage ways, she returns and relays her findings to Reima and Solaire, the former just nods and grins before directing the Chaos Servants to get into formation and march into the chamber. They all enter, still in formation and all patiently awaiting Reima''s next command. He gets them all to face the statue of Gwyn, after confirming that they are ready he slips on the Dark Moon Seance Ring which immediately dispels the statue revealing a large staircase leading to an equally large hallway. Some of the Chaos Servants are startled but manage to keep their voices to themselves as this is supposed to be a stealth mission.

    Reima grabs Priscilla''s hand and turns invisible, her doing the same after catching on to his thought process. They walk down the stairs holding hands, the Slumbering Dragoncrest Ring causing them both to be incredible quiet as they descend. As they reach the bottom they spot an entry way that leads into a massive chamber with around one hundred people lying prostrate with a many Blue Orbs in their hands, seeing this Reima immediately looks around for any guards but doesn''t see any present.

    The two return to the Chaos Servants and Reima directs the PyreBlade''s to come with him, Solaire and Priscilla to quickly kill everyone before they realise what''s happening. Despite them all being immobile through the use of the Blue Eye Orbs if their fellow phantoms start randomly disappearing they''ll realise something is wrong, therefor quick action is required. The group reaching the chamber and the PyreBlade''s ignite their Steel Straight Swords with Quelaag''s Chaos Blade Pyromancy before awaiting Reima''s signal. They all position themselves over the most troublesome looking opponents and immediately strike down as Reima drops his hand in a commanding gesture. Immediately around twenty Dark Moon knights are killed, this isn''t all however as the group swiftly switches to another target and brutally kills them as well. Reima is surprised at how slow the Dark Moon knights are to react to this as he strikes down the fifth person, he estimates around sixty people have been killed already and not one person has returned to see if something was wrong. It was only after eighty people had been brutally executed when the first few people started to wake up, unfortunately for them it was already too late, the attack had been a huge success and the twenty remaining people didn''t put up much of a challenge versus the PyreBlades. The only thing Reima regrets is the fact that the Blue Eye Orbs shatter upon their deaths, not a huge loss but regretful all the same.

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    After what can only be described as a slaughter, Reima sends the PyreBlades to defend the entrance with the Flame Guard and Pyromancers under the command of Eingyi. He didn''t know if Gwyndolin had a method of directing the remaining Dark Moon knights to attack them from behind so he wasn''t going to take chances... Besides, this is personal, he thinks to himself as he gazes upon the massive Fog-Gate that most assuredly leads to the Dark Sun Gwyndolin.

 199 Dark Sun Extinguished

    The trio of Reima, Solaire and Priscilla make their preparations to confront Gwyndolin, each of them holding their own resentment towards him. Reima for his attack on the Chaos Covenant and the sisters, Solaire and Priscilla for the betrayal that led to his banishment and her imprisonment. While some may suggest that forgiveness is the only way if they had said this to the determined trio they''d likely be brutally beaten for even speaking such a thing. While some differences are reconcilable, the atrocities committed and encouraged by Gwyndolin, Gwynevere and Gwyn himself are too much to grant them atonement.

    Reima draws his Black Knight Sword enchanted with Occult due to it''s effectiveness against gods, while not wildly useful in Dark Souls due to Gwyndolin being the last remaining god that the enchantment would work against, of course Gwyn still lives but with his soul split and ego destroyed by the centuries of constant burning torture the weapon would probably not have any effect anymore. The Black blade is wreathed in an ominous purple mist that causes Priscilla and Solaire to recoil slightly at it''s presence, despite Solaire''s divinity being taken he seems to still be able to sense the dangerous aura around the blade. Priscilla even more so due to her half-god heritage... He distributes Green Blossoms to everyone and asks, "You guys ready?", he recieves a nod from his two companions as they step through the mist of the Fog-Gate.

    After walking inside the trio spot a familiar man prostrate on a lavish looking carpet praying towards a figure quite the distance away in the long hallway, even despite the apparent darkness outside light rays shine through the windows illuminating the hall in a gentle orange glow. The figure on the ground seems to notice their presence and turns around, revealing himself to be Laurentius, the man responsible for the betrayal that led to the Dark Moon invading the Chaos Covenant.

    Reima''s lips spread into a vicious grin, "So you''re here? Good. I was scared that I''d accidentally killed you while we were butchering your friends."

    Laurentius scowls at him, "It sickens me to look upon you, to think the man I''d share my flame, my soul with would attack and kill lady Gwynevere. His holiness even told me that you''d killed the Lady FireKeeper."

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    Reima "You betrayed the sisters, your mentor Eingyi and the rest of the Chaos Servants. It''s fortunate you''re undead so I don''t have to be gentle when dealing with you." his grin spreading to an unnatural degree causing Laurentius to shudder.

    Over with Solaire and Priscilla they had ignored the traitorous former Chaos Servant and instead approached the figure in the distance, Gwyndolin. His body is lithe and feminine and he wears a white dress with silver ornaments despite being male. He wears a golden crown in the shape of the sun and has many snakes coming out from the bottom of the dress, raising him off the ground and increasing his previously 5.11ft to around 7ft.

    Gwyndolin is turned around by the vipers that seem to be apart of his body and he finally takes notice of his visitors. "Oh? Quite a surprise it seems, someone has delivered an Abomination and a pathetic Former God to me as tribute. I''ll have to find the person responsible to reward them."

    Solaire grits his teeth in anger at the obvious but effective taunt, "There is no where left to run little brother, your schemes and machinations only work if there are people of power to play. Sister has runaway to some vile begotten lands and Father has kept the First Flame burning with his own soul."

    A smug smile overtakes the visible part of Gwyndolin''s face, "Ah but for you see I require help not, I am still a god, and you are what''s left of one... Even with the abominations assistance you will not be able to harm me."

    Priscilla speaks up from her indignant silence, "You will pay with your life for your sins uncle, that I can assure you." she says as she prepares her scythe for combat.

    Solaire nods and follows her lead, "Indeed, it seems the time for talk has ended." he readies his blade while preparing to block any spells shot at Priscilla.

    Gwyndolin gestures backwards with his hand, making the hallway increase in length as it stretches off into the distance, neither Solaire or Priscilla are able to see the end of it. "Then let the games begin." he says as he vanishes and reappears further along the hallway, Priscilla takes a step and vanishes before her other foot reaches the floor.

    Solaire raises his shield as Gwyndolin starts launching large Soul Spears at him, he easily blocks them but a small amount seems to bypass his shield, dealing small amounts of damage regardless. Luckily the damage is quickly healed as Sanctus''s enchantment springs to life and starts regenerating any damage to his body and soul. He sprints towards Gwyndolin as the Dark Sun raises his golden staff and unleashes a torrent of arrows that random appear above Solaire before shooting at him, he rolls to avoid most and blocking the rest with his shield, he looks at Gwyndolin and sees some kind ripple in the air before his Brother quickly dodges to the side somehow avoiding Priscilla''s scythe. The only thing it''d managed to hit was a wayward snake that''d been bisected for it''s trouble.

    Gwyndolin taunts the Crossbreed while channelling another spell "Insolent Abomination, you are far from matching a God!" he says as a white explosion launches her away, she collides with the wall heavily. Solaire''s about to sprint to her aid but tries to distract Gwyndolin instead as she shakily gets to her feet and vanishes again.

    Solaire "Does it anger you that I was Fathers favourite? Of course that was the only outcome! Who would love someone like you brother!" he spits, drawing the furious gaze of Gwyndolin who quickly retorts, "You know not of what you speaketh!"

    Solaire gives a mock laugh, "Ha! Tell that to our ever so illustrious Father, oh wait! That''s impossible!" He has to cut his taunts short as a Soul Spear larger than before zips by his head, he dodges and blocks a couple more and finally reaches the pale boy. He cuts down a serpent attempting to bite him as he slashes a long gash into Gwyndolin''s abdomen, it doesn''t seem too deep but still bleeds profusely. In response the Dark Sun disappears and reappears further up the all again, unfortunately it seems that Priscilla had predicted this and brings down her scythe, wreathed in the writhing black energy she''d called "Life-Hunt" due to it''s ability to kill souls and heal the user at the same time.

    It carves a long line down the back of Gwyndolin, the black energy causing the wound to quickly turn black along with the blood seeping out of it. Priscilla herself recovers from the previous impact due to the life-stealing effects of her unique magic that they had only recently discovered.

    Gwyndolin gives a weak shout as the snakes under him try to carry him to safety, away from Priscilla. Only for a Lightning Spear to pierce the Dark Suns shoulder, leaving a large burnt wound as it carries on travelling even after penetrating the god.

    Gwyndolin would try teleporting again but his unique teleportation magic takes time and concentration to use, he lacks both as he''s never received a wound before and the pain is to unbearable for him to focus on anything else. A flash of Turquoise light signals Reima''s arrival and he sweeps his blade horizontally, bisecting all the snakes and causing the pale boy to fall to the floor like a sack of potatoes. Reima kicks away his staff causing Gwyndolin to look up, "O-of course my pathetic servant didn''t deal with you." he says as he loses the strength in his arms to hold himself up.

    Reima "I''ll leave this to you guys, I''ve still got a certain Pyromancer to tor-Cough... Punish." he says as he leaves the downed Gwyndolin to the mercy of an angry Solaire and Priscilla.

 201 Reima the Rubble Remover

    Eingyi "Laurentius?" he looks over at the sobbing limbless man in confusion, followed quickly by anger towards the betrayer.

    Laurentius manages to sputter out through his teeth-less, bruised and mangled face. "T-Teacher, S-save me"

    Eingyi feels his temper explode at this, "Save you! What a pathetic excuse for a potential Pyromancer, it shames me that I''d actually trained and trusted you, I treat you as my own and you spit in my face but alighning yourself with our enemies!?!" he spits on the sobbing man in a rage, "Forgive me Reima but I''d like to ask permission to have this... This Rat, in my care."

    Reima shrugs, "As long as you deal with him appropriately, I''ve already had my fun" he says nonplussed either way.

    Eingyi bows deeply and orders some PyreBlades to carry Laurentius away.

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    Solaire pats Reima on the shoulder, "About that, my friend. I think we should talk about your... Less admirable traits."

    Reima "What do you mean?" he asks confused.

    Solaire crosses his arms, "I''m not one to talk of ethics and morality but your fondness for acts of brutality and torture scares me, not to mention Priscilla." said person nods at the side.

    Reima "Ah, really? I thought it was fine..."

    Solaire shakes his head, "I turned a cheek for your harvesting of the boar in Seath''s library, the murder of that Patches fellow and torture of Petrus but your actions against the betrayer Laurentius was too cruel."

    At this Reima replies simply, "People who commit terrible acts of cruelty must expect the same things to befall themselves. While true, I might get carried away often I''ve never done anything I would regret. Even with Laurentius you must consider the possible outcomes of his actions before judging his punishment, his actions could have led to the murder of not only the Sisters, Chaos Covenant and everyone within, it could have led to the death of Priscilla. The final result matters not, it''s the intentions that should be taken into account."

    Solaire would like to argue against this but the bubbling rage he feels at the thought of his Nieces murder forces him to hold his tongue. All he can do is try to change the direction of his question, "Perhaps, but was removing all of his limbs necessary?"

    Reima grins, "No arms to cast Pyromancy, No legs to escape and no penis to procreate." he says trying to hold in his chuckles. He had briefly thought over whether or not removing the mans third leg to be going over the top but the adrenaline from the prior slaughter had pushed him over the proverbial ledge so to speak.

    Priscilla chokes at his retort and quickly turns away embarrassed at her audible slip. Solaire just sighs, he justifies his friends actions mentally adding that he''s never harmed an innocent so it''s best to leave these matters be.

    The trio quickly catch up with Eingyi outside of Gwyn''s tomb, Reima approaches him and asks, "So what''re you going to do now. Should I start teleporting everyone back?"

    Eingyi shakes his head, "We''ll return on foot, it''ll provide valuable experience in combating different situations and changing landscapes."

    Solaire nods, "It''s a fine idea, we can never be too prepared, even despite our only known enemy no longer being a threat." he says as he flicks the now named Sunlight Crown sitting atop his head.

    Priscilla adds, "Can we return? I feel tired after all that''s happened." she asks, brows furrowing slightly.

    Reima nods before looking at Solaire, "You going with them or us?"

    He quickly replies, "I''ll accompany Eingyi and his men, my blood is still boiling for a battle after my brothers rather pathetic showing." Reima nods at this and takes Priscilla''s hand before teleporting back to the Chaos Covenant.

    They are immediately greeted by everyone sitting in the main chamber, eagerly awaiting news of the assault.

    Quelaag "The people trying to breach the collapsed entrances disappeared quickly, I assume it was a success?"

    Reima nods, "The Dark Sun Gwyndolin has been slain, along with the majority of his Covenant." this receives a few sighs in relief and a few cheers from some wayward Chaos Servants who were idling in the area.

    Quelaag looks around, "Eingyi, Solaire and the rest?"

    Reima "Returning on foot to gain live experience, it seems the battles ending too quickly to alleviate their lust for battle."

    Quelaag nods and smiles, "We''ll hold off on celebrating until their return then... Did you find the traitor Laurentius?"

    Reima nods again, "After I "Disarmed" him Eingyi took him away, I assume he''ll be kept alive for target practise or something similar."

    Priscilla scoffs at him, "Do not forget to mention how you also "Dis-legged" him"

    Small chuckles are heard throughout the chamber as some of the more innocent people such as, Quelina, Anastacia and Rhea look around confused.

    Quelaag "I''m glad to hear he got what he deserved, traitors are the worst of the worst in my humble opinion." she says as Reima catches her glances at Quelana. He sighs, even with all this time to reconcile she still holds a grudge? Women huh.

    After the short but concise meeting Reima grabs the 10 remaining Pyromancers to help him clear the collapsed entrances, they''re no longer needed as the threat had been vanquished. They seem to complain at first but are quickly motivated when Reima lifts a huge boulder over his head and throws it away from the rubble. He even stores some of the larger stones into his Folded Space as you never know when they could be used in the future. After only a couple hours of hard labour one of the entrances is cleared of rubble, he pats a sweaty exhausted Chaos Servant on the back while saying "Good job, now only two more entrances to go." the tired complaints don''t seem to reach Reima and he moves on to another pile of rubble.

 202 Frazzled Fluff

    After clearing the entrances to the Chaos Covenant caves Reima starts looking further into Sorceries he hadn''t learned yet while waiting for Eingyi and Solaire to return. He finds a comfortable seat in the Demon ruins where Quelana is coaching Quelina on small scale Pyromancies along with some training Chaos Covenant Pyromancers and opens up a book he''d found in Seath''s vault. It seems like a variation on the Impaling Crystal spell that he''d recently learned. This spell instead of targeting a single person causing the ground around the caster to erupt with many Crystals, It''s called Radial Crystal Impalement... A bit of a mouthful but it works to describe the spell, he spends around an hour just sifting through the Spell Formulae and notes Reima assumes were added by Seath during the creation of the spell. He idly wonders what Big Hat Logan and Griggs are getting up to in the Dukes Archives, he''ll have to visit them after dealing with Gwyn, who knows what secrets they''ve uncovered in that huge library.

    Priscilla wanders into the Demon Ruins looking for something to alliviate her boredom, while not quite as prevalent as when she was imprisoned in the Painted World of Ariamis she still found herself looking for activities to do. Finding Anastacia and Rhea too absorbed in training their Miracles and discussions relating to divinity she decided to try find a sparring partner to practise her skills. She spots Quelana and Quelina training in the distance but ignores them, she had tried to train in Pyromancy before but everytime she tried her Unique Life Hunt magic would overtake the flame and absorb it. It irritated her greatly that she was unable to use Pyromancy as she was also useless at casting Sorceries, the Formulae just didn''t make sense to her and even the simplest spell fizzled in her hands.

    She continues to mull over these thoughts until she spots Reima reading a thick tome in the corner, she begins walking over to him as she thinks of her weird relationship to the man. He''s her saviour as he''d helped her escape the painted world and reunite with her brother Solaire, he''s her mentor as he''d trained her to use her Scythe properly, but that isn''t all she muses to herself as she stands above the white haired Witcher.

    Reima raises his head at the sudden shadow overtaking him, "Oh, hello Priscilla, do you need something?"

    Priscilla''s head drops towards her shoulder, did she need something? She''d forgotten what she wanted to ask him... "Mmm, Is there anything to do to rid myself of this boredom."

    Reima folds the corner on one of the tomes pages to create a makeshift bookmark before closing it, "We''ve got time, why don''t I show something that might help increase your control over your unique magic?"

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    Her eyes open comically as she vigorously nods her head, "Please."

    Reima "Very well" he taps on the floor beside him, "Sit." she follows his instruction and sits next to him, her tail laying itself distractingly behind him. Ignoring it he begins to instruct her in the meditation method Geralt had shown him so long ago, "On your knees, back straight, hands resting on your thighs." he repeats, mirroring Geralt''s words unconsciously.

    Reima "Now, take long deep breaths like this", he breaths in an easy to follow pattern that Priscilla faithfully repeats.

    As she continues following his instructions she slowly feels like she becoming less in touch with her physical form, gaining a better awareness of the magic around them. She looks into herself and feels the dark abyss that she quickly realises is her Life Hunt ability, finding that she can sense magical auras she begins to sense the things around her, her clothing is slightly magical along with her body itself... Continuing to look around she finds a blinding Turquoise aura beside it, is this Reima? She thinks to herself as she scans his aura further. His entire body is like rippling presence, there and yet not... One thing she notices is the deep red circle locate around his chest area... The Dark Sign? Furthermore she can see his base Turquoise aura slowly enveloping it, as if it''s adapting to it''s presence and gaining control of it.

    She''s shunted from her meditation by Reima''s voice "scilla? Are you awake?"

    She opens her eyes and realises she feels amazing, as if she''s completely rejuvenated. "Apologies, did you say something?"

    Reima "Ah, I finally got your attention... You''ve been meditating for around six hours now." his words shock her, Six hours? But it felt like only a few moments.

    Reima chuckles at her shocked confusion, "Don''t worry, you did great. Time becomes less important when meditating, did you sense your unique magic?" She nods, "Good, when you find time to meditate again, try moving it. It''ll be completely different to how you currently use it, perhaps you''ll gain a new understanding on how to control it." he tries to carry on but is enveloped in a tight hug, "Thank you Reima, you knoweth not what you have done for me." she says sincerely as she stands and quickly retreats into the Chaos Covenant Caves.

    After getting hugged and seeing her run off Reima shrugs, opens up the tome he was reading and begins to passively try conjure the Formulae to the spell, not in an attempt to cast it but to confirm the small complexities of it in order to limit any mistakes he might make during his fast time casting it.

 203 Slice of Life?

    In a smaller chamber away from everyone else sits a large fiery spider with a beautiful woman attached atop it, Quelaag keeps her eyes closed as she tries to design another Pyromancy spell. She''d recently found herself alone with a large amount of time to do whatever she wants, with Quelina spending most of her time learning from her annoying sister Quelana her main source of contentment isn''t available any longer. Her rivalry with Quelana doesn''t only extend to their little sisters attention, with Quelana being an extremely accomplished Pyromancer with an extensive list of self-made spells Quelaag feels slightly inadequate when they''re compared... Of course she could be excused as she had to spent most of her time previously acquiring humanity to keep Quelina alive from that dreadful sickness "BlightPuss", it was only through Reima''s intervention that she was free to find her own hobby without constantly worrying about her little sister. And so she now sits here in a cramped chamber trying to design a unique spell to try catch up to Quelana, she condenses mana in her hand and ignites it with Chaos Flames before throwing it in an attempt to create something similar to the Soul Arrow sorcery, unfortunately the projectile just hits the wall like a weak Fireball.

    Standing while grabbing her hair and groaning in irritation she decides to stop for now, all of her experiments have failed and her temper is only increasing, soon she''ll likely explode and it''ll be the unfortunate Chaos Servants who will suffer.

    She''s about to walk past another chamber entrance when a black lightning bolt outlined in white flies past her head and hits the nearby wall, looking at the result reveals a very deep gouge... Weren''t lightning bolts supposed to be immaterial? Realising Solaire isn''t currently here she turns and spots a sheepish looking Anastacia, hand still sparking from the residual energy. Rhea stands behind her looking on with eyes wide and mouth agape, "Ana! That was amazing, I''ve never seen a black lightning bolt before!"

    Anastacia just continues to look at Quelaag, embarrassed. "I-I''m sorry, I didn''t have much c-control over where it went..."

    Quelaag''s scowl softens, her long experience dealing with Quelina has made her susceptible to this sort of person. "It''s fine, but if you wish to continue practising your... Miracles? Please do so outside in the Demon Ruins."

    The duo nod and bow deeply before running outside, whether or not they''re fearful or just excited she can''t tell... Shrugging her shoulders she follows after them, maybe she just needs to get a new perspective before trying to "force" creating a spell.

    She reaches the demon ruins, the dark red stone and dim lighting from the residual lava that still remains in the lake gives off a comfortable warmth that she appreciates for a moment, not many places left in Lordran that are this defensible and hospitable. She frowns as she spots Quelina handing a small flame under Quelana''s instruction, the fire suddenly flashes black before returning to it''s original colour but Quelaag notices it, rubbing her eyes she looks again but the flame remains the same... Weird? Ignoring that she looks around, seeing another smaller black lightning bolt fly into the distance as Rhea giggles and praises the shy Fire Keeper for her efforts.

    Off to the side of them is the ten Chaos Servant Pyromancers, most practising their control over fire and attempting to learn new spells but some seem disgruntled at their inability to wield weapons as well as their comrades who are currently travelling back on foot. She grimaces as one overconfident man slips and accidentally carves a deep line into his leg via his sword, shaking her head in disappointment she finds her gaze drawn away by large Crystal shards exploding out of the ground. Looking at the person responsible she sees Reima sitting cross-legged, tome in hand in the middle of the devastation with a calm and satisfied look on his face.

    After the Crystals seems to crack, lose their form and dissipate she approaches him, "Greetings Reima, I see you''re improving in your spell casting."

    He nods, "These tomes that belonged to Seath contain complicated but powerful Sorceries... Reading further into them they seem like the precursor to his attempt at immortality, the spells themselves only seem to be happy accidents."

    Quelaag lays her large lower body next to the still seated Reima, "From what I''d heard that mad dragon was successful, how then did you manage to slay him?"

    Reima shrugs, "He himself didn''t achieve immortality, he''d only linked his being to something called the Primordial Crystal. Once I destroyed that he was rendered mortal again, either way it was a difficult fight."... "But that''s enough about me, did you need something?"

    She shakes her head, "I''ve been trying to create a Pyromancy spell similar to the sorcery Soul Arrow, but I''ve not even managed to form anything that doesn''t resemble a Fireball. I think it may be impossible." she says depressingly.

    Reima is silent for a moment, he''d had similar idea''s before but never bothered to actually test it. "Can you show me what you''ve got currently?"

    She nods, forms mana into her hand before setting it alight and throwing it at a nearby stone. It collapses in on itself as the mana comprising it quickly dissipates, a pretty useless spell if he does say so himself.

    Quelaag nods her head sadly, "Laugh at my efforts for they amount to nothing."

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    Reima "I think you''re starting off on the wrong foot, the density of mana isn''t enough to remain it''s form over a long distance, especially while fuelling fire. Here, I''ll cast a spell and you do the same thing as before." He says as he conjures a Crystal Soul Arrow above his hand, Quelaag quickly envelops it in Chaos Flames before he shoots it off towards the wall a couple meters away. It pierces the wall and after a short wait explodes from inside the wall, boring a large hole with lava liberally dripping out.

    Quelaag can''t tear her eyes away due to how shocked she is, "H-how!"

 204 Fire Crystal Bomb!

    Quelaag "H-how!" she asks shocked.

    Reima chuckles, "I learned this trick when fighting Crystal Golems... If the Crystal is not too dense then it is extremely flammable, especially with Chaos Flames being involved, I wasn''t however expecting an exploding armour piercing round like that. Congratulations Quelaag, you''ve created a powerful spell."

    She scoffs, "I can''t create Crystal so your praise is meaningless. If anything you''re the one who created this spell, all I did was apply fire to it."

    Reima "I''ll teach you the formulae to condense mana then, It''s not difficult as it only does one thing.. You''d probably have to throw the flaming crystal if you don''t apply the trajectory Formulae though."

    She grumbles, Quelaag prided herself on her mastery of Pyromancy and Reima is expecting her to delve into Sorcery... Thinking further on it though, this could lead to a whole new school of spells, a hybrid class of Pyromancy and Sorcery. Just the very idea makes her excited. "... If you think so, I''ll give it a try..."

    Reima broadly grins, "Excellent, we start now then." he says as he stands over her and retrieves many pieces of parchment with strange drawings on them.

    judging by the look on his face Quelaag knows this''ll be his payback for all those times she "Punished" him...

    Solaire stands at the bottom of the BlightTown elevator waiting for the rest of the troop to arrive, he finds it strange that despite living down here for so long most are completely petrified of even going near this thing. His confusion is quickly solved however as he sees a PyreBlade roll onto the wooden platform before slipping off and falling to his doom... Solaire steps backwards and grimaces slightly as the Chaos Servant brutally hits the floor and dies instantly, luckily Solaire knows that he''ll just come back to life inside the Chaos Covenant Caves otherwise he''d shocked rather than mildly annoyed at the Servants clumsiness. Eingyi arrives at the bottom last after making sure no one else stupidly falls to their death again.

    Eingyi "In all my years here I still have no idea how this contraption functions... Is it the will of the gods or a feat of human engineering, we''ll likely never know."

    Solaire nods, "Reima had the same thoughts when we traversed this area, he said it must be magic as there is no visible mechanism that''d enable this thing to keep running."

    They finish their short chat as they survey the lands around them, usually they''d instantly be assaulted by many Chaos Insects, Hollows and Slugs but most of them had been wiped out by Priscilla''s training expeditions and Quelaag''s rage induced rampages.

    The quickly traverse the swamp and Solaire suddenly remembers an area not far away, the area that leads to the Everlasting Dragon in Ash Lake... After saving Priscilla he''d been meaning to thank the ancient being, despite thinking she''d perished regardless of his efforts and forgetting that it had ever existed. Once he and Reima had slain Gwyn he''d go to visit the great beast and see how he''s doing.

    The large group enter through the previously destroyed entrance, Solaire goes to find Reima and Priscilla with Eingyi following quickly behind. They''d been gone for around three days as they would stop and practise formation for every conflict they encountered, this improved the synergy of the Chaos Servants significantly despite the increase amount of time the journey had taken. Once the duo arrived outside they''re momentarily confused at the chaos happening around them, over in the far corner were two young girls with one throwing black lightning bolts, on another is Quelina throwing small Fireballs under the guidence of Quelana... However the most surprising of all is Quelaag forming small Crystals under the tutelage of Reima, the spell seems to be off from Reima''s as she conjures many smaller Crystal shards instead of one big one. This doesn''t seem to stop her however as she sets them alight and throws them at the nearby wall, the strength of her throw isn''t that strong so they bounce weakly off but what happens afterwards shocks not only Eingyi but Solaire aswell. The small flaming Crystals suddenly seem to become unstable and simultaneously explode causing an explosion similar to a small cluster bomb back on earth. Each Crystal seemingly had the strength of an average strength Fireball which only impresses them further.

    Quelaag jumps in joy at her first success, her formulae was slightly off causing many smaller Crystals to form but she attempted the spell anyway, accidentally creating a new spell in the process, even Reima is happily surprised at the effect it seemed to have.

    Reima "Well, your Formulae was off slightly causing the ambient mana to condense unevenly, forming many Crystals... This would lead to a catastrophic spell failure if you were using regular Sorcery but it ended up forming a formidable spell, congratulations Quelaag." He''s hugged into her bosom as her lower spider half dances in excitement as his feet part from the floor.

    Quelaag suddenly hears a cough behind her, turning to inspect who interrupted them she sees a grinning Solaire standing beside a still shocked Eingyi, he finally regains his senses and exclaims, "Mistress! What was that? Such a unique spell must be shared among the Covenant!"

    Quelaag drops a slowly suffocating Reima and crosses her arms in a haughty expression, "Of course, It''s my newly created spell."

    Eingyi "May I enquire it''s name Mistress?"

    ...

    Her smile starts to crumble as she turns to look at an amused Reima, "Yes Quelaag, we''d love to hear the name of your new spell." he says as he chuckles.

    Solaire "Indeed, it was truly impressive!" he exclaims as the rest of the returning Chaos Servants approach, earnestly wishing to hear the new spell their mistress had devised.

    A bead of sweat crawls down her forehead as he stutters, "Why of course, I-it is called... F-fire... B-bomb c-crystal... Yes, Fire Bomb Crystal."

    ...

    Reima''s chuckling only gets louder as the Chaos Servants begin repeating the new spell in joy and excitement. He steps next to her in an attempt to save her face in front of her servants, "Wouldn''t Chaos Crystal Cluster be more descriptive?" She immediately agrees, "Ah, yes, even despite my originally great name this seems more fitting..." the Chaos Servants don''t seem to be bothered by the sudden name change and begins praising their great Mistress...

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    Reima "I was thinking this new form of Spell Casting should be called something other than Pyromancy or Sorcery as it merges the two, if anyone has a good suggestion I''d love to hear it." he says to the Chaos Servants as he leaves to practise Radial Crystal Impalement.

 205 Drinks, Boars and Whor... Laurentius.

    After the away group returned Quelaag had ordered everyone to prepare for a celebration, truly there was a cause for celebration as they were completely outnumbered by their enemy and without Reima''s help wouldn''t have even known where to counter attack. Of course the role of setting up everything for the party fell on Reima''s shoulders as he literally had everything stored inside his Folded Space.

    They decided to hold the event in the Demon ruins, Reima prepared many tables and chairs around a central area where he gathered many of his shattered furniture. Once it was all put together he pulled out many various metal parts and constructed a large makeshift spit, of course he''d already retrieved a barrel of Kuretz whisky and the mood quickly turned festive. Everyone was drinking, including those who''d never drank alcohol before, these people being Anastacia, Rhea and Dusk... While Dusk had partaken in some wine she''d never tried hard alcohol like what was being served.

    While everyone was having a jolly time with Solaire even singing some strange folk songs that were never present on earth, Reima had just retrieved the large boar he''d killed in the dukes archives. It was already skinned, gutted and beheaded, the legs were going to be prepared separately as he''d previously cut them off beforehand. The hardest thing about preparing this hunk of flesh was removing the armour that''d been melded onto it''s skin, although it came off all the same with a bit of elbow grease.

    Everyone noticed Reima lighting the large pile of wood with Chaos Flames while hefting a huge boar carcass onto the spit, the metal frame was haphazardly thrown together by melting various metal to form it, this unfortunately made it extremely difficult to turn the boar. Reima had to manually twist it around with his bare hands to cook it evenly, despite this he still managed to converse with people nearby and having a drink. Something he found extremely amusing is an obviously inebriated Quelaag hugging an awkward Quelana, it seems her grudge can''t persist through alcohol he muses to himself.

    Looking around he sees an already Tipsy Dusk slurring her words while leaning on Quelina, from what he can gather she''d thought herself a good drinker from her prior wine tasting experience... She''s currently telling a story of her Father trying to set her up with a seventy year old man, this seems to be a common theme among royalty... Are they all perverts or is it the environment that changes them? Regardless he finds it absolutely disgusting to do such a thing to your daughter.

    He glances away and sees Priscilla attempting to waltz with some Chaos Servants but stumbling over herself as she''s already quite drunk, he''d keep an eye on her were Solaire not already doing so, laughing and singing despite the glances towards Priscilla Reima barely spots. An overprotective brother is nice to see despite him technically being her uncle.

    Reima can barely keep the smile of of his face when he sees Rhea and Anastacia passed out next to each other, what''s amusing is the fact that they''d only had one drink and had only drank half of it. The truest of light weights Reima had ever seen... Strangely enough he hasn''t spotted Eingyi yet...

    Taking another glance around he sees around eight people grouped together, giving a nearby Chaos Servant the responsibility of cooking the boar he approaches and laughs at what he sees. Eingyi is concentrating with his tongue sticking out while aiming a throwing knife at what looks like Laurentius... The limbless man is tied to a chain and dangles from a large metal pole embedded in the ground, he can already see many knives sticking into the man''s flesh.

    While this is extremely grisly and brutal Reima shrugs and decides to have a go himself, "What''re the rules??"

    Eingyi looks confused, "Rules?", Reima coughs, "Lets make this a drinking game then, anyone who misses takes a large drink, the first person to kill him gets the first serving of boar meat. Good?"

    The group cheers and Reima unabashedly decides to go first. Back in Kaer Morhen throwing knives were also something that was taught, it was even used to pass the time as there isn''t much to do aside from training. Despite this Reima has already had quite a few drinks, throwing his first knife it flies through the air and pierces the mans pelvis. After this he backs away and allows the next person to have their turn.

    This horrific party games continues until a skinny bald PyreBlade by the name of Bartosz pierces Laurentius eye with his knife, causing the man to fade away. Immediately two Chaos Servants run off the the bonfire to await his rebirth to begin his torture all over again.

    Bartosz "HAHA! The meat is mine!" he roars in victory. He continues to brag to the other servants and they reluctantly congratulate him.

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    Reima and Eingyi watch from the side as the latter comments on the man, "It might surprise you but the man is generally quite quiet, the drink seems to have loosened his tongue though."

    Reima shrugs, "Let them enjoy themselves... Do you smell burning?" he turns to look at the source of the smell and panics when he sees part of the boar beginning to turn black. Running over he sees the Chaos Servant he''d tasked with looking after the boar exhausted on the ground, Reima had forgotten the difference of strength between him and an ordinary person. He immediately grabs part of the boar and manually turns it around to cook the other side, it''s almost done and the smell is already drawing in the hungry drunks... Even Anastacia and Rhea who were previously passed out seem to have woken up from the smell.

    An eternal couple of minutes later Reima pulls Priscilla forward and offers to let her carve the meat, she nods and stumbles slightly while retrieving her scythe... The first swing almost beheads a nearby Chaos Servant but everyone just laughs while backing away. The second cleaves a large chunk of meat off which is quickly caught on a plate by Reima who hands it off to an eager Bartosz.

    And thus the celebration continues for hours, drinks, food and good company keeps the mood cheerful and festive until the last person passes out from alcohol consumption. Needless to say, it was a legendary party. The only one left unsatisfied was Laurtentius who''s still hanging by a chain as everyone had forgotten he even existed.

 206 Again?

    Reima''s eyes slowly open as he begins to regain consciousness, he stares at the ceiling for a couple of moments before losing his strength and dropping his head back down. It lands on something soft and he groans in apprehension. "Uh, I''ve got to stop doing this" he murmurs as he wonders what his head is resting on... Maybe is Priscilla''s tail? He muses to himself, happy at even the prospect.

    A shadow covers him as he blinks at the face...

    Solaire "Good Morrow to you sunshine." he laughs as Reima immediately springs up, the sleep in his eyes disappearing as if it were never there.

    Reima looks at his friend who looks no worse for ware despite the excessive drinking they both had partaken. "How are you this jolly? And how do you know if it''s the morning or not? We literally live underground!"

    Solaire continues to laugh, "It''s no matter, wherever I go the sun will follow!"

    ...

    Reima "I thought you were still seeking your sun? What happened to that?" he asks curious at the sudden change in perspective.

    Solaire "I''ve already found it! After we defeat my father I can wholly dedicate myself to the protection and well-being our friends here."

    Reima retrieves a cup and has some water drop into it from seemingly nowhere, "Yeah, actually we have to talk about that... I want to make sure we''re the best we can be before fighting Gwyn... Despite giving himself to the First Flame he''s still likely to be extremely powerful, I''ve got some Mutagens that I''d like to experiment with before we proceed. Is that alright with you?"

    Solaire nods, "Preparation is the first step to prevention, how long do you think you will take?"

    Reima shrugs, "It takes around three days to distil them, I''ll do them all in a single batch... I do not know how long I''ll be experimenting though, it would not do to turn into a slime creature or some other unspeakable abomination." Solaire nods at this serenely, "Ah, before I go to care for Priscilla could you fill a couple glasses with water? Last time I was sure she''d breath fire on me..." Reima nods and fills a couple glasses before looking around.

    He''s still apparently in the Demon Ruins, unconscious Chaos Servants still lie about around the completely picked clean boar that they''d devoured the previous night. He chuckles as he sees Laurentius still hanging there wide awake, "Still, no time like the present..." he says as he makes his way into the Chaos Covenant Caves, he finds himself a small chamber close to the exit to prevent the build up of fumes and assembles the delicate distillery equipment. After that''s all set up he skims over what samples he''s collected, He''s still got the left overs of the Hell Kite drake, the tail of Seath, Kalameet and the zombie dragon from the Painted world of Ariamis. Oh right, he''s also got many different parts from the Basilisks down in the depths.

    He nods to himself and takes many different samples from the different parts, He separates the scales and flesh from the dragon tails as they can provide different results and takes samples from the Basilisks giant eyes, regular eyes, what Reima assumes is the gland that produces the petrification gas and it''s flesh.

    After depositing the different samples in heat proof vials he puts them in for the three day wait... Great, what now? He sighs and carves "Do not touch, look at or acknowledge the existence of anything in this room" onto the stone wall before heading back to the Demon Ruins to take back all his furniture... What? No use in leaving it here right?

    Reima decides to delve back into Seath''s tomes to waste some time while waiting for the Mutagens to distil. He''s only able to read for a couple hours when an angry shout is heard in the caves, briskly scuttling out, Quelaag looks around with a livid expression. She sees Reima and quickly approaches him, "Did you see?"

    ...

    "Did you see!"

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    She repeats the question to the confused Reima who only replies with "Did I see what?"

    Quelaag glowers, "Did you see who left me sleeping atop Quelana, I''ll flay them!"

    Reima shrugs, "What''s the big deal?"

    She immediately retorts, "What''s the big deal!?! The big deal is that she thinks I''ve forgiven her!"

    Does her pride matter so much he muses to himself, wasn''t she the one drunkenly apologising the entire night? "Well, you had quite a lot to drink, maybe you said something to her?"

    He''s rejected, "Preposterous! Even if I were rendered insane and hollow I would still never apologise!"

    ...

    Reima grumbles, "Look, Surely there''s someone else you can... Explain? This to?"

    She doesn''t seem to pick up on his small slip and agrees, "Yes, surely Eingyi saw something..." she says as we scuttles off in search of the unfortunate Chaos Servant.

    Good, now he can read in peace...

    ...

    ...

    Solaire "My friend!"

    ...

    Solaire "Sir Reima?"

    ...

    Solaire "Reima!"

    Reima drops the tome on his legs and sighs, "What?"

    ...

    Reima "Seriously, do you need something?"

    Solaire "I was going to request some more water but I''ll go elsewhere, you seem a trifle irritated." he says offhandedly before wandering off. Reima can only watch his back leave, is he a Tsund now?

    Yet again, Reima picks up his tome and reads the name of the spell inside. Crystalline Prison?

 208 Confirmed, Reima is a Masochist.

    "This is ever so interesting! This is how you saved me, isn''t it?" Quelina happily chatters.

    Reima nods, "Some of the results were... Unexpected and wholly unwanted but this process of elimination helps prevent me from morphing into a monster of some kind.

    Quelina "Could you teach me how to do it? It''s much more intersting than learning Miracles or Pyromancy..." She gasps, "Please don''t tell my sisters I said that!"

    Reima waves her concern away, "I won''t tell if you don''t, here, sit quietly while I test this last one... I''ll talk you through my actions so you can understand, good?" She nods excitedly.

    He carefully retrieves Seath''s scale Mutagens and introduces them to his own samples, "I''ve separated the Mutagens derived from the Scales and Flesh due to their wildly differing results. I don''t hold high hopes due to the origins of them and what happened to the creature I''d obtained them from." he says as he closely watches the reactions. Even now he can see small Crystalline shards that couldn''t be removed via the distilling process, strangely the results seem optimistic. The samples aren''t reacting in any violent or strange ways. The skin samples seem to even be incorporating the Crystal shards into themselves, Reima doesn''t know if this is a good or bad thing... Maybe the influence of the Primordial Crystal is no longer present after it''s destruction?

    He speaks his thoughts for Quelina to digest, she listens earnestly and asks questions directly relating to the subject, as if she''d understood everything he''d said... Master Vesemir would appreciate her apparent talent in this field.

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    He turns his gaze to the other samples, most don''t show any changes but when he observes the Hair samples he''s surprised... Visually nothing has changed but Reima can tell there is something different about it, he retrieves a strand of hair from the vial after the reaction has finished and tries to pull it apart with a good tug, it''s fine... He tries again and again, adjusting his strength every time, it gets to the point that he has to seriously put his strength in before he it finally gives... He speaks to Quelina, "It seems the Mutagen has made my hair samples incredibly durable, I didn''t expect this to happen, although I probably should have expected this as scales, hair and nails have similar components." he says as he hands several strands of hair to the pale girl to mess around with.

    Quelina "Ah, they shimmer?" she says drawing his attention, looking closer they do indeed shimmer. It''s not anything major but if observed long and closely enough you could tell. Reima groans, "Man, I thought it was almost perfect... It''s synergy with my current Mutagens are extremely high but it''ll also make my hair look like it''s from a twilight movie!" he moves his hair for Quelina to understand what he means.

    Quelina still seems confused however, "Twilight?" He shakes his head, "Nevermind. This is a success, despite the unfortunate "shimmer", shall we look at the last Mutagens?" he recieves a vigorous nod, grabbing Seath''s flesh Mutagen''s he brings them into contact with his own samples. The result? Explosive would be an accurate description... All the vials shatter as large Crystal clumps quickly expand from the shards of glass... Reima scratches his head, "I''d thought the Primordial Crystal would''ve affected the scales first but it seems I was wrong... It seems to affect creatures inside then travelling outward, this is probably why Seath was insane and why he didn''t look like a giant block of Crystal..." he mutters just loud enough for Quelina to hear.

    He claps his hands bringing her attention back to him, "Alright... The experiments are done and now all that''s left is to inject myself with the successful ones."

    Quelina objects, "Isn''t that extremely dangerous? Look what happened to the last samples!"

    Reima shrugs, "If I die I might come back without the additions made by the Mutagens, plus I really don''t want to get my ass handed to me by Gwyn... Those Four Kings trounced me last time. If it''ll make you feel better, go grab Rhea and Anastacia, they''re healers right?" he doesn''t manage to finish his sentence before she scuttles off, probably to bring them over. He sits on his knees to meditate and mentally prepare himself for another painful mutation session, if people were to give him a glance they''d say he''s a masochist for going so far for what some might call a "Small power boost", Reima doesn''t mind though, power is power and any increase is welcomed, even if it is extremely painful.

    The sounds of feet on stone bring him out of his meditation as Quelina scuttles in followed by a worried looking Rhea, Anastacia and... Priscilla?

    Rhea immediately speaks, "Lord, lady Quelina says you are about to find yourself in immense pain... She must be jesting right?"

    Reima shakes his head, "No she''s telling the truth." they''re about to object but he interrupts them, "I will do this regardless of your presence, surely you''ve heard of my intentions to fight Gwyn?" they nod, "Then do you not think it wise to gain as much power as possible before such a confrontation?" he receives another round of reluctant nods.

    Reima sits on his knees in the middle of the chamber, satisfied, "Do not do anything to me unless I explicitly request it, any magic or intervention may prove disastrous to me and perhaps everyone else if I somehow go insane." his words seem to scare all those present.

    He looks at Priscilla, "This vial contains Mutagens derived from your father Seath, after I inject myself with it won''t that technically make me your biological Father?" he chuckles but his words confuse her as she has no idea what''s he''s talking about. Regardless she shakes her head and smiles reassuringly, "No, Reima will still be Reima."

    After everyone has been warned to not intervene he decides to start with the Basilisk gland Mutagen, he injects it into his arm first, just in case he has to sever it if it all goes wrong. Immediately a burning sensation makes itself known as it seems to crawl up his veins and into his heart, afterwards it circulates throughout his entire body causing his internal organs to feel as if they''re on fire. Throughout this whole process Reima stays seated on his knees, the only indication of pain are his teeth audibly grinding against each other. It only lasts around twenty minutes before the feeling quickly dissipates, he breaths a sigh of relief at the relatively short time it took, he doesn''t feel any different then before but he can already guess the new ability. He retrieves a stone vial? Alas, it was originally glass but the liquids he''d retrieved from inside the Basilisks gland had turned it into stone. He drips a few grey droplets onto his hand and they don''t seem to do anything, that is until they slide off his skin and onto the nearby wooden table... The places that make contact immediately become petrified and turn to stone. Everyone near looks amazed at the result, Rhea immediately starts praising his "Glorious all knowing being", among other things...

 210 Looking like a white Finn

    Reima "Alright guys, I''m decent!"

    They come back into the room and look him over, most of them cringe as they look at him though, especially Rhea.

    Reima looks at them suspiciously, "Is something wrong?"

    Rhea nods, "You look like that man called patches..."

    Reima''s eyes bulge at this as he runs his hand across his sleek bald head, "Damn! What am I Saitama? Fuck that." he says as a constipated expression makes itself known on his face, he face turn redder and redder until something miraculous happens. Like a spaghetti PlayDo machine a glorious white mane of hair explodes from his head, Reima feels it to check it''s length and realises he''d pushed a little too hard as it''s stop just below his shoulder blades...

    The girls all have relived expressions as Quelina scuttles forward and runs her hand through it, "Ah, it shimmers like before!" she says excitedly, Reima groans at the idea of becoming a twilight character yet again but allows the girls to surge forth and play with his new hair.

    After a couple minutes he stops them, "I need to cut this shorter, can one of you do that for me?" he asks but feels the need to clarify as Priscilla present her scythe... "With a dagger...", she pouts and puts the scythe away reluctantly as Quelina retrieves a dagger from a nearby table. "I used to trim my sisters hair... Before I became ill of course." he nods at her and sits on the ground so she can comfortably cut it.

    Reima "Can you do it shoulder length please?" she nods and attempt to cut his hair with the dagger. Sliding the dagger across the strands of hair seems to do nothing... She starts sawing at it but the dagger literally isn''t able to sever a single thread.

    Quelina unhappily complains, "Reima, your hair is too strong to cut!"...

    He chuckles at this and attempts to mess with her by gripping the dagger with his hair, it''s difficult but he manages it and she''s unable to pull her hand away now.

    Quelina "Be serious or I won''t do it for you." she says and he can''t tell if she''s cross or not yet.

    He feels he''s had enough fun already, retrieving Arcell he hands it to her and says to just cut it short and to not mind the rest. She seems rather nervous at handling the blade but it easily slices through his Crystalline hair, audibly drawing a sigh from her.

    After all this Reima heads outside to the Demon Ruins while accompanied by everyone, he wants to test his skins durability and doesn''t want to get anymore blood on the floor. Once outside he sees Solaire sparring 1v3 against some PyreBlades, it''s not being lazy that''s for sure. Reima grabs a nearby PyreBlade and asks him to throw a few light swings at him with his sword, their swords are all relatively sharp as he''d acquired them from Andre, that man wouldn''t put out a shoddy product even if you killed him.

    The Chaos Servant named Eamon immediately rejects him. "I''m sorry Sir but I don''t think I can do that.."

    Reima presses him further, "Come on, just hit me a little."

    Eamon shakes his head and runs away, "No! I refuse!"

    ...

    Reima sighs and shrugs, "I''ll do it myself then" and retrieves an average sharpness dagger from his folded space. He mentally retorts at how emo he''s become as he presses the blade into his forearm, it indents the skin but doesn''t cut, he saws it slightly and it still doesn''t cut his skin... He gradually increases the weight he''s applying on the blade until it eventually cuts, he guesses he''d put an average mans full strength into it? This means he''d be relatively impervious to bladed weapons wielded by untrained commoners or something similar. Storing the blade and having Rhea cast a small Miracle to heal it he approaches a sweaty Solaire who''d just finished thrashing the three PyreBlade''s in combat.

    Anastacia walks forward and dabs his sweat with a rag recieving a "thank you" in return. He spots Reima and greets him, "My friend! I heard you were getting up to something with the girls here, I don''t have to worry I hope?" he asks but his smile seems almost shallow for some reason?

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    Reima nods, "I was increasing my strength via Mutagens, youknow, the techniques that I used to save Quelina." he says as he gestures to her.

    He nods, "Do you wish to spar? I would like to see how these "Mutagens" have helped you improve."

    Reima nods and the two walk away from everyone else and stand opposite each other, immediately as the fight starts Reima uses his Elder Blood telekinesis combined with the pull ability he''d acquired from Kalameet. Solaire almost falls forward at the sudden pull but skilfully changes his stance to combat the sudden force, the obvious Turquoise glow on his weapon only makes it more obvious as to what is happening.

    Solaire laughs, "Haha! Is that all my friend!" he says as he uses the pulling force to sprint forward at an extremely fast pace. Raising his shield Sanctus he prepares to bash Reima away with his sudden momentum, Reima isn''t idle however as he uses a WindFall dodge to avoid the shield bash while getting close and flicking his hair as accurately as he can into Solaire''s eyes. It somehow works and Solaire tries to back away from the unorthodox attack but Reima drops low, spins and sweeps his feet from under him.

    Solaire doesn''t look purturbed as Reima''s sword is pointed at his face however as he laughs, "Well fought my friend! Truly will I ever be able to best you?"

    Reima helps him up, "There''s a good chance of it happening, you''ve got the skill after all, you''re just lacking the strength and speed to back it up."

 211 Primordial Pen**

    A couple hours later Reima drags Solaire off to speak with Quelaag about them leaving to fight Gwyn... She took it better than he''d thought, she already knew they''d have to do this at some point or another as Reima had previously told everyone that the world would literally be destroyed soon. His words would cause everyone to panic if "Soon" didn''t mean in the next thousand years or so, the world is extremely old and stagnant, it''ll take a long time to atrophy from the lord souls being taken away. He doesn''t say goodbye to anyone as he''s sure he''ll be back in no time at all, whether or not this is foreshadowing will be up to the author...

    Solaire looks at Reima and nods, the dim lights glinting off of the golden coronet he now wears. "Are you ready my friend?"

    Reima "Yeah, lets go, we can''t keep everyone waiting after all." he says as he grips Solaire''s shoulder and teleports to the hidden alter beneath Firelink Shrine. As the appear a surprised voice speaks to them.

    DarkStalker Kaathe "Ah! You''ve returned Dark Lord... I think it''s time I revealed the truth,The truth I shall share without sentiment.After the advent of fire, the ancient lords found the three souls.

    But your progenitor found a fourth, unique soul. The Dark Soul." He appears to want to continue talking but Reima interrupts him, "Uh, you mean this dark soul?" he says holding the writhing mass of darkness that is Manus''s soul in his hand.

    ...

    DarkStalker Kaathe "WHAAAT! The Dark Soul was stolen from us centuries ago in the travesty that was Oolacile! How have you acquired that!"

    Reima shrugs, "Time travel." he says as if it''s not a big deal, truthfully he just enjoys messing with these giant penis serpents...

    Kaathe is amazed and appalled at this young undead, "T-time travel? Such a technique has and will never exist, the world forbids it!"

    Reima "Tough luck for the world then I guess..." he says uninterested.

    Solaire watches in astonishment as Reima shuts up the legendarily talkative Primordial Serpent, even his father had to listen to the one known as Frampt drone on for days on end, yet his friend is able to do it without even trying...

    Kaathe seethes, "Forget it! Unlock the gateway to Gwyn by presenting the Lord Souls to the alter."

    Reima glances over before looking back, "Nah, I''ll keep these thanks."

    Solaire finds it difficult to hold in his laughter at this ridiculous scene, he''ll have to remember to write it down to immortalise this memory.

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    A large black vein appears on the Serpents bald head, "You have to use the Lord Soul on the alter to open the path to Gwyn! Do not reject my wisdom young undead!"

    ...

    Reima doesn''t reply and walks over to the large stone gate, scanning it with Observation Haki he finds that there is some kind of spatial distortion preventing any from passing without gaining access via the alter... Unfortunately for whoever set this up Reima is literally space incarnate with his Elder Blood powerfully flowing through his veins. He channels Armament Haki across his entire body and grips the stone doors, his hands sinking into the stone as if it were butter. After gaining an strong grip he pulls with everything he has, pulls and pulls until the doors are slowly but surely opened. He only manages to open it enough for a crack to be visible, after this thick white mist begins flowing out of it, as if it''s trying to seal the breach in the barrier. Solaire approaches and waves his hand through it, assuming it to be just like any other Fog-Gate but as he does the silver gauntlet protecting his hand seems to literally disintegrate under it... He quickly backs away but not before looking at Reima''s condition, his eyes bulge as he sees Reima standing amidst the thick mist completely unharmed, not even his equipment seems affected.

    Seeing this Reima realises that he''s likely the only one besides Ciri who could actually attempt what he''s trying now. He walks closer to the crack and peers through, the mist is extremely thick and prevents him from seeing much but he manages to glimpse the floor behind the door. He waves at Solaire and teleports inside the barrier distorting space. Immediately he''s almost blinded by the pure white mist that seems to glow brightly, he sees a staircase leading to a dark exit and many ghosts of what look like Silver Knights wandering around the barrier... Could they be those who attempted this before him? Alas without the Elder Blood Reima is sure he''d be torn apart by the violent spatial energy in this area, a normal person wouldn''t make it past the first step, let alone make it a couple hundred meters down this long ass staircase. He walks to the bottom, carefully watching his steps as the mist obscures the stairs below... This is supposed to be a dramatic moment, falling on his ass like a fool would completely ruin the atmosphere.

    As he walks he waves his hand through the ghostly figures but isn''t able to touch them... He grins after thinking for a moment and channels Haki into his hand before punching the chest of the ghost. He feels it connect and penetrate it''s ghostly figure before quickly being absorbed into Reima. "That''s quite a lot of souls for one knight" he licks his lips while looking at the hundreds of other ghosts now staring at him... "Oh yes, this''ll definitely be fun."

 212 Ashes to Ashes... Ash to Ash... With Ash.

    The spatial barrier that separates the Kiln of the first flame from the rest of the world, preventing those stupid enough to rekindle or even plunder the remnants of the flame and Lord Gwyn''s charred soul. Usually this bright but dreary place is quiet and only inhabited by the lost souls of Gwyn''s loyal knights that failed to reach him on time, now however the silence has been broken, and not peacefully either.

    ??? "Hahahaha! Stop running! Come here!" a white haired man shouts while trying to grab a translucent ghost with black hands. In front of him are around twenty ghosts, all about 6-7ft and donning silver knight armour sprinting as fast as they can to escape this seemingly mad beings wrath.

    Needless to say, this man is Reima, he''d not noticed how much time he had actually spent "farming ghosts" and had kept destroying them until only these twenty remained. This was quickly rectified as he finished the rest off with a few Haki infused punches, the number of souls he''d gathered numbered the same amount he''d get for killing a strong boss creature, a good harvest.

    Reima finally reaches the end of the spatial barrier and sees the path ahead, a large stone tower with many intersecting walkways stands tall off in the distance, everything before and after it is completely covered in ash. Taking a step into it his foot sinks four inches causing him to almost stumble, were he not already expecting this. He keeps looking around and memorising this area before vanishing in Turquoise light and reappearing standing before a bewildered Kaathe and a placid Solaire.

    Reima waves his hand briefly at them, "Yo."

    Kaathe finally seems to regain his bearings and exclaims, "How are you still alive! No being should be able to width stand the violent energies within the barrier without protection!"

    Solaire "Are we set my friend?" he asks, looking as if he''s been mentally preparing himself."

    Nodding, Reima grasps his friends shoulder before teleporting them both back onto the ash covered land comprising the Kiln of the First Flame.

    Kaathe however can only watch astonished at the audacity of this cycles chosen undead, they''d stolen his Dark Hand technique and not soon after betrayed him and the Dark he stood for... He''d even somehow managed to obtain the Pygmy''s Dark Soul, completely obstructing his plans for the future, even without all of this though they wouldn''t be a threat... That is if they didn''t have the ability to bypass the barriers protections while retaining the Lord Souls, the alter was meant to ensure the cycles continued regardless of the outcome. Kaathe and the Primordial Serpents all awaited the cycle finally sputtering out, leaving nothing but a barren wasteland for eternity. Then finally, they''d become the true owners of this land, surely this strange undead wouldn''t be able to jeopardise many millenniums of plans they''d devised...

    When the duo teleport back to the kiln Solaire lands heavily and tries to step forward to relieve the impact, he however does not expect the inches of thick ash to disrupt his footing. He falls to the ground and gets ash everywhere, like sand at a beach but only softer.

    Solaire "..." sits on the ground, seeming to contemplate his life up to this point.

    Reima "Stop being a wuss, get up." he says and pulls his reluctant friend of the floor. "Did I ever tell you I hate sand?"

    Reima shakes his head, "No, but I thought sand and sun come part and parcel..."

    Solaire looks grave, "Indeed, whoever spread such lies deserves a glorious execution."

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    The duo would continue they conversation further but they are interrupted as a black knight shoots it''s Great Bow at them, the almost spear length arrow whizzing past Reima''s head as he dodges it. "Alright, no time to talk. Let''s finish this first." Solaire nods and prepares for combat as he sees many more black knights approaching them...

    Reima doesn''t hold back and immediately blinks behind the black knight who''d first shot at them and fiercely kicks them off of the raised stone platform they were standing on. They fall to their doom, even despite the thick ash cushioning their fall. Back with Solaire he''d just ducked under a large Great sword haphazardly swung at him while stabbing his sword into the joint of the armour, completely rendering it unusable. The black knight attempts to use his off hand to swing the giant blade but fails as his name is not Artorias, this allows Solaire to stun it with a bash from his shield before plunging his sword into it''s throat.

    Reima appears back with Solaire as they finish each of their targets only to see more sprinting at them with various weapons raised, it seems they won''t be able to catch a break against these annoying Black Knights. The duo decide to play the upcoming fight more defensively than usual, partly due to the respect they hold for the Black Knight''s strength. Even when charred and hollow like they are now an army would certainly be difficult to deal with, so instead of biting off more than they can chew Reima and Solaire hunker down while allowing the hollow knights to make mistakes in the deep ash surrounding their current area. While Solaire''s holding off two Black Knight''s wielding shields, Reima casts Impaling Crystal underneath one of them, it proves effective if a bit off target as the Crystal spear pierces the light armour protecting the bottom of the knights groin. Due to it coming out at an odd angle it ends up extending out of the knights leg instead of their torso, pinning it there despite not dealing fatal damage. Solaire quickly finishes them off as Reima turns to his own opponents.

 213 JOLLY!

    The familliar scene of Reima and Solaire fighting increasing waves of enemies continues as more and more Black Knights stream from the large stone structure to attack them. This is all relatively easily fended off however as the two SunBro''s have more than enough experience fighting armies together, they work like clockwork as they systematically dismantle any enemy that comes at them. Eventually only the sweaty two remain, the only thing showing that a battle was recently fought here are the many white glowing orbs scattered across the ash laden floor.

    Solaire tries to catch his breath as he huffs, "I''d never thought so many of my fathers men had actually survived... I do dearly regret the state they''re currently in"

    Reima "Not much we can do about that, lets just concentrate on getting to Gwyn, we can be sentimental afterwards." he says bluntly drawing an irritated glance from his friend.

    Solaire sighs, nods and they both start ascending the steep ash dune, it''s actually significantly more difficult than regular sand ones as the softer ash causes it to be way more unstable. They spend atleast an hour trying to stumble up them trying to reach the stone tower in the distance, eventually Reima gets fed up and starts liberally wasting Mana to blink them both closer.

    As they finally reach the structure Reima notes at the strange degredation that seems to have affected it, in stead of the typical Wind Erosion you''d expect for tall stone structures like this, it seems to have been partly melted instead... Some of the stone even looks charred, is that even possible? Indeed looking closer at the surrounding structure it looks as if the stone melted and the lava had dripped horizontally in one direction, as if the wind or gravity had caused it to fall and dry the wrong way. Reima can only guess this to be the First Flame to be the cause, only something that magical and hot could cause these unnatural phenomenons... Solaire doesn''t comment on it or doesn''t notice it, either way his friends frown only becomes more prominent the closer they get to his fathers location.

    Reima "Are you ok? We can take a rest if you need it."

    Solaire shakes his head, "Not at all... Just feeling nervous is all, I know how powerful my father was, even with splitting his soul and using the rest as fuel he''ll still be a very difficult opponent... He was perhaps the only lord who valued skill as well as power."

    Reima is confused, he''d remembered how easy it was to parry Gwyn in the games, someone like that can''t be skilful right? "We''ll just have to prove our superiority then." Solaire nods but stops replying.

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    Eventually the two descend the charred stone stairs and are confronted with one last knight, protecting the Fog-Gate leading to Gwyn. This one seems unique as it wields a sword in each hand, it''s stance is typical for dual wielders, one weapon prepared to intercept, parry and block while the other is poised to strike quickly and accurately. Solaire starts to approach but is stopped by Reima, "We need to be at full strength when fighting Gwyn, lets just cheese this and continue." he says casting a couple Crystal Soul Spears at the knight. It somehow bats away the first one and barely dodges the second, it doesn''t managed to do the same with the third Reima had added on afterwards. The Spear pierces the knights chest and it drops to it''s knee, shocking Solaire and Reima when it begins to speak. "Ah.. Lord... Forgive this unworthy.. knight." he manages to gasp out before dissipating into white particles.

    ...

    If they were ready to face Gwyn before, this knights words had made sure that Solaire wouldn''t be afterwards, he dips his head and begins speaking, "I think I knew that man, he was the most loyal of all the knights and never left my fathers side, apparently even here he''d not gone hollow and attempted to protect my father... Could you let me process this for a moment?"

    Reima nods and sits down nearby, preparing his own equipment for the fight with Gwyn. He''d be using his Silver Sword as it''d be more effective against Gwyn and his split soul, Reima doesn''t actually know what to expect from Gwyn, there had been changes from the games here and there... Some bosses harder than others and drastically different amounts of enemies. Looking over at the contemplating Solaire he lets him compose himself for twenty minutes before walking over to him, he knows what he needs to do to cheer him up...

    Walking over to Solaire, Reima glowers over him, after being noticed Reima lightly punches the man''s shoulder before raising his arms up high into the air, "PRAISE THE SUN! FOR JOLLY COOPERATION!" and holds the pose until Solaire says something.

    ....

    ...

    He holds the pose for more than a minute when Solaire finally reacts... "Hahahahaha! Hahahaha!" he starts laughing uproariously, "Hahaha!" he suddenly stands up and praises the sun with Reima, "Praise the sun! Let''s go at this with some good old Jolly Cooperation my friend!" he says as he grasps Reima''s forearm in a brotherly gesture.

    Reima "Good, lets get ready then." he says as the two enchant their weapons, eat their herbs and confirm the condition on their equipment before stepping through the Fog-Gate to the Kiln of the First flame and Gwyn''s final resting place.

 214 COOPERATION!

    The two enter the large chamber and immediately are assaulted with the smell of burning flesh, the room itself is huge and charred completely black, the only thing providing any other colour is the ash coating the floor, the dim first flame in the middle of the room and Gwyn, standing 7-8ft in burnt blue armoured robes with a burned black crown sitting atop his head. He wields a huge golden sword that''s about one and a half times the size of it''s user, the blade itself is also completely wreathed in searingly hot flames that can be felt from the entrance. His huge white beard is the only thing covering up his blackened hollow face, his eyes have seemingly been melted or burned away rendering them nothing but empty sockets.

    The man still seems to be burning, his cheek is still glowing and his beard is on fire... Despite all this he stands upright while resting his two hands on his sword currently planted in the ground.

    Gwyn mutters something that only Reima with his enhanced hearing can pick up. "Lamentable Servant, your duty is finished, lay yourself unto the flame, further the age of gods.... The fire must never burn out, never, never... Never." he continues to repeat this as he draws the large sword out of the ground. The two SunBro''s tense at this, preparing for combat.

    Suddenly, without warning the temperature of the Kiln raises substantially causing them both to sweat. Fire explodes out from under Gwyn''s feet as he gestures towards them. Seeing this both know something is up and dodge to opposite sides, barely dodging the massive cyclone of fire that envelops their previous location... Gwyn isn''t just a lord of fire however as he jumps 10 metres into the air before quickly descending down on Reima''s position intending to slash him in half. Reima blinks forwards a couple metres, dodging the main attack but still somehow getting burned anyway. He raises an arm and casts Quen to shield himself from the malicious heat as a large lightning bolt hits Gwyn in the back, drawing his attention towards Solaire.

    Gwyn seems to twist his foot before kicking off the ground, creating a shock-wave as he sails through the air towards Solaire intent on running him through with his Golden Great Sword. Solaire doesn''t attempt to dodge however, he stands his ground and fearlessly raises Sanctus while pushing against it with both hands in an attempt to try negate some of the oncoming impact. Just as he''s about to be speared he rotates the shield slightly in an attempt to deflect some of the force, this proves to be a wise idea as he''s blasted away, rolling through the ash before shakily getting back to his feet... His arm hangs loosely at his side, broken in who knows how many places. Reima blinks behind Gwyn in an attempt to distract him while Solaire downs his Estus flask in attempt to heal the damage he''d sustained.

    Gwyn doesn''t seem to notice Reima appearing behind him but still somehow twists his body and blocks the Silver Sword aiming for his neck. Reima quickly backs away from the Gwyn while disengaging their locked weapons as he can see his Silver Sword melting slightly under the flames heat... Even with Titanite reinforcement it still started to melt? God damn! He shouts mentally as Gwyn tries to grab him, he blinks a tiny distance to the side and slashes Gwyn''s quickly retracting arm, barely catching him and causing a minor cut. The Lord of Cinder seems to growl and temperature increases even more, causing Reima to narrow his eyes in an attempt to protect them. He sends a quick Haki Infused kick at Gwyn, using the momentum when it''s blocked to distance himself.

    Reima "Bro, are you alright?!" he shouts, keeping his eyes on Gwyn. He doesn''t receive a reply, instead another lightning bolt flies at Gwyn before it is batted away by the Lord. Reima starts to conjure three Crystal Soul Spears above him and barely gets them off before having to blink away to dodge Gwyn''s horizontal slash. Only a single spear strikes true, hitting Gwyn in his offhand and gauging a large flesh wound in his forearm, the wound seems to sizzle and glow red and blood quickly stops flowing as it''s seared closed.

    Gwyn jumps backwards and swings his blade, causing a monumental wall of fire to envelop the room, the duo only survives due to Reima''s significantly overpowered Quen shield combined with Havel''s shield taking most of the impact. He stores the shield away again and retrieves the MoonLight Great Sword in his offhand before he starts swinging it at Gwyn, producing many blue projectiles that batter Gwyn''s form. Solaire holds his sword aloft and envelops the both of them in a yellow Miracle circle wreathed in golden light, Reima feels stronger as the buff Solaire had cast quickly empowers him. He continues to wave the Moonlight Great Sword but with increased ferocity than before, 1-2-3-4-5-8-14 attacks continue to strike Gwyn as he tries to fend them off. Apparently finally having enough of the barrage of attacks Gwyn roars as pillars of fire explode from the floor beneath the duo blasting them away from each other, Reima had barely noticed the attack and managed to brace himself before being launched but Solaire took the brunt of it, the Sun Bro still isn''t dissuaded however as he gets to his feet yet again. "You will not beat us Father!" he shouts, channelling all his pain and frustration into it before starting to throw as many Sunlight Spears as his magic can handle.

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    Reima takes a swig of his Estus and blinks above Gwyn while channelling Armament Haki through his entire body. The only thing not covered in black on his entire body is his white hair, he quickly descends on Gwyn, storing the Moonlight Great Sword and two-handing his Silver sword. The lightning bolts from Solaire don''t seem to distract him enough however as Gwyn takes the brunt of them to his body while preparing to cut Reima out of the air. The Witcher expected this however and just before he''s bisected he blinks behind Gwyn, utilising the momentum from his fall he brings his sword down on Gwyn, cutting off a large portion of his right chest and shoulder, causing the golden sword to fall softly into the ash coating the floor. The silence is short as a war-cry signals Solaire''s presence "PRAISE THE SUN!!!", as he viciously stabs his Sunlight Straight Sword into Gwyn''s heart, his momentum causing both of them to collapse to the floor.

    ...

    The temperature suddenly cools, a golden light explodes from the wound inflicted by Solaire and envelops him in the warm glow, Reima can feel the power filling his friend. The golden glow continues to flow into Solaire, his trusty sword taking the brunt of it until it eventually shatters into a million pieces. Solaire collapses to his knees breathing harshly as many shards of shattered metal gather in-front of him forming a straight sword, the golden glow covers it, not fixing the external damage but causing the metal to turn gold. After a couple more moments the light stops and the sword drops to the floor, looking closely at it, it looks as if it was pieced together like a golden puzzle, the many individual shards still being visible but the blade looks incredible sturdy even despite that.

    Reima looks at Gwyn''s quickly disappearing body and glances at his hand now holding his large fiery soul.

 215 Praise the First Sun!

    The duo looks at each other surprised at this unexpected reaction, only now does Reima actually realise the physical changes in Solaire, he''d grown to a tall 6.5ft and the aura around him is silently thrumming with power... His face look around the same as before but his broad jaw is now covered with a thin stubble, his golden eyes now glow brightly with their previosly lost power. Fortunately for both of them Solaire''s armour grew with him, otherwise they''d both be in an extremely awkward situation, especially since the armour is still technically Reima''s.

    Reima retrieves the other soul shard of Gwyn and the two shoot together like magnets, the soul getting even larger than before. In fact this soul is larger than any of the other lord souls with the exception of the Dark Soul, this is probably because the other souls have specific unique traits attributed to them, the Witch of Izalith''s for Chaos and Nito''s for Death. Gwyn''s soul resembles what it''s most attuned to, fire, the fire itself has a purifying effect due to it''s "Holy" nature which explains why his children with Solaire being a prime example were born with Holy attributd powers. This was one of the reasons Gwyndolin was so vilified by Gwyn as he was leaning more towards the Dark, his illusionary abilities were developed afterwards to appease his furious father.

    Looking at the Soul one last time he stores it away for future use, whether or not his idea would be possible would only be confirmed with extensive research.

    He gets up off the floor and picks up Solaire''s sword from the ground, "So, what just happened?" Reima asks as he hands the sword to his baffled friend.

    Solaire firmly grasps the handle while looking at the sword in shock, "I-..My power is back, my divinity has returned." he manages to get out...

    Reima just looks at him curiously, "Does that make you a god again?"

    Solaire nods, "While it might seem impetuous, I''d like to declare it first to you my friend..." He breaths deeply, straitens his back while plunging his new golden sword in the ground before resting his hands on it in a similar stance that Gwyn had been in. The surroundings seem to glow a gentle morning amber colour as if the sun was just rising. "I am Solaire, God of Sunlight. Son of Gwyn, Brother to Gwynevere and Gwyndolin, Uncle to Priscilla." after the declaration the glow seems to fade but the feeling of power remains.

    Reima smiles and clarifies his positon, "If you think I''m going to start calling you lord you can forget about it, I don''t think I can bear to be around you if your head was as big as your little brother."

    Solaire waves his hand, "I never had any doubts my friend, I wouldn''t be here if it weren''t for your assistance. Fate has bound us as comrades and brothers, though, I do want to spar with you when we return." he says sincerely.

    Reima points to his sword, "So, that thing do anything cool?"

    Solaire "Ah, that... I don''t really know!" he chuckles, steps back and prepares to swing it. "Yo, wait! I''m not being anywhere near present to what''s about to happen." Reima exclaims as he runs behind his friend.

    Reima''s choice was a wise one, as Solaire makes the first swing the puzzle like blade''s individual golden shards separate slightly while still being connected by a golden mist, this causes the length of the blade to increase from it''s previously 40 inches to a ridiculous 80! It leaves golden trails in the air as he completes a few basic swings.

    Reima looks on slightly jealous, "Cool..." he quickly shakes his head, "Yo, we should be getting back, the others are probably waiting for us." Solaire nods and they both vanish from the Kiln of the First Flame.

    When the two appear in the middle of the largest chamber they are immediately spotted by their friends, it seems as if everyone was either eagerly awaiting their return or worried about them. Priscilla jumps at Solaire while exclaiming "Brother!", when she hugs him though she finds he''s much taller than before. She pouts briefly before increasing her size to match his before hugging him.

    Reima "What, no hug for me?" he retorts at his own lacklustre welcoming. His words snap everyone out of their daze a Solaire''s massive changes. Quelina scuttles over, hugs him briefly before lowering her head, understanding what she wants he rubs her head affectionately while Quelaag and Quelana watch on smiling.

    Rhea briskly walks towards Reima and quickly asks, "Did you do it my lord? Did you slay Gwyn?". He nods at her question, "Yeah, I defnitely wouldn''t want to fight that guy at full power... Even with the majority of his soul missing he still thrashed us pretty good..."

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    Quelaag retorts, "Of course, he is... Or was a God. He was stronger than our mother and Nito and that position never wavered."

    Anastacia "Ah, I apologise if I''m misunderstanding something but Sir Solaire, you look and feel different... Did something happen?"

    He laughs, "I regained my divinity after we slew Gwyn, I am now the God of Sunlight and the only remaining God in Lordran."

    Rhea and Anastacia are shaken by this and drop onto their knees in prayer, Solaire immediately stops them and helps them up, "I don''t require or requests worship from you, I only wish for you to find happiness and security." he says with his new found authority.

    Rhea "Ah, yes! Thank you."

    Anastacia "I''m sorry for misinterpreting your intentions"

    Reima "Ah, Lord Solaire, you''re so popular! We should name thee God of Sunlight and Spotlights." he mutters sarcastically.

 217 Farming Simulator

    And so a year has passed since Reima came to this world, although he doesn''t know this due to Lordran still being locked in the same time of day no matter what... The now thirteen year old Reima has grown taller and broader, looking as if his age is around 16-17. He''d been quite busy this year, even while disregarding the elimination and collection of the Lords and their souls he''d not been idle. The first thing on his agenda was maxing out Attunement before regaining control over his Mana, what''d be the point of training to control it and then throwing a spanner into his progress. So that''s what he did, he descended into the surroundings city of Anor Londo, systematically pillaging the hollow undead''s for their souls. While he was doing this he couldn''t help himself and "Acquired" many different pieces of furniture as well as any valuables that he''d come across, this had only inflated his already astronomical wealth even further. Not only had he robbed the kingdoms treasure, he''d robbed the pockets of the citizens as well! While he was busy with this he didn''t forget to spend time with his friends and the Chaos Covenant, he''d even taken some of them on trips through the city, Priscilla especially liked accompanying him and seeing the different sights, businesses and buildings that she''d never seen before. It''d be way more exciting were there not bodies littering the streets, storefronts and even inside the buildings themselves, he was also disappointing to find that all the food that had been stored was completely and utterly rotten and unusable. This didn''t seem to effect Priscilla though as she dragged him through the various medieval stores, most being clothing and funnily enough weapon stores...

    Quelaag, Quelina and Quelana also occasionally came with him, they were very curious as to what regular cities would look like as they''d never travelled out of Izalith in it''s prime. If you ignored Quelana and Quelaag''s bickering, Reima would say it was a very enjoyable excursion. There is also another matter concerning Quelina that surprised him, after Gwyn had been slain she''d been constantly requesting him to teach her Chemistry and how to create Mutagens. He thought she''d get bored of it quickly and so haphazardly wrote the basics in a notebook before handing it off to her, she''d come back the next day and requested another, stating that she''d already finished reading the previous one. He didn''t believe her at first and gave her some questions that she easily answered, thus she became something akin to his apprentice, at least when it came to Chemistry.

    Solaire was also very active after Gwyn''s death and subsequently regaining his divinity. Reima hadn''t thought it was a big deal until he had seen Solaire practising his abilities in the Demon Ruins... It was rather eye opening seeing him conjure a massive whip of lightning without using a chime, he''d even suggested a couple things Solaire could work towards that he''d seen in various works. He''d explained that the highest form of mastery would be embodiment of the element, he''d explained it by describing the Goro Goro no Mi, the lightning devil fruit from OnePiece. After hearing his explanation Solaire immediately ran off to attempt it, his failure readily apparent by the following explosion...

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    Reima didn''t just farm souls however, he''d also been working on a secret project that he''d not told anyone else about. What he''d be researching is Humanities effects on different creatures and especially humans. The results always varied but he''d finally found the answer after months of experimentation, it all relates to how the Soul affects the Body and vice versa. The soul slowly morphs the body to suit it''s own image, however the opposite is also true, with the Body slowly changing the Soul. There are exceptions to this, if you recieve a cut, that doesn''t mean your Soul also received the same injury, this is where Humanity flips the table and bends the rules. As Humanity is just shards of the original Dark Soul it also carries a "Will", this is where the Abyss comes from, when a large quantity of Humanity gathers the collective Will eventually leads to it''s formation. This is also why Humanity can corrupt other beings, if a being absorbs too much Humanity that it''s own "Will" is no longer more dominant that is when it becomes an Abyssal creature. This is also where Dark Wraiths originate.

    This research isn''t just for the sake of research however, Reima had intended on absorbing the Dark Soul into himself to increase his own power. This is now impossible as his own Will would not trump the Primordial Dark Souls. It isn''t a complete lost cause as Reima decided to experiment with how to increase someones ability to receive Humanity, the result was easily found and it related to the strength of the Soul. This was very fortunate as Reima just so happened to have three very powerful souls on hand, he couldn''t previous absorb them straight up due to a similar problem to Humanity... The Will''s of the previous owners lingered on, that wouldn''t be so bad as he was confident that he could overpower them but another problem was their unique traits... With the exception of Gwyn''s soul his soul and thus body would be drastically changed if he absorbed the Chaotic Soul of The Witch of Izalith or Nito''s Deathly attuned Soul... As much as he''d like the power they provided, turning into a massive demon or skeleton isn''t on his to-do list.

    The two individual studies proved that he couldn''t take the Souls power with his own strength alone, however... An idea popped into his mind, what if he Absorbed the Dark Soul and the Lord Souls simultaneously?

 218 Talented Alchemis

    Solaire was worried about his companion, a month or two ago he''d suddenly announced that no one was to disturb him until he himself allowed it. This had become a normal thing previously, it didn''t however take this long to do before, it''d never lasted more than a month. The Chaos Servants continued to diligently deliver rats, undead and any other creature they could get there hands on to the chamber Reima had taken possession of. When he occasionally walked past the sealed entrance he could hear horrible screams of various creatures, Solaire himself knew Reima was slightly sadistic from watching his previous actions... He can only hope that this isn''t he case here.

    In the chamber across from Reima''s Quelina can be seen scouring through a few hand written books that Reima had provided for her, in the corner of the room can be seen a makeshift cauldron bubbling away with some green herbs floating amidst the boiling water. She had progressed a lot in her studies and was slowly becoming proficient in the art of Chemistry and Alchemy, the books Reima had written for her only gave a basic outline for which to base her studies around. Due to most of the ingredients he''d listed for some regular concoctions not being available or even existing in this world she''d had to improvise and devise her own creations... This hadn''t been an easy thing to do, due to most sentient being in Lordran not being able to absorb ambient Mana the task fell onto the plants, fungi and animals. This led to them being almost supercharged with magic when compared to regular less magical plants. Reima was also surprised when she''d created a stand alone potion, it was based off of the Golden Oriole potion that temporarily rendered the drinker immune to all poisons. She''d done this by wrapping a Purple Moss Clump, Blooming Purple Moss Clump and a Tree Lizard up into a bundle and boiling them for two days. This resulted in a similar potion that makes you immune to poison for around 30 minutes, while it doesn''t last as long as Golden Oriole''s 8 hour duration it also doesn''t raise you users blood toxicity level, meaning you can use however many you want without repercussions. They had named it Purple Cure, denoting the use of the Purple Moss Clump in his production.

    Reima had heavily praised her afterwards causing her to become even more determined to follow the path of an Alchemist. Though, she did shy away from the disappointed looks her sisters would send her when she refuses to train her Pyromancies with them.

    With Rhea and Anastacia the two almost never separated, they seemed to either constantly pray or train their Miracles in preparation for Reima taking them to his world. With some guidence by the now Deified Solaire they rapidly progressed in their studies, while it usually takes a life time to be able to cast powerful Mircales Rhea and Anastacia are talented in this regard. While the former excelled in traditional Healing and support Miracles the latter began training in a her unique "Black Miracles", this is the result of them training Anastacia to utilise her power as a Fire Keeper, Reima had even said that her power comes from her massive reserves of Humanity that her powerful soul suppresses. With Solaire keeping a close eye on these new Miracles due to Reima''s concern Anastacia quickly became proficient at using offensive Miracles, due to the influence of Humanity the spells all became black and more physically based. Even her lightning bolts would cause tremendous impacts when thrown.

    Reima had even visited Logan and Griggs a couple times as well, what he found had surprised him greatly... It seems one of them had brought a Bottomless Box with them and had stored the entire library, Reima was fine with this, only being slightly saddened at the fact someone had gotten to the books first. He had lent a couple of Seath''s tomes to them in exchange for access to the hundreds of thousands of books they''d robbed from the archives. He collected a great many books detailing human anatomy for his studies on Humanity, this ended up being incorrect as they had nothing to do with one another. In the end he put the books aside as a present for Quelina when she advances in her studies enough to move onto Mutagens.

    Reima had locked himself away after coming up with the idea to absorb the Lord Soul''s and the Dark Soul simultaneously, obviously he wouldn''t do such a thing on a whim but the idea seemed plausible the more he thought about it. Thus he began experiments to find the viability of absorbing two drastically different Souls in an attempt to have their diametrically opposed traits combat each other. He did this by using the Transposing Kiln to shave slivers of each soul off and implanting them in various creatures and adding the others afterwards. This didn''t effect the souls much as if an experiment fails he can just kill the creature and puzzle it back with it''s larger piece. This didn''t end up determining the viability though, after the first few experiments he found that he was indeed correct, it was possible, this however presented a different problem... How much do you absorb at a time? Do you Absorb all the Lord Souls and then the Dark Soul or vice versa? Do you do it in chunks? These experiments are the reason he''d been locked away for months, until now...

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 219 A Tepid Condition

    In the end the experiments finally concluded, Reima had finally found the correct sequence that''d produce the best and most stable results. He didn''t immediately perform the operation however, such a thing is as dangerous for himself as it is everyone else. To take precautions Reima went to visit Solaire who was currently guiding Anastacia on how to cast a Great Lightning Spear.

    Reima "Yo, Solaire!" Said person quickly turns around and greets him, "My friend! It''s been months since you''ve left that dingy lab of yours, I trust all is well?"

    Reima nods "My experiments have provided results... I actually need to talk to you about something, could you spare me a moment?"

    Solaire agrees and leave Rhea to coach Anastacia on her Miracles, the walk a couple metres away and Reima begins speaking, "So, what I''m about to say might be incredibly stupid but you mustn''t interrupt. Ok, so I need you to watch me perform an experiment on myself and kill me if it goes wrong... Good?"

    "WHAT!" Solaire exclaims, definitely not "Good"... "My friend think of your friends and the Chaos Covenant before you go hollow!"

    Reima shakes his head, "No, I''m not going hollow... I just need you to be there when I do this otherwise if I fail shit will hit the fan."

    ...

    Solaire "Is there a reason for such drastic sounding experiments?"

    Reima "I need to be stronger and these will allow me to become much, much more powerful."

    ...

    Solaire "I can''t dissuade you?"

    Reima affirms, "No, I''ve already made my decision."

    In the end Solaire was reluctant to leave Reima to do this on his own and thus followed him. Reima had already picked the spot where he''d perform this ritual like experiment, he''d found that the best place for it would be the giant kiln in the belly of Izalith, where the bed of chaos used to reside. The reason for this is that it''s designed to take overwhelming heat, pressure and it also has mechanisms of reducing them. It may not be needed but it''s a necessary precaution.

    The two teleport inside of the giant chamber of the kiln and look at the collapsed floor around them, almost the entirety of the room had collapsed apart from the small section where the Chaos Bug containing the Soul of the Witch of Izalith dwelled. He positioned Solaire at the entrance and began preparing for the "ritual", first he retrieves the Transposing Kiln and the Four large souls, The Chaos Soul, Nito''s death Soul, Gwyn''s Soul and the Dark Soul of Manus. He doesn''t bother with the Lord Souls and places the Dark Soul into the Kiln with the Four Fire Keeper Souls, the reason he''d added the additional souls is for their miraculous melding of a powerful soul intertwined with humanity. Such a thing when included would lower the powerful aggression he''d be subjected to under the Will of humanity.

    After all five souls are placed inside he channels almost 100,000 souls into it, after the Dark Soul has enveloped the Fire keeper souls he Sudden splits it into four equal pieces... The Dark Soul resisted but under the pressure of 100,000 souls it gives way.

    After preparations for the Dark Soul are completed he looks at the Lord Souls, he had previously thought the order wouldn''t matter much but he was wrong yet again. His experiments had concluded that the correct order would be The Chaos soul, followed by Gwyn''s soul and ending with Nito''s soul... The main reason for this is that if you take Nito''s soul in too early it''ll effect the physical body and render it similar to Nito''s skeletal form. The other would be the Mutative qualities of Chaos, while unpredictable and one of the more dangerous things in the ritual the adaptive qualities the Chaos Soul would imbue would drastically raise the chances of a successful result. The reason for this being it''d prepare the body to take massive changes while also combating the Dark Soul.

    He sits and meditates for who knows how long until he''s finally ready to take the plunge. First he pushes one shard of the Dark Soul into his chest, quickly followed by the Chaos Soul... The first thing he feels is "COLD!, HOT!" the two massive energies immediately start Chaotically churning around in his body. They fight against each other while affecting different parts of his body, his left arm turns black for a moment before changing red and then black again. His own body and soul fight off the drastic changes trying to be made but it''s a hard fought battle, the only reason he manages to stay conscious is the fact that if he fails now he''ll most likely die. And while he might come back to life form a bonfire, whether or not it''ll be him or some rampaging monster is not known.

    The energies continues to rage about his body for a 3 hours until they slow down but don''t cease fighting, Reima immediately grabs another shard of the Dark Soul and forces into himself while doing the same with Gwyn''s Soul. Again, the hot and cold energies rampage, Gwyn''s soul is much larger but less Chaotic than the Witch of Izalith''s which evens it out slightly. This time there are no Mutations, instead a thick black ooze begins leaking from every one of his orifices, this isn''t the end however as the black substance ignites and horrifically burns his body as if it''s gasoline. Reima can''t hold his screams back anymore as he feels his flesh burning from his bones, he doesn''t die however, the black ooze even while burning seems to regenerate his flesh, the black substance becoming delicate pale skin before being burned yet again. This continues for 2 hours, leaving Reima whimpering mess at the end of it, he''s somehow still aware and conscious as the energies start to slow again.

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    Reima slurs, "F-fuck this fuckkkking hu-hurts!" he says as he pushes another Shard of the Dark Soul accompanied by Nito''s.

 220 Nightmares?

    As Reima pushes Nito''s soul into himself after the Dark Soul he doesn''t get the same experience as before. Instead of the blazing hot energies of the previous Lord Souls Nito''s energy slowly creeps around his body, rotting anything it comes into contact with. The flesh on his face rots fast but is regenerated just as quickly as the thick Oozing Humanity repairs it, this continues throughout his entire body. The feeling is intense, he''d rather be burning alive again than have his penis continually rotting off and regrowing! Later on if he was asked to describe it he''d say it was like having thousands of ants chew through your never ending skin.

    Solaire watches at a distance as his friend goes through these many disgusting and horrific changes, he''d not seen Oolacile and so didn''t have any idea what drastic changes the Dark Soul might have. Reima didn''t even give him a warning that wasn''t "This might be nasty to watch, but I can only ask you for this"... Solaire finally has to avert his gaze as his friends body begins rotting, the smell even reaches him at the entrance a large distance away. The one thing he''d always remember though is the screams of agony from Reima, such a thing would be included in many nightmares to come.

    After 2 hours of rotting and regeneration the energy slowly started to stabilise, Reima is almost catatonic at this point as is barely holding out. He realises there is still one more Shard of the Dark Soul remaining but he seriously doubts he can take much more, the Dark Soul had always been the most powerful of all of them, even when split and granted to thousands of other beings it still remained the most powerful. Thus he would be unable to absorb the last shard without dying horrifically or being overtaken by the Dark Souls will, if such a thing were to happen to the current holder of all the Lord Souls the world would definitely come to an end.

    Suddenly as if someone turned on a switch the energies inside Reima explode outwards, raising the temperature of the Kiln significantly, everything around him burns with the exception of the Kiln of Transposing, the last shard of the Dark Soul and his clothes that he''d stored away before the ritual. A massive fire envelops Reima, it doesn''t burn him however, instead he''s at the epicentre as it continues to increase in size. Eventually it gets so hot that even a God like Solaire is finding it almost unbearable to be around... Luckily the temperature stops increasing as the chamber of the Kiln starts drawing out the heat. This doesn''t prevent the stone around Reima from liquefying and turning into Lava however.

    Solaire finally has to retreat, he sends one final glance at Reima before ascending the slippery entrance to the Kiln to escape the heat. Reima sees this and can only hope nothing bad goes wrong as he finally loses Consciousness.

    Reima wakes up with a jolt from the bed he''s lying in, he looks around and sees he''s currently in a cabin with a single room. Look at the window from his bed he can see a massive blizzard is roaring outside, preventing him from seeing anything... The only thing keeping him warm is a fireplace with a black fire brightly burning... "Ok, so did I die again or?" He''s interrupted as a robed man kicks open the Cabin door allowing the blizzard outside to cool the Cabin''s warm atmosphere quickly, he eventually manages to shut it behind him with his single unoccupied arm... In his other he holds a cage with a small bird inside? It appears to be shivering from the cold as he places the golden cage on a table nearby.

    He mutters something but Reima can''t hear it, he tries to get out of bed but can''t move... A couple minutes pass but the robed man continues to fearfully watch ice beginning to spread under the door, encroaching inside and slowly lowering the temperature. The man appears to finally panic and retrieves a golden key and places it into the lock of the birds cage, he doesn''t unlock it however, instead he just leaves it there and sits down on a nearby wooden chair.

    The bird slowly stops shaking and hops up to the key to examine it, it pushes it''s head through the bar and twists the key itself, eventually unlocking the door to it''s cage. It flies out and the robed man tries to catch it out of the air but is stopped suddenly when something starts scratching at the door from outside. The man ignores it seeming to think it harmless until the door swings open, revealing a large white wolf that jumps on him and tears out the mans throat. The bird lands on the wolf''s head and starts pecking at it, in attempt to stop the wolf''s attack, it doesn''t work however and the robed man dies from his injuries.

    The Wolf glances at Reima but turns its attention to the bird, it continues to pester it until it holds the flapping door open, allowing the bird to fly away. The wolf doesn''t follow and lies down on the cabin floor, Reima clicks his fingers at it to try get it''s attention but it doesn''t move...

    An hour later the blizzard outside starts to recede until it finally stops, a tattered bird walks through the door exhausted. It attempts to wake the White wolf up but is snatched away by a big black wolf that appears from the doorway, it tries to escape but the White wolf wakes up an bites it''s neck making it release the bird, they continue to maul each other until the fight continues outside the Cabin where Reima can''t follow. The injured bird doesn''t move and Reima is unwillingly forced to sleep.

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 221 Did I mention Reima is hot?

    Reima wakes up yet again, confused at the strange dream. Around him appears to be the large chamber of the Kiln he''d performed the ritual in, he scans the room for Solaire but doesn''t find him, instead a peculiar warmth surrounds him... He retrieves a mirror with a wooden handle to check his physical changes but drops it as it bursts into flames, glancing around him he indeed notices the air trembling as if the temperature is extremely hot. He however doesn''t feel anything other than a small warmth which confuses him greatly, is this a side effect of taking in the Lord Souls? He remembers that there is one Shard of the Dark Soul left and looks down at the Transposing Kiln which used to house it, instead of a Writhing Dark Shard he sees a large gnarled wooden staff that''s about 6ft long and grows into a large axe-like head. It''s the Manus Catalyst from the game, Reima distinctly remembers it as he used to use it for a one shot build, the staff increases the strength of your spells but halves your spell uses, which basically means it increases the Mana cost.

    Reima bends down to pick it up, as his fingers grasp the staff the small cracks in the wood glow red as if it has been resting in a fireplace for hours. They spread through the staff before finally coalescing at the axe head which glows a chaotic dark red, he tries to lift it but finds it much, much heavier than anything else he''d wielded, as his strength had increased monstrously most weapons felt similar to a flashlight or something similar in weight... This however feels as if his strength hadn''t changed at all, he hefts it up in one hand and lets the bottom of it fall the floor, the hard petrified floor cracks under it''s immense weight, surprising Reima.

    He ends up pulling out a pure silver mirror and moving it via telekinesis away from him as he assumes he is the cause of the heat. His glowing green cat-like eyes glare back at him as his gaze traces over his still naked body, the numerous scars he''d obtained while taking contracts in Kaedwin remain despite his apparent immortality, the still glowing Dark Sign on his chest seems to have changed colour slightly, he shakes his head as he''s sure he''d seeing things. His body hasn''t changed much but he''s surprised to find embers drifting off of his form, it''s as if he''d used an Ember in the third game. Small bursts of flames start and then quickly peter out around him, his hair now unrestrained by the band that''d probably caught fire flutters as if caught by a draft... He retrieves a Titanite infused thin silver chain and ties his hair up with it, hoping the residual heat around him wouldn''t instantly melt it.

    After making sure he''d not turned into a monster or grown a fluffy tail, Reima sits at the bonfire and examines his condition, sure that his stats must''ve improved some how. He meditates and is shocked by what he finds, almost all of his stats are maxed out, his strength, dexterity and attunement actually exceeds the previous limit of 99. He''s not sure to what extent they''d improved but it''s definitely a welcome change. He almost chuckles when he feels his faith is around -10, is this possible? Probably not, but that''s how Reima had interpreted it. He gets up and thinks on what to do next, does he looks for Solaire or test out the Manus Catalyst? Shrugging he decides to look for Solaire before doing anything else, if he needed to give a reason it''d be because he wants to show off...

    He leaps from one side of the room to the other, creating a small explosion from his powerful jump. He climbs up the slippery exit and walks up the stairs to overlook the large city of Izalith, after the Bed of Chaos was destroyed the lava that encompassed the city had gradually cooled, leaving only small puddles left in the vast cavern.

    A voice comes from behind him and he immediately recognises it as Solaire, "Reima! Are you ok?" he says as he walks towards him.

    Reima nods, "I am, that bloody hurt though."

    Solaire''s approach halts for some reason, his eyes twitch and squint as he backs away. "My friend, you''re on fire!"

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    Reima looks at his arms, still glowing and releases small embers. He shouts "Oh! I''M ON FIRE, OH MY GOD!" before finally bursting into laughter. Solaire doesn''t seem to appreciate this and looks as if he wants to slap him. "Your comedic insight baffles me still... Is there a reason your naked?"

    Reima lets out a weird noise, "Ah" he looks down and realises he''d forgotten to put on clothes. He steps back but almost stumbles as he realises a small layer of stone under his feet had melted into lava... He retrieves his Witcher gear, and puts it on, assured that it wouldn''t melt as it''s entirely reinforced with Titanite. He layers his ever faithful Gleam Cloak over the top of it before looking back at Solaire. "Is this heat thing going to be a problem?"

    He doesn''t say anything and just approaches, he stretches his gloved hand out half a metre away from Reima and it starts to glow a dim red, the silver gauntlet apparently becoming extremely hot. Solaire takes his hand back and shakes it, "My friend, I think if you returned to the Chaos Covenant you''d burn everyone present alive... I''m currently a deity and I can barely stay in your presence..."

 222 With great power comes, cool new abilities...

    A glum atmosphere overtakes the mood between the Sun Bro''s, Reima sits down on a nearby stone support. "This is troublesome... I have no idea if this is a problem that can be fixed." he voices his doubts to Solaire.

    Solaire sits a metre away from him, "Don''t worry about it, when I was younger my powers used to go out of control as well... Think the most brutal and horrific static shocks you can imagine." he says chuckling.

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    Reima perks up, "How''d you fix it?"

    Solaire shrugs, "I used to and now have to constantly keep my power under control, I''d nearly lost it when it was suddenly returned to me but muscle memory took over. You''ve just gotta restrain and suppress it."

    Reima "Yeah I know that, the question is how though..."

    Solaire crosses his arms, "For me it took a couple decades to internalise it, as someone with a significantly powerful soul you and I generate an enormous amount of Mana. Unlike regular humans who can only sustain themselves of off there''s, ours will passively escape from us if we don''t control it. One I''d managed to restrain all of it I felt as if I had way more power in reserve, this is probably because the excess energy could now be accessed."

    Reima sighs, "I don''t have a couple decades to get this done..."

    Solaire "I''m sure you''ll be much faster than I was, I only trained between learning stately duties, combat and how to rule an empire and it''s plebeians..."

    The two continue to talk like this for a couple hours until Solaire requests to return to the Chaos Covenant, Reima agree and teleports them into a secluded section of the Demon Ruins. As they arrive Solaire immediately back away from Reima as his Silver Armour is entirely glowing red, "I will let the others know of your condition, if you need to speak to me just use the summon stone."

    Reima nods, "I will, thanks Solaire."

    The god of sunlight leaves to rejoin with their friends and Reima looks at the ground, contemplating his next move... Of course he''ll need to get his aura under control if he''s to interact with any living being who''s not immune to fire, these thoughts lead him to various things that may help. He equips the Flame Stone Plate Ring and he feels his aura lower in temperature slightly, it seems the ring isn''t just useful for defending from external flames. He retrieves the Catalyst of Manus that he''d decided to just call "Staff of Manus" as he can tell it''s no longer just a Catalyst, in-fact he''s decided to name all weapons relating to bosses that don''t have an already recognised name after their originator, therefore his Obsidian Blade will now be called Kalameet but the Moonlight Great Sword will remain the same. Besides, he doesn''t wish to remember that douche bag Seath anyway.

    Leaning on the heavy Staff for a while, he wants to cast a few spells with it, and so he teleports back to Izalith as it''s an empty area where can he discover just how powerful this thing is. He lands in the now solidified lake of lava, the smooth black stone providing a nice area to practise his spells. He''d been having issues before with his output and he imagines it''s now even worse with his massive surge in power. First he chooses to cast a few Soul Arrows, he leans the staff forward as he conjures a couple arrows that dart off into the distance... He had been expecting a larger drain on his Mana but apparently this thing isn''t exactly the same from the games, he tries a couple larger spells and finds that they are much larger than before, almost double in power if he had to guess... Next he decides to try Pyromancies... Only there''s one issue, he can''t find his Pyromancy flame... It used to hibernate in his left hand but it''s now gone, he tries to draw it out and Dark Red flames easily flow from his finger tips. He moves the Staff to his other hand and tries the same and achieves the same result. It seems he no longer needs a Pyromancy flame to actually cast spells, he goof''s off and tries to shoot fire from his mouth, expecting nothing to come out. He feels a build up in his throat and ends up coughing a small stream of Chaos flames, along with some smoke and embers.

    Last but not least he attempts to conjure fire on the still burning Staff of Manus, the axe blade light up and a huge fireball appears atop it, leaning the staff forward the ball is launched with significant momentum before exploding in the distance... Reima is seriously confused at this, when did he gain such good control over fire? He shouldn''t just be able to direct it like a Sorcery, even if he did there should have been some kind of Formulae involved instead of just "Willing" it to shoot forward. He swings the Staff of Manus like a battle axe while imagining waves of energy similar to the Moonlight Great Sword, it works! Dark Red waves of fire extend a couple metres before dissipating into nothing.

    Reima leans against the staff and mutters, "This is going to take a while to get used to...". He teleports back into the Kiln''s chamber and starts meditating but the Bonfire.

 223 Howd Venom get here?

    It''s been a couple hours since Reima started meditating, while the breathing techniques come naturally to him, it''s difficult to put himself in the proper mindset to actually enter a proper trance. His worries on whether or not he''ll make it back before the events involving the Wild Hunt starts, his anxious anticipation at meeting Ciri and reuniting with Geralt, Arie and the rest, and the isolation he must enter to prevent any of his friends getting hurt. These thoughts continue to cycles through his mind until he drops onto his butt, exhausted, while not physically taxing. mentally he''s a wreck. As Vesemir used to say "You cannot force meditation or enlightenment.", this still holds true even despite his now overwhelming level of power. One thing that''d bothered him during his attempt was the fact that he could vaguely hear whispers? He''s unsure whether it''s just his exhaustion affecting him but it''s certainly unsettling.

    Reima continues to try meditate for a couple days afterwards, before finally becoming calm enough to enter a meditative trance. He senses all the things around him via their magical signature, his physical senses slowly stop, allowing him to truly experience his magic. He examines his soul first to check for any abnormalities, this turned out to be a wise choice as he sees three different powers somehow not interfering with each other. There is a Fiery Dark Red one that''s most definitely Chaos, a gooey writhing pure black one which resembles the abyss, most likely humanity. The last one is a dull purple and dark grey, probably death? All these sit separately within his now much larger soul, it''s different from previous inspections, now it resembles Gwyn''s soul as it''s glowing a bright gold and resembles a strong flame. He can see small tints of Turquoise helping to separate the different powers, this is probably his Elder Blood trying to adapt and endure the multiple conflicting energies. It''s well suited to this as it''s own attributes of Space and Time allow it to easily prevent them from ever interacting, this however also means that he''ll find it almost impossible to utilise these together.

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    As there is nothing he can do soul wise he looks at his body and immediately finds where his current problem is originating from. Were it not fro his already magical body courtesy of his Elder Blood he''d likely not be able to take the extreme amount of energy flowing through him constantly. He watches as Mana turns into a specific attribute before dissipating into the surroundings. With Reima''s current Mana regeneration and reserves his most powerful role would definitely have to be Mage, while his physical attributes are also considerably strong they just don''t hold a candle to the amount of destruction he''s currently capable of producing. He attempts to stop the energy from dissipating and almost causes himself to explode at his haphazard attempt... The problem is if he doesn''t find a way to regulate the excess magic then it''ll either escape on it''s own or tear itself out of his own body.

    He mentally sighs as he doesn''t currently have control of his physical mouth, he looks down in thought but notices a black line connecting his soul to something else? He follows it and finds that it leads to the Staff of Manus... "Yo, if this like a bleach thing? I don''t really want some dude speaking to me constantly" he thinks to himself. He continues to examine it and decides to Will it to disappear, the structure of it seem to collapse onto itself a it collapses into a black gooey puddle, it''s apparently sentient as Reima senses it start to crawl towards his body before vanishing into his shadow... "What kind of dog shit is this?!" he finally recovers from his trance and exclaims.

    Reima looking back and touches his shadow, finding nothing... He wills the staff to appear and black tendrils extend out of the darkness before twirling around each other and forming into the familiar Staff/Axe hybrid. The thing that this most reminds him off is the Venom symbiote from Spiderman, if this thing is similar he''s prepared to throw it into a volcano. Either way, it''s currently not dangerous to him and also drastically increases his spell''s strength. "He''d be a fool to reject a deal like this!", as the late great Billy May''s would say. He sits back down and retrieves a metal cup and attempts to pour water into it via his Folded Space, it immediately boils away causing him to frown. "If I can''t drink water then whisky''ll have to do!" he says as he fills the cup up with the now boiling brown liquid. The alcohol has even started to burn causing the top layer to set fire, Reima quickly downs the drink before any more can evaporate. The bitter feelings matches his current mood, his only contact until he can restrain his aura would be Solaire, while he is great company he''d been hoping to touch Priscilla''s tail already... It seems dreams will remain dreams for now.

    He sits back into meditation and goes through many different ideas to restrain the rampaging energies, most of them taken from fictional media, anime, manga, novels. If they described something usable then he''d try it. After an hour with a couple exploded limbs and an implosion that destroyed one lung he takes another break as this situation will take an extremely long time to resolve. No point rushing to his death, right?

 224 Sleeping Dragon.

    1 year later.

    It''s been a couple months since Reima had finally stopped his aura destroying everything around him, it was a difficult journey that required almost constant meditation and control. He had found the solution going through many thousands of attempts via trial and error, he''d actually gotten the initial idea from a Korean novel that detailed internal energies... After many attempts to suppress it he''d ended up instead trying to direct it, through many experiments he had found that rotating the magic throughout his body in an infinity symbol pattern made it much easier to handle. After which he''d push the magic that hadn''t acquired an attribute yet out through his breath. Of course this doesn''t completely solve the problem as if anyone was able to detect magic he''d come up like a spotlight but It''ll have to do for now.

    After fixing his problem he was still incredibly wary of actually visiting his friends again, while he''d remained in contact with Solaire and surprisingly Quelaag he still doubted that he''d be able to keep control of his aura. He''d been using the breath method for a couple months now which made it second nature but high emotions still cause him to slip occasionally... What made it more bearable was the fact that Quelaag actually risked coming to visit him, with her extremely fire resistant body that was basically always on fire anyway she''d come to see him in Izalith. While it was apparent she despised the city itself it only made it all the more heart warming when she came.

    Reima however wasn''t idle during these couple months, he''d been preparing to leave this world relatively soon, were it not for his troubles with his aura he would have left by now. He''d slowly been gaining control over fire and his overwhelming amount of magic during the mean time, he''d finally been able to learn the rest of Seath''s spells now that the books didn''t burn away in his hands. Reima had also been experimenting with the Staff of Manus that is apparently soul bound to him, he had made the observation that it didn''t increase his Mana costs due to his connection with it, after all he is basically the new own of the Dark Soul. He wasn''t just experimenting with fire though, he''d tried to draw out the other energies that''d taken residence inside his soul, he''d been unable to even make them move, the black humanity denied every attempt and the death energy destroyed any prodding tendrils of his Mana. He didn''t dare fiddle around with the Turquoise energy separating them from his main soul as that''d likely result in an apocalyptic explosion.

    Anyway, that brings us to now. Solaire had invited Reima to visit an old friend that he''d not met in centuries. Confused and intrigued Reima agreed and they ended up passing by the entrance to the Chaos covenant and going through the illusionary walls inside of the Great Hollow. The giant tree stays true to it''s name as it seems that the entire thing is completely and utterly hollow, is it a metaphor for the state of the world? Maybe? But such theological talk doesn''t suit Reima at all. He doesn''t forget to take the Chloranthy Ring and everything else hidden on the wayward platforms as they descend.

    Eventually the duo reach Ash Lake, from afar it looks like a white sand breach with a thin path trailing through the middle of the like, once reached however they would find that the beach is made from ash instead. Reima suspects that the ash isn''t from the First Flames Kiln, instead due to the connection the the Kiln in Izalith it''s likely that the ash they now stand on is the incinerated remains of some of the residence of Izalith. They start walking forwards but are suddenly shot at with highly pressurised streams of water by a massive Hydra that leaps out of the water, over the beach and into the other side... The Reima stretches his hand out and the area in front of him glows, the water reaches it and immediately evaporates in a thick mist, covering the duo.

    The Hydra looks at the area where it''s foes had disappeared and approaches, this proved to be a mistake as a massive torrent of many lightning bolts shoot out of the mist, destroying four of it''s nine heads.

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    Reima uses Aard to clear the mist as black tendrils escape from his shadow and form into a Gnarled staff topped with a vicious looking axe head. He raises it up and conjures a few large Crystal Soul Spears which launch at the remaining heads, they explode in a gloriously violent fashion and the Hydra subsequently fades away.

    Solaire "I''m sure I''d killed the last one residing here..." he says scratches his stubble.

    Reima shrugs, "You haven''t been here for who knows how long, it''s not impossible for there to be another one."

    They keep moving and eventually walk into a large clearing, at the end of it rests a huge dragon with dark grey scales that seem reminiscent to stone.

    Everlasting Dragon "Returned?" a low rumble echoes out.

    Solaire bows down in respect, "Apologies for being so late... I didn''t return as I had thought my niece had been executed" he almost shouts at the huge distant figure.

    Everlasting Dragon "Lands spiralling, end draws near... Must sleep." it says as it slowly raises it''s hand, Solaire feels something tug his neck, looking down he sees the shard of it''s horn that he''d recieved so long ago is being drawn towards it... He unclips the chain and allows it to fly towards the dragon who looks at it briefly before handing it back. The stone seems unchanged except for the now glowing dragon visage imprinted in it.

    ...

    Reima just looks at the dragon, "So, err... Can I chop your tail off?" he recieves a heavy slap from Solaire at his disrespect but is surprised when the dragon nods and slowly moves it''s almost completely petrified tail over. It lays it on the ground before him and he doesn''t miss the oppertunity, he slams the bladed head of his staff onto the tail, it gives out a sound akin to smashing stone and he immediately sees a handle... He picks it up and shakes the rubble off of it, revealing the Dragon Great Sword.

    Reima "Thank you, Great One!" he says as he stores away the large sword, the dragon throat rumbles in acknowledgement.

    Everlasting Dragon "Death draws near, fear, wish to sleep in peace..." it says as it lays down, seemingly to await for the apocalypse. An idea flashes in Reima''s eyes before he discards it, like that''d ever happen!

 225 Leaving Dark Souls?

    The duo leave the chamber and after Solaire thoroughly scolds Reima, decide to explore the rest of the lake to see if there is anything left there, they look around for an hour, following the long winding beach and eventually see something shiny in the distance. As they get closer they start to see the shape of the shiny object... Onion? Oh shit it''s Siegmeyer! Reima and Solaire increase their pace as they see an armoured warrior of Catarina standing before a identically armoured person lying on the floor, arms splayed out like a carcass...

    They finally reach the kneeling Onion knight and hear feminine sobs. They notice the duo and quickly glance at Reima before confusedly looking at Solaire.

    ??? "Sir Reima, Sir Solaire?"

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    Solaire "Lady Sieglinde?"

    She nods at his question.

    Reima "Is that Siegmeyer?" he asks hesitantly.

    Sieglinde "He went hollow after we''d conquered Izalith... We reached this beautiful lake but were trapped by the Hydra, I''d thought that I might as well show him Mothers letter... He didn''t take it well."

    Solaire lowers his head, "I''m sorry for your loss, he was a loyal and brave man."

    Reima nods sincerely, "I didn''t think he''d go hollow so quickly, he must have been devastated by your mothers letter."

    Sieglinde "Indeed he was, otherwise I wouldn''t have had to cut him down..." she takes off her helmet and rests it on the ground to wipe her tear stained eyes. Her previously almost lumiescient red hair seems duller than before, she seems physically and mentally exhausted from her travels...

    Reima "What should we do? He''s not dead, just hollow..."

    Sieglinde shakes her head, "A hollow undead retains nothing of their original personality. In my eyes my father is dead, thinking any differently is a horrifying prospect" she says as she stands up.

    Solaire sends a purposeful look at Reima before returning his attention to the still grieving woman, "You should return with us, there is always room for one more friend."

    Reima hesitantly nods, this''ll be the first time he''d be back inside the Chaos Covenant since absorbing the Lord Souls.

    Sieglinde wipes the rest of her face clean. "I''d like that."

    The trio appear inside the Chaos Covenant with a turquoise flash immediately drawing everyone''s attention. Reima is almost bowled over as he''s tackled by many people.

    Quelina/Rhea/Priscilla/Dusk "Reima!""Lord!""Reima""Sir Reima" they all shout as they jump at him, leaving them all in a big heap on the ground.

    Quelaag, Quelana, Anastacia and the rest of the Chaos Covenant just watch on as these skit-like events progress.

    Reima "I''m glad to see you all but can you get off me?" he says with not a small amount of mirth.

    A round of whispered apologies echo as a few climb out of the heap, leaving only Quelina and Priscilla still hugging him.

    Reima "I appreciate that you guys missed me but if you squeeze any hard my organs will come out..." This finally gets them to relinquish their tights holds on him, it doesn''t however stop the subsequent interrogation on why he didn''t return sooner.

    A few hours quickly pass as he happily chats with all his old friends that he''d been wanting to see for around a year, they''d all been told what had led to that situation but most thought it was stupid and reckless. After everything had calmed down he finally spoke of the elephant in the room.

    Reima "So... I''m going to leave soon."

    ...

    Silence

    ...

    Quelaag breaks the silence with a quiet question. "Why?"

    Reima shrugs, "I have to leave sometime, why not leave on a good note? Plus, I''m unsure how long I''ve actually been in this world."

    Quelina "Can''t you go in a week, or a month? Maybe a year?" She asks hopefully.

    Reima shakes his head, "I don''t I''d be able to leave if you act that like" he says semi-sarcastically.

    He continues to answer the unhappy questions from his friends and starts preparing for his departure. He even summoned Logan and Griggs via the Elder Blood infused White Soap Stone. He didn''t bother summoning Andre, Coaugh, Vamos, Rickert or Ciaran and Sif. He''d return for them in future and had given Solaire messages to deliver to them.

    In the end he felt he couldn''t leave without gifting everyone something, he handed Quelina a pile of books about human physiology that he''d acquired from Logan and Grigg''s pile of books, he gifted the mentor student duo a couple of Seath''s spells that he''d already learned. He gifted Solaire the Ring of the Suns First born that he first found in Gwyn''s tomb. He gifted two ornate talismans to Rhea and Anastacia who gratefully accepted. Priscilla received a handwritten book about meditation and magical control Reima had compiled while Quelaag was given a book compiling potential martial techniques she could perform, it was also handwritten by Reima.

    Dusk received a banishment Catalyst, Sieglinde received a large Chaos enchanted Zwei-hander in an homage to Siegmeyer''s main weapon. Last but not least Eingyi and the rest of the Chaos Covenant received books on basic weapon techniques, drills and exercises that''d hopefully improve their coordination.

    Finally he left some Essence ore from the world of Absolver in Solaire''s possession to gift to the blacksmith''s as well as the Artorias Covenant ring to give to Ciaran. Stepping backwards he bows deeply to everyone, "Thank you all for accompanying me throughout my journey through these lands, I''ll return to save you from the world ends but I''d like you all to continue training, there will be much conflict in the future and I''ll be hard pressed to deal with it alone." a wave of encouragement echoes from the rather large group. "Then, I''ll be off... Thank you all again." he says as he vanishes in a flash of Turquoise.

    A wayward Chaos Covenant member breaks the silence, "So... What now?"

    Quelaag crosses her arms, "We prepare for his return and show his faith was not ill placed with us." she says with determination drawing a cheer from the crowd.

 226 She did what!

    Reima doesn''t actually instantly leave however as there are still a few things he needs to deal with, he goes to Firelink shrine to visit Domnall to buy all the armour sets he''d pillaged from graves. He buys the rest of the armour sets from him, Gwyn''s armoured robes that he somehow aquired, Gwyndolin''s moonlight robes, and the Golem''s heavy iron armour. He''d previously bought Ornstein''s set and so almost had all the armour sets, with the exception of Smough''s that he fundamentally refuses to purchase.

    Next stop? The great hall housing the Painting of Ariamis. What? Did you think his furniture robbing days were over? Reima appears in the great hall and briskly walks over to the giant painting, he can teleport inside but he''d given the doll which is used as a key back to Priscilla. This makes it an portable prison, he''d like to create a base inside of the world of Ariamis but he''d promised Priscilla not to harm the inhabitants. He walks around and judges how it''s connected to the wall, finding it to be secured on each corner by large metal clamps, he walks over to each one and gives it a quick slice with Arcell while leaning the painting against the wall to prevent it falling over. After this he extends his Folded Space as much as he can before slowly guiding the painting inside, even despite his huge reserves, forcing the Folded Space to open this large without destabilising it still takes a huge amount of effort. After "Requisitioning" the painting Reima finally feels comfortable leaving this world.

    He hadn''t actually decided his next destination yet and thought he would go with the flow. Thinking about his short term goals he wishes to gain better control over his magic, he concentrates on that thought as he envelops himself in Elder Blood energy. He struggles to do this and remain in control of his Aura but eventually manages, a "Pop!" is heard as he vanishes in a bright flash

    Elsewhere.

    A white haired woman appears in a Turquoise flash, she falls to the ground breathing heavily but even despite this shakily gets to her feet. She starts walking away but increases her pace as the temperature around her decreases, allowing her heavy breaths to be visible. She starts sprinting through the forest and eventually the temperature returns to normal. She kneels down breathing heavily, thinking that she''d escaped her pursuers, that is until she hears something rustling the foliage around her.

    She tenses up and holds her long sword up in preparation to cut down whatever is stalking her... She waits, her green eyes darting around, surveying the surroundings. A minute later something sprints towards causing a great disturbance in the bushes between them, she stabs the sword at the black figure that leaps at her, receiving a loud whine and whimper as she penetrates it''s flesh. Looking down she sees that she''d impaled a black dog through the chest, it''s life force being rapidly drained as it''s blood spurts out of it''s large wound. She hears many feet approaching her and is about to run away when the black dog transforms into a man, he grabs her wrist while holding his fatal wound and hoarsely mutters something.

    She doesn''t manage to pick up what he''s saying, "I don''t know who you are and I''m sorry but I need to go!"

    The man keeps a tight grip, refusing to let go, "Pro-tect H-harry!" he says with an intensity that shouldn''t be possible for a dying man. He falls on his side and groans in pain, she tries to get him to let go of her but can''t find it within herself to strike him again. Finally the footsteps reach them revealing many strangely dressed people pointing sticks in their direction.

    ...

    Reima appears in a large street, bustling with many people wearing old fashioned clothing, this isn''t strange considering he''d been living in medieval worlds since his reincarnation. Someone walks into him and almost falls over at his rock solid stance.

    ??? "You! Are you stupid! What on earth are you doing Apparating in the middle of the street?"

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    Reima looks at the man confused, "Err what?"

    ??? "You know what I mean! I swear if you do it again I''ll report you to the Auror''s!"

    Reima bows his head, "Look, I''m sorry... I was in a rush, please understand my predicament."

    The man nods, "Very well, I can tell you''re not of the bad sort... Oh, before I leave you should find some new attire if you wish to traverse the Muggle world, your outfit is quite extravagant even among wizards."

    Reima can only nod at the man, finally realising what world he''d appeared in... Harry Potter!

    He immediately looks around and sees the place depicted in the movies, Diagon Alley! The many strange shops continue and almost never end as the large group of people hustle and bustle to get to one place or another. He walks around, trying to gain his bearing and decides to figure out what part of the timeline he''s on, he walks to a nearby store selling newspapers and looks at the headline, his mouth drops... "Sirius Black caught and killed by a passerby!" he reads the article and his shock only deepens, "The valiant hero responsible for this is named Ciri Rivia"...

    "WHAT!" he exclaims making those around him jump in surprise.

 227 Fortuitous event?

    Reima continues to just stare at the paper, he feels as if he''s having a heart attack... Wait, maybe he is? He looks down at his throbbing chest and peeks under his armour, his previously glowing red Dark Sign seems to fade away, leaving only the circular scar. Just as the pain recedes he sees it start to glow Turquoise? The implications of this are pretty staggering but for now he needs to figure out why and how Ciri got here... Is the timeline even right? He looks down at the rest of the article, it''s the 1st of July and apparently they''re holding a press conference with Ciri outside of Gringotts Bank? He looks up from the paper, disregarding the pedestrians glaring at him and turns his gaze to the cashier. "Excuse me, which way will I find Gringotts?"

    The elderly woman just points and directs him down the road, he can hear her muttering about "Country bumpkins" as he leaves. Only after he''s half way to his destination does he realise that he doesn''t know when the conference starts... The familiar act of pushing through the large crowds fills him with joy and anticipating to experience modern society again, wait, is he dressed properly for this kind of setting? He glances over his shoulder at the handle of his two blades and shrugs. This outfit will help him retrieve Ciri as she''ll definitely know what it represents. In fact, he''s had to keep his head low to try not draw attention to his cat-like eyes, he knows that some people have a similar condition to him in this world due to shoddy Animagus attempts but most would still find it eerie.

    His metal plated boots clink against the stone floor as he finally spots a large half constructed stage that''s presumably meant for the conference. He looks to the side and spots a small group already gathering in anticipation for the sudden event, he nudges one man and asks, "Excuse me, when will the conference start?" he says with his head down, trying to keep his eyes hidden.

    The man has short dark brown hair, brown eyes and a full bushy beard. He''s around a head shorter than Reima''s now 6.2ft height. The man glances at him, "In an hour or so it said in the Daily Prophet. Thank goodness someone put down that vicious criminal." Reima doesn''t retort at the fact that an innocent man was unfortunately killed, he was sure Ciri had no idea who the man was, let alone the conspiracy around his incarceration. "Do you know anything about the woman who killed Black?" he asks trying to gather information.

    The man shrugs, "Just what I''ve read, not even a photo of her in the papers yet, hehe, I bet she''s quite the looker... Oh, apologies, I''m Gibbon Hawtrey."

    Reima nods, "Reima Ludvig, Witch.. Wizard, a pleasure to make your acquaintance." he says stoically while shaking Gibbon''s hand, still keeping his gaze low.

    Gibbon "So, you know anything about this heroic lass?"

    Reima begins to shake his head but stops partway, "Maybe, she reminds me of an old acquaintance."

    He waits there for a while until the stage is fully constructed, after which the reports are led into the front row as a Pink Cardigan wearing woman walks up to the podium and puts his wand to her throat. "We will begin the conference in a couple more minutes, while we appreciate it is indeed short notice the Minister wished to award the heroic young woman who risked her life to apprehend the sick criminal we all know of as Sirius Black." Her words reverberate around the crowded street, murmurs echo from the crowd as she steps back and allows the Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge to escort a young white haired woman with a large scar across her left cheek. Her clothing is still not dirty but certainly tattered, as if she''d been thrown into a wood chipper and climbed out, she''s currently wearing her trademark white blouse that has a slit revealing a Wolf''s head medallion that comfortable sits in her cleavage. The blouse is tucked into a brown corset, a jewelled metal belt over that and tight leather pants underneath. One thing that draws everyone''s gaze is the singe large sword holstered on her back.

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    Minister Fudge walks up to the podium and clears his throat before placing his wand at his neck to amplify his voice. "Good evening everyone! I know you all must''ve read in the paper that the criminal Sirius Black has been caught, indeed even I was surprised at this fortuitous event. With his miraculous escape our Auror''s had tracked him down as he tried to flee the country, only to find him impaled by the brave young woman behind me... I''d like to present Ciri Rivia, come up on stage here Ciri." he says as he almost drags her up to the podium, many flashes of camera''s go off making her jump and almost draw her weapon.

    "Miss Ciri! Can you tell us how you caught Black?"

    "Where are you from!?!"

    "Why do you carry a sword?"

    The questions come flooding in, startling her, she seems to use a breathing technique to calm her nerves before beginning to speak.

 229 I Axii the problem...

    The duo was led into a small posh looking building where Fudge offered them something called a port key, it looked lat a regular bowler hat but as they held onto it and felt an incredibly uncomfortable feeling hook their stomachs, they vanish with a pop and reappear in a clean office with many finery''s spread about. The duo managed to keep their balance as their senses come rushing back to them, the disorienting feeling slowly fading, luckily for Reima and Ciri they both had a lot of experience with teleportation, even if this version is primitive and clumsy to them.

    Fudge walks around his desk and drops into a large chair before gesturing to the chairs opposite him, they both sit and so Fudge leans on the desk while linking his fingers, a ring with a fat white gem sitting prominently on his left index finger. "So, I haven''t actually gotten your name yet." he says finally spotting Reima''s abnormal eyes.

    Reima "Ah, sorry. I am Reima Ludvig, Witcher and Wizard..."

    Fudge doesn''t comment on the strange sounding occupation and continues "And what is your relationship with young Ciri here?"

    Reima is tempted to say "Lovers" but knows that his only future after that would be pain, in the end his goes for a conservative answer that allows some leeway. "I''m her childhood friend, we''ve known each other all our lives haven''t we Ciri?"

    She plays along and nods.

    Fudge rubs his second chin in contemplation, he hadn''t spotted the mans eyes in the crowd and was now worried he''d just offended the pure-blood community. "Forgive me but I must ask, you are human are you not?"

    Reima nods, "My eyes? An unfortunate Animagus incident... Hopefully you can see past it and we can conduct some... Jolly cooperation." he says as he makes an unseen gesture towards Fudge, Reima knows that there are likely Auror''s positioned outside the room but he has to try get the result he wants... After all, Ciri created this mess and now it falls on him to fix it. He tries to cast Axii but Fudges ring starts to change colour to a dire red. He quickly stops his actions and the ring returns to normal.

    Fudge "Oh course, now we should probably discuss your situation... I''d like to know where you are from Ciri? After all my countries relationships are not the most friendly and it would be prudent for us to try and avoid any mishaps." he asks curious at her origins, the only family that would match her appearance would be the pure-blood Malfoy family.

    Reima answers for her, "Greenland, we''re from an isolated community that was recently rendered inhospitable forcing us to immigrate to other countries. It''s fortunate Ciri has allowed us a good relationship with Britain from the get-go."

    Fudge "Greenland eh? The International Confederation of Wizards didn''t find any communities there, perhaps they didn''t look hard enough eh?" his joke falls flat as Ciri and Reima don''t even twitch a brow at him. Feeling discouraged he slumps in his chair.

    Reima slowly stands up, "Minister I should probably ask you this now, I''m a big fan and I''ve been wanting your autograph for a while now..." Fudge doesn''t think twice and starts signing a small card with his signature, Reima shakes his hand and uses Kalameet''s telekinesis as opposed to the rather conspicuous Elder Blood version to pull Fudges ring from his finger, the action was so quick and unexpected the portly man doesn''t react as the ring loudly falls onto the table.

    Reima "Sorry, I actually have no idea how that happened." he says as he sits and tries to cast Axii again, it takes a lot more magic than he''d thought but it works and Fudge just blankly looks ahead while standing.

    Reima slumps into his own chair while looking at Ciri, "You really have fucked this world up big time..."

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    Ciri looks at him confused and offended, "What? And what did you do to the Minister?"

    Reima shrugs, "He''ll be fine... Look, I know your being chased by the Wild Hunt and I have an idea how to get them off of your trail but you have seriously messed up the predestined events of this world..."

    Ciri "All I did was kill a criminal, aside from that how did you get here?"

    Reima shakes his head "We''ll talk about that later, for now there are some things we need to do to get the ball rolling." he says as he turns his gaze to Fudge. "You will award Ciri and I with an opportunity to study at Hogwarts, you will provide us with valid identification and personally oversee our transfer into the school." he states to the Minister he dully nods as he finishes, Reima snaps his fingers and Fudge blinks rapidly before looking at the two, "I''ve just come up with a great idea, since neither of you seem magically literate why not study at Britain''s premier school? I''ll sort out all the paperwork, all you need to do is show up on time and behave yourselves..." he says as this idea suddenly pops up in his head, it''s not a bad way at raising his popularity. Allowing Britain''s hero to attend Hogwarts and gain citizenship would be the least he can do.

    Ciri glances at Reima before nodding, "That would be great Minister, thank you for the opportunity."

    Fudge seems to preen under her praise, "Right, you should both arrange some accommodation, I''ll owl you once I''m done."

    The duo is led out of the office and left with some Auror''s who port key back to Diagon Alley and take them to the Leaky Cauldron as it''s the best reputed and cheapest Inn around. They''re left alone and Reima realises he''s got no money... Fuck.

 230 Hiding from hunters

    Reima stops in place and Ciri turns to him with a questioning gaze, "I haven''t got any local currency... I think we need to pay a visit to Gringotts."

    Ciri sighs "Fine. but you owe me some answers later."

    Reima "Erm actually, we should probably get the Wild Hun off of your tail first..."

    Ciri "Impossible." she states blankly.

    Reima "Just trust me on this, I have a closer relationship with you than you''d think."

    She looks as if she wants to retort but he interrupts her, "Ok, I need you to teleport back to the forest you first arrived in, lets find a quiet place." he says as he looks around for an alleyway. She would try to argue with this strange Witcher more but she''s been running for a few days straight, any chance to rest is very welcomed.

    Reima drags her away from the crowd and after a few minutes of prodding she gives in and teleports them both to a dark forest. She looks at him expectantly as if he''s about to do something significant.

    Reima "Alright, now teleport to any random world..."

    ...

    Ciri "Tell me what you are planning first and then I''ll consider it." she says crossing her arms in defiance.

    Reima "Just do it, teleport us a few times and then I''ll show you. I swear on my life that my plan will work."

    Ciri "Fine, but if you try anything don''t be surprised when I fight back." she says as she teleports them multiple times, a world of lava and giant fire snakes, water and massive leviathans, a world inhabited by prey mantises? They finally stop in a modern looking world, Reima''s about to use his own teleportation to bring them back when he sees a mouse slamming a pan on a grey and white cats head... Ciri notices this as well and seems confused and intrigued at the sight.

    Reima "Yeah, no... Ok, don''t be surprised when I do this."

    Ciri "Wait wh-" she''s cut off as they both vanish again and reappear in the alleyway they''d first left from.

    Ciri seems alarmed at what he''d just done and looks at him accusingly while preparing to draw her weapon, "Who are you!"

    Reima holds his hands up in a non-threatening gesture, "Did Geralt ever give you a diary?"

    The frown on her face softens slightly, "And how would you know about that?"

    Reima shrugs, "I wrote it of course."

    ...

    Ciri seems to conenct the dots in real-time, "You... you''re Geralt''s lost apprentice!"

    He nods, "It''s a pleasure to finally meet you Cirilla, although I hadn''t expected to meet you so soon, or in such dire circumstances..."

    Ciri "I still do not understand, all I did was kill one man...." she says hesitantly.

    Reima "I''m sure you''ve guessed already but I''m like you, we both share the same blood, you ever have visions of the future?" She nods at this, "I also receive them, and with Blacks death this world stands a good chance at being taken over by a racist dictator who''ll conduct mass genocide the likes of which no-one has ever seen before..."

    She stutters as the realisation sets in, "And it''ll be my fault?"

    Reima nods grimly, "But it''s fine since I''m here... Although we''ll have to stay here for around a year depending on how everything goes."

    Ciri "Ah, I can''t stay that long, I have to get back and find Ava-My friend."

    Reima "I hate to guilt trip you into this but you might literally be the cause of this worlds destruction... Besides that friend of yours likely has many contingency plans, right?"

    Ciri "What, how do-"

    Reima waves his hand, "Visions, visions..."

    She reluctantly sighs, "Fine. Are you sure it will only take a year?"

    He nods, "Just think of it as a vacation while I do the hard work."

    Ciri "Can the Wild Hunt really not find us? I mean, you didn''t do anything different from me?"

    Reima shrugs, "They don''t seem to be able to track my powers so we''re safe."

    After the long discussion they walk over to the large bank Gringotts, Ciri reads the warning poem on the doors as they step through,

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    "Enter, stranger, but take heed

    Of what awaits the sin of greed,

    For those who take, but do not earn,

    Must pay most dearly in their turn,

    So if you seek beneath our floors

    A treasure that was never yours,

    Thief, you have been warned, beware

    Of finding more than treasure there... Rather dramatic for a bank."

    Reima chuckles, "Well I''d also always be angry if I was a Goblin, not much races worse than that." he says as a an Armoured Goblin lowers his Halberd in front of them.

    "No weapons allowed." he says gesturing towards their swords.

    Reima "Don''t wands also count as weapons? Why would a Sword be any different?"

    The Goblin sneers under his helmet, "You think we wouldn''t have ways to disable wands in our own bank?" he spits, "You humans..." he trails off as he catches sight of Reima''s eyes.

    Reima "Fine, give me a second... Ciri pass me your sword." he says as he unbuckles his sheaths from his back. He receives Ciri''s sword and stores it away into his Folded Space, the Goblin glares at him wide eyed by lets him pass through regardless.

    Ciri "What kind of magic was that? I''ve never seen anything like it."

    Reima shrugs, "You''d think after passing through so many worlds you would learn something... I guess you can be forgiven with the Wild Hunt on your tail but you should definitely be more prepared."

    She huffs at this, "I tried... I was told to not practise practical magic due to my status as a source, apparently exploding was not an uncommon occurrence."

    Reima "That''s for regular sources, you''re the wielder of the Elder Blood, it''s adaptability wouldn''t allow your magic to run amok."

 230 Hiding from Hunters.

    Reima stops in place and Ciri turns to him with a questioning gaze, "I haven''t got any local currency... I think we need to pay a visit to Gringotts."

    Ciri sighs "Fine. but you owe me some answers later."

    Reima "Erm actually, we should probably get the Wild Hunt off of your tail first..."

    Ciri "Impossible." she states blankly.

    Reima "Just trust me on this, I have a closer relationship with you than you''d think."

    She looks as if she wants to retort but he interrupts her, "Ok, I need you to teleport back to the forest you first arrived in, lets find a quiet place." he says as he looks around for an alleyway. She would try to argue with this strange Witcher more but she''s been running for a few days straight, any chance to rest is very welcomed.

    Reima drags her away from the crowd and after a few minutes of prodding she gives in and teleports them both to a dark forest. She looks at him expectantly as if he''s about to do something significant.

    Reima "Alright, now teleport to any random world..."

    ...

    Ciri "Tell me what you are planning first and then I''ll consider it." she says crossing her arms in defiance.

    Reima "Just do it, teleport us a few times and then I''ll show you. I swear on my life that my plan will work."

    Ciri "Fine, but if you try anything don''t be surprised when I fight back." she says as she teleports them multiple times, a world of lava and giant fire snakes, water and massive leviathans, a world inhabited by prey mantises? They finally stop in a modern looking world, Reima''s about to use his own teleportation to bring them back when he sees a mouse slamming a pan on a grey and white cats head... Ciri notices this as well and seems confused and intrigued at the sight.

    Reima "Yeah, no... Ok, don''t be surprised when I do this."

    Ciri "Wait wh-" she''s cut off as they both vanish again and reappear in the alleyway they''d first left from.

    Ciri seems alarmed at what he''d just done and looks at him accusingly while preparing to draw her weapon, "Who are you!"

    Reima holds his hands up in a non-threatening gesture, "Did Geralt ever give you a diary?"

    The frown on her face softens slightly, "And how would you know about that?"

    Reima shrugs, "I wrote it of course."

    ...

    Ciri seems to conenct the dots in real-time, "You... you''re Geralt''s lost apprentice!"

    He nods, "It''s a pleasure to finally meet you Cirilla, although I hadn''t expected to meet you so soon, or in such dire circumstances..."

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    Ciri "I still do not understand, all I did was kill one man...." she says hesitantly.

    Reima "I''m sure you''ve guessed already but I''m like you, we both share the same blood, you ever have visions of the future?" She nods at this, "I also receive them, and with Blacks death this world stands a good chance at being taken over by a racist dictator who''ll conduct mass genocide the likes of which no-one has ever seen before..."

    She stutters as the realisation sets in, "And it''ll be my fault?"

    Reima nods grimly, "But it''s fine since I''m here... Although we''ll have to stay here for around a year depending on how everything goes."

    Ciri "Ah, I can''t stay that long, I have to get back and find Ava-My friend."

    Reima "I hate to guilt trip you into this but you might literally be the cause of this worlds destruction... Besides that friend of yours likely has many contingency plans, right?"

    Ciri "What, how do-"

    Reima waves his hand, "Visions, visions..."

    She reluctantly sighs, "Fine. Are you sure it will only take a year?"

    He nods, "Just think of it as a vacation while I do the hard work."

    Ciri "Can the Wild Hunt really not find us? I mean, you didn''t do anything different from me?"

    Reima shrugs, "They don''t seem to be able to track my powers so we''re safe."

    After the long discussion they walk over to the large bank Gringotts, Ciri reads the warning poem on the doors as they step through,

    "Enter, stranger, but take heed

    Of what awaits the sin of greed,

    For those who take, but do not earn,

    Must pay most dearly in their turn,

    So if you seek beneath our floors

    A treasure that was never yours,

    Thief, you have been warned, beware

    Of finding more than treasure there... Rather dramatic for a bank."

    Reima chuckles, "Well I''d also always be angry if I was a Goblin, not much races worse than that." he says as a an Armoured Goblin lowers his Halberd in front of them.

    "No weapons allowed." he says gesturing towards their swords.

    Reima "Don''t wands also count as weapons? Why would a Sword be any different?"

    The Goblin sneers under his helmet, "You think we wouldn''t have ways to disable wands in our own bank?" he spits, "You humans..." he trails off as he catches sight of Reima''s eyes.

    Reima "Fine, give me a second... Ciri pass me your sword." he says as he unbuckles his sheaths from his back. He receives Ciri''s sword and stores it away into his Folded Space, the Goblin glares at him wide eyed by lets him pass through regardless.

    Ciri "What kind of magic was that? I''ve never seen anything like it."

    Reima shrugs, "You''d think after passing through so many worlds you would learn something... I guess you can be forgiven with the Wild Hunt on your tail but you should definitely be more prepared."

    She huffs at this, "I tried... I was told to not practise practical magic due to my status as a source, apparently exploding was not an uncommon occurrence."

    Reima "That''s for regular sources, you''re the wielder of the Elder Blood, it''s adaptability wouldn''t allow your magic to run amok."

 231 Ripping off Goblins.

    Reima allows Ciri to ruminate on his words as he steps up to a nearby counter, the Goblin spies him curiously, "Speak your business."

    Reima "I wish to open an account and make a transaction with the Goblin nation."

    The Goblin sneers, "And what business would you have with us?"

    Reima retrieves a small shard of titanite and places it on the counter, "You tell me?"

    The Goblin carefully looks at it before testing it with his hands, he gives it a few taps with his long nail but excusing himself and running into one of the back rooms.

    Ciri "What did you give him?"

    Reima "A rare piece of metal from another world, the locals called it the metal of the gods... Most of my equipment is reinforced with it actually."

    She tugs at the Gleam cloak around his neck, "This too?"

    Reima "No, I got this from the world before last... It''s indestructible so it''s pretty useful."

    Ciri "It''s quite unusual to look at... is there a reason people aren''t constantly staring at it?"

    Reima shrugs, "I suspect in a magical society like this that it''s not that unusual, although I could be wrong."

    The quick tapping of footsteps alerts them to the approaching Goblin, he''s breathing heavily and looks at them, "We''d like to continue the transaction in private, will your... " he glances at his and her hands before continuing on, "Mistress be joining us?"

    ...

    Ciri "Excuse me!" she exclaims with an angry look on her face.

    Reima "Calm down, he just misunderstood, we shouldn''t cause a scene."

    Ciri "Cause a seen? I''ll show you a seen!"

    Reima just sighs and gestures an Axii sighs towards her before looking at the Goblin, "Can we go?" he nods quickly and walks at brisk pace with Reima and a glassy eyed Ciri following closely behind.

    They reach and opulent room with a single Goblin waiting for them behind a desk. Ciri shakes her head and rubs her temples, "Ah, what?... You, used a sign on me!"

    Reima "Look, can we talk about this later... We still need to get some money to rent a room, I don''t know if they''ll be any rooms free if we take too long." this seems to keep her quiet for now as the Goblin who brought them over leaves and closes the door behind them.

    The Goblin behind the desk introduces himself, "Greetings, I am Flayskin"

    Reima can''t stop the grin spreading across his face, "I''m sorry but Flayskin? Who comes up with these names?" Ciri also seems amused at this.

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    The Goblin looks at them blankly, "We receive our names depending on our actions within the pits, I was named Flayskin after I flayed my opponent alive." this cuts their amusement short.

    Flayskin "I received word that you brought in this?" he holds up the titanite shard and Reima nods. "Where did you acquire such a thing?" he asks without pause.

    Reima shrugs, "In a puddle somewhere", while it technically wasn''t a lie due to him finding it in the Blight Town swamp it also wasn''t the truth either.

    Flayskin "Indeed... Well we''d like to purchase this from you, how does 100 Galleons sound?"

    ...

    Reima "What''s the exchange rate between pounds and Galleons?" he asks as he suspects he''s getting ripped off."

    Flayskin reluctantly answers, "1 Galleon roughly equals 5 British pounds."

    ...

    Reima "So you just offered me 500 pounds for the rarest mineral currently on earth... Do you think I''m stupid?" his cat-like eyes seem to penetrate the Goblins skin.

    Flayskin "Apologies, I hadn''t recognised the rarity of this... How does 1000 Galleons sound?"

    Reima "No... I think I''ll take my business elsewhere." he says as he makes to stand up,

    Flayskin scrambles to sit him back down, "Customer you misunderstand! 1000 Galleons as a gift for approaching our bank first of course!" he says as sweat trickles down his large brow.

    Reima grins, "Ah, I misunderstood... I thought I was getting ripped off, apologies." he says causing Ciri''s lips to upturn slightly.

    Flayskin "What price do you propose for such an extraordinary item?"

    Reima rests his chin on his hand, "Hmm, how about 20000 Galleons?"

    Flayskin grits his pointed teeth at this, "Are you sure you can''t lower the price slightly? After all it''s only a small amount..."

    Reima "This is my price, who knows, maybe I''ll discover more and we can do further business?"

    Flayskin "Yes, indeed... Of course, thank you for your patronage, your account will be opened in vault 2020."

    Reima "Ah, could you covert some Galleons into Pounds? I need around ten thousand ready by tomorrow."

    After everything is complete the duo leave the bank, they had offered Reima a mole-skin pouch, a kind of spatial storage item that is bigger on the inside but he rejected it as he''s got his Folded Space, in the end Ciri thankfully received it and they made their way to the Leaky Cauldron to rent a couple rooms. The owner of the Inn made a great mistake however...

    Tom "So a room for two?"

    Ciri "... No, give us two separate rooms."

    Tom "Ah, I understand... Two rooms next to each other." he says tapping his know with his index finger while smiling with a "Knowing" look.

    Ciri just glowers and walks upstairs with Reima closely following after having paid for the rooms.

    Reima follows Ciri into her room so they can begin talking about his plans for the future.

 232 Fourteen?

    Reima sits down on the bed next to Ciri thinking about this plan for here onward, while it isn''t his fault Sirius Black was killed he still feels partly responsible for it. Whether he likes it on not Ciri is now his responsibility and he''ll try to increase the likelihood that she''ll survive future events by training her in this worlds magic. While he doesn''t actually have a clue how magic works in this world he assumes it won''t be as hard to learn as Sorcery or Pyromancy... After all even children are capable of casting magic here.

    Ciri lays back on the bed resting her head on her arms, "So, you owe me some answers."

    Reima nods, "Ask away."

    Ciri "Did Geralt know you had the Elder Blood?"

    Reima "I don''t think he even knew what it was when I was training with him..." wait a moment... He hadn''t noticed before due to his familiarity with the Wither 3''s version of Ciri but shouldn''t she be much, much younger than she currently is? "How old are you Ciri?" asks suddenly

    Ciri "You know you shouldn''t ask a maidens age..." she jokes but when she sees his serious face she truthfully answers, "Around 20? I''ve had trouble keeping track of it lately..."

    ...

    20? How long had he been in Dark Souls?... Wasn''t it only around 180 chapters?

    Reima "How long have I been gone Ciri?"

    Ciri "Hmm, I don''t know... I arrived in Kaer Morhen when I was twelve, and you had already been missing a couple years."

    Reima scratches his head, "I think the time in my previously visited world was skewed... I''m only 14 yearold." his words shock her still, "... Oh, ha-ha, you''re making fun of me."

    Reima "No really, I''m still only fourteen, despite how I appear..."

    Ciri rests her forearms over her eyes, "This is all way too confusing!"

    Reima "Can you tell me what you were doing before you arrived in this world?" he asks trying to piece together the current timeline.

    Ciri "My companion had just been cursed and we were supposed to meet up before it finally set in, I was waiting for him when I was found by the Hunt and had to flee again."

    Reima nods in understanding, he''d been gone around 10 years then if the timeline remained relatively the same... With the exception of Ciri''s detour to this world everything seems about the same? If he''s not mistaken she should be currently in a hibernation trance inside of a cabin around the Isle of Mists. He doesn''t know how long it''d take Geralt to find "Uma" better known as Avallac''h and travel to find Ciri but they can''t just leave this world doomed due to their, or more accurately "Her" actions.

    Reima nods "I think I''ve got a better idea of the timeline now, however we shouldn''t leave without solving the issues you''ve created.

    Ciri groans, "I know but I can''t be held responsible for everything that goes wrong can I?"

    Reima "Tell that to the Godson of the man you murdered, he was an innocent man convicted of a crime he didn''t commit... Surely you feel guilty for what you''ve done?" he asks quietly.

    Ciri exclaims "Of course I do! Do you think me heartless? No, there just isn''t anything I feel I can do or should do as the person responsible for this mess."

    Reima "Trying to fix things is the least you can do, I''ll be helping you ever step of the way... The only problem will be the "Boy-who-lived", the Godson of Sirius Black and person originally tasked with saving this world. I have no idea what his reaction will be towards us but we have to try and reconcile with him."

    Ciri "If I were him I''d despise me with all my being, did he know his godfather was innocent?"

    Reima "He personally saved Sirius life a couple months before now, from what I know he lives in an abusive household and hoped to have Sirius acquitted and be adopted by him."

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    Ciri seems to fold in on herself as he describes more of the situation, he isn''t trying to guilt trip her... Much, but unless she wishes to leave this place under the rule of an insane megalomaniac she can''t run away.

    Reima "I know you have more questions for me but I''ll leave you for tonight, you must''ve been running for a while now and wish to sleep. he says as he leaves for his own room.

    Ciri just lays in bed looking at the ceiling, "She hadn''t felt bad about killing Sirius Black at first as she thought it was in self defence but as more of the situation had been revealed her eyes had been opened. The guilt from killing an innocent man who''d done nothing more than try to escape execution makes her clench her fists, the day had somehow been even more exhausting than any other, despite not having to constantly flee from the Hunt. Meeting Geralts long lost apprentice and finding out he was somehow still only 14 years old despite being significantly taller than herself had surprised her greatly.

    She reaches into a pouch attached to her belt and pulls out one of her prized possessions, a diary with the initials R.L on the front. This diary hadn''t left her since she''d first received it from Geralt all those years ago, it''d contained valuable information on her constitution and had allowed her to train her abilities much faster, allowing he to escape a few dire situations she''d otherwise been unable to... After finally meeting the original owner of it, she didn''t value it any less, even if writer turned out different than expected...

 234 Asian hospitality

    The two continue to bicker until both of their stomachs start growling, this surprises Reima greatly as he realises what he''s currently feeling... Hunger! Ever since arriving in Dark Souls he hadn''t actually needed to eat to survive, he did occasionally but that was just for pleasure. He looks at Ciri who''s cheeks flush red as she turns away.

    Ciri "I haven''t eaten in a couple days..." she says embarrassed.

    Reima "Same... Want to order some Breakfast here?" she nods and Reima walks up to the bar to check the menu, one he does he almost face palms...

    Leaky Cauldron Menu :

    House, House Soup

    House Leaky Soup

    House Soup Leaky

    Leaky House Soup

    Leaky, Leaky Soup

    Leaky Soup House

    Soup House Leaky

    Soup Leaky House

    Soup Leaky, Leaky

    Soup, Soup Soup

    ...

    Reima "Err, Tom is this the right menu? It seems to be for lunch?"

    The barkeeper gives a toothless smile and replies, "That''s our breakfast, lunch and desert menu, I trust the items are to your taste?"

    Reima "Yeah... Err, I''ll have two House Leaky... No, Give me two House House Soup. Also could I get some bread with it?"

    Tom shakes his head, "Sorry no bread served here, the crumbs attract owls..."

    Reima slowly nods his head, internally wishing that he''d gone to another store... He pays for the soup and sits back down at his table to wait for it.

    The waitress brings it over and Reima is surprised by the smell of it, it smells of chicken and leak soup. Ciri immediately digs it without hesitation, devouring it so quickly that he blinks his eyes in confusion.

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    Ciri "Are you going to eat that?" she points at his bowl and he spitefully pulls it towards him, "No, it''s mine!"

    The duo finish their "breakfast" and leave the Inn, he looks at the list of items they will need for Hogwarts and reads out the first item. "Three sets of plain black work robes.", Ciri immediately retorts, "Robes? Like the things those scholars would wear?"

    Reima nods, "I heard that some Wizards wear robes without underwear as well..." she grimaces at this as they walk into Diagon Alley, Reima doesn''t mind his gaze as it was quite exhausting trying to keep it hidden yesterday... Besides, their bright white hair seems to attract most of the attention anyway. They ask around for the location of a clothing store and receive various answers, such as "Micheal''s special men''s ware", "Armerlin" and even a place called "Premier Hag Lingerie"... Oh course Reima refused to go any of them, instead he decided to go to the one he''s most familiar with, "Madam Malkin''s Robes for all occasions".

    A bell rings as they open the purple shops door and step inside, a short grey haired woman seems to be measuring a young Asian girl who looks to be around 15.

    Madam Malkin "Just a moment, please take a seat as I finish up!" she says as he pulls the tape measure across the girls waist.

    It only takes a couple more minutes when she finally lets the girl go, she''s told to take a seat as she prepares her clothes as she looks at Reima and Ciri.

    Madam Malkin "So what can I do for you?"

    Reima "Er, we''re transferring into Hogwarts and needs uniforms." he looks down at the list, "3 sets of plain bl-"

    She stops him, "Yes, yes... You think I haven''t had to prepare a students uniform before? 3 sets of plain black work robes, black winter cloaks, protective gloves and a pointed hat... Is that all?"

    He nods and she pulls Ciri up and starts measuring her, Ciri seems relatively familiar with this, it doesn''t surprise him as she is royalty after all...

    The young girl seated next to him tries to make small talk, "Hello, I''m Cho Chang..." she says with a Scottish accent which doesn''t seem to fit on an Asian looking girl...

    Reima "Reima Ludvig" he states bluntly while shaking her outstretched hand.

    Cho Chang "So you''re transfer students? Where are you from?" she asks curiously, she''d never heard of transfer students ever coming to Hogwarts before.

    Reima "Greenland, hopefully our magical education will match Britain''s, me and my friend are quite nervous to be honest."

    She smiles, "Well, if you need any help in school try and find me, I''ll be starting fifth year so I''ve been around Hogwarts enough to navigate it properly."

    Ciri sits down next to Reima and comments, "Surely it won''t take long to learn the layout of the school?" she asks as Madam Malkin gets Reima up and starts measuring him.

    Cho "That''s what I thought in my first year too, but when the castle itself moves seemingly at random it''s rather difficult to find your way." She says while Ciri looks intrigued, a moving castle? Sounds magical.

    The two continue to chat while Reima listens to Madam Malkin mutter measurements, "Now do you have any additional requests before I start making your things?"

    Reima "Like what?" he asks confused.

    Madam Malkin sighs, "Really, what''re they teaching people nowadays?.. I''m referring to the material and enchantments on your robes."

    Reima "Sorry but could you list the most popular ones? I''m not really familiar with them..."

    Madam Malkin pulls out an old yellow parchment and hands it to him, on it reads :

    Enchantments :

    One Size Fits All.

    Temperature modulation.

    Acid resistance. (For the clumsy)

    Self Cleaning.

    Materials :

    Acromantula silk.

    Soft Bellied African Long Neck.

    Cloth.

    Mole Skin. (Only applicable on Pockets)

    Reima reads them off and curiously asks the Shop owner, "What''s the difference between Soft Bellied African Long Neck and Acromantula Silk?"

    "Well, as with all Dragon Hide it''s significantly more sturdy than other materials, the only down side is that it can''t hold any enchantments due to it''s magical resistance... Acromantula Silk on the other hand is only slightly less durable but takes incredibly well to enchantments... Although the cost turns most people away." she says pointing to the 100 Galleon price tag.

    Reima "If it''s ok can you make all of our robes out of Acromantula silk with the One Size Fits all, Temperature Modulation and Self cleaning enchantments?" he says as he reaches into his Folded Space for a handful of gold.

 235 What constitues Dark Magic?

    The shop owner agrees and Reima walks back to his seat between the still talking women, it seems Ciri is able to quickly make friends even in this new strange environment for her... She seems to be giving advice to Cho about how to apply makeup, Reima quickly loses interest in what they''re discussing and retrieves the Tome he''d received from Dark Stalker Kaathe, the Dark Hand. He hadn''t been able to learn this due to his control troubles, while it seems to be an incredibly useful ability it is also very dangerous, as seen with the Disaster in New Londo which was directly caused by the overuse of the Dark Hand.

    The chatter seems to quiet down and he looks around to see what''s up, he sees the two girls staring at the Old Dark Tome in his hands. Ciri''s gaze seems inquisitive but Cho''s is very wary.

    Cho notices she''s been caught staring and immediately apologises, "Sorry, but that looks like dark magic to me... I don''t know the attitude in Greenland but here if you''re caught using, learning or even owning Dark Magic you''ll be fined or even arrested and shipped to Azkaban..."

    Reima closes his book, "Oh really? It''s good that this isn''t Dark Magic then... But if you think it does I''ll put it away, no need to cause trouble right?" he tries to play it off but Ciri can clearly tell he''s lying out of his teeth.

    Cho "Oh, good... Ah, it looks like my robes are done... If you want some advice then don''t do what I did, practising a shrinking charm on One Size Fits All robes is a terrible idea." she says as she''s handed a bag from Madam Malkin and leaves.

    Ciri looks at him, "She was nice? Although I''ve never seen someone who looks like that."

    Reima nods, "She''s Asian, I don''t think that ethnicity exists back home... Actually I''ve been meaning to ask, how do you keep applying your eye shadow?"

    Ciri chuckles, "With this" she pulls out a small box, "Yen and Triss enchanted it so I never run out."

    Reima "Ah, how were they? I''ve not met Triss but I briefly met Yennifer."

    Ciri Sighs, "Aside from leaving Yen and Geralt in Avalon? I don''t really know... I hope they''re safe." she says as the mood seem to visible get gloomier.

    They''re interrupted when Madam Malkin walks over to them with two large paper bags, they thanks her and leave as Reima had already paid.

    Ciri "That must''ve been the fastest Tailor I''ve ever seen... I wonder how she did it so quickly..."

    Reima grins, "Magic."

    Ciri scoffs, "Don''t act like you know something." she says and hefts the bag up to get a better grip.

    Reima tries to act gentlemanly and goes to grab the bag off of her but gets his arm swatted away, "What''s next?" she asks him.

    He looks down at the parchment as read out, "Wands."

    Ciri "A wand? Yen got me one once... It exploded in my hand and almost took my fingers with it."

    Reima''s brows raise, "Ah really? Better be careful here then, who knows what could happen..." he mutters, now dreading picking up a wand.

    The duo finally manage to navigate to their destination after an hour of walking around the street. Looking up at the sign it states "Ollivanders: Makers of Fine Wands since 382 B.C.".

    Ciri "382 B.C? How long ago is that... I''m not really familiar with this worlds dates."

    Reima shrugs, "Around two thousands years or so..." his answer seems to surprise her but she manages to remain stoic.

    They enter the shop causing the bell to ring yet again, the shop is dusty but feels comfortable, it''s lit by a few candles which causes the room to glow a warm orange.

    Reima "Hello?" he says relatively loudly to try catch the shop owners attention.

    They wait for a minute but no one seems to appear, Ciri leans against the counter and says "I don''t think anyone''s in.", she''s about to get up and head for the door but jumps and swings her fist at a man who managed to silently appear behind her.

    The manages haphazardly ducks and falls to the floor, groaning in pain as his does.

    Ciri "Oh! I am so sorry!" she exclaims and tries to help the elderly looking man up, he had thin long platinum blonde hair with pale silver eyes that look as if they belong to a blind man.

    Ollivander "No, it''s me who should apologise... I was just so curious of you two I couldn''t help myself." he says as his eyes dart between Reima and Ciri and everything around them. "How curious...

    Reima steps forward, "Is something wrong?"

    Ollivander quickly answers, "Wrong? No. Unique? Certainly... Have you two ever dabbled in dark rituals by any chance?"

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    Ciri "What! No!" she exclaims as he looks at Reima, he himself doesn''t really know... Does Pyromancy count as Dark Magic? Does literally consuming souls make you Dark?"

    Reima shrugs, "Not that I know of."

    Ollivander "You speak the truth? How strange..." he mutters as his eyes seem to glaze over.

    Ciri "Mr Ollivander? We''ve come to purchase some wands?"

    He seems to jolt awake and smile, "Of course. Hold still while I gather my tools." he says as he runs off into a back room.

    Reima "I''m getting bad vibes from this whole situation..." he states as he thinks back to the mans strange actions since meeting them...

    Ciri "I think he''s just an... Eccentric person."

    Reima "If that''s only the case then why would he ask if we practise dark rituals?"

    Ciri "Why would I know?" she huffs as she rests against the counter again, Reima notices her eyes darting around to avoid being scared again.

 236 Talkative old man

    The two wait for a few minutes for Ollivander to return, the man kicks open a door and unsteadily walks in while carrying a large pile of boxes. Ciri walks over to help him as Reima watches with anticipation, he doesn''t really want a wand and doesn''t want Ciri to have one either as they, as wielders of the Elder Blood don''t require one... If they learn with one they''ll most likely become dependant on them, this wouldn''t fit well with either of their combat styles, and while Reima already has his own kind of magic, Ciri does not and this will be her first experience learning real magic.

    The old man manages to lower the large pile of boxes onto the counter with Ciri''s help, a wayward box slides off but is caught by Reima... Unfortunately as soon as his hand touches the wood casing it explodes spectacularly into Turquouise, Black and Dark Red Flames.

    Ciri and Ollivander duck behind the counter as the shards and ashes of the wooden box and it''s contents shoot of and destroy a nearby window, shelf and door... They cautiously peek their heads over and see Reima still standing there with his hand outstretched, not even if clothes seem to be ruffled. He scratches the back of his head and sheepishly mumbles an apology, "Sorry..."

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    Ciri "You''re sorry? After causing an explosion? Look at the store!" he exclaims while pointing at the damaged room.

    Ollivander glances at her, "No need to worry... This is not the first nor the last time this will happen, matching wands with their intended is a rather... Chaotic process. Although, I''ve never seen a wand explode without even being touched before."

    Reima "Yeah... Do I have to pay for that?" he says clapping the leftover ash from his hands.

    ...

    Ollivander seems to ponder for a moment before shaking his head, "For you? No... You two are... Magnificent." he says with a look wonder gleaming in his cloudy eyes.

    The duo just stand looking at him in confusion, magnificent? Where did that come from.

    Ollivander "Ah, you must be confused by what I mean... Well, it''s not everyday you encounter young wizards and witches with more power than the current greatest wizard alive. I have a rare talent you see, they call it "Mage Sight"... There are many theories on hoe to obtain it, inheritance, practise and so on but I digress... You two, shine for lack of a better word." he says looking at them and hardly blinking.

    Ciri repeats, "Shine?"

    Ollivander "Indeed, indeed, you understand I see. For every other witch and wizard their magic comes from their magical core, what that is exactly is a complicated subject but it''s location always remains the same." he says as he points to his stomach, just under his belly button. "You two however don''t appear to have one." he says slowly walking closer to Ciri, his eyes wide and glancing over her entire body. "It''s magnificent... How your bodies appear to be completely magical, from my perspective you look the exact opposite of muggles... Almost blindingly so."

    Ciri "Will this cause issues using magic?"

    He smiles widely putting his white teeth on display, "No, in-fact it''s the complete opposite! Do either of you know why we require wands to use magic?"

    The duo shake their heads, attentively awaiting his explanation.

    Ollivander "Wizards use wands as an extension of themselves, they channel magic through their mundane blood, to their wands and express their magic... With our bodies... Not normally being magical we are unable to use magic without a magical Catalyst, of course there are exceptions but those only belong to the strongest of us."

    Ciri "What makes wands so special?" she asks curiously

    Ollivander seems to visibly perk up as he answers, "Inside of every wand exists an extremely magically potent material, usually taken from a magical animal... My wands usually only contain Pheonix feathers, Dragon Heart Strings and Unicorn hair due to the compatibility to most British wizards. You''d find a completely different selection in say... Greenland?" he grins when they tense up.

    He continues, "To use magic you need to be magical, but humans are innately mundane... There are many discussions on why we can use magic but it all comes down to the magical core, the thing you two appear to lack? Or maybe it''s not visible under the sheer amount of magic you both project."

    Reima brows furrow at this, this is one of the problems with his makeshift solution to stop his aura. His excess magic is breathed out making him extremely easy to notice to magically attune people, this isn''t all however... Due to his method of suppressing his magic by circulating it round his body his magic can easily be spotted if someone wishes to look. Usually he wouldn''t mind but he''s trying to stay under the radar, he sighs. Maybe this''ll draw attention away from Ciri?

    Ciri speaks up, "You''ve built the tension up enough, shall we find wands?"

    ...

    Ollivander smile seem to dim slightly, "That''s just the problem... I have not a clue what wand you can or should use, in my own professional opinion you''d most likely not even require a wand to use magic."

    Reima crosses his arms, "We need a wand to attend Hogwarts..."

    Ollivander shakes his head, "Ok... If you two insist." he says as he grabs a box off of the table and opens it revealing a wooden stick... "These are the only wands I''ve made that might work, young miss, give it a try. Oh wait! Before we start, could you both give me your names?"

    Reima looks at him confused, "Err, why?"

    Ollivander seems to shrug, "So I know who to charge the damages to." he says bluntly

 237 Compromises

    "So I know who to charge the damages to."

    This causes Ciri to snort and Reima to facepalm, "Look I''ll cover it if something big happens..." he says, not knowing if the old man is joking or not.

    He nods and hands Ciri the wand, as soon as it touches her fingertips a bookshelf behind her flips a metre into the air before shattering into a million wood shards on the floor...

    ...

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    Ciri just looks over her shoulder with her mouth agape... "I, am, so sorry!" she says quickly as Ollivander snatches the wand out of her hand. "Don''t worry, small things like this can be fixed" he says as he waves the wand over and mutters an incantation causing the bookshelf to piece itself back together like a puzzle before finally resting against it''s original position against the wall.

    Reima looks at the scene slightly jealous, the only magic he''s actually capable of is incredibly destructive, his aura itself would melt this shop and probably the whole street if it were unrestrained.

    Ciri looks at Ollivander and manages to stifle her excited smile at his skill, "Shall we try the next one?" she says ignoring the elderly mans grimace. "Indeed..." he says as he hands her a lighter coloured wand, again something explodes not surprising anyone this time.

    They keep going through the wands on the counter, everyone causing something unfortunate to happen, thankfully it seems Ollivander isn''t an average wizard and easily fixes any damage caused. After an hour they try the last wand and it turns out to be another failure, Ciri''s smile had been gradually disappearing with every failure, now that all the wands have been tried a prominent frown sits on her lips.

    Ciri "Does this mean I can''t use wands?" she asks hesitantly.

    Ollivander nods gravely, "It appears so... Perhaps if we try your friend we might discover something?" he says as Reima approaches the counter, as he gets closer however all the wands on the counter seem to vibrate in his presence. "Stop! Stop!" Ollivander exclaims as he scrambles in-front of Reima.

    Reima "Is something wrong?"

    Ollivander nods and points at the vibrating wands, "If you step any closer I fear they''ll explode!"

    He nods slowly and backs away, causing the old man to sigh in relief, "You two are the most tricky customers I''ve ever had!"

    Ciri looks at Reima, "Looks like we can''t go to Hogwarts after all..."

    Reima shakes his head, "I didn''t want to draw attention but it looks like I''ll have to..." he says retrieves the Demon Catalyst from his Folded Space, it''s around 5.5ft and looks like an ashen white branch which folds around a black obsidian like stone at the top. He rests it on the floor and Ollivander walks forwards to get a better look at it. He looks at Reima and asks, "Do you mind?" Reima shakes his head and hands it to the old man who almost religiously looks at it as he appraises it.

    Ciri walks up to his side and look at him, "Will that work?"

    Reima shrugs, "They specify wands in the Hogwarts letter but maybe staves are similar enough?"

    Ciri "It looks old, where''d you acquire it?"

    Reima slyly grins, "Would you belief me if I said I killed a huge demon for it?"

    She crosses her arms and huffs, "If you don''t wish to tell me then just refuse."

    After Ollivander observes the staff and casts some spells on it to identify it for a couple minutes his head jolts up as he looks at Reima, "Young man, where did you acquire this!"

    Reima "I don''t remember" he says bluntly.

    Ollivander "This... It appears to be around twelve thousand years old, not even the legends of the elder wand extend that far back!"

    Reima "Shall we carry on? Lets see if Ciri can use this."

    Ciri steps forward and he gently handed the staff from Ollivander, he firmly grasps it''s ashen handle and waves it around... Nothing happens...

    Ollivander rubs his chin, "Perhaps we should try a spell? Do you know any?" he asks but Ciri shakes her head. He pulls his wand out and chants "wingardium leviosa" at a nearby parchment causing it to float up, he causes it to almost dance in the air before letting it flutter back down onto the counter. "Try that... I''m not entirely sure if the wand movement will work with a staff so for now just concentrate on the parchment and say "wingardium leviosa", ok?"

    Ciri nods and a look of concentration overtakes her features, "wingardium leviosa" she states confidently and the parchment rockets into the air before dropping to the floor like a rock. Ollivander claps and congratulates her as she stands dazed at what she had just done.

    Once she realises she''d just cast a spell she jumps into the air, "It did it!", "Reima did you see that!".

    He nods, "I did, good job."

    Ollivander "I believe we''ve found a suitable tool for you..." he looks at Reima, "You wouldn''t happen to have another similar artifact would you?"

    Reima nods, "I do..." he says as he concentrates on his shadow.

    Ollivander looks at him shocked, "Stop!" he almost sprints forward and pinches the air a couple inches away from his chest... Reima looks at him confused, "Err, is something wrong?" The old man doesn''t say anything and traces his clenched fingertips towards Reima''s shadow surprising him greatly. "Mr Ollivander do you need something?"

    Ollivander finally looks at him, "You''ve already bonded with a wand? Why on earth would you try to obtain another?" he asks with a look of agitation on his face.

 238 The supply run never ends!

    Reima stares back into his cloudy eyes with his own cat-like ones, "I didn''t think that was a problem, was I mistaken?"

    Ollivander "It''s a problem two-fold! It''s illegal to own more than one wand, not only that but it disrupts the bond between the wizard and their intended." he states fiercely.

    Reima backs away, "Look I''m sorry, I didn''t know."

    Ollivander "You''d do well to remember it... Now, would you allow me to see your intended?"

    Ciri looks on just as intrigued as Ollivander and Reima nods. He wills his staff to appear in his hand and a black slimy substance climbs out of his shadow, it seems to climb onto itself as if it''s mimicking a human pyramid until it forms into the familiar Staff of Manus. Ciri looks surprised at it''s "Entrance" but Ollivander steps closer and examines it. He casts a couple spells and his face seem to distort with each one, looks of glee, sadness, hatred, disgust and many other emotions flash on his face until he finally tries to touch the axe-like head of the staff. He his finger only manages to get a couple inches close when he jumps back, a fearful look appearing on his face.

    Ollivander stutters, "D-did you hear something?... I-I think it spoke to me..."

    Reima shakes his head, a little hesitant to continue holding the staff... It wouldn''t be the first time he''d heard whispers speaking to him. "I didn''t hear anything, Ciri?" he asks and she shakes her head aswell.

    Ollivander "Forgive me then, I must have imagined it... Thank you for allowing me to appraise your wa... Staff, I''ll pen a letter to Albus to explain the situation so don''t worry about your lack of a wand. He''s a good man, I''m sure he''ll understand."

    Reima nods, "Thank for you for assistance, would it be inappropriate to pay you for your time?"

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    He shakes his head, "No, you''ve given me enough for today... Feel free to visit me in the future, you are both terribly intriguing people."

    Ciri nods at him, "Thank you Mr Ollivander" and walks outside, still clutching her new staff, Reima allowing his staff to climb back into his shadow as he follows.

    The duo look at the sky and it seems to be around mid-day, they''d spent quite a lot of time inside of Ollivander''s... They''d not even found a wand that suited Ciri, Reima knew they could probably just use wandless magic but that''d draw way to much attention towards them... Atleast this way they can play it off as traditional tools in "Greenland", walking sticks aren''t too uncommon either so it shouldn''t draw too much attention... If you exclude how unique their separate staves look.

    Reima "I''m kinda hungry but we should probably finish shopping before settling down to eat... Lets see what''s next..." he says as he drops a bag and retrieves the Supply list. "Cauldron (pewter, standard size 2), 1 set of glass or crystal phials, 1 telescope and 1 set of brass scales... I have no idea where we''re going to get those things..." he says confident in his lack of confidence...

    Ciri shrugs as she leans against her new staff, "Just do what we''ve already been doing, ask around."

    The duo continue to shop for the various items they need, they find the Cauldron and crystal phials at a potioneers store while they find the Brass Scales and telescope in a general store. When they look at the list again they see the last thing they need are books, Reima had held off on this until the end as there are many things he wishes to learn in this world... Animagus tranformations, Occulemncy, Legilimency, Runes, Arithmancy and Transfiguration being the most interesting as they seem completely different and or unique front the Witcher and DarkSouls worlds.

    The duo ask around and get directed towards a store called "Flourish and Blotts", they enter and sees a relatively popular book store with many people going from here to there collecting various books. Reima grabs Ciri''s arm and pushes his way through the small crowd and approaches a woman sitting at a desk. She doesn''t seem to notice them as she''s reading a book of some kind.

    Reima clears his throat and catches her attention, as soon as she looks up she seems to pale. She pushes against the floor and he chair slides backwards, grinding against the floor.

    Reima "Is something wrong?" he asks confused at her reaction.

    The haired girl visible calms herself as she realises she''s not in danger, "Sorry, it''s just your eyes..."

    Ah, so that''s what it was Reima mentally retorts... "It''s ok, that''s most normal peoples reaction. I''m Reima Ludvig, nice to meet you miss?" he says as he puts his hand forward in a friendly gesture.

    She shakes his outstretched hand, "Penelope Clearwater, I really am sorry about my earlier reaction, it was rude and insensitive..."

    Ciri steps forwards, "Don''t mind it, my friends face would scare any woman." she jokes making Reima look aggrieved. "I''m Ciri.. Rivia." she almost hesitates when she says her last name.

    Penelope looks at Ciri with familiarity but quickly changes the subject, "It''s a pleasure to meet you both, do you need something from our store?"

    Reima nods, "I need 1st to 7th year Hogwarts books..."

    Penelope "Ah, are you attending Hogwarts?"

    Reima nods, "We''re transfering in so I''d like to see how their education matches up with our previous schools." he says drawing a glance from Ciri.

    Penelope "Of course... You can find the transfiguration books on" she starts listing the various locations of every book, they number around 30 which confuses Reima and Ciri greatly, seeing their confusion Penelope sighs, "I''ll go retrieve them for you, as an apology for earlier." she says as she gets up and grabs a book sized box from behind her before walking away.

    Reima "See, my eyes come in handy occasionally." he says to Ciri.

    Ciri "Yeah but making people feel pity for the poor old disfigured Witcher."

    Reima nudges her, "Oi, you wouldn''t talk to Geralt like this."

    She retorts, "You''re not Geralt though..."

 239 Brain freeze

    After around 7 minutes Penelope returns, only carrying the small box with her, Ciri looks at her worried and asks, "Did you not find them?"

    The young shop keeper shakes her head, puts the box down and opens it, revealing disproportionate insides which house a stack of books. She doesn''t say anything about it as if this thing is just an everyday occurrence and starts unpacking it. "Charms, Tranfiguration, Astronomy, Defence against the dark arts, Herbology, History of magic and Potions... I think that''s everything?" she asks them.

    Reima rubs his chin, "Are there any books on Arithmancy, Runes, Occlumency and Animagi?... Oh, and Alchemy?", usually it''d be best to search for them himself but this girl seems like a trustworthy person...

    She nods slowly, "Er, I think so..." she glares at him but eventually relents in their staring contest. "Fine, I''ll go look for you... Stay here." she says reluctantly and walks off with the box.

    Ciri "Do we really need all those books? I thought we only needed to practise the base subjects?"

    Reima shrugs, "You can ignore the extra''s I''ve ordered, I''m just interested in the different kinds of magic in this world. Back home Sorceresses can transform into animals but they seem to have a different method here, I wanna try my hand at becoming an Animagus, it seems interesting enough."

    His words catch her attention, she''d previously heard Yennefer and Triss talking about techniques that''d allow self transfiguration. They''d been most intrigued by the concept and had almost ignored her presence entirely while discussing it. Truthfully she felt the need to prove herself to everyone back home, she was no longer just a child who needed protection, perhaps this is the chance she needed.

    Ciri "If it''s not any trouble I''d like to learn as much as I can while we''re here... This Animagus technique sounds interesting, do you choose the animal you transform into?"

    Reima shrugs, "I''m not an expert but I''m sure you turn into an animal that most suits you, if your a disloyal coward you''d be a rat or if you''re a brave person you might be a lion... But that''s just my speculation."

    They''re discussion ends when a slightly sweaty Penelope briskly walks back to the desk and drops the box on the table. She opens the box and pulls out many books detailing Alchemy, Animagi, Occlumency, Arithmency and Runes. "I hope that''s everything?"

    Reima skims over the titles and grins, "This is great thanks, how much will that be?" he says retrieving a handful of Galleons.

    Penelope writes on a piece of paper, seeming to calculate the cost of all the books and finally states "684 Galleons" Reima''s grin drops and he mimics "684? For some books?"

    Penelope doesn''t look away and explains, "While the base Hogwarts subjects books are discounted for students the extra book you requested are considerably more expensive than everything else. Don''t blame the store as it''s due to the ministry heavily taxing all advanced magical knowledge... This is the only way to make a profit sadly."

    Reima can only swallow the lump in his throat and fork out the huge pile of Galleons, "Very well... Thank you for assisting us Miss Clearwater." he says as he seals away all the books into his Folded Space, drawing the surrounding peoples attention at what he''d just done...

    "Wandless magic?"

    "Lord, what spell was that!"

    Penelope "What was that?"

    Reima feels like kicking himself for doing this in plain view, "Err, It''s a magical artifact that I had acquired in my travels... Don''t mind it."

    They seem to buy the excuse and turn to go about their business, Penelope however still eyes him with a suspicious look but he and Ciri quickly leave the store to escape anymore attention towards them.

    Outside on the street the two chatter, "That''s basically everything, there are a couple other things like pets but I doubt you''re interested in that."

    Ciri "Pets?"

    Reima "Like a Mail Owl, Cat or toad, those were the creatures listed but I don''t think it really matter what you bring."

    Ciri "Do you think we should get an Owl? It seems pretty important around here, I mean look at that." she points above them to building with almost one hundred owls just perching on it.

    Reima "It''s up to you, I''d suggest you wait until we get some proper accommodation that isn''t just an Inn though." She agrees and they decide to find something to eat, it''s around 1:30 Pm as they sit down on a table outside of a place called "Florean Fortescue''s Ice Cream Parlour". Reima had eaten ice-cream before but nothing like this, he had bought a flavour called "Unicorn Horn Surprise", it tastes kind of like vanilla but mixed with bone marrow? It''s actually quite nice but the after-taste is a bit sour. Ciri had gotten one called "Bezoar extract", it was brown and Reima suspected it to be rather disgusting but Ciri wanted it nonetheless, she bites into it and filches back at how cold it is, it seems the Elder Blood doesn''t protect against brain freeze... Reima himself is fine, as soon as the Ice -cream enters his body it instantly melts, he is quite literally something akin to a god of fire currently.

    Ciri groan "This is disgusting... It tastes like medicine, and something else I hope isn''t the case."

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    Reima shrugs, "Wanna swap? This is pretty good." she nods and Reima immediately gets what she meant, the only edible tasting part of this was the cone, she however seems to be thouroughly enjoying herself.

    Ciri "I''d heard about mages creating frozen sweets but this is the first time I''d actually had one."

    Reima "Yeah? Well there''s a lot more where that came from, this worlds technology will probably blow you away." he states with confidence.

 240 Match Box

    Later once the two had returned to their room in the Leaky Cauldon Reima immediately delves into the books, Ciri sits on the bed next to him as it quickly reads through the first year Transfiguration book on the floor.

    He glances at her and nods his head to the pile of books, "You should probably get started, we have a lot to get through before we''re ready... It''ll be embarrassing if they have to put you with the 1st year students." She groans and picks up the 1st year charms textbook, lies on her back and starts reading through it.

    Reima is engrossed in this worlds transfiguration, there seems to be many different kinds. First is regular strict transfiguration, this kind is the easiest as it''s more lenient with the power you use and your concentration... All you need to do is chant the spell, use the wand movements and the target will change, it lists some basic spells in the first few pages and Reima wants to try them out. He looks at a glass ashtray sitting on the table beside the bed and holds his hand out towards it, he chants "Flintifors" and it turns into a Match Box, this isn''t perfect however as the matchbox is still glass...

    Ciri who''d just watched this perks up, "You just used wandless magic?"

    He nods, "We''re both wielders of the Elder Blood, of course we''d have advantages over regular people... Have a go yourself, use a charm from that book."

    She nods and points forward with her finger, "Lumos!" she exclaims excitedly and her finger lights up brightly.

    Reima "Great job!", it seems she''s getting into it now, hopefully with this momentum he''ll get her up to date...

    Ciri grins and points at him "Wingardium leviosa!", he feels something tug on his jacket but nothing more. He looks at Ciri and sees her straining and trying to lift her arm upwards, probably in an attempt to float him.

    She stops and huffs, "Why doesn''t it work on you? Are you too heavy?" Reima shrugs, he guesses that it''s probably due to his magical resistance... His soul level doesn''t mean nothing after all. "I''m quite heavy..."

    After successfully casting his first transfiguration spell he dips into the magical theory text book to find out how this magic actually works... He and Ciri don''t even require wand movements and probably eventually even chants to cast these spells, he skims it until he finds the information he''s looking for.

    "The key to casting spells is Will Power and Magical Power and Concentration, lacking any of these will severely limit the spells you can use and may even lead to unexpected effects." He relays this to Ciri and tries to change the glass matchbox into the ashtray to have another go. "Transuerso" it quickly reverts into it''s previous state, he closes his eyes and concentrates on what he wants to happen. He feels his power churning as if it''s a volcano waiting to blow, opening his eyes he points at the glass ashtray and chants "Flintifors!", it quickly morphs into a regular wooden matchbox, it''s plain but looks good.

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    He breaths a sigh in relief, looks like this''ll be a breeze he mutters.

    BANG!

    He jolts as he looks at the location of the small explosion, he looks over to the small bedside table and sees a black scorch mark where the matchbox had previously sat...

    Ciri "An explosive spell? Could be used to lay traps?" she analyses when only causes more mental harm to Reima... He''d tried hard to actually make that work!

    After a 10 minutes of pondering what went wrong he''d concluded that he had used too much magic and it''d been influenced by his attunment towards fire. He tried the spell a couple more times until he could do it reliably without any mishaps, his progress felt slow to himself but if any Hogwarts student heard this they''d try to strangle him. Who apart from Merlin could learn and perfect a spell in under an hour!?!

    In the end he left transiguration for now and dipped into the Animagus book, he vaguely remembered that it took a long time to actually accomplish and wished to get it done before they had to confront the Wild Hunt.

    He started skimming the book and came to one conclusion, he needed to train his occlumency before attempting this... Luckily for him and indeed Ciri, they''d already basically mastered the first step of Occlumency : Meditation.

    The next step had them organising their minds in a way understandable and familiar to themselves, for Reima this meant categorising everything, Sorcery is stored here, Pyromancy stored there, ect... This was a relatively easy thing to accomplish. The third step however is the most difficult, you need to enter a meditative trance and "create" your inner world, this builds from the organising they''d previously done in that they''d now have to create protections for them. For Reima he''d figured that storing all of his knowledge in bookshelves would work pretty well and so started to slowly create a pristine version of Kaer Morhen, the library being the centre-piece where his knowledge would all be. As someone from modern earth he couldn''t not mess around with this though, for protection he''d created 10,000 Lord Gwyn''s to wander around the halls of Kaer Morhen to kill all those trying to invade his mind. He''d found this incredibly amusing to do and even had some fight against each other when he felt like it.

    Reima is suddenly nudged and brought out of his inner world by a worried looking Ciri. "Reima? You''ve been sitting like that for hours, I think they''ve already stopped serving dinner as well." His stomach growls and his rubs it while feeling sorry for himself, "Oh... Well that''s a shame... Did you eat?"

    She shakes her head, "It would be rude to eat without you, plus I don''t really have money..."

    Reima "Ah, sorry then..." he says as he retrieves some of the last remaining dried meat and hands it to her along with some Galleons, "Don''t wait for me next time."

 241 True heaven

    Reima returns to his room and continues to sort own his inner world, truth be told he didn''t really need to sleep ever since becoming a Witcher, meditation always sufficed and sleep was only for pleasure. He continued to make progress towards his short-term goal : Becoming an Animagus. Occlumency wasn''t actually that difficult, it just took a lot of time to do well, Reima wasn''t any different in this regard as he spent the entire night organising his knowledge, memories, feelings and fortifying his protections further. He had made good progress but it was far from completed, if someone like Voldemort were to try breach his mind he doesn''t know if he could stop him, maybe his soul would provide him with some protection?

    The next day Reima is back downstairs in the same seat drinking tea and waiting for Ciri to come down, when she eventually comes down bleary eyed and still wearing the same outfit as yesterday and the day before he determines today to be the day where they go clothes shopping. The people around him seem to notice her however, a small group forms as they crowd around her asking for an autograph and various questions about combat. Confused she looks around and spots him before excusing herself and seating herself next to him, some of the more determined people follow her and keep badgering he for information.

    Reima \"Err, can I ask what this is?\" he asks the surrounding people.

    One of them hold up the Daily Profit and point to her picture featured on the front-page, the title above it states \"Slayer of Sirius Black agrees to attend Hogwarts!\", the article below explains that their magnanimous minister Fudge had invited Ciri to continue her education as she''d unfortunately had to cut it short as stated in the conference. There wasn''t any mention of her \"country\" Greenland and most of it was just demonising the late Sirius Black.

    Reima \"I see...\" he turns his cat-like to them and glares, \"We''ll be having our breakfast in peace, my friend Ciri might be giving our autograph''s later but for now we''d like to be left alone.\" he says in a cold voice.

    Most of them leave but a determined middle-aged woman continues \"I''ve come all this way just to speak with you and you wish to send me away? Have you no heart? I demand that you give me an autograph!\"

    Ciri frowns and replies \"I don''t want to sign anything, now leave us.\"

    The woman refuses and Tom the Inn-keeper looks as if he''s about to intervene that is until Reima speaks up, \"She said no so piss off.\" he states as he tries something he''s seen in many works of fiction before. He looks at the woman and attempts to mimic the feelings he felt cutting through the Demons in Izalith and butchering the men of the DarkMoon covenant. His brows twitch as an unnerving smile spreads across his face, \"Leave.\" the woman almost falls backwards and scrambles off as Ciri and Tom watch with fascination.

    Tom \"Man Reima, you''re one scary bastard. I hadn''t felt like that since the Death Eaters invaded my store...\"

    Ciri nods \"You almost resembled an angry Geralt for a moment there...\"

    Reima \"Ah? Thank''s I guess.\"

    The two drink some tea to wake them up and Ciri asks \"So what''re we doing today?\"

    Reima shrugs, \"Well, I wanted to continue training our magic but I think we should go clothes shopping... Plus there is one place I''ve been yearning to go for a long time.\"

    Reima \"Tom, can you transfigure some glasses for me? I want to see muggle London but my eyes will draw too much attention.\"

    He nods and waves his wand, Reima''s empty cup of tea transifgured itself into some regular looking Sunglasses. Reima looks at them and back at Tom, \"Thanks, this is perfect.\"

    Tom \"Don''t mention it, not the first time I''ve been asked this... Rolanda always seems to forget.\"

    The duo leave the Leaky Cauldron and enter the busy streets of London, Reima''s outfit could be called \"Foreign\" but Ciri''s is regular looking enough to not catch attention... Aside from the fact that she is incredibly beautiful. In-fact two people with pure white hair walking through London is already unusual as it is, combined with Reima''s sunglasses and they look like foreign celebrities. Luckily no one seems to bother approaching them, this could be attributed to Reima''s presence... While still physically only 17-18 his body is incredibly sturdy, his muscular arms that aren''t clothed by his jacket are covered in various scars... Some bites, some claws but most if not all were caused by some sort of monster in his early Witcher contracts, these seem to make people wary as only a certain kind of person living a certain kind of life style could have that many of those types of scars.

    They continue walking the streets, Reima finds them relatively familiar with only some variation to his original world... It seems this place is almost identical to his own with the obvious exception of magic.

    After a couple more minutes of walking Reima stops in place as he spots their first destination, a place that he''d been yearning for ever since reincarnating... The golden arches seem to draw him in as he almost drags Ciri through the front doors of the Mcdoralds, he patiently waits in the large line while Ciri quietly interrogates him. \"I thought we were going clothes shopping?\"

    Reima smiles more brightly than he ever had before. \"We are, this is just a pit-stop... Trust me you''ll love it here.\" he says causing her to look around at the colourful decorations, she even sees a statue of a clown sitting in the corner surrounded by kids... She sighs and the duo continue to wait in line for around 10 minutes, hopefully this''ll be worthwhile she mutters as they approach the employee wearing a red and yellow uniform.

 242 Clowns and Dresses

    The acne ridden faced teenager looks up and feels a lump in his throat as he sees two foreign celebrity-like people at the counter. The tall white haired man speaks and brings him back to reality as the woman purses her lips with her arms crossed while looking at the menu above his head. \"Hey, err... Can I get, two double cheese burgers, two big macs, chicken nuggets and two large fries... Oh, and two large cola''s.\" he looks at the woman beside him and asks, \"Ciri, anything take your fancy?\" She shakes her head, \"I''ll just have what you''re having.\"... The teenage boys shocked face doesn''t clue her in on the sheer amount of food her \"male-friend\" had ordered.

    He can feel his adolescent heart beating faster as he manages to choke out, \"Ahem, t-that''ll be ¡ê33.12... Is that all?\"

    Reima \"That''s great thanks.\" he says and hands a ¡ê50 note and telling him to keep the change.

    The two walk over to the next area to wait for their food, Reima nudges her and nods towards the previous teenager, \"See that kid maybe googly eyes at you?\"

    Ciri grumbles \"It''s fine, I''m used to it... Besides were you not also the same in Fudges office?\"

    He turns his head to the side, \"Touch¨¦.\"

    The duo are soon handed two trays piled high with food, if the duo didn''t draw attention before then they definitely did now. Reima finds them a comfortable seat in the corner and quickly sits down and starts unwrapping his first burger.

    Ciri \"So what''s so great about all of this?\" she says unwrapping her own.

    Reima mumbles out while chewing a his burger, \"Don''t talk, just eat.\"

    This meal technically counted as their breakfast and with their lacklustre meal last night they annihilated the pile of food, Ciri was surprising in the way she managed to keep up with Reima who had functionally no limit on how much he could eat. He was actually counting on her not being able to finish her''s and eating the rest, unfortunately she''s apparently very capable at eating?

    The two eventually finish and slump into their chairs, Ciri feeling more bloated than Reima due to his unique constitution.

    Ciri \"I didn''t realise such food existed... While it''s not a very civilised way of eating I think that was the best meal I''ve ever had...\"

    Reima rests his arms behind his head, \"Told you it was worth it... Although we shouldn''t make this a habit, don''t want you getting fat eh?\"

    Ciri scoffs, \"With the amount of running I have to do that is unlikely... This town actually reminds me of another world I''d been to.\"

    Reima \"Oh yeah? What was it like?\" he asks curiously.

    Ciri \"Everything was almost the same, I did run into a mad man though... He came sprinting out of a blue box shouting about me being his companion, he tried to pull me inside but I''m not a fragile woman. A swift kick in his groin and a punch to his nose allowed me to escape, the Wild Hunt appeared soon after, causing me to flee.\"

    Reima''s face during her short story contorted the more she told it, when he heard she kicked the man in the groin he burst out laughing. She kicked the Doctor in the dick! How amazing!!!... His laughter dies down, hang on, doesn''t David Tennant play a role as Barty Crouch Jr in this universe? Minister Fudge, Umbridge, Tom and even Cho Change looked like they did in the movies. Depending on which Doctor she saw this might be confusing... Rubbing his eyes under his glasses he decides to just leave it until it happens, besides they might not even meet.

    The now thoroughly sated duo leave the restaurant in search of what they''d originally come for, clothing. This actually turned out easier and harder than Reima had first thought, the first store they entered sold sportswear and Ciri immediately picked out a grey tracksuit from Addidas, it looked functional if a bit fragile and easy to tear but it definitely didn''t suit her... She looked like a washed-up supermodel who''d taken residence in a trailer park. He tried to persuade her not to get these things but face-palmed as he was walking outside of the store, in his hand two sets of track-suit clothing, one for Ciri and one for himself.

    He''d managed to drag her into some more feminine clothing stores but found it incredibly difficult to persuade her to get anything, one look at the skirts and she tried to leave the shop. She''d only stayed when he showed her the tank tops. blouses and jeans, he''d also requested a shop assistant to show her the underwear but he was told Ciri absolutely refused to wear a bra... Nice.

    In the end he and Ciri left the store, Reima still in his Absolver get-up and her in some tight blue jeans, leather boots and a blue blouse that''s unbuttoned enough to reveal her cleavage and the Wolf''s head medallion. They''d picked up many sets of clothing for both of them, Reima''s mostly consisted of t-shirts and the like, they both bought heavy winter coats as well. Reima had a couple dark green parka''s and Ciri had gotten some with fur lining the neck, all of which were sealed away into his Folded Space as it''d be far too much to carry.

    The duo had also gone and bought one of the things listed on the Hogwarts supply list, it listed a dress robe for \"Future events\"... Reima knew it was for the Yule ball and decided to throw wizarding tradition out of the window and go with some modern clothes. Ciri had been hesitant but when he told her of the future event and that she could pick anything she wanted to wear she''d gone off with a pile of cash in her pockets.

 243 Touring around London

    After the two had finished most of their clothing shopping Reima decided to take her around the tourist spots. Funnily enough the thing that most surprised her was the London underground, the hustle and bustle of so many people and the confusing layout almost caused Reima, an British born person trouble. On the train they didn''t encounter any trouble, only a busker her was swiftly thrown off of the train by guard, the man''s guitar shattering only rubbing salt in the wound, Reima didn''t bat an eye due to this being the way it had always been but Ciri was very confused by it all.

    Once they''d ridden the underground once the subsequent journeys became much easier, Ciri seems to enjoy the sights, more so for the technological innovation than anything else. When asked what was the most impressive she said Big Ben was a masterpiece, he didn''t disagree as it was quite unique from her perspective.

    Buckingham palace wasn''t very exciting as they''d both seen bigger and better palaces than that, Ciri would even eventually inherit one... The crowd was huge however which made it difficult to get around places without getting into fights. Madam Tussauds turned out to be pretty fun, the wax sculptures of various celebrities weren''t as realistic as the ones they had in the future but they still bore a striking resemblance, he had quite a lot of fun telling Ciri about the various famous people of this world. Afterwards she''d even requested to listen to Freddie Mercury''s music, that''d proven to be rather difficult actually... That was until he''d found a store selling \"Sony Walkman''s\", the devide was like a small metal block with an opening where you''d put a Cassette tape... It had a thing flexible headset included, he''d immediately bought two and went to the nearest HMV store to check out the Cassette tapes.

    They''d browsed the store and bought a wide selection of music to see what she''d actually like, rap, rock, country, folk, opera and many others were included. Ciri was incredibly intrigued at this and walked to the HMV register with a pile of boxed Cassette tapes in her arms, after paying for them the duo travelled to Hyde park and took a seat in the sun on the grass.

    They opened all the packaging for the Walkman''s and Reima helped Ciri set it all up, despite not really knowing what he was doing himself, after all Cassette players weren''t really around when he was.

    The first song they tried was an instrumental which resembles orchestra music, Ciri immediately switched it off while commenting \"It reminds me of the balls my Grand-Mother forced me to attend.\"

    Reima \"Alright, That''s a strike out... Next is... Straight outta Compton? Did this even come out in Britain?\" His contemplation is interrupted by the click of the Cassette player, he can hear the music from her headphones an can see she isn''t really enjoying it...

    Ciri \"I don''t know what they''re saying... It isn''t all that great to listen to either.\"

    Reima nods, \"Alright, two down... I think you''ll like this one, personally one of Freddy Mercuries best.\" he hands her bohemian rhapsody. Immediately he can see the difference when compared to her listening to the other tracks. Reima lays back and watches the various people enjoying themselves in the large park as Ciri enjoys the music.

    He idly thinks about his worst past, the things he liked and the things he disliked... It''s currently 1994 and there isn''t really much to change, most horrific events had either already happened or would happen so far in the future that he''d already be out of this world... Thinking to next year he realises there was one person he liked who was killed, 2Pac? He shakes his head, no that would happen later on in the year... Maybe he could prevent it though? He''s brought out from his thoughts when Ciri speaks up beside him, \"That was interesting, much better than anything I''d heard back home.\"

    Reima \"Ah, so Rock music?\"

    Ciri shrugs, \"If it sounds anything like what I''ve just heard then definitely.\"

    As the day eventually drew to a close the duo were already back in their Inn room practising magic. Ciri seems to easily pick up many different Charms while Reima mainly focuses on Transfiguration, by the time night rolls around they are each in their separate rooms meditating and enforcing their Occlumency.

    Ciri finally ends her hour of meditation and jumps into bed, thinking of the day she''d just had. For the first time in a while she thinks she had actually enjoyed herself, she''d been on the run for so long that she had almost forgotten what it feels like to relax. She runs her hand over the Walkman that Reima had bought her and decides to listen to a couple more Cassette tapes she hadn''t heard before, almost everything is a new experience for her and this is by far the best she''d come across.

    She was also gaining confidence over her magic, Reima had said he had his own style of magic and may teach her some if she proved she had the aptitude for magic via learning this worlds unique spells and techniques. She didn''t actually know how strong Reima was but the feeling he projected in the morning scared her slightly, it resembled her experience fighting against hungry beasts... Hopefully it isn''t symbolic for anything, she''d been betrayed before and dreaded thinking that her new acquaintance would do such a thing.

 244 Late night drinking?.. Sign me up!

    In a dimly lit office sits an elderly man with a huge white beard and golden spectacles resting on his slightly crooked nose. He wears flamboyant white robes and sips Fire Whisky as he ponders about recent events. Sirius black had unfortunately been killed while following his instructions on how to escape Britain, he''d been keeping in correspondence with Sirius via his Pheonix Fawkes... Through his telepathic connection with his familiar he''d seen the black dog jump through a thick bush to escape his pursuers only to be impaled on a young woman''s blade, the fierce look in her eyes seem to fade as he transformed back into his human appearance. Albus Dumbledore had shed few tears in his life but witnessing the death of a man who he himself had accidentally condemned to a lifetime of torture had been truly dreadful, perhaps the second or third thing he''d regret the most until he finally passes. He''d had to cut the mental connection as Sirius tried to beg for Harry''s sake as it was too much to handle. And of course it would be, Albus himself had even condemned the man''s Godson to a life of mistreatment and eventual death due to his poor past choices. But in the end it was all for the greater good, he could not allow Voldemort''s horcruxes to continue existing, his search hadn''t revealed much and the only ones he actually knew of were the one inside of young Harry''s scar and the book he''d unintentionally destroyed.

    He and his close confidant Severus Snape knew it was only a matter of time before Voldemort resurrected and so he had contacted his close friend Alastor Moody to keep an eye on harry this year. The man''s skill was almost legendary and Albus was sure he''d be able to keep harry safe during the event the ministry had unfortunately pushed onto him... The Triwizard Tournament. He''d heavily objected to it''s placement in Hogwarts but was overruled for \"International relations\" he scoffs to himself. Were it not for the bigoted populace who viewed those without \"Pure Blood\" as almost none-human such a thing wouldn''t be a problem, alas all his efforts in changing this particular mindset had been stifled by the few remaining followers of Voldemort that had weasel''d their way out of Azkaban... Most people think it was he who was too soft and allowed them to go free but that is not the case, funnily enough it was the pressure from the international community that''d saved the wealthy pure-bloods. Their connections seemed to extend far outside of Britain, Italy, Germany, Russia and even Bulgaria had argued for them and insisted they were under the imperious curse. A curse that took away ones free will and made you a slave to the caster.

    He rubs his eyes and looks down at the Daily Profits latest paper, the front page details Britain''s \"New hero\" Ciri Rivia, the woman who accidentally killed Sirius under his watch. He''d received a surprising letter from Minister Fudge a few hours after the conference, it detailed his intentions to allow Ciri and a man called Reima Ludvig access to Hogwarts to finish their magical education. He''d been wary of this as it seemed to be a power play to allow the Ministry more control over Hogwarts but a few things clued him into something peculiar... The obvious thing was that Minister Fudge never personally sent letters, instead he usually either directly Floo''d into his office or sent someone in his stead. The other thing is his promotion of a foreigner who might not even be a Pure-Blood as a \"Hero\", Albus had thought Lucius Malfoy would bite this in the bud as he notoriously hated even Half-Bloods, despite them making up most of magical Britain.

    Another thing that confused Albus was the information provided by Fudge, Ciri and her companion had claimed that they both hailed from Greenland... This couldn''t be the case as he''d personally scoured the island looking for Horcruxes, he hadn''t even gotten a whiff of a magical community residing there. Obviously he couldn''t let this be known otherwise Voldemort might catch on that he knew of the Horcruxes.

    He''d also received a letter from Ollivander detailing various things about Ciri and her strange friend Reima. The letter spoke of the man''s strange cat-like eyes and strange reaction towards the wands he presented them. Albus found this especially strange as most wizards grew in strength as they aged, this Reima seemed to only be around 17 and apparently had more magical power than even himself... As the most powerful wizard currently in Britain and perhaps the world if he didn''t constantly control his magic he''d also destroy any wand he touched, only through decades of learning to control his vast power was he able to use it for even delicate tasks. From what he had heard the young man named Reima lacked any kind of fine control, from Ollivander''s own words \"It feels like he had only recently gained his power\"... Such a thing was only possible through the darkest of rituals that even Voldemort would not attempt, for fear of bringing nature itself down on his head.

    Another matter he found strange was the fact that the two foreigners only seemed to be able to use staves? Ollivander noted that he suspected that they were capable of wandless magic but Albus highly doubted it, he was only capable of small party tricks through years of constant practise, if two young adults were able to naturally do such a thing he''d shave his beard. He wonders how they''d be able to use wand movements for the spells taught in the school but figures they must''ve already found a way to circumvent such a thing, after all why attend Hogwarts if they can''t cast magic!?

    In the end the old man could only hope for the best, he knew young Harry would be devastated when he heard the news and had sent letters to the Weasley household to try and comfort the young boy who''d lost his recently discovered Godfather.

 245 Dark Forests are where the fun starts!

    Around a month later on the 29th of July two people can be seen practising sword techniques in a dark forest.

    Ciri ducks under a slow swing by Reima and pirouettes before slashing at his wrist, this is easily parried by Arcell causing her to stumble backwards.

    Ciri \"Hitting you is like hitting a brick wall! Are you made of stone?\"

    Reima chuckles \"Maybe?\"

    The two had felt rejuvenated after their break exploring London, they''d spent most of the month training their magic and swordsmanship. Ciri had improved much faster than Reima had actually expected, she was already on the level of a 2nd year on most subjects. Of course she didn''t try her hand at elective subjects such as Runes, Arithmancy or Divination even if she''d likely be a better seer than most people in this world. No, instead of training that she instead followed Reima''s lead and trained Occlumency and the Animagus transformation, the latter was taken a lot longer due to you also needing to be verse in advanced transfiguration, and while Ciri was improving rapidly she wasn''t at that level yet.

    Reima didn''t slack off either, he was currently on the level of a 4th-5th year Hogwarts student. He''d advanced from the strict transfiguration and started practising the more difficult \"Free transfiguration\", this kind of transfiguration didn''t require spell chants or even wand movements. Instead it required for the user to be magically powerful and have an extremely strong Will, Reima incidentally had both and had took to this style of magic like a fish to water. He had also been training his Animagi transofrmation, Occlumency, Runes and Arithmency... Although he''d been focusing on trying to become an Animagus first as he''d have a lot of time inside Hogwarts to improve the other subjects.

    He hadn''t forgotten about his other styles of magic either and had been trying to control his aura and and Sorceries. Although he couldn''t practise to his full extent due to not wanting to cause a forest fire on previously unforeseen proportions.

    And that leads them to where they are now, with Ciri so engrossed in learning magic she''d completely forgotten about her main skills. Swordsmanship. Reima rectified this by finding a random forest in Scotland and training their Swordmanship, aswell as some of the more destructive spells they knew.

    Reima was about to parry another slash when he sees Ciri''s offhand stretching forward, \"Expelliarmus!\" she shouts. He lets the huge red bolt strike him in his chest to see the effects the disarming charm would have on him. It hits him and he feels his fingers attempting to recoil from his sword, his arms muscle seem to tense and something tugs on his sword. He endures the odd sesnsation and grips his sword tightly, completely negating Ciri''s spell.

    Ciri lowers her sword to her side and pouts, \"I put a lot of magic into that spell! How on earth did it not work?\"

    He shrugs, \"I''m quite magically resistant I think you''ll find.\" he says pointing his finger at Ciri and chantlessly casts \"Expelliarmus\" causing her sword to fly out of her hand and pierce the floor in-front of him.

    Reima \"Works fine for me, maybe you haven''t practised enough?\" he says with a sarcastic grin on his face. He immediately has to duck under the flying kick she sent to his face, he''s starting to regret ever teaching her martial arts... Most of the moves he''d actually taught her were based off of Jujitsu, using your opponents weight against them, for someone her size it''d proven a wise choice as anyone who wasn''t as impossibly strong as Reima would have trouble against her. It seemed Ciri wasn''t just talented at picking up magic but martial techniques as-well... Although they both found it extremely awkward to be rolling around on the floor in close contact together, even if Reima subconsciously enjoyed it.

    Unfortunately for Ciri, as she flew over Reima''s head after trying to kick him she accidentally landed on a black rabbit that just happened to be watching them. It squeaks as her foot crushes it. Scrambling to get off of it Ciri looks down at the.. Fine rabbit? Reima walks over and comments \"What''d that rabbit do to you? Maybe you hate fluffy things?\" he says as he bends over and picks up the bunny in his arms. \"You''re quite cute aren''t you?\" he rub it''s large ears while peering into it''s blood red eyes. It''s nose twitches as it turns it''s head to Ciri and glares at her, \"You''ve made it angry, maybe you should apologise? You''ll forgive her won''t you Snuffles?\" he jokes but when the rabbits nods at his words he becomes speechless.

    Ciri \"D-did you just see that?\" he nods and she approaches it, \"Erm, I''m truly sorry for hurting you..\" she says as she attempts to rub it''s head, it''s eyes squint as it enjoys the sensation until it suddenly leaps out of Reima''s arms and transforms mid air into a young girl who looks around 13 yearsold.

    She has pure black hair that resembles her rabbit form, pale skin and a beautiful porcelain face adorned with almost glowing red eyes. She wears a white sundress that doesn''t leave much to the imagination.

    Reima holds his hands up and exclaims, \"Chris Hansen I didn''t touch her!\"... drawing a confused glare from Ciri.

    She looks up them and finally acknowledges their existence \"Hello... I am Nerissa... Or Snuffles if you prefer?\" she says as she frowns at Reima.

 246 Of Monsters and Men

    Reima \"Err... Nice to meet you Nerissa?\"

    Her frown softens back into her placid expression. \"I was watching you two.\" she states.

    ...

    Reima \"Ok?\"

    Ciri \"I''m sorry for kicking you, should we take you back to your parents?\"

    The young girl shakes her head, \"This is my parents land, I doubt you''d last long if they find you.\"

    Reima shrugs, \"I highly doubt that... What are you?\"

    Nerissa \"Is it not obvious? I, am a Vampire.\"

    Ciri immediately back up and draws her steel sword, despite it not really being effective against monster without Oil. Reima just continues to observe, he had met many \"Monstrous\" individuals in the past... He even \"Bonded\" with Quelaag and so if he immediately attacked this girl he''d just be a hypocrite. \"Are you a threatening us?\"

    She shakes her head, \"No, I''m just warning you for your own good. It''d be a shame if you were torn apart, I quite enjoyed watching you fight.\"

    Ciri \"Are there many vampires in these lands?\" she asks, still prepared to strike the girl down.

    Nerissa \"Not that I know of, the community tries to avoid Britain... For obvious reasons.\"

    Reima \"I''d a thought Scotland would suit vampires fine, afterall sunlight would never breach this desolate hellscape...\" His joke seems to fly over both of their heads as the tension stays thick enough to cut with a butter knife.

    Ciri \"I didn''t know vampires could transform?\"

    Nerissa walks around, her bare feet crunching the sticks beneath them, \"Most can, it''s just not something we like to advertise... It''d be bad for my family if people started butchering black furred animals again.\"

    Reima \"Your family?\"

    Nerissa blinks, \"I''ve said too much...\"

    A voice calls out from somewhere, \"Rissa!? Where are you?\" the voice continues to shout for her and seems to gradually get closer.

    Nerissa \"I think it''d be best if you left, perhaps you could visit again?\" she asks semi-hopefully, it wasn''t everyday someone met a vampire and didn''t immediately flee or attack.

    Ciri \"No, I think we-\" she starts but Reima interrupts \"Maybe, just don''t tell your folks if we do turn up again... Or do? My friend and I haven''t killed something in a while now...\"

    The young girl nods, disregarding his comment and runs deeper into the forest.

    Once the duo return to their Inn Ciri immediately scowls at him, \"Return? Are you mad? The one monster Geralt told me to fear was Vampires and you wish to make acquaintances with one!?\"

    Reima \"The vampires in this world are different from the ones you know, significantly weaker... If they weren''t why hasn''t the world been conquered already?\"

    Ciri \"Because they don''t interfere with mortals?\"

    Reima \"Ah, you see that''s where you''re wrong...\" he opens the history book, \"I see you''ve been slacking on this worlds history. Look here, Vampires have been at war with Werewolves, Muggles and Wizards for so long records further back don''t exist, in-fact there were rumours that they were about to ally with Voldemort before his demise at the hands of Harry Potter.\"

    Ciri \"Ok, but I still don''t understand why you wish to converse with one.\"

    Reima would tell her his real reason, of-course it''s because she''s a cute fluff but he reckons that wouldn''t work. \"I need to find out more information about them, just in case they try to ally with Voldermort when he returns.\"

    Ciri \"I thought you said he was dead?\"

    Reima \"Yeah, but in the future he''ll be revived... I''m hoping to use the upcoming tournament to wipe out him and his allies in a single blow, this is the reason we have to stay in this world.\"

    Ciri \"And how do you know of this?\"

    He shrugs, \"Visions, visions.\"

    Ciri \"Right... But I still don''t agree with you talking to Vampires!\"

    Reima sighs, \"Look Ciri, I''m sure Geralt''s told you this before but not all monsters are evil. Do you think Vampires drink blood because they want to? Sure some might but some may just want to be normal and live peacefully.\" This quiets her and Reima realises it''s quite late at night. \"Just keep it in mind... Remember to meditate before you sleep, good night Ciri.\"

    She mutters a \"Night\" as he shuts the door behind him, thoughts of there previous talk and old conversations with Geralt run through her mind. Geralt was always very philosophical when it came to the \"Path\" and monsters themselves, he''d talk about why Witcher''s didn''t hunt Dragons and the many monsters he''d let go because they were harmless. She''d disagreed with him back then partly due to her being a hot-head and wanting to constantly fight but after this talk with Reima she couldn''t see anything wrong with the argument. Afterall most of the populous considered Witchers themselves monstrous, as well as Witches, elves and anything not human... Especially after that Eternal Flame religion starting becoming more popular. If she continued with her previous thoughts then what separated her from those bigoted peasants burning magic users alive?... Perhaps she should reevaluate her opinions on \"monsters\" and men.

    Due to the many thoughts running through her mind she found it incredibly difficult to enter a meditative trance and ended up not sleeping until it was late into the night.

 247 A Young Vampiress

    Nerissa is a young vampire, born to the noble house of Dracula. Her family was the descendants of the late Vlad the Impaler who was eventually killed by the traitorous Belmont family, the other Vampire families had abandoned Vlad due to his sheer power and treatment of the humans living in his lands. He''d gorge himself of their blood and was quickly whittling down their population, the vampire family Belmont had sent their strongest to assassinate Vlad and had succeeded, forcing the rest of the Dracula clan to flee. Nerissa had heard that all other branches of their family had been eradicated and that they were the only surviving members of the original blood line, this meant that she was not allowed even outside of the manor deep inside of the forest.

    The only real thing to do around here was read in the vast library inside of their manor... This is the place where she''d found the history of her clan and of those who''d forced them into this situation, it was quite strange reading about the Belmont family allying with humans to hunt their own kind... Maybe there is something else driving them?

    The only good thing about living here is that she was always close with nature, despite her kinds nature she enjoyed spending time among animals... It was strange as usually animals would flee from vampires but for her they seem to be drawn closer, as if they appreciated her company or something similar?

    Nerissa ended up disregarding her parents rules due to the sheer boredom she felt, whats the point of living if they have to keep hiding she thought to herself. She transformed into her favourite form, a small black rabbit and hopped through the forest until a Turquoise flash caught her attention. Looking over she saw a young man and woman beginning to attack each other with their swords, the man''s blade looks unnatural and fluctuated as if it''s there and not at the same time. The woman''s resembled a regular steel sword like the ones adorning the armour in her manor.

    She watched them train for a couple hours, the male obviously being more skilful than the woman but she was visibly improving after each confrontation. They''d also trained numerous magical spells that''d likely set the foliage around them on fire were they not blasting them with water beforehand. She''d started to mentally complain about them destroying her forest but obviously they weren''t telepathic.

    She''d thought they were about to leave when she was stomped on by that vile female! She was prepared to run away as fast as she could until the male picked her up and starting stroking her... The only thing she could call this feeling is \"Simply Glorious\", she''d never had someone stroke her animal form before. She felt extremely comfortable being hugged against his chest. Her message was interrupted when the woman started apologising to her and trying to stroke her, ah it feels good! But her pride wouldn''t allow this woman to continue, she left her comfortable seat and transformed in-front of them. The male immediately shouted something about \"Chris Hansen\" that she couldn''t understand and the woman looked ready to cut her down, from witnessing their previous fight she was sure she''d be able to dodge the females strikes but she was unsure about the males.

    She introduces herself and sarcastically comments on the pet name the male had given her bunny form, he seems embarrassed at his mistake and corrects himself.

    She waits for them to introduce themselves but neither does, the most she can gather is that the female is called \"Ciri\", a bad name in her opinion... They should have called her \"Brute\" or \"Imbecile\" instead. Nerissa keeps alert as being cut down here would hurt not only her parents but their family as a whole, as she was the heir to the Dracula clan. Vampires themselves are not actually able to use magic, however their abilities more than make up for this. Super speed, super strength, super reflexes along with the separate clans unique abilities. Some were able to control blood, some could control shadows and some could transform into animals, she wasn''t actually sure what the Dracula Clan''s unique ability was due to her family not telling her. She assumed it was her ability to transform into animals but that wouldn''t explain why the other families hadn''t destroyed their clan before... She elongated her fangs and nails in preparation for combat but the male seems to be calming the female down.

    In the end she accidentally invited them to her forest again, she hadn''t meant to actually say this but she wanted to meet the male again for some reason? Her mother eventually caught her and scolded her until sunrise, it seems she had greatly worried her parents... She felt remorseful but she fully intended to see that man again, hopefully they would visit in the future?

    She idly looks out of the windows of her manor and watched some weird bats fly past her manor before quickly disappearing deeper into the forest, strange, she''d never seen that species inside the forest before... Perhaps they were immigrating from somewhere else? She felt that was probably the right answer but something about their red eyes unnerved her, she brushes a wayward strand of hair from her face... Her parents would deal with whatever would happen, these thoughts put her at ease... She''d never know she could have avoided travesty simply by speaking with her parents.

 248 No rest for the wicked

    Elsewhere.

    It''s a stormy night in a palisade hold, the commoners were hold huddled inside with a line of salt drawn in-front of their doorways. They''d heard fighting, screeches and screams from outside and fearfully awaited dawn, this of course is the result of a Witcher coming into their domain... This is what they all assume, not knowing that the Witcher they all curse is combating groups of Wraiths.

    Blood Baron \"Geralt! This thing is going barmy!\" he shouts while struggling to calm the Botchling in his arms.

    Geralt twirls and cuts the throat of another Wraith and quickly casts an Axii sign on the mutated Fetus so they could continue the ritual. The rain continues to batter them as they cautiously walk through the town, occasionally fighting off Wraith''s attracted by the Botchling, eventually they reach the Threshold of the Barons home where they quickly conduct the naming ceremony before burying it.

    The baron sucks in air with heavy breaths, \"I-Is it done?\"

    Geralt nods, \"It''s done. You should go home, I''ll wait here.\"

    The baron tries to stay behind and wait with Geralt but is sarcastically rebuked and sent away, his head held low.

    Geralt kneels next to the grave and sighs, \"Why do I bother...\" he mutters, thinking about why he''s here... Ciri. A month or two ago he''d finally found Yeneffer but before he could get \"reacquainted\" she dropped a bomb on him, \"Ciri''s been spotted.\". This had been a shock to him, even more so when the Emperor of Nilfgaard, Ciri''s father hired him to search for her, heh, like he''d ever force her back to that vile man after his past intentions. He wasn''t sure whether or not Ciri knew Emhyr was her biological father but could guess that she''d already figured it out.

    Truth be told Geralt was in a rush to find her, not only because he saw her as his daughter but also because of how much damage and destruction the Wild Hunt could cause if they caught her. Alas instead of searching, he''s stuck doing errands for undeserving people like the Baron, he''d been blackmailed with knowledge about Ciri. He could just use Axii on him or threaten him but there were a couple things stopping him, one was the garrison of guards outside who had no qualms with outnumbering him and butchering him, presumably like they''d done countless times already. The other reason was that this man''s situation slightly resembled his, obviously he wasn''t abusive to Ciri but she was indeed missing. This caused him to agree to the man''s request which leads Geralt to where he is now, watching for a Fetus to turn into a guardian. He sighs, \"Maybe I should have just killed it?\" he shakes his head, \"No, that Pellar isn''t trustworthy... He had me searching for his damn goat for hours.\"

    He thinks back to his past experiences while waiting for the Fetus to turn into a Lubberkin, he had actually died once already... He''d taken a Pitchfork to the stomach when he tried to show mercy to a young boy in the midst of a \"race-war\", the last thing he remembered was Yennefer''s healthy skin becoming emaciated as she tried to heal his fatal wound. He still doesn''t know how he''d survived that, he had Yennefer had woken up in what he could only describe as paradise. It was awkward making love to her with live unicorns watching but he made do.... They didn''t spend long in paradise before the Wild Hunt came searching for Ciri, when he and Yen couldn''t or wouldn''t give them the information they wanted they kidnapped Yennefer. The subsequent panicked search with some Witchers from the Viper school eventually allowed him to find them, they weren''t strong enough to defeat them however and Geralt decided to trade his soul for Yennefers and become a rider for them. After that he didn''t really recall much, only that he''d reappeared without memory... This led to his current predicament where he''d entered a relationship with Triss, He''d need to sort this out with Yennefer later...

    Luckily he''d managed to somehow survive til now, he thinks back to the enhanced Witcher mutagens he''d recieved in Toussaint while looking for his still missing Apprentice. He now knew exactly why Reima didn''t disclose his unique magical powers , of course he would, the Elder Blood is one of the most sought after things in this world, as well as others. Geralt is still trying to wrap his head around how Reima knew he''d meet Ciri, it must''ve been fated that she''d end up being his surprise child... Maybe this is all leading to a big conclusion like you see in stories, maybe Reima is just waiting to return with Ciri? He chuckles, \"Indeed, and once he does he''ll unleash an ocean of fire on his enemies before slowly bringing peace to the world.\", the image cheers him up more than he thought it would. That kid saving the world? Yeah, when pigs fly and he''s introduced to a spider-woman purporting to be his daughter in law.

    These thoughts continue until the next day, a humming sound causes him to open his eyes, a ghostly blue figure of the Botchling they''d buried appears before him. \"Greetings Dea, I''m searching for your lost family, could you help me?\" It doesn''t even twitch before it starts floating off in a direction. \"No rest for a Witcher.\" he says as he quickly jogs behind it.

 249 Reima finally gets to F***... I mean Fluff.

    The next day on the 30th of July Reima and a still reluctant Ciri entered the Dark Forest again, a large breakfast courtesy of Tom had them fully prepared to spar for most of the day. This of course was only the side activity, their main purpose of coming here again was to meet Nerissa and see what else they could discover about this worlds vampires.

    Reima had been doing some reading on the local variety and discovered that they aren''t even close to the ones in the Witcher, the higher ones atleast. This worlds vampires are more akin to those you''d discover in a horror novel, they can''t come into contact with direct sunlight, garlic hurts them as well as running water, the reasons for this Reima can''t quite figure out but they exist nonetheless.

    The dark forest consists of many trees that leave the lower canopy in almost pitch darkness, if Reima didn''t know any better he''d think that these were created via magical means... Or where they? Either way the duo find the clearing that they''d used yesterday and set the picnic basket Reima had filled with store bought sandwiches to the side, he could just store it in his Folded Space but he wanted to try and feed Nerissa''s rabbit form... It''s for this creepy reason that he''d also packed the basket with carrots, much to Ciri''s chagrin.

    The thing he''d concentrate on teaching her today would be Witcher Signs... He was surprised to hear that Geralt tried to teach her but she wasn''t able to use any, this was surprising seeing as she easily learnt Aard and Igni in just a few hours within the forest meditating. When asked why she had trouble learning them she just shrugged and said \"It was like I had a block on my magic... One that doesn''t seem present now?\" the explanation wasn''t very satisfactory for Reima but he had to drop it as he didn''t want to badger her.

    After a couple more hours of combining various sword forms, Sign and spells Reima spotted a black red eyed rabbit watching them via his Observation Haki. He immediately halted their practise and almost skipped over to the basket, \"Snuf-I mean Nerissa I''ve got carrots, you want some?\".

    The bunny hops over and thrusts it''s head into the basket, unfortunately for her she doesn''t seem to be able to retrieve anything. Ciri sits next to her and tries to lift her out of it but gets kicked with her back legs causing her to huff and start eating her own sandwich. After a couple minutes a serene scene of Reima sitting next to Ciri with a black rabbit nibbling a carrot hungrily in his arms.

    This continues peacefully for around half an hour until something runs into the clearing, Ciri is already up with her sword drawn but quickly settles down as she sees that a child with tears streaming down his face is before her.

    He falls onto his hands and knees while sobbing, \"Dad, dad! I''m lost... Please.\" Ciri clears her throat causing the boy to jump, he looks to be around 6-7 years-old and is wearing wellingtons and a fishing hat. The boy sees that he''s not in any immediate danger and speaks up, \"Miss! I''m lost, can you help me please?\"

    Ciri kneels down still clutching her sword, \"I can and will, what''s your name?\" she asks in a soft voice.

    The boy seems enchanted by her and stutters out \"L-luke, are you an angel?\"

    Reima scoffs at the side and mutters \"Alright, calm down Anakin.\", the bunny in his arms seems to feel his agitation and wiggles deeper into his arms.

    Ciri \"Well Luke, where did you lose your parents?\"

    Luke \"I don''t know... We were fishing when some black thing took Dad away.\" he sniffles, \"He told me to run and I did, the black things didn''t want me.\"

    Ciri glances at Nerissa in Reima''s arms, \"Don''t worry we''ll find your dad, monsters are only in stories after all.\"

    Nerissa hops out of Reima''s arms and transforms behind a tree before walking back, still barefoot and wearing a white sundress. \"My family are the only vampires in this forest, they also don''t need to feed on live prey...\" she whispers to Reima as Ciri comforts the child.

    Reima \"From what I''ve seen there shouldn''t be anything fast enough to be described of as a \"Blur\" around here... The only thing that seems to fit would be a vampire.\"

    Nerissa looks uncomfrotable at this thought and Ciri walks up over to them, \"I trust everything is, well?\" she says, emphasising \"well\". Reima steps forward and whispers his suspicions of vampires, her gaze at Nerissa turns vicious but when he mentions what Nerissa had said she seems to come to the same conclusion. \"What should we do? The boys father is most likely dead.\"

    Reima rubs his forehead, \"We''ll look regardless, I''m a Witcher and I consider you a Witcheress... It''s in the job description. She nods and everyone turns to the young boy, Luke, \"Could you lead us to the lake you were fishing at?\" He shakes his head and explains he ran randomly, he doesn''t know which direction it would be in.

    Nerissa \"There is only one lake big enough to fish in around here.\" she says as she starts walking north. Reima notes that the quickest way to exit this forest is also indeed to travel northwards, usually if someone was attacked the attacker would drag them deeper into the forest but that doesn''t seem to be the case here? He''ll hold his conclusions until they reach the scene of the crime.

 250 Luke, that is your Father...

    Nerissa continues to lead them through the thick foliage of the forest, her bare feet seem to be incredibly resistant against the harsh forest floor. She occasionally moves ridiculously fast for a 13 year-old but he remembers her race when she glances at him with her almost glowing red eyes. When the path is blocked by thick branches she simply waves her hand and Reima spots claws forming and slashing them away, she''s pretty scary in all honesty, if he were still just a regular human and was never reincarnated he''d probably shit his pants at seeing this.

    The group eventually reach the small lake and spot the various supplies laid out by what could only be Luke''s father, a small grill is set aside along with a cool-box containing bottles of water, beer and sweets presumably for Luke. The two fishing rods still stand propped up facing the lake, one of them appears to have caught something while the other seems to have been snapped in half. Luke runs up and quickly reels in whatever was caught but unfortunately it manages to get away.

    Reima \"You''re fathers missing and you want to fish?\" he asks disbelievingly.

    Luke \"Dad said to never look away from your line...\" he says as he sniffles. Ciri rubs his head and he hugs her waist, his tears quickly moistening her tracksuit coat. Nerissa watches on seeming disinterested and Reima starts looking around, he poses with one hand covering his eye, \"Activate Witcher Sense!\"... Nothing happens and everyone ignores him, he probably deserves it for trying to cheer everyone up...

    At first it looks as if nothing untoward had happened here, but if one examined it closer you''d see some rather disturbing clues.

    1. The tracks of an adult male leading to the fishing rod don''t seem to have gone anywhere, the only thing that''d make this possible would be if he suddenly grew wings and flew off, was taken or fell into the lake. From what Luke had told them he''d likely been kidnapped by a flying creature.

    2. Whatever took him hadn''t disturbed anything nearby, assuming this is a flying creature Reima had focused on the higher foliage. This revealed nothing however as nothing was damage, it was as if Luke''s father had been apparated away. However Reima knows that this isn''t possible as Vampires can''t use magic.

    3. No lingering scents of any creatures, this doesn''t surprise Reima as Nerissa herself doesn''t smell distinct, in-fact she doesn''t smell of anything. He''d thought this might be a unique trait but apparently not.

    He sighs and crosses his arms, \"You guys found anything? There is nothing to indicate where he could have been taken.\"

    Ciri shakes her head forlornly, \"Nothing.\"

    Nerissa seems to sniff the air and suddenly speaks up, \"I can smell something... It smells familiar?\"

    Reima \"Are vampires blood-hounds now?\" he jokes, drawing a glare from Nerissa.

    Nerissa \"It smells like my parents... Only different? I''m not really sure what this means.\"

    Ciri \"Can you follow it?\" she prods.

    The young vampire nods and walks around with her nostrils occasionally flaring. She suddenly swings her head to the side and starts walking North yet again, the others follow, Reima drawing his Divinely enchanted Silver sword and Ciri drawing her own steel sword.

    They follow Nerissa for 30 minutes, she occasionally stops to recapture the scent but she seems quick good at this sort of tracking. The forest starts to thin and they eventually reach the treeline where Nerissa says the scent ends, Reima looks around and imidiately smells something himself, he glances at his vampire companion and sees her licking her lips... It seems she can smell it too, blood.

    He whispers this information to Ciri and she tries to persuade Luke to stay back and wait with her for them to search for his father but he absolutely refuses... In the end he comes along as they follow the strong scent. They exit the treeline and see a village not faraway, over in the distance they see a large group of people, some gasping, some crying but most seem absolutely distraught.

    As it''s extremely cloudy and approaching dusk Nerissa doesn''t have any trouble as the group approaches the mass of people, he hands the vampiress some sunglasses and wears some himself to try not draw attention. They slowly make their way through the crowd but stop when they see what they''re all staring at, the scent of blood is think in the air as everyone sorrowfully looks at the naked man crucified to a brick wall... All of his skin from the neck down has somehow been removed, the blood pools beneath the man as he lays up there, dead. The one thing Reima notices before everyone else are the two teeth marks in the man''s neck, clearly from a vampire... But why would they do something so public? No only that, this doesn''t seem to be for his blood as they''ve completely ignored it.

    Luke escapes from Ciri''s grip and runs towards the man while shouting \"DAD! Dad!! Please wake up! Dad?\" the crowd doesn''t do anything and just watches the young boy tug on his fathers skinless foot to try and get a reaction. Suddenly police sirens blare and everyone clears off, leaving Reima''s group still standing there.

    The officer wearing the typical blue outfit steps up and clicks his tongue when he sees the body, \"You lot, what''re you doing there?!?\"

    Reima \"What do you mean what are we doing? Look at this man, he''s been murdered!\"

    The policeman pulls out his baton and radio''s \"There''s been another, send social services and an ambulance... Just remember to bring a body bag.\" he looks at Reima, \"Look, this is none of your business. Just let the authorities handle it, I assume that''s that kids father?\"

    Reima can only nod before he and his group are escorted away, Ciri tries to comfort Luke but he''s whisked away by some social service agents.

    Ciri \"What on earth is happening in this town?\"

    Reima \"I have no idea, none of this makes sense...\" Nerissa nods with him \"My family are the only residence of the forest, perhaps this is a territory dispute?\"

 251 Mystery Gang?

    After discovering the corpse of Luke''s father and being separated from the young boy by social services the duo decide to investigate the town, Nerissa had already left as her parents were likely looking for her. From what they''d heard from the Officer this murder hasn''t been the only one lately, as the sun was quickly setting the duo found their way into the only pub around here.

    On the way they''d also discovered that the small town was called Brimsby, Reima directs Ciri to a table in the middle of the pub and walks up to the bar.

    A gruff black haired man wearing a white shirt and black pants stands there wiping a glass clean, noticing Reima he asks, \"Whattya havin?\"

    Reima puts down a 10 pound note and asks for two pints of lager, nodding to the man he he plops into his seat opposite Ciri, dropping the drinks onto the table as he does.

    Ciri''s hackles had been up every since they discovered the fathers corpse and so she sends him a questioning look, \"We''re not here to drink.\"

    Reima shrugs, \"Think of it as blending in, plus you need to calm down... We''ll get to the bottom of whatever''s happening in this town but it''s not going to take one night, so drink.\"

    She seems to be ignoring his words but sips her drink anyway while attentively listening to the various conversations around the bar.

    \"The misses has been keeping from drinking lately, real downer I''ll tell ya, I don''t tell her where to shop and cook so she shouldn''t tell me what to drink!\"

    The man sitting beside him clinks his glass, \"Hear! Hear!\"

    Reima does the same and listening to the surroundings while sipping his own drink, he personally prefers harder drinks but this''ll do in a pinch. Most conversations going round seem to be either about general things or the recent murder, although something odd to note is that these people refer to it as the first one? That''s not what he''d heard from the officer, or indeed how the crowd reacted.

    He continues listening for an hour or two until something finally causes him to perk his ears up.

    \"You heard? There''s been another one...\"

    \"I couldn''t not hear, old Markus murdered leaving his wife a widow and son traumatised...\"

    \"I tell you there''s something going on this in town, I asked my wife what she thought the other day and she had no clue what I was on about... Almost as if she''d completely forgotten about it.\"

    \"You know what? I think I know what it is...\" His friends leans forward while glancing around suspiciously, that is until he hears what he has to say. \"Aliens.\"

    He slams his fist on the table causing the many glasses now piled on it to jump and the surrounding people to glance at them, \"You fucking idiot! People are being murdered and you think it''s fucking aliens? Are you dim!?!\"

    \"Mate! What else could it be? People disappear only to turn up skinned alive and days later everyone forgets about it! What other explanation could it be apart from Aliens or feckin magic!\"

    \"You know what I think! I think it''s the damn government! Conducting experiments on us, like those yanks are probably doing over the pond!\"

    Reima stops listening as they ranting gets more louder, more disorganised and random. From the information they''d so helpfully given him Reima still had no idea what could be the cause... He isn''t familiar with the monsters living in this world but he was absolutely sure vampires couldn''t take peoples memories. He slips the transcript of the conversation over to Ciri for her to read while he ponders their next moves. He had a feeling Ciri would refuse to leave Brimsby until they''d solved this, he personally didn''t really need to sleep and was fine with around 2 hours of meditation but Ciri would likely burn herself out on this.

    After a while Reima is brought out of his thoughts as he hears a glass hit the table, looking up he sees that Ciri had finished her drink and stood up. \"Is something wrong?\" he asks, not sure what she''s trying to do.

    \"I''ve heard enough, clearly there is something wrong but we can''t stop it unless we''re proactive. I''ll start searching the streets, you can stay here or do the same... I''ll require my blade though.\"

    Reima follows her outside into the darkness of night and they dip into an ally way, he retrieves her steel sword from his Folded Space and decides to enchant it before handing it over. He runs his hand over the blade causing it to shimmer and suddenly vanish.

    Ciri \"I hope you''re joking or you might feel my fist.\" she asks blankly as she watches her blade disappear.

    He shakes his head at her tense attitude and grasps the now invisible blade, \"Here, this is the handle\" he says directing her hand to it. She seems surprised that she can feel it but nods as he explains that he''d turned it invisible to avoid drawing attention from the locals... After all, a young woman running around with a sword would even be noted in the local paper.

    Ciri \"I''ll go check the part of town closest to the forest, you check the other half.\"

    Reima doesn''t really know where or not to follow her instructions but nods anyway, she can probably protect herself from most things around here... Hopefully? \"How should we call for one another if yo-We, are in-danger?\" he mentally grimaces at his verbal slip.

    Ciri \"Just whistle, at sunrise we meet at the tavern.\" it seems she didn''t notice..

    He nods to her and they both leave in opposite directions.

 252 Dont piss her off...

    Ciri shivers and zips up her tracksuit jacket up further as she wanders through the dark streets of Brimsby, the only thing allowing her to see are the wayward streetlights dotted sporadically around the area. The whole situations is incredibly messed up, she was determined to find the people responsible for the murders. Truth be told she felt partly responsible for the loss of Luke''s father, obviously there was nothing she could have done but she still felt the niggling guilt of letting the boy down. Although she would never admit enjoying walking through these dingy streets, it reminded her of her time with her mentor and father figure Geralt. She idly remembered the various stories he''d tell her as they watched the stars, the one of him dredging through sewage always cheered her up.

    She tenses as she hears something nearby, it sounds like running water? She grips her invisible sword and silently approaches the sound, the street turns left and houses continue either side. She continues to stalker after the noise until it suddenly stops, she realises the sound come from a nearby doorway and quickly moves in to face the enemy... Only to see a man with his hand against the wall having a piss, he clumsy turns around, sees her and starts propositioning her while slurring his words, \"O-oh, Lass... Ya didn''t come to help me with this did yea?\" he says as his zips up his pants

    Ciri almost growls at him, \"Come any closer and I''ll cut it off.\" the pudgy man doesn''t seem to take her warning seriously until she waves her arm at the thin tree on the houses front lawn, causing it to drop to the floor, a clean cut clearly visible. The man pales, takes out his keys and opens the door he was just pissing on before quickly heading inside.

    Ciri starts to walk away but hears voices come from inside the house, \"George? You''ve been out drinking all night even when I told you not to?!\"

    What sounds like the mans voice replies, \"Y-you dun''t tell meh what tu do woman! Now leaf me alone, I-I think I''ll take a bath.\"

    She ignores the subsequent voices and continues searching the town, it''s an hour or so later when she walks into a playground and sits down at a swing set. There had been no clues of anything unnatural happening around the town, she just idly watches the Dark forests tree line while thinking about the possible things that could be the cause of it, of course most of her knowledge was limited to another world but she''d been as proactive as Reima at keeping herself updated on this worlds specific threats. The only thing she''d read about taking away peoples memories are witches and wizards. But that''s incredibly unlikely for them to randomly go round obliviating people... Isn''t it? Could wizards and witches be the ones attacking people and covering their tracks with magic? The thought causes her to grit her teeth, she''d been incredibly angry at hearing the kinds of things the magical folk did to keep their existence a secret. The secrecy itself wasn''t really a problem but the spells devised for such a purpose could be misused and abused in an incredible amount of ways, a wizard could literally walk into someones home, **** or torture the occupants, obliviate them then leave with no evidence apart from their bastard children. Reima had told her that such a thing woul commonly happen while Voldemort was terrorising Britain, in-fact the wouldn''t even need to obliviate the muggles, instead they just killed them istead.

    Her angry thoughts are interrupted as she spots a couple shadows dipping from the treeline and entering the Dark Forest, she doesn''t waste any time and immediately runs after them, making sure not to be noticed by whoever or whatever they are.

    It''s usually quite easy to spot disturbed foliage and tracks but this isn''t the case in almost pitch darkness, she instead had to vaguely follow the sounds of their footsteps. This continues for around 10-20 minutes until they reach the lake that the father and son had been fishing at. The three cloaked figures gather around and starts speaking to one another in hushed tones, \"The plan is working well.\" a whispered voice is barely heard by Ciri.

    \"Indeed, but I suspect we''ll need more to draw \"Their\" attention...\"

    Another voice speaks slightly louder, \"It''s fortunate we''ve got someone volunteering.\" he says and the three figures turn towards Ciri, they''re red eyes glaring directly at her.

    Her breath halts as she prepared for combat, her heart beating furiously as she lowers into an agile stance that Geralt had taught her and Reima had been helping her improve.

    Suddenly one of the creatures almost vanishes as it lunges at her, sharp claws that resembles knifes extend from it''s fingers as it tries to slash her... It seems surprised when she swings \"nothing\" at it and severs it''s wrist.

    \"Ahrrrghh! The bitch is magical, get her!\" the mans words cause the other two to jump into action. They move inhumanly fast as they surround her, one transforms into a black lion and tries to pounce on her, she stops this by casting Aard at it, blasting it a couple meters backwards as it rolls across the forest floor. Ciri herself is having an incredibly difficult time keep track of her enemies in this darkness, she having to rely on her hearing and reflexes to even deflect their blows, suddenly she''s kicked in the stomach and is launched into the lake, dropping her sword as she''s knocked away. She realises she''s in terrible situation, if she was able to teleport without alerting the Wild Hunt she would''ve done so already... The only choice she now has is to try and call for assistance, she sticks her fingers in her move as she floats in the water and whistles as loud as she can. She waits for help to arrive as the cloaked figures walk towards the bank of the lake and look down at her, they gloat over her as she helplessly waits for them to act... That is until blue light off in the distance draws their attention, what on earth is that?

 253 Meeting the cast.

    Reima had just split up from Ciri and started wandering around the town, in his hand is his Silver Sword, like Ciri''s also enchanted to be Invisible. It seems this part of the village is more popular among drunks as he watches many cheerful men walking here to there, probably trying to get home after a rowdy evening.

    He doesn''t expect to randomly find clues about the happenings about this town so just walks around haphazardly, somehow he actually finds himself in someones backyard... If he has to say anything then it would be that the plants are well kept? He sees a couple cuddling up and watching the television through the window, they almost spot him and he ducks out of vision while feeling like an absolute creep. He''s about to leave when he hears a commotion come from within the house, peeking again he sees three people standing over the couple. One has shaggy dirty blonde hair and has a face only a mother could love... But that he means it''s completely mangled, he wears a filthy looking trench coat and leans on what looks to be a walking stick. This however isn''t the most recognisable feature, the man has a large glass eye that rolls around in it''s socket, looking at everything. \"What''s Alastor Moody doing here?\" he mutters unconsciously. Reima doesn''t recognise the other people inside, one is a short man with black hair and the other is rather tall with brown hair and pointing his wand in the couples direction. He mutters \"Obliviate\" and the couple go stiff before both falling unconscious.

    The group is about to leave when Moody twirls around and looks in his direction before shouting \"Attention! We''re being watched! Tony and Elton on me!\" he says as he disappears.

    Reima backs away but ducks when he hears a crack behind him, a red bolt flies over his head followed by a couple more which he easily avoids.

    Reima \"Yo stop! I''m not an enemy!\"

    Moody growls \"That may be true! But my policy says shoot first ask questons later, HA!\" he shouts as chains shoot from the tip of his wand and try to entangle Reima.

    They form into springs before launching themselves at Reima, fed up by this charade by this point he just swipes down, easily cutting the chains into pieces with his invisible sword. Moody looks on shock and surprise momentarily showing on his face, \"You''re good boy, but not good enough!\" he says as the others in his group surround him and starts taking pot shots at him.

    Reima \"Stop! I''m a wizard!\" he says summoning the Staff of Manus in his offhand.

    They eventually stop shooting when they realise they can''t seem to hit him. Moody looks at the other two and comments, \"See that? That''s proper dodging! Son, you better have a good reason to be snooping around these parts.\"

    Reima shrugs, \"Me and my friend were investigating the murders, we had concluded that it must''ve been vampires but we were unsure who was taking the locals memories... I assume that was you guys?\"

    Moody nods, \"You''ve got a good head on your shoulders but you should leave this kind of business to the professionals, you might get killed otherwise.\" his voice lowers as he warns Reima.

    Reima grins, \"If they shoot as well as you lot do then I''ll be fine.\"

    Moody laughs and the tall man wearing some kind of old fashioned outfit points at his staff and asks, \"Is that your magical receptacle?\"

    Reima nods, \"Old Ollivander couldn''t find a wand that matched, thus I use this.\" he says as he silently seals away his invisible Silver Sword.

    The young looking black haired man steps up, \"Why is it shaped so strangely though? It looks like an axe...\"

    Moody grunts \"This isn''t a twenty questions session, stop asking him. What''s your name lad?\"

    He introduces himself ,\"Reima Ludvig, Witcher and Wizard.\"

    Moody \"Never heard of a Witcher before... I''m Alastor Moody an Auror, this is Elton an Obliviator and Tony, my app-\"

    Tony steps up and corrects him, \"It''s Tonks, nice to meetcha.\" they say visibly transforming into a young woman with bright purple hair, she holds her hand out to his, he shakes it and comments. \"I''ve never met a Metamorphmagus before, tell me do you know the answer to life''s greatest question?\"

    Tonks seems confused as curiously asks, \"What are you referring to?\"

    Reima grins, \"Are traps gay?\"

    ...

    Tonks \"How on earth would I know that?\"

    Reima shrugs, \"Well, I just thought that someone who could become a trap could tell me... Seems like a pretty sound theory to me.\"

    Tonks scowls, \"I don''t know what a Trap is and especially not it''s sexuali-\"

    Moody \"Enough, we''ve got a job to do incase you forgot it... Also did you forget what I told you! Never reveal your true form, you haven''t seen what disgusting things criminals would do to you if they found out you were female.\"

    Tonks moves her hand like a puppet and mimics moody talking which only angers him further, \"Nevermind, I''ll be sure to remind you when we return to Amelia!\", this seems to get a reaction from Tonks as her skin literally turns a pale white along with her hair losing all pigment and resembling Reima''s.

    Moody looks at Reima again and states \"You should go back home, collect your friend and leave, this isn''t business for children.\"

    Reima just lowers his sunglasses, revealing his cat-like eyes and replies, \"I''m neither a child nor is this not my business. This has become personal to my friend and I will see it to the end, believe me, I''m more than capable of handling myself.\" he says tapping his staff on the tile below him, causing many cracks to form as it shatters.

    Tonks just whistles at the display as her hair turns red, Moody seems to agree as he doesn''t pursue this line of thought any further. \"Very well, but if I hear one word of this from Amelia I''ll skin you myself.\"

 254 Reima > Vampire

    After Reima is \"allowed\" to accompany the group Moody has the obliviator Elton to continue on his own, but not before dexterously shoving something into his hand. Elton nods in understanding and starts walking towards the next house, presumably to obliviate them as well.

    \"Is that Obliviator, Elton going to be able to do the whole village?\" he asks doubtful that any wizard apart from maybe Dumbledore could do such a thing.

    Moody \"Course not, this has become an incident almost on the level of the death eater attacks from the past... We need to get it under control or the whole of magical Britain could be at risk.\"

    With the Obliviator gone Moody immediately starts asking Reima various questions about what he''s discovered, Reima tries to speak as truthfully as he can without revealing the existence of Nerissa and her home.

    Reima \"What is the ministry''s thoughts on vampires?\" he asks curiously.

    Moody continues to walk along the street without looking at him, his wooden leg appearing to cause him tremendous discomfort. \"Vampires? Dark creatures the lot of em, never met one that hadn''t tried to tear me apart or turn me.\" Tonks looks especially interested at the various stories Moody starts to tell about his past experiences, Reima just nods on idly and thinking how he''s going to keep the Auror''s away from Nerissa. \"What would happen to a vampire trying to live peacefully?\"

    The veteran barks a laugh, \"Peaceful? You''ve gone barmy. CONSTANT VIGILANCE! That is the only thing that protects us all from becoming like this half-living monsters.\"

    Once the group enter into the apparent centre of the village Moody pulls his wand out and mutters a couple incantations that Reima has never heard before, he does this in all directions until he looks towards the dark forest. \"There, in the forest... Someone''s using magic, I''d place bets on them being Hogwarts students but we have to check to make sure.\" he says as he starts to hobble in that direction, Reima just follows behind while keeping an eye out for anything suspicious.

    As they approach the treeline of the forest Reima notices just how clumsy Tonks actually is... They''ve been walking for maybe 20-30 minutes and she''s fallen atleast 10 times already, combine this with the peg-legged Moody and you''ve got the most immobile master-apprentice duo he''s ever seen.

    Reima stops them as he notices something strange, looking around this was the area that they''d come out of the treeline from, the lake shouldn''t be too far from here... No, what troubles Reima are the fresh tracks leading into the forest, they aren''t Nerissa''s as she''s always bare foot. He notices some tracks with less depth than the others, probably female by the.. weight... Shit. He looks up and eyes the disturbed foliage before glancing back at the Auror duo, \"Looks like my friend had come this way, along with atleast three other people, we should probably hurry up, My friend is strong but I dou-\" he''s stopped when he barely catches a high pitched sound, a whistle? A whistle! he mentally exclaims as he charges into the forest, his low light vision allowing him to easily traverse the thick undergrowth.

    He keeps sprinting, faster than even vampires of this world are capable of and eventually reaches the lake where the boy and his father were fishing. He spots them, three cloaked figures looking into the lake from the bank. Wasting no time he points his staff forwards and conjures many Crystal Soul Arrows, they give off an ominous blue glow as he shoots them towards the unidentified threats.

    All of them notices the disturbance with the exception of the one standing in the middle, as they others dodge he looks at his sides confused before he''s completely and utterly annihilated by the barrage of Crystalline Arrows. Something which surprises Reima is that his body bursts into ashes as he dies, something else that causes him a great deal of confusion is the fact that he didn''t absorb his soul, is his Dark Sign no-longer working as intended?

    Regardless he turns his focus onto the enemies now stalking him in the surroundings foliage, he utilises his Observation Haki to his max capabilities and waits for them with his Staff of Manus prepared to strike anything that comes close. He doesn''t have to wait long when a black figure bursts out of the bushes, their hands transformed into long claws. Reima swipes his axe at them, it''s speed not seeming to match the amount of effort he put into it, the axe whistles through the air and cleaves down the centre of the creatures body from head to crotch, completely bisecting them.

    \"One down, one to go.\" he mutters as he waits for the next one... But they don''t come, he hears a rustle in the bushes behind him and almost beheads the person stumbling through, he manages to stop himself as he sees the fearful face of Tonks, her hair turning green, blue and everything in between as Moody hobbles in after her.

    Moody \"Nymphadora! Don''t go charging into a battle ground again! I didn''t come out of retirement to present your folks your severed head!\" He shouts as he points his finger into her face, Tonks only replies with \"Don''t call me that!\" before sheepishly looking around the clearing, \"Did you catch them?\"

    Reima shakes his head, \"One got away and the other two turned to dust when I killed them.\"

    Moody seems to half smile and half frown as he mutters \"Shame, coulda questioned one... No trouble though, good riddance to trash!\" he says as he spits on the floor.

    Tonks \"You said they turned to ash? Must''ve been vampires.\"

    Moody scowls, \"No shit Nymphadora, argh! Without any information Amelia''s likely going to have to send the entire office down here.\"

 255 Moist Ciri...

    As Moody and Tonks are bickering Ciri manages to pull herself out of the Lake with some trouble, her clothes are completely soaked through with dirty water. She sees Reima watches two weird looking people talking to each other, seeming to forget she even existed. She strips her soaking wet tracksuit jacket off and throws it at him, unfortunately he unconsciously moves his head to the side causing Tonks to be the recipient instead.

    Moody pulls his wand out in a flash and points it at Ciri while Tonks exclaims \"What is this! It smells rank!!\"

    Ciri \"You couldn''t arrive sooner Reima?\"

    Reima turns around and sees a soaking Ciri with her blouse sticking closely to her body... He swallows and replies, \"I came when you whistled, I thought you said you were sticking to the village... What would''ve happened if I hadn''t heard your whistle?\"

    Ciri huffs, \"I would have handled it!\"

    Reima chuckles, \"From the lake without your sword?\" he says while gesturing to the indented grass where the invisible sword now lay.

    Moody keeping points his wand and asks \"This your lass Reima?\"

    Ciri \"I''m not his \"Lass\", I''m Ciri.. Rivia, quit pointing your wand at me, are you expecting me to transform into a cloud of bats and charge at you?\"

    Moody seems mollified and retorts, \"Unlikely, kids still drinking their mothers milk aren''t a threat to me... Hang on, aren''t you the one that killed black?\" he asks in surprise, they both don''t seem to notice Tonks gaze becoming more intense.

    Ciri crosses her arms not knowing whether to feel guilty or proud that that he knew of her, \"What of it?\"

    Moody shakes his head, \"Nothing, just never thought you to be such a weakling\" he says infuriating Ciri.

    Reima tries to calm everyone while tossing his dry jacket to Ciri, \"Guys, this isn''t the time or place... In case you haven''t noticed vampires are targeting Brimsby for some reason.\"

    Moody nods, \"Aye, vampires don''t usually cause such public problems, this isn''t their style.\"

    Tonks \"Maybe there''s something in the village that they want?\"

    Ciri \"Like what? From what I''ve seen there''s nothing even remotely valuable there?\"

    The group continue to make speculations but all of them seem wrong or leave to many leads to make sense. They leave the forest, with a shivering Ciri and Moody turns around just before he''s about to apparate away.

    Moody \"While you may have helped tonight, I''d suggest you both go far away from here... You, lass, have already had a lucky escape, don''t count on it happening again...\"

    Reima \"Whatever you say Moody...\" he says sarcastically drawing a glare from the mangled faced man.

    Moody \"I''ll send an owl if I need you for anything, who knows when we''ll need a \"Witcher''s\" skillset.\" he chuckles as he leaves.

    Tonks waves at them and apparates away with Moody leaving the duo on their own.

    Ciri \"Can we get inside? I''m soaking wet and freezing...\" she says wither her teeth chattering.

    Reima nods and teleports them into Ciri''s room in the Leaky Cauldron, he''s about to go over everything that had happened but a glare from Ciri has him stop, \"You want to watch or something? We''ll speak tomorrow... It''s, been a long day.\" she says tiredly as he starts to pull the wet clothes off of herself.

    Reima reluctantly leaves and enters his own room, the events of today playing back through his head. They''d discussed anything that could be valuable to the vampires in Brimsby except one thing... Nerissa and her family, that is likely the only thing that the vampires are interested in, for what reason? He doesn''t know but he can''t get help from the ministry as they''re all bigots, neither can he try get help from Dumbledore and his old group : The Order of the Phoenix, as there is no way any of them would be willing to help the killer of Sirius Black, even if most of them are not in the \"Know\" regarding the truth of his incarceration. In the end, it''s up to him again... He does have Ciri to help this time but he doesn''t hold out much hopes for her to rationally think her plans through, even in the game she acted impulsively with a disregard for her own safety a large amount of the time.

    He sighs and decides to leave it all for tomorrow, he''ll deffinitely need to contact Nerissa as soon as possible to make sure she leaves before the Auror''s start investigating the forest. His distressing thoughts fade away as he meditates and starts going through the various Occlumency techniques. Before he''d been working on constructing a library in the centre of his mental recreation of Kaer Morhen along with the army of Gwyn''s but he''d recently decided that those defences weren''t enough... The Gwyn''s were a good start but not the be all, end all. He looks up at the cloudy blue sky of his mentally created world and decides to add some more... Colour? He raises his arms up, not to cast a spell but due to the gestures helping him visualise the effect he wants, in the sky a small black dot forms, the clouds distort and everything in the forests surrounding Kaer Morhen start being sucked towards it... The trees shake and shudder, the lake suddenly has massive waves forming and everything not extremely heavy or nailed down starts being sucked into the black whole in the sky.

    With this completed Reima visualises everything around to have extra mass, this makes everything incredibly difficult to move but also stops everything being sucked into the black hole... Anyone invading his mental domain will have to fight gravity itself if they wish to obtain his secrets. With that done he walks back inside and continues organising his mental library.

 256 Vampire Hormones?

    For the third day in a row Reima and Ciri make their way into the Dark Forest, Ciri seems even more cautious than yesterday, probably due to her losing against a couple of vampires... This was likely a good thing as it deflated her ego and allowed her to rationally analyse her own strengths and weaknesses, especially without the ability to use the Elder Blood without alerting the entire Wild Hunt of her location.

    Like before, they start training their magic with Reima showing her how to cast Quen... Most of the effort in learning Signs is the meditation and magical aptitude for such a thing, while there aren''t any places of power for Ciri to observe the specific Sign''s forces Reima makes up for this by temporarily creating his own \"Man-made\" place of power but spamming a single Sign and overpowering it beyond belief... While this doesn''t result in an effective spell the usable energy is still tainted with the Sign''s \"meanings\", this allows Ciri to observe them while meditating.

    After Ciri picks up Quen after a couple hours of training they start to move onto sword fighting and martial arts... Or they would have if a certain black rabbit didn''t hop into the clearing. It jumps into Reima''s arms and he starts petting it with a stupid look on his face while Ciri watches on with her eyebrow twitching.

    Reima snaps out of his daze and speaks to \"Snuffles\", \"Nerissa, we''ve got to talk... I''d rather not have serious discussion with a bunny...\"

    The rabbit''s peaceful face seems to scowl as he hops out of his arms and transforms into Nerissa''s recognisable human form, \"I suppose I should hear you out... Did you discover anything yesterday?\"

    Reima \"We did, the culprits are vampires, we fought three of them yesterday near the lake but one managed to escape.\"

    Nerissa has a thoughtful expression as She ponders, \"This is troubling indeed...\"

    Reima shakes his head, \"That isn''t all however... The magical law enforcement is likely going to search everything within the forest to see if they can find anything. You need get your parents and leave as soon as possible.\"

    Nerissa''s expression collapses, \"Unfortunately that isn''t possible... Our home is under magical protection that keeps everyone out while binding us to it.\"

    ...

    Ciri speaks up from the side, \"Surely there''s some way of removing this \"Protection\"... It sounds more like a prison to me.\"

    Nerissa \"If there was a way out I''d have discovered it already, it was not our choice to be bound here... I don''t know who cast the spell but from what I''ve heard my parents haven''t been able to escape it for centuries.\"

    Everyone is silent, Reima crosses his and looks at the young girl who hands are clenched into fists, \"Would it be possible for us to take a closer look at this \"Protection\"? While I wouldn''t call myself an expert I''m sure we can come up with something...\"

    Nerissa, \"Absolutely not. My parents would tear you apart like pulled pork... You are both the first people outside of my family that I''ve met, it would be regretful if you were to die after meeting you.\"

    Ciri \"Can you tell us anything specific about it?\"

    Nerissa \"All I know is that we have to spend the majority of our day within the forest... Or we''ll die.\"

    ...

    Reima \"I refuse to not try do something about this, I''ll speak to your parents personally if I have to!\" he says as he start walking into the deepest part of the forest.

    Nerissa holds his elbow while planting her heels in the floor, unfortunatly for her, Reima is way, way... Way stronger than any vampire in this world, this results in her feet leaving two deep trails behind her as she''s dragged with him. Ciri follows even if she had some misgivings about literally walking into a vampires lair.

    He continues walking further into the forest until he spots something large and solid behind some thick trees, he gets closer while ignoring Nerissa''s increasingly distraught pleading. They enter some sort of clearing and finally see what they''re looking for. Ahead of them is a huge dark manor standing amidst the trees, the almost black bricks it''s made from have moss growing on almost every surface. Reima finds it kind of hard to believe that only Nerissa and her parents live within this place.

    Nerissa \"Please, don''t do this! Leave now and they might spare you!\" she almost shouts at him.

    Reima looks at her, \"Is it a door bell or do I have to use the knocker?\"

    Ciri shrugs and the young vampire girl only seems to get louder. \"This isn''t the time to joke! You. Will. Die. Leave, now!\" Unfortunately for her, they''ve already been spotted...

    From the third floor window two shadows blur to the floor, after arriving they stand tall and reveal themselves to a noble looking couple. The male has pitch black hair with glowing red eyes, his face is clean and handsome without any imperfections on it. The woman has blonde hair with similar eyes to her husband, she looks like an older version of Nerissa, incredibly beautiful.. They both wear formal aristocratic clothing that suits their look well...

    Reima appraises them before sheepishly scratching the back of his head, \"Err... I''m sorry if we disturbed your... Well, youknow.\"

    They seem confused but the woman has a look of realisation on her face as she spots the various lip marks around the males neck, they''re bright red as if they are from freshly applied lipstick that looks unsurprisingly similar to colour she''s currently wearing.

    Ciri remarks \"Is this why your daughter can sneak away all the time? Surely you people must have another hobby!?!\"

 257 Whipped Vampire

    Ciri''s words echo through the clearing and Despite the almost comical sight in-front of them the tension in the air is still thick, Nerissa''s mother tries to wipe away the kiss marks from the males neck but he directs her hands away and drags his fingers across the red marks, trailing four large deep cuts through his flesh, not flinching even slightly as fresh new skin heals over the top... Of course, without the kiss marks.

    He turns his gaze to them and begins, \"Daughter, you''ve brought us dinn-\" he''s interupted as his wife slaps his shoulder while saying, \"Ammy! No self mutilation infront of guests!\"

    ...

    The vampire or \"Ammy\" as his wife had called him dips his head down, \"Apologies dear...\" She seems satisfied by this and doesn''t bother on commenting the incredulous faces of Reima and Ciri.

    The male takes his wife''s arm and steps forwards \"Greetings, I am Ambrose Dracula and this beautiful woman beside me is my wife Talicia Dracula, formerly Alucard. You appear to have already made my daughters acquaintance, may I have the pleasure of knowing your identities?\" he says, eyeing Nerissa who''s still hanging onto Reima''s elbow.

    Reima bows slightly, if he can''t show respect to his friends parents then who is worthy? \"Reima Ludvig, Witcher and Wizard.\" Ambrose nose seems to raise in disgust at hearing the word \"Wizard\"

    Ciri steps forwards next and performs an elaborate bow that looks similar to the one Geralt had to perform to Emhyr. \"Ciri Rivia, Witch and Witcher in training.\"

    Talicia \"It''s a pleasure to finally meet someone in this place, I hope my daughter hasn''t troubled you?\"

    Ambrose growls out, \"Or troubled my daughter?\"

    Reima shakes his head, \"Not at all, she''s a wonderful person and I''ve come to appreciate her company while I train my companion in the forest... I hope you''ll continue to allow us to utilise them?\"

    Talicia and Ambrose speak at the same time, \"Of-course!\"/\"Absolutely not!\"... The look at each other and send meaningful looks at each other, the wife''s scowl seems to pacify Ambrose fortunately.

    Ambrose \"Very well, however... I''d like to discuss something with you, please come inside for... Dinner.\" he''s slapped on the arm again by Talicia, \"I''ll be preparing some game we caught, no need to worry.\" She looks at Nerissa, \"Come along my little rose, we''ll prepare some food for your friends.\" Nerissa looks awkwardly at Reima and Ciri before leaving with her mother as Ambrose leads them inside the large manor.

    Elsewhere in one of the kitchens of the large manor :

    Talicia starts butchering a small elk while Nerissa cuts vegetables beside her, while vampires don''t really need to eat they still all have functional taste buds. \"So dear, could you tell me about those friends of yours?\"

    Nerissa seems to shrink under her mothers gaze, \"Yes mother, I had... Left the Manor to explore the forest, there I saw some people using strange abilities in a clearing, I must have watched them for hours. Believe me mother they''re not like other humans that stumbled inside these lands, the man Reima is kind, compassionate and relaxing, the female, Ciri... She''s nice, I think she''s a good person but has trouble interacting with new people, or maybe just vampires?\"

    The mother smiles as her daughter stutters through describing her first and only friends, her cleaver appears like a silver glint as it easily separates flesh from fat and bone. \"So they''re trustworthy then?\"

    Nerissa nods. \"They don''t seem to mind that we''re vampires, I don''t think Reima is entirely human either... His blood is like molten lava and his eyes are clearly in-human.\"

    Talicia ponders thoughtfully, Molten blood? That''s new, if what her daughter says is true then they might have some hope at escaping this prison... She continues asking her daughter various questions about their guests and finds herself appreciating the company they''ve provided her, after-all it gets incredibly lonely around here, were she and her husband not constantly... \"Physical\" they may have gone mad centuries ago.

    Reima and Ciri are led into a large dining room with a long table strentching from one side of the room to the other, Ambrose takes a seat at the end on the most ornate looking chair and just silently watches them. The duo sit in the middle of the table next to each other and continue looking around, the room is dark and only lit by many candles, everything on the table is valuable looking and covered in Gold, gems or bronze... No silver however, though that''s probably because silver''s qualities cause \"dark\" creatures discomfort and even pain if they come into contact with it.

    Ciri \"This is a beautiful room, did you design it?\" she asks, trying to relax the tension in the room.

    Ambrose waves the compliment away, \"The furnishings are of my Wife''s design, I hadn''t noticed it until you mentioned it.\"

    Reima \"How long have you been living here?\"

    Ambrose appears to count on his fingers with a thoughtful expression, \"I seem to have lost count, maybe a thousand years?\" he says without any confidence.

    Reima \"A thousand years? How old is Nerissa then?\"

    Ambrose seems to smile slightly before returning to his neutral expression, \"Thirteen, she turns fourteen on the 14th of September if I''m not mistaken?\"

    Ciri \"Do you have any other children? One thousand years is quite a while...\"

    Ambrose shakes his head, \"Some families don''t have a problem but the Dracula family has notoriously low birthrates... Perhaps it''s natures way of balancing things?\"

    They continue to talk for a while until the doors open revealing Nerissa pushing in a large cart with five plates on it, Talicia follows behind her with two red bottles in her hands. \"Please grab a plate, Rissa, why don''t you take a seat with your friends?\" she says sweetly. Nerissa nods, gives everyone a plate before wheeling the cart to a corner of the room and sitting down next to Reima.

 258 Ciris been around...

    Once everyone is seated Ambrose clinks his wine glass with his nail and stands up, \"Now that everyone is present I''d like to welcome our first guests in quite a while... Dear, have you retrieved the drinks?\" Talicia holds up the two bottles and starts pouring Ambrose and herself a glass of the red liquid. Afterwards she goes over to Nerissa and fills her glass.

    Reima \"Er, is it ok to have Nerissa drinking?\"

    Talicia only smiles, \"Of-course, she is a vampire afterall.\" she says as Reima finally gets a whiff of the blood from the bottle. Oh, of course, he mentally retorts.

    Talicia \"Would you like some?\"

    Ciri refuses \"Sorry but I''m not sure I''d like blood...\"

    Talicia shakes her head \"I''ve got some wine here, 700 years old if I''m not mistaken?\"

    Ciri \"Oh? Please then.\" she says as she holds out her glass, Reima mimics her and sips it. Wow it taste like... Wine... Ciri seems amazed by it but he literally can''t taste the difference between this and the boxed wine you''d get at the corner store.

    Reima \"lovely, thank you.\" he compliments anyway, this isn''t his house after all.

    After the atmosphere relaxes slightly Ambrose speaks over the table, \"So, I''d like to hear why you''ve come here... It sounded as if our daughter tried to warn you away, wise advice I might add.\"

    Reima nods, \"Actually I have some rather dire information that effects you... Some vampires seem to be mutilating humans in the nearby village, this has caused the magical community to take notice and they may well invade the forest soon enough.\"

    Ambrose and Talicia seem to scowl, the latter speaks first, \"I think I know who may be responsible for this... In our community this kind of thing is known as the least honourable action possible, we call it \"Wizard Baiting\", a few hundred years ago during the clan wars this tactic was frequently used by my family, or former family I should say...

    Ciri \"Why would they be doing such a thing?\" she asks, angered at the fact those murders were literally only to draw the wizarding worlds attention.

    Ambrose \"Now, now. While my daughter seems to trust you, such information will remain secret. While I highly doubt you are spies we cannot take the chance.\"

    Reima \"That''s fine but there is a more pressing matter, the magical law enforcement are probably already planning to scour the forest. I heard from Nerissa that there is a binding keeping you here?\"

    Ambrose \"There is indeed the case, unfortunately the binding is only supposed to keep other vampires from invading the inner forest. It''s old and lost most of it''s power, those magical''s will likely breach the protection and find us... We''ll have to fight them off.\"

    Reima \"This is the reason we came, I want to see if there is anything I can do to release this binding...\"

    Ambrose chuckles, \"You? A young wizard who''s likely unable to tie your own shoe laces? Don''t insult my intelligence.\" he states irritably.

    Talicia \"Now, dear. Perhaps they could do something? It''s not like we''ve had a wizard try to break the wards, maybe that''s what we''re missing?\"

    The elder vampire sighs and seems to think, a minute passes when he finally seems to make his decision. \"Very well, after we''ve eaten I''ll escort you to the wardstone set up by that infuriating man.\"

    The dinner itself was pretty good, Reima hadn''t expected vampires to be able to cook so well, the roast pork was succulent and gamy while the boiled vegetables were a nice accompaniment, especially with the wine that Reima was slowly starting to appreciate. Once everyone was done Nerissa and Talicia took the plates away on the cart as Reima and Ciri followed behind Ambrose as he led them through the winding path leading to the wardstone.

    Eventually they reach a dimly lit room illuminated by many torches scattered on every wall, the place seems to consist entirely of stone, the previous wooden floors had transitioned into stone bricks along with the roof. The most eye drawing thing though is the black alter in the middle of the room, it stands around 5ft and has many markings that pulse blue occasionally. The small pillar-like object seems to be made from a black glass like material, it reminds Reima of Kalameet, his Obsidian blade.

    Ambrose \"This is the wardstone, it was set up before we even arrived here. It was a trap by that essentric old man you all seem to worship as a god.\" he scowls.

    Reima looks at him confused, \"Dumbledore?\"

    Ambrose frowns, \"Who on earth is Dumbledore? I mean the doddery old fool you know as Merlin.\"

    ...

    Ciri seems shocked, \"Merlin? He was here?\"

    Ambrose \"Yes?\"

    Ciri \"Sorry but this is strange... The Merlin I met in Avalon didn''t seem a thousand years old.\" she says confused.

    Reima is incredibly confused, when did Ciri meet Merlin? Did she go back in time or something? And Avallon actually exists?

    Ambrose \"I''m not sure if we''ve met the same person, unless you''re capable of time-travel or know a way of resurrected someone long dead.

    Ciri seems slightly downtrodden, \"Perhaps, the man I knew had long white hair and glowing blue eyes.\"

    Ambrose crosses his arms, \"Seems like you''ve met a doppelganger of some sort, I wouldn''t continue spouting such things amongst wizards... You''d likely be burned at the stake for saying such \"Blasphemous\" things about the man.\"

    Reima gives Ciri a look \"We''ll talk about this later.\" he says as he steps forward and leans over the wardstone.

 259 Another Prophecy, probably by a quack?

    Reima examines the wardstone closely, every insignificant rune and marking are taken into account... While he had been trying to train his runes he definitely isn''t an expert, the main reason for this is that he can''t practise what he''s learned as the results can be rather... Explosive. Regardless he recognises some of the runes laid upon the Obsidian alter, the ones he knows of are Algiz, Thurisaz and Dagaz, the respectively represent : Protection, Giant and Day.

    Algiz : Protection from enemies and Power.

    Thurisaz : Suffering, Motivation and Defence Against Adversaries

    Dagaz : Light, Hope and Good Energy.

    There are a lot more runes that Reima doesn''t know of, this is troubling as if he misses even one major rune, everything in the vicinity of the Wardstone could ignite, disintegrate, vanish, dehydrate rapidly and many, many other results... This is partly why Rune masters are so rare, most don''t last long enough to master the art.

    Ciri asks from behind him, \"Found anything?\"

    Reima \"I know some of these runes but I''m unsure about some of the others, wait there''s some sort of passage here?\"

    Ambrose \"Oh that? Just a taunt from that blithering old man to give us hope of escaping, truly I do wonder why anyone would respect such a despicable person.\" he spits.

    Reima reads it out loud for Ciri to hear.

    \"Peace be to lands, the foe has been felled

    Complacent Masses blunder as the Dark Musters

    One lord Quelled, Only to return once again

    A new threat is birthed from the old foes kin

    Space and Time will victory reside, under a new king\"

    ... Reima isn''t really sure what it''s referring to? Maybe Merlin is just an amateur writer making shit up? He shrugs, he''s dead so we''ll never know.

    Ciri \"Cryptic, although it sound as if it''s referring to me.. Or us I guess?\"

    Reima nods, \"It does doesn''t it, but it speaks of a king here, since it doesn''t say \"Queen\" it must mean me or someone else with our... Constitution?\" He scoffs, \"Fat chance of me ruling over people though, I''d rather just live in isolation within Kaer Morhen...\"

    Ciri shrugs, \"Well, we never know what might happen in future, maybe you''ll suddenly become an egomaniac and found your own kingdom.\" she says sarcastically.

    Ambrose interrupts them, \"As much as your conversation interests me I think we''ve gotten off-topic, is there anything you can do to free us?\"

    Reima looks sheepish, \"Well, yes... And no... I''m able to produce flames that destroy anything magical, this would eventually destroy the wardstone and it''s magic but it''d likely burn down the house and forest with it.\"

    Ambrose grins showing his fangs, \"That''s fine, as long as we can leave before the wizards invade that''ll be satisfactory.\"

    Ciri looks at Reima, \"Are you sure this will work? Burning alive due to a single blunder doesn''t sound good at all...\"

    Reima \"I''ve done it before, in-fact you''ll probably be able to do it too in future. We should get everyone together, I have no idea how the wards magic is going to react at being destroyed...\"

    Ambrose agrees and goes to collect his wife and daughter while Ciri and Reima wait in the room with the Wardstone.

    Ambrose briskly walks in holding Nerissa in his arms and Talicia follows closely.

    Nerissa looks at Reima and smiles, \"Father said you''ve discovered a way for us to escape?\"

    He nods \"I have but it probably going to destroy the house and the surrounding forest as their all in the Wardstone''s area of effect...\" he looks to Ambrose \"Do you have a basement?\" he nods and Talicia adds, \"We have a cellar for our large collection of wines... A shame we''ll have to leave the majority of it behind.\"

    Reima''s ears perk up at this and he smiles, \"I have a unique ability to store vast amounts of objects away, perhaps I could take them off your hands instead of leaving them to burn?\"

    Talicia sends a seductive smile at him, \"For our saviour? Of course.\"

    Reima nods and steps back, \"Ok, so this''ll be the plan. The sun will set in a couple hours and as I''m unsure how long it''ll take for the Wardstone to lose it''s effects I''ll use my anti-magic flames in advance, we can''t lose any time as the wizards could be trying to breach the wards right now for all we know. Once it''s lit we''ll retreat to the cellar and wait until the Wards are destroyed before fleeing, I don''t know where you can go so it''s up to you after that. But know this, Ciri and I will help you if you need it. Any questions? No? Ok.\" He says as he approaches the Wardstone, he channels as little

    Elder Blood magic as possible as they shape themselves into an Igni Sign, a small puff of Turquoise fire impacts the Wardstone and it immediately erupts with a bright light. Reima is blasted backwards and is caught by Talicia who easily places him back on the ground.

    Reima sheepishly thanks her before requesting Ambrose to bring them to the cellar.

    The effects of the Anti-Magic flames are extremely potent it seems, visible ephemeral turquoise flames spread outwards, eating all ambient magic, they pass the group and do seemingly no damage to them, instead all they feel is a disconcerting feeling of despair... This causes them to all increase their pace as they sprint towards the cellar. Once there Ambrose lets Nerissa down and she spins around to thank Reima, only to find him gone... She looks at her mother who looks amused as she points behind her towards the large selection of wines, when she turns she sees Reima moving extremely quickly while stea-Storing every bottle, vat and barrel in the vicinity... Ambrose has a helpless expression as he watches Reima steal all of his hard earned wine that he''d been collecting for centuries, he''s feeling envious at the fact wizards are able to create bags of holding like nothing...

 260 Catastrophe!

    Elsewhere

    Inside a small hutt hidden in the midst of Brimsby a group of cloaked figures can be seen, under each of their hoods dim glowing red eyes can be spotted.

    \"How is \"her\" recovery progressing?\" one of them mutters to another.

    \"The bait has been set, those fools will be upon them soon... Once the barrier is shattered will we strike.\"

    The one opposite the cloaked man raises his head revealing his blonde hair and perfect features. \"Perfect, Mother and Father will reward me, and you greatly should all go according to plan. Our family will finally rise above those other pretenders and claim our rightful position above mortals and Undead alike.\"

    Suddenly a black lion bursts through the door before quickly morphing into a tall cloaked man, \"Sire! Somethings happening!\" he frantically shouts.

    The blonde man scowls and looks at him, \"What is it? It better be important!\" he spits.

    \"Green fire has enveloped the forest and everything inside it! The fire is so large that the magicals have no doubt noticed it already!\"

    His eyes open widely, \"And?! What of the girl!\"

    \"I don''t kno-\" He''s grabbed by his throat and lifted up off of the floor, spluttering and coughing all the while.

    \"YOU BETTER KNOW! OR IT''LL BE YOUR HEAD I BRING TO MY MOTHER AND FATHER!\" He says as he throws the man back through the door he came from. He looks behind him at the gathered cloaked men,\"All of you! There''s trouble! We need to acquire her unharmed, go to the forest and wait for the magical''s to break the wards! Once done bring her to me, no matter the cost!\" his words echo across the room and everyone quickly leaves the room, pulling the black cloaks over them tighter due to them having to cross a small amount of sunlight.

    With Amelia Bones, head of department of magical law enforcement

    She''d just left a meeting with a recently out of retirement Auror called Alastor Moody, the information he provided was simultaneously more than they''d managed towards vampires while also being too little to do anything... The wizarding community had always struggled to deal with the ancient vampire clans due to their far reaching influence over muggle society, while they can''t go out during day this doesn''t mean they can''t interact with the muggle politicians, in-fact due to the greedy disposition most of them have, just an offer of immortality is enough to put them firmly into the vampires pockets. This has affected Britain before, they have numerous accounts in the past of catching people in cahoots with vampires, that''s probably not even the tip of the iceberg however as they didn''t know how much the British muggle community is influence by them, for all they knew the Queen could be one of them...

    She walks into the communication room where they receive the reports of accidental magic, breaches of magical secrecy and any unauthorised high-leveled interactions between wizards and muggles, the latter was only instated recently by Fudge to appease the blood purists. Amelia herself disagreed with it due to them literally being a branch of Britain created with the assistance of the British Monarchy, she didn''t even know whether Queen Elizabeth knew of their existence but it''s likely she did, if not they''d have to worry about a severe backlash should they get discovered.

    She idly looks over everything and everyone in the room, partly to get away from her vast amount of paperwork and also to keep the corruption at an \"Acceptable\" level... She''s tapped on the shoulder by a man with beads of sweat trailing down his face, \"Madam Bones, we''ve received overwhelming reports of a clearly magical disturbance, almost an entire village has already witnessed it despite our attempts to stop it.\"

    Her eyes widen, \"An entire village!?! What is happening and where is it!?\" she exclaims.

    The man seems to ponder how to explain the situation before finally speaking, \"A-A giant green fireball has appeared in the forest beside Brimsby...\"

    Amelia frowns, didn''t Moody just report to her that they''d killed the vampires responsible? \"Well? What are you waiting for? GO, ALL AVALIABLE AUROR''S ARE NEEDED! You there, I need a portkey to Brimsby!\" she starts shouting orders to the various applicable departs in a rush to stop whatever is causing the fire, they don''t need to muggle news to get a hold of this before they can stop it.

    Only an hour later two larger groups are streaming into the forest, one of vampires and the other, wizards. The vampires under special black cloaks that block sunlight temporarily while Amelia Bones personally leads her Auror''s along with Alastor Moody and the head Auror Rufus Scrimgeour. The vampires use their various unique abilities to hide away from the wizards while they try to figure out what to do with the wards that are completely enveloped by green fire.

    Moody looks at the wall of fire and scowls, \"Amelia! The intensity and colour of the fire lead me to believe it''s fiendfyre!\"

    Amelia \"That can''t be! No one, not even Merlin would be able to create, let alone control this amount of FiendFyre.\"

    Some of the curse breakers they''d temporarily hired from Gringotts approaches and comments, \"No, this isn''t FiendFyre but something else entirely, it also appears to be covering some kind of ward, although I''m not sure what it''s purpose is?\" he mutters as Amelia and Moody listens to him.

    Amelia \"A ward?\"

    The curse-breaker nods, \"Indeed, the flames seem to be drawing magic from it, I''d suggest if you wish to get rid of the fire, then first destroy the wards.\"

    Moody shouts, \"You don''t have to tell me twice!\" as he fires various spells in an attempt to destroy the ward, a few bounce off but a few don''t, once he finds the few that seem to do the most damage he continues laying them on thick as the rest of the Auror force mimic him and do the same.

 261 Flaming balls of fire!

    While everyone waits inside of the Cellar after Reima looted everything the discuss the plan of action once they escape. It appears that Ambrose and Talicia have had a safe house ready for use for a few hundred years. This was of-course unknown to Nerissa who''s been kept in the dark about most things, the reason for this is the fear that she''d try to escape the forest and enter one of them.

    Ciri idly chats with Talicia about various monotonous subjects including fashion, Reima himself immediately lost interest when they mentioned \"make-up\", he himself doesn''t really know why either would need it as they are exceptionally beautiful without it. Suddenly low rumbles echo through the walls of the underground cellar, it''s not uniform either as it randomly happens causing everyone to tense up.

    Ambrose \"Everyone wait here, I''ll check one what''s happening outside.\" he looks at Reima, \"You, please keep my wife and daughter safe.\" he starts to walk away but Reima grabs his shoulder, \"Are you stupid? I''ll go check instead, not only can I teleport but you can protect your family yourself. Ciri, Don''t worry about alerting \"Them\", if it''s life or death just do it... Oh, and wear this!\" he throws a couple cloaks that''ll prevent people discovering her identity should wizards actually be attempting to breach the wards. She nods at him as he leaves the Cellar.

    He walks through the already smokey manor and looks outside the window of the first floor, some of the trees had already be burned away, allowing small rays of sunlight to penetrate through and illuminate the forest floor. He however can''t see anything due to the limits of the wards extending far past the clearings treeline, he looks up and almost gapes at what he sees, from where he''s standing it''s as if he''s inside a fireball, a wall of his Turquoise flames covers the large manor like a dome... He equips Ornstein''s golden armour, it''s lion headed helmet providing him protection from being identified before jumping out of the window. He looks back and sees the large building already partly collapsing due to the fire but he shakes his head and casts Invisibility upon himself as he heads to the wards borders to see what''s happening.

    It doesn''t take long to see what the cause is, at one side of the wall of fire he sees various blunt force impacts pushing the fire inwards. Every hit forcing inwards even more than the last, it''s elasticity apparently indicating the strength of the wards, usually it''d take around a day to breach wards as powerful as this using this method but if you include the anti-magic flames the wards''ll barely hold up a few more minutes. His thoughts are interrupted as a powerful spell manages to pierce the ward, launching through and almost obliterating a charred tree as it hits, with a hole being created this causes a chain reaction as the rest of the wards collapse, unfortunately the allows fire to drop and start falling on everything below the dome. The Auror''s who were about to charge in stop as they see the sea of fire about to envelop everything beneath it, they do however notice many black blur charging a manor deeper inside the already burned forest.

    Amelia looks a the curse-breaker and shouts at him, \"Can we do anything about this fire!?\"

    He looks at it closely and waves his wand over some, causing it to burn brighter. \"It seems to be fuelled by magic, if we eliminate the fuel then the rest''ll follow.\" he says as he audibly casts \"Magia Subsisto\", this causes the fire to almost immediately peter out and fade away, leaving only orange embers.

    Moody nods at this and starts casting the same spell at the fires, causing them to either disappear or turn into regular orange flames which are easily dealt with. The wizards immedaitely create a path and start charging to the manor to follow the suspicious black blurs and hopefully discover what had happened here.

    Reima watches the Auror''s try and run through but are stopped by the flames, Reima himself doesn''t do anything as they cover him, his invisibility fades as the magic is eaten and the flames eventually snuff themselves out. His Observation Haki flares as he sees many cloaked people charging the manor, probably vampires if he judges them by their speed. Something that surprises him however is their apparent immunity to the small amount of sunlight breaching the now utterly destroyed canopy. Not wasting any time he teleport''s in-front of them, this halts them for a moment but when they see the turquoise flames dropping from the sky they try to escape into the Manor. Reima materialises his Divine Silver sword and cleaves one of the vampires completely in-half as they try to pass him, the now two separate pieces burst into ash and fade away. He grins under his golden helmet and points his sword at the frantic vampires \"YOU SHALL NOT, PASS!\"

    They all stop under the intensity of the command and all look at their leader for guidance on what they should do vs this seemingly indomitable foe.

    A cloaked man steps forwards and Reima can barely make out his long blonde locks under the hood. \"Warrior! We have no quarrel with you, step aside otherwise you will not like the consequences!\"

    Reima shouts back, \"You have no right to these lands nor the ability to take them by force!\"

    The vampire steps forward \"I do have the right as I am Hacan Alucard!\"

    ...

    Reima just looks at him blankly before shouting back, \"Fuck off!\"

 262 Hacan looking like a Soggy Biscui

    Reima \"Fuck off!\"

    The now named Hacan growls and thrusts his hand forwards, \"ATTACK, BRING HER TO ME!\"

    Reima doesn''t have time to think as he''s immediately assaulted by the around one hundred vampires present, his silver sword is extremely potent as he easily cut them down, even when he blocks one of their strikes with it they shout and squeal in pain at coming into contact with the divinely enchanted silver.

    Eventually the Turquoise flames that''d be slowly drifting to the forest floor had finally reached them, the vampires were able to dodge it with their incredible speed but Reima was unable to fend them off and also escape the fire... This was however what he wanted the vampires to think as he allowed himself to be enveloped, they all laughed and cheered in victory as they watch the burning man stand there, all assuming he''d rapidly die no-matter what. Unfortunately for them this was not the case, Reima who was now completely coated in the Anti-Magic fire leapt forwards and cut down a chuckling vampire who''d gotten a little too close.

    Hacan''s eyes become blood shot as he watches this single man utterly overpower his forces, even while he''s on fire he''s apparently still able to fight as if it doesn''t effect him! \"YOU IDIOTS, ATTACK HIM ALL AT ONCE! USE YOUR ABILITIES, DON''T SAVE THEM FOR AMBROSE!\"

    Upon hearing this the vampires start utilising many different skills, animal transformations, blood and shadow manipulation, flight and many more are used as they try to beat him down with numbers.

    Reima himself is actually enjoying this, it''d been a while since he had engaged in a slaughter, he didn''t even use any of his abilities apart from his incredible strength, speed and reflexes. His Silver sword sings through the air as he beheads another vampire. He dodges one and grabs his cloak, accidentally tearing it off of the unlucky vampire... As he does so the ever-present sun rays seem to penetrate his skin and liquefy him from the inside out, he gives a brief scream before exploding into ash. His allies give an indignant scream at his demise as their attacks increase in intensity, sharp black spikes extend from the shadows and try to pierce him as whips of blood try to stifle his movement. Reima simply pirouettes, expertly dodging the shadow spikes while grabbing the blood whip and fiercely pulling the caster towards him, cutting the flying man out of the sky as he flies past him.

    The battle had barely even started but the vampires numbers had already dropped by half, Hacan was incredibly enraged by this but didn''t dare enter combat against this, this monster! He shouts at his men and gives the order to ignore him and breach the Manor, Reima can only scowl at this, while he''s perfectly capable of protecting himself he doesn''t think he can stop the fifty vampires from getting past him, of-course he could just blow them all to smithereens with his magic but the callateral damage would likely spread to the Manor and the Auror''s. He couldn''t risk drastically changing the story otherwise his plans for Voldemort would go down the drain.

    Suddenly a spell flies over his head, looking behind him he sees what must be a hundred Auror''s charging into the clearing. They rapidly fire non-lethal and lethal spells at him and the surrounding vampires. Reima backs away and continues slicing the vampires apart as he tries to get back inside the Manor, he needs to stop them getting to the Cellar as he doesn''t know how many Ciri, Ambrose and Talicia can actually hold off.

    Inside the Manor, Hacan had already gotten inside with around twenty of his allies, he didn''t know if this was all of the survivors but the plan now rested on his shoulders. It doesn''t matter if he failed or died here, both results would end in the same for him. He and his allies run through the maze-like hallways trying to locate their target, they suddenly hear a voice behind them and spot that fucking golden warrior again! He shouts at his men \"SPLIT UP, WE MUST RECOVER THE TARGET!\", his men don''t dawdle as they''d seen what this golden dildo was capable of and immediately ran in various directions. Reima can only huff and dart after the group going in the direct of the Cellar, it doesn''t take long for him to catch up to them and cut them all down. He hears a scream from nearby and mutters curses as he realises where there coming from.

    Hacan and seven of his men finally find the entrance to the Cellar, they don''t hesitate to kick the heavy wooden doors open as they charge in. Inside Ciri immediately draws her sword as she pulls Nerissa behind her, \"Get any closer and you won''t live long enough to regret it!\" she shouts at them as Ambrose blurs out of existence from beside her, she''s confused for only a moment as the men surrounding the leader fall to pieces, their limbs separate from their torso''s as they drop to the floor screaming. Hacan steps back in fear and awe as he watches his men literally get torn apart by this man in-front of him, he''d been told stories of the House Dracula''s brutality but never had he thought it''d be this... Dominating, this was probably the reason he''d been given one hundred men for this single mission.

    Talicia steps forward as her eyes squint into lines, \"Greetings, Brother. It seems however that you''ve come without an invitation...\"

 263 Ambrose eating Ambrosia

    \"Greetings, Brother. It seems however that you''ve come without an invitation...\" Talicia says as she glares at the profusely sweating Hacan. His nerves more on edge from her expression than his mutilated comrades.

    Hacan \"S-sister! What a-a, coincidence! Yes, it seems as if I''ve accidentally stumbled onto yo-AHHH!\"

    He suddenly screams as both of his arms are torn off by an a livid looking Ambrose, \"Foul wretch! Do you think us fools?\" he spits, \"Bringing seven men with you and you expect mercy? Give me one reason why I shouldn''t drain you dry!\" he says as his fangs elongate, visibly poking from his lips.

    Talicia \"Now, now dear... I''m sure there are other ways to... Acquire information from him.\" he says while licking his lips.

    Ambrose \"Have you forgotten we are under siege from wizards? We will need to find a way to escape once the Wardstone is destroyed.\"

    Ciri tries to cut in through their heated conversation to suggest that Reima would be able to teleport them all elsewhere but she''s irritatingly ignored, she scowls but feels something tug the cloak she''s wearing, she turns and sees a tense Nerissa staring up at her.

    Nerrisa \"If you wish to be heard you will need to be more forceful... I''ve glimpsed Reima''s abilities and believe you.\" she says, putting aside her dislike for the young woman temporarily.

    Ciri nods, \"Hey! Yo-\" she''s cut-off as the prone Hacan starts screaming, everyone seems stunned by this due to them not touching him... If you exclude tearing off his arms.

    Bright red runes draw themselves across his skin, becoming clearly visible through his black clothing. He vomits a pink goo... No, wait those are his intestines? Gross. He seems to be in incredible pain as Ambrose kick him to the far corner of the room as Reima sprints into the Cellar and stands half a meter away from the glowing, screaming man. Ciri puts up a powerful Quen shield around Nerissa and Talicia in preparation for whatever is about to happen.

    Ambrose shouts at Reima while forcing blood from his wrists and creating a wall of crystaline blood that looks similar to rubies, \"GET AWAY FR-\" he doesn''t manage to finish his sentence as Hacan''s body finally erupts, a red flash is all Reima sees as he''s enveloped in an explosion that completely obliterates the Manor''s foundations.

    Outside :

    The large group of Auror''s had finally gotten through most of the flames, above them a giant cloud of black smoke can be seen from miles around due to the forest fire. Amelia was worried that the muggle authorities would be arriving soon, luckily for her bush-fires are not at all common in Britain leading the Fire-services to have no clue on how to tackle such a big and random disaster. Suddenly something rocks the ground under all of them, something is blasted out of the ground and flies a few meters below rolling to a stop in-front of the group of Aurors. They all look at it apprehensively but all jolt back when it suddenly screams, standing up it reveals itself as a black haired man with red eyes... Or formerly black haired as while he stands in direct sunlight all the flesh on his body immediately starts to melt inwards, his hair is singed off and he screams in agonising pain.

    The man better known as Ambrose can barely hold on for a minute under the suns rays, no matter how powerful he is, the sun is his antithesis, he, a person capable of single-handedly tearing down the foundations of vampire society with his bare power alone, slowly succumbs to his races arch-enemy. He sends a final glance to the caved in Manor and prays for his families safety before finally collapsing inwards, turning to ash.

    Amelia looks at Moody \"Are vampire suppose to last that long directly under the suns rays?\"

    Moody shakes his head, freeing a wayward bead of sweat that had appeared on his forehead. \"Absolutely not, whoever it was I''m glad not to face them after dark.\"

    Rufus Scrimgeour doesn''t convese with them and takes a command of the Auror''s, he orders some to search the estate and others to try help quell the fires. They needed to get this situation under control, they already had almost all of their Obliviator''s going around and zapping any and every muggle around.

    Rufus doesn''t follow the Auror''s inside the Manor, fearing that he''d be killed by the vampires who no-longer have to fear the sun indoors. Instead he inspects the foundations of the Manor to try and find out what caused it to collapse, he himself wasn''t an expert on engineering nor did he have a clue what he was doing... But it was readily apparent what had caused the building to collapse, a massive explosion, judging by the left-over residue probably created by magical means. He reports this to Amelia who first, questions why he isn''t inside with the others and second scolds him for not properly grouping the Auror''s into teams before sending them in, afterwards she immediately demands that he follow the men inside and \"Do. His. Job!\"

    As Amelia watches the man cautiously walk inside the building she scowls and turns to Moody, \"How he hasn''t done something demonstrably incompetent yet is beyond me.\"

    Moody \"During the war he''d always hide at the back, there was a battle in Hogsmeade where almost everyone else had been stunned, killed or incapacitated while I was the only one left standing... That''s where I got this gem.\" He points to his mangled face and Amelia finds it difficult to distinguish which scar he''s indicating, he continues despite her polite confusion. \"I''d just finished those masked bastards when I trip over a body, at first I''d thought nothing of it, that is, until it flinched... Looking down I see Rufus''s cowardly mug staring back at me, shaking like a child and smelling of piss.\" he spits on the floor in disrespect, \"That piece of trash got awarded for his services afterwards as well!\"

    Amelia \"I''ve heard similar stories but, he''s in the pockets of the head''s of prominent houses... The previous and current ministers wouldn''t dare provoke their ire.\"

 264 Under Pressure! Pushing down on me!

    Under an immense amount of rubble Ciri''s Quen shield illuminates the confined spot she, Nerrisa and Talicia had found themselves in. It seems that Ciri''s shield had protected them from being crushed and it''s extended use had temporarily stabilised the surrounding rubble, stopping it from sliding onto them and crushing them. This would be great were her shield not already showing signs of weakness, cracks slowly spread as the weight on top of it lowers it''s durability. She look at the two vampires beside her and hopefully asks \"Forgive me for asking but can you do anything to help?\"

    Nerissa just shakes her head and continues to gaze worriedly at the rubble resting atop them, Talicia however seems to ponder, \"I think I can keep us from being crushed but anything more is impossible.\"

    Ciri tries to smile through her focused expression, \"Could you do it now? I don''t know how long I can keep this up.\"

    Talicia nods and cuts her wrists with her nails in a similar fashion to Ambrose, the blood that leaks out seems to become sentient as it crawls along the periphery of the glowing orange shield. Once enough blood has \"Pooled\" forth Talicia appears to concentrate on something, she opens her hand before clenching it quickly, as if she''s crushing something. As she does the blood now surrounding them compresses and solidifies in a ruby-like material that Ambrose had also created to take most of the explosions impact. Soon the group is completely covered in a crystalline sphere, Ciri receives a confirming look from Talicia and lets her Quen shield dissipate, as it fades away they can hear the rubble shift and fall onto the ruby sphere, it doesn''t even make a sound as the weight in transferred to it and it easily keeps the rubble at bay.

    Nerissa''s eye''s are wide open as she watches her mother do this, she''d been surprised at her father''s use of it but this is something else entirely... If both of her parent''s had this unique ability, why didn''t she? She''d need to get answers from her parent''s once this was all over, she''d decided she had been kept in the dark enough.

    Reima had just been hit point blank by some kind of suicide bombing, he had thought vampires were above religions but he guessed he was wrong judging by the vampires dedication to their \"cause\", he reasoned to himself that you didn''t have vampires knocking on your door to preach the word of god is because they''d all burn to death trying... That and they probably can''t come inside uninvited, that way they couldn''t hassle vulnerable people into their cults... Look, he''s ranting to himself again, hopefully he only suffered a concussion?... Looking down he can''t see anything but he can feel that his are legs still attached, good... Arms?... He gives them a wiggle and finds that they''re still there, he tries to get up but the action feels as if he''s trying to perform a sit-up with an entire house atop him... Weight, that''s probably what it is. He covers his body in Armament Haki and forces his body upwards, stone, wood and anything else that constituted this rubble is summarily destroyed under his immense strength. Like a mole he manages to force his head out of the ground, his gold helmet scuffed and dirty but completely intact, the titanite reinforcing it making it incredibly durable, in this world it might even be considered unbreakable. He looks around and comes face to face with an older looking gentleman with long brown hair, a prominent scowl along with matching wrinkles adorn his face... Although they seem to rapidly disappear as they gaze down at him, the only thing visible from the floor being his lion shaped golden helmet...

    Reima \"Err, hello?\" his voice is muffled by the helmet but he''s definitely heard, like a frightened cat the man''s previously locked legs seem to spring themselves, causing the man to fall backwards onto the ground and quickly faint, all the while muttering to himself about gold body-less lion moles... This, while confusing is also convenient as he doesn''t have to worry about fighting his way out of an army of Auror''s, all the while trying to not fatally injure one.

    He looks around to see what part of the building he''d found himself in and finds that he''s currently buried where the stairs to the Cellar used to be, he extends his Observation Haki to see where the other Auror''s are and nods to himself as he sees he''s got a while before any turn up here, he turns and looks down at the rubble he''s currently buried in and spots a familiar magical aura, \"Ciri? Oh shit, Ciri!\" he mentally shouts as he realises she must''ve been buried along with him, he see''s two dark aura''s next to her that contain almost no magic what so-ever and concludes that one vampire is missing, personally he thinks Ambrose is missing, not only because men generally seem to die first in crises but also because he took the brunt of the impact from that explosion. He seemed like a cool guy so hopefully he''s still around and kicking... Again, he''s apparently gone off on a tangent, right now he needs those buried out so he teleport them away, he''s not really familiar with the wizarding world and has no idea if they can detect magical aura''s through significant material. He would assume that they don''t to his knowledge, if they did wouldn''t they use that in the department of mysteries to keep intruders out? Or during the 2nd task of the tri-wizard tournament where they had to find hostages in the murky depths of a lake infested with dangerous wild creatures.

 265 Reima = Boggar

    Reima had many ways to try dig his friends out but most would probably lead to them either burning to death, being crushed to death and being sliced to piece... To death...

    His aura was out as it would cause all the surrounding stone to become lava, cutting his way inside with the Moonlight Greatsword or something similar is a no-no so he''s left with the long, boring way. He starting carefully storing rubble into his inventory, making sure not to take anything vital to the rather unstable foundations. The last thing he needed was another collapse, that''d definitely spell the end for Ciri... He wasn''t sure how Geralt would react if he handed him a Ciri-Sandwich, not well he assumed. Rather Reima thinks he''d prefer a Yen and Triss sandwich \"Heh\" he chuckles to himself as he slowly makes his way deeper into what used to be the Cellar. He had almost reached them as he hears voices behind him...

    \"Ma''am, we found Head Auror Scrimgeour unconscious here, he appears to have soiled himself, perhaps he was hit with a stunning hex along with a bladder burst curse?\"

    Amelia can''t stop the grin from spreading across her face, she does however cover it with her hand and nods to the worried looking recruit who''d reported Rufu''s state to her. \"Yes, most likely... Have you found anything that may have caused this?\"

    The recruit approaches a deep narrow hole in the rubble that used to be a set of stairs \"Likely some kind of magical creature had burrowed itself here, due to the Head Auror''s state we suspect it may have been a new variant of a Boggart? One that burrows, if it does exist it''s most-likely linked with vampires or ancient homes inhabited by them.\" the on-sight Auror''s continue to discuss as Amelia half-listens, she stops them and leaves to see how the Obliviators are doing to quell the Muggle mass panic from the nearby Village.

    Reima hears all of this as he digs towards Ciri, hopefully they don''t try shine a light down here, he suspects his golden armour wouldn''t hide him very well, or it might? Maybe they''ll think a treasure vault was hidden down here, with he himself the treasure. He''s almost reached Ciri, she''s so close he can almost smell her, he comes across some kind of ruby wall and gives it a tap. \"Hello? This is not a drill, I literally had to dig with my bare hands here.\"

    On the other side he hears three sigh''s of relief and Ciri''s voice reply, \"Reima? Thank the gods! Listen, the rubble is resting on the red sphere, if you break it we''ll likely be crushed, can you make a small hole so we can teleport out of here?\"

    Reima \"Yeah, we should do it fast, the Auror''s are on my ass.\"

    Talicia \"Wait, Mr Ludvig, have you seen my husband?\"

    Reima \"No, we have no time to look for him, if he escaped do you know where he would''ve gone?\"

    Talicia \"Yes, once night has fallen we''ll head there for when.. If he ever arrives.\"

    After speaking with Talicia he asks them to back away from his side for a moment, he channels his Aura onto his finger causing it to glow bright red, the heat in the tunnel increases immediately by the end of his finger, he presses it against the Crystalline service of the ruby sphere, weirdly it doesn''t react like how he''d expected, in-fact he hadn''t expected anything to happen at all.. This was just him trying the easiest option first, under his finger the shiny service seems to bubble and boil before melting under his finger. He drags his fingers around in a circle big enough to fit his arm through, once down he gives it a flick causing it to \"Pop\" open, he doesn''t dawdle as he shoves his arm through and telling them to \"All grab him.\"

    He was tempted to make a glory hole joke but wish the rustling behind him and three women who''d not hesitate to tear him limb from limb he decided it probably wasn''t a good choice. A flash of Turquoise alerts the Auror''s looking into the hole, when they look deeper to see what happened they don''t discover anything and chalk it up to be residue from the explosion.

    Reima and three women appear in the shower connected to his room in the leaky cauldron. Ciri gives him an almost baleful look and says, \"You better have a reason for dropping us all inside a shower...\"

    Reima just sighs, \"Look around Ciri, what do you see?\" She reluctantly glances around the room before looking back at him, \"Nothing.\"

    Reima nods, \"Exactly, there are no windows here... Unlike mine and your rooms, I didn''t remember if I still had the curtains open and didn''t want to leave it to chance.\"

    Nerissa stands closely by her mother as the woman looks at Reima thankfully, Ciri seeing this just shrugs and walks out of the shower, she sees the curtains are indeed open resulting in the orange rays from the setting sun to envelop most of the room. He was right, not something she really liked to say as she hated admitting she was wrong, Ciri hadn''t even thought about the suns effect on vampires as they were teleported... If it were up to her Talicia and Nerissa would have both been rendered piles of ash on the carpet. After closing the curtains and adding a couple sheets just to be safe she calls out, \"It''s safe, you can enter now.\", as she does this Reima walks out followed by the wary vampires.

    He sits down on the bed and stretches his arms and back, \"We''ll it''s up to you two to decide what we do now, with Ambrose not around I''ll keep you safe in his stead.

    Ciri corrects him \"He means we. We''ll help you find a safe place, I don''t think that family, Alucard was it? Will give up so easily... Trust me, I''ve got my fair share of fanatic lunatics running after me.\" she says sincerely as she tries to comfort the mother and daughter. While Talicia has a stoic face, Ciri can tell she''s hurting, not physically but for the temporary loss the husband that she''d spent more than one thousands years with.

 266 Sanguine-Info Dump

    Reima allows the golden armour to fade away, leaving him in his old Absolver outfit before picking up on what Ciri was touching on, \"Alucard? Is that what those vampires were called?\"

    Talicia nods, \"My family.\"

    Reima \"If they are your family, why did they attack you?\" he asks, confused at this developing convoluted plot.

    She looks reluctant to even discuss it but realises that Reima and Ciri are the only ones who''re able to help them, \"My family, the house of Alucard is a distant branch from the original Dracula line... Before we went into hiding and subsequently sealed away by Merlin, I was married to Ambrose to secure the purity of the Alucard bloodline... It seems that they had never considered that the Belmont''s would completely disregard them and attempt to annihilate the house of Dracula. It''s been a thousand years since I had seen any of them, without the offspring of Ambrose to improve their bloodline they''d likely currently be one of the weaker houses.\"

    Reima \"So they decide to find and assassinate you to clear a debt? To take you back?\" he asks confused, he had heard the leader of the vampires shouting to \"Bring her to me\" but it doesn''t seem important enough to sacrifice one hundred to achieve it.

    Talicia shakes her head, \"No. They wouldn''t use resources for petty things like that, you see for us vampires, strength is everything. The value of a house is only determined by the strength and purity of their bloodline, if they lose that then they are considered inferior to others and may even be disbanded and or outcast.\"

    Reima \"Yes, but if they weren''t looking for you then that''d mean they wanted...\" he looks to Nerissa. \"You?\"

    Talicia grips Nerissa''s hand tightly \"You wizards aren''t the only ones with prophets, after Merlin transcribed a passage into the Wardstone we pondered over it''s significance for a long while... It was only after I fell pregnant that I realised what part of it meant. I know what the Alucard''s are after and I''ll give my life trying to prevent it.\"

    Ciri \"If you have information then it would be prudent to tell us.\" she says while leaning against the opposite wall.

    Talicia \"No, I cannot. Will not.\" she states sternly.

    Nerissa tugs on her mothers hand, causing her to turn back. \"Mother, if this affects us then I, we need to know... Can you be truthful to me for once?\" she says quietly while trying the \"Puppy eye\" technique which seems strange to witness from a vampire...

    Talicia''s face softens briefly before hardening into a scowl, \"I''m sorry, but I cannot give away this information. It doesn''t only concern the Alucard and if it got out we''d be hunted even more so than we are now.\" When Nerissa hears this she takes her hand away from Talicia, transforms into her bunny form and hops on Reima''s lap.

    Reima \"Fine, don''t tell us... Let''s move on shall we?\" he says trying to change the subject. \"We should talk about where we''re heading before the sun sets so we can use as much time as we need.\" he says while massaging the head of the bunny in his lap.

    Ciri nods and Talicia slowly regains her composure from the semi-interrogation earlier. \"The safehouse we''ve owned for centuries should still be standing on the outskirts of London...\"

    Reima \"Wait, if the Manor where you lived is in Scotland, how did you manage to keep property all the way in London?\"

    Talicia \"Ambrose wasn''t just a \"Vampire\", he was a Dracula.\"

    Ciri \"As is Nerissa, we still however have no idea what that means.\"

    Reima \"Nerissa told us she was only able to shape shift, Ambrose seemed to have controlled blood during the fight in the Cellar... Does this have something to do with the Dracula bloodline?\" he questions her as the bunny in his lap perks up.

    Talicia \"Again, it''s none of your business. But yes, Ambrose would travel to London as an eagle, while there he would collect blood and manage our affairs once a month.\"

    Ciri looks at her confused, \"Collects blood? So you do hunt people?\"

    Reima shakes his head, \"I think she means from a blood bank, although I stand to be corrected.\" he says as he gives a pointed look to the vampire.

    Talicia \"No, you''re correct. The non-magical humans have devised a way that allows our kind to live peacefully... In the past we would have to occasionally hunt due to having no other option available, but it''s different now, or was.\"

    Reima \"What do you mean?\"

    Talicia \"While most vampires seem to be taking advantage of the humans technological innovation, the noble houses seem to be stuck in tradition. This dictates that they are to kidnap healthy virgin humans and enslave them as \"blood storage\", in the past this was needed to keep a large house fed but it''s wholly unnecessary now days.\"

    Ciri questions \"Why virgins?\"

    Talicia frowns, \"Have you ever tasted someone with HIV? No? Well it''s disgusting and can make weaker individuals incredibly sick. Most blood borne diseases don''t effect us but for some reason sexually transmitted ones are our bane.\"

    Reima jokes, \"So if I want to avoid a vampire attack I just need to get HIV?\"

    Talicia \"No. The houses value pure blood and seek to maintain that in their \"Livestock\", this means that most would kill any infected they come across.\"

    After getting metaphorically slapped down he dips his head, \"How morbid.\"

    Talicia sighs, \"I suppose the only good news is that my family only deigned to send my competent brother and seven lackeys after us.\"

    Reima coughs, \"Err, no. I think there was around a hundred when we started...\" this receives a shocked \"What!\" from Talicia and Ciri.

 267 Reima not normal? Gasp!

    Talicia/Ciri \"What!\" they shout as they hear Reima, even Nerissa in her bunny form stares up at him in surprise.

    Reima scratches the back of his head, \"What? You think I was doing nothing outside the whole time?\"

    Talicia \"I though you were watching the wizards.\"

    Ciri continues to look at him shocked and not quite sure if he''s being truthful. She was soundly defeated by three of them, and here he is claiming that he not only survived verses one hundred of them but also seems to be suggesting that he had a hand in whittling them down to seven.

    Reima \"No, after I told that Hacan-whatever to fuck off he told them all to attack me.\"

    Talicia continues for him \"And you successfully escaped?\"

    Reima \"And I cut down around fifty before the Auror''s forced them inside the Manor...\"

    ...

    ...

    Everyone just continues to stare blankly at him, none of them could believe what he was saying, it just sounded so incomprehensibly ridiculous that they might find more sense in a children''s story book.

    Ciri \"Reima, can you tell me honest?... What are you?\"

    Reima tries to brush off the question, \"Just a Witcher.\" but if immediately rebuffed by Ciri, \"No, you''re not. I''ve seen Geralt bleed before, on many occasions in-fact. And on not one of them did he ever bleed lava!\" she almost shouts as she recalls his blood burning the ground on impact.

    Reima sighs, \"Look, you don''t want to know... Maybe in future I''ll tell you but for now this will remain my secret to tell. Let''s leave it on that.\"

    Ciri seems as if she wants to push the issue further but is fortunately interrupted by Talicia. \"It seems that we have a bigger problem than I had initially first thought. If my family had sent one hundred people then they''re already incredibly desperate, I don''t know to what lengths they are willing to go...\"

    Reima \"Well, with one hundred men down they''re forces can''t be that strong... Can they?\" he asks not knowing the average strength of vampire house''s.

    Talicia \"One hundred will hurt them but it''s only a part of their forces, before we were bound to the Manor they had around one thousand or so members, most were grunts tasked with kidnapping acceptable thralls but there are some extremely capable members with unique abilities.\"

    Reima \"Err, like controlling shadows and blood?\" he asks sheepishly.

    She nods, \"Indeed, those traits are common with many rarer sub-variants but they would still be highly valued in vampire society.\"

    Reima \"Yeah, so, err... I may have killed a few, no, quite a lot of these \"Ability users\"... But this is a good thing right?\"

    Talicia holds her head in her hands, \"Not at all...It''s good they don''t know what you look like otherwise you would be hunted to the ends of the earth.\"

    ...

    Reima \"Yeah, so, the thing with that is... They already probably know of me, since one that attack Ciri escaped...\"

    Ciri \"That should be fine, you used your staff to fight them off did you not? They won''t match you with the sword user that slaughtered many of their forces... And in the first place, was there any survivors?\"

    Talicia \"Not likely, but the houses are not stupid... They''ll investigate the wizards news outlets, due to your involvement it''s likely they''ll put a bounty on your head.\"

    Reima \"Not my head, Ornstein''s.\" he says while chuckling, the others don''t know what''s so funny but the thought of Ornstein utterly decimating an army of vampires amuses him too much to stop.

    The trio continue to discuss plans for the immediate future, with the safehouse being relatively nearby Reima is confident that he can get Talicia and Nerissa inside without much fuss. And so they await nightfall, it only takes an hour for the sun to finally set and blanketing the lands in darkness. Ciri peeks through the curtain and sees dark streets below, looking back she nods, \"It''s time to leave.\"

    Reima hands \"Snuffles\" to Talicia and gives her a pair of glasses to wear, to conceal of obviously vampiric eyes from wizards and muggles alike. Tom has a confused expression when unfamiliar people follow Reima and Ciri out the door but shrugs, as long as he gets paid it''s not his problem.

    Three people, one holding a black rabbit with red eyes walk onto the now dark and lonely streets of London. outside the leaky cauldron many cloaked individuals appear to be waiting for someone, they don''t bother the group as they pass by, only taking cursory glances to identify them.

    The group calmly walk through the streets, the only people around seem to be wayward drunks, similar to Brimsby if you exclude the larger amount of them.

    As they walk Reima cannot help but feel they''re being watched, he turns around while flaring his Observation Haki to try and spot anything suspicious but has no luck. For the rest of the journey he has a niggling feeling but just can''t seem to spot anything, eventually they reach what seems to be a residential area with many old buildings present. They walk down the street and come across a truly ancient looking building, it looks as if it hadn''t been renovated for, well \"thousands\" of years. It''s structure is reminiscent of old Victorian designed, if it ever had paint then Reima couldn''t notice. Funnily enough there doesn''t seem to be any damage to it''s structural integrity, no mould, no damage and no visible signs that any had visited, not even the smallest sign that''d suggest this place had ever been touched, let alone inhabited.

    Talicia \"43 Elur street.\"

    Reima, \"strange name, is it french?\" he asks conversationally.

    Talicia \"Not that I know of, Ambrose had said I''d understand in future...\"

    Ciri cuts in \"Well lets go inside shall we?\"

 268 Is Ciri an elf?

    Inside the house they find almost everything the duo could ever need, with the exception of blood of-course. Electricity doesn''t seem to have been connected but the numerous candles in a storage room seem to be enough to keep the place lit, these are likely only supposed to be used for guests as Vampires have absolutely no trouble seeing in the dark. Another thing that Reima notices is the lack of plumbing, he warily broaches this subject with Talicia \"You don''t seem to have plumbing here, or a toilet for that matter...\"

    Talicia doesn''t seem to know what he''s talking about until a face of realisation overtakes her expression, \"Ah, you seem to be under the impression that we''ll need such things...\"

    ...

    Reima \"Err, do vampires not excrete waste? Earlier you did eat regular food...\"

    Talicia \"Don''t try to rationally think on this, we vampires have tried to explain this phenomenon before but have always failed. Some theories suggest that we magically digest the food instead of bacteria, we are after-all \"Undead\". Our intestines are completely inhospitable to the bacteria necessary for such a process.\"

    Ciri overhears this and immediately feels jealous, next thing you know female vampires won''t have their monthlies, now that''d be a hard thing to swallow. Luckily for her Reima doesn''t continue questioning the various peculiarities of vampire biology, if he''d continued they would have found that Vampire''s have annual periods where they \"Excrete\" the blood of their victims in a similar fashion to human women.

    Nerissa had returned to her human form after they had entered the house and immediately gone to look for a library or something similar, if she had to live here then she would have to find something interesting to do to keep her occupied. Most of the houses windows are tinted completely black to stop any sunlight coming inside, there were also rooms entirely without windows. She''d found a bedroom with her name on the door, it''d contained a queen sized bed, lots of parchment and ink as well a a small bookshelf completely stocked with information about None-magical life, habits and various other things probably designed to help her survive if she ever found herself on her own. Ambrose probably had this prepared in-case they found themselves separated for one reason or another, he hadn''t actually thought he would die in such an unexpected and random way...

    Ciri followed some stairs downwards into a basement, inside she found many torture instruments that gave her chills. She unconsciously thinks back to her various interactions with that vile man called Leo Bonhart, he had, for lack of a better word destroyed her psyche as he was torturing her. The physical torture was enough to render any regular man insane, she''d managed to endure it but the worst part was when he forced her to fight in the area and kill numerous presumably innocent people for the amusement of those watching. She hadn''t done this willingly as she''d been thoroughly dosed with Fisstech, she only found out what she had done after each battle was over and the effects of the drug had faded away. The only solace she had was the fact that she had personally butchered the man for his transgression at Vilgefortz castle, even afterwards the scars of her torture ached or itched and acted as a constant reminder to never be caught and to get stronger.

    Ignoring the various instruments of torture she continued to look around the basement, over by the wall their seemed to be lines on the ground, as if something had been dragged over it. She was sure something was hidden here and did the first thing that seemed obvious, checked the nearby walls for switches or triggers. After looking for twenty minutes she didn''t find any, instead she turned her gaze to the only other things present, the torture machines... She walked over, mindfully not touching anything and staying away from anything that looked familiar. Eventually she found a strange contraption by the wall that looked like a rack, from stories she''d heard of them being used to dislocate every bone in someones body... However this one looked strange, the chains that''d usually be connected to someones body disappear into the floor below, looking at the large crank that''s connected to it she has an idea. She cautiously takes hold of it and starts spinning it, it''s easy at first but gets heavier the more she turns it, eventually she had to use all of her weight just to move the blasted thing. Suddenly she hears something behind her, she goes for her sword but realises Reima''s still got it, from when he''d taken it from her as they were walking through London.

    Turning around she sees a section of the wall had opened, following the same scratches she''d found earlier.

    Ciri \"I think I''ve found something!\" she calls up the stairs before cautiously analysing the entrance, she wasn''t about to get trapped inside so she pushed some metal tool in the path of the stone door, sure that they''d block it from shutting. Inside she sees a large pentagram written in some kind of black paint on the floor, getting closer to it she immediately understands what the black paint is, blood. Backing away and looking around she spots numerous bookshelves completely full with tomes and other ancient looking books. She can hear the others making their way into the basement, this makes her more comfortable to look at these things closer, she gives the pentagram a wide berth as she walks around it and approaches a bookshelf. After pulling one free she reads the title on the front, \"10 uses for live babies\"... She throws the tome to the floor, disgusted at it''s assumed contents and quickly reads the title of another, \"Muggles or Squibs, which blood is better?\"... \"What is this place\" she mutters, not believing Ambrose was responsible for it''s creation.

 269 Open up

    Reima enters the secret room that Ciri had apparently found, immediately he notices the large pentagram on the floor and Ciri reading a book with a disgusted expression.

    Reima \"Ciri! Drop it now!\"

    Ciri jolts and drops the book, confused at his command.

    Reima \"Please tell me you atleast scanned them for curses before touching them?\" he asks while sighing in resignation.

    With a sheepish expression she shakes her head, \"I, may have forgotten.. To.\"

    Unfortunately Reima isn''t a curse breaker nor has he purchased any book on the subject, the most he can do is scan for magical presences down here. With a wave of his hand he tries to sense anything containing magic with the obvious exception of he, Ciri and the two vampires beside him. Once done he''s relieved that the only magical thing present is the pentagram, and that''s only residue from a ritual that was cast quite a while ago.

    Reima \"You''re lucky you weren''t cursed, don''t do something so stupid again... Your luck will only go so far.\" he scolds her a she seemingly ignores him.

    Picking up the book she had just dropped he reads the title \"Muggles or Squibs, which blood is better?\"... This place is obviously full of dark magic but there is no sign of anyone visiting for a while, this was supposedly a safehouse acquired by Ambrose, could he have been in contact with a dark wizard? It wouldn''t be strange since he was trying to find a way to break the binding ever since it was put up.

    Reima scans the bookshelves for interesting books that may help him without being too sadistic, morally evil and or unforgivable. Surprisingly he does find a book that draws his interest, it doesn''t have a title and reads more like a diary than anything else. After skimming through it, it seems to be information on Animagus transformations, by the way it''s written it must''ve been written around the time this particular magic was being refined. He''d read that the earliest users of self-transfiguration similar to Animagi were Native-Americans who''d take an inordinately amount of drugs, psychedelic mushrooms and poisons by certain animals and insects. Inside the diary is discusses various ways to improve the transformations and many, many speculations should certain circumstances ever come to pass. Whoever wrote this was apparently very skilled in the art, from a few key clues he''d managed to gather that their Animagus transformation was that of a Raven, what this means? Reima has no clue.

    Reima looks behind him at Talicia and questions \"Did Ambrose ever tell you about this place?\"

    She shakes her head, \"No, never... Perhaps we could ask him when he returns?\"

    Reima mentally counts the amount of time he''d been missing and comes to one conclusion, \"I''m sorry but if he hasn''t returned already he''s at best captured, at worst dead... If not there is no way he wouldn''t be here now, we witnessed his ridiculous regenerative properties when we first met...\" he says as bluntly and truthfully as possible to the woman.

    She appears to have come to the same conclusion but still held out hope that he''d come eventually. Her eyes look down as she quickly mutters \"I''m sorry... I think I need some time to myself...\" as she leaves the secret room and slowly out of the basement itself.

    Nerissa looks up at him and questions, \"Do you believe father is truly gone?\" she asks, and almost chokes through her sentence. He gives a nod and tries to stroke he hair comfortingly but she''d already turned and made her way out of the room, probably towards her mother.

    Ciri just stands back and watches, she''d been slowly getting closer to the young girl but she didn''t think it was her place to comfort her... She felt like she knew what it felt like to lose her father, afterall Geralt had died briefly were it not for her intervention, but she still felt like these two experiences didn''t match up. She couldn''t really imagine having a husband for such a long time before suddenly losing them. \"Do you think they''ll be ok?\" she asks him as he watches the young girl leave.

    He doesn''t move, \"I don''t know, Nerissa is mature for her age but losing a parent will always hurt...\" his answer draws long into silence.

    Ciri sits on a wooden table covered by many haphazardly written notes, \"What of you? Were you close with you''re parents?\" she asks cautiously, she knew of how most children taken to become Witchers were unwilling to leave.

    Reima shrugs \"It''s been such a long time since I''d thought of them, I can barely remember their faces to be honest... But I think they were good to me. How about you? You keep your cards close to your chest and have never mentioned them before.\"

    She seems uncomfortable by the question but answers anyway, \"I don''t really remember my parents, I occasionally recall memories of my mother teaching me to dance, read...\" She smiles to herself before quickly stifling her emotions. \"Before I''d even lived past my fifth winter my mother died sailing to Cintra due to a storm, my father was also supposedly killed but I know not that was not the case.\" she says bitterly.

    Reima notices he appears to have touched a sore spot, \"Sorry, I didn''t mean to bring up bad memories.\"

    Ciri waves it off, \"No matter, nothing can change the past. Shall we continue to peruse these shelves?\" she asks trying to divert to conversation, he doesn''t comment and nods. It isn''t long before a comfortable silence forms between the duo as they investigate the rather vast library.

 270 Daily Profits...

    Soon it''s sunrise, the duo are unaware of this due to them both being in a secret room underground. Reima is still happily sifting through books, separating the extremely dark vile ones from the useful grey. He looks to his side at Ciri to check her progress but frowns when he sees her lying face down and drooling on some valuable looking documents while snoring... Using his telekinesis he quickly saves the document from being destroyed via saliva and exits the room to check on the others.

    Once out of the basement he walks up to Talicia''s room and knocks, a hoarse feminine voice quietly says \"Come in\" from inside, taking the invitation he opens the door revealing the widow with tear streaked makeup and redder eyes than her vampiric nature would imply, her face looks puffy for some reason and she looks all around exhausted.

    Reima \"Are you ok?\"

    Talicia nods, \"It''s been a trying night... I was just preparing to sleep... Did you need something?\"

    Reima finally notices the small black rabbit lying on the bed, asleep. \"I just wanted to let you know, if there is anything you need, I''d be more than willing to help.\"

    Talicia starts to shake her head before slowly stopping as if she had an idea, \"I''m sorry to ask this but would you be amiss to providing us... Blood?\"

    Reima shakes his head, \"I''m sorry but my blood would be incredibly hazardous to ingest.\"

    Talicia \"Ah, no, that''s not what I meant. I was asking if you''d be willing to occasionally drop by the blood bank for us, I don''t think I need to tell you how dangerous it would be for us to be seen in public...\"

    Finally understanding what she meant he nods, \"I can do that... Though I would like to ask a favour of my own.\"

    She looks at him expectantly, waiting for him to say what he need. \"Ciri and I have been living in the Leaky Cauldron for a month or so now, I''ve been meaning to find a proper place to stay but found it''d be pointless since we''d be going to Hogwarts in September... Anyway, I''m asking whether or not we could stay you with two until school starts...\"

    She doesn''t even hesitate to agree, \"Yes, of course. In-fact it''d be a boon if you stayed with us, not only for my daughter but for our protection in general. I, am not the most combat oriented person, obviously I''m not saying I''m weak but Ambrose was always the strongest, without him I don''t think I could protect Nerissa from \"Them\"... As long as Ciri is fine with this then I''ll ready your rooms immediately.\"

    Reima shrugs, \"Seeing as she''d already fallen asleep in the basement I think it''ll be fine, she''s been slowly warming up to the idea of living around vampires...\" He personally believed her aversion to vampires was due to her blood''s unique qualities... If the hags at Crookback bog would ignore the Wild Hunt''s orders just to ingest her blood then what would vampire be willing to do? Of course he doesn''t make his speculations known, he didn''t wish to find out the effects her blood would have on vampires in this world.

    Reima holds his hand out and they both shake in agreement.

    As Talicia''s about to leave her room to prepare his and Ciri''s, he suddenly hears the fluttering of wings. Immediately on alert he draws Arcell and pushes a confused Talicia behind him. She tries to tell him something but he ignores it and gets ready to meet the threat. Through the door comes a large grey owl that throws something in his face before turning around and fleeing as fast as it''s wings can carry... Apparently it understood the danger it was in.

    Talicia \"Did you really just try to cut down the mail owl?\" she asks in disbelief.

    Reima seals away the sword and sheepishly rubs his head, \"Er, not... Just practising caution is all...\", her expression tells him exactly how much she believes him. He shrugs off her glare and uses Telekinesis to pick up the package off of the floor, it''s snatched away from him by Talicia as she rapidly opens it up, revealing a news paper, the daily prophet.

    She clears her throat and reads the front page out loud, \"Fiend-FireBall draws muggle attention!\"... She sighs and reads the paragraph below. \"Yesterday a huge ministry response was formed to stop a magically made green fire from burning down a forest and the nearby Village Brimsby in Scotland. Experts suggest the green colouration indicates the use of FiendFyre by they state that \"Not even Merlin would be able to produce that amount.\", the Department of Magical Law enforcement sent out all of their Obliviators to try and maintain the statute of secrecy. Head Auror Rufus Scrimgeour made this statement when questioned, \"We are led to believe that the fire was not fiendfyre and was instead a new unidentified kind that used magic to fuel it, the unspeakables are already on the case and investigating what could have been the cause.\". We at the Daily Prophet endeavour to bring you all the most truthful news possible and as such asked a couple Auror''s who do not wish to be identified what they saw happen. \"We''d just breached the Fire and immediately came under siege from a large group of vampires using some kind of modified clothing that prevented the sun from affecting them... We would''ve had a hard battle on our hands were it not for a mysterious golden armoured individual cutting most of them down with ease, if this is included then I''d like to say one thing for this person, My family thanks you and I thank you for helping me make it home.\", with this new information we immediately asked the head of magical law enforcement for any comments, here''s what she had to say : \"I don''t know how you accessed this information as it''s highly restricted but since it''s already out I''d like to make one thing public, we at the ministry of magic do not agree with vigilantism and certainly not in incredibly high risk situations such as the one we found ourselves in yesterday. Therefore I''d like to make known a bounty placed on this \"Golden Lions\" head for a thousand galleons, if you have any information on this man please bring it forwards.\".

 271 Fear fear itself for fear of fear is the only correct fear.

    Talicia holds up the paper, \"Look, you''re famous...\"

    Reima takes it and skims the rest that Talicia hadn''t read out, it seemed that the ministry hated anyone taking things into their own hands. The more he finds out about them the more Authoritarian it all seems, and with how corrupt they are he has to be extremely careful or he''d anger the wrong person... Personally he had no qualms with just going on a rampage and purging the taint via fire, but he kind of wanted this world to remain relatively peaceful... It''s so similar to his own earth that he''s considering making this his \"Vacation\" spot for when he''s fed up with the Witcher world. Other than that he''d also like to utilise the knowledge this society has, in future he might \"pop\" over to the London library and \"Ste...Tak...No, permanently borrow.\" their books. Considering the large amount of people he''ll likely be bringing back, the information on agriculture, technology and everything else would prove extremely useful to him... And if that''s not enough he''s sure other countries have libraries as well, maybe he''d try his hand at finding the Great Library of Alexandria.

    He looks at the name of the person who''d written the article and mentally scowls, Rita Skeeter... Do they have no other writers apart from her? Since Animagi don''t revert to their humans forms when they die, maybe he''ll accidentally \"Step\" on her, that''d be a shame wouldn''t it.

    \"Hang on\" he mutters before looking at Talicia, \"How did that owl get in here... And how did it know to find you?\"

    She shrugs, \"Every magical home has an entrance specifically designed for post owls, as for how it found me? I don''t really know, they seem to always know where to deliver mail, I''ve been keeping up to date with magical news due to how boring it is being stuck in that forest for such a long time. We even had up to date magazines on fashion and home design delivered. Ambrose liked to renovate the house occasionally when we weren''t... Occupied.\" she says smiling but slowly turning into a frown.

    After they''d finished their conversation Reima left to pick up all of his and Ciri''s belongings from their room in the Leaky Cauldron. He''d let Tom know that they wouldn''t be lodging with him any more and tipped him a good amount for his hospitality. Once back he had already found two room prepared, Talicia seemed to have done it so quickly he could barely belief they weren''t already read to be used as guest rooms. He gets everything in order before moving onto Ciri''s room, he''s only inside for a few seconds when a groggy Ciri stumbles in, looking for him.

    Ciri \"Are we going back to our rooms any time soon? I could do with a shower...\"

    Reima \"No, I''ve decided that we''ll stay with Talicia in this house for the time being... This''ll be your room so help me set it up.\" he says laying out all of her new clothes on the bed.

    Ciri \"Is there even a shower here?\" she grumbles, the luxuries of modern day society have spoiled her Reima mentally thinks.

    Reima \"No, you''re gonna have to wipe yourself with a wet towel or learn to do it with magic.\"

    Ciri''s eyes light up, \"Of-course!\" she exclaims and casts \"Scourgify\" which causes soapy bubbles to cover her entirely before quickly disappearing, leaving her clean but utterly soaked through, her white shirt giving Reima and eyeful...

    After getting a good look he rapidly turns around while she rubs her eyes, apparently it''s uncomfortable to have your eyes literally cleaned by soap... Once she''s able to see she looks down and sees her state of \"Undress\" and glares at the back of Reima''s head. \"Did you see?\" she asks in a grave voice.

    Reima \"See what? Did you fail the spell or something?\" he says while \"Organising\" the clothes on the bed. Hearing this she huffs and throws the damp shirt on the floor and retrieves a clean one from the bed.

    After she''s changed Reima walks over to the wardrobe to put the clothes inside, once open however Reima frozen in place. Inside he sees some sort of picturesque scene that seems to go deeper the closer he looks. Inside he sees a burning Kaer Morhen with many bodies scattered in the courtyard, all of them being someone he knows, looking up at the balcony he sees Eredin, leader of the Wild Hunt holding a severed head and a beaten and bruised Ciri. He looks at Reima and tosses the head at him, looking down he realises that it''s Geralt... He tries to not let his emotions effect him but he can feel hiS aura becoming unstable. Suddenly he''s pulled backwards, Ciri yells in pain as her hand is severely burned from touching him but she''s also shocked into silence by what she sees inside the wardrobe... Inside she sees three men standing there in the midst of a blizzard, Auboron king of the Aen Elle, Eredin and Avallac''h. They grin and leer at her as she falls backwards onto her butt, Reima who finally managed to restrain his aura sees them and realises what this is, a Boggart. He''s not in the mood for fucking around and making it laugh and instead steps forwards with his hand outstretched, Turquoise flames burning fiercely around it. The three figures seem to distort as his hand approaches, he feels something as he tries to grab the vision, looking what''s in his grasp he sees a small grey sickly looking creature that resembles a goblin mixed with Golum from Lord of the Rings... He doesn''t waste any time and crushes it''s skull with his fiery fist, not even allowing it to scream in agony as it''s brains cover the insides of the wardrobe.

 272 Fried is Forever

    Reima lets the creature drop to the floor, completely and utterly dead as he falls on his backside from the mental fatigue. He had not thought such a thing would effect him at much as it did, but seeing such a realistic depiction of what would undoubtedly happen if they lost against the Wild Hunt had him almost raging... If he wasn''t in control of his faculties he may have tried to invade the Elven world to wipe them out completely, whether or not he''s capable of that yet is still to be seen, especially with their use of the white frost.

    Looking to his side he sees Ciri sitting there, trying to stop her trembling hands. While he could understand her fear of Eredin and their king, he couldn''t comprehend why she would fear Avallac''h as well. From the games he''d always been a mysterious character with unknown goals but maybe here Ciri is well aware of his intentions in this timeline?

    Reima \"Ciri, are you ok?\" he questions, he himself also feeling the strain of the experience.

    Ciri slowly nods, \"Yes, I think so... I-I just wasn''t expected to see them so suddenly, thanks the gods it wasn''t real.\" she mutters. Reima would like to question her but realises asking her something to personal and clearly troubling to her would be insensitive. \"Do you want to talk about it?\" he asks quietly.

    She shakes her head, \"I''d prefer not to, if you wouldn''t mind...\"

    Reima \"It''s fine, maybe in future you can tell me what''s troubling you...\"

    Talicia walks through the door confused at the sudden rise in temperature and shouting. \"Are you tw-Oh my!\" she says as she seen a black blood splattered Reima with an injured Ciri at his side.

    Talicia \"What happened!?\" she exclaims.

    Reima \"Boggart in the wardrobe... I thought you''d checked the room...\" he almost growls out.

    Talicia holds her ground, \"I did, I just wasn''t expected anything to be inside... This building doesn''t have wards or any magical objects that''d attracted magical beings. How a Boggart found it''s way inside alludes me still!\"

    Reima \"Whatever, it''s done now... Are you sure there''s no more surprises waiting for us?\" he gives her a stern look.

    Talicia nods \"I''m sure.\"

    As it''s almost noon and both vampires are asleep Reima decides to try cheer Ciri up by taking her out for breakfast. At first she seems as if she wants to just stay in side and glower at everything, but he manages to tempt her away with promises of a hearty fried breakfast. Putting on his shades and a casual outfit he''d previously purchased he leaves the house with Ciri who''s dressed in tight jeans with a long blouse that reaches her upper thigh, her wolf''s head medallion clearly on display between her cleavage... Not that Reima would notice as he''s a complete gentleman...

    After 10 minutes of walking they find a small restaurant reminiscent of an old american diner, heads turn as they walk in... It''s not everyday the locals see two attractive foreigners comfortably wandering around. Reima orders them both a semi-full English consisting of Fried bread, beans, egg, sausages, bacon and hashbrowns, Ciri also gets some mushrooms on the side as extra.

    Once ordered they take a seat away from everyone else and Reima looks Ciri over, while at first glance she looks fine but Reima can spot the slight slump in her shoulders along with the small frown ever-present on her face.

    Reima \"Did you see my fear?\"

    She nods, \"It was, Kaer Morhen? It was burning and bodies were scattered around like they were nothing, familiar faces stared up at me as if I''d failed them... You''re afraid of the Wild Hunt butchering everyone?\" she asks causing Reima to ponder, is that really what he fears? Or is it just his current worries conflated with a real fear? He doesn''t really know but nods anyway.

    Reima \"It must be if that''s what the Boggart showed me, personally I don''t think my fear is that bad...\"

    Ciri looks confused at this, \"It''s your greatest fear though, surely it''s the worst thing imaginable?\"

    Reima shrugs, \"I know that the Hunt will never get an opportunity to cause something like that, why bother wasting my effort thinking about it when it won''t come to pass.\"

    Ciri \"How are you so sure of yourself? The Wild Hunt isn''t just a couple of Elves... They have an entire world prepared to go to war, they just need me to open the gate.\"

    Reima gives her a grin, \"Those Elves will be hard pressed to stop me, should they anger me. Even if I''m not strong enough to go against all of them, who says Guerrilla tactics won''t work? They can''t track me afterall.\" He gives a low chuckle, \"Plus, do you really think Geralt, Yennefer, Triss and everyone are so weak that they''d fold against some crappy looking cosplaying Elves?\"

    She nods slightly at that, \"I suppose, maybe I''m over thinking things...\" she says as a waitress places large plates of food in-front of them.

    \"Ere''ya go, enjoy.\" they say abruptly before quickly leaving... Reima doesn''t mind it as he''s used to poor customer services in England, it''s almost a staple to be honest. \"We''ve got time to relax now Ciri, just chill with the free time we now have. If you want to do something fun, we''ll do it. If you want to train, sure, we can do that. There are many opportunities available to you, it''s just up to you whether or not you want to take them.\" he says before looking down and concentrating on devouring his breakfast or \"brunch\".

    Ciri doesn''t say anything and just looks at Reima as he quickly eats his breakfast, a slight smile finding it''s way onto her face as she stares at him. She breaks off her gaze and turns it to her breakfast and shocks the locals by eating as quickly and messily as Reima.

 273 Accio-InfoDump!

    After a filling breakfast the duo return to the house, Ciri seems a little chipper than before they had left and immediately goes to her room with a book on Occlumency in her hand. Reima decides it''d be prudent to continue looking through the books in the secret library, the dark books with innocuous titles remind him of the huge pile of books inside his Folded Space relating to necromancy, he still hadn''t really looked at them due to there being more pressing things to learn. While Necromancy seemed useful at it''s highest levels, it''d take a while to get there, plus he''d likely need to remain in one place for an extended period of time to actually make use of it as one of it''s strongest features is creating armies of the undead to do your bidding. While that would be useful it''d also cause basically everyone to hate and despise him for using such \"Dark\" magic... Especially in the Witcher world, if he popped back up out of nowhere with an army of undead in tow he wouldn''t be surprised if Geralt also went against him... That''s not to say there aren''t useful spells in the Necromancy school, he quite vividly remembers the spells from Diablo 3''s Necromancer class, as that game had you moving basically almost constantly along with the limited number you could use at a time, all of your spells had to be useful in some manner or another. He thinks back to the corpse explosion spell and wonder how useful it''d be in his arsenal, he does already leave a mountain of corpses in his wake as it is.

    Either way he''s not planning on learning any Necromancy right now, instead he focuses on Hogwarts base subjects as he''s only around halfway done until 7th year. The first few years don''t actually have that much practical spell casting when compared to later years, the reason for this is obvious... Most spells could go horribly, horribly wrong if you didn''t know enough about what you were trying to achieve. An example of this would be trying to \"vanish\" something, essentially disintegrating it. If a novice were to attempt it without a clear picture on what the wanted to happen they could just transfigure the object into air, this visually has the same result but it is also one of the most dangerous things you can actually do... As air, oxygen is absorbed through our lungs and utilised by most of the body, what do you think would happen if the transfigured air suddenly turned back into it''s base materials? Yes, instant death. Imagine the oxygen in your blood turning to stone or glass... The reason for this is Transfiguration generally always returns to it''s base form eventually, the only way to circumvent this is to apply ambient magic gathering runes on it. Of course there is another branch that allows for permanent transfiguration, it''s called Alchemy... No, not the school of potion making from the Witcher world, this is entirely different.

    Essentially it''s rearranging the molecules to form what you want, the problem with this is that it''s extremely difficult to master or even change a basic object, this is the reason why Transfiguration is the more popular school of magic. There are however notable people who''ve \"mastered\" alchemy such as Albus Dumbledore, Nicholas Flamel, Merlin and a few other names less notable in Reima''s opinion.

    Reima himself had tried to dabble with Alchemy, with his intelligence vastly increased via his soul level he found it manageable without a great deal of experience... However more advanced techniques still alluded him. He muses to himself that only people with Eidentic Memory would truly master this art.

    His study in runes had been accelerated greatly from his examination of the Wardstone binding the vampire trio, just seeing the masterful way in which runes could be combined and used had expanded his horizon for the subject. He still wasn''t confident in applying runes to anything and not causing an explosion, and as such would have to wait until he actually attended Hogwarts.

    Charms were interesting enough... He wasn''t really that into them to be honest, the reason for this being he considered most of the combat spells useless. Why bother stunning, binding, or blinding someone when you could just outright kill them? On the other hand there were a few spells he did wish to learn, the main one being Avada Kedavra : The killing curse, Expecto Patronum : The Patronus spell that is the only known defence against Dementors and a few other utility and healing spells.

    He wanted to try cast the Patronus but had no idea what''d happen if he did, he thought it best to try it at Hogwarts under supervision... A pointblank explosion is the last thing he needs, that and the large amount of magic it''d presumably use would alert the Ministry to his presence.

    Last but not least would be his progress at becoming an Animagus, with the version the Marauders used being unavailable to him he had to do it the long way. This included a huge amount of meditation and self reflection, the latter being something Reima wasn''t good at or liked to do. He still hadn''t found his animal but he felt he was slowly getting closer, with the notes he''d found from the Secret Library he felt his progress would accelerate if he followed some of it''s suggestions. It also provided some information on what the writer thought would happen if a purely magical being tried the transformation. They speculated that they''d likely become a magical creature as mundane flesh can''t become magical, this only confirmed Reima''s hope/speculations. He was looking forward to discovering what his and Ciri''s magical Animagus transformations were.

 274 Harry Potter and the Abusive Household...

    Elsewhere at a little known house : 4 Privet drive...

    Harry Potter sits in his room looking out the window as Dudley leaves with his goons, the fat prick had been throwing small pebbles at his window along with his friends in an attempt to crack or even smash them and get Harry in trouble. Thanking whatever gods that may be out there he sits on his bed and strokes Hedwig who''s resting in her cage nearby, it''d recently been his 14th birthday, not that it really mattered... He''d only noticed when he recieved cards from the Weasleys and Hermione, he looks himself in the mirror to see if he''s changed at all, his body was lanky, almost anorexic due to the Dursley''s treatment of him throughout the years. He''d only been slowly gaining weight due to the large amount of fatty food he''d been eating at Hogwarts, of course the fact that he was properly getting fed caused his \"Family\" to restrict how much food he was allowed to eat, for a \"diet\" they said. He knew they just wanted him to suffer, before going to Hogwarts every day of his life was hell, obviously he didn''t know this as he''d never had a good thing in his life, so he just made due with what he had. When he''d finally attended Hogwarts he knew what it was like to have freedom, friends... Comfort. This only caused his time with the Dursleys to become worse as he now knew they shouldn''t be treating him like this.

    He sighs, either way he doesn''t really have a way out. He''d tried to get help via social services but everyone he talked to eventually told Vernon who thoroughly \"beat some sense\" into him, unfortunately after every beating his body never had any scars... Whether this was due to his magical constitution or some other plot against him, it meant that he couldn''t show any evidence to people that could help him... Eventually he gave up and resigned himself to this life, oh, how he wished he could do to them what they did to him, alas he was a minor and not allowed to use magic outside of Hogwarts, he has tried to fight them off physically before but that always ended in him waking up the next day, feeling sore all over.

    There was one good thing in his life recently however, his God-Father had made himself known as Sirius Black, the escapee of Azkaban. Although he was innocent he was still a wanted man, if not Harry would immediately ask the man to gain custody over him, so he didn''t have to live with this awful Muggles any longer... No, he shouldn''t refer to them like that. He almost sounded like Riddle or Malfoy for a moment. One thing that''d struck him as odd though was that he''d received no Birthday letter from Sirius, this was incredibly unusual as the man had even bought him a Firebolt broomstick last year. Hopefully he was ok, he didn''t know what he would do if his only remaining family were to disappear like the rest.

    His mind slowly moves on to Remus due to the line of thought, last year he''d been surprised to find out that he was a close friend of his parents... It was only until now that he''d realised the man had essentially abandoned him here, the only reason he''d actually met him was because of a job, not because he wanted to see him. This caused his emotions towards the man to become more negative the more he thought about it, yes, he understands that being a werewolf is hard... But Harry mused at his willingness to be infected just to get away from the Dursleys, it was only during the full moon he''d be affected... Compared to the years he had to stay with these vile people that sounded like a bargain.

    That brings him to his friends, Ron and Hermione. The two people that ground him, if he had not met that he''d likely be off his rocker and friends with someone like Draco Malfoy, he shudders at the thought. Ron was a lazy guy who had a slight inferiority complex towards his more successful brothers, Harry didn''t really mind it as long as his jealousy was not directed towards him. Ron usually pulled Harry away from his homework to play chess or talk about Quidditch, this irritated him occasionally as he was usually behind on his work due to this. He did ignore it to appease his first friend however.

    His other friend Hermione was almost completely different to Ron, she was smart, strict and studious... Ever since saving her from the Troll in first year she''d been a close friend even during the dangerous situations he finds himself in. Compared to Ron, Hermione was different in that she encouraged him to focus on his studies and improve himself, most time than not however he sided with Ron and bunked off to do some other inane activity. This caused a great deal of stress for Hermione as she''d always tried to help him, even to the extent of doing Ron''s homework for him, as someone who lacked friends in his earlier life he understood her mentality, she was afraid to be alone and thus put forth her maximum effort in appeasing them completely and utterly. This backfired on her last year when she snitched to Professor McGongall about his Firebolt, she believed it would be prudent considering the many life threatening situations he''d been in to have it checked. This had caused him to ignore her for months causing them both a great deal of stress, as Ron had sided with him both of their studies had suffered as without Hermione''s constant reminders and help Ron literally couldn''t complete most of the tasks.

    Just thinking of how he had treated her last year made him physically sick, a friend only looking out for his well being and he spat on her efforts as if she meant nothing to him, the first person to show him physical affection and concern for him. He suspected that the only reason she forgave him was her lack of friends and stress of constantly using the time-turner, if Ron had acted like that towards him they would definitely no longer be friends.

    With him not being allowed out of the house the majority of the time he had a lot of time to think and ponder. This has his thoughts being drawn to his bad decisions and inadequacies in the past, he''d never really considered them before but maybe it was time to change?

 275 Ciris Apprentice?

    A few days later :

    Inside the basement that''d just recently been cleared of most of the torture machines with the exception of the one that controlled the secret passage, Nerissa was yet again watching Reima and Ciri spar. The young didn''t used to have any interest in combat, seeing no sense in fighting when politicking often lead to better result. Of course her mind set had changed slightly from the recent attack on her family, this in addition with watching some truly beautiful and masterful moves from her new friends had sparked her interest.

    While Reima was parrying yet another of Ciri''s blows he could spot out of the corner of his eye Nerissa mimicking movements of various techniques. This was quite amusing and reminded him of himself during his early days training as a Witcher, he grabs the blade out of the downward slash from Ciri while channelling Armament Haki, stopping her strike''s momentum completely.

    Reima \"Let''s take a break.\" he says, comparatively looking better than a sweaty bruised Ciri. She nods and falls to the floor breathing heavily as Reima makes his way over to Nerissa.

    Reima \"Yo, what''s up?\" he says cheerfully.

    Nerissa''s expressionless face pops a smirk \"The sky.\" she says with mirth.

    Reima \"Oh, ha,ha. Very funny, and to think I was going to include you in our training... Must''ve been thinking of someone else\" he says sarcastically while dramatically shrugging.

    Her eyes widen at his words, she doesn''t say anything but just stands there in a contemplative trance.

    Reima \"Nerissa? Would you like to be trained by me, no. Us, I intend on getting Ciri to train you as well.\"

    Slowly nodding, the vampiress looks up at him expectantly, Reima looks at Ciri and says \"Ciri! You''ll be running Nerissa through some basic stances.\" he says as he hands a wooden sword to Nerissa... Yes, she''s a vampire but he''d rather not see have her being bloodied while training, he dreads to think what Talicia''s reaction would be if she found out.

    Ciri looks up from the floor and complains, \"What? I thought you were training me?\"

    Reima \"Do you not remember what Vesemir used to say?\", he clears his voice, \"Teaching is also a form of learning\" he says in a bad Vesemir impression. It gets a small chuckles out of Ciri who reluctantly nods afterwards.

    Reima glances at a wary Nerissa and pats her on the back, pushing her forwards towards the sweaty Ciri... Luckily she''s not wearing white today, yesterday was embarrassing for both of them.

    The young vampire walks up to Ciri and waits for instructions, the ashen haired girl looks at Reima briefly before turning her gaze on the vampire and starting to run her through the basic Wolf School stances.

    He sits back and watching them, keeping an eye on any mistakes Ciri may make. Fortunately she seems pretty good, Nerissa as well. Her speed and strength already make her a formidable opponent, if she learned proper techniques than she may become a valuable asset in the future. The only thing that would make the young vampire stronger would be the use of magic, unfortunately t hat''s not possible with her races constitution, if it were he reckons they would''ve taken over the globe already.

    An hour or two passes when Reima finally calls an end to the practise, he congratulates Nerissa on a good session and sends her up to Talicia to wash up and get some clean clothing. Once she''s gone he turns and looks at Ciri who seems to have caught her breath from the instruction, \"You did very well Ciri, how did you feel about it?\"

    Ciri cracks her neck \"It was, interesting? I''d much rather get some real practise in though.\" she says and crosses her arms.

    Reima grins, \"It''s good you said that, as I''m not done with you yet. Get into stance!\" he shouts while retrieving a steel sword from his Folded Space.

    She huffs at him but does as he asks, \"I promise, I''ll beat you one day.\" she says causing Reima to go blank for a moment.

    He suddenly starts laughing while dodging her stabbing lunge, he pirouettes past another stab while sweeping her legs out from under her. \"I tell you what Ciri, I''ll give you one wish should you beat me... It can be anything you want or have ever dreamed of.\" he says smirking at her prone position on the floor.

    She growls thinking that he''s mocking her and casts Igni at him, he acts as if it distracts him momentarily due to his immunity to fire and waits for her followup... \"There!\" He mentally shouts while bending backwards to avoid the slash in a movement mimicking Neo.

    The two continue to spar for a couple more hours, afterwards he gives Ciri an hour to train her Occlumency before pulling her aside again and training their Charms and Transfiguration. Reima could visibly see her improving, this wasn''t only due to how talented she is but also as a result of her Elder Blood''s adaptivity. This has allowed her to drastically increase her speed, strength and reflexes almost to the extend of a low level Witcher. Impressive, no doubt and will be a huge surprise for Geralt when they meet again. Another thing Reima notes is how far Ciri''s magical studies are going, his original plan of getting her to 7th year level doesn''t seem like a possible goal, he''d been guessing her progress on his own level... This was incorrect as he has many thing enhancing his learning that Ciri does not. Her Charms and Transfiguration will probably be 7th year level or higher by the time Hogwarts start but he can''t say the same for other subjects, this isn''t all bad however as it goes well with their story of not completing her magical education.

 276 Slice of Life?

    Reima is currently within the centre of London, he''s wearing a long sleeved white shirt with shorts and sandals. He adjusts his black shades as he feels the sun blaring down on his face. The weather is very nice, a welcome change from Dark Souls never ending cloudy days. His purpose for being in London right now? Well a couple of things, he''s here to pick up blood for Talicia and Nerissa firstly, he''s also very interested in finding some activities that''d be interesting for everyone while their locked inside that gloomy house.

    He thinks about his options as he hands the card that Talicia has given him over to the reception lady in the hospital. Monopoly sounds like a good investment, he hasn''t played it in years in-fact, another thing that''d relax everyone would be those insulting card games. Though, he isn''t sure whether they actually exist yet. He''s interrupted out of his thoughts when a burly man wheels a large box up to him, he checks some paper and asks, \"Mr Ambrose?\" Reima just smiles and nods, the man pushing the box onto the floor with his foot before leaving... If he was a regular human how on earth would he get this home? It must weigh at least 50-80Kg''s, people must come in with prepared transport for this stuff... Actually, regular people wouldn''t be taking large boxes of blood from hospitals anyway...

    Shrugging Reima just lifts the box as if it''s nothing and walks away, causing the now red faced receptionist to squeal and run into the staff lounge to talk about him...

    Once outside he dips into an alley way and stores the box into his Folded Space. Now he can think about the important things, board games. He walks around London looking for a toy store or something similar that''d sell them and luckily he does indeed find some. It seems that this particular industry hasn''t been destroyed by digital games yet, he doesn''t know whether this is a good thing or not however.

    He walks inside and is greeted by a blinding amount of various coloured toys, ignoring them and the almost rabid looking children running to and fro. He approaches a shelf with various board games on it, the first catching his attention being Monopoly. He ignores the Micheal Jackson edition and picks up the traditional one, he''s about to walk to the register when he spots another from his old world : BattleShip... Nice, he picks it up and pays for them both and leaves satisfied.

    As he''s moving towards his next destination he thinks that it''s a shame Ciri couldn''t come with him, Nerissa had almost thrown her out of bed while requesting to train. Reima had kept a distance as he wanted Ciri and Nerissa''s relationship to get better, additionally, he couldn''t really be bothered to actually train her... Of course he''d never tell either of them that. Ciri ended up training Nerissa under Talicia''s supervision, Reima chuckles at the face she made when he told them he was popping out. He was expecting retaliation when he eventually returns.

    Reima finally reaches his destination : The London Library... He''d been looking around for a place with lots of information that could help people in the Witcher world, he wasn''t really expecting to giving it over to the large kingdoms but instead for around Kaer Morhen. He''d have to establish some kind of village if he intends to stick to the plan of bringing his friend from Dark Souls over, additionally he didn''t know the status of the Village in Absolver. Only now he realises it must''ve been around 10 years for them as well, hopefully they''re doing fine, they are immortal afterall?

    Walking inside the Library he pays at the reception for entry and insurance for the books inside, he doesn''t actually bother reading anything inside. Instead he''s staking out the place for tonight, Reima didn''t really have a plan for how he intended to Stea-cough! \"Borrow\" from the library but with magic it shouldn''t be too difficult.

    The insides of the library itself looked very impressive, clean wood, nice furniture and good interior design of the building itself created an almost studious atmosphere... It was a shame he had to ruin it all.

    Later that night :

    Reima used his invisibility and had hidden inside the Library until what he assumed was midnight, looking around he notes that the lights are off but the various security camera''s are still visibly on. This doesn''t really matter as Reima doesn''t give a toss about the statute of secrecy.

    Elsewhere :

    A fat white man with many empty doughnut boxes on the floor beside him sleepily rubs his eyes as he looks at the camera feeds. The job was as boring as it looks, I mean honestly, who''s going to steal from a library? Especially the most heavily monitored one in Britain. He''s about to take another \"Power nap\" when he notices something strange, he leans towards the monitor to get a closer look and his eyes bulge when it sees \"it\". On the feed he can see many bookshelves empty, furthermore the ones that still have books on them are rapidly being emptied, it''s like the scene out of Fantasia! Books diving off of the shelves and disappearing before they hit the ground... He sounds the alarm for the Police, buckles his belt and quickly waddles into the library, flashlight and taser in hand.

    He wanders inbetween the now empty bookshelves, his hands tremble as he gets closer to the sound of fluttering pages.

    \"HEHEHEHE!\" he jumps backwards as he hears a maniacal cackle further ahead, looking forward and remembering his lacklustre paycheck he mutters \"No, fuck this.\" and runs away to wait for the police outside. Unfortunately for the government, curators of the Library and investors, by the time the police arrive everything had been stolen, even the books stored in the backrooms... The incident along with footage of the security tapes was quickly broadcast across the nation, along with inquiries if anyone knew anything about this phenomenon... Strangely enough, they had plenty of people voluntarily giving information, most of them were brushed aside however when they starting talking about \"Wizards\", bonkers.

 277 Beach-Time-Fun

    A few days later after the national \"Invisible Crook\" incident, the weather was still clear blue skies and hot sun. Apparently today was reported to be a \"Heatwave\" but Reima didn''t really notice due to his \"particular\" constitution. With the vampires sleeping through it the only person having to endure through it is Ciri, apparently she''d never really experience weather this hot before. With the house having no air conditioning or electricity for that matter Ciri is almost begging Reima to do something about it... \"There must be something you can do? With all the magic I''ve seen you use, you must have a \"cold\" spell somewhere!\" she exclaims at him.

    Reima just shrugs, as it happens he does have a couple spells that could do the trick... However he has other plans, he chuckles to himself as he thinks over his plan, all the while Ciri glaring daggers at him.

    Reima \"I know something that could help.\" he says cheerfully.

    Ciri \"Yeah? Go ahead.\" she says, slightly unnerved by the large grin on his face.

    Reima \"Of course... We''ll go to the beach!\" he exclaims.

    ...

    Ciri \"What?\"

    A few hours later :

    The coach that they''d taken to get to the nearest beach didn''t take long to get to it''s destination, it was strange, the driver drove like a man possessed, as if someone was using magic to make him speed up...

    Reima whistles as he watches the numerous traffic violations that the bus driver is committing under his not so mild Axii. Ciri sits by the window enthralled by the vehicle itself, not knowing that they shouldn''t be going nearly as fast as they are. Reima had taken the liberty of buying a couple swimsuits for her previously, not that she knew this. He didn''t know what she expects them to do at the beach, perhaps swim in her normal underwear? No, Reima refuses to let this opportunity go to waste. He mentally counts the many bottles of sunscreen in the bag he''d brought along, inside it contains two towels, a couple bottles of water and of course, an inordinate amount of sunscreen.

    Once they arrive to the outskirts of the beach the duo walk towards the rather crowded shores, alas it''s to be expected during weather like this... It isn''t uncommon to see people doing BBQ''s in the rain in this bloody country.

    They finding a nice spot to sit Reima lays down both towels on the sand to create makeshift seats should either want to lie down or sun bathe.

    Ciri \"How is laying in the sun supposed to cool us down?\" she asks confused at why he''d even suggest \"Sunbathing\"

    Reima \"It''s a popular thing in this world, it helps give colour and youth to your skin apparently... Oh, before I forget, I''ve bought you some outfits to wear while we''re here, they''re waterproof and used for swimming.\" he says as he presents the various outfits he''d picked out, needless to say, some of them were... Perverse, to say the least. As the MC of a novel Reima had to adhere to beach episode troupes, even if a little bit. Luckily for Ciri and Reima''s well-being there was one outfit that looked similar to what other beach goers were wearing. She reluctantly leaves to put it on, it doesn''t take long for her to return wearing it, Reima can barely take his eyes off of her as she uncomfortably shifts under his gaze.

    Ciri \"Do you mind?\" she says as she adjusts the bottoms slightly.

    The outfit she''s currently wearing is a colourful green and black bikini set that''s common in 1994, Reima had wanted to find something resembling those Brazilian dancers would wear but couldn''t manage it. Her body was covered in many scars, some from what looks like a whip, some looking like bite and claw marks, this however does not take away from her beauty. Her breasts are between C and D cup''s and seem very \"Perky\", Reima swallows his building up saliva as his gaze lowers, her stomach is flat and slightly muscled. Her entire body is incredibly athletic now that he looks at it. He notices a rose tattoo on her inner thigh and remembers it from the game, she never really went into detail on how she obtained it though.

    Reima \"Bea-I mean, you''re beautiful... I mean the outfit...\" he sighs as she smirks at him.

    Ciri \"Thank you, though don''t you have to change into something? You can''t expect me to be the only one swimming.\" she says while crossing her arms under he breasts.

    He nods and pulls down his jeans, revealing some Hawaiian looking swim shorts, afterwards throwing his top off.

    Ciri eyes his body and unconsciously licks her lips. The first thing she notices is the almost glowing turquoise circle carved into his flesh above his heart. The second, being the scars littering his form, not as numerous as Geralt but still visually jarring for an average person, the third being his incredibly athletic body. He''s toned but not huge, more similar to a swimmers physique than a body builders, even if his pecks are slightly larger. Her eyes trail down his form and appreciate his abs before glances at his \"Package\", she turns her head and blushes slightly when she finds her staring noticed by him.

    Reima \"Well?\" he asks amused at her attitude.

    Ciri huffs, \"Well nothing, lets get into the water.\" she says while trudging towards the ocean.

    Reima mentally panics, \"Ah, wait!... I mean, you still need sunscreen...\"

    Ciri \"Sunscreen?\"

    Reima \"It''s a cream that prevents your skin from burning and peeling off.\" he says as he retrieves a bottle from his bag.\"

    She holds out her hand expecting him to pass it to her...

    Reima \"Er, this isn''t something you should do yourself...\" he says while pointing to the various couples applying cream to each other around the beach.

    She frowns momentarily before plopping down on her towel, \"Just be quick... And if I find your hands wandering I''ll cut them off.\" she says gravely.

 278 Beach-Time-Rub

    Reima reveals a wide grin as he hears Ciri give permission, he has her lay on her front as he rubs cream into his hands. Once thoroughly applied he starts applying it to the back of her neck, she shivers at his touch but he doesn''t mind it, once finished with the neck he moves on to her arms and shoulders. While Reima isn''t a perverse person this is definitely up there for his all time \"Experiences\", once he''s done \"massaging\" her arms and shoulders, he moves on to her back and shoulder blades. He trails his finger across many of the whip-made scars and questions \"Do they still hurt?\"

    Ciri \"No, I can feel them occasionally but not enough to get in my way.\" she says while resting her head on her forearms. Having someone give her what essentially amounts to a full body massage is quite an experience, while she had felt something similar in the past (Courtesy of her old girlfriend) this was less intense and more relaxing. The sounds of the waves hitting the shoreline only increase the contentment she feels, one thing she''d change however is the many men she can see taking glances at her... Even more so for the women looking at Reima.

    Reima reaches her lower back and starts coating her sides in sunscreen as well, as he hands approach her butt she warns him to \"steer clear\". He reluctantly skips over her gluteus and moves onto her thighs, her legs are thin but muscular and are very pleasant to touch... As an ass man Reima can appreciate well toned proportions, and Ciri, Ciri doesn''t lack in any department.

    Once done her has her get up and sit on her butt, he''s about to start applying cream to her stomach when she stops him \"I-I think I can do my front...\" she says while trying to avoid his eyes.

    Reima \"Ok, but I''ll need you to do my back afterwards.\" he reveals his trap card causing her to nod.

    He starts applying cream to his front while looking around, strangely everywhere he looks he sees people glancing at them... No one would meet his gaze but from the corner of his vision he could see them talking either about him or Ciri. He can recognise why they''re staring at them, this isn''t a Los Angeles and so everyone else looks average, no incredibly buff body builders running across the shoreline in England, that''s for sure. He sighs and continues applying sunscreen, while he doesn''t actually need it, how else is he going to get Ciri to give him a massage?

    Once done he lies on his front and badgers Ciri to do his back, she doesn''t a leg to stand on should she refuse and so goes ahead, needless to say the feeling was... \"Divine?\" Having delicate hands run themselves across his body made it hard to stop Little-Big-Reima from standing up, alas, Ciri was done quicker than he was.

    Ciri \"Right, shall we go for a swim?\" she asks with no small amount of excitement, this was, after all the first time she''d be swimming without a pursuit in ages.

    Reima \"Lets, I haven''t swam is quite a while...\" he says as he tries to think of the last time he''d actually swam, he''s honestly surprised to remember the last time was when Geralt was giving him lessons in the nearby lake... That was surprising on many different levels, I mean, who knew Geralt could launch himself out of the water like a dolphin?

    They stroll up to the water, disregarding the stares from the other beach goers and check the waters temperature before walking deeper. Once they can no longer feel the ground Reima starts doing a couple laps to get back into the motions, one thing he hadn''t expected was his bodies reaction to swimming however. Even though he was completely restraining his Aura, any wayward water that found it''s way into his gullet instantly disintegrated, this wouldn''t be noticeable were it not for the leftover salt from the saltwater causing an incredibly awful taste to invade his mouth. He eventually resolved himself to just hold his breath if he was swimming, his endurance and Witcher mutations allowed him to not breath for an hour or two anyway, so it didn''t really matter.

    Ciri was like a fish to water however, her thin build and powerful muscles allowed her impressive speed and mobility in the water. \"Reima, race you over there!\" she says as she points to an floating orange orb that indicates they shouldn''t go any further out to sea.

    Reima \"Don''t cry when I win.\" he says and immediately dives down before powerfully kicking his legs to reach the orange buoy, he doesn''t use his full strength as 1. It''d be unfair, and 2. causing massive disruptions in the water would likely draw attention.

    With the duo both underwater and speeding through the water at an Olympic level, neither noticed each other as they banged their heads on one another. \"Ouch!\" exclaimed Ciri as she settled her self into the water, feeling slightly dizzy as if she''d just headbutted a brick wall.

    Reima himself was completely fine, he did feel bad though so he admitted defeat to her, \"You win, you reached it first.\" he says gesturing to the Buoy next to them.

    Ciri pouts, not believing him for a moment but taunts him regardless. \"You''re fast on land but a slow poke in water, who''d have thought?\" she snarkily says to him.

    Reima splashes her, \"Yeah, yeah. Don''t get a big head or you''ll start floating.\" he says before getting a large amount of salt water launched into his face and mouth, courtesy of Ciri.

    The two continue playing around in the water, splashing each other in increasingly large amounts.

 279 Beach-Time-Sub

    Due to the large splashes created by the duo the life guard rides his dinghy over to them, they''re confused at his presence until the man tries to pull Ciri out of the water. She doesn''t allow him to and pulls back, resulting in him falling into the water as well.

    He floats there next to them and sheepishly looks at them, \"So, err... You don''t need help?\"

    The duo just continue to blankly stare at him until he pulls himself back into his boat and rides off, once he''s gone the duo burst into laughter.

    Ciri \"Did you see his face? Clueless!\" she mutters through her laughter.

    Reima continues to chuckle with her as they watch the boat zoom back to the shore. Suddenly he gets an idea, \"Hey Ciri, ever wondered what the bottom of the ocean looks like?\"

    She nods, \"I''ve tried to swim to the bottom of the lake near Kaer Morhen, Geralt always ended up pulling me back out while driving off the Drowners...\"

    Reima grins and waves his hand at her and silently casts the Bubble-head charm, a bubble expands over her neck, mouth and nose. Causing her to panic for a moment before realising she can still breathe. Once she''s calmed down he casts one over himself, \"This is a bubble-head charm, it''ll allow us to breath underwater... Shall we take a look?\"

    She nods and them both submerge into the water, diving down towards the sand below, once there the duo realise another problem, their vision is distorted by the water... This time it''s Ciri who chips in, \"View Liquet\" she chants at herself and Reima, causing their vision to clear and allowing them to behold the true majes... It''s just sand... Maybe they''re not far out enough to see any truly great sights?

    The continue to swim deeper into the depths, light gets dimmer the deeper they go but it''s not enough to black their view. Eventually they start to see various sea life hanging around large rocks jutting out of the ground, various plant-life cling to them and seem to invade the crevices created by the ever-present tides. The duo swim around the area, occasionally prodding slow or unbothered fish with their fingers, Ciri watches amused at they dart away, assuming it was her that''d scared them... That is, until a shadow blocks the light above them momentarily.

    She scrambles to Reima, fear of the unnatural habitat inhibiting her movements spurring her to duck behind him. Reima himself is confused, he hadn''t heard of any sharks in British waters, though he wasn''t an expert or even knowledgeable on the subject. The shadow covers them again, this time seeming closer than before. Reima finally spots whatever is stalker them and realises what it is... It''s black and white colours giving it away like no other creature, apart from maybe a Zebra? Either way, the Orca, or Killer Whale as most call them swims towards them in an placid manner.

    Seeing that it doesn''t seem to be hostile in it''s approach he takes hold of Ciri''s shoulder and points her towards it, so she can get a good look at it. She''s seemingly mesmerised at it''s unique colouration and size, \"Big.\" is the only thing she manages to get out as it approaches.

    It seems more curious than anything else, it swims around them before getting close to Reima and pushing against him with it''s nose. Were he a regular human this would''ve knocked the breath out of him, fortunately he''s not and simply rubs it''s almost rubbery skin.

    Ciri swims next to him and starts patting it curiously, getting surprised by it''s strange texture in the process.

    The duo continue to play around with the curious mammal until Reima whispers something in Ciri''s ear, her eyes sparkle as she quickly nods at him...

    Elsewhere :

    On a Scottish vessel following a wayward Orca that''d for some reason or another, traveled away from it''s family. The researchers were intrigued at this and had been keeping a close eye on him for a couple hours now, however they''d lost sight of him when he''d dived deep under water. That is, until a black shape almost explosively bursts from the water, the researchers were shocked, not because it''d jumped out of the water, but because of the two people apparently riding it''s back! Luckily for them they''d be recording almost everything for a documentary that they''d be presenting to the BBC, this was bound to get their program a lot of publicity... They didn''t even have to ask the mysterious duo''s permission since you could barely make their faces out.

    A glowing green Camera floating not far away snaps a few pictures before hiding itself amidst the waves.

    Back in the water Reima and Ciri had just ridden the \"Orca Express\", The Orca''s eyes return to normal from it''s Axii induced mind control. It makes a calming noise before swimming away, seemingly confused at what''d just happened.

    Ciri waves at it as it leaves them before turning to Reima and bickering about how exciting that was, they''d been holding onto it''s fin while it travelled a couple kilometres under water, needless to say, they''d probably be the only people that have or ever will ride a Killer Whale.

    Reima can''t help the smile from forming on his face, he''d been telekinetically controlling a camera he''d previously brought and had it take photo''s of them during the peak of the whales jump. He didn''t know how they''d turn out but one things for sure, Geralt''ll be amused when he sees those photo''s...

 280 Beach-Time-Sun

    Once the two eventually returned to the beach the time was around 5-6pm, many beach goers were leaving or had already left. This isn''t he case for Reim and Ciri however, they didn''t need to work and had no prior arrangements that''d make them unable to stay, and with the relaxed face on his companions face, Reima was unwilling to leave just yet. Besides, they hadn''t tried any of the beach side food yet.

    They walk side by side across the beach looking for an interesting place to eat, Ciri points to various stores that sell burgers, hot-dogs and other commonly found foods. Reima refused each time however, the reason? \"This is England and we''re near the sea. If we don''t eat fish and chips I''ll castrate myself.\"... Needless to say, after that declaration Reima couldn''t and wouldn''t eat anything else, to the chagrin of his companion.

    Eventually they found a store selling cod and chips and they wasted no time in ordering and finding themselves a seat. The store was nice but if Reima could change one thing? It''d be the creepy dude trying to flirt with Ciri, neither found it amusing but both were worried he''d do something weird to her food. Once the plump man gave them the boxed food Reima swapped his with Ciri''s, while it might be paranoia, he''d rather take the bullet for her... He''s a gentleman afterall???

    Ciri looks confused at the forked stick she had been handed and glances at Reima, \"Do we not get proper cutlery?\"

    Reima waves away her worries, \"It''s tradition... And cheaper.\" he says prodding his own wooden fork in her direction.

    The meal itself was average, the fish was alright but the batter was greasy and falling apart. The chips were the same and are only edible with liberal use of vinegar and ketchup.

    Ciri \"Reima?\" she asks while eating.

    Reima \"Ciri?\" he parrots her, causing her nose to wrinkle.

    Ciri \"I''m being serious.\"

    Reima \"Fine, what''s up?\"

    Ciri \"This all, feels weird... Like we''re wasting precious time, we should be doing something proactive like training.\" she says sincerely.

    Reima nods, he can see why she''d be thinking that, she does have interdimentional wraith cosplaying elves after her booty, so it''s a warranted worry. \"Relax Ciri, no one can constantly fight or train.\" he says remembering his time spent in Dark Souls. \"You have to rest at some point, if you''re too overworked then your progress may be stunted, breaks like the one we''re having today is good for your mind and body. You''d know this if you read the book on muscular hypertrophy that I''d given you a couple days ago.

    She sheepishly looks away a this, \"I guess you''re right... I''ve had a great time today, Reima.\" she says with genuine emotion.

    He smiles at her, \"I''m glad, you always seem so stressed out. If doing this can ease your burden then I''m content. Perhaps when all of this is over we can take our friends somewhere similar?\"

    She nods, \"I''d like that.\"

    After they''re done with with the food they quickly leave, not noticing or ignoring the fat man''s glaring at Ciri. They continue to walk around the beech, arms brushing against each other occasionally, a comfortable silence between them.

    Reima spots a stand they''d previously walked past in his focussed attempt to find fish and chips, he unconsciously starts salivating at the smell of it. Ciri notices his heavy gaze and looks in the same direction.

    Ciri \"You want to get some treats? I could still eat.\" she says, this being the last thing Reima needs before he''s briskly walking towards the stand.

    \"Hello, what can I do fo-\" the woman is cut off as Reima states \"As many dohnuts this ¡ê50 note can buy me.\"

    ...

    \"O-ok sir.\" she says as he cashes the note and walks back into the stand.

    Ciri \"Do you really need that many?\" she asks curiously.

    Reima \"Ciri, you''ve never had a soft warm sugar doughnut before. If there was such a thing as heaven, and it didn''t look like McDocnalds, it''d defnitely be covered in these doughnuts.\" he says with absolute certainty.

    Around 10 minutes later the woman comes back with a huge bag of doughnuts, \"60 doughnuts sir.\" she says as she hands it to him, the heat from the sugary treats causing the paper bag to warm his fingers...

    Reima \"Thanks\" he says to the lady before turning to Ciri, \"Quick, let''s find somewhere to sit before these get cold.\"

    In the end they find themselves sitting in a few lounge chairs overlooking the ocean, both have a couple of alcoholic drinks next to them as they occasionally pop a doughnut into their mouths. Ciri herself must have eaten 14 of them, she felt so full that the only thing she''d managed to get down her gullet is the drink Reima had bought them, though, she''d never thought the combination of \"Coke\" and \"Whisky\" would go well together... Personally she''d prefer something more fruity but this''ll do, it''s significantly better than the piss the commoners would usually drink.

    They idly rest on the chairs as the sky turns yellow and the sun starts to set, Reima looks at Ciri, her bloated belly and unwomanly posture making him smile, \"Yep, that''s Ciri.\" he muses to himself mentally.

    Reima \"So, your first time at an English beach been?\" he asks, already fully knowing the answer.

    Ciri \"Wonderful, though I''d prefer it without the people...\" she mutters the last part.

    Reima grins \"There is another type of beach, it''s called a nudist-\" he doesn''t finish his sentence due to a doughnut colliding with the side of his head.

    They both lock eyes for a moment before bursting into laughter, truly, this was an amazing day.

 281 Alluding to Alucards

    Elsewhere : Inside a large hidden mansion

    A man with blonde hair, a handsome face and glowing red eyes sits at a desk, reading a huge amount of paperwork and scowling all the while. Sterling Alucard had been having a terrible amount of trouble dealing with the clans lately, he didn''t know why but it felt as if something was conspiring against them... This wouldn''t normally phase him as such a thing wouldn''t be uncommon is vampire noble society, however, never before had the Belmont family started to interfere in their politics. They generally would stay out of the way and only ask for tributes, these included mostly low tier vampires from the clans, information or wealth... Sterling himself didn''t really know why they only wanted vampires and not humans, alas any specific information on the Belmont''s is hard if not impossible to acquire.

    A few years ago they''d been forced to give one of his daughters as tribute, Katherine. For some reason they wanted her specifically and not his useless son Hacan. His daughter was born blind but could also see in places that others couldn''t, one of these being the future. How the Belmont''s found out about her? He had not a clue. One thing was for sure though, he''d be hard pressed to find the Dracula Heir without Katherine''s prophecies to point him in the right direction.

    A vampire runs in sweating and kneels down, \"My liege! The mission was a complete failure, only one man escaped and relayed this information, the others all died, your son included.\" they say while waiting for the eruption.

    \"WHAT!\" there it is the servant muses. \"TELL ME, HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE!\" Sterling shouts, saliva flying through the air as his temper flares.

    The vampire waits for a moment before replying, \"With the wards breached our group surged forwards intent on ripping apart the remaining Dracula''s and acquiring \"Her\". However, due to an unknown man interfering and slaughtering the majority of our brethren we were unable to subdue Ambrose Dracula, we still do not know what had caused the explosion but from our spies in the wizarding world we are fairly sure Ambrose is dead.\"

    Sterling starts to calm himself at this news, he hadn''t told anyone of the blood runes he''d applied to Hacan but he was satisfied that his useless suns sacrifice had defeated one of his greatest enemies. How that monster had gotten himself sealed away still boggled his mind.

    Sterling \"Is there any information on the man who interfered in our plans?\" he asks quietly, linking his fingers on his desk.

    His servant shakes his head rapidly, \"Unfortunately not sire, the only things we know of him are his amour, weapons of choice, voice and speech pattern. We also know that his weapon is divinely enchanted silver, it seems he''s adept at dealing with our kind.\" he says while trying to think through what they had learned.

    Sterling \"Divine Silver? This could prove troublesome, we have a pact with the church so they shouldn''t be involved... To what degree is the level of it''s enchantment?\"

    \"Sire, from what our witness says it would be the same level or higher as the long since destroyed Excalibur.\"

    ...

    Sterling throws his head back laughing, \"HAHAHAHAHA!\" this continues for a minute until he suddenly stops, he throws his arm sideways across the table, knocking everything off and causing a tremendous amount of noise. \"FATE IS TRYING TO INTERFERE!?!\" he shouts as he transforms into a puddle of blood, reforming in-front of his servant and grabbing his neck. \"DO YOU KNOW HOW LONG I''VE WAITED! ONLY FOR THE BELMONT''S AND NOW THIS MONKEY TO INTERFERE!?! AHH!\" he shouts as he throws the vampire at the wall, \"If this is god''s will, then we will go against god, as we always have.\" he says as he calms himself, he turns and leaves the room to have his wife Velika comfort him.

    A couple hours later the couple is resting in a dim room lit by the fireplace, Velika, Talicia''s mother looks almost identical to her. Were it not for the higher cheek bones and smaller breasts, most who''d call them identical twins.

    \"Husband, are you sure this is the only way to ensure the clans prosperity?\" she asks doubtfully.

    He nods as her hand runs across his own, he takes a sip of his blood filled goblet, \"Our gift of blood manipulation is being diluted while other clans get stronger. Even with supplementing our family with outsider''s that have similar abilities we''ll not last past the century, especially with the pressure being put on us.

    Velika \"But do you honestly plan to do that to your own Grand daughter? Even I find what you''re suggesting to be incredibly... Distasteful.\"

    Sterling growls, \"Just think of it as reparations for Ambrose transgressions, getting sealed away opened us up to assault from his enemies. Without his presence we were easy pickings, and with our eldest daughter no longer being available as an offering we have struggled ever since.

    Velika \"Maybe so, but even as vampires we must retain at least some decorum... Perhaps we could wait a couple more years until you make the attempt?\" she asks hopefully.

    Sterling \"No, any longer and she''ll start following Ambrose path, once that starts there won''t be anyone who can contain her... We need her weak and subservient, even if we have to sever her arms and legs from her body to keep her... Quiet.\"

    Velika frowns and leaves the room, beginning to become sick at the conversation... She was having doubts about her mates sanity at this point, who on earth would consider doing such a thing to a young and innocent girl who also happened to be your Grand Daughter.\"

 282 Preparations for the future

    Elsewhere : Ministry of Magic

    Minister Fudge sits on his desk opposite his undersecretary Dolores Umbridge, he mentally grimaces at her pink outfit but quickly stifles it, they need to make a couple important decisions for the rather immediate future. \"Dolores as you know we have many events approaching, as someone who''s got a good head for judging people I''ll need your help suggesting who I should formally invite to the Quidditch world cup finals. I''ve thought of a couple people myself but if I wish to ingratiate myself with the common peoples then I''ll need to put more thought in my decisions, we can''t be rash after-all.\" he says, rubbing his ring all the while.

    She seems to think for a momentum before mock-coughing into her hand, \"Ahem, Ahem. As long as they are of good blood it will always be a correct choice.\" she states.

    Fudge rubs his forehead, \"Yes, while that might indeed be the case, I need to pick someone who''s popular with the commoners while also appealing to our... Backers.\" he almost whispers the last part.

    Umbridge seems to think for a longer period of time than before, her eyes suddenly light up. \"Minister, didn''t you endorse a pure-blood but a month ago?\"

    ...

    Fudge looks at her blankly \"Eh, did I?\"

    She nods, \"That ashen haired girl that looks like she''s a descendant from the Malfoy line, what was her name? Oh! Ciri Rivia.\"

    Fudge remembers when he hears the name, she was and still is very popular among the common people. While it wasn''t as impressive as killing You-Know-Who as a child, it was more notable than any other event since then. His name still spreads fear when spoken, even despite the Dark Lords death, so anything directly opposed to him and his ideology would obviously be massively supported by the populace. As such, Ciri even had action figures made after her, the fact she wielded a sword and not magic only increased how many we sold as it adds mysteriousness to her character. In-fact it had even become a trademark associated with her, while Fudge himself didn''t care at all about muggle weapons, the wizarding world itself had had a surge of people teaching swordsmanship classes and even reteaching old lost spells that''d conjure swords or something similar.

    \"Miss Rivia? She does fit all of the criteria, however there is one thing I am hesitatant about.\" he says to his undersecretary while rubbing his double chin.

    Umbridge \"And what might that be Minister?\"

    Fudge \"Her origins, as she''s not a British born witch I hesitate to use her instead of a more traditional family, they might find themselves slighted by my choice.\"

    Umbridge shakes her toad-like head and replies, \"With the popularity of Miss Rivia they will understand, even if they don''t, you are the Minister. Your word is final\" she adds the last part to massage the fat mans ego.

    He nods, \"Of course, would you mind sending Miss Rivia a letter of invitation? Oh, and before I forgot, allow her to bring her friend... Mr Ludvig was it? He had proved very helpful in our last discussion.\"

    The woman in pink nods and bids her farewell to the Minister before attending to the task assigned to her. Personally she despised pretty looking pure bloods such as Ciri Rivia, but as a political tool she''ll be useful to them... And if something unfortunate were to happen as a result of the families being offended then she would mourn for her for a moment... But only for a moment. \" she thinks to herself as she grins.

    Elsewhere : A hidden bunker completely and utterly surrounded by wards.

    \"I''m not sure, if even a few Auror''s are present we''ll be completely wiped out in only a number of seconds...\" a man wearing a skull mask says to the rest of companions in the room.

    \"Don''t be a coward, for how long have we waited for an opportunity like this? And with one of the Dark Lords former inner member, we''ll be hard pressed to fail.\"

    The first man looks at him, \"How are we supposed to believe what you''re saying? We''ve not yet even seen this person you purport to represent...\" he says doubtfully.

    Suddenly a wand is drawn and put in his face, \"Don''t. You. Doubt me! He growls out before pulling his wand back. I promise you all, this plan is fool proof, we might even have some opportunities to sample the Veela that are present\" he says with a sick grin on his face.

    The rest of the men chuckles and hoot at his words, of course, some wouldn''t touch such in-human creatures, instead wishing to torture them to death instead. This would be the only fate for those that went against them.

    \"So, when and where are we going to strike?\" one hesitantly asks.

    The man who seems to be the leader speaks up again, \"I think it''s time to reveal the full plan, once the Quidditch world cup is over, we''ll wait for security to be at it''s lowest before donning our masks and causing as much destruction as possible. Those dirty muggles won''t stand a chance, and for all of you here. Cast to kill, don''t be like those idiotic Auror''s who seek to incapacitate us, we''ll follow old Death Eater tactics, reinvervate anyone who''s stunned and cast lethal or debilitating spells in return. No one wishes to die and so the Auror''s will likely retreat for reinforcements, this will give us enough time to do as we wish.\" he says as he lists the various tactics, formation and movements of the previous death eaters.

    \"Remember one thing though, your port keys will be activated should you be unconscious for 5 seconds or longer. Keep them in your pockets, if you get teleported to safety you''ll miss out on all the fun.\"

 283 Sadistic "Ornstein"

    It''s been a couple week since Ciri had started to Train Nerissa, both showed drastic increases in skill during this period, Reima could help but attribute this to Ciri expanding her knowledge enough to be able to teach it and Nerissa either being exceptionally talented or hard working... Or perhaps Vampires are intrinsically built for physical combat? Reima shakes his head, regardless Ciri was shaping up quickly, being capable of everything is expected of her. After their break at the beach she seemed to increase the intensity of everything she did, training, reading, magic practise, everything. This did occasionally result in injury but a quick trip down to Diagon Alley to purchase some healing potions did the trick admirably. He guessed it was a result of her Elder Blood but she healed faster than he would have thought, perhaps her highly magical body increased the effectiveness of this worlds potions?

    Nerissa was standing opposite Ciri with a steel sword in hand, she''d progressed enough that Reima was sure she wouldn''t heavily injure herself accidentally and was given a sword by him. It was about half as long as Reima''s long swords but it matched her height perfectly, any longer and she''d be having trouble doing most of the techniques Ciri was showing her.

    Ciri even had Reima transfigure part of the room into one of the obstacle courses they''d had a Kaer Morhen to help assist in both her and Nerissa''s training. Needless to say, Reima''s skill in Transfiguration had been tested and increased during this period of time. Nothing like getting practical practise in to solidify a new skill.

    Talicia was a bit wary of the duo training her daughter at first, but when she came down to watch for herself she''d rapidly come to terms with it. It wasn''t as if they were living a comfortable life with no threats, indeed it was the complete opposite, Talicia mentally scolded herself for no taking the initiative to train herself to prepare for a crises. As such, Reima would occasionally find Talicia using various techniques with her own blood, utilising that strange crystallisation technique to perform deadly looking manoeuvres. He''d actually sparred with her a couple times and found her to be more skilful than the other vampires he''d fought when defending the Manor. Unfortunately she wouldn''t answer any questions about her unique ability and Ambrose almost miraculous use of it.

    It was around two weeks before the Quidditch world cup when Reima starts to plan for his next move, he wanted to stop innocents dying in the attack of the world cup, he didn''t remember if anyone actually died but any reason to slaughter some douche bags was good enough for Reima... The only problem was having a valid reason of being there just in-case he was questioned by the Auror''s in the inevitable slaughter that''d happen... Of course he could just go as \"Ornstein\" again, but maybe using that identity too much would eventually result in getting discovered, he wasn''t extremely versed in this worlds magic and wasn''t sure if there was a way to detect him based on his magical signature... Another reason why his breathing technique was problematic.

    Suddenly Ciri walks in with a letter in-hand, she looks at him questioningly as she continues reading through it. Reima eyes her suspiciously as there obviously isn''t anyone that''d write to Ciri, if you exclude the couple of \"fanmail\" she''d received.

    Ciri \"Err, I just got a letter from the Minister. It''s an invitation to a \"Quidditch\" world cup? Any idea on what this is?\" she asks Reima, unsure of what to do.

    Reima \"Let me take a look at it, I think I know what this is about.\" he says as she hands it off to him.

    Taking the letter he skims through it, summing it up briefly it''s essentially an invitation to the VIP seating, surprisingly close to Fudge himself. Reima can''t really think of a reason for this and ponders why the Minister would bring her instead of his normal guest : Lucius Malfoy. Another thing that bothered Reima was that Harry Potter and the Weasleys would definitely be there as well... With Ciri butchering his God Father Reima didn''t really want to be there when the teen explodes. But here''s the problem, this is likely the only way he''d acquire a ticket to the event without stealing from some unfortunate sod, the places selling seats had sold out a month or two ago when Reima was still orienting himself. Other than that, Ciri can''t very well refuse the Ministers invitation and still stay on good terms. Considering the man chose her instead of some other high society family, it''d be indirectly offending everyone else who wasn''t invited...

    He rubs his forehead, \"You should go...\" he says

    Ciri \"Are you sure? I''ve had to deal with politics all my early life but this world is new to me, maybe this is a plot against us?\"

    Reima reads the bottom of the letter and see''s his name written as well... \"It says here that I''m also invited as long as it''s with you...\" he grins, \"Just think of it as a date.\"

    She blushes slightly and looks away, \"That''s not my only issue with this, look at the requirements.\" she says pointing to a part of the parchment.

    Reima reads it and has to double check it to make sure what he''s seeing is real. \"They''re requesting that you bring your sword? Is that even legal?\" he asks confused.

    She crosses her arms, \"I''m not sure but it seems to me like I''ll be paraded around like some sort of trophy.\" she almost growls out.

    Reima shrugs, \"You''re a hero, of course they''d want you there... Though, I''m still unsure about bringing a weapon.\" he says as he suddenly recalls that there''ll be an attack later on, maybe they can take advantage of this and increase Ciri''s popularity further by eliminating a public threat? He nods, \"Don''t mind it, I think everything will play out nicely.\" he says as he hands back the letter.

 284 Comeuppance?

    The Dursley Residence.

    \"BOY!\" shouts Vernon as he rapidly flips over a letter in his hands, normally he wouldn''t be bothered by mail but this is different...It''s covered in many different stamps, some not even being recognisable to Vernon, the other thing is who it''s addressed to, \"Harry Potter\".

    Harry briskly walks down the stairs and sees his purple faced uncle, he filches slightly in anticipation of the beating he''d usually receive... He opens one eye and remembers that the Dursley''s hadn''t touched him since Sirius had gotten out of prison, having a mass murderer for a godfather seems to have a few Pro''s, so he should be fine, right? Unfortunately it seems something is different, Vernon slaps him on the side of his head before grabbing a fist full of hair. \"What is the meaning of this boy? If you''re expecting me to have freaks in my house you can forget it !\"

    Harry groans at having his hair tugged by his uncle as he rapidly tries to calm the situation, \"Sorry Uncle, I didn''t know I would be receiving letters!\" he says, inwardly confused at why he''d gotten a letter via the muggle route instead of from an owl.

    Vernon growls and palms harry in the chest with the letter, the teen grabs it with both hands and backs away from the impact.

    Vernon \"Well? Open it.\" he commands him.

    Harry nods and opens it, revealing who it''s from... \"It''s an invitation from the Weasleys to the Quidditch world cup?\" he unintentionally says out loud to his Uncle who''s only growing angrier.

    Vernon \"You tell those freaks that you''ll not be going anywhere! Pet told me that your work on the garden has gotten sloppy, bin that rubbish and go do it. Or Else.\" he says as he hobbles into the kitchen.

    Harry can barely hold his anger back, he follows after his Uncle, \"Wait, Uncle, think about it. I''ll be out of your hair if I accept.\"

    He turns and growls, \"I''ll not have you enjoying yourself, if I can''t beat the magic out of you, I''ll beat god int you!\" he scowls.

    Harry pleads, \"Please Uncle, if I don''t accept they''ll come around and see what''s wrong... You don''t want the neighbours to see them do you?\"

    The fat man stops, would those freaks really come here just for this brat? He thinks back to the numerous cases of \"Accidental Magic\" the boy had caused and he shivers, if he''s capable of that as a child, what would adult freaks be able to do? That giant freak seem as dull as a brick but still cursed his son.

    Harry continues to try and persuade Vernon until he eventually gives in, \"Fine, but mark my words boy, if those freaks cause any trouble it''ll be you who gets punished!\" he says to Harry who''s trying to stifle his smile as he runs upstairs to pen a letter to Mr Weasley.

    The next day the Dursley''s are manically trying to get everything looking pristine in preparation for the Weasley''s arrival, why they are dressing up for supposed \"Freaks\"? Harry muses it''s because they want to seem superior for some reason or another, this''ll likely offend the Weasley''s due to their poor financial situation. Ten minutes after they were suppose to arrive everyone is sitting in the living room, waiting... Vernon scowls at Harry and says, \"Freaks or not, I''d have thought they''d be on time... Especially with their Witchcraft and Dark Magic.\"

    Dudley sits there dressed up to his gills, wearing so many jumpers that his sweat marks are quickly becoming visible through them.

    Harry scrunches his nose up at them, if this was what normal people acted like then maybe it wouldn''t be so bad to wipe them out? He shakes those wayward thoughts away as a large *BANG* is heard... The group looks around to find what the noise was but nothing seems out of place, *BANG!\" it happens again, only louder this time.

    \"AHHHHHH!\" a voice shouts from behind the Dursley''s electric fireplace, Vernon looks dangerously at Harry, as if he''s about to punch him.

    \"Fred I think we''ve bungled this one...\" \"Really? Why''d you say that dear brother?\" \"Well, with you sitting on me I think it''s a given...\" \"No, this feels quite normal for me.\"

    An elder voice speaks over them, \"Enough you two! I think something must have gone wrong.\"

    Harry recognises the voices and approaches the fireplace, \"Hello? It''s me, Harry!\" he says while tapping on the wall.

    \"Harry mate! Do something, we''re all stuck in here.\" a voice sounding like Ron exclaims.

    The twins add, \"It''s cold\" \"And dark\", \"Is that a spider?\"/\"Is that a spider\" they say simultaneously as Harry hears Ron slam against the wall in an attempt to escape the \"Spider\", Harry realises it''s a prank by the howling laughter from the twins.

    The elder man Harry assumes to be Arthur Weasley tries to stop them, \"Boys, stop playing around. Harry, what''s happening on you''re side?\"

    Harry \"It looks like you''ve floo''d into the boarded up fireplace...\" he turns around and sees a purple faced Vernon, \"I''d appreciate if you didn''t damage the electric Fireplace.\" he says worried that he''d be punished for the damages that are about to be caused.

    From behind the wall he can hear Mr Weasley let out an excited squeak, \"Eclectic? Marvelous! Back away Harry, I''ll sort this all out.\" he says causing Harry to quickly back away... Unfortunately for the Dursley''s they hadn''t heard the warning and stood stock still as Mr Weasley blasted the wall apart, the \"eclectic\" fireplace being thrown into Vernon''s chest, causing him to fall to the ground in a painful heap.

    ...

    Arthur \"Oh my! I am terribly sorry for this... Err, Harry? Have you got your trunk ready?\"

    Harry can bearly hold his grin back as he looks at his downed Uncle, he nods to Arthur, \"It''s upstairs.\" , well, off you go, we shouldn''t.. Dawdle.\" he says as he looks at the terrified Dudley, crying Petunia and white looking Vernon.

 285 Bad News

    Mr Weasley doesn''t waste any time and hurried gets everyone through the Floo and back to his home, the Burrow. Harry takes one last glance at the almost catatonic looking Vernon Dursley before shrugging and stepping through while speaking aloud \"The Burrow!\".

    Arthur bows to the owners of the property and apologises before leaving, ignoring the indignant screams and shouts from Petunia and Dudley. The damage didn''t look that bad, any magical intervention would easily fix the problem he thinks to himself as he leaves.

    Harry arrives to the Burrow and immediately spots two of the eldest Weasleys, Bill and Charlie, he''d met the latter briefly when they''d had to hand pass off the dragon \"Norbert\" to him. He had a good impression of him, and from what he''s heard about Bill, he already thinks pretty highly of him.

    They greet him and he nods back, \"Ah, hello.\" he says as he notices some new comers walking into the room, Hermione and Ginny. They stand aside as Ron leaves the room for some reason or another, one thing Harry notices is Hermione''s downtrodden face. Miss Weasley comes in from the Kitchen and smothers him in a quick hug while asking how he''s doing, he gives a noncommittal \"Fine\" and turns around as Arthur Weasley arrives, \"Ah, I''m back Mollywobbles\" he says giving her a quick peck on the lips... \"We may have caused some trouble for your family Harry...\"

    Harry shakes his head, \"Don''t worry about it...\" he says and whisper \"They deserved it.\"

    Molly \"Alright, RON! Come and show Harry where he''ll be sleeping!\" she shouts up the stairs to her youngest boy. \"Dinner will be done soon so quickly get unpacked\" she says to Harry.

    He nods and is taken upstairs to Ron''s room that has a vacant bed. He starts unpacking but is interrupted when Hermione comes in.

    Noticing her he nods, \"Thanks for the food you sent me Hermione, with Dudley''s diet I would probably be skin and bones by now...\" He''s surprised when she jumps on his back and hugs him, \"Oh Harry! I''m so sorry!\"

    Ron who''s sitting at the side leans he head slightly, a flash of jealousy crosses his face but he rapidly muffles it and asks \"Er, do you two need some time alone?\"

    Hermione turns to him, \"Ron! Did you not hear what has happened?\" she asks him as tears start to moisten her eyes. Her words bring Harry out of his momentary daze from having her rather soft breasts pressed against his back... \"Sorry, can you repeat that Hermione?\" he asks, himself not really knowing what he''s referring to.

    Hermione \"It''s Sirius...\" the hard look on her face causing his heart to stop for a moment...

    Harry \"What do you mean? Has something happened?\" he asks hesitantly.

    She chokes up as she''s trying to say it, Harry unconsciously returns the hug from early to comfort her as she tries to get out the words.

    Hermione \"Sirius, Harry, He''s dead.\"

    ...

    Harry \"W-what... No, there must be some mistake... We saved him, remember?\" he stutters out, the shock not fully sinking in yet.

    Ron \"Sirius Black? I thought he''d be out of the country by now...\" he says confused.

    Hermione shakes her head, \"It was plastered all over the prophet, someone called Ciri Rivia had killed him with a sword.\" she says within Harry''s arms.

    ...

    Harry himself can barely listen to this, were the information not coming from Hermione he''d think it some sort of prank. But when had Hermione ever been wrong? With the exception of the Polyjuice potion in second year, she''d always steered him right. \"No, it must be the ministry making things up... It wouldn''t be the first time.\" he says, his hold on his friend only getting tighter.

    Suddenly a huge bird flies in and launches a package at Harry before flying away again...

    Reluctantly letting go of Hermione he bends down and picks it up, he glances at his curious friends before opening it... It''s from Gringotts? He reads aloud, \"Mr Potter, we writing to inform you of the late Heir Blacks unfortunate demise. As is directed in Sirius Black''s will, you are now deemed Heir of the black family. As a result, all holdings and property will be locked until you come of age or are emancipated, your magical guardian will be unable to access these assets as per the Wills i-in-instructions.\"... his hands tremble as he lets the letter escape from his grasp, his legs gives out from under him as he drops to his knees, the world feels as if it''s crumbling all around him. His hopes of a family, his dreams of escaping the Dursley''s, his wish to spent more time with Sirius. All gone. He lets out a choked sob as tears start falling from his face, wetting his baggy shirt.

    Ron looks on in uncomfortable confusion at his friends apparent breakdown, unsure of what to do. Hermione seeing Harry''s like this can''t help herself and throws herself on him again, the feeling of losing someone for the first time finally kicking in as she sees her distraught friend. They both cry in each others arms, Hermione barely maintaining her composure enough to try and comfort Harry, who''s seemingly lost all perception of the things around him, only focused in grieving for his lost God Father.

    Ron looks to the door and sees His mother, father and brothers all crowding around it and looking in, confused and unsure of what brought on this sudden bout of sadness from the duo on the floor. Molly looks to Arthur, \"Do you know what''s wrong?\" she asks. He shakes his head, \"I don''t know... But if what Ron had told us is correct, then it''s likely Harry had only just found out of his demise.\"

    Molly''s eyes soften as she looks at the duo she attempts to get closer and comfort them but Arthur holds her back, \"Leave them, this is natural... Let''s let them work through it.\" she reluctantly nods and leaves to prepare dinner.

 286 Outdoor Toys?

    In the centre of Diagon Alley Reima is uncomfortable dragged through the bustling crowd by his companion, Ciri. The letter had included things they''ll need to bring for the trip, either they had to rent out a tent already at the scene or they would have to buy one... Unfortunately it seems the the ones present were already rented out to somebody else, resulting in the current situation.

    Ciri \"Come on, it starts tomorrow, we need to be prepared.\" she says as she pulls him by his hand.

    Reima \"There''s not rush, calm down...\"

    Ciri \"What if we can''t find one!\" she says, her eyes darting left to right, looking for a store that sells tents.

    Reima huffs, \"Then we''ll just teleport back home when we need to.\" this causes her to slow down slightly, she pouts as she looks back at him. \"Look, if I have to go along with this to appease the minister then I''ll enjoy myself during the off-time.\" she states, Reima remembers the arguements he had used to try and persuade her to go... These included but are not exclusive to, Campfire''s, Smores, Interesting sights, Fairground-like activities and watching people unironically wear ridiculous clothing. That doesn''t even touch on the worst part of trying to persuade her, as she was extremely wary of wearing her sword Reima offered to play Monopoly... If she wins, he''ll wear his sword alongside her, if he had won she''d have to go regardless. For some reaoson however, he''s completely trash at every single board game he plays, Gwent, Battleships, Monopoly, Cards. Everything, this resulted in him losing to Ciri who was playing for the first time. As a gentleman he couldn''t back out and reluctantly agreed to wear his sword alongside her, he comforted himself with the fact that their story has them coming from the same place, as such, having similar customs and weapons wouldn''t be out of the ordinary.

    They spot a store called \"Pitching a Tent for the Lady\"... Reima shakes his head at such stupid name but is dragged towards the store by Ciri who disregards his increasingly dramatic refusal to enter the store. As he''s pulled into the store the duo are immediately shocked silent by what they see, black leather BDSM suits for men and women are scattered throughout the store. Many life-like toys for a woman''s enjoyment are almost overflowing from a shelf nearby, Ciri curiously looks around and picks up a big red one and droops in her hand. \"What do you think this is?\" she asks Reima. Turning his head to the side he mutters, \"Just put it down, this deffinitely isn''t the store we need...\"

    She looks at him confused at his weird attitude and strokes the red thing in her hand, it stiffens and starts moving on it''s own causing her to drop it in surprise... It turns blue as it hits the floor and a huge black shop assistant walks over an scolds her for damaging the merchandise. \"Ma''am, please try not to give our products \"Blue-balls\", it affects their performance.\" he says in an incredibly low voice.

    Reima \"Sorry, we were just leaving.\" he says as he puts his foot down, finally having enough of Ciri''s curiosity.

    Outside Ciri pulls her hand out of his grasp and complains, \"That store was interesting, what''s wrong?\"

    Reima looks her in the eye and says, \"That \"Store\" is a sex shop that sells stuff for couples to use in bed... Of course, you don''t have to be a couple to use them, I used to know quite a few women who... Enjoyed using those kinds of things.\" he says, delighting in how red her face was getting.

    Ciri \"So, I just, that thing?\"

    Reima nods \"A large red dildo. Man, I thought you''d realise what it was when white stuff started leaking out the end of it.\"

    Ciri \"It what!?!\"

    Unfortunately for the duo, neither noticed a blue water beetle watching them from afar...

    Eventually they managed to find a place that sold tents, Ciri had assumed that they were regular tents with nothing special about them. The shock on her face when they were being shown the various sizes of tents available was readily apparent, \"This tent has four bedrooms, a kitchen and living area. It also includes a self assembly rune cluster that can be turned off if and when you''re in a muggle area.\" the man says to him, Reima nods and asks \"What about protection? I would hate for it to, go up in flames, as the saying goes.\" he says thinking about whether or not it''d be a waste of money to buy an expensive tent that would only be burned to the ground once those death eaters attacked.

    He looks at Reima strangely and replies, \"This one reacts to fire like another other tent, however, we do have a fire resistant selection that is generally used by adventurers hunting dangerous creatures.\" he says as he walks to a couple grey tents that look almost scaled? \"These are designed to protect against most things, even the breath of a Nundo wouldn''t breach this ones defences.\"

    Ciri \"Er, Nundo?\" she asks confused.

    Reima shrugs, \"The cat-like creature who''s breath can apparently wipe out entire villages.\" He isn''t really sure what to do when a hungry look appears in her eyes... Surely she can''t be thinking of hunting one? He shakes his head, \"I''ll take it, don''t tell me how much it costs or I might have a heart attack. Just direct it to vault 2020 in Gringotts, he says as he dips his finger in some ink and presses it on some parchment. Usually you''d have a special card or just sign something in your blood but this isn''t possible for Reima due to his bloods unique problem...

 287 Food for though

    It''s the day of the Quidditch world cup, Reima slowly gets to his feet from his previous meditation and heads into the kitchen to prepare some food for himself and Ciri. With the lack of electricity the stove burns wood, this would make it quite difficult to cook on pans and similar things, were he not in complete control of the flames. Spilling a small amount of olive oil into the pan he directs a good amount of fire underneath it in preparation for cooking.

    Behind him Talicia and Nerissa walk in due to the sound of spitting flames and the clanking of utensils.

    Reima \"Just got up?\"

    Talicia smiles \"We''re vampires, we haven''t gone to sleep yet.\" she says as she sits down at the table in the centre of the room.

    Reima scratches his head, \"Er, right. Done anything interesting last night?\" he tries to make small talk.

    Nerissa nods, \"Mother is terrible at Monopoly...\"

    Talicia gives her a look but Reima can see it''s a playful one.

    He lays down some bacon and sausages in the pan and cooks them all evenly, afterwards throwing in four eggs. Once everything is almost cooked he glances at Nerissa and asks, \"Could you grab Ciri? We''ll have to leave pretty soon, and you know how she gets without breakfast...\"

    She skips away to go bother Ciri enough that she can''t sleep any longer.

    Talicia \"So, you''ll be going to this \"Quidditch\" cup?\"

    He nods, \"We''ll probably be there a day or two, depending on how everything goes, will you and Nerissa will be alright without us?\" he asks as he seasons the eggs and stops the flames from heating the pot of beans any further.

    Talicia waves her hand \"We''ll be fine, go and enjoy yourself with Ciri.\" she says in a suggestive tone.

    He struggles from keeping his cheeks from flushing but somehow succeeds, his relationship with Ciri was a weird one, he was of course attracted to her, there was no doubt about that. But he''d been pretty apprehensive since being reincarnated to actually get into a relationship, most of his experiences with the other sex either ended on incredibly bad terms, never speaking again or they became so hostile that any interaction ended in shouting matches, to the chagrin of anyone nearby. His caution didn''t stop him from forming close friendships and even romantic feelings, they just stopped him acting on them, he''d felt this the most when he was with Risryn, Quelaag, Priscilla and of course Ciri. He felt pretty shit about it in all honesty, as much as he would like to dream, he wasn''t a harem protagonist... Relationships like that are only formed in duress, by force or compulsion, any of which would be incredibly unhealthy to any longer lasting relationship, even if his hormones pushed him towards such a situation...

    Either way, Reima himself knew that Ciri wasn''t looking for a relationship either. From his interactions with her he could tell she had some sort of phobia against men, while it wasn''t apparent in her interactions with other people, he could see the small flinches and distancing she unconsciously did.

    Talicia \"On another matter... You both will be leaving on the 1st?\" she asks with a strange tone to her voice.

    Reima \"Yes, we''ll be off to Hogwarts.\"

    As he says this he could see a an expression flash on her face, as if she''d just eaten a lemon...

    The door opens revealing a bleary eyed Ciri being dragged by Nerissa, she rubs her eyes and looks around like Clint Eastwood does desert bandits. She''s sat into a seat by the young vampire who walks up to Reima to receive her \"Reward\" via head pats...

    Reima \"Thank you for bringing her Snuffles\" he chuckles. He can see her expressionless face form a pout as she turns away from him. \"Morning Ciri.\"

    She looks at him, \"Do we have to be up this early?\"

    Reima shrugs, \"You don''t need anymore beauty sleep, plus we need to be ready for the portkey that the minister sent.\"

    She continues to look irritated until he drops a the large plate of food in front of her, all previous remnants of the Princess of Cintra seemingly disappeared as she devoured the food like a starving animal...

    Reima waves his hand causing the flames to snuff out and leaving a good portion of the wood for another time, he places his own plate at the table and starts eating alongside his ravenous companion. After a moment he looks up and sees Talicia and Nerissa looking at him...

    Reima \"Eh, did you want some?\" he asks, apprehensive about giving away his breakfast.

    Talicia politely shakes her head, this is mirrored by Nerissa who nods her head instead... The elder vampire sighs at her daughter becoming spoiled by this man by doesn''t say anything.

    Reima reluctantly grabs another plate and scrapes half of his food onto it before it''s snatched away by the young vampire, it seems she''s becoming more like Ciri with every interactions as they both eat like animals.

    Reima quickly finishes his rather small breakfast and fishes out the portkey from his pocket... It''s a sock... Hopefully an unused one, while it''s not really possible for bacteria, fungi, viruses or even parasites to remain on his person due to his unique constitution, he still found disgusting things, well, disgusting. Whether or not he got sick didn''t matter, if he had to wade through the Depths again he''d rather collapse the whole thing maze-like complex.

    Once Ciri had eaten her fill she went and got dressed in some smart looking casual clothes, it was however, a strange appearance due to the sword also strapped to her back. They were about to leave when Ciri poked him in the chest and gestures back to her sword with her thumb...

    Reima \"Fine.\" he said as he sheathed his black knight sword on his back... He doesn''t equip another due to it likely to attract more attention, especially since his silver one was well known as \"Ornstein''s\" weapon.

 288 Fair-Ground Performance.

    The duo appear on the outskirts of a large fairground? They both look in awe at the absolutely enormous amount of people present, Reima is wearing his Absolver wear without the jacket, his sandals and shorts don''t look that conspicuous when compared to the various rediculous outfits worn by many of the people here... Ciri was wearing a beige long sleeved jumper with black pants that are held up by her jewelled belt, Reima more often than not found himself unconciously glances at her tight... Ahem, assets.

    They don''t get much time to stare at the carnival as they''re interrupted by an almost glassy eyed old man who stumbles over to them.

    \"Ah, no, call me, err... Roberts?\" he questions, somehow confused at his own name?

    \"These grounds are mine and as per our agreement... I think? Everyone needs to pay to access these grounds.\" he says while holding out his hand.

    Reima shrugs an gives him a couple of pound coins, \"The man looks at them and nods, \"¡ê20, thank you. I think I''ll be off... Then?\" he says as he pockets the ¡ê4 and walks away, Reima can see various official looking people keeping an eye on him.

    Ciri \"That was... Strange?\" she says, finding the rather disoriented man unnerving.

    Reima continues looking at the man, he looks up at someone flying over them with a broom, he rubs his eyes but turns around due to someone calling his name. A flash of light causes him to stumble back, Reima can hear him ask about \"What he was doing\"...

    Reima \"Seems like they''re just constantly erasing his memory every time he sees something magical...\"

    Ciri \"But would that-\"

    Reima \"Potentially cause permanent and irreparable brain damage? Probably, but this is just how magical''s in this world are, showing a complete disregard for non-magical people.\"

    The duo continue to talk while they walk around looking for a clear spot to put down their tent, it''s pretty difficult as they apparently came pretty late, even though they''d turned up at 6 am... Eventually the find a large hill that''s unoccupied and Reima immediately puts down the tent, unwilling for this spot to be taken.

    As the letter stated he starts manually putting the tent up without the assistance of magic, this would have been much easier if he had Ciri helping him but she''d buggered off and starting exploring the fair grounds... Reima found it incredibly confusing to set up this blasted thing, this pole connect with that one, that connects with another? But what about this pole? The instructions say it conencts to THIS pole... After an hour of trial and error he manages to finally finish it, luckily the tent was fire-resistant or he would have burned to it to cinders in his frustration induced anger, either way, it''s finally complete!

    He''s about to go inside when a white blur beats him to it... Walkng inside he can see Ciri already lounging on the large sofa in the centre of the living room.

    Reima \"After all the work I put it, I''d have liked to be the first one inside...\" he says forlornly.

    Ciri \"Tough luck, that aside look at this!\" she says pulling out some marbles.

    Reima \"Er, yeah... Marbles? Cool.\" he says uninterested, that is, until she throws one at his head.

    It smashes on impact and something appears out of it, a small... Bird? It about the size of his thumb and looks like a cartoon character, as soon as it''s free it starts flying around the room, he tries to get Ciri to stop throwing them as he didn''t want his new abode to be infested by the bloody things but it turned out too late. She''d thrown a handful on the floor, revealing thirty miniature animals that start running around. A mini tiger pounces on a lizard and eats it, despite the cartoony appearance, the sight of a tiger tearing apart a lizard while it''s still alive isn''t a nice sight. Reima scrambles to clear them up before any more blood, guts or shit gets on his new furniture, Ciri laughing the entire time.

    A while later Reima walks out of his tent and starts preparing a campfire in-front of it, he''d promised Ciri a campfire with smores and by god, he''d make it happen. Fortunately setting up a campfire as a god of fire may have been the easiest thing he''d ever done, after setting up to lawn chairs next to each other and pulling out a couple of beers from his Folded Space he leans back into his seat. His eyes trail over the camp sight in pursuit of anyone of interest he may know, he doesn''t find any but this doesn''t bother him, this way he''d have more time to relax and enjoy the merriment and atmosphere until the World Cup starts. Ciri almost jumps into the chair next to him and asks, \"Doing anything interesting?\"

    Reima grins, \"You''re just in time, I was about to make some smores...\"

    She smiles and remembers, she giggles as she sees him pierce a couple large marshmallows on his sword and rest it over the fire. He pulls out some crackers and chocolate bars and retrieves the marshmallows which now have a slightly singed appearance, he makes a couple sandwiches with marshmallow and chocolate with the crackers and hands one to Ciri.

    She bites into the crunchy and gooey texture and a smile unconsciously finds it''s way on her face.

    Reima eats enough to replace his half stolen breakfast and decides to try and mimic one of the performers tricks. While still seated, he conjures a couple dark red balls of fire and starts juggling them, a skill he''d been practising ever since being shown up in-front of Priscilla... As he does this he inadvertantly draws spectators closer, who notice the smell of the smores and offer to pay for some... Needless to say, money is money, and if he can charge stupid amounts for some smores, well, all the better.\"

 289 Rising Tempers

    Reima continued to perform various tricks for the amusement of the gathered people and Ciri, he made quite a lot of money as well but he was eventually interrupted as the World Cup was starting. A man wearing dress robes approached and asks, \"Are you Ciri Rivia and Reima Ludivg?\" he asks glancing at the weapon on Ciri''s back and the sword laying across the campfire with marshmallow''s impaled on it...

    Ciri \"We are, is something wrong?\" she asks, as small frown starting to form.

    The man shakes his head, \"Not at all, I was just asked by the Minister to escort you to your seats for the event.\" he says with a fake-smile plastered across his face.

    Reima \"Ah, is it really that late?\" the conversation causing the gathered people to check the time and rush off to find their own seats. The man nods and asks him to look presentable for the Minister, Reima isn''t really sure what he means but realises when the man glances at his sword yet again...

    Picking up the sword he bites the blade and drags his teeth across it to slide the marshmallows off, eating them after they come free. He sheaths the sword afterwards and grins at the man, causing him the flinch backwards slightly. He and Ciri are amused by this man who seemingly lacks any sort of backbone and slowly follows him, much to his displeasure.

    They were brought to a huge stadium where they then had to climb stairs for almost ten minutes straight, the height was so great that a regular person would have had to take a couple breaks in attempt to reach the top... This was the case with their guide who was sweating profusely due to them spurring him to go faster, needless to say, the duo found this incredibly amusing.

    Once they reached the top box he and Ciri were told to sit at some front row seats... Reima however asked to sit elsewhere, \"Er, sir, I''m sorry to trouble you but are there any other seats besides these ones?\"

    The man looks confused, \"I''m not sure, why do you ask?\"

    Reima glances to the side at a group of redheads approaching the seats next to him and a sense of foreboding fills him, of course he can''t just say \"Because of the people that''ll be sitting there\", in the end his objections die in his throat and he sits beside Ciri.

    An exhausted harry with black rings around his raw red eyes sits down with a *thump*, Hermione accompanying him soon after. After finding out about Sirius death Harry had found it increasingly difficult to care about much, why would he? His only family left is dead, killed by some bitch with some pointy metal, he''d even seen actions figures besides his own in the fair ground... The fact that this person is being praised and rewarded for killing an innocent man makes him sick, that''s without the feeling of despair that had followed him ever since yesterday.

    Soon after they sit he can see Minister Fudge approaching, he notices Harry and smiles, walking down to some seats in the front row he collects someone and starts almost pulling them towards him.

    \"Harry! How are you doing, well I assume!\" he says as the person he''s pulling is quietly saying \"No, Minsiter, I don''t think this is a good idea...\" The female seems to hide behind Fudge as he finally reaches him.

    \"My boy, you must have heard that the criminal Sirius Black who had confounded you last year was caught? Well, I present to you Ciri Rivia, the one who caught Black.\" he says and pulls her forwards with a tug.

    The ashen haired girl uncomfortably looks at him, \"Err, hi?\" she says nervously.

    Hermione grasps his arm tightly, the same arm that was just about to pull his wand and attack this white haired bitch! He grits his teeth as he glares holes into the woman who''d killed his God Father, how dare she approach him! How dare she speak to him! Rage fills him as Hermione tries everything she can to calm him, he''s about to jump out of his seat when a voice interrupts them. A man with strange cat-like eyes and white hair similar to Miss Rivia''s approaches, he wears a sword on his back like her and starts to speak in a calm tone.

    Reima \"Minister, I''m sure Mr Potter is still... processing everything, perhaps we should leave properly introducing ourselves when we enter Hogwarts?\"

    Fudge \"Oh, of course, apologies Harry, I was getting ahead of myself... Though, I would appreciate us taking a photo together to commemorate this happy event.\" he says as he poses with Harry on his left and Ciri on his right, a flash from a hidden camera somewhere indicates that the photo had been taken and he lets go.

    Fudge leaves almost immediately after taking a photo together to go talk with someone else and Ciri is left there next to Harry... She finds him staring back at herself with his emerald green eyes, rage clearly visible on his face, she''d about to try and explain herself when Reima pulls her back to her seat. \"No, this isn''t the time, if he loses his temper here it could spell disaster for not only ourselves, but him and his friends as well.\" she reluctantly nods, still feeling the Boy-Who-Live''s gaze on her person.

    Hermione continues to hold Harry closely while whispering calming things into his ear, really this had been the only thing she had been doing since yesterday. If she had thought the boy was an emotional wreck when they had first met then this was something else, he was constantly on the edge of shouting, crying and or becoming apathetic to everything. He was clearly depressed and distraught by the loss of Sirius and there wasn''t much she could do to help him...

 290 Veeling Frisky...

    Reima sits between where Harry and Ciri are sitting, trying to stop the young boy from biting her head off... Glancing over he can hear a red head, probably Ron say \"Mate, that bird was fit.\", Reima ends up smirking however when he gets slapped by Hermione for \"Being insensitive.\".

    Around him many more people join the stands, one being a man wearing a green and yellow striped jumper, he''s overweight with blonde hair and an average face. He greets the Weasley''s and Harry after briefly speaking with the Minister. He glances over the Witcher duo but doesn''t say anything, instead electing to walk forwards to be visible for most of the people in the stadium, putting his wand to his neck he welcomes everyone. \"Ladies and gentlemen... Welcome! Welcome to the final of

    the four hundred and twenty second Quidditch World Cup!\", Immediately as he says this many people start waving flags of either green and white or black and red, the respectively belonging to Ireland and Bulgaria. The red heads on Reima''s left burst into cheers, shouting like apes and disturbing the relatively quiet atmosphere of the top box, suddenly a huge scoreboard appears with the two teams featured prominently on it. Many advertisements are also shown, various brands of candy, makeup and clothing are shown off as the fat man continues. \"And now, without further ado, allow me to introduce... The Bulgarian National Team Mascots!\" he shouts with a smile as many blonde women appear on the field, dancing away under the awed cheers of the stadium.

    Reima feels a mild compulsion to, Ahem, \"Bed\" these women immediately, however it only lasts a moment before he realises what these women are : Veela. He glances at Ciri and sees her unconsciously licking her lips as she watches them... Weird? Looking to his left he sees that Harry''s attention has finally been drawn away from Ciri, and towards the Veela. He tries to shrug off Hermione''s grip but some stern words cause him to regain his composure, unlike some of the red heads that look as if they''re about to leap off of the stand to their demise... The bright side? Maybe some of their splattered remains would be in contact with a Veela?

    Eventually the dancing stops and the angry crowd begs and pleads for them to return... Reima rubs his chin, if they wanted this sort of show they should have just gone to a brothel.

    Ciri nudges him with her elbow, \"What''s going on?\" she asks, curious at the stadiums sudden shift in mood.

    Reima \"Those women are Veela, they unconsciously entice men with their aura''s and strangely can transform into bird like creatures that can throw fire...\"

    Ciri \"Were you affected?\" she asks.

    Reima shrugs \"As a gentleman I am immune to the wiles of wicked women.\" he says pompously.

    Ciri leans in her chair while crossing her arms, \"Yeah, whatever you say, Rei\"

    Not long after the Veela had stopped dancing the announcer begins again, \"And now, it is a pleasure to introduce the Irish National Mascots!\" he says, while Reima mutters under his breath about being bias.

    After this announcement huge fireworks go off in the shape of a shamrock and start peppering the crowd in gold coins, Reima would be following Ron Weasley''s example by scooping the coins into his Folded Space, were he not already aware that they were fake''s created by the Leprechauns. Beside him Ciri fiddles with one and looks surprised when she bites one to check it''s softness.

    Ciri \"It''s real?\" she mutters in surprise.

    Reima shakes his head, \"No, they''ll disappear in a while.\" She doesn''t seem that bothered by this and flicks it off the stand, creating a metallic sound as it flies through the air.

    The leprechauns leave just as quickly as the Veela, leaving the announcer to stand again, \"And now, ladies and gentlemen, kindly welcome... The Bulgarian National Quidditch Team!\" He starts to list off the various players, specifically noting the presence of the seeker Krum. At the mention of his name the stadium starts chanting for him, cheering as he passes the various stands, he raise his arm in triumph as if the game is already won. He passes by the top box and nods to the Bulgarian Minister but stops momentarily when he seems to see Ciri? His gaze lingers on her longer than Reima would have liked, Ciri herself glares back as if she had just encountered a Drowner...

    Ciri \"Have we met him before? He looks far too interested in me for it to be anything else.\"

    Reima grins \"Maybe, or perhaps it''s love at first sight?\" he says and receives and elbow to his stomach.

    Next, the fat man starts to introduce the Irish team. Reima doesn''t note anyone of interest in their ranks and just continues to watch, interested in how this''ll look in real life. A man walks past selling Omnioculars, Reima doesn''t really need them as his enhanced sight and dexterity which grants him incredible reaction speed allows him to easily see what''s going on. He does however buy one for Ciri, who''s squinting to get a better look at the players further away.

    She seems confused as he hands it to her but nods in understanding as she sees various people around them using them to spectate. Reima notices that Harry isn''t actually using any, rather, he doesn''t actually seem that interested in the game. Instead he just sits there brooding and occasionally taking glances at Ciri. He mentally sighs, not knowing if it''s possible for the two to reconcile, either way, he''ll have to get rid of the soul shard lodged in Harry''s scar. Depending on how the boy acts this year he may attempt to help him, after all, even after Voldemort is dead, he''ll still have to live in this world.

 291 Death Approaching

    It isn''t long before the game starts, Reima watches with rapt attention as they fly in every which direction, some colliding in air and others barely avoiding disastrous impacts. The people in the top box flinch backwards as a Bludger is knocked towards them, luckily some kind of barrier protects people from having their skulls crushed by the rather ridiculously dangerous looking ball. Reima idly wonders how no one has been killed by that thing yet, he remembers that it''s able to easily break bone, so what''d happen if it hit you in the back of the head? Instant death? He can see Ciri on his side unconsciously mimicking the players, flinching left and right as if she''s the one dodging instead of them. Truth be told it looks as if she''s playing mario cart or something similar.

    Throughout the whole game Krum kept making small glancing towards Ciri, Reima wasn''t sure if she notices this but for him it''s rather obvious. The one most notable was after he''d performed that famous feint, causing his opponent to rocket into the floor, probably disabling them for life with the speed they were travelling at. After this he''d blew a kiss at his companion, she definitely saw this one as she gave him the finger immediately after.

    After Bulgaria was penalised for \"Excessive use of elbows\" the Veela mascots leapt to their feet and start throwing fireballs at the Leprechauns who were taunting them, needless to say, Veela beat Leprechauns. The game is drawn to a momentary break when the Veela start pressuring the referee with their aura, while they are being given stern words by the match officials Ciri looks at him with a smile.

    Ciri \"This is exciting isn''t it?\"

    Reima \"Sure is, we''ll be able to play Quidditch in Hogwarts you know?\"

    Her eyes almost seem to shine as she imagines flying around at crazy high speeds.

    Eventually the game is brought to an end when Krum catches the snitch, apparently his pride wouldn''t allow the match to go on any longer as the Irish barely squeeze out a win, much to the consternation of the Veela below the stands.

    With the game over a ceremony is held by Fudge who gives a golden cup over to the Irish with a stupid grin on his face. The fat blonde announcer has everyone cheer for both teams that had participated for a \"Great game\", Reima wasn''t really sure about the quality of it, but since it was close it would have been interesting to watch... Had he not already knew of the outcome.

    After people start filing out of the stadium Fudge approaches Ciri and grabs her hand before rapidly shaking it, \"I think you for accepting my invitation today Miss Rivia, I hope you have enjoyed the festivities, surely nothing back in Greenland could ever match up to Britain.\" he says while brightly smiling.

    Ciri gives a lacklustre smile in return and he parts ways with them, Reima leads her out of the stadium, all the while trying to keep a good distance away from the Weasley''s and Harry especially.

    Once back at the camp Reima immediately starts the fire again, leaning back into his lawn chair and opening a beer. Ciri plops next to his and grabs a beer, \"That was fun, but tiring.\" she says as she takes a sip.

    Reima \"Yeah, I knew we were going to meet Harry Potter but I didn''t expect the Minister to literally push you towards him... That should''ve been avoided.\"

    Ciri nods, \"Do you think he''ll ever forgive me?\" she asks, unsure whether or not she wants to be forgiven in the first place.

    Reima takes a swig, \"Maybe? I know for a fact he''ll be ostracised by the people in Hogwarts, it might be a extremely manipulative but if we try to help him out he might lighten up... Maybe after hearing your side of the story he won''t be as hostile towards you, he''s quite similar to you in that he''s almost always in constant danger for things he has no control over.\" Reima says as he places his feet near the fire, the only thing stopping his sandals from bursting into the flames being their unique material and regenerative qualities.

    Ciri doesn''t comment on the fact that her friends feet should be rapidly burning and thinks over what he had said, she didn''t wish to manipulate a fourteen yearold but if that what it took for him to actually listen to what she has to say, maybe it''s justified? She''s still unsure, either way, she''ll try her best to help him through what will apparently be an extremely dangerous year for the boy.

    Reima \"Oh, by the way, don''t drink too much tonight... We will be expecting unwelcome \"Visitors\" if you catch my drift?\" he says in a quiet tone.

    She nods in understanding and habitually checks the status of her sword, still sheathed on her back.

    Reima keeps an eye on the fair grounds, not knowing the exact time the Death Eaters will be attacking, one thing he needs to makesure of is that Barty Crouch Jr gets away, if not then his plans could all go down the drain, other than that, it''s party that only he, Ciri, the Auror''s and Death Eaters are invited to.

 292 Dealing with Death

    Ciri had taken a nap in her chair as Reima kept watch on the ground, the atmosphere was pleasant, well, for the Irish it was. Cheering and Irish folk songs we being sung by rowdy drunks crowds, various food stands selling fatty meats and sweet treats.

    That is, until the screaming started. Ciri is prodded awake by Reima and she springs up, already preparing to draw her sword.

    Reima \"Looks like the attack is starting, remember, don''t get hit by anything, some spells won''t instantly kill you but if you see green, get outta dodge quickly!\" he says and he emphasises how serious the matter is. She nods in understanding and follows him as he approaches the area where flames are starting to spring up, it''s pretty difficult for her to keep up as people sprint past to try to get to safety, inadvertantly bashing her and other people in a selfish race to stay ahead of others.

    They''re finally able to see who''s causing all the commotion when they spot a large group of black cloaked men wearing skull-like masks underneath their hoods. They drunkenly laugh and jeer at people as they cast fire at the various tents and occasional deadly spells at people, above them float four figures, one familiar male who they''d met previously, Mr Roberts, the three others appear to be a woman and two children. The death eaters laugh as they cause their bodies to contort like a puppet on strings, Reima didn''t think much of it and thought it was pretty tame as far as torture goes, that is until they starting bending their limbs backwards.

    Roberts \"NO STOP, PLEASE, I''LL DO ANYTHING!\" he shouts through the pain as he witnesses his wife and children being sadistically tortured by the masked men.

    This only causes the group to laugh louder and start stripping clothing off of the women and children, cackling madly when the womans breasts are revealed.

    Ciri \"They''re animals, fucking sick perverts.\" she says infuriated that no one is trying to stop them.

    Reima growls, \"Well Ciri, you know what you do with sick animals? You put them down.\" he says as he starts walking around the group.

    Ciri follows him and notices a small group of what seemed to be Auror''s glaring at the group, muttering \"We need to secure the hostages, if we stun the caster then the family will plummet to their deaths.\" they say to each other. She relays this information to Reima who has a thoughtful face, after they get into a position behind the group he looks at Ciri, \"You know the levitation spell right?\" she nods, \"Well, go to the Auror''s and tell them that I''ll create a distraction, we''ll need them to to get the hostages to safety once I start, Ahem, dealing with them.\"

    She starts to protest as she wishes to help in a more important way but he waves her off, \"Do you want to save them or not?\" This gets his desired reaction and she sprints towards the Auror''s, he watches as she explains to them, raising her hand and giving a thumbs up to signal that they''re ready.

    He unsheathes the sword on his back and takes a couple deep breathes, not knowing that a small blue beetle is spectating everything nearby... He checks his Slumbering Dragoncrest Ring to makesure it''s still present and working before leaping into action. He doesn''t utilise his teleportation abilities due to wanting to keep that secret for the final confrontation with Voldemort, the group of around thirty Death Eaters don''t realise what''s happening when something blurs past them causing a few of their members to drop to the floor. They''re surprised and horrified when they try to pull up their fallen comrades, thinking that the alcohol had gotten the better of them... This thought immediately exits their minds when their heads fall from their bodies, a clean cut being readily visible.

    \"WE''RE UNDER ATTACK!\" One shouts causing another to activate his hidden portkey leaving the rest to curse him for his cowardice, the subsequent chaos in their ranks allowing their hostages to drop from the sky and start falling to their death... Only to be caught by the on-sight Auror''s an Ciri, a few Auror''s levitate some of the destroyed tents and other debris in-front of them to defend against any curses shot towards them as they try to recover the Hostages.

    On Reima''s side he''d just decapitated a few of them before retreating back into the darkness, a large grin finding its way onto his face as blood drops from his blade. Seeing that the muggle family had been caught and were being noticed by the Death Eaters he jumps back into action, this time being seen by the group of dark wizards. A couple shoot green projectiles at him, causing him to give them a wide berth as he dodges them, not knowing what''d happen if he were hit by them.

    After dodging under a couple more spells he approaches and flicks his sword, causing a wand wielding arm to drop to the floor, it''s owner going with it, screaming in pain while clutching his stump.

    Behind Reima the small group of Auror''s had starting casting incapacitating hexes at the Death Eaters, with their attention all on Reima they don''t even have the chance to dodge. Reima continues to dodge, pirouette, avoid and strike in the midst of the group.

    As he''s cutting them down he notices a familiar face joining him, Ciri. She doesn''t say anything, partly due to the incredibly dangerous situation and partly because nothing needs to be said. With their familiarity with each other they both agilely separate the group of Death Eaters, cutting them down as they retreat backwards. Reima bashes one in the face with his pommel, causing the mask to fly of and revealing their face... \"Gibbon?\" he says aloud.

 293 Nothing like a BBQ!

    Reima \"Gibbon?\" he says aloud.

    Gibbon coughs spittle at him as his nose bleeds profusely from the impact of Reima''s strike, \"I should have known you''d be with those traitors. In-human pieces of shit like you are the worst of em!\" he shouts.

    Reima''s about to retort but has to move his head to dodge a spell flying at his head, realising he hasn''t got time to question him Reima severs his wand and both legs with a flourish of his sword, Gibbon would usually instantly die due to the Occult enchantment on Reima''s blade but he utilised a small portion of his aura to burn the wounds, stopping his death.. Temporarily. Of course this doesn''t happen quietly, the horrific screams of the man draw the attention of everyone present, while this gives Ciri an easier time of dodging their spells, the barrage now being shot at Reima isn''t welcome.

    As the battle continues he notices various injured Death Eaters seem to disappear, all except Gibbon. This is confusing as every wound he makes with his black knights sword is fatal due to it''s enchantment, therefore it must be some kind of timed port key or something similar.

    Ciri herself is having a harder time than Reima, lacking his extensive experience, speed and skill set she''s finding herself more often than not using the Death Eaters themselves as makeshift cover. This works extremely well funnily enough due to their companions complete disregard for their allies safety. After using one body as a human shield she curses Reima for not giving her staff before the fight, while it would prove slightly cumbersome it would also provide her with a different method of attack. She still remembered Reima telling her to not show her abilities in wandless magic, \"You''ll be taken and studied by the Unspeakables and probably be used as breeding stock.\" were his words. Of course she could teleport away but where would that lead her?... Her mental monologue is interrupted as she''s thrown to the side by a wayward \"Bombarda Maxima!\", the subsequent explosion causes shrapnel and debris to be thrown violently in random directions, some hitting the Auror''s and even the caster themselves due the strength of the explosion.

    A couple men who had been assisting the duo by throwing out some spells as a distraction were struck in the face with shrapnel, one died instantly while two others were heavily injured. Seeing this the other Auror''s decide to wait for reinforcements, neglecting the fact that two teenagers were in the midst of a heavy battle.

    Due to the hit and run tactics and formations performed by the Death Eaters who somehow managed to regain their composure fifteen had survived out of the thirty. They all sit behind cover pointing their wands in various directions, curses on their lips, ready to blow anything that moves to kingdom come.

    \"You said they wouldn''t be prepared!\" one shouts, clearly panicking.

    \"THEY WEREN''T!\" another shouts, unsure of how the plan had failed... Maybe slowly walking from one end of the campsite to the other with only four hostages had something to do with it?

    \"I can''t take this, I don''t want to die!\" a skinny robed man quickly says before activating his port key, causing the others to become enraged at yet another cowardice, truly they were no better than blood traitors!

    As their remaining enemies are hiding and jumping at their own shadows, Reima and Ciri are no far away. Reima is extracting various sharp bits of metal out of his companions skin before wrapping them in bandages, he''d expected her to get through this unharmed but he couldn''t blame her for being unable to completely dodge a exploding curse, especially when he''d forgotten to give Ciri her staff...

    Reima \"Is anything else injured?\" he says, appraising her dirty and torn jumper.

    Ciri pats herself down before shaking her head. \"No, I think I''m good.\"

    Reima \"Right, are you still good for a final push?\"

    She nods with determination in her eyes, Reima pushes her staff into her unoccupied left hand and looks over to the group of Auror''s who had apparently abandoned them. Him letting Ciri participate is partly to prepare her for future battles, witches and wizards fought differently to anything else he''d battled before. Their variety of spells and ability to utilise their environments was almost unmatched at this level of power. Having experience against this type of opponent would increase the likely hood that she''d survive vs the Wild Hunt, while Reima was sure he''d be able to obliterate their leaders he wasn''t sure what else they had tucked away, for this he decided to err on the side of caution and make all necessary preparations.

    Reima \"Ok, since our friends have ditched us I''ll draw the Death Eaters attention... I can hear them bickering with one another behind that pile of wood and stone, if you can get atop it and cast a radial spell then this''ll be a quick fight... Think you can handle it?\"

    She nods \"Easily.\"

    Hearing her words Reima immediately bursts into action, sprinting faster than an Olympic Athlete past the fifteen wands which immediately start casting various dangerous and lethal spells, the most prominent being the killing curse. Due to them not panicking as much as before they try to lead their spells, causing Reima to utilise his Observation Haki to avoid unseen spells, it doesn''t take long before he notices a shadow appear above the rubble the Death Eaters are hiding behind.

    Ciri had just reached the top and stabs her sword into the rubble to balance herself on the unstable platform, in her left hand lies the staff given to her by Reima, she points the tip of it at the group of robed men and shouts \"INCENDIO!\", unfortunately for the men below she had unconsciously overpowered it, causing a huge stream of fire to envelop them, making it akin to dragons breath. The force of the spell pushes her back slightly but she holds her sword tightly and points the tip left to right, making sure that the enemies were completely subdued. It''s only until the smell of burnt flesh and hair hits her nose that she finally stops the spell.

 294 Angst = torture? Who knew?

    Elsewhere.

    Harry, Ron and Hermione had been separated from everyone else and had ran into the woods as Mr Weasley had told them. Harry himself can feel his blood boiling, he had briefly seen the robed men burning tents and torturing people as they marched past. He felt the need to do something but was escorted away by his friends and forced to flee into the forest like the rest of the wizards.

    They continue to run through the trees but stopped when they hear feminine screams.

    Ron \"We should just run, we''re also in danger here!\" he says to an almost raging Harry and uncomfortable looking Hermione.

    Harry growls \"We can''t just do nothing! Not when we''re able to help!\" he says reaching for his wand.

    Hermione \"Those are trained wizards! What could we do to stop them?\" she says, more to convince herself than they others.

    Harry \"If I can kill a Basilisk and stop Quirrel then I can definitely deal with, with-\" He says as he pats his pockets. \"Wait, my wand, Where''s my wand!\" he exclaims, finally noticing the absence of his wand.

    Ron \"Mate, even if you had a wand going over there would be madness!\"

    Hermione \"Harry, I''m sorry but we have to go!\" she says as the screams get louder.

    Feeling incredibly indignant, Harry shouts \"Sod off and run then!\", slapping Hermione''s hand away and running towards the screams, picking up a large stick with a pointy enough edge to seem threatening. He ignores the shouts of his friends and continues further into the forest, getting small cuts and scuffs from the various foliage.

    Eventually he reaches the treeline of a clearing where the screaming is loudest, looking inside he sees a single man laughing while pointing a wand at a girl, she looks familiar and seems about his age... The man repeats, \"Crucio!\" which causes the girl to start screaming again, this time more tired than before. \"Half-Blood bitch! If you wish to blame someone, blame your blood traitor father! CRUCIO!\" he shouts again, causing another bout of exhausted screams.

    Harry isn''t idle during this however, with the lack of his wand he needs to stop the man physically. Somehow, he isn''t scared, the feeling of fear just doesn''t seem like a valid concept to him at this moment, unsettled rage and adrenaline pump through his veins as he slowly approaches the back of the man.

    The man stop casting at the young girl, causing Harry to stop in his tracks, worried that he''d been heard. It''s only the sound of the man unbuckling his belt that eases his worries while making him more angry than before.

    He waits as the man pulls down his pants, leaping out of the bushes as they sit around his ankles.

    \"Wha-\" the man manages to get out before a large stick impacts the back of his head, his grip on the wand remains tight, even through the head boggling impact.

    Harry lifts the stick to bash in the mans skull but is punched in the face, shattering his glasses. He falls to the floor as the man turns to look at him. His tongue flicks out of his mouth as a look of sheer excitement fills his face, \"Potter? Oh, it''s Potter! HOW EXCITING!\" he says as he flicks his wand, causing the stick in Harry''s hand to be forced out of his grip and thrown far away.

    \"How couragous of you to try stop me unarmed! Truly Heroic, however... This isn''t one of those stories... You realise that, don''t you Potter?\" he says, the silence only causing the tension to rise further.

    Harry \"You''re a monster!\" he shouts, only drawing out more laughter from the man.

    \"Hahahaha! I guess I am, to you at least. But for Magical Britain I''ll be a hero when HE returns! And I''ll be bringing HIM you''re head as a trophy\" he says pointing his wand at Harry, who only now recognises it to be his own Pheonix Feather wand.

    \"Crucio!\" he chants, causing Harry to scream as he feels thousands of needles shred underneath his skin, it feels as if his insides are liquefying into molten lava, all while he feels everything!

    \"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!\"

    \"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! CRUCIO! HAHAHAHA!\" two screams echo throughout the forest, causing animals and people alike to run as far away from them as possible.

    Barty Crouch Jr continues to torture Harry, the boys body reacting violently to each Crucio he casts. He hadn''t felt this alive since the last Death Eater raid. Oh, how he would love to kill the boy here and now, but the Dark Lord still has plans for him. He was denied the opportunity to permanently kill the boy for some reason, his Lord must have future plans involving him, this however didn''t mean he couldn''t torture him. This was the least he could do for ruining his fun with the blood traitor.

    Unknown to him, a shadow silently approaches behind him... It gets closer, and closer until Barty can feel a hot breath on his neck. Quickly turning he finds himself staring into Cat-like green eyes that seem to glow in the darkness. \"Oh, David Tennant? Lucky I didn''t cut your head off... But I guess I could leave you with a souvenir..\" he says as he swipes a black blade, cutting off Barty''s left leg below the knee, a wound that funnily enough, matches Alastor Moody''s...

    Reima doesn''t forget to sear the wound closed as he knocks the wand out of the man''s hand and throws him deeper into the forest, making sure he''s out of sight and able to get away.

    He looks down at the two young teens lying on the floor, a girl he hadn''t met before and Harry Potter... The boy continues to writhe on the floor in pain, as if he''s still under the torture curse.

    Reima \"Er, sorry for coming late?\" he mutters, unsure if the chosen one can hear him.

 295 If a tree is obliterated in a forest, is Reima there?

    Reima watches as Ciri shows no mercy and burns the rest of the Death Eaters alive, he waves his hand in-front of his face to get the smell of burnt human flesh away but it doesn''t do much.

    Ciri manages to dislodge her sword out of the rubble and falls backwards off of the mound, Reima dashes forward just in time to catch her.

    Reima \"Good job.\" he says as he holds her in a princess carry.

    Ciri gives a smug grin, \"Did you expect any less?\"

    He chuckles, \"No, I suppose not...\" he says as he continues to hold her...

    ...

    ...

    It starts becoming awkward and she finally asks \"Er, can you put me down already?\"

    He nods embarrassed at his error and lets her feet down first, he''s about to try retort but is interrupted as around fifty Auror''s suddenly surround them.

    \"HALT SURRENDER, YOU''RE UNDER ARREST!\" one shouts but is slapped around the back of the head by a stern looking woman. \"Ah, forgive me Madam Bones\" he says and backs away.

    Barty Crouch the the Head of the Department of International Magical Cooperation walks forward and points his wand in Reima''s face, \"Where are your accomplices!\" he shouts.

    Reimas''s eyes narrow dangerously, \"Get that stick out of my face or you won''t like the consequences\" he states, the his bloodlust from the recent battle only intimidating the man further. It seems however that he''s experienced the horror of live battles and manages to hold his ground, \"I repeat! Where are your accomplices!\"

    An Auror behind them says \"Wait! These are the two that fought the Death Eaters before we retreated for reinforcements.\" he hurriedly explains.

    Amelia walks forwards, \"I thought I had seen your face before. You''re Ciri Rivia, slayer of Black.\"

    She nods, uncomfortable that she''s so well known in this world.

    Amelia directs everyone to lower their weapons as there is enough evidence to suggest that Reima and Ciri were helping to combat the Death Eaters. \"Did they escape?\" she asks.

    Reima tries to stifle a grin but can''t seem to manage it. \"No, you''ll find their... Remains behind here.\" he says pointing at the rubble.

    A couple Auror''s walks around but their faces become white and a few gag at what they see, one has enough composure to present their findings and levitates a completely charred corpse forwards for Amelia to see.

    Her nose wrinkles at the smell and she looks at the duo, \"Did you do this?\" she asks.

    Ciri nods, \"They got what they deserve, I have no idea how many were hurt or even killed but violent unprovoked attacked deserve lethal retaliation.\"

    Amelia \"That is not your choice to make, though you haven''t broken any laws due to this being self defence, as brutal as it may seem.\"

    Reima \"I may have... Captured one of them alive.\" he says as he walks over to a passed out Gibbon... Who''s lacking arms and legs.

    Amelia squints her eyes at Reima, wondering how a young man such as himself could become so brutal to sever someones limbs and talk about it like it''s nothing.

    Amelia orders the Auror''s to investigate the scene to see if they can find anything, she then look at the duo as says \"I''ll have to take you two in for questioning, no need to worry as it''s just a formality. Though, guessing by there attire you might find a certain group clambering for your arrest.\" she''s about to continue when Reima''s ears twitch, \"Is that... Screaming?\" he unconsciously mutters out loud.

    Ciri looks at him oddly, \"No, I don''t hear anything.\"

    Amelia \"Look, if this is to get out of questioning then it won''t work, these procedures are in pla-\" She tries to explain but Reima is already sprinting off in the direction of the screams. He sprints towards the forest where the feminine screams seem to be getting louder, this forest seems to have been made via magical means as he sees a large clump grouped together as if a wall had been made created with them. Reima keeps running as if they''re not even there however and barrels into a tree, causing it to explode into a shower of wooden splinters as the upper part falls to the forest floor.

    He continues running and hears a male voice replacing the female one, it sounds familiar and realises that the Dark Mark hadn''t been cast in the sky yet... Had he changed the future too much?

    With his Slumbering Dragoncrest Ring he silently sneaks into the dark treeline and sees a man standing over Harry Potter who seems to be having a seizure. Knowing this is probably due to the torture curse he sneaks up behind the man and prepares to bisect him, that is, until he turns and sees his face. \"Oh, David Tennant? Lucky I didn''t cut your head off... But I guess I could leave you with a souvenir..\" he says with a grin on his face, deciding that the only lasting damage he could do without drastically changing the future would be to sever his leg to match Moodies. And so, that''s what he did. He doesn''t forget to burn the severed foot to ash to remove any chance of the Auror''s finding evidence that Barty Crouch Jr is still alive.

    After throwing Moody into the forest and apologising to Harry for coming too late the rest of the Auror''s arrive. Again, pointing their wands at him.

    Reima \"Looks like someone was screaming, lucky I heard them isn''t it?\" he asks pointing down at the two teenagers.

    Amelia \"Harry Potter! Merlin who did this!\" she exclaims.

    Reima points to the wand on the floor, \"The man dropped that wand, maybe you should check it for spells?\" An Auror nods and checks, speaking aloud his findings, \"Last three spells are... Crucio, Crucio and.... Crucio.\" everyone except Ciri and Reima flinch at this finding.

 296 Clarifications

    Amelia looks around, seeing her Auror''s not moving and just staring at the fallen boy-who-lived, \"What are you all waiting for! Take both of them to Saint Mungos!\" she shouts making them all jump to attention and start following orders.

    A couple Auror''s scoop up Harry and the girl before apparating away, presumably to the hospital. Reima and Ciri finally sheath their weapons, the latter still gripping her staff as if it''s a lifeline.

    With Ciri''s soft spot for children, seeing two young teens broken and battered on the floor is difficult, especially after watching those Death Eaters torturing two children mid air. Though she had done all she could to help them, she still felt bitter at her lack of strength when compared to her companion.

    Amelia looks at the duo and sighs, \"Mr Ludvig is it? I thank you for bringing this to our attention but I''ll still need to question you both for tonight''s events.\" she says while looking apologetic.

    Reima shrugs, \"It''s fine, I could do with a break and maybe some tea?\" he prods cheekily.

    Amelia \"Fine, but you better tell me everything.\" she huffs and pulls out a scrunched up newspaper.

    \"You lot, continue investigating and search the ground for anyone who didn''t get away fast enough. Check the rubble for survivors and Obliviate any Muggles who''d seen even the slightest magic. Do NOT forget to collect statements! Am I clear?\"

    \"Yes Madam Bones!\" they echo as Amelia, Reima and Ciri are port keyed away.

    The group appears inside a clean looking room with bookshelves, ornaments and a desk with a huge pile of paperwork atop it. She walks around the desk and slumps into a large chair behind it, she pulls out a blue quill that floats above some parchment in-front of her. She waves her wand and levitates two chairs to sit opposite her before gesturing for the duo to sit.

    \"Brunty!\" she calls, causing a goblion like creature to appear next to her.

    Brunty \"What needs doing Miss Madams?\" he says in a high pitched voice.

    Amelia \"Bring us some tea please.\" she looks a Reima expectantly.

    Reima \"Er, just milk please...\" Ciri repeats his order and the House elf pops away leaving the trio alone.

    Madam Bones sits up right and starts, \"State your names, age, occupations and blood status.\"

    Reima looks at her confused, \"Why would blood status matter in a statement?\"

    Amelia looks at him \"Because pure-blood statements are seen as more accurate, for some reason.\" she mutters under her breath and has the quill scratch off everything that had been said. She repeats her previous question.

    Reima shrugs, \"Reima Ludvig, seventeen, witcher, pure-blood.\" he states following their story of being pure-bloods from Greenland.

    Ciri follows his lead, \"Ciri Rivia, Seventeen?\" she says trying to stick to Reima''s story... \"mm, witcher in training, pure-blood.\"

    The quill scribbles down everything that''d been said quickly and accurate as Amelia looks at them, \"Witcher?\"

    Reima \"Another name for monster hunters.\" he states blandly.

    She nods, such an occupation isn''t rare, secluded communities sometimes need to hire hit-wizards to deal with magical creatures that are bothering them.

    \"What was your purpose for attending the Quidditch World Cup?\"

    Reima \"We were invited by Minister Fudge, we saw no reason to refuse as Quidditch seems like an incredibly interesting sport. We also though joining the festivities of the international community would broaden our horizons.\" he says as if this is a scripted interview, leaving Ciri slightly baffled at his eloquence.

    She looks at Ciri and she roughly repeats what Reima had said, trying to keep their story as straight as possible.

    \"What were you doing immediately before the attack?\" she asks.

    Reima \"Resting at our tent, which I sincerely hope hasn''t burned down...\" he adds.

    Amelia \"What caused you to to intervene when Auror''s were already on the scene?\"

    Ciri speaks up this time, \"We couldn''t do nothing, innocent people were being tortured while your Auror''s stood back and did nothing, only with our intervention were we able to get the hostages to safety.\"

    Reima \"Not to mention how they ran while we were still fighting for our lives.\" he adds with sarcastic mirth.

    Amelia''s eyes squint at this, \"I see, I''ll be investigating your claims once we are done here.\" she says with a steely voice. She continues, \"Now, from what I had gathered you both entered combat with the terrorists with only the swords on your persons... Why did you feel the need to bring those to a sports event and why did you not use your wands... Or staves instead?\"

    Reima \"Minister Fudge thought it would be a good idea for us to wear them, probably due to Ciri''s popularity. I brought mine as I''d lost a bet...\" he says looking slightly put out.

    Ciri \"I didn''t use magic because someone\" she glances obviously at Reima, \"Forgot to give me my staff before the fight.\"

    Reima \"Look, we''re both alive so it doesn''t matter... Ok?\"

    She doesn''t say anything and just fiddle with the staff while still seated.

    Amelia can only shake her head at these two antics, \"From what my Auror''s had found, half of the terrorists had managed to escape, the other half had been burned alive by some quite powerful flames, do you two have any information that might brings some things to light?\"

    Reima \"I think they had port keys, the man called Gibbon didn''t end up teleporting away for some reason, they must have been located in their pockets? Seeing as I cut his legs off.\" he says with brutal honesty which shocks Amelia slightly.

    Ciri \"I burned quite a few alive...\" she says.

 297 Aftermath

    The interview continues for another ten minutes where Amelia tries to gather some information about their backgrounds, Reima takes the lead and changes the subject multiple times causing Amelia to give up this line of questioning as it doesn''t even relate to last night.

    In the end Amelia gets an almost perfect picture of what had happened, she had not believed them when they''d said they had killed almost everyone, mostly with swords... Such a thing is almost unheard of, the last instance of it occurring may have been Godric Griffindor.

    Amelia \"I thank you both for being so cooperative, I''d like you to keep everything confidential for the time being, I''d like to make sure everything is accurate before releasing information to the press.

    Reima nods, \"We understand Madam Bones. I look forward to seeing Gibbon getting sent to Azkaban, Pure-Blood supremacists are what create Dark Lords, hopefully people will start thinking rationally about things.\" he adds as he downs the last of his tea and stands.

    Amelia shakes his and Ciri''s hand as they leave her office. She slumps in her seat and goes over the interview, finding nothing out of place. She hoped with her entire being that these weren''t Death Eaters but just copy-cats, her prior experience with Death Eaters is not a good one, seeing as her family was brutally murdered in their homes by You-know-who''s supporters. The biggest failure off the ministry in her opinion was letting rich pure-bloods get off simply by stating \"I was under the Imperious\", really. If it was that easy to take control of so many people then magical Britain would have fallen centuries ago.

    Back with Reima he and Ciri were kind of lost inside the Ministry, it seems Madam Bones hadn''t found it prudent to tell them the way out... He was also cautious of teleporting away due to them probably being monitored, it wouldn''t surprise him if they had anti-apparition wards up. If he showed that he could teleport through anti-apparition wards then he''d probably be kidnapped by the Unspeakables...

    Reima \"You want to visit Tonks? She''s probably around here somewhere...\" he asks, not knowing whether or not Ciri actually liked Tonks.

    Ciri shrugs, \"Let''s not... I''d prefer to just get home, we also need to pick up our tent.\" she says, reminding him that he had indeed almost forgotten about it, despite moaning to Amelia about it.

    They eventually find the way out which leads into London... For some reason? Wouldn''t it make more sense for the entrance to be in Diagon alley or something? Regardless the duo dip into an alleyway and teleport to the fair ground that''s still streaming with Auror''s. Quite a few people have apparently returned to try and collect their valuables, they seem to be bothering the Auror''s who are still searching for people under the rubble. Looking to get some revenge on Ciri he says \"I''ll go help look for people underground as I have a few abilities that can help... You''ll be fine taking the tent down, won''t you?\"

    Ciri frowns \"Of course I can, do I look like a child to you?\" she says indignantly, not realising she''d just been tricked by an ecstatic Reima.

    Reima \"Right, than I''ll leave you to it, Ciao!\" he says while briskly walking away.

    Ciri \"Uh, you tripe spouting trickster!\" she shouts when she realises what he''d just done.

    Reima starts walking around the burned campsite, using Observation Haki to try and scan for magical aura''s. This seems to be an incredibly good way at finding buried people as before two hours pass he''d already found three people, he''s happily rewarded with many, many kisses by the overeager Veela... For some reason they seem incredibly attracted to him, not that he''s complaining of course.

    As this happens he''s being watched by a few jealous Auror''s who''re gritting their teeth every time he saves someone, the fact that they''re Veela only adding insult to their injuries.

    Reima waves at them while absolutely covered in various colours of lipstick, \"Good work guys, hopefully we''ll find anyone who''s still trapped.\" he says, making them mentally cry at how lucky he was.

    Reima was having a good time going about shifting rubble, that is, until he walked into the more heavily damaged area that the Death Eaters had first attacked. There was no aura''s around but that didn''t fool Reima, he knew that while there wouldn''t be survivors, the bodies would be plenty. He started to pick random piles and carefully digging through them, he started to find people who died from the fire, suffocation or simply being crushed. His happy mood from earlier was easily dampened by line up of corpses behind him, it only being made worse due to the majority of them being either young adults or children. Those sick cunts had attacked an event that was incredibly popular with all ages, leaving this as the result.

    He kept a stern face as if he didn''t he''d feel the need to go hunt down the \"Innocent\" Death Eaters immediately, his fury only increasing with every body he finds. He''d only finished when the sun was

    high in the sky, people gathered around him and the huge line of bodies laid behind him. Some weeping as they recognise a brother, sister, parents or even children. Even the press didn''t wish to disturb this tragic scene and put the camera''s away, even those who hadn''t lost anyone gathered to mourn for those lost.

    Reima quietly dipped away after doing all he could, he''d gotten back to his tent to find Ciri finally finishing packing up the tent... The fact that she''d taken a couple hours to do it caused Reima to chuckle through his terrible mood. \"Let''s go home, shall we?\"

    Ciri nods tiredly, despite the nap she''d had a couple hour ago she was exhausted, mentally and physically.

 298 Vampires, yet not?

    Elsewhere :

    A man stands looking at a fireplace wearing Victorian era clothing consisting of a red tailcoat, waistcoat and fine pants. He had long black hair, red slit eyes and three claw marks trailing diagonally across his face. He turns around to look at a scantily clad woman with a white blindfold covering her eyes, her pale skin looking almost translucent. The only adding colour to her was her Blonde hair.

    \"I will not repeat myself, tell me, or you will suffer the consequences.\"

    The woman turns her head in the direction of his face \"My abilities are not meant for the likes of you.\" she says defiantly.

    The man scowls at her, \"You may think that we Belmont''s seek justice due to our intervention long ago, but I assure you. We are the true monsters.\" he says as he walks towards the black curtain covering a window. He suddenly opens it, allowing light to envelop the room and severely burning the blonde haired woman. She screams in absolute agony as she feels her body beginning to turn to ash.

    The man shuts the curtain and looks at her, a prominent grin spreading across his face. Looking as if the sun had no affect at all.

    \"M-monster!\" she manages to shout through the pain as she realises what this means.

    He walks up to the severely burnt woman and takes a handful of her blonde locks, \"YOU WILL TELL ME WHAT I WANT, OR YOU WILL FEEL THE AGONY OF A THOUSAND SUNS!\"

    Katherine tries to resist, but she knows she will break eventually... She can only pray for her sisters forgiveness.

    43 Elur street :

    Talicia and her daughter were preparing to go to sleep as the night was over, she idly wondered what Reima was doing. The event must already be over, oh, how she wished to be able to participate in such festivities. This was an impossible dream however due to her vampiric constitution, maybe that miracle man Reima would be able to create something that would allow her and her daughter to experience the sun without instantly dying? With his many abilities previously thought of as impossible it seems more hopeful than she''d ever thought before.

    *Knock, Knock, Knock*

    ...

    Someones knocking on the door, at this time? Talicia shivers as she gets a bad feeling. She can''t even open the door as the sun is already up...

    *Knock, Knock, Knock*

    Nerissa walks in, \"Mother, could it be Reima and Master?\" she asks.

    Talicia ...\"No, go to the basement, now!\" she says, as the bad feeling gets stronger and stronger.

    Nerissa runs off to the basement, however she returns quickly with a sword in hand.

    Talicia tries to send her away to hide but she''s interrupted as the door explodes, allowing some rays of light to collide with the floor.

    Two tall men with black hair and sunglasses walk in, one wielding some kind of whip while the other has his hand in his pockets.

    \"Ah, just who we''re looking for.\" the whip wielding man says with a smug grin as he eyes the young girl.

    Talicia \"Who are you!\" she shouts while pushing Nerissa behind her.

    The other man walks forward and gives a mock bow, \"I am Juste and this is my brother Richter. I''m sure you''ve heard of the Belmont clan before?\"

    Her eyes widen, \"What would they want with us!?!\" she shouts at them.

    Richter \"That''s none of your business sweet heart, well, it doesn''t really matter since you''re both already dead.\" he says while unclipping his silver whip from his belt, it''s covered in numerous studs that would cause many cuts should someone be hit by them.

    Nerissa steps forward with her sword drawn, \"You won''t hurt Mother!\"

    Talicia seeing no other way slits her wrists and starts coalescing a large amount of blood around her, she''d fortunately started training again recently and had started to regain her previous strength... This still might not be enough however as she''d heard legends of the Belmonts.

    Richter steps forwards while flicking his wrist, causing his whip to flick at Talicia, she moves blood in-front of her and condenses it, creating a blood-crystal shield. The whip collides with the shield and pushes her back slightly due to it''s strong impact.

    Juste leaps forward with his hand still in his pockets at Nerissa, he sends a flying kick at her, reminding the young vampire of her first interaction with Ciri. She quickly ducks and slashes him, aiming for his achilles tendon but missing and hitting his calf instead.

    He turns his head and looks down at his cut trousers, Nerissa realises that there isn''t even a drop of blood from her heavy blow...

    Juste \"Is that the best you can do? I''m surprised elder was worried about you.\" he says, turning and performing a heavy kick towards her. Fortunately for her, she''d sparred with Reima plenty of times to learn to deal with quick martial kicks. She steps forward and gets inside and close to his thigh to stop most of the impact while brutally striking upwards to his face with her pommel. It strikes him in the face, causing his head to jolt back, she doesn''t stay close however and immediately jumps back after connecting the strike.

    Juste starts laughing with his head upturned. \"Hahahaha! You''re interesting! I''d love to meet who taught you!\" he almost shouts as he sprints at her at a much faster speed than before.

    Nerissa tries to block with the flat of her blade but finds it in two pieces as it shatters due to the strength of the Belmont''s blow. The kick continues and collides with her sternum, causing a loud crack to echo throughout the room.

    Talicia who was barely fighting off Richter had her attention drawn away due to this and is raked across the back with the silver whip, causing smoke to be emitted from her wound.

    Nerissa looks up at Juste and towards her injured mother, feeling as if all hope is lost.

 299 Just because youre Juste doesnt make you Richt...

    With the feeling of silver cutting deeply into her skin Talicia can feel the purity of it start to corrode her flesh. Glancing at her daughter she can see how dire the situation is, she finds herself wishing her husband were here, but it isn''t likely that he''ll appear...

    Talicia realises that she''s the only one who can do anything to help, this thought allows her to push through the agonising pain and have a last stand. Her lively skin starts turning white and pale with her body becoming gaunt as she starts drawing out almost her entire body weight in blood. They float around her resembling dozens of tentacles, prepared to strike.

    Juste \"Looks like granny wants to get serious.\" he states, glancing at Nerissa''s despairing face as he does so.

    Richter \"So what? It''s not like she can harm us, weaklings will always be weaklings.\" he snarks while preparing to strike with his whip again.

    This time Talicia strikes first, a tentacle of blood piercing forwards with a ruby like tip forming, acting like a spear head. It''s quickly dodged by Richter who waves his whip, causing it to spin twirl around him, kicking up wind and obliterating the tentacle of blood.

    After blocking the woman''s attack he kicks his heel up which collides with his whip, causing it to rocket towards Talicia. She throws herself to the side, barely dodging it and sweeps her arm upwards, causing three more tentacles to attack him while he''s overextended.

    Richter smiles and ducks while wrenching his whip back, causing it to jolt backwards and sending the extended end flying towards the back of Talicia.

    Talicia seeing the jarring smile on her opponents face covers herself in a ruby sphere to block any potential attacks, this proved to be a smart move as the whip point pierces the sphere, penetrating a couple inches inside, stopping short of Talicia''s head, causing her to sigh in relief. The move isn''t over though, as Richter forces the whip backwards to retrieve it''s extended tip. This causing the whip to almost cut the ruby sphere in half from the force, causing the whip to fly back and blow a hole into the ceiling which allows a ray of sunlight to hit the floor.

    Talicia manages to stay away from the sunlight but can feel a bead of sweat crawl down her face as the fights intensity continues to increase.

    Richter \"You''re finished!\" he shouts as he spins the whip over his head, causing it to collide with the walls of the house, the action making the antiquated house becoming unstable.

    Talicia seeing this pushing a couples tentacles to support the walls to prevent it collapsing on their heads, the ruby pillars seem to stop the house from shaking but any more impacts will likely bring it down.

    Talicia \"We haven''t done anything to you! Leave us\" she shouts, almost pleading to the two arrogant men.

    Richter \"As tempting as that offer is, we''ll have to refuse.\" he says as slaps the whip on the floor, more to intimidate her than anything else.

    Juste \"Brother, perhaps it''s time to end this? Stop playing with your prey.\"

    Richter nods and sprints forwards, his feet causing the floor underneath him to crack at the pressure. He swings the whip widely, causing it to destroy a couple ruby pillars and forcing Talicia to duck to dodge, this however was what Richter had wanted. He steps forward and sends a brutal punch to her chest, Talicia is unable to dodge or block the strike, allowing it to collide with her chest and explode out of her back.

    Nerissa \"NO! MOTHER!\" she hears her daughters voice in the background as she feels her vision dim at the catastrophic damage she had just taken.

    Talicia manages to look up into the smiling man''s eyes, the smug look still ever present on his face.

    \"I won''t let you have my daughter!\" she shouts as the last remnants of blood in her body leak onto the mans hand that''d penetrated her chest. They act a needle as ruby points form and penetrate Richter''s wrist. He tries to pulls his hand back but finds the woman gripping his arm tightly, he tears one of her arms off in an attempt to stop what she''s doing but by then it''s already too late.

    The tendrils of blood had breached the skin and found the man''s veins, once inside they started rapidly traveling up, haphazardly damaging everything inside with their sharp ruby-like points. Eventually they reach his heart.

    By this time Juste notices something is wrong as Richter starts seizing up and shaking, he''d thought he was playing with the female but now it doesn''t seem to be the case... He begins to step forwards but the house around him starts to collapse, rays of sunlight hit the floor and an unfortunate Nerissa who''s face is stained with tears.

    Nerissa can barely hold in her screams at the searing pain, but she manages to stay silent, instead pushing her focus on one goal. Killing these monsters! Even with most of her skin burning and muscles being destroyed she still manages to leap onto Juste''s back while biting down fiercely onto his neck.

    Juste \"Guah!\" he exclaims when he feels his life-force being rapidly drained, faster and stronger than anything else he''d ever felt before. He tries to claw the girl off of his back but slowly finds himself being burned? The sunlight! \"AHHHHHHHHHHH!\" he gives off a terrifying scream as his blood is drained and his body is turned to ashes simultaneously.

    As this happens Talicia''s attack finally concludes, Richter''s body fading away into ashes, the only thing remaining is a heart inside some sort of ruby sphere that falls harshly to the ground.

 300 Goodbyes

    The sound of the crystallised heart dropping to the ground brings Talicia out of her momentary daze. With the building around her collapsing and the suns rays drawing closer she looks for her daughter, to see whether she had managed to save her. She hears bare feet stepping towards her, Talicia tries to smile but the skin on her face is so gaunt and tight that any movement causing tremendous pain.

    Nerissa had fallen to the floor after draining Juste until he faded away and had confusedly felt warmth on her skin, looking up she has to squint as she had looked directly into the sun... Her burns and wounds had all apparently healed and for some reason she was no longer being burned? The many questions are all overshadowed by a single prominent one... \"Where is Mother?\"

    She looks around and sees a small pale corpse that looks almost skeletal, the only thing giving any indication of it''s identity being it''s blonde hair and familiar red eyes that still hold some clarity.

    She slowly walks over, staggering due to exhaustion but still pushes herself forwards. She eventually drops onto her knees over the corpse and places her hand on it''s cheek. \"Mother?\"

    Small droplets of water start coming out of the corpses eyes, it''s fanged mouth trying to smile.

    \"N-neri-ssa\" is hoarsely choked out.

    Nerissa recognising the voice cries, \"Mother, it''s me... Please don''t leave me.\" she repeats to her last remaining parent.

    Unfortunately for the young vampiress and her mother, there is nothing she can do. Realising that her end is drawing near, Talicia tries to make one final sacrifice for her daughter.

    She raises her gaunt arm as if it''s the heaviest thing on earth and chokes something out to her daughter. \"r-nk, d- it.\"

    Nerissa doesn''t understand at first but Talicia continues to press, \"Dr-nk -lo-d\"

    Eventually the young girl realises what her mother wants, \"No! We''ll get help! Reima and Ciri must be back soon. Please! Don''t leave!\"

    Talicia feels death approach and pushes her arm into her daughters face. \"F-or me, dri-nk.\"

    ...

    Nerissa can''t understand what her mother is trying to do, surely there is away to heal her? Why would she want her to drink the last vestiges keeping her alive?... Talicia''s attempts continue, getting more intense as her end draws near. Eventually Nerissa stabs a single fang into her mothers wrist, following her final wish.

    With the rest of her blood drained Talicia croaks out a \"B-e Str-ong\" before fading away into ash, leaving a sobbing Nerissa who cries into the ashen pile.

    Outside a couple minutes latter Reima and Ciri had just teleported in-front of the house... Only to find it slumping inwards with a shattered door and looking as if it''ll collapse at any moment, the final straw that causing them both to sprint inside is the sound of a sobbing young girl. The fatigue from last nights events seemingly disappearing as the see the sight before them.

    In the middle of the large room they see a young girl bathed in sunlight crying over a pile of ashes, a crystallised heart sitting next to her.

    Ciri holds as hand over her mouth as her eyes tear up, \"No. Oh gods.\" she immediately runs to the girl and hugs her, the young vampire reciprocating and sobbing into Ciri''s arms.

    Reima just looks around, a feeling of fury beginning to overtake him, causing some of the wood around him to start steaming, flickers of dark red fire start to lick his ankles. Was it the Alucard''s that did this? Slowly the temperature becomes so hot the air around him becomes hazy, his gaze is drawn towards his two friends in the middle of the room which causes him to quickly stifle his flames and compose himself. He has to be the mature one now, with the house around them beginning to collapse and police likely already on their way to see the disturbance he has to take control of the situation.

    Reima \"Ciri! Take Nerissa to the backyard. Quickly.\" he says with a steely voice.

    Ciri looks as if she wishes to complain but the words die in her throat as she sees his expression. She tugs on Nerissa who tries to remain with what should be her mothers ashes but Ciri picks her up and runs into the garden.

    With them gone Reima finally notices the peculiar crystal heart along with a silver whip next to it. He quickly stores them away while levitating the ashes into an expensive looking urn that he''d \"acquired\" from Anor Londo''s castle. Once done with that he blurs upstairs and empties all of their items and clothing, storing away the entirety of Ciri''s wardrobe while not forgetting to grab all of Nerissa''s clothing along with her mothers.

    Once that''s done he remembers the library in the basement and teleport inside, he swipes his hand across the shelves storing away every book. he continues this until he reaches the last bookshelf, as he attempts to pull out all of the books he finds one that seems to be impervious to all attempts to move it... With time still ticking he roughly pulls on it, causing a loud clicking to echo throughout the room. A mechanical sounds reminiscent of rusty gears continues to make various sounds for a couple seconds before he finally sees movement. The walls slides downwards revealing a metal wall behind it, again the wall slides away giving way to another wall, this continues another five times before he''s able to look into the new room that''d just opened up.

    Reima \"What the fuck is this?...\" he cannot help but say out loud.

 301 Homeless, yet again.

    Looking inside the room Reima sees many scattered books on the floor around a large expensive looking throne... Sitting on the throne appears to be a skeleton? He''s unsure of it''s race due to the two thin skeletal wings sprouting from it''s back. The most peculiar thing however is the fact that the skeletons arms are missing... No, after looking around he finds them a couple meters away on the floor.

    What seems like very old blood coats the throne and some of the books nearby it, the arm''s were apparently removed while this person was still alive. Reima can tell by the shape of it''s pelvis that isn''t female, for some reason it''s clothes are missing, looters maybe? But that wouldn''t explain why so many valuable items are still around...

    Looking around he finds a book with a lock on it, a touch of his aura causes it to melt away allowing Reima to peek inside. Once opened he sees the authors name and his eyes widen : Morgan le Fay... The legendary figure on par with Merlin and even King Arthur?

    Suddenly the contents of the previous room start to make sense, from the various pieces of information he''d gathered from researching the Animagi transformation experts suggest that the original created was in fact Morgan le Fay.

    Reima \"Well, that explains the wings... But not the lack of arms?\" he says to himself, finding everything to be quite a mystery.

    Realising that he is in-fact in a rush, Reima quickly stores away everything into his Folded Space... Yes, even the skeleton. Once done he runs outside to rejoin with his friends, Ciri giving him a harsh look for taking so long.

    Reima looks at Nerissa who still has her head buried in Ciri''s stomach and is apparently unaffected by the sunlight, something they''ll have to discuss in private... \"Nerissa? I''ve got something for you.\"

    She glances at him through red tear stained eyes and sees him holding out some sort of urn to her.

    Reima doesn''t really know how to give this to her, or if he should do so immediately after her death. Either way, it''s her mother and she deserves her ashes.

    He gently pushes the urn into her arms and quietly says, \"I''m sorry for not coming soon enough, but we will protect you in her stead\" he says gesturing towards the urn. Nerissa''s eyes widen as she realises what she has in her hands, she starts crying again, louder than before. Making Reima uncomfortably step back for Ciri to deal with the girl...

    He''s pretty fortunate that he''d had them become closer, if not this situation may have been much more awkward. These callous thoughts run through his head but are squashed as it''s extremely disrespectful for the recently departed. From the looks of inside the building, he could see Talicia gave her all to protect Nerissa, something he can respect.

    The sounds of sirens alert the group, Reima grabs the shoulder of Ciri and Nerissa before teleporting outside of the Leaky Cauldron to, yet again, reserve some rooms.

    Nearby the destroyed house on 43 Elur street a man wearing a trench coat with a large camera in his hands continues to take shots. He''d been investigating rumours of strange things happening around the ancient house, things like vampires inhabiting it. \"Ha, yeah right!\" he''d thought... But that was before he''d seen two men in shades kick the doors open, the only thing stopping him from running inside to help the two screaming women was the explosive sound of the house being destroyed from the inside out. Instead he did what he could, recording everything that had happened. He didn''t manage to see much due to him not daring to get any closer, however this was not needed to see some supernatural sights.

    The conflict inside didn''t actually last that long but once everything was over two people appeared outside the house from no where, due to the large distance from them and his shabby camera he didn''t manage to capture any identifiable features apart from their white hair. The duo went inside and didn''t come back out, or maybe left through the back... Once the police arrived the house finally collapsed into itself from the incredible amount of damage it had sustained, from outside it looked as if a huge metallic sword was cleaving pieces out of the property. Due to him being the one who had alerted the police he immediately came forward and showed them his footage, they asked him to come in for questioning which he agreed to. However, due to the incredible footage he had captured he managed to slip the camera away to one of his contacts, he hoped they''d follow his instructions of copying the footage and creating multiple posts online to get the info out there. Originally this plan was meant for confidential information hidden by higher authority people, but here it''s just as applicable due to the incredible implications of it...

    Of course, none of this was remembered as as soon as they made it to the police station he was obliviated and his \"footage\" destroyed. He''d never know he was the one who''d recorded one of the most mysterious video''s on the internet of all time.

 302 Home sweet rental...

    With the trio appearing in a nearby alley way from the Cauldron they quickly enter inside, the owner of the bar Tom raises an eyebrow at his and Ciri''s new companion. In-fact, it''s not just Tom who''s keeping an eye on them, it seems as if everyone in the bar has gain a sudden interest in he and Ciri... Reima just pays for the room and explains that she''s a friend and they''re looking after her for the moment. He shrugs it off as this is probably a normal occurrence, additionally it seems the magical world values children above all due to the low population. Any attack on a minor is seen as the worst of the worst and could easily put you in Azkaban.

    Reima ends up renting his and Ciri''s old rooms, the two adjacent to each other provided easy access should they need something. Nerissa goes with Ciri, apparently not willing to let go even for sleep.

    Deciding to just let Ciri comfort the girl Reima dives into the books of Morgan le Fay that he''d found in the \"Secret\" secret room in the basement. Skimming through some of the books to find the particularly interesting ones, he comes across a book fully detailing Morgan''s transformation into becoming an Animagi, this was incredibly useful as the other books on the subject he had read only gave vague descriptions on what he actually had to do... Here however, it feels as if the ancient powerful witch was teaching him personally, if he were to put this in an auction after being verified he might become the richest man in wizarding Britain... Or richer than he already is? An artifact dating back to the time of Merlin and his greatest rival would surely draw attention to him however, and he had no intention to sell this book of before reaping all of the benefits.

    Before, the books simply stated that through meditation he''d eventually find his animal and slowly start transforming, even after finding the diary on theories of various Animagi transformations he still only had a vague idea of what to do. These new books however, give a full detailed explanation on the process, is your Occlumency is good enough and you meditate during a full moon you''ll get a look at your form, of course how detailed it is depends on your forms personality... If it''s a predator that stalks prey it might be incredibly difficult to actually discover what your animal is, this is the reason not many people have completed the transformation. This was probably also the reason the marauders found it so easy to transform with their half-assed potion, the book actually speaks of people who''d skip the most essential parts to quickly gain the form. this forces some of the animals actual personality into the person, rather than the persons personality deciding the animal... Back onto the Marauders, from what Reima can remember the books theory explains quite a lot, James Potter and Sirius black found it the easiest as their forms were not shy at all. Peter Pettegrew took the longest, not due to him lacking the talent, but because his form of a rat was probably incredibly hard to discover.

    Either way, he''ll not take the easy route to gaining this ability and will not allow Ciri to either. Not that he knows how to create the potion anyway, the book states that the potion is an abomination of the original method and should be purged from history...

    Continuing to read further it states that after you''ve found your animal you''ll have to slowly meditate and try to passively transfigure your body into the animal. There is not spell needed and you don''t have to be talented in transfiguration either, instead it''s all about imagination. Essentially you''re overlaying your animal''s form over your own, imagining what it''d take to transform into it... It has scaled skin? How would your skin transform into that? It has wings? What muscles must be changed to adapt to that? And so on.

    He stops reading there as he''s not even discovered his animal yet and getting too far ahead of himself could have unforeseen consequences, instead he tries to rememer how the moon looked last night to find out how long it''ll be until he can discover his animal... Almost full? he isn''t an expert on astrology which will become readily apparent when he takes his Hogwarts test, he didn''t put that much effort into learning either as stars and constellations change with each different universe h enters. Trying to memorise such thing would prove to be a pointless endeavour.

    Sitting himself on the floor he starts to meditate, he was incredibly wary of actually attending Hogwarts, he knew the headmaster was a master Legilimens and would be able to breach his mental shields if he was off guard... Hopefully his short time training Occlumency would be able to hold off his unobtrusive scans, the last thing he needs is a nosy mage in his business. Another thing he was curious of was the famous sorting hat, well, not famous in the magical world as it was almost a taboo to talk about it, but famous in his old world. He wasn''t sure what house he''d actually be in... Hopefully he''d be in the same house as Ciri as it''d make it easier to train her if they followed a similar scheduel, although he was sure they wouldn''t be in the same grade.

    Wait, what were they supposed to do with Nerissa? They couldn''t exactly take her to school with them, he had promised to take care of her in her mothers stead and he was very opposed to leaving her with someone as he felt he was the only one powerful enough to keep her safe...

    He sighs and continues meditating, deciding to leave these problems for future Reima.

 303 Sharing is Caring...

    A couple hours later Reima slowly comes out of his meditative trance due to someone knocking on his door. \"Come in\" he says, still seated on his knees.

    Ciri opens the door and steps inside with Nerissa by her side, the thirteen yearold''s usually expressionless face is red raw from crying so much and is marred by sadness.

    Reima \"Is everything alright?\" he asks sensitively.

    Ciri''s stomach rumbles causing her face to flush slightly.\"I was wondering if you wanted to get some food, I''m not really into getting soup right now... Maybe a restaurant?\"

    Reima \"Sure, is that ok with you Nerissa?\" he asks her.

    She doesn''t say anything but slowly nods her head instead.

    Once everyone''s in agreement Reima pulls out jackets for the girl due to the afternoon slowly becoming chilly. They leave the Leaky Cauldron and start wandering around London, looking for some food that peaks their fancy. It doesn''t take long before Reima spots a place he hadn''t been to in ages : Pizza Hovel... Yep, looks exactly how he remembers it. They enter but find the place pretty empty due to it being so late, they sit down in the far corner away from everyone else while Reima orders three different pizzas, Steak and cheese, chicken supreme and meat feast.

    While they wait for the pizza to arrive Reima decides to prod Nerissa for some answers as to what had actually happened.

    Reima \"So... You''re immune to sunlight now?\" he asks, unsure how it''s even possible for a race to completely negate their only weakness.

    Nerissa just looks at him blankly without saying anything...

    Ciri decides to speak for her as she''s presumably asked the same question already. \"She isn''t really sure, she said that she''d drank blood from one of her attackers and the burning from the suns rays stopped...\"

    Reima''s eyes widen as he hears this, it reminds him of that game, what was it... Prototype? The ability to steal others abilities and add it to your own... While it was incredibly disconcerting to find out there are vampires who are apparently immune to the sun, it also doesn''t surprise him as it''s a common trope in most fiction.

    \"Could it be she took the ability from her attacker?\" he asks in a quiet tone, as if they were being spied on.

    Ciri nods, looking as if she''d come to the same conclusion. \"This might be what Talicia and Ambrose were keeping secret, I think I agree with them. An ability like this is would be feared by anyone it affects, I''m still not sure whether it only affects vampires or not.\" she look down at the girl who seems to be listening intently to their conversions. \"Rissa, if you''re able to steal the abilities from any race and people found out, you''d be hunted down for the rest of your life. You would be feared and hunted even by your own race...\"

    Reima \"I''d like to think it only effects vampires... If not, she''d be obtaining abilities from the food she eats and the blood she ingests. This would explain why you haven''t noticed this particular ability before?\"

    Ciri nods, \"Ambrose was able to use the same ability as Talicia, it''s likely he had the same ability.\"

    The group are interrupted by the waitress who places three large pizza''s on the table, Reima thanks the waitress and she leaves after giving one final glance at his sunglasses. He turns to continue speaking with the girls but he finds them giving a challenging glare at the pizzas... He can only chuckle and start eating before they devour everything.

    After they finish Ciri leans back into her chair, her stomach bulging from the large meal... Nerissa seems to be in a similar state, despite the expressionless look on her face, he feels as if she''s still hungry? Ah... He realises she is indeed probably hungry, he takes a glass from the table and empties a small bag of blood into it. It looks like wine or tomato juice so unless someone smells it she''ll be able to drink it in public.

    He hands it to her and she gives a quiet \"Thank you\" before starting to sip on it.

    Reima \"This actually leads me to another problem. The card that Talicia gave me expires tomorrow and I have no idea how to get more. As Nerissa is the only one who drinks blood, the supplies should last around half a month, after that I''ll have to sneak into a blood bank and steal some. Or take some from someone who may not need it...\"

    Ciri frowns at his willingness to literally drain blood from unknowing and possibly innocent people.

    \"Look, if we can''t get some then I''ll give my own...\"

    Nerissa and Reima looks at Ciri weirdly, both for different reasons. Nerissa is surprised at her masters willingness to sacrifice her own blood for her, most mortals would be terrified or angry if you were to ask them for blood. This simple statement shows the great deal of trust between Ciri and herself...

    Reima is reluctantly to let her give her own blood, it''s not the act that bothers him, but the potential danger it could present... After all, she has the Elder Blood within herself, what would happen if a vampire who could potentially steal ability were to drink her blood?\" just the thought sends a shiver down Reima''s back. He hasn''t even discovered the limits of the blood itself, and he had fought a god to a standstill (Albeit with some help...).

 304 Pizza-Hovel, great date spot.

    Reima \"I don''t think giving your blood would be the safest thing to do... You do remember your, or should I say, our unique constitution?\"

    Ciri purses her lips in realisation, \"It''ll be an option should things become dire... It''s not like your blood is any better.\"

    Nerissa imagines drinking his blood and simply states \"Hot.\"

    Reima shrugs \"I know, I''m well aware of this... Are you able to drink animal blood?\" he asks the young vampire.

    She shakes her head, \"Gross.\"

    He''s unsure whether she means it''s too gross to eat or it''s incompatible, probably the latter due to how vampires use the blood they ingest as their own.

    Reima decides to change the topic, \"That aside, there is one more thing that we need to discuss. Ciri, we''ll be attending Hogwarts on the 1st of September, a few days from now. I''m not sure how we''re going to bring Nerissa, it''s not as if it was easy for us to get admitted ourselves... You had to kill one the most hated people alive, and even then we barely made it in with some, trickery.\"

    Ciri leans into her chair and crosses her arms, \"This is a problem... I don''t suppose you have any ideas?\" she asks, quickly thinking of ways that could allow her apprentices admission.

    Reima contemplates for a while before a lightbulb appears above his head. \"Familiars are allowed inside Hogwarts...\"

    Ciri seems confused, \"And? How does that help us?\"

    Nerissa looks at her and answers after connecting the dots. \"Rabbit.\"

    Her eyes widen in realisation, \"Ah, of course! But, are you sure you want to be a rabbit for most of the year?\" she asks the young girl.

    She nods while Reima adds, \"She can go as your familiar.\" he says while leaning forward and whispering, \"With recent events, I''d keep her close... I''m not sure how she is mentally but losing both parents must have been a huge blow.\"

    Ciri nods and runs her hand through Nerissa''s hair, thinking that they aren''t that dissimilar to each other. Both are valued by all the wrong people due to their blood and heritage, both took solace in Witcher training and both lost their parents while young...

    Reima \"Ciri, there is actually something else I''d like to talk about before we call it a night... I found a secret chamber, behind the secret chamber... Secret chamber-ception...\" he mutters the last part sarcastically.

    She doesn''t appear to get the joke and bluntly states, \"And?\"

    Reima grumbles for a moment before continuing, \"It contained books belonging to Morgan le Fay, Merlin rival and some may say equal.\"

    Her eyes widen, while the two hadn''t been in the Wizarding world for long she had heard of Merlin and Morgan le Fay. They''re integral to the development of Wizards and Witches as a whole, their legacy lives on even today.

    Reima \"Inside I found various books, some dark magic but most importantly, books on the Animagi transformation. With the new information I found out that we''ll potentially discover our animal if we meditate on the full moon, while your still a novice in Occlumency I think it''d good enough to join me.\"

    She looks unsure, \"I''ve barely created my own inner space and protections... I''m still trying to organise my knowledge, are you sure it''s good enough?\" she asks.

    He nods, \"I think so, the more important part comes afterwards where you meditate to transform. I think you''ll need to train your Occlumency further for that stage, but until then, your current skill should do.\" he says confidently, despite him not really knowing what he''s talking about...

    Ciri \"Any idea on what your animal will be?\" she asks curious at what he might say.

    Reima shrugs, \"Since it''ll probably be magical I''d say a Griffen?\"

    She looks at him and laughs.

    Reima \"What''s so funny?\" he asks, mock offended.

    Ciri \"Just thinking how you''d resemble a Niffler more than a Griffin.\"

    Even Nerissa has a small grin on her face as Ciri laughs at him.

    Reima \"Yeah? Well, what do you think you''ll be?\"

    Ciri slowly stops laughing and wipes a tear from her eye, \"ahah, ha... I actually don''t know, I''ve been known as Swallow so maybe one of those?\" she says.

    Reima chuckles, \"Gee, I wonder why people call you swallow... Maybe spit would''ve suited you better?\" he says drawing an angry glare from Ciri, a confused Nerissa looks back and forth not knowing what they''re talking about.

    Ciri huffs, \"Like you''ll ever find out.\" she says turning her head away from him.

    After a couple minutes of laughing at her expense he starts to get up, \"I think your form would be something else, maybe a Unicorn? Or a Pegasus?\" This seems to assuage her anger momentarily as she ponders.

    Reima \"Right, let''s call it a night... We''ll be up early to get you guys \"Ready\" for Hogwarts, Ciri''ll be studying and I will have you Nerissa learning to fight better.\" he says, grinning at the look of determination that appears on the young girls face.

    After returning to his room he falls backwards onto his bed, while his body instantly breaks down food making it impossible for him to be \"Stuffed\" but after the long chat and comfortable meal he didn''t feel like meditating any longer, instead he allows himself to quickly drift off into the land of dreams, for the first time in two years.

 305 Paper please?

    The next day Reima, Ciri and Nerissa were eating their breakfast in the Leaky Cauldron''s main room. They all sipped on their soupsoupsoup, leakysoupsoup and soupleakysoup respectively... Reima still hasn''t gotten around to asking why Tom made all of his menu items so confusing.

    Today the group had decided to go to the local pet store in Diagon Alley to buy Nerissa or \"Snuffles\" a comfortable bed, brush and other things a young girl/rabbit would like. Anything that''d make her stay in Hogwarts with them more enjoyable will be considered.

    Still, same as yesterday night. Everyone''s gaze seems to be attracted towards the duo, some even quickly turning away if they are noticed, Reima didn''t really care but Ciri finally snapped, she stands up and quickly walks over to a man who was sending small glances at her.

    Ciri \"Is something wrong? You seem to be very captivated by us.\"

    \"Uh, no, er... Please Miss Rivia, I meant no harm.\" the man stutters through his sentence as if he was face to face with a Dementor.

    Ciri \"No, please. Educate me on why you, and everyone else for that matter\" she says looking around the room as people hurriedly look away. \"Keep looking at me and my friend.\"

    The man appears to be shivering at this point and points a shaking finger at a nearby paper, the daily prophet.

    Picking up the paper her face immediately becomes frosty as a look of anger overtakes her. She walks back to Reima, not even noticing that she''d just stolen the mans paper and roughly throws it onto his chest. \"Look at this!\"

    Reima reluctantly stops sipping on his soup and takes a look at the news paper... \"Ciri Rivia, Savage or Saviour?\" the words appear in bold, prominently featured on the front page... \"Oh crap, this isn''t going to go well..\" he mentally complains to the gods of the 4th dimension and higher.

    Under the bold title is a large moving picture that funnily enough features himself, the angle seems to be from behind him and captures part of his face, hair and sword. In-front of him are the many people dressed up in Death Eater attire completely wreathed in flames, the person who cast the fire? Well, it''s Ciri, obivously. She''s standing above them on a pile of rubble, one hand on a sword stabbed into the ground appearing to keep her steady as her other hand points a staff which spews out a torrent of fire at her unfortunate victims. Reima isn''t really sure if this should be allowed to be featured in a news paper as it''s incredibly brutal, he can see from the photo that those men are literally burning alive, their visible skin bubbling and melting away from their very bones... Another thing that''s got him confused is how he hadn''t noticed whoever took this photo.

    He looks down at the writer of the article and finally sees the culprit, Rita Skeeter... He had to admit, he hadn''t been keeping an eye out for her as his attention was elsewhere during these highly volatile situation, but he had thought we would have at least noticed her. Especially when he was fully utilising his Haki during the Death Eater raid, this is something he should investigate further should he have the time.

    He looks back to Ciri, \"What''s the problem?\" he asks and immediately regrets his wording.

    Ciri \"Really! What''s the problem!?! She''d making me out to be some kind of blood thirsty psychopath!\"

    Reima \"Err, are you not?\" he jokes, but receives a vicious glare from his angry companion.

    \"Right, sorry.. Well, don''t mind it. Most older people still remember the Death Eater raids, these people attempting to do the same thing have definitely dug up bad memories and you''ll probably be thanked by them for putting such sick individuals out of their misery.\"

    Ciri \"So older people won''t listen to this tripe? But what of the people inside of Hogwarts, need I remind you we''ll be attending the school in a few days?\"

    Reima shrugs, \"Just be yourself, do you really want the admiration of sheep anyway?\"

    With her temper temporarily quelled she sits down next to Nerissa and continues eating her soup, while Reima flips through the rest of the paper to see what''s happening.

    Few titles actually catch his attention apart from \"Harry Potter injured in Terrorist attack!\", \"Bounty for Golden Lion\", \"Rising tensions with Vampire families\" and \"Muggles asking questions about recent \"Mystical\" events?\"

    The attack on Harry is already known to Reima, how could it not, he was there after-all. He was slightly surprised that it was actually reported however, the golden-boy of Dumbledore and Britain as a whole being injured in an attack is incredibly bad press.

    A bounty being put out for the \"Golden Lion\" isn''t a bad deal either, he''ll likely not use this alias again in this world. Other than that his gaze is drawn towards the last two, Obviously anything to do with vampires directly relates to the situation with Nerissa, as he and Ciri had found out, she''s probably the vampire with the most potential around... Something the Vampire families are most likely already aware of, if their attempts to capture her are any indication. Other than that, the Muggles finally wising up due to \"Mystical events\" may be his fault... He did cause a rather large panic after robbing the largest Library in London while completely disregarding any detecting they may have had. Personally he doesn''t care but he wonder how this''ll affect the future of this world, should wizards and witches be discovered by the public, what would happen? Only time will tell.

 306 Hate-Mail

    As Reima was finished reading the news paper, an owl flew in and dropped a stack of letters on Ciri''s head, some fell into her soup but it seems they''ve been charmed to be water, or soup proofed... Whether this is because of how often this happens, Reima will never know.

    Nerissa pulls out a letter and shakes it off before opening it, her expression doesn''t change and she just hands it over to Ciri for her to read... Yup, she''s angry again...

    Reima sighs, \"What is it this time?\" he asks.

    Ciri growls as she reads the contents, \"Due to recent events the \"Ciri Rivia action figure with sword included\" has seen a massive hit to sales. With this affecting multiple stores we unfortunately find it in our best interests to claim lost revenue via the courts, if you do not recompense our losses you will find yourself facing a lawsuit Miss Rivia.\"

    ...

    Reima \"Wait, you agreed for them to use your likeness?\"

    Ciri growls \"No, I never did such a thing... Yet they want me to pay for them creating toys of myself without permission!?!\" she almost shouts, causing some of the nearby customers to leave, fear of her due to recent events still vivid in their minds.

    Reima \"Don''t mind them, if they try to sue you then we''ll both deal with them.\"

    Tom approaches and says \"Uh ah, Miss Rivia, would you do me the favour of not scaring my customers off, please?\"

    She idly nods to him while tearing open another letter. \"Misses Ciri, please give back the toy I sent to you, brother says your a dark witch and will curse me.\"

    Reima \"I didn''t know kids sent you letters?\" he asks curiously.

    Ciri \"Well, I had a few things sent to me... But looking at this now I''ll return them, ungrateful bastards.\" she says, angry and confused at the sudden change in attitude towards her.

    Reima shrugs and opens one for her, if she read through all of these alone they wouldn''t have time to visit Diagon Alley. \"This one looks to be from the Minister... Apparently he''s very disappointed in how you, and I for some reason... Had handled last nights events. He''s suggesting you keep your head down in Hogwarts and not cause him any more grief.\"

    Ciri \"Well, bugger him. I''ll cause all the chaos I want and more.\" she says rebelliously.

    After everyone had eaten their breakfast and looked through the angry letters (Some where from grateful adults) they all got up and prepared to visit the local pet store.

    They found it incredibly distracting to walk through the streets, with Ciri''s popularity turning to infamy everyone was keeping an eye on her, Reima didn''t bother wearing Sunglasses due to the town being magical but that didn''t stop people staring. He''d given a pair of glasses to Nerissa to hide her blood red eyes that''d attracted way more bad attention that either he or Ciri. The reason for this being that only Vampires and dark wizards who''d performed disgusting rituals having red eyes, causing people to be instantly wary or hostile towards anyone who has them.

    They finally reach the pet shop with no small deal of hassle, inside they see various animals inside, including frogs, owls, mice and many other creatures... The thing that draws his attention the most being the cats, or Kneazle''s as the more intelligent magical variety are called. He still remembers his promise to Priscilla of buying her a cat and will buy one these eventually, he decides to purchase one as his time inside this world is closing out, no point having to take care of an animal until then. Nerissa however is immediately drawn towards some sort of dog bed? The shop owner approaches and tells them of how its charmed to always stay warm, clean and comfortable. The almost glittering eyes of the young vampire somehow cause Reima to instantly purchase it... Is this the true power of Moe?

    Ciri herself was more interested in the owls but didn''t end up wanting any as she felt her life was too dangerous to keep a pet alive and happy.

    Reima himself didn''t see anything else apart from Priscilla''s gift that he''d actually want to buy, familiars were cool but unless he stumbled across a phoenix somehow he''d rather not subject a creature to the levels of power he''d eventually have to face, the phoenix only being an option due to it''s immortality that it''d undoubtedly be constantly using...

    The group leave the store, the only person looking satisfied being Nerissa who''d bought a vibrating brush that Ciri''d kept glancing at for some reason and the aforementioned dog bed that she''d probably be sleeping in while in bunny form.

    Everything didn''t go smoothly as they tried to get back to their inn however as it seems the press had heard about them being in Diagon Alley, immediately they are surrounded by an army of journalists, each of them individually trying to get a story from them to boost their respective papers.

    \"Miss Ciri! Why did you slaughter those unfortunate people!?!\"

    \"Miss Ciri! Are you and Mister Ludvig lovers?\"

    \"Miss Ciri! Is that your daughter or have you kidnapped yet another young girl!?!\"

    Ciri \"I''ve got nothing to say, I did what I felt was right! No further questions! Get out of my way!\" she shouts over the crowd but they don''t want to let her pass, any conflict commit by her would make a great story and would be worth any injury they would otherwise sustain.

    Reima notices a dark alley way that people seem to avoid and decides to pull Ciri and Nerissa into it, fortunately the reports refuse to follow but most are rapidly writing about what''d just occurred, murmurs of \"Dark Witch\" can be heard as they travel further into the shadowy street.

 307 Time to take *******

    The trio continue to escape into the alley, the tight dark street becoming more populated by weird looking wizards and witches, they eventually stop in the middle of the street and survey the area around them... Dark, dank and smelling of death are the only descriptions that come to mind. Reima feels various eyes watching them, not only from the street but from the various stores around them... He can almost feel the dark magic emanating from some of the stores, he notices a few old women eyeing up Nerissa and glares at them, his Cat-like eyes causing them to shrink away as his killing intent pressures them.

    \"Hags?\" he mutters under his breath, realising this must be Knockturn Alley... Why magical Britain hasn''t come together and burned this place to the ground yet beats him, but he assumes it must be the darker noble families advocating for it''s \"Usefulness\" while ignoring the fact that actual dark creatures are lurking closer to regular people on the main street.

    Reima \"I''m not sure whether I prefer the reporters or the people in this street...\" he mutters to Ciri and Nerissa.

    Ciri \"I think I''d rather be here than surrounded by reporters...\" she says seriously.

    Nerissa nods, at her side. \"Flashes.\"

    Suddenly Reima hears something, his ears perk up as he concentrates on the sound... It sounds like sniffling? From a young boy or a teenage girl...

    Reima \"Alright Scooby Gang, looks as if we''ve found ourselves another mystery to solve.\" he says sarcastically while starting to head in the sounds direction, which just happens to be deeper into the Alley.

    Nerissa \"Scooby?\"

    Ciri \"Gang?\" they ask, confused at the reference.

    Reima shrugs, \"Ignore it, I think someone may have kidnapped a kid around here...\" his words immediately causing Ciri to become serious. While they are temporarily out of sight Nerissa jumps into her arms while transforming into a Rabbit.

    Ciri \"If we''re getting into a fight could you give me my sword?\" she asks.

    Reima shakes his head, \"No but you can have this.\" he says while passing her staff over, thinking that she should be keeping it on her at all points from now on. She shouldn''t be making him hold it \"Because it''s annoying\", that kind of mentally could easily cause them problems.

    She grasps the staff in her right hand while holding Snuffles to her chest with her left.

    It doesn''t take long for them to actually find the area in which the voices are coming from, not that he''s closer Reima can tell there are way more than one or two people, more like 20 or 30... This is one big operation and makes him slightly more frantic to deal with the perpetrators.

    The location itself lies down a long Alley way that splits off from the main street of Knockturn Alley, at the end stands what looks like an armoured door with an eye slit that''s currently covered.

    Approaching the door Reima knocks on it a couple times, no one answers... He knocks again and nothing happens. He tries the \"Alohomora\" unlocking charm but it does nothing. In the end he continues to bang on the door for five to ten minutes, causing what sound like an angry man to open the eye slit and starts speaking to them in a quiet but stern tone. \"If you keep up that racket I''ll flay you alive, now piss off!\"

    Reima \"I''ve been knocking because I want entry.\" he says as the man begins to close the slit.

    The man laughs, \"You think you can just knock randomly to gain access? Do we look like fools, no. If you want to buy groceries go elsewhere.\" he says while continuing to close the slit.

    Reima frowns and casts Axii at the man who seems to try and resist but ends up giving in to his overpowered Sign. \"You will open the door and tell me what this place is.\" he states to the man.

    The door opens and a fat man stands before them, wearing dark robes with a bald head, scars littering his face like a warzone. He seems to tremble momentarily before speaking, \"Welcome to the Auction. We have products that''ll interest everyone, today in particular will most likely please you.\" he says, someone keeping much of the information confidential. It seems as if he has some skill in Occlumency.

    Ciri \"Who do you work for\" she asks, attempting to cut to the point.

    The mans eyes widen at her, he begins to choke out ,\"L-l-l-l-ARGHH!\" he shouts as his throat explodes into a shower of blood, revealing his spine to the trio.

    Reima sighs, \"Of course they''ll be protecting their identity...\" He looks at Ciri, we should have started off with the easy questions.

    Ciri shrugs, \"Good riddance to rubbish.\" the Rabbit in her arms flicking it''s tongue out at some of the blood on her clothes.

    Reima \"Well, not much we can do but progress now... Keep your guard up and follow closely behind me, do as I say, I may be able to survive a few traps but you''ll surely die if you get hit.\" he says and receives a nod from Ciri and Snuffles... He doesn''t comment on the almost comedic sight and starts searching the man for anything interesting, bag of gold, a single glove, wand and guest list?

    He checks it but sees that all the names are blank, or more likely covered by some kind of enchantment. He''d try to remove it with his anti-magic flames but it''d most likely burn the paper with it. He scratches his head and decides to just bite the bullet and go inside the dirty looking secret hideout.

    Spoiler title : Time to take Auction...

 308 Inhumane to non-humans?

    As the duo enter the hallway Reima casts Invisibility over himself and walks a few steps ahead of Ciri, with the dim lighting he''s the only one who can actually see most of what he''s doing. They don''t dare illuminate the hallway as it might attract attention to themselves, instead Reima continues to follow the sounds of crying through the almost maze like building. There are many stairs and cross sections that shouldn''t really be possible due to many of them overlapping with others, maybe magic is involved?

    They continue to slowly walk through the dimly lit halls and eventually start hearing what sounds like a large crowd? Almost at a stadium-like volume. With the noises coming from above and a staircase standing next to them it could be surmised that whatever the "Auction" is, it appears to be up those steps. Reima goes past it and continues forward, the sound of high-pitched crying only getting louder the closer he gets.

    It''s only at this point where he decides that they may need a disguise, depending on how populated this place is and who''s inside, inattentive action could lead to disaster. He retrieves the shadow set which he''d found in Dark Souls and looks suspiciously like a ninja outfit along with Marvellous Chesters mask and clothes along with his trench coat. He holds both out to Ciri and let''s her pick which one she''d prefer to wear.

    She ends up taking the Ninja outfit, much to Reima''s "Pleasure" as the tight fitting clothing would certainly accentuate her figure. She doesn''t both removing her already tight fitting pants and simply wears it over them, while she does this Reima quickly changes into Marvellous Chesters outfit the mask reminding him of that movie "V for Vendetta", or more traditionally known as the "Guy Fawkes Mask"

    Reima "I think we''re good" he whispers while looking Ciri up and down to make sure every identifiable characteristic is covered, the face mask not being able to hide her vibrant green eyes. Though there is one thing that might catch them out, he takes her staff and shurgs, "No point using a staff if we''re under cover, plus I think it''s now pretty recognisable since it was featured in the news.

    "Actually, I think there''s one thing missing" he says while pointing his finger at "Snuffles" and casting "Colovaria" the spell causing the black rabbit to turn blue, although it''s crimson eyes remain the same.

    Ciri "That everything?" she asks still confused at why they need to take so many preventative measures.

    He nods and they continue their journey down the suspiciously large complex yet again.

    Finally they reach a large wooden double door, there doesn''t appear to be a keyhole so instead he opens it slightly and peeks inside, what he sees disgusts and confuses him at the same time. The crying that he''d originally thought belonged to human children seems to be coming from these small, grey skinned, long eared creatures with bulbous eyes. The area itself looks almost like a farmstead that''d been built inside of a cave, were it not for sentient creatures being caged and bred like animals...

    He sees numerous black robed people moving back and forth with cages of what seems to be the children of these things.

    "M-master! Please let keep child!" one grey skinned female cries out as a man backhands it and grabs the smaller one. "Shut up and do as your told." he grunts out as he stuffs it in a tiny cage.

    Finally, Reima recognises these creatures for what they really are... House elves? Is this how they''re bred?... This can''t be legal, let alone humane. Despite wizards literally having cleaning spells, the living space of the creatures is absolutely filthy, the only time they seem to be cleaned is when one of the workers stuffs a male in with a female.

    Ciri "What do you see?" she asks from behind him.

    Reima "You won''t like it..." he says, mentally preparing for her angry explosion and the subsequent mission impossible like escape.

    Ciri "Just tell me, I''ll find out as soon as we step inside."

    Reima "It looks like some sort of breeding factory for House Elves?"

    Ciri "House Elves?" she asks confused.

    Reima "A race that wizards enslaved to do all of their menial tasks, they will die if they lack a master for a prolonged period of time it seems."

    ...

    "Ciri?" he asks as the silence is unnerving him.

    Ciri "So, how are we going to free them?" she asks with a sense of determination.

    Reima shrugs, he''s not sure if they should free them. What would they do with hundreds of House Elves afterall? Then again, they would probably be useful when he eventually returns to Kaer Morhen, they could probably fix up the castle in a matter of hours... "I''m not sure... If there''s an Auction going on upstairs then this must be connected somehow, maybe these House Elves are the "Products"." he says grimly.

    Ciri appears to have heard enough and moves next to him to peek inside, it isn''t surprising that she immediately slips inside the large underground room... Reima just follows and they both eventually hide behind a pile of some sort of discarded metal.

    Reima surveys the area for a couple minutes to count how many people are present, it''s lucky that he''d patiently waited as the thirty workers had around ten more working inside some sort of stone building that looks like it contains all of the tools. He can see beside him that Ciri''s itching to go, and he felt the same.

 309 Rip and TEAR!

    As the duo were about to start picking them off a chubby man wearing some sort of dress robe hurried bursts through the wooden doors.

    "Have you got them ready?" he asks, wiping a bead of sweat off of his brow with a handkerchief.

    A hooded figure drags out a large cage with around ten House Elf children struggling inside.

    "Good, now carry that behind me. Everything is almost ready and guests are almost here." he says which catches Reima''s attention... Er, they forgot to get rid of the door-man''s body... Struggling not to face palm he decides to just flip the table and go in guns blazing before they''re discovered. Taking advantage of his invisibility he walks up to the fat man who''s still conversing with the robed figure and punches him as hard as he can in the back of the head... Needless to say, the only thing running through the man''s head were fragments of his skull, teeth and his spinal cord. The impact was so great in-fact that it caused the fat man''s body to fly into the nearby robed man, causing him to drop the large cage which Reima luckily caught as his Invisibility wore off. He doesn''t take a second glance at the unconscious robed man and instead stomps on his skull to ensure he never wakes up again.

    Unfortunately the impact of his punch also alerted the others to whatever was happening, two who were keeping an eye out were already launching various spells at him, apparently disregarding the fact that Reima was holding the cage of children. He didn''t have to dodge for long however as a familiar figure drops behind them and breaks their necks with relative ease. Ciri gives a thumbs up before slipping back into the darkness.

    Reima places the cage near the discarding metal to keep the young elves safe and starts sprinting towards a crowd of workers. They''d heard the impact but didn''t think anything of it, that is until they see a masked man covered in blood running towards them, without a second thought most had already drawn their wands and started firing various dark curses towards him. Unfortunately for them, wizarding spells are notoriously slow and easy to dodge with the exception of some high level magic. Reima avoids most with ease and gets into melee range of one of them, under the hood Reima can see the horrified expression of the man who''d never trained his body or learned to fight hand to hand. Although even if he did, it wouldn''t have saved him from having Reima''s foot penetrate his skull, which is exactly what it does. The man''s head detaches from his neck and shoots away like a football, a trail of blood following it.

    It seems that Reima''s brutal fighting style, overpowering blows and ability to kill people without a second thought scares the shit out of most of those present as some even drop their wands in fright.

    "Demon!" one shouts while pointing towards his Guy Fawkes mask.

    Reima just gives a blood thirsty laugh as he uses a man a a human shield to block a spell shot at him, said man''s intestines explode out of his abdomen causing blood to fly absolutely everywhere. The dark curse not killing him instantly and instead increasing the man''s pain in his final moments.

    Reima himself is actually surprised by how vicious the spell actually was, and feels no need to test what''d happen if he got hit by that, instead he spins and throws the man towards the person who''d shot as him, his intestines trailing behind him as he flies through the air.

    Ciri isn''t absent either, she continues to stealthily break the necks of those watching Reima''s trail of death and destruction. Were it not for Snuffles on her shoulder she''d be heading straight into combat with him. Fortunately Nerissa is not witnessing most of Reima''s actions as Ciri is keeping far enough away to avoid most of it, although a few stray droplets of blood find there way onto her clothing regardless.

    Reima continues to whittle down the numbers of the disgusting men who work here, not bothering to even consider mercy. A few who see that regular projectiles aren''t working decide to use fire instead, not even considering the destruction of their "Produce" the House Elves which are behind Reima. A torrent of fire shot from multiple people simultaneously head in Reima and the House Elves direction. Seeing that those behind him are in danger he utilises a small amount of his Aura and starts literally pulling the flames into himself, the fire coalesces around his left arm and is quickly sucked inside, at the same time burning away his trench coat sleeve from the intense heat. With his arm glowing as if it''s made of red hot metal the wizards who''d shot the fire all seem to lose control of their bowels at once.

    Reima can hear the cries of gratitude and thanks from the Elves behind him but ignores them for now as there are still a few people left. He leaps towards one of the few remaining people and decides to take a page out of the late Ambrose''s book by tearing the man''s arms off, apparently though it takes some amount of skull to tear both arms off at the same time... Huffing at this failure Reima starts swinging around the one armed man towards his comrades, the impact of his body and legs against them causing most of his and their bones to shatter on impact. A few more swings causing the man''s elbow to dislocate and eventually tear itself free from the rest of his arm. Leaving Reima without a weapon. Fortunately, that seems to have been the last of them.

 310 Only good Elf is a dead Elf... Or House Elf

    While Reima calms himself after his bloody rampage Ciri surveys the scene. The smell of blood is thick in the air, with a hint of fear... No, that''s not fear, just the expelled bowels of the numerous corpses.

    Truth be told she''s extremely unnerved by the level of violence Reima has displayed today. She hadn''t thought such brutality from a sane person possible. But perhaps Reima isn''t the most mentally stable people she had ever met? She mentally questions while thinking about her interactions with him, most of the time he was rational, generally just but slightly apathetic. This is another side of him she hadn''t expected to see however. In her arms she can feel the Rabbit trying to escape her arms to get at the blood littering the floor, she just sighs and lets "Snuffles" eat her fill as they''d likely run out of blood eventually.

    After Reima had composed himself he walks over to the cages containing the House Elves and forces them open with his bare hands.

    Numerous *CLINKS!* are heard as he literally tears the metal cages apart to free them. Most of the House Elves gather around him, hushed whispers quickly talking about the recent battle echo throughout the cave as he waits for all of them to gather. Even the Elf children seem to now view him as some sort of "God" or Saviour.

    Looking over them there appears to be around two hundred? Most seem dirty, underfed and lack any kind of clothing what so ever.

    Reima "Hello." he says which causing many Elves to instinctively return his greeting, the subsequent "Hello Master!" almost causing him to jump out of his skin.

    Reima "Er, right. You are all free now, are you all able to escape this place withou-" his word are interupted as most of them burst out into tears as if he''d just condemned them to death.

    "Master! Please don''t free us! We beg of thee!" they almost shout in their high pitched voices.

    Reima "... So you don''t want to be free?" he asks confused, if so, what''d be the point of all of this then?"

    "Wish to serve, we want to work!"

    ...

    Ciri steps next to him, "Didn''t you say that they''ll die without a master?"

    Reima sheepishly scratches the back of his head. "Oh yeah... Right." he turns his gaze back to the elves, "Those of you that wish to serve under me are welcome to do so, you will have to tell me how to form a bond with you however."

    A group erupt into cheers as an elderly House Elf walks ahead of the others, "Master, you need only accept our servitude and have enough magic to sustain us all."

    ...

    Reima "Right, that easy? Ok I guess.. Ahem, I willing take all of you into my service."

    Suddenly he feels a large amount of magic envelop the group, he can feel a tiny amount of his excess magic being funnelled towards his new "Servants". This is actually a good thing as it slightly reduces the amount of magic he expels with each breath.

    Reima "Wait, we don''t currently have any property... Where can we keep them?" he asks Ciri in a slight panic.

    She shrugs as if it''s not her problem and picks up Snuffles to start stroking her.

    Reima remembers in the movie''s that Dobby had started working for Hogwarts... Maybe he can send them there until he leaves this world? He''d rather not waste money on property that he wouldn''t be keeping.

    "I''ll need you all to start working at Hogwarts until some other arrangements can be sorted out, will that be adequate?" he says towards the almost orgasmic looking crowd. The old elf''s cloudy eyes clear up and they nod, "Will do!" they say as they all disappear with a *POP*. Just in time too as the wooden doors that lead to the room explode off of their hinges as many robed men run inside.

    "You''re on private property! Drop you wand an-" their commands end when they see most of the floors, walls and building inside the cave completely covered in blood and the occasional organ, bone fragment or body part.

    Reima turns his mask face towards them slowly, trying to mimic a horror movie antagonist. "Welcome to my kingdom!" he says raising his arms and gesturing towards the gory scene.

    His words echo throughout the room. eventually ending in an extended silence.

    A robed man apparently made of sterner stuff than the others gives a command, "KILL THAT FREAK!" he shouts, causing his allies to fire with him.

    Reima deciding it''s not worth the trouble picks Ciri up, runs behind a building and teleports to his room in the Leaky Cauldron.

    Ciri immediately falls onto her butt, exhausted by their prolonged outing that''d morphed into some sort of heist? Either way, she could use a shower. She silently leaves the room and enters her own with Snuffles to try get the blood out of her hair.

    Reima himself doesn''t dare sit down anywhere due to he himself taking the brunt of most of the gory explosions... Although he can''t complain since he was the one who caused them, he tries to use "Scourgify" to remove the blood, which works... But the stains remain, deciding to just leave the stains on the clothes to "Enhance" the intimidation factory he slips into the shower and turns it to max heat while occasionally spitting into the drain, the taste of blood still prominent on his tongue.

 311 All Aboard!

    It wasn''t long before Reima, Ciri and Snuffles found themselves standing outside of platform 9 3/4. In Reima''s hand he held the Staff of Manus, it''s axe head sitting prominently and intimidatingly atop the mangled almost black wooden haft. Despite how he''s easily carrying it, it''s weight is more similar to a car than a magical focus, luckily the weight doesn''t seem to negatively affect the things he''s standing on, despite the small strain he feels from wielding it.

    His clothing consists of a white t-shirt under a thin black jumper that hugs his body, below that he''s wearing a pair of dark blue jeans along with some beige shoes. Fortunately King''s cross station has some Muggle repelling wards of some kind so people don''t notice his Cat-like eyes as they walk by.

    On his side stands Ciri who''s holding her own staff, the Demon Catalyst. It''s ashen white wood is topped with large jagged pieces of obsidian-like stone that seem to almost glow in the presence of magic. She wears furred boots that match with her tight leather pants, her jewelled belt is not hidden from view either as it sits in it''s usual place. Above that she''s wearing a white blouse reminiscent of the one that she used to wear, still sitting ever present between her cleavage lays her Wolf''s head medallion that seems to stare back at everyone who looks. Her hair is let down and random strands brush against her shoulders. Last but not least is Snuffles who sits in Ciri''s embrace, her left arm wrapping comfortably around the red eye''d black furred rabbit, her fluffy ears adorably flop lifelessly as she enjoys Ciri''s body heat.

    Ciri "Are you sure this is the right place? I''d rather not break my nose... Maybe you should go first?" she says gesturing towards the rather durable looking brick wall.

    Reima shrugs and semi-confidently steps forwards and eventually through the wall, the surrounding people not seeming to notice that someone had literally disappeared before their eyes. Ciri follows quickly after, flinching as she attempts to headbutt the wall but sighing in relief when her face remains intact.

    On the other side she finds Reima waiting for her, as they had come early there didn''t seem to be many people around, which suited her preference as being mobbed was not fun in the least.

    Already waiting for it''s passengers is the Hogwarts Express, the black and red colouring making it look unique from all the other locomotives she''d ever seen before, if she hadn''t had Reima explaining everything she''d thought it was magic... Which, come to think of it, might be the case for this one.

    Reima "Let''s find a seat... At the back preferably, I''d rather not be bothered by side-characters." he says semi-sarcastically while stepping aboard the train. Inside is a warm, neat and comfortable interior that reminded Reima of old luxury trains he''d seen from movies. They walk to the end of the train and commandeer a cabin for themselves, as soon as they sit down Reima kicks his feet up, gets out his cassette player and puts on some music.

    Ciri "I thought our music machines didn''t work around magic?" she asks confused.

    Reima shrugs, "I''m guessing it''s only around high levels of ambient magic, so I''ll be putting it away before we get to Hogwarts."

    Ciri "Huh, can I have mine then?" she asks, knowing that he''s literally got everything they own inside his Folded Space. He nods and tosses it to her, along with whatever Cassette is still inside it... The Wall? She''s got good taste.

    Reima "Ah, before I forget." he tosses her a couple books on magic. "You should start revising, we''ll probably get tested to see how far we are in our magical studies."

    She groans and reluctantly opens a book with one hand, her ear phones covering one ear and her other hand stroking Snuffles.

    Reima glances at Nerissa in her Rabbit form and wonders where he''s going to acquire blood from inside of Hogwarts... It wouldn''t surprise him if Dumbledore was able to track who enters and leaves the castle as that kind of feature was all to easy to add to wards. They''ve still got a couple weeks of blood left from the Talicia''s reservations but this''ll be a big problem down the line, if only his blood wasn''t literally lava, he''d be more than willing to have the Loli vampire suck on hi- Ahem. His neck...

    An hour quickly passes and the train still hasn''t left the platform, it seems they''re expecting students to come late and so ask them to come much earlier than the original departure time... This only makes him more sure of how useless and lazy most of the Weasley family is, with the exception of Charlie, Bill and Arthur, he feels as if they deserve all the criticism they get... Maybe not Arthur? He''s a Ministry official and didn''t find it strange that his son''s rat had lived way, way longer than any regular rat should have. Reima however, only puts the blame on him being dosed up to his gills with love potion via Molly Weasley. He had found it strange that no one questions it in the movies, but it really is despicable and almost akin to **** if you think about it.

 312 In love with good company

    Soon Reima starts hearing footsteps of many excited children, and many not so excited children... One of which are currently glaring through their cabin window. The black circles around his eyes would be mimicking a raccoon were his expression not extremely hateful. Yes, it''s him, Harry Potter. Something Reima finds somewhat unnerving is the fact that''s he''s almost constantly shaking, he had thought it was a tick or something similar but no, it''s as if he''s cold and his bodies trying to warm himself up... Ah, that must be what had happened, the Cruciatus curse must''ve injured his nerve endings, resulting in unconscious shaking. After Harry continues the 1v3 staring contest between him, Ciri and funnily enough Snuffles for a couple seconds that felt like minutes, a girl with frizzy brown hair spots him, looks into the window, frowns and then drags him away. Hermione to the rescue again Reima muses to himself.

    Reima "Youknow, he might just have a crush on you." he says to Ciri who had tried to get back to studying.

    Ciri "Yes, because everyone is as sadistic as you are... I doubt he''ll be forgiving me any time soon, I wouldn''t if I were him."

    Reima slouches into his seat, "Accidents happen... Besides, who knows what''ll happen during the year. Maybe after crushing Voldydork''s skull he''ll be a little more forgiving." he says, not expecting a response.

    A few minutes later someone knocks on their cabin door, Reima assumes it''s Draco Malfoy since he seems to check every Cabin, every year as some sort of ritual. Maybe each Cabin door increases his blood purity by 1%? Either way, it''s not him. Instead they see a girl with platinum blonde hair, pale skin and a small smile on her face looking into the cabin with glazed over hazy blue eyes.

    Ciri seems to be ignoring her and expecting Reima to deal with everyone that comes by while she studies... "Come in" he calls out.

    Luna Lovegood walk in with patchy clothing that looks weird yet warm, colours that look diametrically opposed are placed next to each other in an almost haphazard manner. The only good thing? Atleast she''s wearing shoes.

    "Is this cabin free?" she asks in a gentle voice that sounds reminiscent of wind chimes.

    Reima nods, he didn''t really think much of the strange girl but never found a reason to dislike her. Yeah she''s a little barmy but losing your mother at a young age would do that to you, not to mention her almost definitely insane father... He holds his hand out for her to shake his but she simply smiles and shakes her head.

    Luna "Daddy said not to touch hot things." she turns towards Ciri and Snuffles and holds her left hand out. "I''m Luna Lovegood." she says sweetly

    Realising someone is greeting her Ciri hurriedly puts out her right hand to shake hers, only then realising her mistake. "Ah, sorry, haven''t met many left-handed people."

    Luna nods sagely, "It''s okay miss, I''m not left handed either."

    ...

    Ciri almost glares a hole through Luna''s outstretched left hand but gives up on trying to comprehend the girls actions before shaking her hand.

    Luna then holds her hand out to Snuffles, "A pleasure to meet you all. Although you seem a little young for Hogwarts? A scholarship perhaps?" She says to the rabbit.

    Snuffles looks at Reima and Ciri confused for a moment before giving Luna a front foot to shake. The young girl beams at this and jumps into the chair next to Reima, giving him some distance of course as she wouldn''t want to get "burned"...

    Reima glances at the girl and realises neither had actually introduced themselves to her. "I''m Reima, this is Ciri and the furry one is called Snuffles." he says while shifting his headphones to be able to listen to the girl better.

    Luna "Snuffles? It suits you. Daddy said that if he had his way I''d be called Llunawellyn... I''m glad Mumny picked."

    This draws a small chuckle from him, "I think Luna suits you well."

    Happiness seems to radiate from the young girl, "Really? The nargles don''t seem to think so, everything with my name on it goes missing."

    Ciri looks up from her book, "Nargles?"

    Luna "Small creatures that buzz around and give you negative thoughts... I suspect they flock to me because I''m immune to their tricks." she says in her strangely calming voice.

    Ciri slowly nods as if she''s placating a child... Well, she is but... "Well, you tell me if any.. Nargles bother you. I''ll scare them away personally."

    Luna "hmmmm" her hum trails off, "That would be really nice of you."

    Ciri shrugs, "Isn''t that what friends are for?"

    Luna "Friends?"

    Ciri "Well, yeah? We''ve become friends right?"

    Luna smiles, "Mmm, friends."

    Reima just sits back and watch Ciri work her "Talk-no-Jutsu", he''s still wondering when she learned Naruto''s trademark technique...

    As Ciri''s talking with Luna the train suddenly shifts and pulls out of the platform, starting to head to Hogwarts. Reima lets Luna borrow his headphones and listen to his music for a while which mystifies the curious witch, she babbles on about how Muggles have weaponized Wrackspurts to create bombs of unparalleled destruction... How she''s able to perfectly describe an atomic bomb explosion goes over Reima''s head completely...

 313 Lord of the flies...

    The train ride is pretty long, only lengthened by the fact that it has to stop occasionally to pick up students in Scotland. The food was pretty good, for Ciri, Snuffles and Luna atleast. Reima himself didn''t have a sweet tooth like those gluttons and instead ordered a Pumpkin pasty, something he regrets deeply hours later as the disgusting taste still lingers in his mouth. The reason why wizards and witches have pumpkin in everything? Tradition apparently as they''re extremely easy to grow with magic and didn''t deform as much when you quicken their growth rate. Other than that the only reason he can think of is that every wizard is dropped on their heads at an early age...

    He met Cho again as she was buying the same thing as him and they made small talk while she awkwardly tried to leave. It seems his presence alongside Ciri during the attack wasn''t unnoticed, he wonders how this''ll change Harry''s interaction with Cho Chang in the future. To be honest, with how much the future has changed he probably wouldn''t be attracted to her at all, or anyone for that matter.

    As the journey is almost done they pull their school robes over their current clothing, they consist of a white shirt, black tie, grey vest and a plain black robe over them. As neither had entered a house yet, they remained plain when compared to Luna''s blue and white Ravenclaw ones.

    Eventually the train stops at it''s final destination in Hogsmeade the sky already dark as it''s around 8pm already, the group watches as students stream out of the train, most heading on their own elsewhere. Luna smiles at them and bids them a farewell before leaving, they attempt to follow to try and get on a carriage but a large figure appears behind them.

    "Ar''ye them transfur students headmaster Dumbledore had told me about?" he asks in a gruff voice.

    They turn around and see a huge man in a ragged coat holding a latern, his big bushy black beard covering the majority of his face apart from his rosy cheeks and cheesy smile.

    Reima looks him in the eye and says "Yep, that''s us."

    Hagrid is slightly shocked when he sees two almost glowing Cat-like eyes staring back at him but remembers his interactions with Madam Hooch and calms himself.

    "Aye, they call me Hagrid, I''m the professor for the care of magical creatures class, not to mention the grounds keeper. Now see ere, as we''ve not ''ad transfer students in a mighty long time you''ll be comin'' with me and the rest of the first years." he says, eyeing up Snuffles as if she was the greatest thing to ever walk the earth.

    Reima shrugs and glances at ciri, "Err, okay... I''m Reima Ludvig, and this is Ciri. Nice to meet you Hagrid."

    He walks next to them while calling for the first years to follow him before turning to them once again, "I hate to ask ye'' but, I can''t help noticin you''ve got there specie of rabbit I''ve never seen before."

    Snuffles hearing this burrows herself deeper into Ciri''s arm... "Er, yes... She''s called Snuffles." she says trying to satisfy his curiosity.

    Hagrid laughs, "Good name! Reminds me of a group of animals we''d recently saved... Shame really, how people hunt them for their uniqueness." he says but neither Reima or Ciri comment on it.

    They are eventually led to a shoreline that has many, many boats floating above the water, ready for passengers. Hagrid decides to put them in a boat on their own since they both are holding rather unwieldy staves. After he''s got all the first years into their respective boats he climbs into a vacant one and sails off, making sure Ciri and Reima''s boat follows his closely... It''s as if he''s been asked to keep an eye on them, which wouldn''t really surprise Reima at all, considering they have literally no traceable history aside from what they had told the Minister. Combine that with their recent actions at the terrorist attack and one might spot the problem.

    They continue to travel along the dark lake when they hear the first years suddenly start gasping in awe at the scene before them, Hogwarts castle sits at the end of the lake, the many lights shining through the windows providing a magnificent sight to behold. Not only that, Reima knows that it''s certainly more than meets the eye, as the room of requirement is likely one of a kind and the greatest achievement (In his opinion) of witches and wizards despite the fact that almost none of them know of it actually existing. He suspects that Merlin must have had a hand in creating it as from the movies alone the uses were almost endless, and indeed, he intended to make the most out of using it.

    There are a few mishaps along the way, with one kid falling into the water only to be flung back out into the boat by what looks like a tentacle. What was funny and slightly unnerving is the fact that Hagrid didn''t even notice... If that kid had disappeared they might have only found his bloated corpse on the shoreline, the squid is probably a preventative measure?

    Eventually they reach Hogwarts, Hagrid tells the first years to follow the hallway and literally leaves us all to figure out where to go... Unfortunately as he and Ciri looked the oldest, all the kids turned to them and waiting for them to lead the way. Reima thinks to himself how funny it''d be to lead them into the dark forest but stifles the thought when considering how many would be left once they were found.

    They start walking through the halls, the painting occasionally giving them directions to the great hall. This is probably to stall them in order to get the other students ready for their arrival, pretty pointless and annoying but it seems to have worked in order to awe the kids behind them. Eventually they reach a staircase with a dark figure standing at the end of it, looking down at them with a stern face.

 314 Snape getting sorted out.

    Professor Mcgonagall stares down at the new students, raising an eyebrow at the ashen haired teens leading them. She remembers Albus telling her something about transfer students but she was still unsure how in which she should go about getting them sorted...

    "I assume you are our new transfer students?" she asks, while taking notice of the males eyes.

    They nod, "Sorry for the inconvenience" adds Reima politely.

    She nods to herself, atleast they know how to be respectful. What she had read in the papers may just be some fabrication made by desperate reporters.

    "Very well, I''ll have you two at the back to be sorted last." she says before turning to the rest of the new students. "Now, welcome to Hogwarts. Not just your new school, but your new family." he emphasises this, afterwards she goes on to explain the different houses, house cup and how to gain or lose points.

    Mcgonagall "When you walk though these doors you will follow me and be prepared to answer when your name is called. Do I make myself clear?"

    She receives a round of nods by the nervous students. "Right, then follow me." she says and starts walking towards the large double doors as they open up seemingly on their own.

    Inside the great hall sits the entire school, long tables extend to each end of the huge room and sit before the raised platform in which the teachers sit. The students stream in behind Mcgonagall as happens every year, only this time two much older people are present. They walk in, both staves tapping against the stone floor which echoes throughout the silent room.

    Reima glances around the hall, everyone caught staring reels back as if they were pushed, apparently afraid of him? Ciri''s not doing much better, only that the kind of gazes she was attracting were more, lustful. Most Muggleborn''s hadn''t read of recent events and were immediately captivated by her beauty, while Pure Blood''s and those in the know nervously shuffled at the fact "she" was going to attend school with them. One thing that some noticed and were confused by is the hateful glare from Harry Potter himself, did they have history or was he jealous that she was stealing him limelight?

    Albus Dumbledore watched in fascination with his mage sight as two huge but vastly different aura''s entered the room. The female looked like a beacon of pure magic, power like he''d never seen before manifest in a human female shape. He wondered how she contained such power without exploding from the strain, as many dark lord had done in the past.

    He swaps his focus on the male with strange eyes, his magical presence somehow larger than the girl''s despite how stupidly powerful she already is. From Albus view he looks like the sun manifest, except with tinges of darkness, the mere fact that the dark seems to already be present on his aura frightens him more than he would like admit. Though it doesn''t seem to be spreading, looking more akin to curse damage or being in contact with extreme dark for an extended period of time. It seems Ollivander was right in how unique these two were, he''d try to scan their thoughts to see what their objectives for the school are but considering how magically potent they seem, it would be foolish.

    It seems however that Dumbledore''s thoughts didn''t extend to his potion master Severus Snape, who holds in head in pain and topples backwards, shocking the staff on the table.

    Hagrid who had been sitting not far from him stands up, almost knocking the table over with his fat stomach and picks Severus up. The man looking limp in his grip for a moment before shaking his head and coming to clarity.

    Dumbledore "Severus, is something wrong?" he asks, knowing full well what the man had just attempted.

    Severus "No... Headmaster, I must have been overworking myself lately, please, do not mind it." he says while getting himself seated again, noticing that he had attracted the attention of most of the school, not to mention the person he had attempted to use legilimency on.

    Reima stares back at the potion master with a harsh glare, wondering why he''d even attempt to read his mind... Had he done something to gain his attention? Or may be he was just curious of the two and didn''t wish to bother Ciri? Either way, he had retaliated with what he felt was "Justified force".

    Eventually the group makes it to the front of the hall, most not knowing how one of them had already been assaulted despite only being present a couple seconds...

    Mcgonagall stands beside a small child sized stool with a hat sitting on it. She pulls out a large parchment and starts calling out names in alphabetical order, of course, Ciri and he were not going to be called until all the children were done.

    Reima didn''t know any of the new students and just idly glanced around the room while they were getting sorted. Admiring his first time viewing the great hall, the candles floating above everyone while somehow not dripping wax everywhere. The night time sky being realistically depicted replacing the roof. Even Ciri who had seen many different worlds was briefly awestruck when she saw the place.

    Eventually, the duo are the only two remaining that had to be sorted.

 315 Dont hat-e yourself...

    The hall watches with anticipating as Mcgonagall stares at the last two students needing to be sorted. Albus Dumbledore stands up and decides to introduce them...

    "As you all must have noticed we have two guests joining us today. For the first time in centuries Hogwarts will be gaining two new transfer students, they hail from the colonies in Greenland I am told and were highly praised by the Minister of magic himself. Most of you already know of Ciri Rivia, a woman with an exceedingly rare talent of solving trouble where it finds her, along with her companion Reima Ludvig. As this goes along with the theme of international cooperation this year, would you all give a hand to our guests." he says with his eyes glittering.

    Most people starts clapping, some more enthusiastically than others while a few didn''t clap at all, after the applause gives way Mcgonagall clears her throat.

    "Ahem! Ciri Rivia, would you please take a seat?" she asks while gesturing towards the stool. Ciri glances at Reima before stepping forwards, as she isn''t too tall she manages to make herself look atleast semi-presentable. Her eyes close as the sorting hat is placed over her head.

    "Hmm, girl. You''ve been practising the mind arts, but it seems it wasn''t enough." a voice says in her head, causing her eyes to snap open to look for the person speaking to her.

    "No you silly girl, I''m on your head." it says, making he realise it''s the hat...

    "If you know my thoughts, then you know your fate should you reveal my secrets." she thinks to herself, hoping the hat can hear her thoughts.

    The hat chuckles not only inside her mind, "Do not worry, there are protections in place to prevent breeches of privacy. But I have to say, you are the most unique person I''ve ever been atop." he says while chuckling further.

    "Sort me then." she prods, hoping to get this over with before the hat finds out about her more "intimate" moments .

    "Oh, you mean with this Mistle girl? Hehehe, it seems you''ve got quite a mouth on you."

    "Stop and LEAVE." she mentally shouts at the hat, unconsciously utilising Occlumency to push him out.

    "Fine, I''ve already seen enough." he says reluctantly, still wishing to revel in the memories of another world. "GRYFFINDOR!" it shouts, causing the table to erupt into cheers while a worried Hermione looks at a livid Harry. Ciri takes the hat off and lays it back on the stool, glancing at Reima before taking seat at the end of the Gryffindor table, the people around her already asking many questions, a few even trying to flirt with her.

    Dumbledore scratches his bearded chin, surprised at her placement. With all that had happened he had assumed she''d be in Slytherin, maybe this is for the better however...

    Mcgonagall clears her throat yet again, "Reima Ludvig." The hall quietens as he approaches the stool, unlike Ciri, he was much taller and found it difficult to sit on the stool, the almost comedic scene of an almost adult man sitting in a stool many sizes too small for him caused some to laugh and sneer at him. Ignoring this he allows Mcgonagall to place the hat over his head while waiting for the voice to appear. And so he waits... And waits... And waits.

    A minute passes and he continues to hear nothing, maybe the hats broken. He suddenly hears a voice and thanks whatever god is watching over him for the assistance.

    "Boy, lower your shields or I can''t sort you." the sorting hat says aloud, causing many to raise an eyebrow at it...

    Reima''s hope of semi-anonymity quickly washes away as he realises the hat had revealed his skill in Occlumency, an obscure art that took decades to master...

    Inwardly panicking he creates a space without any protects in his mind while delving inside to talk in private with it.

    Inside his mentally created space he sees some sort of glowing orb hovering nearby him, it moves from here to there looking for something before eventually stopping in-front of him.

    A familiar voice comes out of it, "Good one, lock all your memories elsewhere and continue to prevent me to sort you. How on earth do you expect for me to do my job if you continue to belligerently block my attempts."

    Reima "I''d rather you not go prying, I suspect you won''t find what you''re looking for."

    Hat "And what do you suppose I''m looking for, boy?"

    Reima "Secrets for you to relay to that old man." he states.

    The glowing orb laughs in his face... Or shines? It''s hard to tell with it looking like the god who had sent him here. "You think Albus would attempt to modify my functions?!? Don''t make me laugh! The man is the most principled headmaster we''ve ever had, even making the likes of Godric Gryffindor look like a schoolyard bully in comparison."

    ...

    Reima "Er, what?" this wasn''t how the fanfictions he had read in the past described Dumbledore... Wasn''t he supposed to be, you know, evil? Maybe this is just a ploy to gain his trust...

    His confusion apparently allowing the hat to read his surface thoughts, it simply replies "Regardless of your views on Dumbledore, I need access to your memories to sort you. If not then you better find another school!"

    ...

    Reima grumbles at the limited options he has... Youknow what, fine! But if it''s going to force him to show his memories, he might as well have fun with it...

    Reima gives a toothy grin, causing the orb to visible shudder. He delves into he memories and pulls out his fight against the Demon army of Izalith.

 316 The hats ahead of the curve...

    Mcgonagall taps her foot as she waits for Reima Ludvig to be sorted, it''s quite a confusing situation as no one had ever taken this long to be sorted before, even Harry Potter only took half a minute at most. She was not the only person taking an interest in the strange situation, all of the students and staff were captivated and waiting to find out which house the boy will be thrown into, most assumed he had no bravery, cunning, intelligence or even loyalty. This would be why the hat was taking so long, because it couldn''t find a viable house for him to go to. Other''s thought the complete opposite, that he embodied all of the traits so much and so equally that the hat simply couldn''t decide.

    It was a shocking surprise for all of them when the hat started screaming... "AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! NO! WHAT IS THAT! RUN! NO!"

    Mcgonagall looks at the headmaster, discreetly imploring him to allow her to stop the sorting, unfortunately for all of their eardrums, the man gives a smile and gestures her to allow it to continue.

    Inside Reima''s head, he had just shown his fight versus a mini Taurus Demon in the demon ruins. The hat was watching from his point of view, making it all the more nerve racking to have a huge block of furry muscle sprinting at you with a giant axe in hand. Reima could hear the screams of the hat and was laughing uproariously at how scared it was, apparently the hat had never been in combat before and as such, was scared out of it''s mind.

    Once the mini Taurus Demon was killed he quickly changed the scene to his fight versus the Demon FireSage...

    The hats hoarse voice echoes throughout the hall "HOT HOT HOT HOT! AH, DUCK! OH, oh blessed sun!"

    ...

    People next to Ciri begin to ask questions.

    "What is wrong with your friend?"

    "Are his eyes real?"

    "Why is the hat screaming?"

    She doesn''t answer as she either doesn''t wish to tell or doesn''t know herself, listening to the screams of the Hat she can guess that this is probably what Reima experienced from a previous world... Whatever can cause the hat to act like this must have been truly horrific however.

    Reima was having a blast, it''d been a nightmare to progress through Lordran himself but subjecting a poor animated hat to it was surprisingly fun. Just listening to his reactions to the lake of fire, the army of statues and his eventual fight with the bed of chaos made it all seem, worth it. He was abit apprehensive when the hat started worshipping Solaire like a deity but he got over it thinking that it''d never meet him directly.

    Unfortunately as the hat was sliding down the large stone incline towards the bed of chaos it shouts, "I GIVE I GIVE!"

    Reima hearing this shrugs and releases the hat from his mind.

    It had been a long thirty minutes for the great hall, the hat''s screams started to sound reminiscent of a saga sung by vikings... Somehow telling a tale amidst it''s shouts of terror. Although, it was hard for even the most cunning students and teachers to piece together the mess that was a story told through a hat shitting it''s metaphorical pants.

    Dumbledore himself had only pieced together that it contained combat of some sort, it couldn''t have been a regular fight however as it occasionally sorted children who lived in abusive house holds...

    Eventually the hat stopped shouts and start panting exhaustively on Reima''s head, despite the fact that it didn''t need to breath.

    "G-G-GRYFFINDOR!" it stutters before shouting. "Now get me off this boys head!" it almost pleads to Mcgonagall. She does so and looks sternly at Reima who slowly gets out off the tiny stool.

    "Mister Ludvig, in all my years here I''ve never seen someone prank the sorting hat. I demand an explanation!" she says in a restrained voice.

    Reima shrugs and grins, "Apparently the hat''s never seen StarWars before, the death star really scared it." he says innocently with most of the Muggleborn''s cheering for the popular movie.

    Mcgonagall herself had never seen a muggle movie and was confused at the cheering from some of the students, she decides to let it go for now and talk with the boy later to understand just what this "Death Star" that he''s referring to is. If it''s from some sort of dark ritual then she''ll have to have a stern talk with him and possible the head of magical law enforcement.

    Reima sees that his prank on the hat hadn''t just been inside his head and sheepishly looks around. There are a few pale faces in the crowd but most seem to have already forgotten about it and are eagerly awaiting their food. He can see a certain redhead scratching his arm like a drug addict waiting for his next hit. Reima walks over and attempts to sit next to Ciri, only to find both spaces beside her filled, a glare causes both to move over while he sits down and pats the head of Snuffles who''s now resting on the table.

    A few people try to make conversation with him but they''re all interrupted when the headmaster suddenly stands up.

 317 A Moody atmosphere

    Dumbledore stands up and smiles down at the students, "I have only two words to say, tuck in!" he says and a huge feast appears on each table in the hall. Ciri herself jumps when a whole chicken appears before her.

    Reima salivates at the smell of a traditional English roast, he hadn''t eaten one in ages and wasn''t going to be polite. He did however try not to mimic the redhead with a bottomless stomach next to him. While he''s trying to scoop food onto his plate he''s constantly being accosted by various people across the table. He tries to ignore them to eat but when two red head''s start asking him questions he finally gives in.

    Fred/George "What''s with those eyes?""I don''t know brother but they look angry.""And that scar on his face?""Even Angrier Gred.". they say quickly one after the other.

    Reima "Do you two need something?" he says after swallowing a roast potato.

    Fred and George both just glance at each other before looking back "Mister, you don''t mind if we talk to your girl friend do you?"

    Reima chokes on his drink, whether or not it''s due to it''s overbearing sweetness or the twin''s question is unknown, either way he manages to quickly compose himself and answering them. "Er, we''re not together, feel free to talk to her though..." he says metaphorically pushing Ciri under the bus.

    He can feel the glares from Ciri and the red eyed rabbit but shrugs and continues to eat his food. Occasionally a few ghostly float through their respective tables and house members, however when Nearly-Headless Nick tries to pass through Reima he flinches backwards as if he''d just touched a hot stove top... He looks around to see if anyone had noticed but silently gliding away, he didn''t need another reason for his ghostly comrades to ignore him.

    On the other side of the table sits the golden trio, Ron Weasley scooping piles of food down his gullet, Hermione Granger picking various foods while calculating their calories and last but not least, Harry Potter, who''s hand tremors so much that he loses the pea''s he had spooned up.

    Ron "''Arry ''ou ''right?" he asks with a mouth full of food, feeling incredibly sorry for his friend who''s having trouble eating.

    Harry grunts out "Fine, Ron."

    Parvati who''s sitting opposite them looks confused and asks "Is something wrong Harry? You''ve been shaking the entire time we''ve been here." her words attract the attention of the nearby Gryffindors.

    Lavender "Did you not read the news? Harry was attacked during the World Cup." he says loud enough for everyone else to hear.

    Hearing this all start to observe the trembling Harry, said person can only grit his teeth and continue eating.

    Hermione "Guys, perhaps Harry doesn''t want to talk about it?"

    Lavender "Really? What could have been so bad anyway?" she points at him, "He doesn''t look that bad, apart from the trembling and lack of sleep."

    Ron "You''d be shaking if you got hit by the Torture curse as well Lavender." the words escape his mouth, not that he intended to hold any information back anyway.

    The table falls silent hearing this, Neville who''s not far away turns his gaze to Harry and his eyes soften and moisten. He leans in a whispers, "If you need anything just ask Harry, I know how awful that curse can be."

    Harry nods, "Thanks Neville"

    The feast continues and it''s not only Gryffindor that are interested in the transfer students, a few people on Slytherin glare at Ciri as if she had killed their parents... Which she might have in the World Cup attack. Malfoy was cockily sitting back and making snide comments about how freakish Reima looks while saying how Ciri would only be good to push out children. This is all picked up by the Witcher who can only wait for them to attack first before retaliating, and oh boy, it would be a glorious moment when he does.

    The feast comes to an end and Headmaster Dumbledore stands up again and begins to address the school. "Now that we''ve all eaten, I''d like to remind everyone of the forbidden items that are not allowed into the castle, our Mr. Filch will additionally be keeping an eye out for : Screaming Yo-yos, Fanged Frisbees, and Ever-Bashing Boomerangs. The full list comprises some four hundred and thirty seven items, I believe, and can be viewed in Mr. Filch''s office, if anybody would like to check it."

    He clears his throat and begins again, "It is also unfortunate that I have to announce that this year''s inter-house Quidditch Cup will not take place this year."

    Everyone who hears this is stunned, some mouth to eachother questioning what on earth was happening this year.

    Dumbledore continues despite the disbelieving expressions on the students.

    "This is due to an event being hosted here in Hogwarts! It will be starting Octorber an-" he''s interrupted when the great hall''s doors slam open and a monster starts walking through the room. Whoops, it''s just Moody, who for some reason looks more comfortable on his peg-leg than he did in the movie. Reima grins, probably due to having extended experience on one foot.

    Some of the students recoil at his mangled face while others gape in recognition, Alastor Moody the veteran Auror who personally put most of the Death Eaters in Azkaban! Ciri herself recognises the man from their time fighting vampires, though he wouldn''t know that due to him being an impostor, he''ll have to talk with Ciri about not blowing his cover...

 318 Eternal glory, for some.

    The mangled face man trudges up to Dumbledore and roughly shakes his hand while his bulbous glass eye darts from left to right, scanning everyone and lingering on Harry Potter. "Greetings Dumbledore, are you well?"

    Dumbledore "Very, I trust it wasn''t difficult to get here?" he asks, eyeing up the man''s dirty attire.

    Moody "Not at all."

    Dumbledore nods and gestures towards an empty chair behind him before looking at the students.

    "I''d like to introduce you all to your new Defence against the dark arts professor, Alastor Moody."

    The students give applause despite they discontent they still feel at the fact Quidditch is cancelled.

    Dumbledore rubs his beard and lets the applause die down before continuing, "Now then, where was I? Oh, yes. I would like to announce that we will be hosting the Tri-wizard tournament at Hogwarts this year!"

    A few cheer while others look around with questioning looks, not knowing what this is about. Dumbledore continues on to explain the history of the tournament and why it cancelled due to it''s exceeding large "Death toll", his words did squash the excitement of some but most of Gryffindor was more than ready to dive headfirst into a dragons maw at this news. Ron himself was already salivating at the prospect of entering and winning it, while Harry is already feeling a sense of dread overtake him.

    "The schools, Beauxbatons and Durmstrang will be arriving with their short-listed contenders in October, and the selection of the three champions will take place at Halloween. An impartial judge will decide which students are most worthy to compete for the Tri-wizard Cup, the glory of their school, and a thousand Galleons personal prize money."

    Just hearing that there''ll be a cash prize confirms for Ron that he''ll be entering, regardless of how dangerous they purport it to be. Maybe he''ll finally be able to stand on his own two feet after this. His brothers seem to be just as enthusiastic as him, shouting out "I''ll be taking those Galleons!" "No Fred, they''re mine!" there voices echo above the clamouring students.

    Dumbledore "I do not wish to bring down your enthusiasm but I must mention that all of the organisers of the event have agreed that the age of entry will be restricted to those of 17 years old and above. I will personally be warding against anyone trying to get around this restriction, for your own safety." he says and the shouting begins. Most students were loudly complaining about the lost oppertunity, the 6th years more than anyone do to being just short of the requirement, Fred and George Weasley who were cheering the loudest earlier were again, making their thoughts known. "That''s rubbish!""The headmasters lost his brain in his beard!""Where''s my eternal glory?""Where''s my riches!"

    Dumbledore "These measures were put into place to prevent the high death count of participants to carry over, even with the age restriction I feel that those who enter will find the challengers most difficult. And as such, if you have thoughts about entering the tournament I would advise you think over your decision many times, as your life will be at risk... The other schools will be arriving in October, now then, it wouldn''t do for you all to be tired for tomorrow''s lessons. Off to bed, chop, chop!" he says ending his speech.

    The first years of each house were being grouped together for a quick tour of the castle before heading to their respective dorms, Reima and Ciri were about to follow when they were stopped by Professor Mcgonagall. "You two, as we do not know how far you are along your magical education, the school has seen fit to provide tests for you tomorrow. You will be pulled aside by Professor Babbling who will then lead you to where you need to go. I would advise you to rest early and revise anything you are unsure about, good night to your both." she says before leaving them both.

    Reima shrugs to Ciri and asks "You confident?"

    Ciri "No... I''ve tried to get up to my age group though so we''ll see where I end up."

    Reima "It''d be awkward if you ended up with Harry Potter wouldn''t it." he chuckles and recieves an elbow jab. They briskly walk to catch up with the first years who are being led by a prefect, he passes by the toilets, explains how the stairs function or more accurately, how to guess where they''ll move to before finally ending up standing outside a painting of a fat lady.

    "Balderdash" states the prefect and the painting swings open, revealing the gaudy red and gold decorations inside the common room.

    It seems as if the excitement from the earlier announcement has stimulated the student population as most are currently present and talking about what they''d do if they won the competition.

    Reima is led to a room that seems to only be occupied by one other person, he looks at the 17 year old who''s sitting on his bed and reading a book. They''re black with an affro and quite tall from the looks of it.

    They look at Reima and lean their head to the side, "Er, hey? I''m Damien Parks, you?"

    The teen doesn''t seem frightened by Reima''s gaze which give him a good impression, "Reima Ludvig, guess we''re room mates. Are we the only ones here?" he asks, confused at the lack of beds present.

    Damien "Yeah, I''ve had the room all to myself until now. It''ll be nice to see what having a room mate feels like though." he says.

    Reima nods and starts sorting out his bed and checking out the room itself, all while making small talk with his new room mate.

 319 Foreshadow? Yup.

    Ciri is led up the stairs towards the female dorms, in her arms the small magic dog bed with Snuffles sitting comfortably inside. Reima had passed it and some other personal affects to her before he was led away, one thing that''s confusing her is the fact that Professor Mcgonagall was walking beside her towards her room.

    They open the doors and Mcgonagall introduces the three people inside, Angelina Johnson a black girl with black hair and muscular body. Alicia Spinnet a short, stout girl who looked like a Zerrikanian mixed with a dwarf, and last but not least Olivia Dewbury, a girl with sickly pale skin who looks too small for her age. Her thin black hair trails over her shoulders lifelessly.

    The girls turn their gaze to Ciri and look confused at Mcgonagall, "Where''s Phoebe?" they ask simultaneously.

    The professor looks down solemnly, "Miss Buffay was tragically killed during the terrorist attack at the World Cup."

    Alicia "What! The prophet didn''t mention anyone had died!"

    Angelina "We were there when the attack started... Why didn''t she tell us she was there?"

    Olivia doesn''t say anything and looks at the vacant bed that used to belong to Phoebe... "Is she our new room mate?" she asks quietly, appraising Ciri up and down.

    Mcgonagall nods, "However tragic it may be, life, life must continue. As this is now the only room with a free spot Miss Rivia will be joining you." She says before gesturing Ciri inside and quickly leaving, the moisture in the woman''s eyes threatening to escape.

    Ciri slowly enters and places Snuffles on a nearby desk, the rabbit''s red eyes boring into the grieving girls. "I''m Ciri Rivia, pleasure to make your acquaintance."

    Alicia "We know who you are, who doesn''t? The girl who killed black and butchered the terrorists at the world cup... I thought they were just trying to scare people and destroy property, no one said anything about people being killed."

    Ciri "I was there with my friend, those robed men were firing curses everywhere, it would be strange if they hadn''t caught anyone... I decided to intervene, as the news paper continues to report to this day." she says bitterly

    Angelina "What were the Auror''s doing, it''s like there was new security for the event at all. You had do the law''s job because they were so useless, maybe Phoebe..."

    Ciri doesn''t say anything and stuffs some of her clothes into a wardrobe, she takes the stuffy robe off and starts dressing into some comfortable sleeping attire.

    The girls continue to talk, most of it about Phoebe so Ciri doesn''t try to enter the conversation herself. She''d try to study for tomorrow but it''s already pretty late so instead she climbs into the vacant bed and pulls the covers over herself, Snuffles jumps off the nearby desk and curls up close to her neck, providing them both warmth. Since the death of Nerissa''s mother the girl hadn''t been as talkative as before, instead quietly trying to gain control over her new powers. The most surprising of them being her mothers ability to control blood and harden it into a ruby-like substance. As her master Ciri had been trying to get her to open up but it seems she''s still grieving for her lost parents.

    The only thing that had actually gotten her to act like her previous self was training with swords, Reima had given her another due to her old one being shattered and had found various hidden locations for them to practise sparring. He didn''t dare stay in one place as it''d become trivial to find them, even if he could wipe up their base single handedly being hunted by an entire race for the rest of his stay in this world wouldn''t help towards his final goal.

    In a nearby room.

    Ron "Come on Harry, admit you want to enter the tournament."

    Dean Thomas and Seamus Finnegan watch with amusement as Ron continues to bother an exhausted looking Harry who continues to reject wanting to be in a "Death Game"

    Harry "Look, Ron, I get that you want to enter but that doesn''t mean everyone else does. I''ve almost died too many times to count in this school and I''d rather it not become a habit. Besides, with Dumbledore warding it there''s no chance that you or I will be participating."

    His words crush any remaining hope the red head has of entering the competition, he nods and stuffs some chocolate in his face before laying back into his bed. "I guess your right... You''d tell me though... If you found a way to enter, right?"

    Harry rubs his scar, wondering if the headaches are from it or his friend, "Yes Ron, you''d be the first to know." he says trying to placate his best friend who nods and falls asleep, Harry knows this due to the monstrous snoring that the teen produces.

    Harry looks up towards the ceiling gritting his teeth, his shaking won''t stop and the more he takes note of it, the more unbearable it becomes. He''d been having dreams, terrible dreams of people dying and what he can only guess to be Voldemort plotting against him. The forboding feeling he had when the Tri-Wizard tournament was announced only get worse when he considers the events that had transpired thus far. The death of his Godfather, attack on the Quidditch World Cup, dreams of Voldemort and now this competition? It feels as if the world itself wants to kill him, and he''s starting to think it might be time to give it what it wants.

 320 Revelare : Infodump!

    Reima spent the night lying in his bed meditating and gets up quite early, his room mate isn''t even starting to stir yet so he looks around the common room to find something to do... Only to find that no one else is up yet either. Shrugging he quickly dresses himself in his now Gryffindor themed school robes and heads down to the great hall where a single plate of breakfast is already there waiting for him.

    Propping his staff to lean on the table next to him he digs into the full English breakfast while rubbing sipping some tea that appeared next to it. Looking around he sees that not even the professors are up this early but just shrugs and retrieves a history textbook from his Folded Space as it''s the one he''d prepared for the least.

    Eventually the teaching staff start arriving and Reima appraises them as they do the same for him.

    Filius Flitwick : A half-Goblin master duellist who''s apparently won many championships in his time despite his small stature. He''s also the Ravenclaw head of house, maybe Reima should ask him about teaching Ciri and himself some moves, maybe he''ll learn something? He nods his head and Reima before taking a seat at the head table and starting on his breakfast.

    Minerva McGonagall : Deputy Headmistress, head of house Gryffindor and Transfiguration teacher... Quite a handful if he does say so himself, she almost has as many jobs as Albus Dumbledore, his impression of her is a strict but kind woman, despite her indirect involvement with Harry Potters abusiveness house hold. Additionally she''s also an Animagus, something Reima might try talk to her about as he''s not too confident at performing self transfiguration on himself or Ciri without permanent deformation. She briskly strides past, not taking notice of him until she reaches her table.

    Aurora Sinistra : The astronomy professor, a subject Reima hates and in-turn is terrible at. She''s black with frizzy brown hair but doesn''t talk much, it''s almost as if she''s a background character or something? She glances at him but quickly turns her head away before taking her rightful place at the head table.

    Septima Vector : The Arithmency professor, something Reima had learn before even coming to this world from his teacher Big Hat Logan. There were a few differences when comparing Sorcery to Witchcraft and Wizardry, the first being that all Wizardry related algorithms had to take into account the person''s magical core, something that if ignored could cause the spell to fizzle. It also had to take into account wands, although Sorcery did a similar thing with Catalysts, it wasn''t nearly as intrusive as having an extremely magically potent piece of an animal inside of each of their Foci. Either way, he was looking forward to attending her classes and improving his spell crafting. She smiles at him as she walks by.

    After Septima''s entrance some bleary eyed students have started walking into the great hall in search of food. The majorty of them happen to be Ravenclaws which doesn''t surprise Reima, he ignores them and continues to people watch until the next person of interest walks through in.

    Bathsheda Babbling : The Ancient Runes Professor, an intriguing subject that Reima still isn''t really sure how it works completely. Yes, infusing certain runes with magic produces certain effects... But why those runes? Why do those shapes contribute to the final effect? Either way, he''s looking forward to finding out in her class later on. The tall woman doesn''t even notice him as she walks by, this doesn''t bother Reima as the next person had already arrived.

    Charity Burbage : The Muggle studies professor, someone who in Reima''s opinion is completely and utterly useless, not to mention incredibly detrimental to the children she teaches. He hadn''t even been here a day yet and he had already heard rumours of her classes, she taught people that Muggles still rode around on horse drawn carriages, despite Kings Cross station literally being surrounded by auto-mobiles. It seems the pure-blood inbreeding has had an affect on this particular woman. She has her head upturned as she snootily walks by everyone like they aren''t worth notice... Bitch, Reima thinks to himself as two more people walk in.

    Pomona Sprout : The head of house for Hufflepuff and professor for herbology, as well as being in-charge of the department of herbology which manages all of the various plants, green houses and other miscellaneous things around the castle. Reima was actually pretty interested in her subject as most potions in this universe are incredibly useful, unlike Alchemy in the Witcher, Wizard potions can be used on Muggles with any detrimental effects (Within reason). When compared to the almost instant death of those that drink Witcher potions Reima would say it''s an improvement. He will most deffinitely try to bring back a significant portion of the plants grown in this world so that Kaer Morhen could have another trick up it''s sleeve against the Wild Hunt, or indeed a mob of angry villagers. Next to her walks a tall dark figure with greasy hair.

    Severus Snape : Head of house for Slytherin, Potion master and professor. Former Death Eater and someone who''s already attracted Reima''s ire, Snapes attack on him yesterday had given him a worse impression than he already had, the man constantly bullies children that aren''t in Slytherin, public mocking them and even encouraging bullying of other students. Reima still vividly remembers the movie''s which explain that Snape''s a douche bag because he got cucked by James Potter, indeed, he was cucked so hard that he felt the need to bully James and Lily potters offspring decades later in some form of petty revenge.

    The two walk past, Snape seeming to ask about certain plants that''ll be used in the next potion class for the 6th years.

 321 Back to school again...

    Reima continues to watch as the professors walk in to get breakfast, Poppy Pomfrey the Medi-witch/healer, Professor Mad-eye Moody/Barty Crouch or David Tennant as Reima refers to him. Pomfrey eyes him up like a frog on a dissection board while Moody stays far away from him, for obvious reasons.

    Reima continues to watch and wait for the last few teachers to arrive but for some reason they don''t, Professor Sybill Treylawney, Madam Hooch, Hagrid and Headmaster Albus Dumbledore don''t seem to bother getting breakfast today and so his attention is drawn to the sleepy looking ashen haired girl who''d plopped down next to him, rabbit in hand.

    He retrieves a box of Tomato juice that he''d filled with blood and stored away for just such an occasion and fills a small goblet with the liquid, the bunny''s nose twitch and it immediately starts sipping up the blood. Ciri unfortunately still not awake picks up the goblet and attempt to drink it, only to spit it out all over Reima''s half eaten breakfast... Dude, come on!

    Reima "Ciri, do you mind?" he asks gesturing towards his ruined breakfast, which promptly disappears and is replaced by a fresh plate.

    Ciri rubs her eyes and grumbles, "No, do you mind? Putting blood next to my drink, is this your idea of a prank?"

    Reima strokes the back of Snuffles who''s gotten a red tint around the fur around her mouth. "Would you rather Snuffles goes hungry?" he says while playing his guilt trap card!

    This placates Ciri who lays a finger on her staff that''s propped up against the table and casts "Scourgify" which caused bubbles to wash her mouth out. She grimaces at the bitter taste of soap but it soon disappears, along with the lingering aftertaste of blood.

    Reima "You ready for our tests?" he asks.

    Ciri "I suppose... Though I''d prefer having the full amount of time to study, trying to learn seven years worth of material in a couple months is a bit much to ask don''t you think?"

    Angelina Ciri''s dorm mate sits down next to her, "A couple months?"

    Ciri glances at her, "Isn''t it rude to listen in on other conversations?"

    Angelina shrugs, "Say that to the thousands of living painting around the castle, unless you do a couple favour for each of them they''ll rat you out to Filch like it''s nothing."

    ...

    Reima "Favours?" he question, what could a painting want?

    Angelina blushes, "Well, some of the male painting are a bit... Frisky?"

    Ciri "And the female ones?"

    Angelina shrugs, "They sometimes ask to be moved closer to other painting for easier access, the one they ask for the most should be the bath house painting... I think I agree with their choice."

    Reima "Wait, why would you need to be sneaking around anyway?"

    The Quidditch chaser snorts, "What? You never had a rendezvous with someone you fancy?"

    Reima "Kinda?" Ciri "All the time."

    Angelina grins at Ciri before looking at Reima, "Kinda? You''re a good looking guy, although your eyes might put some off..."

    Reima scratches his chin not sure whether or not to be offended, "I''ve just never had the need to sneak around... It''s always been cut and dry, no meeting after dark in a secluded space, I think my friends took way too many trips down the local park though. Sorta hard to ignore the dirt staining their knees when they came back..." he says grimacing at those awkward interactions with his "Definitely not gay" friends. The trio had a chuckle at that.

    They continue to talk about various subjects until someone approaches Reima from behind.

    "Ah, M-mister Ludvig?" a nervous shaky voice asks.

    "Yeah?" he says while turning, only now noticing that she looks familiar... Oh! The girl who was being tortured alongside Harry Potter at the World Cup... She had long brown hair, brown eyes and is an average height with an equally average build, though her breasts are coming along quite nicely... No, bad Reima, mentally chastises himself before moving his gaze back to her eyes.

    "I-m Tracey Davis, I h-heard it was you w-who saved me" she stutters out while shaking in a similar manner to Harry Potter, only not as severe. Only now Reima notices that she''s wearing the green colours belonging to the house of Slytherin, weird, why would she be attacked if she belongs to the same crowd?

    Reima "Don''t worry about it, I only hope you''ll do the same should you find someone in danger." he says giving a nonchalant gesture.

    Her face reddens, "T-thank you, I just w-wanted to say t-that. B-bye now." she says before escaping like a hunted rabbit.. No offence Snuffles.

    Angelina "Looks like you''ve already got fans, Ciri''s beating you in that department though." she says nudging her head down the table at some of the boys who''re almost drooling.

    Ciri just shakes her head and continues eating, wondering when all these boys started paying attention to her.

    The breakfast continues and the rest of Ciri''s dorm mates along with Damien join the trio, they continue to chat, bicker and laugh, well, until Damien asks where Phoebe is... After that it''s just awkward. Luckily he''s saved by an angel, or more accurately Professor Babbling.

    "Mr Ludvig, Miss Rivia, I''ve come to collect you for your placement tests... Are you both ready?" she asks.

    They both nod, get up and collect their staff''s, Ciri lifts Snuffles into her bosom and they start to follow Professor Babbling down the winding halls of Hogwarts while being encouraged by their new friends.

 322 Testing, testing, 1, 2, 3?

    The duo are led through the castle and into an unused classroom where two desks sit in the middle of the room a few meters away from each other. At the back of the room there are two elder men and one woman sitting inbetween them, all of them are wearing posh looking dress robes and a pointy hat reminiscent of the one Mcgonagall wears around the school.

    Professor Babbling "I wish you both luck in these exams, hopefully I''ll find one of you in my class, hmm?"

    They duo nod and give thanks and approach the examiners as Babbling leaves the room.

    "Examinee''s please state your names and age." the woman says.

    Reima shrugs, and does so, followed by Ciri.

    The examiners begin to introduce themselves after confirming that they have the right people.

    The woman introduces them all, "I am Meredith Pontshrub a member of the department of education. My colleagues Edmund Griffin," "No relation to Gryffindor" he adds with smile before letting her carry on. "And Trumpus Dooltus."

    Trumpus nods at them, his weird blonde hair almost slapping him in the face as he does so. "So, these, are the examinee''s? Why, am I not surprised... Does, the Minister really think we have too much, free time?" he says in an arrogant weirdly organised sentence that Ciri and Reima barely managed to piece together.

    The people next to him seem to sigh as they hear him talk, "Trumpus, whether you like it or not, this was in the job description."

    Trumpus rubs his palms together slowly, "That, may be so, but I hold no hope for these... Things." he says staring Reima in the eyes. Although the almost orange skinned man pales slightly when Reima''s slit pupils contract like a predator looking at it''s prey.

    Edmund "Now, now. I believe we''ll just have to see how knowledgeable they are, er Miss Rivia, could you please leave your familiar up here with us? While it''s unusual that they''d be used to cheat, it isn''t unheard of." he grumbles to himself thinking of the Puffskein incident years ago.

    Ciri reluctantly walks up and places Snuffles as far from Trumpus as possible, "You will not harm her in any way, correct?" she states receiving a nod from Meredith and Edmund.

    Meredith "Now them, once you two take a sit you will be presented with tests that will include questions from all years and all subjects. Do not worry if you cannot answer some as even some master level questions have been added to supplement the difficulty. These will not count as either your OWL or NEWT''s so you will have to retake those tests after your tuition at Hogwarts ends. There is a practical part of the exam in which you will be asked to perform spells for us to observe your proficiency in them, this is also an opportunity to present abilities that may not have been included in the test. Do NOT speak to each other and if you wish to ask a question please raise your hand straight up in the air, one of us will inquire what the problem is. Once the tests are done we will evaluate your proficiency and send the findings to the school board and staff who will decide which year you will be placed in. Any questions?" she asks after her explanation.

    The duo shake their heads and are asked to sit, they are given a couple minutes to compose themselves before a large stack of papers drops onto each of their tables and beginning the test.

    And thus, the two start flipping through the pages of the test, Reima finding most easily answered while some that he assumes are the Master level questions allude him. There are various questions about history, these actually become quite troubling for Reima as he knows two different histories that are vaguely similar yet have massive differences. This ended up with him writing almost nonsensical answers for some of the history based questions, though he did prove himself adept at Ancient Runes, Arithmancy and even some vague Alchemy questions that were thrown in.

    His charms and defence against the dark arts were pretty good along with his potions, though this was partly due to there not being any practical tests for this subject... His transfiguration was excellent however and he was looking forward to showing how much he has improved during the practical test for this subject.

    Ciri was having some trouble however, she was finding it incredibly disheartening to be unable to answer most of the questions, yes she hadn''t studied for Ancient runes, Arithmancy, Care of magical creatures or even Alchemy (Though she was pretty good at the Witchers version) but no one could blame her could they? She had seven years worth of stuff to learn and was barely able to get to an acceptable level in the core subjects. Despite how badly she thought she was doing she still managed to answer some pretty difficult questions in charms which brought her spirits up slightly.

    Eventually the theory tests were completed, Reima finished around the same time as Ciri despite how quickly he was going through it, this was due to him having to write exceptionally long explanations for some of the NEWT level questions. Once both papers were laid down on the tables the tired looking Ciri and bored looking Reima look up at their examiners, only to find them cooing over Snuffles who was being pampered like a princess from Meredith, of course Trumpus was quietly complaining about having to look after some black furry rat but his two other colleagues didn''t take notice. It seems like they felt the duo''s gazes as they sheepishly look up at them before coughing into their hands.

    Meredith "Ahem, it seems you''ve completed the first part of the test. Regardless of how well you did, congratulations, I''ve had many an examinee break down into tears before they''ve even finished." she says dramatically to a disbelieving Reima and Ciri.

 323 Pinocchio?

    Meredith "Now that you''ve completed the first part of the test we must move onto the next. Will both of you stand and take hold of your wan-Magical Foci please?" she says and their text sheets float over to the examiners table before the chairs and tables also vanish, leaving the duo standing in the middle of the spacious room.

    Reima plays with his staff while waiting for the examiners to prepare the next test, it doesn''t take long before a small box appears in-front of Meredith.

    "Now, this test will be to see how you''ll fare at using practical applications of magic." she says while pulling out some needles from the box and placing them upright in-front of her. "Will both of you please turn these needles into matches?" she says.

    Reima shrugs and doesn''t even move to transfigure the item, it simply changes as he wills it. Ciri doesn''t appear to have the focus or willpower needed to do this and so leans her staff forwards slightly, the gesture providing all she needs to successfully change it.

    The examiners looks at each other and nod in satisfaction, Trumpus looking reluctant to do so.

    Meredith "Now, please increase the size of these matches two fold." she asks.

    Ciri''s unable to cast this spell chantlessly as she had done the previous one, she gestures towards the match and casts "Engorgio". This causes her match to double in size, as the examiner had asked, Reima does the same without chanting the spells name afterwards.

    It seems however that this isn''t the end for the now rather large match sticks, Edmund picks both up and tries to strike Ciri''s first in an attempt to light it. It sparks slightly but fails showing that while Ciri had indeed increased it''s size, the composition of the material''s expanded had changed slightly. Endmund does the same with Reima''s and it sparks into a small fire proportional to it''s increased size.

    After the matchstick test they pull out two small blocks of oak wood about the same size as Meredith''s fist. She looks towards them and asks the duo to transfigure them into statues, they don''t seem to care what you transfigure them into though.

    Reima goes first and turns his into an almost identical replica of Nerissa, complete with a sundress, straw hat and lack of shoes. He directs a smile towards the rabbit who''s ears had perked up at the display. The examiners look at it and are surprised at it''s quality, along with how artistically sound it is. If they didn''t know any better they''d say this was slowly carved over days of effort.

    Seeing this Ciri decides to mess with that infuriating Trumpus, she focuses all of her attention on the block of wood while remembering the form she wishes to transfigure it into. It slowly begins to change, twist and warp into a tall almost naked figure of Reima... Complete with small scars, tied up hair and speedo''s for good measure.

    Reima glances at her with an embarrassed grin at the fact she''d paid such close attention to his body, the examiners also praised her transfiguration, with the exception of the scoffing Trumpus who didn''t seem happy at her efforts. Snuffles seemed to find it more interesting than her own wood statue however which amused Ciri some.

    Meredith coughs into her hand, "Ahem, both of your statues are very well done, however your choice in subject has made your next task all the more difficult, we''d like you to animate these statues as accurately as possible." she says, causing the smile of Ciri''s face to drop. She eyes Reima as if this is his fault. He can only shrug and think about how to animate it... Did they want it to have the same personality as the person depicted? Did they just want it to act like a human, or vampire in this case? Rubbing his chin he finally decides to try to animate it as accurately as possible. Tapping his staff on the floor he utilises free transfiguration to try and achieve the results he wants.

    The wooden model of Nerissa begins to slowly move, slowly stumbling around the table before regaining it''s balance. It looks as if it''s trying to breathe but due to it''s lack of lungs the copy of Nerissa appears to hold it''s throat and choke, it falls to the floor as if it''s suffocating but slowly comes to realise it doesn''t require air.

    The exminers looks horrified at this, as does Ciri, Snuffles and Reima... He quickly fixes this by reducing it''s complexity, leaving it able to walk around and perform actions, but no longer able to think for itself... He lets out a sigh in relief when it starts acting normally, only now noticing that he''d used a relatively large amount of magic for such a small transfiguration.

    Edmund "Err, very well done, Mr Ludvig... Perhaps you should stick to animals instead?" he says rubbing his sweaty palms. Reima simply nods, agreeing he shouldn''t attempt that again.

    Next up is Ciri, and boy is she reluctant to animate her mini-Reima after watching the mini-Nerissa literally suffocate for minutes on end due to it''s lack of lungs...

 324 Expecto Patr-OHH YEEEEEEEEE!

    It''s now Ciri''s turn to try animate her statue, after the disastrous results of Reima''s creation she was determined not to have it start flirting with her or starting fighting things..."Animatis" she chants, causing the statues to stumble backwards before stand upright and awaiting her commands. Seeing this the other Examiners nod in approval.

    Meredith "Nicely done. Now, I''d like you both to make these fire-resistant." she says gesturing towards the statues who are now looking towards her...

    As this came under charms Ciri quickly cast the Flame-freezing charm "Incendi" soon followed by Reima who casts the same spell on his own statue.

    After they''d cast the spells Trumpus grins and shoots a slightly too powerful "Incendio" at it, hoping that they''d be burned to a crisp so he could fail them for something. The fire evenlopes the wooden statues before fading away, revealing them to be completely unharmed...

    Meredith scowls, "Trumpus! This is not proper procedure, if you do not wish to adjudicate seriously then leave!"

    Trumpus "Apologies Mrs Pontshrub, I was too eager to test their spells and may have lost myself... Please continue."

    The elderly woman gives him one last warning glare before turning back to the duo who were watching the events passively. "While proper procedure was not followed your spells held up and protected the statues against Trumpus spell, well done." after saying this she levitates the two animated statues onto the floor below them and asks, "Now, I would like for both of you to destroy these in any manner you see necessary."

    ..

    Reima "Any requirements?" he asks, unsure what she wants from them."

    Meredith "None at all."

    Shrugging Reima casts "Evanesco" causing the statue of Nerissa to fade away, as if it hadn''t existed in the first place.

    Ciri''s brows furrow when she sees what Reima had done, know that she wasn''t able to use that spell yet... Instead she leans her staff at the statue and casts "Reducto" she says causing a blue bolt to shoot at the statue, that on impact causes it to explode into a fine dust, leaving only smoke in it''s wake.

    Meredith and Edmund look satisfied at the results, quietly commenting to each to other about the methods the duo had used. Most obviously praising Reima for his high level in Transfiguration.

    Meredith "Well, that''s everything... Unless you have anything else to show us? Any unique skills that were not included in the test?" she asks giving an appraising look to the duo.

    Reima nods, "Would casting the Patronus charm help my placing?" he asks.

    Meredith "Of course, such a charm is incredibly difficult to cast, even some Auror''s find it difficult to use. Being able to cast it at your age would be an impressive talent indeed."

    Reima nods, "Ok..." he says before closing his eyes and going through his own memories to find the happiest one of all. It''s actually pretty difficult even with his Occlumency to sort which of his memories are the most happy, this is due to other emotions like lust, greed, gluttony and even love not actually contributing to the spell at all. Taking this into account, most of his memories wouldn''t even power a incorporeal Patronus due to them being marred in greed, lust or love. Therefore he has to delve deeper into his memories to find a suitable one, his time in Harry Potter? Too much lust, Dark Souls? Not good enough, Absolver? Too many other emotions... Eventually he''s reached his time in the Witcher world, what he''d experienced while travelling, most of it isn''t happy... This continues until he reaches Kaer Morhen, receiving his silver sword from Geralt was a good memory, however he still didn''t think it was good enough. Eventually he finds himself sitting atop his favorite balcony overlooking the courtyard of Kaer Morhen, Geralt silently meditating next to him while they''re surrounded by candles.

    "Expecto Patronum!" he exclaims, causing a bright light to erupt from the top of his staff, blinding everyone in the room and sending out a pulse of sheer joy that quickly envelopes the castle.

    Elsewhere in the Headmasters office :

    Dumbledore had just finished completing the final preparations for Durmstrangs arrival, why they wished to sail here and not simply use the train escapes him as he makes an exception for them regarding the wards. Suddenly Fawkes chirps loudly as a walls of sheer joy explodes through his office, not physically doing anything but making him simply feel happy, he gets up and looks out the window towards where they could have come from but doesn''t see anyone from his vantage point. He can only assume it''s those transfer students as their placement exams should have started around now... Again, he isn''t surprised that they were able to cast such strong spells, simply by looking at the aura they had exuded in the great hall he could tell they were exceptionally powerful. Although it did make him at ease that they were capable of casting the Patronus charm as most Dark Wizards were incapable of such a feat.

    Around the school a similar phenomenon was seen, the walls of joy causing all of the students and teachers to perk up and become more determined, studious and all in all, happy. Only a few students actually knew what had happened and one Harry Potter could already guess who was responsible...

 325 Dont be a Patranus...

    Back with Reima :

    After the blinding light had faded everyone opens their eyes, only to be face to face with a huge corporeal Patronus in the shape of a wolf, a scar over it''s left eye giving Ciri an indication of who it actually represents.

    Meredith stands up and claps, "MARVELOUS, ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL!" She exclaims loudly, apparently overjoyed at the incredibly powerful feeling Patronus standing before them.

    The wolf turns it''s head and Ciri could swear it winks at her before leaping up and into Reima''s chest, disappearing and leaving the room and indeed, the rest of the castle feeling dull, as if it''d lost a spark of life.

    Trumpus himself was struck senseless by what''d just happened, did this young man really just cast that!?! How is such a thing even possible!

    Snuffles who''d also been basking in the happiness radiating from the wolf felt almost empty when it disappeared, she was determined to have Reima cast it again in private for her.

    After the commotion had died down Ciri steps up, "I would also like to cast the Patronus." she states, still feeling the lingering joy from Reima''s Patronus.

    Meredith nods and gestures for her to continue "Please go on, if it is only a fraction of Mr Ludvig''s then you''ll be receive a high commendation from myself."

    Ciri nods and begins looking for her own happy memory, as she''d improved with Occlumency and organising her memories she''d been able to unlock more of her earlier memories. The most notable being of her mother Pavetta, instead of going backwards like Reima had, she went forwards. Starting from when she was three years old and moving up. She though this was the correct choice as her life hadn''t been a happy one, lacking joyful moments and being dominating by the painful, sad and violent ones. Her time with Reima had been a welcomed break but she remembered Reima''s comments about the charm, "Any emotion that isn''t joy is useless for the spell." and so most of her interactions with Reima himself wouldn''t be good enough. Even the time she spent with Nerissa was more for the girls sake than her own, even if it was the happiest she''d been in the last couple years. Eventually, she''d found a memory, one that she''d forgotten until now as it wasn''t significant or memorable... Instead, it was simply happy. She was sitting on her mothers lap while she read Ciri a story, a story about Witchers.

    "Expecto Patronum!" she shouts with a smile on her face, causing a flash of light and a bird to shoot from her staff. It was small but had two long tail tip, it''s a Swallow! The spell itself isn''t nearly as powerful as Reima''s but the feeling of it was similar in that it also produced happiness in anyone nearby. The bird continued to fly around the room for a minute or so before flying into her chest and disappearing.

    Edmund "Ahh.. Both geniuses?" he says, mentally complaining to whatever gods exist that allow two students to both be better than him at magic...

    Meredith "Extraordinary." she mutters, still feeling high from the Patronus.

    Reima grins at Ciri while giving a thumbs up at a job well done.

    After all the excitement dies down Meredith stands along with the other examiners, "The tests are complete, unless you have anything else to show..." she asks expecting something else, Reima and Ciri shrug, not wishing to show anything else. "Very well then, both of you are free to do as you please. We will mark the tests and present our findings to the Albus and his staff to see where you''ll be placed. Please try not to disrupt school activities in your free time." she says and shakes each of hteir hands before leaving out the door on the far end of the room quickly followed by Edmund and Trumpus, the former giving them a wave before leaving.

    Reima breathes a sigh in relief at finally being done with the test, looking over to Ciri he asks "How''d you think you did?"

    She frowns, "I could barely answer most of the questions... So pretty shit."

    Reima "You cast a Patronus though, that''ll count for something."

    Ciri "I also cast a Reducto on my statue instead of vanishing it like you did."

    Reima "And? They''re similar level spells, the only difference is what school they belong to."

    Ciri sighs, "Whatever, let''s go get lunch or something..." she says as she picks up Snuffles and exits the room, followed by Reima.

    The duo walks through the halls for a while, only realising that they''d gotten lost after an hour of walking...

    Reima "Er, where are we?" he asks, more to himself then Ciri as she''d shown no directional awareness since they started walking.

    Ciri sheepishly shrugs, "I''m.. Not sure." She says, spotting a window and looking out of it... "Since when did we get to the third floor?" she asks not believing what she''s seeing.

    Reima looks outside and sees, they are indeed on the third floor.

    "Er, maybe we... Yeah, I have no idea." he says, incredibly confused how they''d ascended a couple floors without going up stairs or even an incline... Though, this does give him an idea of how to spend his time until the end of the day... The room of requirement!

 326 A wild snake has appeared!

    Reima "Ciri, I''ve just had an idea." he says with a wide smile.

    Ciri''s blank face says it all... "No?"

    Reima "Come on, it''ll be really cool." he almost pleads to her.

    ...

    She huffs, "Fine."

    With this devastating and difficult argument between them over, Reima takes the lead and starts walking in the vague direction of the revolving staircase.

    Ciri "So, where are you taking us?" she asks curious.

    Reima "This castle holds many secret rooms, items and artifacts... It''s the former which I''m hoping to discover."

    Ciri "What''s so special about a room?"

    Reima "Oh, you''ll see." he says excited at testing the limits of the room.

    As they continue to try find the staircase they pass by multiple students going to and fro, probably to get to their next class. This doesn''t initially cause the trio any problems, that is until a short fat figure attempts to block their way. He''s got short short brown hair that doesn''t seem to match his fat head along with the typical Slytherin green robes. He''s surrounded by a few other Slytherin''s, some just watching while others look more eager to get involved.

    "It''s the freak and his bitch, I reckon you two had something to do with whatever happened earlier, probably a botched spell."

    Reima glances at Ciri and shrugs, "Sorry Mr. background character but I''m kind of busy, I''m sure I''ll learn your name in our next meeting." he says while grasping Ciri''s hand and pulling her through the dumbfounded crowd, most stepping back when his axe-like staff clinks by.

    The fat boy who tried to block their passenger stiffly turns to face their quickly retreating back. "Background character!? You think I Cassius Warrington is a background character!?!" he shouts loud enough for the trio to hear.

    Reima "Huh, guess we learned his name sooner than I thought.." he says while Ciri chuckles.

    Eventually they find the staircase and slowly make their way up to the seventh floor, once at the right level Reima leads the trio through the many hallways looking at each painting as he goes. Eventually after twenty minutes of searching he seems to spot one of particular interest... Ciri walks up and examines it, she''s no expert in painting but from her limited exposure she had no idea why this one was created, are those trolls dancing?

    Reima "This is it."

    Ciri "I hope you''ve not come just for this painting."

    Reima "Oh but I have... Follow me and think about what you really want right now." he says and starts pacing, with Ciri following his movements.

    They continue this until a door that wasn''t there in the first place appears opposite the painting...

    Ciri looks at it and Reima suspiciously, "You first."

    He shrugs and opens the door, seeing a cosy looking room with a roaring fireplace and a huge sofa sitting a comfortable distance from it.

    Reima "Er, is this what you wanted?" he asks, confused at the lack of anything interesting, truth be told he was expecting to find some ammunition to use on the Tsundere...

    Ciri''s eyes widen as she steps inside, "I was thinking that "I was tired and I want to rest.", this is pretty amazing isn''t it?"

    Reima sighs "Yeah but it can do much, much more... Come." he says exiting the room with a reluctant Ciri. After leaving he paces back and forth thinking of the balcony overlooking Kaer Morhen''s courtyard. Once the door appears he open it and a breeze blows his hair and robes back.

    Ciri peeks her head over his shoulder and gapes at the landscape, tree''s covered by snow with a destroyed tower nearby. She can spot where it all ends but it''s at least a couple miles wide... "Woah...."

    Reima "Yeah, it''s like our very own holodeck!"

    Ciri "Is this all real?"

    Reima "Er, I''m not sure... I think it''s just using my memory as a baseline, I''d assume it would use a ridiculous amount of energy to create this amount of matter, so it''s probably self-contained in this room. This means we can''t just imagine gold and take it from the room to become rich."

    Snuffles jumps out of Ciri''s arms and turns into her human/vampire form, she lands on the floor and shivers slightly at the cool breeze blowing through the valley. She ignores this however and walks up to the balcony and leans over to look around.

    Ciri "This is our home Risa, Reima and I come this place." she says to the young girl wearing a sundress.

    Nerissa "Cold... Pretty." she states with more enthusiasm than she had anything else in the last few days.

    Reima "Deepen your voice and you''ll start sounding like Geralt" he says while chuckling.

    Nerissa continues to look at the sights, she''d never seen anything like this before and was enthralled. "Take?" she asks as she glances back at the duo.

    Reima doesn''t know what she means but Ciri''s apparently fluent in "One-work-speak"

    "I''m not sure, we have plenty of time to decide in the future."

    The young vampiress nods and turns back to continue looking around.

    An hour passes and Reima decides that it''s probably time to change the room and start doing something productive with their free time. They leave with Nerissa reluctantly turning back into a rabbit before returning again with the room this time resembling the Raslan Colosseum, the place Reima had first met Kuretz.

 327 Flaming and Bragging.

    The Colosseum looks exactly as Reima remembers it, probably because it''s based off of his memory... The temperature is much hotter than Kaer Morhen''s almost perpetual winter and he can feel the heat warming his clothing. The sun beats down on them as if it were the real thing, lucky Nerissa is immune to sunlight or Ciri''d be holding a pile of ash right about now...

    With Nerissa turning back into her vampire form Ciri walks over and asks, "What now?"

    Reima grins, "It''s time to train of course, I''ve been waiting to gain access to this room to train you without any interference."

    Ciri "Training?"

    Reima "Proper combat training, stuff I haven''t been able to teach as the Auror''s would be on our asses in minutes."

    Ciri "Ok... What do you have in mind?" she asks curious.

    Reima "Watch and learn." he says and imagines the room producing a couple stone training dummies, exact copies crawling out of the Colosseum floor and standing still opposite him.

    Deciding to try and impress the girl he opens his hand and compresses flames into it, fire seems to pour from his bare skin and grow into a large ball of dark red fire. He continues to push more and more power into it until it''s around the size of one of those Yoga Balls, after this he compresses the flame down again into the size of a tennis ball before starting the process over again. He does it slowly for the girls to see how each stage happens.

    After he compresses it enough that he''s almost worried about whether or not the room can survive the spell he glances back at the girls before throwing it at the stone dummies.

    *BAAAAAAAAAAAANG!*

    A huge explosion shakes the floor and fills the area with dust which envelopes everyone present. Reima casts an overpowered Aard to clear the air which reveals the damage his attack had caused.

    On the far side of the Colosseum, or what used to be the Colosseum is a huge crater which seems to have completely annihilated the nearby wall, the stone dummies that were previously standing there seem to have disintegrated with no indication of them ever having existed at all.

    The girl who were watching this almost had their eyes escapes their sockets at the devestation the attack had caused. Nerissa approaches the crater and sees lava pooling at the bottom of it, still giving off a dangerous red glow.

    Ciri "Incredible..." she mutters, wondering where Reima had obtained such power, considering he was technically still younger than her...

    Reima "So, whaddya think?" he asks with a grin.

    Ciri "Teach me."

    Reima "Now, now... There is one other kind of magic I want to show you, so before you set your heart on "Pyromancy", I wish to show you Sorcery. Nerissa, come here!" he shouts and the girl scrambles back to Ciri''s side.

    He gets the room to summon around fifty stone dummies who stands next to each other in formation with large shields being held in-front of them.

    Reima holds his staff up and a blue glow envelopes it, many blue orbs coalesce into existence above him, they each stretch themselves out into feet long shapes that resemble spears. After forming their shapes they seem to start growing scales, or crystals as becomes apparent the longer the diamond like materiel expands. Again, Reima had been slowing the process so the girls could observe but it still only took a couple seconds for his many Crystal Soul Spears to form and become ready to shoot.

    Eventually he brings his staff down and taps the ground with the bottom of it, causing the Spears above him to fire extremely quickly into the dummy formation. Like a knife through butter each isn''t even affected by the large stone spears or indeed the rubble behind them. Again Reima has to Aard away the dust but the results are obvious, the only thing remaining of the Soldiers are their feet and stone fragments that used to comprised their forms. Behind them are incredibly large bore holes into the ground that seem to not stop travelling underground, courtesy of his Crystal Soul Spears.

    He looks back at the girls and sees them agape yet again, "Pretty good, isn''t it?" he says cockily which seems to bring them out of their stunned silence.

    Nerissa "Strong." she says regretfully.

    Ciri "Were you always this strong?" she asks not believing what she had just seen, it must be a trick of the room or something.

    Reima "I''ve been holding myself back the entire time we''ve been here... Watch." he says before swing his staff''s axe head towards a nearby wall.

    *CRASH*

    It cuts into it and caused the entire wall to collapse under it''s own weight, Reima is hops backwards to avoid the rubble but his point has been well and truly made.

    Ciri "Geralt was never that strong, how is this possible?" she says, more to herself than Reima, he replies regardless.

    "I''ve been training in different worlds, learning their techniques and gaining their power. It''s not been easy but these are the results." he says gesturing towards the destroyed Colosseum.

    "Either way, I think we should discuss which school of magic you''d rather start learning, Pyromancy or Sorcery. Both have positives and negatives but with effort, both will be incredibly powerful when mastered, even more so than the Wild Hunt''s best spell casters." he says which catches Ciri''s attention.

 328 Make your choice!

    Reima "I won''t force you to learn one or the other, or indeed either should you not wish to learn them... Both are strong in different areas so I''ll explain the basics of each one before you make your choice." he says while Ciri and Nerissa are captivated by his words.

    "Pyromancy would be the easiest of the two to learn as it doesn''t require a lot of work to get started, indeed all it would take is me parting with some of my soul for you to use as what wizards would recognise as a Foci." he says but finding out she''d receive part of his soul seems to have put a damper on her enthusiasm...

    "You''d almost immediately be able to cast a few easy spells but that''s were the easy part ends and the struggle begins. With Pyromancy the most important thing is to control the flame, lest it control you. With the fire basically becoming connected with your own soul, any mishaps with it could be disastrous, losing control could end up with you burning to death by your own flame... But, with practise and dedication you''ll be able to summon fire storms on command, turn your skin to iron or cover your enemies in corrosive and acidic fogs that''ll melt them from the inside out." he says, describing some of the abilities she''d likely learn should she choose this path.

    Seeing the contemplative expression on her face he nods to himself and begins to explain Sorcery.

    "Now, Sorcery is a different beast when compared to Pyromancy... While it isn''t as deadly to the user it doesn''t allow you to instantly be able to cast spells the moment you start, instead it takes years or maybe even decades to master the Formulae essential in forming the spells. It''s different from this worlds magic as it doesn''t need "Imagination" or "Wand movements", instead you form Formulae out of mana itself, these function like runes except they don''t need to be powered as they are already of course, magic itself. Observe." he says and casts a regular soul arrow above his vacant hand.

    "The formulae to make this soul arrow includes compression of the surrounding magic which reduces the amount of magic you yourself have to use, a firing function which shoots it at a relatively quick speed and also a weak ability to target hostiles, though I wouldn''t aim blind and trust this particular formulae..." He says, noting that Nerissa''s eyes seem glazed over... Is that a snot bubble?

    "Ahem, anyway. As this soul arrow is comprised of only magic it will not strike people physically, instead dealing all of it''s damage to their souls. This means that enemies without souls will be considerably less effected by this particular spell, for some magical constructs it might disrupt their magic somewhat which might be useful, but I''d recommend higher tier spells in the school of Sorcery for this particular problem. As you saw earlier, if you compress magic enough it''ll eventually become Crystal, which is able to affect the soul and the body. Needless to say, giant shards of crystal tearing your body apart would probably be effective against most enemies... Other than that, the school includes other spells that might be useful in certain situations, one of which you''ve already seen." he says and turns his staff invisible before cancelling the spell.

    Ciri "Ah, when we were hunting vampires in Brimsby... You cast the same spell." she says, recognising it.

    Reima nods, "I''m not sure how far Sorcery''s use extends but there are spells that stifle sound, produce light and even make you able to fall great distances without harm... Though, it''ll likely take you an incredibly long amount of time to truly master this art, my master Big Hat Logan''s one of the biggest geniuses that''d existed and it''s still taken him hundreds of years to get to his current level.

    Ciri "So, it''s not useful right now? I need to fight the Wild Hunt eventually and I don''t have hundreds of years to train... Besides, how have you become so adept without training as long as him?" she asks confused.

    Reima shrugs, "I may have had a few... A lot of advantages over Big Hat Logan, in his world Sorcerers are not able to passively absorb mana from the air and instead have to eat magically rich foods to get their reserves back up. Compared to us this makes them take a lot more time training their spells as they can''t practise all day haphazardly like we may be able to.

    She nods at this, "Still, you''ve probably not even trained a fraction of the time he has, and you''ve still managed to get to this level."

    Reima tries to think of a reason without outright stating "A godly being give me a cheat for shits and giggles."... "I seem to have had an adpittude to this school of magic, Logan even said I was more talented than he was... That with my ability to constantly train allowed my quick growth."

    She still looks suspicious but sighs and drops it, "I guess I want to learn Pyromancy? It''ll help deal with the Wild Hunt''s frost based assaults and attacks, plus I doubt I''ll be able to learn Sorcery nearly as quickly as you... Other than that I think learning this worlds magic will help fill in for less powerful and more utility based skills." she says, thinking over the benefits of each school.

 329 Bunny can bite

    Reima "Are you sure you want to learn Pyromancy?" he asks again, knowing this is about to get really awkward.

    She nods with a determined look.

    Reima sighs, "Er, so I''ll just say it out now... I''m literally giving you part of my soul so, this will feel weird for both of us..."

    ...

    Ciri "What?"

    Reima shakes his head, "Just, try not to be surprised." he says and materialises a tiny portion of his soul, also making sure to separate out every other power that isn''t just "fire", he didn''t know if she''d be able to handle Chaos flames yet and didn''t wish to test it out, it does take some effort to remove all other traces from the flame but it''s an essential part of her training. Ciri watches as a small fire appears on her friend, now masters hand. It looks l self contained, let a seed waiting to sprout.

    Reima "Hold out your left hand." she does as he asks, "Now, just give in, do not resist this." he says as he grasps her hand with his, the seed-like flame embedding itself into her palm, it doesn''t burn but... Tickles? She shivers as the feeling moves up her arm and under her bosom, the warmth is gentle yet stimulating. She takes a glance at Reima and sees that his cheeks are bright red, she can even feel his palm become sweaty...

    Eventually Reima lets go and they both unconsciously sigh at the loss of the warm feeling, both blushing at hearing the other afterwards.

    Ciri "That, was interesting..." She says with burning cheeks.

    Reima "Yes... Wanna do it again?"

    Ciri "No." he''s immediately rejected.

    Once they had composed themselves Ciri opens her left hand and sees nothing, confused she tries to channel mana through it which also does nothing.

    Reima "You need to summon the Pyromancy flame, just will it into being."

    She looks at him confused but does so, eventually managing to summon the baseball sized fire on her palm. She grins at this and tries to throw a fireball but only manages to send a few embers out.

    Reima goes onto explain about how mana manipulation works with Pyromancy and why most spells are medium to short range. She looks slightly miffed that he didn''t explain this earlier but accepts it anyway, it''s already too late to turn back now.

    While Ciri''s practising mana manipulation Reima turns his attention onto Nerissa who''s patiently waiting at the side with a sword in hand, truth be told, she looks like the lonely kid at a playground...

    Reima "Wanna train?" he asks while stepping over.

    She nods and drops into a school of the wolf stance, it impresses him that she''s already quite proficient despite only training a month or two with them. He draws a steel sword from his Folded Space and waits for her strike.

    As she''s a vampire her speed is not negligible, despite her young age she must be four to five times faster than a regular human. Though, he could swear she wasn''t this fast before... She dashes forward and lunges at him, causing him to lift his blade up with a flick to deflect it, turning his wrist for a quick slash at her throat, she sees this common counter attack and leans back, allowing the blade to brush a few millimetres away from her neck. She turns and tries to donkey kick him which forces him backwards and allows her to stand back up.

    Reima "Very good, Ciri''s been training you well." he says and spots a small smile on her face.

    This time he goes on the offence, briskly stepping forwards before feinting at her legs and striking from above. Nerissa locks the downward slash in her guard and forms ruby-like claws to form over her nails while trying to slash past their blades and at his face. He has to back away to avoid losing an eye or gaining another scar, well, if he was still a regular human atleast.

    Reima "I thought we were training your swordsmanship?" he asks curious at what she''d say.

    Nerissa "Lose sword, die." she states blankly, allowing the claws to liquefy into blood and crawl back under her fingernails.

    Mentally Reima sighs, her sword had shattered while she was fighting against her attackers and he couldn''t help but think if he had given her a properly powerful sword or even a silver one, her mother would still be around today... He just hadn''t expected someone to attack them the moment he and Ciri were away, it''s as if they knew the attack on the World Cup was happening and it would force them to remain... No, he''ll become a conspiracy theorist if he continues with this line of thought. Instead he focuses on training Nerissa and Ciri to be the strongest they can be, the former to become an extremely powerful physically based fighter and the latter to become something that resembles his own style, with sword and magic both utilised in-tandem.

    Reima "Nerissa, once you''ve become strong enough I''ll be giving you another sword... It''s kind of tradition for Witchers, I myself received my first swords from Geralt, though they''re almost obsolete at this point. he says, materialising his first silver sword and looking over it in nostalgia, the red runes on it still glow strongly, as if it''s waiting for live combat.

 330 You like legs? How about eight of them?

    Ciri overhears him talking about swords and glances at his old silver one, "What about me? I never got a silver sword.. I even had to steal my current one." she says with a mix of irritation and mirth.

    Reima shrugs, "How about this? When you become an adequate level at Pyromancy I''ll give you a sword along with an upgrade to your flame." he says, hoping it''ll increase the rate in which she improves.

    She grins and nods, "Easy, you should keep the sword warm for me until then."

    The trio continue to train for a couple more hours until Ciri and Nerissa''s stomachs growl...

    Ciri "Lunch?"

    Reima nods "Lunch... Or is it dinner?" he isn''t too sure how long they''ve actually been in here. Maybe they should try and find the schools kitchens, it''s supposedly behind a painting of a peach but he isn''t too sure where it actually is... He gets an idea when they exit the room and attempts to call one of the house elves he had saved.

    Reima "House elf?" he asks, unsure if anyone had actually heard his call....

    Suddenly numerous pops are heard and the duo + Rabbit are surrounded by almost a hundred house elves, there''s probably more but they couldn''t fit in the crowded hallway with the rest...

    They all chirp "Greetings master!", each of them with a happy or worshipping look on their face.

    ...

    Reima "Er, nice to see you all alive and healthy... Er, could I speak with one of you? I''m sure you must be busy with helping manage the school. Some nod and salute him before popping away while others look rather reluctant to leave. They all seem to convene to elect a leader to represent them and the eldery looking house elf steps forwards.

    "Master, I am Hinky. What do you need?" they ask in a more grammatically correct way than the other house elves had.

    Reima nods, "I''d like to find the kitchen but am not aware of where they actually are..."

    "Hinky knows!" they say before pulling his hand in the direction of the stairs. Ciri follows with Snuffles literally in-hand and they''re led down many stairs, towards what seems like the basement. A couple times Hinky pops away to avoid being spotted by other students but other than that the journey is smooth sailing. They find themselves in-front of a painting depicted a fruit bowel, a peach being shown prominantly above the rest. Reima steps forward and rubs it with Ciri looking at him weirdly as he does so, that is, until it swings open, revealing many House Elves running to and fro preparing one meal or another.

    Hinky "Master, you know the secret to the painting! Master is great!" they chirp.

    Reima "Thank you Hinky, could I trouble you to prepare us some food, three plates... Also, would it be possible to acquire a goblet of blood? Human blood."

    The elf leans it''s head to the side, "Student blood? Can do." Hinky says while grabbing a knife from the table.

    Reima''s eyes bulge as he hurriedly tries to get her to stop. "No, forget that, don''t harm anyone!" this thankfully works to appease the Elf''s "blood lust" and they go off the prepare the trio a meal.

    The trio sit down at a nearby table and wait for their food to be delivered.

    Ciri "So, you told us who taught you Sorcery but never Pyromancy... Why''s that?" she asks curious.

    Reima shrugs, "I actually had multiple teachers, I ended up having to fight and torture my first one but he deserved it." he says thinking of Laurentius betrayal.

    Ciri "And your second?"

    Reima smiles to himself, "She was called the Chaos Witch due to her origins and the types of fire she used." he says forming small wisps of Dark Red fire on his fingertips. "Quelaag, daughter of the Witch of Izalith, the originator of Pyromancy and as it happens, Demon''s themselves.

    Ciri "Demons? Like through Goetia?" she asks confused.

    Reima shakes his head, "Goetia is the act of summoning demons from a different realm, the Witch of Izalith created demons. Some were titanic beings who''s only purpose was death and destruction while others seem to retain some sort of intelligence and try to rebuild their destroyed city."

    Ciri "So, this Quelaag is strong then?" she asks.

    He grins, "Way stronger than you currently are. It wouldn''t even be a fight if you two faced one another."

    She furrows her brows at this, "I believe I''d have a good shot... She can''t teleport can she?" she says semi-cockily.

    Reima "She doesn''t need to, you''re currently limited to whatever you can swing a sword at. She''s already perpetually on fire, combine that with a constant torrent of Chaos flames and you''d never get close."

    She huffs, not disagreeing with his observations. "So, were you intimate with her?" she asks out of the blue.

    Reima''s mouth becomes dry at this, "Wha, why would you as that?"

    Ciri grins, "It''s just the way your talking about her, reminds me of how Geralt talked about Yeneffer... And Triss as it happens, huh."

    Reima "Well, it isn''t like that. I see her as a sister, a gorgeous sister with a nice set of personalities..." he says, his expression slowly relaxing as he continues talking. "Er, what was I talking about?" he asks scratching his chin sheepishly.

    Ciri laughs and they continue to bicker until their food comes.

 331 Stargazing.

    After they finish their meals Reima suddenly perks up, Ciri and Snuffles look at him confused but understand when he explains. "Tonight should be a full moon, I can''t believe I almost forgot!"

    Ciri "That''s great but, what am I suppose to say to my room mates should they come questioning?"

    Reima shrugs, "Just say you were in a broom closet with me- Ouch!" he gets punched in the arm by Ciri.

    "Continue that thought and I''ll have Snuffles bite you." she says holding up the suddenly menacing looking bunny...

    Reima "Fine... Just tell them you were making preparations for tomorrow''s lessons, that''ll get them asking about the test and off of your back... Probably... Now, how do we get to the astronomy tower?"

    Hinky "I can show you master!"

    Reima looks at her apprehensively, the fact that he/she was ready to go butcher someone based on his words alone frightens him slightly... It does give him an idea though, what would happen if he made a unit of one hundred elves trained in assassination... He grins at this but is pulled from his thoughts when Ciri begins talking.

    "Shall we go then?" she asks, excited at the prospect of becoming an Animagus.

    They''re led by Hinky to the top of the highest tower, coming out and standing in the open air. The only thing stopping students of falling off is the battlements, he''d heard rumours that there are spells to prevent people jumping off and dying instantly but he doubted it, it''s just that no one''s tested the theory out before.

    The group look up and see the full moon looking down at them, shining brilliantly amongst the rest of the stars dotting the sky.

    Reima "Thank you Hinky, we''ll be ok from here."

    The elf nods and pops away, leaving the trio alone on the relatively silent roof, the only thing reminding them that they do in-fact have ears is the breeze and there own breathing.

    Reima retrieves Morgan le Fay''s Animagus book and skims through it to makesure he''s not missing anything. After a couple minutes of confirming what the have to do he pulls out a fine carpet, courtesy of Lord Gwyn''s domain and sits down on his knees in a meditative pose.

    Ciri mentally comments how similar he and Geralt actually look when meditating, it''s almost uncanny...

    Reima "Ok, take a seat next to me. To find our Animagus transformations we need to meditate under the full moon, for however long it takes until we find our animal. After that we can meditate and try to transform at a later time without the moon''s assistance, though it apparently helps if your form is a rather unnatural one.

    Ciri gets on her knees next to him and Snuffles finds a comfortable spot atop them, "So, just meditate until you find your animal?"

    Reima "Clear your mind and don''t think of anything, depending on what your animal is you might find it immediately or never at all."

    Ciri nods at him and closes her eyes to meditate, now meditating on a subject is quite easy... But trying to think of nothing is kind of impossible, if you think of nothing then you are thinking that you are thinking of nothing, so therefore, impossible... But, as with most things, the human mind isn''t as simple as that. With constant practise and special breathing techniques that Vesemir had taught her and Reima, making your mind blank is not so hard for the duo.

    Unfortunately for Ciri however, this appears to not be her night. She meditates for hours until sunrise and had only seen a glimpse of green feathers before it escaped from view... She opens her eyes and sees Reima grinning broadly to himself...

    Reima had just started meditating when he''d come face to face with a black skull-like face. It as covered in scales and had bright green slitted eyes that made him feel he was looking in a mirror. The beast reared back proudly allowing him to see it''s full form, and boy, what is a magnificent creature...

    It has four legs, the back look incredibly strong and muscled while the front ended with wicked claws that seem as if they could easily slice through steel, it''s completely covered in black scales and it''s about 8 meters tall and 30 meters long from head to tail. It''s head is adorned with large horns that protrude from the back of it''s head in a manner that mimics Kalameet''s. Long vicious looking fangs stick out from it''s lips as if they are too big for it''s own mouth, from it''s head following it''s spine and finally it''s tail it has sharp looking scaled ridges that''d prevent all but the most daring from attempting to sit atop it. Either side of the ridges sits two pairs of wings, a main set that that are huge but still don''t seem large enough to hold it''s incredible weight in the air, and a sub set that seem to function more like a rudder than something that''d help the creature fly. Last but not least, the beasts entire power seems to be heating up the surrounding air just by being present, embers occasionally drift from it''s form in a manner similar to Reima''s unleashed human form.

    "Woah, so, you''re my animal?" he says in amazement.

    It''s face twists into a horrific grin, "And, you are my human." it says in a rumbling voice that seems to reverberate the earth itself.

    He''s pretty shocked by the fact it can speak but he shouldn''t be surprised, if he''s not wrong this looks like a true dragon... They''re supposedly capable of not only speech, but high level magic as well.

    "Well, I hope we can get along." he says holding his hand out in a friendly gesture.

    A bout of dark red fire puffs out of it''s nose in amusement as it extends a huge front claw to meet his hand, as they touch Reima finds himself opening his eyes and looking around, realising he was still on the roof... And it seems the sun is just now coming up.

 332 Stop exorcists performing exorcism on exorcists to preserve more exorcists

    Ciri looks at the excited expression on Reima''s face and feels jealous that he''d found his animal with such ease. "So, what is it?"

    Reima grins, "A fucking huge black dragon!"

    ...

    Ciri "A dragon!?!"

    Reima nods, "yeah, pretty awesome huh."

    Ciri "I''ll say... I got a glimpse of mine but only saw green feathers... Any ideas?" she asks hopefully.

    He shrugs, "Peacock?"

    She frowns and shakes her head, "No, it seems much larger than a normal animal... Oh, well, I''ll hopefully find out next full moon." she says while picking up a sleeping Snuffles and hugging her closely.

    After the trio was done on the tower they both went into their respective rooms and cleaned themselves up in preparation for todays classes. As most of the night was spent in meditation neither felt all that fatigued, Ciri''s room mates were still asleep when she''d come back so instead of taking a couple more hours sleep she got some jogging bottoms on and went to see if Reima wanted to run around the lake with her. He agreed and got himself suitably dressed and made his way out of the school with Ciri, he''d also brought Snuffles for a reason unknown to Ciri.

    Once outside and near the lake Reima held up Snuffles and allowed a turqouise glow to surround her, he then pulls his hands away to reveal Snuffles floating alongside him.

    Ciri "Er, why are you doing this?" she asks confused.

    Reima "It helps with my telekinesis, plus I doubt Snuffles would want to seperate from us, ain''t that right?" he says poking the forehead of the rabbit who nods slowly.

    Ciri nods and begins to limber up for the run while Reima just stands there and waits.

    "Are you not going to stretch before running?"

    Reima shrugs, "I don''t really need to... My bodies not really human at this point to be honest, and I''m not talking about the mutations."

    Ciri opens her mouth to reply but words just don''t seem to form, instead she turns away and finishes her stretches before starting a slow job around the black lake, Reima following next to her with Snuffles floating in-between them.

    Reima didn''t actually need to exercise to keep his strength up anymore, he could of course still increase his strength through very, very intensive exercises but he didn''t see tons of boulders lying around, nor did he think he could do that covertly and not attract attention from the wrong sort of people. Anyway, he''s accompanying Ciri more to train his ability to focus on multiple things. He''s actually not just levitating Snuffles, but also summoning Sorcery formulae before quickly dissipating them, interrupting whatever effect they would have had. This is actually pretty good training now that he thinks about it, telekinesis had always been rather difficult without his complete and utter focus but with this he was sure he''d be able to start increasing how many objects he''s using it on.

    A couple hours later the duo + space bunny get back to their original position, Reima looks as if he was out on a morning walk while Ciri is entirely slick with sweat. They had gradually increased the pace as they got more into the groove and it showed on how exhausted Ciri actually was, good training.

    Ciri picks up her staff from the ground and casts scourgify on herself to clean the sweat.

    Reima "You know, we could take a dip in the lake if you wanna clean up..." he says while raising an eyebrow suggestively.

    Ciri "While that does sound fun I think we should get some breakfast before classes start.

    Hearing this Reima remembers that yes, they should have classes soon. They both quickly make their way to the Gryffindor dorms to get dressed into proper uniform before heading down to the Great Hall where the majority of students were now having their breakfast.

    They''d only sat down for a couple of seconds before Professor Mcgonagall approaches them and lays a parchment in-front of each of them. "Mr Ludvig, Miss Rivia, these are your class schedules for this year. Try to be on time and set a good example for those younger than you, this applies especially to you Miss Rivia as you''ve been placed with the forth years."

    Ciri mentally groans at this as she was hoping to be a little closer to the people her own age, even if she was probably much older than most of them.

    Mcgonagall "I''d also like to congratulate you Mr Ludvig as you''ve impressed the majority of the staff with your theoretical knowledge, do not let it get to your head however as your magical history resembled something an underdeveloped child would write." She says sternly.

    Reima would like to reply but can''t as he agrees with her analysis of his work, looking down he see''s that he''s with the seventh years and grins. Atleast they saw merit in his knowledge of other subjects, he probably only made it into 7th year due to his Patronus and expertise on alchemy.

    Reima "Thank you Miss Mcgonagall." she nods and walks away, not taking notice of the glare Ciri was giving to Reima.

    Ciri "Why are you in 7th year when I''m stuck with the horny kids who can''t keep their eyes off me."

    Reima shrugs, "To be fair to them, I have the same problem." he receives a smack on his hand by a furry paw courtesy of Snuffles.

 333 Moody the Unforgivable.

    And so classes officially started for the duo + rabbit. Reima left to attend his first class which just so happened to be advanced potions. Ciri on the other hand had to attend the first Defence of the dark arts lesson with Alastor Moody/David Tennant...

    Ciri had a hard time actually finding the classroom which resulted in her being the last one there, she opens the door and sees the entire class already sitting to attention and looking at her, along with Professor Moody.

    "Miss Rivia, I see you''re already making light of my classes, there is a spare seat in front so take it. And if that rabbit makes so much as a squeak we''ll be performing today''s spells onto it!" he says, gesturing to the chair besides guess who? Harry Potter. The dark circles around his eyes and down trodden look and occasional tremors are already making her feel bad for him, she''ll need to find some time to apologise to him... Beside him sits a red head with a dull look, atleast that was until she had come in... His face lit up but quickly stifled the emotion as he awkwardly crosses his legs, gross.

    Ciri props her staff against the table while sitting and placing Snuffles down gently. She sits upright in a manner that reminds her of her old etticate lessons that she''d been forced to sit in by her grandmother.

    Moody "Now that everyone is here, I''ll introduce myself for those of you who don''t already know me. I am Alastor Moody, or Professor Moody as you will all refer to me as. I am here on the request of Dumbledore, and that''s all I''ll be saying on that matter. Now, when it comes to the dark arts, I believe in a practical approach." his eye bulges in excitement as he says this, it''s rather unnerving truth be told.

    "I this is as good a place to start, who knows how many unforgivable curses there are?"

    ...

    No one answers, partly due to how intimidating Moody is and party because most knowledge on the Unforgivable''s is restricted information, for obvious reasons.

    Hermione uncomfortably begins speaking, "Three sir, the use of any one of them-"

    Moody "Will earn you a one, way ticket, to Azkaban!" he says as he quickly scratches the information onto the dirty chalk board. "The Ministry says you are too young to see what these curses can do- Well I say different! You need to know what you''re up against, you need to be prepared and you need to find another place to hide your gum Mr Finnigan!" he shouts, throwing the chalk in his hand at the boy which strikes him in the forehead, leaving a white mark that some snicker at.

    "So... Which curse will we see first?..." he asks and no one retorts... "Weasley!" he exclaims causing the redhead to flinch, "Y-yes sir!" he yelps.

    Professor Moody then procedes to make him stand and tell him an Unforgiveable curse, the boy stutters out information about the "Imperious curse" which Moody somehow seems bitter at...

    Moody "That curse gave the ministry quite a lot of grief, how about we see why?" his words trail off as he walks to the back of the class and retrieves a spider before casting the enlargement charm on it to make it visible for all the students.

    Moody "Are you sure you don''t wish to volunteer your rat Miss Rivia?"

    Ciri "She''s not a rat, and I don''t suppose I will." she almost growls out at me.

    The man grunts and places the spider on the table, "Observe, Imperio!" he then floats the large spider onto Ron Weasley''s desk, causing the boy to topple off of his chair backwards in fright.

    Moody "What''s wrong? It''s just a harmless bug." he then flicks it onto Harry but he doesn''t seem to have any big reaction to it aside from trying to brush it off like it''s bird shit. He then tosses it at Draco Malfoy who''s laughing like some sort of Hyena, the boy almost shits his pants when it starts scuttling around on his face.

    Moody seems to be enjoying torturing the students, "Aha! Who''s next?" he glances at Ciri and levitates it over before forcing it via Imperious curse to bite her or the rabbit. Seeing the huge spider try to rear back and bite Snuffles Ciri brings her fist down and splatters the spider across her desk and the nearby students. She frowns at the mess on her robes and Snuffles but turns her ire to Moody.

    Ciri shakes her gut covered hand and begins, "Perhaps you could actually teach something instead of playing around like a child, Professor?"

    Moody growls "Destruction of school property, 50 points from Gryffindor. Now I''ll have to find another volunteer, he glances once at the rabbit before turning to the other large containers of insects behind him. He then goes on to explain while using another insect why the Imperious curse is so deadly, he even has the poor creature drown itself in a glass of water, all while under the unnerved gazes of the teenage class.

    Moody smiles at them while retrieving yet another insect, "Now, what curse is next?" he says while looking around for any volunteers. He grins and approaches Neville Longbottom, "You must know, your a smart lad. What other curses are there?"

 334 Touching Hoochs wood..en brooms.

    Neville goes pale and clammy while stuttering out "T-the C-cruciatus curse sir."

    Moody''s lips upturn into a knowing grin, "Correct. Mr Longbottom would you come up to the front please."

    Neville does so and steps beside the table which has a fresh insect standing on it. Moody licks his lips and flicks his wand at the insect, "Crucio!" his expression turns vicious and cruel as the insect flails and squeals under immense pain and duress. Neville who''s closely watching this starts to shiver uncomfortably, his eyes moisten as he tries to remain composed. Clearly his unusual state is recognised by at least somebody as Hermione shouts for Moody to stop. The man seems to ignore the initial shout before gaining control over himself again, he classes over the class and sees various people looking terrified or uncomfortable. Even Draco Malfoy was pale and he''d probably heard stories from his father about various dark spells and artifacts.

    Ciri herself was curious of the spell and it''s uses, as someone who''s from a world where death, destruction, unconscionable violence and horrific deeds happen on the daily. Not to mention monsters literally wandering the wilderness snatching anyone that''s brave enough to approach. While yes, the spell did seem unnecessarily cruel it may have applications in distracting foes or even crippling them for an ally to finish them off. She mentally grins at the idea of using it on Eredin or indeed Avallac''h.

    Another person who was shaken by the curse was the Boy-Who-Lived-And-Also-Got-Tortured, his personal experience was not a good one, as clearly seen by the tremors as a result of it. As someone who''d be on the receiving end of it (And from the same person, though he''d never know that) he was very aware of what the insect was feeling... He''d not wish this on his greatest enemy, he thinks glancing at Ciri before turning back. Moody excuses Neville who slowly walks back to his seat.

    Harry "You ok Neville?" he asks, worried for his friend.

    Neville just smiles sadly and nods before sitting down at his desk.

    Moody walks over to Hermione, "Now, maybe you''d like to give us the last curse Miss Granger?" Hermione shakes her head with a tearful expression.

    Moody hums, "How about you Miss Rivia?" he says dropping the bug on the remains of the last insect that''d stepped onto her table.

    Ciri isn''t sure but remembers the most common curses shot at her and Reima during the world cup, Bombarda, Crucio, Reducto... But the most common was "Avada Kedavra." she states aloud.

    Moody grins, "Indeed, you''d know from your encounter with Death Eaters in the world cup wouldn''t you? Fortunate you weren''t hit by one ey?" he says slowly before exclaiming "Avada Kedavra!" a green bolt hits the Insect which causes it to flip on it''s back and perish without a sound.

    "The killing curse, favourite of You-Know-Who and the rest of his servants. Only one person is said to have survived it, and he''s sitting right here in this room." he says while focusing his gaze on Harry. He glares at him for what felt like minutes but backs off while taking a swig of his flask.

    Moody "I want two parchments on the history of the Unforgivable curses and instances where they were used in the last two decades by next week! Class dismissed!" he says which causes the students to quickly leave. Ciri cleans herself and Snuffles up with a few cleaning spells before making her way down to the Great Hall as she has an hour break before the next lesson starts... Looking closer at it, it seems as if she''s supposed to have two hours break but maybe they''ve added another class to help them catch up, she ponders to herself, "I mean, how boring could flying be?"

    An hour or so later Ciri finds herself walking beside Reima towards a woman with Eagle-like eyes that remind her of a Witchers. In-front of her lay many brooms that match the same number of kids around them, all of the children nearby seem to be first years...

    Reima "So, how''d your first lesson go?" he asks curiously.

    Ciri "It was interesting but I feel as though Professor Moody shouldn''t be teaching teenagers..."

    Reima nods knowingly to himself, he hadn''t told her he was an impostor yet as it''d be a disaster if she were to blow his cover.

    Ciri "And you?"

    Reima shrugs, "This worlds Potions resembles our worlds Alchemy with a few differences, the most glaring being the effectiveness of wizarding potions when compared to the Witcher versions. I mean, they can literally regrow bones here over night or create Truth serums, if we were to bring back methods in producing these we''ll have an incredibly advantage over the Wild Hunt, not to mention the rest of the world. Not only that but these people can literally brew liquid luck, LUCK! First of all, how is that possible, and second, the implications of luck being a measurable thing are staggering."

    Ciri smiles, half listening before replying. "So, all in all good?"

    Reima purses his lips at her inattentiveness at his enthusiasm but nods anyway, "Pretty good."

    Madam Hooch "Is everyone here? Good. Now I''d like all of you to stand with a broom on your left." she says before glancing at Reima and Ciri who''ve still got Snuffles with them.

    "Could you both put your pet down while we''re doing this? Flying can be quite dangerous even at the best of times." she says with more lenience than she''d give most other people, mostly because of Mr Ludvig''s affliction that mirrors her own.

 335 Fly me to the moon... On a broom!

    After a couple minutes of shuffling from the group of first years, Reima and Ciri find themselves standing next to a vacant broom which lays on the grass near their feet. Madam Hooch tells everyone to pick up their broom by commanding it into their hands by saying "Up"... Reima and Ciri do so and the broom''s snap into their hands with ease, unlike the majority of the surrounding students. She then goes on to explain how to hold a broom properly and how it functions. Reima can feel Ciri almost vibrating with excitement at the prospect of actually flying but doesn''t comment yet.

    After a couple more minutes of getting the first years situated, Madam Hooch gives the Ok for those who are confident to start hovering. The ashen haired duo do so, Ciri laughs nervously as her feet leave the ground, she hovers a couple meters off of the floor at a comfortable height while Reima hovers next to her.

    Reima "This is easier than I thought it''d be."

    Ciri nods, "We should buy a couple of these and give them to Kaer Morhen, I want to try facing Geralt and Yen at Quidditch!" She says while smiling at the thought. Reima also thought it was a funny idea and made a mental note to purchase a bunch of brooms, their production methods and materials alongside the potion books and materials he intends to bring back.

    Finally Madam Hooch gives everyone permission to free fly, but "Not too high". Reima didn''t really know why she''d add the last bit as most of these first years would instantly die should they fall from their brooms. No amount of potions could heal a splattered skull afterall. He and Ciri dart around the sky passing by each other while performing various tricks, Reima himself found it relatively easy to surf the broom as if it were a skateboard. While it was difficult to turn the thing with his feet, he found it doable with a touch of Telekinesis.

    Madam Hooch was on the ground keeping a close eye on the students to ensure their safety. As she had previously had an accident while trying to become an Animagus she''d acquired the eyes of an Eagle which pushed her Quidditch skills to the next level, allowing her to compete professionally and eventually find her current position at Hogwarts, teaching flying and judging Quidditch matches. She''d been keeping a close eye on a boy called Dennis Creevey who while having the confidence of a professional, looked incredibly unstable on his broom. That is, until her attention was drawn away towards the transfer students who she''d had the pleasure to teach...

    Hooch "Oh lord..." she mutters as she watches Mr Ludvig stand atop his broom and almost collide with Miss Rivia. She''s even more surprised when she sees the latter perform a handstand for a couple seconds...

    Reima "Hey Ciri, wanna try a stupid and dangerous stunt?"

    She grins "Obviously!"

    Reima "Alright, when we pass each other I want you to jump on my broom." she nods and they fly away from each other to gain speed. Madam Hooch who''s on the ground is biting her nails in confused and worried apprehension at what they''re going to do next. She isn''t disappointing as when the duo pass each other they jump to the others broom, successfully swapping them midair!

    Dennis Creevey who was also watching slowly topples off of his broom backwards in awe of them, he''s high enough to severely hurt himself, especially if he falls on his head or neck...

    Luckily for Madam Hooch''s career and the boys spine, Reima had noticed the brewing trouble and quickly swooped down to catch the boy under his armpit.

    Dennis "O.M.G! Thank you so much for saving me! You''re an amazing flyer! Could I get an autograph? Maybe my brother could get me a picture of you?" like a verbal machine gun he fires a barrage of questions at Reima who can only smile and nod at him, all the while thinking whether or not it''d be appropriate to drop him "Accidentally"...

    He delivers the young boy to a pale Madam Hooch who thanks him graciously before joining back with Ciri and continuing to mess around in the sky.

    Dennis "Do you think I could be as good at flying as them someday?" the young boy asks Madam Hooch. While she wishes to be truthful she can''t just destroy this boys dreams now can she?

    "Maybe? If you put the effort in? You would have to be extraordinarily talented to match those two who seem to both be geniuses at flying...

    He smiles and nods rapidly at her, grinning at the thought of becoming a famous Quidditch player.

    As the lesson is about to end Madam Hooch signals everyone to make their way back to her, she collects all the brooms and congratulates them all for learning to fly, she also mentions to Reima and Ciri that she''d support them in attempting to join a national Quidditch team should they wish to. Of course they both refuse as they know they won''t be in this world long enough to actually compete.

    Alas, both can''t rest as they have another set of lessons immediately after this one as it was tacked on to their already prepared schedule, not that they''re complaining, flying was incredibly fun after all.

 336 Moody getting into a Hairry situation...

    Today was a relatively normal day for Harry Potter, he was back in his home Hogwarts and was attending lessons. He was decided to try and increase his grades and hopefully learn to defend himself after the disaster that was the Quidditch World Cup, the ever present trembling providing an adequate motivator for the young boy to finally put some effort in, much to the chagrin of his friend Ron who tries to get him to skive off with himself to play chess or some other inane game. Hermione on the other hand was incredibly supportive in his efforts and even accompanied him whenever he was studying, he was grateful to have such a good friend beside him despite his own attempts to sabotage their long time friendship last year.

    However, there was something different about her this year, something... Attractive? He wasn''t sure but he found his gaze being drawn towards her unconsciously, personally he found it embarressing that he couldn''t keep his eyes from wandering over her but when questioned about it Hermione only blushed and didn''t complain... Now Harry definitely isn''t a psychologist and had even less experience with women than most children but he was starting to suspect something was off with Hermione, the way she occasionally brushed her hand against his or looked into his eyes too long. It was all a new experience for him, but he wasn''t sure whether he liked it or not. He was edging towards the former but his resistance against human contact always made it difficult to accept certain interactions...

    One thing he found incredibly difficult this year was his enemy, the one who killed Sirius actually attending Hogwarts. While she acted like a normal girl, beautiful, bashful and not afraid to offend those around her, he knew that something more sinister lay beneath the thin veneer act of a likeable and approachable girl. He had thought he had witnessed what lay underneath when she had brutally crushed a spider beneath her fist, though it was in defence of her familiar so it was still justified, at least in Harry''s own mind. Something else that confused him though was the powerful Patroni that were cast yesterday, from just listening to Lavender Brown he had found out that they were cast by Ciri Rivia and Reima Ludvig. This was incredibly hard to comprehend as he had already determined that they were both in some sort of plot to make his life hell and probably even deliver him to Voldemort, now hearing that they are able to cast such powerful and pure feeling Patroni made his previous thoughts about them crumble.

    While yes, she killed Sirius there was no doubt about that... But maybe there was more to this than just him being murdered by her, it wouldn''t be the first time the Ministry has lied now would it. He doesn''t make known these thoughts to Ron or Hermione as he wouldn''t wish to worry them and believed these were his own problems, problems he''d either solve himself or die trying.

    Harry lying in the courtyard enjoying the bright sun beaming down on him, around him there were various clicks, the popular done up girls belonging to various houses, studious nerds belonging almost entirely to Ravenclaw, Quidditch jocks spending their time each in their respective houses company. He''d almost confused this for a Muggle school were it not for magical pranks and games being played.

    Suddenly some shadows block the warmth of the sunlight above him, looking up he sees the smug grin of his self proclaimed rival, Draco Malfoy.

    "What''s wrong Potter? Your shaking... Scared?" he sneers.

    Harry just frowns at him, why couldn''t he piss off and bother someone else.

    "Of you? Never, your just a pathetic copy of your father without his cunning or intelligence. When the money finally drys up and your lackeys leave you for your business rivals what will you do? Can''t cry to father when he''s dead can you?" He says quickly and succinctly, not bothering to get up and confront the inbred imbecile.

    Draco frowns and glances at his amused goons, no, he can''t be seen as weak by those lesser than him. "Pathetic? I''ll show you Potter!" he says and draws his wand, only to be struck by another spell from elsewhere. "YOU BETTER NOT SONNY!" a hoarse voice sounds out as they walk over with a visible limp.

    Professor Moody levitates the now Ferret Malfoy and glares at his friends who back away in fear of retaliation. "Trying to cast on someone prone! I''d expect those tactics from your father but it seems you''re NO BETTER!" he says while waving the Ferret around in a dizzying array of directions.

    All the surrounding students gather to watch a Ferret be stuffed down Goyle''s pants, the animal seeming to bite the boy in all his sensitive areas. Harry who''s watching this smiles and takes grim pleasure in the pain of those who''ve tormented him for years on end, Moody seems to have the right idea apparently, finally a defence Professor he can respect.

    Of course, the fun doesn''t last long as Professor Mcgonagall soon arrives on the scene, turns Draco back into the greasy haired human he originally was and scolds Moody for using Transfiguration as a punishment on students. Draco slides away like his houses mascot and quickly starts plotting how to deal with Moody''s disrespect for someone of his station.

    After getting chewed out by Mcgonagall Moody looks at Harry and exclaims "CONSTANT VIGILANCE! Boy, don''t you forget it, or next time one of those idiots try to curse you I won''t be there to save your hide."

    Harry "Thanks, I''ll be sure to remember it." he says before noting that his class is going to start soon and he needs to make his way down there.

 337 Reima exploding his goo on everyone and everything...

    It''d been a couple days since the duo + rabbit had started Hogwarts, during their brief stay they''d already made a couple friends, especially so with their dorm mates. Though the knowledge that they''d eventually have to be left behind in this world always put a damper on any interaction they may have. Reima, Ciri and Snuffles made it a daily ritual to run around the black lake in the mornings, this was noticed by a few students and their dorm mates, some attempting to actually accompany them, after the first session anyone who wished to run with them quickly relinquished that idea as the two''s stamina was completely and utterly ridiculous, not to mention whatever charm they cast on that rabbit to make it float, they even thought it might''ve gloated at them as they struggled to keep up...

    Of course when hearing about their activities some were supportive while others thought it was a "Muggle trick that was attempting to fool pure-bloods into believing that Muggleborns are not inferior than their obvious betters."... Of course, those that thought this were mostly in Slytherin, Draco Malfoy who was still receiving the backlash of being transfigured and stuffed down his lackeys pants attempted to prove he was superior than Muggles in every way, he did this by participating in the daily run around the lake but only succeeded in embarrassing himself when he couldn''t even manage one lap. Of course, the fact that his father would hear about this was the cherry on top.

    The trio didn''t forget about training however and made it a point to spend a couple hours a day inside the room of requirements to train their various skills. One thing that Reima had found out was the rooms ability to produce skilful warrior golems, this allowed him to set a couple on Nerissa and focus on his own magic elsewhere. What magic did he focus on? Pyromnacy? Sorcery? The combination of both in Aderecery? Well, none of the above!

    Reima instead focused his efforts on learning the "evil" technique known as the Dark Hand... As his ability to absorb the souls of those defeated seems to have disappeared some how he needed another method to top up his soul count, regardless of it''s already astronomical number. As such he found that the Dark Hand would suit these purposes perfectly, not only allowing him to start absorbing souls again but also to remove some of Voldemorts souls shards from the Hogwarts Founders artifacts, if his theory was proven correct then he''d have the cleansed version of Rowena''s diadam, the item supposedly made you a genius just by wearing it... Well, he''d have to test it out after cleansing it.

    To start learning this dark technique he pulled out the large tome he''d acquired from DarkStalker Kaathe, as he was literally already the manifestation of Humanity he didn''t think there was any danger in learning this, he even thought it might improve his ability to utilise it. The ability itself was actually quite simple, it allowed it''s user to plunge their hand into a physical body and tear out it''s soul, the shock of having part or all of your soul taken would result in instant death for most, horrifyingly agonisingly slow death for those unfortunate to be lucky in this instance. Another thing to note was the fact it could block attacks by forming some sort of force-field in-front of it''s user, Reima wasn''t really sure how this functioned but wasn''t going to argue about it''s flexibility and potential adaptability into other techniques.

    After reading through the thick tome he''d gotten a basic idea of how to perform it, one thing that surprised him was the fact that you need to be human, or have humanity to actually use it. He had thought it would be similar to the way Miracles work, or maybe even Sorcery''s.. Apparently not. He started by prodding his humanity, the part of his soul locked off by the Elder Blood''s interference to release a minute amount of Humanity in order to channel it into his hand. Luckily for the well being of his friends they were not in his vicinity when he lost control over the turbulent cascade of energy that erupted from him. A scene that looked eerily similar to Artorias final fight appeared, Reima''s energy "exploded" releasing a dark gooey substance that resembles the stuff overtaking Oolacile all those years ago. The stone floor of the Colosseum instantly looked corroded as some Golems that were stood around him started to mutate into horrific creatures, they started to sprint at Ciri and Nerissa but when he shouted "Stop!" they seemingly followed his command...

    Ciri "Are you alright Reima?" she asks frantically as her friend had released some sort of vile looking goo from his body, even now he was drenched in the stuff.

    Reima "Er, yeah... Just don''t touch this shit or you might get infected or something... Ah, this is going to be a pain to clean up..."

    However, unknown to everyone present, Reima''s left eye flickers from his bright green to complete black, quickly enough that nobody noticed...

    Reima begins to try and clean up the goo but nothing he does is able to actually remove it, it''s like blood but a million times worse. After becoming irritated in his inability to clean this shit up for a hour or two he finally decides to "Fuck it" and slams his Staff of Manus onto it... Only for the staff to act like a hoover and start sucking up the Humanity, he can feel the staff directing all the humanity back into the reserves of his soul...

 338 Revelations

    After Reima''s disastrous first try at using the Dark Hand he decided that any time he utilised any of the separated energies inside his soul he''d need to do it away from everyone else. And as such he began to spend his night inside the room of requirement instead of sleeping, as he didn''t need as much sleep as everyone else it didn''t really effect him physically or mentally, though his dorm mate was worried about where he was going every night.

    A small Axii and plausible explanation had him stop asking questions however, which left Reima to try and train in peace. The majority of his free time was of course spent trying to control his output of humanity, to allow him to use relatively delicate techniques like the Dark Hand, one thing that kept worrying him was the small whispers he''d occasionally hear, not loud enough to tell what they were saying but almost always present when he was trying to use humanity. Thinking over what Humanity actually is gives him a couple suspicions, especially when remembering Ollivander also may have heard something when examining his Staff of Manus. He wills it to appear and it''s typical gooey black slime crawls out of his shadow and forms into the staff, looking at it carefully he mutters, "Just what are you hiding?"

    As he''s looking at it he''s interrupted by the alarm charm he''d put down earlie to alert him when it was time to go jogging with Ciri.

    A couple days later Reima found himself back in the room of requirement with Ciri and Nerissa, the latter was going to town on a group of relatively difficult armed golems.

    Reima was sat on a nearby rock watching her with Ciri next to him, taking a break from mentally exhausting herself to control her Pyromancy flame.

    Reima "So, what are you going to do after all of this?" he asks, still watching Nerissa.

    Ciri "Hm, huh?" she replies, apparently not hearing what he''d said.

    He repeats his questions and her expression hardens, "I''m not too sure, eliminating the Wild Hunt in only a secondary objective."

    He gives her a confused look.

    Ciri "Don''t get me wrong, I want them to stop chasing after me more than anyone else. But there are more dire problems that can only be dealt by me..."

    If shes talking about the White frost then she''s forgetting I also have the Elder Blood, Reima muses to himself.

    Reima "What do you propose we do about the leaders of the Wild Hunt?"

    Ciri''s expression darkens, "Eredin, Imrelith, Caranthir, Ge''el''s and Avallac''h will get what''s coming to them, eventually."

    Reima "Avallac''h? I thought he was assisting you?" he asks, confused as this wasn''t how the game went.

    Ciri laughs, "Maybe he was, but it''s all for his own agenda. All of them seek to control me, Avallac''h is just using a different approach, their end goal is saving their race and world. Eredin and his followers seek to use the Elder Blood to invade other worlds with their entire armies in an attempt to outrun the White Frost which is slowly destroying worlds and eventually find a way to stop it.... Avallac''h on the other hand wishes for me to sacrifice myself to stop it, though he never said that explicitly."

    Reima "Is that why you hate him? Because he wants you to sacrifice yourself?"

    Ciri shakes her head, "No, my problem with them goes farther back than that..."

    Reima presses on, "Really? What did they do to earn such ire?"

    Ciri growls to herself, apparently thinking about it, "They, tried to force me to sire their kings offspring... "To return the blood my family stole", were their words on the matter."

    Reima''s brows furrow, "And Avallac''h had a hand in this?"

    She nods, "He''s the one that suggested it, though he wanted to be the one to impregnate me, Eredin was the one that suggested it should be their king. I was fortunate in that king Auberon was addicted to fisstech and had no intentions to "lay with some human wench", the fact that I threatened to bite my tongue or cut my throat seemed to stop them forcing me into it. They valued my blood too much to risk losing it afterall."

    Reima who was trying to keep a neutral expression during this can barely hold the scowl from appearing on his face, sick bastards. From the games he had thought Avallac''h was rather commendable and morally superior than the rest of his race but it seems he was wrong. He''s as sick and sadistic as the rest of them and he''ll happily deal with him when he gets the chance.

    "Why, why are you accompanying him then?"

    Ciri shrugs, "He''s the only one who could possibly help me learn to control the Elder Blood, that and he might have some information on the White Frost that''d help me stop it... I''d gladly give my life for our world and my friends." she states with certainty.

    He nods, "Don''t forget that I''ll be coming with you, we share the same blood and I''ll not have you risking your life alone... Ok?"

    She smiles and pecks him on his cheek and says "Whatever you say Rei." before standing up and getting back to training her control over Pyromancy.

 339 Dont cast spells of mass destruction kids!

    Ciri had been trying to get into contact with Harry Potter for a while now, she''d thought it''d be rather easy to get the young teen alone to apologise and it seemed Harry was also trying to talk to her alone as well, the only problem was his ever present friends making things difficult, the Granger girl always interrogating her on what she wants from Harry and the Weasley trying to get in her pants, why he thought he was even remotely attractive to her would be a mystery she''d never solve but the problem still stands.

    Either way she''d get to apologise eventually but she still felt it''d be better sooner than later... Maybe she''d get an opportunity when the tournament finally started. As she was now training under Reima to learn Pyromancy her confidence was steadily rising, every successfully thrown firebolt and cast combustion had her anticipating the future where she''d be able to throw around tsunami''s of fire like Reima had been shown to be able to do. That wasn''t all she was learning however as her Hogwarts education progressed she continued to learn more spells that''d help her in various ways, even first year spells like the tripping hex or counter spell would be incredibly useful in her fight against the Wild Hunt, she grins as she imagines Yennefer and Triss''s faces when she performs unheard of magic for them.

    She hadn''t been slacking on her swordsmanship either however as that skill inparticular has proven to be incredibly valuable through all of her misadventures. Indeed her enthusiasm to get better only increased when she saw Reima wreath his sword in fire... Man that was cool, she hoped to be able to do that relatively soon, though for some reason he kept warning her to not channel her Elder Blood with Pyromancy or indeed any magic at all. He''d actually given her an example of why it was an incredibly stupid and reckless idea to actually do so.

    Flashback :

    Reima "Now, when you''re utilising your Pyromancy flame do NOT, channel your Elder Blood."

    Ciri "Er, why?"

    Reima "Because, you''ll either burn to death, combust, disintegrate, be turned inside out, teleport inside of yourself, teleport inside of someone else, teleport someone inside of yourself, cease existing entirely, be torn apart by spatial distortions, expl-"

    Ciri "Ok, ok... I get it, but, why would that happen if I channelled it?" she asks confused.

    Reima "Did Avallac''h not tell you anything?" he asks exacerbated at her lack of knowledge.

    Ciri get''s a sheepish expression, "He said it was something to do with the energy being attributed to space and time but... I wasn''t really paying attention..."

    Reima face palms, "Ok... Well, the basics of it are this, the Elder Blood is a type of magical energy that''s attributed to Space and probably Time... I''m not really sure on the latter as I have yet to actually control or even affect time, apart from maybe perception of time but that''s another matter entirely. The point is, the Elder Blood is incredibly powerful and if used in conjunction with something else, will give it the trait of time and space."

    Ciri nods, "But why not try and control it if it''s so powerful?" she asks confused.

    Reima sighs, "I''ve been trying to, it''s-it''s just incredibly difficult to actually direct it in the same way every time... Even mixing it with fire, one of the easiest thing to manage as fire just uses the magic as fuel, it''s still incredibly taxing mentally and magically... Look, I''ll just show you what happens to an ordinary wizarding spell should you channel the Elder Blood." he says to try and finalise his point.

    He points his hand at the Colosseum wall, "This''ll be the stinging hex." he says and a Turquoise bolt fires from his hand, sailing and hitting the wall with no discernible effect.

    Ciri "Nothing happ-" she''s cut off as a ripple appears mid air and starts emitting some sort of electricity before imploding on itself and disappearing.

    ...

    Reima glances back at Ciri, "A harmless stinging hex could probably kill someone if infused with the Elder Blood, but that''s not all. I''ll cast the same spell again." he says and shoots another Turquoise beam from his hand which impacts the same area, this time flashing into green light and vanishing, taking a layer off of the stone wall with it...

    Reima "Imagine that on a human, if it''s able to rip a layer of stone away from a wall, what would it do to someones skin?" he asks, but isn''t expecting an answer.

    Ciri "Fine, I won''t play around with the Elder Blood." she huffs, slightly disappointing in the lost opportunity.

    Reima "Other than having the possibility to kill yourself, you might also alert the Wild Hunt. So I''ll say again, don''t do it."

    Flashback End :

    After that lesson she realised the full power that she held at her fingertips, she was sure once everything was over and done with her and Reima would attempt to unravel the mystery of their powers. In all honesty she was looking forward to it, well, they''d do that after she''d fully become a Witcher... Hopefully after roping Geralt into completing her training.

 340 Were what?

    It was slowly reaching the end of the month, the trio had been constantly training and slowly achieving their desired results.

    Nerissa had been constantly training her muscles to exhastion, after which she''d turn into a rabbit and have Ciri carry her around everywhere. There wasn''t a moment in which she wasn''t either fighting, training or exhausted. This work ethic pushed her to new heights after every session, something Ciri, her master was proud to see. The girl had even started gaining control over the ability she''d inherited from her mother, something Reima had gleefully starting calling Blood Bending, much to the girls chagrin. He swordsmanship also improved leaps and bounds, she''d actually ended up swapping styles however. Instead of the school of the Wolf''s long sword style that''s more like the jack of all trades of monster hunting techniques, she''d started experimenting with various weapons including spears, short swords, daggers and even great swords. The one that''d proven the best suited for her however was the Katana, one specifically called the Iaito, a sword Reima had picked up in Blight Town. While not having incredible reach, amazing thrusts or devastating slash attacks, it had one ability that suited her perfectly. This ability it to draw blood from even the fainted touch, allowing her to control it and use it elsewhere. Reima had said something about "Loli Vampire Ninja" but dared not elaborate on it in front of Nerissa or Ciri... He''d ended up gifting the sword to Nerissa as a reward for how hard she had been working and how much she''d improved, he found that the smile he received in-turn was well worth it.

    Ciri on the other hand focused on improving in her Pyromancy, graduating from a simple firebolt to a relatively powerful fireball, something that would have taken the average practitioner in Dark Souls months or even years. She''d began to start on mana manipulation and "Leading" the flame as Reima had done before her years ago. While he didn''t need to do this anymore due to literally being able to control fire completely, it was still a good skill to have and would allow Ciri to perform more of the complex Pyromancies available to her. Her swordsmanship was still great, only lacking in strength, speed and endurance. She stuck with the tradition longsword for the school of the wolf style as she''d been using it for around 8 years now, the muscle memory was to ingrained to try and teach her much else without a great deal of effort.

    Reima had spent the majority of his team teaching Nerissa and Ciri but spent his nights trying to finally control his Humanity enough to be able to use the Dark Hand. The problem he was having was that he had too many conflicting energies in his body, if he wanted to utilise Humanity without it simply dissipating while travelling through his body he''d need to use more power than he''d usually need to. This always resulted in a "Gooey" explosion, as such he''d began to look for a different solution, if he couldn''t simply force it through to make it work, why not try and use the same energy that''s preventing his soul from simply exploding... The Elder Blood... He began to theorise if he created small channels of Elder Blood mana to pass through Humanity without interference from other energies it''d solve his problem completely, and may open up the possibility of combining them to create certain other techniques... It was all still a theory but he began to work on it and was slowly progressing.

    As September was almost over the school had been anticipating the arrival of the foreigners that''ll be competing in the Tri-Wizard Cup. Dumbledore even had small talks and classes held to try and improve the amount of civil interactions Hogwarts would have with the other schools, they taught about traditions and cultures that might conflict with their own and made sure the students knew what not to say and do. Of course many didn''t even bother attending these and simply skived off to play Quidditch or even study for other "More important" classes, the trio did this and spent these lessons in the room of requirements in preparation for the tournament and arrival of the other schools. Reima knew that he was definitely going to enter and found it incredibly unlikely that his name wouldn''t be chosen, unless some "fate" dogshit tried to interfere, in which case he''d do the same thing as Moody had done for Harry and confound the Goblet of fire, he was sure he had enough magical power to force the artifact to do as he wants.

    The trio were eating lunch in the great hall with their friends when an awkward atmosphere suddenly over took them.

    Angelina "So, Ciri, Reima... Is there something your not telling us?" she asks as Damien, Alicia and Olivia nods with her.

    Reima and Ciri sweat drops and the former slowly answers, "Er, what do you mean?"

    Alicia "Isn''t it obvious? You two are almost constantly together and are both always sneaking around god knows where... Surely you didn''t think we wouldn''t notice?" she says with a grin on her face.

    Ciri "I don''t know what you''re getting at..." she says.

    Damien "Are, are the two of you dating?" he finally says, deciding to get it over quickly and stop drawing it out.

    ...

    The duo look at each other, both not knowing what to say... "Ah," "Er" they both stumble over their words in an attempt to find a good explanation.

    Reima thinks to himself how he''d explain both of them spending all of their time together while also occasionally not coming back to their dorm rooms... He mentally goes through the avaliable choices, "I''m blackmailing her to service me", no that wouldn''t go down well... "I''m teaching her advanced magic", well that''s true but his friends would probably ask to join in, something that he wouldn''t allow.

    Ciri decides to just bite the bullet and answer, "Yes, we''re lovers. Anything else?"

    ...

 341 Two sides of the same coin

    Ciri "Yes, we''re lovers. Anything else?"

    ...

    Everyone goes silent and looks between Ciri and Reima, the latter is finding himself just as confused as them however. He blushes slightly, "Er, if you want, I guess?" he says quietly but receives a jab to the stomach by Ciri.

    Damien "So... When you''re out at night you''re..."

    Angela grins widely "Snogging?"

    Alicia "Touching?"

    Olivia squeaks out, "B-Bumming?"

    ...

    The others look at the quiet girl strangely, she after the attention is focused on her seems to shrink into herself and doesn''t speak anymore on the topic.

    Ciri "That''s all our own business, though I have no idea what Bumming is... We''d appreciate if you didn''t go spreading this around."

    Angelia "That''s fine, but you have to give us all the juicy details... If your fine with it of course.

    Ciri shrugs, "Depends on what you ask."

    Alicia "When did you two hook up?" she asks.

    Ciri goes silent, internally quickly trying to think up a satisfactory answer...

    "We went to a beach... I asked him there."

    Angela "You asked him?"

    Ciri nods, "He''s quite shy if you get to know him." she almost laughs at his expression when she says that.

    Angela "Who''d thought? With that scar and those eyes you look pretty fierce, who knew you were a teddy bear at heart." she says to him.

    Reima who has no other choice than to follow Ciri''s lead has to find an explination that''ll settle with his pride. "No, I just thought as Ciri is quite manly she''d want to be the one to ask first." he says with a neutral face.

    Damien roars with laughter at this along with Angela and Alicia, Ciri glances back at him with an angry look before turning back and smiling at their friends. "Yes, It''s laid the foundation of the rest of our relationship, as I''m the one who wears the trousers around here."

    The duo continue to bicker while their friends laugh, Snuffles who''s resting on the table and sipping the last rations of blood they have left looks back and forth to them, as if she''s watching a tennis match.

    Eventually lunch ends and everyone has to separate to attend their lessons, once done Ciri, Snuffles and Reima meet back up inside the room of requirements...

    Reima "You''re the one who wears the trousers in the relationship?" he opens up with a funny expression.

    Ciri "I had to ask because I''m manly?"

    Reima "Why''d you tell them we were in a relationship in the first place?"

    Ciri shrugs, "There wasn''t any other option that didn''t sound impossible or suspicious!"

    The tension rises as they both approach each other, their voices getting louder.

    Reima "Did you really have to say I''d wear your nickers for fun!?!"

    Ciri "Did YOU have to say I wear your shirts?!?"

    Reima "W-what! That''s something women usually do!"

    Ciri "Not this woman!"

    They eye each other, wondering what''ll be said next. A strange feeling overtaking them despite the tense atmosphere... Suddenly the tension breaks and the two wrap their arms around the other and start kissing madly, like two virgins starved for love.

    Nerissa who''d started training with her Iaito looks back with widen eyes as the duo continue their tongue swapping match on the floor, slowly increasing in intensity as they go. She allows them to continue for a minute but it becomes too distracting to train like this, and walks up and gives a gentle cough into her little hand. "*Cough*, Stop, can''t train."

    The two on the floor lost in passion suddenly halt as if time had stopped, they gingerly look up at Nerissa and the position their in and scramble backwards.

    Ciri who''s panting due to having more tongue then oxygen looks at him in surprise, "You.."

    Reima who doesn''t need to breath in the first place looks at her confused, "Me?"

    Nerissa "Both, stop." she mutters before walking back over to the training dummies and dismembering with more fervour than she had previously.

    The two who''re still sitting on the floor can barely look at each other without blushing fiercely.

    Reima "So..." he asks, not knowing what to say in this situation.

    Ciri herself has a conflicted expression, as if she doesn''t know what to do.

    Reima "Was it as good for you as it was for me?" he asks, causing her to frown and throw her boot at him.

    Ciri "What a way to ruin the moment." she says and stomps off to watch Nerissa''s training.

    Reima sighs, this is weird... Back in his past life in England he''d just need to have a snog, maybe more and that''d be it, he''d unknowingly slip into and out of relationships seemingly at the whim of the woman he as currently involved with. With Ciri it was different, he didn''t know what she wanted and he was sure she didn''t know herself. Yes, he''d like to be in a relationship with her but pushing the final mile towards someone who might not even want a relationship is nerve wracking to say the least. He hadn''t even intended to kiss her, it just happened... Naturally. He unconsciously licks his lips, "Sweet." he notes.

    Deciding to work out his nerves through training he sits down and starts creating Elder Blood channels yet again for him to eventually be able to utilise the Dark Hand.

 342 Keep your nose outta my mind

    The next few days were slightly awkward between the duo, their interactions were timid and deliberate. Most of the time they kept to themselves, making sure not to extend their discomfort to Nerissa. Reima had actually had to start taking blood from his room mate Damien, he had stock of blood-replenishing potions so he didn''t feel any effects of it but Reima was sure he couldn''t continue this forever...

    Classes continued as usual, except Moody''s... Ciri and Reima had both been taught how to "Resist" the imperious curse.

    Flashback :

    Ciri had just entered Moody''s classroom and was silently dreading what the man would come up with next. His attention seemed to be primarily on Harry which helped her avoid his attention, even if it was impossible to completely evade him.

    Moody "Today, we''ll be learning about the Imperius curse in a more... Practical manner. You will be subjected to the curse to see if you can resist it, positive reactions will improve your overall grades so you better try seriously." he growls.

    Hermione "But Professor, that''s illegal!"

    Moody "Hogwarts and the Ministry may have some similar rules but they are different entities, as Hogwarts has existed before the Ministry was even founded, it can skirt around some rules... This includes being taught to resist the unforgiveables." he grins in a way that causes the class to shiver.

    "Now, line up, everyone will get a chance so don''t rush hehehehe." he gives a low chuckles at his joke.

    Eventually a line if formed out of the students and one by one, they each fail to resist the curse. Draco Malfoy barks like a dog and pisses himself, Neville starts to think he''s a mole and headbutts the floor in an attempts to dig through it, Ron screams as he thinks he''s covered in spiders... Slowly all students except Harry and Ciri are tested.

    Ciri steps forwards, reinforcing her occlumency shields as she doesn''t wish to give up any sensitive information...

    Moody points his wand at her, "Imperio"

    She''s hit and feels a sense of ease overtake her, as if everything will be all right. A gentle voice tickles her ear, "Reveal your secrets". Immediately as she hears this she rejects it completely, she isn''t so disoriented that she''d put herself, Nerissa and Reima at risk. "No." she states, surprising the room and Moody himself. Growling to himself Moody tries again, "REVEAL. YOUR. SECRETS!" the voice shouts in her ear, her willpower being frayed by the deafening sound but she manages to resist still. "NO!"

    ...

    Moody releases the spell, "Very well-done... Miss Rivia, take a seat." he slowly says, the students not being able to tell his thoughts on what''d just happened.

    Harry then steps forward and gives a similar demonstration, except more violent than Ciri''s. He breaks out of the spell in a rage and punches Moody in his already scarred and crooked nose.

    Moody backs away while holding his sore nose but congratulates Harry regardless. "Good work Potter, sit, you deserve it."

    With Reima and the 7th years :

    Reima was sitting in the Defence of the dark arts class room when Moody stumbles in, his nose looks slightly red but maybe it''s just cold outside. He grins at everyone and begins to explain that he''ll be casting the Imperious on everyone to see how well they can resist it. Some of the class look to want to object but Moody''s reputation is well known to them and so they respect his judgement on the matter, after all this could prove useful in future.

    Again, the students line up. All failing with only Cedric Diggory coming close to actually resisting it, even Damien started mimicking some sort of bird when it was cast on him. Reima was last and steps forward but unconsciously guards himself when he sees a grim smile on Moody''s face.

    "Imperio"

    ...

    Reima "Er, Professor did you cast the spell?" he asks confused.

    ...

    Moody looks at him surprised but shakes his head, "Ah-Uh, I must''ve cast it wrong... Let me try again. He shouts "Imperio!"

    ...

    Again Reima feels nothing, he scratches his head, not sure if he''s just immune or Moody''s having a bad day.

    Moody "Aha! You scratched your head, you fail!" he shouts, more desperately than anything else.

    Reima "Er, this is just an old habit of mine.."

    Moody "Yes, but I caused it! Now sit down, I''ll have to mark your absolute failure." he says frantically.

    Reima shrugs, sits and listens to the rest of the lesson.

    Flashback End :

    Truly, now that he''s heard Ciri''s side of the story Reima thinks he just wanted to spite her by causing him trouble. Not that he really cares about his grades, it''s just annoying to think that a pest like Moody could actually bother Reima... He''ll just take solace in the fact that he cut his leg off.

    Either way, Reima was happy that he and Ciri could resist the Imperious curse. He wasn''t really sure how Ciri would do but apparently she has enough will power to resist it.

    Reima shakes away his thoughts and continues reading the book on lunar cycles, he''d found out that the next full moon would be after the champions were chosen. It didn''t effect the moon if he was in the tournament so he found it satisfactory for his purposes. It''s a shame they missed the upcoming cycle due to astronomy class being held on the day, even more so that even after it ended the clouds were overcast and blocking it''s light completely.

 343 The schools have arrived!

    It''s the 30th of October and the two foreign schools should be arriving today if the information plastered all throughout the Great Hall is correct. Everything in the castle had been completely and utterly cleaned, armours were gleaming and Peeve''s had been tied up and subdued by the rest of the ghosts at the behest of Dumbledore. It seemed as if the house elves were working overtime with increased overtime, Reima once tried to call on Hinky, the had appeared but in an incredibly dishevelled and exhausted manner. Despite them only wearing pillow cases he could see the wear and tear on it.

    Reima "You alright Hinky?"

    Hinky "Me is fine master! Just-Just many things to do..."

    He nods, "I''ll leave you to them then, please try not to overwork yourselves, while you are currently Hogwarts elves you should remember who you all serve."

    Hinky nods rapidly, "Hinks knows, we all know master!" then pops away.

    After lessons everyone entered the Great Hall which was decorated with many silk banners depicting the separate houses. Professor Mcgonagall was walking to each table telling students that their clothing wasn''t good good enough or that their manners could do with touching up, truth be told it was getting on everyone''s nerves. It wasn''t long after that she got the halls attention and directed them follow her outside. A brisk walk later and the whole school found itself waiting in the cool Scottish air looking around for something. Everyone knew that the schools would arrive near to this time somehow and a few were making guesses on how they''d do it. Reima could hear Harry, Ron and Hermione bickering over whether or not they''d be using broomsticks or something else.

    Ciri "How will they get here?" she asks, assuming he''d already know.

    Reima shrugs, "I''m receive visions but none so innocuous and bland that it''d show how a school would arrive..." she gives him a glare for a few seconds straight with quickly whittles down his defences.

    Reima sighs, "Fine, one will arrive by flying carriage and the other will be using some sort of underwater ship."

    Ciri "A submarine?"

    Reima "No, an underwater sail boat...."

    A couple minutes later a few students spot something in the sky, "It''s a bird!" "It''s a plane!" "No it''''s sup-" that last child was stopped by supernatural forces to prevent an awful crossover from ever happening. Of course what they saw was none of these things which readily became apparent as it got closer. In the sky was a large carriage being pulled by twelve large winged horses, Hagrid walks out with brightly coloured indicators in his hands to direct the carriage into an available landing spot. This results in the thing almost taking his head off as it passes by and touches down on the grounds of Hogwarts.

    The door to the carriage opens revealing a huge woman, Dumbledore walks over to greet her and Reima chuckles as she refers to him as "Dumblydore". She then directs her students to exit the carriage, first the many french boys hop out and politely help the women down. This is particularly true for one girl with platinum blonde hair, she seems to glow even though the weather is horrid. Reima notices Ron and a few other boys next to him going glassy eyed while staring at this girl. She steps forth with a snooty attitude and gracefully descends the stairs. She glances towards the gathered Hogwarts students as if they''re dirt on her boot but freezes mid step when she spots Reima. They hold each others gaze until someone behind her hurries her along so the rest of them can exit the carriage.

    With the group of students all wearing blue silk robes gathered Dumbledore asks whether they''d like to enter or wait for the Durmstrang''s arrival. The large women shakes her head "I zink we would like to warm up."

    Dumbledore nods and leads them towards the Hogwarts crowd that parts like the red sea, again the platinum haired girl making all those around her glassy eyed and drooling, only that her gaze was firmly on one person. Ciri notices this and elbows him, "What''s with you and that girl?" she accuses.

    Reima grins and shrugs, "What can I say? I''m an attractive guy."

    Ciri mumbles, "In your dreams maybe."

    It isn''t long after all this that the students start to notice something roiling in the lake. Suddenly a huge ship bursts from the surface, providing a magnificent sight to those who can appreciate it. If Reima didn''t know any better he''d suspect this is a ghost ship of some sort... Maybe he could "Acquire" it somehow...

    The ship approaches the shore and people start disembarking, a man covered in heavy white furs walk up and shout, "Dumbledore! How are you doing my old friend?" he says and shakes the headmasters hand firmly.

    Dumbledore "Very well Karkaroff, I hope the trip was pleasant?"

    Karkaroff "Always when we''re sailing in luxury. Come Victor! Lets get ourselves acquainted with the ancient castle." he says pulling along a broad teen-no man along with him. Reima and apparently the rest of Hogwarts already know of his identity, Victor Krum.

    Ron "Oh my god, it''s Krum!" he squeals like a fan girl, causing many of his house to back away in discomfort. Krum hears his name called and glances over only to see Ciri standing in the crowd, he grins and continues to walk with his headmaster towards the school.

    Ciri "Didn''t he play in the Quidditch match?" she comments, remembering his eyes travelling across her entire body during the match.

    Reima "Yeah, that''s him." he states, not sure how to feel at this.

 344 Be Veeling the love...

    After both schools had unceremoniously left the Hogwarts group standing in the cold Professor Mcgongagall directed everyone to follow her. A brisk walk and they were streaming back into the Great Hall where Durmstrang had taken residence up at the Slytherine table and Beauxbaton''s on Ravenclaw''s. Reima and Ciri quickly got to their seats next to their friends on the Gryffindor table, which had Krum and the Platinum blonde haired french girl look as if they wanted to change seats. Alas it was already too late as Dumbledore had sat between the two school leaders and stood to begin his speech.

    Dumbledore "Greetings! I welcome you all to our fine school and offer you all to partake in the various foods that''ll be brought out, as a show of mutual respect we''ve increased the variety of foods that should appeal to any palate. Once this feast is over the Tournament will have officially begun!" He says before sitting backdown and entering a conversation with Karkaroff.

    Suddenly many foods start appearing on the various tables, some look appetising while others do not. Reima himself stayed clear of the frogs legs as while he''s not unused to eating disgusting things he''d rather not subject himself to it, though his expression as Ciri was chewing on some was a strange one.

    The school seemed intent on talking to their new guessed and if that wasn''t possible, talking about them. Already quite a few boys had succumb to the aura the french girl was emitting, though she was looking in Reima''s direction the entire time. Krum on the other hand also had his focus on the Gryffindor table, much to the nearby Draco''s chagrin.

    Draco "What''re you looking over there for? It''s only Mudbloods and blood traitors." he scoff''s.

    Krum gives him the stink eye and replies, "Speak for yourself, I do not see a problem wit them."

    On the Ravenclaw table Fleurs friends, or friend as she had difficulty actually finding people who weren''t jealous of her nature, were asking about what''s been up her skirt since they got off the carriage. She didn''t, no, couldn''t answer that question as she herself didn''t know. She ha never felt anything like this before and if she had to describe it, it''d be like what she thought it would feel like should she ever meet a male Veela... Something that is so rare it''s almost impossible to ever happen, the few times it does results in extremely magically potent people, one who the Veela covens suspect to originate from this is Merlin himself, though Britain and the other countries in the ICW dispute it almost ravenously.

    Finally having enough just staring from afar she decides to take action and gracefully walks over to the Gryffindor table, on the way however she''s stopped by a red head who''s drool is reaching the floor, she scowls at how weak willed this man is and tries to go around him. Again he stumbles in-front of her and starts babbling out something nonsensical until a boy with green eyes, glasses and a scar on his forehead pulls him away. It seems that she was just saved by Harry Potter.

    Harry looks at her apologetically under the gazes of all his class mates, "I''m sorry for Ron, he''s not always in control of himself... Did you want some food or something? Maybe the Bouillabaisse?" he asks, Bouillabaisse being the only french food he now knows the name of."

    She shakes her head "Non, I wish to make someone''z acquaintanze"

    Harry "Ah... Ok, well please enjoy your stay in Hogwarts miss..?"

    "Fleur Delacour" she says and shakes his trembling outstretched hand before walking further down the table to reach her prey-Cough, target.

    "Ahem."

    Reima had just started on a chicken leg when a voice interrupts him, thinking they''re asking for someone else he continues and slathers it in gravy. While the table watching in shock as he completely ignores the bombshell behind him.

    Fleur "Ahem!"

    Reima''s brows furrow, "Look if your throat is sore can you cough somewhere...Else.." his words die off as he turns around and sees what should be the Beauxbaton''s Tri-Wizard champion.

    Fleur who felt her face going red in indignation at being ignored slowly managed to compose herself, this was only aided at the shock she saw in his face as he saw her. Probably the only time she wanted someone to be struck by her beauty. Ciri who was next to Reima gave her and odd look and licked her lips, while yes Ciri was female but that didn''t mean she couldn''t appreciate a beautiful woman... That and her being Bi-sexual might have had something to do with it.

    Fleur "Salut, er hello. I am Fleur Delacour, may I make your acquaintancze

    Monsieur?" She asks, her nerves causing her to begin in french but eventually correcting itself.

    Reima "Er, I''m Reima.... Nice to meet your Fleur."

    ...

    Angela who''s watching Ciri''s reaction at this can''t help but laugh at the awkwardness of the situation, it seems the french witch isn''t well versed in going on the attack.

    Reima ".... Er, did you need something?"

    Fleur blushes, "Non, I just wanted to ask your name... W-would you be able to give me a tour of ze castle?" she slowly asks.

    Reima shrugs, "Er, maybe?"

    She smiles and kisses him on both cheeks before thanking him and returning to her table.

 345 Doghouse rejected!

    Reima stares at Fleur''s back as she leaves.. "Er, what just happened?" he asks, the attention of the entire table already on him.

    Damien "Mate, that french bombshell want you!"

    Alicia "She''s hot, shame your dating Ciri... No offence..." she adds on.

    Reima is heckled by the men in Gryffindor for being such a stud while others glared at him with jealous eyes.

    Reima shrugs, "I don''t know about you guys but I find Ciri more attractive" he says placatingly with a grin on his face.

    Ciri''s cheek redden slightly at this as she turns her attention to Snuffle''s who''s got her head in a Goblet of Damien''s blood. She wasn''t sure how to feel about all this, maybe she should try and snag the french witch for herself? Maybe she should just stave off all relationships whatsoever... Atleast until the Wild Hunt is dealt with.

    It isn''t long after this that Ludo Bagman and Barty Crouch make they way to the chairs near Dumbledore. The headmaster stands up and smiles, "It''s time! The Tri-Wizard tournament is about to start, I''d like to clarify a few things before we bring in the casket... But first, let me introduce, for those of you who do not know them, Mr. Bartemius Crouch, Head of the Department of International

    Magical Cooperation and Mr. Ludo Bagman, Head of the Department of Magical Games and Sports."

    Reima and Ciri recognise both men from the World Cup, Ludo Bagman being the overweight commentator and Barty Crouch being the one who was waving his wand in their faces and demanding answers, neither had a good opinion of the two men.

    Dumbledore goes on to explain that he, the two foreign school leader and the previosuly mentioned Ministry officials will be judging the tasks during the event.

    The headmaster continues, "There will be three tasks, spaced throughout the school year, and they will test the champions in many different ways . . . their magical prowess, their daring, their powers of deduction, and, of course... Their ability to cope with danger!"

    He goes onto explain that each champion will be given points for how well they each do the task, and that the points will determine what kind of advantage they will have at the final task.

    The caretaker filch walks in pushing a large golden casket, once it''s directly in-front of the headmaster he taps it with his wand, causing it to seemingly melt away to reveal the contents inside... A goblet?

    The stone goblet is topped with blue flames that seemed to mesmerise the rest of the school.

    Dumbledore "For any of you that wish to become a champion, you will need to place your name in the Goblet of fire. It will be placed in the entrance hall and I will personally inscribe an age-line to prevent anyone under the required age from competing, know that I only do this for your own safety, as the tasks will be brutal, hardy and maybe even horrific!" his words echo, causing some who were considering having a go to relinquish those thoughts.

    Dumbledore continues on until he finally gives everyone a goodnight and has the school start preparing for tomorrow.

    The Gryffindor table, like all the others were rabidly talking to each other, some boasting that they''d put their names into the Goblet while others saying how they''d bed one of the Beauxbaton''s girls. All these boasts would go on deaf ears however as most already knew.

    Reima found himself in his dorm with Damien yet again, the boy seems intent on asking him all questions possible about Fleur, despite he himself only knowing her for around an hour now...

    Damien "So, are you going to go for it?"

    Reima "Go for what?" he asks, already knowing where this is heading.

    Damien leans closer and almost whispers, "Youknow, with Fleur?"

    Reima sigh''s, "Youknow I''m dating Ciri right?"

    Damien "Yeah, but... She doesn''t have to know..." he says, not really convinced of his own argument.

    Reima "You clearly haven''t seen an angry Ciri, I value my testicles as well as my life thanks, if you''re so interested maybe you should go for her yourself?" he questions.

    Damien "Ah, no... I couldn''t, she''s way outta my league" he says depressingly.

    Reima "Never know if you never try." he says simply before laying on his bed for the first time in a while and starting to meditate. He wanted to continue trying to form channels for his Humanity but with the school on high security and Filch almost sprinting from hall to hall, he didn''t think it was worth the hassle one night of training would provide.

    Once Damien was fully asleep Reima cast Axii on him to makesure he stayed that way before draining some of his blood for Nerissa. The boy randomly rolls over and causes a scuff on his arm from where he was draining the blood, Reima curses whatever gods of sleep caused this and rolls Damien back over to cast "Episkey", a spell he isn''t well versed in buy casts well enough. The scuff quickly closes up not leaving any visible injury, allowing Reima to sigh in relief. He then goes back to his bed, sits in it upright and begins to meditate, looking forward to the not too distant Full Moon to see if Ciri can finally find her form.

 346 Caught "RED" handed!

    In Ciri''s room she was being interrogated by her room mates about what she was going to do about the "Fleur Incident" as they came to coin it. As teenage girls often do, they bicker, make rumours and gossip for fun. This isn''t any different in Hogwarts which had most of the students already knowing about Reima and Ciri''s relationship in a matter of days due to how quickly the rumour mill works in the castle.

    It didn''t really matter in the end as it wasn''t anyone else''s business what they get up to in their free time, even if they had to be more careful about "Nightly excursions". Another thing she knew Reima was finding difficult was obtaining enough blood for Nerissa to subsist on, regular vampires could feed once a night and be satiated but Nerissa was still a growing girl which meant that she needed more than usual, this added with her unique bloodline that increased the amount she actually required had him scrambling to look for other students that wouldn''t notice feeling lethargic the next day.

    He had proposed he snuck into the Slytherin dorms, kidnap one of the racist students and kept them locked up as a blood supply in the room of requirement, however it was shot down by Ciri who didn''t believe they could get away with it for long. Either way she herself was looking into other methods but wasn''t finding anything other than... "That", but she''d continue to look before resorting to something potentially dangerous like "that".

    Angelia "So, what''re you going to do to Fleur?"

    Ciri was broken out of her thoughts and mumbles out "Hmm?"

    Angelia "Fleur, what''re you going to do to her." he repeat.

    Ciri "Nothing?"

    Alicia "You can''t do that! What if she makes moves on your man! You need to mark your territory!"

    Olivia nods at this, seemingly in agreement with Alicia.

    Ciri "Look, I''m not worried about Reima being seduced by her."

    Angela "But she''s a bombshell that has most of our house lusting after her, you really don''t think your B.F wouldn''t be the same?"

    Cikri shrugs, "He''s always been different so why bother worrying... Even if he does stray I have my ways to sort him out."

    Alicia grins, "Ways?"

    Angela "I think I know what you''re getting at, tug on the balls lightly and they''ll do anything."

    ...

    The others just look at her confused and slightly uncomfortable.

    Alicia "And how would you know about that?"

    Angela "I may have to pull a few guys to get myself onto the Quidditch team..." she admits.

    Alicia "Ewww! Wait, wasn''t the Quidditch captain Charlie Weasley?"

    Angela gives a smug grin to her.

    Alicia "You didn''t!"

    The next day after breakfast Reima, Ciri and of course Snuffles were walking towards the entrance hall to see about putting his name in the Goblet, he already had the parchment ready and just needed to put it inside and he was sure he''d be picked. That is, until Professor Mcgonagall walks up behind him. "Ahem! Mr Ludvig, please make your way to the headmasters office as he wishes to speak with you."

    Reima "Er, can it wait for a bit?"

    Her glare already answers his question but she rejects him anyway, "Quickly make your way there, or I''ll no longer be assisting you in your "Problem"." She says before turning around and quickly leaving.

    Reima "Man, why now? Ciri, can you put my name in the Goblet?" he asks.

    Ciri nods "Of course."

    He hands her the parchment before briskly walking towards the headmasters office. Leaving a thoughtful looking Ciri behind.

    The journey to the headmasters office isn''t all that long, but it still takes him a while to actually find the correct route to it as he feels like the castle is purposely making it difficult for him. He reaches the revolving stairs that lead to the office and stands before a large Gargoyle that guards a set of heavy wooden doors...

    Reima "Er, Crumpets? No, Juicy drop?" he continues to name sweet''s he vaguely remembers the name of before an amused voice echoes from behind the door.

    "The door is unlocked, no need to play word games with my statue."

    Reima scratches the back of his embarrassed and quickly goes through the doors which lead into Dumbledore''s office.

    Looking around he sees various gadgets and do-dads, each doing something weird or random for seemingly no reason. Reima suspects it''s just to add mystery and awe for those in the old man''s presence, though he''s still unconsciously drawn towards the large phoenix sat in the middle of the room on a perch.

    He walks towards it and tries to stroke it but it shrieks and flaps it''s wings at him, he sighs and turns towards Dumbledore who seemed to be watching this interaction intently.

    "Fawkes has always been a good judge of character, but perhaps even phoenixes can be wrong sometimes? I hope that''s the case in this instance." he says.

    Reima "Er, why did you call me up... Sir?"

    Dumbledore smiles at him, "Now, why would I ask you up here? What do you think Mr Ludvig?"

    Reima goes silent, quickly thinking of the many things the headmaster could be cautious or even fearful of... Did he figure out that he brainwashed the Minister into allowing them entry here?

    Dumbledore chuckles, "The correct answer would be no, Mr Ludvig, but I see you are not well versed in the subtle art of subterfuge... No, the reason I wished for your presence was due to various complains I have recieved from a certain Damien Parks..."

    Reima''s face becomes grim at this.

    Dumbledore continues "He complained about lethargy, difficulty falling to sleep, pins and needles constantly effecting him throughout the day, and a rather dramatic increase in hunger... You wouldn''t happen to know what this all means would you?"

 347 Vanilla flavoured Dumbles

    "He complained about lethargy, difficulty falling to sleep, pins and needles constantly effecting him throughout the day, and a rather dramatic increase in hunger... You wouldn''t happen to know what this all means would you?"

    Reima''s mouth becomes dry as he tries to think of a valid answer, though he suspects Dumbledore is already aware of his actions. "Er, no sir..."

    The old man chuckles, "Well, from my personal observations of the situation and the report from Madam Pomfrey I think Mr Damien is either abusing Blood-replenishment potions while preparing a large amount of blood for a ritual... Or, more likely, someone is taking blood from him and trying to cover the effects with daily doses of blood-replenishment potions... Earlier today Madam Pomfrey reported that someone had used a... Not so skillful Episky charm to heal a wound on his arm." He continues to smile at Reima as he lays out all the evidence before him

    Dumbledore "Now while we have many suspects, the personal it''s most likely to be is you... Mr Damien had no problems like this before you became his room mate and you would be the only one with easy access to him daily. Is there anything you''d like to say Mr Ludvig?"

    Reima sighs, "Not really... Can I ask what the potential punishment would be?"

    Dumbledore "For stealing blood? The old crime would be death but I believe we''ve progressed past such barbarity. As Hogwarts and the Ministry are two separate entities I have control over what happens to you Mr Ludvig, for that reason I''d like to know what purpose were you stealing Mr Damien''s blood?" he asks with no malice whatsoever.

    Reima goes over his options, he hasn''t admitted his guilt yet but it''s already as clear as day that he''s the one responsible, he can''t deny it when the headmasters conclusion has already been made, and quite rightly. Maybe he can use the man''s compassion and soft nature against him?

    "Professor, my reasons for doing this are purely altruistic, I don''t dare dabble in whatever rituals would require someones blood nor would I ever wish to."

    Dumbledore nods, "Whether your actions are justifiable are up to me Mr Ludvig, would you care to explain how you may perceive this as Altruistic in any way?"

    Reima clears his throat, inwardly thinking that if this goes wrong he''ll probably have to kill the old man. "Sir, are you aware of the state of vampires currently?"

    Dumbledore rubs his chin, "No, as much as I''ve tried to gain a correspondence with them they seem to despise myself for some reason."

    Reima "Well, most vampires belong to clans which organise themselves into massive groups that occasionally steal people from the streets. They are also brutal against each other, so much so that you''d think a war was being waged between them."

    Dumbledore nods, "I appreciate the information Mr Ludvig but I fail to see how this relates with your current situation."

    Reima "Yes, well.. I recently saved a young girl who was about to be murdered by another clan of vampires. She of course is also a vampire and requires a relatively large amount of blood everyday to stay healthy. I''m sure you can see where I''m going with this?"

    Dumbledore hums, "And, this person is on school grounds?"

    Reima "She is but I beg you to let her stay, for some reason she''s being hunted down by the majority of vampire clans. Without us she''ll be alone and without protections."

    Dumbledore ""Us" meaning you and Miss Rivia?"

    Reima nods "I recently ran out of the blood we''d accquired from the muggle blood banks which caused me to resort to taking it from Damien, I had no other choice."

    Dumbledore leans back in his chair and ponders over the information he''d just been provided, he had been trying to access the Vampire communities for decades as he feared they''d ally with Voldemort. Fortunately an opportunity seems to have dropped itself into his hands, with this leverage he might be able to actually enter talks with them... "And what is the name of your charge, Mr Ludvig?"

    Reima "Nerissa Dracula."

    ...

    Dumbledore is shocked at the name but manages to compose himself outwardly, he truly didn''t expect a descendant of that monster to be alive and kicking. He could see why the child would draw the vampires attention, especially if she had similar abilities to her ancestor. He''ll need to think over a few plans to see how he could integrate this into his plans. "Mr Ludvig, I can provide you with enough blood to keep the child healthy... But you''ll need to inform me of any updates to her situation, as you can see, I''m also responsible for the safety of the school."

    Reima sighs in relief at acquiring a method of securing blood for Nerissa without having to sneak around in the night like a... Well, a vampire. Other than that, providing Dumbledore with information relating to Nerissa is easy as he didn''t expect there to be any changes in the near future. "That''s acceptable Head Master, thank you for your kindness."

    Dumbldore nods, "Now, pop off and continue your day, take a lemon drop if you wish. Oh, and greet that young vampire for me." he says happily while waving him away.

    After Reima leaves Dumbledore looks at Fawkes and sighs, "What do you make of him old friend?" The bird hums a sad tone that echoes through the office.

 348 Goblet of Drama

    Ciri watches Reima leave for Dumbledore''s office and turns towards the entrance hall which contains the goblet of fire. Her staff taps against the floor while she holds Snuffles against her chest. She silently thinks to herself whether or not she''s progressing fast enough to be able to actually fight the Wild Hunt, yes her training with Reima is going well and she''s learning quite a lot. But she still feels like she''s lagging behind, after witnessing the extraordinary amount of power Reima possessed she couldn''t help but feel he was holding something back, something that he wasn''t willing to teach her.

    For instance why was he not teaching her how he got so strong? Sure Pyromancy is powerful but why doesn''t he teach her that specific skill? It''d help against supernaturally strong foes and increase the amount of damage her swordsmanship would deal, she didn''t think he was doing it on purpose but more like avoiding giving up his secrets... She had wished to find a way to persuade him into training her in the other skills he had shown and now, had apparently found one.

    She pulls out a quill and some parchment from the small bottomless box strapped to her waist and quickly pens her name on it. After doing this she briskly walks to the Goblet and tries to enter the age line, she''s stopped however as she feels like the ward is trying to thrown Snuffles from her grip. "Ah..." she mutters, realising that Snuffles isn''t actually old enough to pass the line, she looks around the room and sees the shaggy brown hair of Hermione Granger and walks over.

    Ciri "Excuse me? Could you hold onto Snuffles while I enter my name into the Goblet?" she asks with a neutral expression.

    Hermione "Why me? We don''t exactly have the best relationship..." she says unconvinced.

    Ciri "No matter what you think of me, I believe you to be trustworthy and wouldn''t stoop to harming a defenceless creature in spite of me."

    Hermione nods, silently taking in the praise. "Well, I suppose I can hold your rabbit for a few minutes." she says gently taking Snuffles into he arms and almost cooing at the softness of her fur.

    Ciri mutters a thanks and quickly approaches the goblet before placing her name inside, all the while tucking Reima''s parchment into her pocket. "This will definitely force him to show me his more secretive skills." she mutters as she goes back to collect Snuffles, something that is actually pretty hard to do.

    Ciri "Er, I think it''s time we go." she says to Hermione.

    Hermione "Ah? I think it would be better if you stayed and watched who else puts their names forwards..." she says while continuing to stroke Snuffles who looks as if their in paradise. Ciri glances at the rabbit feeling slightly betrayed at how quickly she jumps ship to anyone with good petting skills.

    Ciri takes a seat next to Hermione and mutters a "Fine"

    It isn''t too long before a crowd gathers, Harry Potter and Ron Weasley walk up and sit nearby to Hermione but apparently don''t wish to be near Ciri, for obvious reasons. Harry gives Ciri a look but it isn''t as malicious as the ones who gave on the train or the start of school which surprised Ciri and even Hermione. It isn''t long after this before Fred and George Weasley come running into the room, throwing their arms in the air and gaining the mock applause of everyone in the entrance hall.

    They run in shout and raving about how they''re going to be the champions, they halt in the middle of the room, link arms and drink a potion that doesn''t seem to have any effects at all...

    Fred/George "Shall we give it a go?""Of course, we wouldn''t be Hogwarts premier pranksters if we didn''t take this opportunity!" they say quickly before hopping over the ephemeral looking age line.

    When they discover that they hadn''t been ejected instantly they shout in glee and raise their arms up, all to the applause of the surrounding students.

    They duo walk forward and try to enter their names but find the goblet burning brighter before throwing them a few meters away, with the new addition of massive white beards and long hair.

    Fred/George "YOU""YOU" they shout as they start fighting each other. A crowd gather around them which allows a certain famous man to slip in and quickly drop his name in, Victor Krum briskly walks away from the goblet after inserting his name but spots Ciri sitting next to another beautiful girl that''s just his type.

    He walks over and grabs both Ciri''s and Hermione''s hands before kissing them gently.

    "As both you ladies probably know, I am Victor Krum. Vould you both do me the honour of giving me your names?" he asks with a small smile on his face.

    Ciri is trying with all her might to keep the scowl from her face, this man, his looks and interactions remind her way to much of those in her childhood who only wished to betroth her to gain control over Cintra. Hermione on the other hand blushes like a tomato and replies, "H-Hermione Granger."

    Krum looks expectantly at Ciri after giving a smile at Hermione, her brows furrow as she replies.

    Ciri "Ciri Rivia, I have a boyfriend so..." her words trail off and she takes pleasure in seeing his expression dim slightly.

    Victor "Ah, vell it does not surprise me that others can see your beauty. It''s a pleasure to meet you both but I must be on my way." he says before quickly leaving.

 349 Deadpool is that you?

    Reima had just finished his meeting with Dumbledore and enters the entrance hall for Victor Krum to try and push him aside with his shoulder, the Bulgarian Qudditch player feels like he''d tried to fight a brick wall with his shoulder as he falls to the floor in an attempt to alleviate the impact even slightly. Reima just stands there looking confusedly at the downed man who''s glaring back up at him.

    "Er, sorry? I must have mis-stepped..."

    Victor "We vill see." he says through gritted teeth before quickly retreating, probably back to their pirate ship or whatever.

    Reima simply shrugs and walks into the hall, he quickly notices Ciri sitting next to Hermione Granger which is an extremely weird occurrence. He notes Harry Potter and Ron Weasley sitting not too far away and extends his hearing to listen into their conversation.

    Ron "Come on Harry! Surely you must have a way to enter, you always cause something weird to happen every year... Why not just give me a chance to prove myself for once, just so people don''t just see me as your side-kick"

    Harry "For the last time Ron, I don''t have a way to enter the tournament. And I haven''t been making weird stuff happen in the past, weird stuff just happens to me!" he replies with a touch of anger in his voice. Reima notes that the boys trembling doesn''t seem to affect him when he''s angry, for some reason?

    He stops listening in on the duo and walks over to Ciri and Hermione.

    Hermione "So, what did you study in Greenland?"

    Ciri "Oh, youknow... This and that..." she says vaguely.

    Hermione "I don''t know, that''s why I''m asking."

    Reima plops himself down next to Ciri and looks over at Hermione. "Yo Ciri, who''s your new friend?"

    Ciri glances at him and gestures towards Hermione "This is Hermione Granger, she''s in my classes but we''ve never had a chance to actually talk."

    Hermione "I already know you Reima Ludvig, you were apparently with Ciri when she... Dealt with those terrorist at the World Cup."

    Reima nods, "Yeah well, youknow what they say about trash... You either dump it or burn it." he says with a grim smile.

    Hermione glowers at him, "Or repurpose it."

    Reima shrugs, "What use is rotten infected meat that causes suffering for everyone nearby?"

    Hermione "You can use it as fertiliser." she says matter-of-factly.

    Reima "That''s just dumping them with extra steps." he laughs, feeling as if they''re having two conversations at once.

    Ciri "I think you both''ll have to agree to disagree on this..."

    Hermione "And you Ciri? What''s your impression on this?"

    Ciri "It depends if your talking about fertiliser or murderous rapists." she replies succinctly.

    Hermione blanches at her but continue regardless, "The latter, should they be reintegrated into society after being cured of whatever ailment they may have or... Dumped as Reima had put it."

    Ciri thinks for a moment before replying, "I think it depends on the person. But I''ll say that most if not all murderers and rapists deserve death, you can''t rehabilitate someone who''s incapable of learning."

    Hermione has apparently had enough of hearing this and hands Snuffles over to Ciri before walking away, large stack of books in hand.

    Reima chuckles, "Guess she didn''t like what she was hearing.

    Ciri "She''s just never witnessed what people would do to each other if given the choice... I think she would quickly change her tune if she witnessed a father killing his wife and raping his daughters. Things like that will happen and to suggest that imprisoning him and try to reeducate him would be the solution is a fools errand." she says, looking into the invisible fourth wall.

    Reima nods, "I suppose it''s just up to the sensibilities of those in-charge, they don''t want blood on their hands and are willing to keep criminals alive on the off chance that they''ll become productive members of society, they don''t take into account the people that may be killed later on as a result." he says, thinking back to all the "compassionate" arguments against the death penalty he''d heard in his past life and even in debates with Geralt.

    Eventually the duo + rabbit make their way up to the room of requirement to continue to train, Reima notes that Ciri had increased the intensity of her training for some reason but doesn''t think anything of it while he himself prepares for the upcoming tournament that he''d no doubt be part of.

    Inside the room he also explains his talk with Dumbledore and the fact that the old man would be providing them with blood for Nerissa. Something Ciri and Reima were relieved by.

    Reima also lets Ciri know that tomorrow night will be a full moon and that she should prepare for it mentally. After a couple hours of training the group separates and joins their room mates in their dorms. Damien greet Reima as if nothing had happened between them, Reima suspects that Dumbledore hadn''t told Damien of the true reason he was having various health problems which suited him just fine.

 350 Champions!

    The next day everyone found themselves excitedly enjoying the Halloween feast, most looking forward to find out who''d be chosen as Tri-Wizard champions. Reima, Ciri, Snuffles and the rest of their friends were sitting together on the Gryffindor table idly making conversations, Angelia, Alicia and Damien all seem to have put their names forwards to get a chance to compete, though Reima didn''t think any of them were capable enough to survive even the first task.

    Angelina "So, who do you think will be picked as champions? I heard the twins were setting up bets and wanted to know your thoughts before I pu some Galleons forward."

    Damien shrugs, "Maybe Cedric? He''s always been ahead of his year and a model student at that."

    Alicia "That and he''s pretty cute... What?" she asks as they glance at her.

    Reima and Ciri don''t offer anyone as both are already sure who''ll be picked, apart from the fact that both are thinking of two different people.

    It isn''t long before the feast ends and Dumbledore stands up and walks over to the goblet, behind him waiting patiently are the Durmstrang and Beauxbaton headmasters along with Barty Crouch and Ludo Bagman.

    Dumbledore "Everyone! Please quiet down! It''s time to find out who''ll be representing each school in the Tri-Wizard tournament!" he says, causing everyone in the hall to quickly applause.

    "If your name comes out of the Goblet please make your way to the chamber behind me and wait for the other champions to arrive." the Goblet of fire flashes red causing some of the nearby students to flinch away. "I believe the Goblet has almost made it''s decision!" and just as he shouts this a piece of scorch parchment erupts from the fire, Dumbledore snatches it out of the air with agility that doesn''t seem to match his fragile frame.

    "Representing Durmstrang... VICTOR KRUM!" the hall erupts into shouts, whistling and applause for the famous Quidditch player, said person sends a smug smile at Reima''s direction, though Reima either doesn''t notice or doesn''t care.

    Victor makes his way to the chamber but is stopped by his headmaster as Karkaroff rapidly shakes his hand while whispering things to him, Krum''s face remains neutral as he''s eventually free''d.

    The Goblet flashes again, causing the hall to tremble in excitement, a flash of red and another scorch piece of paper explodes out of the goblet. again Dumbledore snatches it from the sky and announces the name "Fleur Delacour!"

    The platinum haired blonde slowly stands up, the rest of the school claps and cheers for her but are surprised to see her "friends" burst into tears, apparently wishing they were instead picked. Fleur ignores this, shakes Dumbledore''s hand and makes her way into the chamber.

    Dumbledore''s about to say a few more words but the Goblet explodes yet again, a scorched parchment lands in his outstretched hand. "Representing Hogwarts... Ciri... Fiona Elen Riannon, Rivia...." he says confusedly, he looks over to the ashen haired girl who''s full name had just come out of the goblet some how.

    Ciri herself was extremely surprised at this had she had only written "Ciri Rivia" on the parchment... Did the Goblet have some sort of divination enchantments or something? She''s brought from her stupor as a firm hand lands on her shoulder.

    Reima "Congratulations, Ciri..." he says slowly.

    Ciri sheepishly nods at him, "Er, thanks... I, better be off then." she says as she makes her way down to Dumbledore after handing off Snuffles to Reima. Her staff taps against the floor as she swaps it into her other hand in order to shake Dumbledore''s.

    Dumbledore "And I thought my name was long Miss Rivia." he chuckles.

    Ciri "My parents were eccentric sir." she says before heading to the chamber containing the other champions.

    Reima''s mind was in turmoil, multiple different options for why this had happened were running through his head. First among them being that Ciri had simply not put his name into the Goblet, he doubted it as he didn''t see any justifiable reason for this, maybe apart from her wishing to make up for killing Siruis by personally saving Harry? No, that doesn''t seem right. Perhaps the Goblet didn''t recognise him as a student or simply couldn''t bind him as he''s too powerful? Either way he''d need to question Ciri after this, they''d be meeting atop the astrology tower tonight so he''d question her there.

    Dumbledore "With that all the champions are picked, I''d appreciate if all of you gave them your full supp-" he''s interrupted as the Goblet flashes red yet again. A scorched parchment gently floats down towards Dumbledore almost imploringly. He grasps it and opens it up before freezing... "H-Harry Potter... Harry Potter!"

    ...

    The hall bursts into screams and shouts of indignation, Harry himself is stunned at what''d just transpired. His trembling grew more intense as the added fear and anxiousness made it worse, that is until his friend Ron made a comment that absolutely infuriated him.

    Ron "You bloody bastard! I can''t believe you would do this to me! After all I''ve done for you? And you try to take all the glory yet again!" he shouts, but the only person who could hear him was Harry due to the screaming of the other students.

    Harry felt something finally snap at hearing his friends words, and he didn''t feel the need to hold it back.

 351 Boy-Who-Broke

    Harry stands up which causes the surrounding students to quiet, he looks down at Ron who''s silently seething after shouting at Harry.

    Harry "I didn''t put my fucking name in the Goblet you bloody idiot!" His words echo throughout the hall causing some of the more sensitive ones to gasp at his language.

    Harry continues, "THIS HAPPENS EVERY BLOODY YEAR! Every year I''ve almost been killed, eaten alive, had my soul sucked out and now to top it all off, BE PLACED IN A DEADLY TOURNAMENT! And what have you done Ron? What did you do that you felt that you deserved glory? You dropped a club on a troll? You drove a car into a tree? YOUR BLOODY RAT KILLED MY PARENTS YOU C-"

    He''s interrupted when Dumbledore shouts, "Mister Potter! Please make your way to the chamber!"

    Harry wipes the moisture from his eyes and glares back at Dumbledore, "Didn''t you hear me? I didn''t put my name in the Goblet! Sir while I respect you and what you''ve done in the past, ever since I''ve known you, you have completely and utterly failed me, as a teacher and as my magical guardian!"

    Dumbledore''s brows furrow, he didn''t need his dirty laundry to be announced to the whole school, "Harry, make your way to the chamber. We will discuss your issues there." he states with an air of finality.

    Hearing the tone of Dumbledore Harry stops momentarily, he glances around all the gossiping students, waiting for the next bit of juicy information the Boy-Who-Lived was about to reveal. Anger, he felt angry at these people. They wouldn''t understand what he''d been through and why would they? Most were bigoted racists while the rest were untrustworthy rumour mongers. He sighs and his anger allows his trembling to cease momentarily as he starts walking towards the chamber.

    Dumbledore leans in as he walks past and comments. "I don''t know what''s brought this on my boy, but I assure you I will assist you in any way possible." he says, providing some much needed relief to Harry.

    Once Harry disappears into the chamber the gossiping starts at full force, most of it is directed at Ron Weasley who sits there looking absolutely furious. His best friend had just ranted and insulted him in front of the entire school he had always wanted to be the centre of attention but not like this! He shrinks into himself while not even considering what Harry had just said, instead thinking up ways to get his brothers to prank Harry until he publicly apologised.

    Hermione who had witnessed all of this was trying her best not to cry, Harry had just been entered into a deadly tournament, and not only that he''d thoroughly broken off his relationship with Ron. Something was seriously wrong with this and she knew it, Harry was never someone who''d do something that drastic as was usually content to sit in whatever horrible situation he''d landed in. She''d need to talk to him as soon as possible to prevent anything else from happening.

    Another person who was incredibly surprised by this was Reima, he hadn''t expected Harry to have changed so much from the loss of Sirius that he''d do something like that. While yes he found it amusing and internally praised the boy for finally standing up for himself, he also didn''t know how this would effect the future...

    Ciri had just entered the chamber and walks towards Fleur and Victor who were looking around the large dusty room in a bored manner. "Hello." she greets them.

    Fleur looks at her and recognises her as the woman who was hanging around her crush, she stifled whatever jealousy she was feeling and smiled at her. "He-llo What iz your name?" she asks, trying to mimic the English greeting.

    Krum ends up answering for her, "Ciri Rivia, It is my pleasure to see you." he tries to kiss her hand but she pulls away this time, trying to show her stance on him clearly.

    Ciri nods and begins to try and make small talk, "So, why did you both compete?" she asks.

    Victor "It is expected ov me." he says simply.

    Fleur "I wish to improve myzelf and show that I am not just a pretty face." she says with a smile that doesn''t reach her eyes.

    The trio don''t get to talk for long when the chamber doors open revealing a boy they all now know as Harry Potter. He walks in with a down trodden posture and expression. He glances up and doesn''t seem to even notice Ciri. Behind him Dumbledore, Karkaroff, Madam Maxine, Ludo Bagman, Barty Crouch and a few other Hogwarts staff erupt into the room. Dumbledore rapidly approaches Harry and leans down to look into his eye, "Harry, I need to know truthfully. Did you put your name into the Goblet?" he asks with a grandfatherly voice.

    Harry "I already told you, I did NOT put my name into the Goblet!"

    Karkaroff "Poppycock! Albus it''s obvious that he put his name in, that''s the only option aside from you conspiring to give your school an advantage in the competition!"

    Dumbledore "Why would I enter a fourteen yearold if I wished to achieve that?" he asks coldly.

    Karkaroff "He''s the boy who lived! He must have been training under you for years!" he shouts accusingly.

    Harry scoffs, "What? I''m average in my year! How could you come up with that!?"

 352 Friendship ended with Mudasir!

    Madam Maxine interrupts them, "Arguing iz all very well and good but are iz what you''re talking about providing any solutions?"

    Ludo Bagman happily hops forward, "I personally don''t see the problem! More publicity for the event! "Boy-Who-Lived competes!", my what a captivating title." he quickly says.

    Harry scowls at him "How about Boy-Who-Dies-At-Tornament? Because that''s what will happen if I''m competing!" he shouts at the fat blonde haired man.

    Ciri and the rest of the champions walk over, Victor looks Harry up and down and comments "Is he really going to compete? I vould not put him against one ov our dogs, let alone this tornament."

    Fleur "Zis little boy shouldn''t compete, it iz not fair for ''im or us!" he lets her objective known to the judges.

    Ciri "Harry clearly doesn''t want to compete, he shouldn''t be forced into something he''s obviously objecting to." she says, making a few people nod.

    Barty Crouch steps forwards, "As much as I''m inclined to agree with you Miss Rivia, that just isn''t possible as the entry into the Tournament counts as a binding magical contract."

    Ciri "Wait, so you had an artifact that can forcefully place people into magical contracts available to teenagers? With the only security being an age-line? What if someone placed someone else''s name in the Goblet?!" she shouts.

    Barty Crouch sweats slightly, "Er, well... Then they''d be entered into the Tournament..."

    ...

    Harry "Wait, if you had this why didn''t you use it against Voldemort in the last war?" he asks still confused and still angry.

    Barty "If only it were that easy! For an entry to be valid it need to be in your own hand writing and you also need to be present when the selections are made, not only that but you need two other entries to be ready to compete in tasks difficult enough to kill the Dark Lord, the Ministry refused to attempt such an ill fated suicide mission which would also most deffnitely sacrifice the two other participants."

    Harry relunctantly nods at his explanation and grumbles, "Wait, how was I entered if it need my own handwriting?"

    Karkaroff "Aha! Proof that you entered yourself!" he shouts with glee.

    Alastor Moody stumbles forward, pulling Karkaroff back forcefully while presenting what looks like torn up bits of parchment. Looking closer at it reveals that it''s an assignment that Harry had written in the past, with the name clearly missing.

    Moody "It seems that someone is out for Potter''s life." he says grimly.

    Everyone continues to talk, make accusations and try to find undeniable proof that Harry put his name in the Goblet, the arguing continues for an hour or so until they finally give up and it''s determined that Harry must compete or he''ll lose his magic. Harry tries to speak with Dumbledore but the Headmaster shakes his head and says "In light of new information I need to figure out the next best actions moving forwards, I''m sorry Harry but I''ll speak with you tomorrow or the day after that." he says before leaving the boy alone.

    After leaving the chamber Harry see''s that the feast is over and almost everyone is already gone, the only people still present are the school staff who are heatedly debating over something. He ignores them and moves past and starts wandering throughout the school, occasionally getting jeered at by some students for being a liar and cheat. He wanted to speak with someone who didn''t currently hate him but apparently that was too much to ask for, he glares at the red head who''d blocked his path.

    Ron "You really meant all those things you said?" he says angrily.

    Harry "I did, you''re a jealous idiot who''d sell me out for a handful of Galleons!" he shouts, inadvertently hitting a sore spot for Ron who quickly walks over and punches Harry in the face. Shattering his glasses and knocking him to the floor.

    Ron "Some friend you are! Insulting me in-front of the entire school, saying that I''ve never helped you before! I''ve saved you plenty times and this is how you repay me!?!" he shouts indignantly at Harry who takes his broken glasses off, wincing at the small shards that''d pierced the bridge of his nose. "We''re done Ron! Don''t speak to me again you stupid git!"

    Ron steps back angry and slightly surprised at this, not expecting their friendship to abruptly end just like that, he was expecting Harry to apologise and try an make it up to him like he always does but he''s acting differently for some reason. "So that''s it? After we let you into our home you''ll just forget everything we''ve done together?" he says in a hurt voice.

    Harry "You just punched me in the face you arsehole! Are you so dimwitted to see that''s not how friends act?" he shouts while slowly getting off the floor.

    Ron "Yeah? Well, I''ll make sure everyone knows how you really are!" he says as he briskly walks away.

    Harry stuffs the remnants of his glasses into his pocket and starts making his way up, as far up as he can go. He continues to climb stairs until he reaches the top of the astronomy tower, all the while seething in sadness and rage, he thinks over his life, his home at Privet drive, the abuse his suffers, Hogwarts the place he felt he''d finally be free of pain, only to find it worse than his home life! The only thing in this world that makes it all worth it is his friends. But now? After the loss of Sirius, not hearing from Remus since he left school? The betrayal of Dumbledore and now Ron? What exactly was he living for?

 353 My legs are dangling off the edge

    Harry slowly and cautiously enters the astronomy tower, the breeze immediately giving him a sense of relief. His emotions are roiling as he rubs his eyes and tries to look around but barely see''s anything at all. The only thing he can make out is the parapet of the tower, he begins to slowly step towards it an expression of fury and sadness marring his face. He doesn''t think about what he has, instead continues wallowing in self-pity at what he has lost.

    He remembers Sirius, his parents in the mirror, Peter Pettigrew who betrayed them, the ministry that seeks to control him and Dumbledore with unclear intentions. "Enough." he mutters to himself as a single tear slides down his face, "I''ve had enough, I need this to end." he says stepping up on the ledge overlooking the huge drop below.

    He closes his eyes and imagines how quickly it''d all be over, he starts to lean forwards slightly having to push against the howling wind, suddenly a voice shouts from behind him. "What are you doing!"

    Ciri has just arrived at the roof of the tower and saw an angry looking Reima standing not too far away. She sighs and walked over to him.

    Reima "Ciri, did you put my name in the Goblet?" he asks.

    Ciri looks at the ground before glancing back up at him, "No..."

    Reima "Why? You do understand why I''m doing all this right? To fix the mess your created!"

    Ciri "I didn''t want to stay in the first place! It''s not my fault the man jumped onto my blade, nor would it be my fault that the world would be destroyed by this "Dark Lord", I''ve got my own problems and I can''t just keep waiting around until something happens!"

    Reima "You know that we''re not just waiting around, that''s an excuse! What''s the real reason you didn''t put my name in?" he presses.

    Ciri grumbles, "You were holding back, and I wanted to learn faster." he states with her arms crossed.

    Reima "You think I''m holding back? Why?"

    Ciri "All you''re teaching me is Pyromancy, what about your physical abilities? How did you obtain those?"

    Reima is about to reply to her when they hear steps coming from the staircase of the tower, he quickly pulls her against a pillar to hide them against whoever is coming up here, last thing he needs is for a teacher to find them "doing something" in the astronomy tower. Their fears appear unfounded however as a small figure stumbles in, arms stretched out in-front of them as if they''re blind.

    Reima recognises them as Harry Potter but feels something is seriously wrong, the boy looks sad but furious at the same time and is muttering things about it being "Enough", he looks down at Ciri who he holding against him and lets her go. "Say something before this kid jumps off!" he frantically whispers as Harry steps onto a ledge and starts peering over it. She nods at him and runs forward, "What are you doing!" she shouts, not knowing what else to say.

    Harry turns and can vaguely make out her ashen white hair, "Oh, Ciri... Why are you here?" he says dully.

    Ciri "That doesn''t matter, all that matters is what YOU''RE doing here!"

    Harry "I.. I''m going to end it." he states simply.

    Reima hears this and feels pity for the boy, how had he been pushed so far? He looks over a nearby ledge and casts the Patronus charm before giving it a message and telling it to find Hermione Granger, one person Reima could count on putting Harry in his place.

    Ciri continues to try and talk the boy down, "Why? What about your friends?" he says, knowing full well the boy doesn''t have any family left.

    Harry "What friends!?!" he shouts, "Ron''s a jealous bastard who only looks out for himself and the rest of the school hates me!"

    Ciri "What about Hermione!"

    ...

    Harry trembles when he hears the name, "Hermione?"

    Ciri "What would she be thinking if you continue? That it''s her fault? That she could have done something? Why put her through that!" she shouts, latching onto something he seemed to still care about.

    Harry "It''s my life, why should she affect my actions?"

    Ciri "Because she''s your friend? Who would she have left if you jumped?" she asks.

    Harry thinks this over and comes to a sad conclusion, "No one..." he says, the only people that actually hang out with Hermione were Ron and Harry. The former only because of Harry''s own presence. A sad smile overtakes his face when he thinks about the girl he''d saved from a troll in his first year, how would it effect her if he left? Come to think of it, why was he listening to Sirius murderer? Like she would know what he''s been through, how he''s suffered. These conflicting thoughts continue to run through his mind as he stands there on the ledge, silent, contemplative. That is, until a familiar voice calls out to him in shock.

    Hermione "Harry!?!"

 354 Scolded to tears

    Hermione "Harry!?!" she almost shrieks when she sees her best friend looking as if he''s about to leap off of the Astronomy tower.

    Harry shudders when he hears her and turns his head to look at her, "Hermione?"

    She sprints at him and pull him off of the ledge and into herself, Harry loses his footing and falls onto of her and immediately starts apologising, thinking that he''d hurt her. "Did I land on you? Are you hurt? I''m sorry!" he says, barely being able to make out her tearful face.

    Hermione "WHAT ARE YOU THINKING!" She shouts as she hugs him closely while on her back.

    The Boy-who-lived stutters and begins to try and explain but is interrupted by the furious girl.

    Hermione "Why would you ever feel the need to do something like that! Is it because of Sirius? The tournament? Ron? Or am I just not good enough!" she shouts, tears streaming down her face.

    Harry "Hermione I-" she interupts him again, "NO! Just... Don''t say anything" she says, holding him tightly in an embrace"

    Harry hugs her back and starts to tear up, "I-I''m sorry." he says before breaking down and sobbing into her shoulder.

    Reima steps beside Ciri as the both watch everything that''d happened. He was still angry with her lying to him and only placing her name into the Goblet but this isn''t the time nor place to talk about it, that and it''s currently a full moon and he was hoping he could start training her animagus transformation after tonight. He decides to try and accomplish what he can tonight and deal with her tomorrow, as well as Hermione and Harry.

    Reima "It''s still a full moon, think you can meditate without thinking about... All this?" he gestures to the downed duo.

    Ciri nods, "I want to speak with them though, to finally apologise as I''m partly responsible for this."

    Reima "I''ll leave a note with them for them to meet up with us tomorrow in the kitchens, for now lets just leave them on their own." he says and spies another tower that doesn''t look accessible from anywhere else and teleporting him and his companion to it, Snuffles gives a squeak and they disappear.

    Hermione feels something ruffle in her pocket but doesn''t take notice as she was fully focused on her best friend, she hadn''t thought that he would be someone who would try to do something like this but apparently she was wrong. She was about to go to sleep when a white wolf patronus came and whispered to her that Harry was about to jump off the Astronomy tower. She didn''t even have time to properly get dressed as she sprinted to the roof to stop him. Right now she was still in her pyjama''s, though she couldn''t help but notice the lack of her bra as Harry''s arms wrapped around her tightly. "You''re stupid you know that?" she says gently to him, only receiving and nod in response that causes a small smile to appear on her face.

    After Reima teleports them to another empty tower he immediately sits in his meditative stance to begin trying to integrate what Professor Mcgonagall had begun to teach him. He had entered her class to try and "Fix the problem with his eyes" as everyone assumed they were similar to Madam Hooch''s, in that it was an animagus accident. It didn''t take much else to convince her to help him as he was clearly skilful enough in transfiguration to make it work.

    Ciri sits beside him with Snuffles on her lap, she tries to concentrate but she can''t help but think about what''d just happened. She''d seen people commit suicide before but they were imprisoned by Leo Bonhart or enslaved by the Wild Hunt, she hadn''t even imagined that someone in such a relatively peaceful place would even think of such a thing. But thinking on it she could see why he would feel this way, she was partly responsible afterall.

    Reima "Ciri, stop thinking about external things and concentrate on the here and now. You''ll have an opportunity to speak to them tomorrow." he states with his eyes still closed.

    She grumbles but doesn''t reply, she was still wary of whatever punishment she''d receive for going against him like an petulant child, yes she knew how it looked but she felt the need to prove herself and try to gain strength.

    Eventually Ciri managed to clear her mind and began looking for her Animagus animal yet again, like last time it felt like a thick fog was dulling her senses, like her animal was hiding in thick black smoke and would only peek it''s head out when she wasn''t looking. Weirdly she began to think about the sensation she''d felt while flying on her broom, the black smoke around her reminded her of clouds as she flew by them. She continued to follow this sensation until the black smoke began to brighten, turning into what looked like grey clouds into white fluffy ones with a blue backdrop. "I''m in the sky" she murmurs as her form flies into a cloud and explodes out of the end of it, she wipes her moist face due to the cloud and opens her eyes, only to have her mouth drop in awe of what''s before her.

    Ciri "Are you my animal?" she asks, scanning it''s huge form and having to turn her head to see it entirely.

 355 Rita Skeeta, Pa Pa, Ka-Ka-Ka, Skidiki-pap-pap

    Ciri audible swallows her saliva as she looks up and down the huge form of her animal. It has four huge feathered wings on it''s incredibly long body with an amazing array of colours. It''s body looks to be around 36 meters long from head to tail with no visible legs or arms that she can see. It''s head looks as if it''s carved from stone with many small runes, symbols and inscription inlaid in it, along with bright turquoise eyes that feel as if they peer into her own soul.

    It flies around, spinning and moving in ways she didn''t think possible for such a massive creature. It approaches her and curls up in a way reminiscent of a snake as it''s head moves closer.

    It begins to speak in a gentle feminine voice that seems to carry on the air itself, "We are one, child."

    Ciri''s eyes shoot open as she falls backward out of her meditative trance, causing Reima to look at her.

    Reima "Good news?"

    Ciri "Yes! I''ve found it, my animal!" she exclaims excited.

    Reima "Describe it." he asks.

    She then goes on to explain how it looks like a giant feathered serpent except that it''s head looks like a carving of a dragons.

    Reima begins to think through the various options that it could be, the description of it''s appearance reminds his on the asian dragons but they''re never said to be made from stone... Ah, "A Quetzalcoatl?" he asks.

    Ciri feels as if he''s hit the nail on the head as the name seems to resonate with her very being. "I think that''s it." she says.

    Reima "Hm, a Quetzalcoatl?... He begins to think about what abilities it may have but comes up short, in the wizarding world there has never been a proven sighting of one of these creatures, in-fact they may be the most illusive creatures to have ever existed, apart from maybe Wrackspurts and Nargles... Come to think of it, he hadn''t spoken to Luna in quite a while, he''d need to see how she''s doing soon.

    Ciri "So, what now?"

    Reima "Now? You continue to meditate, I''ll see about getting Mcgonagall to observe us as we try and change. Just try and get familiar with your animal in preparation for when we eventually try to shapeshift." he says, not really knowing how he''d get the stern professor on board. For himself it was easy as he had a valid reason but for Ciri? She was still technically in fourth year so she might just outright refuse... Though the fact that she''s entered this tournament might be a way of gaining some leverage.

    The duo continue to meditate through the night until a certain rabbit opens it''s mouth wide and gives a cute yawn, Ciri feels this and opens her eyes, only to be blinded by the sunrise. Reima end sup teleporting them back into the castle to do whatever they need to do before beginning their morning run and attending to their lessons.

    After their run they go to the great hall for breakfast and Ciri immediately notices how much attention she''d gathered onto herself. She hugs Snuffles more tightly against her chest as she lays her staff against the table before sitting. She immediately starts getting asked various questions from her house and also her dorm mates, they congratulate her but Reima can tell they''re all slightly jealous that she was chosen instead of themselves. He glances around the room to look for the fourth champion but doesn''t see him, must''ve gone to the kitchens instead he muses to himself. Thinking that he and Ciri would be meeting them there in the afternoon.

    As she''s trying to give brief answers and explain how she was allowed to enter despite still technically being in fourth year the flapping of wings signals the arrival of today''s mail. An army of owls drop piles of small packages that land on food and drinks alike, much to the amusement of Dumbledore and some of the students.

    Ciri glances at Alicia who opens the daily prophet and gawks at it. "What''s wrong?" she asks, only for the chubby girl to pass her the paper.

    In bold letters the title is seen "BOY-WHO-LIED CHEATED TO ENTER TOURNAMENT"

    Her brows raise as the inflammatory title as she begins to read the article "Harry Potter also known as The Boy-Who-Lived has always been a person of particular interest to the British magical community this of course because of his heroic slaying of You-Know-Who, but it seems Mr Potter isn''t content with his fame in local shores, instead looking to spread his wings and name to foreigners but cheating to enter the international Tri-Wizard Tournament that''s being held in our very own Hogwarts. Mr Potter seems to show no regard for our Hogwarts Champion Ciri Rivia, yes the very person who slew Black not a few months ago. His disdain for her has been noted by various people in the school itself every since she transferred in to finish her magical education, I''ve personally had the pleasure to interview a few students on this matter and the results will shock you!" The article then goes on to list various interviews with people like Draco Malfoy, Cassius Warrington and... Ron Weasley? Indeed it seems as soon as Harry ditched the ginger twat he began reporting directly to Rita Skeeter, the person responsible for this trash.

    Reima thinks to himself that she should be visiting soon for the wand weighing ceremony, no one would be upset if he happened to step on a water beetle would they, He thinks to himself grimly.

 356 Princess

    As Ciri is now a champion for the Tri-Wizard tournament she doesn''t have to attend any of her classes, instead she''s pulled along to the room of requirement by Reima who looks like he has a couple things to say to her.

    Reima opens the door to the room of requirement and enters, Ciri looks around confused as it''s not the normal Colosseum that they usually train in, instead it''s Dumbledore''s office? Reima walks in and sits himself in the headmasters chair and gestures for Ciri to sit in the one opposite.

    Ciri "Is this role-play? Because I''m not into you playing the Headmaster." she jokes to try and settle her nerves.

    Reima scoffs at her, "No, it''s just that if you''re going to act like a spoiled child then I better start treating you like one."

    Ciri frowns at him when he says this, "I do not! I think you might have forgotten which of us is older."

    Reima "Older or not, you''ve been acting like I owe you something for a while now, so I ask you again... Sit." he says in a dull tone.

    Ciri doesn''t wish to do as he says but standing here and refusing would only prove his point, reluctantly she sits into the smaller chair and lays Snuffles on the desk.

    Reima looks at her for a minute or so which causes her to shuffle under his unwavering gaze, "Ciri, do you not trust me?"

    Ciri looks at him strangely, of course she... Trusts him? Actually she isn''t sure, with her past experiences she found it extraordinarily hard to trust anyone, let alone Reima who she''d only known for a month. Yes, she''d slowly been getting to know him and from his actions he clearly didn''t have any bad intentions towards her, but the questions was still quite difficult to answer. "Yes." she says, unassuredly.

    Reima can see her weird reaction but doesn''t comment on it, "So you do? Then why did you refuse to do what I asked of you?"

    Ciri "Because I thought you didn''t need to." she states.

    Reima "Don''t lie to me, I want to know what possessed you to do something so stupid!?" his voice raises unintentionally.

    Ciri "What''s stupid about it? I just want to compete!"

    Reima "What''s stupid? Do you know what the first task is?" She shakes her head, "You have to fight past a dragon and capture a golden egg from it''s clutch! How are you going to do that without using your Elder Blood abilities or magic not seen before in this world?"

    She goes to reply but the words halt in her throat, they want us to fight dragons? Even Geralt wouldn''t dare to fight them one on one, and yet they were expecting teenagers with little practical experience to survive this task?

    Reima "So you see the problem? Either you have to use advanced magic not from this world or attract the Wild Hunt to you. With your current level of this worlds magic I highly doubt you''ll be able to find a solution for this!"

    Ciri slowly nods, trying to think of a way to actually complete the task. Without using her special abilities she highly doubted she''d make it out without being reduced to cinders.

    Reima "This isn''t the part that bothers me the most though! It''s the fact that you betrayed my trust! You complete went against me for no other reason than to satisfy your own ego!"

    Ciri shakes her head, "It''s not because of that, I just wanted you to stop holding back with me!" she shouts.

    Reima looks at her confused, "holding back?"

    Ciri "Yes! You show me all these amazing abilities and yet you''re only teaching me Pyromancy, why wouldn''t you show me your other techniques if you weren''t holding back?"

    Reima''s brows furrow and he thinks over what he''d just heard, she thought that his other abilities including his strength was something that could be learned? He was teaching her Pyromancy and she wanted more? It''s an insulting proposition, and that''s not even mentioning the fact that teaching Pyromancy literally means sharing your soul.

    Reima "Apologise now or we''re done." he states blankly.

    Ciri "What? Apologise for what?"

    Reima "You''re taking everything I''ve given and done for you for granted, you really think I can teach you the majority of my abilities? No! Most of them were stolen from the worlds I have visited, as a result they''re doomed to a slow death from the lack of those extraordinary resources. And if you don''t wish to learn Pyromancy then that''s fine! I don''t have to teach you."

    Ciri "But!-" She''s cut off by Reima who asks once again. "Apologise!"

    ...

    She slumps in her seat and looks down, contemplative. She hadn''t really considered Reima''s feelings on everything that''d happened, she thought he''d start acting like Avallac''h as he seemed to have some sort of agenda, why else would he coerce her into staying in this world? Then again, she could see why he''d stay if what he said about this "Voldemort" was true...

    Ciri "Sorry." she says, quietly.

    Reima hears it clearly, "What did you say?"

    Ciri raises her voice, "I''m sorry alright!"

 357 Too late now to say sorry?

    Ciri "I''m sorry alright!"

    Reima''s expression softens as he hears her finally apologise properly. He sighs, the situation is incredibly difficult for him to deal with, his relationship with Ciri was romantic but at the same time one of authority as he was teaching her. He was always technically much older than she was which made him feel kind of like a creepy middle aged man, regardless even if he cares for her he won''t let her walk all over him like a certain white wolf might. Then again, maybe telling her his intentions and how he feels would settle her mind slightly?

    Reima "Ciri, you know I love you, right?"

    Her eyes widen at this as her mouth drops open, funnily enough a certain rabbit was mimicking her.

    Reima "I love you just like I love Geralt, Lambert, Eskel and Vesemir. I love Kaer Morhen and I don''t wish to see it destroyed by some fucking elves!" he shouts and continues, "I''m trying to prepare you for the eventual conflict between us and them! Don''t think I''m training you for shits and giggles or some other inane reason! I''m doing this all to protect you and everyone else. The reason why we''re in this world? Because I''d rather not have the deaths of millions and potentially billions on my conscience, and I doubt you would either."

    She nods as he continues, "So, when I say I''m training you the best I can, I mean it! I can''t teach you to be as strong, fast or durable as me because it simply isn''t possible. And don''t think I''m giving you nothing either because Pyromancy is incredibly powerful, especially if you consider the possibilities with your unique blood." he slowly stops as he calms down, leaving the duo + rabbit in silence.

    ...

    Ciri "Rei, what I did was wrong and I accept that... I just, I just wanted to prove to myself that I was useful... Just look at the attack in the world cup, did I even need to be there? You could have easily dealt with everyone in a matter of seconds! it just feels like I''m useless when compared to you."

    Reima looks over at her, he doesn''t know how to answer that as she was right... When compared to him most people would find themselves completely and utterly overwhelmed, suddenly an idea comes to mind that makes him grin to himself.

    Reima "How about this? Once everything is done, the Wild Hunt is defeated and you''ve completed your training with Geralt, why don''t we travel through some worlds and make you just as awesome as I am?" he says cockily.

    Ciri laughs and nods while rubbing her eyes of moisture, "I''d like that."

    Reima chuckles but finds himself at a lose when the Rabbit on the table turns into Snuffles and stands over him, looking into his eyes with her own crimson ones. "Take me." she says simply causing him to scratch his head. This was something he was hoping he wouldn''t have to deal with until they''d killed Voldemort or at least avenged her parents, he had always assumed she''d be coming with them to Kaer Morhen but didn''t know if that''s what she actually wanted... But now she''d apparently already made her decision.

    Reima ruffles her black hair, "Of course, what''d we do without our familiar?" he says jokingly, causing the young girl to give a satisfied "Nnn"

    Ciri smiles at their interaction but blushes when she remembers what Reima had said earlier, she only remember two other people who had ever said that to her. They sit in a comfortable silence until he realises they have something to do.

    Reima "Right, well we should probably go down to the kitchens to meet the golden duo."

    Ciri "Ah, we''re doing that today aren''t we..." she says apprehensively.

    Harry and Hermione slowly made their way down to the kitchens to speak with Reima Ludvig and Ciri Rivia about what''d happened last night, Hermione''s first goal was getting them to promise to never speak of it again as she was worried the press would pounce on it. Her second was to find out what actually happened to Sirius and finally put Harry''s mind at ease, even if the outcome was worse than she assumed it''d still provide some finality for her best friend. They were both under Harry''s invisibility cloak to avoid the gazes of those foolish enough to believe he''d actually put his name into the Goblet of fire.

    Reima and Ciri had already sat down and were being waited by Hinky when the portrait opens revealing nothing behind it. Reima tries to use his Observation Haki to dispell whatever spell they were using but somehow still found nothing... "Er, Harry, Hermione?" He asks.

    The duo take off the cloak revealing both of them, looking remarkably better than yesterday, Harry still had black rings around his eyes but his skin looked less clammy and he even had a new pair of glasses that matched better than those old round spectacles ever did. Hermione looked like she always did, uniform tucked in formally, no makeup and frizzy hair untouched.

    Reima waves at them, "Yo, you two hungry?" he asks.

    Harry nods "Yeah..." He doesn''t elaborate but trying to eat under the stares of the entire school is rather difficult for the introverted boy.

    Reima "Well then, take a seat and eat, then we''ll have a much needed talk."

 358 Consorting with the enemy!

    Harry and Hermione take their seats opposite Reima and Ciri while the former calls for someone called "Hinky", they''re surprised when a house elf walks up and asks "Is there something Hinky can do master?"

    Reima nods, "Could you get these two some food? Oh, and some more crumpets for me please."

    Ciri "Some wine for me?" she asks and receives and quick nod from Hinky as she pops away.

    Hermione "...What was that?" she asks confused.

    Reima looks and her and realises something... He manages to hold his groan in when he remembers the whole spew thing she''d created this year in the movies. "That was my house elf Hinky, she works at Hogwarts as I don''t hold any property for her to clean.

    Hermione "Are they the same?" she points to the other elves doing various tasks in the background.

    Reima nods, "Yep."

    Harry notices one that he recognises and can''t help the words from slipping out, "Dobby?"

    The elf in question jumps as he hears his name but starts muttering while trembling when he sees Harry.

    Dobby "Great Harry Potter! What can Dobby do for you sir!"

    Harry sheepishly glances at Hermione before waving the elf away, "Nothing Dobby, it''s just nice to see you."

    Dobby squeals at this and pops away, leaving "OH MASTER!" echoing through the room.

    Reima "That''s one weird elf." he says, feeling slightly violated at hearing that.

    After that the group drops into silence as they wait for the food to arrive, which doesn''t take long due to the army of enthusiastic elves seeking to serve their master. In-front of Harry appears a large

    bacon and cheese quiche while Hermione receives a large slice of chocolate cake. In-front of Reima appears a small plate filled with buttered crumpets, next to it pops a large bottle of wine...

    Reima "Hinky, I don''t think she wanted a whole bottle." he asks, he air.

    Ciri "No, this will do just fine." she says hugging the bottle to her chest.

    Hermione "So, I have a few questions but I''d like to hear what you wanted before I start." she interrupts them, wishing to get this all over and done with.

    Reima glances over to Ciri and gives her a nudge which causes her to lay the bottle on the table and look at Harry. "I''m sorry for what happened to Sirius Black!" she almost shouts while bowing her head low.

    Harry looks at her strangely, feeling the bitter feeling of loss rising back up. He manages to get a few words out through it however. "W-what happened... With Sirius I mean." he asks.

    Ciri looks up and begins to explain, "I''m being hunted by a group of people who wish to use me for... a ritual that will cause a huge amount of death and destruction, I was running through the forest in an attempt to outrun them when something jumped out of the bushes causing me to attack it... It turned out to be a black dog-" she can see Harry''s knuckles turn white at hearing this. "-That transformed into a man and requested for me to look after "Harry"... I assume he meant you. Quickly after he passed away a large group of Auror''s broke through the bushes and arrested me, I told them what I told you and they had the announcement almost immediately after." she says.

    ...

    Harry "So... It was an accident?" he asks, confused and upset.

    Ciri nods, "If I could I''d go back and stop myself, but that''s impossible... So I want to set things right, If you''ll allow me to."

    Hermione "How would you go about doing that?" she asks, wary.

    Ciri "I''m not sure, protecting you is one... Unless you have a better idea?"

    Harry shakes his head, "I don''t need protection, I need to learn to protect myself."

    Reima coughs into his hand, "Er... Sorry to interupt but have either of you ever heard of a seer?"

    Harry "Like professor Trelawney?"

    Hermione shakes her head, "Like that fraud would ever give an accurate prediction... I''m not even sure Divination works in the first place." she says suspiciously.

    Reima nods slowly but continues, "Well, it may surprise you both to find out that I''m a seer."

    Hermione immediately replies, "Prove it."

    Reima shrugs, "I could tell you about the first task of the Tournament?"

    Their eye''s widen at this, Harry "Please."

    Reima "Well, you have to steal a golden egg placed in the clutch of a nesting drago-"

    Hermione shrieks "DRAGON! WHAT ON EARTH ARE THEY THINKING!?!"

    Ciri rubs her ears which is mimicking by Snuffles as she complains "Hermione, could you not... Youknow, scream? We didn''t set up those tasks after all."

    Hermione dips her head while muttering a quiet apology.

    Harry "So... A dragon? Man I''m fucked." he states hopelessly.

    Reima rubs his chin, "Yeah, pretty much... Good news though, I didn''t see you die so that''s something... I guess?"

    Hermione nods, "Oh, Harry, how are we going to get through this mess..." she sighs.

    Harry "We?"

    Hermione slaps his arm, "Of course! I''m going to be with you every step of the way, and don''t you dare argue with me about it!" she give him a fierce look that causes him to back down.

    Ciri grins at them, "Ah, young love." which causes both teens to glare at her which she simply shrugs off.

    Neither side wants to talk about yesterday as it''d raise many uncomfortable questions, "Why was Ciri and Reima alone on the observation tower" for instance, that and neither Reima or Ciri felt Harry was ready to talk about what he''d attempted to do. And they knew Hermione would agree with them on this.

 359 Stronk

    Reima "Harry, you got any idea''s on how to deal with your dragon?" he asks, thinking about how he got incredibly lucky in the original time line, I mean out flying a dragon? Really?

    Harry "I-I don''t know... I''ve fought against a huge reptile before but I almost died doing it..." he says, remembering the basilisk.

    Reima "Maybe it''s time you started advancing your spell repertoire?"

    Harry "But I don''t know anyone willing to teach me, I doubt Dumbledore would even give me the time of day either... Wait, aren''t you in 7th year Reima?"

    Hemione nods at this, "Could you perhaps teach Harry?"

    Reima shakes his head, "I''ve got my hands full with Ciri as it is" he says, truthfully his time was primarily taken up by his classes, most of which he''d already studied most of the material for. This was especially the case with Arithmancy and runes in which he''d dedicated a good portion of his time to, that and most of Professor Bins lessons. Though, the idea of skipping all his classes to teach Ciri and in addition Harry didn''t sound like a bad idea, plus it''d give him an excuse as he didn''t think Dumbledore would disallow him to teach Harry.

    Hermione "Please Reima! You''re the only 7th year who isn''t jeering at Harry."

    Ciri shrugs when he takes a cursory glance at her, she''s the one who wants additional training after all.

    Reima "Look, I''ll think it over... Until then atleast try to learn something on your own? As you well know, you can''t place your trust in others if your life is on the line, it''ll only end in your death." he states bluntly, leaving the two looking exacerbated.

    Ciri "Did you read the daily prophet?" she asks the duo.

    Hermione "It''s tripe and everyone knows it, Rita Skeeter has less journalistic integrity then my thumb." she says bitterly.

    Harry "Yeah but I''m sure everyone is eating it up."

    Reima "It pits you against Ciri so if you show that you''re not going to shiv her in a dark alley it should all die down." he shrugs, taking a bite of his crumpet.

    The duo nod and the continue to make small talk afterwards until it''s time to leave, Harry still looks slightly conflicted but seems less tense than before.

    Once Reima and Ciri are alone they grab Snuffles and head to the room of requirement, they have many things to do and many things to train. Reima still needed to figure out a way which would guarantee her survival against a dragon... He went over the various Pyromancies in his head and came to one rather annoying conclusion, dragons are resistant to fire... For an art based solely around well, fire. It would really cause them problems.

    Reima "Alright... I''ve got a couple ideas on how you can pass the task without dying but they''re all a bit unorthodox... Come here." he says, having her stand in-front of him. Once there Reima summons Gough''s Great bow along with a couple dragon slayer arrows...

    Ciri "What on earth is that!" she shouts as she sees it.

    Reima "This is a bow designed to kill dragons... Atleast, dragons with thicker skins than the ones in this world."

    Ciri "And you''ll let me use it for the task?"

    Reima "Well, as you already know the summoning spell, yeah... The only problem is whether or not you can actually draw it.."

    Ciri "Of-course I can draw it!" she says, grabbing it but struggling to keep it''s immense weight upright. "Uh, haha... Could you keep it standing while I give it a go?" she asks sheepishly.

    Reima shrugs and places one hand on it to keep it still, she then grabs the bow string and pulls it with all her might... Not managing to draw it even an inch.

    Ciri "You''re pranking me aren''t you?" she asks, rolling her shoulder from the effort.

    Reima shakes his head, "No, why would I have a completely unusable bow on me?" he says, knocking a dragon slayer arrow on it and shooting it at the far wall of the Colosseum.

    *BOOM!*

    It penetrates the wall cleaning, leaving a small amount of dust in the air from the impact. Ciri just looks at him and the bow challengingly but relents as there is no way she''d be able to draw it.

    Nerissa who was sparring with stone puppets sheathes her Iaito and runs over to Reima, giving him and the bow a pointed look.

    Reima "What? You wanna go?" he asks, receiving a vigorous nod from the young vampire.

    "Alright then... Give it a go." he says, holding it upright for her as she''d struggle even if she was strong enough due to her height.

    To both of their surprise Nerissa pulls the bowstring half way before having to let it go, causing a loud *TWANG*.

    Nerissa "Heavy." she states.

    Reima laughs, "At least you did better than Ciri" he says, rubbing her head.

    Ciri "You''re both freaks, how can I even begin to match up to that!"

    Reima "Believe it or not you could do it if you trained hard enough... Though I think training your speed would be more productive."

 360 French Rejection

    Reima seals away Gough''s bow and continues to think of what would be useful for Ciri, as she''d be completely handicapped he didn''t see any problem with giving her some assistance... He thinks through his many weapons that might be able to help, first one would probably be his Slumbering Dragoncrest Ring as it''d allow her to quickly manoeuvre around the dragon without drawing it''s attention. Another would probably be one of his weapons with a special ability, like his Kalameet or Moonlight Greatsword, though weight would be a problem for Ciri... Maybe the drake sword would be useful? It didn''t do much against the dragons in DarkSouls but perhaps it would do more against this worlds ones?

    He summons it to his hand and tosses it to Ciri, "Have a go" he says, grabbing Nerissa''s wrist and backing away a good distance from her.

    Ciri "It''s a bit heavy but looks sharp enough... What''s it made from?"

    Reima "A drake''s tail." he says bluntly causing her to almost drop it.

    Ciri "A what! And how did something this shape come from a tail!?!" she asks confused.

    Reima shrugs, "Just swing it and see how well it works."

    Ciri swings it around, doing various moves and techniques, eventually gaining a light sheen of sweat over her forehead. "It''s fine but I don''t see how this will be better than any other weapon?" she asks unsure of what Reima''s trying to do.

    Reima "Hold it in the air with both hands and slam it down... Not towards us." he adds at the end.

    Ciri sighs thinking he''s trying to prank her again but does as he says, as she raises it in the air she feels some sort of energy build up and when she brings it down a powerful shock-wave explodes from the sword, carving a long line in the stone floor. "Wow." she says, admiring the long pit she''d created.

    Reima "Think that will be useful against the dragon?"

    Ciri "Absolutely."

    Reima "Well, when the first task starts just summon it as you can''t take anything but your staff with you, it might be amusing to see how their unrestricted rules can be used to make the competition a complete joke."

    A couple days later after all of there lessons are done Reima has Ciri follow him to Professor Mcgonagall''s office. He wraps his knuckles against the door and receives a quiet "Enter" from the stern Professor.

    "Mr Ludvig... Miss Rivia, what may I do for you" she asks, eyeing them both.

    Reima "Professor, as you already know due to my circumstances, our previous magical education had us all learning to utilise the Animagus transformation... This also extends to Ciri, the only different between me and her being that she hadn''t attempted to transform yet."

    Mcgonagall "So you wished to have me oversee both of you attempted to transform?" she asks in a knowing tone.

    Reima "Yes. If that isn''t a problem for you?"

    Mcgonagall "Usually I would be completely against allowing someone at the level of a fourth year trying to attempt this, but as you are representing our school it would be travesty if you had a poor showing... I will watch over you so don''t do something stupid like trying it unsupervised." she states.

    Ciri "Thank you Professor." she says, receiving a small smile before it quickly disappears.

    Mcgonagall "Is there anything else?"

    Reima "No, that''s all I wished to ask, thank you again Professor." he says before quickly leaving with Ciri.

    Reima "That went well." he says, not having expected her to accept it so easily.

    Ciri "Well I guess we were lucky I ended up in the tournament" she says sending a pointed smug look at him.

    Reima "Keep staring at me like that and I''ll spank you." he says bitterly.

    They walk towards the Great Hall to get some food but are stopped when one of the four champions approach them.

    Fleur "Reima! I did not expect to zee you ''ere... Perhaps you could, show me around now?" she says, tucking her platinum blonde hair behind her ear seductively.

    Reima looks at her and can''t help but see how attractive she is, truly if he didn''t have this weird relationship with Ciri he''d pounce on the girl... "I''m sorry but I''m showing my Girlfriend to lunch." he says, placing emphasis on "Girlfriend"

    Ciri smugly looks at her with Snuffles doing her best to mimic her expression.

    Fleur''s expression doesn''t change but Ciri can tell her posture had shifted straighter, "Oh, iz dat so? Apologiez. I.. ''Ad no idea you were dating, ah, I have somezing I must attend to." she says, quickly walking towards the entrance hall.

    Reima/Ciri "God she''s hot." they both say looking at her tight silk robes that hug her hips before glancing at each other and laughing.

    They enter the Great Hall and Ciri takes the initiative to sit beside Harry and Hermione, under the shocked looks of the majority of the hall.

    Ciri "How are my favourite people?" she says sarcastically.

    Hermione "Favourite?"

    Reima sits next to her, "What about me? Don''t I qualify... Man, my girlfriend treats me as disposable." he says in mock sadness.

 361 Call me Professor Ludvig.

    over the next couple of days Reima skips the majority of his lessons to teach Ciri advanced charms and transfiguration spells that may help her against a dragon.

    As Reima had expected it didn''t take long for him to be pulled into Dumbledore''s office for skipping classes. Once there he and Dumbledore had a long discussion about whether or not he should be allowed to teach Ciri advanced spells in order to help her survive the tournament. Reima was actually about to lose the argument until he brought up the idea of having Harry accompany her in these training sessions, something which caused the old man''s eyes to twinkle incessantly.

    This all leads up to where he is now, in an empty classroom with Ciri and Harry standing before him looking on expectantly. He sighs and begins to speak, "Harry, are you sure you want to learn from me? I can be a cruel task master..."

    Harry "I don''t want to die, so please teach me!" he says earnestly.

    Reima "Fine. But if I hear a word about "Not wishing to learn dark magic" I''ll brand it on your forehead permanently!" he says harshly.

    Harry''s face drops as he rubs his scar, apparently the idea of something more visible isn''t exactly appealing to him.

    Reima "Now, what spells do you know that would actually be useful against a dragon?" he asks.

    Harry thinks to himself before answering, "Er, Expelliarmus?"

    ...

    Reima "Harry, are you stupid? What would a disarming charm do against a dragon?"

    Harry mumbles something that neither Reima or Ciri catch.

    Reima "What was that?"

    Harry "I don''t know any other offensive spell! Happy?" he shouts, looking down in embarrassment.

    ...

    Reima "What the fuck is this school teaching?!?" he shouts. "No, you know what, I can work with this." he says to himself before pointing his staff at a table on the far end of the room. "Reducto." he says, causing the table hit to disintegrate into dust, under the surprised gaze of Harry.

    Harry "What was that?"

    Reima "A proper offensive spell, reduces things it hits to dust."

    Harry "Would it be useful against a dragon?"

    Reima shrugs, "Probably not? Maybe if you hit it''s eye but I wouldn''t try it, no instead I want you to start with this spell as it''s one of the easier ones to learn.

    Harry nods, "What are the wand movements?"

    ...

    Reima "The what?"

    Harry "Wand movements.. Youknow, to cast the spell?"

    Reima points to his staff, "Do I look like I use wand movements?" Harry shakes his head in realisation.

    Reima "Wand movements are crutches for shit wizards anyway, so are incantations. So if you wanna learn under me you''re going to have to start there." he says.

    And so that''s how Reima became the teacher of Harry Potter... In only a few days under Reima''s tutilage Harry managed to cast his first Lumos without incantation or wand movements, it was based on sheer will alone. As someone capable of casting a powerful Patronus this was a no brainer but it still took a while to remove his reliance on those magical crutches.

    Ciri and Harry''s "Friendship" was also noticed by the school and especially Ron Weasley who gnashed his teeth every time he saw it. Not long after this development did a new article from the Daily Prophet come out, causing a whole new heap of trouble.

    "Boy-Who-Cheats bribes champion?" was the article which caused Hermione to try and leave school to hex Rita Skeeter. It''s contents basically stated that Harry had no chance in hell at winning and instead had bribed Ciri to accompany him and eventually loose in the tournament, there was also implications that she''d perform sexual favours for him...

    Ciri "Ok, I''ve had it with this bitch." she says gritting her teeth.

    Reima "Just deal with it, it isn''t time to get rid of her yet." he says, wishing for the wand weighing ceremony to come sooner.

    Ciri "Is she even allowed to write slanderous stuff like this!? There must be laws to prevent it!" she exclaims.

    Reima "The Ministry doesn''t care as long as the articles are not on it''s inadequacies or pure-blood scandals."

    Ciri "But that''s-that''s-"

    Reima "Bullshit?"

    Ciri "Bullshit!"

    She continues to complain to a reluctant Reima while Snuffles sips the blood Dumbledore had the elves deliver to them.

    The days continue until it''s eventually the day for the wand weighing ceremony, Reima keeps his Observation Haki flaring, looking for even the most minute aura. His senses were almost being overloaded by the sheer amount of information, he could feel a colony of ants outside in the school grounds tending to their young, he could hear them sounding like an anthem of Anthony.

    Truth be told he was getting quite the headache but he endured, this was for the good of mankind after all. If he didn''t deal with this threat then no one would, and the sanctity of journalism would be at risk. Of course all of this was an excuse as he was just hoping to find a certain blue beetle before it started to do interviews.

 362 Weighing wands?

    Reima continues to search the school for Rita Skeeta but frowns we he sees a large contingent enter the school, he can see Ludo Bagman, Barty Crouch, Rita Skeeter and Ollivander all come in with a few other people he doesn''t know... Probably just camera men and miscellaneous staff.

    Reima frowns as he was hoping to catch Rita snooping as quickly as possible but it seems unlikely that he''ll achieve his goals today, as he''s got an hour to kill since he skipped his last lesson he goes to the room of requirements and starts reading a book detailing the wizarding worlds apparition.

    Ciri was currently in potions and funnily enough was partnered with Harry Potter when a third year with blonde hair and a strange resemblance to a hamster hesitantly approaches Professor Snape.

    Colin "Er, sir. I need to take Harry Potter and Ciri Rivia-"

    Snape "They still have a potion to finish Mr. Creevey, I suggest you come back another time." he slowly retorts.

    Colin "But sir! It''s for the tournament!"

    The bat faced man scowls at him, "Very well, Miss Rivia, make sure our celebrity here does not get lost. It would be a travesty if that were to happen." he says, turning to the rest of the students to continue "Teaching"

    Ciri shrugs at Harry and collects her staff along with Snuffles before beginning to follow the young third year.

    They walk for a while but are blinded by a flash of light, Harry would assume it as Colin but his presence next to them dissuades him of that idea. When his vision clears up he sees a women with golden glasses, white hair and a neon green dress adorned with fur.

    "I''m Rita Skeeter from the Daily Prophet, pleasure to meet you both, though I see you''re fraternising with the enemy Harry, perhaps you could tell me more in a moment?" she says with a toothy smile.

    Ciri has a look of realisation and exclaims, "Ah! You''re that bitch writing lies about us!" Harry hearing this loses his polite expression in exchange for a dark one.

    Rita looks surprised but quickly returns her face to a neutral expression, "Now, now... Bitch is a harsh word, I prefer "Dedicated journalist with incredible work ethics"... For short."

    Harry "I doubt any part of that is true" he says dully to the overeager looking journalist.

    Rita ignores him and continues, "We have a bit before the weighing of the wands ceremony, which one of you would like to be interviewed first?"

    ...

    Ciri "Neither?"

    Rita grins and glances at the camera, "Now, why wouldn''t two of the most popular people in britain right now not want to talk to the press?" A green quill behind her scribbles away on a floating parchment. "Is there something you''re not telling the public? Perhaps something between the two of you?" she asks.

    Ciri frowns and prods the staff at the woman, "I don''t want to talk to you and neither does Harry, with the slanderous things you''ve said in the past did you really think we''d give you an interview? Not likely." She says, gesturing to Colin to continue to lead them to where they need to be.

    Rita frowns at this and grabs Harry''s elbow in an attempt to stop him from leaving, "Come on Harry, the people want to know!"

    Harry "Let go of me you creepy trollop." he says loud enough to get her to let go.

    Rita growls to herself and shouts after them, "You can''t hide anything from me! The people will know!" She looks at her camera man and asks, "You got the cover?" which she receives a nod for.

    Ciri and Harry are led into and empty classroom containing Ludo Bagman and a number of camera men. Sitting at the side of the room conversing was Victor Krum and Fleur Delacour, the former turning his attention onto Ciri yet again with a glint of interest in his eyes.

    Ludo "Harry!" he exclaims, walking over and patting him on the shoulder. "Remember me from the Quidditch World Cup? You had a wonderful time from my recollection!"

    ...

    Harry "Sir... I was nearly tortured into a cripple.." he says uncomfortably which causes Ludo''s face to pale.

    Ludo "Ah, apologies. I had forgotten about all that bad business... On another matter we are still waiting on the daily prophets reporter and Dumbledore with the expert."

    Ciri "Wait... Did you just say Daily Prophet?"

    Harry rubs his face and begins, "Oh, please no-"

    *Flash!*

    Rita steps in after the smoke from the camera had cleared with a wide smile, "Oh yes. My, all you champions look absolutely delectable..."

    Ludo "This is Rita Skeeter, a prominant journalist from the Daily Prophet. She''s here to run a small story on the events."

    Rita scoffs, "Small, Ludo? No, I intend for this to be the highlight of my career and probably your own." she says looking at each of the champions. "Would it trouble you if I were to interview Harry briefly?" she asks Bagman.

    Ludo "Oh, that see-"

    Harry "No, I told you last time that I won''t give you an interview."

    Ludo "-Seems inappropriate" he quickly changes his answer after hearing Harry''s objection which causes Rita to frown momentarily.

 363 Polish your wand DAILY!

    Rita frowns at him, "Please Ludo, you''ll let me have this or you might find me remembering a certain incident that almost had you in a certain prison?.." she says sweetly.

    Said man glances around at the champions to see there reactions before giving Rita and angry look. He''s about to reply when Dumbledore, Barty Crouch, Madam Maxine and Karkaroff along with Ollivander steps inside, the latter giving Ciri a smile when he sees her. They all take a seat with Rita reluctantly placing herself down in the corner with her camera man.

    Dumbledore "Shall we begin the ceremony then?" he asks, looking at every to see if there''s an objection.

    Ollivander nods, "Indeed... Perhaps we should start with Mademoiselle Delacour?" he says, stepping into the middle of the room so everyone can get a good look.

    Fleur briskly walks forward and hands him her wand, Ollivander looks at it closer, spinning it in between his fingers before pointing upwards and releasing a small torrent of gold and pink sparks. "Rosewood, containing-"

    Fleur "A ''air from my grandmuzzer, Veela."

    This immediately gets Rita prodding her camera man to take pictures when she hears this, a quill is already quickly scribbling into a parchment, no doubt making bold remarks about Fleur''s heritage.

    Ollivander "Veela hair tends to make very temperamental wands, though I can see you''ve thoroughly tamed this one." he says with a smile.

    He hands the wand back to her while commenting "It''s a fine well working wand, nothing wrong at all."

    Fleur "Thank you Monsieur." she says before walking back to her seat.

    Ollivander, "Hmm, let''s try the Durmstrang Champion, Mr Krum." he says gesturing for him to come towards himself.

    Victor steps over, looking significantly less graceful than Fleur and not even approaching as beautiful. "Have a look." he says handing over his wand to the pale eyed man.

    Ollivander takes it and starts examining it, he tries to make it cast sparks like he had done with Fleur''s but nothing comes out. He frowns and look at Krum, "This is a Gregorovitch creation,

    unless I''m much mistaken? Well made but I''ve found them to be somewhat... Less efficient, lets say?

    Hornbeam and Dragon Heartstring..."

    "Avis" he casts, causing some small birds to shoot out of the end of it like a cannon.

    Ollivander "Ah... Yes, it is in... Working order" he says with some bitterness in his voice.

    "Next, let''s see... Harry Potter." he glances at Ciri, "We''ll save the most interesting for last."

    Harry steps over and passes his wand to Ollivander nonchalantly.

    The old man looks at the wand and then at him, "Harry, you must know that polishing your wand occasionally is key to it''s long term health."

    Ciri hearing this smirks and can''t help but feel Reima would be giggling like a school girl if he was here.

    Harry nods, "I must have forgotten last night..."

    Ollivander gives him a look but doesn''t pursue this, "Holly and Phoenix feather... You''ve formed a strong bond together, I must say you''ve been through quite a lot..."

    Rita "What do you mean by that Mr Ollivander?" he asks from her corner.

    Ollivander "Nothing you''d understand Miss Skeeter." he says before returning his attention to the wand. He twirls it around his fingers and shoots out gold sparks from it''s tip, "Hmm, curious."

    Harry "Curious sir?"

    Ollivander look up and shakes his head, "Oh, don''t mind me, I was just remembering when you''d bought this wand... Regardless, it''s in perfect working order. If a bit scuffed." he gives Harry a look before waving him away.

    "Now, shall we begin with you Miss Rivia?" he asks.

    Ciri nods and hands him her staff before backing away.

    Rita and indeed everyone else present is interested in why she uses a staff instead of a wand, they''d assumed it was due to her foreign origins but maybe Ollivander could illuminate some facts on this?

    Ollivander "My, my Miss Rivia, you''ve certainly been using this a lot more than last I checked. Indeed..." he says, spinning in his hands and shooting orange and turquoise sparks from the obsidian stone atop it. There is one problem however, when the sparks touch the floor they immediately ignite the floor boards, causing the pale eyed man to jump back in surprise. Dumbledore quickly douses the flames with a spray of water but everyone focuses their attention on Ollivander for an explanation.

    Ollivander "Every time I get a hold of this I''m always surprised." he says with a smile, "It''s temperamental and seems to lean towards fire..."

    Rita "Could you elaborate on this Mr Ollivander?" she asks again from her corner.

    Ollivander "Well what I said is self explanatory, any spell haphazardly cast with this magical foci will be attributed to fire." he says simply.

    Karkaroff looks appalled at this information, "Is this legal for the competition!?"

    Ollivander nods, "There is nothing wrong with it, to put it in layman''s terms it acts as a more powerful more temperamental phoenix feather core... Yes, much more powerful." he mutters the last part to himself.

    Ciri "A-are you done?" she asks, wishing to get this over and done with.

    Ollivander shakes his head, "Wood unknown, core unknown." he says before casting "Avis" again, causing many small birds made from fire to fly out of the window. He nod and hands the staff back to Ciri, "It''s in working order, what a wonderfully unique companion you have."

 364 Ice, Ice, Baby!

    Rita "Before we end the ceremony Mr Ollivander, shouldn''t you know what wood and core was used in the construct of Miss Rivia''s foci? That is your job isn''t it?" she asks accusingly.

    Ollivander shrugs with his misty eyes focusing on her, "Indeed it is Miss Skeeter, I however doubt you would find anyone in this world that would know what materials the staff was made from."

    Rita "That is a rather broad and blatant statement you''ve just made there Mr Ollivander."

    Ollivander "And one I''ll stick by." he says, ending the conversation there.

    Dumbledore "That will be the end of the wand weighing ceremony! Thank you all for coming, champions you should go back to your lessons, though this isn''t required of you."

    Rita "Dumbledore! Photo''s!" she exclaims causing the old man to sigh.

    Dumbledore "Very well..."

    Skeeter pulls Fleur and Ciri together while depositing Harry in the middle of them. "Very nice, comfortable there Harry?" she asks, grinning as he tries not to touch anything inappropriate.

    Harry "Very. Could you take the photo now?" he asks, the rest of the champions agreeing with him.

    *FLASH!* *RUMBLE*

    The camera goes off but is quickly followed by the school itself vibrating as if an explosion had gone off nearby.

    Rita gives the camera man a look and he throws his arms in the air, "I didn''t do nothing!"

    Dumbledore "Whatever it was we must check it immediately, it seems to have gone off inside the wards which worries me." he says before quickly leaving in pursuit to find out what''d just happened.

    Ciri rubs her arm anxious as she could almost predict who was responsible for it.

    Now with Reima (Who''s completely unrelated...)

    Reima was sitting on the floor of the room of requirements pouring through the book on apparition. The theory was quite simple really, wizards use their magic to tear open a tiny worm hole that extends to wherever they wish to go, though this is just the best explanation he''d found in the books presented to him from the room of requirements. Most wizards didn''t even know the theory however, instead just following these three steps :

    Destination, choosing where you''ll land and making sure it isn''t likely to be inside of anything else.

    Determination, just another name for will power. Most magic relies on the will to cast it and the lack of this will result in a botched job, this includes being splinched in two.

    Deliberation, last but not least, as if you do not focus on what you want to happen enough you''ll likely just get a random result. This may lead to you losing body parts, ending up somewhere you hadn''t intended to go or just vanishing completely...

    Yes, that''s apparently all that''s required for magical teleportation! Something that''d make all magic users in the Witcher universe green with envy. Reima theorises it''s because Wizards have magical cores and Witches do not, instead they draw magic directly from their life force and those around them, sometimes resulting in gory ends for those that overuse it.

    Either way Reima wished to be able to use this technique, not because he need them but because this kind of spatial tearing could be useful when applied to other spells, or infused with Elder Blood for instance? Indeed he''s looking to try and apply spatial tearing in many different ways and hopefully will achieve some appreciable results, this''ll be doubly so if he manages to create a new school of "Spatial" magic from it as he and Ciri would likely be incredibly adept at it.

    Reima had just been meditating over what he wanted to do, he had successfully created a small wormhole that''d allow apparition but didn''t try to teleport as the Hogwarts wards would probably tear him a new one, instead he''s going to see what''d happen if you combined it with Elder Blood mana... Yes this is incredibly dangerous but he''s alone and he reckons he could survive a couple mistakes...

    His fingers glow turquoise as he channels the Elder Blood mana into them, once fully saturated he plunges both hands forwards as if he''s about to open a tightly shut bag. His fingers disappear mid air but he doesn''t lose their sensation... Until he does, he panics and pulls them back seeing them still attached to his hands but doesn''t get much time to celebrate the survival of his fingers due to him being blasted point blank in the face by a huge torrent of icy mist, which shoots from the spatial distortion in-front of him which glows the same colour as his eyes.

    Reima is instantly frozen solid by this and so is the rest of the room, the temperature instantly drops to sub zero, causing everything the mist touches to instantly freeze solid. Reima voluntarily lets his true form out which subsequently bursts into a violent pillar of dark red flames which temporarily hold back the icy beam of death still shooting from the spatial tear. The wind is just as bad as he''s trying his best not to be blown around the room like a piece of paper stuck in a blizzard. He casts the most powerful Quen shield he can while slowly making his way towards the spatial tear, the amount of effort he''s putting into trying to stop this exceeding the difficulty of fighting off the army of Izalith. Eventually he reaches the tear and throws his arm at it while channelling his Elder Blood through his hands, they swipe through the tear, destabilising it and causing it to implode, causing a huge explosion which rockets Reima into the wall. Creating a huge crater as a result.

    Out of the crater a voice echoes out, "Man that fucking hurt!"

 365 Iceing on the cake...

    Ciri immediately left after the wand weighing ceremony was done and headed straight for the room of requirements. Snuffles bounced with her ears flopping as Ciri jogged to her desired location.

    Eventually she reaches the room and finds the door is already there, indicating someone is inside.

    She steps forwards and tries to open it but finds it''s locked? She gives it another tug and the door barely moves. Snuffles returns to her vampire form and grasps a part of it to help Ciri pull, "1, 2, 3!" She says, both wrenching the door backwards, finally opening it.

    As soon as it''s opened however they both start shivering, cool mist slowly starts draining from the room, hugging the floor and causing their toe''s to lose all sense of feeling, Nerissa turns back into Snuffles and jumps into her arms to relieve herself of standing, much to the ashen haired girls chagrin. "I''m not your personal taxi youknow?" she says with mirth, causing the rabbit to flop an ear at her.

    Walking inside the room they see the typical Colosseum archetecture that Reima likes to use, except that the majority of is it is frozen solid... The large yellow and orange stones comprising the stadium are coated iwth a thick layer of sturdy looking ice, in the middle of the room they see an area that''s completely void of ice and instead soaking wet, as if something had caused everything to melt, even the stone had partly melted. In the middle of it sat Reima who seemed fine but had a contemplative look.

    Ciri "Reima what happened?" she probes.

    Reima "Err... I was experimenting with a new spell? It didn''t go well."

    Ciri "What kind of spell could cause all this!?" she exclaims, pointing her nose at various parts of the room.

    Reima "Well, it started as an altered Apparition spell but turned into something else entirely... It kinda reminded me of how the Wild Hunt freezes stuff..." he says.

    Reima didn''t know what he had done to cause something like this, all he did was channel type and space energy into it and "Boom", ice spell. He felt there was something more to it however as he wasn''t really focused on what the spell was actually doing, more just seeing what''d happen. He''d need to test this further in the future.

    Shaking these thoughts from his head he glances at Ciri and asks, "How was the wand weighing ceremony?"

    Ciri shrugs, "Not much really happened, they brought in Ollivander and had him look over all of our magical Foci. The only two he really seemed at all interested in was Harry''s and mine..."

    Reima "Well, it''s not everyday you get to examine and ancient artifact... Anything troublesome happen?"

    Ciri "Apart from a random explosion?" She grins, "Rita Skeeter was annoying I guess, if I had my way i''d curb stomp that bitch until she couldn''t remember how to write."

    Reima "Just don''t say anything you want to be kept secret in public, she''s an Animagus and I intend to catch her. So don''t try anything against her or I might not be able to do anything." he says, causing her to widen her eyes. It was really surprising, that a vile reporter like Rita Skeeter had the patience required to actually achieve her Animagus transformation, hearing her friend she did have the urge to go out and start stomping on woodland critters until she''d "scored" but knew it would probably be best left in his hands.

    Soon it was time for Reima to tutor Harry and Ciri, the duo + rabbit slowly walked to the empty classroom they had been using and immediately began spell casting. Harry was actually learning relatively quickly, he had been able to start using chantless spells with minimal wand movement which was a massive improvement over his previous "shout casting". Truly whoever taught someone to shout your spell was an imbecile.

    Harry was now able to cast the basic lethal combat spells, he did look a tad green at learning them but didn''t complain as he probably remembered Reima''s introduction when teaching him. Of course they didn''t focus on only lethal spells, stupify had been thoroughly embedded in Harry''s mind and he''d even been able cast it silently, something he probably achieved through constant practise.

    Ciri was also learning quickly, much faster than she would in any class taught by a traditional professor, this was partly due to Reima skipping over the majority of the spells theory and just going into practical. This was generally seen as unwise as some spells would be slightly chaotic but in a combat situation that might be a useful trait, creating a transfigured stone wall to block fire which happens to get up and start running at your enemies or maybe even a head exploding stupify for instance. In all honesty the thought of Harry accidentally making a Death Eaters head explode while casting a stupify made him laugh.

    Of course they also sparred quite often which allowed them to mix in some "duelling" techniques, although Reima wouldn''t call them that. They are more "Fighting" techniques more than anything as he thought proper footwork and spatial awareness was essential for anyone attempting to participate in live combat.

 366 Sports day?

    The next morning Reima and Ciri were jogging around the black lake with Snuffles floating behind the latter, as had become a daily ritual they had a couple gawkers watching them run but they didn''t mind it. However today was different than the others.. Why? Because a certain Victor Krum was running beside Reima with a determined look on his face. Even the majority of the Durmstrang contingent was watching this all happening, they''d just done their first lap around the lake and the only person present that was sweating was Krum. He had a disbelieving expression when he glanced over at his rival in love, the ashen haired cat-eyed man hadn''t even a drop of sweat on his face. Victor shakes his head causing droplets of sweat to fly around as it''s inconceivable for someone to be better at physical activities than him.

    Reima can''t help a grin from appearing on his face at the Durmstrang champion continues to follow them. He could probably run forever if they had enough time and was only accompanying Ciri while training his telekinesis on Snuffles.

    After the second lap Ciri had a couple droplets of sweat crawling down her forehead but her determined expression told of a different story. She was quite competitive when she got the chance to be and unlike her relatively long time companion Reima, Victor Krum could be beat.

    Half way through this lap a group of Beauxbaton students walk over and watch them go at it, some even starting to slowly jog around the lake on their own. They only causes more of the male Hogwarts students to watch them run as their hormones dictate.

    Reima glances at Krum and see''s his tight fitting sweat suit soaked through, it''s pretty disgusting to be honest as his sleeves collect more moisture and start deploying like salty missiles whenever he shakes his arms.

    Reima "I can do this all day Krum." he says, trying to get the teen to stop before he passes out.

    Krum "F-funny! As can I!" he says panting.

    Reima gives a shrug and increases his pace which is followed by Ciri and a reluctant Krum. It isn''t long after this that Fleur Delacour the Beauxbaton champion starts running beside Ciri.

    Fleur "Zis is a nice day for some jogging." she says to Ciri.

    Ciri gives her a strange look and can already see her Ogling Reima beside her. She doesn''t comment as she''s trying to maintain her breathing to complete a couple more laps around the huge lake.

    They manage to complete one more lap before Krum collapses to the floor, not moving. Reima doesn''t stop and just chuckles when he sees the Durmstrang students levitate him towards the infirmary, thinking he must be sick or something similar. Never thinking that it might be from exhaustion...

    Fleur who had only completed one lap was already sweating heavily, though the way she flicked it off of her brow still looked graceful. This continues until Fleur finally stops and rests near the Beauxbaton group whil watching the duo + rabbit continue.

    Reima and Ciri complete two more full laps before she collapses to her knee''s in-front of the castle.

    Reima "Nice job Ciri, you''re definitely improving."

    Ciri pants for a while but eventually catches her breath enough to retort, "Yeah but you''re a monster... You''ve not even started to sweat" she says through her breaths.

    He shrugs, not even sure if he can sweat from exhaustion anymore... The function of sweat is to cool the body down but how is that practical when your body is literally always on fire.

    Fleur walks over and passes Reima a towel that looks slightly damp, "You are very fit Monsieur Reima."

    Reima"Er, thanks?" he says uncomfortably under Ciri''s glare.

    Ciri "Wait, did you just wipe yourself with that towel?" she says with a grimace.

    Fleur nods, "Oui but boys have always liked my fragrance." she says with a smug smile.

    Ciri "Then it''s a shame Reima''s a man, my man. And wouldn''t be interested in your dirty towel!" she says, giving him a look.

    Reima who was just about to wipe his face while "Accidentally" giving it a whiff stops at his "Lovers" words. Uhh, yeah... What she said." he says, passing it back to Fleur who''s brows furrow.

    Fleur "Ah... I apologiez zen, would you like a clean towel?" she asks.

    Reima shakes his head, "I don''t think I need one, but thanks for the thought." he says with a small smile, which causes her to quickly leave with the rest of her group.

    Ciri "I wish I could wipe that smile off of her face..." she says, glancing again at her tight jogging bottoms.

    Reima nods absentmindedly, "Yes... The things I''d do to those lips... Cough, I mean... Youknow, never mind." he says, looking around for anyone who may have heard that.

    Snuffles squeaks from behind him, still floating.

    Ciri nods as if she''d just understood her, "Shall we get some breakfast then?... After I get changed..."

    The duo + rabbit make their way into the great hall, ignoring all the eyes on them as it''s become a common thing since the champions were announced. They sit next to Harry and Hermione who are already reading the Daily Prophet.

    Ciri groans, "Tell me Rita hasn''t written a new article."

    Harry rubs his forehead, "Rita hasn''t written a new article..."

    Ciri "Then what is it?"

    Harry "I just said what you wanted to say, Rita deffnitely did write another one." he says, causing Reima to chuckle and Ciri to scowl, though the person responsible remains a mystery.

 367 Is hating black fur racist?

    Ciri gestures towards the paper, "Let''s see it then."

    Harry shrugs and hands the paper over, revealing the prominently featured article on the front page.

    "Harry Potter and Ciri Rivia rendezvous!?" it states in bolt letters with a large photo of the two walking beside each other, the camera focussing on Ciri more than Harry which shows a ball of black fur with red eyes resting on one of her arms.

    Reima "Look Snuffles, you made the news!" he jokes, causing the rabbit to bite his finger.

    Hermione "That isn''t even the worst of it." she says, pointing down to an article detailing the wand weighing ceremony.

    "The expert on wand-lore Garrick Ollivander was happy to examine all of the champions wands and give incredible detail about them... With the exception of Ciri Rivia now famous staff! The self purported expert could not even identify the materials it was made from making some question his qualification at all! Not to mention a trait of Miss Rivia''s staff that she has attempted to keep hidden from the public ever since her debut! The woman''s magical Foci is demonically enhanced! Causing most spells it conjures to be dangerous and more often than not ignite things on accident! Is this really a legal tool that a champion should be allowed? And if so, why are we allowing our other champions to be disadvantaged because of it!" - Rita Skeeter.

    Reima holds his fingers off and starts listing them off, "Slandered Ollivander, a prominent wand maker in the magical community. Slandered the Tournament officials for allowing Ciri to use her staff. Slandered Harry for being in a sensational relationship with Ciri. Slandered Ciri for using a demonically enchanted staff and essentially cheating in the tournament... I think Skeeter''s really out done her self today." he says, noting that he doesn''t have enough finger on one hand to continue listing people she''d offended with a single article.

    Harry "This is mad! How can she get away with stuff like this!?"

    Fred Weasley leans over, "Isn''t it obvious?"

    His brother George quickly answers, "She''s got dirt on everyone!"

    Fred/George "The quill is mightier than the sword!" they say, raising their arms in the air and crossing two quills against each other, causing some of the surrounding students to laugh.

    Reima was slightly confused at why the twins were being friendly with Harry since their brother had a public falling out together, he shrugs, in the end it wouldn''t be weird if they also disliked Ron as it''s a common trait for the civilised person. As he''s thinking this the Great Halls doors burst open revealing a horrified looking Hagrid with tears still streaming down his face.

    Hagrid walks past the tables and exclaims to Dumbledore who''s silently eating his breakfast. "They killed em! All of em! Who would do such a thing!" the large man says while wiping snot and tears from his face.

    Dumbledore "What has happened Hagrid?"

    Hagrid "All those ''uns, torn apart!"

    No one can really tell what the large almost hysterical man is saying and it seems Dumbledore can''t either.

    Dumbledore "Perhaps we should take this in my office, Hagrid?"

    The large man slowly nods and follows the headmaster out, under suspicious whispering from the students.

    Ciri "What was that about?" she wonder aloud.

    Hermione "It sounds like some animals were killed..."

    Harry nods, "Knowing Hagrid and the way he was acting that sounds about right."

    Reima "You guys have got a lesson with him later right?"

    Hermione nods, "We do don''t we... We''ll have to ask him then." she says.

    Later on when Harry and Hermione go to attend their Care of magical creatures class they spot Hagrid with students already gathering in-front of him.

    The large man sighs and rubs his red eyes, "Al''right class, today I was gonna teach you about blast ended skrewts but... I need to dig a couple graves, you can all continue the task on flobberworms ''aight?" they students nod and disperse to continue their project, Harry and Hermione however follow Hagrid back to his hut.

    Harry "Hagrid?" he asks, causing the man to jump.

    Hagrid "Ah, Harry? You scared me... Thought I''d be next." he says, scratching his neck.

    Hermione "Are you alright Hagrid?"

    The half giant shakes his head, "No... Not at all, did I tell ye about my looking after a group of terrorised animals?"

    Harry shakes his head in response queuing the man to continue.

    "Well, the worst has happened... While I was out feeding the hippogriff''s a felt a strange breeze, I felt like somethin'' was wrong so I went''ta check and found... Them, all butchered."

    Hermione "What animals are you talking about Hagrid?"

    He wipes his face again and replies, "Dem black furred cat''n dogs''n other animals wizard''s see as a bad omen... I found''em in Diagon Alley about to be transfig''red into stones and tossed in a river. Took''em in I did..."

    Hermione "Black furred animals are seen as a bad omen?" she asks confused, thinking about Ciri''s familiar Snuffles.

    Hagrid nods, "It''s ''cause of the dark creatures that can turn into''em... They have black fur which makes them easy to spot out of a crowd, but I think magical folk just want somethin''ta hate..." he says sadly.

    After they talk to the man for a couple more minutes the excuse themselves as they have a project on flobber worms to complete, as they walk Harry glances at Hermione, "You don''t think?.." he says, feeling that something was wrong with this whole situation.

    Hermione shakes her head, "No, that sounds silly, we''re sounding like conspiracy theorists now."

 368 Alcohol + Fish, is there a better combo?

    And so the days go on, Reima and Ciri continue their usual routine, running in the morning, classes, tutoring Harry and training in the room of requirement. They both had Professor Mcgonagall watch their progress towards their Animagus transformations, while neither had even started to transform yet they felt they were getting somewhere. Reima kept trying to create channels to finally be able to use his humanity along with carefully experimenting with Apparition, though which one poses a bigger threat to Hogwarts is debatable.

    Eventually Hogsmeade weekend rolls around causing excitement in many students, this included Ciri who wished to take a good look around the town and what it had to offer. Unfortunately Harry isn''t able to go as his guardians refuse to allow him any enjoyment whatsoever, instead of leaving him like Ron would have Reima decides to spend the day getting to know Harry better while the girls are off shopping or whatever they do.

    Reima watches as the girls leave and glances at Harry beside him who''s looking quite glum, "Harry? Come I''ll show you how to enjoy yourself around here." he says, walking towards the black lake.

    Harry shivers slightly and gives him a strange look, "It''s cold enough today, I don''t think swimming is a good idea."

    Reima shrugs, "We''re not swimming." he says, pulling out two fishing rods and nice looking chairs along with a small table that he sits between them.

    Harry''s eyes open wide at this, "Where did they come from!?"

    Reima "Ah? Didn''t you know? I''m a genie." he says sarcastically before sitting down and preparing his fishing line.

    Harry sits in the other chair and looks at the fishing rod before looking back at him, "Er... I-I don''t know how to fish..."

    Reima nods slowly, "Hmm, well watch closely as I prepare your line, I''ll only do it once." he says, grasping the end of it and preparing it.

    Once both rods are prepared Reima claps his hand over his mouth in shock, causing Harry to jump.

    Harry "What is it?" he asks warily.

    Reima "I''ve almost forgotten the most important thing!" he says, waving his hand and causing many bottles of hard alcohol to appear along with two large glasses.

    Harry reads them out loud with some consternation, "Smirnoff Vodka? Famous Grouse? Balkan?"

    Reima snatches the last one away as it was the strongest he had found in England, due to his constitution he doubted anything but the strongest would allow a hint of inebriation anymore.

    "That''s mine..." he says, hugging the bottle to his chest.

    Harry "Uh, I don''t think we should be having these on school grounds... And I haven''t drank before."

    Reima chuckles, "Well today I''m taking many of your virginities so get over it. Now, pour yourself a glass of whatever suits your fancy and I''ll hand you some bait."

    Harry nods absentmindedly, not really wanting to drink but the lure of a first time experience has his hand moving on it''s own. Not really sure of what he should drink he takes the closest one that happens to be the Vodka and pours a quarter pint into his class.

    Reima raises his bottle and clinks it against Harry''s own before taking a swig, almost gagging at the harsh taste. Harry on the otherhand... Is on the floor dry heaving after taking a mouthful of Vodka.

    Harry "Hurgh! Urrrgh! W-what, the fuck is that-Hurrrghh!"

    Reima "It''s called growing up and getting some hairs on your chest... And almost vomiting, but I was the same during my first time drinking he says with an almost sympathetic smile.

    Harry looks up from the floor, saliva and snot dripping from his face, "Well it taste awful!"

    Reima sighs, "Fine." he retrieves a bottle of orange juice and pours it into his glass to water down the Vodka, "That should taste drinkable now."

    Harry looks at him suspiciously but sits back in his chair and takes a sip... It''s good? It still has the aftertaste of Vodka but the sweetness of the orange juice makes it stomach-able.

    Harry "Thanks... I guess?"

    Reima brings out a box filled with dead worms, along with small strips of still bloody meat. "Choose your weapon" he says sarcastically before attaching some meat to his hook and casts his line far into the lake.

    Harry observes how he does this and replicates it with some success, managing to at least get it into the water with his worm bait intact. "What now?" he asks.

    Reima "Now, we wait."

    Harry sits there for about 4 minute before he starts shuffling uncomfortably.

    Reima "Do you have ADHD or something?" he asks when glances at Harry.

    Harry "Er, AD ache what now?"

    Reima shakes his head, "Nevermind... How about you tell me your hobbys?" he asks, hoping to get the teen to stop moving like an addict looking for his next fix.

    Harry contemplates for a moment before his gaze drops to the ground, "I-I don''t really have one... Aside from Quidditch?" he says, more trying to convince himself than anything.

    Reima "Surely you must like more than just Quidditch?" he asks.

    Harry "... Playing chess?" he questions but grimaces as he remembers he only played because of Ron.

    Reima chuckles "Well, I can''t say I''m too much better..."

    Harry "Why? What''re your hobbys?" he asks curious at his enigmatic new acquaintance.

    Reima "I like fighting I guess? To be honest I don''t do much else now days... Fishing could count as one but I hardly ever do it."

    Harry nods, "I don''t think I need hobbys, as long as I can spend time with my frien-Hermione..." he quickly corrects himself.

    Reima clinks his bottle on harrys glass to get him to drink up before grinning at him, "So, Hermione''s important to you?"

 369 Not even his fault but still responsible.

    "So, Hermione''s important to you?"

    Harry almost chokes on his drink when he hears this but quickly composes himself with a small blush. "Of course she is, she''s my best friend!"

    Reima nods his head, "Uh huh."

    Harry''s brows furrow, "Yeah, well is Ciri important to you?!"

    Reima who saw this coming a smile away grins at him, "Yeah, especially with her tongue in my mouth." he says, causing Harry to look at him wide eyed and red faced.

    Suddenly Harry''s line start shaking causing him to panic, "What do I do!?!"

    Reima "Just slowly reel it in, if you feel it''s putting too much pressure on the line give it some leeway before bringing it back." he says concisely so Harry can understand it even while frantic.

    The teen does as he says and quickly but carefully reels whatever he''d caught in, it isn''t too difficult but after he''s done he feels like he''d had quite the workout. Raising the rod and reeling it out of the water he looks closely as the large, fish is raised out of the water. Without the bouency of the water holding the fish up Harry almost topples over had Reima not gotten up and supported him.

    Harry looks over the huge fish with brown and dark green scales speckled with white dots. "What is it?" he asks, amazed that he''d actually managed to catch something.

    Reima "Er, I''m not really sure... But It''s probably edible, maybe?" he says making Harry unsure of how to react. "You wanna learn how to gut a fish?" he asks the teen, who nods unconsciously. Harry wasn''t sure himself but he felt like he was enjoying this experience, it''s a lot different to what he''d ever done in the past but felt it was pretty fun.

    Reima levitates the fish and brings out a steel dagger from his Folded Space before swinging it and quickly severing the fishes head, a flash of metal and it''s stomach is opened up which allows it''s organs to fall out of it. Reima quickly cleans them out before starting on it''s scales, with his dexterity an telekinesis he quickly descales it.

    Harry watches this in silent amazement at how quickly and efficiently Reima is actually doing this, he''d seen aunt Petunia prepare fish before but it took forever, especially if the fish wasn''t already prepared for cooking.

    In the end all that they''re left with is two huge fillets that Reima attached to a couple long branches and starts cooking over a fire he''d quickly prepared next to them.

    Reima takes a swig from hid Vodka, only now noticing it''s already half gone, he felt like he was starting to approach feeling it''s effects but he wasn''t sure. "Cheers Harry!" he says, clinking his drink against Harry''s yet again. The boy himself was starting to feel abit wobbly from the amount of Vodka he''d ingested, as a first time drinker he was doing quite well when also considering his small stature.

    Harry casts his line again and sits back in his chair, putting his feet close to the fire which provides them a pleasant warmth. Suddenly Reima''s line starts violently shaking, more so than Harry''s ever had. The ashen haired man didn''t waste any time and quickly reeled it in, he didn''t give it a chance to escape as he kept the pressure on and eventually got it close enough to sure where he could drag it out... Only to go bug-eyed at what he''d caught. It had many thin sharp teeth, green skin and fins instead of ears.

    Harry "I think that''s a merman!" he almost slurs while shouting in surprise.

    Reima approaches the creature to try and remve the hook from it''s face as he didn''t think this humanoid creature would taste very nice. As he approaches it screeches an ungodly sound which causes Harry to clasp his hands around his ears, Reima ignores it and quickly tackles the creature, holding it''s throat tightly causes it to cease it''s screaming. He reaching into it''s mouth while minding it''s sharp teeth and manages to retrieve the hook, once done he lets go of the Merman and allows it to return back to the lake.

    Reima "I thought these things were supposed to be intelligent?" he mutters loud enough for Harry to hear.

    Harry "Maybe they didn''t expect red meat to be used as bait?" he says, making Reima nod.

    Reima "I don''t know, it seemed pretty feral to me." he says, grabbing the now cooked fish and takinga bite out of it... It''s a bit bland... He retrieves salt, pepper and lemon from his Folded Space and covers it in them along with Harry''s before taking another more satisfactory bite.

    Reima ends up having to drink three more bottles of the highly alcoholic Vodka before he starts feeling slightly tipsy, by the time he gets this far however Harry is already completely shit faced and murmuring various things. Things that Reima didn''t think he wanted to be known, the boy even started talking about the Chamber of Secrets along with a "Huge Basilisk and Ghost Voldemort"...

    The two continued to drink, fish and eat until the girls found them, Reima wasn''t drunk enough not to notice their state of dress however. Seeing both Hermione and Ciri in scuffed clothes that''d been torn and bloodied...

    Reima "Er, what happened?" he asks as the two girls give him a harsh glare after seeing Harry completely fucked.

 370 Hogsmeade trip

    Hermione and Ciri had just left for Hogsmeade, and were briskly walking towards an ice cream store after arguing about which store they should go to first. Hermione obviously wanted to go check out the library but Ciri had wanted to try and buy Hermione some "Nice" clothes as she could see the young girl had potential to look beautiful, she imagined it was a similar feeling Yennefer had towards herself all those years ago. As they couldn''t decide which to go to first they decided to buy a snack and decide afterwards, Ciri had ordered something different from the last time she''d bought ice cream in Diagon Alley. The girls also ordered two bottle of butterbear to go with it.

    The girls talked to each other about various miscellaneous things but Ciri had to cut the conversation short as Hermione was trying to probe into her and Reima''s past. She look down to take another spoonful of ice cream but finds most of it had already been eaten by Snuffles who gives her an innocent look.

    In the end Ciri''s stubbornness won out and the girls ended up going to a clothing store, she had a pocket full of change courtesy of Reima and she intended to spend it all. She quickly bought many sets of clothing for herself and Hermione after getting the teen to try them on. Most of them were robes but she found that the wizarding underwear stores were pretty comprehensive, she still refused to wear a bra but panties that didn''t get dirty from her monthlies? Definitely a good purchase!

    The two had just exited the store with too many bags to handle and Hermione with giving her a glare for buying too many things, Ciri gives her a shrug but suddenly remembers the name of Reima''s house elf. "Hinky" she says aloud, causing the small creature to appear in-front of her.

    Hinky "What can Hinky do for Mistress?" it says, causing her brows to furrow.

    Ciri "Mistress?" she asks.

    Hinky "Misstress is Masters Mistress, Mistress."

    Ciri "...Uh huh... Erm, could you take our bags back to Hogwarts please Hinky?"

    Hinky quickly nods and clicks it''s fingers, causing it along with their bags to disappear.

    Hermione "So, Mistress, what was that about?"

    Ciri grumbles but replies, "I thought you already knew that me and Reima were dating?"

    Hermione "I did but being called Mistress? I didn''t know you were into that kind of stuff..."

    Ciri "Funny hearing that from a prude" she says with a smug grin.

    Hermione "Prude!?!"

    Ciri "Well of course you are, you''ve got Harry Potter by the balls but still haven''t made your move."

    ...

    Hermione doesn''t reply but just shakes her head, she starts heading towards the library with Ciri following but something causes them both to stop. Ciri steps beside Hermione and hands Snuffles to her before drawing her sword with her hand that''s not occupied by her staff. Immediately her hairs on the back of her neck raise when she see''s black shadows darting from the roof tops of the village.

    Ciri shouts, "Vampires!" causing the surrounding people to look at her strangely. This doesn''t continue however as many figures drop from the rooftops and surround the girls. Snuffles glares at them with her crimson eyes only to feel the figures glare back. The vampires all around the duo + rabbit have black hair with slitted red eyes and seem unaffected by the suns rays.

    "IT''S HER" one shouts, causing the rest the pull out various Silver weapons. This causes the surrounding people to scream in terror and flee in various directions, some unfortunate few aren''t fast enough or were already too close as the vampire haphazardly wave their weapons, bisecting a few people.

    Hermione is absolutely horrified by this and starts backing away towards the building behind them while Ciri steps forward with her sword drawn.

    Ciri "Back off or I''ll cut you a new one!" she shouts, dragging her staff over her sword and causing it to ignite with powerful flames enshrouding the blade.

    One figure steps forward and glares at her, "Hand her over and we will grant you a quick demise!" they shout.

    Ciri knows that the Auror''s will get here eventually and all she has to do is hold them off until then, however she knows who they''re after and isn''t sure she would be able to fend them all off.

    Suddenly Snuffles jumps out of Hermione''s arms and transforms into her vampire form, still shoe-less with a white sundress and wielding her Iaito. Hermiones eyes almost roll out of her sockets when she sees this but she shakily retrieves her wand and points it at the vampire surrounding them.

    Nerissa digs a nail into her wrist holding the sword, causing blood to crawl out of it and envelope the blade, making it resemble ruby isntead of steel. She growls out, "Die" before lunging forwards and attempting to stab the closest vampire. It parries the blade but gets launched away as a Reducto from Ciri connects with it''s shoulder, causing it''s arm to disintegrate due to the overpowered spell, however as soon as the vampire see Ciri fire a spell from her staff they leap forwards in an attempt to eliminate her quickly. In response to this she brings her sword up and parries a silver blade while ducking under the other which to an average person only looks like a glimmer of silver in the air.

    After successfully dodging the blow she flicks her blade at the Achilles tendon of one of the vampires, the flames of her sword damaging it too much to be healed quickly.

    Ciri huffs out, "Shit, where is Reima when you need him!"

 371 Smart, but strong you are not.

    Hermione continues to watch Ciri and her familiar, person? Battle with such voracity that it scares her. The young girl that had been a rabbit only moments ago swings a katana that is bigger than she is with such ease and speed that she feel incredibly vulnerable in comparison.

    Ciri''d just crippled one vampire and was darting her eyes around quickly to try and tell where the next attack would be, her steel sword isn''t as affective as a silver one but the flames more than make up for it, the vampire she''d dodged comes sprinting at her with it''s silver blade coming down from an overheard strike, from her experience sparring with Nerissa and Reima she could tell she wouldn''t be able to block the blow without being terribly injured. Instead she twirls out of the way as the sword cleaves into the floor, destroying the stone below. As Ciri turns she flicks her sword at the vampires neck, presumably severing an artery considering the vampires reaction. It immediately throws itself backwards holding it''s neck that''s been simultaneously cut and seared, blood trickled through it''s fingers as it snarls at her, long fangs bared. However it doesn''t get long to glare at Ciri as a ruby-like blade penetrate the back of it''s head and out of it''s eye, killing it instantly and rendering it dust.

    Ciri nods at Nerissa who quickly retrieves her blade to block another attack while leaping out of the way of one aimed at her. Truly if the Auror''s always took this long it wouldn''t surprise her if Voldemort just won outright!

    She deflects another sword strike before pointing the tip of her staff at them and casting an overpowered "Reducto!" which hits the vampires chest and explodes out of it''s back, causing the rest of it''s body to puff into ash.

    Nerissa''s lips were upturned as she continued to ravage through the ranks of vampires, she considered this retribution for her parents and gladly sliced through any vampire that''d dare present themselves. Her strength was slightly lesser than her older counterparts but her speed was unmatched among their ranks, this was primarily due to the training Ciri and Reima had been putting her through almost daily. Additionally, she had something these bloodsuckers didn''t.

    After kicking a body off of her sword she swipes her left hand towards an approaching vampire, causing blood to coalesce out of her self inflicted wound and harden into long claws attached to whip like tendrils, she had created this after remembering her mother using it before her life was snuffed out. It apparently proved effective when the claws penetrated the vampires body she wrenched them out, causing huge gashes and wound to appear on it''s body, the blood from her unfortunate victim was also drained provided Nerissa with more ammunition to use on it''s comrades.

    Due to the huge amount of pain the vampire was in Nerissa had no problem stepping low and bisecting it with Iaito, the shower of ashes coated her form creating a truly terrifying sight for the other vampires who''s been tasks with her capture.

    While the other were preoccupied Hermione continued to stand stock still with her wand pointing at the floor, fearing enveloping her like a cloud.

    Suddenly she hears light footsteps behind her, when she musters the courage to turn she sees a grinning fanged face glaring at her due to it''s taller height. She can''t even give a scream before it grabs her throat and lifts her off of the ground, causing her to choke and gurgle. Her eyes tear up as she see''s it''s mouth approaching her neck, as a last ditch attempt she brings her wand up and points it at it''s chest and casts "Expelliarmus" from her strangled position, the red bolt it''s and causes Hermione to be flung from it''s hands and towards Nerissa. She rolls to a stop below the young girls feet causing the ash covered fourteen year old to glance at her before returning her focus to the enemies surrounding them.

    The vampire Hermione had just escaped from looks at her fiercely and starts walking over, drawing a sword from it''s belt and approaching the back of Nerissa who''s entangled with two others. Hermione tries to get up to stop his advance but the pain in her back and neck cause her to halt, however as it gets closer and closer she becomes more frantic. The vampire quickly raises it''s blade behind Nerissa in an attempt to behead her but finds a pain in it''s chest... Hermione had tried to get up to stop it''s attack but stumbled, she looks at the ground fearing for Ciri''s friend but realises she''s not holding her wand? Looking up she sees the handle of her faithful companion sticking from the vampires chest... It gives a gasp before bursting into ash, letting her now rather pointy wand clatter to the floor.

    Eventually in the background the trio hear "AURORS DROP YOUR WEAPONS", causing Ciri and Nerissa to lock eyes before the latter turns back into a rabbit. It''s not long before the red cloaked men barrel onto the scene casting various curses at the vampires, causing them to reluctantly retreat.

    Ciri falls onto her ass with Snuffle resting on her legs as she breathes heavily, she has various wounds covering her body from barely dodged blows but nothing fatal, indeed the only thing she''s upset about is her new outfit being completely ruined.

    Ciri "Hemione? You okay?" she asks the still shaky girl.

    Hermione "Y-yes... I think..."

    Not long after their intervention the Auror''s start to interrogate them, until they realise one of them is Ciri Rivia. Indeed it seemed as though these people appreciated the services she''d done for the community and after a brief statement allowed them to return to Hogwarts.

 372 Sausage-fest fixed!

    The girl quickly recount the story under the stunned looks of the completely shit-faced Harry and slightly tipsy Reima.

    Harry slurs, "Wait, your rabbit is a person?... Uh, how come you never... Said anything about it." he says apparently choking on his own burp.

    Reima "Well, you''re all still alive so that''s good..."

    Ciri snorts, "Really, you could be a little more enthusiastic that we survived... I almost died fighting three off last time remember?"

    Reima "Er yeah... But look at the bright side? You''re improving!"

    ...

    Snuffles who''d hopped onto his seat slaps him in the face with her long ears before resting peacefully on his lap, apparently enjoying the nearby fire.

    Hermione "I don''t care much about the vampires... But what have you done to Harry!" she almost shieks as said person gives her a dopey smile.

    Harry "Uh-ah, it''s my only friend Hermioneeeee! Come here and sit on my lap, I''ll catch you a biiig fisshh." he slurs, causing Hermione to glare harshly at Reima.

    Reima shrugs, "We were bonding over some drinks, I may have encouraged him to drink more than he could handle... But look at it this way, he''s finally blowing off steam.

    Ciri "Hey, why have you never offered to take me fishing?" she asks.

    Reima "You''re loud and annoying, definitely not fishing material."

    Ciri "I am not!" she starts to shout but quietens when she realises she''s just proving his point.

    "Though Geralt used to say the same thing..." she adds on with mirth.

    Reima "You two look like you''ve been through hell, why not sit back with us, have a couple drinks and eat some fish." he says, gesturing to some chairs that''d somehow materialised next to he and Harry.

    The sky was still bright as they still had a few hours of sunlight as Reima wanted to make the most of it before they had to continue the constant training they''d been subjecting themselves to.

    Ciri glances at Hermione and shrugs, before snatching a bottle of whisky from the table and plopping herself down in the comfortable chair next to Reima. After popping the top off with her thumb she takes a big swig of whisky and almost cough''s after she''s done.

    Ciri "That''s-some strong stuff..." she says while Reima chuckles.

    Hermione "Ciri, Harry! You shouldn''t be drinking on school grounds!"

    Ciri "Come on Herm''s I told you before, you''ve gotta stop being such a prude."

    Eventually Hermiones relents and sits next to Harry, still refusing to drink but more than happy to use the techniques her father had taught her to fish.

    Hermione "So... What''s with the rabbit?" she asks while casting her line.

    Reima strokes Snuffles furry head and ears, "What about her?"

    Hermione "I''m not stupid enough to believe you simply have a young girl as a familiar for no reason."

    Reima shakes his head, "It''s personal, and also up to Snuffles whether or not she wants to tell you. Don''t push it or you might get bitten by this terrifying beast!" he says, raising the lazy looking rabbit up. Seeing he''s not having the affect he wanted he shakes her slightly causing the Rabbit to glare at Hermione and causing Harry to start laughing uproariously.

    The group spend the rest of the day drinking, fishing and eating. They weren''t stopped by anyone as even when Hagrid came over to see what the smoke was all about Reima offered him a chair and a drink... The man simply couldn''t refuse and drank the day away with the teens, telling stories of the various creatures he''d encountered in the forbidden forest.

    The next day after Reima and Ciri''s morning run they find Hermione at breakfast, along with a horrible looking Harry who''s got a pile of greasy food stacked in-front of him.

    Reima "Sup Harry, first hangover?" he asks with a smug smile.

    Harry "I am never drinking again!" he says while chewing some fried bread.

    Ciri chuckles, "That''s what they all say."

    They continue to joke until the fluttering of wings signals the entrance of the mail owls, they glide in, dropping various packages, two even landing in Harry''s heap of food, causing him to curse everything that''s holy. Hermione shakes the package clean of ketchup and opens it, causing her brows to furrow.

    Ciri "Prophet?"

    Hermione nods, "Prophet.", she then shows Ciri the front cover which has a moving picture of Ciri breathing heavily on the floor, covered in blood and ashes while her still flaming sword rest in the ground next to her. She reads the title aloud for the group to hear, "Ciri Rivia saves the day again!"

    ...

    Reima "It''s like the media are all Bipolar, one minute your having a scandalous relationship with the national hero and the next? You''re saving them all.

    Harry nods along, "I know the feeling, just get used to it and ignore them."

    She continues to read the article that tells the heroic story of how she fended off fifty vampires alone with just her sword and staff, that she was about to finally be cut down when the Auror''s arrived and saved her.

    Hermione "But none of that is true..." she says slowly.

    Reima "It''s true for the public now, which basically makes it a fact." he says while shrugging.

    Ciri "What a sad state for journalism to fall to." she says.

    Reima chuckles, "I don''t know what you''re talking about, I vaguely remember something about Cintra executing prisoners?" this causes Ciri to purse her lips, not being able to retort.

    Hermione looks at them confused, Cintra?

 373 Mouldyshorts

    During the attack in Hogsmeade a rat had finally managed to recover it''s head from a plastic wrapper after being too eager in eating it''s contents, it''s beady black eyes glance left and right as black figures drop down to try and attack two people, one it recognised as Harry Potters companion Hermione Granger and the other something he had seen in the Daily Prophet often, Ciri Rivia, the one who killed his old friend and enemy, Sirius Black. Not long after the battle had started he quickly ducked into a dark corner and waited until the Auror''s had arrived as he didn''t have any interest in being torn apart by some dark creatures. Once the sounds of combat were over he stuck his head out and saw Ciri Rivia with a rabbit on her leg resting on the ground while giving an Auror a statement, he quickly retreats and starts heading back to his master with new information that might be useful to him.

    In the depths of a dimly lit mansion, torn apart by the degradation of time can be heard the loud clattering of doors.

    "Wormtail!?!" A hoarse voice tries to shout out but the volume doesn''t go over a whisper.

    A fat man with ragged blonde hair, pimples and buck teeth barrels into the room that contains the origin of the voice. "It is me master!" he calls apprehensively.

    A a quiet voice whispers from the robes that envelop it in an attempt to hide it''s disgusting visage and keep it warm "What is so urgent that you must disturb my rest Wormtail!" it says slowly.

    Peter Pettigrew shivers at the voice, not so distant memories of being tortured by the cruciatus curse flash in his mind as the words in his throat don''t come out. He coughs into his hand and shakily replies, "I-I was doing a-a-as you asked when Hogsmeade was attacked my Lord!"

    Voldemort now in his homunculus form grits his teeth without the strength to even chew marshmallow, "Were you discovered Wormtail?" he asks, a silent threat lingering in the air.

    Peter "No my Lord! I-I managed to escape as those vampires attacked the one who killed Sirius Black!"

    Voldemort "Ah, so that thorn is already dealt with?" he asks slowly, wondering why he''d not been informed of this before.

    Peter nods quickly, "Stabbed through the heart by Ciri Rivia sir!"

    ...

    Voldemort "And this.. Girl? Is she Death Eater material?" he rasps out the question.

    Peter "I''m n-not sure, there are rumours that she is romantically involved with Harry Potter my Lord!"

    The half-living homunculus gives a chilling chuckle, "Even better. The look in his eyes when I grant her the final release will be glorious..."

    Peter "Lord, this is also the Hogwarts champion! If she can fight off a horde of vampires then she must disrupt your plans!"

    ...

    Voldemort closes his eyes and contemplates his servants words, if this girl manages to win the tournament then all his planning will be rendered useless... Perhaps he could gain the assistance of the vampires she had slaughtered? He muses to himself.

    "Wormtail! Is there word of Greyback?

    Peter "No my liege! There has not been even a whisper of his location."

    Voldemort scowls, "What about my Death Eaters who escaped being sentenced to Azkaban!?"

    Peter "I have tried to speak with them but they refuse to believe your survival my Lord!"

    ...

    Voldemort "They will suffer the consequences of betraying me." he spits. "For now, try to contact the vampires and see if we can negotiate with them. Give hints to our plans but never disclose it, otherwise I''ll deal with you permenantly."

    Peter bows low before almost sprinting from the room, not looking back.

    The dark lord watches as his cowardly servant leaves and start formulating more plans from the information he had gathered, clearly he wouldn''t be receiving any help from his former Death Eaters, he''d have to wait until he was back to full power before showing why he should still be feared. His thoughts drift to the new name that''d made itself prominent, Ciri Rivia. He doubted the girl would be strong enough to cause him trouble but he had to be cautious, if was Wormtail had said was true in that she had fought off a large group of vampires alone then she would have to be quite magically powerful, as even he would have trouble defending against it.

    Regardless his plans were already progressing and if Crouch Jr did as he was instructed then everything would go according to plan. His Resurrection and the death of Harry Potter would cripple magical Britain, and in their terror fuel''d grief they would become easy pickings, especially if he was able to gain the allegiance of the discriminated dark creatures. Yes, his plans were slowly coming together and he patiently awaited the day he would return to rule not only Britain, but Europe and the other continents, showing that he was far above what Grindlewald could have ever been.

 374 First task!!!

    Eventually the day of the first task rolled around, much to the chagrin of Harry who still wasn''t assured of his own survival. Even though he''d learned more under Reima than he had any professor before, despite none of being exam worthy it was all useful stuff. That and he had finally learned a couple offensive spells that weren''t "Expelliarmus". Harry was wearing an outfit with minimal protection in the red and gold colours of Gryffindor while Ciri wore a similar coloured jumper with tight leather pants and knee pads.

    He and Ciri were led towards a hastily constructed stadium with a tent attached to it, once led inside the tent they could see the two other champions pacing back and forth or just sitting down in a corner with a grim look, clearly they already knew about the dragons.

    Ciri takes a seat on a nearby table and goes over the plan she''d discussed with Reima, it was quite simple really. Enter, hide, Accio the Drake sword towards herself and smash it into the Dragons face. If the shockwave doesn''t outright kill the it then it''d knock it out for a while. She also has a couple other plans just in case this one doesn''t work but they are slightly less excited then fighting a dragon, something she''d be bragging to Geralt about when they next see each other.

    Harry was stood next to a tent wall, fear exacerbating his twitching that he''d thought had all but disappeared. It seems the Cruciatus curse isn''t so easily fixed however, hearing a ruffling behind him he sees the face of his best friend Hermione looking as she was about to cry along with him. She hugs him tightly only to suddenly hear a commotion behind them, turning they can see Rita Skeeta and Ciri arguing with each other, the latter being backed up by Krum who states "This is a place for friends! Not like you and your green quill." he scowls, causing Rita to back off a little, not wishing to offend one of the most famous young men around.

    Rita "Nonsense, I was just wondering if I could get a couple photo''s of the champions before their tasks." she says with a sweet smile, causing the champions to frown.

    Ciri "We refuse, now piss off Rita. I''ve had enough of your bullshit journalism and lies, take your cunt camera man with you as well." she says loudly, causing the other champions to nod alongside her.

    Rita "But I have a right to be here!"

    She''s interrupted by Barty Crouch who quickly enters alongside Ludo Bagman, Dumbledore and the foreign school headmasters.

    Crouch "Indeed Rita you are allowed to attend but you were strictly forbidden from interacting with the champions in any way... Perhaps we''d be better off with another Journalist?" he says, the threat obvious.

    Rita quickly shakes her head, "No need Barty, I''ll behave myself..." she says through a false smile.

    Ludo Bagman steps towards the champions and smiles brightly apparently trying to mimic his bright yellow Quidditch jersey. "It is almost time for the first task to start, I''m sure you are all wondering what it''ll be?" he looks around but frowns slightly when he sees no interest on any of their faces. He coughs "Ahem, right. Well I am sure you will all be happy to know that the task is simply for you all to collect a single golden egg... Of course it is guarded by a dragon as it''s placed amongst her original eggs but I am sure you will all accomplish this task easily enough." he says with as smile. As he''s finished explaining he holds up a purple bag, "Inside you will find one of four varieties of dragons, some are more difficult to deal with than others but they''re all still dragons... So, lets start with... Ladies first?" he says, eyes glazing over slightly as he almost stumbles up to Fleur. She plunges her hand inside and pulls out a green dragon that lazily lays down on her palm.

    Ludo "Ah, a Welsh Green. It seems luck was with you today Miss Delacour... Now, lets be fair to the men shall we? Krum, you''re next." he says, shaking the bag with an eager look.

    Krum reaches his hand inside and pulls out a bright red dragon that shoots out small fires from it''s mouth.

    Ludo "A Chinese Fireball? Funny how it''s not squinting ey?" he laughs and claps Krum on the shoulder who''s still blankly staring at the dragon in his hand.

    Ludo then glances at Ciri and Harry, "Hmm, shall we have Miss Rivia pull out this one?" he asks, presenting the bag to her.

    Ciri remembers Reima''s words and replies to Bagman, "I''d actually like to pick last, since someone is obviously trying to kill Harry I''d wager to bet the most dangerous dragon will be picked last, the position you happened to have Harry in..." she quickly says.

    Ludo''s brows furrow, "Are you trying to imply something Miss Rivia?"

    Ciri shakes her head, "Not at all, but I''m wondering whether you''d take the bet on whether or not the most dangerous dragon will come last...

    Ludo shakes his head, "Very well, if you don''t wish to pick then... Harry! Please reach your hand inside and grab the first thing you feel."

    Harry does so while glancing at Ciri, he feels something and pulls it out, revealing it to be a bluish grey dragon with a one written on it''s neck.

    Ludo scratches the back of his head, "The Swedish Shortsnout... It seems your hunch was right Miss Rivia, though whether you should be happy about facing this beat is up to your luck." he says presenting the bag. Ciri pulls out the Hungarian Horntail, it''s spiky black scales looking menacing as it tries to bite her hand.

 375 Harry VS Dragon

    Ludo "The Hungarian Horntail... Believe me Miss Rivia when I say even the dragon handlers were having difficulties transporting it, I do hope you won''t regret swapping with Harry here...

    Ciri nods, "I''ll be fine, better than if Harry competed against it."

    The other officials in the room look slightly suspicious at what Ciri had revealed but they continued nevertheless.

    Dumbledore steps forwards and pats Harry on the back, "Harry, since you''ll be going first when you hear the sound of th-" *BAAANG* "-Cannon... You must enter the stadium, well, since our ever competent Mr Filch has already shot it!" he shouts at the man above them who scowls at him, "You should enter the stadium now Harry, I wish you luck."

    Harry doesn''t look at the man, still not believing there was nothing he could do that''d help him out of this tournament. He takes a deep breath before walking past the tent flaps and into the stadium where the voice of Ludo Bagman echoes around along with the almost deafening cheers of those watching.

    Up in the seats sits Reima and Hermione, the latter freaking out about how Harry would get out of this one alive.

    Reima nudges her and gives her a smile, "Don''t worry Hermione, I haven''t been training him nothing these past weeks. Just trust that he''ll complete this in one piece."

    Hermione nods despite her breathing still being ragged, "Okay.. He''ll be okay.... Okay." she quickly whispers to herself while Reima watches Harry enter the stadium.

    Ludo "Here is our first challenger! Harry Potter facing off against the brutal Swwweeeedddish Shortsnout!" he shouts, causing everyone to cheer even louder than before.

    Ludo smiles and continues, "His goal for this task is to make it past the dragon and steal the golden egg that has been placed within her clutch, this will be an extremely difficult and dangerous task I assure all of you!" he shouts.

    Harry''s face twitches when he hears Bagman but ignores it and starts glancing around the stadium, looking for the dragon. He has a spell on his slips as Reima had already given him all he needed to easily get past this task.

    Flashback :

    Harry sits in the classroom where he''d been learning magic from Reima Ludvig, he''s almost pulling his hair out while quickly scanning a book for information that''d help him not be barbecued by a dragon. Half an hour later he throws the book at a nearby wall with red eyes, furious that he still hadn''t found anything.

    Reima who was re-reading the book that taught the Dark Hand with his feet up on the desk opposite Harry glances at the angry boy and flicks some chalk at his forehead.

    Harry reels from the sudden attack before spinning and drawing his wand.

    Reima stores his book and claps, "Very good, you''re learning."

    Harry "Leave it Reima, I''m not in the mood for jokes." he says tiredly.

    Reima "Still looking for a solution to your dragon problem?" he asks and receives a nod. "I think you''re thinking about taking it down too abstractly, I seem to recall in your drunken state you talking about killing a basilisk with the sword of Gryffindor?"

    Harry scratches the back of his head for uttering his secrets so easily with a bit of alcohol... "Yeah, but I doubt a dragon would be as easily taken out..."

    Reima "Again, you''re not thinking outside the box! The sword of Gryffindor is a Goblin made sword yes?" Harry nods, "And Goblin made swords take on the traits of whatever they touch, yes?"

    Harry "Dumbledore did say something like that... But where is this going?"

    Reima "Man Harry, are your trying to be oblivious or is this your natural state? If the sword is now as venomous as Basilisk venom, wouldn''t it almost instantly kill whatever it cut?"

    Harry "..Including dragons! Reima you''re a genius!"

    Reima shakes his head, "No, your just an idiot" he says while chuckling.

    Flashback End

    Harry still had no idea why he didn''t think of this before, the sword was still placed in the headmasters office and easily retreivable. He raises his wand in the air and casts "Accio Sword of Gryffindor!"

    Ludo "It seems young Harry has cast the first spell of the tournament, I wonder what it was! Perhaps a flame-freeze charm!?! Who knows!"

    While Harry waits for the sword to appear he sees a greyish-blue spike tail almost slithering on the floor in-front of him, this immediately tells Harry where the dragon is and as such backs away from it''s current position, carefully watching his steps in order to not trip and inform it of his location.

    It''s only 10 seconds later that a shadow comes flying from the sky, Harry pales as he sees the sword of Gryffindor heading for him blade first and immediately starts running, only barely managing to move his foot away at the last instance before it landed.

    Ludo "Wow! Harry summons a sword which almost impales him! That''s what I call a spell backfire!" he shout, causing the crowd to laugh and cheer.

    Harry mentally thanks Ludo as his shouting may have blocked the dragon from hearing his panicked footsteps, looking at the sword penetrating the stone ground he grasps the handle and pulls it out. The stone underneath it looking almost corroded by it''s presence.

    He gets to a high vantage point and finally spots the neck of the dragon, once up there he points the sword towards it while casting a charm on the sword. "Virga!" he shouts, casting the most powerful charm he can, which causes the Sword of Gryffindor to vibrate slightly before being slingshot-ed at the dragon, causing a loud *CLANK* as it hits it''s scales, not penetrating deeply but enough for the venom to enter it''s bloodstream!

 376 The-Boy-Who-Slays?

    Ludo Bagman shouts excitedly as he watches this all happen, "OH MERLIN! HE JUST SHOT THE SWORD AT THE DRAGON!" the sword clanks loudly off of it''s scales but not before piercing a couple inches and drawing a thick droplet of crimson blood. "I DON''T KNOW WHAT POTTER WAS AIMING FOR BUT IT SEEMS TO HAVE FAILED! Now he''s only angered the dragon!" he shouts, thanking Merlin that he''d not bet on Harry when given the chance.

    Harry himself threw his fist in the air when he saw that he had actually drawn blood but quickly had to duck into cover as a stream of searing flames flew over his head, courtesy of the furious dragon. Now that he''d managed to injure the dragon all he had to do was wait for the venom to do it''s work, hopefully it''d be effective against dragons and work fast enough for him to escape being crushed.

    The Swedish Shortsnout quickly climbs up to the rocky area where Harry had previously been and pokes it''s head over to spot the ant that''d attacked it. It sees nothing and it shoots flames from it''s nostrals in anger. It quickly turns it''s attention towards it''s eggs and walks over to protect them but... It''s movements starts becoming sluggish... It tries to lift it''s front arm to continue moving but finds it unable to, this continues to spread until it falls face first onto the floor, not being able to move at all.

    Ludo "MERLIN! HARRY POTTER MUST HAVE POISONED IT! I HAVE NEVER HEARD OF POISON THAT CAN EFFECT A DRAGON! MARVELLOUS!" He shouts excitedly as the dragon closes it''s eyes and ceases to breathe.

    Harrry pokes his head up from cover and throws a rock at the large beast to see if it''s still awake... It doesn''t move which gives him the confidence to run forwards and collect the golden egg, he grabs it and raises it into towards the sky while the crowd roars with excitement. Ludo "HE''S DONE IT, THE FIRST CHAMPION HAS PASSED! Oh! What is this? The dragon handlers are rushing to the Swedish Shortsnout!" he quickly says.

    Harry''s almost knocked off of his feat by Charlie Weasley as the young man tries to attend to the dragon, he feels around it''s neck and chest with a grim look before fiercely looking at Harry.

    Charlie "You''ve killed her!"

    Ludo hears this and screams, "Harry Potter as slain the dragon! SOME ONE SO YOUNG HAS NEVER DONE THIS BEFORE!"

    Harry shrugs to Charlie who''s glaring at him, "It was me or it Charlie! I''m sure you would love to see your beloved Dragon tear me apart but I''m not so weak as to let that happen!" he shouts, accio''s the sword of Gryffindor and briskly walks towards the exit, almost being pounced on by Madam Pomfrey who quickly goes about and starts checking various things on his body.

    Harry "Pomfrey the dragon never even touched me!" he exclaims to try and escape the woman''s "Tender care".

    Pomfrey "Nonsense! I will check you over as many times as I can before I am satisfied with your health!"

    Harry can only grumble excuses while we makes him drink a couple of nasty tasting potions, eventually he''s spared from any more and he''s almost tackled by a brown blur.

    Harry "H-ermi-one! Let-me-breathe!" after choking this out his best friend reluctantly releases him from the tight hug.

    Hermione "You did so well Harry! You might even be in first place after that!" she says quickly, never releasing her grip from him.

    Harry "Thanks, but I doubt I would have gotten through this without Reima, or you." he says with a smile. This only causes her to pounce on him yet again, except this time with a few kisses to his cheeks by the flushed Hermione.

    Reima still sits in the audience while Hermione "comforts" Harry, he felt no need to cockblock him after such a good showing, plus he was still waiting for when Ciri would be showing. He was happy the sword in his hands would finally see some use as he never really used it in all his years in Lordran.

    *BANG!*

    Ludo "Let''s see out next champion!" he shouts after hearing the cannon go again, a large green dragon is released and curls itself around it''s eggs protectively.

    Fleur Delacour walks in timidly at first but when she hears the cheers of the audience her back straightens, her gaze travels over the audience until she spots Reima, she smiles at him before turning her attention to the task at hand. She walks up to the highest point in the stadium and looks over where the green dragon is, as soon as she spots it she ducks low in attempt to evade it''s notice. Once hidden she points her wand to her throat to amplify her voice and starts singing.

    Ludo "Woaah! Miss Delacour wishes to soothe the Dragon! I have no idea if this will work but if it does it could gain her a great advantage over the other champions!" His voice rumbles over her soothing song but doesn''t disrupt it, Fleurs brows furrow slightly as Ludo''s voice almost ruins her plan but she continues nevertheless.

    Soon people in the audiance start to fall asleep, starting with the magically weak ones then moving towards the ones who are not guarded against it. Ludo manages to keep his eyes open for a few minutes but eventually succumbs to the song, as it happens, the Green Dragon yawns, feeling less threatened as the sound of the audience slowly fades away as more and more people fall asleep.

    Reima himself isn''t even slightly affected and continues to watch on with interest in how this spell works.

    Suddenly her voice halts and the girl quickly sneaks towards the dragon, grabbing it and slowly walking away. She glances up at Reima and sends a smug smile, not noticing the dragon snoring next to her feet. Flames burst from it''s nose lighting her trousers on fire and causing her to quickly pat them out, luckily without waking the dragon.

 377 There wont be anything but... Krums left...

    Fleur enters Madam Pomfrey''s tent and is quickly looked over by the dedicated nurse, the only injuries she has are the small burns from her rather silly mistake. Fleur could only shake her head sadly as she knew this would drastically affects her score.

    Madam Pomfrey "Apply this salve to your burn every night for three days and it''ll heal completely.." She quickly says, "Dragons? And dragonfire, a healers bane!" she grumbles to herself as she walks away.

    Fleur sits down to rest her still slightly shaking legs and wait for the others to compete, looking to her side she can see the youngest champion Harry Potter with his friend Hermione Granger sitting on his legs. Fleur smiles slightly at seeing this as she herself can feel the tension between the two and she knew it was only a matter of time before it broke.

    Krum was wearing his bright red Durmstrang robe over a simple t-shirt and some tracksuit bottoms. The cannon blasts into the air signalling it was time for him to enter the arena, walking inside he immediately drops low and starts scanning the vicinity.

    Reima watches as Krum wanders around the arena slowly for a ten minutes before finally spotting the large spiky red beast on the far end of the stadium, he vaguely remembered that Krum would survive this but he wouldn''t care much if the guy got eaten either, he didn''t strike Reima as the most morally just person ever. Especially with that Death Eater headmaster of his personally tutoring him.

    When Krum spots the dragon he immediately ducks behind some rocks and looks to be hyperventilating before slowly composing himself.

    Ludo "Looks like Krum''s seen the dragon! What''ll he do next!" he shouts, causing the red dragon to shoot fire into the air.

    Krum closes his eyes and mutters a few things before leaping out of cover and shooting a curse at it''s eye. The first one misses and hit''s the dragon''s cheek but the other managed to score a hit directly in it''s eye, causing the great beast to thrash around and destroy many of it''s own clutch in the process. Krum sprints past and ducks under a tile swipe before picking up the golden egg and trying to make his way back, only to be knocked over by the dragons tail as it swipes his legs. As he''s completed the task and recovered the egg the Dragon Handlers burst onto the scene to subdue the beast before it tries to fly off or something due to it''s clutch being destroyed.

    Ludo "Krums done it! He''s got the eg-OH! THE DRAGON''S BACK FOR REVENGE!" He shouts when he sees Krum get toppled over.

    Krum drags himself into Pomfrey''s tent and is quickly levitated onto a bed to be checked over.

    Pomfrey "My word! Did you try and fight it with your bare hands Mr Krum!" she shouts when she sees his lacerated hands that''d been raked across the floor when he got hit, however these weren''t the worst of his injuries.

    Krum "M-my leg!" he gets out through his pained grunts.

    Pomfrey tears his trousers off and see''s a large scale protruding from his thigh, it seems to have broken off of the dragon tail when it hit him... After getting a closer look at it she glances at her patient and says, "You''re lucky this didn''t hit your knee or you would never walk again."

    The other champions watch as Krum limps out from behin the curtains and plops himself down onto a comfortable chair, slowly sighing to himself that he''d not done well enough for his headmaster.

    Hermione "Are you okay?" she asks when she sees his pained look.

    Krum looks at her and nods, "I vink so, but I did not do vell I vink..." he says, his accent becoming heavier due to his exhaustion.

    Harry "If you need anything just let me know, we''re all in this together you know?" he says with a smile and receives a nod from Krum.

    Krum "It''s Victor... Call me Victor."

    Harry nods, "You better call me Harry then." he says, making Victor chuckle.

    Fleur stands and gives a quick bow, "Az my fellow championz, you may call me Fleur."

    Hermione doesn''t add anything as she''s only here for Harry, though she can see Victor''s imploring eyes at her.

    Harry "So, Ciri''s last right?"

    Victor nods, he had kept a close eye on how Ciri would do and he held out hopes she wouldn''t get horribly disfigured or injured in the task. "I think she vill do vell."

    Fleur nods along but Harry cuts in, "I hope she does... But she''s not like you guys, despite how old she is she''s still in the fourth year like me and Hermione, I only managed to finish the task so easily because I had an old artifact at my disposal..."

    Fleur "Non, I think she is very strong... I can feel it, it is like she is keeping it all hidden."

    Hermione nods at this, "Why do you feel like that?" she asks curious.

    Fleur "We Veela can sense strong aura''s, thiz is because we like to find strong males to mate... Zou we do not practise this tradition any longer."

    Harry "Aura? What''s my aura like?"

    Fleur looks at him for a couple seconds before replying, "Like a young Dumblydore''s."

    Harry nods slowly, happy that he''s being compared to the greatest wizard currently alive but also conflicted at having any similarities with him.

    Hermione "And Ciri''s?"

    ...

    Fleur licks her lips, "Like the world iz compressed in on itself, more powerful than Dumblydore''s but less controlled." she says with a strange expression.

 378 Therell be peace when you are done...

    Fleur sighs, "She iz not the aura that standz out ze most zou." she says with a small smile.

    Krum "Vat do you mean?" he asks.

    Fleur "Her friend Reima, he shines like the sun but fiercer." she slowly says, a blush quickly overtaking her face causing Harry and Hermione to glance at each other.

    Harry "He does seem like he''s always hiding something..."

    Hermione "How does it compare with Professor Dumbledore?" she asks, curious at how strong Reima is compared to the headmaster.

    Fleur shakes her head, "It iz not comparable..."

    Hermione breathes a sigh in relief, "Thank goodness... If Reima was stronger than Dumb-"

    Fleur hearing this waves her hands, "Non, I mean Dumblydore cannot compare with him... It iz like comparing an ant to a dragon..."

    ...

    Harry "No, you must be mistaken... That guy can''t be more powerful than Dumbledore." he says, thinking to the many pranks he''d had pulled on him by Reima during his training, if someone like that can be the strongest in the world then he feels as if he should just give up.

    Hermione "Has it got something to do with his eyes?" she wonders out-loud.

    Fleur "Non, I have asked around and your Professor Mcgonagall says it iz an badly done Animagus transformation..."

    Hermione nods, "Like Madam Hooch... But I feel like there''s something more to it.

    Harry "What other reason could there be Hermione? He''s an alien? A magical creature in human form?"

    Fleur "Zat would not surprise me if it were true..." she says, thinking about his incredible aura.

    Ciri was waiting in the champions tent, hand tightly gripping her staff in apprehension at facing a dragon, she chews her lips as the audience quietens, signalling that Krum had finished the task.

    *BANG!*

    The cannon signals that it''s her turn to enter the stadium, she glances back at Rita Skeeter who grins and gets her camera man to take a couple more photo''s before Ciri leaves. After exiting the tent Ciri looks around the stadium but only sees the audience, focusing on them she can spot Reima who''s got a furry black bundle in his hand along with a familiar looking sword. Smiling to herself now that she has some reassurance she quickly looks around but doesn''t spot the dragon that''s supposed to be here.

    Ludo "Our last champion is here! Give a hand to Ciri Rivia! Slayer of Black, Terrorists and even Vampires! Is there nothing this woman cannot do!" he shouts causing the audience to cheer.

    Ciri tries to block out his voice as she listens for anything that''d give the dragons position away... Hearing nothing after a minute or two she crawls up to a high rocky part of the stadium and looks over, seeing the golden eggs among the clutch, the only thing missing is the... Dragon...

    She quickly raises her staff to the sky and casts, "ACCIO DRAKE SWORD!"

    Ludo "She''s using the same strategy as Harry Potter! I wonder if this will be able to slay the dragon as his had!" he shouts as the audience watches a strange grey sword fly into her hand, it''s shaped like a sabre but looks much heavier than ever the heaviest steel sabre.

    Ciri hefts it onto her shoulder and casts "Bombarda" at a part of the stadium that looks like it''d allow the dragon to hide, it seems her instincts had proved true as from the smoke and shards of stone a huge vicious black dragon erupts and starts charging her. It takes a deep breath before shooting out a torrent of searingly hot flames that even melt the rocks near it. Ciri seeing that the light cover around her wouldn''t be able to block the flames immediately jumps to the side, managing to get out of the way in time. Luckily for her, a she''d be training in Pyromancy her resistance to heat was significantly better than most others, this helped prevent her getting burns from just being near teh dragon''s breath.

    Ludo "THE DRAGON SHOOTS IT''S FIRE AT CIRI, QUICK RUN OR YOU''LL BE BURNED TO A CRISP!" he shouts frantically, while some of the audience screams in terror.

    As the dragon had to close it''s eyes to unleash it''s fire it seems to have lost it''s prey, especially with Ludo''s shouting it has no idea where Ciri had gone. It starts stamping towards the spot she''d previously been, unaware it was now the hunted.

    Ciri listens for the dragons approach while in cover and drops her staff on the floor to use both hands on the drake sword. Once it gets close enough she sprints out from cover and slashes the sword upwards, which strikes the dragon in it''s scaly chin. The sword seeming to dig a deep wound despite how blunt it seemed and how thick the scales are, the dragon reels it''s head back to avoid any more strike but this just allows Ciri to kick off of it''s winged arm, almost stumbling but eventually finding herself onto it''s back.

    Ludo "WHAT IS SHE DOING! IS THIS THE LEGENDARY SWORDSMANSHIP OF GODRIC GRYFFINDOR!?! WAS SHE TAUGHT BY THE GOBLINS!" He spews a torrent of words out, some not making sense while others seeming quite wise.

    Reima watches as Ciri manages to thrown herself onto it''s back and grins as he can already see the dragons end, Snuffles who''s watching intently in his arms squeaks in an attempt to cheer her master and close friend on.

    Charlie Weasley who''d already lost one dragon today goes pale when he sees the ashen haired girl stand atop the dragons back and raising her sword up, he''s about to try and stop whatever was about to happen but is already too late.

 379 End of the first task.

    Ciri raises the sword high up in the air, the dragons thick scales providing a stable foothold for her to perform her attack. The audience roars as they think she''s showboating while atop the dragon, Ludo is even more excited than them as he''d bet on her winning this. "WHAT WILL SHE DO NEXT!" He shouts, almost foaming at the mouth.

    Ciri "HYAAA!" she shouts as she brings the sword down at an angle, hoping to bring home a trophy for Geralt.

    What reaches the audience''s ears isn''t the clank of the sword bouncing off of the dragons scales, nor the grinding sound of it barely penetrating. No, the sound that reaches their ears is only the whipping of the wind, as when the sword reaches the dragon''s neck some sort of vibration shockwave extends from the sword, assisting in it''s cutting power and allowing her to easily cleave it''s head off, causing the dragon to immediately slump to the floor, it''s large head dropping to the floor with a *THUMP*.

    ...

    ...

    Silence, so deep that you could even hear a pin drop. That is, until the audience see''s Ciri grabbing

    the golden egg before getting a hold of one of the horns of the dragons severed head and start dragging it towards the exit with a wide smile on her face.

    LUDO "OHHHHHHHHHH! SHE''S DONE IT! SHE CUT IT''S HEAD OFF WITH EASE I DID NOT THINK POSSIBLE! WHAT IS THAT SWORD???? IS IT AN ARTIFACT FROM MERLIN HIMSELF!?!?!!?" He shouts as loud as he can, simply not believing the events that''d just happened before his eyes.

    Reima laughs uproariously as he sees Ciri trying to bring the head with her, thinking that''d he''d badly influenced her already. He feels Snuffles patting him with her little paw making him realise it''s time to visit her.

    Reima quickly makes his way down to Madam Pomfrey''s tent, just in time for Ciri to exit the curtains with the dragon''s head in toe.

    Ciri "Can you store this before they try and take it? I wanna give it to Geralt as a gift." she says excitedly.

    Reima "I think you''re forgetting something."

    ...

    Ciri scoffs, "Fine." she says, handing him back the Drake Sword.

    Reima "Behave yourself and continue learning and you''ll receive a sword better than this one" he says with a grin, causing Ciri to start daydreaming. He waves his hand over the dragons head causing it to disappear, just as the other champions walk towards Ciri to congratulate her.

    Harry "From the cheers outside I''d say you did great" he says, nodding at Reima who''s standing to the side with his arms crossed, the head of a rabbit glancing at everyone with it''s red eyes from within his grip.

    Ciri has a smug grin, "You can call me Dragon Slayer Ciri now." she says semi-haughtily.

    Harry "Same here, my dragon didn''t even last one blow" he boasts cockily towards her, causing Hermione to raise a brow at his weird shift in personality.

    Ciri "I may have taken two hits but I bet you didn''t cut it''s head off, huh?" she adds.

    Hearing this Fleur and Krum can only feel bad for themselves, if this was their competition then they were screwed.

    Harry "Yeah but I bet you only did it with help from Reima" he points at said person.

    Ciri "You take that back!" she says, not acknowledging she had in-fact only killed the dragon with one of Reima''s weapons.

    Harry "Never!-" he says before bring dragged into a headlock by Ciri.

    Hermione glances at Reima, "Am I missing something?" she asks, confused at this.

    He shrugs, "Close contact with someone daily will do one of two things, improve the relationship or worsen it... I could tell he had been conflicted with how to act around her and so I... Locked them in a room overnight..."

    Hermione has a look of realisation, "So that''s where he was!"

    Reima shrugs, "The next morning when I went inside I saw the destroyed remains of most of my beloved board games along with these two surrounded by a pile of snacks, sleeping on opposite sofa''s... Come to think of it, I still haven''t gotten back at them for that..." he says with smile on his face, causing the wrestling duo to grimace.

    He leans in close to Hermione causing her to back away slightly, "Don''t worry though, a little birdy told me Harry''s still interested in you." he says, causing her to blush profusely.

    Eventually Ludo comes into the tent and tells everyone it''s time for scores to be given. "Would you all follow me? We will be revealing the scores for each of you, though I feel as it''s obvious who''s a...head, in the competition" he says, laughing his ass off under the confused looks of the other champions, with only Ciri popping a small grin at his pun.

    The champions at led into the same rocky arena that they had each fought their dragons in while Ludo quickly makes his way back up to the judges panel. They all stare up at Dumbledore, Madam Maxime, Karkaroff, Barty Crouch and a sweaty Ludo who had apparently sprinted back up to where he needed to be.

    Ludo "Now, we the judges will be revealing our scores for each of the champions! The scores will be rounded up in the third task giving an advantage to those with the highest scores! Now, let''s start with Fleur Delacour!" he shouts, pulling out a card with a number 8 on it.

    Dumbledore holds up an 8, Karkaroff a 7, Barty Crouch an 8 and Madam Maxime a 9.

    Ludo "A score of fourty in total for the Beauxbaton''s champion!"

    For Krum he receives 6''s from everyone except Karkaroff who gives him a 10, causing the audience to shout and cheer at him.

    Ludo "Thirty Four for the Durmstrang champion!" he shouts.

    When it''s Harry''s score the audience heats up, he receives a 10 from Ludo and Croch while Dumblredore gives him an 8 along with Madam Maxime. Worst of all was Karkaroff who gives him a 7 for "Slaying such a majestic beast" ignoring the fact that his own champion had indirectly destroyed many eggs that happened to be fertile.

    Ludo "That''s Harry Potter in the lead with forty three points! Now, last but certainly not least, Ciri Rivia!"

    The crowd roars when it''s her turn, not only had she given them an incredible spectacle to watch but she had severed the heard of a dragon as if she was a hero from legend.

    Dumbledore raises a reluctant 9 along with Maxime while Ludo and Barty give 10''s, Karkaroff again sets off the audience when he gives a 7 for the same reason as last time.

    Ludo "Despite some rather obvious bias" he glances at Karkaroff who glares back at him, "Ciri Rivia is in the lead with FORTY FIVE POINTS!" he shouts, causing the crowd to erupt into applause.

    Ludo "This brings us to the end of the first task! I hope you all have enjoyed it as much as we in the judging seats have! Hopefully there are many more interesting events ahead though I''ve heard whispering of creating certain rules that''d restrict bringing weapons into the tasks via summoning spell." he finishes up as the audience claps.

 380 Alcoholism intensifies

    Once the first task is over Reima, Hermione along with Snuffles and the four champions all head back to Hogwarts for some food. They were given the option the eat before the task but no one dared to fill their stomachs when they had to face a dragon not an hour later.

    Reima "So, I know you''re still abit wary of alcohol Harry but maybe you two wanna have a couple drinks as celebration?" he asks, looking at Fluer and Krum.

    Krum shakes his head, taking a glance a Ciri before replying. "I vish I could, but I cannot drink while taking these potions..."

    Fleur doesn''t seem to mind Krums refusal and eagerly nods, "I would love to have a couple glasses of wine with you."

    Ciri nods, "Got any whisky left from last time?" she asks, apparently having enjoyed whatever she had drank last time.

    Reima nods, "I got plenty, how about you two?" he asks Hermione and Harry.

    Hermione shrugs, appearing to defer her decision to Harry, who slowly nods. "I just fought and killed a dragon... I think I''m justified a couple drinks, though I would like to try something that isn''t Vodka?" he asks looking somewhat green when talking about Vodka.

    Reima "Can do! Let''s get going then." he says, walking towards the empty classroom they usually train their spells in, leaving a glum looking Krum behind who carefully limps back to the boat, not feeling hungry anymore.

    Reima boldy kicks the door opens and walks into the room, calling "Hinky" as he does so. The elf pops in and he asks her for food fit for champions. She nods with a bug eyed smile before popping away.

    Hermione seeing this can''t help but comment, "I still can''t believe that slavery is so common in the magical world..."

    Reima "For the last time, they will literally die if they don''t work. Not only that, but most enjoy working. I''m sure Harry has told you about how peculiar their species is."

    Hermione nods reluctantly, remembering how he used to speak about Dobby, the elf that''d tried to kill him to save his life...

    Ciri "Enough talk about elves, you''re bringing back bad memories... Let''s drink!" she exclaims. Causing Reima to materialise a bottle of whisky in his hand before tossing it at her.

    Fleur seeing this moves closer to Reima and smiles, "Some wine please?"

    He shrugs, depositing a bottle of wine and a crystal chalice from Lordran into her hands, causing her eyes to almost roll out of their sockets when she sees them.

    Fleur "Apologies Monsieur but, what kind of wine Iz dis?" she says, looking it over and being unable to read the strange language on the label, along with numbers that don''t seem to match anything identifiable that she nows of...

    Reima grins, "Don''t worry about that, I can assure you it''s good shit though."

    She slowly nods and pours herself a goblet of the ruby liquid, she swirls and sniffs it and has a look of bliss overtake her face.

    Reima nudges glances at Hermione and nudges his head at Fleur, "Er, what''s with her? Is it a french thing?"

    Hermione "It''s wine tasting techniques... I think?"

    Fleur "Irr¨¦elle! Zis is the best wine I have ever had!" she exclaims with a wondrous look on her face.

    Reima "Glad you like it, because it''s finite and I''ve only got a few of those left." he says, not telling her that a "few" means hundreds if not thousands.

    Fleur "Iz dat so?" she says as she slides closer to him, "Maybe I can do something to make up for it?" he say sweetly.

    Reima glances at Ciri who''s sipping her drink but still managing to somehow glare at him.

    He shrugs, " Maybe when Ciri''s passed out and I''ve had a couple drinks you can ask me that again..." he says jokingly, but the way Fleur is licking her lips tells a different story.

    A couple minutes later the group is sat down on a number of comfortable sofa''s courtesy of Reima''s "Gate of Ikea", with various plates of food provided by the elves surrounding them. Snuffles sits on the table in-front of the sofa Ciri, Reima and Fleur sit on. He sips from a small goblet filled with wine, though Hinky added a couple drops of blood from the supplies Dumbledore had given Reima.

    Reima himself sits between a now tipsy Ciri and overeager Fleur, the latter vying for his attention while the former is content with just drinking away.

    Opposite them sits Harry and Hermione, the former with a number of different drinks in-front of him, ranging from beers, to whisky, to spirits. He had been taking sips from them and mixing them with suggestion from Reima, though due to the mixture of different alcohol''s he had drank he was already more shitfaced than he was when they were fishing.

    Fleur who had slowly opened up and began talking about herself with the assistance of the friendly company and the wine asks Reima "Zo, Monsieur Reima, tell me about your home, Greenland." she says, leaning into him.

    Ciri snorts to herself, "It''s cold and covered in magical monsters that like to tear the commoners apart."

    Hermione who had been listening leans her head at her description, "Commoners? Are you a noble Ciri?"

    Ciri "Just a princess, why?" she says.

    ...

    Hermione "You''re joking right? You''re not really a princess?"

    Ciri''s about to retort but Reima claps his hand over her mouth, "No, she''s just a bit drunk and making shit u-p" he stutters, as he can feel Ciri licking the palm of his hand...

 381 Pajama party

    Reima give Ciri''s a strange look before pulling his now wet hand away, she snorts and laughs at his face as she takes another swig of her drink.

    Harry "H-hey, I..I''ve always wondered how you got that scar... Reima.." he stutters out.

    Ciri leans forward in interest along with everyone else present.

    Reima just sighs and thinks back to his trials with Arie, "I was eleven years old, me and my friend Arie had entered a cave to look for a few medallions." he says, holding up his own Wolf''s head medallion and glancing at Ciri''s. "It''s a rite of passage where I''m from and you are required to do this if you wanted to.. "Grow up"..." He says after trying to come up with an appropriate way to describe becoming a Witcher. "We didn''t know at that time what was inside the cave... It had used to be a magical blacksmiths lair where the medallions were originally created, the forge had been heavily enchanted but due to magical degradation it had become sentient some how. It had become some sort of fire elemental." He says, with a sombre face, remembering how he and Arie had almost died trying to destroy it.

    Reima "After a fierce battle where Arie had lost his arm, the elemental exploded, sending shards of metal everywhere... That''s where this comes from." he taps the scar on his face.

    ...

    Harry nods "That''s cool... I killed Voldemort when I was eleven... That would make it the second time wouldn''t it." he slowly says, not noticing Fleur''s surprised face at this information.

    Harry finishes off a can of beer and looks at Ciri, "Howa''bout you Ciri? How''d you get that scar?" he asks, but gets elbowed in the stomach by Hermione. "You shouldn''t ask her that." she quickly says.

    Ciri herself traces her finger over it and replies, "I think it was called a throwing star? Something like that? You don''t need to worry though, the person responsible isn''t around to harm anyone else." she with a look of reminiscence.

    The group continues to drink and talk, that is, until someone had the bright idea to suggest playing "Truth or Dare"...

    Reima sends a dark look to Harry who suggested it.

    Harry "What? I s-saw someone playing it in a movie, I kinda wanna see what it''s like." he says, slurring some of his words.

    Fleur nods, having already finished her N''th glass of wine and looking flushed. "Oui, it iz a good idea." she quickly says.

    Reima can only be carried away by their pace, as he can already tell where this will end up... Hopefully no one will do something they will regret.

    Ciri "How do you play?" she asks.

    Hermione looks conflicted at whether or not she wanted to play but answers anyway, "We go around and the person who''s turn it is chooses whether they want to be asked a question that they will have to truthfully answer or a dare that they will have to do." she says, not really sure how it works as she''d never played it before.

    Reima shrugs, "Anyone who doesn''t answer truthfully or fails to do a dare has to drink. Also the person who''s go it previously was gets to asks." he adds.

    Ciri nods, "Who''s first then?"

    Reima finishes his bottle off and places it on the table before spinning it, it spins for a while before eventually stopping, pointing a Fleur.

    Reima "Guess I get to ask then huh... Truth or Dare?" he asks the flushed girl who eyes him seductively.

    Fleur "Dare." she says confidently...

    Reima scratches the back of his head and tries to think of something that would be fun to watch but wouldn''t be extremely perverted, as much as he would like the latter. "I dare you to... Hold a handstand for a minute straight."

    Fleur grins at him and nods, she walks into a clear part of the room and easily performs a handstand, as she had to change back into her silk blue robes due to her outfit being burned by the dragon this revealed her rather risque black underwear...

    Ciri whistles at her while Hermione tries to turn a bug-eyed Harry''s head away.

    A minute later and Fleur gracefully gets back to her feet, sending a wink at Reima who rubs his forehead in attempt to assuage the sexual tension.

    Fleur "It iz my turn." she says looking at Harry, "Truth or Dare?"

    Harry thinks for a moment before saying, "Dare."

    Fleur grins at him, "You will say "My Boy" at the end of every sentence." she says, laughing when she sees his reaction.

    Harry groans, "Do I have to?.... My boy..." This causes everyone including Hermione to laugh.

    Fleur "Oui! Oui! Or you will have to drink!"

    It''s now Harry''s turn to ask Hermione something, "Truth or Dare" he asks, with a blush slowly overtaking his face. Hermione isn''t much better as she struggles to answer, "T-truth."

    Harry thinks for a while before finally coming up with something, "Have you ever kissed a guy?" he slowly asks.

    She nods with a blush, causing Harry''s expression to darken slightly. "Who was it?"

    Hermione sees his face and slaps him on the shoulder, "You earlier you idiot!"

    Harry "Ah, oh... Right." he says, causing Reima to chuckle.

    It''s Hermione''s turn to ask Ciri who picks Dare... "Er, act out the most memorable thing you can think of." she says, causing Ciri to halt and quickly think through what she was going to do, the memories of Mistle were floating around in her head due to the question asked by Harry earlier. She was also feeling kind of devious and wished to make the prudish Hermione uncomfortable.

    The others watch as Ciri begins to mimic... Something? It''s only Fleur and Reima who can tell what she''s trying to show, it''s pretty obvious when she starts to flick her tongue out. Harry and Hermione finally pick up on what''s she''s doing when three fingers start moving rapidly.

    Hermione "Ew! Really!"

    Ciri laughs at her, "You asked for it, you''re kind of perverted Hermione!"

    Reima glances at everyone''s flushed faces as it finally rolls around to him, "Truth" he says, not wishing to test how far Ciri''s willing to go with this.

 382 Anarchy

    Reima "Truth"

    ...

    Ciri pouts when she hears him but a devious smile overtakes her face anyway, she glances at Fleur before clearing her throat and asking, "Who is the most beautiful girl you know?"

    Reima looks at Ciri''s smug face and quickly answers, "Yennefer."

    ...

    Ciri chokes, "Reima! Don''t you dare!"

    Reima chuckles, "I said truth, not dare.... If you don''t like the answer don''t ask the question" he says.

    Ciri brows furrow, "Touch Yen and I''ll tell Geralt!"

    Reima "I won''t, I won''t... She''s a bit too "Nympho" anyway if you know what I mean?" he says, making her nod.

    Fleur "Who iz Yen?" she asks, confused.

    Reima waves the question away,"No one you would know."

    Ciri takes a drink and leans into Reima before whispering a few things in his ear, causing him to sigh in exasperation. "Truth or Dare?"

    Fleur "Dare."

    Reima "I dare you to give Ciri a massage...."

    Fleur stands "Zis is cheating!"

    Ciri "Stop playing if you don''t like it." she says, turning her back to Fleur who reluctantly starts rubbing her shoulders.

    The game continues, Harry having to speak in increasingly ridiculous ways, Hermione never choosing dare, Ciri being asked more about her being a "Princess", refusing to answer and having to drink instead. She dares Reima to give her a foot rub and laughs as he does so. Reima dares Fleur to rub Ciri''s feet for him which has her angrily dare Harry to Dare Hermione to Dare Ciri to strip naked...

    This roundabout daring eventually has Fleur reluctantly making out with Ciri after the latter convinced a slightly tipsy Reima to dare the french witch to do it.

    Reima finally ends the game before anything even more frisky can happen, it was probably the right choice due to how drunk everyone was actually getting, Harry was almost passed out at how drunk he was, Hermione who refused to answer a couple questions ended up drinking a couple shots of Gin which had her "Feel like she was floating". Fleur had a few too many glasses of wine to stay awake while Ciri seemed eager to carry on sexually harassing the french witch.

    Reima "Hinky." the elf pops into the room, "Could you take everyone to their rooms? I''m not confident that they''d be able to make it back on their own..."

    Hinky "Can do, master!" they say, before popping away and popping back with many elves that do as he asked.

    With that done Reima eats a couple more plates of food before leaving towards the room of requirement to get a couple more hours of training in today.

    As he''s walking he senses a human aura in a broom cupboard, walking closer and peeking inside he sees a familiar girl with platinum blonde hair and hazy eyes. "Luna?"

    The girl jumps at hearing her name and quickly turns to face him, revealing that she is in fact, completely naked.

    Luna "Oh! It''s you? I thought it would have been the Nargles again..."

    Reima "Nargles? So Nargles did this to you?"

    She nods, "They seem to be fascinated with my clothes and shoes... They''ve never taken my necklace which must mean it has some effect against them?" she says, grasping the butterbeer cork necklace around her neck.

    Reima "Er, Luna... Why don''t you tell Professor Flitwick about.. The Nargles?"

    Luna "I have often told him about them but... He doesn''t seem to listen.."

    Reima materialises some panties, trousers, shirt and furry jacket and hands them to her. "Get dressed, you shouldn''t be out here, people might take advantage of you." he says, thinking of the various Slytherins who he suspects wouldn''t hesitate to violate an innocent girl like Luna.

    Luna "Are you going to take me from this world?" she asks while raising her head and staring at the roof.

    Reima "Er, no... I''m not sure I can even do that..." he says, wondering if he would indeed be able to survive in space.

    Luna shakes her head and looks directly at him, or maybe even past him. "But you''ve done it before, many times in-fact. Or maybe Wrackspurts are making you forget?" she says with an gentle voice.

    Reima scratches the back of his and walks outside of the cupboard to wait for her to get changed, all the while thinking about what she had said... It feels as if she knows some of his more intimate secrets but he''s never given anything to even suggest such a thing is possible. She must be making stuff up and getting lucky as he''d never heard of such an ability in the books or movies...

    Once she''s changed Luna''s skips out of the cupboard and twirls, "Thank you Reima, it''s not often that people ignore the Blithering Humdingers and try to help..."

    Reima "Yeah... What''re you doing out here anyway?"

    Luna "The Nargles wrapped me up, stole my clothes and threw me out of my house... The painting would not allow me past so I had to sleep in here." she says simply.

    Reima''s brows furrow, "Has this happened before?" he asks, a coldness becoming apparent in his voice.

    She nods, "It happens every now and then, I''ve grown accustom to the cold though... So maybe the Nargles are helping me improve my resistance to Wrackspurts?" he says to herself.

    Reima shakes his head while scratching his face, "How about this Luna, you stay in my room until we can get the... Wrackspurts sorted.."

    Luna giggles at him, "Wrackspurts can''t get sorted! That''s the Nargles!"

    Reima "Regardless, will you accept this offer?"

    Luna nods, "Of course, you would never hurt me... Wrackspurts aren''t even able to get close to you as you burn them!"

    Reima smiles and holds her hand before leading her to his dorm-room, deciding he didn''t need to use his bed until he got Luna''s problem sorted out.

 383 New Gryffindor?

    Reima enters the Gryffindor common rooms with Luna in tow after giving the password, no-one else seems to be awake and so he quickly makes his way to his dorm-room. Once inside a voice groans out in annoyance, "Reima, can you please stop coming back so late? It''s getting kind of ridiculous how often this happens, and I''m beginning to think you don''t sleep at all!"

    Reima "Er, yeah... By the way, here''s your new room mate." he says, pushing Luna forwards for Damien to see her.

    ...

    Damien "Why have you kidnapped a Claw?" he asks after rubbing his eyes a couple times to make sure what he''s seeing is real.

    Luna smiles and waves at him, "Hello! I''m Luna, but people usually call me Looney." she says.

    Damien nods at her "Uh, good... Afternoon?" he says, unsure of the current time. "Wait, new room mate?"

    Reima nods, "Luna''s being bullied, I found her naked huddling inside a broom cupboard. She''ll be using my bed until I can sort something out with her head of house."

    Damien hearing this slowly nods, finally understanding why he''d be choosing to have her sleep here.

    Reima pats Luna on the back, "Right. That''s your bed for now, try not to bother Damien as he''s a grumpy guy." he says, receiving a "Hey" from said his dorm mate.

    Luna "Will you not be sleeping Reima?"

    Reima smiles, "I''ve got another room in the castle that I like to use, don''t mind me and sleep well Luna." he says, ruffling her hair and leaving the room to head to the room of requirement.

    The next day a weird sight appears in the Gryffindor common room, Ron Weasley had just crawled out of his bed and walked into the main room with a chess set under his arm, intent on finding some one who was willing to play a couple games with him in the morning. He steps into the room and sees a familiar face talking with Ciri Rivia, "Why''s Looney here?" he exclaims, upset that his house had been infiltrated so easily, if a claw could get in here what would the Slytherins do!? He quickly thinks to himself.

    Ciri''s brows furrow, the hangover from last night combined with Ron''s annoying voice and the fact he was insulting an innocent girl like Luna grated on her greatly. "Her names Luna, I wouldn''t call her Looney again if you want a complete set of teeth." she growls out.

    Luna "Don''t worry Ciri, I have known Ron for a long time."

    Ron "Yeah, you used to hang around with Ginny until she finally had enough of you." he says, causing Luna to lean her head to the side.

    Luna "She was acting weird in our first year, along with the things happening in the school it wouldn''t surprise me if she was possessed by a particularly nasty Wrackspurt.."

    Ron hearing this frowns and shouts, "Shut up Looney, you have no ide-ARGH" he''s interrupted when Ciri slams her fist into his jaw, sending him sprawling to the floor while his chess pieces cover the ground.

    Ron holds his mouth with tears in his eyes, "You fucking bitch! What was that for!"

    Ciri "I told you to stop calling her Looney... Come Luna, I''m going to get running with Reima, you can hold Snuffles if you like?"

    Luna nods rapidly while saying excitedly, "That sounds fantastic!"

    As Ciri had woken up pretty late Reima and her only managed a few laps before they had to head to breakfast, apparently there was going to be an announcement during it. They enter the great hall and as Luna''s about to sit at the Ravenclaw table Ciri pull her aside and has her sit at the Gryffindor table. Much to the chagrin of Professor Flitwick, Professor Mcgonagall and Professor Snape. Though due to the announcement that are about to be made they keep quiet for now.

    During breakfast Reima shares a nod with Fleur before looking back at Harry and Hermione who both seem to be experiencing his second and her first hangover, they greet him and take his advice on greasy food to try and rid themselves of the headache.

    One everyone had eaten Dumbledore gives a brief speech about how "inspirational" the four champions were during their tasks and that everyone should aspire to become as magically talented as they are, he also announces that there will be a Yule Ball held during Christmas which will have the champions performing the opening dance. "Due to certain circumstances we''ve had to open the ball to fourth years and above, though if you are invited by someone older you will be allowed to attend." he says.

    After hes done talking Barty Crouch steps forward and coughs into his hand to catch everyone''s attention. "As there were a couple champions using what some have decided are "Underhanded" tactics we will be imposing a few rules onto the following tasks. The first and currently only being being : No use of any magical weapon is to be permitted during any of the tasks from here onwards. This however does not mean that the champions who won their tasks will be punished as it was fairly done within the rules. We will not retroactively not take points either as it would be incredibly biased to do something like that." he says quickly before stepping back and taking a seat on the teachers table to finish the rest of his breakfast.

 384 "Cunning" snakes.

    After the announcement the familiar sound of flapping wings signalled the entrance of the mail owls. Ciri snatches a bundle out of the air with practised ease before opening it up and frowning.

    Harry who''s still holding his his head in pain glances up and asks, "Skeeter?"

    Ciri nods, "Skeeter." she reads the offending title out loud, "Two champions brutally execute Ministry owned Dragons!"

    ...

    Harry "If anyone believes this shit I''m gonna go mental!"

    Hermione''s about to refute that anyone would ever believe this when the surrounding people starts pointing at Harry and Ciri while whispering and gossiping.

    Reima "You were saying?"

    Harry "Forget it, I feel like I would have been better off being a Muggle." he mutters.

    Reima nods, "Muggle teens aren''t usually forced into life threatening tournaments, nor are they almost killed by an international terrorist twice." he quickly says.

    Ciri "Just thank the gods you weren''t brought up like Reima was." she adds, confusing him and Hermione. They''re about to ask for an explination when two shadows appear behind Luna.

    Professor Mcgonagall along with Professor Flitwick approach, the former speaks in her trademark stern but gentle voice, "Miss Lovegood, I hope there is a good reason for you to be present on the Gryffindor table?"

    Luna nods, "Reima found me and brought me back to his dorm room."

    ...

    The two professors immediately eye Reima who sweats slightly, "Don''t cause a misunderstanding Luna... I found her naked in a broom cupboard after she had apparently had her clothes stolen and the Ravenclaw painting locked.

    Professor Flitwicks eyes narrow at this, "I see... And I wonder why I''m just hearing of this now?" he says, sending a suspicious look at Reima.

    Luna "I''ve been telling you about the Nargles for years Professor Flitwick." she says, causing him to go pale.

    Professor Flitwick, "You mean to say... That the Nargles you often spoke of meant bullies?" he asks shocked.

    Reima "I''m still wondering how this kept happening without anyone noticing?" he says.

    Luna "The Nargles infested the whole of my house, there was no one free of them." she says, causing the short professor to scowl.

    Professor Flitwick "I see... I don''t suppose I could request for Luna to be cared for by the Gryffindor house for a few days longer while I try to find out what''s been occurring in my house?" he asks.

    Professor Mcgonagall nods with pursed lips, "I''ll be giving her access to a room in the female dorms, she is free to come and go as she pleases." she turns to look at Luna. "Consider Gryffindor as a second family Miss Lovegood."

    Luna gives a bright toothy smile at them, "Thank you very much Professor!"

    Mcgonagall feels her heart melt slightly at the fact this girl had been viciously bullied from what she had gathered, "You''re very welcome Miss Lovegood." she turns the Reima, Ciri, Harry and Hermione. "As you had heard from Dumbledore, the Yule Ball will be hosted on Christmas, I''d recommend all of you to attend the dancing class I''m setting up in preparation for it, I''ll not have anyone of Gryffindor make a fool of themselves." she says.

    Luna "Can I come too Professor?" she asks quietly.

    ...

    Mcgonagall "Of course you can dear." she says before turning and briskly walking away with Flitwick in toe.

    Reima "Er, what just happened?" he asks confused.

    Luna "I''m a Gryffinclaw now!" she says happily before waving her wand and added a crude copy of the Gryffindor badge to her blue robes.

    Harry chuckles at this while Hermione tries to stifle her own objections about "Modifying school uniforms"

    After breakfast the group make their way to their lessons, Reima''s class isn''t far from the fourth years and so walks with them, this proves to be the right decision as they''re stopped in the hallway by a group of cocky looking Slytherins.

    Draco stands with his arms crossed in-front of the group along with someone Reima feels like he knows.

    Dragon "Look, scarface has found friends that have something in common with him." he jeers, causing the group behind him to laugh.

    Harry who''s still recovering from his hangover bluntly retorts, "Fuck off Malfoy."

    Draco''s about to retort, probably something about his father when Reima exclaims. "Oh! It''s you, background character! Haven''t seen you in a while!" he says, pointing at the 7th year next to Draco.

    "I am not called Background character! I am Cassius Warrington! Pure blood elite who you should bow your head to when I walk by!" he shouts.

    Reima who''s finding a great amount of pleasure just ridiculing this fat fuck plays with his nails as the young adult talks. "Er, did you say something background character?" this has Ciri laughing at this antics while Cassius look as if he''s about to explode.

    Cassius "That''s it! I''ll show you what it means to try go above your station!" he shouts, drawing his wand and pointing it at Reima.

    Reima shrugs, and leans his staff in his hands playfully. "Yo, don''t do something you''ll regret... I''m not known to be merciful." he says with a sadistic grin.

    Cassius cannot help but feel a cold sweat overtake him as he''s glared at by Reima, he feels as if he''s being eyed by a Nundo. However, giving into his poor judgement he holds his ground. "Kiss my feet or get blasted fool!" he shouts, more to increase his own confidence than to intimidate his opponent.

 385 Show off.

    "Kiss my feet or get blasted fool!" he shouts.

    the group behind Reima are all stunned by this sudden turn of events, Ciri because she didn''t believe this person was stupid enough to try and actually fight Reima and the other because the Slytherins usually had thicker skin than this.

    Reima "How about this? You kiss my feet and I won''t hurt you."

    ...

    Draco "Scarface! It looks like your friend''s gone barmy!" he shouts and laughs with the rest of his group. They all knew that Cassius was the top of their private duelling club, no one could beat him especially if he was already prepared to attack.

    Harry whispers behind Reima, "You want backup or?"

    Reima shakes his head, "Just watch your backs for the other Slytherins." he says quietly before loudly taunting his opponent yet again, "So Cassius Warrington huh? Personally I think Background character suits you better."

    Cassius finally loses it and casts "STUPIFY!"

    The group behind Reima are all prepared to jump into combat should he fall to the curse but they are all surprised to see the red bolt strike him in the chest.

    Draco laughs "He didn''t even move! What an idiot!"

    The rest of the Slytherins begin jeering at them, none of them noticing that Reima hadn''t actually been stunned...

    Cassius stands there horrified that his curse had literally no affect, it had hit him point blank in the chest and should have instantly knocked him unconscious... Had he not cast the spell correctly? Did his arch enemy cast a shield beforehand? Regardless, the prove is in-front of him, with Reima still smiling at him.

    Reima "Was that a tickling charm? Because it didn''t seem to do anything... You''re out of practise if you can''t even cast a proper tickling charm." he says, causing the other Slytherin to notice that he''s still conscious.

    Draco looks abit more cautious now that something unexpected has occurred but he doesn''t relent in his taunting of Harry, "It seems your friends not all talk Scarface, but it still won''t matter! Get him Warrington!" he presses, causing the 7th year to cast a couple more stunning charms that do literally nothing when they collide with Reima''s chest.

    Cassius "Why isn''t it working! What have you done!" he shouts at Reima while continuing to shoot stunners at him, making the hallway flash red as if a strobelight was present.

    Reima "It''s like a story, the background character is so weak that he can''t even damage the protagonist." he says while shrugging.

    Cassius grabs his head and screams, "THAT''S IT" before casting a loud "BOMBARDA!" at Reima, knowing full well they could potentially kill him.

    Draco pales when he hears the spell Warrington had just cast and can only hold his hands over his ears to block the sound.

    *BANG*

    ...

    ...

    Everyone opens their eyes, some expecting to see Reima''s blood and internal organs scattered throughout the hall, however they see something completely out of their expectations.

    Reima stand there with his hand outstretched, a black mark signifying an explosion had occurred on his palm.

    Reima himself had only taken the spell to his hand to prevent it from affecting the people behind him. He laughs causing the Slytherins to get a cold sweat. "Is that all you got? I think it''s my turn, don''t you think?" he says, taking a big step forward and kicking Warrington in the stomach, creating a loud *CRACK* before he is launched into the group behind him, toppling them over like bowling pins.

    Reima lowers his leg as if he hadn''t applied any effort at all and glares down at them, "So, anyone want another crack at it? Or shall I just continue?" the question goes unanswered as they all retreat as quickly as they can, as if a demon in human skin had just foretold of their collective deaths. It''s funny to watch as a couple try to drag the almost catatonic Warrington along with them as he trails behind.

    Draco takes a glance behind him as he runs, wondering how this foreigner was so powerful and whether or not he would reach that level at any point in his lifetime. One thing was for sure however, he wouldn''t be challenging scarface and his new friends without collecting information first.

    Reima turns and smiles at the group behind him while they all with the exception of Ciri look back at him in awe.

    Harry "W-what was that!"

    Hermione "That''s impossible!! You can''t block an explosion curse with your bare hand!"

    Snuffles taps her paws together "Squeak!"

    Reima "I''m just that awesome... Also, don''t you guys have classes to attend to?" he asks causing them all to look about in panic before rushing off to their respective classes, leaving him and Ciri standing in the hallway, with Snuffles in her arms of course.

    Ciri "You just have to show off, don''t you?" she asks with mirth.

    Reima "You''d do the same thing if you had the oppertunity so don''t lie." he states, causing her to nod in acquiescence.

    Reima "You should get to your classes as well, I know you can skip them but you want to stay in Mcgonagall''s good books so she''ll watch our Animagi transformations." Ciri nods at this and walks off, waving to him as she does so.

 386 The real vampire!

    It isn''t even half a day later that the school''s rumour mill had distributed an altered version about what''d happened between Reima and Cassius Warrington and why the latter was currently in the hospital wing.

    Reima kept his head low during the lessons but he still ended up getting pestered by his classmates because of it.

    Cedric "Did you really attack a Sytherin for no reason?" he asks, not believing the rumour completely but knowing there''s usually smoke where there''s fire.

    Reima "He tried to cast Bombarda at me and my friends, he got off lightly." he states coldly, due to this being the third time he''s had to say it.

    Cedric looks at him wide eyed, "Bombarda!?! Was he trying to murder you?" he quickly asks.

    Reima shrugs, "Probably, that background character seems to be missing a few screws if you know what I mean?"

    Cedric nods, "Well be careful, the Slytherins aren''t know for giving up grudges... You might just find yourself surrounded out of the blue, or green should I say?" he says with a stupid smile.

    Reima groans, "Your puns are awful you dumb sparkle vampire." he says while rubbing his forehead.

    Cedric looks confused "Spar-kle Vam-pire?" seeing how the words sound in his mouth.

    Reima waves the boys focus away "Nevermind, ignore it..."

    After this lesson as he''s heading to the classroom he tutors Harry and Ciri in he''s suddenly stopped by a calm, dull voice that seems to exudes contempt. "Mr. Ludvig, you will come with me to my office to speak about a recent conflict you may have had with one of my house." the familiar voice of Professor Snape droll''s out.

    Reima "Does it have to be now? I''ve got things to do." he says, focusing his cat-like eyes on the man who doesn''t even seem to flinch at the usually intimidating action

    Snape "Indeed, I''ve heard of the activities you participate in as you skip classes. Needless to say, I am not amused. Perhaps if you spent less time teaching you wouldn''t be such a poor student?" he says while glaring at him.

    Reima "Fine, whatever you say Professor, lets get this over with." he says reluctantly, starting to follow the man who''s claok seems to flutter despite there being no breeze...

    He''s led through the dungeon and eventually into a room that''s not far from the potion classroom, the room itself is as dark and damp as the classroom but doesn''t seem to smell as harshly of potion ingredients, no, instead Reima can pick up the scent of Fire-whisky... Recently opened as well.

    Reima doesn''t hold any pretence and quickly sits down opposite the desk as the sallow faced man does the same with his own chair.

    Snape "So, Mr Ludvig. I suppose I should hear the events from your side of the story?" he says slowly, looking gloomy presumedbly for having to follow such a basic procedure.

    Reima nods, "I was accompanying my friends towards their lesson as my own was nearby to theirs when we were stopped by a wall of green. Slytherin students."

    Snape cuts him off as a quill floats and scribbles the details, "May I know the name of those present?" he asks.

    Reima leans his head to the side in confusion, this all seems way more professional that anything else he''d seen from the staff thus far. "Ciri Rivia, Hermione Granger, Harry Potter." he says, having to stifle his grin when the man grimaces at Harry''s name.

    Snape "And, did they participate in the assau-Ahem. Conflict, in any way?" he quickly asks.

    Reima''s brows rise at this but he doesn''t bother correcting the Professor, if they intend to do something to him then he''d return it 10-fold. "No Professor."

    Snape nods to himself before gesturing for Reima to continue.

    Reima "The group of Slytherins had cut us off and refused to let us pass, that''s when Draco Malfoy started taunting Harry, this continued until a 7th year student... I don''t really recall his name but he looks average-" he says with some mirth but is quickly interrupted.

    Snape "Cassius Warrington?" he clarifies.

    Reima scratches the back of his head, "Sounds about right, he started spouting some racist stuff about blood purity before he finally started throwing spells at me. I managed to block them with a silent Protego but it seemed that I had hurt his Ego-"

    Snape "You are able to cast a silent Protego?" Reima nods, "Well, please do not stand on ceremony... Go ahead and prove your claim." he says, looking interested.

    Reima shrugs his shoulders and taps his staff on the floor, causing a shield to appear in-front of him. "That good enough Professor?"

    Snape nods, "Continue."

    Reima "As I was saying... I must have hurt his precious Ego as he resorted to firing a Bombarda, explosion curse at me. I''m sure you know fairly well what would have happened had that hit me or one of my friends, I wonder if Warringtons pure-blood would have saved him from those consequences? Especially since two of the people involved are champions for the tri-wizard tournament."

    Snape doesn''t reply but instead inquires on something else, "How did you block the spell? I''ve heard from numerous people that you had blocked it with your bare hand... Explain this." he says with a look of "Gotcha" on his face.

    Reima "I like to craft spells in my free time, as you probably know I''m well versed in Arithmency and am able to cobble together functional spells at my leisure... What I used was a spell that''s still in it''s testing phase, though due to dire circumstances I had to use it."

 387 Old Habits Die Hard...

    Snape "Would you be willing to show me this spell?" he asks eagerly.

    Reima shakes his head, "I''m sure as a spell-crafter yourself you would hesitate before letting others analyse your spells Professor... I''d prefer to keep my private creations, private."

    Snape can only nod in acceptance at this, "Mr. Ludvig, it has been a great pleasure having you but we must end this. Please get going to your... Extracurricular activities." he says, looking Reima in the eyes.

    Reima feels a legilimency probe brush past his mind causing him to frown, hadn''t snape learned last time what''d happen if he tried this? Choosing the vengeful option he mentally grabs hold of the probe and slings it away like a catapult, causing Snapes head to snap to the side, the quick action shaking his brain hard enough to force him unconscious.

    Reima hadn''t expected the man to be this weak and just shrugs to himself as he watches the "Former" Death Eater slump in his chair.

    Reima "Well, if you''re going to give me permission I won''t be polite." he says before he starts wandering around the room, looking for anything that might suit his fancy.

    There are various things present, the most immediate being a string wrapped around a cupboard handle enchanted to burn and alert someone should it be moved or broken. Reima just runs his finger past it, rendering it ashes and causing a small ping sound to emit from Snapes body. Reima chuckles, it seems it''s not the best charm to use should you be unconscious... Maybe it wakes you if you''re awake? He ponders. Regardless Reima throws open the cupboard and glances at everything inside. He sees various corked bottle filled with strange liquids, one thing that''s most interesting above all others however is a small picture that seems to have been stuffed and hidden behind some bottles. Retrieving it Reima sees what looks like a young Severus Snape and a red haired girl, they''re holding hands together and smiling... He feels kind of sick at the sight of this, considering what the man''s actions and intentions towards this girl had caused.

    Feeling indignant justice boiling in his chest he decides to get some payback while also providing Harry with a souvenir of his mother. He runs his finger down the picture, burning it in half where the children''s hands connect before pocketing the half with Lily on it.

    Reima "That''ll teach you, you scummy bastard." he mutters to himself, "Mmm, let''s not forget the gifts you''ve left for me though." he says, quickly dumping the potions into his Folded Space, only taking notice to some of the more extraordinary potions, three takes his interest particularly, Veritasium, Draught of living death and Felix Felicis... The luck potion? Nice!

    With all that said and done Reima quickly vacates the premises, he knew Snape would hate him for this but he wouldn''t be able to accuse him of anything as he had tried to mind-rape him, something that could land him directly in Azkaban. Reima grins to himself when he thinks of the man''s face when he finds the picture, truly it is an accurate representation of his actions.

    Reima eventually reaches the classroom where he''d been teaching Harry and Ciri, he walks inside and sees them already practising their spells, though they stop when they hear him come in.

    Ciri "Where have you been?" she asks as he''d never missed one of these sessions before.

    Reima shrugs, "Snape called me in to talk about the fight I had earlier."

    Harry "Your not in trouble right?" he asks apprehensively.

    Reima shakes his head, "No, I don''t think so... Though I might be later..." he mutters the last part. "Oh! By the way, I''ve got a gift for you Harry." he says, reaching into his pocket and pulling out the picture of his mother before handing it to him.

    ...

    Harry looks at his hand in awe, eventually focusing his gaze on Reima''s face. "Where did you find this? I''ve never seen a picture of my mother as a child before..."

    Reima "Er, I... Found it, in the castle." he says after making it up a valid explanation.

    Harry can tell something more must have happened but doesn''t comment on it, instead intent on memorising the details of the photo. "Thank you, this means a lot to me..." he says with moist eyes.

    Reima "Don''t worry about it, we''re friends right?" he waves the boys feeling away.

    Harry rubs his eyes with his sleeve, "Yeah, we are..."

    Reima "Right, let''s get started, I''ll have to makeup for the time I''ve missed by training you twice, no THRICE AS HARD!" he shouts causing Ciri to groan and Harry to chuckle.

    Suddenly, the door to the room opens, revealing a familiar figure that none of them had expected to see.

    Harry "Hermione?" he asks confused at her presence.

    Hermione "Er... Hi? I was in the library when I..." She trails off, "I know this is to help train Harry and Ciri to survive in the tournament but after the attack in Hogsmeade I realised how defenceless I am..."

    Reima "Are you going somewhere with this?" he asks, knowing full well what she wants but wishes for her to say it outright.

    Hermione "Please teach me!" she exclaims while bowing low respectfully, her hair falling around her face.

    Reima "All you needed to do was ask, it won''t disrupt either of these two if you''re also learning... It might even help them to have a practise dummy around." he says with a sadistic smile.

    Hermione feels as if she''s going to regret ever coming here...

 388 Miladys honour!

    The next day during Reima and Ciri''s morning run Krum joins them along with a few other students who seem to have been motivated by their daily exercise.

    Reima doesn''t really mind Krum being present but he seems to be glancing at Ciri way more often now, he wonders to himself why for a moment before returning his concentration back to running while levitating Snuffles.

    Additionally, today they even had a surprising extra. Harry and his friend Neville had asked to run with them, which they had accepted without any qualms.

    The group of Reima, Ciri, Krum, Harry, Neville and a wild Fleur who appears from the long grass run around the lake at a good pace. Though Reima can already see the sweat gathering on Neville''s forehead, the boy is pretty chubby which is probably why he''s having trouble so quickly. As they pass they hear an occasionally cheer from Luna who''s watching as they run, as had become a normal occasion since they had inducted her into Gryffindor.

    Neville ends up having to stop first immediately after the first lap, laying down on the grass breathing heavily. Next is Harry who had done better than Reima had actually expected, followed by Fleur and then Krum who reluctantly drops to his knee''s while watching Ciri and Reima continue to run laps around the lake.

    Once Ciri collapses next to everyone else Krum approaches Reima and asks will still breathing slightly too heavily. "Is it true? Vat you did to those Slytharins?"

    Reima shrugs, "Yeah? They attacked first though."

    Krum shakes his head, "I heard differently from various people." he says, glaring daggers at Reima.

    Reima "... I''m not really sure what you want from me? You want me to say sorry for not dying when I''m told to or something?" he asks confused.

    Krum "You should not act like a brute, especially towards ladies." he says, unconsciously glancing at Ciri.

    Reima scratches the back of his head, "Er, ok? Thanks for the advice... Yo guys, get dressed, it''s almost time for breakfast." he says towards the exhausted group before making his way to his dorm to get changed, noting that Krum is still glaring at his back all the while

    They make their way down to breakfast and he immediately feels the harsh gaze of the rest of the school on him, he catches a bundle from the air and opens it, knowing it''ll probably be the Daily Prophet. He sighs to himself when he reads the title, "Brutal assault on son of Wizangamot member in Hogwarts!"

    ...

    Reima "The fuck?" he quickly reads it and finds it''s from Rita Skeeter, the only way possible for her to find out about this is either from the students themselves of the rumour mill of the school as he''d been keeping an eye out for a blue beetle lately. His suspicions are only confirmed by the lack of photo''s of the event on the paper, something that''d be so common on Rita''s work that she could have trademarked it.

    Over in the Slytherin table Krum slams the paper onto the table and marches over to them, Reima feels as if he''s about to get punched but it never comes...

    Krum "Miss Rivia, vill you accompany me to the Yule ball?" he asks loudly, causing the rest of the hall to focus their attention on them.

    Ciri''s about to answer when Reima interrupts.

    Reima "Sorry mate, but she''s coming with me." he says, realising he hadn''t actually asked Ciri yet.

    Krum watches as Ciri''s expression changes from confused, shocked and then neutral. He feels rage boil up inside as he see''s his cruch being taken advantage of in-front of his eyes by this violent brute. "Reima Ludvig! I challenge you to a duel to take the lady to the ball!" he exclaims, forgetting that his Headmaster had explicitly forbid any of the students from attempting to duel someone from another school.

    ...

    Reima/Ciri "What?"

    Krum "I can see you are forcing her to accompany you! You are a coward and I vill not allow you to continue!"

    Karkaroff "VIKTOR! What are you doing!" he shouts from the teachers table where they all are watching this with interest, especially Professor Flitwick.

    Krum "I am challenging this §Ý§Ñ§Û§ß§Ñ§â, §Ô§à§Ó§ß§à to a duel!"

    Karkaroff scowls deeply at his protege, this wasn''t Bulgaria and there were laws to prevent honour duels in England.

    Dumbledore "Perhaps you should prevent your student from doing something unfortunate Karkaroff?" he says quietly but with a hidden force behind it.

    Flitwick "Now, now. I believe if these young men wish to have an honest duel for the opportunity to bring the lady to the ball, they should be able to." he says, loud enough for th rest of the hall to hear.

    Krum, taking this as permission to continue presses on, "Vell? Vat say you Reima!?!"

    Reima looks at Ciri who''s smiling smugly at him.

    Ciri "Go on, fight for my honour lover." she says while trying to not burst out into laughter.

    Reima "Fine, but I won''t forget this." he says before standing up and looking Krum in the eye. "I accept, just don''t regret this later." he says, causing Flitwick to clap in excitement, "The duel will be held in a week inside the great hall!! Oh I''m so excited, we haven''t had a good duel since the duelling club was shut down!"

    Dumbledore just strokes his beard while observing everything that''s happening, he''d tried to prevent Karkaroff''s student from challenging Reima for his own safety... He was one of the only people around with mage-sight and he knew no one else was aware of this boys ridiculous level of power... Hopefully nothing drastic would happen and draw the attention of the Ministry or god forbid the school council.

 389 Take me to the blue ball...

    Fleur could only glare at her fellow champion Krum as he challenges Reima to a duel over a chance to take Ciri to the ball, she grits her teeth as she sees the girls smug grin as she persuades Reima to accept the challenge, despite it being well known that they are already lovers. Fleur didn''t dislike Ciri but her closeness with Reima grated against her, especially with how she acted entitled all the time. If she were with Reima she would smother him in all the gentleness that a proper woman could muster, in-fact it was only her pride that stopped her directly asking him to the ball as the man should be the first to approach.

    She sighs to herself as the duel is scheduled for next week, why was it that the only time her allure doesn''t work it''s on the person she actually likes? A friend next to her excitedly claps for the announcement of the event while trying to make conversation with her but she can only sink into these depressing thoughts.

    Almost immediately after breakfast had finished Reima was swarmed by many people seeking different things, some came to gloat as they didn''t think he had a chance at winning, others wanted to wish him luck, but most were actually more interested in his relationship with Krum. It seems gossiping over the famous boy is as popular as it was during the World Cup. During this he was asked various questions like "Did Krum challenge you because you killed his father!?!" "Did Krum challenge you because you ARE his father!?!" "When will you give up!?!"... He eventually manages to escape the almost ravenous teens before finding refuge in the class where he usually tutors Ciri and Harry.

    He sits there for a while wondering how long the hype''s going to be like this... He doesn''t think he''d be able to handle a week straight of this, maybe he should just because invisible until then? By the time Harry, Ciri and Hermione arrive to the room they just see Reima sitting on a desk in the corner, looking as if he''s pondering his life choices thus far.

    Ciri "Guess your taking me to the ball" she says.

    Hermione "Not that you gave him much of a choice."

    Harry nods, "Did you really need to encourage Krum?" he asks with no small deal of confusion.

    Ciri "I''ve been waiting for Reima to ask me since they announced it, this just provided an opportunity." she says with a smug grin.

    Reima finally looks up from his corner, "As much as I''d love to smash Krum, I have to limit my strength at least somewhat... It''d be weird if a foreign student that no one had heard of could easily dispatch an international star and not to mention Tri-wizard champion."

    Harry "I know your strong and know a lot about magic but are you any good at duelling?" he asks.

    Ciri "Duelling is just "play-fighting", so many rules, so many restrictions... If Reima loses to Krum I''ll eat my sword."

    Reima grumbles, "You''ll be eating my sword once this is all over." but luckily no one heard him. "I wanted to ask you to the ball in my own time but since it''s been rushed like this I''ll just have to make due" he says with a frown.

    Ciri smirks, "What? Were you planning on wining and dining me before asking the question?"

    Reima shrugs, "Yeah, basically. But now it''ll never happen." he says, taking a great amount of glee from her now downtrodden expression.

    Hermione "I still think it''s barbaric to duel each other over a girl."

    Harry "I''d do the same for you." he blurts out, causing them both to blush.

    Reima "Come to think of it, Harry have you asked Herrmione to the balll yet?"

    Harry glances away from Hermione and shakes his head.

    Reima "Well, as your teacher I command you to ask her now!" he says haughtily while pointing at him.

    Hermione quickly objects, "No, it''s up to Harry whether he wants to ask me or not."

    ...

    Harry feels pretty bad that Hermione''s standing up for him to be able to not choose her, "No, it''s alright... Hermione would you please go to the Yule Ball with me?" he slowly asks but is immediately leapt on by the beaming girl.

    Hermione "Yes!"

    Reima "Let''s just leave them to it... We can train tomorrow." he says, leaving the room with Ciri in toe.

    They quickly enter the Room of requirements after checking for anyone near to them, the inside looks like the typical Colosseum that Reima seems to favour above all else. Snuffles jumps out of Ciri''s arms and turns into Nerissa who looks dully at them both.

    Reima "Something up Snuffles?" he says with a chuckle.

    Nerissa "Want.. Need to fight stronger." she say simply, gripping her fists until her small knuckles turned white.

    Ciri "Is this because of what happened in Hogsmeade?" she asks, receiving a nod from the young vampire.

    Nerissa "Immune to sunlight, Belmont."

    Reima "If only we knew where they operate from, I''d just go and wipe them all out." he says while sighing. "Fine, you want to get even stronger? Let''s up the ante." he says, waving his hand and causing the room to create an 8 ft iron golem wielding a massive mace. It resembles the golem he had fought atop Sen''s fortress except, well, less humongous.

    Reima "Think you can handle that?" he asks the diminutive girl, who nods eagerly while drawing Iaito.

 390 The iron giant is not friendly!

    As she had done in Hogsmeade Nerissa wreaths her blade in ruby-like crystals, through the ability she had inherited from her mother she was able to vary how sharp the now red blade was. Due to the large iron soldier''s defence she shapes Iaito from a katana into a more spear-like weapon, lacking sharp edges but having a fierce point that would likely pierce any plate mail, though it remained to be seen how effective it would be against a moving block of iron.

    Reima and Ciri watch as she makes her preparations to fight the golem he had summoned.

    Ciri "Youknow, that thing reminds me of an earth elemental Vesemir used to drone on about."

    Reima nods, "I''ve never seen one but Vesemir kept telling me the same story about how he slew one to save a damsel before... Well, I prefer to forget about that part."

    Ciri grimaces before nodding, "Is there a reason Witchers always brag about their sexual conquests?" she asks.

    Reima shrugs, "Most live for incredibly long periods of time so bedding women is probably the most notable thing that happens to them, aside from slaying monsters."

    As the duo talk about Vesemir''s glory days Nerissa has completed her preparations.

    The young girl stands wearing a white sundress and no shoes, her black hair hangs below her shoulder blades while her red eyes glare at the soldier, her left hand has huge red claws extending from her fingers while her right is wielding a large red sword, completely blunt except for the point.

    She kicks off the floor roughly, causing some dust to be forced up from the sheer force of it, the golem explodes into life and slams the mace down at her with enough strength to seriously injure her, as the room calculates any impacts it causes to prevent deaths.

    The girl who''s still mid air twists and taps the floor with her sword to change her trajectory, this causes her to avoid the mace while being in a perfect position to strike. She forces all of her momentum into her front foot while pivoting and lunging to pierce the soldiers kneecap, the red sword pierces it, all the while creating a screeching grinding sound from the metal being destroyed.

    The golem stumbles due to losing the function of one of it''s legs, it tries to put some weight on it but it''s knee folds inwards, causing it to fall backwards, where the young vampiress hops atop it to take advantage of it''s prone position. Not wasting any time she flips forwards while plunging the sword into it''s visor, causing it''s limbs to jolt before stilling permanently.

    The duo who had just finished talking about Vesemir''s tale of him getting tricked into sleeping with a water hag look over, slightly surprised that Nerissa had destroyed the golem so quickly. Reima claps which has the young vampire blushes slightly before returning to her neutral expression.

    Nerissa "More."

    Reima doesn''t object and waves his arm, creating another slightly larger iron golem.

    This time they watch intently as the young vampiress slowly decimates it, piece by piece with an aggressive precision they hadn''t seen before in the girl.

    Reima "Atleast she''s getting her aggression out?" he ponder out loud, wondering what is was like for the girl to almost permanently be in her rabbit form.

    Ciri nods, "It''s a shame she can''t use magic, otherwise we could include her in our magical practises."

    Reima "All races have negatives and positives... Trolls are stupid but durable, unicorns are pure but timid, humans are weak but spread quickly... Vampires? Super strong, super fast, but unable to use magic... That and their weakness to sunlight."

    Ciri "I don''t buy that theory, what about dragons?"

    Reima "Incredibly low birth rates, and it takes centuries for them to fully grow." he states with a shrug.

    ...

    Ciri "Djinns." she says with a victorious smirk on her face.

    Reima crosses his arms, "Lacking a physical form and therefore incredibly easy to seal, that and it''s incredibly rare for one to com about."

    Ciri "Ok, how about our blood? How does that fit in with your "Balance of nature" theory.?"

    Reima "Our blood is artificial, as Avalac''h must have told you. It''s unnatural, like most incredibly powerful entities nature itself usually doesn''t like their presence, though it doesn''t seem to mind ours, probably because our power is linked elsewhere?" he slowly says, trying to rationalise his argument but only creating more questions.

    *SCREEEEEEEEEE*

    Reima haphazardly waves his hand, creating another golem for the vampire while he ponders over whether his theory holds any weight to it, or it''s just correlating things that support it, while negating things that''d disprove it.

    Reima "Either way, everything has a weakness, you just gotta look for it." he says remembering Vesemir saying something similar to him in his early Witcher training.

    Ciri "Oh yeah, before I forget... How good are you at dancing?" she asks.

    Reima "... Er, not good at all... I heard Arie was taught to dance in-case he ever had to attend a high society function but Geralt... Geralt doesn''t dance..."

    Ciri laughs at this, "I''ve seen him dance before, but that was after the others almost drowned him in drinks... I think we''ll have to attend Mcgonagalls dancing lessons as I am very rusty, I doubt I could even cursty properly anymore." she says with a weird expression.

    Reima "I thought you say you didn''t like to dance?"

    Ciri "I don''t, but with you and a couple drinks? I could get into it." she says with a smile.

 391 Choose your punishment.

    Reima is currently escorting Luna to her lesson, the young teen holding a lazy looking Snuffles in her arms while she happily hops along through the hallway. When they''re almost at her destination a familiar Scottish sounding voice stops Reima, he turns and sees ravenclaw blue robed Cho Chang looking at him eagerly.

    Cho "Reima? Good! I''ve been looking everywhere for you." she quickly says.

    Luna hovers behind him, still stroking Snuffles with a happy look on her face.

    Reima "You need something?" he asks, wondering if this is about Krum?

    Cho "I''ve... I need your help with something personal!" she quickly says.

    Reima just gives her a blank look, as if to encourage her to continue.

    Cho "I heard that you are friends with Harry, youknow... Harry Potter? The Tri-wizard champion?" he nods.

    Cho "Well, I was wondering if... If, you could ask him to meet up with me? Or maybe you could introduce us?"

    ...

    Reima "It depends, why would you want me to do that?" he asks confused.

    Cho blushes slightly, "I want to ask him to the Yule Ball."

    ...

    Reima rubs his face in exasperation, "I thought you were dating Diggory?" he says in disbelief.

    Cho "Cedric Diggory? He''s not really my type..." she says waving it off, "But Harry? He did so well in the first task not to mention he was already fa-Ahem... A great quidditch player, what''s not to like?"

    Reima "I''m sorry to inform you that he''s already got a date for the ball, I''d appreciate if you try someone else and not badger him." he says, not really liking this girls intentions towards his friend.

    Cho''s brows furrow as she clicks her tongue at a barely audible level, even for Reima. "Really? That''s a shame... Who is it may I ask?" she asks him with an eager look on her face.

    Reima "It''s not really any of your business don''t you think?" he says with a frown.

    Cho grumbles, "Bet it''s that Granger bint, ain''t it?"

    Reima doesn''t comment and chooses to stay silent, "Well, I''m busy... Let''s go Luna." he says to the girl who seemed to be hiding behind him for some reason.

    Cho looks at her wide eyed, "Looney?"

    ...

    Luna halts as she''s walking and rigidly turns to face Cho, "Oh! It''s the head nargle! I haven''t seen you since I became a Gryffinclaw..." she says, her grip on Snuffles slowly becoming tighter.

    Cho looks at Reima, "Never thought you''d be hanging around with Looney, guess I was wrong about you." she says as she starts to walk away.

    Reima "Hold up, you''re not just going to talk shit and walk away. Say it upfront instead of being a sneaky cunt." he says, finally losing his temper with the aggravating girl.

    Cho has her arms behind her back and turns slightly to face him, "I just never thought anyone sane would hang around with Looney Lovegood, I wonder what she''s doing to get you to escort her around like that? You fucking her? It wouldn''t surprise me as you seem to have a hard on for white hair." she says with a harmless smile on her face, despite spouting incredibly vile things about the innocent girl.

    Luna "Reima lets go, Nargles always try to get under your skin. There''s no point in conversing with them." she says with glassy eyes.

    Reima shakes his head, "Man, I never knew you were such a bitch. I''m sure Harry would love to hear this."

    Cho''s expression darkens, "You do that and the whole school will know that you fuck Looney for money."

    Reima grits his teeth, "Right, that''s it. I may not be able to tear you apart but I can simply just change my target, from your body to your reputation!" he exclaims, performing an Axii charm on her. "Luna, go to class, I''ll see you at lunch."

    Luna nods rapidly, "Don''t do something that would get you in trouble" she says before skipping away with Snuffles.

    Once Luna leaves, Reima is left with a bank faced Cho who, if he didn''t know any better looked like she had been hit by the imperius curse. He wondered if the effects were similar as he hadn''t had the chance to learn the Imperius curse yet, though it would probably be pretty easy as even the original Harry Potter was able to cast it.

    Reima "Now, what am I going to do with you?" he asks himself, but she replies regardless.

    Cho "I am yours to use master."

    ...

    It seems he had massively overpowered the Axii in his frustration with her... If she called him master one more time he might get some sinister ideas for her.... He shakes his head quickly, no. He wouldn''t stoop to doing something like "That", instead let''s just do as he first intended, destroying her reputation.

    Reima "At lunch you will strip naked and run around the great hall shouting your deepest darkest secrets that you hoped no one would ever find out. After that you will forget you ever met me or Luna today, additionally you will claim you tried eating glue which resulted in your actions."

    Cho''s expression doesn''t change but she repeats everything he said before nodding, "I will do as you say master. I will return to my dorm until then." she says before leaving, presumably to get ready for Lunch''s "event".

    Reima "I feel like I might have gone too far?... Nah, she''s a bitch anyway."

 392 God damn it Reima!

    It wasn''t long until lunch rolled around and the Gryffindor +Gryffinclaw group were all assembled at their houses table. Reima eagerly watches the Great Halls entrance as he expects a certain someone to come bursting through any minute.

    Ciri leans over and gently elbows him in the side, "Something going on?" she asks as she can clearly see he''s preoccupied.

    Reima grins and attempts to explain, however someone else answers for him.

    Luna "He''s waiting for the nargle to appear, I hope they''re well." she says, still stroking an incredibly lazy looking Snuffles.

    Ciri''s eyes narrow at this, "What did you do?" she quickly whispers.

    Reima "Dealt with one of Luna''s bullies..."

    Ciri pops a smirk, "Oh, now you really need to tell me what you''ve done."

    Reima "You''ll see in a couple minutes." he says, quickly straightening his back and starting to converse with Damien so as not to be seen as a suspect in what will happen soon.

    Angelina had just finished talking about why she had dumped her recent boyfriend when a gasp was heard throughout the GreatHall, the teachers were included in this shocked surprise as they hadn''t expected something like this to happen. Indeed this hadn''t happened since James Potter Pranked Severus in another one of his "Schemes".

    All eyes in the hall turn towards the entrance where an almost naked Cho Change stands, looking completely neutral towards all the attention she''s gathering.

    Reima is slightly surprised to see that she''s actually wearing a black pair of panties and bra, it seems she''d managed to work around the word "Naked" and infer her own meaning on it... Damn.

    However, that isn''t the end of it, the girl immediately starts sprinting around the hall before shouting various things.

    Cho "I didn''t stop wetting my bed til I was twelve years old! I look Asian but I hate rice! I have cheated on all of my past boyfriends! I masturbate regularly!" She continues but the secrets shes shouting get more and more severe. "I was molested by my mothers boyfriend! My dead father used to beat me constantly! I let a seventh year fuck me so he would do my assignme-" A voice shouts from the Ravenclaw table "Stupify!".

    The red spell hits the girl in the chest, causing her to fall over and headbutt the floor, breaking her nose in the process and causing blood to starts leaking from it creating a small puddle underneath her. The person that had cast the spell who was standing with his wand still drawn was called Roger Davies, a Seventh year who was apparently pretty close with Cho.

    Roger "I don''t know who jinxed Cho but I demand answers! Headmaster! This has gone way past a prank and I suspect the use of the Imperius curse!" he shouts furiously, not bothering to pick up his friend who''s lying face down in her own blood.

    Reima had grimaced when he heard her shouting about being molested and then again when she face-planted. He hadn''t expected such a vile person to have experienced something like that, he glances to Ciri who''s slightly pale and looking at him.

    Ciri "That was... Unexpected."

    Reima nods, "I... Don''t think I''ll attempt this again..." he says with Ciri thoroughly agreeing with him.

    Dumbledore stands from his table and directs a couple teachers to attend to Cho before beginning to address the room. "Students of Hogwarts, Durmstrang and Beauxbatons, as you have all just seen someone was bewitched and if anyone has any information on who''s responsible we''d appreciate that information highly... Additionally we will be having our Medi-Witch Madam Pomfrey taking care of Miss Chang to makesure she''s well physically and mentally... I would request as your headmaster but also as fellow students that you treat her with respect and civility I would expect from the brightest witches and wizards from magical society. I''d also like to say, any use of mind altering spells, potions or indeed rune clusters will result in expulsion or even a trip to Azkaban depending on the severity of their use... Thank you." he says before sitting down with a sad look on his face.

    Luna "I never knew Nargles have their own problems... Really puts in prospective the amount of Wrackspurts they had." she says but the majority of the table ignores her, the exception being the few who knew what she was talking about.

    Hermione "That really seemed like she was under the Imperious curse... But who would dare cast it inside Hogwarts?" she says with an aghast face.

    Harry "I think we should keep our eyes open, I don''t know what I''d do if that happened to me..." he shivers as she ponders the secrets he''d spew running around the hall.

    Reima "Yeeahh... We should makesure this person doesn''t affect any of us..." he says, receiving a funny look from Ciri.

    Alicia "I think she deserved it..." harsh eyes look to her, "No, I don''t mean the molesting part... But she was really a huge bitch, she''s made rumours about me before, Angelina too. She even tried to steal my last boyfriend!"

    Angelina nods, "Maybe it''s karma, or vengeful girl who''s been badly affected by her shit stirring?"

    Harry "Either way, I think we can all agree whoever it was, they went too far." he says, receiving a nod from the majority of those listening.

 393 PedoFilet, Well Done

    After the incident with Cho the school staff had their eyes open for anyone displaying sadistic or sociopathic tendencies. Sadly they couldn''t find anyone and even the victim didn''t even have memories of any event that would lead them to someone... Well, with the exception of the many, many people she had aggravated directly or indirectly by her scheming. Indeed Professor Flitwick was horrified to additionally find that she was also selling her body to someone for them to complete her assignments for her. This person''s name being Roger Davies, he was promptly reprimanded and given a daily does of a potion called "Labido Blocker", to prevent him taking advantage of anyone else. The only thing that prevent further punishments was his status as a Pure-Blood, something that had some of the teachers fuming as he had been having sex with Cho since she was a second year.

    But, as it happens, not all teachers are as ethical as some would suggest. This was seen when information about Roger Davies actions towards Cho was released among the students, causing him to become a social outcast and while being branded a Pedophile in the Muggle world was career destroying, in the Magical world it had different implications due to the low birthrates and how much people valued children as a whole.

    As such, the next day a Daily Prophet detailing everything that''d happened on the second page had him sobbing into the pages, the same thing was observed the next day when Howlers from almost the entire country was sent to him, causing most of the Hall an ear ache.

    This however wasn''t the end for Roger Davies troubles as after a couple too many grief fuel''d mid-day butter beers he ended up asking Fleur Delacour out to the Yule Ball in-front of a large portion of the school as they were leaving the Great Hall.

    Roger "F-Fleur! Please go out with-Come to the ball with me!" he shouts, correcting himself half way through his sentence.

    Fleur scowls at him and crosses her arms, "You? Are you not ze Pedophile I ''ave been ''earing so much about?" she says, imaging someone attempting to do the same to her little sister and almost bursting into angry flames.

    Roger "It''s all lies! Cho was making it up!" he says loudly and stubbornly.

    Fleur looks a him like he''s a clown, "I never zaid anyzing about Cho... I zink we are done ''ere Mr Pedo." she says, quickly turning and walking away.

    Roger grits his teeth in anger, his life had thoroughly been destroyed by whoever had cast the Imperious on Cho and everything had been going wrong for him. This was his last hope at getting his reputation back, after-all, why would he go for anyone younger if he could land Fleur? Unfortunately his drunken reasoning and eloquence didn''t translate into words.

    "Don''t turn your back on me! You''ll be coming with me!" he shouts, knowing full well that he''d bribed a few seniors in Ravenclaw to avoid her, increasing the chance in that she won''t have a date.

    Fleur herself knew that she needed a date but the person she''d set her eyes on was already competing for someone else, she found herself struggling to contain herself when around his aura and even found herself daydreaming about him on occasion. She''s been asked by many, many people to the ball but everytime she considered accepting them she always thought back to "him"... She continues to ponder this while ignoring the shouts from the angry Roger who''s quickly approaching her.

    Roger grabs her wrist which shocks Fleur as she had never expected him to lay his hands on her, "Unhand me pedophilic swine!" she shouts, starting to lose control of her Veela side.

    Roger "No, you''ll be coming to the ball with me, and you will like it." he gets in her face, "Do you understand me!"

    Fleur "Non! I am going with someone else!"

    Roger growls "Who is it! Ah, I bet it''s that fucking freak that you''ve been staring at all lunch!"

    Fleur halts, did he just call Reima a freak? Her composure finally breaks as a fireball appears in her hand, she slams it into Roger''s face while a large group of students watch. The boy falls to the floor screaming and writhing as the flesh on his face melts and his hair burns away. The surrounding students shout and scream for a medic as Roger''s screams echo throughout the castle, eventually leading to Professor Flitwick appearing and almost vomiting at Roger''s new visage. It looked as if he''d held his face in fiendfyre fora couple seconds!

    Flitwick "Oh my! Who did this! Who is responsible!" he shouts while looking over the victim and trying to heal as much as he can before Pomfrey get''s here courtesy of his Paronous message.

    Fleur stands proudly with a scowl, "It waz me."

    Flitwick "Why, why would you do something like this!?"

    Fleur "He attacked me!" she exclaims, rage in being questioned on her actions apparent.

    Flitwick is almost intimidated by the furious girl but continues to try and tend to whoever this is... He''s currently unable to identify them due to how horribly mutilated his face is.

    Eventually Pomfrey and a few other teachers get to the scene, a few gagging at the stench of burnt flesh while others at the sight of Roger''s face. She immediately transports him to the infirmary while Madam Maxime takes Fleur away in order to find out what happened. Leaving all the students behind still gossiping on what''d just occurred

 394 We do what we must, because, we can.

    Reima only heard of this incident later on, after passing a gossiping group as he was heading to the room of requirement for his nightly training. He felt bad that Fleur was subjected to something like that, he also felt pretty redundant as a man because he couldn''t accept her advances. He knew Fleur was attracted to him as it was blatantly obvious, even if he was completely stupid he would have noticed her intentions when they were drinking together. Maybe he should talk to Ciri about how to deal with this? She''s a girl, she''d probably know... Though that would have to wait until tomorrow morning.

    For now, he intended to practise something that''d been niggling in the back of his mind. The spatial tearing that he''d almost frozen himself with, he had some suspicions based on what he was doing last time he''d attempted to use them and felt confident he could create a substantially different result.

    As he enters the room he lets go of the Staff of Manus, allowing it to transform into the black liquid before scurrying into his shadow, looking around he sees what he would call "The representation of hell", as he''d asked the room for a room that burns incredibly hot. What he ended up with was basically a giant furnace that would hopefully prevent any incident with ice from ocurring again. He also locked the doors behind him as if anyone even opened the door a fraction they''d no doubt be turned to ashes due to how hot this room actually was.

    Wasting no time Reima imbued his Elder Blood energy into his fingers while thinking about apparitions basic principles, as he''s doing this he thinks of the other side of the room vividly before plunging his fingers into the air in-front of him, causing them to enter a spatial pocket? Tear? Either way, they escape this dimension. Once that''s done he pulls his hands apart, trying to open... Something? He continues to think of the other side of the room as he eventually pulls the spatial tear open, revealing... Himself? Looking through the rift it looks like he''s staring at a mirror, he tries to release one of his hands that are holding to glowing Turquoise border of the tear but finds that it immediately snaps shut like a rubber band pulled taut. Again he pulls the tear open and telekinetically throws something through the tear, causing it to be thrown from the other side of the room and at himself...

    Reima "Is this a portal? Did I just make a portal?..." he mutters excitedly, he holds the tear open and steps inside, finding himself on the other room. He had indeed, created a portal.

    Reima smirks, "Guess I''m "Thinking with portals" now, huh?" he snarks to himself.

    If there was one thing he remembers from his past life, it''d definitely be the almost ridiculous amount of time he spent gaming, with Portal being one of the only puzzle games he actually liked. The nostalgia effects him so much that instead of training anything else he just spends a couple hours playing around with the portals, he changes the room halfway through as all his attempt to make a stone companion cube end in a molten melted failure.

    During this he does make some discoveries that could prove useful, he can extend the size of the portal with the assistance of his Telekinesis, however it is incredibly difficult to maintain both at the same time. Even when he uses his telekinesis he still has to have his hands imbuing Elder Blood energy into it at an equal rate to keep it open without abruptly shutting, which leads us into another use... Cutting. As the portals are inter-dimensional things that shouldn''t be affecting the physical world in the first place, any objects caught between them that aren''t imbued with Elder Blood energy are severed in two cleanly... Obviously some magical things can resist this as magic seems to affect space in some weird ways that Reima isn''t able to quite figure out.

    Reima actually experimented with the Staff of Manus by imbuing it with Elder Blood energy and using it to hold the sides of the tear out, allowing a substantially larger portal to be created. Though Reima doubted he could even move while performing this feat of strength and magical control.

    Last but not least among his discoveries were that momentum is maintained through the portals, this was seen when he threw something into it. This meant that if he intended to try and stop someone falling with one or attempting to block a projectile it would fail spectacularly and both would result in someone becoming a fine red mist.

    Reima ends up spending the entire night messing around with portals, only realising that he had forgotten about his and Ciri''s morning run when her Swallow Patronus flies into the room and starts calling him various names with Ciri''s voice.

    He makes his way down to the Gryffindor dorms where an impatient Ciri is tapping her foot.

    Ciri "Having too much fun playing with yourself I see?" she says while brushing some stray strands of hair out of her face.

    Reima "What can I say? My girlfriend doesn''t so it falls to me."

    She snorts "Just get ready, I wanna get some exercise in before breakfast."

    Reima "Aye, aye cap''ain." he says before heading into his dorm to get changed, waving to Luna who''s apparently already up and talking with.. Neville? Huh, never saw that coming, well if he does something impolite I''ll have to have a "talk" with him.

 395 Three is a party, Four is a harem...

    The duo make their way down to the lake and start slowly jogging around, after the first lap they realise that the usual suspects aren''t here today...

    Ciri "I wonder where Fleur is?" she ponders aloud while running.

    Reima glances at her, "You didn''t hear?"

    Ciri shakes her head, "No... Did something happen?"

    Reima "She barbecued the guy who was extorting Cho Change..."

    Ciri looks surprised at this and questions "Why?"

    Reima shrugs, "Apparently he was trying to force her to the ball with him?"

    Ciri nods "Ah, I can see how that would happen..."

    Reima "Ciri... You know Fleur likes me right?" she grins and nods at this, "Apparently she''s been refusing all invitations to the ball and is waiting for someone to ask her..."

    Ciri "Where is this going, Rei?" she asks, wondering what he wants to say.

    Reima swallows his saliva, "Would you be opposed to me asking Fleur as well?"

    ...

    "Hahahahahaha!" she begins laughing.

    Reima''s brows furrow, "What''s so-"

    Ciri "hahahaha!... I was wondering when you would ask me that, guys are all the same." she huffs, feeling slightly out of breath from running and laughing simultaneously. "Reima, what do you want from me?" she asks a sombre voice.

    Reima "Want?"

    Ciri nods, "Is there something your aiming for when you interact with me? You want my power? Body?" "I''d never-" "No, I don''t think you would but everyone has an agenda, especially towards me. I just want to know what I''m getting into if we continue... Whatever this is."

    Reima "I''m not really sure to be honest... I like you Ciri, don''t doubt that but... I guess I''m just hoping for things to work themselves out."

    Ciri smirks at this and nods, "The same could be said for me. I don''t think I''m ready for a relationship right now... But for your other question? Yeah, bringing Fleur would be fun for both of us."

    Reima "Then, next we see her I''ll ask." he says, wondering if Fleur would accept this weird arrangement.

    Ciri "You forget that you''ll have to duel someone for the honour of taking me first." she says sarcastically, knowing full well Krum doesn''t stand a chance.

    They continue to run, all the while forgetting the rabbit floating next to them, becoming terribly confused over their conversation.

    Fleur was having a bad day, she''d been locked in her room all night after being given a stern talking to by her headmistress Madam Maxime. Apparently the newspapers had already let the public know about her ancestry, that she was part Veela. This wouldn''t usually bother her but the situation had drastically changed, with her "Assault" on a pure-blood and her "Lower than Mud-blood" status she''s in quite a pickle when it comes to this countries authorities. She had heard that some were even trying to get her arrested and tossed into Azkaban, fortunately for her "Creatures" weren''t allowed the mercy of Azkaban and would instead be executed by the kiss if it came to punishing her.

    Fleur wasn''t worried however as her father was a politician with not a low standing and wouldn''t stand for such barbaric things to happen to her, though she was temporarily being kept inside the Beauxbaton carriage for her own safety as many Pure-Bloods would love to get revenge on her, and even though they viewed her as "Sub-Human" they wouldn''t hesitate to attempt vile things to her.

    While she lets all these almost life threatening problems wash over her, she''s still battling with herself about what to do about the Yule Ball, she hadn''t see hide nor hair of Reima since she had permanently scarred Roger Davies and she dreaded his reaction to it. Would he be disgusted with her? Scared? Indeed she thought her chances of seducing him were near zero at this point, perhaps she''d have to settle on one of the other substandard boys around? Though she doubted anyone would be brave enough to ask her after what''d happened to the last person.

    Fleur grew bored of lying in bed and staring at her bedroom ceiling eventually and decides to pen a letter to her parents and sister, detailing everything that''d happened and to reassure them that she was fine.

    Reima and Ciri make their way to the Great Hall after their morning run, both feel more relaxed about their situation than they had been before where everything was up in the air and could either way. Having an understanding about their relationship and where they stand makes them feel a little more stable, this can clearly be seen as both sit down at the table with small smiles present on their faces.

    Angelina immediately notices this however and ruins the mood with a question, "You two fuck or what?" she says bluntly, causing Harry to spurt juice out of his mouth and nose.

    Alicia and Damien snickers at this while Olivia holds a hand over her mouth to stifle a laugh.

    Hermione looks at her balefully, "You can''t ask people that! It''s rude!"

    Angelina glances at her before grinning, "Ah, my bad.." she turns to Harry and Hermione, "You two fuck yet?"

    *Pfft!* Harry loses his drink yet again, wondering if he''d die if dehydration if this continued.

    Hermione just stutters at her with a huge blush on her face, not being able to formulate a response that she wouldn''t be mocked for.

    Ciri shrugs, "Even if we did, why would we tell you?" she says while tucking into her breakfast.

    Angelina nods at this appreciatively while Alicia and Olivia blush slightly.

 396 Karkaroff... Karkaron...

    "FASTER!" Karkaroff shouts as he casts yet another curse at his student.

    Krum is sweating profusely with his breathing ragged, he manages to knock away the red spell cast by his Headmaster with a counter spell layered on the tip of his wand. The red spell deflects off to the side and hits the wooden wall of the ship''s room they''re practising inside.

    Karkaroff "NO! YOU DEFLECT IT AT YOUR OPPONENT YOU IMBECILE!" he shouts furiously, waving his wand and causing two planks beneath krum to shoot up in an attempt to bash him. Krum can''t react fast enough an is toppled over when a plank slaps him on the chest while the other on his knee that''s still sore from the injury received during the first task.

    Krum "Arggh! H-Headmaster! Please don''t target my knee!" he shouts from his back while holding his leg in agony.

    Karkaroff "Why would I do that! You''ve challenged someone to a duel while you are still injured, do you think they won''t take advantage of that!" he quickly says, wondering if this was really all the talent his protege had. He was an amazing Quidditch player but his spell casting was above average at best, not nearly enough for someone of his stature.

    Krum "It it between me and him, the schools are not involved!" he pleads.

    Karkaroff "Do you really think such a public event will not implicate the schools involved!?! What if you lose!? How will the school look then? We pride ourselves at training all students in the combat arts while Hogwarts focuses on solely academic purposes, if you lose, we lose. We will be the laughing stock of Europe!" he says through gritted black teeth.

    Krum immediately feels the pressure of his entire school on his back when he hears this, he hadn''t realised his challenge would result in such drastic results.

    Karkaroff "Not only that! You challenged someone to a duel over a girl from Hogwarts! A champion no less you Govedo!"

    Krum frowns at hearing this and retorts, "I vink that doesn''t matter."

    Karkaroff walks up and slaps him in the ear, "Now listen to me you Koochi sin! You may think you''re big shit but fame fades, especially if your fans start hating you! You should get a Bulgarian girl and make them happy! Even staying single would be better than spitting on them and dating some English Grozna kurva!"

    Krum becomes angry with his headmaster as he continues to insult Ciri, "Ve vill continue" he shouts, grabbing his wand and launching a curse at Karkaroff who''s still berating him. Caught off guard the man is launched to the end of the room and collides with the wall, cracking some planks as he lands.

    Krum realises that he may have just heavily injured his Headmaster and rushes over to help him, that is, until he hears hoarse laughter.

    Karkaroff coughs and splutters as he lets out a creepy laugh that echoes throughout the room, "Yes! This is exactly what you need!" he shouts, grinning ear to ear despite the apparent pain he''s in.

    Krum tries to help him up by Karkaroff smacks his hand away, "You need to be Ruthless! Cunning! CRUEL!" he shouts pointing his wand at Krum knee and silently casting something that causes the boy to scream in agony as he drops to the floor. "YOU WILL LEARN VHAT IT IS TO BE STRONG VIKTOR! AND I VILL TEACH YOU!"

    Elsewhere :

    A rat is crawling through Knockturn alley in search of a certain store, they look for a couple of hours and eventually find it. The simply named "Wine store", he scurries inside and is almost shocked by he disparity of Knockturn Alley''s dirty, grimy architecture and this places clean and noble one. The rat squeaks and raises it head to a person look straight at it over the counter.

    "Hello customer, would you like to purchase something?" they say with a smile that doesn''t reach their eyes.

    Peter Pettigrew is terrified as the pale person with red eyes immediately identifies him, he shifts into his dirty buck toothed human form that ironically resembles a rat, or fat hamster before bowing a deep as his fat gut will allow. "H-hello! I-I-I am here to speak w-with the vampire f-families... My M-master wishes to make an offer..." he stutters out, the knowledge that this being could tear him apart with it''s bare hands at the fore front of his mind.

    The vampire across the counter chuckles, "Oh? And who might this "master" be?"

    Peter "I-I cannot reveal that..."

    "Then begone, as I doubt my clan head would wish to make deals with someone who we have no knowledge of... Unless you would like volunteer something to our stock?" they say, a threat made clear.

    Peter shakes hi head while trembling in fear, "N-no!" he says but realises if he returns with a negative or no response he''d definitely be punished. "My master believes we have a common goal and wishes to ally with your people." he stutters out.

    ... The vampire doesn''t reply and instead pierces the tip of his finger on a fang before drinking the pinprick of blood that oozes out.

    Peter "We wish to cooperate with you, if you accept we will hand Ciri Rivia to you on a platter."

    The vampire looks at him strangely while thinking "Ciri Rivia?", he''d need to ask his informants if this name holds any weight to any of the families. "Hm, I will see if we have any need for your assistance. Return in four days and I will see if anyone is interested. Begone." he says, waving his hand an allowing Pettigrew to transform back into a rat and scurrying back into Knockturn Alley.

 397 Interrogation gone wrong!

    Reima is sitting and eating lunch in the Great Hall when a shadow approaches him from behind, he sighs and turns thinking that nothing bad had happened in a few hours so this must be it. Behind him he sees Severus Snape with a sick grin on his face staring down at him.

    Snape "Mr. Ludvig, as unfortunate as it is I will need to ask you to follow me as some people wish to see you promptly." he says, causing a few people on the Gryffindor to object to it.

    Ciri "Why? Who is it?" she asks with a frown.

    Snape "It is a private matter that will hopefully be swiftly resolved. Now, do not dawdle as you do not want to keep these people waiting." he says.

    Reima clicks his tongue and takes one last mouthful of food before picking up his staff and following Snape to wherever he was leading him to.

    They walk down into the dungeons and into a spare classroom where five people are waiting, a chair sitting in the middle of the room. The people present aren''t immediately familiar to Reima, though he remembers one or two faces of some Auror''s he''d seen during the World Cup fiasco. As he steps inside the door behind him opens, revealing Minister Fudge and another pudgy gentleman who looks like a certain background character, only looking even more forgettable.

    Fudge "Ah! Reima, how are you? It''s unfortunate we''ve had to meet again in such circumstances but I''ve got my hands tied you see... Oh, this is Billius Warrington, a fellow from the Wizengamot who wishes to inquire about the incident involving you and his son."

    Billius scowls, "That''s enough of that Fudge, he''s clearly guilty of assaulting a Pure-blood with no justification. Just throw him into Azkaban like we talked about."

    Fudge shakes his head, "The public certainly wouldn''t accept that, that is why I''ve asked Professor Snape here to provide us with some Vertitaserum so we can discover what really happened." he says, not taking notice of the absolutely fuming looking Billius.

    Snape "Mr Ludvig will you please take a seat? Otherwise I''ll have to ask these Auror''s to seat you in a more undignified manner." he says, taking joy in subjecting Reima to such a situation and hoping it''ll escalate.

    Reima "Isn''t veritaserum only legally allowed to be used in court under the supervision of the entire Wizengamot?" he asks due to having researched a couple things that he may be involved in while in this world.

    Fudge chuckles, "While that would usually be the case, this is a particularly complex situation which has led to me using my full power of Minister to oversee this personally." he says, making Reima realise what is complex about this, he''s being bribed by Warrington.

    Reima knowing that unless he intends to kill everyone present before wiping out Britain''s magical population he''ll either have to ditch this world or do something even more drastic, as such he does what he''s told and sits down.

    Snape "Open your mouth, I will give you three drops of Veritaserum which would make even the most masterful Occlumens shout their secrets from the roof tops." he says with a smirk.

    Reima is quickly given the potion but doesn''t feel anything from having taken it, instead he only tastes the rather pleasant potion washing over his tongue.

    Snape eyes him before turning to Fudge and Warrington, "It has been administered, I hope I won''t trouble you by asking if I could watch the proceedings?"

    Fudge "That wouldn''t be any trouble at all! In-fact having a potion master watch would make this far more legal-Legitimate.." he quickly corrects himself.

    An Auror is about to start questioning him but Warrington moves them out of the way with his fat body, "Now boy, you will speak the truth or I''ll have your tongue cut. Who was the one that first initiated your fight between you and Cassius Warrington?"

    Reima raises a brow, "Cassius Warrington." he states causing the man to scowl.

    Warrington scowls, "I said don''t lie to me!"

    Fudge makes his presence known as he tries to calm his colleague, "Billius, he''s been giving Veritaserum, he cannot lie and any attempts to force the issue will not look good for your character!" he quickly says, quelling the mans rage for now.

    Warrington continues, "Who attack whom first in the conflict between you and Cassius Warrington?"

    Reima "Cassius Warrington." he says yet again, feeling sorry for himself at having to say a background characters name so much.

    Warrington "Why did you attack Cassius Warrington?"

    Reima stifles a smirk as he slowly speaks, "I retaliated against Cassius Warrington after he cast an exploding curse at me and my friends, I never wished to fight with him but he was so eager in trying to persuade me to sleep with him that I was afraid for my anal virginity."

    ...

    Warrington "WHAT!" he shouts as the Auror''s all starts chuckling at Reima''s words, even Snape is shocked that one of his Slytherins would try and force themselves on a male like that.

    Reima tries to think of something that''d moisten his eyes but isn''t able to draw out the crocodile tears, instead he covers his face with a hand and quietly mutters, "He wanted to make my girlfriend watch as he violated me in-front of her, I was scared and so I kicked him."

    Warrington is almost foaming at the mouth in rage at what he was hearing, his knew his son wasn''t gay... Didn''t he? He glares at the Auror holding the recording device and tells him to turn it off and delete what was discussed here.

    Fudge "I think... We are done here?" he says, wondering if he''d still be paid by Warrington for this.

    Warrington nods quickly and stomps out of the room and is quickly followed by the rest, leaving Reima in an empty classroom trying to not laugh until he can no longer hear their footsteps.

 398 Its time to D-D-D-D-D-D-D-D-D-D-D

    Once Reima eventually makes his way back to the Great Hall he''s besieged by a barrage of question on what''d just happened by his friends and acquaintances.

    Reima just shakes his head and says, "Don''t worry, it was nothing and was easily dealt with. Snape was just making it out to be bigger than it was." he says, causing most to lose their enthusiasm quickly enough while Ciri prods him further regardless.

    Reima snickers and leans in to whisper to her, "Fudge was there with Warrington Sr, they tried to truth potion me but I gave them some info that neither would want made public.

    Ciri "Oh? What was it?"

    Reima "That Cassius tried to **** me with you watching." he says, causing Ciri snort and begin laughing at the thought of it.

    They continue to joke around until it''s time for the next lesson, afterwards they go to the empty classroom to teach Harry and Hermione before finishing the day in the room of requirements for Snuffles to stretch her legs and destroy a couple more golems.

    Eventually the day of the duel betwen Reima and Krum rolls around, and boy are people excited about it. Reima had just finished his morning run with Ciri and entered the Great Hall for breakfast when he notices all eyes are on him, he looks over to the Slytherin table and notices Krum glaring at him like he''s a steak.

    Reima glances a Ciri "You''d think by the way he was staring at me he wants to take me to the ball instead of you." he jokes, causing those who hear him to laugh.

    Krum''s eyes narrow further as he sees various Gryffindor''s pointing at him and snickering, only fuelling the anger he feels towards Reima more, at this point he didn''t care about taking Ciri to the ball. Only beating this smug Kopele and showing how superior he was to him, luckily he was completely healthy as Karkaroff had given him some rest a day in advance in order to be as healthy as possible when he enters the duel.

    The Slytherin table as a whole are betting on who''s going to win, the majority bet against Reima as they believed if he was so much better than Krum he would have been chosen as a champion instead of Ciri. They recalled the incident between Warrington and him but believed it as just a fluke as even a giant wouldn''t be able to block an exploding curse with it''s bare hand without a scratch.

    Cassius "I bet 500 Galleons on Krum." he states confidently. This is echoed by many others who wish to make some quick coin off of the misfortune of others.

    Draco sits and ponders for a while before exclaiming above the others, "1000 on Ludvig!"

    ...

    Cassius "What''s your game Malfoy? You siding with those Mud-bloods now?"

    Draco shakes his head and calmly replies under the scathing glares of his peers, "Certainly not. But I see an opportunity for profit and I''ll take it, as my father taught me."

    Casius "You really believe that freak will beat Victor?" he asks in disbelief.

    Draco "Who knows? We''ve already seen Ludvig fight, I heard that he''s the one training Rivia and she certainly did better than Krum in the first task." he says, glancing at Krum who''s further down the table with his focus still on Reima.

    His argument seems to change a couple peoples minds on the outcome of the match but the consensus is that Reima will still get his shit kicked in by Krum. However this suits Draco fine as the odds are so in his favour that he''d be an idiot to not accept this bet, once he''d won and proven himself more capable than Warrington he could begin trying to climb the top of the Slytherin hierarchy, he was already the top of his own year but that wasn''t enough if he wished to prove himself to his father.

    While breakfast was happening someone who Reima hadn''t seen in a while appears from the entrance and walks towards the Ravenclaw table. Fleur glances at him and smiles as she sits down, fully anticipating the duel between her crush and Krum. She technically shouldn''t be allowed out of the carriage yet but since Hogwarts was relatively safe and the fact she''ll be sticking close to her friends from Beauxbatons Madam Maxime had allowed her to attend the event, afterall she had been begging for a couple days straight.

    Once everyone had stopped eating Dumbledore stands up and walks to the podium, "Good morning everyone! I''m sure you''re all excited for today''s lessons.." he says causing most to groan at his words, "But, before that there is an event being hosted by our very own Professor Flitwick that some may be interested to watch. For those of you who wish to observe the Duel between Reima Ludvig and Victor Krum please stands aside while prepare the wards and area. For everyone else would you please make your way out of the Hall to eat cheese pops and fluffy chewables in your leisure." He says, stroking his beard when he sees no one leaving.

    Suddenly the tables start popping away in a similar fashion to the food, causing many students to gasp in surprise. Once that''s done Dumbledore waves his hand, causing the air around the centre of the hall to shimmer slightly, showing that a ward had been placed.

 399 D-D-D-D-D-D-D-D-D-D-D-D-D-D-D

    After the area was warded and cleared Professor Flitwick walks to the middle of the room, followed by Professor Snape.

    Flitwick raises a brow at Snape and asks, "Do you need something Severus?"

    Snape shakes his head, "As I was involved in the last duelling club that was held in the school I feel that I should assist you in this as well."

    Flitwick smiles, "That is a lovely thought professor but I am more than capable of overseeing a single duel. I appreciate your dedication though." he says, not noticing Snape glare at Reima before turning and walking back to the teachers table.

    Ciri nudges Reima and asks "What do you think that was about?"

    Reima shrugs, "Probably just wanted to fuck with me during the duel."

    Flitwick "Now, I hope everyone is as excited for this event as I am, I''d usually advocate harsher rules than the Minister would usually allow but I''ve been troubled looking through the Durmstrangs duelling rules. To put it bluntly this will not be an honour duel as I don''t wish to see either student crippled or dead by the end of this, and as such any spells designed to kill, permanently incapacitate, mutilate or cripple are banned from being used."

    Karkaroff "What! This is disrespect to our ways in the highest degree!" he shouts down at Flitwick.

    Flitwick "Unless you forgot Karkaroff, your student challenged ours! And thus you will be following our rules. Any attempt to disregard my warning will result in disqualification and possibly higher punishments depending on the spells used."

    Karkaroff can only grit his black teeth at this and glare down hatefully at the half-goblin Professor.

    Flitwick "I would also like the students observing this to try and be as quiet as possible, If I see anyone shouting out compromising information to either participant they will be soundly ejected and punished later." he says looking towards the Slytherin crowd, he knew they had money on the line and wouldn''t hesitate to try and put the odds in their favour. "Now! Would Reima Ludvig and Victor Krum come to me for a quick inspection please." he quickly says.

    The two teens walk up to Flitwick, Reima having a relaxed smile on his face while resting on his staff as Krum tries to glare a hole through his forehead.

    Flitwick "Now I know both of you are competing over Miss Rivia but the outcome of the duel must be followed, if I hear a peep of any dishonourable conduct from either of you after this I will personally punish you." he says, waving his wand over both of them and stopping it over Reima''s chest. "You seem to be wearing a magical artifact Mr Ludvig..."

    Reima "Uh, really? Oh! I almost forgot..." he says, pulling out his Witcher medallion that''s trembling slightly.

    Flitwick "May I ask what this is?" he says, depending on the abilities of said artifact he may be punished for "trying" to smuggle it into a duel.

    Rema "It shakes when there''s magic or monsters nearby." he states blandly, causing Flitwick to look confusedly at it.

    Flitwick "What on earth would it be used for?" he asks, confused at why someone would need such a thing.

    Reima "It''s just something that was given to me when I was younger." he turns to look at Ciri and tosses it to her, "Keep hold of it." he says to her, causing Krum to scowl at him.

    Flitwick nods and examines him again, finding no magical items on his apart from his staff. "Now, would both of you take a position opposite each other at the far ends of the designated duelling area?" he says, gesturing to the sides. The duo nod and do as he says, once they reach the outer limits the surrounding students start becoming abit louder in anticipation of the duel.

    Flitwick walks outside the ward and begins to address both of them, "I will count to three, three will mark the start of the duel in which you will both begin, do you understand?" they nod at him, "If I shout "stop" at any point in the match I expect both of you to cease spell casting as soon as possible. If I am ignored there will be dire consequences."

    Reima takes a moment to glance at his friends who''re looking on expectantly, he can see Ciri looking a bit bored, Harry and Hermione interested, Damien and Ciri''s dorm-mates excited and last but not least, Fleur looking eager to jump him...

    Flitwick starts the signal when he sees both participants are ready, "1! 2!-" He stops as he sees a yellow bolt fired by Krum and at his opponent. Reima ducks under it as it collides with the ward behind him and scowls at the Durmstrang champion for shooting early, which Flitwick seems to agree with.

    Flitwick "STOP! Victor Krum! If you do that again you will be disqualified! Do you understand!" he shouts furiously with his face red at the disrespect and arrogance shown by Krum.

    Karkaroff shakes his head as he watches this, idiot, if he was going to break the rules atleast makesure you hit him!

    Krum nods "Aplogies, I vas overeager." he says as the other students boo him simultaneously, the only students who cheered were the Slytherins who had bet on him.

    Flitwick "I will count down again." he sends a glare at Krum and starts counting. "1! 2!.. 3!"

 400 D-D-D-DUEL!

    Flitwick "1! 2!.. 3!" he shouts and Krum immediately fires a flurry of spells of varying colour towards Reima while crouching low and moving to the side to make himself a harder target to hit.

    Reima glances at Krum and tilts his head to the side while turning his body slightly to dodge all of the spells shot at him, with the speed the spells travel at and his incredible perception he would be hard pressed to actually be hit by one of these things. Another spell is shot at him and Reima just bats it away with his staff like it''s nothing, causing the spell to ricochet at the ward before exploding into sparks. The students who were stood behind the ward fall on their asses as the spell explodes in-front of them, causing many to back away fearing that the wards wouldn''t be strong enough to protect them.

    Krum scowls as he sees his spells easily blocked or avoided and decides to change up his tactics, he points at the floor and raises his wand upwards, causing the stones comprising the ground of the great hall to slowly rise and form makeshift cover that Krum duck underneath. Reima just watches silently as his opponent enchants the stone he''s hiding behind to strengthen it against impacts and spells. He''s tempted to just walk over and punt the douchebag in the face and ending the duel quickly but doesn''t wish to raise questions over his background and where he had learnt to fight, something he would be hard pressed to brush off.

    Krum pokes his head above his cover and shouts "Confringo!" causing a gout of fire to shoot from his wand, Reima spins his staff in his hands as the fire hits it, completely dissipating the flames, despite there being no danger to himself. The audience cheers as they see this and even Flitwick is surprised as he''d never seen something like that before.

    Seeing his attack hadn''t done anything he decides to use a couple spells taught by Karkaroff, he takes some sand out of his pockets and waves his wand over the granules, they form into mini-golems in which he enchants with a couple more spells before flicking his wand at Reima to direct them towards his opponent.

    Reima begins to walk towards Krum''s hiding spot, his staff tapping against the floor and providing those watching with a forboding feeling. He notices a couple small figures walking up to him and he raises an eyebrow, he can sense magic in them but doesn''t feel any need to worry. He kicks one away haphazardly and halts when he sees it explode as it hits the ward boundary...

    Reima "Really? Mini-sand-suicide bombers?" he says aloud with mirth before tapping his staff on the floor and causing the floor to lift up and launch the mini-people over to Krum, who throws himself over his barricade in an attempt to escape the explosion. He barely makes it out with only his trouser leg on fire which he quickly pats out. He looks up to Reima in a panic realising how close he''s getting, he gets up and starts backing away while shooting various spells at him.

    Eventually Krum starts to look quite exhausted from throwing so many spells and as a last resort he raises another barricade that completely envelopes him in stone, hoping that he''d be able to catch his breath and not worry about Reima''s advance.

    A few people boo as they watch Krum hide away like a rabbit against a wolf but they fall silent as Reima approaches the stone structure in the middle of the room. He gives a few taps with the bottom of his staff and sees that it''s solid stone that''s been strengthened by centuries of magical encroachment, apparently using Hogwarts materials as a barricade is quite effective, especially since Krum has added even more enchantments to prevent him breaking through.

    Reima sighs and decides to just "Fuck it", the axe head of his staff glows dark red as embers start drifting from it, the air around it becoming fuzzy as he became hotter by the second. Eventually even the audience can feel the heat being emitted by it, Reima raises the staff up over his head and slams it down onto the stone structure, slicing cleanly through it and he even had to stop the axe from continuing through the floor.

    Krum who had just caught his breath inside the structure almost shits his pants as he feels the temperature rise and a glowing red "thing" slice through the wall, causing the rest of the structure to collapse, leaving him sitting below his opponent without any cover.

    Reima hefts the axe over his shoulder as it cools down and dims, "You wanna surrender yet or?" he asks, believing this would be enough to make the prideful boy give up.

    Krum ignores his words and throws himself to the side while casting darker curses that you''d usually expect from a student, despite still being "legal" to duel with. Reima''s had enough at this point and briskly walks over to the teen while blocking all of his spells with the Staff of Manus, once he''s close enough he grabs Krum by the neck and throws him to the floor, seeing he''s not yet unconscious Reima kicks him in the stomach, launching him a couple meters away and finally making him unconscious.

    ...

    There''s silence for a moment before the audience bursts into cheers, surprised at how one sided the duel actually was while some of the Slytherins grit their teeth at how much money they had lost.

    Flitwick "The winner of this duel is Reima Ludvig!" he shouts happily, pondering whether it would be prudent to ask him what techniques he had used.

 401 Krum in Crutches....

    Draco stands there in-front of the Slytherins grinning ear to ear, he''d proven his insight and had instantly become the focus of those who''d followed Warrington and lost, additionally he''d won a substantial sum of gold from the bet. All according to plan.

    Reima just stands there, not really sure what to do now... Does he celebrate with everyone like the end of a chick flick or just leave... He has his decision chosen for him as Dumbledore dispells the wards and fixes the floor that was used as barricades by Krum.

    Dumbledore "Everyone! Could I have your attention!... Thank you. As much as I appreciate your enthusiasm for this event I''d like to remind you that lessons will be starting in half an hour so please keep the festivities to an absolute minimum." he slowly says causing the hall to quieten and become less chaotic.

    Reima takes the opportunity to nod his head at Professor Flitwick and head towards Ciri while sending a look to Fleur. Fleur sees this and feels an indescribable feeling overtake her and she can feel her feet already moving in the direction the duo was heading in.

    The majority of the hall didn''t even notice as Reima ducked away into the crowd before disappearing, most electing to watch Krum get levitated and taken to the infirmary.

    Karkaroff was fuming at the display of his student and was pondering whether or not he should just expel him under being an absolute disgrace to the school and the people that taught him. However he realises that Krum''s fame is a double sided sword, the boy can become hated quickly but it''d also protect him against such a public thing as being expelled. He just scoffs, shakes his head and starts briskly walking back to the Durmstrang ship to ease his anger through alcohol.

    Karkaroff wasn''t the only one upset at the result, Snape had thought Potters friend would be destroyed by the Durmstrang Champion. He had thought the boy held potential before the school started as he had aligned himself with the girl that''d killed black but apparently something else was going on as they had befriended the godson of the very person they had killed. He glares at Reima''s back as he leaves, wondering how he''d get the items he''d stolen back and most importantly, get revenge for ruining the only photo of Lilly and himself left.

    Reima''s friends were cheering and hadn''t noticed him leave with Ciri in tow, they looked around for a while but realised Ciri was gone and thought the couple wanted some "time" alone.

    Reima and Ciri slowly walked through the hallways, their destination the typical classroom they use for spellcasting. Reima can feel a fiery aura following them and feels his nerves rising by the second, is this really the way to approach this? Or is he just being selfish? Either way, he''d find out soon.

    The duo enter the room and Ciri lazily slumps into a nearby chair while kicking her feet up, "What a surprise, you won." she says sarcastically before tossing him his Medallion back to it''s rightful owner.

    Reima shrugs, "What''d you expect? I''ve killed dragons, demons and gods. You really think a teenager still attending school is going to beat me?"

    Ciri "I suppose not... Though you could have ended it quicker than that."

    Reima "Yeah, let''s broadcast my abilities to the entire school, that sounds like a great idea."

    Ciri "Didn''t stop you showing off." she snarks. "...Should we let the birdy outside the door in? I can smell her arousal from here."

    Reima sniffs the air but smells nothing, causing Ciri to laugh. "Pervert.", shaking his head he raises his voice and calls out "Come in".

    The door is pushed open by a familiar french girl who''s looking at Reima intently, her brows furrow as she sees Ciri but she continues inside with a determined stride.

    Fleur "Bonjour..." She says, accidentally speaking her native language due to how nervous she is.

    Reima and Ciri nod at her, "Hello"/"Hey."

    Fleur stirs uncomfortably under their gazes, "Iz there somezing you needed?" she asks.

    Ciri "Weren''t you the one who followed us here?" she says, while she supported Reima''s decision to try and ask Fleur to go with them that didn''t mean she wasn''t going to have fun with the girl.

    Fleur stutters, "B-but..." she sends a pleading look to Reima.

    Reima sighs, "I''ve heard you had trouble with someone a few days ago?"

    She nods, "He iz dealt with, I do not zink he will try zat again." she says with some edge in her voice.

    Reima "Have you had any luck finding a date to the ball?"

    ...

    Fleur slowly shakes her head before giving him a meaningful look, "Non, all of ze good men are taken." she says as her eyes flit to Ciri who smirks back at her.

    Ciri "Maybe you should have asked sooner then?"

    Fleur doesn''t reply to this as she feels Ciri is right, she should have asked sooner. Reima wasn''t even taken before Krum challenged him for Ciri.

    Reima rubs his face, trying to find a good way of saying what needs to be said. Eventually he just decides to go for it and deal with the consequences. "Fleur, I was wondering if you would like to go to the Yule Ball with me?"

    ...

    Fleur "What!?"

 402 Reima the Romantic?

    Fleur "What?!?"

    Reima repeats, hoping her reaction was from surprise alone. "Will you go to the Yule Ball with me?"

    Fleur "But-but..." she glances at Ciri yet again, "What about Ciri? I thought this waz what you fought Victor for..."

    Reima''s throat becomes abit dry as he tries to mutter the words he knows could possibly make or break the situation. "Well... Uh, I was wondering if you''d like to... Go with me... And Ciri."

    ...

    When Fleur hears him she immediately feels the urge to immediately reject him, however as he''s clearly uncomfortable with asking this, maybe there''s more to it? From the answer alone she''d infer that he was asking her to become a mistress or something similar but she simply couldn''t believe that her crush would say something like that. "Why?" is all she can utter.

    Ciri groans, "Come on Fleur, I know you''ve got a brain in there. We know you have been rejecting everyone in hopes of getting Reima to come with you, what will you do when you''re left with someone like Ron Weasley?"

    Fleur "But you-"

    Ciri "I personally do not mind so don''t refuse due to concern for me, this is your decision to make."

    ...

    Reima mentally cheers for Ciri''s backup and presses onwards to victory, "I''m just throwing the question out there Fleur, I think we would have a great time together but if you think you''d rather go with someone else I won''t hold it against you."

    Fleur "You two must know what I am?" They nod, "Zen you know ze stigma on my species. If I go wiz you it will be viewed as me taking advantage of you or the opposite, neither of us will come out with ze public looking favourably at us."

    Reima shrugs, "Let them think what they want, they already think Ciri''s fucking harry and that we''re both murderous monsters for defending people at the Quidditch World Cup."

    Ciri nods, "The news is all fake anyway, why bother thinking about it."

    Fleur looks as if she''s about to crack but still has some reservations about it, "How would we dance? I do not know of any way to dance wiz three people."

    Reima "We''ll just take turns... Someone''s gotta looks after Snuffles anyway, he points his thumb at the rabbit sitting on Ciri''s lap, glaring at Fleur with wide red eyes.

    ...

    Fleur "Fine."

    ...

    Reima "Huh?" he asks, wondering if he had just misheard her.

    Ciri throws a chair leg at him, "She said yes so you better not disappoint us." she says licking her lips while looking at Fleur. "We''ve got classes soon, so we''ll meet up here tomorrow in the morning... Bring your dress Fleur." she says, receiving a nod from the girl and a confused look from Reima.

    Fleur leaves to attend her lessons but feels as if she won''t be able to concentrate on them at all due to the recent developments, she was still unsure whether this was a good decision or a bad one.

    Reima is left in the room with Ciri an slumps into a chair, feeling mentally and emotionally exhausted. His heart was pounding the entire time she was here but he luckily managed to keep his cool.

    Ciri seeing his state cannot help but chuckle, "You''ve successfully conned two girls to the Ball with you and you''re acting as if you just got divorced."

    Reima clicks his fingers and telekinetically floats Snuffles to him before he begins to starts fluffing her for comfort. "Believe it or not Ciri but this is pretty draining for me, I''ve never had to deal with something like this before, and even when it got close to it I''d just ignored it and hoped it would sort itself out. Proactively dealing with it means being the cause of all the problems that result from it, I don''t really want the pressure of that..."

    Ciri "Coward?" she asks jokingly.

    Reima "As you said earlier, I''ve just landed two beautiful girls to go to the Ball. I feel as if that disqualifies me as a coward, but if I have to be a coward to be with you then it doesn''t sound so bad." he says without thinking, causing Ciri to blush slightly at his words.

    He continues to brush Snuffles black fur and is about to suggest they either go to lesson or get some training in when he feels Ciri quickly approach him, he doesn''t move to see what she''s trying to do now but is surprised to feel her lips on his. She leans into him causing the chair to lean on it''s back two legs before releasing him, "Youknow, you can be romantic when you want to be Rei. Just don''t say the same to Fleur or she might actually fall for you."

    Reima doesn''t really know how to react to the sudden action but decides he won''t be one of those brainless, dickless anime protagonists, he wraps his arm around her butt and pulls her back in for another kiss which is eventually interrupted by Snuffles who''s slightly indignant about not being stroked by anyone. Reima feels as if Snuffles is the ultimate cock-blocker but can''t find it in himself to be mad at her. "Room of requirement?" he asks, deciding he''d get his revenge in the form of training.

    Ciri nods with Snuffles mimicking her, "Room of requirement."

 403 Fifty shades of dark?

    Krum wakes up and finds himself staring at a white ceiling, he tries to remember what''d put him here but wishes he hadn''t when he thinks back to the duel. He had initially thought he''d trounce Reima easily but his confidence was shaken slightly when Reima had easily dodged his early spell that he definitely should not have been prepared for as he had broken the rules just to get it in. After that was all a nightmare, he was casting every spell he could think of while also employing some of the tactics given to him by his headmaster Karkaroff in the explosive sand puppets. He really hadn''t expected for them to literally be launched right back at hm, he shudder at what would have happened to him if one had exploded close to him, losing a limb wasn''t an impossibility.

    Even despite all of that the scariest part was his opponents unfazed face throughout the entire fight, the only emotions he could spot was exasperation, boredom and... Pity? Clearly he was outmatched and it was made even more clear by the fact Reima had literally cut through his heavily enchanted stone barricade... He could vividly remember the heat from the axe head of his staff and even had a few burns on his hand that was closest to it, that person wasn''t someone to be trifled with and he was extraordinarily grateful that he hadn''t entered the Tri-Wizard tournament, losing in such a fashion on an international stage would defnitely spell the end for his career.

    He still felt as though Reima was taking advantage of Ciri but simply didn''t have the means to do anything about it, however looking at it more rationally he felt as though maybe he was projecting his own feelings towards the situation, his jealousy fuelling his belief that Reima was a villain so he could justify his own actions... Though the dull pain echoing through his body made him think that Reima was a kind person either.

    Feeling antsy from lying in bed so long he tries to push himself upwards but feels terrible pain in his stomach and ribs from the movement. Looking down and lifting his shirt he sees his entire front covered in blue and purple bruises, apparently Reima hadn''t gone easy on him, he felt as if he''d been kicked many times in the ribs and stomach by a strongman.

    "You''re awake."

    Krum shudders at the familiar voice and dreads what Karkaroff will do to him, "Headmaster..."

    Karkaroff grits his black teeth and glares at his protege furiously, "Don''t you call me that after such a disgraceful display! You ran around in fear before getting knocked out like a MUGGLE!"

    Krum shudders at his Headmaster, fearing that he''d inflict even more injuries to himself in a rage.

    Karkaroff slowly calms down, "We will have to find ways for you to redeem yourself..." he says with a thoughtful expression.

    Krum shakes his head, "I will not antagonise Reima Ludvig any further." he says, knowing any confrontation would be a complete and utter loss, he doubt if even Karkaroff could beat Reima.

    A feminine voice echoes from behind Karkaroff who''s leaning over Krum, "Mr Karkaroff would you please let my patient rest? I''m sure he''s still hurting from his injuries." Madam Pomfrey says, with Krum nodding at her.

    Karkaroff can only nod and leave, still thinking of ways to return glory to Durmstrang, he didn''t think even winning the Tri-Wizard tournament would be enough now... He looks down and scratches his arm, feeling the throbbing ache of his former masters mark and dreading the tattoo becoming darker could mean.

    Krum was left alone as his headmaster was escorted out, he hoped his injuries wouldn''t effect him in the Tri-Wizard tournament but knew one thing for certain... He''d need to find another date to the Yule Ball... Maybe that Hermione girl was still available?

    Elsewhere :

    Fleur had just finished brushing her teeth but still had her mind on one thing, Reima. She had accepted his offer as she was afraid it was her only opportunity but was still pondering over whether or not she wanted to do this or was just settling for the "best she can hope to get", her mother had always told her to follow her instincts but her father had a complete contradictory philosophy, in which he reminded her to think over everything as rationally as possible before going ahead with it. These two conflicting views are the cause of most of her inhibitions towards Reima and Ciri''s proposal, as a Veela she was naturally more in-tune with her sexuality but she had never thought she''d be included in such a peculiar situation. She was thankful that they''d thought of her but was still conflicted over whether she made the right choice...

    She wondered if it was just Ciri''s presence alone that was causing her to hesitate so much, or whether it was just the fact that there was three people involved. She knew if Reima had asked alone she would have agreed so is it just because of Ciri? She didn''t dislike the girl and was even receptive to her advances towards herself so why was she feeling like this? Is it jealousy? Was she jealous at Ciri''s official relationship with Reima or was she just thinking of this wrong... They didn''t ask her to become romantically involved, it''s just a Ball afterall so maybe she''s placing too much importance on it?

    Eventually after the lights had dimmed and the stars were out she decided to just go with the flow and deal with the fallout afterwards, hopefully she wouldn''t regret this in the future.

 404 Cosplay?

    The next day after a morning run with Reima, Ciri, Fleur and Snuffles they quickly finish breakfast and return back to the classroom where they had talked yesterday. Fleur looks a lot less nervous today and somehow more... Driven? Due to both Ciri and Fleur being champions and Reima not actually caring about the school rules they aren''t required to attend lessons, Fleur walks in with a mokeskin pouch and smiles at the duo.

    Fleur "Bonjour vous deux... I still wonder how high your endurance really is Reima, after our run you did not even zeem tired." he says after nodding to them both.

    Reima doesn''t really know how to reply to that, he''s currently still trying to figure out if that was an invitation or not...

    Ciri "You''re pretty fit yourself Fleur, I didn''t think Witches or Wizards actually tried to exercise..."

    Fleur "Non, most do not but, since the tournament waz announced I decided I had to train to win."

    Reima "You do any other exercises?" he asks curiosuly.

    She nods and smiles at him, "Yes, I am quite.. Stretchy, which you will hopefully zee during the next tasks or maybe..." she trails off.

    Ciri shakes her head at their flirting and decides to get started on the reason they''re here. "Alright, enough with the small talk, let''s see your outfit Fleur."

    Fleur nods and opens her Mokeskin pouch and gently retrieves a grey embroidered dress that looks as if it''d reach to her ankles with two spaghetti straps that''d go over her shoulders. She lays it down on a clean table for Ciri to view it, only for her to scoff as she sees it.

    Ciri "I''ve always hated dresses, though I can''t say mine is much better." she says, sending a glance to Reima which has him retrieving the dress she''d bought during their trip through London. She hadn''t actually wanted to buy one but it was a requirement for Hogwarts so she just picked the one she thought looked the nicest, this ended up being a dark blue, almost black dress with a lighter blue trim. She''d picked it because it resembled a dress she remembered Yennefer wearing but found it didn''t quite suit her, that and it''s ability to cause discomfort in ways she hadn''t experienced in years made her want to burn it.

    She places it next to Fleurs and the both groan at how terribly they match, it''s worse than fire and water because atleast those have some deal of symmetry, no these look like pigshit and vomit. They glare at the clothes for a while as if their eyes would magically change the clothes looks completely until eventually Reima retrieves his own outfit.

    Reima had picked a regular muggle black suit, it was modern and he thought it looked much better than the almost Victorian shit the magicals were wearing. Compared to the "Dress Robes" that were basically just elongated suits that served no functional purpose he''d rather go with the non-magicals on this one.

    He lays the suit beside the two dresses and sees that his outfit would suit both Ciri and Fleurs fine, however with both of them together it looks out of place, even with his inferior male sense of fashion.

    Fleur "C''est affreux! These look terrible..." she mutters.

    Ciri nods, "Maybe we should just go in full armour, roleplay as knights or something." she says jokingly.

    Reima "Atleast no one would know who we are, covered from head to toe in metal...

    Fleur "Zer iz not enough time to get more tailored, and I refuse to purchase a pre-made one."

    Ciri shrugs, "Unless you''ve got something in that magical closet of your Rei then we''ll have to figure something else out..." She looks at him when he doesn''t answer, "You don''t right?"

    ...

    Reima scratches the back of his head, "Well... I may have.. Some souvenirs from my travels?" he says, causing Ciri''s face to light up. If his weapons are any indication of the quality of his "Souvenirs" then she and Fleur were in for a big surprise."

    Fleur looks at them both confused and asks, "Iz there somezing else?"

    Reima shrugs and pulls out a number of ridiculously expensive looking dresses, all of them shimmer with a mysterious aura while some even seem to glow. The dresses are in every colour you can imagine, red, blue, brown and even metallic colours like gold, silver and bronze. Ciri almost drools as she finds a dress that seems to be.. Armoured? It''s purple with silver plates places here and there that seem to reinforce the vitals, on the hips there are some plates travelling down to protect the thighs while the fabric itself seems to be incredibly durable.

    Ciri "I want this one." she doesn''t hesitate in saying.

    Reima "Er, shouldn''t you try to find something that will match with Fleur?" he asks as he observes his other date looking at all of them with glazed eyes.

    Fleur "Merde, Reima where did you find all zees? Zay must be ze most beautiful clothes I have ever seen." she says in awe.

    Reima shrugs but doesn''t reply, he''s not going to tell them that some of these used to belong to a cross dressing douche bag that he helped murder.

 405 Wearing stolen clothing.

    Reima "I think you guys should decide what you want to wear and I''ll find something to accompany it... You''re better at this than I am." he says, taking Snuffles off of the table and sitting her in his lap before begging to stroke her. He ignores the shimmer in her red eyes are she glares at the dresses as it isn''t weird for a young girl to want to "dress up". "I''ll give you one later." he whispers into her fluffy ears, causing her to look up at him and squeak in surprised delight.. Or atleast that''s what Reima thinks she was trying to say, he doesn''t speak rabbit you see.

    The girls continue to go through the dresses, comparing with others while matching them with what each of them had picked. Eventually after almost an hour of this they finally end up with two dresses that seems to please both of them while matching relatively well. Obviously neither had eve tried to match dresses with one another as they''d never thought either of them would attend a ball as a trio.

    Fleur ended up with a black dress that was made from almost silk-like fabric, with the exception of it''s incredible durability. If she didn''t know any better she would have thought that the dress was enchanted with something, the upper part of the dress was covered in "sprinkles" of metal that shimmer in the light, a nice contrast to the black fabric. It lacked sleeves and supported itself by attaching around her neck which she found relatively comfortable as it reminded her of as one piece swimsuit she''d worn at home. It also had some freely hanging fabric that''d sway in the breeze as it moved, giving it a unique look compared to other dresses.

    Ciri had found something that wasn''t too restrictive and was quite revealing if you took the magical sense of modesty into account. It was a similar black fabric to Fleur''s own dress however was thinner and thus seems to flutter much more often, it''s cleavage was completely open with only the corset like bra covering her goods. Spaghetti straps supporting her breasts which was needed as Ciri never wore bra''s. Additionally it had silver embroidery and adornments that matched spectacularly with Fleur''s without looking like a copy, the similarities didn''t end there as it also had loose fabric that''d sway as she moved.

    With the girl content in their choices they turned there attention to Reima, he hadn''t picked anything yet, presumably to find something that matched with them. They decided to try on the dresses before committing to having him choose something.

    Reima watched as they cordoned off one part of the room and quickly got changed into the clothes, he knew that the majority of the clothing was enchanted and so was scanning everything they inspected, making sure it wasn''t dangerous. After a couple minutes the girls came out, they hadn''t done their hair or makeup but were simply just wearing the dresses... And god did they look good.

    Fleur "How do we look?" she asks with a small blush, mirrored by Ciri.

    Reima blankly states, "Like two goddesses have descended..." before rapidly regaining his composure, *Ahem* he coughs to alleviate some of his embarrassment. "You''ll be the centre of attention, I pity those mortals who are unfortunate enough to not be in your company" he says dramatically, only half joking...

    They girls nod to eachother at his reaction, "Will you start looking for something to wear?" they ask, unsure if they should help.

    He shrugs, waves his hand and makes all the unworn dresses disappear, only for make outfits to take their place. All of the clothes present are far from the modern suit that he had wanted to wear, instead belonging to Gwyn. As the former "Lord of Cinder, Sunlight, Fire and whatever else" seemed to have a fetish on robes, that was what the majority comprised of. Luckily they seemed to be around his size, despite remembering the man in the Kiln of the First Flame looking about 7ft... Maybe he grew in the Kiln? Or maybe the robes were like Gwynevere''s in that they could change size... Of course they could have just shrinked in the wash but Reima doubted that was actually a possibility.

    Either way all the robes present seems to be wearable, though some looked more combat focused than anything else, with chainmail and titanite plates of metal covering the majority of them. The girls look at him suspiciously as he brings out another set of ridiculously expensive looking clothing, thinking that he''d robbed and ancient civilisation or something... Oh how right they were.

    Regardless Reima scoured through the clothes with the help of the girls and even Snuffles was dragging the occasional robe to him, though it was not even close to matching the girls own dresses. They continued this until they went through 75% of them, all they were left with was what Reima assumed to be only sleep wear and casual wear. However he had forgotten that the Lord of Cinder was the ruler of a nation and had to look the part at every moment of every day. They eventually came across a dressing gown that looked nothing like it''s modern counterparts, it was a heavy robe that was still relatively light when compared to the other armoured clothing they could pick from, it had two lapels that went down to his ankles and crossed each other over his front, it was partially covered by other fabric covering it and was completely black, with the exception of the small murals depicting Gwyn slaying dragons. Despite it being a gown is also had some silver chainmail in some parts but it looked natural enough to where you wouldn''t noticed unless you were looking for it. Last but not least it had some kind of grey fur going around the neck and shoulders.

 406 A kings attire

    The robe was accompanied with black trousers that have armoured plates hidden in the fabric... For some reason Gwyn was expecting someone to try and stab him in the shin while he was lounging in his palace...

    Reima throws the robe on and places a large silver mirror in-front of himself and the girls, they stand side by side and are surprised by how well it all looks. The girls start to imagine what it''d look like after they had done their hair and makeup while Reima imagines what they''ll look like without the dresses entirely...

    Ciri "This looks..."

    Reima "Nice?" he finishes her thought.

    Fleur "Oui, you both look magnifique."

    "So do you."Reima says with a grin and pats her on the butt causing her to eye him predatorily,

    Ciri notices this and slaps his butt which makes him look at her weirdly.

    The trio continue to flirt around and jokingly grope eachother until they hear a squeak from Snuffles which has Reima groaning outloud.

    Eventually Fleur leaves and the duo + rabbit head up to the room of requirement, something tells Reima that Snuffles needs another training session...

    The next day at breakfast Reima is seated next to the usual suspects, Harry, Hermione, Ciri, Snuffles and their dorm mates. Everything had gone relatively normal today and Reima was feeling antsy, he felt like something was amiss but wasn''t quite able to put his finger on it... That is, until Harry leans over to him.

    Harry "Uh, Reima... I, er... I think Krum''s trying to hook up with Hermione" he quickly whispers.

    Reima leans his head to the side in confusion, "Isn''t he still in crutches?"

    Harry nods, "Hermione says he''s been coincidentally "Meeting" her in the library, I don''t you about you but Krum doesn''t strike me as the literate type..." he says with bitterness in his voice.

    Reima doesn''t really know how to respond to him, hadn''t this already been sorted out? "Didn''t you already ask Hermione to the ball?" Harry nods, "And aren''t you two dating yet?"

    Harry shakes his head, "It feels like we''re dating but neither of us have really said anything about it..."

    Reima "Sooo, why are you asking me about it?"

    Harry "Well, I just thought if you''ve already-well youknow, beaten Krum up once... Maybe you could scare him away or something?"

    Reima "You''re asking me to scare away something hitting on your girlfriend, or "to be girlfriend"

    Harry nods at this with a pleading look.

    Reima "I hope you know how pathetic you sound right now. And I refuse, if I do this then next time it happens you''ll bend over and watch as your woman is snatched away. Learn to defend yourself and what''s yours." he says with a frown.

    Harry "B-but, he''s a 7th year... I can''t fight him like you did and with his popularity I''m afraid of what might happen."

    Reima "Do you trust Hermione?"

    Harry "What wh-" Reima interrupts, "Do you trust Hermione?"

    Harry nods after a moment, "Yes."

    Reima "Then trust that she won''t go off and ditch you for Krum, also keep an eye on her incase the douche tries to dose her with a Love potion or something."

    Harry "W-Wait do you really think he would do that?" he stutters out in a worried tone.

    Reima shrugs, "He''s already had one date stolen, if he asks another and gets rejected then it wouldn''t look good for him. I think he''s an attention whore and wouldn''t chance it... Maybe brewing a couple cleansing potions in preparation wouldn''t be a bad idea? Afterall it''s better to be safe than sorry." he says with Harry nodding rapidly.

    Harry leans back in his chair with a sigh which is immediately picked up by Hermione who starts interrogating him, Harry keeps his worries quiet and rather skilfully changes the subject without her noticing.

    Reima glances over the table while eating his breakfast after the quick chat he''d had with Harry, he hadn''t actually thought about Love potions for a while and wondered if anyone in the hall was currently dosed with one? It wouldn''t surprise him if there was due to the Yule Ball happening soon, having a good date would be a status symbol for the Pure-Bloods and even the Muggleborns wouldn''t scoff at dating the girl of their dreams, even if they were previously unwilling.

    He scans over the Gryffindor table in curiosity by finds his gaze being drawn by a young red head who''s currently getting up with a determined look on his face. Ron Weasley gets up and trods to the Ravenclaw table where the clamouring from it slowly quietens as he approaches, his eyes are squarely on Fleur as he walks to her, they gain a glassy look the closer he gets until he almost stumbles over his own foot. Eventually he finally reaches her and shouts as loud as his throat can mustre, "GO TO THE BALL WITH ME!" he says looking at Fleur.

    ...

    The table starts giggling before erupting into laughter at how incredibly stupid Ron looks right now, he''s drooling with glassy eyes and a dumb look on his face. Reima can only feel sorry for him as Fleur was obviously already taken, he didn''t mind that Ron asked her because the chances of her accepting were so low that it was comical.

 407 Is that Darude Sandstorm?

    The table continues to laugh at the now red faced Ron who looks down furiously in embarrassment, eventually the laughter subsides and the attention is all laid upon Fleur so she could tell him her answer.

    Fleur "I already have a date." she says simply, causing others to start gossiping as to who that might be.

    Ron "Wha-Who is it?" he asks quickly as if he''s just been insulted.

    Ron follows Fleurs eyes as she blushes and glances at Reima, he feels indignant rage at the fact this single guy had ruined his chances with the most beautiful girl in school. Not only that but he''d been replaced as Harry''s friend... Wait didn''t he just beat Krum to take Ciri Rivia to the ball? "But he''s taking someone else." he exclaims causing her to scowl at him.

    Fleur nods, "Oui, but a man like him can handle two women." she says with a mocking look.

    Ron can only grit his teeth at this and leave the hall, under the attention of the rest of the school. Perhaps he should open the package his mum had sent him a few days ago, in the letter it said it would help with his relationship to Hermione but maybe it could be used on someone else... Depending on what it is ofcourse.

    Reima watches as Ron leaves and suspects that this isn''t the end of it, the boy''s an idiot but a determined one nonetheless. He wouldn''t bother keeping an eye on him but making sure he doesn''t try anything would be quite easy, considering how useless and clumsy he is.

    He notices Fleur still glancing in his direction and waves his hand at her, causing a small blush to appear on her face as she quickly turns around.

    Ciri "Don''t tease her or you might be jumped in the hallway." she says, having spoken to the girl more so than Reima she couldn''t really tell how far her affection for him went. Though it wouldn''t surprise her if it turned into an obsession, she doubted Reima would dislike if that happened however.

    Reima notices Snuffles isn''t next to either he or Ciri and looks around, afraid of what might have happened to her. However is worries are quickly alleviated when he sees Luna cradling her while talking happily with Neville, he leaves them to it and he knows he won''t be around forever to keep Luna away from bullies, perhaps he could rely on Neville for that.

    After breakfast Reima and Ciri head to a class that''d been recently opened for those attending the Yule Ball, dancing lessons. Students filed into the room and lined up on one side while Professor Mcgonagall watches them. It seems that everyone from Gryffindor is here, including Luna who was previously invited by the Professor.

    Mcgonagall "Greetings everyone, I am sure you are all excited for the upcoming event... However, I doubt that many of you are even able to dance a simple Waltz. This is a problem for me and for Gryffindor as a whole as I will not permit my house to look like a babbling, bumbling band of baboons!" she says, drawing a laugh for the Weasley twins.

    Mcgonagall sends a glance at Filch who''s in the corner hovering over a large ornamental music player, of course his cat is also present., he clicks the player and music springs to life. "Everyone one of you is capable of beauty or bravery and I''ll be trying to draw that out in these lessons." She looks around before finally stopping on Ron Weasley who smirking while talking with Seamus Finnigan.

    Mcgonagall "Mr Weasley? Would you perhaps step up with me please?" she says with a look that denies his rejection. The other students chuckle at this but stop quickly due to a glance from the Professor.

    Ron groans and slowly gets up, wondering if he''d actually find someone to dance with anyway...

    Mcgonagall proceeds to show Ron how to Waltz, after a couple minutes she invites everyone else to join her but the only people brave enough to step forward are Neville and Reima, who is quickly followed by Harry. On the other side of the room the girls who''s dates have stood up also get up to join them, they all meet in the middle of the room and start practising either what''d just been showed by Mcgonagall or what they remember from previous dance lessons they may have forgotten, as was the case for Ciri.

    Reima holds her waist as he grips her snugly as they move to the music, Ciri looks uncomfortable at first but begins to loosen up and go with the flow. Snuffles who''s on a seat nearby begins putting her feet back and forward to mimics the movements of the dance but without a partner and indeed, as a rabbit, it just looks adorable.

    The class continues with Mcgonagall occasionally showing them more complex movements but everything goes smoothly, it was an enjoyable experience for everyone involved, excluding Ron Weasley ofcourse.

    After the lesson Mcgonagall tells everyone the time of next weeks lesson and leaves the room, followed by Reima and Ciri who have Animagus practise with her.

    They shadow Mcgonagall as she enters the office, she glances at them momentarily as they sit on the floor and enter meditation. She herself doesn''t actually have to do much except watch for badly done transformations or ones done too quickly or slowly, both can result in terrifying injuries.

    She idly scratches the back of Ciri''s rabbit familiar while marking some students papers... That is, until she sees something... Weird?

 408 Backup is here!

    Mcgonagall watches closely as black scales begin to appear on Reima''s face, she''s intrigued by what animal his Animagus transformation might be but doesn''t press him on it as it''s a rather personal subject.

    Reima''s face is slowly covered by scales which continue to travel down his neck and presumably his chest, abdomen and legs. Mcgonagall observes this closely as literally anything is possible at this point, she''d even seen someone''s skin invert, leaving their organs on the outside during a transformation... Obviously they died a painful and agonising death, not because she couldn''t reverse the transformation but because he was terribly infected by all sorts of things before they could return him to normal. That incident alone made her wary of anyone attempting to transform alone, of course there were others. Turning into a centaur is one, half spider half human hybrid that researchers fondly named "SpiderMan", though what happened after the Unforgivables took him is anyone''s guess.

    Eventually she decides to put a stop to his transformation for now as doing so too hastily could end in disaster, he prods Reima with her wand which slowly draws his eyes open as the scales fade away back under his skin.

    Reima rubs his forehead as a strange feeling overtakes him and asks "What happened?"

    Mcgonagall smiles at him, "You are close to transforming, did you feel your body changing?"

    Reima nods, "My skin was tingling but I thought that was something else..."

    Mcgonagall shakes her head, "You did very well, a couple more sessions and you''ll be able to transform completely" she says with a hint of excitement.

    Reima nods and glances at Ciri who''s still deep in meditation, "I''ll continue until the next classes start." he says, receiving a nod from Mcgonagall.

    Elsewhere :

    Ron Weasley was having an awful day, first he gets rejected in-front of the whole school then he finds out that Harry''s freak friend is going to the ball with Ciri and Fleur? If that wasn''t enough he was forced to dance with Mcgonagall for a full hour! After the dancing class had ended he''d retreated up to his dorms while skipping his lessons. Once in his room he looks around his messy trunk in search of something. All of his personal affects are strewn about the place haphazardly which makes finding anything incredibly difficult but he eventually finds the package he was looking for.

    It''s the package his mother had sent to him a few days ago after telling her his troubles with Harry and Hermione. He''d never admit that it was his fault that they had cut relations with him but his mother would never know that. He tears apart the package as if it were Christmas but stops when he sees the contents... A vial? Some kind of potion? He pops the cork and takes a whiff before frowning when he finds that it smells like old books... Did his mum send him the wrong thing? He notices among the torn apart remains of the package a note that he''d inadvertently ripped in half, piecing it together he sees what''s written : "Ron, I''ve heard your worries over your relationship between Harry and more importantly Hermione so I''ve placed a potion that''ll fix your problem immediately. All you have to do is place it in her drink or food and your problems will be fixed. Love Mum."

    Ron nods to himself after he''s finished reading it, trust his mum to finding a solution to his problems... However instead of trying to fix his relationship with Hermione, maybe he should get some revenge on that freak instead? After all he''s already got two dates, why shouldn''t he get one? While the classes continue he starts to think up ways of slipping whatever this potion is into the drink of Fleur or Ciri, he''d have to go for the easier out of the two so he''ll try for Ciri... However, without Hermiones intellect or Harry''s bravery, Ron''s plans are all either incredibly stupid or impossible.

    The next day at breakfast Ron is stirring in his seat, he''d already eaten his own weight in food but was constantly looking for a chance to stick the potion into Ciri''s drink. He was lucky no-one noticed he''d taken a seat much closer to Harry''s group than he usually would but still found it difficult to go forward with his plans.

    Eventually he drums up his courage enough to attempt it, he gets up and acts as if he''s heading for the toilets with the vial hidden in his palm. As he''s passing Ciri he pretends to stumble and tries to slip the vial in her drink.

    Reima is keeping a close eye on Ron during all of this and already knows he''s got a potion in his hand, he''s about to intervene when someone else does.

    Ron''s hand is slapped away by a furry black paw courtesy of Snuffles, but that isn''t all. Ron is immediately tackled to the floor by around 10 grey skinned midgets, or better known as House Elves.

    "YOU WILL NOT HARM MISTRESS!" they all screech in horror while attacking him, giving him weak punches and kicks while occasionally throwing cutlary at him.

    Ron screams in panic as he''s assaulted by many tiny hands, the whole rooms focus is on him as he flails around while Bug Eyed creatures try to attack him. Eventually Dumbledores seen enough and shouts, "STOP!" causing the hall to fall silent and the house elves to stop.

    Dumbledore "What is the meaning of this!" he says calmly but loudly.

 409 Hes gone.

    Dumbledore "What is the meaning of this!"

    ...

    The house elves crawl off of Ron''s beaten and bruised body before popping away. Reima decides to stand up and address Dumbledores question. He walks over to ron and picks up the vial he tried to slip in Ciri''s drink.

    Reima "Professor, he just tried to slip this into Ciri''s drink, apparently the house elves were making sure she didn''t get dosed." he says, causing many to glare at Ron.

    Dumbledore scratches his beard in thought before saying, "Bring it here."

    Reima does so and hands Dumbledore the vial who gives it a whiff, his eyes go wide but Reima isn''t sure if it''s due to the smell or whatever the potion is.

    Dumbledore "Amortentia." He states in shock loud enough for the Hall to hear.

    Hermione "Amortentia! The most powerful love potion in existence and you tried to drug someone with it RON!" she shrieks at him.

    Ron goes pale knowing full well what the punishment for trying to dose a pure-blood with love potion is...

    Reima "Perhaps we should call the Ministry Headmaster?" he asks but the old man shakes his head.

    Dumbledore "No.. I don''t think that is needed, it was probably a prank wasn''t it Mr Weasley?"

    Ron nods his head rapidly but Reima''s scowl only increases.

    Reima "If you do not punish him headmaster then I will have to Owl the Auror''s of what was just attempted here. I cannot allow something akin to attempted **** to go unpunished so if you value his life then you should do something." he says, the threat in full effect as Dumbledore seems to shrink in his chair at having to punish one of Molly Weasleys children.

    ...

    Dumbeldore sighs, "... Ron Weasley, for attempting to drug a Pure-Blood with Amortentia you are hereby expelled from Hogwarts. Please collect your things, your parents will immediately be notified"

    ...

    The school looks on in shock as the first person in almost two centuries is expelled from the school. Dumbledore has always tried to be merciful to rule breakers but for someone committing such a public crime and especially to a Tri-Wizard champion? His only option was to expel the boy or have him shipped to Azkaban for the rest of his life as Line-theft was seen as a larger crime than **** or murder.

    Harry looks at Ron in anger and confusion as Dumbledore announces his punishment for the school. He hadn''t expected something like this to actually happen but it seems Ron isn''t as clever as he thought he was. He was conflicted as Ron had been his first friend in the magical world and hadn''t expected it to end as abruptly as this, though he couldn''t say he was upset about it.

    Ron just stands there, glancing at the people glaring at himself. He couldn''t comprehend what''d just happened, had he really just been expelled? Truthfully he thought he would have been expelled sooner or later due to his incredibly poor grades but like this? And so publicly? His life in England was definitely over when people hear about what he''d just done, he''d like to blame his mother but knew it was his own actions that led to this. He lowers his head to hide his tearful eyes and slowly walks out of the Great Hall, he can hear the gossiping and whispers already but just ignores them as there is nothing he can do about it.

    Reima watches Ron leave before taking his seat again, he didn''t really know how to feel on the matter, he''d expected Ron to try and drug Hermione but Ciri? Whatever was going on in that boys hollow skull wasn''t rational to say the least... Atleast he wouldn''t have to personally punish Ron as he doubts he could get away with removing his limbs without drawing Dumbledores attention towards himself.

    After the commotion over what''d just occurred finally ends most people simply forgot that Ron ever existed, he was only ever mentioned as "That guy who tried to drug Ciri". Needless to say the school wasn''t really affected by his departure and some even rejoiced at it while others felt he was treated unfairly. Either way he''s gone now and his impact was minimal and trivial, only reinforcing that if you use love potion then you''ll be dealt with swiftly.

    Reima sits next to Ciri who''s been frowning ever since she was almost dosed. "What''s up?" he asks.

    Ciri "Nothing..."

    Reima "I can tell your upset at something, if it wasn''t your frown then it''d be the fact you haven''t touched your food."...

    Ciri "It''s just, I feel weird. That kid just tried to give me a love potion and I''m not sure how to react to it."

    Reima shrugs, "Just be flattered that he was so in awe of you that he needed to have you, by any means necessary."

    She nods at this but doesn''t eat, apparently still pondering over what''d just happened. To fix this Reima pulls her into the Room of Requirement and starts "Pounding" her... No not sexually but in combat. A few hours of getting manhandled by Reima proves to draw her mind from the subject, Reima then leaves her to tutor Nerissa in swordsmanship for a while.

    And so the days carry on with Reima and Ciri continuing their Animagi training, spell training with Harry and Hermione and combat training in the Room of Requirements with Nerissa... All in all they do quite a lot of training though they don''t forget to practise their dancing as they will most likely be forced to dance first as Ciri and Fleur are champions... Though how he''s going to dance with two people simultaneously is anyone''s guess...

 410 Do they know its Christmas?

    Reima woke up from his meditation to a large commotion outside his room, looking over he noticed Damien was not sleeping and his bed was empty. Did something happen? He ponders as he stands up walks outside, only to completely covered in confetti courtesy of the Weasley twins.... He''d thought they''d be a little more subdued since their brother was expelled but it seems they''re still pranking.

    Looking around he see''s a variety of decorations around a many people excitedly milling about... He can see Ciri speaking to Luna with a confused face, walking over he asks "What''s the occasion?"

    Ciri sends him a sympathetic look while Luna smiles widely at him before pushing a butterbeer cork necklace into his hands "Merry Christmas!" he exclaims excitedly...

    ...

    Reima repeats the word as nostalgia takes him over "Christmas?" how long had it been since he''d celebrated Christmas?

    Ciri "Sorry but... What''s Christmas?" she asks, causing a nearby Hermione to gasp in horror.

    Hermione "You don''t know what Christmas is?"

    Ciri shrugs, "Er, just never got around to it.. I guess?"

    Reima "Our culture... Doesn''t celebrate Christmas, oh right, gifts..." he mutters, thinking through the many things he can give as gifts. Obviously he didn''t want to give them something extraordinarily valuable as they''d probably misuse it or something. Hmm, what would be a good gift for Luna? Mmmm the moon, silver, silver sword... Plus it''d be funny to watch Luna swing one around.

    Reima "Here Luna." he says materialising a silver knight sword and handing it to her. The young girl doesn''t react and just takes it.

    Luna "Thank you" she says, slowly lifting it up and pretending to swing it, to the dismay of Hermione.

    Hermione "Luna! Please don''t swing that inside, you might hurt someone."

    Luna laughs, "It''s a sword! It''s meant to hurt people."

    Reima "Actually it''s a silver sword, it''s meant to hurt monsters." he says, causing Hermione''s brows to furrow. "Don''t think I forgot you either Hermione." he says handing her a whip.

    ...

    Hermione unfurls it and frowns, "What am I suppose to do with this?"

    Reima shrugs, "To punish Harry if he does something stupid again?"

    Hermione nods slowly and puts it in her bag... For later use.

    Luna walks off to show Neville her new sword what has him almost fainting at the sight of it while Ciri walks up to him.

    Ciri "So... Got another sword stowed away for me in there?" she asks.

    Reima grins, "I don''t know, you got a present for me?"

    Ciri smiles back with a devious look, "I do, but it depends on how well you do during the ball."

    ...

    Reima "Fine, I''ve been thinking on what sword would suit you but haven''t currently got anything that you''d truly make your own..."

    Ciri crosses her arms, "So.. I''m stuck with Zireael?"

    Reima shakes his head, "I don''t have one but... That doesn''t mean we can''t make one."

    Ciri looks at him confused but he interupts her.

    Reima "Grab Snuffles and meet me in the Room of Requirements, be quick as we need to be a breakfast soon." he says, getting up and briskly walking to the room.

    Once Ciri and Snuffles enter the Room of Requirement they see themselves inside a massive crystalline cave that looks as if it''s completely made of diamond or sapphires.

    Ciri "Beautiful.." she says, not minding the thick blue mist covering most of it.

    "It is isn''t it?" Reima''s familiar voice says a few meters away, the girls focus their eyes and see him sitting cross legged with a large bowl? Sitting in-front of him.

    Reima "Well? Stop gawking, we''ve got things to do and time''s against us."

    Ciri quickly makes her way over and sees something glowing inside the bowl and quickly questions him on it. "What''s that? I thought we were forging a sword?" he asks confused.

    Reima grins, "This? This is the Transposing Kiln, an artifact that allows me to transform a soul into something else... If the Ministry heard of what this is they''d do everything the could to destroy it as soul magic is seen as the most abhorrent they can concieve of, obviously you shouldn''t talk about it one we''re done here.

    Ciri "But, wouldn''t you need a soul to make this work? You''re not intending to sacrifice yourself to make a sword I hope? I still need a date for the Ball and I doubt Fleur will go with just me." she gives him a glare.

    Reima waves his hand, "No, no... I was thinking of using Snuffles." he says, receiving an indignant squeak from the rabbit which has him laughing. "That was a joke so don''t bite me... It may surprise you to know that I''m currently in the possession of millions of souls from various beings, the being I wish to use for your sword was the most powerful sorcerer in existence, plus he was one of the last remaining great dragons that turned against their own kin."

    ...

    Ciri "Wow..." she says, trying to imagine what a weapon from such a being would be like.

    Reima "But first, I''d like to try an experiment... I''ve been thinking about it for a while but never wanted to waste a valuable soul on it, additionally I didn''t want to be "bound" to a crappy one.

    Ciri "Can''t we just do it normally?"

    Reima "Sure, but if someone steals the weapon then you''re screwed." this causes her to go quiet.

    "What I want to try, is something called Soul-Bound Weapons. I took the idea from my own Staff" he says, making it slink from his shadow and into his hands.

 411 Giving Ciri his sword

    Ciri "Is, is it dangerous?" she asks, unsure if what he''s proposing could kill her or not.

    Reima shakes his head, "No.. Not to you atleast"

    Ciri "And you?"

    Reima waves his hand, "Don''t mind the additional stuff, let''s get started... The Ball''s in the afternoon and I''d rather meet up with Fleur during breakfast to get everything sorted."

    Ciri nods and sits next to him cross-legged with Snuffles finding a comfortable place in-between them.

    Reima "I''ve already channelled a couple thousand souls into the Kiln, drip a couple drops of blood into the Kiln... From what I''ve seen this''ll only work with people of "our" constitution as the Elder Blood seems to fuse with our physical bodies and souls, thus creating a physical tether that can be manipulated in good ways... And bad, though I doubt anyone is as good with soul manipulation as I am at this point." he quickly says, most of which goes over Ciri''s head but she bites her thumb and places it forwards to allow her blood to drip into the Kiln which turns a Turquoise colour from the usual white.

    Ciri "Is this enough?"

    Reima nods and retrieves something that dazzles both her and Snuffles. It''s a floating ephemeral crystal? Or something... It''s blue and glows weirdly. "This is Seath the Scaleless soul. Pretty aint it?" he asks receiving a nod from both. "Now, I''ll need you both to stay still an quiet while I do this... Also, what kind of weapon would you prefer? I think I can try manipulate the outcome..."

    Ciri "Um, something similar to the swords Geralt taught us to use? I''d rather not have to change my style completely." she says after a moment.

    Reima nods, "Two handed straight sword coming up..." he says while putting Seath''s soul into the Kiln, causing blue mist to form and start flowing from the bowl, Ciri almost gets up but is stopped by Reima who gives her a glare.

    Reima pulls his focus entirely onto the Kiln and what''s happening to the soul, he can feel Seath''s will trying to eclipse his own but he easily squashes it and maintains control. The dragon couldn''t defeat Gwyn, how would he even start to defeat him who possessed the power of all the Lord Souls. He pushes more souls into the Kiln when he sees the process taking it''s time, he tries to speed it up while pushing and prodding it''s form into the shape he desires.

    Ciri watches as the Kiln glows brighter and brighter, blue and green lights seem to be fighting eachother but the green wins and takes over blue, afterwards she can see white lights being pushed from Reima''s hands into the Kiln which has the colours inside increase in speed.

    After an hour Reima sighs in relief and rolls onto his back, he''d finally completed it... To be honest other than Gwyndolin''s soul he hadn''t ever tried to transpose a soul as big or powerful as Seath''s, the latter was way more powerful than Gwyndolin anyway...

    "Wow", he can hear Ciri''s voice and slowly gets up to observe her reaction. Inside the Kiln Turquoise light coalesce into a thin shape before condensing into it''s final form. It''s blade is about 100cm or 39inches and looks like the same material as the MoonLight Greatswords blade, though it''s tinted green rather than blue. It''s guard is a gold material and the handle is covered in black dragonskin to increase it''s grip, it also has a gold pommel in the shape of a dragon''s head.

    Reima reaches up and grabs it but finds that it doesn''t seem to want to be in his grip, he hands it to Ciri and lifts Snuffles from her lap to allow her to play around with it.

    Ciri appraises it for a couple minutes, taking the most time examining the crystal blade. Once done she goes through a couple forms before attempting a few slashes, the blade whistles through the air smoothly which draws a smile to her face. She then attempts a heavy strike similar to the one she''d done with the Drake sword...

    Reima sees this and backs away, feeling as if he''s seeing the Moonlight Greatswords little sister in action.

    *CRASH!*

    The wall is gouged as a turquoise blade of light smashes into it from Ciri''s glowing blade. She looks at it in shock and then back to Reima. "This is incredible!" she exclaims.

    Reima smiles back at her, "I''m glad you-" he''s stopped as her lips are pressed against his. After Reima presses his advantage abit more they both recover their breathes, "If you''re going to kiss me for giving you a sword then I''ve got a few more that you might like" he says sarcastically.

    Ciri laughs and shakes her head but realises something, "I''ve got no sheathe for it..."

    Reima "I''ll owl someone in Diagon alley to get one made, good?"

    She nods, "Let''s get breakfast, I''ve had enough excitement... Atleast until the Ball actually starts." she says, handing him the sword which he seals away in his Folded Space.

    They make their way to the Great Hall and immediately spy many people devouring the various things laid out, they''re all filling foods which seems to have some of the girls trying to diet complaining about it... One of which is a certain French witch who''s sitting at the Gryffindor table and drawing a lot of attention.

 412 BDSM Hermione?

    Fleur notices them and waves them over to the two places she''d saved for them. Obviously this has the curious Gryffindor''s looking over and becoming confused at why Reima and Ciri would be close with what should be an enemy champion.

    Reima sits next to Fleur with Ciri sitting on her other side with a satisfied expression.

    Fleur "You two are late?" she asks.

    Reima''s about to reply but someone else does for him.

    Luna "Reima was giving Ciri his sword for Christmas." she says with a smile, before returning back to talking with neville.

    ...

    Fleur gives Ciri a look but Reima immediately corrects the situation, "I give her a sword as a Christmas present." he quickly says, making Fleur give an "Oh."

    Reima "That reminds me... Merry Christmas Fleur" he says, handing her a golden necklace with a sapphire prominently placed at the centre of it''s pendant. It''s one of many that he''d stolen from Lordran but he''s not going to tell her that.

    Fleur shakes her head, "Non... Ze dress you gave me waz enough." she quickly says.

    Reima stands up and puts the necklace around her neck as he''d not take no as an answer. "Matches your eyes." he says which causes Fleur to blush. "Zank you."

    Harry leans over and questions, "Er, what''s the deal with you three? You seem close..."

    Reima shrugs, "We''re all going to the ball together." he says bluntly causing Harry''s mouth to drop to drop to the floor.

    Harry "W-what? I thought you could only partner with one person?"

    Reima "If there was a rule like that it''s too late now... Oh right, Merry Christmas Harry." he says, handing him a Silver Dagger.

    ...

    Harry "What''s with you and giving people weapons? Luna almost took my head off earlier, and don''t get me started on what you gave Hermione."

    Reima "You know about it? Huh, didn''t think she''d use it on you until you two got more intimate..."

    Harry smirks, "She didn''t use it on me... Krum tried to push her into going to the Ball with him, I was about to stop him when she pulls out a whip and starts swinging it at him."

    Reima laughs and looks over to the Slytherin table where Krum has indeed got marks that are clearly from a whip on his face.

    Harry "Thanks for the gift... Here." he says, handing Reima a package. Opening it he finds some sweets...

    Harry "Not everyone is rich enough to go around handing people weapons." he snarks at Reima''s lacklustre reaction.

    Reima throws a sweet into his mouth, "No, it''s just that I was expecting something else. Thanks mate."

    After breakfast everyone is given some free time before having to get ready for the Ball, Reima wants to spend some more time with his dates but they leave to get "Ready", he still has no idea why it''d take so long to get ready but he just shrugs and endures it. He spends his idle time wandering around the school with Snuffles, enjoying the snow an idly talking to her, despite her not being able to reply. Eventually he has to return to the Gryffindor common rooms to get ready for the Ball, he felt it was too dangerous to leave Snuffles on her own so he just decides to take her along. He washes and brushes his white hair before having the strands tie themselves into a bun, something he took great joy in making Gryffindor girls watch as he could feel their envy wash over him. His outfit didn''t really look out of place in the magical world despite it being slightly armoured and a lot more expensive looking than what other people are wearing. He has a funny idea and decides to slip a small top hat onto Snuffles head to make her fit for the occasion, she seems to find it funny so she keeps it on.

    Reima sees Harry and Neville standing nearby and walks over, Harry''s wearing a black dress robe that resembles the one he wore in the movies. Though Reima isn''t sure how he got it as his relationship with Molly Weasley probably isn''t the best right now. "You guys good?" he asks from behind them, which causes Neville to almost jump out of his skin.

    They turn around and almost gape at the robes Reima is wearing, he looks like a king when dressed like this...

    Harry nods while Neville stutters out, "Y-yes."

    Reima smirks and claps them both of the shoulders, "Cheer up guys, you''re both taking beautiful girls to the Ball. You should be thanking god you''re not like those other poor sods who couldn''t even get a date."

    They both nod at this thinking they were indeed lucky to be going with their dates.

    Harry "Where did you get those robes? I don''t remember seeing anything like them in Hogsmeade or Diagon Alley."

    Reima raises a brow, "You been to those places recently?"

    Harry nods, "Professor Mcgonagall took me when she saw I didn''t have any robes prepared."

    Reima "Well these are... From Greenland." he says with a smile.

    Neville seems to completely believe him. "Ah, ok."

    Reima "Right, let''s go find our ladies shall we?" he says before he starts walking to the staircase. At the bottom he sees Hermione and Luna looking absolutely beautiful. Hermione smiled at them though her teeth were still slightly larger than normal but that didn''t take away from the sight. She was wearing a pink dress that looks exactly like what she''d brought in the movies. Her hair was straighter than it''s usual bushy state and seems to shimmer in the light.

    Luna was wearing a white dress that looked as if it could be be used as a wedding dress, it had frills and fit her perfectly. The innocent smile on her face seems to brighten the area around her. Her hair was left freely trailing down her back but seems to look more formal than her usual style.

 413 White haired Jessie

    Harry and Neville look awe struck at seeing their dates, they probably hadn''t expected them to look so different just for the Yule Ball... The trio walk down with Harry and Neville nervously taking the girls hands and bowing.

    Reima "You guys look good." he says, causing the other two to realise they hadn''t complimented their own dates yet.

    Hary/Neville nod "You look great." before looking at eachother with an embarrassed chuckle.

    Luna "I don''t know what you''re nervous about, we''re the same people after all..."

    Neville "Y-yeah.. Sorr-"

    Luna "Not you, I meant him." she says looking at Reima who''s stroking Snuffles in his arms.

    Reima "Er, what do you mean?"

    Luna "You''re anxious, I can feel it."

    ...

    Reima "Ok.. I might be abit but, it''s the first time I''ve had to dance in such a public setting..."

    Harry "It''s the same for me Reima, so if we fail we fail together." he says trying to cheer him up.

    Reima shakes his head, "You can fail on your own, I''ve got two ladies that won''t be happy if I slip." he mutters.

    Mcgonagall walks up to Harry "Mr Potter, your date is... Miss Granger? You look lovely this evening... Oh! Pardon me but I need to remind you that champions traditionally lead the first dance so once you have everything sorted would you please meet me at entrance of the Great Hall. This includes you and Miss Rivia, Mr Ludvig." she says as she sends a smile at them before leaving.

    Reima nods at her and turns towards Luna and Neville "You two enjoy your evening, if you need anything don''t hesitate to ask... Just remember tonight''s about enjoying yourself so don''t bother with what other people think." he says, more to Neville than Luna.

    Neville sighs and has a determined expression on his face, "Ok... Thanks." he says as he and Luna leave.

    Reima turns towards Harry and Hermione "I''m guessing my dates are already waiting at the entrance... Let''s get going." he says.

    The group reach the entrance but see the doors are closed as everyone had already been led inside, apparently they are just waiting for the champions to lead the first dance. He can see Krum with his date... Cho Chang... This is quite surprising but pretty fortunate for the girl as attending the Ball with an international celebrity might put her back into her houses good graces, that won''t make him forget how she treated Luna however.

    He can also see that his dates still hadn''t arrived and wondered where they''d gotten off to, while he''s standing idly waiting for them he checks the things he may need for the Ball.

    Extra pair of dresses (Just in case)

    Extra robes (Just in case)

    Extra pair of shoes (Just in case)

    Extra drinks (Just in case)

    Unbreakable Glass Jar (Certain.)

    Veritaserum (Just in case)

    Reima nods to himself, that should be the important things, nothing would ruin this ball even if it would kill "them"...

    Mcgonagall walks up to him with a light sheen of sweat on her forehead, "Mr Ludvig, may I ask where your date is? I still haven''t found the Beauxbaton''s champion date either... Oh, this is troubling." she says in a mild panic.

    Reima looks at her "Er, Professor... I''m Fleur and Ciri''s date..."

    ...

    Mcgonagalls eyes almost bulge out of their sockets "What did ye say?" she quickly says, her Scottish accent becoming more prevelant.

    Reima "I''m their date..."

    Mcgonagall "Oh, oh! Ye Canne do this! How are three people supposed ter dance! Oh no no no this is a problem!"

    Harry and Krum glance over with the former asking "Is everything alright?"

    Mcgonagall "No it certainly is not! Mr Ludvig has caused a massive kerfuffle, I have no idea how I am supposed to save this situation!"

    As she''s saying this Fleur and Ciri finally arrive, and boy do they draw everyone''s attention.

    Fleur is dressed in her black and silver dress with light makeup coating her face, her hair shines in the light and is tied back into a pony tail. She''s flushed slightly which only accentuates her beauty as she smiles as them.

    Ciri''s also wearing the dress they all picked out for her, the men in the room can''t help but feel their eyes drawn towards her bust however a quick glare from Reima sorts them out, of course their dates giving them the elbow was also an encouragement. Same as Fleur she didn''t require much makeup as adding any more wouldn''t increase her attractiveness, only change what was attractive. Her hair as braided presumably by Fleur by was also draped freely below her shoulders, something Reima also took notice of was the fact that both Fleur and Ciri were wearing matching heels... Something he found curious as Ciri hated them so much that she said she would burn them on sight, he wonders what had changed?

    Either way, he still found himself not being able to react to them but simply just stare despite already knowing what dresses they''d be wearing.

    Ciri "I think we broke him" she snarks revealing that while she''d become more refined physically her personality hadn''t changed.

    Fleur smiles and is about to reply when Mcgonagall beats them to it.

    "No, you simply broke the event! What caused you both to accept this Jessie as your date? Did you forget that you have to perform the first dance with your partner!?!" she almost shouts.

 414 Ball with no Balls

    Ciri and Fleur are surprised to hear Mcgonagall talking like that to them but aren''t quite able to reply as they had indeed forgotten all about the first dance...

    Harry chips in "Maybe they can take turns?"

    Mcgonagall scoffs "Yes and maybe we should increase the Balls length to accommodate them!" She sees Reima about to say something and interrupts him "And don''t get me started on you! First of all why on earth have you brought a rabbit along with you! Second, what possessed you to ask two women, nay Champions to the Ball!"

    Reima scratches the back of his head, "Look, I''ve got a way to fix the problem." he says calmly, trying to ease Mcgonagalls temper if only slightly.

    Mcgonagall snaps back "And what may that be?!"

    Reima "Why not just let Ciri and Fleur do the first dance? I''ll sit to the side to watch Snuffles, then we can enjoy the rest of the Ball taking turns." he says, having already thought about this previously.

    Fleur looks indignant at his suggestions but he gives her a smile, "Do you dislike Ciri?" he asks her.

    She shakes her head and he repeats the question to Ciri, her smiles and sends a peculiar look at Fleur. Reima claps in response and says, "Then you both just do the first dance and we''ll spend the rest of the night together."

    Mcgonagall "Mr Ludvig, while your suggestions would fix our problem I''m hesitant to advertise that two of the champions may be.. Lesbians.."

    Fleur "I am no-" Ciri "I''m actually Bi-s" they looks at eachother with Fleur frowning and Ciri grinning.

    Mcgonagall rubs her forehead and sighs, "Fine... But you will have to deal with the consequences, Mr Ludvig could you please enter the hall and wait for your dates to finish the first dance?" Reima nods and smiles at his dates before disappearing inside.

    Krum "If he was a man he vould take you both." he says eyeing them both up.

    Ciri smirks at him, "If he isn''t a man then what does that make you? You definitely showed your manliness during the duel." she says, making him stiffen up and become quiet.

    Hermione "Are you two okay with this? It seems a little..."

    Fleur sighs "Non, it will be fine. I am just worried about how ze girls in Beauxbaton''s will view me after zis."

    Ciri "You worried they''ll make fun of you?" she asks.

    Fleur shakes her head, "I am worried they''ll try and get me in bed with zem..." she says, causing Ciri and Harry to laugh.

    Mcgonagall "Haud yer wheesht!... Ahem, be quiet and prepare to enter the hall." she says, slightly flushed at losing her composure.

    Inside the hall Reima is waiting with the few guys who don''t have dates, Snuffles wearing a top hate sits in his arms looking around the gaudily decorated room. It whie all over with a huge Christmas tree at the end of the room, the usual floating candles seem to have been replaced with snow that disappears before it hits the ground.

    Cassius Warrington walk over with an average looking Slytherin girl on his arm, gloating at Reima. "Look like that Ciri girl dumped you at the last second. I don''t blame her as having to go with a freak would be enough to cause suicide." he snarks.

    Reima looks her and acts as if he doesn''t see him, he looks down to Snuffles who looks back and asks "Did you hear something?"

    Cassius face goes slightly red before he stifles his anger, "Ignoring your betters is a mistake you will regret freak."

    Reima looks at him with an expression of realisation "Ah! My old friend Background character! I see you''ve managed to find a date, alas I''m forced to wait here for mine..."

    Cassius "You''re not fooling anyone, who goes to a ball with a rabbit? Unless it''s your date" he laughs at his own joke while his partner mimics him poorly.

    Reima "I don''t know about you but I find Snuffles rather pretty, I think it''s the top hat." he says, chuckling as Snuffles tries to cover her face with the hat.

    Cassius has a look of disgust and joins the rest of the Slytherins just before entrance hall doors burst open, with the champions walking inside along with their partners... Only that some weren''t expecting Ciri and Fleur to emerge hand in hand. There are a few jeers but most are just baffled by it, never expecting these two incredibly beautiful women to be "Carpet Munchers". It shock was so great most didn''t even notice the drastic changes Hermione and Luna had gone through.

    Reima watches with a smile as they walk onto the dance floor and it only gets wider as the two women glare at him. He holds his hand up and retrieves a bottle of wine from his stash from Lordran which has Fleurs eyes light up. He nudges his head towards Ciri and she nods having accepted her fate, though when Professor Flitwick starts the music neither look uncomfortable.

    Both girls had learned to lead a dance due to various reasons, Ciri because she found it funny to start leading Reima when he wasn''t paying attention and Fleur because he expected her dates to become drooling messes after a few moment with her aura. The only problem with this is both women looked to be fighting over the lead. This isn''t a problem as they seem to be much more active and enthusiastic than the other dancers which results in many giving them an applause, though most don''t realise it''s just Ciri being competitive.

 415 Yule be Balling later.

    Reima takes his eyes off of the girls for a moment to concentrate his attention on a small blue beetle that''d found it''s way onto his shoulder... He can''t help but feel the grin slowly overtake his face which would unnerve all those watching... He retrieves the unbreakable enchanted jar and in a flash captures the beetle that seems to panic and try and find it''s way out. He raises the jar to his face and glares at it with hi cat-like eyes that contract and focus on the bug, "I''d suggest no trying to transform to get out, or you''ll be shot out of the jar in the shape of a red paste with the only solid parts being your shattered misshapen bones... Though, I won''t stop you from trying, it''d look pretty funny from where I''m sat, Rita." The bug seems to freeze as he says the name, "Yes, I know what you are but don''t worry, I won''t tell anyone... No one will know you''re in my posession, oh the fun we''ll get up to." he says happily, the sick grin still present on his face. "Hinky." he says quietly, causing his personal house elf to pop into existence next to him. "Take this jar and keep it safe until I need it, don''t open it under any circumstances. Do I make myself clear?"

    Hinky "Yes master!" they say before popping away Jar in hand.

    Eventually the music slows and eventually ends, giving the champions a short break and everyone else and opportunity to dance. Ciri and Fleur walk towards Reima, the latter slightly flush at the rather strenuous task of keeping up with Ciri. They both sit either side Reima which has those watching becoming confused at the situation, Cassius who''d glanced at Reima from the corner of his eye to find another moment to mock him almost falls ontop of his partner in shock.

    Reima smiles at them, seemingly happier than before the Ball had started. "You two have fun?"

    Ciri nods "You''re quite quick Fleur, almost kept up with me."

    Fleur "Not enough zough, Reima would you dance wit Ciri first? I need to catch my breath." she says, still breathing a little heavy from the "Dance-Fight" between her and Ciri.

    Reima nods, "Could you hold onto Snuffles? Leaving her alone would be dangerous... Maybe I''ll tell you about it later?" he says, giving a look to the rabbit to get permission. Of course she just gives a squeak that could mean yes or no which only has him more confused than before.

    Ciri pulls him up but before they leave for the dance floor Reima places a bottle of wine on the table next to Fleur after giving her a kiss on the cheek who just smiles in response.

    The duo get to the crowded dance floor and stance a slow waltz to get into the mood.

    Ciri "Trying to get her drinking already? Should I be worried?" she asks sarcastically.

    Reima shakes his head "I just like it when your saliva taste like wine." he says boldly.

    Ciri "Oh? Maybe I should have a couple glasses?" she says as he twirls her around.

    Reima "I know it reminds you of.. Things, so I''ve got others available if you want them... God knows the school won''t be providing hard alcohol when there are minors around."

    Ciri "We''ll see how I feel after we''ve eaten." she says.

    They dance for two songs, enjoying themselves thoroughly before Reima decides to take Fleur up. He finds her sitting with her leg crossed stroking Snuffles while one of the dateless guys is trying to get her to dance with him. Ciri plops down on the seat next to Fleur while complaining about the heels.

    Fleur waves the boy away like he''s an annoying pest and stands up before taking Reima''s presented hand. "Care to dance?" he asks while kissing her hand.

    Fleur "Oui Monsieur" she says, following him as he leads her onto the dance floor for the last couple of songs before dinner is provided. Before he leaves he tosses Ciri her Walkman and gives her a thumbs up, which she returns.

    Compared with dancing with Ciri, Fleur is seemingly more gentle and "Touchy". They dance with her head almost permanently buried onto his shoulder or chest, the only time this isn''t he case is when he twirls her or when she goes for a peck on he neck, cheek or lips. It seems that the wine had loosened her up, despite it only being a single glass...

    While they dance Reima takes the time to observe how everyone else is getting on, Harry and Hermione haven''t stopped dancing since they started, having seemingly limitless stamina. He can also see Neville and Luna slowly stepping side to side in time with the music, Neville still looks slightly nervous by Luna continues to smile regardless.

    Reima felt quite relieved that he hadn''t had to dance in-front of everyone and was comfortable just spending his time with Ciri and Fleur. He idly wondered if either were regretting going with him but shook those thoughts away the moment they surfaced. Eventually the music stopped and everyone was quite hungry from the light exercise, it wasn''t long before a couple people retrieves him, Ciri and Fleur and had them seated at a large table along with the other Champions, officials, teachers and press. Though Reima couldn''t help but notice there was a chair for someone that was missing, he changes his focus back onto his dates as to not look suspiciously interested in Rita Skeeters lack of attendance.

    "Mr Crouch is not able to attend the festivities as he''s been ill, he''s seemed so since the catastrophic attack at the World Cup." a red head says to Harry who had inquired on his presence.

    Harry "But didn''t Reima and Ciri clean up that mess Percy?" he asks.

    The now named Percy Weasley shakes his head, "I don''t know what you heard but the public taking justice into their own hands is not helpful nor was it needed." he says as he scowls down the table at the duo involved.

 416 Expensive taste

    Reima can hear Percy ridiculing him but just shrugs it off, what interests him more is his peculiar relationship with Harry... Had he just not noticed what''d happened with Ron? Or maybe he simply didn''t care, electing to focus on his career than his families issues... Either way this pompous git would find his employer unfortunately permanently indisposed once his son kills him. That reminds Reima, is Harry still in contact with Fake Moody? He wouldn''t really need to be since he was receiving training for Reima.

    He''s pulled from his thoughts when his dates begin questioning if something was wrong, he shakes his head "No, just distracted... What were you saying?" he asks, wondering if they were talking...

    The trio converse for a couple more minutes until the table hears Dumbledore say "Pork Chops", this has a steaming plate of said food appear in-front of him.

    Fleur "Foie Gras." she says with a satisfied smirk as it takes around thirty seconds for it to finally appear.

    Ciri just shrugs "Pizza."

    Reima''s brows almost disappear into his hair, "Pizza?" he asks, accidentally ordering it... This has Fleur and Ciri laughing at his depressed expression. In the end to save himself the embarrassment he stores the pizza away into his Folded Space and asks again. "Wagyu Steak", his eyes almost roll out of their sockets when he sees it appear before him... How on earth they''d gone to Japan and back for this particular type of steak he doesn''t know... Either way he''d finally be getting to try one.

    A few people give Ciri a weird look when they see her munching on a pizza as this was a formal event that provided any food imaginable... The contract with Reima and Fleur eating spectacularly expensive food next to her was almost too much for some.

    Percy "Of course, the trouble maker would try and stir more at a festive event." he snarks loud enough for most to hear.

    Reima "Piss off, your family lives in a hut so what would you know about fine dining?" he retorts, causing the boy to grit his teeth and glare back. Of course it does get a few chuckles from the few in the know about the Weasley''s situation.

    Ciri gives Reima a nudge after a while and he retrieves a bottle of Whisky and fills her glass with it, Harry incidentally looks over and looks peaky at seeing this drink for some reason. He doesn''t have to do the same with Fleur as she''d brought the bottle of wine he''d given her earlier. Reima himself was indulging on the Wizarding alcohol "Fire Whisky", he hadn''t tried it before and thought that this would be a fine occasion, especially considering the price of it... It really put modern alcohol to shame...

    After the meal Dumbledore stands and waves the tables away, they rearrange themselves and allow a clearing in the middle to form as the dance floor. A band know as the "Weird Sisters" steps up and immediately starts playing a slow song, presumably to get everyone in the mood. However eating everyone seems to be wanting to get involved, leading everyone to steam onto the dance floor, leaving no room for any "Proper" dancing. Seeing this Reima just shrugs, and pulls both of his dates to the dance floor with Snuffles sitting comfortably on his shoulder.

    With everyone already on the dance floor the Weird Sister change the tune to something quicker, something Reima would expect from a shitty night club or a school.. Ball.. Huh. He shouldn''t have expected anything else, especially for a primarily magical band.

    Reima "Apparently the Weird Sister are one of the most popular bands around." he says to his girls.

    Ciri looks shocked at this, "Really? They don''t sound anything special."

    Fleur "Our french musicians are much better than zis." she says without her usual haughty voice when speaking about france.

    Reima "I reckon they are probably the only pure-blood band, which is probably why they were asked to play."

    As they dance to the music Reima takes a look around and sees a couple other people he hadn''t expected to see, first of all would be Roger Davies looking over in his direction with his horrifically scarred face, it seemed Madam Pomfrey did all she could but burns they severe aren''t healable with magic. The Second person was Ginny Weasley, who was dancing with a 4th year called Dean Thomas. He could see her taking glances at Harry but seemed more or less content with just having fun with her partner. Third was Krum and Cho seemed to actually be enjoying themselves, which made Reima feel slightly less bad for mind controlling her...

    They trio + rabbit spent their time in the festive mood, dancing the day away. However while this was happening Karkaroff and the Hogwarts potion master were conversing outside.

    Karkaroff "Severus, you must feel it! He''s coming back!"

    Snape scowls at the man while scanning the surroundings for people watching, "If he is then why don''t you run like last time hmm?"

    Karkaroff "If he returns a second time then there vill be a third, forth and fifth time! How many times vill a baby stop him before he finally rules England?"

    Snape "And you fear he will come for revenge once he''s gained control over England?" he says slowly in a mocking voice.

    Karkaroff steps forward and pulls Snapes sleeve up, revealing the blackening dark mark. "See the change with your own eyes Severus! You will die with me if we do not do something to gain his favour!"

    Snape slaps his hands off and begins walking away, "Your problems are not my own, it was you who chose this course of action and it is you who must deal with the consequences."

    Karkaroff grits his blackened teeth "You mark my words Severus! He''ll be back and you''ll be one of his first victims!"

    Snape chuckles "No... I think you''ll find that you will be that person." he says as he finally leaves.

 417 Advances

    At the end of the Ball Reima finds himself sitting outside on a stone bench holding the waists of Fleur and Ciri while watching people walk back to their dorms... Sometimes together and sometimes not, though he could spot Snape kicking carriages that happened to be "rocking", generally it was a feminine scream that''d signal just who was inside but occasionally two masculine shouts would be heard. The trio actually had a bet on how many carriages would contain horny teens trying to get it on. Reima had bet that most of them would have people inside while Ciri had bet that half, Fleur herself made the same bet as him so it was them against Ciri..

    Snape had a prominant scowl on his face as he continued interupting the intimate time of these "lovers", eventually it was Reima and Fleur who won the bet as they were closest to the outcome... Though they hadn''t bet anything which was a problem.

    After another half an away drifts by Fleur gives Ciri a look to which she nods.

    Ciri "I''ll be waiting in "our" room..." she says before leaving with Snuffles in hand.

    Reima didn''t know what was up but he now found himself alone with Fleur who seemed to be twitching uncomfortable while giving him a predatory look. "Is something wrong Fleur?" he asks.

    Fleur shakes her head, "Non... It iz just..." she stops seemingly trying to find the words to explain what she means. "I wish to ask you a question but... I will ask it after the third task.." she says.

    Reima "Are you sure? I''m all ears right now." he asks as he''s sure she''s just drawing the question out.

    She nods, instead just leaning into him and taking in his warmth. She wondered how such an aura was contained in his body but shrugged it off and simply enjoyed his presence.

    Fleur "Do... Do you love me?" she asks quietly into his neck.

    ...

    He isn''t sure how to respond to that question, if he had to answer it then he''d say no but, he liked her? It''s just a lesser form of love, though he was aware of the fact he and Ciri would be leaving this world soon and he didn''t know whether Fleur would actually accept something like that. Additionally he wasn''t even sure what he wanted with Ciri so bringing someone else would make the situation a whole lot more complicated... "I don''t love you, but you''re someone I value dearly" he says truthfully.

    She nods at this, seemingly in relief. "I feel ze same... Back home expressing love is encouraged but I zink peeple fall for each other too fast, but somehow I cannot stop zis emotions. I feel az zoe zis ambiguous English term "Like" suits my feelings perfectly." she says before giving him a deep kiss. Aftewards she just looks up with a blush and mutters "Shall we join Ciri?"

    ...

    Reima "Err... Yeah?" he asks, excitement and confusion beginning to inhibit his rational thoughts.

    They slowly make their way to the castle, Reima feeling the Fire-Whisky kicking in as he stumbles over Fleurs and his own feet as she''s attached herself to him. At this point he isn''t even thinking, not wondering why he was leading Fleur to the Room of Requirement, not wondering if Ciri would be okay with what he intended to do to Fleur and maybe Ciri as well... He didn''t even think about whether or not Snuffles would still be awake at this point.

    They are occasionally spotted by students who''re taking their time in getting back to their dorms, their surprised and incredulous faces aren''t noticed by the increasingly reddening duo who are but a moment away from tearing each others clothes off.

    The duo finally reach the seventh floor, they briskly walk towards the entrance to the Room of Requirements and find a door already there.

    Reima looks to Fleur, feeling his emotions, or maybe his lust bubbling to the surface. He doesn''t say anything and just pushes the door open, revealing the room inside... He stops in his tracks as he sees the dimly lit hallway, further inside he sees a door labelled "Nerissa" which is closed, taking a peek inside he sees a massive bed with a black rabbit sleeping in the middle of it... He silently closes the door and walks to the end of the hallway that holds a door that has "Christmas Present" written on it...

    Fleur lets go of him, steps forward and enters the room before shutting it behind her... Reima waits for a moment before following her in, seeing the candle lit room with a massive bed in the middle of it... Atop it lies two scantily clad women, Ciri has already got her hands trailing over Fleurs body who doesn''t look uncomfortable at her actions, instead just looking at Reima with an expectant look.

    Reima feels his mouth go dry as he audibly swallow, "You guys sure about this? Once it starts it won''t stop..."

    Ciri raises her head and her focus shifts from Fleurs body to him "Either come here or I''ll have Fleur to myself."

    Reima doesn''t utter another word and immediately throws his clothes off and onto the floor.

 418 Things are getting heated... R18

    While Fleurs being caressed by Ciri she watches Reima throw of his clothes, revealing his scarred muscular body. She takes particular notice of the turquoise coloured circle glowing dimly above his heart and wonders of it''s purpose, of course this is before she feels Ciri''s hand find itself under her panties and begin physically examining her folds.

    Fleur gasps as she feels Ciri''s finger slip inside her and almost doesn''t notice Reima''s lips on hers. However with his tongue coiling around her own she''s snapped back to reality and indulges herself in pleasure. Reima releases his hold on her tongue and examines her body, it''s completely void of hair and is so pale he''d almost mistake her as a vampire, though she''s gradually gaining a red tint from her flushed skin. He runs his hands across her legs and kisses her perky breasts as Ciri goes to town.

    Reima quickly finds Reima''Jr awake and fully extended to it''s full 8 inches... A size he''d not been before absorbing the Lord Souls... Fleur''s hand finds it''s away around it and starts jerking it slowly, she''d pick up speed but almost loses control of her body as Ciri pinches her clitoris. She almost headbutts Reima as she rears up in pain and pleasure. Apparently Fleurs had enough as she twists round and pins Ciri''s arms to the bed, she''s about to complain but Fleur stops her words with her tongue, examining the insides of her mouth and stroking her teeth.

    This gives Reima and almost heavenly view of both girls panties, both almost soaked through with juices. He pushes his finger into the fabric above their entrances and teases them, seeing them tremble at this he becomes more confident and slaps both of their asses causing them both to yelp in surprise. Ciri manages to glare at him from her prone position but he just gives a smug grin back while prodding her pussy more.

    After a couple minutes of this Reima presses onto Fleur''s clitoris while slapping her ass, causing her to finally climax. Ciri seizes the opportunity and shifts the moaning Veela off of her by raising her hips. With her back on top in a dominant position Ciri looks back at Reima with a flushed look and tears Fleur''s panties off. "Stop waiting and just fuck her." she says.

    Reima spanks her while tearing off her own underwear and pushing two fingers inside, causing her to tremble. "Maybe you should go first, as the eldest?"

    Ciri "Just do it!" she exclaims unintentionally.

    Taking this as permission Reima prods his rod against her moist entrance and after some pressure he sheaths himself inside her, she tries to lean forwards to avoid it but he traps her underneath him as he pushes himself entirely inside her. She moans loudly and he gives off a similar groan as he feels her insides react to his intrusion. He holds her waist tightly as she becomes accustom to his presence, all the while Fleur watches on in interest. She sits up and begins sucking on Ciri''s nipple while rubbing her clitoris while Reima is still inside her.

    This doesn''t give Ciri much of a chance to try and retaliate as she cums quickly to the simultaneous stimulation. She goes limp on top of Fleur while Reima looks down at her twitching and gasping for air with as weird expression. "Don''t blue ball me Ciri." he mutters in exasperation.

    Fleur pushes Ciri to the side which releases Reima''s member from her pussy with a small "pop" before looking at him and spreading her entrance in a seductive manner. "It Iz my first time so, please be gentle." she says as her blush only intensifies.

    Reima nods at her and positions himself over her while directing his rod against her entrance, "Ready?" he asks and only receiving a nod from her. He slowly drops his weight which pushes his member inside her, he feels resistance but pushes through it making Fleur release a heavy moan. He stops momentarily as he isn''t sure how painful breaking her hymen was, however after a couple seconds he finds her legs wrapping around her waist and pulling him closer and deeper as a result. Soon he''s fully sheathed inside Fleur and proceeds to fondle her breasts while kissing her deeply to get ready for more intense movements.

    It isn''t long before Reima starts pumping his hips with Fleur mimicking him in a lust fuelled daze, the sound of flesh slapping against flesh become prominent enough to where Reima is afraid that Nerissa may hear it. However Fleur''s gasps make him unable to stop when combined with his own pleasure. After a while he drills her so quickly it''s like a blur and he can feels her cumming as he approaches his own, not wishing to see if he''s still able to procreate he quickly pulls out and explodes his load off of the bed and onto the floor... Only for the wooden floor to start smoking under his almost glowing semen''s heat, the floor would have burst into flames if he hadn''t stifled the creation of any fire in his vicinity before storing his semen in his Folded Space... This had the unintentional side affect of extinguishing the candles laid around, making him have to relight them.

    He looks down at the exhausted Fleur to see if she noticed what''d just happened and breathes a sigh in relief as it didn''t look like it. However when he glances at Ciri he can see her disbelieving face looking at the floor from the bed.

    Ciri "You are not doing that inside me..." she mutters to herself, barely loud enough for Reima to hear.

 419 Pillow Talk?

    It was late into the night, Reima had Fleur using one of his arms as a pillow while Ciri slept a bit further from him. The night had been amazing for all of them, however there was one thing bothering Reima... As it turns out, his semen is so hot it would ignite flammable material when in contact... This wasn''t good for him or any of the women he intended to have relations with, he knew that his Elder Blood adaption would probably allow him to bypass the Witcher''s sterile properties which makes it ironic as it wasn''t even the mutations that''d prevent him having children. The only reason he wasn''t freaking out is that he didn''t intend on having any kids right now and felt he had quite a lot of time to decipher a solution.

    He brushes a hand through Fleurs hair as he looks over to Ciri, he can feel that her heart-rate is average which would mean a few things...

    Reima "Can''t sleep?" he asks quietly.

    Ciri shuffles and turns around to face him in the bed, "Mmm..."

    Reima "Something bothering you?"

    Ciri barely holds back a scoff as she hears this, "I don''t know... Maybe the fact that I almost died due to one of your orgasms is bothering me?"

    ...

    Reima "It''s not like I knew that would come out, as it happens I''ve not jerked the gerkin in years..."

    Ciri huffs, she knew she couldn''t blame him for what he couldn''t have possibly known, though that isn''t the thing that''s on her mind. "This thing, with you, Fleur and I."

    Reima "What about it? You wanted her as much as I did, I''m guessing you guys just decided this method of handling it."

    Ciri "Well, we did but that''s not the issue... The issue is Fleur."

    Reima''s brows furrow, "If you have something to say, just say it."

    Ciri "She''s under the impression that you and her will eventually enter a relationship... I, hadn''t told her we would be leaving eventually."

    ...

    Reima "So you lied?"

    Ciri shakes her head, "No. I just omitted the truth... Besides, we all had fun tonight."

    Reima "At the expense of Fleur... Ciri what is your relationship to Fleur? I know you''re physically attracted to her but there must be something more than that."

    Ciri "Not really... I want her, she wants you... Didn''t take much to work out this situation, just consider us Harem sisters" she jokes.

    Reima rubs his face while groaning quietly, "In the morning I''ll tell her the truth, since you decided to dump it on me... This was a pretty shitty thing to do you know?"

    Ciri shrugs, "Everyone''s happy so what''s the problem?"

    Reima "Temporarily, everyone''s temporarily happy. Did you specifically say that we will not be going anywhere?"

    Ciri shakes her head, "I''ve been completely honest, I just haven''t told her of our origins."

    Reima nods his head, "Atleast we haven''t broken her trust in us..." he mutters, he thinks about what her reaction may be when he tells her tomorrow but dreads the various reactions. She could comfortably state that Ciri and he had taken advantage of her which wouldn''t be a misinterpretation of what had happened. Either way he wasn''t happy with Ciri and hoped Fleur would understand.

    Ze next morning :

    Reima wakes up due to something or someone stirring on his arm, opening his eyes he see''s a pair of deep blue ones staring back into his own. Fleur leans forwards and give him a peck on the lips "Mon beau" she says while smiling at him.

    Reima can only give a brief smile back as things were still on his mind. "Morning Fleur, sleep well?"

    She snuffles closer to him while wrapping her arms around his neck, "Oui very Rei."

    He shivers at hearing her call him that but manages to compose himself, he gets the room of requirement to materialise a table with chairs next to the bed but as he''s about to leave the covers the door slowly opens, revealing Nerissa who''s rubbing the dust out of her eyes and looking at the naked trio in confusion. "Clothes?" is all she says as Fleur looks her over and taking notice of her red eyes.

    Fleur "Vampire?"

    Reima just rubs his face in exasperation and materialises another seat at the table for Nerissa. "Fleur I have a couple things to tell you, I''d rather not make it pillow talk so..." he gestures towards the table.

    She nods and slides out from under the covers revealing that she''s still completely naked, she walks over to a nearby wardrobe that Reima hadn''t noticed before and pulls out a nightgown that''s just barely see-through.

    While she''s getting "dressed" Reima looks to where Ciri''s still laying and gives her a hard prod with his foot, causing her to be thrown off of the bed and onto the wooden floor with a yelp.

    Ciri "Hey! What was that for!" she exclaims while rubbing her butt that''s even sorer than yesterday.

    Reima "You caused the problem so you gotta be here while I fix it." he says giving her a glare.

    She grumbles and slowly gets up, walking up the wardrobe and pulling out a similar gown to Fleurs own, making Reima''Jr want to get back in action, he stifles the feelings as Nerissa is here.

 420 Trio becomes a Quartet...

    Reima quickly retrieves some trousers from his Folded Space and throws them on before Nerissa can be scarred for life, eventually Reima is sat between Nerissa and Ciri with Fleur sitting opposite him with her legs crossed. He clicks his fingers and has a few glasses of water appear in-front of everyone, with the exception of Nerissa who gets blood.

    Fleur "You zaid there is something you need to tell me?"

    Reima nods, "Where to start is what I''m finding troublesome... I''m not sure if Nerissa has even heard most of this." He gives her a look and she just stares back with no noticeable change in expression. "You''re cuter as a rabbit, I hope you know that." he says, getting her to pop a brief smile before returning to normal.

    Fleur picks this up, "So, ze rabbit was-"

    Reima "Yes, Snuffles is Nerissa and Vice-Versa. But that isn''t important right now... Fluer, me and Ciri are from a different world." he says bluntly causing her to stare back at him in confusion.

    ...

    Fleur smiles "Iz that a joke? Where iz ze punchline?"

    Reima shakes his head, "It''s no joke."

    ...

    Fleur rubs the necklace he had given her before asking back, "Can you prove it?"

    Reima "Well, if the clothing that used to be owned by Gods isn''t proof enough then how about this?" he says raising his hand and conjuring a few Crystal Soul Spears wandlessly.

    Fleur gapes at this in awe, "Wha-" Reima proceeds to dispel them and conjure a large dark red flame on his palm.

    Reima "We are not from this world, Fleur."

    She takes a moment to compose herself before looking at Ciri, "Iz zis true?" she asks.

    Ciri nods, "I''m sorry I didn''t tell you before but as you can probably guess, this information shouldn''t be shared lightly... I''ve been chased through many worlds by those trying to find me, if mention this fact to a single person I might have to start running again." she says while giving Reima an almost unnoticeable glance.

    He can only shake his head at her manipulating Fleur into accepting the situation... While what she''s saying isn''t untrue it''s still a stretch.

    Regardless Fleur nods in acceptance "So... Will you be staying?" she asks in an almost pleading tone of voice.

    Reima shakes his head, "We need to deal with a couple things in this world... Once done we''ll leave..."

    Fleurs eyes begin to tear up before she seems to compose herself, "Can you not stay longer?"

    Reima "As much as I want to Fleur, we''re going to war with another race once we return. They''ve been hunting Ciri for a long time and won''t stop until they''re eradicated." he says, which has Ciri to gaining a determined look.

    ...

    Fleur "So that''s it zen? Just play with me zen leave?" she says, her sadness quickly turning into grief and anger.

    Reima stands up and moves over to try and comfort her but she slaps his hand away.

    Fleur "Iz that all it waz?" she asks harshly.

    Reima "No! I like you Fleur, if there was a reason to return to this world in the future it would be you but I belong to another world. Do you blame me for indulging in my feelings for you while I have the chance?"

    Fleur "Zen why do you not stay?!"

    Reima "Why don''t you come with us?" he accidentally says, causing the room to fall silent.

    ...

    Fleur "Go wiz you?"

    Reima nods, "You may have to fight but we will still be together." he quickly says, trying to figure out a way to make this work should she accept his offer.

    It doesn''t take long for her to finally shake her head, "Non... I cannot, my family, friends..."

    ...

    Reima thinks for a moment before getting an idea, he retrieves a small circular titanite piece and his white soap stone. The others watch as the white stone glows Turquoise and he begins to carve his name onto the titanite, one done he hands it to her.

    Fleur "What iz this?" she asks in confusion while looking it over.

    Reima "It''s a piece of metal with my name on it." he says bluntly, but before he gets punched he continues, "It also allows you to summon me if you need help, it would probably work even if I''m in another world." he says.

    Fleur looks at it wide eyed, "How does it work?"

    Reima "Just channel magic into it." as he says this he feels a tug, he goes with it and finds himself ontop of the table in-front of her. "Er, probably don''t try this in-front of a wall, unless you want me in jelly form..."

    Fleur "Zank you... I am still mad." she says without the same seriousness as before.

    Reima sits on the end of the table, "Maybe there''s something I can do to make up for it?" he asks with a lustful expression. He and Fleur are about to kiss when Ciri interrupts them, "I hate to separate you love birds but we should probably go get breakfast? Wouldn''t want the school to think we disappeared..."

    Fleur gives her a glare but eventually just nods in reluctance, "Where are my clothes?"

    Reima has a sheepish expression, "Er, I may have torn your underwear... Do you not have any school robes in that wardrobe?"

    Ciri "I had Hinky grab yours before we got frisky Fleur." she says.

    Fleur nods at her and is about to get up when she sees Nerissa still sipping on blood. "Ah-you still have not zaid anyzing about ze vampire... Nerissa?"

    Nerissa seems to give a minute shrug before saying "Batman."

    Fleur "Batman? Because Vampire can turn into Bats?" she asks in confusion, not really understanding the young girls words.

    Reima chuckles but immediately feels bad for doing so, "I''ve adopted her, so no, you can''t have her." he says taking almost too much satisfaction in seeing the vampire blush slightly.

 421 Love can bite?

    Reima, Ciri and Fleur + Rabbit slowly make their way down to the Great Hall after a quick shower. They notice a few people starting at them for some reason but don''t take any notice as two of them are champions and it''s normal. However once they enter the Great Hall they can immediately tell something is up, this is by the strange way the entire hall turns and looks in their direction...

    The trio sit at a spare spot on the Gryffindor table and are about to dig into their breakfast when a large shadow appears behind Fleur.

    "Miss Delacour! Are you well? Are you ''urt?" the familiar voice of Madam Maxime quickly says in a slight panic.

    Fleur turns to face her "Oui Madam, iz there somezing wrong?" she asks in confusion.

    Madam Maxime blanches at her, "Iz zer something wrong!? You did not return to ze carriage last night, I ''ad Dumblydore search for you but ''e could not find you!"

    Fleur "D¨¦sol¨¦e Madam! I had no idea, I was... I spent ze night in Hogwarts."

    Harry leans over and comments, "Really? It looks like you and Ciri got into a fight or something."

    Angelina gives him a weird look, "What makes you say that?"

    Harry points at the small purple and red bruises that litter up Fleur and Ciri''s necks. "Looks like they got punched by House Elves or something..."

    Angelina looks at him in disbelief, "You-You think? Hahahaha! Oh Merlin this is hilarious!"

    Harry frowns, "Did I say something funny?"

    Damien shakes his head and leans close to Harry to explain what love bites are, he visibly reddens as he quickly glances at those involved.

    Fleur pulls out a mirror and examines her neck and turns beat red at the many love bites covering her skin. She glares at Reima thinking that he did this on purpose but he just shrugs.

    Reima "Don''t look at me, most of those were probably by her." he points at Ciri.

    Fleur "And ze marks on ''er?" she asks with a brow raised.

    Reima "Er, I''m not really sure... The ones on her breas-"

    Ciri "Can we not talk about this?" she says, making the two realise that they have the attention of the entire Gryffindor table and most of the other tables.

    Madam Maxime herself who had heard the entire conversation blushes deeply but tries to cover her face with her hand, "Well Miss Delacour, if you feel the need to... Stay within Hogwarts please notify me or any of ze other staff available." she says quickly before marching back up to the staff table.

    Fleur leans into Reima "Why did you not tell me of zees? I would have worn a scarf..."

    Reima shrugs, "I didn''t notice to be honest, we did have a long discussion just before that... Also, why not ask Ciri the same thing..."

    She looks at Ciri who has a devious look on her face, "Just wanted the creeps to know you''re not on the market." she says, glancing at the few men who''re giving Reima furious looks.

    Angelina leans forwards, "So, you fucked?" she asks in the same manner she did Harry and Hermione.

    Reima "None of your business." he states.

    Angelina "Aw, come on. This is juicy information, I could probably buy a new broom by selling it."

    Ciri "You wouldn''t..."

    Hermione "You guys should probably get ready, Rita has probably already written a hit piece on you." she says.

    Reima smirks but manages to hide it, "Nevermind about that... How was the Ball for you and Harry?" he asks her.

    Hermione smiles, "It was amazing, I''ve never been to anything even vaguely resembling a party like that before."

    Harry "My feet still hurt" he mutters.

    Hermione "Oh don''t be a baby Harry, I was wearing heels and you barely kept up with me." she says.

    Harry "Doing the first dance was nerve wracking though, you must admit."

    She nods, "I was nervous at first but when I saw all the attention was on Ciri and Fleur it was fine."

    Fleur sighs, "Ciri wore me out during zat dance..."

    The continue to converse over breakfast until the sound of wings signals the owls arrival, everyone eagerly grabs their own copy to see what the Daily Prophets interpretation of yesterdays ball was.

    Reima steals someone else''s copy as it''s dropping and grins as he opens it up. He reads aloud neutrally. "Daily Prophet reporter missing!" it says in bold letters on the front page.

    Harry "I hope it''s Skeeter." he mutters but Hermione slaps him on the arm, "Don''t say that! Even if she is evil no one deserves something like that." she quickly says.

    Reima doesn''t say anything and continues reading.

    "Rita Skeeter who has been the Daily Prophets most dedicated reporters for four years straight did not return yesterday at the schedueled time. As a reporter it isn''t uncommon for people to try and stifle the truth which is why Rita went undercover while attending the Yule Ball, however it appears as though these measures weren''t enough as she''s gone missing. This puts into doubt the security of Hogwarts and the officials handling the Tri-wizard tournament. We at the Daily Prophet will say this : Whoever has harmed Miss Skeeter will be reported and dealt with by the full force of the law, let it be known that we will find you and bring your crimes to justice!"

    Reima "Seems like something''s got their hackles up, personally I don''t really care about Rita so her going missing isn''t a problem." he says.

    Ciri nods "I feel like kissing whoever did it, that bitch has been harassing us since we got here."

    Harry "Who do you think did it?" he leans in and asks quietly.

    Reima shrugs, "Maybe Snape? Or Karkaroff? They both seem to have secrets they''d rather not be known." he says uncaringly with the others nodding at who he suspects. He continues to read through the paper before tossing it aside, "Apparently Rita was the only reporter they send to the Yule Ball as there is no mention to it aside from her disappearance, what a shoddy paper."

 422 Prep work

    A couple hours after breakfast Harry and Hermione make their way to the classroom where Reima usually tutors them. The enter the room but quickly stop when the see someone they weren''t expecting.

    Harry "Fleur?" Said person stops firing spells at Ciri for a moment to turn at look at him.

    Fleur "Yes?"

    Hemione glances at the two who were throwing spells at one anther a moment ago and asks "Is this because of Reima?"

    They hear someone chuckling in the corner and see Reima with his feet up on a desk stroking Snuffles. "I admit watching them fight is hot but this is for training."

    Harry "Er, ok? Glad to have you with us Fleur." he says, wondering if it''s normal for three of the four competitors to train with one another...

    Hermione glances over the girls, "I''m still unsure about how you two are comfortable with dating the same guy." she says.

    Fleur shrugs, "I am not dating ''im..."

    Hermione "Then-"

    Fleur "We are just lovers..." she cuts her off.

    Hermione "How can you be someones lover without dating?" she asks in confusion.

    Fleur blushes "Oh leetle one, zer are many wayz to show your affection."

    Harry''s cheeks go red but he shakes away the embarrassment "S-shall we get started Reima?"

    Reima nods slowly, "I was thinking that the second task isn''t far off, have any of you opened your eggs?"

    Ciri "Egg?"

    Hermione "Your golden egg... The one you grabbed after killing the dragon..."

    Ciri "Ohhh... I was using it as a door stop... Hinky! Can you grab my golden egg for me?"

    It isn''t even a couple seconds when a golden egg appears on the floor in-front of her, she gives the house elf her thanks and starts examining it.

    Reima "Wait so you haven''t even looked at it?"

    Ciri shrugs, "I didn''t think it was important in the moment..."

    Fleur "''Ave you figured out ze way to use eet yet?" she asks them all.

    To Reima''s surprise Harry speaks up, "Er yeah, it''s Mermish right?"

    ...

    Reima "How did you know that?" he asks wondering if Moody was being more proactive than in the books of movies.

    Harry "Well, I recognised the screeching from the egg from that time we were fishing and caught a merman"

    Reima nods in realisatsion, "Huh... We did do that didn''t we? To be honest I forgot that actually happened."

    *SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEECH*

    The sound abrubtly stops and they all look to where it originated from... Ciri stands there with a sheepish expression still holding the egg.

    Ciri "...I just wanted to see what would happen..."

    Fleur ignores her and questions Harry "Do you know what ze puzzle iz?"

    Harry shakes his head, "I haven''t found a place to check the egg... For mermish you need to listen to it under water, the lake is a bit too cold for my liking..."

    Fleur gives Reima a look, it seems she wants him to reveal the room of requirement to Harry and Hermione but he just shakes his head. He retrieves a large inflatable pool from his Folded Space, sits down on the floor and starts slowly blowing it up.

    Ciri "What is that?"

    Reima stops blowing for a moment and looks up, "An inflatable pool... Give me a couple minutes..."

    Hermione "For a pool that size it will probably take half an hour..." she says.

    Ciri shrugs, "Let''s just continue sparring until he''s done."

    Harry and Hermione look at each other before following the other two in sparring.

    ten minutes later Reima is finally done with the pool, it stands in the middle of the room looking incredibly out of place, especially with the small unicorns decorating it...

    Ciri "Do I want to ask?"

    Reima ignores her, and blasts the pool full with a strong aguamenti charm which also happens to spray the other with it. Of course this was on purpose... Pay back for no one offering to help... "Ciri, your egg?"

    She hands it to him and he looks at everyone, "Stick your heads underwater and I''ll open the egg for you to hear the puzzle." he says.

    They do as he says, with a few complaints about how long it took to do their hair. With everyone submerged Reima puts his own head in while opening the egg, which releases a calming voice along with what sound like chimes.

    "Come seek us where our voices sound,We cannot sing above the ground,And while you''re searching ponder this;We''ve taken what you''ll sorely miss,An hour long you''ll have to look,And to recover what we took,But past an hour, the prospect''s black,Too late, it''s gone, it won''t come back."

    Harry and Hermione are the first to emerge from the water, breathing slightly heavily to catch their breathes back. Reima comes out and gives them a look. "You guys get the riddle?"

    Harry nods grimly, "They''r going to steal my firebolt!" he exclaims.

    ...

    Reima "You serious?" he asks, his previous thought on Harry being smarter this time around immediately vanish.

    Hermione "Well.. It''s obviously going to be underwater, hence the Mermish."

    Fleur "You ''ave an hour to retrieve it or it will disappear forever?" she mutters, growing slightly concerned at it''s implications.

    Reima "Whatever it is, you guys don''t have to worry... I''ve got another trick to anger the judges, I''ll give it to Ciri so you will retrieve whatever is taken from you." he says making them all look relieved, however Ciri looks apprehensive.

    Ciri "Can''t I try to complete the task without your help?" she says.

 423 To Spell or Dispel, that is the question...

    Ciri "Can''t I try to complete the task without your help?"

    ...

    Reima gives her a look "Trust me Ciri, you''ll not be comfortable in the Task without my help... I''m sure you can complete it without me but not without... Losses." he says.

    Fleur "You know what ze task iz?" she asks confused.

    Reima glances at the others while trying to come up with a valid explanation... "Um, I''m a seer... Yes, I get visions of the future, like Ciri sometimes does."

    Harry "Then can''t you just tell us about the task?" Hermione nods in agreement with him.

    Reima "If I tell you it would change the future... Trust me when I say you don''t want that to happen." he says only making them more worried about the task.

    Ciri doesn''t listen to his seer talk but just continues contemplating about what she wants to do during the Second Task. From what they can tell it''s underwater, this is easily dealt with with a simply Bubblehead charm, the same charm Reima had used to let them explore the ocean together however that didn''t extend to her combat abilities... They made them fight a dragon in the first task, it wouldn''t be much of a stretch to send a Kraken at them or something similar.

    Hermione "Ok... So you won''t tell us what the next task will be?"

    Reima nods, "That doesn''t mean I won''t train you in things that might assist you..." he says causing Harry to stand straighter.

    Harry "Ok, what should I do?"

    Reima smirks, "Ever heard of the Bubblehead charm?"

    Thus the training for the three champions begun, he first started on getting them to master the Bubblehead charm as it was the most useful thing to use underwater. While it looks fragile it is actually one of the most durable spells around as it repairs any damage made to it before it can affect the caster. It''s not like a regular bubble that will pop at the slightest touch, no instead it''s like the "DeadPool" of bubbles, eternally coming back despite the damage it takes. Of course Ciri and Fleur already knew generally how to cast it but Harry? Not so much. Reima estimated it''d take around a month for him to learn and master the spell enough to be able to cast chantlessly so he can use it under water. The reason you need to use the spell underwater first instead of before you enter? Because the spell basis the strength of the bubble on the current pressure around you, it uses more magic to strengthen the spell if you are underwater when compared to air, thus allowing you to not drown.

    Of course that wasn''t all he was going to teach however, most spells wouldn''t act the same underwater which can lead to unpredictable effects... Bombarda for instance would release a shockwave from the wand that would incapacitate everyone nearby, including the caster. How was this discovered? By a wizard in a swimming competition who thought it would give him a "boost", the Auror''s were cleaning up bits of him for days afterwards.

    The main spells he was going to teach that worked underwater were :

    Gravis charm : Causes the weight of whatever it hits to increase ten fold. This would be useful stalling or even stunning things trying to harm you, it could also be used to quicken your descent into water.

    Diffindo : Cutting charm, usually taught to be used on cloth or other materials however Reima had found it useful on flesh... The spell itself is taught to be cast as under-powered as possible to prevent possible misuse and injury. However when overpowered it''ll cut clean through someones throat, belly or even bone if enough magic is used. Definitely a useful spell to use on underwater creatures.

    Expulso : Different from Bombarda in that instead of causing an explosion at the first thing it impacts, Expulso sends out a bolt that causes it''s target to explode. This deals incredible damage to whatever it hits and also releases a shockwave that can even knock people off of their feet. This is a dangerous spell to use underwater as if you are close by when it hits you may also be stunned.

    These three charms while simple would be very useful for the trio, additionally Reima thought that Harry would be able to learn them all just before the task starts. Of course he was unsure about using such deadly spells but Reima noted he still had access to his other nonlethal ones, even if they might be less effective against underwater creatures.

    After an hour or two Reima stops the class and has everyone attend their lessons as he and Ciri had some more Animagi training with Mcgonagall to do. Harry and Hermione leave after wiping the sweat from their brows and Reima gives Fleur a kiss before she too leaves.

    Ciri "So you gonna tell me about your plan or do I have to wait like the others?"

    Reima smirks, "You''ll wait... I''d also suggest not trying to use any Pyromancy underwater... I might be immune to fire but I doubt your body could handle being boiled alive..."

    Ciri nods, "Thanks for the heads up."

    Reima waves her thanks, picks up Snuffles and starts heading to Professor Mcgonagall''s classroom. Ciri doesn''t look as excited as Reima feels right now as he can tell he''s very close to finally reaching his form. Hopefully today would be the day.

 424 Reima now counts as black.

    Reima and Ciri enter the office to find Professor Mcgonagall sitting back in her chair with a Victrola blaring a classical song from it''s large horn. The door closes behind them alerting the woman to their presence, her eyes shoot open and glare at them before turning back to a more placid expression.

    Mcgonagall "My young Animagi, I forgot you were coming..." she says with them both giving her a funny look due to bottle of fire whisky also standing tall on her desk. "Well? Stop standing their and start meditating." she says while stealthily putting the bottle away.

    The duo look at eachother and shrug, Ciri sits down while Reima places Snuffles on the desk in-front of Mcgonagall who like everyone else, cannot stop herself from spoiling the rabbit.

    Reima sits down on his knees and begins his meditation, however somehow this time feels different from any other. As soon as he closes his eyes he finds himself standing on a mountain top, or more accurately, a volcano. Looking around he can see the scorched surroundings that look devoid of life as far as the eye can see. Cracks, crators and rivers of lava cover the landscape in an almost hellish display. He looks to his side and sees what must be the entrance to the volcano as thick black smoke billows out of a massive whole that must span half a mile wide. The cloud of smoke drifts into the sky and collects with the rest that linger above everything, blocking the sun and allowing a black snowfall of ashes to coat everything around.

    Reima wipes some ash from his face and hair but finds his body unconsciously letting his aura out, causing it to glow dimly and start releasing embers from his form. The stone underneath his feet melts into lava as his clothes burn from his body, leaving him naked.

    His brows furrow as he feels himself losing control over his aura which causes the area around him to start heating up and glowing dimly, small flickers of dark red fire appear and disappear around him. His attention his brought from his internal predicament to something inside the volcano, he can feel something enormous emerging and from the black smoke he can see two slitted turquoise eyes staring back at him. Without another moment to spare the smoke explodes and reveals it''s form, the two gigantic wings with a pair of smaller ones behind them flap once and clear the smoke. Allowing Reima to see the familiar black scales covering it''s body.

    "You, have returned." it says, the voice causing the very floor to vibrate.

    Reima looks at it''s skull-like face and nods, "I have."

    "You wish to take me into yourself?"

    Reima "...Er, I''m not gay so, no..."

    The dragon snorts, causing fire to escape it''s nostrils. "Do not play your petty mortal games with me."

    Reima "Yeah, I know the Jedi-schtick. I am you, you are me."

    It nods, "Words of wisdom from a great prophet no doubt, this Jedi Schtick."

    ....

    Reima just shakes his head, deciding that trying to explain Star Wars to an ancient dragon would probably be annoying and futile. "So... How do we do this?"

    It lowers it''s head to his level, "You must step in my mouth for us to become one." it says, opening it''s maw wide, revealing it''s horrifically sharp teeth and molten looking interior.

    Reima gives the dragon a suspicious look, "You sure?" with it nodding at him.

    He begins to step towards it while looking into it''s eyes, he can see them dilating as he approaches and he can swear he can hear it''s heart-rate increasing. Just as he''s about to put one foot inside it''s mouth he realises something. "Hang on a minute, if you''re me you must know what Star Wars is!"

    The dragon seems to tremble for a moment before slowly closing it''s mouth... It then proceeds to burst into laughter, it''s louder than anything Reima had ever heard before and he could swear a volcano just erupted behind him...

    "Hahahaha! It seems you are not as foolish as I thought. Yes, I know what Star Wars is you imbecile! I am you''re own personality, mind, emotions and soul manifest into a suitable creature. If you had stepped in my mouth I would refuse to work with someone stupid enough to allow themselves to be eaten!"

    Reima "Yeah? Well, I''d cut my way out." he says indignantly causing the dragon to shake it''s head, "I doubt that!"

    Reima "No, I doubt you!"

    "You cannot doubt yourself!"

    Reima "WELL I JUST DID!"

    Outside with Mcgonagall she can see something is wrong with Mr Ludvig. He''s trembling for some odd reason but the weirdest thing is the fact he''s frowning and then smirking, then repeating this for who knows how long.

    Suddenly something catches her eye which has her gently awaken Ciri before pulling her away from Reima. His fingers had turned into brutally sharp black claws... His skin is turning black and she can see his clothing begin to retreat into his skin, something that happens to all Animagi as they don''t wish to be naked every time they transform.

    The duo continue to watch as Reima hunches over and begins slowly transforming. Even Snuffles is enraptured with just what is happening. Mcgonagall cannot tell what animal he is but Ciri does, shes internally panicking as she didn''t know what''d happen if Reima turned into a giant dragon inside of this tiny room... However it seems her worries were unjustified as he seemed to be shrinking.

    They watch as his body turns into some kind of lizard with two pairs of tiny wings on it''s back that are clearly not enough to fly. It''s only a few meters long from head to tail but it''s face is cute, despite it looking emaciated.

    It raises it''s head slowly and looks at this with it''s lizard-like turquoise eyes, it gives a squeak and belches dark red fire from it''s mouth that sets fire to a nearby chair.

    Mcgonagall "OH MY!" she exclaims after her brain finally takes in what''d just happened.

 425 Chibi-Dragon

    Mcgonagall "OH MY!"

    Ciri just continues to look on at the baby winged reptile that''d replaced Reima, it was so cute and unoffensive to look at she really couldn''t compare it to any dragons she''d ever seen. In this world or her own.

    Reima in his dragon form looks up at them before coughing and spluttering after making some kind of grumbling noise. The flames that escape his maw don''t retract from his cuteness at all and Mcgonagall flicks her wand at them causing a few spurts of water to extinguish them.

    Reima growls again, only this time it starts to sound like he''s trying to say something... After few more choked groans a squeaky voice echoes through the room. "C-can you hear me?"

    Ciri immediately laughs at this while pointing her finger at him, "Hahahahaha! You sound like a child!"

    "Piss off, atleast I transformed!" he exclaims in a high pitch voice.

    Ciri "What are you? Because you look like a black winged Rhino mixed with a Komodo dragon!"

    Reima growls and looks around for a moment before turning to Mcgonagall who''s still gaping at him. "You got a mirror?"

    She can only nod her head absently, not moving to grab a mirror...

    Ciri "Professor? Are you ok?" she asks, seeing her in a weird state.

    Mcgonagall "Huh? Oh... Yes Miss Rivia... Please just, give me a moment.."

    Ciri just shrugs and enlarges a hand held mirror on the desk before showing it to Reima, who''s eyes widen when he sees himself.

    Reima "Why am I so small! I''m a dragon for fuck sake, these puny wings would never support my weight!"

    Ciri "I don''t know... Maybe you got duped by your animal?

    Reima "Duped by myself? How would that even work!?" he complains.

    Mcgonagall who seems to finally have regained her composure speaks up. "You two don''t see, to be surprised at this... Creature Mr Ludvig managed to transform into... I''ve never seen anything like it and I know full well that it isn''t a dragon due to it having four limbs and four wings..."

    ...

    Reima "I''m an extinct kind of dragon, besides have you ever seen a winged lizard that can breathe fire that isn''t a dragon?" he squeaks out. Not mentioning how this worlds dragons are weaklings and more comparable to Wyverns due to their arms and wings being connected.

    Mcgonagall nods slowly, "Then perhaps your Animagus animal takes a significant amount of time before it matures?"

    Ciri "Would that really affect it?" she asks, wondering if her animal would come out the size of a tape worm.

    Mcgonagall nods, "It isn''t a well known phenomenon due to how difficult it is to become an animagus but through thorough research they determined it to be the case..." She stops momentarily, "However... This is a first time a magical creature was someone''s transformation..." she says staring daggers at the Chibi-Dragon that happened to be Reima.

    Reima laughs uncomfortably, "Ha-ha-ha-ha... How lucky is that huh?"

    ...

    Ciri almost facepalms herself at how unnatural that sounded.

    Mcgonagall "Mr Ludvig if you have some information that helped you achieve this result I''d be more than eager to listen and learn, you''re never to old to learn more..." she says.

    Reima "It''s not something other people can do Professor, it''s due to my and Ciri''s unique heritage... We are part... Veela... Hence the hair and attractiveness..."

    Mcgonagall leans her head to the side, "But Veela cannot become Animagi?" she states as if it''s already a fact... Reima has no idea if it might be.

    Reima "We''re from an ancient coven of Veela that live in Greenland... Perhaps our anatomy has shifted enough to allow this, I am proof enough."

    Mcgonagall doesn''t look entirely convinced but nods anyway, "Fine, congratulations on becoming an Animagi Mr Ludvig, you will be required to register your form within the Ministry before you turn eighteen. If you do not you will have broken the law." She looks towards Ciri, "I look forward to seeing your form Miss Rivia." she says while nodding her head at them both.

    They leave the rather exhausted looking Professor and return to the room of requirement, Snuffles lies on Reima''s back as he walks with Ciri as he''s trying to get comfortable in his form. Obviously he''s blasting his Observation Haki out to check if anyone is near, however they all seem to still be in classes.

    Ciri opens the door and the scene they see inside is a hot beach, the same one Reima had taken her to all those months ago. They''re umbrella and towels are even laid down in the place he remembers.

    The Chibi-dragon slowly makes it''s way through the sand, it''s still developing claws apparently not a good way of travelling through it. He hops on his back legs while flapping the unfamiliar appendages on his back. Ciri seems to find it funny as she laughs at his attempt... Or maybe it''s the fact that Snuffles is struggling to hold onto his back while he''s rearing up like a horse.

    Eventually he reaches the towel he laid down the first time they came here and slumps down to enjoy the surprisingly comfortable sensation of the sun on his scales, though Snuffles hopes into the shadow of the umbrella as her black fur seems to assist in her overheating.

    Ciri "You look like a snake basking in the sun..." she says.

    Reima "... Why did you pick a beach?" he asks after a moment.

    Ciri shrugs, "Just wanted to feel the sun on my face... Can''t really do that in the winter."

    Reima accepts this and just enjoys the peculiar sensation, it''s like sunbathing but x100. The warmth invades every inch of his body, this shouldn''t really be possible as he reckoned his blood was still lava, but maybe it''s due to dragon''s usually being cold blooded?

 426 Bequeathed a new title...

    Ciri continues to sit on the towel enjoying the sunshine, she glances at her companion Reima and feels an weird feeling in her chest. They''d been together a while now yet she was still keeping him at arms length away, despite her internally wishing for it not to be so. Of course there was a "logical" reason to her madness, the fact that the Wild Hunt still needed her. While Reima would still be applicable and maybe even more valuable due to him being male, they weren''t able to track him... And even if they were, she doubted they would be able to capture him from what limited abilities he had already displayed.

    Jealousy was still a prominent emotion she felt towards him, however it isn''t only about power and strength anymore. She felt anxious at his interactions with Fleur, at how close he was getting with her... Yes she assisted Fleur in getting closer but she had always considered it a temporary thing as they''d have to leave this world eventually, this is why she was shocked to see him try and take her with him. She hadn''t realised their relationship went to that extent... She felt uncomfortable at the fact she was relieved when Fleur refused.

    Her interactions with Fleur were mostly hostile as she saw Ciri as a rival in love, she thawed out abit when Ciri arranged that threesome, seeing them more as sisters than rivals after that. However Ciri was only comfortable with Fleur and Reima hooking up because she felt she was leading him on, words are important and she wasn''t ready to enter a relationship while all this "stuff" was still happening and so she "gifted" Reima the opportunity... That and she was still attracted to Fleur.

    Reima "Ciri can you call Hinky to get drinks? I think they''d have a heart attack if they saw me." he asks in his Chibi-Dragon form from the ground.

    Ciri scoffs "Get it yourself." before sighing to herself, she really needed to fix that habit of hers... While most people would be acting like this on purpose, she had basically trained herself to disregard people, as was the common attitude within the Cintra, the Rats and sometimes even Kaer Morhen. She had cemented it when she''d been captured by Bonhart and the Elves, it served as a shield to hide her more fragile emotions from the people who''d take advantage if even the smallest crack. While yes, this did mirror part of her personality but it was emphasised, it was difficult to show any positive emotion towards someone which made her interactions with Reima particularly hard on her.

    The only person she had actually shown her true emotions to in the last few years was her dearly departed lover Mistle who''d been cutdown in-front of her. Of course Nerissa was also someone she was becoming fond of, however she was hesitant to air her worries to a fourteen yearold who''d recently lost her parents.

    Maybe when they get back she can talk about this with Geralt... Just as she''s thinking that the doors to the room of requirement open, causing the trio to all instantly become alert.

    "A beach and Zunlight? Zis iz amazing!" a familiar voice says, which makes Ciri prepare herself.

    Fleur waks inside, heels hanging off of her hand while she treads through the sand bare-foot. "''Ello? Reima? Ciri?"

    Reima raises his head and gives Ciri a pleading look, she can only shake her head at this.

    Ciri "We''re here Fleur." she says.

    Fleur quickly walks over and sees her, she kisses both her cheeks before doing the same to Snuffles. She then looks at Reima and tilts her head to the side at the scaly ball of mass sitting silently on a towel. "What iz this?"

    Reima "Er, hi Fleur" he says in his new voice.

    She jumps for a moment before recognising who it is, "Rei? I ''ave ''eard of zis before! You are a Animagus!" she exclaims as she leans over and starts vigorously stroking his scales, causing him to release a satisfied low grumbling sound.

    Ciri just watches their interactions and feels the need to comment, "Shouldn''t you be in lesson Fleur?"

    Fleur shakes her head, "You forget I am a champion, I can skip lessons should I wish." she says absentmindedly while continuing to spoil Reima.

    To take her mind off of the duo she grabs Snuffles and begins petting her, "We should probably come up with a name for your form... You named Snuffles so maybe she should get to name you?" she says, with the rabbit bobbing it''s head with a devious glint in her eyes.

    Fleur "Oui, zat sounds like a wonderful past time."

    Reima doesn''t comment and just continues to sunbathe, knowing that whatever name he''ll be given will be humiliating.

    The girls start brainstorming names, all of them being put past Snuffles who shakes her head at a negative.

    Fleur "Dragogon?" Snuffles shakes her head.

    Ciri "Smallscale?" Again, no dice.

    ...

    Every name makes Reima shudder but isn''t til the last one that he regrets not having any input...

    Ciri "How about Squeaks?"

    ...

    Snuffles turns her red eyes to Reima who glares back with his own Turquoise ones... She nods her head at Ciri, making Reima regret even being born.

    Fleur "Squeakz it iz, it iz a fitting name No?"

    Reima just nods his head while trying not to cry.

    Ciri sits back, feeling satisfied at having her name chosen. Something he''d probably bare for life and be eternally embarrassed from.

 427 Reima and Rita, together forever.

    A few days after Reima receives his new name "Squeaks" he finds himself alone in the Room of Requirements. He''s currently sitting on the floor in-front of a jar that contains a blue beetle that seems to be slamming itself into glass walls in an attempt to escape... Even though it would take literally forever for that to even begin to work.

    Reima "I don''t know what you''re trying to achieve with this... Even if the glass was cracked you still wouldn''t have a chance... Or perhaps you''re trying to kill yourself?" he says, causing the insect to stop it''s actions. "Why not just transform back into your human form if you want to die?" he asks, of course Rita can''t answer as she''s currently a Beetle.

    He was thinking of whether or not to invite Ciri to this.. Event, but decided it was probably a bit too evil for her tastes... "What am I going to do with you Miss Skeeter? I''ve got a couple ideas but none of them seem appropriate for someone like you."

    ...

    Reima gains a grin, "I have found myself in need of a test subject..." he mutters, "Ok, I know." he uncorks the jar and lets the beetle fly out, as soon as it does it transforms into a woman wearing a gaudy trench-coat, golden spectacles and platinum blonde hair.

    Rita Skeeter glares at him with a hatefully look, "I''d report what you did to me but I''d rather get revenge personally!" she shouts, casting "Avada Kedavra!", a green bolt is launched from her wand faster than any wizarding spell Reima had seen before. However it still isn''t fast enough as Reima fully expected this.

    Black ooze jumps out of his shadow as if it were alive, the tentacles made from the black substance quickly coalesce into it''s familiar gnarled wooden form. Reima grabs it and bats the green spell away like it''s nothing, making Rita gape at him.

    Rita "W-what, no this isn''t possible! AVADA KEDAVRA!" she shouts again, with Reima using the axe head of his staff to cut the green bolt in two, causing it to instantly dissipate.

    Reima "You done?" he asks with a smirk, seeing her not replying he shrugs and says, "My turn then."

    He pushes Humanity through the pathways he''d completed and through the Staff of Manus, causing a dark aura to overtake it. Black ooze drips from it as if it was melting, however it''s form only seems to become stronger and sharper. He taps the staff on the floor, causing veins made from the substance to pierce the floor and start to infect the surroundings. If Reima weren''t controlling it''s expansion it''d probably have already overtaken the room, however he''s only directing it to one place... Rita Skeeter.

    The woman screams in fear as she sees Reima''s eyes flicker pure black, as the tendrils quickly approach her. She begins to back away but seeing that they''re approaching faster and faster she tries to run. However... A tendril has already grabbed her ankle...

    Instantly she feels agonizing pain pierce her leg, looking down she can see the tendril form a hard point and pierce her leg and then infecting her flesh like it did the stone floor of the room. Her flesh goes pale with black veins, she had lost her heels from trying to run earlier leaving her feet bare, she looks at them and sees her digits start turning into mangled claws.

    Rita "PLEASE STOP! AHHHH HELP ME!" she screams in agony as Reima watches on in interest.

    Reima "Oh, my apologies Miss Skeeter, it seems I was under the impression a vile bitch like yourself could handle something like this..." he shrugs, "Whatever, it''ll all be over soon." he says in a dark voice that sounds like two overlayed into one.

    The tendrils continue to move up her leg, ravaging her body and causing immense pain from the screams she''s bellowing out. Eventually the veins reach her throat and he can see her scratching at them, however as the veins had already reached her hands they now resembled claws. Allowing her to gauge deep cuts into her flesh... Only for the damaged parts to be replaced by the black ooze, not allowing her to kill herself.

    Finally when the Humanity infects her brain she stops squirming and screaming, her eyes turn completely black but after a moment a cracking sound comes from her, then another... And another. Her body looks as if it''s having a seizure as it shakes and shudders from the floor, her arms elongating and the wand still gripped tightly in her hand becoming a mangled mess of branches.

    Her head then begins bubbling, the flesh hardening and increasing in size, eventually covering her entire head in a bloated black ball that resembles what the residents of Oolacile looked like after succumbing to the Abyss... Her trenchcoat isn''t even left alone as the tendrils turn it entirely black, it occasionally drips with black droplets that create even more tendrils...

    Reima "Hmm.. That was interesting.." he says, his eyes returning to their normal Turquoise colour. He points at the Abyssal nightmare in-front of him, "Stand!" it does as he says and stands, revealing it''s height to now be around 8ft.

    ...

    He then gets the room to conjure a few targets and points at them, ordering the creature to destroy them. He''s surprised to see it swipe what used to be Rita''s wand at the target, creating a black orb that launches at it and causes it to explode into stone fragments...

    Reima "It''s a mage from Oolacile... This is fucked..." he says, realising he had basically inherited the Abyss from Manus... He shakes his head and orders the Abyssal creature to disappear, but is stunned to see it collapse into the familiar black Ooze and escape into his shadow.

    Reima glares at his shadow, "What. The. Fuck."

 428 Precautions

    It''s been a month since the Yule Ball and Reima hadn''t lightened up on the groups training by one bit. He pushed Harry, Fleur and Ciri to learn new skills, spells and techniques in preparation for the Second Task. They all did well, Ciri and Fleur easily acquiring new skills while Harry managed to chantlessly cast all the spells Reima had set for him.

    Reima himself was still trying to work through the shock that Humanity had presented him, learning that you were essentially the embodiment of the Abyss and all that entails it is quite a nerve wracking experience, especially when you have an Abyssal Skeeter Zombie hiding in your shadows and waiting for enemies to strike...

    He didn''t slack on his training however, concentrating on controlling this power partly due to his fear that he''d become like Manus had, a giant abomination hell bent on spreading the Abyss.

    Reima is currently pondering the possibilities of this power when he''s interrupted by Ciri who nervously pats him on the shoulder.

    Ciri "You sure everything will go well?" she asks.

    Reima looks her up and down, admiring the swimsuit she was currently wearing. "Just go with the plan and you''ll see... Also, wasn''t there a better option to use for the Second Task?" he says with her looking at her swimsuit in confusion.

    Ciri "Is something wrong with it?"

    Reima shakes his head, "No... If anything it''ll distract your competitors." As he''s saying this Harry and Hermione approach them from behind.

    Harry doesn''t say anything but just nods at them, Reima gives him a curious look and turns his attention to Hermione as she''d more than likely know what''s up with him.

    Hermione shrugs and leans in, "He''s seeing visions again, a hoarse voice talking to a room of red eyes... I''m not sure what it means but it can''t be good." she mutters.

    Reima scratches his face and walks towards Harry who''s currently wearing some tight swimming trunks. "Harry?"

    Harry glances at him and nods again.

    Reima "Bro, I know you''ve got a problem with a certain Dark Lord but don''t let that distract you from the here and now."

    ...

    His frown eases slightly, "I''ll try." he says.

    Fleur "Rei, iz thiz swimsuit good enough?" her voice echoes from behind him, he see''s a similar one to Ciri''s bikini which he nods vigorously at.

    Reima "It is, however are you sure you wouldn''t prefer something more secure? A small tug would remove it completely." he says.

    She think for a moment before walking back into the walk-in closet and retrieving a one piece swimsuit that doesn''t detract from her beauty at all. It''s lucky that Harry is immune to her allure otherwise he''d be a drooling mess... Like a certain other Champion. He glances at Krum who''s standing there in speedo''s which seem to slowly be growing as he stares at Fleur.

    Reima clicks his fingers loudly causing him to regain his composure and hurriedly turn away.

    Just as this happens a robed women walks in, "Has everyone chosen their wares?" she asks.

    They all nod at her which has a quill writing a couple things down in a checklist which floats behind her. "I''d like you all to know that if you modify the clothing in any way you may be disqualified, do you understand?"

    "Yes." is echoed through the room as everyone accepts it.

    Reima wasn''t sure if this was what usually happened in Tri-Wizard tournaments, it seems abit weird that they''d refuse the champions the opportunity to wear their own clothes... Maybe it''s because of all the magical artifacts that were brought into the last one? If so... Then they''ll be extremely pissed with him.

    The woman sighs loudly, "Please place the clothing of your choosing back, it will be prepared for you tomorrow. I wish you all luck." she says as she quickly leaves.

    Reima "You guys ready?" he asks them.

    Harry "I think so."

    Ciri "Definitely."

    Fleur "Piece of cake."

    They all mutter, apparently already feeling the pressure.

    As they all return to their dorms Reima quickly makes his way to Luna''s room in the Gryffindor house. The traps that bar men from the female dorms are no match for Reima as he simply walks up the stairs with none of the magic affecting him. He thinks he can vaguely hear cheers from behind him but a few *thumps* later it stops with a few groans.

    Reima quickly finds the room with a Luna name tag on the door, he gives it a few knocks and it eventually opens revealing Luna who''s currently in weird looking Pajama''s and wielding a sword...

    Luna "Oh, it''s you... I thought it would be a Nargle out for revenge." she says with her familiar airy voice.

    Reima "Really? You get many of those?"

    Luna shakes her head, "No... It''s just good to be prepared."

    Reima "Luna, listen. I was wondering if you''d help me out with something."

    Her eyes seem to shimmer when he asks, "Yes?"

    Reima "I was hoping you could look after Snuffles until the end of the Second Task tomorrow?" he says, revealing the furry black mass on his arm.

    Luna can barely hold her excitement as she hops up and down and gently grasps Snuffles into a hug. "Reima? She''s got a ring attached to her? Should I take it off?"

    Reima smirks, "No... Just leave it as it is. Thanks for your help Luna." he says, patting her head and then leaving.

    Once Reima leaves Luna looks at Snuffles with a determined look, "We''ll have a pajama party... I''ll brush your hair, you''ll brush mine... We''ll tell stories and have pillow fights!" she quickly says, her excitement growing with every word.

    Snuffles can only look at the door, pondering if it''d be better to escape or not.

 429 Starting Line

    The next day Reima finds himself underwater... Looking left to right he sees Cho Chang, Hermione and Gabrielle Delacour, Fleur''s little sister. He knew he''d have to try his best to act like the spells worked on him but it was more difficult than he''d thought...

    Flashback :

    Reima had just woken from his meditation when he spotted a letter on his desk, what was inside was what he was expecting.

    "Mr Ludvig, the Ministry requires your presence in the Headmasters office immediately, any attempt to disregard these orders will be met with force."

    ...

    Reima "Either they''re incredibly stupid or haven''t met anyone who''d refuse... I wonder how they''ll kidnap Fleurs sister? If she refused would they risk bringing the French Magical community on their heads? I doubt it." he mutters to himself.

    He''d already dealt with everything that need doing yesterday and so quickly got dressed and headed to the Headmasters office. Once there he noticed the doors were already wide open, he briskly walks inside expecting to be asked to be placed underwater, however he wasn''t expecting to immediately be blasted with a few stunners. Upon realising what they intended to do he let them hit him and crumpled to the floor in an attempt to look unconscious.

    Crouch "With how I heard he dealt with Krum I was expecting a bit more resistance..."

    Dumbledore "Are you sure you have to use this method? Most would gladly accept your proposition."

    Crouch shakes his head, "With how many of these hostages die in the tournament do you really think they''d be crazy enough to agree? No, we''ll do it my way... We''ve got everyone except... Cho Chang?"

    Dumbledore sighs, "I''ll send a letter." he says reluctantly.

    Reima who is hearing all of this can''t help but to retort to everything they say, he wonders if this is even legal or that they had found a loophole to weasel out of should they be called on it. Not long after his "Stunning" he''s lifted by Hagrid and transported to the lake where a few wizards apply charms to him unsuccessfully and then allow the Mermen to place him underwater.

    Flashback End :

    Reima was shocked at the fact they didn''t even bother to check if their charms had worked on him, if he was anyone else he would''ve drowned immediately... However, now he''s just holding his breath and awaiting rescue. His legs are tied together with a chain that''s holding him underwater, he crosses his arms and glares at the Mermen who shiver in his focus.

    On the bright side atleast he could monitor how Gabrielle and Hermione were doing, he''d save them if there was any danger present but he doubted Harry would need any help... Fleur on the other hand as a Veela would probably still be unable to make it, not because of the water, but because of the creatures that are naturally attracted towards Veela.

    Back on land was a boisterous atmosphere, large stands were erected for people to watch the lake, despite most of what''d be happening not being visible. There were a few flags being held by various people from each school, however one attracted everyone''s attention...

    It was a large bed cover that seems to have been painted over with a black paint in the shape of a rabbit with red eyes... Luna holds her wand upwards to continue levitating it while Snuffles chitters in a manner reminiscent of laughter at her antics. Ciri glanced over to it and spotted Snuffles and immediately felt relieved.

    Eventually everyone was gathered, the audience, press, judges and champions.

    Ludo Bagman "GREETINGS EVERYONE! I welcome you all to the Second Task of the Tri-Wizard tournament! I hope you are all as excited as I am because this is looking to be an amazing event!" he shouts, causing everyone to cheer with unrestrained anticipation.

    Ludo "I am sitting here with my fellow judges Albus Dumbledore, Olympe Maxime, Igor Karkaroff and last but not least, Barty Crouch!.. The task for today is another retrieval, hold your groans in because it''s so much more exciting! The champions must retrieve someone precious to them who had been hidden in the black lake, they have an hour to bring them back or they will be lost forever!" he shouts, causing a few people to look at the judges and champions in shock.

    Ludo continues, "As was stated not long after the First Task, Magical weapons will not be permitted, of course this does not disqualify your wands. Also, the points from the last task are as followed : Victor Krum with 34 points! Fleur Delacour with 40 points! Harry Potter with 43 points! Ciri Rivia leading them all with 45 POINTS!" he shouts as loud as his voice can handle.

    Crouch "Would all champions make their ways to the start please?" he asks.

    Ciri glances at Fleur and Harry before walking forwards and taking her place on the wooden scaffolding presumably built for this event. He grips her staff and hopes Reima''s plan will work as doesn''t think her staff will be the more conducive to fighting underwater...

    Fleur has had a frown since she found out her sister was missing, her emotions were high and she felt he she spoke she''d begin shouting. Hopefully they were bluffing about "Losing them forever" as she''d tear whoever set this task up apart.

 430 Why is it never the "good" kind of tentacles?

    Dumbledore "Champions! The task will begin as soon as the-*BOOOOOOOOOOM*... Cannons.. Nevermind the task has started! Go! You have an hour!" he shouts after sending a dirty look to Filch who simply shrugs with a nonplussed face at him.

    Krum, Fleur and Harry all immediately dive into the water, however Ciri raises her staff and audibly casts "Accio Rusted Iron Ring!"

    Immediately those watching feel a sense of foreboding, as if they were watching her executing of the dragon in the First Task again.

    From the stands a run attached to Snuffles flies off towards Ciri who grabs it from the air and puts it on.

    Ludo "It seems Ciri Rivia has found another loophole! What will this artifact do I wonder!" he exclaims.

    Ciri doesn''t hesitate and jumps into the water... He entry doesn''t even create the smallest splash and she finds herself falling as if through air instead of water. He has to cushion her fall with a spell as she''d probably be seriously injured or dead if she hit the ground at that speed.

    Once she''s on the lake bed she casts the bubble head charm and begins a few movements to makesure everything is ok. She swings her staff like a sword and feels no resistance whatsoever, this ring is incredibly useful apparently. Nodding to herself she casts a point me charm and begins sprinting in the direction it indicates.

    Those who were watching from the shore are baffled to see such an unnatural looking phenomenon, however they quickly lose her in the cloudy lake.

    ...

    The audience stops cheering as soon as they realise that they''ll be waiting there for an hour straight doing nothing... "Who came up with this!?!" a few shout. The only people enjoying the situation are Luna and Snuffles who are playing against eachother with cards...

    Fleur had just entered the lake and wasted no time in trying to save her sister, the bubble head charm was quickly cast as she used small charms to boost her propulsion slightly. She continued doing this despite how weakly her magic was flowing due to the cold water around her, she felt it was needed but regretted doing it when she felt the presence of numerous eyes watching her.

    "Grindylow" she mutters with feeling of dread overtaking her. Without warning she''s immediately surrounded by them, she casts a couple expulsio charms at them which makes a few explode into a fine red mist however their numbers seem endless. They get close enough to where area of effect spells would hit her as much as her target, she cast a few wide Diffindo''s that completely bisect a few and injuring more however she feels something bite her back. It''s teeth sink into her flesh causing her to gasp and fumble the spell she was about to cast. Reaching back she grabs a slimy tentacle of the Grindylow that''d bitten her and pulls it away, inadvertently helping it tear a bite sized chunk from her back.

    They don''t let up however as she''s besieged by more of them, they wrap their tentacles around her neck in an attempt to strangle her while a few try to burst her bubble head charm which luckily proves more durable then they can deal with.

    As more and more pile on she can feel a few digging their teeth into her flesh, she struggles to try and get them off but to no avail as she mutters a soft "Sorry" for her doomed sister... However this isn''t Game of Thrones, a Diffindo charm passes Fleur and manages to kill a large amount of the gathered Grindylows. Ciri who''s been sprinting for a while now jumps up and slams her staff into a clump of them, knocking a few unconscious while giving brain damage to a few others. She pulls Fluer down to the lake bed so she can protect her more easily as without the buoyency of the water she''s unable to reach such high places without using other means.

    Fleur floats near the ground covered in many wounds which continuously leak blood as Ciri fends off a few more. Without the water resistance Ciri was easily able to swing her staff and react faster than these creatures could. They didn''t stand a chance as she employed kicks, knees, elbows and any other move to strike at them. While their bodies resembled squids or octopi they had skeletons which were shattered with every strike of hers.

    Once the water around her was tinted blood and littered with the many corpses of the Grindylows she turns her attention to Fleur who''s still bleeding profusely from her wounds. It wasn''t fatal but it would be if left underwater and untreated.

    Ciri "Fleur can you make it back?" she quickly asks.

    Fleur shakes her head, "Non! I need to find Gabrielle!" she exclaims.

    Ciri "I''ll get her for you so go back and get patched up, you can blame whoever made the task!" she says with no hesitation.

    ...

    After a moment Fleur nods, and slowly swims to the surface where she''d be collected by the healers on standby.

    Ciri watches her leave and quickly turns her attention to the task at hand, she takes a few seconds to catch her breath before starting to sprint toward the hostages again.

 431 Giving a hand...

    Harry had just jumped into the water and immediately cast the bubble head charm and the point me charm similarly to the others who had trained under Reima. He remembers Moody telling him about a specific route that''d be easiest to travel and dips low against the lake bed to follow it.

    The route itself isn''t anything but a long ridge that digs a trail for what seem like miles. Harry swiftly follows it and isn''t bothered by any sea creatures, he can see a few but they don''t dare go near him... Or is it the trench? Either way he wasn''t going to look a gift shark in the mouth and continued on under he eventually found the Merman village.

    It looked like a ruins that''d fallen into the lake from the land, however it seems as if these creatures didn''t mind it and made it their home regardless. A few minutes of swimming reveals four large stone pillars with chains connecting them to figures who''re floating in the water. Hermione, Cho, Fleurs sister and... Reima? The person of his focus didn''t seem as pale and lifeless as the others as Harry thinks he can see him floating there with crossed and and tapping his foot as if impatiently waiting at a line...

    Harry swim up to him and almost chokes when he sees Reima''s cat-like eyes stare back at him, he smirks and points at Hermione with his thumb.

    Harry "Why-How are you still awake?" he asks loudly, his question barely understandable due to the water mangling it in transit.

    Reima hears it regardless and shrugs, not opening his mouth to answer, partly because he can''t speak underwater.

    The two speak with their eyes for a few more moments before Harry goes over with the intent to free Hermione and bring her back. He''s also occasionally eyeing Gabrielle but Reima signals that he''s got it handled. Trusting in his words Harry nods, shoots the chain with a reducto and begins to leave with his hostage, only to almost be knocked over by a speeding blue shape with many teeth.

    Krum had transfigured himself into some sort of shark-human hybrid and viciously bites at the chain holding Cho but finds his teeth are unable to pierce the metal. He growls audibly through the water and retrieves his wand from the inside of his pants and blows the chain to smithereens, causing fragments of it to hurtle through the water at the others.

    Reima frowns and uses his telekinesis to change their paths so as to avoid injuring Hermione or Gabrielle. He then glares at Krum who shivers momentarily before turning his glassy fish eyes towards Reima. He sees his rival simply floating there, vulnerable, weak...

    Krum immediately gets a couple ideas on how to get revenge on this person who had caused him so much trouble. His Headmaster had even encouraged these thoughts which made them all the more easy to fantasise about. His rows of serrated teeth open and clench in anticipation as he slowly swims towards Reima, not expecting him to be able to do anything except float there.

    Reima cannot help the smirk that finds it''s way onto his face as Krum approaches him, maybe he''ll change him mind at the last second but he doubts it. Krum swims around him as if trying to provoke a response before going up to Reima''s right hand and attempting to bite down on it. Only to be blown away by a spell from Harry who''s looking at him furiously.

    Harry hadn''t expected another champion to attempt an attack on a hostage but he probably should have given Reima and Krum''s history together. The surrounding Merman quickly retreat as they recognise a fight is about to start, they do not wish to be caught in the cross fire as a few had already been injured by the metal shrapnal by Krum earlier.

    Krum quickly spins and recovers from the spell he''d been hit with look at Harry who''s still got one hand on Hermione to get her in the water. The shark-man gives Reima another glance before swimming quickly to Harry, not realising that going past Reima was a bad idea.

    *HRRK* A weird sound echoes in the water as Krum bends over as if he''d just been punched... Well, Reima had just punched him so it was the correct reaction, he hadn''t used much force in it and the water resistance prevented the subsequent punch from knocking Krum out completely but Reima felt that he broke a few of the Bulgarians ribs.

    While Krum in bent over and trying to catch his breath Reima throws him away from where Harry and Hermione are, once done he looks at Harry and points towards the surface.

    Harry shakes his head, Reima didn''t have a wand and was underwater against a transfigured Krum. He''d be torn apart if he didn''t do something.

    He casts a couple stunners at Krum, hoping he was bespelled or something similar to attack them, Krum easily dodges the slow moving red projectiles and tries to swim at him, this time giving Reima a wide berth

    However Reima isn''t about to let Harry take all the fun, he heats the chains up around his legs until they become a molten mess and quickly start leaking towards the bed of the lake. Once done he kicks the water and propels himself towards Krum while utilising his telekinesis to get the small edge he needs to catch him.

    Krum is shocked to find Reima appearing before him but is even more confused when Reima''s arm bursts through his torso where his heart used to be...

 432 Underwater Fisting

    Harry watches with morbid fascination as Reima''s arm penetrates Krums chest and exits from his back, the wound on his back exploding into many chunks of flesh, bone and organs that begin to slowly float away in the now red tinted water.

    Krum stares into Reima''s eyes after seeing his injury, his shark transfiguration begins to fade due to his injury but Reima isn''t quite done yet. He pushes Humanity through his arm and casts Dark Hand, this isn''t visible to Harry luckily as Reima''s hand turns a wispy black and dark red.

    Krum feels a pull but isn''t sure what it is as his mind is currently clouded in pain, agony and existential dread at his apparent death. His soul is torn out of his body and absorbed through the Dark Hand and into the glowing Turquoise Circle imprinted on Reima''s chest. It pulses briefly before settling down, seemingly satisfied with it''s meal.

    Reima smirks at finally being able to use the Dark Hand but remembers that Harry is currently watching. He wrenches his hand out of Krums chest causing blood to spread through the water and turn everything a shade of foreboding red.

    Harry comes back to his senses and tries to escape the spreading red tint in the water but is quickly covered, he remembers what''d just happened and gags at the thought of it, had Reima really just killed Victor! "R-reima! What the hell did you do!"

    Reima swims over to Harry with a dull look, he points at Harry''s face and then to his, trying to signal his need for a bubblehead charm.

    Harry doesn''t seem to compute anything except the fact of Victors death, he stares at Reima in disbelief but both are interupted when a familiar voice reaches the scene.

    Ciri "One of the hostages having her time of the month or something?" she says waving her hand to try and get rid of the some of the red tint. She looks at Reima wondering if he is supposed to be tied down like the other hostages or just got bored and started moving.

    Reima points to Krums carcass that''s slowly floating to the surface which causing a non-plussed look to find it''s way onto her face.

    Harry "Ciri! Reima killed Victor!" he exclaims, the water making his voice sound gurgled.

    Ciri "...So?.... He must have attacked you first right?" she asks, which has Reima nodding as if it''s obvious. She waves her staff at him which has a bubble head appearing around his mouth.

    Reima "Harry, Krum tried to kill us. You know what that means right? He wanted to hurt me, you, Hermione and Gabrielle! He got what was coming to him."

    Harry "B-but you can''t just kill people!" he exclaims, internally panicking at the fact that neither seem bothered but Victors death.

    Reima "Harry, if someone wants to kill me then I''ll return the favour. The moment you give mercy is the moment they become merciless. He assumed I was unable to defend myself and chose to attack, not to win the competition, not to gain anything, but to get revenge... We''ll talk about this later, you have a tournament to win remember?" he says, silently waving his hand and removing all spell traces from Harry''s wand to prevent him being implicated in Krum''s death.

    Harry slowly nods at his words and grabs hold of Hermione and Cho to prepare to leave... However a huge shadow moves over the group, causing them to look up and spot something... Massive, above them.

    Reima is the only one who can see it clearly due to his vastly superior sight, it''s a squid... A huge squid. It has eight tentacles with large sharp bony protrusions at the end of them and two longer tentacles that seem to primarily be used for grabbing things. It swims over them and they begin to think it''s leaving, however an arm shoots out and grabs Krums corpse, it stuffed it into it''s mouth that''s hidden by the tentacles but they can hear the sound of bone being crunched as it chews the body.

    Harry looks pale and slightly green at this and turns towards the duo who are eyeing the giant squid as if it''s sushi.

    Reima "You wanna try and take it?" he asks, not changing his focus from the squid that''s slowly floating towards them.

    Ciri laughs, "Just another trophy to show everyone back home."

    Harry looks at them as if they''re both insane, are they really going to fight this thing with no prior preparation?!

    Reima turns back to Harry, "Yo, while we''re dealing with this can you get the hostages back to shore?" The young boy nods and Ciri swings her staff at the chain still connecting Gabrielle to the pillar, a *CHINK* signals her release as she starts drifting towards the surface.

    Harry quickly swims and grabs Gabrielle along with Cho and Hermione. He conjures a couple ropes that he ties to their wrists to make it easier to swim with them before retreating back to the shore where the judges are still waiting. He sends one last look at the duo standing confrontationally in-front the leviathan before kicking his legs and leaving.

 433 Make Sushi with these easy to follow steps :

    Reima can feel his adrenaline pumping as he hadn''t had a good fight in a while. He tosses Ciri''s new sword Seath at her while retrieving his own Moonlight Greatsword. This reason he chose this? It''s weight and special ability make it useful at staying on the lake bed and using range attacks. He reckons that slicing attacks will probably due to most damage against it but suspects it has some amount of magical resistance.

    Without warning one of the squids grabbing tentacles whip up and try to bind Ciri, however due to the Rusty Iron Ring she''s still wearing she easily cuts it a few meters shorter. An moaning sound echoes through the water, louder than even the Killer Whale had been. Luckily it isn''t enough to deafen them, however it does distract Ciri enough for it to squirt an incredibly large amount of black ink in her direction.

    Ciri "This better just be ink!" she shouts indignantly as she retreats to escape it.

    Reima seems to have offended it somehow as it''s eight spiked legs are currently trying to spear him through. He dodges the first while bringing his sword down on another like a cleaver at a butchers, it easily severs the majority of it''s tentacle which seems to stun it momentarily, he then proceeds to use his telekinesis on the tip of the tentacle which shoots towards it''s original owner. A sadistic grin appears on his face as it connects with one of it''s huge eyes, making it spasm in an attempt to avoid more pain.

    However it seems that taking out part of it''s vision wasn''t a great idea as it thrashes around and begins to destroy the majority of the Merman village, mangled bodies of the residents to start floating to the surface.

    Reima conjures a couple Crystal Soul Spear that shoot towards it however the squid elects to sacrifice some of it''s arms to redirect their trajectory. With three tentacles destroyed and another bisected it leaves six left to deal with.

    Ciri finally manages to exit the ink and seems slightly put out that Reima had already almost dealt with the threat, she starts running towards it but realises the Rusty Iron Ring is preventing her from reaching her target, she takes it off mid jump in an attempt to preserve her moment before pocketing the ring.

    She swims closer to it, staff and sword in hand. She casts a couple Expulsio''s which explode when they connect with it''s rubbery flesh but it doesn''t seem to do much damage, maybe because of the particular spell or maybe because of it''s magical resistance? Either way she swings Seath as hard and fast as she can underwater at it which releases a blue flash which gouges a large line above it''s remaining eye, causing blue blood to start flowing out in large amounts.

    The squid launches it''s remaining tentacles at Ciri in a last ditch attempt attack, she puts the Rusted Iron Ring back on which causes her to fall quickly, barely dodging the barrage of tentacles. However Reima decides to end the fight as they''d both had enough fun at this point.

    He blinks next to it with the Moonlight Greatsword mid swing and completely cleaves it in two with the assistance of it''s special ability, blue blood explodes out as two parts of it''s body separates and begins floating in opposite directions. Reima wastes no time and pulls out a knife before quickly carving it''s remaining eye out and depositing it in a jar. He stores it away with a look of contentment at gaining another trophy.

    Ciri swims up to him and gives him a fist bump as they swim to the surface with it''s corpse, she doesn''t really care about points and Harry would have probably reached the shore already. Besides, slaying a huge creature would always be a more impressive feat in her eyes. Reima stores away his weapons as to look like a regular hostage, all the while hoping Harry had kept his mouth shut.

    However before they even reached the shore, it was already a chaotic situation.

    Ludo "WHO IS THAT? IT''S HARRY POTTER!?! HE''S BROUGHT THREE OF THE FOUR HOSTAGES? IS THAT EVEN ALLOWED?!"

    Harry assists the girls in climbing up the scaffolding before pulling himself up, however he''s violently grabbed by his collar when he gets to his feet.

    Karkaroff "WHERE IS VIKTOR!?" He shouts, eyeing Cho up and down.

    Dumbledore "Igor! Leave the boy alone, I''m sure there is a valid explanation.

    Karkaroff "Nonesense! He stole Viktor''s hostage leaving him still down there, looking for her!"

    The crowd watches intensely as they''d been bored out of their minds for around fifty minutes straight.

    Harry "I''m sorry but, Victors dead!" exclaims, causing shock to overtake everyone.

    Karkaroff''s hand trembles, "..W-WHAT!"

    Harry "I-it was a Giant Squid! It ate him and Ciri''s still fighting it!" he shouts, causing the audience to turn their gaze to the lake where blue blood was starting to pool in a certain area.

    Fleur walks up to Harry with Gabrielle firmly squashed into her arms, "Iz she ok? What about Rei?" she quickly asks, which has Harry looking pale. She begins to fear the worst when he replies "They.. They''re fine, I''m just worried about whether or not they''ll be able to escape the Squid."

    Fleur breathes a sigh of relief much to the confusion of Harry. "Do you know something I don''t?" he asks suspiciously.

    Fleur looks sheepish but plays it off, "Zey will be fine, thank you again for saving my sister." she says, kissing both of his cheeks, much to the ire of Miss Granger who hugs him closely despite them both still being soaking wet.

 434 You gonna eat that?

    After Harry''s announcement everyone turned their eyes towards the lake which was now looking like a blue oil slick. Blue blood made it impossible to see anything under the water which had some worried about the champions safety however what happened next astounded them.

    A huge lump of flesh floats to the surface with two people standing atop it, looking closer you could easily tell the identity of the people due to their pure white hair which was slightly slick with blue blood.

    Ludo "What is this! They''ve slain the creature responsible for Victor Krums death!" he exclaims while almost foaming at the mouth in excitement. The crowd is in a similar state as they seem to forget that Krum had died not long ago.

    Reima tries to keep his balance on the carcass of the squid while thinking that this "dramatic" entrance isn''t a practical as it looks... "This thing reminds me of a bouncy castle... Or a water bed." he says to Ciri who has no idea what either of those are.

    Ciri "It was your suggestion so stop complaining." she says as they watch a few boats leave the shore with many wizards boarding them.

    Reima "I wonder what their response will be? Try to arrest us or celebrate our survival?" he wonders aloud. His question is answered when the boats stop beside the carcass and start moving it towards themselves with magic.

    Inside the boat was a few Auror''s and other helpers for the Tri-Wizard tournament, they look at the duo with a mix of shock, respect and suspicion. "Both of you, get aboard, we''ll be taking the carcass to land to see if Krum still lives."

    ...

    The duo look at each other as if the Auror had said something incredibly stupid, while yes Krum was eaten and might still be alive if that was all that happened, but he had an arm sized hole in his chest where his heart used to be... Regardless, they said nothing and clambered aboard the boat in a way "fit" for the survivors of a horrific battle. This gained them a few pity points from those empathetic enough to care, Reima and Ciri were both covered in blankets enchanted to stay warm as the former was wearing completely soaked through clothes while the latter was still wearing a bikini.

    Once they were out of the water the wizards threw hooks at the carcass and started to move back to shore, however the other half seems to have finally surfaced which forces them to go back and collect the other. By the time they finally got to land an hour had passed.

    Reima and Ciri were immediately greeted by their friends upon setting foot on solid ground, the former "unfortunately" having Fleur''s tongue "forced" down his throat. Ciri gives them both a blank look but feels a tug on her blanket, looking down she sees a girl that looks similar to Fleur. She looks a lot different from when she was underwater but Ciri recognises her anyway. Gabrielle Delacour.

    Gabrielle "Miss?"

    Ciri gives her a small smile, "Yes? Do you nee something?"

    Gabrielle "My sister has zaid much about you, you look exactly az she described."

    Ciri nods awkwardly, "And what has Fleur said about me?" she asks.

    Gabrielle "That I should stay away from you az you might eat me..."

    ...

    Fleur finally releases Reima from her grip and turns towards her sister, "Gabby, zat waz a private conversation." she says quicky, but Ciri was already giving her an exacerbated look.

    Gabrielle "But Ciri seems nice, you said she saved both of us as well, someone like zat can''t be bad."

    Ciri nods with a triumphant look on her face, "See, atleast your sister knows what''s-"

    Gabrielle look at Reima, "He on the other hand looks scary, iz he your boyfriend Fleur?" she asks with an innocent look.

    ...

    Fleur "Em-Um... Non, we are... Somezing else... Aren''t they about to announce ze scores?" she says while awkwardly trying to change the subject.

    Gabrielle gives her the stink eye but Ludo saves Fleur from having to explain further.

    Ludo "All the champions have finally returned!" he shouts, causing a great deal of confusion.

    "Krum''s dead!"

    "How could you say something so insensitive!"

    "We''re missing one champion!"

    Ludo rubs his chin sheepishly. "I meant what I said, due to Miss Rivia''s efforts we''ve managed to recover the stomach of the squid that ate our Bulgarian Champion. Due to how large the creature was there is a good chance of him still being alive!" he shouts as a Hagrid helps a few other wizards drag the carcass onto shore and start carefully dissecting it. Revealing it''s internal organs and eventually it''s stomach. Some might say it was a bad idea to try and do this publicly... Those people would be right as when they opened the stomach everyone present was horrified.

    It''s contents almost explode from the incision they make, half digested fish and other underwater creatures flood the ground. However, this is not the thing that everyone was focused on...

    Victor Krums body flows out of the cavity slowly face-down, it''s pale and lifeless form confirms to all those present that he is in-fact dead. The wizards flip his body over but the screams from the audience make known their feelings on the brutal sight in-front of them. Krum''s face, chest and most of the front of his body are partially digested, melted. His once stoic and handsome visage is now a bony mess with melted, mangled flesh comprising most of it. His eyes are hollowed out and only the sockets remain of the once excellent sensory organ.

 435 Regurgitate...

    Fleur and Ciri quickly cover Gabrielle''s eyes but others are not quite so lucky, parents that''d brought their younger children are so disgusted at the sight they forget to shield their charges from the sight of it. Most look at it with morbid curiosity while others immediately burst into tears.

    Ludo "Oh Merlin! Is that Victor Krum!?! Ladies and Gentleman we apologise for you all having to witness this." he says in a queasy sounding voice.

    Karkaroff marches over and starts examining his corpse, not minding the melted flesh that attempts to stick to his fingers. "Vhat is this! Foul play!" he shouts.

    A few officials with iron stomachs march over to see what he''s going on about but they raise a brow when they see it.

    Karkaroff "He vas dead before he even got eaten!" he exclaims, causing the crowd to turn towards Harry and Ciri.

    Crouch walks over with a stiff upper lip and nods, "This wound must have killed him instantly."

    Karkaroff "I DEMAND SATISFACTION DUMBLEDORE! You''re students kills Viktor!"

    Dumbledore rubs his forehead, "Igor, I think you are misunderstanding something..." he holds his hand up to stop the Bulgarian interrupting him. "Dumbledore walks over to one of the Squids tentacles and levitates it, causing the skin to retract and reveal a large bony spike that looks roughly the same size of the wound that Krum had sustained. "This should be a valid explanation." he says, laying the spike next to Krum.

    Karkaroff grits his teeth and shakes his head, "No! Check their wands, they must have something to do with it!" he shouts, not wishing to believe Dumbledore''s explanation.

    Dumbledore nods and waves the officials to do so, "While I too mourn for the loss of such a talented young man, you cannot start blaming others. You said it before that if someone is killed in the tournament then it would be due to their own inadequacies." he says firmly but calmly.

    Karkaroff "Nonesense! Viktor vas superior than all of the other Champions by far, the only way he''d lose is due to Hogwarts and Beauxbaton''s colluding against us!"

    Madam Maxime steps forwards and glares down at Igor, "How dare you! Beauxbaton iz an honourable institution that would never stoop to such uncouth tactics! You will hold your tongue or you will find yourself in court for slander!" she shouts.

    Karkaroff growls at her, "Shut your mouth you half-blood bitch! You have killed Viktor and the Bulgarian ministr-" he''s stopped abruptly when a large fist connects with his face, causing many black teeth to escape his mouth as if they weren''t even secure in the first place. He falls to the completely unconscious with a massive mark on the side of his face.

    Dumbledore glances at Madam Maxime who''s looked at her clenched fist in satisfaction but also worry. "Do not worry Olympe, we''ll send Krum''s body back so they can have a proper funeral and also request the Bulgarian Ministry for an explanation of Igor''s words, and whether or not he represented them or Durmstrang."

    She nods through pursed lips and thanks Dumbledore before leaving without even giving her score for the event.

    Ludo sweats in the announcer seat as the tournament falls apart at it''s seams. "Er... Well... We will have the score presented tomorrow during breakfast! Thank you all for coming and we again apologise to you all for having to witness some truly terrible things." he says quickly and escapes before anyone can ask him anything.

    ...

    Reima looks around and realises that the only people with authority left are the helpers for the tournament, Dumbledore, Hogwarts teachers and a few Auror''s scribbling a report on Krum and their findings. "Er, did they just ditch us?" he asks the group of Ciri, Fleur and Gabrielle.

    Ciri shrugs, "No one ever said they were reliable... In-fact there''s quite a lot of evidence for the contrary."

    Reima "I know but usually they atleast try to save face in the public eye... They probably feel safer due to Skeeter''s disappearance."

    Fleur "I will join you two "there" after I drop Gabby back at ze carriage."

    Gabrielle "But I want to come with you!" she exclaims.

    Fleur "You have lessons to attend to, I need to speak with Rei and Ciri in private." she says, causing the young girl to pout.

    Reima "I''ll need to bring Harry as well... I''m not sure what we''ll tell him but he should know a couple things as he''s proven trustworthy..."

    The girls nod, Fleur goes to drop her sister off while Ciri retrieves Snuffles from Luna who thanks both her and the rabbit for spending time with her.

    Reima walks up to Harry who''s waiting around for the scores that''ll never come, probably because he didn''t hear Ludo''s announcement. "Yo Harry?" he asks with the boy jumping at his voice.

    Hermione gives him a weird look at his reaction but doesn''t comment on it.

    Harry "Y-yeah?"

    Reima "I need to speak with you, think I can borrow him for a while Hermione?" he asks the girl who examines for a moment before nodding. Reima pats Harry on the shoulder while directing him to their destination. "You wanted answers so that''s what you''ll get." he says, as Harry rapidly thinks of what''s about to happen to him.

 436 Pain in the ass

    Once the group reconvenes outside the Room of Requirement Reima opens the door revealing a comfortable room covered in sofa''s that seems to be inside a palace? Everyone walks in with Harry and Fleur looking around in shock, apparently she hadn''t expected the room to be able to create something like this. Ciri walks forward with Snuffles in her hand and looks out the window with her mouth agape.

    Ciri "Is this Toussaint?" she asks.

    Reima nods, "Land of wine and sunshine.. Didn''t know you''ve been there before?" he says surprised.

    Ciri shakes her head, "I haven''t... I''ve just heard many stories of it from Geralt and Vesemir."

    Fleur "Toussaint? It resembles France in ze summer." she says after taking a look out the window.

    Reima throws himself on sofa, "I met Dandelion here, during the summer solstice and while he was wooing the Duchess."

    Ciri laughs, "Were you there when the Duke came home?"

    Reima shakes his head, "No, I made sure to get out of there before I was implicated."

    Ciri "Good choice, Duke Raymund ordered that Dandelions heart be cut out and served to the Duchess in-front of the court when they catch him. You would''ve probably been tortured and killed for information." she says, reciting what she knew from Geralt''s recounts.

    Harry interupts them, "Erm, sorry but. I thought we were going to talk about something important?"

    Fleur gives him a irritated look as she was enjoying learning about the duo''s past but Reima replies regardless. "I guess we are... I can see you''re still thinking about Krum?" he asks as if he wasn''t the one that killed him.

    Harry opens his mouth to say something but nothing comes out... He tries again and is audible this time. "I-I still can''t get past the fact you killed him... And you act like it''s nothing." he says, slumping into the sofa.

    Fleur "Zo you did kill ''im?"

    Reima nods, "He was trying to kill me, Harry and indirectly Hermione along with your sister."

    Fleur scowls and nods, "Good riddance." she says simply.

    Harry can''t believe her reaction... "You don''t know if he was going to kill us or not, maybe he just wanted to injure us to increase his chances of winning?" he quickly says.

    Reima "Even if that was the case, did you forget the squid? It seemed to be attracted by Krums blood, what do you think would have happened if he injures one of us enough that we couldn''t escape?"

    ...

    He doesn''t answer, knowing full well what the result would have been.

    Reima "Harry you''ve gotta get this "Good verses Evil" mindset fixed, we are evil to some people while good to others, It''s subjective. Is a snake evil for biting someone for stepping on it? Is a child evil for pointing a gun at someone and pulling the trigger? Is a husband evil for killing his cheating wife and her lover?" His barrage of questions only seems to make Harry''s mood worse.

    Harry "If neither matters then why bother trying to be good?" he asks with a downtrodden expression.

    Reima "Because you decide how you act, your actions and inaction''s have consequences. If you decide not to fix the roof of your house and a burglar falls through it and breaks his neck, did you murder them?"

    ...

    Harry "Yes. It was my action that led to their death." he says after thinking a moment.

    Reima frowns at his stubbornness, "If you''re made a hostage and the only way to save everyone is to kill your kidnapper, would you do it?" he asks.

    ...

    Ciri and Fleur watch as Reima continues to ask Harry various questions, both think it''s a pointless endeavour however he keep at it regardless.

    After half an hour of this Reima finally stops, "Fine, you can make yourself responsible for all the worlds evils instead of letting it be. The fact that you killed your first Defence against the Dark Arts teacher doesn''t seem to make a difference to you should indicate what kind of world this is." he says, turning his attention to the girls.

    Harry wasn''t sure what to make of Reima''s reaction to his view on the world... His last words did have an effect on him though, he hadn''t really thought about it but.. Had he really killed Quirrel? Dumbledore had said that Voldemort killed him but his actions still led to his death..." he runs his hands through his hair at the question, this year had changed a lot, his view on himself and other people along with his situation and future actions... He''d need to think on this further. He gets up and leave the room while the others watch, they don''t comment on the fact that he''s seemingly forgotten about Krum''s death in favour of feeling bad for his past actions instead...

    Ciri "He''s only fourteen, shouldn''t you give him a break?" she says with arms crossed.

    Reima shrugs, "I''m fourteen too so what''s your point?" he says, causing Fleur to give him a weird look.

    Fleur "You''re fourteen?"

    ...

    Reima "Yeah?" he asks, only now realising she hadn''t known about that yet.

    Fleur she looks troubled for only a moment before asking a question that makes both Reima and Ciri shudder. "Shall we stay ze night?" she asks.

    Ciri "Er, you guys can have fun... I''ve got something else to attend to." She looks back and adds, "Uh, Reima... Try not to, er... "Load her up" if you know what I mean?" she says, taking Snuffles in her arms and leaving.

    Reima knew this would happen eventually as he hadn''t been intimate with Fleur since the Yule Ball... He''d been apprehensive due to his "condition" however he''d have to work around it by "storing" his excretions into his Folded Space...

    Fleur drops her clothes to the floor and approaches him while licking her lips in anticipation. Reima sighs and does the same, hoping she wouldn''t ask him to do something harmful to her...

 437 Azkabreakou

    Reima groggily wakes up and finds Fleur sleeping on his arm he can still see the small marks where she''d been bitten during the task but just runs his hand over them gently, the previous night had been rather.. Interesting. Without Ciri there Fleur had went on the offensive and the two made love like well, rabbits. He prods her awake and she gives him a warm smile and a couple kisses before they get up and ready for a morning run. They''d stopped it as the Second Task was drawing nearer however they have quite some time to prepare for the Final Task, which was good for Reima as he had to makesure his plans went off without a hitch. Hopefully the future hadn''t changed too drastically otherwise he''d have to personally go hunting for Snake Face.

    They meet up with Ciri and Luna who''s holding Snuffles. Reima levitates Snuffles while running and doesn''t mention the stink eye Ciri is giving him for the duration. It isn''t long before they find themselves sat in the Great Hall for breakfast, however by the way the Tournament officials are present it isn''t going to be a quiet one.

    The table seem to be interested in Fleur having additional bruises to her neck but they quickly forget about it as the Owl''s swoop in and drop the mail. Reima again snatches one from himself without taking notice of the poor soul who''s missing their paper.

    Opening it up he sees the front page... It''s a picture of him and Ciri standing atop the giant squid''s corpse, "Tri-Wizard Tournament tragedy!"

    ...

    Below it described what had happened during the Second Task, how Harry had made it back first with all the hostages, how Reima and Ciri were accused to be responsible for Krum''s death, how they found his pale, half digested corpse inside the belly of the squid they had slain... What Reima found the most disrespectful were the photo''s of Krum body on full display for the readers to see... Obviously they had been edited to no be so horrifying but Krum''s grieving family surely wouldn''t appreciate this...

    Reima "Well, even without Skeeter the Daily Prophet are a bunch of scoundrels and scum. They made sure to mention how we were accused of his murder."

    Harry''s eyes shoot in his direction but he lowers his head when he feels that he was noticed.

    Reima can only sigh and shake his head, he uses a concentrated heat on the tip of his finger to cut out the moving picture of him and Ciri atop the squid before pocketing it with the rest. Usually Reima would throw away the paper after reading the first few pages as they were generally the most important, however he notices something through the hole he''d cut for the photo... Turning the page he sees a tiny article, "Azkaban Attacked! Numerous Escape!"

    ...

    Reading further it says that Azkaban, the ultimate wizarding prison with Sirius Black being it''s only escapee, had been attacked. Apparently the guards stationed there were slaughtered in a fashion taht resembled wild beasts, they were torn apart however no flesh was eaten which ruled werewolves out. These "Shadows" as the Prophet had coined them apparently helped known Death Eaters escape their cells, the Dementors didn''t even try to stop them as the simply walked out of the devastated prison.

    ...

    Why would the Daily Prophet put such a big story in such a small article? If it were him writing this he''d plaster it across the front page. However maybe Fudge had a hand in it not being distributed as it made the Ministry look completely incompetent... Especially as they have no idea who broke into Azkaban. Of course Reima knew it was that fucking Vampires again, except this time they''d teamed up with the Death Eaters... A smirk finds it''s way onto his face, maybe he''ll be able to do one clean sweep if they are all present during the Third Task.

    There was a few things he had to think out before that however, would he simply just wait next to the cup while invisible to grab it at the same time as Harry? He needs Voldemort to gain a body so he can make sure to catch him, Reima couldn''t imagine how difficult it would be to track and catch a disembodied spirit, especially when it could apparently travel continents... He''d also need to make sure of Nerissa''s safety due to the Vampires involvement, no doubt they wish to try and kill or capture her with their alliance with Voldemort.

    As he''s thinking about this Dumbledore, Madam Maxime, Barty Crouch and Ludo Bagman all stand to adress the Great Hall.

    Dumbledore "Students, friends... I''m sure you all know of the unfortunate fate of Victor Krum, the Durmstrang Champion for the Tri-Wizard tournament. He was tragically killed during the Second Task yesterday, stabbed through the heart and then eaten by one of the many creatures residing in the Black Lake... I''d like all of us to give a moment of silence for our lost friend, and wish him well in the next great adventure." he says solemnly, dipping his head after he''s finished and remaining silent for a full minute along with the rest of the students.

    Not a moment after a minute had passed does Ludo Bagman speak up, "Well, enough of that. While the loss of a Champion is sad, it isn''t uncommon for this particular event. I''d also like to mention the fact that scores for the Second Task weren''t given. We should deal with this quickly, although the absence of Igor Karkaroff is noted." he quickly says, drawing the ire of some of the students towards himself, however he doesn''t seem to care.

 438 Change of plans

    Ludo continues talking about the "disastrous" consequences disobeying the rules set in the Tri-Wizard tournament would be, eventually making the judges reluctantly vote on who had won the Second Task.

    Harry receives 10''s from Dumbledore, Maxime, Crouch and Ludo which gives him the "perfect" score of 40 points. This is due to him actually completing the task set, which was rescuing the hostages in under an hour.

    Ciri receives 34 points due to her reaching the hostages and managing to slay a huge creature.

    Fleur receives 14 points due to her getting too injured to continue, not even reaching her hostage.

    Of course Krum get''s nothing as dead people don''t get votes.

    Ludo "That leaves us with the finals scores! Fleur Delacour with 53 points in last place. Ciri Rivia with 79 points is in second and Harry Potter is leading them all with 83 points!" he exclaims, however no one cheers as had expected. He shakes his head and assumes they just aren''t interested in the points right now.

    Barty Crouch then steps forwards, "I know you are all still upset over the loss of one of our Champions but know he entered knowing this could have been the result.. Now, onto more pressing matters, again it seems our security and rules for the event was lacking as Ciri Rivia used a ring artifact to increase her speed underwater. This didn''t break the rules as we had specified that only magical weapons were prohibited... This was a mistake. From now on any items brought in from outside the task will lead to immediate disqualification, to assist in this we asked the Ministry to provide a way of tracking the participants." Crouch waves his wand causing a large white tarp to unfold at one side of the room, a light is then projected onto it showing a picture from above Crouch looking over the room. "This is called an "Observer", it''s invisible and follows it''s target while observing everything around it, we procured three of these due numerous complains about the Last Task being boring, along with the Bulgarian Ministry calling for an increase in surveillance to prevent any more deaths. These will also show what the Champions are doing and using, preventing them from bringing in any artifacts from outside."

    ...

    The Hall looks on in interest as most magical''s had never seen a projector before, however Reima frowns at it''s implications... This would mean the magical world would see the resurrection of Voldemort and as a consequence, himself dealing with them. He''d be leaving soon after the Third Task but he still wanted the option of returning some day as this world resembled his old one greatly.

    Crouch "I hope you are all looking forward to the Third and final task of the Tri-Wizard tournament that''ll be held on the 24th of June. Thank you." he finishes and takes his seat.

    With that breakfast ends, everyone leaves to attend their lessons while Reima, Ciri and Fleur all leave for the unused classroom for practise. They try to get Harry to come but he shakes his head and starts moving towards potions which is his currently class, he''s trailed by Hermione who gives them all a weird look. Regardless the trio enter the classroom and look to Reima to see if he knows anything about the Third Task.

    Reima shrugs, "Voldemort will return after kidnapping Harry during the Third Task." he says simply.

    Fleur "Voldemort? Ze dark lord that was killed by ''Arry as a baby?" she asks.

    Reima nods, "You guys just need to stay away, I''ll stay invisible and wait near where he''s kidnapped. I''ll follow, kill Voldemort then we party before leaving this world." he quickly says as if it''s no big deal.

    Ciri "Will it really be so easy though? If this Voldouche is really as powerful as everyone makes him out to be, he''ll probably be able to detect your invisibility."

    Reima opens his mouth to retort but finds her idea logical... His magical presence was a problem in itself, if he just stood there with invisibility he''d be noticed in no time.. "I''ll... Use Harry''s invisibility cloak, it should be powerful enough to prevent me from being seen." he says after a moment.

    Fleur "But wit ze new Observers everyone will see zis, you are planning to murder Voldemort and his companions non? Ze people who belong to der higher echelons? You will be hunted as a criminal..."

    Reima shrugs, "Once they see what I do to Voldemort, I doubt anyone will be brave enough to try and fuck with me" he says confidently.

    Ciri "And me?"

    Reima "... What about you?"

    Ciri "What should I do? I''m not going to stand there while you and Harry get whisked away."

    Reima scratches the back of his head, "You think I can''t take them?"

    Ciri shakes her head, "I don''t know, but if they''ve got vampires with them then it will be difficult on your own, especially if you''re trying to get Harry safe as well."

    Reima "Ciri, trust me that I can handle it. I''ll gift you Voldemorts severed head afterwards if you want."

    She frowns, "...Fine, but if have a chance to help I''ll take it."

    Reima just shrugs at this, hopefully everything would go to plan and she wouldn''t get a chance to involve herself.

    Fleur "What should I do?" she asks.

    Reima "Don''t try too hard in the Third Task, someone will probably try and sabotage you in an attempt to get Harry to the finish alone so bear that in mind. You can even just surrender as soon as it starts which would make me less worried for your safety."

    Fleur shakes her head, "Non.. My family will be watching, I cannot give up zo easily... Ah, I was ''oping to ask but would you like to meet zem?"

    ...

    Where did having a serious discussion turn to talking to your lovers parents?

 439 Come and Loo

    After failing to escape the classroom and reluctantly agreeing to meet Fleur''s parents Reima heads up to the Room of Requirement. He''s alone as he wishes to enter a dangerous area that could be full of cursed and dangerous items. If Ciri entered with Snuffles he''d have to keep an eye on them 24/7, not allowing him to do what he''s come here for...

    Opening the door to the Room of Requirement he immediately can tell that he''s in the right place, towers of books stacked as high as they can go as far as the eye can see. A massive room that doesn''t seem to end is completely littered in stuff that the House Elves had left here. Broken furniture, rusty weapons and even prank items that the Elves couldn''t find a use for is left in this room. Reima had only expected to be in and out of here after finding Rowena''s Diadem however after seeing all this loot, he decided otherwise.

    Walking up to a book tower he picks up an old dusty one and reads the title : "Ye ''old Beginner to Master''s rituals"

    ...

    Is it really an old book or did they just name it that to make it sound more legit? Either it didn''t seem recent as Reima hadn''t found a single mention of ritual magic during his long walks through the magical book stores, nor did he find any in the Hogwarts library.

    He opens it in the middle and reads page 200, "For the young lady who wishes for perfect skin that resembles a babe, boil a human child under a year old until moist and succulent-" he closes the book with a clap, deciding that if this was the middle of the book, he''d not like the end of it... However... He opens the last page and reads it, "For those with the bravery, cunning and determination to become great. A ritual to increase magical power." Reima can''t help but to be interested, increasing magical power was rather difficult and usually you were stuck with what you naturally possessed. This was partly the reason Pure-Blood''s made such a big stink about Muggleborns, however you could slowly increase your power through constant practise and use, though this would take years of constant work. Reima continues to read the ritual in the book, "Ingredients for this ritual include : the blood of a young unicorn that''s still shedding it''s gold fur, part of the liver of a dragon older than fifty years of age, the fresh gland of a Nundu, a large amount of human blood (Preferably virgin) along with silver and gold. Last but not least you will need five sacrifices that haven''t known the pleasures of the flesh (Age is not a concern)."

    Reima isn''t sure how to react to this, all these ingredients are listed as if inside a cook book. However the thing that disgusts him the most is the small text at the end of it, "The Ritual will increase a Wizard or Witches magical power by at most 1%, quality of ingredients contribute highly to the outcome"

    Essentially you get almost no boost from this ritual that a requires human sacrifices and unicorn blood. Reima erases this page from the book as he sees it as impractical and worthless. You''d get a more efficient way to increase your power but just using a gun, or creating a more powerful wand. Why use such a crappy ritual?

    Shaking his head he seals it away in his Folded Space and heads towards the malevolent aura perverting the room. It was what he came for an would have time to sift through all the valuable of the room once he completed his mission.

    He continued to walk through the room until he spots a small box resting on a discarded rotten table. He flips the lid open and is mesmerised by the blue jewel encrusted Diadem... He feels as if he can hear whispers from it, however he isn''t scared. Instead, a smirk finds it''s way on his face. "Let''s see if this works, shall we?"

    Reima''s hand is slowly covered by a black and red mist that seems to move and squirm as if something is trying to escape it. He moves his hand over the Diadem and the sounds escaping from it only increase, like it can feel it''s impending doom. He grabs the Diadem with the Dark Hand active and immediately feels resistance, it shakes and shudders in a similar manner as his own necklace is currently doing. Black mist tries to escape from the Diadem in the form of a face, a face that resembles Voldemort''s nose-less visage. Reima uses the Dark Hand technique with his other hand and punches the apparition in the face, he''s not surprised when it starts being absorbed into his hand and gathered above his heart where the Dark Sign was originally placed.

    Eventually, when he feels like he''s got a grasp on all of it, he pulls his hands away, as if dragging Voldemort''s soul from it''s hiding place. A shrill scream let''s him know he''s successful as he feels the familiar sensation of adding another soul to his vast collection... Only, it feels as if this soul isn''t even complete... Which makes sense as it''s only a shard.

    The turquoise mark on his chest pulses in what seems like satisfaction, Reima looks down at the now cleansed Diadem and wonders if the rumours of it granting genius intellect were true... He puts it on and... Feels nothing.

    Reima "Must mean I''m already a genius." he snarks to himself. He can''t really feel if the Diadem has any affect on him and decides to lend it to Ciri or Fleur when he sees than to find out if they feel anything.

 440 Useless Trinket.

    After Reima had cleaned the Diadem he didn''t immediately leave the Room of Requirement, instead he starting sifting through everything that looked vaguely valuable. He made sure to store every book he came across as well, knowledge is power after all. Most of the books present were obviously of the darker variety which was useful as Reima already had the popular "light sided" books, however he didn''t actually know what he''d do with them, maybe he''d just let them rot in his Folded Space?

    Reima had to admit however, there were quite a few pieces of nice furniture around here, though none of them could match up to the giant couch of the gods he''s still got stored away... Shame he hadn''t gotten a chance to use it yet.

    After half a day of wandering around and collecting things he eventually leaves, despite not clearing the room out yet.

    Once outside the room he spots Fleur and Ciri who''s holding Snuffles with an unamused look on their faces.

    Ciri "Was there a point to locking the door?"

    Reima nods, turns around and opens the door while thinking of the typical Colosseum scene. The duo + rabbit follow him as he waves them in.

    Ciri "You''ve been here for hours now... Doing something you didn''t want us to see?" she asks with a smirk.

    Reima shrugs, "You want me to tell you everytime I jerk the gherkin? Perform the five finger knuckle shuffle? The spanking of the monkey?" he says, causing the girls to blush. He laughs at there reaction and shakes his head, "No, really though I was dealing with something involving Voldemort and I wasn''t sure if you guys could protect yourself against being possessed..."

    Fleur "Possessed? Iz he here in school?" she asks in surprise.

    Reima pulls out the Diadem but it seems neither has any idea what it is. "You guys really have no idea what this is?"

    They shake their heads.

    Reima "Well, that kinda ruins my dramatic reveal... It''s Rowena Ravenclaw''s Diadem by the way, the thing that turns you into a genius if you put it on, or so they say..."

    Fleur "Ze Hogwarts founder?"

    He nods, "So... Who wants to try it on? I''ve had a go myself but did''t feel anything."

    ...

    Neither says anything and the only person in the room that makes a noise is Snuffles who''s nose twitches as she stares at it...

    Reima "..." He holds the Diadem up and shakes it as if it''s a dog toy, "It makes you a genius... Really?" he asks after they still seem uninterested.

    Fleur "Sorry but I am not eager to put on something that was involved a ze Dark Lord" she says.

    Ciri shrugs, "It''s just not my kinda of thing.."

    Reima "Fine. Snuffles you wanna try it?" he say while levitating the rabbit out of Ciri''s arms and into his. Without even acknologing her answer he puts the tiara that''s a little too big for her head, the rabbit stops for a moment before looking up at him with confusion in her eyes. He feels her rustle and lets go as she transforms back into her vampire form with the Diadem still on her head.

    Reima "Feel anything?" he asks.

    Nerissa shakes her head, "Hungry."

    He feels like throwing his hands in the air in exasperation but instead just releases a solemn sigh, one of the most valuable artifacts in this world and it seems useless. He''s feeling pretty indignant that he went to all this effort to cleanse such a piece of junk.

    Reima "Fuck it, it''s a useless trinket with no value." he states before looking at Nerissa, "Wanna fight?"

    A simply nod is all she gives as he hands her Iaito and the duo head towards the middle of the Colosseum with the Diadem still on the young vampires head.

    Fleur looks on in interest as she hadn''t seen Nerissa actually fight before and that sword she''s wielding is giving her a bad feeling. Ciri isn''t any different as watching her apprentice improve is always a gratifying feeling.

    Reima and Nerissa stand opposite eachother, the former gesturing for her to come at him while the latter gives him a dull look.

    Nerissa "Weapon?" she asks as she doesn''t see him wielding anything.

    Reima "I''ll be fine, come."

    The vampire doesn''t hesitate and immediately leaps towards him, causing the ground to crack under the force she subjected it to. She holds the blade high as if she''s about to cut down on him however as she lands in-front of him she feint''s and throws a quick flying heel kick to his temple, Reima uses the back of his hand to slap her attack away but this gives her the momentum to continue the attack, she twists Iaito into a reverse grip and attempts to slash him from below. He sides steps it but she combo''s it into a stab that brushes past his air as he leans his head to the side.

    Fleur''s mouth drops when she sees how good a fighter Nerissa truly is, she hadn''t expected something like this from someone so young. Her strength and speed were already vastly above her own which is probably due to her race but it''s still impressive nonetheless.

    Nerissa tries to pull back her blade from the stab but finds it stuck? Looking closer she can see Reima''s hair curling around it and letting it go, as if it''s acting like another limb.

    Reima grins at her reaction as he''d not really had a chance to do much with his hair manipulation ability, his hair was long enough to reach the middle of his back but he always kept it in a bun... Honestly the only way to cut through the crystalline threads now would be through magical means as ordinary blades would struggle to cut a single strand. Even if it was cut he could force it to grow out to the same length in no time at all.

    Nerissa isn''t out of options however as she abandons her sword and slices her hand past her opposite wrist, causing a large amount of blood to escape and starts moving towards her fingertips, transforming into ruby-like claws which she uses to cut his face. He brings his arm up and channels Armament Haki which causes it to turn black, the claw harmlessly bounces off of his arm as he uses her own sword to stab at her, it approaches her throat and as it''s about to end her life he stops it.

    Reima "You''re improving." he says with a smile.

    Nerissa''s eye go wide as she takes the Diadem from her head, "Weird."

    Reima "What''s weird?" he asks, thinking about whether not he''d offended her somehow.

    Nerissa points at the Diadem, "Remember."

 441 Researcher Ludvig

    Nerissa "Remember."

    Reima didn''t really know what she meant but after a couple minutes of charades he think he found what she meant. The Diadem seems to have allowed her perfect clarity of her memories of their fight, she can recall everything, every detail, minute muscle movement and expression. She could even remember how many breathes she took which surprised him.

    Fleur and Ciri walk over after he''d talked with Nerissa, apparently they thought he was coaching her and was preparing for another round which is why they stayed back.

    Reima "We''ve discovered the Diadem''s function. It allows the wearer a perfect memory while wearing it. The rumour that it makes you a genius is pretty accurate when you consider the possibilities" he says.

    Ciri "You know, now that I think about it I think it would suit me well."

    Reima "Yeah, no. The only person who gets to wear it is Nerissa as she''s earned it." he says quickly in response to her cheek.

    Fleur "Can I not borrow it for studying?" she asks.

    Reima "That''s up to Snuffles there." he points to the young vampire.

    Nerissa "Squeaks." she says while cleaning her nails with a bored posture.

    Reima "Yeah, yeah. Laugh it up. Just don''t forget that Dragon''s trump Rabbits." he snaps at hearing the name.

    The sides of Nerissa''s mouth upturn and she begins to transform, however it isn''t into a rabbit but a huge dire wolf that towers over them.

    Ciri and Reima look at her in surprise as they''d never seen her transform into something that wasn''t a rabbit.

    Reima "Dragon''s still beat wolves." he says while crossing his arms.

    Nerissa turns back, "Baby Dragon."

    Fleur and Ciri can only look on and laugh at their antics.

    A few days had past since the Second Task and everything was relatively normal, the only change to Reima''s normal routine was the fact that Harry was being stubborn and refused to be tutored by him any more. From what he''d heard from Hermione Harry felt that he couldn''t learn from someone who he''d seen brutally murder another. Hermione herself didn''t actually seem too bothered about it after he had explained the situation to her, though he suspected her reaction would be a lot more negative if she was actually there...

    As a result of Harry being a "little shit" Reima decided to guarantee his plans would go off without a hitch. The boy-who-lived had been spending more time with Moody to talk and train, hopefully he hadn''t revealed anything important, though his relationship with the imposter was one of the reasons Reima hadn''t told him anything important.

    Late in the night Reima finishes up a little project he''d been working on. After discovering he could inscribe his name onto objects and give them to people who''d need his help, he decided to look more into it. This led to him finding various runes that worked when channelled with Elder Blood Mana. Though the only substance he had that was strong enough to handle the power contained in it was Titanite, something that while he had a lot of, was still finite.

    This is where Reima''s hair was incredibly useful, he was sitting about a table with a look of intensity, a small glass lense was attached to one eye as a few strands of hair manipulated tiny carving tools. They were slowly carving a rune that he''d derived from "Hearth" that the ancient Greeks used. Hearth meant home, comfort, safety and fire. It took a while and a lot of deciphering from other runes that belonged to different parts of the world but he''d finally managed to create the one needed for this to work. The rune itself simply meant Location, usually it''d need to be mixed in with a full rune set that integrated well with it however when used with Elder Blood Mana it''d effects were more pronounced.

    His hair continued to carve the tiny Location rune into the extremely small shard of Titanite that was laid upon the table, after that was done he added a symbol that wasn''t usually regarded as something usable in a rune set. It was an eye, the reason this wasn''t regarded as something usable was due to the high variety of meaning it could convey, various societies around the world used it for their own means. Some use it for truth, justice and wisdom while others may use it for future, tomorrow and clairvoyance... However one of the most common uses of it was simply for... "Sight".

    When used together the runes would mean "Location Sight", this would be completely useless to normal people without the Elder Blood but for Reima it would allow him to know where it was at all times. He doubted even the Fidelius charm would stop him as it creates a separate dimension that people not aware of the secret can not access. With the Elder Blood''s space attribute this protection was almost useless.

    After Reima made sure the runes were complete and not at risk of exploding he channelled Elder Blood Magic through the strands of his hair with caused them to glow a dim Turquoise light that shimmered due to their crystalline structure. It traced down the hair and eventually into the runes which flashed briefly indicating it''d worked. Reima walks away and doesn''t even need to try and "sense" it as it''s obvious to him where it is.

    Reima "Finally done." he mutters as he wipes his forehead, he''d been sweating due to anticipation of it''s completion... That and worry as he wouldn''t know how to explain why half the castle was disintegrated and how he was the only one who survived... Nor why it''s magical signature matched his own.

 442 Chipping

    Reima quickly stored the tiny piece of rune inscribed Titanite and stood up. He had previously used a sleep spell on Damien to make sure he didn''t wake up and so didn''t worry about making noise. He closes his eyes and casts the Sorcery "Invisibility" along with a few charms that''d change his magical aura enough for it not to be recognised, though it''d prevent him from using any "good" spells or abilities. Last but not least he added a scent removal charm as his trademark "Burnt Ash" smell would easily give him away.

    Once all of the preparations were made he silently made his way out of his room and heading towards Harry''s. He already knew which one it was but also that the hinges were rather loud, as such he used his telekinesis to release the weight on them as he opened the door to prevent them squeaking as he entered. Once inside he blasted everyone with a stupefy and a sleep charm to makesure they didn''t wake up during the... Procedure. He walks towards Harry and pulls the covers to reveal his body, he then turns the boy over to reveal the back of his neck, Reima extends a finger that has it''s nail slowly growing and sharpening to a fine point. Once he believes it''s sharp enough he trails a deep cut in the boys neck, blood would be spewing out if he wasn''t applying counter pressure with his Telekinesis, though this took a lot of focus to do.

    Once the cut was deep enough he retrieves the small Titanite piece and inserted it inside, he hadn''t bothered designing it to be comfortable in the skin as it wasn''t intended to be inside for a prolonged period of time, instead he just added a mild numbing charm that''d prevent him from noticing it. Once Reima was sure it wouldn''t be visible from under his skin or found out but Pomfrey should the boy get injured again he pushed the cut together and used a knitting charm to bind the skin together. As the injury was clean and clotting had not started yet, it was easy to completely heal it.

    Reima breathes a sigh of relief and makesure everything is back where he put it, after confirming it indeed was he blinks back to his room to have a couple celebratory drinks for himself.

    The next morning after He, Ciri and Fleur had run around the lake a couple times and were starting to eat breakfast Angelina starts talking in an agitated tone.

    "Have you guys seen what they''re doing to the Quidditch Pitch!?! It''s travesty!" she exclaims with the Weasley twins overhearing it and mimicking her for a laugh.

    Reima plays along despite knowing full well what they''re doing. "They renovating it or something?" he asks.

    Angelina "No! They''re growing a ruddy huge maze in the middle of it!"

    Alicia nods, "I get it''s probably for the tournament but why do they have to start messing with our field!?! Even if we don''t have the Quidditch cup to compete for this year we still want and need to practise!"

    Harry interjects into the conversation while rubbing the back of his neck "If they had managed the events better we could have probably competed with the other schools... It''s not as if they didn''t have good players, Krum is.. Was, one of the worlds best seekers." he says with his mood quickly dampening after mentioning Krum.

    Ciri snorts but doesn''t say anything, as someone who''d grown up around death and destruction she found it difficult to get her head around Harry mourning someone who''d tried to kill him.

    Reima "He was a good flyer, shame he couldn''t out swim a giant squid." he chuckles and recieves a glare from Harry and a few of the Quidditch fans around the table.

    Fleur "I wonder what ze task inside ze maze will be." she ponders outloud. While everyone else is on the topic of Quidditch.

    Damien "First one to the centre wins?" he says jokingly.

    Angelina "You''re being sarcastic but I think that might just be it, though I''m glad they introduced the Observers so we don''t have to stare at a lake for an hour straight.

    Harry "Yeah, atleast you''ll be able to see us being killed now." he grumbles out.

    Reima "Stop being a brat Harry, Krum was a douche bag and deserved what he got. He entered the tournament and knew death was a possibility."

    Ciri and Fleur watch with neutral expressions as Harry and Reima begin to argue with eachother, the former didn''t give two shits about Krum and was glad he died while the latter was glad he hadn''t succeeded in hurting her friend, lover and sister.

    Eventually Harry just gets up and storms out of the hall with Hermione giving Reima a scathing look and following him.

    Angelina "I thought you and Harry were buddies." she asks.

    Reima shrugs, "Difference of opinion, I think Harry''s a bit too soft for what''s in his future." he states.

    Angelina "And what might "that" be?"

    Reima looks at her grimly, "Voldemort....."....

    ...

    Before laughing at her fearful expression, "I really got you there didn''t I?"

    Angelina throws an apple at him with pursed lips, this boy was really annoying sometimes.

 443 Fragile Alliance

    Outside the Riddle manor :

    Numerous shadows slink around in the darkness, many red eyes peer out and onto the single fat man who''s holding something covered in a blanket.

    Peter Pettigrew was terrified, not only was he holding the Dark Lord in his arms like you would a child but he was currently surrounded by hundreds or maybe even thousands of vampires. He hadn''t expected something so grand when he approached the establishment in Knockturn alley...

    Eventually after the movement had calmed two blonde red eyes people step forth, the darkness behind them reluctantly giving them up.

    Peter "Welcome Lords to my Masters home." he says with a deep bow, however he can hear the Dark Lord gritting his teeth as his servant shows respect to someone else.

    The man steps forward and introduces himself, "As you already know, I am Sterling Alucard, and this is my wife Velika." they give no indication that they themselves are going to bow which infuriates Voldemort, however he holds his tongue for now.

    The raspy voice slowly escapes the blanket, "Guests, I''d let you inside but you know the old saying, "Never invite a vampire into your home.". I would like to thank you with your assistance at retrieving some of my colleagues but you should know I also have another guest who should be arriving soon." he says foreboding.

    Sterling frowns, "Breaking into that dreadful prison was easy for the Alucard, however may I inquire as to their identities?" he asks with a threat not needing to be stated.

    Voldemort smirks, "Oh, I believe you already know them. They are from your... Community after all."

    Velika pulls on Sterlings sleeve and whispers, "Something about this doesn''t seem right, I think we should leave." she says warily.

    Sterling "No, if what he says is true then this''ll be our only chance to capture her."

    Velika scowls but doesn''t say anything.

    Voldemort senses a powerful being nearby and smirks, "Ah. I think they''re here."

    The thick shadows being Sterling and Velika seems to retreat slightly as few people confidently walk into the clearing as if they own the place. A man with long black hair and slitted red eyes smiles as he sees Sterling. "Ah, I had wondered if the Alucard clan would also be here. We are all after the same thing after all. He glances at Pettigrew before his gaze lands on the blanket, "Forgive me, I seem to have forgotten to introduce myself. I am Leon Belmont, the patriarch and leader of the clan." he says jovially.

    Sterling and his wife take a step back as they knew this man could and would tear them apart if they got in his way. Velika sends an "I told you so" look at him but he''s currently so tense he doesn''t notice. L-leon... What a pleasure to see you again... Is your marriage with Katherine serving you both well?" he asks, wondering if his daughter is still alive.

    Leon laughs and nods, "Of course, however I didn''t see the need for Marriage and instead keep her as a concubine. Despite being blind she''s quite good, I bet she learned all those techniques from your wife... Maybe she could show me them personally?" he says with a sadistic smile.

    Sterlin and Velika shudder but are interrupted as they''re about to reply.

    Voldemort "Let us start the discussion and move from the topic of concubines to your target." he says, gaining the interest of the two opposing clans. "From what I have gathered you are all hunting Ciri Rivia?" he states confidentially.

    ...

    Both Leon and Sterling are confused at this, why would he think they wanted some pathetic human woman?

    One of the men behind Leon looks furious, "Fool, we do not want the girl, it''s what the girl has that we want!" however he''s slap away by Leon and flies a few meters before landing unconscious.

    Leon "Forgive my subordinate but, he was correct. We seek the black furred animal in her care, not the woman herself."

    ...

    Voldemort is tempting to cast the killing curse at Wormtail for getting the information wrong, from that alone he was already at a disadvantage when negotiating with these creatures. "Good, it appears that I haven''t got the wrong people. Of course you would want the animal but I was suggesting the woman and the rabbit."

    ...

    Sterling can tell the Dark Lord is trying to recover but it''s plainly obvious that he hadn''t known what they were seeking. It''s hard to keep secrets from ancient being afterall. "We care not about the woman, the rabbit is all we seek."

    Leon "The rabbit will be ours Sterling, do not force my hand."

    Sterling frowns and decides to try and gain some ground back, "I''ll suggest the same to you, I know a secret of the Belmont clan that you''d not wish to get out." he says with a low tone.

    Leon "Oh? And what''s preventing me from tearing you and your men apart?" he asks with amusement.

    Voldemort doesn''t like where this is going, if a fight does breakout Wormtail is likely to perish and all his planning will be for nought. Not only that but he suspects he''ll need to entirety of both clans to be able to fight off whatever countermeasures Dumbledore and the unseen players will make. "We must recover the target first, you can squabble about what happens to it afterwards" he rasps out. "We will need a strong force to act should the plan fail, it is in all of our interests that we work together."

    Leon "And what prevents us from just storming Hogwarts and taking what''s ours?"

    Voldemort "It would disrupt my plans, something you shouldn''t do lightly. Additionally anyone who assists me here will receive great rewards in the world I will create."

    Sterling "Such as?" he asks in interest, usually an alliance with magicals was off the table but if they could gain a situation similar to what Transylvania had in the past they''d be in a very favourable position.

    Voldemort "Food. As many humans as you can get your fangs on." he states.

    Leon thinks for a while before waving his hand, "That is acceptable, we''ll be present when your plan comes to fruition. Do not fail us." he says before disappearing with his cohorts.

    Sterling nods and does the same and the darkness surrounding the manor seems to thin and fade, leaving an exhausted looking Wormtail still standing there clutching Voldemort.

 444 Barty beaten barmy

    Barty Crouch was not having a good time, ever since the ICW had suggested reforming the Tri-Wizard tournament and had the Minister task him with it''s completion everything that could go wrong, had gone wrong.

    He hadn''t wanted to do this event in the first place however the problems started during the Qudditch World Cup when the Death Eaters attacked. He hadn''t known it at the time but his son was probably responsible as when he returned home he wasn''t in his usual almost comatose state. Indeed it was stupid of him to think he could keep someone as powerful as Barty Crouch Jr. under his Imperius permanently.

    He wanted to search for him before he caused any more problems but his duties to the tournament prevented this, he suspected something big was approaching as the signs were there. The mass breakout of Azkaban that the Ministry haphazardly tried to cover up, the abrupt silence of the non-human groups and the attack at the World Cup. He''d ask someone for help but he knew if they found out his son was still alive he''d be shipped to Azkaban, probably to a cell next to his own son''s.

    Then the problems with the tournament started, he suspected it was the fault of Ciri Rivia as she''s the person who''s been breaking all of the rules he''s created to stop her interference. The First Task was meant to be a magnificent struggle that the champions would barely pass, however that girl and Harry Potter made it look like a joke. Not only easily completing the tasks with powerful artifacts but costing the Ministry thousands of Galleons due to the deaths of the dragons!

    After seeing that he''d created the rule of no magical weapons, of course this excluded wands as they were essential to wizards and witches however as soon as the Second Task started he knew she''d found another loop-hole. A ring, he''d not been able to get a closer look at it but from what Dumbledore said the Mermen had told him she''d put it on and rendered the water essentially non-existant for herself.

    Crouch was almost foaming as the mouth in anger, if he was in a better state of mind and not worrying about his son he may have been able to quell it, however this was the final straw. He''d used a couple contacts and managed to acquire some prototypes desgiend to mimick muggle technology from the Department of the misuse of Muggle artifacts. These were incredibly illegal however he wished to show everyone that Ciri Rivia was too weak to even survive the final task without bringing in some kind of outside help.

    He nods to himself, he hadn''t had a second thought about whether or not Ciri would succeed as it was already a foregone conclusion. Crouch had to write a couple of discreet letters to his associates that''d helped him in acquiring these "Observers". Not wishing for his mail to be discovered by those wishing to put him out of a job or even in jail he headed towards the forbidden forest with his owl on his shoulder.

    However as soon as he was out of sight from Hogwarts he felt that he had made a grave error... Alastor Moody was grinning at him ear to ear with an occasional flick of the tongue that looked familiar... "No, that can''t be." he mutters to himself.

    Moody hobbles towards him, "Some''thin bothering you Crouch?" he asks in a grave voice.

    Crouch "uh-uh-n-n-no Moody.. I seem to have wandered off... I''ll be getting back now if you don''t mind." he stutters out with his mind racing, he doesn''t dare reach for his wand because if what he suspects is true then he''ll not make it. He turns his back and carefully starts making his way back to Hogwarts however a different voice calls him from behind.

    "That''s no way to treat your son now is it... Father?"

    ...

    A chill runs down his back as he turns and sees Moody still standing there, however his tongue flicks from his mouth and alerts him to his true identity.

    Crouch "Jr... W-what are you doing? Where is Mad-Eye?"

    Barty Jr points his wand at Crouch, "You''d love to know that wouldn''t you? After what you did to mother, TO ME!"

    Crouch "I swear I did-" "CRUCIO!" "AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" He screams from the agonising pain being inflicted to him.

    Barty Jr laughs, "SCREAM ALL YOU LIKE FATHER, I''VE WARDED THE AREA FOR JUST SUCH AN OCCASION! CRUCIO!"

    Crouch "Pl-PLEASE STOP!" he pleads through his seizure-like movement.

    Barty Jr stops for a moment to change the spell "Imperio!" he casts, "How''s it feel? To be under my control instead of the other way around!?!" he asks, however something that he doesn''t expect happens. The Owl that''d flown away earlier comes back and tries to attack Barty Jr''s face, this interrupts the Imperius curse and allows Crouch to break it and run. Jr chases after him and hits him with a few deadly spells however he still manages to make it out of the clearing where Harry Potter spots him.

    Harry runs up to the heavily injured man and calls for someone to help, however no one is near enough to hear him. He can only try to stifle the profuse bleeding as he didn''t know any advanced healing spells. Crouch tries to tell the boy of Moody''s identity but only manages to make a few gasps for air before finally dying.

    Barty Jr peers through the clearing and grins before using a portkey to teleport back to Moody''s office.

 445 Progress

    The Final Task is drawing near and Reima has been trying his hardest to train Ciri and Fleur. While both were already adept at spell casting he''d been trying to improve their athletic capabilities as being able to dodge the spells that''d be thrown at them should the plan go balls up will be invaluable.

    These four months had been incredibly productive, he''d not had to try train Harry any longer since he''d decided to try and distance himself and so Reima was left with Ciri and Fleur, something he wasn''t complaining about. After a heavy day of training it wouldn''t be weird for him to be "compensated" at the end of it, though Snuffles prided herself in getting in the way. He'' also managed to completely clear out the "Come and Go Room", gaining a few interesting artifacts from his troubles along with an ungodly amount of books.

    Fleur had become slighter taller and more muscular during her time with him, she was stronger, faster and even her control over her allure was better. Overall he judged she''d be alright during the task.

    Ciri on the other hand hadn''t changed all that much, this was probably due to her already being around 20 years old. The only thing that really changed was her skills, she''d increased the variety of spells she was able to use with but began to specialise with her affinity to air. Neither Fleur or Reima had any idea what uses it''d have as fire, water and earth based spells were far more common. Ciri managed to impress them with a spell similar to the cutting spell, the only exception being that it was wind based, this also complemented her Pyromancies as well. It''d only been an accident when she''d conjured a Combustion Pyromancy along with her Air Slice spell immediately after it. The two spells combined caused the a deeper cut in the statues they were using as target practise and it even melted the "wound". This had given Reima a couple idea''s and it wasn''t hard to work out blasting a fireball with wind made it more powerful and violent, if less longlived.

    One thing was bothering Ciri though, her progress towards becoming an Animagus was slow and she hadn''t even been able to transform a pinky, she was calm about it but admitted she resented the fact that he was faster than her by atleast a few months, maybe even more depending on how her progress is. He wondered if they''d have to continue her training back home.

    Reima was the one who changed the most however, as his Witcher mutations increased his rate of growth he''d grown to 6.4ft. He towered over Ciri and Fleur like Hagrid would an adult. His build got broader as well making him have to adjust some of his clothes and armour, this was easy as all he needed to do was apply some souls to the Armour Smithbox and Voil¨¤, new appropriately sized clothing.

    His growth wasn''t really noticed by everyone else apart from his girls as teens grew relatively quickly and it wasn''t out of the ordinary for a Wizard or Witch to have incredible growth periods out of no where.

    He continued to practise but was hesitant to play around with his Humanity based abilities, excluding the Dark Hand he hadn''t tried to create any new abilities, only skimming through the spells he''d found in the Abyss named Dark Orb, Dark Fog and Black Flame, the latter of them being the most interesting to him despite never working up the determination to try it out.

    Nerissa was also getting the most out of her training, becoming almost ninja like in her movements. Perhaps it was due to her time spent as a rabbit but when she walked around with bare feet Reima was hard-pressed to hear her, something that was even more impressive when considering he was a powerful being with incredible senses. She''d also gotten a little taller and finally reached 5ft, despite her incredible speed and strength her body didn''t show any musculature at all, instead she looked like a regular little girl... With the exception of red eyes and fangs of course.

    With Nerissa he''d really been trying to increase her variety of skills, he didn''t think she''d be able to go toe to toe with one of the older vampires with centuries of experience and so made her practise in her particular abilities, mainly her blood manipulation. As much as he''d like to claim responsibility for her progress he hadn''t really done much except suggest ways of utilising it. She''d managed to create chain, swords, spears, and even bows with arrows. The strong ability she''d learned included Iaito.

    She was striking against a steel soldier while Reima was giving her suggestions based on the various spells her already knew. He wondered if she would be able to produce a large amount of blood, solidify it and then reverse it mid strike.

    Nerissa hadn''t disappointed him as she''d come up with something on her own, she covered Iaito with a large amount of blood before crystallising it, causing it to look like a huge ruby spike. She then jabbed it at the steel soldier, however mid strike she''d transformed the ruby into blood and manipulated it to surround the soldier. She then forced the blood into it''s ears, mouth and nose, Reima took a step back in surprise as it huge red shards exploded out of the steel soldier... He suspected most enemies in this world wouldn''t be able to defend against such an attack, especially due to it being a stab feint into the move.

    All in all Reima was happy with everyone''s progress, with not long before the Final Task he knew they''d be targeted in some manner. It was lucky he stayed away from the drama involving Crouch''s death as he reckoned he''d somehow be blamed for it, despite no evidence for it, scape goats seemed to be the Ministries most effective way of keeping control of the public after all.

 446 In-laws.

    Reima opens his eyes and quickly stands up, today''s the day for the Third Task and the tension had made it difficult for him to sleep or eve meditate. It wasn''t just the tension however, he felt excitement at being able to finally cut loose and show his enemies who they''re really dealing with...

    The task is supposed to start at "Dusk" so Ciri and Fleur will have all day to prepare, he makes his way to breakfast as they''d already decided not to run in the morning.

    He sits down at the Gryffindor table alone as no one seems to have awoken yet, a couple hours later Ciri arrives followed by Fleur not long later.

    Reima "You guys ready?" he asks.

    Ciri nods, "Definitely." she says confidentially.

    Fleur smirks at him, "Are you ready Rei?"

    ...

    Reima "Ready for what?"

    Fleur "My parents will be at Hogwarts in a couple hours."

    ...

    Reima rubs his face, "Is this revenge for us having to leave?" he asks.

    Fleur doesn''t say anything and just start eating her breakfast.

    After breakfast the group doesn''t go to the Room of Requirement to train as they''d already prepared as much as possible for the task. Anything more would be counter intuitive and exhaust them before they had even started. Instead Fleur insists on spending as much time as possible with each other as she knows her time with them is drawing to a close.

    She has them follow her to a clump of trees near the Bauxbaton''s carriage and Reima spots three people that seem to be having a picnic. Looking closer he can see Gabrielle Delacour with an older woman who looks a good deal like her, the man is presumably the woman''s husband and Fleur''s father...

    Fleur steps foward with a wide smile "Mama, Papa." she says, hugging them both closely. The man reciprocates while saying "ma petite fille ''ow I missed you."

    Gabrielle looks behind Fleur to see Reima and Ciri, "Fleur your boyfriend iz ''ere?" she asks with a mischievous glint in her eye.

    The parents turn their eyes to Reima and seem to examine him up and down, taking particular interest with his Cat-like eyes.

    The man introduces himself with a firm handshake that seems to be trying to crush Reima''s hand... Though he''d have an easier time trying to squeeze blood from a rock. "You may call me Monsieur Delacour, this is my beloved wife Apolline Delacour. I am sure you''ve met my daughters already... What is your relationship to Fleur?" he asks without letting go of Reima''s hand.

    ...

    Reima stares at his hand in disbelief for a moment before replying, "Er, We''re... Close fr-... Lo-No... We''re dating." he finally decides as even if they have to leave soon it still counts.

    Fleur gives a bright smile at this but Apolline continues for her husband, "Apologies if this is a sore subject but are you part creature? I''ve never seen someone wiz eye''s like zat." she says.

    Reima shakes his head, "Just an Animagus accident." he says.

    Monseiur Delacour nods at this, "At such an age? You show talent... What career are you expecting to have in the future?" he asks.

    Fleur "Papa, Rei is not ''ere to be interrogated." he says which gets the man off of his back momentarily.

    Apolline turns her eyes to Ciri, "And who might you be?" she asks.

    Ciri shrugs, "Ciri Rivia, one of the champions. I''ve been training with Fleur to makesure we don''t end up like Krum." she says which has the parents give her a thankful look.

    Gabrielle "Can we eat already? I am starving." she asks.

    Thus the group spent their time having a picnic with the Delacour family, Reima wasn''t spared from the personal questions as Monseiur Delacour was on the hunt and Reima was his prey. Luckily he wouldn''t be able to find him when he moves to another world... This continues until it''s almost time for the Tasks to start.

    Reima stands, "Thank you both for having us but we must go get ready for the tasks." he bows slightly, "It was a pleasure meeting you Monseiur and Apolline Delacour." He waves his hand, "You too "Gabby"" he says, receiving a snort from the young girl.

    The group leave but don''t immediately head to the Quidditch pitch where the Third Task will be held, instead he heads to the Room of Requirement and leaves Snuffles inside with the orders to not leave under any circumstances. The last thing he needed was a hostage situation that didn''t include Harry. He placated her with a promise of some Blood Pudding once the task is over.

    With that the trio make their way to the Quidditch Pitch.

    Ciri "Fleur, if you''re in danger just surrender or call for me. We''re not in the task to win and I''d feel awful if you were to get hurt." she says.

    Fleur nods, "You too Ciri, I have become fond of you as time goes on..." she says in a gentle voice with a bitter tone.

    Reima nods "Just remember to stay away from the Cup, we need Harry to be port-keyed, if either of you went instead you''d probably be trapped and murdered." he says gravely with the girls nodding. He gives them both a deep kiss and leaves them to make their way up to the platform in-front of the huge maze.

 447 Start of the Final Task

    Reima walks up and sits in the stands the surround a small clearing that''s next to the maze, he notes that there are still four entrances despite one of the champions dying in the last task... Maybe the layout was already decided and they couldn''t be bothered to change it?

    Not long after he sits down does the music start, chipper trumpets alert the large crowd to the entrance of the clearing where Fleur is led out in-front of everyone by Madam Maxime, she is followed by Dumbledore who leads Harry and Ciri.

    Reima looks over at the judges and sees that Crouch had been replaced by Minister Fudge... The man notices his focus and gives him a nod and a smile. Reima can only nod back at him with a neutral expression.

    With all the champions present Dumbledore straightens his back and starts speaking to the crowd after making the music stop. "Silence! I have instructed Professor Moody to place the Tri-Wizard cup deep within the maze, he is the only one who knows of it''s exact location to prevent cheating of any kind. We also have Auror''s and Hogwarts staff patrolling the outskirts of the maze to prevent any outside interference... Should a Champion wish to leave the maze they only need to shoot up red sparks and we will come to collect them. The goal for this task? To simply touch the cup. The first one to touch the cup will be brought back here and declared the Tri-Wizard champion!" he shouts and the crowd erupts in cheers and applause. He turns and flicks his wand at one of the stadium walls revealing a large taut white fabric, which starts to display the areas around the champions. "As we have realised our mistakes of the Second Task we have decided to use these "Observers" to watch our champions progress." he says.

    Dumbledore then gathers the champions to give some foreboding words about how "People change within the maze"... Reima can hear this clearly and snorts to himself which has those near him look at him weirdly.

    Once he''s talked with the champions he lets the audience know the order of who''s going. First is Harry, then Ciri and then Fleur. He begins to countdown however as soon as he starts Filch lets off the cannon, signalling the start of the Task.

    Harry takes one glance back at Hermione before slowly walking inside the maze, his knuckles white as he grips his wand.

    Reima sends a nod to Ciri and Fleur as he leaves the stage to begin the plan. No one notices as he quickly makes his way out and into a hidden area to blink away, a flash of Turquoise light reveals the location he''d appeared... Harry Potters room, he doesn''t waste any time and quickly tears open the boys trunk and retrieves the Cloak of Invisibility, this should be powerful enough to prevent people from discovering his magical aura... Of course he''d need to layer scent, sound and other miscellaneous charms over it to makesure it''s fool proof.

    The cannon goes off again, signalling Ciri''s turn to delve into the maze, she sprints inside with her staff in hand. While she didn''t intend to get to the cup she had to make it look convincing enough for everyone.

    She''s actually impressed at the maze itself, it moves like a sentient being and she isn''t sure but she suspects it''s changing the path subtly on it''s own...

    A few more minutes of walking reveals her first enemy... A troll...

    The audience watching gasp at the fact the champions would have to face something as deadly as a mountain troll. Hermione turns to Harry''s feed after seeing the troll but see''s he hadn''t come across anything deadly yet. However the crowd watching Ciri shout in surprise as they hadn''t expected to see something like that!

    Ciri back away slightly from the troll as it''s towers over her with a club in hand, it seems to give a gurgled chuckle as it approaches her. She surprises everyone by grinning at it, she spins her staff and flings a dark red fireball at it''s head, the troll raises it''s arm to try and stop it but misses and allows it to explode on it''s forehead... It''s body falls to the floor without a head before the smoke even clears.

    Ciri mutters to herself "Easy" while stepping over it it''s corpse, not knowing that the Observer had picked up her words for the audience to hear.

    Fleur who hadn''t even entered the maze yet isn''t surprised at this as she''d seen the progress she''d made with Rei''s personal magic called Pyromancy. She herself wished to try and learn it but he refused as he''d need to be there to train her otherwise she''d likely ignite her soul entirely and kill herself. She wasn''t jealous as that was a pretty good reason not to attempt something she probably wasn''t ready for yet. Though she wished Reima would leave something more permanent for her...

    She jumps as her thoughts are interrupted by a cannon alerting that it''s her turn to enter the maze, she has a determined face as she sprints inside in a similar manner that Ciri had.

    Reima had just returned to the stands as she''s leaving, he gives her a wave that she probably didn''t manage to see while watching the feeds with interest. Luckily a couple people next to him erratically explained what Ciri had just done.

 448 Demented creatures

    Fleur stops running as she gets pas the first corner, she''d keep running but the branching that are trying to catch her feet make it dangerous, she suspects if she fell to the floor she''d be eaten by the hedges.

    The tip of her wand is lit brightly so she can see further in the dark maze, however this was a mistake as she immediately hears the flapping of hundreds of what sounds like wings... It continues to get closer until the flapping becomes buzzing, she pales when she sees a large amount of giant insects appearing around the far corner and rushing towards her. She sprints in the opposite direct while minding her footing, she throws her arm behind her and flames start springing to life, attempting to block the advance of the giant insects.

    The bugs are halted but it''s only a temporary solution as the fire fades as she gets further away from it. She runs enough to where she should be back where the audience should be, however she can''t see the exit and instead is presented with more winding hedges... Deciding that she can''t run forever she turns and confronts the insects.

    Now that she can see them clearer she notices that they all resemble huge dragons flies with larger than normal mandibles, truly they are frightening creatures. She points her wand at them and channels as much magical power into it as possible. "BOMBARDA MAXIMA!" she shouts as the projectile explodes from her wand and travels towards the group. She ducks and shields her face with her hands as it''s about to hit them as she doesn''t know exactly how big the explosion will be.

    *BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!*

    The explosion makes the ground tremble, if the audience hadn''t been watching they''d have assumed it was an earthquake. Even from the stand they can see the light from the explosion appearing above the maze like a misfired firework, along with the smoke.

    Monseiur Delacour, his wife and daughter are all watching intensely while this happens, worrying the entire time for their child and sister.

    Fleur is pummled by the aftershock and thrown a few meters, however she immediately gets back up as the hedge''s branches start to try and get a grip on her. She turns to look at where the insects had been and sees a large crater along with various exoskeleton parts... Even the hedges around the area seem to be hesitant to return to the devastated area, Fleur takes advantage of this and dips into another passage before it closes, assuming it''d help her progress atleast somewhat...

    Ciri had just kicked an acromantula in it''s fanged face when the ground underneath her rumbles, followed by a huge explosion off in a direction. She knows that it was probably Fleur''s doing but wonders what''d cause her to cast such a powerful spell in such a confined space. Regardless she starts to head in that direction after turning the spider to dust with a Reducto.

    She walks for around 7 minutes, killing the various creatures that she comes across. Most aren''t at the level of the troll but are annoying enough to gain her wrath. She hears rapid footsteps and gets ready to hit whatever it is with her staff, however mid swing she stops when she recognises their face... Fleur?

    Ciri "Fleur! Are you ok? I saw the explosion." she asks quickly.

    Fleur nods "Giant insects, I hate zem."

    They don''t get to talk for long however as the surroundings seem to chill...

    Dumbledore turns to look at Minister Fudge when he sees the Hedges start to freeze, "YOU SENT A DEMENTOR IN THERE?!" he exclaims in shock. With the audience reacting in the same way.

    Fudge holds his hands up "It was requested by the department of international cooperation, I figured that the champions would be talented enough to deal with it."

    Dumbledore "Most Auror''s can''t even cast a Patronus! Let alone students! Mark my words Fudge if they are kissed then it will be on your head!" he exclaims, being killed in the Tasks was a risk but having your soul sucked out by a Dementor should only be restricted to those who have committed the most Heinous crimes.

    Reima doesn''t know whether or not Dumbledore is aware of his and Ciri''s test but he should have definitely felt it... It wasn''t exactly subtle...

    Fleur could feel her blood run cold as the affects of the Dementor begin to take hold, the worst part was that they hadn''t even spotted it yet. She looks at her companion who doesn''t seem to even be bothered by it. "Ciri, we must run... It-It''s a Dementor!"

    Ciri "It''s ok, I can deal with it." she says confidently.

    As she says this the cloaked figure appears above the maze and begins to float towards them... Fleur''s body freeze at the sight of it as she relives every horrible memory she''s ever had, however Ciri''s voice seems to halt time momentarily. "EXPECTO PATRONUM!" she shouts as a bright light escapes her staff, releasing a wave of happiness that seems to dull all of the creatures inside of the maze. The most effected though is the Dementor which acts like it was just hit by a truck. It retreats as fast as it can into the sky, reaching the clouds and promptly disappearing behind them.

    Fleur hugs Ciri and revels in the happiness given off by the Swallow that flies around them.

    The audience erupts into cheers and screams for Ciri Rivia and Fudge wipes the gathering sweat from his brow with relieved expression.

 449 Whats a maze without a ********

    Harry had been walking through the maze for a while now, he wondered if the maze was just barren and empty as he''d not come across a single enemy the entire time he''s been here... There had been a large explosion somewhere inside earlier so he assumed the other champions were having a harder time than he was.

    The audience was also confused with how Harry''s task was progressing, Ciri and Fleur already having come across many monsters but Harry seems to be the exception to the rule. Reima doesn''t say anything as he hears murmurs from those watching that Harry''s cheating somehow. He looks over to Ciri and Fleur''s projectors and sees that they''ve just come across a minotaur...

    The two girls stare up at the 10ft beast, it''s head resembles a bull''s complete with vicious looking horns, below that seems to be what Hercules''s body would have looked like, huge, muscular and chiselled with the only other inhuman part appearing below it''s knee''s where it has hooves.

    Fleur casts a couple Reducto''s but it doesn''t even seem to hurt it, instead just dissipating on it''s skin.

    Ciri has better luck when a wind blade cuts deeply into it''s flesh, blood dribbling down from the wound, however the creature is far from dead.

    Dumbledore looks at Fudge, "Where on Earth did the Ministry acquire a Minotaur!?!"

    Fudge looks at him sheepishly "The Greek Ministry of Magic felt the need to contribute... I didn''t refuse..."

    Dumbledore can only facepalm at the man''s stupidity, did he not know that Minotaurs were arguably more dangerous than Dragons? Especially in small area''s such as a maze? Their magically resistant skin prevents wizards from harming them, which made him more curious at the spell Ciri Rivia had used to cut it....

    Fleur was sprinting away from an enraged Minotaur, Ciri wasn''t far behind as she kept casting Wind Blades to try and impede it, however it didn''t seem to stop it''s charge.

    Fleur deciding that trying to outrun it won''t do much turns to the hedge and casts a Bombarda, the Hedges retreat as part of it is blown apart revealing another route. Fleur pulls Ciri into it and the start running the opposite direction with the Hedges separating them and the Minotaur... This doesn''t last long though as the Minotaur charges through the Hedge quite a distance behind them, it turns at them and begins it''s charge again leaving them in the same situation as before.

    Ciri stops running and turns to face the Minotaur, she then pushes the bottom of her staff into the dirt under her with a focused look. Not long after this stone spear raises from the floor and point in the Minotaur''s direction as it''s charging at them. Seeing what she''s doing Fleur helps her out and compresses the spears to make them more durable, once the Minotaur is close enough they start running again...

    The audience watches on enraptured with whether or not their trap would work... Their worries are confirmed when the Minotaur leaps in the air to avoid the spears, however when it''s coming down it''s belly is clipped by one of them. Cutting it open and allowing it''s entrails to fall to floor, still attached to the beast. The injury doesn''t seem to stop it though as it ignores the pain and continues running at them, the entrails dangling behind it as it runs.

    The girls sees this and Ciri get''s an idea, while she''s running she transfigures a few hook-like shapes that rise out of the floor inconspicuously. They run past and the Minotaur follows, not noticing that it''s intestine was snagged by the hook, causing the of it''s internal organs to start unravelling out of it''s body as it runs further away from the hook.

    The duo doesn''t have to run for much longer as the Minotaur drops to it''s knees after losing a copious amount of blood and organs. It breathes heavily on it''s knees, blood pouring from it''s stomach wound. Ciri walks towards it, not coming into it''s reach but enough to try and put it out of it''s suffering. She raises her staff and casts a powerful Wind Blade at it''s throat, the Minotaur doesn''t even attempt to block it as it''s jugular is severed along with all it''s arteries.

    Ludo Bagman rubs his sweaty face with a handkerchief, "That... Was a particularly brutal solution to the Minotaur, no doubt the Greek Ministry will be receiving their beast in a body bag... Hopefully it wasn''t an ancient one." he says after a moment of silence.

    Reima chuckles and wonders if the Minotaur was too stupid to care about it''s injury or simply didn''t notice. Either way it''s dead now, and it looks like Ciri is severing it''s head as a trophy... How she''s going to get it out of the maze he has no idea.

    Fleur watches in morbid fascination as Ciri beheads the creature and ties it to her belt.

    Ciri "Shall we get moving?" she says with a satisfied smile.

    ...

    Fleur nods, "Oui."

    However just as they agree to continue the maze around them morphs, revealing only one path... Looking at it they see the stadium where they''d first come from.

    Ciri "If we''re being led back wouldn''t that mean-"

    Fleur "''Arry ''as won." she says, not disappointed as she knew this was Reima''s plan.

    They start walking back, Ciri satisfied that she got something out of the Task with her new Minotaur trophy...

 450 In a pickle.

    Harry had just come across his first enemy or to be accurate, enemies. Some kind of insect that seemed to have traits of a crab aswell? He wasn''t too sure what they were but they looked menacing to say the least, like a mutated lobster with a scorpion tail...

    They weren''t all that big but if compared to regular insects they are huge. 6-8 inches long and smelled like rotten fish and sulfur. They number around 10 to 20 and Harry was sure they''d be relatively easy to get past. "Aquamenti" he mutters as he casts the water making spell, it comes out like a garden hose and the creatures shriek and chitter at him for soaking them. They retreat backwards but it doesn''t do all that much to help him progress as the path is still blocked...

    Sighing to himself he decides that the only way around was through them and while he hated to kill thing it was needed. "Reducto!" he exclaims as a bolt leaves his wand and eviscerates one of the insects.

    The rest of them shriek at the loss of one of their own and start scuttling towards him, Harry backs away but is tripped by a branch from the Hedges that''d tangled around his foot while he contemplated what to do with the insects.

    He starts to panic as they approach and fires a few more Reducto''s, some miss while others hit however the rest keep coming. Sparks shoot from them as they begin to bite his legs. His trousers provide some resistance but it still hurts to get bitten, he blasts another as it''s tail comes forward to sting him however they are almost on top of him now, as a last ditch attempt he casts "Expulsio!" at the one furthest away, causing it to implode and catch the others in an explosion which launches Harry a couple meters away.

    He tumbles and rolls before finally coming to a stop, he''s covered in blood from the dead insects but quickly gets to his feet as he feels the Hedge try and tangle him in it''s roots. He flinches slightly as he feels his leg is injured, maybe even broken but is halted as a path opens up in-front of him... At the end of it is a gleaming Cup, the Tri-Wizard tournament cup. He limps towards it absentmindedly not bothering to think about how suspicious it is that the Hedge itself is giving him an easy route to victory, no. Instead his will to win trumps him rational mind, he doesn''t even think about whether or not the events up until now could have been leading to this point... He grabs the cup and disappears, the Observers feed turning black as it follows him.

    The audience shouts in excitement as they see Harry disappear, thinking that he''d won and that his disappearance was planned... Dumbledore pales when he sees his student vanish and not appearing in the middle of the stadium where he was supposed to... He looks at the Observer feed and sees that it''s currently pitch black.

    Ciri and Fleur step out of the Hedge, the Observers still following them and projecting their feed. They glance around at the cheering crowd, worrying about Harry. Suddenly Harry''s feed comes back to life revealing the eerie sight of a graveyard, the sky is dark and fog is thick in the air. Red eyes peer from the darkness at him as ropes wrap around him of their own accord, his wand drops to the floor as he falls onto his back.

    Harry raises his head and sees one of the people he hates the most, Peter Pettigrew. The man points his wand at Harry and levitates him up to a statue who''s arms grab ahold of the boy tightly, restricting his movement completely.

    Harry "You! I should have killed you when I had the chance!" he shouts furiously.

    Peter smiles at him, his rat-like teeth protruding from his mouth. "Harry, how are you? Well I hope? My master has been waiting for this moment for a long time." he says.

    Harry struggles against his restrains to no avail, "I hate you! When I get out I''ll kill you myself!" he screams.

    Peter turns towards where the invisible Observer is floating and grins, "They will watch my as master kills you Harry."

    The audience is completely silent, no one knows how to react to the sudden turn of events, Hermione watches on tearfully as Harry screams at the man responsible for the deaths of his parents.

    The Auror''s are scrambling to try and find their location however they seem to be having no luck as the land has been made unplottable. A few apparate out to go alert Amelia Bones while other increase the security around Hogwarts itself, for fear of a terrorist attack attempting to kill the people present at the event or even the Minister himself.

    Fudge "I-is that Peter Pettigrew?" he stutters out.

    Severus Snape whos standing nearby smirks, "The very man who you granted an order of Merlin." he snarks. However Fudge is too shocked to reply.

    Fleur watches on with a frown on her face and doesn''t notice the dark shadows stealthily moving in the surroundings. However, that doesn''t mean that Ciri hadn''t. She leaves without anyone noticing, in-fact, no one had even noticed that Reima had disappeared as well.

 451 The Dark Lord has Returned!!!!!

    Reima had teleported a few meters away from where Harry was being held, the typical turquoise flash given off by his magical travel isn''t present as the Cloak of Invisibility he borrowed from Harry. Luckily he had the common sense of applying scent and silence charms before coming here as the many red eyes surrounding the area reveal the creatures surrounding him. Vampires aren''t just incredibly strong and fast, but they also have very strong senses as he''d previously seen with Nerissa.

    Reima just keeps down and watches as Pettigrew prepares a cauldron underneath Harry, he notices a large snake in a coil with a bundle laid ontop of it. This is presumebly Voldemorts familiar and Horcrux Nagini along with Voldemort himself.

    A figure appears a few meters away from Pettigrew, his blonde hair and red eyes immediately give away what he is. "We have begun the extraction." he states.

    Voldemort give out a hoarse choke, before turning his attention on Pettigrew. "Do it!" he exclaims as loud as his mangled vocal cords can manage.

    Pettigrew nods while trying to hide his reluctance at performing the ritual he picks up the bundle of cloth containing Voldemort and starts walking over to the cauldron with a pale face. "Master, must it be me who performs this? There are those more deserving of the honor than I..." he says in a shaky voice.

    Voldemort "My other servants are more useful than you are Wormtail, it would be an inconvenience should they be unable to fight at their maximum potential."

    Pettigrew just nods before taking a deep breathe and tosses the Dark Lord into the Cauldron haphazardly.

    Reima snickers as he hears Voldemort give a weak scream as he tumbles into the boiling cauldron. However after hearing the duo''s interaction he realises that the Azkaban escapees must be nearby somewhere... He expands his Observation Haki and notices a few magical aura''s hidden under invisibility cloaks, "So that''s where you are." he mumbles to himself, noting their locations for when he has to act.

    The audience in the stadium watches on in silence as Pettigrew starts to perform the ritual.

    "Bone of the father, unknowingly given, you will renew your son!" he says as he levitates a bone into the cauldron, it seems to turn to dust as soon as it hits the liquid. Reima can feel the ambient magic in the air being pulled towards the ritual.

    "Flesh of the servant, willingly sacrificed, you will revive your master." he says quietly, dreading what he must do next. He raises a knife and bring it down as hard as possible onto his hand, somehow severing it in one strike an causing it to fall into the cauldron, dissipating in a similar manner as the bone had... To be honest Reima is impressed at how clean it is...

    "Blood of the enemy, forcibly taken, you will resurrect your foe." he says as he walks over to Harry, his injured arm tucked into his armpit painfully. He cuts Harry''s sleeve to reveal his wrist before stabbing the knife into his arm seemingly at random, the cut doesn''t hit anything vital and only draws out a few droplets of blood. However this seems to be enough as he walks over to the cauldron and drops the blood into it. Hermione has streaks of tears running down her face at seeing Harry in pain like this, she feels helpless at not being able to do anything to help, she''s already pleaded to Dumbledore to do something but the Headmaster doesn''t appear to be able to do anything.

    The only thing everyone not present in the graveyard can do is watch on helplessly, their eyes glued onto the projector of Harry''s Observer. Not noticing some peculiar things happening on Ciri''s end.

    With the ritual complete the cauldron explodes, causing fire to envelop the area where it''d previously been. It liquefies and the molten metal seems to shape itself into some kind of humanoid. It isn''t long before those watching see it''s true form. The molten metal turns to flesh and reveals the pale form of Voldemort, his eyes looking slitted like a snakes but changing after a moment to brown human ones. He stands there, completely naked and Reima can''t help but notice his pickle definitely wasn''t enhanced by the ritual... In-fact it may have the same effects that steroids would have... That or Voldemort is a grower? He shakes his head and focuses on the more important things.

    Voldemort "Robe me Wormtail." he says, with the one handed rat-like man scrambling to throw a loose black robe over his master. He nods, "My wand Wormtail." he states.

    Pettigrew nodding and handing Voldemort the Holly, phoenix feather and bone handle wand. "Here master."

    Voldemort moves his arms in a weird manner, probably to get the hang of actually having a body again. "Your arm."

    Pettigrew''s eyes shimmer, "Master... Thank yo-"

    Voldemort "Your other arm, Wormtail." he cuts him off after Pettigrew presents his injured arm, expecting his master to reward him. Voldemort presses his wand into the Dark Mark to summon his servants that aren''t already present.

    People start apparating in covered in the garbs of the Death Eaters that''d fought in the last wizarding war. Unlike in the movies Voldemort doesn''t immediately unmask them however, this is probably due to the Observers that are still watching them.

    Voldemort "My loyal servants, you''ve finally returned. And after thirteen years no less... You''ve make me question your loyalty, not even willing to follow you''re comrades in Azkaban. Instead cowering as those not of pure-blood continue to steal your magic... Our magic!" he says, his speech echoing in the stadium as the audience watches with pale faces.

    Pettigrew looks dizzy and drops to his knees, presumably due to blood loss but no one seems to care. Voldemort doesn''t even look at him as he examines the other Death Eaters, they number around thirty people, not much until you consider that only the most loyal, skilful and dedicated were given the Dark Mark in the first place.

 452 Vampire problems

    One of the Death Eaters standing before Voldemort tries to explain himself, "Master, everything I''ve done thus far has been for the cause. I was simply await your return!"

    Voldemort scowls at them, his noseless visage giving a eerie vibe. "Do not lie to me, I know you have done nothing but fill your pockets! Only now do you return due to fear, by my estimation you are far worse than even Wormtail as he acted to assist my return instead of doing nothing!"

    Another Death Eater interjects after looking at the various red eyes that surround them, "Master, why have you allied with "them", they refused cooperation last time and they might very well betray you the first chance they get."

    Voldemort "The assistance of the vampire clans has been invaluable and the tenuous alliance we currently have will be maintained, you will cease your words or be fed to them. Do you understand?" he says in a grave voice that will not allow questions. The Death Eater gulps their saliva and slowly nods.

    Sterling Alucard steps forward with Leon Belmont coming from the opposite side of the graveyard.

    Leon "While your domestic conflics amuse me greatly, I am here for a reason."

    Sterling "As am I."

    Voldemort nods, "My servant should arrive soon, along with the "help" you sent to make the task go faster. They must have hidden your target deeply for it to be taking so long." he states as both vampires eye one another, both knowing that they will have to fight for ownership of the last descendant of Dracula.

    Reima''s brows furrow as he hears this, would that be able to breach the Room of Requirement and find Nerissa? He remembers that she could track an old vampire scent in pitch darkness easily so maybe they would be able to? Damn. He''s worried now, he begins to formulate a plan to-

    *FLASH*

    The sound of a portkey interrupts his thoughts, Ciri and a blood covered Nerissa appear next to the statue Harry is currently restrained against with a furious looking Alastor Moody looking at them.

    Reima "Well, fuck." he mutters.

    Earlier with Ciri :

    Ciri had just left the stadium after handing the Minotaur head to a House Elf due to her spotting the familiar looking blurs heading towards Hogwarts. "Vampires." she mutters to herself as she sees them entering the school. She doesn''t waste time and quickly follows them, seeing eight vampires along with Alastor Moody who''s limps along behind them.

    They appear to know where they need to go already as one vampire morphs into a dog and starts sniffing the air around. Ciri immediately applies a scent cleansing charm to herself to avoid detecton. The black dog sniffs the floor and begins to makes it way through the school, Ciri inwardly panic due to the direction they are heading in... The Room of Requirement.

    She begins to plan an ambush before they can reach Nerissa, she believes that mounting her attack outside the doors of the Room of Requirement would be the most devastating and decrease their numbers enough for her to pick them off... Though she wasn''t sure if these vampires were of the same skill level of those that attacked Hogsmeade.

    She begins to prepare to attack however she spots a red eyed fourteen yearold wearing a white sundress and no shoes... The vampires and Moody immediately shout for her to surrender, however they back away slightly as Nerissa unsheathes Iaito and drops into a stance... A determined look on her face as she focuses on those responsible of her parents deaths.

    Ciri doesn''t waste any time and casts the strongest Pyromancy she can, Dark Red Flames appearing in her hand. It it morphs into a searingly hot whip that she swings at the backs of the vampires, Moody seems to notice and immediately turns around while casting a powerful Protego shield charm. The whip wraps around the shield and seems to melt away the very magic that comprises it as it attempts to maintain it''s solidified form. The vampire ignore his troubles and start sprinting up the stairs towards Nerissa, the young girl not taking a single step yet.

    The vampire at the front of the group grows large mist-like black wings on his back and leaps ahead of the others. He flies up and attempts to bring claws made from a similar material down on Nerissa''s head. However he doesn''t notice a droplet of blood that drops from the self inflicted wound on her lip. Blood pours from her mouth, flowing down her neck, body, legs and eventually reaching the floor. It then shoots up like a spring before solidifying into a large ruby shard that attempt to spear the flying vampire. They manage to twist out of the way but are not able to rotate themselves enough to defend against Iaito...

    Nerissa Bisects the vampire while grabbing the upper torso with her free hand. The vampire is still somehow still alive, but not for long as she bites into his neck savagely, not sucking his blood and instead tearing his throat out with her teeth. She swallows the flesh in her mouth while slitting her wrist to prepare the use of more blood for the other seven vampires heading for her.

    Blood flows from the cut and gathers in her hand, creating a large ruby dagger that she holds in a reverse grip. The vampires continue to come, a few utilising their unique abilities. Two disappear into shadows on the floor, the dog that''d found her scent grows into a dire wolf while one creates a blood whip to restrain her.

 453 The unfortunate fate of Moodys leg

    The blood whip swing horizontally towards her legs but is proven useless as Nerissa simply raises her Ruby dagger and severs it, and uses the blood that splashes to the floor in her own reserves. The blood gathers on her heel and turns into a sharp spike, she spins and jumps into the air while swinging her heel at a shadow behind her. Which reveals a vampire leaping from it, they aren''t able to dodge as the ruby spike impales their temple causing them to burst into ash. She lands on her side with a thud, her momentum gone due to her hitting something mid jump. It''s then a vampire leaps from the shadow above her with sharp claws extended, she swings Iaito at it but it dodges and allows it''s Dire Wolf ally to pounce at her, while still on her side her stabs the floor with her ruby dagger and pushes herself quickly, causing her to dodge the Dire Wolf''s claws. She spins a full rotation around and nails a brutal kick into it''s face, launching it away at the shadow wielding vampire that''d tried to attack her before.

    As she''s trying to regain her bearings she''s grabbed by yet another blood whip, she''s thrown towards the stairs and rolls down a few before stabilising and glaring at the blood wielding vampire. They grin at her but have to dodge the ruby dagger that she throws at him in a rage, it whistles past his face and draws blood that dribbles down the side of his face. He turns to look back and taunt her but finds his heart already pierced by Iaito, the dagger only being a distraction.

    While Nerissa is fighting Ciri is trying to deal with Moody.

    After Moody''s shield had thoroughly disintegrated he''d ducked under the whip that past by his position and threw a couple killing curses at her. They were easily dodged and Ciri continued to move forward on his location. She points her staff and casts a silent explosion charm at him, it last next to him and rockets him at the stairs which makes him choke out some blood due to the impact.

    Moody "You fuckin'' bitch!" he spits along with a goblet of blood.

    Ciri "What''s wrong? You''re able to torture harmless creatures but can''t fight a woman? Pathetic!"

    Moody growls, "I''ll show you pathetic! "Aruspices Expellunt!" he shouts as a yellow bolt passes by her. Ciri easily dodging it.

    Ciri gives a smug smirk at his failure which only aggravates him more. Moody raises the staircase with some impressive transfiguration and starts hobbling up the stairs in an attempt to get help from his vampire allies.

    Moody "You fools! Help kill this cunt!" he shouts, his words getting noticed by two of the vampires who''d just witnessed Nerissa annihilate yet another of their companions. They look at eachother and nod, deciding they''d stand a better chance killing the witch first.

    Ciri finally clambers up the raise staircase when she''s confronted with two vampires and Moody, he starts with the typical killing curse, quickly combo''ing it with the torture curse Crucio, however they all miss. She twists through them but is finding dodging the vampire and Moody''s spells difficult, one vampire transforms his arm into a huge blade which if Reima was here to see it would shout "Prototype" excitedly.

    Ciri uses her staff to parry the huge arm blade and it sticks in the ground with the vampire struggling to retrieve it, she steps on it and over to dodge another curse from Moody which barely misses his vampire ally. She then shoves her hand in it''s face and casts the Pyromancy Great Combustion, dark red flames explode from her hand, instantly incinerating the vampire and causing the other to retreat. The only one unaffected is Moody who casts Imperio through the fire, the spell actually hitting her and causing her to halt for a moment as she tries to escape it.

    She eventually manages to break out of it and tries to dodge but receives a cut on her side via the remaining vampires claws. She scowls and throws an axe kick at it, it dodges but fails to notice her pirouette with her staff spinning towards it''s head...

    *THUNK* *SPLASH*

    Is heard by those nearby as the obsidian head of the staff connects with the vampires skull, crushing it to the floor and causing it''s contents to stain the ground moments before it turns to dust.

    Moody glares at her with a look of exasperation and fear, "Why won''t you fucking die! AVADA KEDAVRA!" he exclaims as yet another green bolt flies past her.

    Ciri "Maybe because you are weak?" she taunts.

    Moody doesn''t say anything and quickly starts hobbling up the stairs towards the two other remaining vampires that Nerissa is currently fending off.

    Ciri "Oh no you don''t!" she says as she summons another flame whip and throws it at him. He isn''t able to dodge or shield this one and it wraps around the one leg that isn''t wooden...

    "AHHHHHHHHHH!" he screams as the whip burns his flesh, the trousers burn away and reveal his quickly boiling and blistering flesh. It quickly turns black as the flame whip sinks deeper into his flesh. A quick tug by Ciri completely removing it from the man.

    Moody "AHHHHHHHHH! YOU FUCKING BITCH, MY LEG, YOU TOOK MY LEG!"

    Ciri clinks her tongue, "Damn, I was planning on removing your manhood... But that can wait." she says as she steals the wand from him. He screams at her in a rage, as if his voice would be strong enough to kill her on it''s own. She walks past him after casting a sticking charm to keep him where he is and attempts to help Nerissa out.

 454 The great reveal!

    Nerissa had been having difficulties mounting a defence against the vampire transformed into a Dire Wolf and the one utilising the shadows as a means of travel. Unlike the other one, this one seems to use his ability intelligently instead of just going for a quick kill at the enemies back. The Dire Wolf has sustained a few injuries in their fight thus far but none seem to be inhibiting it''s abilities yet.

    She had just fended off another mauling from the Wolf when two hands grasp her ankles from below her, looking down she sees the smiling face of the shadow vampire. He pulls her into the shadow and they both end up falling from the roof, Nerissa kicks off of the wall and uses Ruby claws to keep herself at an elevated position. She watches as the shadow vampire falls and leaps towards him, brandishing Iaito and clashing with him as he tries to use his claws to defend himself.

    *CLANK*

    They both fall to the floor gracefully, however one of the straps of Nerissa''s dress hangs limply due it being cut... She turns and raises her sword at the shadow wielding vampire who''s still standing, but changes her focus elsewhere as one half of his body falls to the side, the entirety of it bursting to ash not long after.

    A roar behind her signals the last remaining foe is on the move, however an explosion abruptly ends it.

    Ciri had thrown a fireball at the Dire Wolf as it attempted to charge Nerissa. It''s ashes coat the room like a cloud. She runs over to Nerissa and wipes some of the blood from her face, "Are you ok?"

    Nerissa nods with a neutral expression, "Dirty."

    Ciri "Well there''s one left so lets go deal with him ." she says, grasping Nerissa''s hand and walking down the stairs towards Moody.

    The "no-legged" man notices their approach and shouts at them, "Back to finish the job? Well? DO IT! JUST, DO IT!"

    Ciri scowls at him but Nerissa is the one who makes the first move, while holding Ciri''s hand she steps forward and stabs Moody in the stomach with Iaito... However the man only grins at them as he grips the blade embedded in his stomach. "Gotcha." he says in a voice that''s not Moody''s, of course Ciri knew this already but it''s still weird.

    *FLASH*

    They disappear as Moody activates the portkey.

    Present time :

    Reima "Well, fuck." he says as he stares at the two, along with everyone else present in the graveyard.

    Even the audience is surprise at this, only now having actually looked at Ciri''s Observer feed.

    Dumbledore "Alastor?" he question when he sees him. However his confusion won''t last much longer as the Polyjuice potion had just run out.

    Moody pulls Nerissa''s sword from his stomach and tosses it to the floor as his face and body begins to melt. He isn''t at risk of bleeding out due to the wound missing all his vital organs and his missing leg wound being seared closed by the flame whip.

    His skin bubbles and his fake eye *POPS* off of his head, eventually the transformation ends and reveals Barty Crouch Jr or David Tennant as Reima knows him.

    Ciri "Ah, it''s you! The freak who tried to pull me into a police box!" she exclaims while pointing her finger at him.

    Voldemort is baffled along with all the Death Eaters, Vampires and the Audience back in the stadium.

    Reima gives up and screams "FUCK IT!" as he throws the Invisibility cloak off of himself, "CIRI YOU HAD ONE DAMN JOB!" he shouts at her. Immediately as he reveals himself forty Death Eaters take off their own cloaks with their wands pointing at him. This brings the count up to around seventy Death Eaters, with their full attention on Reima.

    Voldemort "It seems we had more guessed than I had accounted for..." he says after a moment.

    Sterling Alucard steps forward, "Nerissa, my Grand Daughter. Come to me, I will take you where you belong." he says while holding his arms wide.

    Leon Belmont scowls at him, "You won''t be getting her, the prophesy states that she will be more than even Dracula should she survive. She will be dying tonight." he states with Sterling glaring at him.

    Reima "Both of you shut the fuck up! Nerissa''s mine, you can try and take her but I''ll tear you apart before that happens!" he shouts, and as he does so flicks his wrist, causing the Tri-Wizard cup to fly furiously at Harry.

    *CLANK!*

    It hits him in the head and gives off an echoing sound that makes the audience and everyone else watching flinch. Harry is instantly knocked out as the heavy cup collides with his forehead, however his limp body appears in the middle of the stadium, safe and sound. Leaving the only feed to what''s actually happening with Ciri''s Observer.

    Voldemort looks in shock as this "teenager" had just displayed an impressive use of wandless magic, not even he was as talented as this boy was, not that he would admit it of course. "YOU, YOU HAVE PROLONGED MY REVENGE!" he says in a rage at seeing Harry Potter disappear right under his grasp.

    Reima "Lick my ass-hole you noseless cunt!" he shouts and spits on the floor as disrespectfully as he can manage. All the while preparing to start killing everyone present.

    While Reima is drawing everyone''s attention Nerissa retrieves Iaito from the ground and crouches low with Ciri, Barty Crouch Jr still watching them like a hawk however without legs or a wand he''s functionally useless. He didn''t dare draw his Lords ire to himself by interrupting the fool who''s currently insulting him.

 455 Release

    Everyone can only watch on as Reima Ludvig cusses out the Dark Lord in-front of his face, the snake-like man seething in rage and deciding which torture he''d subject this person to. He was so infuriated that he thought death would be a mercy for him.

    Reima "Yeah you and your butt-muchers heard what I said, what are you gonna do about it?" he says sarcastically with the surrounding Death Eaters not getting angry, but instead are scared of what their Lords reaction to this person would be.

    Voldemort "Hmm."

    Reima "What''s wrong? I''d have thought the "Great Dark Lord" would have a comeback to this, I guess that''s all you are... All bark an no bite!"

    Voldemort smiles creepily at him, "Oh, no... I was just deciding how I wanted to kill you... CRUCIO!" he exclaims as he points his wand at Reima.

    The audience back at the stadium all wince as they see the Dark Lord cast the unforgivable, they all knew Reima would likely not make it out alive... Even the Death Eaters pitied Reima as they themselves had been on the receiving end of their Lords torture curse more times than not.

    ....

    However, when Voldemorts spell hits Reima the expected screams of agony aren''t there...

    Reima looks at the Dark Lord and scratches his chest that''d just been hit by the torture curse, he felt like this could be used as a massage spell...

    Voldemort scowls and looks down at his wand in confusion, "Crucio!" he shouts again, with similar results.

    Reima "Could you cast that on my back? I think I''ve got a few knots..."

    Voldemort "WHAT ARE YOU? WHY DOES CRUCIO NOT AFFECT YOU?" He howls in rage.

    Back in the stadium everyone breathes a sigh of relief while also pondering how Reima is resisting the Dark Lords spell, Dumbledore is intrigued but not surprised... As Reima is someone with such a powerful and unique aura he suspected there was more than meets the eye to him.

    Fudge''s throat is dry as he continues to watch open mouthed from Ciri''s observer, not knowing what he should do in this situation.

    Reima smirks, his shadow rippling as black tentacles slowly extend out and morph into the Staff of Manus, a clawed hand tries to escape with it but he gives it a nudge with his foot and it falls back inside it''s prison. Those around just look on with confusion as he does this, this wasn''t a magic known to any of them. "What am I? If I were a Protagonist I''d say something cliche about "being your death" or "being justice"..." his words confuse those watching, "But, I think it''d be better to show you." he states as the surroundings begin to heat up, the staff of Manus glowing red as fiery tendrils make their way across it''s surface, making it look like a piece of firewood that''d just been retrieved from a fireplace. Embers drift from Reima''s form as his robes burn away, leaving him in some flexible trousers from Absolver, even his school shoes burn away, the leather combusting immediately and leaving his feet to rest in the dirt.

    Small Dark Red flames spring to life around him as the air ripples due to the rise in temperature from his presence alone. Everyone is shocked at this transformation, not knowing what could have caused it, even Ciri and Nerissa are unsure about what is happening as Reima had never showed them this form before.

    Fleur who''s sitting with her parents with a worried face blanks out, her parents shake her to try and get her attention.

    Appoline "Fleur? What is happening?" she asks with a few of the surrounding people leaning in to listen.

    Fleur shakes her head, "I-I have no idea..."

    Dumbledore watches in interest, luckily for him the Observer doesn''t transmit magical aura''s through it''s projection as he''d probably have been blinded by Reima''s release.

    Voldemort glares at him unflinchingly, "You think petty tricks will prevent your death!?!"

    Reima shakes his head, "No, but I think this might." he says as he waves his offhand, confusing a few people for a moment, until a rumbling in the earth signals something amiss.

    A few Death Eaters notice and jump out of the way, leaving their unfortunate comrades as the ground explodes and a huge pillar of fire shoots into the sky, it''s Dark Red Flames incinerating anything caught by them. While everyone''s attention is on the explosion Reima casts Invisible weapon on Ciri''s sword Seath and levitates it to her, releasing the spell as it impales the ground in-front of her.

    Voldemort growls out, "You will not leave this place alive!" he says as he whips his wand to point at the sky, causing the air to ripple around them in a large area, enveloping everyone present. He''d strengthened the anti-apparition ward as he didn''t think the old one would prevent this being from escaping.

    Reima laughs and raises his own fist, it glows turquoise for a moment as he clenches his fist. As he does this turquoise tendrils start crawling up the air, presumably around the Anti-apparition ward. "I don''t think you understand your situation... You''re stuck here with me!" he shouts, stealing the line from a hero he resonates with the most.

    Voldemort would have paled if he had any colour in his skin left, this boy had just taken control over his own ward. "N-no matter, no one can defeat me, the Dark Lord." he says as he raises his wand and drops into a duelling stance. Something he hadn''t had to use in years due to everyone being simply too easy to defeat, however he knew this man wouldn''t go down as easy as them.

 456 The fisting continues...

    Voldemort wastes no time and casts the killing curse at Reima, the green spell more vivid than any other he''d seen. Reima''s expression doesn''t change though as he swats it away with the Staff of Manus, the redirected killing curse hitting a nearby Death Eater.

    In response to this the surrounding Death Eaters begin to fire various spells at Reima, the barrage lighting up the graveyard as if it were a nightclub or day-time. He focuses his Observation Haki and begins to spin his staff, each spell that''s shot at him is deflected. Due to the sheer amount of them he isn''t able to deflect them all back to their senders however the few he does manage forces Voldemort to stop them.

    Voldemort "STOP! HE IS MINE!" He shouts as he sees his Death Eaters begin to start dropping like flies. They back away when they hear this, with some of his more loyal follows such as Bellaltrix Lestrange, Lucious Malfoy and Corban Yaxley stay at the forefront, despite the risk to themselves.

    Reima "You sure? I was enjoying killing those pricks." he states.

    Voldemort doesn''t reply and transfigures many large stone snakes from the ground, they move at quicker speeds than Reima had expected however as they tried to bite him he punches the first one, causing it''s head to explode in a rain of stone fragment-like shrapnel. The others continue to move on him but due to them being slower than the others they glow red and melt into lava at being in his vicinity too long.

    Those watching are confused and assume he''d cast a spell of some-sort, not believing his body could simply be just that "hot".

    Reima hadn''t actually moved an inch yet, his feet still planted firmly on the ground... In small puddles of lava that''d formed under them... He decides to use some of the spells he hadn''t had a chance to use in a while. He raises the Staff of Manus and numerous Crystals starts forming mid air, growing into huge blue spears... Voldemort swallows and braces himself as he sees the large amount of spears pointing in his direction...

    A flick of his wrist signals their assault as all of the spears shoot in Voldemort direction, he tries to shield himself but a spear passes through his exceedingly powerful Protego like butter, gouging a large hole in his side. Not knowing what to do he drops to the floor in an attempt to dodge the rest, somehow succeeding...

    He slowly gets to his feet and points his wand at Reima, "You''re spells are useless and ineffective!" he shouts in triumph.

    Reima leans his head to the side and points behind Voldemort, the Dark Lord takes a glance behind him and freezes... The Death Eaters that''d be hiding behind him while assuming the safest place was behind their lord are were all eviscerated, their piles of flesh telling the story of what happens to those who put their faith in their master.

    Reima "You''d think for someone so infamous in the wizarding world, you''d be way more powerful than this... I mean, that wasn''t even one of my stronger spells." he states mockingly.

    Voldemort doesn''t or maybe can''t respond and casts some kind of fire, Reima recognises it to be FiendFyre but isn''t scared at all. The flames turn into a huge snake that''s around two stories tall and twice as long. "You won''t be unscathed after this! NO ONE CAN DEFEAT VOLDE-"

    Reima watches the snake try and bite him, however instead of letting it''s fiery fangs hit him he punches a hole into it''s flaming head. It gives off no resistance as it''s still just fire but that wasn''t his goal. The snake seems to pulse as it''s colour turns Dark Red, this doesn''t last long as it''s form seems to start getting compressed... No, not compressed, absorbed. The snake is slowly being drawn into Reima''s hand, not even ten seconds pass and the snake had completely vanished. The only sign that it ever existed at all is the giant scorch mark in the floor.

    Voldemort''s composure finally breaks at this, he''d used a lot of his magical reserves to conjure that FiendFyre construct and yet it was destroyed with such ease. He waves his wand and conjures a large stone wall to raise in-front of him while he tries to dismantle whatever hold Reima has over the Anti-Apparition ward.

    Reima watches as the wal is build and chuckles, he could just jump over it but he found it incredibly amusing to mess with the "Dark Lord". He shifts the Staff of Manus to his left hand as he channels Armament Haki into his right arm. Without another moment he leaps towards the wall with ridiculous speeds while rearing back his blackened fist.

    *BBBAAAAAAAAAAANNNNNNGGGGGGGGGG!!!!!*

    The result of his punch resembling an earthquake as the thick stone wall turns to rubble and boulder sized chunks that shoot away from him at terminal velocity. They pepper the surrounds of the graveyard like meteorites, causing huge craters to form. A few Death Eaters are turned to mulch as they couldn''t escape fast enough but funnily enough, Voldemort is the person least affected by this... The force of Reima''s punch not allowing any rubble to go slow enough to drop on him.

    Voldemort looks up as the meteor shower happens above him, wondering what kind of god he had angered with his presence... He falls onto his back and tries to scramble away from Reima who''s slowly stepping towards him.

    Every step of Reima''s causing the ground below his feet to melt away into glowing red slag, he can see the skin on Voldemorts face begin to char and blister the closer he gets.

    Voldemort is in agonising pain but still resists "EVEN IF YOU KILL ME, I WILL RETURN!" he shouts, his voice echoing throughout the graveyard, along with the stadium broadcasting the events.

    Reima chuckles, "Oh, I don''t think you''ll be returning after this... The funny thing is, you don''t even know the best part yet." Voldemort struggles to try and get away but gasps as a searingly hot hand wraps around his throat.

    Reima had stabbed the Staff of Manus in the ground to free his hands, "I know about your little trinkets Tom." he says, while finding the fearful look in the Dark Lords eyes incredibly satisfying. "I won''t destroy them though... I don''t even need to." he mutters as his hand is enveloped in a black and dark red mist... The Dark Hand. Reima''s eyes turn pure black as his voice lowers and sounds like multiple people speaking at once. "YOUR SOUL IS MINE!" He exclaims as he plunges his hand into Voldemorts chest, grabbing the shard of whatever is still present of the Dark Lords soul.

 457 Accidentally Flexing...

    Everyone watches with morbid fascination as Reima''s hand exits the chest of Voldemort, dragging with it a black wispy substance that screams an shrieks in what sounds like terror and agony. It doesn''t last long however as Reima absorbs it, the turquoise circle on his chest pulsing as he does so.

    The audience back in the stadium can''t believe their eyes, most begin to think this is some kind of play. They remembered the terror of the last wizarding war and how much pain and suffering Voldemort had wrought... To see this powerful figure in their minds literally get his soul ripped out and eaten by what they thought was a teenager is too much for some.

    Severus Snape pales at he watches this, remembering the various times he''d tried to use Legilimency on him. His anger at having one of his last memories of him and Lily Evens disappear and are replaced with fear and appreciation. He feels his arm tingle and looks down, seeing that the Dark Mark of the Dark Lord had simply vanished without a trace. Unlike the previous time where it had faded but not completely disappeared.

    Dumbledore was confused at the events happening before his eyes, was the prophecy wrong? Or was Reima Ludvig a being that superseded fate itself? He''d like to talk with the boy but knew the Magical community would label him a terrorist and monster for the power he held and his brutal methods in which he deposed of his enemies... Albus could see throughout the boys battle with Tom that he''d been holding back significantly, most of his attacks hadn''t even been targeted towards Voldemort, instead being directed at the surrounding Death Eaters... He sighs to himself and begins to try and think of a couple ways he could put the public on Reima Ludvigs side, he didn''t think the world could handle a Dark Lord with such power, should the magical world turn against him.

    Fleur feels the stares of many people on her, they weren''t the usual lustful ones but instead were fearful, almost reverential... Her close contact with Reima up until this point had apparently put her on another level from her peers, simply being close to him was apparently enough to make people wary of her. She couldn''t help but chuckle at her fathers expression though, the man remembering the time he''d threatened Reima should he hurt his daughter... What a laugh.

    The vampires on the scene had been watching the fight between Voldemort and Reima, they didn''t interfere as both factions intended to eliminate the winner after they were exhausted. Only after this would they fight one another for the possession over Dracula''s last and most powerful heir.

    Their plans looked to be looking more stupid as the fight went on however, they hadn''t known of the existence of a being as powerful as Reima, not even the strongest vampire had come close to this level.

    Velika Alucard looks to her husband, "Perhaps we should not pursue Nerissa any longer?" she asks, not wishing to fight a being capable of tearing someones soul out with such ease.

    Sterling shakes his head, "No. If such a person gains control over Dracula''s most powerful heir, balance of the worlds power would shift... In ways that I am not able to comprehend."

    Velika presses, "Please! I do not wish for the destruction of our clan... We must let this go!"

    Sterling "Silence! We will attack when the others do, hold your tongue until we''ve achieved victory" he states.

    Ciri and Nerissa hadn''t engaged the large group of vampires around them yet as they didn''t think they''d be able to hold off such a large group, instead waiting as Reima destroyed everything and anyone that challenged him. They''d move when the numbers were lowered enough so for now they continued to crouch low to the ground and look as conspicuous as possible, the two of them gripping their weapons at the ready incase of a surprise attack.

    Reima had just torn Voldemorts soul from his body, his pale lifeless form slowly dissipating into ashes. Not due to Reima''s fiery aura but due to it only being held together by the huge magical potential of Tom Riddle himself.

    His eyes are still black as stands there motionless, Reima himself wasn''t thinking of anything and was instead concentrating on whatever he was currently feeling.

    A green spell shoots towards his back out of no where, shocking those with the composure to notice. The spell is surprising that those close to Reima don''t even get a chance to shout for him to watch out as it hits him in the back.

    Bellatrix "THAT''S FOR OUR LORD!" She howls from the group of Death Eaters still remaining, a few had tried to flee but were killed by those still loyal. Afterall if the Dark Lord could return once he could return again. They were constructing a plan to kill Reima when Bellatrix shot a spell randomly at him... They were all shocked when it actually hit him.

    The stadium of observers had their mouths agape as they watched Reima, a being of such power killed in such a manner!

    ...

    They all continue to watch, expecting Reima to fall down limply, there was only one instance of someone surviving the killing curse but they didn''t think this was one of those times...

    Another couple of seconds ticks by with Reima still standing, not having moved from his original position...

    Bellatrix frowns and fires a couple more green bolt at him, all of them hitting his back. This apparently gave the others the courage to help her out as a barrage of killing curses shoot from the group and collide with Reima. His friends watch in horror as he''s pelted with many spells that should be capable of killing him with a single hit... However, he continues to just stand there.

    Reima''s eyes return to their normal Turquoise colour as he shakes his head and turns around absentmindedly. He notices everyone staring at him and leans his head to the side, "Yeah, Voldemorts dead, and you''re next." he says, not giving any indication that the killing curses had actually affected him or even that he knew he''d been hit at all.

 458 Who Cries?

    Reima "Yeah, Voldemort''s dead, and you''re next."

    The Death Eaters back away with pale faces as they hear him, had he simply not noticed that they were firing spells at him? What on earth was happening!

    Bellatrix steps forward and casts a couple spells of varying colours at him, Reima raises a brow at this and simply swats them away as if they were mosquito''s.

    Reima "Is that all you got?" he asks with a disinterested tone.

    Lucius Malfoy slowly backs away while everyone''s attention is on Reima, he could tell that this was a doomed venture and wished to escape with his life. When he reached the end of the group of Death Eaters he starts sprinting towards the border of the Anti-Apparation ward, hoping to teleport away once outside of it...

    *Flash*

    Reima appears in-front of him with a Turquoise flash of light, "Don''t think I forgot about you Malfoy" he says as he picks the white haired man off of the ground by his neck, using telekinesis he removes the man''s mask which has some of the Audience back at the stadium gasp at his identity, Minister Fudge who had been "cooperating" with Lucius in the past immediately felt that his career was drawing to a close.

    Lucius coughs and splutters as he tries to breath through having his airway restricted, he lifts his wand and fires yet another Killing Curse at Reima pointblank but it does nothing.

    Reima looks down in surprise at the fact he''d just been hit with that unforgivable but a smirk finds it''s way onto his face when he realises what''d happened. "You cunt, you''ve removed one of the millions of souls in my possession." he states after checking his soul count.

    His words echo through the graveyard and scare the shit out of those with hostile intentions towards Reima, even the vampires feel as if they are facing annihilation made manifest.

    Lucius "L-let go... I w-will pay!" he gasps out.

    Reima stabs the Staff of Manus into the ground beside him and taps his chin with a mock thoughtful expression, "Oh, really?"

    Lucius nods rapidly with a pleading look.

    Reima just shakes his head and grabs the man''s collarbone with his other hand and starts applying pressure.

    Lucius lets out a gargled groan as he feels the opposite pressure starting to affect his body, he claws at Reima''s hand, arm and face to no avail as he doesn''t even manage to scratch his skin.

    Another killing curse strikes Reima''s side but he isn''t quite done with Lucius yet, with a jolt his applies a small amount of his strength and literally tears the man apart, one hand tearing Lucius head and spine from his body in a blood display while the other tosses the limp corpse away.

    A few Death Eaters began to vomit at the sight before them however Bellatrix Lestrange continued to scream in fury and madness while firing curses at him, Reima grabbed his staff and threw Lucius still bleeding head into the group of Death Eaters, it flew threw the crowd and hit Corban Yaxley, the skull shattering as it passes through his body sending brain matter and bone fragments flying into those behind him, killing or seriously injuring most of them.

    Reima then teleported in the middle of the group while swinging the axehead of his staff at a nearby man, cutting him completely in two, others scrabbled to try and get away as the heat surrounding Reima''s body was still present, and those too close already felt their skin burning and blistering from being in his presence.

    Truth be told, Reima was having a blast. He was having the most fun he''d had since arriving at this world, the mindless slaughter he was currently committing satisfying the months of idle schoolwork. His hands light up as he channelled a spell he hadn''t used in a long time, Chaos Storm.

    The Staff of Manus is completely wreathed in Dark Red Flames as Reima taps it to the floor with a sadistic look. First is the shockwave, the tap of his staff causing an affect similar to an explosion which knocks a few people nearby off of their feet. Second is silence, as his spell moves underground and gradually starts increasing the pressure of it''s buildup. Third and finally, is the heat.

    *BOOOOOOM!*

    Towers of Red Fire explode from the ground in a large radius around Reima, the Death Eaters that''d previously been present had all been utterly incinerated. They hadn''t even needed to be hit by the spell itself as the subsequent nearby temperature was enough to burn their lungs and melt their eyes.

    They scream in utter agony as Reima stands amidst it, watching his spell go to work. In a mere few seconds the entirety of Voldemorts servants had been eliminated, the only thing remaining of his most loyal ally Bellatrix Lestrange being a few locks of matted and tangled black hair, that quickly burns to ash in Reima''s hand.

    Once the Chaos Storm finally simmers down and ends he turns his sight towards where Ciri and Nerissa are being held. He almost laughs when he sees Barty Crouch Jr staring at him with mouth agape.

    Reima steps forwards and laughs, "Hahahaha! Barty Crouch Jr, or David Tennant if you prefer. I see my friends have finished what I started by removing your other leg!"

    The man can''t seem to conjure a response as he stares down the man responsible for not only killing his Lord, but all of his allies and additionally, his hope and dreams of creating a fully Pure-Blooded society. Tears begin to stream down his face as his tongue flick inexplicably stops, he begins to choke and sob, snot crawling down his face and he cries.

 459 Rita-Creature

    Reima looks down awkwardly at the sobbing man, not really knowing how to react... Most of his enemies usually shouted at him while enraged, or bowed their head as they knew their lives were over... This was a first he''d had someone completely breakdown, it''s weird.

    Reima pokes the man in the face with his foot which causes part of his face to melt and blisters to start to form, only making the man cry louder... "Oh! My bad.." He mutters while scratching the back of his head.

    Ciri''s brow''s furrow at his reaction, "Reima just stomp him out, he tried to kill us earlier!" she says with Nerissa nodding next to her.

    Reima looks at her, "Man, I gave you one job Ciri and you still somehow managed to turn up here..." he mutters as he raises his foot.

    The vampires watch in confusion as the two begin to bicker about who''s fault is who''s, despite everyone present and even in the stadium seeing Reima as some sort of vengeful god.

    Reima brings his foot down and crushes Barty Crouch Jr''s skull, the smell of cooked flesh quickly turning burnt as the brain matter sinks into the lava that quickly forms beneath his foot. "Look, we all know it''s you fault so just shut it while I kill these blood-suckers, kay?" he says in a sarcastic tone.

    Ciri "No, you shut up while I kill them." she states, picking up her sword Seath.

    Reima sighs, not taking notice of the vampires reactions at the fact he''d just proclaimed he was about to kill them, "Snuffles tell Ciri for me to stop being an annoying Princess." he says, with the young vampire giving him a dull look as he tries to involve her in their argument.

    Nerissa shakes her head and turns her attention to Sterlin Alucard, one of the men responsible for her Fathers death. She also turns to look at Leon Belmont who''s standing their cross armed and tapping his foot impatiently. "Revenge." she states, Reima and Ciri stop arguing, both knowing that this isn''t just about them and decide to support their Rabbit.

    Reima "Rit-Ahem, servant. Protect her." he says aloud, much to the confusion of those watching. That is, until a clawed arm bursts from his shadow. It quickly crawls out with it''s other hand grasping some kind of mangled wand? It''s head looks hard, fleshy and bulbous while it''s skin looks pale with black veins clearly visible. It''s arms are twice the length of an average persons and it''s height is around 8ft and stands above everyone present.

    ...

    None of the vampires move as the creature stands to it''s full height, most horrified at it''s appearance while others are curious as to what it is. Despite unconsciously knowing their deaths draw near.

    The Abyssal creature raises it''s wand and points it towards a nearby vampire that panics and tries to run away, the key word being "Tries" as a ball of pure darkness is shot towards them. It collides with his form, blowing a massive hole in it''s chest and leaving black goo in it''s wake. The vampire drops to the floor, signalling that the combat has started.

    Nerissa had already begun to move as soon as the creature had appeared, she''d shot towards Sterling Alucard with Iaito, inteding to end him quickly. However the leader of the Alucard clan isn''t so easy to kill. A ruby wall appears in-front of him, blocking her strike and causing her to lose sight of him.

    She''s about to try and climb over it when the wall begins to liquefy back into blood, it grabs her leg and she struggles to escape it''s grasp. A black blur assists her though, the Abyssal creature bringing a claw down on the blood grabbing it''s temporary charge, disconnecting it and allowing Nerissa to retreat.

    The wave of blood changes it''s target to the Abyssal creature that''d interfered, it forms small tendrils with hard spiked tips of ruby that shoot and penetrate the monsters body. Black ooze is splashed as it''s body is injured, however it gives no indication that it''s in any pain.

    Nerissa sprints around the wall as it''s trying to kill Reima''s monster and she sees Sterling with his arms raised, controlling the wave of blood with a look of concentration.

    Red Flames cover the area she and Sterling are currently in but she takes no notice, her focus completely on her enemy. She shoots towards him, Iaito pointing towards his heart with the intent to pierce it. However the man falls backwards, his control over the wall of blood fading which releases the injured Abyssal creature from it''s restraints.

    Sterling forms a spring of blood under him and launches himself away, almost throwing himself into the wall of fire that now surrounds them. Nerissa notices a few drained corpses of nearby vampires and realises where the large quantity of blood must have come from, shaking her head she begins to take control of it. The large amount difficult to manoeuvre but providing enough power to destroy her Grand Father.

    The blood forms a huge hand that makes it''s way over to Sterling but isn''t quite fast enough to crush him, as he dodges he starts sprinting towards Nerissa in an attempt to outrun the huge hand trying to grab him and interrupt her. However he''s tackled by Reima''s Abyssal monster.

    The Rita-Creature raises it''s claw and tries to swipe at Sterlings downed form but is knocked away by a strong kick that sends it tumbling over itself. He then dodges yet another attempt at crushing him by Nerissa before charging at her.

    Sterling "YOU WILL OBEY ME, CEASE FIGHTING AND ACCEPT YOUR FATE" he shouts as he slits his wrist and forms a ruby sword.

    Nerissa doesn''t say anything and just relinquishes her control over the blood, dropping into a stance with Iaito and awaiting her Grand-Father.

 460 One down, Three more to potato.

    While Nerissa goes off on her own Reima immediately jumps into action, retrieving his divinely enchanted silver sword and leaping into the group of vampires that were preparing to stop Nerissa. He swings his sword and the Staff of Manus like a bladed tornado as he moves through the crowd, the vampires themselves are significantly faster than regular humans but they are still no match for him.

    Leon Belmont watches as all this happens, not even raising a finger as the Alucard clan gets decimated. The few people he''d brought with him all look to him for instructions but he doesn''t say anything and continues to wait, his gaze alternating from Nerissa to Reima.

    One of the vampires next to him inquires as to what they should do, "Father, if we let the Alucard be destroyed then we are likely next with no reinforcements. If we are going to act we must act now." he states.

    Leon shakes his head, "Trevor my son, we will not fight with that man... Wait for the opportunity to grab the girl, if that''s not possible, strike to kill then flee." he says.

    Travor Belmont just nods with a grave look on his face.

    Ciri isn''t idle in all this either, despite her speed not matching some of the faster vampires she still manages to hold her own. She''d abandoned her staff in favour of just using Seath and Wandless magic, her crystal sword occasionally flashes as she swings it to shoot magical air blades at her targets, dismembering them when they hit.

    With her other hand she occasionally has to use Quen to stifle an impact or block one of the vampires abilities. Her most devastating spells were her Pyromancies however. A flame whip swings in a wide arc, catching one vampires neck, coiling around and wrapping around a second. With a quick pull she tightens the hold which continues to burn their flesh, the first dying in a few seconds due to the intense heat while the other screams in terror and pain as his arms stop working due to the flesh being entirely burned.

    Ciri parry''s a claw with Seath and stabs back, making them burst into ashes as she releases the whip and fires a fireball into a crowd waiting to strike Reima. It explodes sending burnt body parts flying through the battlefield.

    Reima continues his path of destruction, already having killed around seventy vampires, he spots a large group getting ready to protect Sterling Alucard as Nerissa and Rita-creature attempt to kil him. He throws the Staff of Manus at a nearby vampire transformed into a Tiger which cuts it in two without issue before swinging is arm with what looks like great effort. The surrounding vampires watch in fear and awe as Dark Red Fire explodes from Reima''s hand, he concentrates and has it form a huge sphere the revolves around the area Nerissa is currently at. This single action takes a large amount of strength and mental effort to perform but for his enemies to see something like that is so demoralising that the battle probably could have been ended there...

    A few of the more loyal vampires try and use their unique abilities to breach the sphere of Dark Red fiery death but disintegrate upon touching it. Not even leaving ashes as they disappear. Reima keeps his Observation Haki at full blast to keep an eye on Nerissa, he trusts that she''s currently stronger than the Alucard leader but is ready to jump in should she need help.

    He turns his gaze to the nearby vampires who shrink away from him as his glowing turquoise cat-like eyes focus on them, he ignores them and looks towards where the other group of vampires had been. He spots them still standing there trying to look superior while their brethren are being slaughtered. Deciding to deal with them before they do whatever they''re planning he blinks in-front of their group after using Telekinesis to grab the Staff of Manus.

    A few of the Belmont clan take a few steps back as he appears before them but Leon holds his ground, his own red slitted eyes roam over Reima''s form appraisingly. "I am Leon Belmont, Patriarch of the Belmont clan and leader of the vampires as a whole." he states.

    Reima has a weird look on his face as he hears this, wondering what this guys game is... He flicks some of the blood from his Silver Sword and shakes off some of the lava forming under his feet. "You want to start? Or shall I begin tearing you apart?" he asks, a promise in his words.

    Leon raises his hands and shows his palms placatingly, "Now, Now. I am sure we can come to some sort of agreement."

    ...

    Seeing Reima not saying anything Leon continues, "I am a man who values many things, riches, people, land... But there is one thing I respect above all else... Power. You my friend have that, I offer you a place in our Belmont family."

    ...

    Reima "Why would I want to join a bunch of leeches?.." he says but internally apologises to Nerissa for his comment.

    Leon "We control the majority of the Muggle world, in every country we have a powerful politician in our pocket, in every Government we contribute to the rules set. We could make you rich, famous, adored by the masses..." he offers.

    Reima rolls his eyes, "And what would you have in return? Me not tearing you a new ass-hole?"

    Leon shakes his head, "We want the girl... To kill her to be more specif-"

    *SNAP!*

    *TEAR!*

    *THUMP*

    As the man''s about to continues his words his vision flashes Turquoise as he feels a pain in his arm, once it clears and he''s able to see he spots his arm... A few meters away on the floor. Leon isn''t a coward and can deal with pain, an as such doesn''t show the amount of pain he''s in from having his arm torn off. Looking up he sees Reima still standing in the same position as before with a neutral expression.

 461 Betrayal!

    The surrounding vampires look at if they''re about to jump at Reima but Leon raises a hand to stop them.

    Leon "Do you really value the girl above the worlds riches?" he asks, apparently not able to comprehend his decision.

    Reima "I told you earlier, she''s mine. The moment you try and touch something of mine I''ll tear you apart." he states.

    ...

    Leon "There''s a prophecy, she will bring a reign of terror to the world the likes no one has ever seen. It is set in stone, why do you try and stop us?"

    Reima rolls his eyes and sighs, "Fuck your seer and prophecy dog shit, I don''t care about your reasons but I''ll say it again... Make a move against me and I''ll end you."

    ...

    Trevor Belmont is about to try and reason with his father for them to leave but, the man breaks into uproarious laughter.

    Leon "HAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!" He laughs loudly, his fangs glinting in the dim light. He holds his stomach with his remaining arm as he does so.

    Reima raises a brow at his reaction, he feels as if he''s missed a joke somewhere here...

    A minute passes and the vampire is finally done, he turns his gaze to Reima and explodes at him. "YOU PATHETIC MORTAL, WE ARE BELMONT! THE RULERS OF THIS WORLD. I WILL NOT BE INTIMIDATED BY SOME CREATURE WHO''S ONLY CAPABLE OF SCARING WEAK WIZARDS!"#

    Trevor feels his words caught in his throat as he sees his father go mad and antagonise this powerful being. Looking over he can see said person smirking as Leon berates him...

    With Nerissa :

    Nerissa had been fighting Sterling for a while now, she could feel her exhaustion but didn''t slow down, her strikes not weakening but instead becoming more fierce and desperate as time goes on. Sterling was strong and had a lot more practise with the unique ability of the Alucard clan but Nerissa wasn''t far behind him in skill. The only thing that''d prevented her cleaving the man in two was his speed and strength, due to the man being significantly older than her he was simply stronger than her. However, due to her training with Reima and Ciri she was more comfortable with a sword, which was clearly seen whenever they clashed blades.

    Sterling himself felt like he was on deaths door, he was so tired that his muscles burned and ached. The last time he''d had to move so fast was during their betrayal of the original Dracula. I felt like fate that the last heir would be seeking retribution for her ancestors and indeed her fathers demise.

    His ruby sword glints in the air as he swings it at Nerissa, she attempts to parry but the sword flies over her head, apparently not aiming for her at all. A *Squelch* is heard as the Abyssal creature that''d been assisting her has it''s arm removed, the limb dissolving into black goo as it hits the floor...

    Nerissa backs away while throwing a ruby knife that shatters upon impact with Sterlings ruby sword, the shards of the knife liquifying and reinforcing his own blade.

    He attempts to leap forward at her but finds that his foot is tangled in the goo from the creatures destroyed arm, a tentacle wraps his ankle tightly as the Abyssal creature recovers from having it''s arm chopped. It points it''s mangled wand at him and shoots a dark orb that he barely dodges. However this isn''t the end of the assault, Nerissa takes advantage of his disrupted balance and charges with her swords pointing at his heart.

    Sterling tries to parry the strike but the stab was only a feint, Nerissa bashes his weapon and forces them both to be flung from their hands. She doesn''t stop and leaps onto the man, biting fiercely into his neck to drain his life-force. Sterling shouts in pain but bites her back to try and reabsorb his own lost life force.

    The sphere of fire around them starts to dissipate as they attempt to drain the other dry, however Sterlings complexion begins to turn paler than before, his face becoming gaunt. He becomes so weak that he''s unable to continue draining the girl and feels death approaching. He spots someone who may be able to save him however, his wife Velika...

    Sterling looks at her while trying to push off the ravenous girl from his neck, "My wife... H-elp me!"

    A dark figure stands above Nerissa, the Abyssal creature looking at her menacingly. Velika shivers under it''s glare but bends down to pick up Iaito from the floor, she walks over to the duo and raises it over her head, ready to strike down. The Abyssal servant looks as if it''s about to pounce as she brings it down.

    Sterling''s eyes shimmer as he sees his wife about to save him, he thanks whatever gods are out there... But... The blade lands on his forehead, taking the top of his skull cleanly off and reducing him to ash instantly.

    Velika''s legs shake as she drops the blade and falls to her knees, a tear drips down her face as a completely covered in blood Nerissa looks up at her amidst the ash pile she''s now leaning over.

    Velika "M-my grand daughter... I''m sorry." she says slowly.

    Around them the vampires of the Alucard clan look at the remnants of their leader, a few meters away from that is Ciri who''s still cutting them down. All at once, as if a command has just been given, they flee. Some turning to mist, some turning to animals and some simply sprinting. They run as fast as their legs can carry them, away from these monsters that''d torn most of them apart, their numbers being decreased by around 70%!

 462 Silver Crown

    Ciri look around in confusion as her target practise begin to flee, she cuts down a few trying to escape but can only do so much to those running away. She taps Seath on her shoulder while walking towards Nerissa, she can see a blonde haired woman holding her arms out as if to hug the girl but Nerissa just walks away, leaving the tear stricken woman sobbing quietly on her knees.

    Nerissa walks up to Ciri and just stands in-front of her without moving, Ciri smiles and hugs the young girl, her small arms wrapping around her waist as she tries to comfort her.

    Ciri "Once this is all over I''ll introduce you to our family." she says quietly in a soothing voice.

    Nerissa nods her head in agreement while in Ciri''s embrace. She looks over to see what Reima''s doing and can see him talking to the other group of vampires, she recognises the weapons they''re carrying as the ones used to kill Talicia. Looking down she decides that comfort can come later, revenge is best served as soon as possible after all.

    Ciri pats Nerissa on the back, "We still have a job to do, you don''t want Reima to have all the fun do you?" she asks.

    Nerissa pulls away and rubs her eyes with her forearm, smeared blood replacing her tears as she walks over to pick up Iaito. "Belmont, suffer." she states as she walks over to Reima, the one armed Abyssal creature following dutifully after her. They have to step over a few charred corpses as they go, they try to walk over to where Reima is but find the temperature surrounding him too unbearable to approach.

    Reima notices them standing a few meters away and nods his head with a smile, "I''ve been keeping them warm for you Snuffles... You want the big one or the small ones?" he asks.

    Nerissa points to Leon Belmont and Reima nods, "You two handle that douche bag, I''ll stop his retard kids from giving him a... Hand." he says, emphasising "hand".

    ...

    Ciri glances from the hand currently resting on the floor that used to belong to Leon, "Your jokes still suck."

    Reima "No, you suck." he says with his arms crossed, still holding the Staff of Manus and his Silver Sword.

    Before they''re about to get into another argument Nerissa tugs Ciri''s torn clothes with an un-amused look.

    Ciri huffs, "Fine, but this isn''t over." she adds at the end.

    Reima walks towards the group of around twenty five vampires that has three standing ahead of the rest as if they''re leaders of the pack. "You wanna introduce yourselves before I crush you?" he asks.

    The one who had previously tried to persuade his father to leave nods and bows to him, "I am Trevor Belmont, may I have the pleasure of learning your name?"

    Reima shrugs ,"Reima Ludvig... You know, if you wanna run I won''t stop you." he says after deciding that this one guy isn''t so bad.

    Trevor shakes his head as the two others step forwards, both have short black hair, red eyes and a silver whip at their sides. "I am Christopher Belmont, son of Trevor Belmont." "I am Simon Belmont, son of Christopher Belmont."

    ...

    Reima "Some fucked up family you guys have got there." he says as he begins to prepare for the battle.

    Reima clicks his neck and stabs the Staff of Manus into the floor, deciding to go back to the basics. He points the Silver Sword at Trevor, "You''ll die last." he says as he dashes over to them. Trevor retrieves what looks like a segmented sword and drops into a martial stance that Reima doesn''t recognise. Simon and Christopher unclip their whips and begin spinning them to gain momentum on the first attack.

    A vampire sprints in-front of them while shouting something about "Loyalty", they wield a silver sword and try to bring it down on the charging Reima. However Reima just catches the sword and twists his hand, causing the weapon to break in half. The vampire looks as if he''s just shit himself as Reima rears back for a headbutt. They try and back away but are hit in the face, their skull imploding from the force and sending blood and grey matter everywhere before turning to ash...

    ...

    Any of the other lower ranked vampires who had idea''s of running ahead and confronting him immediately thank whatever god they worship that they hadn''t gone first. The crazy look on Reima''s bloody face as he licks the now boiling blood from his face makes them back away in fear.

    Reima "Come on, FIGHT!" he shouts, with the three Belmont generations jumping into action.

    Immediately the fight changes into something he hadn''t fought before, Trevor''s segmented sword extends into some kind of whip. This combines with the other two and dexterously moves with them, not tangling or affecting another''s trajectory. This gives Reima no where to move and they begin to close in on him... This would be the end for any normal person, but Reima is simply a being on a higher level than they are. As the silver whips come down on him he pushes his aura at them, causing them to melt into molten slag that hits him but doesn''t affect him at all.

    Reima brushes off some lava from his shoulder and looks over to them, un-amused... He had thought their weapons would be like his own and survive a little longer... But turns out he had forgotten that they didn''t have access to "God Metal" or Titanite like he did.

    He uses Telekinesis and gathers the molten silver into a clump before shooting it at high speeds towards the youngest Belmont, Simon.

    He tries to dodge but the shock of losing his weapon so quickly has him unable to dodge.

 463 This situation sucks doesnt it?

    A glob of molten silver collides with the side of Simons face, the weight and momentum of it allowing it to jolt his head back and envelop him. He tries to scream but finds his mouth covered in the molten silver. The purifying aspects of the metal burning him more than even the heat of it. He drops to his knees while trying to claw the metal off of him however it''s already started sticking to his charred flesh. With the strength only a vampire can employ he manages to tear it off of him, however it brings with it most of the flesh from his head and face. What''s left makes his father Christopher want to vomit, his face lacked any skin the only thing present was blackened and burnt bone, his eyes as been the first to melt and even his tongue and throat were horribly scarred. He falls over backwards after a moment and turns to ash, the injuries far too severe to heal.

    Reima grins at them, "Man, I thought I was hot..." he says and almost laughs with his cheeks inflating to hold it in.

    Christopher "You monster!" he shouts in disbelief at how cruel this man could be.

    Reima scoffs at him, "Hahh? You, a vampire just called me a monster? You stupid or something?"

    Christopher "Monsters come in many forms, like yourself." he says and would have continued had Reima not teleported behind him and bisected him with his sword.

    Reima looks at the last remaining Belmont, Trevor. "I gave you a chance, any last words?"

    Trevor shakes his head, "It was an honour to fight with you." he says as he runs at Reima and uses his claws to try and slash at him.

    Reima decides to experiment with one of his less used weapons and retrieves Grant, the holy hammer of Paladin Leeroy. He viciously thrusts it at Trevor, the head penetrated the man''s stomach, Reima then activates it''s special ability which causes it to release a powerful holy shock-wave inside of Trevor''s body... He explodes in a red mist which promptly turns to ash that lingers in the air.

    He goes to look at the group of vampires that''d been standing there but finds that they had all ran away... "Cowards." he mutters despite his blood-lust being sated for now.

    With Nerissa, Ciri and Rita-Creature :

    Leon draws an ornate looking silver sword and drops into a light stance not fitting a swordsman. His only goal had been to kill the heir of Dracula and that stupid god of fire had just given him the opportunity. Once he killed her he would ingest her blood and become the strongest vampire in existence, as is the Belmont way. He was thankful for his good fortune as his offhand had been torn off, he would have been at a great disadvantage if his preferred hand had been removed...

    Ciri is the first to move as she dashes forward with Seath ready to strike, she brings the sapphire blade down but Leon taps the side of it with his foot and stabs at her. Ciri''s eyes open wide at the man''s weird technique and is barely able to back away from the stab... Everything she knew as a swordsman told her that the Belmont''s technique shouldn''t have worked, he should have been knocked off balance and been made vulnerable to attack...

    Rita-Creature is next, it raises it''s wand and fires a spray of small dark orbs, the ancient vampire simply ducks under them while slashes those that get to close and home in on him. Once the orbs disappear Nerissa cuts her wrist and presses her hand to the floor, causing a ruby spike to erupt from the floor, Leon barely dodging it. The spike retracts, presumably to return the blood used in the attack to Nerissa.

    Leon "Girl, give yourself up or I''ll cut down your friends first!" he says to try and distract her, however it doesn''t seem to even make Nerissa''s face twitch... Ciri is another story though.

    Ciri "Trying to threaten her with my life? Try it you bastard!" she says, slashing upwards but getting parried, however she throws a handful of dirt into the vampires face which makes him back away with a furious expression.

    Leon "You dishonourable little bi-" *Clank!* He''s interrupted as he has to block yet another strike, this time for Nerissa. Iaito whistles through the air as rapid strikes are made but parried. The Abyssal creature decides it''s had enough and leaps at Leon to try and claw him with it''s remaining arm, however he kicks it in the stomach, it''s foot pierces it and getting stuck. Cir''s sword comes down on it''s raises knee as he blocks a stab from Nerissa, the strike severs his leg and he falls to onto his back from the momentum.

    He looks up and sees his severed leg turning black and getting absorbed into the black creature, goo drips down from it''s severed arm and slowly forms into another... Leon grits his teeth and rolls out of the way of another strike, he could reattach severed limbs but not if they are destroyed. He continues to try and dodge strikes however with only one leg and one arm remaining he''s quickly overwhelmed, his sword clattering a few meters away. Ciri''s about to make the last strike but stops when Nerissa approaches. The Abyssal Creature picks the man up by his remaining arm and neck before presenting him to Nerissa. The young girl''s fangs extend as she opens her mouth as wide as it can go, she bites onto the man''s vulnerable neck and begins draining him.

    Leon screams as he feels his life-force being absorbed, he can''t do anything but struggle as his body shrinks and begins to die. His body turns to ash not soon after, thus ending the Belmont line.

 464 Persuasion of Power...

    Ciri and Nerissa stare at the pile of ash for a moment before turning towards Reima, his aura was still prominently affecting the environment and melting most things that come close he''s about to walk over to them but realises he hadn''t suppressed it when they back away. Halting in place and closing his eyes he begins to restrict it, it takes a couple minutes but his aura is eventually entirely gone with the only thing remaining the few small holes filled with lava where he''d previously stepped.

    He doesn''t say anything and instead walks up to hug Nerissa who reciprocates with Ciri joining in. The young vampiress was clearly in an emotional state, whether it''s due to her duty finally being finished, or having finally gotten revenge on those that''d wronged her family. Reima''d like to think these are tears of exhaustion, happiness and relief, though there was a chance something else was bothering her.

    Reima "We said before that we''d be leaving eventually, you''ll come with us right?" he whispers in her ear and receives a nod. He tries to stand up but finds the girls arms firmly wrapped around his neck which leaves her dangling from it... He sighs and puts his Silver sword back into his Folded-Space, he then lets go of the Staff of Manus which dissolves into goo and retreats into his shadow, along with Rita-Creature who vanishes in a similar manner.

    Reima "I need to put on a new shirt, can you let go for a moment?" he asks the young vampire but doesn''t receive and answer. She''s probably enjoying making fun of him but he can''t find it in himself to stop her.

    Ciri stretches her back with Seath on her shoulder, "Let''s head back, I''m tired, dirty and need some new clothes..." she mutters as she looks down at her blood covered wear.

    Reima takes a glance at the Observer still broadcasting them with his Observation Haki and nods, "Alright, we have a couple things to do and clear up before we leave anyway."

    He walks up, grabs Ciri''s hand and teleport''s back to the stadium where a silent crowd still watches them.

    Reima had wondered what their reaction would be, would they scream in terror? Cheer at the fact Voldemort was dead? However his expectations were blown away when they simply stared at him, not moving an inch. He looks over to the judges where Dumbledore, Fudge, Bagman and Maxime are and see''s that they have a similar expression. He glances over to his friends... Or more likely, his former friends judging by their reactions... Damien, Angelina, Alicia and Olivia are have looks of shock and horror on their faces, a few even look a sick shade of green.

    Turning his gaze onto Hermione he can see that while she''s horrified by what''d just happened, she''s also thankful. Presumably for recovering Harry before the chaos kicked off.

    Finally, he turns to look at the one person who he actually gave a shit about... However he''s interrupted by two shouts, one from a certain background character while another from Draco Malfoy.

    Cassius "You-You killed my father you bastard!" he screams, almost foaming at the mouth in rage.

    Draco "Minister! Arrest him! He just brutally murdered a large portion of Britains pure-bloods!" he shouts, making sure to maintain a good distance against this being who''d just slaughtered so many.

    Fudge doesn''t move and watches in horror as Cassius Warrington gets up with a red face and eyes before sprinting at Reima, he''s even forgotten his wand in favour of trying to punch him in the face.

    Dumbledore stands and is ready to protect the misguided student should Reima elect to finish him like he had done all the others.

    However just as a sour-faced Reima is about to slap Warrington to Mount Everest a white blur kicks him in the side of the head, knocking him out instantly.

    Reima would have assumed it was Ciri but she''s still standing next to him...

    The figure gets up and reveals who they are, Fleur... She jogs up to him and hugs him, smothered Nerissa inbetween them as she does so.

    Fleur "I am glad you are safe my love!" she says, not minding the strong smell of blood coming from him, Nerissa and even Ciri.

    Reima "I''m sorry you had to watch that Fleur." he says.

    She shakes her head, "It had to be done, zou my sister kept begging to watch but we would not allow her... She might be angry wiz me." she says with a helpless expression.

    Draco Malfoy shouts from the stands yet again, "Minister Fudge! Does the Ministry condone actions committed by Reima Ludvig!?!" A few in the crowd who''d just had family butchered start to echo his thoughts, while others start arguing with him, wondering if the destroyer of Voldemort and a huge amount of Dark Creatures would be under arrest.

    Fudge shakily gets to his feet and flinches away from the harsh look of Reima, "I.. The Ministry would usually investigate these matters thoroughly but... Due to the Observers present there is nothing new to uncover, Reima Ludvig, Ciri Rivia and their young friend have eliminated a large amount of terrorists, dark creatures and even the Dark Lord himself..." He says and pauses.

    Dumbledore adds, "Perhaps Minister you would consider a First Class Order of Merlin for their services to the world?" he says, more from fear of Reima not being satisfied and continuing his slaughter.

    Fudge jolts as if he''d forgotten his wife in a burning building, "O-of course! I... I will leave and start organising an award ceremony..." he says quickly, completely ignoring the shouts of indignation from the young Death Eater crowd. Without another moment he exits, leaving Dumbledore to deal with the situation at hand.

 465 Hot Sea

    Dumbledore looks down a the group, unsure of what to do with them... Should he act normally, as if they hadn''t just publicly butchered so many people? Or should he try and punish them and risk invoking whatever aggression that still remained onto himself and the school...

    Additionally the abilities that Reima had displayed were incredibly dark, it didn''t need to be mentioned that stealing someones soul was the height of Dark Magic. He worried for the world as if this man wanted to pursue domination no one would be able to stop him.

    Dumbledore decides to end the tournament and have a private chat with the group to ascertain their goals from now on. "Everyone! The Tri-Wizard Tournament is over with Harry Potter being the winner! Please make your way back to your dorms to be ready for tomorrow''s celebration... Now!" he shouts which finally gets most moving, despite the many who are barely able to make it back on their shaky legs.

    Dumbledore sends a look at all his staff present before turning to Reima, "Mr Ludvig, I would like to invite you and your group to my office for a chat about... The recent events..."

    Madam Maxime whispers a couple thing to Albus and he reluctantly nods his head to her.

    Reima "Sure... I''ll head straight there, after a shower." he says, chuckling at the slightly indignant looks some of the Hogwarts staff give him for his disrespect.

    Dumbledore nods, "That is perfectly acceptable, we''ll be waiting." he says as he walks towards the school with the others following. Snape has to divert his path to levitate Cassius Warrington to Madam Pomfrey''s office where Harry is also being tended to.

    Reima''s about to teleport the group but spots Fleur''s parents walking towards them.

    Monsieur Delacour gives a small bow to him, "Mr Ludvig I am terribly sorry for my previous words." he says warily.

    Reima shakes his head, "Don''t mind it, I understand your reasons."

    Monsieur Delacour bites his lip and continues, "But I must ask... What iz your goal with my daughter?"

    Fleur "Papa-"

    Monsieur "No Fille, this iz for your ''appiness." he says before looking expectantly at Reima.

    Reima "I''m sorry to say that I won''t be around to continue my relationship with Fleur..." he says with a hint of bitterness, the feeling also mirrored Fleur who frowns slightly.

    Monsieur Delacour nods with a thoughtful expression, Reima isn''t sure what he''s thinking or even if he''s happy or upset about his words.

    Reima "Well, I have an appointment with Dumbledore so you''ll have to excuse us." he says to try and escape the awkward situation. A Turquoise flash later leaves Fleur''s father alone with his wife and youngest daughter.

    Appoline "Iz zis what you wanted dear?"

    He shakes his head, "I do not know... I am scared of zat man, and for our daughter... It pains me to say zat I am relieved that he will not be present much longer..."

    Reima and the girls appear above the prefect bath, Ciri and Fleur give a small yelp as they fall into the bath, the water becoming a tint of red due to the blood washing from their skin, clothes and hair.

    ...

    Ciri "Reima! You did this on purpose!" she exclaims while soaking wet.

    Reima "Yeah, don''t take this the wrong way but you smell right now."

    Fleur laughs and Nerissa grins at their bickering, the girls walking to the edge of the bath to remove their wet clothes. Ciri does the same and the group spend a quiet hour bathing, they don''t really speak and just enjoy each others company, despite how comfortable Reima is bathing with Nerissa and a horny Veela at the same time...

    The group had even forgotten that they had to meet Dumbledore until a House Elf pops into the room and asks when they would be arriving.

    The group laughs at the thought of keeping so many people waiting on them to shower but they quickly get dressed in some new clothes and make their way up. They don''t see anyone as they walk through the now barren halls of Hogwarts and finally reach the Head Masters office, the doors open for them as they walk inside and see all those present.

    Dumbledore sits at his desk with Severus Snape sitting in a chair next to him along with Amelia Bones, Madam Maxime, Fillius Flitwick, Minerva Mcgonagall and a few other teachers such as Professor Babbling. A few look abit miffed at the amount of time they''d taken to arrive but didn''t dare utter their thoughts.

    Dumbledore gestures to a couple chairs that sit in the middle of the room while asking, "Forgive me for asking but is there a reason for Miss Delacour to be present?"

    Fleur "Iz zer a reason I should not?" she retorts.

    Dumbledore "No, but-"

    Fleur "Zen I will stay." she states with Dumbeldore giving Madam Maxime an exasperated look.

    Dumbledore "Very well...." he turns to Reima, "Mr Ludvig, the first thing I''d like to ask you is what your goal for the future is... After seeing such a.. Large display I find myself nervous for what''s to come." he says, echoing everyone in the room''s current thoughts.

    Reima shrugs, "I won''t be in this world for much longer so you don''t have to worry."

    Mcgonagall gives him a wide eyed look, "Mr Ludvig, I know the situation is stressful but there is no need to commit-"

    Reima laughs and waves his hand, "No, no... That''s not what I mean at all! I meant I would literally not be in this world much longer, I''m a world traveller afterall."

    ...

    Someone snorts audibly but everyone else just looks at him dumbfounded.

    Amelia "My apologies... But I''m having trouble deciding whether you are joking..."

    Reima "Believe it or not if you want, it doesn''t matter to me."

 466 Disbelief

    Reima "Believe it or not if you want, it doesn''t matter to me."

    A few mumbled voices begin to question the validity of his statement.

    *BANG!*

    The office door is hastily shoved open by a familiar girl with bubblegum pink hair, she stops mid-stride and looks around sheepishly before spotting Amelia Bones.

    Tonks "Er, we''ve found Moody..."

    ...

    Reima "I''d have thought it was obvious he was being kept in fake Moody''s office..."

    Tonks looks at him and is about to retort but recognises who it is, "Reima?"

    Reima nods, "Nice to see you again Tonks."

    Tonks gushes like a fangirl over what she had seen tonight, "It was so awesome the way you killed Volde-"

    Amelia "I hate to interrupt you two but we''re having a serious discussion here.. Nymphedora please tend to Alastor and makesure he gets proper medical attention before he wanders off."

    Tonks salutes her and briskly walks away.

    Dumbledore sighs, "I think the possibility of Mr Ludvig not being from this world is high, his and Miss Rivia''s magical aptitude is incredibly high, so much more than my own that it astounds me."

    Amelia "Mr Ludvig, how did you find yourself in the graveyard?" she asks.

    Reima "Er, I may have borrowed Harry''s invisibility cloak and followed where he''d been taken..."

    Amelia "How? He was portkey''d to my knowledge."

    Reima shrugs, "I may have... Chipped Harry so I could follow him."

    Dumbledore "So you had prior knowledge of what''d be happening?" he asks suspiciously.

    Reima "You see, I''m a seer..."

    Ciri barely holds in her snort at his overused answer to everything.

    Amelia "If you knew about future events, why did you not contact the authorities? Your actions may have been illegal you know?"

    Reima "You can try and arrest me but I''ll resist. Plus I doubt the Auror''s would be able to deal with an army of vampires along with Voldemort and his goons."

    Amelia nods at his words as she didn''t think they''d be able to handle it either. "And your vampire... Friend?"

    Reima looks at the sleeping looking Nerissa before focusing on Amelia, "She''s under my protection and is no threat to anyone." he states with a warning in his voice.

    Amelia changes her focus to Ciri, "Miss Rivia, you attempted to apprehend a group of vampires trying to gain access to Hogwarts?" she asks.

    Ciri "Yes? Did I break an obscure law or something?" she asks.

    Amelia shakes her head, "I just need this to write a report... No doubt the media is in a frenzy to try and pry some information about tonights events from those that''d participated."

    They continue to ask him various questions, Reima mostly giving honest answers as long as the information wasn''t dangerous.

    Eventually they let him leave, deciding that even if he had broken the law, there was literally nothing they could do about it. Amelia herself wasn''t too bothered over his actions as she herself held a grudge against Voldemort and his Death Eaters for the deaths and torture of her family.

    After the group leave Mcgonagall speaks up with a helpless expression, "I taught that boy how to become an Animagi, who knew he was so..."

    Flitwick "Brutal?" he finishes for her.

    Mcgonagall nods her head but continues her original thought, "Powerful."

    Babbling "It''s a shame he won''t be staying, he''s a prodigy in runework..." she mutters with a frown as she was likely going to lose her best student.

    Amelia stands and brushes off her robes while walking to the fireplace to floo back to the Ministry, "As long as he isn''t out to destroy the world I don''t mind him... He did reduce our criminals, Azkaban escapees and a potential war with the vampires to ashes. I''d recommend not bothering him, if what he''s saying is truthful then we won''t have to worry about him for much longer."

    Dumbledore nods, still wary about the boy, however he feels something in his pocket that hadn''t been there before... Dipping his hand inside he pulls out a note asking to meet him and Harry Potter in his office privately as "Tom Riddle" isn''t quite dead yet. His breath hitches but returns to normal quickly as he expects Mr Ludvig to have a way to deal with his old student once and for all, Albus couldn''t really imagine a way for Voldemort to come back after having his soul absorbed, aside from his Horcruxes gaining sentience like one had almost done two years ago.

    Severus stands and heads for the door, "As much as I dislike the boy, if he wanted to we''d all be in a similar situation to Voldemort. Respectfully headmaster, if you have any plans to bother him I wish to decline." he says as he leaves.

    Reima and the others head to the Room of Requirement, partly to big "goodbye" to Fleur but also to rest up for tomorrow, he had a few things he needed to do before they finally left after all.

    They enter the room and find it to be the familiar hallway that''d been here after the Yule Ball, Nerissa rubs her eyes and goes into her own room, the long day apparently catching up with her.

    Reima continues to the final room where he''s pushed onto the bed and mounted by Fleur... He intended to be gentle to her but for Ciri? A couple hours of spanking will be her punishment for somehow ending up in the graveyard.

 467 Putting the Fear of God in Magical Britain.

    Reima once again wakes up with two ladies on his arms, he sighs to himself as he looks at Fleur and reluctantly teleports out of the bed to get dressed.

    The bedroom door opens revealing Nerissa who walks up to him in her typical sundress, she rubs her eyes, walks to the bed and nudges Ciri and Fleur awake, obviously wanting to head to breakfast as soon as possible.

    Fleur gets up immediately but Ciri has to literally be carried out of the bed by the young vampire.

    Ciri "Ok! Ok! I''m awake!" she exclaims as she finds herself lifted by the girl.

    Reima sits at the table in some jeans and a black t-shirt while dropping his Witcher scabbard onto the table. "Well, secrets out... Might as well try and get reacquainted with our worlds rules and traditions." he says as he drops Ciri''s scabbard next to it along with her sword Seath.

    Nerissa nods and sprints off before coming back with Iaito attached to her hip.

    Reima rubs her head, "I think you''ll fit in just fine Snuffles, I''m sure you''ll get on fabulously with our grumpy "Dad"." he says while smirking at embarrassed face of Ciri.

    ...

    Fleur "Our dad?" she asks in confusion.

    Ciri "Geralt, not biological but you''d confuse us for family."

    Reima "Right, we should get breakfast... I''ve got a lot to do today, though getting the House Elves to help will make it quicker."

    Ciri "What are you planning to do?"

    Reima "I''m going to bring back everything useful." he says.

    The group makes their way through the school after a while, eventually reaching the entrance hall where everyone''s eyes turn to them. Reima''s got his two blades on his back and is wearing his Witcher gear, the black armoured plates giving those looking at them an ominous feeling.

    Ciri is the same, Seath is hanging from her back, though her old scabbered isn''t suitable for it so she''s temporarily using a strap, allowing people to see the saphire or diamond blade.

    Next to them is Nerissa, as her identity had already been uncovered they felt no need to have her act as a Rabbit any longer. The girl herself was holding Ciri and Reima''s hands with the sides of her mouth upturned, apparently happier than she had been since Talicia passed.

    Fleur accompanies them though people feel that she shouldn''t be involved with the trio.

    They walk to the Gryffindor table where people scurry and almost trip over themselves to get some distance from them. The only people who don''t are Harry, Hermione and Luna... Reima glances at Damien who lowers his head as he''d been noticed staring.

    Luna "Snuffles!" she squeaks as she looks at Nerissa, the young girl nodding at her and closing her eyes as Luna rubs her head in a way reminiscent of how she would her Rabbit form.

    The group smiles at their interaction as Harry attempts to start a conversation.

    Harry "Reima.. I heard about what''d happened last night.." he takes a glance at Hermione before looking back. "Thanks." he says.

    Reima "No problem... Oh, yeah, sorry about that." he says as he pokes the blackened bruise on Harry''s forehead.

    Harry "Ouch! Dude!" He exclaims through a pained laugh.

    Hermione leans in while checking if anyone is nearby to hear her, "Is... Is Voldemort dead?" she asks, clearly worried about whether he''d be back again for Harry as this was the third time already.

    Reima nods, "There''s a couple more thing I have to deal with but he''s gone... Or atleast, he should be as long as someone doesn''t do something incredibly stupid." His final words not providing her with the closure she was hoping for.

    Reima "By the way Harry, I''ll be needing to speak with you and Dumbledore privately later."

    Harry nods, he didn''t fear that Reima would hurt him as it''d be counter productive considering everything he''d done thus far. He also felt that Dumbledore wouldn''t allow something like that to happen, even if he wasn''t a match for Reima.

    Soon enough the news arrives by owl, more than he''d ever remembered dropping in-front of everyone present, even those who never even ordered a paper. Reima snatches someone elses from the air as it''d become a custom at this point, even if he had his own copy for some reason.

    Opening it he almost gawks at the title : "Return and Death of YOU-KNOW-WHO, ARE GODS AMONG US?!" Of course, the title is as provocative as possible.

    "Dear readers, we at the Daily Prophet were stunned by last nights conclusion of the Tri-Wizard tournament, the event itself went off without a hitch and was incredibly entertaining, especially with our own Minister Fudge taking part as a judge. However, as the Boy-Who-Lived or Harry Potter as most of you know him touched the cup to win the final task he was whisked away to a location now identified as Little Hangleton graveyard. There he was confronted with the true betrayer of the Potters, PETER PETTIGREW! Of course when this information was revealed Minister Fudge dutifully revoked his Order of Merlin reward, additionally the supposed crimes of Serius Black were retracted and the reward given to him unfortunately post-mortem."

    Reima takes a glance at Harry and can see his eyes shimmering with Hermione comforting him. He was wondering if they''d mention Ciri''s involvement in his death, he doubted it as it sounds as if Fudge is manipulating the information in the paper. He wouldn''t risk offending Reima at this point as he was there to witness his wrath.

 468 Keeping Promises.

    Reima continues to read the paper, wondering how they''d present him considering he''d basically annihilated all Death Eaters and an army of Vampires for them.

    "Thankfully due to the integration of Ministry issued Observer''s we at the Daily Prophet an the public were able to witness the events, once again Minister Fudge''s fore-thought and inventiveness is to be admired. Harry Potter was quickly captured by Peter Pettigrew and was unable to do anything as they conducted a ritual to revive YOU-KNOW-WHO! The terror that committed so many crimes in the past that they are almost uncountable! Once he was resurrected he summoned his Death Eaters to him, the Prophet would like to note the identities of a prominent few. Almost all of the Azkaban escapees were present along with Lucius Malfoy and a few others that evaded Azkaban by invoking the "I was under the Imperius." argument that so many before him had used. Thankfully Ministry Fudge has been speaking with Amelia Bones, the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement for a way to limit these occurrences.

    The Dark Lord has returned and all those watching had thought Magical Britain was lost, however something unexpected happened. Ciri Rivia along with a still unidentified girl appeared with Barty Crouch Jr who''d been disguised as Alastor Moody. Immediately a huge number of vampires descended on them, numbers that astounded everyone. Then, "He" revealed himself... Reima Ludvig, someone the Prophet had unfortunately disregarded in favour of his companion Ciri Rivia. Readers, we at the Prophet can only speculate about Reima Ludvig''s origins but we can say for certain that he isn''t human. He confronted the Dark Lord and the army of darkness, tearing his soul out with ease before turning his ire on the vampires who were subsequently annihilated. Most of you already know about the events as Wizarding Wireless was broadcasting the event for those that couldn''t attend in person... The rest of today''s paper will be dedicated to the events of last night, moving photo''s and descriptions of those there on the scene will be included. Finally, the Daily Prophet would like to formally apologise to Reima Ludvig for any offence it may have caused." it states.

    Reima chuckles slightly at the almost begging way they asked him to forgive them, he didn''t even remember if they''d done anything to him as he''d attributed it all to Rita who''s now in a "not so good" place. He tosses the paper onto the table and stands up, causing a few of the students watching him to jolt in fright. He chuckles at this which makes them shrink away from him as he looks towards his friends.

    Reima "I''ve got a couple thing to do today in Diagon Alley, anyone wanna come?"

    Hermione "We''ve got lessons to attend... And the celebration for the completion of the Tri-Wizard tournament..."

    Fleur picks up an unopened letter from the pile, "Rei, you ''ave got a letter from ze Minister."

    Reima sighs and opens it, revealing that the Minister wants to arrange a time where he''d be presented with the Order of Merlin. Rolling his eyes he tosses it in the air and clicks his fingers, causing it to explode into ashes. "I can''t be bothered to deal with him, or the Ministry... So, who''s coming?" he says in a non-chalant manner.

    Fleur, Ciri and Nerissa obviously agree however he didn''t count on Luna wanting to come, he nods to her and leaves Harry and Hermione at the table as they wanted to attend their lessons. A *Flash* later and the group appears in the middle of Diagon Alley.

    "Oi! Watch where you''re... Aparrating..." The man stops his words as he see''s who he''s talking to... Reima looks down and spots the Daily Prophet in his now trembling hands. Funnily enough he remembers him from the first time he''d appeared in Diagon Alley, again the man had complained about him aparrating in a dangerous spot. He growls at him and laughs as the man sprints away with sweat pouring off of him.

    Reima "Right, I almost forgot... Hinky!?!" he says expectantly with the Elf appearing before him not long afte.

    Hinky "Yes master?"

    Reima "I need you and the other Elves to gather as many seeds of magical plants as possible... Also gather magical animals that''re manageable and a large amount of materials for construction, I don''t really care what you bring as long as it''s useful. Store what you buy in the Come and Go room." he says as he waves his hand, making a huge pouch of gold appear on the ground in-front of him.

    Hinky nods vigorously "Yes Master!" they say as they disappear.

    Ciri "What are you planning? I can''t even think of a reason you''d need all that stuff." she asks in confusion.

    Reima shrugs, "You just gotta think outside the box." he says mysteriously as he starts walking through the Alley. People almost falling over themselves to get out of his path.

    Luna "Where are we going?" she asks in a chipper tone.

    Reima smiles, "I need to buy a cat for someone."

    Luna''s eyes open wide, "Is it me?"

    Reima "No, but you remind me of her... If you want a pet I''ll get you one."

    She almost jumps in happiness as she hears this.

    Fleur "You spoil ''er." she says in a gentle tone.

    Reima "What monster wouldn''t?"

    The group enters the shop called the "Magical Menagerie", it''s incredibly noises due to the caged birds covering the walls but Reima is more interested in the other side of the room which holds the Kneazles. They are essentially incredibly smart cats that Wizards have magically altered to suit their needs, primarily their senses are much better than a regular cats allowing them to protect property better.

 469 Can anyone stop this man?

    The Kneazles themselves look basically like regular cats, with the exception of their pointed ears reminiscent of Lynx''s and the fluffy tufts at the end of their tails. Reima thinks they look cuter than regular cats by miles. Luna skips over to the area where they''re being held while the shop owner eyes them from the side, clearly fearful of Reima like the rest of the Magical population...

    Reima walks up to the cats and eyes them all, they vary in colour that you''d find in regular cats with the exception of a few with an almost blue hue to their fur, a few also have speckled dots in varying colours. Luna walks in and immediately starts hugging a few, most don''t seem to care and pur under her attention, Reima approaches one but it hisses and leaps away...

    He continues to look for a cat that isn''t scared of him but doesn''t manage to find a single one who''ll tolerate his presence... He uses his Observation Haki to looks through the area abit more and finds what seems to be a kitten hidden away in a cats sleeping area. He reaches his hand inside and retrieves it, revealing a pure white kneazle barely bigger than his fist, the back of it''s fur has black dots running across it... Most importantly however is the fact that it doesn''t hiss at him, nodding to himself he looks to Luna, "You found one you want?"

    Luna nods with a large black furball in her arms, "Yes! His... Her name will be Catalyn." she says after a moment.

    They both walk to the shops counter where Ciri, Nerissa and Fleur were playing with some ferrets that try to nibble their fingers.

    He looks at the shop owner who flinches and asks, "I''d like to buy these two."

    ...

    "D-do you have a license to own a Kneazle?.." he asks.

    Reima frowns at him, "Yeah, I''ve got a license."

    "C-could you p-please show me?"

    Reima nods and flicks his wrist and casts Axii at the man, his eyes going hazy and thanking them for their purchase. Reima also buys food for the cat''s they bought, luckily the kitten was old enough to eat solids at this point as he''d have to give it to the Elves to raise.

    As they leave the store Luna asks, "What are you going to call her?"

    Reima shrugs, "Cat?"

    ...

    Ciri "How about Carimir?"

    Reima raises a brow, "Where''d you get that from?"

    Ciri "Well, cat''s sleep all day.. So does Vesemir."

    Reima "Pfft, yes. That''s it''s name, it''s final." he says through his laughter.

    Fleur "So, iz zat all you needed?" she asks.

    Reima shakes his head, "I need to get some dragon skin, a bunch of moke-skin pouches, a ton of acromentula web... Come to think of it, I hope the House Elves gather some of those animals, being able to produce those things in the future would be useful. I also want to grab a lot of alcohol, treats and some things from the Muggle world.

    The group nods with a few still confused as to why he''d need all this stuff, Ciri guesses it''s because he wants to buy some batteries so he can listen to music in their home world... Or something similar.

    Thus they spend the rest of the day travelling through Diagon Alley and purchasing anything that takes their fancy, Reima made sure to purchase any books he wasn''t sure he owned, even if the vast amount he''d acquired from the Come and Go room would probably contain it.

    He also went to Gringotts and sold a few more tiny fragments of Titanite at a ridicules fee, allowing him even more gold than before... The goblins even threw in a few rare gems to get the cost up, though he thought they were just trying to suck up to him incase he wanted to destroy them.

    In all honesty the trip was more like a last date for Fleur as she knew they''d be leaving soon, they made the most of it and enjoyed themselves until Reima sent them back to Hogwarts as he ventured into the Muggle world to purchase what he needs... Primarily that includes generators and a vast quantity of fuel for them, he also bought as much technology as he could. He didn''t know when he''d need them but it was useful to have on hand. Last but not least he raided almost every supermarket in London, he didn''t have time to purchase everything and so he instead turned invisible and stole everything they were selling. People were amazed as the entire place had it''s things quickly disappearing, some even recorded it... Though Reima wouldn''t care or even know of this until later.

    He also made a point to... Borrow as many vehicles as possible, by the end of his shopping spree London was in chaos as cars were literally vanishing from the streets, leaving their original occupants sitting on the floor in confusion, still turning their steering wheels as if they were still there...

    Most thought it was Aliens responsible but a few in the "Know" knew better and started investigating whatever rogue group had tried to breach the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy.

    Reima laughs as he teleport''s back to Hogwarts with every car he could dream of in his possession. He even stol-Ahem, borrowed construction vehicles and motor bikes as he wondered what''d happen if he tried to armour them and cover them in runes... Though he''d have to try out his idea''s when he has time... The public was demanding to know what was causing this, they didn''t even know that a private jet had gone missing as well.

    One thing was for sure though, it was stated across all newspapers : "The Invsible Bandit had struck again"

 470 The Horse Crux?

    Reima blinks into Hogwarts Great Hall as everyone is having dinner, the customary screams of terror doesn''t bother him as he spots his group and sits with them. They interrogate him on what he''d bought but he says he''ll show them later. For now he just turns his gaze to Dumbledore who''s currently glancing at him and Harry.

    The group had already had lunch while they were shopping and so didn''t eat anything presented, afterwards Reima excuses himself and drags Harry along with him as he teleport''s to Dumbledore''s office.

    Harry "Wah!" he exclaims as he topples over after Reima had let go of him.

    "What was that for?!" he complains.

    Reima shrugs, "It''s faster?"

    Almost immediately after they arrive a burst of fire signals the Headmasters arrival, Fawkes flies to his perch where he glares at Reima.

    Dumbledore "Both of you have a seat, I am still unsure as to why you''d wish for this meeting Mr Ludvig."

    Reima "Well, it involves the life of Harry and possibly the lives of many innocent people."

    Both the elderly man and student perk up at this and listen intently, the former gesturing for him to continue.

    Reima "I''m sure you know what a Horcrux is Dumbledore?"

    The older man''s face goes paler at the mention of this topic, he slowly nods before answering. "I do indeed... I suspect I already know of the purpose of this meeting."

    Harry "What''s a horcrux?" he interjects.

    Reima "It''s a shard of someones soul that''s been ritualistically removed and placed in a container, it allows them to remain in the mortal plane even after death."

    Harry rubs his wrist nervously, "So.. Like Voldemort?"

    Reima nods, "You''ve already come across one Harry, in your second year."

    Harry "The book!..." he turns to Dumbledore, "But that means you''ve not been telling me the whole story."

    Dumbledore nods, "There are things that you are.. Or were too young to know of, it would be a horrible tragedy if your childhood was tainted by such knowledge..."

    Reima "My question is... Do you "Know" already?" he says in an accusatory tone.

    The headmaster goes grim, he lowers his head and sombrely glances at Harry.

    Harry "What are you talking about? I can tell it''s about me so just spit it out already!" he quickly says in an annoyed voice.

    Reima stands and looks at him, "The thing about Horcruxes Harry is that they can use living containers."

    ...

    Harry unconsciously rubs his scar before realising the implications of what Reima had just said, "W-what... Am, am I a Horcrux?" he asks in silent terror.

    Dumbledore "Harry, I am so sorry. I wish there was something I could do." he says as tears roll down his pale cheeks.

    Harry stands with a furious expression after a moment, "You knew!?! You knew I''ve got that psycho''s soul in my head?!?" He turns to Reima, "Tell me there''s a way to remove this thing!" he exclaims.

    Reima "In this world there is no way of removing a Horcrux without destroying it''s vessel." he states.

    Harry''s knees crumble and he drops into his chair with a distant look, "So... That''s it, I''m dead."

    Reima shrugs, "Maybe? There''s always a possibility that you yourself are just a clone of Voldemort and the real Harry had died after being hit with the killing curse." he says which makes Harry and Dumbledore panic momentarily before throwing such an idea out the window.

    Dumbledore "If that were the case Voldemort wouldn''t have hunted Harry so relentlessly... Mr Ludvig, for all intents and purposes you destroyed Voldemort''s main soul. From my understanding of Horcruxes that shouldn''t be possible, but you made it so, wouldn''t that invalidate any Horcruxes he had created?"

    Reima "Probably, if you don''t think that the Horcrux in Harry''s head won''t take him over like the book had to Ginny."

    Dumbledore''s lips purse as he looks at Harry, "I.. I am not sure."

    Reima lets them stew in silence for a couple of minutes before offering a solution, "I could remove the Horcrux in Harry''s head..."

    ...

    They both look at him with confusion.

    Reima "I said there wasn''t a way to remove the Horcrux in THIS world, you forget that I''m not from here." he states with a smug smile.

    Harry "Then, I won''t have to die?" he asks hopefully.

    Reima nods, "There is something I''d like to ask in return however." he says as he looks at Dumbledore.

    Dumbledore "Anything." he almost pleads.

    Reima "There''ll be a battle soon, I may need your help during it."

    ...

    Dumbledore "You wish for me to participate in a war?"

    Reima shrugs, "It''s not really a war as two nations are not involved, as Harry already knows Ciri didn''t come to this world willingly, she was chased here by a group of Elves known as the Wild Hunt."

    Harry "Elves? Like Dobby?" he asks while imagining Reima and Ciri running in terror from a band of House Elves.

    Reima shakes his head, "No, these Elves are much more powerful than House Elves, they have a limited capacity of travelling through worlds by hijacking Ciri''s ability. These Elves can live far longer than any wizard and are generally magically stronger from what I have seen."

    Dumbledore "I have seen how you dealt with Voldemort and those Vampires, what do you expect me to do if you cannot solve the problem yourself?"

    Reima "I am strong, but I do not think I can completely destroy a group who are able to teleport anywhere they need. I wish for all my friends to survive and for that I''ll need all the help I can get."

 471 Deals being struck

    Dumbledore sighs, "I''ve been in many wars Mr Ludvig, but if this is what you ask of me to save Harry then I''ll agree." he says.

    Harry looks at Dumbledore gratefully, despite everything that''d happened he still respects the headmaster. He''d still find it hard to trust him but atleast now he knows that he''ll walk into a perilous and uncomfortable situation for his well being.

    Reima holds his hand out and shakes Dumbledores, "Then we are in agreement. Harry turns this way." he says.

    Harry does as he''s asked, "How will you remove it?"

    Reima shrugs, "To be honest I''m not sure, I''m assuming it''ll be basically the same as how I killed Voldouch."

    Harry goes even paler than before, "M-maybe we should wait and try another method? Something that won''t in all likelihood kill me aswell?" he says.

    Reima''s hand is enveloped in a black and red mist, "Alright, I need you to hold veeerry still now..." he says as he grips Harry''s hair and focuses his Observation Haki entirely on Harry''s scar.

    Immediately he can sense the soul shard of Voldemort, as he''d already dealt with Rowena''s Diadem and Voldemort himself he could easily identify it''s exact location... Reima was slightly horrified to find that it was present not only in his skull, but also his blood-brain barrier. If this were anything else Harry''d already be dead.

    His hand approaches Harry''s forehead as the boy tries his hardest not to squirm at the crushing feeling being emitted from Reima''s hand. His fingers penetrate, or more accurately phase through his forehead, ignoring the boy''s own soul in favour of digging for Voldemort''s.

    Beads of sweat gather on Reima''s head as he inhibits the Dark Hand''s gluttonous attributes that try to absorb any soul near it. Harry groans in pain as he feels a strange pinching sensation "somewhere", he can''t put a finger on it but he can tell if he doesn''t stay still it''ll be much, much worse.

    Reima finally reaches the shard, his fingers brushing across it and causing the sentience inside to tremble in fear. He pinches it and the Dark Hand''s mist start absorbing it, not even a minute had past and the shard was already gone. He slowly retrieves his hand and releases the Dark Hand, leaving a Harry with a bleeding scar leaking a black fluid.

    Dumbledore "Is it done?" he leans in and asks.

    Reima nods, "Yeah, I''m wondering what I could create from Voldemorts soul..." he says idly while examining the soul.

    Dumbledore looks at him in confusion for a moment as Harry groans and rubs his head. The headmaster stands and calls Fawkes to him which flies and sits on his shoulder. "I''ll take Harry to the infirmary, thank you for all you''ve done Mr Ludvig..."

    Reima "Just remember our deal, I''ll come to collect eventually." he says

    The old man nods and bursts into flame via Fawke''s flame travel. Reima glances around the office at all the nickknacks and almost gives in to the temptation, however he knew that Dumbledore would notice, especially with those pictures of the old headmasters still watching him. He blinks away to the entrance of the Room of Requirement, he notices that the door is already there and walks inside, he finds Ciri, Nerissa and Fleur standing there and looking at a huge pile of materials, animals and plants... Apparently they''d entered the Come and Go room to check out the Elves progress, he was impressed at their efficiency to be honest, not having expected "This" much to have already been gathered.

    Reima claps his hands from behind them, "Yo!"

    Ciri and Fleur jump with Nerissa just turning to smirk at him, apparently having smelt him coming.

    Ciri "Reima what on earth are you going to do with all this? Is your Folding Box or whatever going to be able to hold all of this?"

    Reima grins, "I think it''s time to show you guys an artifact I''d recovered from a world I''d previously visited." he says as he walks up to a large clear area next to a wall and retrieving the huge Painting of Ariamis.

    ...

    Fleur "While zis is a magnificent painting I do not know how this relates to our questions?"

    Reima "Well, it''s not just a painting of-course! It''s called the Painted World of Ariamis, I''d spent quite a lot of time inside it training a close friend."

    Ciri "Wait, so you can enter it?"

    Reima nods, "Yep... Though my friend currently holds the key, but that doesn''t stop me simply teleporting inside of it... You guys wanna take a look?" They nod and he smiles before calling "Hinky!?"

    The elf pops into existence beside him, "Yes master!"

    Reima "While the others are gathering materials I''d like you to help me survey the area... It''s a quite decrepit and will require some work..." he says which has the Elf hopping side to side in excitement.

    Reima "Hmm.. Oh, right.. You guys should wear some warm clothing, the weather inside the painting is... Not friendly to say the least." he says while tossing them a few heavy duty jackets. Hinky tries to protest wearing clothes but Reima just ignores their objections and pushes a childs coat into their hands. "Alright, hold onto me and try not to get lost... Not that it''s really possible there." he says, disappearing with the group in a Turquoise flash after everyone grabs him.

    They appear at where he''d first landed in the world, the out of nowhere blizzard almost blowing Fleur off of the mountain. Reima grabs and holds her against himself to help keep her footing.

    Fleur "Thank you." she says as she pushes her weight onto him with a smile.

    Reima "Hinky are you alright?" he asks the Elf wearing a child''s heavy duty coat. Almost waist deep in snow.

    Hinky "Yes master!" they shout loudly.

 472 Renovations

    Ciri "I have to say, this does remind me of home." she says as the group wades through knee deep snow while travelling up the mountain path.

    Reima "I''m glad you appreciate the subtle things in life." he says behind her, the snow around his legs melting away with some small manipulations of his aura.

    Ciri looks behind her and sees everyone walking with ease through the trail Reima had made, "Reima! You''re doing this on purpose!"

    He shrugs with a smug smile, "You wanted to go ahead of us, who am I to stop you?"

    She frowns and keeps wading through the snow, stubbornly refusing to take the easy route.

    Reima "Ah, I''d suggest taking cover when you see the castle walls, last I was here bows and arrows were the greeting I recieved."

    Ciri "Wait, people live here?" she asks, not believing this mountain top to be able to sustain life."

    Reima "Well yeah, though I''ve killed them plenty of times already."

    ...

    Fleur "Rei, that doesn''t make sense..."

    Reima "Did I not tell you guys of how the last world I''d been to operated?" he asks.

    They shake their heads and he almost slaps his forehead, "That''ll explain it... Basically, everyone in this world should be immortal..."

    Ciri snorts, "Right, and I''m the leader of the Wild Hunt." she mocks.

    Reima "Believe it or not, I''ve died before..."

    Fleur "How?" she asks in interest.

    Reima "Hmm, it was against the Bed of Chaos if I recall correctly?"

    Ciri "What''s the Bed of Chaos?"

    Reima "Er, a Lord that''d absorbed the soul of Chaos, tried to alter it and create a self sustaining power-source but ended up accidentally creating the Demon race and going mad." He says and nods to himself at the accurate description, but finds everyone looking at him in confusion. He sighs, "Basically a God of Chaos that had created the Demon race."

    Fleur "And it killed you? Did you eventually slay it?"

    Reima "I died as I killed it, it exploded and annihilated me and almost my friend Solaire."

    Ciri "What''s it like dying then?"

    Reima "Er, the way I died it was searingly hot, then freezing..." he says, not saying anything about forgetting his mothers face and possibly forgetting a family member, though he wasn''t too sure about that. He points ahead at a now visible castle to change the subject, "We''re here."

    The others look ahead as he examines the top of the walls, expecting many undead to be patrolling them as they usually did... But noone was there, he scratched the back of his head and looks towards the bonfire that sits just outside the walls... It''s burned out, nothing remaining except ashes and the blackened sword sticking from the ground.

    Ciri "I thought you said we''d be shot at?"

    Reima "I did, it''s just that something''s probably happened." he says, walking through the open gates and spotting a pile of frozen corpses. They belonged to the creatures that were constantly huddling around the statue with shields and spears.

    Fleur "What are zees monsters?" she grimaces as she lays her eyes on them.

    Reima "A bunch of Hollow''s melded together, though I think I know why they''re dead... The First Flame is gone, not only that but we''re in a different world where the First Flame can''t affect them.."

    Ciri "First Flame?"

    Reima "The thing that granted people immortality, it was regarded as a curse as people usually wanted to permanently die after the first few goes of life. Eventually if you lost the will to live, you''d go Hollow, a cursed existence that only seeks to kill others to absorb their souls.... But, that''s not why we''re here." he says as he looks at Hinky. "It''s a good thing these guys are permanently dead, it''ll make renovating the castle much easier. Hinky, do you think we have enough materials to fix this place up?"

    Hinky looks around for a moment before nodding, "Yes!"

    Reima "Great, as I''d like you guys to make this place the most impenetrable prison in existence. There is not way into or out of this place without the key, I also need you to bring lots of food and water inside along with the animals you''ve gathered. You will keep them safe here until they''re needed." he says.

    Hinky nods vigorously, "Yes master!"

    Reima "It''s a shame the weather isn''t good, otherwise we could start growing alchemical ingredients for the Wizarding worlds potions... Whatever, we''ve got the seeds so it should be enough."

    Ciri "What good would this place be as a Prison? Why not make it a luxurious palace?" she asks.

    Reima "Why would I do that here when I could fix up Kaer Morhen?" he says, startling Ciri who looks at him wide eyed.

    Ciri "You want to-"

    Reima "Hell yeah I do, just imagining the look on Vesemir''s face after we''ve fixed it up already makes it worth it. Not only that, the old castle could look amazing if we fixed it properly! Like that white palace in Lord of the Rings, Minus Turith or whatever it''s called."

    Nerissa "Do it." she says, apparently being the only person who''d read Lord of the Rings."

    Reima looks to Hinky, "Use the money I gave you to gather a lot more materials, they won''t only be used for this dingy place but for other projects as well. Okay, are you guys done touring my soon-to-be prison?"

    They nod and he takes them back to the Come and Go room before storing the Painting of Ariamis back into his Folded Space, no point of leaving it out when it''s not needed.

    Reima waves to all the Elves popping in and out with bundles of materials as he leaves, "We''ll be leaving tomorrow." he states, shocking Fleur who wasn''t expecting it to be so soon.

    Fleur holds his arm tightly, "Does it ''ave to be so soon?"

    Reima "Yes, there''s thing happening at this moment and I''m not even sure if they''ve happened yet or not... Ciri and I have responsibilities that we can''t disregard, even if we''d pushed it to the future in the past."

    Fleur "Stay the night with me?" she asks with a downtrodden expression. He nods and the change Room of Requirement into the hallway with bedrooms. He Fleur and Ciri approach the end but stop as he looks to the latter, "Er, could you... Let just me and Fleur say goodbye?" he asks Ciri.

    Fleur shakes her head, "It''s okay, I wish to say goodbye to Ciri as well... And punish her for stealing you from me." she says with a forced grin.

    Ciri walks inside and throws her arms in the air, "Why''s it always me getting punished!"

 473 Farewell!

    The next morning Reima finds a breakfast already present on the table next to the bed, from Hinky he assumes, though the young vampire already sitting there and munching on blood pudding probably had something to do with it.

    After carefully extracting himself from Fleur and Ciri''s arms he sits next to Nerissa and starts eating.

    Reima "It''s not good to eat pudding so early." he says, knowing that blood pudding didn''t technically count.

    Nerissa only responds with a "Don''t care." before continuing to eat her breakfast.

    He sighs, luckily he''d managed to retrieve a large amount of blood to keep her sated in the future, otherwise they''d need to kidnap hapless people off the street. Not that he minded if it was to keep Nerissa happy.

    Soon enough the other two join them, Ciri looking no worse for ware but Fleur sits there with a downtrodden expression. He doesn''t comment on it as he knows the reason for it, there wasn''t really anything he could do about it however.

    Reima "Remember I''m only a moment away if you call me." he says, pointing to the Titanite shard hanging around her neck.

    Fleur shakes her head, "You will be busy, I will not bother you for trivial things."

    Reima nods slightly and looks to Ciri, "You got anyone you want to say goodbye to, we''re leaving today afterall."

    Ciri "I think Professor Mcgonagall deserves atleast a goodbye, she''s helped us a lot."

    Reima "And Angelina, Alicia and Olivia?" he asks.

    Ciri "They haven''t spoken to either of us since the last task, if they are unable to get past their biases then why should I approach them? As far as I''m concerned they are not true friends." She says with crossed arms.

    Reima "Then, I think the only people I need to see is Harry, Hermione, Luna and Dumbledore..." he says after contemplating who he actually cared about in this world... "I think letting Professor Babbling and Professor Vector know we''re leaving would also be polite, they''ve taught me an incredible amount."

    Ciri shrugs, "Why not just tell everyone in the Great Hall we''re leaving then, it''d save us the trouble of finding everyone."

    Reima nods, "I guess... I should have asked this before but, are you sure you know where we are going?"

    Ciri nods, "I''ve been there before, Avallac''h said he''d enchanted it so that the Wild Hunt wouldn''t be able to find me there."

    Reima "Good, I don''t want to find myself in the middle of the ocean surrounded by Wild Hunt ships."

    After a quick discussion they quickly make their way to the Great Hall, everyone is present, some looking more haggard than usual due to the celebratory party that''d happened yesterday... Obviously Reima''s group hadn''t even attended which left Harry as the only champion present, judging by the black rings around his eyes and the frown he''s sending their way, he wasn''t happy about it.

    Reima walks in the middle of the Hall with everyone staring at him, taking a deep breath he begins to speak. "Yo everyone! As some of you may know I and my friends won''t be around much longer. In-fact we are leaving today! As such I''d like to bid my farewell to the Hogwarts teachers that''d taught me so much in my short time here." he nods to the teachers sitting at the head table, though a few knew he wasn''t referring to them.

    Hermione "Wait! So you''re leaving just like that?" she interjects.

    Reima "Yeah, why? Got something you need to profess to me before I leave?" he says with a chuckle, causing Harry to shake his head at him. He walks by the Gryffindor table and is about to pat Luna on the head, only to be hugged tightly by the girl.

    Luna "We will miss you!" she says with her new cat "Catalyn" sticking her head out from Luna''s robe collar.

    Reima smiles, "I''ll miss you too Luna... If anyone gives you trouble just whack them with that sword I gave you."

    She nods happily with a bright smile.

    He turns to Harry and Hermione, "Hopefully you make the most out of your "Second Chance" Harry, remember that I may not be here to save your ass again... While you still disagree with my way of thinking I think with time you''ll understand."

    Harry shakes his head, "I doubt it. But thanks."

    Reima looks at Hermione, "Make sure he doesn''t cause anymore trouble, I''m sure you can handle it."

    She nods with a determined look, ignoring Harry''s exasperated one.

    Ciri then gives her farewell to everyone she cares to.

    Reima nods at Dumbeldore with a knowing look as he turns to Fleur. "Well, this is goodbye..."

    She hugs him and nods, "Au revoir mon amour. Be safe, all of you."

    He steps away and waves as he grabs Ciri and Nerissa.

    Reima "Beam me up Scotty!" he shouts through laughter as he blinks to the Come and Go room.

    Just after he leaves a large group of robed men sprint into the room, the look around rapidly before asking, "Where is the creature known as Reima Ludvig?"

    Harry "Ah, you just missed him. He said he was going back to Greenland." he says with a dead serious face.

    The leader grips his wand with white knuckles, "Damn!" He turns to look at his men, "Quick, book some international portkeys! We have to find it!" he shouts as he runs out of the hall, leaving a dumb-founded Dumbledore sitting there with a blank face.

 474 Leaving the Harry Potter World!

    The group appear in the Come and Go room in-front of the huge pile of stuff that''s still accumulating mass. Elves quickly pop in and out with piles of new materials and furious animals in their grasp... Reima looks to the side and see''s a pile of Acromantula''s with their legs bound together to prevent them moving anywhere.

    There''s quite a selections of animals here, in all honesty he hadn''t thought that the House Elves would manage to gather all of them.

    Reima "Hinky?" he asks as the Elf pops next to him, still dutifully wearing the heavy duty coat he had previously given them.

    Hinky "Yes master!" they ask while looking up at him expectantly.

    Reima "Yeah, I was wondering if you''d give me an idea of what animals you''ve managed to gather?" he asks.

    The Elf nods, "I do not know what most are called Master but, the others decided that they needed to prove themselves worthy to work under you... They delved into the Forbidden forest and managed to acquire many creatures."

    Reima eyes the elf warily, "No one got hurt right?" he quickly asks.

    Hinky shakes their head, "No master! After watching you in action they decided to... Mimic you against bad creatures that try to hurt us."

    Reima stifles the grimace from his face as he presses the Elf, "And... How did they "Mimic" me?"

    Hinky "They used their magic to grasp and pull out the Animals eyes! Then they picked up sticks and beat them until they stop moving."

    ...

    Reima glances back at Ciri and Nerissa who both respectively look shocked and surprised. "Well... I''m glad no one was hurt, so what did you all gather?"

    Hinky gently takes his sleeve and begins to walk him towards the animals, "This way!". They first point at the Acromantula''s, "Big mean spiders that Master asked us to gather, they try to eat us but are weak without legs! Hmph!"

    Reima nods and is led to the next animal, a bunch of small green lizards. If he''s not mistaken these should be the Moke''s he requested.

    Hinky points at them, "Nice Lizards, did not struggle when grabbed!" they say as they walk past them. They lead Reima past a huge pile of white marble and spots an animal he definitely hadn''t expected to see.

    Ciri "What on earth are they doing here?" she asks with a frown, looking at the Unicorns. There''s a small group of them with some smaller ones with gold fur.

    Reima "Relax Ciri, these aren''t the Unicorns you''re familiar with... I''m not even sure if these are intelligent... Hinky how''d you manage to get these here?"

    Hinky "We didn''t find Horn Horses, Horn Horses found us. We did not know if Master wanted them and they would not leave us alone..." they say, staring at Reima''s face to check if he''s happy or not.

    Reima walks up to the Unicorns and is surprise to find them approaching him and allowing him to stroke them, Nerissa goes forwards and strokes the baby ones with a neutral look that seems strained. Ciri doesn''t go near them however, stating "I hate Unicorns."

    They quickly move on from there and Hinky leads them to a group of skeletal horses which are being fed chunks of meat from a few other Elves.

    Reima "You guys managed to get Thestrals as well?" he asks in wonder at how efficient the Elves were. "Don''t tell me you managed to get a few dragons?"

    Hinky shakes their head, "Big lizards were bad, spit fire at us when we tried to pop them... Stole some eggs for payback." they say.

    Reima pats the elf on the back, "Well, I think gathering dragon eggs still counts, in a few years we might be able to start a farm like how the Magicals had... Though I''m unsure how long dragons take to grow.

    Ciri "You want to farm dragons?" she asks in disbelief.

    Reima shrugs, "I''m transporting a few of my friends from their worlds to ours, if anything else selling Dragon Hide would be incredibly profitable... Hinky, what''s next?"

    The Elf nods and shows him the few other animals that they''d managed to acquire, some more useful than others, for instance the Murtlap which is a marine animal that doesn''t have a problem surviving out of the water. From it you can gather Murtlap essence which is crucial for many potions and can even be used on cuts to assist in healing.

    Hinky then goes through the numerous plants they''d managed to acquire, they number of them almost making Reima dizzy after hearing it. After making sure everything and everyone was ready he brought out the Painting of Ariamis and slowly started transporting the Animals inside along with the elves and supplies to keep them healthy. He also put the plants with them as the only thing he could store in his Folded Space were the seeds. He then retrieved all of the other materials the Elves had gathered before storing the Painting, luckily it''s subspace wasn''t affected by being in the Folded Space which meant the elves and animals were safe.

    Reima looks to the duo, "You ready?"

    Nerissa nods along with Ciri who walks up to them and holds them with a focused expression. Not long after they all disappear with a Turquoise flash.

    *FLASH*

    The trio drop gracefully onto a misty beach, the weather was extremely cold but it didn''t bother anyone as they were either "Technically undead", A god of fire or a Native to these lands.

    Ciri "Well, it''s exactly as Avallac''h had described.. There should be.. a.. Cab-" she holds her head, a golden orb flashes from the middle of the island and shoots at Ciri, making her collapse to the floor.

    ...

 475 A vampire goes to the beach... Thats the joke.

    Reima and Nerissa look at the collapsed Ciri with neutral expressions... He glances to her and smirks, "You think she''d mind if I.." He doesn''t continue but just waggles his eyes brows.

    Nerissa "Pervert." she states as she walks up and throws the unconscious woman over her shoulder, she starts moving towards the centre of the island to where this "Cabin" Ciri had talked about should be.

    Reima "Ah, come on Snuffles cheer up! If you don''t laugh at my jokes then there must be something wrong with you." he says as he briskly walks to her side.

    The vampire is about to reply but is stopped as Reima holds his arm out in-front of her.

    Reima "Wait, somethings in the fog." he says, with Nerissa nodding as her nose twitches.

    He retrieves his Silver sword from his back as Nerissa does the same with Iaito, Ciri''s weight seemingly not even affecting her. Reima leans his head to the side as a claw manifests from the fog and swipes past where his head had been. He spreads his Observation Haki and finds that all the fog surrounding them is part of the creature.

    Reima glances at Nerissa who''s rapidly scanning everything around them, "It''s called a Foglet, it''s not that strong but can transform into fog. All you need to do is wait for it to strike or-"

    He uses Yrden and creates a large circle around them that traps the Foglet and reveals it''s true form.

    Reima "Trap it." he states as he looks at the grey skinned hunched over creature that growls at them.

    Nerissa steps forward and slashes at it, severing one of it''s arms completely which makes it fall backwards and out of the trap, allowing it to transform into fog again.

    Reima sighs in disapproval, "Shoulda gone for the head." he says, while wondering why the phrase seems to familiar to him. Regardless he brings his hand up and fires a Great Combustion at where the Foglet had ran, though if compared to other Pyromancers it''d count as a "GREAT, GREAT, GREAT, SUPER GREAT COMBUSTION!" The Dark Red flames light up the area and incinerate everything in it''s path, even the Foglet hidden by the mist.

    Nerissa starts to sheathe her blade but is stopped by Reima "Our world isn''t as peaceful as your old one. This island is absolutely infested with creatures..." he says as he makes a grab to the side at nothing, though his hand wraps around the throat of yet another Foglet as it materialises. He crushes it which kills it instantly but Nerissa gets the point he''s trying to make.

    Eventually they make it to a dingy cabin in the centre of the Island, Reima feels the need to give it a few knocks but there isn''t a reply from inside. Opening the door they immediately get a whiff of the insides, dust, mould and other smells of decay as prominent. He uses Aard to push out the stale air before heading inside and laying Ciri down on the bench at the far end of the room.

    Reima sits down next to her and examines her condition, wondering if this was planned by Avallac''h or not. Checking her pulse he finds that she''s in some sort of Hibernation... Even her magic is running lower than it ever had before, almost as if it''s being suppressed. This must be why Avallac''h said the Wild Hunt wouldn''t find her here, her magic wouldn''t be visible to them due to her current state.

    He lays a few blankets over her as he lights a few candles around the room to make it more comfortable, then he retrieves two large sofa''s that he plops down at the right side of the room. He drops onto it with a sigh as Nerissa sits next to him.

    Reima "I have no idea how long we''ll be here... I know Geralt''s going to be heading here eventually... But eventually is a long time."

    Nerissa shrugs, "Is Ciri ok?" she says, Reima wondering if this was the longest sentence she''d muttered in a while.

    Reima nods, "Just a magic induced coma.. Sort of, she''ll be fine." The vampire nods with what Reima assumes is a relieved expression.

    They sit around and rest for a while, Nerissa eventually puffs her cheeks and looks at him. "Bored." she states.

    Reima scratches the back of his head before pulling out Carimir from his shirt, the white cat still sleep even after being moved from it''s favourite spot. This soothes the girl as she strokes the cat with a placid expression fora while... Reima was just about to have a nap when he hears it yet again, "Bored."

    ...

    Reima throws his legs forwards and gets up, "Fine, you''re bored... Wanna take a look around the island?"

    Nerissa nods, placing Carimir under the blankets that''re covering Ciri.

    Reima casts a few heavy wards around the Cabin to prevent anything getting in, or out. He leaves with his Silver sword in hand, Nerissa mimicking him with Iaito.

    Reima "So, where''d you wanna go? It''s your choice... To be honest this might be a good way of introducing you to this worlds inhabitants."

    Nerissa nods and points at the shore-line that''s being gently swept by waves. She eyes it with interest as if she''s never been to the beach before... Wait, Reima realises that may just be the case...

    They walk down to it, Nerissa having a perplexed expression at the feeling of sand slipping in-between her toes...

    Reima walks just behind her and observes as she drags Iaito through the sand to form a smiley face. He''s glad she''s enjoying herself and experiencing something knew, though, happy moments never last. As he spots numerous hunched over figures crawling out of the water towards them.

 476 Personal Island.

    The duo blankly stares into the water at the approaching shapes, Reima remembers them of course, how could he forget the most annoying and numerous monster around the world? Drowners.

    Their claws hands, horrific mangled fanged faces and sharp claws almost makes him nostalgic for the time he''d spent with Geralt, as weird as that may sound... Regardless he pats Nerissa on the back towards them, she keeps complaining about being bored so why not just let her "Play" with these things for a while. They don''t have any unique abilities she should watch out for so it''d be good practise, he knew that the island held much stronger enemies than these creatures.

    He does spot a creature behind the Drowners emerging from the water however, a Water Hag.

    Reima "That female in the back is called a Water Hag, watch out for it''s tongue and the mud it throws." he states with his arms crossed, not intending to help her as she is already way more powerful than he was when first facing these things.

    Nerissa just slows walks towards them, waving Iaito at them as she passes, ducking and moving to the side to dodge their attacks. The creatures fall to pieces as she passes, however as she reaches the Water Hag something strange happens. She had just twirled out of the way of a ball of mud that''d been thrown when a Black Misty substance was emitted from her body... Reim had no idea what it was but elected to watch to see if it happens again.

    Nerissa herself didn''t seem to notice it as she continued moving towards the Water Hag as if nothing is wrong. She thrusts Iaito fowards with the black mist appearing again and enveloping her sword. The strike kills the Hag but the young vampire just stands there glaring at her sword, wondering what''d just happened.

    Reima "What was that?" he asks as he approaches the corpses and dissects them for their useful components.

    Nerissa watches him, half interested and half worried about this strange new phenomenon that''d just happened. "Don''t know." she states.

    ...

    He thinks as to what could have caused it and remembers her most powerful ability in his opinion. "Could you have Absorbed another ability?" he asks.

    Nerissa thinks for a moment before nodding, she had indeed drained a vampire with a similar ability a few days ago.

    Reima "Well, since you''re so bored why not try practising with it?" he asks snarkily.

    She nods, not taking any notice at his tone.

    Some time later :

    It''s been a couple months since they''d arrived to this island, Ciri''s still asleep and has become Carimir''s permanent "Cat Bed" while Reima trains Nerissa further in combat and helping her master her new ability.

    From what they''d discovered while practising with it, the Black Mist is some kind of energy that can be manifest in a number of ways. For instance Nerissa can make it corporeal and use it to create weapons, though these are limited to small things like daggers, arrows, throwing knives ect. The reason for this being that it is hard for Nerissa to maintain larger corporeal shapes while also keeping their durability. The first long sword she''d created from it crumbled like a blade made of pasta. The other way the energy can be manipulated is through "Incorporeal" manifestation, though Reima wasn''t sure if it was truly incorporeal as the ways she''s able to use it seem to defy the definition.

    Nerissa stated that while fighting the vampire that held this ability they''d created wings from it, she first gave it a try through corporeal manifestation but holding it for a moment took most of her energy and concentration, additional it was so weak that a light breeze would dissipate it. As such they turned to incorporeal manifestation and somehow managed to create wings, they didn''t allow for true flight however and instead only let her glide around. Though the young vampire took the opportunity to explore the island by leaping from the top of the crumbling lighthouse in the centre of the land.

    As it happens, it was during one of her "Glides" that she''d run into the ruler of this island...

    Flashback :

    Reima reluctantly walks to the top of the tower with Nerissa dragging him by his sleeve, "Do you really want me to watch you jump?" he asks an exasperated smile.

    Nerissa nods "Mn."

    Eventually they reach the top and look over the mist covered Island, the fog is so thick that he can barely see the ground floor. Of course he isn''t all that worried for Nerissa as she''s become quite strong compared to when they''d first met. She concentrates for a moment and sprouts larger misty black wings, they are currently folded against her back but Reima knows that they have a massive wingspan.

    Reima "I''ll watch but makesure you don''t fly off to another Island or the middle of the ocean... This fog is quite thick."

    Nerissa nods and doesn''t waste any time before jumping, her black wings unfolded and expanding to their full size. Her arms don''t do anything and stay at her side as she concentrates on maintaining the wings and occasionally flapping them to keep her altitude.

    Reima keeps his Observation Haki to the max to keep an eye on her as she disappears through the fog. Nerissa herself has a small smile plastered across her face as she flies around the dim light marking the lighthouse. She had always wondered what flying was like and she wasn''t disappointed to finally experience it. However as she flies over apart of the Island Reima and herself hadn''t visited before a roar makes her lose concentration and start rapidly descending.

    The wings dissipate as she hits the floor and rolls off the momentum, the fog is still brutally thick but she can smell and hear something dangerous approaching. From the distance she can see a single glowing red eye glaring at her.

 477 Cleansing the Island

    Nerissa immediately draws Iaito and drops into a stance, Reima had never described a beast like whatever this was before and she had no idea what it was capable of... She continued to stare at the red eye as it was the only thing that indicated where the beast was, unfortunately this was the worst thing she could have done.

    A terrible pain in her head forces her to close her eyes, she quickly reopens them as she was trained to do by Reima however the area around her was not the same, instead of the thick fog of the island it had morphed into darkness. Preventing her from seeing anything more than a couple inches in-front of her. The only thing still visible was the glowing red eye that seemed to be approaching. Her senses all felt dulled, her ability to hear and smell felt almost useless as the eye picked up speed and rushed at her with the speed of a fast car.

    She leaps out of the way despite the only indication of danger being the red eye, however even with her incredible vampiric speed she could feel the dust of the ground the beast had just destroyed on her heels.

    Reima watches as Nerissa barely avoids the Fiends charge, he was ready to intervene at any moment but felt that fighting one of the most dangerous monsters out there would prove to be invaluable experience for her.

    The beast itself was around 15ft tall and made of pure muscle, it''s fur and large mane were red as if to mimic the blood of those it''d encountered. On his head were a huge set of vicious looking antlers, these suggest that it''s quite the ancient beast as the larger the antlers the older the Fiend.

    Nerissa eventually calmed herself down enough to evaluate the situation, she knew that the thing causing her current loss of senses was probably that red eye that remained affixed on her. Conjuring a Mist Dagger she throws it as the monster charges her again, her knife is knocked away by what seems like a huge arm however... She leaps away again but isn''t quite fast enough as a hand slaps her away like a missile, she collides with a tree that cracks and splinters from he impact. While she is a vampire the attack she''d just received proved to be too much, she struggles to get up and falls to the floor as soon as she gets to her feet. The eye approaches once again but it''s influence on her ends as Reima decides to end it.

    Seeing that Nerissa was down and unable to fight he leaps forward and kicks the fiend in it''s stomach as it''s charging, launching it a couple meters away, it rolls due to the force applied to it which causes it''s robust set of antlers to break as it''s head collides with the floor.

    Reima looks down at his apprentice and reaches out an arm with which he pulls her up, "You''ve a lot to learn Snuffles... But I have to say, I''m impressed at your first fight with a Fiend." he says, making her defeated expression look a little lighter.

    He helps her walk as they pick up Iaito from the floor and approach the Fiend that''s bleeding from it''s mouth due to it''s internal injuries... Reima''s kick isn''t something to be scoffed at afterall.

    Reima "You wanna do the honours?" he asks as they look at the struggling beast.

    Nerissa shakes her head, "When I''m stronger." she states without hesitation.

    Reima shrugs, unsheathes his Silver Sword and cleanly decapitates the beast. He couldn''t destroy valuable alchemical components with a showy Pyromancy after all.

    Flashback End.

    After their run in the Fiend Reima had Nerissa join him as he went around and killed any monsters still inhabiting the Island. It wasn''t difficult as the Fiend was the most threatening creature living here, the other Sirens, Foglets, Drowners and occasional Wraith weren''t too much trouble. Though it as fun watching Nerissa try and navigate around fighting them as killing some monsters was more like a puzzle than it is an actual fight.

    Another thing that Reima was making sure to do was to train Nerissa in some techniques he''d devised after coming to a realisation... Most of his martial techniques were based on the assumption that he''d be fighting people at his level or stronger than him, this obviously was not the case anymore for him or even Nerissa who was vastly superior to regular humans and even some Witchers in strength and speed.

    He had noticed this when thinking back to his fight with the vampires, their techniques didn''t resemble anything that a human would have devised, instead of focusing on the power you can direct in a strike they did something completely different. Their fighting style was based on speed and unpredictable attacks, while some martial arts did have similarities it just wasn''t to the extent that the vampires had.

    For example, with a round house kick you''d need to position your leg and hips correctly before making the strike, otherwise you''d have no momentum in which to deal damage with... The vampire version of this attack would have your leg facing fowards in a weird way, this is due to how quickly and how powerful a simple strike like that could be. Though, if vampires were fighting with each other they would need to integrate more traditional strikes. And so Reima had started creating techniques that suited higher strength and speeds that he and Nerissa possessed... And as usual, his apprentice took to it like a fish in water.

    This didn''t mean he slacked on the martial arts that he''d been using as his base fighting style however, he wanted to be ready if a being with similar strength and speed to himself came around.

 478 The Seven Dwarves....

    During their time spent on the Island Reima made sure to keep an eye on what the Elves were doing in the Painted World of Ariamis... He was hesitant to check while the Island was still infested with monsters as he didn''t know what''d happen if someone damaged the painting itself... Would the world implode in on itself? Would the Painted world change based on the paintings new features? There are many questions but to have them answered would mean risking a an amount Reima thought wasn''t worth it.

    Inside the Painted World itself the Animals were getting on well and are generally healthy. There was a few problems with keeping the Mokes warm as Lizards didn''t tend to last too well in blizzards. However a few Warming charms sorted that issue out appropriately.

    One thing he hadn''t expected was for the Unicorns and Thestrals to make some kind of "Mega-Herd" with both animals interacting with eachother without getting violent. There was an incident when an Acromentula managed to escape it''s bindings, it tried to attack a young unicorn but was instantly pounced upon by a couple Thestrals that mauled it to death... Obviously the Elves were terribly sorry about the whole thing but Reima forgave them as something was bound to happen eventually.

    They also managed to set up a limited green house where the various plants could be grown, however some struggled to grow at an average rate due to the limited sunlight they could get through the clouds and occasional blizzards.

    Reima was happy to see that most of the essential plants for potioneering were growing correctly, he knew that the Elves had some of the Magical Worlds tree seeds but didn''t allow them to plant any as it''d take far to long to grow anything useful.

    Another thing that should be noted is the fact that Reima had provided all the Elves with clothes. Again, same with Hinky most burst into tears at the mention of it but as soon as he explained it was to show their loyalty to him and to show his absorbitant amount of wealth they agreed. Most House Elves now dress in children sized butler outfits with thin chain-mail hidden underneath... This was partly because he remembered how easily Dobby had died in the movies and he wasn''t going to allow something like that to happen to those in his care. He also thought about whether or not it would be alright to give the female Elves maid uniforms but gave up on the idea as he had no idea what gender most actually were... Even asking them felt weird to him.

    The Elves weren''t just responsible for taking care of the animals and plants though, they were also given the task to fix up the castle in the Painted World, something they did with utter glee. Not even a few months had passed and the walls were already patched up and scrubbed clean of rot, mould, moss and anything else that''d cling to them. They had also followed his orders and made various prison cells at different points in the keep. Most were located atop the towers where the wind blew the hardest, the Elves had carved tiny holes in the cell so the cold winter breeze would flow through... Truly a nasty place to be, the only place that wouldn''t lead to you freezing to death was a single corner of the cell where a single stone with a warming charm was lain.

    After another month of waiting for Geralt to arrive Nerissa spotted an average sized boat crash into some rocks just off the shore while she was gliding. Reima went to check and found seven dwaves crawling out of the water, he couldn''t help but think they were lucky that he''d cleaned the waters of Drowners recently.

    Reima "Yo, what bring you to my island?" he says while crossing his arms.

    They Dwarves jump at the sound of his voice and quickly look towards him, a few help one Dwarf who look to have fallen asleep while his head is still underwater...

    The leader, or atleast the one with the biggest, bushiest beard steps forwards and points to himself, "Aye, I''m Kaben, Captain of the Rabenick''s... Of the former Merchant vessel. Who''re you?" the short, stocky man asks.

    Reima "Reima Ludvig, Witcher." he states, his anticipation growing as he vaguely remembers that these guys were present when Geralt had found Ciri.

    Kaben tries to squeeze some water out of his jerkin but doesn''t manage much, he wipes his nose and rubs his hands together while asking, "Er, so.. You got a place for us to kip? It''s bloody freezin out ''ere!"

    Reima shrugs, "Depends, you got anything to compensate my time and effort?" he asks. Knowing that these guys must have some gold stashed away if they belonged to a company.

    Kaben "Ah.. I, er.. No, we must have lost it all while trying to escape the wreckage."

    Reima can already tell the Dwarf was lying, for someone involved in business his poker face was trash. He waves his hand while silently casting "Accio Gold". The Dwarves watch in disbelief as gold coins crawl from their hidden pockets and compartments before flying into Reima''s hand.

    Reima "This''ll be enough for your rent. Do NOT bother the white haired girl inside." he says and starts to walk towards the cabin.

    Kaben "Ah, hang on a sec! Since you-Er, we''ve already paid is there any chance of givin'' us a boat to get off this rock?"

    Reima shrugs, "There aren''t any boats around here, though I wouldn''t stop you if you wanted to make one. I''ve already cleared out the monsters from the Island so go nuts."

 479 The Wolf Approaches

    The white wolf was wading through freezing water in an attempt to get to a boat that was hastily tied to a nearby tree, he''d just been to talk to Cerys an Craite, the new Queen of Skellige about gaining their support against the Wild Hunt. Unfortunately as they had already decided for the battle to take place in Kaer Morhen due to it''s remote location and easily defensible position Cery''s was in no position to help. Skellige was simply too far for an army to go, additionally the Nilfgardian''s were prodding their defences for a chance to strike and take a foothold on the island.

    Skellige was an incredible point to hold and if Nilfgard did take it then the rest of the Northern Kingdoms would follow, nothing Radovid could do would stop the Black Sun''s advance should they take the Isle''s of Skellige.

    Nevertheless Geralt asked Crach aswell but he too couldn''t provide any men, he did grant Geralt the fabled "Winter''s blade". A weapon famous for it''s use by King Erlend Stonefirst in his war with the old Northern Kingdoms, with it he cut a swath through the Kingdom''s land before finally returning to Skellige with their loot in hand. It is said to be forged in Mahakam and Tempered in dragonfire, though Geralt only had Crach''s word to go off of. Regardless it was clearly better than his current Steel Blade and he was thankful that Crach would think him worthy of wielding it.

    He also went to have a chat with Cery''s brother Hjalmar an Craite, he knew the man was one of Ciri''s old flames, though the tryst didn''t last as when she was around ten years old she was taken back to Cintra. Once Geralt made known who needed help Hjalmar wholeheartedly agreed to help and immediately set off for Kaer Morhen. From past experience he knew that he was a fine warrior that he would trust his back to.

    Which leads him to where he is now... Slowing steering the Ship''s helm while fighting against the wind itself. Not to mention fighting off the occasional Siren that wishes to feast on his bones. A few crossbow bolts had it dropping into his range however, bisecting it was easier than shooting it out of the air as it happens.

    Once Geralt was in range of the "Misty Isles" he retrieved a corked bottle that Avallac''h had given them, he didn''t trust the Elven Sage but knew that Ciri must have as she travelled with him. He still didn''t know what to do with him but he''d decide once he''d had a chat with Ciri... If she''s even here in the first place.

    Uncorking the bottle releases a ball of light that zips up and begins heading towards some fog that almost seems impenetrable... Shaking his head at the fact that this may all be a trap he heads forth, steering the ship in the light''s direction.

    Soon enough he''s completely surrounded by the fog, even with his enhanced senses he''s unable to see a thing, simply following the distant light with the hope it wasn''t leading him into some deadly rapids or something similar.

    *SHRREEEEK*

    He ducks his head slightly as he hears the noise, he can''t make out what it is but can tell it''s heading right for him. Retrieving his Silver Blade for a second time this trip he uses Yrden to lay a trap which encompasses the boat before waiting...

    *Shreek!*

    The sound makes itself known once again, however much, much closer. Geralt can tell it''s a varient of a Siren but isn''t sure what type yet... Most likely it''s an Ekhidna as remaining unseen would be in it''s prerogative due to it''s ghastly appearance relative to regular Sirens.

    Geralt hearts the flapping of wings and ducks, however a claw catches him on his hand as he tries to defend against his unseen foe... A black fluid drips from his wound, "This fog is too thick! I can''t see a fucking thing." he growls out as he quickly retrieves a Golden Oriole and sips it to prevent the venom from affecting him, atleast until he''s on land.

    *Shrieeek!*

    It screams yet again but based on it''s previous attack Geralt can tell it''s just a feint, he waits until it''s completely silent and is prepared to swing on the fainting wing beat...

    "There!" he thinks as he stands on the unstable boat and brings the Silver Sword down, cutting "something" and causing the creature to drop into the boat with him. Looking down it seems his suspicion was right as the monstrous face of the Ekhidna looks up at him, it''s fanged face furiously trying to bite him. A quick stab ends it''s existence, he quickly dismantles it and throws it overboard for whatever else lives in this waters to eat.

    He looks up to see whether or no the light is still visible and breathes a sight of relief when he finds it seemingly waiting there for him. Unfurling the sail he''s on the move again, warily dodging the rocks that he can barely make out a few meters ahead of himself.

    Eventually he reaches some kind of shipwreck? Moving closer and lifting a bit of the wreckage slightly he doesn''t find any barnacles or muscles growing, which means it hasn''t been all that long since it crashed here. Following the light a bit more he spots a second light in the distance, heading towards it he finds what looks like a makeshift dock made from the ruined ships, a lone lantern dangling from a fragile looking wooden pillar.

 480 Daddys Back!

    Geralt takes a cautious step onto the rotten boards after tying his boat to the sturdiest thing he could find. The light he''d been following all this time seeming to be content to float above his shoulder. Shrugging a it''s presence he moves onto the land, keeping his senses up as places like this are usually swarming with monsters... Though, for some reason he doesn''t spot anything. Even his Medallion remains still for the first time since embarking on this journey.

    He occasionally finds blood staining the floor but by it''s scent, consistency and amount it''s quite old and probably from a hunter dissembling his prey. He hears something rustle in the grass nearby and immediately draws his blade, though the only thing that he sees is a small black rabbit with red eyes...

    Geralt sighs, "Wouldn''t happen to see a white haired girl around here?" he mockingly asks the rabbit which quickly hops away. Shaking he head he mutters, "Didn''t think so."

    Following the path for a couple minutes he comes across some kind of structure? It looks as if someone had raised stone from the ground itself, it''s square and has no windows, only a door which seems to be fit for a Dwarf... There''s some sound of people coming from inside and he can see light emitting from the door, as well as smoke coming from what seems to be a hole in the roof.

    Approaching it he clears his throat which has the occupants scrambling, one comes out in rags, a scarf made from what looks like human hair? Additionally he notes that the Dwarf doesn''t have a beard.

    Kaben "Oh gods! The demon''s back for more! Gasperd wake up and hide everything shiny!" he shouts into the hovel.

    Geralt "Demon? Whaddya mean?" he asks while crossing his arms, curious at this situation.

    Kaben "Huh? Ah... You''re not him! Sorry there, I''d mistaken ye for ''im. You look quite similar to be honest."

    Geralt "Similar? And what''s this demon you''re talking about"

    Kaben "The demon... He did this to us! Threw us out in the cold with nought but our beards to provide warmth... If I didn''t know any better I''d say he''s waiting for us to starve before eaten us!"

    Geralt slowly nods, "And... What does this "Demon" looks like?" he asks, wondering if it''s another Sylvan proclaiming itself "God".

    Kaben "Ah, well... It looks like you, White ''air, cat-like eyes, scar on ''is face right ere" the Dwarf draws a line on his own face with his finger.

    Geralt has a face flash in his mind but shakes it off, he hasn''t been spotted in atleast ten years. Him turning up now wouldn''t make sense... Or would it? If his suspicions are correct then he''s atleast somewhat similar to Ciri.

    Kaben continues, "He stole our gold and makes us sleep out here, not even providing us tools to build a boat to escape. Evil Incarnate he is!"

    Geralt "Well. I''m a Witcher see." he points to the two swords on his back, "I''m looking for a White Haired girl, seen her?"

    Kaben''s eyes go wide, "I ''ave! The demon''s keeping her corpse for some reason! Told us not to bother her body but after we asked too many questions he turned his ire towards us."

    Geralt feels his heart begin to thump in his chest at hearing this, he has to manually slow it down otherwise the Adrenaline would have him sprinting at the "Demon" with sword drawn. "Where is this "Demon" and the girls body?" he asks while barely restraining a growl.

    Kaben points up a hill where a dim light is being emitted, another Lantern Geralt muses. "Once you''ve slain the Demon you wouldn''t mind retrieving our stolen coin would ya?" he asks.

    Geralt shrugs and with a grunt starts walking, leaving the frantic Dwarf behind him. The light continues to float behind him as he sees a cabin in the distance. It seems to have been made by Skelligians who were here previous judging by the marking around the door. "Hey!? Anyone inside?!" he shouts after receiving no answer to his knock.

    Gripping his Silver Sword he slowly pushes the door open, his medallion shivering as he steps inside... The room is lit by many candles and has luxurious furniture adorning the place, spotting movement on one side of the room he sees a.. Rabbit? No, the same black rabbit he''d seen earlier. It''s laying atop some kind of black alligator skin pillow? Wait, is it breathing? The rabbit hits it''s seat with it''s paw and has a scaly black head with slitted Turquoise eyes looking at him.

    Geralt "The hell? Who''s crazy enough to keep a dragon in a wooden shack?" he mutters, however he quickly realises this place must belong to a powerful mage. Judging by the hovel made for the Dwarves they aren''t afraid of revealing their magic either. Ignoring the strange sight of the rabbit and dragon he walks towards the end of a room where blankets are bundled over something, unconsciously his control over his cardiovascular system slips as his heart beats rapidly.

    He shifts some fabric over an sees a white cat sitting on someones chest... Ciri''s chest... His breath hitches in his throat as he feels bile rise up in his stomach. "Ciri?" he asks, almost pleading. Geralt drops his sword and cups her face, trying to find any signs of life, however she''s cold and not even breathing.

    Geralt "No..." he breathes out, cursing whoever''s responsible. He lifts her body and hugs her to his chest, the cat hopping off and joining the rabbit and dragon.

    However Geralt doesn''t notice the sphere of light behind him entering Ciri''s body, her limp arms start moving to reciprocate the tight hug she''s currently in.

    Geralt notices but doesn''t say anything, neither do. They just remain in each others embrace as their emotions all come out in one, like a tsunami.

    The Dragon and Rabbit watch with rapt attention, both glancing at each other with what could only be described as smirks.

 481 Youre back BOI!

    After the longest hug she''s ever enjoyed or experienced Ciri releases Geralt, her eyes shimmering as she looks at his face, noting that he looks older and more frayed than last time she''d seen him.

    Ciri "Your age is catching up with you." she says with a smile.

    Geralt "And you''ve become a woman, feels as though it was just yesterday you were learning to sharpen a blade." he retorts.

    She sighs, "It''s so good to see you again Geralt." she says, a moment later realising that Reima and Nerissa weren''t around... Had she made a mistake while teleporting them?

    Ciri reluctantly removes her gaze from Geralt to the room they were currently in, almost immediately spotting the familiar dragon and rabbit watching them. "Alright, time to stop playing around." she says towards them.

    Geralt is confused but remembers that a mage should still be around here somewhere, he picks his sword up from the floor and readies it to defend his dau-Ciri. However she lays a hand on his shoulder and throws her boot at the dragon, Geralt''s medallion shudders as it starts morphing into someone, along with the rabbit.

    Reima turns back into his human form and catches Ciri''s boot, chuckling as he looks at Geralt''s shocked face. Nerissa just sits on his shoulders idly as her transformation had unfortunately placed her there... It did feel good to finally be taller than everyone else though.

    Reima "Sup old man, how''s life been treating you?" he jokes.

    Geralt "Reima?" he mutters.

    Reima "The one and only... Though I''d like a one of those hugs you were just giving out." he says with open arms.

    Geralt steps forward and sheathes his blade before cuffing Reima in the ear.

    Reima "Oi! What was that for!" he complains, the blow not hurting in the slightest with it''s only affect being emotional.

    Geralt "That was for disappearing without a trace." he growls out before hugging him.

    Reima slowly reciprocates, he wouldn''t like to admit it but this reunion was hard for him to deal with without crying. Even know his eyes were moist with unshed tears, "Sorry for leaving so abruptly... It''s just that I had to prepare for the future." he mutters.

    Geralt lets go after Nerissa begins patting both of their heads in a similar manner that Reima would do for Snuffles. He looks up and raises an eye brow, "What''s with the kid?"

    Reima smirks which is seen by Ciri who sighs, "This is Nerissa, your Grand Daughter."

    ...

    Geralt looks at the girl suspiciously, her red eyes staring back at him. "What?" he asks as he glances at Ciri.

    Ciri shrugs, "We''ve more or less adopted her."

    Geralt nods in understanding, picking the girl up by her armpits and carrying her off of Reima''s shoulders on dropping her on the ground. He looks at her for a moment before awkwardly introducing himself, "... I''m Geralt of Rivia... Witcher..."

    The young vampiress introduces herself with a small bow, "Nerissa Dracula... Rei has your eyes." she mutters.

    Geralt blinks and nods, "That he does... I think you two have some explaining to do, also. What''s with the Dwarves outside? They''ve got it in their heads that you''re some kind of Demon."

    Reima scratches the back of his head, "Er, well. They were annoying and kept asking about Ciri, so I threw them out and created a Hovel for them... To be honest when they started creating clothes out of their beards I started watching them for entertainment, this island can be quite dull." Nerissa nods as he says this.

    Ciri laughs, "This is the first I''m hearing of this, I''ll have to take a look later."

    Geralt "Still, that''s quite advanced magic when compared to Signs... It seems you haven''t ceased your training."

    Reima "Oh, you have no idea. Make yourself at home Geralt, I''ll prepare some food over the fireplace, the trip must have been laborious afterall." he says, waving his hand and causing the fire to intensify and turn dark red.

    The group makes themselves comfortable as they rearrange the furniture around the fire, Reima retrieves a cast iron pot and hangs it above the fire while filling it with various meats, searing them and then adding vegetables to the stew. He doesn''t forget to add the various spices he''d obtained from the HP world to give it some kick, hopefully Geralt would appreciate the flavours.

    He also retrieves a bottle of wine to go with it, not forgetting Nerissa''s daily dose. Geralt''s nose twitches as he smells the blood being poured into a goblet.

    Geralt "Acquired a taste for blood?" he asks Reima curiously.

    Reima shakes he head and hands to goblet to Nerissa, "While in a way you aren''t wrong, but this is for Nerissa... She''s a vampire you see." he says with the person in-question nodding after taking a gulp.

    Geralt looks at the girl with confusion, he wasn''t aware of any vampires that look so young. He wasn''t even sure if it was possible. He looks at Ciri and asks, "Is she like Regis?"

    Ciri shakes her head, "No.. I mean, kind of? She''s not from this world so I don''t think they''re comparable..." she says which only raises his interest in her origins and specific race.

    Reima "Nerissa''s race is completely different to this worlds Vampires, they usually instantly die in sunlight and have many unique abilities. The only similarity they have to this worlds vampires is their need for blood, transformation abilities and enhanced physical traits."

    Geralt "So she will perish in sunlight?" he asks with concern.

    Reima shakes his head, "Nerissa is a special case... She''s able to steal the abilities of other vampire''s she drinks from. There was a clan called "Belmont" that fortunately don''t exist anymore that were able to survive in sunlight, you can imagine what''d happened." he says.

 482 Measuring Match

    The group continues some small talk while the stews cooking, once it''s done they quickly eat it and Reima asks Geralt something he''d been wanting to ask since he got here...

    Reima "So, what''s with your armour?" he asks, eyeing the School of the Wolf armour he''s currently wearing. To be honest he''d been expecting Geralt to have something better than that, while it''s not bad armour it definitely isn''t suited to the "best Witcher around".

    Geralt looks down in confusion and parrots the question, "What''s wrong with it?"

    Reima shrugs, "It looks worse than your old Kaer Morhen armour... I mean, what''s that tiny jerkin supposed to protect? Your nipples?" He comments with Ciri chuckling with him.

    Geralt "You know the answer already but I''ll tell you again, it helps with School of the Wolf movements. Besides, I don''t think what you''re wearing is any better... Might as well be wearing full-plate." he states as he glances over Reima''s Master Craft Ursine-like armour.

    Reima "Yeah? Well I can guarantee your weapons are worse then mine." he says with a smirk and crossed arms.

    Geralt smirks, "Wanna bet?"

    Reima puts his hand out, "500 Gold coins." he says, not specifying the kind of coin.

    Geralt nods and shakes his hand, "500." he says as they both begin unsheathing their blades.

    Reima props his swords up on a nearby chair with Geralt doing the same, they admire them for a moment. The former looks over Winter''s Blade, the steel sword has a Nordic look with numerous blue runes covering the blade. It''s a powerful weapon from what Reima can tell, he turns his attention towards the Silver Sword, it looks like a regular blade with the exception of the red runes covering it and the Wolf Pommel. He reaches over and tests their sharpness with his fingernail, finding them to be almost razor sharp, though there are some tiny indentations as though they''d recently been used in combat. "Good, but nowhere near mine." he states, with the old wolf doing his own tests on Reima''s Silver Knight Straight Sword and Black Knight Sword.

    Geralt hefts the Black Knight Sword up and groans, "How do you use this in combat? It must be half my weight!"

    Reima "I''ve gotten stronger." he simply says as he retrieves it from Geralt with such ease it makes the Witcher blink in surprise. "Not to mention it''s made from a metal not seen before in this world."

    Geralt "Right, and that thing on Ciri''s back is real." he say sarcastically.

    Ciri "Ah? You mean Seath?" she asks.

    Geralt "You named that wall-piece?"

    Ciri "I''ll have you know that it''s a fine blade." she says, unsheathing it and handing it to him.

    Geralts about to comment on how worthless a blade made from glass would be but is speechless when he gets a hold of it... It''s weight suggest that it''s not simply made from glass, it''s quite similar to steel actually.

    Reima "Don''t judge it by it''s looks Geralt, I made that myself with the soul of an ancient dragon I''d slain." he says without any bravado in his tone.

    Geralt shakes his head in disbelief and hands it back to Ciri, "Ah, I almost forgot... I found these inside the property of "Three Hags" you may well remember." he says as he hands Ciri three Medallions... They consist of Wolf, Griffin and Cat.

    Ciri "You found them? I''d thought they were lost off the coast of Skellige!"

    Reima looks at them weirdly, "Where did you get those from?" he asks, wondering where you could find three different Witcher necklaces...

    Ciri''s expression darkens for a moment before replying, "Leo Bonhart." is all she says.

    Geralt quickly changes the topic and turns to Reima. "So, what have you been doing in the past ten years? You don''t look older then eighteen which shouldn''t be possible."

    Reima shrugs, "I was stuck in a world that was slowly ending which caused the time to dilate and slow... I was there two years but ten ended up passing outside."

    Geralt "The world was ending? Was it the White Frost?" he asks while rubbing his chin.

    Reima shakes his head, "No... The world was weird but the Frost didn''t have anything to do with it."

    Ciri "Speaking of the Frost... Geralt, have you had any "Dreams" lately?" she asks with a serious face.

    Geralt shakes his head, "None... They stopped around a year ago, I have no idea why."

    Ciri "Me to... I stopped getting them around the same time."

    Reima "This is about that old Prophecy I''m guessing?"

    The duo nods, "I''ve been trying all my life to find the answer to it, I have a few idea''s but I''d rather not air them." Ciri says.

    ...

    Reima "Hang on, don''t you owe me 500 gold Geralt?"

    The Witcher shakes his head, "A weapon''s effectiveness is determined by it''s wielder.. But if you really want the coin we could have a few Gwent matches." he says.

    Reima sighs, "No it''s fine, I don''t want to play Gwent..."

    Ciri laughs, "You still playing that old card game? I wonder if you''ve completed the set yet?"

    Geralt small smile turns into a frown, "Definitely not. Every time I find a new card more are created... It''s as if the creators base their cards on real people and mass produce them." he growls out.

    Reima shakes his head, deciding to change the subject otherwise he suspects Geralt will go on all day. "So, what''ve you been doing Geralt?"

    His forlorn expressions changes back to his neutral one, "Well, running in circles trying to find Ciri would be the main thing."

    Ciri "Hey, I was looking for you as well. However it was like any mention of you, Yen or even Triss was forbidden " she says.

 483 Assembling the Puzzle

    Geralt gives her a curious look, "Strange, I''d become quite famous in the northern Kingdoms as of late. Almost single-handedly cleansed a few forests near the Pontar... People knew of my name before even meeting me."

    Ciri shakes her head, "Either way, after I''d been separated from Avallac''h after he''d been cursed I was dropped in Crookback Bog... Barely escaped those Crones." she shivers as she rubs the back of her neck, anxious over just thinking about itl.

    Geralt nods and continues, "Met with the Baron and his men, they have quite the few stories to tell about you."

    She smiles, "It was fun while it lasted, though I had to leave or they''d be trampled by the Wild Hunt... I knew the curse on Avallac''h would have progressed in the time we were separated, instead I tried to find you and Yennefer, though the only person I stumbled across was Dandelion in Novigrad."

    Geralt "I know, had to save him from Temple Isle... Not exactly the greatest tactician."

    Ciri "Well, it wasn''t planned... I knew of Dandelion''s luck with you and miraculous rescues so I wasn''t too worried for him. After I teleported I ended up off the shore of Hindarsfjall, hadn''t intended it. I''d just thought of a happy memory and voil¨¤ I''m there."

    Geralt "Thought about your time with Hjalmar? You''re in luck as he''s one of the people I''ve persuaded to help."

    Ciri''s face bightens up, "Really? Oh, I haven''t seen him in ever so long. I wonder how he''s doing these days?"

    Geralt "You can speak with him when we get back, for now I''d like to hear what had happened to you once you fled the Hunt in Hindarsfjall." he asks, wishing to finally piece the puzzle together.

    Ciri shrugs, "I''d already ran across the Northern Kingdoms looking for you, I didn''t dare go into Nilfgardian occupied territory for obvious reasons... So I fled the world itself."

    Geralt''s eyes open at her comments about Nilfgard as he hadn''t thought she''d known about her parentage... But apparently he was underestimating her.

    Reima adds in, "That''s where we first met, I''d seen her with the Countries minister answering questions on how she''d killed the criminal known as Sirius Black. I knew she wasn''t native to that world as soon as I saw the Wolf''s Head Medallion, I could tell immediately that it was the one I''d handed you." he says to Geralt.

    Ciri frowns, "Sirius Black ended up being innocent, though. I still regret his death to this day."

    Geralt pats her on the shoulder to comfort her, "Innocent people die, there are many things not in our control Ciri. This is just one of them."

    ...

    They sit for a coupe minutes to listen to the fire crackling away before Geralt asks, "So, what was the world like? Was it anything like ours?"

    Ciri shakes her head, "No to say it simply. Their technology was vastly superior to ours, not to mention they had huge communities of Mages that kept themselves hidden from the regular folk."

    Geralt nods, "Smart, people fear that which they don''t understand. I''m sure the common folk would be burning them at the stake in a manner similar to the Eternal Fire."

    Reima nods, "Well, you got that right. That was the primary reason they decided to to not interact with regular people. Though I wonder how long that''ll last considering the rapid advance in technology... They had already sent men to the moon believe it or not."

    Geralt snorts, "Don''t joke around."

    Ciri "It''s true Geralt, I saw the video''s of it."

    ...

    Geralt "Video''s?"

    Reima "Er, it''s kinda like.. Ah nevermind, just imagine this but without magic." he says, waving his hand and causing a memory of Kalameet to be projected on the nearby wall.

    Geralt tumbles backwards while grabbing his Silver Sword, "Get down! What the hell''s a Dragon doing here!"

    Reima and Ciri burst into laughter at his reaction which has him realise that there is no danger present.

    Geralt "What is that!" he growls in slight embarrassment.

    Reima "It''s a projection of one of the dragon''s I''d fought in the past."

    The old Witcher calms himself and rubs his face, eventually he sits back down and looks at Reima. "Speaking of dragons, I didn''t know you could transform into one... I thought mage''s could only become regular animals." he says.

    Reima "Well, it''s unique to those of us with the Elder Blood. Ciri''s also trying but, not quite there yet." he says with a smug look.

    Ciri "Yeah, keep gloating Squeakes. Atleast mine won''t be as small as yours is." she retorts.

    Reima ignroes her and looks at Geralt, "We stayed in the other world for around a year due to a vision I''d received... Basically, due to her killing Sirius Black the world was probably going to either end or be taken over by a Dark Lord."

    Ciri pouts as Reima reveals her dirty laundry to Geralt who just nods without saying anything.

    Reima "We eventually dealt with it though, the Dark Lord is no more. Though I didn''t count on the army of Vampires that wanted to capture Nerissa."

    Ciri shrugs, "Imagine if I hadn''t messed up though, Nerissa more than likely wouldn''t be here. I think it''s a worthy sacrifice." she says.

    Reima nods solemnly, silently agreeing that he''d rather have Sirius die for Nerissa''s sake.

    ...

    Reima "There''s something else I''m curious about... How''s mom doing?" he asks with a stupidly large grin.

    Geralt groans, "I have no idea why Dandelion thought it was a good idea to write those songs, but now everywhere from Nilfgard to the Dragon mountain''s are under the impression that I can conceive children."

    Reima and Ciri yet again break into uproarious laughter at hearing this, just imagining the look on Geralt''s face the first time he heard them was enough fuel for a couple more minutes.

 484 Why not just portal?

    After a while Geralt unfortunately has to put a stop to the jovial mood, "As much as I''d like to spend a few days catching up, I doubt the Hunt will give us the opportunity." he says, bringing them all back to reality.

    Ciri nods, "Knowing them, they''re already on the way..."

    Reima "I can teleport us to wherever we need to go, the Hunt can''t track me afterall."

    Geralt shakes his head, "No, I''ve left a boat on the shore. We''ll travel back to Skellige, book a ship to the mainland and then head to Kaer Morhen on horseback." he states.

    Reima "Why? That''ll take a few days at the least." he complains.

    Geralt turns and glares at him, "I hate portals."

    ...

    Reima "Alright, fine. Let''s go then." he says while sheathing his swords and making sure everything is where it needs to be.

    The group head outside and find that it''s already dark, it seems they''d spent more time inside then they''d initially thought... They start walking towards the shore however they notice something out of place as they go.

    Geralt "Those Dwarves, they''re gone." he states.

    Reima palms his face, idly wondering why he didn''t just kill them when they had first arrived. "Those fucking Dwarves. One Thousand gold they''ve run off with your boat." he says.

    Geralt "They better not have, or I''ll make them a head shorter when I find them."

    Ciri "Well, we''ll not know until we check. Let''s go." she says.

    Reima and Geralt continue cursing the Dwarves until they finally reach the makeshift dock. Surprise, surprise. The boats gone along with the lantern that he''d left hanging here.

    Reima "You know, I don''t think I''ve ever met a Dwarf that I actually liked." he says.

    Geralt shakes his head, "Most are good people, though they have the same problem as Gnomes. They tend to favour material wealth above all else."

    Ciri stops listening to them as she feels something off... She shivers and realises her breath is visible. "Guys, they''re here!" she says in a slight panic.

    The duo stop talking and looks around, Reima manages to spot a ship appearing via portal in the distance. As it approaches he can feel the temperature drop, however, he isn''t scared... Instead, he''s excited.

    Reima "Oi you bastards! You want some? Come and get it!" he shouts as the Staff of Manus climbs from his shadow and into his hand. He raises it and conjures hundreds of Crystal Soul Spears above him, they all spin and target the ship in the distance.

    Aboard the Ship :

    Imlerith stands aboard the Wild Hunt vessel''s bow, he glares at the island in the distance but doesn''t spot their target yet... However, not long after they arrive Caranthir and his apprentices all seem to be in a panic. "What is it!?" he shouts, demanding to be told about what''s happening.

    An apprentice approaches, his heavy armour obscuring his features however one thing is certain. He is fearful. "General! A being on the shore is casting a powerful spell that we have never seen before! Caranthir is attempting to counter it but we have no idea if it will work!" they quickly say.

    Imlerith "Who is it, who is casting this spell? Is it "Her"!?!"

    The apprentice shakes their head, "No, but she is with the Witcher that managed to escape and kill Nithral. The being looks similar to the Witcher and seems to be his descendant of some sort from what our spies suggest."

    Imlerith growls, "Counter the spell and board the land, we must catch the girl before she flee''s again!".

    Back with Reima :

    Geralt watches in shocked awe as Reima conjures a powerful looking spell, it didn''t require the Elder Speech that Yennefer, Triss or other Sorceresses typically require. Instead he just raises the monstrous looking Staff and the spell appears. He glances at Ciri and see''s she isn''t shocked by this which must mean she''s aware of it already... Just how strong has his Apprentice become?

    Reima launches the spell without mercy and targets the ship instead of it''s occupants, attempting to breach the hull to have it sink. However some kind of shield explodes outwards the moment the Crystal Soul Spears starts moving. It destroys a couple but the rest penetrate the shield which quickly dissipates, after which they devastate the vessel, mangling it to such an extent that repairing it would be an almost impossible task.

    However. He isn''t done yet. He starts channelling Chaos into the axehead of the Staff of Manus which causes the temperature surrounding them to raise a couple degrees. It starts glowing dangerously but he isn''t done yet. It takes a lot of effort restraining his aura while he does this but he barely manages, eventually putting enough power into the spell that he''s confident it''ll achieve it''s desired results.

    Stepping forwards he gives a yell as he swings the Staff downwards as hard as he can towards the ship. The crew of the ship look confused as a huge blade of Dark Red Flames are flung at them with incredible speed. Some attempt to conjure shields while others hit the deck and prepare for impact as it finally reaches the boat...

    ...

    It passes through the boat without any noticeable impact, even the bombardment of those Crystal Spears had done more than this... Perhaps it was an illusion?

    ...

    *CREEAAAAAAAAAK!*

    The boat under their feet starts making an ominous noise, the part where the wave of fire had passed starts to separate. Revealing a clean cut that bisects the boat in two, the two parts start moving in opposite directions as the entire thing begins to sink.

    Imlerith roars in rage as he has to ditch his armour for fear of sinking to his doom. Everyone who hadn''t taken off their armour drowns quickly without any drama which enrages those that survive.

 485 New, Old Spell

    As Imlerith tumbles into the water as his ship splits in two he scrambles to get to the surface and look around for the survivors. His eyes dart around until they spot Caranthir, the other General and Navigator that allows for world travel, the man is floating above the surface with nothing but his staff and helmet, mimicking Imlerith in ditching the heavy armour that''d most certainly lead to their deaths.

    Imlerith "What was that! Was it that traitor Avallac''h!?!" he shouts with furious indignation.

    Caranthir shakes their head and looks back to the shore where the attack had come from, his eyes widen as he spots something else churning the surrounding magic...

    Reima had just cut the ship in two and found it was quite entertainment to watch the soldiers of the Wild Hunt sink to the bottom of their ocean while frantically trying to swim in their heavy armour... However, he knew that the leaders wouldn''t be taken out so easily. This was confirmed when he spots one large figure and one that looks similarly to a mage floating in the water not far from the wreckage.

    Reima "There''s some survivors." he states.

    Geralt doesn''t say anything but Ciri asks, "What do they look like?"

    Reima "One''s large and bald while the other''s still got his helmet on... And still has a staff."

    Ciri nods, "Imlerith and Caranthir, generals of the Hunt... Can you pick them off from here?" she asks.

    Reima shrugs, "Kinda wanna try a spell I''ve been dying to use since assembling it..."

    Ciri "As long as it kills them do whatever you want."

    Reima spins the Staff of Manus in his hand while applying the formulae responsible for the spell, the entirety of the staff begins to glow a bright light blue. Eventually it''s done and he points the tip of the staff at the two floating in the water.

    Light explodes from his staff, though no sound is emitted... Instead a huge beam of white and light blue light shoots from his staff towards the two men. As it approaches them it skims the water but for some reason doesn''t affect it in the slightest, as if it were an illusion.

    Caranthir who''d noticed the spell being constructed had already prepared an escape, though when he saw the attack he was almost too shocked to act. A slap across his back courtesy of Imlerith brought him back to reality however. He points his staff downwards and a portal opens up, sucking the two in along with a amount of water which becomes a huge whirlpool. Atleast, until the portal closes.

    Geralt and Ciri both watch as the duo escape and then turn their eyes to Reima who''s currently on his back with the tip of his staff still smoking....

    Reima "Uh, I think it could use a little more work..." he mutters from the ground.

    Ciri "You think?" she says while sighing at the fact two of the people she hated the most had escaped.

    Geralt "Whatever it was, it''s effective." he says, still glaring at the now vacant water.

    Reima "Unless you guys wanna keep staring at a bunch of bloated elven corpses I suggest we get going... The Hunt will take a while to follow if I take us to Kaer Morhen, which''ll give me enough time to gather my own allies." he says.

    Geralt "Your own allies?"

    Reima nods, "Remember I was saying about a world coming to an end? I befriended it''s inhabitants and promised them sanctuary, though I''d have to ask Vesemir if they could occupy Kaer Morhen... That, and I''m not sure how many I''m going to actually bring. You could say I''ve got a literal immortal army at my disposal." he says while thinking about Risryn, Talem and Kuretz.

    Geralt nods, "Well, we can use all the help we can get. To be honest I thought we were going to be outnumbered a hundred to one, but with your friends it''ll be an easier battle."

    Ciri "No, point in dawdling, let''s get back then." she says, taking hold of Reima''s hand.

    Geralt gives a heavy sigh and grabs Reima''s shoulder, just as Nerissa hugs Reima''s arm to herself.

    Reima "Alright guys, for this to work you need to say "Up-up and away!"... Otherwise it won''t work." he says, barely holding a neutral expression.

    Ciri players along as she finds messing with Geralt incredibly entertaining. "Right, almost forgot about that."

    Reima and Ciri "Up-up and away!"....

    Reima looks at Geralt, "You need to say the words or this won''t work."

    He groans and rubs his face, "Fine. Let''s just get this over with."

    Geralt "Up-up and away!" he says loudly, before looking at the other with confusion at being the only person doing it.

    They laugh and Reima teleports them to Kaer Morhen before Geralt scolds them.

    Courtyard of Kaer Morhen :

    A turquouise flash indicates the groups arrival, Geralt shaking his head and remarking, "Hm, that isn''t as bad as I''d thought."

    Reima "Well obviously, our teleportation is like Portals on crack... Or er, Fisstech." he corrects himself while Geralt nods in understanding.

    While the duo are chatting Ciri looks around in giddy excitement at the nostalgic scene, though it''s around midnight in this area of the world the torches illuminate the keep well. They aren''t for the Witcher however as they don''t require lighting to see, instead it''s for the people here to help fend off the Wild Hunt.

    Up on Reima''s favourite balcony there are two people sipping wine as they watch over the mountain pass... One notices the groups presence and stands up, revealing her striking red hair.

 486 Friend Zone

    Triss Merigold had just been... Talking with her best friend Yennefer, the topics of conversation were random and at times uninteresting but the two didn''t stop as they both wished to gain specific information from it... After Geralt had helped her evacuate the Mages from Novigrad to Kovir she had thought it would be their last meeting in a long time, but... She couldn''t abandon her responsibilities to Ciri, the girl she''d claimed as her little sister.

    Though, that wasn''t all she was here for...

    Triss "So... How are you and Geralt?" she finally asks the niggling question.

    Yennefer "Oh, finally cutting to the chase then?" she replies before sipping her wine.

    Triss shifts uncomfortably, not saying anything and just waiting for a reply.

    Yennefer sighs and puts down her goblet, "Why is it you''re asking Triss? Is it because you feel guilty about taking advantage of him? Or because you hope something may remain between the two of you?"

    Triss hears her and thinks over the question, finding that she didn''t really know the answer. "I.. I don''t know. You know I would never purposely hurt you Yen but, we both know that this "Thing" between the three of us will always end with heartache."

    Yennefer "Hmm, did you ever imagine us fighting over a single man like this back in Aretuza?" she says with mirth.

    Triss shakes her head, "I didn''t think someone like Geralt could exist."

    Yennefer "Triss, I didn''t say anything when you bespelled Geralt, nor did I comment when you started another tryst with him immediately after we were separated... But Geralt and I, we''ve already resolved some issues that''d been plaguing us."

    Triss probes her friends face for the answer, her eyes widen when she realises what they''d done. "The wish?"

    Yennefer nods, "I had Geralt assist in releasing us from it, managed to find one bound to a dead master on a boat wreckage atop a mountain."

    Triss "I, I understand. I''m glad you two are happy... Forgive me but could we talk about something else?" she asks, the familiar pain in her chest coming back with full force. However as Yennefer is about to accede to her request she notices a flash of light in the courtyard. Her goblet falls from her hand as she notices four people, Geralt and her little sister included.

    Yennefer gets up and looks over the balcony and spots the group, excitedly yelling "CIRI!" and running as fast as her dress would allow to the courtyard. Triss isn''t far behind as she changes her focus from Geralt to Ciri.

    Reima steps back with Nerissa to allow everyone to reaquaint, a sadistic grin finding it''s way onto his face.

    Yennefer finally reaches the courtyard and smothers Ciri in a tight hug, remarking that she''s "Become so beautiful". Ciri reciprocates, taking incredible comfort in her arms. Once Yennefer lets go Triss takes her place, giving a longer hug than even Yennefer had. "Little sis, you''re back!"

    Yen walks to Geralt and kisses him deeply, "How was the trip?" she asks after releasing his lips.

    Geralt smiles, "Tense, but full of surprises." he says which has Yen intrigued.

    Reima finally steps forward while still holding Nerissa''s hand, "Yo mom, how''re you doing?" he asks with a cheeky grin.

    ...

    Triss''s attention is immediately drawn by the word "Mom" and she is spooked when she spots what could only be described as Geralt''s son...

    Yennefer "Reima? Is that you?" she asks in shock.

    He nods, "Yeah, Dad found me with Ciri." he says, with Geralt rubbing his face as he hears himself be referred to as "Dad".

    Reima is surprised however when Yen hugs him, "Do you know how much grief you''ve caused Geralt and I?" she asks with a scolding tone.

    Reima "Er, no?"

    Yennefer "Disappearing without a trace? You will be paying me back for all the spell components I used to find you!" she says.

    Reima "Ok, ok! Jeez..." he says, finally escaping her arms. He turns to Triss and sends a grin to Geralt. "Hi, Mom 2.0"

    Triss blushes at being called that but shakes her head to regain her composure. "It''s Triss... And you?"

    Reima "Reima Merigold of Rivia and Vengerberg." he states without hesitation.

    Ciri can''t help but laugh at this and she''s joined by Yen who chuckles at Triss''s expression.

    Geralt slaps him on the back, "Stop playing around." he looks at Triss, "This is Reima Ludvig, my old apprentice that vanished a while ago."

    Triss nods, "Oh! I didn''t think you both would look so alike."

    Geralt shrugs, "Yeah, well. Fate seem''d to have it out for me when it drop this one in my lap." he says.

    Reima "So harsh, I bet you don''t treat Ciri like this."

    Geralt "Ciri doesn''t go flaunting around the continent proclaiming they''re my son." he growls.

    Reima laughs before realising someone hadn''t been introduced yet. "Oh, Yen, Triss. This is Nerissa Dracula, please treat her as one of your own." he states.

    Yennefer glances at him, "You know, I don''t mind it if you want to call me Mother." she says as she walks past him and bends over to greet Nerissa. "Hello there, I''m Yennefer of Vengerberg." she introduces herself with her hand outstretched.

    Nerrisa "Hello." she says as she shakes her hand.

    Triss is about to greet her but stops, "Why are her eyes red?" she asks.

    Geralt "She''s a vampire." he says while shrugging.

    Reima "Don''t worry, she doesn''t bite, usually..." he says with a chuckle. "You''d not hurt a fly would you Snuffles?"

    Nerissa herself is embarrassed by all the attention she''s getting and just lowers her head while kicking Reima''s shin.

    Reima chuckles and rubs her head, "Hm, ok... If you want you don''t have to talk to anyone, though it''d be good for you to start talking more." however just as he says this she leaps into his arms while turning into a rabbit.

 487 The crew is... Almost, assembled.

    Triss "As much as I would love to continue reacquainting, isn''t the Wild Hunt hot on your trail? Especially with Ciri using her powers?"

    Reima "Ah, that wasn''t Ciri. I also possess the Elder Blood." he states, taking great amusement as Yen and Triss''s shocked faces.

    Yennefer "You do? Why didn''t you tell us when you were training?"

    Reima "I don''t know about you guys but telling everyone about a secret that could very well lead to my death isn''t something I''m into." They nod at his answer.

    Triss "That doesn''t change the situation though, the Wild Hunt will still be coming for you."

    Reima shakes his head, "My abilities are different to Ciri''s in that the Wild Hunt can''t track me, they''ll find us eventually but we probably have enough time to start fixing this old fort up.

    Geralt nods, "That''s right, is everyone here?" he asks.

    Triss "Hjalmar an Craite arrived with Ermion recently."

    Yennefer "We should wake them and explain the situation." she says.

    Geralt "Yeah, soon as we get to work the better the odds we''ll have against the Hunt... I suspect after what Reima did to them they''ll send everything they can."

    Yennefer "Why? What''d he do?"

    Geralt shakes his head and starts walking into the keep, "Cut the Wild Hunt ship in two with some kind of spell."

    Yennefer turns to Reima, "You''ve learned magic?"

    Reima nods, "Yeah, I''d be happy to show you after this is all over... I''ve got a few books that may interest you."

    Yennefer "I''ll be looking forward to it... Would it be too much to hope for Ciri to have learned as well?" she asks, turning her focus to Ciri.

    Ciri "I''ve been learning, Reima''s been teaching me his own kind of magic... It''s very different to what you tried to teach me in the past Yen."

    Yennefer "You know, I''ll be observing your progress when we get a chance... You won''t escape my tutilage this time." she says with a smile that sends shivers across Ciri''s back.

    The group walks into the keep and starts progressing further inside, eventually reaching the Great Hall. Geralt walks up to a pillar which has a large bell hanging from it and starts vigorously ringing it, giving off an ungodly racket that almost certainly wakes up anyone unfortunate enough to have slept.

    The sound of quickly shuffling feet signals the arrival of some of the keeps occupants... A small figure sprints down the stares with an axe bared, his small mohawk and thick beard being the only feature Reima can discern as they sprint towards the group. "WHAT IS IT? Are they ''ere!?!" they shout however they halt in their steps as they spot Geralt and Ciri.

    Geralt "It''s good to see you Zoltan." he says, walking up and clasping the Dwarve''s arm.

    Zoltan lowers the axe and heaves a sigh, realising that there isn''t any danger currently. "Ey, it''s my pleasure Geralt. Couldn''t live wit'' myself if I left ye lot on your own." He looks at Ciri, "Hey lass, it''s fantastic to see you alive and well."

    Ciri nods and gives him a quick hug, "You too."

    Not long after Zoltan had arrived two people garbed in blue and white appear, one being a stern faced man with a large gold medallion while the other has average length blonde hair, pointed ears and a large pair of... Personalities that''re quite visible from her open shirt.

    Roche "Geralt! It seems you''ve found her, that''s quite a relief!" he says as he walks down the stairs.

    Geralt "The relief come from having a former special force members backing us up." he says, grateful that Roche and Ves had come.

    Ves "Don''t mind it, I owe you my life." she says.

    The clinking of heels signals the next person, they saunter down the stairs with a hair brush still in their hands. They smile as they spot Geralt, "You''ve finally come, I was thinking our rendezvous meant nothing to you." she says coyly

    Yennefer "Keira I''d prefer you stopped throwing yourself at every man you lay your eyes on." she says with an annoyed expression.

    Keira Metz gives a light laugh while continuing to brush her hair, "My Yennefer, did I strike a nerve? From what I can remember it was he who was throwing himself at me... Or should I say thrusting?"

    Geralt "Ladies, let''s not do this here. Ok?"

    Keira shrugs, "It''s fine, it was merely a jest... Now, what someone like to explain why you interrupted my beauty sleep?" she says.

    Triss "We will but it seems that we''re missing a couple people..."

    Zoltan "Ah, you mean Lambert, Eskel, Arie and the master Vesemir?"

    Reima "Arie''s still around?" he asks curious.

    Zoltan nods, "That one armed lunatic drank the other two under the table last night, glad I didn''t join ''em or I''d still be past out. A dwarf simply can''t match a Witcher at drinking see."

    Geralt rings the bell again and the others make their way down, Lambert almost falling down the stairs as he goes.

    Eskel holds his head, "Gods, Geralt this better be important." he states.

    Arie walks down behind Eskel, his blonde hair the only thing that Reima recognises. He''s now taller than both Lambert and Eskel with heavy muscles. His missing arm seems to have been replaced with a curved blade that looks like silver. "Must be or they''d not ring that fucking bell." he retorts.

    Vesemir "If you three oafs hadn''t been so rowdy you''d be wide and awake already!" he says, following them all down. When he finally reaches the bottom he''s struck by a ashen haired missile.

    Ciri "Uncle Vesemir!"

    Vesemir "Aha! You''re back you little she-devil!" he says with a smile.

    Ciri "Uncle you promised to stop calling me that!"

    Vesemir "Force of habit." he waves it off.

    Ciri releases him with a smile and turns towards Lambert and Eskel before giving them quick hugs, for Arie she only gives him a handshake while introducing themselves to eachother. This is apparently the first time they''d be meeting eachother...

 488 The "good" kind of Elves

    Once Arie''s done greeting Ciri he looks towards the group and his eye''s focus on a single person... "Reima?"

    Reima "Yeah bro, I''m finally back." he says with a smile.

    Arie walks up and Reima assumes he''s gonna grab his arm as they used to do... However, *Crack!* a fist slams into face, though the only thing it did was turn his head slightly. "Bastard! You fucked off for ten years and act like everything is "Alright"!?" he asks with an angry look.

    Reima doesn''t react to the punch and continues holding Snuffles in his arms, "I don''t know what your problem is but there''s a reason to my absence." he says.

    Arie "Like what? What could you have possibly been doing for ten years which prevented you from even sending a letter!?!"

    Reima shrugs, "Well travelling to different worlds is one, another is getting stuck in a world that had it''s time slowed down..."

    Arie shakes his head, "You''re still joking around? You wanna take this outside!?!"

    Ciri steps inbetween them and separates them, "Reima''s telling the truth, he''s like me and has been travelling different worlds... I know because I met him in one."

    Arie eyes her and Reima suspiciously but just shakes his head, "Whatever, we''ll work out our problems once this is over. Man to man."

    Reima "Oh, I didn''t know you felt that way about me Arie."

    Arie shakes his head, "You know what I mean." he says, leaning on a nearby pillar and waiting for an explanation.

    Reima nods at Lambert, Eskel and Vesemir. "Nice to see you guys, seems like forever ago doesn''t it."

    Vesemir nods, "I''m glad to see you''re still above land and not rotting in some monster den in Toussaint."

    Lambert snorts, "That kids always been a monster, no way anything but an army of Fiends was going to take him out."

    Eskel "Can we just cut to the chase already? My heads pounding."

    Vesemir looks at him in exasperation, "What kind of Witcher can''t handle their drink."

    Eskel points his thumb at himself, "This one, so can we get this over with?"

    Yennefer "We''re waiting on Emion."

    Ciri "And Hjalmar." she adds.

    Geralt grumbles, "How many times am I going to ring this bell." he says as he rings it one more time.

    Finally a large red haired man wearing expensive Skellige warrior clothing walks down the stairs, following by a man with graying black hair who''s wielding a staff.

    Ciri "Hjalmar!"

    Hjalmar smiles, "Ciri, is that you? I almost didn''t recognise ye!" he says they both greet eachother with a hug.

    Ciri "You''ve changed a lot since we last saw eachother... I think the beard suits you." she says.

    Hjalmar nods, "Good, cause I''m not shaving it! Hahahaha!"

    Ermion smiles at their reunion, he''d always considered Ciri as one of his own and treated her as such. "Geralt, is it time?" he asks.

    Geralt shakes his head, "Not yet. Now that everyone''s here we can begin discussions over what to do."

    Hjalmar "What else is there to do? We fight them when they come, that''s what I say." he states.

    Ermion "If only it were so easy." he interjects, "I''m not knowledgeable on the tactics that the Wraiths employ but it won''t be your average army for certain."

    Geralt nods, "I''ve fought them before, even killed a general with Keira. Their Navigators will transport troops inside the keep and use the White Frost to go on the offensive."

    Vesemir "We can''t defend Kaer Morhen if they can bypass the walls as if they were nothing... Has anyone got something that can deal with it?"

    Reima shrugs, "I can probably set up some runes but I''m not sure if they''ll work." he says, not really sure if he could create a rune cluster before they arrived.

    Yennefer "I can deal with it, though I have no idea for how long."

    Geralt nods, "Good enough, as long as we don''t have them coming from behind us we should atleast have a chance.

    Roche "Me and Ves could prepare some guerrilla style traps, but it would depend on how much time we have until they get here."

    Yennefer "They shouldn''t arrive until tomorrow at the earliest, Reima has already done damage to some of their forces, they''ll be preparing their forces instead of tracking Ciri which should give us more time than we had initially anticipated."

    Roche crosses his arms "Good enough." he states.

    Zoltan "I''ve brought my'' tools, if anyone needs any maintenance let me know. Other than that I''ll be brewin'' my Mahakem mix, shite''s so volatile it''ll make Napalm look like a wet fart!"

    Vesemir "Before we talk about offence we need to shore up our defence. The walls of Kaer Morhen are falling apart as we speak, we need them repaired before we can even contemplate other things."

    Reima interjects, "Ah, I may have a solution to that problem..."

    Ciri "Are you talking about "Them"?" she asks.

    He nods, "Yeah, bet they''ll be excited for something else to do... They''re quite bored just looking after animals."

    Geralt "You two, you''ve lost us... What, or who are you talking about?" he asks with the others nodding along.

    Reima "Ah, wait a moment. I''ll get them." he says as he steps back into a vacant area of the hall. His hands begin to glow Turquoise as he plunges them forwards, forcing a crack in reality itself before slowly opening it, revealing a snowy land on the other side that blows a chilly breeze into the hall. He sticks his head in and shouts, "Hinky! I''ve got a job for you lot!"

    The other people of the room watch with shocked fascination as around a hundred Elves appear through the portal, all of them wearing elegant looking clothing except for one of them, which elects to wear some kind of heavy winter coat.

    Hinky "Yes Master!?!"

 489 Friends in need

    Hinky "Yes Master!" they shout dutifully.

    Reima "I need you and everyone who isn''t taking care of the "Animals" to come and help repair this place. A battle will be taking place soon so I''ll give you some high quality materials to use." he says.

    The Elves behind Hinky hear him and start streaming out of the portal, pushing eachother out of the way as if it''s the line to the lottery. Eventually only a few are left inside the portal with forlorn looks, realising they''d been put on "Animal" duty.

    Reima pulls out a Bottomless Box from DarkSouls and fills it with a huge amount of stone, wood, and other materials that may be needed before handing it to Hinky. "You guys''ll have to be quick as we have no idea when we''ll be attacked." he says.

    Hinky "Yes Master! We will complete it before bad peoples attack!" they say and all simultaneously disappear with a "POP!"

    ...

    Reima turns and almost loses it as the looks of shock on the group of people''s faces.

    Lambert "What the fuck! Was that!"

    Reima "Was what?" he asks innocently.

    Lambert "The army of midgets you just commanded to repair Kaer Morhen!"

    Reima "Ah, they''re called House Elves... They used to be enslaved to humans in another world, I saved them and now they obey me."

    Geralt shrugs, "Fine by me." he says, not really bothered by Reima''s antics at this point.

    Vesemir nods, "I''ll go check on their progress later, they seem reliable though."

    While most are commenting on the Elves presence, those knowledgeable in the magical arts send suspicious looks at Reima. Yennefer pulls them aside and explains his abilities and similarities to Ciri, along with his apparent immunity to their attempts to track him.

    Most still seem wary of him but after learning he''s also a Witcher they relent, deciding that questions could be asked after they fended off the Wild Hunt.

    Geralt "Now that the problem with the walls are... Resolved, what else can we do to prepare?"

    Lambert "Let me use the tools in the workshop and I''ll dig a passage through to the armory."

    Geralt "The armoury?" he asks.

    Lambert nods, "Roof collapsed a while ago, no one could be bothered to fix it."

    Vesemir "Seems my name is "No-one" now, since I''ve been asking you to patch it up for a year or two."

    Lambert "Look, I didn''t think we''d need to defend Kaer Morhen again after the Salamandra attacked."

    Vesemir "A Witcher should always be prepared." he states, with Lambert giving up at arguing with the old man.

    Eskel "I can finish those potions Vesemir was brewing, if I have time I could make a few more depending on what we''ll need... Maybe even some bombs."

    Yennefer "Dimeritium Bombs could be used to cancel their portals, it''d only limit the number coming through but would still be useful."

    Eskel nods, "I''ll get working on them later then."

    Geralt "Those of you that don''t have a task follow me, we''ll look at the map of the keep and iron out the details." he says.

    Reima "Ah, wait a moment. As I said earlier, I''ve got friends that we can count on... They''re ready to fight and I intend to get them."

    Ciri "Does this include the slower world?" she asks.

    Reima nods, "I''ll need to be quick in there otherwise I''d miss the battle." he states.

    Ciri nods, "Don''t be long otherwise you''d miss the fun."

    Reima nods, "Snuffles you coming with me or wanna stay with Ciri?" he asks the rabbit in his arms, the surrounding people give him a weird look as he does.

    The rabbit rolls in his arms, apparently content with where she is.

    Reima nods, "Alright, I''ll head to the world that doesn''t have a time dilation affect on it first. Once I get there I''ll bring them back here so they can sort themselves out. Then, I head to the other."

    Geralt "As Ciri said, don''t take too long. If you can''t gather all of your allies fast enough then come back, we could use your help during the siege."

    Reima nods and with another flash of Turquoise light he disappears from Kaer Morhen.

    Ciri "Right. Now let''s talk about my role in the battle." she says to Geralt, with the old wolf sighing and rubbing his face at what he knows is about to happen.

    Absolver, Ruined City of Raslan, Village of Masks surrounding the Raslan Colleseium. :

    Four people are sitting around a round table, masks covering their faces as a solemn mood bears over everything.

    Kuretz "So... To put it simply, we''re fucked." he says through a sigh.

    Talem, Risryn and Kalini all nod. The former tapping the table with his fingers, "There isn''t anything we can do... We''ve been fighting for who knows how many years, with the Guides allying with the surrounding countries and their armies bearing down on us we will lose eventually. And while we can''t die we can suffer."

    Risryn "The fight will not stop until they learn of the unmasking technique." she states, even herself feeling exhausted by the constant back and forth fighting with armies.

    Kuretz moves his hands through his hair, "The Prospects are losing hope, we''d saved them from eternally fighting, dying and repeating the cycle... How is now any different?"

    Risryn "They have a goal, freedom from the Guides who seek to control and dominate them."

    Talem "Many people have begun to regress into their old ways, becoming extremely aggressive and almost manic. If this situation continues then we might lose a significant amount of man power... We can''t take their masks off either for fear of the Guides killing them while they''re vulnerable." he says quietly.

 490 Favours for Friends

    Kalini "They''ve been changing their tactics lately, instead of killing those that come near they have created a fortified position near the Tower of Adal... The entire place is a giant trap, designed to capture anyone near it. Luckily I had a knife on hand otherwise I''d still be trapped."

    Talem nods, "If they can''t kill us, they''ll try and trap us."

    Risryn "Hypocritical fools, they created us without a way to deal with us... Aside from those traitorous Absolvers."

    Kuretz chuckles, "Yeah, well they didn''t last long against us. They sure squirmed when their fucking masks were removed." he says with Risryn chuckling along with him.

    Kalini sighs, "I wonder where Reima is.. I''m sure he''d have a solution."

    Kuretz shrugs, "Who knows, he hasn''t visited once since he left... Maybe he''s dead?" however immediately after he says this he''s kicked in the face by Risryn.

    Risryn "He is fine, probably just busy." he states.

    Talem nods, "Probably helping someone somewhere."

    *Squeeaaaaak*

    The rooms occupants turn towards the door as four sets of eyes look through the crack. One red and another pair of familiar slitted Turquoise ones.

    Reima doesn''t open the door any wider, "If Kuretz wants to talk more shit about me then I''ll come by another time." he says sarcastically.

    Kuretz stands and immediately sprints to the door, throwing it open and leaping at him with a hug. "REIMA YOU BASTARD! HOW COULD YOU LEAVE US FOR SO LONG!" He shouts and Reima wonders if the man is about to start crying.

    Reima laughs, "I was busy dude! I was in a world for two years and it ended up being ten!"

    Kuretz "You can make whatever excuse you want but you still left us bro!!!"

    Talem walks over and bows to him slightly, "It''s good you came, we likely couldn''t hold out any longer.

    Reima "Really?" he asks in surprise, not really expecting this village of a thousand immortal warriors to be having trouble.

    Risryn walks to him leaving Kalini the last one sitting at the table, "You''ve grown, though, not as much as I''d expect...

    Reima smiles at her, "As I said, time dilation... Anyway you guys were saying about some trouble you were having?"

    Risryn nods, "The guides have assembled the surrounding countries and laid siege to Raslan. The village is the only safe place for us now, with even the Harbour being dangerous for us to travel to."

    Reima "The Guides? Huh, thought those douchebags would have given up already..."

    Kuretz snorts, "Given up? Not likely, they''ve gotten worse as time has passed. Apparently they''d forgotten the numerous thrashing we gave them when they''d sent their Absolvers in."

    Reima "Well, you guys are in luck... I''m here to recruit you to fight off a race from another world threatening my home. I''m sure the land will suit the Prospects and yourselves."

    Talem "Are you sure? We have many people so unless you own a kingdom there isn''t likely to be a place for us."

    Reima shrugs, "I don''t own a kingdom but there''s a lot of land too dangerous for other countries to try and claim. My world is infested with monsters afterall... Though that wouldn''t really be a problem for you guys now, would it?"

    Kuretz laughs, "Damn right! Kalini, start gathering everyone. Me and Reima need to talk about some pests near the Tower of Adal." he says, with Kalini nodding and running off to get everyone''s attention.

    Risryn looks him over admiringly, only now noticing the Rabbit in his arms. "What''s with the rabbit?" she asks.

    Reima "Ah, Snuffles? She''s a vampire from another world who has the ability to transform into animals... Say hi Snuffles." he prods at the curious rabbit which raises a paw in Risryn''s direction.

    Risryn blushes under he mask and ignores everything Reima had just said, "Cute."

    Kuretz "While Kalini is gathering everyone I was wondering if you had any... Explosive ways to deal with a fortified enemy position near the Tower of Adal?"

    Reima grins, "Oh, you have no idea. How about you guys show me the fort and I''ll show you my explosives?"

    Kuretz "Deal! Hahaha! I knew I could count on you, though you''ll have to sort out some drinks as I''d run out four years ago! Hahahaha!"

    Talem shakes his head and looks at Reima, "It''s not conventional explosives is it?" he guesses.

    Reima nods, "You''ll see."

    The masked trio lead Reima out of the shack and through a hidden path made for their scouts to keep an eye on enemy movements.

    Kuretz points in the distance towards a huge building that seems to have been constructed from waste and rubble, cement that has barely dried is visible on the buildings cracks, the Guides having probably used it to shore up the forts defences. "So, think you can destroy that?" he asks.

    Reima nods and hands Snuffles over to Risryn, "Easy."

    He steps out of the bushes and onto the hill overlooking the fort, from his shadow black tentacles crawl out and into his hand, quickly forming into the Staff of Manus. Reima idly clicks his tongue while thinking of a spell that''ll provide a satisfactory "Boom", atleast by Kuretz''s standards.

    Deciding that something similar to a gas explosion would probably be the most effective against a structure like that he plants the Staff into the ground while channelling a spell similar to Chaos Storm. He pushes the pressure through cracks in the earth and manipulates it to burrow under the fort. It takes a while and a lot of effort but eventually it''s in position... The final thing to do is to push as much magic into it as possible... Which he does with glee.

    The ground under Reima starts boiling and convulsing, the stone turning to lava and any moisture instantly evaporating. A similar phenomenon happens on the surface above the other passage ways that''d been created, giving the only warning of what was to come.

 491 *Boom!*

    Inside the Guide fort :

    A group of Guide holy warriors are sitting around some makeshift chairs and tables while playing cards that look suspiciously like a certain "game", one throws his cards on the table after he loses for the third time in a row.

    Already dead Guide "Man, why are we even here! We almost captured those masked freaks leader a few times already, why can''t we just march our army over and do it again?"

    Already dead Guide 2 "Are you stupid? Just to almost capture that one woman cost us one hundred men!"

    Already dead Guide 3 "Whatever, just deal with it, I mean what''s so bad about sitting around all day and getting paid?..." They sniff the air for a moment, "Are one of you guys cooking something?" he asks.

    The others shake their heads...

    Already dead Guide "Now that you mention it, it''s getting quite hot isn''t it?"

    ....

    The Guides ignore the signs and keep talking, however they all start to panic the moment a sound not too dissimilar from a leaky gas pipe makes itself known... For all but three seconds before :

    *BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!*

    Reima and the group watch from the hill as a huge sound signals the explosion, though from the outside it doesn''t look like anything. A few seconds after the initial explosion the cement holding the fort together starts to glow red, before eventually melting and shooting lava out like a high pressure hose. Everything inside the fort is either a charred corpse or lava now, it streams from the wound like cracks in the fort and slowly solidifies, basically filling the fort with rock and preventing the Guides from trying to use it again.

    Kuretz throws his fist in the air and laughs, "Hahahaha! That''s payback!" he shouts.

    Talem tries to walk beside Reima but finds the ground he''s standing on too hot to tread, "You seem to have improved with those unique abilities Reima." he states.

    Reima shrugs, "Well, yeah. I''ve had a lot of practise.... Alright, we should probably get going, I''m on a time limit see. Oh, yeah you guys should grab everything you want to bring as we probably won''t be returning here."

    They nod and all separate to go collect their things will Snuffles hops back into his arms, Reima glances back at the fort and wonders what treasures would have been inside had he not destroyed it... "Hmm, too late now I guess." he says noncommittally.

    Reima walks back to the village centre and looks at the huge group of people gathered, they number around a thousand as they had before he''d left, obviously their numbers would remain the same as they are all immortal. Most who recognise him due to his unique eyes, hair and scar across his face come and greet him with an almost desperate excitement. He didn''t fault them on this as they''d seen him disappear from this world entirely ten years ago and probably hoped he was here to help them escape the wrath of the Guides.

    Of course there were a few gathered who occasionally reached to remove their masks to no avail, they seemed erratic and twitchy. The same kinds of thing he''d seen before he removed their masks all that time ago.

    Eventually Kuretz, Talem and Risryn comes back to him with huge sacks in their hands. When they''re near his Medallion starts to shudder which already lets him know what''s inside.

    Reima "Why have you got so much Essence?" he asks, hoping they hadn''t been stupid enough to try and dig up more... After all that had been the cause of the last Cataclysm.

    Kuretz "Well, the Guides use it with the help of their "God" to create more Prospects... We decided it was best to go collect all of it before they tried... Obviously we didn''t dare try and mine it though."

    Talem "With the readily available Essence gone the Guides will try to mine it, and lead to another Cataclysm... I spoke with Innara while you were gone and she only reaffirmed what I believed would happen. Should the Guides cause another Cataclysm it won''t just be Arcell coming through, it may be ten, twenty or even one hundred of malicious ephemeral beings seeking to destroy the world... Without us present they may very well succeed."

    Risryn "Then let them, they reap what they sow." she states with crossed arms.

    Reima "I''m with Risryn on this one, you guys can''t be responsible for everything that happens in the world, nor is it your responsibility to help people who actively work against you... So yeah, fuck em."

    Kalini "Guys, everyone is here and ready." she says.

    Reima grabs the bags of essence and stores them away into his Folded Space, "I''d suggest destroying the altars that help you respawn but I doubt they work interdimensionally."

    Risryn "We can just create another in your world, it will probably be required if we are to fight." she says.

    Reima "You can create altars?"

    Risryn nods, "I was once the Guides best Absolver, I know many of their secrets... All I require is a large amount of Essence."

    Reima "Ahhh, I understand... Okay, let''s go address everyone and prepare to leave." he says, jumping atop a raise platform to look upon the thousand masked warriors.

    Reima "Yo everyone! You guys may remember me as much as I do you but I''m not here to chat. Instead, I offer you all salvation in another world! Those of you that wish to follow me, Talem, Risryn, Kuretz and Kalini can do so... Those of you that would like to stay behind can also do what you wish. However! There is one thing I wish to ask from you, my home is under attack and I''d like your assistance in defending it as it could very well become your home aswell! You do not have to fight if you don''t want to but please bear in mind that there will be conflict!"

 492 New Prospects in Kaer Morhen

    Soon enough it was time to leave, Reima made sure that everyone knew to walk in an orderly line... He didn''t think he could handle a thousand people fighting to get into a portal that''s difficult enough as it is to keep open.

    Talem, Risryn, Kuretz and Kalini watch as Reima tears open a portal in reality, a chilly breeze blows through it as the crowd looks upon the entrance of Kaer Morhen... He hadn''t opened it inside the keep as he didn''t think a thousand people appearing out of no where would do much good...

    Reima "Kalini, Talem could you direct people inside while Kuretz and Risryn protects the otherside... Ah, if anyone asks tell them I sent you or you might have a rain of fire heading your way." he says with them all nodding.

    Eventually the Prospects starts heading inside, the huge line of people streaming into the portal Reima''s holding open like a door. While he does this he sticks his head through the portal and shouts at Kuretz, "You know, I wonder if this counts as Illegal Immigration?"

    Kuretz "Probably but who cares, you got our backs and we got yours bro!" he says while sending a thumbs up.

    Reima shakes his head at his friends and continues keeping the portal open until everyone is through... Though, just before he steps in himself he hears a ghostly voice that seems oddly familiar. Looking behind him he sees someone he hadn''t expected to see again, Innara.

    Innara "Leaving so soon?" they ask in their mimicry of human voices, the multitude of different tones and sounds giving off an eerie feeling.

    Reima nods, "Yeah, not much left for me, or anyone else here anymore." he states, not wishing to be hostile to someone who''d helped him in the past.

    The ghostly figure nods, the circle behind her rotating in a peculiar manner as they do so. "This world is coming to an end, your decision to save those worthy is an admirable one."

    Reima smirks, "Some of them are annoying." he says thinking about Kuretz, "But, they''re friends... Speaking of which, wanna come along?" he says, nudging his head towards the portal.

    Innara "As much as your proposition interests me, my presence would only lead to destruction... Not from myself but from those that would be created by my presence."

    Reima nods, not really understanding the dynamic of Innara''s race but knowing that Arcell is a prime example of what she means.

    Kuretz "Bro hurry up! I''m freezing my ass off out here!" his voice is heard through the portal.

    Reima "Well, that''s my queue to leave... Good luck Innara, and thanks for your help in the past."

    Innara waves at him, "It is you who I should be thanking... But, your friends grow wary, go."

    Reima doesn''t waste anymore time and steps through the portal, letting go of it''s borders which causes it to quickly collapse and disappear. The time still seems to be around midnight, he had only been gone for around an hour or two.

    Kuretz "That your castle?" he asks, pointing towards the large keep which has many dimly lit windows signalling people being present inside.

    Reima shrugs, "Kinda? But not really... You guys wait a sec..." he says as he blinks to the top of the wall. "VESEMIR!" he shouts to get to old man''s attention.

    In the distance Reima spots a few small figures repairing a wall and an old man looking in his direction, they jog over with a confused look.

    Vesemir "Child, I thought you were retrieving your allies?" he asks.

    Reima points at the huge group with a blank face.

    Vesemir looks down and gapes at them, he had no idea Reima would bring this many people... "I-is this everyone?" he asks.

    Reima shakes his head, "Not yet, there''s two more worlds I need to hop to... Also... I kinda promised these guys that you could stay around Kaer Morhen, youknow since their world is gonna end in the near future..."

    ...

    Vesemir rubs his face, "Hmmm, we will discuss this further if we survive the battle..."

    Reima nods and telekenetically opens the gate and allows the Prospects into the courtyard, Risryn, Talem, Kuretz and Kalini all makes their way up the wall to the duo. "Vesemir, these guys are called Talem, Kuretz, Risryn and Kalini... For all intents and purposes they are the leaders of the group."

    Kuretz raises his hand and waves, "Yo."

    Talem bows slightly, "It''s an honour to make your acquaintance."

    Kalini "Thank you for taking us in." she says, bowing deeper than Talem had.

    Risryn just nods at them with Snuffles in her arms.

    Vesemir looks contemplative for a moment, "Hmm, is there a reason that they''re all wearing masks?" he asks.

    Reima nods, "They can''t take the masks off without special magic, but the masks make them immortal as long as they wear them."

    ...

    Vesemir "So... All of these people are unable to die?" he asks with a bewildered expression.

    Kuretz "Yeah, lucky you guys got us as backup right! Hahaha!"

    Reima "Ah, before I forget..." he retrieves the bags of essence from his Folded Space and drops them on the floor in-front of the group. "Risryn, create an altar in the armoury... It''s the most hidden and secure point of the castle... Hopefully Lambert''s dug it out already.

    Vesemir nods, "He has, I checked on him earlier... Follow me I''ll show you to it, Reima you should get going if you want to make it back in time." He states as he walks off.

    Reima nods, "While I''m gone you guys should probably separate those willing to fight, or those that aren''t or are not in the right state of mind for it... For those people you should let them rest in the keep while the others get some practise in..."

    They nod and all go their own ways with Risryn and Talem following Vesemir.

 493 Kidnapping an Old Man

    It''s dinner time in Hogwarts and the whole school is gathered to eat, the mood is jovial despite the increasing tensions between Muggles and Wizards as the magical world is content that most of the blood purists had been ousted and removed from positions of power.

    However...

    *Flash!*

    Right in-front of Dumbledore a turquoise flash attracts the everyone''s attention as a familiar person with white hair and two swords on their back lands on the table, unfortunately crushing the old man''s dinner.

    The New Defence against the Dark Arts professor stands and points their wand at the intruder, demanding that they reveal who they are... Though the other teachers try and signal him to stop.

    Reima ignores the retard flailing his stick around and looks to Dumbledore, "Old man, I''ve come to collect on our deal."

    Dumbledore sighs, "That is fair... I wouldn''t have minded finishing my supper first however."

    Reima "You can eat once you''re there, I have no idea when these interdimentional douchebags are going to try something."

    He nods and stands just as the DADA professor casts a stupefy at Reima, the spell barely missing Snuffles who''s currently sitting on his shoulder. The red bolt strikes him in the side of the head, doing nothing but finally bringing Reima''s attention to the man.

    Reima "You''re playing with fire, now piss off." he says, waving his hand and using telekinesis to send the man flipping through the air and landing on his leg which bends it at a weird angle with a *CRACK!*.

    Dumbledore "Young Reima, I appreciate that you are in a rush but injuring my staff will not make it faster... Mr Binkle won''t bother you much after that injury so I suggest we go... Fawkes!" he exclaims, causing a burst of fire above him to appear and reveal the phoenix.

    Reima just shrugs, grabs the old man by his shoulder and disappears with another flash. Leaving the bewildered school still sitting there.

    The Duo + Rabbit and Phoenix appear inside the keep of Kaer Morhen. The other occupants of the room being Yennefer, Ciri, Geralt, Triss, Ermion, Hjalmar and Arie. They all look curiously at their new ally, the old man in colourful clothing with a strange bird sitting on his shoulder seemed to give off the air of a wise grandpa.

    Yennefer "Reima, you''ve brought a mage?" she asks.

    Dumbledore steps forward and extends a hand, "We prefer Wizards, though I suppose it is interchangeable. A pleasure to meet you Miss?"

    "Yennefer of Vengerberg, Sorceress." she replies as she shakes his hand.

    Dumbledore "Ah a sorceror? My old teacher was one of the only recorded Sorcerers in existence, perhaps this world has different requirements for the position?"

    Triss "What would be the requirement to become a sorcerer then?" she asks curious.

    Dumbledore "The primary one would be obtaining eternal life. The others usually include being powerful and knowledgeable." he says solemnly.

    Yen and Triss shrug to eachother, "Then we should fit your definition as all Sorceresses are ageless. Though I prefer to not boast of my skills." the former states.

    His eyes go wide at Yennefer''s words, "Really? Extraordinary." he mutters while stroking his beard.

    Reima "I hate to interrupt but Albus here isn''t like the magic users of this world... The magic users from where he''s from generally have magical cores inside of themselves, making them more similar to monsters than Mages. Dumbledore is what you would call a pacifist and hates conflict, so I thought having him help power the barrier that Yennefer is going to create would help?"

    Yennefer nods while waving her hand over the old man who does nothing to stop her, "I suppose... I could probably hold the barrier up at full strength for a few hours with his assistance, this "Magical Core" is rather intriguing though."

    Dumbledore "Forgive me if I am hesitant to become your test subject but I am the Headmaster of a school that I hope to return to after my role is over... Ah, Miss Rivia? I hope you are well since last we met." he smiles at her.

    ...

    Geralt "Miss Rivia?" he asks with his lips upturned slightly.

    Ciri "It was the first name I could think of." she says while covering the massive blush on her face with her hands as Yen and Triss smile at her.

    Refocusing her attention on Dumbeldore and quickly changes the subject, "I''m alright Headmaster, but I''ll be even better once those Elves are dead."

    The old man''s expression saddens slightly but he''s quick to fix it, "Is there anywhere I can grab something to eat? Mr Ludvig grabbed me during dinner." The people in the room sending weird looks at Reima after Dumbledore says this.

    Reima "You sure know how to play a crowd old man." he says with a shrug, waving his hand afterwards and dropping a table with a veritable feast on it. "There, happy?" he asks.

    Dumbledore nods and takes a seat, "I knew you were a nice boy Mr Ludvig." he says sending at wink at him.

    Reima shakes his head, feeling as if he''d just been played. "Whatever, I''ve still got some folks to grab... But I''ll warn you guys this once, don''t freak out when you see them or we will be having problems. Understand?" he says seriously, not intending to allow any insult towards those he calls family to go unanswered.

    The room nods, with those that have known him the longest sending him wary looks as he''d not acted like this before except in very specific situations.

    Geralt "Don''t worry about it, can''t get much more freakish than Witchers." he states with a shrug.

    Reima nibbles his lower lip, slightly anxious at whether or not they''d accept his family in Dark Souls. "You''ll see." he says, stepping back and disappearing with a flash.

 494 The Darkening of Souls...

    With yet another flash Reima appears at the Firelink shrine, the familiar scenery giving him nostalgia for his time spent here and in the game. He feels Snuffles squirm on his shoulder and gives her a look to stop... Only to find the Rabbit staring up at the sky in what he could only guess was shock and awe. Looking up Reima feels as if he''d just been struck due to the surprising sight...

    Above them and the clouds, the sky was... Fracturing? Turquoise cracks splintered across the sky like never ceasing shooting stars, it was magnificent and he''d want to stay and watch for a while had he not have an important task on hand.

    Reima "Right... I need to be quick about this." he mutters as he walks over to the burnt out bonfire in the middle of the clearing, sitting there innocently was a yellow summoning sign. He holds his hand over it and summons the person it belongs to.

    Taking a step back a golden figure begins to manifest above the sign, they''re bent over at first but straighten their backs and praise the sun. Obviously, despite the figures different attire Reima could tell who this person was with ease.

    Reima "Solaire, I''m back." he says as he looks at the robed armour now covering Solaire, it almost look reminiscent of Gwyn''s equipment.

    Solaire gives a bright smile, Reima goes to grab his arm to greet him but Solaire just hugs him with strength only a god could muster. "My friend, you''ve returned! What a jolly day this is indeed!"

    Reima pats him on the back, "Yeah, jolly to see you too Solaire. "

    Solaire lets go and observes him, "You''ve gotten taller! My you''ve almost caught up with me."

    Reima "Would it surprise you to know It''s been around a year since we last saw eachother?" he asks, wondering how much time had passed here.

    Solaire shrugs, "It is hard to keep time here, though it would not be more than a few months since you left."

    Reima nods, "Well, as you could probably tell I''m on a tight schedule. Once I dissipate your phantom could you get everyone to quickly prepare their belongings to leave this world?"

    Solaire nods, "We''ve been waiting for this moment since your departure, the world continues to degrade and fall apart at the seams but we never despaired!" he says dramatically.

    ...

    Reima "Ah, before you go... What''s with the armour?" he asks.

    Solaire looks down and realises what Reima''s curious about, "I found that while my father and I differ in many ways, our admiration for fine clothing wasn''t one of them."

    Reima "Huh, I was expecting something else... Whatever, makesure everyone''s ready Solaire." he says, waving his hand and sending the phantom away.

    After Solaire leaves Reima blinks to the archives that he''d left Logan and Griggs... Hopefully he wouldn''t catch them in the middle of something...

    He appears in the middle of the large entrance hall that''s previously been completely infested with Crystalline Hollow''s, however the first thing he notices is that all the bookshelves have been picked clean... Through his enhanced hearing he can hear the fluttering of paper as someones rapidly turns pages.

    Ascending the archives is not nearly as difficult if you can teleport and so Reima makes his way up towards the sound in no time at all. Sitting on the revolving platform surrounded by books is Logan along with his apprentice Griggs who appears to be casting some sort of spell at the nearby wall. Eventually it''s cast and a poorly constructed Soul Spear shoots out at a slow pace, it doesn''t even reach the wall as it dissipates long before it gets there.

    Griggs "For the love of!-"

    Logan "Be calm, you''ve only started training this spell for two months. If you had cast it perfectly so soon I''d be calling you the name of that monster I previously taught." he says with a chuckle.

    Reima "Is my name a new title for genius students now?" he asks with his arms crossed behind the duo who jump after noticing his presence.

    Griggs/Logan "Reima!?!" "Reima?" they parrot eachother.

    Reima "Well, yeah... Who else is gonna visit your decrepit asses?"

    ...

    Logan slowly nods are a moment, "You are correct.. Though we are occasionally visited by that dragon-child.. What was her name..."

    Griggs "Priscilla." he states.

    Logan "Ahh yes, how could I forget? That girl is almost as talented as you are Reima." he says with a triumphant smirk, as if gaining a student who comes close to Reima had been his goal in life.

    Reima "Ah, good. Priscilla''s expanding her horizons then? How''s her progress?" he asks, nonplussed at the old man''s smug face.

    Griggs "She''s incredible, though she demanded to learn Crystal Soul Spear as soon as she got here. Said something about surprising someone?"

    Logan whacks his apprentice on the back of his head with his Staff, "You fool! How could you forget who she was learning for! If she finds out she''ll skin the hide off your hind!"

    Reima just idly strokes Snuffles, pretending he''d not heard anything... He''d need to makesure he''s surprised when Priscilla shows him her moves...

    Griggs "Ah, Reima... If it would not be too much trouble, could you forget to mention my name when speaking with Priscilla?" he asks with a slightly tearful expression.

    Reima turns back to him, "Huh, what were you saying?"

    ....

    Griggs "I was just saying abou-Gurgg!" he''s interrupted yet again by a hit from Logan.

    Logan "Do I need to manually force thoughts into that tiny brain of yours!"

    Griggs "What do you mean mast-... Ohhh, aha. I see." he says while sending a grateful smile to Reima who look on in disbelief, wondering if these two had permanently turned into some kind of comedy skit?

    Reima "Whatever... Just gather your things and be ready on the summoning sign, we are leaving this world and I won''t be coming back for you if you missed the "ride". He says before disappearing with another flash.

 495 Blacksmiths in arms

    With a flash Reima appears before Andre of Astora, the topless bearded blacksmith still banging away on his anvil. A large pile of a variety of weapons lay behind him, all oiled and seemingly ready for use.

    Andre looks up and gives a toothy grin, "Oi, aint it ol'' Reima!"

    Reima nods, "You got my message from Solaire after I left right?"

    Andre "Ye'' I did, somethin'' about a battle and leaving this wretched world. Now that''s somethin''ta look forwards to, so I starts making as many weapons as I could to help ye out." he says, nodding his head at the pile of weapons.

    Reima walks over and picks one up, almost dropping it when he realises it''s enchanted with Occult. "Don''t tell me you''ve enchanted all of these..."

    Andre shrugs, "When ye lack Tit''nite the only thing I could do to improve the blades was to enchant them wit''those ol''embers you gave me."

    Reima "So... All of them are Occult?" he asks in surprise.

    Andre shakes his head, "Naw, what use would Occult weapons be against an army of the undead? A quarter are Divine, along with a few silver accents that you seemed to love so much."

    Reima scratches his head, "Didn''t Solaire tell you what enemies we''d be fighting? I''d explained to him what they were a few times before..."

    Andre "Well... He did, and didn''t... Somethin about Wraiths? I wasn''t too sure if that meant undead or not so I went "Fock it" and crafted everything."

    Reima "Well, they''ll all be a massive help. Thanks Andre, truly."

    Andre blushes slightly under his huge beard but waves it off, "Don''mind it, it twas nothing really... Now, judging by your having come here it is time to leave?"

    Reima nods, "Yeah, need any help storing your tools?"

    Andre shakes his head, "Naw, take the weapons I''ve made but you can''t touch ma tools... A blacksmith is nothing without an anvil." he states as he hefts the incredibly heavy anvil onto his shoulder with ease.

    ...

    Reima tries to comment on the man''s surprising strength but decides that hammering god-metal all day would have it''s perks... He stores away the veritable armoury into his Folded Space and looks to Andre to see if he''d want assistance to Firelink shrine, the place where they''d be leaving from.

    Andre "Naw, it ain''t far from ''ere, specially with them Hollow''s finally rotting away. I''ll take that ol'' elevator that still inexplicably works. See ya there Reima!" he says jovially before walking off.

    Reima "Whaddya think of him Snuffles? Pretty cool guy right?"

    Snuffles nods her head, being even more impressed by the man''s work ethic than Reima had been.

    Reima "Right... Who to get next... Ok, let''s go grab that bag of bones. Hopefully he''s still intact or whatever you''d call him." he says, confusing Snuffles slightly.

    With a flash the duo appear within the darkest, dankest place Snuffles has ever had the displeasure of being inside... If it weren''t for her status as a vampire she''d be completely blind in this thick darkness... The only thing preventing her from holding onto Reima for deal life is the distant sound of metal being struck.

    Reima pats the rabbit to reassure her, he''d probably have felt the same as her had he not been fighting through an army of skeletons the first way around... He focuses his gaze down the long hallway and spots the dim dark red fire in the distance. Yep, that''s Vamos.

    He briskly makes his way to the skeletal blacksmith until said person turns around prepared to strike at them with a still glowing red hot sword.

    Vamos "Fuckin'' skeletons, ye keep botherin me and I''ll-Ah.." he stops as he spots the person he was most grateful to in his life... Or un-life. "Reima? How long has it been since you''ve been in this here dark hole." he says as he places the sword back and holds out a bony hand.

    Reima shakes the skeletons hand with a smile, "Too long Vamos, how''s life been in this pit while I was gone?"

    Vamos shrugs, "Same old, same old... By that I mean literally nothing ever happens, the only thing that''s changed is the occasional undead trying to attack me. I suspect they''re trying to absorb Nito''s energy that be keeping me alive... It''s akin to something resembling life force."

    Reima "Ah, are you ok? You won''t suddenly drop dea-Fall apart on me?" he asks.

    Vamos shrugs, "I''ve got enough fuel to last a while... Maybe.. let''s say.. Twenty years?.. Yeah, around that." he says noncommittally as if he weren''t speaking about his life expectancy.

    Reima "Well, I''m sure we can find a solution to that... For now you got the letter I asked Solaire to send a while ago right?"

    Vamos nods, "Something about Wraiths from another world botherin''ya? Well, that a you saving us from these shit lands of death and decay... I can fight if need be but I''d prefer to stick to blacksmithin if ya don''t mind, find that someone of my skill is preferred still hammerin."

    Reima "I won''t force you to fight, rather, I''d hope you would continue your craft... Gather your things and I''ll transport you to Firelink shrine where we''re all meeting."

    The old skeleton does so and refuses to allow Reima to touch his tools and anvil in the same manner as Andre. The trio teleport to Firelink shrine where Andre is currently making himself at home and sitting on his anvil.

    Vamos drops his Anvil down opposite Andre with a thud and eyes the man, both seem to be examining the other with apparently no-one wishing to speak.

    Reima "...Er, I''ll go grab the others then... You two try not to bite each others head''s off." he says, as he vanishes yet again.

    Andre "So... Ye, worked for Nito I''m guessin?"

    Vamos "And you that old bastard Gwyn?"

    Andre "They both turned out to be scum in the end." he states.

    Vamos "....Hahahaha! You''re damn right! Both fuckin pricks who I''d gladly give a kick in the bollocks if I ''ad the chance!" the large skeleton says as he stands and reaches an arm towards Andre who grabs it with glee.

    Andre "Ha! Never knew someone working under Nito could be such a laugh! Tell me, how''d you come across Reima?"

    Vamos "Well he kinda just fell into me workshop outta tha-blue!"

    Andre "Ha! It was the same with me!"

 496 Its just Blacksmithing + Magic...

    *FLASH!*

    Reima appears within Anor Londo''s palace, more specifically Coaugh''s domain.

    *Clank-Clank-Clank-Clank*

    The sound of a giant using a tiny hammer to tap away on a red how piece of metal is all the sound for miles around.

    Snuffles glares at the huge figure slumped over an warily observes Reima''s facial expression to see if the creature is a threat or not.

    Reima "Yo, Coaugh!" he says loudly, causing the clanking to stop and the Giant to turn. The crude helmet covering it''s face not allowing either of the duo to see his expression. Though if Reima had to guess it would be one of surprise and happiness judging by the sound Coaugh''s giving off.

    Coaugh "Hmmmm! Small Reima... Come here to see Coaugh?" they ask.

    Reima "Well, yeah.. Why else would I be here?"

    Coaugh nods and straightens it''s back, a cacophony of clicking bones almost deafening those present. After the giant''s done stretching it grabs it''s anvil with one hand and scoops all of it''s tools and completed weaponry onto a thick tarp which he then ties up. "Bad Wraith, kill Wraith. Help friend of Gough and Coaugh."

    Reima nods, "Well, even if Solaire didn''t fully explain the situation to everyone atleast you''re all willing to help. Yes Coaugh, let''s meet up with everyone and kill some "Bad Wraiths" alright?" he says while outstretching his hand.

    The giant grunts in approval and reaches down and places a finger in Reima''s hand, the trio disappearing not soon after.

    Vamos "He''s a abit mad but a friends a friend! Never expected ''im to give me a Chaos Ember though!"

    Andre "Aha! I know what ye mean, I have no idea where he got all those embers. He''d even recovered one the gods had supposedly destroyed! Think about that!"

    *Flash!* *CRASH!*

    The two blacksmith look over to the large sound and spot a huge figure looking down at them with an anvil on it''s shoulder... The giant looks at both of them and the anvil''s they''re sitting on and proceeds to sit down next to them.

    Andre "Ah, is that who I think it is? That big ol''Blacksmith who helped create the majority of Gwyn''s armies arms!"

    Vamos "Damn, oi! Big man?" he shouts at the giant who bends over slightly to looks at him.

    Coaugh "Yes bony man?" he asks.

    Vamos laughs at his nickname but continues, "I''m wonderin if you made that captain Orsteins armour!?!"

    Coaugh nods his head, "Did, armour for tall man with spear."

    Vamos "And that fat cunt Smough!?!"

    Coaugh shakes his head and holds his palm against his face, "Not much work with... Fat man too fat and fattening to fasten plate."

    Andre nods, "Ye, apparently Smough''s armour become a second skin after he got so fat he couldn''t take it off... Reima probably already killed that monster, and good riddance for it! Cannibal can rot in the abyss for all he''s done!"

    Reima "Yeah, he''s dead... To be honest I''m not entirely sure if his body was human shaped, it was like a reverse hourglass..." He says while contemplating the fight with the man, though he''s interrupted when Andre and Vamos burst into laughter at his words.

    Shaking his head Reima waves them off, "Whatever, I''m on a time limit so I''m off to collect our last blacksmith. Be right back!" he says as he and Snuffles disappear with yet another flash.

    Rickert had been waiting inside his cell for Reima to come and take him away from this world, however he had no idea how long it''d been or even if Reima had simply forgotten him and left him for dead. He looks down from the cell into the remains of the previously drowned city of New Londo, it''d previously been crawling with Dark Wraiths but after Reima''s expedition into them he hadn''t seen a single one.

    Rickert "Perhaps I should have asked Reima to take me to Firelink shrine..." he mutters, however the sound of boots walking down the nearby steps silences him. He feels am indescribable emotion when he spots those familiar slitted eyes peering at him. "Reima! You''re back!"

    Reima "Yeah, yeah... Just grab your things and I''ll teleport you to Firelink." he says quickly.

    Rickert nods and scrambles to collect everything, however Reima just waves his hand and stores all scattered books an weapons that were laying around, leaving only the man''s tools and anvil.

    Reima "You ready to go?" he asks.

    ...

    Rickert sheepishly looks at Reima, embarrassed to ask for more, though the look on Reima''s face forces it out of him. "If it wouldn''t be too much to ask, could you help carry my anvil and tools?"

    ...

    Reima "Huh.. Oh, right." he mutters, realising that Rickert is more Mage than Blacksmith. He stores everything away and doesn''t hesitate to teleport back to the shrine. Rickert falling on his face as he trips over his own foot.

    Vamos "Hold up Reima, don''t tell me this ponse from Vinheim is the "Blacksmith" you were speaking of... He barely even counts as a craftsman, let alone someone with the fine profession of blacksmith!"

    Rickert gets up and looks at Vamos, but is taken aback by his appearance, along with Coaugh''s presence beside him. "You-Ah..." Shaking his head he continues, "I''ll have you know Magic Blacksmiths are of a higher calibre than any of you blockheads!"

    Andre "Hah! I''ve ''eard stories about ye''lot from that Dragon School.. Magic Smiths were those not gifted enough to become full Sorcerer''s is what I ''eard!"

    Rickert "Nonesense! I was regarded as a fine Sorcerer but decided to focus my skills on Blacksmithing and the advance of technology along with it!"

    Vamos "Poppycock." he snorts.

    Reima "Alright you guys... There''s a few more people that I need to bring, try not to kill each other or shit yourselves when you see the new arrivals."

    Andre "Right, best watch out for the Magic Blacksmiths nickers!"

    Rickert "Shut your mouth! The only thing that''d make me soil my briefs would be a dragon, and we all know what happened to them." he states with Reima slinking away with a sadistic grin on his face.

 497 Big Fluff

    Ciaran was lent up against her old lovers grave with her sword resting next to her, she glances at the gate leading into the clearing with a look of consternation. These past months it seems that the DarkRoot Covenant wishes to reclaim the land surrounding the forest, declaring it an "Integral part of the forest"... She shakes her head, knowing that they only wish to cause trouble for her due to the signs of the worlds end approaching.

    *HOOoooowwlll!"

    Ciaran "Must''ve caught something." she remarks as Sif comes sprinting towards her with something in his mouth...

    The humongous Wolf event reaches her and drops some kind of mangled body on the ground in-front of her with an expectant look.

    ....

    She sighs, and rubs his snout, "Good boy."

    "K-k-kill meeee" a voice presumably belonging to the man Sif had just brought groans out.

    Ciaran shrugs and crushes his skull with her foot, not bothering to even ask of his identity, aside from the annoying Darkroot Covenant that''d occasionally require "Pruning" she did have a few visitors. Those friends of Reima, the new God of Sunlight and son of Gwyn, Solaire along with his Half-breed sister Priscilla. They came with a few other people occasionally but it was generally just them.

    She found that the company kept her from going hollow, the boredom, isolation and monotony of tending to Artorias grave for centuries on end had started to make her extremely apathetic, a sign that she was going hollow. Thankfully Reima had given her hope that things would improve, while she was still wary of leaving Artorias grave she knew that he''d want her to move on and not die with a symbol of what he once was. Additionally, she wished to keep Sif safe as it is what Artorias had given his life for, in all honesty she regarded the big fluffball as her own child. One to protect.

    *Flash!*

    Her eyes are drawn towards a familiar phenomenon, however a white blur tumbled into it which stopped her from identifying the person... Though it was obvious who it is by Sif''s reaction.

    Reima "Ah Sif! S-stop with the tongue dude, this is gross!" he says as the huge wolf excitedly licks him and covers him in saliva, not noticing that some of it still has traces of the former man''s blood.

    Reima ends up teleporting behind the big wolf and running towards Ciaran to escape Sif, he hid behind the woman wearing the exact same armour that Artorias was to fend off the "Too-Happy-Wolf".

    Ciaran "From what I heard from Solaire some wolf saliva shouldn''t even phase you... You did delve the depths afterall." she states in exasperation at her friends behaviour, it seems while he looks older he hasn''t changed all that much.

    Reima "Yeah, it''s not the saliva but him crushing the two passengers I''ve got on me." he says, pointing to a rabbit on his shoulder, glaring at the Wolf.

    Ciaran gives an understanding hum and calls out to Sif, "Sif! Come! Sit!" she says sternly with the wolf instantly complying.

    She then walks up and leans against the big beast and looks at him, "Is it time then?"

    Reima nods, "It is. Everyone''s almost gathered, are you ready?"

    Ciaran idly nods, "Sif, grab your sword, it''s time to go." she says as she bends over and gives one final prayer for Artorias, whispering promises to keep Sif and his legacy safe.

    Reima walks over and grabs the side of Sif''s neck, or a handful of fur to be more accurate while holding out another hand for Ciaran. Once she grabs hold of him they disappear from the clearing, finally leaving the lonely grave, alone.

    *FLASH!*

    The Blacksmiths all looks towards whoever had arrived and gape at the huge wolf now glaring at them with an equally huge sword in it''s mouth.

    Vamos/Andre/Rickert "Unholy Fuck!""ARTORIAS?""AH! DON''T EAT ME!" they all scream with the only one not saying anything being Coaugh.

    Reima "Guys, meet Ciaran and Sif." he says gesturing towards them.

    Ciaran "Coaugh? Is that you?" she asks.

    The giant nods, "Happy see friend of Gough." he states with a nod.

    Andre "Forgive my curiosity but why are''ya wearing old Artorias gear?" he asks as politely as he can.

    Ciaran "That''s none of your concern, just know that I''m not a grave robber."

    ...

    The awkward atmosphere is broken when two Sorcerers finally appear within the shrine via the summoning signs he''d previously laid down.

    Griggs "Don''t tell me you wish to stay in this decaying world?" he says with a tone of disbelief.

    Logan shakes his head, "Of course not! But we''ve yet to plunder the secrets of Seath. So much knowledge left to uncover, so many Sorceries waiting to be learnt!"

    Griggs "You will have all the time in the world to progress the art when we escape this place." he says.

    Logan grumbles, "I-I suppose you''re ri-..." he stops as he realises that many people are looking at them, a few surprising ones being a Giant, Skeleton and Giant Wolf.

    Griggs "Er... Did we miss something?" he asks anxiously.

    Reima "No, not really... You''re just in time in-fact, you guys wait here while I go get someone a few of you will be... Fearful of." he states as he disappears with another flash.

    Vamos "First he shocks us with a huge wolf, what''s next? A Dragon!?!..."

    ...

    Those present who know Reima well enough can already guess the next "Guest".

 498 Dragon iconography

    Snuffles is unsure of where Reima was taken them when they teleported to yet another location, they were travelling to so many places that she was getting slightly disorientated at the many vastly different places they were going.

    However this last place was different, white sand, or was it ash coated the ground as a small breeze blew through the clearing. They were just outside some kind of structure and seemed to currently be standing on an extremely long beach. She pats Reima''s ear to indicate her confusion and wariness.

    Reima "Just relax, I think you''ll find this next guy interesting." he says as he steps inside the structure, the lights dims as they both lay their eyes upon a huge figure that seems to be made from stone.

    The Everlasting Dragon turns towards him, the sound of stone grinding against itself drowning out anything else. It''s slitted eyes focus on his form and eventually recognise him, he wonders if it''s pondering his previous offer that he''d given before he left.

    Reima "Yo!" he waves at it, casually.

    ...

    Reima "Youknow, it''s hard to have a conversation with someone who doesn''t talk. I''m here to offer you salvation, I won''t be back so this is your only chance.

    The dragon gives off an ungodly rumble that shakes the earth itself, "You smell of Dragon''s." it states.

    Reima "Well, yeah. I''ve killed plenty. You coming or not?"

    "Wish to sleep."

    ....

    Reima "Ah... Ok, I guess I''ll be goin then?" he says, taking the response as a refusal.

    "Impossible to sleep if destroyed." it''s rumbles out.

    ...

    Reima "So, I take that as a yes then?"

    "Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeessssssssssss" it says causing it''s voice to echo through the structure.

    Reima "Alright... Just bear in mind I have no idea how much magic this is going to take to do, so try not to resist it, ok?" he mutters as he walks up to the dragon and places a hand on it''s stony scales. They vanish from the clearing leaving the only remaining inhabitant of Ash Lake the children of the Hydra Reima and Solaire had killed previously.

    From Firelink shrine an earthquake can be felt, those present can only guess who''s responsible but a perceptive few noticed that apart of the bridge leading to the Undead Burg had collapsed, the thing only barely supporting the weight of a gigantic dragon that''d appeared atop it... Even now the bridge was crumbling under it''s ridicules weight, the fact that it''s scales had begun to turn to stone only making it worse!

    The bridge rumbles as Reima stands atop it, he tries to cast a featherlight charm on it but it''s magical resistance refuses to allow it''s weight to be lightened... Deciding to just hope the bridge doesn''t collapse before he manages to get the big beast out of here he teleports to Firelink shrine where everyone was now staring at the Dragon.

    Rickert had collapsed to the floor, apparently having fainted at seeing the Dragon...

    Ciaran who''d lost many, many comrades against the ancient dragons glares at it before then focusing her attention on Reima. "What is the meaning of this? Bringing that monster here... Don''t tell me you intend to bring it with us?!?"

    Reima scratches his head, "What''s your issue with Dragon''s now? You didn''t have a problem with Priscilla when she visited you right?"

    Ciaran crosses her arms, "It''s different, she''s innocent of any crimes committed by her ancestors."

    Reima "Yeah? Well I''m pretty sure that old boy up there literally did nothing but hide from it''s kin and the gods. Found a cosy home in ash-lake that Solaire had found. We''ve both befriended it and it only seeks to sleep which doesn''t seem to be harmful in any way to yourself or anyone else."

    ...

    Ciaran "Fine. But Sif and I will keep an eye on it, if it should make one wrong move we will end it."

    ...

    Reima "You think you can kill that thing?" he asks in disbelief while pointing at it.

    Ciaran blushes under her helmet, "Not just us, I will persuade Solaire to assist us."

    ...

    Reima "Did you not just hear that he''s friends with the Dragon?"

    Ciaran "Shut up." she finally says, turning and sitting on one of Sif''s legs.

    Reima "Can someone wake up Rickert? I''d rather not have my dramatic reunion ruined by some guy who''d passed out and shit himself." he says while pointing at him.

    No one seems to want to touch the man due to the smell coming from him but Snuffles is here to save the day, she hops off of his shoulder and directly onto his face. The impact is enough to awaken the man as Reima places the rabbit back on his shoulder via telekinesis.

    Reima "Alright, I''m opening the portal for the last people remaining." he states as he tears apart reality and opens a passageway to the Demon Ruins, he can see that everyone is already present with huge sacks of their belongings lying around. The first thing he notices is the many Chaos Servants, or more specifically their attires.

    The regular Pyromancers were no longer dressed in burnt rags, instead they all wore grey robes with hoods embroidered in gold. Focusing on the large gold pendants that all of them had around their necks he spots a Dragon''s Head carved into them. Their sleeves were blackened probably due to their overuse of Pyromancies however all in all the garbs look almost religious in origin...

    The Pyreblades were similar and different at the same time, they wore grey robes which were lightly armoured with Chainmail and metal plates, the heaviest of which was focused on their main hands all the way up to their shoulders. Again the metal was dark, almost black and the gauntlets were marked black due to their use with Pyromancy. Their hoods were thicker than the Pyromancers, seeming to have extra padding and chainmail to add protection.

    The Flame Guard also had vastly different armour than he remembered. They were covered in thick plates that extended outwards to promote strikes glancing off of them, their joints were protected by additional parts that undoubtedly increased their weight to a ridiculous degree. They also have grey robes under all the armour with hoods over their heads, underneath them they appear to be wearing thick metal helmets... Last but not least is the carving on their armour, in-fact everyone with even a piece of metal present has some inscriptions on it, depicted shining warriors using lighting and fire to combat dragons, demons, undead and even gods.

    Reima "What the fuck is going on..." he mutters.

 499 Unwanted Worship

    Reima "What the fuck is going on..."

    Eventually those on the other side start noticing the Turquoise portal that''d been opened and all get on their knees when they spot Reima. Some seemed to be abit more subdued when performing this action but they do so anyway.

    A few moments later he spots someone, they see him and smile widely at him.

    Quelana "Reima! You''re here!" she says as she jogs over.

    Reima "I am... Could you grab everyone and have them go through the portal? I can''t really move without it closing."

    Quelana "Ah, right... I''ll be a moment." she says as she runs off. He can hear her shouting in the distance about him being here and an awkward smile appears on his face when he hears Quelaag''s voice shout "Make him wait! I''m not done getting ready yet!"

    Eventually Solaire walks over, due to him not being a phantom Reima can now tell the colour of his robes and armour... Grey robes with gold armour, the golden Sunlight Crown they''d made from Gwyndolin''s soul still sits proudly on his head. Beside him is Priscilla, she''s still wearing the pale blue dress he''d previously given her, however it seems to have been modified. White fur sits on it''s collar and lining the ending of the skirt. She hasn''t changed all that much but it doesn''t matter as she still looks as beautiful as last they''d met.

    Solaire "My friend, I know it''s been a while but if you continue staring at my sister like that I''ll have to get some rings made." he says while chuckling.

    Reima has to restrain himself from scratching the back of his head as he blushes slightly, "It''s good to see you both."

    Priscilla gives a brilliant smile as she steps through the portal and hugs him. Though she squeals when she spots Snuffles who is currently glaring at her. "Is this a cat!?!" she asks while trying to stroke her, Snuffles forcing herself into his collar to escape her.

    Reima "No, but speaking of cats... I''ve got you a gift." he says, telekinetically floating Carimir out of his armour where the cat had been sleeping, only just now being woken up by Snuffles forcing herself into the cats favourite spot.

    Priscilla gently grasps the cat and raises it to her face to get a closer look, Carimir doesn''t seem to mind and places a paw on her face.

    Reima "She''s called Carimir, take care of her okay?-Hurgk!" he''s almost strangled as the Half-dragon hugs him fiercely, her tail slapping his legs as it wags like an excited dog... Or Sif.

    Solaire "Stop spoiling her Reima... That''s my job!" he says, pointing his thumb to himself and laughing.

    Reima "Fight me." he states and both men begin to glare at eachother. However they''re interrupted by the sound of scuttling...

    Quelina races towards the portal, her white dress flowing in the wind as her scaled spider lower-half''s legs look like a blur. "Brooother!"

    Snuffles who''d stuck her head out had her eyes widen at the woman rushing towards them, however she remembers the warning Reima gave to the others in Kaer Morhen and realises this must be one of the reasons for it.

    Reima "Quelina! How are you!" he asks with a smile.

    Quelina leaps through the portal and hugs him along side Priscilla, if it weren'' for his overwhelming strength he''d have fallen over already. "Now that you''re here I''m feeling wonderful brother! I have so many thing to show you! I''ve read all the books you gave me!" she machine guns out questions so fast Reima isn''t able to answer them.

    Reima "Ah, really? I''m looking forward to seeing your progress then. How''s your progress with Pyromancies and Miracles?" he asks.

    Quelina "Ah, that.. I am improving but those of us that are Firekeepers keep running into "Dark" problems..."

    Reima "Don''t worry about it... You can now call me an expert on the subject, once everything has calmed down I''ll sit down with you and you can show me everything, alright?" he boasts.

    Quelina nods vigorously but continues to hold onto him just as three other people briskly walk up to the portal.

    Rhea, Anastacia and Dusk all see him and smile, the former two both are wearing Grey robes with many gold trinkets attached to them that clink as they walk. Gold also seems to have been directly embroidered into the fabric, forming similar depictions as the Chaos Servants armour. It''s most heavy on their sleeve and arms which have heavy use of the golden threads.

    Rhea "My lord you''ve returned to offer us salvation!" she says with misty eyes.

    ...

    Reima "Er, Rhea is something up? For you guys I''ve only been gone a couple months..."

    Solaire leans in and whispers into his ear, "Once you left and weren''t there to refuse her wishes to worship you she started preaching and pushing others to join her, I tried to remonstrate her but she decided that as a God I was to be worshipped as well... Quelaag was not happy at all about this, but couldn''t find anything wrong as the Servants remained loyal to her but also to us as well."

    Reima "Bro, this is starting to get serious! If I''d been gone any longer she''d have started a religion!"

    Solaire "Fortunately it''s not come to that... Though the power of her miracles has increased the more she preaches about us... Which should be useful for the battle to come." he says.

    Reima shakes his head, the girl had been getting worse as time had continued and he didn''t know how to deal with it... Her one purpose in life was to serve the church, she''d almost gone hollow in the Tomb of Giants but she turned her focus onto himself and Solaire... "It''s... Good, to see you too Rhea."

 500 Anxious Spider

    Rhea smiles and bows to him as he addresses her, apparently not wishing to say anything further.

    ...

    Reima "Okay... Anastacia, Dusk, you guys doing good?" he asks them.

    Anastacia nods, "The sky is falling but It''s very pretty... Who knew the destruction of the world would be so beautiful."

    Reima "It does look cool I suppose..."

    Dusk "I''m glad you''re back Sir Reima, everyone''s been on edge since the decay started... We all know it''ll be a hundred to a thousand years before the end starts but it''s still scary."

    Reima "Hm, what you guys didn''t expect me to come back?" he says with a chuckle.

    She looks aghast at him, shocked that he''d ever imply such a thing. However when he begins chuckling she shakes her head and continues, "No, never! Those who''d say such a thing would be punished!"

    ...

    Reima "Err, what?"

    Dusk is about to reply but Rhea kicks her in the back of her leg, "My apologies your holiness, she seems to be confused about something."

    Reima eyes Dusk who sheepishly glances between him and Rhea. "Is something wrong? This fanatical religious shit is getting on my nerves." he says with furrowed brows.

    Anastacia "We wish only to serve the true gods, those that wish for our success instead of dooming us to eternal torment. You and Lord Solaire are those gods Reima."

    Reima sighs, "Yeah? Well, can you guys just tune it down... No punishments for "Heretics", no forceful conversion and certainly no fucking prayer ceremonies dedicated to me... Also, was it you guys who designed those new robes and armour?"

    Behind him Solaire coughs into his gauntlet, "Err, that was me my friend... It was this or a bunch of steel suits of armour with your face carved into them..."

    ...

    Reima gets a cold sweat at the thought of around fifty Chaos Servants running around with his face carved into their armour. "Ah.. That''s good then... But, what''s with the focus on Dragons?" he asks.

    Solaire shrugs, "Dragons legendary beasts of power and elegance... Plus, they look. Hmm, how would you say?... Cool?"

    Reima snorts at his friend, "Yeah, I guess they are... Oh, by the way our old friend is coming along with us... He''s sat over there on the bridge." he says, nudging his head in the Everlasting Dragons direction all the while holding the portal open.

    Priscilla who''d only just now let go spots it and waves at it, apparently having been introduced by Solaire while he was gone.

    The Dragon in the distance raises it''s head at her and gives a nod before going silent again.

    Reima "Alright... Yo, Chaos Servants! Get in a line and starts walking through the portal!" he shouts at the still kneeling group.

    They all start slowly moving and organising themselves, however just as they start a woman wearing onion armour comes walks into view of the portal.

    Reima "Sieglinde!?" he shouts, grabbing her attention.

    Siegline "Greetings Reima! Give me a moment while I organise the troops." she states as she efficiently commands them into a line. With a surprising degree of uniformity and discipline they all pick up the heavy sacks before marching on through and standing to attention while the others present watch.

    Ciaran "Reminds me of Captain Ornstein and the Silver Knights." she states as she watches the drill.

    Andre "Whaddya think of thar'' armour?" he asks her with crossed arms.

    Ciaran "Looks functional... More ornate than even the knights though."

    Andre "Good answer, cause I made them!" he says with a smile, revealing a few missing teeth.

    Vamos "You did? Looks like they could use some fire resistance, I can see the signs of Pyromancy on them."

    Andre shrugs, "Apparently the gear that had fire resistance made their spells weak''ar, no idea how that flamin'' soul magic works."

    The blacksmiths begin discussion the different ways of applying fire resistant properties to steel and fabric as the last of the Chaos Servants come through the portal.

    Sieglinde "They''re all ready for battle Sir Reima! Those Wraiths don''t stand a chance!" she says while presenting him with her fist.

    He fist bumps her and nods, "Thanks, good to see you guys are taking it seriously... Just remember that none of you will be undead when we leave. Once you die it''s for good."

    Rhea "Being released from Gwyn''s curse fills us all with hope your Holiness!"

    Through the portal Quelana drags someone into view, Quelaag wears the same red silk dress he''d gifted her. Her long black hair seems to have been washed and a few strands braided, there''s also signs of what looks like makeup?

    Quelana "Come on Quelaag! You''re keeping everyone waiting!"

    Quelaag "Let go, I haven''t done my nails yet!!! What if he sees them!!"

    ...

    Quelaag stops as she spots the portal, and through it everyone is staring at her, along with the one person she''d been so anxious to meet.

    Reima "I''m sure your nails are good enough, can you guys come through the portal already? I think my leg''s fallen asleep..."

    Quelana slaps Quelaag on the back, the flames on her spider lower-half increase in intesity as she starts scuttling through.

    Quelana steps through behind her as Reima closes the portal. Quelaag looks at him with red cheeks, not being able to focus on him without looking away.

    Reima smiles at her and taps the floor with his foot which causes the ground to raise, he uses the elevated position to give her a tight hug. "Why''re you wearing makeup? You''re beautiful regardless." he says which smashing the tense atmosphere around the Chaos Witch.

    Quelaag "I''m glad your finally back!" she exclaims as she returns his hug with a tight one of her own.

 501 Everlasting Hug

    ...

    ...

    ...

    *Cough, Cough!*

    Solaire awkward coughs into his hand to try and separate Reima and Quelaag from their "Everlasting Hug".

    Reima and Quelaag jolt away and look at eachother, they''d not thought it''d been long but thought it must have been for Solaire to have intervened.

    Reima "It''s so good to see everyone again, you have no idea how much I wanted to fight with Solaire, or talk with the rest of you. But... We''re finally back together, that''s all I cast ask for." he says, feeling more complete now that he''s reunited with his other family.

    Solaire "My friend I''ve wanted to fight someone on my level for a while!" he says, as he grabs Reima in a headlock. They both laugh and are surrounded by the others who dogpile onto them.

    The others who aren''t as close with Reima as those living in the Demon Ruins just watch on as the atmosphere turns jovial.

    Logan who was leant over and examing the ground that Reima had just raised stands up abruptly and leaps into the pile while shouting for "Reima! CAST THAT SPELL AGAIN!" It didn''t take long for Griggs to jump in and try to retrieve his master as well.

    Reima "Alright! Alright! Guys we should probably get going! We''re on a time limit so get off!" he shouts underneath everyone.

    Eventually they all get off and allow Reima to breathe again, Snuffles crawls out from his clothing and look around at all the people Reima was close with. Surprised that so many people were so intimate with him as she''d seen him be rather introverted and uninterested in friendship what in Hogwarts.

    Reima "Everyone! You all know why you are here! The world is ending and I am here to save you, however there will be a battle between a race known as Elves who have powerful sorcerers and an entire world to draw troops from. I will be taking you all to a place called Kaer Morhen on the Continent, people there will be wary of you but rest assured you have my protection." he says loud enough for everyone and maybe even the Everlasting Dragon to hear him.

    Solaire "Worry not my friend! We are allies in arms and will practise some Jolly Cooperation!" he shouts, with the Chaos Servants are raising their weapons in the air and chanting "JOLLY!"

    Reima sweat drops at how he''d corrupted the Servants but shakes his head, "Alright, make sure you have got everything cause we will not be returning once we leave!"

    Kaer Morhen 10am :

    It''s a cloudless day with the sun bearing down on the mountain range providing warmth to those still around... Most people were extremely tired due to working the majority of the night, fortunately a new arrival will wake them up promptly.

    *CRASSSHHHH!*

    *RUMMBBLLLEEEE!*

    The huge sounds cause everyone in Kaer Morhen to scramble outside into the courtyard to see what''d happened. However they see nothing as they look around.

    ...

    That is, until Geralt points towards a nearby mountain peak where a huge figure had just appeared. "What... Is that..." he says as he tries to keep himself composed.

    Everyone looks to where he''s pointing and gape as they see a huge creature with two paired of wings, stone-like scales and light fur covering some of it''s body.

    Lambert "What the fuck! It''s a dragon!"

    Kuretz glances at Risryn and Talem, "Reima never said anything about that! Holy shit we are so dead!"

    Lambert "Vesemir! Do you know what kind of Dragon that is!?!" he asks anxiously, never hearing of a dragon that large before.

    Vesemir shakes his head and he tries to memorise it''s unique features. "No.. Never. It''s certainly bigger than a Golden Dragon..."

    Yennefer "Think it''ll attack us?" she asks outloud for anyone who may have an answer.

    Ermion "Most likely, why else would it suddenly appear here?"

    With Reima :

    The Everlasting Dragon flexes it''s wings on the mountain top, it enjoys the breeze blowing through the area and rumbles in satisfaction like the purr of a cat...

    Reima "You like this spot?"

    "Hmmmmmmmmmm, yesssss."

    Reima shrugs and wipes his forehead, teleporting this guy to another world is quite taxing, fortunately is didn''t resist otherwise they''d both end up somewhere random.

    Kaer Morhen :

    The group continues to watch the dragon in the distance, ready to start launching arrows, spells and whatever else they can throw at it should it suddenly attack.

    However in the middle of the courtyard a familiar portal opens up, the clanking of heavy boots starts almost immediately revealing a troop of heavily armoured warriors wearing almost religious looking armour covered in golden embroidery. Their hoods are raised over their metal helmets and they carry huge tower shields capable of covering their entire body and more.

    Obviously those present are aware that these are probably Reima''s allies and don''t draw their weapons.

    Behind the heavily armoured warriors comes the Pyreblades and Pyromancers next, Ciri immediately recognises the black marks around their sleeves as use of Pyromancy.

    After the Chaos Servants are all through Andre comes next with his Anvil still on his shoulder. Those who see it are amazed by the man''s strength as even a Witcher would be unable to carry an Anvil like that. Next is Rickert who stumbles through still looking pale, of course, the person who steps through next has a few of the residents cautious...

    Vamos walks through with his Anvil and turns towards those who tense at his appearance, Yennefer and Geralt give eachother a weird look a the skeleton''s appearance, the latter wondering if it was some kind of necromantic animation.

    Vamos "Stop your staring, I may not be wearing clothes but you don''t just stare at peoples bones without permission!" he says, which has a few looking away.

    Following the theme of blacksmiths Reima has to use the staff of Manus to push the portal open as wide as it can go, even then Coaugh has to bend over to get through it.

    At the sight of the giant people turn to look at the Witchers reactions, they don''t seem to be worried about it which calms a few slightly.

 502 Dramatic Entrance!

    Next out of the portal is Logan, Griggs, Anastacia and Dusk. They don''t draw any particular reactions apart from those proficient in magic, Logan giving off a feeling of eccentricity, knowledge and power. All the makings of a powerful magic user.

    However, they all feel as if they''d just been punched in the face by the next person that steps through... Solaire and Sieglinde step inside, the former not bothering to restrain his power as he never had the need to before this. Due to this those present who were sensitive to magic all stare at him with blank expression, the power he''s giving off is ridiculous... Like Vilgefortz times by ten thousand, it simply isn''t comparable. His eye''s glow with an eerie gold but the simple smile he gives knocks them offguard.

    Sieglinde "Stop smiling or I''ll be forced to pull those women off of you." she says through her onion helm. She was beginning to regret walking with Solaire, the reason she had done so was to draw attention away from her armour as people generally mocked it the first time seeing it. Except for those who were knowledgeable of Catarina.

    Solaire "With friends there''s no reason not to smile Sieglinde!" he says happily but frowns afterwards, "I still wish my sister would have picked me though." he says slightly downtrodden.

    Sieglinde "Well you''ve got my company so stop frowning or I''ll take offence to it." she says which has Solaire''s mood improving slightly.

    The duo stand in-front of the the Chaos Servants and wait for the others to arrive, just as Quelana leads Quelina inside. The latter is nervous at what Reima''s friends and family will think of her but is more confident than Quelaag is... Truth be told she''s a nervous wreck and is only presenting herself so publicly because Reima is there with her.

    Lambert backs away as he sees Quelina''s lower body and shouts, "What the fuck!" He''s about to draw his sword when an Occult enchanted dagger stabs the wooden stable beside his head...

    Reima''s voice shouts from the portal, "Lambert you draw that fucking sword I''ll ram it up your arse so far you''ll be using it as a tooth pick!"

    ...

    Lambert slowly releases his grip on the swords handle as Quelina notices someone she thinks she knows. She shakes off Quelana''s grip and scuttles towards them as they tense up.

    Quelina "Uncle Vesemir!" she exclaims with a smile.

    Vesemir''s face goes from tense, to confused before finally resting at a soft smile he usually only saves for Ciri. "You know me child?" he says, deciding to ignore her lower half and treat her like a young woman until he gets some answers.

    Quelina gives a bright smile and nods, "Reima saved me by using techniques you taught him, he''s told me all about you while teaching me Alchemy!" she says quickly.

    Vesemir "Hmm, Reima''s been tutoring students? That''s good to hear." he says as he slowly pats her head. "What is you and your.. Friends name?"

    Quelana walks over and addresses him, "I''m her sister, Quelana. This is Quelina, it''s a pleasure to meet you."

    Ermion walks over with a frown and begins, "Forgive me Miss Quelana but your sister appears to have had her nature twisted..."

    Quelana "What''s that supposed to mean?" she says, not yet taking offence...

    Ermion "Hmm, how to explain, think of it like a thread... Normally the threads would be straight, or occasionally twisting around eachother, but... Quelina''s is more comparable to a ball o'' twine."

    Quelana "So? She''s happy and healthy so I see no need to try and change her." she states, only now realising that her sisters affliction doesn''t really bother her anymore.

    Ermion "It''s just... I am a Druid, someone who seeks balance. Your sister is all over the place..."

    Quelana "Enough, keep your thoughts to yourself. I feel if I hear what you are proposing I''d burn you to a crisp." she says threateningly.

    Ermion shows his palms and nods, "My apologies, I just wished to discuss about how this had come about."

    Quelana "Talk with Reima if you wish to know, he''s the most involved at this point..." she says.

    As Quelina and Vesemir and conversing the second to last pair come from the portal... Ciaran and Sif. At this point no one is surprised when Sif prowls out of the portal with Ciaran next to him. Artorias giving off a striking picture when stood next to the great wolf.

    Finally Priscilla walks through the portal with Carimir in one hand, Scythe in the other along with the Dragon Slayer GreatBow slung across her back. Her tail and horns heavily imply her inhuman origins however this doesn''t matter all that much when Reima steps through with Quelaag holding his hand. Her lower body continues to burn as it looks much more mutated and unnatural than anything else that''d come through before her.

    Reima "Is everyone here then?" he says as the portal closes behind him and he walks forwards with.

    Geralt "No idea, but I''m hoping you know what that thing is." he points to the Dragon sitting on the nearby mountain

    Reima "Ah, him? He''s called the Everlasting Dragon... He''s a buddy of mine so don''t worry about it." he says which makes a few people heave sighs of relief.

    Geralt himself feels assured that the Wild Hunt has no chance if that big ass Dragon is going to be assisting them, "So.. Care to introduce us to your friends?" he asks.

    Reima nods, "This is Quelaag, she''s called the Chaos Witch in her world, though not many are still alive to tell tales of her... This is Priscilla, daughter of Seath the Scaleless Dragon, creator of Sorceries." He points to Quelana and Quelina, "They''re Quelana and Quelina, sisters of Quelaag and all daughters of the Witch of Izalith, Mother of Demons."

    Reima then gestures towards Sieglinde and Solaire, "Over there is Sieglinde of Catarina, daughter to Siegmeyer, a warrior who''s unfortunately no longer with us... This is Solaire, God of Sunlight and terrible Gwent player-"

    Solaire "I have only lost one hundred and twenty four games to you my friend! You have just gotten lucky."

    Reima shakes his head and moves on while ignoring the looks of disbelief being sent his and his friends way. He points to Rhea and Anastacia and is about to introduce them when the former interrupts him.

    Rhea "I am Rhea of Thorolund, faithful worshipper of his Holiness Reima and Solaire."

    ...

    Reima "Right... This is Anastacia of Astora, a.. Healer if you will." He points at Sif and Ciaran, "This is Ciaran, former Lords Blade and former knight of Gwyn. And this ball of fluff is Sif, yes. He''s a Wolf and no, I have no idea why he''s so big... Or is able to use a sword." Reima is then about to introduce Dusk but is interupted.

    Following in the footsteps of Rhea, Dusk decides to introduce herself to everyone. "I am Dusk, Princess of Oolacile and fiance of Sir Reima."

    ...

    ...

    ...

    "What!"

 503 All in Attendance

    "What!"

    Quelaag and most people who were living in the Chaos Covenant caves while Reima was staying there can only sigh at Dusks announcement. For most people this went over their heads as Reima''s relationships weren''t as interesting as the beings he''d brought along. Only Geralt, Yennefer, Ciri. a few of the Prospects and a few of the Witchers were actually interested to hear about it.

    Ciri crosses her arms and gives Reima the stink-eye, "Reima you never said you were to be married, would''ve put a damper on your sweet talk right?"

    Yennefer "Oh, so you''ve tried to seduce our Ciri have you?" she asks with a restrained smile.

    Triss "Well, atleast we know which of you he takes after." she says while looking straight at Geralt.

    Reima "Ciri I don''t think you have a horse in this race... There was someone inbetween us afterall." he retorts at he in his opinion unfounded anger.

    Risryn "Well done, he is a good lover." she remarks casually, causing Ciri to glare at her.

    Kuretz laughs and cheers at the situation, "Hahahaha! You get''em champ!"

    Reima rubs his face and looks at Dusk, "I never agreed to marry you Dusk..."

    Dusk huffs and crosses her arms, "Hmph, with enough determination, resilience and repetition anything is possible." she states.

    All the while Quelaag and Priscilla are glaring at the women Reima''s said to have been involved with...

    Vesemir coughs into his hand to get back everyone''s attention, "Forgive me for not being as interested in Reima''s... Various relationships, but we have a crises approaching and I for one would like to be prepared."

    Everyone reluctantly agrees and Reima continues introducing those remaining, he points to Logan and Griggs, "Those two are called Big Hat Logan, a legendary Sorcerer in the previous world and his apprentice Griggs of Vinheim."

    Reima then turns his attention on the blacksmiths and continues, "These guys are Andre of Astora, Vamos, Rickert and Coaugh respectively. They are all Blacksmiths of incredible skill and are capable of working with "Godmetal" or Titanite, a material only found in the previous world and is said to be all but indestructible. From personal experience I''d have to agree with that statement. Also, don''t worry about Vamos being undead as it wasn''t any form of Necromancy that keeps him alive, instead a God of Death called Nito created him to craft weapons for his armies. Additionally Coaugh is a gentle giant who''s good company if you treat him well." he states, the Blacksmiths nodding at him for the high praise of their skills.

    Reima scratches his head for a moment and calls out, "Yo, where''s Eingyi?" he asks.

    Quelaag "Eingyi? He''s one of the Pyromancers... I had his rank temporarily lowered when he started shouting "Jolly" with every attack... Eingyi! Speak up!" she shouts towards the large group of warriors.

    Eingyi stands to attention and exclaims, "Yes Mistress!"

    Quelaag looks at Reima and gestures towards him with a shrug.

    Reima "Well, as we''ll all be fighting together you should probably know who these guys are... We usually refer to them as Chaos Servants, they are all well versed in the use of Pyromancy, a kind of soul magic that allows you to create and use flames in a wide variety of ways. During my stay in their world we found ourselves under attack by another faction and decided to train them in weaponry, as such we created the Pyreblades and Flame Guard. The only thing you really need to know is if there is trouble, hide behind a Flame Guard."

    After introducing them Reima walks towards the huge group of Prospects, "For those of you who are not aware yet, these guys are called Prospects... They will be fighting with us and the people leading them and these four, Kuretz, Risryn, Talem and Kalini." he states as he introduces them to everyone else. He doesn''t explicitly state that they are immortal due to him not knowing or fully trusting everyone present.

    Reima "Is the Altar finished?" he asks.

    Risryn nods, "We are ready to fight."

    Reima "How many are willing and able?" he asks, his gaze wandering over the large crowd.

    Risryn "Out of the thousand there are nine hundred and twenty." she states.

    Reima "That''s better than I''d hoped.."

    Geralt "Is there anything else that needs to be said Reima?" he asks, wanting to get back to the "War room" to make a new plan that involves their now rather large group.

    Reima nods, "That should be it, Eingyi! Can I leave you to manage the Chaos Servants."

    Eingyi nods, "Of course."

    Reima glances at Kalini and she nods without the question even needing to be asked.

    After everyone is aware of Kaer Morhen''s new guests Reima along with Kuretz, Risryn, Talem, Solaire, Sieglinde, Logan, Griggs, Rhea, Quelana and Priscilla make their ways up with everyone to the "War Room". While the stairways were kinda of narrow they did manage to get Quelaag and Quelina up with them, though it was a hard task making sure the former didn''t set fire to something with her lower body. Ciaran wanted to come as well but decided to stay and keep Sif company.

    The group enter a large room with a big map sitting atop and even bigger table set in the middle of the room.

    Geralt walks up and leans on it, looking as if he''s examining the map but in reality just trying to think up ways to utilise Reima''s allies in the most efficient ways.

    Vesemir "This situation we find ourselves in is looking better and better as time goes on, with our new allies we now have many more ways to fend off the hunt."

 504 What are you?

    Geralt nods with a grunt and looks around at the new faces in the room, "Are any of you familiar with siege warfare?" he asks.

    Kuretz who''s currently leaning against the wall with arms crossed shrugs, "Siegeing? No. Being sieged? Yup, but I think our version would probably not apply to you guys."

    Lambert "Why''s that? Think we''re not as good as you?" he asks sarcastically.

    Kuretz shakes his head, "No... It''s just that we''d run at the enemies and fight to the death until they backed off. Perks of being immortal."

    Vesemir "Yes... Reima said something about that, how far does it extend?"

    Talem "We can die, but we will return back to life not long after in perfect condition. Well.. Except for our mental states which remain fractured for some Prospects you have already seen."

    Vesemir nods, but Yennefer adds her own thoughts. "They look like those that''d been tortured to insanity by magic, perhaps there is some way to remedy this?"

    Dumbledore who''s standing nearby comment, "Perhaps someone skilled in Legillimency could delve into their minds and try to rectify the problem?"

    Reima "That''s all well and good but how on earth would you even do something like that? The mind isn''t simple and even I who actually knows what kind of magic you speak of doesn''t have any idea how you''d achieve that."

    Dumbledore strokes his beard, "It was just a suggestion, as you know we Wizards are horribly under-prepared to deal with mental afflictions."

    Yennefer "Unfortunately we Sorceresses have a similar problem, lacking any delicate way to remedy those kinds of problems. The best we have are Oneiromancers and the like."

    Triss "How about you.. Big Hat Logan? Reima said you are regarded as "Legendary" surely you must have something useful?"

    Logan scratches his beard, "Unfortunately most of my magics are offensive, though I''d like to expand my horizons with this worlds magic."

    Reima "Let''s leave this topic for another time, for now giving them the already established treatment will mend their minds eventually. For now we need to focus on defending against the Wild Hunt. How''re the Elves getting on with repairing Kaer Morhen Vesemir?" he asks.

    Vesemir "They''re fantastic creatures, the walls are almost completely repaired and are probably stronger than they ever were before. Not only that but they''ve completed cleared the keep of dust, mould and anything else unwanted."

    Ermion "Reima, you had said they were enslaved to you? Would it be possible to purchase some for the Isles of Skellige?" he asks.

    Reima shakes his head, "For all intents and purposes they are free to do as they wish, they only serve me because I saved them. Forcing them somewhere else would be similar to torture for House Elves. Anyway, how is Roche and Ves doing with those traps?"

    Geralt "They''re exhausted but one step into the forest and I almost found myself skewered by a trap." he states.

    Reima "Any signs of the enemy yet?"

    Yennefer "Yes, I could feel them observing us with magic before you arrived. I managed to dispel it but they know our location and are probably mobilising their forces."

    Reima "Are you ready to create the shield?"

    Yennefer nods, "With Albus we''ll have half a day of protection against the winds of the White Frost."

    Geralt "We should talk about how we station people... I''m assuming the Prospects don''t mind dying?"

    Talem "They mind it but for a situation such as this it isn''t too big an ask."

    Geralt nods, "Then, we should use them as scouts and assassins when they starts teleporting in. Are the Prospects strong?"

    Reima nods, "All the Prospects have tens or probably even hundreds of years of combat experience, they won''t be weaker than your average Wraith. These three used to be able to give me trouble."

    Risryn "Used?" she asks challengingly.

    Solaire "I assume this was before you became a God?"

    ...

    Lambert "Right, now you guys are pulling my leg. This kid being a god? I don''t even know what that''d mean."

    Rhea "Hold your tongue or it''ll be cut out for speaking such heresy!" she exclaims, causing the room to go silent.

    Reima "Rhea, what did I say earlier?" he asks with a grave tone of voice.

    ...

    Reima sighs, "Go outside and wait with Anastacia while we try and sort this out... I''ll have a chat with you later." he tells her, she reluctantly leaves all the while glaring at Lambert.

    Lambert "You''ve got yourself some crazy girls Reima." he says but notices a few glares from said "Girls", "Er, no offence" he says with an awkward smile.

    Solaire "Our world seems incredibly different to this one, gods used to rule ours with an iron fist. They branded all of humanity with a curse they''d only now escaped with Reima''s help, though it will result in the world ending because of his actions... Fortunately everyone still alive or sane enough to fear the end had been brought here."

    Arie "That doesn''t explain your claims that he''s now a god." he says, wondering what else Reima had be doing while he was gone.

    Dumbledore "Beg my pardon but I''ve witnessed Mr Ludvig use power that regular people simply shouldn''t possess, the ability to devour souls being one..."

    Reima just sits back and watches everyone try and decipher what he actually is... Eventually he decides to interject and explain. "Look, I became a "God" after I absorbed the souls of the God of Death, Cinder, Chaos and Darkness."

    ...

    Solaire nods, "Most were Jolly good fights as well my friend!" he says while slapping his bicep. "It''s unfortunate I wasn''t around to see the owner of the Dark Soul''s demise."

    Reima shrugs, "The entire situation wasn''t a pretty affair... If you wanna hear more about it go and talk to Ciaran, she was there."

    Solaire nods, "She''s never spoken of Oolacile, I didn''t broach the subject as I thought it was a sore subject."

 505 Calm Before the Blizzard

    Lambert interrupts the two close friends talking, "That''s great and all but how would you go about "Absorbing" a Gods soul... I''m pretty sure Soul''s aren''t something you can grab..."

    Reima shrugs and draws out a Hero''s soul into his hand, the white wispy soul glows dimly as everyone present who isn''t familiar with souls looks closely at it. "This is what a relatively powerful one looks like... This is what I''d assume Geralt''s soul would resemble. Other than that I made Ciri''s sword from the Soul of Seath the Scaleless Dragon."

    Triss "Hang on, didn''t you say that Seath was Priscilla''s father?" she asks while glancing at the Half-breed to see her reaction at the news.

    Reima "No one ever said he was a good father. I''m sure the only problem she has with me killing her father is that she wasn''t there to participate." he says while looking at her.

    Priscilla herself nods as she hears this, she''d never met her father and didn''t hold any conflicting feelings about him. In-fact she''d only ever met her mother, a person she despised with her entire being.

    Yennefer "I feel as if we are straying from the subject at hand, Reima''s apparent "Godhood"..."

    Solaire "What else do you need to know? He''s powerful, that''s all."

    Yennefer "Yes, but what constitutes a god and where does the power come from. For us Sorceresses we need to draw magic from the air, land and even ourselves. Albus draws it from his Magical Core, where do "Gods" draw their strength from?"

    Reima shrugs, "Well, my soul is constantly producing too much for me to deal with... The only reason Kaer Morhen hasn''t been incinerated and turned into something akin to a volcano is because I''m restraining it." he says casually, though his words have a dramatic effect on those in the room.

    Triss "If you are so strong why don''t you just defeat the Wild Hunt alone?" she asks something that everyone else in the room is thinking.

    Reima "Well, aside from the huge amount of damage it''d cause it''s not me they''re after. What''s stopping them from just keeping me busy with an army while kidnapping Ciri? I don''t know where their home world is so we''d be fucked if they caught her. That''s why this is a problem for all of us."

    Geralt taps the table with his finger, "Hmm, regardless of Reima''s strength there''s an army heading our way... What will the... Chaos Servants? Be doing?"

    Sieglinde "I think positioning them on the walls would be the best place for them, imagine a constant stream of boiling oil landing on those trying to breach the walls. That is basically how they''d function."

    Quelaag "They''re all versed in poison and toxic mist as well, I doubt these "Wraiths" have any way to resist it aside from powerful magics that wouldn''t be able to cover their entire army."

    Geralt "If it''s just left in a location then it''d probably be blown away by the Wild Hunt''s mages, they have access to the White Frost which''ll make most airborne poisons useless and maybe even harmful for our own forces." he says rejected her proposal.

    Lambert "Reima, can I just ask what that big fucking dragon is going to be doing? If it''s on our side the battle won''t last long."

    Reima shrugs, "That old guy probably won''t participate..."

    Lambert "Then what''s the point of bringing him?"

    Solaire interrupts with an annoyed expression "Did you not listen earlier? Our world was ending, just because it''s a Dragon doesn''t mean he should be left to perish."

    Lambert raises his hand, "Look, I didn''t mean anything like that. It just seems like a waste to not use something that could save lives."

    Reima changes the subject and looks towards Geralt "What will you guys be doing?" he asks the Witchers.

    Geralt "Hmm, we were going to try and block the portals with dimeritium bombs but with the sudden influx in men and the Prospects I suspect that won''t be needed..."

    Kuretz "If it''s only us being sent out then we can keep the gate closed for the entire conflict. That''d prevent any accidents from happening."

    Geralt nods, "I feel that there must be something for us to do though..."

    Ciri "Wasn''t I saying the same thing to you earlier Geralt? We''re in the same boat now." she says with a smug, satisfied smile.

    Geralt shakes his head and grunts, knowing full well that it''s not the same as she''s the enemies priority.

    Eskel "I think sitting back and preventing them from breaching the walls and entering the courtyard would be the best thing for us to do."

    Vesemir "If anything we can help direct the Prospects towards the enemy, we are well suited to commanding men when you consider our skill set." he says.

    Reima "I think everything is prepared, not much else to discuss besides the sleep schedule depending on when the Hunt Strikes."

    Geralt "Witchers don''t need sleep so we''ll keep watch during the night if it takes that long." he volunteers.

    Reima nods and turns to Solaire and Priscilla, "I don''t know about you guys but I haven''t tried out Gough''s bow on anyone, Priscilla you been keeping up with your target practise?" he asks with her nodding at him with a smile.

    Solaire "My sisters been the most busy since you left Reima, training everything from physical combat to Sorceries to Miracles. Truth be told I fear her aiming that bow you gave her at me."

    Ciri "You going to bring that monster back out?" she asks while remembering how ridiculous it actually was.

    Reima grins and retrieves it, making those familiar with archery scratch their heads at it. Though they were already confused with the Greatbow slung across Priscilla''s back. "I guarantee if I get one hit on Eredin he''ll be red mist." he says while chuckling.

 506 Hydrophobia

    Tir n¨¢ Lia, Capital of the Aen Elle :

    Inside a grand palace with the signs of frost beginning to encroach upon it''s marble walls is a Great Hall with large glass windows allowing natural light in. The entire room in inscribed with runes and words with a high degree of significance to the Aen Elle Elder in their native language Ellylon.

    Eredin Br¨¦acc Glas, current king of the Aen Elle and subsequently, the Wild Hunt, sits with his legs crossed as two of his Generals begin to walk through the hall towards him. He notes that they are not wearing their typical armour for some strange reason, he taps his throne in annoyance at their lack of decorum but disregards it as they must have something important to say.

    Imlerith who has been seething in rage ever since escaping the Mages magic at the cost of the men under his command slowly walks towards his King, his roiling emotions becoming more uncertain the closer he gets until he''s finally in position to address Eredin... He kneels with his head down, usually a sign of respect but in this instance due to shame at losing the girl yet again as well as escaping with his tail tucked between his legs. He felt naked under the gaze of his king, the armour that usually hid his pale skin and bald head now at the bottom of some ocean in that god forsaken world.

    Caranthir who had been walking beside Imlerith doesn''t do the same however, he didn''t regard it as his own failure at being unable to repel the enemies strange and powerful magic. Instead he thought of it as a learning experience, finding out that there was still much to learn and maybe that his former teacher Avallac''h hadn''t imparted all of his knowledge. He stands next to his kneeling comrade with a neutral expression, knowing full well that he was too valuable for Eredin to even try to punish. He stands there confidently in scholarly robes with the hood up to hide his face, as even if the Generals knew what he looked like he would continue to hide his appearance.

    Eredin look down at his two generals, he notes that Imlerith''s usually pale white skin is slightly blushed and clammy, though Caranthir doesn''t appear to have the same issue. "You bring not the girl, so news of your failure I assume?" he almost growls, despite his composure remaining untouched.

    Imlerith tries to work up the courage but Caranthir addresses his king first, "The girl was with the Vatt''ghern that had escaped us." he states.

    Eredin rests his head on his fist, "A single mutant wouldn''t have you coming back here to grovel without armour or men... Tell me, what excuse will you use for this recent failure?" he says, letting it known that all of the failed Wild Hunt''s forays have disappointing him greatly.

    Imlerith "Eredin, my liege... They had a powerful Mage with them, one capable of annihilating our vessel and all the men aboard it, not even Caranthirs magic could block it." he says with his head still down, not daring to look his king in the eyes.

    Eredin glares at Caranthir, "Is this true?"

    Caranthir nods, "They used magic the Aen Elle have never observed before, in all of our records we''ve never come across something even slightly similar."

    "Oh, please. Describe the spells used for us." a voice from above them on the balconies overlooking the hall says.

    Eredin "Ge''els, if you wish to advise us then have the modesty to atleast attend properly instead of skulking around like an assassin." he says to his most trusted general but also most annoying general.

    Ge''els sighs and opens up a portal from the balcony to beside Eredin''s throne where he stands with his hands behind his back. His fine robes giving off a sense of dignity and nobility. "Now that I am present, won''t you explain these "Spells" for me Caranthir?"

    Caranthir nods, "First the Mage conjured what looked like diamond spears in a large quantity, once fired at our vessel I along with my apprentices tried to block them... Our spells were almost useless against it, as if it was meant to counter our magic."

    Ge''els listens with a contemplative expression, could a traitor be funnelling information to their enemies? It would have to be Caranthir or a Navigator of high rapport for something like that... Shaking his head he decides that it must be something else other than a traitor unless some new information comes to light. He gestures to Caranthir, "Continue."

    Caranthir "After the Diamond Spear assault we tried to quickly recover, my apprentices and I had barely regained our footing when I sensed a massive spell being conjured. One that would rival the Sages-"

    Eredin slams his fist on his throne, "Sages!?! Was it Avallac''h! Did he escape the curse!?!" he shouts, the chance of the foe being his former friend and now nemesis Avallac''h bringing him unrivalled fury.

    Caranthir shakes his head, "No, not Avallac''h. I would have sensed it if he was there, I do not know what being it was or what spell was being cast but after it was done a blade of Dark Red fire cut our vessel in two with ease."

    Ge''els snorts, "I can already guess what happened next." he looks to Eredin, "Why must you insist on heavy armour even when not on land? There is a reason the common folk in others worlds think we fear water!"

    Eredin "It is not the armour, but the fear it commands. My decision is final no matter how many times you try to challenge it." he states after calming down some.

 507 Elves + Portals = Douchebags.

    Ge''els shakes his head, the King''s argument while a sound one isn''t practical, "Regardless of my thoughts on our Armies attire, what can we do about this.. Mage?"

    Eredin "No matter how strong they are we will trap, surround and deal with them swiftly. Caranthir, ready as many Navigators as possible, once we find the girl the Mage will likely be defending her."

    Ge''els nods, "Our usual tactics will likely not work if they''ve hidden in a fortified position, we must wage warfare like our ancestors before us had.

    Eredin "I do not disagree with you Ge''els but I find it hard to fathom that those lesser races could muster a defence capable of holding our Armies off."

    Ge''els "Think what you will but our disadvantage is clear, having to transport our Armies in any appreciable number will exhaust our Navigators. Not only will it take time to transport them but we will also lack Magical protection due to our strongest Mages being Navigators."

    Eredin growls, "It matters not. We must acquire the girl, no matter the sacrifices, I will not let the White Frost take the Aen Elle, even if it takes our world."

    Ge''els nods, knowing that they truly had no other option. While the could probably transport their people to a couple other worlds, the White Frost would catch up eventually due to them needing to follow a Child of the Elderblood''s cracks in space to teleport. To truly be safe from the White Frost they would need to capture the girl and have her produce heirs that would be loyal and serve them. As ghastly as it sounds it is the only way.

    Eredin looks at Imlerith, "I do not blame Caranthir for being unable to stop the Mage destroying our vessel and killing our men, I blame you for not being competent enough to escape with the survivors. You will have a chance to redeem yourself in the coming days, you will carry victory on your shoulders or your corpse make the path for it."

    Imlerith rapidly nods, "I will not fail you again." he says as he gets up and addresses his king one last time before he leaves. "I will have my revenge on the Mage and bring you the girl Eredin."

    Eredin watches Imlerith leave before looking at Ge''els, "Come, we must Divine where the girl is... If she''s protected then we must look for the Vatt''ghern Gwynbleidd." he says as they both disappear from the room.

    One day later Eredin with the help of Ge''els and Caranthir finally managed to Divine the location of someone who wasn''t protected. The black haired Sorceress known as Yennefer of Vengerberg, with this information they managed to narrow down the area that they had to look for the girl, after that it was easy to decipher where they might be as their spies told of an old fortress that used to and probably still does belong to the Vatt''ghern... Kaer Morhen.

    After failing to prove it due to the Sorceresses interference they decided to start readying troops for the assault. Due to the possibility of the Mage being present in the castle sending small numbers of warriors through portals into the keep would most likely fail spectacularly. Instead they decided that the best way was to mass their army behind the forest sitting below Kaer Morhen, due to the way the keep was constructed there was only around two ways to approach sieging it. One allowed the keep full view of them which would open them up to the Mage''s spells, the other was trekking through the forest. Their choice was obvious, though their usual tactics of teleporting in troops behind the enemy once they are distracted may work later on the battle.

    Eredin stands before thousands of his soldiers, he doesn''t give a speech to raise morale as he didn''t need to. As the rulers of this world his word was absolute, if he gave the order to cut their own throats they would do so without hesitation as if they refused their families would be butchered before them. Below him looking over the crowd were all of the Navigators the Aen Elle currently had, usually some would be left on standby incase something catastrophic happened but this was the most important battle they would be tasked with since ridding this world of humans.

    Eredin "My orders are so, Find the girl and bring her back alive. Kill any who get in your way." he states, his voice carrying through the lines of troops who stand as if frozen in time in attention. Their heavy skeletal armour glinting in the sun as they listen to the information that Ge''els lists off in preparation for sieging Kaer Morhen.

    Without another word by Eredin the Navigators began to open up portals for the armies to move through, of course Eredin sat back and allowed everyone to go through first as he refused to be caught off guard by a trap, as a king it his men''s honour to die for him. On the opposite side was Imlerith who heading through before anyone else, hoping to gain back his kings confidence and to cleanse the shame of defeat from himself.

    Kaer Morhen :

    As soon as the Navigators began to conjure portals bells across the keep of Kaer Morhen were being rung, everyone sensitive to magic could feel it. Not only that but the temperature dropped a couple degrees simply because of the portals which made a few of the none-magical folk anxious.

    Reima who had been sitting on the wall conversing with Priscilla, Solaire, Quelaag, Quelana and Risryn immediately knew what was happening and began to ready up for the conflict.

 508 Traps on Traps on Traps on Traps on Traps!

    It was early in the morning when everyone was notified of the Wild Hunt''s arrival, the preparations had been made, the keep repaired, the supplies stocked and the weaponry ready. Roche and Ves had returned late last night with Keira after setting traps in the forest, while the House Elves finished repairing the fort, not only repairing but cleaning as well, much to delight of Vesemir.

    Ermion had also recently finished releasing pockets of gas from the earth, making a few area''s inside the forest rather... Explosive. The only people who weren''t satisfied with the situation were Ciri and Nerissa, the former because they refused to let her fight on the frost lines and the latter because she was tasked with taking care of Carimir. The vampire sitting on the entrance steps of the keep with a dull expression on her face and cat sitting on her lap.

    It wasn''t long after the bells had rung that everyone was awake and ready, the Sorceresses, Prospects, Witchers, Chaos Servants and anyone else present in Kaer Morhen all get up and examine the situation outside. Geralt makes his way to the wall while Yennefer waits on the highest balcony with Dumbledore, prepared to conjure the shield at a moments notice.

    Geralt "See anything?" he asks as he approaches Reima and the group with him.

    Reima nods and points over to the forest, "They''re gathering their troops over there, hopefully those traps will catch a few of them."

    Geralt "When should we send out the Prospects?" he asks, not really knowing the best time to send them.

    Reima shrugs, "Probably after they''ve set off most of the traps, it''s be stupid to have our own guys getting caught in them. Though it''s your call." he says while looking over the forest, extending his Observation Haki as far as it will go to try and spot anyone approaching.

    Solaire "This situation is reminding me of our time approaching the Kiln my friend."

    Reima "Why? Is it their numbers or the edgy armour they''re wearing?" he jokes.

    Solaire shakes his head and smiles, "Both but neither! It''s due the amount of Jolly Cooperation we''re about to embark on!"

    Behind them all armoured up and waiting in the courtyard the Chaos Servants all raise their weapons and shout "JOLLY!"

    Reima "... You''ve completely and utterly corrupted them... Hey, Priscilla? Wanna take a couple pot shots?" he asks with a smirk, the Half-breed nodding in agreement at his words. Hopefully they''d hit Eredin if he was around, though Reima expected him to only turn up if the battle was going well for them or even.

    They both retrieve their GreatBows and stab them into the ground of the stone wall, the sharp tips piercing it to keep them stable when they''re drawn. Geralt watches as the duo both insert Dragon Slayer Great Arrows into the bows, he feels anxious just looking at them as they are more comparable to spears or ballista bolts than arrows... Truth be told he''d rubbed his eyes to check if what he was seeing was real a couple times when both of them drew the metallic strings with ease.

    Wild Hunt Army :

    Eredin steps through the portal after a quarter of his troops had entered without dying, he looks around and frowns at the fact the forest is blocking their view of the keep, though this was the reason they chose the spot.

    The Wild Hunt soldiers get into formation and begin to scout ahead into the forest, as they do Eredin looks at Imlerith and asks, "Has there been any movement from the keep?"

    Imlerith nods, "They were ringing bells earlier, they must have sensed our arrival" he states, not wishing to make known his opinion about using the Navigators magical reserves to use the White Frost to signal their arrival. He understood that fear was one of the greatest weapons in their arsenal but when sieging fear is only secondary to other practical applications.

    Eredin nods and is about to say something when a Navigator stops the advancing troops, "Halt! There are illusions present!" they shout.

    The Navigator waves his staff and dispels some of the nearby illusions, causing spike traps to be revealed. A soldier nods his thanks to the Navigator and begins to walk again, only to find himself stepping into a hidden spike trap and instantly being skewered as it falls into it. The elf screams for a moment before his voice and life are cut off.

    Imlerith growls before shouting "Watch out! There are traps lain around everywhere!"

    One of the soldiers point at a revealed spike trap and shout about it being an illusion, however none dare to step into it. The Navigators themselves can''t dedicate their time to dispelling all the illusions due to them having to transport an entire army through portals.

    Imlerith "Enough! All of you follow me!" he shouts while readying his tower shield and mace, using the latter to tap the ground in-front of him as he walks to check for traps. A Navigator dispels a revealed spike trap and a soldier walks over the revealed ground, only to tumble in to his death.

    Eredin "Fools, send the hounds in first to check for traps!" he shouts, furious that Imlerith had not ordered it first. The Golems sprinting ahead and falling into the large amount of pit traps scattered through the forest, the Generals find it almost unbelievable at how many traps had actually been laid, while Eredin silently remarks to himself about how genius it is to make illusions of traps which hide traps, or illusions with no traps at all to confuse and lower the morale of the enemy. Truly once he conquered these lesser beings he would record this tactic for later use.

    Imlerith follows the hounds with his men trailing behind him, his shield is raises in-front of him to protect against anything that may come from the keep. However...

    *TWANG!*

    *WHISTLE*

 509 Battle begins!

    The sound is almost deafening as a huge projectile zips past Imlerith''s head, causing the man to dodge to the side in an attempt to avoid anymore that may come... Unfortunately for him, his movement had put him into the travel path of another, substantially more powerful one.

    *CRACK!*

    *CHING!*

    *SPLATTER!*

    Imlerith''s shield was struck directly by the huge arrow, the speed and weight of it actually managing to pierce his shield... Well, pierce is the polite term. His shield as well as his arm were both obliterated from existence, the large man falling to the floor while screaming in agony.

    A few troops quickly get up him and start moving him towards the back line where Eredin and Caranthir are. The latter conjuring a magic shield to block any projectiles hitting him or their king.

    Imlerith "Ahhhh! Arrrgghh!" he continues to writh around in extreme pain as blood spurts from where his left arm used to be.

    Eredin "What was that?" he growls out, wondering what could be strong enough to do that to Imlerith. No one says anything but a soldier runs over carrying a huge... Spear?

    Eredin grabs it and is surprised by it''s weight, he knew this was the one that struck his General due to the blood covering it, though he found the lack of any damage on it intriguing. He knew not was this metal was but he needed to know what kind of weapon they were using to shoot them, it must be some kind of new siege weapon that he hadn''t heard of as a regular ballista could not shoot something like this.

    A Imlerith''s second hand addresses Eredin to see what their next action was, the king looks at the man and points towards Kaer Morhen.

    Eredin "The battle isn''t over yet, keep advancing!" he shouts. Causing the men to immediately turn and continue towards the keep.

    With Reima :

    He could hear his arrow impacting something and hoped it was Eredin''s smug face, he gave a smug look to Priscilla who knew her arrow had missed everything and continued on. They keep knocking and firing arrows into the forest, the only indication that they''d hit anything the sound of splintering and cracking steel.

    However they could only do this for so long before soldiers start leaving the tree line and running towards the keep. Some are carrying metal ladders while others seem to be carrying small spheres with runes carved on them. As soon as they''re visible Yennefer creates a huge shield that envelopes the keep and it''s walls. Just in time too as a portal open up a few meters off the ground and starts blowing the White Frost at them, instantly freezing plant life and anything else it touches, though it''s luckily stopped by Yennefer''s shield.

    The Navigator''s seeing that their usual tactic of freezing and smashing wasn''t working and so stopped the White Frost to conserve energy to bring more troops in.

    However the next phase of the battle had finally begun with the Wild Hunt troops revealing themselves. Reima gives Risryn a slap on her ass as her and the rest of the Prospects get ready to leap off of the walls and into battle. She looks at him and he could feel her gaze on him from under her mask.

    Kuretz "Let''s go boyysss!" he shouts as he and a stream of Prospects jump from the walls, all of them rolling to relieve the impact and then charging at the Wild Hunt soldiers.

    Kuretz crosses his hands before dramatically pulling them back as a pair of bladed gauntlets materialise on his hands. He leaps in the air and delivers a kick to the helmeted face of a Wild Hunt soldier, the large elf toppling over backwards as Kuretz uses his momentum to crush their head with his gauntlets through many brutal blows.

    Talem approaches two soldiers while traces his hands in the air and materialising a spear with a jagged bladed edge. It looked more like a Glaive than a traditional spear due to it''s slight curve. The two soldiers wielding long swords approach fearlessly and try to swing and stab at Talem, he ducks under a swing and parries the stab with his Glaives handle, using the momentum to bring the spears blade into the unprotected joint near the groin, severing a vital artery and kicking him away to get some distance from the first soldier who''s still swinging at him.

    Talem then reaches forward and grabs the air before pulling as if gripping something, the Wild Hunt soldier is incredibly confused when his weapon is torn from his grip. Talem takes the moment of in-attention to perform a spinning hell kick at their helmeted head, throwing them to the ground where he finishes them with a their own blade to the throat.

    Kalini who''s definitely the youngest and less experience of the leading Prospects summons two stiletto daggers and follows a group of Prospects trying to break through a formation of shielded soldiers, she sprints and uses a Prospects back as a springboard and flies over the shields, jamming her daggers into the eye sockets of the unfortunate soldier she ends up landing on.

    The few maintaining the formation notice her but they do not release their defensive position as they''d be overrun, a few reinforcing soldiers try to intercept her as she stabs through the neck of another soldier. A stab grazes her stomach as she avoids it, she manages to cripple her attacker by piercing his eye but a stab from behind finally pierces her chest. She looks at the blade sprouting from where her heart had used to be and sighs as she bursts into particles and disappears, confusing the surrounding troops even more than they had been before.

 510 Prospects are still cool.

    On the walls Reima watches and winces as Kalini is killed, though her walking up the stairs and standing next to him to observe where the next place to attack was really took the oomph out of her apparent death.

    He knocks another arrow and fires it into the forest, hoping to hit one of Generals of the Wild Hunt... Well, atleast before Priscilla does.

    Risryn who''d been on a spree of destruction as soon as hitting the floor hadn''t even drawn her blade yet. Using her palms she deflects two swords by slapping their flat sides and changing their momentum, then she delivers a combo on the face of a soldier only seen before in Street fighter. Despite the man''s steel helmet the force was so strong and rapid that his spine had all but liquefied. However as more of the Prospects are killed their numbers dwindle until they can make their way back. The Wild Hunt had an advantage in their heavy armour, formations, tactics and overall numbers.

    Risryn was left surrounded by a group of soldiers who were all ready to cut her down... Risryn wasn''t a pushover however, White Fold Particles envelop her as she finally draws her weapon. A long double edge sword, nothing particularly special about it apart from it''s wielder. She dashes forwards towards an armoured soldier with ridiculous speed, her sword piercing their throat before they could even react. Tearing her sword from their throat she performs a graceful overarm slash that kills yet another man.

    After seeing her dramatic increase in strength the soldiers didn''t hesitate to rush forwards in an attempt to overpower her, they''d performed a perfect manoeuvre that would have prevented any regular person from defending against all their attacks. They had made the mistake of assuming Risryn didn''t have any option though, using the chest of a soldier she leaps above them and uses her speed to use their heads, shoulders and backs to fight. They try to knock her off but she just changes her position when they make the attempt, but not before slashes their throats as she leaves. Even when others try to attack her they end up attacking their own colleagues!

    Placing her feet on either side of a soldiers head she rapidly twists her hips and breaks their neck, she returns back to the ground after reducing their units enough where she''d be at a disadvantage using her previous tactic. Her hand glows white with the Fold Particles as she strikes the floor, causing an area around her to rumble and push the remaining ones off balance. It''s like spearing fish in a barrel as she finishes the rest off.

    She looks around the battle field to see where she''d next be most efficient, however she spots a dim glow and a shadow shooting from behind her on the ground. Ducking under it she turns and see''s an armoured soldier wearing robes and a different helmet to the rest, they wield a metal staff and their offhand glows with what looks like a mini-blizzard.

    Having already heard about the magic of this world she tries to get closer to the Mage, her feet not moving as she almost glides over the ground towards them.

    The Mage throws their hand forward with causes shards of hardened ice to shoot towards her, Risryn dodges them but obtains a few cuts and scratches for her trouble. After twisting her body to avoid the attack she lunges forwards with her sword to kill the Mage, but ends up passing through them as they teleport away, the only thing remaining in their place being some kind of unstable orb that immediately explodes and kills Risryn.

    Reima who had seen the fight and seen the Mage teleporting away frowns and knocks an arrow before pointing it as where the douche bag had teleported to. They''d just reduced four Prospects to particles as the huge arrow hits their chest and liquefies their organs.

    Solaire "Perhaps it is time to have our Pyromancers start attacking?" he asks with his arms crossed.

    Reima shrugs, "Keeping their strength for the main force would be the most efficient, these guys are probably just here to see where the keeps weaknesses are."

    Solaire nods, "We are wearing them down with the Prospects, from their point of view it must feel like we have unlimited reinforcements."

    Foot steps coming from behind them have them turning around to see an unperturbed Risryn who looks over the wall and observes the battles situation. To be honest the Wild Hunt aren''t able to even get past the constant stream of Prospects, though the enemies numbers and presence are dwindling which must mean they are planning something?

    Solaire "Milady, I must say watching you fight was magnificent, like watching a dance of death." he says with a thumps up.

    Risryn shrugs, "I hate Mages." she states, even now wondering how she could have avoided her last death.

    Reima "After the battle I''ll show you a couple ways of dealing with Mages, in exchange I wanna spar." he says with a grin.

    Risryn nods, "Deal." she says as she leaps off of the wall yet again to join the fight.

    Solaire "Ah, all this standing around is making me want to fight!"

    Reima "Then just start throwing lightning, you have enough energy for the whole battle and then some." he shrugs.

    Solaire "Ah... You''re right.." he mutters sheepishly before pulling his arm back while materialising a lighting bolt and throwing it at a lone soldier who''d snuck past and was trying to put up a metal ladder on the wall. The bolt hits and the manner has a violent seizure before falling to the ground smoking.

 511 Battle of Ice and Fire

    Eredin was watching as more of his men streamed through the forest, he knew they were somehow being picked off but didn''t know what it as from. He assumed it was from the Mage but guessed they would run out of energy soon enough. He looks to a nearby Navigator bringing troops in and grabs them, "You, create a projection of the battle." he states.

    The Navigator complies as if he refused he''d most certainly be killed, a few seconds later Eredin is showed what''s currently happening. He sees his warriors being overwhelmed by constant and consistent reinforcements from the keep, he had no idea how they''d managed to fit so many people inside the castle but decided that magic must be involved.

    On the wall he can see a large number of people doing nothing and just observing as their warriors run out to fight and die. However what draws his attention are the inhuman people present, one woman with the lower half of a flaming spider, one with obvious Draconic traits wielding a huge bow and other men. One with another huge bow and the other throwing what look like lightning bolts haphazardly from the wall at his men.

    Eredin "Caranthir! See this!?!"

    The General nods and pales under his mask, "That woman... Could she be a Golden Dragon?" he asks with a hint of fear in his voice.

    Eredin growls, "Ignore her! I mean the two men, one is using magic I''ve never seen before... And the other seem to match the description of the Mage you encountered."

    Caranthir looks closer and nods, "It''s the Mage, though I do not know of the magic the other is using."

    Eredin "And what of these masked people who disappear when killed?!? Could they be magical constructs?"

    Caranthir shakes his head, "No, it would be easy to tell if they were... They are something different."

    Eredin growls "We are making no progress towards the girl, that shield blocks the Frost so we must use our other tools. Tell the soldiers to throw their bombs!"

    Caranthir nods and sends off a couple higher up soldiers to make the command.

    Over in the battle the Wild Hunt soldiers had been pushed to the treeline and had been on the defensive ever since Solaire started being proactive. The Prospects were all trying to breach the formation but were constantly under attack from the Wild Hunt hounds that sprint from between the armoured soldiers legs to attack at awkward angles.

    However Reima notices a few soldiers shouting commands at the soldiers, they back off slightly and grab ahold of the rune inscripted spheres attached to their belts and throw them onto the battle field, at first they don''t do anything but not long after they touched the floor they begin to glow brightly. The Prospects are trapped between the Wild Hunt soldiers and the spheres and are unable to escape, Risryn leaps over the shields and begins to cut down a large amount of enemies, however she''s killed surround, slowed by magic and cut down.

    The spheres eventually explode, causing everything near them to freeze solid. That isn''t all however as the spheres the dead soldiers were carrying also explode, causing a chain reaction that freezes everything on the battle field. This traps most of the Prospects in ice which turns out to be a perfect counter to their immortality as they aren''t yet dead!

    Reima sees this and realises that the next phase of battle is beginning, "Solaire get the Chaos Servants ready to cast." he states as the fraction of Prospects who''d not been frozen make their way back to the wall. Fortunately Risryn had been killed and not frozen as she''d be invaluable against their numbers.

    With the Prospects no longer impeding the Wild Hunts progress they form a shield wall and slowly make their way towards the keep. A few pick up the ladders previously dropped by their fallen comrades and try to get against the wall... However the Pyromancers have started their assault.

    Quelaag is the first to begin, she leans over the wall and casts Great Chaos Fireball, it hits their shields but explodes into lava afterwards, flowing over their defences and burning the few hit to death. Those nearby have their armour heat up to unbearable temperatures, causing them to back away out of the shield wall where the other Pyromancers pick them off.

    Logan who''s been observing the battle from the wall conjures a Crystal Soul Spear that annihilates a part of the shield wall, however it''s quickly fixed by the reinforcements that seem to never end.

    Solaire is probably the person doing the most work against the shield wall as their armour is all conductive, a rain of lightning bolts reduce their numbers quicker than they can even replenish.

    Reima himself is throwing wide radius Pyromancies at the reinforcements, burning them to ashes and molten metal with ease. Again, as it had been before the Wild Hunt was unable to get the ladders onto the wall with their numbers constantly being reduced by the bombardment of powerful Pyromancies, Sorceries, Miracles and Magics. The gas pockets that Ermion had summoned were quickly used up at fuel for the Pyromancies, anyone being caught in their radius instantly being reduced to red mist and metal fragments that ended up hurtling towards their allies.

    The Navigators near the treeline attempt to pick off some of the Pyromancers on the wall, however the Flame Guard instantly block their attacks with their tower shields, making sure to defend the much less armoured Pyreblades and Pyromancers.

    Triss who''s observing the battle from higher up is almost entranced by the amount of fiery death being laid upon the Wild Hunt, she''d be sure to enquire about this peculiar method of magic after the battle.

 512 Sacrifice

    Eredin watches as his forces are being utterly decimated, those on the walls were providing an incredible defence, not allowing a single ladder to go up for a moment. Not to mention the duo throwing lightning and dark fire respectively. If this kept up they''d have to give up on the siege!

    Eredin "Caranthir! Gather a few Navigators and smash the gates." he states, referring to something that was already in the minds of those present.

    Caranthir nods and takes a few Navigator''s from portal duty, along with a large amount of Hounds and a few heavy shield warriors.

    On the wall the defenders continued to kill the shield wall trying to raise ladders, though the reinforcements were becoming incredibly wary of him, thus making the formation weaker. A few Navigators in the tree''s had managed to injure the Flame Guards but with Anastacia and Rhea present they were healed quicker than any normal spell in this world would traditionally allow.

    Suddenly the shield wall begins to back up as Reima senses a large group of people in the tree-line, though they were not yet visible. Only a quarter of the formation actually made it out alive, the charred and smoking bodies of their companions having been left in the rush to escape.

    Reima and the rest of the magically sensitive sense a large spell being cast from the tree-line, he gets ready to cast a huge shield but finds that won''t be necessary as the spell wasn''t an offensive one.

    From the tree''s walks a huge Golem, it''s 11 foot tall and seems to be made from earth, it''s arms end in hammer-like clubs and it looks incredibly sturdy.

    Triss "They''re trying to breach the gate!" she shouts, remembering having read about Golem''s being used as makeshift siege devices.

    Logan and the other Pyromancers don''t halt their attacks and begin casting high power spells at the Golem, Quelaag conjures a spell that looks suspiciously like the Forbidden sun spell and throws it. It spins violently as it approaches the Golem but all those watching are confused when a Wild Hunt soldier with a heavy shield runs in-front of it and attempts to block the spell. He''s instantly burned to death but the power in the spell was all used and did almost nothing against the Golem.

    Logan waves his staff and fires two Crystal Soul Spears and two Wild Hunt Hounds jump into their path.

    Reima "They''re trying to get the Golem to the gate no-matter what!" he shouts as he knocks an arrow and fires it at the Golem which is mimicked by Priscilla.

    The heavy great arrows zip towards it but the Navigators in the back conjure small powerful shields that don''t block them, but instead slow their speed enough to not cause any damage.

    Solaire unsheathes his sword, the fractured golden blade glowing brightly and drawing attention from everyone nearby and even the enemies. He raises it to the sky and after a moment, a rain of lightning begins to fall on the area the Wild Hunt are currently at.

    The spell begins to kill large amounts of people but Caranthir grabs a Navigator by the shoulder and pushes him forward, the unfortunate man being chosen to sacrifice himself for the "Good of their race. He glows blue for a moment before a large shield expands to protect against the lightning. Bolts of electricity pound against the shield and decrease it''s size the longer it goes on, however eventually the barrage ends and the man who''d cast the shield bursts into flames, his use apparently having been over.

    The Golem is around halfway to the wall and the spells shot at it are all blocked by the hounds and the soldiers who use their own bodies as shields.

    Reima begins shooting his own spells at it, Pyromancies that incinerate those stupid enough to get in the way and char the Golem, though it seems that burning it doesn''t affect it''s functionality.

    A couple Navigators run ahead and cast some kind of frozen projectile at the gates which causes them to be frozen solid, this would usually provide more protection against outsiders but in this instance the brittle gates would likely be shattered by a single punch of the Golem, which is probably their plan.

    Reima retrieves the Staff of Manus and charges up another slash he''d used previously on their ship. He brings the staff down which unleashes a vicious wave of dark red fire at the Golem which bisects it and a few Navigators behind it...

    The people on the wall cheer at finally bringing it down however as half of the Golem falls over the ground underneath it swells and quickly repairs the damage made to it, though Reima notices yet another Navigator burst into flames in the distance.

    He uses the same spell a couple more times but the result is always the same, a Navigator in the backline exploding into fire while the Golem repairs itself. He tries to raise a wall of stone in-front of it but the wall is only integrated into the Golem, making it stronger and more durable.

    Solaire "What is this abomination!" he shouts in disbelief as it constantly repairs itself.

    Reima "It''s the Mages in the back constantly repairing it, kill them and it''ll stop!"

    His words echo throughout the keep and those present turn their attention from the Golem to the tree-line, the amount of spells being cast in the moment instantly causing a forest fire that is only quelled by the White Frost, though those caught in the crossfire were brutally annihilated.

    Eventually however the Golem makes it to the wall, Reima who''s had enough of this jumps down and delivers the strongest kick he can muster at it, the kick connects with it''s shoulder and obliterates half of it''s body. Reima had miscalculated though, the strength of his kick being so much that half of the Golem was instantly destroyed without the other half being affected by it.

 513 Breach

    With one final Navigator sacrifice the Golem manages to thrust it''s broken body at the gate, falling through it with a loud crash, the shattering of frozen wood and iron deafening those on the wall. Reima looks behind him at the destroyed gate and frowns before turning and glaring at the army that''s now slowly approaching, hoping to make their way into the keep by the broken gate.

    The Flame Guard rush down into the courtyard and plant their tower shields where the gate had been, Geralt and the other Witchers also making their way down to prepare for the enemies coming in. Ciaran and Sif stand to the side, ready to pounce on anyone stupid enough to enter the walls.

    Everyone who didn''t have another task was ready for the Wild Hunt, however Reima simply stood in-front of the gate with the Staff of Manus in his hand glowing an ominous dark red, the embers being emitted from it following the wind and flying away behind him.

    Solaire jumps from the wall after telling Priscilla to stay out of the battlefield and lands next to Reima, "Is it finally time to fight my friend?" he asks as his golden blade begins to crackle with yellow lightning.

    Reima shrugs, "To be honest, I wasn''t expecting them to be able to breach the walls... But yes, let''s just end it." he says while giving a fist pump to Solaire.

    Around a thousand heavily armoured Wild Hunt soldiers slowly walk out of the forest in formation, the shield wall looking like a solid block of steel.

    Rhea and the Chaos Servants behind the duo start to cheer as the feeling of static electricity expands from Solaire, his body crackles as electricity sparks from his body and to the floor.

    Solaire "I will claim the highest count! Praise the sun!" he shouts as he suddenly rockets towards the wall, a sparking crater being left where he previously stood.

    Reima "You didn''t beat me in the Catamomb''s, Izalith or the First Flame! Today won''t be any different!" he calls from behind as he sprints ahead, still not daring to release his aura for fear of harming his allies. However, those soldiers look like they''d make fine Abyssal Servants.

    Eredin watches as a lightning bolt shaped as a man impacts his men, sending those hit directly flying away, their mangled bodies still crackling lethally with electricity. He has no idea who these two men are but is shocked when the other one holding a staff disappears with a familiar Turquoise flash! "Elder Blood!" he shouts.

    Reima appears behind the formation and uses uses Humanity to empower his Staff''s axe head, the black ooze-like substance drips from the blade as he buries it into the back of an unfortunate Wild Hunt soldier, they are crushed under it''s weight but instantly start having a seizure as the Humanity invades the wound. A nearby soldier swings at him but he simply grabs the blade and snaps it like a twig, then proceeding to send a kick to their head which causes it to explode into red mist and metal fragments.

    Reima retrieves Kalameet, previously known as the Obsidian Greatsword and swings it while utilising it''s unique ability, sending black flames spewing over a large group of soldiers, they immediately panic and begin to frantically get the flames off but it''s no good as they succumb to them not too soon after.

    Solaire continues his path of destruction through the formation, his golden sword splitting into fragments and becoming like a whip of lightning as it cuts many men in twain. A few Navigators manage to hit him with some frost spells while he''s distracted but as if he''s clicking his neck he shrugs it off like nothing, pointing his blade to the sky and summoning a huge lightning bolt onto their position which causes them and the ground to explode violently.

    However, even as the duo lay a waste to the Wild Hunt''s forces their objective remains the same, retrieve the girl. The hounds attempt to breach the Flame Guard tower shields but simply bounce off of them as they had already cast "Iron Skin" and were too heavy for even a giant to move.

    The Pyromancers on the walls killed the hounds but the soldiers still marched forwards, eventually reaching the tower shields and attempting to breach them, only to find the action like trying to squeeze blood from a stone! A few climb and jump over, only to find themselves inside the giant maw of Sif or instantly being cut down by the Witchers, Pyreblade''s and others present.

    Triss who had begun casting a spell when the gate had gone down finally finishes and sends fireballs raining from the sky into the forest, the action hopefully killing a few of the Navigators still bringing reinforcements in and maybe even Eredin.

    Unfortunately Caranthir is present to shield himself and the King from the bombardment, however a few more of the Navigators are killed by it, serious reducing how many troops they can continue to bring.

    On the wall Priscilla continues to shoot Dragon Slayer Great Arrows at the Navigators she can see, she''s already killed quite a number of them but feels as if she''d be a better help present in the battle, regardless she''ll listen to her brothers words and stay where it''s safe. Quelaag who''s next to her sharing a similar sentiment, knowing that she simply wasn''t as strong as Reima or Solaire.

    Of course everyone else watching the battle was amazed and horrified by the strength, abilities and brutality shown by Reima and Solaire. Even if it was to their benefit. Dumbledore is the shaken by the sight of thousands dying, even if what he was told about the enemy was true it was still a travesty that this event was actually occurring.

 514 Solaire Flare!

    In the courtyard the Flame Guard were being pushed back slightly due to the Wild Hunt soldiers throwing ice bombs at their feet, were they not Pyromancers they would have most certainly found it difficult to fend off these attacks, however them backing off slightly allowed more troops into the keep where the others were fighting.

    Geralt casts an Aard at a soldier in-front of him which forces them away like a man-shaped metal projectile at their allies. He then pirouette''s under a blade that passes over his head and drives his steel blade into the unprotected armpit joint of their armour, crippling them and severing a vital artery. An arrow comes from behind courtesy of Ves that penetrates their eye socket which finally kills them. Geralt nods to her and continues fighting off the soldiers. Though he does take a moment to take in the sight of Sif mauling groups of soldiers without mercy.

    Geralt "Damn scary thing." he mutters as he focuses on his next target.

    Eingyi who was currently suited up in Pyreblade armour locks blades with a Wild Hunt soldier, the blades scrape against each other as they both try to overpower their foes. Eingyi eventually manages to deflect away their sword while thrusting his Pyromancy flame into their face and casting Great Combustion which melts the flesh away from the unfortunate Elf''s face.

    Ciaran was maybe quick work of the soldiers that approached her, the Greatsword of Artorias cleanly cutting through armour as if it were butter. While she was more accustom to her old twin blades she felt closer to her lost lover while covered in blood from the wounds caused by his weaponry. As she was an assassin at heart she made sure to kill the few Navigator''s that actually made it inside the keep, knowing that with their teleportation and magic capabilities they''d be the biggest problem with trying to secure the area. Even with the Greatsword they didn''t see or hear her coming as she bisected them, their armour proving too weak to resist.

    While Risryn was one of the last Prospects still fighting she acted as if she was doing their work for them, brutally dismembering any soldier that got close. To her chagrin there wasn''t anymore Navigators for her to get her revenge on, atleast inside the courtyard. They were picked off quickly by either Keira Metz, Triss, Logan or Ciaran.

    Griggs wasn''t completely useless either, his soul arrows not being affected by the Wild Hunt''s armour due to it directly attacking their souls. They obviously hadn''t come across this kind of attack before because when it hit them they acted like they''d been poisoned or bashed over the back of the head.

    Anastacia was getting into it when she wasn''t healing those who got injured, occasionally throwing black lightning bolts that tore and rended flesh when it connected. Quelina was next to her most of the time throwing relatively small fireballs when compared with what everyone else was using, regardless they were effective, especially for someone who wasn''t well versed in Pyromancy yet.

    While Eskel, Lambert and Vesemir generally stuck together and performed marneuvers that complemented each other Arie was a completely different story. His steel sword in his remaining right hand while the silver blade replacing his arm on his left. He was like a tornado of steel, almost as fast as Geralt was, despite it being less skillful and tamed it was impressive for someone of his age. Or atleast when compared to the other Witchers.

    Coaugh who had just been watching with the other blacksmiths had apparently had enough and started stomping into battle, a Greatsword sparkling with electricity looking like a short sword in his hand. The weapon wasn''t even necessary as a single stomp would definitely kill someone. Surprisingly the giant was rather skilful with the blade, apparently crafting them for centuries gave you an innate understanding over how to use them.

    After seeing one of their own join the battle the other blacksmiths were pumped, Andre grabbing two Greatswords while Vamos picked up his own anvil and started swinging it at the Wild Hunt soldiers, those being caught in his strikes dying instantly from the impact.

    Eventually even Priscilla got bored with firing her Great Bow at distant targets and leapt off of the wall with her scythe, turning invisible as she fell. Quelaag who had been left on the wall with the Pyromancers only saw spurts of blood coming from random soldiers necks that signalled where the Half-dragon actually was. Sighing to herself she unsheathes her flaming Furyblade and scuttled into battle, her legs proving harder than steel as they pierced the soldiers armour without much trouble. With her Pyromancies she was a force to be reckoned with as she stabbed, slashed gouged and burned any enemy that dared face her.

    Overall the battle in the courtyard deffnitely wasn''t in the Wild Hunt''s favour, any soldier inside having their life expectancy at around a couple minutes if not less.

    With Reima the soldier he''d infected with Humanity had finally stopped shaking, black liquid now pouring from their armour''s eye''s, mouth and any other openings present in it. Those nearby the corpse hear the body of the creature cracking as it mutates and starts growing larger, eventually becoming around 8ft. The being still wearing the skeletal steel armour, however due to it''s increased size it''d broken and shifted, causing the steel ribs to split and look jagged and menacing. It didn''t have the typical bloated head of the other Abyssal creatures, probably due to the helmet it''s wearing but the black ooze drips and slowly transforms into black fabric which looked similar to what Dark Wraith''s usually wear.

    Eventually the huge creature stands much to the shock of those near it, not having expected their comrade to turn into this.. Beast! It''s gauntlets had broken as it''s hands grew into claws, the steel comprising them adding to the long claws now extending from it''s fingers. Without a second thought it gives a horrific gurgled "ROAAARRR!" as it swings it''s arm at a nearby soldier, it hits them in the face, denting it heavily and piercing it with it''s claws, if the man wasn''t dead enough the impact had shattered his spine.

    Reima sees this transformation and grins before infected a few more soldiers with Humanity, along with unleashing Rita-Creature from his shadow which instantly begins casting Dark Sorceries as well as clawing anyone who get''s near.

    Eventually Reima has around four new "Abyssal Wraiths" along with the first one rampaging around and destroying anyone they see. Any injury they sustain being healed as they take more lives. A Navigator tries to freeze one and almost succeeds, but that''s before Reima teleports above them and stabs them with the Humanity infused bottom of the Staff of Manus.

    Again, the Navigator falls to the ground and begins to seize before mutating into a slightly smaller version of the "Abyssal Wraith", the skeletal armour and staff that used to have a glowing blue orb atop, now instead has a black orb that drips black ooze from it. It opens it''s hand revealing a mass of darkness and thrusts it towards a group of Wild Hunt soldiers which causes black fog to envelop them. Screams come from it and after it dissipates all that''s left are the melted bones of it''s victims.

    Eredin who is watching this with morbid fascination finally snaps out of it when he realises that this man possessing the Elder Blood could possibly transform his entire army into those beasts. "Kill him at all costs! His blood matters not if we cannot use it!" he shouts which has a few Navigator''s solemnly nodding to each other before walking to a vacant area. The start opening a portal which isn''t strange for Navigators, the only different this time being where it''s connected to...

    *BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANG*

    The sound of many huge explosions happening simultaneously starts being emitted as the portal opens, a laser of what looks like pure violent fire being shot towards Reima. Yes, the Navigator''s had opened a portal next to the sun. It took all there strength and life-force to restrain the power and direct it at their enemy without instantly annihilating their army but they managed it and could feel pride at having substantially assisted in their races survival...

    Reima who''d not noticed them opening the portal was surprised by the sound, and was even more shocked when he was hit by a beam of fiery plasma. His armour glowed bright white as the Titanite infusion was the only thing holding it together, he didn''t know what to do with all the energy that was being shot at him.

    From Kaer Morhen everyone was almost blinded by the beam of light being shot at Reima, many were fearful that he''d be killed by it, but most knew Reima was the only one who could possibly survive something like that!

    Reima himself was struggling against the impact more than the heat of the ray, as it was pointing in the direction of Kaer Morhen if he didn''t block this it was likely that everyone would be killed. Deciding that the best way to deal with this was to absorb the heat and redirect it he pushed his hands out and began drawing all the heat being emitted by it into himself, empowering his soul and forcing his aura out unconsciously.

    After a minute straight of this attack the portal finally implodes on itself, killing the Navigator''s who''d opened it. Everyone looks at where Reima is, hoping to see him still alive.

    Standing there in a small pool of lava is Reima, the armour he was wearing was still glowing white along with even his flesh.

    Eredin and Caranthir both get a terrifying premonition as they see Reima''s glowing Turquoise eyes staring directly at them. The latter grabbing his king and teleporting away as Reima thrusts his hands forward as if he was trying to do the "Kamehameha" and unleashing a tidal wave of dark red fiery death towards the army. "DRAAAGOONNN BAALLLLLL!" He shouts as he redirects the power.

    Even Solaire had to run out of it''s radius as it felt dangerous merely even being near, he escaped and watched as the fire enveloped the forest and reduced it all to ashes, making the area look like a desolate hell-scape.

    Everyone caught in the attack was killed, most of the Navigators having managed to escape while abandoning the soldiers to their doom.

    Even in Kaer Morhen they could feel the heat coming from the attack and wondered if this was how powerful Reima truly was? Regardless, the battle of Kaer Morhen was over.

 515 One battle over while another begins.

    The attack from Reima moved across the land like a roiling sea of red fire, the Prospects who were previously frozen were all killed and returned back to the altar as the wave continued. The land underneath where it past was covered in ashes and scorched earth, fertile but lifeless. However even after the wave of fire petered out the surround trees and plant-life were still aflame, forcing ridicules amounts of smoke into the sky which would almost certainly be seen around for miles, if not more.

    Solaire crack''s next to Reima like a bolt of lightning and smiles, "My word! Now this is what I call Jolly Cooperation!"

    Reima "You won''t make me forget that I won Solaire." he states with crossed arms.

    ...

    Solaire "Nonsense! This was a team effort... If not for me then your attack would have been useless!" he says mock-seriously.

    Reima shakes his head, "Whatever, let''s head back and see how everyone else got on." he says as he begins walking back to the keep, though half way back he notices small patches of black ooze retreating into his shadow, probably the Abyssal Creatures he''d accidentally killed.

    Once the duo finally make it back inside the walls they notice everyone standing there and looking at the huge cloud of smoke in the sky. There''s one stray hound of the Wild Hunt left that gets stomped on by Coaugh which brings everyone back to reality.

    Reima "The Wild Hunt retreated! We''ve won!" he shouts, causing everyone to cheer and hoot at the not so hard-fought victory.

    Ciri comes out of the keep with Nerissa and approaches him along with Geralt, the former asking the question most prominent in her mind. "Did we manage to kill Eredin?" he asks.

    Reima frowns and shakes his head, "No... He escaped before I could get to him. I''d thought he would only appear at the latter half of the battle and so waited... But he still managed to escape."

    Geralt "Either way, they won''t dare attack Kaer Morhen again anytime soon. The amount of men they lost is sure to put a dent in their troops, even for world ruling race." he grunts out.

    The shield being cast by Yennefer and Dumbledore slowly collapses in on itself as they dispel it, the duo disappearing from the top balcony and making their way down to the courtyard.

    Kuretz, Talem, Kalini and Risryn walk up and clap Reima on the shoulder, "Bro! Being frozen, then burned to death fucking hurts!" he complains as a few of the Prospects nod in agreement.

    Reima "My bad... You gotta admit though, it was cool."

    Kuretz "Well obviously, you just came down like a god of fire and destroyed those guys!" he exclaims.

    Next to him Priscilla appears out of nowhere while still wielding her bloody scythe, probably after dispelling her invisibility. Kuretz jumps in surprise at her sudden appearance and barely managed to hold in his girly shriek.

    Solaire crosses his arms, "Ah, I see you got your hands dirty." he states while looking the blood covered Half-breed up and down.

    Priscilla shakes some blood from her hand, "I got bored firing my bow from afar." she states.

    Zoltan walks up with a bloody axe and happily grabs Geralt by the shoulder, "Your boy ''as got some strong but peculiar friends Geralt!"

    Geralt shrugs, "Hmm, yeah he does... I wonder what they''ll all be doing now.." he muses.

    Zoltan laughs "Ignore that quandary, you know how we normally celebrate a victory Geralt?!"

    Geralt "I''d assume it''s something with alcohol."

    Zoltan laughs "Of course it is! Nothin'' like a drink after a bout of fightin!... Though, er. I am not sure I have enough drinks for everyone..."

    Kuretz "''Zat you say about drinks?" he asks, his alcohol-spidey sense picking up talk of drinks.

    Zoltan "Eh, Kuretz is yer name? You happen to bring any drinks from that world along wit''ya?" he inquires.

    Kuretz "No, I drank all my stock a couple years ago.. The one person you can count on having drinks though is Reima." he says pointing at said person who''s chatting with Risryn, Talem and Ciri.

    Zoltan "Is that so?... Geralt... You mind askin your boy for some brewskies?" he says with a chuckle.

    Geralt shrugs, "Fine." he relents and starts walking over, not consciously ever denouncing Zoltan''s use of "Your boy".

    Ciri eyes Risryn as she talks with Reima about the events in her own world, it was pretty interesting but something else was bothering her... "Risryn right? What''s your relationship with Reima?" she asks.

    Risryn tilts her head slightly at the sudden question, "Why do you ask?"

    Ciri doesn''t really know how to answer that, regardless she presses. "I juts want to know, you two seem close." she says.

    Risryn smirks under her mask, "We are very close, socially and.. Physically." she says, trying to get a rise out of the obviously antagonistic girl.

    Ciri frowns and is so irritated by the woman''s answer that she doesn''t notice the obvious bait. "Yeah?.. Well.. So am I." she says with a huff.

    Risryn slowly nods but doesn''t reply.

    Ciri was expecting an answer, retort or even a rebuttal becomes angry with this woman''s lack lustre reactions. "What? If you have something to say then say it." she states.

    Risryn looks back at her, "Oh, I was just thinking how Reima never spoke of you. You must have never crossed his mind." he says simply, however her verbal assault was a critical success.

    Ciri "You bitch!" she exclaims as she jumps at Risryn while throwing a fist at her face. Risryn dodges with ease and is about to perform a palm strike on Ciri''s chest when she teleports behind her and kicks her in the back. The two back away and are about to attack each other again, however Reima and Geralt step forward.

    Reima/Geralt "That''s enough!..."

 516 What time is it? Drinking time!

    Reima/Geralt "That''s enough!..." the shout, both giving each other a weird look.

    Reima "What''s up with you two? We''ve just won a war and you''re already clawing at each others throats." he says.

    Risryn nods, "My apologies." she says with a small bow.

    Ciri scowls, "She started it." she states. The indignant feelings she''d be suffering throughout the battle bubbling up again, the fact that she was unable to fight with everyone was seriously getting to her and it took all her willpower not to run out of the keep to join the fight.

    Geralt shakes his head, "Even if that were true there is no reason to continue." he says which has Ciri huffing and walking away to Vesemir who''s currently got a smile while talking with Quelina.

    Vesemir "So you want me to teach you further child?"

    Quelina "Will you?" she asks excitedly.

    Ciri "Vesemir?"

    Vesemir "Hm, yes Ciri?"

    Ciri "Which room is Avallac''h resting in?" she asks.

    Vesemir "Second to last floor, forth door on the right... Why? The Elf is still exhausted from having the curse afflicting him lifted."

    Ciri "I just need to speak with him about some things."

    Vesemir "Well... I don''t think he''s in a good enough state to talk to anyone right now... Wait til tomorrow and I''ll take you up while I give him some herbs."

    Ciri sighs and nods, "Okay, thanks Vesemir." she says and walks off to find Hjalmar.

    Geralt "Reima, I heard from your friend that you have some drinks stocked somewhere?"

    Reima nods "Yeah, why?"

    Geralt "Zoltan wanted to celebrate but doesn''t have enough drinks for everyone." he says.

    Reima looks around and spots Zoltan talking with Kuretz animatedly., he walks over with Geralt.

    Zoltan "So, me and the boys started a sellin jewellery. Dwarves have dexterous fingers you know, good for intricate stuff."

    Kuretz nods, "I never really saw the point of wearing gems and gold, seems all a bit superfluous to me. Though if it makes money then who am I to judge?" he says with a small chuckle.

    Reima calls out to them with a wave, "Yo. I heard you wanted some drinks?"

    Zoltan nods, "What''s a celebration without a few pints?"

    Kuretz grins "I like this guy already."

    Reima "I''ve got more than enough for everyone, plus I owe you for that whisky you gave me last time." he says as he walks over to the keep with the others following him. Once inside he retrieves a portion of all the alcohol he''d "borrowed" from London. Wines, Whiskies, Vodka''s, Gin''s, Brandies and beers. He rested drinks of all kinds on the floor which immediately had Kuretz and Zoltan rifling through them.

    Kuretz pulls out a bottle of Vodka and looks at it for a while before taking off the plastic lid, removing his mask and taking a whiff. "Smells of nothing.." he states, handing it to Zoltan.

    Zoltan takes a big whiff and wrinkles his nose, "It may not smell of much but it''s burning the ''airs from me nostrils. That''s some strong stuff!" he says.

    Kuretz "Well? What are we waiting for, drinks all around!" he exclaims, with Reima nodding.

    Zoltan "Eh, slow down a moment lad. A celebration isn''t all about boozin, it requires good food, company and atmosphere."

    Reima and Kuretz look at eachother with dull looks, honestly both were just looking to drink and catch up with everyone.

    Zoltan "I don''t suppose you have any tables in that magic hat of yours Reima?" he asks sarcastically.

    Reima shrugs and waves his hand, causing a table to appear out of no-where, the ornate wood making it look fit for a king.

    Zoltan looks at it wide eyed and back at Reima, "Ye should warn me if you''re gonna do that, almost shocked the life outta me... I guess we''ve got tables then, let''s go set em up outside and start a couple fires. Kaer Morhen lacks drinks but we got food aplenty!"

    Outside the Pyromancers were hanging out with the huge amount of Prospects, there were so many that most were waiting outside the walls for whatever their leaders had planned. Most had wanted to help clear out the bodies but were incredibly confused when they starting magically disappearing.

    Eventually a large amount of tables were set up outside the walls of Kaer Morhen, large bonfires were lit and the House Elves had already started to prepare food. Risryn, Kuretz and Talem were taking the masks off of the Prospects that wished to drink, eat and celebrate with everyone else. The Pyromancers were already in good spirits as they remembered the parties Reima used to throw in the Demon ruins.

    The allies Geralt had helped gather were all pretty intrigued by Reima''s and quickly started conversations with them. The mages with those who were knowledgeable in magical crafts while the warriors and Witchers talked with the Prospects.

    The sky was starting to dim as the drinks were given out, Reima was sat at a table with Risryn, Quelaag, Priscilla, Solaire, Dusk and Nerissa. Most were curious as to where he had gone after he left their respective worlds and were interested in the stories he had to tell. Risryn was surprised by the world of Dark Souls and by the similarities in their situations. Being unable to die at the whims of the powerful. Everyone was very surprised when she felt comfortable enough to take her mask off and start to drink. Her cute face, blue eyes and black hair not connecting with how they''d thought she''d look.

    The group takes a shot of Vodka together and Risryn leans forward to ask, "So, did you really kill a god? How strong were they?"

    Reima "Well, their strength varies... Nito was strong but Solaire did most of the work there, same thing with Gwyn who was probably the strongest aside from Manus."

    Solaire "Manus was it''s name?" he asks.

    Reima nods, "Yeah, it was a huge creature that was able to cast dark sorceries."

    Solaire "Like those creatures you created to fight for you?"

    Reima nods, "I only learned to do that recently."

 517 A jolly occasion.

    Quelaag "What was the world after you left us like?"

    Reima "Hm, well it was more technologically advance then either of your worlds. They were even able to send people to the moon." he gestures at the incomplete moon above them.

    Quelaag "Humph, if you''re going to lie then what''s the point of saying anything."

    Reima scratches his head, "It''s true I swear... Look at this." he says bringing his Sony Walkman out.

    Everyone looks at it curiously as Reima puts the earphones on Quelaag''s head and starts the music player.

    Quelaag freezes as she hears music and looks around to see if anyone is playing instruments, seeing no one she pulls off the headphones which removes the music. "What is this? It sounds like there''s a band playing in my head... Is it magic?"

    Reima "No, it''s technology from the other world. It plays songs recorded by other people. Nerissa back me up." he pleads to the young vampire currently stroking Carimir.

    Nerissa "En." is all she says as she returns her attention to the cat.

    Priscilla holds her hand out to Quelaag, "Let me try."

    Quelaag passes it over and Priscilla goes through a whole range of different expressions before finally resting on a relaxed one.

    Solaire "So, is there any chance we can have a spar soon my friend? Your attack earlier still has my blood boiling for battle."

    Reima "Maybe tomorrow, tonight lets just enjoy ourselves." he says, taking another swig and looking around to observe what the other tables are doing. Obviously the most boisterous and loud group were Zoltan, Kuretz, Sieglinde, the Pyreblade known as Bartosz, Ves, Roche, Andre, Vamos and Coaugh. Coming up with random songs no-one had ever heard before, telling loud stories about eachother and their worlds and all around having a good time.

    Roche raises his drink and toasts "For a free Temeria!" which Ves follows.

    Kuretz laughs and raises his glass, "I have no fucking idea where Temeria is but, For a free Temeria!"

    Andre "For the honourable and noble Astora!" he toasts his homeland which everyone joins him in, Vamos''s drink flowing down his bony body and staining the chair he sits upon.

    Not far from them was a table that seated Yennefer, Triss, Dumbledore, Logan, Grigs, Rickert and Quelana. Triss looks to be interrogating the latter on her style of spell casting. While Yennefer is trying to explain spell formulae to Dumbledore who has an enraptured expression as he listens.

    Separated from everyone is Ciaran and Sif, the former sitting atop the giant wolf with a shank of meat in one hand and a drink in the other. Sif himself was chewing on a huge bone that wouldn''t seem strange if it''d come from a dragon.

    On a table in a more remote spot that hadn''t seen much of Reima''s final attack sat Ermion, Ciri and Hjalmar. Ciri apparently wished to catch up with the Skelligan''s as she was formerly pretty close to them.

    Not far from them were Anastacia, Rhea, Quelina and a few other Chaos Servants. They weren''t drinking as heavily as everyone else and seemed to be in deep discussion about something important... Though Reima couldn''t hear them over the noise everyone else was giving off.

    Last but not least was the "Witcher" table, Geralt sat with Vesemir, Eskel, Lambert and Arie. Reima would go and talk with them but he decided to just enjoy the night without worrying about anything. Though, for the Witcher''s they were already in a semi-serious discussion.

    Eskel "Did Reima ever say what was happening with all of these people after the battle?" he asks.

    Vesemir drinks and replies, "Well, he said that their worlds were both in the process of being destroyed... I doubt he''d be sending them back to that which leave us with issue of what to do with them." he says.

    Geralt "Hmm, we do owe them for coming to our aid. With Reima and their help I doubt all of us would have made it out alive." he says grimly.

    Arie scratches his face, "We can''t rightly send them away if they need help, plus we are the last of the School of the Wolf which makes Kaer Morhen almost empty most seasons. Unless you intend to have another go at the trials Vesemir?"

    Vesemir shakes his head with a sad expression, "No. Never again, while I may have broke my vow to rid Uma of his curse, it was to help Ciri."

    Lambert nods, "If you tried we''d be having issues Vesemir."

    Eskel slaps him on the back, "Show some damn respect Lambert, we''re all above making vague threats. If you got a problem with someone then out with it."

    The table goes silent.

    ...

    Geralt "Still, it''s strange, having a celebration of such a scale here..."

    Vesemir nods, "Never thought I''d see so many people present at Kaer Morhen again in my life time."

    Arie "I''m surprised at Reima''s strength." mutters as he sips his drink.

    Lambert scoffs, "Don''t think about it, being like the kid and Ciri are in another league. What''s the point of worrying over it."

    Geralt nods, "From what I''ve heard it wasn''t all that easy either, I''d run in the other direction if I was told to fight a God."

    Eskel "Pfft, my ass Geralt. I heard about you and Yen going off and hunting another Djinn. Atleast you didn''t cause another disaster like what happened in Rinde.

    Lamert "So, what are you guys thoughts on some of these people..."

    Vesemir "I assume you''re not talking about the Prospects or "Normal" looking people." he says with a disappointed look that he''d even bring this up.

    Lambert "Yeah, it just doesn''t seem normal for us, Witchers to be making friends with what could only be described as monsters."

    Vesemir "Keep your thoughts to yourself, it may surprise you that I''m considering making one of those "Monsters" my apprentice."

    Geralt grunts, "Hmm, the one called Quelina that seems to see you as an uncle?"

    Vesemir smiles, "She''s smart, someone who could carry my knowledge with her incase something happens to me."

    Arie "I don''t see anything wrong with that, she acts like a young girl and the only difference between her and one is her inhuman lower body. Lambert, if you dislike them because of that then you are no better than those racist Eternal Fire cunts." he says and takes a swig.

    Eskel "Here, here." he says as he raises his glass and takes a drink, followed by the others including Lambert who sighs and decides to let it go.

 518 Saitama?

    Elsewhere :

    A couple men stride into a well decorated room that is covered in finery, they lower their hoods so the single man present can see their faces before kneeling down and speaking, "Liege, we have news from the east."

    The bearded man they are address is wearing silk clothing over what looks like chain mail, his bald head being adorned with a small crown. Anyone from Nilfgaard to the Northern kingdoms would recognise this person with only a glance, this was how prominent King Radovig V the Stern was. He frowns and takes his focus from the half finished chess board to his visitors. "Is that so? Tell me, does it have something to do with that great black cloud that even Kovir could invariably see?" he asks with his hand on his chin.

    One of the knelt men nod, "Yes... Would you allow me?" he asks anxiously, knowing that there have been spies killed for giving the information too quickly as Radovid loved to try figure it out before he was told.

    ...

    Radovid gestures for him to continue after a moment, "The smoke was not from Kaedwen, instead it was from further into the mountains. The scouts that were sent spoke of a massive forest fire that was enveloping the region, though they do not expect it to continue for much longer as the weather wouldn''t allow it."

    Radovid closes his eyes and contemplates for a moment before replying, "What structures are in the mountains where the fire originated?"

    The spies look at each other with confusion for a moment, the take out parchments of paper and look through their notes and eventually find the information their King wanted. "N-nothing but a village that was recently destroyed by monsters of some sort and the ruins of an old keep that belonged to a group of Witchers."

    ...

    Radovid "You wouldn''t happen to know which group would you?" He inquires.

    The spy answers dutifully, "The school of the Wolf if I''m not mistaken my liege."

    Radovid nods as if the pieces had finally come together, he waves the spies away and pours himself a bottle of wine to contemplate his next move.

    From his spies he knew the Witcher Geralt of Rivia was performing some kind of mission for Nilfgaard, though most information about him contradicted this as it wasn''t uncommon for the man to kill Nilfgaardian''s if the situation called for it. One of the prominent examples of this being when he butchered a troop of Nilfgaardian soldiers in an attempt to help his long time friend Vernon Roche.

    Radovid knew Geralt as a tough but sentimental man, he judged him to be quite simple with a stern code that differs from regular Witchers who''d kill monsters for coin, harmful or not. From his former contact Whoreson Junior he had heard of the White Haired girl that''d displayed abilities most would say were impossible. Of course, this could only be one person, the lost child of Cintra Cirilla Fiona Elen Riannon. Most who knew of her wrote her off as dead, especially after the Nilfgaardian war machine took her home, however those in the know knew she was still out there... And those with ears in even the most remote places knew that she had been taken in by Geralt of Rivia.

    Of course most of the information he knew about Cirilla came from the Sorceresses of the Lodge he''d managed to capture, torturing for everything they did and did not know. Gaining valuable information about various obscure things in the process. The Elder Blood, something he had initially brushed off as raving from a tortured soul that wished for death. However the more he looked into it the more intrigued he became.

    After finding out about the Elder Blood, Cirilla''s connection to Geralt and the location of the fires it wasn''t all that hard to piece together what may have happened... Though some other reports he''d received only confirmed his suspicion. The movements of notable people that are close with the Witcher towards Kaedwen and the mountains after it.

    Radovid "Wraiths hmm?" he mutters to himself, he wasn''t a stupid man and knew rumours and stories must have originated from somewhere. Stories of the Wild Hunt, or Wraiths as Skellige referred to them go back hundreds, maybe even thousands of years around the lands. His spies told of a village covered in ice and frost with the stench of death lingering in the air that Geralt of Rivia happened to have visited.

    Most would call him crazy for believing that they exist if they didn''t already question his sanity, but it them he would question if they didn''t have doubts. Magic, Monsters and Demons all exist within this world, why would it be strange for Wraith''s to be real as well? Regardless of his rationalisations over their existence, if they do exist then they are trying to obtain Cirilla, possibly for the Elder Blood running through her veins.

    He knew not of what they wanted with it but from this he could bet a large fortune that the Wraiths had attacked the keep owned by the Witchers while they and their allies tried to defend Ciri against them. That is the only rational explanation for the sudden inexplicable fires apart from maybe a dragon of supreme power flying over the Dragon Mountains for a meal and getting into a fight with the Witchers.

    Either way he would need to keep an eye on the happening from now on, hopefully they had managed to fend off the Wraiths as he''d dread to think about what they could do with the Elder Blood, a prophecy from long ago strikes his thoughts but he shakes his head. If that were to come to fruition there would be nothing that he could possibly do.

    He sighs to himself, he''d send a message to his newly appointed King of Kaedwen Mansfeld to keep an eye on the mountains and possibly send some Elite Witch Hunters to see if anything is wrong.

    Radovid rubs his face and finishes his wine, "This war is mine to win, it is only the outside influences that could change this."

 519 Bounds of Bonds

    Of course, as everything must. The celebrations eventually came to an end, tents were distributed to the Prospects and Chaos Servants while everyone else was graciously given a room inside the keep. Albus Dumbledore was returned to his own world as he wasn''t much for prolonged parties. However there were those with higher alcohol tolerances that kept drinking throughout the night.

    Sitting in the main hall of Kaer Morhen was Reima and Geralt, along with a passed out Ciri, Zoltan Kuretz, Hjalmar, Eskel and Lambert. The latters dagger is still sticking out of the table from the very dangerous drinking game they''d been playing, thankfully no one had lost any figures doing it though.

    Reima looks over the sleeping few on the table and chuckles, "Seems that even Witchers have an upper limit." he says while slurring slightly, the magical worlds fire whisky definitely effective him more than any normal alcohol would have.

    Geralt almost knocks his mug over as he tries to grab it to take another swig, "W-Whadd''ya expect? Not everyone is a God or has super Witcher Mutagens." he slurs as he points to Reima and himself.

    Reima nods, "I guess.... Hey.. Geralt?..." he asks quietly.

    Geralt "Whaat?"

    Reima grins, "You wanna.. You wanna see some pictures?"

    Geralt "Pictures? Why would I care about some pictures?" he scoffs and takes another drink.

    Reima "Well, because they''re of Ciri and myself in another world." this has Geralt perking up slightly.

    Geralt scratches his beard, "Now that I think of it, yeah I''ll have a look." he says as he leans forwards.

    Reima retrieves a stack of photo''s and places them gingerly on the table, a few getting stained slightly from the stray droplets of alcohol present. Geralt picks up the first one Reima had ever taken, the one where he and Ciri were riding a Killer Whale that''d jumped out of the water.

    Geralt "Kind of monster is this thing? Surely this is fake." he slurs.

    Reima "They call it an Orca or Killer Whale, it''s just a regular animal that lives in the ocean. As it wasn''t a monster it had no magical resistance... A quick Axii had it our temorary ride, I took the opportunity to snap a photo."

    Geralt grunts, "This with one of this magic camera things you and Ciri were talking about?"

    Reima nods and places down another photo, one of Ciri with her foot resting on a dragon''s severed head.

    Geralt''s lips upturn when he looks at it, "This during that tournament you both told me about?"

    Reima nods, "I''ve still got the head... We''ll have to hang the head in Kaer Morhen somewhere." he says with a smile.

    He continues to show Geralt various photo''s of his and Ciri''s time spent in Hogwarts and Britain as a whole. Most were taken without Ciri''s permission but it''s not like she could stop him showing Geralt now was it?

    Eventually they reach the end of the Photo''s and they dip into a comfortable silence, that is, until Geralt inquires about a certain someone. "Upstairs is that Sage Ciri was travelling with, while I trust her I cannot trust this person who has obvious ties to the Wild Hunt... We may have beaten them today but who knows what they''ll do next?" he asks more seriously than anything else they''d spoken about before.

    Reima "To be honest, I don''t trust him either... Especially after hearing what he tried to do in the past." he mutters after taking another drink, by now already completely plastered.

    Geralt "The past? Hmm... Tell me about it."

    Reima "Well, it''s only what Ciri herself told me but apparently Avallac''h was once close friends with Eredin and the previous King of the Wild Hunt Auberon. When she found herself in their world they tried to force her to bear a child as a way to repent for her ancestors "Betrayal", Avallac''h being the only one of the leaders to volunteer to "Do the deed"..." He says, a hint of anger becoming apparent in his voice the more he speaks about the man resting in the very same Keep as them.

    Geralt isn''t doing too much better as the glass in his hand shatters from the force of his grip, the alcohol splashing against the new wounds and burning them, however the Witcher doesn''t give any indication that he''s in pain at all. "Are you sure this is correct?" he asks angrily.

    Reima nods, "I''d have killed him myself if Ciri hadn''t asked me not to. To be honest it wouldn''t surprise me if he''d mind controlled her to gain her trust after what he tried to do." he growls.

    Geralt shakes his head and after picking the glass shards from his hand stands up from the table, "I''m gonna hit the hay, today''s been... A long day." he states and stumbles away.

    Reima waves at him, "Night Geralt." he says, not noticing that Lambert''s knife had disappeared from the table. After Geralt leaves Reima decides to go clear his head on the balcony, beginning to ponder what he''d actually do with all the Prospects and people he''d brought from other worlds... He hadn''t really thought this all through as it was likely that most countries would try and kill Priscilla, Quelaag and Quelina should they even lay eyes on them. Not only that but most of the Northern Kingdoms were under the partial control of the Eternal Fire which persecuted magic users, this would include Pyromancers and Sorcerers aswell unfortunately. Regardless, now wasn''t the time to think of solutions for the problems he was presented with as his alcohol muddled mind would only create more issues.

 520 Retribution

    Geralt makes his way up the stairs to a certain room, his stumbling steps someone quieter than a regular person''s attempt at sneaking. In his hand is the dagger he''d taken from the table, he didn''t recall why it was there as only one thing remained in his mind currently. Retribution.

    He intended to punish the Sage that''d attempted something so vile towards something so dear to him, he couldn''t rationalise another way to rectify the Elves crime apart from death. As far as he was concerned it would serve as a message to anyone else who wished to attempt something similar.

    Turning right after climbing the stairs he finally reaches the room of the Elven Sage Avallac''h. Pushing it open without a care it bangs against it''s hinges, waking the Elf up with a start.

    Avallac''h stares at Geralt and notices the dagger in his hand, "You.. Witcher, is-is something wrong?"

    Geralt "You know damn well there''s something wrong bastard." he growls out as he steps towards the still weak Sage.

    Avallac''h shifts himself with a grunt backwards on the bed until his back hits the wall behind him, "I assure you Witcher I have no idea what you are referring to! Perhaps this is a misunderstanding?" he says quickly.

    Geralt finally reaches the bedside and stare down at the Elf, "The only misunderstanding between us is that I haven''t killed you yet."

    Avallac''h can smell the stench of alcohol on Geralt and realises that he won''t be able to talk himself out of this situation, and while he is still incredibly weak from the curse he''s a Sage for a reason. He points his hand at Geralt and starts chanting a spell in Elder Speech. A lightning bolt is fired from his hand and hits Geralt in the shoulder which has him stumbling back, a large black scorch mark now visible on his clothing.

    Avallac''h "Witcher! Stop this madness!" he says, pleading for him to stop, however Geralt isn''t perturbed by his words.

    Avallac''h starts to chant another spell but Geralt leaps forwards and grabs him by the throat, halting his spell. The Elves eyes widen as Geralt bring the dagger back and plunges it into his stomach, bringing out a pained wheeze as he stabs again, and again, and again. Until the Elf vomits up blood and slumps backwards, his eye''s still staring at Geralt unblinkingly as his heart stops.

    The grizzled wolf looks down at his fallen prey and drops the dagger before checking the injury he''d received from the Sage''s lightning bolt. The wound itself looked like a spiderweb pattern burned into his flesh, it''d likely scar but what was another to his collection? He didn''t feel all that much pain from it, partly due to how drunk he was, though his pain tolerance was nothing to scoff at.

    Suddenly the door behind him slams open, revealing Yennefer, her amulet glowing as she has a spell ready on her lips. Her eyes widen at the scene before her, she stops the spell and briskly walks towards the Sage and checks his injuries, her breath halting when she realises he''s most certainly dead.

    She looks at Geralt in disbelief, "Geralt.. You, you killed him..."

    Geralt can already tell by the tone of her voice that he''s in trouble for some reason, instead of simply taking it as he points at the dead elf and explains. "This bastard tried to **** Ciri. He deserved it." he states.

    Yennefer "What? How would you even know that? Just because you don''t like someone doesn''t mean you should kill them Geralt!" she exclaims.

    Geralt "Reima told me earlier, and I trust him a hell of a lot more than this piece of filth."

    Yennefer falls into a nearby seat, the shock of the situation making her knee''s weak. "Geralt, even if what Reima said was true there must have been a reason Ciri travelled with him."

    Geralt "Yeah, must''ve been some sort of slave spell." he says, not for a second believing he''s in the wrong.

    Yennefer "He could have been useful to us! Think of all he might have known about their world?"

    Geralt "We''ve literally got two Gods on our side! What help would this pathetic piece of shit be anyway?"

    Yennefer "Oh, I don''t know? Maybe train Ciri to use her powers? Like she said he was going to do?"

    Geralt "There are other ways to train her without having her potential rapist be involved." he states.

    Yennefer frowns and rubs her face, "I don''t know how you-we''re going to explain this to Ciri..." she sighs, "I''ll lock the room, come with me Geralt. You''re far too drunk to reason with right now." she says, taking his arm and leading him to her room.

    However unbeknownst to the two of them, a certain god of sunlight had happened to have been listening to the events that''d just occurred. Solaire wasn''t all that familiar with this world or Reima''s "family" yet but he knew he''d have to tell him about this, even if it was against their wishes as his loyalty to his friend obviously trumped whatever negative situation he''d find himself in as a result.

    For now though he''d return to his room and wait for tomorrow to tell him, it''d be a long day for many and much needed to be done. But... One thing he was certainly looking forwards to was the first sunrise he''d see in hundreds or maybe even thousands of years.

 521 Craite outside the gate before its too late....

    Reima is awakened by the feeling sunshine on his face and the aura being given off by someone familiar, slowing getting out of his meditative he stands and looks over the balcony to see Solaire standing on the wall, his arms raised in the air in the direction of the sun.

    His aura seems more powerful than it had been before by atleast 50% if he had to guess, though it wasn''t surprising given what kind of God he is. Reima leaps off of the balcony to Solaire and gives him a slap on the back, "You gonna do this every morning now?" he asks curiously.

    Solaire doesn''t move from his position, electing to just turn his head, "Ah, my friend.. Well, the answer to your question is a resounding yes! After not seeing the sunrise for so long I will never take it for granted again... Would you like to join me?"

    Reima rubs his chin before grinning, "Yeah, sure... Praise the sun!" he says, adopting a similar pose to Solaire.

    The few people who''d not drank themselves into a stupor were milling around the keep, preparing to leave, using the outhouse or just doing their daily exercises. They were presented with the almost majestic sight of the duo surrounded by sunlight in the peculiar pose.

    Not long before they started they were joined by Priscilla who was carrying Snuffles and Carimir, she sat gently on the battlement next to them, her tail swinging as she smiled at them.

    Vernon Roch had just pulled a bucket full of water from the well and poured it over his head while handing the rest to Ves who uses a wet rag to clean under her clothing. He looks at the wall and gestures to Ves, "You ever seen anything like it?"

    Ves "No, I don''t suppose I have... They seem to enjoy it though so why bother them."

    Roche shakes his head, "That''s not the point, I mean during the battle... Those Wraith''s were considerably stronger than your average Black one, and they almost single-handedly wiped them out... Just think of what we could with their assistance?"

    Ves "I don''t think they''ll concern themselves with the plights of mere mortals such as us... Though, it couldn''t hurt to ask."

    Roche nods, "Maybe a free Temeria wouldn''t be such a difficult task."

    *Ruummblle*

    The sound causes both blue stripes to jump in surprise, only to find that the originator had just been the giant that''d turned up yesterday. It''d been sitting nearby, almost camouflaged as the wall as it sat against it.

    Roche "Ah... Sorry, you scared us." he apologises for his rudeness... And not just because this creature could crush them like ants.

    Coaugh nods, "Small people jump high."

    ...

    As the two sun bro''stop praising the sun Solaire steps closely to Reima and whispers into his ear, "Last night I heard something you may wish to know.."

    Reima "Yeah? Lay it on me."

    Solaire "Sir Geralt murdered some sort of Sage last night, Lady Yennefer is the only one who knows."

    ...

    Reima grins, "Nicely done." he mutters. "Let Geralt, Yen and Ciri sort it out between themselves... I haven''t got a horse in this race... Plus I''d probably get blamed for it if I got involved."

    Solaire "You''ve grown smarter at dealing with women my friend." he says with a chuckle.

    A couple hours later mostly everyone is outside, the last people out are Geralt and Yennefer who don''t seem as happy as the occasion would purport. A few people go to greet them and bid their farewells as they''d only intended to stay for the defence against the Wraiths. Ermion and Hjlamar both had responsibilities to Skellige, the former being the Hierophant of the Skellige circle, a kind of council that advises the Jarls who rule the lands, of course this is a stark contrast to the Northern Kingdoms attitudes to magic users in politics. Hjalmar wished to stay longer to reunite with his long time friend Ciri but wasn''t able to as conflicts with Nilfgaard were rapidly increasing, he needed to be there to lead their armies along side his sister Cerys.

    Geralt "Thank you both for coming to our aid." he nods his head gratefully at them.

    Hjalmar laughs, "Ah, Geralt... Don''t speak like all would have been should we not have come, we know that is not the case. Other than that, I hope we can count on your assistance in the future. Allies in arms should stick together, that is the Skelligan way." he says while grabbing each others forearm.

    Geralt nods which conveys his intentions without a single word and turns towards Ermion.

    Ermion "It was good to fight with you again Geralt, you need only ask if you need my help again."

    Geralt "Likewise."

    Ciri walks up and gives Hjalmar a big hug before doing the same with Ermion, "Be careful you two, if I hear about either of you getting killed I''ll find you and kill you again."

    Hjalmar chuckles and frizzes her hair, "Aha, Ciri. Even if I was dead I''d beat you."

    Ciri "You wanna try?" she says while patting down her hair.

    Ermion shakes his head, "Come Hjalmar, we must leave if we are to be back in good time."

    Hjalmar and Ciri share one last hug before the two men depart.

    Nearby Vesemir was standing at the gates leading out of the Kaer Morhen talking to Kalini, "You say creatures invaded your campsite last night hmm?"

    Kalini nods, "Yes, they looked like hunched over men with rotten skin, inhuman fanged faces and stunk like corpses."

    Vesemir "Ghouls. Must''ve smelt the stench of death from the battle. Did you manage to fend them off?"

    Kalini "They seemed resistant to most of our attacks, that is, until those Chaos Servants starting throwing fire at them... I don''t think I''ll be eating meat for a while after that..." he mutters.

    Vesemir nods, "Atleast we won''t have to worry about protecting you against monsters, that was my main worry when you were all camping outside the walls, this region is notoriously ridden with the buggers."

 522 Unexpected Reaction

    Kalini nods, "Reima warned us of the monsters but we thought that normal blades would be enough..."

    Vesemir shakes his head, "Silver is weakness to most monsters, the purifying effects-"

    Ciri "Vesemir?" she calls out causing the old Witcher to turn to her.

    Vesemir "Yes child?"

    Ciri "Is it time to see Avallac''h?" she asks.

    Vesemir looks up at the sun, "Hmm, it is.. I''ve already prepared the herbs in the Laboratory, forgive me miss.. Kalini, I have a prior matter to attend to."

    Kalini "No, thank you for your help Vesemir." she says and walks off to inform the others of what she''d found out.

    Geralt and Yen follow the duo inside as Vesemir collects his herbs and they both head up the stairs. Eventually they reach the room and try to open it, only to find it locked.

    Vesemir "Strange... I don''t remember locking it..."

    Yennefer steps forwards, "Sorry Vesemir, I locked it last night."

    ...

    Ciri''s brows raise, "Why?"

    ...

    Yennefer twitches uncomfortably under her gaze while Geralt stands stock still, "There was... An incident last night..."

    Ciri "An incident?..." she parrots, the words not sounding right in her mind.

    Geralt rubs Yens shoulder and steps forwards, "I... I may have killed the Elven Sage..."

    ...

    Vesemir and Ciri look at him in surprise, neither really knowing how to take in this information.

    Ciri "You killed Avallac''h?"

    Geralt nods, "Yes."

    Ciri "Open the door." she states.

    Yennefer "Ciri-"

    Ciri "Open the door!"

    The sorceress sighs and complies, the door swinging open and allowing the smell of blood to drift out. Ciri briskly walks to the bed and throws the covers off, revealing the pale dead form of Avallac''h, still covered in blood.

    Geralt "Ciri, I''m sorry.. But I do not regret my actions." he says, drawing a sigh from Yennefer.

    Ciri gives him an angry look and starts rifling through the Sage''s various bags and clothing.

    The trio in the door way are confused by her actions as she frantically pulls out every item and looks over it. Eventually stopping at some sort of journal.

    Yennefer "What is that?" she asks.

    Ciri "Avallac''h''s journal."

    Geralt "You don''t seem... As upset as I''d thought you''d be..." he remarks.

    Ciri frowns, "The only thing I''m angry about is that you killed him without telling me first, he was valuable and had information that I needed." she states, shocking everyone else.

    Yennefer "But you said you were close, companions even."

    Ciri "I had to gain his trust somehow.. I would have liked to kill him myself Geralt." she says with an irritated expression.

    ...

    Geralt "Well... I''ll say it again then, I''m sorry." he says, though the meaning is now completely different.

    Ciri nods and opens the journal, only to scowl at it. "Damn Elves and their language."

    Yennefer "Is it Elder Speech?"

    Ciri shrugs, "Probably? Can you decipher it?" she asks while handing it over.

    Yennefer looks at it for a moment before shaking her head, "This... Some of this is legible while some isn''t, could it be the Aen Elle elves use a different language?"

    Ciri "I''m not sure, it all sounded foreign to me... Are you able to translate it? It''s very, very important." she says seriously.

    Yennefer "I.. Might be able to, though I''ll need to spend some time with it, maybe Triss and Keira will have better observations than I will."

    Ciri "Yen.. Only show this to Triss, while Keira seems trustworthy I''d rather his remain between us."

    Yennefer nods, "What are you expecting to find Ciri? Surely you must have an idea to be so confident."

    Ciri "I... I cannot tell you, you will eventually learn of it if you manage to translate it. You can ask me about it then, right now it''s something only I and maybe someone else can do."

    Geralt "Hmm, don''t keep secrets from us Ciri. It always ends badly." he says.

    Vesemir "Now, now Geralt. Whatever it is I''m sure she''ll tell us in time, won''t you child?"

    Ciri nods gratefully at him, "Yes Vesemir."

    Vesemir smiles and calls "Hinky?"

    With a pop one of Reima''s House Elves appear before them, "Yes Master''s Master?" Hinky exclaims with a creepy, toothy smile.

    Vesemir chuckles, "Please, call me Vesemir. I''d like to ask for one of you to clear this room? Perhaps store anything that looks valuable away?" he asks.

    Hinky nods, "Will do!" they shout as things start disappearing from the room, which not long after begins to filled with House Elves who scrub the blood away and even clean dust.

    Vesemir "You three can continue your discussion, I have an important matter with Reima to attend to." he says and begins walking away.

    Ciri "Thanks, cya Vesemir."

    Vesemir walks out back onto the courtyard to find Reima sitting on the wall talking with Solaire, Priscilla, Risryn and Kuretz.

    Kuretz "Last night was great... Even if I can''t remember much of it."

    Risryn shakes her head at him, "Drunkard."

    Reima "Nothing wrong with liking a few drinks. Ain''t that right guys?"

    Solaire and Priscilla look at eachother for a moment before responding, "I''m sorry to tell you this my friend but you''ve got a problem.."

    ...

    Vesemir waves at them, "Reima? We have a few things to discuss... Could I ask you to gather the leaders of your friends?"

    Reima nods, "Well, the only people who lead the Chaos Servants are me, Solaire, Quelaag and maybe her sisters..."

    Solaire "Don''t forget our new "Prophet" Rhea." he mutters gravely.

    Vesemir "Ah, is that so? Perhaps miss Quelaag should be included in the discussion? It is of great importance after all."

    Reima nods, "Hinky could you do that for us?" he asks, with a popping being his only answer.

    Vesemir "Extraordinary creatures aren''t they?"

    Solaire nods, "If they were not bound to Reima I''d fear for the world."

    Kuretz "Just what are they anyway? I''ve seen them around but no ones explained them to me..."

    Reima shrugs, "Just House Elves... If you want to know more just ask one when get the chance. I''m sure they''ll gratefully answer."

 523 The start of something new?

    Eventually Quelaag scuttles up to the wall where the group are waiting, "A little creature told me I was needed here?" she asks with a smile.

    Vesemir tenses up at the sight of her but quickly calms down, his honed reflexes from battling monsters for over a century causes him to be incredibly wary of the woman.

    Reima notices but doesn''t say anything, "Is there anyone else that needs to be present?"

    Kuretz "Talem and Kalini maybe? Nah, the Prospects need someone to keep them busy."

    Risryn nods, "We are enough for now."

    Vesemir "Well then, the first thing I''d like to ask is what your plans are from here on?"

    Quelaag "I intend to stay with Reima." she states with an air of absoluteness.

    Solaire and Priscilla nod at this, both agreeing with the sentiment.

    Vesemir "I, see... But, what does that mean exactly?" he inquires.

    Quelaag shrugs, "I''m not too sure, we are new to this world and are no longer cursed with immortality..."

    Reima "The Dark Sign is gone?" he asks, having wondered when it''d happen.

    Quelaag nods, "After everyone had awoken they found that the curse no longer afflicted them, the Dark Sign remaining as nothing but a scar."

    Reima "That''s good, though everyone will have to be more careful than they usually are... No more jumping to your death for a past time." he says with his arms crossed.

    Solaire "I''m sure the Chaos Servants will be upset by the news."

    ...

    Kuretz "Yo, we''re immortal as well but have never felt the need to kill ourselves for fun..."

    Solaire "It was more to preserve our sanity than anything else Sir Kuretz. In our world boredom is a dangerous thing and can lead to someone going "Hollow"... A frail husk that lives for living sake, it''s only instinct to attack others to absorb their souls."

    Kuretz "That''s fucked bro." he mutters.

    Quelaag "It is... But we''re saved from such a fate, thanks to Reima." she says with a smile.

    Vesemir coughs into his hand, "That''s very interesting, but we have gone off on a tangent... Miss Risryn, what''re your plans for the future?" he asks.

    Risryn rests her hand on her sword and ponders before replying, "Staying with Reima is best."

    Vesemir sighs, "Reima, do you have any plans for what to do with all these people?" he asks, hoping that something could be done. He didn''t mind people being present in Kaer Morhen but knew that the keep wouldn''t be able to sustain all these people.

    Reima taps his foot, "Er... I was thinking about this earlier but couldn''t think of a place other than this that wouldn''t require us conquering a kingdom... Basically, what I''m suggesting is that we build a village near Kaer Morhen for all everyone..."

    Vesemir''s brows furrow, "We have neither the resources, connections or tools for such a task Reima."

    Reima "You forget I have an army of magical elves to help, plus I''ve got a huge amount of food, materials and even tools stored away."

    Kuretz "Food isn''t really a problem for us either as we don''t need to eat when we wear our masks." he states.

    Quelaag "This region is a welcome change from the Caves near the Demon Ruins.." she adds.

    Vesemir sighs, "Are you sure about this Reima? It''ll likely attract the attention of Kaedwen... The only reason this land hasn''t been cultivated is due to the infestation of monsters in the region. Setting up a villa-no, city, will require you clear most of them."

    Reima "Well, it''ll be our land, and we are free to protect it. Be it from the Wild Hunt, Humans or Monsters."

    Solaire "I think this plan shows promise." he says with the others nodding in acceptance.

    Vesemir scratches his chin, "I''m too old for this. If you are going ahead with this then you will be in-charge of it Reima. That also means you are responsible for anything that goes wrong." he says as he walks away.

    Kuretz "Er, did he give us permission?"

    Reima shrugs, "Probably... Wait, what does he mean I''m in-charge? Isn''t that you guys jobs?"

    Solaire grins, "It means you''re leading us my friend, as you''d done back in Lordran."

    Risryn nods, "And in Raslan."

    Reima palms his face in exasperation, "Whatever... You guys go inform everyone of what''s happening." he says as he walks away to find Arie, he''s needed to have a chat since their reunion. That, and he needs a break to think about what''d just happened... If they think he''s going to become some sort of mayor then they''ve got another thing coming. He''ll force the position on Solaire if he needs to as managing a city sounds boring as fuck!

    Quelaag, Solaire and Priscilla begin to walk back to the Chaos Servants to make known the final decision. The trio discussing what kinds of things they''d need to bring this "City" to fruition.

    Priscilla "Dragon Statue." she states.

    Solaire "Sun dial."

    Quelaag "A mural for Quenall." she says with a forlorn look.

    The trio were honestly excited as creating something like a city of their own, having only used the ruins of other societies as homes for centuries. They wished to integrate many things into what would be made and hopefully it''d be as great as they imagined.

    Quelaag wasn''t really involved in the creation of Izalith as it was completely up to her mother as to what got built, eventually the demons started building things of their own, most of it to worship what became of her mother.

    Priscilla didn''t really care what was built, so long as she got to spend time with those she loved. The distant memories of isolation still present and effecting her.

    Solaire himself was the heir to Lordran, being Gwyn''s first born he always expected to be King someday, though that''s long in the past. The only thing that remained was hatred for his father and siblings, and the longing to build something of his own. Now however, it seemed he''d finally get the chance to create something in his own image, without his father''s input.

 524 Bros Before Hoeseth?

    A Reima''s walking away he notices a certain black rabbit hopping after him, he levitates it up to his shoulder and continues trying to find Arie. "What''s wrong Snuffles? Had enough Fluffing already?" he jokes. He doesn''t receive any answer apart from a paw to his ear but ignores it.

    Eventually after looking around the outskirts of the keep and giving up after not finding him Reima walks into the workshop to see what''s new... Only to find Arie leaning over a grinding stone and sharpening his arm blade.

    Reima "Yo, Arie. I''ve been looking for you all over." he says as he walks up to him, ignoring the sparks flying off of the wheel.

    Arie stops pumping his foot and operating the wheel to look up at him, "Come to visit huh? Thought you were happy philandering around with those women..."

    Reima scratches his face sheepishly, "Whaaat... You know the saying, bro''s before hoe''s!"

    ...

    Arie "No, I''ve never heard that before." he says expressionlessly.

    ...

    Reima "So, yeah. I was just coming to see how you''re doing."

    Arie "Oh, youknow. Just an ordinary Witcher humbly going about his business in the face of god-like beings... The usual." he states.

    Reima "Somehow I feel as though you are mad about something..." he says semi-seriously.

    Arie shakes his head, "It''s not like that, I just.. You come back with a thousand people like some kind of God-king while I''ve been toiling away in Kaedwen getting nothing but abuse and scorn for my efforts... Even despite your previous work in Ard Carraigh."

    Reima crosses his arms, "Ah, so you heard about that?"

    Arie snorts, "Yeah and the Doppler crusade after your blood? Who hasn''t, it''s one of "Master Dandelions" ballads after all."

    Reima "Wait Dopplers really hate me? I thought that was a one off situation." he says in surprise.

    Arie "Well, not all of them. But I''ve come across a few trying to get information out of me, let me tell you. One Doppler is tough but a group of them? I barely managed to escape." he says, rubbing a light scar on his shoulder next to his neck.

    Reima "Well, sorry about that... I guess." he says sincerely.

    Arie waves him off, "Despite all the trouble you''ve caused me, I''m glad you''re finally back... Come to think of it, I was about to go look for a Leshen that''d recently put up camp in this area, wanna come? For old times sake."

    Reima shrugs, "Sure, to be honest I need to get away from this place for a bit. The way people are talking makes me nervous..." he says as Arie gets up and collects his weapons, pouches and potions.

    Arie "I wanna make one thing clear though Reima, please don''t burn the forest down... Any more and people will start to think the Dragon''s are invading."

    Reima nods, "It''s all right... How about Snuffles joins you while I follow?"

    Arie "Snuffles?" he asks, wondering if Reima was trying to tell a bad joke.

    The black rabbit on Reima''s shoulders jumps off and transforms into Nerissa, Iaito already on her hip."

    Arie just looks at her dumbfounded, "Ah, the vampire kid..."

    Reima "Is that alright?"

    Arie shrugs and nods, "Yeah, never a bad time to get some experience in, plus this Leshen will hopefully be younger than the one we fought as kids."

    Reima "We managed to kill it anyway."

    Arie chuckles, "You, managed to kill it."

    The trio leave Kaer Morhen, a few eyes taking notice of their departure, though no one bothers to ask what they''re doing.

    Arie "So, kid. Let me check out that sword before we go, make sure it''s fit for the job." he asks as they walk into the woods while following a barely visible path.

    Nerissa unsheathes Iaito and shows it to him, making Arie furrow at it.

    Arie "Reima, this thing''s not even silver..."

    Reima "You forget she''s a vampire, when your strong enough to bisect monsters it doesn''t matter if what kind of weapon you use." he states, only just now realising that she''d been fighting monsters without silver...

    Nerissa "Iaito is strong." he states.

    Arie "Yeah, it''s a nice weapon... For human''s, here use mine for now." he says and begins to unsheathe his Silver blade from his back and handing it to Nerissa who takes it curiously, touching the tip and immediately sticking her finger in her mouth from the stinging sensation she''d received.

    Reima "You wanna try my sword then?" he asks.

    Arie laughs, "Why not, see if it''s any better than what I currently got."

    Reima nods and hands him his Divinely enchanted Silver Knight Sword.

    Arie examines it for a moment, stopping in place as he looks at it, "... Reima, you applied runes to this because it''s glowing..."

    Reima gives a smug grin, "Well yeah, it''s got a Divine enchantment."

    Arie frowns at him, "What does that even mean?"

    Reima "It means anything you hit with it is gonna shit bricks and die." he says with a chuckle.

    Arie "Alright... I appreciate the Wolf''s head pommel though, sticking to your roots."

    Reima shrugs, "It looked cool."

    Arie shakes his head, "Douche bag."

    Reima takes the chance to get a better look at Arie''s blade arm, it''s curved, sharp and silver. However it has a few peculiar additions that look like mistakes from the creator of it, the most obviously being some kind of hook pointing inwards... "Hey bro, what''s that hook thing on your arm?"

    Arie "Ah, that? After a year or two of testing this design out I decided that I needed some way of grabbing things from my belt without dropping my weapon, hence the hook.

    Reima notices that a few leather straps are hanging from a large pouch on his hip, from the angle it''d seem easy to hook one of them and throw them quickly... Quite a good design he had to admit.

 525 Wheredat Leshen at doe?

    Reima "So, tell us about this Leshen?" he asks, curious over the information his friend had.

    Arie "Ah, quite a story to this whole situation... You may not know but the Scoia''tael have become scarce in the Northern Kingdoms, but, the few that remain stay far, far away from civilisation. This often means nearby Kaer Morhen as it''s one of the safest places for them, monsters don''t last long around Witcher inhabited land after all."

    Reima "What does this have to do with the Leshen though?" he asks confused at where this was going.

    Arie "I''m getting to it." he states before continuing, "Ard Carraigh had been investigating the Hawkers smuggling weapons to them and eventually formed a band to follow and hunt down everyone involved. This led to a chase that went on for day''s straight, the Northern Warriors only managing to keep up due to how weak, sick and starved the Elves were. The chase led up here, near Kaer Morhen and even further into the valley, the elves managing to finally escape and leaving the soldiers alone in the forest..."

    Reima "Idiots." he mutters with a sigh.

    Arie "Yeah, right fucking retards. There was only one survivor who ran as soon as the ravens started dive bombing the group, he didn''t have much information on him apart from "The forest had turned against us, I saw the tree''s themselves moving!". Hah, what a laugh." he says and spits on the floor.

    Reima "So basically, we know nothing and are walking in blind."

    Arie "When you put it like that I feel stupid for thinking of doing this solo..." he mutters, slightly embarrassed.

    Reima "How have you survived this long bro, that''s reckless as fuck." he says with a sigh.

    Arie "To be fair, I was comparing myself to you. Give me a break for feeling inadequate." he grunts.

    Reima "Making me feel guilty bro... Let''s talk to Andre when we get back about giving you a few upgrades, yeah? Maybe Rickert''ll be able to make you a new hand or some shit."

    Arie "Fuck off, who needs hands when you got this thing?" he says with boisterous laughter.

    The two continue talking as they reach and ominously dark part of the forest, the sunny clear skies barely even visible now.

    Nerissa sniffs for a moment, "Blood." she says.

    Arie looks down at her, surprised that her nose is so sensitive. They were barely even close to where the incident had occurred. "Where''ye smelling it?" he asks.

    Nerissa points at an angle into the forest, surprising no one at it''s origin.

    Reima "Why can''t monster dens ever be nice? Like maybe once in a while finding a leprechaun at the end of a rainbow."

    Arie "I don''t think robbing and murdering a halfling counts as monster hunting Reima... Also, aren''t Harpy dens usually beautiful?

    Reima "Yeah, when your not balancing a hundred feat off the ground while fighting humanoid cannibal bird women." he retorts.

    Arie can dispute that, "Fair point... But, I think we''ve idled enough, let''s go." he says as he starts walking into the forest.

    The first thing the group notice once they''re inside is the lack of sound, it''s as if everything inside is dead and the only thing moving is the trio themselves. The second is the trembling of their Medallions, it''s not to the extent that there''s a monster in the immediate vicinity, but there is clearly high levels of magic around, possibly making this some kind of place of power...

    A couple minutes later they reach a clearing, still dark due to the canopy inhibiting the light above them, however their focus isn''t on the tree''s but the dark stains on the ground that are immediately familiar to everyone. Arie walks up, stabs the silver sword in the ground and leans over a dark stain, picking up a few shards of metal from the ground to examine.

    Arie "A Leshen capable of completely shattering steel... It''s lucky you came with me Reima, this one must''ve come over the Dragon Mountains for some reason..."

    Reima "I feel as though you are ignoring the most obvious thing here..." he says while pointing at a nearby tree, a large thick root sticking from the ground and pinning the upper half of a corpse to it. Walking closer he sees that the root pierced a lung but didn''t kill the man instantly, instead just pinning him here to be finished off... His lower half seems to have been torn away, though the common allies of Leshen''s such as wolves and ravens aren''t nearly strong enough to get through steel plate... Atleast as cleanly as this.

    Arie "Damn, poor bastard was probably still alive as it happened." he mutters.

    Reima "What do you think did it?" he asks, not as familiar with this worlds monsters as Arie would be. Though he could make a few educated guesses."

    Arie "I''m not sure.." he says as he leans down and look at the floor, discovering a few black brittle spots in the dirt. He scoops it up and gives it a sniff, dumping it on the ground afterwards with a nod. "Endrega."

    Reima nods, "That''d explain the lack of tracks..."

    Nerissa "Endrega?" she asks.

    Arie "Huge insects with strong jaws, venom and the ability to... Ambush." he mutters while his eyes slowly widen.

    *Rumbblle!*

    *CRASH!*

    A large amount of Endrega warriors crawl from the ground, their mandibles clicking towards the trio as they gradually surround them. Arie throws his arm blade up, hooking a leather strap and causing a bomb to fly into the group, "Look away!" he shouts as as he prepares to take advantage of the opponents weakness.

    Reima covers Nerissa face with his hand, not doing the same for himself as his pupils narrow on their own to resist the blinding explosion.

    *Baang!*

 526 Learning your Leshen

    *Bang!*

    The explosion envelopes the group, blinding and disorientating the huge insects, Arie leaps forwards and slashes downwards at the nearest one with Reima''s Silver Sword, slicing clean through it''s hard carapace and killing it instantly, even despite the Divine enchantment being ineffective against Insectoids. He pulls the blade out and uses his momentum to chop his bladed arm into another, causing it to squeal and back away.

    Reima pats Nerissa on the back encouragingly, as if he were a parent pushing his kid to play with other children. She doesn''t wait and sprints forwards faster than Arie, drawing an arc through the air with the silver blade slashing clean through one Endrega warrior. As she goes to attack another they begin to get their senses back and go to use their tails to block the young vampires strike, however due to her monstrous strength the blade continues through them and into their heads.

    Nerissa is almost tackled from behind by two others but delivers a heavy backwards heel kick that sends both of them rolling meters away. Another tries to charge her but she just jumps on it''s back, chopping of it''s tail and severing all of it''s legs on one side, leaving it on the floor crippled and useless.

    Reima who''d been standing back and observing is approached by one, he tries to shoe it away with his foot but it takes the opportunity to bite him, locking his foot in it''s mouth... He continues to try and shake it off in a manner you would if you''d just stepped in dog shit, but it''s grip is firm and won''t let go. "Shoo, bad Endrega... Baaad."

    While this is happening Arie is already covered in the purple blood of his enemies, his arm blade now probably more venomous than most assassin''s weapons. He dodges the charge of an Endrega as he passes by him, turning the tables and charging at it as it tries to recover, pinning it to the tree behind it. He lets go of the sword and uses Igni which blasts a wave of fire at a group of Endrega that illumines the clearing and keeps them distracted for a moment, with which he uses to tear the sword out of the tree it was buried in. He reaches down and tosses another grenade into the largest group, this one being a Grapeshot that sends shrapnel hurtling towards the huge insects.

    Nerissa continues her trail of destruction against the insects, cutting down any that come close to her... Though her rough use of the blade as dulled it''s previously sharp edge. Eventually though the only Endrega that remains is firmly latched onto Reima''s leg...

    Reima continues to click and make strange sounds at it, attempting the techniques he vaguely remembers from the Dog Whisperer. However none seem effective against the insect.

    Arie walks towards Reima with a frown, sipping on a Golden Oriole as he does so to mend the damage the venom in his wounds were causing. "Reima, I get your strong but do you really have to joke around like this? These things have killed and eaten people." he states.

    Reima looks at him sheepishly, "Er... Sure, my bad." he says and bring his foot down, instantly crushing and killing the Endrega.

    The duo who''d been fighting take a moment to catch their breathes while Reima looks around the clearing at the corpses, deciding to harvest their materials while those two rest. Once he''s stored all their organs and potential mutagen material he looks at Arie and wonders aloud, "So, that the contract done?"

    Arie shakes his head, "No.. Not that I know of, we won''t get paid without the head of a Leshen." he states.

    Reima "Why? What would those guys know about monsters anyway?"

    Arie "Cities have scribes knowledgable about these sorts of things, it''s vital considering Witchers are a dying breed."

    Reima "I guess... A Leshen must''ve been here though, that root pinning the soldier is a dead give away."

    Arie "Maybe the Leshen is controlling the Endrega? They aren''t usually very far from the colony, there must be a nest nearby..." he mutters.

    Reima "Well, guess it''s time to go looking... Though, we could probably track where the bodies were taken if we follow the scent of blood, it''s still thick in the air."

    Arie "I''ll have to count on you two then, scents always been a blind spot for me..." he says.

    Reima and Nerissa nod and begin to probe the area for the strongest scent, eventually finding it near the pinned soldier. They follow it and occasionally find blood droplets which confirm they''re on the right track.

    After thirty minutes of walking their find a small cave entrance, one that''d force Reima and Arie to duck and almost crawl through. Reima offers to go first but Nerrisa climbs in without any questions asked. Arie downs a cat potion which causes black veins to crawl up his neck and almost reach his face and making his eyes glow slightly.

    Arie "You need some?" he asks while showing Reima another dose in his pouch.

    Reima "Er, I don''t really have issues with darkness anymore..."

    Arie scoffs, "Yeah, yeah, whatever."

    They climb into the cave which has walls stained black with dried blood, long scrapes are everywhere and are the right size for Endrega warriors and workers... Though there''s some different ones that confuse the duo as to their origins.

    The reach the end of the tunnel and drop into a larger cave room which smells weird, like rot, mushrooms, blood and puss all at the same time. Looking around they spot a few glowing egg sacks that Arie elects to not disturb quite yet, the element of surprise being more important than exterminating them immediately.

    The walk through the various rooms, finding it easy to navigate due to their not being any diverging paths. Though something raises their hackles when they spot them... Huge thick roots covering one of the walls and threading through most of the floor. Neither of the Witcher''s had ever seen something like this before and wondered if it was the Leshen or something else...

 527 Leshendary...

    Arie examines the roots enveloping the room, wondering outloud where the Endrega are, "This is obviously their den, so where are they?"

    Reima shrugs, "Probably setting up another ambush in the next room."

    Arie "Well, let''s not keep them waiting" he mutters as he downs two more potions, causing his skin to go pale and clammy while the black veins crawl across his face. He shudders for a moment before finally stopping and nodding at the duo, Nerissa gives him a concerned look but ignores it after noticing Reima''s lack of reaction.

    The entrance to the next room is big enough to let four people in, though only unique thing about it is the roots attached to the walls like some sort of hedge maze. Arie sticks his sword in the floor, and uses a Quen sign to create a shield around himself that glows dimly before moving forwards, no one noticing the root touched by the silver is quickly retreating into the ground.

    As they enter they notice a big bulbous sack on the far side of the room, it pulsates with strange noises which would unnerve regular people. However Reima already knows what this is, judging but the legs hidden under it, it''s the Endrega Queen, probably in the process of making more eggs due to the "Surplus" of food it''d partaken in, as is obvious by the mostly eaten corpses strewn around the room.

    Arie "A Queen this big? Strange." he mutters, however he''s shaken from his thoughts when the roots behind them seal them inside. "Shit."

    From the wall and ceiling Endrega warriors and workers burst out, one of the former almost land on Arie, though he just swipes upwards with Reima''s Silver Sword and bisects it easily, covering him in even more purple blood than before.

    Nerissa leaps forwards and conjures two mist daggers in one hand with which she throws at a nearby worker. They pierce it''s carapace but don''t go deep enough to be lethal, however the silver blade continuing through it''s abdomen obviously is.

    Reima''s about to get involved but is surprised to find the roots under him and from the entrance trying to entrap him, he tears them away easily but they keep coming from the floor, walls and ceiling. By the time he decides to use fire against them he''d already been prodded into the other room, where a huge Leshen awaits.

    The creature stands around 12ft, the roots comprising it''s form looking significantly denser than the one he''d fought before. Even the skull-like head looks more menacing, and that''s not even mentioning the strange antlers it''s got on it''s head. It steps towards him, revealing that the roots underneath it''s feet moves with it... One thing that was confusing Reima however was the strong magic it was giving off, it''s body even shimmered in a similar way that Arie''s did after casting Quen.

    Reima "Alright you big.. Barksterd... No?.. Ok..." he mutters.

    The Leshen points towards him with it''s large vicious looking claws and begins to speak, it''s voice a groaning, echoing mess of unrefined sound. "Tre-eeessss-passsss-errrrr!"

    Reima scatches his head for a moment before pointing towards the Leshen and mimicking it''s voice, "Treeeeee."

    However Reima doesn''t get the laugh he''d hoped, instead the roots under him shoot up and try to stab at him. He dodges to the side but everyone where he goes the roots comprising the floor follow. The Leshen disappears leaving behind black particles and appears behind Reima while slashing down at him.

    Reima stops dodging and throws his hands up, grabbing the arm of the Leshen and trying to tear it off, only to find himself shot away by a Quen shield break explosion? He rolls backwards and springs from his hands to his feet, the roots under him stabbing yet again, not doing much to his armour but bruising the unprotected area''s like his joints. It''s not dangerous but just annoying as the bruises heal in a couple seconds, but, these roots are actually stronger than steel weapons...

    The Leshen slowly walks towards him yet again, however Reima''s finally had enough and retrieve Arcell. Immediately enchanting it with Chaos Blade while casting a Great Combustion at the ground which clears some of the roots in his vicinity, though he can''t help but notice that most had just retreated back into the earth.

    He blinks behind the Leshen and cuts at it''s thick wooden neck, finding not all that much resistance as it passes through and drops the creatures head onto the floor. However he''s confused to find the head of the Leshen being absorbed back into the ground while it''s body continues operating. It turns and flings it''s claws arm towards him, only to have it cut off with ease as well.

    His brows furrow at this, he conjures a Chaos Whip with his off hand and flicks it at the Leshen''s body, enveloping it and setting fire to most surfaces, the Chaos Flames doing horrific damage to it. The Leshen''s body collapses to the floor still burning, however it''s as if the ground opens up and swallows it... As unfortunate as it is even Chaos Flames require oxygen to function, roots start coalescing in the corner, creating yet another body for the Leshen which looks identical to the one he''d just destroyed.

    Reima "Bro, this is bull shit! Just die already because this is getting old!" he says.

    The Leshen doesn''t reply this time, only throwing it''s arm out and causing a veritable tsunami of roots to shoot towards him. Reima blinks behind them and bisects the Leshen, it''s two halves falling against the wall and being consumed by it.

    Reima "What is this Leshen!"

 528 Passing Gas

    Nerissa ducks under the tail of a Endrega warriors while driving her sword into it''s mandible, doing lethal damage to it before spinning away and performing another graceful slash on a worker, it''s light carapace not nearly being enough to defend against the Silver Blade.

    Arie is also under assault from a considerable number of the insectoids, wounds that seep with venom covering him, though his Golden Oriole potion is luckily still in effect, otherwise this''d spell the end for yet another Witcher. He''d noticed Reima get pulled into the other room with the roots closing behind him, he wasn''t worried though as he doubted any monster in the world would be able to threaten him.

    He shakes off an Endrega warriors from his back while headbutting a Warrior that had his arm blade in it''s mouth, it lets go but he receives a headache in return for smashing his forehead into it''s thick carapace. He looks over to check if the kid is already but shakes his head in exasperation as he sees her cutting a blood path through the Endrega, truly just being around Reima and his friends made him feel more and more inadequate. However now wasn''t the time to feel bad for himself, he stabs a Warrior in a gap between it''s carapace while booting another in the face to get some distance, using his arm blade to cut off a few legs from a worker trying to swarm him again.

    He uses his blade to hook a leather strap and tosses it at a large group currently bursting from the walls. A fiery explosion occurs not soon after, the Dancing Star bomb coating the group of Endrega in a napalm like substance that envelopes them in an inferno.

    However, no matter how many the duo kill the Endrega seem to never stop coming. Nerissa throws another mist dagger that misses a worker but continues towards the pulsating Queen, it connects and causes a blue liquid to start leaking from it, staining the floor that starts to burn and steam when in contact with it.

    Arie notices the Queen''s lack of response to the attack and starts to make his way over to it, slicing and dicing any Endrega in his way as he does so. "Kid, cover me while I check this out!" he shouts to Nerissa who nods, cuts her wrist and conjures a ruby sword in her other hand.

    While Nerissa becomes a tornado of silver and blood Arie bends down and examines the Endrega Queen''s body, he walks around it a couple times and can''t even locate it''s head which was never even mentioned in the books Vesemir had him read so long ago. He uses his foot to push it and shift it over, finally finding the head, and being shocked by what he finds... Roots lead from the ground and into it''s mouth, he moves it more and finds that it''s entire abdomen has roots coming out of it and connecting to the floor.

    Not knowing what to do in this situation he falls back onto something that has always worked, for the best or the worst. He stabs his sword into the ground while retrieving two Grapeshot bombs and stuffing both underneath the Queen. "Kid, leg it!" he exclaims as he grabs his sword and sprints away from the Queen.

    Nerissa follows his instructions and follows him to the other side of the room while cutting down the Endrega that get in their way. Once there Arie hugs her close and shields them both with a Quen shield just as the bombs go off.

    *BAAANG!*

    The combined explosion of both bombs proves to be enough to achieve what he needed, the Queen''s body imploding and covering everything in the room with the blue acidic liquid. It collides with his Quen shield and starts trying to dissolve it, only for the shield to give off a weird noise that sounds similar to a chime. Eventually though the acid falls away, leaving the duo and a few heavily corroded Endrega left.

    The duo get ready to kill the rest but find them having some sort of seizure, all of them shaking and shuddering while screeching. Eventually they stop, looking around and start escaping into the walls, confusing both Arie and Nerissa.

    Arie "I''ve never seen something like this before..." he mutters, making a mental note to consult Vesemir about this later.

    Nerissa looks at him and simply states, "Rei."

    Arie nods and looks towards the still root covered entrance, "I guess we''ll start with cutting our way out." he says, not too confident that this''ll actually work.

    However what seems like an earthquake begins, fracturing the floor around the room and allowing some kind of green gas to begin to enter. Arie''s eyes dilate at this and he frantically runs at the root wall and begins chopping at it in an attempt to escape. He recognised what this was and if the duo stayed inside they''d eventually succumb to it, he might be able to last a little bit but slowing his heart rate but the kid? No chance.

    As he begins to chop at the roots with Reima''s Silver Sword he finds that they are extremely weak to it, retreating at even the mere touch of it. This is a boon as it seemed like there was a feet of roots to get through and not a lot of time to do it.

    Nerissa assisted but found my less success with Arie''s Silver Sword, the blade slightly blunt by it''s use and not being upgraded by titanite or enchanted by Andre.

 529 Lesh not do this again...

    Reima had cut up this Leshen around four times now, the thing constantly regenerating itself in-spite of the damage he''s inflicting to it. Not only that but occasionally a Quen-like shield would cover it and protect from one of his strikes, making the already annoying fight even more infuriating.

    It was at this point that Reima was about to risk releasing his aura and completely incinerating it, however just as the area around him starting to increase in temperature the Leshen slams it''s claws onto the ground, causing it to rumble and shake erratically. The sound of stone shifting and grinding against eachother was almost deafening, but the most shocking thing was the green gas that''d started to escape into the room. Realising what this was he quickly restricted his aura and dispelled the Chaos Blade from Arcell, if the gas ignited Arie and Nerissa would no doubt be annihilated by it. Not only that but he wasn''t even sure if the explosion would kill this immortal Leshen.

    After the ground stop rumbling the Leshen vanishes before reappearing behind Reima yet again, Reima performing a spinning heel kick that connects with it''s side and obliterates it into sawdust and wooden splinters. However, even then it reforms without an issue.

    His shadow shifts as the Staff of Manus appears in his hand, he''ll have to try other methods to see if this thing''ll finally die. He waves it above him and causes Crystal Soul Spears to appear and shoot towards it, penetrating it''s body and tearing it apart with ease.

    Reima "Not sorcery then." he growls as it reforms again.

    The staff begins to drip with the black ooze as he channels humanity into it, he leaps forward and drives the axe head into the Leshen''s body. Performing a similar technique that''d created the Abyssal servants currently residing in his shadow.

    The black ooze delves into it''s wooden body, visibly spreading like black veins until it''s body eventually disintegrates out of no where.

    Reima "Did that do it?" he mutters while looking around, only to sigh as he sees the Leshen''s head poke from the floor.

    *CHOP**CHOP**CHOP*

    The sound of something cutting wood becomes audible from the room the Endrega has laid an ambush, not long after Arie and Nerissa burst into the room, both looking at the huge Leshen with wide eyes.

    Reima "Er, can I get my sword back? This thing won''t fucking die!" he complains to Arie who tosses it back to him.

    Arie "Yeah, but we''re getting mine upgraded in a similar way as soon as possible." he states.

    With the short exchange done they turn their attention towards the Leshen, only for the newcomers to come under assault from the roots below them. Arie starts jumping around to dodge the lethal attacks, casting Quen to protect himself should he not be quick enough to escape the assault.

    Nerissa swipes the silver and ruby swords at the roots but isn''t able to completely sever them, she gets grazed by one but manages to dodge the rest.

    Reima twirls his Silver Sword in his hand and blinks under the Leshen, flicks his sword at it''s leg which cleaves through it with ease, making the creature tumble over. It swipes it''s claws at him but he blocks them with the Staff of Manus while penetrating it''s chest with the Silver Blade... Only for the creature to regenerate at the far wall. "BRO! WILL THIS THING NOT DIE!" he exclaims furiously.

    Arie "Reima! The roots on the walls disappear every time it''s killed." he shouts as he notices the large bundle of roots on the wall become smaller.

    Reima looks at the bundle and grins, "Ah, so you do have a weakness. Not keen on silver are you?" he taunts.

    The next moment Reima disappears again, appearing next to the Leshen and cleaving it in two, the Leshen regenerates on the other wall but Reima''s there again to cut it down. Every time he destroys it''s body the bundle of roots becomes smaller and smaller until it''s half of it''s original size.

    Arie''s nose wrinkles as he smells the scent of the gas getting thicker, the room quickly becoming unihabitable for humans, vampires or even witchers. "The gas is getting thick, we need to leave soon before we suffocate!" he shouts as gas continues to stream inside.

    Reima decides to just flip the table and blinks towards the bundle of roots themselves, slashing at it vertically and causing them to fall to the ground and reveal what''s behind them... A glowing stone covered in roots with the carving of a Quen sign on it... "A place a power.." he mutters as he lays eyes upon it.

    The Leshen appears in-front of the stone with claws bared, it gives off a peculiar screech/roar as the roots around the stone tighten as if to protect it.

    Reima has wasted enough time fighting this thing already and doesn''t hesitate as he blinks forward and chops it in two, continuing and slashing against the roots surrounding the stone. They cut cleanly and fall to the ground as the Leshen appears again, this time hunched over the stone in a weak posture.

    A firm kick delivered to the stone turns it to dust and causes a small magical explosion that barely even affects him, though the Leshen roars in pain as the ambient magic disappears without a receptacle to gather it. One last flourish of his blade beheads the creature, finally ending it''s life.

    Reima steps forwards, grabs the heads antlers and tosses it towards Arie, "There''s your contract, now grab me so we can leave." he quickly says, the others complying and vanishing with a turquoise flash.

 530 Jolly-Genocide... Wait...

    The trio appear back in Kaer Morhen with a flash, the only people remaining in the courtyard being Eskel and Lambert who''re currently sparring with each other. They both notice the bloody Arie and relatively fine-looking Reima and Nerissa, along with the huge Leshen head resting against the floor in his hand.

    Lambert "Wondered where you both got off to... Finally went off for the Leshen huh?"

    Arie huffs, "Leshen? Seemed more like a Demon than anything else... Thing even gave Reima trouble." he states.

    Eskel "You look like shit." he says, looking at the wounds covering Arie.

    Arie shrugs, "It''ll heal eventually."

    Reima "If you go see Rhea or Anastacia they''ll be able to heal you in no time." he adds.

    Arie nods, "I''ll go do that, don''t forget about us talking to Andre though." he says as he tosses the Leshen head to Lambert and begins to walk towards the encampment outside the gates.

    With Arie gone Reima rubs his face and runs his fingers through his hair, now that he was back he needed to start thinking about what should be done for Kaer Morhen and the new residence. The day was getting late though so he went up to the balcony and began to meditate for tomorrow, all the while Snuffles was resting in his lap.

    The next day Reima was strolling into the courtyard with Snuffles on his shoulders, a determined look on his face. Already there was Ciri, Geralt, Quelaag, Solaire, Priscilla and the leaders of the Prospects.

    Kuretz "Oh, glorious leader! Tell your humble subjects what you require of us!" he exclaims as Reima approaches.

    Reima retrieves a chair from his Folded Space and throws it at Kuretz, the furniture shattering against his back as he tries to run. "Screw off Kuretz."

    Geralt and Ciri look at each other as the duo begin insulting each other, however, eventually words of reason intervene...

    Talem "You can beat each other later, for now, I think it''s time to discuss what we should be doing. It''s been two days since we''ve arrived and I think it''s time for us to change our living conditions."

    Kuretz nods while trying to rub the bruise on his back, "Yeah, tents are great and all but I think I''d like a roof over my head..."

    Geralt "Hmm, we''re midway through Autumn, creating places to rest for winter would be essential." he says with his arms crossed.

    Reima nods, yes housing should be built first, but the main problem, for now, is the structuring of the placements, the stability of land, what kinds of buildings and such... Though, there is one thing they need to rectify before they can even begin to think about construction.

    Reima "First, I think we need to talk about the infestation of monsters in the region. We can''t rightly build if ghouls, ghosts and fiends are prowling the area."

    Quelaag nods, "I agree, during the night my Chaos Servants were attacked by short creatures with claws and fangs."

    Ciri snorts, "Well, that''s one way to call a Nekker."

    Quelaag "I don''t care for the name and your input is not helpful." she says with a glare.

    Reima interjects into the cat-fight, "Enough. Geralt, what do you think is the best way to clear the area? Apart from burning the forest to the ground obviously."

    Geralt rubs his beard for a moment before replying, "Send groups, a Witcher with each... Each group needs to be fitted with Silver Weapons, or at least Silver Plated."

    Reima "You think Lambert, Eskel and Vesemir will help?" he asks, now wishing that Arie had stayed a little longer instead of leaving to cash in the Leshen contract.

    Geralt nods, "Vesemir is busy with something else, though Eskel would gladly help... Lambert too if you added in drink or coin."

    Reima snorts, "I need to bribe Lambert to help?"

    Geralt shrugs, "Hmm most likely, though I stand to be correct."

    Reima "Right, you guys decide the groups. I''d prefer having Prospects distributed liberally as having someone die to a monster would make this a complete failure. I''ll go check with the Blacksmiths and try to get some Silver made, once the groups are formed look over the weapons needing and come to the workshop." he says before leaving.

    With Reima gone Geralt gathers everyone and has them follow him out the gate to see what skills and abilities people possess and creating the most effective groups possible.

    Inside the workshop, Andre and Vamos were gathering various tools in what looks to be an attempt to transport them somewhere else... Reima walks in and his brows furrow at them, "What''re you guys doing? Why are you tearing about the Workshop?"

    Andre "Ah, Reima? Good ta see''ya lad. This? We''re just moving the tools outside so Coaugh can work with us, I''ve always wanted to see what the big oaf could do with a hammer!" he exclaims cheerfully.

    Oh, right... Coaugh is literally like a statue as he just sits against the wall in the Courtyard, to be honest, he''d forgotten the giant was even there due to how still and silent he is.

    Reima "Well, as long as you don''t damage anything... Vesemir would have a fit if you broke something. Anyway, I was wondering if you guys could create some Silver weapons for a monster hunt that''ll be happening soon?"

    Vamos "I''d be ''appy to, but I''m confused as to why Silva'' if effective against them."

    Reima "It''s due to it''s cleansing and purifying properties, this also means that the Silver has to be pure, or at least incredibly close to it."

    Andre nods, "Alright Reima, just give us the materials, types of weapons ya need and we''ll get started..."

    ...

    Reima "Er, materials?"

    Andre laughs, "You didn''t think we shit silver now did ya? Hahahaaha!"

    Reima grumbles for a moment before finally relenting, he waves his hand and allows many, many silver objects to fall to the floor with a *clank*, candelabra''s, broaches and even decorative suits of armour are deposited on the floor. Lordran didn''t lack Silver after all.

 531 Lambasted

    Reima steps back out into the courtyard where Vamos and Andre have set up a large furnace with multiple anvils next to it. Everything needed for blacksmithing is present, the tools, oils, and machinery that contribute to making masterful products.

    Coaugh who''d been sitting at the side suddenly stands up and makes his way over to Andre and Vamos, giving them both heavy claps on the shoulder. "Thank ye beard man, bone man."

    Andre laughs "Think nothing of it big guy! We know how boring it is without a hammer in ya hand."

    Reima "Come to think of it... Where''s Rickert?" he asks with a confused expression.

    Vamos "That stick up the ass? He''s over botherin that black ''aired Sorceress to teach him this worlds magic or somethin."

    Reima shakes his head, these guys are gonna make Rickert want to go back to his cage in Lordran if they carry on...

    A couple hours later Geralt had finally assembled all the groups needed to clear up the region, there would be four in total with himself, Reima, Eskel, and Lambert all leading separate parties. In each group there would be equal amounts of Flame Guards, Pyromancers and Pyreblade along with around fifty Prospects. The rest of the Prospects would be left behind to defend Kaer Morhen, that and having around two hundred and fifty Prospects in each group would be almost completely unmanageable, especially for Eskel and Lambert who''d never really led large groups of people before.

    As per Reima''s instructions, they gathered the weapons of the Prospects that''d be involved and gave them to the blacksmiths for plating, they even had Coaugh help carry them due to the amount. For the Pyromancers it wasn''t really necessary to plate their weapons in Silver due to their Pyromancies, Chaos Blade serving as a good enough substitute for Silver against most enemies.

    Reima had also gone to look for Eskel and Lambert to ask for their assistance, Eskel was happy to help but Lambert was another story... Unfortunately, he''d started on the wrong foot as he entered the Witchers room he had interrupted him and Keira Metz doing rigorous activities under the covers.

    Lambert "Eskel! I swear if it''s you again I''ll... Reima? For fuck sake!" he exclaims as he takes a look at the person in the doorway.

    Reima turns around, "Er, I need to talk to you about something important, but I can see you''re already busy. Look for me later." he says as he slams the door behind him, remarking to himself at how firm Keira''s breasts were.

    An hour later a frosty faced Lambert walks towards Reima, "What''d you need to talk about Reima? It must be incredibly important for you to force your way into my room."

    ...

    Reima "I need you to lead a group through the region and hunt down any monsters you see. Geralt, Eskel, and I will all be participating."

    Lambert crosses his arms, "Yeah? What''s in it for me?"

    Reima shrugs, "I''ll give you a couple bottles of whisky from another world." he states.

    Lambert shakes his head, "All that trouble for some drinks? Sorry Reima but I''m not as charitable as Geralt and Eskel are."

    Reima frowns, "I''ll throw in some gold as well, but don''t expect me to help you out without some compensation either Lambert."

    Lambert nods, "Fine, just point me in a direction and I''ll lead whoever you give me... Just don''t count on everything returning if we''re unlucky or they''re not strong enough."

    Reima "I think you''re forgetting that most of them are Immortal...." he mutters in exasperation.

    After talking to Lambert Reima summons Hinky to talk about how everything is going, the Elf happily tells him about the lands surrounding Kaer Morhen, that it''s relatively stable and fertile making it a good place to start crops and build atop. Though the Elf isn''t too sure if the Magical plants he''d brought would grow well here as while the ambient magic is actually higher here, it''s more concentrated into certain elements.

    For example, Hinky notes that they feel "Hot magic" atop the mountain where the Everlasting Dragon is resting. Reima concludes that this is probably due to the Igni Place of Power that rests up there, it''s one of the places Geralt took him to years ago to train his Signs.

    He was a bit wary of growing Magical plants near such places as his encounter with the Quen empowered Leshen was worrying, of course he wasn''t scared of the plants growing out of control and trying to kill him, instead, he didn''t want to waste the limit supplies he''d brought and have to go back and pick up more.

    Not only that but recently the Elves had found a place of power where the battle had just happened. It was a few meters under the ground and appeared to be an Axii stone, Reima wasn''t really sure what to do with it and so decided to make the Elves keep it hidden for now... However when they decided to start building houses for everyone they''d have to take another look at it as it was in the area where they''d begin.

    Reima had also taken a few fibres from Sol, Priscilla''s doll that unlocks the Painted World of Ariamis to make a few bracelets that would allow the Elves to come and go from there without him having to transport them. While there he checked to makesure the creatures inside were alright and hadn''t eaten any of the House Elves, luckily they''d remained relatively docile and was even greeted by the Unicorn + Thestral herd. Once everyone was properly constructed he''d take them into the world outside instead of keeping them locked up... That and he wanted to see Geralt and Yennefer''s reaction to them.

 532 Four-way Expedition.

    The next day after everything had been gathered, created and completed, everyone participating was present in the courtyard. The Prospects and Chaos servants were present along with everyone except for Kalini, Logan, Griggs and Quelina. Rhea and Anastacia were coming aswell and joining the groups that wouldn''t have Solaire or Reima with them for obvious reasons...

    Everyone''s who wasn''t able to cast Chaos Blade had had their weapons plated in silver and given a few bombs courtesy of the Witchers. Geralt, Eskel and Lambert were standing next to Reima as he addresses the crowd.

    Reima "I assume everyone is gathered?" he receives a few mumbles from the crowd and continues, "This will be the first step to making this land habitable for those that aren''t able to defend themselves or simply wish to be safe in their sleep. All of you know what we''re going to do, but I''ll repeat it for clarity... The four groups will go off in separate directions with a Witcher leading them, you will eradicate any monsters you come across, along with their nests, eggs and youngsters you find. You will listen to every order I, Eskel, Geralt or Lambert give as it could mean life or death... And while that might not seem that dire to some of you-" he looks at the masked Prospects who turn their heads away in embarrassment, "It is important that no one dies today, if we come back with one less man than I will personally consider the expedition a complete failure." he states, before ending with one last thing. "Last but not least, I''d like to introduce you all to these two women, Rhea and Anastacia." he points towards the women wearing religious garbs depicting him and Solaire.

    Reima "They are well versed in the art of healing, if you are injured then seek them out if you are in the same group as them... Good, unless anything else needs to be said you should all gather in your designated groups!" he says and leaves the entrance of Kaer Morhen followed by those in his charge, specifically Talem and Nerissa.

    He has the Prospects form what could only be described as a meatshield around the Pyromancers in his group. He''d picked for his group to head north, directly to the Dragon Mountains where it''d probably be the most dangerous.

    The path they took was zig-zagging, making sure to scour the lands to cleanse any monsters they come across. Additionally due to the path''s close vicinity with the nearby like they had a huge amount of Drowner and Hag nests to clear.

    They also found a relatively large group of trolls that weren''t immediately hostile, despite their wariness over his "Witchy" eyes. Reima determined that they wouldn''t eat humans and would disturb anyone unless provoked first and as such, let them live.

    Talem "Amusing creatures, are they not?" he says, most likely smiling under he mask as he takes a few most glances at where they''d been.

    Reima nods, "Yeah, that group might be... But it isn''t uncommon for others to turn completely hostile against humans, invading villages, smalls towns and eating anyone who doesn''t manage to escape. I may have let them live, but that doesn''t mean I won''t be keeping an eye on them."

    Talem "I do wonder where these monsters originate from, most don''t seem native to these lands." he wonders aloud.

    Reima "Well, that''s because they''re not. Most were dropped here in the past during the Conjunction of the Spheres or whatever it''s called. Human''s were also apparently not from this world originally either." He adds.

    Talem "How wondrous... I wonder if humans came to my old world in a similar process?"

    The party continues delivering quick death to the monsters they come across, however just as they begin scouting the bottom of a small mountain Reima notices a huge rock being thrown towards the group from above them via his Observation Haki. He casts Aard at the ground causing those around him to be knocked away as he braces to catch the boulder.

    *CRASH!*

    He catches it but the ground below him gives and a creator forms underneath him, fortunately, no one was injured by it. Reima drops it to the side with a large *Crack* and looks up at where it might''ve come from. The only thing he sees when he takes a look is an empty mountain path...

    Reima "Any of you see what caused that?" he questions the group, with most shaking their heads.

    One speaks up though, "I saw a large figure throwing it, it as too far to see any details though."

    ...

    Reima "Something threw this? What was it? Some kind of giant!?" he exclaims.

    Talem "It was lucky our group came across this, I doubt the others would have been able to resist such an unconventional attack." he adds.

    Reima shakes his head, "We''ll start ascending the mountain, I''ll be a couple meters ahead to prevent any more "stonings", is that clear?"

    "Jolly!" the Chaos Servants shout, while the Prospects just yell "Yes" at his command. Reima just shakes his head at the former, deciding that it was alright too late to change them. Besides, he found it pretty funny when they did it.

    They group began to walk along the steep mountain path, it was wide enough to allow 6-7 people to walk side by side which was a boon to the large group. Reima was ahead of the group while the Prospects led the others, the Flame Guard with their tower shields directly behind them and followed by everyone else.

    Eventually they make it up to the spot where the boulder had apparently been tossed, a small patch of dirt with a large footprint making it apparent that it was indeed some kind of large humanoid that''d attacked them. Though Reima wasn''t all that familiar with the size, shape and smell of the foot that''d previously been here.

    Nerissa of course was incredibly grossed out when he had his head in the foot-shaped hole to get a whiff of it.

 533 Keep an eye on the sky

    After taking a look at all the evidence left behind by the monster Reima still had really no idea what''d attacked them, could it be one of those long lost giants told in Skelligan stories? Regardless, the group continues ascending the mountain in an attempt to find the perpetrator.

    Again, as they are walking the sound of grinding stone can be heard, they look above them but don''t notice anything being thrown, however the boulder hurtling towards them as it rolls down the path is a different story.

    Reima steps forwards and gives it a kick like some kind of a giant football, it''s launched away, the impact shattering it into two large pieces along with smaller sharp chunks that rain death on anyone below the mountain path.

    Reima "Alright, I''ve had enough of whoever throwing this shit! Hurry up and follow me." he says as he begins to briskly walk up the path, the group behind him quickly following.

    He reaches level ground where the boulder must''ve been rolled off, the indentations on the ground only confirm this. Looking around he spots a huge cave entrance with large variety of bones scattered outside of it.

    Talem "It appears that we''ve reached our destination" he says as a glaive appears in his hands, the blade of which now being plated in silver.

    Nerissa also unsheathes Iaito, he''d had Andre personally upgrade it as it was originally from Lordran. He infused it with titanate before plating it with silver and enchanting it with the large Divine ember. It was incredibly dangerous for the young girl to wield but Reima believed she was proficient enough to not hurt herself with it.

    The Prospects behind them also materialise their weapons, their hundreds of years of combat experience immediately becoming recognisable as their stance, aura''s and attitude shifts minutely, like a beast prepared to pounce.

    The pyromancers all also had their flames appear in their hands, some enchanting their weapons with Chaos Blade while others prepare to cast Iron skin.

    Reima "Everyone ready? You see anything weird then call it out." he shouts, truthfully he could probably just seal the cave entrance and starve whatever is inside, or turn the cave into a molten nightmare... But it would do the troops good if they fought against something significantly stronger than they were.

    The group shouts in agreement, "Jolly!" and Reima casts a light spell over himself as he steps into the cave, the spell easily illuminating everything in the dark. Past the entrance it is immediately obvious that some kind of semi-intelligent creature has been living here, logs have been propped against the walls in an attempt to block access further in. This doesn''t prove an issue though as Reima simply lifts them and pushes them to the side, though the sound would probably be audible to the residents of the cave.

    Again, the more they progress the more crushed, gnawed, and desecrated bones they discover, the amount becoming so much that they cannot avoid stepping on them. Reima bends over and discovers that the bone marrow had been sucked out... There are only a few creatures that''d do that, and even fewer capable of actually throwing boulders.

    The sound of something approaching and the crunching of bone underfoot made the group ready for combat. Eventually a single, huge eye glares at them from the darkness, Reima''s spell hovers over slightly and reveals it''s true form... The creature is a hulking mass of muscle, it''s height causing its head to graze against the ceiling of the large cave, fortunately for everyone''s sanity, the Cyclops was wearing some ragged furs around its waist, preventing everyone from getting an eye full.

    It growls at everyone present and makes a sound that resembles a hacking cough, which causes another Cyclops to appear behind it... And another. Luckily the cave was too small for all of them to attack simultaneously but their number eventually reached five, which was huge for a group of Cyclopses.

    Reima "Aim for the eyes, don''t get hit directly or you''ll most certainly die. I''ll deal with the backline while you guys deal with the front two."

    "Jolly!" they shout with their adrenaline pumping in anticipation.

    Reima casts another light spell that sticks to the wall as he blinks behind the group of Cyclopses, causing the three unable to access his group to turn to him with fierce, hungry looks on their faces.

    He grins and begins to dismantle them.

    Talem was glaring through his mask at the Cyclopses as they looked down at him, he noticed that the young vampire girl had started approaching the right one so he wen to distract the other so that the Pyromancers could hopefully blind it.

    The Cyclopse steps forwards and attempts to bring it''s fist down on Talem, however with a quick use of Windfall he gracefully dodges it while increasing the momentum of his glaive that strikes at the monsters wrist, severing a few tendons and causing some fingers to go limp.

    The giant roars in pain and anger and throws the same hand at Talem as if to slap him, only to have one of the limp fingers cut cleanly off... This unfortunately sends the creature into a rage, it starts stomping forwards disregarding the wounds given to it by Talem, getting dangerously close to the group behind him.

    The Flame Guard all run ahead and raise their tower shields while casting Iron skin, just in time too as he sends a brutal kick to the shields. The impact causes them to slide backwards into the people behind them, no one was injured with the exception of the giant who''s toes now bent at odd angles.

    Without waiting a moment more the Pyromancers threw various projectiles at the Cyclops, it tries to close it''s eye but a Chaos fireball hits it in the face, throwing lava over its eyelid and causing it to scream in agony. During this Chaos Whips are being conjured and wrapping around its four limbs, searing it''s flesh creating a disgusting smell throughout the area.

 534 A Giant Problem

    Nerissa had run ahead of the group to fight her foe, the Cyclops was licking its lips as it gazed upon her, though the mist daggers thrown at its only eye immediately put it on the defensive. As it backs away it tore a stalactite from the roof and attempted to slam it down on her, she dodges it with ease however the stone spike shatters causing debris to go everywhere, grazing the Cyclops skin and forces Nerissa to back away.

    She takes a moment to catch her balance before leaping forwards again, Iaito prepared to rend anything in her path. The Cyclops tries to crush her with its foot, but she dodges with a spin and brings Iaito down on it''s Achilles tendon, forcing it to one knee while it shouts in pain.

    Black misty wings explode from Nerissa''s back as she leaps in the area to reach its head, the wings flapping slightly to change her mid-air trajectory as it tries to smack her from the sky. After dodging the blow she grips it''s clammy, stick ear and prepares to jam Iaito through its eye, however, it shields it''s face with a hand while smacking itself as if a mosquito was biting it.

    Nerissa drops to its nape and cuts her left wrist to draw blood, using it to form crystal claws that she uses to penetrate the back of its neck to get a grip. The Cyclops tries to smack her again but she slashes at its hand with Iaito, drawing a profuse amount of blood that splatters against the floor and wall.

    The Cyclops rolls onto it''s back to try and get her off but this only makes it''s other area''s vulnerable, Nerissa takes advantage but penetrating its belly with Iaito and dragging the blade down fiercely, disemboweling it. She then takes control of the blood spewing out by making it crystalise and form large crystal shards that penetrate it''s internal organs, forcing out a horrified squeal, then... Silence.

    She hops off of its corpse and takes a look at the other one that they were tasked with killing, her nose wrinkling as the smell of burnt flesh hits her. The Cyclops is pinned to the floor by Chaos Whips, the flesh touching them burned completely black and has already become charcoal. Somehow though it''s still alive, whimpering from pain as Talem approaches its head, she watches as Talem says a few words before severing it''s Carotid Artery, allowing it''s life-force to spill out and killing it in the process.

    After the group step over the corpses and go to check how Reima is doing they are surprised to find three torso''s missing their limbs on the floor, black vein-like tendrils crawling into their still bleeding stumps, Reima watching them with black eyes and a grin.

    Talem "Reima?"

    Reima glances at them once without a reaction before taking a second and shaking his head, "Er, what?... Oh, you guys killed them? Great job."

    Talem "What... What are you doing with those creatures Reima?" he asks, apprehensive about what exactly was going on.

    Reima shrugs, "You guys remember how I made the Wild Hunt soldiers my own? Well, I''m attempting to see if the same process would work on these guys. It''s taking a while but it seems to be working."

    Talem nods "Hmm..."

    Reima "Ah, could you guys do me a favour? Grab some samples from the Cyclopses, particularly the heart, liver, skin, muscle, and eyes." he says before turning his attention back to the rather demonic looking process.

    Nerissa walks away first to do as he says, having learned to do this during their stay in the Misty Isles, Talem following soon after as to escape the grim sight befalling the still alive Cyclopses.

    An hour later the group hears semi-mad cackling from where Reima was, Nerissa and Talem give each other wary looks as they go to check out what''s happening. Once there they are confronted with three, 17ft black figures. Their flesh looks like black oak with ooze dripping from them, their faces aren''t bloated, instead of having their single eye covered over by oak flesh which glows an ominous red. Their mouths have huge black teeth that seem to belong to a beast as black saliva drips out onto the ground, a tentacle forming and wiggling back to its owner where it''s absorbed into its flesh.

    The limbs that were previously severed have returned, huge muscles and new black oak skin present. At the ends of the arms are absolutely humongous claws, the kind that would seem impractical if it wasn''t for how sharp, long, and strong they were. Their feet were also decorated with nails that penetrated the stone floor even now.

    Reima is standing before them, looking at them admiringly as if they were an artist''s final masterpiece. He speaks to the duo behind him without looking, "They''re amazing aren''t they... I wouldn''t be surprised if they could take on a dragon on their own." he says exaggeratingly, though by the creature''s appearance it wouldn''t surprise the duo either.

    Talem "They look fierce, but I am not sure if the method is good, for them and you Reima." he says, with Nerissa nodding her head next to him.

    Reima "What do you mean?" he asks, confused.

    Talem "You just seem like a different person when you were using that... Black fluid." he mutters with a shiver.

    Reima shrugs, "I get a little excited, ignore it... Anyway, I need to come up with a name for these three... Any suggestions?" he asks with a grin.

    ...

    Talem doesn''t answer and just shakes his head, though Nerissa isn''t as adverse to this as him.

    Nerissa "Blacky."

    Reima "No, not intimidating enough..."

    ...

    "Cyclaws?"

    "Clawclops?"

    ...

    "Corpseclaw?"

    ...

    "Scytheclops."

    Reima "I''d like to introduce you all to my Scytheclops!" he exclaims with a manic expression.

 535 Onion of Catarina

    Eskel was leading his assigned group to the plains to the west of Kaer Morhen, the land was vast but relatively more tame than the mountains, monsters usually preferring to rest in large caves and on mountain paths. They compete with one another and it eventually leads the weaker monsters out elsewhere, which likely has them residing in the plains.

    Due to the lesser difficulty of his task he was assigned with the "comparatively" weaker individuals that number among Reima''s friends. These people are Sieglinde, Dusk, Quelana and Eingyi, along with the other Prospects and Chaos Servants present.

    Eskel at first didn''t think much of these people, though his expectations were destroyed, annihilated and burned to ashes the moment Sieglinde entered battle with a bear. The armour resembling an onion didn''t appear to affect her agility as he sprinted ahead while preparing to strike with her Zweihander, the blade bursting into dark red flames when swung and cleanly decapitating the bear, something a regular woman, or even Witcher wouldn''t be able to do.

    Not long after their encounter with a bear a screech from the sky signaled the arrival of a wyvern, the robed woman called Quelana instantly conjured some sort of flaming whip that wrangled around it''s neck as it tried to dive for one of them. She was unable to take it down with her strength alone but Dusk shot crystalline shards from the metal staff she was wielding which struck it''s wing and forced it to the ground.

    From there Eskel tried to subdue it, but it seems this creature was experienced enough to know who was the most threatening to it. It hissed and clawed at him whenever he tried to approach. Again, Sieglinde came from behind and completely severed it''s tail while the polite, servile man Eingyi jumped atop it with his sword covered in blazing dark red flames. He fiercely stabbed downwards into the Wyverns nape and manage to nip a vital artery, allowing for Eskel to finish it off.

    After killing the Wyvern Eskel managed to track where its nest was, taking the eggs and burning it to prevent any other creature from using it.

    However, it wasn''t just monsters that were present in this region...

    *Whistle!*

    Eskel stumbles backwards as an arrow hits him in the shoulder, he grunts and pulls it out, eyes widening at the green substance seeping from his wound. "They''ve got poison! Shield up!" he shouts as the Flameguard prop their tower shields in-front of the group while Eskel sips a Golden Oriole, unsure of how potent the poison they were using was.

    Quelana "Brigands must have lain an ambush for travelers. Are you alright Eskel?" she asks with a concerned expression hidden under her hood.

    He nods, "Yeah, nothing but a flesh wound. Let''s teach these bastards a lesson, shall we?"

    Sieglinde commands the Flameguard to begin advancing, having previously led them in skirmishes while waiting for Reima to return.

    It was pretty obvious where the enemy was hidden, a thick clump of trees in the middle of a relatively desolate plain screamed "Hideout". The Flameguard was advancing, disregarding the arrows bouncing off of their Tower Shields. The Pyromancers and Pyreblades behind them tossing fireballs at the tree-line when they get close enough, dark red flames beginning to burn the trees.

    The arrows keep coming though, one almost hitting a pyromancer if it wasn''t for Eskel making use of Aard to redirect it. However, the fire enveloping the trees was intensifying, causing the bandits to escape and charge towards the group, most looking drugged up on Fisstech and other drugs, which would explain their strange action of charging at heavily armoured and outfitted troops.

    Regardless of the quality of their troops, the Flameguard dutifully cast Ironskin on themselves and easily resist the bandits throwing themselves at the tower shields. Afterwards the Pyreblade use the armoured shield bearers bodies to leap over the shield and onto the confused bandits. Their blades easily slice and rend flesh as they cast the occasional pyromancy if they were in danger of getting outnumbered.

    Their armour was probably superior to anything this world had aswell, having been enhanced by titanate, courtesy of Andre. Eventually less insane looking people slowly walked from the burning trees, dirty pieces of ununiform plate covering them, probably having been scavenged from their victims.

    Sieglinde doesn''t seem able to hold herself back any longer as she charges them with her Zweihander raised, "Engarde Brigands!" she shouts as she approaches the first one who''s wielding a kite shield and a longsword.

    He raises the shield to block the strike but it was only a feint, Sieglinde drawing a line in the air and bringing the large blade onto the man''s leg, cutting clean through the steel plate armour protecting it. He screams and falls to the floor as she focuses on her next target, sprinting at them and using her two-handed sword as a lance. The man tries to block it with his wooden shield but the blade penetrates it, and his spine as he falls backwards onto the floor, dead.

    An arrow bounces off of her onion helmet which has her looking at the terrified man responsible, however a crystalline shard penetrates his neck and kills him off before Sieglinde could direct her wrath upon him.

    The rest of the battle wasn''t much to speak of, Eskel, Sieglinde, Eingyi and the Pyreblades carving a trail through the bandits. Those that tried to flee were hit in the back by spells courtesy of Dusk, Quelana and the other Pyromancers.

    After the battle the group took a moment to rest before looting their hideout, unfortunately discovering that they had held some people hostage, though only their burned husks remained. The brigands didn''t own much, but the gold was appreciated either way, the group pocketed it and continued to try and hunt the monsters in the region.

 536 South-side encounters

    Heading south from Kaer Morhen was a large group consisting of Lambert, Solaire, Kuretz, Anastacia, Roche, Ves, followed by the group of Pyromancers and Prospects.

    Immediately as they started heading south they''d found themselves trudging through a Ford, Lambert and Solaire don''t particularly mind as both have experienced wading through sewage but Kuretz won''t stop complaining about his boots getting wet, that and Anastacia having to lift her robes and almost reveal her underwater to keep it dry.

    Kuretz "Why can''t we just go around the river? I think I''m getting mud in my boots!" he complains.

    Lambert sighs, "Because we need to clear all monster nests, even ones that may be on the other side of the river. I swear I have no idea how Reima got me to agree to this."

    Solaire "Because you are a trustworthy and loyal person my friend! Even if you try not to display your more admirable traits." he says with a jubilant smile that seems to brighten the day.

    Lambert shakes his head, "And why are you even with us? Shouldn''t you be smiting non-believers or something?" he snarks to the God of the Sun.

    Anastacia "Erm, excuse me but you shouldn''t be so rude to his Holiness." she says quietly, embarrassed at having to even interject.

    Solaire "There''s no harm, besides those who reason their beliefs are more worthy of it when they find it!" he says.

    Roche nods from the front, "I agree wholeheartedly, though belief does not always have to be religious." he states.

    Lambert "Can we just focus on hunting monsters? I wanna get back inside Kaer Morhen as soon as possible."

    Ves chuckles, "This doesn''t have something to do with a certain Sorceress does it?"

    Lambert twitches as he glares at her, "How does everyone know about that!"

    Solaire coughs into his fist sheepishly, "Well, Reima made sure everyone in our group knew about it before we left..."

    Lambert "REEEIIIMMMAAAA!" he shouts a the north, as if the god of fire could hear him.

    The Pyromancers and Prospects all laugh at his reaction, however, nearby the splashing and thrashing of water was heard.

    Everyone''s attention was peaked and they started moving towards it, eventually finding someone in a knee-deep pool with a few clawed hands trying to drag them in. They notice the group and begin to shout for help, "H-help! I''VE GOT COIN, PLEASE JUST HELP ME!" they shout frantically as the claws begin to draw blood from his legs.

    Lambert shrugs, "Coin it is then, he says as he draws his silver blade and walks down to the stream nonchalantly, stabbing the water which begins to pool with blood. Once he pulls the sword out a monstrous fanged face leaps out to try and tear his throat out, however an Aard sign blasts it back into the water like a skipped stone.

    Ves knocks a silver arrow that she''d acquired from Andre and shoots it at the creature still holding onto the man''s leg, it strikes true and the pale form of the monster floats to the surface lifelessly. The man crawls out of the poll and finally stops panicking when he''s in the middle of the group of Prospects.

    Lambert continues watching the water to see if any more remain before looking around for a nest. However just as he begins to look away a larger, darker and more fierce Drowner sprints from the water at him... Only for a black lightning bolt to strike it in the chest and causing it to implode, it''s heart and internal organs destroyed by the impact, let alone the electricity sparking from it afterwards.

    Lambert looks at who''s responsible, assuming it to be Solaire, only to find Anastacia pointing her Talisman at the Drowner.

    Anastacia "I''m sorry, did I startle you?" she asks apologetically.

    Lambert shakes his head and barely keeps the confused look from his face, "No... Thanks." He walks back to the group and points at the man they''d just saved, he has a firm face and delicately cut hair that''s been bedraggled but the recent scuffle. "Who''re you and what are you doing this far north?" he excuses, knowing full well that the only thing of value up here in Kaer Morhen or some of the abandoned mines that people like to pick through.

    The man audibly swallows when he spots Lambert''s eyes, and then again as he notices most of the people surrounding him wearing masks. "I''m sorry master Witcher, I got lost in the woods and got myself caught by those fouls beasts!"

    ...

    Lambert glares down at the man, not believing a single thing he''d said. "Oh? Then where did you get lost from?" he asks.

    ...

    "...M-Mirfield sir!"

    Lambert "Ah, that old village? Are you from there?"

    ...

    "Yes, my family have been living there for generations," he says quickly.

    Lambert nods with his arms crossed, "Then you won''t have a problem telling me who the Ealderman is." he states, looking down at the man who starts sweating profusely.

    "Ah, the Ealderman? That.. Old... Man, yes he and my father are close. I usually just call him uncle..." he says with a desperate smile.

    Roche "Poppycock. If you wish Lambert, me and Ves could show him some Blue stripes interrogation techniques. I''m sure that''ll get him singing." he says from the side.

    The man''s eyes widen when he mentions the Blue stripes, then he goes pale when he speaks of Interrogation techniques. "No-Please master Witcher, have mercy on this lost soul!"

    Lambert "I don''t think it will be needed... We''ll just use him as bait for the Drowners, hopefully finding the nest afterwards will be a cakewalk." he states.

    "NO, PLEASE! What do you want from me! I will tell you anything!!"

    Lambert "Then, why are you here." he asks once again.

    "I am lost!" As the man says this Lambert punches him in the face, breaking his nose. He''s about to begin pummeling the man however Solaire stops it.

    Solaire "Perhaps we can have him sent back and we will question him later once our task is complete."

    Lambert "We''re quite far out, it''ll take a while to get him back..."

    Solaire "Not at all my friend, Hinky?" he asks the air, causing the elf to pop into existence next to him.

    Hinky "Yes Son of Master?"

    ...

    Solaire "Son?" he shakes his head and decides to ignore it, "Would it be possible for you to transport this man to Kaer Morhen? Tied up and bound snugly would also be recommended.

 537 Tricks of the Trade

    "Would it be possible for you to transport this man to Kaer Morhen? Tied up and bound snugly would also be recommended Solaire asks the small creature.

    Hinky nods and snaps their fingers, causing ropes to materialise around the man, constricting and preventing any movement from him. The man tries to shift a dagger from the back of his trousers by Ves gives him a kick in the leg and removes it swiftly, "Not so fast."

    Hinky "Hinky will take man to masters prison!" they say as they pop away, the man whimpering before he''s whisked away.

    Lambert "Wait, Reima has a prison?"

    Solaire "I can think of one place in his possession that would serve as a fine prison." he mutters.

    Kuretz "Whatever, let''s just continue. We can talk about Reima''s sex dungeon when we get back!"

    The group continues south, clearing up any nests they come across, the monsters they''re fighting are mostly Drowners, though Hags were more common than you''d usually find. As the group are walking next to a river Kuretz notices a few figures resting on a rocky outcropping hanging over the water.

    He walks towards them and his pace picks up when he''s able to see the people properly, those behind him being left behind as they slowly follow.

    He climbs up the rocks and looks down at the three naked women sitting nearby, their lowers halves a large single tail covered in multicolored scales with the addition of two large wings. They smile at him and wave him over, his eyes not even noting their inhuman features, instead being firmly locked on their breasts.

    Kuretz "Hey ladies, you new around here or what?" he says, a wide grin under his mask.

    They smile at him but don''t say anything, however as soon as he sits next to them their faces and bodies shift from previously young and beautiful to scaled, horrific and monstrous. Their faces turning scaled with huge fangs with their arms getting a similar treatment. Kuretz is too shocked to react properly as he stumbles backwards, a claw raking across his neck and barely missing a vital artery.

    From behind him he hears Lambert''s voice, "You fucking idiot! Did you not hear us shouting to come back!" he exclaims as he leaps forward with his sword drawn, the Sirens flying off when they missed their surprise attack.

    From below the rock Ves, Solaire and Anastacia start firing at them. Ves''s arrow grazes one while Solaire''s lightning bolt makes one explode into a fine red mist midair. Unfortunately, Anastacia''s black lightning misses, allowing two to gain a lot of distance from them.

    Solaire isn''t perturbed by the distance however and draws the Sun''s Sword and points it at them, causing the blade to light up and almost blind those watching. Suddenly a white beam is released from his blade, striking a Siren. He slowly points his sword at the other, the beam following as the frantic man-eating-monster attempts to dodge it, her attempts are futile however as she''s unable to move faster than light.

    Both fall from the sky smoking, if not already dead from the beam then the impact most certainly will finish the job.

    Solaire releases the magic from the sword and sheathes it, turning around and giving a bright smile to everyone. "Fantastic cooperation everyone!" he says with a thumbs up.

    Roche and Ves aren''t really sure how to react around this man, every display of power only makes them more reverent towards him.

    Lambert rubs his face and focuses on Kuretz, "Stupid, don''t do that again!"

    Kuretz "Bro, any holes a goal right? As a man you must understand!"

    Lambert growls, "The only hole those Sirens will be forcing you in is their gullet! Do you understand? They. Will. Eat. You."

    ...

    Kuretz "Hmm, any woman wishing to eat me is welcome to." he jokes, which has Lambert at a loss, wondering how someone more shameless than himself had been created.

    Lambert "Whatever, let''s continue... If you want to try fuck a Siren then who am I to stop you? Just don''t complain when you come back to life without a cock." this causes Kuretz to halt mid-step, a grim look under his mask.

    The group sweeps most of the land south of Kaer Morhen, making sure any nests they come across are burned and buried. The hardest monsters they actually come across are a large group of Foglets that''d claimed a swampy cave for themselves. However with smart use of the Pyromancers it was easy to flush them out, by the end of it the swampy water in the cave was boiling and steaming... However the steam allowed the Foglets to escape and ambush them, without Lambert''s medallion giving them a warning and Solaire''s quick reflexes they might have lost a Pyromancer to their claws, luckily any injures sustained were quickly healed by Anastacia.

    The Foglets themselves were quickly dispatched, their mist forms not being immune to Solaire''s lightning and the armoury of Silver that was thrust at them after they were revealed.

    Eventually, though it was time to return to Kaer Morhen, the sky dimming cutting their task short despite it not being entirely completed yet.

    Lambert "We''ll have to continue tomorrow, even experienced Witchers would hesitate to hunt at night. Plus, I need to hand in this Foglet contract to Mirfield..." he adds with a smirk.

    Kuretz "Wait what? You''re using us to complete a contract for you?"

    Lambert shrugs, "What''s wrong with that? You guys need the monsters gone and the village wants the same, what''s the problem with me getting paid for it?"

    Kuretz "The fact that we aren''t?"

    Roche "Let''s just leave it, I can understand why you''ve done this... But you owe us all drinks for it."

    Kuretz nods along with everyone else, making Lambert realise he''d be making a loss from this venture...

 538 White Wolf with the White Wolf

    Compared to Eskel and Lambert''s groups Geralt was having a much more difficult time. He was given the task of clearing the east side of Kaer Morhen, this basically meant that he had to clear monsters up to and maybe even in the Blue Mountains. Not only that, but the monsters in these kinds of areas were second in ferocity only to the Dragon Mountains.

    Fortunately for the grizzled Witcher he wasn''t alone in this task, being accompanied by Ciri, Quelaag, Rhea, Priscilla, Ciaran with Sif, Risryn and even Zoltan who''d decided to come along.

    Zoltan struggles to pull himself over a rock to follow the group, having to be pulled up by Quelaag who easily traverses the terrain.

    The lands themselves are incredibly hazardous to those who''re not careful, making the area prone to certain kinds of monsters who are mobile despite the terrain. Ciaran who''s watching Sif scout the area happily speaks up, "Where do you think these monsters might well be Witcher?" she asks, finding it boring and mildly irritating that they hadn''t found anything yet.

    Geralt "Hm, we''re likely to find them higher up... But if we want to be thorough then checking every crack and crevice is essential. The most hazardous monsters to civilisation are not the large, loud ones. But the ones the creep around in the night, stealing men, women and children... These are the kinds of monsters that make their homes in caves and hidden alcoves."

    Zoltan nods, "Nary been fond of the night, find my''self wandering ''round in stupor, easy prey... Must''ve been lucky to live to this age." he mutters, realising just how numerous monsters still are.

    Quelaag "Any monster unfortunate enough to traipse into our land won''t live long enough to harm anyone." she states.

    Zoltan nods, "I can see that, ''specially with that big ole'' wolf you got there." he says while watching Sif find an interesting scent and knock over a tree while following it...

    Ciaran "He''s been incredibly bored for the past few centuries, he''s excited to explore these new things around this world." she says with a small smile.

    Priscilla "I understand." she says quietly behind everyone, her bow over her shoulder and her Scythe in her hands.

    While they walk Sif appears to have smelt something threatening, the wolf giving Ciaran a look that seems to communicate just that. Geralt isn''t sure whether the wolf can even rationalise what they''re looking for but follows anyway, deciding that if it can then their task will be a lot shorter as a result. The giant wolf eventually leads them to a small crack in a wall. Old dried blood stains the entrance which is probably what Sif had smelt.

    Geralt takes a look around and finds quite a few things that could indicate what the creature inhabiting the hole is... It''s size already gives him the vague idea of what it might be, but the tracks and claw marks in the nearby tree''s confirm it.

    Geralt "See the clues? Tell me what you think is here." he asks Ciri who''s been observing the surroundings beside him.

    Ciri looks around and spots claw marks at the top of a leaf-less tree, remembering Vesemir talking about his experience with Nekkers. He told her a story of a contract he''d accepted, supposedly easy, however, the contractor failed to mention how long the creatures had been roaming the area. Having created a tribe with strong warriors and a chieftain, as displayed by the Red clay they coat their faces in. The Tribe would send out scouts near their lair which would climb to the tops of trees to spot any prey or predators that might be in the area, relaying the information to their leaders.

    Obviously the story ended with Vesemir still alive, but his words and story had remained with her, "Groups of the weakest creatures with enough ingenuity could even take down Dragons.", Ciri thought at the time he was just referring to monsters but the saying was true for humans as well.

    Ciri "Nekkers isn''t it? A tribe it looks like." she says.

    Geralt nods, "Good." he says as he tosses a stone into the den, listening for any movement but hearing none. "They''ve all left in a hunting party, we can track where they went or lay an ambush... Probably best to do the latter as we have limited time.

    Ciaran nods and pats Sif on the snout, "Got a scent of the creatures? Sif can follow them."

    Geralt nods and grabs a torn rag hanging off of a sharp stone near the entrance, probably a Nekker loincloth or something similar. "Use this." he says as he hands it to her.

    Ciaran holds it next to Sif who''s nose twitches at it, the wolf sniffs the air and turns his head east.

    The group start walking there, but Geralt walks back to the crack with a bomb in hand, lighting it before throwing it in, the explosion making the cave inside collapse.

    Ciri "Why destroy the nest if we''re hunting them?" she asks.

    Geralt "Hm, to stop anything else claiming it as it''s own. Without shelter the creatures are likely to be picked off by larger prey, doing our jobs for us." he states, with the others nodding.

    Zoltan "Never notice before but ye''ve probably got more bombs on ye than I actually own Geralt. You''d make a fine Dwarf."

    The sides of Geralt''s lips upturn, "And you''d make a terrible Witcher."

    They laugh and continue following the great wolf, the Nekker Warband not realising how dead they truly were.

 539 Chortling during a figh

    Eventually the group reaches a rocky cliff overlooking a small valley, a tree has fallen against the side of it with claw marks covering it, confirming that the Warband had come this way. Looking over they see a couple more trees toppled over with large heavy tracks in the floor below.

    They climb down but begin to hear roars in the distance, Geralt recognising them to be from a Chort or a Fiend.

    Geralt "Hmm, they''re approaching. Get ready for a fight." he growls out while unsheathing his Silver Blade.

    The group back up against the cliff so the Flame Guard can cover every direction, the Prospects spreading out and climbing atop the various downed trees for an ambush.

    Ciaran pats Sif on the back and the giant wolf unsheaths the absolutely huge sword from it''s back, it having been the most difficult weapon to plate in silver.

    Zoltan stands beside Geralt with his axe in-hand, believing the safest place to get some action would be beside him.

    Priscilla had stepped forwards with her Scythe ready just as a Chort sprints into view, it''s horn large and fur thick, its eyes are red as it stares at the half breed and charges her.

    A fireball hits the Chort and sears some fur and flesh but it continues towards Priscilla, she feints to one side while stepping to the other, her Scythe spinning to gain momentum before finally striking. As the Chort passes she slices upwards at its neck, cutting cleanly through half of it and making it spew blood everywhere. Its legs tremble and its charge is cut short as it falls to the side, dead.

    Zoltan "Eeey? That thar'' was one of them Fiends right? ''Eard about em destroying whole villages alone... GOOD JOB LASS!" he shouts, however as he does so another roar echoes through the valley, followed by another, and another.

    Geralt "Must be more than three of them.. Hmm, mating season?" he wonders aloud.

    Not long after the first Chort was slain two more come charging into the valley from two different places, however as soon as one enters the clearing Ciaran steps before it with her shield raised, the Chort charges into her however she holds her ground and is simply only pushed by backwards by the creature. While she''s got its attention Sif comes from behind and swings his blade down, the heavy weapon landing on the creatures back and severing its spine, paralysing it from the waist down.

    The other attempts to charge into the Flame Guard shield wall but while it does so the Prospects drop from the trees and impale their weapons into it''s back, some a thrown off but most strike true. This forces the beast''s attention away from the group and towards the masked individuals who''d attacked it.

    Risryn sprints forwards from the group and launches herself into the air, managing to avoid the beast''s horns as it tries to strike her. Once she''s atop it she grabs a horn and stabs her silver plated sword into one of its eyes. It roars and tries to buck her off, however she channels Fold energy into her hand and palm strikes the back of its neck while casting Shockwave.

    *CRACK!*

    The shockwave passes through the Chorts body, causing its legs to collapse as it''s internal organs are either instantly crushed or heavily bruised.

    With the beast on the floor the rest of the Prospect charge in and stab their weapons into its vulnerable areas, eyes, neck, anus, testicles, and sides included.

    While this is happening Geralt had gone forwards to inspect an area with heavy foliage that was giving off an odd vibe, his medallion was shaking from just being near it. Using Aard he blows away the foliage and reveals a large hole...

    *Roooooaaarr!*

    It seems something didn''t want to be disturbed, Geralt muses to himself as he steps back and prepares for combat. From the hole huge claws grab the side and pull the rest up, revealing something larger than all of the Chorts had been.

    Gerat "Fiend, an old one. Smell must''ve been what the Chorts were looking for." he mutters aloud.

    Zoltan "Well there''s no time to speculate now Geralt! It''s about to charge us!"

    Geralt throws his hand to the floor, using the Yrden sign which should slow the Fiend should it charge them. However, behind him the Pyromancers had already unleashed a few fireballs at the beast, infuriating it and causing its third eye to open in response.

    Geralt "Don''t look at its eye!" he shouts, to no avail as it was already too late. The only people not caught in its illusion were the Flame Guard behind their tower shields, a few Prospects, Zoltan and Priscilla.

    The Fiend charges forwards preparing to slash them to pieces with it''s claws, though it''s slowed significantly by the Yrden trap that allows Zoltan and Geralt to evade safely. Ciri who''d been observing the fight blinks above the Fiend and lands on its back to give deal some damage as it charges, though the cuts are superficial.

    It continues running and actually manages to swipe at a few disorientated Prospects who die instantly, though will luckily respawn back in Kaer Morhen.

    Priscilla approaches it, her Scythe being infused with a strange energy. It swipes as her but she stabs the offending hand with her Scythe, the black misty energy manifesting around the new wound. The Fiend''s arm drops lifelessly to the ground and almost topples over as it tries to rest its weight on it.

    Geralt and Zoltan take advantage of this, the Dwarf burying his axe in its hind-leg while Geralt stabs its belly, dragging the blade out which disembowels it.

    It falls to its side but still tries to strike at them despite its injuries. Priscilla buries her Scythes blade into its skull to finally kill the beast, ending the fight abruptly.

    Zoltan "Remind me not to follow ye out ''ere again Geralt... This is too much excitement for this Dwarf." he says as he slumps to the floor breathing heavily.

 540 Nekker gonna give you up

    Once the group is released from the Fiends illusion they rest for a bit to compose themselves, while they''re doing that though Geralt kills the paralysed Chort and checks the Fiend hole a second time, just to makesure he hadn''t missed anything...

    Looking down into it he sees a shallow layer of water with a slightly raised stone that stays above its surface... Resting on it is a pile of fire and three pairs of eyes staring up at him.

    Geralt "Hmm, Kids. Better deal with them." he mutters, lighting a grapeshot and tossing it into the nest and looking away as the young Fiends are turned to red mist.

    Ciri "That was.. Cruel Geralt." he mutters, despite knowing full well that was needed.

    Geralt shrugs, "If you really want to be a Witcher then this is part of the job." he says to her, not wishing for her to follow his path in life.

    Ciri shakes her head and looks towards the other side of the valley, "The Warband must''ve continued that way, though they might even be coming back in our direction now."

    Geralt shakes his head, "With the commotion, the Fiend and Chorts made the Nekkers would wait before coming back."

    Risryn "Let us continue then."

    Geralt "Not so fast, we need to dismantle these corpses and burn them afterwards. Don''t want Necrophages invading after we removed these." he states, those nearby reluctantly nodding.

    After dissecting and harvesting the corpses for anything useful the group burn them and continue following the Warband

    A couple hours later the group spot the hunting party in a clearing from the treeline they''re hidden in. The Warband appears to be hiding behind a raised rocky incline to protect against something, Geralt and a few others can see arrows coming from the opposite forest, obviously trying to fend off the over sixty hungry Nekkers.

    Zoltan "Bandits?" he wonders but Geralt shakes his head.

    Geralt "Hmm, can''t be. Their arrows are too accurate, their position too strategic to be bandits."

    Rhea "It matters not who they are, only that they are on Hallowed ground." he states from behind, drawing a few raised eyebrows.

    Zoltan "You''re giving me shivers, reminding me of that shite the Eternal Fire spouts." he says with a frown.

    Rhea "Those who worship fake gods will receive fake enlightenment." she states absolutely.

    Ciri "Don''t you worship Reima? What words of wisdom will that battle junky give you?" she asks sarcastically.

    Rhea "That treachery means death, and the gods themselves decide what is treacherous!"

    ...

    Ciri "Did Reima say that or are you making it up?"

    Rhea looks glances away, "I may be interpreting something he said in the past..."

    ...

    Quelaag "We have a task to do, I would rather do it ourselves than let some Brigands claim the glory." she states, the Pyromancers behind her echoing her sentiments by saying "Jolly!" in unison.

    Geralt "Fine, get your shields up and start advancing, we''ll follow. If the arrows change targets to us then Ciaran and Sif should try and ambush them for a distraction. If that fails then set fire to the forest and retreat." he says after thinking a moment.

    With that the Flame Guard leave the forest, their shields raised and protecting the Pyreblades, Pyromancers and Prospects behind them. Immediately the arrows stop and the Nekkers spot the group, a larger one wielding a rusty sword pointing at them and gurgling something. The red clay decorating it''s face marks itself as the leader of the Warband.

    Seemingly having forgotten that they were just under fire they charge the group, crude weaponry ready to strike against the tower shields, though with Iron skin the little creatures stood no chance of moving them an inch.

    Realising that trying to break through a literally wall of iron and steel wasn''t going to work they start coming around the sides, only to be confronted by the Pyreblades, Prospects, Witchers and everyone else present.

    The little creatures were clearly stronger than your average Nekker but still stood no chance against an organised unit, especially those that had Hundreds, if not thousands of years of experience in combat.

    Geralt football kicks one Nekker as it tries to stab him in the thigh, the creature rolling to a stop a few meters away, it''s body broken and bleeding from the kick alone. He looks ahead and spots the leader shouting what sounds like commands at the Warband and decides to take it out to make clearing the rest easier. He casts a wide range Igni to distract the group in-front of him while sprinting past them, surprisingly the Nekker manages to dodge the first strike and parry the other... However a feint proves too difficult for the creature to interpret, allowing Geralt to bisect it.

    The rest of the battle wasn''t difficult in the slightest, the Nekkers trying to escape after the leader was cut down but was forced to stay in close range to the group due to the huge variety of Pyromancies fired at their backs.

    One of the most surprising things was an ability Ciri displayed, having to no longer restraint her abilities she''s using techniques that Avallac''h had taught her before his "unfortunate" end. Channeling in as single spot for a moment allows her to deal a barrage of strikes at a large group in a short amount of time. The only thing stopping this move from being overwhelmingly powerful was her own strength, speed, and reserves... Something that a certain other person didn''t have issues with.

    Once the group was done dealing with the Nekkers Ciaran and Sif walk int the clearing, them no longer expecting the people in the forest to be shooting arrows at them.

    Ciaran "I tried to circle around and get some information on them, but they''re incredibly well versed at hiding in the forest. Similar to another group I despised.

 541 Squirrels again?

    Geralt leads the group into the forest, looking for those that''d been chased by the Warband. He and see light tracks on the floor but they don''t seem enough for the amount of arrows that were being shot...

    His ears twitch as he hears a twig break, however it''s not on the ground floor where he expected to find it... Above!

    Looking up he sees around thirty people wearing dirty ragged clothing, all with drawn bows pointing in his direction.

    Geralt "Scoia''tael?" he says in surprise out loud.

    Zoltan "I thought they were all done for... ''Specially since the Black ones invaded..."

    Suddenly a familiar figure walks out of the foliage, bandana covering his right eye and patches covering his clothing. A special bow rests on his back as he greets them.

    Iorveth "Gwynnbleid, I knew it was you even from this distance, not many possess hair like yours." the grizzled elf says, looking much older than Geralt and Zoltan remembered.

    Geralt "Iorveth? What are you doing here?" he asks, confused at the man''s presence in this region.

    Iorveth "Where else would we be? Nilfgaard still hunts us like animals and has invaded the North, the Northern Kingdoms remembers our faces and what we did. We have nowhere, no place to be safe." he says with a sombre expression.

    Zoltan "Eh, surely wandering into monster-infested lands is the worst option available to you?"

    Iorveth "No, I know ways to avoid monsters. You would be surprised at how much easier it is to evade them than it is Witch hunters or cavalry..."

    Geralt "Hmm, so you''ve encountered the Eternal Fire."

    Iorveth shakes his head with a grim expression, "Knight of the Flaming Rose were brutal, but the cruelty of the masses surprises me further. Burning non-human''s for even the slightest offence, or even none at all. It only affirms my hatred for the race... Their focus are on Sorcerers for now, but how long until they run out and need another scape goat..." He sighs and changes the subject, asking something he himself was intrigued about. "And what are you doing here Gwynnbleid? The soldiers behind you aren''t simply to help you hunt monsters are they?" he asks suspiciously.

    Geralt "It might surprise you to find that they are, my long lost apprentice is creating a settlement and needs to clear the monsters to make it safe." he states.

    Iorveth "Ah, yes. The son of the White Wolf, even I have heard of those ballads." he says, causing Ciri and Zoltan to chuckle at Geralts unamused expression.

    Iorveth "I suppose that makes us enemies then Gwynnbleid, the Scoia''tael have never been friendly to settlements, human ones especially."

    Quelaag scuttled forward, shocking the elves keeping watch. "Who said anything about a human settlement?" he asks, Iorveth having a shocked expression plastered across his face as he sees her.

    Iorveth "... Forgive me for asking but, what are you?"

    Quelaag "I am part-demon, my name is Quelaag and I am one of the leaders helping to create the settlement."

    ...

    Iorveth "And you would do so knowing what the humans have done in the past, what they will do in the future?" he asks.

    Quelaag "The race of those around me matters not, only their ideals."

    Iorveth "That is admirable, but you cannot disregard Human''s propensity for violence and destruction."

    Quelaag "Even if that were true, we have means of dealing with it."

    Geralt "Iorveth, we cannot allow you to remain in this region if you intend to continue your efforts. Even if you don''t direct it towards us, it will lead to Kaedwin or even the entirety of the Eternal Fire to investigate, if they find the people inhabiting Kaer Morhen then we will have a war on our hands."

    Iorveth "And you don''t wish to fight a losing war?" he states, as if he already knows of the reason.

    Geralt shakes his head, "No, because what happens afterwards will mean death and destruction for the Northern Kingdoms." he states with absolute certainty.

    Iorveth "How can you be so sure about that? You may have a few Sorceresses and a small army but that is nothing compared to the legions of men they can send against you."

    Rhea walks forwards, "Their holiness won''t allow those non-believers to trample us, they will bring a rain of death the likes of which none have ever seen. It will make the sun look like a candle in comparison!" she exclaims.

    Iorveth raises an eyebrow at Geralt, "You''ve joined a cult?"

    Geralt just shakes his head, "No... Just consider us as having very, very powerful allies."

    ...

    Zoltan crosses his arms, "Geralt, why not just take this lot in? The finest archer and a group of the most fierce combatants would definitely prove useful." he says, having admired Iorveth for his dedication to non-human rights.

    Geralt "Iorveth has been labelled a terrorist by most places on the continent, if it were to get out that he''s with us then we''d be making our stance clear."

    Iorveth nods, "Who said we wanted to join you either, we have been betrayed too much to trust again. First was Dol Blathanna and Francesca, Second was that Sorceress Phillipa who bewitched Saskia... I do not intend to be betrayed a third time."

    Ciaran walks in with Sif behind her, "Then you will die. As someone who''s led men in the past, I can see you are low on supplies, arms, men and even rest. I give you a couple weeks before you are too weak to defend against the monsters in the area."

    Iorveth grits his teeth, what she was saying is true, truth be told they were on their last legs... He didn''t even think they''d be able to defeat the Warband that was chasing them, having used most of their arrows shooting down Harpies a couple days before. He takes a look at his men in the trees, some shaking and in danger of fainting on the spot due to hunger and exhaustion.

    A low chuckle escapes his throat as he holds his face, "You would take us in Gwynbleidd?"

    Geralt shrugs with a neutral expression, not really knowing how to deal with this.

    Quelaag "It will be up to Reima and Solaire." she adds, saving Geralt the responsibility of making a decision on the matter.

    Iorveth looks down for a moment before finally adding, "Then, I will add my own condition. We will actively seek to free Saskia from Philippa Eilhart''s control, if you wish to truly create an equal place for all races, then prove it."

    Geralt "Saskia escaped her control years ago, you must''ve not heard."

    Iorveth continues, "Then we must find her, despite how long it''s been, she is still a beacon of hope for non-humans." he says, deciding to leave it at that.

 542 Elf Scarface

    By the time all the groups returned to Kaer Morhen it was evening, most had been successful with the exception of Lamberts that will have to head out again tomorrow to make sure the south is secure.

    Geralt''s group continued the expedition with Iorveth, giving the elf an appreciation for the combat strength of the small group. In his personal opinion, having a group of highly trained, experienced warriors who also have the capability of casting magic would rank these men among the strongest in the lands, no doubt rivaling even Nilfgaard''s most elite cavalry.

    However, not all was buttercups and daisies, as Reima found out when he got back to the sound of someone shouting.

    Roche "What!? Geralt you can''t be serious! He''s a brutal murderer who fought with Nilfgaard!" he shouts while pointing at Iorveth.

    Geralt "I agree with you Roche, but is he still allied with Nilfgaard? Is he fighting against Temeria? No."

    Roche grits his teeth, "All the lives he took cannot amount to nothing!"

    Iorveth "It is an absolute pleasure to see you here Vernon, please, give me a reason to finish the job." he says with his arms crossed.

    Geralt "You cannot claim to be innocent either Roche, the blue stripes weren''t known to be the most merciful group." he growls out.

    Ves "But, for what reason are you aiding him Geralt? Surely you have strength enough to not have to lower yourselves to..-to."

    Iorveth "Take in Elves? Take in us who fight for equality."

    Roch scoffs, "Equality? More like Elf superiority! If you were to rule you''d have all human''s treated like the Eternal Fire treats mages!"

    Reima walks into the courtyard with a confused expression, he raises a hand and greets them, "Yo."

    Quelaag "Reima, you''re back." she asks as everyone''s eyes turn to him.

    Reima rubs the back of his head, "Yeah... Did I miss something?"

    Quelaag shakes her head, "We need you and Solaire to make a decision."

    ...

    Reima sighs, "Alright..." He looks towards Geralt and Iorveth, "Er, mind introducing your buddy Geralt?"

    Iorveth "I can speak for myself." he states prideful, "I am Iorveth, former Vrihedd Brigade officer, and current leader of one of the last splinters of the Scoia''tael."

    ...

    Reima "The elf bandits?" he questions, confused as why this guy was even here.

    Iorveth sighs, "Yes... The "Elf Bandits"." he confirms.

    Reima "If you''re here to ask for something or threaten us then you''re sorely mistaken in your assumptions."

    Geralt "That''s not why he''s here, he is here to seek protection for he and his men."

    Quelaag "We should get Solaire, unless you wish to make this decision alone?"

    Reima shrugs, turn and shouts "JOLLY!" into the distance, not long after someone else shouts "JOLLY!" back, obviously being Solaire.

    Reima shouts it again with no response this time, only a lightning bolt striking the ground next to him, in its place was standing Solaire.

    Solaire "Do you need something my friend?"

    Reima "Yeah, you think we should let the elf join us?"

    Solaire shrugs, "If it''s for Jolly Cooperation then why not!?!"

    ...

    Roche looks angry a the decision they''re approaching but Reima has one condition before he''ll let the elf join.

    Reima "You can join us... But, you will need to drink this." he says as he presents a small vial.

    Iorveth''s nose wrinkles as he almost smacks it away, "And be beguiled like how Saskia was? Do you think me foolish Dh''oine?"

    Reima "Relax, it''s called Veritaserum... It''s a truth potion, I''ll prove it by drinking it with you." he says.

    Iorveth "You''d have me reveal my secrets? What then? Selling me and my men to the nearest country that''ll pay?"

    Reima''s brows furrow, "Look, this is my only condition apart from you following the rules. If you don''t want to accept then you can go off int the dragon mountains and be eaten for all I care." He looks at the Elves behind Iorveth, "Though, I doubt your men would make it that far."

    ...

    Iorveth "Fine. Give it here."

    Reima "Remember, only three drops or you might die..."

    ...

    Iorveth isn''t amused by Reima, assuming that his words were intended as a joke, he didn''t ignore his words either as death wasn''t something to be trifled with.

    Reima raises his hand and causes a stone chair to appear behind Iorveth, another behind himself as he sits down in-front of the elf, "What is your name?"

    Iorveth''s brows furrow as his mouth begins moving, "Iornith Aen Feinal."

    ...

    Zoltan "That''s some strong stuff! Forcing his true name out like that!" he exclaims in surprise, those in the know nodding at his words.

    Reima continues, "Do you intend harm to anyone in Kaer Morhen or nearby?"

    Iorveth "The Blue Stripes should they give a just reason." he states.

    Roche "Couldn''t do me in before, what makes you think you can now?"

    Iorveth looks at Roche, "For that reason alone. You''ve grown arrogant in your age" he says.

    Roche looks as if he wants to jump the Elf, though the opportunity to listen to what could useful information was too tempting to reject.

    Reima "What are your intentions towards our settlement." he asks, not really knowing what to call whatever they were currently building.

    Iorveth "Either gather supplies and have my men rest before leaving, or staying and making one last attempt for equality, possibly finding Saskia in the process." he states.

    Reima "Saskia?"

    Iorveth "The only being I truly believe could bring about change, her beauty only being matched by her skill in battle, her ideals staunch-" he continues on praising the woman, giving Reima a good idea about the Elves intentions towards wanting to find her.

    Reima "Alright, anyone got anything else they want to ask? Or is that everything?"

    Geralt "What were you doing out there in the forest?"

    Iorveth "Seeking refuge away from the forces that actively hunt us."

    Roche "What atrocities have you committed?"

    Iorveth "None. I fight to raise the Elven race above the lowly humans that''d eventually find reason to eradicate all other races, only then having themselves to fight."

    Roche "Bullshit."

    Solaire "Are you willing to participate in some Jolly Cooperation?" he says, semi-sarcastically.

    Iorveth "No." he states, making Reima chuckle.

    Once the questioning was over Reima walks over and has the elf drink the antidote, he''s quite perturbed that he actually gave his true name and was incredibly intrigued by the potion used, commenting that it''d be incredibly useful on the field.

 543 City Sim

    Thus the Scoia''tael were taken into the settlement, however, due to their notoriety, they were commanded to never refer to themselves as Scoia''tael. Iorveth was incredibly against this but when given the option to leave with his men, he relented and lowered his head. They were given some temporary accommodation among the Pyromancers and Prospects while the House Elves were told to keep an eye on them and to tell Reima or Solaire if they were doing anything hostile.

    Due to the Elves integration into their forces Vernon Roche was incredibly angry, though for some reason he didn''t leave with Ves. Instead electing to stay here for now instead of immediately going back to their camp near Oxenfurt

    The next day Lambert left for the south again with his group, determined to finish the expedition that day. While he was gone Reima was meeting with Risryn, Talem, Quelaag, Quelana, Solaire, Priscilla, Geralt, and Ciri. They were all picked to support their respective factions, even if some are incredibly close, almost fused even. The reason for this was due to important discussions needing to be had.

    They were in the war room inside Kaer Morhen and sat around a table, the topic currently being discussed was how there were actually going to construct the settlement, how it would be managed, who would do what and other miscellaneous things.

    Geralt "Hmm, I don''t understand why this is important, just make the streets large enough for two carts to pass and be done with it." he says with furrowed brows.

    Reima "It''s a good start but we need to make the streets large and uniform, it stops us having to demolish buildings if and when those living here get advanced enough.

    Ciri "I know what you''re getting at Reima but are you sure? It''ll probably take hundreds of years before this land develops vehicles like that."

    Quelaag "Why don''t you enlighten us as to what you are referring to?" she questions Ciri.

    Ciri scowls at the woman, "In the last world we travelled to, human''s had developed fantastic technologies that allowed them to fly or travel miles in an instant. What Reima intends is to facilitate their use as soon as they''re made by giving streets the proper parameters."

    Reima "I don''t think it will take that long, you don''t know this Ciri but I had... Gain in my possession a huge assortment of books detailing that worlds technology. Supposing that the people living here are smart and industrious I reckon that it won''t be long before they catch up to the other world."

    Talem "If what you say is true then it might the wishing choice, yes it would force us to spread housing out which might lead to other problems, but it would certainly encourage trade... That is, if we make ourselves known to the world."

    Geralt "I don''t think it would be a wise idea to do that any time soon, with Nilfgaard at the Northern Kingdoms throats, the latter will get desperate and look for an advantage anywhere they can reach. While you may dispute it, this land is still technically Kaedwenian."

    Reima "Right... What else needed to be discussed?" he asks while rubbing his forehead.

    Solaire "There is... A dispute among the Prospects and Pyromancers my friend, I''m afraid it''ll progress to blows if we leave or ignore it."

    ...

    Reima "What? I thought those guys were friendly with each other."

    Solaire nods, "They are, however when talks about creating a settlement started both groups started to speak about their lost societies. While the minority of them wish to forget their pasts, most want to preserve something from their homes."

    Quelaag nods, "Despite never having lived there, the Chaos Servants had admired and worshipped Izalith as it literally was a city of the gods to them. I and my sister''s relationship to it only increased their fervor, they wish to bring it''s ancient architecture back and use it while constructing the new settlement.

    Talem "It is the same with the Prospects, I find it strange that they would wish to recreate Raslan here, even as they were trapped within it for hundreds of years."

    Reima "Don''t both of those places basically look the same? Stone, carving, and that''s basically it." he shrugs.

    Quelana "We''re not really sure, none of us have seen the others cities after all."

    Reima scratches his face, "Right... Why don''t I just show you then?" he says, preparing to create a projection of his memories.

    He shows the scene of him and Solaire walking above the sea of lava through the raised platform, hundreds of headless mutated dragons below them. The scene changes as it focuses on the city ahead, large stone towers that were intricately carved with many inscriptions from the Izalithian language. Though the magnificent scene was marred by the desolate, decaying city melting inwards due to the Chaos Bed''s influence.

    Everyone not from Dark Souls look on in awe at the scene, Ciri included. It looked like something you''d read from a fairy tale.

    Talem "Is it entirely underground?" he asks after managing to regain his composure.

    Quelaag nods, "Mother built it far away from everything else due to her fear that her experiments would.. Well, lead to this... A city of Demons."

    Solaire "It''s an apt description, being cooked inside my own armour was possibly the most painful experience to date." he states, causing the others to give him a grim look.

    Reima chuckles, "Yeah, it wasn''t nice pulling the hot metal away from your melting skin either buddy."

    Solaire nods, "Only true comrades would do such a thing my friend!"

    Geralt gives Ciri a weary look, asking her with his eyes if she''s as mad as everyone else in this room."

    Ciri shrugs, never having heard of this story from Reima before.

 544 Lovers Spa

    Reima keeps the Projection of Izalith while he conjures another, this time of his time in Raslan, the destroyed city in the sunlight, the forest slowly overtaking it as the Tower of Adal sits in the background. One noticeable thing was the lumbering Prospects in the picture, giving off a despairing feeling.

    Ciri "So this is what your home was like?"

    Risryn nods, "It was used as a training ground to train Prospects into Absolvers, using them as an unbeatable task force and becoming the world''s most powerful organisation."

    Talem "We were lucky to escape them, Reima saved us."

    Reima shrugs, "The Guides are all douchebags anyway, I''m also pretty sure that world is going to end eventually as well."

    Geralt "Hmm, why is it most worlds you enter end up destroyed?"

    Reima "It''s a fluke, I swear... Plus the last world we went to is fine."

    Geralt "You sure?" he asks, Reima isn''t really sure if he''s joking or not.

    Reima nods regardless, "Yeah, no way they''re going anywhere. There isn''t a supernatural force causing time to loop or an evil organisation harvesting materials that''ll result in the world destruction either..."

    Solaire "I think we may be straying from the subject at hand..."

    Reima "Right... I was going to suggest just combining the architecture and being done with it, I kind of wanted to design a modern city but it''s up to you guys."

    Geralt "Hmm, one thing you all need to keep in mind is this is the north, it gets incredibly cold at winter and those buildings all were either in tropical regions or literally surrounded by lava. The open stone buildings would have regular people freezing to death." he states, making the dispute pretty pointless now.

    Reima "I think using stone for the buildings isn''t a bad idea, just the design of the buildings would have to be changed. While wood is readily available it isn''t as abundant as stone is, especially after my attack during the fight with the Wild Hunt and the fact that Kaer Morhen is build partly inside a mountain... Any other problems that may arise from that could probably be fixed with runes.

    Talem "Runes?"

    Reima "A type of magic that allows you to create inscriptions that do certain things, for instance I could create one that produces light or heat."

    Talem nods, "Ah, that sounds incredibly versatile."

    Reima "It is, to be honest, I don''t think there are any limits to it.

    Quelana "So we will be starting construction with stone?"

    Reima nods, "That and everything else we''ve spoken about seems like a good start, we can discuss everything else at a later time. Though one last thing I''d like to add is the buildings can be very tall, especially if they''re stone. This will limit the amount of land we have to use for housing... Oh! And one last thing, Geralt you said that the Bastion west of here was haunted but you cleared it?"

    Geralt nods, "Hmm, yeah. Why?"

    Reima "I was just thinking we could get the House Elves to fix it and make it functional again, stationing a few Prospects inside would let us keep an eye on the area."

    Geralt nods, "Yeah, it might take a while though, it''s condition is worse than Kaer Morhen''s was. Not to mention your attack must''ve melted the outside walls."

    Reima shrugs, "It''s fine, Hinky!"

    Hinky pops next to him, their bulbous eyes looking up at him expectantly, "Yes master!"

    Reima "See if you can start repairs on the Bastion west of here, also get a couple House Elves to assist everyone else with the construction of the settlement, they''ll be needing the stone and other materials you have in the bottomless box."

    Hinky nods, "Yes master!" they exclaim as they disappear.

    Reima "Right, that should be everything for now, I think... Unless someone wants to discuss Iorveth or something else?

    Geralt shakes his head and gets up to leave, along with everyone else.

    Quelaag scuttled towards Reima while Ciri watches her from the corner of her eye. "Ahem, Reima, would you like to have a meal together?"

    Reima "Yea-"

    Ciri walks over and grabs his arm, "Sorry but we''ve got something planned, maybe he''ll have time next week." she says as she teleports him and herself to the kitchen in Kaer Morhen.

    Reima is momentarily confused at her bold actions but realises she must be jealous or something similar. "What was that for?" he asks.

    Ciri "What''s your relationship with her?... And every other woman you''ve managed to seduce in other worlds." she interrogates.

    Reima "We''re close friends, why? You got a problem with my relationships now?"

    Ciri frowns, "I''ve got a problem with tramps dribbling over you."

    Reima crosses his arms, "Why though? I thought you weren''t interested?"

    Ciri "I never said that!" she quickly retorts.

    Reima "Well it''s pretty clear, you said you didn''t want to enter a relationship until the Wild Hunt was dealt with. Where are those Douchy elves now?"

    Ciri "We beat them but they''re not gone for good yet!"

    Reima "Seems awfully convenient, doesn''t it? If you don''t want to pursue a relationship with me then just say it Ciri, I''ll turn my attention elsewhere."

    Ciri growls at him, "It isn''t just the hunt! Don''t talk like you haven''t heard of the prophecy!"

    Reima "I have, but why would that contribute to your decision." he presses.

    Ciri "It affects all of my decisions. The fact that I have no idea whether I''ll live through it or not is always sitting in the back of my head, the thought never leaving!"

    Reima "Are you stupid? I told you before, it involves both of us and so we will both deal with it."

    Ciri "It is my responsibility!"

    Reima "Is what Avallac''h probably told you."

    Ciri "You don''t understand."

    Reima "I do, you just don''t want me to understand!"

    Ciri "FINE!" she shouts before teleporting away, the furious expression never leaving her face.

    Reima "YEAH? WELL, FINE!" he shouts as she leaves.

    ...

    *Pitter* *Patter* *Pitter *Patter*

    The young figure of Nerissa runs into the room, her bare feet slapping against the floor. She grabs his arms and looks up at him, "Hungry." she states, not bothering to comment at how angry he looks.

    Reima''s features soften and he sighs, "Yeah, yeah. Give me a sec to get it." he says after taking a deep breath, deciding to think about what to do with Ciri another time.

 545 Witcher Therapy?

    Geralt walks out of Kaer Morhen with a frown on his face, he had planned to meet with Ciri and walk around the lake but she never showed. He''d look around inside the keep but found no trace of her. He decides that if she was going to be anywhere then it wouldn''t be inside, he steps out onto the courtyard and spots a small figure sitting on the wall and looking towards the valley.

    Making his way up he slowly sits next to her, his legs hanging off the wall next to hers. "Beautiful day."

    ...

    Geralt "Hmm, any reason you didn''t show up earlier?" he probes.

    Ciri "I didn''t feel like it." she says simply, resting her chin in her hands.

    Geralt "Coulda told me that before I started looking for you... What''s bothering you?"

    Ciri shakes her head at his question, "Nothing."

    Geralt "I''ve known you long enough to tell when you''re bothered by something... And have I ever given you bad advice?"

    ...

    Ciri "It''s about the Prophecy, the White Frost." she mutters.

    Geralt scratches his beard, "What about it?"

    Ciri "It refers to me, "Swallow"... But Reima also possesses the Elder Blood, I don''t know what that means."

    Geralt "Always been a fool''s game, trying to interpret Prophecies Ciri."

    Ciri "I know, but during my time with Avallac''h I''d learned a lot about it. He always made sure I knew I was the last of the Elder Blood, he seemed sure of it. But how then would he explain Reima''s existence?"

    Geralt "You shouldn''t trust his words, if he were all that powerful and intelligent he wouldn''t be dead now, would he?"

    Ciri "I can''t just do nothing, the world is ending and I may be the only one who can stop it."

    Geralt "I understand your worries, but overthinking it will cause nothing but grief. Let Yennefer transcribe the Sage''s journal and then we will see what we can decipher from it."

    Ciri nods but doesn''t move, still letting her legs dangle over the wall.

    Geralt "Hmm, is there something else?"

    Ciri "What? No! Of course not."

    ...

    Geralt "Clearly." He states, still not releasing her from his gaze.

    ...

    Ciri sighs, "Ok... Suppose that I am interested in someone."

    Geralt''s lips upturn, "Hmm, I''m not sure I''m the best at relationship advice Ciri. Almost ruined what I had with Yen so many times I can''t recall them all."

    Ciri snorts, "If anyone could give advice on my troubles it''d be you."

    Geralt shrugs and looks forward at the valley, "Fine, I''m all ears."

    Ciri "Suppose I am interested in someone, this person is surrounded by women who love and adore them, almost to a creepy extent... The person and I are already attracted to each other but I am... Not ready to accept them."

    Geralt "Why?" he asks, trying to figure out who she''s referring to.

    Ciri "The Wild Hunt hasn''t been destroyed and are probably still looking for ways to capture me, I need to be ready when they try."

    Geralt "That''s not the whole story." he states, not letting her leave out the details.

    Ciri frowns, "I, I also worry about the future... I am not sure whether to not the Prophecy will require my sacrifice to stop the White Frost..."

    Geralt scowls, "That''s idiotic-"

    Ciri "-Just, listen. If that was to be true, then I wouldn''t want to harm them with my death."

    ...

    Geralt "I feel as though you are making excuses Ciri, if you truly wished to be with this person then wouldn''t you want to make the most of what time you do have? And that''s assuming you will die, which I will definitely not let happen."

    Ciri "I am not making excuses."

    Geralt "Hmm, sometimes I feel like I know you better than yourself. Take some distance to the person you''re referring to and think about the relationship you want with them, if you truly want to be with them then work up the courage to say it, if not then let them enjoy their life. These excuses you keep making up will only leave them and yourself troubled, not to mention resentful."

    Ciri frowns at the idea, taking some time away from Reima would mean that the other girls would take advantage... She was sure the reasons she gave were valid, but maybe Geralt was right? Maybe she was making excuses?

    Geralt begins getting up as the sun peeks out from behind the clouds, lighting up the valley in a beautiful scene. "Wanna go for that walk?" he asks her.

    ...

    Ciri nods after a moment, deciding that she needed to move her legs, plus the weather would only be like this for a while longer as winter would be here eventually. "Yeah... Sure."

    Elsewhere :

    Atop a large tower is a cell, the room with small holes allowing the cold blizzard air into it, making the Prisoner inside incredibly uncomfortable. The only thing inside his cell that kept them freezing to death was a jagged rock that seemed to always be hot, he couldn''t move it and instead opted to hug it constantly to prevent himself from getting too cold.

    He shivered constantly as the only people he ever saw were small long-eared grey-skinned creatures that''d give him some disgusting meat to consume, the meal barely even filling him.

    "P-P-P-P-PLEASE! LET ME OUT! SOMEONE!"

    *POP!*

    The sound causes the prisoner to jump backwards, landing hard on his side on the hard, cold, stone floor.

    Hinky "Prisoner will stay here until master says otherwise!"

    "Who is your master!" he exclaims, over to be jabbed in the chest by a long stick that the House Elf was holding.

    Hinky "Do not speak of Master! And stop shouting! You disturbing the Unicorns!"

    "Unicorns? This-This is madness!"

    *Jab*

 546 You know what they say? Big Hat, Big Stack.

    It''s been a couple of days since the expeditions had cleared the land, Reima walks through a stone road admiring the half-built stone structures being erected around him. Elves, Prospects and Pyromancers worked together to create houses, however, none of that compared to one thing he spots on the road... Connected to the sidewalk that he requested to be built on every road was... A storm drain. Luckily there was no clown inside it, but what it meant was there was some rudimentary water system already in place...

    Reima "Hinky?"

    Hinky pops in, "Yes master!?!"

    Reima points at the storm drain, "What''s that?"

    Hinky looks at it and smiles happily, "It is a rain to river travel!"

    ...

    Reima "A what?" he asks, confused at it''s name.

    Hinky "It diverts water to the river!"

    Reima "Yeah, I guess that, but why is it called-Oh... Hinky, I''d like to change it''s name to "Storm Drain", is that ok?"

    Hinky nods happily, "Yes master!"

    Reima "So, how is construction going?"

    Hinky "Roads is built, now is the buildingses."

    Reima nods and continues to walk, taking a right on the road towards an area just below the western wall of Kaer Morhen. Stopping at a huge foundation for a building bigger than all the others near it. "Hmm, I was expecting this to be a priority to be honest..."

    Hinky "We is sorry, but bottomless box is being used by everyone..."

    Reima "Right..." he then rolls up his sleeves, "Well, this library ain''t gonna build itself, how are we going to go about this?" he asks, the elf having more knowledge at building than he does.

    Thus, he spent most of the day helping the House Elves build the Library. Kuretz and at few others came to help which sped up the process but overall it was a large timeconsuming project.

    However with everyone''s help it only took a couple of days to complete, once done the building was finished it was around 7 stories tall, it was almost completely made from stone with the exception of some gold accents on the corners and Izalithian inscriptions carved into it. Reima wasn''t really bothered by that due to the sheer amount of gold he had in his Folded Space, he felt like he could probably create the city of Eldorado and still have too much gold...

    Regardless the stone building had a large entrance fit for two huge doors that would allow anyone of any size (Within reason) to enter, as well as a few other exits. Additionally, he enchanted a few large glass panes with the "Unbreakable charm" before having them fitted, the charm would make breaking it as difficult as cracking stone, which should keep the contents of the building protected.

    Once that was done the room was fitted with many, many stone bookshelves. So many that they covered the walls, truth be told Reima was organising this place to look similar to the Dukes archive, balconies allow access to books too high for regular ladders to access. Once that was done he had large sturdy stairs fitted that led to the top floor, a floor only accessible to certain people due to the contents he''d be storing in here.

    The contents would mainly be information about nuclear bombs, along with their history, Dark Magics that could lead to the user becoming crippled or even killed, Necromancy, Ritual Magic, soul magic and sorceries. Of course, he made sure to copy every book just in case of the unlikely event of a fire breaking out... Which wouldn''t really be possible since the whole building and bookshelves are made from stone...

    The main reason he wanted to set up the Library as soon as possible was to allow the Prospects, Chaos Servants and anyone else to expand their knowledge, the advanced science of the Harry Potter world would allow many things to be created and he had no doubt that ancient people who''d lived for centuries would be incredibly happy to learn something new.

    Of course, after it was finally built that left one thing... The need for a Librarian, but Reima knew just the people for the job...

    *Knock, Knock, Knock, Knock!*

    Logan "C-come in!" they exclaim in a weak voice.

    Reima walks in but stops as his eyes look at Logan carrying a huge pile of books, the old man shaking as he barely hold them up. "Er, what are you doing?"

    Griggs walks out from another room, "Master Logan wished to increase his strength and decided that books were the answer to everything... Literally... I''ve been trying to get him to stop for a couple of days now." he says with a sigh.

    Logan "Be quiet apprentice! Don''t you see the genius in my actions? If books could be used to increase your intelligence and expand your mind, then why couldn''t they be used to increase your strength!?!" he says, his knees now beginning to shake.

    Reima "Well... I have a book explaining the biology of muscles and the complete anatomy of humans, I''m sure not even Seath would know of these secrets." he says casually, causing Logan to fall backwards and drop the stack of books.

    Logan "You must allow me to read this book you speak of Reima!"

    Reima shrugs, "I don''t know, all of my books have been stored within the new Library that''d been constructed... Alas I need someone to take care of the-"

    Logan "We will do it!... Ahem.. My apprentice and I would be glad to assist you."

    Griggs "But mast-"

    Logan glares at him, stopping him mid-sentence.

    Reima claps his hands, "That''s great, however you''ll have to follow a few rules if that''s ok?"

    Logan nods his head, "Of course, a place of learning must be strict."

    Reima "Then pack your stuff, I don''t think either of you will mind living next to the Library right?" he asks.

    Griggs sighs, "No, I don''t suppose not. Though all that time spent within the Pale Dragon''s archives has given me a distaste for Crystals."

    Reima "Then it''s good because the only thing inside the Library are stone, paper and gold." he states, waiting for them to finish packing up their stuff and teleporting them inside the library.

 547 A Patriot.

    One day while Reima was meditating on his usual balcony a bird flies off and lands next to him, it''s head twitching to the side while it blinks rapidly at him.

    Reima sighs and opens his eyes, "Whaddya want?" he mutters to the bird, which hops towards him, only now revealing the small scroll tied to its leg.

    ...

    Reima "Didn''t know people used birds as messengers in this world..." he wonders aloud as he takes it from the bird, the creature immediately flying away once it''s freed of its burden.

    Deciding to open it and check what kind of information is going to and fro from Kaer Morhen, Reima unwraps it and takes a peek.

    "To V\u0026V.R

    The butter is ready to be churned, it has been procured from the finest farmer in the land. Foreign farmers intend to inquire of our farming techniques and thus we must send them our cattle in an attempt to placate them."

    This is the only legible part of the letter, the rest seems to be in some sort of foreign language that Reima can''t even begin to guess where it''s from... Though, inside Kaer Morhen there are only two people with those initials. Ves \u0026 Vernon Roche.

    Reima reluctantly gets up and steps off of the balcony, landing gracefully and without a sound before heading towards the lowest courtyard where Roche and Ves usually trained their swordsmanship.

    ...

    Once there he finds no one but a couple of Prospects and Pyreblades sparring, Reima takes a moment to admire their moves and incredibly different combat styles. Obviously, without Pyromancies the Pyreblades were outmatched by the vastly more skillful Prospects. Finally they spot him watching and greet, "JOLLY!"

    ...

    Reima waves with a troubled smile, "Jolly...." and quickly retreats to try and find Ves and Roche. After a while of looking he eventually finds them in the Library, specifically the section that involves weaponry... Vernon and Ves have stacks of books piled next to them as they talk and deliberate about how certain weapons would work, they were especially interested in Firearms and missiles...

    Reima coughs into his fist, "Ahem."

    They both glance at him before nodding, "Morning Reima. Do you need us for something?"

    Reima "Yes, but first I''d like to know what you think of my Library?"

    Ves "It''s incredible, I never knew such technology existed."

    Roche nods, "If we were to utilise even a fraction of it we could easily destroy Nilfgaard... Though, this does bring int question why you don''t just conquer the known world Reima. You have power, men, weaponry... A huge fucking dragon!"

    Reima shrugs, "I''m not interested in ruling, the only reason I''m in charge of this... Settlement, is because my friends wished for it."

    Roche looks him hard in the face, "Then you are a better man than most, not many would turn down an opportunity like this."

    Reima takes a seat opposite them, "So, I received a letter penned to V\u0026V.R, any idea who it might mean?" he asks sarcastically, analysing their reactions to see if they are shocked, angry, fearful or anything else that might indicate the contents.

    Ves gives Roche a relieved look, "I told you we''d spent too long here, how was the bird supposed to find us inside?"

    Roche "It''s fine, at least it delivered the message. May I see it Reima?"

    Reima nods and hands it over, "Something about churning butter..." he says with a chuckle, however his words make the two tense up.

    Roche quickly opens and skims it with his eyes, "Damn." he says.

    Ves "What is it?" she asks with concern.

    Roche "Nilfgaard are moving a few small groups into Crookback bog, likely making a play to take Oxenfurt or Novigrad." he looks at Reima, "I hope this information stays-What?"

    Reima had burst out laughing as soon as he heard the words "Nilfgaard into Crookback bog", the idea that heavily armoured troops would be able to make it through that place without first burning it to the ground is incredibly funny to him. "PFFT! CROOKBACK BOG!?! Are they mad!"

    Roche frowns, "I don''t think you realise the brevity of the situation Reima, this could mean full out frontal warfare soon."

    Reima shakes his head "No, no no no... It''s you who doesn''t know Roche, Crookback bog is inhabited by powerful beings known as the Crones. They control all the monsters inside it and probably most of Velen, if Nilfgaard hasn''t got an army of Witchers then they''re fucked!"

    Ves "Is this information accurate?" she asks, a relieved expression bleeding through her neutral mask.

    Reima nods, "Well, as long as you trust Geralt then yeah."

    Roche crosses his arms and nods, "I see... Well, regardless we will need to leave and make sure the Redanians know of this information. We will leave tomorrow at dawn." he states.

    Reima "Thank you both for your help against the Wild Hunt, I know Geralt appreciates it greatly, as do I."

    Ves "It was nothing, if there is anything you all need then please let us know."

    Reima shakes his head, "No, I should be saying the same for you both. If you need anything just say the word." he says, however once he does the duo have an awkward expression.

    ...

    Roche "Well... If you really wish to help us... Before I ask I''d like to hear your opinion on Temeria?"

    Reima "It used to be a rich and powerful country, though even now after it''s subjugation by Nilfgaard it remains as racist as ever." he states, not really feeling anything for a country who''s peoples hated him for being a Witcher.

    Roche nods slowly, "I see, well... What would you say to using your might to push back the Empire and securing a free Temeria with us?" he broaches.

    Reima shrugs, "It would be hard to justify, not only because of how many people would need to die, but because of how Radovid is creating the North, allowing the Eternal Fire to pick up in popularity. Supposing I did help you free Temeria, what assurances would I have that it wouldn''t immediately be captured by Nilfgaard again, or taken over by the Eternal Fire... Or Redania for that matter."

    ...

    Roche stays silent, he was among the few surviving Temerian soldiers, they wouldn''t be able to hold the country should Reima hand it back to them on a silver platter. He also wouldn''t be surprised if Radovid did take it over afterwards for his own goals as well, he''d also likely command Reima to fight for the North due to Kaer Morhen technically residing in Kaedwen. "Nevermind, I am sorry to ask such a question of you. I do hope that when the time comes, we will be able count on your support though."

    Reima nods, "As long as it doesn''t involve me getting heavily involved in politics, then sure. If you ever need a monster dead then give me a call though." he says with a thumbs up.

 548 Pyromaniac meets Pyromancers

    Triss had stayed in Kaer Morhen for a while now, disregarding her duties to Kovir for a chance to learn the new magic that was used during the battle against the Wild Hunt by those "Pyromancers". She considered herself the most versed in the usage of fire magic but seeing some of the spells they used, especially the final cast by Geralt''s long lost apprentice had her itching to learn.

    As a result, she found herself at the top floor of the new library that had been constructed, to be honest, she found it incredible and one of the largest and most diverse collections of books in the world. The stone book-shelves were a requirement in her eyes as any damage to this place would be a loss to humanity itself. Fortunately she and a few others were allowed into the "Restricted" area, apparently some of the magic held in it was outright dangerous to everyone around it, of course there were others that were especially powerful and needed to be kept secret as almost anyone was allowed access to the lower floors.

    She found herself wary of the librarians however, the old man wearing a huge hat along with his apprentice gave off an odd feeling, though their strange actions could be attributing to this.

    Regardless she prowled around the huge selection of books and tomes in the top floor looking for the specific magics used by the Pyromancers, she had tried to get the woman Quelana to teach her but it was apparently a "Family Secret", this wasn''t weird to her as many Sorceresses and magical lines kept spells and techniques hidden... It did make her somewhat confused though as every single one of those "Chaos Servants" seemed capable of it, to a high degree as well.

    Regular magic didn''t work that way, you were either gifted in it or not. To have such a large number of capable mages was truly an impressive sight, one that could have only been matched by Aretuza or one of the other prominent colleges in their prime.

    There was one problem to her learning this magic though... There were no books on the subject within the Library... She''d scoured every evil looking book on rituals, necromancy and soul magic and none even hinted at "Pyromancy".

    She sighs to herself and slumps in her seat, Griggs who''s sitting in a cushioned stone chair nearby with his feet up noticing her having trouble.

    Griggs "Is there a problem Milady?" he asks as politely as possible, as per instructions from his master to be a "Good Librarian".

    Triss nods, "I''ve been looking for information on the magic those Chaos Servants had been using, but no books here do anything more than hint at it''s existence." she complains.

    Griggs "Ah, why did you not simply ask? I''m no expert in the matter but I''ve had enough run in''s and conversations with people using it to have a basic idea."

    Triss "Forgive me but, you and your master aren''t the most approachable people..." she says with a apologetic smile.

    Griggs "Yes... It seems that our time spent in the Dukes Archives have done a number on our sanity, but, at least we haven''t gone hollow..." he shakes his head, "Anyway, regarding your query, the magic you seek is called Pyromancy. It was created by the Witch of Izalith, lady Quelaag, Quelana and Quelina''s mother, who also happened to be... What you may refer to as the God of Chaos."

    ...

    Triss "God of Chaos?" she asks, not really believing him. Gods should be omnipotent in her eyes, and while yes Solaire and Reima were extraordinarily powerful it didn''t mean they were gods."

    Griggs "It''s just what they''re called, people who worshipped her were granted a Pyromancy flame and ways to train it, of course, most had their souls burned to nothingness due to how skillful you needed to be to truly master it. From what I heard the only people who survived receiving a Pyromancy Flame from the Witch of Izalith were her own daughters."

    Triss "That is interesting, but it does not tell me what a "Pyromancy Flame" is..."

    Griggs shrugs, "I believe it''s some sort of manifestation of your soul... Though I have no idea what it specifically entails. Personally I think lighting your soul on fire is a truly foolish action, though it seems to have made the Chaos Servants a powerful faction in their own right."

    Triss "Hmmm, and what of your magic? It seems you regard it as superior?" she asks.

    Griggs nods, "While it takes a significantly longer amount of time to learn, it doesn''t require you to endanger your life by igniting your soul. Sorceries are simply practical soul magic that utilise mana and your soul in-tandem. Though if you have more abstract questions about it you should ask my master or lady Dusk as they have truly mastered their respective crafts."

    Triss "What''s the difference between your master and Dusk?" she asks.

    Griggs "Lady Dusk utilises the ancient magics of Ooalicile, a forgotten place that strayed from the Pale Dragons teachings and used magic is unconventional ways, from what I''ve personally seen she can manipulate light to turn invisible or even produce light, something that was thought impossible."

    Triss "And your master?"

    Griggs nods, seemingly excited to talk about Logan and his teachings. "Master Logan specialises in Crystal Magics, ah-eh, essentially a kind of incredibly compressed mana... Think of it like the water to ice version of mana. It is almost impossible to achieve this state but through formulae designed by the Pale Dragon he was able to achieve it, and even start designing spells based around it."

    Triss "Hmm, and what of this "Pale Dragon" you keep referring to?"

    Griggs "Oh? I''d thought you would have read about him in one of those tomes?... Well, the Pale Dragon is the originator of all Sorceries. I''ll not bore you with the history of it but suffice to say all of the magic from our world were created by the Gods themselves.

    Triss nods and stands up, "Thank you for the information... I still wish to learn Pyromancy though... If you wished to learn Pyromancy and weren''t in the Chaos Servant''s inner circle, who would you ask?" she says to him with a smile.

    Griggs doesn''t even react to her sensual gaze and just falls silent to think for a moment, "Hmm, Quelaag and Quelana are... Stern and confident women, perhaps asking Quelina would give better results?"

    Triss nods and leaves, seeking her next target for information about the strange magic.

 549 Draggen up a mountain.

    Reima had taken a break from helping with the construction for a day, deciding that he might as well enjoy having everyone present and happy. As such he invited Priscilla, Solaire, Quelaag, Quelana, Quelina

    Unfortunately, it seemed as though almost everyone had a prior arrangement, from doing drills with the Chaos Servants, Constructing, taking care of the mentally unstable Prospects, or scouting the perimeter of the settlement to make sure no monsters slipped past their expeditions.

    Thus the only people participating were Quelaag and Priscilla. It didn''t really bother Reima as he enjoyed spending time with them, even if he hadn''t had the chance due to how busy he''d been, and now that Ciri was taking a step back from whatever their relationship was he felt more comfortable in general.

    The trio met where the stone road of the settlement ended, the mountain path becoming dirt and rocks for the rest of the journey.

    Reima "You guys ready to go?"

    Quelaag nods, "Yes, this''ll be the first time I''m going to see a true dragon up close. Plus it''s been a long time since we both spent some time together." she says with a smile.

    Priscilla smiles at the two, Carimir sitting in between her breasts with a lazy expression on its face. "I wonder if it''s my uncle? Do either of you know if my father had relatives?" she asks with an excited expression.

    Reima shrugs, "Not that I''m aware of, to be honest, I''m unsure if dragons procreate like a normal species anyway..."

    Priscilla gives him a confused look, "Then how did my mother give birth to me?"

    Reima snorts, "Maybe she laid an egg?"

    This has the trio laughing as they begin to make their way up the path, it was a windy morning which made it much more perilous than it usually would be, though everyone present could easily take over a large city in this world.

    Quelaag and Reima spoke the most, talking about what they''d been doing while they were separated as Priscilla listens to them. The half-breed occasionally chipping in, though she quickly got bored and started having fun by shapeshifting to different sizes and jumping to different parts of the mountain path

    After an hour or two of walking they reach the top of the mountain, only now needing to follow the ridge towards where the Everlasting Dragon is resting. However as they walk Quelaag stops abruptly, holding her chest with a confused expression on her face.

    Reima walks up and asks "Are you alright?" with a concerned expression, never having seen her act like this before.

    Quelaag stays there momentarily, holding her hand out and creating a small red fire on her palm. She shakes her head and look at him, "It''s strange... This area, I mean. It feels as though my flame is stronger, more easily controlled."

    ...

    Reima looks at her hand, watching what seems like many miniature Chaos Whips being manifest and performing delicate actions. "Hmm, I think I know what might be causing this..."

    Quelaag looks at him, "Really? Show me." she asks with interest.

    Reima nods and begins to walk slightly off of the ridge, down an incline which begins climbing again, eventually they reach a stone that glows a dim red, the Igni sign carved into it.

    Quelaag "Yes, this is it. I can feel it."

    Reima "This is a "Place of Power", one that Geralt used to take me to train as it happens." he says with his arms crossed.

    Quelaag "This is incredible... Really, I''ve never seen anything like it." she mutters, scuttling around it to see if there is anything else to it.

    Priscilla "I don''t feel anything." she says, slightly sad that she''s not involved in whatever they''re experiencing.

    Reima "Probably because It''s an Igni, or fire, Place of Power. Unfortunately the stone is just a conduit and isn''t able to be moved, if you try you''ll probably disrupt the flow and destroy it."

    Quelaag nods thoughtfully, "Indeed. Unfortunate."

    Reima "Right, let''s go meet that old guy."

    The others nod and they backtrack to the ridge and make their way over to the slumbering dragon, Priscilla happily skips over and starts patting on its foot to gain its attention but the Dragon doesn''t move.

    Reima "Yo, old man! Move your ass!" he shouts at the dragon who''s sleeping upright.

    The ground begins to rumble as the dragon starts moving, as it does fragments of stone fall from its body and clink against the rocky ground below. "Shouting will not increase your size young wrym." it states in a tired voice.

    Priscilla "I didn''t shout!" she complains.

    The dragon leans it''s head down and looks at the trio, "I did not mean you pale one."

    ...

    Reima crosses his arms in annoyance, people bringing up the size of his Animagus transformation for some reason irritates him more than most things, "Size isn''t everything."

    The ancient dragon blinks slowly at him a couple of times before replying, "For a Dragon it is."

    Quelaag "Reima what are you talking about? Last I checked you weren''t a dragon... Does this involve that peculiar Dragon cult I''d heard about?"

    ...

    Reima shrugs, "Kinda? But not really, in another world I learned how to transform into a dragon."

    Priscilla looks at him with shining eyes, "Really? Can I learn it?"

    Reima rubs his chin, "Er, I don''t know... Maybe? Though if you ever want to try it you need to speak to me first, transforming can be incredibly dangerous without supervision."

    Quelaag looks at him with interest, "Does the transformation have to only be for Dragons?"

    Reima shakes his head, "No, you could probably become anything... I left a copy of the book in the restricted section of the library."

    Priscilla nods and look at the ancient dragon, "Do you know me?"

    The ancient dragon''s eyes flick to her, it''s rumbling voice following soon after, "Indeed, you are the spawn of the traitor that led to the downfall of our kind."

 550 Spies Demise

    Priscilla frowns and stares into the dragon''s eye. "Does that mean you hate me?" she asks.

    The ancient dragon slowly blinks again, it''s slit pupil focusing on her, "No... The sins of the parent don''t belong to the child. You. Are the last of my family, I wish to keep you, and my lineage safe." it states, though Reima couldn''t extract any emotion from its words.

    Priscilla nods, becoming silent for a moment before finally asking. "Do you have a name?"

    ...

    "Eeuwigdurend was what they called me."

    Reima "Erwigdurend?" he mutters, trying to pronounce it properly.

    Quelaag "Who''s they?"

    Eeuwigdurend "The humans. We dragons don''t use names unless we interact with mortals, the Pale One being called Seath by the small god because of his "Seething Rage" towards us... Even now it amuses me."

    Reima "Yeah, sounds like the edgiest dragon that had ever lived." he says sarcastically.

    Priscilla "Do you like it here?" she asks, interested to hear what the dragon thinks of this world.

    The dragon nods, "The air is clean, the world fresh. These mountains remind me of the ancient times humans did not exist. I feel warmth on this peak."

    Quelaag "Must be that Place of Power, I still feel it from here."

    The group continues to talk with the dragon until it gets tired of their presence for the day, it sends them off but not before telling Priscilla that she''s free to visit him any time she wishes. She happily accepts and skips down the mountain with Quelaag and Reima, the smile on her face never leaving.

    Reima "What did you think of the old man?" he asks Quelaag.

    Quelaag "There isn''t much to say, he''s old, powerful and lazy."

    Reima nods, "Yeah, to be honest, I find it hard to distinguish him from a statue..."

    Quelaag laughs, "Yes, I''m sure most would."

    The group reaches the settlement and Reima thanks them for accompanying him, "We should do this again."

    Priscilla nods, "Eeuwigdurend would get lonely if we didn''t visit him." she says and skips away, probably to tell Solaire about what the dragon had said.

    Quelaag turns to him and smiles, "Doing this again would be nice... Maybe just the two of us next time?" she says while she rests her hands on her spider lower-half.

    Reima nods, "Sounds good." he says and she scuttles off with a blush, taking glances at him as she does so.

    He''s left alone after they both leave, he still has a couple things to do today but he should probably start with the most pressing...

    *Flash!*

    Reima teleports to the Painted World, specifically to the only tower currently holding a prisoner.

    The man is currently shivering while hugging the warm rock he''d previously enchanted, when he sees Reima he quickly gets up and almost throws himself at the bars. "P-please! Let me out! I''ll freeze in here!"

    Reima "Hmm, I think you''ve got the situation twisted... You are my prisoner, I''m the one who makes demands. Got it?" he says with a glare, the man crumbles to his knees in a mixture of exhaustion, fear and desperation.

    "Yes."

    Reima "Great. I''ll just tell you straight off the bat, if you lie to me, you die. Cool?"

    The man shivers and slower nods.

    Reima "First, what''s your name?"

    "Krundi Hasro." he says after a moment.

    Reima nods, "Mmm hmm... And your real name?"

    ...

    "Krundi Hasro." he repeats after a moment.

    Reima "Ok, Krundi... What were you doing so close to the mountains? Wanting to commit suicide? Because I''ll tell you right now, the monsters wouldn''t have granted a swift death."

    Krundi "I got lost, the same I told to your companions."

    Reima shrugs, "Yeah, it seems no one tells me anything nowadays." he says with a fake sigh.

    Krundi "Yes, they kept speaking of rebelling against those who ruled them."

    Reima looks at him with interest, "Oh? It seems I need to crack a few heads."

    Krundi nods rapidly, "I can help you if you let me out!"

    Reima snorts, "Man, what a brave peasant, offering advice on subterfuge and punishment? Alright, I''ve had enough of this farce." he says as he raises his hand and uses telekinesis on the man, forcing his face against the bars as he retrieves a small vial of Veritaserum. Krundi struggles and whimpers as he mouth is painfully pried open to allow the liquid to stream down his throat.

    Reima releases his hold on the man once he''s sure the serum has been ingested, "Remember what I said at the start? If you lie to me you die? Well, let''s just see how truthful you were... What''s your real name?"

    "Krundi" struggles and tries to keep his mouth shut, only for Reima to telekinetically break one of the man''s fingers. He gasps and a few words slip out... "Florentijn"

    Reima "Hmm, Florentjin? Doesn''t sound like your from around Kaedwen now, does it?"

    Florentijn begins to tear up, "Please, I was-They made-I didn''t-" every time he tried to speak an explanation he found his brain unable to finish the thought.

    Reima "Why are you here?"

    Florentijn "You captured me."

    Reima shakes his head in annoyance, "What were you doing so close to Kaer Morhen?"

    Florentijn "Mansfeld commanded me to-" his hands go to his throat and cut his words off, a disbelieving and shocked expression on his face.

    Reima examines his nail, "Uh huh, who''s Mansfeld?"

    Florentijn "The ruler of Kaedwen."

    Reima "Hmm, what would Kaedwen want with Kaer Morhen?"

    Florentijn has tears streaming from his eyes as his resistance can hold up no longer, "He wished to find a reason to send the Eternal Fire to your doorstep, I do not know for what reason... Please don''t kill me!"

    Reima "Youknow, I''m a man of my word, I don''t think I''ve ever told a lie before... Would you have me become a liar?"

    Florentijn "Please sir, I won''t spea-" he''s cut off yet again, his words obviously not truthful.

    Reima shrugs, blinks inside the cell and grabs the man by the throat before teleporting to the Unicorn and Thestral herd. He looks around and sees a House Elf tending to them, keeping the area clean of shit and the animals well-fed. "Have the Thestrels been fed yet?" he asks the Elf who jumps in surprise to see him.

    "No master! I was just-"

    Reima "-Then, prepare less food than usual, I''ve got a treat for them." he states as he throws the man inside, but not before breaking his arms and legs to prevent him running. "Enjoy your time petting the animals, be careful though, they bite!" he says with a chuckle before disappearing, leaving the unfortunate elf to listen to the man''s agonizing screams as he''s devoured by the Thestrels.

 551 Equal Reaction

    After Reima had interrogated the spy he''d contacted those available and requested for a meeting in the war room, an hour later they were all gathered. Quelaag, Quelana, Solaire, Ciaran, Risryn, Talem, Geralt and Vesemir were all present as Reima leant on the table.

    Reima "So, I''m guessing most of you heard about the spy Lamberts party had come across?"

    Ciaran nods along with everyone else, "Give me thirty minutes with him, I''ll show him some Lord''s Blade techniques."

    Reima scratches the back of his head, "Yeah, about that. I''ve already questioned and executed him."

    ...

    Solaire "Forgive me my friend but, shouldn''t we keep prisoners alive as long as possible gather more information?"

    Reima nods, "Yeah, but that guy pissed me off, so I fed him to the Threstrels."

    Vesemir "Thestrels?" he asks, wondering if it was a creature from another world.

    Reima shrugs, "Winged carniverous skeleton horses..." he states blandly.

    Quelana "Ignoring your crude manner of disposal, did he know anything useful... Was he even a spy?" she asks with a weird expression.

    Reima nods, "He was, apparently the new ruler of Kaedwen wished to set his religious dogs, the Eternal Fire on us... Their name was Mensfeld or something?" he says with a frown.

    Geralt "Mensfeld? Hmm, he was only the Voivode of Ard Carriagh before Henselt was assassinated... Had many shady dealings from what the rumours say."

    Reima "I''m not familiar with them, Vesemir do you know anything?"

    Vesemir shakes his head, "I''ve tried to stay out of politics, only ends badly I say." he states with crossed arms.

    Quelaag "For their attempt we should retaliate, burning their capital city to ashes would be a start." she says while pointing at Ard Carraigh on the map.

    Ciaran and Quelana nod in agreement, however the others don''t agree.

    Talem "Senseless violent against them will only bring us to their level, not to mention the innocents residing there that would undoubtedly be killed."

    Reima "To be fair, these "Innocents" likely support the Eternal Fire, a religion that burns magic users and non-humans to death for simply existing."

    Vesemir "You must not forget that the destruction of a nation''s infrastructure will result in deaths no matter who''s targeted. Destroying Kaedwens capital will halt all trade in the area, allow brigands to ransack nearby villages and remove any protection nearby farms would have had. I don''t doubt that thousands would starve not soon after its destruction." he says slowly and methodically.

    Quelaag "But we cannot just sit on our hands and do nothing, we must retaliate, let them know we are not to be trifled with!"

    Risryn nods, "Perhaps we should adopt those Blue Stripes Guirreilla tactics? We have the men, skill and knowledge for it... Though it would not send much of a message if they didn''t know who was causing them troubles." she questions.

    Reima leans back in his seat, "We should just kill that douchebag Mensfeld, wouldn''t be hard. Just pop in, crack his neck and pop out." he says with a shrug.

    Geralt "As great as that sounds, regicide isn''t something to be casually done... Trust me."

    Quelaag "Then, what should we do? We are strong enough to fight them and I care not for the lives of their peasants, we must focus on our own people and how to defend ourselves."

    Vesemir "I feel you are all missing the other antagonist in all of this... While yes the ruler of Kaedwen attempted to provoke them upon us, the real threat is the Eternal Fire, eliminate their leadership and our worries would be over... For now."

    Reima nods, "That''s not a bad idea, wouldn''t mind tearing a crackpot "Hand of God" in half." he mutters with a chuckle.

    Geralt "As much fun as they would be to do and watch, you would have no chance getting to them without alerting the entire city... We aren''t exactly human."

    Vesemir "Not to mention we have no idea who "They" are, investigation on the subject would be needed, and if a Witcher were to be seen asking about them then all hell would break loose... That and I will not manage the settlement in you stead Reima."

    Reima frowns, "Then, who should we send?"

    Talem "Well, forgive me for sounding arrogant but aren''t we Prospects the perfect assassins? Not only are we well versed in combat but we do not risk death."

    Ciaran "This is true, but I am unsure about your skills in subterfuge... Gathering information is incredibly different from fighting, there are layers upon layers that you may have to peel back to gain true insight."

    Risryn "We can, and will do it. I will go with Talem and a few others." she states, leaving no room for argument."

    Reima "That''s great and all but while you look human you are all still wearing masks, only a few of you can even take them off yourselves..."

    Geralt "That''s fine, it isn''t uncommon for people to conceal their features in a large city like Ard Carraigh, getting past the gate would just be a bag of gold away." he explains.

    Quelana "I can agree to a plan like this." she states.

    Vesemir "Good, doesn''t anyone have any objections to this course of action?.... No? Then we will send out Lady Risryn and her chosen Prospects to Ard Carraigh when they''re ready."

    Reima breathes out a sigh, "Ahh, finally. Though, I feel like I''m forgetting something... Something to do with Kaedwen..."

    ...

    Quelana looks at Quelaag before returning her gaze to Reima, "Another woman I''m guessing?" she says with a chuckle, a jab by Quelaag only increases her amusement of the situation.

    ...

    Reima''s eyes open wide, "Oh shit... Wasn''t Arie handing in a contract to Ard Carraigh?" he says quickly.

    ...

    Geralt "Shit."

 552 A-bsolver Team

    Geralt "Shit."

    Vesemir looks grim at the revelation, "I-We must assume that he''s still alive, I do not think they would kill him as quickly as we did with our own prisoner..."

    Quelaag "Does this mean we can destroy the city?" she asks hopefully.

    Reima rubs his forehead, "No... It just means we have another objective."

    Talem "Then we will just rescue him before we attempt to assassinate the Eternal Fire leader."

    Vesemir "I fear both targets will be in the same place, if they have indeed captured Arie then the Eternal Fire would be jubilant at the chance to interrogate him."

    Reima "They''re making it terribly hard not to annihilate them..." he mutters as Ard Carraigh in the map begins to smoke and smolder.

    Quelana remove the flame by dragging her finger across the burning patch and interjects, "Perhaps we should leave the Prospects to assassinating the target, and choose someone else to rescue our capture comrade while everything is in chaos."

    Geralt "Hmm, assuming that they are in the same place... Who would be suitable for the task?" he asks.

    *Cough, Cough*

    Solaire coughs into his hand with a smile, "Friends, I believe I would be suitable."

    Quelaag snorts, "Suitable at destroying the city."

    Vesemir shakes his head, "It isn''t a bad suggestion Lady Quelaag, he is-looks, human. Not only that I doubt we have to worry about his safety or that of Arie''s."

    Reima looks at Solaire, "You sure you can manage it bro? I don''t doubt your strength but they''d probably execute Arie at the first sign of trouble."

    Solaire thumps above his heart with his fist, "I will not allow any harm to come to Sir Arie my friend."

    Reima nods, "Then, you will leave with Risryn... I''m sure the others wouldn''t mind you borrowing their horses for this, just make sure to leave nothing to chance." he states.

    And thus the plans were made, Risryn, Talem, and Solaire along with a few highly skilled Prospects would be heading to Kaedwen to achieve two things. To assassinate the Eternal Fire leader in Ard Carriage, and to rescue Arie from wherever he was being held.

    Obviously they could not go as they were, the Prospects wore ragged foreign clothing that, while it did not degrade and even regenerated, was not suitable for the task at hand. The same was true for Solaire, golden armour with grey robes isn''t exactly the most inconspicuous...

    Risryn, Talem and the five other Prospects that were coming with them were all given some of the Chaos Servants grey robes that''d be fashioned into travelling cloaks. Their hoods hid their masks unless someone was specifically trying to get a look at their faces.

    Solaire, on the other hand, stored his golden armour and sunlight crown in a small bottomless box on his hip while putting on some "Peasant" clothes under his travelling cloak. The only thing he retained was his Sun''s Sword, the fractured golden blade not able to be seen in its scabbard.

    The night before they were due to leave Reima was having a drink with Risryn, Talem, Solaire and Kuretz.

    Kuretz "So you guys just decided to leave me here?" he asks in disbelief.

    Talem "We felt that you wouldn''t be the best suited for stealth."

    Kuretz bangs his fist on the table and exclaims "What!"

    Risryn finishes her drink and nods, "Exactly."

    Reima smirks at their interactions and leans in, "So, you guys ever assassinated someone before?" he asks, wondering if they had experience in the matter.

    Risryn nods, "During my time as an Absolver the Guides had me sent to many countries to assassinate various leaders of rebellions, rulers that stood against them and troublesome influential people."

    Reima "Seems like the Guides had the right idea on how to control the world, just crush anyone who resists." he muses before looking at Talem, "And you?"

    Talem shrugs, "Apart from a few raids on Guide outposts... No, I will be following Risryn in our task ahead."

    Kuretz "What''s so hard about it anyway? Killing someone is easy, just walk up, stab them and run." he says.

    Talem "If only it were so easy." he mutters.

    Risryn "If everyone were as simple as you Kuretz we''d still be in the stone age. The people who warrant assassinations don''t wait in the open and allow random people to brazenly walk up to them. Our target will most likely be in a heavily fortified position guarded by an army of people who''d gladly give their lives for their "Cause", not only that but we need to assist Solaire in rescuing the Witcher Arie."

    Solaire who''d been silently listening to them finally speaks up, "We will most certainly complete this task, the only caveat is how many innocent people are involved. I would prefer to limit the number of unnecessary deaths but, of course, the lives of our comrades come first."

    Reima "To be honest, the only reason I haven''t torn apart Mensfeld and Kaedwen with him is due to how many people would be affected, what Vesemir said earlier opened my eyes to the fact that everything I do would have consequences... Plus, people would probably seek asylum with us, I don''t know if I could be bothered to take in so many people, the work required would be stupidly huge." he mutters.

    Kuretz "Man, Reima, you gotta get used to this. You''re our boss now bro, no more adventuring for you hahaha!" he laughs at Reima''s expense.

    Reima "I refuse! I''ll push all the work to you if you don''t shut up Kuretz."

    ...

    The look of horror and silence given by Kuretz told the entire story of how he regarded Reima''s job.

    Talem "Don''t fret Reima, it is an honorable position to be responsible for everyone. I am sure you will find a way of doing it that will suit you well."

    Solaire nods, "Indeed, I have no doubts that you will make a fine King my friend."

    Reima "Don''t call me a king or I''ll have a heart attack." he grumbles out holding his chest.

 553 Games and Scheme against the Throne

    Sitting in a palace high above the city below is a skinny man with short balding black hair surrounded by beautiful dancers. Mensfeld sits in his chair with his chin resting on his fist while admiring the entertainments prepared for him by his benefactor. They had been a lot more generous as of late, despite the small requests they make from him.

    He really couldn''t understand what was so important about a ruined keep out in the middle of nowhere, and also why his benefactor would be cautious of making enemies with them without good information to justify it. Personally, if it were up to him he would burn the place to the ground along with the monster hunters residing inside it.

    Of course, if he did he''d dedicate it to the Eternal Fire... The religion''s presence in his city had reduced crime significantly and increased his... Monetary incentives. Tithe they call it, Hah! More like another word for increased taxes he mused. Though he wouldn''t complain about it as it was all being pocketed by himself.

    He didn''t believe in the church''s teachings at all, but didn''t make a move against them due to how useful they were are controlling the populace, that and continually providing scapegoats whenever something went wrong.

    "Oh your house burned down? Must be Witches."

    "Oh? Your daughter is pregnant? A lecherous Halfling must have been here."

    "Your business is failing and is rapidly losing money? Those greedy Dwarves must have a hand in it!"

    "Taxes are too high? It must be those Witchers charging an arm and a leg to slay monsters!"

    Truly, the common populace are idiots, believing whatever someone of "Authority" says. However, there were many things he disliked about the church, one of the primary things being Reverend Albwin Febert and his fucking huge bodyguard Card Dorcick... If ever there a half-breed of a troll then ''twould be him, the fat priest was almost untouchable with that pile of muscle constantly looking over him.

    Albwin Ferbert was probably even more powerful in this city than he himself was, this bothered Mensfeld greatly but there wasn''t really anything he could do about it, that was how prominent the church was in this land.

    Recently all of the mages and sorcerers had either been burned to the stake or fled to Novigrad in an attempt to leave the Northern Kingdom via the port. This had many effects, the major one being the Eternal Fires ire being turned towards non-humans, he waves the dancers away and stands up before walking over to his window.

    Looking down he can see the black smoke coming from the numerous pyres covering the city, Dwarves, Halflings, Gnomes and Elves all burn alike while crowds of dithering peasants watch in delight, expecting their lives to get better as a result of them extinguishing others.

    Mensfeld spits out the window in disgust, the Eternal Fire''s actions had led in a 20% decrease in productivity and 40% of businesses hastily leaving. It was undoubtedly their fault as most businesses were run by non-humans! Even if the Eternal Fire stole everything they owned and allowed a human merchant to try and run it, it simply wouldn''t be as effective as a Dwarf or a Gnome!

    It is the simple truth that some races have the propensity towards certain things, Dwarves and Gnomes to numerically taxing subjects like business, Elves to agricultural ventures, Halflings to culinary and entertainment while humans were only good at fucking all the other races into extinction!

    He had spoken to his benefactor about this issue but they''d simply told him to wait for it to finish and allow the humans to fill the vacant roles. Pah! Like those fucking peasants would know the difference between a hammer and an anvil!

    Shaking his head he walks over and falls back into his chair, a frown marring his face.

    Suddenly, the door to the room opens and a polite man in red and white robes walks in, accompanied by his guards.

    Mensfeld rubs his face and groans, "Whaddya want?" he asks with a sigh.

    "Sire, that Witcher you requested for us to interrogate hasn''t spoken a word as of yet. However, we are sure he will give eventually, our methods are very... Thorough."

    Mensfeld nods, while he had been instructed not to antagonise Kaer Morhen that didn''t mean a Witcher caught outside of the place was included. Besides, this was likely the best place for information he was going to get in the near or distant future as all the spies he''d hadn''t returned... Or more specifically, he only got pieces of them returned. "Keep their location secret, we have no idea how many allies they may have and I will not have the interrogation interrupted before we get the information I require!"

    The robed figure nods, "Will you be coming to the banquet prepared by the Reverend to celebrate this city''s cleansing?" they ask.

    Mensfeld "Banquet? This is the first I''m hearing of this..."

    "Are you sure my liege? Every aristocrat and rich merchant in the city has heard of it are dying to attend, it would be unfortunate if you were to miss the event."

    Mensfeld waves his hand at the man, "Go inform the Reverend I''ll be attending then, I expect the highest quality banquet the church can afford." he states.

    The robed figure bows low and leaves after confirming the King''s attendance, it wouldn''t do to have the highest authority in the land scorn their invitation.

    Mensfeld is yet again, left alone in the room. He knew that the fact he hadn''t heard of the banquet until the latest date possible was planned, giving him no room to maneuver out of it. He''d need to check which of his advisors was a "follower" of the Eternal Fire before he started making any actions against them, it was a delicate time and he couldn''t afford any mishaps that would lead to his position being questioned.

 554 Infideltration

    In the morning the eight participating in the mission were all outfitted and given horses, they were seen off by everyone as Reima got ready to drop them off somewhere close to Ard Carraigh to prevent more time being wasted. He creates a portal in a forest a couple villages away from the capital city let the group pass through with their horses.

    Risryn was leading the group while Solaire would go off on his own once they entered Kaedwen itself, they''d trade information if it was needed but would primarily ignore each other.

    On the main road no one really bothered them, they did notice a few bands of brigands but they didn''t dare attack a large group such as theirs. Solaire offered to end their existence to prevent them from harming anyone else but Risryn refused, stating that a group capable of hunting down bands of brigands without injury would likely be suspect.

    Regardless, what they saw on the main road disgusting everyone in the group. Many, many people hung from trees and posts, words like "Traitor", "Thief", "Freak" were sometimes even carved into their flesh. Due to this Ghouls were prominent in the area, the group was almost even attacked by some if they''d dawdled in one area longer than needed.

    Solaire "How do peasants work with all these killings and monsters around them?" he wonders aloud.

    Talem "In my estimation, they simply don''t have a choice. Where would they go? Travel would undoubtedly leave them robbed and murdered by the roving bands of thieves, wolves and monsters. The only thing they can do is stay within their villages and hope it''s not the next target of the enemy army."

    Risryn nods, "It appears as though Kaedwen practises "Scorched Earth", burning buildings and supplies should they fear their position being taken."

    Solaire "War, a dismal business indeed." he says with a sigh.

    Eventually the group spots the huge bridge leading to Ard Carraigh, as they approach the patrols of Witch Hunters increase to ridiculous degrees, so much so that if you have a bounty on your head you would no doubt be caught by them. However, as the group is completely unknown to this world they have nothing to fear, they pass a few carriages leaving the city as they make their way across the bridge, only now notices plumes of black smoke coming from within it.

    The gate of Ard Carraigh was one of the most ghastly sights of all though, as if they were attempting to greet them with the sight, the walls were covered in pikes which had numerous people speared on them, of course, they were all non-human.

    Solaires nose wrinkles at the sight momentarily before he replaces it with a jovial smile with which he greets the soldier guarding the gate. "Greetings my friend!"

    ...

    The guard looks up at the eight robed people riding horses, Solaire''s face is the only one visible while the others have their hoods up. "State your business."

    Solaire "Just wishing to see the opportunities within the city, now that those freaks have been dealt with." he says, his smile not slipping for a moment.

    The guard examines them for a moment, trying to peek under Risryn''s hood to see if her body matches her face, but is unable to catch a glance. Grumbling to themselves momentarily he turns his attention back to Solaire, "Yeah, fucking freaks cause nothin'' but trouble. Soon as they were gone a wart on me ass disappeared, typical. Right, so you want entry? got any form of identification?" he asks.

    Solaire "Identification? What for?"

    "Just need to make sure your a blue blooded Kaedwenian, can''t have some Nilfgaardian prick stroll on through. And no offence meant but you look like one of those fuckin'' noble-pricks to me."

    Solaire shakes his head and tosses a bag of gold at the man, "I am sure this will satisfy your curiosity my friend."

    The guard nods, "Tis good to see people know how things work around here nowadays." he says as they let the group pass.

    Talem "Well, that was easy. Never expected security to be so... Relaxed." he states.

    Risryn "I suspect no one would dare cause trouble in a city that burns people to death on a daily basis." she says as she gestures towards the burning pyres with numerous people atop them.

    Solaire "What are our next moves?" he asks, unsure of how to go about getting information in this place.

    Risryn "First we must take the horses to rest, then, try and contact the underparts of the city." she states as the group moves towards a stable nearest to the gate. Solaire pays for their food and shelter as Risryn tries to make small talk with the stablehand.

    The stablehand is a young average looking man covered in dirt and muck from working all day, he was surprised to hear someone try to speak with him and was enamoured by Risryn''s voice, only wishing he could lay his eyes upon her face.

    Risryn "Excuse me? I''m new to this city and wish to explore the market place, do you know the directions from here?" she asks in a sweet tone.

    The young man rapidly wipes his hands clean on his clothes before trying to shake her hand, he holds it out with Risryn looking at it for a moment before accepting and shaking it. "I am Burni, would you grace me with your name?" he asks earnestly.

    Risryn nods, "Rias Ryndal, a pleasure."

    Burni "Rias Ryndal.." he mutters to himself, memorizing it before jumping as he realises he was doing it aloud. "Miss Ryndal, for your question earlier the market place is simply a straight walk along the main road from the city gates, you will find everything you may or may not need there... Is there anything else you need to know? I know much about the city, perhaps I could give you a tour?"

 555 Underground deals

    Burni "Perhaps I could give you a tour?"

    Risryn shakes her head, "Sorry, I have a few things to attend to first... Ah, also, is there any place in the city I should steer clear of?"

    Burni nods solemnly at the fact he was rejected, "Steer clear hmm? You would do well to keep away from the slums at the east of the city, nothing but thieves, homeless and smugglers there."

    Risryn "Is that so? Thank you for your advice, maybe we will see each other again in the future?" she says as she begins to leave.

    Burni waves her off as she''s followed by everyone else, "Farewell Lady Ryndal, be safe and steer clear of the slums."

    The group leave with Talem and Solaire giving Risryn a weird look, she glances at them both, "What is it?" she asks irritably.

    Talem "Ryndal?" he asks with mirth.

    Risryn "Using your real name is a stupid idea, especially when your on the kind of mission we''re currently attempting."

    Solaire "I understand, but it is still amusing to see you acting so different to your usual self."

    Risryn shrugs, "Don''t worry, when we get back I''ll return to the same old person... A beating will be included." she says making Talem grimace under his mask.

    Solaire "So where are we headed then Miss Ryndal?"

    Risryn "No need to worry Sir Lence, I''ve been told that the best products are being sold in the east."

    Solaire "Hmm, and you''ve created an alter ego for me?"

    Risryn nods, "Sir Flatu Lence. I believe it suits you well."

    Talem snorts and barely contains his laughter despite the dire mission they''re currently on.

    Solaire "That''s a fine name, Sir Flatulence... Oi!" he objects when he realises it''s meaning.

    Risryn shakes her head at his naivety and continues walking towards the slums, the road becomes less organised and more decrepit the further they progress, the previously rich looking building now looking slump in, some almost collapsing into themselves.

    People shrink away from the eight robed figures as they pass, probably taking them for followers of the Eternal Fire. Solaire himself can even spot some non-humans scrambling into the shadows, some even paling and fainting when he looks at them...

    Talem "What are we doing here? These people barely look alive, how would they have the information we need?"

    Risryn "In every city there are hidden locations that the authorities may or may not be privy to, most keep them around as they allow the aristocracy to shimmy around the law and commit atrocities. Atleast, this was how it worked in our old world... Look." she points at the street ahead, the only thing of interest being a ruined well, a few skinny children begging for money and what look like thugs.

    Solaire "Miss Ryndal, I don''t believe those thugs would have the information we require... We''ll just be causing trouble."

    Risryn shakes her head and begins waking forwards, past the alleyway with the thugs and towards the children. She kneels down and places a couple gold coins in their small hands before asking, "I''m looking to acquire some young merchandise." she states.

    The children pale as the see her mask beneath the robe but her voice seems to quell the fear enough for them to speak, "Does Mistress have a preference?"

    Talem "Preference?" he asks in confusion.

    The child nods, "Elf, Dwarf, Gnome... Human."

    ...

    Risryn "Human." she states.

    The children look at each other and nod solemnly, "We will take you there miss, but we have to ask that only two other people accompany you.

    ...

    Risryn turns and selects Talem and another Prospect known as Tarek to come while Solaire and the rest wait in the area. "We are ready, let''s go." she says with the children nodding and leading them further into the slums.

    The reach the east wall of the city and continue along it, eventually reaching an old abandoned building. The children escort them inside and travel down some stairs into a basement, once there they shift some boxes from a corner of the room to reveal some sort of hatch.

    "Down here is what you need." they say as they wait at the side for the group to descend.

    Risryn nods, opens the hatch and climbs down the ladder, the only thing now providing any light being the torches lit below.

    Talem "When you said we needed to find the "Undercity" I didn''t think you meant it literally."

    Risryn "I didn''t, it seems that these people need to take more precautions than those I am familiar with." she mutters as they drop into some sort of tunnel. It''s damp and many echoes can be heard from either direction, however there is a sign on the wall directing them towards "Merchandise" which Risryn begins to follow.

    Talem "May I ask, what is "Young Merchandise"?"

    Risryn shakes her head, "Do not ask what you do not want to know. Just follow my lead." she says as they finally walk out into a disgusting smelling room, most fo the people present are wearing dirty clothes and are moving around various jars, buckets and other miscellaneous things... However that isn''t all, there are three richly dressed masked people being led towards a door at the far end of the room.

    Not only after they arrive the group are greeted by a short middle-aged man with a humped back. "Greetings visitors, this is your first time here is it not?"

    Risryn frowns under her mask, "It is, how would you know?"

    The man gives them a grin revealing his black teeth, "I''m known as the caretaker, it is my business to know. Now, what have you come for?

    Risryn "I am here for a helper, perhaps they could "help" in other areas... Other than that what other things can you provide?"

    The man looks Risryn over appraisingly while rubbing his chubby neck, "Hmm, it depends what you want... I can see that you aren''t really interested in acquiring my stock, so you must be after something else..."

 556 Stumbling Through

    Caretaker "Hmm, it depends what you want... I can see that you aren''t really interested in acquiring my stock, so you must be after something else..."

    The group tenses at his words but are aware enough not to do anything noticeable.

    Risryn "What do you mean?"

    The man waves at them and growls, "Come off it, you must be the twelfth group to come here looking for one already. It''s starting to piss me off in all honesty."

    The group has no idea what he''s referring to and doesn''t know whether or not to risk asking about it, however Risryn just continues.

    Risryn shrugs helplessly, "My, you are perceptive... Do you have one or not?"

    The caretaker eyes her and licks his lips, "Hmm, maybe... They are, very hard to come across. Most aren''t even able to pay."

    Risryn "Name your price and we''ll see." she says, hoping that whatever they''re talking about is useful.

    Caretaker "Two Thousand Gold."

    Risryn snorts, "No wonder people haven''t been able to pay, with you extorting them you might find your business in jeopardy." she states with a hint of anger in her voice.

    The man squints at her and spits, "Fine, just checking to see if you weren''t rich and stupid. A common combination, believe you me... Seven Hundred Gold."

    Risryn "Six fifty."

    Caretaker "six eighty, last offer."

    Risryn nods, "Very well, prepare it and you''ll get your gold."

    The man nods and waddles off, leaving the trio alone.

    Talem "Do we even have 700 gold with us?" he asks while frowning under his mask.

    Risryn shakes her head, "No, but Reima provided me with some... Gems, that will be suitable.

    Tarken "I don''t think paying these scoundrels is a good idea, I can tell the kind of business they''re running and I don''t like it."

    Risryn "Then it''s a good thing these gems aren''t real." she says quietly with a chuckle.

    The man comes back with a small, single slip of paper. It''s stamped with some kind of insignia that none of the group recognise.

    Risryn is almost in disbelief at what he''s charging 700 gold for but thinks that it must be used for something. "Is it legit?" she asks.

    The man nods, "You won''t have any problems attending the banquet with this, just don''t mention where you got it or we''re both fucked."

    She tries to take it from the man but he pulls away, "Not yet, ask one of you goons to grab the gold."

    She shakes her head, "I intend to pay in gems."

    Caretaker "Hmm, I don''t have anyone qualified to check their quality... So you''ll have to overpay for the inconvenience."

    Risryn reluctantly nods and pulls out a pouch filled with already cut emeralds, diamonds and rubies. All spectacularly colourful and relatively large.

    The man''s eyes sparkle at it and he attempts to take the bag, however his hand is slapped away.

    Risryn glares at him through her mask, "The invitation is valuable, but not worth the entire bag, keep your hands yourself cripple." she growls out with the man stepping back with a chuckle.

    Caretaker "So fierce, I''m beginning to think you don''t want to continue our business relationship."

    Risryn shakes her head and places a handful of gems in his hand, the man looking over them before nodding in satisfaction. "It is time we left, good day." she says as she begins to leave towards the hatch they''d come down through.

    The group climb out but find the hatch is blocked, they give it a knock and hear the sound of boxing being rapidly moved. Once out they see the two children that''d led them there present.

    "Are you done mistress?" one asks.

    Risryn nods and leaves, the children skipping away from the building, likely to watch for another customer.

    They reach the place where they''d left Solaire but don''t find them anywhere... Risryn sighs and walks towards the alleyway where the thugs had previously been and peers inside, seeing Solaire holding two up by their necks with a smile still plastered across his face.

    Solaire "You two think it''s funny to strike and abuse a woman do you? Well then, let me show you how it feels to be a woman." he states jovially as he slams them into the wall, a loud crack being heard as he does so.

    He slams them again before dropping them and beginning to beat the everliving shit out of them, all this happens while their friends who''re surrounded by the Prospects watch.

    "Holy fuck! Stop! They didn''t mean anything by it, it was an accident!"

    "Stop! You''re killing em!"

    Solaire gives the two downed douche bags another kick before turning to them, "Oh, so you condone their actions?"

    The group pales at this and goes silent, the two on the ground whimpering in pain as most of their bones were shattered.

    Risryn walks in followed by Talem and Tarken, "Solaire, when I said we shouldn''t draw attention to ourselves I meant it." she states, irritated by the God''s actions.

    Solaire "My apologies, but I couldn''t stand by and watch them attempt to abuse a woman."

    Talem "It''s respectable but not conducive to our mission... Now, we must decide what to do with them." he mutters.

    Risryn waves at them with disinterest, "Kill them. Store their bodies in the bottomless box."

    The man all draw their weapons when they hear this but the Prospects are already following their leaders orders, weapons materialise in their hands as they leap forwards, stabs, slices and decapitations all happening simultaneously with a seriously high degree of coordination.

    The thugs literally fall to pieces, wounds completely covering them and bodyparts falling off cleanly. Luckily the cuts and strikes were so clean no blood got on them, allowing them to keep their current clothing on.

    Solaire draws his Sun''s sword, the light being emitted from it lighting up the alleyway in a dazzling display. He delivers two simple thrusts to the two men''s necks which kills them before he stores them and their companion''s bodies in the bottomless box. He turns to Risryn with a smile, "Did you find anything that pertains to our respective tasks?"

 557 Noseyferatu

    Solaire "Did you find anything that pertains to our respective tasks?"

    Risryn nods, "We did..."

    Talem "Indeed, Miss Ryndal decided to buy an invitation for some kind of banquet. So, while she is having dinner we can continue with our mission."

    Risryn glares at him from behind her mask, she pulls out the invitation, "This, is obviously of some importance. From what I gathered from that man it is for an important event being held for the aristocracy in the city, this could very well get us the information we need if we play our cards right." she states.

    Tarek "I don''t know boss, seems like your just looking for a fluke here..."

    Solaire "Perhaps we shouldn''t reject lady Risryn''s plans? Even if they fail spectacularly we will simply end up where we began."

    Talem nods, "Eitherway we don''t have much time, I doubt they will keep Arie alive for an extended period of time."

    Risryn nods, "I will go and try find some information pertaining to this "Banquet", meanwhile you should try and find out where the Eternal Fire''s headquarters are, do not engage unless you have no other choice. Meet back here before sunset." she says as she pulls her hood back up and begins walking towards the centre of the city again.

    The others just look at each other and shrug, "She''s the boss."

    Talem "Hmm, where would a bunch of genocidal egomaniacs build a church?" he ponders aloud.

    Solaire shrugs, "Well, from personal experience they''d try and build it higher than everything else in the city..." he mutters and they all look up towards the north side of the town where a palace connected to a mountain towers over everything. Not far from it at a slightly lower level is a majestic marble building with a few towers emitting black plumes of smoke.

    Talem "Hmm, convenient." he says with a chuckle.

    Tarek "How do you think we should scale it though?"

    Solaire "Well, from lady Risryn''s words we shouldn''t engage or provoke them, perhaps climbing the mountain behind it and observing it from above would be the most prudent action?"

    Talem nods, "We should have enough time to check it out and make it back to rendezvous."

    Solaire "Then lets go, our friend is in great danger and there isn''t a moment to waste!" he says as he begins to follow the east wall towards the mountain while the group sticks close to him.

    The mountain itself is incredibly steep and seems to have been carved at the bottom to prevent people climb it, though no-one ever counted on it being used to spy on the people within the city. The group use bladeless daggers known as a Rondel as makeshift pins to scale area''s that had no foliage, moss or divets to climb, though it was seriously dangerous to attempt this without proper equipment. The Prospects would have elected to not try this had they not been immortal... As for Solaire? He''d be fine even if he fell from space, so that wasn''t a problem.

    While climbing the back of the mountain one of the Prospect pushed their weight onto some plants to pull himself up, accidentally falling inside a small cave as he did so.

    Tarek "Oi! Where''d you go! Are you alright?" they ask into the cave, still cautious at being too loud and drawing attention to themselves.

    "I-I''m alright!" they shout from the cave.

    Talem "Are you able to climb out?"

    "No... It''s too dark and slippery in here to get a grip!"

    Tarek "Eh, Solaire you mind rescuing our man down there?" he asks with an awkward chuckle.

    Solaire nods, "Do not worry my friend! I''ll have you out in a moment!" he says as he jumps in the hole, unsheathing his sword slightly to illuminate the cave.

    What''s lit up isn''t the inside of a cave, instead looking like an old elven ruin. It did however look completely uninhabited which was a plus?

    Solaire look down and sees the Prospect palming the wall, they stop when the room lights up.

    "Solaire? Thanks for coming to get me, suicide isn''t my preferred means of existing this place..."

    Solaire nods with a smile, "No worries my friend, this is all in the name of Jolly Cooperatio-"

    "What in the fuck are you doing here?" a voice asks from below them, they look down through a hole in the ground and spot a pale skinned dark-haired man glaring at them both.

    ...

    "You have five fucking seconds to answer me before I start killing!" he says angrily.

    Solaire "Oh.. My apologies, we didn''t realise someone lived here. May I know you name?"

    The man grumbles momentarily before answering, "Yesferatu... Is it time? Or rather, What time is it?"

    The Prospect think for a moment, "Should be around 8pm, last I checked."

    Yesferatu "Not that time you idiot! What year is it!"

    ...

    Solaire "Err, I''m not sure... To be honest I never asked."

    Yesferatu "What kind of simpletons don''t know what fucking year it is?"

    The Prospect snorts, "Didn''t you just ask what year it is, simpleton?"

    Yesferatu "Fuck you!" they shout and throw a large rock up at them, blasting a hole through the floor and knocking the Prospect away.

    What has used to be a man morphs into a large grey creature with large claws adorning each hand.

    Yesferatu growls in a low tone, "You will regret ever coming here." he says as he crawls through the hole, halting midway as he spots Solaire still standing in the same place, not affected by his attack earlier.

    Solaire "It seems that you''ve made an unfortunate error my friend." he says with a smile as he grabs the creature''s neck, tighter than even a giant would be able to.

 558 Date?

    Solaire "It seems that you''ve made an unfortunate error my friend." he says while gripping the Katakan''s throat.

    ...

    Solaire "Well? Do you have anything to say before I retaliate?"

    The Katakan begins trying to claw at Solaire, this however does nothing but ruffle the titanate infused cloak.

    *CRACK!*

    Solaire gives final squeeze which breaks the beast''s neck and shatters its spine, he stores the body in the bottomless box to see if Reima would have any use for it.

    The Prospect gets up while rubbing their lower back, "Man, the creatures in this world keep getting freakier and freakier... I wonder what it was?"

    Solaire shrugs, "We can ask Reima or Sir Vesemir when we get back, for now we have a task to do." he says as he picks the Prospect up in a princess carry and jumps out of the cave.#

    Talem and the others spot the duo leaving and breathe a sigh of relief, they''d heard something collapse down there and were worried that the cave had collapsed on them. They didn''t mind the Prospect dying but Solaire? That''d be a terrible loss, to the mission and their settlement as a whole.

    Tarek "You two get lost down there?"

    Solaire shakes his head, "We ran into one of the many monsters in this world, though it''s threats proved stronger than it''s neck."

    Talem nods, "Hmm... Best we continue scaling the mountain, if we get it right then the sun will be at our backs and prevent us from being seen."

    They others agree and they all continue, another half an hour passes when they finally reach the peak. It''s windy and the sight is beautiful but they have no time to admire it, the Eternal Fire building is just beneath them.

    Talem "It''s good we decided to check, this place looks like a fortress... Seems they are expecting an attack of some sort?"

    Tarek "Probably from the Mages they''d been routinely burning, wouldn''t surprise me at all."

    Solaire "Enough speculation, other than those towers does any of you see any ways inside?"

    The group takes a moment, examining the pristine marble walls and pillars holding the building up, however, they see no entrances at all, the only things that''d potentially let them inside are the stone grated vents that allow fresh air in.

    Talem "Seems like the only way inside is through the front door or the towers..."

    Solaire nods while rubbing his face, "It would seem so, hopefully, lady Risryn has found more information otherwise we''ll have to scour the complex for Arie and the leader of the Eternal Fire.

    They take another couple of minutes observing the building before descending down the mountain to meet with Risryn, they do so without any trouble and luckily make it down unseen.

    The group arrives back in the slums where Risryn is leant against a wall with her arms crossed, she waves them over and asks, "Find anything out?"

    Talem nods, "Yeah, we''ll have to enter through the towers... Unless you have a better idea?"

    Risryn nods and pulls out a torn parchment from under her robes, she unfurls it and reveals a painting of a fat man with greying red hair. "This is Albwin Febert, the current leader of the Eternal Fire within Kaedwen. He, is our target."

    Tarken nods, "Good to finally know who need to die."

    Risryn "Indeed, I also found out that we''ve arrived just on time... A banquet is being held by the Eternal Fire for the prominent people within the city, a banquet I just happen to have an invitation for."

    Talem shrugs, "Atleast our fake gems didn''t go to waste."

    Risryn nods, "There are a couple problems though..."

    Solaire "I don''t think here is anything that could stop our progress now." he says with a smile.

    Risryn "I need Solaire to accompany me as my date to the banquet."

    ...

    Solaire "Er, pardon me miss but I may have just misheard you. Something about being your date to the banquet."

    Risryn nods, "You heard right, I need Talem to lead the assassination through the towers and the others are unable to take off their masks. It isn''t a masquerade so we must look the part."

    Solaire "Ah, but I must find Sir Arie-"

    Risryn "You can do that once you are inside and we''ve mingled enough to not seem out of place, plus, you look more noble than the majority of the people in this world."

    ...

    Solaire "Very well, even if I must tread through hell itself, I will rescue our friend."

    Risryn frowns at him from under her mask, "Attending a banquet with me is like treading through hell?" she questions.

    Solaire "Ah, not at all! It was just a phrase milady!" he quickly says while the other Prospects snicker at him.

    Risryn nods, "Good, because we need to do some shopping to get properly clothed for tonight... Oh, did I forget to mention it''s happening in a couple hours?"

    Talem rubs his face, "Yes, yes you did. Well then, we must be going. What time do you think we should breach the building?"

    Risryn "Hmm, as soon as night falls." they nod and start heading to the mountain, leaving Solaire alone with Risryn.

    ...

    Solaire "So... Shall we depart Milady?"

    Risryn shakes her head and chuckles, "Don''t be stiff Solaire, I haven''t warped into a new being suddenly, and you shouldn''t consider the banquet as anything else but necessary for the mission."

    Solaire nods, "Well that clears up my misapprehensi-"

    Risryn "Unless you want it to be." she adds as she walks away.

    ...

    Solaire shakes his head and walks after her, hoping that the banquet wouldn''t be like one of those that his father routinely hosted... He didn''t think he could handle watching someone like Smough eat again.

 559 Jolly Celebration!

    The sun had just set and the church of the Eternal Fire had finally opened it''s doors to greet those attending the banquet, the marble walls were lit with many lanterns and small burning piles of incense that provided the whole place with a tranquil smell. Of course there were many, many guards and Witch Hunters milling about to patrol the area, this was a requirement due to the kinds of people attending the event. Every single one was a potential target for capture and random or even assassination, though ever since Foltest''s death assassins hadn''t been thought of as a big issue.

    Reverend Albwin Febert was stood next to the doors of the main hall where the banquet would be held, his arms held out wide as he greeted everyone with a grandfatherly smile. His bodyguard Card Dorcick was stood nearby fully armed, ready to meet anyone who dared attempt anything during the event.

    Albwin "Oh! Marvelous, greetings Vidwile Molwid, your attendance today is a great boon to the church aswell as myself. You have my thanks." He greets a short chubby man with a particularly young girl on his arm.

    Vidwile bows his head at the reverend and kisses his hand, "Please, the thanks belongs to you for setting up such a large event, you are one of the strongest foundations of this city and I''m sure many others share my sentiments."

    Albwin smiles, "Oh, you are too kind. Please, enjoy the refreshments with your... Date, that I''ve had set up."

    Vidwile nods, thanks the Reverend before leaving to mingle with the other nobles present.

    Albwin turns to greet the next person but finds himself enamored by them, the man stands at 6.5ft towering over the Reverend himself. His bright, almost glowing golden hair seems to light up the room along with his piercing golden coloured eyes. On the man''s arm is possibly the most beautiful woman he''d ever seen, a slim face with foreign features, black silky hair and blue eyes. They walk with grace and stop before the Reverend just as he picks his jaw up from the floor.

    Albwin "G-greetings! I don''t believe I''ve had the fortunate to make your acquaintance yet. I am Reverend Albwin Febert, the host of this auspicious event, might I inquire as to my guests identities?"

    The man nods, "I am Lence Flatu, and my beautiful companion is my mistress Rias Ryndal." the woman''s smile doesn''t move at the man''s words and luckily the Reverend doesn''t catch her stomping on her companions foot.

    Albwin nods, his eyes looking over their outfits to ascertain their relative position in society, from what he can see they should be wealthy merchants or low nobles attempting to blend in. Though from the looks of these two unique individuals he''d guess the latter. "What is your occupation may I ask? I find myself forgetful these days, age must be catching up with me." he says with an innocent chuckle.

    Rias "My... Lover, is apart of a banking clan looking to stake a claim within Ard Carraigh and perhaps Kaedwen as a whole. Redania is profitable but expansion must continue regardless of its success."

    Albwin hums in agreement, "Is that so? You seem quite knowledgable for a mistress, no offence meant of course." he says politely.

    Lence "It''s a must, as someone I''d converse with often she must have at least the minimum knowledge with business, my last mistress failed a deal and thus I, unfortunately, had to let her go." he says while slapping Rias ass with a lustful grin.

    Albwin nods, "I understand, though I''d caution you against mixing business and pleasure, such things can lead to unfortunate situations. I''ve seen many a marriage destroyed by it."

    Lence bows his head, "I thank you for your advice Reverend, well, we must be going for some Jolly cele-Ahem, Fine festivities." Rias leads Lence towards the large crowd surrounding a huge table filled with every kind of food imaginable.

    The Reverend watches them go and rubs his chubby neck, "A memorable duo, I look forward to making deals with them in future."

    The duo of Lence and Rias make it to a corner of the room where the latter throws her arms around his shoulders and begins kissing his neck.

    Rias, or Risryn as she''s usually known moves up to Lences ear, "Mistress? I''ll show you Mistress Solaire!"

    Solaire blushes "Forgive me Risryn but I don''t wish to partake in that kind of relationship with you."

    Risryn "I will stab you, if it weren''t for this mission I''d have castrated you already."

    Solaire pales slightly and pats her back, "Ah... Perhaps you misunderstood me, in my world Mistress means wife..."

    ...

    ...

    Risryn shakes her head and lets go of him, "Regardless, we must play our roles. If Talem and the others are unable to complete their tasks then I''ll have to make a move. If that happens then you will be at risk."

    Solaire "If all else fails I will simply tear the place apart and look for our captured friend, we should try and inquire about this building''s layout, perhaps they have a prison or something similar to it."

    Risryn nods, "It will be difficult, but we may have no other options-"

    Somewhere music starts playing, trumpets and harps all playing in unison as everyone''s eyes turn towards the entrance. The Reverend stands there with a huge grin on their face and his arms open wide as a man followed by many guards walk in, a few people in the room kneel when they see him, though many do not.

    One of the men in the new arrivals entourage steps forwards and clears their throat as they begin to address the room. "May I introduce his liege, King Mensfelt of Kaedwen."

 560 First Blood

    The room erupts into applause as the king enters, the trumpets and other instruments blare as the man finally reaches the Reverend and greets him happily.

    Next to Risryn and Solaire another couple approaches them while pointing at the king. "Nothing like the Kaedwenian anthem to bring the hearts and minds of the elite together." the man says as he looks towards the duo.

    Solaire nods confidently, "Indeed, if I didn''t know better I''d say that music was magically based." he says with a smile, though the couples expressions seem to go neutral as he says this.

    Risryn notices this and tries to correct his statement, "Of course, magic is a vile and disgusting art so maybe your analogy is a bit out there darling."

    Solaire "Oh? Ah, yes, forgive me. These drinks must be affecting me! I''ve never been known for having a strong stomach hahaha!" he says jovially.

    The man with dirty blonde hair and athletic build steps forwards and introduces himself, "I am Kreld Gaeveled, governor of Rakverelin, the city just north of Ard Carraigh. This is my wife Merdrah Gaeveled." he says while gesturing to a woman with light brown hair, chubby figure and a pockmarked face. She nods and curtseys as they glance at her.

    Risryn nods and bends forwards slightly in a restrained bow as Solaire introduces them, "I am Lence Flatu and this is my Mistress Rias Ryndal. We are... Visitors from a foreign banking clan that wishes to scope out the opportunities in the north."

    Kreld looks at them both appraisingly before remarking, "You both seem to be from Kovir judging from your looks, though I could be wrong?"

    Risryn "We, are from Redania. near the borders of what was once Temeria... Though, if I''m not mistake wasn''t Rrakverelin in the possession of Kovir?" she asks confused at the news, it seemed that Reima''s information was slightly out of date?

    Kreld chuckles, "It seems that news moves slowly in Redania, Mensfeld felt it would only be appropriate for Kovir to lend us Rakverelin to aid us in the war. While Kovir wishes to be neutral in everything from the war to wiping their own asses, they are still a northern kingdom... Having their trade routes to Kaedwen restricted would bring their blooming economy into disarray."

    Risryn "Well, we congratulate you on being granted the city by King Mensfeld." he states.

    Kreld "Hmm, well, if you don''t have any other priorities I''d like to discuss bringing your banking clan in Rakverelin, after bringing the Eternal Fire into our arms our businesses had taken a hit. Perpahs some generous loans from you would give us the boost we need?"

    Solaire "I believe that a discussion between us would be very profitable my friend, but we have other matters to attend to, please enjoy the festivities, and perhaps, later on, we will continue with our talk." he says diplomatically which seems to quell the couple''s interest.

    The duo slowly walks away into a large crowd that is still watching King Mensfeld''s interactions with the Reverend.

    Solaire leans down to Risryn and whispers, "Should we not eliminate the king aswell? It wouldn''t be all that difficult, and I''m sure Reima would be satisfied with a two for one deal." he says with mirth.

    Risryn shakes her head, "Do not forget Solaire, we aren''t here to start a war, simply to send a message to those that have provoked us." she states.

    Solaire nods solemnly, "I see, when do you think the others will begin their infiltration?"

    Risryn smiles, "Oh, I believe they should have started by now."

    Atop the mountain peak overlooking the church, six Prospects were observing the towers. They were still lit and emitting plumes of smoke and it seems a guard would patrol them once every ten or so minutes. The group had rid themselves of the cloaks and were now dressed in their old indestructible clothing, and were ready to scale the building.

    Talem and Tarek step forth once the patrol leaves, they begin to spin metal hooks attached to a bundle of rope before flinging them at the tower below them. Talem''s misses and scrapes down the wall and eventually hitting the stone roof, but Tareks manages to grip the tower''s balcony.

    Tarek "I win this one Talem." he says with a chuckle as he walks back and ties the rope taut to a large boulder.

    Talem shakes his head and jumps atop the taut rope, "When was this a competition?"

    Tarek "When I started winning." he states, climbing jumping on the rope like a funambulist or an acrobat before proceeding to quickly make his way across to the tower.

    The other Prospects quickly follow them, once they are all across Tarek materialises his weapon, a relatively long curved sword which he uses to cut the rope to prevent any patrols from spotting it.

    In the middle of the platform atop the tower is a small indentation filled with wood that constantly burns, the patrols don''t seem to be for protection at all, instead, they are meant to keep the wood stocked up in order to keep the fire going.

    Talem "We should wait for the next patrol and eliminate them, we can''t risk stumbling into them and alerting the others that we are here." he states.

    Tarek nods, "Time to draw first blood."

    The Witch Hunter walks up with a couple blocks of wood in a basket, while his sword is sheathed on his side. However as soon as they reach the top they spot five masked men staring at them from the other side of the tower...

    Witch Huner "Eh, what? You shouldn-Hurrgh!" They groan in pain as a blade pierces the back of their chest and becomes visible from the front. The man can only utter a final gasping breath as they fall to the floor, dead.

 561 Perfect Assassination?

    Tarek grins as he wipes the blood currently on his sword on the clothing of the dead Witch Hunter, "It seems you don''t have to be strong to kill innocent civilians." he spits at the dead man.

    Talem "We should toss the body over to prevent it being spotted."

    Tarek grins "Or, we can throw it into the fire."

    Talem shrugs, "Do what you will, I''ll scout downstairs, don''t move or get spotted."

    He leaves as the others loot and toss the body onto the fire, the smell of burnt flesh filling the tower.

    Talem sneaks downstairs, the Witch Hunters sword in his hand due to his materalised weapon being a glaive, unsuitable for indoor close-quarters combat. The spiraling staircase leads to a wooden door, he looks through the keyhole and sees what looks to be a room filled with wood. A single man with his legs on a desk while asleep is present, though he isn''t in a state to protect himself.

    Talem cautiously opens the door, mentally praising whoever maintains this place due to the hinges on the door being well oiled. He keeps low and sneaks towards the sleeping man, observing everything around as he does so. At the other end of the room is another door, though it is wide open with a patrol occasionally walking past it. He quietly moves past the guard and closes the door, however as soon as it *Clinks* shut the man begins to slowly wake.

    "Sven? Is it my turn to restoc-" He isn''t able to continue as Talem dashes forwards and grabs the man into a chokehold. They try to draw their sword but are unable to as the table blocks it, he struggles a little more but Talem just wrenches the man''s neck at an awkward angle, breaking it with a *CRACK*.

    The man stills as his life is extinguished, his eyes are still wide open but Talem closes them and props him up again in the same sleeping posture as before. Luckily he manages to do this just in time as the door to the room opens and another Witch Hunter enters. Talem hides behind one of the piles of wood as the man approaches the dead Hunter.

    "Miles? Still asleep? Feckin idiot, today is a day of import to the Reverend. If the captain sees you like this he''d skin your hide... Still not getting up? Fine, but you owe me." he says roughly as he walks past, grabs a basket and fills it some wood, barely missing Talem and heading up the stairs to the tower, where his inevitable doom awaits.

    Talem gets out of the hiding place as he hears a quiet, distant *CRACK* from the tower. With two people now missing it wouldn''t be long before the others would begin to suspect something amiss. He heads to the door and peeks out, seeing no one nearby he walks out onto what looks like a dark balcony overlooking a large hall. Peering down he spots what looks like the banquet, a moment more of investigation and he can spot Solaier and Risryn conversing with a couple, looking as if they belonged in such an event.

    He continues to scan the room until he spots their target, the Reverend. The man is greeting another who''s got a large entourage behind them, if they stick together this would likely be a difficult task.

    His gaze follows the balcony, spotting a chandelier that would allow them to drop down and complete their task as efficiently as possible... No doubt they would die in the process but that wasn''t much of a threat to the immortal Prospects.

    Talem backs into the previous room as he hears a patrol talking to one another pass, he heads back up the tower to alert the others that he had spotted the target and may have a way of reaching them.

    Tarek "Do you think we''ll be able to take them out?"

    Talem nods, "I do, though if all else fails then Risryn will have to finish the job."

    Tarek "If Risryn fails then I deem that old fart unkillable."

    Talem shrugs, "Atleast until Solaire or Reima have a go." he says with a chuckle.

    The group make their way down, to the door and wait as another patrol passes, once they do they climb onto the balcony and climbing up the rafters where the chandelier is connected. They make their way across until all six are standing just above the chandelier, in the rafters which conceals them with darkness.

    They watch as the Reverend continues to converse with the man until they depart, the Reverend walking down the middle of the hall towards the other side, this just happens to lead under the chandelier.

    Tarek "Almost there..."

    Talem "I''ll cut the chain holding it up when he''s in position, everyone get on top of the chandelier now." he says as he pushing the Witch Hunters blade in between a chain link, intending to twist it and break it.

    ...

    The music from below them blares as the Reverend finally walks into position, Talem twists the blade as hard as he can but it only warps the metal, not breaking it. He frowns and realises that this must partly be made from gold which doesn''t break but bend instead. He grits his teeth, pulls the sword out and strikes at it, creating an audible sound from the clanking of metal.

    Luckily the chain finally gives and loudly snaps, everyone''s eyes are drawn towards it as it falls quickly towards the Reverend below it. The man himself seems to shocked and oblivious to even try to move, raising his arms in some sort of feeble attempt to block the heavy metal that''s about to crush his body.

 562 The banquet becomes a masquerade!

    Solaire had heard what sounded like a terribly designed windchime while he was conversing with Risryn, looking up he could see the minute movement of the chandelier, in the darkness above that he saw the Prospects ready and waiting for an attack. He nudges Risryn and quietly draws her attention to it, she quickly turns her back to it as to not look complicit. They both knew that the Reverend was heading in their relative direction and both separate to subtly guide his movement under the chandelier.

    It was difficult but they managed to do it, the chandelier started descending on the old man slightly late but it mattered not, he''d be crushed regardless. The surrounding people scream and point as it falls, however just as the Reverend''s life was snuffed out the large figure of his bodyguard Card Dorcick flies past and manages to get himself and the Reverend to safety.

    The Prospects that were atop the chandelier as it was falling all jumped off just before it hit the ground, rolling as they hit the floor to alleviate the impact.

    The screams of terror for the Reverend''s life were replaced by ones of fear, the six masked assassins had used magic to materialise weapons and started moving towards the Reverend.

    Mensfeld scowls at these men who had the audacity to attempt such a public assassination while HE was here! "Men! Arrest this fools! I want at least one alive to reveal the conspirator!" he points and shouts at the Prospects.

    Reverend Albwin isn''t holding up any better, he hides behind his bodyguard Card and screams, "GUARDS STOP THEM!"

    The Prospects are quickly surrounded by the heavily armoured guards of the king as well as many Witch Hunters, all seething with fury at what they''d just attempted.

    Talem "Remember your task!" he says simply before jumping into combat towards the Reverend. Card Dorcick blocks his progress however, the man''s steel armour and Zweihander proving a difficult match for Talem''s glaive. This, as well as the couple Witch Hunters trying to flank him almost completely stops his charge.

    Card "You will surrender of die heretic!" he shouts while pointing his blade at Talem.

    Talem "Oh? Then I request the same of yourself." he states as Fold Energy manifests in his left hand, he palms the ground below him which causes the earth to shudder, creating small cracks in the marble floor and causing a few of the surrounding men to fall over. With the numbers made even if slightly, he steps forward and jabs his glaive at the bodyguard, however, the man deflects it with ease with his Zweihander.

    Talem twists and turns as he pulls the glaive with him, this action would have severed one of the bodyguards vital arteries in his leg had he not backed away.

    Card "You are a strong warrior."

    Talem doesn''t say anything, instead ducking under a slash courtesy of a Witch Hunter before delivering a roundhouse kick to their face. The force of it instantly knocks them unconscious as well as shattering their jaw and possible their neck. He stops and drops into a low stance, performing Bruce Lee''s signature "Come at me" taunt.

    Card roars, a combination of seeing one of his men killed as well as this masked man''s arrogance sending him into a rage. He sprints forwards and brings his Zweihander down with a brutal strike, Talem misses but the sword collides with the floor, cutting the stone as if it were flesh.

    Talem chops at the man''s left arm in an attempt to cripple him but the man leaves the Zweihander and moves closer, grabbing the handle of the glaive and attempting to pull it from Talem''s grasp.

    The two engage in a tug of war momentarily but Talem has to let go to avoid being stabbed by yet another Witch Hunter. He grips the sword that had barely missed his waist and locks it in place as he thrusts his elbow backwards at the man''s face, it collides heavily, knocking out the man''s teeth and destroying his nose as they topple over backwards.

    Card Dorcick now holds Talem''s glaive in a grip fitting of someone who''d never handled one before while Talem holds the sword up in a foreign stance never before seen in this world. Those from earth would recognise it as being from China, though no one here had such a reference.

    The bodyguard steps forward and stabs the glaive at Talem, the masked warrior moving his head to the sword and stepping forward into an awkward range for the glaive. His sword ready to pierce the large man''s vitals. He jabs at the man''s neck but his forget barely blocks it, saving the man''s life temporarily.

    Card jumps back while slashing down with the glaive, Talem side steps and places his foot on the back of the blade, causing the large bodyguard to pull it back to prevent being disarmed. However, Talem uses this momentum to launch himself over the man and towards the Reverend.

    The crowd watches at Talem readies his blade to pierce the Eternal Fire leaders heart, only to be surprised when his Achilles tendon cut. He rolls to the floor a couple of meters away from his target, glancing at whoever was responsible for preventing the kill.

    Albwin "Sir Gaeveled! You''ve saved me!" he exclaims gratefully as his savior approaches the downed masked man.

    Kreld points his rapier at Talem and demands he surrenders. Talem tries to get up but is unable to due to his injury.

    Talem "Gaeveled? I will remember that name." he growls out, his anger revealing itself for the first time in a while at his task being impeded by this man.

    Kreld "Indeed, I will have it carved on your grave so people will know who had slain you. Now, let''s take off that mask shall we?"

 563 The Reverend Snuffed.

    Kreld "Now, let''s take off that mask shall we?"

    Talem grits his teeth and prepares to give one last strike before he''s inevitably killed...

    "HUURRGHHH!" A shout of pain causes Kreld to rapidly turn around, behind him he can see the Reverend... With a blade protruding from where his heart is, the old man goes pale and spits blood as they fall onto their face. Revealing the person wielding the sword.

    They were wearing a mask made from a stone-like material with two slits for the eyes, segmented metallic shoulder pads with a red robe held together by a sash tied around her waist. Black trousers and leather boots complete the ensemble as Risryn stares at Kreld in a relaxed posture.

    Risryn "Mission Complete." she says to him in a mocking tone.

    Kreld grits his teeth and growls at her, "Do you know what you have done!? GUARDS!" he shouts, causing those not already in combat to come rushing to his aid.

    As Risryn finally joins the combat Solaire slips out of one of the many doors, the distraction giving him time to search for Arie.

    Risryn lets the guards surround her as Kreld waits for the right moment to strike, however a roar of fury signals Card Dorcick''s charge. The man wanting revenge for the Reverend''s death.

    Talem has to rapidly roll to the side to avoid the large man''s foot crushing his skull, the bodyguard rushes at Risryn with his Zweihander back in his hands.

    Risryn slowly pushes her free hand forwards, the guards backed away as they assumed it was another sorcery, they were correct. A flash of Fold Energy causes the Zweihander in Card''s hand to be flung out of his hands and at her, she sidesteps it which allows the large sword to kill an unfortunate guard behind her.

    Card continues, however, the loss of his weapon not an issue to him. He raises his fist, intend on destroying this feeble woman with one punch... Risryn sees this and utilises a Forsaken style block to completely eliminate the man''s momentum. To everyone else it looks as if she''d stopped the man''s entire body and strike with one hand, a guard rushes in to try and stop the inevitable counter-attack on Dorcick but Risryn simply parries the sword away while delivering a quick stab to his throat, killing him with ease.

    Talem who''d been trying to find a way to join the combat to help crawls to a chair and tears it apart, leaving a tall piece of wood that he uses to prop himself upon. Picking up a knife from the table he approaches the bodyguard he was fighting earlier to end them.

    He gets close and uses Fold Energy to cast heal on himself, making his leg usable, if still a bit weak.

    Talem "I''m not finished with you yet." he says as he throws the knife at the big brute while materialising his glaive yet again.

    Card backs away from Risryn, feeling fear for the first time towards her when he suddenly hears his original opponent''s voice. Deciding he could probably use the man as a hostage for the woman he steps towards him while looting a sword from a nearby dead guard. "You, I will use your skull as a trophy!" he says as he dashes forwards, attempting to get behind the glaive, though Talem doesn''t allow this.

    Talem backs up while spinning the glaive, deflecting one strike while sweeping the large man off of his feet mid-step, Dorcick falls onto his side and scrambles to get up while defending himself against Talem''s attacks. If he were any weaker the fight would have ended there, however, he wasn''t the Reverend''s bodyguard for nothing.

    Card thrust the blade at Talem and misses before attempting the same again. Talem uses a Windfall dodge which slows the man''s speed significantly and allows him to deliver a slash to his calf. The attack cuts deeply into the man''s flesh and he struggles to stand due to it.

    He grunts as he tries to stay in a defensive stance but the injury proves too much as he stumbles, allowing Talem an opportunity to attack.

    *SLASH!*

    The glaive trails a streak in the air as it eventually connects with the man''s neck, above the gorget that''d previously saved his life. He gurgles blood and falls to the floor loudly, his metal armour clanking against the stone ground.

    Talem turns to look at the situation in the room, none of the Prospects had been killed yet, though some were on the backfoot and about to be swarmed by the amount of heavily armored guards there were, luckily they''d only brought the best and most skillful of them along. The Prospects all able to use Fold Powers to give them an advantage.

    He looks to Risryn and sees her playing around with the Witch Hunters, only killing one occasionally to keep tensions high, but not instantly annihilating them as she''d usually do... Must be for a distraction he thinks to himself, Solaire still had a mission to do after all.

    Kreld was still fighting Risryn, occasionally trying to get a stab in with his Rapier but her skill and speed astonished him. He was a dueling champion but any chance of victory alluded him, he glanced backward at his wife watching with a worried expression and started to slowly retreat, fighting this person was a lost cause and he wouldn''t make his wife a widow just because of his stubbornness.

    Risryn noticed him attempting to leave but didn''t stop him, they weren''t here to kill officials or anyone important aside from the Reverend. She felt it was their role to show restraint, to show that they weren''t mindless killing machines and would only retaliate if provoked. This was the message they wished to send.

 564 Spelunking

    Solaire had no idea where he was going, the sound of fighting in the hall was now a distant memory as he''d been wandering around the Churches underbelly for who knows how long. It was like a maze, and Solaire hated mazes.

    The area wasn''t like the welcoming he received above ground, the candles and incense were no-longer present. Only torches occasionally providing light were around, making this dungeon feel, well... More like a dungeon.

    Eventually, he reached some stairs leading down into darkness, no light was present down there but this wasn''t a problem for Solaire. He unsheathed his sword slightly to allow the blade''s light to illuminate the area. Now, instead of the marble floor and walls, he was familiar with, were stone brick. Another few minutes of walking allow him to spot a distant light, he quickly sheathes his blade to prevent being spotted and starts quietly moving towards it, as he does so voices start becoming audible.

    "How long is it going to take for fuck sake." someone growls in irritation.

    "Don''t know, but that freak will give up eventually. I''m thinking that removing its other arm will get it talking." they say wit ha chuckle.

    "Hah! Maybe we should tear out those eyes, they don''t belong to human''s so why should it have them?"

    Solaire has had enough of listening to them and decides to interrupt, he walks out from the shadows and into the room. The only thing inside is a table with Gwent cards atop it, the two men sitting opposite each other dressed in Witch Hunter gear.

    They immediately stand as they see him and draw their weapons, "Who''re you? Identify yourself!"

    Solaire "My apologies to you both, but you seem to have my friend imprisoned. Would you please retrieve them? I would hate to have to force you."

    The two look at each other and laugh, "Hahaha! Look at this fuckin'' tough guy, thinkin'' he can take us two on one."

    "Ow'' about this sunshine? You discard your weapon and I''ll only remove one ''and. Good deal right?"

    Solaire shakes his head in disappointment, why do people wish to die so much? "Well, forgive me if I don''t appear as Jolly as I usually am. But, I have a duty to do." he states as lightning begins to form in his hand.

    The two Witch Hunters freeze at the display, and can only watch as the lightning elongates and slumps to the floor like some kind of limp rope.

    Solaire flicks his wrist and causes the lightning whip to cut at the two men, this is more powerful than he had expected as it completely slices them in half, their torso''s severed cleanly from their lower bodies. The duo screams painfully for a few seconds but Solaire flicks his wrist again, causing the whip to decapitate them both, finally ending their miserable existences.

    Solaire "Now, let''s see where our lost Witcher is." he mutters as he opens the next door and walks on through.

    Inside he encounters the thick smell of burnt flesh along with the sound of some sort of live flame. The hallway before him is extremely long and the walls are covered in iron bars. Inside those are the cells of people captured by the Eternal Fire, most presumably to be publically burned later on.

    When they see someone not wearing the Witch Hunter gear they all immediately leap at the bars and begin begging for him to let them go. Men and women of a variety of races plead for him to free them, peculiarly there doesn''t seem to be any children present?

    Solaire "Pardon, please quieten down for a moment." he asks them in a commanding voice, "Do any of you know the location of the Witcher known as Arie?"

    ...

    A middle-aged elven woman nods, "I do! He was brought to the torture room and has been screaming every morning and night for days. Tonight is the only night he''s been silent!"

    Her words cause Solaire to frown, "I must check to see if he''s still alive then, where is this torture room?"

    "It''s at the end of the hall... Will you let us out now?" she pleads.

    Solaire briskly begins walking to where Arie is purported to be, not really knowing how to deal with all these people. He crashes through the metal door at the end of the hallway and scowls when he sees Arie with his single hand and feet nailed to a cross, covering his body are brands that''d been burnt into it, they resemble crosses similar to the ones the Eternal Fire displays on their uniform and the one he''s currently nailed to.

    Solaire "My friend! Are you awake?" he asks quickly.

    Arie stirs and his cat-like eyes flicker open, they''re bloodshot as he peers down at Solaire hatefully, only to realise he isn''t his torturer. "You, you''re Solaire right?" he asks with a harsh voice.

    Solaire "I am, I will try to get you down. Please don''t struggle." he says as he lays the large cross on the floor and pries the nails out of his friends limbs."

    Arie "Hurrgh, fuck. Shit stings." he groans in pain as the rusty looking nails are pulled.

    Solaire "Are you able to stand?" he asks while kneeling down.

    Arie slowly tries to get up with Solaire''s assistance, brushing the Sun God''s hands once he''s standing. "Yeah... You see my damn silver arm blade?"

    Solaire shakes his head, "I have not, but we can simply get another made. Right now we need to leave, there are many prisoners that also need help but I am unsure of how to deal with them."

    Arie shrugs, "Isn''t it obvious? Take them with us, these fucking cunts treat people like shit and kindling." he growls.

    Solaire nods, "Indeed, but how are we going to escape with around forty people?" he questions, a frown on his face.

 565 Jolly Escape

    Solaire "Indeed, but how are we going to escape with around forty people?" he questions.

    Arie "Hmm, you got any idea where these air vents go?" he asks pointing to the stone grid preventing anything larger than a spider from going through it.

    Solaire nods, "I do, they lead outside. However, there''s quite a large drop from there to the ground floor." he mutters.

    Arie "Well, unless you got any other ideas we best get moving."

    Solaire nods, "I''ll keep everyone calm, you open the cells. We cannot have them making too much noise or running off on their own." he says as he collapses the entrance towards the prison cells, preventing anyone else from getting in or out the regular way.

    Elsewhere :

    The Prospects had almost killed every single Witch Hunter present, the only people left to defend the king were his own entourage, though none of the Prospects attempting to harm him.

    *Boom!*

    The ground rumbles as the sound of stone collapsing echoes throughout the church, startling many of those present. What follows the explosion is many, many feet clanking against the marble, as reinforcements finally arrive. Almost every non-essential guard in the city had arrived and were now looking down menacingly at the Prospects. They all back up and behind Risryn as she finishes off yet another group of Witch Hunters.

    King Mensfeld steps forth and points at the group, "You will all lay down your weapons and surrender! If you do not you will be killed, captured and tortured until you can''t speak. Then, you will be staked atop a pyre along with the rest of the non-humans, magic users and traitors to Kaedwen!"

    Risryn smirks under the mask, it seems by the recent explosion that her job was done here. She performs a hand signal to the Prospects behind her which has them all nodding, drawing their weapons... And stabbing themselves in the heart. They each begin to explode into Fold Particles as onlookers watch in awe at the display.

    Mensfeld growls at Risryn, the last remaining person. "Stop the sorcery and come quietly!"

    Risryn "I would, however, I''ve other things to attend to. But, be careful my liege. You might just find us waking you up one day." she says as she flourishes her sword before plunging it into her heart. She explodes into Fold Particles in a similar fashion to the others, her incessant chuckling creeping out those watching.

    Mensfeld steps forward and tries to make a grab at some of the particles, finding that they aren''t corporeal and simply pass through his flesh. He growls, "Men! Secure the city, arrest anyone wearing masks, and list rewards for anyone who can deliver one to me. Especially their bitch leader!" he exclaims angrily.

    The king leaves while escorted by his guards, the nobility of Kaedwen not really sure about what to do. The party had been destroyed and the Reverend killed, along with most of the Witch Hunters.

    Solaire and Arie had managed to control the prisoners, the former leading them out of the vents and onto the platform a few stories off of the ground. He sighs and reaches into his bottomless box, managing to find some rope but having nowhere to tie it, "I will hold the rope, you all descend."

    The woman from earlier objects, "How would you get down then?"

    Solaire grins, "Do not worry about me, I can handle myself."

    They nod and begin to slowly climb down the rope, a few of the weaker ones being assisted by Arie, though there''s a limit to how much help you can give while climbing. Eventually, though they all reach the bottom and look up to Solaire, wondering how he was going to get down. A few are shocked silent while others shout in fear as Solaire jumps off, they look away as he lands, not wishing to see their saviors crushed corpse.

    Solaire "We should get moving, I fear we will have to fight our way out." he says, which quietens the shocked prisoners. They turn back and see Solaire standing there with his usual smile.

    Arie grunts, "Enough gawking, we need to leave quickly."

    Solaire "Ah, I forgot! We need to visit one place before we leave the city."

    Arie "What? Do you not see the battalion of soldiers now manning the walls? If I didn''t know any better I''d say Nilfgaard was invading!"

    Solaire "I promise you my friend that I cannot leave without visiting this place."

    Arie sighs, "Fine, we better do it quickly though!"

    Solaire nods and begins moving directly under the wall where the shadows keep them hidden. They travel to the slums where those children were previously, however, it seems their huge group of people wasn''t as quiet as they thought.

    A small group of guards spot and stand before them, "You! What are all you freaks doing in our city?!?" the leader exclaims at the large mishmash of different races.

    Solaire raises a hand at them, "I realise you are only soldiers and doing your duty, but if you do not let us pass then I will have to eliminate you."

    The leader snorts, "Huh? You and what army?" he says as his men behind him begin to laugh.

    Solaire shakes his head, "Always such simpletons, I humbly apologies to your families." he says as he raises his hand, conjures a lightning whip and swings it at the men, in but a moment all the men are now waist-high, this is mostly due to their legs being cut from their bodies. They scream in pain and terror as the grasp at their now detached legs, but Solaire has a task to complete and cannot have these men causing a ruckus.

    *Flick*

    *SLICE!, CRACKLE!"

    The whip finishes them with ease, the technique proving to be incredibly useful when dealing with fodder.

    Solaire smiles at the horrified group behind him and waves, "Come, I''d rather not destroy the city due to my selfishness." he says as he continues jogging towards his destination.

 566 Caretaker taken care of...

    Solaire led the group towards the two children that could lead them to the "Caretaker" Risryn had previously spoken to. When they reached the area there were two kids there, however they weren''t the same as those yesterday.

    Solaire "Young ones! I need you to take me to the Caretaker!" he quickly says.

    "I''m sorry. Unless you wish to buy something we cannot lead you there."

    Solaire grumbles, "Fine! I wish to buy some "Young Merchandise"." he remembers and repeats Risryn''s request.

    The children nod and leave, they had requested that only two people accompany Solaire but the large group just followed a few meters behind. Deciding to just see what''ll happen they lead the group to the abandoned house, as well as the trapdoor which would take you to the underground tunnels.

    Solaire "Is this truly the place young ones?" he asks.

    They nod and he climbs down after requesting Arie to protect the group should any guards come their way.

    Solaire doesn''t waste anytime, as soon as he drops into the tunnels he follows the sign and burst into the room Risryn had previously been in. He strolls through the room and eventually encounters the creepy looking Caretaker.

    Caretaker "Excuse me? You should know that doing business in such dire circumstances could be troublesome for everyone involved." he states.

    Solaire "Indeed, but I find myself in immediate need of some young slaves. Please, lead me to them."

    The Caretaker frowns and tilts his head to the side at Solaire, whoever this man was, he obviously didn''t know how business worked down here. "I''m sorry but that''s not possible currently, the time isn''t right to be selling that kind of-"

    Solaire step forwards and grips the cripples neck, raising him off of the floor and repeating himself, "You will take me to where ever you are hiding the children." he states.

    The Caretaker sweats, it seems this man did know how business worked after all... "Y-es! P-lease just let me do-wn!" he pleads.

    He''s eventually dropped to the floor where he scrambles backwards while yelling for his guards, Solaire sighs and points at the group rushing towards him. A blast of lightning explodes from his finger and jumps between the men, killing and incapacitating them while leaving only their smoking bodies alone.

    The Caretaker looks on in shock at this and rigidly turns around to Solaire who''s looking down at him with crossed arms.

    Solaire "If you value your life then you will take me to the children." he says as he holds his hand up, electricity sparking between his fingers dangerously.

    Caretaker "Okay! Okay! Forgive me! I-I will take you there." they exclaim as they struggle to get up. Solaire follows the man as he shuffles towards the door at the end of the room, once the door is opened Solaire is hit by the stench of dirt, rot and increments. As he walks inside he spots where the scent is coming from, there are many cells with children inside, a variety of races are kept here, all obviously except human. The cells don''t seem to have proper lavatory''s and so the children use buckets to relieve themselves.

    Solaire scowls at this and looks at the Caretaker, "For what reasons are the conditions of the cells like this?"

    Caretaker "I-It''s to make them take easier to their new masters..." he says weakly.

    Solaire growls, "Disgusting. Are these all the children?"

    The Caretaker begins to nod but the glare from Solaire suggests his imminent death should he lie. "Ah, er... There''s another set of cells at the end of the hall. It holds the more valuable produc-Children."

    Solaire nods, "Then, your use is at its end." he says as he grips the top of the man''s head and channels a ridiculous amount of electricity inside of him. The man spasms as his eyes explode from his skull. Eventually slumping to the floor, dead.

    Solaire tosses the corpse to the side, steps forward and begins to address the children being held here. "Young ones! I am here to rescue you from this place! I will open your cells and you will follow me to safety! Please be calm as I will do everything in my power to protect you!"

    Outside, Arie had been waiting a couple of minutes for Solaire to complete whatever he was doing down there. However the patrols in the area were increasing, apparently, they''d found the bodies of the other one and decided to investigate. They tried their best to stay hidden but due to their sheer numbers, it was inevitable that they''d be caught.

    Arie was standing in front of the door of the abandoned house, all the others in the group being hidden inside as twenty guards surrounded the building.

    "Give up! Surrender and no further harm will come to you!"

    Arie laughs, "Yeah right! Just like how you staked innocent men and women on pyres?" He spits, "Fuck you!"

    The guard captain scowls at him, "Very well, your death will not be a quick one." he says as his men start shuffling forwards, spears pointing at Arie.

    Arie stabs his sword in the ground and casts the most powerful Igni he can muster at them, they back away quickly due to its intensity and their spears catch fire. But this''ll only stop them momentarily.

    "Forget the spears! Advance with sword and shields." the captain shouts.

    Arie doesn''t back off, holding his ground in spite of certain death approaching. If he was still at his top performance he would have been able to maybe put up a fight, but without his arm and days of constant torture he stood no chance... Suddenly, a commotion can be heard from the house behind him.

    The door behind him explodes as someone shouts, "JOLLY!"

 567 Smitten

    "JOLLY!"

    The door shatters into a million pieces as Solaire kicks it, he walks next to Arie and pats his shoulder under the disbelieving looks from the guards, "Thank you for your efforts my friend!"

    Arie nods, "Well, I hope you found whatever you were looking for... We''ve definitely gotta escape now though."

    The guard captain glares at the duo which are talking as if they weren''t even there, "Halt, you are under arrest by orders of the King!"

    Solaire "Is that so? Well, as I said to your other comrades, you will let us go or die." he says, already getting his next spell ready as these guards didn''t seem to value their lives very much.

    "Do you think me stupi-" He''s cut off as Solaire beheads him with a lightning bolt.

    ...

    The guards all drop their weapons and flee, shouting to let them live.

    Arie sighs, "You really don''t do it by halves, do you Solaire?"

    Solaire shrugs, "Let us get out of the city walls, perhaps then we could contact Reima."

    Arie "But how? The gate is surely locked down by now."

    Solaire "Where there''s a will, there''s a way my friend." he says as he walks up to the wall and casts an overpowered Force Miracle.

    *BOOOOOM!*

    The spell instantly cracks the wall and sends fractured splinters throughout the stone, it starts crumbling on it''s own but Solaire hits it again.

    *BAAANG! CRACK!*

    The wall caves in, tumbling down the mountain that it was previously sitting on. The guards atop it are killed as they''re buried under tons of stone. Solaire looks down at the steep drop and draws his sword. He channels lightning into it and strikes with both hands, cutting out a large swath of stone and creating a makeshift incline that''ll allow the group to slide down it.

    Solaire "Come! There''s no time to lose!" he shouts as he helps people down.

    Once everyone is out of the city and in the field just under it Solaire follows as the reinforcements attempt to fire arrows at them. Solaire points his sword at them and a few lightning bolts fall from the sky and on top of the unfortunate souls tasked with apprehending them.

    The group flees, running until they were out of range of the cities archers. From a distance they could already see Calvary mounting up at the gates, preparing to chase them down.

    Arie "Damn, Solaire they plan to chase us all the way back."

    Solaire nods and pulls a summoning stone from his bottomless box, he writes Reima''s name on the floor and waits a moment for him to respond...

    ...

    Only, that he doesn''t. Reima doesn''t seem to be available at this time, causing Solaire to frown.

    Solaire "It seems my short cut isn''t available... We need to walk back."

    ...

    Arie "Walk? Look at how many sick, injured, and starving there are. That with the fact we would have to defend them from Kaedwen, monsters, and bandits makes me think we aren''t getting home!"

    Solaire shakes his head and points his sword to the sky, "We will make it back, eventually." he says as a rain of lightning falls from the sky, atop the mounting cavalry gathering at the gates of Ard Carraigh. The spell kills most and collapses the gate, preventing anyone from entering or exiting the city, at least until they get it fixed.

    Arie sighs, "Whatever, let''s get moving. They probably already know of our settlement, leading them to it won''t do much apart from confirming it." he says reluctantly.

    Solaire laughs, "That''s the spirit my friend! I''ve got a large amount of food stored in my box for such an occasion anyway!"

    Elsewhere :

    Risryn and the other Prospects had just reappeared next to the alter after killing themselves. As soon as they confirm that everyone is present they cheer at their first completed mission.

    Risryn leaves as they all cheer and looks for Reima, to make sure he knows that the mission is complete. However, she can''t seem to find him anywhere, inside Kaer Morhen, around the half-built city, or even atop the mountain with the Everlasting Dragon.

    She asks around and eventually hears about some kind of "Place of Power" from the half dragon girl that he might be at. Risryn sighs and clambers her way back up the mountain while following the directions given to her.

    When she reaches her destination she spots Reima, however, something is immediately wrong when she gets there. He''s meditating in-front of the glowing stone, the floor under him is stained black as some kind of similarly colored ooze drips from his ears. She walks up and looks at his face before grimacing at what she sees, the same ooze is trailing down his face like black tears. His eyes are wide open but completely black...

    Suddenly she spots movement and jumps backwards as some sort of tentacle sprouts from the ooze and tries to attack her.

    Risryn "What is this?" she mutters, tossing a rock at the tendril that deflects it away with ease. "I must inform the others." she reasons and starts sprinting down the mountain.

    She tells everyone close to Reima about what is happening to try and find some answers, but most have little to no idea what it actually is. Quelaag explains that Solaire might have a clue but that isn''t all that helpful as still completing his mission right now.

    That''s when she explains the situation to Ciaran, the woman pales when she hears it and requests to see him. Sif follows as if he can sense the impending situation approaching.

    They manage to get Ciri to teleport them all to the top of the mountain, the group of Geralt, Ciaran, Risryn, Sif, Dusk and Ciri all walk along the path leading to Reima to inspect the situation.

 568 Gimme your soul

    Reima had been speaking with Kuretz and a few Chaos Servants about how the construction of the city was going. All was going slowly, but well, that is, until an ominous feeling overtook him.

    Reima "Sorry guys, I-I have something else to do. Continue without me." he quickly says as he teleports to the Balcony where he kneels down and starts examining his body. Physically nothing appeared to be wrong, though once he checked his soul he could see the problem. His Humanity seemed to be shaking and shuddering, attempting to flow through the channels he''d created to be able to use it. This was a massive problem as if it got out there was no doubt in his mind that another Oolacile would be created.

    He prods at it and attempts to restrain it with Elder Blood mana, but it doesn''t have any effect at all, instead seeming to just aggravate it. He attempts to stifle the Humanity with the Chaos energy as well as his own soul. This temporarily inhibits the spasms it''s giving off but it soon starts again.

    Deciding that sticking around Kaer Morhen any longer would be dangerous for everyone involved, he teleports to the Igni Place of Power atop the mountain to try and utilise its energy to restrain the Humanity.

    He kneels down and tries to delve into his soul to fix whatever was causing this, but his world goes black as he does so...

    ...

    A while later Reima opens his eyes and finds himself within a large dark room, reminiscent of the Abyss in New Londo or the bottom of Oolacile.

    Reima "Err, hello?" he asks into the darkness.

    ...

    There''s no reply, however a single red light appears in the distance... Followed by another, and another. Eventually the red lights cover the entirety of the darkness surrounding him, though Reima now recognises them for what they are... Eyes, those that had belonged to Manus, Father of the Abyss.

    Reima "I killed you once, so stop fucking with me and leave." he says irritably.

    Once he says this the thick darkness seems to recede, allowing the monumental form of Manus to be seen. No longer was it some sort of humanoid amalgamation, now, it resembled a true titan. It was entirely composed of the black ooze with glowing red eyes covering it. It was so massive that it''s true form could be seen in every direction that Reima looked.

    ...

    Reima scratches the back of his head, "Er, you''ve been working out..." he jokes.

    It doesn''t speak, but a voice can be heard by Reima anyway.

    Manus "SEEK MORE SOULS!"

    Reima "No."

    Manus "DEVOUR MORE SOULS!"

    Reima "Bro, I said no!"

    Manus "CLAIM THEM ALL!"

    Reima frowns, "This isn''t Pokemon! I''ll eat souls when I feel like it, you can sit and wait for the occasion when it happens."

    The titanic form of Manus bends over to address Reima better, "YOU DEVOURED ME... DEVOUR THEM!"

    Reima "Yeah, I did. So why aren''t you dead yet?"

    Manus "WE ARE ONE SOUL! A WHOLE THAT MUST FEED!"

    Reima "Look, I''ve already had this talk with a dragon. We are one in the same, blah, blah, blah. Can we just resolve this and go back to normal?"

    Manus "YOU MUST DEVOUR WORLDS, IT IS OUR PURPOSE!"

    Reima "How about, I occasionally eat a soul. That''s the best I''m going to offer you." he shrugs.

    Manus huge arm throws something at him, it collides with the ground next to Reima which causes the earth to shake.

    Reima looks down and spots the Staff of Manus sticking from the floor, he looks back up at Manus and asks, "What do you want me to do with this?"

    Manus "DEVOUR OUR ENEMIES!"

    Reima picks up the Staff and teleports next to one of Manus feet, he slams the axe head onto its foot causing the creature to scream in pain and fury. The axe head seems to start sucking in the liquid composing Manus form.

    Manus "YOU DEFY ME?!?"

    Reima shrugs and leaves the staff planting in the colossal beasts foot, continually sucking in large amounts of its body. "Yeah, I do. Now, where''s the exit? I''ve got things to do today."

    ...

    Manus doesn''t answer and instead tries to pry the Staff of Manus from its foot, though it seems to be futile as the hand it uses to attempt this is also sucked into it.

    Reima sits on the floor and watches with a bored expression as this happens, yawning to himself as he wonders how long it''ll actually take to completely suck in all of Manus.

    Outside the group had finally reached Reima, with Ciaran backing away as soon as she spots the black ooze falling from him. "No, this can''t be..."

    Geralt "What?"

    Ciaran "It''s the abyss, I thought Reima had restrained or controlled it, but it seems I was wrong..."

    Dusk has an ugly expression on her face as she sees Reima surrounded by abyssal tendrils.

    Ciri shrugs, "It''s just black goo, I don''t get what you''re so worried about..."

    Ciaran and Sif glare at her, "No? Then the deaths of many ancient cities and everyone within isn''t all that important to you."

    Risryn "Can anything be done?"

    Ciaran nods, "Either Reima restrains it or we kill him and seal his soul."

    ....

    Ciri "Kill Reima? You must be joking."

    Ciaran "I''d never jest about something so dire."

    Ciri "What I mean is, how would you kill him? I''m pretty sure he heals from any damage, his flesh is incredibly resistant, and those tentacles don''t seem to want us to get close."

    Ciaran reluctantly nods, "We will have to request Sir Solaire to assist-"

    Suddenly the abyssal ooze surrounding Reima jerks, and begins to sink into his shadow. Reima rolls onto his back with his arms spread wide.

    Reima "Ahh, for god sake. How many days does it take to hoover up a god of darkness." he groans in annoyance.

    Quelaag/Ciri "Reima?" they ask, glancing at each other when they speak.

 569 A pain in the Manus

    Quelaag/Ciri "Reima?"

    Reima looks up and sees his family staring down at him with cautious expressions, "Er, what''re you guys doing here?"

    Ciaran "Trying to prevent you from becoming another Manus, tell us, what just happened!"

    The others nod and Reima sighs, "Well, Manus wanted me to start eating peoples souls, I said no and sucked him into my staff... Come to think of it, where is my staff?" he says will looking at his shadow in confusion.

    He can''t seem to find it and looks back at the group who''re all now staring at the sky in fear and awe.

    Geralt "I must be seeing things, looks to me that Reima''s staff is flying..."

    Reima looks up and spots the Staff of Manus floating above him, a single large eye at the base of the axe head. A rumbling voice comes from it, "I WILL DEVOUR YOU ALL!"

    Geralt "Yeah, must be going crazy..." he says while picking his ear with a finger.

    Ciaran "Manus!" she shouts in anger at the staff.

    The eye flicks to her, "ARRTTTOORRRIIAASS, I WILL DEVOUR YOU A SECOND TIME!"

    Reima frowns, "No you don''t" he says and summons the staff back to his hand.

    As the Staff of Manus is flying back to Reima it continues to speak, "G-GET OFF OF ME MORTAL! I WILL DEVOU-" It''s cut off as Reima grabs it, suppressing Manus will on contact.

    Reima "Hmm, I kinda don''t wanna use this thing anymore..." he says while poking it in the now-closed eye.

    Dusk "Is, Is it safe?" she asks.

    Reima nods, "Should be, to be honest, I''m glad he''s stuck in the staff and not my head. I feel refreshed!"

    Ciri''s about to walk up and comfort him but their previous argument along with Geralt''s words prevent her from making the first move. Instead she''s beaten by Quelaag who quickly scuttled over.

    Quelaag "I''m glad your okay Reima." she says and hugs him.

    Reima''s gotten used to Quelaag''s breasts smothering his face and just hugs her bac with a smile, "Yeah, yeah... Atleast the sentient weapon didn''t come with a black robe and skull mask, that''d definitely be copyright."

    Ciaran tilts her head to the side, "Copyright? What kind of sorcery is that?"

    Reima shakes his head, "Don''t worry, we should be immune to it." he says while depositing the Staff of Manus back into his shadow where it remains suppressed.

    Risryn "Are you fine then Reima? Because I have news of our mission."

    Reima nods, "Let''s take this to the war room." he says as he opens a portal there, everyone except Sif going inside with Reima following. Apparently Sif wants to play with Eeuwigdurend, better known as the Everlasting Dragon.

    The group get back to Kaer Morhen and Ciri instantly leaves to go somewhere else, while the rest stay to hear how Risryn''s mission had went.

    Reima "So, is the Eternal Fart leader dead?" he says as he falls into a chair next to the large table in the middle of the room.

    Risryn nods, "Pierced his heart with my own blade, now all that''s left is for Solaire to get back."

    Reima nods, "Shouldn''t be too long if they use the horses everyone lent them."

    Risryn nods, "We provided an adequate distraction so we should be in the clear."

    Geralt "Hmm, still hard to believe the Eternal Fire has spread so far. I''d have thought the non-humans would fight back against it."

    Ciaran shakes her head, "They can''t, religion is like a virus, it infects the hearts of minds of the people until it finally has enough numbers to oppress others. I''ve experienced it before during my numerous expeditions in Lordran, not to mention Gwyn''s reign essentially embodying this philosophy."

    Dusk "I agree with you partly Lord''s blade, but I think religion can be for the betterment of men in general. See how Reah and Anastacia are operating."

    Ciaran shakes her head, "I''m not sure how to feel about their actions, everytime I step outside I hear someone shouting "Jolly" at the top of their lungs."

    Reima frowns and points at her, "Yo, that''s not me... Solaire''s completely at fault for that one, you give the masses one memorable line and they''ll latch onto it like rabid dogs." he says as he winks at the camera. "Not that I''m complaining, I think it''s far better than "Amen", or "Praise Allah" and whatever else people yell.

    Quelaag "Those two have stolen my servants with that religion of theirs." she complains.

    Geralt grunts, "Well, as long as it doesn''t start calling for people to start being burned alive, I''m neutral to it. I''ve a couple of other things to do today, Reima, try and keep control of whatever that creature is." he says as he leaves.

    With that, the others realise they''d been in the middle of something when Risryn had pulled them away. They all quickly leave, Quelaag looking the most reluctant to. Though a wave from Reima finally sends her away.

    Risryn "Kaedwen''s King Mensfeld will likely know we are responsible for the assassination. What plans do you have should they try and invade us?" she asks.

    Reima shrugs, "I was just thinking of running into the middle of them and turning them all to ash... It''s not like any weaponry they have could actually hurt me, and they''ve already killed or lost their magic users due to the Eternal Fire''s presence."

    Risryn nods, "I believe that would be an adequate way to solve the problem, if you''re busy our Prospects would be enough to cut them down... Especially since they have no access to the magic that caused us issues in the last battle."

    Reima "Go have a rest and some drinks. Not everyone could so easily assassinate someone within their own home. I''ve still got some stuff to do that''d been delayed due to my... Small problem."

    "I WILL DEVOUR YOU!" shouts from his shadow which causes him to sigh.

    Reima flicks a small red fireball into his shadow which seems to quieten the former god of darkness.

    Risryn nods, "I will leave you to it then my lieg-"

    Reima "Don''t! Call me that..."

    Risryn shakes her head, "Reima." she says as she leaves.

 570 Flame of colour

    It''s been a couple days since the incident with Manus, however with it came unexpected benefits. Reima felt his control over Humanity was steadily growing, apparently Manus had been affecting his overall growth with the ability, perhaps even funneling it into himself in an attempt to break out... Though now he''s just an annoying Staff that shouts "I WILL DEVOUR YOU" whenever it gets the chance...

    He was now able to manipulate the black ooze and create tendrils out of it, though this wasn''t the most impressive use of it... That title would belong to it''s adaptability, it was able to be used in conjunction with other kinds of magic, this was party how Dark Orb and Black Flame functioned. Spells that he''d neglected to train due to their difficulty in the past, though now it was different.

    Reima sat in an isolated position in the mountains with large stone pillars surrounding him. He was in the meditative pose that Geralt had taught him all those years ago and was experimenting with Humanities new capabilities.

    Holding his hand out a red flame begins to coalesce, that is, until it gains a black core, slowly leeching out until the entirety of the fire was black. The abilities of this flame were quite unique, Humanity was physically based and so, when added to his fire it made the fire corporeal. The more Humanity he added the more physical it got, until, finally.

    *Ruuummbbblleee*

    The stone pillars around Reima were enveloped in the black flames and were being lifted into the air. No telekinesis was being used, the pillars were simply being lifted by the flames. Though the rock that comprised them was quickly turning red due to the heat of the fire.

    Reima slowly breathes out as he lowers the pillars, the control wasn''t all that more difficult then when he first started using Chaos Flames, though it provided different challenges. Trying to manipulate chaos was like trying to force an unruly child to do what you want, whereas black fire was like trying to bend steel with your bare hands.

    However, it didn''t take long for him to become proficient with them, the thoughts of what''d happen to someone should they be caught by a hand of Black Flames made him morbidly giddy.

    His experiments with black sorceries didn''t give such good results however, each time he tried resulting in something similar to a dark orb... Even a Crystal Soul Spear would melt into a mass of black tendrils when injected with Humanity, though this wasn''t surprising due to Humanities attributes.

    Reima wished he could have more time to train these abilities, he reckoned he could even start flying if he practised enough with it, but, as a leader of a newly forming settlement there were always things to do.

    He had recently visited Vesemir and Quelina to see how she was getting on under his tutelage. Upon entering the laboratory he was surprised to see a large amount of already completed potions sitting on a table. Next to it was the large body of Quelina as well as Vesemir looking over into a cauldron, they were quickly speaking to one another about "Creating a truth potion similar to the one Reima had used.", it seemed that the Veritaserum he''d displayed previously had these two in a frenzy to find out what could possibly have such an effect.

    He walks towards and knocks on the wooden table to catch their attention, Quelina almost jumps and knocks over the cauldron had Vesemir not been quick to steady it.

    Vesemir "Lambert for god''s sake, how many times do I have to tell you NOT-... Reima?" he almost explodes until he turns and sees Reima standing there with crossed arms.

    Quelina turns and smiles brightly at him, scuttling forwards and hugging his waist, "Reima! You''ve come to visit me!"

    Reima "Yeah, just wanted to check up on your progress... It seems you''ve progressed past just learning though." he mutters while glancing over the table.

    Quelina nods, "Uncle Vesemir and I are trying to make a new potion!"

    Vesemir chuckles, "This ones an incredibly quick learner, I''ve got no more material to teach her so I decided that we should try creating something new." he says with a gentle expression.

    Reima "Something about recreating my Veritaserum right?"

    Vesemir "Oh, you heard that?" he says with a funny expression.

    Reima nods, "I did, but it seems you guys haven''t checked out the library I''d built..."

    Quelina "I did, but there wasn''t anything on alchemy... Those books on biology and microscopic organisms were interesting though!"

    Reima shakes his head, "You both have access to the restricted section on the top floor, I''d left all the books on alchemy and potioneering there. The recipe to create Veritaserum included, but you''d still lack the ingredients as I haven''t gotten around to creating a farm here yet."

    Vesemir rubs his chin, "Hmm, a farm? I''m guessing you''d not be growing Wolf''s Bane or Fools Parsley there..."

    Reima "Yeah, it''d only be for magical plants from the previous world I visited. Their potions are much more useful than the ones we could usually brew, regular humans are even able to take them."

    Quelina "Really? Oh, just think of the things we could brew with such plants... Reima! You have to start growing them!"

    ...

    Reima "I''d have to finish those rune clusters though, the weather here isn''t exactly amazing..."

    Quelina "Please! It would mean a lot to me." she says with sparkling eyes.

    ...

    Reima sighs, "Fine, I''ve needed to get around to doing it anyway." he mutters, just before he''s crushed in a tight hug courtesy of the young spider/crab/dragon/human/demon.

    Vesemir chuckles at the side as he watches them, remembering old times with previous Witcher children or even indeed Geralt with Reima and Ciri.

 571 Refugee that broke the gods back

    After Quelina begged him to start growing those magical plants from Harry Potter he cracked and started experimenting with the rune clusters again. Though he wasn''t really able to spend all that much time on it due to the city still mid-construction, as well as people constantly asking him for permission to build "This or that". He was starting to think this would be his life if something didn''t happen and change the situation.

    Another thing that''d been on his mind these past few days was, "where the fuck is Solaire?"... If he''d taken the horses he should have been back by now.

    Reah "Your holiness, I was thinking that a statue dedicated to you and Sir Solaire''s greatness would benefit the settlement!"

    ... Even when he wasn''t helping with construction, designing his rune cluster, giving permissions or talking about methods of dealing with the others kingdoms with his "Advisors", there was always Reah bickering to him about various "Holy" things...

    Reima "How would a statue benefit us?" he asks with a sigh.

    Reah "I believe everyone would work and train harder if we could gaze upon your face whenever we looked up!"

    Reima gets a cold sweat, "How big do you want to make this statue?"

    Reah smiles, "Fifteen stories high!-"

    Reima "Hell fucking no! That''d be bigger than two of my libraries stack ontop of each other! Why the fuck would we need something like that!" he exclaims when he hears her answer.

    Reah "But your holiness, we need people to know about our great, powerful, and infallible leader!"

    ...

    Reima stores all the rune clusters he was designing into his Fold Space before flipping the table and walking out.

    Reah looks on in confusion as he leaves, quickly following him after regaining her composure. "My lord! Wait for me!"

    She runs outside and finds Reima drawing on the ground with a white soapstone, once he''s done it glows and Solaire appears with a smile on his face before them. "My friend! Are you still busy?"

    Reima "Busy? No! Where are you! I need you to keep Reah occup-busy-... Happy!"

    Solaire rubs the back of his head, "Well, my rescue of Arie went excellently... Actually, it might have gone too excellently as I''m currently heading to Kaer Morhen with sixty people who wish to join the settlement..."

    A vein appears on Reima''s forehead when he hears this, "... Sorry, I must''ve misheard you. I could have sworn you just said that you''ve got another sixty people with you, hahaha..."

    ...

    Solaire "No, you are correct my friend! I''ve got sixty jolly men, women, and children who wish to join our glorious settlement!"

    ...

    Reima doesn''t say anything, instead, bending down at the white summoning sign and pushing Elder Blood Energy into it, eventually managing to target Solaire relative position... Reah and Solaire watch as Reima plunges his hands into the air, a spatial rift forming and opening to reveal the group of sixty people the Sun God was just talking about.

    Arie "Reima? About time you opened one of those damn portals! We''ve been walking for day-Wait, you need to calm down." he says as Reima destroys the soapstone summoning of Solaire with a furious expression, which has the real one re-materialise before them.

    Reima steps through the portal leaving Reah alone and approaches Solaire.

    Solaire "My friend! You''ve come to retrie-"

    *BOOM!*

    Reima punches Solaire in the face, causing a sonic boom as the Sun God is launched through the tree''s behind him with an incredible force, Solaire tumbles through them like a cannonball before eventually landing after many innocent trees are destroyed.

    Arie sweatdrops at this and the group of refugees all scream at their saviour getting blown out of sight with a single punch by this teleporting intruder.

    Solaire crawls out of the pile of halved timber and rubs his neck as he walks back to them, "My friend, that was hardly a jolly handshake!"

    Reima "Do you know how fucking long it''s going to take to build houses for these people? Who''s going to take care of those kids!?! Do you even know if they are trustworthy?"

    Solaire crosses his arms and nods, "Indeed I do, I personally rescued them and we''ve had a jolly time walking Kaer Morhen."

    Reima "What happened to the horses the others lent to you!?!" he exclaims, knowing full well that Roach was rather important to Geralt.

    Solaire scratches his chin, "Well, our escape required my destroying one of Ard Carraigh''s walls and going through that... There wasn''t much time to collect our horses."

    Reima shakes his head, "You know what? Fuck it." he says as he turns around and opens a portal to the settlement.

    Solaire "Are you okay my friend?" he asks, though he doesn''t get a reply.

    Arie leads the sixty wary people through the portal where a large group of Prospects and Chaos Servants were waiting, Quelaag, Talem, Kalini, Kuretz and Risryn were all there as well.

    The last of them step through and Reima closes the portal after Solaire steps inside.

    Kuretz "So we''ve got some new arrivals? Maybe they can do some of the building and give the rest of us a break."

    Kalini "I don''t know, most of these people look like they need rest. Look, they''ve got children with them."

    Quelaag steps forwards, "Reima, Solaire? Who are these people?"

    Reima pushes Solaire in-front, "Solaire''s in charge of this. I''m going on vacation." he says and teleports away.

    ...

    Talem "Going on vacation?"

    Quelaag "It seems that Reima wants a break..."

    Solaire pats his chest, "Don''t worry everyone, as the person temporarily in charge I will make sure we all have an effective time fo it. Are you ready for some Jolly Cooperation!?!"

    "Yeaaaah!!" The refugees shout.

    "JOLLY!" the Prospects and Chaos Servants shout.

    Quelaag "Hopefully Solaire doesn''t destroy everything we''ve built thus far..." she mutters.

    Reah runs onto the scene and cheers, "His holiness has returned with lost lambs! We must teach them our ways!"

    Quelaag sighs, "Or Reah."

 572 Vacation?

    Reima teleports away from Solaire and the refugee''s still fuming, he knew is anger was unfounded by he simply couldn''t imagine ruling over so many people and being responsible for them. Thus, he decided to find someone more suitable for the job, it''d be a vacation, but also a search for someone "Worthy".

    He teleports to the top of the mountain where the Everlasting Dragon is to ask them to look after the settlement while he was gone, however when he arrives he finds Priscilla sitting on the Dragon''s tail with Snuffles and Carimir on her lap.

    Priscilla "Reima?" he asks, wondering what he was doing here.

    Reima waves "Hey Cilla, I''ve come to speak with the old man."

    She nods, "Grandpa?"

    Eeuwigdurend "Yeesss child?"

    Priscilla "Reima has come to speak with you."

    Eeuwigdurend turns his massive head towards Reima, "Well then? I am present... Speak."

    Reima "Just wanted to let you know I''m going on a vacation and to ask you to look after everyone while I''m gone."

    Priscilla "A vacation?" she asks with Snuffles head lifting and looking at him.

    Eeuwigdurend "I will do so." he grumbles out.

    Reima nods "Thanks." and begins walking away, only to be stopped by Priscilla.

    Priscilla "Can I come?" she asks.

    ...

    Reima "I don''t know..."

    Priscilla "Please? It sounds so exciting!"

    ...

    Reima crosses his arms and nods, "Only if I can fluff your tail."

    ...

    Priscilla looks confused at what he means but Eeuwigdurend glares at him.

    Eeuwigdurend "Do you wish to die?" he asks gravely.

    Reima shakes his head, it seems he''d have to try when the old man wasn''t around. "Nevermind... Do you need anything before we leave?"

    Priscilla shakes her head, "No, we should let my Brother know I''m leaving though."

    Reima nods, walks up to the Eternal Dragon while retrieving a stainless steel plate. Reima heats his finger and carves a message into it, "Solaire! I have taken your sister with me on my vacation, I have no idea when we''ll be back.". After he writes the message he nails it to the Dragons Stone Scales and nods. "That should do it."

    Priscilla "Where are we going?" she asks with an excited expression.

    Reimna shrugs, "No idea... Let''s hope it''s interesting though." he says as he touches the half-breeds shoulder and begins contemplating where his destination should be. Primarily, he wants to find someone who''ll take his place and limit the workload he''s under... So, someone in-charge of many people who''s in dire need of help. Someone who''s not averse to ruling over "Freaks". And someone who wishes to relocate their people... Or, simply, someone suitable for the role he has in mind for them.

    This vague idea slowly comes to fruition as Reima, Priscilla, Snuffles and Carimir begin to glow with a turquoise light.

    *FLASH*

    They disappear with a flash, leaving nothing but green particles behind. Eeuwigdurend watches with a neutral expression, eventually moving his head so he can easily watch over the settlement, as per Reima''s request. He could see the still building city, the keep Kaer Morhen itself and some kind of statue being erected in the city center... "Mortals." he''d never understand them.

    The group reappears on a snowy hill, during some sort of blizzard. The snowfall was so thick that it came up to their waists and they could barely see a couple meters ahead.

    Priscilla frowns, "Reima, when you said vacation I thought you meant someone warm... This place reminds me of my old prison."

    Reima "Well, I didn''t really know where we would end up, to be honest..." he says as he looks behind him, seeing a long rope bridge behind him that looks incredibly similar to the one in the painted world of Ariamis. "Yeah, I''m getting the same vibes as you..." he says as he conjures a large flame on his hand and telekinetically shields them from the blizzard.

    Priscilla holds onto Reima''s arm while feeling the warmth being emitted by him and the flame, "Thank you."

    Reima nods, "Don''t worry about it, I''d rather not have Carimir turn into a catsicle either."

    Snuffles hops onto his shoulder and slaps his ear.

    Reima "What was that for?" he asks, giving the rabbit a glare.

    Snuffles turns back into Nerissa and sits on his shoulders with a neutral expression, "Hungry."

    Reima shakes his head in disbelief, "I''ll feed you when we find shelter, alright?" he states with young vampire nodding.

    They begin to walk, the blizzard continuing and creating a surprisingly comfortable atmosphere, the warmth being emitted by the flame making them feel like they''re inside a log cabin, watching the weather from inside.

    The group continues to walk down the hill, which begins to reveal pine tree''s occasionally dotted around, though something is immediately wrong when they get to the bottom...

    Nerissa "Something smells... Smells like you Reima."

    ...

    Reima "Smells like ash, somethings burning." he states, and begins to head towards it.

    The blizzard slowly begins to clear up and the group find themselves in the middle of some kind of village, or, what used to be a village. The entire place is on fire, it seems to have only recently happened as well as the buildings are still burning.

    Priscilla "There might be people inside, we need to help them!" she quickly says and begins walking towards the nearest building.

    They all enter and realise that this is some kind of library, though most of the books have already been burned... The only thing notable other than the normal looking furniture is the thick coating of snow on the floor, it doesn''t seem to melt however which confuses Reima...

    Reima "There''s no one here, they must''ve ran away and escaped."

    Priscilla nods, "Atleast no one was killed... This Vacation isn''t turning out very well..."

    Reima sighs, "Yeah... You got me there."

 573 Dangerous Waterfall

    As they were about to leave the Library Reima notices a book half-burned, though some of it''s words are still legible. Perhaps this would give some insight into where they actually were...

    Reima picks it up and begins to read the text, "-Mages were too strong to defeat, with them and others like them not having a single casualty our loss was imminent. In an act of mercy or vengeance, they decided-" the rest of the page was burnt and unreadable...

    Reima "Well, that tells me literally nothing... Apart from magic being real in this world I guess." he mutters.

    Priscilla "Perhaps the mages it speaks about are responsible for the destruction of this village?"

    Reima nods, "Probably, but we''d need to find whoever "They" are to confirm it.

    They leave the building and spot one that, while scorched all over, seems relatively unaffected. Reima walks inside and discovers it to be some sort of bar, well, before whoever came in and trashed the place. Various foods are discarded on the floor, burgers, fries and similar pub foods that remind Reima of home.

    Reima frowns and examines the place, "This... This place seems to be fire-proofed?" he says aloud.

    Priscilla "How do you know that?" she asks with Nerissa nodding next to her.

    Reima shrugs, ignites a small flame on the tip of his finger, and drags it across the bar counter. Any regular wood would at least begin to smoke but this did nothing. "The fire that scorched the outside should have at least done the same to the inside, I''m curious at why this precaution was needed..."

    Nerissa "Hungry." she states.

    ...

    Reima nods, "Fine." he says as he lifts up an upturned seat and falls into it. He fills a glass with a good amount of blood and hands it off to her, all the while thinking of where this could be, and who could have caused it.

    Priscilla "I think we should get moving, the blizzard has stopped and we don''t know when it will return." she says.

    Reima nods, "I guess your right. Lets go." he says, causing Nerissa to down her drink and wipe the blood from around her mouth.

    They exit and begin walking east, they''d come from the west and hadn''t spotted anyone so this should be the correct direction to go.

    The group eventually spot a river that carries huge icecubes down it and Reima wonders where they''re coming from, and indeed, where they''re going.

    As he''s walking he almost falls over something hidden in the snow... A torn red scarf? He brushes off the snow-like substance the clings to it and examines it for any magical properties, but finds none.

    Reima smiles and wraps it around Nerissa''s neck, "Red suits you... Whaddya think Cilla?" he asks while the young vampire looks down at it.

    Priscilla nods, "It matches your eyes, but, whoever left it there must be looking for it?"

    Reima shakes his head, "It''s torn and buried in snow... That with the addition of the burning town makes me think they aren''t coming back."

    Nerissa "Like it." she says.

    Reima pats her head, "I think I see the snow lessening ahead, let''s go."

    Another mile of walking leads them into an area with strange purple grass that someone had apparently tracked snow through, though Reima was beginning to suspect that whatever this was, wasn''t snow. Ahead they spot some sort of guardpost with a large flower blue flower next to it, against, it''s covered in that snow-like substance. A sign stands next to it which says, "Speaks your dreams into the flowers and it is said they''ll come true."

    ...

    Reima "Anyone wanna go?" he asks.

    Priscilla nods and steps forwards, though as soon as she approaches a voice begins to come from the flower.

    "I wish for us all to be fr-... Hurrgh! S-stop, please!", it cuts off there...

    ...

    Reima shrugs, "Look like whoever that person was got what they were asking for... In a sense."

    Priscilla frowns at him, "Someone killed them, they didn''t seem to try and fight back either."

    Nerissa sniffs the air and shakes her head, "No blood."

    Reima "Maybe there''ll be more of these flowers that can tell us what happened." he wonder aloud, the others agree and they all begin moving once more.

    They encounter some sort of waterfall with rocks continuously falling from it, directly onto the path ahead.

    Reima "Yeah, that seems really fucking dangerous... Whoever''s in charge of this place needs to be taken to the health and safety department." he complains.

    Priscilla "Maybe it''s a game? Avoid the rocks the longest and you win?" she guesses.

    Reima "And who''d be playing it? Children? Right, only if you wanted them with caved in skulls." he says as he grabs the others and teleports them across. Not trusting some other booby trap to be waiting in the shallow water.

    Further along the path, instead of bridges, there is some kind of water lily''s that look like they could support someone''s weight. Though, again, Reima doesn''t trust it and simply teleports the group across. Priscilla wants to have a go but almost immediately falls int the water, the only thing preventing her from getting soaked is Reima catching her with Telekinesis.

    Reima "As I was saying, looks like only a child would be able to traverse this without sinking."

    Priscilla turns her gaze to Nerissa who frowns.

    Nerissa "No."

    ...

    Priscilla "Please?"

    Nerissa "No." she states, leaving no room to question her.

    Soon, after another mile of walking through this peculiar place, they walk out into a more dimly lit area. A telescope lays on its side in the purple grass, obviously broken. But the presence of it causes Reima to look up, which reveals the nighttime sky with thousands of stars glowing brightly.

 574 Troublesome child

    Priscilla "It''s beautiful... Is this the sky?" she asks as they all stare upwards.

    Reima is momentarily confused by her question and proceeds to focus on the stars, eventually realising that it''s not the sky. Instead, it''s the ceiling of a large cave they''re currently inside, the stars being only numerous glowing stones lodged in the roof. "We''re underground..."

    Priscilla "Underground? But that would mean that the previous town is the same, tree''s can''t grow without sunlight right?"

    Reima nods, "And blizzards don''t just appear underground for no reason... Must be those mages or something...

    The group continues onwards despite the shocking revelation, the path leads to some sort of wooden platform that sits just above the water level. It travels past a wall that has some sort of glowing inscriptions on it, though it looks like someone had attempted, and succeeded in destroying them. Only a few letters remain while the rest are obscured by cut marks.

    Passed that the group encounter glowing blue water, possibly from some sort of algae, though the lack of sunlight create doubts to the plausibility to that theory. They also encounter more "Wish Flowers", each telling their own grim story. Some weren''t disturbed by the throws of death that tainted the others, but none gave concrete information apart from the residents wishing to be free of "this place". Reima assumes that they mean this Underground place, but he could be wrong.

    Eventually, they reach a pitch-black room only illuminated by "Wish Flowers", they walk inside and start listening to the flowers, though all of these ones seem to have gone silent...

    Priscilla goes to the last remaining one that they haven''t checked, the flower giving off a chilling childish giggle as she approaches.

    Suddenly out of nowhere a small figure leaps out from behind the flower and tries to stab at Priscilla with a knife, the Half-breed is so shocked by this that she''s only able to dodge backwards towards Reima as her pressure relentlessly follows.

    Reima notices the commotion and rushes over, spotting the figure trying to attack Priscilla. He telekinetically drags the Half-breed back and tosses a Chaos Fireball at the figure, causing them to jump away from the subsequent explosion.

    The lava spread by the fireball illuminates the figure, revealing it to be a child, slightly younger than Nerissa and wearing a blue and purple striped jumper. They have a menacing smile on their face along with red eyes as they point the knife at him...

    Reima "I''m gonna gut you, you little cunt." he growls, thinking that a regular child wouldn''t attempt to murder someone.,

    Priscilla "Reima! They''re young, you must show mercy, something must be wrong."

    Reima shakes his head but decides to humour her, "You better start explaining yourself or I''m gonna give you the spanking of a lifetime!" he shouts at the kid.

    They don''t say anything, and begin approaching again, the creepy smile everpresent on their face.

    Reima scowls at them and steps in-front of Priscilla, "You better stop now or you won''t like the consequences." he states.

    The child leaps at him while attempting to slash at his face, though he simply grabs the knife and headbutts the child, causing them to fall to the ground with a thud.

    Reima begins to examine the knife but finds nothing special about it, ruling out some sort of "Lich King" situation. The child gets up and punches him in the stomach, accomplishing literally nothing.

    Priscilla "Please stop, whatever is bothering you is not worth this violence." she pleads gently.

    Her words don''t seem to even affect the child though as they jump at her instead, getting caught by the back of their jumper by Reima.

    Reima "Cilla, I think this is a lost cause..." he says as the child in his grasp rapidly tries to escape, even going as far to try and bite his arm.

    Priscilla "There must be something we can do..."

    Reima shrugs, "I''ll just tie them up and take them with us... Maybe someone in the cave will know something?" he says as he conjures ropes and binds the child. "Let''s get mov-" he begins but is disoriented when he finds himself and the other teleported out of the room containing the Wish Flowers...

    Reima rubs his head, "What the fuck just happened." he asks with a groan.

    Priscilla "Is something wrong?" she asks as if everything is normal.

    Reima "Huh? You don''t remember that little punk kid trying to stab you?"

    Priscilla has a confused expression as she shakes her head, "No... Not that I remember?"

    ...

    Reima "Wait here." he says as he reenters the room, walking straight for the Wish Flower the kid was previously hiding behind. He throws a fireball at it. instantly reducing it to ash as the child leaps out of the way, he then telekinetically lifts the child into the air, dragging them towards him where he glares dagger at them.

    Reima "What did you do?"

    ...

    Reima growls at their silence, "I said, what. Did. You. Do?"

    The child''s smile only grows wider at their begin to giggle, as if he''d just said the funniest thing in the world.

    Reima frowns and again, conjures ropes and attempts to bind the child... Only to be teleported back outside of the room... "For fuck sake!"

    Priscilla "Is something wrong?" she asks, again.

    Reima nods, "Yeah, there''s something wrong! There''s a kid in there that''s able to teleport me and remove your memories." he quickly says.

    Nerissa shakes her head, giving Reima a weird look as if he''d gone crazy.

    Priscilla "Perhaps it''s an illusion that only effects you Reima? One by those Mages?"

    Reima shakes his head, "Most illusions don''t work on me, they''d have to be like Dumbledore times a thousand while casting their most powerful illusion to even affect me in the slightest."

 575 Deal or no deal?

    Reima sighs, "Well, here I go again... Wait here, let''s see if I can do something about this..." he mutters as he reenters the room, again.

    However, as soon as he enters his Observation Haki flares, the child jumps out from behind the flower nearest to the door and attempts to stab him. His brows furrow at this as even if he let the knife hit him it would probably break against his skin... He telekinetically lifts the child by their neck, Darth Vader style and brings them face to face.

    Reima gives them a harsh glare as he speaks, "Look, the only reason I haven''t literally torn you apart yet is that my friend thinks something is off, but if you continue my hands might slip." he says gravely.

    They giggle and stab to stab at his face, he growls and snaps their neck.

    *Warp*

    He''s teleported back with the others yet again...

    Reima "Do you guys remember anything?" he asks.

    Priscilla "Remember anything? Not... What are you talking about?"

    ...

    He sighs, feels like some kind of time loop. Even when he kills the kid it does literally nothing. "Wait here." he says for the third time.

    This time when he enters the child is standing in the open, their arms spread wide as if they wish to give him a hug...

    Reima approaches, "Finally want to talk?" he asks.

    Their red eyes stare back at him, beckoning him closer. When he''s in arms-length they attempt to hug him, while he doesn''t trust them this might be a way to solve this issue? However, as soon as their arms wrap around his waist they retrieve a dagger from their sleeve and try to stab him in the back.

    Reima shakes his head in exasperation as the knife scrapes against his Witcher gear, not even penetrating it. He grips the top of the child''s head and crushes it in his grip, causing skull fragments and brain matter to splatter everywhere.

    He looks down at the corpse, wondering if this was it?

    *Warp*

    ...

    Reima cracks his knuckles and walks inside the room again, giving a "Wait here" to his group as he does so.

    He scans the room with Observation Haki and locates the child, casting hundreds of Crystal Soul Spears that shoot quickly towards them. However a surprising phenomenon happens, the child easily dodges every single one, as if they''d practised against this move constantly, completely mastering it.

    Once the attack is done they giggle and rush him, yet again. He stamps on the floor causing the ground to explode with dark red fire, it envelopes the room and incinerates the child.

    *Warp*

    *Warp*

    *Warp*

    Reima looks at Priscilla, "Just fucking wait here." he says as he marches into the room again.

    *Warp*

    *Warp*

    *Warp*

    This continues for who knows how long, entering the room and butchering the child in a new way, after the 50th time Reima starts getting creative in the way he executed them. But every time they''d always teleport him back and regenerate, taking his friend''s memories with them.

    After the 60th time Reima attempts to use the Dark Hand on them, deciding that maybe devouring their soul would accomplish something?

    The child floats towards him yet again, their expression never changing from the creepy smile as his hand is covered in a black and red misty substance.

    Reima "I promise, this will hurt you more than it''ll hurt me." he snarks as he plunges his hand into their chest. Gripping something peculiar... This sensation wasn''t the same as all the other times he had used the Dark Hand, the soul of his victim was usually relatively small, but this? This reminded him of the Lord Souls...

    He dragged it out of their chest and was finally able to get a look at it... Weird, it looks like a red heart... Not like the ones beating inside your body, but like the ones you get in Haribo sweet packs.

    Just as Reima is about to devour it, the phenomenon happens again.

    *Warp*

    ...

    He looks at his hand that was gripping their soul, the sensation still fresh in his memory. "Wait here." he says, feeling like a broken record. As he enters the room again, repeating his attempt with the Dark Hand. Only this time attempting to devour their soul as quickly as possible.

    *Warp*

    This is getting ridiculous, at this rate he''d be stuck here forever, or at least until he leaves this child alone. However, he''s never been a forgiving person and for trying to kill himself and his friends he''ll get revenge on that smarmy faced cunt.

    *Warp*

    *Warp*

    *Warp*

    Reima glares down at the smiling child, "I can continue forever like this, only problem is... Can you?"

    They giggle and leap at him again, only to be bisected by his Occult Black Knight Straight Sword.

    *Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp**Warp*

    Reima "Wait." he states as he enters the room again.

    *Warp*

    Reima walks to a nearby wall and bangs his head against it.

    Priscilla "Reima!? What''s wrong?"

    Reima glances at her and smiles, "It''s nothing... Don''t worry about it, I''m taking a small break."

    Priscilla "A break?"

    Reima nods, "Yeah. A break."

    *Warp*

    Reima sits on the floor in the room surrounded by glowing blue Wish Flowers, "Youknow, I never thought I could get bored of killing stuff... But you''ve made it happen." he says with a sigh towards the child approaching him.

    Reima "How many times have I gotta decapitate, flay, burn, stab... Even freeze you to death for you to stop this shit?"

    They giggle as he recites some of the ways he''d dismembered them.

    Reima shakes his head, lifts his hand, and uses telekinesis to force the child to sit opposite him. He retrieves some chocolate and tosses it at them as he floats some marshmallows over a fire and eats them. The child gives him a curious look and almost immediately devours the chocolate.

    Reima "Let''s cut a deal? You can''t kill me, and I, apparently, can''t kill you. How about we part ways and go on about our business?"

    They shake their head, refusing his offer.

    Reima frowns, "Then, I''ll spice up the offer. I''ll give you one free strike anywhere on my body, if I survive you piss off and go elsewhere... Deal?"

    The child giggles and nods, standing up with their knife drawn and approaching him. They walk around and bring the knife back, brutally stabbing it into the back of his neck.

    *Chink!*

    The knife snaps cleanly.

 576 Somethings fishy...

    Reima turns around as the knife breaks, taking in a great deal of satisfaction from the child''s bewildered expression. "I believe that means I win, right?"

    The kid''s red eyes glare at him, their smile returning as they giggle.

    *Warp*

    ...

    Reima sighs, "Wait." he states to Priscillas as he walks into the room, his Observation Haki scanning it.

    ...

    There''s nothing here though, it seems the kid honoured the deal, probably only reset to get their damn knife back. Little freak.

    Priscilla and Nerissa follow him in, "Is something wrong Reima?"

    Reima shakes his head, "No... You won''t believe the time I''ve just had..."

    They give him a confused look as he goes on to explain his encounter with the child, their abilities and the deal that freed him from the loop he was stuck in. If he didn''t know any better he''d think that the child was Gaunter O''dimm or something.

    Priscilla "Perhaps it was an illusion?" she asks, though Reima had already heard that before.

    Reima decides to act as if their conversation was fresh, as treating his friends like imposters would not be a good habit to acquire... This kid was making him paranoid... "No, it definitely wasn''t an illusion. Let''s stick to the original plan, maybe the inhabitants of this world know a way of dealing with that kid should we encounter them again." he says as he walks through the room, ignoring all the flowers this time.

    they walk through another long hallway and encounter a sign not yet destroyed, it read : "However... There is a prophecy. The Angel... The one who has seen the surface... They will return and the underground will go empty."

    ...

    Priscilla "What do you think it means?"

    Reima shrugs, "You look like an angel, maybe you''ll make the underground "Empty"?" he says, causing the Half-breed to blush.

    Nerissa "Prophecies lie." she states with a bitter expression.

    Reima nods, "Yeah, most are bullshit but you never know when one might be useful." he says as they continue, coming across a rickety-looking wooden platform with a awfully long drop.

    Reima "It''s like everything in this place is designed to kill you..."

    Priscila "Perhaps the residents don''t fear heights? Maybe they can fly?" she wonders aloud.

    Reima "Hmm, if they could fly that''d explain why there were no bodies in that village?"

    ...

    They head across the bridge and spot a large cave entrance, though they''re already underground so Reima has no idea where this would lead.

    "HALT! Human! You''ve slaughtered enough monsters today! I WILL put a stop to it, no matter what!" a tomboyish voice shouts from atop the cave entrance.

    *Thump*

    They land hard on the ground, letting the group see their heavy black armour and glowing spear that seems similar to Reima''s Sorceries.

    ...

    The figure points the spear at them, "WHAT? You gonna just stare at me all day? Or are we gonna FIGHT!?!"

    ...

    Reima "Err, I think you''ve got the wrong person. None of us is really human." he says, debating whether or not he''s Human, Witcher or God?

    "Grrr, then that must make you monsters?" they ask.

    Reima shrugs, "Look, we''re not from around here. I''m guessing your looking for the human kid that tried to attack us earlier?"

    They nod, "YEAH! You''ve seen em? AND SURVIVED?"

    Reima "I did, I''ve also got a few questions regarding them as well... Oh, I''m Reima Ludvig by the way." he says while holding his hand out.

    The figure look at it for a moment and reciprocates with a handshake, "Undyne, captain of the royal guard."

    Priscilla bows, "I''m Priscilla, this is Carimir and Nerissa." she says pointing to the cat in her bosom and the young vampire next to her.

    Undyne takes her helmet off, revealing blue skin, an eyepatch, fish-like features and a red ponytail. "You sure that ain''t the human?"

    Reima nods, "She''s a vampire, so definitely not human."

    ...

    Undyne "Hmmm, fine. You said you weren''t from around here? What do you mean by that?" she asks with a suspicious look.

    Reima "It''s hard to explain, basically we''re not from this world. I''d like to speak to whoever is in charge of this place, in regards to the human child that attacked us."

    Undyne gives him a strange look as he tells her they''re from another world. "That''d be Asgore, our king. But I can''t leave, I must defend this area should that murderer come through." she states absolutely, apparently not even bothering to think about his earlier claim.

    Reima "What if I collapse this entrance? It''d take a while for them to dig through it with that dinky little knife they''re carrying."

    ...

    Undyne "HAHAHA! Good idea! Everyone has already been evacuated so this is PERFECT!" she exclaims.

    Reima "Right... You guys go through, I''ll follow once I collapsed this point."

    The group walk to the other side of the large entrance and watch Reima as he collapses it. He retrieves Gough''s GreatBow and knocks a Dragonslayer Arrow into it, deciding that this would be enough to collapse the tunnel in a controlled manner.

    *CRACK!*

    Once he shoots the arrow, fractures and cracks begin to quickly form in the stone. A little persuasion with his telekinesis helps bring it down, crashing a huge amount of rock in the way of the entrance, preventing anyone from passing through without moving tons of rock.

    He blinks to the other side where Undyne is shouting about something.

    Undyne "Wait, HOW IS HE GOING TO GET IN?" she shouts, only now realising their massive error.

    Reima taps her shoulder, causing her to look at him and jump in shock. "I''m right here."

    Undyne "What! How? WHAT!"

    Priscilla "Don''t worry, Reima does this all the time."

    Undyne frowns, "Does that mean you took a "Shortcut"?" she asks suspiciously.

    Reima "Shortcut? If there was a shortcut wouldn''t it make collapsing the entrance pointless?"

    Undyne shakes her head, "Nevermind, you just reminded me of someone." she says.

 577 Fish outta water

    Reima "So, what''s with this place?" he asks as they walk along a long path, the temperature gradually getting hotter as they progress.

    Undyne "What do you mean "This place"? I should be asking what''s wrong with YOU!."

    Reima "I mean, why are you living underground?" he corrects her.

    Undyne huffs, "We didn''t choose to live here, the humans forced us underground and sealed the exit."

    Reima "Why not just dig your way out then? Can''t imagine it''d be all that difficult."

    Undyne "We weren''t buried. The humans sealed us inside with some kind of magic that prevents us from ever leaving... Unless a god breaks it."

    ...

    Reima "A god?" he asks curiously.

    Undyne nods, "A monster gets a HUGE power boost when they absorb a human soul, you''d need to give a monster 7 to make them a god... But with that human massacring their way through the underground we had to use the 6 souls we''d already gathered."

    Reima "How''d you manage to acquire souls? That kind of magic is incredibly rare." he asks, knowing full well how difficult it is to manipulate souls.

    Undyne "I''m not the person to ask about this, but from what I''ve heard human souls linger around after death, allowing us to seal them until they need to be used."

    Reima "And... How did you use the souls?"

    Undyne "King Asgore decided that the only way we could prevent the human from destroying us all was to split the souls and have all monsters absorb a portion. "A united front will prevent our destruction." he says"

    Reima "You feel any stronger after absorbing a human soul?" he asks.

    She nods, "I feel like I could stop that human in their tracks!... But, I know everyone would be better off if we fought them together."

    Reima ponders for a moment before retrieving a single human soul from his reserves, "Yo, Undyne?"

    She turns and spots the white misty substance in his grasp, "What is that?"

    Reima "This? It''s a human soul obviously." he states.

    Undyne shakes her head, "No, it looks completely different to the 6 we''d previously gathered."

    ...

    Reima "Those 6 souls wouldn''t happen to resemble a heart shape right?"

    Undyne nods, "Yeah, how''d you know?"

    ...

    Reima "I think the humans in this world and ours, are rather different. From what I''ve seen those heart-shaped souls are much, much more powerful than a regular human soul. How many monsters live down here?"

    Undyne crosses her arms and thinks for a moment, eventually answering him, "Around 2000."

    Reima "2000 monsters receiving the power of 6 equivalent to Lord Souls... To be honest I''m curious at the results." he mutters.

    Undyne "Huh? You wanna fight?" she asks, taking his words as an offer.

    Reima nods, "Sure, this area looks big enough... Show me how strong you are." he says as Priscilla and Nerissa back away to give them room.

    Undyne puts her helmet back on and summons a blue spear into her hand, "Hah! You''re going down punk!" she says as she throws it at him, leaving a trail in the air as it rockets towards him.

    Reima grabs it out of the air and attempts to examine it, but it dissipates not long after. He then ducks a couple more spears thrown at him before waving his hand and creating a couple Crystal Soul Spears.

    Undyne eyes them curiously but doesn''t hesitate to strike those that get close to her, her spear whacks a couple out of the way before stabbing one of the Crystal spears point to point. The spear fractures and explodes as Undyne''s spear dissipates forcing her backwards and making her tumble from the impact.

    Reima "Is that all you got?" he asks the fish-monster-lady-thing with a grin.

    Undyne gets up and shouts at him, "You''ve seen nothing yet!" and casts some kind of green magic at him. He lets it wrap around him but it doesn''t seem to impede his movements, he wasn''t sure if it did anything at all... That is, until a barrage of spears begin to home in on his position, he tries to slap one away but realises it''s a soul attack. Not something he can physically block. Instead he casts a Protego, the shield easily blocking the rest.

    Undyne "HEY! That''s cheating!"

    Reima "Yeah? Your spears are cheating." he states with a smug smirk.

    Undyne growls, "I''ll show YOU!" she shouts and dashes towards him, attempting a stab at his stomach. He slaps the spear away with his hand and flick kicks her knee, causing her to stumble. Once her balance is unstable he performs a palm strike at her chest, knocking her onto her back with a *Thud*.

    She doesn''t seem quite done yet though, springing off of the floor while tossing a spear that is easily blocked. She summons another spear in her off-hand, using them both as makeshift rapiers and attempting to stab him with them.

    He casts a relatively low-powered Aard which launches her away, he then conjures dark red flames that slither along the ground like snakes, surrounding, and trapping her.

    Reima "Your strong, stronger than most human''s I''ve met." she states as Undyne huffs and sweats from within his flaming trap.

    Undyne "Your not bad yourself, but, I. WILL. NOT. LOSE!" she exclaims, tossing many spears in a flurry that are blocked by a quickly cast Protego. She continues this until she eventually collapses to the ground, breathing heavily and sweating profusely.

    ...

    Reima "Er, you want some water?"

    The fish girl nods and Reima retrieves a couple bottles of water from his Folded Space, dispelling the flaming trap and handing it to her.

    Undyne huffs and downs the water before looking up at him, "I almost had ya!"

    Reima shakes his head, "In your dreams. Any more and I''d have ended up with more sushi than I would know what to do with..." he jokes.

 578 Royal Weeb Scientis

    It takes a couple minutes for Undyne to collect herself after their fight, still, she wouldn''t admit that she lost fairly but Reima didn''t really care about that.

    Reima "Let''s get moving, I have no idea how long it''ll take that kid to get through the blockade."

    Undyne nods "The royal scientist''s lab is nearby, she should have all the answers your looking for."

    Reima nods and gestures for his group to follow. They walk for a while and the purple grass eventually disappears, leaving bare orange stone while the temperature continues to rise. Undyne got so hot that she had to take off and carry her armour, leaving herself dressed in a tank top and trousers.

    Undyne "Whaddya looking at punk?" she asks the group who''re all watching her undress.

    Priscilla "Isn''t it considered impolite to undress in front of the opposite gender?" she asks innocently.

    Undyne "No... Why?" she replies, oblivious to what the half-breed is referring to.

    Reima shakes his head, "This is another world, they probably don''t have the same standards as us Cilla." he says with the half-breed nodding in agreement. Undyne herself doesn''t care enough to pursue the topic.

    They all continue until they come across yet another rickety wooden bridge, though this time it''s suspended over a lake of lava...

    Reima "Okay, now this is pretty fucked... Who puts a wooden bridge over lava!" he exclaims when he catches a glimpse of it.

    Undyne punches him on the arm, "What? You scared now?" she asks with a laugh.

    Reima shakes his head, "No, but you should be... What do you think would happen if you fell in that." he says pointing to the lake of lava.

    ...

    The monster looks down and gulps when she thinks about it seriously, "Now that I think about it... It is pretty dumb... I''ll have to ask Alphys about it..."

    Reima "Yeah, you do that." he says as he grabs Priscilla and Nerissa before teleporting them all across. He wasn''t about to make them walk across what could potentially be instant death.

    Undyne "Hey! Wait for me!" she shouts as she hesitantly makes her way across the bridge, wishing that Reima hadn''t made her aware of its perils. Once across she leads the group to a large metal building with "LAB" written on it in bold letters.

    ...

    The group enter while Reima tries his hardest not to comment on the "sign" outside, the doors open automatically like the ones you''d find in a supermarket or a sci-fi novel.

    Undyne "Alphys? You here?" she shouts into the pristine-looking lab.

    Reima walks inside and examines the place, spotting some kind of giant monitor watching the same child that''d caused him so much trouble previously. Next to it was a computer atop a desk completely covered in sticky notes denoting passwords, reminders, and times on it. Next to that was a fridge, which when opened revealed... A lot of Soda and Raman...

    "Undyne!?! Is that you?" someone shouts from a room only accessible from what looks like conveyor belts.

    Undyne "Yeah! Get in here, you''ve got guests."

    ...

    The sound of heavy, clumsy feet alert the group to the new arrival... They''re carried into the room by the conveyor belt and the group eyes her curiously... She looks like a nerdy dinosaur in Reima''s estimation, the glasses, hunched back, buck teeth, and lab coat give the impression of the ultimate introvert.

    Alphys "Undyne... I thought you were confronting the... Human..." her words trail off as she sees her guests. "A-are they humans!?!" she exclaims fearfully.

    Undyne shakes her head, "Nah, they told me they weren''t and that''s good enough for me!"

    ...

    Alphys looks at the group, "Well... I am Alphys the Royal scientist... Nice to meet you?" she says anxiously.

    Reima nods, "I''m Reima, this is Priscilla and Nerissa" he points to them each respectively.

    Alphys nods, "W-what are you doing here? All civilian monsters should have been evacuated by now." she asks

    Undyne snorts, "These guys say they are from "Another world"... I think they''re just pranking me!"

    Priscilla shakes her head, "No, we don''t belong in this world. We were supposed to be on a vacation but when we encountered that burning village we started to investigate."

    Alphys "I-Investigate? And... What did you find?" she asks curiously.

    Reima frowns, "A psychopathic kid that tried to murder us, they possess some kind of ability to change memories and teleport people... That or reversing time." he quickly explains.

    Alphys look at the large monitor with the kid currently displayed on it, "Hmm, I haven''t observed any abilities like that... But if they do indeed reverse time then that would explain their peculiar actions and reactions to unexpected things."

    Reima "What do you mean?"

    Alphys picks up a control and walks over to the monitor, changing it to some recordings she''d taken of the child fighting monsters. The group watch as they deftly avoid all the magical attacks and strike at the vulnerable points on each monster, turning them to dust when they''re killed.

    Reima is slightly confused at one thing, "Why do the monsters turn to dust when killed? Are they vampires or something?"

    Undyne gives him a weird look, "All monsters turn to dust when killed..."

    ...

    Reima "Huh, I''m starting to feel bad for mistaking it as snow..." he mutters.

    Alphys shakes her head and turns back to the monitor, "If the human is able to reverse time then it would explain how they almost always know what''s coming... Even attacks from behind don''t seem to be effective against them."

    Reima "Well, every time I killed them time was reset... I must''ve killed them a few hundred times to be honest..."

    ...

    Undyne "Then, there isn''t a way to beat them?" she asks with a hard look.

    Alphys shakes her head, "No... There is always a weakness, but I think we should talk with King Asgore about our actions moving forwards. This new information is worrying..." she looks at Reima and the group, "Will you come with us and explain the situation to our king?"

    Reima nods, "Yeah, I was hoping to talk with them anyway... Once this is all over I may have a job for them."

 579 Tea?

    Elsewhere :

    A large figure wearing gold armour with a purple cloak draped over it sits amongst a sea of yellow flowers, they rest their chin on their fist as they contemplate the situation at hand. This is King Asgore, a Boss Monster in charge of overseeing everything in his underground kingdom. He had white fur covering him, a goatlike face with blonde hair, and an average length beard.

    Asgore sighs, "Is this the correct way to go about it?" he ponders to himself, wondering if his actions thus far had been acceptable, morally and rationally. He had personally killed the six human children that''d made it down to the underground and stored their souls, there was only one more left to collect until he could absorb them and become powerful enough to free his people... Only now that was useless, he had elected to use the souls to empower his people in preparation for the menace that threatened them all...

    Another human child had breached the underground, only that this time they did not act like those that''d come before them... They targeted monsters, hunting them down until there were none left to find, his Royal Scientist Alphys had shown him the recordings of it, and they were as heartbreaking to watch as he''d thought.

    The doors to the room open as a small figure walks in, they have their pockets in their jumper and a smile plastered across their face...

    Asgore watches as the skeleton approaches him, wondering what he could want. "Have you returned to reclaim your job as the Royal Scientist?"

    The skeleton shakes their head, "No, working myself down to the bone doesn''t suit me." he says with a wink.

    ...

    Asgore shakes his head, "I miss the time when you didn''t keep telling the same jokes, Sans." he says with a chuckle.

    Sans shrugs, "What can I say? I''ve always been humerus..."

    Asgore "Forgive me Sans but I''ve a lot to think about... Do you need something?"

    Sans nods, "A change as finally occurred."

    ...

    Asgore "A change?"

    Sans "Yes, a change. An outside influence..." he presses.

    Asgore "I''m sorry but I don''t quite understand your meaning..."

    Sans shakes his head, "If this wasn''t so serious I''d say you''re getting under my skin... No, what I mean is that THIS time it might finally end."

    Asgore "Are you okay? Perhaps you should sit down and have some tea, maybe all the bad news is getting to you."

    Sans nods, "Sure, just remember tea goes right through me, maybe I just don''t have the stomach for it..."

    Asgore "Really now, you''re just being lazy with those jokes of yours." he says as he stands up from his throne to go prepare some tea.

    Sans chuckles, "What can I say? Coming up with new material makes me bone-tired."

    Elsewhere :

    A child wielding a knife walks across a bridge but encounters something weird... The entrance to the Hot lands are gone? No... Collapsed. This is different... And ever so exciting! This must be that new character that they encountered, the one with cat-eyes and the two waifu''s behind them.

    Is this a new expansion? There wasn''t any update?... Must''ve unlocked a hidden character! THE FIRST! Oh, I must explore this!

    The child moves forwards and examines the collapsed entrance, discovering that it''d take a while for them to even begin to clear this...

    What''s this crappy mini-game? Moving rocks? AH! IT DOESN''T MATTER, I MUST SEE WHERE THIS PATH LEADS! I AM DETERMINED TO FIND OUT!

    With that, the child begins slowly shifting rocks. The task is laborious and will take days of work to complete but they do so regardless.

    Back with Reima, they''d began to ride a large elevator that goes incredibly high... He wondered if they''d still be in the underground when they left it but, sadly. They still were. Though the temperature was a lot cooler now that they were away from the lakes of lava.

    Undyne huffs "Ah, I hate that place." she mutters as they step out of the elevator.

    From there Alphys and Undyne lead the group through some sophisticated looking traps, a room completely covered in webs and then a huge building that Alphy''s calls "Metatons resort"

    They walk inside and Reima takes a look around, grinning at what he sees. "This looks like vacation material."

    Alphys "You are still thinking about a vacation as monsters are slaughtered left and right?" she quickly asks.

    Reima "Er, yeah..."

    She shakes her head, "I''m starting to regret asking for your help." she mutters as they make their way through the resort and into an elevator labeled "CORE". Going through that and a couple more elevators takes them to an elaborately designed entrance to some room, going inside reveals the pitch-black interior with a single robot inside. They look like a box with a single wheel, arms with many lit up buttons...

    Alphys "Mettaton? Are you guarding the entrance?"

    Mettaton "OH YES!" they exclaim, causing Priscilla to jump in surprise. "If the human manages to destroy everything then where would my viewers and ratings go!"

    ...

    Mettaton "Ahem, I mean... I wish to save everyone." they correct themselves not long after their slipup.

    Reima "As cool as a real talking robot is, isn''t talking to Asgore kinda important?"

    Alphys quickly nods, "Y-yes! Excuse us Mettaton, we have important matters to attend to!" she says and quickly walks past the robot.

    Mettaton "Don''t mind me darling! I''ll protect you all from the human! I promise!"

    As soon as they all reach the next room Reima leans over to Alphys and asks, "Did you design the robot to act gay?"

    ...

    Alphys "No! And what''s wrong with being gay anyway!"

    Reima "Nothing, just thought it was weird to create a gay robot..." he mutters.

    Alphys "Well, Mettaton isn''t a complete robot. It''s just a robotic shell surrounding a monster."

    ...

    Reima "So it''s the monster version of Ironman..."

    Alphys shrugs and continues leading them, not knowing what an "Ironman" was.

 580 Unexpected Saviour

    Another few elevators take them to the final floor, they walk out and Reima sees a small city before him, though it looks completely abandoned. He walks along the sidewalk and looks to Alphys, "Where could you possibly be hiding so many people?" he asks.

    Alphys "D-don''t worry about it, come on, we''ve almost reached the palace." she says, pointing towards the large structure not far from their current position.

    Reima "Well, if nothing else at least he''s got style." he says as they walk towards it.

    No one is guarding the large entrance as they simply walk in, the insides are ornate with large windows letting in sunlight, or some other kind of light source in, illuminating a large hallway with many pillars inside. When Reima passes a pillar he suddenly feels like he''s gonna have a bad time, but the sensation is gone the next moment...

    The group finally reach the entrance to the throne room, Reima enters first and is surprised by the sight. Instead of the typical ornate room covered in finery and riches he''d expect, the floor was thick with plants, the most prominent being a single kind of yellow flower. Sunlight streams through a window lights up the room in a warm glow.

    Inside there are two figures sitting together, a large goat-like humanoid in gold armour sitting on some sort of throne and the other being a short skeleton wearing a hoody. A small table is placed between them and the larger one sips a cup of tea while the skeleton just stares at the cup with a goofy smile on its face.

    Undyne "King Asgore... Sans?"

    Sans looks up at the new arrivals, "Heya Undyne... You seem to have a bone to pick with me?" he says.

    Priscilla smirks at the joke while everyone else''s reaction are more tame.

    Undyne marches up to Sans and jabs him in the chest, "Where have you been!?! And where is Papyrus? He won''t pick up his phone or anything!!!" she shouts.

    ...

    Sans "Papyrus is dead." he states gravely...

    ...

    Undyne looks shocked, "What? No... Why would anyone hurt Papyrus!?!"

    Reima coughs into his hand behind Undyne, "Er, are you forgetting the genocidal kid tearing their way through the underground?"

    ...

    Undyne "I''LL KILL EM!" she exclaims, furious at the news.

    Reima "Yeah, that''s what we''re here to talk about, remember?"

    ...

    Undyne rubs her face with her sleeve, wiping the moisture from her eyes. "Then, tell Asgore about your encounter."

    Asgore nods, "As saddening as it is to hear news of another monster passing, we must strive to solve the issue at hand..." he looks at the group, "Forgive me, I am Asgore Dreemurr, King of Monster kind. We don''t appear to have met before, may I know your names?"

    Reima nods, "I''m Reima, this is Priscilla and Nerissa." he points to them respectively.

    Sans left eye lights up momentarily as he spots something around Nerissa''s neck, he stands, walks over and tears the red scarf from her. "Where did you get this?"

    Reima puts a hand on the skeletons shoulder, changing the focus of his glare from the vampire to himself. "We found it near that burning village." he states.

    ...

    Sans nods and stuffs the scarf into his pocket, "It belonged to my brother, thank you for finding it." he says and returns to his seat.

    Reima "Yeah, I ran into that kid and know a few things about their abilities. Maybe we can find a way to kill them permanently."

    Asgore "Permanently? I thought death was already absolute."

    Alphys "We believe that the human is able to reverse time, Reima doesn''t appear to be affected by it and retains his memories of their encounter somehow."

    When Sans hears this he looks at Reima in surprise, "So you aren''t affected by them resetting time?" he asks.

    Reima nods, "Yeah, why? You know something about it?"

    Sans "Yep... I''m aware of time resetting, but my memories are never complete. I used to work with someone during my time as the Royal Scientist-"

    Asgore "Oh, yes... I remember, what was their name..." he interjects, "Hmm... Ah, I don''t seem to be able to recall their name." he mutters after thinking fora while.

    Sans continues, "Their projects allowed me to see when time was reset, but nothing more..."

    Alphys "So you know how many times the human has reset time?" she asks curiously.

    Sans nods slowly, "Time has been reset over a hundred thousand times and nothing I do has ever stopped it..."

    Reima "Yeah, that kid doesn''t give up... I must have killed them in every way you can imagine, even trying to remove their soul doesn''t work." he shrugs.

    Sans "Their soul allows them to reset time, and as long as they are determined they can''t die as long as it exists."

    Undyne frowns, "Then, we just have to destroy their soul."

    ...

    Sans sighs, "It won''t work, believe me I''ve tried. Destroying a soul is completely different from removing, splitting or modifying it." he says.

    Asgore "Then, there is nothing we can do... Maybe trying to appeal to their kindness and humanity would work?"

    Reima scratches his head, "Wait a sec, destroying souls?" mutters, slowly turning towards Priscilla.

    Everyone else follows his gaze towards the slightly anxious half-breed.

    Priscilla "I-is something wrong?" she asks.

    Reima shakes his head, "No, not at all. I was just thinking about the only person capable of completely destroying a soul."

    Priscilla''s eyes widen in realisation, "I can do it."

    Sans "How?" he presses, hoping that what they''re saying is true.

    Reima "Cilla has a very special ability known as Lifehunt, it allows her to destroy souls affected by it... All we need to do is have her cut that kid in half and the problems solved." he states with a grin.

 581 Absolution

    The child had been digging for hours now, they shifted the smaller stones in the way and allowed the bigger ones to roll from the pile. This had been the method they were using to try and breach the only entrance to Hotlands from Waterfall.

    They were not physically tired, but mentally? It felt as if they could barely move, like their theoretical puppet-master was exhausted or something? Regardless they pressed on...

    Suddenly a large sound was coming from the other side of the collapsed entrance... They couldn''t make out the sound, but it sounded like when that new character-BACK!

    *BOOM!*

    The child leaps away from the wall but is too late, they''re crushed by the stone debris as the blockade explodes, sending boulders raining down on everything nearby.

    *Warp*

    The child looks up at the blockade, realising all their progress was now for naught... A couple hours of work were gone just like that... The grin on their face doesn''t fade but they mentally scream in anguish at the fiend who had caused this, with a renewed determination for revenge they start digging out the rocks of the blockade again.

    A couple hours later there doesn''t appear to be a sound, so something else must have triggered it? Or maybe that character gave up?

    *BOOM!*

    *Warp*

    ...

    Again, hours are lost but the ANGER remains! AGAIN! they mentally shout as they throw themselves at the blockade.

    *Boom!*

    *Warp*

    This continues until the child is mentally foaming at the mouth in anger, THIS WAS COMPLETELY UNFAIR! They didn''t even know why they were still trying, but they had a feeling that this was a challenge, a challenge to see how DETERMINED they were to progress.

    The child begins digging again, and a couple hours later when the explosion usually happens they flee as fast as they can.

    *BOOM*

    Again, an explosion shakes the ground as the child struggles to dodge the boulders launched into the sky. They roll, sidestep and throw themselves to safety, and eventually the onslaught stops.

    The child looks up at the entrance and spots a figure, their glowing turquoise cat-like eyes looking down at them with smug satisfaction that causes a fury like non-other to rise in their stomach.

    Reima "Oh hey kid, I was just clearing the blockade, the underground can''t really function if most of it is blocked off." he says.

    The child''s grin doesn''t even move, they don''t giggle like they usually do and instead run at him with their knife drawn.

    Reima "Seriously? Youknow that will do nothing right?" he says cockily and raises a single arm to block the child''s slash.

    ...

    The child backs away and looks at the knife, which is now coated in blood... They look up at Reima who''s looking at his arm, his clothing cut slightly with blood trickling out of it.

    Reima "This-This isn''t possible..." he mutters, turning his gaze to the child and slowly backing away.

    At the sight of drawn blood the child''s bloodlust starts, they sprint at him like a rapid animal wishing to kill its prey.

    Reima "S-stop! Please leave me be!" he shouts over his shoulder as he begins running, still holding his bleeding arm that allows occasional droplets to fall to the earth.

    He''s chased through Alphys lab, through all the traps in all of the layers of Hotland. He leaps across dangerously placed platforms sitting over lakes of lava, the child using active vents to fling themselves across the long drops.

    Reima "We can talk about this!" he shouts, pressing a nearby switch which activates lasers in the child''s pathway, though they easily glide through them like they''ve practiced it a thousand times.

    The chase continues through the Mettaton hotel and through the core, past where Mettaton was previously waiting and into the main monster city.

    The child grins as Reima seems to be slowing down, the blood dripping from his wound increasing in quantity as they run.

    Reima runs into a building and up some stairs that lead to the roof that overlooks the rest of the city, it''s the second-highest building around and he backs up to the ledge as the child reaches the top.

    The child giggles as they playfully finger the knife in their hand, they approach Reima as he reaching the end of the roof... Blood drips from his wound as he tries to prevent more bleeding by applying pressure to it, though it doesn''t seem too effective with how much blood he''d already lost.

    Reima "Look, we can work this out... I have answers to many things, please, let me live and I''ll tell you anything." he says fearfully.

    The child approaches him, reaching the ledge as he moves to the side leaving them both visible to the street below. Their move opens suddenly, "What are you?" they ask in an almost robotic way.

    Reima "I am Reima Ludvig, Human, Witcher, God of Chaos and Darkness. I am leader of the Kaer Morhen settlement and savior of worlds, I am the true bringer of justice and light. I am the be all end all. I am inevitable. I am-"

    *THUD*

    Reima "-Talking out of my ass." he laughs. As a Great Arrow is launched from the taller nearby building, the tip of it is enshrouded in a black misty substance.

    The child looks down and sees a large hole in their chest, now covered in the same misty substance... Looking behind them they see an almost spear-sized arrow lodged in the roof.

    They turn and giggle at Reima while attempting to reset time...

    ...

    But nothing happens, they mentally panic as their video game character drops to their knees as Reima laughs. Then, in a flash of light the power for their whole neighborhood goes out. Their computer releases a plume of black smoke as the sparks ignite a trashcan full of soiled paper and socks. The overweight person sitting at the desk topples backwards in their chair and flees the house as it quickly goes up in flames.

    ...

    From the police investigation, it was determined that it was attempted fraud which results in their imprisonment. With their house, livelihood, files upon files of their favourite "Waifus" gone, they hang themselves in their cell. Finally killing the fiend of the underground.

 582 Time for mourning

    Reima cleans himself with a Scourgify and teleports to the other building where Priscilla and the others had been watching their plan.

    Once he gets there he sees everyone already celebrating, Undyne throwing Alphys in the air with a jubilant expression, the scientist blushing all the while it happens.

    Asgore looks down at the child''s corpse on the other building with a solemn expression, saddened but not regretful.

    Sans stands a noticeable distance away from everyone else, he stares at the red scarf in his hand and seems mournful despite the smile everpresent on his skeletal face. Reima is about to go over and talk to the strange monster but is almost tackled off of his feet by Priscilla who''s still carrying his GreatBow.

    Priscilla "Did you see?!? I hit dead centre!" she says excitedly.

    Reima nods from between her arms, "Yeah I saw, good job Cilla." he says while patting her silky white hair.

    Snuffles jumps from the half-breeds shoulder and morphs into Nerissa, she has a frown on her face as she glares at Reima. "Wasted food." she states, referring to the blood he''d been liberally dripping on the floor to make his acting look more convincing.

    Reima "There''s still more than enough left, but there''s plenty of human''s that... Wouldn''t mind donating their blood." he says, thinking about whether or not it''d be reasonable to create a blood harvesting factory.

    Undyne finally lets go of Alphys and turns to Reima, "Does that mean it''s over? Time hasn''t reset so it must right!?!" she asks, wishing to confirm that their troubles are over.

    Reima nods, "Yeah, that kid is definitely dead... I could sense their soul being destroyed-"

    A black staff pops out of his shadow, red eyes glow dangerously on it. "DEVOUR SOUL-"

    Reima grabs it and stuffs it back into his shadow, "-No, get back in there. Who said you could come out?" he says reproachfully to the former god of darkness.

    ...

    Undyne "Er, what was that?" she asks looking completely dumbfounded.

    Reima shrugs, "It''s better if you didn''t know to be honest." he mutters.

    After a while, Asgore straightens up and shuffles over to the group, "So... You were saying something about needing my assistance Reima?" he asks.

    Reima nods, "I have a way of transporting your people out of this place and to my world." he says, holding up his hand and creating a small turquoise spatial distortion to demonstrate what he means.

    ...

    Asgore goes silent, a look of contemplation overtaking his face. "So you weren''t lying about being from another world?"

    Reima "Well, yeah... I doubt anyone from this world can teleport." he says, though everyone''s reaction of glances at Sans let him know that his statement might not be quite true.

    Reima "Anyway, that''s why I came to this world."

    Priscilla "I thought we came here for a vacation?"

    Reima rubs his face, "We did, and I still intend on staying here for a week before returning... Look, what I''m offering is freedom for your people and a position of power for yourself." he says to Asgore.

    Asgore "A position of power? What would such a position entail?" he asks, still wary at handing over his peoples freedom to this out-worlder, even if he saved them from a crises.

    Reima crosses his arms, "Well... Ruler?" he says, causing the others to give him a strange look.

    Alphys "You''re not intending on handing over everything to King Asgore are you?" she asks.

    Reima shakes his head, "No... It''s more like a... Prime Minister!"

    ...

    Asgore "My apologies but this sounds like your intending of just shoving all of the paperwork and responsibilities to me..."

    Reima grins, "That''s exactly what I''m doing." he states.

    ...

    Asgore sighs, "I can''t very well reject you, you are offering everything my people have ever dreamed of. And now that they have been infused with those human souls they are strong in their own right. I will accept your offer on one condition Reima."

    Reima "And what might that be?"

    Asgore "That we occasionally sit down for some tea, there will be things that I will need to bring to your attention. So don''t feel like I will be able to solve all of your lands problems when I am in charge."

    Reima nods, "As long as you stop your habit of killing innocent human children."

    ...

    Asgore looks sombre and nods, "Never again will I strike down an innocent, maybe being king is the punishment for my failures after all?" he mutters.

    Reima "Right, so, now that we''re in agreement, I''ll be popping down to that hotel and look around for something fun to do. I''ll open a portal to my world in a week, so take your time to organise everything until then." he says.

    Undyne "Alphys! We''re finally getting to see the surface!" she shouts while shaking the scientist.

    Alphys "I know, I know! I was listening!"

    Reima chuckles at their reaction, grabs Priscilla and Nerissa before teleporting to the Mettaton resort with a turquoise flash.

    With Reima and his friends gone, Asgore approaches Sans and places a hand on his shoulder, "We will mourn all those who had lost their lives to the human, come, we must make special arrangements for the Royal Guard. I''m sure your brother would want to be remembered this way." he says gently.

    Sans chuckles, "You''re right. Always wanted to be in the Royal Guard... Was in his bones, ya know?" he says as he wraps the red scarf around his neck, resting his hand on it as he follows Asgore.

    Undyne follows them, wishing to bid her last goodbye to those who''d lost their lives. Lesser Dog, Greater Dog, Doggo, Dogamy and Dogaressa... And, finally, Papyrus.

 583 Monster-Info-Dump

    Reima, Priscilla, and Nerissa spend the next week exploring the Underground while Asgore and everyone else gets ready to move everyone and everything. Priscilla was particularly interested in some kind of T.V show shown to her by Alphys, Reima found it difficult tearing the half-breed away from it to eat or even sleep. Though this did allow him the opportunity to finally fluff her tail, and it was as glorious as he''d thought it''d be.

    Priscilla didn''t seem to mind as he raked his hands through her soft tail fur, though she did find it incredibly ticklish at the end of it. Regardless, Reima had found one of his favourite things to do in his past time.

    Nerissa was also captivated by the cartoon, but not as much as the Half-breed due to her experience back in the HP universe. She admitted that having Reima stroke her rabbit form as she watched cartoons was her favourite thing to do... Truly, the Moe was too much with these girls, though it did help him relax in this unfamiliar environment.

    The food the monsters make was also particularly strange, the stuff managing to heal soul injuries when ingested. Reima wasn''t sure whether it was their method of preparing it, the ingredients or just the fact that a monster made it that caused this effect. He''d spent an afternoon learning how to "cook" with Undyne but didn''t see anything strange, meaning that it was either the ingredients or the monsters themselves...

    His discoveries with the monsters food also led him to ask Alphys, who explained that for Monsters, intention mattered more than actual action. If a monster didn''t wish to harm someone, they simply weren''t able to. Like some cosmic force prevented their strikes from even affecting their target unless they willed it to.

    Based on his own knowledge of the soul this is naturally what would happen if your body was mostly comprised of your soul like the monsters were. This had another effect though, their "Affinity" to sorcery. To be clear, they could likely become stronger than Logan in Sorcery in a hundred years or so, making his trials in Lordran feel slightly worthless... Maybe the old man would be excited to train people similar to Reima? He didn''t seem upset when Reima became more proficient in Sorceries then himself in an incredibly short time.

    Most monsters didn''t really have the physical forms that humans did, though now that they all had absorbed a portion from those 6 Lord Souls they could now function like humans. Reima had met quite a few of the citizens in his time in the Underground.

    There was another kind of monster that differed from the other though, they were called "Boss Monsters" and included Asgore in their ranks. They also apparently didn''t age unless they had a living child, making them functionally immortal until they wish to pass their responsibilities onto the next generation.

    Reima found that most monsters were completely unique, however, their forms were influenced by their parents. There were monsters of every kind, fire monsters, snow monsters... Even ghost monsters. When Reima found out there was a Fairy monster he went to check if there was a "Pikachu" monster as well... Sadly he didn''t find any.

    Thus his time spent in the Underground was relatively peaceful, as the people responsible for saving the monster race he, Priscilla and Nerissa were constantly invited out to do stuff. The hobbies of the monsters were diverse to say the least, fishing, sailing, boxing, flexing, singing, dancing... There wasn''t really anything they didn''t like to do, well, except for drinking. A fact he found out when he offered Asgore some Firewhisky... The Goat King almost charged into Snowden to look for someone called "Toriel", it was Sans who ended up telling him that she was likely dead, as the human who''d been killing their way through had gone through the ruins, a place Toriel had made her home.

    Asgore was determined to look, regardless of what they may find. And, just as they feared, they found her dust scattered across the carpet after opening the ruins. A cold Butterscotch pie sitting in her residence making the King tear-up at the sight of it. Reima didn''t see the old goat king for days after that incident, he didn''t know, and didn''t want to know how it felt to see your wife''s corpse. Hopefully, he''d be able to avoid anything like that from happening.

    Another thing that piqued Reima''s interest was the technology of the monsters, arguably they were above modern-day humans due to them having actually built a functional robot, (Even if it''s controlled by a ghost). He''d asked Alphys many questions about how the Core functioned, apparently, it converted geothermal energy into electricity which powered the Underground city. This would explain the lava and the need to transport huge blocks of ice down the river to cool it.

    Reima was hoping that the monster''s presence would expedite the expansion of technological innovation in his settlement, though he''d need to make sure none of what is created is spread to the outside world as he was sure they''d destroyed themselves if they ever discovered firearms, bombs or hell even nuclear weaponry.

    The end of the week signaled the end of Reima''s vacation. All of the monsters were ready to depart and had most of their movable property with them, Asgore had informed them of the method of travel they''d be using and were mystified by Reima''s ability to supposedly teleport thousands of monsters to another universe.

    Reima looks over at the two thousand gathered monsters and rubs his chin, it''s funny, he''d lost his temper with Solaire over under a hundred people... And now he was doing the same thing on an entirely different scale... He chuckles when he thinks about the Sun God''s reaction when he returns.

 584 Nilfgaardian error

    Elsewhere :

    A man armoured in ornate heavy black armour briskly walks up and salutes a finely dressed man with long brown hair, powdered face and neutral expression. "Commander, one of our scouts sent through the marsh has not returned, we must consider enemy intervention."

    Voorhis "Is that so? Hmm, send a cavalry unit and check until no man''s land for the missing scouts." he states.

    The soldier salutes and leaves, collecting a few men and riding out as soon as possible. The ride wasn''t long and they soon reached the bog, the water beginning to impede their horses.

    "Wonder where those men had gone, Nordlings don''t usually intercept scouts..." one comments as they ride.

    "Rumours might be true, tales of monsters thriving in this muck." one at the back of the unit says.

    "Hah! Right, never believe those Nordlings rumours. Remember yesterday when we heard about the so-called "Eternal Fire"?" another laughs.

    ...

    They look back to see if their friend was paying attention but is shocked to see they''re missing someone in their unit... "Halt! We''re missing someone!"

    They all quickly stop and warily look around, the dark, damp swamp starting to frighten some. A gurgling noise can be heard in the distance but they are hesitant to go check it.

    "Enough! We are elite units of his Emperors army! We must see if that sound is the enemy or not!" the captain shouts and turns his horse towards the direction, which just so happens to lead deeper into the swamp.

    The horses move at a crawl as the gurgling gets louder, the men eventually spot someone being pushed under the shallow water by many small figures. As soon as they arrive the figures run off, revealing the gurgling man to be their lost unit... They looked pale and slightly blue due to lack of oxygen, other than that though they shake and tremble while muttering things about "sharp teeth"...

    The captain gravely examines the area around them, realising that he had no idea where the way back was, "Get him on one of your horses! Do any of you remember the way back?" he questions.

    They all shake their heads, looking anxious at what lives in this place... A distant inhuman roar can be heard echoing around them, though they can''t make out where it''s coming from. A sadistic giggle is all it takes for the men to break ranks and flee backwards, hoping that it''d lead them out of the swamp.

    The captain shouts for them to all remain in their formation but fear prevents them from following his commands. However, as he tries to follow them he finds that the tree''s themselves seem to restrict his path, causing his men to leave without him, all having split off int various directions.

    Now alone in this place without his men, the captain feels a cold sweat drip down his back, his breaths are quick and short while his eyes dart around rapidly looking for any threats.

    *ROAAARRR!*

    His eardrums are almost burst when something not far behind him roars, he quickly turns to look at it and sees a huge beast standing on four legs and covered in ragged fur. A Nilfgaardian gauntlet drops from its mouth as it glares at him, drool stringing out from its lips.

    "M-M-MONSTER!" He shouts, kicking his horse to flee, not minding the thick foliage in-front of him. It seems he isn''t the most scared however as his horse whinnies and moves as fast as it can. The huge beast audibly following closely.

    The captain''s heart beats rapidly as he preys to his god for a safe arrival back to camp, but his prayers come unanswered as a nearby tree branch seemingly bends downwards and collides with him, knocking him clear off of his horse and into the bog below, the only thing preventing his neck from snapping at the impact being his armour that''s now covered in muck.

    The huge beast sprints after the horse but manages to step on one of the man''s arms with its clawed foot, crushing it and causing his armour to penetrate his flesh and restrict his blood flow. He stifles his scream to prevent the beast from hearing him though and quickly gets up, fleeing in the opposite direction of the monster while it''s busy with his horse.

    He begins to calm down once he can no longer hear his horse''s dying groans, though the blood dripping into the swamp from his arm seems to have attracted other creatures. Two Drowners emerge from the water and leap at him, he draws his sword and manages to cut halfway through one''s neck, paralysing it but not completely killing it. The other grabs ahold of him and sinks it''s teeth into his cheek, tearing out a chunk as he pushes it away.

    It attempts to jump at him again but his elite training kicks in, allowing him to slash the at the beast while redirecting its momentum. It falls onto the floor where he brutally stabs his sword into its eye, and subsequently into its brain. Killing it.

    He breathes heavily but spots the treeline thinning in one direction and begins moving towards it, eventually finding himself outside of the swamp, causing tears of gratitude to shimmer in his eyes.

    The captain eventually makes it back to camp, now having lost all feeling in his arm and feeling feint. He''s found by nearby scouts and taken to the infirmary where Commander Voorhis visits him and requests to know what''d happened.

    "M-M-Monsters C-commander... D-did any of my men make it b-back?"

    Voorhis shakes his head solemnly, "My apologies Captain Strickut, but you are the only one who returned."

    Stairrde Strickut sadly nods at the news and shudders in pain as the doctors try to prey his indented armour from his mangled arm, they give grave looks at each other when they see what''s beneath it and bring Voorhis to the side to speak momentarily.

    The man in the infirmary bed looks up at the ceiling, tears finally allowed to flow from his tired eyes, the large wound in his cheek seemingly not hurting anymore as he grips his single hand in fury. "Monsters."

 585 A glorious projec

    Solaire along with Ciri, Geralt, and the Prospect leaders all watch as two large statues are erecting in the town square of the settlement.

    Ciri and Kuretz chuckle as it''s finally unveiled to everyone, Geralt looks on while trying to hide a knowing smirk.

    Solaire "Aha! It''s finally done my friends, when Reima returns I''m sure he''ll be happily surprised!" he says as he walks to the base of the statue and carves a name into a golden plaque.

    *Flash*

    Behind the group a turquoise portal opens, revealing Reima on the other side, Geralt turns and almost loses his composure, palming his face to hide his amused and disbelieving expression.

    Solaire "My friend! You''ve returned!"

    Reima "Yeah, yeah. Gimme a sec, I''ve got some friends coming through." he says as Asgore ducks through the portal as Reima holds it open.

    Asgore "Ahem, excuse my intruding. I am Asgore King of Monsters, Reima has gracefully allowed my people and I to join this settlement." he says with a bow towards them.

    ...

    Ciri nudges Kuretz with her elbow, "Er, is it just me or is there a giant goat talking to us?"

    Kuretz nods, "I''m seeing the same thing... I must still be drunk..." he mutters.

    Reima "We can talk after everyone is across, move your ass Asgore." he says, causing the monster king to chuckle and walk to the side of the portal.

    Sans casually walks through next, "Heya folks" he winks with the everpresent grin still on his skeletal face.

    ...

    Talem "Are you perhaps related to someone called Vamos?"

    Sans shrugs as monsters start walking through the portal, "Nope, but I''ve been known to be empty-headed." he says.

    Kuretz snorts, "Oh, I like him already."

    The group continues to watch as monsters stream out of the portal, each carrying a suitcase full of everything they own. And each looking at the sky in shock and awe.

    After an hour all of the monsters are finally in the settlement, their numbers making it look like a festival of some sort. Priscilla steps through with Carimir in her bosom and Snuffles on her shoulder, Reima walking through and closing the portal behind him afterward.

    Solaire "Aha, my friend! You''ve finally returned my sister!" he says with a laugh, walking up and hugging Priscilla.

    Priscilla "We had a wonderful vacation brother, the monsters have many exciting things like television and anime!"

    ...

    Solaire "I am unsure what this "Anime" you are referring to is, but I hope to hear more about it later." He says, patting her head.

    Priscilla smiles, "It felt good to watch it while Reima stroked my tail." she mutters as Solaire rubs her head, freezing the jolly expression on his face.

    ...

    Kuretz laughs, "Hahaha! Reima''s been catching tail while he was gone! Hahahaha!" he exclaims.

    Ciri crosses her arms and has a conflicted expression as she watches the events progress.

    Reima walks up to Solaire and pats his shoulder, "Don''t worry bro, I didn''t do anything "uncouth"."

    Solaire looks at him deeply, "My friend, not even I have had the opportunity to stroke my dear sister''s tail. You have stolen this from me!"

    Reima shakes his head, "First come first serve." he states as Priscilla watches the duo bicker.

    Risryn interjects and pushes the squabbling duo away from each other, "So, what''s the deal with these... Monsters?"

    Reima er''s for a moment before calling Asgore over, "Asgore''s already introduced himself, so you already know he is a King. Someone who''s run a kingdom for a long time apparently. I helped them out and asked him whether or not he''d want to join us."

    ...

    Risryn crosses her arms, his mask stopping them from viewing her baffled expression, "So you''ve taken in thousands of people so you could dump all the work onto their leader?"

    Reima nods, "Man, how does everyone find out so quickly... Am I that easy to read?"

    Risryn nods, "You left Solaire in charge of the settlement in a fit of anger... Finding someone suitable for the role would be the logical thing to do, especially when you include your unique abilities."

    Reima nods, "So... How''d Solaire do while I was gone?" he says, glancing at the sun bro who''d just began to beam at him.

    ...

    Risryn sighs, "Well... Take a look for yourself, just know I had nothing to do with this." she steps aside and gestures towards the large gold plated statue in the middle of the town centre.

    Reima''s happy face instantly sours, going pale and clammy. "No... This is a joke right?"

    Solaire pats his back jovially, Of course not my friend! This is a representation of everything we''ve done, build, and accomplished... I''m sure you''re unsure how to react to such a sincere gesture, but I assure you I wished for it to be built."

    ...

    Reima can''t find any words to say as he looks up at the statue... It''s comprised of two people, Solaire and Himself plated in gold and beautifully sculpted. They both clasp arms with smiles on their faces while he rests against the Staff of Manus, Solaire resting his hand on his sword which sits in its sheath on his hip.

    His throat feels parched as he turns towards Solaire, "W-what is it called?..." he asks, hoping it would at least have some kind of meaning to it.

    Solaire beams and points to the plaque that he''d just recently carved, "I call it... "Jolly Cooperation."

    ...

    Reima palms his face, a smirk trying to find itself onto his face as a tear attempts to slip out of one of his eyes... "I-...This... It is a... Statue." is all he can get out, the name making the whole thing seem comical, while also cementing Solaire and Himself as leaders of this settlement. There''s no going back now it seemed.

 586 Integration

    After everyone had made fun of Reima''s reaction to the statue he calls for the leaders to gather to the war room so he can get briefed on recent developments, as well as introducing Asgore, his Royal Guard Captain Undyne, Royal Scientist Alphys and regular comedian Sans.

    The monsters were given to Kalini so she could sort out where their housing would be constructed, and the House Elves were told to assist in the building of it. Of course they''d be in the same architecture as the rest of the settlement, though some special requirements would be added depending on the kind of monster it is meant for.

    It takes around an hour to gather everyone, but eventually, Vesemir, Iorveth, Eskel, Geralt, Ciri, Risryn, Kuretz, Talem, Quelaag, Quelana, Solaire, Priscilla, and Ciaran are all gathered. Reima sits in his usual chair while everyone finds their own chair, Asgore standing next to Reima as he intended to act as his position demanded.

    Reima "So. Before we start I''d like to start by introducing Asgore, the new Prime Minister of the settlement." he says, causing many to appraise the monster king, his posture, expression, and demeanor all being taken int account.

    ...

    Kuretz "Doesn''t that make you King, Reima?"

    ...

    Reima scratches his chin, "Er, no... Why would it?"

    Risryn smirks under her mask, "Well, the Prime Minister must serve under the highest authority in the land, that makes you king."

    ...

    Reima shakes his head and changes the subject, "Anyway, he will be in charge of most administrative duties, low-level permissions, conflicts, and decisions will all be handled by him. I will be briefed at the end of every week so nothing is ignored... Is that alright with all of you?"

    Vesemir "It is, though I''d like to learn more about this person before giving them power over us." he objects politely.

    Asgore nods and bows at the hip slightly, "Indeed, I would ask for nothing less. What do you wish to ask of me?" he says with a gentle expression.

    Vesemir "Well, first I''d like to clarify what you actually are... I''ve never seen a being quite like you before."

    Eskel nods, "And that''s saying something." he adds.

    Asgore "I am what is known as a "Boss Monster", I cannot age and am rather powerful if you''ll allow me to boast."

    Vesemir "I''m not arguing with that point, but what are "Monsters", here, in this world the term "Monster" encompasses many races, most of which are incredibly dangerous and violent."

    Reima chips in, "From what I''ve learned in my time with them, their race come in a huge variety of creatures, from monsters that are attuned with ice to those attuned with fire. They are not dangerous, and are pretty harmless unless massively provoked. If you wish to learn more than Alphys is the one to speak to, she''s a scientist and probably knows the most about the subject." he says, pointing to the incredibly shy dinosaur standing in the corner with Sans and Undyne.

    Vesemir nods, "Very well, I will continue looking int out after this meeting." he says.

    Quelaag "I''d like to know how you acquired their loyalty in such a short time Reima?"

    Ciri sighs, "How else do you think? He saved them and requested them to join him. Like he did with everyone else." she says with everyone nodding in agreement to her.

    Reima "Ah, come on. The threat I had to face this time was really something." he complains at being seen through so easily.

    Priscilla nods, "They could reset time and weren''t able to die from normal means."

    Geralt "Hmm, while it sounds like an interesting story, one I''d like to hear another time, the specifics don''t really matter. What matters most right now is how to integrate the two thousand additional people." he states.

    Reima "I think you''ll find that the Monsters don''t hold any traditions that''d be problematic to the settlement. To be honest, they function more like humans from the last world Ciri and I had gone to more than anything else." he says, drawing out bitter expressions from some of the present monsters at being compared to humans.

    Asgore "That may not be exactly true Reima, some Monsters hold grudges against humans for imprisoning us for centuries and killing a large amount of us."

    Iorveth chuckles from the side, revealing an outfit that looks as if it were crafted by an expert tailor. Black leather with small golden engravings comprises most of it while dark chainmail is visible under it while also forming a small skirt to protect his groan and hips. His unique bow is propped on the table next to him as he grins, "I think the Monsters and Elves will get on handsomely."

    Geralt shakes his head in exasperation, "You know the Prospects technically count as human right?"

    Iorveth shrugs, "Regardless, humans outside of this settlement all fall under the same category for me Gwynbleidd. Target Practise."

    Ciaran ignores the coversing duo and looks at Asgore, "Will it be a problem?" she asks, already preparing herself mentally to quell riots and kill perpetrators that go against the law of this land.

    Undyne interjects, "There will be no incidents, I promise you. I will personally make sure everyone understands their position and that this world''s Humans are not responsible for the ones we''ve fought against.

    Ciaran looks into Undyne''s single eye suspiciously before eventually nodding, "Very well, but you will be responsible for anything that does happen."

    Undyne stands and salutes, "Aye, Aye!" she exclaims with a relieved expression.

    Reima "So, is that everything you wished to ask concerning our new residence?" he asks everyone and they nod back at him.

    Reima "Right, so, let''s move onto what happened during my absence shall we? I''d especially like to know who was involved with that... Statue sitting in the town square." he says, making a few present grimace.

 587 News!

    Solaire smiles, "It was entirely my doing my friend, that statue is a visual representation of the bond we all share!"

    ...

    Reima sighs, he couldn''t really fault his friend''s intentions, regardless of how gaudy the thing looked. "Alright... Any news I should hear about?"

    Eskel "We received intel from Roche that Nilfgaard had sent scouts through Crookback Bog, only one returned."

    Geralt shakes his head, "Hmm, should have listened to the locals. Those swamps are dangerous, even for a Witcher."

    Ciri nods, "No doubt those Hags had a hand in it."

    Quelaag "It matters not who killed those men, only that they were our enemies and rightly deserved such a fate." she says callously.

    Ciaran and Risryn nod, "Agreed."

    Reima "I told Roche that anyone who crosses that swamp was a dead man, didn''t seem to believe me until now though. Lucky he didn''t go and take a look for himself..."

    Eskel "Solaire''s reign of terror through Ard Carraigh has definitely drawn their attention towards us, we''ve many scouts imprisoned in that painting of yours Reima. Additionally, Iorveth managed to spot troops being summoned from Aed Gwynvael to Rakverelin, this is obviously them preparing against us as Rakverelin and Ard Carraigh are the closest cities to us."

    Reima nods, "Well, if they try anything we''ll just destroy them... Anything from the Eternal Fire?"

    Eskel shakes his head, "No. After Reverend Albwin Febert was assassinated they''ve yet to instate another."

    Geralt "Probably waiting for the church in Novigrad to tell them what to do." he shrugs.

    Asgore "Forgive me but I have yet to go over all the information... Who are the Eternal Fire?"

    Reima "The Eternal Fire is a religion demanding everything not-human to be burned, they started with Witches and Sorcerers before moving onto non-humans. We managed to assassinate their leader in the capital city of Kaedwen but are unsure how their leadership is even picked."

    Asgore nods at the brief explanation, "I see... And the people support them?" he asks.

    Risryn crosses her arms, "The people do not seem to mind the stench of burning flesh in their cities and even welcome it, blaming all their woes and sorrows on others."

    Quelana "I still do not think people like that deserve mercy, I agree with my sister when she requests we annihilate them all."

    Vesemir waves her off, "Indeed, but we have many other options of dealing with them until then. We are strong enough to choose when we end our enemies, so why rush into it?" he says causing a few others to nod.

    Reima "Regardless of how much I want to destroy them, simply by the existence of the people Solaire brought here makes me hesitant to do anything large scale."

    Talem nods, "I feel that erring on causing is the best way forwards, Sir Vesemir''s opinion is correct in my mind, we are not lacking in options."

    Reima leans back in his chair, "Right... Ignoring genocidal pyromaniacs for now, is there anything else?"

    Geralt nods, "We''ve received information from Hjalmar that Skellige is expecting Nilfgaard to launch a fleet against them soon. Personally, I''d like to help them as I feel we all have an obligation, but it''s up to you all whether or not you wish to do so. Regardless on your decision, I will be assisting them." he states.

    Ciri "I''ll be going too, if it isn''t just to help Hjalmar and the Jarl''s then it''s to get back at my father." she says.

    Vesemir "Are you sure that''s wise child? The Wild Hunt still wishes to take you."

    Ciri points to a necklace around her neck, it''s a black shard with turquoise runes written on it, "I have this, it allows Reima to know my location at all times, and call on him should I need help." she states.

    Quelaag frowns, "Something like that exists? May I request one of my own?" he says looking at Reima.

    Reima sighs, "Sure... Does anyone else want one before we continue, it''s just easier this way..."

    Asgore nods, "Such an item would be invaluable for my work Reima."

    Solaire "What a Jolly sounding device! Much easier than writing your name on the floor every time I need your aid."

    Reima "Alright, I''ll get started when I have time... Anyway, we were talking about Skellige?"

    Solaire grins, "Why are we even discussing such a thing? Of course, we will assist our friends! For Jolly Cooperation!"

    Iorveth "I hate to be the voice of reason here but, are we sure we wish to antagonise Nilfgaard? They own the south and are beginning to take over the north. From my personal dealings with them they are not averse to brutal and dishonourable tactics."

    Geralt "Hmm, Nilfgaard hired me and Yen to look for Ciri, if we don''t return we''ll be their enemies regardless." he states the obvious.

    Reima nods, "I''m not afraid of Nilfgaard either, Ermion and Hjalmar came to help us despite Skellige''s growing tensions with Nilfgaard so we should help them. We have the ability, so we should use it."

    Ciri nods, "I''ll send a letter to Hjalmar to tell him to notify us when the attack is coming."

    Reima "Right, anything else I should be privy to?"

    Iorveth "I''ve taken some of the prisoners Solaire brought into my ranks, they wished to learn how to defend themselves and had heard stories of the Scoia''tael. Once they are trained we will request extra armour and weaponry from those blacksmiths."

    Reima "Hm, I haven''t spoken with Andre, Vamos, Coaugh or Rickert in ages. Are they getting on well with the workshop we provided them?"

    Solaire nods, "Indeed they are, they wish to take on apprentices once they''ve gotten comfortable in this world. They''re also happy to experiment with the other metals in this world, primarily Dimeritium."

    Reima "I''ll have to pay them a visit soon then, any other news on the former prisoners?"

    Quelana shakes her head, "Other than them joining the church, not really."

    ...

    Reima "Church?"

 588 Church Surprise

    Reima "Church?"

    Quelaag nods, "Yeah, if they aren''t praying to you and Solaire they''re requesting to learn Pyromancy from us..."

    Quelana "It''s a shame we don''t have anywhere suitable to teach them, having more Pyromancers would suit the settlement well."

    Reima quickly waves his hand, "Hang on, hang on... What church!?!"

    Eskel grins, "Oh, you didn''t hear? Those two girls, Rhea and Anastacia had the House Elves construct a church for them. Soon as it was made Prospects and Chaos Servants all began to pray there. Come to think of it, it''s weird how quickly people started attending it..." he says with a thoughtful expression.

    ...

    Reima sighs, "Youknow what? I''ll check it out later... Tell me how the construction of the city is going and we''ll finish this up." he says as he slouches in his chair.

    Talem "We had almost nine hundred houses built, but with the new arrivals we''ll have to speed up the process, hopefully, the Monsters will be able to assist us."

    Asgore "I''m sure every Monster would be happy to help contribute to their new home, most were shocked at the sight of the sky which should give you an idea of the hardships we have gone through."

    Reima "Right, if that''s all then let''s end this meeting. Thanks to all of you for attending, hopefully, we won''t need another one of these anytime soon." he says and begins to walk to the exit to take a look at this new church they''d apparently built. Quelaag, Quelana, Solaire and Priscilla.

    The walkthrough Kaer Morhen is completely different from when he''d first got here, the ruined keep was completely fixed by the House Elves. Making it an incredibly strong fortification that would undoubtedly be impossible to breach if all combatants in the city were holed up in it. Walking past the entrance they approach the large city that was slowly growing, it wasn''t an incredibly huge size yet due to Reima deciding that building vertically to save space was the way to go.

    With every building being at least three stories tall, they towered over them, enveloping the streets below in darkness. Though it seems that someone had been experimenting with runes and designed some sort of magical lighting while he was gone. The lights were small circles that emitted a golden light at a consistent rate, Reima could feel the small amount of ambient magic they were using to power themselves.

    People were milling about in the streets, Prospects carrying things from here to there, Monsters walking around wide-eyed at the strange buildings comprising the city and House Elves occasionally popping here and there to deliver the supplies he''d previously given them.

    The city wasn''t entirely made out of housing though, the middle having been designated for businesses, apparently, there were already people trading for goods there. People seeking carvings, herbs from the nearby forest, fresh carcasses from hunted creatures, and even some ragged-looking clothing. Incidentally, this was also where the workshop built for the blacksmiths was. It was easily identifiable due to the absolutely humungous door made specifically for Couagh to be able to walk through.

    It was all quite impressive considering the settlement hadn''t been here long, he was also beginning to see various tools being carries out of the blacksmiths, pickaxes, farming tools and hammers included.

    One thing that bothered Reima though was the fact that everyone would bow deeply towards he and Solaire when they passed, even the Monsters started doing it after observing everyone else.

    Ignoring them all Reima and those following him eventually reached the church... A place oddly familiar to him and buzzing with ambient magic, the building itself was huge and covered in gold. The corners were plated and any appreciatable stretch of wall had inscriptions drawn int them, some describing the history of Lordran via pictograms while others just depicted he or Solaire battling huge beasts and demons.

    Reima was started to regret giving access to his gold for construction purposes, but made peace at the fact that it was already too late... Changing the aesthetic of the city already would put a bad taste in his mouth.

    The church''s entrance was massive with large metal doors on extraordinarily strong hinges, they were already open revealing a massive hall inside, the floor was polished marble and had many small smalls dotted around the place. It seems the church wasn''t finished either as the windows had yet to be put in, though Reima could already guess that the city lacked the technology to create the windows Rhea wished for.

    Solaire "Its resemblance to the Eternal Fire''s church in Kaedwen is rather unnerving to me personally." he says.

    Reima walks in and feels the ambient magic get stronger and stronger the more he progresses, eventually reaching the middle of the hall where it is at it''s strongest. Of course, his presence in the church wasn''t unnoticed, the people present already bowing to him respectfully. Rhea and Anastacia were at the end of the hall but were quickly approaching with smiles on their faces.

    Rhea "My lords! Do you like the church we''ve had built!?! The House Elves are almost as dedicated as we are!"

    Solaire gives a thumbs up and smiles, "Of course, it is an honour to be so respected among you."

    Reima continues to examine the place with his Observation Haki, wondering why this all seemed so familiar, and why this place was so magically potent.

    Rhea "Lord Reima, we were waiting on your return to perform the rite before you."

    Anastacia nods, "For the first time I am looking forwards to doing my duty."

    ...

    Reima "Err, what rite?" he asks confused.

    Anastacia "The rite and ritual my soul was made for. Would you allow me?" she asks Reima with puppy eyes.

    Reima rubs the back of his head, mentally thinking that something doesn''t feel right here. "Errr, sure?"

    Rhea and Anastacia beam at him and the latter kneels onto the floor in-front of Reima...

 589 Rite of Fire

    Anastacia kneels onto the floor before Reima, causing Quelaag to almost pounce on her.

    Quelaag "What are you doing!?!" she exclaims at the poor girl.

    Anastacia "I-I''m performing the rite for his holiness..." she quickly says.

    Quelaag "There''s a rite to su-"

    Quelana puts a hand on Quelaag''s shoulder, "I''m sure there''s a misunderstanding here, let''s just observe and see what happens." he says, causing the livid spider to back off momentarily.

    Reima isn''t really sure how to react to this and just stands still, hoping it''ll be over quickly... It was already to late to try and shake their beliefs.

    Anastacia gets back on her knees, closing her eyes and after a minute or two, beginning to glow. The centre of her chest has some kind of tendril of fire come out of it, it extends forwards and delves into the ground in-front of Reima, confusing him.

    Reima "Wait..." he mutters as he realises just where this place actually is... It''s where the Axii Place of Power was...

    The marble floor starts heating up and eventually turning red, melting revealing a hole beneath the stone where the focus of the Place of Power sits.

    *FOOSH!*

    A small pillar of fire that extends a few metres in the air explodes from the hole, causing everyone watching to back off, leaving Anastacia and Reima still standing there. The ambient magic in the air begins to increase rapidly as the flame seems to spin, visible tendrils of fire forming what looks like a small writhing tornado.

    Reima''s eyes widen as he realises that Anastacia was creating a bonfire, the ritual pulling magic from the earth itself, presumably causing other magical places to be rediverted to here. Eventually the intense heat subsides leaving only the writhing tornado of fire still standing around twelve feet tall.

    Anastacia finally opens her eyes and marvels at her Bonfire, the manifestation of her soul. She''d never seen anything like this and felt much more powerful than power... "I... It''s complete." she states as everyone looks in awe at it.

    Reima "A bonfire..." he mutters, waving his hand through it which causes Anastacia to blush and squirm. "Ah, sorry..." he apologises, though the priestess doesn''t seem to mind.

    Quelaag "W-what is that?" she asks in disbelief.

    Reima "Well, it seems that the bonfire linked itself with the Place of Power... The ambient magic in the air is astounding, this is probably now the most magically rich land in the world..." he says.

    Quelana "So... If a Bonfire is placed in a Place of Power, it causes this?" she asks, causing a lightbulb to light up in Quelaag''s head.

    Reima shrugs, "Seems so... I''m not really sure how it all works though, I''m curious how the type of magic would affect it though. This being an Axii Place of Power.

    Anastacia "Are you proud of me, Lord?"

    Reima sighs and pats her head, "Yeah... I guess."

    Rhea "I helped your holiness!" she chirps from the side.

    Reima pats her head aswell, all the while thinking about the affects Axii would have when combined with a bonfire and ambient mana."

    Elsewhere :

    In a place filled with lush exotic plants and giant trees there lays many huge winged beasts, the land itself is vibrant with a large variety of strange beasts inhabiting it, most serving as food for their guardians and masters.

    A gold dragon rolls on its side, it''s one hundred year slumber not looking as if it will end any time soon, despite the global temperatures slowly getting colder. Nearby were small rifts in the earth, causing magic to liberally spew out and infuse everything nearby, causing even regular creatures to become powerful and mighty, though still no match for the overlords of the land, the dragons.

    Suddenly, the rift begins to sputter, the magic being cut off for seemingly no reason, this being the first time such a thing has ever occurred. Eventually, the magic is gone, the rift collapsing in on itself, and the gold dragon''s eyes quickly opening.

    Being awoken from its slumber by something stealing its magic causing it to stand in a rage, firing a plume of fire into the sky to relieve it''s anger slightly. Around the lush mountain where it''d been laying more plumes of fire rose to the sky, indignant roars following them.

    The gold dragon flaps it''s wings and begins to fly, reaching a mountain peak where others were already gathered.

    "What is the meaning of this! Which of you stole from me!" they shout, causing the other lesser dragons to grovel before them.

    A dragon with dark blue scales clambers forwards, "No dragon could do such a thing! Our magic simply cannot twist nature to such an extent!"

    "Then who is responsible!?!"

    The blue dragon thinks for a moment before coming to a conclusion, "Could it be the mortals?"

    The gold dragons reptilian eyes contract as it glances around at the other dragons present, they come in all manner of shapes and sizes, but the one he seeks is hiding behind two others.

    "Saesenthessis, do the mortals have the capabilities to do this?" he asks, knowing that the half-breed had spent a considerable amount of time among them.

    Saesenthessis mentally frowns at the question, knowing full well that given enough motivation Sorcerers could accomplish most feats, even killing or controlling a dragon. "They do." she states, knowing that if she lied she''d most certainly be killed, even if she fled there would be nowhere else for her to go.

    "Then, we must investigate... Are the other elders available?" the gold dragon masks.

    The blue dragon shakes its large head, "No, they are further north."

    The gold dragon growls, "Then, I will go... With Saesenthessis."

    Saesenthessis is shocked at this, "No! They know my form, they will hunt us down if they see me."

    "That is a risk we will take, to find and eliminate whoever is responsible for this!" they exclaim.

 590 Magical Farm!

    With the combination of the Place of Power and Anastacia''s bonfire the ambient magic around the city, and mountain range, in general, had increased an incredible amount. Every person with even the slightest magical attunement felt it immediately. Yen, Triss, and Keira thought that a magical explosion was about to happen due to the density of magic, but were assured an hour later when nothing substantial happened.

    All three sorceresses were astonished at the evolution that the land had gone through, it''d only been a couple of weeks and already the potential of this place was unmatched by any other city in the world.

    There were some things that were badly affected by the boost in ambient magic however, the magical lights amidst the streets all started releasing a blinding amount of light due to them not having a restriction on how much ambient power they should take in. Of course, this was quickly fixed by Rickert who scrambled to get it fixed, sprinting like a madman through the city while occasionally stopping to fiddle with the gems.

    Of course, the good outweighed the bad heavily, with Asgore now taking care of most administrative tasks, Reima was free to continue to try and design a rune cluster for the magical plants and herbs he''s got stored away in the painting of Ariamis. With the ambient magic increased so much it wasn''t difficult at all to get a working temperature regulator, plus the magic would probably increase their potency and growth.

    It wasn''t long before Reima and the House Elves had set up a farm near Kaer Morhen, it was surrounded with a stone fence topped with sharp iron prongs that''d stop anyone from attempting to climb over it, these plants were incredibly valuable and it wouldn''t do to have someone try and steal any, thus why it was placed so near Kaer Morhen.

    Quelina and Vesemir were at the scene as the House Elves began to plant the various species he''d gathered from the HP universe. The former was excitedly asking question about each different plant she looked at, Vesemir was chuckling as just as Reima had explain her query she''d move onto the next.

    Quelina "What''s that!?!" she exclaims as a House Elf pops in with some sort of tree sapling, planting it just inside of the stone fence.

    Reima "That''s called a "Whomping Willow, they''ll be used to protect the other plants." he says.

    Vesemir "Protect?" he asks curiously.

    Reima nods, picks up a stone and lightly tosses it at the tree, one of it''s thin branches snapping at the rock and flicking it away.

    Quelina "Wow!" she mutters.

    Reima "Did you guys check out the library while I was gone?" he asks.

    Vesemir nods, "We did, I must say what an incredible place you''ve got there Reima... I found book on things I didn''t even know existed, and those potions? Why, alchemy is about to become the most sought after art in the lands." he says.

    Quelina "I want to try make the Draught of Living Death." she says.

    Reima "I''d practise with easier potions before that... I doubt I could even brew it properly to be honest, maybe if I had a couple tries I''d get out a passable one. Maybe you''ll even brew a Felix Felicis one day."

    Vesemir "Hmm? I''ve not read about that one yet."

    Reima grins, "It''s a potion that increases your luck."

    Vesemir gapes at him in surprise, "Truly?"

    Quelina "When will we be able to get started Reima?" she asks, her gaze tracing across the freshly planted seeds.

    Reima "Well, I''ve got some plants already prepared. I''ll have some House Elves give you some, try not to be wasteful with them though, until these grow I don''t want to use all of our stock." he states.

    Quelina beams and hugs his waist, "Thank you!"

    Reima pats her head, though his attention is drawn away by a red hed approaching them.

    Triss walks up with her hand on her hip, "Miss Quelina?" she asks tentatively.

    Quelina lets Reima go and looks at her, "Yes?"

    Triss "I was wondering if you''d be willing to teach me Pyromancy?" she asks, her arms now crossed.

    Quelina shakes her head, "I''m sorry, but I''ve other things to do... My sisters are better than I am at Pyromancy as well, wouldn''t they be the ones the ask?"

    Triss frowns, "Well, I''ve asked them already but they refused." she says forlornly.

    Vesemir "Hmm, perhaps you need to be subservient to the sisters before you''re eligible to learn the art?" he ponders, thinking about the Chaos Servants.

    Reima shakes his head, "That''s not it... I think, that there simply isn''t a good place to train it, that and the risk of death is incredibly high. Though the fact that Quelaag and Quelana might consider Pyromancy something to be kept away from outsiders would be another reason." he explains.

    Triss sighs, "Is that so? I''ve been asking all around to try and learn it, it looks like a useful skill to know but no one is willing to teach me."

    Reima "I''ve been meaning to ask you Triss, what do you intend to do here?" he asks.

    Triss looks at him with brows raised, "What do you mean?"

    Reima "I mean, you should be over with the other mages in Kovir by now..."

    Triss "I simply wanted to learn the art of Pyromancy before I left." she says.

    Reima "Then, would that be a reason not to teach you? You''re a friend but risking you teaching others prevent any of us from taking you in."

    Triss frowns, "I can''t simply stay here, I have responsibilities to the mages, and to Kovir now.

    Reima "Then leave. We can''t teach you Pyromancy if you are working with another country, it''d be foolish." he says rather callously.

    Vesemir "Forgive me my dear but what Reima says is common sense, not only would it reveal our secrets but it would also put you at risk, should anyone find out you have knowledge about our magics." he says politely.

    Triss "I see... Then, I might do just that." she says and begins to leave.

    Reima "Hang out, you''ve been here since the start Triss, why did it take you so long to ask Quelina to teach you?" he asks curiously at what she''d been doing the whole time.

    Triss turns and smiles at him, "I learned it from being around Kaer Morhen so much, interrupt Vesemir in a lab at your own peril." she states and leaves.

    Vesemi scratches his beard, "She''s got a point." he says.

 591 Strange Bedfellows

    Quelaag was struggling, she had been reading the dairy from someone called Morgan le Fay and was interested in the applications of the "Animagus Transformation", however while it explained how to do it, it didn''t teach you the fundamentals. For example, you apparently needed proficiency in a type of magic called "Occlumency", something she was a complete novice at. She''d found a couple books in the library detailing it but wasn''t able to progress beyond simple meditation.

    She knew Reima had probably already mastered it but didn''t want to ask for him help, she intended this to be a "Pleasant" surprise, she also knew that the old man who''d assisted them from another world called Albus Dumbledore would have probably been knowledgable in it, unfortunately, he was already gone... Leave her with one last annual that could possibly know it... Ciri.

    She didn''t despite the girl, no, she actually appreciated her bold and brash behavior as someone who had similar traits. Her only problem with the girl was her relationship, whatever it was, with Reima.

    However, if she wanted to gain this skill she''d have to grit her teeth and bare asking for her assistance in the matter... She looked around and eventually found Reima''s father, Geralt. He usually knew where Ciri was so this was as good as finding her outright. The Witcher pointed Quelaag to the topmost balcony of Kaer Morhen, a room claimed by Geralt and Yennefer.

    Quelaag scuttled up the keep, minding not to set anything on fire with her lower bodies everpresent flames and eventually found the ashen haired girl meditating on the balcony, a gentle wind brushing against her hair.

    She approaches and waits a moment to see if she''d wake up anytime soon, but after a couple minutes Quelaag gets bored and announces her presence, "Ahem"

    Ciri''s eyelids flicker as she slowly turns around, spotting Quelaag and barely managing not to frown. "Do you need something?" she asks, trying to keep the irritation of being interrupted out of her voice.

    Quelaag nods and presents a copy of the Occlumency book, "I''ve been trying to learn the art of Occlumency but require someone more knowledgable to show me the path forwards... Would you be willing in assisting me?" she asks diplomatically.

    Ciri''s gaze moves between the book and Quelaag sincere expression, not really knowing what to do... Should she accept? She didn''t really have a valid reason not to. Should she refuse? She knew her dislike of the woman was only because of Reima... "Maybe? Depends on what you can offer me in return." she says, deciding to compromise.

    Quelaag thinks for a moment and senses the girls Pyromancy Flame, "It seems Reima has been teaching you... Are you progressing in your lessons with him?" she asks, the question meaning more than it initially appears.

    Ciri sighs, "...No, Reima has been... Busy as of late, I''ve had to practice on my own."

    Quelaag crosses her arms and nods, "Then we will teach each other, is that a good enough trade?"

    Ciri thinks for a moment before finally nodding, "That sounds... Fine..."

    Quelaag walks in and rests her body next to Ciri, "Then let''s get started?"

    Ciri nods, and starts explaining the basics of Occlumency, incase the Chaos Witch hadn''t completely understood it, then going into further detail about Mental Constructions and organisation. It wasn''t long before the duo were sat silently next to each other in deep meditation, a peaceful sight despite their slight animosity towards one another.

    Elsewhere :

    Alphys was as in the library with a stack of books next to her, she''d been allowed into the restricted section along with Undyne, Asgore, and Sans, though the short skeleton didn''t seem interested in it at all. She was intrigued by the technology on display, some of the information intersected with what the monsters already knew, but most had no ever actually been explored in such an in-depth fashion. The only thing she could confidently claim superiority on is the monsters knowledge on Magictech, the combination of magic and technology.

    *Bang!*

    Undyne walks over and drops a pile of books onto the stone desk Alphys was sitting next to, "Alphys! Look at all these books! They talk about something called "Sorcery", the thing Reima said we would probably be good at!"

    Alphys adjusts her glasses, "Are you going to learn this "Sorcery" then?" she asks.

    Undyne frowns, "I would but... It seems too complicated for me..." she says sadly.

    Alphys scratches her head and shuffles over, taking closer look at the book in Undyne''s hand and marveling at the intricate Formulae displayed on the page. "This... This is incredible..."

    Undyne glances at her, "You understand it?"

    Alphys nods, "Barely... This part here collects magic while that one restricts the amount to prevent overload. And LOOK here! A a part that alters the size, compression and-.... Nevermind... Anyway, I''m interested to see how it''d function when used." she wonders aloud.

    "HMMMM?!?" a voice comes from the corner of the room where a man with a giant hat sitting next to a huge pile of books is sitting. He gets up and walks over, his staff clanking against the stone ground as he approaches.

    Logan "It seems you both have an interest in Sorcery hmm?" he asks.

    Alphys is about to respond but Undyne is faster than her, "Huh? How''d you know? Were you spying on us?" she asks indignantly.

    Logan nods, "Indeed I was." he states absolutely. "I was pleasantly surprised to hear that someone other than my old apprentices have an interest in the finest of magical arts."

    Alphys "W-who are you again if you don''t mind me asking?"

    Logan grins, "People call me Big Hat Logan, or just Logan. I am a master of Sorcery and one of Reima''s old teachers. I would like to offer you both a chance to tutor under me, if Reima is correct then my legacy will live on through your race." he says happily.

    Undyne shakes her head, "It looks too hard to learn, I think I would be better off practicing my natural abilities." she says.

    Logan grins, knowing full well what kind of person this was, "Oh? I guess being able to shoot a barrage of Crystal Soul Spears doesn''t sound all that interesting to you, I suppose someone of your caliber would never be capable enough to be my appr-"

    Undyne "YOU''RE ON!" she shouts while pointing at Logan face, causing Alphys to sigh and accept as well. She''d continue her work as a scientist, and maybe use the lessons with Undyne as an opportunity to get closer to her.

 592 Despicable Intentions

    After completing the magical farm and speaking with Triss, Reima left to go check the prisoners that were apparently locked in his painted world. Teleporting inside was immediately greeted by the Housr Elves, Unicorns and Thestrals, he nodded at the Elves and petted the animals before calling for Hinky.

    The ever Faithful House Elf pops before him and exclaims "Do you needs somethings Master?"

    Reima nods, "Yeah, take me to where the prisoners are." he says, with the elf nodding and taking him to the cells.

    Once there he was slightly startled at the amount of people present... He was expecting two or three, but the ten unfortunate men being tortured by the chilling winds was certainly a surprise.

    Reima smiles at one through the bars, making them shiver, though whether this was due to his gaze or the cold temperatures was unknown. "Hello there, you''ve found yourself in a sour situation."

    "P-P-Please, let me out! I d-d-did nothing!" he pleads.

    Reima shakes his head, "Sure."

    The man looks at him wide eyed, "R-Really?!?"

    Reima nods, "After you''ve answered a few questions... Though, if you lie I will kill you." he looks at the other cells, "That goes for all of you, but I''m only expecting that you''ll understand after my third victim." he says with a chuckle.

    They all nod quickly, the man he was talking to doing so the fastest.

    Reima nods, "Right, let''s ask you a couple questions then... What''s your name and who do you work for?"

    "I-I''m called Varteand, and I''m a poacher... Please don''t hurt me!" he begs.

    Reima "Poacher? What is someone like you doing so close to the "Monster" Infested mountains?"

    Varteand "I-I was looking for rare animals, I need to pay off my debts... That have my sister!"

    Reima "Is that so? Hmm, your story sounds legit... But! Where are my manners? Would you like a drink?" he asks, materialising a porcelain cup in his hand filled with tea that he heats up by quickly manipulating some fire.

    Varteand nods rapidly and reaches through the bars for it, Reima hands it to him and he quickly drinks it, savouring the heat that trails down his throat.

    Reima smiles, "Now, who do you really work for?"

    Varteand "Mensfeld of cour-" he drops the cup and it shatters to the floor, he looks at his hands and begins to sweat profusely despite the winter breeze blowing through the cell.

    Varteand "W-W-What did you do to me?!?" he asks quickly.

    Reima grins and telekinetically levitates the shattered cup, casting a silent charm on it that causes it to repair before the man''s eyes. "Why, I cast a spell on you. You can''t lie to me anymore, I might be lenient and kill you quickly if you spill your guts now."

    Tears begin to from in Varteands eyes as he drops to his knees and begs, "P-Please don''t! I want to live! I''ll do anything!" he exclaims.

    Reima''s brows furrow, "Then, what did Mensfeld send you to do?" he asks.

    Varteand "H-He wanted information about the happenings of Kaer Morhen, and a detailed map about the area."

    Reima "And?" he asks, guessing there''s probably more.

    Varteand "He also wanted me to try and gain leverage against whoever was in charge of the fortress, he suggested kidnapping a resident... I swear, that''s all!"

    Reima nods, "Hmm, alright... Hinky, take this man away... Not to the horses this time." he states as the House Elf pops into the cell and salutes Reima before teleporting away with the man.

    Reima strolls in-front of the next cell, a man with a shocked expression sits on the floor as he looks up at Reima. "You''re next." he says with a grin.

    The man tried to resist, not saying a single word to any of the questions Reima had, it was only when Reima showed his Humanity devouring a mouse that the man began talking. Though after forcefully apply Veritaserum to them it seemed most were lies with small truths sprinkled in.

    Reima sighs, "Well, that''s two liars... And unfortunately for you, two is today''s unlucky number." he says as the Staff of Manus floats out of his shadow and begins spinning before burying itself in the man''s skull. A pulse of white mist signals the absorption of the man''s soul as Humanity liquidates his body as if it were dumped in a vat of acid.

    Clapping his hands clean Reima walks to the next cell, the man immediately shouting everything he knows. He was apparently sent by someone called Kreld Gaeveled, apparently, they''re the ruler of Rakverelin. Reima wasn''t really interested as their identity didn''t matter, only their intentions. Unfortunately for the man his job of marking any trade routes, burning any granaries and assassinating anyone important meant he was horse food.

    Most of the rest were similar, having been sent by Mensfeld or one of the other Nobility to scout, infiltrate and or sabotage Kaer Morhen. Though, there were a few innocent people who had literally just been fleeing a bandit group or the war as a whole. These people were given the choice to stay in the settlement, an offer they gratefully accepted

    The last person though was the most interesting of the lot, Reima had gotten bored by now and had already forced them to ingest Veritaserum and begun questioning. The information he procured was some of the most aggravating and surprising things he''d heard in a while... Radovid had sent this man, he was one of the best men in the lands at infiltration and other similar lines of work. He had been sent to drug and kidnap... Ciri.

    Reima didn''t know where Radovid had learned of Ciri''s existence, or even that she was located here. But it was definitely a problem. Reima assumed it was because the man wanted leverage against the Nilfgaardian Emperor, maybe he was right or maybe the man intended more despicable things... One way to gain legitimacy for the Nilfgaardian empire would indeed be to marry Ciri, something Reima knew she''d not do unless magically compelled or given no other option.

    Perhaps it was time to change how he thought about other countries? He thought to himself.

 593 The city of Ichor

    It''s been around a month since Reima had set up the magic farm and tensions were brewing between Nilfgaard and Skellige, most had no doubt about Hjalmar''s letter and knew that they would be called on to help their allies soon.

    However, it was not all doom and gloom, the city was getting on fantastically with the majority of housing built for Monsters, Prospects, and Chaos Servants alike. With the help of the Monsters the construction had sped up tremendously, helping with housing and even creating new businesses. The city now had bakers, traders, restaurants, bars and other essential establishments for a happy and prosperous city.

    This wave of progress was mostly due to the Monsters still having fresh memories of their old businesses and the knowledge to create them. With that they wasted no time in creating new opportunities for themselves and their families.

    Another thing to note were the relatively large farms being erected west of Kaer Morhen, most were created by Monsters with the ability to boost plant growth without affecting the soil''s fertility, but a few were made by the peasants Solaire had freed from the Eternal Fire. Either way, due to the Monsters abilities the city now had a stable influx of food, and with Ciaran and Sif patrolling the outskirts along with Iorveth''s troops, there wasn''t any chance of that changing anytime soon.

    Asgore had been an incredible help in starting essential services aswell, while there didn''t need to be a hospital due to the "Church of Two" already functioning as one, education was something he wished to get started immediately. And so, he made it happen. A single large school opened next to the library, one big enough to teach half of the city''s population if needed, teachers weren''t lacking either as the Monsters had plenty capable of doing the job. However, the syllabus would need to be designed eventually to incorporate the knowledge in the library.

    The goat king also had the Monsters help the House Elves with designing an effective sewage system in all of the homes, Reima designed a few rune clusters to cleanse the waste as it was dumped into the river, it wasn''t too hard though with him only needing to incorporate a modified Scougify into it.

    Another thing Asgore felt was dire to have done was to instate a currency, as they were really just trading and giving away commodities to those needing them. This could not continue if the city was to function independently without surplus supplies from Reima. Asgore had spoken to Reima about it during their weekly tea meeting and Reima had simply dumped an incredible amount of Lordran gold coins on the table, causing it to collapse under the weight.

    Unbeknownst to Reima, Solaire, Rhea, and the House Elves were unhappy with the coins, Gwyn''s head being prominently displayed on one side while the deaths of dragons was on the other... With the help of the House Elves they managed to chisel down Gwyn''s large beard and replace it with Solaire''s face... The other side of the coins were replaced with the sunlight medallion mark, then, the slightly larger coins replaced Gwyn''s face with Reima''s, a moon with a small carving of the symbol of Izalith was stamped onto those as well.

    With that done the coins were distributed through the city along with a few rules. The coins were not to be melted down, this needed to be emphasized due to them being almost pure gold with a tiny amount of copper added to increase strength. Destroying the coins would be seen as a crime and would be punished accordingly.

    Another rule was that the coins were not allowed to leave the city, eventually, when the city would begin trading its commodities with the outside world, it would be through trading goods and not money. This was due to no other societies coins matching the worth of theirs...

    One thing Reima hadn''t found out until it was too late was the names the new currency were being given... Sola and Remi... One hundred Sola equaled one Remi, which functioned as his old countries pence and pounds did.

    Through this "Month" of prosperity, the town actually gained a name by the residents... No one knew who started it but word of mouth quickly spread it and made it "Official", the city was now known as Ichor.

    Despite Asgore''s presence, the month had been rather exhausting for Reima... Due to the rapid growth of the city he''d been run around ragged, and with the introductions of the new currency he grimaced anytime someone used it.

    Additionally the church had become a hotspot of activity with most of the city occasionally using it to prey or pay "Tithe" to their gods. This in itself wasn''t a problem, but Reima had been closely observing the effects of the Axii fueled bonfire, with its effect translating to the ambient magic around the whole city and more, he was afraid it would have adverse effects on the population... However, he found that it wasn''t harmful in the least, and was actually slightly beneficial to anyone within its vicinity. Perhaps it was due to Anastacia''s faith or something similar because people''s wounds healed slightly faster, and he suspected they were all slightly stronger.

    The biggest effect it had though was obviously on their minds, the Axii place of power working to push people into following the "Two Gods" religion. He didn''t know whether this was a good or a bad thing, but only those with strong wills or magical abilities could resist this for a prolonged period of time. This would certainly make it hard for spies to infiltrate the city without being "Corrupted" by it. One last thing he spotted was Rhea and Anastacia''s miracles gaining incredible strength around the city, and primarily around the bonfire. This allowed them to easily heal anyone who came in, even those that are half dead would be healed with the weakest Miracle spell.

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 594 Skelligga my jigga

    Reima was sitting on the balcony of Kaer Morhen overlooking the keep and the city below it. he''d been constantly training to master his aura so it wouldn''t be like a volcano every time he ejaculated, though it was difficult reducing his internal body heat... Though he''d thought of a few solutions, his soul produced too much magic for his body, but maybe if he designed a rune cluster that forced the magic released from his body into a cooling spell, he might be able to slowly reduce his temperature... Even without the rune cluster he''d managed to reduce it by 20%, but that had caused him to release more magic than before, which was a problem.

    Shaking his head he focussed his vision and looked down at the enclosure he''d built recently, it contained a colony of Acromentula which produced web that was harvested by the House Elves. The silk made from the material would create light clothing stronger than some metals, this had everyone wishing to get it woven into their clothes and armour, the robed Chaos Servants and Prospects alike. While the Prospects clothes were technically unbreakable, it was possible to edit them with a small amount of Essence. This allowed Reima, Risryn and the blacksmiths to upgrade some of their clothing to be suitable for the subversive missions they''d likely be put on.

    With the Acromentula''s out of the Painted World Reima felt that it would be wrong of him to only go that far, he released the herd of Thestrals and Unicorns into the nearby forest and had Iorveth''s group keep an eye on them to watch what would happen.

    As you''d think, most were amazed at the beautiful creatures even if some couldn''t see the Threstrals. The herd itself was excited to roam around the magically potent land and to finally stretch their legs. Iorveth reported that the Herd didn''t stray very far from the city, likely wishing to be closer to the source of the high levels of ambient magic.

    Sif was almost like a sheep dog though, playfully chasing the Herd while Ciaran shouting for him to stop and come back, almost sounding like someone screaming "FENTON!"... Though it could just be Reima''s imagination. One thing he found amusing though was the dog sleeping amongst the Herd as if he were one of them, a few young gold furred Unicorns playing with the gigantic Wolf''s tail.

    Reima was thankful for the House Elves, he couldn''t imagine how difficult it would be to teach the Prospects, regular people or even Monsters how to take care of these Magical Animals, especially when a few of them are incredibly dangerous.

    Even the House Elves were sometimes having difficulties dealing with the easier creatures like the Moke, a creature whose skin could be used to make something akin to a bag of holding.

    Manus "SOU-" Reima telekinetically forced the staff back into his shadow and sighs.

    Reima "Bro, shut up for a week and I''ll go and absorb some souls." he growls.

    Geralt walks onto the balcony with a neutral expression, "Hmm, talking to yourself Reima? Where did I go wrong all those years ago?" he asks sarcastically.

    Reima "By training me, now I could kick your ass with my arms and legs tied, along with being blindfolded." he snarks.

    Geralt shakes his head, "Yeah? Most people get by with hard work, you on the other hand do it with luck... Anyway, I''m not here beat you up... It''s come."

    Reima glances up at him, "What''s come?"

    Geralt "Hjalmar''s letter." he states.

    Reima "What''d it say?" he asks.

    Geralt "Exactly what you''d think, come on, everyone''s gathered in the War Room." he says and begins to walk to it, Reima getting up and quickly following.

    They reach the War room which is chock full of people, almost everyone who isn''t protecting the city is present. Sieglinde, Dusk, Keira, Yennefer, Zoltan, Eskel, Lambert, Vesemir, Risryn, Talem, Kuretz, Quelaag, Quelana, Solaire, Priscilla, Asgore, Undyne, Ciri, Rhea and Anastacia.

    Reima walks in with Geralt and sits in his usual seat, "What a party, almost everyone turned up." he jokes.

    Kuretz "Well, you know us Reima, always itching for a fight."

    Vesemir "Perhaps we should begin discussing the letter?" he suggests before the duo get off topic.

    Ciri nods and stands, holding the let in question, "Right, Hjalmar is officially requesting our help, they''ve gotten word that the Nilfgaardian armada is heading for Skellige and are already preparing their own fleet."

    Reima nods, "Well, first things first... Who wants to come?" he asks the room.

    Zoltan scratches his beard, "Eh, I was thinkin'' twas gonna be a brawl, not some ship to ship battle. Sorry be my skills lay elsewhere." he says, knowing that he''d be useless in such a situation.

    Sieglinde nods, "I fear I may not be much help, it''s unfortunate I can''t help our allies."

    Lambert chuckles, "Yeah, you''d sink to the bottom of the ocean like an onion-shaped rock."

    Sieglinde frowns, "And your corpse would sink with my sword sticking from it''s chest." she growls.

    Geralt "Enough. Lambert, try not to be a prick until we''re done." he sighs.

    Reima looks to Rhea and Anastacia, "And you two?"

    Anastacia shakes her head sadly, "I have duties to the church and am unable to come."

    Rhea smiles, "I will gladly participate in the crusade against the black ones!"

    ...

    Reima rubs his face, "Alright...

    Keira, Asgore and Lambert excuse themselves aswell, all stating prior responsibilities as their reason, though only Asgore is believable.

    Quelaag "I''d like to participate." she states, though most do not seem to agree.

    Vesemir "As useful as I think you''d be, you would likely not be allowed on the Long boats..."

    Quelaag frowns, "Is it because of how I look?" she asks sternly.

    Reima shakes his head, "No... It''s because your lower body is permanently on fire... Not something you''d want on a boat."

    ...

    Quelaag "Oh." she sighs, getting up and leaving with a forlorn look.

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 595 God Viking Pirate Mage Monster Martial Artists?

    Vesemir sighs and follows her, "Excuse me from the battle, I have other matters to attend to." he says and leaves.

    Lambert "Looks like she couldn''t take the heat hehehe." he jokes.

    Reima raises his hand causing the annoying Witcher to be lifted before then being flung out of the door unceremoniously. "Seriously Keira, how do you cope with him?"

    Keira shrugs, "He''s polite when we''re alone, if you''ll excuse me." she says while leaving to attend to Lamberts damaged ego.

    Solaire "Good, I had half a mind to do the same myself." he says with Priscilla, Quelana and at ew others nodding in agreement.

    Reima "Anyway, let''s get back on the subject at hand." he looks at Ciri and Yennefer. "You guys sure you wanna go? Nilfgaard will definitely hear about it, you won''t be able to go anywhere south without bounty hunters looking for you."

    Ciri "Absolutely, I care not for what my father wants or thinks." he states.

    Yennefer shrugs, "As a woman I am satisfied here... As a Sorceress even more so. I doubt I''ll be returning south anytime soon, plus with Geralt already going Emyr will likely know where our loyalties lie." she says.

    Reima nods, "I don''t think I''ll be bringing any of the Chaos Servants... While they''d be incredibly useful, I doubt we could make it through the battle without losing any of them. With how many we have we need to conserve their use in battle for our own conflicts."

    Risryn "Then just bring Prospects, we will dive, board and burn the boats with relative ease." she states.

    Kuretz nods, "Yeah, they won''t see it coming."

    Reima taps his foot, "Alright, go gather some Prospects who can actually swim." he says, remembering a few Prospects who sank like a rock when kicked into shallow water.

    Geralt "That should be everything then, I doubt it will take all of us to even win the battle though." he says, glancing at the two literal gods sitting nearby.

    Reima "We''ll meet in the courtyard, Ciri''ll take me to Skellige where I''ll open a portal for the rest of you." he says, getting up and leaving.

    An hour later he meets up with everyone in the courtyard, around a hundred Prospects all standing there at the ready.

    Reima "Is this everyone who can swim out of the thousand? Or just everyone who''d be good in the battle."

    Risryn shrugs, "Both, these are the people who are strong swimmers and would be able to board the ships without drowning like fools." she says, not wishing people to see one of their masks and immediately think "Lemming".

    Reima nods and walks over to Ciri, "You... Good?" he asks.

    She nods, "Yep."

    ...

    Reima "Everyones ready, shall we get going?" he says, breaking the awkward atmosphere.

    Ciri nods, places a hand on his shoulder and teleports him to Kaer Trolde port.

    The turquoise flash had everyone turning to them, surprised by the two people suddenly appearing out of nowhere. Everyone around them seemed to be a soldier or sailor of somekind, each with determined expressions on their faces. He looks at the ocean as sees around a hundred Longboats varying in sizes...

    Hjalmar spots them and briskly walks towards them from the port, "Ciri! Reima!" he shouts.

    Ciri hugs him, causing Reima''s eye to twitch, but it relents when Hjalmar lets go and gives a bearhug to Reima.

    Hjalmar "It is a fine day to see you two, I was dreadin'' this battle but, now that you''re here I think we can win this!" he says with a grateful smile.

    Reima "Yeah, yeah... Everyone''s not here yet though, give me a second..." he says, taking a step back and tearing a rift open which reveals a hundred Prospects and everyone else. Geralt and Yennefer walk through and greet Hjalmar.

    Geralt "Greetings, where''s Ermion? I''d have thought he''d be around."

    Hjalmar shakes his head, "He''s speaking with the Jarls about strategies should our fleet fail. I have faith that we will make it through though." he says.

    The surrounding Skelligan warriors watch as a hundred masked men walk through the portal, though they''re even more surprised by Priscilla as she walks through. The horns on her head, reptilian eyes and fluffy tail apparently matching the description of one of their folk tales.

    Undyne walks through with light armour, though her helmet hides her in-human traits.

    Rhea then walks though with a beaming smile on her face, though everyone gives her a wide berth.

    Hjalmar frowns and whispers to Ciri and Reima, "Is tha'' one of them Eternal Fire priests?" he asks suspiciously.

    Ciri shakes her head, "No, she worships something else entirely." she says.

    Reima sighs, "Unfortunately."

    Geralt "Hmm, is Cerys leading as well?"

    Hjalmar nods, "Me, Cerys and a couple others will be leading the fleet, she''s over there on the Longboat in the port if ya want to speak wit'' her. I know she''s still grateful for everything you''ve done for her." he says.

    The group talk for a while and eventually are organised, and placed on other ships. The Prospects will be placed up front so they can easily swim to the Nilfgaardian boats while everyone else will be placed on the rear guard.

    Geralt, Yennefer, Ciri and Reima walk onto Cery''s longboat with Hjalmar leading them.

    Cerys spots Geralt and gives him a brief hug, getting serious immediately after letting go. "So, you''re Reima then? Hjalmar''s had much to say after going to help you lot in Kaer Morhen."

    Reima shrugs, "Yeah?" he says, wondering where this is going.

    Cerys nods, "I think ye for turning up then, people like you usually don''t bother with common people''s troubles, like them Elf Sages that sit around in complacency."

    Reima snorts, "Yeah, Geralt would know all about them." he says, getting an elbow jab from Ciri.

    Yennefer "When will we be leaving then?" she asks.

    Cerys looks up at the sun, then glances at her fleet. "Now." she states simply, "We will meet the Black Ones far from Skellige''s shores, can''t risk them bombarding our cities during the fight." she says.

    Hjalmar nods, turns and starts directing everyone to quicken their pace and to get the boat ready to leave.

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 596 War Crime

    The Skelligan fleet was relatively large for this world, the population valuing their ancestor''s ways of raiding the mainland shores over other things like farming or even trade. Thus, despite Skellige having a smaller country than most, they were able to rival the temple fleet in Novigrad.

    Their boats were not meant for ship to ship combat however, only having a few low powered cannons on each ship, so even if they matched the Nilfgaardians fleet in numbers, they would still likely face defeat.

    Hjalmar and Cerys were stood on the ship''s bow as the Skelligan fleet traveled in-front of them, both look determined but didn''t dare let their men see the worry on their faces. Morale was important and if they were to have the best chance of winning, they had to present a strong front.

    Geralt, Ciri were looking over the side of the ship into the ocean with bored expressions while Yennefer prepared a number of spells for the eventual battle. Geralt seemed to be telling Ciri the story of the time he''d almost died heading to Skellige from a storm hitting the boat.

    Reima, on the other hand, was sitting atop the sail watching the horizon for any sighting of Nilfgaard. Eventually, after a couple hours, Reima spotted the tips of black sails... He points shouts "Black ones!" causing the rest of the fleet to slowly spot them.

    Slowly the trademark strangely shaped sails of the Nilfgaardian fleet appeared, their black sun decorating each and every one of them. Reima could only sigh at the sea of black before him, wondering how Skillige could have possibly defended against this without his and his friends intervention...

    The Nilfgaardian fleet was massive, the boats at the front were around the same size as the average Skellige longboat, but these were only the scout ships, built for fast travel and possibly boarding parties... No, behind them were massive frigates with a huge arsenal of cannons and weaponry visible.

    There were around thirty scout ships with seventy Corvettes behind them and forty frigates behind those... Immediately after Nilfgaard spotted them their boats started turning and displaying their broadsides.

    Luckily for the Skellige fleet they weren''t quite in range being around 2.5 miles away. Cerys and Hjlamar frown, the former standing tall on the bow and speaking to all the surrounding longboats.

    Cerys "Warriors of Skelllige! This is your moment! This is your time to give your lives for your lands, your people, your ancestors! DO NOT let our history be destroyed by the Black ones, DO NOT let our people be enslaved and broken!... As Daughter of Crach and Jarl of Skellige I will fight til'' my last breath!" She shouts coincidentally, loud enough for most of the neighboring ships to hear.

    The men give a roar, their blood boiling from the speech and rage at those who''d wish to take away their freedom. Hjalmar steps next to Cerys and puts a hand on her shoulder as she overlooks the black fleet.

    Cerys glances at him and quietly asks, "How''d I do?"

    Hjalmar nods with a grin, "Like a true Jarl sis." he says, causing her to stand straighter at the compliment.

    The Nilfgaardian Frigates and Corvettes form a wall with the broadsides of their boats, a single scout ship approaches and is let through by the other longboats so it can reach the Jarls boat.

    It stops in-front of Cery''s ship as she stands and looks down at the few finely dressed men standing as if they have a stick up their arses. "Ahem, is this the current leader of Skellige?" they ask in a foreign accent.

    Cerys "I am the Jarl of Skellige, what say you? Do you wish to offer your surrender already?" she mocks, causing her men to laugh and jeer at the duck-faced nobles on the boat.

    "HOW DARE YOU!" The leader shouts, "I AM OF NILFGAARDIAN NOBILITY AND I WILL NOT BE TALKED DOWN TO BY A BITCH PEASANT WEARING RAW ANIMAL SKIN! You will offer your surrender or die like the savages you are!" he shouts.

    Cerys "How would it be seen if I were to sink this dinky ship?" she whispers to Hjalmar.

    Hjalmar "I know Nilfgaard would see it as a war crime, you and I would be executed... I don''t plan on surviving a losing battle though so go ahead sis." he laughs.

    Cerys nods and points at the scout ship, "SINK IT!"

    *BANG!*BANG!*BANG!*

    Three shots from three separate ships cannons annihilate the boat and everyone on board, the previous high and mighty noble becoming nothing more than chunks of fish food.

    Almost immediately after this the Nilfgaardian fleet starts heading in their direction, obviously wishing retribution for the callous deaths of their compatriots...

    Reima shouts from the top of the sail, "Hey, Hjalmar! You mind if I just destroy their ships on my own?" he asks, making his friends sigh and the Skellige warriors laugh at his arrogance.

    Hjalmar shakes his head however, "I''m sorry Reima, if we let someone fight our battles for us then it would dishonour our ancestors... More will die, yes, but they will die for Skellige, a death all of us from these lands wish for." he says with a few warriors who''d heard it giving sombre looks while others cheer.

    Reima frowns but shrugs, it was their choice... He could literally just teleport over there and set fire to all of their boats, but he''ll play along for now... Atleast until the battle starts.

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 597 Dragon Napalm

    The Nilfgaardian fleet gets closer and closer but are still not in cannon range... However, that isn''t all the Emperors troops can muster.

    Reima spots three frigates that have robed men standing on the bow with staves in their hands, they are pointing their palms towards Cery''s ship and chanting something... Suddenly the mages efforts coalesce into some sort of bird made from fire, it soars high before heading for the ship like a missile.

    Yennefer "It''s war magic!" she exclaims, preparing to intercept it, however Reima reacts first, grabbing the air which seems to halt the apparition mid-air, it struggles as if bound and is slowly dragged towards him.

    Cerys "What is he doin''?" she asks, wondering if Reima intended to set fire to the ship with them on it.

    Hjalmar "Relax sis, he knows what he''s doing."

    When the apparition is in arm''s length of Reima he thrusts his hand into it''s chest and absorbs it, shocking the mages that''d cast it, as well as the other less skillful mages on the other ships.

    Geralt "Hmm, did you really have a spell ready for that Yen?" he asks.

    Yennefer nods, "Of course, it is typical Nilfgaardian war magic. I came prepared and had Reima not stopped it, I would have."

    Geralt grunts and nods, giving no indication to whether he believes her or not... He could tell by her reaction that she hadn''t expected such a spell so soon, but letting this be known was a quick was to the dog house.

    Cerys "Men! Cannons ready!" she shouts as the Corvettes get in range and start turning to allow their cannons to fire."

    The Longboats mimic the Corvettes and begin turning in preparing to fire, once in position a tense silence overtakes both sides... Until finally, a Nilfgaardian Corvette fires the first shot, signaling to everyone else to unload their armaments as well.

    *BAAANG!*

    The deafening sound of hundreds of cannons firing at once fills the once calm sea, ships on all starts start exploding into wood splinters a cannonballs blow huge holes into their hulls. A warrior on Cerys ship gets obliterated by a direct hit, turning him to red mist and leaving a cannon unoccupied, Geralt rushes over and takes control as two other men begin reloading it. Once done he aims at the Corvette nearby that''d presumably killed the man and tries to hit the helmsman controlling the ship.

    His eyes contract as he judges the distance, the falloff and power of the previous cannonballs fired by the Skellige canons. It finally shoots and strikes the Helmsman directly, providing a similar treatment to fallen Skellige warrior. Without the Helmsman the ship drifts too close to the other Longboats, and while someone tries to take control and redivert it, it''s already too late, the barrage sent at them is simply too much and the boat rapidly starts sinking to the bottom of the ocean as men throw themselves into the water and try to swim to nearby Nilfgaardian boats.

    Unfortunately for them, their armour isn''t designed for extended swimming... The Nilfgaards in their arrogance didn''t believe that their ships would be sunk, even if they did the people controlling it were "Unfit" and deserved what they got... The men sucked in water and descended into the depths, their lungs slowly filling with water.

    The initial barrage dealt heavy damage to both sides, but Nilfgaard came out ahead due to their superior firepower. Many Longboats were sunk with the Skelligan''s being rescued by allied ships. Yennefer creates a large shield that blocks all shots from either side of the battle to allow the Longboats to rescue the overboard warriors.

    The other side sees this as a sign of weakness however and starts pelting it with counterspells and spells designed to pierce it. Despite Yennefer''s talent and power, the shield slowly dissipates and the battle continues...

    Priscilla is stood on a ship with Quelana and Solaire. She''d stabbed her DragonSlayer GreatBow into the longboat to prepare to shoot it, destroying the floorboards underneath her. Quelana conjures a lingering flame which envelopes the arrow tip just as the halfbreed fires it at one of the further off frigates...

    It flies true and hits the wooden part of the sail, the Luff and penetrates halfway through it, almost crippling the frigate with the initial shot. The impact causes the Nilfgaardians to duck and look at it, suspecting they''d been hit by a stray cannonball, but are confused when they see some sort of glowing spear sticking out from their sail... It''s glowing slowly intensifies unil-

    *BOOM!*

    The explosion kills many, but it isn''t the entire function of the timed explosive, lava is shoot out like a napalm bomb and coats the ship, killing any who weren''t already dead. The ship goes up in flames almost instantly, which almost spreads to a nearby Frigate were it not for their quick maneuvering.

    Gyrtrich Aep Heluhd, the Admiral of the Nilfgaardian Navy looks at the nearby ship that''d suddenly gone up in flames seemingly without reason. He''s shocked by the attack and gives a pointed look to the mage who was accompanying him, imploring them to explain what''d just happened.

    The mage''s expression isn''t a good one, truly they had no idea what''d caused this... Most magic capable of this was large, powerful, and slow-moving. Not at all compared to the silent ship killer that he''d just witnessed. "Perhaps there are bombs already planted on our ships!?!" he quickly questions, receiving a slap from the Admiral.

    Gyrtrich "Of course not you simpleton! We checked many times these boats, and I myself personally inspected the Frigates! It must have been magic, though clearly out of YOUR league!" he exclaims, angered by this inept magic user he''d been given by the Emperor.

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 598 Black Tentacle

    Solaire grins and claps Priscilla on her shoulder after witnessing the arrow strike true, "Well done!"

    Priscilla smiles, nods and knocks another arrow.

    Quelana grumbles at the fact it was her spell that did most of the work, but adds yet another Lingering Flame to Priscilla''s arrow.

    Ciri was pacing up and down Cerys ship, Seath in hand. Yennefer turns her attention away from the battle and questions what she''d doing, "If you wish for something to do, there are cannons that need to be reloaded."

    Ciri shakes her head, "I was expecting us to board their ships, not this battle of artillery! Whatever, I''m just going to do it my way!" she exclaims. Sprinting and leaping off of the boat before disappearing in a flash.

    Geralt calls for her, "Ciri!" But she''s already gone... Though he could see the men on a distant Frigate in chaos over something... An explosion throws some off of the ship as an ashen haired-" Damn..." He mutters, realising she''d teleported aboard the ship.

    Ciri had appeared behind the Helmsan of the Frigate and easily beheaded him, kicking the wheel and sending it spinning clockwise, causing it to turn and crash into a nearby Corvette and sinking it. The men on board almost immediately notice her and begin trying to apprehend her. They head up the stairs with weapons drawn but Ciri points her palm at them and shoots a stream of fire, causing the men to fall backwards down the stairs in a pile. She continues to shoot flames while turning her focus on the sails and ship itself.

    Yet another Frigate goes up in flames without warning, though the Nilfgaardian Admiral could spot the intruder from his own boat and commanded his men to be vigilant. Ciri then jumped off and teleported to another Frigate, attempting to kill the Helmsman in a similar fashion to the last.

    *CLINK*

    He was perceptive enough to realise something wasn''t right and managed to catch her blade with his, as a large man he was stronger than Ciri and forced her away from him. Though she used the momentum of being pushed to transition into a sweep to his legs, manages to buckle the man''s knees.

    She then goes in for a stab at his face but he throws himself to the side as two heavily armoured Nilfgaardian soldiers rush in and try to cut her down. She pushes her hand out and casts a powerful Aard, throwing one off of the boat and to his death, while the other lands heavily against the Gunwale.

    Ciri then blocks a strike from the Helmsman, deflecting it with one hand while conjuring a pyromancy with the other. She kicks the man in the stomach to get some distance before throwing the Chaos Fireball on the main deck, it explodes and covers the ship in lava.

    As the men were looking at the devastation she''d caused she teleports back to Cerys ship to get a breather before heading out again, though Geralt has a couple of things to say about her recklessness.

    On another longboat Undyne was already tossing spears while integrating Logans teachings into her style of combat. Her spears were usually only spiritual and couldn''t harm the ships she was against, but with the compression, Formulae Logan had taught her she was able to form a small crystal tip atop her spears. This didn''t make the spears effective against the Nilfgaardian boats however... Only against the men atop them, which was what she was aiming for. She''d already killed around twenty of them, most dying from the shock of taking soul damage for the first time.

    Rhea was also incredibly busy, she was on a boat in the backline which is where all the heavily injured warriors were being taken. She shocked everyone but easily healing them and making them able to go back into combat as if their mangled arms and legs hadn''t been shattered or broken at all. She did this all the while praising the "Two gods" and calling for the destruction of their enemies.

    The battle was reaching its peak, Solaire had just gotten involved and was sending lightning raining down from the sky atop a cluster of Corvettes, instantly annihilating them and causing the nearby ships to flee behind the Frigates, fearing a similar phenomenon happening to themselves.

    Once Reima saw a couple Nilfgaardian vessels looking as if they were going to retreat, he allowed the Staff of Manus to materialise in his hand and started channeling energy into it. More than he''d used against the Wild Hunt vessel previously. The red eye on the staff opens but Manus voice doesn''t come as the axe blade begins to glow brightly.

    He swings it horizontally, drawing a line in the hair that quickly moves forwards, cutting most of the Nilfgaardian ship''s sails in half, completely crippling them.

    The battle stops momentarily as everyone looks at Reima in awe, some begging to aim their cannon at him as he stands complacently atop the sails of Cerys ship.

    *BANG!*

    One fires at him, but he holds his hand out and grabs the searingly hot ball with ease, looking at it for a moment before throwing it back at the person who''d shot it. The man didn''t get a moment to comprehend what''d just happened as his head explodes from the cast iron ball. His friends screaming in shock and terror as they are covered in skull fragments and grey matter.

    Reima then grips the air with his outstretched hand, black flames beginning to materialise in his grip and forming some sort of giant tentacle. He swings it up and down, allowing it to slam onto the boat and cleaving it in half while incinerating anything it touches.

    The leaders of both sides look at him in fear, not really knowing what to do with this person. Cerys could feel her hands shaking as she watches him easily tear apart a ship but Hjalmar comforts her, telling assuring her that Reima was on their side.

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 599 ITS A TRAP!

    Reima dissipated the initial huge black tentacle and formed another, slamming it against a scout ship and dragging it against its deck, burning as well as knocking off everyone hit by it into the water.

    The Nilfgaardian mages attempt to fire counterspells at the flame but they do literally nothing due to it not being comprised of any Formulae, instead, being directly controlled by Reima himself. The turn their spells to Reima and fire shards of ice, bolts of lightning and magic arrows at him. Another black tentacle forms and easily blocks all of them, Reima throwing the Staff of Manus at the boat with the most mages. The staff screaming "SOOOUUUUUUUUUUUUULLLSSSSSSSSSS" as he throws it.

    The staff lands on the ship, the axe head sticking from the floorboards as the red eye darts around looking at the people onboard. The mages give it a wide berth the a few Nilfgaardian soldiers don''t think anything of it, walking up and trying to lift it out and throw it overboard due to the ominous feeling it was giving off.

    However, as soon as one lays a hand on the staff a voice calls out from it, "YOU WILL BE A FINE ADDITION MORTAL!" it exclaims as black tendrils wrap around their hand, digging into their wrist and moving through their bloodstream. The others watch, shocked still as black veins begin to form under the man''s skin as he screams and writhes around in agony, eventually dropping to the ground and spasming as if he were struck by lightning.

    "What black magic is this!" A mage shouts in terror as the unfortunate Nilfgaardian soldier begins to mutate, their black armour gaining accents similar to those of the Dark Wraiths of Lordran. A few more seconds of bone being cracks, displaced and mended by something stronger leaves the presumably dead soldier on the ground still, looking completely different to his original form.

    The monster shudders, causing his old friends to shout his name, but the creature clambers up and glares at them, black ooze dripping from its body and seeming to crawl towards everyone else.

    "MONSTER!" the mages shout and begin to fire spells at the abyssal servent, eventually bringing it down with numerous gouts of fire and other powerful magic...

    Manus red eye glares at those who''d deny him, and the shadow beneath the staff expands with a huge clawed hand reaching out of it... Even the surrounding ships take notice as three demonic-looking giant seem to materialise aboard one of their Frigates, the creatures look around with one glowing red light on their faces.... Without warning, they begin to stamp, claw, crush and punch everything nearby. Two leap aboard other vessels and begin tearing them apart as one stays aboard and eats alive the Mages that''d killed the previous abyssal creature.

    With its job complete the Staff of Manus melts into ooze, returning back to the shadow realm that lives within Reima''s shadow.

    Reima had been enjoying himself while playing around with his new flames, he''d occasionally grab a Nilfgaardian soldier from the water and throw him at the black fleet just to pummel the "Fear of God" into them even more. Their burned and mangled corpses being used as ammunition certainly did the trick as if they were able to flee the battle they would have already, though Reima had already crippled their ships in preparation for this.

    By now the Skellige warriors weren''t even trying to fight anymore, with the Nilfgaardians aiming all their weaponry at Reima the weren''t at risk of being attacked any longer, plus the horrific devastation caused by him made them rethink their warrior lifestyles. Thus the only people still attacking the Nilfgarrdian fleet were a few brave Skillige warriors, Solaire, Priscilla, Quelana and Ciri, who occasionally hopped aboard a ship and set it aflame with her pyromancy.

    Destroying the fleet wasn''t the end game however, those from Ichor had already discussed what they should do...

    Reima forms a huge black flame tentacle and swipes it across the middle of the ocean, causing steam to explode forth and block everyone''s view.

    One this was done Dusk shouts for everyone to get ready and raises the banishing catalyst Reima had given her so long ago and casts her newly designed spell. The light around them morphs, causing those looking at it to see it distort and disappear... Even the water the boat was previously in looked natural, if slightly fuzzy.

    With the ship now invisible and the steam clearing the boat begins to move around the Nilfgaardian fleet to the back of it. The most skillful Prospects were aboard the ship and were preparing to capture the Admiral of this fleet, Skellige would likely find many uses for such a person.

    Getting to the Frigate was the hard part however due to the large amount of ships surrounding it. The scout ships on the outskirts of the battle were rather easy to bypass but with Corvettes and other Frigates sitting nearby their target, getting close enough to get aboard without notice was incredibly difficult.

    Eventually though, with some rough and skillful maneuvers by the Skellige helmsman they managed to stop tens of meters away from the Frigate, seemingly without their notice. Dusk quickly cast Reima''s combination of Hidden body and hidden weapon on the Prospects, though due to her lack of practice with the inefficient spell the Prospects were transparent instead of completely invisible.

    Kuretz "This is fucking weird... I can see through myself!"

    Risryn "Just keep your mouth shut, just because we are see-through doesn''t mean they are deaf." she states seriously.

    Kuretz "You''re no fun, you''ve gotta lighten up or you''ll sink when we start swimming." he jokes.

    Risryn shakes her head, "I''ll "Lighten up" when we''ve captured the Admiral.

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 600 Fighting from Dusk to Dawn...

    Risryn "Is everyone ready?" she asks the Prospects behind and they all nod.

    With that confirmation she takes the lead, jumping off of the boat and under the water, still within the effect of Dusks spell, the Prospects follow and they all swim beneath the waves and head towards the Frigate.

    One they reach it they aren''t able to get a grip on the slimy, barnacle-covered wood and have to resort to prying their weapons into it, the noise of the waves crashing against the boat is enough to block them out and they quickly manage to climb onto the back of the boat. Risrin looks though the window to the quarters but doesn''t see anyone inside, meaning that the admiral must be on the deck, presumably overseeing battle.

    The hefts herself up and peeks at the Helm of the ship, spotting a Nilfgaardian steering the wheel with a Navigator and someone else next to them... Judging by their fine clothing, posture and expression, this must be the Admiral... The men on the ship calling them Admiral is also a rather big clue...

    She signals those below her and they all start shuffling around, a moment later Risryn leaps atop the deck and smashes her elbow into the back of the Admirals head, catching him when he falls unconscious... The Navigator notices this but is stabbed through the back by another Prospect, his gasp is muffled by the hand wrapped tightly around his mouth.

    Without a word Risryn throws the Admiral over her shoulder and leaps into the water below, leaving Talem, Kuretz and the rest of the Prospects to cause a distraction... Kuretz picks up the dead Nilfgaardian and throws him onto the lower deck, the men below hearing the sound and seeing the body all looking on in surprise. The mage who''d been on the bow attempting to shoot Reima down has his attention drawn by this, he turns and spots the distortion in the air and realises it must be an illusion.

    The heavily armoured Nilfgaardian soldiers begin defending against enemies they can''t see, swinging their weapons at empty air while flashes of red signal the death of another one of their friends. The Mages incantation is eventually done and a magical wind sweeps across the deck, dispelling the illusion on the Prospets and revealing them.

    Kuretz laughs and shouts, "FIGHT ME! HAHAHA!", before running in, materialising his fist weapons and delivering a lethal spinning back fist to a Nilfgaardians head, the helmet denting inwards along with their skull.

    Talem finds himself surrounded by slams the floor, using Fold energy to cast shockwave, knocking a few overboard... However their screams and the other commotion caused by them has drawn the attention from nearby ships, despite all the chaos Reima is causing they still somehow manage to keep their composure enough to react to their Admirals ship being under attack.

    Another unfortunate issue is the fact that the dispelling wind managed to effect Dusks spell, causing a massive distortion in the area where her ship is. It is obvious to all those watching that some kind of magic was used to sneak a ship in... And now Dusks ship is stuck behind enemy lines.

    Risryn pulls the unconscious Admiral aboard as the magic becomes unstable and dissipates, revealing the Longboat to the black fleet. "Shit." is all she mutters as a cannon is fired and strikes her in the chest, causing her to explode into Fold particles leaving the Admiral to fall heavily to the ship''s deck.

    The Skellige warriors scramble to try and maneuver the ship away but nearby Corvette block their path of retreat. No more cannons are being fired due to the Admirals presence on the Longboat but scoutships filled with troops are sent to retake their leader.

    Dusk scrambles and begins shooting Great Heavy Soul Arrows at the ships, hitting a few heavily armoured Nilfgaardian soldiers and killing them with ease, but her stamina has a limit, her previously cast shipwide invisibility had already taken much out of her.

    The scoutships crash against the Longboat and large hooks are thrown over to keep it attached to them, they''re pulled taught and Nilfgaardians being to try and climb onto the ship, the Skellige warriors aren''t having any of it however, brutally striking those daring enough to board them.

    A Nilfgaardian gives out a wail as an axe is buried into their shoulder, a gap in their armour allowed blade to slip through, they lose their grip on the ship and fall backwards, crashing against their fellow men and even breaking the neck of one.

    Dusk casts a homing soul mass which splits and hits three different men, knocking them into the water unconscious due to the soul damage. That was the last of her magical energy though and she''s confronted with a Nilfgaardian glaring at her while clambering up the side of the ship, without any other way to defend herself she points the banishing catalyst at the man and charges them, managing to impale the metal rod through their helmet, killing them.

    The Prospects aboard the Frigate had finally finished off the men on board, Kuretz smashes a lantern and spreads the oil around before diving off of the boat and towards the scout ship that''s boarding Dusks vessel. He''s followed by the others as he jumps aboard and begins attacking the backs of the armoured unit, smashing his fists into the back of their heads.

    With this new element of chaos and disruption added, the boarding parties have no idea what to do. The men begin splitting their focus, some electing to try and get aboard the ship while others try to fight off the Prospects.

    The initial boarding ships fail but that doesn''t mean the end of it, Corvettes begin to approach with angry looking soldiers and mages alike glaring down at the Longboat.

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 601 Obvious Resul

    Solaire and Reima were both aware of what was happening to Dusks ship, the sun god launching himself off his present position and onto the closest Nilfgaardian vessel. He conjured a lightning whip and sweeped it through the soldiers attempting to apprehend him, cutting them all in half with ease before he jumped to another. This continued until he reached a Frigate now a few meters away from Dusks ship.

    A swift kick sent a man flying as he started tearing apart the vessel to prevent them from assaulting his companions. After killing everyone on the Frigate, another start firing their cannons at it, fearing Solaire more than killing their own allies.

    Solaire "That is not jolly cooperation at all!" He shouts as he watches a injured Nilfgaardian get eviscerated by a cannonball. He draws his blade and raises it as it begins to glow brighter than the sun. Without warning he quickly lowers it, the fractured golden blade expanding and cutting the neighboring Frigate in half as well as partially his own.

    The nearby mages who witness this begin to fire spells at Dusks ship, attempting to kill those on board and retake their Admiral so they can flee... If they were to leave without their superior they''d no doubt be executed.

    Reima chains a number of blinks and eventually plants his feet on Dusks ship, the Princess giving an exhausted smile at him as he arrives. "You alright?" he asks, never before having seen her so tired.

    Dusk nods, "Just out of magic, the Admirals there, take him."

    Reima doesn''t waste any time, he grabs the Admiral as well as Dusk and teleports back to Cerys ship, dropping the protesting Princess as well as the enemy leader.

    Dusk "I can still fight" she says, trying to raise the banishing catalyst but being unable to due to her sore muscles.

    Reima "Right, and Geralt can sing. Just be satisfied with how well you did Dusk." he says, patting her on the head and returning to the surrounded ship.

    After Reima had taken the Admiral the other ships immediately opened fire on it, killing some of the Skellige warriors, Solaire had retaliated by bisecting their ships and summoning a shower of lightning but it seemed that the Nilfgaardians had realised they weren''t leaving alive, deciding instead to take as many men as they could with them.

    With only a quarter of the fleet remaining they still had enough firepower to proof a threat to the Longboats, though with Priscilla and Quelana picking them off one by one, they wouldn''t last much longer.

    Once Reima''s onboard he summons a large amount of Crystal Soul Spears and sends them at the cannons firing at the ship, blasting them apart and relieving the beaten and battered Skelligans for a moment. He then turns his attention to the Corvette blocking their exit, mustering his magic and climbing onto the bow of the longboat and casting the most powerful Aard he could summon.

    *BOOM!*

    The men behind him were knocked off of their feet from just being near the subsequent blast. The ocean around them was kicked up into a temporary rain as the Corvette was blasted a few meters sideways, then rolling upside down due to the force.

    Reima then summons a black flame tentacle, it smashes the ship in half before two arms push them away, creating a way out which the Skelligan warriors gleefully take. Driving the ship through it, more Nilfgaardians attempt to stop them but with the combination of Reima and Solaire, they don''t stand a chance. Being destroyed as easily as an adult man crushing an ant, leaving nothing left but mangled bodies.

    Reima was expecting cheers when the heavily damaged longboat emerged from the destroyed black fleet, but there was none... Only shocked silence as the brutal power displayed by the duo, it said something that a people who respected strength and power were unsure of how to react to Reima and Solaire''s display.

    Of course, the surviving Prospects were not known to be a quiet bunch....

    Kuretz "EYYY! DRINKS ON THE KING-JARL EVERYONE! GOOD FIGHT!" he stands proudly on the ship, yelling and cheering along with some of the other boisterous masked people.

    With the tension broken by the comedic scene of Kuretz victoriously claiming the battle to be over, the warriors finally break out into cheers.

    Cerys sighs as she hears her soldiers celebrating, the fact that they''d won only now just hitting her. This obviously wouldn''t have been possible without their peculiar and powerful allies, this blow against Nilfgaard would affect all battles in the north, they''d just destroyed the majority of the Empires Armada which would allow Radovid to go on the offensive... But, now isn''t the time for politics or strategy. Now was the time to get home and celebrate their miraculous victory... That, and she wasn''t happy suddenly being given the bill for everyone''s drinks.

    Yennefer''s eye twitches at how powerful Reima was, aswell as how pitiful everyone else seemed against him. Unfortunately with a few Mages having fled through portals, the information about them and their abilities would eventually make it back to the Emperor... Though, the existence of Ciri would be the most troubling. Yennefer didn''t know how Emyr would react, nor if he would simply go mad and demand the destruction of Kaer Morhen and all those residing in it.

    Geralt "Hmm, what''s got you worried?" he asks.

    Yennefer shakes her head, "Nothing... Fancy a drink when we get back?"

    Geralt gives a smug smirk, "I don''t think we''ll have a choice." he says, glancing at everyone uproariously celebrating their victory.

    Yennefer gives the best smile she can muster, "Well, I''ll not refuse a session of drunken lovemaking." she says, causing Ciri who''s listening nearby to blush furiously. Yen glances at the ashen haired girl and winks, letting the girl know she could spot her eavesdropping.

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 602 Scotti-Skelligan Celebration!

    With the battle over Cerys ordered their boats to look for survivors and to take anything valuable floating in the water. After fishing out all the warriors from the destroyed longboats and anything light enough to float, she had her men throw over an anchor tied to an empty barrel... When asked about it she said it was to mark where the shipwrecked Nilfgaardian fleet was, in case they wished to paw through it for valuables at a later date.

    After that, it was a jolly ride back to Kaer Trolde, many Skellige folk songs we sung as a few of the men started drinking before they were even on land. The Prospects didn''t elect to join in due to their masks but Kuretz and a few participated in the singing. Reima had unfortunately pulled Solaire along to get destroyed with alcohol, almost carrying the sunbro with the Skelligan warriors to the longhouse were drinks were being liberally served.

    What followed was an incredibly rowdy party with the two gods being challenged to fist fights and drinking contests. Geralt and Yen were nowhere to be seen after the first couple of rounds while Quelana made sure Priscilla didn''t get into any trouble, being in-human was always a hazard. Undyne eventually decided to join in, throwing off her helmet and causing those nearby to look at her with wide eyes, not having expected her to be some kind of monster. Though, with how Reima''s group didn''t react, they decided to just go with the flow and served her a drink.

    Dusk was happily telling stories of her old home Oolacile to an eagerly listening crowd of older men, they were happy to hear of new lands they''d never been to before and saddened by the fate it''d apparently suffered. Though her praising Reima afterwards for cleansing it made them see him in a different light, even when compared to the stories of him tearing apart the Nilfgaardian fleet.

    In attention to this, Rhea was worse than even Dusk, after a drink or two beginning to drunkenly ramble about how the "Two Gods" had saved her from the "Underworld" by fighting off armies of skeletons and the God of the Death. The culture of Skellige always valued a good yarn, which in common tongue means "Story", the fantasy-like tales being spouted by Rhea really got their hackles up and their blood boiling. It was no surprise when by the end of the night she was the most popular person there, even more so than the Jarl.

    Ciri spent most of the night reacquainting with old friends that she''d not seen in numerous years, having initially grown up in Skellige. In all honesty, she preferred being here than in Cintra, everything was done for "Posterity", so the future generation can flourish wish her being groomed as it''s eventually queen. She used to long for the time she''d spent in Skellige, with Hjalmar and everyone else. The lack of etiquette and relaxed attitude of the culture appealed to someone like her greatly.

    Hjalmar jabs her with his elbow, "What''s wrong wit'' ye Ciri? Somethin'' on your mind?" he asks, taking another sip from his drink.

    She shakes her head, "No, just reminiscing the time I''d spent here as a child." she says.

    Hjalmar laughs and nods, "I''m wit'' ya, us and the lads playin'' around''n getting in trouble was fun... You, err... Happy, now?" he asks awkwardly, an old memory playing itself in his mind.

    Ciri knows exactly what he means and smiles, "I, I am." he says, hesitating at her answer for a moment.

    Hjalmar "That''s good, I myself have found a lass who makes me want to fight for ''er, only recently proven to my father and hers that I''m worthy for her... Bringin'' back a Frost Giants head''ll do that!"

    Ciri claps him on the shoulder and gratulates him for accomplishing such a feat, all the while being unsure how to respond to it. She was happy he''d found someone but felt awkward trying to broach the subject, feeling as if she were prying, despite them both being childhood friends. "Geralt told me that he''d helped you with the Giant, reckon you could''ve done it without a Witcher helping you?" she asks, changing the subject.

    Hjalmar shakes his head, "No way, without Geralt I''d be nothin'' but red paste on the rocks and stock for its cauldron. After fighting the thing I''d say leave the monster fightin'' to the Witchers!"

    A nearby man raises his drink and yells "To the Witchers!", which is echoed by the rest of the room like a wave through a stadium. Hjalmar and Ciri laugh, raising their drinks and mimicking them.

    Hjalmar "So, who''s the lucky chap who''s caught your eye Ciri?" he asks, glancing at a few of the Prospects before landing on Solaire and Reima. "One o'' them I bet." he says with a smug grin.

    Ciri punches him on the arm, "None of your business." she states.

    Hjalmar shrugs and nods, "Well, whichever one it is, I won''t be talking on your behalf, I''d be lucky if they just kicked my arse." he says with a laugh.

    Ciri "I''m stronger than you are, who''d need you to speak for them... Plus, Geralt will probably do it anyway." she mutters, a small chuckle escaping her lips as she thinks about it.

    Hjalmar "What you talkin? You may be able to teleport around like a skittish bird but I''d still best ye''." he says, the alcohol getting the better of him.

    Ciri shakes her head, "Just stick to fighting regular folk, you''ll live longer that way."

    Hjalmar nods, "Yeah, yeah. I''ve learned that lesson already." he says thinking about the Wild Hunt and taking another drink.

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 603 Politicking

    There was a commotion in the Royal Palace of Vizima, the generals of the Nilfgaardian army were all in a panic at the news, a courier having just delivered it and quickly fled, not wishing to be around when the Emperor hears of it.

    It was then that Henry var Attre walks around the corner, spotting the commotion and approaching to see what it was about. Unfortunately for him, he was unceremoniously dumped with the task of informing the infamously brutal Emperor that his naval fleet had been entire annihilated, with only a few cowardly mages fleeing and spreading the information before disappearing entirely.

    Henry "My apologies but I have a prio-"

    A duke growls, "Cease with the grovelling apology, you have been given the task, you will see it through or it''ll be on your head." he says and stuffs a load of documents into the man''s hands before briskly walking away while the others do the same.

    ...

    Henry got a cold sweat when reading the information he was supposed to hand to the Emperor, the lowly savage isles of Skellige had beaten the empire, but this news was not the most damning... No, it was the sightings of an ashen haired girl assisting the enemy... He dutifully began marching to the Emperor''s quarters, nodding to the guards standing outside the door before knocking and waiting for a response.

    "Come in." a voice calls a couple minutes later.

    Walking inside Henry var Attre bows deeply towards the Emperor while following proper Nilfgaarding ettiquate.

    Emyr gestures for him to continue, letting the sweaty Henry walk over and place the documents on his desk.

    Henry "These are the recent reports of our assault on the Skellige Isles, and the subsequent happenings thereafter." he states, managing not to choke under the pressure.

    Emyr flips the document over and frowns deeply when he sees it, "Is-Is this a joke?" he asks.

    Henry swallows his saliva, "N-no your eminence."

    Emyr "Then, the empire has truly lost eighty percent of its fleet?" he asks, not immediately believing it.

    Henry quickly nods, "Y-yes! The reports and accounts from those who managed to flee state that the Skellige fleet had incredibly powerful magic users at their dispos-"

    Emyr "Enough." he growls, "I read what the report stated, I wish to know how it is possible for our army to fail so spectacularly against a few simple mages, and how our own did not best them."

    Henry "I-I don''t know, all the information available is inside the report... I believe there is something else that will capture your attention, however." he says, gesturing to the documents.

    Emyr takes a couple minutes to read the complete report, his expression becoming angry at first, and slowly becoming saddened and finally somber. "I-Is this report accurate?" he asks.

    Henry nods, "It has been looked over by many people and verified independently."

    Emyr waves at him, "Leave, and tell no one what lies inside this document." he states, not even acknowledging the man''s existence any longer. One Henry leaves, Emyr stands and walks below the giant portrait of his daughter Cirilla. Her grumpy face after being fitted into that dress always brought a small smile to his face, but now? After hearing the news of her betrayal, likely helped along by the traitorous Witcher and Yennefer of Vengerberg he knew nothing of the happiness it used to bring...

    Using a knife on his belt he walks up and drags it across the painting, cutting the bottom and tearing the rest off in a way not fitting of the world''s most powerful man. He slumped back down in his chair, pouring a large glass of wine and drinking it like water, all the while staring at the remnants of the portrait.

    Emyr "Unfilial child, I will make you watch as I kill the Witch and Witcher." he mutters into his drink.

    Elsewhere :

    Radovid had just been handed a report, it having just been sent by his contact in Skellige, it seems that his plans would need to change due to this abrupt and shocking loss of the Nilfgaardian fleet... From what he''d heard it seemed that the Emperors lost child has turned against him, making his plan of capturing the girl and using her as leverage useless.

    Unfortunately due to his incompetent puppet Mensfeld and numerous missing agents, they likely knew of his intentions already, causing any potential partnership to vanish as quickly as his men had.

    For now, he''d set his eyes on Novigrad, the Temple Fleet being the only way Nilfgaard would be able to regain their naval superiority. He''d not need to dedicate as many men to the coastal cities now, allowing him to add them to the ground army he wished to storm Novigrad with. Additionally with the death of the man known as the blood baron, the area he used to hold has been taken over by a large group of bandits that had used to be his men, preventing the Nilfgaardians from immediately retaking it due to their army being spread thin as it is.

    There simply wasn''t a better time to finally take the city, and with the majority of Novigrads military might belonging to the Eternal Fire, Radovid could easily take it over, already being a known "strong supporter" of the religion. All that was left was a lot of gold to bring the Crime Lords to his side and potentially have them sabotage the city gates and the largest city in the world would be his, along with the largest fleet.

    He looks down at the chessboard and maerveuvers a bishop next to the enemy king, a satisfied expression overtaking his features, "Check... The stage has been set."

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 604 Ignorant Dragon

    The two dragons which left their lairs in search of whoever had taken their lands magic had finally reached the edge of the dragon mountains, just before they pass into the mortals lands the Golden Dragon rapidly begins to shrink, their bodies bulging and shifting until they eventually resemble a 6ft handsome blonde-haired man wearing expensive robes that appear made from Kovir.

    He turns and looks at the anxious green dragon behind him and calls "Don''t tarry Saesenthessis, our goal is important and we must be swift." the man states, all the while looking uncomfortable at the incredibly different vocal organs now present in his throat.

    The green dragon nods and begins to shrink, due to her being a halfbreed it''s rather uncomfortable but she deals with it due to how often she used to do it. She slowly shrinks, eventually becoming a woman of similar height to the blonde man with dirty blonde hair and already wearing plate armour with red fabrics...

    The man eyes her, scoffing when he sees her dirty blonde hair, "Hmm, a half-breed would never be able to mimic us, even when using magic for the soul purpose of doing so."

    The woman shakes her head, "I care not for your opinion only human form, we must find you a name as Weelderigeweegschalen would expose us to unnecessary attention.

    The man frowns, "Then I will burn all those who oppose me." he states.

    She scowls at him, "Do not underestimate mortals, if they are capable of stealing our magic then they are certainly able to kill you."

    The man lifts her off of the ground by her throat with a single-arm, "Do you test me half-breed? Were I not needing your knowledge I would snap your neck for your insolence!" he says and drops her.

    She gets back up and rubs her neck, the red marks already beginning to fade. "Then our mission will fail, and we will return with nothing to show for it?."

    Weelderigeweegschalen glowers at her, "Then, what is your mortal name, Half-breed?"

    "Saskia." she says simply, a small smile coming to her face at using it for the first time in so many years.

    The man nods, "I will be known as Schall to the lesser beings then." they say, beginning to march down the mountain path towards a village in the distance.

    Saskia sighs, and trails after him, wondering if she''d be killed in their attempt to bring magic back to the dragon''s land.

    Schall scowled when he first sighted a pitiful human tending to a field, the young man looked up and eventually saw them, fearfully approaching.

    "M-my lord... D-do you require something?"

    Schall nods, "Indeed I do..." He grabs the teens head and begin applying pressure, threatening to cave in the boys skull, "Where did you take our magic!"

    Saskia is shocked when her companion immediately starts torturing some peasant and demanding information they obviously wouldn''t have.

    "AHHH! P-P-PLEASE! I KNOW NOTHING, I''VE NEVER EVEN SEE MAGIC!" he shouts as his eyes threaten to burst from their sockets.

    Saskia dashes forwards and forces Schall to let go, "Stop! This peasant won''t know anything!"

    Schall "How would you know!?!" he growls.

    Saskia "Because I''ve spent almost my entire life around mortals, that''s more than you can say!"

    Schall "Why should I care if I kill a few morals in our attempt to find what we''re looking for?"

    Saskia "Because if you do then they will send armies against us!"

    Schall shoves her away and begins walking again, "Bah! You are as useless as that misbegotten father of yours, Half-breed!"

    The duo continue travelling, Saskia luckily managing to divert Schall from the nearby village to the next large town. She recognises it to be the one owned by Kovir and Poviss, one called Rakverelyn, all she has to do now is make sure her companion doesn''t burn it to the ground.

    ...

    A day of walking later and they reach the city at sunrise, Saskia found something strange however... It seemed that it was heavily fortified and they were getting ready to mount an attack somewhere. The gate was closed but people were still slowly moving inside and out of the city, though it appeared that they''d need some kind fo identification to actually enter... As she was thinking of way to bypass this Schall just haphazardly strolls up to the guard, she''d unable to stop him as he opens his mouth.

    Schall "Move aside, I have business to conduct" he says, his fixed posture, raised head, manner of speaking and clothing all giving them the impression he was someone of import.

    "Sir, forgive me but we need your identification to allow you entry." the guard carefully says, not wishing to insult the wrong person.

    Schall frowns, "I do not need your mortal identification, move aside now." he says as Saskia slowly backs away from him... If she couldn''t return to the dragons then she''d have to find somewhere else...

    The guard presses, "We cannot allow entry without identification, please make way for other people who need to get through he says, changing his focus onto someone else.

    Schall is enraged at the guard now ignoring him, he tries to walk through but finds a hand placed on his shoulder... Without waiting a moment he grabs the guards arm and snaps it like a twig, causing everyone watching to back away, and the other guards to draw their weapons.

    Schall "Ssaskia? Explain to these lesser beings that I WILL get wh-... Saskia?" he asks, realising she was no longer behind him.

    A soldier runs forwards and jabs a sword at him, lightly cutting his side. Schall finally loses it, being injured by these bugs is too much to handle for the dragon as he begins thrashing around randomly, his limbs easily breaking bone when they connect with someone... However his frail mortal flesh is easily damaged, forcing him to reconsider changing back...

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 605 I am fire! I am dea-AH!

    Kreld Gaeveled wakes up with a start, he was sweating with goosebumps and quickly sat up to look around, his fear of the masked assassins that''d easily killed the Reverend fresh in his memory... Even with himself attempting to push them back, he found they were somehow more skillful than even her was... Having been a dueling champion for a few years in a row, this was an incredibly unlikely event.

    His wife Merdrah slowly awakens and looks at him quizzically, "Mmmh, it is early.... Is something wrong?" she asks after seeing his expression.

    Kreld shakes his head, "Er, no... Not at all, just wondering if I had something to do today." he mutters, slumping back down onto their bed.

    However, it was in that moment when *CRASH* *ROAAAAAR*, "FOOLISH MORTALS!". Kreld zips up for the second time this morning, leaping out of bed and grabbing his sword that was propped up against the bedside. Merdrah was also up, rapidly getting dressed into some fancy, yet comfortable clothes in-case she needed to flee.

    Kreld dashed to the window still in his underwear and looked outside at his city, Rakverelyn, only to see a huge golden dragon standing on the wall swatting at the guards trying to attack it. He goes pale, the stories he''d heard about the Gold Ones made him sure that his city and himself were going to be annihilated. "Merdrah! Get to the Cellar!" he shouts before rushing to assist his men against the beast.

    He ran out of the keeps front entrance still in his underwear and wielding his sword, taking in the sight of buildings crushed and burning, charred corpses, and innocent people running to the keep for protection. He''s almost knocked over when people rush through the now open entrance to seek salvation against the beast tearing his city apart.

    He glances at the beast and sees his guards weapons striking uselessly against the beast''s scales, with the same phenomenon happening even to the ballistae attached to the wall... "Gods." he mutters, feeling similar despair to that he''d felt during the Eternal Fire''s Feast.

    With the feeling of dread overtaking him he bites his lip and charges at the dragon, his sword drawn. He runs up the stairway to the wall and gets close enough to it''s slowly swaying tail to get a strike in...

    *CLANK!*

    ...

    His sword bounces off as if he''d struck granite, the sword that''d been crafted in Mahakam and even imbued with runes was less useful than a pickaxe in this situation. His shocked frown only lasts a moment as the dragon reflexively flicks at its attacker as if it were a fly. Pelting him in the chest and knocking him a couple meters, into the ballistae and almost off of the wall itself.

    He gasps and groans at the feeling of his chest being crushed by the blow, glancing up only to see one of his soldiers get bitten in half through his armour... The rest of his men begin to flee, realising that the city was lost and that they stood no chance of defending it.

    Kreld looks on somberly as the dragon triumphantly roars as everyone flees, leaving the only person near it himself.

    "Pathetic mortals! FEAR MY POWER!" it says with mirth, roaring into the sky.

    Kreld grits his teeth "What power! You''re nothing but a beast! A barbaric beast that is even lower than us "mortals"!!" he exclaims, the pain in his chest not lessening.

    Schall turns his head to whoever was daring enough to speak such words, seeing an almost naked man lying weakly against some kind of wooden contraption. He growls, clambering towards the weak thing that seeks death. "You say I am more lowly than you creatures? I am a Dragon! The world belongs to us, and you live only because we deem it merciful." it states.

    Kreld can feel the temperature around him rising as the dragon gets closer and closer, it''s hot breath washing over him as if he''d entered a sulfur-rich hot spring. He edges backwards, slowly maneuvering around the ballistae.

    Schal snorts, a small flame escaping from its nostril as he sees the small creatures attempt to retreat away from him, even despite its brave front earlier. "Well then? Speak your last words, this is the only mercy I will grant, as I will destroy the rest of this pitiful settlement due to your insult."

    Kreld "I-I... Forgive me, I meant not my words... Kill me but be lenient to the others!" he asks.

    Schall grins sadistically and leans in closer to the man, "I intend to devour the rest, we Dragons have been merciful enou-"

    *THEEWP!*

    *CRACK!*

    *SQUELCH!*

    Just as the Dragon was finishing or indeed, beginning its monologue Kreld released the catch on the ballistae after waiting for the right moment. Miraculously the Ballistae bolt penetrated the Golden Dragons slitted eye in between a blink, it lodged deeply within it but didn''t reach the brain unfortunately...

    Schall "ARRGH! YOU WILL SUFFER!" He roars, closing his eyes and thrashing its claws while spewing fire randomly around itself. It manages to smash the Ballistae Kreld was behind, sending him flying.

    He eventually rolled to a halt, almost having fallen off of the wall, however, the Dragon could still smell him. It turned it''s head towards him while still shooting out a torrent of face-meltingly hot flames. Kreld was left without any other option and threw himself off of the wall, getting burned slightly as the wall behind him was scorched red hot as well as melting slightly.

    He fell a long way, trying to land properly but breaking both of his legs as he hits the floor, bashing his head and going unconscious.

    Schall had lost track of the man, opening it''s one good eye and looking around, only seeing the burned remains of the wall. Deciding that it needed more knowledge of these mortals in order to destroy them he flew up and left, the injury to its eye bringing it a small deal of fear towards the creatures, this of course being the first injury it''d ever sustained.

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 606 Sweaty, Moist, Black.. Smiths.

    It''s been a couple of days since Reima and the others had left to assist the Skellige Isles against Nilfgaard, the subsequent celebration was great but eventually, they all had to return home as they all had responsibilities. That, and the fact Reima couldn''t very well leave Asgore in charge of everything for an extended period of time...

    Reima was greeted by Quelaag and Quelina upon returning, him spending a couple hours listening what they both had gotten up to during the battle, the former just training the Chaos Servants while the latter was managing to brew Potions with the new magical herbs.

    The next day Garelt stopped Reima as he was finally going to visit the Smithy... Apparently Geralt wished to have special weaponry made for Cerys, Hjalmar, and Crach an Craite, as gratitude for all the help they''d given them, as well as Winters Blade.

    Reima nods, thinking that being on good terms with Skellige didn''t seem like such a bad idea. "I''m sure Andre, Vamos and Coaugh would be happy to make whatever you want." he says, them both then walking to the Smithy.

    They enter through the giant-sized door and are immediately hit with the smell of coal, molten metals and oil. That, as well as the distinct stench of sweaty unwashed men... This was obviously coming from Andre and Coaugh, the former was sweating profusely while hammering a red hot lump of steel, the sweat rapidly evaporating as it dripped onto it.

    Reima holds his nose, "Man, do you guys ever wash? I don''t know what''s worse! The sewers of Lordran or the lot not taking a shower."

    Andre glances at them, still hammering away, "Oi, I don''t know what a shower is but those Sewers could kill a man from its stench alone!"

    Vamos laughs, "Hahaha! The advantage of not having a nose!" he says, as he links another ring for some king of chainmail armour. His bony fingers proving to be quite dexterous for the task.

    Coaugh doesn''t respond, simply grunting from the corner where he taps on some kind of dagger with his tiny hammer.

    Reima "So you guys have finally scared off Rickert?" he asks, looking around for the meek magical blacksmith.

    Vamos "''Im? He''s in that library ''o yours, somethin'' about this worlds magical applications and runes." he mutters, obviously having not listened to Rickert very well.

    Andre "Aye, he''d been talking with that Arie friend of yours. Seemed rather put out with losin'' ''is arm to those Eternal Arse Holes. Offered to make one similar to ''is last, but Rickert pulled ''im to the side for somethin''." he says, causing both Reima and Geralt to raise their eyebrows.

    Reima "So hows everything going for the smithy? You don''t seem to have many customers right now..." he asks, wondering if there was something wrong.

    Andre stops hammering the lump of molten metal that''s beginning to shape and stuffs it back in the furnace to heat back up. "Yup, problem we got is all our creations are too durable... We don''t get repeat customers you see, not that I mind it, creating weapons for people ''as never been my goal... Perfecting my craft? Now that''s what I long for." he says,

    Vamos "Tends to be a bit boring ''ere though, that Alphys creature gets us to make some interesting things ''owever. I mean, what on earth do ya need large copper coils for!?!" he exclaims.

    Coaugh nods, "Long coppery wires, strange." he says, tossing the completed dagger into a pile next to him before starting on another.

    Reima rubs his chin but doesn''t pursue the subject, deciding he''d have better luck talking to Alphys directly. "Anyway, Geralt here has a request for you lot." he says, nodding his head at the Witcher next to him.

    Andre chuckles, "Now I wonder what ''ur pappy wants from us Reima?"

    Geralt shakes his head and ignores his words, "I need three blades made, one for a woman and the others for two large men. I''ll leave the specific designs to you but they must be the best quality we can make."

    Reima nods, "Think of this as a political mission, I''ll allow you to use as much Titanite as you want for this, so go crazy... These''ll likely be made their families ancestral weapons so bear that in mind." he says, not believing that anyone in this world, or indeed many others could beat these three at blacksmithing.

    Andre grins, showing a few missing teeth, "Hmm, I ''ave a couple ideas already. Come back in..." he gives the other two a glance, "A week, and we''ll see what we''ve come up with." he says.

    Geralt nods, "Thank you." he says, nodding to Reima and leaving.

    Reima "I''ll be down in a week to check out what you''ve done with Geralt, I look forward to it." he says, waving his hand and dropping a small crate of Titanite before leaving as well.

    Elsewhere :

    Ciri had just beaten three Pyreblades in a sparring session while utilising her Elder Blood abilities, she felt quite rusty compared to when she was constantly on the run from the Wild Hunt, this is primarily due to her extended stay in the HP universe. Though, she was looking forward to improving her ability to use it further than she had the chance to in the past.

    Just as she was about to begin another fight with four Pyreblades they were interrupted by a black-haired witch watching from the sie with crossed arms.

    Ciri "Yen?" she asks, wondering if she needed something.

    Yennefer nods and walks between the confused looking Pyreblades as well as Ciri, "I''ve made some progress deciphering the Sages journal, would you like to have a look?" she asks.

    Ciri''s eyes go wide, "What? I mean, yes!"

    Yennefer grins and opens a portal to her and Geralt''s room, "Come, let''s look them over inside." she says, both walking through with the portal disappearing.

    The Pyreblades that''d been sparring with Ciri just shrug at each other and begin fighting each other in a free for all.

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 607 Hypergraphia Sage

    Ciri and Yennefer walk through the portal and into the room, the latter heading to a sofa and falling into it, all the while picking a journal off of the nearby table.

    Ciri follows and sits next to her, eyeing the book in her hand, "Is that the translation?" she asks.

    Yennefer nods, and the Ashen haired girl attempts to take it, but it''s he''s away by the witch, causing her to frown.

    Ciri "Is something wrong?" she asks.

    Yennefer shakes her head, "Not at all, I just wanted to ask a few things before discussing the content of this..."

    Ciri sighs, "And what might that be?" she wonders aloud.

    Yennefer, "Our dear Geralt has been worried about you." she says with a smug smile.

    Ciri frowns, "Really? He''s said nothing to me about it..."

    Yennefer "Of course not, he has no idea how to go about it... And when he needs a female opinion, who do you think he speaks to?"

    Ciri groans, "You?"

    Yennefer nods, "Now, what''s going on between you and Reima?" she asks, apparently taking great satisfaction from Ciri''s shocked expression.

    Ciri "Huh? H-how do you-"

    Yennefer "Oh, come now. You didn''t think no one noticed the tension between you two, and the way you act with the girls who are close with him. I know you Ciri, which means I know you''d never ask someone for relationship advice unless you really had no idea what to do."

    Ciri "Can we not talk about this? I''ve already decided how to deal with it." she mutters.

    Yennefer "I''m sure you think you have, but maybe talking about it would help you rationalise it better?"

    Ciri shakes her head, "I don''t think you are the right person to talk to about this. Even if I did want to, I''d have better luck asking Dandelion."

    Yennefer smiles, "Watch your tongue Ciri, or I''ll turn you into a frog and give you to your prince charming to save you."

    Ciri snorts, "Can we just look at the Journal already?"

    Yennefer sighs, "Fine." she says while passing the book over, "Here''s what I''ve translated thus far."

    Ciri quickly opens the books and starts skimming through the book, frowning at the first few pages...

    "I''ve finally found Zireael, she had been injured by Eredin and his forces which allowed me to rescue her... Finally I can begin my plans for her." Ciri reads aloud.

    Yennefer nods, "Damning indeed, it seems he never expected an angry father to butcher him." she says with sadistic mirth.

    Ciri continues reading through Avallac''hs writings, the sage literally having planned every close call and every important conversation they''d have. Trying to enforce trust within her for him, manipulating her world view and twisting her mind... He stated his intentions clearly within the pages which made her wish she''d had a chance at deal with him instead of Geralt. She wondered what would have happened if she''d not run into Reima and managed to get back to Avallac''h, and what his plans for her might''ve entailed...

    Continuing to read through, it seemed that Avallac''h needed her to do something of her own volition, though her stubbornness and independence bothered the sage greatly. Reading further it started to appear as if he''d planned to be cursed by Eredin all along, somehow knowing he''d end up in Geralt''s care... Though, Avallac''h didn''t manage to write much else after that, Geralt stabbing him in the heart probably not being in his foreseeable future.

    After that was a lot of information about the Elder Blood, things that only others with the gene could know...

    Ciri "T-this..."

    Yennefer nods, "It seems as if Avallac''h had plans for others like you... Learning their secrets before manipulating them to "breed" with those with strong magical affinity, to eventually produce someone powerful... Someone, like you."

    Ciri swallows her saliva at the evaluation, having heard Avallac''h speak of doing something similar with someone known as Caranthir, the golden child. "W-what could he have wanted? He insisted on me being the one to stop the White Frost, but is that all? All this effort to supposedly have me sacrifice myself does not seem to match his previous actions."

    Yennefer "Indeed, which is why we may need to interrogate Avallac''h for information." she says grimly.

    Ciri squints at her, "Interrogate? He''s dead." she states.

    Yennefer nods, "The dead can speak if we need them to, it only takes a lot of magic to perform, something that''d been recently delivered to us by those girls, Rhea and Anastacia."

    Ciri "W-when will you do this?"

    Yennefer "The materials I need to perform the spell are rare and expensive, with Keira''s help I may be able to procure them in a few months... Though, the amount of time since the Sages death will increase the difficulty of summoning him... But, on another matter, I believe there are some things within that journal that could prove incredibly useful to you and Reima." she says.

    Ciri turns a couple pages and spots exactly what the witch is referring to, "This... Elder Blood Techniques?"

    Yennefer nods, "I''d call them spells were they not so powerful and unique, apparently they were created by your ancestors who had enough time to dedicate time to practise with their gift. Avallac''h thought you knowing some of them would prove useful for his plans..."

    Ciri "I can barely understand these..."

    Yennefer "It seems your tutelage in Pyromancy hasn''t improved what I taught you all those years ago... This spell seems to be some kind of wormhole, though I wouldn''t dare cast it until you are more proficient with your powers... Maybe you should ask Reima for help with this, he seems more comfortable with his abilities."

    Ciri grins, "I''ll learn a couple before showing them to him, imagine the look on his face." she says with a laugh.

    Yennefer chuckles, "Just remember to let me know when you''ll be practicing, some of these look rather dangerous and we should be careful with them." she says with Ciri nodding.

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 608 Slipped

    Mensfeld was standing high above a large Crowd of people, having just given a speech stating his dedication to finding and capturing the people responsible for the death of the Reverend. He waves at them and backs off, breathing a large sigh and wondering if this day could get any worse...

    "Sire! Reverelyn has just been attacked by a Gold Dragon!" a guard rushes to his side while exclaiming the news.

    ...

    Mensfeld glares at him, "Oh? I suppose an army of vampires are about to attack this city as well?" he says sarcastically.

    "No sire! Reverelyn is up in flames with Kreld Gaeveled the Dragon Bane somehow managing to make it flee!"

    ...

    Mensfeld "Dragon Bane?" he asks in disbelief.

    "The survivors named him as such for his heroic effort, though both his legs were broken in the conflict."

    Mensfeld rubs his face, all of his men were ready to march on Kaer Morhen to relatiate against those that''d attacked them, but with Reverelyn in dire need of repairs he couldn''t very well continue with his plan of action... "Send a couple troops of men along with supplies to help them rebuild, then tell Kreld to prepare his men for our initial plan." he says, the guard quickly leaving.

    With them gone the King of Kaedwen slumps into his seat, wondering if Nilfgaard had somehow tamed dragons?

    *Knock, Knock, Knock!*

    Mensfeld "Can you lot just piss off and leave me a moment of silence for a couple of minutes!" he exclaims, the door opening and revealing a sheepish looking

    Varteand "My liege!"

    Mensfeld sits up in interest, having though this spy had been killed like the rest, "Do you have any information on the operations of Kaer Morhen?" he asks quickly as if this spies head was about to explode at any moment.

    Varteand bows, "I do sir, they tried to capture me but I managed to escape them." he says.

    Mensfeld eyes him and sees the man is indeed covered in mud, however under it his complexion seems better than last he saw him... Regardless, he gestures for him t continue.

    Varteand "During my escape I managed to get a good look at everything they had... Outside of Kaer Morhen is a large city, but aside from that their military might is puny, having only those Masked Fiends for protection... Even that lightning mage wasn''t there, seems to have only been hired for that specific job!"

    Mensfeld nods vigorously, a sadistic smile forming on his face, "So, they are vulnerable? Interesting... I think you deserve a reward for your loyal service to the country." he says, pulling out a large pouch of gold and tossing it to them. "I do not wish to hear of this information on anyone else''s lips, your life depends on it." he states, with the man quickly leaving after receiving his reward.

    Elsewhere :

    Quelaag scuttles towards Reima who is within the city of Ichor, dragging behind her Quelina and Quelana while Eingyi briskly follows them.

    Eingyi "Mistress!? Please tell us where you are taking us!" he quickly asks.

    Quelaag "I''ve been waiting for the cities housing to be completed, now that it''s done we have a chance to ask."

    Quelana "Ask what?" she mutters, while Quelina just smiles at being included in her sisters plans.

    Eventually they find Reima talking to a monster called Snowdrake with a forced smile.

    Snowdrake "So I asked them, "do you like my ice-cool demeanor?"... Apparently, they found it annoying, so I left and cried myself to sleep."

    Reima sighs, "Sounds to me like your trying to hard, just relax, get drunk and stop telling shit jokes. Problem solved." he says, clapping the monster on the back and making a quick retreat.

    Quelaag "Reima!" she calls as he tries to get away from another conversation.

    Reima points at her and glances to Snowdrake, "Ah, Quelaag, looks like I forgot our prior appointment! Forgive me, I really must get going." he says, with Snowdrake thanking him for taking the time out of his day.

    Reima reaches the group and uses Observation Haki to check if Snowdrake was still milling around, thankfully, he wasn''t. "You guys saved me..." he mutters.

    Quelina, "From what?" she asks.

    Reima rubs her head, "From a terribly boring conversation which had no tactful way of leaving..." He looks at Quelaag, "So, what''s up?"

    Quelaag "I''m here to make a request to you."

    ...

    Reima "Mmhmm... And what might that be? It''s not something naughty is it." he says with a grin, causing her to blush.

    Quelaag "No!... I mean... I wish to build a place for our Chaos Covenant to train new recruits safely, as well as practice our more dangerous abilities."

    Reima raises a brow, "Really? Then do it, I''m not stopping you." he shrugs.

    Quelaag gives a sheepish smile, "Well... The place I wish to build is there." she points in a general direction quite high up.

    ...

    Reima "You want to build a tower?"

    Quelaag shakes her head, "No! I wish to build atop the mountain, next to the dragon and the Place of Power!"

    ...

    Reima realises what she wants to do... "You want to have Quelina create a bonfire there don''t you?" he asks.

    ...

    She doesn''t answer, looking away embarrassed at having been seen through so easily.

    Reima "Sure, that''s a good idea, though Rickert will have a go at you for destroying his lights like Anastacia did. I''m not really planning on doing anything else up there-" he''s hugged by Quelaag who thanks him for allowing her to do this.

    When she finally lets go he scratches his head, "Just let me know when the Bonfire''ll be created, I have no idea what''ll happen if we use an Igni one for it."

    Quelaag grins, nods, and turns around victoriously, "We should ask the House Elves to assist us, go gather the Chaos Servants and have them all start hiking up the mountain with materials!" she says happily.

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 609 Services

    Within a dingy bar in Novigrad two finely dressed people were arguing with each other, much to the amusement of the feckless patrons.

    Priscilla "We have to leave, can you not see the signs? Everyone else has already fled, yet you wish to stay here? Will you do the same as the city burns!?!"

    Dandelion "You''re being overly dramatic! Sure the Witch hunters seem more aggressive nowadays but I''m sure the storm''s end is in sight."

    Priscilla "I don''t understand you! Why do you feel the need to remain here? Do you expect Geralt to come and rescue you when you''re in trouble again?" she asks, causing Dandelion to frown.

    Dandelion "Hey! I would never expect Geralt to use his valuable time to rescue me... It''s just a hobby of his you see... Anyway, don''t you see what we have here? This place could be magnificent if we put enough coin into it, my very own cabaret!"

    Priscilla growls and pulls out a stack of papers, Dandelions eye almost bulging out of their sockets as he sees what they are.

    Dandelion "Oi-wowowow! How did you get those!" he quickly asks.

    Priscilla smirks, "You sleep like a corpse, it isn''t hard to take a gander at your mail. Look, we don''t have to leave permanently, but it isn''t safe right now... We can go visit Kaer Morhen, like Zoltan keeps saying in his letters."

    Dandelion crosses his arms and looks conflicted, Priscilla continues to sweeten the deal. "We''ll meet everyone again, even those two that Geralt had been looking for." she says pointedly, not daring to utter their names due to them being sought after, well, at least for Ciri.

    Dandelion finally cracks, "Fine! But once we''ve had our fun I want to come back here and make this the greatest establishment in the city, with your help." he says smugly.

    Priscilla quickly nods, "Ok. But we must be leaving swiftly, tomorrow morning." she states.

    Elsewhere :

    Reima was sitting in a bakery with Solaire, both sipping some Spider Cider courtesy of Muffet who was the owner of the establishment.

    Solaire "I must say, I wasn''t expecting any of these... Spider Products be very appetising."

    Reima shrugs, "Muffet calls them Spider Donuts, Spider Tea and more just for the branding... And the fact that spiders make them, it''d be rather disgusting and cannibalistic if they added real spiders to them." he says with a laugh.

    While they converse Risryn walks in looking for someone, eventually spotting Reima and walking over.

    Solaire "Jolly good day miss Risryn!" he greets happily, Risryn nodding at him in return.

    Reima "You looking for someone?" he asks, dreading his break being interrupted.

    Risryn "I would like to discuss a coup-"

    Muffet walks over, her three pairs of arms all carrying some kind of confectionery. "Excuse me, this is a bakery, it''d be rude if you didn''t buy something first before making yourself at home." she says, giving a gentle smile to Risryn.

    Reima "Cut the act Muffet, you''re the most stingy person I''ve ever met... I''ll take a another Spider Cider for Risryn." he says with a sigh.

    Risryn nods at the Humanoid spider and sits at their table, "Thank you for the drink." she says, slowly grasping her mask and gracefully taking it off.

    Solaire "It''s a shame you have to hide your face Miss Risryn, works of art should see the sun, and in turn be seen." he compliments."

    Risryn ignores Solaire as Muffet sets down her drink in-front of her, Reima flicking a Remi into one of her free hands. "I wish to discuss the construction atop the mountain with you."

    ...

    Reima "Something wrong with the Chaos Covenenats new building?" he asks, confused.

    Risryn shakes her head, "No, I just wish to create one for the training of new Prospects... On the otherwise of the mountain top."

    ...

    Reima "Why? Why does it need to be atop a mountain and why do you need to train more Prospects?" he asks, the limited amount of masks preventing the creation of anymore.

    Risryn "As I''m sure you already know, some Prospects wish to permanently rid themselves of their masks. Having spent centuries wearing my own, I can understand the sentiment, this, however, would mean we''d have vacant masks available for use."

    Reima slowly nods, "Uh huh... And where''s the mountain come into this?"

    Risryn "As much as I don''t like to admit it, the Guides knew how to train Prospects, the place where we''d first embark on the journey would be below the mountain where the shrine sat. We''d be forced to climb the treacherous path without food, nor water. We''d also be stripped of our clothing, forcing us to travel the freezing path naked and vulnerable."

    Reima "Sounds like a good way of finding who''s determined to succeed and whose not."

    Risryn nods, "It is, though only twenty percent reach the top, forty percent giving up and the other twenty dying on the mountain. Becoming frozen monuments to those that''d failed." she says gravely, remembering the horrified expressions on the bodies as she walked past them.

    Reima "And you wish to recreate this brutal method of training?" he asks, the look on her face not making the suggestion very appealing.

    Risryn "Yes, and no. The mountain isn''t as high or perilous as the one the Guides had used, nor the weather as cold. This would prevent casualties while also allowing those worthy of the mask to succeed. Plus, I wish to have special training equipment made to assist in the new Prospects tutelage... Eventually, I''d like to give up my own mask." she says with a sad smile.

    Solaire "What''s stopping you? Ichor has the strength to defend itself even without your might, you''ve struggled enough from what I''ve heard and seen... Perhaps you are owed the rest?" he asks.

    Risryn shakes her head, finishing her drink and putting her mask back on, "I wish I could, but my duties to the Prospects and this city are not finished. Nor is my promise to you, Reima." she says, standing up. "So what is your final decision? Will you allow my venture?"

    Reima nods, "Yeah, but try not to force anyone into taking up the masks. I know you won''t but it''s an important responsibility that could go to some peoples heads." he says, waving at her as she leaves.

    Solaire and Reima spend a couple more minutes relaxing, before getting up to leave...

    Muffet stops them in the door though, "Might this servent receive a tip for her excellent service?" she says with a grin.

    Reima shakes his head and chuckles, "Yeah, I''ll be sure to tip you when I see this "Excellent service""

    Solaire however tosses a Remi at her, "The food was delicious, thank you Miss Muffet." he says before leaving.

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 610 Dont drag the dragon

    Schall had flown away from that blasted mortal city after receiving an injury to his eye, he''d been trying to find Saskia by following her scent, but it was difficult to do due to her human form not smelling the same as her draconic one... Though, luckily as a Golden Dragon he could influence his human transformation, allowing his sense of smell to carry over from his dragon form... After a day or two of jogging, steering clear of the human villages he managed to find her, creating a campfire with a dull expression on her face, apparently already aware of his presence.

    Saskia "So you didn''t perish? Seems the city had no mages within their walls then." she says with a shrug.

    Schall walks up, his right eye missing even in his human form, and growls at her, "You should have warned me! Those mortals are tricksters with no honour!" he exclaims.

    Saskia "And burning down a city because you felt entitled to is honourable? You''re a hypocrite Weelderigeweegschalen."

    Schall furiously walks over and attempts to back hand, only for Saskis to dodge into his now blind spot and take him down by sweeping his legs. He heavily lands on his ass and feels the fury almost overtake him.

    Saskia points down at him, "You may be a Gold One, but you have no experience within a human body, nor do you know what they are capable of, even with one of your eyes being taken by them!"

    Schall "Impudent half-bree-Hurgh!"

    Saskia stamps down on his chest as he speaks the irritating insult, "In these lands, I am more powerful than you. Transform and strike me if you wish, but you will be hunted for it. I have no doubt if you continue you rampage the mortals will form armies and march through the Dragon Mountains!"

    Schall "Then they will die!" he exclaims.

    Saskia "Their number eclipses ours, even if they only occasionally killed one of us, within a hundred years we''d be extinct. Yet you can not see this, for you are blind not only in one eye!" she says, finally taking her foot off of his chest and sitting back on the makeshift log seat.

    Schall gets up, thinking over her words and wondering if she could be correct. However, his pride would not allow him to see the mortals as a threat, despite them already injuring him. "I do not wish to remain in these lands, let us find who stole our magic and begone!"

    Saskia nods, "While you were rampaging I took the chance to investigate the nearby villages. Apparently the cities of Kaedwen were preparing to siege a hidden keep in the mountains owned by some Witchers... Before they had to send reinforcements to Reverelyn, the city you burned down."

    Schall frowns, "What does this have to do with our goal?" he growls out.

    Saskia "I''ve had a few run-ins with Witchers during my time here, I''m even friends with one that may help us seek answers... Geralt of Rivia, a Witcher of the School of the Wolf, which just so happens to inhabit Kaer Morhen, the keep in the mountains."

    Schall "I know not what a Witcher is, but if this "Friend" has information then we must investigate."

    Saskia stops him as the dragon begins to walk towards the mountains, "I will warn you beforehand, do not act violently against them." she says gravely, rubbing the scar on her chest that Geralt had caused when bringing her down.

    Schall scoffs, "I know what weapons may harm me now, those mortals will not get the upper hand again." he says, ignoring her and continuing to walk.

    Saskia slowly follows him, hoping that Schall wouldn''t force her to choose between her kin and her friends... As she was responsible for the dragon heading to Kaer Morhen she''d fight against him should he attempt something similar to Reverelyn.

    A couple of days of walking later the duo slowly entered the valley path, Saskia having previously flown over here in an attempt to find some sanctuary for herself, though no one was present when she needed help.

    As they were getting closer to Kaer Morhen they could see occasional farms dotted around, though they were being manned by strange monstrous creatures, something you definitely wouldn''t expect next to a Witcher inhabited keep... A few more miles and the duo could finally see the keep, it looking unlike it had been in the past, no longer looking ruined and decrepit... Another thing that caused both Saskia and Schall to be weary was some kind of huge dragon statue overlooking the valley, it gave them both a foreboding feeling, as well as a deep fear when they look at it directly.

    Next to the dragon statue was some kind of half-built shrine, which was mirrored on the other side of the mountain ridge, which had a building with remarkably different architecture compared to the former one.

    Both Saskia and Schall''s eyes were drawn towards the large city below the mountain and before Kaer Morhen... The buildings were plated in gold with many people entering and exiting the city, transporting goods from the farms outside of it.

    Suddenly, the sound of ruffling foliage causes the two to turn, instantly spotting a gigantic White Wolf glaring down at them with some kind of sword strapped to its side.

    Schall backs away from it, "W-what is this creature!" he asks, the innate power being emitted by it not being dissimilar from some dragons.

    Saskia "I do not know! Do not try to fight it, we are in foreign lands so this must be their guardian." she quickly says, not wishing to start fighting whatever society had sprung up around the Witcher''s Keep.

    Sif sniffs them, briefly showing its teeth to Schall while rubbing his wet nose against Saskia. From where the Wolf had come from an armoured person with blue cloth accents walks out, a large shield strapped to one arm with a greatsword strapped to their back.

    Ciaran "It seems Sif likes you girl, that''s a good sign for your immediate safety." she says with crossed arms.

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 611 Goldzirra vs Fenrirra

    Ciaran "It seems Sif likes you girl, that''s a good sign for your immediate safety." she says with crossed arms.

    Saskia pats the huge wolf on the nose, it immediately afterwards backing away and standing behind Ciaran like a bodyguard. "W-what is this place?" she asks, wondering if the Witchers had been eliminated and replaced with those... Monsters.

    Ciaran glances behind her at the city and shrugs, "This is Ichor, a city for all peoples, races and... Most creeds." she says, hesitating slightly at the end.

    Saskia "I thought Witchers inhabited the mountain, what did you do to them?" she accuses, not believing an independent city which purports to support all races could exist for an extended period of time.

    Ciaran chuckles, "Did you not hear me? The city is for all peoples, Witchers included... It also happens to be a Witcher who rules us. But, I think it''s time you answered a couple of my questions, who are you?" she asks, the threat of violence not hidden in the slightest from her tone.

    Saskia "I am Saski-"

    Schall "We need not answer your questions mortal, take you dog elsewhere, we have business to conduct with the Witchers." he says, ignoring Ciaran and Sif while attempting to walk past them.

    Ciaran "You will not enter our lands without asking my questions!" she demands, drawing her sword while Sif lowers in posture and gets ready to pounce.

    Saskia growls, "Schall, stop!"

    However the Golden Dragon refuses to listen, continuing to walk towards the city and starting to feel the powerful ambient magic wash over him. "T-this! YOU!" he exclaims, turning to Ciaran and beginning to morph into his true form. Golden scales start forming on his skin as he bends over, his skeletal structure expanding and defying the laws of physics.

    Ciaran and Sif are on the defensive as Schalls form bulges and eventually becomes a huge Golden Dragon. "Dragon! Trespass on our lands and I promise you certain death!" she exclaims.

    Saskia begins to transform as well, though it''s slower than Schall''s due to her mixed heritage, she''s only halfway done when Schall attacks Ciaran.

    He the dragon sweeps low and attempt to grab the armoured woman in his jaws, he''s stopped however but Sif who leaps onto his side, knocking him off balance before jumping away, gripping the handle of the sword strapped to his side in his mouth.

    Saskia is incredibly confused when she sees the huge wolf handle the blade, but is awestruck when it starts using it.

    Ciaran blocks a claw swipe from Schall and retaliates with her Greatsword, the blade surprising Schall and Saskia as it digs into the dragon scales, scratching the flesh underneath and drawing blood.

    The dragon roars in fury and tries to retaliate, only to have Sif''s blade rake along his side, trailing a long wound through the scales. Schall backs away at having been injured by these pathetic creatures, fire flickering within his mouth as he prepares to bathe the two in molten death.

    Saskia had just finished transforming as this was happening, and she was only quick enough to jump before the fire to try and save the two innocents who Schall had attacks, searing pain washed over her, scorching her scales and burning her flesh, but she knew she was much more resistant to fire then the knight and her companion.

    Schall glares at her, "Saesenthessis! These are the creatures that stole our magic! Assist me you traitorous wyrm or perish with them!" he roars.

    Saskia looks at him fiercely, "I refuse!" she shouts, leaping at him and biting his shoulder, her teeth not doing as much damage as she''d thought.

    Schall easily throws her off and uses both front legs to stamp on her head, disorientating her and almost knocking her unconscious from the powerful blow. He''s stopped from making more attacks when Sif''s blade collides with his back, knocking him over as if a truck had just slammed into him and cutting another wound through the scales.

    Ciaran dashes and climbs atop the dragon as it falls, rushing to its head and attempting to cut out its other eye. Only for her to be batted away by its claws, as if she were launched by a catapult, she falls 40 feet before colliding with the ground, tumbling over herself before eventually stopping in a heap.

    Sif looks over, worried at his partner''s condition but Ciaran just gets up and rubs her head, groaning that she''d be "Bruised tomorrow". The wolf continues to combat the dragon in solo-combat while Ciaran composes herself and checks for injuries.

    Schall stands on his back feet over the wolf, claws bared as flames puffs from its nostrils, Sif makes the first move. Sprinting ahead and delivering a wide low to high cut, Schall backs off and manages to avoid it, belching a flame at the wolf which distracts it momentarily and allows him to cut deep wounds into Sif''s leg, the wolf giving a whimper as it backs away limping.

    Schall "You are no match for a true dragon dog!" he exclaims triumphantly.

    Ciaran makes her way back to Sif and spots the deep wound in her companion''s leg, realising that they were outmatched by this creature...

    Just then, as the two were about to retreat and request assistance the sound of an arrow string echoes throughout the clearing.

    Schall lets out a grunt as he backs away from the sudden pain, looking down and spotting a spear sized arrow sticking from his abdomen. He glances back up and sees some sort of pale horned girl, with a furry tail wielding another mortal weapon.

    Priscilla "You do not belong here!" she shouts, Prospects all charging from behind her, having obviously heard the commotion of the titanic beings fighting.

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 612 Fluff in Peril!

    Five hundred Prospects charge from behind Priscilla, weapons drawn and ready to start beating down on the Gold Dragon, only for the beast to scowl and start spewing a wave of fire at them, incinerating those in-front and badly burning a few behind them. However, due to their large numbers most were insulated by the others acting as human shields.

    Schall growls and prepares to fire another torrent, only to be struck in the chest by yet another Dragon Slayer arrow, courtesy of Priscilla. "YOU ARROGANT MORTALS! PREPARE TO MEET DEATH!" it exclaims, charging the group of people and wiping out a fraction of them with a few swipes from its claws.

    The Prospects try everything they can to dodge it''s strikes but the Dragon is too large to reliably dodge in the large group, their powers are also useless against the huge beast due to its magical resistance, strength and size. Kalini who''s behind everyone watching pales and looks up towards the mountain where the Chaos Covenant and new Absolver training centre are being constructed, hoping that someone up there would notice this beast before it caused some real damage.

    Priscilla fires yet another arrow, but Schall was keeping an eye on her, ducking it and glaring at her with his own reptilian eyes. He tries to move towards her and ignore the Prospects, but finds even their weapons can somehow penetrate his scales, causing him to refocus his attention on them, determined to destroy the girl after he''d killed all of them.

    From the nearby forest arrows start flying, though none of them carry enough weight or power to penetrate the Dragon''s Scales like Priscilla''s Great bow had done, even with the arrows being of similar quality.

    The elves under Iorveth have returned from a patrol, finally noticing the Gold One trying to destroy the city. However, they are dismayed to find that their arrows didn''t seem to affect the beast, only causing it to be wary of taking another arrow to its remaining eye.

    Even a few Monsters started to try and assist in taking down the dragon, only for Undyne to realise her Spears did literally nothing to it, it''s magical resistance preventing the Monster from even affecting it. Quickly she decides to get the monsters out of the battle and back into the city, them not likely to contribute anything to the battle aside from an increased casualty count.

    "Saskia!" a familiar voice shouts beside the fallen Green Dragons head, having just been absolutely trounced by Schall she was sure she''d be dead already, though the urgency in the tone fo the voice caused her to raise her head and open her eyes.

    What she saw next shocked her... Iorveth? Her dragon form didn''t allow for human speech, but the recognition in her eyes was enough for the Elf.

    Iorveth "It is a fine time to meet you again, but now is not the time to reacquaint ourselves, your friend is getting dangerously close to being carved up and served for lunch." he says, them both turning their heads to Schall brutally destroying the army of prospects.

    Saskia isn''t sure what Iorveth means, the Dragon seems to be overpowering the cities forces but he''d never lied to her before. With his presence, she felt much more assured of this city''s goal and knew Schall must be stopped.

    She tries to get up and stumbles, almost flattening Iorveth as he attempts to help keep her steady, though he''s not strong enough to even provide the smallest amount of support, his intentions help Saskia mentally push herself up though.

    Iorveth "We should get you somewhere safe, you are too weak to continue fighting." he states. Though Saskia shakes her head, almost stumbling as she does so.

    She rears up on her hand legs and shoots flames at Schall, though it does nothing more than heat the dragon slightly, he turns and swings his arm haphazardly, cracking her across her snout and knocking her over again, returning to his battle with the Prospects.

    Iorveth "Saskia! Transform back, I''ll help you!" he commands.

    Feeling weak from the repeated blows to the head, Saskia slowly shrinks down into her human form, Iorveth propping her up before slowly dragging her away from the battlefield while Schall tears it asunder.

    Soon enough the Witchers appear with Yennefer, Ciri and Keira in tow, they all look at the Dragon in disbelief, Gold Ones an incredible rarity that''s not often seen aside from paintings and writings of them.

    Geralt steps forward and shouts, "Villentretenmerth!?!"

    Schall glowers at them, "Do not speak of that philosophic drivel spouting traitor!" it roars, slashing apart a few more Prospects while dodging another Dragon Slaying arrow.

    Lambert "I don''t know about you guys, but fuck fighting that thing!"

    Eskel nods, "I hate to admit it guys but we''re outmatched."

    Yennefer "You boys sit back and let us do all the work then." she says mockingly, her and Keira stepping forwards and beginning to conjure a spell to hopefully disarm the Dragon, despite its magical resistance.

    By the time they''d spoken the incantation most of the Prospects had already been killed, a flash of light signals it''s completion however.

    Schall''s wings and limbs have rings of ephemeral chains appear from nowhere and begin to wrap around them, it''s magical resistance not preventing them from physically restraining him. He roars and struggles against them for a moment, the spell seeming to have worked.

    Keira "If you want something done right, do it yourself." she says smugly while giving Lambert a grin.

    Priscilla shoots another Dragon Slayer arrow at Schall while he''s restrain almost hitting his heart, but missing due to the Dragon''s erratic movement.

    Fear of death makes itself known in the dragon''s mind, causing him to struggle more and more, *Creeaaaaakkkk*, the chains give off an ominous sound before completely shattering, dissipating into particles as Schall charges Priscilla.

    The Witchers attempt to stop its charge but are too far away to do anything substantial apart from fire haphazard signs at it, accomplishing nothing.

    Schall rears up and tries to slam his fists on Priscilla, all the while shouting "DIE!"

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 613 A "True" end

    Reima, Solaire, Quelaag, Quelana, Sieglinde, Rhea, Anastacia, the Prospect leaders and Chaos Servants, were all overseeing the creation of Quelina''s bonfire which would be combined with the Place of Power. The group intended to have a celebration after it''s creation due to the significance of the event, it likely being the last time someone would ever witness such a phenomenon due to Anastacia and Quelina being the only firekeepers left.

    Quelina looks at the group, Reima especially with a wary smile. "Are you sure this is safe to do? Should everyone not get a lot more distance before I attempt this?

    Solaire shakes his head and gives a thumbs up, "No need! I and Reima will oversee everyone''s safety, you only need worry about the creation of the bonfire." he says.

    Quelaag "Don''t worry Lina, we all just here to watch you create something beautiful." she says with a gentle smile.

    Reima "Just relax and go ahead, even the old guy wants to see this." he says with a chuckle, nodding his head at the Everlasting Dragon leaning over the half-built Chaos Covenant temple with an interested gaze.

    Quelina nods, "Then, here I go..." she says, kneeling down and beginning the ritual, the Igni Place of Power immediately reacting by bursting into dark red flames, raising the surrounding temperature by a lot.

    As this is all happening the Everlasting Dragon notices some sort of commotion in the valley, him being the only one to see it due to his elevated position. Taking a closer look he sees somekind of Gold Dragon fighting against the Prospects, having just backhanded a different Green Dragon.

    Eeuwigdurend "Reima." it asks in a clear voice, causing everyone to turn their attention towards it. "A dragon is attacking the city." it states, causing everyone to halt, including Quelina who luckily hasn''t gotten far enough into the ritual to cause any harm to herself.

    Reima teleports above the Chaos Covenant temple and looks down at the city, spotting the Gold Dragon and bringing a confused look to his face, "What the fuck? What''d we do to offend the dragons?" he mutters.

    Solaire appears next to him in a flash of lightning, "Regardless of why it is here, perhaps it''s time for me to return to my roots.." he says, a Spear of Lightning appearing in his hand.

    Reima sighs, "Bro, smiting people from a mountain top is coming a little close to a story I know... Maybe just let me handle it?"

    Solaire shrugs and dispels the spear, "Do what you wish Reima, it matters to me not."

    Eeuwigdurend interrupts them, however, "No, I wish to show this wyrmling how weak it is, daring to attack my territory." it states in a voice that causes the ground to tremble.

    Reima looks up at it, "You sure? Thought you''d be alright just being a permanent fixture up here." he says jokingly.

    Eeuwigdurend nods, "This creature wishes to harm my kin, I will deal with it myself." it says, spreading its wings for the first time since it''d arrived in this world before leaping off of the mountain, causing a mini-earthquake and almost collapsing the half-built Chaos Covenant temple.

    Saskia digs her heels in as Iorveth continues to drag her as she spots something happening on the mountain top, the Dragon Statue that''d be on the mountain top had just moved... "I-Iorveth... What is that!" she exclaims in fright, pointing at the titanic beast flying towards them.

    Iorveth "I warned you, your friend''s death is guaranteed, that thing hasn''t moved from its spot since I''d arrived here... But your intrusion seems to have warranted its attention."

    Schall who was just about to crush Priscilla, spots the shadow enveloping him and everyone else nearby, glancing upwards and almost toppling over at the sight of the gigantic monster flying overhead.

    Priscilla "Uncle!" she shouts from below Schall, having been ready to flee with her invisibility, but not feeling the need to anymore.

    Eeuwigdurend pulls his wings back in and falls from the sky, landing behind Schall and causing the very earth itself to shake, uplifting soil and stone where it lands. "Wyrmling, you dare to encroach upon my territory and strike at my KIN?" he asks in a grave voice as he towers over Schall, being over 3-4 times the Gold Dragons size.

    If Schall was able, he would have pissed himself in fear at this freakishly huge dragon standing before him, the aura it was giving off making every sense and instinct scream at him to flee. However, his pride would not allow it.

    Schall "I-I will not be intimidated by some lesser being!" He exclaims but still doesn''t move an inch.

    Eeuwigdurend releases a rather terrifying chuckle down at Schall, dust from its petrified scales liberally escaping and covering the ground beneath him. "Lesser being? I cannot think of anything lesser than you, Wyrm."

    This insult provides Schall with enough indignant rage to overcome his fear, he strikes at the Everlasting Dragon with both claws... And doesn''t even scratch the beings scales...

    Schall''s eye almost bulges from his head, "A-a true dragon bested by an imposter!" he exclaims after seeing his attack had no effect.

    Eeuwigdurend slowly reaches, wrapping his clawed hand around Schall''s neck and pinning him to the floor with ease, "True Dragon? You are humorous small one, but you are not a True Dragon, far from it." it says, adding weight to his grip, causing Schall to gasp for air.

    Eeuwigdurend "As retribution for striking at my kin, I bring you death." he says, bending down and getting ready to bite into Schall''s neck.

    Priscilla "Uncle! Wait!" she shouts, causing Schall to look at her with pleading eyes.

    Eeuwigdurend "What is it?" he asks, his voice gentler than when speaking with anyone else.

    Priscilla "Do no damage the scales! I wish to make clothing out of them!" she says, causing Schalls eyes to open wide.

    The Everlasting Dragon slowly nods and bites into Schalls neck, making sure to pierce the vital arteries but not crushing the Golden Scales in his mouth.

    The world around Schall begins to lose colour and slow as he feels his lifeblood drain into Eeuwigdurend''s mouth, his last sight in this life being the real True Dragon''s hand pinning his head to the dirt.

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 614 Unforeseen Troubles

    A couple minutes after Schall stops struggling and had finally died, Iorveth picks up Saskia in a princess carry and walks over under the watch of everyone else.

    Everyone was gathered around the Golden Dragons body as Priscilla happily talked with the Everlasting Dragon, those not familiar with the foreign dragon were wary of it, though since it''d come to their aid they had no reason to be.

    Vesemir, Lambert, Eskel, and Arie were all examining Schalls body with interest, never having seen a dead Gold One before. Geralt, however, was surprised to see Saskia in Iorveth''s arms, having thought she''d remain hidden from the world until they''d forgotten about her entirely.

    Geralt "So you''ve finally returned?" he asks, walking towards them.

    Saskia rubs her head, still weak from Schall''s blows, "No. Not intentionally." she mutters.

    Iorveth "Should I take you to the church to get healing?" he asks, worried about her injuries."

    Saskia shakes her head, "I-I think I''m fine."

    Geralt "Fine or not, you need rest. Take her to the vacant residences, we''ll have a meeting about your presence here as well as the Gold Ones, maybe get some answer too." he says, nodding to Iorveth who begins walking towards Ichor.

    Vesemir looks at up the Everlasting Dragon, him having just finished talking with Priscilla, "Quite a fierce showing. I can''t help but feel you found it distateful though." he remarks.

    Eeuwigdurend nods, "I''ve grown... bored of conflict, I only wish to keep my kin safe."

    Vesemir chuckles, "I can understand you perfectly, perhaps I''ll come have visit you atop your mountain for a talk between two old souls."

    The Everlasting Dragon makes no indication at whether he agrees or disagree''s with the old Witcher, instead electing to leap into the air and fly back up to the mountain.

    Lambert "Don''t worry Vesemir, there are plenty more fish in the sea." he such with a grin, only to be waved off by the old man as they walk away.

    Thirty minutes later Reima had stored Schall''s corpse into his Folded Space, along with blinking back up the Mountain with Priscilla and Snuffles who''d hitched a ride.

    There were many things to do, but delaying the bonfire ritual was not one of them, particularly since everyone had already been gathered for the event.

    Quelina was less nervous than before, having just begun to ritual earlier despite being interrupted.

    Reima "Alright, everything''s fine now... Let''s start again shall we?" he says, Quelina nodding with a determined face.

    Everyone watches with rapt attention as the Igni Place of Power bursts into dark red flames for the second time today, and again, the temperature raises as the flames begin to swirl around in a mini-tornado.

    The stone place of power began to blacken as the flames scorched it, though it didn''t look as if it was going to melt. instead the ground around it began to glow and turn to lava, a few people having to quickly back away to not get caught in it. Thankfully due to Quelina''s "Affinity" to Chaos she wasn''t bothered at sinking into an increasingly large puddle of lava.

    It continued to grow, and grow, until it resembled a small pond surrounding the Igni stone. The dark red flames whirling around said stone also began increasing in height, growing much, much taller than Anastacia''s bonfire ever did.

    Eventually the ritual came to completion, a small explosion of pure magical energy signalling the creation of the bonfire. Everyone nearby, even those not knowledgable in the magical arts could feel the magic, it was thick and caressed your skin as you moved... The phenomenon continued spreading outwards, washing over Kaer Morhen and the city of Ichor, unfortunately causing all of Rickerts magical lights to explode in the process. However the wave of powerful ambient magic continued to even the outskirts of the further farm.

    Quelina gave a heavy sigh and stood up, scuttling out of the pool of lava and looking at everyone, "How''d I do?" she asks, finally breaking the tension.

    Solaire "What a Jolly occasion this is!" he laughs and congratulates the girl.

    Quelaag and Quelana both hug Quelina, telling her how proud they were of her to knock any sense of anxiety from her mind.

    Reima himself was really impressed, the ambient magic surrounding the valley was incredibly potent, making even the most novice mage powerful if they tapped into it. If he wasn''t sure before, he was now, that this place was the single most magically potent place in this world and possibly many others.

    All around the city, Monsters were finding themselves having to restrict their magical abilities due to the large influx of magic, along with Yennefer and Keira almost having a seizure at the potent magic now surrounding them at all times... Truly, it was a Sorceresses dream to find a place like this.

    Unbeknownst to the inhabitants of Ichor, their creation of a new bonfire drew the eyes of many being, most furious at having their magical sources stolen from them. With the ambient magic of the area being so high, it was obvious to all who was responsible for sucking some of the other magical area''s dry of magic.

    Indeed, almost every magic user and magical creature could sense the creation of, what could only be a "Sacred" place. A place that required the world itself to redistribute the magic that exuded from it. Had Reima been more mindful, or more aware, he''d have noticed that their action of creating two bonfires had sucked most of the north dry of magic. The situation could have been significantly worse had the North not already persecuted the mages inhabiting it, though the few that were there were incredibly curious at this new "Wondrous" place that''d never before been recorded in history.

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 615 Dragon Lady

    The next day everyone was convened in the War Room, in-front of them sat Saskia who was now dressed in a comfortable dress that suited her better than the armour she always wore.

    She shuffled uncomfortably under everyone''s appraising gaze, though she couldn''t help but be baffled by some of the people and creatures here... There was a large, kingly goat man with some sort of humanoid fish bodyguard, a woman with a spider lower-body that seemed to never stop burning, a few Masked people that gave off an odd energy as well as Iorveth sitting in the corner, giving her a small nod of acknowledgment... All of this combined with the Witchers seeming nonchalance about being in the presence of people that literally called themselves "Monsters", is causes her to go a little barmy.

    Geralt stands and introduces Saskia to everyone, noting their positions, race, and relation to the city. Afterwards gesturing to her to continue.

    Saskia coughs into her hand, "I-I am Saskia, though most of you will know me as the Virgin of Aedirn..."

    Vesemir nods, "I heard whispers of you, and rumours of the fate you suffered at the hands of the sorceress."

    Saskia "Fortunately, I escaped. The one binding me going missing not soon after." she says with a sigh, though what her forlorn expression meant was another mystery entirely.

    Quelaag "Let''s dispense with the niceties and ask why she was here with another dragon that tried to destroy our city." she says bluntly.

    Asgore nods, "The safety of our people comes first, I believe this is the most important avenue to pursue."

    Saskia''s brows furrow, "Do you truly not know why Schall, the Gold Dragon would be here?"

    Reima shakes his head, "Err... No? Should we?" he asks sheepishly.

    Saskia rubs her face, "Your actions of stealing magic from the dragon were not unnoticed, especially with you stealing even more yesterday."

    ...

    Reima "The bonfire''s?" he asks.

    Saskia "If that''s what you call the magical siphons that are draining magic from other areas, then yes. I was forced to accompany Schall as he attempted to find those responsible."

    Reima "Well, he''s dead now... So what''s the issue?" he says sarcastically.

    Saskia glowers at him, "The issue? The issue is that, now that this place resembles a beacon to every magical being on the continent, you''ll have more than just one dragon to deal with. Armies of Monsters, cabals, and cults of mages, families of dragons. If you truly value your peoples safety then you will destroy those siphons."

    Her words cause most to think about it, however, one hard-headed individual is absolutely against it.

    Reima "I refuse, if they want to fight us then let them come." he says, deciding that the magical already belonged to him.

    ...

    Asgore "Are you sure that is wise? It sounds like our city will never be completely safe if we choose this route."

    Solaire "Don''t fear my horned friend, we''ll fight those fiends off with an almighty fury!" he says with a thumbs up, causing a few in the room to sigh.

    Vesemir "First the Wild Hunt, now Kaedwen and Redania... Now the rest of the world... We''re not making any friends Reima." he mutters.

    Reima chuckles, "Don''t forget Nilfgaard, they probably won''t forgive us for destroying their fleet."

    ...

    Saskia interjects, "My apologies, but, I''d like to know what this place actually is... By the sounds of it you''ve already come into conflict with the north and the south..." she asks, unsure of how they''d need been sieged into oblivion yet.

    Reima shrugs, "This is the city of Ichor, just a gathering of people who wish to be left alone and to do whatever they want." he says, drawing chuckles from a few people.

    Iorveth, "Saskia, Think of it like everything we wanted Vergen to be." he says, causing her eyes to slowly widen.

    Geralt "On the subject, is there any news of Vergen? Most seem to think it''s been taken over by Nilfgaard, especially since Stannis and Henselt are dead."

    Saskia shrugs, "I''ve been living amongst the dragons since escaping, most kingdoms attempting to capture me for their own ends."

    Quelaag "Do you intend to return and bring back another group of Dragons for revenge?" she asks.

    Saskia shakes her head, "I cannot return... My scales are marked by the claws of Schall, if I come back without him they will assume I killed him. Something completely forbidden, especially when Gold Ones are a rarity, even amount our kin."

    Iorveth "Then, there is a simple solution to all of our problems... You will stay here to make reparations for your friend''s attack, and you will receive our protection from your own kind." he says while leaning back with his arms crossed.

    Reima shrugs, "You tried to stop him, you''re good in my books. Though, I hope you don''t mind if we skin him and make clothes out of his scales." he says, causing a few to grimace.

    Saskia ignores his comment about skinning Schall and airs her troubles, "I-I''m unsure if I want to participate in something like this again... Only tragedy has ever come from it." she mutters.

    Iorveth "It will work this time Saskia, we have allies, we have power... Most of all, we have the WILL to see it done."

    Geralt "No one is forcing you to do anything Saskia, you could just live your days as a citizen here, never involving yourself in combat or politics. You don''t have much of a choice other than to leave and likely be killed." he says with crossed arms.

    Saskia nods, "I would like to know one thing though... What was that creature that killed Schall?" she asks, fear audible in her voice.

    Reima grins, "The old man? Just a sleepy dragon who never moves from the mountain top... Aside from yesterday obviously. You can go speak with him if you want."

    Saskia quickly shakes her head, "N-no... I don''t think that would be a wise idea... I, I will stay in the city until I decide what role I wish to have within it. Is that fine with you?"

    Everyone nods, seeing no negatives to having this well-known advocate for equality in their midst, having already made enemies out of the entire world. What was a few more to the list?

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 616 Romance is in the air... Or is it just magic?

    It''d been a week since Saskia had officially joined Ichor, though she hadn''t yet decided what she wanted to actually do. Iorveth dutifully kept close to her however and showed her around the city, taking her to different restaurants and showing some of the more advanced technology that was starting to be developed... Obviously, most knew his reasons for being so dedicated, whether or not Saskia was aware of it was another matter entirely.

    Iorveth wasn''t the only love bird within Ichor though, Quelaag had asked Reima if he had free time enough that he simply couldn''t refuse any longer.

    Reima wasn''t stupid, he knew how the Chaos Witch felt for him, the problem was himself, he didn''t know what he felt for her... Whether it was just attraction, or something more, regardless, he finally agreed to go on a date with her.

    It was in the evening when the two left Kaer Morhen, Quelaag hugging his arm while wearing the same red dress he''d given her so long ago. Reima himself was just wearing some dress pants and a shirt, deciding not to wear anything extravagant today.

    The city was still in its infancy, but that didn''t mean there weren''t things to do within it, first the duo explored some of the clothing stores, the more luxurious ones including things being made from Acromentula silk. While it was usually dangerous for Quelaag to wear something, a quick Flamefreeze charm on it allowed her to happily display most of the store''s contents for him. Truth be told, he thought some of the clothes were too tight for her particular... Personality, he bought them for her anyway though, the blissful look on her face every time he complimented her making him unable to refuse.

    One thing he noticed during her "Show" was the longing look she sent to the trousers and longer dresses being sold in the store, obviously wishing to try them on. Reima didn''t really have an answer to this, not knowing if it was possible to even change her form. He deciding to not mention it as it''d probably sour their outing, but it remained on his mind throughout the night.

    They continued to walk through the city, occasionally stopping at a nearby stall to look at some jewelry they had on display, or maybe some snacks they both enjoyed, even if Quelaag was a bit too intent on feeding them to him.

    Eventually, the snacks proved too little for Quelaag though, her face blushing tomato red as her stomach betrayed her by rumbling.

    Reima smiles at her, "Fancy finding someplace to eat?" he asks, her still attached to his arm.

    Quelaag nods, "Y-yes, if you don''t mind."

    They walk around for a while trying to find a good looking place to eat, before stopping at store smelling of frying and roasting meats. Reima salivates and directs Quelaag towards it, she has some trouble fitting through the door but with an innocuous use of blink, they get inside and are directed to a table by a Prospect? Must be one of the few that hate combat?

    They''re led to a table in the corner of the room which is dimly lit, once sat down they are given a menu which they both start to browse, Reima nodding at how advanced compared to the rest of the world the city has already become.

    Reima does notice a jittery looking Monster wearing a chef''s hat watching him from the kitchen... Their eyes meet and they almost fall over backwards in shock.

    Not long after the offending Monster makes their way to Reima''s table, bowing deeply before anything is even said.

    Reima "Err, is something wrong?" he asks.

    They shake their head, "I''m like, really, really sorry for spying... I-I just never thought someone... someone like YOU, would enter my restaurant..."

    Reima glances at Quelaag, her giving him a similar look, "Relax, I''m not going to bite your head off, we''re just here for some food."

    He nods rapidly, "I-My name is Burgerpants, so-so, please let-me-know-if-you-need-anything!" he quickly says before retreating to the kitchen without even taking their order.

    Reima and Quelaag look at each other and laugh, Burgerpants interruption alleviated some of the tension between the two, the rather romantic setting making them both unsure of how to proceed... Reima would remember to give the man a tip, even if it was slightly unprofessional behavior.

    They look through the menu and Reima spots a few peculiar entries on it... "Legendary Hero?" He mutters.

    Quelaag "Maybe he just wants to be exotic?" she says.

    Reima nods, and both eventually decide what they want to eat as a waiter comes by to collect their order. Quelaag orders some kind of venison meal, while Reima goes for something he''s familiar with, a large steak, and they even make fries? Joy.

    Reima "So, how''re you getting on with your sisters nowadays?" he asks as they wait for their meal.

    Quelaag smiles, "It''s never been better... Quelina is almost always busy brewing something with Vesemir, but I''m happy she''s doing something she loves."

    Reima "And Quelana?"

    Quelaag nods, "It''s been hard, I can''t forgive what she did, but I''m trying to forget. She''s taken the reins for the Chaos Covenant while I... Train myself, us being forced to work together has brought us closer, even if it''ll never be like how we used to be."

    Reima "That''s good, I think you guys have been dealt a bad hand. None of you had good options, but I''m glad to see you''re all reconnecting again."

    Quelaag leans forwards slightly, "None of it would be possible without your help though, Rei. The more I think about what would have eventually happened had you not intervened, the worse it gets... I''d have probably been killed by whoever Quelana sent to "free us", leaving Quelina alone, still suffering in silence." she says, a single tear threatening to fall from her eyes.

    Reima places his hand over hers, "Relax, I''ll never let something like that happen. This place we have now? It allows all of us to live whatever life we want, without fear."

    Quelaag leans forwards even further, "Any life we want?" she says, her face beginning to blush deeply.

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 617 Reverse Cock-Block?

    Just as the two were about to commit, they are interrupted by a frantic voice, "H-H-Here is your food! Please enjoy it!" Burgerpants quickly says, pushing their plates in-front of them.

    Quelaag gives him a scathing glare at having the moment ruined, "Thank you!" she says loudly, pulling her own plate towards herself and out of Burgerpants hands.

    Reima shakes his head, finding the situation almost comical... That, and he can''t decide whether to increase or remove Burgerpants tip for his interruption. "Thanks." he says, nodding at the jittery Monster.

    The meal continues, the two conversing about what they want from the city before unfortunately talking about politics. Quelaag asking what he''d do to the Eternal Fire if they try to do anything against them.

    Reima "We''ll kill them, plain and simple... Let''s change the subject, surely you''ve had enough of politics during our meetings?"

    Quelaag nods, "Then... What is your relationship to Ciri?" she asks, knowing full well there was something between them. But hoping he''d answer in the negative, giving her a chance to push.

    Reima scratches the back of his head, "Er, it''s complicated.

    Quelaag "Is that so? Well, you''ve got all night to explain it." she presses.

    Reima sighs, "Don''t ask the question if know you won''t like the answer, Quelaag." he says.

    Quelaag "I dislike ignoring it and staying silent aswell, so go ahead and say it." she says while putting up a strong front.

    Reima "I want to be with Ciri, but she doesn''t seem to want to be with me."

    ...

    At Reima''s words Quelaag felt her heart was going to break, but by the end she''d gain some hope that Ciri herself would reject Reima. "Why pursue someone who won''t reciprocate?" she asks, knowing that it''s hypocritical for her to ask this.

    Reima shrugs, "It''s not as easy as that..." he shakes his head, "You finished eating?" he asks, changing the subject.

    Quelaag looks down and realises that they''d both finished their food a while back... She nods, "Yes."

    The two get up, Reima leaving some Remi on the table along with a small tip for Burgerpants before teleporting outside of the establishment, Quelaag still on his arm.

    The happy mood they''d started the date with was more toned down now, their talk in the restaurant dulling the positive emotions of the two. Quelaag pulls herself closer to Reima as they walk, his warmth making her feel a bit better about their earlier conversation.

    As the leave the street and enter another, they''re met by two men, one Prospect and one Dwarf.

    Zoltan "Oioioi! Reima, Quelaag? Eh, you two finally gettin'' together?" he slurs, clearly drunk.

    The Prospect turns and reveals the familiar blood stained mask to Reima, the man taking it off to sip a bottle of whisky in his hand before placing it back on his face.

    Kuretz "Reima? Finally come out to have a drink? Ah, Quelaag? Good snag!" he exclaims with a laugh.

    Reima and Quelaag give each other a shrug, "You two usually do this?" He asks.

    Zoltan grins a them, "What? Goin'' on a boozer? You''re damn right!" he says taking another swig.

    Kuretz "We''re on our way to another bar, you wanna tag along?"

    Reima shakes his head, "I''m alright, don''t feel like drinking tonight..." he says, causing Kuretz to give him a weird look.

    Kuretz "But, you''re always up for a drink!?!" he shouts, causing one of the residence windows nearby to open, a Monster sticking their head out and shouting at them, "I''VE GOT WORK TOMORROW, SHUT UP AND GO SOMEWHERE ELSE!", shutting the window behind them as they leave after having their say.

    Reima shrugs, "You two should get going, the nights still young after all." he say, causing the duo to laugh and begin walking to the next bar, presumably causing trouble for everyone they come across.

    Alone again, Reima and Quelaag walk through the city, trying to find somewhere interesting to go to, eventually finding some kind of... Comedy club? Across the street from it is a hotel run by a bored-looking Prospect, while laughter is heard from the club.

    Reima points at it, "Wanna check it out?"

    Quelaag nods, "I''ve never heard of a "Comedy Club" before."

    Reima "Never been to one myself, should be interesting though." he says leading her towards the building with a large sign displaying the words: Papyrus and Toriels Comedy Club. The mascot next to the words being a skeletal goat wearing a red scarf.

    Pushing open the double doors, they walk into a dimly lit room covered in many tables, comfortable chairs and a bar at one end of the room. A stage raised above the ground floor is the only brightly lit area, and a skeleton wearing a blue hoody holds a... Microphone? Seems as if Alphys helped San''s out here.

    Sans looks down at the relatively large crowd of Prospects, Monsters, Chaos Servants and regular people. "What''s up with your expressions? Looks like you''ve seen a... Monster." This draws out a few chuckles but flops for most people, San''s doesn''t look perturbed though. He chuckles, "Wow, tough crowd. Don''t worry though I''m not all bones with no bite, and I''m sure the people I''ve prepared are some real Rib-ticklers."

    A grown from the crowd causes laughter from a few already familiar with San''s style of comedy.

    Sans winks at them, "I can go all day, I''ve got a skele-ton of these." He continues before anyone can get up to leave, "Now, after the guys finish their acts, you guys, the crowd, will have a chance to come up and show how funny you really are. A few drinks wouldn''t go amiss either, hopefully you''ll all have you funny bones hit at least once tonight." he says, gesturing towards the bar where some sort of fire elemental wearing a barman uniform is mixing drinks...

    Sans eventually invites the first guest up, the person conveniently being SnowDrake, the Monster Quelaag and her sisters "Saved" Reima from.

    Quelaag and Reima had already sat down at a table and were looking up at the stage, the latter already dreading the act the Monster was about to give.

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 618 City of Monst-rous jokes.

    Two people on horseback enter the Valley towards Kaer Morhen, both wearing extravagant, colourful clothes barely concealed under travelling cloaks.

    Dandelion "Ah! I hate long journies on horseback, surely there must be a saddle with a cushion somewhere?" he says while shuffling uncomfortably on the horse.

    Priscilla "Stop whining, we''re almost there." she says, almost beginning to regret getting her and Dandelion out of Novigrad."

    Dandelion glances at some of the nearby burned soil and tree''s that are starting to show signs of life again. "I wonder what happened here, I doubt any ordinary forest fire could start so far north." he mutters.

    Priscilla "Did you not hear of the rumours? Fire claimed a large swath of this place, some say it was a Dragon fighting off Wraiths."

    Dandelion''s eyes widen at this, "Ah... That must be how they fought off the Wild Hunt, fortunate they found a way to counter them." he says,

    Priscilla "Had any run-ins with that group?" she asks, curious at the almost mythical riders.

    Dandelion shakes his head, "Luckily, no. Though I doubt they''d be completely beaten so easily."

    The two continue to converse as they enter the valley, the moon not needed to illuminate the brightly lit city in the distance.

    Dandelion "W-what is that!" he exclaims, pointing towards it.

    Priscilla "Some sort of city? Did Zoltan ever mention anything like that in his letters?" she asks, dumbfounded by it.

    As they get closer they hear a voice commanding them to halt, they stop their horses and are confronted by ten Prospects. Dandelion smiles at them, despite how scared he currently is, thinking that they are some sort of masked brigands. "Greetings!"

    The leading Prospect steps forwards, "Who are you and what is your purpose here?" he asks, ignoring the friendly face.

    ...

    Priscilla "We wish to meet with Geralt of Rivia, we are friends of his."

    "Geralt?" the Prospect mutters, "He''ll be asleep but we can give you temporary residence until morning." he says, sending the rest of his patrol off while he guides the two towards the city.

    They enter the city and the duo are immediately shocked by the strange figures of Monsters strolling around, entering restraints or bars.

    Dandelion "Eh, excuse me? What are those... People?" he asks, never before having seen anything like this.

    The Prospect turns and chuckles at their faces, "Monsters, what else would they be?"

    Priscilla "If I''m not mistaken... Isn''t a School of Witchers living nearby, are they fine with this city of, well, Monsters?"

    The Prospect laughs, "Yes, they are."

    Dandelion continues, "And your masks?"

    "I think it looks fashionable, is that a good enough reason?" he asks.

    ...

    The duo are eventually led to some lodgings, though it isn''t a suitable place for it due to a loud establishment sitting across the street, someplace called "Papyrus and Toriels Comedy Club".

    The Prospect pays for their temporary accommodation and tells them to stay put, if they leave the building without permission they won''t like the result.

    Dandelion and Priscilla get a room with has two separate beds in it, additionally, it had magical lighting and a bathroom in the next room, something neither knew how to use at all.

    Dandelion "I feel like I''m in a dream, this place doesn''t seem real..." he mutters, taking off his travelling coat and sitting on the bed.

    Priscilla "They clearly know Geralt, so he must have something to do with this all... I don''t think it''s a bad thing, this place doesn''t have beggars like in Novigard, nor does it seem as crime-ridden."

    The two are interrupted as laughter erupts from the either side of the street, Dandelion stands and looks out the window. "Wonder what all the commotion''s about?"

    Priscilla "Well, it''s called a Comedy Club..."

    Dandelion grins, "Shall we take a look?" he says, turning to look at Priscilla.

    She shakes her head, "No way, you''ll get stuffed into a jail cell again, like in temple isle.

    Dandelion "Come on, it''ll be fun. Plus Geralt''s nearby, he''ll rescue us if we get into trouble."

    ...

    Dandelion pulls her towards the door, sneaking down the hallway and exiting the hotel while the Prospect watches them with a dull look under his mask. He shrugs, deciding they''re someone else''s problem.

    The duo enter the club and are met with a dimly lit room with a large stage that almost dazzles Dandelion, Priscilla notices this look and pulls his ear, "No, I can tell what you''re thinking... I won''t let you."

    Dandelion "Oh, come on! We can both go on stage."

    Priscilla "No! Just sit and watch them, then we''re going straight back to our room."

    Dandelion mumbles but can''t argue, not escape her grasp, eventually sitting down and watching the Monster on stage. A creature the skeletal host calls "Snowdrake" had just finished his set, to mixed reactions, receiving applause regardless.

    The next person causes someone in the crowd to shout "WHAT!" when the young woman with black hair and red eyes walks on stage, she looks perturbed by the voice and looks for whoever was responsible, not finding them in the dark crowd, however.

    Quelana takes the microphone and smiles at every, waiting for them to quiet enough for her to begin. "Youknow, we''re so far north that I''ve had to think about the best way to keep warm, I''ve tried extra socks, two pairs of socks, and even three pairs of socks... But my hands are always cold!..." The joke receives a chuckle from a few but isn''t that popular, she continues though, "I have found a way to fix the problem permanently, it came from a saying from my homeland... Build a man a fire, keep him warm for a day... Set a man on fire, keep him warm for the rest of his life.", the audience bursts out into laughter, not having expected such a dark joke.

    Even Dandelion and Priscilla begin laughing, even despite being in this strange city.

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 619 Bard, now Comic.

    Quelana "Build a man a fire, keep him warm for a day... Set a man on fire, keep him warm for the rest of his life."

    Reima bursts out into laughter, never having expected Quelana to be able to tell jokes. He looks at the disbelieving Quelaag and asks, "Is that a real saying from Izalith? Please don''t ruin this for me."

    Quelaag shakes her head, "No... It definitely isn''t... The real saying is, if you see a man, set him on fire."

    Reima "That''s even better!"

    Quelana continues her act, most involving things to do with Izalith and demons. By the end of it she receives the loudest applause of the night, despite it not being perfect in the least. "Thank you, this my first time doing something like this, hopefully I''ll be invited again." she says with a smile, walking from the stage towards the bar and ordering a drink.

    Reima looks to Quelaag, "Want a drink? I''m about to go get one." he asks,

    Quelaag wants to accompany him, but isn''t comfortable with Quelana potentially spoiling their date, deciding to just ask him to pick something for her.

    Reima nods, and walks over, seeing a blonde girl in colourful clothing arguing with the barman.

    Priscilla "What do you mean you won''t take crowns? EVERYWHERE takes crowns!"

    Grillby "My apologies, but we only accept Sola and Remi."

    Priscilla "Sola and Remi? I''ve never heard of it." she mutters.

    Grillby "You must be new here, that is the currency of the city, I''m not sure if there''s a place to transfer currencies. Trading goods if probably your best be-"

    Reima interrupts, "What did you want to order?" he asks her, deciding to do a second good deed for the day on a whim.

    Priscilla "Two ales." she states, not really knowing if he''s trying to hit on her.

    Reima nods and hands a couple Sola to Grillby, the gold coins somehow sitting firmly on the fire elementals palm. "Two ales, could I get two Whiskies as well?"

    Grillby nods respectfully, "Of course sir."

    Reima looks at Priscilla, "So your new here?" he asks, wondering if she came in with the rescued prisoners.

    Priscilla nods, "Just came in today."

    ...

    Reima "Today? Surely the guards would have given you trouble." he probes, the woman clearly not knowing who he is.

    Priscilla fingers the countertop it being covered in a weird paint, "They did, but a few words anD they let us few."

    Reima raises a brow, "What''d you tell em?"

    Priscilla "That''s none of your business, what''s your name anyway?" she asks, wondering who this person was.

    Reima introduces himself, "Reima Ludvig."

    ...

    Priscilla''s eyes widen, "Geralt''s kid?"

    Reima snorts, "Ha! I wonder where you heard that!"

    Priscilla "From my companion of course, he''s right over..." she points at her table but realises Dandelion isn''t there any longer.

    Reima notices someone making their way to the vacant stage, "Er, is that them?" he asks, pointing at their colourfully clothed back.

    Priscilla nods with a sigh, "Yes... That idiot is going to make a fool of himself." she mutters as Grillby finally places their drinks on the counter.

    Reima nods at the fire elemental, "Well, I''ve got someone waiting so enjoy the rest of you ni-" he''s stopped as he stops the person holding the microphone upside down on the stage. "Dandelion?"

    Sans walks up as Dandelion speaks into the wrong side of the microphone, "Hey, buddy, you''re holding the mic wrong, bonehead."

    Dandelion look at it, "Oh!" he flips it over and nods at Sans, "Thank you, skeleton man."

    Sans shakes his head and stands back and watches the gentleman begin his act, feeling as if he''ll have to interject at some point.

    Dandelion "Ahem, is this thing on-Oh, hello! I am Dandelion, writer, artist, poet, singer, and most importantly, lover." he says receiving a few chuckles. "While I was learning my trade, my teacher taught me "Dandelion, know this, the pen is mightier than the sword!", a couple hours later bandits raided the college... My teacher threw his pen at them and ran away..." again, he receives a good amount of laughs for his joke.

    Dandelion "After that I was determined to get stronger, I walked straight up to a Redanian officer and offered to join the army. "What position do you want?" he asked. "I want to be a Lute-tenent" I replied back... I didn''t end up joining." he says, though there was only one person laughing at it.

    Sans chuckles, "Heh, nice."

    Dandelion scratches his head, "Pun''s aren''t doing it for you? Then, how about I tell you the time my lovers husband found me naked in her closet?" he asks, receiving affirmation from the crowd. He goes on to tell the story about how he''d tried to climb out of the window, but climbing but in due to a previous girlfriend of his that happened to be a noble noticing him and shouting for her guards to apprehend him. The story ended with a white-haired Witcher throwing him over his shoulder and running out of the town with him. The crowd cheered for this, clearly interested in this medium of comedy/storytelling.

    Dandelion noticing their mood nods, "You liked that one? Then, how about the time I saved the Witchers son from a Griffen?" he offers.

    Reima "You''re really trying your luck aren''t you Dandelion!" he shouts from his table, the bard finally noticing his presence in the crowd.

    Dandelion looks shocked at how much the relatively young boy had changed, telling San''s he was done for now and leaving the stage.

    Quelaag frowns at having her and Reima''s date interrupted, but considering these two had not met in a while she couldn''t refute it.

    Dandelion walks over with Priscilla following him, "Reima! It''s bee so long! How have you been!?!" he says, taking the initiative to hug Reima.

    Reima pats him on the back awkwardly, not expecting Dandelion to be this happy at seeing him, "Err, I''m great... How''re you doing?"

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 620 Finding trouble, then trouble finding trouble.

    Reima "Err, I''m great... How''re you doing?"

    Dandelion smiles, "I''m feeling fantasti-AHH!" He exclaims in shock as his eyes wander over Quelaag.

    Reima notices this and gives him a hard look, "You mind not being rude to my date?" he asks.

    Priscilla gives him a hard jab and Dandelion quickly composes himself after hearing Reima''s words.

    Dandelion "Oh-er, I am really sorry. I, just didn''t expect to... See someone so beautiful!"

    ...

    Quelaag "Please. I know my form scares some, I dislike your petty attempts to placate me more than your original reaction." she says, frowning with crossed arms.

    Dandelion smiles sheepishly, "Well, I''ll say it again to make it clear... I am truly sorry for my poor behavior."

    Reima shakes his head and changes the subject, "I was expecting to see you bomb on stage Dandelion, shoulda known you knew how to play a crowd."

    Dandelion "Of course! The audience is like a violent mob, play along and do what the majority want and you''ll probably come out without injuries." he says.

    Reima snorts, "Or in your case, with Ego intact?"

    Dandelion nods, "That, but it wouldn''t be the first time I''ve been jumped after not singing so well, or accidentally offending someone from the Eternal Fire by singing about Sorceresses."

    Reima crosses his arms, "So, why''d you come and visit now? I doubt it''s because you heard of our city, or it''s slowly growing entertainment opportunities."

    Dandelion "Well, to be honest, it was Priscilla here that had us coming to Kaer Morhen. It''s not like I didn''t want to come, I did, but I had a business to run an-"

    Priscilla shakes her head, "What this fool is missing from his explanation was the almost imminent takeover of Novigrad by Redania, I wanted Geralt to talk some sense into him, maybe allowing us to move further south or someplace peaceful like Kovir."

    Reima raises a brow, "So you two are together?"

    Dandelion and Priscilla look at each other, both longer than necessary. "It''s complicated." both parrot, giving each other glances when they hear the other.

    Reima nods with a small chuckle, "I understand the feeling..."

    Dandelion "Priscilla just doesn''t understand Reima, my dream has always been to build something of my own, like a caberet or something similar. Beautiful, talented, women sometimes don''t see the bigger picture." he says, drawing a glare from Quelaag and Priscilla.

    Reima "Well, if your looking for someplace... Relatively peaceful, why not set up shop here? Zoltan said he''s thinking of making a trade company to sell some of our goods at... Fair, prices. I''d be willing to help you out."

    Dandelion shakes his head, "I couldn''t ask for so much from you Reima, you may not know but I see myself as an uncle for you."

    Reima "Well then, uncle, I want to give you your "dream" in this slowly growing city of ours."

    Priscilla mimics Dandelion, "As much as it pains me, we can''t accept something so great from a friend... Asking whoever rules this place for something like that would take a lot of effort and many favours."

    Quelaag snorts and Reima widely grins, the bard duo looking at them with confusion.

    Reima pulls out a coin and flicks it at them, Dandelion catching it. "You guys know the names of this city''s currency?"

    Priscilla nods, "The barman called it Sola and Remi?"

    Reima "Yeah, it''s based off of the rulers of the city, Solaire and me." he says, causing the duo to go bug eyed.

    Dandelion "You created this place?" he asks in wonder.

    Reima nods, "With a little help, for now it''s still hidden from the world, but eventually everyone will know about it... I expect people to start immigrating here as soon as it''s existence is common knowledge."

    Dandelion "So... Reima... About that offer?" he says with a grin, the other three struggling not to laugh at his sudden change in attitude.

    Suddenly the Comedy Clubs doors are slammed open and a few Prospects run in, they see the missing foreign duo and shout "There!" before all rushing over and pointing weapons at the two.

    "You two! I told you to stay put, then you immediately leave and disobey my orders!" the Prospect leader shouts.

    Dandelion and Priscilla holds their hands up in the air, scared at this sudden change in mood, if Sans were able to frown he would have, these people interrupting this fun night out of nowhere.

    Reima stands and presses his index finger against the tip of the leaders blade, causing it to burst into particles as it''s structure breaks down. The leader is about to shout at whoever had caused this but pales under his mask when he sees Reima standing there with an innocent smile.

    Reima "Hey, Kulen... Having a good night?"

    ...

    Kulen "L-Lord Reima! My apologies!" he shouts, the other Prospects all dissipating their weapons when they recognise him.

    Reima "You''re lucky these two are friends of mine, what would you have done if they were spies? They''d have entered the library, stolen technology, possibly killed a civilian or some other egregious action, and it''d be your fault."

    Kulen "But Lord, they said they personally knew Sir Geralt-"

    Reima snorts, "Everyone from the far north to Baccal¨¤ knows tales of the White Wolf Geralt, you think they wouldn''t use his name to infiltrate a place where he''s known to stay?"

    Kulen lowers his head, "Of course, my apologies for my ineptitude."

    Reima smirks, "You better start taking your job seriously or I''ll have to speak with Risryn."

    The man''s eyes bulge under his mask, "R-Risryn? Sir, surely you''d not be so cruel?"

    Reima shrugs, "I don''t know, if this happens a second time then I''d be forced to..."

    Kulen straightens and salutes Reima, "It''ll not happen again Lord!... We''ll be on our way." he says, quickly leaving, presumably to do overtime.

    Dandelion wipes some sweat from his brow, "You''ve got them on a tight leash don''t you Reima? Though for a minute there I thought I''d be losing my head, they''re awfully scary with those masks."

    Reima "Well, unless you guys have got something else to do, why not give reparations to Sans for interrupting his Comedy Club?"

    Sans walks up with his hands in his hoody, "Bud, that sounds like a swell idea, the crowd liked your pal earlier... Why not send him up again."

    Dandelion "Ah, really?.. Maybe we should let some one else have a chance first?"

    Sans everpresent grin seems to widen slightly, "Heh, it''s that or I break a couple... Bones for the trouble." he says, though Reima isn''t sure whether it''s just a pun or if he''s serious or not. Dandelion immediately accepts however, proving that the short skeleton can be intimidating when he wants to be.

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 621 Eccentric Trio

    With Dandelion and Priscilla now joining them on their date, Quelaag heaved a large sigh and downed her Whisky, immediately ordering another one while feeling sorry for herself.

    Reima wasn''t really aware why she was now drinking so heavily, being someone who, when he could, drank more than any other being alive. Instead he enjoyed the night with the increasingly clinging Quelaag, Dandelion and Priscilla.

    It was around 4am when Sans decided to finally end the night, having Reima polish the top of his skull was apparently the last straw... Dandelion and Priscilla were led back into their hotel room while Reima picked up the "Hot and Heavy" Quelaag... Though, in this instance she was literally hot and heavy, the flames on her lower body accidentally lighting things on fire due to her drunken state.

    He teleported back to her stone apartment just outside of Kaer Morhen and placed her on the large bed. Her slurring and asking him to join her, obviously, he wasn''t a creep and decided she was too drunk to decide something like that... That and he literally had no idea how they''d actually "Get it on".

    Once that was done he blinked back the balcony and began meditating again, deciding that he''d rather be productive and improve his skills than sleep.

    ...

    ...

    The next morning Reima is awoken by an angry shout, Lambert walking onto the Balcony holding a black bunny in one hand by it''s ears.

    Lambert "Reima, this one has been scratching everyone''s doors since sunrise, some of us have had a long night so please, TAKE CARE OF IT!" he exclaims, dropping the bunny to the floor, it transforming into Nerissa before she lands on the ground.

    Nerissa sends a dirty look to Lambert while rubbing her ears, eventually looking at Reima. "Hungry."

    Reima grins, "What''s this I hear about you scratching on peoples doors like a homeless house cat?"

    Nerissa shrugs, "Couldn''t find you." she says simply.

    Reima nods, retrieves a goblet before filling it with blood. Nerissa grabs it out of the air as he telekinetically floats it towards her and plops herself down on his lap, looking up at his chin between sips.

    Reima "Something up?" he asks, her being more clingy than usual.

    Nerissa slowly nods, "...Lonely."

    Reima''s brows raise, "I thought you were hanging out with Priscilla?"

    Nerissa "Can''t find." she mutters.

    Reima scratches his face, "Must be training her invisibility or something then... What about Ciri? Surely she''s free?"

    Nerissa shakes her head, "Training."

    Reima "Hmm, you not tried making friends with anyone else?" he grins, "How about Grandpa Geralt?"

    Nerissa "Scary." she says, remembering trying to approach the White Wolf but getting cold feet when their eyes met.

    Reima chuckles at this, "Yeah, I can see that... Well, I haven''t got anything else to do today, how about we go looking for trouble in the forests? Soon enough there''ll be monsters flooding from the Dragon Mountains towards the city, might as well get a headstart at clearing them out." he says, the young Vampiress nodding with a smile wide enough to show her fangs.

    Reima puts the girl on his shoulders and teleports to the outskirts of the Dragon Mountains after leaving a note on the balcony.

    It was around sunset when they finally returned, Nerissa covered in disgusting smelling monster blood with a huge satisfied smile on her face. Reima casts a scourgify on her to clean the muck off and pats her on the head, "Fun?"

    Nerissa nods, "Fun."

    Reima smiles, "Just remember that if you ever feel lonely that you can come and find me, even then most people in Kaer Morhen, or even Ichor would be happy to spend time with you, you just gotta make the first move." he says gently to the Vampiress who''s got a satisfied expression as he rubs her head.

    She nods and he sits down to meditate for the night, her sitting on his lap and beginning to sleep in her rabbit form.

    Reima "Sleep well Snuffles."

    The next day Reima was waiting in-front of the smithy with Snuffles sitting on his shoulders, waiting for Geralt to arrive.

    He taps his foot and strikes the rabbits head with a bored expression, "You''d think a Witcher would be on time to receive some swords he''s getting for free." he jokes.

    Geralt "Hmm, as Dandelion always says, "It''s fashionable to be late.", consider it payback for making me wait ten years before you came back." he says, walking beside Reima out of nowhere.

    Reima "I''m guessing you met Dandelion yesterday huh?"

    Geralt nods, "Yeah, apparently he can''t wait for you to build him his business." he says with crossed arms.

    Reima shrugs, almost knocking off Snuffles from his shoulders, "I''ll makesure to get the House Elves started on it... He said he wanted a cabaret but I''m thinking more of an Amphitheater kind of thing?"

    Geralt "Hmm, whatever you give him he''ll be happy about it." he says, walking into the smithy.

    Reima follows after him and they both are greeted with the sight of Andre carving symbols into a round pommel, Vamos performing a ritual with the Chaos Ember and Coaugh wrapping some kind of leather around a handle.

    Geralt "Greetings, are the weapons complete?" he asks drawing all of their attention.

    Andre "Huh, oh-ah! Geralt, Reima, yeah we''re just finishin'' the final touches. We''ve gotten a bit artsy with them at the big guys request, but I feel we''ve done a good job." he says, speeding up his carving, long strings of steel coming away from it as if he were a carpenter working on wood.

    Vamos "He ain''t lyin'', You lot are gonna love these!"

    Geralt and Reima look at each other, wondering what they were so proud to present to them.

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 622 Bait Taken

    The duo + rabbit are made to wait around half an hour for the trio to finish up, the time passes quickly while watching them perform feats that''d take ordinary smiths days, if not weeks to do in mere moments.

    Eventually Andre and Vamos stand up, Coaugh handing the large undead man a sword as they walk over to them.

    Andre "Alright, first I''d like to show ye the lasses weapon." he says, holding out a longsword suited for a women. It has an inscription written across the blade in Izalithian, meaning "Compassion".

    Geralt takes the blade and it begins to glow blue, Reima recognising the blade to have been magically enchanted, making it strikes affect the soul itself. He gives it a couple swings before slashing as hard as it can at a nearby stone wall, carving a chunk out of it without even scratching the blade. "Hmm, good steel." he mutters.

    Andre nods, "It better be, my years in this craft demand it!"

    Reima "I''m guessing you managed to wrangle Rickerts help for the magic enchantment?"

    Andre sheepishly nods, "Aye, we did. Made us bang out special nails, or bolts or whatever they''re called. Not fun work I''ll tell ye''." he says handing Gerat a beautifully designed sheath for the blade that *clinks* as it slides tightly into it.

    Vamos walks up with one sword in each hand, "Me and Coaugh put some effort inta'' these, hope ya like em atleast a bit." he says handing the first to Geralt who sets aside the first.

    The moment the handle touches the Witchers hand it bursts into Dark Red Flames, causing him to extend it away from himself due to the heat it is giving off, though strangely it doesn''t affect his hand.

    Geralt "You said the last one was called "Compassion", what''s this one? Fury?" he asks.

    Vamos shakes his head, "Nah, fine guess though. This one''s called "Might.", I ain''t a poet or nothin'' but I feel it suits it."

    Reima shrugs at the side, "Chaos Flames for might? Can''t think of anything else which describes it better, apart from maybe entropy, power, fire... They probably wouldn''t make "good" names though would they..." he mutters, those in the room ignoring him aside from Snuffles.

    Geralt continues to admire the blade, the pommel unlike the circular one on Compassion, instead, being pointy on both sides, harming the user and the opponent. It''s two-handed and requires strength to use it, though Geralt isn''t lacking any. He nods and slides it into its sheath, the flames disappearing as he does so.

    Vamos hands him the last one, this one bursting into crackling golden lighting as he holds it. "Coaugh calls it "Justice", personally never thought of Gwyn''s old weapon to be "just", but that''s just me."

    Geralt waves it around, poking the lightning with his finger and flinching causing Reima to chuckle. It''s a longsword most similar to his own preference, its pommel shaped into a rounded point with no edge making it only good for precise stabbing. He nods at it and sheathes it, "I appreciate the effort you put into this, they are fine blades." he says.

    Andre and Vamos grin, both grabbing eachother''s forearm, "Aye, well done you gutless, heavy-handed fiend!"

    Vamos "You two you fleshy, toothless ape!" he laughs.

    Coaugh hums contentedly in the background, immediately beginning another project when he hears Geralt''s words.

    Reima "Need any help delivering them Geralt?" he asks.

    Geralt shakes his head, "No, I''ll have Yen teleport us there. She looks like she could use a break from... Whatever her and Ciri are getting up to."

    Reima "I thought you hated portals?"

    Geralt nods, "I do, but "someone" lost Roach... Won''t even come when I whistle..." he says, shaking his head and continuing, "That and I doubt I''d be able to travel through Kaedwen, Redania, and Novigrad without getting into trouble."

    Reima crosses his arms, "Yeah, I guess you''re right... I should apologise, it''s my fault the world''s after us." he sighs.

    Geralt shifts the weapons under one arm and cups Reima''s shoulder, "Reima, our situation now is better than I could have hoped for... Without your help I doubt we would have gotten through the battle against the Wild Hunt alive. Even if I''m wanted by the world, as long as You, Ciri, and our friends are safe I''ll be fine." he says, looking more like a father figure than Reima had ever seen before, almost bringing a tear to his face.

    Reima''s about to respond by a *Neigh!* behind them interrupts the moment, both turn and see Varteand, Reima''s new spy riding up to them atop Roach. "Greetings Lord! I''ve accomplished my mission and retrieved the things you asked for."

    Reima grins widely at him, "I don''t suppose you got that raise from Mensfeld then?"

    Varteand laughs, "Oh, I did, just made sure to retire from his services immediately afterwards, buying these as I left."

    Geralt "Hmm, managed to get Roach back, I owe you... What''s your name?"

    Varteand "Varteand sir, do not worry about me, Lord Reima did my a favour in sparing my life for my treachery... Afterwards providing me with a well-paying career."

    Reima "Seems my investment paid off though, did they take the bait?" he asks.

    Geralt "Bait?" he interjects, confused at what they were talking about.

    Varteand grins, "Indeed sire, the Kaedweni are under the assumption that we have no military might, with only the Masked Assassins to defend ourselves."

    Geralt "Hold up, are you trying to start a war or something?" he quickly asks, knowing full well that they were probably the most powerful group on the planet right now.

    Reima looks at one of the men he admires most and nods, "Yeah, I am. They''ve pissed me off, sent enough spies for me to start a sweatshop with and even attempted to kidnap Ciri. I feel it''s time to let everyone know who''s in-charge on this continent."

    Geralt shakes his head with a small smile coming to his face, "Hmm, fine. Just try not to get anyone killed, and don''t hold back against the countries. I''ve seen their true faces and know the lengths to which they''ll go for victory." he states.

    Reima nods, "Don''t worry Geralt, they don''t stand a chance."

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 623 Destruction and Construction

    Mensfeld stood over a massive table with an equally sized map of the continent lying across it, around him stood his nobility and generals, all seeming confused at this sudden call. "You''re all finally here? Good. Then we can become planning for the immediate future." he says.

    "Apologies my liege but, who are we attacking?" he asks, most nodding at the rather obvious question.

    Mensfeld nods, "I''m sure some of you thought we were going to fight back against King Radovid, or Nilfgaard... But that''s not what we''re here for, no, I gathered you here to strike against those fiends who attempted to assassinate me and successfully assassinated Reverend Albwin."

    A few of the more intensely religious men can feel their blood boiling already, "Here, here!"

    Kreld interjects, "Forgive me King, but after the dragon attack on Rakverelin we are simply not prepared to launch an assault." he says quickly, dreading the man''s response.

    Mensfeld nods, "Indeed, I am not going to force your city to assist in such dire straights."

    Kreld "Then-"

    Mensfeld "Instead, I wish to have Kreld Dragon Bane help lead the army, I''m sure you know the men think very highly of you, our enemies probably even more so."

    ...

    Kreld gives a resigned nod, hopefully he''d make it back to his wife so he could begin rebuilding his city. "Very well sire, I am at your disposal."

    Mensfeld nods, "Of course you are, now. Our spies have gained information that our enemy is severely lacking in men and means to protect themselves. I expect an easy victory, but we will treat this as a proper conflict for practice, and to prevent any mishaps should the intelligence prove unreliable."

    An Eternal Fire priest nods, "The newly instated Reverend Favro Vivort will support your efforts to avange the late Reverend Albwin Ferbert."

    Mensfeld "Good." he says, pointing at Kaer Morhen on the map, "This is where our enemy hides, they will likely barricade themselves within the old keep there. Our siege equipment will bring it down like a house of cards though!" he exclaims with a laugh.

    "What will we do about those Masked Magic Assassins?" one person asks, clearly fearful of those people who''d easily infiltrated one of the most fortified positions in the city, as well as making it out alive.

    Mensfeld "They are but assassins, faced with Kaedweni knights they will bend the knee or die!"

    Kreld "Those Masked people aren''t ordinary assassins my liege, they were able to best me in single combat while surrounded by Witcher Hunters and armoured guards." he says, doubting anything but an army could properly bring them down, especially if they''re able to use magic.

    Mensfeld "Hold your touch, speak only of victory and do your role well, otherwise I''ll find someone to replace you." he states, pointing at him. "Now, begone all of you, we have planning to do, men to train, and an army to prepare!" he shouts, causing everyone to quickly leave.

    After everyone had left Mensfeld was still standing over the table, not thinking about strategies, but how King Radovid would react to his actions. He''d received a letter from him not long ago, explicitly warning him to not antagonise those in Kaer Morhen. However with the information that they were unprotected, he knew Radovid would reward him for removing a threat to the North''s efforts.

    The Dragon attack on Rakverelin was worrying, but could be deduced as a fluke accident, comparable to an earthquake, volcanic eruption or floods. It was something to keep in mind, but not actively worry about... Of course, Mensfeld knew that if the dragon attempted to attack Ard Carraigh it''d be shot down in no time, having already had the battlements fitted with enough ballistae to blot out the sun.

    Elsewhere.

    Alphys points at a blueprint diagram detailing what she knew about the previous core''s functions, "See here? I was surprised to find that it wasn''t only geothermal energy that the core utilised... But magical energy too! With Sans help I''ve managed to separate it into simple parts which should help with designing another!" she excitedly says to Reima and Asgore who''re standing opposite her.

    Reima "That sounds great... Only if it doesn''t permanently affect the ambient magic of the area." he says, feeling as if it was more important for the city to be magically powerful than to have electricity.

    Asgore nods, "I''ve grown fond of the tingle of magic in the air, makes me feel at home wherever I may be." he says slowly with a smile.

    Alphys perks up, "Well! You''ll both be happy to hear that the probability of it permanently affecting ambient magic is almost too low to quantify. Think of it as a... Steam generator... The water evaporates but still exists in one form or another, magic though doesn''t have any other form aside form maybe the crystalline one Master Logan showed me, but that is another matter entirely... What I''m trying to say is, the core will take in magical energy, and spit out an equal amount while creating electricity."

    ...

    Reima "I feel like we''re coming close to breaking the laws of physics... Isn''t infinite energy supposedly impossible?" he asks.

    Alphys gives him a look as if he were a five-year-old, "Reima, where does your magic come from?"

    Reima shrugs, "My soul, why?"

    Alphys "Then, isn''t your soul producing infinite energy?"

    ...

    Reima scratches the back of his head, "I suppose your right..."

    Asgore chuckles at their interaction, "Then, Alphys, when can we expect to see this be created?" he asks.

    ...

    Alphys rubs her hands together, "I''m not too sure King as-Priminster Asgore... Sans is busy with his Comedy Club so it''s just me and Rickert trying to experiment with materials that''d be useful to use."

    Reima "Rickert''s helping you out?"

    Alphys nods, "His knowledge, engineering skills, and magical abilities were surprising as well as incredibly helpful."

    Reima nods, at least Rickert found someone who won''t mock him incessantly... "So, about you needing materials... Have you heard of Titanite yet?" he asks with a grin.

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 624 Vampires hate onions?

    In a hidden clearing protected by a number of spells meant to conceal sight, smell and magic were two people. One practicing magic while the other watched with rapt attention.

    A withing mass of swirling turquoise colours sat in Ciri''s clasped hands as she continued channeling more magic into it with a look of concentration. "A-am I doing this right?" she asks without turning her focus away from the spell.

    Yennefer "I''m not sure, the Sage''s journal says that''s how it''s supposed to look... Does it feel right to you?"

    Ciri nods, "It does."

    Yennefer "Then cast the spell." she says.

    Ciri does as she''s told, pushing her hands out and forcing the orb to quickly float towards the other side of the clearing. The duo wait for something to happen as it gradually approaches the stone wall...

    ...

    ...

    The orb reaches the wall and goes through it, as if it wasn''t corporeal.

    Ciri sighs, "Well that seems like a failu-"

    *VOOM!*

    *CRACK!* *CRACK!*

    Lines quickly start forming in the stone, however, the chips and smaller pieces that break off don''t fall to the ground, instead, clinging to the wall as if gravity were reversed. A moment later the wall implodes in on itself, revealing a circular pit where the turquoise orb is greedily sucking in matter, it continues to grow, enveloping more of the wall as it does so, the duo beginning to get worried in case this doesn''t stop.

    Yennefer spots something peculiar, her shouting for Ciri to get down as she raises a thick wall of stone before them.

    *PFTOOM!*

    The orb finally explodes, releasing dense shards of stone everything, raising dust everywhere it hits as well as drilling deep holes into Yennefer''s raised stone wall. The two huddles low as the dust rises, eventually realising the spell was over...

    Ciri gets up and coughs, the thick dust in the air irritating her throat, she pushes her hand forward with an Aard and clear the area of dust, revealing the devastation wrought by the orb.

    Yennefer "...Perhaps we should hold off on any other spell for now? Mastering this one seem like an appropriate idea?" she mutters, scanning the ravaged clearing.

    Ciri nods, "Look like many bombs had gone off, imagine what that orb would do if it hit someone." she wonders aloud.

    Yennefer shakes her head, "I''d rather not... Soon I should be ready to summon the sage from death, however, with the boost to the surrounding ambient magic it shouldn''t take all that long to prepare, though I am still waiting on Keira to bring the ingredients."

    Ciri shrugs, "Take your time, it''s not like he''s going anywhere." she snarks, beginning to conjure another orb, much smaller this time.

    Elsewhere :

    Reima stands next to one of the training grounds, watching Nerissa and Sieglinde fight, he''d only introduced them an hour ago and they''d been fighting ever since...

    Nerissa darts forwards, flinging Mist knives at Siegelinde who allows the to bounce off of her Onion armour, stepping forwards and swinging her Zweihander sheathed in Dark Red flames at the young vampiress.

    The fourteen yearold ducks low, avoiding the strike while delivering a kick to the side of Sieglinde''s knee, forcing her off balance with her disproportionate strength. Attempting to slash at one of her vulnerable joints with Iaito.

    Sieglinde holds her greatsword in one hand and stabs it into the floor at an angle, causing Nerissa''s blade to be deflected towards a more heavily armoured part, using her free hand to deliver a punch to the young girls face.

    Nerissa catches the punch with one hand, swiftly changing her grip while turning to launch Sieglinde over her shoulder.

    The Catarina knight struggles midair to get into a good position to protect herself, and eventually manages due to this tactic being a common used by the Prospects. She rolls and jumps to her feet as Nerissa pursues her, however, once she turns around she doesn''t see the vampire... A shadow on the ground below the knight alert her, but it''s already too late. Nerrisa had flown over her with mist wings and held a Ruby dagger close to the helmet''s eye slit.

    Reima claps at the side, the superhuman duel being impressive even to someone like him. Nerissa''s shoulder throw and Sieglinde''s rapid recovery surprised him, they''d improved a lot since coming here, and with many much more skilful opponents it was obvious that they''d begin rapidly learning.

    Sieglinde retrieves her sword and sheaths it onto her back, "Nerissa! You battle with strength, skill, and ferocity! Perhaps you''d be willing to don Catarina''s armour?" she asks, hoping to spread the design amongst this world to continue the legacy or her father and their country.

    Nerissa shakes her head, "Onion." she states, causing Sieglinde to almost topple over in despair... Even some so young as Nerissa would mock her?

    Reima walks over and pats both their shoulders, "Good fight guys, believe me when I say, I doubt anyone native to this world... Aside from Geralt would be able to best you guys... Maybe the mages?" he says before going off on a tangent, attempting to rank order the power level of each individual he knows in this world.

    Nerissa and Sieglinde had already left him behind to go watch the other Prospects sparring in a nearby training ground, the duo forming a small friendship despite the former almost never talking. Sieglinde was happy to talk for the both of them though, so that wasn''t really a problem.

    By the time Reima had noted that the girls stood no chance against Elder Vampires and Golden Dragons it was already lunch, he spotted the position of the sun and blinked away quickly, having missed his and Solaire''s meet up at Muffet''s bakery.

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 625 Approaching

    The news from Priscilla that Novigrad was likely to be taken by Radovid relatively soon was troubling to some leaders of Ichor, the more aggressive of the bunch declaring they should just wipe out both factions and everyone else who disagrees with them. Reima refused though, not really giving a shit about Novigrad, it being the home of the Eternal Fire church, as well as its leader''s.

    He knew eventually he''d get to deal with them, but for now he was happy to sit and wait until his baited target rolls up with their army in tow.

    It''d taken another week for the Chaos Covenant temple to be constructed, the place itself looking as if it''d come straight out of Izalith. Long stairways with Dark Red braziers dotting the place, gold inscriptions that supposedly help new Pyromancers have a better chance at controlling their flames without burning to death.

    With its completion they''d already had a few people who wanted to learn the art, they were wary once they learned they''d have to pledge allegiance to the sisters but relaxed when they learned Reima, their king, had gone through a similar process.

    Quelana had only allowed a single flame elemental monster of a similar composition to Grillby to join. Due to their spiritual forms it was suspected they''d instantly burn to death after igniting their soul to create their Pyromancer Flame. He''d be under constant supervision with at least one of the sisters guiding him when he trained. They were called Keahi, and didn''t seem to mind the prospect of "burning to death", probably because they were already eternally burning.

    Despite the sisters being the leaders of the Chaos Covenant, it was Reima who was the most highly regarded, essentially being the new bearer of the Chaos Soul. Reima himself didn''t really mind much, the main hall of the temple being large enough to hold Gwynevere''s couch, allowing him to finally slouch around on it for hours on end... Though the sisters would take advantage of its presence when he wasn''t around, Quelaag doing it even if he was.

    Additionally, the temple had a hole designed to be big enough for the Eternal Dragon to slip his head through, allowing it to converse with his niece and a few others he found interesting enough to engage with. When asked whether it was comfortable for him to do he replies with, "Nothing comforts me anymore, nor does anything cause me discomfort. My place as a protector and a guide suits me well, and provides me with meaning."

    A few Prospects had already given up their masks, mental illness, boredom, fatigue, and wishing to do something else with their lives were a few reasons given. A more common, morbid one however, was that some just wished to live out their natural lifespan and die, finally being freed from "Eternal Torment", though Reima thought they were just being melodramatic.

    The Absolver temple itself looks similar to most of the architecture in Raslan, though the religious symbols were obviously missing. He was surprised to find training equipment similar to the things you''d find on earth... Wooden dummies, brick walls to harden your bones, etc. Most importantly to Risryn however was a spot atop the temple where the mountain winds were strongest, this was supposed to force deep meditation in preparation for receiving a mask, a process which has caused weaker willed men to go insane in the past. Though this was likely due to the Guides irresponsibility.

    With the two temples now beginning to train the new generation of warriors, Reima thought everything was going fine. During a meeting in the War Room Iorveth had some news that''d only improve his mood.

    Iorveth walks to the table and points nearby the Valley entrance, "My men have spotted Kaedweni forces gathering here, siege equipment, armoured cavalry, witch hunters, you name it... This is obviously an army meant for us." he states, causing most of the room to go silent.

    Geralt "Hmm, your plan''s working then Reima."

    Eyes turn to Reima in confusion, wondering how he''d planned this.

    Iorveth "I don''t know about you, but I''d rather not be in the dark, especially on military matters." he says with a scowl.

    Reima shrugs, "I stole one of Mensfeld''s spies and had them report that we are defenceless with no standing military aside from the few Prospects they saw."

    ...

    Vesemir "But why? Are you trying to start a war Reima?" he asks, clearly bothered by this news.

    Reima nods, "I''d rather not go looking for a fight, but will gladly slap the faces of anyone who tries to harm us. Redania and Kaedwen have both tried tactics I personally deem disgusting and dishonourable, so... I''m going to have Kaedwen tell everyone that we are not to be bothered again."

    Quelaag grins sadistically, "By making smoke signals with their burnt corpses?"

    Reima snorts, "While that sounds hilarious, I think letting a few survive would be the easier method of doing it."

    Vesemir "Any reason you didn''t wish to inform any of us about this until now?" he asks, a few others nodding.

    Reima "Because you''d probably disagree." he says with a laugh, a few others snickering with him.

    Vesemir sighs, "Well, please just let us know when you want to engage in warfare... I''d rather be prepared for when it next happens."

    Kuretz "Please, you think anyone''s going to fight us after we shit on the approaching army?" he asks loudly, the rest of the room shaking their heads.

    Reima nods, "Good, then we''re in agreement? Not that there''s any other way anymore."

 626 War with Kaedwen

    Thus, another battle was approaching the walls of Kaer Morhen, now Ichor. In all honesty the people were excited, most looking forward to watching the battle from the city while others wished to participate. Asgore however was rigidly against having any of the none military-trained Monsters fight, despite them being more powerful than the average human.

    The smithes were also being efficient with their time, Priscilla having asked them to make Schall''s golden scales and hide into durable clothing for some of the more fragile people. She also had them and Rickert make a huge gold ring for the Everlasting Dragon that would negate some magic thrown at him. If it were anyone else attempting to put something on one of his horns there is no doubt they''d have been eaten...

    The farms on the outskirts had already been evacuated to prevent anyone from accidentally losing their lives. Last but not least the herd of Unicorns and Thestrals had been corralled back to the city to prevent them wandering into the Kaedweni army, even if they''d be able to run away their existence should be protected.

    Elsewhere :

    On a mountain top a large group of dragons were gathered, all of a variety of colours but the biggest and more authoritative were covered in gold scales.

    One lumbers forwards and puts a claw on a boulder before straightening to address the rest, "Fiends have stolen all of the magic within these mountains! My descendant Weelderigeweegschalen left to cleanse them, but never returned... I am sure you can all sense where the magic had gone, all of it being funnelled into a single place like a dwarf with their gold! My descendant is likely dead, but that only gives us more reason to leave with numbers to avenge him, a kill the scourge siphoning the lands magic!" they finish with an angry roar, flames flickering from their nostrils.

    The rest affirm that they''re in agreement, most despising who''d ever try to drain their lands dry. A cacophony of roars is given and the large gold dragon gives a large sadistic grin towards the mana rich area, vowing to destroy them.

    Elsewhere :

    Mensfeld sat, heavily armoured on an equally heavily armoured horse, riding around his encampment while his soldiers ate their fill and made sure their equipment, as well as the siege equipment, were all working properly. Everywhere he went he was saluted, always nodding in response, eventually he made it back to his large tent, struggling to get off of the horse with the help of a nearby aid. Once on the ground he slowly stumbled into the tent, the heavy armour restricting his movement to such an extent he''d be unable to get off of the ground should he fall.

    A long half an hour later he was free of the armour whilst also sweating profusely, he''d only just sat down when his newly appointed general Kreld walks in, a sour look on his face.

    Kreld "My liege, I know you have already made your decision but, I feel as if the enemy is hiding a lot... Perhaps we shou-"

    Mensfeld throws his goblet at the man, "You listen here, general! Even if the enemy has an army at their disposal they will stand no chance! Another word from you and you''ll be the headless dragon bane, UNDERSTAND!?!"

    ....

    Kreld nods and leaves, already dreading the battle to come, having had a bad feeling ever since he was appointed... Hopefully he''d come back to his wife alive, she said she had some good news... A smile stretching across his face, maybe after this it would be time to lay down his weapon and life a peaceful life?

    It was early morning when the Kaedweni army began to move, the path relatively easy to travel through due to the tree''s and plants still recovering from being turned to ash.

    The army continues through, eventually discovering small farms not before known about... When they finally spot the city, they were stunned... Such a large place built under their noses... A few spotted the dragon statue ominously looking down at them from atop the mountain where some sort of temple was standing.

    Kreld felt shivers go up his spine as he saw it, rubbing his eyes as he could swear it just looked at him.

    Mensfeld straightens his back atop his horse and calls, "Steady men! Build the siege engines!" he roars, the engineers immediately having the cargo dropped to build the trebuchets. The city had no walls, and was just large, tall, stone buildings which would be easily destroyed by their assault, that, and Mensfeld could see the gold covering most of the buildings, greed filling his heart as he thinks about claiming it.

    A soldier points at the city and shouts, drawing everyone''s attention towards it as three figures begin walking towards them. "Should we fire!?!" they ask.

    Mensfeld shakes his head and gestures for them to hold, "No. Perhaps they wish to surrender under the might of Kaedwen!?!" he shouts, the troops behind him roaring in laughter.

    However it slowly dies off as they finally see who''s approaching... One blonde human man with glowing golden eyes wearing golden armour atop grey robes, one Witcher with white hair, turquoise eyes and a scar across his cheek to his ear, he was wearing some sort of Skelligan armour with blackened metal and green-tinted leather, as well as the typical two swords on his back.

    The last one was the most shocking for the Kaedweni though, a very tall creature looking like a humanoid goat with pure white fur and two large horns. They wore gold armour with a purple cloak over it, concealing almost everything under it. Almost as soon as Asgore got into eyesight shouts of "Demon" and "Monster" were shouted within the Kaedweni ranks, though Mesnfeld and his generals managed to hold their tongue, whether it was due to discipline or shock was not known.

 627 Negotiations

    Reima walks up to the Kaedweni army with his hands in his pockets and a relaxed expression on his face. He eyes king Mensfeld who sits atop a heavily armoured horse in-front of the army, his skinny figure hidden by thick metal covering him, his eyes meet a few of the man''s generals and they take a step back as if they''d just been growled at by a predator.

    He stops at a comfortable talking distance to Mensfeld, Solaire and Asgore at his sides standing as confidently as he is.

    Reima "Who''s the leader of this army?" he asks, already knowing the answer but wishing to start the talk in a position of authority.

    A soldier growls at him, "Watch your tongue freak, before you is King Mensfeld of Kaedwen!" they gesture to the person in question.

    Reima nods at them, waiting for them to introduce themselves.

    ...

    Neither speaks however, both waiting for the other to begin...

    ...

    A couple minutes go by when Reima finally gets bored, "I am Reima Ludvig, leader of this city-"

    Asgore "King, of this city." he corrects him.

    ...

    Reima gives the Boss Monster a glare before continuing, "King of this city, you''ve brought an army to our doorstep, is this a declaration of war?"

    Mensfeld laughs, "Declaration!?! That would require another nation, you are no such thing! Just a bunch of vagabonds refusing to pay tax to your betters!" he shouts. "Even if you were, bringing some Monstrous freak before me would be an immediate cause for war, just because you dress it doesn''t mean it''s civilised or intelligent!" he says looking fiercely at Asgore.

    Asgore "Hmm, your insults wound me false king, allow me this question... Did King Radovid, your puppet-master command you to invade us? Or was it your own stupidity?" he asks, clearly mocking the man.

    Reima and Solaire snort and struggle to not laugh at this, never before having seen Asgore go on the attack before.

    Mensfeld has a vein appear on his forehead, his generals looking at him already knowing that Radovid is the true ruler of Kaedwen. "Fucking Monster, shut your mouth or I''ll have you stuffed and made a decoration!" he roars, a few of his soldiers shouting similar insults.

    Reima "For a king you don''t seem all that great, I bet if that douchebag Albwin Ferbert wanted to take your position you''d hand the crown to him. Lucky for you I had him killed." he states, angry shouts of "Heathen" "Demon" and "Freak" are screamed at him as a result of his words.

    One archer even fires an arrow at Reima, clearly breaking the rules of war, however, he just lets it hit him in the forehead, breaking in half and falling to the floor, shocking everyone watching.

    Reima grins, levitating the broken arrow and having the splintered pieces slowly repair...

    Kreld "I-Impossible." he mutters, echoing the thoughts of everyone else.

    Reima "I''ve come to talk with Mensfeld, anymore interruptions will end badly." he states.

    A soldier laughs, "HA! You and what arm-" *CRACK!*

    With a flick of Reima''s wrist the man''s head twist around 180 degrees, killing them instantly, their friends watching at their corpse falls to the floor with a loud thud.

    Mesnfeld grips the horse tighter with his thighs, fear that he''d be instantly killed crawling up his spine. He can barely speak, words not allowing themselves to form in his throat.

    Reima "So, "King"." he says sarcastically. "You are here to invade my city, kill my people and steal my wealth... For, what? Retaliating against your spies? For fighting against your corrupt and evil religion?" he asks, a small amount of killing intent being directed on them.

    Mensfeld starts sweating profusely, goosebumps forming on his arms. "I-I..."

    Kreld steps forwards, seeing his King almost catatonic and unable to reply, "Regardless of your thoughts on our beliefs and country, it is you who chose dishonourable tactics, assassinating a well-respected member of society!"

    Reima leans his head to the side, "Who''re you?" he asks, wondering why he was speaking for his king.

    Kreld straightens up, "I am Kreld Gaeveled Dragon Bane! Ruler of Rakverelin and protector of the people of Kaedwen!" he says loudly, attempting to inspire confidence in the troops behind him.

    Reima and Solaire look at each other with funny expressions, "Dragon Bane? Not "Dragon Slayer", but Dragon Bane... Meaning that you never even killed a dragon?"

    Kreld frowns, "I fought as valiantly as any other man could have against such impossible odds! Don''t dare try to tarnish my honour, fiend."

    ...

    Reima shakes his head, "Whatever, I can see you guys are intent on invading us, I just wanted to give you a warning that if you do, I will personally tear you apart..." he says looking at Mensfeld, turning his attention to Kreld, "And I''ll feed you to one of our dragons." he says with a grin.

    Mensfeld eventually managed to compose himself enough to reply, "Begone, your negotiations have failed, we will see you on the fields of battle."

    Solaire nods, "And what a Jolly battlefield it will be!" he shouts.

    Reima "Just remember that I warned you." he says, grabbing Solaire and Asgore before teleporting back to Ichor. Making the Kaedweni army jump one last time before the battle officially starts.

    The trio reappear in-front of the others, Vesemir immediately asking, "Anything come from speaking with them?"

    Reima nods, "Yeah, they now know who will kill them." he says sarcastically.

    Yennefer asks from beside Geralt, "I hope you have a plan for dealing with those Trebuchets, the damage they''ll cause alone will take forever to fix, not to mention the lives they''ll potentially take."

    Reima grins, "Don''t worry, I''ve already got a plan for those."

 628 Revenge from an Ancestor...

    Kreld watches the trio leave and immediately walks over to Mensfeld, "My liege... Perhaps we should reconsider our attack?" he quickly asks, the confidence with which Reima had said he''d tear them apart still prominent in his mind.

    Mensfeld unconsciously nods for a moment before shaking his head, his pride would not allow him to run with his tail between his legs, especially if they potentially have the advantage against this enemy. "No, tell the men to ready the siege machines!"

    Another general rushes off to coordinate that while Kreld is left standing there, glancing back at the city, his gazing moving to the dragon statue atop the mountain.

    Reima stands atop a building along with Quelaag, Priscilla, Anastacia, Rhea, Solaire, Asgore, Undyne, Nerissa, Geralt, and Yennefer. Most of them were already wearing their gold "Schall" robes, the exception being the men and Yennefer due to "Black suiting her better".

    They all watch as the trebuchets are pulled back with large rocks ready to fire, Priscilla pats her Greatbow and asks "Should I shoot them?"

    Reima shakes his head, "No need, just watch." he says.

    The general on the other side of the battlefield points and shouts "FIRE!", the engineers shooting the trebuchets which have their large arms begin to rotate... However, they didn''t stop where they were supposed to, continuing the arc a full 360, causing the rock ammunition to slam onto the troops on the front-line, killing a small portion of the army off.

    ...

    Scream from the injured and dying men immediately bring the morale of the army low, having just realised their own friendly fire had deal a brutal blow to their numbers.

    Mensfeld watches as they happens and seethes, "WHAT! WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS!?!" he screams in fury.

    An engineer checks the trebuchet he was manning and shouts, "THE SIEGE ENGINES HAVE BEEN SABOTAGED! THEY ARE COMPLETELY INOPERABLE!"

    ...

    Reima begins laughing when the front-line soldiers are reduced to red mist from their own side.

    Yennefer "Now, how did you manage that Reima?" she asks in wonder.

    Reima "You didn''t think I went over to talk with them because I was bored did you?"

    ...

    Solaire "Err, that''s what I thought my friend..."

    Reima shakes his head, "While I was showing off I had Dusk cast invisibility over the House Elves so they could sabotage their siege engines."

    Asgore "As you say... But I get the impression you wanted an excuse to mock the enemy." he says, Undyne nodding seemingly in agreement with Reima.

    Reima shrugs, "Fine, you caught me... Solaire, you wanna just clean them up ourselv-"

    *Roooooaaarrrr!*

    Everyone on both sides of the battlefield looks up, the numerous roars coming from the Dragon Mountains sending chills down ordinary people''s spines.

    Their shadows cover the ground as they begin to block the sun with their bodies, the Kaedweni army all frozen stiff as a flock of dragons fly over them.

    Reima "Err, I didn''t see that one coming... Solaire, Priscilla, it''s time to put your Dragon slaying heritage to good use." he states, both the Sun God and Half-breed nodding.

    Atop the mountain, the Everlasting Dragon straightens up while glaring furiously at the flock heading towards him. He roars, defeating those on the battlefield and overwhelming the pitiful roars in comparison to his own.

    A Gold Dragon swoops in and lands next to the Everlasting Dragon, "I CAN SMELL IT, YOU KILLED MY KIN, OUTSIDER! PREPARE TO DI-"

    Those on the ground watch as the Everlasting Dragon claws the Gold Dragon in the face, gripping its neck and abdomen before tearing it completely in half. Guts, blood, and flesh explode from the now completely dead Gold Dragon.

    Reima "H-holy shit!" he shouts, feeling as if he just watched a wrestling TKO an unaware ordinary person.

    It seems the flock of dragons had the same reaction as him, immediately flying towards the city instead of the mountain top. However the Everlasting Dragon leaps from his perch in pursuit, a blast of fire from his rendering the victims nothing but charred corpses... However, even in death they prove dangerous to the city, their corpse falling towards it, forcing Reima to teleport to them and absorb them into his Folded Space.

    Solaire begins throwing powerful bolts of lightning, the dragon races weakness, picking them out of the air as Priscilla does the same with her Dragon Slayer Greatbow. This creates even more bodies for Reima to have to collect out of the air, making him look like a turquoise blur as the huge corpses vanish one by one.

    The Kaedweni army are shaken by this, but Mensfeld feels now is their only chance at victory, if they work together with the dragon perhaps they still have a chance... "ATTACK! CHARGE! DESTROY THEM!" he screams, his men shouting to boost their own confidence before charging at the city. The heavy cavalry getting closer quickly.

    Quelaag turns her attention away from the battle happening above them and begins conjuring two large chaos fireballs in each hand. Throwing them at the cavalry and causing lava to envelop a portion of the ground in-front of them.

    The horses continue unaware as their riders try to stop them, however, as soon as their hooves sink into the molten rock their legs break due to the moment pushing them, causing the horse to fall face-first into the lava instantly burning them to death while their riders are launched from their saddles to meet a similar fate.

    From the nearby forest Iorveth and his Scoia''tael have already started firing, their titanate infused arrows easily penetrating the thick armour of the Kaedweni forces.

    The battle had started, the two opponents now turned three causing chaos in the previously pristine and silent valley.

 629 Trample

    Iorveth''s group continued to fire arrows into the army, picking off good amount of people in a small amount of time. It wasn''t long before the generals directed some free cavalry to charge their position however, them reaching the treeline in almost no time at all.

    Iorveth and his group retreated into the forest at the cavalry attempted to follow, but they were greeted by two large reptilian eyes glaring at them from the foliage.

    Saskia in her dragon form burst out of the trees and bit one man completely in half before moving onto the next as the squad of men prompted their horses to flee, horrified at what they''d just run into.

    Saskia gives a loud roar as she tramples a couple more horsemen, all the while Iorveth continues to fire arrows at any vulnerable enemies.

    The Flame Guard had already run in-front of the city, forming a wall with their tower shields as the cavalry fortunate enough to not have fallen into the lava created by Quelaag charge them. They stand stead fast and ignite their pyromancy flames while casting Iron Flesh.

    The calvary give sadistic grins as the prepare to trample the tower shield-bearing men under their mounts, but are surprised to find themselves colliding with them as if they''d just ridden into a stone wall. Their horses crumple under their momentum enhanced weight, dying instantly as the riders are thrown over the Flame Guards, into the arms of the Pyreblades who easily slaughter them.

    Yennefer and Keira cast small mana efficient area of effect spells that literally disintegrate groups of soldiers as they attempt to advance towards the city, their focus more on their target and the dragons above them than the witches, making it incredibly hard to dodge their spells.

    The Kaedweni weren''t helpless, however, their archers released a volley of arrows towards the Flame Guard and while they easily blocked it, the same couldn''t be said for the Pyreblades, many getting hit in places their armour didn''t cover. To the dismay of the enemy though, Rhea stepped forth and cast Great Heal, instantly bringing them all back to pique performance and rendering the lucky Kaedweni blows futile.

    Mensfeld watches this with a horrified expression, his large cavalry being played with as if they were untrained peasants. *THACK* An arrow lands nearby him causing his horse to rear up and throw him from it''s back. A general tries to help him up but they''re shot in the temple which kills them instantly, fear forces the false king up despite his heavy armour, him quickly finding refuse behind his other generals, just in time for an arrow clearly meant for him to hit another in the chest... "AS KING I COMMAND OU TO FIX THESE SIEGE ENGINES!" He screams like a dying animal.

    "SIRE! We cannot! They''ve been rendered inoperable unless we dismantle them and use their parts to fix-"

    The Kaedweni infantry had almost reached the city, but the Prospects were still sitting back under the order of Risryn, she wanted to wait for them to get closer to prevent them all fleeing when they inevitably started dropping like flies. The enemy force was quite substantial, thousands strong, but nowhere near the might of the around eight hundred Prospects.

    The Infantry had gotten a good distance to the city and had now started charging towards the Flame Guard, fire rained down on them killing ten or even a hundred of them. Quelaag, Quelana and Quelina all working in conjunction with each other to blast the soldiers with chaotic red flames, leaving nothing but melted steel covered in ash.

    Their charge had slowed due to the magical assault but they''d almost reached the Flame Guard, a roar signalled their imminent attack, which is when the Prospects started streaming out of the city. Each had a weapon unique to themselves through their centuries of combat training in Raslan, and each was comparable to the most skilful warriors this world had to offer.

    A Kaedweni infantry tries to stab at Kuretz as they charge at each other, but he ducks under the stab and slams his spiked metal fist into their face, destroying their helmet and shattering their skull in one blow, immediately moving onto the next. "AHA! FIGHT ME!" he shouts, even more blood splattering against his mask as he travels.

    Talem uses his glaive to sweep the legs of a trio attempting to surround him, jabbing them in the throats and killing them with ease afterwards.

    Risryn is covered in Fold Energy as she moves in between the soldiers, giving small stabs and slashing to their vitals which all prove to be fatal. She''s a blur to the soldiers who are unable to defend against the unseen strikes dealt by her. A Fold Energy enhanced kick from her caves in a breastplate and crushes the unfortunate man''s heart and lungs.

    A few soldiers notice the disparity in combat ability, not having their senses overwhelmed by the battle yet and try to flee, only to be cut down by the generals for being traitors and deserters.

    Siegelinde was in the midst of the battle as well, every swipe of her Zweihander dealing with multiple opponents at once, the chaos infused blade acting like a hot knife through butter, easily crippling or killing any enemy she came across. No one was mocking her armour now, it easily shrugging off the heaviest of blows leaving her to go completely on the offensive.

    She lifts her weapon high and brings it down on a single unlucky man, bisecting him with ease and causing those nearby to piss themselves with fear. Them being unable to move for fear of death from their superiors and the enemy, leaving them easy targets for the Prospects.

 630 Need a hand?

    The Prospects weren''t omniscient though, many falling to blows from soldiers behind them causing them to burst into particles upon death. The Kaedweni numbers were simply overwhelmingly large compared to Ichor''s forces, and while they weren''t gaining ground due to the dead Prospects simply running back into battle after respawning, it did put a lot of strain on the auxiliary forces like the Pyromancer, Scoia''tael and others.

    Seeing that the Dragons could be handled by the others, Ciri blinked between a group of enemy infantry, channeling an ability for a moment before disappearing in a turquoise flash, her reappearing next to the many enemies in the next moment to deliver a strike from her sword Seath.

    Groans of pain and shouts of death are the only thing audible to her until her technique ends, her sword dripping with blood. She channels energy into Seath and spins while slashing at the advancing soldiers behind her, releasing a blade made of pure magic from her sword which cuts down a large swath of them.

    However, despite how many she''d killed, more advance, she ignites her Pyromancy flame and sweeps it in-front of her, covering the floor in dark red flames to prevent them from coming any closer. After stopping their charge she decides to test out her new spell, quickly conjuring the ball of Elder Blood Magic in her hand and throwing it through the fire.

    The soldiers on the other side are confused she a ball of turquoise light passes through a few of them, it stops inside a fat man and instantly causes him body to implode and compress into a lump of flash and steel, others standing nearby being pulled towards him to meet a similar fate. An area soon forms around the writhing mass of turquoise, steel and bloody flesh, no one daring to step near it... Until, eventually... *BANG!*

    It explodes, shooting out everything sucked within back out, remnants of the armour and weaponry of the soldiers becoming lethal shrapnel that impales the other infantry. The lucky ones only being stuck in the face but bloody chunks of flesh of their former comrades, at most knocking them unconscious.

    Everyone who survives the explosion is completely painted red, most gagging at the putrid smell of blood, guts, and death. The general behind them in a state of shock but still managing to order them to charge.

    Ciri who''d been watching grimaces, "Yen was right, that was disgusting." she mutters, blinking away to assist others having trouble in the battle.

    Nerissa had also joined the battle, her short stature allowing her to slip between her allies and penetrate the front-lines. A soldier hesitates at striking her, something she uses to her advantage by severing his arm and crystallising the blood in his veins making him look like a ruby porcupine. She grabs one of the new large spines protruding from his form and throws him into his allies, killing most who''re hit.

    Once done she coalesces the mist into daggers with which she throws haphazardly into the large crowd, probably killing or at least injuring a few.

    A large man attempts to grab her from behind but finds the child stronger than he, having his arms easily broken in her grip before having his neck twisted 180 degrees with a flick kick.

    "DIE HUMANS!" Undyne shouts as she conjures spears and shoots them towards the infantry like a machine gun, killing them due to the soul shock they receive alone.

    Geralt had entered the battle once Ciri had, deflecting two blows, disarming one before cutting them all down in one clean strike.

    Lambert "Makes you wonder, doesn''t IT!" says, blocking a blow and stabbing the offending person.

    Geralt "Wonder what!?!" he asks, casting a strong Aard at a few charging him, knocking them to the ground and leaving them vulnerable to the nearby Prospects .

    Lambert "If we''d killed more humans or monsters!" he shouts, his sword cutting deeply into a man''s arm before he kicks him in the chest.

    Eskel is thrown between them onto the floor by a larger soldier wielding an axe, Lambert looks over his shoulder and asks, "Looks like you need some help Eskel!?!"

    Eskel growls, "No, thank, YOU!" he grunts, throwing dirt in the man''s eyes while hitting him over the head with his pommel. Stabbing him in the throat while he''s disoriented.

    Suddenly a familiar figure barges in to the battle, his titanate infused steel blade cutting deeply into a soldiers chest as he kicks them off. Another uses the opportunity to cut down at them, but are shocked to find them blocking the strike with their left arm...

    *CLANK!*

    Arie "This is for stealing my fucking arm!" he shouts, stabbing the dagger-like fingers into the man''s face, destroying their eyes, cheeks, nose and jaw.

    He retrieves his new arm from the man''s skull, admiring the sleek, silver design of it and how easy it is to move compared to his old silver arm.

    Lambert "Holy shit!" he shouts, Arie looking pretty fucking scary right now.

    Arie "What? Never seen someone get stabbed in the face before?"

    Eskel "Arie, nice to see you stopped bitching about your arm." he says with a chuckle.

    Arie "Fuck you, go have your arm cut off and let''s see you not bitch about it!" he shouts while grabbing a swinging sword out of the air and twisting his hand, snapping it and using it to return the strike.

 631 Heroic battle of Dragons Bane!

    Even Logan and Griggs had joined in the battle, launching Sorceries left and right at anything that looked worthy of a clean death. A Crystal Soul Spear flies through the air and strikes a soldier in the chest, continues and piercing a couple more before nailing them all to the floor, dead.

    The battle between Solaire, Priscilla, Reima, and Eeuwigdurend rages on, the former having finally drawn his sword and shooting powerful white lasers of death at the dragons in the sky. The beam streaked through the sky as the dragons tried to avoid it but a simple movement from Solaire caused it to cut through any creature unfortunate enough to be hit by it.

    This only created more work for Reima though, making him have to blink twice to collect both halves of the dragons hit.

    Priscilla herself was treating this more as target practice, her Great arrows whistling through the air and penetrating deeply into the dragons hide, occasionally hitting their wings and making them fall from the air, Reima having to severe it''s head so he could store it in time before it collided wit the city.

    The thing the dragons feared the most was the Everlasting Dragon however, it''s massive form being unaffected by any attack they made. It completely obliterating anything that dared strike at it, ripping and tearing as if it were called the "Doom Guy".

    On the ground the Kaedweni has finally fixed the trebuchet, launching it as soon as possible... The projectile is off however, the quick fix messing with the strength of its throw, altering the projectiles destination from the city itself to the battlefield. The large rock lands in the front-line, killing Kaedweni infantry and Prospects, while also injuring some Pyreblades. They were dragged in-front of Reah to receive healing and probably would have died were it not for her presence.

    Iorveth shouts at Saskia who''s still helping fight off the large group of cavalry and archers, "Saskia! We need to destroy the siege engine!"

    Saskia nods and focuses on it, charging towards it and trampling everyone in-front of her underfoot. It seems like their worries were misplaced however when Sif sprints towards the backlines with Ciaran on his back.

    Mensfeld and his generals scream in terror and throw themselves to the ground as the titanic white wolf barrels into the trebuchet, easily destroying it while sweeping the engineers with its huge sword.

    Ciaran leaps off and jumps into the group of archers, cleaving at them as they scramble to flee or unsheath their swords. Only to find they''d somehow lost a limb or two, the pain not kicking in until they''d noticed it.

    The Kaedweni forces were beginning to dwindle and the soldier''s morale was the lowest it''d ever been. The gruesome ways they were dealt death by the enemy made even the most loyal rethink attending the battle, with only the threat by the generals keeping them compliant.

    However not long after all the cavalry were dealt with Sif and Saskia both started attacking the backlines of the infantry, killing most of the generals swiftly, and causing the soldiers to start fleeing.

    The Prospects followed, easily catching up to the heavily armoured infantry and cutting them down as they fled.

    Sif seemed to have gotten excited by the chase as he''d dropped his sword and started picking men up and throwing them in the air, the fall instantly killing them as they hit the ground.

    The men spotted Kreld helping Mensfeld up after Sif''s carnage, they all began to shout for "Kreld Dragon Bane" to slay the dragon, them referring to Saskia.

    He got a cold sweat and momentarily pondered whether or not it would be dishonourable to flee already? The large green dragon eyed him and he somehow found his bravery, him stepping forth and pointing at the dragon, "DRAGON! I AM KRELD DRAGON BANE! FIGHT ME AND LEAVE THESE INNOCENT MEN!" he shouts as loud as he can, the fleeing soldiers beginning to slow as Kreld tries to defend them.

    He charges Saskia with his sword, reaching her and slashing at her face...

    *Clank*

    His sword bouncing off of her scales as she looks down menacingly at him...

    Kreld backs off, "Ah-er-erm... Mercy?" he asks.

    *CRUNCH!*

    Saskia slams her claw onto him, flattening and crushing his body, instantly killing him.

    The soldiers who were watching this with hope in their hearts had felt part of themselves die, their legs already moving without their knowledge. The few people who survived sprinted past Mensfeld who tried to escape, but found it difficult to move in the heavy armour.

    Risryn gives a flying kick to the back of his head, knocking him to the floor, a few Prospects turn him around so he''s facing the sky.

    Risryn looks down on him, "False King, you have been captured and are at our mercy... I promise, you will be treated as well as your Eternal Fire treats its prisoners." she states, causing the king to piss himself in fear at the thought of being burned alive.

    Kuretz "Ahahaha! Look he''s pissed himself, who''d have thought such a coward would be king!" he shouts.

    Reah slowly walks up and examines the king for injuries, not wishing for him to die before Reima got his hands on him. She lifts his head and points to the sky where the midair battle was still happening. "You dishonour the title of king, behold what our own monarch can do for our people." she says, pointing at the far figure of Reima who''d just beheaded a dragon midair before storing its body.

    Reah "You are nothing, just like the rest of the false kings." she states.

 632 Monsters?

    Solaire and the Everlasting Dragon had both just annihilated two separate Gold Dragons, with the loss of their leaders the other lesser dragons immediately started fleeing for their lives, vowing to never again enter this beast''s territory.

    Reima had a droplet of sweat crawling down his face as he fell through the sky after picking up the last corpse. The constant teleporting, use of the Folded Space, as well as him utilising his Observation Haki had begun to tire him out, not having to use this much power in recent memory.

    He blinks back to the rooftop where Yennefer, Keira, Priscilla, and Solaire are, the latter duo giving him a look of concern due to his increased breathing from usual.

    Solaire "Are you okay my friend? You seem tired..."

    Priscilla nods and wipes the droplet of sweat from his face, "Are you injured?"

    Yennefer "Injured? He''s just sweaty from fighting a legion of dragons... I''d be worried if he were not!" she says.

    ...

    Reima "I''m sweating?" he asks, the others becoming confused at his happy tone.

    Yennefer nods, "Just a touch."

    Reima grins, "That''s good news... Anything unexpected happen on the ground?" he asks, changing the subject.

    Yennefer shakes her head, but just as she is about to answer a familiar voice shouts in between the shuddering of the ground.

    Saskia in her dragon form stretches, her head poking above the building to reveal Iorveth hanging onto her neck.

    Iorveth "Reima! The enemy has been routed and are fleeing, we''ve captured Mensfeld as well... Should we cut down the rest trying to run?" he asks.

    Reima shakes his head, "Don''t bother, we need someone to tell of what happened here... Who better but the mentally scarred soldiers of the battle." he says with a chuckle. "Now, shall we take a look at our prisoner?" he says, disappearing in a turquoise flash before reappearing next to Mensfeld.

    The heavily armoured man squeals and tries to shuffle away, the nearby Prospects laughing at him.

    Reima pins him to the floor with a foot on his chest and smiles down at the King. "So, it seems you''ve come out the worst in the conflict between us... I wonder what happened to your Dragon Bane?"

    Ciaran "He was crushed by Saskia." she says, her expression unseen behind her helmet.

    Reima breaks into laughter when he hears of this, "Pfft, hahahahahaha! Man, what a shitty "Dragon Bane" he was."

    Risryn nods, "What will you do with this man?" she asks with interest.

    Reima scratches his face and ponders the question, never having expected Mensfeld himself would appear with the army, or if he did, not staying for their defeat. His gaze is drawn towards the man''s arms and legs, a cruel idea coming to his mind. "Burning him to death would be ironic, but... I feel like something different would be a better choice." he says with a grin, the cowardly man paling at his words.

    He drops the king in a cell and quickly leaves, deciding that his interrogation could wait as he had a party to attend to...

    A few days later :

    Radovid looks up in bordem from his chair at the person addressing him, "Have the crime lords accepted the coin yet? Any longer and I''ll simply just have them killed." he remarks.

    "No my liege, they seem to be negotiating with one another about whether or not you''ll allow their presence within the city to remain after the war is over."

    Radovid frowns, "Criminals that think of the future? What has the world come to?... Assure them that they will always have a role within Novigrad, and that I will not betray my word." he says, thinking that he would always need people to manage the sewage within such a large settlement.

    *Bang!*

    "My liege!" shouts the man who''d just run in.

    Radovid waves off the previous man, giving a "Do not mistake my words, or it will be on your head." before turning his attention to rude intruder. "Yes? I hope the urgency in your tone is valid, or I''ll have your tongue remov-"

    "Kaedwen has been defeated! Mesnfeld has been captured!" he exclaims.

    ...

    Radovid sighs, "I suppose it wasn''t the Empire that was involved, was it?"

    The man shakes his head slowly, "No sire... You are correct, King Mensfeld attempted to invade a northern keep known as Kaer Morhen, the ones responsible for the assassination of Reverend Albwin Ferbert. I-I don''t know if the stories the soldiers spout are true but... The clear power shown by this foreign power is troubling to me." he says.

    ...

    Radovid leans back in his chair, "How many simpletons will die from not following orders? It seems I was mistaken in my choice for Kaedwen''s King, Mensfeld is-was, clearly inept."

    "Mensfeld might still be alive sire, we only need to randsome-"

    Radovid "We will do no such thing, leave him to rot in whatever cell they''re keeping him, stupid dog... Tell me, what do the soldiers who survived the skirmish say about our opponent?"

    ...

    The man hesitates, but a glare from Radovid has his tongue wagging, "Sire, they tell stories of a city of gold, dragons, and monsters. They say they battled immortal beings under an army of winged beasts, ungodly magic that mutilated and burned, sliced and crushed... They were all previously deep adherents of the Eternal Fire, but after the battle they all seem to have renounced their faith, believing that gods live among us, though they are not merciful, nor kind."

    Radovid rubs his face, "Is... Is that all?"

    They shake their head, "There are many stories, but all agree on one thing... Whatver that city is, whoever inhabits it... They are not human, dwarf, elf, or any known race of these lands."

    Radovid "Monsters, hmm?" he murmurs.

 633 Building a wall, and making Kaedwen pay for it.

    The party after the battle now named "Kaedwenian''s Despair" had been bigger than any other Reima had been involved in... Endless drinks, food, dancing etc, Dandelion and Priscilla had begun the night by singing for everyone, the duo having written some songs based on the battle. It wasn''t long before everyone had memorised the words and began singing them all night long.

    Even the Everlasting Dragon had a few drinks, the smell of roast dragon flesh bringing him from the mountain. While some would consider it cannibalism, dragon''s simply didn''t mind, the nutrients from such a magical beings flesh outweighing the taboo of kin-eating.

    The blood that wasn''t able to be cleaned up from the battlefield had attracted Ghouls halfway through the celebration, but the Thestrals tore them apart with the help of the Unicorns and ate them, proving themselves to be more than just unique looking creatures.

    The next day Reima woke up in the middle of a courtyard surrounded by passed out Prospects, Monsters, and Chaos servants... If this was any indication to how the celebration had gone, then it was an awesome party.

    The next couple of days Reima had begun tutoring Hinky on how to torture and interrogate people... Starting with Mensfeld. He''d decided that he couldn''t very well interrogate every single person they''d capture, so training Hinky to do it was the next best thing.

    Mensfeld screams from having a glowing red brand shaped like an Igni sign pressed against his stomach, Hinky has a look of concentration as she makes sure the brand stays on long enough and with enough pressure to brand the man clearly.

    Reima snorts at how serious they are when torturing people, "Well done Hink-

    Mesnfeld "AHHHHH! GODS! HELP! PLEASE MERCY!"

    Reima coughs into his hand, "Ahem, well done Hinky. That''s what I''d call a perfect brand if ever there were one." he says, causing the House Elf to beam at him.

    Hinky "Should Hinky do again?"

    Mesnfeld "PLEEEAASESE NOOO!"

    Reima "Err, maybe he''ll be willing to talk now?" he says, the House Elf''s ear slumping like a sad dog.

    Hinky "Yes Master..." they say while retrieving a vial of Veritaserum, it also incidentally being the first vial created by Quelina and Vesemir. "Drink this slave."

    ...

    Hinky holds the brand menacingly, "Drink."

    Mensfeld quickly nods and drinks it, feeling nothing nad glancing at the duo questioningly, as if they''d just poisoned him.

    Hinky "Who dids told you to attack us?" they ask.

    Mensfeld unconsciously answers, "N-no one... It was me..."

    Reima raises at brow at this, having expected Radovid to have been involved, "Are you the puppet of Radovid?"

    Mensfeld quickly nods, "Y-yes, he must be resp-" he chokes as if he''d eaten something disgusting, being unable to speak the life-preserving words.

    Mensfeld nods, "I-I was told not to... Antagonise you."

    ...

    Reima scratches his face, not having expected Radovid to try and leave them alone, temporarily at least. After this question he sits back and lets Hinky ask everything from the list he''d compiled, and other things they themselves had thought up... Though he was confused at why Hinky''d want to know if he was homosexual or not...

    A couple hours later it was decided that he knew literally nothing about Radovids personal plans, him being nothing but a figurehead to rule Kaedwen until the war ended. It was likely Radovid wished to take Kaedwen under his complete control after the Nilfgaardians had been fended off.

    Reima didn''t really know what to do with Kaedwen now, he had neither the people nor the will to take the kingdom over, the same could be said for the council, Quelaag, Quelana, and Reah being the only ones wishing for conquest.

    Atleast with this battle no one else would want to fuck with them, the stories from the soldiers being enough to stop even the most hungry for war to hesitate. He''d wait and see what Radovid did with Kaedwen, depending on his choice for the next king they''d see whether or not Ard Carraigh would burn.

    The next few days the valley would see many looters and brigands attempting to scour the battlefield for any valuables, most would be torn apart by Sif or shot by Iorveth and his men. Though, a few also attempted to murder the Monsters tending to farms on the outskirts, which has Reima really fucking pissed.

    They were imprisoned and given to Hinky for further training, Reima relieving his own anger on Mensfeld by removing all of his limbs, handing the limbless man to a messenger and ordering them to deliver the torso to Radovid.

    After that he''d gone to the entrance of the valley with some House Elves and began constructing a massive wall that''d connect to the mountains on either side, he''d had the smiths infuse titanite into granite and used the enhanced material to build a huge wall, ten stories high with the top plated in gold, as well as cannons using Zoltan''s Mahakam brew.

    Due to the rivers leaving the valley he had to make a channel for it through the wall, but a few runes that would electrocute any sentient being that attempted to swim through it provided enough protection until he found a better solution.

    It would take months to build but would allow Ciaran, Sif, and Iorveth to stop patrolling within the valley. Instead, using their time to watch for monsters coming from the Dragon Mountains or scouting outside the wall.

    Reima also planned for the gate to be massive and not act as a weak point like most generally were. A couple runes that''d lighten or make it heavier depending on whether or not it was being opened would make that intention a reality. The ambient magic of the city even allowing him to make the wall incredibly magically resistant, so much so that all of the members of the Lodge combined would not be able to breach it.

 634 Quick replacement.

    Radovid was not a kind man, but being delivered the limbless former King of Kaedwen had him reconsider immediately executing him... He''d had the whimpering man patched up and given a room to recover, though, he obviously wouldn''t be getting any of his limbs back.

    After the man had finally stopped screaming and begging for him life Radovid''s agents were able to extract some interesting information about the city called "Ichor"...

    He was slightly regretful that he had all of the known mages executed and persecuted, their council would have been valuable with this information he'' acquired... And even if the Witch Hunters had compiled as much magical knowledge as possible, they weren''t practitioners and had no practical knowledge of it.

    After they were sure they had nothing more to learn from Mensfeld they had him unceremoniously buried alive, Radovid praying that he''d not be such a big failure in his next life.

    His plans had to be significantly altered due to the new information about the foreign faction, though he didn''t panic. He suspected they didn''t wish to conquer like the empire did, Kaedwen still not having been countered attacked being a testament to this.

    He had a new King for Kaedwen in mind, someone suitable for the role, and someone suitable at keeping "Ichor" in check... The only problem was the fact he''d have to promise to give a substantial reward to this person, as wealth, women, or knowledge would not appeal to them.

    Radovid "I need a messenger, one with good relations to the former country of Temeria."

    A few days later the council of Ichor received news that Kaedwen''s next King wished to speak with them about their tenuous relationship, apparently hoping terms could be made that would prevent further conflict. Most were surprised at how easily leadership was transferred to another, it seemed as if the devastating defeat by a relatively small and unknown faction had most patriotic Kaedwenian people stay quiet... That and Radovid''s obvious take over of the country had their spirits broken even before now.

    Again, Quelaag wished to have them burned alive as soo as they arrived, however calmer heads prevailed. Reima mostly hoping that getting rid of the Eternal Fire form Kaedwen was on the table.

    And so, a week went by, the people of Ichor not changing in demeanor from the battle due to how confident they were in the city''s military might and their King''s power.

    Reima was spending most of his time focusing on mastering his aura, the fact that he was able to sweat being a big indicator of his progress. Ciri and Yennefer had also come by and showed him some magics the former had begun to learn from Avallac''hs journal, he wasn''t surprised to hear that the sage had been stalking, manipulating and directing Ciri''s lineage, nor was he surprised when they handed him a list of spells they''d been able to translate into workable formulae.

    He was lead to a clearing by Ciri and Yennefer where they showed him some of the spells the former had manage to cast, most looking impressive, while some looking remarkably similar with spells he''d come up with on his own... Though, they were more refined than his brute force method of utilising Elder Blood Magic.

    For example, him enveloping his sword in Elder Blood Energy during his fight with the four kings in the abyss, Ciri had managed to use a similar spell that used a lot less energy, though, it was noticeably less powerful.

    Ciri thrust her glowing Turquoise blade at the stone wall, producing a spear of similar colour light that cut a few meters into it, she sent a competitive glance at Reima before moving into another technique...

    When Reima decided to use his own self made technique it almost caused the cliff face to collapse... The shocked faces of Ciri and Yennefer were well worth it though.

    Yennefer "I say... Have you taken a look at the Sage''s journal while I wasn''t looking?" she asks.

    Reima shakes his head, "No, just using a spell I''d made a couple years ago... Haven''t really used it up until now though."

    Yennefer "Why? It seems powerful enough..."

    Reima shrugs, "Never really had a use for it, plus when fighting with allies you''d be more likely to kill friends than foes." he says, mentally noting how awkward it is to have Ciri ignoring him and interacting through Yennefer...

    Their practice continued, Ciri displaying everything she''d managed to learn up until then, and even some spells that she wasn''t all that confident in using, Reima''s presence pushed her into trying to one-up him, however.

    Eventually, they separated, Reima being left with a copy of the journal they were researching as Ciri and Yennefer left to do something else... Reima was sure Ciri was tired of acting all "Tsundere" around him though.

    A couple days later, a Prospect who was watching over the construction of the new wall ran to Reima who was having tea with Asgore "The Kaedwen entourage is here! What should we do!?!"

    Reima gives Asgore a glance before turning back to the Prospect, "Let them through, have them wait outside the gates... Not too close though, I wouldn''t put it past them to smuggle an explosive for revenge. Have Ciaran, Sif, Iorveth, Risryn and Sieglinde accompany them to makesure they don''t cause any trouble."

    The Prospect nods and runs off, relaying his orders to everyone involved, if anything were to go wrong he''d likely have his mask removed by Risryn... But that was before she beat him to death a couple times.

 635 Friendly Face

    The ornate carriage belonging to Kaedwen was allowed passage while under the watch of Ciaran, Sif, Iorveth, Risryn, and Sieglinde. Each was ready to cut down the guards as well as everyone within the carriage should things look sketchy, though they didn''t expect such a bold move from a country they''d easily beaten in all-out war.

    Reima and Asgore stood outside the city waiting for them to arrive, both having remarkably different assumptions of the reasons for this visit.

    Reima thought that Kaedwen and Radovid as a result was trying to save face, bargain for terms they had no right, or position to try claim. He''d aired these thoughts to Asgore who shook his head,

    Asgore "I believe this King Radovid wishes to avoid further conflict with us, fighting a war against the Nilfgaardian empire is taxing enough, add us? The North would fall in a matter of weeks or months."

    Reima nods, "I guess that sounds right, he''s supposed to be a genius commander, negotiator, and politician... Among other things, though, I''m wondering who he''s sent to try and quell the conflict?"

    Asgore "I am still not familiar with this world, nor it''s inhabitants but I suspect it will be someone you know personally." he guesses.

    Reima "Well, we''ll get to see soon... Look." he says pointing at the entourage moving in their direction with a carriage in the middle of them.

    Due to there not being a proper road built yet it takes it''s time, trundling across the dirt, burnt remains of plantlife and shards of metal from the battle.

    It eventually crawls to a halt a good distance away from the city, as per Reima''s command. The people under his control stand at attention near it as the door to the carriage opens, someone stepping out and revealing familiar blue clothing...

    Reima "Roche?" he asks, the Temerian Blue Stripe uncomfortably looking around, knowing that for all intents and purposes, he was now their enemy.

    Roche "Reima." he says, slowly walking towards them, leading Ves who''s the next person out of the carriage.

    Reima goes up to meet them, grasping Roche''s forearm ina friendly gesture before doing the same to Ves, "I don''t understand... Are you escorting the Kaedweni King?" he asks, doubting that Roche would accept the position.

    Roche rubs his chin and neck sheepishly, "No... I''ve been given the position by King Radovid." he says, with an apologetic expression.

    Reima leans his head to the side, "Huh, what''d Radovid offer you for that? Enough gold to build a country?"

    Roche shakes his head, "No, he made an offer a patriot couldn''t refuse... He''d assist in retaking Temeria, he vowed to not interfere in its reformation and even promised to provide funds, men and supplies to get started..."

    Reima "Are you so sure of Radovid''s ability to take Temeria from Nilfgaard?" he asks

    Reima shakes his head, disagreeing as he thought Radovid would have lost already if he''d not interfered in defending Skellige. "Oh, right... This is Asgore, the Priminister of Ichor." he says gesturing to the large humanoid goat behind him.

    Asgore "Greetings, I am Priminster Asgore, former King of the Monster race."

    Roche and Ves''s eyes widen but they quickly regain their composure, having already spent enough time within this city to know it was not as normal as the rest of the world. Roche bows respectfully, "We haven''t met yet, I am Vernon Roche... King Roche of Kaedwen." he corrects himself.

    Asgore "Shall we talk over some tea? Seeing as you are old friends I don''t see why we need to keep the hostility between our countries."

    Roche nods, "I know what you are all capable of, if you still wished to conquer Kaedwen then I''d send the news to Radovid that it is a certainty." he states, following Asgore and Reima as they head towards Kaer Morhen keep, Ves quickly trailing Roche.

    The group eventually reach a room with large windows, allowing the sunlight to stream in. On one side of the room is a small table, decorated with a vas holding a single yellow flower.

    Asgore "Hinky? Be a dear and retrieve some extra chairs for me." he asks the air, two extra chairs appearing next to the table as if it were normal. He then walks to the other side of the room where a small kitchen had been set up, Asgore quickly preparing some tea as Reima, Roche, and Ves sit own opposite each other.

    Roche "I must say, this city of yours is coming on well... Though, I must question the need for every building to be plated in gold." he asks while looking out of the window.

    Reima "I''ve got more gold than this world probably has in its mines, it''s just a valuable metal, so why not use it for something decorative?"

    Ves "Yes, but most people simply have jewelry made, not plating a city in in it."

    Reima chuckles, "Well, I''m not most people, am I?"

    The three of the laugh, Roche continuing to press for answers, "May I ask where all those new... Monster residents came from?"

    Reim shrugs, "Same place as the Prospects and Chaos servants... Another world entirely." he says.

    Roche and Ves look at each other, a familiar look they''d give each other when facing unwinnable odds. "How this world has lasted so long with the presence of your ancestors is a complete mystery to me, maybe your just the best of them? Or the most ambitious." he wonders aloud.

 636 Disestablishmentarianism

    Asgore walks over and sets down a tray of tea and some cream and jam scones to go with it, Ves immediately biting into one and showing a blissful expression.

    Roche "Ves, have some propriety, we''re supposed to be here for diplomatic purposes."

    Reima snorts, "Relax and eat one Roche, if I were to treat you properly as the Kaedweni King I''d probably have you executed if I didn''t like what I heard."

    ...

    Roche slowly nods, takes a scone and bites into it, retraining himself as his face contorts into one of pleasure.

    Ves elbows him with a smug smirk, Roche immediately regaining his composure with a sour look. "See?" she asks him.

    Roche nods a sips the tea, "What kind of tea is this? I''ve never had something like it before..."

    Asgore smiles, "Monster Tea, my own blend. I''m glad you like it. Be sure to add sugar if it''s too bitter for your liking."

    Ves shakes her head, "It''s perfect."

    ....

    Reima "Right, enough about tea, we should probably get on topic as to why you''re here."

    Roche puts down the cup and nods, "I am here on behalf of Kaedwen to negotiate peace."

    Reima grins, "You do know that it was Kaedwen that attacked us first right?"

    Roche has a bitter expression, "I do... For our part in such a traitorous and unfounded attack I think some terms are needed. As your friend, I want to give you terms as the former King was mad and never should have attacked you... As the King of Kaedwen the terms would act to reassure the people that another conflict is incredibly unlikely." he reasons.

    Reima nods and gestures towards Asgore, "Any idea''s on what''d be useful to us?" he asks, wishing to hear but his Priminster has to say first.

    Asgore sips his tea and thinks for a moment, "I believe roads would be the first request, built by us of-course, the craftsmanship of this world has made me question the capabilities of humans altogether. Road''s would only be a start, something that would benefit both our countries would be trade... I know the Dwarf Zoltan has already begun his own company in preparation for such an occurrence, we have many commodities not seen before in the outside world... Monster food that heals the body and soul, Acromentula silk that is stronger than steel, legendary weaponry, technology and much, much more."

    Roche nods, "I think we can both agree on that, I suspect people would begin to melt your coins down as soon as they got into circulation. I''m also not opposed to having trade relations with you, these simple confections being proof enough to the quality of what you can produce." he says.

    Reima "So we are in agreement on this... I''d also like to mention that we''d have to patrol the road to prevent bandits, or event organised groups from stealing from us... Our goods would likely gain a quick reputation for their expense and quality, something that most bandits would salivate at procuring."

    Roche nods, "I think I can agree to that, our own forces not really being a match to your own in mobility, strength or indeed, speed."

    Reima "There is one vital term that you would have to accept for any relations to be made at all though..."

    Roche "What are you referring to?" he asks.

    Reima "The disbanding of the Eternal Fire from your cities, the integration of disestablishmentarianism as well as the creation of laws to prevent hate crimes against other races. With the large variety of races within Ichor, it is essential that my people would not be persecuted in your cities." he states, Asgore nodding.

    Ves "Er, what is dis-is-tablish-ment-anism?" she asks, incredibly confused at what he''s referring to, Roche looking at him with a similar quandary.

    Reima "The separation of church and state... Right now, the Eternal Fire has a firm grip on your populace, nobles, and even your courts. I suspect if Zoltan even entered Ard Carraigh he''d be tied to a pyre and set ablaze."

    Roche "That... That''s a big ask Reima..."

    Reima nods, "It is, but I will state this clearly, just so Radovid understands your dilemma... Ichor will never be at peace with Kaedwen as long as the Eternal Fire is a prominent faction within it. Indeed, the war will continue if the Church of the Eternal Fire remains, I swear to you Roche, if you do not disband that cult of pyromaniacs then I will cleanse them from Kaedwen for you." he states, with no indication that he''s bluffing.

    ...

    Roche downs his tea and thinks for a moment, "I-I don''t think I can agree to that term... Without proposing some of my own." he says, waiting for a reaction from Reima but continuing when he gives none, "I will need a non-aggressive pact, as well as a promise not to aid Nilfgaard or any enemies of the North. It is no well known but Radovid only keeps the Eternal Fire around because it is useful, he wouldn''t blink an eye to your terms if you agreed to not interfere in his war... Indeed, he''d probably consider it a victory due to relations being made with you."

 637 I feel it in my bones, enough to make my system blow.

    Reima "That''s acceptable, good relations would be required if we were to trade with one another, though, I''m unsure how easy it would be for you to get rid of that cult-like religion from Kaedwen entirely."

    Roche nods, "It will be a difficult task, but I doubt the people will attempt to stop it since it''s required to keep war from their doorstep. Losing a war is worse for the people than it is the country itself." he says, himself despising the religion due to it actively decreasing the strength of the North by persecuting mages.

    Asgore "So, we are in agreement? Roads will be built and trading encouraged, the Eternal Fire will be disbanded and laws created to prevent religion from interfering in government affairs... A non-aggressive pact will be established between Keadwen and Ichor and the latter will promise not to assist the enemies of the North in any way... Is that all correct?"

    Reima and Roche nod, "I think that''s everything, unless you wanna add Ves to the deal." he says with a wink and a grin.

    Ves blushes and Roche snickers, "I don''t think a deal is needed, just ask and she''ll toss her clothes off and greet you with open le-Ouuhhh!" he''s interrupted by a punch to the ribs.

    Ves "I''d appreciate you keeping quiet, King." she quickly says.

    Reima chuckles and stands, "I think this was productive for both countries, it was smart of Radovid to send you." he says, while shaking Roche''s hand.

    Roche nods, "There wasn''t really anyone else for the job I''m told, otherwise Radovid wouldn''t make such a great promise about Temeria, him having eyes on it since Foltest was killed."

    Reima "You guys gonna stay and explore the new businesses in the city?" he asks, trusting that they wouldn''t do anything uncouth.

    Roche shakes his head, "No, we better get back before the nobles start trying to proclaim themselves king or something, the troops Radovid gave me should be enough to handle them, I would ask for your help but it would be seen as some sort of occupation."

    Reima nods, "Well, King or not, you are always welcome here." he says, leading the duo out the door, Ves cradling a handful of the leftover scones.

    The meeting took around an hour, their conversation being relaxed and divided between small talk, tea, and scones as well as the more important aspects of politicking. Roche and Ves were delivered back into the carriage and escorted out of the city, Reima and Asgore watching them leave and hoping the terms would be accepted by the nobles, but more importantly, by King Radovid... If not, Reima would follow through with his threats and personally bring a rain of fire, death, and destruction upon the unruly cities inhabited by those racist cults of fascists and fanatics.

    Reima "Think our terms will be accepted?" he asks aloud, not looking away from the carriage now growing distant.

    Elsewhere :

    Quelaag watches as Ciri meditated, them having just finished a session improving her control over her Pyromancy Flame. She watches closely as Ciri begins to sprout feathers on her hands, Quelaag placing a hand on her shoulder to gently wake her up, having been warned that going through an animagus transformation without supervision is incredibly dangerous.

    The feathers disappear and Ciri wakes up, "D-did something happen?"

    Quelaag nods, "You were doing it again." she states, Ciri frowning.

    Ciri "I... I''ll need to ask Reima to watch over my transformation then..."

    Quelaag "You don''t seem happy about that?" she asks, already knowing that they''d had an argument.

    Ciri "That''s none of your concern..."

    Quelaag shakes her head, "You''re right, I''m just being nosey." she says sarcastically, "Maybe we should stop for today... I just remembered I have a couple of things to do." she says, getting up and scuttling from the balcony.

    Ciri is left alone, still frowning at the thought of asking Reima for help... Their previous fight was nothing more than a squabble, but she found herself embarrassed and too prideful to apologise. Her talks with Yennefer and Geralt didn''t help, the former telling her to find some dirt on Reima and have him apologise first, the latter telling her to face her problems head-on like a "Proper Witcher"...

    She smiles, "Idiots the both of them..." she mutters.

    Ciri felt like she was in some kind of limbo, and that it wouldn''t be long before she was forced to run again. The city and people too peaceful to be real, despite her being involved in the creation of it... She knew she had to do something before it was too late, and she''d use this opportunity to fix her relationship with Reima while she was at it.

    Elsewhere :

    A man covered in skeletal looking armour sat on a throne of modern junk, the armrests being adorned with the skulls of a cat and a mouse. He looks over his men, all kneeling before him. Most were present, with the exception of his general Ge''els who''d refused to come with him. Imlerith stood on his left, one of his arms missing while Caranthir stood on his right, fortunately with both body parts.

    What surrounded them were the burnt ruins of a large city that looked like New York, orange and red smoke and debris filled the sky, no sunlight coming through the thick clouds despite it being a summer''s day. No one was around either, the only human presence being the litany of burned corpses.

    Caranthir and the few remaining Navigators maintained a shield around them that kept out the radiation from the nuclear bombs they''d triggered, the time they''d spent within the world allowing them to swiftly annihilate the annoying human race while they took refuge there.

    Eredin "Soon, we will have our revenge."

 638 Quetzalcoatl

    Reima was sitting atop the Chaos Temple, the place being suitable for any dangerous large scale magic due to its location. In his hand sat the Sage''s journal, or at least, the copy of the real one. He''d skimmed through the pages during Yennefer and Ciri''s display but had a chance to analyse the contents of it properly this time.

    Reima "This one creates a psuedo-black hole that would implode objects when shot at them... And this... Is a pseudo-black hole..." he sighs, "Aren''t most of these just varients on black holes? I mean, sure they''re powerful but maybe some more creative spells would''ve been better..." he mutters to himself.

    The head of the Everlasting Dragon towers about him as it appraisingly glares at him, "Perhaps it is your role to create such spells?" it muses.

    Reima shakes his head, "Nah, doubt it... I''ve never been all that creative anyway... I mean, look at my city, it''s literally just stone plated in gold..."

    The dragon slowly nods, "Regardless of it''s materials, I find it appealing."

    Reima snorts, "Well yeah, you''re a dragon, gold''s kinda your thing." he says flipping through another page.

    "Do not forget that you are a dragon yourself, perhaps it is this that pushed you to make such a city." he says, backing away and sitting back down in its usual spot.

    Reima shrugs to himself, wondering if that really was the reason... Or if he just wanted to flex on his enemies. Regardless he continued reading through the journal, scowling at the part that hadn''t been translated yet.

    "Reima?" a voice asks a couple minutes later, causing him to turn around.

    Reima "Ciri?" he asks in confusion, her never having come up to the Chaos Temple before.

    Ciri walks up the rather perilous position his was seated on and sits next to him, "I-I need your help to complete my animagus transformation..." she asks.

    Reima leans his head to the side, "Finally stopped being angry at me?" he asks sarcastically.

    Ciri sighs and shakes her head, not replying to his question, "Will you help me?"

    Reima scratches the back of his head, the wind beginning to pick up and blowing his long hair back, "The wind''s howling... Er, I mean yeah... Sure."

    Ciri isn''t really sure what "Wind''s howling" means, but she''s heard Geralt say it to himself a number of times... Must be a Witcher thing, that or he''s inherited a twitch. "Then, do you have time now?"

    Reima nods and Ciri sits down on her knees in a medatative pose, her breathing slows and her heart rate follows suit.

    She falls into a meditative trance, again, finding herself flying above the clouds where she''d previously met her animagus form. However, she doesn''t see the creature anywhere, she flies around, her tail allowing her to move through the air with ease... But no matter how far she flew, or how much she looked, she simply couldn''t find it.

    ...

    Her feathers?

    ...

    She looks behind her and sees a tail covered in green feathers, the tip of it being plumed in an array of rainbow-colored feathers that seems to mesmerise her senses. The underside of her body was covered in a stone-like material that had many carving like symbols displayed on it, and even without a mirror nearby, she could tell her face was made of the same stone line material. Her eyes glowed turquoise, no actual eye being visible through it.

    Her body had no legs or arms, only two sets of wings, one larger than the other. It was difficult to tell how big she was due to her currently flying among the clouds.

    Reima had been watching closely as Ciri''s body began to morph, it didn''t actually take all that long for her to transform, becoming a creature as long as the Everlasting Dragon, though she weighed nowhere near as much as them due to them being an Eastern Dragon, more serpent than the Dragons of this world.

    Certainly, she was much, much larger than his own animagus form though, something his ego might never recover from...

    Reima "Ciri!" he shouts as the dragon sits in the air, it''s wings not even having to move to stay airborne.

    Ciri is jolted from her vision, looking downwards at the voice and seeing the Chaos Temple, all of the Chaos Servants and trainee''s looking up at her in awe.

    Reima "Ciri! You awake!?" he shouts, trying to get her attention.

    She twists her body in a way that looked impossible to a mortal viewer, approaching Reima''s relatively small form with her head. "Yes?" she asks, her voice gentle, as if it were the wind itself, her mouth and jaws not even moving to speak.

    Reima grins and gives a thumbs up, "Congratulations."

    At this she finally realises she''d completed her animagus transformation, it being so comfortable and innate to her that she''d thought nothing of it.

    The Everlasting Dragon looks over, causing Ciri''s body to freeze up, her instincts calling for her to flee. "Interesting form young one, I''ve seen nothing like it before."

    ...

    The fear gradually disappeared, but she could now appreciate just how most dragons felt around them. "I feel as if I could fly from one end of the continent to the other." she says, twirling around and darting forwards, unconsciously teleporting a mile ahead.

    ....

    Ciri "I''m going to need some practise with this" she mutters, not having intended to teleport there.

    Reima and the Everlasting Dragon could still hear her speak, despite her being so far away. "Why don''t you follow her in your own form young one?"

    ...

    Reima shakes his head with a sour expression, "Yeah... No chance."

    Ciri slowly flies back after doing some airborne maneuvers and her body dissipates into turquoise particles as she transforms back into her human body.

    Reima "Youknow, we need to give your new form a name..."

    ...

    Ciri knows what''s coming next and tries to put her own forward, "How about Gust?"

    Reima shakes his head, "It sounds alright, but I''ve already thought one up... Limbless."

 639 Tir nè°© Lia to Ti ra misu

    Ciri "Limbless? But I''ve still got two sets of wings." she complains.

    Reima shakes his head, "Doesn''t matter, I deem you Limbless the Dragon!"

    ...

    Ciri "Still a better name than Squeaks." she mutters.

    Reima "Limbless." he states.

    Ciri "Squeaks." she says, louder than last time.

    ...

    They both chuckle at each other, the argument being incredibly stupid in the first place.

    ...

    ...

    Ciri "Rei?"

    Reima "Yeah?" he asks, her never usually using his nickname.

    Ciri "I''ve been thinking about us for a while and... I want to be with you..."

    Reima slowly nods, "The feelings mutual, though, I can feel the "But" coming." he says bluntly.

    She ignores him and continues, "But... We can''t be together unless we defeat the Wild Hunt."

    Reima sighs, "Yeah, that''s what you said last time..."

    Ciri "Let-Let me finish" she exclaims, getting silence from him momentarily... "Let''s go trash their world, and kill any who remain after the battle."

    ...

    Reima grins widely, "Really? I thought you''d never ask..." he says, wondering if the Wild Hunt had any more secret weapons that could possibly stop him.

    Ciri nods, "I don''t think they could stop us, and now that I''ve got my animagus form... I think it''s time."

    Reima "Well, what''re you waiting for? Let''s go do it."

    ...

    Ciri "Shouldn''t you tell everyone you''r-"

    Reima interrupts her, "No... I doubt it''ll take more than a day... Plus, the old man''s been listening in so he can tell them for us." he says pointing at the Everlasting Dragon peeping on their private discussion.

    Ciri walks up and grabs his hand, "As long as you''re ready to face them..."

    Reima nods, "Just try to keep a good distance from me when I begin..." he says, the two of them disappearing in a flash of light, leaving the Everlasting Dragon still sitting there.

    "Perhaps I could have assisted..." it mutters.

    The duo appear on an old decrepit tower overlooking a vast city currently enveloped in a blizzard.

    Ciri "This is Tir n¨¢ Lia, the capital of the Aen Elle... The Wild Hunt." she says, looking down at it, seeming to reminisce on her time spent here.

    Reima nods, the temperature around him beginning to rise as dark red flames flicker to life around him, "Alright... I''m going to get to work then, just use the amulet if you get into trouble." he says, leaping from the tower and towards the city like a meteorite.

    Ciri examines the tower, it having previously held her... Though, it was in disrepair at having no maintenance for years.

    A couple minutes later footsteps signal someones arrival, she quickly draws Seath and points it at whoever is approaching.

    Ciri "Ge''els?" she asks, not lowering her blade for a moment.

    Ciri "What? Didn''t think me brave enough?"

    Ge''els snorts, "Yes, very brave of you to have your companion do all the work..."

    Ciri scowls at him, "As brave as you and the others imprisoning me? It''s good then that I show you the same courtesy."

    Ge''els shakes his head, "It''s cold is it not Zireael?"

    Ciri raises a brow at him, "It is, what''s your point?"

    Ge''els "My point? My point is thus, we needed you to save our world, and our people... I did not agree with their methods, believing you could be reasoned with... But alas, I was not and still am not able to go against my King''s wishes."

    Ciri "You only say this now, as you are at my mercy and Tir n¨¢ Lia burns..."

    Ge''els nods, "I wish to make my stance clear on the matter, before my people are snuffed out of existence... Even if you hadn''t chosen this course of action, we''d have perished regardless... The White Frost continues to encroach upon our world, rivers freeze in summer, crops die, and all wildlife goes extinct... Truly, we are at the end times."

    Ciri "You expect me to feel pity for you?" she asks.

    Ge''els shakes his head, "Your pity doesn''t matter... With Eredin gone, fleeing our rightful homeland in some misguided attempt at revenge while we all suffer, my race''s end is near."

    Ciri "Eredin is gone?"

    Ge''els nods, "With Imlerith and Caranthir, and what''s left of our armies... The only people your friend is battling are innocent men, women and children, attempting to save their homes, lives and city." he says, with a forlorn expression.

    Ciri frowns, not having expected Eredin to flee, if the army had still been here she wouldn''t feel all that bad about it... But sending Reima to incinerate innocent people didn''t sit well on her conscience, she didn''t think he''d appreciate the news if he was allowed to continue either... She held the amulet he''d given her and pushed magic within it, Reima appearing nearby in a flash of Turqouise light in the next moment.

    The marble beneath his feet melted where he stood as he quickly brought his aura back within himself, his eyes darting around to find whoever had caused her to have to use the amulet, eventually spotting Ge''els standing nearby an uncomfortable-looking Ciri.

    Reima "Elf, you''ve come to offer you life to me?" he asks, approaching with Arcell wreathed in Chaos flames sitting in his hand.

    Ciri "No Rei... He had news of Eredin... He''s fled this world with the Aen Elle armies... The only people within the city are regular people..." she mutters, the words seeming distasteful on her tongue.

    Reima frowns and looks at Ge''els, "Where is Eredin then?" he asks, the threat heavy in his tone.

    Ge''els look over his shoulder at Reima, "I don''t know..."

    Reima grits his teeth and telekinetically picks the man up by his throat, "You will tell me where the rebe-Eredin is." he says, almost accidentally blurting out something from a movie.

 640 Veritaserum Immigration Test....

    Ge''els claws at his throat as he begins to choke and asphexiate, he tries to answer Reima''s question but obviously isn''t able to...

    Ciri "Wait, hold on Reima." she says, placing a hand on his shoulder.

    Reima glances at her and drops Ge''els, his falling to the floor while breathing heavily, "What? This cockbloc-Liar... Is stopping us from killing those douchebags."

    Ciri "Did you forget you literally have truth serum?" she asks, wondering what she saw in him.

    ...

    Reima nods, "Er.. No, I just wanted to try being Darth Vader for a bit..." he says, her giving him a dull look as if she didn''t believe him.

    Ge''els rubs his throat and slowly stands up, "Y-your truth serum won''t be needed... I may not know where Eredin is but... The Navigators can only follow the path made by Zireael..."

    Ciri frowns, "But... That would force us to look through hundreds, if not thousands of worlds!" she exclaims.

    Ge''els "It may not be the answer you wanted, but it''s the only once I can provide." he says.

    Reima rubs his face, "So... What now? I don''t know how I''d feel about committing genocide against people who can''t fight back..." he mutters.

    Ciri looks down at the city still slowly being enveloped by chaos flames, "You didn''t seem to have a problem earlier..." she says.

    Reima shrugs, "There wasn''t even anyone in the buildings, feels like your Elf friend is lying to us. Eredin probably evacuated all of his people to another world with him."

    Ge''els interject, "No, I evacuated the city when Eredin left... I knew you''d come for revenge, and wished to ask for a favour, as unworthy as we are to ask you for such a thing."

    ...

    Ciri gives him a glare and Reima walks over and punches the man, retrieving Veritaserum and forcing Ge''els to drink it. Once done he drops the man and begins asking him questions.

    Reima "Do you know where Eredin is?"

    Ge''els "No."

    Reima glowers, he seemed to be telling them the truth earlier...

    Ciri "Why did you come to speak with me?"

    Ge''els "I wish for my race to continue... I want you to take some of the Aen Elle with you, back to the world of the Aen Seidhe."

    Reima "Aren''t you all a bunch of racists and "Elf" supremecists? Why the fuck would I take any of you back?"

    Ge''els "Tradition is everything to us... It is the reason Eredin refused to relocate our people to another world not in-danger of the White Frost. I gathered the people willing to give up their heritage, their tradition and their homes to have a chance of survival... I wish for you to take those few souls with you, so my race can continue." he almost pleads, still under the effects of Veritaserum.

    Reima and Ciri give each other a look, the latter looking as if she was close to agreeing.

    Quelina "Reima?! Oh, is this was being summoned feels like?!? Weeeirrd..."

    Reima "Hey Lina, mind if I ask you for a favour?" She nods at him, "I need you and Vesemir to make as much Veritaserum as possible..."

    Quelina leans her head to the side, "Why?"

    Reima "I''ve got a lot of people who need to be interogated before I allow them to immigrate into Ichor." he says, her giving an understanding nod.

    Quelina "I will try my best!" she says, Reima releasing her from the summon and turning to Ge''els.

    Reima "Show me these people." he says, Ge''els eyes lighting up with hope as he heard the conversation.

    Ge''els leads them down the tower, through the relatively technologically advanced city and out the other end. The trio walking for miles through the blizzard until they spot a large village covered in fires, lanterns and other lights to keep them warm during the blizzard.

    Reima and Ciri continue walking to the centre of it, the pale faces of the Aen Elle watching them with suspicion and fear. Though, with Ge''els beside them, they keep their ground.

    Once the trio reaches the centre of the village the inhabitants and refugee''s all surround them, wanting to know what''ll be happening to them... If they''ll be saved or doomed to die in the grip of the White Frost.

    A male Aen Elle with blonde hair walks up and spits on the floor before Ciri, "Spawn of the Traitorous Lara Dorren, you are the cause of all of our sorro-gujhk!" he''s stopped when Ge''els slaps him in the face, knocking him to the floor along with a few teeth.

    Ge''els "Did you not listen to my prior command? Or are you too stupid to remember it?" he asks with a scowl, knowing that Ciri and her friend could simply refuse to help and leave them to their suffering.

    The elf looks up at Ge''els while rubbing his jaw, "You are no better! Wishing to give up our homeland and flee with them!"

    Ge''els draws a knife from his belt, "I will not leave our home, I simply wish for our race to continue... If you continue to waggle your tongue I will cut it out." he threatens.

    "You are pathetic, cut from the same cloth as Eredin and the rest of his generals. If we give up our traditions then we are no better than the Aen Seidhe, a people we all know are dying out."

    Ge''els "It''s pride, then?" he says, walking over to the elf, kicking them in the face and pushing their forehead as he prepares to cut the man''s tongue out.

    The people surrounding him are horrified when the young adult squirms and screams in pain and terror as Ge''els struggles to cut his tongue out. Eventually giving up on the venture and slitting his throat. Finally turning to Reima and Ciri and bowing, "My apologies for such a mistake in including something like that..."

    Ciri''d been frowning and debating with herself whether to interfere, Reima was watching in interest to see if he''d actually manage to cut out his tongue without any help...

 641 Asylum Seekers...

    Ge''els "My apologies for such a mistake in including something like that..."

    Reima shrugs, "Right... Is this everyone?" he asks, looking around at the surprising sight, many of the refugees being women and children.

    Ge''els "As I said, tradition is everything to us... Only those with everything to lose would abandon them, people like these mothers trying to protect their children." he says as if he hadn''t just executed a man in-front of them all.

    Reima rubs his face, "Alright... Have them all line up." he says, turning and opening a portal to Quelina and Vesemir''s laboratory.

    A few of the Aen Elle Elves gawk at the sight, with Ge''els looking bewildered at Reima wielding the Elder Blood... Through the portal reveals Quelina and Vesemir quickly brewing potions from six separate cauldrons at once, the duo darting around to place ingredients in at the right time.

    Reima "You guys okay in there?" he asks, causing Quelina to jump in surprise, her crab-like lowerbody *clack*''ing against the floor.

    Vesemir doesn''t look at him and answers, "We are, with the amount of Veritaserum you requested we''re having to push ourselves to get it done."

    Reima scratches the back of his head, "How many doses do you think we have?"

    Vesemir "Oh... One hundred and fifty... At most..."

    ...

    Reima "I''ve got something like a few thousand that need to be interrogated..." he mutters.

    Vesemir "Well, you should have given us more time to prepare then, shouldn''t you?" he says with a sour expression.

    Quelina "Uncle, Reima is doing his best, we should to..." she says, darting from one cauldron to another.

    Vesemir gives a sigh and nods, "I suppose you''re right."

    Reima "Any chance the potion would work if I diluted it in water?" he wonders aloud.

    Vesemir nods, "It would from what I''ve read, but depending on how diluted it is it''ll not work on magically powerful beings, or being practised in the art of something called Occlumency." he says.

    Reima nods, "Good... Give me the one hundred and fifty you have now, I''ll dilute them and use them, no need for you to be working your asses off anymore."

    The duo nod and have some Prospects carrying the boxes of Veritaserum through the portal, Reima raising the earth and creating a makeshift vat that he fills with water and the potion.

    Ciri "I''m not too sure if Veritaserum will work diluted like this Rei..."

    Reima shrugs, "Even if a few douchebags slip through, the House Elves will be keeping a watch on them for while until they''re cleared." he says, Ciri nodding in agreement at him.

    The front row of the line nods, but further back didn''t seem to hear him at all...

    Reima "Alright... Ge''els can you walk down the line and explain it to everyone? I don''t want to have to break some necks because of a misunderstanding." he says, Ge''els nodding dutifully and doing as he''s told.

    Reima then opens a portal to Asgore''s office/kitchen, telling him to get housing ready, as well as preparing to receive up to five thousand citizens. Afterwards he opens a portal to the front of the city, a field with enough space to hold all these people without causing trouble within the city itself.

    Reima "Alright, first Aen Elle step forward!" he shouts.

    ...

    The first of the line is a woman holding a baby looking incredibly nervous under his appraising glare.

    Reima materialises a glass and scoops out some of the diluted Veritaserum and hands it to her, "Drink."

    The woman does as she''s told with a great amount of apprehension, though, she looks fine after drinking it.

    Reima "What is your name?" he asks.

    "Thietti sire..."

    Reima "Do you hate me, or Ciri?"

    Thietti "I am grateful towards you, but despise the girl." she says, looking shocked at her own admission.

    Ciri frowns, "Why?" she asks from the side.

    Thietti "Why? King Auberon said you wished to help save us as recompense for stealing Lara Dorren''s blood... But you ran, you fled and left us to suffer in this dying world."

    Ciri "Lara Dorren''s blood was never stolen, she loved a human, it is you Aen Elle who wished to steal my own blood." she glowers.

    Thietti shakes her head but doesn''t continue to argue.

    Reima sighs, this''ll make it a lot more difficult than he''d thought... "Do you have any intentions on betraying me, Ciri, or the country that takes you in?" he asks.

    Thietti shakes her head, "No... I only wish for a future for my child." she says, looking down at the now cooing babe.

    Reima looks at Ciri and shrugs, "One last question, what are your thoughts on Eredin?"

    Thietti "He is traitorous scum and should be picked apart by those gods forsaken unicorns!" he exclaims, shocking a few of the Aen Elle behind her.

    Reima nods, "Very well, walk on through... But be wared, you will be watched for any suspicious activity." he says, Thietti slowly walking through the portal and being amazed by the drastic change in temperature... As well as Asgore standing there with a gentle expression.

    Reima looks at Ciri, "Hope you don''t mind if every new citizen in Ichor hates your guts." he says with a chuckle.

    Ciri shrugs, "I don''t really have a choice... Plus, whether they like me or not, they are innocent." she says with a firm expression.

    Reima looks ahead, "Next!" he exclaims, bringing the next person forwards.

 642 Knocking Boots

    And so the long road of questioning the thousands of Aen Elle started, Reima had cut the questions down to only the vital ones to save time, though, it still meant it would take a couple days to get through everyone...

    Reima "Next" he says with a sigh, already handing a glass of the diluted Veritaserum to the next person.

    *Slap!*

    The older woman had slapped the glass out of his hand, causing it to fall and shatter against the floor, "How dare you! Human Filth, you will let me through, as governess of-" She''s interrupted by Reima.

    Reima "Shut up. I don''t know who you are and I don''t care, you are at my mercy and if you don''t change your attitude I''ll send you through that fucking portal without arms, legs, or a head... Do you understand me?" he asks with a glare.

    ...

    She nods, and Reima had the previously smashed glass fix itself, the liquid climbing back into it and floating before her. "Drink." he states.

    She does as she''s told and Reima begins questioning, "Will you, or do you intend to harm, disrupt, negatively influence, or take over my city once you are saved?"

    ....

    "N-N-N...Yes..."

    Reima "Good." he says, telekinetically picking her up and tossing her away. "Next!"

    "Wait!" the previous woman shouts, slowly getting up and running over. "Y-you misunderstand me! Please! Give me another chance!"

    Reima shakes his head and waves her away, "No... Next!"

    The older woman tries to grab Reima but Ciri grabs her and pushes her away, "You failed the questioning, if you are so loyal to Tir n¨¢ Lia then you can stay here." she scowls.

    She looks like she''d about to object one more time, but a glare from Ge''els sends her away, pale and down-trodden.

    A few hours later there was another incident, a furious looking man who was denied despite his wife being let through. He drew a dagger and tried to attack Reima... Only to have his soul torn out.

    Reima and Ciri were given the village elders home to stay during the night, the process of questioning everyone taking longer than either had expected...

    Unforunately... Or fortunately, there was only one bed present in the house... Neither were awkward about it however, Ciri''s intentions for coming here were primarily to ease her nerves about entering a serious relationship... Even if the Wild Hunt hadn''t been wiped out yet, their desperation gave her a sense of power, relieving her of the vulnerability she felt towards them.

    As a result... The villagers nearby thought a small earthquake was happening, it lasted for hours during the night and was constant, only stopping occasionally as if it were taking a break... Of course, they''d never know it was Reima and Ciri knocking boots in the night.

    After they''d finished both laid next to each other staring at the ceiling, Ciri breathing heavily from trying to keep up with Reima alone, her stamina simply not being a match to his.

    Reima "As good as you remember?" he says with a smug grin.

    Ciri "No." she states.

    ...

    Reima looks at her, "Why not?"

    Ciri "Fleur wasn''t here to take some of the pressure..." she says, half-joking.

    Reima nods, "Hopefully she''s doing well..." he mutters, falling back into the stack of pillows.

    Ciri sighs and rests her head on his chest, "Atleast everything worked out... After everything''s calmed down we should visit everyone again."

    Reima "Almost everything, Eredin is still out there."

    Ciri "It''s fine... He''ll turn up eventually, we''ll beat him again when he does."

    ...

    Reima "What''dya wanna tell Geralt and Yennefer when we get back?"

    Ciri snorts, "I doubt we need to tell them anything, they''ll know as soon as they see us... It''s the others I''m worried about."

    Reima, "Quelaag?" he asks.

    Ciri nods, "Queelag... Dusk, Reah, Anastacia, Priscilla, Risryn... Almost every woman you interact with is interested in you... I was afraid you''d get together with one of them." she admits with a jealous expression.

    Reima pinches her nipple, getting an "Ouch!" from her and causing her to turn and look at his grinning face, "Well you''ve got me now, so stop thinking about it..."

    Ciri climbs on top of him with a determined expression, "I''ll show you about messing with me." she says, the earthquake beginning yet again.

    The next day Reima was stood in the same place as before, the vat of Veritaserum sitting next to him with a ragged and tired look Ciri on his other side. Ge''els had everyone line up again and Reima reopened the portal, "Alright, next!" he shouts, the first person of the day stepping forwards.

    Ge''els who''s standing nearby spots Ciri''s condition and asks, "Are you okay Zireael? You look exhausted... Perhaps the weather is not agreeing with you?"

    Ciri gives him a half-lidded look, "Piss off." is all she says before turning her attention to the line in front of her. An energy drink slowly floats before her, Reima giving a thumbs up with a victorious expression.

    Reima "Stay alert Ciri, we''ve still got a few thousand people to get through." he snarks.

    Ciri groans at her words and downs the drink she''d been given, "There must be a faster way of doing this... I know, we''ll do two at a time."

    Reima facepalms, "Why didn''t we think of that yesterday..."

    Ciri "Because there are some things I''m better than you at." she huffs.

    Reima shakes his head, "I don''t know, you lost pretty well last night... Maybe you''re better at losing?"

    Ciri ignores him and look at the line, "Next." she asks, no one coming forwards to greet her.

    ...

    Ciri "Next!" she says, glaring at the person at the front of the line.

    They still don''t move, causing her to walk up to them and ask, "Why aren''t you moving?"

    "Apologies, but I would rather be questioned by someone who''s not evil." they say.

    ...

 643 YOURE SOU-STUFF IS MINE!

    A couple days later the final Aen Elle shuffles through the portal, Reima and Ciri breathing a sigh of relief at finally being done with it... While there was many they had to turn away, even some women and children. The veritaserum prevented anyone harmful from coming through, allowing only the relatively unbias or malleable people through without bringing their hatred of the human race, or the racial supremacy most usually spout.

    Ge''els looks at the duo and gives a small bow towards them, "I thank you... I can rest in peace knowing I wasn''t one of the few responsible for the extinction of our race."

    Reima "Hmm, I was assuming you''d want to come with instead of dying in this shit hole."

    Ge''els gives him a hard look, "I am a true, loyal Aen Elle, and I will l die with our heritage... I am grateful for granting me this favour... Is there anything I can do to repay you?" he asks.

    ...

    Reima "Welllll, if you insist... I wouldn''t mind having a gander at your library, treasury, and... That building over there." he says pointing at a large palace.

    ...

    Ge''els sighs, "Very well... Follow me, I suppose our knowledge and riches would be better preserved with the last of us." he says with a sour expression.

    Ciri snorts behind Reima as they walk, "Seriously, even Quelaag admitted you have a problem with taking things that are not your own..."

    Reima shrugs, "I was planning on burning this city down and taking it anyway, at least now I won''t have to kill anyone."

    Ge''els "I''m glad we could come to an arrangement then..." he mutters.

    The duo is led to the palace where Reima immediately starts storing away furniture, decorations, painting and even prying gold plating from the walls... Even some of the decorative glazed windows were stolen because he thought they looked nice...

    Ge''els occasionally turns around and had a vein appear on his forehead when he sees Reima stealing literally everything as he walks past it. Eventually they reach the treasury, though, to Reima and Ciri it just looks like a stone wall with carving on it.

    Ge''els cuts his finger and drags it across two fine hidden carvings, causing the rest on the wall to light up with a brilliant blue colour.

    Some rumbling occurs, stone grinding against stone until eventually the stone wall slowly descends into the ground, revealing a hidden entrance lit by similar blue carving that run along the walls.

    Ge''els "Try not to touch anything without my permission, I''m unsure what is trapped and what is not... It''s been a while since any have visited here."

    The hallway is long, descending downwards for a mile or so, the temperature heating up and a small breeze blowing into the depths, probably supplying the lower levels with oxygen.

    Reima "Is there a need to have such a well hidden treasury? You own the world, surely it''s unnecessary?..."

    Reima "That doesn''t really answer why this needed to be so hidden..."

    Ge''els nods, "There were some... Navigators that took the sides of the rebels, one almost managing to steal our wealth from under our noses. Thus, we had to create a place they would not be able to access. With the help of Avallac''h and some of the more knowledgable Aen Elle we managed to construct this place... I''d imagine it would be difficult for you to gain entry to this place from the outside..." he mutters.

    Ciri "I don''t suppose you''re leading us into a trap then?" she asks suspiciously.

    Ge''els shakes his head, "I doubt it would stop you from leaving, I''m just telling the tales of our creation, perhaps in a hope you''d tell my races descendants of their history, and the power they once wielded." he says, the group finally reaching a door similar to the entrance. Ge''els performs the same action as last time, whipping blood over a different symbol to the entrance causing it to open, revealing a huge room.

    The far end of it had a tower of gold just sitting there, enough to suggest that it was this entire words deposit. Marble pillars lined the walls, each topped with some jewelry, most seeming to be magical.

    Ge''els walk up to one of the pillars and lifts a tiara from it, a creation from my father I believe... I forgot this was here." he mutters while enveloped in nostalgia.

    Reima "Hmm, that''s great Ge''els but are there any traps around? Just asking before we have to run out like Indiana Jones..." he jokes, though still not touching anything.

    Ge''els "Indiana-what?... Hmm, I''m not sure but I don''t belive there were any traps located here... I''d be careful if I were you, however."

    Reima nods, "That''s all I needed to know." he says, walking up and storing the nearest pillar along with the treasure sitting atop it.

    Ciri walks around, gazing at the numerous painting decorating the walls, most being of King Auberon and other prominent members of society, there was even a section dedicated to the Sages, Avallac''h being displayed prominently.

    Ge''els walks beside her and points to a woman, one with turquoise eyes, white hair, pointy ears, pale skin, and beautiful features. "Your ancestor Lara Dorren, his as well assuming he''s from the same line... I doubt another like Lara was ever created however."

    Ciri continues to stare at the painting in wonder, inwardly remarking how similar they both looked, the pointy ears aside. "Well, I can see why Avallac''h was so hung up on her." she mutters.

    Ge''els snorts, "Indeed, he never forgot her, even as she tossed him aside for a human."

    Ciri doesn''t tell him that Avallac''h was dead, deciding to keep it a secret... The less Eredin could find out about their situation the better. "Think she would mind if I claimed her portrait?"

    Ge''els shakes his head, "I think she''d be jubilant that a descendent of hers survived until now." he says.

 644 Tsundere Elf?

    Reima slowly walks around the treasury, storing everything, from paintings to magical artifacts, to gold. He could tell Ge''els was irritated as the casualness that he did it with but what was he going to do? Call Eredin for help after he''d basically allied with them? Yeah, no.

    The amount of gold stored was around half of what Anor Londo had, maybe it''s because Lordran simply had more gold, or maybe it''s because Aen Elle are terrible at mining for it... Either way, he wasn''t going to be running out any time soon.

    Reima "Shall we move onto the Library then?" he asks Ge''els who''s brow is still twitching at him.

    ...

    Ge''els "...Yes..." he says, beginning to walk out of the vault, only to be stopped by Reima.

    Reima "Uh, I don''t really fancy walking out of here..." he says, grabbing Ge''els and Ciri before teleporting them back to the palace. He felt himself pass through some sort of spacial field but it wasn''t enough to prevent his teleportation.

    The trio arrive, Ge''els almost tripping over his own feet at suddenly being teleported, the other two walking casually as if they did this all the time... Which they did.

    Ge''els "I must say... I think I prefer the Navigators portals to your own way of travel."

    Ciri shrugs, "You get used to it."

    Ge''els then leads them towers a large tower, runes decorating not only the door, but the walls as well. "You may want to stay back, the room prevents any non-Aen Elle from entering... While your blood might suffice I doubt it''s pure enough anymore." he says, cutting his palm yet again and swiping across a few symbols... He then mutters a few words which cause two ward stones nearby to disintegrate, causing the other glowing runes to flicker and dim.

    Ge''els "Without the places of power to sustain this structure, the defences will no longer be of use." he says, finally pushing the door open.

    Reima and Ciri follow him in, immediately glancing around at the numerous books, tomes and inscribed stones strewn around the place.

    Ge''els "This is the llamas tor y darganfod morc, in your simple tongue it would translate roughly to tower of tomes... I''d rather you refer to them as Archives however... They deserve at least that amount of respect." he says, glancing around with familiarity.

    Reima shrugs, "As long as I can tell you to go fuck yourself, I think our current language is fine." he says sarcastically, walking to the nearest bok shelf and opening a book. "Wait... It''s all in Elvish!" he exclaims, angry he hadn''t thought about this until now.

    Ge''els "Of course they are... You didn''t think we''d inscribe our history, knowledge, technology, and magic with human literature did you?" he asks as if Reima were stupid.

    Ciri sighs, "I''ve had enough trying to comprehend elven translations... Good thing we have a few thousand Aen Elle who we could hire to transcribe these..."

    ...

    Reima shrugs, "Er, I wasn''t looking for permission, that''s exactly what I was about to do." he says, storing a whole bookshelf before moving onto the next.

    Ciri "Is our current library big enough to hold all of this?" she asks.

    Reima shakes his head, "No... But you forget we can increase the space within an area, like in those magical stores, Hogwarts and the Hogwarts Express."

    Ciri nods, "Ohh yeah, they did do that didn''t they?"

    Reima "Should be pretty easy for us as well, considering how attuned we are to space magic." he says, storing a glowing stone inscription.

    They continue to take everything in sight at they ascend the tower, each new floor holding more and more valuable looking writings... Eventually they reach the top where Ge''els is located, the Elf is standing stiff, staring at a pillar glowing with energy like a forcefield... Though, unlike the many found in the vault, there wasn''t anything being protected atop it.

    Ge''els "This troublesome..." he murmurs, his voice sounding strained.

    Ciri "Something wrong?" she asks.

    Ge''els turns to them, an incredibly worried look on his face, "I hadn''t thought to check before but, it seems Eredin and his generals did take something with them." he says gesturing towards the pillar.

    Reima "Judging by your look, it''s not good, is it?"

    Ge''els shakes his head, "They stole one of the last remaining tomes of the Sages, it compiled most of their achievements within... It was heavily restricted, locked so only King Auberon, the Sages... Or, the King''s successor could look upon its pages."

    Reima hums, "Hmm, think they''re going to create another like us?" he asks, though, if that was possible they''d not have to look for Ciri.

    Ge''els shakes his head again, "No, definitely not... I know the rituals used to gift Lara Dorren the Elder Blood were lost to time, perhaps for good reason... No, within those pages are magics based off of your Elder Blood, it is where our Navigators first discovered their specific kind of magic... I suspect they wish to try and counter your own abilities somehow." he guesses without confidence.

    Reima "I don''t suppose you have another just lying around? I''m interested in taking a look now that you''ve hyped it up."

    Ge''els gives him a tired look, "No, even if there was you''d not be able to open it." he states.

    Reima "I don''t know about that... Penetrating defenses is my forte." he says, sending a wink at Ciri.

    Ge''els "Let''s speak of this no more... There are other valuable texts still here, retrieve them and be on your way... I wish to spend my last few months, years, or however long the frost takes to end us in the company of those I enjoy."

    Reima smirks at him, "What? You not having fun with us around?"

    Ge''els glowers at him, "No, I have not. I believe you taking all of our wealth, knowledge, and even our furniture is favour enough for the help you''ve given us..."

 645 Spurned

    In a flash of turquoise light Reima and Ciri reappear in Ichor, almost immediately they spot the large construction happening around them. The House Elves, Prospects, Chaos Servants, Monsters, and Aen Elle all working overtime to create enough housing for everyone.

    Asgore spots them on the stone street and walks over, "Welcome back the both of you... I hope you enjoyed your time in, what as it... Tir Nor Lia?" he asks, fumbling the name of the Aen Elle capital.

    Ciri smiles at him, "It''s Tir n¨¢ Lia, and yes, I think we had a great time." she says holding Reima''s hand, causing Asgore''s furry eyebrows to raise.

    Asgore "Ohhohoho, indeed a joyous occasion... I''d even be tempted to not drop all of the new work on you King... Unfortunately, however, there are some things that my authority doesn''t extend to." he says, causing Reima to grimace.

    Reima groans, "...You sure? I could raise your position or whatever is nee-"

    Asgore interrupts him, "That, isn''t possible. Only the King should be allowed to do certain things, perhaps we could discuss this over some tea?" he asks, sending an inviting look to Ciri.

    Ciri "Ah... I have some people to talk to, have fun Reima." she says, disappearing in another flash of Turqouise light.

    Reima sighs, "Man, she just ditches me when paperwork is mentioned..." he mutters.

    Asgore chuckles, "Indeed it''s taxing on the mind, and the heart... My old love, bless her soul, would run as the faintest sound of paper." he says, his eyes almost glazed over in nostalgia.

    The duo begins walking towards Kaer Morhen to begin to long, taxing work of ruling a now, bustling city under significant construction. Both now brought closer through their troubles and toils with women.

    Elsewhere :

    Quelaag is sat on the balcony of Kaer Morhen, meditating... She''d usually have Ciri helping her but she''d run off with Reima, she was incredibly jealous and worried. So much so that the thought of those two kept stopping her from entering a deep meditation trance. "Uwah! This is impossible! And why have those two not come back yet? Could something have happened!?!" she exclaims while running her hands through her hair.

    *Flash*

    The familiar flash of light that always signalled Reima''s arrival had her head zip around at "breakneck" speeds, "Reima!?!"

    ...

    Ciri stands there with an awkward expression, "No... Just me." she says, already dreading the conversation they were about to have.

    She knew that Quelaag had been pining after Reima, even before she''d met him... She also knew that the news of them finally getting together would be hard to take, she had no idea what reaction she would have.

    Ciri "Quelaag, we need to talk..." she says, Quelaag getting an ominous feeling crawling down her spine.

    Quelaag nods, "Very well... My meditation isn''t going so well, I''ve nothing better to do."

    Quelaag nods, already dreading the words she suspects will come from Ciri''s mouth.

    Ciri rolls the words around in her mind and mouth for a couple moments before finally saying it, "I''ve gotten together with Reima." she states, silence immediately taking hold over them.

    The everpresent fires on Quelaag lowerbody ignite with fury Ciri had never seen before. They flicker and dance over it as if she were magma, her cold expression providing a district contract to the rising temperature.

    It''s only when the stone beneath Quelaag begins to start glowing red that Ciri calls for her, "Quelaag, calm down." she says, the Chaos Witches eyes flicking to her''s angrily.

    Quelaag "Don''t tell me to calm down, bitch!" she exclaims, fire enveloping her hands as if she were about to throw it. "Everything I''ve done, everything I''ve tried to gain his affection!?! And you walk in and take him from me!?!" she shouts furiously.

    Ciri frowns, "He was never yours to take, it''s his choice." she states, then having to duck a small fireball thrown by Quelaag.

    Quelaag "Oh, how I want to burn you to ashes Ciri! I LOATHE you! I-I can''t understand what you have that I don''t!?! Is it my body? Is that why he would spurn me?" she almost howls, tears beginning to form in her eyes.

    Quelaag hands droop, the fire losing its lustre and becoming a shadow of its former self, "A-am I just not good enough?" she says, broken and downtrodden, tears streaming down her face.

    Ciri ignores the heat coming from Quelaag and wraps her arms around her, "I know I''m not the person you want to hear this from, but, there''s nothing wrong with you. I think Reima would have chosen you if he''d spent more time with you... But, this is just the way it''s worked out... I''m sorry." she says gently.

    Quelaag looks over Ciri''s shoulder from her embrace, wishing to tear her spine from her back, her hands sparking with flames... She releases them though, hugging Ciri back and holding the position for a few minutes. "I won''t give up." she states absolutely, "Even if it takes a thousand years... I''ll take him from you."

    Ciri lets go and looks her dead in the eyes, "You can try... But I won''t let him go."

    They hold each others gaze for a while before Quelaag turns away, "Leave me Ciri... I need to be alone for a while.." she mutters, looking over the city with renewed "DETERMINATION".

    Ciri nods and flashes away, breathing a sigh of relief that nothing terrible had happened... Apart from, youknow, almost being lunged at by a furious Chaos Witch who''d capable of tearing her apart... Yep.

 646 Business and Pleasure...

    A day later Reima was meeting with Zoltan, his trade company being finally completed and ready to begin a business relationship with Kaedwen.

    Reima looks up at the large stone warehouse plated in gold, then down at the two fine, heavy wooden doors. He shrugs and pushes his way through, spotting a Monster receptionist, some kind of Bunny girl?...

    "Hel-HELLO!" she exclaims in fright.

    Reima scratches the back of his head, "Err... Are you alright?" he asks, curious.

    "N-nono.. I mean YES!... I-I''m sorry, I''m just not used to talking to someone so famous..."

    Reima leans his head to the side, "Famous? I get most of you guys know me, but I suspect you''re talking about something else..."

    "Y-you mean you don''t know!?!" she quickly asks.

    ...

    Reima "No, explain it to me." he states, wishing to find out what''s the big deal.

    "I saw you on T.V! Mettaton News talks about you constantly! Especially after you saved two thousand Elves from a dying world... I REALLY ADMIRE YOU!" she exclaims.

    "What in te'' fok are ye, running your gums about?" Zoltan asks, walking through the doors behind the receptionist.

    "Ah, apologies boss but I was-"

    Zoltan "Reima! How''re you lad? Been busy? Bein'' King an all I betcha are!" he says happily, walking over and jumping to clap Reima on his shoulder, their height disparity being too much.

    Reima nods, "I''m good... And yeah, been so busy I''ve apparently missed Television being created, as well as my face being plastered all over it..." he mutters.

    Zoltan laughs, "Hahahaha! Those little boxes are magic aren''t they! Though, I could do with seeing your mug a little less, it''s as if the only thing they have on it is Dandelion, that Robot Mettaton, and you!"

    Reima nods, "That reminds me, I''ve gotta get Dandelion his "Cabaret" built... But, enough of that... We''re here to talk business aren''t we?"

    Zoltan nods, "Aye, we can have drinks and talk drivel later... Follow me." he says, gesturing Reima to follow.

    The receptionist squeaks as Reima nods at her, causing him to shake his head.

    Reima is led into an office relatively devoid of finery, the only real thing of note is the glass case absolutely filled with many different kinds of alcohol, some being monster made, homebrewed, and even some from Earth like Smirnoff are sitting there.

    They both sit on either side of a sturdy desk and Zoltan pulls out some papers, "I have to say Reima, I''m having difficulties doing even the most basic things..." he mutters.

    Reima "Why''s that?"

    Reima nods, "Being self-sufficient was one of the goals I had when making this place..."

    Zoltan "That''s where the problem is Reima! A trade company can''t trade if there''s no demand!"

    Reima "Then, what do you want me to do about it? I''m not about to arbitrarily lower the quantity of something to force people to use your services." he says, not wishing to start using his power like that.

    Zoltan scratches his beard, "Aye, fortunately I''ve got a few ideas on what this city lacks... You''ve got farms that allow you to grow any kind of crop, but, you lack specific crops... That''s where I come in, acquirin'' the exotic seeds to expand the variety of the produce of the city."

    Reima slowly nods, "That sound interesting, I''d be willing to personally pay you for it aswell, seeing as it''d only be benefiting the city... But, what''ll you do after you''ve acquired all of the plants?"

    Zoltan grins, "The mountains around Ichor are thick with Iron, Copper and other common metals... But, it lacks some of the rarer kinds, I''ll be trading for ores and such.

    Reima grins, "Maybe... Maybe you could acquire trade deal for a metal I''ve been wanting to experiment with for a while now..."

    Zoltan raises a brow at him, "What metal are ye'' referrin'' to?" he asks curious.

    Reima "Dimeritium, I heard Kovir and Povis are the main producers of it for some reason, as long as Radovid keeps his nose out of our business it should be easy to acquire some... Especially with the unique products we can trade for it."

    Zoltan nods, "It''s possible... That''s also another thing I needed to talk to ye'' about, the kinds of goods you''ll allow me to distribute outside Ichor... Supply decides to value, so trading a small amount of a unique material like, say, that Acromentula Silk, would keep its price about even pure gold! That stuff is as hard as steel and soft as silk, I personally know many who''d sell their kin for such a thing!"

    Reima nods, "No technology will leave Ichor at all, you''ve seen television already, now imagine what we could make if given a couple of years or centuries... The weapons we could make would literally destroy the world, so, all preparations need to be made to prevent that from happening. Aside from that, I''ll give you permission to sell a few different kinds of potions. I suspect the Breast Enlargement potion will be the most sought after... But maybe the healing ones would trump it?" he says with a shrug.

    Zoltan "Ye, I''ve had a chat with Ole''Vesemir and the young''in Quelina, some of the potions they''re makin'' would make Kingdoms bend the knee to purchase.

    Reima nods, "Other than that, only sell specific weapons that don''t contain Titanite... It''s a finite resource due to the world it comes from being destroyed, so, I''d rather keep it with us. But other than that go nuts." he says.

 647 Meeting the "Family"

    The two thousand new residents were getting on amazingly with the residents of Ichor, from previously prideful elves to subdued and introverted, they didn''t seem to clash with anyone... Whether this is a good thing is debatable however, some finding their almost reverent and indebted attitude creepy.

    The housing was built relatively quick, the Aen Elle occasionally offering suggestions for changes to their own housing, making the new district look more elegant, but at the same time, more fragile.

    Most had lived within the Aen Elle capital city Tir n¨¢ Lia making most of them more educated than the average person, their skills matching their more domestic raising. Reima had give those with a good argument a stipend of gold to open their own business, allowing them to create different kinds of products, food, entertainment, and other vital produce, they''d continued to be paid until they were finally self sufficient.

    The stipend was Asgore''s suggestions, a way to encourage productivity in a place where everyone could be provided for even if only a small portion of the population worked... Citizens of Ichor were all paid monthly which would allow them to afford vital services like food, clothing, etc...

    Reima was still uncertain whether just giving everyone their bare essentials was a good idea, but having no one starving in the streets was a bonus... He''d start rethinking their distributive policy when the population started picking up, "maybe limiting the amount of children you were allowed to have would be a good way of preventing overpopulation?" He muses to himself.

    The city was incredibly rich, it alone being worth more than all of the Northen Kingdoms combined, and probably even the Southern. And with the unique abilities of the residents, it would take a population of a few million to begin to strain the resources... Atleast, with their current technology.

    Reima had thought about expanding into the Dragon Mountains by literally removing a few mountains in the way, but that would be a rather drastic action, one he''d rather have the advice of the council before attempting... That and it wouldn''t be of much use until Ichor increased in size.

    Another thing to note was that some of the Aen Elle wished to join the military, most wanted to join Iorveth but there was another group that wished to learn magic, Pyromancy, or even join the Prospects...

    Unfortunately for them, the Aen Elle were still under watch to make sure none of the traitorous ones slipped through. The Places of Power were relatively easy to destroy, so if one knew the locations of them then it wouldn''t be difficult to sabotage them, something which would make technological innovation, the city''s strength, and even powering it much more difficult than it is now.

    Reima "Then, could Griggs do it?"

    Logan looks at him apprentice who is currently helping someone find a specific book, he slowly nods while stroking his beard, "Perhaps... He''s achieved much and I think he''d be more than happy to tutor the next generation..."

    Reima "That leaves one problem though, if Griggs is going to be teaching and you''ll be elsewhere... Who will watch the library?" he asks with concern.

    Logan gives his a dull look, "Why, aren''t those little friends of your watching everything that happens within the city?" he asks.

    ...

    Reima nods, "Oh, yeah... I forgot about that... But, I think we still need a human presence here." he says, not wishing for the world to know just how vital the House Elves were to the city.

    Logan shrugs, "Let''s just make the students take shifts as "Training", it''ll teach them "Patience" and "Discipline", as well as "Duty"..." he says, barely able to contain his laughter at the thought.

    Reima nods, "Well, ask Griggs and get back to me on that... If he accepts I''ll have a wizard tower extension added to the library... Oh, soon I''ll also be coming around to magically expand the library itself, I''ve got a literal archives worth of Aen Elle books." he says, making Logan almost salivate as he leaves.

    Eventually though, you have to meet "Her" family... Or, both of your family? Regardless, Reima found himself at a fine dining resteraunt next to Ciri... On the opposite of the table sat Geralt and Yennefer, the latter looking at them both with a huge grin...

    Yennefer "So you two have finally dropped the facade and let your passions fly?" she asks, leaning forwards in interest.

    Ciri blushes slightly "Letting our passions fly? I wouldn''t call it that..."

    Yennefer glances at them both ,"Then, is it "Letting your passions lie"? My, Geralt... Who''d have known that our little ones would be so naughty..." she says, causing Geralt to grunt in acknowledgment.

    Reima "It''s not a big deal guys... Why are we even here anyway? I thought Geralt hated dressing up." he says, pointing at the tunic Geralt had been stuffed into.

    Geralt is about to speak but Yennefer interrupts him, "With enough "Persuasion" anything is possible... Be sure to remember that one Ciri, men are such brutes without someone of the fairer sex leading them."

    Geralt pulls his sleeve uncomfortably, "Hmm, last I checked I was the one-"

    Yennefer slaps his arm playfully, "We''re at a restaurant Geralt, don''t be rude."

    Geralt sighs and looks at Reima, both wishing they were somewhere else.

    Yennefer continues to interrogate the duo about their relationship, Ciri giving short answers and blushing up a storm, almost threatening to leave the restaurant after a rather raunchy question. Eventually though Ciri has enough and bids farewell to them all, leaving Reima with Geralt and Yennefer.

    Geralt "I don''t think I need to say it, but, I''ve been preparing for this moment for years so I''m going to anyway... Hurt her and you die." he says, though Reima can tell it''s more in jest than an actual threat.

    Yennefer "So, Reima... Tell us about the first time you-"

    *Flash*

    Reima disappears in a flash of light, escaping the awkward situation and leaving the duo chuckling to themselves.

 648 Trade Operations

    Zoltan was driving a horse-drawn carriage filled with a variety of rare goods, he looks to the side at the armoured woman riding the giant wolf with amusement. He turns to the other side leans closer to Sieglinde sitting next to him currently sharpening her Zwei-hander. "I appreciate ye'' guardin'' me... But don''t ye think bringing a giant wolf to Ard Carriagh will scare the residence?" he asks the onion knight.

    Sieglinde "Sif? He''s a big teddy bear..." she says waving of his concerns.

    Zoltan "Aye, he might be, but I''ve seen the same teddy bear tear men apart and eat them alive..." he presses.

    Sieglinde frowns, "Forget Sif... Wouldn''t they be more likely to scare people?" she asks while pointing at the Thestrals pulling the carriage.

    ...

    Zoltan shrugs, "Eh? Nah, those beauties''ll not be scarin anybody." he says.

    Sieglinde shakes her head and continues sharpening her sword, occasionally looking around the carriage to look out for danger.

    ...

    ...

    Suddenly, Sif stops in his tracks, Ciaran showing the carriage her palm and commanding them to stop.

    A couple moment later the sound of foliage being disturbed is heard, though, whoever it is seems to be moving in the opposite direction... This is only confirmed when the group hear "WHAT THE FUCK IS DAT! A GIANT WOLF! FOOKIN LEG IT!"

    Zoltan gives a hearty laugh and commands the Threstrels to continue along the road as Ciaran and Sif pursue the thieves that''d been hiding... By the time Zoltan''s carriage passes the area where they''d been caught, nothing remained apart from some rusty weapons and torn clothing.

    Zoltan "Glad they''re with us... Flippin'' scary things." he mutters as they ride past the red-tinted grass.

    Eventually they reach the long bridge of Ard Carriagh, repairs are being built on the gate and wall from when Solaire had been escaping with the prisoners. The people on the bridge give a wide berth to the carriage an especially Sif who''s walking next to it.

    The guards at the gate had already fled inside the city and shut the gates, incredibly scared of Sif due to the stories the survivors had told of the great beast.

    "Halt! I SAID HALT! GO NO FURTHER OR WE''LL TURN YOU INTO PINCUSSIONS!" the on controlling the gate shouts, fear clear in his voice.

    Zoltan stops his carriage and looks at the man, "Lad, we mean ye no harm but we have a deal with the new King... I''d hate for it to be on your head if you anger them!"

    The guard glares down at Zoltan, his eyes glances over the Thestrals, "Our King is kind and just! Take your giant dog and freakish horses and begone!" they command.

    Zoltan "I want to talk to ye commander! I''ll not be leaving til I''ve seen them or your King!" he shouts from below the wall.

    "Commander! These fiends wish to invade our city and spread curses with their freakish creatures and mag-" he''s stopped when the Commander slams his fist int their face, knocking them to the floor.

    "FOOL! King Roche explicitly warned us of our new trade partners! Do you wish to commit treason or start another war!?!?" he shouts, at the downed man.

    "N-N-No! It was my mistake Commander! Have mercy!"

    The commander growls at them, "Go, back to the barracks... It seems you need more training in discipline... Now!" he shouts, sending the soldier sprinting out of there.

    The gate opens soon after this interaction, the Commander walking out of the gate with an apologetic look, his balding short brown hair with similar coloured eyes gives the group a friendly vibe, despite him being fully armoured and ready for battle. "My apologies guests, that recruit will be... Heavily punished for his insolence... I am Arter Of Kaedwen, the new, old Commander of the Ard Carriagh guards." he says, giving a small bow after his introduction.

    Zoltan nods, "I appreciate it, but try not to break the lad... Probably didn''t know we existed. I am Zoltan Chivay by the way, this is Sieglinde, Ciaran, and the fluffy one is Sif." he says, pointing to everyone respectively.

    Arter nods, "This... Sif... Are they dangerous?" he asks, not shaking as most would as Sif give him a sniff.

    Ciaran "Not unless someone wishes to harm us." she states.

    Arter "And... The horses?" he asks, looking at the almost skeletal winged black Thestrals tied to the carriage.

    Zoltan "Consider them better horses... That eat meat..." he says, pausing when he remembers they aren''t vegetarian.

    Arter nods and gestures to them to follow him, "Hmm. It is good that King Roche thought ahead and cleared a large property in-case you brought... A larger entourage..." he says ambiguously.

    Zoltan "Oooohh, bought land for us did he?" he asks curious.

    Arter "He did, though, it might be different to what you are expecting..."

    Zoltan and Sieglinde give each other a shrug as they follow the commander, eventually reaching some such of luxury area filled with fine jewelry, clothing, and other shops. Arter stops before a building bigger than the rest nearby, an Eternal Fire logo scratched almost completely off of it, letting them know who used to own it.

    Arter "I hope you don''t mind if we''ve already named it for you... The Kaedweni Auction House. This is now yours to use as you wish, the back of the building holds a large garden suitable for your... Companions, there will be a gentleman named Lovat Wag which will watch the property for you when you aren''t here... I have other business to attend to but they will be present momentarily for you to iron out the details." he says, bowing to them one last time before leaving.

    Zoltan watches the Commander go and immediately feels the variety of gazes on his back... Some fearful, some hateful, some hopeful, and even some with disgust... He decides that instead of waiting out in the square for the Estate Keeper they''ll just have a look around inside to see how well kept the building was... And, if need be, replace this "Lovat Wag" with someone else.

 649 Blood is Wine?

    At the walls of Ichor a man riding a horse is stopped as he approaches the gates, the Prospects on the half-built walls watching him intently.

    "I carry a letter from the Duchess of Toussaint, Anna Henrietta... The recipient... Dandelion?"

    The Prospect on the wall looks to his friend, "The bard?"

    "Seems like it..."

    "Hand the letter over, we will personally deliver it to the Bard Dandelion." they state, though the messenger shakes his head.

    "I refuse to part with my delivery until I find the recipient!"

    ...

    ...

    The Prospect sighs, "Fine, but you will not leave our sight." they say, leaving the rest of the guards to escort the messenger to Dandelion.

    Eventually the letter finally finds itself in Dandelions hands, him seeing who it''s from and the lipstick mark left on it has him almost tearing it open. Luckily for him, Priscilla is off performing in the town square...

    The letter reads, "Dandelion my flower... It has been so long since we''ve spoken, but this simply letter will have to suffice. I am unfortunately lacking in time for us to reacquaint, but perhaps after the issue has been resolved we could meet?

    The issue I am referring to is some kind of beast tearing apart Knights and Nobility in Toussaint, I have hired many to try solve the problem, even implored the Emperor himself, but to no avail... Thus, am I forced to go to you my love, and ask for the aid of your close friend Geralt of Rivia. I fear none but him could save the innocent from being murdered but whatever is prowling the streets.

    As recompense for his service he would receive an vineyard in Toussaint, one I picked out myself for someone of such high standing, regardless of the populace opinions on his kind.

    One last thing I more request from you... Please, do not come to Toussaint until the creature has been slain, I fear for your safety... And even with your many stories of combat and courage, I do not wish to take the risk.

    Your weasel, Anna Henrietta."

    ...

    Dandelion rubs his face with his hand as he rereads it, it was clearly from Henrietta, but something felt wrong about it... Regardless, he couldn''t very well ignore a damsel in distress and immediately left to find Geralt.

    Geralt was surprised to hear he was being summoned to Toussaint by the Duchess, big contracts by rulers usually being quite rare... This "Beast of Beauclair" must be quite some threat.

    Reima sits with his legs dangling on the balcony and his back facing Geralt, "So, you want to take Ciri and go fulfill this contract?" he asks, vaguely remembering something about a DLC, though, through the years the specifics have begun to evade him.

    Geralt nods, "Yeah, want to use the time to finish her training as a Witcher, figured a big contract like this would be good for her." he says with crossed arms.

    Geralt "No, but I can''t really see her refusing."

    Reima nods and tosses him a necklace, "You''ll be going into Nilfgaard territory, if you see anything amiss, channel magic into it and I''ll be there in a flash. Ciri''s already got one, but keep this just in-case." he says.

    Geralt catches it and clips it the rune inscribed titanate next to his Wolf''s head medallion, "Thanks. And don''t worry, I doubt she''ll go running off with any of those pompous Toussaint knights." he says sarcastically.

    Reima chuckles, "I doubt any of them would be able to handle her."

    Elsewhere :

    Yennefer had finally translated some rather frightening information from Avallac''hs journal, she''d immediately summoned Ciri who teleported in as soo as she heard the news.

    Yennefer "Ciri, there''s good news and... Really, really bad news. Which do you want to hear first?" she asks, her face paler than usual.

    Ciri gives her a weird look, "The good news?"

    Yennefer gestures towards the book in her hand, "I''ve finally translated it..."

    ...

    Ciri "Is that it?"

    Yennefer nods, "Unfortunately, it is... The bad news is, the only way Avallac''h knew to stop the White Frost was to use a tower in Skellige called Tor Gvalch''ca-"

    Ciri "What!?! Lets go then!"

    Yennefer "Let me finish... You need to perform a ritual within Tor Gvalch''ca during a conjunction of the spheres..."

    Ciri "I don''t suppose Avallac''h knew when one would happen?"

    Yennefer slowly nods, "He did... One happened during our fight against the Nilfgaardian fleet..."

    Ciri "And the next?"

    Yennefer bites her lip and looks Ciri dead in the eye, "Two thousand years."

    ...

    Ciri "So... We''re all dead?" she mutters, shocked.

    Yennefer shakes her head, "No... Have you forgotten all the impossible things we''ve achieved thus far, I''m sure with you and Reima we could solve any problem that presents itself... We have many, many years until the White Frost starts affecting this world." she says to try and reassure Ciri.

    Ciri had been quite confident before this that the answers to her problems would be within Avallac''h''s journal, it was a surprise that they''d missed the deadline though... She looks up at Yennefer, "How long will it be til you can summon Avallac''h''s spirit?" she asks.

    Yennefer "Keira has gone to collect the last ingredient... The ritual should be ready in a couple weeks at most..."

    Ciri "Good... We need more information, and I don''t care if we even have to torture his spirit to get it." she says, determined to succeed.

    *Creeak*

    The door slowly opens revealing Geralt, "Hmm, I assume you won''t be travelling with me then?" he asks.

    ...

    Ciri "Were you spying on us?"

    Geralt shakes his head, "No... A little... I was going to ask if you wanted to come to Toussaint with me to complete a Witcher Contract." he says.

    Ciri looks back and forth between Yennefer and Geralt before finally answering, "Can you wait a week?" she asks.

    Geralt shrugs, "Yeah... Don''t know how urgent this summon is though, maybe we''ll ride one of those Thestrals to get there on time." he says.

    Ciri "Then, we''ll leave in a week... I-I need to be here to see if Avallac''h has any information." she states, worry clear in her tone.

 650 The dead tell many tales.

    A week later Geralt, Ciri, Yennefer, Keira and Reima were all gathered in the Two God''s Church, the stained glass windows had finally been made which depicted various creatures and people, most prominently features being Solaire and Reima of course.

    It was even and the sun was beginning to set, apparently the best time to perform a necromantic ritual. Dim light shafts from the windows lit up the room enough for the group to see what was happening.

    Reima "I don''t suppose you''ve been looking through my numerous books on Necromancy?" he asks, the tomes he''d stolen from Pinwheel making that particular kind of magic one of the most extensively researched.

    Yennefer smiles at him, "I might have taken a look, though, I lack the abilities to utilise some of the magics they spoke of..." she says, slowly walking around the middle of the large hall while drawing a line with a mixture of lead, Avallac''hs blood, and crushed gems.

    As Yennefer is doing this Keira places many candles with strange scents around the circle, not yet lighting them but making sure they are all accurately and evenly spread apart.

    After all the preparation are made Yennefer stands in the middle of the circle while holding a bag, it looks wet and soiled, drops of blood slowly leaking from it.

    Yennefer "I''m about to begin, whatever you do, do not interrupt me." he states, giving a glare to Reima and Geralt. Once everyone is quiet she begins chanting in elder blood, her feet seemingly moving on their own as she positions the bag to drop blood on specific points of the circle... Afterwards using her feet to smear them into a rough shape.

    Eventually the smears begin to form what looks like a five pointed pentagram and once it''s complete Yennefer opens the bag and pulls out... A brain?

    Yennefer "Mind of the one who''s knowledge we seek." she says, dropping it in the middle of the circle. She then pulls out a couple pale, sticky looking eyes. "Eye''s to view and lock with."

    She continues the chilling the ritual, dim purple particles beginning to slowly gather, the flames of the candles slowly changing shade. "Your heart to beat, your lungs to breathe. she says, dropping the heart and lungs on two separate points of the pentagram.

    The lights brighten, seeming to gather in one place, however, Yennefer isn''t finished yet. She pulls out a long tongue, stick slick and slimy, her expression gives no indication of discomfort as she holds it firmly, despite how disgusting it looks. "And finally your tongue, so you may speak your secrets true." she says, dropping the organ on the last point, waving the bloody wet bag around her to spread droplets around.

    Yennefer opens her eyes, the purple particles gathering in one spot and forming a humanoid shape. Everyone there can recognise it almost immediately, Avallac''hs fine cheekbones giving away his identity.

    Yennefer "Yes, It''s lovely to see you again aswell Avallac''h." she says, breathing a sigh of relief at the completed ritual.

    Avallac''h "The Witch in Black, I should have known there was no peace for me... Even after I was betrayed." he says, glaring at Geralt."

    Ciri steps forwards, pointing at Avallac''h, "The only betrayal you''ve been involved in was against me you bastard!"

    Avallac''h "Zireael?... I see, it failed then?" he says, a saddened expression replacing his former one.

    Ciri "Your plan to have me kill myself on Tor Gvalch''ca?" she asks, the Sage slowly nodding.

    Avallac''h frowns at looks at Yennefer, "I see you''ve weaved some kind of compulsion into your vile spell, witch."

    Yennefer shrugs, "Took a little more power but it does the job, I hope you like it." she says sarcastically.

    Avallac''h shakes his head, "If only you were an Elf."

    Yennefer "What, a quarter isn''t good enough for you?" she asks with mirth.

    Reima "As much as I like the banter, shouldn''t we just pry the secrets from his soul?"

    Manus "SOOOUU-" he shouts, poking from Reima''s shadow, only to be stuffed back in as the others watch with irritation and confusion.

    ...

    Ciri sighs and nods, "We want to know if you have information you didn''t write in your journal?

    Avallac''h nods, "I do, but I suspect nothing I know will pertain to what you are asking... Know this Zireael, I would not have chosen my previous plan had there been a better way, Lara''s blood needs to continue." he states.

    Yennefer "So you know of no way to stop the White Frost?" she asks with her arms crossed.

    Avallac''h shakes his head, "No, I do not. The world the White Frost resides in seems to be covered by some kind of barrier, one which not even the Elder Blood could break alone... The conjunction of the spheres provided a way through, but now that you''ve missed it, every world is doomed... Good work Vatt''ghern." he spits towards Geralt.

    Reima "I''d watch your mouth Elf, there are many worse things than death..." he says with a sadistic grin.

    Avallac''h almost snarls are Reima, "Ah, the proverbial foil to everything I''d planned up until now... I truly hope Eredin rends the flesh from your bones."

    Reima snorts, opening a Turqouise portal and pulling stealing someones drink through it from a nearby bar. "Yeah, I''m sure Lara would love that." he says, taking great satisfaction from Avallac''hs gaping face.

    Avallac''h "You.. Impossible, you are an imposter!" he exclaims, not believing Reima''s apparent possession of the Elder Blood.

    Geralt grumbles, "Hmm, I don''t think there''s much else we need from him."

    Reima "Eh? I still have a few questions to ask... Hey Avallac''h, how''s it feel to be dead?"

    Avallac''h gives him a glare but is compelled to answer regardless, "I feels like nothing, as if I was unaware of anything until you summoned me back here." he says.

    Reima "No Douchebag elf prison then?"

    Avallac''h "No, there is not." he states.

 651 Sage to Stage...

    The group continues to ask Avallac''h various questions, Yennefer and Keira on magics, mysteries and practical things that could help their own sorceries, Geralt and Ciri on ways they could possibly stop the White Frost, as well as the remaining Wild Hunt under Eredin... Last but not least was Reima, who continued to badger the undead elf with stupid and humiliating questions that he was forced to answer, the group, unfortunately, finding out that Avallac''h had stalked Lara Dorren so much that she married a human just to spite him...

    Yennefer "I think we should end the ritual soon before we started affecting the ambient magic permanently." she says, the others nodding at her.

    Reima "Hang on, I''ve got a couple things I wanna try..." he says, immediately after calling for Hinky to bring Avallac''hs corpse, all of its organs having already been removed just leaving the skin, skeleton, and muscles.

    Avallac''h look down at his desecrated corpse, the Elder Speech tattoo''s still prominently showing on his pale lifeless skin. "Do you intend to humiliated me further?" he asks angrily.

    Reima shakes his head, "Not quite..." he says, turning back and warning the others to step back.

    Avallac''h watches in horror and curiosity as black ooze begins dripping to the floor from Reima''s hand, it appears to come from his skin like some kind of disgusting sweat.

    The black goo then coalesces into a spider, one that moves towards Avallac''hs body, rippling and shuddering like jello.

    It crawls onto the Elve''s face, opening the mouth before pushing itself down his throat. All the while black veins begin forming on the skin and flesh that''re touched by the spider.

    Reima walks up to the floating Avallac''h the ghost attempting to back away, only to be stopped by the ritual circle which prevents him from moving outside of it.

    Avallac''h "What do you want? I am already dead, you can''t touch me!" he says loudly, speaking to himself more than Reima.

    Reima shrugs, "Never know til you try, right?" he says while channeling the Dark Hand, the whispy black and red aura enveloping his fist. He grabs the ghost around the throat and much to everyone''s surprise, the ghost acts as if he was corporeal, being dragged by Reima towards the body that was now shaking and shuddering, black ooze leaking from the missing eyes and open mouth.

    Avallac''h squirms to escape his grasp to no avail, eventually being pushed inside his rapidly mutating corpse, black tendrils burst from his chest, wrapping the ghost and pulling him into the body, his figure disappearing from inside it.

    Keira "And I thought Yennefer''s magic was disturbing..." she mutters.

    Yennefer "This is beyond simple Necromancy..."

    The humanoid figure is completely black, with the exception of the glowing red tattoo''s beginning to scar themselves into its skin, all of them looking identical to Avallac''hs former tattoo''s. A black robe begins to form, a hood gracefully dropping over its bald head and concealing its glowing red slitted eyes.

    It stands there just looking at Reima, its robes almost concealing all of its monstrous features, with the exception fo the long black claws extending from each fingertip.

    Reima crosses his arms and taps his foot, "Aha! I''ll name you Abyssal Sage!"

    Abyssal Sage "P-Pleeaassseee killlll meeeeeeeeeee." it pleads in a voice similar to Avallac''hs, though, not quite.

    Ciri "Is, is he alive?" she asks, wondering if this counts as resurrection...

    Reima shrugs, "Alive? Maybe? In eternal torment? You betcha! I figured if death wasn''t going to punish him then why not do it myself." he says with a laugh, the others looking at him and the new Abyssal Servant with morbid curiosity.

    ...

    Abyssal Sage "Kiiillllllll meeee"

    ...

    Reima "So... I probably should have asked this before I turned Avallac''h to... That. You find out everything you needed?"

    Ciri shakes her head, "Yeah." she says, obviously put out that they''d not found anything useful.

    The group leave the church after spending an hour or two inside performing the ritual. Reima had stored the Abyssal Sage in his shadow while everyone split up. Geralt reminded Ciri that they were leaving for Toussaint tomorrow and to prepare everything for travel, even though she could just teleport back and forth to restock on supplies if needed... Reima had asked Geralt if he wanted him to just open a portal there, but he gave the usual "I hate Portals", as well as explaining that he wanted some proper time to catch up with Ciri as well as finally finishing her training.

    Of course, as they''d be gone a couple of months Reima and Ciri spent the night "saying goodbye", annoying most of the people living in Kaer Morhen in the process.

    The next morning he met them by the gates of Kaer Morhen, Roach and... A Thestral standing next to Geralt and Ciri.

    Reima "Err, what''s with the Thestral?" he asks, unsure as to why they''d be taking it.

    Geralt "Roach is faster and has more stamina than any I''ve ever seen... Only those Unicorns and Thestrals are faster."

    Ciri nods, "And I''d rather not ride one..."

    Geralt agrees with a grunt, "Hmm."

    Reima grabs Geralt''s forearm and nods, "It''ll be her rescuing you this time." he says with a laugh.

    Geralt "Hm, I don''t doubt it."

    Reima then moves on to Ciri, locking lips with her for longer than Geralt was comfortable with watching... "And remember those necklaces, I hear about you dying out there I''ll give you the Avallac''h treatment." he says, causing both of them to grimace.

    Reima is about to let them leave but remembers something, materialising it in his hand before wrapping some kind of cloak around Ciri''s neck and shoulder.

    Ciri looks down at the weird ephemeral cloak she''d seen Reima wearing before, the white geometrical-particles flowing down and disappearing before more are created at the top.

    Reima "Looks good on you." he says after taking a step back, the gleam cloak looking better on Ciri than it ever had him.

    Ciri smiles, "Are you sure?" he gives a nod and she gives him another kiss before hopping on the Thestral, the specially designed saddle making it comfortable for both her and the beast. "Cya later Rei." she says, her and Geralt riding off.

 652 Social Anxiety

    It''s been a couple weeks since Geralt and Ciri had left, everything had become relatively calm every since the Kaedweni massacre, not even bandits daring to try and raid them. Not that they could with that giant wall in the way...

    Nilfgaard had been almost completely stagnant, not even moving when Radovid finally took Novigrad, the country and religion holding a giant ceremony to celebrate... Of course this included burning most non-humans who lived within its walls to death. This action alone caused almost everyone non-human aware of it to move out of Northern Cities inhabited by the Eternal Fire, creating huge vacancies and problems for the people who remained.

    The refugee''s moved to various places, most not being able to travel huge distances due to lack of funds and skills. The stories of Ichor had obviously spread to most of the north by now, some travellers from Cintra even hearing tales about the "City of Gold, Gods, and Dragons.", obviously there were many other names too, "City of Monsters", "Land of Magic", "Eldorado", "Indomitable Valley", and most favourably among non-humans, "Sanctuary".

    No refugee''s had reached Ichor or it''s walls yet, but Kaedwen had received a massive influx of people, replacing those who had been killed recently as well as the non-human''s that''d been burned by the Eternal Fire. It was well known that Ichor was allied with Kaedwen, the terms for the agreement were rather public as well as the Eternal Fire didn''t leave Kaedwen peacefully.

    The refugee''s only options were really Kovir and Poviss, Kaedwen, or Ichor. Some attempted to get help from the Nilfgaardians, but as soon as they tried to travel through Velen they were killed by either Monsters, Bandits, or Soldiers from either side of the war.

    Whether or not Radovid planned the Ceremony was irrelevant, Novigrad, Redania, and most of the north saw a sharp decrease in trade, most large businesses dealing with or are being run by non-humans. Perhaps gaining Novigrad was worth the other losses though, Redania''s fleet now eclipsing any other known country.

    Reima sighs into a cup of tea, feeling the desire to toss the pen in his hand at the wall or to crush it in his grasp. Even with Asgore''s help it felt like the work never ended, this combined with the social obligations he had made him feel like he was being pulled in two separate directions.

    Despite everything though he continued, even now thinking of what needed to be done... One thing that crossed his mind was education, not for the monsters, but for Nerissa. The schools in Ichor were fine, but it was a struggle getting her to stay in a class with people she considered "Immature", something he could understand as she''d been through much and didn''t act her own age most of the time.

    She clearly already found it difficult to speak her mind, her quiet demeanor and unique way of speaking a testament to that... He could remember his mother?... No, his father talking about a topic similar to this when concerning himself, or was it his sister? Reima shakes his head, the memories fuzzy from dying previously.

    A couple minutes of trying to recall the conversation finally gave him some much-needed suggestions, a boarding school? Reima himself had never entered one but if his Father''s words were right, "It''s a great way of coming out of your shell and making friends."...

    Reima nods to himself, a boarding school would allow him some more free time without her holding his hand constantly, as well as pushing her to become more extroverted. "Hinky, could you go grab Rissa for me?" he asks gently.

    *Pop!*

    Hinky reappears with Snuffles in her arms, looking at him with bored eyes.

    Reima takes Snuffles and thanks Hinky, waving her off and sitting down at his desk that was currently cluttered with paperwork. "Yo Snuffles, you alright?" he asks, putting her on the desk.

    Snuffles transforms back into Nerissa, her legs dangling from the table as she sits facing him, her usual sundress replaced with one made from Golden Scales. She gives him a curious look, and he returns it to annoy her.

    ...

    They keep staring at each other until the vampiress gets annoyed and pushes a stack of papers over, making Reima gape and quickly telekinetically put them back, though a few were probably mixed up by the movement.

    Reima sighs and tosses her a blood-pop, "You win."

    Nerissa gives him a fanged smile, unwraps the candy, and sticks it in her mouth.

    Reima gives a gentle look to her, still pondering whether it was the right call. "Are you happy?" he asks simply, receiving a confused nod from Nerissa.

    Reima "And how do you feel about school?"

    Nerissa frowns, "Boring."

    Reima gives her a grin, "Then, if I could find you a more exciting School to go to... Would you wanna go?"

    The fourteen yearold crosses her arms and leans her head to the side with a thoughtful look, the blood-pop still sticking from her mouth. Eventually, she gives a nod, causing Reima to stand.

    Reima "Well then, I''m sure Asgore wouldn''t mind me taking the day off... Let''s go find somewhere fun." he says, taking Nerissa''s hand and thinking of a place suitable for her education. Asgore had just walked in with a booklet of papers he needed Reima to sign as the duo flashes away, causing the former king''s knees to almost buckle in despair.

    The only thing that keeps him determined to keep working was the happy expression he saw on the young girls face as the two disappeared, it looking remarkably similar to how his own children had smiled...

 653 Cosprayar!

    Reima and Nerissa reppear in a strange place, all around them are dead trees with almost no foliage... The are standing nearby to a cliff edge that leads to what looks like the ocean, only that the water is entirely red. The air itself smells magical, however, meaning that if a school is around here then it would be suitable for Nerissa.

    Reima looks down at the vampiress still holding his hand, "Smell anything you recognise?" he asks, her sense of smell for certain things being greater than his own.

    She shakes her head, not smelling any blood or humans. One thing Reima does notice is a Pumpkinhead scarecrow with writing down its torso... If it looked foreign, Chinese or Japanese by the looks of it...

    *Beeeeep*

    Behind them a portal opens up and an orange school bus drives into the area, through Reima''s Observation Haki he can sense the driver is a powerful being. He''s about to cut the advancing car in two when it suddenly stops, the driver poking his head out and glaring at them, "*************** ******** *****" he begins to speak but it sounds like complete jibberish to both Reima and Nerissa.

    Reima remembers the artifacts he''d bought from Harry Potter that would allow them to speak different languages. He retrieves two necklaces, one for Chinese and one for Japanese, eventually finding the latter to be the correct one.

    Bus-Driver "New students? I don''t remember bringing you here... Must''ve been "his" doing... You going to stand there all day? I got shit to do." he grumbles, the duo moving aside and allowing the bus to pass them... Only for it to stop next to the Scarecrow and let out a single sixteen yearold student with brown hair, eyes, and a green and white Uniform with a red tie.

    After dropping off the student the Bus-Driver accelerates like a racer, doing a U-turn and quickly disappearing from view.

    The teen looks incredibly skittish, trying to check his cellphone while cautiously looking around and eventually spotting Reima and Nerissa. He backs away in fright, his Turqouise cat-like eyes and her own red-ones seeming to scare him.

    "W-what!... Oh, hahaha! You must be Cosplayers right?" he says, still clearly unnerved.

    ...

    He slowly approaches them, looking them over and getting increasingly more excited the more he sees, "Wow! Those outfits look so real! And those swords?" he says, about to try and touch the sheathes.

    Reima slaps his hand away, "I''d appreciate keeping your hands to yourself." he says, the boy rubbing his hand from the light slap.

    "Right... Oh, I''m Aono Tsukune by the way, are you new students too? You''re missing the Uniform..."

    Reima rests his hand on Nerissa''s head, drawing a wistful expression from her, "Yeah, I''m looking for a school near here, you know where it is Tsukune?"

    Tsukune "Erm, could you not use my first name? It''s impolite..." he asks timidly.

    Aono nods and points into the distance at a shadowy structure, "That should be it... Or, at least I''m hoping it is."

    Reima shakes his head at how hopeless this kid is and starts moving in the vague direction of the school, the trees immediately ahead already covering the path in a shady, barely perforated by the sun''s rays.

    Tsukune quickly follows after them, not wishing to be alone in this creepy place. However, after a while of walking he gets bored and begins to ask questions, "No offence, but, you look a bit to old to be a new student... And she''s a bit too young.."

    Reima shrugs, "She''ll be accepted, they don''t have a choice in the matter." he says ominously.

    Tsukune slowly nods, "Are you both foreigners? I know your eyes are cosplay but I''ve never seen someone with white hair before!"

    Reima grins at how true the statement is, "Yes, we''re foreigners... I''m guessing your Japanese?"

    Tsukune "I am... You''re Japanese is really good though, you must''ve been speaking it all your life!" he says, clearly impressed by their fluency.

    Reima is about to retort but sense something coming towards them at high speed, he stops and looks towards it, hearing something disturbing the foliage off of the beaten path.

    "Aiiieeeeee!" a feminine voice shouts as they crash onto the road while clearly losing control of her bike. She drives to swerve around them but ends up heading towards Reima who just stands there as if nothing''s wrong.

    Tsukune doesn''t get chance to help as the pink haired girl crashes straight into Reima, the Witcher not moving an inch as if he were a brick wall which sends the girl and her bike tumbling over him before dropping to the floor.

    Tsukune "Oh my god! Are you ok!" he quickly asks, bending down and trying to help the dizzy looking girl.

    Reima wipes off some dirt from his armour and turns to the girl, already noting the girl has a similar aura when compared to the Bus-Driver, if a bit weaker. From his side he can feel Nerissa perking up, as if it was dinner time or he''d just given her a candy. "Something up?" he asks her, ignoring the comedy skit between the pinkette and Tsukune.

    Nerissa slowly nods, "Smells good."

    Reima raises a brow at this, "Smells good?" he asks, looking towards the pinkette and audibly sniffing. While yes, she smells like a girl with good hygiene, hints of shampoo, the faint smell of sweat, dirt, and plant-matter... Probably because she''d just been crashing through the foliage, he didn''t personally smell anything like what Nerissa was experiencing.

    Tsukune tries to help the girl up but stumbles and almost buries his face in her rather large breasts, only for Reima to pull him back with Telekinesis to prevent the awkward mistake from occurring.

    Reima "You should watch where you''re going Pinky, could''ve hurt Tsukune there." he says with a grin and crossed arms.

 654 Monologue

    The girl turns to Reima with an apologetic expression, pale skin, green eyes, and a strange metal cross around her neck which sits in her cleavage.

    "I am so sorry! I didn''t know I was going so fast!" she says while bowing.

    Tsukune "N-no it''s okay, are you fine though, you got hit th-"

    The girl approaches Reima and looks him over for injuries, a polite gesture after slamming into him with her bike. "I didn''t hurt you.. Did I?"

    Reima shakes his head, "No, you didn''t."

    The girl breaths a sigh of relief, "That''s great!... I hate to have hurt someone before sch-" she stops, feeling the heavy gaze Nerissa is giving. She shudders momentarily and the cross around her neck dimly glows red, as if it were aware of its surroundings.

    "I-I am Akashiya Moka, nice to meet you..." she says, trying to regain her composure from having Nerissa glaring at her.

    Tsukune feels a bit sour that he was ignored in favour of Reima but decides to try and be helpful regardless, walking over and seeing if her bike is alright... "Er, Akashiya-san? Your bike is completely broken... I''m Aono Tsukune by the way..." he says, holding up the mangled frame, wheel, and completely shattered chain.

    Moka looks down at her bike and sighs as if it wasn''t a big deal, "It''s fine... Can I walk up with you guys?" she says hopefully.

    The atmosphere between Tsukune and Moka starts getting too awkward for Reima''s tastes, him drawing their attention by raising his hand and magically repairing Moka''s bike, as if he were reversing time on it.

    Moka "Wow! That''s really cool!" she exclaims, clearly not surprised by the use of magic.

    Tsukune on the other hand was almost catatonic... "W-w-w-w-what!?! WHAT WAS THAT!!?!" he shouts, his mind clearly blown by what''d just occurred in-front of him.

    Reima "It''s magic, never seen it before?" he says sarcastically, Nerissa''s lips upturning at the teen''s confusion.

    Tsukune is still clearly confused by this, but Moka only adds fuel to the fire...

    Moka "What kind of Monster are you? Are you a Wizard!?!"

    Reima leans his head to the side, "Monster?"

    Moka nods, "Yes, you''re attending a school for monsters aren''t you?"

    ...

    Reima "What kind of monster are you then?"

    Moka pushes a lip up revealing a fang, "I''m a vampire!"

    Reima "What a coincidence, my little sister here is a vampire too." he says, patting Nerissa on the back encouragingly.

    Moka "Really? Hey, can we be friends? I''ve never had a friend before." she asks the vampiress, causing everyone, even Tsukune to be dumbfounded by her admission.

    Reima looks down at Nerissa as she''s seemingly thinking over the question, she crosses her arms and rolls her head with a trying expression. Another pat on the back by Reima had her finally nod, "Yes."

    Reima "I''m going to get your admittance Rissa, feel free to tell Moka whatever you want." he says, backing away before taking a running Armamant Haki powered leap towards the schools direction. Casuing the ground to rumble as a crater forms, again, shocking Tsukune.

    Moka hugs Nerissa happily, "This is going to be so much fun! Hey, your dress is really nice, where''d you get it from?" she asks.

    Nerissa "The corpse of a golden dragon." she states, straight-faced despite knowing how outrageous her answer was.

    Again, Tsukune is speechless, not knowing if what he''s seeing or hearing is real... His feet working on their own to walk beside the strange duo.

    Reima rockets towards the ground like a meteorite, landing heavily in-front of a creepy looking school. Various student all staring at him with curious looks, all of them have small aura''s giving Reima the expression that none were human, a few having monstrous features sticking from their human transformations.

    He walks towards the school calmly, ignoring the students and going straight for a man with red hair and a white and blue tracksuit watching the new students arrive.

    "Can I help you?" he asks, eyeing Reiam suspiciously.

    Reima nods, "How do I find the headmasters office?"

    "That creepy guy? It''s the only room on the top floor... Good luck buddy." he says, turning his attention back to the students, specifically the female ones.

    Reima follows the guys directions and eventually comes across two large doors, obviously leading to the Headmasters office, judging by the nameplate... "Mikogami?" he reads aloud while pushing the doors open.

    Mikogami "A traveller has come to see me, how quaint." a man in full priest robes that shady his face, only revealing his glowing yellow eyes says, his elbows resting on the large ornate desk at the end of the room.

    Reima "Yeah, I''ve come to request you allow someone admittance to your school."

    Mikogami grins, "No."

    ...

    Reima "Huh? What? Why not?"

    Mikogami "The admission period has finished, no new students will be accepted." he states.

    Reima frowns, "Unfortunately for you, I''m not going to ask this time... Allow Nerissa to attend your school." he says with a glare.

    Mikogami laughs, "Will you be a new challenger? There have been so many, and they''ve all perished." he says ominously.

    Reima "Bro, let Nerissa in or I''m going to beat you up." he says cracking his knuckles.

    Mikogami pulls up his sleeve, revealing a golden lock restricting chains that seem to wrap further around his body. "Do you know what this is?"

    Reima "I''m going to hit you so stop your damn monologuing." he states.

    Mikogami "Well, this is a Holy Lock, it restricts my po-"

    *BOOM!*

    The robed man is punched in the face as Reima blinks next to him, the man flying through the wall and out the other side, landing heavily in-front of many of the new students.

    Reima stands in the window created by Mikogami''s body and shouts at him, "I told you, you stupid bastard!"

 655 Accepted!

    Reima "I told you, you stupid bastard!" he shouts from the new hole in the building.

    The students back away as Mikogami slowly get up from within the crater, he clicks his neck and grins up at him, "I have to say Mr Reima, you pack a, mean, PUNCH!" he shouts, leaping back at Reima at speeds the human eye can''t follow.

    Reima could see this coming from a mile away though and kicks Mikogami in the air, blinking in the trajectory to deliver a heel kick to his back, sending him back into the previous crater he''d landed in.

    Reima uses a small Aard sigh to blow away the smoke covering the crater which reveals Mikogami unwrapping his robes and taking off the numerous Holy Locks covering his body.

    The teachers watching this realise shit''s about to go down and quickly usher the students to safety, the last one present entering the school as the final Holy Lock falls to the floor.

    An explosion of raw energy occurs flattening a few nearby gravestones, metal fences, and trees. Immediately after a being moves at incredible speeds to attack Reima, delivering a mountain destroying punch to his chest which causes him to be launched into the forest.

    Reima tumbles a couple times before regaining his balance, grinning at the small ache where he''d been hit. He''d not felt pain in quite a while, so this was getting him pumped up.

    *Boom!*

    An impact occurs not far from Reima in the clearing, revealing Mikogami''s true form... Long white hair with two horns protruding from his head, handsome face, and an absolutely ripped body.

    Reima "Bring it!" he shouts, the two of them slamming their fists into each other''s, causing nearby tree''s to creak under the shockwave.

    Mikogami "You''ll have to do better than that!" he shouts, a golden aura beginning to surround him, increasing his strength and speed.

    Reima ducks under a kick and headbutts the headmaster in response, causing them to back away. "Fucking super saiyan? That''s bullshit!" he shouts, blinking behind Mikogami, grabbing a horn and tossing them away like a skipping stone.

    Mikogami tumbles a few times before performing a handspring and floating midair, his hands glowing golden as Reima glowers up at him.

    Reima "You can fly too!?" he shouts angrily.

    Mikogami "You should use those blade on your back, you''re going to need them." he says ominously as he fires a blast of energy at him.

    Reima dodges it but when it impacts the ground it causes a mini-earthquake as well as digging a huge trench in the ground. Deciding to fire back with something similar Reima begins releasing his aura, causing Mikogami to halt for a moment in confusion.

    Dark red flames spring to life around Reima as the temperature around them rises, Reima throws his hand up, causing a pillar huge pillar of fire to shoot into the sky at Mikogami, they barely dodge it but are still burned by simply being near it.

    Reima "You''ll find out swiftly!" he shouts, blinking in-front of Mikogami and shoving a Great Chaos Fireball into his chest, launching him further into the forest with heavy burns on his body, some lava still clinging to him.

    Mikogami huffs and carefully caresses his burnt flesh, flinching from the pain as Reima materialises a few meters from him. "You''re strong, I''ll give you that..."

    Reima "Let Nerissa enter your school and I''ll stop kicking the shit out of you." he says, tree''s nearby beginning to ignite from his presence alone.

    Mikogami "I refuse! The rules must be followed!" he says, preparing for another bout of combat.

    However, the two of them sense three people approaching, the duo only now realising they were standing on the path towards the school.

    Nerissa "Reima?" she asks in confusion, the destruction around the two powerful beings not matching their intentions for coming to this world.

    Reima "Don''t worry Rissa, I''ll have your admission slip in no time." he says giving at thumbs up, taking the chance to kick Mikogami in the face while he''s distracted.

    *BOOM!*

    The headmaster he launched away again as he was observing Tsukune closely.

    Tsukune "WHAT IS HAPPENING HERE!?!" he screams.

    Nerissa "They are fighting."

    Moka nods, "I used to fight with my sisters like that all the time."

    Tsukune runs his hands through his hair, a migraine beginning to hammer its way into his head as he tries to comprehend the situation.

    After Mikogami crashes through a few more trees, he brushes himself off and gives Reima a glare, "That was thoroughly dishonest of you Mr Reima."

    Reima "Give up, or I''ll start getting serious."

    ...

    Mikogami grins, "Take my attack and I''ll give you your slip."

    Reima nods, "Fine." he says, dropping into a defensive stance in preparation for whatever attack he was about to receive.

    Mikogami floats in the air, with energy beginning to coalesce around him. After a few moments of gathering energy he thrusts his palms forwards, a powerful beam being blasted ferociously at Reima.

    Reima grins deviously and tears open a portal facing the sky which swallows the beam and redirects, allowing it to blast harmlessly into space.

    Mikogami glares at him before finally laughing, he floats next to Reima and reluctantly pushes a piece of paper at him, his aura accidentally burning to ashes. "Fine, you''ll get your slip...

    Reima looks down at the ashes and frowns, "Do I have to beat you up to get another one?"

    Mikogami shakes his head, "I''ll just give the next to the girl..."

    Reima "You better treat her well, or I''ll kill you and take over the school." he states, walking towards the path Nerissa and her two friends were walking down.

    Mikogami watches him leave, leaning on a tree exhausted when he''s out of sight. "What kind of person have I just met..." he mutters, wondering where this powerful being had come from.

 656 Getting Aonout of here

    Reima leaves the exhausted head master and walks back towards Nerissa and her new friends, slowly restricting his aura as he does so.

    When he finally finds them back on the path he notices that one person is missing...

    Reima "Where''s Tsukune?" he asks, confused./

    Moka gives him a sad look, "He ran away to try and find the bus, your fight must have scared him..."

    Nerissa''s lips upturn, "Scaredy-Cat."

    Reima "Alright, anyway, good news! You''ve been accepted into the school Rissa!"

    Moka''s despondent face immediately changes, looking excited at the Prospect of Nerissa attending the school with her. "Ah... But what class will you be in? You look too young to attend highschool..."

    Reima shrugs, "She''s smart enough, that headmaster of yours will have to ADVANCE HER." he says, emphasizing the last words while glancing behind him. The headmaster grimaces at Reima knowing he can see and hear everything that goes on on around the school. "Anyway, are you happy Rissa?" he asks, her nodding at him.

    Reima "Oh yeah, I almost forgot..." he mutters, waving his hand and materialising a crimson coloured bag filled with spare clothes for her, as well as Iaito sitting firmly in its sheath. Reima had seen how she had difficulties dealing with specific monsters without a silver blade, electing to have the smiths carve small lines of silver along it achieve the same effect, if a bit weaker.

    Moka watches curiously as Nerissa straps the sword to the belt on her Golden Scaled dress and thefts the large bag onto her shoulder.

    Reima "Oh, yeah... One last thing, remember I showed you how to dissect Monsters? If you happen to... Come across an opportunity, I''d love to have a look at the physiology of this... Lands, creatures." he says, taking note that Moka didn''t seem to care about his words.

    Nerissa slowly nods, taking the opportunity to give him a quick hug, "Are you leaving?"

    Reima "I am, try to make some friends while you''re here... And use your amulet if you need me, I''ll be there in a flash." he says, rubbing her head with a chuckle. Finally he turns his eyes to Moka, the strong aura seemingly hidden under her "Pink" facade giving him some reassurance that Nerissa was in safe hands, "You take care of her now."

    Moka nods, "Don''t worry! I won''t let anyone bother her!" she exclaims, patting her thin bicep as if to further reassure Reima... It doesn''t.

    Reima "Ok, cya later." he says, disappearing in a turquoise flash before their eyes.

    Moka steps back in wonder, "Wow, is he really your brother? I''ve never seen a vampire do that before!"

    Nerissa shrugs, "Witcher." is all she says as she begins walking towards the school, sword occasionally clinking against the scaled dress.

    Reima reappears at the bus stop, Tsukune falling over backwards in shock as the former looks down menacingly at him. "Yo, sup?"

    ...

    Tsukune "I PROBABLY HAVE! THIS PLACE IS MAD!" he exclaims, rubbing his temples to alleviate the migraine he''s experiencing.

    Reima "Well, it''s called "Yokai Acadamy" for a reason... Though, I was surprised to see a Human trying to join it."

    Tsukune frowns, "If you''re not human then what are you?" he asks.

    Reima shrugs, "Human, Witcher, or... God? I''m not really sure anymore to be honest."

    Tsukune looks as if he''s about to fall on his ass again, his face looking pale.

    Reima "So, is that it? You''re done with this school?" he asks, curious at whether or not he''s just a coward.

    Tsukune nods, "As soon as the bus comes back I''m leaving... I never wanted to get involved in this... Supernatural stuff, and I''d like everything to go back to normal."

    Reima snorts, "Well, bad news dude but the bus ain''t coming back til next week." he says, pointing at the back of the scarecrow where the schedule is listed.

    Tsukune "WHAT!" he shouts, dashing forward and quickly reading it. "But... I can''t stay here, I''ll die!"

    Reima "If you wanna leave that badly I could probably take you out of here." he says, looking towards the barrier that the Bus had travelled through.

    Tsukune "You will!?!"

    Reima nods, "Hold on." he says, grabbing Tsukune''s arm and walking towards the barrier, delicately tracing his finger while using Elder Blood Magic and creating a hole, the other side of which looks like a tunnel in Japan.

    They walk through and Tsukune perks up, "This is near where I live!... Who know it was so close!"

    Reima shrugs, "Alright, enjoy your normal, boring life Tsukune. Hopefully you won''t get eating by a uncover Monster or something." he says and disappears, leaving Tsukune standing there with a horrified expression.

    Elsewhere :

    Mikogami had been watching as Reima took Tsukune back to the human world, frowning the entire time. His plans to have the human boy grow strong enough and eventually inherit the school were slowly falling to pieces due to their foreigner''s actions.

    He sighs, thinking how he''d have to modify his plans, and whether or not it would be possible to get Aono Tsukune back to Yokai Acadamy... Perhaps the new student would be a suitable replacement? Though, their gender could prove to be a problem...

    Regardless, he needs to sort out the paperwork to have the girl properly placed in a classroom, as well as a test room so they could judge her intelligence... Placing her with Akashiya would be a start, he sighs again, she also requires a uniform immediately...

 657 Courting...

    It''s been a couple weeks since Nerissa had been sent to boarding school, Reima feeling her absence more than he''d thought he would. Without her occasionally popping in to visit him his only social interactions were with Asgore when they were handing off paperwork, Kuretz, Solaire, Priscilla, or the Chaos sisters when they invited him to a coffee shop or a restaurant.

    One thing he''d noted was Quelaag''s attitude towards him, her seductive poses and longing looks sending chills up his spine... She''d never directly confronted him, knowing that he and Ciri were still together but he could tell she was testing the waters.

    Another surprising thing was Solaire and Risryn, he''d occasionally seen the two sparring or eating at restaurants but when asked about it they''d always said they were just friends. Last time he''d went to Muffet''s bakery with Solaire however Risryn had stopped by, and, Reima could swear there were literal sparks between the two... That and her playing footsy with Solaire under the table was very distracting, even if they didn''t think he''d noticed.

    As he was thinking about the recent happenings, the door opens after some appraising knocks, revealing Asgore who slowly walks to his desk.

    Asgore "Are you ready?" He says, the Monsters eyes analysing the stacks of paper covering Reima''s desk.

    ...

    Reima "Er, ready for what?" he asks, confused.

    Asgore sighs, "We spoke about it nary two days ago... With the Courthouse finally completed you were to preside over some cases, specifically the ones that were too important for myself to decide."

    Reima "We have a Courthouse?" he wonder aloud, dumbfounded.

    Asgore gives him a hard look, "Indeed, you signed for it to be built... Your obliviousness on the subject has me worried about what else you have signed."

    Reima shakes his head "Whatever... Let''s just go and get this over with..." he says, standing before following Asgore out of Kaer Morhen and towards the newly constructed Courthouse.

    The building itself looks like a huge stone temple, stairs surrounded by pillars leading up to a single large entrance... Upon entering it Reima is presented with a long checkered Crimson, Black, and Gold carpet that led to what looked like a throne sitting prominently at the back of the single huge room. Behind the throne was a huge flag striped with the same colours as the carpet, the fierce silhouette of a dragon featured in the middle of it.

    Reima "What''s that?" he asks, pointing at it.

    Asgore "Well, you''d ignored all designed and requests for a flag, so I just had your friend Solaire design it... You seemed so taken with the statue he''d had made, I thought you''d be happy with it.

    Reima looks at the flag closely and frowns, "Isn''t that just the flag of Belgium with a Dragon on it?"

    Reima sighs and slowly begins walking to the throne, the huge windows letting ungodly amounts of light into the room, were he not a Witcher he''d need sunglasses due to sun''s positioning almost blinding him.

    He sits down on it, the pure gold throne made comfortable by the Acromantula Silk cushions stuffed with the fur of many Unicorns.

    Asgore "I wish you''d refrain from wearing such attire at a formal occasion such as this..." he complains, Reima''s Witcher gear giving him the appearance of a warrior instead of a king.

    Reima shrugs, "It''s fine, no one living past today is gonna complain about it anyway."

    Asgore huffs, "Very well... Let me tell the Prospects to bring in today''s queries."

    Reima leans back in the throne, materialising some rum and drinking straight from the bottle, he felt he''d need it to get through this, depending on how boring it was.

    Asgore eventually makes his way back to Reima''s side as various people begin walking into the room and gathering at the sides.

    Reima "Who''re they?" he asks, seeing a few familiar faces in the crowd.

    Asgore "Just spectators wishing to see their King''s first judgments." he quickly explains as the Prospects walk in two men glaring at one another.

    The Prospects keep them both separated as they slowly become anxious while walking towards Reima, both kneeling down when the Prospects stop them.

    Asgore pulls up a long parchment and glances at Reima, "We will begin with today''s minor crimes and disputes before moving onto the more... Severe cases." he says and getting a nod from Reima. "State your names from my left to right." he asks down at the two men.

    "Brin." the older-looking of the two says.

    "Husi" the other says quietly.

    Asgore nods, "Husi, you claim that Brin had stolen your wheelbarrow... Brin, you claim that Husi slept with your daughter..." he says, only now realising how annoying this case would be.

    Husi "Wa! Is somethin'' wrong with that!?"

    Brin "YEAH THERE IS! And you know it ya'' scoundrel!" he shouts, getting jabbed in the back by a Prospect for raising his voice.

    ...

    Reima rests his elbow on the throne, "Depends how old you and the daughter is." he shrugs.

    Brin pleads to Reima, "Sire! As a father yourself you must know how I feel having this scoundrel sneaking out of her window naked!"

    Reima gives Asgore a look and the goat-man shrugs, clearly not aware of why this person thinks Reima is a father. "I''ll ask again, how old is your daughter."

    Brin scratches the back of his head, "Er, she''s thirty-two now my lord!"

    ...

    Reima face palms, shocked at the stupidity of this entire case... "Asgore, how old is Husi?"

    Asgore looks down at the parchment, "Seventeen."

    ...

    Reima points at Brin, "If anything your daughter is at fault for robbing the cradle you idiot! Don''t bring stupid things like that shit in here!... Now, what''s this about a wheel-barrow?"

    Husi "He stole it after I ploughed Margereet!" he says pointing at Brin.

    Brin "That''s not true ye'' bastard!"

    Reima feels as if he''s about to break both their necks in irritation, he materialises Veritaserum and floats it over to Brin. "Drink this now."

 658 Unmasked

    Reima "Drink this now." he states, Brin looking nervous when he''s ordered to do so.

    Brin "Sire, would you really force me to admit to something I''ve not done with your magic?" he asks with some of the audience cursing at him for implying such a thing about Reima.

    Reima "I see, let me explain what this is... This is called Veritaserum, or more commonly referred to as Truth Serum, you drink this and we will find out if you stole anything. I''d also like to remind you that refusing to drink counts as admitting your guilt." he states, leaving the man no way to talk his way out of it.

    Brin thinks momentarily before uncorking the vial and quickly drinking its contents, glowering as he does so.

    Husi "Did you steal my wheel-barrow!" he shouts at Brin.

    Brin "N-Yeah I did you bastard! NO ONE PLOUGHS MY DAUGHTER AND GETS AWAY WITH IT!"

    Reima glares at Husi, "That''ll be fifty hours of community service for speaking out of line." he states, refusing to allow someone to take advantage of the man''s Veritaserum induced mental state.

    Husi stays quiet as Reima turns his attention to Brin, leaning closer to Asgore and asking, "What''s an appropriate punishment for stealing a wheel-barrow?"

    Asgore runs his fingers through his beard and contemplates, "I''m not entirely sure... A few days in prison should suffice however."

    Reima grins, "I doubt after being in my prison for a couple days they''d ever commit a crime again." he whispers back and straightens to give his judgement on the case. "Brin, you will be imprisoned in the Painted World for four days for the theft of a Wheel-Barrow... I do hope you learn to not commit theft in my land." he says.

    Asgore claps his hands as the two men are brought away, "Next."

    And so the cases continued, most of them involving the rescued prisoners that were being held by the Eternal Fire that Solaire had brought back. In all honesty Reima would have sent them all back had most not been imprisoned for refusing to discriminate and allow non-human''s to perish.

    There were a few Monsters that needed to be judged, though, most were only because of their physiology, a fire elemental like Grillby accidentally burning someone''s Property for example, this was easily rectified by having the Monsters recompense the victim.

    Thus, it was time to begin the more "Serious" cases, these were saved for last so that Reima could get comfortable with his role, as well as getting all the peasants out of the way first.

    Much to his surprise, it was Risryn who dragged in a restrained Prospect, them shouting as many obsenities at the woman as possible. Eventually, the two of them reached below the throne, Risryn kicking the back of the man''s knees causing him to drop to the ground.

    "Fucking bitch! I should have known coming with you was a mistake!" he shouts furiously.

    Reima looks at Asgore, "Who''s this douche?"

    Asgore looks at the parchment, "A Prospect known as Lased..." his eyes widen when he looks at the report. He stand straighter as he addresses the court, "Lased. You are accused of using your position to steal gold and other valuables, as well as refusing to battle against the Kaedweni, abandoning your service and duties. You are also ¨¢ccused of being in correspondence with a Nilfgaardian spy from outside the walls."

    Lased glares at Asgore, "Fucking Monster, shut your mouth or I''ll shut it for you!"

    Risryn tightens her hold on him, making him groan in pain, "And how will you do that, cretin?"

    Reima "Are we sure he committed these crimes?"

    Risryn nods, "I personally investigated and confirmed it." she says, the man cursing at her again in response.

    Reima stands up, the audience captivated as he slowly walks down the steps and places his hand on Lased''s mask.

    Lased "G-g-get off of my you cunt!"

    The rims of the mask glows as he pulls it off of the man''s face, blad head and hard features, black bags under his eyes with numerous scars showing. He screams in terror, and madness, "NO! PUT IT BACK!!!! PUT, IT, BACK!!!!!" he yells.

    Reima walks back to the throne while continuing to look at the mask, he then uses telekinesis to keep the man''s mouth shut as he begins to speak. "Hmm, punishment fit for a piece of shit as well as a traitor?... Well, you seemed to like wearing the mask right? Have a red hot metal mask placed on his face and let it stick... Once it''s secure, hang him by it over the Chaos Temples lake of lava." he states, causing the man to whimper and silently beg with his forehead on the floor. The audience gaping at the horrific punishment he''d just been given.

    Risryn grins and nods at Reima''s choice, Asgore leaning over and asking, "Are you sure? Such a punishment would be incredibly harsh."

    Reima shrugs, "I wonder how long it''ll take for his face to peel away, and for him to fall into the lava?" he asks, ignoring Asgore''s concern.

    Asgore shakes his head but continues the service, "Next!" he calls, Risryn quickly dragging the man out after catching the Mask thrown by Reima.

    There are comparatively few serious cases when compared to other similarly-sized cities, and eventually, the last case begins. The double doors being opens by many Prospects who lead five men dressed in Eternal Fire robes into the hall.

    Reima grins sadistically at them, "Oh, this is going to be fun." he mutters loud enough for Asgore to pick it up.

 659 Burn and Slice

    The crowd stirs in anger as the men are brought forth, the Prospects toss them to the floor seemingly without care, allowing the men to pitifully look up at Reima.

    Asgore coughs into his fist, "Krendet Seg, Crer Gasranck, Harnellas Kensig, Havres Of Kaedwen, and Lihli Sasthid, you have been brought before us after attempting to gain access to Ichor''s lands, what say you?" he commands, unsure why these men would attempt to get into Ichor.

    Krendet "T-The king''s men hunt us! We were just trying to flee when you captured us!"

    Reima snorts, "Is that so? Then, why did you come here? You know our relationship with the Eternal Fire is less than pleasant right?"

    Krendet quickly shakes his head, "We did not Sire! We just ran in a direction and kept going, had we known this was your territory we would have never come!" he argues.

    Reima shrugs, "So you''re just idiots... Alright, let me ask you a couple questions and I''ll see what''ll happen to you. Did any of you participate in the burning of Non-human''s?" he asks, the men immediately going pale.

    Crer "MERCY! We only did it to appease them, we never wanted to-"

    Krendet "QUIET CRER!... Lord! He''s a fool and knows not what he speaks, none of us had any involvement with those horrific acts!"

    Reima frowns "Do you think I''m stupid?"

    Krendet "No my liege! You are the most brilliant, humble, and powerful man I''ve ever had the pleasure to lay my eyes upon!" he quickly says, not missing a beat.

    Reima smiles, "Oh? I''m brilliant? Then you wouldn''t reject my judgement of you?" he says, acting flattered.

    Krendet grabs onto this chance like a lifeline, "Nothing you do could be wrong Sire!"

    Reima slowly nods, "Hmm, have these men hung from the wall with chains by the ankles... Cover them in oil and have the new Chaos Servants use them as target practise." he says waving them off.

    All of the men''s eyes go wide as the ground shouts in agreement, "LORD PLEASE, MERCY!" Krendet screams.

    Reima "I thought nothing I do could be wrong?" he asks, taking a great deal of satisfaction from the man''s stuttering.

    Krendet "YES BUT... SURELY A GREAT AND, AND POWERFUL KING WOULD BE MERCIFUL!?!"

    Reima raises his hand, stopping the Prospects taking them away, "I''ve changed my mind..." he says, causing the men to look at him hopefully. "Only apply oil to Krendet Seg''s genitals."

    ...

    "NOOOOOOO! PLEEAAASSSEEE! MEERRRCCYYYYYYYYYY-" The men beg as they are dragged out, Reima slowly standing up and rolling his shoulders, he looks to Asgore, "Are we done yet?"

    Asgore nods, "That''s all for today, I''ll only ask you to be present for the serious cases so do not worry about the regular management." he says.

    Elsewhere :

    "Hey, girl, you''re Akashiya Moka right? I''m Saizou, how about you and I go somewhere else to talk?" a tall, blonde-haired teen with many piercings asks Moka as she and Nerissa were sipping Tomato juice during break.

    Moka gives him a weird look, "Do you want to be a friends?" she asks innocently.

    Saizo grins "Oh yeah, and a lot more then that." he says, an inhumanly long tong sliding through his lips and moving towards the pinkette.

    Nerrisa glares at Saizo causing the teen to halt and retract his tongue, "Who''s this pipsqueak?" he growls.

    Moka smiles brightly, clearly unaware of the situation at hand, "This is my best friend Nerissa!"

    Saizou eyes the fourteen yearrold and his grin returns, "Oh? Then she can join us during our "Private" talk." he says, trying to grab Moka''s arm.

    Nerissa slaps his offending hand away and stands, "Lead us." she states to him.

    Saizou "Hehe, didn''t realise you were so eager... Follow me then."

    Moka and Nerissa at lead far into the forest where wandering eyes wouldn''t spot them, Moka also doubted they were close enough to the school for anyone to hear them if there was trouble. She stuck to close to the younger girl as she could finally feel something was wrong with the situation.

    Eventually Saizou turns around with a sadistic grin, "Now, take off your clothes... Wouldn''t want to damage them would we?" he says with a chuckle.

    Moka''s eyes open wide, "What!? No!"

    Saizou "Who said you have a choice?" he asks, his body beginning to expand to three times his usual size, his uniform tearing and revealing thick, plate-like muscles. Once it''s over he begins walking towards them, Moka trembling as she feels his sick gaze digging into her skin.

    Saizou "I''ll take you first, and then your little frie-"

    *Clink*

    Moka and Saizou both look at the latters body, a thin red line slowly forming on it as the delinquent trembles.

    Saizou looks up and only see''s Nerissa resting her hand on Iaito that''s discreetly strapped to her hip. "W-w-wha-" he isn''t able to finish his sentence as his body splits vertically down the middle, the two pieces falling lifelessly to the floor.

    Moka can''t believe her eyes at what''d just happened, had Nerissa just done that? If so, how?"

    Nerissa walks up and grabs Moka''s hand, "Okay?"

    Moka takes a moment to compose herself before shaking her head and rubbing her moist eyes, "No, I''m fine... Thanks for saving us." she says, giving a thankful smile.

    Nerrisa nods, "Nn." and walks up to the corpse, beginning to dissect pieces of the brain, spine, heart, muscles, blood, and other organs that may prove useful to Reima. She then stows them away in small vials which she tucks into her school bag.

    Moka "Are you sure you should be touching that... It''s dirty." she says with a grossed out expression.

    Nerissa "Rei asked." is all she says as she begins walking back to school, as if she hadn''t just killed a fellow student.

 660 From one beast to another

    It''d taken a couple months of leisurely travel to finally reach Toussaint, all the while Geralt had been parting his personal experience, knowledge, and anything else that might prove useful to his adoptive daughter. Ciri herself had taken the trip more as a vacation than training, her finally getting to spend some quality time with Geralt. While yes she''d had some opportunities to do so in Ichor, it just wasn''t the same as walking the path with him.

    Eventually they finally reached Toussaint, festivities had already been set up, and a young knight was set to fight a Shaelmaar.

    Geralt and Ciri stood and watched down from the stands at the handsome knight about to get turned to paste.

    The Duchess and her entourage watched while the crowd roared, this apparently being a common occurrence to them.

    The monster was slowly led into the area by many heavily armoured guards, it was small for a Shaelmaar but still quite capable of tearing a man to pieces.

    Ciri sends a callous glance at the showboating knight and lightly elbows Geralt, "Hundred Remi on the knight being crushed."

    Geralt shakes his head, "No point taking a losing bet." he growls out.

    Ciri nods, "I mean, are his weapons even silver? Feels like he''s only there to die for the audience."

    Geralt shrugs, "Hmm, only one of them leaves the arena alive, the audience is only here to watch things die." he says pragmatically.

    The heavily armoured beast looks at the knight wearing decorative armour, still showboating for the crowd. It chitters and screeches at him, finally drawing his attention.

    He holds up his shield protectively, as if it would do anything should the beast attack, the Monster eventually charges him, swiping, clawing and attempting to crush the knight as he barely avoids it''s attacks.

    Ciri had to admit, the fight was pretty entertaining, especially when she could tell the Knight was barely dodging lethal blows... However, the Monster quickly turns around and uses the weights keeping it restrained and within the arena to attack the knight, sending the heavy bells crashing into the shield which causes the chain connecting them to break... Freeing the Monster.

    Ciri "He''s dead." she states as soon as she sees the weights fly off.

    Geralt nod with a sour expression, watching as the Shaelmaar balls up like a pangolin and swiftly rolls towards the knight.

    The warrior attempts to roll out of the way, but his back leg is caught and crushed under the massive weight of the Monster, causing him to scream out in pain and terror.

    The Shaelmaar turns and begins stomping towards the Knight as he tries to crawl backwards, the crowd continues to cheer as the knight has his head placed within the Monsters jaws and crushed like a ripe great.

    Ciri shakes her at the now dead man, "Fool."

    Geralt points at the monster however, "I think we''ve got a problem." he says as he begins to get some distance in preparation to roll up the arena walls to start devouring the crowd.

    The announcer''s voice trembles as the Shaelmaar almost rolls up the wall and into where he''s currently standing, "T-The Monster continues seek for a fight, what we all need is a Witchers might!" he shouts, him as well as the Duchess looking at Geralt and Ciri at the same time.

    ...

    Ciri "Did they plan this?" she continues aloud as Geralt grunts.

    Geralt "Whether they did or not doesn''t matter right now, we got a Monster to kill." he says, hopping over the stand and into the arena.

    Ciri huffs and follows him, quickly drawing Seath from its sheath on her back.

    "THE WITCHER... WITCHERS HAVE APPEARED, THE PEOPLE NO LONGER NEED FEAR!" The announcers hollers as the Shaelmaar takes notice of its new challengers.

    Geralt runs ahead, drawing his Silver blade and confronting the Shaelmaar as it tries to claw him, he stabs at an unarmoured point on it''s claw causing the monster to halt the attack, screeching in pain at him.

    Ciri discreetly makes her way behind it as Geralt distracts it, dashing forwards as it back up to try and roll at the Witcher.

    She lunges forwards with Seath, impaling the crystalline blade into the beast''s jugular, causing profuse amounts of blood to spurt out onto the sandy arena floor.

    "WHA! A SINGLE SWIFT STRIKE ENDS THE BEASTS LIFE!" the announcer screams, the Duchess immediately standing and clapping for them despite the death of the previous knight. One woman in her entourage seems to have excused herself after the man''s death.

    Eventually the Duchess makes her way into the arena, her attendants holding her skirt up as she steps onto the bloody sand. "That entrance! Spectacular!.... It''s a shame you did not elect to intervene to save my knights life." she says, looking at the bloody corpse being carried out.

    Ciri crosses her arms, "I thought it wouldn''t be "Honourable" if we interfered with someone else''s fight... Even if they were destined lose." she says abrasively.

    Henrietta gives Ciri a weird look and turns to Geralt, "Geralt, it is good to see you again... It''s been a while but I believe you need to introduce this young... Witcher?"

    Geralt nods, "This is my..." he gives Ciri a look, "Daughter... Ciri."

    Henrietta nods, "She shares a resemblance with your Son, Reima I believe his name was." she says, causing Ciri to laugh and Geralt to sigh. The duchess gives Ciri an intense look for a couple of seconds before finally returning to the topic at hand, "I believe you''ve come after hearing of the letter I sent Dandelion? I seem to need quicker messengers as I''d sent it months ago... And the situation has gotten worse... But we should discuss this elsewhere." she says, gesturing for them to follow her as she gracefully walks out of the arena.

 661 The Beast of Beauclair

    The duo were led by the Duchess to an encampment, though, it seemed too busy for a country not currently at war with anyone. Geralt and Ciri occasionally saw glimpes into some of the tents, spotting men with heavy injuries obviously not caused by human weapons.

    Geralt "Was there some kind of attack here?" he asks, curious at what creature might have caused all this.

    Henrietta shakes her head, "Unfortunately yes, but not from any country, guild, or even a band of brigands... The one responsible for all of this is the target for your contract, the people have taken to calling it the "Beast of Beauclair", though, my guard captain Damien de la Tour will have more information than I can provide." she says, stopping in front of a large man hastily giving orders to different squads of men.

    Damien "You, go patrol the waters surrounding the palace, see anything hostile or out of sorts, then kill it... Understood?" he says, the men nodding before being sent off.

    Eventually he''s sent all the men away, and notices the Duchess''s presence. When he turns towards them Geralt and Ciri finally get a good look at his appearance... He has a bald head with an immaculately maintained mustache, his face does have three large scars displayed on it, two of which look recently received.

    Damien "Duchess? Are they the ones you requested?" he asks, giving them an appraising look.

    Henrietta nods, "This is Geralt of Rivia and his daughter Ciri, they have already proven their expertise in killing monsters so please restrain yourself from testing their mettle."

    Damien rubs his chin and looks over them, "This iz not some bring your daughter to work day Witcher, the beast has killed many already and doesn''t seem to slowing his rampage down anytime soon."

    Ciri frowns "I could easily beat you if that''s what you''re implying" she growls at him.

    Geralt gestures for her to stop for a moment, "Him? Meaning you''ve already identified whatever is responsible for this?"

    Damien nods, "I encountered them personally... Some kind of fanged monster with huge claws." he says pointing at the scars on his face.

    Henrietta "Damien here thought that your service was not needed, that he could solve the problem himself... I invited you anyway as I didn''t believe him knowledgable enough in such matters to stop the beast''s rampage."

    Geralt nods with crossed arms, "You chose right, what you''ve described is a Higher Vampire, an immortal being that literally cannot die no-matter what you do to it... Inhumanly fast, strong, durable... And all of them have abilities unique to themselves, giving them an incredible advantage over combatants that aren''t aware of how they fight."

    Henrietta''s composure breaks momentarily, "Immortal? Then Toussaint is doomed?"

    Ciri "How''d you reckon Geralt?"

    Geralt "Hmm, we''ve got a certain painting capable of containing something like a Higher Vampire." he says, causing Ciri to slowly nod in realisation.

    Henrietta "It seems you have a plan in mind already? Truly quick work, I expected nothing less from the man Dandelion admires so."

    Geralt "All we need now is to find where this Monster of yours is."

    Damien "Hmm, from the original five victims we found a pattern...The beast hunted men who strayed from the virtues Toussaint was founded upon... Compassion, Generosity, Honour, Valor and Wisdom... Using these hints is where I finally met the beast, but it was too fierce and defeated me... The next kills were on similar men, all knights who''d strayed even slightly from their path." he says looking downtrodden.

    Geralt "Hmm, don''t suppose you know of any knights who''ll likely be attacked?"

    Henrietta sighs, "As much as it pains me to say, many knights have begun to lose the virtues that made them so righteous in the first place... There are too many to attempt to catch the fiend in the act."

    Ciri "Then... Why don''t we have a knight "Stray" even further? Have a knight publically show how much they lack the virtues and wait for the beast to strike." she reasons, Geralt slowly nodding at her idea.

    Henrietta "No... We can''t have a knight reputation sullied through such a thing, especially when their life would be put in danger as well!" she refutes, only for Damien to chip in.

    Damien "I... I myself will do it... As repentance for my failure at apprehending the beast." he says.

    Henrietta "No, Damien, I command you to not do something so, so, STUPID!"

    Damien shakes his head, "Apologies Duchess, but I have made up my mind... I will become a dishonourable swine to save this land." he states, his resolve made.

    ...

    Henrietta scowls and storms off, leaving the trio alone as she heads to her palace.

    Geralt gives Damien a respectful look, "Are you sure? There''s a chance you''ll be torn apart..." he says bluntly.

    Damien nods, "If it must be so, then let it be so... I wish to battle again against the beast, and reclaim the honour I''d lost... But, first, I need to learn how to be a cantankerous swine... Perhaps you could show me Witcher?" he asks seriously, not yet realising that he''d insulted Geralt.

    Ciri''s about to punch him in the face but is stopped by Geralt, "It''s fine. Alright, let''s go to a Brothel, drinks are on me... First, though I''d like to make sure our contract has been finalized... With the Duchess gone that leaves you to sort it out."

    Damien nods, "You''ve already been given the Vineyard Corvo Bianco, the gold reward will have to wait until after we''ve killed the beast." he states. "Now, we should get moving." he says, anxiously walking into town towards the nearest brothel.

    Ciri sighs, "I hate brothels."

 662 Achieving FLIGHT!

    The trio eventually ended up at a brothel in the evening, Geralt and Ciri walked straight in as Damien looked at the door with an awkward expression.

    Geralt pokes his head out when he realises Damien wasn''t with them, "We''re not here for fun... Come on." he states.

    Damien sighs and claps his cheeks, "For Toussaint." he says to himself to boost his confidence before walking straight in while holding his breath as if he was entering water.

    Inside he''s immediately assaulted with a musky smell, one he recognises as sweat, sex, alcohol, and sin... Atleast, this is what he thinks "Sin" would smell like.

    He spots Geralt and Ciri already sitting at a table as a few scantily clad women walk over and start fussing over his numerous scars.

    "Ooohh, I bet this scar has a story to tell?"

    "I was in the stands as you slew the Monster Witcher, what a magnificent man."

    "Is this your woman Witcher? I hope not, you look close enough to be related!"

    Geralt growls but ignores them, gesturing for Damien to come over. The knight does so and lean in as Geralt tries to whisper something into his ear.

    Damien goes slightly pale at his words but steels himself to do what he has to, he stands with his back straight and walks over to the women bothering Geralt. Grabbing the ass of both and pulling them closer to him, "Wench, I will pay for you services." he states, the women looking shocked at a knight acting so impolite.

    Ciri almost shoots alcohol out of her nose when she sees this, looking at Geralt and discreetly raising her mug at him.

    "I know you... You''re Damien de la Tour aren''t you! Did you get those scars trying to kill the Beast of Beauclair?" one asks.

    Damien slowly nods, "Indeed... Now... Let us make love, I will drink myself into a stupor afterwards!" he says, pulling two of the girls into a private room by their asses.

    Ciri "Well, word will definitely get around after a showing like that... I''m guessing you told him to do that."

    Geralt shakes his head, "My suggestion was for him to make love to them on the table, must''ve been too much for him though." he says, taking another drink and watching some girls dancing in the corner of the room.

    Ciri eyes him, "You can look but not touch, I doubt I could keep my lips sealed if Yennefer asked what you got up to." she says, Geralt posture immediately straightening at her name.

    Geralt "Hmm, the same for you... Reima isn''t the most forgiving person." he says, a smug grin appearing on his face as he spots a light blush on her cheeks.

    Elsewhere :

    Reima had just finished the days work and finally had some time to himself... He''d just left the Papyrus and Toriel comedy club after having an awkward meetup with Quelaag... She''d invited him and he didn''t want to refuse just because of Ciri, but maybe it would have been better to make an excuse.

    Quelaag looked put out after he''d refused to "Bed" her after finishing his drink, he didn''t have the heart to tell her he knew exactly what she was trying to do... Now that he had some free time though he wished to practise a new ability... One that he''d realised he desperately needed after fighting against Mikogami... Flight.

    Now, he could just use Voldemorts magical flight, but he found it was simply too slow to be useful in combat. Rather, he''d found another solution that''d be more than good enough for his purposes. Animagus Transformation... His Animagi form was obviously too "young" to fly, but that didn''t mean he couldn''t partially transform which would hopefully give him wings proportional to his size.

    He didn''t waste any time and started meditating next to the "Igni Bonfire of Power" due to its power positively enhancing his power and control.

    From Morgan le Fay''s book he knew that she herself had mastered this technique, her winged skeleton being the primary evidence for it. He closed his eyes and began feeling his form, the boundaries and limitations of it and attempting to blur the line.

    The difficulty with this technique is not performing it, but specifying which trait of your Animagi animal you wanted to gain... If he was doing it haphazardly he might just end up with the head of a dragon, or even the cock... Something that would literally make him a "Dickhead".

    Eventually after an hour Reima''s eyes open, feeling something different about his body... Turning around he saw two... Tiny wings on his lower back. "Fuck." he curses, realising he must''ve gained the wrong pair of wings, his current ones resembling his Dragon''s smallest set.

    Again, he drops into meditation and begins the process anew, making sure to remove the current set of wings incase he makes another mistake...

    Opening his eyes again he spots two huge wings folded on his back, already he could feel the tingle of magic being infused within them, the wings of dragons needing it to support their massive bodies... Though, with Reima''s powerful magic he''d probably be able to fly without flapping them.

    The wing themselves are black and tip with sharp-looking bone protrusions, scales cover the parts with bone to give more protection. He fiddles for a moment with the new muscles connected to his body and eventually unfurls them, having them extend around 14ft at max length, they were huge and unwieldy... But he couldn''t help but feel the need to leap off the mountain and test them out.

    Some of the Chaos Servants who were resting from their training almost crap their pants when Reima glides past them, his two massive wings occasionally flapping so he could gain familiarity with the movement. His speed had already broken the sound barrier, but this was more due to how much magic he was injecting into them.

    The rest of the waning day was spent doing tricks around the mountain as the city below watched, most assumed their King had some ingenious intentions to his strange movements... But those with good enough eyesight or knowledge of Reima''s personality could tell he was giggling like a school girl while flying around...

 663 Red "Missed"

    Geralt and Ciri had been trying for a full month to get Damien''s reputation as low as possible... They''d been having his go on drunken boozes trips through town, assaulting everyone he saw while also destroying cheap property. Henrietta wasn''t fond of their tactics and elected to send anonymous benefits to those effected, it was usually just gold that''d pay for the repairs and a little extra for the trouble...

    Damien himself had been drunk for three weeks straight now, Geralt and Ciri didn''t know whether he was still acting or had actually become what he hated... Regardless, Toussaint hated him, a new title coined by the populace for him being "The Fallen Knight", or "Damien the Terrible".

    They weren''t sure if Damien was bothered by his new reputation as he couldn''t really comprehend it in his constantly drunken state. But, eventually the group were sure that the Beast of Beauclair would target him next, the last victim having been a couple weeks ago, and it was long overdue for the next to be discovered.

    Geralt and Ciri were waiting within Damiens estate as he, spent "time" with a wench he''d picked up. However, the continuous sound of a woman''s screams were replaced with shrieks of horror from both Damien and the wench.

    The duo look at each other, grab their weapons and rush upstairs before kicking in the locked door. Damien and the woman were on the floor naked, both huddled next to each other as a figure drops from the ceiling.

    Geralt "Stop right there!" he growls at the intruder while flicking his hand to ignite the nearby candles.

    The room is illuminated, revealing the "Beast of Beauclair" in all his glory. The man standing before them wore a black leather coat with red undergarments, though the more noticeable thing about him was his vicious vampiric face and huge claws extending from his hands.

    "Do not attempt to stop me, or I''ll cut you down like the rest!" they exclaim in a inhuman voice.

    Ciri "Try it!" she challenges.

    Geralt dropping into a stance, prepared for a sudden attack, "Come th-"

    "DETTLAFF STOP!" another voice shouts, a figure appearing behind Dettlaff and grabbing him around his waist.

    Dettlaff struggles against the newcomer, but to Geralt combat is least important thing right now.

    Geralt "Regis!?!" he exclaims, seeing his lost long friend for the first time is years.

    Regis almost lets go of Dettlaff at hearing Geralts voice, "I''d love to talk Geralt but now is not the time!" he shouts, throwing himself backwards out of the window.

    Damien slurrs at Geralt, "Geeet that baastard WITCHER!" he says, passing out into the bosom of the prostitute he''d been romping with.

    Ciri disappears in a flash to Turquise light as Geralt follows the others out of the window.

    A turquoise light flashes behind Dettlaff as Ciri attempts to slice at him, the vampire trying to defending with his claws, but is momentarily startled to find that her crystalline blade had chipped his nails.

    Dettlaff "You will pay for that!" he shouts, sending a backwards kick which connects with her stomach, sending her flying.

    Geralt "Ciri!" he shouts, seeing his daughter get hit. He looks at the vampire with fury and downs a couple of potions in preparation of dealing with the threat, black veins becoming prominent on his face.

    Regis "Dettlaff stop! They''re my friends! YOU DON''T HAVE TO DO THIS!"

    Dettlaff "YES, I, DO!" he exclaims, throwing his head back and breaking Regis nose before spinning and delivering a knee to his chest, sending him tumbling head over toe. He then turns and stand off against Geralt, taking a keen interest in the Witcher''s increase in strength.

    Geralt lunges forwards, "Taste silver, scum!" he shouts as Dettlaff gets ready to defend against the swift strike... However, it was only a distraction as Geralt rolls a Dancing star bomb under the vampire and leaping away.

    Dettlaff only notices something is wrong when it''s too late, the bomb explodes and he''s covered in a napalm-like substance which burns the skin from his flesh. "AHHHRRRGHGHH! YOU WILL DIE!" he screams, finding it difficult to locate Geralt through the flames covering his face.

    Geralt pirouettes forwards and deliver''s a cut to his opponents back, severing his spine near the lumbar and causing the vampire to fall to the floor. Dettlaff''s spine begins to regenerate immediately after the injury, but the flames and silver from the blade reduce his healing factor significantly.

    Dettlaff screams in pain and throws himself away from Geralt so he could gain control of his lower body again. However, from a large bush of multicolored flowers Ciri jumps out and tries to cut him down, only for him to block her blade with his claws again... Claws that are destroyed upon blocking her strike.

    Dettlaff rolls away, launching himself back onto his now healed feet, still burning. Regis comes out from the rubble of a guest home and runs to confront Dettlaff as Geralt and Ciri prepare to finish him.

    Regis "Geralt, Ciri! Please, Dettlaff is not himself, I don''t believe he''s been killing those people willingly!"

    Geralt "Willing or not, I won''t let him hurt anyone else!" he shouts, dashing forwards and aiming to cripple Dettlaff so Ciri could teleport him to the Painted World''s prison.

    Ciri seemed to be on the same page as Geralt as she blinks behind him, getting ready to grab ahold of Dettlaff and teleport him.

    Dettlaff could sense that he''s in big trouble and decides to retreat, his body bursting into a red mist and quickly disappearing into the sky.

    Ciri "W-what!?!"

    Geralt "Damn, he got away." he grumbles, eventually sheathing his sword and turning to Regis. "What the hell is going on Regis!"

 664 Trojan Horse

    Geralt "What the hell is going on Regis!" he shouts.

    Regis looks in the sky where Dettlaff had vanished, "That''s something I myself would like to know..."

    Ciri rubs her stomach, slightly hunched over in pain at the kick she''d taken earlier. "Your friend packs a mean kick." she says, retrieving a potion Quelina had made from the HP world that supposedly heals bruising.

    Regis nods, "Indeed... I think we best find a place to speak, privately preferably." he says.

    Geralt looks back up at Damiens estate and nods, "You''ve got some explaining to do, if anyone asks, we went chasing after the beast." he mutters, following Regis.

    The duo are led out of Beauclair and into a cemetery, Regis leads them into his hideout and slumps on a chair as the others sit on some rubble.

    Regis "A city sleeps undisturbed by foray, as men try to keep the night at bay. Shadows move unabated, seeking to keep their thirst sated. A window open, the lock was broken, a fanged bite giving a dreadful fright." he recites for them.

    Geralt "Hmm, I''ve heard better." he states.

    Regis nods, "Indeed, not my best work but I''m a novice you see... Winemaking suits my blood better I think." he says, reaching for a bottle and uncorking it.

    Ciri frowns, "Can we cut to the chase? There''s a vampire on the loose murdering people..."

    Regis retrieves three goblets and starts filling them, "Ah yes... I assume you''ve rid yourself of those annoying pests Ciri?" he asks.

    Ciri "The Wild Hunt?" he asks confused.

    Regis hands the drinks to her and Geralt, "Them and the others, all seeking you for your blood, though, not in the same way I might add."

    Ciri sips the drinks, "Not all of them have been dealt with..." she mutters, bring that subject to a close.

    Geralt "So... How''d you free yourself?" he asks, the last time he saw Regis was when he was fused into molten rock.

    Regis takes another swig and looks into his goblet, "Dettlaff."

    Geralt "Hmm, sounds like you owe him. Is that why you look the other way while he massacres people?"

    Regis shakes his head, "As I said before, I believe something is wrong with him... He and I have been alive many, many years... And this is the first I''ve ever seen him act like this, something must be bothering him, that or forcing his hand."

    Ciri "Do you have any evidence for that?" she presses.

    Regis slowly nods, "During his time terrorizing the city I''ve been investigating his home, whereabouts, and targets... His targets gave me nothing, apart from the fact that he is a pragmatic person, if he ever were blackmailed then he''d choose the path that''d only harm the guilty... But, I don''t think that is correct either... I found some things within his residence and hideouts that suggest someone is pulling his strings, manipulating him for some purpose."

    Regis shakes his head, "I only know where the messages he''s receiving come from... Dun Tynne Castle."

    Ciri sighs, "What good is that? We''d have to torture the information out of everyone in the castle to get... Answers..."

    Geralt glances at her, "Sounds like you''ve got an idea?"

    Ciri slowly nods, "I do, but it might be difficult to pull off..."

    Regis "Please Ciri, if you have a way of helping them please do tell me... Dettlaff is an admirable person at heart, he''s just misguided right now."

    A smile begins to widen across her face, "Alright, I doubt Geralt will appreciate my plan though."

    Due to Regis having been partially seen by the drunken Damien they elected to have him hide out until he was needed. They then reported their findings the next morning, making sure to keep the information about Dun Tynne Castle secret, as if the information got out all their leads would vanish.

    With Damiens authority and his mental state still recovering from his month-long binge they acquired all the material they needed for Ciri''s plan, though, Geralt was thoroughly unamused by what she''d come up with...

    Geralt, Ciri, and Regis led a large group of Prospects and a few large wagons towards the walls of Dun Tynne Castle, the Prospects all wore colourful clothing and had funny faces drawn onto their masks.

    Geralt was dressed in tight-fitting leather with a whip strapped to his side and carrying a collar attached to a tamed Acromentula.

    Regis wasn''t any better off, having been dressed and painted in white and black to resemble a mime...

    Ciri was the only one dressed normally, wearing a fine dress that made her look like a regular citizen of Beauclair.

    Geralt "Why do I have to be dressed like this and you don''t?" he asks, giving her a stern glare.

    Ciri sends a smug look at him, "My plan, my rules."

    Regis "I have to say Ciri, I never expected you to have so many... Friends on hand."

    Ciri grins, "Well, my boyfriend is a King, soo..."

    Regis nods, "Say no more... I have no wish to get mixed up in your romance..."

    The group slowly walk towards the gate of Dun Tynne Castle, eventually stopping when the guard shouts at them from the wall. "IDENTIFY YOURSELVES!"

    Ciri steps forth with her arms spread, "We are the Duchess''s personal traveling circus! We wish to speak to Sir Roderick!" she says, revealing the Duchesses insignia.

    The guard squints at it and almost falls over backwards when he finally spots it, "OOOHHH-OPEN THE GATE!" he hollers towards the guards.

    The large heavy wooden doors swing open and Ciri confidently steps inside while Regis and Geralt follow her. The guards within the castle giving the group weird, confused, or excited looks.

    Regis leans closer to Geralt and nods at Ciri, "Atleast we managed to get inside... I personally didn''t think we''d manage that."

 665 Circus

    The trio reaches a large courtyard with a tower connected to a main building looking down at them, the castle itself didn''t look to be a Knights property, instead looking more like a military outpost with how many armed guards there were.

    Ciri, Geralt, and Regis were told to wait in the courtyard as someone went off to retrieve Sir Roderick. The tall man stormed out of the main building with a scowl, glaring at the trio as if he were about to cut them down "What, is the meaning of this!?!" he exclaims, pointing at them.

    Ciri steps forwards with her arms wide, "As I told your guardsman, we are operating under the Duchesses commands."

    Roderick frowns "And why would the Duchess send you lot to my land?" he asks.

    Ciri "The Duchess mourns the veteran knights solitary lifestyles, not even deigning to join the festivities... While she does not dispute your choice to isolate yourselves, she doesn''t wish for you to be forgotten... And thus she sent us! If you will not come to the festivities, the festivities will come to you!" she exclaims, giving a twirl and sending a wink at him.

    Roderick is about to tell them all to fuck off, but due to them having been sent by the Duchess doing such a thing would be incredibly disrespectful... Almost imprisonment worthy infact. He looks around at his guards and ponders for a moment before eventually reaching a decision. "Fine, you may perform here, but do not dwell too long. I appreciate the peace and quiet afforded to me after my long years of service." he states, slowly walking back inside where a black-haired woman is waiting for him.

    Ciri grins, her plan working almost perfectly. "Clowns! Bring in the wagons!" she shouts, the Prospects leading the wagons inside the Castle before beginning to set up a crudely built stage as well as a few huge barrels of alcohol.

    A few decorative sheets are placed to cover them all from the hot Toussaint sun, many fabrics also being placed on the floor to act as seating, along with a few large pillows.

    Immediately, Ciri has the alcohol distributed to everyone, the guards happily beginning to drink despite it being midday.

    With the Duchesses insignia their guards were obviously dropped, no one daring to think that it would be used against them. Roderick despite being a greedy scoundrel was still loyal to Toussaint, to a degree atleast.

    And so, the circus started. The beginning acts were just the Prospects performing acrobatic stunts, shocking the guards who''d never seen anything like it before. Afterwards the did disappearing acts with their weapons, hiding them behind their backs and dematerialising them as the guards watched, shocking them even further.

    The commotion had been loud and unruly, drawing Roderick back out to see what the hubbub was about, he was followed by a beautiful black haired girl who seemed to try and stay incognito, never approaching anyone aside from Roderick.

    The guards were obviously wary, but the alcohol had dulled the fears, allowing them to scream "Freak!" at the Witcher as he began to perform.

    Geralt tried his best to keep a neutral expression as he had the Acromentula do tricks, rolling on it''s back, jumping in the air, and even approaching the audience. The men who were cursing at him almost shit themselves when the angry looking spider scuttled towards them, forcing them to be quiet.

    Roderick seemed to be getting into the mood, shouting for Geralt to do something dangerous with the creature, the black-haired girl at his side giving him a dull look as another drink was pushed into her hands.

    Geralt began to bow which usually signalled the performance was over, however, much to the surprise of the audience the spider crawled up his back and sat on his head, screeching at the audience and causing them all to cheer and clap.

    Roderick laughs, clapping one of his guards on the shoulder, "That bitch Duchess really knows how to create a circus!..." those that''d heard him give him a confused look, Roderick himself blushing at having literally cursed the Duchess. "My apologies, the alcohol must be getting to me!... LONG LIVE DUCHESS ANNA HENRIETTA!" he screams to try and draw attention from his earlier gaff.

    The black-haired girl raises her glass and tries to say it too, however, her words don''t seem to come out. She frowns, feeling like something was off, but having no valid reason to excuse herself...

    The next act is Regis, or, as Ciri announces, "The Noble Silence!"

    Regis steps out, still dressed as a mime, and begins performing... At first it''s quite boring when compared to the people before him, but his earlier practice had allowed him to utilise his vampiric strength to astound the audience. Though, some of the tricks he performed were only possible with Ciri silently levitating objects or using magic...

    There were a few weird things happening from within the... "So I got there, and guess what I saw? Four wome-... Wom-... Four men..." the guard says, becoming confused.

    "So what''d you do?"

    The guards almost chokes on his drink as words seem to leave his mouth without his notice. "They ploughed me ass until it was raw... WOT!?!" he exclaims, realising he''d just revealed that he''d been raped by a group of men. The man quickly left, saying that he''d flubbed his words but all his mates were laughing and cheering at him, not noticing that whatever happened to him had also affected them.

    Eventually, though, the circus was over. Ciri standing up on stage and bowing to the audience with a wide smile on her face. Roderick had been offered drinks by his men and the Circus and was already in a drunken stupour, his hands wandering over the clothes of the black-haired woman as she attempted to push him away.

    She stands up and excuses herself to Roderick and begins walked towards the main building just as Ciri starts talking.

    Ciri "I hope you all enjoyed the festivities provided by the Duchess, but I think you''ll all enjoy the words she asked me to give you... WHO HERE IS INVOLVED WITH THE BEAST OF BEAUCLAIR!?!" she shouts, everyone going silent as the Prospects begin to fight should everything turn sideways.

 666 Mastermind

    Ciri "WHO HERE IS INVOLVED WITH THE BEAST OF BEAUCLAIR!?!" she shouts.

    Roderick sits up and shouts at her, "I hafff noo fuckkinggg clue, what you are talking about!"

    Most of the other guards give an affirmative answer... However, some of the more rugged ones with newer armour feel as if something is stuck in their throats.

    "I AM!" one shouts, everyone staring at them as they hold their mouth in shock.

    The black-haired woman turns at hearing this and glares at the man, never expecting she''d be betrayed like this.

    Ciri points at him, "WHO IS THE MASTERMIND?"

    The man quickly stands and points at the woman, hoping to save his own skin.. Only to be stabbed through the back by his compatriot.

    It was too late however, Regis and Geralt were already on the move towards the woman as random guards begin to get up and start killing the others. Roderick clearly has no idea what''s happening and drunkenly get to his feet and starts swinging his sword about randomly.

    The Prospects were also targeted, but through the haze of alcohol and their lesser skills the guards were completely outmatched.

    Three groups quickly form, the Prospects on one side, the unaware guards in the middle, with the criminals forming around the main building where Regis, Geralt, and the woman had run in.

    Ciri "All of you who are not rebels against the Duchess should lay down your arms and come to us, or you will be cut down like the rest!" she shouts, a few men doing as they''re told but some others still not believing her.

    Without many other options, the battle begins, some innocents being caught in the crossfire with it being unfortunately unavoidable.

    The criminals do all they can to block all entrances to the main building, but the Prospects push them further and further back, until they retreat inside the building and barricade the doors.

    Ciri isn''t ready to let them all bumrush Geralt and Regis and casts a Bombarda from her fingertip, causing the entrance to explode which kills all the men trying to hold it shut. Immediately afterwards dashing inside while slashing at all those who try to interfere... She channels Elder Blood Energy into her blade which allows it to cut through armour as if it were butter, using this to decimate everyone inside.

    Seeing this opulently dressed woman easily kill most of their friends the men remaining all drop their weapons and beg for mercy, all shouting "WE SURRENDER!"

    Ciri sighs and releases the magic in her blade, before nodding at the Prospects to tie them all up to prevent them from doing anything sneaky.

    Afterwards she heads upstairs towards the tower where the woman had presumably run, coming to an open door. Through it she sees Regis and Geralt looking at a woman threatening to jump out of the window should they try and capture her.

    Geralt "Don''t do it, we just want to talk." he says, approaching so slowly the woman doesn''t notice.

    "NO! I WILL, HAVE, MY, REVENGE!"

    Geralt casts an Axii sign at her, attempting to get her down without a fight but she shakes her head and resists it somehow, the feeling of having her mind manipulated disorients her and causes her to fall backwards towards the window.

    Ciri without much choice throws her hand forwards, causing an outline of Turqouise to cover the woman as she''s pulled back inside by an invisible force.

    Regis and Geralt jump on and restrain her as she screams furiously, attempting to stab at them with a knife. The scuffle allowing her to stab Regis in the throat... He shrugs it off however, causing the woman''s eyes to widen at the quickly healing wound.

    "Y-you, you''re a-"

    Regis "Vampire? Indeed." he states as Geralt disarms her and ties her hands behind her back.

    Geralt glances at Ciri, "Is everything fine outside?"

    Ciri nods and Regis glares at the woman, "I wish to know your relation to Dettlaff." he asks more politely than his expression would suggest.

    The woman gives a hard look, the Veritaserum causing words to bubble in her throat, as if the truth wished to be announced. "We-we were lovers." he states, causing Regis to eye her curiously.

    Geralt "Hmm, you were lovers... So you knew what he was, and you are trying to use him to further some scheme?" he wonders aloud.

    Ciri "Sounds like a regular bitch to me, what''s your name?" she asks.

    "Sylvia..." she says, looking as if she were struggling with something.

    Ciri "Full name." she presses.

    "Sylvia... Anna." she says, shocking all those present.

    Regis "I''d heard the Duchess had a sister, but it is said that she was lost, forgotten."

    Geralt "Probably the reason you wanted revenge right?"

    Sylvia scowls at him, "I was banished, all so Anarietta could inherit my position!" she says loudly.

    Regis "And so, you chose to betray Dettlaff? Have you never heard the saying "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you"? Or do you simply not care about those who get in your way?" he asks, furious that this bitch would manipulate his friend and saviour.

    Sylvia "I''d give everything for my revenge, even burn the world down if I had to." she states with a scowl.

    Ciri sighs and looks to Geralt, "We should probably tell the Duchess we''ve found the perpetrator..."

    Geralt "Hmm, they will want Dettlaff dead aswell though..." he says, knowing full well that his existence as a monster already forces hostility against him.

    Regis "First, I believe we should find out what she''s using to blackmail Dettlaff... Then, we could stop his rampage." he argues.

    Sylvia snorts, "Rampage? Hardly, the fool refused my last request." she says, causing the others to give her a look.

 667 Sister, Sister.

    Geralt "He refused?"

    Sylvia nods, Veritaserum still potent in her blood, "He refused to kill Anarietta." she spits.

    Regis breathes a sigh of relief, "Truly? That is fantastic news." he says, not taking notice of Sylvia''s glare.

    Geralt "Hmm, seems like Dettlaff isn''t as monstrous as the city thinks."

    Ciri "How did you manipulate Dettlaff?" she presses.

    Sylvia struggles to keep the secret, but a kick to the gut by Ciri has her talking, "H-He thinks I have been kidnapped... I send him letters telling him who the next targets are, threatening my death if he should refuse..."

    Regis "You... You are one of the most vile people I have ever had the misfortune of meeting... Did you ever stop to think what would happen if he discovered your ruse? How many innocents would die?"

    Sylvia doesn''t say anything, simply sitting there with her arms bound.

    Geralt "Regis, think you could contact Dettlaff?"

    Regis shrugs, "He''ll be lingering around the city somewhere... I might be able to find it, for now, you should deliver this..." he stops himself and shakes his head, "Sylvia, to her sister."

    Ciri and Geralt nod as Regis disappears out of the window, both picking up Sylvia and escorting her downstairs.

    Once downstairs Geralt sends one of the innocent guardsmen who survived to deliver a message to Damien de la Tour and the Duchess. Ciri then opens a portal so the Prospects can all return to Ichor, having foreign troops in her territory would not go down so well if the Duchess asked about it. Ciri hoped Reima wouldn''t mind her using the city''s troops without his permission...

    A couple hours later a large entourage of troops arrive at Dun Tynne Castle, Damien walking in with large bags under his eyes and slowly sipping a flask of water. "Is it true? Have you uncovered the perpetrator?" he asks.

    Geralt nods with crossed arms, "We have, this them... Sylvia Anna." he says, Damiens eyes going wide.

    Damien "Surely you jest..." he asks, not believing them to be serious.

    Ciri "We aren''t joking... We also have a group of men who''d assisted her."

    Damien looks over at the men being escorted out in chains and nods, "Indeed... They will be judged for their actions... Though, I don''t see any way out for them that doesn''t involve a rope."

    Ciri "I hope you won''t mind if we help escort Sylvia... I don''t want to have to go running after her again." she says, Damien reluctantly agreeing as they stuff their prisoner onto a wagon bound in ropes.

    The morning went quickly, people rushing about to get everything in order for the trial... It would be held in a small chapel not far from the palace with only a few of the Duchesses close retainers present, as well as Ciri and Geralt.

    The chapel itself was surrounded by trees and was built on a large hill that slopes into a river, leaving the only exit through the single stone path.

    Geralt and Ciri were out of their "Circus" clothing and into clothes provided by the Toussaint servants, silks, and leathers giving them both regal looks, even if Geralt couldn''t wait to get out of it.

    As the two approach the chapal Henrietta approaches them with a saddened look, "Damien stated that it was you who found out that my sister was involved... But I would like to hear from you personally how you know she intended to kill me?"

    Geralt and Ciri give each other a glance before the latter speaks, "We used... Magic, to pull the truth from her. She physically could not lie to us whe new interrogated her, there is no doubt that she tried to kill you."

    The Duchess looks down conflicted, "And the beast? Damien informed me that in his shock he forgot to ask about its status... Is it dead?"

    Geralt shakes his head, "No, but it was your sister who was blackmailing the vampire into attacking your people. I wish to contact them and reason with them, no point in-"

    Henrietta gives him a hard look, "No. This creature has killed so many of my knights, even if it did so unwillingly it must pay for it''s crimes."

    Ciri crosses her arms, "And your sister? I don''t suppose you''re going to execute her for betraying you, your country, and it''s people?" she asks, knowing full well that Sylvia''s status would probably save her from harsh punishment.

    Henrietta "Silence, I will hear no more from you." she states, turning and walking towards the back of the chapel in preparation for Sylvia''s arrival.

    A few trumpets are blown as some soldiers escort Sylvia to the chapal, the woman has dark bags under her eyes and glares viciously at the Duchess, causing her retaining to place their hands on their weapons should she try anything.

    Henrietta "Sister... Sylvia... Is that you?" she asks, her voice trembling.

    Sylvia continues to glare at her, "Yes, it is I sister."

    Henrietta "Then... Why?" is all she could ask, her composure begin to break despite her years of practice.

    Sylvia point at her, "You know damn well why sister, I was banished, exiled for your actions. You stood there as I was punished, and did not speak up, even as I begged you... Do you know what It''s like to be cast into the unknown? No money, clothes, or friends? No! You do not, instead, you rule my lands, my people, and enjoy MY wealth!" she says, getting louder and louder as she speaks.

 668 Busy Day

    The Duchess looks wide-eyed at her sister, not expecting such an answer from her... "S-sister... I know it was my fault for what happened, but I looked for you! You simply didn''t wish to be found."

    Sylvia glares daggers at her sister, "Do you really believe the Ministers would not send someone to have me killed? If so, then you are a fool sister!"

    Henrietta looks down in sadness, "I... There was nothing else I could do... I thought you were lost to me, either dead or never wishing to return. Every morning since you left I''ve woken up still thinking about you, about how I failed you... Please, sister, is there any way you could forgive me?" she asks, slowly approaching Sylvia. "As Duchess, I must judge you, but as your sister I will never stop loving you." she says, holding her arms out to Sylvia.

    Damien gives a suspicious look to Sylvia as the two approaches each other, Geralt and Ciri were also ready to intervene should Sylvia try anything.

    The Duchess and her sister embrace under the sunlight, most are surprised at how anticlimactic it is but hold their tongues to avoid offending the Duchess... However, just as things were beginning to relax Sylvia makes a sudden move.

    Sylvia "I will never forgive you, sister." she says, grabbing the Duchesses hairpin and driving it down at her.

    Damien and Geralt rush forward to try and stop her, but the unorthodox attack was too sudden, all hope was thought to be lost until someone shouts "Expelliarmus!", a bolt of red magic shooting out and hitting Sylvia in the hand, causing the hairpin to throw itself away from her.

    Sylvia "What!" she exclaims, having her only way of exacting her revenge literally pulled from her grasp.

    Henrietta pushes Sylvia off of her, the shock leaving her as Damien and Geralt dogpile the treacherous attempted kin-slayer.

    Damien "Damned traitor!" he shouts, furious that she''d attempt something like this.

    Ciri breathes a sigh of relief, the Duchess was supposed to be the one paying them, if she croaked then they''d probably only receive half the reward... She''s about to fall back into a relaxed pose but it stopped when a small rumble causes the earth below her to tremble...

    Geralt was also looking around confused, his sense allowing him to sense it much sooner than everyone else.

    *Dub, Dub... Dub, Dub...*

    Soon everyone else started hearing it, but it was still too far to tell what it was...

    Damien "W-what is that?"

    *Dub, Dub, Dub, Dub... Dub, Dub, Dub, Dub...*

    The sound gets quicker and quicker, Geralt''s eyes eventually opening in realisation.

    *DUB DUB DUB DUB DUB DUB DUB DUB DUB!*

    Geralt "SOMETHING BIG IS COMING!" he shouts, grabbing Sylvia and pushing her into Damiens arms as he draws his silver blade and looks along the stone path.

    Regis "STOP! DETTLAFF WE CAN WORK THIS OUT!"

    Dettlaff "YOU BETRAY ME RHEENNAAAAA!!?!"

    The crowd in the chapel almost shit themselves when Dettlaff appears in his monster form, two wings, as well as two long limbs tipped with sharp bone sit on his back and shoulders, his face has nothing but a mouth filled with dangerous-looking teeth, his claws look similar to how they usually look, only this time larger.

    The creature''s body seems to lack skin entirely, showing the pink fleshy muscle beneath, bats surround him as he sprints forwards, using his wings to get faster and faster. His only target being Rhena, or better known as Sylvia Annam who''s currently being held in Damien''s arms.

    Regis simply isn''t fast enough to catch up, only being able to shout for his friend to stop... To no avail.

    A few crossbow bolts are launched from the guards inside the chapel, however, they simply bounce off of Dettlaff''s body as if they were toys.

    Cir throws the Gleam Cloak Reima had given her over her shoulders, hoping it''d be enough to prevent a fatal attack if shit hit the fan.

    Geralt retrieves a Thunderbolt potion, Wyvern Decoction, Tawny Owl potion, Full Moon potion and finally a Black-Blood potion, immediately drinking them as Dettlaff approaches. The potions cause black veins to cover his face, turning his skin pale and clammy as he struggles to correct his breathing under the strain of the toxicity... He only has a couple of seconds left to prepare, retrieving one last thing... A vial filled with Vampire Oil which he smashes on his blade, allowing it to drip down and cover most of it.

    By the time Dettlaff reaches the Chapel Ciri had already Enchanted Seath with "Chaos Blade", wreathing it in dark red flames.

    Dettlaff roars and leaps at Geralt who''s standing in the Chapel entrance, Gerlat knows he wouldn''t be able to block such a powerful attack, deciding instead to divert it somewhere else. He throws his hand forwards and casts the most powerful Aard he can mustre, causing Dettlaff to be forced sideways, crashing through one of the Chapels pillars and causing stone shrapnel to knock a few of the nobles over as the vampiric beast rolls down the hill towards the river.

    Ciri follows, blinking behind Dettlaff and trying to stab him through the back as he regains his footing, however her attack is prevented by one of the limbs on the vampires back, it stabbing at her reflexively and forcing her to block, the flames painfully licking the limbs regardless.

    Dettlaff grunts in pain, the dark red flames feeling nothing like he''d ever experienced before. He throws his arm out wildly, catching Ciri with the back of his claw and giving a shallow cut to her arm as she backs away. "YOU AGAIN? I WILL NOT BE MERCIFUL THIS TIME!" Dettlaff shouts as the rematch begins.

    Sylvia looks on fearfully, never having seen Dettlaff transforming into... This, before. Henrietta isn''t doing much better, her usual unbreakable public face seeming weak in the face of such a beast.

 669 Chapel Brawl

    Geralt rushes down the hill, followed by the fearful looking knights of Toussaint. The heavily armoured knights wielding halberds quickly run to confront Dettlaff, Geralt shouting "No!" as they are easily cut in two by one sweep of its claws, shocking everyone watching from the Chapel.

    Dettlaff kicks the halved corpses at Geralt, forcing him to duck under them as the vampire tries to run him through with its claws.

    *CLANK!*

    Regis leaps in-front of Geralt and blocks the strike with his own claws, "Dettlaff! STOP! We can talk about this!"

    Dettlaff growls at him, "THERE IS NOTHING TO DISCUSS!" he exclaims, using his superior strength to fling Regis aside like a baseball, smashing through a couple trees during his flight.

    Ciri points towards the ground under Dettlaff, casting a spell that causes a thin stone spike to explode from the ground, however, it isn''t strong enough to injury the beast, the stone breaking upon impact and doing nothing but drawing Dettlaff''s attention back to her.

    Dettlafff leaps into the air, his wings slowly flapping as bats continue to gather around him. He throws his arm out and the swarm flies towards Geralt as Dettlaff himself swoops towards Ciri, intending to run her through.

    Geralt casts an Igni at the swarm which unfortunately only causes the swarm of bats to become a "Fiery Swarm of Bats", they frantically attempt to bite at him as their flesh burns, burning Geralt slightly as he slashes at them.

    Ciri drops into a low stance while preparing her Elder Blood Magic, disappearing as Dettlaff slashes through her position and reappearing behind him while stabbing into his side, returning back to where she was after she''s finished.

    Dettlaff prepares for another dive but is grabbed from the air by Regis who''d recovered from the previous attack, the duo crashing against the roof of the Chapel before falling into the river.

    Ciri and Geralt run to the side of it and look for Dettlaff and Regis, backing up as they see bubbles beginning to quickly form on the surface.

    Dettlaff rockets out of the river, his claws pushes deeply into Regis''s chest as he tries to bite him, only being restrained by Regis own claws. Ciri cast a spell at the duo, causing the water covering them to freeze solid, allowing Geralt to dash forwards and bring his sword down on Detlaff''s arm, cutting it off as Regis pushes himself away, breaking the ice restraining them both.

    Dettlaff continues try grab Regis, ignoring his lost arm and snarling viciously at his former friend. Ciri uses her Pyromancy flame to form a weak, novice Chaos whip which wraps around Dettlaff''s wings, causing the smell of putrid burnt flesh to linger in the air.

    Dettlaff proves too strong for her Pyromancy, however, forcing himself forwards and breaking it while slashing down at Regis, only to be blocked by Geralt.

    Dettlaff "There is no need for words, ONLY ACTION!" he spits, pushes and flinging Geralts sword a few meters away, bringing his claw down and cutting him across his chest, the regal clothing he''s wearing not giving him any protection against it.

    Ciri "Geralt!" she shouts, blinking under Dettlaff and stabbing upwards into his stomach before tearing the blade out, destroying a large amount of the vampire''s internal organs.

    Geralt is pulled back by Regis, both having been injured but still trying to stay in the fight. "These damned clothes!" he exclaims, tearing off the damaged tunic and revealing his scarred body and bloody chest.

    Regis "Atleast you had the forethough to bring your equipment." he says placatingly, slowly walking around Dettlaff as Ciri fight him, attempting to get a good angle to pounce.

    Ciri uses Quen which surrounds herself in a protective shield as she parries another claw from Dettlaff, his cut arm slowly beginning to grow back despite the silver and vampire oil restricting its healing.

    The fight continues for a few moments more, Detlaff being covered in wounds that his body hastily attempts to heal, only to receive more due to his now sluggish movements.

    Ciri deflects another blow from his single arm, spinning the blade and bringing it upwards to slice it off to match the other.

    Regis and Geralt lunges at Dettlaff once they get into position, claws, and silver blade penetrating the beast chest as Ciri twirls and cuts the vampire''s head clean off.

    She breaths heavily, falling onto her ass while looking at Dettlaff''s heavy body, currently only being held up by Regis and Geralt.

    The duo pulls back and lets it drop, blood spilling into the rich green grass, the body bulges and pulsating as it continues to try and heal itself.

    Ciri looks at her companions, "What... What now?" she asks.

    Regis looks down at his friend with a grim look, glancing up at the Chapel full of people that''d seen his true form... He could see Henrietta looking at him in shock, obviously recognising him from their previous run-ins.

    Regis "I... The only thing that can kill a true vampire, is another true vampire..." he says, looking down at Dettlaff solemnly.

    Geralt shakes his head with his hand on his bloody chest, "We don''t have to kill him... Ciri, we can still use the Prison."

    Ciri''s eyes widen and she nods, grabbing Dettlaff''s head and body before disappearing in a Turqouise flash, dropping Dettlaff in the heavily fortified cell and giving Hinky a warning about how to deal with Dettlaff.

    Geralt and Regis slowly walk up to the Chapel, Regis now in his human form...

    Geralt "You sure about this?" he asks, his friend making a bold decision that could have him forever hunted.

    Regis slowly nods, "Consider it punishment for my inaction towards Dettlaff''s massacre..." he says, the duo finally reaching the damaged Chapel, Ciri reappearing next to them while giving a thumbs up.

 670 Contract Complete

    The trio stands in the entrance to the Chapel, Geralt wearing no shirt with a huge bloody claw mark on his chest, Regis with his tunic almost completely shredded, and the dress Ciri was wearing being unrecognisable, the skirt having been torn off when trouble was brewing and the silk being heavily damaged from a few close calls... Her arms were also bleeding for a few cuts, and the only thing that wasn''t torn on her body was the Ephemeral-looking Gleam Cloak sitting on her shoulders. The artifact having blocked a few dangerous strikes from cutting her shoulder.

    Immediately a few noblemen begin shouting curses at Regis like "Monster", "Fiend", and "Blood-Sucker".

    His expression doesn''t change but his hands ball up into fists from behind his back. The Duchess looks at him warily, her past experiences with him coming to memory and the contrast causes her to frown.

    Damien steps forwards, hand on sword. "What happened to the Beast?" he asks accusingly.

    Geralt growls at him, not liking being accused of something after having saved them, "Dealt with." he states.

    Damien "I find that hard to believe, your words from before do not inspire much confidence." he says, thinking that the Beast of Beauclair is still alive.

    Ciri nods, "He is not dead... But he will never return again, I separated the body parts and hid them in heavy stone boxes. He will only be alive again if someone opens all of them and reunites the bodyparts." she says, getting the idea from a card game back in the Harry Potter universe.

    Damien looks at Geralt, "Is this the truth?"

    Geralt gives Ciri a sideways glance before nodding, "It is, we have nothing to gain from lying, nor would we shelter a Monster who tried to kill us."

    Damien nods, backing away and giving the floor to Henrietta who still looks baffled at how to deal with this.

    Henrietta "Regis, what are you?... Do not attempt to lie, I have seen everything with my own eyes."

    Regis sighs, "A vampire, but I do not see what my race has to do with anything. I tried to stop Dettlaff, surely that puts me in your favour."

    Henrietta slowly nods, "Indeed... I am unsure if I know you though, or if our prior meetings we all an act... Begone, do not show your face in Toussaint again, or I might have to do something drastic." she says, waving him away.

    Geralt looks at Regis as the vampire slowly turns and walks away, leaving him and Ciri alone to answer to the Duchess.

    Henrietta looks to Geralt, "Are you okay Witcher? You look awful."

    Geralt nods his head, "Just another to the collection... I''ll be fine by tomorrow, with the toxins flushed out." he states.

    Geralt "Forgive me grace, but for tomorrow... Could I perhaps wear my own clothing, as you can see, the clothes you provided were... Beautiful, but lacking." he asks, trying to get out of wearing another tunic.

    Henrietta nods absentmindedly before waving him off.

    They walk away, down the damaged stone path that has claw marks from Dettlaff now permanently etched into them.

    Ciri "Did you notice something weird with the Duchess? She seemed... Sad, that we''d be receiving our rewards tomorrow?"

    Geralt shrugs, "Her sister just tried to kill her, if she wasn''t sad then it would be weird." he says.

    Ciri shakes her head, "I have a bad feeling about this..." she says, both her and Geralt entering the same room to bandage each other up and drink healing potions they''d acquired from Quelina.

    Due to it still being morning they had the whole day to themselves, the duo decides to explore Toussaint while they waited for tomorrow to come. Well, by "Duo", it is Ciri who wishes to look around the city, Geralt instead wanting to find Regis and have a drink.

    They do many things to pass the time, mostly prompted by Ciri... She even dragged him into an auction which was, unfortunately, selling an old unique picture... One of Ciri has a little girl, a copy of the one Emhyr had destroyed in his office.

    Without a second thought,Geralt had purchased it, much to the dismay of Ciri who tried her best to destroy it... Only to have Geralt to pull out a bottomless box and store the painting within it.

    Ciri "Did Reima give that to you!?!" she asks with a glare.

    Geralt chuckles, "Of course, he asked me to bring back some souvineers... What better than a portrait of his beloved." he says.

    Ciri shakes her head, planning to air her complaints to Reima when they got back to Ichor.

    Eventually, the day ended, Ciri still feeling like something bad was going to happen but didn''t want to miss out on the reward.

    Geralt meditated beside Ciri''s bed, deciding that her just getting a "bad feeling" was warrant enough for preparing for a threat.

    The morning came without issues however, the Toussaint sun annihilating all shadow from the room and causing Ciri to uncomfortably stir away. "Where are the damn curtains in this place?" she murmurs, her eyes slowly blinking the dust out of them.

    Geralt "You''re finally up... It''s almost time for us to head down to the Chapel to receive our rewards." he says, already wearing his Grandmaster Wolf School Gear.

    Ciri throws the pillow at him and almost falls out of bed, pulling the Acromentula and Dragon Leather trousers over her legs before throwing on a white Acromentula silk vest that definitely wouldn''t suit the Toussaint sensibilities.

 671 Putting the Meddle in Medal

    The duo yet again make their way to the damaged Chapel, the only reason for it still being in use was due to long tradition.

    Both already have their weapons strapped to their backs, prepared for anything that might happen ... They even walked the long way around to check the surrounding area, but didn''t see anything apart from guards patrolling the palace.

    Ciri shrugs, "Maybe we''re just being paranoid?"

    Geralt shakes his head, "Better paranoid than dead." he states bluntly.

    Eventually, they reach the Chapel, many guards already present with Henrietta standing their diligently with a neutral expression, Damien de la Tour holding a box which presumably contained their reward.

    There weren''t as many aristocrats as there was yesterday, but that is probably because their rewards didn''t involve the Duchess sister, and subsequently the lineage of Toussaint itself.

    Obviously, those that were there gave them glares, some commenting that their attire was hardly appropriate for such a ceremony.

    Henrietta steps forwards, "You... You have arrived, come... Stand proudly as you have done Toussaint the great service of destroying the Beast of Beauclair, the vampire that hunted our streets and killed innocent knights." she says.

    Ciri almost can''t contain her snort, the knights were targeted specifically for their misdeeds, obviously specifying that detail wouldn''t go down well with the nobles or the people.

    Henrietta "It is... My pleasure, to present you both of you with the Vitis Vinifera, the highest possible honour I can grant as the Duchess of Toussaint. Your actions of saving our city have made us all incredibly grateful to you..." she says, her expression looking conflicted for a moment.

    Damien "Geralt of Rivia, step forth... Cirilla... Step forth." he says, the duo stepping forward, though Ciri was confused at why they used her full name?... How did they even know it anyway?

    The Duchess opens the box and reveals tow medals hung by gold and silver chains, she reaches in and grabs the first, walking over to Geralt and getting on her tiptoes to put it around his neck.

    Geralt looks down at it and mentally remarks that he''d never seen any of the nobility wear one of these before...

    The Duchess then turns to Ciri, glancing at the Ephemeral Gleam Cloak shifting on her shoulders before refocussing her attention. She steps forward and lowers the chain over Ciri''s head... And as soon as it rests on her shoulders the chain shortens, causing it to fit snugly around her neck.

    Ciri''s eyes widen as she realises what this is... "Hurgh!" she groans, pushing the Duchess away while grasping at the chain. One of the nobility in the Chapel casting a large fireball into the sky.

    Geralt growls and dashes over to Ciri, throwing the medallion off as he draws his blade, "What have you done?!?" he demands.

    The Guards begins to surround the duo as Geralt looks at Ciri''s neck, a blue bruise which seemed to travel up her veins was present where the chain was. Through his vast experience with Sorceresses, he knew what this was... Dimeritium.

    Geralt "Fucking bitch!" he shouts, casting Igni as the nobles in an attempt to stop any more mages from making this more difficult than it had to be. The group screamed, their fine clothing igniting as if it were oil, making clear that there were no more mages present.

    He then looks to the single mage closeby that''d cast the fireball, the man backing away with a spell on his lips... Geralt doesn''t waste any time, casting a strong Aard at him which launches the man from the Chapel to his doom.

    Geralt "Ciri! Are you ok!?!" he quickly asks.

    Ciri groans in pain, the experience of having her magic torn and unusable to her makes her almost unable to stand. She could still feel her Elder Blood Magic bubbling inside her, it apparently not being affected in the least by the Dimeritium, though if she tried to teleport like this they''d likely end up underground.

    The guards slowly approach as Henrietta is evacuated by Damien after seeing Geralt kill the nobility present. They both knew this was an absolute betrayal, but under the circumstances, there was nothing else they could do.

    Geralt, not hearing any answer from Ciri stands protectively in-front of her as the guards enter the Chapel. He reaches into his pouch and retrieves a bomb, tossing it at the groups feet and casting a Quen around him and his adoptive daughter.

    The guards aren''t able to react as the bomb explodes, releasing a dark green gas that they all subconsciously breath in... Almost immediately their skin turns green, they cough and splutter as their lungs liquify. The small amount that was absorbed by their lungs was already at work destroying the rest of their internal organs, and after a few moments, they all drop dead. The poison bomb designed for monsters proving to be incredibly effective against human foes.

    Geralt is about to grab Ciri and flee, but is confronted by a sea of black and gold... On the only exit from the Chapel was many heavily armoured Nilfgaardian soldiers, Emhyr standing with his arms crossed in-front of them with a neutral expression.

    Geralt glares at him, "Emhyr..."

    The soldiers around him clammer at their emperor being addressed in such a disrespectful way, but a wave of his hand has them silent again. "Witcher, why am I not surprised to see my traitorous offspring with you?"

    Garen grips his sword tighter, "Because I''ve been a better father to her than you ever have?" he mocks, Emhyr''s brow twitching at his words.

    Emhyr "If she won''t consider me her father, perhaps I should return to one of my previous plans... My lineage must live on after all, something you cannot understand, Witcher."

 672 Rise before the fall

    Geralt "You''re a disgusting tyrant, you won''t touch her." he states as if it were a fact.

    Emhyr shakes his head, "I''ve had enough of your drivel Witcher." he says, giving a small gesture towards Geralt which causes a platoon of men to start approaching, heavy ornate black armour and large two-handed swords.

    Geralt draws Winter''s Blade and drops into a stance in the entrance of the Chapel, "Come." he says, glaring daggers at the men.

    The first steps forwards, attempting to bisect Geralt with his blade, only to have it deflected and another sword piece his throat. The confrontation lasted all but a second, but the man drops to the floor holding his throat, gurgling as blood filled his lungs.

    Geralt spits at the man on the floor and turns his eyes to the rest who looks at each other, as if they were daring them to go next.

    Three more step forth, this time hoping to overwhelm the Witcher, Geralt casts a Yrden which surrounds him, the guards approaching are slowed as the enter it, causing their movements to look even more sluggish than before to Geralt.

    Without wasting any time he dashes in between the men, their two-handed swords not being able to be used at full effectiveness in such close range. He ducks a punch and jams the tip of his blade into their kneecap where a weakpoint in the armour was located. The man stumbles just as his friend was attempting a lower slash, accidentally cutting his ally across the neck, killing him.

    Geralt then sends a heavy kick to the stomach of another, causing them to back away unstable, eventually falling over the side of the Chapel. As he watches them fall he mentally notes to thank Talem for the lessons.

    The last man backs away, having just killed his ally and witnessing Geralt''s ferocity... The Soldier glances back at the small army gathered, imploring them to help with his eyes, but Emhyr doesn''t make a move, simply watching. His silent pleading is interrupted when the world starts turning... The soldier doesn''t realise his head had been cut off before his world goes black.

    Emhyr "Haven''t lost your touch, Witcher... Let''s see how you fare against my mages." he says, gesturing to the side was a few robed individuals begin chanting, particles gathering in the air.

    Geralt growls, retrieving a Dimeritium bomb and throwing it into the group, it exploding and preventing the mages from using magic temporarily. The only problem now is, that was his last bomb of that type... He looks back at Ciri and sees she''s still struggling on her knees, trying to get her composure to help Geralt, but the pain is too great.

    Geralt can see the Dimertium smoke is dissipating, it being his only protection against the barrage of spells that''re about to be cast at him... He clutches the Titanite shard hanging neck to his Wolf''s Head Medallion, not wishing to summon Reima here due what it would mean for Ichor and Nilfgaard...

    "HUUURRGGH!!"

    Shouts of pain from the mages cause everyone to turn towards it, seeing claws explode from one of their chests before being torn apart, leaving Regis standing there in his vampiric form, covered in blood.

    Geralt "Regis..." he mutters, not having expected his friend to intervene in a battle he was clearly losing.

    Emhyr "Kill the monster." he states, backing away to prevent himself becoming another casualty.

    The guards all surround Regis with a few mages attempting to cast spells at him, but he was too close to them, a flash of claws killing them easily, their robes not providing any protection against him.

    More mages appear from behind the small army, casting spells at him as he approaches the soldiers, disappearing into red mist before reappearing behind an unfortunate soldier who has his spine torn out.

    A fireball strikes Regis in the chest, forcing him to remember his fight against Vilgefortz, he winces and a soldiers blade cut into his shoulder, only giving a shallow cut due to it being steel. He backs away and turns his focus to Emhyr, knowing that if he cut the head off of the snake it''d all be over... Again, he vanishes, striking down at Emhyr as the emperor attempts to dodge... Claws pass but Regis doesn''t feel any resistance...

    Regis "Must''ve missed." he remarks to himself, dodging a sword strike and backing towards Geralt. "It''s never boring around you, is it my friend?"

    Geralt shakes his head "No... But we can talk later, I feel as if I have no choices left now..." he says as Emhyr commands the army to storm them, "Capture my daughter alive." he states.

    Regis "I don''t suppose you''ve got a plan?" he asks, clashing his claws against each other to create sparks.

    Geralt sighs, channelling magic through the Titanite shard. "You can only blame yourselves."

    Elsewhere :

    Reima was meditating atop the Chaos Temple, attempting to have his aura cover only certain points of his body... He''d managed to cover only his hands, though it didn''t really mean much as the temperature of them alone would burn and scorch anything near, making his effort in isolating it basically useless.

    His eyes suddenly open, anger filling his eyes as he feels the shard he''d given to Geralt being powered. His cat-like eyes contract as he stands, wings exploding from his back as his aura is released, causing his body to burst into flames. He takes a single step and disappears in a turquoise flash, promising death to whoever had forced Geralt''s hand.

 673 Wrath

    The army advances towards the Chapel as Geralt sends them an apologetic look, Regis is confused at his reaction, but quickly realises why as the temperature around everyone raises as if a fire were pushed against their bodies.

    A turquoise light flashes in the sky as a winged humanoid covered in flames appears, their form temporarily blackened by the sun behind them, the only visible thing being their glowing turquoise cat-like eyes.

    He looks towards the Chapel and sees Ciri hunched over in pain, his eyes squinting in anger as he turns towards the army. "Nilfgaard huh?" he asks, as if he''d noted the existence of an ant.

    Emhyr "Who are you, monster?" he commands from the ground.

    Reima immediately recognises this person and starts laughing manically, "Hahahahaha! Oh, you''ve made my day..."

    Emhyr "Silence, peasant." he says, loud enough for Reima to hear him.

    Reima "Don''t you recognise me, emperor? I was the one leading the group that destroyed your fleet." he says with a smug smirk.

    Emhyr gives him a hard look, "You must be the False-King Reima Ludvig then?"

    Reima "I do have to thank you though, your actions mark the first... And last day of my war with Nilfgaard." he states ominously, Dark Red Flames beginning to coalesce in his hands.

    The remaining mages under Emhyr immediately start conjuring a shield, this doesn''t bother Reima however as he throws his hands forwards, releasing a huge blast of flame, only to channel Elder Blood Energy into it as it approaches the shield, turning the flames turquoise.

    The shield blocked the flames, but the moment of relief doesn''t last long as the turquoise flames eat through the shield and begin crawling towards the mages. They try to dispel their own mages but it''s too late as the flames reach them, they all scream in terror and agony as their everything is burned to nothing but ash.

    Reima then crashes to the floor between the Chapel and the army, magma forming below him as the stone path melts. From his shadow he summons the Staff of Manus, it not saying anything as the Former Gods and Reima''s intentions both match in this moment. He raises the staff and slams the bottom of it against the floor, causing a small wave of black ooze to travel towards teh army, corrupting everything it touches.

    Tree''s being quickly rotting, their branches losing their leaves and having huge thorns that look similar to teeth form... The stone path becomes pitch black as the wave passes over it, red eyes form on the surface, scaring everyone who witnesses the horrific phenomenon.

    The army backs away, but the front-line isn''t able to get past the retreating backline, the wave only reaches their ankles, but as they are submerged the black ooze forms small tenticals with needle-like points that penetrate their flesh, travelling up their veins and heading towards their heart and brains.

    Regis is bewildered by this magic, never having seen anything like it in all his years. "What is this?"

    Geralt glances at him... but doesn''t say anything, he himself not really sure what this type of magic Reima uses is.

    Emhyr stands still as the wave approaches, "Men! Fight against this demon, your emperor commands you!" he shouts, a few of the remaining Nilfgaardians turning to confront their Humanity Corrupted allies, only to be pounced and torn apart by them, the humanity giving them superior strength, speed, and durability than they''d ever had in the past.

    The ooze reaches Emhyr, it surrounding his feet as the man stands there, stock still.

    Reima grins towards him as he walks through the ooze, "I''m still unsure whether I want to enslave you for all eternity, or to just simply kill you?"

    Emhyr shakes his head, "You do not have the capabilities." he states.

    Reima leans his head to the side, "Did... Did you not just watch me easily destroy the army you''d brought? Like, I was going easy as well..." he asks, feeling as if Emhyr wasn''t taking his imminent demise seriously... Also, shouldn''t his flesh be horrifically burned at being so close to him?

    Reima walks up and attempts to grab Emhyr''s neck, finding to his surprise that his hand goes through him... As if he were a hologram.

    Emhyr "I have many enemies, False-King... I always have countermeasures." he says.

    Reima growls at him, "I wonder if your countermeasures will protect you against me destroying your empire single-handedly... There is not a limit to how many of these creatures I can create." he says gesturing towards the Abyssal Servants tearing apart the retreating Nilfgaardians.

    Emhyr "The empire will live on, even if I pass." he states, sure that even if he died, someone would find Reima''s weakness."

    Reima rubs his face, "You want to know something bad about projection magic?" he asks, an idea forming in his mind.

    Emhyr doesn''t say anything and lets Reima continue, confident that his safety was assured.

    Reima "The problem with it is... That you are projecting your soul..." he says, his hand being covered in a black and red mist as he plunges it into the Emperors chest.

    Emhyr''s eyes open wide at the sudden feeling of intense pain, "Stop!" he shouts, his unbreakable composure shattered. He can feel his mages trying to stop the projection magic, but due to Reima''s grip on the man''s soul, they are unable to...

    Reima "I wonder if your soul is as black as your heart is? Either way, I''ll be making a nice pair of shoes out of it." he says with a grin, wrenching his hand backwards, tearing a white mass out of the projections and causing it to disappear.

    The black ooze covering the floor crawls up Reima''s leg to try and get to it, but he slaps it away, deciding he''d rather create something humiliating out of the Emperors soul... Maybe some underwear? He shrugs, he can decide later.

 674 Blade against... Blade?

    Ciri shakes her head, "Those two have been around for a century... Any modesty they still have is buried under everything else."

    Reima "I''m not getting your point."

    Ciri "My point is, I''m not going to announce to everyone whenever we''re going to fuck." she states, this particular topic clearly over.

    As the duo approach Toussaint they are confronted by a legion of knights led by Damien, "Halt... You will not enter Toussain-"

    Ciri "Piss of Damien, don''t think I''ll forget how you betrayed us and left us for dead." she glowers at him.

    Reima tilts his head at the around three hundred men gathered in-front of them to bar them from entering Beauclair. "Is this some kind of joke?" he asks, the question an honest one.

    Damien shakes his head and points his sword, "This is no joke, you will only enter Beauclair by stepping over my corpse."

    ...

    Reima "Did... Did you not just see me killed the Emperor and his army?... Singlehandedly?" he asks in disbelief.

    Damien "Regardless of the odds, we knights of Toussaint will never back down!" he shouts, though the slight tremble in his legs lets Reima know he really doesn''t want to fight him.

    Reima shrugs, "Whatever, I''ll be collecting my horses and leaving... I''ll decide what I want to do to Toussaint later." he says, forming a Quen sign while holding Ciri up with Telekinesis, causing a bright orange shield to surround the duo.

    Reima then begins to walk towards the group of guards, ignoring their shouts and eventually reaching the front-line.

    Damien swings at the shield, only to be knocked away by a shockwave, sending him sprawling to the ground, the Quen shield still standing.

    Reima continues walking, like un unstoppable force surrounded by an unmoveable object. Men try to stop his march by pushing against the shield, only to unceremoniously bounce off of the shield.

    Ciri "This is stupid." she states, watching swords and men alike being launched away from the shield.

    Reima shrugs, "Would you rather I kill them?"

    Ciri "It''s up to you... I''m just saying a Quen shield should never be this powerful."

    Reima "You could probably do it too, you''ve got the aptitude for it." he says, the knights giving hopeless looks at the duo talk to each other casually.

    After a mile of failing to stop Reima''s slow walk, most of the knights just seem to give up... Exhausted and bruised from being thrown around by the shield. The citizens of Beauclair are unsure of what this is supposed to be, is it an act being shown by the knights? Or was this truly a person just shrugging off their best warriors with ease.

    Regardless, Reima keeps walking, eventually stopping in-front of a stable. "Is this it?" he asks Ciri, her giving a nod.

    Reima "I wonder how you managed to find someone who''d willingly feed a Thestral." he says.

    *RRAAGGHH!*

    Reima finally takes notice, this man being the only one who''d continued trying to breach the shield the entire time. "Yo, you''re beginning to annoy me... Piss off or I''ll eat your soul." he says with a blank expression.

    Damien retrieves his sword and points it at him, "Any who threaten Toussaint will perish under my blade! Fight me like a true warrior coward!" he shouts, the band of citizens who were following Reima to see what was happening beginning to cheer for their brave knight.

    Reima glowers for a moment, "You alright to stand?" he asks Ciri, she nods and he places her back on her feet.

    Reima walks towards Damien, dispelling the shield and glaring at him, "Might I ask what fighting like a "True Warrior" entails?"

    Damien growls at him, "Blade to blade, no tricks, no spells... Only skill!" he shouts, the crowd beginning to get excited at the prospect of a duel.

    Reima slowly nods, "Then you won''t mind if I use my own sword?"

    Damien shakes his head, still pointing his blade at Reima. Taking this as an invitation, Reima opens his Folded Space and grabs the handle of the Dragon Greatsword... Damien and the onlookers are struck speechless as he continues pulling out the rest of the blade, it being so long and wide that it never seems to end...

    Reima hefts to sword onto his shoulder, it''s weight not bothering him in the least, despite it being incredibly heavy.

    Damein begins to sweat as he looks at the weapon Reima had brought out, wishing he''d not made such a broad statement... "En Garde!" he shouts, dropping into a low stance.

    Reima gives the Great sword a test swing, slicing the air in-front of him with one hand and causing a breeze to blow past Damien from the force.

    "Go brave knight!"

    "We believe in you Sir de la Tour!"

    "Slay the freak!"

    ...

    Reima waits, tapping his foot as Damien approaches, the man eventually lunching for a stab... Reima grabs the sword with ease though, twisting his wrist which breaks the steel.

    Damien begins to back away, but isn''t out of reach of Reima''s sword when he brings it down...

    *CRAAAASSSHHH!!*

    The Dragon Greatsword is brought down ontop of Damien, slicing him in two and hitting the ground, causing dust to kick up as a shockwave explodes from the blade, splitting a nearby house completely in two.

    The cheering stops and the smoke eventually clears, revealing a bisected corpse within a large crater and Reima already heading towards Ciri who''s standing in-front of the stable, his sword already sealed away.

    Ciri "Do you always have to show off?" she asks, grabbing his arm as she''s still feeling weak.

    Reima grins, "He said I could use my own sword, plus, if you have the capabilities why not show off when you can."

    Ciri "Atleast the Duchess will get the message not to mess with us... I was beginning to trust her as well." she says with a sigh.

 675 Acting Casual

    Reima taps the floor with the Staff of Manus, calling for all the Humanity to return, along with his new soldiers. They all fade into the ooze as it''s almost pulled towards him, eventually being sucked into his shadow, leaving nothing but the mutated plants and blackened stone path.

    He drops the staff which dissolved into his shadow in a similar manner to the rest and retracts his aura before heading over to the Chapel where Geralt and Regis are now attempting to tend to Ciri.

    She''s on her hands and knees still groaning in pain from the Dimeritium wrapped around her neck... She claws at it but it won''t budge an inch, Regis even tries to cut it with a claw but to no avail, it clings to her skin like a tick.

    Reima "What''s up with Ciri?" he asks, kneeling next to her.

    Geralt "The Duchess put a Dimeritium trapped necklace around her neck." he growls.

    Reima''s brows furrow as he looks down at it, he reaches his arm close to it and tries to us the Severing Charm on it, only for it to dissipate... Right, Dimeritium is incredibly magically resistant... He can''t really cut it with his physical strength because there is nothing to leverage, it being so tight that it digs into her skin.

    He uses the index fingers from both hands and opens a tiny portal in between the chain, it resists for a moment but eventually gives. It doesn''t snap, or even break... Simply slumping to the floor as it was cut.

    Ciri rolls onto her back breathing heavily, relieved that the damned necklace was finally off. "Damn Duchess." she mutters.

    Reima props her head on his thighs, giving her a lap pillow. "So... I hope you don''t mind if I killed the Emperor." he says bluntly.

    ...

    Ciri''s eyes open wide, "You what?"

    Reima wipes some of the sweat from her forehead with a towel he''d retrieved, "Yeah, I tore out his soul." he says, causing Geralt and Regis to give him a disbelieving look.

    Ciri opens her mouth to speak but no words come out, she simply can''t believe that her father was dead...

    Geralt "Hmm, how''d you do it? I can''t imagine the Emperor to venture out of Vizime without preventative measures being taken."

    Reima shrugs, "He never left Vizima, he had his mages cast a projection spell... Too bad for him I''m one of the only people who you should never use that particular spell around."

    Regis "Forgive me but, might I know who you are?" he asks, having expected to be killed and buried along with Geralt and Ciri.

    Reima "I''m Reima Ludvig, you must be Regis right?" he asks, having heard of the vampire from Geralt.

    Regis "You''ve heard of me?"

    Reima nods with a devious grin, "Yes, Geralt was very fond of you... He''d whisper you name as he cried to sleep thinking about you."

    ...

    Reima "Probably best we get going then... Oh, right. Regis, I''d like to formally invite you to join my city of Ichor... You don''t have to answer now, but I''m sure you''ll agree when you see the place."

    Regis shrugs, "I am now an enemy to the Nilfgaardian Empire, I''d appreciate the help in hiding myself."

    Ciri speaks up from Reima''s lap pillow, "I doubt the Empire will last much longer, my father was the only thing keeping the factions from trying to seat one of their own on the throne." she says.

    Reima opens a portal in front of him and Ciri, nodding for Geralt and Regis to go through, closing after the step through. He then closes it and looks at Ciri, "Will I ever have to stop saving you?" he says with a smug grin.

    Ciri gives him a blank look, eventually leaning up and giving him a kiss, "I don''t know... Nothing gets a girl hotting than watching her man kill an army led by her father..." she says, though, whether or not she''s being sarcastic, Reima can''t really tell.

    Reima "I see you''re wearing the cloak." he says, picking her up in a princess carry.

    Ciri "Why wouldn''t I? It''s unbreakable, grants the best protection you can find, looks good..." she trails off.

    Reima starts walking towards Toussaint, intending on retrieving Roach and the Thestral Geralt and Ciri had ridden to get here. "Ah, and I thought it was only for sentimental value." he says.

    Ciri blushes slightly, "I didn''t think that needed to be said." she says, turning away to prevent her face from being seen.

    The stone path towards Toussaint looks ancient and decrepit after the Humanity had travelled over it, allowing the stone to crack under his steps. "You know, you could have come back and visited me any time... Running off with my Prospects without even saying hello hurts youknow." he says, noting the moment his Prospects had come back dressed like clones with painting on their masks... San''s sure got a kick out of that, the "Feared Masked Warriors of Ichor" now dressed like jesters.

    Ciri "I was busy... I assume you were too, if I had visited I doubt we''d be getting much done. Plus, it would be too awkward to tell Geralt where I had gone..." she says, Reima nodding at her reasoning.

    Reima glances at her, "Why? He and Yen make it their mission to tell us when they''re having sex." he says, remembering all the times they were doing something important, only to have Yen announce that she and Geralt were taking a break to use the "Unicorn"...

    Thank god the Unicorns in Ichor weren''t sentient, otherwise they''d riot if the found out what those two do to that poor taxidermy.

 674 Acting Casual

    He drops the staff which dissolved into his shadow in a similar manner to the rest and retracts his aura before heading over to the Chapel where Geralt and Regis are now attempting to tend to Ciri.

    She''s on her hands and knees still groaning in pain from the Dimeritium wrapped around her neck... She claws at it but it won''t budge an inch, Regis even tries to cut it with a claw but to no avail, it clings to her skin like a tick.

    Reima "What''s up with Ciri?" he asks, kneeling next to her.

    Geralt "The Duchess put a Dimeritium trapped necklace around her neck." he growls.

    Reima''s brows furrow as he looks down at it, he reaches his arm close to it and tries to us the Severing Charm on it, only for it to dissipate... Right, Dimeritium is incredibly magically resistant... He can''t really cut it with his physical strength because there is nothing to leverage, it being so tight that it digs into her skin.

    He uses the index fingers from both hands and opens a tiny portal in between the chain, it resists for a moment but eventually gives. It doesn''t snap, or even break... Simply slumping to the floor as it was cut.

    Ciri rolls onto her back breathing heavily, relieved that the damned necklace was finally off. "Damn Duchess." she mutters.

    Reima props her head on his thighs, giving her a lap pillow. "So... I hope you don''t mind if I killed the Emperor." he says bluntly.

    ...

    Ciri''s eyes open wide, "You what?"

    Reima wipes some of the sweat from her forehead with a towel he''d retrieved, "Yeah, I tore out his soul." he says, causing Geralt and Regis to give him a disbelieving look.

    Ciri opens her mouth to speak but no words come out, she simply can''t believe that her father was dead...

    Geralt "Hmm, how''d you do it? I can''t imagine the Emperor to venture out of Vizime without preventative measures being taken."

    Reima shrugs, "He never left Vizima, he had his mages cast a projection spell... Too bad for him I''m one of the only people who you should never use that particular spell around."

    Regis "Forgive me but, might I know who you are?" he asks, having expected to be killed and buried along with Geralt and Ciri.

    Reima "I''m Reima Ludvig, you must be Regis right?" he asks, having heard of the vampire from Geralt.

    Regis "You''ve heard of me?"

    Reima nods with a devious grin, "Yes, Geralt was very fond of you... He''d whisper you name as he cried to sleep thinking about you."

    ...

    Reima "Probably best we get going then... Oh, right. Regis, I''d like to formally invite you to join my city of Ichor... You don''t have to answer now, but I''m sure you''ll agree when you see the place."

    Regis shrugs, "I am now an enemy to the Nilfgaardian Empire, I''d appreciate the help in hiding myself."

    Ciri speaks up from Reima''s lap pillow, "I doubt the Empire will last much longer, my father was the only thing keeping the factions from trying to seat one of their own on the throne." she says.

    Reima opens a portal in front of him and Ciri, nodding for Geralt and Regis to go through, closing after the step through. He then closes it and looks at Ciri, "Will I ever have to stop saving you?" he says with a smug grin.

    Ciri gives him a blank look, eventually leaning up and giving him a kiss, "I don''t know... Nothing gets a girl hotting than watching her man kill an army led by her father..." she says, though, whether or not she''s being sarcastic, Reima can''t really tell.

    Reima "I see you''re wearing the cloak." he says, picking her up in a princess carry.

    Ciri "Why wouldn''t I? It''s unbreakable, grants the best protection you can find, looks good..." she trails off.

    Reima starts walking towards Toussaint, intending on retrieving Roach and the Thestral Geralt and Ciri had ridden to get here. "Ah, and I thought it was only for sentimental value." he says.

    Ciri blushes slightly, "I didn''t think that needed to be said." she says, turning away to prevent her face from being seen.

    The stone path towards Toussaint looks ancient and decrepit after the Humanity had travelled over it, allowing the stone to crack under his steps. "You know, you could have come back and visited me any time... Running off with my Prospects without even saying hello hurts youknow." he says, noting the moment his Prospects had come back dressed like clones with painting on their masks... San''s sure got a kick out of that, the "Feared Masked Warriors of Ichor" now dressed like jesters.

    Ciri "I was busy... I assume you were too, if I had visited I doubt we''d be getting much done. Plus, it would be too awkward to tell Geralt where I had gone..." she says, Reima nodding at her reasoning.

    Reima glances at her, "Why? He and Yen make it their mission to tell us when they''re having sex." he says, remembering all the times they were doing something important, only to have Yen announce that she and Geralt were taking a break to use the "Unicorn"...

    Thank god the Unicorns in Ichor weren''t sentient, otherwise they''d riot if the found out what those two do to that poor taxidermy.

 675 Blade against... Blade?

    Reima "I''m not getting your point."

    Ciri "My point is, I''m not going to announce to everyone whenever we''re going to fuck." she states, this particular topic clearly over.

    As the duo approach Toussaint they are confronted by a legion of knights led by Damien, "Halt... You will not enter Toussain-"

    Ciri "Piss of Damien, don''t think I''ll forget how you betrayed us and left us for dead." she glowers at him.

    Reima tilts his head at the around three hundred men gathered in-front of them to bar them from entering Beauclair. "Is this some kind of joke?" he asks, the question an honest one.

    Damien shakes his head and points his sword, "This is no joke, you will only enter Beauclair by stepping over my corpse."

    ...

    Reima "Did... Did you not just see me killed the Emperor and his army?... Singlehandedly?" he asks in disbelief.

    Damien "Regardless of the odds, we knights of Toussaint will never back down!" he shouts, though the slight tremble in his legs lets Reima know he really doesn''t want to fight him.

    Reima shrugs, "Whatever, I''ll be collecting my horses and leaving... I''ll decide what I want to do to Toussaint later." he says, forming a Quen sign while holding Ciri up with Telekinesis, causing a bright orange shield to surround the duo.

    Reima then begins to walk towards the group of guards, ignoring their shouts and eventually reaching the front-line.

    Damien swings at the shield, only to be knocked away by a shockwave, sending him sprawling to the ground, the Quen shield still standing.

    Reima continues walking, like un unstoppable force surrounded by an unmoveable object. Men try to stop his march by pushing against the shield, only to unceremoniously bounce off of the shield.

    Ciri "This is stupid." she states, watching swords and men alike being launched away from the shield.

    Reima shrugs, "Would you rather I kill them?"

    Ciri "It''s up to you... I''m just saying a Quen shield should never be this powerful."

    Reima "You could probably do it too, you''ve got the aptitude for it." he says, the knights giving hopeless looks at the duo talk to each other casually.

    After a mile of failing to stop Reima''s slow walk, most of the knights just seem to give up... Exhausted and bruised from being thrown around by the shield. The citizens of Beauclair are unsure of what this is supposed to be, is it an act being shown by the knights? Or was this truly a person just shrugging off their best warriors with ease.

    Regardless, Reima keeps walking, eventually stopping in-front of a stable. "Is this it?" he asks Ciri, her giving a nod.

    Reima "I wonder how you managed to find someone who''d willingly feed a Thestral." he says.

    *RRAAGGHH!*

    Reima finally takes notice, this man being the only one who''d continued trying to breach the shield the entire time. "Yo, you''re beginning to annoy me... Piss off or I''ll eat your soul." he says with a blank expression.

    Damien retrieves his sword and points it at him, "Any who threaten Toussaint will perish under my blade! Fight me like a true warrior coward!" he shouts, the band of citizens who were following Reima to see what was happening beginning to cheer for their brave knight.

    Reima glowers for a moment, "You alright to stand?" he asks Ciri, she nods and he places her back on her feet.

    Reima walks towards Damien, dispelling the shield and glaring at him, "Might I ask what fighting like a "True Warrior" entails?"

    Damien growls at him, "Blade to blade, no tricks, no spells... Only skill!" he shouts, the crowd beginning to get excited at the prospect of a duel.

    Reima slowly nods, "Then you won''t mind if I use my own sword?"

    Damien shakes his head, still pointing his blade at Reima. Taking this as an invitation, Reima opens his Folded Space and grabs the handle of the Dragon Greatsword... Damien and the onlookers are struck speechless as he continues pulling out the rest of the blade, it being so long and wide that it never seems to end...

    Reima hefts to sword onto his shoulder, it''s weight not bothering him in the least, despite it being incredibly heavy.

    Damein begins to sweat as he looks at the weapon Reima had brought out, wishing he''d not made such a broad statement... "En Garde!" he shouts, dropping into a low stance.

    Reima gives the Great sword a test swing, slicing the air in-front of him with one hand and causing a breeze to blow past Damien from the force.

    "Go brave knight!"

    "We believe in you Sir de la Tour!"

    "Slay the freak!"

    ...

    Reima waits, tapping his foot as Damien approaches, the man eventually lunching for a stab... Reima grabs the sword with ease though, twisting his wrist which breaks the steel.

    Damien begins to back away, but isn''t out of reach of Reima''s sword when he brings it down...

    *CRAAAASSSHHH!!*

    The Dragon Greatsword is brought down ontop of Damien, slicing him in two and hitting the ground, causing dust to kick up as a shockwave explodes from the blade, splitting a nearby house completely in two.

    The cheering stops and the smoke eventually clears, revealing a bisected corpse within a large crater and Reima already heading towards Ciri who''s standing in-front of the stable, his sword already sealed away.

    Ciri "Do you always have to show off?" she asks, grabbing his arm as she''s still feeling weak.

    Reima grins, "He said I could use my own sword, plus, if you have the capabilities why not show off when you can."

    Ciri "Atleast the Duchess will get the message not to mess with us... I was beginning to trust her as well." she says with a sigh.

 676 Truly an "Alpha"

    Yukari "Are you having trouble?" she asks in a chipper voice.

    Nerissa shakes her head, wishing to do this herself, "No."

    Yukari sighs, "Mou, you''re too prideful Nerissa-Chan... You should be more like Moka!... Come to think of it, where is Moka?" she asks aloud, tapping her chin.

    Nerissa''s eyes squint as she looks towards the window, the light from the full moon streaming into the room.

    *Ahhhh!*

    A feminine cry comes from the rooftop of the school, due to how familiar Nerissa is with saving Moka at this point she easily recognises it. She gives a sigh before strapping her sword to her hip and leaping out of the window, Yukari shouting after her.

    Yukari "Wait fooor meeeeee!" the 11-year-old cries.

    On the rooftop Moka is backing away from a large furry beast that drools as it looks at her.

    Moka "Gin, stop! I don''t like you like that!" she says, finding herself unable to move back any further as she''d reached the limits of the roof.

    Gin "You will be mine Moka! You will take me as your alpha, and you, will, LIKE IT!" he shouts, becoming a blur and rushing towards Moka. She throws herself to the side but a claw rakes through her uniform, tearing most of the front of it off, revealing her pale breasts. She covers them and crawls into a ball, pleading for him to stop.

    Gin "HEHEHE, YOU''RE MINE!" he shouts, lunging at her again, Moka giving a scream, internally thinking whether or not she should just throw herself off of the roof.

    *SLICE*

    A spatter of bright red blood hits the floor as Nerissa appears, black misty wings flapping from her back.

    Nerissa gives him a blank look, "Bad dog."

    Gin "Grrr, YOU CALL ME A DOG?!?! I WILL TEAR YOU APART!" he roars, not noticing that the wound on his arm is steaming.

    Nerissa dissipates her wings and drops in-front of Moka, dropping into a stance and holding Iaito at the ready.

    Gin blurs again, his speed increased to an incredible degree due to the full moon being out, the werewolf gaining strength from it. He attempts to run Nerissa through with his claws, only to find a Ruby spear erupt from the ground, he rapidly changes his direction and retreats, glaring daggers at Nerissa who has a few drops of blood dripping from her fingertip.

    Nerissa leaps in the air and slashes at Gin, both receiving each others attack and landing.

    Nerissa has three cuts on her shoulder from Gin''s claws, however the werewolf isn''t doing much better... A large cut on his chest steams, Gin bends over while holding it, the wound incredibly painful for him.

    Gin "Wha... SILVER!?!" he exclaims, wondering if the brat planned to cut him down ever since they''d met.

    Nerissa flourishes her blade and sheathes it, "Stop or die." she states, preparing another strike.

    Gin growls, his adrenaline spiking as his instincts push him to do things he''d not usually do, "NEVER." he says, dashing at Nerissa on all fours, attempting to bite her.

    She stamps her foot on the floor, causing a wall of black mist to shield her from his view, *CLINK!* she dodges sideways and performs a draw strike.

    Gin "Arrrghghh!!" he shouts in pain, eventually coming to a stop and looking down at the origin of it, his eyes widening... "MY ARM!" he exclaims in a rage, his arm cleanly cut with the wound steaming.

    Nerissa kicks the severe arm off of the roof, wishing to add further insult to injury towards the beast that''d tried to assault her friend.

    Gin seeing this loses all common sense, charging her and swinging wide with his claws...

    Nerissa twirls while dropping low and under the strike, remembering this exact movement from where Ciri and Reima had taught her. After dodging the strike she has her back to Gin, Iaito going under her armpit and stabbing backwards, directly into the werewolves heart.

    Gin looks down, the young girl in arms reach, but his body won''t move... The silver that''d slowly been poisoning him prevents him from doing anything, the blade in his heart meaning his end. He falls backwards, blood pouring from his wound and covering the roof.

    Nerissa stands from her position, having not moved after dealing the fatal blow, swinging Iaito at the floor to remove the blood sticking to it. She then looks over to Moka, the pinkette looking at her with a thankful expression.

    *Bang!*

    The door to the rooftop slams open, revealing Yukari who sprints in, she stops however when she sees the dead werewolf... Almost losing her lunch as she gags at the thick smell of blood. "What happened here!" she shouts, walking towards Moka and Nerissa while keeping a good distance from the corpse.

    Moka "Gin... He attacked me, Rissa saved me!" she says, wiping tears from her face."

    Yukari feels bile rise in her stomach, true Nerissa had brutally murdered the bullies who tried to eat her, but they''d always been antagonistic towards her... But Gin? Weren''t they friends? "Why did he attack you?" she asks, solemn.

    Moka "He said... He said he wanted to make me his..." she says, covering her body tighter at the thought.

    Nerissa "Scum."

    Yukari slowly nods, "I never thought Gin were try... Try to **** Moka!" she exclaims, not sure how to take in this information. "What do we do now?" she asks, not sure how the Newspaper club would function without him.

    Nerissa slowly nods, walking over to Gin and beginning to harvest his organs.

    Yukari "Wha-w-w-w-WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?!"

    Nerissa glances back at her, "Present."

 677 Consequences

    However, instead of immediately going on the offensive against the North, the death of Emhyr had caused some internal strife within the empire itself. Emhyr not having a valid successor meant that everyone was vying for the throne.

    Due to the strange way the Emperor died the populace suspected that the nobles had assassinated him for power, most not believing that someone could kill the Emperor within Vizima from Toussaint without being caught.

    The populace began to question the status quo and were looking for leadership elsewhere, eventually raising up a famous knight for the position... However, the nobles had already begun instating Morvran Voorhis as the new Emperor, his blood being the closest to Emhyr.

    The conflict soon arrived, the vassals of the empire all taking separate sides, some wishing to put in place a new ruler outside of the inbred noble lines, while others wished to keep the royal lineage going.

    And so Nilfgaard split into two separate factions, the east which contained the capital of Nilfgaard, the City of Golden Towers wished for Morvran Voorhis to be Emperor. While the west which wanted the knight Rudild Aep Num to ascend the throne, his great deeds of courage and valour already known far and wide throughout the empire.

    The vassals were unsure of which would be more suitable for an emperor, nor which wouldn''t lead to their demise... Should the person they side with lose they''ll likely lose everything. The choice was difficult and vassals began heavily fortifying their cities while making known their choice for the new Emperor...

    Most of the land that belongs to the West were coastal cities, which, due to their failed attack against Skellige left them almost entirely defenceless against Radovid''s now huge fleet. Morvran Voorhis faction actually had more support, but the locations of their cities and troops were in entirely the wrong positions...

    Cintra with the empires new territories of Aedirn and Temeria wanted an Emperor not related to Emhyr, his brutality against them in the past pushing them towards the peoples pick Rudild Aep Num.

    Radovid was eagerly watching all of this from the side, his army prepared but not moving... He expected the new civil war to kick up in intensity relatively soon. The emperor''s demise had been a surprise, but not entirely unexpected... He had many allies, and with so much territory and power, it was a certainty that people would try to claim what was his through any means necessary.

    Most in the know knew who was responsible for Emhyr''s death, Ichor now looking more intimidating than it ever had before, even despite the stories of Dragons and Immortal warriors on the lips of everything on the continent.

    Reima, the person who was the cause of all the chaos on the continent hadn''t even bothered to take note of it. Even Asgore who was usually on the ball for these kinds of things had ignored it, it being one of the many things that were, really, inconsequential in the end, the winner of either conflict not affecting the way Ichor would operate in the slightest.

    A few days after Reima had gotten back to Ichor with Geralt, Regis, and Ciri, he was stood in-front of a cell looking down at a certain vampire who was now completely healed.

    Dettlaff pats himself over, only now having the ability to investigate the state of his body as he''d been paralyzed until a few moments ago. "Regis?" he growls, knowing full well that he shouldn''t have healed so quickly with such wounds.

    Reima brings the vampires attention to him, "Yeah, he was concerned about you... Despite you trying to claw him to pieces." he shrugs. "I for one am still tempting to try to tear your soul out, you did try to hurt my woman after all." he says.

    Dettlaff slouches against the cell wall, not bothered by the winter breeze blowing through and making it incredibly uncomfortable for any normal person. "Women..." he mutters, frowning.

    Reima nods, "I get why you''re angry, but did you really have to try and kill Geralt and Ciri? Sure Regis would live but you''d undoubtedly ruin your relationship with him."

    Dettlaff "A betrayal must no go unpunished." he says with conviction.

    Reima grins, "I completely agree, and it seems you''re in luck! The only thing preventing me from allowing you to achieve your revenge had betrayed my people... How would you feel returning to Toussaint to see your ex again?" he asks.

    Dettlaff looks up in disbelief at Reima, "You would allow me to butcher Rhenawedd?"

    Reima nods, "I''d do the same if a bitch played me like that, my only stipulation is that you do not harm the general populous... The Duchess and her men are fair game though."

    Dettlaff looks at his hand, "And what would you have in return? I am not so foolish to assume such a favour would come without a cost." he asks with a glare.

    Reima shakes his head, "I want nothing from you, only revenge against those that''d betrayed my family." he says, mimicking Dettlaff''s own words. "Plus, Regis doesn''t want me to kill you... The only options are letting you go and allowing you to rampage in Toussaint, keeping you here to rot... Or possibly brainwashing you?... Regardless, I want those cunts to pay." he says, all the while wondering if it''s possible to brainwash a true vampire.

    Dettlaff stands, "Then, I will make them pay." he states, a portal opening up and leading to the forest nearby Beauclair.

    Reima "Enjoy yourself... And if you''ve nowhere to go afterwards, there''s always a place in Ichor... Just mind your manners or I''ll clip your fangs." he says, the vampire ignoring him and walking through the portal.

 678 School Life

    Nerissa didn''t really care about her concern, and wasn''t even phased when an investigation revealed that Gin had forgotten to take a certain medicine that prevented his instincts from coming out... This was the reason he''d attacked Moka, Yukari and Moka was saddened at this news but knew that it was likely the only way to stop him from assaulting them...

    Yukari was wary of Nerissa afterwards though, the vampiress''s casualness when she''d dissected the werewolf''s corpse had her scared of meeting a similar fate.

    The newspaper club must go on though, Shizuka making Yukari the club leader due to her grades and willingness to take the role.

    By now most of the school was aware of Nerissa''s actions, giving her a reputation of "Piss me off and die", there were a few other incidents in school not involving the newspaper club, one of the prominent ones being that a Succubus had managed to enslave most of the males in school.

    The newspaper club covered it but eventually, Mikogami had to step in, the Succubus Kurumu Kurono preventing a huge portion of the students from studying or attending class due to her antics. She was threatened with expulsion unless she wore glasses that prevented her from charming people, this had her hysterical, causing her to command the enslaved students to flee with her back to her home... The bus-driver didn''t allow the huge group into the bus though, shutting the doors and leaving...

    Kurumu Kurono was expelled, with Nerissa''s only interaction with her being when she tried to confront Moka, but was scared off when Nerissa glared at her.

    One thing Nerissa noted was that most of the teachers neglected their duties and sometimes even attacked students... The art teacher attempting to turn Moka to stone being a prime example, fortunately, she wasn''t punished for stabbing the snake lady in the face, but Mikogami did complain about having to find a replacement.

    This all leads up into now, Nerissa, Moka, and Yukari were handing out today''s edition of the newspaper to the students entering school from their dorms. Moka cheerfully hands a copy to a male student drooling at her when someone suddenly snatches a stack from under her arm.

    Immediately a circle of students form as a purple haired girl glowers at the papers she''d stolen, "What is this?... You can''t report this!" she exclaims after reading the article about a teacher kidnapping students.

    Yukari huffs, "And who are you to tell us what we can report on?"

    "I am Keito, part of the Public Safety Commission, and have decided that you cannot distribute these papers!"

    ...

    Keito has a vein appear as she struggles not to straight-up attack Nerissa for her insolence, the only thing preventing her being the crowd watching them.

    Moka "I... I don''t see anything wrong with our newspaper though." she asks innocently.

    Keito points at them, "You will stop releasing articles like this, or the Public Safety Commission will have to intervene for the safety of the school!" she says, walking away.

    Yukari glares at the back of Keito as she leaves, "Mou, I don''t care what that stuck up floozy says! WE WON''T STOP SHOWING THE NEWS!" she shouts in the direction Keito had left.

    Moka "But, won''t they try to shut us down?"

    Nerissa shakes her head, "No."

    ...

    Yukari slowly nods, "They don''t have the authority to shut us down..."

    Moka "Should we ask Miss Nekonome?"

    Yukari "No... We shouldn''t bother her for something like this. If it comes to it we can speak to the headmaster." she says, continuing to hand out papers.

    In the afternoon Nerissa had finally finished her article for tomorrow''s newspaper... An article detailing the Public Safety Commissions attempt to censor the press, and also trying to intimidate them into shutting down. Not only that, but Yukari had been asking around, and had found out that a few students who tried to stand up against them had gone missing, the ones that eventually return don''t act the same anymore either, like they''d been brainwashed.

    All of their discoveries were detailed in the paper, filling every available space with stories about the Public Safety Commissions'' wrongdoings.

    The next day as they were handing out the new edition the trio were approached by a large group of student all wearing black and white clothing,

    The one leading them was tall with blonde hair and weird short eyebrows, his ears were slightly pointed and he had a huge sneer on his face as he approached them. There were two other men and one woman aside from Keito who''d they''d met yesterday...

    Keito "That''s them." she says to the sneering blonde.

    Yukari looks at them and shouts, "What? You''re back for more? Well, bring it!"

    Keita growls, "Do you know who you''re talking to? This is Kuyo, the leader of the Public Safety Commission, show some respect!"

    Kuyo holds his hand up, causing her to stop her tirade. "I understand you have issues with us?" he asks.

    ...

    Yukari "... Y-yeah, we do! That lady came here yesterday and demanded we shut ourselves down!"

    Kuyo "So, your lying article about us is for revenge?"

    ...

    Yukari "Wha-No! Everything in it is true!" she shouts but can see some of the students around them nodding as if Kuyo was right. "J-Just because everyone else is afraid of you doesn''t mean we are!" she says, though she was beginning to pale.

 679 Removing Health Commission

    Moka shouts in shock, throwing the papers in the air to prevent her hands from being burned.

    Nerissa frowns at them, "Fight?" she asks, placing a hand on Iaito.

    Kuyo "Of course not, fighting is prohibited unless it''s in self-defence... Since the problem has been solved, we must be going... I am very busy." he says, leaving with his group.

    Yukari "YOU CAN''T JUST DESTROY OUR WORK AND LEAVE, YOU, YOU, IDIOTS!" she shouts, but they''d already left.

    Moka looks down at the ashes that used to be their papers, "What... What do we do now?"

    Nerissa "Make more." she states, turning and walking back towards the club room to print out more News-Papers.

    Yukari nods with a determined expression, quickly following her with Moka in tow.

    The group walk through an alley to get to their clubroom faster in order to not miss all the students, but are stopped when they hear a scream.

    "Ahhhhhhhhhh!"

    ...

    They wait a couple seconds but it happens again, louder and more frantic this time, they all start sprinting in it''s direction, expecting to be able to help, or at least investigate what''d happened... However, when they exit the alley they spot four people, all of them having been with Kuyo just a moment ago.

    Keito "Hahaha! I knew those News-paper rats wouldn''t resist something to report on." she says, transforming into some kind of human-spider hybrid, eight thin legs covered in an exoskeleton erupting from her back.

    The two men transform into their own true forms, one being some kind of ghost while the other turns into some sort of humanoid goat creature that stands at about 6ft.

    The last woman doesn''t change at all, instead just dashing towards them with a bo staff in hand, twirling it and attempting to strike at Nerissa, only for her to block it with Iaito''s scabbard.

    Yukari "What do you want!?" she shouts, pointing her wand at them and getting ready to drop as many heavy items no them as possible.

    They don''t say anything, instead choosing to advance towards the group. Keito launches web from her mouth which tangles Moka, the sealed vampire trying to break free but struggling to do so.

    Yukari summons large basins that drop onto the goat-man and the ghost... But find that the basins pass through the ghost.

    Nerissa pushes back against the staff wielding woman with enough strength to make her stumble, allowing the vampiress to close and perform a draw strike, cutting her arm complete off.

    ...

    She blocks it but something too fast to spot blurs behind her, a kick connecting with her back and sending her tumbling her over heel into a nearby tree.

    Moka "Rissa!" she shouts, seeing Kuyo just sneak attack her best friend.

    Kuyo "Not as tough as the rumours say." he says, brushing off some dust from his shoulder.

    Yukari turns and tries to cast a spell at him, but is stopped by the ghost who wraps his arms around her and somehow restrains her. "You''re not going anywhere missy."

    Kuyo waves off his followers and they knock out Moka and Yukari before leaving towards their HQ, eventually, though the dust clears and Nerissa comes walking out of it, her back bruised but still relatively fine.

    She looks around for her friends but realises they''d been taking, glaring daggers at Kuyo. "Where."

    Kuyo smiles at her, "Where are your friends? Don''t worry about that, you''ll be seeing them soon." he says, walking towards her with his hands in his pockets.

    Nerissa flourishes Iaito and dashes forwards, wings of black mist forming on her back to increase her speed. Kuyo frowns at her speed and backs away as she slashes at him, cutting a long cut into his chest.

    ...

    He runs his hand over it and looks at the blood, seemingly stunned...

    "Ha... Haha.... HAHAHAHAHA! You''ve hurt me!?! HOW EXCITING!" he exclaims, his human form beginning to break down as flames overtake his body. An explosion occurs as he flies towards Nerissa, slamming his fist into her stomach and launching her away yet again.

    She was prepared this time though, bouncing off of a tree and back towards Kuyo, cutting downwards on his position.

    Kuyo "IS THAT ALL YOU GOT?!?!" He shouts, fire exploding from him and enveloping Nerrisa. She covers her face with her arms but still has most of her uniform burned black, even her vampiric durability doesn''t protect her against getting burned. She cuts her wrist and covers herself in a ruby sphere which prevents her from taking anymore damage.

    Kuyo looks down at it and growls, "Another trick?... Take this!" he says, kicking the sphere and launching it into the sky. Nerissa watches form inside it as Kuyo transforms into some sort of fire fox with four tales, flying up to deal another attack.

    As he approaches she suddenly liquified the sphere and sends ruby tipped blood tentacles at the fox. It dodges most but ends up being pierced by a couple, enraging him even more than before. Nerissa solidifies the blood piercing Kuyo, causing the wounds to expand and damage his body even further.

    Kuyo howls in pain, using his flaming tails to slam down on the now crystalline tentacles connecting him and Nerissa, causing damage to himself but releasing him from Nerissa''s control. "These petty tricks won''t stop me from killing you... OR YOUR FRIENDS!" he exclaims, turning and flying in the other direction, presumably towards the Public Safety Commissions HQ.

 680 Tattletale

    Ignoring the pain she conjures mist wings and flies high, eventually spotting a large compound that Kuyo seemed to have entered... However, she doesn''t immediately go to storm it, instead flying towards the main school building... Specfically the boarded up hole leading to the headmasters office...

    *Crash!*

    Nerissa busts through it like an angry flying cool-aid man, looking across the room at the headmaster peacefully sitting at his desk.

    Mikogami "Miss Ludvig, a pleasure to have you, but I''d rather you came through the door next time." he says with a polite smile.

    The young vampire marches to his desk and glares at him, "My friends." she states, already knowing that this useless Headmaster is aware of most events around the school, having previously heard it from Reima.

    Mikogami "Your friends?" he asks, his acting truly something to behold.

    Nerissa "I will tell." she states, causing the headmaster to frown.

    Mikogami "Wait, wait, wait... I will not intervene-" as soon as he says this Nerissa starts walking away, causing the headmaster to stand and shout after her, "BUT! I can tell you how to easily solve this!"

    Nerissa turns to him and watches silently.

    ...

    Mikogami "Simply pull Akashiya-sans Rosario and your problems will be solved."

    Nerissa leans her head to the side, eventually squinting at him and leaving, deciding to see if she''d need to call Rei for help later.

    Again she leaves through the hole previously made by Reima, causing the headmaster to sigh.

    It''d only been a couple minutes since Kuyo had retreated, but Nerissa was still worried about her friends... Now that the Headmaster was proving to be utterly useless it seemed she had to do everything herself...

    She flew down towards the fortified compounds double doors, wrapping the mist wings around her as she hits it like a missile. Once the dust clears she notices that three people were buried under the remains of the door and its stone door frame... She doesn''t bother checking if they''re still alive as she simply didn''t care.

    She jogged through the long entrance hallway of the compound, hearing groans and shouts from unfamiliar voices. Following them she''s led down to some sort of basement complex, the stairs leading into darkness.

    This would prove troubling for most humans, but as a vampire, she could easily see in the dark. She covers her feet in black mist to deaden the noise her steps would make as she slowly sneaks through the darkness.

    The unpleasant noises get louder and louder until Nerissa finally enters some sort of prison, bars lining the walls with cells behind them... Beaten and bloody Yokai of every kind sitting within.

    Nerissa scowls at them, her cover clearly blown as footsteps rapidly make their way towards her, she conjures mist form her hands and fills the hallway. Crouching down low within it while listening carefully for those approaching.

    "The fuck is this?" A male voice questions.

    "I don''t know, but I don''t think it''s dangerous... Whoever it was is probably escaping now!" A female voice exclaims.

    "Right! Let''s get ''em then!" shouts, three sets of footsteps making their way through the mist.

    Nerissa waits and is about to strike when a hand drops onto her shoulder, the sound of rapid sniffing next to her ear, "Got you." it says, Nerissa pulling the mist around her into her hands, forming a dagger which she uses to plunge into the intruder''s chest.

    With the mist gone she sees who''d found her... It looks like some sort of short, dog-faced child, she remembers that it might be called a Kobold, but doesn''t have the time to confirm it as the other three Public Safety Commission goons surround her.

    A large male wielding a club storms over, "Bitch killed Inuka!" he exclaims, his form growing wider, taller and fatter... An ogre.

    The woman had already turned into some kind of humanoid crocodile with the head and tail of a beaver.

    The last man doesn''t turn into any kind of creature, instead growing horns on his head and having a fluffy layer of golden wool grow on his skin and two wings erupt from his back.

    Nerissa draws Iaito and drops into a stance, keeping an eye on the Crocabeaver and the Ogre, since she had a hunch they''d be the most dangerous... Through her extensive time spent in her parents library, she''d heard of the "Golden Fleece" before, and assumed all of their advantages would be defensive.

    The Crocabeaver leaps at her, it''s buckteeth sharper than they appear, Nerissa dodges the attack easily but is momentarily baffled as the beaver tears a chunk out of the stone wall with its teeth.

    The Ogre swings down his club to try and intercept her dodge, but she slashes upwards with Iaito, cutting the club in two before stabbing forwards into the Ogre, penetrating deeply into its stomach and causing them to groan in pain.

    It appears the Ogre''s fat had prevented the strike from being lethal however, it picking up some debris from the wall that the beaver had chewed on and starting to throw it. The large rocks acting like ammo from a catapult due to the monster''s strength.

    As Nerissa is dodging the golden goat man grabs her from behind, his arms locking and pinning her against his fluffy chest.

    She conjures a mist dagger and attempts to cut his arm, but her suspicions were right. Her slice does nothing at all, forcing her to smash the back of her head into his face, breaking his nose and freeing her.

 681 Crocabeaver

    The Ruby shard breaks off as it penetrates the Crocabeavers neck, causing her life-blood to spew out onto the floor, the blow fatal.

    The Ogre seeing this battle isn''t going in their favour drops the rocks and attempts to flee, only to have one of the Prisoners grab his leg through the bars, knocking him to the floor.

    Nerissa lunges at the goat man, kicking off of him like a springboard and launching towards the Ogre, stabbing Iaito down into the back of his neck, killing him.

    The goat man shakes his head, the impacts harsh but not truly injuring him, "Give up, you''ll never get through my defences!" he shouts, completely transforming into a golden-winged goat.

    It charges Nerissa, but she just conjures a wall of crystalline blood causing them to slam into it. She then liquefies it again, smothering the goat and forcing the blood into its nostrils, mouth and eventually the rest of its sinuses. She then crystallises the blood, causing it to expand and evicerating the creature''s brain.

    She then reabsorbs the blood she''d used back into her body, not having enough to waste even despite the disgusting places it''d been... Her fight with Kuyo drawing near, and she suspects he hadn''t even been at full power beforehand.

    She takes one final glance at the golden fleece before running off, vowing to come back and dissect it for Rei and slicing the locks to the cells.

    Moka "AAAARRGGHH!" she screams in agony, lighting sparking off of her violently as droplets of water fall from above.

    Kuyo growls at her, "TELL ME! What kind of Yokai is your friend!?!?" he demands, wishing to gain any advantage possible.

    Moka shudders in pain but bites the inside of her cheek, "I''ll never tell you!"

    Kuyo slaps her across the face with the back of his hand, "YOU WILL EVENTUALLY! MORE WATER!" he shouts to the people above, a larger amount of water beginning to flow onto Moka, causing her to scream louder.

    In the next room Yukari is tied to a chair, Keito questioning her as Moka''s screams echo around them.

    Keito "If you don''t tell me then your friend might die... It doesn''t sound like Kuyo is being nice, does it?" she says mockingly.

    Yukari looks up at her with tears streaming down her face, "Please stop! I-I... I''ll tell you anything you want to know!"

    Keito grins, "Then, what kind of Yokai is your friend Nerissa!?!"

    Yukari squirms, but enough bout of screaming from Moka finally breaks her, "She''s a vampire! A VAMPIRE! PLEASE STOP!"

    Kuyo looks behind him as the doors open, Keita strolling in with a victorious look. "And?"

    Keita smiles, "The pest is a vampire, a powerful Yokai, but one with many weaknesses."

    Kuyo nods, waving her off to prepare everything for his confrontation with Nerissa. He didn''t think she could beat him, but their earlier fight had shaken him... Having never seen abilities quite like hers before.

    Moka watches on helplessly, the pain not matching her worry for Nerissa at this point in time.

    Nerissa continues to search through the compound, most of the other Public Safety Commission having to deal with the prisoners she''d quickly freed. Most of the building seemed empty, though the thick smell of blood that pervaded the entire place stopped her from attempting to sniff her friends out, she''d probably get disorientated if she focussed too much on her nose when surrounded by the thick stench of old, coagulated blood.

    Suddenly though, she could hear a familiar voice a while away, "Moka" she mutters, the screams clearly one of extreme pain and duress, as well as exhaustion.

    Gritting her teeth she explodes into action, barrelling down the hallway as quickly as she could physically manage. She sprints into a big, dark room with Yukari at the centre of it tied to a chair, she''s about to approach but finds herself being soaked in water from above, the woman named Keito jumping out and sneering at her. "It''s over! We know what you... Are..." her words slowly stop, noticing the furious looking Nerissa''s hand holding Iaito shaking.

    She was soaked through but was completely unaffected by the water, confusing Keito who quickly starts backing away when she realises that she''s alone in here with her.

    Keito "Hold on! It was a prank, Ha... Ha... Ha... See?" she says after giving the most obviously fake laugh Nerissa had ever heard.

    The sobbing Yukari looks up at her saviour, Nerissa only speaking one word to Keito as she walks towards her, "Shinu."

    Keito turns to run but finds a huge ruby sword pierces her back and exit out of her chest. Nerissa wasn''t in the mood to play games with her friends at risk, deciding to make sure this bitch was dead, she expanded the ruby sword, literally tearing Keito''s body in two.

    She reabsorbs the blood and walks over to Yukari, slashes at the chair and causing the bindings to fall to pieces. "Moka?" she asks.

    Yukari points to the next room, the sound of slow whimpering mixed with sobs coming from it. "There."

    Nerissa nods, "Stay." and approaches the door, kicking it open while preparing to attack with Iaito... Only, that there''s no one inside apart from Moka... Hanging limply from chains with a pool of water beneath her.

 682 What place?

    Nerissa looks down at Moka resting in a princess carry, nudging her with her own forehead. "Moka... Wake up."

    Moka stirs and her eyes flutter, awakening with a start. "Ah!-Wa... I... Rissa!?!"

    Nerissa nods, continuing to hold her.

    Moka hugs the young vampire, "You''re safe!" she exclaims happily as if she''d not just been tortured minutes earlier.

    Unfortunately, their reunion is interrupted as steps from the entrance of the room echo out, causing Nerissa to rapidly turn and face them.

    Kuyo "I hope I am not interrupting anything, I wouldn''t want to disturb your last moments with each other." he states, flames already beginning to form around him.

    Nerissa scowls, "You will die, dog." she says after walking to the side of the room and gently placing Moka down in a safe spot.

    Kuyo "I won''t go easy on you this time!" he shouts, immediately turning into a flaming fox. However, his transformation isn''t done yet... His fox form stands upright, the flames coalescing around him and covering him from view... When he becomes visible again he''s changed, now looking like a handsome man with four tails and fox ears. "This is my ultimate form... Not many have ever witnessed it, even less still alive today."

    Nerissa pierces her offhand with a fang, drawing blood and forming a ruby claw on her left hand, "Come." his all she says, preparing to dodge any ability he plans to shoot at her.

    Kuyo pushes his palm towards Nerissa, foxfire shooting at her and hitting the wall behind her as she dodges, melting it into red hot slag that drips to the floor dangerously. "Why are you running!? DIDN''T YOU SAY TO COME?" he roars, his tails swirling nad launches a powerful circle of fire at her.

    Again she dodges, but the walls of the room are hit again and causing the roof to shake ominously. Kuyo doesn''t seem to care though, continuing to launch explosions that rocked the foundations of the building.

    Nerissa spots some kind of modified sprinkler system that had presumably been used to torture Moka, she forms mist wings and leaps to it while dodging Kuyo''s attacks, stabbing a claw just under it and causing water to rapidly spray out at Kuyo, causing steam to fill the room as it hits him.

    Using this, Nerissa cushions her feet again, Kuyo''s angry shouts clearly giving his position away. She quickly steps towards him, pushing Iaito into his vague position and feeling some resistance, as well as hearing a pained groan.

    *BOOM!*

    He channels some kind of orb before throwing it upwards, it looks like a miniature sun as it slowly hits the ceiling, melting the stone before exploding with a huge bang.

    *Booooom!*

    *CRASH!*

    With that final attack, the ceiling finally gave way, the compound crumbling atop them and burying everyone within.

    Nerissa is buried, but she is more worried about Moka and Yukari as she digs herself out. She lifts a large boulder off of herself and tosses it to the side, Kuyo already floating in the air and grinning down at her.

    Kuyo "How''s that? Your friends are dead, you going to cry?" he asks mockingly.

    Nerissa sends a furious glare at him and launches herself towards him, Iaito and her claw prepares to cut him down.

    Kuyo opens his arms our wide, a wave of fire exploding from his form and heading towards Nerissa, she throws herself behind some debris and feels the heat wash over her, managing to not get burned.

    Kuyo then runs up and kicks the boulder she''s hiding behind, launching her away and knocking Iaito from her hands.

    Nerissa glances up and pushes her hands to the floor, causing ruby spikes to erupt from the ground and attempt to skewer the monster, only to have him fly way above them and send more firey bolts at Nerissa... She leaps out of the way, feeling feint from how much blood she''d used, all the while trying to form ruby claws.

    She isn''t able to though, instead just leaping at Kuyo and punching him in the face, bringing back down to the ground where she sends a few more strikes at him. He dodges and blocks a few but quickly realises he''s no match in hand-to-hand combat against her, electing to fly high and continue shooting fire at her.

    *Rumble*

    Some debris nearby is lifted by an invisible force, Moka and a weak looking Yukari crawling out of it. Nerissa''s eyes light up at them still being alive, dodging another firebolt and heading towards them, deciding to trust the headmaster''s words and hoping she''d not been betrayed.

    Moka "Rissa!?!" she gives a startled shout as the young vampiress rushes over and grabs her Rosario, it coming off with a clink.

    *BANG!*

    An explosion of energy knocks Nerissa and Yukari to the ground as the sky turns red and ominous... An army of bats seem to come from nowhere and surround Moka, somehow making her breasts and butt bigger as they surround her.

    A moment later they begin peeling away from her body as if Moka were molting, red slitted eyes are revealed along with white hair... A stern expression both had never seen on their friend''s face before...

    Kuyo glares at Moka, slightly fearful at the energy she was giving off, "True Vampire..."

    Moka looks around before eventually locking eyes with Nerissa, "I don''t know what you are, but you are no vampire." she states.

    Nerissa ignores her words, not knowing if they were meant to be insulting or not. "Moka?"

    Moka turns to Kuyo and cracks her knuckles, "And you... It''s time to return the favour!" she shouts, dashing to him at ridiculous speeds. "KNOW YOUR PLACE!" she exclaims, delivering a powerful kick to his face, sending him flying into a large pile of stone and whatever else remains of the compound.

    She isn''t done yet however, walking over to Kuyo''s broken body and pressing a foot against his face. "Any last words?"

    Kuyo growls "Yeah... FUCK YO-" his surprise attack is stopped when Iaito''s blade penetrates his eye, killing him instantly.

    Moka turns and sees Nerissa, her breathing heavy from her fight and recovering from having just thrown Iaito. "No mercy." she states, bringing a fanged smile to Moka''s face.

 683 Cold Attitude

    Moka walks over, hands-on hip, and looking down appraisingly at her. "You''re not like the others, are you?" she says glancing at Yukari, "Too weak to do what must be done... Regardless whether you''re a vampire or not, I must thank you for taking care of my other self, Kami knows what would have happened without your protection." she says patting Nerissa''s cheek. "Continue your service young one." she says, retrieving her Rosario from the ground and clipping it back onto her neck, causing her white hair to turn back to its regular pink.

    Moka slumps to the ground but is caught by Nerissa, she slowly wakes up and frantically looks around, sighing in relief when she sees Yukari and Nerissa safe. "Did... Did we win?"

    Nerissa nods, "Nn."

    Moka gives a wide smile and cheers before hugging Nerissa, "Yipee!"

    Yukari joins the group hug and the trio stay there for a coupe minutes, Moka and Yukari eventually letting go.

    Yukari "Now we won''t have to shut down our club!" she says happily, forcing herself to not look at Kuyo''s corpse.

    Nerissa begins walking away from the duo without warning, occasionally sniffing and beginning to dig through the rubble.

    YukarI "What are you doing?" she asks.

    Nerissa "Present."

    And so Nerissa''s school life continued, after Kuyo''s death everyone kept a large distance between themselves and the newspaper club, fearing they''d meet their own demise... There were a few petitions to the Headmaster to form another Public Safety Commission due to some of the teachers and more powerful students blatantly breaking the rules... And while he had tried to recruit the Newspaper club for the role, Nerissa outright refused, leaving him no choice but to get his own hands dirty...

    While handing out Newspapers in the morning Nerissa was approached by a pale girl with long light purple hair, blue and purple eyes with a lollipop sticking from her mouth. She introduces herself as Mizore, and as a huge fan of Nerissa''s news articles, stating that they remind her of herself.

    This doesn''t surprise anyone as Nerissa''s articles are all monotone and to-the-point, quite like this almost emotionless girl standing before them.

    She hands over a booklet which contains every article Nerissa had ever written, causing goosebumps to appear on Yukari''s arms.

    Yukari "This... This is kinda creepy..."

    Mizore points to the red text covering every free bit of paper, "I have added my own thoughts and comments if you want to read it..." she says in a subdued manner, not matching how... Obsessed her booklet presents itself.

    Moka "If you are so interested in our papers, why don''t you join? We need more members to split the workload..."

    Yukari nods grimly, "Any more and I''ll be sick."

    The Newspaper club paid no mind to it though... There was an incident one day that forced them into action though, Mizore had apparently attacked the Gym teacher Okuto Kotsubo and two other students, freezing them.

    When confronted about this Mizore ran away, the others splitting up and looking for her... It wasn''t long before Nerissa found her after flying around for a bit, being confronted by some kind of Kraken, tentacle monster next to a cliff.

    It had the face of Okuto Kotsubo and was trying to kill Mizore, only to be cut completely in half by Nerissa... Her having killed yet another teacher...

    After this incident, everything had come to light, Mizore being taking advantage of by Okuto Kotsubo, who then used his position to punish her when she refused, framing her for attacking himself and other students in an attempt to get her expelled before she could call attention to his actions.

    The Newspaper club continued like nothing had ever happened, Mizore staying the same monotone girl, but Moka and the others could feel as though she was beginning to get used to having friends. Nerissa herself made an effort to form a relationship with the Yuki-Onna, her own experiences seemingly helping Mizore break out of her shell... Though, while her emotionless face never changed, everyone knew she was content to stay with them.

    Ofcourse where there are people, there are stupid people. A group called ANTI-THESIS had attempted to kidnap Moka, only to be torn to shred by Nerissa, the group was formed by creatures known as "Monstrels", these usually consisted of half-breed Yokai that didn''t fit in anywhere else, and were subsequently outcast... Usually seen as lesser by all other Yokai.

    The group wasn''t limited to brash actions though, even attempting to assassinate Nerissa when she was restocking her blood supply in the Nurses Office. They were unceremoniously killed, but the existence of this group was starting to tick off the young vampire.

    Nerissa, Moka, Mizore, and Yukari all confront the headmaster about why he''s not dealing with this, Mikogami gives some vague answers but internally he''s worried about the future. Most of the things the Newspaper club had had to deal with were of his own design, directly or indirectly in an attempt to have Nerissa get stronger, as well as removing Moka''s Rosario.

    While one part of the plan had succeeded, Nerissa still wasn''t strong enough in his eyes... He needed them to face the Monstrel terrorists and beat them to get stronger...

    Nerissa "Will tell." she states, causing him to sweat profusely.

    Then again, if all else failed he could try and rely on the girls brother to solve it...

    Mikogami "Very well... I will expel them." he states, waving his hand and causing the barrier around the school to pick out the perpetrators and throw them out.

    Yukari glares at him, "You mean you could have done that the entire time!?! How many times has Moka been in danger because of your negligence?"

 684 Festival

    Reima lifts her up and holds her while continuing, both moaning in pleasure... Suddenly, he receives the worrying sensation of Nerissa''s necklace being filled with magic, he immediately stops. "Nerissa''s in trouble!" he exclaims, pulling on some underwear and shorts before beginning to open a portal to Nerissa''s position.

    Ciri behind him scrambles to get dressed, only managing to put on a black vest and some leather trousers that cling to her sweaty skin. She then dashes over to the side of the bed and picks up Seath and Reima''s two other swords.

    The Reima tears open the portal, revealing a bustling area with many people in what looks like a festival. Ciri runs inside with sword drawn as Reima follows her, both looking disheveled.

    Their entrance causes a commotion, the crowd making way for the duo as they look around for Nerissa...

    Nerissa "Rei? Master?" she asks, a confused expression on her face as she stands between Moka, Mizore, and Yukari, along with the latter two''s parents.

    ...

    Reima "Are you okay Rissa!?! You used the necklace!" he quickly says, preparing for a fight.

    Yukari "Your family are perverts..." she mutters, blushing at their physical state.

    Mizore sniffs the air and nods, "Something smells."

    Reima fights to contain his blush and notices that Ciri is having trouble.

    Ciri "What''re they saying?"

    Reima swaps back to English, "They think we are perverts." he mutters, passing her a necklace that''ll allow her to speak in Japanese.

    Ciri puts it on, "Is everything all right?" she asks, approaching Nerissa and grabbing her shoulders.

    Nerissa nods, and gestures at the festival happening around them, "Family."

    Mizore''s mother steps forward with her hand extended, she looks like an older clone of Mizore, lollipop and all. "I am Tsurara Shirayuki, you must be Nerissa''s father... It''s a pleasure to meet you." she says seductively, her eyes trailing up and down his muscular, scarred body, all the while ignoring Ciri.

    Ciri "Hey, hands off the good." she says glaring at the woman.

    Reima scratches the back of his head, "Rissa is my little sister... So..." he corrects her.

    Yukari''s parents step forward and bow, Yukari introducing them, "These are my parents, Tamanori Sendo and Fujiko Sendo... They are both mute, but I think they are pleased to meet you both." she says with a smile.

    Reima raises a brow, "Mute?"

    Yukari nods somberly, "A spell gone wrong..."

    Nerissa points at them, "Clothes."

    Reima and CIri give a mock laugh in embarrassment, the former raising the floor around them and lowering a few moments later. Both now dressed in casual clothes with their weapons now sitting on their backs.

    Ciri smiles at them, "It''s good to meet you all... You''ve been taking care of Nerissa I hope?"

    Yukari slowly shakes her head, "It''s her that''s been keeping us safe... She''s saved all of us more than once already.

    Moka "Its good to see you again Reima-san." she chirps.

    Reima nods, "You too Moka, did your parents not come?" he asks, glancing around.

    Moka looks down sadly and shakes her head, "No... My mother is, has passed away. And my father is too busy with his work to visit something like this." she mutters.

    Reima "Oh, I''m sorry for asking... But it''s fine right? We''ll keep you company."

    Yukari nods, "That''s right!"

    Reima looks to Nerissa, "So you called us for the festival?" Nerissa nods and he continues, "Then, got any idea on what you wanna do first?"

    Nerissa points at a stands hosting a gun game, in which you try to shoot bottles from a stand with a rifle.

    Reima picks Nerissa up and puts her on his shoulders as he walks over, all the while followed by the rest of the group that smiles at their interaction. "Whaddya you wanna win?" he asks, glancing at the numerous prices hanging from the walls and roof of the stand.

    Nerissa points at a huge black rabbit stuffed animal, and the guy manning the stand grins, "For that, you''ll need to knock down three bottles with two bullets."

    ...

    Reima squints at him, "Huh? Isn''t that impossible?"

    The guy shakes his head, grabbing the gun and firing two quick shots, the weak air rifle''s final bullet bouncing off of one bottle and hitting the other. Though, Reima could feel the manipulation of mana, meaning that this guy cheated.

    Nerissa "Me first." she asks, being handed the gun and aiming down from Reima''s shoulders.

    "Aha, I''d usually say no to getting help, but I''ll let it slide for you missy." he says, stepping aside after Nerissa tosses a few Yen at him.

    She takes aim and eventually fires, the bullet hitting a bottle head-on but it doesn''t even budge... It''s clearly weighted and too heavy for the gun.

    "You get two more tries miss, then you gotta pay for another go." he says cheerfully.

    Nerissa fires again, hitting the top of the bottle which knocks it over, firing another bullet at the other bottle to make it recochet and hit the last one...*Ping!*, The bullets hits both bottles but doesn''t move them.

    "Last one, missy..."

    *Ping!, Ping!, Ping!*

    She rapidly fires off three shots, knowing two over but unfortunately leaving the last one standing.

    "Ah, you only got two, bad luck!"

    Nerissa looks down at Reima, "Rei..." is all she says while sending puppy-dog eyes at him.

    Reima "Alright, I''ll give it a shot." he says, grabbing the rifle and flicking the man one Sola.

    "Oi-Oi-Oi... What is this?" he asks, examining the coin.

    Reima "It''s gold, I don''t have any money on me." he states, making the man shrug.

    *Ping!* he shoots one bullet and uses telekinesis on the bullet to have it ricochet off of one bottle to another, then the stand owner before finally hitting the last bottle.

    Yukari "Wow!" she exclaims as all three bottles fall.

 685 Quality time

    Ciri "Never knew you were good with a gun." she asks.

    Reima "There are many things I''m good at that you don''t know about."

    Ciri "Oh? You''ll be telling me more about that when we get back." she says with a grin.

    Reima shakes his head, and grabs the large stuffed animal before handing it to Nerissa on his shoulders.

    She hugs it tightly, the rabbit being around half her own size.

    Reima "Anyone else want anything?" he asks, glancing at the rest of the group.

    Yukari points at some kind of pillow hidden in the back, one so hidden it makes even Reima have to squint at it... Is that...

    "Wa! How did that get here? N-no that''s not a prize!"

    Reima glowers at him, "It is." he states, glaring at the man.

    ...

    "O-Ok..."

    Reima easily knocks down the bottles with a little telekenisis again, forcing the man to retrieve teh pillow in the back... Upon seeing it the rest of the group gives the stand owner a hard stare, him handing over the full height Moka body-pillow in embarrassment. "I... This was a prank gift by my friend...."

    Mizore/Nerissa "Pervert/Creep"

    Reimna "Well, now I won''t feel bad about cleaning this place out... Anyone else want anything?" he asks, the man paling, those large stuffed animals worth more than he can get back in returns. They are supposed to only attract customers!

    The girls nod, Moka receiving a large bat, Mizore being handed a huge stuffed icecream pillow and Ciri being given a Unicorn one... Obviously she doesn''t appreciate the gift.

    Reima also gives Yukari and Mizore''s parents a few gifts, regardless if they want them or not... This was only to spite the greedy stand owner. He looks up at Nerissa who''s happily sitting on his shoulders, "Where to next?"

    Nerissa slowly looks around and spots her teacher Shizuka Nekonome, the cat-woman with a poor disguise playing a game to win gold-fish.

    The group walk over, Yukari calling her, "Miss Nekonome?"

    The cat woman brings her arm back, hooking one of the plastic toys and cheering. "I win!... Oh? Sendo-San?"

    Moka "Miss I thought you were off getting lunch?" she asks, confused.

    Shizuka grins, showing her sharp canines, "I was!" she says, grabbing the bag containing the gold fish she''d one and stuffing the poor thing in her mouth.

    ...

    The group watches her chew a couple down before swallowing, placing some more money down and playing the game again.

    Reima grins and whispers to Ciri "Something''s "Fishy" about this." he says with a chuckle, her punching him in the arm for the crappy pun.

    Moka "Ludvig-san? Do you not live in Japan?" she asks.

    Reima shakes his head, "No... We live... Quite far away from Japan." he says.

    Yukari "But your Japanese is really good..."

    Reima nods, "It''s daily practice, I believe that language is the key to life itself and so I must try my best to keep it up to scratch."

    Ciri snorts at his words but doesn''t say anything, the only thing this guy does daily is complain about his workload.

    Moka "Then, you should try Takoyaki!"

    Reima raises a brow, "What''s that?"

    Moka "It''s a fluffy balls of goodness, that you can choose whatever you want put in it!"

    Reima shrugs, "You guys wanna get some?" he asks, Nerissa, Ciri and the rest of the group nodding.

    The ground walk over to the nearest stand and make a couple orders, no one gets the squid probably because of witnessing that teacher devour raw Gold-fish... Instead some are filled with marinated pork, beef, or vegetables.

    Mizore and her mother even request some ice with theirs for some reason, leaving it freezing even after cooking.

    Reima looks down at the box in his hands, six Takoyaki sitting there covered in mayonnaise and some other kinds of sauces. "They didn''t go light with the condiments did they?" he mutters, getting memories of when he''d tried to drink a bottle of ketchup.

    Moka eats one and her face lights up, "Its good! Try it!"

    Reima shrugs and pops one in his mouth, getting a satisfying amount of resistance as he chews it, as well as the strong flavors of the pork and batter... The sauces blend together and aren''t too overpowering for his palate. "Shit... These are good... We should get this in Ichor!" he exclaims, Ciri nodding next to him.

    The group continues to exploring the festival, playing games, eating food and generally having a good time.

    Mikogami looks down at a tiny girl with wings, not bigger than his fist. "Do you understand what I want you to do?"

    The girl quickly nods, "Yes sir!"

    Mikogami frowns at her, "Oh? Then, remind me of what I just said." he asks.

    ...

    "I''ve forgotten, Tehe?" she says, playfully knocking on the side of her head.

    Mikogami grabs a nearby mirror and holds it above the floor, "I will smash this if you don''t take my words seriously!"

    "NOOOO! PLEASE DON''T!"

    Mikogami "Then you will do as you are told, once you''re done you will be free to do whatever you want... Within certain limits."

    "Then... Could you explain what you want me to do again?"

    Mikogami sighs, internally wondering why he''d chosen to put his hope in this idiot. "You will use the mirror, to see Nerissa Ludvig''s true form... As well as Reima Ludvig." he states, the atmosphere becoming ominous.

 686 Master heading for pain

    The only downside was having Ciri glare at the side of his head whenever one of the girls had a "Nipple-slip", or "Wardrobe malfunction"... But, could he really be blamed for such a thing?

    They were just beginning to walk away and look at another stand when a commotion not far away drew their attention... It wasn''t like the usual bustling crowds that''d make getting anywhere annoying, no, there were screams of shock, fear, and confusion...

    Reima sighs, "You guys wanna go over and check it out? I personally couldn''t give less of a shit..." he admits.

    Ciri "If there''s a problem then we should try help." she says, Moka, Yukari, and Nerissa nodding.

    Mizore and Yukari''s parents don''t give any indication of caring, simply following the group as they walk towards the chaos now unfolding.

    It doesn''t take long before they see people turning into monsters, men turning into lizardmen, women turning into lamia and even children turning into goblins.

    Ciri "What the fuck is going on..." she asks, a lizardman running past them to get away while trying to hide his face.

    Yukari "That''s their true forms... Something is forcing them out of their human forms!" she exclaims.

    The crowd finally realises trouble is afoot and begins retreating, stomping over anyone who falls or loses their balance. Reima stands in-front of the group like an iron wall, anyone who tries to brush past them or move him bouncing off like a rubber ball.

    Even a Centaur dislocates its arm when it tries to push him out of the way, falling to the ground and getting trampled like the others.

    Yukari "We have to stop this!"

    Nerissa climbs onto Reima''s shoulders and stands, looking over the crowd to see whatever is doing this... A flash of light causes her to squint, a mirror carried by some sort of fairy approaching and revealing her face.

    Yukari "Rissa don''t like at it!" she shouts, realising that this must be the cause of everything. However, it''s too late, Nerissa was already staring deeply into it, brushing a lock of hair over her air.

    Mizore, Yukari, and both sets of parents back away, expecting something horrible to happen...

    Only for Nerissa to swat at the Fairy and knock her away, her form not budging an inch. Unfortuantely the mirror is launched from the fairies hands and flies over the group, Reima is about to grab it but is alerted by a shout from Ciri.

    Ciri "H-hey!" she shouts, Moka turning from a pinkette into a taller, bustier silver-haired vampire. Yukari launches herself at Moka, hugging her tightly and drooling over her clothes.

    Mizore and her mother weren''t any better, the former giving Nerissa a heated look while the latter does the same towards Reima.

    Reima himself felt something trying to release his aura, but he focussed on retraining it, not wishing to burn everyone near him to ash.

    Moka "What is the meaning of this?" she asks, glaring at everyone.

    Ciri "Where''d that mirror go?" she asks, looking around for it but not finding anything.

    Nerissa "Bug took it." she states, noting that the fairy isn''t around any longer.

    Reima uses his Observation Haki to try and find the fairy, as well as the mirror, "I''ll go-" but is interrupted by Tsurara who presses her breasts against his back.

    Tsurara "Ah, please, don''t leave me here alone... Keep me company." she says seductively.

    Ciri gives a kick to her hip, throwing the snow-woman away from Reima, "I told you already, hands off!"

    Tsurara covers her mouth with her hand, "Ohohoho, jealous?" she says, suddenly swinging her other hand and throwing ice shards at Ciri.

    She cuts them all out of the air with Seath, giving an irritated glare to the home-wrecker.

    Reima "Both of you sto-" he tries to break them up but has his feet frozen and a fireball hit his chest.

    Tsurara/Ciri "Stay out of this!" they shout, beginning their assault on each other again.

    Moka "Ignore them, we must find the mirror." she says, grabbing Reima and Nerissa, kicking Yukari off of her leg and leaping away.

    Yukari "MOKAAAAAA!" she screams at being left behind.

    The trio land just outside of the festival, Reima admiring Moka''s new firm... Personality.

    Reima "Could you not grab me? You''ll ruin my clothes." he complains, brushing off her hand that was holding his shirt.

    Moka "Be quiet. The fairy is around here somewhere." she says, though, how she knows this information Reima has no idea.

    Nerissa sniffs the air, and points into the forest. "There." she says, leaping into the treeline and jumping off of the trees as if she were a from the Elemental Nations.

    Moka and Reima follow, easily catching up with her as she grabs the Fairy yet again.

    Nerissa "Got you." she mutters, glaring down at the frantic looking Fairy.

    "Ahh! Don''t hurt me!"

    Moka "Tell us what we need to know or I will personall-"

    "AHH! It was Mikogami-sama! MIIIKOOOGAMMI-SAMMMAMAAA!" she shouts, giving away the person responsible so quickly that Reima is actually surprised.

    Reima "Mikogami huh? Seems I''ll be having a talk with him." he says, looking up into the sky with a sadistic grin, knowing full well that Mikogami was watching.

 687 Vampunishmen

    They ignore all of that however, electing to go straight to the man himself...

    Mikogami watches as the double doors are kicked open with three pissed people walking inside. Reima and Nerissa slowly walk up as Moka storms to his desk.

    Moka "What is the meaning of this!?!" she growls.

    Mikogami smiles at her, "What is the meaning of what?" he asks innocently.

    Reima "You unleashing this damn fairy upon the academy?" he asks, holding up the still sobbing fairy who''s clutching her mirror.

    Mikogami has a drop of sweat trail down his forehead, "I have no idea what you mean Mr Ludvig?"

    Reima "Cut the shit or I''m going to have to pummel you again."

    Mikogami sighs, "Fine, I had Lillith here try to reveal you and her true forms... Just as insurance incase you ever tried to harm the school or students... But, it seems she went ahead and revealed most of the school''s forms while she was at it." he says, sending a harsh look at the fairy.

    Moka "Do you know wh-"

    Mikogami interrupts him while waving her off, "Now, now Moka-san... Adults are talking."

    A vein appears on her forehead as she leans over the desk and tries to punch him in the face... Only for the Headmaster to catch it with ease.

    Reima frowns at him and cracks his knuckles, "Alright, I''ve been wanting to punch you for a while now... But I''ll allow Moka here to do it for me." he says, teleporting behind Mikogami before he can unleash his seals and holding him so he can''t move. "Go ahead Moka." he says with grin.

    Moka sends a similar one back to him and begins pummeling the Headmaster, bruising his face, chest, and stomach with her furious blows. "Seems the Dark Lords aren''t all they''re cracked up to be." she says, delivering another hard punch to his nose.

    Mikogami "Argh, Moka-Chan! I knew your mother, for her sake please stop-Argh!"

    Moka "Know your place!" she exclaims, giving a final punch to Mikogami''s face which breaks his nose and receives a pitiful groan from him.

    Reima drops the limp Mikogami back into his chair, not minding how he''s playing dead. "What now?"

    Moka sighs, "With the Public Safety Comission destroyed and the Headmaster... Also out of Commission, it falls to us to stop the school from getting anymore damaged than it already is.

    Reima groans at the thought of all the effort it''d take, but is persuaded by Nerissa as she holds his hand.

    Nerissa "Please Rei?"

    Reima''s heart melts as he rapidly nods, "Alright, fine!"

    Most monsters were easy to deal with, them being regular types which allowed Moka to kick the shit out of them, but some like slimes and ghosts didn''t allow her to hit them, forcing Reima to deal with them. Haki Infused punches allowed him to knock them unconscious, Nerissa not being able to subdue them without murdering them.

    Reima also helped put out the numerous fires that were springing out due to some of the Fire type monsters causing havoc. Dealing with fire was his forte, simply flying above the school and absorbing any fire dealt with the problem quickly.

    Eventually, they reached their group again, Ciri standing over a thoroughly beaten Tsurara.

    Ciri "You guys find who''s causing this?" she asks, foot still on Tsurara''s face.

    Reima nods, "It was the Headmaster... He wanted to see Rissa''s true form and released the fairy. Don''t worry though, we gave some payback for the trouble." he says, him and Moka sending grins to one another.

    Ciri "So, any ideas on how to fix these guys?" she says, nudging Tsurara with her foot and pointing at the sobbing Yukari, along with the Witches parents who are getting more frisky than before...

    Reima slowly nods, "Just beat them up is how we''ve been doing it." he shrugs.

    Ciri "Good enough for me." she says, walking over and slamming her fists into Yukari and her parent''s heads, knocking them unconscious.

    A couple hours later the group had finally caught every transformed guest, it seemed that the Mirror not only revealed Yokai''s true form, but also their feelings. This didn''t seem to affect Reima or Ciri because they weren''t really monsters... It also might not have affected Nerissa, but it''s hard to tell with how expressionless she usually is.

    Moka slowly grew weaker and weaker, the mirrors affects wearing off and causing her other personality to start to push its way back to the surface. "It seems it''s time for me to sleep again." she says, giving Reima the impression of reluctance but he wasn''t certain.

    Reima extends his hand, "It''s a pleasure to meet you other Moka... Continue to take care of Rissa for me, ok?" he says with a smile.

    Moka squints at him, "It''s her taking care of the other me... You''ve trained her well, Ludvig-San." she says, fainting as her hair finally turns back to its usual pink.

    Ciri looks down with a frown, "But I was the one who trained her." she complains.

    Reima laughs, "That''s what you''re mad about?"

    Ciri nods with crossed arms, "Yeah, I''d like some recognition for how well she turned out." she says semi-sarcastically.

    Reima pulls her in close with her arms around her hips, "You sure you want it now?" he asks with a smug grin.

    Ciri blushes "Well, only if you want to." she says, their faces slowly approaching.

    Nerissa walks in between them, "Perverts." she mutters, performing another trademark "Cock-block".

 688 School Trip

    Nerissa wasn''t all that bothered about it, but Moka didn''t have anywhere to stay due to her Father being away... He didn''t even visit during the festival. When asked about her other family she looked pale, as if there were unresolved problems she''d rather not be dealing with.

    Yukari was the first to chirp up, "You can come with us!" she says, her parents giving glances to each other. A hand on her shoulder and a shake of their heads had her optimistic attitude subdued.

    A glance towards Tsurara revealed that she wasn''t able, or wasn''t willing to take her in for however long it''d take to repair the school.

    ...

    Eye''s turn towards Reima who''s trying his best not to notice them, Ciri uncomfortably shuffles, not sure if they know where they''re from yet.

    Nerissa "Rei?"

    ...

    Reima gives a shrug, "Fine, you need somewhere to stay?" he asks with a sigh.

    Moka "Are you sure I wouldn''t be a bother?" she asks, her eyes glistening.

    Ciri "As long as you don''t mind the travel." she says ominously.

    Yukari "I want to come!" she exclaims, her hand held up as if she wanted to ask a question.

    Mizore steps forward, "Me too."

    Reima rubs his face, "What is this, a school trip?" he asks exasperated.

    Tsurara "I don''t mind you taking them off of our hands for a while." she says, leaning forwards and revealing her cleavage.

    A punch to the arm by Ciri has Reima''s eyes shoot back to her face, "Yeah... You''ll get em back when the Academy''s repaired.

    Yukari''s parents give a bow to him as Yukari attempts to squash herself into Moka''s bosom.

    Reima "I guess... You guys get your stuff and we''ll leave.." he says, waving them off.

    The girls go off, Ciri with Nerissa to help carry all of her stuff. Leaving Reima alone with Tsurara and Yukari''s parents.

    They tell him about what they''ll be needing while away, as if its a sleep-over for children... Though, finding out that Mizore needs to keep sucking those Lollipops just to not melt was a surprise.

    It takes around an hour for them to retrieve their possessions from the damaged dorm rooms, Moka being especially upset when finding some of her outfits burned or maybe even stolen.

    Eventually, Reima turns after the girls had bid their farewells, thrusting his hands into the air and opening a portal to the entrance of Ichor, the Monsters and Prospects roaming around making way for their king and his unconventional means of transportation.

    He steps in after the group, closing the portal behind him as Yukari is brushed by a Monster passerby.

    Yukari "Wow, do none of them need to wear their disguises?" she asks, wondering where this place is, having never heard of it before.

    Moka "Sorry, I never asked but, what kind of Monster are you?" she asks Ciri bluntly.

    Ciri shrugs, "I''m not a monster..."

    Yukari "So you''re a human? But you beat Shirayuki-san in a fight..."

    Reima "Oh, did Rissa not tell you guys? This is another world to your own, some human''s here aren''t as powerless as the ones you know... Regular humans can use magic here." he says, causing her eyes to open wide.

    Yukari "Really? But, that doesn''t make sense!?! Don''t you need a magical core to cast spells?" she asks, her mind blown by the possibilities.

    Reima "That''s how Witches and Wizards cast spells, there are others way to conjure magic... Using ambient magic being one of them."

    Moka "Umm, Ludvid-san-"

    Reima realises something abruptly, "Ah, hang on..." he says, retrieving a couple English translating necklaces from his Folded Space. "Put these on, your language isn''t really known here..."

    Yukari "So they''ll allow us to understand the people here?" she questions, more for the specifics on how it works than a confirmation on the function.

    The trio put the necklaces on, almost immediately scanning the surroundings where whispering could be heard... Voice of admiration or confusion towards Reima was the most prominent, there was a minority admiring the girls for their looks however, causing them to blush in embarrassment.

    Moka finally gets the courage to speak again, drawing attention to the many suitcases resting next to her. He hadn''t noticed, but how had she dragged so many through? He eyes Ciri, her giving a shrug, not seeming to be bothered by the pile of luggage.

    Reima stores it all, "Now, where should I take you?" he wonders aloud, not sure whether a house, hotels, or Kaer Morhen itself would be suitable for them. "Where would you feel most at home?" he asks.

    Yukari "Somewhere small and clean?"

    Mizore "Somewhere cold."

    Moka "My family lives in a castle so..."

    Reima "You wanna stay in there then?" he asks, pointing towards Kaer Morhen with the clouds brushing against the top of it.

    They all nod, Yukari always having wished to stay in a castle, adding Moka into the mix completes her dream-package.

    Reima nods and begins leading them towards it, "Alright, but a few rules first... Don''t wander outside of the city, don''t cause any trouble... And, especially, don''t feed teh dragon." he points to the Everlasting Dragon sitting atop the mountain.

    Moka "Ohhhhh, I thought dragons were extinct!"

    Ciri snorts, "Not in our world, even as much as they''ve tried to force us." she remarks.

 689 Schools Ou

    Siegelinde stands with her sword pressed into the stone floor in-front of a store, raising her hand and waving at Nerissa, "You''re back? So eager to fight me again?" she says, not taking note of Yukari giggling at her onion-shaped helmet.

    Nerissa "School''s Out." she states, Reima''s brow twitching at her choice of words.

    Mizore "Who''re you?" she asks with a neutral expression.

    Sieglinde, "Me? I''m Sieglinde of Catarina, knight captain of Ichor!" she exclaims, pride filling her voice.

    Yukari/Moka "Ohooooho?" the say, not really knowing how high up her position is.

    Sieglinde chuckles, "That''s enough to impress you lot? Don''t you know who is leading you?" she asks as if it''s the most obvious thing.

    Ciri "Enough Sieglinde... You''ll give him a big head."

    Sieglinde "All the better for you Ciri!" she laughs and receives a punch to her helmet, shaking her head.

    Ciri "Alright, we''re busy so tell your jokes somewhere else Miss Onion." she huffs and stomps after Reima who was still walking.

    Yukari "Your family is weird." she whispers to Nerissa, the vampiress nodding at her in agreement.

    Moka "I think it''s fun." she adds, feeling like she wanted something similar.

    As they walk they come across a few patrols of Prospects, the masked men giving them appraising looks due to the way Reima is leading them.

    Yukari "What''s with the masks?" she asks, curious.

    Nerissa looks up in thought before giving a short answer, "Armour."

    Moka "Armour? But they don''t look all that effective." she mutters.

    Yukari "Maybe they''re enchanted? Wouldn''t be the first time a mask was used like that."

    Moka "But for the town guard?"

    Yukari slowly shakes her head, "No, that, would be a first." she says, trying to get a closer look at the Prospects masks without them noticing.

    Eventually, they reach the gates of Kaer Morhen, already lifted but providing an impressive sight nonetheless.

    Reima steps over the drawbridge and into the first courtyard, a man in armour with a silver arm walking over and grabbing each others forearm.

    Arie "Where''ve you been Reima? I get that your busy but you should find time to have some drinks." he says, clearly much happier with his new arm.

    Reima "I will, I will... Just gather everyone, set a time, and I''ll turn up... You seem to forget I can literally teleport anywhere I want."

    Arie scratches the back of his head with his silver arm, "Ah, yeah... Right..." his eyes glance at the group following Reima, "This part of your harem then?" he asks with a laugh.

    Arie sweats, "Er, yeah... Rei''s... Male harem!... That''s what we call it when all the guys are out drinking..." he quickly says, causing more misunderstandings in the minds of the girls.

    Ciri smiles at Arie and Reima, "I''ll be looking forward to hearing about the "Harem" then Rei." she says, and Reima can tell she''s barely holding in her laughter.

    Reima sends an irritated look to the remorseful Arie as he steps past him. "Ciri, about that Harem-"

    Ciri chuckles, "Yeah, Geralt will be hearing about that."

    Reima sighs, "Let''s just get these guys sorted out." he says, defeated.

    Reima leads the group up Kaer Morhen, the keep looking much cleaner and more expensive than when Avallac''h had been here. He goes to the room under the topmost that belongs to Geralt and Yennefer. The rooms are attached to a hallway which''ll allow them easy access to one another.

    Reima enters one room, "This''ll be yours Mizore-chan, try not to spend too much time on the balcony... Some of the residents in Kaer Morhen and Ichor can be a bit... Loud." he says, remembering Solaire singing an old Lodran song about a prince screwing a maid with large breasts.

    Mizore walks around, checking the T.V in the room and finding some sort of game console attached to it. She points to it and looks at Reima questioningly, "What''s this?"

    Reima hadn''t even noticed it, but when he does he sends a glare at it. "I... Have no idea... Why does no one tell me about anything?" he complains, wishing he''d been told if a new gaming console had been created or not.

    Mizore then walks over and opens the doors to the balcony, a baleful wind blows her hair backwards as well as slapping the other''s in the face by its speed alone. "Nnn, perfect." she says, her voice barely audible over the wind. She struggles to close the door but eventually manages it, turning and sending a smile at the others, "We''ll write a paper about this."

    Nerissa looks up at Reima, "Can we?"

    Reima shrugs, "Do what you want, it''s not like anyone could follow us back, or more likely, threaten us... Well, unless you forget to use your necklace." he admits, but it seems that halfway through his sentence he''d been ignored, Nerissa hugging his waist with a satisfied expression.

    Reima "Stop acting so cute Snuffles, or I''ll have trouble letting you go." he says rubbing her head while the others watch.

    Yukari "So, what about my room?" she asks with a huge grin.

    Reima walks out with Nerissa still attached to him, opening the next door on his left and gesturing inside, "There you go, your majesty... Oh, and if any of you girls need something, just call for Hinky."

    *Pop!*

    Hinky "Yes master!?!"

    ...

    Reima "Introduce yourself to them Hinky, they''re our guests for a while."

 690 Unpleasant Awakening...

    She crawls out of bed and goes to the Ensuite, this modification being recently added due to how quickly the city itself is advancing, not wishing for Kaer Morhen to stay in the "Dark Ages" technology-wise.

    A quick shower after brushing her teeth and blowdrying her hair allowed her to finally wake up, existing her room and looking around for anyone else who was awake... It seemed she was the earliest, no noise coming from any of her friends rooms...

    *Bang, Bang, Bang, Bang*

    ...

    Moka''s ears perked at the noise, it being too early for construction... Maybe someone was making Mochi? Her stomach grumbles at the thought of it... Unconsciously she begins following the noise, walking down some stairs and eventually coming to a stop before a set of double doors.

    *Bang, Bang, Bang*

    The sound is clearer now... It definitely sounds like someone is pounding Mochi. She confidently takes ahold of the doorknob and enters... And swiftly leaves when she sees what the sound was.

    Reima atop Ciri pounding her brutally...

    Ciri "Stop! Stop!... Did you hear something?" she asks, glancing at the closed door."

    Reima shakes his head, "I said this before, no mercy!" he begins anew, having left the duty of locking the door to Ciri earlier that night.

    Moka runs back up to the hallway, holding her mouth in arousal and disgust. She runs for Nerissa''s room, wishing not to be alone right now, her fifteen-year-old mind having not yet seen someone be passionately "loved".

    Nerissa''s door isn''t locked, allow Moka to rush in, closing it behind her as she looks around...

    Moka "Pink?" she questions, the room in question being entirely pink with Chibi plushies of Reima holding his thumb up, causing her to blush harder. "Rissa? Are you here?" she asks, almost pleading.

    A black bundle atop the bed shifts at her voice, a small head with two large ears and red eyes raising to look at her. The black rabbit was atop the stuffed black rabbit they''d won in the festival. It gives a small squeak to Moka, as if it was asking her a question.

    Moka "... Rissa?" she asks, not being able to mistake her eyes.

    Snuffles lazily transforms back into Nerissa, her lazily slumped into her mountain of plushies and she looks up languidly, "Nn?"

    Moka "I-I saw Ludvig-san and Ciri..." she blushes, unable to finish.

    Nerissa makes a snorting sound, gesturing for Moka to come closer with her hand.

    The pinkette does so and is pulled onto the bed, getting hugged tightly by the sleepy-looking Vampiress. "Early."

    Moka "Its morning though." she squeaks.

    Nerissa "Earrrly."

    Yukari "You traitors! What about me!" she exclaims, launching herself on the duo.

    Moka wonders where Mizore is, but a chill breeze coming from below answers her question... Mizore lying under the bed with only her head showing with a dull look. "Morning."

    Yukari "Its midday..." she corrects her, "Lets go get brunch, I''m starving."

    Nerissa manages to free herself from the dogpile and walks to the door, "Breakfast." she states, the other following her.

    They go down a couple floors and enter the dining room... It''d been added next to the kitchen as it was no longer just about the bare essentials. Somehow there was already food sitting on the table for them, a stack of pancakes covered in maple syrup for Yukari, a cold vegetable stew for Mizore, and two large black puddings with goblets of blood for the vampires.

    Each sits in their respective places and begins eating, Nerissa bowing slightly before sitting, "Thanks Hinky." she mutters before eating.

    Moka takes a bite of the savoury tasting desert, and holding her hand over her mouth in surprise, "This is good... I''ve never had something like this before... What''s in it?" she asks, curious.

    Nerissa "Blood." she states, causing the others to grimace at the thought of its taste.

    Moka "I didn''t know you could make food out of blood... That''s ingenious!" she exclaims, eating another large piece.

    Yukari "I wanna know how the food got here, and how they knew what to make us."

    Nerissa "Told Hinky last night."

    Yukari "Ah, really? Where''s Hinky I wanna thank her for this." she says with a smile, almost falling backwards over her chair as Hinky appears on the table in her usual butler uniform, Reima having gotten her to stop wearing the puffy-jacket.

    Hinky "Me is hopings food is good?" they ask earnestly.

    Moka "Its very good Hinky-san... Thank you very much."

    The elf squeals and disappears excitedly, Yukari crawling back into her chair after they''d gone.

    Yukari "Why is everyone around here weird?" she mutters.

    Nerissa "Your weird." she states, the young witch having no standing to call others weird.

    Moka "So, what is there to do around here? Can we explore the city?"

    Yukari chips in, "The library?"

    Nerissa "Parts of Library, restricted." she says, bringing down Yukari''s enthusiasm as bit.

    Yukari "But there are opens areas right?" she asks, receiving a nod from Nerissa and cheering, "Lets go do everything then! Its a vacation!" she exclaims.

    Mizore nods, "Explore the mountain..."

    Moka "Ah... Didn''t Ludvig-san say not to leave the city?"

    Nerissa shrugs, "Mountain is part of city." she says, not looking completely sure of herself when she says it.

    Yukari "What are we waiting for? We don''t know when we have to go back to school, so lets make the most of it." she says, almost dragging Moka and Nerissa out of the room as Mizore follows.

 691 Teen Team

    Snow Drake passes by, muttering various jokes to himself in preparation for tonights routine.

    Mizore watches over her shoulder as they round the corner, leaning into Nerissa and asking, "What is that?"

    Nerissa shrugs, "Snow Monster?" he guesses, Mizore nodding as if it was a satisfactory answer.

    Yukari points at a huge building gilded in gold, "What''s that!?!"

    Nerissa "Library."

    Yukari "Let''s look, let''s look!" she quickly says, almost skipping over to the doors.

    The rest follow her, peeking inside and spotting a smattering of people inside, reading a variety of books from cooking, to building, to knitting...

    Logan is slumped over some papers calculating a new spell Formulae at the reception desk, not realising there were new guests to the Library.

    Yukari walks over, getting up on her tip toes to be seen and looking down at the Formulae, "Wow! What spell is that!?!" she exclaims, shocking Logan as he rapidly sits up while clutching the papers to his chest.

    Logan "Wha! Who are you? A thief!?!"

    Nerissa walks up and shakes her head, "Witch." she says, gesturing to Yukari.

    Logan''s eyes widen, him getting closer and looking intensely at Yukari, "A witch huh? Like those that attend that Hogwarts?" he questions.

    Yukari "Hogwarts?"

    Logan nods, "School of Witchcraft and Wizardry... A school that apparently has the biggest library in Magical Britain." he states, having read about it in the numerous spell books from that world.

    Yukari''s eyes turn to stars at hearing this, "There''s a proper school for Witchcraft!!? How come I''ve never heard of this!?!"

    Nerissa "Another world." she states, forcing Yukari to remember their situation.

    Yukari sighs, "Ah... So its impossible to see their library huh?" she mutters.

    Logan has a grandfatherly grin overtake his features, "Well, our King just so happened to make a copy of every single book they had within their school." he says.

    Moka "Your king?" she asks, confused at not hearing about this "King" beforehand.

    Logan nods, "Since you''re here you must''ve met him already... Though, it wouldn''t surprise me if my old student neglected to tell you." he says, running his hand through his beard.

    Moka "Who''s the King then?"

    Nerissa "Rei." she states, shocking Moka and Mizore, Yukari isn''t able to hear them due to how excited she is...

    Mizore "Woooah, are you a princess?" she asks Nerissa in a neutral tone.

    Yukari was skipping through the Witchcraft section with a look of awe on her face, taking a book occasionally and adding it to the steadily growing stack in Nerissa''s arms. "There''s a spell for everything here! Look! A lightning spell?... Fulgur?" she mutters while reading the way to cast it, not realising that she is holding her wand, causing a spark to jump out and scare her.

    She falls over backwards and into Nerissa, causing the pile of books to topple over and collapse on them both.

    Moka jogs in and bends down, lifting a few books off of the duo in an attempt to dig them out, "Are you two ok!?" she asks.

    Nerissa sits up with messed up hair and a dull expression. "Yukari... One book." she states, causing a disappointed groan to sound from under the books. She looks to Moka and leans her head to the side, "Want to read?"

    Moka shakes her head, "Ah... As long as I''m with you... I don''t mind what we do." she says with a bright smile.

    The group continue to explore the library, Nerissa eventually allowing Yukari to take three books to study, the young witch''s propensity to try and read everything as quickly as possible making her almost irritable in the face of this "Worlds" worth of knowledge.

    Mizore picks up a couple brochure-looking booklets from the reception of the library, each detailing activities that can be done within Ichor itself, as well as the limited amount of rules and laws it has.

    Moka is eventually persuaded to pick out a few books that interest her, one explaining what True Vampires in this world are seeming to enthral her, to the point that her Rosario is glowing red as well...

    Nerissa picked up a fantasy book based on a knight that saves a princess from Wights as they walked through, deciding that reading sometimes wasn''t the worst to alleviate her boredom. Though, with the technological developments, she suspected cartoons to be on already or introduced soon. She''d need to go see Alphys for information on that...

    Once exiting the Library they are pulled towards the resteraunt district by the smell alone, the stands selling a variety of sweet and savoury goods that suit all of their pallets... Mizore is even presented with food for snow monsters, causing the girl to give a rare smile after tasting it.

    It isn''t long before the group end up surrounded by clothing stores, ancient and modern dresses can be seen sitting together, being sold in the same store. Ichor had artisans from multiple worlds and times, giving it the best variety of goods in this world and probably many others.

    Moka spots a gothic-looking dress and almost presses her face against the glass to get a better look at it.

    Nerissa stands next to her and tugs her sleeve, "You want?" she asks, pulling out a Sola and flicking it into the air.

    Moka "I couldn''t... It looks expensive..."

    The sides of Nerissa''s lips upturn, "Rei is King." she states, pulling Moka into the shop without hesitation.

 692 Calm before the war

    Moka was wearing a black acromentula silk frilly dress, it suited the Rosario that hung everpresent around her neck, especially since she was a vampire. She also managed to get Nerissa to wear one, the vampiress reluctantly wearing a long-sleeved dress that clung to her body... The only thing missing for the two now is the black makeup, unfortunately Reima had forbidden Nerissa from ever wearing that for some reason...

    Yukari wasn''t faring any better for Reima''s wallet, the girl having bought heavily enchanted grey robes that the Pyromancers usually wear, electing to wear a large hat based off of Logan''s instead of pulling up the hood. It was scaled down to fit her better, but it still looked ridiculously huge atop her head.

    Mizore had picked up some teal coloured jumpers that were actually meant for Snow Monsters, and regulated the temperature of the wearer automatically, allowing her to not have to suck lollipops all day... Though, she continued because she "Liked the taste"...

    It was approaching evening after all the shopping they''d done, stopping by a restaurant and having a huge meal, obviously paid for by Reima...

    Once they left they were attracted by the sound of laughter, eventually entering the Papyrus and Toriel Comedy Club. The place was booked, almost ever seat filled as hundreds of people watched San''s on stage giving his usual introduction.

    Nerissa sniffs the air and looks over, spotting Reima, Kuretz, Arie, Eingyi, and Solaire all sitting on the same table with drinks already in-front of them.

    She walks over with the others following, standing next to Reima and leaning her head on his shoulder.

    Reima "Rissa? You guys enjoying your time here then?" he asks with a smile.

    Solaire "Are these your new har-"

    Arie punches him in the arm, "Don''t go there Solaire, I''ve made the same mistake so you don''t have to." he says ominously.

    Kuretz "Still, what''s it with you and beautiful women?" he asks, causing the girls to blush.

    Reima "I don''t know Kuretz, what''s up with you and no women?" he asks sarcastically.

    Kuretz slams his drink on the table, "Don''t go there harem boy! Only the other men in this city could understand my woes!"

    Solaire leans his head to the side, "Perhaps I could help you my friend?"

    Kuretz drops his head to the table, "No... Just enjoy your time with Risryn." he mutters in a downtrodden voice.

    Eingyi puts his hand on Kuretz shoulder, "Don''t worry Sir Kuretz... I am also scorned by all the women I know, the mistresses don''t allow such feelings..." he says, causing Kuretz to silently sob.

    Reima looks back and realises all of the tables are full, giving a sigh and extending his own table with magic while conjuring some chairs. "There, don''t ask for drinks because you''re too young for that." he states, not minding he was drinking at their age.

    Arie "Whaddya mean? They look like adults... Apart from that one." he says pointing at Yukari.

    *Bonk!*

    A large pan falls from the roof and onto Arie''s head, knocking him backwards off of his chair.

    Arie "Why are women so angry all the time!" he exclaims, rubbing his head.

    Reima "There are some topics you just don''t touch... Trust me." he says with a hard look.

    Mizore "What is this place?" she asks, looking up at the stage in interest.

    Reima "It''s a comedy club, you go here to watch people tell jokes, or tell jokes yourself... I''d recommend not going up unless you''ve got a routine planned out though."

    It eventually starts, a few comedians already well known in Ichor coming out and performing their bits. Quelana, Snow Drake, and even Dandelion come and provide entertaining shows... Afterwards is the amateurs... A drunken Kuretz gets on stage and starts slurring incomplete jokes into the mic, forcing San''s to throw him off of the stage and back to his table after a minute of his drivel.

    Sans "Remember folks, you''re guests in my establishment... Don''t take my generosity for weakness" he says with one glowing eye, causing some to shudder before returning back to his usual laid back attitude. "We got any more jokesters who wanna have a go?" he asks.

    A few of the braver folks do, walking up on stage and giving their best goes, most receiving only a chuckle for their best line. But, for newbies it was a good showing.

    The night crawls to an end, the girls sleepily getting up and heading back to Kaer Morhen. The guys stay to continue drinking however, Reima himself having drunk most of the establishment''s alcohol and having to switch to his own stock.

    When morning starts to roll around Sans throws them all out, having to get the place ready for evening''s show. The group all separate, Kuretz presumably going to one of the few stripclubs in Ichor while the others simply return to their homes.

    Reima teleports to his usual balcony, his drunken state wearing off quickly through meditation. Refocussing his efforts on mastering his control over his aura.

    ...

    ...

    ...

    Reima''s brow furrows when he gets a familiar sensation... What''s this?...

    "**** ** ***"

    ... Seriously this is getting annoying now, the hell is this?

    He focuses his Observation Haki which causes his eyes to open wide, "Help us Rei!"

    Reima "Fleur?... Shit!" he exclaims, standing and blinking to her position without any hesitation.

 693 Bitter Reunion.

    A frail, almost starving looking first year walks up, stumbling as he does so. "Are you here to save us?" he asks innocently.

    Reima "Save you from what?" he asks, confused.

    "Everything." he mutters.

    ...

    Reima looks around, extending his Observation Haki to find Fleur... Eventually finding her standing in the large crowd watching him with her hand placed over her heart, his titanate shard clenched in her fist. "Yo, Fleur!?" he shouts, wondering if she''d forgotten him or something.

    The crowd around her makes room, allowing the duo to walk towards each other, Reima holds his arms out to hug her but she looks away and bows at him slightly.

    Reima "Is something wrong?" he asks, admiring how mature she''s grown in only a year apart.

    Fleur shakes her head, "No... It iz just... Thingz are different now." she says looking up to him, Reima having reached the limits of his growth a couple of months ago, reaching 6.5ft in height.

    Reima "We''re not lovers anymore, I know, but we''re still friends right?" he shrugs.

    Fleur gives him an unsure look before finally nodding, "Yes, we are."

    Reima "Right... So, why''d you call me?"

    Fleur "Ze world... It''s... Dead." she says, choking the words out.

    Reima puts a hand on her shoulder comfortingly, "Dead?"

    Fleur slowly nods, "Ze Non-magicals... Zey found out about us, we tried to start talks... It was going well, but a group of ze last blood purists assassinated ze president of the United States..."

    Reima "Nukes huh?" he mutters, already knowing where such actions would lead. "Then, how is the school still standing?... And where''s Dumbledore?"

    Fleur "Dumblydore used all ''iz power to keep ze wards up, sacrificing ''imself to keep us safe." she says with moist eyes.

    Reima frowns, "Then, you''ve been stuck in Hogwarts for how long?"

    Fleur "I do not know anymore... But we are running out of food, zat is why I called for you."

    Reima "Why''d you not call me sooner? You know I''d come running."

    Fleur brushes his hand off, "Becau-"

    A tall ginger-haired man walks through the doors of the great hall, followed by Hermione Granger. "Fleur? We''ve got the enchantments going, given enough time we could-... Sorry, am I interrupting something?" he asks, eyeing Reima but not immediately recognising him.

    Hermione "Reima? What''re you doing here!?" she exclaims, rushing over like a frizzy-haired missile.

    Bill nods, keeping a stern expression. "I have, some suspect you''re the cause of the end of the world... Funny how you turn up out of nowhere completely fine."

    Reima shrugs, "Yeah, I doubt a nuclear bomb would hurt me... But I''ve been busy elsewhere."

    Fleur is hugged by Bill, her expression awkward and tense. "Zis is my boyfriend Bill Weasley..."

    Bill smiles, "Fleur is the most amazing person I''ve ever met, lucky you decided to run away instead of taking care of her like you should." he says, Fleur jabbing him in the side with an angry look.

    Reima grits his teeth before grinning, "Yeah, as I said, I was busy... There''s no hard feeling though, I hope you don''t get upset with Fleur when she calls my name at the most inappropriate times." he says, Bill''s face turning red as he clenching his fists.

    Hermione "Stop you two, the worlds ending and you want to fight each other!?!" she exclaims.

    Reima shrugs, "I''d win, but I see your point..." he says, Bill not saying anything as he remembers that this is the guy who killed Voldemort, all the death eaters, and an army of vampires at the same time.

    Reima "So, anyway... The bombs dropped, Dumbledore died, and you''re all trapped in the school... Where''s Harry anyway?" he asks, taking another glance around.

    Hermione "Well, he-"

    *Crash!*

    The doors to the great hall are shoved open yet again, a ghostly figure in black rags enters, the hood blocking their face from being seen.

    Reima "The fuck''s a dementor doing here?" he asks, beginning to walk over to it while channeling the Dark Hand.

    The Dementor quickly steps back at the sight of him, pulling down its hood and revealing familiar green eyes.

    Reima "Harry?" he questions.

    Harry "Y-yes it''s me!" he quickly answers, not wishing to be in Reima''s line-of-fire.

    Reima crosses his arms and chuckles, "Never thought you''d be into Emo shit, though, you coulda fooled me with how you were acting last year."

    Harry''s cheeks go red, "I''m not emo!"

    Reima tilts his head to the side, "You sure? You''re dressing in all black and have even ditched your glasses for contacts." he says pointing at him.

    Harry "I don''t have contacts!... And I''m not bloody Emo!" he shouts.

    Reima "Did Hermione dump you or something? No reason to turn to the Edge side." he says sarcastically. "Next thing you know you''ll be casting Edgy spells, and announce yourself the new "Edge Lord" or something."

    Harry slowly shakes his head and sighs, "I''ve not missed your humor Reima." he says, walking up and attempting to shake Reima''s hand.

    Reima slaps his hand out of the way and hugs the teen, picking him up and squeezing the life out of him. "Long time no see Harry!"

    Harry "G-get off!"

    Reima puts him down, "Sorry mate, I was denied a hug earlier so I had to make up for it... It was you or your girlfriend." he says pointing Hermione.

    Harry nods, the sides of his lips upturned at the way Reima''s acting, making the situation look and feel less severe than it actually is.

 694 Edgy Dementor

    Harry "You sure? I''m the only one who can go out there, it''s pretty dangerous"

    Reima raises a brow at him, "Er, why''s that?"

    Harry pulls something from under his robe... The Elder Wand? "I''m not really sure if I''m human anymore to be honest..." he says with a forlorn expression.

    Reima spots a ring containing the stone on Harry''s finger and realises what he means, "Ah, so you''ve obtained all the Deathly Hallows?"

    Harry nods, "Master of Death and all that." he waves it off.

    Reima "Don''t be so nonchalant about it... They must''ve given you some cool abilities right?" he says, interested in the Hallows effects.

    Harry shrugs, "Yeah... I can fly, calls shades of the dead, create undead... It''s all just a bit too morbid for me though."

    Reima "Power''s power, not use complaining about things other people would kill for... Let''s take a look outside then." he says, patting Harry on the back and pushing him towards the exit.

    Harry "Ah, I don''t really wanna go back out t-"

    Reima "Nonsense, let''s go." he states, the teen reluctantly following.

    The duo exit, the wards stopping the radiation from flooding through the open doors as Hermione, Bill and Fleur watch them leave.

    Immediately the previously lush Scottish landscape looks like hell, no plants to be seen for miles, with even the Forbidden forest having been completely annihilated... Not even leaving stumps. The temperature was incredibly hot, even with orange clouds blocking the sunlight from reaching the ground.

    Harry walks over and kicks a stone, "Happy? I hope you are satisfied with our world." he states, scanning the horizon languidly.

    Reima shrugs "I''ve seen worse." he says, memories of Ooalacile springing to mind.

    Harry sighs and sits down on some rubble, "So, what''s the real reason you wanted to come out here?" he asks, knowing that Reima didn''t care about this sort of thing.

    Reima chuckles, "Bills face was pissing me off, I needed to get away before I incinerated him."

    Harry frowns, "Why? You left her, not the otherway around... Her finding someone else was obvious wasn''t it?"

    Reima nods, "Yeah, but now I''m forced to save Bill or I''ll look like a douche... That, and I wasn''t expecting her to move on so quickly."

    Harry "She''s a Veela, whaddya expect?..."

    Reima "Did you and Albus find the last Horcruxes?"

    Harry nods, "The bombs dropped only a week after we''d destroyed the last... They initially targeted magical institutions, their goal obviously to wipe out Witches and Wizards completely, apparently Muggle politics isn''t any better than ours though... After the first was dropped many more soon followed, all aimed at large cities and important infrastructure."

    Harry shakes his head, "Nothing is funny about... This. There were many who didn''t manage to get within the school in time, I watched through a window as they were incinerated"

    Reima frowns, "No one important I hope?" he asks.

    Harrry scowls at him, "Important? What do you mean by that? Something you know? A friend?... Almost half the students were killed, as well as the teachers who tried to get them inside."

    Reima doesn''t really care about anyone else aside from the people he personally knew... If he wanted to feel bad for everyone who ever died he''d be depressed all day. "Is Luna alright?" he asks, not having seen her in the hall.

    Harry slowly nods, "The death of her father and many others hit her particularly hard... She''s been sleeping in her dorm most of the time, only getting up for food."

    Reima slowly stands, "Hmm, well, first things first is getting you all out of this world I guess..."

    Harry nods, "I''d appreciate it if you could, there''s nothing left for us here now."

    Reima "I do have a few conditions though." he says with a grin.

    Harry frowns at him, "Not going to do it for free... For your friends?"

    Reima "Of course, but I just wanna make sure everything is on the level, if you know what I mean?"

    Harry shakes his head, "I don''t..."

    Reima "Well, I''d like take everything within Hogwarts... You guys won''t be needing them where you''re going."

    Harry "Everything? The Library? Enchanted items? I''d like to keep those to begin anew... Like Albus would have wanted."

    Reima rubs his chin, "You want to start up a new school?"

    Harry nods, "Everyone needs to finish their education... And with the teachers gone it falls on my shoulders, my responsibility."

    Reima "I can agree to that, but the school will be within my territory... And, I''ll need all of the students to drink Veritaserum and answer my questions." he states.

    Harry''s eyes squint at him, "Why would you need them to do that?"

    Reima "Ah, you don''t know do you." he says facepalming himself, "I''m actually the King of a country, national security matters most to me."

    ...

    Harry "YOU''RE WHAT!?!!" he exclaims, shocked.

    Reima clears his ear with a finger, "A king, geez, calm it... Royalty isn''t all that foreign to you, you''re English after all!"

    Harry nods, "Yeah, but you never said anything about it before!"

    Reima smirks, "It''s a recent development..."

    Harry turns and walks back towards the school, "Then, I''ll trust you... You''ll have to prepare your own Veritaserum though, there''s nothing left to make it. There''s around 460 people within Hogwarts last I counted." he says, leaving Reima behind.

    Reima stands there amidst the ruin, tapping his foot and wondering what to do if someone is actually a threat to Ichor... Harry wouldn''t let him toss them into the fallout would he?... "Whatever, I''ll cross that bridge when I get to it." he mutters, following Harry.

 695 Becoming Slaves?

    Reima glowers at it, "Open or I''ll do it myself." he states.

    *Creeaaaak*

    The door slowly swings open, the knocker apparently having some sort of self-preservation instinct. Inside he spots a few familiar faces in deep concentration over a pile of books, the few that notice him excuse themselves however.

    Ignoring them he heads for the stairs, they collapse into a slide as he takes his first step, the female dorms not allowing men to try and gain access... Reima simply leaps to the top, extending his Observation Haki and spotting Luna with her bed covers over her head.

    He stands outside her door, a few girls quickling passing while glancing over their shoulders at him, obviously wary of his presence.

    *Knock, Knock, Knock*

    Reima "Luna, it''s me, Reima." he asks through the door.

    ...

    He can vaguely hear the shuffling of bedsheets through the door, the door opening a few moments after with a platinum blonde missile slamming into his chest.

    Luna "You came back?" she exclaims, her eyes moist as she looks up at him.

    Reima brushes her hair, "I did, I came to save you guys." he says softly.

    As he''s comforting the almost in tears fourteen-year-old, a black bundle slinks along the floor and brushes against his leg.

    Reima "Hmm, ah, it''s... Catalyn, right?" he asks, hoping that he''d remembered the right name.

    Luna nods, "She''s the only family I have left..." she mutters.

    Reima flicks her on the forehead, "Not anymore, I''ll be introducing you to my family... Is that okay?"

    Luna nods, a smile cutting through her tears.

    Reima "Alright, let''s get you packed... Harry should be getting everyone else ready to leave too." he says, starting to help Luna pack up all her stuff before storing it in his Folded Space.

    Afterwards he let her head to the Great hall alone as he blinked through Hogwarts, taking everything that wasn''t nailed down... From the Candles floating in the Great hall, to the telescope atop the Astrology tower, to the broomsticks stored for Quidditch... Nothing was spared the greed of Reima.

    A couple hours later he finally walked through the doors of the Great hall where everyone was gathered, it was chock full of people from every house. The Slytherins raise their voices when he appears, but Harry standing where the ornate podium used to sit, stifles them.

    A Slytherin stands up, "So you''re going to leave with him? He''s the cause of all of this!" they shout.

    Reima tilts his head to the side, "How''s that?" he asks, curious.

    "My father spoke about it before he was killed, some white-haired wizard was blatantly breaking the statute of secrecy in-front of Muggles... That''s how they found out about us!" they exclaim, causing the rest of the hall to start talking amongst each other.

    Reima "You sure it was me? I can think of a more worthy candidate of such a thing... Lucius Malfoy, he was one of the Death Eaters that''d **** and murder innocent Muggles on a whim, surely that''d catch their attention more than whatever you think I did?" he deflects the accusation onto the long dead Lucius.

    Draco stands and points at him, "Shut your mouth! My father would never lay a hand on a filthy Muggle!"

    Reima sighs and looks to Harry, "Why is it that all the annoying ones survived?"

    Harry shakes his head and doesn''t answer, "I have already spoken to Reima, and he has up forth a few conditions before he saves anyone..." he says, causing a few more to shout at Reima.

    Reima "Keep talking and I''ll just leave you cunts here." he states, forcing them all silent.

    Bill who''s sitting with crossed arms at the teacher''s table behind Harry leans over to Fleur, "Real charmer." he says sarcastically, Fleur ignoring him.

    Harry "The first, as Reima would essentially be immigrating you to a country he is currently the reigning Monarch in, he requires you all to submit to questioning under Veritaserum."

    "What!""Hell no!""THIS IS CRAZY!" Shouts from all over the hall make themselves known, Veritaserum isn''t something to take lightly, especially since some of the students here had been trained since childhood to utterly reject every considering taking it.

    Reima "It''s that or you can stay here... Hmm, I wonder when Nuclear Winter will hit?" he says tapping his chin.

    Draco "The other conditions?" he asks.

    Harry "There are only two... But the last one was a compromise between myself and Reima. I will be recreating Hogwarts in Reima''s territory, and it will for all intents and purposes, belong to Reima''s country... In return we are allowed to run the school how I sit fit, the artifacts within Hogwarts will be relocated."

    Hermione nods to herself, this being one of her primary concerns when leaving Hogwarts.

    Draco "Wouldn''t that just make us slaves to him!?"

    Reima grins, "The world I''m taking you, being my slave is probably the most luxurious position possible." he says ominously.

    Luna "Being your slave doesn''t sound so bad." she says, holding Catalyn.

    Reima "Who said you''ll be a slave? I''ll have you treated like a princess Luna." he says, giving her a thumbs up.

 696 Last Tes

    He watches as everyone stays seated, no one daring to move an inch, "Right..." he says, dropping a wide bathtub on the floor and filling it with around forty vials of Veritaserum, diluting them with water afterwards.

    Reima takes a glass and fills it, taking a sip to show that it''s not poisonous. "It''s quite refreshing to be honest." he says as they all watch.

    Draco decides that now''s his chance, "Do you plan to harm us!?!" he shouts.

    Reima snorts, "No, but if you don''t shut up I might." he says, looking to Harry and continuing, "Then, we''ll do this however you want... Just makesure everyone gets to me." he states, pulling out an ornate chair and sitting in it.

    Harry sighs, "Alright! Let''s go table to table, Gryffindors first, then Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and finally Slytherin... I''ll be keeping an eye on you, if you try to avoid drinking then you''ll be punished and then forced to anyway."

    Reima crosses his legs and looks at the first person approaching him, "Hermione, I don''t think I''ll need to question you... You''re shit at lying anyway." he says with a chuckle.

    Hermione frowns and drinks anyway, "I''ll be treated like everyone else." she states with determination.

    Reima slumps in his chair, thinking that this isn''t a good start. "Right, well, do you have any intentions to harm, inhibited or negatively affect myself, my people, or my country?"

    Hermione shakes her head, "No."

    Reima waves her off, "That''s all. Next!"

    Hermione stops herself before she walks away, "Wait, that''s it?"

    Reima nods, "Yeah, what did you expect?"

    Hermione "Well, something more..." she stops, blushing.

    Reima grins, "I see... Alright... How far have you and Harry gotten?" he asks, his voice clearly echoing through the room.

    ...

    Harry blushes and Hermione looks as if she''s about to explode. "What!?! Why did you ask-" she''s interrupted by Reima again.

    Reima "You wanted to be humiliated right? So, how far have you gotten?" he asks again.

    Hermione holds her mouth and runs over to Harry, the blushing teen boy cleansing her with a powerful spell, courtesy of the Elder Wand.

    Reima shakes his head, "Next!"

    A familiar girl awkwardly walks over to him, sipping the potion while not daring to meet his eyes.

    Reima "Angelina?" she nods, still not looking up.

    Reima "I''d ask what''s up but I don''t actually care right now..." he says bluntly.

    Angelina "I-I can''t face you after ditching Ciri..." she says quietly.

    After receiving no indication that she''s an enemy calls for the next person, like a diligent worker at the DMV.

    The Gryffindor table was easy to get through, Luna apparently still more comfortable among the red lions than the blue ravens. He didn''t even ask her any questions, simply letting her sit back down without an issue.

    Then it was time for the Ravenclaws, a few faces making Reima want to harshly send them away... The bitches who''d previously bullied Luna almost piss themselves when he began asking questions, some not even related to their intentions towards Ichor.

    It was then time for the Hufflepuffs, they were very cooperative much to Reima''s surprise... However, halfway through them as a short brown haired girl walked up he felt something was up.

    The girl takes a sip of the potion and almost stumbles as she walks towards him, Reima grinning at his notes she tripped over her own feet. "Tonks huh?"

    The seemingly shy girl looks up and laughs, "Ah, you found me out?"

    Reima nods, "Of course I did, you''re the only person I know who stumbles like that without alcohol." he says, not telling her he could sense it wasn''t her true form.

    Tonks grows to 5.6ft and stands there with crossed arms, her hair growing out to her shoulders and turning bubblegum pink. "I''ve been training and you still caught me..."

    Reima "Why''re you hiding anyway? Afraid I might eat you?" he asks, leaning forwards with a grin.

    Tonks hair goes red but she keeps a stern expression, "Someones gotta keep Harry straight, plus, I doubt you could handle me... Now ask your damn questions." she says quickly.

    Reima goes through the same question yet again, Tonks obviously not wishing to do anything. "Next." he states, Tonks walking away and almost tripping over herself again.

    After Hufflepuff, comes the Slytherins... Reima glances at Harry, wondering what he''d allow him to do to someone should they actually give a negative answer.

    A Slytherin sips the potion while glaring at Reima, the boy obviously projecting animosity towards Reima...

    Reima "Do you have any intentions to harm, inhibited or negatively affect myself, my people, or my country?" he asks yet again.

    The Slytherin struggles, his body trembling for a moment before speaking, "No."

    ...

    Reima shrugs, "Next!"

    This kind of reaction continued for a while, two Slytherins who''s Death Eater father''s he''d killed in the past failing the test.

    Reima looks towards Harry, "Those that fail will be left here, right?"

    Harry frowns, "I... I don''t..."

    Reima "Then, how about this? I''ll kill them so you don''t have to feel bad about it?"

    ...

    The two Slytherins piss themselves when they hear him, urine dripping down their robes... No one laughs however, as their lives were on the line and even the most morbid person would find this disturbing.

    Harry "I don''t think we can leave people here where death awaits... Nor do I think executing them is morally right at all!"

    Reima "Then, I''ll cut their arms and legs before paralyzing them... They won''t be able to harm my interests after that." he says, arms crossed and a satisfied look on his face as if he''d solved the issue.

 697 Might makes Righ

    Harry "I refuse... We cannot treat people like that Reima!"

    Reima "Then, how would you go about fixing this issue?" he asks, curious.

    Harry "We bring them with us and rehabilitate them."

    ...

    Reima stands from his chair, storing it as well as the bathtub in his Folded Space, "Remember the old saying? Might makes Right?" Harry nods, still not moving. "Then, let''s find out who''s right, Harry."

    Harry goes pale for a moment, his hand clenching around the Elder Wand, "I''m not the same person you trained Reima, don''t think everything will go your way." he says, drawing his wand and pointing it at Reima, the tables seating everyone moving towards the walls on their own.

    With the obstacles cleared, the duo now had enough space to properly fight... A ward appearing out of nowhere and blocking either from exiting.

    Reima smirks, "Just because you''ve got a new wand doesn''t mean much to me Harry." he says, pointing a finger at Harry, a weak lightning bolt exploding forth and heading for him.

    Harry "Protego!" he exclaims, an incredibly powerful shield appearing and blocking the spell. He then chains the movement into another spell, "Stupefy!" he shouts, a brightly glowing red bolt heading straight for Reima.

    Reima snatches the Stupefy out of the air, taking note of how powerful it actually was.

    Most had already seen how powerful Reima was, him catching Harry''s spell was no surprise, even with the boy now possessing all of the Deathly Hallows.

    Bill "Think Harry''s got a chance?" he asks, rubbing Fleur''s hand.

    Fleur shakes her head, "Non."

    Harry had expected his spell to fail, his previous experience with Reima making him fully aware of how ridiculously resistant to magic he was... "Hastam Glacius!" he calls, a spear of ice heading straight for Reima, causing many watching to shout in shock and terror.

    Reima reels back and sends a punch at it, easily shattering the meters long Ice Spear and sending deadly shards back at Harry. He hadn''t been expecting this and raises his arms, unable to conjure a shield fast enough...

    Suddenly the ground in-front of Harry raises, blocking the shards before lowering again.

    Harry looks down and then up, a grateful expression on his face, "Ah... Thanks."

    Reima raises a brow, "Isn''t outside interference against the "Rules of dueling"?, where''s your morally right bravado go?"

    Harry "It wasn''t outside interference though, Hogwarts simply wished to assist me." he says, thrusting his wand forwards, "FULGUR MAXIMA!"

    *CRACK!*

    A huge bolt of lightning explodes from Harry''s wand, almost deafening everyone within the hall as it strikes Reima in the chest.

    Reima appears behind him with a grin, the floor raising to protect Harry even though an attack hadn''t been sent.

    Reima grabs the raised stone and tears it out of the ground, looking over and not seeing Harry anywhere... Even when extending his Observation Haki he can''t seem to find him... "Come on Harry, hiding''s not very Hero-like." he slowly says, ducking under a Bombarda Maxima that was sent at his head from behind him.

    Looking around Harry''s still nowhere to be found, the only thing he''s able to sense with his Observation Haki being the attacks appearing out of nowhere...

    Reima kicks a stone spear, causing it to shatter and turn to shrapnel that peppers the ward, making those behind it back away. He then slams his fist to the ground and causes a wall of fire to expand around him.

    One done Reima spots an invisible figure covered in fire, Harry attempting to put it out but to no avail.

    Reima "Don''t do that again or I''ll start cheating." he says, Harry apparently not listening to his advice and turning invisible again after putting out the flames.

    Reima sighs, "Whatever..." and then focuses on the chip he''d put in Harry''s neck... As he''d suspected, it''s still there for some reason... The potions used to keep Magical''s healthy probably preventing his body from getting rid of it.

    He walks towards a spot and gives a light kick to the air, feeling resistance as Harry topples over backward holding his stomach, now visible.

    Reima "Give up?"

    Harry "I refuse!"

    Reima shrugs, "You don''t, have, a, choice!" he growls, grabbing Harry and throwing him to the other side of the dueling area, his body limply colliding with barrier.

    Reima "You''re tougher then you look though, those Deathly Hallows have done some good... Mind if I make you my punching bag?" he says, clearly not asking for permission, walking over and resting his foot on Harry''s head. "Listen, being idealistic is a good trait... During peace times, but where has it gotten you during war? The world destroyed, innocent people dead? My world won''t allow someone like you to live a good life, so forget about your previous conviction and grow up!" he says, grinding his foot.

    Harry "I-I won''t! I won''t betray Dumbledore!" he shouts, the Elder Wand blasting the floor beneath them and throwing his body away from Reima.

    The audience watching grimaces at the beaten and bloody Harry, even if most of his injuries were caused by himself.

    Bill "He might kill him..." he mutters, ready to stand and defend the teen.

    Fleur pulls him back into his seat, shaking her head, knowing full well that Reima wouldn''t kill Harry. "Stay ''ere and watch."

    Hermione shouts for Harry to give up, but her words don''t reach him as he slowly gets to his feet.

    Harry "Why, why do you have to act this way Reima?" he asks, breathing heavily.

    Reima tilts his head to the side, "Look at it from my position... I am doing you a favour by inviting you to come with me, but why should that extend to those that would work against me? If my inaction means their death then so be it, supporting my enemies is a fool''s game." he states absolutely, not budging on the subject.

 698 Beating Generations

    He knew that Reima was going easy on him, but, doing his best to try and save those students relieved a slight amount of guilt from their inevitable deaths.

    Harry stands upright, wand still in hand as he slowly points it at Reima, his body trembling from the effort. "Mercy will always be just, that is where I stand. Maiorum praesidio esuriunt et sitiunt!" he shouts, waving his wand at his sides and causing black plumes of smoke to emit from the end of it.

    Reima raises a brow at the shadows as they slowly coalesce and form shapes... Humanoid shapes. The audience is baffled when they finally see the first form, Dumbledore?

    Dumbledore looks around sagely, looking how Reima remembered him despite being see-through... "Ah, Mr Ludvig... I don''t suppose I''ve been called for a peaceful discussion?" he asks, semi-sarcastically.

    Reima "No, your student just doesn''t want to do as I say." he says as more people form from the smoke.

    There are many old looking individuals wearing fine clothing, most looking around in what looks to be nostalgia as the stand in a line against Reima.

    Harry "You stand against the Headmasters of Hogwarts Reima, I don''t think you can take this lightly!" he calls, getting ready to fire a spell.

    However, one plume of smoke still hadn''t formed a person, at least, until now... A relatively large wizards hat and regular looking robes of no import covered a man who everyone knew.

    Dumbledore''s eyes widen at them, "M-Merlin!" he calls, some not sure whether he''s just surprised, or if that''s really THE Merlin!

    Merlin grins while tapping his stave on the stone floor, "I have to say, I''d not expected to be summoned like this..." he says, looking down at his ephemeral body.

    Reima "Ah, so you''re that douchebag who imprisoned Nerissa''s parents? Good, I''ve been meaning to have a word with you." he says, anger clear in his voice.

    Harry sweatdrops, "You are outnumbered and outclassed now Reima, give up."

    Reima snorts and says one of his favourite quotes, "I''m not stuck in here with you... You''re stuck in here with me!" he shouts, releasing his aura slightly and bursting into flames.

    Immediately Harry fires off a few Stupefy''s at Reima as the other headmasters cast their own spells, the floor beneath Reima freezes over momentarily, only for it to melt soon after, the spears of ice attempting to skewer him not even reaching their target.

    Dumbledore conjures stone golems from the floor, five of them each nine feet tall in height. They shamble towards Reima as some of the darker Headmasters shoot lethal spells at him.

    The ground under Reima suddenly drops, the walls of the newly created hole attempting to close in on him. Sealing him underground... Harry looks warily at the ground, knowing full well that''d not stop him... He was right.

    *CRASH!*

    Reima explodes from under the backline of summoned Headmasters, his sword piercing one of their chests, causing them to burst into smoke and disappear.

    Merlin twirls his staff, the end glowing brightly as blue projectiles shoot from it, all homing in on Reima.

    Reima dodges one but realises they won''t stop unless they''re hit or blocked, this gives Merlin the chance to cast another spell, he whacks his staff onto the floor in Reima''s direction, causing an explosion of ice to shoot towards his enemy.

    The ice was stronger than the other spells used and slowed Reima momentarily, allowing a Magic Missile to hit him in the back... Though, it didn''t do any real damage.

    Reima blinks forwards, in-front of Merlin, and delivers an uppercut to his chin that throws the elderly man a few meters into the air, "Shoryuken!" he shouts, a grin on his face.

    The Golem''s had finally caught up, slamming down furiously on Reima as his blade flashes momentarily, the conjured creatures falling to pieces with ease. Looking over his shoulder he could spot another few spells coming from Harry and was about ready to finish the fight...

    "Tenebris!" someone shouts, covering the whole area in darkness that prevents anything a few inches from your face from being seen.

    This was a grave mistake however, as Reima was immune to this sort of obstruction... He channels his Observation Haki and all becomes visible to him again, the barrage of spells heading his way, Merlin falling limply to the floor after his attack, Harry smiling as if victory was at hand...

    *Flash*

    Reima appears behind Harry, chopping at his neck with his hand and knocking the boy unconscious...

    Harry falls to the ground as his spectres watch, not really knowing what to do.

    Dumbledore "I suppose that means our work is done." he wonders aloud, putting his wand back in his sleeve.

    Reima slowly nods, "Yeah... But not quite yet." he states, walking over to Merlin who''s slowly trying to get up. He pokes the man with his foot, using telekinesis to lift him onto his feet. "So, Merlin... Tell me, why''d you imprison Ambrose and Talicia Dracula?" he asks, hands behind his back wreathed in red and black mist.

    Merlin rubs his jaw, "It was the only way to save them, their fate had been decided after Dracula''s defeat... I merely wished to help them survive."

    Reima frowns, "Well, you failed because they''re both dead."

    Merlin shakes his head, "The Prophecy stated that they''d have a child, I am sure you are looking after them well." he says with a gentle smile.

    Reima "Yeah, I read that Prophecy, but I''d rather hear you explain it fully." he states, Merlin snorting.

    Merlin "That''s not how Prophecies work, you must let time work its magic." he says, his body beginning to fade away.

 699 Tide is changing

    Reima "Aren''t you guys going to Oogway like Merlin?" he asks, confused.

    Dumbeldore shakes his head, "We have plenty more time, Merlin simply wished to leave before you asked anymore questions." he says with a chuckle.

    Reima "What! Merlin you fuck! Come back here so I can strangle you!" he shouts, only now remembering that there was an audience watching.

    ...

    Bill "Erm... We didn''t just see Merlin did we? I think I''m going mad..."

    Fleur "When Rei iz involved, many strange thingz happen." she mutters with a shrug.

    The wards around the middle of the hall disburse, allowing Hermione to run in and check on Harry, giving a sigh of relief at him being relatively okay.

    Reima addresses everyone, "Anyway, I guess that means I win..." he says and turns to the two failed Slytherins, "You two, get out." he states, the duo moving rapidly to leave the hall.

    The excitement from seeing the Headmasters of Hogwarts as well as Merlin himself quickly faded away as people realised two students had been essentially given the death penalty.

    Dumbledore "I know you think you are right for doing such a thing Reima, but perhaps this old man could request one thing before I begin my eternal sleep?" he asks, the Slytherin students stopping and looking behind them.

    Reima sighs, "What is it?"

    Dumbledore "If you will not protect them, at least move them... To a world not in a state like this one..." he mutters.

    Reima thinks for a moment, he could just send them to Lodran or something to get them out of his hair... Wait... "Okay, I can do that." he says, opening a portal to a valley with thousands of brilliant stars and large blue flowers. "Go through before I change my mind." he states.

    The Slytherins quickly shuffle through, not realising they''d been sent to the Underground which the Monsters used to inhabit... They had no chance of escaping the barrier, forcing them to live underground for the rest of their lives.

    Reima "Okay... Who''re the last Slytherins that need to be checked?" he asks, pulling out the bathtub of Veritaserum again as the spectres finally disappear.

    A few Slytherins step forwards, taking sips of the drink and failing the test. They''re all sent to the Underground like the rest, a merciful, if unfortunate fate.

    Last but not least was Draco Malfoy, a boy who''d watched this man Reima Ludvig do impossible feats with ease... Defeat Voldemort, his father, vampires, Potter and all of the Headmasters combined with MERLIN! He knew what fights were worth taking, and knew in his heart of hearts that picking a fight with this person was the epitome of stupidity.

    He steps forwards confidently, taking a large gulp of the Veritaserum and standing before Reima, his conviction made.

    Draco "I would never go against you Reima Ludvig." he states, shocking those watching.

    Reima grins at the surprise, "Oh, what brought this on then?"

    Draco "It is futile to fight you, why would I subject myself to certain death over some misbegotten image of pride... Even Potter, the Master of Death could not harm you with Merlin assisting him, what chance would I, or any other student have?"

    Reima gives a thumbs up, "You''re not as stupid as you look Draco, I was seriously looking forward to sending you away, but you''ve surprised me." he says, standing.

    Luna gets up and skips over, "Are we finally leaving?" she asks with a brilliant smile.

    Reima nods, "Yeah, we are... All of you, grab your shit, I won''t be waiting around for you so be ready." he states, walking over to Harry and telekinetically floating him as Hermione continues to tend to him.

    Luna skips over to his side as he tears open a portal to Ichor, the people already present seemingly used to Reima transporting large groups of people out of nowhere.

    The students start walking through, Risryn, Asgore, Solaire, Quelaag, Ciri, and a few others waiting at the other side to make sure nothing unexpected happens.

    Solaire smiles and waves at them, "Jolly, everyone! Welcome to the sunshine and brimstone!" he shouts, the Prospects behind him all shouting "Jolly" in response.

    Bill walks through the portal with Fleur on his arm, Ciri spots them and gives a heavy sigh while shaking her head.

    Quelaag notices this and leans in, "Is something wrong with the new residents?"

    Ciri "No... Just never expected my and Reima''s ex to be dating someone else." she says with chuckle, "I wonder how he''s taking it." she mutters.

    Quelaag "You and Reima''s ex? I, I''m struggling to comprehend what you mean..."

    Ciri points at Fleur in the distance, "She was the third wheel on our sex-tricycle."

    Quelaag "Wha... You and her?" she asks in disbelief.

    Ciri nods, "You didn''t know? I''m Bisexual, being sandwiched in between them both was... An experience." she says with a slight blush.

    Quelaag frowns momentarily at the fact that woman had been intimate with Reima, only to realise that this opened up new opportunities for herself... She hadn''t ever thought that a relationship such as that would be possible, which, it might still not be considering their current relationship status. She''d need to investigate this further to see where it could lead. "Is she afraid of spiders?" she asks.

    Ciri "Spiders?" she parrots, "I don''t think so, she didn''t seem all that bothered when fighting giant ones... Why?"

    Quelaag covers her mouth to conceal her grin, "Oh, no reason... I might show her around Ichor, I''ve been needing to increase the number of people I interact with after all." she says and scuttles off, leaving Ciri standing there wondering about her words.

 700 Time for speeches

    Yukari "Ohhh, what is this?" she asks, curious.

    Risryn who''s standing nearby with crossed arms answers her question, "These are new residents of Ichor. Reima had disappeared in the morning so we assumed something like this would be happening, it always does."

    Moka "But, where do they all come from? They couldn''t be kidnapped could they?" she asks warily.

    Risryn shakes her head, "Everyone is Ichor is here because Reima saved them at one point or another. We Prospects were being hunted by the entire world and were saved by Reima as the world itself was crumbling..." he explains.

    Yukari points at some of the men wearing armoured grey robes, "And them?"

    Risryn "The Chaos Servants, previously immortal warriors forced to live in a world that refused to grant them peace... Their only solace was serving Quelaag and her sisters, that is, until Reima brought them here to a place they all consider onpar with heaven." she states.

    Moka "Sugoi!... Everyone in this city has such deep histories." she mutters.

    Yukari "Oh! And what about them?!" she asks loudly, pointing at a nearby Monster.

    Risryn shrugs, "The race called Monsters, having previously lost the war against humanity, they were sealed underground with no viable way to escape. They stayed down there for centuries, generations living and dying all with the same wish, to see the sun. When Reima arrived, a large portion of them had been killed by a human child who possessed a powerful soul... He killed them." she states, causing Moka and Yukari to gasp, "He then allied with the Monsters, agreeing to take them out of the Underworld and grant them their wish."

    Moka "Why do you know so much about this?" she asks, the question on the lips of everyone else aswell.

    Risryn "I''m one of the leaders of Ichor, my duties require me to know the history and situation of every race present."

    Yukari "Are all the leaders as knowledgable as you?" she asks.

    Risryn eyes Kuretz in the corner of her eye, the man drinking a bottle of whisky despite it being around midday. She sighs, "Unfortunately, there are some better than others." she says diplomatically.

    Nerissa nods at this, having spent enough time around the higherups to know their personalities.

    "Snuffles!" a cheerful voice shouts.

    The group look over and see a girl with platinum blonde hair running over, a cat sitting comfortably in her robes with its head poking from her collar.

    Nerissa "Luna?"

    Luna smiles brightly and jumps at the vampiress, hugging her tightly and squishing the cat within her robes. "Its been so lonely without you Snuffles!"

    Reima whistles a tune as he waits for everyone to get through the portal, the four hundred and sixty students taking their fucking time walking through.

    It takes around twenty minutes for everyone to make it through, Reima closing the portal after checking that no one was left in Hogwarts.

    Harry floats next to him as he walks to a raised platform, Hermione following her boyfriend dutifully.

    Reima stands on the platform and becomes visible to everyone else, "Alright! Everyone, I''d like to introduce you all to the new inhabitants of Ichor... They are magical humans, Witches and Wizards who are naturally gifted in casting magic. This is Harry Potter, their current leader."

    Kuretz "Why''s he unconscious!" he shouts from nearby.

    Reima "Because he was tired and wanted to sleep." he states and continues, "All of you already know of House Elves, they will be escorting you to temporary accommodation until we can build you housing. If you have any questions don''t ask me because I don''t care... The House Elves will give you a brochure which will explain most things about this place, the leaders, its rules, the currency, the surrounding countries, and more. So, before any of you ask anything... READ THE DAMN BROCHURE!" he shouts, this situation not being uncommon due to how many new people the city gains.

    As Reima takes a moment to think over if he''d missed anything, Asgore steps up and spreads his arms, "Greetings Witches and Wizards, I am Asgore, the Priminister of Ichor and, as you can see... A Monster. I hope you can all join the harmonious races that''re already present, and try to adapt to the new, jarring environment." he says, bowing and giving the floor back to Reima.

    Reima "Yeah, as Asgore was saying. There are many races within this city, some might scare you, some might fear you... But you need to remember that they are in the same situation as you, in another world, and seeking a better life. If you are unable to accept this then you can leave Ichor... But, I promise that''ll be the worse decision you''ll ever make... Alright, that''s me done." he says, dropping from the platform before walking over to where Luna and Nerissa are.

    Reima raises a hand, "Yo." he says as the group watches him approach.

    Moka "You''re so cool Ludvig-san! I don''t think I''d be able to speak in front of so many people..."

    Reima shrugs, "Just imagine that everyone is naked and its easy..." he says sarcastically, but Moka nods as if he''d given good advice anyway.

    Yukari "Is he okay?" she asks, pointing at Harry still floating behind Reima.

    Reima nods, "Yeah, just had to knock some sense into him... I should probably wake him up shouldn''t I?" he mutters, tipping a potion into the boys mouth and dropping him onto the floor as Hermione glares at him

    Harry hits the ground and springs up, looking around cautiously and frowning when he realises he''d lost the battle. He''s about to say something but has his head zip around to look at Moka, "Horcrux!?!" he exclaims.

 701 Time for action

    Reima raises an eyebrow at him, "Horcrux?"

    Harry rapidly nods and points, "I can feel it... She''s wearing a Horcrux, we must destroy it!"

    Nerissa glowers at him, this old acquaintance already accusing her best friend of having one of those vile artifacts.

    Moka puts her hands to her chest and looks at them imploringly, "What''s a Horcrux? Is something wrong with me?" she asks quickly.

    Reima opens a portal to the war room and gestures at it, "We should speak about this in private."

    Nerissa nods and drags Moka into the portal as Mizore, Yukari, Luna, Harry, and Hermione follow them in.

    Reima steps in and lets the portal close behind him, glancing at Harry who''s still sending a heavy glare at Moka. "Alright Harry, I''m assuming you''re being straight with me and haven''t got a concussion from earlier... What''s up?"

    Harry "That girl, she''s got a Horcrux, there''s no doubt about it." he states.

    Yukari "Erm, sorry, what''s a Horcrux?" she asks, confused.

    Harry "A kind of dark magic that stores a piece of your soul to prevent you from dying, a dark lord Reima killed had created them and I was forced to hunt them down after he dumped the task on me." he says with a sigh.

    Mizore "Ludvig-san so lazy..." she says with a neutral expression.

    Reima waves them off, "I was busy alright? Inter-dimensional elves were trying to catch Ciri..."

    Hermione "Yeah, you looked very pressed for time..." she says sarcastically.

    Moka "Ano... I don''t know you are talking about... I''ve never even heard of a Horcrux before..."

    Harry looks to Reima, "You mind if I check her over?" he asks, not wishing to receive another beating.

    Reima crosses his arms, "I''ll be keeping a close eye on you, don''t do anything without asking first." he states.

    Harry nods and walks over to Moka who''s standing stock still, Nerissa still glaring at Harry. He lifts his palm and manervers it around like some sort of metal detector, moving it across her legs, body, arms and finally... Neck.

    Harry points at the Rosario, "What''s this?"

    Moka "It''s... It''s the seal that keeps my Vampire form sealed."

    Reima "Hmm, maybe..."

    Harry nods, "This is it... The Horcrux..."

    Yukari "Ah, but..." she tries to argue but realises it does make sense...

    Reima "You mind if we take it off for a moment Moka?"

    Moka slowly nods, "Just... Don''t destroy it without being sure.." she mutters.

    Reima nods, "Rissa?"

    Nerissa nods, walking over to Moka and slowly taking the Rosario off...

    *Clink!*

    It comes off without issue, an explosion of magical energy blowing past the group as Moka transforms. Her hair turning white, her bust growing in size, and her eyes turning red with cat-like irises.

    Moka "What is the meaning of this?" she asks Nerissa with a glare.

    Reima "Chill Moka, Harry just wants to check your Rosario"

    Moka gives him a hard look, "Who gave you the authority over my body and possessions?" she growls out.

    Reima shrugs, "You''re in my country, as King I think that''s good enough... Unless you think you can do something about it?"

    Moka frowns at him but doesn''t do anything, walking over to the large table in the middle of the room and leaning on it, "Be quick, and do not do anything to it."

    Reima looks at the Rosario, "I see what you mean Harry... There''s a soul locked inside here..."

    Yukari "But, who would lock their soul into Moka''s Rosario?" she asks, shocked.

    Harry "Well, don''t you find it weird that your friend''s personality changes when she takes off the Rosario?" he asks, everyone''s eyes widening simultaneously.

    Yukari "No... Moka isn''t like that..." she mutters, looking over at Moka who''s looking contemplative.

    Moka "I... I''ve had that Rosario for a long time, I can barely remember a time when I didn''t have to wear it... I don''t believe my other self would do something like that though..." she thinks aloud.

    Harry continues examining the Rosario, "Regardless, this is definitely a Horcrux..."

    Reima "What do you want to do about it then?"

    Harry "Well... I''d like to destroy it-"

    Moka slams her palm into the table, were it not reinforced it would have completely broken. "Absolutely not!"

    Yukari "Yeah! We have no idea if other Moka is aware of what she is, or if it is even a Horcrux in the first place!"

    Harry sighs, "I was going to suggest we speak to the soul sealed within it..."

    ...

    Yukari "How would you do that?" she questions.

    Harry fingers a ring topped with a black gem and smiles, "That''s for me to know and you to find out..." he looks to Moka, "Do I have your permission to summon them?"

    Moka anxiously bites her lip while clenching her fists. "I... Fine, do it." she says, turning her head as if it wasn''t a big deal, though, it was obviously bothering her.

    Reima "Go ahead Harry, just don''t be shocked if I eat the soul if I don''t like them." he states.

    Harry runs the finger wearing the ring over the Rosario, the object glowing red before producing smoke from the gem in the center of it.

    Yukari, Nerissa, Mizore, and Luna back away as it gathers into a pillar of smoke, shrinking into a humanoid shape.

    The shape shifts, long flowing pink hair forming, green eyes, and pale white skin. They''re dressed in some sort of ball dress that looks almost as if it were from the medieval period.

    Yukari "Moka?" she asks, the see-through woman blinking a couple times and looking around.

    "Moka? Why do you say that name?" she asks, her voice the same as before.

 702 Surprise Reveal!

    Yukari "That''s... That''s your name isn''t it?"

    The figure smiles, "No... I''m Akasha Bloodriver..."

    ...

    Everyone is confused at her words... Aside from one person...

    Moka "Mother?" she asks, her voice trembling.

    Akasha "Moka? Is that you?" she mutters, turning towards her daughter.

    Moka quickly nods, quickly walking over and attempting to hug her... Only to fall through her ephemeral form. She sends a glare at Harry, "What did you do?"

    Akasha "Do not blame him Moka... I am simply a ghost, there''s nothing anyone can do about it... I am glad I''m able to speak with you again." she says, wiping a tear from her eye.

    Yukari "But... Why do you look so similar to other Moka?" she points out something everyone was thinking.

    Akasha smiles, "Unfortunately, your friend doesn''t exist as you know her..."

    Moka tilts her head, "What do you mean mother?"

    Akasha "... I am the other Moka." she says, shocking everyone.

    Reima "Well, that''s unexpected..." he mutters, not having seen that one coming.

    Moka "H-how?"

    Akasha holds her hands to her chest, "Do you remember how I died?" she asks.

    Moka shakes her head, "My memories are... Fuzzy at that time..."

    Akasha "I had decided that I needed to seal your power away, for your safety... There was a beast slumbering under the Shuzen manor... A beast known as Alucard, or more commonly, Dracula."

    Nerissa''s eyes widen at this, "Dracula?" she asks, louder than most had ever heard her speak.

    Reima "Relax Rissa... It''s a different Dracula you know of... You do not share any relations with this one." he says, already aware that Dracula was an incredibly common name, myth, and legend that probably extends through multiple universes.

    Akasha "Elaborate, what do you mean?" she asks, the atmosphere around her seemingly getting darker.

    Nerissa "I am Nerissa Dracula." she states, shocking those not in the know yet again.

    Akasha eyes her and floats over, "Dracula?" she asks, running her ephemeral hands over Nerissa''s shoulder, reaching her chin before letting go. "You look similar, but your blood is different."

    Reima "Yeah, that''s what I said... Continue with your story." he says, wishing to push the plot forwards.

    Akasha ignores him, "I had been sealed within Alucard and saved by the Shuzen family... But it left our blood synchronised, a dangerous fact considering Alucard could already destroy the world. Our bloodline, the Shinso bloodline was linked with his own, meaning I needed to seal it to protect you."

    Moka "How did you die?" she presses.

    Moka "But if the other me was you, why did you not remember anything?" she questions, trying not to break down at the new discoveries.

    Akasha "I didn''t wish to burden you with this knowledge... I didn''t give my memories to the other me."

    Moka "Wouldn''t it be better to let me decide that? Instead of sending me out with missing memories, unaware of the danger I was in?" she asks, her voice rising.

    Akasha "There was no time to decide, and you were too young to make that choice... Forgive me Moka." she says with a bow.

    ...

    Reima coughs into his hand to release the tension if slightly, "So, is this "Alucard" still around?"

    Akasha nods, "The other half of my soul is likely still keeping him sealed, I have no idea when he''ll break free..."

    Reima "Then, I''ll just put this out there... Do you want to be resurrected?" he asks, causing the room to look at him intently.

    Akasha tilts her head, "Resurrected?"

    Reima nods, "Your soul hasn''t moved on, and your body is still within Alucard right? Its as simple as replacing a battery. Remove Alucards soul, complete your own. Bing, Bang, Boom, you gotta Vampire." he says, those listening not sure if he''s being serious or not.

    Moka "Is it possible?" she asks hopefully,

    Akasha "I don''t know, your friends seems to have abilities I''ve never seen before, so it might be..." she says, looking down at her see-through limbs.

    Harry shrugs, "Being around you Reima is like sitting on a rollercoaster blindfolded, you never know when it''ll fall off the tracks and explode." he says with a sigh.

    Reima grins, "Your words hurt me Harry, did you forget it was me who trained you?" he says with a chuckle.

    Harry "Who could forget? It''s not like you''ll ever stop reminding me..."

    Reima nods, "Damn right."

    Harry looks at Moka and Akasha, "Your time is running out, I can only do this for so long... Say what needs to be said and we''ll decide what to do another day."

    Moka "Why can''t we do it today?" she asks, her gratitude to him for allowing her to speak to her mother clashing with his attempt to destroy the Rosario.

    Harry "Because I need to organise the four hundred students that''ve been brought to Ichor... Plus, I need to talk to Reima about the new Hogwarts."

    Yukari "The school? You''re going to make one here?"

    Reima nods, "Yeah, its a win, win... I get competent magic users in my country, and Harry gets to reign over people like Merlin." he says with a smirk.

    Harry "Huh? You, a King, are saying that..."

    Reima "Yeah, and as your King I command you to get to work." he says, opening a portal which appears where the House Elves are leading the Students.

    Harry holds Hermione hand and starts walking towards the portal, tossing the Rosario back at Moka, "Your mothers specter will remain for around ten more minutes, say what you need to say. Goodbye." he says, stepping through with the portal closing behind him.

 703 Doting Reima

    Luna looks up at him, "Can I stay with Snuffles?" she asks, her puppy-dog eyes preventing him from even thinking about disagreeing.

    Reima "S-sure... As long as Rissa is fine with it." he says sending her a questioning look.

    Nerissa nods, "Come." she says to Luna, leading the others out of the room and leaving Moka alone with Akasha.

    Reima bows to them both, "Excuse me." he says, disappearing in a flash of Turquoise light.

    Akasha "Your friends are interesting..." she says with a smile.

    Moka "They''re your friends too mother... Do you remember them at all?"

    Akasha slowly nods, "Slightly, my memories of that time are... Fuzzy, as you say."

    Moka "Will you accept Ludvig-sans offer to resurrect you?" she asks, attempting to hold her mothers hands to no avail.

    Akasha "It depends... Do you want him to?"

    Moka frowns, "Of course! I want you back mother!"

    Akasha smiles, "Then, we''ll see where it goes, Moka."

    The day passes, Reima, Asgore, and Harry all trying to get the housing built as quickly as possible, as well as plans for the new Hogwarts prepared.

    Most Witches and Wizards weren''t really bothered by the numerous races inhabiting Ichor, their experience with House Elves, and other magical creatures making them more open-minded than regular humans.

    There were a few blood-purists that remained, but they understood their positions clearly and knew death awaited them should they step out of line.

    All in all the migration from Hogwarts to Ichor was peaceful and efficient, the people''s trust in Harry''s power and kindness made it easy to direct them.

    The next day Reima was knocking on Neissa''s door to check how her and the others were doing, there was no answer for a couple minutes, forcing him to knock a couple more times, louder than before.

    The door suddenly opens as he was going to start knocking again, revealing Luna in her pajama''s, behind her on the bed was Moka with two fluffy bundles of black fur curled around her.

    Luna "Reima! Good morning!" she chirps happily.

    He rubs her head and nods at the others, "Think they''re gonna get up anytime soon?"

    Luna thinks for a moment before shaking her head, "Moka and Snuffles were up all night... They were still talking when I fell asleep..."

    Reima "Probably not then..." he mutters, finding Nerissa being so social to be a pleasant surprise. "If you''re up for it, we can walk around town for a bit... I''ve got a couple of things that''ll blow you away." he says with a grin.

    Luna "Ah... We can''t..." she says, her smile suddenly turning to a frown.

    Reima raises a brow, "Why''s that?"

    Luna "Mummy said to run if a boy starts talking about blowing..." she puts a finger on her chin, "I''m not sure why though."

    ...

    Luna quickly nods, "Let me get dressed." she says, running back inside and reaching her arm into a mokeskin bag. She pulls out some wizarding robes, frowns, and picks up some casual wear instead. She turns to the still smiling Reima and shoo''s him with her hand, "Do you want to watch Reima?" she asks, an innocent expression still on her face.

    Reima''s back straightens, "Err.. No, I was lost in thought." he says, shutting the door and waiting outside.

    Fortunately, Luna was a typical girl, three to five minutes later the door opens again with the full dressed fourteen-year-old. She wore no makeup, but didn''t need any as she was cute enough as it is.

    Reima "Ready?" she nods and he continues, "Then, let''s get breakfast first... What do you fancy?"

    Luna "Pudding?"

    Reima snorts but nods anyway, "Sure." he says, holding her hand and teleporting them both to a desert shop run by a former prospect.

    Afterwards Reima shows her around the town, clothing stores, jewelry, the giant gold statue of he and Solaire in the town square, and many other places. They hadn''t reached the best part yet however...

    Reima leads Luna by the hand towards a place he''d had specifically designed for children... A farm filled with as many "harmless" animals as possible. They reach the fence surrounding it and could already spot various Monster, Human, and Non-human children petting the animals within...

    Luna "Oooohh, is that a tiger?" she asks, pointing at the large killing machine currently being climbed by many children.

    Reima nods, "It is... Found it being hunted by Zerrikanians..." he says, not mentioning that the tiger was the only survivor of that encounter...

    Luna "Is it happy being climbed?" she asks, finding something strange about it not tearing those kids to pieces.

    Reima "I think so... I''ve only limited its aggression, other than that it gets lots of exercises and food."

    Luna nods, "Do you have any Hippogryphs?" she asks, glancing around.

    Reima scratches his chin, "Yeah, I think the Elves brought a few over."

    Luna "Then, did you save any Thestrals?!" she exclaims, drawing the attention of nearby watchers.

    Reima grins, "Yeah, I did... You wanna see them?"

    The young girl rapidly nods and Reima takes this as a yes, taking her hand and teleporting to where the Unicorn and Thestral herd had previously been seen.

    Luckily, it seemed that they were still nearby, small golden furred foals skipped nearby and played with one another, occasionally accidentally running into a Thestral which playfully knocked them away with its skeletal wing.

    Reima looks down to speak to Luna, but finds her already skipping towards the herd. He crosses his arms and watches as she attempts to pet the Foals, only for them to run away shyly. "We should get more Unicorns." he mutters.

 704 Character sheet : Conquering the Witcher Spoilers

    Age: 16/27

    Class: Level 500 City Sim Manager (This is bs so don''t take it seriously..."

    Money : Literally owns a Kingdom + more

    Cheats :

    Pure Elder Blood.

    Ability to use Haki.

    Fast Learning.

    Stats (Soul Level)

    Vitality : 200 (Imagine a Dragon shrunk into a human body...)

    Attunement : 240 (More magical than true dragons.)

    Endurance : 130 (Don''t come knockin'' if the caravan''s rockin'')

    Strength : 200 (Slightly weaker than Chuck Norris...)

    Dexterity : 180 (Can steal your wallet without you noticing.)

    Resistance : 150 (Likes to use Fluoroantimonic acid as a disinfectant.)

    Intelligence : 180 (Somehow only extends to Sorcery? Must be a bug...)

    Faith : -400 (He is religion...)

    Humanity : Hentai Tentacle Monster! (Wut?)

    Martial arts :

    High Absolver Level

    Styles :

    Windfall.

    Foresaken

    Kahlt Method

    Haki :

    Armament Haki : 99% control.

    Observation Haki : 60% control.

    Conquerors Haki : This nerd still isn''t even able to use it?

    Energies :

    Time.

    Space.

    Death.

    Chaos Flames.

    Humanity.

    Divine.

    Abyssal servants :

    Abyssal Mage : Rita Skeeter. (Rita-Creature)

    Abyssal Sage : Avallac''h

    Abyssal Navigator : Skeletal armour, able to cast black mist that corrodes and similar stuff.

    Abyssal Wraith x130 : 8ft, wearing skeletal armour with Dark Wraith accents.

    Scytheclops x3 : 17ft oak flesh cyclopses with claws. Eyes covered by oak flesh but glow red under it.

    Mutagens :

    Doppler : Hair and nail control + Increased healing rate.

    Arch Griffin : Poison Resistance + Increased Strength.

    Seath : Crystalline Skin + Stronger nails and hair (Shimmering twilight vampire hair), Pretty gay.

    Kalameet : Increased attunement towards telekinesis (Only when pulling though)

    Basilisk : Petrification immunity.

    Yoko : Increases physical abilities, allows wingless flight, increases flame-based abilities. Adds "Yoko" mode.

    Signs :

    Aard.

    Axii.

    Yrden.

    Quen.

    Igni.

    Heliotrop.

    Witcher Spells :

    Voice Projection.

    Spark.

    Ember.

    Detect.

    Weed removal. (Drug dealers worst nightmare!)

    Conjure Messenger.

    Sorcery :

    All.

    Pyromancy :

    All.

    Pyromancy + Sorcery = Aderecery

    Freestyle.

    Equipment (Notable):

    Witcher gear (Looks like Mastercraft Bear school armour) : Reinforced with titanite.

    Arcell : Sword of Arcell (Absolver)

    Moonlight Greatsword : Seath''s tail (Dark Souls)

    Silver knight sword : Enchanted with Divine (Dark Souls)

    Kalameet : Kalameet''s tail, Obsidian Blade (Dark Souls)

    Gough : Gough''s Greatbow (Dark Souls)

    Grant : Paladin Leeroy''s Great hammer (DarkSouls)

    Staff of Manus (SoulBound), binds the soul of the Dark God Manus. : Catalyst of Manus (Dark Souls)

    Slumbering Dragoncrest ring : Purchased from Griggs (Dark Souls)

    Flame Stoneplate ring : prevents MC from joining the fantastic four (Dark Souls)

    Furniture : Most powerful weapon. (Incredibly potent against certain enemies...)

    Blades of Mercy : Marvellous Chester (Blood bourne)

    + A huge amount of Dark Souls equipment.

 704 Science is fun!...?

    Once again entering Nerissa''s room he spots Moka meditating on bed with Snuffles watching from the side. The rabbit leapt off and transformed back into her human form as he asks "What''s up?"

    Nerissa points at Moka, "They are talking." she says.

    Reima "Who''re talking?" he asks, confused.

    Nerissa "Moka and Moka."

    Reima has a lightbulb illuminate in his mind, "Ah, Moka and Other Moka?" he asks, Nerissa nodding at him. "How long have they been at it?"

    Nerissa shrugs, "Hours?"

    Reima "Hm, what do you think about all this? Worried about Moka?"

    The vampiress shakes her head, "No... She''s strong." she says, when suddenly her eyes light up. "Ah... Present..."

    Reima raises a brow, "You want a present?"

    Nerissa walks over to her bottomless box and reaches inside, retrieving many vials containing what look like organic samples. "No, for you."

    Reima receives them, and analyses them for a moment, "So you did remember? I''ll have to find some way to reward you then Rissa." he says with a smile.

    Nerissa thinks for a moment before pointing at Moka, "Help her."

    Reima "I was going to do that anyway... Think of something else, actually, do you want to see what I''m going to do with these?" he asks, the young girl nodding. "Then, let''s head to the labs, hopefully Quelina and Vesemir aren''t busy in there." he says, grabbing Nerissa and teleporting them both to Kaer Morhen''s lab.

    Inside there was only Quelina working on a small batch of potions, she dexterously cut up ingredients while gingerly placing them within a bubbling cauldron, the fumes given off by it being sucked into the ventilation system Reima had forced them to add.

    Reima and Nerissa watch for a couple of minutes, not daring to interrupt the focussed potioneer, any mistake could potentially reduce the lab to rubble...

    Eventually, Quelina sprinkled some ground Thestral bones into the concoction, the cauldron stabilising as soon as the substance contacts the surface.

    Quelina "Haaah, what a relief..." she mutters, using a titanate reinforced ladel to spoon the contents into many vials that she delicately puts into a small box.

    Reima "Nice work." he says after she''s finished, causing her to jump and spin around.

    Quelina "R-reima! How long have you been there?!?"

    Reima "Around eight minutes?" he guesses, taking a glance at Nerissa who nods. "What''re you making there?"

    Quelina doesn''t seem to react to his question for a moment, her face blank for a couple seconds. "Ah!... I was making a potion..."

    Reima raises a brow at her, "Er, I know... I asked what potion you were making."

    Quelina shakes her head, "No... I mean, I was making, a potion..."

    Quelina straightens up, obviously looking forward to talking about it, "If all went well, then it should simulate death!"

    Reima gives her a weird look, but she continues.

    Quelina "It doesn''t kill you, or even put you into a death-like state... Instead it diffuses your magical signature into the ambient magic around you, allowing you to go noticed by those fluent in magical detection."

    Reima rubs his chin, "Oooh, that''s really useful."

    Quelina scuttles closer to him, "It is isn''t it!"

    Reima gives an awkward smile and pats her head, "Calm down Lina, its an impressive feat but I think you need some sleep..." he says, only now noticing the bags under her eyes.

    Quelina shakes her head, "Sleep is for the weak and unmotivated." she states before changing the topic, "What''re you two doing here anyway Reima?"

    Reima grins, "Rissa managed to snag me to unique organic samples, I need to process them into Mutagen and see what effects they''ll have."

    Quelina eyes them, "Can I watch? Its been a long time since I''ve seen you at work Reima."

    Reima snorts, "Whaddya mean? I''m always working nowadays." he says semi-sarcastically.

    Quelina puffs her cheeks, "I meant with Alchemy."

    Reima "I know, I know... Let''s get started then, no time like the present." he says, walking over and placing the separate vials in the distillery. "Quelina, you know how to work this thing?" he asks, pointing at something Vesemir had cobbled together with a few others help.

    Quelina nods, "Uncle Vesemir called it a "Catalytic Quickener", it''s supposed to quicken the rates of reactions."

    Reima raises a brow at her words, "You mean it doesn''t currently?"

    She shakes her head, "It does... Sometimes."

    Reima shakes his head, "Well, I''m not waiting three days for it to complete, so lets just use the thing." he says, gesturing for Quelina to activate it.

    She does so, channeling magic into a small hole while pressing a large button, immediately the sound of the distillery becomes choppy, like a car that won''t start.

    Reima''s about to ask if its alright but Quelina''s confident look alleviates him of his worry.

    With the Catalytic Quickener the three-day process is reduced to three hours, allowing Reima, Nerissa, and Quelina to play Gwent as they waited for it to finish.

    Vesemir popped in to retrieve some supplies, but that was all that happened...

    Eventually a sound akin to a "Microwave ding" was heard, Reima immediately storing the Gwent game that wasn''t going in his favour.

    Nerissa "Cheater."

    Reima "I don''t know what you mean, look, the Mutagen Samples are done." he says attempting to change the subject.

    Quelina "You''ve always been a sore loser at Gwent Reima..." she adds further insult to injury.

    Reima "Right, enough about Gwent... Let''s have a look at these samples, shall we?" he says, pulling out the hot vials and placing them on a rack. "So, Rissa, what samples are these anyway?" he asks, the vials only having letters on them to indicate what they are.

 705 Mutagen fun..

    Nerissa thinks for a moment before pointing at each of them, "Orc, Werewolf, Gorgon, Kraken, Crocodilebeaver...-"

    Reima "Crocodilebeaver?" he asks, confused.

    She nods, "Crocodile body, Beaver Head..."

    Reima "Can we trash this sample now? I doubt it''d be any use anyway..."

    Nerissa begins to frown causing Reima to wave his hands, "Ah, nevermind... We''ll try since you went through the trouble of getting it..." she nods and continues.

    Nerissa points to another, "Ogre, Gold Sheep-"

    Quelina "Gold sheep?"

    Nerissa shrugs, "Gold Fleece Goat?"

    Reima "Gold Fleece? Like the thing in those old Greek stories?"

    Nerissa nods, "Talked a lot, removed head." she explains bluntly, and moves on, "Spider... Woman?" she asks, glancing at Quelina for a moment.

    Quelina "Someone like me and my sister?"

    Nerissa shakes her head, "Ugly."

    Quelina smiles, "Oh, thank you."

    Reima "Is that all of them then?"

    Nerissa "No..." she points at the end, "Yoko."

    Reima "The hell is a Yoko?"

    Nerissa "Fire fox?"

    Reima "Fire fox?... Seems like that''ll be interesting. Shall we get started then?" he asks, the others nodding at him.

    Reima begins, taking the various organs samples from each vial and mixing them with his hair, skin, muscle, blood, and sperm... Of course, he had to restrain his internal temperature enough so that they wouldn''t melt through the vials, or destroy the samples.

    The results were aggravating but also completely expected...

    Ogre samples all had no effect whatsoever, Reima had thought some of its strength would have been transferred but it seemed that Reima was completely above whatever an Ogre could accomplish.

    The only thing the Orc sample did was turn Reima''s skin sample into weak-looking bone armor, when Reima subjected forced to it he found it was way, way, way weaker than even his own regular skin. The sample was a failure.

    Next was the Werewolf sample, and as you would expect for a usually contagious virus, the sample attempts to encroach onto all of own samples. Of course, it wasn''t able to due to how his body and organic matter functioned, but it made clear that the sample was ineffective or problematic at best.

    One Reima was very interested in was the Gorgon sample, however, ones his organic matter was introduced to them the vial itself began turning to stone...

    Quelina "Is that good or bad?" she wonders aloud.

    Reima "Bad, it''d basically mean everything around me would constantly be turning to stone... I mean, if I was going to be cursed like that at least make it the Hand of Midas or something..."

    They moved on to the next sample, the Kraken...

    The Crocodilebeaver sample was no better, causing some parts of his skin samples to grow scales while others grew hair... It seemed completely random, and if taken would probably turn Reima into man-bear-pig or something similar.

    Reima begins the process for the "Spider Woman" samples with a sigh, everything thus far having been a failure. "Reckon I''ll start shooting web outta my hands after this one?" he asks jokingly.

    Quelina "No... Web is annoying to produce." she mutters, blushing slightly.

    Reima ignores whatever she just said and looks closer at the samples, discovering that many eyes are large fangs had begun to sprout from the skin samples... The worst was his sperm sample, large disgusting looking eggs seemingly beginning to grow from them. "Fuck this." he states after witnessing this abomination.

    Quelina "There''s one left..."

    ...

    The three of them look at the sample, wondering if it''d turn out like the rest of them...

    Reima "Maybe the creatures in that world just aren''t able to be made into viable Mutagens?" he mutters.

    Nerissa grabs the Yoko sample and starts the preparations herself, feeling like she''d failed somehow due to how all the samples had ended up.

    The group watches anxiously as Reima''s samples are introduced... Almost immediately all of the samples begin glowing golden in a similar manner to how Kuyo had in his ultimate form. A second after the vials containing them melt, letting molten glass drip to the floor.

    Reima telekinetically floats the samples and examines them a bit closer, using reinforced glass to have a look under a microscope... Somehow, nothing had physically changed aside from the samples emitting serious amounts of heat and glowing mysteriously... Magically? They seem to have become a conduit for fire attributed ambient magic.

    Reima "It seems to be fine, but I don''t know how I feel about look like Naruto..."

    Nerissa "Naruto?" she asks, curious.

    Reima shakes his head, "Its a cartoon you haven''t seen yet... Well, let''s go try and use it then, not in the lab obviously as I don''t wanna destroy all the equipment." he says, opening a portal to the Igni Bonfire next to the Chaos Temple.

    The bonfire is surrounded by a lake of lava and seriously hot, but both Nerissa and Quelina have a good degree of fire resistance, or, at least enough to not burn to death.

    Reima stands on the small island surrounded by lava as Quelina and Nerissa watch from the other side, in his hand is a titanate reinforced syringe with the Yoko Mutagen inside, "Fingers crossed I don''t turn into a furry!" he exclaims, jabbing the needle into his thigh and storing it in his Folded Space.

    ...

    ...

    Nerissa and Quelina watch intently, but nothing seems to be happening... "Did it not work?" the latter asks.

    Reima frowns, "I guess it was useless the-ARGGHH! he groans, dropping to his knees as bubble begin forming underneath his skin, painfully stretching and bulging outwards in an ugly display. "I-Hurrrghh, HAD TO OPEN MY MOUTH!" he shouts, vomiting blood that melts the stone beneath him.

 706 Ominous

    From the Chaos Temple the Chaos Servants begin making their way over to see what''s happening, the roars of Reima having attracted their attention.

    Even the Everlasting Dragon clambers over, looking down at Reima as he squirms like a slug covered in salt.

    Quelana walks to Quelina''s side while watching Reima, "This isn''t a new "Modern" dance I hope..."

    Quelina shakes her head, "Reima injected a new Mutagen... I can tell from personal experience that it is terribly painful."

    Quelana looks at her sisters lower body, "Yes, I remember you saying something like that... What''s the goal then?"

    Quelina "Goal?... I think he''s just trying to increase his power further..."

    Quelana "Strange... I''d have thought he was powerful enough as it is..." she mutters.

    Reima shudders, feeling his body shifting but also feeling the changes slowing. The dreadful, retching pain eventually stops. Leaving Reima''s sweaty body limp as he looks up at the sky, he sighs, feeling his entire body sore all over.

    He puts his hand to the floor to try and prop himself up, but uses too much strength and launches himself a couple meters in the air, his arm glowing golden.

    He looks down at it in wonder, and slowly realising that he was floating in the air as the golden glow slowly made its way across his entire body.

    "JOLLLYYYY!" he could hear numerous shouts below him, with a glance he spotted almost the entire Chaos Temple cheering below him... Ignoring them, he tries to reduce his altitude, accidentally deactivating the glow and falling into the lava below.

    ...

    The cheers stop as they watch Reima slowly climb out of the lava... He eventually gets to his feet and teleports beside Nerissa, grabbing her and Quelina and returning back to the lab. Stumbling to a nearby chair he falls into it as Nerissa and Quelina watch in amusement.

    Reima "Something funny?" he asks, still winded from his earlier ordeal.

    Quelina "Its funny to see you like this Reima... I don''t think I''ve ever seen you as exhausted as this before."

    Nerissa nods, "Olympic Diver." she says with a smirk.

    Reima leans backwards and groans, "Alright, you go off and check on Moka then Rissa... Thank you for your gift, but I want to do nothing for a couple hours... And preferably hide from Asgore..." he adds.

    The next day past the Dragon Mountains was a glowing blur, randomly destroying mountains and gigantic trees that got in its way...

    Now however the Yoko Mutagen had given him a number of things that boosted his abilities further... He''d found that he was now able to fly without wings, though, only when he was in his "Empowered" form, and his dragon wings could dramatically increase his speed.

    Reima wasn''t all that sure why the Yoko Mutagen had given him this ability, but he wasn''t going to complain about it. Next, was the fact that it doubled his physical attributes when activated, making his monstrous strength even more ridiculous.

    Reima continued pummeling mountains into submission for a couple more hours, taking this time of "Practise" as a break from work aswell...

    *BANG!*

    His golden glowing fist impacted a part of a mountain that seemed to refuse to fall again, and again, and again... Until, it began to crack.

    A few more punches eventually brought it down, a huge hole now revealing some sort of hidden room within it...

    Reima crosses his arms and wonders if exploring this place is a dumb idea or not, his instincts already on high alert... "Nah, fuck it." he mutters, jumping into the hole and lighting a fireball above his hand which illuminates the area.

    And man, it''s a good thing this room was hidden because some demonic shit had obviously gone down here. The entire room was made from the hard stone material that the previous wall was made from, however it didn''t lack decorations, if you can call them that?

    Around the room were large statues of monsters, there was a large variety as well... Fiends, Nekkers, Wyverns, and even vampires of every kind. If Reima didn''t know any better he''d say whoever made this place had some sort of obsession...

    Behind the statues were many intricate painting, all in the same red shade and smelling like old pungent blood. They were painting with it obviously, which allowed an ominous sense of dread to bubbling in Reima''s stomach... The painting themselves depicted many things, stormy oceans with boats about to be wrecked, a lonely man standing on the moon and looking longingly at the earth, a man staring into a mirror with another staring back, and creepily enough... A ruined city of gold, half-covered in frost, the other on fire...

    Reima "Ok, I''m not retarded enough to believe that a painting of a city which just so happens to contain a statue of me and Solaire has nothing wrong with it." he mutters, tossing a small fireball at it which ignites the painting and rendering it ash in mere moments.

    Reima was expecting something to happen when he burned it, but literally nothing did... Not even the ambient magic made a move, which would be the most obvious indicator that it was magical.

    Taking a closer look around, a blood-stained carpet covered the entirety of the floor, its previous colour unobservable due to the profuse amounts of blood soaking it.

    The only thing he saw that would give any indication as to who created this place were the symbols carved into the heads of the statues, all of them the same one and in the same place... The left side of their faces.

 707 A Dimm day indeed

    As his fingers run across the brand he gets a glimpse of something... Strange, something unnatural. It felt like magic, only tainted, like an inverted soul producing negative energy? It doesn''t really make sense with his current knowledge of magic, but perhaps its like dark matter in his previous world?

    The brand decorating the Fiend statue he''d just dusted off begins to glow however, the stone seeming to retract and revealing healthy flesh underneath...

    Reima steps back and watches as the Fiend stumbles after breaking free from its stone prison, shaking the dust that still clings to its form before finally noticing Reima''s presence.

    Reima holds his hands out, "Yo, you try to charge me and I''ll skin you alive." he states, not in the mood for any funny business.

    Unfortunately, the Fiend isn''t intelligent enough to understand his words, instead electing to charge him... Its third eye opens as it tries to ram him, but Reima''s fist crashes against its skull, disintegrating it on impact and sending brain matter splattering the surroundings.

    The blood, bone-fragments and other organic matter cover the other statues, unlocking their prisons in a similar manner to the fiend...

    As soon as they''re free most begin attacking each other, monsters not usually friendly to their own race, let alone others.

    A true vampire stumbles from his prison and walks to the side of the room, avoiding the rampaging beasts destroying everything in sight.

    Reima eyes him, "Hey, are you able to speak?" he asks, wanting to know what this place is.

    The vampire snarls at him but looks astonished at its own reaction, holding his head and backing away. "I... Hmm foolish... I lost." he mutters in a confused manner.

    Reima tilts his head, "You lost?"

    The vampire nods, "I thought myself superior, all races are below us... But that, thing... It isn''t-Hurrgh!" he chokes, holding his throat.

    Reima expands his Observation Haki to sense if anything was wrong, and finds the same negative magic he''d sensed earlier from the brand wrapping around the vampire''s neck... The origin isn''t clear, but he extends his hands and tries to grab the tendril of anti-magic, passing through it as if it wasn''t there.

    He tries again, channeling magic into his hand this time, but again, they don''t react to one another...

    The vampire continues to choke, harder than before... Considering Vampires rarely need to breath, it might be doing something else to it...

    Reima "Here goes nothing." he mutters, using Elder Blood Energy to try and grab the tendril... It works! He pries the strange magic away from the vampires, freeing him and forcing the magic to flee to wherever it''d come from. "Are you okay?"

    Reima thumbs himself, "I am Reima Ludvig, you are?"

    "Lothaire Kavita la Demidicus" the man states, his back straightening.

    Reima looks him up and down, his aristocratic clothing fitting his thin build nicely, his short black hair and green eyes giving a feeling of nobility. "What is this place?"

    Lothaire "I can only presume it to be its lair, the one who "Won" me and those other beasts." he says, glancing over at the still rampaging monsters.

    Reima scratches her face, "Who is it you keep referring to, I can''t imagine any normal person would be able to capture a person such as yourself... An Elven Sage perhaps?"

    Lothaire grits his teeth which reveals his fangs and shakes his head, "It attempted to stop me from revealing it, but I am not one of its pathetic puppets! Master Mirror, is the culprit... The demon beat me in a game of my own making, claiming my soul and presumably imprisoning me here."

    Reima "I''m guessing that brand has something to do with it?" he questions, pointing at the ugly mark on the left side of the vampire''s face.

    Lothaire nods, "It shows that you''ve made a deal with a being beyond your understanding and control... A mark of stupidity and ignorance." he says, rubbing the mark as if it were a raw wound.

    "I would prefer that you stop spreading my secrets fanged one... People who get in the way of my entertainment find themselves... Indisposed." a voice echoes around the room, the monsters all frozen in time as the carpet under them seemingly starts to burn away, revealing some kind of ritual circle.

    A set of stone stairs dramatically materialise as a regular looking man steps down it with a grin plastered across his face. He wears colourful peasant clothes with a leather coif, a bag of gold wrapped around his neck like a merchant would. His bald head and average looking face seems almost "too" normal to be real... Resembling something you''d find if you combined all faces of the human race together.

    Lothaire backs away, large claws appearing from his fingertips as his face turns beast-like, resembling Regis or Dettlaff in their own transformed states. "I will not go peacefully like the last, demon."

    "Heh, now where would the fun be if you didn''t struggle a touch?" he says with a chuckle, continuing to walk towards them.

    Reima "Who are you?"

    The man slows his descent, his focus on Reima, "Me? Just a merchant of sorts, most know me as Gaunter O''Dimm, others, Master Mirror... Regardless of how you call me, I am not an enemy." he says as he finally reaches the bottom of the stairs.

    Gaunter O''Dimm "I see you''ve perused my... Collection. It''s rude to destroy another person''s property is it not?" he asks.

    Reima shrugs and glares at him defiantly, "Depends on who''s it belongs to."

    Gaunter O''Dimm "I see, well, if it were yourself wouldn''t you wish for compensation?" he inquires, his curiosity seeming more... Ominous than most.

 708 Blackmail?

    Reima frowns, feeling the same negative magic from earlier infesting the entirety of the room, as if it were ready to spring and attack. "No... I wouldn''t."

    Gaunter O''Dimm smiles, "Now, now... I can tell that''s a lie, your actions in this world have proven vindictive and even sadistic at times. From what I''ve observed thus far, you''d storm the Palace in Vizima looking for a thief who''d stolen a pittance from you." he says with mirth.

    Reima "You some kind of stalker?" he asks, dark red flames covering his hands threateningly.

    Gaunter O''Dimm "A stalker? Don''t be so cruel, I am merely a merchant..."

    Lothaire "Do not believe his honeyed words... He''s a merchant, true... But one of men, not pence."

    Gaunter O''Dimm "I believe its time for you to stop attempting to intervene in my conversation with this fine... Gentleman." he says, clicking his fingers and causing the negative magic around Lothaire to halt, freezing him completely.

    Reima looks at the frozen Lothaire, thinking over whether this man had just frozen time with ease... Something even he didn''t think he could accomplish with such ease. "What is it you want?" he presses.

    Gaunter O''Dimm walks towards Lothaire, but Reima holds his flaming hands out to stop him, protecting the Vampire. O''Dimm just shakes his head and stays put, not approaching any further. "What do I want? Now that''s the question isn''t it... What, do men want?... From personal experience, I can say that it comes under a few things, wealth, women, and power. I think the better question would be, what do YOU want Reima Ludvig?"

    Reima frowns, not actually having the answer to that question... However, O''Dimm continues. "You are surrounded by Wealth and Women, you possess godly power that would stamp out Empires with ease... I wonder what someone such as you could possibly want?"

    Reima "Just say what you wanna say and fuck off, I''m not here to solve riddles." he says.

    O''Dimm grins, "Sensitive, aren''t we?... Very well, I will leave you with this... This world''s inhabitance provides me with entertainment, should they go, I''ll seek it elsewhere." he says, vanishing as Reima blinks his eyes...

    Lothaire falls to the ground, breathing heavily, looking around rapidly... "Is... Is it gone?" he mutters, clearly fearful.

    Reima "I thought you were a vampire... Aren''t you supposed to be fearless or something?" he asks, still feeling a chill from his encounter with O''Dimm.

    Lothaire "Believe what you will, there are things that must be feared... I thank you for freeing me, but I must leave to find my people, last I saw them they were within that new country... Toussaint was it?" he mutters, turning into red mist and leaving through the hole Reima had created.

    Elsewhere :

    Quelaag had been sneaking around and gathering information about Fleur, Reima and Ciri''s apparent ex. She hadn''t had the courage to directly go to the woman and ask her without information to use as possible leverage, but her burning emotions wouldn''t let her wait any longer...

    Fleur was sitting within a hairdresser, waiting as someone decided the best style to do her hair in... She''d wanted to try something new in this strange and new city, plus she felt the need to change her appearance so it didn''t match with the one she''d had when she dated Reima... The person who apparently now ruled this city.

    *Ding!*

    The chimes on the door rung as a tall, beautiful black-haired woman walked through the door... She sauntered to the desk and asked for a small trim before sitting down directly next to Fleur.

    They sat in silence for a couple minutes, Fleur eventually starting a conversation due to how awkward the silence was. "Do you come ''ere often?" she asks, noting that the woman eyes were red...

    The woman smiles, "No, this is my first time... I am.. Quena by the way."

    Fleur returns the smile, "Fleur Delacour."

    Quena "So, you''re one of those new Witches that''ve come to Ichor?" she suddenly asks, the hairdressers beginning to start on both of them.

    Fleur nods slightly, almost causing the hairdresser to make a mistake. "Oui, Rei-I.. I mean, King Reima saved us from a destroyed world. We are all very grateful."

    Quena nods, "He has a habit of doing that, most people who live here have had the same experience. He''s quite manly is he not?" she says with a slight blush.

    Fleur frowns, "Oui, ''e iz... ''Ave you ever met him?" she asks, curious.

    Quena "I have... Once I shook his hand as he visited the town. It was very exciting... And you?"

    Fleur "Hmm, no, not zat I can remember." she says, not wishing to draw attention to herself.

    Quena taps her chin, "Oh? I was sure I heard about someone who looked like you previous having dated him?" she wonders aloud.

    Fleur "No, you must be mistaken." she says, wishing that the Hairdresser would finish faster.

    Quena frowns, "No... I assure you, I know for certain you were in a relationship with King Reima... And a certain Cirilla we both know."

    ...

    Fleur "What do you want?" she asks, feeling that she was about to get blackmailed.

    Quena smiles, "What do I want? I want you to tell me how you entered a relationship with them both."

    Fleur raises a brow, "Excuse me?"

    Quena "I didn''t misspeak, you heard correctly... I wish to know what you did to enter a relationship with them both." she repeats.

    Fleur "W-why would you wish to know this?" she asks, suspicious at this person''s intentions.

    Quena "There are many who would pay much for such information, King Reima is an incredibly attractive prospective partner after all."

 709 Home invasion

    Fleur feels like taking her wand out and cursing this woman right here and right now... "Sorry, can we finish this later? Something important has come up." she says to the hairdresser behind her.

    The monster woman holding scissors nods, leaving to go and attend to someone else as Fleur stands.

    Quena stands as well, saying something similar to her own hairdresser, "I hope you aren''t intending to leave without answering my questions... Who''d know what would happen if certain information got out..." she says with a malicious smile.

    Fleur sighs, "Very well... Follow me, I wish to speak in private." she says, leaving the store and heading to the outskirts of the city where her new house had been constructed.

    The duo walk through the city without much trouble, Quena remaining behind Fleur just incase the Veela Witch wished to retaliate.

    Fleurs home didn''t look like much, the building looking identical to the others beside it... Small steps lead to a wooden door that she pushes open and walks through, Quena following her.

    "Fleur? Are you back honey?" a voice from inside asks.

    Fleur dives through a nearby door to get out of Quena''s line of vision, shouting "Bill ''elp!"

    Bill stands from the couch, having been watching T.V nonstop for hours straight since the home had been built. He dashes into the hallway where Quena stands with a furious expression on her face. Pulling his wand he casts a couple Stupefy''s at her, but is shocked to find they seem to have no effect on her.

    Quena, or better known as Quelaag hadn''t been hit in a long, long time... The spell caused her mild discomfort, but the fact that he''d dared to hit her had her fucking furious!

    Her hands ignite, dark red flames covering them as she walks towards Bill with a baleful glare.

    Bill steps back unconsciously, not having expected her to withstand his spells so easily... "G-get out of my home, or I''ll be forced to defend myself!"

    Quelaag "Tell your bitch wife to speak what she knows or I''ll have to force it out of you both!" she shouts, pulling out her Furysword which bursts into flames when drawn.

    Bill "We will not be threatened in our own home! Petrificus Totalus!" he shouts, the full-body bind curse shooting from his wand towards Quelaag, hitting her but achieving nothing... He following it up with an "Incendio!" which causes flames to envelop Quelaag... Doing literally nothing.

    Quelaag approaches, thrusting her blade at Bills shoulder, not intending to kill him but merely incapacitate. Bill throws himself backwards, avoiding the attack while throwing a Relashio charm over his shoulder, hitting Quelaag and almost causing her to lose her grip on her sword.

    Bills head is slammed against the stone wall from the attack, disorienting him but not completely knocking him out... He stands and wraps his arms around Quelaag as she attempts to dash towards Fleur, finding much to his surprise that she''s much, much stronger than he is...

    Quelaag grabs Bill and throws him in front of her to intercept the spell cast by Fluer, causing the Weasly to get knocked out by his girlfriends Stupefy. "Tell me what I want and I''ll leave peacefully." she states as she conjures a flame over Bills head.

    Fleur''s breath hitches in her throat as she sees this, horrified at the thought of Bill suffering... "I... FINE! I will tell you! Don''t hurt ''im!"

    Quelaag grins, "Good." she says, dispelling the flame as Fleur goes to check on Bill. "Tell me everything..."

    ...

    Quelaag leaves Feurs home a couple hours later, a prominent frown on her face as she walks away... "Just fell in love? What pathetic lie is that? If falling in love was enough then there would be no problem!" she mutters loudly, angrily looking at passerby''s as if they''d just kicked her puppy.

    Fleur had essentially told her that she''d randomly ended up in a relationship with Reima and Ciri... She didn''t really know how it''d all happened, but that was the result. The only concrete thing she''d actually said was that Ciri''s affection was vital for Reima to accept her, something that had Quelaag even more irritated than before... Ciri hadn''t ever shown any indication that she found Quelaag attractive, though, this could be attributed to her spider lower-half...

    Now, however, she was able to use her Animagus transformation to retain a human appearance as long as she wanted... Perhaps this was the key that would allow her to achieve her goals? Only thing to do now is acquiring Ciri''s affection, then she''d be free to give herself to Reima...

    Plans quickly formed and died within her mind as she went through various scenarios which might be successfully or not... Most would require ridiculous circumstances to align, or people to act contrary to how they usually would... No, she couldn''t risk something this important on chance, Quelaag had to be certain it would work.

    Hang on, wasn''t a solution just sitting under her nose the entire time? Last she''d visited Quelina the girl had spoken about a potion that apparently forced someone to love you, perhaps that would work?

    A grin forms on Quelaag''s face, as she begins walking to the labs within Kaer Morhen. "It''s all coming together." she mutters.

 710 Plans

    Hermione walks over and stands above him, blocking the sunshine, "Reima, are you going to help at all? You''ve been watching everyone work for an hour now..."

    Reima smirks, "I am helping." he says, telekinetically tossing a pebble at the half-built stone wall.

    Hermione glowers at him, "You''re so funny." she states, obviously not amused.

    Reima sips his drink and points, "Do you not see my people building the castle for you chuckle-fucks? My agreement with Harry didn''t state I had to help build the thing at all, maybe I should just let you Wizards do it." he says.

    Hermione frowns, "I didn''t mean it like that... Everyone is doing their part, seeing you doing nothing is annoying some people..."

    Reima "Show me these people." he says shooing her.

    Hermione "T-they are busy building the castle."

    Reima shakes his head, "If you have the energy to complain to me, then you have the energy to move your ass and start building." he says, slouching further into his seat and taking a sip from his drink.

    Hermione huffs and walks off, presumably moaning at someone else who isn''t able to tell her to fuck off.

    "Ludvig-san?"

    Reima sighs, "Yes-chan?"

    ...

    He turns and sees Moka standing there with Nerissa...

    Moka "Excuse me?" she asks, frowning.

    Reima "Err, yes-san?" he asks, wondering why she was taking such offense to a harmless joke.

    Moka shakes her head, "Forget it... I wanted to ask you if you could help me bring back my mother."

    Reima eyes her, "Is there a reason you''re not putting the Rosario back on?" he wonders aloud.

    Moka nods, "I will keep it off until we bring my mother back..." she says, not explaining any further.

    Reima nods, "Hmm, alright..." he agrees, Moka''s lips upturning but quickly returning to normal. "There are a few things we need to sort out first however."

    Moka crosses her arms, "And what would that be?"

    Reima "Well, first we have no idea where Alucards body is. Second, I will need the Rosario-"

    Moka "Why do you need it?" she interrupts him.

    Reima "To transfer a soul into a body, I require the soul... Obviously." he says bluntly.

    Moka "I see, but why do you need it now?"

    Reima scratches the back of his head, "I have no idea how many times I''ve seen the "Heroes" lose the important artifact required for "victory"... If you keep hold of it you''ll likely drop it into Alucard''s mouth or something equally stupid." he says, knowing that the Plot-Gods will force something like that to happen.

    Moka growls, "Are you inferring that I am incompetent?"

    She sighs and hands the Rosario over, Reima taking it and immediately storing Akasha''s soul before handing it back to her. "You can use this as bait if you find yourself in trouble." he shrugs.

    Moka takes it and puts it back on, though, it no longer seals her powers like it used to... Without Akasha''s soul it was likely just a useless ornament.

    Reima "As I was saying... The third problem is that we have no idea how strong Alucard is, or if there are people triyng to push for his resurrection... I mean, it''s likely right? There''s always someone trying to do something like that."

    Moka "Trying to destroy the world?"

    Reima shrugs, "Yeah, he wants to wipe out humanity right? What do you think humans will do in response?"

    Nerissa "Nukes." she states.

    Reima nods, "I''m starting to hate nuclear bombs to be honest, they "Solve" every problem humans encounter... Zombie virus? Nuke it, Godzilla? Nuke it, Another country launching a nuke? Nuke it."

    Moka shakes her head at him, "I don''t understand what you''re talking about... When will we be returning to fight revive my mother?"

    Reima shrugs, "Err, get your friends ready, I''ll start looking tomorrow while you guys wait here... I''m faster than you and won''t be as likely to get caught." he says, Moka turning and leaving with a frown on her face.

    Moka looks to Nerissa who''s currently walking beside her, "Is he always like that? So blas¨¦ even about the most important or dangerous things?"

    Nerissa nods, "Rei is strong, confident... Nothing can beat him." she states as if it were a fact.

    Moka "I hope you''re right, my mothers life depends on it."

    Elsewhere :

    Aboard a giant flying island with a huge city atop it, sat seven people around a circular table. They comprised of monsters of every sort who were currently in their human forms.

    A tanned woman with silver hair stood and looked around at all of them appraisingly, "Are our projects progressing well?" she asks.

    A large muscular man with long blonde hair grunts at her, "They are, I''d like to know why we were called to this meeting? I''ve got shit to do."

    In a nearby chair a living set of armour slams his hand onto the table, "You will refer to Shuzen-sama with the respect she deserves Raika!"

    The big man now known as Raika internally grimaces, still not showing weakness despite the overbearing presence given by his ally, "Hmm, my apologies... Shuzen-sama."

    Gyokuro Shuzen slowly nods and waves her hand, signalling for them to continue.

    Kanade Kamiya speaks up, "My area is secure, perhaps you could relocate me somewhere else? Preferably somewhere that didn''t stink of fish?" he asks politely.

    Gyokuro shakes her head, "You will remain, that area is vital to our plans." she states.

 711 Search and Capture

    Gyokuro frowns, "What''s incidents?... Husband."

    Issa "Mikogami has personally destroyed ANTI-THESIS, they didn''t even manage to begin the plan to reveal the school to the human and yet, he still intervened."

    Raika "Yeah? He''s the headmaster of the school, of course he''d interevene." he says as if Issa making shit up."

    Issa shakes his head, "Mikogami has never acted this way before, simply letting the school govern itself. However this year seems to be different... We got word that he was fighting someone when the Acadamy opened."

    Gyokuro "And were crushed by him surely?"

    Issa shakes his head, "No new news has been uncovered, but, I suspect he may have lost against this person."

    ...

    Those present look at each other, not really sure how to react to this information.

    Gyokuro huffs, "Hm, the old man lost in a fight... So what?" she mutters, still not taking Issa''s words seriously.

    Issa "That "old man", just so happens to the one of the two remaining Dark Lords... No ordinary person can defeat him."

    Kanade "So what do you suggest? Should we defeat the Dark Lord while he''s weak?" he questions.

    Issa "No, we need to recruit this person... Or make sure they won''t be a threat to us, everything needs to be known, destroyed, or subdued."

    Gyokuro nods, "What about our... Target?"

    Issa frowns, "Our "Target" is nowhere to be found... Yokai Acadamy had temporarily closed for repairs, but we''ve seen nothing of them..."

    Gyokuro''s eyes widen, "SHE''S GONE!" she screams, causing the others to squint at the sound of her shrill voice.

    Issa nods, "She is.."

    Gyokuro points at all of them, "THEN GO FIND HER! SHE''S THE KEY TO EVERYTHING!! WE CAN ACHIEVE NOTHING IF WE DO NOT HAVE HER!" she shouts which has the subdivision leaders quickly shuffling out of the room, leaving her and Issa alone.

    She sighs and slumps in her chair, "You can change back, they''re gone." she says, causing Issa to change into a bald man with a beard. "Uehara Kazuhiko."

    Uehara stretched his limbs, "Mmmhh, staying in that guy''s form makes me stiff... Do I have to keep doing it?" he complains.

    Gyokuro "Obviously... Issa will be involved whether he likes it or not, but, if you don''t then I''ll have to find someone else to attend to me." she says, unbuttoning the topmost button on her shirt.

    Uehara blushes slightly, "O-Ofcourse I''ll continue Gyokuro-sama... Who could resist you?" he says flatteringly.

    Gyokuro stops her seduction and throws a nearby chair at Uehara, "Go make yourself useful and find my step-daughter, Akashiya Moka."

    One day later :

    Turning on his heels he teleports to Japan, the city where he''d dropped Tsukune off when he wanted to return home.

    Reima smirks to himself, "This counts as a valid reason to dump work on Asgore." he mutters aloud, turning invisible and beginning to fly around with Observaki Haki at full blast.

    With his Dragon Wings out and Yoko mode on, Reima could travel incredibly quickly... Though, even with all of his advantages, searching an entire country takes time.

    He spends around two days in Japan but finds nothing, continuing to Korea and spending a day and a half there... Still nothing.

    He continues and searches Russia, Mongolia, and finally, China, where he finds a few powerful monsters within one large, but relatively normal residence... It looked like a compound of some sort but this didn''t phase Reima... He conceals his aura and maintains his invisibility as he approaches, keeping his Observation Haki activated.

    A few men jog to the building, opening the door and entering inside which allows Reima to slip inside along wit them.

    He follows them and they eventually lead him to a large room with many people sitting on their knees, looking at a young man sitting on the back of a young woman.

    The woman who''s on all fours looks over her shoulder and asks, "Master, how long do I have to remain like this?" Reima sighs in relief that he''d put on the correct translation necklace for the country.

    The man smiles down at her, "Routier, for your failure you will remain my seat for another week." he states.

    It seems that all the guards had finally arrived as one speaks up to the young man, "Young Master Xia-Long! What are you orders!?!" he asks loudly.

    Xia-Long taps his foot and quickly answers, "You will search all of China for a girl with Pink hair and a Rosario around her neck. It is vital that she be captured alive, do you all understand?"

    "YES YOUNG MASTER!" They all shout and leave.

    Reima decides to capture and question this person as they obviously have something to do with Moka, however, as soon as he steps forwards the Young Man''s eyes spring open.

    Xia-Long "Stranger, for what reason have you intruded on my, the Miao family''s property?" he asks, standing and allowing the girl below him to get up as well.

    Reima dispels his invisibility and shrugs, "I don''t know? How about we play a game?"

    Xia-Long smirks, "A game? I must warn you my luck is exemplary."

    Reima shakes his head, "The game I have in mind has me asking you a question, and you answering it... If you refuse I''ll cut your arms, legs, and whatever other body parts that annoy me in the moment."

    Routier "You will not harm master!" she shouts, somehow grabbing a chainsaw out of nowhere...

    Xia-Long rubs Routiers head as he looks at Reima, "You''re awfully violent aren''t you?"

 712 Xianxia Challanger!

    Reima raises a brow at him, "That girl has literally got a chainsaw, and you''re telling me this?" he asks in disbelief.

    Xia-Long "Enough talk, you will not leave here alive." he says as he backs away with his hand in his pocket.

    Routier gives a shout as she charges at Reima, her chainsaw giving off a roar as she swings it towards him.

    Reima smacks the side of it away and flicks the girl on her forehead, sending her flying back at her master.

    Xia-Long dodges his flying servant and points his skull-topped cane at Reima...

    *BANG!*

    A burst of smoke occurs and covers the room, however Reima''s Observation Haki makes him aware of something strange that''d appeared where Xia-Long was pointing.

    Xia-Long "Unlike most brutes you''ve no doubt faced, I prefer to meld my two passions... Nature, and man-made destruction!" he shouts as the smoke clears, revealing a large plant with the barrel of a gun connected to it.

    ...

    Reima glares at it as if it''d insulted his mother, "What the fuck is-" *BANG!*

    The plant-gun-thing had fired a magical projectile that hits Reima in the chest... And does nothing.

    ...

    Xia-Long looks at Reima thoughtfully, "I wonder what kind of Yokai you actually are?" he wonders aloud.

    Reima "I''ll give you a hint if you start spilling your secrets." he says with a grin.

    Xia-Long "Hmm, this one creature apparently isn''t enough to stop you? Then, how about this!" he shouts, smoke yet again filling the room.

    Reima telekinetically opens a nearby window and blows it all out, getting tired of feeling as if he were inside a rave... He looks at the new creatures summoned and sighs, "Oh gee, what a surprise... More Plant-Guns..." he says, waving his hand and causing fire to envelop and destroy them.

    Xia-Long''s eyes widen as he sees Reima easily destroy his summons... "Fine! IF THAT WON''T DO, THEN TAKE THIS!" he shouts, summoning something so large that it causes the ceiling to crumble, the young man taking refuge under his summon as the building collapses atop them.

    Reima casts a Quen shield around him and waits as the dust slowly settles, the only thing still standing being him and the humungous plant with what looks like an artillery cannon connected to it.... "This is really, really stupid... I doubt even a nuclear blast would hurt me, and yet you''re summoning this shit?" he asks aloud as Xia-Long crawls out with Routier, both completely covered in dust.

    Xia-Long "You lie stranger! You''ll not be able to withstand the Miao clans techniques!" he shouts as the plant fires at Reima... Who slaps the magical projectile away which causes it to explode in the sky like a firework...

    Routier rapidly swings her chainsaw at the now demonic blade-plant that''d turned on them, only barely managing to hold them off as Xia-Long starts pummeling one with his cane.

    Xia-Long "What have you done to my summons!" he screams in fury.

    Reima shrugs, "A simple change in Aesthetic. I think I prefer them this way actually." he says, walking towards the duo as they desperately destroy the Humanity corrupted plants.#

    Xia-Long "Enough! I will give everything, even my life-force to defeat you!" he shouts, chanting a spell and casting it at Reima, falling to his knees in exhaustion immediately afterward.

    *BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!*

    Numerous plants of every kind begin exploding from the ground around Reima, Gatling guns, rocket launchers, pistols, shotguns, and any other you can conceive of can be seen atop the plants, all pointing at Reima.

    Reima crosses his arms, "This didn''t work before, why would it work-"

    *BAAAAANGBANGABNGBANGBANGBANG!*

    A volley of explosions go off as every weapon fires simultaneously at Reima, magical bullets, rockets, and grenades are shot at him and add to the destruction. It''s around three minutes later when the final plant seems to run out of ammunition, Routier looking on while giving her master a lap pillow, hoping that the enemy had been defeated.

    Something starts glowing within the dust cloud, however, causing her instincts to flare... She picks up Xia-Long and starts running, but its already too late to get out of the area of effect...

    *BOOM!*

    An explosion is released from Reima''s plan which causes a fiery wall to expand outwards, incinerating all the nearby plants and hitting Routier in the back, flinging her a few meters away.

    She slowly rolls to a stop with Xia-Long in her arms unconscious, both of them covered in horrific burns.

    Reima sweatdrops as he looks around at the destruction, not having intended to kill the Xianxia character or his servant. "Fuck, if this means I have to go looking for another lead then I''m going to resurrect your Chinese ass." he mutters stomping over to the injured duo.

    Routier looks up at the completely uninjured Reima and begs, "Please sir, don''t hurt us! We were wrong! We failed to recognize Mount Tai!" she shouts.

    Reima rubs his face, pulling out some healing potions and dumping it over their heads before opening a portal and telekinetically dragging them both through it.

    They end up within a cell in the Painted World, screams could already be heard from some poor tortured soul...

    The scream stop as small feet rapidly tap against the ground, eventually appearing on the other side of the bars.

    Hinky "Master! Have you brought more toys!?!" they ask excitedly.

    Reima grins, "Yes Hinky... I have." he says, looking down menacingly at the burned duo.

 713 Kung-fang

    ...

    "AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

    ...

    "AHHHHHHHHHHHH-"

    Reima "Hinky! He''s already talked, just kill him already!" he shouts down the hallway as he thinks about the information Xia-Long had given him.

    *SPURT!*

    Reima nods at the sound, satisfied that another "Young Master" douchebag had been ridden from the world.

    *Tap, Tap, Tap, Tap*

    Hinky runs in, completely covered in blood with a smile on its face, "Master! Prisoner has lost his head!"

    Reima "Good, what''d you do with the woman?" he asks.

    Hinky "Womans dead after man..." she explains, Routier somehow being connected with Xia-Long...

    Reima shrugs, "Eh, no big loss..." he mutters, "You should go help with building Hogwarts Hinky, thanks for your assistance." he says, waving them off as they pop away.

    Reima then starts thinking about the information they''d... "Extracted" from Xia-Long... This organisation called Fairy Tale seems to be at the center of everything, especially when they''re specifically targeting Moka.

    The unfortunately departed prisoner had also revealed the location of the place... Apparently it sat atop a floating island that was constantly on the move, its last location was apparently around Europe... Though, it''d been long enough to where that wouldn''t be true any longer.

    Additionally, the enemy also had an army at their disposal, a large army of Yokai that could potentially rival his Prospects and Chaos Servants strength-wise. Xia-Long himself said he was a sub-division leader along with six others... The divisions themselves each served different purposes and operated in different territories, and the leaders were apparently much more powerful than Xia-Long had been... Reima wasn''t really all that worried, but if Moka wanted to accompany him while he raided this floating island they''d need to keep it in mind.

    The organisation itself only had one goal... The complete annihilation of humanity. World Domination probably goes along with that, but that''s a given for the "Bad guys", another thing that had Reima worried was the fact that Issa and Gyokuro Shuzen are apparently higher-ups within Fairy Tale... Their role as Moka''s parents would have her conflicted and may even prevent the resurrections of Akasha depending on the situation.

    Reima "Let''s just see what happens..." he mutters, teleporting away with a blink.

    Elsewhere :

    Yukari "Show me it again!" she asks with a smile.

    Luna tilts her head to the side, "You want to see it again?" she asks, surprised that someone would want to see it again... Yukari rapidly nods her head and Luna points her wand towards the training ground again while chanting "Expecto Patronum!"

    Moka raises an eyebrow at it and glances towards Nerissa who shrugs.

    Yukari "Wow! I wonder if I''ll ever be able to cast that!" she exclaims, attempting to pet the skittish Patronus charm.

    Luna smiles, "You can... All you need to do is be happy."

    Yukari''s eyes widen, "Really?!" she shouts, immediately bringing out her own wand and making an attempt. "Expecto Patronum!"

    *Fizzle*

    Unfortunately, the only thing that escapes her wand is a spray of white particles, not even beginning to form into any valid shape.

    Yukari "Ah... But, I''m happy? Why won''t it work?"

    Luna "You need to be happier!" she says.

    ...

    The two witches continue showing each other various spells while Nerissa and Moka resume their sparring... Moka had requested they start seriously preparing to fight Alucard, not wishing to waste a moment of preparation if it meant life or death.

    Moka launches forwards, her martial abilities having been honed early on in her life and allowing her to focus on a singular goal... Beating Nerissa.

    Nerissa herself was physically weaker than Moka, but excelled in swordsmanship and her other unique vampiric abilities... However, she''d decided not to use Iaito or her other abilities in order to not overpower Moka and make it a fair fight.

    She ducks under a punch from Moka but doesn''t spot the followup kick, moving in close to reduce the impact and only managing to receive a knee to the stomach, knocking her a few meters away and having her roll to a stop.

    She springs back onto her feat, flinching slightly at the bruise beginning to form from the blow. Moka kicks off the ground again, causing a small crater to form as she attempts to deliver another round-house kick to Nerissa''s chest.

    Nerissa had seen Moka use this move many times however, it being her most commonly used one... She dashes forwards, delivering a plan strike to her shoulder while hooking her right leg around Moka''s left, the combo''s managing to knock her off balance...

    Moka was used to kind of maneuver, somehow turning while grabbing Nerissa''s extended arm and performing a shoulder throw. Pile driving Nerissa into the ground below her which causes dust to rise from the impact.

    Nerissa has the wind knock out of her but still continues, punching Moka in the nose and trapping her head within her thighs. The younger vampiress hands from the other while performing a triangle choke.

    Moka grits her teeth as she feels her neck be constricted, Nerissa''s short stature making the choke even tighter than usual... She attempts to pry the young girl off of her but is unable to force her off, Nerissa pulls tighter, and tighter, with Moka going slightly blue from lack of oxygen.

    Moka''s pride won''t allow her to be defeated like this, she stands up and prepares to slam Nerissa onto the ground as hard as possible. If this fails then she''d surely go unconscious...

    Nerissa squints as she feels herself being raised up, as Moka brings her down she changes her position, flipping a leg up and swapping into an armbar, Moka struggles but slips, causing them both fall to the floor awkwardly in a pile...

 714 Falling Debris

    Moka and Nerissa look up and see Reima with his arms crossed, a grin plastered across his face.

    Reima "You two gonna get up or should I give you a couple minutes?"

    Moka gets to her feet, "We were sparring, but even if we were not it would still not be your business Ludvig-san." she says with Nerissa raising a brow at her.

    Reima looks surprised at her words, "Ah, do you swing that way Moka?"

    Moka huffs, "Vampires don''t "swing" either way, the gender of whoever we form bonds with doesn''t matter to us." she states.

    ...

    Reima stares at her for a while, eventually regaining his composure when Nerissa kicks his shin. "That... Is an interesting bit of information." he says, glancing at Nerissa who doesn''t seem bothered by it.

    Moka decides to change the subject as Reima was acting weirdly... "Are there any leads as to where Alucard might be?"

    Reima nods, "Yeah, I managed to capture some guy called Xia-Long Miao and... He volunteered some information pertaining to an organisation called Fairy Tale."

    Moka snorts, "Fairy Tale? Are you sure this information is reliable?"

    Reima grins sadistically, "Oh, I have no doubts..."

    Moka "Well? Let''s hear it." she presses.

    Reima "Right, funnily enough this organisation is currently searching for you Moka, you are apparently very important to their plans for the future."

    Moka "And what are their plans? World Dominations? Yokai superiority?"

    Reima scratches the back of his head, "You sure you haven''t heard of these guys? You''ve just listed their "To-do-list"... But yeah, the annihilation of humanity is their main goal."

    Moka "Regardless if Alucard is there, destroying them wouldn''t bother me." she states, Nerissa nodding next to her.

    Reima "Me neither, Fairy Tale is apparently located atop a flying island fortress. Xia-Long had said it was in Europe last he saw, but I doubt it''d remain in the same place."

    Moka "Will you continue looking?" she asks, knowing that as a King Reima had responsibilities elsewhere. It''d be selfish to demand his assistance when others probably needed it more urgently.

    Reima nods, "Yeah, shouldn''t be long... I reckon it''s traveling east judging by what Xia-Long had said. I''ll let you know when I find it and we''ll storm the place together." he says, turning and blinking away to go search for it.

    It wasn''t long before Reima had located the Island and headed there with Nerissa and Moka in tow. It''d only taken a couple days to find the headquarters of Fairy Tale, the Island lingering above Kazakhstan for some unknown reason...

    Three figures cast a shadow onto a floating island fortress, hundreds of people could be seen aboard it walking around like ants, though, none of them had noticed the three figures yet...

    Moka frowns at him, Nerissa holding her up under her armpits.. "I am not helpless, I want to fight to bring my mother back."

    Reima shrugs, "Atleast we manage to convicne the others to stay behind... Yukari, Mizore, and Luna aren''t ready for something like this I don''t think."

    Moka and Nerissa nod, "They aren''t fighters, they''d be a liability if we brought them."

    Reima "Hm, atleast we aren''t over any populated areas... Kazakhstan shouldn''t notice if we drop an Island on them." he thinks aloud, confusing the duo.

    Moka "Excuse me?"

    Reima "I was just thinking how much easier it''d be to deal with this place if it was grounded..." he says ominously. "You two should get some distance from me, It''s about to get hot." he says activating Yoko mode, a gold aura enveloping his body and causing it to glow.

    Even with the glowing person above their heads the members of Fairy Tale fail to notice him... That is, until he raises the staff of Manus, the head of it lighting up so brightly it looks like a second sun to the ants below...

    "What''s that!?!"

    "An attack?"

    "A celestial movement?"

    "IS GOD DESCENDING!?!"

    Reima "Eat fire fuckers!" he shouts, the miniature sun compressing into a blade which he brings down on the Island. It doesn''t cause any impact whatsoever though, causing those below to think its just an illusion of some kind...

    *CRACK!*

    Those thoughts were quickly extinguished as the Island begins to part, it splitting into two halves and beginning to fall to the vast plains below. The only human''s in-sight being a few Shepards who immediately run in the other direction, a good idea considering the city sized meteor heading for the earth.

    Moka''s eyes widen to a comedic degree, the blade of fire unleashed by Reima not having been in her expectations... She''s thought he''d damage the flying mechanism or something similar, never dreaming that he''d simply split the entire thing in two.

    Almost immediately the people aboard the two falling pieces of fortress start transforming into their monster forms, those with wings fleeing while the ground and water based monster cursed them and pleaded for help.

    "You bastards! Don''t just leave us here!"

    "SAVE US, PLEASE!"

    "I WANT MY MOMMY!"

    "I THINK I JUST PISSED MYSELF!"

    "OH MY GOD! KENNY''S BEEN SPLIT IN HALF! YOU BASTARDS!"

    The many voices cry out as they continue to descend, unfortuantely no one will save them, their fates having already been decided...

    *BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!*

    The loudest explosion Reima had ever heard goes off as the Island hits the ground, causing an earthquake to start and a huge cloud of dust to rise, blocking his view towards the ruins below.

    Reima grins, "I''ve always wanted to drop an Island on someone." he says with a chuckle.

    Moka "We need Alucard alive to bring back my mother!" she shouts, taking off her shoe and throwing it at Reima.

    Reima catches it and telekinetically puts it back on for her, "You think the guy who almost destroyed the world would be taken out like a chump? I doubt it!... Let''s go check out the ruins!"

 715 Make like a tree and leaf...

    Issa "It is true my wife, the rest of the Miao clan is in an uproar due to some unknown man destroying their main house and capturing Xia-Long... The device monitoring his vitality has revealed that he is long dead." he explains, grimacing at Gyokuro''s voice.

    Raika "What does that pipsqueak being dead have to do with us?" he asks, the rest of the table nodding.

    Gyokuro "What does it have to do with you? It means someone is hunting our members!" she shouts.

    Issa shakes his head, "Not necessarily, the Miao family has been feuding with many other Chinese organisations for years... It isn''t unlikely that one of them are the culprit."

    A tall tanned man with leaves for hair shakes his head, "No... I feel as though we are being targetted..." he says, as though a feeling is worth noting.

    Gyokuro "I agree Mayklikeatrii, that''s why I''ve called for backup." she says with a smile, waving her hand at the door as two figures step inside. "Please introduce yourselves for our friends."

    A tall tanned girl with average-length blonde hair, red eyes, and a revealing dress walks in first, and trips on her dress... She scrambles to get up with a blush on her face and eventually introduces herself. "I am Kahlua Shuzen, please treat me well." she says with a bow, revealing two cross-shaped earrings.

    The next is a shorter girl with long pitch-black hair like Issa, and slitted red eyes. She gives a glare at everyone present and crosses her arms, "Akua Shuzen." she says bluntly.

    Raika stands with a frown, "What''re two little girls going to help us wi-Hurghk!" he''s stopped when Akua appears next to him, her hand shaped in a "Karate chop" which slices through the heavy metal table and ends at his throat.

    ...

    A bead of sweat drips down his face as he begs the girl for his life with his eyes...

    ...

    Gyokuro "Enough daughter, he''s got the message."

    Akua withdraws her hand and walks back next to Kahlua, "What is it you need us to do Mother, Father?" she asks respectfully.

    Issa "We require you to... Is it me or is it getting hot in he-"

    Mayklikeatrii "OH MOTHER NATURE''S ASS-CRACK!" He shouts, running to a nearby window and throwing open the curtain. It''s incredibly bright outside but everyone present can see what''s happening... Another sun had appeared over the island...

    Gyokuro dashes over, "What is that!?!" she shouts yet again.

    Everyone stays silent... That is, until it forms into a blade and starts heading towards them.

    "AHHHH!" one person screams and punches their way out of the room through the wall, getting to the side of the island and jumping off... Despite not having any means of flight...

    Mayklikeatrii "Ahh! Help, help, ohh sweet nature help!" he screams, Kanade walking over with a scowl and dousing him with water, setting out the flames.

    Kanade "Fool! I told you before, if you are a nature spirit then wear fire retardent clothing!" he says, giving Mayklikeatrii a kick which has him slowly getting up.

    Raika "Being on fire isn''t the dire of our problems ya'' idiots! Look!" he points over the edge of the island at the rapidly approaching ground below.

    Gyokuro "Miyabi! Surely you can do something!?" she shouts, after seeing no one else having any good ideas.

    Miyabi, a black-haired man with red eyes and wearing a suit shrugs, "I do... Leave the weaklings." he states, black wings bursting from his back as he leaps off the side of the island.

    Issa looks nervous but nods regardless, "I... I agree." he says, growing weak looking wings on his back and glancing at Gyokuro.

    She bites her lip and grabs his collar, releases her seals and using the vampire ability known as "Wealth of Power" which allows vampires to change their bodies at will, to grow wings.

    Gyokuro leaps off and flies off with Kahlua releasing her own seals, picking up Akua and following their mother.

    Mayklikeatrii "Wait! You can''t leave me! We''re allies!" he shouts, grabbing Raika''s shoulder.

    Raika explodes with electricity, releasing his true form and punting Mayklikeatrii away, "I''d say sorry, but I try not to lie." he states, his body now covered with yellow fur and his head resembling some kind of horned lion... With a flash of lightning he disappears.

    Kanade smirks at his injured ally and sprouts white feathered wings, "Alas, I refuse to dirty my hands with... Well, dirt. Farewell tree-man." he says, flying away.

    Gairen Yuki follows suit, leaving Mayklikeatrii to his fate despite having the capabilities to easily save him.

    Mayklikeatrii falls to his knees, looking up at the sky where three shadows look down at them with nonchalance. "Is this my fate?" he wonders, shaking his head and surrounding himself with thick roots, hoping it''d shield enough of the impact to save his life.

    *BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!*

    The island hits the earth, killing most of the subordinates of Fairy Tale, the only survivors being those lucky enough to be able to fly, tank the impact, or get assistance from some of the more powerful Yokai.

    The surviving Sub-division leaders are completely covered in dust as the slowly glide to the ground, hoping that the creature contained within the island hadn''t been disturbed... Or worse, awakened...

 716 Lightning fast reactions

    Moka "Do you see Alucard?" she asks, reminding Reima that they''re not just destroying an organisation...

    Reima "Eh... Ah, right..." he mutters, having completely forgotten about it. Within the cloud he can detect numerous survivors, some seeming to be stronger than others but more are either flying or crippled on the ground floor.

    He continues to scan for Alucard but has to grab Moka and Nerissa to dodge something heading for them...

    *CRACKLE!*

    A yellow lightning bolt passes by where they''d previously been. The trio look down at the cloud and Reima swipes his hand, casting a powerful Aard and blowing the majority of it away.

    "You''ve destroyed our headquarters! But you won''t leave here alive!" a voice shouts, drawing their attention to some kind of yellow-haired humanoid beast.

    Reima "What kind of ugly dump did your mother shit out..." he mutters, though everyone could hear him.

    "YOU DARE!?! I AM RAIKA! FITH SUB-DIVISION LEADER OF FAIRY TALE, I WILL DESTROY YOU!" He roars.

    Moka "It''s a Raiju, an S class monster." she says behind Reima, still being carried by Nerissa.

    Reima raises an eyebrow "A lucky bastard?" he asks, righteous indignation building within him.

    Moka tries to kick him in the back of the head but isn''t able to reach him, "No! A thunder beast you fool!"

    Raika "That''s right! Its time to meet your end stranger! I''ll be taking that girl with me after I''m done with you!" he shouts as lightning begins to coalesce around his body.

    Reima gets some distance from the others and flies towards Raika, not yet drawing his blade... "So, dog-face... You have any idea where I might find some Shuzens?" he asks, they being the most likely to know where Alucard is.

    Raika''s eyes widen briefly before turning to normal, "I do... LET ME TELL YOU!" He shouts suddenly, attempting to attack Reima off-guard

    *THUMP!*

    Raika collides with Reima who makes no attempt to stop the moment, both being flung high into the air as the former tries to deliver punches and kicks to the other...

    Reima blocks them with ease, the lightning not affecting him in the slightest... "Compared to Solaire you''re nothing dog." he mutters, blocking another punch, grabbing the wrist and wrenching the arm backwards... Dislocating the Elbow, Shoulder, and breaking many bones within it.

    Raika gives a pained grunt as he feels his arm utterly destroyed, he kicks off of Reima who lets him retreat. The Raiju fires off more lightning, each bolt hitting and bouncing off Reima as if he were made of rubber. "Why, won''t, you, DIE!" He shouts, unleashing the biggest bolt thus far which strikes Reima in the chest and has him give grimace in pain.

    Raika "Hah! Had enough!?!" he shouts, not relenting his assault.

    Reima cannot help the small grin coming to his face as something quickly flies from the sky above him...

    *CLANK!*

    Within the blink of an eye, Reima had drawn his blade and was defending against another figure... Her tanned skin and blond hair wasn''t the most notable thing... No, that would belong to the massive bladed wing where her arm should be that was grinding against his own blade.

    Reima "You''ve finally stop sneaking around like a rat... Bat?..." he mutters, his Divinely enchanted silver blade beginning to harm the blade wing it was in contact with.

    "I''m sorry!" she says, her tearful expression confusing him...

    Raika "Kahlua! Stop apologizing and kill him!" she shouts, approaching to assist her.

    Some distance away Moka looks on Kahlua in horror and disbelief, "Sister?" she mutters.

    Nerissa "Sister?" she asks.

    Moka "Kahlua, my elder-sister... Why is she here... Why is she doing this?"

    Nerissa frowns, "Tell Rei, before she dies." she states, Moka''s eyes widening.

    Reima is about to cut this girls arms and legs off, but is interrupted by a voice, "Don''t hurt my sister!" Moka shouts...

    Reima "Bro, tell her not to hurt me!" he shouts, kicking Kahlua away and blinking behind Raika.

    Raika isn''t able to react as Reima''s blade cuts him in half, his upper-half looking around confused at the loss of feeling to its legs before plummeting to its death.

    His body collides against the floor hard, splattered blood everyone, however, the red paint nor decorating the floor ominously starts being absorbed, the stone seeming to draw the blood as well as the corpse into itself.

    Reima eyes Moka''s sister, wondering if there was a way to incapacitate her without killing her... "If you don''t stop I''ll be forced to hurt you." he says carefully.

    Kahlua "Please run... I''m sorry!" she cries as she flies forwards and slashes at Reima again.

    He blocks the bladed wing with an Armament Haki infused hand and uses the pommel of his silver sword to hit her in the face, knocking her head back fiercely enough that it''d break the neck of any regular human.

    She isn''t unconscious yet though so he grabs her hair and begins descending, brutally slamming her head into the floor as the reach the ruins.

    Reima holds the girl back up to see if she''s knocked out yet, her blade heading for his neck irritating him more than he''d like to admit... "Just, fucking, go-to, sleep!" he says, slamming her head into the floor a couple more times.

    After innumerable impacts to the floor Kahlua''s body begins to liquefy, covering his hand and crawling up his arm like some kind of slime.

    He tries to shake her off to no avail, casting a couple high powered stunners at her which also prove ineffective... Whatever she is, she''s freakishly resistant to being knocked unconscious!

    Kahlua "I''mmmm sorrryy." she somehow manages to say, her voice sounding distorted from her slime-like form.

 717 Troublesome creatures

    *VHOOM!*

    Like a shadow, one of them collides with Nerissa, carrying her away as Moka falls, not having anyone holding her up anymore.

    Moka doesn''t care about her own safety, instead turning to look for Nerissa and spotting the young vampiress grabbed by two people who suspiciously look like her parens... "Rissa!" she shouts as she plummets to the earth.

    Reima notices this all happening and tries to help, but Kahlua half-reforms into her humanoid body, pulling him back and entangling around his leg to prevent him from moving. Spikes form from her body and stab at him, catching him off guard and drawing blood as they dig a couple millimeters into his flesh. "You''re beginning to piss me off." he says, ignoring her and telekinetically slowing Moka''s fall.

    He loosens the restrictions on his aura which begin to rapidly heat up the surroundings, the wounds caused by Kahlua beginning to release molten blood and scolding her... Though, she doesn''t seem to notice the damage being done to her.

    Reima again attempts to cast sleep spells, stunners, and any other magic that can effectively incapacitate without dealing damage on her, but nothing works!... She''s apparently immune to being knocked out, an incredibly annoying fact considering that''s just about all Reima can do to avoid harming her.

    As Nerissa combats the new arrivals he''s split on whether or not to simply just kill Kahlua, he was honestly reaching the limit of his patience, wishing to assist Nerissa as soon as possible... He''d try to teleport if it weren''t for the fact Kahlua''s slime form had managed to get inside of his clothing, making it difficult to distinguish her own form... He''d probably end up killing her if he tried it.

    Nerissa had been grabbed by two winged people, A handsome black-haired man that look suspiciously like one of her ancestors, along with a tanned silver-haired woman. She attempts to draw her blade but finds a strong hand on the handle preventing it.

    Gyokuro "No so fast little one, or we''ll have to do something drast-" she''s cut off as Nerissa slams her fist into the woman face with an uppercut, freeing herself from their grasp.

    Nerissa "Don''t touch, hag." she mutters, her mist wings flapping to gain some distance from them.

    Gyokuro "You fucking bitch! How dare you hit me! I''LL KILL YOU!" She screeches, flying towards and attempting to kick Nerissa is the face.

    Nerissa performs a draw strike with Iaito, cutting a large wound into Gyokuro''s leg which has her shout in pain. The wound slowly heals due to her vampiric abilities but the silver inhibits it regardless.

    Nerissa prepares to defend against another attack but is hit in the back by somekind of sound wave, launching her towards Gyokruo who delivers an axe kick which shoots her towards the ruins of Fairy Tale.

    Moka watches at Nerissa hits the ground, running over to try and help her...

    *Bang!*

    Something hits the ground next to her like a meteorite, launching shrapnel into the air. She manages to shield herself against the stone shards and looks over, her mouth opening as she sees her father lying in the crater.

    Moka ignores him and continues to run for Nerissa but has her wrist grabbed...

    Issa "Akashiya Mok-Daughter... Help your father up..." he asks, her grip firm.

    Moka frowns at him, "Let go, I need to help my friend!" she says, giving a tug and pulling Issa out of the crater has he attempts to stop her.

    Issa growls, "You WILL obey me!" he growls.

    Nerissa had just hit the ground, hard, but got to her feet regardless... She wields her sword and looks at whoever had just sneak attacked her, eventually spotting two people... A handsome man with longer silver hair wielding a harp, and a suit of Japanese armour.

    Kanade "Don''t worry girl, not many can say they were personally slain by god." he says, flying above her with angel-like wings.

    Gyokuro lands on the ground, her wounds already healed and arms transformed into similar bladed wings as her daughter... She dashes forwards in a rage, slashing and stabbing at Nerissa, the girl easily dodging the haphazard attacks and dealing small amounts of damage in return...

    The living suit of armour Gairen Yuki land heavily to the floor and begins assisting Gyokuro against Nerissa.

    Reima grits his teeth and decides to intervene, even if Moka hates him for it afterwards... He forces himself forwards, Kahlua''s body being torn in half as it attempts to stop him. Her pained scream doesn''t faze him as he rockets towards the suit of armour... He collides with it and causes as a shockwave to echo out and dust to rise.

    As it clears all that''s left of Gairen Yuki is a molten puddle of metal and remnants of crumpled armour... Reima stands above it with flames licking his feet.

    Gyokuro has her arm cut off by Nerissa as she''s distracted by Reima, Kanade attacking her again and causing numerous internal injuries to the young girl... Unfortunately for him, he''d done it within range of Reima.

    *Blink*

    *Cut*

    Kanade looks down just as his head splits in half, his body having been bisected... "I-Impossibru..." he manages to gasp before finally dying.

    Reima turns his gaze to Nerissa, the girl staring up at him with a small smile... A shadow shifts behind her however, his sudden change of expression causing Nerissa to turn and block with her blade.

    *CLANK!*

    Akua Shuzen had swiped her hand at Nerissa but it was blocked by Iaito... She looks on in confusion at not having cut her enemy in two... "H-How, blocking this is impossible!"

    Reima doesn''t wait a moment and blinks above Akua, smashing his foot heavily into her face... His aura burns her heavily and the impact crushes her skull, if she were not a vampire she''d definitely have no survived this.

 718 Fouled Blood

    ...

    She looks down and feels her chest, the fabric of her dress falling away and revealing that a fist sized hole had been created where her heart would be... "Rei?" she mutters, falling forwards and into his arms.

    ...

    Reima isn''t able to process what''d just happened, this girl hadn''t managed to hit Nerissa right?... Then HOW!?!

    He grinds his foot against Akua''s skull as his aura is unconsciously released due to his roiling emotions, he spots Nerissa''s flesh beginning to be burned which has him quickly restricted his aura...

    Reima "Rissa get up!" he shouts, shaking her gently but receiving no response.

    The world goes silent, his Observation Haki flaring as if it were trying to find answers to solve this situation. His eyes scan the ruins of Fairy Tale... Eventually landing on Gyokuro. His rage bubbles at the sight of her but rational thoughts prevail, memories of her rapid regeneration causing him to teleport next to her.

    She''d been watching the fight between Akua and the duo, attempting to regrow her arm so she could reenter the fight... A hand wraps around her skull and forcefully turns her head, making her look into the furious eyes of Reima.

    Without a second thought he bites a chunk out of her neck, spitting out the flesh and taking in a large amount of Gyokuro''s blood into his mouth.

    Gyokur o"AH! W-WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?!" she screams as he continues to hold her still, dropping her when he''s unable to hold anymore blood.

    He then opens Nerissa''s mouth and helps the blood flow down her throat by massaging her gullet with his hand, the girl slowly managing to take it in... He would feel weird about this, but under the circumstances, he considered it similar to CPR... An essential life-saving technique.

    His eyes dart to her wound, spotting that it doesn''t seem to be closing... He grits his teeth, there isn''t much time left... He''d store her soul if he had to but create a body out of nothing would be virtually impossible at this stage, the only reason it''d work for Akasha being that her body is still technically alive, her soul just being split.

    Reima "Fuck! Please fucking work!!" he shouts, restricting his aura and cutting his wrist before allowing the girl to drink his own blood.

    *Gulp, Gulp, Gulp*

    Instantly he notices changes, the girl''s wound closing but knitting itself back together... Recreating her heart and allowing her to breathe again.

    Reima hugs her to his chest as she begins healing, thankful that she was alive...

    *Tremble*

    ...

    *Woom*

    Small spatial tears begin opening and closing within Nerissa, taking small pieces of her body and teleporting them away somewhere, effectively wounding her.

    Reima had never seen anything like this before and attempts to stop them from opening, this only makes things worse as the spatial tears get wider than before... Seeming to increase in size the more resistance they meet.

    "GET OFF OF ME!" A familiar voice shots, Reima''s head zipping around and spotting Moka being dragged somewhere by a black-haired man and Gyokuro.

    Gyokuro "Haha! Now that I''ve got the Rosario, the world will be mine!" she shouts victoriously.

    Miyabi "Be quiet, we need to be quick." he says, breaking into a sprint with Moka being pulled behind him.

    Reima slowly follows after them with Nerissa in his arms, still attempting to find a solution to the spatial rifts slowly tearing her body apart... Her eyes flicker open, small streams of blood dripping down her face as spatial rifts over more wound over it. "Rissa?" he asks hopefully.

    Nerissa "Save, Moka..." she utters, passing out again.

    Reima rubs his face and nods, laying her on the ground and blinking towards where Moka is...

    Miyabi and Gyokuro had reached a part of the ruins where some kind of seal had previously been... The only thing that survived in a wide stone platform that''d bee split in half, the cross shaped hole in the middle of it obviously broken.

    Miyabi frowns, "It seems we''ll have to do this the hard way then." he says, kicking a crippled surviving Fairy Tale member out of the way and dragging Moka over... Positioning her arm over the hole and cutting her wrist deeply, allowing the blood to flow into the halved cross-shaped seal.

    Moka "Get, off, of, me!" she shouts, kicking Gyokuro away as she lets her guard down and headbutting Miyabi... Her attacks deals damage to him but he doesn''t let go.

    Miyabi "It''s already too late child, he''s awakening." he says, the ground underneath them rapidly shaking.

    The rubble of Fairy Tale shifts and reveals what''s under it... Black flesh can be seen as the creature begins to move. Reima blinks beside Moka and sends a heavy glare at Miyabi and Gyokuro, "I''m going to enjoy killing you both."

    Miyabi smirks, "It''s too late for that... I''m immortal!" he proclaims, widening his arms and allowing himself to fall backwards into the writhing sea of black flesh.

    Gyokuro''s eyes widen at this as she follows, Moka''s Rosario in-hand. However, she finds herself telekentically grabbed and lifted, Reima dashing forwards and stabbing both hands into her chest, moving them apart and tearing her body in half.

    The light in the woman''s eyes quickly fades as her body is absorbed into the flesh of the monster, Alucard.

    Reima "Moka, go look after Rissa... I''m going to destroy this cunt." he mutters, his demeanor giving no room to refuse. She slowly backs away, her eyes remaining on the gigantic monster sprouting from the ground, only the thoughts of Nerissa helping her to tear her eyes away from it.

 719 Immortal?

    Reima looks up as two huge arms push from the ground, the upper body of Alucard sitting up and looking down at him... The creature itself is around 200 meters tall with firm and hardy black flesh making its form, its humanoid-like, though the only visible part of it currently is its upper body.

    The earth itself trembles as it moves, bending down to present Miyabi Fujisaki to Reima from an indentation within its head.

    Miyabi "I must thank you for assisting in my revival, I''d have thought it would take a few more years to see its fruition, but you''ve expedited that process." Reima doesn''t say anything and just glares at the man, "Not so talkative anymore? Let me introduce myself and we''ll see if that''ll get your tongue moving... I am Alucard, former king of Wallachia and future ruler of this world."

    Reima shakes his head and grips his Silver Blade, "Forgive my impoliteness but, shut the fuck up, you giant cunt." he growls, Yoko mode activating and breathing him in a Golden aura, releasing the restriction on his own body and causing the surrounding temperature rise considerably.

    Miyabi doesn''t seem bothered by his words instead, just smiling at him, "I''ll ignore your words if you surrender and serve under me... I will need powerful servants such as yourse-" He''s interrupted as a blade of fire is fired at him, forcing him to retreat within the black flesh to avoid it... The blade shot by Reima cuts into the black flesh deeply, but its resistance and size prevents it from going all the way.

    Miyabi appears from the shoulder this time, the monstrous body of Alucard standing and revealing its true size at around 400 meters tall. "You''ll regret that!" he shouts, a giant black arm raising in preparation to crush Reima like a bug.

    His wings flap as he shoots into the air, a trail of dark red fire left in his wake... He flies towards the hand heading for him and readies his blade, slicing at it as he gets into range.

    A spurt of black blood comes from the arm, but it continues traveling, going through where Reima had just been and hitting the floor, causing an earthquake in the surrounding area.

    Miyabi "Hahaha! TO THINK YOU COULD MATCH ME! FOOLISH!" he shouts as he laughs hysterically, not noticing the Turqouise flash far above him.

    Reima flies downward as fast as he can, his sword pointing directly at Miyabi. Alucards body reacts before Miyabi does, its hand moving to swipe Reima out of the air, but its too slow to prevent the attack...

    Miyabi "Wha-Aaarrrghh!" he groans as Reima''s blade stabs him through the heart and pins him against Alucard''s body. "H-how!" he demands, attempting to push Reima''s blade from his chest but only succeeding in horribly mutilating his hands.

    In his weakened state, there''s nothing he can do to resist it, and like a dementor''s kiss his soul is sucked out through his mouth and stored into Reima...

    For some reason however, his body begins to break down and fade into dust... Something that shouldn''t happen to this world''s vampires.

    With Miyabi gone Alucard should go back to sleep, he was the one controlling the monster so it wouldn''t be strange for that to be the case... The gigantic hand still heading for Reima disputes this though.

    *Flash*

    He blinks away again just as the hand collides with Alucard''s shoulder, creating a shockwave that''d kill a regular human if stood close enough. Reima frowns, not really having any idea how to kill this monster... It would definitely resist him if he tried to remove its soul, and its regenerative abilities made it impossible to kill... That, and its size didn''t allow him to annihilate it in one shot.

    He really was in a spot of trouble here, while it didn''t pose any threat to himself, it''d no doubt continue its reign of destruction wherever it went... Ultimately destroying this world if it continues to absorb monsters into its body.

    Reima shakes his head and conjures dark red flames into his hands, compressing them as much as possible before throwing them at Alucard, they soar through the air like slow-moving meteorites, and on impact they create massive explosions that rock the beasts entire body... Splattering black blood everywhere and even destroying one of its arms.

    Unfortunately, the limb regenerates almost instantaneously and making Reima''s efforts futile..

    Reima "How about this!" he shouts, channeling Elder Blood Magic into a Chaos Fireball sitting within his hand... It flares and turns into a Turquoise colour, the space around it rippling in what could only be described as anticipation.

    He rears back and throws it as hard as he can, getting some distance as it collides with Alucard''s chest.

    *BOOOOOOM!*

    The turquoise ball of fire doesn''t immediately explode on contact with Alucard, instead sticking to the black flesh and shrinking for a moment... Then exploding with horrific force!

    The rubble surrounding Alucard is instantly liquified and turned into a sea of lava, not dealing any damage to the beast but impeding its movement a significant amount, that wasn''t the main affect of the explosion however...

    The upper-body of Alucard has been entirely removed, the only thing remaining being charred black blood and flesh now floating in the pool of lava.

    Reima looks on hopefully, but feels his heart drop as the legs take another step towards him, the upper body regenerating in a matter of seconds! "This is fucking bullshit!" he shouts.

 720 OP Loli

    He thinks back to his experiments with portals and his encounter with the White Frost, trying to remember how such an outcome had been created.

    Reima plunges his hands into the space in-front of him, not thinking of any particular location and tearing it open, it feeling much more difficult than opening a regular portal...

    *The Wind''s Howling*

    He''s immediately blown away from the newly created rift that starts producing ungodly amounts of wind, ice, snow from it. The temperature near the rift reaches what Reima could only describe as absolute zero, the only thing preventing him from being completely frozen being his aura...

    The winds blow from the rift and towards Alucard, immediately causing the lava pool encompassing his lower body to solidify, along with ice forming across its black flesh.

    It gives a terrifying roar and swipes at the unseen enemy that''s freezing it, but to no avail... The rift sits in the air unaffected as Alucard''s hand swipes through it... The only thing achieved by the action being the beasts hand freezing solid and shattering against the ground.

    Reima leaves the rift open and teleports to Nerissa and Moka after restraining his aura, once there finding Moka with her fangs in the other''s neck... He restrains the urge to snap Moka''s neck and asks, "What''re you doing..."

    Moka almost scared to death but the low-tone of Reima, his voice sounding more serious than she''d ever heard before... She lets go of Nerissa and tries to stand, stumbling slightly due to giving her blood to her best friend. "I injecting my blood into Rissa, it''s the only thing I can do to save her." she mutters sadly.

    Reima looks down at Nerissa, the spatial rifts still occurring and opening wounds, though, now new flesh was being created faster than before... Moka''s regeneration must be more powerful that Gyokuro''s, that or Nerissa is adapting to her body being destroyed from the inside out.

    Reima "Thanks, for your help... But I don''t know if I''m able to kill Alucard... Maybe if I teleporting him into the sun?" he mutters, wondering if he had enough magic to carry the gigantic beast.

    Moka "W-what about my mother?" she asks, clearly ready to give up hope.

    An arm grips her wrist, one that has blood dripping from it incessantly...

    Nerissa "Take, to it." she says in a strained voice...

    Reima frowns, "I''m not moving you, Rissa... You''re in no state to move." he says, Moka nodding with him.

    Nerissa trembles as she tries to get to her feet, "I.... Will, eat, it." she says.

    ...

    Moka''s eyes widen at him, "What! No! She''ll die!" she shouts, falling to her knees as she tries to stop him. "Don''t!" she manages to get out as Reima blinks away with Nerissa.

    He teleports behind the now frost-covered Alucard who''s still struggling to attack the rift, its body protecting them from the White Frost temporarily. He floats next to the riggling black flesh that seems to want to absorb him and Nerissa, allowing the young vampiress to lean against it.

    Reima "You can do it Rissa." he mutters as she bites into the beast, Alucard''s body twitching as if it knew it''s doom was approaching.

    Nerissa''s fangs pierce the flesh with ease, black blood flowing down her throat and being integrated into her own body... Within an instant pain wracks her body, the contents of her stomach feeling as if they were trying to eat her from the inside out. It doesn''t like long however, her body adapting and absorbing the blood before incorporating its attributes to itself.

    Reima''s looks down worriedly at Nerissa''s shaking body but doesn''t move her, believing this would be the only way to stop her body from eventually breaking down due to the spatial rifts.

    Alucard''s body arcs backwards as if it''d been stabbed, immense pain coming from where Nerissa was biting it... It attempts to crush them with its hand, but Reima musters his strength and cuts the offending limb off while keeping Nerissa up with telekinesis.

    The black flesh itself comes top life, creating snakes that try to bite Nerissa, only for them to be severed by Reima.

    The amount of blood absorbed by Nerissa at this point would definitely be greater than her own bodyweight, it was continually being used to reinforce and fortify her body though, slowly taking the abilities of Alucard and granting them to herself.

    This combined with the White Frost and Reima constantly dealing damage to the beast had its movements slow and its strength waning.

    Reima cuts its arm off again as it tries to hurt Nerissa, a huge grin appearing on his face as he sees the limb not regenerating. He then channels flames into his blade and sweeps hi sword at Alucards legs. It is unable to dodge due to the solidified lava restraining them, allowing the attack to cut completely through them.

    Alucards titanic body slowly falls onto its chest, allowing the White Frost to start blowing on its back and affecting Nerissa... Reima blinks to the rift and swipes a hand infused with Elder Blood Energy through it, destabalising it and causing it to implode... Launching him away and onto Alucard''s remaining arm...

 721 Soul Sucking

    He looks over and sees Nerissa covered in snow, still heavily drinking from Alucard and looking remarkably healthier than before... The spatial rifts seeming to no-longer appear on her body? Though, it could just be that her flesh is regenerating so fast that it''s not noticeable.

    Blinking over and looking down at her he asks, "How''re you feeling Rissa?"

    She continues sucking for a moment longer before removing her fangs, "Painful." she mutters.

    Reima raises a brow, "Painful?"

    Nerissa nods, "Everything hurts..."

    Reima looks closely at her flesh, pushing his effective eyesight to the limit and eventually spotting minute spatial tears forming, removing flesh before being regenerated. "Is it bad?" he asks, feeling guilty over having her drink his blood.

    Nerissa shakes her head, "Muscle Ache." she says, allowing Reima to sigh in relief... If aching muscles was all she had to worry about then he''d gladly give her his blood again... Though, only if she were dying.

    He kneels down and gives her a tight hug, "I''m glad you''re ok Rissa, I''m sorry for letting that happen." he mutters, truly apologetic that he''d been split over keeping Moka''s sister alive and helping Nerissa.

    Nerissa shakes her head, "Love you, Rei."

    Reima nods, "And I you, Rissa." he says, giving her a final squeeze before letting go. "We still need to deal with this guy though..." he mutters, summoning the Dark Hand and plunging it into Alucard''s body.

    As he expected, there are two souls within the form, both entangled and fighting against one another, this probably being the reason why Alucard acted like a mindless beast... Its soul was preoccupied.

    Of course, the easy part was noticing the souls... Now begins the hard part of actually identifying them, if Reima weren''t already familiar with Akasha''s soul he''d likely have no idea which one is which, the souls being so tangled that separating them without hurting one or the other would probably take years.

    Unfortunately for Alucard, Reima already had Miyabi''s soul stored, and it looked remarkably similar to his own... Like a Horcrux. This made it relatively easy to slowly absorb Alucard''s soul and leave Akasha''s, once done injecting Akasha''s soul shard into Alucard''s body.

    He pulls his hand out and almost immediately recognises the changes occurring, Alucard''s body bubbling and melting into what could only be described as tar...

    Reima picks up Nerissa and leaps away as Alucard''s massive body drops into itself all at once, the tar-like liquid splashing against the floor but not submerging everything in sight, instead gathering at one point and beginning to shrink.

    The new arm tries to wipe off the tar from the rest, finding it difficult and instead electing to tear it off as if it were hardened glue.

    Reima looks at Nerissa and shrugs, emptying out a few gallons of water from his Folded Space ontop of the person...

    Without warning lightning begins to crackles over them as the water makes contact with their skin, making Reima go pale as he realises Akasha is a vampire which makes her incredibly vulnerable to water... Hang on, couldn''t he have used that against Alucard?... Damn...

    The tar explodes off of the person as they glare at Reima, their pink hair and almost identical face to Moka causing the duo to have to look twice at her.

    Akasha "I''d appreciate if you''d refrain from doing that again Ludvig-san." she states.

    Reima scratches the back of his head, "Yeah, sorry about that... My bad."

    Akasha nods, walks over and starts patting Nerissa on the head, "Where is my daughter?" she asks.

    Reima grabs her wrist as well as Nerissa''s and teleports to where Moka had been...

    Moments earlier :

    Moka had been waiting on her knee''s for Reima and Nerissa to return, hoping that they were both safe... Alucards massive body had fallen earlier which should be a good sign but she couldn''t be sure from here...

    Nearby rubble starts to shift drawing her attention as a pale arm tears its way out from underneath the stone... Eventually pulling the rest of its body out and glancing around...

    Akua "Moka?" she mutters, completely naked due to her clothing being ripped off after having her skull crushed.

    Moka "Sister." she says bitterly, this person having almost killed Nerissa earlier.

    Akua''s face breaks into a smile as she slowly crawls towards Moka, her body still attempting to repair itself after being crushed and buried alive. "I''ve finally found you! And without that seal sister!"

    Moka glowers at her, mustering the last of her strength to stand and back away, "After what you did, we are no longer sister." she says baring her fangs.

    Akua looks shocked at her words, "W-what... Sister we''re finally together again! We can destroy the human''s and rid the world of suffering!" she says, her voice rising.

    Moka "I want nothing to do with destroying the human''s, or you for that matter Akua! You almost took someone important from me, and I''ll never forgive you for that!"

    Akua stops moving, looking down at the ground while trembling in what seems like sadness, rage, or both. "I don''t understand... YOU don''t understand, the human''s are the real monsters! They need to be eliminated before anyone can be safe!"

    Moka "I don''t care about your delusions Akua!" she shouts, beginning to walk towards where Alucard''s body is... But stops when the familiar sound of Reima''s teleportations rings out across the ruins...

 722 Vamily

    Moka "M-mother?" she mutters in shock, tears coming to her eyes.

    Akua "W-what... No, I killed you!"

    Akasha crosses her arms and frowns at Akua, "Not well enough it seems..." she says, walking over and brushing a stray lock of hair from Moka''s face, "I''m back Moka."

    Moka''s face twists into one of confused happiness, not being able to restrain herself anymore and lunging into her mother''s arms, all the while tears falling from her face.

    Nerissa smiles at the duo as Reima glares down at Akua...

    Reima "So, you''re still alive? That''s pretty fortunate... For me." he states as the woman tries to put up a strong front, though its plain to see from her trembling that her confidence isn''t holding up.

    Akua "I-I''m n-not scared of you."

    Reima grins, "Of course you aren''t... I hope that won''t change as I tear out your soul and dissect your body."

    Akasha looks over while still hugging Moka, "Ah... Ludvig-san, could you perhaps show some lenience to my step-daughter?" she asks, looking conflicted.

    Reima rests his hand atop Nerissa''s head and looks into Akasha''s eyes, "No, she''ll pay for what she''s done... If she survives I''ll have whatever''s left over to you." he states.

    Akasha sighs, looking at Akua before shaking her head, clearly it was a lost cause... She loved Akua like her own daughter, even after she attempted to kill her, but it was clear Reima wouldn''t budge on this... She doesn''t blame him, from what she understands Akua had done something unforgivable, something she''ll have to pay for.

    Akua looks at Akasha with hopeful eyes, that same hope dying when the woman turns away from her as Reima approaches. She attempts to shuffle away but is grabbed by the neck and lifted by him, his hand feeling like a vice around her throat.

    Reima "You have some strong regenerative abilities, one of my subordinates will thoroughly enjoy that aspect of yours... Remember to refer to them as Hinky, I''d hate for you to get on their bad side." he states, opening a portal to the Prison cells within the Painted World of Ariamis and shoving the vampire into them before closing it again.

    He claps the dust off of his hands and looks to the others, "I''m glad we managed to do this without many casualties." he says cheerfully.

    ...

    Akasha looks around at the ruins and shakes her head, "Aside from the hundreds of Fairy Tale members, and the few farmers this island landed on?" she asks.

    Reima gives her a thumbs up and nods, "Yeah, pretty good if I do say so myself."

    Akasha sighs, "My standard of "Good" is different than yours Ludvig-san..."

    Reima "Think we should clear all of this up? It''ll take forever but I doubt the human''s didn''t notice the earthquakes..."

    Reima taps his foot and stretches his back... "Hmm, fine..." he mutters, tossing the Akasha and Moka some bottomless boxes and beginning to store the ruins of Fairy Tale within his Folded Space. Of course, he focussed on the technologically advanced parts first, particularly the machines that kept this place afloat... While they had unfortunately been cut in half, their durability seems to have retained most of their shape, allowing the delicate parts within to survive the descent of the Island aswell as Alucard''s rampage.

    Hopefully Alphys would be able to do something with the parts, having his own floating Island sounds really fucking cool!

    The group eventually leaves after clearing their mess, just in time as helicopters and an army of cars, trucks, and other military vehicles make their way over.

    Reima allows Akasha a room in Kaer Morhen after they get back, her and Moka wishing to catch up, even if she retained most of the other Moka''s memories. He was tempted to throw a celebration at a job well done, but truly he didn''t think he''d done all that much... Nerissa had been hurt and he might''ve been able to prevent it, this fact putting him in a bad mood...

    The only thing that''d cheered him up was watching Hinky "Deal" with Akua, his anger at the girl still not having lowered since her attack. The niggling feeling that everything was going his way too much had him spend the night in San''s comedy club with Solaire, Priscilla, Harry, and a few others, alcohol providing relief from having to think for a while.

    Elsewhere :

    Quelaag eyes the bubbling cauldron eerily, glancing back at her little sister who''s chopping ingredients in preparation for the next step in the recipe. "When will it be finished?" she asks, feeling anxious at having asked for its creation.

    Quelina pouts, "Five more minutes... You can''t rush these things, this especially." she says, dumping something into the cauldron and causing the bubbles to increase in size. "What do you want this for anyway sister? I don''t see any practical applications for it, except for maybe subterfuge?" she wonders aloud.

    Quelaag "Nothing special, I just wish to see if its effects would affect me like a regular human..." she says, having already thought up an excuse.

    Quelina hums, "I see... You know this won''t work on Rei right?" she says, causing Quelaags eye''s to dart over to Quelina, her back straightening.

    Quelaag "Hmm? Reima? Oh... Wait, how do you know that?" she presses, attempting to redirect the conversation.

    Quelina blushes slightly, "A girl can dream can''t she?... I promise I only intended to see what it''d be like..."

    Quelaag holds her hand over her mouth to stifle a laugh but fails, "Pfft, hahahahaha!" her laughter echoes through the laboratory, causing Quelina to pout and turn away.

    Quelina "I hate you sister!"

    Quelaag slowly scuttles towards her little sister, resting her hands on her shoulder before giving her a hug from behind. "I''m only teasing you Lina, I understand the feeling... I''d guess that most women in Ichor do." she says, Quelina leaning into her and relaxing slightly... Eventually jumping and rushing to the cauldron that''d almost exploded due to their negligence to continue making it.

 723 Boi-lover

    Though, even with the return of her mother, she was still ready and willing to curb stomp anyone who even looks at her friends wrong.

    Reima had spoken to Akasha about what she intends to do now, and she''d say that she wished to return to her world and try to promote monster and human relations. That and visiting her old friends the "Dark Lords"... When asked about her husband she''d shrugged it off, saying that Issa and her marriage were over.

    For that question he''d gotten a suspicious look, Akasha straight up asking if he was attracted to her... Reima was 70% sure she was joking about that and the other kinky statements she''d made, though, even if she did want to pursue something with him he''d likely refuse. There were others more worthy of his affection, and if he couldn''t accept them then he couldn''t accept her.

    The repairs for Yokai Acadamy were coming along aswell apparently, the school scheduled to reopen in a week or so. This presented Reima with a problem though...

    Luna "I want to go to Yokai Acadamy!" she chirps from Yukari''s side.

    ....

    Reima picks his ear, "Huh?" he asks, having spaced out for a moment... He could have sworn he''d heard Luna ask something weird.

    Luna "Reima! I want to go to Yokai Acadamy with everyone!" she repeats, causing him to leans over slightly and glare at her.

    Reima "Who''s putting strange thoughts in your head? New Hogwarts will be built soon and you wanna go somewhere that doesn''t even teach magic?" he asks, the girl not backing down from his look.

    Luna "Only nargles put thoughts in my head..." she says, her eyes glazing over for a moment before the clarity returns, "I want to go with Snuffles and everyone else..."

    Reima "You know its a school for monsters right?"

    Luna smiles, "Yukari goes, so that must mean she''s a monster... And if she''s one then I''m one too!"

    ...

    You can''t really fault her logic... They''re both Witches after all, their races being almost identical to each other despite coming from different worlds.

    Reima sighs and crosses his arms, "Yokai Acadamy reopens next week, I''ll let you go if you show Harry that you are up to date with your magical studies... That, and you''ll need to take a test to see if you''re good enough at mathematics, science, and other subjects Hogwarts doesn''t teach."

    Despite his restrictions, he''s leapt at, Luna''s hands wrapping around his stomach as she thanks him... He rubs her head and sends her off with everyone else, turning to leave but getting stopped by Ciri.

    Ciri "Do you have a fetish or do you simply just like spoiling every young girl you see?" she asks as she approaches him.

    Ciri nods, "There is, it includes the word "No"... That or I''d accept you treating only Rissa and Luna like that."

    Reima smirks, "Hmm, I was hoping to catch you out... Don''t think I haven''t seen you feeding the two of them like some animals at a petting zoo." he says with a chuckle.

    Ciri "I can''t help it, I''m weak against them..." she mutters with a helpless expression.

    Reima shakes his head, "... Were you looking for me?" he asks.

    Ciri''s about to reply but they''re interrupted by the sound of exo-skeleton covered legs tapping against the floor.

    Quelaag "Ah, Ciri... Reima. Would you mind if I borrowed her for the day? I had something I wished to discuss with her."

    Reima shrugs, "Yeah, just bring her back in one piece." he jokes.

    Ciri sighs, "I''ll talk to you later then Rei." she says reluctantly and leaves with Quelaag.

    The duo leave and Quelaag leads Ciri out of Kaer Morhen and into the city, neither saying a word until the silence finally gets to Ciri.

    Ciri "So... What''d you need to talk to me about?" she asks, feeling more anxious than she thinks she should...

    Quelaag "The topic I wish to discuss shouldn''t be spoken about in public..." she says, as they leave town and walk towards the mountain path that heads to the Chaos Temple. "It is incredibly important for you, Reima, and Ichor as a whole though... Something that must not be ignored."

    On the way they spot some young men travelling up towards the Absolver Temple, they look beaten and battered from the journey... The time limit prevents them from slowing their ascent and the fact they''re not allowed to eat another for a couple of days before the task only makes it harder.

    One collapses to the floor, unconscious as the others walk past him... Some glance at the others to see if anyone was willing to help them, but most just shake their heads and continue on their own.

    One teen with short brown hair and a baby-face frowns and lifts the man over his shoulder, visibly straining at holding his weight while already being exhausted... Ciri and Quelaag are impressed as they see the boy walk around the path out of their view.

    Both notice the shadow of Risryn watching from a nearby ridge, the woman nodding at the duo as she follows the new potential recruits.

    Ciri "Seems Risryn''s found a new favourite." she mutters, trying to break the strange tension between her and Quelaag.

    Quelaag snorts, "Nobody will trump Solaire for that woman."

    Ciri laughs, "Yeah, that''s true I suppose... Hard to believe they''re both so old."

    Quelaag raises a brow at her, "And what''s wrong with being old?"

    Ciri "Ah, nothing... Just saying it''s weird..." she''s about to continue her explanation but chooses to stop, realising that it''d only offend Quelaag further... She is around the same age as Solaire after all.

 724 Arachnophilia

    They walk into the large hall containing Gwenevere''s huge sofa that Reima had plopped here, heading to the left wall and entering a room.

    Inside Ciri spots a huge bed in the corner of the room, large bookcases containing different Pyromancies and strangely, romance novels within them. The room itself was ornately decorated with gold plating and inscriptions, a low stone table sits in the middle of it without any chairs nearby.

    Quelaag scuttles in and gestures towards the table, resting her spider-body on the ground and propping her human upper-half on it.

    Ciri slowly sits down onto the floor, the table seeming to have been designed for use without chairs, understandable considering Quelaag and her sister aren''t able to use them. "So, what is it that you wanted to ask me?" she questions, taking her boots off and rubbing her feet... The trek up the mountain making her grateful for the reprieve.

    Quelaag "Ah, forgive my impoliteness, after walking so far you must be parched..." she mutters, walking over to a cabinet and pulling out a bottle of wine as well as two glasses.

    Ciri "You''re not going to poison me are you?" she jokes, as Quelaag fills the glasses.

    Quelaag smiles, "If it meant eliminating my competition then I might be tempted to." she says, drinking a good amount to show it wasn''t dangerous to either of them.

    Ciri nods, sipping the wine as Quelaag watches with a slightly too-intense look... "This isn''t about Reima is it?" she asks, feeling that Quelaag''s mood and attitude has been better than normal, if a bit weird.

    Quelaag shakes her head, "No..." she says as she circles her finger around the rim of her glass, "I was just interested in your relationship with Miss Delacour... We''d recently met and I''ve learned a few curious things about you that I hadn''t known before.

    Ciri "Fleur? She''s not upset about how it ended is she?" she asks, having not spoken to her since they''d arrived in this world.

    Quelaag shakes her head, "No, she seems perfectly content with that ginger toy of hers, it just came up in conversation." she shrugs.

    Ciri "Well, what do you want to know?... It might be kind of awkward talking about this, to be honest, I have no idea why I''m willing to tell you about it." she mutters, feeling an urge to open up to Quelaag, and perhaps more?

    Quelaag sips her wine, the Amortentia not being able to affect the person its keyed to... She can''t exactly fall in love with herself... Can she? "Fleur told me a couple stories about the time you were romantically involved."

    Quelaag shakes her head, "She had been drinking a lot and was under the impression I was very close to the two of you. I don''t think saying that is a lie either, right?"

    Ciri "No, I don''t suppose it is... You are very important to us Quelaag." she says unconsciously, thinking that perhaps her feelings towards Quelaag were more complicated than just "Important". "My relationship with Fleur was... Weird, to say the least. She was enamored with Rei and didn''t give more than a fleeting glance to myself. Thinking back on it, I had been... Manipulative, using her emotions for Rei and his for me to push the three of us into a relationship.

    Rei had wanted to enter a proper relationship with me, whatever that''s supposed to mean, and didn''t want to add problems to our already complicated dynamic by including Fleur... Sure it worked out for the both of us in the end, but Fleur''s the one that ended up hurt when we had to leave."

    Quelaag leans in, "Do you have any regrets?" she asks, Ciri unconsciously breathing in Quelaag''s scent.

    Ciri "No, I don''t... We all wanted different things and weren''t prepared to sacrifice for the other, Fleur to stay with her family and friends, while we had other more pressing things to deal with."

    Quelaag "The Wild Hunt?"

    Ciri nods, "And the White Frost, we didn''t end up visiting her like we''d said we would... And while I''d like to say we were distracted with other things, it was more that neither of us wished to reopen old wounds by seeing her again... Atleast, that''s what I think happened." she says, her breathing increasingly getting heavier. A lustful glint in her eye towards Quelaag.

    Quelaag sees her state and presses further towards her goal, "Do you think any chance of a polyamorous relationship is over for you?"

    Ciri blushes and struggles to restrain the urge to throw off her clothes, "I-I don''t know... I won''t betray Rei, both of us have been trying to stay faithful to one another and I haven''t mentioned wanting to experiment... After how our relationship with Fleur ended, I didn''t want to push him into something like that again."

    Quelaag lets a strap from the red dress Reima had given her so long ago fall, revealing more skin to Ciri. "I''m sure, if you tried hard enough... You could make it work." she says, resting her hand over Ciri''s.

    Ciri swallows her saliva and glances away with a red face, not removing Quelaag''s hand, "Do... Do you really think that?"

    Quelaag nods, "The only thing that matters is finding the perfect candidate... Right?" she says, her body starting to morph as her spider lower-half transforms into human legs.

    As if a dam had broken, the things holding Ciri back from ravaging Quelaag were gone... Her magic flares and she blinks atop Quelaag, both of them falling down and beginning to wrestle tongues on the floor, Ciri acting like the other''s lips were a life-line.

    Ciri''s face is pushed away by Quelaag''s finger, the woman smiling as she nods her head towards the bed. "The floor is dirty... but the bed is free."

 725 A wealth of power

    Of course, something of such power also carries significant risks, which is why he was performing more intensive tests on these particular samples...

    Inside the vial sits a bit of black flesh that twitches and writhes as if it was still alive... He taps the side of the vessel which causes the flesh to lunge towards his finger, banging against the glass for its attempt...

    Clearly, this wasn''t your usual Mutagen... He''d already distilled it for twice the duration you''d need for a regular sample, but it still reacted like a living being... Perhaps the heat wasn''t enough?

    He places the sample back in the machine yet again, applying the Catalytic Quickener and applying Chaos Flames instead of the usual used in this process...

    The changes were slow, even with the Quickener, but, gradually the black flesh melted into some kind of black mass... No longer moving but still looking ominous.

    Reima "Right, now for my own cells." he mutters, splitting the mass into separate vials and applying his own organic materials, blood, skin, muscle, hair, semen, all of it was tested to prevent something catastrophic from happening.

    Reima "Damn." he says haplessly, watching as the black masses lunge at his organic samples and absorb them... Each seeming to tremble in pain before going dormant while strange changes keep occurring...

    The black masses grow scales that turn into tentacles which then have eyes appear at the ends of them... The mutations cancel themselves out before occurring again in a loop, not seeming to be slowing anytime soon.

    Reima had a few guesses as to what this is, Alucard''s body had turned into an insane beastlike entity due to absorbing so many monsters. So, it wouldn''t be a stretch to say that any mutagen created from his flesh would contain the genes of every monster he''d ever absorbed, making it incredibly unstable.

    Reima sighs and rubs his face, "I''ll save this and see if I can get something stable from it eventually... The potential is too much to simply trash." he says, storing it in his Folded Space.

    He drops into a nearby chair and thinks about Nerissa''s new abilities that she''d absorbed from the monster, as well as the changes her body was gradually going through...

    Nerissa had gained incredible regenerative abilities, to such an extent that destroying her head, heart, or any other vital organs didn''t really matter... Only putting her out of the fight for a while, having her head destroyed functioning as being knocked out.

    Her strength and speed had also seen a large boost, Moka was stronger that Nerissa in the past without even being able to access her Shinso Vampire abilities. But now Nerissa was incredibly fast, Reima would place her strength and speed slightly lower than Solaire, which shouldn''t be scoffed at considering he was a god.

    Its unfortunate Nerissa didn''t manage to absorb the separate monster abilities within Alucard, only getting the empowered Shinso blood due to its interaction and merging with Akasha and Alucard''s own.

    Though, even if she didn''t get those other abilities, Nerissa still obtained "Creation" and "Wealth of Power". The former is the ability to create a black metal-like substance, something only Shinso vampire are capable of doing, it''s a powerful ability with huge potential... Aditionally it seemed to have merged with Nerissa''s other abilities, allowing her to use it in conjunction with her black mist and animal transformation.

    Wealth of Power is the ability to morph the users body into whatever form they wish, bat, wolf, mist, or even grow bodyparts like wings. There isn''t really a limit to what this can be used to achieve, most don''t even know this ability exists, Akasha says it''s due to vampire pride and wishing to retain an Aesthetically pleasing form. Nerissa isn''t like those arrogant and narcissistic guys those, almost immediately displaying use it in by making herself slightly taller after being teased by Reima.

    Fortunately Nerissa isn''t affected by any of the weaknesses plaguing the other worlds vampires, water and crosses not affecting her even after gaining their abilities.

    Aside from the new vampiric abilities she''d gotten, the thing that worried and interested Reima the most was the introduction of the Elder Blood to her... She''d complain able the aching pain within her body often, the tiny spatial rifts causing her discomfort despite not being deadly anymore.

    There wasn''t really anything they could do about that, but, that was the only negative they''d discovered thus far... Nerissa had experimented and tried to use some of the abilities she''d seen Reima use, but apparently wasn''t able to.

    However, there was one dramatic change to Nerissa from the Elder Blood... She was now able to use magic... It was surprising to both the vampiress and Reima, but Nerissa now had magic running through her veins. It seems that while the Elder Blood hadn''t given her any physical abilities, it''d somehow modified her soul and allowed it to produce magic like most regular beings.

    It was funny to see the usually stoic girl excitedly trying to perform magic she''d seen taught at Hogwarts, he could''ve sworn he''d heard her squeal when a bolt of red light shot from a wand Luna had lent her.

 726 Vampire Troupe!

    Reima "Er, is this what you wanted me to see?" he asks the young girl who looks up at him.

    Nerissa''s eyes had been the only noticeable physical change from the Elder Blood, now having the inner iris change into a Turouise that fades into red... Not to mention they glowed with power like how his and sometimes Ciri''s did. She puts her other hand to her chest and frowns, "Feeling weird."

    Reima raises a brow at this, "Whaddya mean "feeling weird"? You sure it''s not another affect of the Elder Blood?" he asks, concerned.

    She shakes her head, "Something pulls." she says, patting her chest again.

    Reima activates his Observation Haki in order to see if something was up, not spotting anything imparticular... He''d suspected it''d had something to do with magic but there wasn''t anything strange on that front. "Maybe you just ate something wrong?" he jokes.

    A scream from nearby has Nerissa''s knees buckle, Reima catches her before she falls to the floor. Looking over he spots Moka in a similar situation...

    Reima "Oi, what''re you doing over there Akasha!" he shout, the woman looking over with a smile as he approaches.

    Akasha "With Alucard gone, I thought it would be a good idea to release the restrictions I put on Moka''s Shinso blood..." he says, glancing at Nerissa, "It seems she''s been promiscuous though." she mutters with a giggle.

    Reima "Promiscuous?" he asks, confused.

    Akasha "Do you know what it means to inject your blood into someone, Ludvig-san?"

    Reima shrugs, "I''m not a vampire, so no."

    Akasha looks down at Moka, "For regular vampires its regarded as a life-saving action, allowing the recipients to recover from wounds faster and other beneficial things... But for us Shinso, it has a different meaning entirely."

    Reima "You''re not gonna tell me it''s like a marriage contract right?" he mutters, feeling as if he was inside some kind of romcom.

    Akasha laughs, "No, no... Of course not."

    Reima breathes a sigh of relief, "Ah, good. I was afr-"

    Akasha "It''s much more than that!"

    ...

    ...

    Reima feels like hurting this woman for so obviously teasing him, "Can you just say it already, you''ve had your fun Akasha." he complains.

    Reima "Then, you did the same with your husband?" he asks curiously, remember their previous talks about the man.

    Akasha scoffs and shakes her head, "No, our relationship was never so close. I never trusted him enough to give him Shinso abilities either."

    Reima frowns, "What''s this mean for Nerissa and Moka then?"

    Akasha smiles, "We wish them happiness together." she states as if it were a fact.

    Reima "I''m being serious."

    Akasha nods, "As am I... They both have the same blood within them, this gives them a "Blood-Link" and allows them to feel each other''s emotions and whether or not they''re in danger. With this affecting them do you truly think they''d be able to separate for long periods?" she asks.

    Reima slowly shakes his head, "No, I don''t..." he sighs, "Man, I was hoping to scare off Rissa''s boyfriend when the time came... I can''t really do that with Moka now, can I?"

    Akasha "Be at peace with it Ludvig-san, I was hoping for something similar but, I think the way things have ended up isn''t bad."

    Reima shrugs and nods at Akasha, blinking away to Nerissa''s room to put her to bed so she could recover.

    Elsewhere :

    "Is everything prepared?" a man in heavy skeleton-like armour asks from atop a trash throne.

    Caranthir "Yes... Lord." he mutter

    The man stands and takes his helmet off, "Then, we will strike when the scouts come back wit the intelligence we need. Our original plans have failed, but our revenge will not..."

    Imerlith frowns and pushes himself out of a nearby chair with his single arm, "Lord, I don''t believe we require such drastic actions for those whelps." he says, attempting to sway Eredin from their current course.

    Eredin growls and slams the back of his fist into Imlerith''s face, "Silence, you failed too many times already, yet you dare to speak on such matters?"

    Imlerith falls backwards and rolls down the mountain of trash and rubble they''re standing on, the decimated city providing more than enough for such a construction. Once he stops rolling he looks up at Eredin, his helmet having been knocked off by the previous blow. "Our race will end if you continue Ere-Lord, Eredin."

    Eredin "Let it end then, if it produces failures like yourself then we do not have the right to exist! If our race is truly supposed to rise above this challenge then the gods will provide us with another chance... But our first duty is to annihilate those who think themselves better than us!"

    Imlerith "But its suicide! Are you really willing to give your life for those inferior to us!?!"

    Eredin grabs the handle of his blade that''s currently stabbed into the pile of trash beneath him and begins walking over to Imlerith. "I AM!" he roars, piercing Imlerith''s throat with the weapon, ending his life unceremoniously.

    Caranthir doesn''t move as this all happens, having already accepted that his lord had gone mad... Perhaps if he''d stayed loyal to his teacher then he''d be saved this fate?

 727 The work never ends...

    Reima watches her exit and thinks back on how weird she''d been acting for the last few days, it wasn''t anything negative but it felt like she had something to say but simply couldn''t get it out... She was spending more time with Quelaag aswell, he''d known the two had spent time together before but their relationship seems to have gotten better than before... Maybe Quelaag had finally come to terms with his and her relationship?

    Regardless Reima just writes off Ciri''s behavior as "The time of the month", having unfortunately experienced her mood swings before...

    Eventually he reluctantly gets up and dressed before blinking to his office where a stack of papers were already waiting for him... He''d be mad at Asgore if he wasn''t the big goat wasn''t the one doing most of the work, the paperwork in-front of him being only the important ones that absolutely require his attention.

    Sitting in his seat he looks at the first one, spotting that its a request for permission to start the Auction inside Kaedwen...

    That reminds him, Zoltan, Ciaran and Sieglinde were still in Kaedwen... They''d sent a couple letters to explain their progress and he was pretty happy with what they were doing, he quickly signs it and has Hinky hand it over to the courier to deliver it... The Kaedweni Auction house would be trading "rare" and "Valuable" items from Ichor the "City of Gold"... Truthfully he''d send some of the most easily producible things with Zoltan, their rarity being artificially created by their small quantity outside of Ichor...

    He''d already received a shipment from Zoltan containing Dimeritium, the rare metal primarily produced from Kovir and Povis... He''d not yet gotten around to experimenting with it himself, but Rickert might have found a use for it by now, he''ll have to check on the man when he has a chance.

    Hopefully the auction would go well, it''d bring the status of Ichor to a higher level within the minds of nobles and the common people if all went without issue. Almost everyone was aware of the military might of the country already, Reima''s power also being told through stories that got more and more grand the more people it got told to... To be honest, if they continued exaggerating their stories they might eventually be telling the truth about his power. This thought makes him laugh, the fact that most people already consider him the most powerful person on the continent only makes it more hilarious.

    The state of the world itself was rapidly changing... The loss of the Emperor had allowed the north to start taking back territories, the civil war was destroying the empire from the inside out and didn''t seem to be ending anytime soon.

    Temeria was a very valuable territory with numerous resources, this is the reason Nilfgaard had stationed more troops there than Aedirn... But, their forces were already spread thin, their fortifications not being any worth if there weren''t enough men manning them.

    Skellige was doing better than they ever had before as well, he''d received letters from Cerys that they''d begun to pillage the sunk ships of the Nilfgaardian fleet, the materials gathered from that being very valuable indeed... Perhaps the army had believe they were unbeatable or it was simply arrogance, but for some reason the ships were filled with valuables, large delicate flags of Nilfgaard, furniture, gold, and other luxury things...

    Reima could only guess that these were going to be set up once they''d conquered Skellige, their "Nobility" not allowing their higher-ups to rest in places that were covered in gold and finery?

    Apparently Cerys, Hjalmar, and Crach had received the weapons that Geralt had sent them... Reima was surprised by the crates of gold, animals skins, and pearls they''d sent in return. The three of them were incredibly grateful for the weapons, Skelligan''s valuing weaponry, armour, and similar things above all. It seemed that receiving weapons that were unmatched on this continent almost had Skellige become a vassal of Ichor...

    Reima shakes his head and refocuses on the paperwork, signing a piece that would begin the construction of Dandelion''s amphitheater. He''d continue to stall it but the Bard was getting increasingly more annoying the more time went on, if he held off any longer he''d probably follow him around and continuously serenade him... He thinks with a shudder.

    *Knock, Knock, Knock*

    ...

    Reima glances over at the door and looks behind it with Observation Haki to see who it is... And whether or not he''ll just lock the door and stay quiet...

    Harry "Hey, Reima... Are you in there?" he asks, knocking again.

    Reima sighs and waves his hand, opening the door with Telekensis Harry''s about to start knocking again. "You think knocking again is going to do anything?" he says to the sheepish teen.

    Harry goes to adjust his glasses but stops himself as he remembers he doesn''t wear them anymore... "Sorry, force of habit..." he mutters, stepping inside and taking a seat opposite Reima, staring warily at the tower of paperwork.

    Reima rubs the bridge of his nose and retrieves an energy drink from his Folded Space, "I''m guessing you need something?"

    Harry nods, "Yeah... I was wondering if you had a solution to a problem we were facing..."

    Reima "We, as in Witches and Wizards?" he asks.

    Harry nods again, "Yes. I''m new to leading people you see, and I''d completely forgotten about something really important... Witches and Wizards need wands to use magic, usually..." he adds, he himself not being restricted anymore due to the Hallow''s Influence.

 728 Progress

    Harry nods, "We''d probably be able to produce them ourselves, but we lack some of the needed materials."

    Reima "Such as?"

    Harry "Dragon Heartstrings and Phoenix Feathers mainly. Those are the most commonly used aside from Unicorn hair, but we already have that so..."

    Reima sighs, "Well, I have no idea where you''d get phoenix feathers... What happened to that bird, Fawkes anyway?"

    Harry "He disappeared when Albus passed away." he says with a solemn expression.

    Reima taps the table, "You''ll need to find a replacement for Pheonix Feathers but, aside from that I just so happen to have some Dragon Eggs. Hinky?"

    *Pop!*

    Hinky "Yes master!?" they shout diligently.

    Reima "Take Harry and start setting up a farm near the others, use the heating runes to make an incubation chamber." he says and then looks at Harry, "You''ll need to train a couple people to be able to restrain the Dragons, I''d hate to have to eliminate the last remaining ones should they escape."

    Harry grabs his hand and shakes it vigorously, "Thanks Reima, I mean it!" he says, taking Hinky''s hand and popping away with them.

    Unfortunately, the rigorous shaking had disturbed the piles of paperwork, causing a tower to slide and collapse to the floor, Reima being unable to save it even with his telekinesis...

    Reima rests his forehead on the desk and groans, "When will it end!"

    One week later :

    Nerissa, Yukari, Mizore, Moka, and Luna wave to Reima who''s holding the portal as they walk through, the other side being the freshly repaired Yokai Acadamy... "Bye Ludvig-san!" a few of them parrot as he nods at them.

    Reima "You girl behave yourselves, Akasha will be keeping an eye on you so be prepared if you do something stupid or dangerous." he says with a smile promising pain.

    Akasha "Don''t worry, even without me there they can take care of themselves." she says as she steps through herself.

    Reima "Say hi to Mikogami for me, I also wouldn''t mind a photo of his face when he sees you..." he says, imaging the man''s reaction.

    Akasha giggles, "I can show you in one of those pensieves, carrying around a camera would be laberous for a lady such as myself." she says, brushes her hair dramatically.

    Reima gives her a blank look and closes the portal behind her, the surprised look she gave in response well worth the attitude he''d no doubt receive when next they met.

    He claps his hands off as if he''d just finished some carpentry and walk towards his next destination... Rickert''s workshop.

    Reima stands outside the heavy wooden door leading into the workshop, stopping and examining it as black smoke begins to billow from the gap underneath the door... "Yep... Everything look in-order here." he says, turning away and beginning to walk back...

    *Hiiyaaa!*

    *Bang!*

    A pained girly squeal is heard from the inside as the door presumably hits someone. Reima waits for the smoke to clear before finally entering the building, spotting metal shavings, wires, crystals, and other trash scattered across the floor and the few tables set up... On the other side of the room heavy breathing can be heard from under the relocated door.

    Reima telekinetically levitates it, spotting a soot-covered Rickert with a pained look on his face. "Yo, you still alive?"

    Rickert groans, rolling onto his stomach and slowly pushing himself up, "N-no... I think I broke something..."

    Reima shrugs, "That all? Good..."

    Rickert rubs his head and sighs, "Your morbid sense of humour never ceases to amaze me Reima." he mutters.

    Reima "Putting that aside, you wanna tell me why you were trying to suffocate yourself? Sure you might want to die but you''re too useful for me to allow it."

    Rickert gives him a confused look with morphs into a frown, "Good to know I don''t even have control over my own life... And I wasn''t trying to commit suicide I''ll have you know!" he huffs.

    Reima "Then, what was that?" he asks, leaning on a nearby table after brushing off some kind of device...

    Rickert throws himself at it to catch it, scowling at Reima as he looks it over for damages, "I was testing a Dimertium Smoke Bomb I''ll have you know, and I''d appreciate if you didn''t break anything, while it may look like unassuming trash to you, they hold my blood, sweat, and tears!" he states.

    Reima shrugs, "So, you''ve been experimenting with Dimeritium?" he asks, ignoring whatever Rickert said a moment ago...

    Rickert sighs and places the device on a shelf nearby before looking back at Reima, "Yes, I''ve been working on what you asked, and I have to say... This metal is baffling, intriguing, and irritating at the same time..." he explains, not bothering to point out Reima''s blas¨¦ attitude.

    Reima "More so than the rainbow selection of titanate?" he jokes.

    Rickert nod his head seriously, "Indeed. At first I thought it only destabilised magic, but upon closer inspection, I found that it instead redirects magic..."

    ...

    Reima "Er, whats the difference?"

    Rickert sighs, "Take the Dimeritium shackles those Eternal Fire fools use to capture mages, once put on they force the magic out of the mage which prevents them from performing magic." he explains.

    Reima slowly nods, "Ahh, right... So, can you make any weapons out of it?"

    ...

    Rickert gives a frown, "Yes and no... The metal itself is soft, like gold... And if diluted by stronger metals its effects are drastically reduced."

    Reima "Just make a projectile weapon or something then, I imagine a bullet of Dimeritium would put a mage out for a long, long time."

    Rickert "Ah, yes, Firearms... Miss Alphys had talked about them enough to pique my interest, I believe something like that would work... The only problem is creating a firearm though."

    Reima shrugs, "Well, that''s your next job then... I''d recommend you get Alphys to watch over your work. Be careful as well, you can''t make stuff if you get your hands blown off." he says before blinking away with a turquoise flash.

    Rickert looks at the spot Reima had just disappeared from and has a determined expression overtake his features, "Fine! I''ll make the greatest firearm this, or any other world has ever seen! DO YOU HEAR ME REIMA!" he shouts, scaring some of the people passing by his workshop.

 729 Heavy Revelations

    Reima "As I said, I need something to cool-down Ciri..." he repeats.

    ...

    Quelina "Bu-but why?"

    Reima sighs, "You sure you want to know?" he asks, the girl nodding her head, "Well, she won''t stop trying to get me into a threesome with Quelaag... I think Ciri''s somehow in her mating season." he mutters, not being able to explain her new seemingly never-ending lust.

    ...

    Before Quelina is able to answer the door suddenly opens, revealing a woman wearing a sketchy looking hood...

    Quelina "Can I help you?"

    The woman shakes her head, "No, I need to speak with King Rei-ma for a moment..." she says in an oddly familiar voice.

    Reima "Fleur?" he asks, confused.

    She pulls down her hood and reveals that she is indeed Fleur, a concerned look on her face. "We need to talk about zis in private Rei..." she says.

    Reima nods, "Alright... I''ll come back later Lina." he says as he leaves, giving a small wave to her.

    Fleur "Iz zer any place we can talk without anyone ''earing?"

    Reima nods, takes Fleur''s hand, and teleports to the top floor. "Geralt''s off hunting monster near the Dragon Mountains and Yennefer seems to be spending most of her time in the Library... They won''t be back anytime soon." he says, sitting down on a nearby seat, trying not to look at the stuffed Unicorn sitting in the corner. Fleur gives it a glare and Reima waves his hand, "Please, just ignore it..."

    Fleur sits down and places her hands on her knees, looking down at the floor with a conflicted look, she''s about to start talking but is interrupted by Reima...

    Reima "It''s been so long since we last properly talked... How''s life been for you Fleur?"

    ...

    Fleur decides to place the issue at hand to the side for now, electing to bring it up after both have refamiliarized with one another. "Since the bombs, or since joining your city?"

    Reima shrugs, "Both."

    Fleur frowns, "All waz well... I had just started dating Bill and working at ''ogwarts when ze bombs started dropping out of nowhere. It ''appened so fast I couldn''t react, ze students who''re outside were killed instantly, but my thoughts were on my parents and zister... Within ten minutes everything I ''ad ever known waz gone, and we were trapped within ''ogwarts. ''arry was the only one to survive ze bombs, and that iz only because of ''is Deathly ''allows."

    Reima presents her his palm and gives her a look, "Hold up... Why didn''t you summon me?" he questions, sure he probably couldn''t have saved her family but getting everyone out of Hogwarts would''ve been pretty easy.

    Fleur frowns and tightens her grip on her knees, "Zer, was no point... ''arry and Bill thought they could return ze world back to normal, I ''ad hope they could do it, but ze food waz running out... I summoned you as a last resort."

    Fleur tries to look him in the eye but ends up glancing away... "After you left, I did not know what to do wiz myself... Ze love of my life ''ad just left, and it felt like a joke was being played on me. You never bothered to visit me, and I thought you had forgotten about me, zat, hurt... Perhaps I wished to show you, and myself, that I did not need your ''elp to survive... You must think me a dreadful woman." she says, trying to restrain her tears.

    Thoughts of walking up and comforting her flash in his mind, but he restrains himself... They weren''t that close anymore, she had a Bill and he had Ciri. If something happened it''d clearly be himself taking advantage of her.

    Her words also reminded him that he had never actually visited after he''d left... Why was that? Ciri didn''t mention it either, did that actually forget her? He shakes his head and refocuses his attention on Fleur. "I''m sorry for not coming to see you Fleur, you may not believe me, but I''ve been busy building, well, this." he says opening his arms and gesturing around them, the tops of gold plated buildings being visible out of the open balcony.

    Fleur nods and sniffles to prevent the tears from flowing, "I understand zat Rei, but my ''eart does not..."

    Reima holds back a sigh, women sure are troublesome... These callous thoughts sit in his mind as he brings out some cups, teabags, milk and sugar. While Fleur is sitting there with a tense emotional expression he quickly makes a couple cups of tea for them both, filling Fleur''s with a liberal amount of sugar like she used to like before heating the water with his aura. "Here." he says handing her to steaming cup.

    Fleur nods and gives a small thanks, sipping it and seeming to relax into the chair, after a couple moments taking a deep breath and moving onto the topic she originally came to discuss... "Rei, I believe Miss Quelaag is using love potions on Ciri..."

    *Pfft*

    A spray of boiling hot tea spurts from Reima''s mouth, covering the nearby table and unfortunately, the Unicorn... Ignoring the stains he''d created on the stuffed animal he sends a heavy look to Fleur, "You serious??"

    Fleur nods, "I am... ''as Ciri been acting weird lately?" she asks, a lightbulb going off in Reima''s head.

    Reima has a look of realisation cross him, "Ah, yeah... I thought that was just her perio-"

    Fleur glares at him, before sighing, "Hmm... You men never cease to amaze me, ''ow can you not notice your lover being infatuated with another?" she presses.

    Reima "Err, wasn''t that basically how my, Ciri, and your relationship went? Maybe you desensitized me to it!" he accuses jokingly.

 730 CAUGHT!

    Reima shrugs, "If it were a guy drugging Ciri then there''d be a problem... But Quelaag and Ciri? That''s just kinky to me."

    Fleur "I do not understand, your lover is being taken advantage of, raped by another... And you joke about it?" she asks, clearly shocked by his reaction.

    Reima snorts, "If it''s so important, why wait a week to tell me about it?" he questions pointedly.

    Fleur scowls, "Quelaag ''as her Chaos Servants following me around constantly! I cannot move anywhere without eye''s on me... I ''ad to dress up Bill like me to even reach you now Rei!" she says, her voice rising and her tea beginning to boil again.

    Reima "Hmm, now that''s a problem... Quelaag can''t go around breaching peoples privacy." he says with as serious face, now befitting the King of Ichor.

    Fleur "I cannot believe you Rei, mismanagement of troops is more important to you than ze abduction of your lover!"

    Reima smirks, "Considering Quelaag''s body, you reckon they''re doing "leg-play"?" he asks.

    Fleur glares at him, "What iz leg-play?"

    Reima forms a hole with his fingers and pushes his finger through it, "Those spider legs are slim right?"

    Fleur goes pale and slightly green after a moment, "You... You are ill Rei, I don''t know what ''as happened to you, but you are not ze man I remember!" she says, getting up and storming out of the room.

    Reima sighs and slumps in his chair, "Hopefully that''d remove any notion of hers to try and get back together with me... With what''s going on with Ciri and Quelaag I don''t think I could handle any more drama..."

    His thoughts drift to Quelaag and her obsession with him... Drugging Ciri is a drastic action, one someone would only take as a last resort. Oh... That''s probably what her intention is... Memories of Ciri trying to push a threeway relationship between them all flashing in his mind.

    He rubs the bridge of his nose and stands, "I better go try and sort this all out then..." he mutters, disappearing in a turquoise flash and reappearing at the steps of the Chaos Temple. Chaos Servants all stands to attention and salute him with a "Jolly!"...

    Reima gives a weak wave, "Jolly guys... Is Quelaag in?"

    The men all look at each other and nod, "Mistress ordered us to take you to her without telling you about her order." he states.

    Reima rubs his face, "And, why are you telling me that part?"

    "She may be our Mistress, but you are our King!... That, and I do not wish to be involved with whatever scheme she''s hatched this time." one says, the other nodding along almost sagely.

    Reima "This time?" he almost hesitates to ask.

    Reima "Oook... I hope that was the end of it then?"

    They shake their head, "Mistress then attempted to train children to try and sabotage your relationship by being as irritating as possible. Of course, that plan didn''t work."

    Reima thinks back and remembers children storming a restaurant he and Ciri were in, running into the kitchen and ruining all the meals they were preparing, making the waiting time far longer than usual. After a couple of those incidents, he simply had Hinky teleport away any kids who got near him... "Bro... She''s got problems..." he mutters, the Chaos Servants nodding at him with sombre expressions.

    "Then, will you follow me sire?" he asks, beginning to walk up the stairs that lead to the temple with Reima following him.

    They walk towards the large entrance of the temple, the Chaos Servants and trainee were all bowing towards Reima with "Jolly!" on their lips.

    Reima ignores them and enters, being lead to the left of the large hall and to a door which is presumably Quelaag''s room. He thanks the Chaos Servant who retreats to a safe distance... Without knocking, he telekinetically opens the lock and strolls in, the sound of people "Playing" on a bed being audible from outside the room.

    His eyes almost roll out of their sockets when he sees what''s inside... A naked Ciri and... An equally naked human Quelaag both scissoring on the bed...

    Immediately his manhood feels like getting up and fighting for dominance, but he restrains himself... "What in the fuck is going on here?" he asks loudly with a commanding voice, both people on the bed finally noticing him and freezing while in the compromising position...

    Ciri "I-I can explain!" she quickly says, but is interrupted by Quelaag before she can say anything else.

    Quelaag "Ara, Reima''s finally caught us Ciri... What are we going to do!" she exclaims in an obviously fake manner, her acting skills being around the pre-school level...

    ...

    Reima wasn''t sure what he''d see when he entered and had thought up a number of things he''d say when he got there... But right now nothing would come to his mind, as if the heavy stench of sex pervading the room had stolen his words. "I-You-What..."

    Quelaag accidentally slips a small smile at his reaction, quickly recomposing herself and acting shocked again. "We are in-love Reima! But... If you really must tear us apart, then so be it." she says, wiping her eyes despite no trace of tears being anywhere in sight.

    Reima glances away, not being able to look at their locked legs any longer for his own sanity, "Quelaag, I already know you''ve potioned Ciri..."

    Quelaag frowns, "What! Preposterous? Who would tell such horrible lies!" she exclaims, still not moving away from Ciri...

    Reima waves his hand and retrieves some covers to shield his sight from the arousing sight, these being the only thing preventing him from jumping them. "Everyone involved has told me, it''s over Quelaag, I know."

 731 Taking Responsibility?

    Quelaag''s expression gradually changes from shock to disbelief, "No, I have no idea what you mean... Perhaps you''ve been told lies?"

    Ciri "Quelaag''s done nothing Rei, don''t say something so ridiculous!" she says, forgetting she''s still naked under the covers with Quelaag...

    Reima frowns and turns, tearing open a portal which leads to Quelina''s laboratory, said person looking down at a cauldron in concentration. "Lina!" he calls, the girl jumping and looking up.

    Quelina "Rei-Oh my! Quelaag what are you doing!" she shouts, spotting her sister and Ciri through the portal.

    Reima "Lina, do you have anything that can cleanse love potions?" he asks, no such potion existing in the Harry Potter world.

    Quelina struggles to move her gaze from her sister but eventually manages, nodding at Reima and grabbing something from a nearby shelf, "I made this a while ago with Uncle Vesemir... It combines a Golden Oriole with magical ingredients, making it possible for regular people to ingest." she says, handing it to Reima through the portal.

    Quelaag "There''s no need for that Reima... Ciri''s perfectly fine." she says while trying to restrain the frantic expression on her face.

    Reima gives her a glare, "I never said anything about giving it to Ciri, did I?" he states, Quelaag going pale as he walks over and forces Ciri to drink the concoction.

    *Glug, Glug, Glug*

    ...

    Her eyes glaze over momentarily, she shakes her head and looks around in confusion, trying to shift her body but trembling in pleasure as her and Quelaag''s locked legs...

    Ciri "Wait what?" she mutters, looking under the covers and blushing heavily. "W-when did this happen?..."

    Reima "Around a week, that''s how long you''ve been affected by a love potion." he shrugs, looking at Quelaag.

    ...

    Ciri "You didn''t..." she asks Quelaag in disbelief.

    Quelaag looks down in resignation, "Fine, I potioned Ciri! I admit it..." afterwards sending a pointed look at Reima, "Well? Go on then, punish me!" she states, having given up any hope of achieving her goal.

    Reima frowns and crosses his arms, there wasn''t all that many options to be honest... Her role as leader of the Chaos Covenant and a powerful combatant made her almost irreplaceable, and while some would think her actions complete betrayal, Reima saw them more as her loyalty towards himself... She was after all just trying to form a romantic relationship with him, his own inadequacies had probably exacerbated the situation... "Hmm... Then, I''ll give Ciri the duty of punishing you as the victim of your actions." he looks to Ciri, "Is that alright?"

    Ciri slowly nods, looking at Quelaag with a smug grin, "Oh yes, I think I can come up with a few things."

    Reima shakes his head, "No, I think this suit-"

    *Roooooaaaaarrrr!*

    The sound of world trembling roar echoes through the temple, rattling their eardrums and giving them all a minor headache.

    Reima palms his face in irritation, "What fucking now!" he asks no-one imparticular. "Both of you get some clothes on, Ciri come with me and Quelaag prepare the Chaos Servants," he says, using his Observation Haki to observe the Everlasting Dragon, the one who''d just roared to alert everyone in Ichor.

    He''d thought of just making sirens, but decided that having a Dragon monitor the town and letting everyone know if the town is in danger is way cooler.

    He tears open a portal next to the Dragon where Priscilla and Solaire were already waiting, stepping through with Ciri once she''d gotten dressed and Scourgified the sweat and other fluids covering her. "What''s up?" he asks them.

    Solaire "I''m as unaware as you are my friend, Eeuwigdurend here was waiting for you to explain the situation." he says, everyone looking up at the ancient dragon for an explanation.

    Eeuwigdurend "Over there, on the far mountain peak." he states, everyone turning to look with Reima, Solair, and Priscilla being able to spot a large group of armoured warriors...

    Ciri "W-what is it?" she asks, not having as good eyesight as everyone else.

    Reima "The Wild Hunt." he states, watching as what seems like the few remaining navigators form a circle and start chanting something. "They''re performing some sort of ritual, we need to intervene now!" he states, teleporting over there while Solaire and Eeuwigdurend follows, the others riding on the latter''s back.

    Eredin gives a sadistic smirk as a Turqouise flash reveals Reima, "You! You''ll not stop us now! EVERYTHING IS ALREADY DOOMED!" he shouts madly.

    Reima scowls at him, "Fuck off you B-tier bad-guy!" he shouts, the Staff of Manus Materialising in his hand as he throws it like a javelin.

    *SPURT!*

    The staff pierces Eredin''s chest, causing the man to drop to his knees as his soldiers attempt to defend him. He spits blood and looks up with the same smirk on his face, "I WAS... DEAD REGARDLESS... OF THIS..." he heaves, a profuse amount of blood beginning to leave his mouth.

    Reima looks at the nearby glowing ritual circle surrounded by Navigators and blinks behind one of them, running his hand through their chest and tearing them apart with ease... However, even after their physical body dies, a spiritual copy was left behind in its place, still continuing with the ritual.

    Eeuwigdurend and Solaire had arrived and were dealing with the army that was attempting to intercept Reima, the Dragon and God easily destroying their ranks as if they were slimes in an RPG.

    Using the Dark Hand Reima absorbs the spiritual copy of the Navigator which seems to affect the ritual slightly, the lights pulsing as the person disappears.

 732 Comes to a head

    Priscilla hops off of the bag of the Everlasting Dragon and instantly goes invisible, the only thing possibly giving away her position being her bare feet in the snow... Unfortunately for the Wild Hunt soldiers the chaotic battle made it almost impossible to spot Priscilla''s from everyone else''s...

    She retrieves her scythe from her back and sweeps it towards an unaware soldier, the sound of screeching metal can be heard as the scythe blade penetrates the armour, as opposed to cutting it. The Aen Elle Elf drops to his knees and passes out, the blade piercing his heart forcing his lifeblood to spill out onto the snow below...

    Priscilla kicks the body off and points her scythe to the sky, Crystalline Orbs materialising and shooting towards the other nearby warriors, hitting their vitals and killing them.

    She dodges backwards to avoid an attack as the gigantic claw of Eeuwigdurend slams down on the offending attacker, splattering the unfortunate soul like an egg to concrete... She sends a small smile at the dragon who continues his path of destruction.

    Solaire himself was thankful he had a chance to let loose, Ichor was fantastic, but it was remarkably different to Lordran where almost every moment was a fight for survival... Though, these foes were not able to match him at his current strength...

    He points his brightly glowing blade at a group of Wild Hunt Soldiers who seem to be retreating away from him, a beam of pure light is released from his blade, the laserbeam hitting the group dead on and turning them all to ash, only leaving behind the molten metal of their armour. "And a Jolly day to you!" he shouts with a grin, turning his gaze to the next target that immediately breaks into a sprint to escape.

    Solaire "If you wish to embark on a Jolly conquest, then you must be prepared to charge head on!" he calls at the cowardly man as a lightning bolt pierces their chest, killing them instantly.

    Imlerith pushes past one of his subordinates and points his great-hammer at Solaire, his combat effectiveness not as great as before due to the loss of his arm, but he knew their lives were forfeit regardless of what he does now... Fighting a powerful warrior like this man in gold would truly be a worthy death. "I am Imlerith! General under King Eredin and the Wild Hunt! Name yourself warrior!" he calls as his men back away so they have enough space to duel.

    Solaire gives a bright smile unbefitting of a battlefield, "My apologies Sir Imlerith, but battling a cripple isn''t something I wish to do." he says, inadvertently insulting Imlerith.

    Imlerith growls, "We will fight regardless of your conviction! NOW NAME YOURSELF!"

    Imlerith nods, and charges while preparing to swing his Great-hammer at Solaire.. No ordinary man would be able to block such a strike, and many others had been left crippled or dead by it in the past...

    *CLANK!*

    Imlerith grins as he feels something crunch under his hammer, taking a glance at what he could only assume to be the crushed skull of his enemy, he goes pale when he sees Solaire stopping the attack with his bare hand... The Great-Hammer''s head being the one that''s crumpled from the force...

    Solaire "My apologies." he states simply as he channels lightning through the weapon, electrocuting Imlerith who''s body shakes and shudders violently.

    Imlerith "Hhheeeyyyaaaaaaarrrrrghhhh!" he cries out, attempting to let go of his weapon but finding his fingers wrapped tightly around the handle, disobeying his will. A few seconds of this treatment has his skin starting to blacken and smoke, his eyes melting out of their sockets as his armour starts glowing red from the accumulating heat.

    The nearby soldiers watch in terror as their general falls backwards smoking, his face looking like a block of charcoal with his melted eyes looking like the spilled whites of eggs...

    Solaire rests his foot on the corpse at look at the others, "Who wishes to engage me in Jolly combat next!" he calls while flashing them a smile.

    ...

    "Hiiiyyaaaaa!" a few elves scream as they drop their weapons and flee, only to be pierced by lightning bolts courtesy of Solaire.

    Solaire "You attacked us, and so must pay the toll!"

    Ciri had just landed in the snow, blocking a slash with Seath and slamming an Aard into her attackers chest, sending them flying off of the mountain peak with a Wilhelm scream.

    She cuts couple more down before having to thrown herself to the floor as a blue projectile flies over her head...

    Ciri "Caranthir..." she mutters as she gets to her feet with Seath pointing towards him.

    Caranthir "Zireael... A shame you didn''t just do as you were told, it would not have had to end like this." he states, spinning his staff and dropping into a combat stance, the blue orb atop it flashing with magical power.

    Ciri "You''ll die, just like your former master... You won''t escape with you tail between your legs this time." she taunts, dragging her fingers across Seath and shrouding it in Chaos Flames.

    Caranthir "You are still the weak little girl who could do nothing but threaten to bite her tongue!" he growls from under his mask, approaching her and swinging the staff at her...

    *Flash!*

    She appears behind him and stabs him in the side between the armour plates, causing him to stumble forwards as she prepares to attack again.

    *Clank!*

    Caranthir blocks Seath and forces her blade down, headbutting her before backing away to check his wound. "Lucky hit, it won''t happen again." he states.

 733 Solemn Sacrifice

    *Flash!*

    Caranthir appears behind her and parries her blow, neither behind knocked away due to their current strengths being equal... Caranthir is momentarily stunned by Ciri''s strength, something like him who''d been training in combat all his life not having expected to be matched by a mere human girl.

    Ciri''s eyes contract as magic is channeled through Caranthir''s staff, causing the orb atop it to explode with energy. She blinks away before he''s hit by it, and sees that the ground surrounding Caranthir is heavily damaged... Not only is this man Avallac''h''s prised student, but a fierce warrior as well, even despite all her training she still felt that they were evenly matched.

    She and Caranthir teleport around the battlefield, occasionally clashing before backing away and continuing their dance. Ciri''s stops blinking for a moment to take a breathing, spotting Caranthir in a similar situation, though, due to her blood she wasn''t as exhausted as him...

    Caranthir frowns and raises his staff which causes blue orbs to appear above Ciri... They pulse a couple times before exploding which brings blue pillars of magical energy to bombard the area.

    Ciri could easily dodge them but decides to go on the offensive, teleporting behind Caranthir for a moment before doing it again to his front as he turns.

    *Shiiiiik!*

    The sound of metal sliding against metal is heard as she forces her blade through armoured plates again, this time piercing the Elves gut and doing not a small amount of damage!

    Caranthir groans in pain as he teleports backwards and into a group of Wild Hunt soldiers who''re currently fighting the others. Ciri isn''t going to let him escape again however, quickly following him and using the soldiers heads as stepping stones as she chases the hunched over mage.

    Ciri "What''s wrong Caranthir!?! Can''t take the heat!?" she taunts, slashes her sword at a soldier who attempts to intercept her, cutting their neck and causing them to bleed out.

    Caranthir slams his staff on the floor and conjures large golems to attack Ciri, but they''re too slow to accomplish anything meaningful, her simply blinking past them and delivering a kick to the back of Caranthir''s head.

    He crumbles to the floor as Ciri walks up to him and kicks his staff away while pointing her blade at his throat. "You, Eredin, and the Wild Hunt have tormented me enough... This is the END Caranthir!" she states, thrusting her blade into his throat and achieving a satisfying splatter of red.

    ...

    *Pulse. Pulse, Pulse!*

    A strange sound draws her attention, it''s coming from the ritual circle... She spots that Reima had just finished off all of the Navigators responsible for it, but for some reason, it''d still not disappeared...

    *BOOM!*

    A shockwave explodes from the ritual circle, the circle itself expanding to incase Reima within it... Geralt, Yennfeer, The prospects, Chaos Servants, and everyone else had finally arrived up the mountain, but the battle was almost completely over... Only a few fleeing Wild Hunt members remaining...

    Reima feels an ungodly amount of magic somehow manifesting within the ritual circle and tries to stop it. Absorbing the magic and sending it outside of the circle where it''ll become like the rest of the ambient magic... But his rate of transfer isn''t fast enough and the amount already gathered is enough to wipe Ichor, and most of the nearby countries off of the continent entirely!

    This must''ve been what Eredin''s plan was, even after eliminating the Navigators they wouldn''t be able to stop it... The ritual itself already being self-sustaining, he could only guess they planned to have it self destruct to get revenge for their defeat...

    Reima "Fuck! There''s nothing I can do to stop it!" he shouts, the others hearing him and attempting to approach to see if they themselves could do something.

    Yennefer scans it and goes pale, Geralt sends her a worried look which allows her voice to return, "The concentration of magic is too much! Even if we manage to dispel it, everyone in Ichor will die!"

    Geralt frowns, "Open a portal, we need to evacuate the city and hope Reima can do something about it!" he decides, not having any other answer to this situation.

    Yennefer nods and does so, opening a portal to Kaedwen and trying to get everyone nearby into it... Quelaag refuses to go through, Quelana agreeing and instead attempting to destroy the circle... Unfortunately, the concentration of magic running through it makes it all but impervious to damage, to such an extent that getting close would have your flesh disintegrate...

    Reima growls and decides to "Fuck it", summoning Chaos Flames and pushing Elder Blood Magic within them to create anti-magic fire... From within the tornado of magic that is the ritual circle he expands the flames, turning the whole thing into a tornado of Turquoise fire!

    His actions aren''t for nothing, the concentrated magic burning away and causing space-time itself to tremble under the power the tornado is giving off...

    *BOOM!*

    Suddenly and without warning a rift opens up, sucking Reima into it and causing everything nearby to freeze solid as the White Frost spews out.

    Yennefer cuts the portal and tries to conjure a shield strong and large enough to protect everyone, but it falls short and allows most of the Prospects to freeze solid... The Chaos Servants fight off the cold by summoning powerful Chaos Flames, but the winds will exhaust them eventually!

    Solaire sees Reima disappear into the rift and explodes with lighting, empowering himself and launching towards the rift... Only to be frozen solid and get thrown away by the powerful winds...

    Priscilla catches the frozen statue of her brother and retreats into Yennefers shield... Just as Eeuwigdurend stands to his full height and approaches the rift, his wings fully extended as he fights against the turbulent winds...

    Eeuwigdurend "You will cease!" he growls, causing the air to tremble from his voice...

    Ciri who''d been shocked still but Reima''s disappearance finally regains her composure, blinking out of the shield as Geralt tries to stop her, "Ciri no!"

    She pushes against the wind and thinks to herself that it isn''t as gold as everything makes it seem... Reaching the rift with relative ease and stepping through it as everyone watches on in disbelief...

    Eeuwigdurend finally reaches the rift, dropping on all fours as his body freezes while wrapping his wings around the rift, sealing any entrance or exit to it in an air-tight vacuum made from his own flesh. He feels as if his strength is being sucked out as his body slowly freezes, taking one last glance at Priscilla before everything goes black.

 734 Battling Against The Wind

    The random blizzard isn''t what is rousing his interest however, no, that would be the weirdly high level of ambient magic... The world felt more magically powerful than the Bonfire''s in Ichor, which is impressive considering those were the vocal points of many different sources and had even siphoned magic from other areas.

    There was also something giving him a weird feeling around here that made his skin tingle... He''d never felt something like this before and was interested in finding out what it was...

    Reima sighs, "Hopefully everyone else is alright..." he mutters, wondering if he should just teleport back to check on everyone...

    *Flash!*

    The fit that''d closed behind him reopens and spits out a familiar figure... Ciri lays face down in the snow unceremoniously as Reima attempts to stifle a laugh.

    Ciri pushes herself off of the floor and looks around while shivering, jumping to her feet and leaping at him with a hug once she spots Reima. "Rei! You''re alright!?!" she shouts, the blizzard around them seemingly not reducing her enthusiasm.

    ...

    Reima squeezes her back and looks at her face, "Hang on, what chance did you stand if I couldn''t make it through the rift in one piece?"

    ...

    Ciri blushes slightly and looks away, "Just be grateful I came and stop asking questions..."

    Reima gives her a blank look, "Tsundere?"

    Ciri "I still don''t know what that means, but it feels like I''m being insulted." she mutters.

    Reima shakes his head and casts a strong enough Quen to try and protect them from the wind... Usually this wouldn''t work but it was strong and fast enough that the Quen shield counted it as an offensive action, and in turn, attempted to shield against it.

    With the blizzard stifled slightly Ciri gives a relieved sigh and leans into him more, his aura acting to warm her up...

    Reima "How were things looking on the other side after I got teleported away?" he asks.

    Ciri frowns, "The White Frost is fully open through the rift, I doubt we have more than a couple months before the world ends up like this one. I think everyone was ok so we could probably move worlds if we needed to?" she questions.

    Reima slowly nods, "I''d rather not lose all the progress we''d made until now... The rift leads here, so, wouldn''t this place be the origin on the White Frost?"

    ...

    Ciri''s eyes open wide, "Yes! This is the solution to all of our problems!... Eredin''s given us an opportunity to completely stop the White Frost!" she exclaims.

    Ciri does the same and nods, "This must be leading us to where we need to be! Probably..." she quietly adds the last part.

    Reima "It''s a shame we can''t just teleport over there... I can barely see ahead of us." he mutters, even Observation Haki not being any use in this kind of situation.

    Ciri "I can try fly us over." she says, referring to her Animagus Transformation.

    Reima shakes his head, "Think you can fly in these winds? That, and I doubt you''d survive more than a couple of minutes as a cold-blooded creature at this temperature."

    She nods, "I guess you''re right... What do we do then?"

    Reima sighs, "We do it the old fashion way... We walk." he states, taking a step and finding himself buried up to his waist in snow. "This is going to piss me off." he states, projecting his aura forwards and melting a small trench for them to walk through.

    Ciri walks up and holds his hand, "Just think of it like a date... A deadly date that could lead to the end of all life in every universe."

    Reima smirks, "I already think of our dates like that."

    Ciri slaps him on the arm, "You''re very funny, you know that?"

    Reima nods, "It''s a blessing and a curse." he shrugs.

    And so the duo began their trek through the frozen world, and while they tried to look around for anything interesting, the blizzard put an end to any potential sightseeing they could''ve accomplished.

    After a couple hours of walking they could feel the intensity of the blizzard rising, it seemed that they were getting closer to teh source of it... And both were curious as to what it might be, an ancient treasure? Advanced Civilisation? Natural Phenomenon? Whatever it was, they were determined to find out.

    Reima looks up at what seems like a hill, the blizzard winds blowing down it in a cascade of snow... Atop the hill was somesort of dim glow that he could barely make it even with his powerful eyesight. "Looks like we''re nearing the end..."

    Ciri nods, "If the winds got any stronger I doubt the shield would hold up." she mutters, the Quen shield itself bulging inwards as if it was being bombarded by deadly armaments.

    Honestly, Reima had no idea how Ciri would do this on her own... From what he remembers there were a number of ways Ciri deals with the White frost in the game, sacrificing herself being one of them... He simply can''t imagine her being able to get through these winds without his assistance, maybe he was underestimating her though?

    Ciri "I see it... The light." she says as they approach it. "What do you think it is?"

    Reima squints at it and shakes his head, "No idea, let''s get a closer look before making any theories." he says as they press on.

 735 Lost Soul

    Ciri "What... Is that." she mutters as they approach it... The Quen shield covering them getting beaten up even more the closure to the rift they get.

    Reima channels more magic into it to makesure they reach the turquoise shield, dispelling it as they step inside... The wind and freezing temperature outside didn''t seem to affect the things within the shield, which would explain why the ancient marble ruins weren''t completely buried in snow.

    Ciri frowns, "This isn''t what I was expecting." she mutters...

    Reima looks around at the marble ruins and sees a number of strange things... It looks like someone had been camping here, a small pile of ash where a fire had previously been with a cast-iron pot hanging atop it sits in the middle of the ruins.

    He bends down and touches the ash, feeling that it''d not been lit in many, many years... To emphasize that fact the food within the pot seemed to be petrified?

    Reima "Whoever was here seems to have abandoned this place..." he mutters, spotting a nearby rucksack and examining it. "Doesn''t look like they intended to leave though, this is still filled with clothes, what''s left of the rations, and other supplies. They seem to be female from what I can tell though." he mutters at the female clothing.

    Ciri "There doesn''t seem to be anything over here." she says as he looks around the outskirts of the ruins, spotting some kind of sleeping bag sitting on a raised stone platform. "Hang on, what''s this?"

    She hops up to the platform and look at the sleeping bag, not expecting to find anything but doing so anyway... She opens it up and shakes it out, hearing a *Thud* as something falls out and hits the stone. Looking down she spots a book, and from the looks of it, it seems to be a journal. "Rei, over here... I''ve found something."

    She opens the book as Reima looks over her shoulder and squints as she sees what seems to be an old version of their common language... She''d been expecting ancient elvish or something similar, but this? This was unexpected.

    Reima "Can you read it? Just looks like unintelligible "Ye ole'' English" to me..."

    Ciri "I can... I might get some things wrong though so bear with me..." she mutters as she begins reading it. "This owner of this was named... Nalenthi? Strange, they''ve left a note for people who read this... "Greetings stranger, if you''ve stumbled across this, then I am presumably dead. I wish to detail my experiences in hope someone can learn from them, and perhaps not repeat my mistakes...

    One day I was particularly hungry, having not eaten for a few days and desperately looking for "prey" if you could call them that. It was stupid and reckless, and I was obviously caught... It''d become apparent that I''d attempted to rob someone of high status, I was young with white hair which seemed to appeal to the man, and he attempted to enslave me... Looking back on it, I was lucky to escape, I''d have likely be abused, used, and killed after they got bored of me.

    Fortunately, it was when the man attempted to force himself upon me that something awoke inside me... A power that allowed me to vanish from that place entirely. Once I was free I left for a different country, not wishing to give those vile people another chance to capture me. During these travels I trained myself to use these new powers effectively, finding them to not just allow me to disappear and reappear at will, but also move things with my mind...

    It was when I turned eleven years old that I met him... A strange man with pointy ears, pale skin, piercing aquamarine eyes, and lavish robes. He called himself Avallac''h, and said he wished to train me for something greater than a common thief. At first, I was resistant to his attempts to persuade me, but after a year of him doing nothing but assisting me, I agreed.

    He taught me many things, magic, combat, diplomacy, history of the world, different cultures, languages and so much more... But, most importantly, he taught me about my abilities. Elder Blood he called it, something I''d never heard of before. Apparently I was a descendant of an elf named Lara Dorren, someone who was obviously important to him, I never broached the topic with him, but I could tell his mind was almost always on it, especially with the familiar glances he''d send at me... Apparently I resembled the elf somewhat.

    When I turned eighteen he suddenly left, telling me to experiment with my abilities and to live life to the fullest. To be honest, it felt like he''d abandoned me... Avallac''h was the only parental figure I''d known, and him leaving had left a void I needed to fill."

 736 Nalenthis Lamen

    Reima shrugs, "The dude got around in his lifetime, isn''t surprising he influenced your Ancestors."

    Ciri shakes her head, "Let''s read on, maybe there''s something about the White Frost within it." she says, continuing to read the journal.

    "With my teacher''s disappearance, I dedicated myself to the pursuit of knowledge, trying to master any magic I could get my hands on. Slowly my fame began to grow, news of my strength and abilities had apparently reached the leaders of countries who wanted to make use of me. Some even suspected that I held the Elder Blood, making me a prime target to produce heirs, or some I''m told... Soon enough there was nowhere I could run, every country knew me and wished to capture me.

    I was fed up with people at this point and wanted to be left alone... I used my abilities to appear within the desert to the east. With magic it wasn''t difficult to life there in peace, I''d created an artificial oasis where small amounts of wild-life had begun to live... I do not know how many years I spent there, but I''d focused almost entirely on my studies, achieving many great insights in my seclusion.

    But, as always, my peace was broken... A dehydrated traveller who was almost dead had found my Oasis. After throwing himself into the water, taking heaving mouthfuls and passing out I was left with many options to deal with them. Thoughts of killing them or teleporting them out of the desert flashed with my mind, but, something stayed my hand... Was it loneliness? Or boredom? I still do not have the answer, I allowed the man to temporarily stay.

    His name was Adalvin, a simple peasant that''d escaped the razing of his village by fleeing into the desert. He had blonde hair and blue eyes, something you''d not commonly see in this region, of course, with my appearance I''d be remiss to say anything.

    At first I found the man annoying... His bumbling attempts at making conversation, cleaning up, preparing food, or anything else for that matter had me almost throw him out a number of times. Unfortunately, the void that my former teacher had left within me had made me more receptive to his advances than I had expected.

    I found I was pregnant not long after, and, Adalvin was nowhere to be seen... As if he''d vanished from the face of the earth. I was, furious. I unleashed my magic in a fit of rage, creating storms of fire than turned my Oasis to dust, and melted the nearby sand into glass. To this day desert Nomads visit the "Glass Shrine", they believe that a dragon had created it with its breath... I''ve chosen not to interfere with their beliefs.

    It, did not go well... Despite all the planning and precautions I took, there was a limit to what I could do by myself. As I was giving birth my child umbilical had wrapped around their neck, suffocating them... I could feel their life-force waning and felt as if my soul was going to tear itself apart, the thought of losing my child causing me unimaginable pain...

    It cried out for the gods to help me, to save my child, for Avallac''h, for anything... It was then, that He, appeared... I must note, that this is my third attempt to recount the details, every time I write his name the journal would burst into flames, and such, I will refrain from attempting to refer to him by any known alias.

    The being that looked like a man stood there with a small smile that didn''t extend to his eyes... It should have noticed something was off about him, but the physical pain of labour and emotional pain of losing my child had made me almost delirious... He offered to save my child, in exchange for one request. He didn''t specify it at the time, but I wasn''t able to refuse.

    I agreed without hesitation, something that still haunts me to this day. My child was successfully birthed, and I passed out from physical, emotional, and magical exhaustion... That was the last time I saw my child, I had yet to even give him a name before he disappeared from my arms...

    Again, I was alone... When I awoke I was in a panic, trying to find my lost child even with the post-labour weakness I was experiencing. The being who I''d made a deal with, stood nearby watching me, I accused him of stealing them, but they told me he hadn''t done it, and that he was unable to lie... Somehow, I believe him, even more so when he described a man appearing inside of the room and taking my child from my arms.

    When pressed for information he described a man who looked identical to my former teacher, Avallac''h... It seemed, I had been betrayed. A few days after learning this I attempting to find my former teacher, but was stopped by the being... It wanted to make it''s one request.

    I was to be its agent, the being had difficulties manifesting in the physical realm... And wanted me to find a power source which would allow it to bypass its limitations. I wish I hadn''t, but, in order to keep my child safe from him, I did as I was told. I needed to accomplish the task set for me, but I didn''t know where to start... So, I began at the most powerful thing I knew of... The Elder Blood.

 737 Its magic, you know?

    He crosses his arms and sighs, "I can think of a couple candidates for this "Being", but nothing concrete... Whether or not she succeeded doesn''t matter anyway, we need to focus on stopping the White Frost."

    Ciri nods, "Think you can do anything to that rift as it is?" she asks, looking at the huge rift above them.

    Reima shakes his head, "No... If it were like the portals I open then maybe? But, this one feels different... Is there anything else in the journal? It being here must mean that they are involved with this rift in one way or another."

    Ciri nods, dipping her head once again to read the journal.

    "My life of servitude and non-stop research had begun, I locked myself within a tower on the coast of the Undvil island and created a shield that hid my location, preventing people from even seeing the tower as well as forcing them to unconsciously avoid it. It wasn''t difficult to do as my seclusion in the desert had allowed me much time to develop many different spells.

    The being was also ever-present, distracting me at first but I eventually got used to his presence... There was no escape from his grasp, and I accepted that my fate was certain.

    Years pass and I''d only just begun to touch upon the secrets held within my blood, and magics existence itself... The two things were inexplicably linked in some way I couldn''t explain at the time, one thing was for certain though, I was on the "right" track, whatever that meant I had no idea.

    One day while experimenting with ability I''d lost concentration and fallen, accidentally using my magic to teleport to safety... Perhaps it was due to the beings presence, or my forced servitude, but I did not consider the tower as "Safe", and found myself in another world entirely.

    I appeared before a group of people and some peculiar short creatures... The people wore fine clothes reminiscent of the nobles back on the continent, forcing me on my guard. I prepared a number of magical shields aswell as numerous circles that''d reduced them all to ashes should they start a conflict, but, surprisingly they were more amazed than horrified by my use of magic.

    One of their little girls who had white hair looked up at me hopefully, I had only just noticed the other injured child in her fathers arms... Their names were King Agnarr, Queen Iduna, Elsa, and Anna. The latter being the injured one.

    The small beings were apparently known as Trolls, they were much more intelligent than the ones I knew of and seemed to have an affinity with ambient magic, even if they struggled to use it for anything. Again, they requested for me to extend my teachings, not to them, but to the white-haired girl who''d apparently harmed her sister.

    I handed her the diary I''d been writing in since Avallac''h had started teaching me before leaving. I returned just as the being was preparing to reap my child soul, thankfully I hadn''t dawdled with those peoples requests otherwise something terrible would have happened... The trip had been a good change of pace, but it''d also opened my eyes to some new possibilities.

    Clearly, the Elder Blood was not bound to one world or another, which meant it existed completely independent of them. With this new frame to work around my research progress at ten-fold the previous speed, eventually leading me to the power source I was looking for, and the origin of the Elder Blood''s power.

    The void. A place existing outside and in between worlds that separates them and doesn''t usually allow them to interact with one another, I suspect the conjunction of the sphere''s had altered the rules temporarily and allowed worlds to intersect, providing us with the menagerie of otherworldly creatures you now see on the continent.

    My discovery of the void had been the pinnacle of my life''s work, no one had ever found or even thought of the possibility of it existing before, but I had not only theorized it, but found it. I wasn''t allowed any time to celebrate with being pushing me to experiment further, the void clearly taking its interest...

    The void, is the origin of all magic... It flows into worlds and fills them with ambient magic, filling the earth, dirt, oceans, creatures, and air. Of course, many theories speculate that souls have the ability to generate magic, but that isn''t my area of expertise. Regardless, I had found my power source... It was time to try and link it with the being to fulfill our deal.

    Before I explain my actions from here on, I will need to explain what magic actually is... It is nothing made manifest, this is the reason magic is so wild, chaotic, and has endless possibilities. The void was nothing, and magic... It sounds counter-intuitive but that''s just how it is, to look further would be to question existence in its entirety." Ciri stops there for a moment, giving Reima a shocked look... He had the same expression, after all, they''d just found out the literal origin of magic, and the Elder Blood...

 738 Never believe its not so!

    Ciri frowns, "Wait, if the void is the origin of all magic, and she manages to link it with this "Being", would they basically be a god... Not like you and Solaire, but a TRUE god."

    Reima slowly nods, "If the being was able to take it then yes, but think about this... Aren''t we basically already linked with the Void via the Elder Blood? If what she''s saying is true then we draw in magic directly from the void, even if we don''t realise it..."

    Ciri sighs and rubs her temples, "All these revelations are giving me a headache..."

    Reima massages her temples for her, "Read on Ciri... This journal might contain more secrets about things I''d rather not know about... Like the colour of Asgore''s underwear or why a Tomato isn''t a vegetable."

    ...

    Ciri shakes her head at his jokes and continues.

    "From what I can experiment with by myself, it seems that the Elder Blood is a genetic trait that allows you to freely take from the void. This is probably the reason why it was so unstable when I was young, I was unable to restrict the amount I took. Another thing is that the magic taken from the void is attributed... Not like the typical elements like fire, water, earth, or wind... But a higher one involving what I suspect is Space and Time.

    This is a curse and a boon, it makes it almost impossible to use with regular spells, giving explosive results whenever such a thing is attempted. But, it also allows the creation of spells never seen before, an example of this would be my ability to teleport between worlds at will.

    Alas, my research on this line of thought wasn''t useful to the being, so they forced me to focus on linking it and the void... Through our attempts a number of things were discovered, one was the fact the being was somehow allergic to the void and its magic... Once contact between the two had been made the being almost destroyed myself and the tower as it tried to escape.

    Thoughts of using this to destroy it crossed my mind, but in practice trying to have the void touch a being that wasn''t stationary and willing was another matter entirely. With this the void was not useful for the beings use, and I was punished for my "Failure".

    After what I think was a couple months of physical and psychological torture I was set to work again... This time, to spite me for the pain that I''d accidentally caused it the being had created something to "Motivate" me. A mirror, containing a live feed over an orphaned child... Blonde hair, blue eyes. It was my son.

    "For every failure I will not punish you, but your son" he stated, and I had no reason to doubt him... My son was dirty and seemed to be starving on the streets, something which caused me greater pain than the torture the being had subjected to me.

    Eventually, I made a discovery... Through a method I will not reveal, I managed to reverse the magic taken from the void... Creating something entirely new.

    Magic, is nothing made something. But this substance was the opposite, something made nothing. Unlike magic it had many restrictions and wasn''t easily changed, but, controlling it was easier than magic due to its predictability.

    It was still powered by the void but was filtered through an intricately designed magical circle I spent a number of years creating... Only I could activate it as it is only operable by someone with the Elder Blood, this is the only countermeasure I could add without rousing the beings suspicion.

    It worked. Once activated the circle pulled magic from the void, filtered it into anti-magic before bestowing it to the being... Somehow they were able to utilise this "Anti-magic" with ease, I suspect it''s due to how the being is remarkably similar to it... Restricted, but powerful when allowed.

    With that, I had my freedom... Or so I thought. The beings request was for me to serve it, it didn''t specify a time limit which meant that my servitude was eternal. I suspect even my soul would be put to work had I stayed. Due to our deal being partially completed, the being wasn''t able to touch, influence or even indirectly affect my son, freeing me from that shackle.

    With nothing holding me back any longer I fled, the being was able to slowly follow me through worlds as I was marked by it, and the Anti-magic allowed it some ability to manipulate time and space. It wasn''t able to leave on its own, but following me was within its capabilities, forcing me to travel through many worlds just to evade him.

    This leads to the present time as I write this journal... I''m getting older, and I''ve been running all my life. I''ve decided to try and destroy the being and undo the damage I''ve done by giving it power. I have devised a plan to lure it here and open a path to the void itself, this should destroy it... However, should I fail I have no idea what might happen due to my actions. This is the reason I leave this journal here, protected within this shield... You, my descendant, will right my wrongs.

    I leave you with this final message, do not strike deals with demons, just as Casino''s rig the games in their favour, the deals are never fair, nor simple. May the gods bless you - Nalenthi" Ciri finishes, giving a heavy breath and setting the journal down.

 739 The Michael Bay of spells

    Reima "Looks like her plan didn''t go as expected..."

    Ciri shakes her head, "You think?" she snaps back, giving an apologetic expression afterwards, "Sorry... I''m just not sure how to process all of this."

    Reima "Process what? Your ancestor apparently created the White Frost, what else is there to know?"

    Ciri "Oh, I don''t know... Maybe the fact that the thing I was trained to sacrifice myself to stop was created by my ancestor? The fact that Avallac''h was heavily involved in influencing everything until now? Or maybe the fact that some godly being may still be out there with a grudge against those with the Elder Blood?"

    ...

    Reima slowly nods, "Yeah, now that I think about it, the being she described reminds me of something I met a while ago..."

    Ciri sits on a nearby rock and rests her head in her hands, "Great... I don''t suppose you made it a deal with it?"

    Reima shakes his head, "No, a vampire destroyed any thoughts of doing that." he mutters. remembering Lothaire.

    Ciri "Atleast that''s some good news... Any idea on how to stop that?" she nods up at the rift.

    Reima shrugs, "The rift leads to the void, but I still have no idea if its possible to close it... Maybe if we cause it to implode?" he mutters.

    Ciri "And how would we do that?" she questions, not seeing any hope of achieving that.

    Reima taps his foot on the marble floor for a moment before perking up, "What about that spell? The one that passes through objects before becoming a miniature black hole?"

    Ciri "Ah, that... But it''s nowhere near powerful enough to... You want to use the void to power it?" she questions, seeing his shifty expression.

    Reima grins, "If we don''t destroy the universe then it''ll work..."

    Ciri "That''s a big "if" Rei, you sure we won''t just make things worse?" she questions hesitantly.

    Reima shrugs, "Might as well right? If we don''t stop this then it''ll destroy the universe anyway... The White Frost will keep consuming worlds and spreading to the next, and while I like snow as much as the next person, having it 24/7 would be a bummer."

    Ciri "Well... No time like the present then? We should get started as soon as possible, Ichor might still be in danger." she says, standing up and brushing the dust off of her pants.

    Reima nods, glancing at the shield covering them and getting an idea... "Let''s take a look around and find a good spot to begin. I doubt this shield will do anything positive for our efforts." he states, walking out after safely stowing away the journal within his Folded Space.

    Ciri "Why didn''t you do this earlier?" she complains as the walk to get directly under the rift''s epicenter.

    Reima "I didn''t think it would work, that''s all. No point in complaining as nothing was lost, right?"

    Ciri "We lost a lot of time walking up here." she adds, making Reima feel like the husband being insulted as he drives.

    Reima ignores her for a while before eventually spotting something strange... Their vision was only completely impaired but he could vaguely see a silhouette? "What''s that?" he mutters as they approach.

    Ciri gasps as they reach it... It''s a person completely frozen in ice. A middle-aged looking woman who''s holding her hands into the air towards the rift, a look of shock permanently frozen on her face. "Th-this is Nelenthi?" she asks, not sure if it''s truly her.

    Reima nods, "Yeah... Seems like she didn''t expect the rift either. Her soul isn''t present, either it moved on or got eaten by the one she spoke about."

    Ciri "Can we do anything for her? I don''t want to just leave her here..."

    Reima "You should focus on the task at hand, if we survive we can give her a proper burial... I''m only 50% sure we''ll get through this to be honest." he says with a forced nervous chuckle.

    Ciri "Thanks for the encouragement Rei, its good to know we''re betting our lives on a coin toss."

    Reima shakes his head, "Alright, enough talking... I''ll start the spell, all you need to do is channel as much magic into it as possible. Do it at a steady rate so I can keep up or we might just implode ourselves." he mutters, the thought of such a thing not sounding that great...

    He raises his hands up to the rift like Nalenthi had been, Ciri mimicking him as he begins attempts to create a tiny portal to the void itself... Previously, when he conjured portals without thinking of a location they''d end up leading to this world, it being the weakest link in the proverbial chain of worlds. This time, he was specifically trying to open a portal to the void, this is essentially what created the White Frost, but to a much, much smaller scale.

    Once the portal is opened a shockwave occurs, blasting freezing wind from the small opening in time and space. Reima quickly seals it within a cocoon of Elder Blood Magic that seals it temporarily. "Ciri, now!" he calls, casting the black-hole spell while incasing the void portal within it.

    The portal acts like an air-canister filling a balloon, granting the spell an incredible amount of magic in a small amount of time, giving Reima the impossible task of stabilising it... The introduction of Ciri''s magic allows him to reinforce the cocoon which gives him more time to prepare the spell.

    Soon enough, a large orb of pulsing turquoise magic hovers above them, it''s only a fraction of a fraction of the size of the rift... But the power contained within it "should" be able to destabilise it and possibly cause it to implode... That, or it''ll add energy to the rift and tear the universe asunder.

    Reima "Dooooo ieeetttttttt!" he shouts, finally unleashing the orb at the rift, the maelstrom of overflowing power heading straight for it.

    Once it''s far enough away from them Reima, stores the frozen body of Nalenthi and picks up Ciri... Teleporting out of there as the spell is about to collide with the rift.

    *BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!*

 740 Eeuwigdurs-end

    As the duo leave an explosion rocks space and time itself, the rift imploding faster than the speed of light and obliterating the planet it as on... That wasn''t the only extent of the damage however, as the rift seals the power of the explosion causes huge turquoise cracks to start spreading throughout the area. They crack and splinter the space they travel through, causing various anomalies as the tails of the cracks seal as they move...

    Their expansion is constant, not being impeded by anything and heading for other universes unfortunate to be in their line of fire... Things drop from the cracks as they travel, a talking dog that instantly dies from lack of oxygen, a red and blue truck that transforms into a robot and begins floating around aimlessly, a yellow-skinned woman with tall blue hair and green dress, a gigantic ape, and even a young boy wearing a green outfit with a decorative blue sword strapped to his belt...

    Elsewhere :

    A deep growl can be heard deep within a cave that sits within Toussaint, Reima and Ciri had just sealed the rift but this apparently had unfortunate side-affects...

    "THE GATE! NOOO, WHAT IS THIS!" an enraged shout escapes a pale figure hanging from the roof of the cave, their fangs and long claws bared. He breathes in heavily and scowls, the gate to their homeworld no-longer allowing even the scent through... Something must have happened, someone must''ve done something!

    The figure drops to the floor and turns his head to the sky, giving out an incredibly loud roar that travels out of Toussaint and to the neighboring kingdoms, similar roars being giving by those as well which allows the sound to ring across the entire continent.

    As for everyone who heard the sound? Sleepless nights were had, especially for Toussaint who''d had a vampire already tearing their capital city of Beauclaire apart... Assassinating the Duchesses sister and horrifically scaring her herself.

    Elsewhere :

    Reima and Ciri reappear next to the rift that''d originally sucked them in... Everyone was still present despite the amount of time they''d been gone, they pats themselves off as if to check if they''re still alive, both giving long sighs when they realise they have indeed survived. They smile at each other but Reima''s face quickly morphs into a frown...

    Reima "What happened..." he mutters, looking up at the frozen Eeuwigdurend.

    A white figure barrels into him, tears streaming down their face as they hug him tightly, "Rei, Uncle... He..."

    He hugs her and pats her back comfortingly, "It''s ok Cilla..." he mutters, glancing at Solaire who walks over with a sad expression.

    Reima "What happened?" he whispers to the sun-bro, making sure Priscilla didn''t hear them.

    Reima raises his voice so everyone can hear him, "Then, we must give him a proper send off. The old m-Eeuwigdurend, protected us and asked for nothing in return. We at least owe him a heroes funeral." he states, the Chaos Servants and Prospects all giving solemn "Jolly"''s in response.

    *Rooooaarr*

    A strange sound echoes over the mountain top, causing everyone to turn their heads towards it... Reima''s ears perk at it, never having heard such a thing before in all his life, giving a glance to Geralt it seemed even with his experience he hadn''t either.

    Reima "We''ll deal with it later, we having something more important than that right now!" he shouts, checking Eeuwigdurend''s body for a soul one last time before trying to store it inside his Folded Space... His exhausted magic from earlier not allowing him to to do such a thing right now... Shaking his head he leaves the body here temporarily so they could decide what to do with it.

    Everyone begins making their way down the mountain, no one wishing to celebrate due to the solemn atmosphere... Reima spots Harry within the group and he walks over after handing Priscilla off to Solaire while greeting, "Yo... Harry?"

    Harry turns and gives him an apologetic expression, "I''m sorry, I couldn''t do anything..."

    Reima sighs, "That''s what I was gonna ask, did you try to take his soul?"

    Harry nods, "I tried... But I didn''t expect for the dragons soul to be so powerful, and resistant to my attempts. It was almost like it rejected my help."

    ...

    Reima "Well, he always did like sleeping... Thanks anyway Harry, for trying." he says, patting him on the shoulder and teleporting to the city to try and find Asgore.

    Rapidly, a huge funeral was arranged to take place outside the Chaos Temple... Reima chose the Bonfire.

    It was difficult to fit most of the city on the mountain peak but it was managed somehow... Reima stood on the small island holding the bonfire surrounded by lava as everyone looks on at him. Solaire had just given a short Eulogy about Eeuwigdurend, the only other person close enough to the dragon would be Prisclla, but she definitely wasn''t ready for something like that, especially as she''d just lost the only "true" father-figure in her life.

    Taking a deep breath he looks at the gathered people and raises his voice, "You all know why we are here right now, but, most of you don''t know who you are here to celebrate and mourne for... They were called Eeuwigdurend, the huge dragon that sat atop the mountain scaring you and your kids by their mere presence alone.

    Some of you even petitioned to have him removed simply because of your fear for him, I have the paperwork to prove it." he says, giving a glare to a few of the humans and non-humans gathered. "Luckily your idiotic requests were ignored! As it was Eeuwigdurend who saved all of your lives by shielding the city with his own body! It''s still there, the frozen corpse of our friend and guardian, a testament to all he gave us. Forget your prejudice, fear, and pre-formed conclusions about Eeuwigdurend and celebrate his life with us, as you owe him everything you are and have.

    While he left many behind who will mourne him for as long as they live, he gave them a chance to continue on... So, unless you want me to dump you into the lake of lava, raise your drink for the guardian who gave everything, Eeuwigdurend!" he shouts, the crowd all cheering Eeuwigdurend''s name, even those who''d previously wanted him gone.

 741 Serving with utmost loyalty...

    His grudge against monsters remained throughout everything, even as people of his own race and country cut down his troops... But, finally, he had an opportunity to cut the head off of the snake that''d caused this brutal civil war, Rudild Aep Num was a fierce combatant in his own right but Stairrde was confident his men could overcome anything!

    He led the charge, sword in hand and covered in heavy ornate black armour... The two sides clashed, Stairrde''s horse getting skewered by a spear and causing him to fall to the ground, his quickly gets up and engages the enemy, moving towards the man who''d killed his horse but finds they''d already been killed by someone else... Changing his focus he screams "For the Emperor!" to encourage his troops as he moves towards the general area where Rudild had previously been spotted.

    Even with only having one arm, he easily cut down many men... His skills forged through countless brutal battles, and his fears being squashed by his previous encounter with those monsters within the swamps of Velen.

    Arrows rain down from both sides, the skirmish being at the height of its intensity which causes the ranged combatants to not being able to fire without hitting their own allies... Their commanders force them to continue firing, however... Fireballs follow the arrows over the men''s heads as the mages now get involved, numerous spells which skewer, burn, melt, control, and all manner of different things are fired from both sides... Though, Emperor Voorhis side has the advantage due to most mages being of "Noble" blood.

    Stairrde screams as he cuts down another man, the slowly accumulating injuries on his body not preventing his onslaught... Suddenly he spots Rudild still sitting atop his horse and commanding his troops, a couple mages by his side to shield him from the projectiles being fired. "MEN, CHARRRRGGEE!" he shouts, managing to push the soldiers surrounding him towards Rudilds position...

    The knight doesn''t have any change of expression at the sudden aggression, the mages around him firing various spells that kill large swaths of the attackers... But Stairrde manages to break through, gutting one mage and moving to ram his blade into Rudilds stomach... Only for the man to wave his sword skillfully and slice a deep cut into Stairrde''s wrist, forcing him to drop his sword...

    A spell slams into his back and forces him to his knees, using his remaining injured hand to push himself up... He looks up at Rudild who smiles gently at him.

    Stairrde "You are no different from them, seeking only power to raise yourself above everyone else... I spit on your honey''d words traitor!"

    Rudild sigh, "That, is unfortunate." he says, nodding to someone which has them run a blade through Stairrde''s back... "Huuurrghh!" he groans, rolling onto his back as the battle continues around him, his blood pooling beneath him.

    Suddenly, the sounds of battle stop... Confused, Stairrde looks around and notices th arrows above him not moving, as if they were frozen in time.

    *Clap, Clap, Clap, Clap*

    Stairrde looks up and spots a man clapping while walking towards him, sidestepping the frozen warriors with asmile on his face. "Well done, your bravery really is something... Not many men would so willingly charge to their death like you had." he says as he sits into a squat next to the dying man.

    Stairrde "W-what is this? A-am I dead?" he manages to say through the agonising pain he''s currently experiencing.

    "Hmm, you aren''t dead, yet. As to what "This" is, I have no idea what you might be referring to."

    Stairrde growls, "D-don''t joke! What have you done to, to everyone."

    The man shrugs, "Simply a small trick to allow us to speak."

    Stairrde "What would you need to speak with me about... I am but a simple soldier." he states, not knowing what this man wanted.

    "Oh, but you are not as simple as you think... I need your bravery and... Loyalty, to achieve some goals of mine."

    Stairrde "I-I refuse!"

    The man chuckles, "Oh? That, is unfortunate." he says mimicking Rudilds last words to Stairrde, "I will have to find someone else to destroy the "City of Monsters" for me then." he says, standing and beginning to walk away.

    ...

    Stairrde "Wait..." he says after a moment of thinking. "You said you, need to destroy some City of Monsters?" he inquires.

    The man stops and nods, "Indeed."

    Stairrde "And, what would that mean for my place in the Nilfgaardian empire?" he asks, not wishing to betray his country.

    "I''d prefer you stay as General, but, you are free to do as you wish aslong as you agree to my terms."

    Stairrde "And... What might they be?"

    The man smiles, "Nothing all that important, I simply wish for you to serve me with your heart, and soul... As you had done when you served your country. Sound acceptable? In return, I will grant you power, and a second chance to achieve your own goals." he says with a smug grin.

    Stairrde slowly nods, "I-I agree!" he shouts with all the effort he can mustre, afraid that he''d bleed out before the man would get a chance to save him."

    "Good. Oh, by the way, you may refer to me as... Gaunter O''Dimm." he states as he covers Stairrde in some sort of strange red energy.

 742 Err, you gonna eat that?

    With Eeuwigdurend gone Reima was forced to integrate some other kind of security for Ichor and the land surrounding it... As such, he employed Rickert and Alphys to get on it, even if both were already swamped with work. While they were tasked to come up with a solution he had Iorveth and the Prospects to increase the number of patrols to make sure nothing untoward happens.

    Reima and Ciri decided to lock the journal within the highest floor of the library... The knowledge it contained was incredibly important and valuable, it literally contained the secrets of the universe as well as one of Ciri''s ancestor, Nalenthi''s last words.

    On the same topic, Reima had the House Elves create a statue of Nalenthi within a corner of the courtyard of Kaer Mornhen... It was more to put Ciri''s worries to rest than anything else, but it didn''t look out of place surrounded by bright flowers in the sunlight. In elvish he had an inscription carved on its base "Unwilling Villain" with her frozen corpse buried under the statue.

    A few days after the incident Reima had actually gone back to where the rift had been to check if everything had gone off without issues... To be honest, finding himself in space surrounded by rubble and dead fictional characters he barely remembered was a peculiar experience.

    The mutilated corpse of Scooby Doo floats by him as he spots what looks like a broken and battered Optimus Prime... Upon closer inspection, the robot didn''t respond to anything, so heavily damaged that it was only scrap metal now... This didn''t prevent Reima from storing it so Alphys could analyse it, but it was a mystery as to how it ended up like this... And, how these things got here in the first place.

    He looked around the area for a couple hours, oxygen not being a problem as he could probably hold his breath for as long as he wished, but didn''t find whatever had caused all this chaos here... He returned back to Ichor and was stood outside his and Ciri''s room...

    Stepping onto the mat he''d created with Ciri''s father''s soul and wiping his feet, he opens the door and enters, stopping when he spots something that almost causes his jaw to hit the floor...

    Ciri had her lower half-naked and was sat on the sofa with her legs spread open, a T.V remote in her hand as she watched Mettatton''s latest show... And, surprisingly, Quelaag servicing her on her knees...

    Reima had thought such a thing was way too far, but after Ciri made the argument of "She basically enslaved me, it''s fair this way right?" he relented... Quelaag tried her best to try and get out of it, but Reima made sure she couldn''t escape it. What she had done was really quite serious, had it been anyone else he probably would have eaten their soul...

    Reima looks down at Quelaag who''s dutifully moving her tongue and rubbing the bridge of his nose, "Ciri, are you serious?" he asks in exasperation, the duo finally noticing his presence.

    Ciri "What? I can''t be lazy even after the Wild Hunt and White Frost are gone?" she questions.

    Truthfully, Ciri had mellowed out quite considerably after everything had ended... If she wasn''t training, learning under Yennefer, or helping him with paperwork, then she was in this chair... Watching T.V like a stereotypical husband would be...

    Reima rubs his face "No... That''s not it, what are you doing to Quelaag..."

    ...

    Ciri looks down and shrugs with a smirk, "She''s my slave, I can do what I want with her right?"

    Reima slowly nods, "Yeah, but why, this..."

    Ciri "She took liberties with me, now''s payback. Plus, if I don''t keep her mouth busy then she won''t stop talking."

    Reima "And what''d you say if someone walked in on this? I can''t imagine you''d be able to look at them in the eye again." he says, trying to ignore the sounds coming from Quelaag...

    Ciri "You know no one comes in here except you and Rissa, and she''s in school..."

    Reima "... Look, this just feels really fuckin'' weird to walk in on..."

    Ciri "Ah, I get it..." she says, making Reima feel that she actually listened to him... Until he hears her next words, "You''re jealous?"

    Reima raises a brow at her, "Jealous?"

    Ciri nods, "I''ve got this perky slave," she pokes Quelaag exposed breast, "And you don''t."

    Reima "No, I don''t think so..." he says, not know what she''s on about.

    Ciri sighs, "Fine, I''m a compassionate person, so I''ll share." she says patting the free seat next to her...

    ...

    Reima "What?"

    Ciri "I''m sure you''ve been working all day, a massage will help you relax." she says with a wink.

    ...

    Reima looks at Quelaag who''s currently giving Ciri an adoring and grateful look before shrugging, "I mean, if you''re going to offer..." he says, feeling that while this situation might be incredibly weird, it might end up with all parties better off than before...

 743 Half and Half

    Large amounts of various market stalls had been set up around the area in preparation to receive all of the foreign guests and hoping to get a cut of whatever the Auction house was receiving.

    Bards were performing wherever there were space to do so, they simply couldn''t resist busking for this many people, making the city livelier from their initially selfish efforts...

    Hjalmar "Come on Da'', we''re gonna miss it if ya don''t hurry yourself." he says, urging the older man onwards.

    Crach increased the length of his strides in response to his sons words, treating them as a challenge instead of disrespect as most would in his position... He wore padded trousers and a chainmail vest, with some additional jewelry to complete it, the weather didn''t allow him to use the formal attire he''d brought, and refused to simply sweat like a dog while attempting to enjoy himself as this event. "Hurry myself eh? You were in such a rush u nary got dressed!" he bites back at Hjalmar who''s currently shirtless.

    Hjalmar laughs, "Clothes are to hide what''s shameful, what''s shameful about this?" he brags, moving his pectoral muscles in unison.

    Crach sighs, "Shoulda'' left you in Skellige and bought yer'' sister, at least she woulda'' dressed properly!"

    Hjalmar shrugs, "I offered, but you said I''d have the whole isle in flames by the time you returned!"

    Crach raises a bro at him, "Do you disagree with my accessment?" he asks.

    ...

    Hjalmar doesn''t reply and keeps striding through the city, knowing full well a peasant would have a better chance at leading the current Skellige than he would.

    Eventually they spot the large building with the sign "Kaedweni Auction House" present on the front.

    Hjalmar "Looks like the plac-" he''s stopped when a thin man brushes by him, he could barely hear the sound of metal scraping against metal. Without a moments notice Hjalmar spins around and grabs the man''s shoulder. "Oi, don''t think you can rob me cut-purse." he states.

    The thief tries to make a run for it but is firmly locked in place by Hjalmar, without any other option he shouts, "Help! I''m being attacked, someone save me!"

    Hjalmar "Return what you stole and I might let you go."

    Crach "You''re always causing trouble, couldn''t you just knock the fool unconscious instead of letting him wail like a new-born babe?"

    Hjalmar sighs, feeling his fathers constant criticisms of him weren''t really justified...

    "Halt! You dare cause trouble in our city foreigners!" a man wearing leather armour interjects with his sword drawn.

    "Take your hands off or face the consequences!" the guard shouts as a circle begins to form around the duo.

    ...

    Crach scratches his beard and sighs, "There''s been a misunderstanding." he states, "This thief tried to steal something of ours, once they return it you can do what you wish with them."

    The guard gives them a hard look and shakes his head, "I will ask you one last time, let the man go or I''ll have to deal justice to the both of you."

    Hjalmar grits his teeth, "You''re pushing your luck lad, any more and you''ll not be able to push anything without assistance." he says with a glare, his hand itching to draw the Zwei-Hander on his back.

    The guard goes slightly pale at Hjalmar''s words but continues regardless, stepping forwards and trying to grab the thief.

    Crach "Son don''t-" he tries to intervene but it''s already too late...

    *CUT!*

    In a flash Hjalmar had drawn his blade with one hand and cut down on the guard... Somehow slicing through their blade and continuing to bisect through their body.

    *Thump*

    The two pieces fall to the floor separately, a moment of silence followed by horrified screams...

    Crach "Oh, for fuck sake Hjalmar!" he shouts, feeling that this situation looked incredibly bad for them.

    Hjalmar looks down at the thief he''s still holding and glares at him, "Return what you stole." he growls, the smell of urine being pungent in the air as the thief pisses themself.

    "O-ok! Don''t kill me!" he quibbles out while handing a pile of gold coins to Hjalmar, having previously cut his coin purse and dexterously taken them.

    "HALT!"

    ...

    Hjalmar sighs, "Again?"

    A large group of guards approach the duo, all of them seeming to protect someone... The duo stand near a bisected corpse with Hjalmar still holding his bloody sword, all is definitely not looking well.

    Clear and concise footsteps can be heard from behind the steel plate armoured guards, a familiar face appearing before them.

    Roche "Huh, I can''t say I expected you both to be responsible for this... It isn''t surprising though." he says, with crossed arms.

    Hjalmar "Ah, Roche is it?... Me and Ermion were both surprised to hear you got promoted, good job mate." he says with a grin, beginning to wipe his blade off with some cloth.

    Crach "Aye, we''re sorry about... This, but one of your guards attempted to arrest us for catching a thief... You could say he''s currently in two minds about it though." he says with a chuckle at the morbid situation.

    Roche looks at the man and raises a brow, "All of my men have been outfitted with plate armour, not leather... Seems you''ve caught an imposter."

    ...

    Hjalmar "A fake? I can''t say I''ve ever seen someone brave or stupid enough to do that before..."

    Roche sighs, "The auction has attracted many wealthy and influential people... The rewards for managing to steal from them would tempt any regular man. I''m glad the trouble was only you two though, any other royalty would have raised hell and high water if they''d been pickpocketed."

 744 Pulling something outta your Crach...

    Roche nods and reciprocates, "I was just heading to the Auction House, would you accompany me?"

    Crach nods, "Aye, we got these fancy VIP invitations, thought we might''as well use ''em... ''Specially considering the things Ichor ''as been producin''." he states, the duo both walking with Roche into the Auction House.

    The entrance was large, but it was still chock-full of people, all of them wearing fine clothing and expensive jewelry. There were a couple staff on reception as well as a few heavily armoured men guarding the doors with fierce looks, on a balcony which overlooks the entrance the trio could spot someone wearing peculiar onion-shaped armour with a large two-handed sword strapped to their back.

    Sieglinde spots them in the crowd and leaves, coming back moments later with Zoltan leading her.

    Zoltan "You''ve finally arrived!" he says with a cheerful grin, grasping their forearms in a manner unbefitting towards royalty.

    Hjalmar "Ahaha, Zoltan! You''ve caused quite a fuss with this Auction House haven''t ya?"

    Zoltan nods, "I''m a warrior first and foremost, but business runs in my veins. Plus, it isn''t ''ard to create somethin'' like this with a most of the wealth on the continent behind ye''." he says with a chuckle.

    Roche nods, "I didn''t expect for it''s popularity to be so wide-spread... I''ve seen some amazing things in Ichor already, so I''m looking forward to whatever you''re going to bring out."

    Zoltan "I don''t think you''ll be disappointed! Alright, follow me and I''ll show you the "VIP" seats." he says as he begins to lead them through a string of doors, each more heavily protected than the last. "I hope you don''t mind that there are already some people present, I thought you folk would want to talk with one another... I can change the arrangement if ya'' wish though."

    Crach "Who''s present?" he asks, wondering what other countries can afford moving their leaders around during wartime."

    Zoltan "King of Kovir and Poviss, Tankred Thyssen and his escort... Triss Merigold." he says.

    ...

    The trio enter and find themselves within a huge room with many, many seats. The area they are currently located is over the regular seats and allows them to look down at everything within the room.

    Zoltan pulls out three separate cards with numbers on them and hands it to them, "You know the drill, raise em if u want something and call out if you want to set the price. Now, I''ve got a lotta'' things ta''do right about now, so enjoy yourselves, eat somethin'' and buy a lot. I''ll be seein'' ya later folks." he says, nodding at them as he quickly leaves.

    Sieglinde doesn''t follow and instead stands guard at the door to prevent anything untoward from happening.

    Roche walks off and coughs into his hand, "Greetings the three of you." he says, drawing their attention towards him. They eye him and don''t respond, customs holding their tongue so Roche could properly introduce himself. "I am Vernon Roche, King of Kaedwen."

    Tankred nods, "Greetings King Roche, I am Tankred Thyssen of Kovir and Poviss, at my sides are Stryrdan Bentz, Captain of my Royal Guard, and Triss Merigold, my advisor in all things supernatural." he says with a polite smile, resting his hand on Triss leg which gets a weird reaction from her.

    Roche nods, "I''ve already been acquainted with Miss Merigold, it''s good to see you again... I''d also like to properly extend a formal welcome to my city. I apologize in not being able to greet you at the gates, the security of the city was strained in trying to manage the influx of people for this event."

    Tankred waves his hand, "Don''t mind it, I understand the woes of hosting such events... The troubles never seem to end hahaha!"

    Crach and Hjalmar step forth, the former casually shaking Tankreds hand, "Didn''t expect to see you here King Thyssen." he says diplomatically.

    Tankred shakes his head, "Enough with the formalities Crach, we''ve known each other for a while now... And while we''ve had our squabbles, I believe we''re above those politicking and scheming few."

    Crach nods, "Aye, those Mogrels can go do one as far as I''m concerned, politics should never trump a leaders ability to rule... Ah! This is my son Hjalmar, I don''t believe you''ve met?"

    Tankred shakes his head, "Indeed, this is the first... I heard you''ve decided your daughter, Cerys was it? To be the new Jarl?"

    Crach nods, "I have, not because Hjalmar is unfit, but because Cerys is in her element leadin''. This one would prefer to fight anyway, ain''t that right?"

    Hjalmar grins, "You know me too well Da'', it''s good to meet a friend of my old man, Tankred." he says, shaking their hand like how Crach had done.

    Tankred gestures towards the nearby seats, "Take a seat, I believe the Auction will be starting soon, from what I''ve heard they''ll be presenting goods never before seen in this world!" he says excitedly.

    Crach chuckles, "Typical Kovir, tossin'' gold at things until they go your way." he jokes.

    Tankred "Why change what works, right?" he says with a chuckle.

 745 Lights, Auction, Camera!

    Suddenly, bright lights illuminate the stage where all the seats were facing, revealing Zoltan who smiles at everyone and begins speaking into a microphone fixed upon a stand. "Welcome all of ye'', to the Kaedwen Auction House! Sponsored by King Reima of Ichor!" His words reverberate around the room, surprising most of the guests gathered due to them never seeing such a device before.

    The crowd begins to talk amongst themselves excitedly, but Zoltan continues, his voice easily overcoming the whispers from the public. "I''m sure you''re all excited to see what we have to show ye'', but you must have patience... I can guarantee those of you with coin will be satisfied by the end of our three-day event, anyone who isn''t... Simply couldn''t afford the luxuries we''re providing." he says, taking advantage of the arrogant merchants in the crowd. "I''d also like to thank the King of Kaedwen for allowing us the opportunity to host such a thing in their territory, such an honest and charitable person must be commended, and so we won''t be selling the first item shown here today!... Instead, we''ll be gifting it to King Roche." This doesn''t make those in the crowd happy at all, but, it''s more jealousy than anything else.

    Zoltan turns and looks at the shadowed entrance to the stand, gesturing for someone to come forwards.

    From the entrance a woman with pale blonde hair and revealing tight clothing walks out with a box. She smiles at everyone, sending a glare at Roche on the balcony before finally standing beside Zoltan.

    Zoltan "This fantastically beautiful woman before you will be the one presenting the incredible items we''ve acquired for you, her name is Vessica, but don''t get any ideas... She''s taken." he says with a laugh, taking the box out of her hand and opening it to show everyone in the room... Inside the box, sitting on velvet pillows in some kind of gold necklace with a huge blue gem inlaid in it.

    Some of the crowd are drawn in by it, but others seem to lose interest... Jewelry wasn''t all that uncommon in the continent, even if the gem was the biggest they''d ever seen cut and inlaid.

    Zoltan grins, "I see, some of you aren''t aware of this items true worth... Allow me to open your eyes!" he says, gently putting the necklace on and turning as "Vessica" returns with a bow in hand...

    The crowd begins murmering at the strange scene, and start panicking when Ves begins drawing the bow while aiming at Zoltan''s chest...

    *TWANG*

    The steel tip arrow leaves the bow at incredible speeds, heading straight for Zoltan''s heart as he stands there confidently...

    *Snap!*

    A shield forms around Zoltan out of nowhere, glowing the same yellow colour of a typical Quen sign... The blue gem on the necklace glows brightly as its activated, making it clear it''s the one responsible for the defensive magic.

    The shield dissipates as the broken arrow hits the floor, the whole venue silently looking on at what''d just happened in disbelief...

    "OOOHHHHH!" A merchant shouts, followed by everyone else who cheer at the brave and brilliant display.

    Roche grins, "What do you think? Worth your time to come?" he asks the Kovirian King.

    Tankred slowly nods, "I don''t doubt it, my, risking his life to show the effect of the product, what a fantastic showman!" he exclaims.

    Hjalmar laughs, "Zoltan''s ''ad a pair on ''im since I first met ''im in Kaer Morhen!" he praises.

    Zoltan turns back to the crowd, delicately taking the necklace off and placing it back in its box, "Haha, I''m sure you all wish to purchase such a priceless artifact, but unfortunately we''ve decided to gift it to the King of Kaedwen." he says, lowering everyone''s enthusiasm quite considerably.

    Zoltan hands the box to Ves and she walks off of the stage to hand it off to someone else.

    Not long after an anxious-looking girl enters the balcony after Sieglinde checks her over for weapons with the box in hand. "Erm... King Ro-che" she almost chokes on her own spit and blushes bright red...

    Roche smiles at her, "Thank you." he says, taking the box out of her hand and looking at artifact within...

    Tankred "Ah, Roche, how much would it take for you to sell that necklace to me?" he asks, eyeing it greedily.

    Roche shakes his head, "My apologies, but parting with a gift like that would be disrespectful to the people who originally sent it... I''d hate to offend King Reima, I''ve seen what happens to people who anger him..." he mutters, indirectly warning the Kovirian King to not pursue this.

    Tankred nods, "I see... Indeed, it would be a shame to offend some a well-meaning person..." he says diplomatically.

    Roche "Besides, there will be other artifacts similar to this one within the three-day auction I imagine?"

    Tankred leans forwards in anticipation, "I hope so, men, guards, and mages can only do so much, an artifact like that would allow me to rest at ease."

    Crach "Who''d dare try to assassinate you any-how Tankred?" he asks, wondering who was brave enough to risk offending one of the richest nations in the world.

    Tankred sighs and glances around as if to look for spies, "King Radovid has been... Eager, to involve me in the war against Nilfgaard. I believe he''ll win in the end, the civil war destroying the empire from the inside out, but Kovir''s neutrality has protected us for generations... To give it up would be an insult to my parents and ancestors, not to mention dangerous for the future."

    Roche nods, "I know what you are feeling, Radovid can be very persuasive when he needs to be... My advice would be to not give him any leverage over you, or you''ll be dragged into the war regardless of your wishes."

 746 Sow Sowing Seeds

    Zoltan "All of ye'' take a gander..." he gestures towards the dark red long sleeve shirt and shouts, "At the Fire Retardant Top!"

    ...

    The crowd all give him confused looks, some shouting "What good would a Retarded Top be you fool!"

    Zoltan laughs, "Oh course you would ask! Do it!" he calls, Ves tossing a bucket of oil over the clothing before setting it alight.

    Everyone watches anxiously as it burns, gasping once extinguished...

    Zoltan "Protection against all manner of flame based attacks, I''d say quite a bargain considering what was done to create such a thing!"

    Immediately people start bidding, the misers looking for a chance at winning start at the lowest possible, but are quickly overcome by the high rollers...

    Tankred looks at his companions, "Stryrdan, does such a thing interest you?" he asks.

    The royal guard captain slowly nods, but is interrupted before he''s able to get a word in...

    Triss "Forgive me liege, but I think an item like that would suite me better... In my duties towards you of course..." she adds the last part as an after-thought.

    Tankred''s eyes trace over Triss''s body, his mouth feeling parched when he imagines her wearing the relatively tight-looking top. "Yes... I believe it would." he says with a grin, raising his card to raise the bid.

    Zoltan "Ohohoh! Two Thousand Ducats already? Come on, don''t be shy... This item could very well save your life!" he says with a smile, another few bids being made in response.

    The back and forth continues, the only one still bidding being the King of Kovir and Poviss, and a few relatively wealthy merchants who fear the wrath of mages, probably due to their assistance in the persecution of them.

    Tankred raises his card again, a small frown finding its way onto his face as he didn''t think this top was worth all that much... Regardless, he as King would not be beaten.

    Zoltan "6500! Someone really wants this don''t they!?... Going once!... Going twice!... Sold! Congratulations on your purchase." he says, nodding to Ves as she rolls it out.

    Roche "Expecting a surprise attack Triss?" he asks, confused at why she''d want such a thing.

    Triss shakes her head, "No, but I''ve been burnt before, I''d rather not experience another injury like that again." she says, rubbing the scar on her chest hidden by her clothing... Of course, her old injury wasn''t the only reason she wanted defence against fire... The biggest would be so that she could try and practise and mimick the pyromancy techniques she''d seen in Ichor.

    Zoltan continues the auction, selling a variety of things from Alcohol from Earth to meat and scales from the various Dragon''s they''d slain...

    Overall the first day of the Auction had been a complete and utter success, the items that''d been sold had really been quite worthless to Ichor, but in the outside world? Even the cheapest Vodka from earth would be considered a delicacy that only royalty would dine on, even if not for the taste, then for the price.

    Roche hadn''t bought all that much and neither had Crach or Hjalmar... Tankred on the other hand, had acted how someone in-charge of one of the richest countries should, buying literally anything that took his fancy.

    Zoltan ends the day by selling a rune cluster made by Reima that''d allow someone to change their appearance to a preset one at will. This could be useful in any manner of things, most including life-saving measures.

    Of course, Tankred managed to buy it by drowning anyone else in the running for it with his coin... The Rune Cluster looked like a slip of leather with runes carved onto it, it looks inconspicuous to any normal person, and the method of activating it looked like a small zip.

    Zoltan bids goodbye to everyone and bow deeply to them as they leave, the sky was dimming due to the amount of time they''d spent within the auction, but even if people didn''t buy anything, just witnessing the goods they had to display was satisfaction enough for most.

    Tankred, Roche, Hjalmar and Crach all make their way out of the auction after collecting their items, the former shaking hands with everyone while smiling, "It''s been a good and productive day, I hope to see you all tomorrow, some friendly competition makes everything better I say." he says.

    Roche nods, "Definitely, I wouldn''t miss the opportunity to see what''s presented next... Apparently, the quality of items will only improve as days go on."

    Tankred "Oh? I wonder who you heard that from." remarks, clapping Triss on her ass and walking away with his entourage in tow.

    Hjalmar "Treats his lass like a sow, but a fun guy to drink with I reckon?"

    Crach shakes his head, "Don''t get drawn in by the way the man acts, he''s as sly as they come, and has a ''ead for numbers. Don''t make bets with him or you''ll come out penniless." he says, shaking hands with Roche and beginning to walk towards the Inn they''d rented rooms in.

    Both had purchased a couple things, but they were on a budget that Cerys herself had set for them, Skellige wasn''t exactly the richest country around, that with their war with Nilfgaard had them more mindful than they''d usually be.

 747 Un-meeting

    Rickert "J-just hold on, we''re almost done... I''m sure you''ll be impressed!" he says, anxiety and excitement both present in his voice.

    Alphys nods and readjusts her glasses, "I''d like to say it was all our own effort... But San''s chipped in on some aspects..." she says, as she and Rickert walk to Reima''s sides. She presents him with a remote control that has a single large red button on it. "Will you do the hono-Wait, you''ve already presse-"

    *CLANK!*

    The box suddenly opens in response to Reima pushing the button, the top slides to the side as a long tube raises and becomes visible... The tube drops horizontally and reveals itself as the barrel of some kind of weapon...

    Reima "Huh, cool... How''s it work?" he asks, not seeing any way to control it.

    Rickert grins widely, "Well you see, Alphys had managed to make it react to your vocal commands... I never thought something like this was possible!"

    Alphys blushes slightly and readjusts her glasses yet again due to habit, "It, it was nothing! I already had the technology... All that was needed was to make it compatible with magical energy. P-Please, try it!"

    Reima nods and glances at all the targets already set up, "Destroy the leftmost target." he states, a whirring sound becoming audible as the gun turns left, aims down slightly, and begins charging its attack.

    ...

    Reima "What does it shoot anywa-"

    *PEEEEWM!*

    A blue torrent of magic leaves the gun like a blaster from StarWars, the shot heads straight for the target and collides with its chest, not stopping and digging a huge seared hole in its place.

    Reima "Impressive... I have to ask, is this the "Gun" I asked you to build Rickert?"

    Rickert slowly nods, "It is... I decided that something like this would please you more than one of those regular ballistic ones that shoot lead." he says while scratching the back of his head.

    Reima shrugs, "Don''t mock the ballisics, yeah your laser could kill humans and probably some monsters, but bullets can mow down armies within seconds..."

    Rickert sighs, "Then... After this project I''ll work on it, for now I believe this is an achievement worth celebrating."

    Reima nods, "Destroy the rest of the targets." he calls to the turret, causing it to charge up and start firing at the rest, annihilating them and causing the barrel of the turret to glow red hot.

    ...

    The gun starts smoking from the barrel, causing the science duo to start sweating...

    Alphys "It''s overheated! It''s gonna blow!" she shouts, leaping out of the way after failing to move Reima. Rickert follows her and they both dive to the floor as the turret explodes.

    *BOOM!*

    A shockwave of magic explodes outwards, Reima casts a Quen shield to protect the scientists... Thanking that they''d attempted to test this outside of Ichor, while it might not have killed anyone, the light powered by ambient magic would have definitely all been overloaded and destroyed...

    Once it''s all over Reima looks down at the duo, "That was great... Make one that doesn''t explode and we might be getting somewhere." he says sarcastically.

    Alphys and Rickert nod from the floor, both looking at the ruined remnants of their creation with embarrassed and anxious expressions.

    Elsewhere :

    Nineteen figures were waiting within a pitch-black cave, most look irritated, some fearful, while others didn''t show any emotion whatsoever...

    Everyone present had incredibly pale skin, glowing yellow irises with black sclera, and ears that end in a point, like an elf''s but slightly shorter.

    A male wearing nothing but a cloth that covers his lower body and ritualistic scars covering his upper body speaks up, breaking the silence. "Where, is that fool?" he growls out, as if speaking causes him physical pain.

    A female wearing robes that cover everything but her face retorts, "You speak of fools but I see none here but you! Kiah! I''d wager that your irresponsibility has caused the trouble we''re now in!"

    Kiah growls at her and presents his hand, long dangerous looking claws extending from the finger tips, "You dare? Hold your tongue or I''ll be forced to break one of our sacred rules Phaidra."

    Phaidra reveals her fangs and presents her own claws, facing off against Kiah as the others watch unamused. "I''ll tear your throat out with my teeth if you try!"

    "Enough, both of you. We are on the precipice of destruction and you still squabble? I am ashamed to call you kin." another enters the fray, a male wearing old fashioned noble robes, thin blonde hair covers his head in patches.

    Phaidra "Yes, we''ll all take advice from you, Roisin. Let you lead us and deplete the mortals so much that we couldn''t drink any longer. Pah!"

    Roisin "That was but a failure on my part, but do not act like you had nothing to do with it, rampaging around and gorging yourself on blood like a bloated leech!" he says with a scowl.

    A woman with long black hair and wearing a long black dress chuckle from the side, drawing attention to herself...

    Roisin "And what''s so amusing Morwenna?" he asks angrily.

    Morwenna "Ara? I was just struck by how pathetic the Gharasham have become, fighting one another like mortal children." she says, causing many yellow eyes to glare at he

 748 Cabal

    Morwenna is about to retort but the light sound of flapping wings signals the last person''s arrival... From the entrance of the cave a bat flies in and transforms into a person mid-air, them landing on their feet skillfully before looking at everyone present.

    Lothaire "Good evening everyone." he says, bowing respectfully.

    Roisin "About time, Kiah was about to start tearing arms off if you had arrived any later."

    Kiah growls, "Lothaire, you are the youngest of us, and yet you dare keep us waiting? DO YOU SEEK DEATH!?!"

    Lothaire steps back and gives placating gestures to them, "My apologies, but I''d been... Indisposed due to unforeseen circumstances... I''d only managed to escape recently, barely making it out with my life."

    Phaidra "An unknown Elder attacked you?" she asks, confused at his words.

    Lothaire shakes his head, "Nevermind... Let''s move on to the reason for our meeting?" he changes the topic.

    Kiah steps forward and looks the others challengingly, "Someone, has blocked access to our home... Where you could previously smell familiar hints there is nothing, like someone intentionally blocked the portals!" he says, his voice rising as he emotions flair.

    The others present nod sadly at his words, Lothaire raising a brow at them, "What do you mean the portal''s closed?"

    Roisin "What does it sound like? All known places that previously linked us to our original worlds have closed, ceased to exist. Someone, or someTHING, must be responsible!"

    Lothaire "But, what would we do? Scour the continent?"

    Kiah shakes his head and Phaidra continues, "There is no point for us to wait any longer, any chance of returning is gone, so... We must make this place our home."

    Morwenna nods, "For once I agree with you... I''ve had enough of those arrogant mortals waltzing around this world, pretending to be our betters while killing our less powerful kin..."

    Kiah "I care not for your goals, I only wish to find the one responsible for destroying the portals and killing them." he states.

    Lothaire frowns, not really sure what to make outta all of this... "I don''t understand, I thought manipulating the mortals from the darkness was the preferred plan-of-action?"

    Roisin nods, "It was, when we had a goal to work towards... Returning home, but with that gone there is no point being merciful towards the mortals any longer, this is now our world." he says ominously.

    Lothaire "So, you''ll destroy them?" he wonders, feeling that such an action would be wasteful.

    Kiah "Does anyone have any disagreements with these decisions?..." he asks, but no one of the twenty speak up, "Then, it is settled. Leave and prepare your territories and kin to take control of this world, it might not measure up to our home, but it will do for now." he says, many of the vampire transforming into mist, bats, gargoyles, and other creatures to leave.

    Elsewhere :

    The second day of the Auction had just ended, this time the most expensive things presented were the Penis Enlargement potion, Breast Enlargement potion, and Healing potion... For some reason or another the latter was the less popular of the bunch, the fact that it could bring someone back from the brink of death didn''t seem to be noted as people went crazy for the Penis and Breast Englargement potions...

    Ciaran was sitting against Sif''s fluffy belly as the giant wolf laid on its side at the back of the Auction House, she heaves a sigh as she closes the book she was reading... It was a comic book based on some kind of "Dark Knight", it was interesting to read but she didn''t believe that anything within it was realistic... Although, it is unfortunate speech bubbles containing *BAM!* or *THUD!* didn''t appear whenever she hit someone.

    Sif lets out a deep groaning sound, Ciaran rubbing his belly to placate him for now, "I know you want to return and play with the Unicorns, but we''ve got a job to do until then... Just bear with it and I''ll treat you to some food if you''re a good boy."

    "Lady, who are you talking to?" a voice asks from nearby... Looking around she could spot a child peeking around the wall of the Auction House building, she quickly puts her mask back on to prevent them from seeing her face.

    Ciaran "Children shouldn''t be wandering around on property that doesn''t belong to them." she states, the child looking slightly intimidated due to her mask.

    "I-I''m sorry! I didn''t mean to..." they apologise, not seeming to be here for anything malicious.

    Ciaran sighs, "Then, leave and don''t do it again, for your sake."

    ...

    ...

    Ciaran "Why''re you still here?" she asks in irritation.

    "You look like my mum... Are you my auntie?" they ask, stepping out into the open and revealing their tattered outfit, silver-blonde hair, and hazel eyes.

    ...

    Ciaran "No, we aren''t related in any way... Haven''t you been told not to speak to strangers? You might get kidnapped." she says ominously, hoping to scare them away.

    "Nu-uh, I can tell if someone''s bad or not." they say, crossing their arms and arrogantly raising their head.

    Ciaran "Oh? And how do you know I''m not bad?"

    The child looks at her, seemingly through her mask and into her eyes... "...No one who looks like Mum can be bad!" they say with a smile.

    ...

    Ciaran shakes her head and does a shooing gesture at them, "Look, I don''t want to play and I don''t care if I look like your mother, go away."

 749 Unsuspecting Fluff

    Ciaran sighs and looks at them, "Do you need something?"

    They look unsure, walking over and sitting next to Ciaran while unknowingly using Sif as a backrest. "Mum is busy selling stuff to people, and all of my friends are busy helping their mums and dads. It''s really boring!" they say, slumping into Sif''s fur.

    Ciaran "I''m sure your mother needs your help selling goods, why don''t you go bothe-help, her?"

    "Mum already has helpers for her stall, I''d just get in the way..."

    ...

    Ciaran "What''s your name?" she asks, deciding to know then same of the child if they were going to stick around.

    "Lut... What about you auntie?"

    ...

    Ciaran "It''s Ciaran, and I''m not your auntie." she states, leaving no room to maneuver.

    Lut grins, "Alright Aunti Cia."

    Ciaran glares at them, but relents with a sigh, deciding that it''s not important enough to pursue...

    Lut "So... Who were you talking to?" he asks again, not having gotten an answer earlier.

    Ciaran pats the wall of fur behind them, "If you must know, it was my companion Sif." she says, the big wolf exhaling as if it''d been holding its breath until now.

    Lut "Woooahh, its moving... What is it? I thought it was just a pile of hides.." they mutters.

    Ciaran "Sif." she states, the wolf pushing off of its paws and bending over to look at the duo, blocking the light of the setting sun from above.

    ...

    Lut "OOOooohhh! So cool!" they exclaim happily.

    Ciaran gives them a confused look, she''d thought they''d run away as fast as possible once they''d seen Sif, but apparently not. "You aren''t scared?" she asks, not letting her emotions be audible within her voice.

    Lut shakes his head, "No, why would I be... This is your, your compan-onion...? Right?"

    Ciaran manages to hold back a snort but nods anyway, "He is."

    Lut "Where are you from? I''ve never seen anything like him before!"

    Ciaran thinks of Lordran for a moment before shaking her head, "Our home is in Ichor, near the blue mountains."

    Lut smiles, "That''s cool... I wish I could explore far-away places. This city is fun, but I don''t think I want to spend my whole life here..." he mutters thoughtfully, in a way that doesn''t befit a child of their age.

    Ciaran "Travelling? I do not think it''s a bad goal, but you would need to learn how to defend yourself first... Monsters, Brigands, and Armies await you if you choose that path." she cautions them, not wishing Lut to die a foolish death.

    ...

    Lut seems to be lost in his thought for a while, before eventually turning to Ciaran with a wide smile, "Then, could you teach me Auntie?"

    ...

    Lut "Plleeasssee?"

    Ciaran "No."

    Lut "Why not?" they press, not willing to let this topic drop apparently.

    Ciaran "Because I have other more important things that require my attention."

    ...

    Lut "You weren''t doing anything just now though!"

    ...

    Hm, he''s right... Ciaran shakes her head, "I was taking a brief respite from a long day''s work." she says.

    Lut "But, you are really strong right? Not even mum could lift something that big! You are lying about resting aren''t you!" they accuse.

    ...

    Ciaran looks up at Sif who''s not giving any indication as to what his thoughts on the matter are... Until he nudges her towards Lut with his nose, making clear his stance on the matter. She didn''t really have any reason to refuse either, apart from the fact they''d only be in Ard Carraigh for two more days.

    Lut "Pleeaaaaaaaaaaaa-"

    Ciaran "Fine! Be here tomorrow at the same time and I''ll teach you some things, but that''s it, we''ll be leaving soon after so don''t get your hopes up!"

    Lut''s eyes light up as they hug Ciaran arm, "Thank you Auntie!" they exclaim, letting go and hugging Sif who''s for some reason unperturbed by the child affection.

    "Lut!?! Where are you?" a feminine voice calls for them.

    Lut "Ah, that''s Mum, see you tomorrow Auntie!" they say with a giggle, running off in the direction of the voice.

    Ciaran looks at Sif, "Don''t think your getting outta helping Sif, I''ll have the kid practising strikes on you." she says.

    Sif whimpers in response, even despite the fact there was no way for Lut to actually injure him.

    The next day :

    It''s the last day of the Auction and expectations were higher than ever, the previous days had sold goods that hadn''t previously existed in this world or, more accurately, shouldn''t.

    Triss was wearing the fire retardant top Tankred had purchased for her, though, she was still reluctant to drink the Breast Enlargement potion he''d also acquired... Their relationship was a strictly Professional one, even if the King did desire to court her, she wouldn''t stoop low like so many other Sorceresses and use their beauty to manipulate their leaders... Again... Her time in the Lodge had taught her enough to know that subverting countries was playing with fire, and if you were unlucky, Pyres.

    She was yet again sat next to Tankred at the VIP balcony seating as Zoltan started the final day of the auction. Tankred had already spent a small countries worth of gold here, but it didn''t seem likely that he''d be stopping anytime soon...

    Triss "My Liege, maybe we should allow others to have a chance to acquire some goods today? We''ve already filled a carriage with the items you have bought, any more and I don''t doubt we''d be chased all the way back to Kovir." she says warily.

 750 City of Blood

    Hjalmar speaks up from the side "Lass ''as a point though, with all that you''ve bought I wouldn''t be surprised if the remaining Mages tried their luck." he states.

    Tankred shakes his head, "My land is one of the only places magic users are free from persecution, I refuse to believe any would attempt such a thing... And even if they do, I regard Miss Merigolds abilities highly!" he says obstinately.

    Hjalmar shrugs and slouches in his chair, "Aye, I only hope you don''t run int''a trouble on yer'' way back."

    Roche "The Auction is beginning, we can talk afterwards." he says, sitting up and looking at the first thing Zoltan had Ves bring out.

    Elsewhere :

    Anna Henrietta sat within a luxuries room in her palace, looking warily out of the window with a sombre expression... Her eyes scanned across Beauclair, or at least, what''s left of it. The events that unfolded after the Emperor forced her into trying to capture Geralt and Ciri were horrific. It wasn''t even a weak later that the dreaded Beast of Beauclaire had returned with a vengeance...

    It seemed that she''d been told lies by the Witchers, they hadn''t killed the Vampire, nor had they stopped its return. The vampire, Dettlaff was so bold that he attacked Beauclaire during the day while the sun was highest. It was like he was mocking their inability to combat his army of the night even when at their most vulnerable.

    The majority of Toussaint''s knights were slain, as well as a large portion of the civilians caught in the crossfire, Anna had watched as those Monsters gorged themselves on her subjects flesh and blood. She''d even tried to stop them, only for her knights to pick her up and retreat towards the tower that held her sister, it being one of the most heavily fortified places in Beauclaire at the time.

    Flashback :

    Henrietta was horrified when the knight kicked open the door to Syanna''s room, the beast Dettlaff was holding her off of the ground by her throat, a scowl etched into his face.

    Dettlaff "You did this to us Rhena, I hope you understand that." he states as he rams his claws into her stomach, splattering blood across the room.

    Henrietta "SISTER!" she gives a baleful scream as Syanna is killed.

    The knight that''d brought Henrietta drops her and draws his weapon, fearfully defending her against Dettlaff...

    Dettlaff turns and looks at them, "Hm, the betrayer has come before me?"

    Henrietta bites her lip hard enough for it to bleed as she looks up at Dettlaff, "YOU, WILL PAY FOR WHAT YOU HAVE DONE!" she shouts, the knight defending her trying his best to get her to back up so he can retreat...

    Henrietta gets up and accidentally pushes the knight towards Dettlaff, the vampire swiping his claws and beheading the man with ease... The Duchess doesn''t seem to care however, picking up the fallen sword and swinging it at Dettlaff!

    *Clank!*

    The vampire stops it with ease, the sword colliding with his claws as though they were a steel wall... He grabs the blade and snaps it in two, walking towards the Duchess as she falls down onto her backside again, "Rest assured betrayer, your time will come... But it is not my place to kill someone else''s quarry." he says swiping his claws and cutting three deep wounds into Henrietta''s face before turning into mist and leaving.

    Flashback end :

    Henrietta sighs and rubs her face, the deep scars on her face constantly reminding her of her failure towards her sister, and her country.

    *HAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!*

    A peculiar sound echoes through the area, causing goosebumps to cover the Duchess arms... It minded her of a similar sound that''d recently been heard across the continent, aswell as the loud call Dettlaff would make when he summoned his vampiric kin...

    She didn''t move from her spot, continuing to watch out the window as the sun started to set over her previously prosperous country... One thing caught her eye however... A cloud in the sky was moving too fast to be natural, that, and it wasn''t the fluffy white of all the others, instead looking like a bulging mass of black.

    ...

    She drops her wine and it loudly smashes against the floor, causing maids to run to her aid...

    "Duchess, is something wron-"

    Henrietta "QUICK, RING THE BELLS, ALERT THE GUARDS!" she shouts, just as the cloud of black approaches the city. She could not spot out different entities within it, causing her heart to feel like it''d stopped.

    Thousands of black wings form the cloud, most looking like regular bats but she could see large Gargoyles or other monstrous entities also present.

    Her warning was apparently too late however, the cloud sweeps over the city like a wave... A few of the black figures head straight for her window, Henrietta only now realising they were drawn in by the lanterns in her room. "Quick! Turn out the lig-" she shouts, but is too late.

    *CRASH!*

    A crowd of bats smash through the class, sending shards everywhere as the small creatures transform into humanoids. They don''t say anything and bare their fangs at everyone within the room, rushing and biting the neck of the maid as others approach Henrietta.

    Henrietta "Back fiend! Or I''ll... I''ll-"

    "You''ll what mortal?" one asks, saliva dripping from his mouth as he eyes her neck.

    "Stop, look... She''s been marked." another says, pointing at the claw mark on her face.

    The first growls in irritation and shakes their head reluctantly, walking past the Duchess in pursuit of the other inhabitants within the castle.

    Henrietta curls up into a ball as she watches the vampires tear apart the body of her maid, gulping down the blood as if it were the Elixer of life. Her trembling is followed by silent sobs of despair, she knew that her kingdom was gone, and a new race would now rule.

 751 Darkness is Upon Us!

    He slowly opens the box, the crowd all leaning forwards to get a better look at it... Inside, sits a dull gold ring, with an oval-like surface that seems to fit a gem? However, none are present. The crowd is unenthused by this, jeering at Zoltan for hyping such a thing up too much.

    "What a let down!"

    "And to think I''d been excited!"

    "Hmmph! I should''ve taken a look at the jewelry stall, at least it would have been better than this!"

    "Greedy Dwarf is trying to trick us with trash!"

    "Is that half-elf single?"

    ...

    Zoltan begins chuckling, and eventually breaks into full-on laughter at the crowds reaction, he eventually calms down and points at them all. "Unfortunately, I''m unable to show you this rings function due to it''s unique effect. But I assure you this is no ordinary ring! I''ve been given permission by the King of Ichor himself to sell this artifact to you all... Its name is the Ring of Sacrifice, and it will protect its wearer from dying once, before shattering and becoming useless. This is the main reason why I cannot show you what it does." he says, the crowd going silent.

    "How do we know if it work!?!" one person shout from the crowd, a few others parroting them.

    Zoltan frowns, "Do you dare question the honor of the King of Ichor? I should just throw your asses out of my Auction right now!" he exclaims in mock fury.

    Tankred stands from the balcony and shouts, "9000 Ducats!"

    Everyone looks up him in confusion, wondering why this person would bid so much on a ring that probably doesn''t even work.

    Tankred "You pissants don''t dare to gamble with me for this ring? Then so be it!" he shouts.

    Some merchants frown, remembering this man as the one who''d outbid everyone for the last two days... "10000 Ducats!" one exclaims.

    "10050 Ducats!" another calls, hoping that he wasn''t getting tricked by the bidders or the Auction itself.

    Tankred "Dabbling with pennies? 12000 Ducats!" he shouts again.

    Zoltan covers his mouth with his hand as a greedy smirk makes it way onto his face... Truthfully this ring is one of the most worthless items out of the whole selection, Reima had said that these were common back in Lordran and that it''d make a great final item. In this world, no other artifact with a similar effect actually existed, making it a valued item for royalty that feared assassination.

    Zoltan claps his hands as he sees the bidding slow, "15000 Ducats to the VIP! Going once. Going twice!... Sold!"

    Zoltan "That''s the end folks! I do so hope you''ve all enjoyed the Auction and acquired some things that suit your tastes, you lads and ladies try not to go too far with those potions, we don''t currently sell shrinking potions so you''re stuck with what you got if you drink too much!" he says with a laugh. "Also, the King of Ichor thanks all of you for your patronage... Perhaps next year we''ll have even more incredible items than what we showed here!" he says, turning and leaving after bowing to everyone.

    Sieglinde nods to the VIP''s as they leave aswell, following them and helping them through the crowd, her onion armour acting like a battering ram towards those who refused to move.

    Roche, Crach, Hjalmar, and Tankred speak for a while outside of the auction, the former eventually inviting everyone inside his keep for drinks.

    Tankred looks at Stryrdan and Triss, "Whaddya think? Do we have enough time to have a couple drinks?"

    Stryrdan shakes his head, "With teh amount of goods we have, I think it''s best to leave before anyone can start plotting against us my Liege." he says seriously.

    Triss nods, "I agree, we can visit another time, what''s currently most important is your safety."

    Tankred shakes his head, "The question was rhetorical! Of course we''re going to drink wit them!" he exclaims, clearly ignoring their words and following Roche into the keep.

    After all the guests had left, Ciaran leaves to wait at the back for Lut to arrive with Sif... She''d already prepared a wooden sword for him in preparation for their lesson. It didn''t matter that she''d only be teaching him for one day, he was technically now her student and she would treat him as seriously as possible.

    While they wait Sif''s ears perk up, the huge wolf looking at the sky and beginning to growl, revealing his lethal-looking teeth.

    Ciaran "What is it?" she asks, wishing the wolf could properly verbalize the threat at hand.

    Sif points his nose at Ciaran and then to the sky a couple times, she eventually follows where he''s pointing and spots a black cloud... Her eyesight was a lot more effective than regular humans due to the gifts Gwyn had given her and the other knights, aswell as the strengthening of her soul through the ages.

    Ciaran "What is... That... Enemies!" she exclaims, catching a glimpse of what the black cloud is made from, she dashes towards the bell tower at ungodly speeds, leaping over roof-tops and eventually climbing up the outside of the tower as if she were called Ezio. A guard is surprised once she flips onto the top floor, challenging her presence there...

    Ciaran "There''s an army of vampires heading right for us, ring the damn bell!" she exclaims, the guard refusing to do so as he didn''t believe her.

    Shaking her head she slaps him in the face with her backhand, kicking the bell so hard it begins loudly ringing, the sound echoing throughout the city. Once she is sure everyone has been alerted she jumps off of the tower, landing on Sif''s back as the wolf heads towards the Auction to protect Zoltan and everyone else.

 752 Bloody Assaul

    Roche shakes his head in mirth, "I didn''t, but I feel all with work out in the end, eventually I''ll have to give up this position... The luxuries don''t suit me anyway." he states.

    Hjalmar tilts his head at that, "Wha? You mean you''d prefer to live in mud huts at the side of the road?" he jokes.

    Roche "Of course not... Tents would be much more comfortable." he retorts, causing the others to laugh or pop a smirk.

    Tankred "Speaking of mud huts... How''s Skellige doing?" he says with a laugh.

    Crach "Better than whatever you''re thinking, and most certainly not livin'' in some fukin'' mud huts."

    Tankred nods, "It was a mere jest Crach, thought, with Nilfgaard attempting to invade you I''d honestly thought you''d be dead by now." he says.

    Hjalmar "That lot? They''re all shaking hands at the bottom of the ocean, Hmph, black ones didn''t stand a chance!"

    Roche "You did get help from our mutual friend, you could''ve sent one boat and I don''t doubt it would have been handled." he states, those in the know nodding at him.

    Tankred "I''ve heard the rumors, but passed most of them off as exaggerated wives tales... But, from the sounds of it this "Ichor" is truly a remarkable place." he mutters.

    Roche nods, "Of course, they are the ones who provided all the goods in the Auction House, no regular country could produce artifacts like that, especially in such quantities." he says, indirectly bragging of Kaedwen''s relationship with Ichor. "I honestly thought Triss would have told you about Ichor, she did spend quite some time there, more than I did at least." he says, accidentally throwing her under the bus.

    Tankred "Hmm, funny, I''ve not heard anything about that particular subject..." he says, glancing at Triss.

    Triss feels like torching Roche, but decides to just try and hide herself in her drink... She glances around the room to find something of interest to change the topic but is aggrieved at the barren aesthetics... The only thing separating this place from a dungeon cell are the drink cabinets, tables, and large windows letting in the dim light from the setting sun...

    Tankred "Miss Merigold? I''m surprised to hear you have some sort of relationship with Ichor, is there a reason you hadn''t revealed this information to me?" he presses.

    Hjalmar "Leave the lass, you keep on and you might scare her off, as well as any friendly relations with Ichor that might come with ''er." he says, trying to take the pressure off Triss.

    Tankred sighs, "I suppose, but we''ll have to talk about th-"

    Stryrdan stands up and places his hand on his hilt, ready to draw his blade at any sign of danger, "What is it Sorceress?"

    ...

    ...

    They all watch Triss go pale as she stares at the window... She''d caught a glimpse of some sort of cloud that looked unnatural, upon closer inspection and a quietly cast spell that improved her eyesight, she couldn''t believe what she was seeing...

    *DANG! DANG! DANG! DANG!*

    The sound of the town bell rapidly ringing informs everyone that Ard Carriagh was in danger, the bell only usually being rung during fires or other similar emergencies.

    Triss "All of you, prepares yourselves!" she calls, a fire lighting atop her palm as she starves weaving a spell.

    Everyone draws their weapons as they spot numerous creatures flying towards the keep, heading for each and every window...

    Triss backs up just as a Gargoyle smashes through the window, their heavy stone-like body causes features in the ground beneath them as they land. Their beast-like head turns towards everyone and saliva begins dripping from its mouth...

    She finally finishes her spell however, thrusting her palm forwards while chanting in Elder Speech.

    *THOOM!*

    Red lightning leaves her hand, hitting the Gargoyle in the chesty and scorching the area it hits, as well as knocking the creature right back out the shattered window it''d arrived through.

    Triss "Do any of you have silver!?" she quickly asks, wishing Geralt was here.

    Hjalmar smirks and stands, wielding his two-handed sword which is suddenly enveloped in dark red flames. "Remind me to thank Geralt again for these." he says, stepping dropping into a stance as a few more creatures head towards them.

    Crach nods, his own longsword bursting into crackling lightning. "Aye, if we survive this that is."

    Two bats fly through the window while transforming into pale humanoid creatures, their faces morphing into a beastly visage as long claws form on their fingertips. "Surrender and we''ll grant you a quick death, mortal!" one growls.

    Crach spits at their feet, "Hah! Not likely monster!"

    "I''ll suck the marrow from your bones!" one roars, charging at Crach.

    Hjalmar swings his sword downwards with lethal intentions, shouting "I''ll give ya'' something to suck on you fuckers!" as he does so.

    *CLANK!*

    The vampire backhands the weapon, deflecting it away but losing one nail due to its sharpness. Crach isn''t idle and thrusts his longsword at the gut of the vampire, but they back up quicker than expected making his attack miss.

    Stryrdan steps forwards to confront the other vampire, readying his sword as Triss begins casting another spell.

    The vampire dashes forwards at speed the royal knight captain hadn''t thought possible, he manages to block one claw, but the other cuts a deep wound on his chest, causing him to back up due to the pain.

 753 A Vam-Pyre...

    "ARRGGHHHRRAAAAA!" they scream in pain, trying to remove their clothes but being unable to due to the huge claws extending from its hands.

    Stryrdan takes the opportunity to lunges forwards, burying his sword in the gut of the burning creature and twisting it. He pulls it out and chops at their arm, cutting all the way to the bone and getting stuck within it... He lets go of the sword and kicks the vampire, sending them to the floor as the roll around in agony...

    Hjalmar fends off the other vampire''s attacks but finds himself quickly being overwhelmed by its strength and speed... "Hrgghh!" he groans as he''s backhanded and spent spinning across the room.

    Crach''s focus follows Hjalmar and is unprepared for the vampire to suddenly pounce at him...

    *CUT!*

    The vampires claw flies off as it falls to the ground after its failed pounce, Roche recovering his balance after someone managing to cut its claw off...

    Roche "Had enough!?!" he taunts as the vampire pushes itself away and gets up, looking down at its missing hand with a scowl.

    "You''re arrogant mortals, just this strong and yet you dare challenge me!?!" he roars, his flesh beginning to bubble and expand, blood splattering everywhere as new limbs explode from its back.

    The vampire that''d been burning was going through a similar transformation, their faces mutating from their beastlike appearance into fleshy animal-like maws with vicious teeth protruding from them.

    Roche backs up, "Oh, fuck!" he mutters before glancing at everyone else, "RUN, GET THE FUCK OUT OF HERE!" he roars.

    Hjalmar limps over, having injured his leg after getting slammed against the wall, his sword still pointing at the enemies. "You lot, go, I''ll hold ''em off!"

    Crach frowns at him, giving him a kick in the ass towards the door, "You damn fool, just run!"

    Triss produces a wall of fire between the group and the two mutating vampires, temporarily blocking them from view .

    The door is kicked in and Ves runs in, "Roche! We''re under attac-"

    Roche "We fucking know Ves! Run!" he shouts as they all leg it down the hallway of the keep, just as the vampire''s finish transforming.

    "YOU WON''T ESCAPE! WE ARE YOUR NEW GODS!" one shouts as it runs through the wall of fire and tries to squeeze through the doorway they''d all run through, to no avail.

    Ves "The whole of Ard Carraigh is under siege!" she shouts as they run.

    Roche "Are our soldiers fighting them off!?" he quickly asks, dodging out of the way as a a man falls through a door into a hallway, a woman atop him sucking his blood out.

    Ves "The bells allowed us to mount a defence, but most positions were instantly wiped out last I saw!"

    Triss "Ves, has Zoltan and the others left the city yet?" she quickly asks, realising that only overbeating power could possibly survive against these creatures of the night.

    Ves nods, "They''re leaving tomorrow, what''s your plan?"

    Triss "I think the best place to try and defend would be the Auction House, I don''t believe Reima wouldn''t give it defences!" she quickly says.

    Roche "Then, let''s make our way there... Hopefully we can get through the streets in one piece!"

    The group exit onto the second-floor balcony that looks down on a large hall, with stairs leading down into it. The stairs are covered in blood and screams of pain and terror were prominent, causing everyone to be on edge...

    Triss tosses a blue flame through the relatively dark room, illuminating it and revealing a woman being impaled by seemingly nothing, her body being held off of the floor as he body appears to hang on some invisible object, blood dripping down from her lethal wound.

    Tankred "What on gods earth is that!" he exclaims, accidentally alerting whatever invisible creature was down there.

    Stryrdan "My liege, stay quiet until we get you to safety!" he asks, preparing to defend Tankred from whatever was making that strange noise...

    *Clack, Clack, Clack*

    It sounds like large heavy clawed feet hitting the stone floor with every step, not to mention the sound deep sound that''s reminiscent of a cat''s purring, if said cat was huge and about to try and eat them...

    Ves "It''s invisible, how''re we supposed to fight such a thing..."

    Triss "Leave it to me." she says, quickly chanting a spell and spraying fire in a wide arc, the napalm-like substance sticking to the creature and revealing it''s 8ft sillouet...

    It gives an ungodly squeal and he thrashes around, the flames blocking its vision as Hjalmar quickly limps down the stairs and confronts it to try and take advantage of it''s apparently blindness, not taking into account it''s incredible hearing...

    The creature swings at Hjalmar''s vague direction, his loud footsteps giving away his location, forcing him to dive away to avoid the attack.

    Ves takes the bow off of her back and lines up the shot, the *twang* of the bow not alerting the creature as an arrow flies towards it, it penetrates the beast''s shoulder but doesn''t seem to do all that much damage... Only managing to enrage it.

    Roche and Crach reach the bottom of the stairs and surround the creature, stamping on the floor to draw its attention while the other strikes it in the back... They do this a couple times, and receive a few light wounds for their troubles, but eventually wear down the creature enough to where it''s unable to maintain its invisibility...

 754 Town under siege!

    Hjalmar "You''re an ugly bastard aren''t ye?" he mutters, almost gagging at the smell of its breath as it desperately sucks in air due to how exhausted it is...

    Crach "Stop wit'' yer'' jokes, this thing is still alive an fightin''" he warns, moving in to perform an attack but transitioning into a feint, allowing Roche to bury his blade in it''s back.

    It gives one last shriek before Hjalmar brings his blade down on its neck, decapitating and finally killing the beast.

    The others make their way down the stairs and stare at the creature...

    Tankred "W-what is that thing?" he asks, trying to mask his fear from everyone...

    Roche "No idea, whatever it is there''s probably more outside..."

    Tankred "Then... Perhaps we should locked ourselves somewhere safe within the keep? What better place is there to defend than a castle?" he asks.

    Hjalmar "Those two bastards we left behind are probably still after us, I don''t think anything we put between us is going to stop ''em either!"

    Triss "I can try and teleport us to the Auction House, as long as the enemy aren''t actively attempting to disrupt portals... If they are then, well, maybe a few pieces of us would make it through?" she mutters gravely.

    Roche "What are the chances for an army of monsters to have magic users assisting them?" he asks, wondering if something like this had ever happened before.

    Triss shakes her head, "I''ve only heard a few stories of mad mages creating and manipulating monsters for their own ends, but nothing recent..."

    *BANG!*

    From the door they''d entered from a large fleshy claw sticks through it, it retracts and the head of one of their previous attackers look through, "I SEE YOU!" it says in a sickening voice while its long tongue dangles out of its mouth, saliva dripping from it.

    Crach "I don''t know about you lot, but I''d rather be chewed up and spit out by a malfuctioning portal than that thing! Get on it Sorceress!" he shouts.

    Triss nods, beginning the relatively long encantation to open a portal powerful enough to take everyone present...

    Ves begins firing arrows at the head of the creature, her face going pale when no visible damage can be seen, "Why do arrows never fucking work against these things!" she cries out in irritation.

    *SHATTER!* *CRASH!*

    *FLASH!*

    The portal finally opens up, the group not wasting any time at leaping through it... Hjalmar is the last one to enter, his injured leg making him slower than everyone else.

    The huge beast flies at him like a tornado of claws, Hjalmar jumps through just as its hand wraps around his torso, the claws dig into his body as the try to squeeze him in half... Only for the portal to close and sever the vampires arm.

    It drops to the floor, flailing and spewing blood everywhere from the severed end as Hjalmar drops to the floor, covered in wounds and exhausted. "Da, I''m not coming to this fuckin'' continent again, mark my words!" he says.

    Elsewhere :

    Ciaran glares at the sky from Sif''s back as the giant wolf sprints through the city, scaring civilians and guards alike, even if they''d known about Sif''s existence beforehand... The duo''s speed apparently wasn''t enough, as the cloud of darkness was already descending upon the city before they''d even reached the Auction House...

    Ciaran "Sif, go and protect the others! I''ll catch up!" she shouts, leaping off of the giant wolf''s back and swinging her greatsword at a hulking beast which was lunging at a woman trying to protect her child.

    *SLASH!*

    Like butter the blade cleaved through the beast, splattering it''s disgusting smelling blood all around, unfortunately covering the mother and child in it as well. Ciaran doesn''t stick around, the bells, sounds of panicked terror, and screams of the guards getting mutilated while trying to defend the town was deafening... Her instincts forged throughout the ages in Oolacile and the other wars conducted by Gwyn flared and had her already dashing towards the next target.

    The sound of wind being sliced is followed by monstrous shrieks as she bisects another monster, she wasn''t sure what they were, but by their looks they reminded her of the "Fleder''s" the Witcher Vesemir had talked about... It was fortunate they weren''t one of the dreaded "Higher Vampires" she''d heard so much about, she doubted her ability to actually kill one...

    Her ears twitch at the sound of flapping wings, glancing up she could see hundreds of small creatures with bodies similar to that of giant rats and heads decorated with two small eyes, large ears, and a fanged maw fit for biting flesh from unsuspecting victims... She wasn''t sure what they were, but knew one thing was for certain... They needed to be purged.

    She jumps and performs a backflip, tossing out ten throwing knives that spark with electricity at the creatures, they don''t seem to be aware of the danger and fail to dodge the attack, once hit having seizures in the sky and plummeting towards the ground, most dying from the impact while the rest are heavily injured.

    Ciaran stomps on the head of one of the grounded creatures, glaring at the others as her foot crushes its skull, "Prepare for retribution." she states.

 755 Unending Swarm

    Sieglinde "I am sorry Zoltan, but as a knight of Catarina, and daughter of Siegmeyer, I cannot let those creatures continue to run amuck! My very pride and honor are on the line and I refuse to reject my fathers virtues." she states, grabbing her sword and walking towards the exit.

    Zoltan "Lass... Just, be careful, you are young and can achieve much, no point in cutting in short." he says, trying yet again to summon Reima with the necklace he''d given him.

    Sieglinde nods, "The defenses Sir Reima gave us will protect you for the most part, do not draw needless attention towards the building though, I do not know the limitations of the defenses." she cautions and finally leaves.

    Arter of Kaedwen had attempted to muster a defense as the commander of the guard, but his men had instantly broken ranks as soon as the flying creatures descended upon them, and even despite their traitorous intentions of retreating, he couldn''t blame them... No sane man should try to fight such an army, and he doubted anyone could. With all of his men fleeing or dead, he ran into the city in an attempt to find his daughter and grandchildren...

    He barely managed to fight off the small bat-like creatures that now completely infested the city as he ran, eventually finding a spot devoid of living creatures... Though, their corpses littered the area. A woman wearing plate armour and covered in blue cloth could be seen decimating the invading enemies, her great-sword cutting through them with ease.

    People gathered around her location to find safety in her strength, and Arter could spot his daughter among them...

    "Father!" she shouts, tears streaming down her face, blood clumping her silver-blonde hair together.

    Arter runs over and cups her face, checking her over for injuries as the woman continues to brutalize the seemingly never-ending creatures. "Ardral! Are you okay, are you injured?" he asks, seeing her distressed appearance.

    Ardral "Father! Lut, he''s missing, I don''t know where he is!" she shouts, choking up as despair begins to take hold, the numerous corpses of humans and monsters alike not providing her any hope.

    Ardral "NO! WE MUST SEARCH FOR HIM!" she screams inconsolably.

    Shaking his head Arter stands, his blood sword still firm in his grip, "Then, you stay here and keep close to that woman... I''ll look for Lut, DON''T follow me." he states and runs off, through a nearby alleyway in search of his grandson.

    Arter himself knew that he was no match for most of these monsters, even if he was one of the most skillful warriors in this city... He made sure to remain unseen as he ducked behind alley''s, snuck through burning buildings, and other incredibly risky things. Eventually, he''d reached the entrance to the Kaedweni Auction House and spotted another warrior fighting off the hordes, this one wearing armour that resembled an onion, wielding a Zweihander covered in dark red flames in one hand with ease, while the other held a buckler with a spike in the center of it.

    Sieglinde gives a strained heave as she bashes a hulking creature in the chest, piercing a large wound with the spike and getting some distance from it as it flails its claws around in a rage. She stabs her weapon forwards like you would a pike, defending against a claw as she does so.

    The weapon sheaths half of its blade in the creature''s chest, penetrating its heart and killing it... It falls backward with a yelp, blood spewing out all over.

    Sieglinde glances towards Arter and is about to tell him to take shelter within the Auction House, but is interrupted as one of the many bat-like creatures pounce on her back, she struggles to tear it off of her armour and only thrashes around absentmindedly, as more and more grab ahold of her... After a moment she was covered by thirty of them, her armour wasn''t even visible withing the pile any longer as the beasts tried to pierce the army to attack her flesh within...

    Arter looks on fearfully but squints as something from within the pile begins to light up... Before he could even blink the creatures had been evaporated into red mist as a white shockwave explodes outwards from the onion warrior.

    Sieglinde "Come at me fiends! I am unlike those without the strength to defend themselves!" she roars, bagging her sword on her buckler.

    "Ahhhhhhhh! H-help me! someone!" a young voice yells fearfully drawing both of their attention... One of the bat-like creatures had grabbed a young man from behind the Auction House and was attempting to fly away with them...

    "LUT!" Arter shouts while attempting to throw his sword at the creature, which hits... But isn''t strong enough to dislodge his Grandson from its grip...

    Sieglinde was about to throw a lightning bolt at it just as someone else intervenes... A huge shadow leaps at the creature, headbutting it and grabbing the young boy gently in his mouth.

    Lut looks at his savior and smiles through his panicked tears, "Sif!"

 756 Boss fight x2

    Arter "Boy! What are doing here!?! The whole towns being destroyed for gods sake!" he quickly says.

    Lut wipes his tears and looks Arter in the eyes, "Auntie was going to teach me how to fight, but she never came!"

    Arter "Auntie!?" he asks, ignoring the fact that Sieglinde was still having to defend them from the onslaught of creatures.

    Lut quickly nods, "Auntie Cia, she wears cool armor and a white mask!"

    Arter "HER!? She''s down the road protecting the survivors of the city, along with your mother!" he exclaims, not sure whether to be happy or angry that this person had offered to teach Lut, inadvertently putting him in danger.

    Sieglinde stamps down on a vampires head, crushing it as she looks over, "Lady Ciaran is? Then we must assist her and get everyone to safety!" she says, glancing at Sif and only now noticing the fact the giant wolf was covered in blood...

    The wolf turns around and walks over the blade he''d dropped in-order to catch Lut, readying it in his jaws as he prepares to go over and assist his master.

    Sieglinde "Both of you take refuge without the Auction House, we''ll retrieve the survivors!" she says, beginning to jog down the road, followed by Sif.

    Lut "No! I want to help!" he shouts, escaping Arter''s grasp and running after them.

    Arter catches up and grabs Lut again, "GO WAIT IN THE BUILDING, NOW!" he roars, not giving any mercy to his Grandson who''s acting almost suicidal."

    Lut freezes at Arters tone, unconsciously turning around and entering the Auction House, despite his previous conviction.

    Arter shakes his head and follows after the others after picking up his sword, even if he had to use his own body to protect everyone, then that''s what he''d do!

    Ciaran wasn''t even winded even after cutting down hundreds of these creatures... It seemed that they''d finished dealing with everyone else around the city, and were coalescing on her position to try and wear her down. It was difficult, trying to defend a group of fragile and useless people against this hoard of enemies, but she was strong enough to deal with it for now...

    She''d just smashed another Gargoyle when Sif, Sieglinde, and some other unknown man started leading the survivors towards the Auction House... This made it easier to protect them as she didn''t have to manage every attack point, though, she could feel the restrictions Artorias sword had... It''s weight and size differed from her favoured weapons and made it more difficult to deal with many smaller threats...

    Hjalmar "Da, I''m not coming to this fuckin'' continent again, mark my words!" he says from the floor, covered in wounds.

    Sieglinde "Everyone! Retreat into the Auction House!" she shouts, accidentally causing a miniature riot as the survivors push and shove to get to safety... The doors of the Auction House were big, but not big enough for hundreds of people to try and get inside all at once.

    Neither Ciaran or Sieglinde could manage the chaos as they were forced to defend against the creatures still wishing to dine on everyone''s flesh...

    Arter "EVERYONE, DON''T PUSH, GO THROUGH ORDERLY!" he shouts, but no one seems to listen to him...

    "FOUND YOU!" a monstrous voice roars from the sky, drawing everyone''s attention towards the two huge creatures flying above them.

    Arter "What in the FUCK IS THAT!" he shouts, pointing his blade at it.

    Hjalmar "Ah shit! It''s that fucker tha'' was chasin'' us!" he groans loudly.

    Ciaran glares at them, their presence alone is enough to tell her that they weren''t by any means weak... "Do you dare fight me, monster?!?" she taunts, readying her great-shield and her great-sword.

    "I DARE!" one roars, descending towards her like a meteorite, the beast''s claws bared.

    *CLANK!*

    Ciaran blocks the attack and her drag along the floor as she''s pushed back by the sheer impact of the strike... The cobblestone road was cracked and destroyed where the creature had landed, showing the power it''d exerted.

    *CRACKLE!*

    A lightning bolt flies past the other airborne creature, skimming its side due to the unexpected attack and causing it to fall to the earth as its muscles unwillingly convulse.

    Sieglinde "I will handle the other Lady Ciaran! EN GARDE!" she shouts.

    Ciaran frowns, the attacked she''d just blocked already had her arms aching... "Sif, assist that brave fool!" she commands, doubting Sieglinde could combat a foe like this alone.

    "Your attempts to stop us are futile!" the beast taunts, leaping in the air and disappearing in a puff of red mist.

    ...

    ...

    Ciaran''s pupils contract, her insticts warning her that danger was rapidly approaching...

    *Slice!*

    She spins and slashes her sword behind her, managing to hit the vampire as it reappeared and tried to swoop down and pierce her with its claws.

    The vampire hits the floor, having not expected to actually be hit... Its arm below the elbow had been severed... The severed area bubbles as a new one begins forming to replace the previous. "You cannot stop us, WE ARE ETERNAL!"

    Ciaran scowls under her mask, readying her sword and shield as the beast stands upright, it''s wings fully extending as it freezes momentarily?

    Seeing this as an opportunity to attack she dashes forwards, preparing the behead the creature... Only for it to unleash a horrific roar at her, so powerful that she''s forced to block it with her shield. Those nearby cover their ears as it almost bursts their eardrums, the shockwave of the roar itself toppling over a few people and sending stone from the destroyed cobble road flying around like shrapnel.

 757 Kings Blade

    Gritting her teeth at the disrespect to Artorias shield she wields the Greatsword with both hands, attempting to plunge it into the heart of the beast as it recovers from the attack... Only for it to disappear into mist halfway through her lunge.

    The beast appears a couple meters away, growling at her... "Unfortuate, a mortal has forced me to this extent... Then, let me show you my true strength!" it says, two more arms exploded from under its original arms, both equipped with razor-sharp claws... Not only that, but the monster grows two more head on each side of its neck, each snarling and speaking at the same time with the others.

    Two seem to be preparing to unleash more of those sonic roars, as the main one starts walking towards her while randomly thrashing its claws around towards her...

    *ROOOOOOAAAAARRRR*

    Just as she severs one arm with an expertly timed slash and blocks another, the two heads unleash ear-splitting roars down at her, her eardrums immediately burst from this attack, disorienting her and causing blood to stream down from her ears.

    She bites her lip to get through the pain and sickening sense of vertigo, slashing her blade across its chest and sliding beneath its legs, performing some flips afterward to get some distance... The monster had managed to burst her ear-drums despite having them covered by her helmet. This isn''t going to be easy to survive this fight, let alone defeat the monster.

    Elsewhere :

    Sieglinde had just charged at the downed creature, haphazardly trying to smash her sword down at it... Only for it to disappear into red-mist that seems to retreat away from the Chaos Flames on her Zweihander.

    The monster reappears a few meters away, a few burnt patches visible on its body... "You will pay for that, mortal!" it shouts, two more sets of wings bursting from its back as it leaps into the air at quick speeds.

    Sieglinde doesn''t notice the monster flying behind her, ready to cut her head from her body...

    *CUT!*

    Blood sprays into the air as a huge sword severs all the wings off of the back of the flying vampire, sending it tumbling to the floor, profusely bleeding.

    Sieglinde doesn''t waste this opportunity, sprinting forwards and cutting down on it, this time managing to sever its legs and making the surroundings smell of putrid burnt flesh.

    It tries to crawl away but Sif doesn''t let up, dropping its sword and beginning to bite and maul the vampire, tearing to pieces... Even then, the ruined and mangled flesh pulsates and moves, signaling that it''s somehow still alive.

    Elsewhere :

    Ciaran was beaten and bloody, her armour dented despite it being infused with titanate... The situation wasn''t all bad however, her opponent was missing its wings and three arms, and seemed to be struggling to regenerate them like how it''d previously done.

    She sucks in a breath and drops into a low stance as the beast slowly walks around her, looking for an opportunity to strike... It''s three heads were breathing heavily, which likely meant they weren''t able to produce anymore roar-attacks, though, this is just Ciaran''s hope.

    The creature suddenly sprints towards Ciaran, it''s single remaining arm preparing to smash down at her... She slashes upwards, preparing to cut it''s last arm off, only for its chest to explode, sending blood and flesh scattering everywhere... A new arm protruding from its sternum.

    She wasn''t able to dodge the attack, bringing the greatsword down to try and block it...

    *BANG!*

    She''s sent flying, bouncing along the floor and her weapon clattering a couple meters nearby... She ends up lying on her front, her poercelein mask falling from her face and hitting the ground underneath her. She tries to push herself off the floor but fails, her muscles screaming for her to stop.

    "You, are mine." the vampire states as it slowly approaches her... Only for someone to block its path.

    Arter "S-stop beast! You''ve killed too m-many people this day!" he says, pointing his sword at the creature.

    ...

    "HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! And what will you do to stop me? Puny human."

    *Shatter!*

    Arter runs forwards and tries to stab the monster as it laughs at him... His sword breaking into many pieces as it collides with its flesh... He goes pale as he looks up, the monster seeming to grin down at him.

    The arm protruding from its chest grabs his legs, as the other grabs his upperbody... It takes a bite out of Arter''s shoulder and greedily swallows the flesh, afterwards turning its head towards the Auction House where many people were watching from the windows...

    *TEAR!*

    "AHHHHHHHHHHRRRGGGGHHHH!" Arter screams as he''s brutally torn in half.

    "AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" the monster bellows, seeming to take extreme satisfaction from the man''s screams of agony.

    Ciaran had been trying to get up throughout Arter''s confrontation with the creature, only managing to unbuckle her bottomless box from her belt, it dropping to the floor and opening.

    She groans in pain from the movement, but shoves her hands into the box regardless, pulling out two familiar weapons that fit perfectly in her hands... Gold Tracer and Dark Silver Tracer...

    "Fight!" she shouts as she struggles to stand, stumbling backwards as she points the Gold Blade at the monster.

    "VERY WELL!" it says, immediately lunging at her.

    *THUD!*

    Two thuds could be heard throughout the clearing, as the vampire''s arms all drop to the floor... Ciaran feels like passing out, but doesn''t stop, continuing her attack...

    *THUD!* *THUD!* *THUD!*

    Large chunks of the monster''s flesh are quickly cut, the muscle on its legs are completely shaved off causing it to drop to the floor, unable to hold its weight. She continues rapidly swinging her blades, finishing it by swinging the Gold Tracer at its neck, decapitating it.

    ...

    She looks down at the pile of bloody flesh and sighs, closing her eyes and falling backwards, and passing out.

 758 A new look

    Reima "So, how''s life for you right now Quelaag?" he asks, wondering if she was happy with her current situation.

    ...

    Quelaag "It''s, not unpleasant. Not having to manage the Chaos Covenant after many centuries of just that makes me feel anxious, but, other than that I feel content simply serving you... And Ciri." she slowly explains while digging her knuckles into his shoulder.

    Reima nods, "Good, I''d thought some of the things she''s having you do would be over the line, but if you''re fine with it then who am I to judge."

    Quelaag smiles behind him, "My tasks are sometimes laborious or demeaning, but the potential rewards are well worth the trouble." she says ambiguously.

    Reima''s about to reply but senses someone approaching the door... It swings open revealing Asgore who''s giving him a frown... "What are you doing?" he quickly asks.

    ...

    Reima glances behind him, "Err, it''s not what it looks like?"

    ...

    Asgore shakes his head, "I-Wha... Nevermind. You are scheduled to do an interview live with Mettaton in five minutes." he says.

    Reima "Ah..." he mutters, realising he''d almost forgot it. "Thanks for the heads up" he says, getting up and teleporting to the T.V station after he''d changed into suitable attire.

    A humanoid monster with the head of a lion finally notices him, "Oh! You''re finally here! I thought we''d have to cancel the interview! Quickly, come, come!" he says, leading Reima inside and eventually to a large room with two chairs opposite each other.

    Reima adjusts the lapels on his suit, the black attire heavily embroidered with gold inscriptions. He had a light turquoise shirt underneath it and his hair tied back in a bun.

    He glances around at the room as he takes his seat, taking notice of the rather large, advanced-looking camera''s pointing directly at him.

    *Crash!*

    The door slams open as the familiar metal box balanced on a single wheel rolls in, a microphone already in each hand. "Hello! I am here!" he says cheerfully, handing Reima a microphone and moving towards the opposite chair...

    Reima didn''t have to be a genius to guess that Mettaton would fit in that chair... Luckily the robot didn''t attempt to sit down, otherwise it might have destroyed the chair and the floor underneath it. "When will we be starting?" he asks, with a small smile.

    Mettaton "We''ve already started darling." he says, Reima only now noticing a red light next to the cameras... "Greetings fans, friends, ladies, and gents! And welcome to Meta-News!" he exclaims, spinning around on his wheel with his arms held out.

    Mettaton "We have many wonderful articles for all of you viewers today, one I am MOST excited about is our guest for today... Our King, Reima Ludvig!" he says, clapping his hands as a applause track goes off...

    Reima slowly nods, "Thanks for having me..."

    Mettaton trembles for a moment, causing Reima to raise a brow... "Ah, don''t mind me, I''m just getting more comfortable!" he says, as smoke explodes from his body, covering the cameras...

    "OOOOooohhhh YEESSSS!"

    ...

    Reima "Wait what?" he asks, clearing the smoke and revealing Mettaton, or at least, what he thinks is Mettaton sitting on the chair opposite...

    Mettaon crosses his leg and smiles, his body more like a cyborg than a box with flashing lights on it... Long black hair covers one eye, but Reima feels like he''s being winked at... "That''s much better." he says, looking at the cameras.

    Reima "Hmm... Right..." he mutters awkwardly.

    Mettaton "My apologies for the inconvenience, I just had to get a change of outfit. I''d like to think that it "suits" me better. Of course, if my appearance doesn''t appeal to my fans they can still buy the "Classic Mettaton Action Figure" for 50% off!"

    Reima sighs and rubs the bridge of his nose, "Can we get started already?"

    Mettaton "Oh yes darling!" he says, some interview papers dropping from the ceiling and landing in his hand... "It''s my pleasure you have you on Mr Ludvig-"

    Reima "Reima''s fine, thanks."

    Mettaton nods, "Then, Reima, before I open up the questions to our viewers, I have a few of my own... Firstly, what are you opinions on the current state of Ichor if you don''t mind my asking?"

    He hadn''t really expected to be asked this particular question, after looking up and t thinking for a moment he finally answers, "I think it''s progressing well, after the recent lucky miss with the last incident involving the Wild Hunt I don''t think there''ll be anymore conflicts in the near future. Other than that, Economically, Socially, and Structurally everything is slowly getting better." he says, interlinking his hands and resting them on his lap.

    Mettaton "My what a concise answer, if only everything could be handled by you Reima, then we might see some real change in needed areas... Let me try and pursue the recent incident, from the reports this group, the "Wild Hunt" are a terrorist organisation run by Elves from another world, is that right?" he questions.

    Reima nods, "They "Were" a terrorist organisation, thankfully they''ve all been purged. As to their origins? I''d rather not say for national and social reasons." he says, knowing that the Aen Elle would probably be discriminated against if he made known their relationship with the Wild Hunt. While most were probably aware of it, confirming it would be another matter entirely, especially for someone of his status.

 759 True meaning of "Jolly Cooperation"

    At this question Reima immediately remembers the temple containing the rituals circles made from blood and captured creatures. That being, Gaunter O''Dimm reminded him of the person mentioned in Nalenthi''s journal, he''d gone back to check on the temple but it''d somehow completely disappeared, leaving only natural-looking scenery where it''d been.

    Reima slowly nods, "I''ll not lie, there are things that could potentially put the city and it''s inhabitants at risk, but that is why we need to keep working together, do our best, and continue advancing technology, military, and magic. We are an incredibly strong and diverse country, probably the most out of all the places on this world, but there are still things we have to tackle before we are completely secure."

    Mettaton, "Do these threats come from other nations, or perhaps something else? Another organisation from a different world?" they question.

    Reima sighs, "All I''ll say is this... If I and our friend Solaire can achieve godhood, it wouldn''t be a stretch for an unsavoury individual to do the same." he looks directly into the camera, "For you, my citizens, if you wish to protect your home, friends, and family, consider joining with one of the various Military institutes that are currently open, the Chaos Covenant, Absolvers, Scoia''tael, Hogwarts, and the Church. " he says.

    Mettaton "Oooh, I never realised how many options there are, would you mind if I signed up?" he asks, tongue in cheek.

    Reima smirks, "Go ahead, I''d recommend Hogwarts as it suits Monster constitutions better than the others do."

    Mettaton gives a giggle which creeps Reima out a little, but he doesn''t let it show on his face... "This will be my last question before we hand it off to our viewers. Do you have any big projects planned for the future?"

    Reima shrugs, "It depends, can you be more specific?"

    Mettaton nods, "Like the wall, the "Jolly Cooperation" statue, Grand Library, or Hogwarts."

    Reima "Ah, well, with the new Amphitheatre built I''d say next on the list would be... An Arena maybe?"

    Mettaton "Ah, forgive me, I said it was the last but I have one last personal question... What do you think of my new body?"

    ...

    Reima glares at the cyborgs body for a moment, "Er, it''s shiny, I guess... Is it plastic?" he asks, not sure what it''s made from.

    Mettaton smiles, "It''s made from a material called "Carbon Fibre" and "Titanite"... Professor Alphys really has spoiled me!"

    ...

    Reima "Titanite eh?" he asks, looking at the camera, "Me and Alphys will be needing to have a talk soon." he says, Alphys who''s currently sitting up home falling backwards off of her chair.

    Alphys "NoooOOOO! Mettaton why!"

    *Brrr, Brrr, Brrr*

    A table drops from the ceiling between Reima and Mettaton, a phone falling atop it after it lands, already ringing...

    Mettaton looks at Reima, "Aren''t you going to answer it? Making someone wait is rude." they say jokingly.

    Reima shrugs and picks up the phone, pressing it to his ear to hear the person on the other end... "Err, H-hello... C-can you hear me..."

    Reima "I can." he says, noting that Mettaton had another phone hooked up to the same line held against his ear, giving a thumbs up to Reima...

    "I-I-I''m a worker at a-a stall... I-I w-was wondering if you w-would consider r-raising the m-minimum wages?"

    Reima "Er, I don''t think I would... Minimum wage jobs are more for part-time work than anything, and if you consider the fact that all your homes, electricity, gas and other services are built and paid for by me, I don''t think it needs to be raised... As of right now, you can live happily without even working, though you''d be limited on the hobbies you could take up." he says.

    "Ah, t-thank you for answering my question." they say, putting the phone down...

    Mettaton "Thank you for calling in!"

    *Brrr, Brrr, Brrr*

    Again, Reima picks up the phone and answer it, "Hallo?"

    "YOU! WHY DID YOU TAKE THE MISTRESS AWAY FROM US! GIVE MISTRESS BACK!"

    ...

    Reima "Eingyi?" he asks, recognising the voice.

    "Ahheekk!" they scream and drop the call.

    *Beep, Beep, Beep*

    Mettaton "I wonder what that was about... Perhaps the rumours of you taking two wives have some substance?" they asks curiously.

    Reima "Errr, I''d rather not let the world know of my private life. Rest assured I''ve been nothing but... Faithful." he mutters.

    Mettaton "Ah, so I''m guessing the rumours of your relationship with Solaire are false?"

    ...

    Reima "The-what-now?" he quickly backtracks.

    Mettaton "Yes, a portion of Ichor think that the phrase "Jolly Cooperation" has a deeper meaning to it, the statue with the same name seems to indicate this with you and Solaire holding hands-"

    Reima "Shaking hands." he says, correcting the robot.

    Mettaton nods, "All I''m saying is, if "Jolly Cooperation" was doublespeak for your romantic relationship with Solaire I''d be all for it-"

    Reima shakes his head, "That''s not happening, absolutely not... I''d also like to know the people spreading such rumours." he asks, a grave expression on his face.

    Again, Alphys shrinks into the blankets covering her, wishing her BL hobby hadn''t made her write those fanfics about Solaire and Reima.

    *Brrr, Brrr, Brrr*

    Reima sighs and picks up the phone yet again, "Yo?"

    "Hello! I''m an activist supporting equal treatment for all monsters that goes by the name Ironia."

    Reima nods, "That''s great, but I don''t know what your goal is... Monsters are treated like all other races within Ichor?"

    Ironia "No, that''s not what I mean... I mean the monsters you ritualistically and sadistically massacre each and every day!"

    ...

    Reima thinks for a moment before he realises what they mean and feels like throwing the phone at the wall... "You mean the monsters of this world that include Ghouls, Hags, Nekkers, and Basilisks?" he asks, as if they were stupid.

    Ironia "I do!"

    ....

 760 Witch Er -Hun

    ...

    Reima rubs his face, "I don''t think you know what you''re talking about..."

    Ironia "What! How dare you say that! I''ll have you know I''ve studied Monsters since we arrived in this world, and I''m probably more versed on them than you are!" they shout over the phone.

    ...

    Reima "Miss I-"

    Ironia "I''m not a miss! I identify as non-binary!" they cut him off.

    Reima "Okay, person. Do you know what my occupation was before I created this city?"

    ...

    Ironia "A misogynistic piece of sh-"

    Reima "-Of course you wouldn''t. I''m a Witcher, and incase you don''t know what that is, It''s a monster hunter specifically created for that job, we''ve been genetically altered and trained since we are children to combat supernatural threats."

    Ironia "And? it doesn''t mean you aren''t committing genocide!"

    ...

    Mettaton "We can change caller if you wish Reima-"

    Reima shakes his head, "No, I need to clear this up before other people get the same dumb ideas. Look, Monsters from this world, specifically the unintelligent ones are a threat to everyone, even now powerful creatures travel through the Dragon Mountains to try and claim the magically potent territory. It is factually inaccurate that those Monsters are capable of anything but mindless violence, breeding, and eating."

    Ironia "How would you know that! Have you ever spoken to them!?!

    Reima "No, but I''ve experienced getting attacked by them enough to understand them well, and I reckon my years of experience would trump whatever you''ve accumulated up until now." he says, putting down the phone just as Ironia was about to start unleashing a verbal tirade against him.

    Mettaton "I have to say, I''d not expected one of my fans to be so rude, let me apologise on their behalf."

    Reima "It''s fine, can''t say I didn''t expect something to be mad at me as we took calls, though, I think it''s crazy that they think the things they do, even when evidence disputes their claims entirely.

    Mettaton nods, "Let''s take one last call to end the interview on a positive note." they say, the phone beginning to ring.

    "Hello?" a childish voice comes through the phone as Reima listens.

    Reima "Hello, how''re you?"

    "I''m good... I just wanted to say thank you for saving us, those angry men wanted to burn us because we look different. But you stopped them and helped us, gave us a home, food, clothes. I don''t want to close my eyes because I think I''ll wake up and it''ll all have been a dream"

    Reima smiles, "No problem, I think the real people you need to thank are the Absolvers managing the wall. They''re probably the ones directly responsible."

    "We did, I just want to thank you personally. We''d all be dead if it wasn''t for you... That''s all I wanted to say, thank you!"

    *Beep, Beep, Beep*

    Reima "It was fun." he says, having enjoyed it somewhat despite the small issues he had.

    Mettaton "Ah? Then you wouldn''t mind becoming a frequent guest?"

    Reima immediately shakes his head, "Er, unfortunately I am very bus-"

    *WEEEEEEEEEEEEE-ooooooooooooooooohhhhhhhh*

    The sound of sirens starts blaring incredibly loud, notifying that danger is rapidly approaching...

    Reima inwardly thanks god as he''d literally been "Saved by the bell", even if the "Bell" is the alarm system for the city. "Ah, I gotta go, duty calls." he says, nodding at Mettaton and disappearing in a flash of Turquoise light.

    Mettaton looks at the cameras and spreads his arms out, "Round of applause for our guest, King Reima Ludvig!... Oh, and please immediately head to the underground bunker for your own safety!" he says, all the channels on the T.V screens switching to information on how to get to the bunker.

    Atop the Chaos Temple Reima appears in a flash of light, just as a lightning bolt strikes the ground next to him.

    Reima "Yo Solaire, what''s up?" he asks, the knight in literal shining armor.

    Solaire "I am here for the same reason as you, my friend, do you see anything amiss?" he says, looking at the horizon towards the valley wall.

    Reima shakes his head, "No... I wonder if it''s a false alarm?" he mutters aloud.

    ...

    After a moment a large shadow appears on the horizon, flying towards them. It''s a large green dragon with Iorveth sitting atop its head.

    They land on the spot the Everlasting Dragon used to rest in, the dragon turning into Saskia and they both quickly make their way up to where Reima and Solaire are.

    Iorveth "An army! A huge army of monsters are approaching!"

    Solaire "Monsters? What kind?"

    Iorveth "I don''t know, but it isn''t limited to a single species, I know that much for certain. There are so many flying that I thought an eclipse was occurring!"

    Saskia "We spotted them while we were... Patrolling the outskirts of the wall, they must number tens of thousands!" she says gravely.

    ...

    Reima "Hang on, aren''t both of you supposed to be on break? Right now should be Kuretz turn to patrol."

    Saskia blushes slightly as Iorveth glances away, "Now is not the time for this." the latter states.

    Reima nods, "Iorveth, lead the Scoia''tael and situate them around the city, the wall is functionally useless against a flying threat, and your archers will be vital in defending multiple fronts."

    Saskia "And me?" she asks with a look of determination.

    Reima "Makesure all the civilians are safely in the bunker, once that''s done you can assist Iorveth." he states, both of them nodding and Iorveth flying off on Saskia''s back.

    Solaire smirks, "I suppose they were doing the "Reverse Dragon Ride" beyond the walls..." he says with a chuckle.

 761 Confronting your elders

    Solaire "You''re not leaving me out of the fun!" he shouts, as a lighting bolt strikes him and he disappears.

    A turquoise flash signals his arrival, the Prospects giving sighs of relief as they spot him...

    Reima "Spotted the enemy yet?" he asks the group, all of them shaking their heads.

    Talem walks up from behind them, "Not a the moment, but everyone''s preparing for the worst, Saskia and Iorveth already relayed their report to most areas."

    Reima nods, "What''re the positions looking like?" he asks, wanting to know everyone''s general position before shit hits the fan.

    Talem "Lady Yennefer and Lady Keira are both preparing a spell atop Kaer Morhen with the help of Logan and Griggs."

    Reima "What spell?"

    Talem "Some kind of warding spell that''ll apparently deter enemies from entering the city, how powerful it will be is anyone''s guess." he shrugs, "Lady Quelana has already mobilised the Chaos Covenant, they''re being split among the Prospects in order to increase the "Fire-power" if you''ll pardon the pun. They will be working in the formations that were designed to combat unknown monsters."

    Reima "What about her sisters Quelina and Quelaag? I doubt they''ll be staying idle." he guesses.

    Talem "Quelaag will be joining the front-line forces, her role as a commander hasn''t been reinstated, but her combat capabilities will be useful nonetheless. For Quelina?" he mutters, thinking for a moment, "Ah, she''s distributing potions among the forces as we speak."

    Reima nods, "Good. Is Kuretz back from his patrol?"

    Talem shakes his head, "No, not yet. Risryn is spreading the other Prospects throughout the city at ambush points and Kalini has been tasked with stopping the Trainees from doing something stupid.

    Reima "Any news on what the church is doing?"

    Talem nods, "Lady Anastacia will remain within the church to heal any who get injured, while lady Reah has joined hands with Dusk and set up a healing point near this position."

    ...

    Reima raises an eyebrow and extends his Observation Haki, it expands like a bubble and notes everything that''s around him... Talem, the Prospects, Solaire who''s currently behind him... Ah, nearby the wall there''s a thin film of magic surrounding Dusk and Reah, rendering them invisible, not to mention the other enchantments layered on top of it that block sound and smells, this is particularly important when facing a Monster force.

    Reima "And, what''re Geralt, Ciri and the other Witchers doing?" he asks.

    Talem "Lady Ciri was... Unhappy with her and Geralt''s fishing trip being interrupted, as such she''s standing atop the Statue of Jolly Cooperation to wait for the enemy..." he mutters.

    Talem "As for Geralt and the Witchers? They''re protecting the city, and will most likely assist Risryn in her efforts after the ambushes have been set off."

    Reima "Is that everything?" he mutters to himself aloud.

    Solaire "Priscilla is standing atop Kaer Morhen''s balcony with her bow, perhaps it would be best to stay out of her line of fire."

    Reima "Ah, what''s Rickert and Alphys doing?" he asks.

    Talem "Hmm, I received word of them setting up a "Pro-to-type" or something similar? You''d have to check with them to confirm anything though."

    Reima slowly nods, "Well, I guess all we have left to do is wait for the enemy..."

    Red mist materialises next to them all, getting their hackles up...

    Regis "I hope you wouldn''t mind if I joined you? I''m getting a bad feeling all of a sudden..."

    Reima "Bad feeling?"

    Regis nods, "Like an instinctual niggling to flee, or perhaps even fight?"

    Reima "Isn''t that just called fear?" he questions, feeling like Regis probably hadn''t been scared before due to him being an immortal vampire.

    Regis shakes his head, "I know fear, and this isn''t it." he says, not speaking anymore on the subject.

    A few moments later a sound echoes throughout the valley.

    *Raaaaaeeeeeeeeeekkkkkkkkkkkk!*

    Reima turns to everyone to see their reactions, raising a brow at Regis pale(er), expression. "Something wrong?"

    Regis nods, "I-...Yes... I think you''ll want to come with me Reima, perhaps we can avoid what''s about to happen?" he says, jumping off of the wall as Reima and Solaire follow him.

    They all start Jogging away from the wall, though, most wouldn''t consider running faster than most cars "Jogging".

    Reima "So, Regis, I''d kinda like to know what we''re literally running into?"

    Solaire "I agree, knowing is the first step of preventing!" he chirps from beside them.

    Regis sighs, "I fear the enemy before us belong to my own race... I don''t know why they''d mobilize such a force, but whatever it is, it can''t be good."

    Reima "Vampires? Like, High Vampires?"

    Regis shakes his head, "Worse, it that roar from earlier was a call from an Elder Vampire, attempting to recruit more of our kind to her forces."

    Solaire "Her?"

    Regis "I... Have unfortunately encountered this particular Elder before, needless to say, I don''t wish to anger her, I am all but defenseless against her power, and I don''t want to speculate at whether or not you could defeat her." he says gravely.

    Solaire "Seems like a Jolly opponent worthy of battle." he exclaims with a grin.

    Regis ignores Solaire''s words and they continue running, eventually getting a few miles from the wall and spotting a huge black cloud in the sky.

    Reima "Er, how''re you going to call out this person? I doubt vampires are also capable of telepathy."

    Regis glances at him, "Some are, but I have a trick up my sleeve... Elder''s are very old, and very particular about what is known about them. She is the only one I have any information about at all to be honest, which makes it lucky she''s the one leading the force." He says, stepping forwards and taking a deep breath...

    "MOOOORRRRWEEENNNAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" he shouts as loud as his lungs can manage.

 762 Blood Shed

    ...

    ...

    Reima and Solaire glance at one another, giving a shrug as they watch on as Regis''s legs begin to tremble.

    A black shadow shoots from the cloud, heading for the group at incredible speeds...

    *BANG!*

    Dust rises as a creator is created, a furious looking woman with shoulder-length black hair, wearing a long black dress glares at him, her iris''s glow an unnatural yellow with black sclera''s only emphasizing it. She steps forwards which causes Regis to step back, "Emiel, so nice of you to call for me, even if it was me who called for you."

    Regis "Ah, Morwenna I-"

    Morwenna "Emiel." she says, causing him to jolt before freezing... Reima could sense that even Regis heart was still, his brain functions in a similar state...

    She walks up to Regis and touches his face, "You were always so handsome Emiel, a shame we had to part ways." she mutters, finally glancing at Reima and Solaire, she pokes Regis on the forehead which causes him to be able to move again. "So, what have you called me for? These mortals supposed to be an apology for the past?"

    Regis "I-err..." he takes a deep breath, "No. I''ve come to ask why you''re leading an army towards a mortal settlement. I was hoping you were simply attempting to find your kin across the Blue Mountains, but with these numbers... I doubt it."

    Morwenna laughs, "You''re right to be doubtful, the Elders convened and have decided to take over this world due to unexpected events."

    ...

    Reima "Wait, what?" he asks, suddenly getting a ringing in his head which signals that someone is using one of his necklaces... Fuck, he couldn''t leave right now, there was a literal army of vampires on his doorstep!

    Morwenna "Did I give you permission to speak, mortal?" she says, sending a heavy glare at him.

    Reima scowls, "Like I need your permission, Hag. I haven''t given you permission to try and invade my cit-"

    Regis "Please, both of you, we can negotiate... Perhaps you could tell us what lead to the Elder''s decisio-"

    Morwenna "Hag?... You dare!?!" she exclaims, her face turning bestial as huge claws extend from her fingertips.

    Regis "Really, I thi-"

    Reima "Yeah I dare, you stupid cunt!" he says, the area heating up as he starts releasing his aura.

    Regis "BOTH OF YOU STOP!" he shouts, finally losing his temper... "We don''t need to fight! I''m sure we can come to some arrangement!"

    Morwenna/Reima "I refuse" they both say simultaneously, sending a glare at one another.

    Regis "Morwenna, please... For me, reconsider this... You are going to kill thousands!"

    Reima "Hell no, you aren''t leaving after saying all that shit!" he shouts, throwing his palm in her direction and causing a huge Chaos Fireball to be sent in her direction.

    Morwenna gets hit by it, the fire evaporating a large amount of the red mist comprising her body, but she orders the army to attack as she swiftly escapes upwards in an attempt to enter it.

    Wings explode from Reima''s back as he fully releases his aura and activates Yoko mode, his body beginning to glow golden in response, launching from the ground so fast that a creator forms where he was previously standing.

    Like a flaming missile, he flies towards the black cloud, eyes focussed on the thin strands of red mist escaping within it, ignoring the fact they''re heading towards his city...

    Finally, he hits the cloud, blasting those in his path into bloody burnt chunks, an wave of dark red flames wash through the crowd, killing a large portion of them, while also injuring those that couldn''t be killed by regular means.

    Those that''d seen him coming had turned invisible, to mist, and used other defensive abilities to get out of the line of fire. And even despite the damage his initial attack had done, the cloud was still massive, the tens of thousands of creatures comprising it seeming to not have dropped in numbers.

    The huge cloud begins to split into groups of smaller ones, separating and heading towards different directions, their focus still on the Ichor.

    Reima continues to blast through the cloud, his Observation Haki locked onto Morwenna, eventually they both exit out the back of the cloud, the blood covering Reima quickly evaporating due to the heat coming off of his body.

    He teleports behind the mist and makes a grab for it using Armament Haki, managing to grab hold of it but finding the red gas slip from his grip as a foot materialises from the mist and brutally kicks him in the face... Breaking his nose and shocking him...

    He touches his face and realises blood was streaming from his nose, a frown finding its way onto his face... He was actually injured? This... Is weird. Did he get poisoned? Was there some special magic that allowed someone as weak as this to harm him? Various questions rapidly pass through his mind.

    Morwenna transforms back into her humanoid form with a huge grin on her face, the only sign of injury are the small burns on her left arm that quickly heal. "Not bad, mortal. But you''re out of you depth against one of us!" she says, wings exploding from her back in a bloody mess and beginning to flap to keep her airborne.

    Reima is incensed by her words and tries to wipe the blood away with his thumb, accidentally smearing it across his face, "It''s you who''s out of your depth, bitch. Get in one lucky shot and you suddenly stop running? The supreme vampire scared of a mortal eh?"

 763 Arrogant Mistakes

    Once she''s finished speaking she seemingly disappears from her position in the sky... However she hadn''t used any teleportation on invisibility, she was simply so fast it was difficult to keep track of her. Fortunately, Reima hadn''t busted his balls training just to die fighting this woman, through his eyesight, reflexes, and Observation Haki he was able to fight her on even terms.

    She flies past his position with claws outstretched, attempting to cut him in half with them... He dodges with relative ease, confusing the vampire who circles round and makes another attempt.

    *SWISH!*

    Reima''s Divinely Enchanted Silver Sword materialises in his hand and flicks at Morwenna as she attempts to run him through, almost decapitating her in one swift blow, she manages to dodge it though, backing off while something she''d not experienced in many, many years happens.

    Cold sweat drips from her neck and down her back, she''d come close to getting beheaded by that blade, and she feared the state she''d be in if it''d actually done so... While she was immortal, she feared being captured, imprisoned, and locked away until she went mad. This was one thing all higher vampires could unite around, it was worse than death.

    Reima "What''s wrong? Lost your luster?" he taunts, flourishing his blade.

    Morwenna "It seems I misjudged you, I swore to never use this against mortals, but you aren''t mortal... Are you?" she says, her flesh beginning to bubble...

    *CUT!*

    "AHHhhhhrrghh!" Morwenna shouts in pain as her transformation stops abruptly.

    Reima teleports next to her and severs her lower body, trying to store it into his Folded Space but finding the lower-body was still somehow alive... He allows it to fall to the earth below and attempts to slash her again. "You must think I''m fucking stupid!? What fucking retard would sit there and watch you transform!" he shouts as she turns to mist and backs off.

    Morwenna returns to her humanoid form with her legs somehow reattached, though last burned patches are left on her skin that do not seem to heal as fast as before. "W-what is that blade!"

    Reima smirks at her, "This? It''s called Excalibur!"

    Morwenna "WHHAAAATT!!? WE DESTROYED THAT WEAPON CENTURIES AGO!" she screams, fearfully looking at the sword in his hand.

    Reima "Yeah, I''m just bullshitting..." he says, teleporting behind her and trying to bisect her this time, she''s prepared for this however, and blocks the attack with her claws before backing away.

    Morwenna scowls at him, but a smile eventually finds its way onto her face, "I''ve got a joke for you. What do you call a city unprepared to deal with an army of darkness?"

    ...

    Reima''s cocky look drops, "Fuck." he mutters as he teleports to Ichor.

    He appears atop the wall and frowns when he notices the black clouds hadn''t even attacked yet... That bitch tricked him!

    *Flash!*

    He blinks back but finds that she''d already fled, he throws a chaos fireball at a hill in frustrations and annihilates it before returning to the wall where Regis and Solaire were waiting.

    Solaire "Congratulation for overcoming your foe my friend!" he praises, not noticing how angry Reima was.

    Reima "I didn''t "Overcome" anything, she got away."

    Regis shakes his head, "Her army is still here, besides she wouldn''t dare retreat." he says, gravely.

    Reima takes a deep breath to try and calm himself down, "Why''d you think that?"

    Regis "She''d stated that this was a joint decision made by the Elders... If she returned defeated she''d no doubt be devoured, and her position given to another worthy of it."

    Reima nods, "Then, I won''t let her get away a second time." he states, looking up as the clouds begin to descend upon them, monsters of every kind compose it... Higher Vampires, Katakan, Alps, Bruxa, Nosferat, Mula, Fleder, Ekimmura, Plumard''s, the list is endless... There are even species of vampires that the oldest Witcher Vesemir didn''t know!

    Arrows are shot at the advancing monsters, the tips of all of them enchanted with various things like Chaos, Lightning, and even Divine, the latter of which killed most non-higher vampires instantly if hit in a vital spot.

    Obviously, the huge spear hurtling across the sky wreathed in a black substance belonged to Priscilla... It almost cut one cloud in half due to how devastating it was to anything hit by it.

    Solaire laughs uproariously as he liberally throws lightning spears as if they were nothing at anything that moved, "NOW THIS IS WHAT I CALL JOLLY COOPERATION! DOWN WITH THE FIENDS MY FRIENDS!" he shouts.

    Reima claps Regis on the shoulder, "I hate to ask this of you, but would you be willing to kill Higher Vampires that are cut down by everyone? I doubt anyone other than me could permanently kill them." he states.

    Regis sucks in a breath at his words, looking him in the eyes, "You realise what you''ve just ask of me would make any other vampire attack you in a rage?" he asks with a somber expression.

    Reima slowly nods, "I do, and that''s why I ask you... You are unlike the monsters that''d not bat an eye at what could potentially be a massacre, I''ve heard Geralt speak about you, and I want to believe your honor, dignity, and compassion would trump whatever loyalty you would have to your race." he says honestly.

    Regis rubs his face, "I... Fine, I will assist you." he says, leaping away, not wishing to talk any further and simply get on with his new duties, as executioner of his kin.

 764 Wartime, yet again.

    He shakes his head, "No... I thought I''d gotten my life-times excitement fighting the Hunt, but apparently not. Let''s just makesure we all get through this alive, okay?" he says.

    *BZZZZZZOOOOOOOOWMM!*

    A purple shield begins slowly materialises from the top of Kaer Morhen, the sphere slowing coming into existence and wrapping around the entire city of Ichor. It doesn''t impede the arrows firing out of it at the vampires, nor does it stop their corpses from falling through.

    Yennefer breaths a sigh, "That should hold off the weaker ones."

    Logan "My apologies, but what function does this shield even have?"

    Yennefer "It''ll force the weaker monsters from entering the city, stopping out forces inside from being overwhelmed."

    Keira nods, "It''s going to take a lot of power to maintain with this amount of enemies, even with the ambient magic at our disposal... It should hold with all of us here, but for how long is anyone guess."

    Ciri had been tapping her foot impatiently as she waited atop the Jolly Cooperation statue for the enemy to finally arrive. Flashes of lightning occur above her as Solaire ravages through the black clouds, piercing them and then casting Gods Wrath to utterly annihilate them.

    She could spot Reima talking with Regis, and afterwards he was enveloped in that golden aura and shot into the sky like a rocket, passing by a group of monsters and like a flame thrower, sprays them in dark red flames that reduce most to dust in seconds.

    Ciri "Bugger this, I''m not waiting any longer." she mutters, jumping off of the statue and transforming into her "Limbless" form, most were already away of it, so a massive eastern dragon appearing above the city was only a minor surprise...

    The air whips up around her like a mini-tornado as she shoots towards the nearest black cloud, like a spear she continues flying, impacting and continuing through it while the wind around her tears apart the weaker vampires. She receives a few minor scratches from the Higher Vampire''s but nothing major...

    *Flash*

    Her massive body disappears and reappears next to another group, a glowing turquoise ball manifesting in her mouth... It shoots out, the space around it trembling as it flashes in between the group...

    No sound is given off as it implodes, the only thing audible beings the terrified screeches of the vampires caught in its gravitational pull.

    *CRUSH!*

    Blood splatters from the ball before being pulled back in, as the bodies are mashed together and compressed.

    *Puchii*

    She quickly flies around, swinging her snake-like body to try and dislodge the vampire from her, to no avail. She''s about to bend over and bite the thing in half when someone comes to her rescue...

    A green dragon swoops by and swings a claw at the vampire, cutting it in two and causing it to fall towards the city below.

    Ciri "Thanks, Saskia." she says in her peculiar draconic voice.

    Saskia herself just nods before flying back down towards Iorveth in-order fight off the enemies who''re just beginning to land and fight the ground forces.

    Arie glares at a charging Katakan, the beast turning invisible as it approaches... "I fucking hate Vampires!" he shouts, throwing a Moon Dust bomb which explodes and covers the area in silver shards...

    Arie looks around and goes pale... It wasn''t just one Katakan that was now visible, it was five. "Oh, shi-" he''s cut off as one swings its claws at him, causing him to rolls backwards to avoid it.

    Once back upright he isn''t given any rest, having to use his silver arm to block a claw heading right for his face, the force of the blow throwing him a couple of meters away.

    Arie "Er, guys? Any help?" he calls to the nearby Witchers.

    Lambert had just cut an arm off of a Bruxa but was immediately attacked by another, "No can do!"

    Arie ducks under a swipe and cuts at the Katakan''s side as he sidesteps, the silver of his blade slowing the regeneration of the beast.

    *BANG!*

    He''s suddenly leapt upon by the Katakan, his sword locked against the ground by its claw... It roars at it, covering his face in saliva as it holds him down, rearing back slightly to take a good bite out of him.

    Arie "G-get off of me you fucki-"

    *CRASH!*

    The Katakan''s head disappears from its body, an explosion occurring behind it nearby... Arie quickly throws the beast off of himself and looks towards the newly formed creator, a spear-like arrow sticking from it... He glances towards Kaer Morhen where Priscilla is and nods at her before continuing his fight.

    Eskel wasn''t doing any better than Arie was, a couple Alp''s were working in tandom to fight him... The grusome looking women dance and dodge to avoid his blade, occasionally trying to cut at one of his vitals with their claws...

    He throws his hand forwards and casts Igni, showering them both in flames and allowing him to run one through with his blade while they''re distracted.

    His blade easily passes through its heart, killing it as the other delivers the Alp''s trademark shriek at him, it shocks his senses and disorients him, putting him on the defensive as he waits for its effects to wear off.

    The Alp leaps in the air and dives down at him but Eskel manages to avoid it by striking at it mid-air, forcing it away.

    He fingers a bomb on his belt and tosses it at them, while the vampire tries to recover...

    *Bang!*

    It explodes, tearing the legs from the monsters and allowing Eskel to subdue it... Once done he runs over to Arie to help him deal with the group of Katakan that''s causing him trouble.

 765 Unjolly Mechanisation

    ....

    What''s that?....

    A short, fat creature with red skin and pink hair waddles out of a building and runs towards the purple shield that''s keeping most of the monsters at bay... Shit, it''s a civilian!

    He shoots down and hits the floor like a meteorite, causing the civilian to stop.

    "W-what!?"

    Reima stands and restrains his aura in-order to not harm them with his mere presence alone. "What the fuck do you think you''re doing!?! THIS IS A WARZONE, GO TO THE BUNKER!"

    The civilian scowls at him, "I know you, "King" Reima! We talked on the phone not longer ago! I am Ironia, the Monster Equality Activist!"

    Reima facepalm, "Oh, for fuck sake... Do you WANT to die!?!" he exclaims.

    Ironia "You are committing genocide you pig! I''LL SHOW YOU THAT THESE PEOPLE CAN BE CIVILISED!" they shout and begin running/waddling towards the shield...

    Reima "Oh... Noo... Someone stop them..." he says, glancing around to see if there was anyone around... No? Then he''ll just pretend he didn''t see anything...

    Ironia "I''m here to save you all! You don''t need to attack our city to gain equal rights anymore! I am your champion!" they shout, leaving the shield and immediately being grabbed by two Plumards, the dog-sized bat creatures salivating as they prepare to bite into her.

    Ironia "W-what are you doing? I know you''re happy I''m here but-AHHHHH!" they scream as a chunk of flesh is bitten off from their arm. "GET OFF, GET OFF, SOMEONE HELP!" they shout, running for the shield...

    ...

    Reima sighs, teleporting up to her and slicing off the Plumards, "Do you understand now!?! Now get to the fucking bunker!" he shouts, Ironia rapidly nodding with tears streaking down her face... Hand-pressed on her new wound as she runs off.

    He flares his aura yet again, ready to continue the fight when he notices something atop one of the outer building of Ichor... Something glowing blue. On closer inspection he could spot Alphys and Rickert standing next to a box...

    *Flash!*

    Reima "What''re you two doing? I thought these weren''t ready to be used yet?" he quickly asks, he''s still needed in the battle.

    Rickert/Alphys "Eeek!" they both squeak at his sudden entrance, Rickert pointing what looks like a small firearm as Alphys readies a Heavy Soul Arrow...

    Rickert "Ah, Reima? Thank the sun, I thought it was one of those beasts.

    Alphys "Ah about the gun... I think it''s functional! We''ve tweaked it and it should work!"

    They both nod and Rickert pulls out a switch, "Observe!" he exclaims, pressing teh big red button which activates the gun, the barrel of it popping out of the box and immediately aiming at the vampires held back by the shield.

    *duuuuuUUUUUUUU!*

    *PEEEEWW!*

    A blue laser is fired from the barrel, causing the box to move due to the kickback... It''s accurate, the laser smashes into the group of lesser vampires, killing them instantly.

    Alphys and Rickert both jump and high five, congratulating each other on a fine weapon...

    ...

    *Craaaaack*

    Crack-like splinters start forming in the purple shield surrounding the town... The duo have neutral expression, with the exception of their eyes which are bulging out of their sockets as they watch the cracks travel across the entirety of the shield...

    *SHATTER!*

    All at once, the shield breaks, purple shards beginning to rain down and disappear. Over atop Kaer Morhen Yennefer, Keira, Logan, and Griggs eyes all roll to the back of their heads as they pass out, the destruction of their spell providing a huge back-lash.

    Reima could sense from here with his Observation Haki that they''d gone unconscious... Sending a furious glare down at Rickert and Alphys.

    ...

    Rickert "Ah, oh wow, who''d have known that this would happen!?! Ha..ha....ha...." he says scratching the back of his head.

    Alphys nods, "Yes... What a surprising outcome... If only someone had warned us, haha...ha..."

    Reima "We will be discussing this if you survive the battle." he gravely states, as he teleports into the sky to combat the airborne threat as the rest of the Vampire army on the ground charges into Ichor.

    Arie and Eskel had just finished off the Katakan that were attacking them and turned their gazes to the front lines... Just as the shield shatters and allows the horde of vampires to charge at them.

    Arie "Why do we even fucking bother!"

    Lambert "This isn''t part of the plan!!!" he shouts, dropping into a stance and preparing for the horde to reach them.

    Fortunately for the Witchers, the ambushes that''d previously been set up were prepared just for such an occasion...

    Just as the vampire horde enters the street of Ichor, many shadows atop the buildings make themselves known by raining fire down at them.

    Risryn stands next to Quelaag as Quelana commands the Chaos Servants to attack. Fire envelopes the street, killing all of the lesser vampires and heavily injuring the Higher ones. Luckily the buildings of Ichor were almost entirely made from stone, allowing such tactics to be used without also burning down the city.

    The Higher Vampires caught in the fire look up at the rooftops and begin transforming into their true forms, using their wings to fly up and attempt to attack them... Only for Risryn to throw her arm out and shout, "Prospects, attack!"

    With that, the Prospects leap off of the rooftops and onto the Higher Vampires, using their silver blades to cut deep wounds into their flesh. Though, most Prospects who manage to land a blow on them are sliced or torn apart.

 766 Degenerate with Regenerative Qualities

    One the smoke clears none of them are left flying, all of them now locked in combat against the Prospects, the ash of their kin deep enough to cover their feet.

    While the Prospects are incredibly skilled warriors, they''re still no match for the Higher Vampires or brutally decimate their forces...

    Kuretz "Yo Risryn, can we fight yet?" he asks, his fists itching and his sharp knuckle weapons already at the ready.

    Risryn nods, materialising her sword and covering herself with energy, "Let''s." she says simply as she leaps off the roof, directly towards an unaware hulking vampire.

    *PUCHII!*

    "RRRRAAAAAGHHHH!"

    Risryn''s sword penetrates its neck, and she throws herself downwards with it still sheathed in its flesh, allowing her to decapitate it. She''s still forced to dodge the claws of its body that''re still randomly thrashing around.

    Kuretz soon follows her, delivering a hard punch to the headless body, knocking it down and causing it to finally stop, even if the flesh is still writhing, displaying that it''s still somehow alive.

    They both separate and start assisting the struggling Prospects, dealing with the bigger threats while mostly ignoring Bruxa, Alps, and other Vampires.

    A shadow flashes through the alleyway just as they leave, mouth bloody from the numerous kills they''ve already had to commit...

    Regis gags a little as he tears into the still writhing body of the Higher Vampire, devouring its vitals before moving onto the head, cracking open the skull and eating its brain.

    Elsewhere :

    Morwenna watches all of them on from the sides, not stepping out of her mist from as she thinks over what could possibly help her achieve victory... The mortal from earlier that was with Emiel had displayed surprising strength, but she was sure if she went all out she could probably deal with them, even if it stung her pride to admit this fact.

    Her eyes travel over the landscape, past the unconscious magic users atop the keep, ignoring the Fire mages assaulting her kin from the rooftops, and on the Witchers slowly, efficiently, and methodically killing anything near them... None of these groups could threaten her, but eliminating them and revealing herself would not achieve victory. No, the things that were causing the most trouble would be the group of archers shooting elemental arrows and the two dragons decimating her airborne forces.

    Morwenna''s arm is sheathed deep inside Ciri''s flesh, the force of her attack sending the dragon tumbling to the ground...

    *BANG!*

    Limbless body hits the ground causing an explosion due to her weight, creating a creator and causing dust to rise.

    Fortunately or not, Geralt has been near the impact area and was running without hesitation to Ciri''s aid, casting Aard to clear the dust but not noticing the shadow behind him... "Ciri!" he shouts, running over to her.

    A pair of thin, yet strong arms wraps around his arms, preventing him from moving his shoulders or even turning around...

    Morwenna "I''ve never tasted a Witcher''s flesh before, this''ll be a first." she states, as she bites into Geralts neck, not noticing his sword raising and pointing towards his own stomach.

    *STAB!*

    Morwenna quickly backs off as the Witchers silver blade stabs out of his own back and into her stomach, she coughs a little as a searing pain enters her veins... The Witcher''s blood covers her body, and the little she''d drunk was eating her form the inside due to the copious amounts of Black Blood potion Geralt had drank earlier.

    *Flash!*

    Reima appears behind Morwenna with a furious expression, muttering "Found you." as he shoves his flaming hands into her chest and tearing her apart with his strength alone.

    The two blood chunks of Morwenna''s body fly in opposite directions and turn into mist... Reima glances over at Ciri in her dragon form, a large wound on her body bleeds profusely but he doesn''t have time to help her right now... Geralt is also heavily injured, the injury on his neck isn''t that bad but his suicidal sneak attack had damaged his internal organs.

    Morwenna reappears a mile above Reima and immediately starts transforming, not making the same mistake as last time. She grows to around 13ft, her flesh turning pink and bloody, as if she''d been skinned alive with a beastlike head mutating from her human one... Its mouth is scarily large compared to Dettlaff''s form, and it was overall much more fierce-looking.

    Without a second thought, she dives for Reima at speeds few could match, impacting him with her claws being blocked by his Silver Blade as she carries him off into the sky.

    Reima head butts the Vampire a couple times which does nothing but burn the flesh on her monstrous face. Eventually teleporting above the beast and stabbing down, only managing to cut a wound into her shoulder as she dodges to the side.

    She swings her claws at him to counter-attack but he disappears again, appearing behind her and unleashes a huge gout of Dark Red Flame at her... She turns to mist and split into two strings of it, dodging the fire and reappearing below Reima, he''s already aware of her location though and his sword passes through her face and bisects her.

    He cuts at the pieces of Morwenna''s body, slicing and dicing them until only small chunks remain... "This should be good enough right?" he asks himself aloud, but is shocked when the chunks liquify and reform into Morwenna''s body.

    Morwenna "I AM IMMORTAL!" she roars, unleashing a shockwave that''d kill and probably even mulch any regular human hit by it... Unfortunately for her, Reima wasn''t affected in the slightest.

 767 Becoming Mortal

    Reima wipes the saliva from his face and scowls at her, "Shut your fat mouth." he says, holding his hand up and conjuring hundreds of Crystal Soul Spears above him, all pointing at the vampire. And with a flick of his wrist, they all are sent shooting towards Morwenna.

    She tries to dodge them but finds that they''re homing in on her, eventually deciding to turn to mist to dodge them...

    *WHIZZ!*

    The many Crystal Soul Spears pass through the red mist comprising Morwenna''s body, surprisingly causing her immense pain when they hit her... This was of course because the spears not only affect the physical, but spiritual as well.

    The sudden pain has her accidentally revert her form, allowing the Spears to tear her body to bloody chunks for the second time this battle.

    And, yet again, the chunks turn to mist and Morwenna reappears, completely intact. "YOUR EFFORTS ARE FUTILE! NOW DIE!" she shrieks, charging him again... Only for Reima to summon the Staff of Manus in his left hand and slam it down at her. She tries to block it but finds the weight of the weapon too much, her own strength not allowing her to stop the momentum.

    Her claws are crushed as she tries to block the attack, she spins through the air disoriented from the impact and by the time she regains control of her faculties a searing pain erupts in her chest.

    Reima had teleported behind her and driven his Divine Silver Sword into her back, "Let''s see how immortal you are after this!" he exclaims, stowing away the Staff of Manus and driving the Dark Hand into her body.

    *PAIN!*

    The feeling was indescribable, Morwenna was unable to due anything as soon Reima''s hand entered her back... She was exhausted from getting cut to pieces so many times and barely had the strength to resist this strange painful sensation.

    Reima forces his hand in further, getting up to his shoulder until he touches something that immediately tries to escape away from his hand...

    On Morwenna''s end, it''d felt as if this man had touched her "everything", the thing that made her, her. The thing that made her an intelligent being capable reason, or feeling anything... "NO! LET GO! I''LL KILL YOU!" she wails at the top of her lungs, wishing for this feeling to stop.

    Reima "You''re fucking done! This is what you get for pissing me off!" he shouts, reaching further in and grabbing the slimy thing, pulling his arm back as quickly and hard as possible.

    Morwenna''s protests suddenly stop when the object leaves her back... Reima looks down at it and frowns... "Is this Humanity?" he mutters to himself, the entirely black soul writhing around in his hand...

    He makesure to store the body into his Folded Space, the flesh no-longer living after he tore Morwenna''s soul out. This''d make a good present for Nerissa, he''d also like to see what kinds of Mutagen''s could be made from it... Regardless, there was something more important to attend to right now.

    *Flash!*

    Reima reappears where Ciri and Geralt had been, Limbless large body was no-longer present, meaning that she''d changed back into her human form... Looking over he could see Quelina and Anastacia attending to Ciri as Geralt watches them. "Geralt, you alright?" he asks, checking him over.

    Geralt nods his head, his face still pale and covered in black veins from the potion toxins "I''m fine. What I''m worried about is Ciri..." he says, Reima only now noticing the huge wound starting from her shoulder, between her breasts and to her hip.

    Reima pats him on the shoulder, "She''ll be fine, right?" he sends the questions to Anastacia.

    She quickly nods, "The wound is resisting my Miracles, but she''ll live."

    Geralt frowns, "I''ve never heard of Vampires having venomous claws before... Maybe it''s a new species?" he asks.

    Reima stands, "You guys look after her, I need to help the others clean up the remaining vampires." he says, disappearing with another flash at the wall... Once he gets there he''s immediately pounced upon by a Higher Vampire in its true form, Reima grabs its arms as its tries to claw him and tears them off. Delivering a heavy kick to one of its knee''s which causes it to bend backwards...

    He looks at the kneeling creature and uses the Dark Hand to tear its soul out, with a lot more ease than it had been against Morwenna. The corpse slumps to the floor lifeless, and Reima looks around to see the situation...

    It seems after Morwenna''s death the army of vampires had started to retreat, and with most of the lesser vampires being unable to fly they''re forced to try and breach the wall without their counterparts carrying them again.

    He spots Talem trying to fight off another Higher Vampire, using his glaive to keep it at bay inorder to resist its superior speed and strength... Unfortunately a nearby Prospects severs the head of a Plumard, inadvertently pushing its body into him and knocking him off balance... Talem tries to recover and uses the ability Unbreakable, causing Fold energy to cover him and block as claw heading for his head.

    *Flash*

    *Cut!*

    Reima blinks towards them and cuts the beasts arms off as it tries to go for another swipe, driving his Dark Hand into its side and tearing its soul out like the previous one.

    Reima helps Talem up off of the ground, "How''s the situation?"

    Talem nods, "Without Solaire we''d all be sent straight back to the shrine... We hadn''t anticipated all the enemy forces to try and escape through the wall, the two monsters you just killed had previously been beaten by Solaire... But they managed to piece themselves back together..."

 768 Vasile the Defiler

    Talem nods and Reima disappears, heading straight for whoever was using the amulet...

    Elsewhere :

    Ciaran had just passed out as Sieglinde and Sif had fought their way through many groups of vampires... Only to find that Ciaran wasn''t the only person present in-front of the Auction House.

    Sieglinde "Stop! Who''re you!? Are you an enemy!?!" shouts at the person standing over Ciaran. They have pale white skin and a bald head, dressed in what looks like rags... They turn towards the Catarina knight and open their eyes, revealing yellow irises with black sclera.

    "You impede our conquest? How very strange." they mutter, glancing back and continuing to glare a Ciaran.

    Sif growls at them and flips the sword in their mouth so it''s ready to strike at the stranger...

    Sieglinde "Stay away from our comrade, fiend." she shouts, cautiously walking towards Ciaran, sword still pointing at the man.

    "Why would I approach them? I am a simply, kind, and generous soul." he says, looking at Sieglinde with a small ominous feeling-smile.

    Sieglinde "With eyes like those, I suspect you are mocking me." she states, increasing her stride towards Ciaran.

    Sif releases a bark and dashes towards the stranger for some reason, swinging his blade at them...

    *Swish!*

    But it passes through nothing, the man was no-longer standing there... Sif glances around before looking back at Sieglinde, only to see the man tearing her helmet off with speed and strength none of the vampires had displayed before...

    Sieglinde "Arrgh! Unhand me fiend, you defile Catarina''s honor with your actions!" she shouts, trying to cut the man but finding her arm locked in place by his... She looks into his eyes with a frown, finding that they don''t look so monstrous anymore?

    "Catarina? That''s a beautiful name for a lady such as yourself, I am Vasile, a pleasure to meet you." he says, smiling and revealing the fangs in his mouth...

    Sieglinde''s eyes glaze as her face involuntarily blushes...

    *SLASH!*

    Sif slashes his sword at Vasile, only for Sieglinde to throw herself in-front of the blade.

    Sieglinde "Stop!" she screams, as if the person dearest to her was about to be murdered. Luckily, Sif is able to redirect the slash upwards, performing a backflip and getting some distance.

    Vasile grins and turns Sieglinde around, placing a hand on her face and looking at her adoringly, "You''re very brave, you saved my life... What can I do to repay you?"

    Lut "You killed my Grandfather! I''ll never forgive you! NEVER!" He shouts, throwing another rock, attempting to draw the vampire''s attention away from Sieglinde and more importantly, Ciaran.

    Another rock hits Vasile in the face and he stumbles backwards as if it had done significant damage... He grabs ahold of Sieglinde''s armour and looks up at her, "My lady, please stop him... I won''t be able to take much more of this..." he says weakly.

    Sieglinde robotically nods and starts dashing over to Lut, the young boy quickly running away to avoid being cut into pieces...

    Yet again, a large ball of fur intervenes and blocks Sieglinde''s blade on his own,

    Sieglinde "What are you doing Sif? Can''t you see I''m executing Justice?... If you try to stop me, then you must be evil then too, right?" she says in a dull tone, backing up and trying to stab at Sif.

    *Flash!*

    Reima appears in-front of Sif, catching Sieglinde''s blade in his hand as it heads towards him, "What, the fuck is going on here..." he mutters, glaring at Sieglinde.

    Sieglinde "Ah, Reima... Something is wrong with Sif, he''s trying to stop me eliminating a threat."

    ...

    Reima glances behind him at the small boy being protected by Sif and scowls, "Yeah, I don''t think so." he says, punching her in the face and knocking her out. He then turns towards Sif and the boy and asks, "Now, can one of you tell me what''s happening?..." immediately after feeling stupid for asking Sif to explain the situation to him.

    Lut "Sir, Monsters attacked the city! Aunti Ci-Cia!" he shouts, looking over at an empty area with a small pool of blood on the ground and some debris.

    Reima "Cia?" he asks, spotting three weapons and a familiar amulet on the floor that has his eyes open in realisation, "Ciaran?"

    Lut runs over and kneels down on the bloody ground, "She was just here! That man with yellow eyes, he must have taken her!" he shouts, beginning to cry again.

    Reima quickly scans the area with Observation Haki, not finding even a trace of her or the Elder Vampire who''s apparently kidnapped her. He palms his face and scowls, "Shit."

    Sif sniffs around and sits on his hind legs, rearing up and howling into the sky...

    *Bang!*

    The door to the Auction House slams open as Zoltan runs out, "Reima! Ye'' can''t just teleport here and disappear again! I fuckin'' shat myself thinin ye''d left us!" he says.

    Reima frowns, "I spotted Sieglinde attacking Sif through the window, so there isn''t much I can do about that... We''ve also got a bigger problem than that right now... Ciaran''s been kidnapped."

    Zoltan looks down, feeling guilty that he wasn''t able to do anything. "Is there anything I can do?"

    Reima shakes his head, "No... And judging by the fact Ichor and Kaedwen were attacked, I reckon this isn''t just a one-off incident... Vampires have made a play for the world." he says, shocking the dwarf.

 769 Kingdom of Corpses

    Zoltan''s eyes almost bulge out of their sockets. "Bu-but such a thing''s never ''appened befor-"

    Roche "Reima! Oh, thank fucking god you''re here!" he exclaims, walking out of the Auction House with Ves, Crach, and Triss following him.

    Reima sighs, "Hmm, it''s good that you guys are still alive..." he mutters.

    Roche nods, "That''s all thanks to your men an the Auction House." he holds his arms out and gestures towards the burning city of Ard Carraigh. "Most of my men have fled or been killed, and I doubt any civilians apart from the ones present here have managed to survive... By the looks of it, this is the end of Kaedwen." he states.

    Reima "Not just for Kaedwen, I''ve just arrived from an army of Vampires attacker Ichor, I reckon this is a world wide problem."

    Crach "Ah? Are you serious? Then I need''ta get back to Skellige as soon as possible, hopefully stay standin'' long enough for me to die in battle there." he says gravely.

    Reima summons the Staff of Manus and walks over to a clear area, his shadow melding into the ground like a black puddle and extending to encompass a large area... Not long after arms of black demonic-looking creatures can be seen as they pull themselves out, an army appearing out of nowhere. He glances back at Crach, "To be fair, I think Skillige is one of the only places capable of surviving something like this... Vampires aren''t really native to the Isles, and I doubt they''d be flying over from the continent to get to you."

    Crach nods, "All the more reason for me to rush back and mount a proper defence for when they do." he says, ignoring the literal army of abyssal creatures Reima had just summoned.

    Reima sends a shoo''ing gesture at them, "Kill any Vampires you find in the city and rescue the survivors you find... Also, bring back any the bodies of any Higher Vampires you bring down, can''t have them getting back up can we?" he states, still agonising over where the Vampires might have taken Ciaran...

    Crach "Reima, I hate to ask you this after savin'' us but, could you help me and hjalmar back to Skellige?" he asks.

    Reima slowly nods, "Yeah, I guess." he says, Crach sending him a grateful expression and walking back into the Auction House to retrieve Hjalmar.

    Triss rubs her hands together anxiously, "So, how''s everyone doing?" she asks him despite the current situation...

    Reima raises a brow, "Geralt''s fine." he says bluntly, not wishing to dally during what could possibly be the Apocolypse...

    Triss blushes slightly but shakes her head, "And Yennefer? How''s she doing?"

    Reima "Last I saw she was passed out atop Kaer Morhen after a security system turret malfunction." he says with a shrug.

    Crach comes back out with a limping Hjalmar, aswell as a bearded man with long brown hair who''s also wearing a crown.

    Tankred quickly nods, "I am, you must be King Reima if I''m not mistaken..." he says.

    Reima "I''m surprised you''ve survived this disaster, you must have pretty good guards... Or you''v been hiding out in my Auction?" he wonders aloud, sending a nod at Hjalmar and Crach as he opens a portal to Skellige... The isles looking completely unscathed from whatever is happening all over the world.

    Hjalmar "Thank ye'' Reima, I''ll repay this debt eventually... Count on it." he says while wincing at his wounds as Crach helps him through the portal.

    Tankred "Ah... That magic, could you possibly take me to my kingdom?"

    Reima shakes his head, "I can only open a portal to a place I''ve been before... Otherwise It''d probably destroy the world."

    Tankred slowly nods, "I... See..." he says slightly downtrodden.

    *Thud, Thud, Thud.*

    The Abyssal Cyclopses return to the clearing with three Higher Vampires in their grips... They drop them on the floor unceremoniously and Reima tears their souls out without a moment''s notice.

    The sun finally sets and the night continues on as the Abyssal Servants purge the city of any traces of Vampires. Eventually the last of Reima''s summoned soldiers return, relaying that the city held no more vampires within its midst. Additionally, they''d managed to collect quite a large amount of survivors. Reima hadn''t expected this many to have survived, judging from what he''d heard, the vampires were killing anything that moved, which is why it was strange for so many to have survived the invasion.

    Upon talking to some of the survivors, it seemed that the Higher Vampires were keeping some alive for some purpose. If he had to guess, Reima would say that they''d be made slaves? The lesser vampires required flesh and blood to survive, which would be one reason why they''d want survivors... They''d be livestock.

    This was good, and bad... It meant that the Vampires hadn''t wiped out every person from the continent, meaning that it could be repopulated relatively easily. It also meant that Reima was restricted from simply burning the cities to the ground with the Vampires inside them.

    He doubted that any country could actually survive these attacks... Ichor had managed because they were overwhelmingly more powerful than anything else in this world, even then they had to use all their forces to get away without mass civilian casualties, even then Reima wasn''t sure how many of his men had perished against the Vampires... Sure, the Prospects would be alright as they were immortal, but the Chaos Servants, Monsters, and Scoia''tael? Dead was dead.

    Regardless, what he needed to focus on now was Ard Carriagh and all the survivors... Kaedwen was most likely no more, so it was up to Reima to take over this vacant land.

 770 Sunless Alliance

    The door closes behind him as he''s confronted with Emperor Voorhis and Nilfgaard''s bravest commander, and rumours say the strongest warrior... Though, it''s only the publics speculation.

    Stairrde Strickut steps forwards, he''s covered almost entirely with thick black armour from head to toe, the only exception is his left arm, which looks somewhat see-through and pulsing with power... Lothaire felt danger from it, even as an Elder Vampire, which was saying thing.

    Voorhis "Ah, greetings. Please, sit." he states, gesturing towards a single lonely chair placed in-front of the huge desk.

    Lothaire slowly nods and takes a seat, "As you say Emperor..." he says, taking his place, "I''ve come to see if you''ll accept my offer."

    Voorhis shakes his head, "Hold the formalities for a moment." he mutters as he gets up and walks to the wine cabinet, grabbing a bottle and three glasses. "Good drinks in good company makes the occasion, yes?" he says as he pours everyone a drink.

    Lothaire sighs and drinks, not wishing to upset the emperor and potentially miss out on an opportunity... "Unfortunately, there isn''t much time left... I can only hold them back for so long.."

    Stairrde "It matters not, if they invade I will personally send them to hell." he states, clenching his ephemeral hand into a fist.

    Lothaire "This is an offer that will only be given to your Empire, and only because I, unlike my peers, am a compassionate man."

    ...

    Voorhis "I have received reports that many regions have been invaded by your allies, some even belonging to the Empire, so forgive me if your words don''t seem reliable."

    Lothaire "Ah, you speak of Toussaint and Aedirn?" he asks, the Emperor nodding, "Those regions are out my control, the people residing in them are far too powerful for me to influence... The one who sacked Toussaint is the strongest of us, and I believe he did it simply to air his frustrations with recent developments."

    Voorhis "Developments?" he asks, curious.

    Lothaire "Alas I am not at liberty to discuss such private things... If I did so I''d most likely be executed before I could say a word of protest."

    Voorhis sighs, "What makes Nilfgaard so important compared to the other nations you''ve already destroyed?"

    Lothaire crosses his legs and rests against the back of the chair, "You know about the supposed weaknesses of Vampires, do you not?"

    Voorhis nods, "Garlic, Sunlight, Running water, Holy objects... I hear their effects vary though." he says with a thoughtful expression.

    Lothaire "You are partly right... Those weaknesses only apply to our weaker kin, as well as the more savage variety."

    Voorhis frowns, "What does this have to do with my question?"

    Voorhis "Hmm, so, you''re saying that one of the reasons you destroyed the Northern Kingdoms is because... Of the weather?..." he asks in disbelief.

    Lothaire nods, "Partly, that and the fact we don''t require the entire continent to do what we want, means that your Empire can be spared... If you agree to our terms."

    Voorhis looks at the desk with a troubled expression, "The terms, are they... Negotiable?"

    Lothaire grins, "Of course."

    Voorhis "Then... The tax is agreeable but, forcing me to send civilians to act as chattel is not. As you know, civil unrest was recently quelled with the death of Rudild Aep Num. If I were to agree to send civilians as chattel then there would no doubt be another. The commoners would not stand for it." he says with a conflicted demeanor.

    Lothaire slowly nods, "Hmm, you have magic users at your disposal?" he asks, the Emperor nodding... "Removing the chattel from the terms can be arranged, if you ship human blood to us." he states.

    Voorhis "Hmm, that can be arranged, the route is long but magic can stop it from spoiling..."

    Lothaire "Then, we''re in agreement!" he says.

    Stairrde "Wait." says, causing both men to look at him. "I wish to make a request, and possibly add my own term."

    ...

    Voorhis frowns, "Commander, I appreciate your enthusiasm for negotiation, but you are not in a position to ask for anything."

    Lothaire raises his hand to stop Voorhis from lambasting his subordinate. "Wait, let''s here what he has to say." he says, feeling "Something" pulling him in a certain direction..

    Stairrde "The City of Monsters... Has it been destroyed?" he asks, his expression hard.

    Lothaire raises a brow, "From what I know, it is still standing... They''ve apparently put up quite a fight, their King managing to even kill one of us..." he says, still unsure of the validity of the news as someone killing an Elder seems farfetched at best.

    Stairrde "If it still stands, then I request to assist you in destroying it... They''ve plagued Nilfgaard long enough, and I personally wish to see them destroyed." he states absolutely.

    Lothaire "I wonder where your hatred of them comes from?" he wonders aloud, not getting an answer from the man... "I think I can agree to your request however, their existence is a thorn for us and any assistance in rooting them out would be appreciated," he says.

    Voorhis gives a relieved sigh, truth be told, he''d been bluffing about potentially refusing the terms... The Vampires were simply too strong to fight off. Luckily he''d managed to secure the safety of his people, but he still wasn''t sure about attacking Ichor, every battle the Empire had ever fought against them had resulted in a loss... Hopefully now with Stairrde Strickut they''d manage to get rid of their enemy, and potentially create good relations with the new leaders of the continent...

 771 "Dispel"

    Ciaran "Ah, my head..." she mutters, rubbing her face and temples. Quickly noticing that she''s no-longer wearing Artorias armour, nor her mask... In fact, all of her equipment was gone, her bottomless box, weapons, and even hidden knives. "This... Is not good." she mutters, patting herself over and checking her wounds, finding that aside from a few scrabbed over scratches, she was fine.

    A light blinds her momentarily as her eyes adjust to it, the sounds of clear and confident footsteps echoing through the room.

    "Ah, so you''ve finally awaken?" the voice of a stranger asks in sickly sweet tone.

    Ciaran''s vision eventually returns and she finally spots the origin of the voice... Pale skin, bald head, and piercing yellow eyes with black sclera... Vampire... An old one. "Who are you?" she questions, pushing herself to the back of the barred cell that now holds her.

    The man grins, "I have many names, but the one that currently seems to be sticking is Vasile the Defiler."

    Ciaran scowls and covers her body, "I''ll bite my tongue if you try to touch me." she states.

    Vasile laughs, "Hahahahahahaha! Don''t worry little girl, I have no intention of lowering myself enough to use your body... No, what I want is far more abstract and precious..."

    Ciaran "Where is this?" she asks, wishing to try and gather some intel for her eventual escape.

    Vasile "This is one of my kind no domain, you might recognise it... I believe it''s called Kovir and Poviss?"

    Ciaran frowns, seems like Kaedwen wasn''t the only place under assault... She''d have expected the many Mages to be able to defend Kovir at least somewhat, though, judging by how calm and comfortable Vasile is, all resistance has likely been squashed. "Hmm, judging by the fact we''re not currently in Kaedwen... You failed to capture the city, didn''t you?" she asks, almost taunting the man.

    Vasile growls at her, grabbing the metal bar and squeezing it hard. "Shut your mouth mortal, if it weren''t for how unique you are, I would have bled you dry right there in Ard Carriagh!" he exclaims.

    ...

    The vampires seem to compose himself and breathes a long sigh, releasing the bar and revealing that his grip had left a deep handprint in the metal... "My apologies, centuries of sleep tends to cause havoc on your emotions...

    Ciaran shakes her head, "Don''t trouble yourself over it, my opinion of you can''t get any less than it already is." she spits.

    Vasile "Oh, you''ll find that I am very persuasive... I promise you''ll be mine eventually." he says, his head resting against the bars as he looks down at Ciaran.

    Vasile easily backs up, "You''re quick, for a mortal, and while I hate to leave people in despair, you should know that I cannot be killed. I am immortal."

    Ciaran shakes her head, "It matters not, you will die at my hand."

    Vasile nods, "I look forward to it." he says, waving at her as he walks away.

    Ciaran slumps against the wall and looks up at the stone ceiling... she''s like to make plans for her escape but there was simply not enough information to go off on. She''s never been to Kovir and Poviss before and had no clue able the layout of the land, nor did she know of the routes of Patrols, their numbers, watchtowers, the sensory abilities of vampires, or even whether or not they''d enslaved the Mages or simply killed them.

    Around three hours after Vasile had visited her, or atleast that''s how long she thought it''d been, footsteps could be heard walking down the hallway... A dim light giving away someone''s presence... It''s a woman...

    They have dirty blonde hair and blue eyes, they''re wearing tattered rags that look to have previously been fine clothing, though, the most notable thing would be the collar around her neck...

    "Here''s your food, prisoner." she says in a dull, emotionless voice and passes some bread and water through the slip in the bars.

    Ciaran stands up and walks over, noting that the woman doesn''t seem to have a reaction to her movements... She looks into her eyes, and finds that they''re glazed over, almost like a corpses usually are... "Hello?"

    ...

    Ciaran frowns at not getting a reply, reaching out and grabbing the woman shoulder, "Excuse me? Can you speak?"

    ...

    *Slap!*

    Ciaran gives the woman a slap across the face, making sure to grab their shoulders in order to stop them from walking too far away from the bars. "You, can you speak!?!" she asks loudly, finding the woman''s eye twitches slightly. "Forgive me... It seems I must bring you back to your senses."

    *SLAP! SLAP! SLAP! SLAP! SLAP!*

    A few minutes pass, and after a barrage of rather heavy slaps to the face, the woman finally reacts, pushing herself away and falling on her butt while glaring up at Ciaran. "Stop! Why on earth are you slapping me!"

    Ciaran "You wouldn''t react when I spoke to you." she states, not apologetic in the least. And while she would not admit it, relieving her irritation on the woman had quelled some of her irritation at the situation...

    ...

    The woman''s eyes widen as she quickly looks around, "W-what? Where am I?"

    Ciaran "In a prison."

    ...

    The woman slowly gets up and touches her neck, her face going pale when she notices the collar... "W-no, this can''t be... When had this..."

    Ciaran "Calm down, you aren''t currently the one locked in a cell, so if you don''t compose yourself I''ll start hitting you again."

    The woman scowls, "With your previous actions, I''d guess you are more ape than woman... But I suppose you do have a point..."

 772 Pummel

    ...

    "Margarita Laux-Antille."

    Ciaran focuses on the woman, "Margarita? The Sorceress?"

    She nods, "Indeed... And, who might you be?"

    Ciaran decides to just give her true name, no point in disguising herself... "Ciaran."

    ...

    Margarita "... Okay "Ciaran", what''re you doing in that cell?"

    Ciaran "I was captured by a Vampire after they invaded Ard Carraigh." she states.

    Margarita''s eyes widen as something seems to click in her mind, "Ah! The Vampires were attacking Kovir!... But... We were beaten... I think?" she ponders aloud.

    Ciaran nods, "I doubt any regular nation could defend against their forces... You must''ve been bespelled, you''d just brought me some food." she gestures towards the bread lying on the floor.

    Margarita "Wouldn''t that mean I''m expected to return soon?" she says, clearly worried.

    Ciaran "Most likely... You should go, whether you choose to escape or not is up to you, but if you encounter someone, act as if you''re emotionless, and try not to react to anything..."

    Margarita slowly nods, "I''ll... I''ll try to come back, I don''t think escaping on my own is possible, and I refuse to leave behind the others..." she says, quickly walking off and leaving Ciaran on her own again.

    One day later :

    Vasile reappears in front of Ciarans cell as she''s doing pushups, silently watching from above her creepily...

    Ciaran stops, wipes the sweat from her brow, and sighs. "So the leech hath returned, what brings you to my abode?" she says, uninterested.

    Vasile grins, "I''m glad you''re keeping yourself fit... I''ve come to discipline you." he says, turning into mist, passing through the bars and returning to his humanoid form.

    Ciaran springs into action, lunging for a punch but feinting it half-way through and performing a spinning back-kick.

    *Thud*

    Vasile stops it with his hand, "Oh, so fiery... Good." he says as he grabs her leg and smashes her against the wall, hard.

    *Bang! Bang! Bang!*

    He continues to swing Ciaran''s body at the walls, floor, and ceiling until she goes limp, exhausted and bruised all over...

    Vasile "A normal mortal would''ve been killed by that... You continue to surprise me, but that''s enough with the game." he says, grabbing her back the neck and lifting her off of the floor. "Look into my eyes." he states, his yellow irises glowing ominously.

    Ciaran refuses and looks away, only for the vampire to grab her hair and force her to look at him. They lock gazes and her eyes glaze for a moment... Only for them to regain clarity not long after. "I refuse! Let go of me you despical monster!" she exclaims, only for Vasile to throw her against the wall.

    Vasile "Damn mortal! I should just kill you now! Damn, Damn, Damn! NEVER RESIST ME! DO YOU UNDERSTAND!!!" he screams with unhinged anger, stamping on Ciaran without mercy.

    Ciaran doesn''t let out a single groan of pain, this is due to her determination to not give Vasile anything he wants, not even the satisfaction of hurting her. Luckily or not, it doesn''t seem like he''s trying to kill her, his strikes on her body not dealing the lethal damage the vampire was most likely capable of giving.

    Vasile looks down at Ciaran, one of her arms bent towards the wrong direction and horrific bruises quickly forming... "Damn... That''ll teach you! NEVER RESIST ME!" he shouts, turning to mist and disappearing from the cell.

    Ciaran allows her body to stop tensing in preparing for more blows, flopping down and lying facing the ceiling, pain aching throughout every inch of her. Her left arm is obviously broken, and by the sudden sharp pain she could infer that at least one of her ribs was also damaged...

    *Tap, Tap, Tap, Tap*

    Margarita runs into view of the cell, "Ciaran are you alrig-Oh my god!" she exclaims, bending down next to the cell bars. Not being able to help due to Vasile owning the key to the cell... "Are you alive?" she quickly asks.

    Ciaran gives groans as she turns to face the bars, "W-what do you think?" she says.

    Margarita gives her a pitying look, "I think he beat you almost half to death... If you come closer I might be able to take a look at you." she says, urging Ciaran to approach the bars.

    Ciaran shakes her head, "I heal faster than regular people do, there''s nothing you can do anyway..."

    Margarita frowns, "I''m a mage, come closer and let me see you."

    Ciaran "Mage or not, I doubt that collar is just for show... Its Dimeritium is it not?"

    ...

    Ciaran "Instead of worrying about my health, perhaps you could tell me something about this place, the building I''m currently imprisoned in, the people inside, security..."

    Margarita slowly nods, "I think we''re currently in an old mansion on the outskirts of Pont Vanis, the port, heavy snow, and architecture makes it easy to identify... It seems a large group of Vampires affiliated with Vasile have taken up residence here, they won''t allow me to take even a step outside... Other than them, the only people present are young human women they''ve taken a liking to..."

    Ciaran scowls, "Pleasure Slaves?"

    Margarita shakes her head, "No... It seems laying with a human is considered shameful and filthy to most Vampires, they use us as Livestock instead..." she says, lowering ragged clothing from her shoulder a little and revealing numerous bite marks. "Luckily they don''t go for the neck, probably to avoid killing their slaves..." she says with a downtrodden expression.

    Ciaran "Are all of the slaves bespelled like how you were?" she asks..

    Margarita "No... It seems I was special in that regard, probably because I''m a mage... Acting like I''m charmed is difficult, but it seems Vasile''s focus is solely on you at the moment. The whole estate could hear his shouting earlier, I feared you''d been killed."

    Ciaran shakes her head slowly, "We will escape, just continue to gather information... We''ll need it if we''re going to get out alive."

 773 Jinxed

    Asgore raises his hands placatingly with an awkward smile, "We should slow this discussion down... A calm hand is need during dire times like these." he says diplomatically.

    Reima curls his hands into fists and shakes his head, "What time is there? Who knows what they''re doing to Ciaran right now, we don''t even know if she''s still alive!? I refuse to let them take one of our own without full-scale retaliation!"

    Asgore nods, "I also worry for her safety, but we need to plan rationally, instead of with terse emotion... If you continue with your plan of barging into everyone stronghold within the continent, Ichor itself will be left without your strength. Solaire might be able to fight off one of these "Elder Vampires", but what if more than one comes?" he explains, not dropping his solemn expression.

    Reima glares at the floor for a moment before sighing and dropping into his chair, "You''re right... We don''t even know how many Elders there are. If two, five, or maybe even ten invade I might be able to fight them off... But anymore will be a problem." he says, his fight with Morwenna reminding him that he can still be stronger than he is now.

    Iorveth speaks up with his feet resting on the table, "You know, we''re talking about what if''s and a lack of information... But we have one of their own with us now, don''t we?" he asks, gesturing towards Regis who''s silently sitting in the corner, brooding.

    Reima "Regis? You alright?" he asks, the vampire jolting as he''s spoken to as if he were surprised.

    Regis "Ah, er... Yes... Sorry, I''m just... Not feeling well after the battle." he says in an almost monotone voice.

    Reima "Is "That" causing problems?" he asks, not wishing to broach the subject if Regis didn''t want to.

    Regis slowly nods, "There''s a reason we Vampires have a law about not killing one another... Generally, there are two ways for us to gain power... The traditional way is just through time, Vampires gain strength the older they are... For what reason, we''ve never attempted to find out, as trying to pry into the secrets of our "Betters" is considered treacherous..." he looks at his hands, still slightly blackened from dried blood, washing them once apparently not enough to completely cleanse them. "The second, is to kill other Vampires. The law against killing kin was created to stop a contest of strength, where everyone Vampire would engage in lethal combat until the single strongest remained."

    Asgore leans in curiously, "Who created this "law", something like this would only stick if there was an authority maintaining it?"

    Reima decides to backtrack onto what he''d initially asked about "So, you''re feeling the backlash from gaining too much strength too quickly?" he questions.

    Regis "I suppose it''s somewhat like that... It''s hard to describe, but it''s an incongruity between my mind and my body, the changes to the latter are happening too quickly, and it provides an intense sense of... Vertigo?..."

    Iorveth "As much as I care about your wellbeing, I''d rather know how many Elders there are." he asks, interrupting Regis.

    ...

    Regis nods, "Yes, such a thing would be important... From what I know, there are twenty Elders... Or at least, twenty official ones. Their number was decided based on how many sealed portals leading to our homeworld there were, the regions around them would be the Elder''s territory. If a Vampire wished to try and take an Elder''s position, it would be decided with a fight to the death... The victor would kill the loser and gain strength through it, cementing their position."

    Iorveth sighs, "Twenty of those monsters? I''ll just say what we''re all thinking... We''re fucked." he states, no hint of sarcasm in his voice.

    Reima shrugs, "Nineteen you mean, I killed the one that invaded us... Morwenna she called herself." he says, holding up her soul for all to see.

    Iorveth "That''s great and all, but there''s still way too many for us to handle properly..."

    Reima nods, "I know, so we''ll need to change up our tactics."

    Iorveth grins, "When the enemy''s numbers eclipse your own, tackle them with tricks, traps, and shiv the throne... It''s finally time to go on the offensive?" he asks hopefully.

    Reima looks around at the room, everyone was tired from the battle but they all sent determined looks at him. "Then we''re in agreement, go, get some rest and we''ll discuss strategies tomorrow..." he says, waving them off.

    Everyone shuffles out of the room which leaves only Reima, Quelaag, and Agore left inside...

    Asgore finishes his tea and sighs, "You know, I used to believe that the strongest kingdoms were formed through strive... And while it still might be somewhat true, I can''t help but feel that Ichor is a magnet for trouble. Battle after battle, and still no peace in sight... Hmm, how about we make a bet?"

    Reima raises a brow, "A bet?"

    Asgore nods, "A bet, on whether or not another threat will present itself after we''ve dealt with the vampires."

    Reima snickers, "No thanks, I''m not in the business of making losing bets. The world hates me, and it''d bring down Satan himself if I jinxed it..."

    Asgore laughs, "I suppose your right..." he stands, " Well then, good evening Reim. Ah, send my greetings to Ciri and Geralt, I wish them both a quick recovery." he says, walking off, presumably to his office to complete more paperwork.

    Reima "Will do." he says, grabbing Quelaag''s hand and teleporting to the church where Ciri was being cared for.

 774 Hospital to Hospice

    Reima and Quelaag appear within one of the backrooms of the church, the room itself resembled a modern hospital, with the clinical white curtains, tiles, sheets, and floor. They''re standing next to the door to the room and are presented with a dozen closed curtains, Reima scans everything with Observation Haki and enters the far one on the left, spotting Geralt standing over the bedridden Ciri with Anastacia and some Monster doctors leaving just as Reima arrives.

    The doctors nod towards him respectfully and he coughs into his hand towards Geralt, "Yo."

    Geralt grunts back a greeting, choosing not to speak at all.

    Reima sits down on the chair closest to Ciri''s bed, "How''s she doing?" he asks.

    Geralt "They say she''s fine, but I''m still worried about whatever venom that Vampire had..." he mutters.

    Reima nods, "I gave them, Quelina and Vesemir some samples of it to see what it is exactly, I think Ciri''ll be alright though."

    Geralt "Hmm, did I miss anything important?" he asks, having not been in the war room to discuss plans.

    Reima shakes his head, "No, we heard a few interesting things from Regis, and we''ve decided to finally go on the offensive, but other than that... Nothing."

    Geralt "The battle?"

    Reima sighs, "We lost a few Scoia''tael, Chaos Servants, and Civilians... But we fared better than everywhere else had..."

    Geralt raises a brow at him, "Whaddya mean?"

    Reima gives him a surprised look, "You don''t know?" Geralt shakes his head... "Man, I''d have thought everyone would be aware of this by now... We weren''t the sole target of the Vampires, I''d assume that most of the continent has been captured by them..." he says, causing Geralt''s eyes to almost pop out of their sockets.

    Geralt "It''s so widespread? Shit." he mutters.

    Reima nods, "Kaedwen was hit hard... Zoltan managed to call me vis the pendants I gave out after I''d killed the Elder Morwenna. But I was too late, Ciaran has been captured..."

    Geralt frowns, "What about the survivors of Kaedwen?"

    Reima "They''re temporarily staying within Ichor... They''ll be interrogated tomorrow if they want to become permanent residents. I won''t force them to return to Ard Carraigh if they''re trustworthy."

    Geralt "Did Roche survive?"

    Reima nods, "Yeah, him, King Tankred Thyssen of Kovir and Poviss, and your old flame are currently residing in Ichor."

    Geralt raises a brow, "Old flame?"/"Old flame?" another voice asks at the same time.

    ...

    Reima pulls apart the neighboring curtain with telekinesis, revealing Yennefer laying in bed with an ominous smile.

    Geralt coughs as soon as he spots her, realising he''s in trouble for one reason or another... "Guugk"

    Yennefer "So, which "Old Flame" is this?" she asks.

    Reima "Err, Triss?" he says, wondering if "this" was the correct answer.

    Geralt "Look, Yen, Ciri was injured-"

    Yennefer "I know that, I was just wondering why you never asked about me... I''ve been here the WHOLE time after all."

    Geralt "I was making sure... Our child was safe." he says, Yen blushing momentarily at his words.

    She crosses her arms and looks away, "Well, I suppose that''s an acceptable reason... But I''ll have you pamper me until my magic returns to normal."

    Reima "Why''re you here anyway?" he asks from the side, knowing that Alphys and Rickerts Prototype probably had something to do with it...

    Yennefer "Some fool managed to dismantle our spell like a tornado to a House of Cards... We were so focussed on the spell that none of us noticed it collapsing, knocking us unconscious with the backlash... It''ll take a day or two for my magic to return to normal, so it isn''t the worst. But I still want to have a word with whoever caused that to happen, Vampires can''t use magic after all."

    Reima scratches his face, "Yeah, I''ll back to you on that..." he says, wondering if directing Yennefer at Alphys and Rickert would be a good enough punishment, or if more was required.

    Yennefer smiles at him, "Good." she says, her eyes flickering to Ciri, "Ah, Geralt come inside, I need to talk with you in private." she says, pulling him in and closing the curtains. Just as Ciri begins to stir awake.

    Reima "Morning." he says as her eyes dart open.

    Ciri "Hnn, argh, what happened?" she says with a pained groan.

    Reima "You fell asleep mid-air after destroying the Vampire army... Yeah, not really. You got destroyed by the Elder Vampire." he says with a shrug.

    Ciri pulls down the cover and looks at the many bandages covering her chest, frowning, "Ateast I''ve still got both tits." she mutters, feeling them for injury.

    Reima snorts "Yeah, I''m glad you''ve got your priorities in order."

    Ciri "For us women, it''s a priority, what''d you do if you got your cock cut off?" she says, pointing down at his pants.

    Reima "I''d send whoever did it to the deepest pits of hell... And try to reattach it, if that was impossible I''d commit suicide." he states with Ciri and Quelaag laughing at him.

    Reima "I''m glad you''re okay though, Ciri."

    Ciri nods, "You too Rei... Did you manage to get whoever attacked me?"

    Reima nods, "Yeah, I did." he says, holding up Morwenna''s soul.

    Ciri "You planning on doing anything with it? Can''t imagine it''d make something weak." she questions while glaring at it.

    Reima "I think, that''s a good idea... Maybe I could make something that counters Vampires?" he wonders aloud.

    Ciri looks over at Quelaag who''s standing dutifully behind Reima in a maid outfit, "You''ve been quiet Quelaag, something wrong?"

    Quelaag shakes her head, "No, I just didn''t want to interrupt..." she says with an awkward expression.

    Ciri "It''s like you''re a different person since you became our servant, no biting remarks, flirting with Rei, or anything... You can loosen up occasionally you know."

    Quelaag shakes her head, "I feel as though I''ve gotten off lightly..." she mutters, sighing and continuing, "I''ll continue serving you with my full efforts." she says, though, it wouldn''t be a lie to suggest ulterior motives still drove her.

    Reima and Ciri look at each other and shrug, deciding to just go with it.

 775 Give a hand

    He grabs Quelaag before teleporting to the Igni Place of Power and sitting cross-legged on the small island amidst the lava pond, gesturing for Quelaag to take a seat next to him on the ground.

    Quelaag "Erm, why are we here?" she asks, trying to hide her nervous twitches.

    Reima gives her a weird look, "Didn''t we just talk about it?" he questions.

    ...

    Quelaag "You''re doing it now?"

    Reima nods, retrieving the Transposing Kiln and Morwenna''s soul. "Best to see if Vampire''s souls can be made into anything useful..." he says, channelling souls into the Kiln to get it started.

    Quelaag "Anything I can do to help?"

    Reima "No, not really... Just make sure nothing bothers me while I''m doing this." he says, leaning over the Kiln that currently has a mini-tornado of energy swirling within it.

    The black soul of Morwenna rests on his palm as he continues preparing the Kiln, all the while wondering what might be created from it... Once ready he gently drops the soul into the eye of the mini-tornado, watching it get sucked into the Kiln as the energy slowly begins turning black.

    Quelaag watches as the black energy slowly comes to a halt, settling into a puddle of what looks like ordinary oil... Reima''s face is still locked in a look of concentration, meaning that the process hadn''t finished or failed...

    Suddenly, something erupts from the Kiln, a staff? It''s about 6ft and is completely black... Reima comes to and stands up to examine the staff, and upon closer inspection, he grimaces... The staff is made from numerous interlocking pitch-black hands that make up the entirety of it.

    Reima "The fuck is this creepy ass thing..." he mutters, gingerly holding it.

    Quelaag "Does it do anything?" she asks from the side, having not noticed the hands yet.

    Reima looks it up and down but doesn''t discover any way to activate an ability, deciding to do a few Kata''s with it to see it''s strength and durability... After slamming it as hard as possible into a Titanite slab, he determines that it isn''t any weaker than a weapon made from it.

    Aside from that, it seems that it''s just a regular Bo staff... Even if its aesthetic is slightly unnerving... After finishing the Kata''s he spins it over his head and slams the butt of it onto the floor.

    *CHINK!*

    Suddenly the staff Reima''s wielding separates into its base components... 30 hands start flying around him, though, none seem to be doing anything...

    Quelaag tumbles backwards from where she was sitting as the hands start orbiting Reima. "W-what is that!" she exclaims.

    ...

    Quelaag "M-maybe you can make them do things?" she questions.

    Reima slowly nods before pointing at the Titanite slab he''d been using for testing earlier. Not a word needed to be spoken as the hands immediately swarm at the slab, once they reach it they start punching and pummeling it without mercy...

    They both watch on in morbid fascination as the hands continue assaulting the slab, not letting up until Reima finally speaks, "Er... Bring it to me." he states, the hands reacting to his voice and grabbing the slab before carrying it over to him.

    Quelaag "It seems useful..." she mutters, thinking up a variety of things it could be used for.

    Reima nods, "The hands are almost unbreakable and would be a huge distraction to anyone you are fighting. But..."

    Quelaag "Do you have anymore Vampire souls?"

    Reima nods, "Yeah... Let''s use them aswell, see if we can get anything that isn''t... This." he says shoving the Staff of Morwenna into his Folded Space.

    Again, Reima sits down in-front of the Kiln, dropping a single Higher Vampire soul into it with the hope of finding something useful against Vampires.

    The energy settles and he reaches his hand in, retrieving a pointy wooden stick... A white stake to exact... It has strange intricate runes of an unknown origin carved along it, and it gives off a faint unattributed magical energy passively...

    Reima eyes it, "Hmm, well... It''s a stake, so it must be useful against Vampires... Right?"

    Quelaag shrugs, "It''s unfortunate there isn''t any Vampires around to test it on."

    Reima "It''s fine... I''ll get a chance to test it pretty soon if all goes well." he says, storing it in his Folded Space and continuing the same process with the around 10 other Higher Vampire souls he has in his possession...

    [Eleven White Stakes Acquired!]

    ...

    Quelaag "Maybe this is what regular Higher Vampire souls always turn into?" she questions.

    Reima shakes his head, "All souls are unique... There must be a reason as to why they all ended up the same..."

    Quelaag "Well then, if it isn''t the soul''s, wouldn''t it be your fault?"

    ...

    Reima sighs, "Yeah, probably... Let''s just hope that these stakes can be used for something, if not I might just have Regis eat all the Vampires we come across to be efficient." he thinks aloud, though whether Regis would agree to such a thing would be another matter entirely.

    Quelaag "If you need someone capable of permanently killing Higher Vampires, why don''t you retrieve your rabbit?"

    Reima shakes his head, "Rissa? I was thinking about it earlier, but unless we really need her, I don''t want to interrupt her education... With Alucard gone, she should be enjoying a relatively peaceful school life with her friends." he says, standing and presenting a hand to Quelaag. "It''s late, you should get some sleep. I''ll take you to your room."

    Quelaag shakes her head, "I''ll go sleep in the Chaos Temple, I haven''t spoken to Lana in a while..."

    Reima nods and blinks away, leaving Quelaag still standing in the middle of the lava pond.

    Quelaag "Hmm... He could have at least taken me to the other side, the maid outfit will burn..."

 776 Servile Slaves

    A maid standing behind him dutifully goes to answer but hesitates, deciding to stay silent...

    The Elder Vampire Roisin presents his empty goblet to the maid and she gives a sigh, holding her wrist over it and cutting deep enough to draw enough blood to fill it. Once full she rubs something over it and covers it with cloth...

    The door to the room is almost slammed open but someone, causing the girl to jump in surprise...

    Roisin sighs, "Vasile, I appreciate you don''t care for my property, but if you break another door I will tear your arms off." he states.

    Vasile walks over, pushing the maid so hard that her head hits the wall and she falls unconscious. He places his hand on the backrest of Roisins chair and looks down at his fellow Elder, "If it''s made by mortals, then it holds no notable worth."

    Roisin "The mortals themselves do however, it isn''t easy to get willing premium servants like that one." he says gesturing towards the maid. "You''ve already killed three thus far, if anymore vanish then you can stay in someone else''s territory... I won''t allow it."

    Vasile frowns, "You''re acting more and more like those mortals every day, it sickens me."

    Roisin "What do you want?" he asks, wishing for this fool to leave him alone.

    Vasile "I want to use some more of your servants, my new acquisition is difficult to break, I was thinking some different techniques would be more suitable."

    Roisin "I refuse, you''re lucky I''m letting you do as you please within my region Vasile."

    Vasile "I just need a few Roisin, I think she''ll finally break with that."

    Roisin slams his fist on his armrest, rendering it wooden splinters, "Do you have no shame Vasile!? First, you fail to take control of your designated territory, and now you come here constantly asking for things... Stop your obsession with the mortal and go claim that territory!" he exclaims.

    Vasile scowls, "You don''t understand, there''s something different about that mortal, I''ve never seen anything like it."

    Roisin "And? What is this "something" then!?" he demands.

    Vasile "I don''t know, that''s just what I feel. They must hold secrets, secrets that could possibl-"

    Roisin "Enough! I refuse to give you anymore of my slaves just so you can kill them off, torture that mortal how you please, but do so without causing me trouble. Now, begone." he says, waving his hand at the door.

    Vasile growls and walks out, muttering curses towards Roisin as he does so. "Damn fools, they don''t understand what I am working towards. None of them understand!" he shouts as he walks through the mansion...

    She hides nearby and enters after Vasile exits, running down and checking on Ciaran... Within the cell she''s as bloody and bruised as last time, at least Vasile had held back and not killed her. "Ciaran, can you hear me?"

    Ciaran slowly nods as she looks up at the ceiling, still lying on her back, body screaming in pain.

    Margarita "Is there anything I can do to help you?" she asks, feeling immense pity for her fellow captive.

    Ciaran shakes her head, "We need... Information..." she mutters.

    Margarita nods, "I''ll keep working on it... Just try and survive until then..." she says, almost pleading.

    Ciaran chuckles, "Of course, I''m not dying... Anytime soon." she says, she shifts her arm and continues, "Go, you''ve been visiting too often, they might be onto us."

    Margarita nods and leaves, heading towards the slave quarters where all the captives sleep and keep their personal items...

    Opening the door, she''s greeted with a familiar room, beds crammed next to each other like some sort of military barracks... No one is present as they''re all working or accompanying their "masters", she walks over to her bed and looks underneath it, slowly sliding out a box and opening it to reveal many gems of varying sizes, along with some cutlery she''d managed to steal under the Vampires noses. "This should be enough..." she mutters, wondering if any of the Vampires would notice the gems missing from some of their jewelry and artworks.

    Pocketing them all, hiding the box and standing, she heads towards the kitchen next... It was busy at this time, which was surprising as she''d not thought that Vampires had to eat. She''d asked the servants about it, and apparently they didn''t, they just enjoyed the taste...

    She ducks her head to stay inconspicuous while walking towards the storeroom, but someone shouting causes her to jump in surprise...

    *Thud!*

    A slave hits the floor hard as a furious looking Vampire glares down at her, "Damn mortal! Why are you all so useless! The Elder wanted the Mansion completely cleaned, and yet the window are still FILTHY!"

    "B-but we-we''re not allowed t-to leave the M-mansion! H-how can we clean the w-windows?" she stutters out, cowering on the floor .

    "Did I allow you to speak!?!" they shout, slamming a fist into the young girls head.

    *CRACK!*

    The girl slumps to the floor with blood pooling beneath her, no one else even attempts to help the girl who''s left on the floor...

    Margarita tries to bite her tongue and ignore this, but is unable to as she finds herself crouching down to check on the girl... "Her skull''s been split..." she mutters in a sorrowful voice.

    The Vampire glares at her, "So useless, she even dirtied the floor! You!" they point at Margarita, "Clean this mess up and then get back to work, or the same fate awaits you."

 777 How to build a sn-dirt man.

    "My sister... He kills my sister..." she chokes through tears. They others give words of sympathy but they all ring hollow. This was their lives now, slaves under beings without empathy for their troubles or even lives.

    The realisation that she''d likely meet the same, equally callous and grizzly end fills her with dispair, "I-I don''t want to be here anymore..." she mutters quietly.

    "There''s nothing that can be done... Atleast... Your sister is free now." one slave says to try and comfort her.

    The woman takes a knife and prepares to plunge it into her throat, "That''s right. There''s one way to escape!" she says, the trembling in her hand suddenly stopping as she stabs herself in the throat with determined precision...

    The nearby women give muffled screams as the second person today drops dead, even now they managed to contain their horrified reactions as to not irritate their monstrous overlords...

    Margarita watches all this happen and has an incling to do the same to herself, but quickly stifles that train of thought. She quickly walks towards the kitchens storeroom, accidentally treading bloody footprints with the first victim''s blood.

    The storeroom was dim, with only a small window letting in light... Quickly she kneels down and uses her nails to get a grip on a floorboard, eventually finding a loose one. With some effort she eventually manages to pry it up, revealing the dirt foundation underneath...

    Margarita ignores the pain of having some of her nails torn off and starts digging dirt out of the hole, gathering it at the side until she''s accumulated a small pile. "That should do..." she mutters, looking over and grabbing a nearby mortar.

    She pulls out the gems she''d previously acquired, putting them on a sturdy-looking cutting board and using the skirt of her outfit to cover them as she raises the Mortar over her head.

    *Thud*

    She brings it down and hit the gems with the stone container, glancing at the door to check if anyone had heard the muffled impact... No? Good.

    *Thud, Thud, Thud, Thud*

    Margarita continues this for a while until she was sure all the gems had been shattered and rendered into dust... Luckily the Mortar hadn''t torn or left any noticeable marks on her outfit she thinks to herself as she pulls it off the gem dust.

    Nodding to herself she scraps the dust into her dirt pile, applying some water to moisten it and make it workable before shaping it into a humanoid form... It''s only a foot or two tall, but it''ll do for now. She shoves it into a hemp bag and cleans up the mess she''d made, refitting the floorboard and making sure everything looked relatively normal.

    Margarita exits and cleans the blood of the two women as she was told, carrying the bag with her the entire time...

    She walks over to the oven and quickly shoves the mud-gem doll into it, adding some more wood to raise the temperature enough to harden it for her purposes.

    After an anxious hour of nonchalantly waiting around she finally pulls out the dirt doll, stuffing it into a bag and slinking back into the storeroom...

    With all the preparations complete there were only two more steps to go... It was fortunate that she was an Enchantress as any other magic user fitted with a Dimeritium collar would be rendered utterly useless.

    She rests the doll on a cutting board and pulls out the cutlery she''d acquired, using a butterknife on the doll''s head to roughly carve out the runes it required to work. "Emet... Mysterious runes without known origins..." she mutters, using the prongs of a fork to sharpen the edges of the runes and make sure it''s accurate. A badly drawn rune could cause explosive results after all...

    Margarita rubs the Dimeritium collar and sighs, "I can''t use magic to activate it, thus I have to resort to other means..." she mutters, using a steak knife to cut into her hand, wiping it over the runes. "Blood Magic... A taboo magic without many uses, lucky I learned it."

    The blood sinks into the dirt doll and the being slowly gets to its feet, the runes on its head dimly glowing a red colour...

    Margarita pulls out a letter and stuffs it into a slit she''d made on the golem''s stomach previously, making sure it wouldn''t come out easily. With that she picks it up and opens the small window, using nightfall to allow it to escape the mansion without getting spotted. "Walk around the city until you find a magic-user... Give the letter to them if you find any." she says, dropping the golem and sending it off.

    She sighs to herself, "Hopefully someone who isn''t affiliated with the Vampires finds it... There must be people still resisting them, or at least some mages who evaded capture until now?... I should get some rest, I''ve been slacking on work today and will need to make up for it before the Vampires notice."

    Margarita bandages her arm and heads towards the Slave Quarters with a jug filled with water, so she''d have an excuse should she be accosted. Luckily she didn''t encounter any Vampires and got to her room safely, immediately throwing off her outfit and crawling into bed... The blood magic she used didn''t require any incantations or conscious magic use, but it did tax the body. Especially if her magic was restricted by Dimeritium... Hopefully she''d be able to sleep off the exhaustion though.

 778 Petty thieves

    Monsters visibly patrolled the streets filled with damaged buildings and injured and dirty peasants... Occasionally one of the hulking beasts would simply pick up a mortal on a whim and carry them off presumably to be devoured.

    Of course, it wasn''t as chaotic as most would assume, the population of mortals was thoroughly managed so as not to "overfish", they required mortals after all... As livestock.

    Most vampires could survive on blood or nothing, the blood didn''t even have to belong to a sentient creature... The only reason it was so popular was due to it''s "Taste".

    Even despite the catastrophic battle that''d recently happened, and the current situation, there were a few stalls lingering along the streets. The people manning them had pledged themselves to the vampires and were allowed to set up small businesses, and possibly rise through the ranks... Though, they''d always remain lesser.

    The Vampires were smart when they''d invaded... Only destroying military posts, areas of prominent resistance, and especially the new Magic Acadamy that''d recently been opened within Pont Vanis. Magic was one of the things that could cause a Vampire still, the thought of something capable of doing that caused great anger among them, this is why most Magic users were killed as soon as they were captured.

    ...

    In an alleyway two shadowed figures were watching the street, their eyes glancing at the street stalls selling overpriced food to the impoverished slaves.

    The larger of the two looks a the other, "Zudite, we goin''?" they ask.

    Zudite "Yeah, just stick to the plan as usual Tidanird, don''t want to draw any unwanted attention." he states, walking out into the sunlight. He''s thin, clean-shaven with short brown-hair, and a thin, short build.

    Behind him his companion followed, standing a few heads over him, Tidanird had a muscular build with short black hair, a rusty sword sat on his hip that didn''t seem like it''d seen use in years...

    They both wore rags similar to what the rest of the slaves would be wearing, Zudite flashes a smile towards the owner of the stall they''d just walked up to, his hands in his pockets. "Hey Jydmed, how''re you doing?" he greets as if they had been friends for ages.

    The fat gnome manning the stall glares at them, "Whaddya want? And how''d ya'' know my name?"

    Zudite "Ah, don''t you remember me? We''ve been old friends for ages... I was even there when you met your wife. I could hardly believe you''d marry a dwarf."

    ...

    Jydmed "I''m serious, who the fuck are ya?" he asks again, a mix of confusion and anger on his face.

    Jydmed "Ah, Bill?" he wonders aloud, rubbing his head. "Sorry I didn''t recognise ya'', I think the stress is gettin'' to me."

    Zudite slowly nods, "It''s fine... Stress isn''t the worst thing we have to worry about nowadays." he says knowingly.

    Jydmed smiles, "Well, what can I do for ya?"

    Zudite sheepishly rubs his hands together, "Well, erm... You see... I kind of lost all my cash to a pickpocket, I was hoping to could fix me with some food to get me through the week..."

    ...

    Jydmed sighs, "You''d think crime would stop with these monsters patrolling the streets... ''Parenltly not... I''ll help you out, I''ve still not paid you back for that wedding gift/" he says, beginning to fill a basket with vegetables, bread, and a small amount of meat.

    Zudite receives it with a smile, "Thanks a lot, I''ll be sure to pay you back." he says and begins to leave.

    Jydmed waves him off, "Don''t worry about it Bill, you''re always... Welcome... Here..." the gnome looks at his stall and does a doubletake, "Oi, some gits stolen my goods!"

    Zudite and Tidanird walk inconspicuously towards the next stall, the latter carrying the basket filled with food.

    Tidanird "I still can''t think of how your magic actually works... We''ve done the same thing to that guy every day for three days..."

    Zudite "Just don''t think about it... Magic works in mysterious ways and all that." he says, waving his hand in the air.

    The duo continue doing the same trick to other stall owners in different districts of the city, making sure to not get noticed by the Vampires or anyone affiliated with them...

    Zudite nods at the stall owner, "Remember that time I babysat your daughter? It''d really help me out if you could lend some-Huh?" he mutters, feeling something on his leg... He looks down and almost shouts in surprise at the golem hugging his leg.

    "Bill? Is something wrong?"

    Zudite shakes his head, "No.. Nothing, just bit my tongue, sorry... Anyway, could you help me out?" he says, discreetly trying to shake off the annoying golem.

    The man sighs, "Fine, don''t think I''ll keep giving out freebies though, I''ve got a family to feed." he says, filling a basket and handing it to Zudite who nods an thanks him before leaving.

    Tidanird "Mate, what''s that on your leg?"

    Zudite shakes his head, "Just ignore it, we''ll check it out when we get back."

    Tianird "But-" he''s interrupted by Zudite who elbows him, "Look, it''s obviously made by a mage, this might be the help we''ve been looking for." he says as the two duck into an alleyway.

    The look around for a while, checking that no one has been following them... Once they are certain they walk down some steps that lead to a door with iron bars that lead to the sewers.

    Zudite waves his hand over the lock and it gives a *click* as it unlocks. They push it open and enter, the shallow water quietly splashing as they step through it. He doesn''t forget to lock it again as they leave, just in case one of the more beast-like vampires find their way down here.

 779 Hopelessness

    Tideanird''s nose wrinkles at the smell, "I don''t understand the point to living in the sewers, do you just like the smell, or?"

    Zudite shakes his head, "Yeah, I like the smell. Idiot, of course I don''t! It''s just the only way we have of not immediately getting sniffed out by the Vampires!" he says, walking up to a wall and pushing normal-looking brick.

    *Shhuuuuuuuuuua!*

    The sound of grinding stones makes the two aware of a mechanism working away behind the wall... Slowly the wall in-front of them begins to slide upwards, revealing a relatively clean room.

    The enter and push another brick, closing the hidden passage behind them, walking through the stone corridor until they reach a dimly lit room filled with furniture. A child with brown hair and eyes is slumped on a sofa, with a bald, scarred man with cat-like eyes sitting and cleaning his nails with a knife opposite them...

    Zudite "Etredi stop looking so pitiful, we''ve brought food." he says as the two place the baskets on the table.

    The Witcher snorts, "She''s been moaning and groaning since you left, you''d think she was dying or something."

    Etredi suddenly sits up and points at him, "Shut your mouth Hurtelt! We''re not all like you, I need to eat occasionally!" she exclaims.

    Tidanird tosses his rusty iron sword near the doorway and slumps into the sofa next to Etredi, taking some bread and stuffing it into his mouth while he''s at it. "You both make it seem as if you are the ones doing all the work, how about you two go out with Zudite next time? I''d rather sleep to be honest." he says as he chews.

    Etredi "You dolt, the reason you both go is because you two won''t draw attention to yourselves... News would spread quickly if a child and a Witcher were seen around places where stuff keeps getting stolen. Besides, I still work, which is something compared to that guy." she gestures towards the Witcher.

    Hurtelt shakes his head, "Any of you ever killed a Vampire before?" he asks, and doesn''t receive and answer, "Yeah, that''s what I thought. You guys feed me and I''ll lend you my skills, that''s the deal." he states.

    Zudite shakes his head and sighs while bending over and finally removing the Golem that''d been stuck to his leg this whole time.

    Etredi "What''s that?" she asks after swallowing some berries.

    Zudite shrugs, "No idea, picked it up on the way here, it should be carrying a message or something similar though..." he says, sitting down and examining it...

    ...

    Tildanird "Eh! You killed it!" he exclaims in surprise.

    Zudite shakes his head, "No, it just destroyed itself... Its only goal was probably to deliver the letter, whoever made it must''ve been lacking magic..."

    Hurtelt "Wouldn''t that mean whoever sent it wouldn''t be any help to us?" he questions, receiving a glare from Etredi.

    Etredi "Even if they''re weak we could use any help they can offer... They might even have information on the state of other countries."

    Zudite nods, "Right, besides, having another mage would help with many things." he says, opening the letter and reading through it.

    ...

    Tildanird "What''s it say?" he asks, curious.

    Zudite frowns, "It''s Margarita Laux-Antille." he states with a strange look.

    Tildanird "Who?"

    Zudite sighs and rubs his head, "An enchantress who escaped the Witch Hunters of the Eternal Fire, she used to teach at Aretuza, before it was destroyed..."

    Tildanird "You look like something is wrong, what is it?"

    Zudite "Margarita is powerful from what I know, the Golem was weak and made from shit materials. Either it''s not really her, or she''s in trouble." he says gravely.

    Hurtelt looks up, "How would that be? Sorceresses are notoriously hard to deal with, not to mention how easy it would be for her to escape." he questions.

    Zudite scratches his head, "From what I know, she was captured by the Eternal Fire due to the fact she was trying to protect her students... Perhaps it''s a similar situation?" he wonders aloud.

    Etredi "You''d think someone like that would learn their lesson after the first time." she says callously.

    Tidanird "I think, if we can we should help... That''s why she sent the Golem right?"

    Zudite nods, "From the letter, apparently she''s being held in a mansion on the outskirts of town with another woman.

    Etredi "Then, we just gotta break them out, right?"

    Hurtelt shakes his head, "This is why you''d die without us. I''d bet they''re using Dimertium to keep her there, not to mention the powerful Vampires that likely reside there."

    Zudite nods, "Yes, apparently two Elder Vampires live in the mansion..." he says, Hurtelt''s eyes widening at his words.

    Hurtelt "T-two Elders? Shit..."

    Etredi "What''s an Elder?" she asks.

    Hurtelt "Something that shouldn''t exist... Vampires who have lived a long, long time, and have become extremely powerful. Just one could destroy a Kingdom, but two? What the fucks going on!" he exclaims.

    Zudite "Hm, didn''t think those things could get any stronger..." he says with a sigh.

    Tildanird "How are we going to help this "Margarita" then?" he asks.

    Hurtelt shakes his head, "Best you forget her, I''d rather kill myself now than possibly anger an Elder."

    "No, I think, with proper planning, we might be able to help." a voice says from the doorway leading to another room.

    Zudite "Dythi..."

 780 The Jolliest of Cooperation

    Dythi "We can''t wait around here forever, eventually we''ll be found out... The choice is whether we want to be the ones to act first, or let the enemy act for us."

    Hurtelt sighs, "You always talk a big game, but you have no idea what we''re facing, you''re just a simple Guard Captain... Former, Guard Captain." he corrects himself with a slight mocking air.

    Dythi doesn''t seem bothered by the remark, simply nodding with crosses arms, "You''re right, I don''t... But that''s what we''ve got you for, right? Or is my confidence in you misplaced?"

    Hurtelt "Don''t try play me, I know full well we''ll all die if we try to intervene with whatever plan the Elder has for the Sorceress."

    Zudite "Listen... I think we should help, if it really is Margarita then we''ll be able to escape the city with ease."

    Hurtelt "We would have to resort to such a suicidal mission if you could just make a damn portal, I mean, what can you even do apart from a few party tricks?" he accuses.

    Zudite frowns, "I may not have finished my education, but I could still take you on." he says with a challenging look.

    Hurtelt "Hah! You''re kidding yourself kid, I''d say go drink your mother milk but she''s probably been eaten by Vampires!"

    With that Zudite lunges at Hurtelt, throwing a punch that the Witcher easily dodges... Hurtelt sends a punch of his own that connects with Zudite''s nose, crunching it and causing blood to start spewing from it... Dythi pulls Zudite while Tildanird grabs Hurtelt.

    Dythi "Stop, both of you!" he shouts, almost frantically...

    Tildanird "We''re all suppose to be allies here, why are we fighting!" he says, managing to restrain the Witcher with his strength and size.

    Hurtelt "You are all fucking idiots! You think we''re going to get out of this alive!?! I used to hunt these fuckers, and almost died trying every time! You think a group with a shit mage and a bunch of non-combatants is going to do anything other than shit the bed and die!?!" he shouts.

    ...

    Hurtelt eventually stops struggling, a solemn mood enveloping him... "There... Is nothing we can do, if this has happened to Kovir and Poviss, don''t you think all the other countries have met a similar fate?"

    Dythi "We don''t know that." he says, though everyone could tell he was worried about just that.

    Hurtelt shakes his head, "I''d bet it''s safer across the damn Dragon Mountain right now! I mean, at least there wouldn''t be ELDER FUCKING VAMPIRES THERE!"

    Everyone watches her go, Dythi nodding to himself, "If even Etredi''s going to put the effort in, then we might as well too. Hurtelt, I know how you''re feeling, I felt the same after my unit was annihilated... But wouldn''t you rather die on your feet, than on your knee''s?"

    ...

    Hurtelt slowly nods, "Yeah, I would."

    Dythi "Zudite, we''ll start planning to help Margarita, we''ll definitely need your expertise when planning... Can we count on you for that?"

    Zudite wipes the blood from his face with his sleeve, "Yes... I won''t let you down."

    Dythi nods, "Good... Now burn your clothes, any traces of blood could lead the Vampires right to us, even with the sewers covering us.

    Tildanird "Uh, guys?"

    Everyone looks over to see what''s up, noticing Tildanird holding the letter sent by Margarita...

    Tildanird "Is it normal for Sorceresses to send hair with their letters?"

    ...

    Zudite jumps and dashes over, "Hair? Are you sure?" he says, looking around for said hair.

    Tildanird holds up some hair woven together and Zudite immediately snatches it from him.

    Dythi "Something special about that hair?" he asks what everyone else is thinking.

    Zudite "With magic, everything is special... Especially something that had originally been part of someone''s body. Everyone''s magic is unique, and for this hair to be inside the letter sent by Margarita, probably means that it belongs to her..."

    Dythi "Can you do something with it?" he asks, hopeful.

    Zudite shrugs, "Maybe? This subject of magic isn''t really my forte, but, with enough time I might be able to establish a mental connection with her."

    Hurtelt "Yeah, but if she''s shackled with Dimeritium it means nothing." he says, dampening the mood.

    Zudite shakes his head, "No... It wouldn''t matter I think, as long as I''m powering the mental link with my magic, and there aren''t any barriers, it should still work."

    Dythi "That''s great! Once we''ve established means of communication we can start planning for the future... Good work everyone, really, I think we''ll get out of this alive if we work together." he says with a bright smile.

    Zudite clutches the hair an nods, "Let''s tell Etredi the good news when she gets back, I bet she''ll be excited to hear it!" he says in a chipper tone.

    Dythi nods and looks at Hurtelt, "Come with me, I want you to tell me everything you know about Elder Vampires, and about the specific types of Vampires that exist, their abilities, weaknesses, and all." he says.

    Hurtelt grabs some bread and reluctantly nods, "Fine, be prepared though, it''s going to take a while..."

 781 Dont stab the messenger

    He shakes his head, "No, Solaire needs to be here in case any Elders come snooping around... Plus, I think I''ll be fine. It''s not like they can stop me from escaping even if I do have trouble." he explains.

    Ciri slowly nods, "I know, but who knows what could happen... That thing Nalenthi spoke about is probably still out there..." she mutters.

    Reima shrugs, "Probably, but what''s the point of worrying about it and doing nothing... I''d rather fight it after I''ve dealt with everything else first to be honest."

    Ciri sighs, "Is there anything I can do to help?" she asks with crossed arms.

    Reima nods, "Yeah, it''s really important and means a lot to me..." he says, walking closer to her and bending down to whisper into her ear.

    Ciri "Rei, not here..." she mutters, blushing at the sudden close contact.

    Reima "Do my paperwork." he whispers into her ear before quickly pulling away, wings bursting from his back as he leaps into the air.

    Ciri glares at him in irritation and shout after him, "You''re taking advantage of me!"

    Reima laughs, "Makesure Alphys and Rickert finish those Prototypes, oh! And bring Yen with you to check on them!" shouts as he flies west, leaving Ciri standing there in front of the city tapping her foot in irritation.

    Reima''s first destination is the closest city to Ichor... Rakverelin, he''d decided to just slowly sweep across the continent and free the territories he came across from the Vampires control. He would also need to set up some sort of leadership within these places as he couldn''t very well invite everyone person in the North to Ichor... Not only would it be a nightmare to build so many houses, he doubted their current food production could keep up with such an influx.

    It didn''t take long for Reima to reach the city of Rakverelin, following the river until he finally spotted the walls was relatively easy, though, it was obvious this place had been through much... Parts of the walls had huge scorch marks, ones that could have only been made by a Dragon, and the building within are partially collapsed, likely due to the Vampires.

    The city didn''t look too busy, but there were civilians walking around the streets, not to mention large monsters like Katakans and Ekimarra doing the same... It was a strange sight to behold, watching the humans fearfully skirt around the large creatures to go about their business.

    There were many, many homeless as well he noted, most seemed to be children, but there was a suspicious lack of teenagers present. Perhaps they''d all been eaten?

    Reima shakes his head, and slowly descends into the city, ignoring the many gazes on him as he does so... He walks up to one of the children and kneels down, "Yo, who runs this town?" he asks.

    ...

    Reima sighs and pulls out a few bars of chocolate and tosses them at the kids, "Alright, now answer my question." he says.

    ...

    The children still don''t answer him, simply staring up at him with wide, innocent eyes. Reima shrugs and stands as a man dressed in noble clothes walks over, giving a wide smile that reveals his fangs.

    "I''d appreciate if you would stop talking to my Chattle." he says.

    Reima raises a brow, "Chattle?" he questions, feeling the urge to crush this guy.

    The man nods, "Yes, I am Ichabod, the person currently ruling this town... I couldn''t help but notice one of my fellows coming to visit unannounced."

    ...

    Reima "I have no idea what you''re talking about, what Fellow?"

    Ichabod chuckles, "Don''t be coy, regular humans don''t have wings on their backs, nor do they have eyes like yours." he states.

    Reima realises this person must be thinking he''s a Vampire... "Er, my apologies... Brother..? I was given a message by an Elder and needed to contact whoever''s in charge on this region.

    Ichabod tilts his head to the side, "You must be misinformed then, our leader is Morwenna and she''s current residing in that city over in the mountains... Kaer Morhen was it? I trust she''ll be back soon so perhaps you won''t have to wait long."

    ...

    Reima sighs, he probably should have left her alive... Or, at least alive long enough to be interrogated. "Ah? That''s a shame... Tell me, is there any news from whoever was supposed to capture Kaedwen?" he asks with a small smile.

    Ichabod nods and leans forwards slightly as he speaks in a lowered tone, "It behooves me to say such a thing, but I suspect Elder Vasile isn''t worthy of such a title... Failing such a simple task makes me want to punish him myself!" he says, his voice rising as he starts to lose his composure.

    Reima grins, Vasile... The one who took Ciaran, so they are an Elder after all. "Do you know the location of Vasile? I also have a message I need to give to him."

    Ichabod nods and is about to answer, but suddenly starts sniffing... "You, you''re not one of us!" he exclaims, his face turning bestial as long claws appear on his fingertips. Without a second thought he lunges at Reima, trying to claw his throat in one swift strike...

    Only to find that his target had disappeared... He stops moving and looks around warily, looking at his side as he hears a *thud*.

    ...

    His arm had dropped to the floor, causing his eyes to widen...

    *Thud*

    His other arm...

    Ichabod "Wha-What is this!" he shouts as pain suddenly starts to kick in, fortunately, he wouldn''t live long enough to experience it all.

    The Vampires in the area watch as Ichabod collapses to the floor like a pile of minced meat... Reima stands next to it with his Silver Sword in hand, dark red energy swirling in the other.

 782 I love Democracy.

    Reima casts a powerful Aard at them which blows them away, afterward summoning the Staff of Manus and tapping the floor, causing his shadow to open up.

    Some of the Vampires leap into the air and start flying to escape the shadow which quickly expands and envelopes the surrounding group, their less mobile allies were, unfortunately, unable to escape.

    A Katakan shrieks at Reima, just as a humungous claw escapes the shadow and grabs it, pulling it inside the blackness and "disappearing" it from the face of the earth... A few seconds later the a large head with one glowing red eye climbs out of the shadow without the Katakan.

    It stands 17ft tall and towers over everything else, the Abyssal Cyclopse or Scytheclops as Reima calls it immediately stomps over to a Bruxa who''s trying to flee, slamming its claw down on it and instantly killing it...

    The other Vampires caught in the shadow weren''t doing much better, many regular sized black arms with claws grab at their limbs, a head appears and bites down on a Vampire which screeches in agony.

    Soon enough, Reima''s entire Abyssal Army had climbed out, the three Abyssal Cyclopses stomping around the town and crushing any Vampires they come across. 200 Wraiths sprints through the city, storming every building and space the Cyclopses couldn''t enter, cutting down any of the lesser Vampires harmed by the sun.

    Reima watches on while resting his weight on the Staff of Manus, just as his Abyssal Sage hobbles next to him...

    Avallac''h "Killllll meeeeee" they plead, not being capable of any other vocalisation at this point.

    Reima smirks, "No thanks, go use your magic and wipe out any Vampires the others don''t catch." he states, the sage slowly nodding and walking off while chanting in Elder Speech.

    It only takes a couple hours for the Abyssal Servants to completely cleanse the town, dragging the mangled bodies of the Higher Vampires refuse, or are unable to die.

    Reima looks down at the many homeless children, their awed looks making him feel uncomfortable... "Alright guys, stop staring, you''re making me blush." he says sarcastically.

    "Mister, are they all gone?" one asks, their eyes sparkling.

    Reima nods, "Yeah, should be."

    "He did it!"

    "We''re free!"

    "The monsters are dead!"

    The children cheer and Reima taps his foot while thinking about what to do next... He casts a spell to amplify his voice and speaks, "All residents of Rakverelin, the Vampires are dead, meet at the town square immediately." he states, his words echoing across the city.

    Reima floats above everyone and holds the head of Ichabod on display, "Yo! I''m Reima Ludvig, King of Ichor, and I''ve freed you from the Vampire''s control. Yeah, Yeah, I know, your gratitude is well received." he says, even know no one is thanking him... "So, what''s going to happen now is-"

    "IT''S YOU, YOU KILLED MY HUSBAND YOU FIEND!" someone shouts from the crowd and a circle forms around them...

    ...

    Reima "Err, who?" he asks, wondering if his Abyssal Servants had accidentally killed anyone...

    "I am Merdrah Gaeveled! You killed my husband Kreld Gaeveled!" she screams.

    ...

    Reima "Yeah... I hate to repeat myself but, who is this "Kreld" you speak of..." he mutters in confusion.

    Merdrah sends a furious look at him, "WHO? HE WAS THE FORMER OWNER OF RAKVERELIN, KRELD DRAGONBANE, AND YOU KILLED HIM!"

    ...

    Reima tilts his head to the side while squinting, trying to recall such a person... "Ah." he mutters, dropping a fist into his palm. "The cocky guy who got stepped on by a dragon?"

    ...

    Merdrah Gaeveled "You bastard! How dare you! Kreld died honorably, heroically fighting off your army of monsters!"

    Reima snorts, "Right... Anyway, I''d like to continue what I was saying, I''d apologize for killing Krud Dragonpain but I don''t care about something trying to invade my territory." he states, causing Merdrah to go bright red in righteous indignation.

    Merdrah "OUR TOWN WILL NEVER LISTEN TO YOU, FIEND!"

    ...

    The circle around her grows wider as people murmur insults at her...

    "Barating our saviour?"

    "Sir Kreld invaded his territory, it''s self defense right?"

    "He freed us!"

    "Damn noble, don''t bring down his wrath upon us!"

    Reima shrugs, "Doesn''t seem so, could you keep quiet until I''m finished?" he asks, waving his hand and casting a silencing charm on her just to make sure. He can''t help but chuckle however as Merdrah continues to soundlessly scream and flail her arms around angrily.

    A rock is thrown at him and Reima gives it a flick back to the sender, knocking Merdrah out... Finally. A child walks by and gives her a kick in the shin before running away, getting a nod from Reima.

    Reima "Anyway! What I was saying was that I''ll need volunteers to become the new leaders of this territory, the Vampires likely won''t attack again as I''ll be keeping them busy, which means it''s up to you all to rebuild what was lost. I will provide you with enough supplies until you become self-sufficient again, so the volunteers must be at least somewhat versed in leadership, management, reading, writing, and some knowledge of trade." he says, causing some of the excited people to frown and back up as the few with these skills step forwards.

    Reima nods, "And now, I''d like to present you all with one of life''s greatest creations... Democracy. These people here will have a few minutes each to persuade you all they are suited for the job of mayor, once they''re all finished you can vote for them. Good? Good." he says, watching as one of the potential leaders immediately begins speaking and promising a better future for everyone...

 783 New managemen

    Rickert nods "We do! So... Please, keep that woman away from us!" he pleads.

    Ciri smirks, "Yennefer? That depends if you truly understood my words..."

    Alphys speaks up, "We understood you perfectly! No more testing Prototypes during battles! No more experimenting on rats! No more unnotified utilisation of Ambient Magic! No more hiding failed products in the sewer system!"

    Ciri nods, "You better remember that last one! I''d thought a bomb had gone off!"

    Rickert "We''re truly sorry and seek to make reparations through our creations!"

    Ciri sighs, "I have half a mind to shut down your lab, you guys are honestly more trouble than you''re worth right now... You''re lucky Reima wants you to keep working." she mutters, leaving to start on the massive pile she''d been left with...

    Reima had only been gone a day, but the paperwork was already getting to Ciri... At first she''d been determined to do her best, but... After the 6th hour straight of working she''d found herself just randomly signing papers without paying much attention.

    Ciri rubs her temples, "Damn, I need a break, or I might break something..." she mutters, feeling slightly guilty that she wasn''t able to keep going.

    *Flash*

    She blinks towards the training grounds to find someone to spar with, hoping to expel her stress on a "Punching bag", however, when she gets there it seems someone had the same idea.

    Sieglinde roars and smashes her blade down at the Flame Guard who''s frantically trying to defend against it, he''s knocked away though, even with his Iron Skin applied the impact was too much for him to handle.

    Ciri "Ah, Sieglinde? Didn''t think I''d see you here..." she says.

    Sieglinde turns, stabs her sword into the ground and takes her helmet off, revealing her red hair and freckled face. "Lady Ciri, do you need something from me?" she asks in a low tone.

    Ciri shrugs, "I was just looking to get some exercise in, up for a round or two?"

    Sieglinde slowly nods, putting her helmet back on and readying her weapon. Unlike how she usually acts, she doesn''t say anything, simply advancing towards Ciri with determined steps.

    The two clash, Sieglinde managing to push Ciri back with her strength, but is unable to do anything against her counter-attack as Ciri is much faster.

    They spar for an hour or two, neither speaking a word and just simply fighting with all they have. Eventually though one has to give, Sieglinde lies on her back with ragged breaths, exhausted from trying to keep up with Ciri''s speed, even though she hadn''t even used the Elder Blood.

    *Clap, Clap, Clap, Clap*

    Solaire applauds the from the side with a bright smile, "Good work you two, a remarkable performance other warriors should aspire towards."

    Ciri "Unfit? Why would you think that? You''re stronger than most people I''ve met." she says.

    Sieglinde "I attacked my own comrade and failed to protect Lady Ciaran... I am a failure of a knight!"

    Ciri "Ah, you mean in Kaedwen? I heard from Reima, there was nothing you could do-"

    Sieglinde "Of course there was! I could have not been bespelled, I could have been stronger, I COULD have not tried to strike down Sif!" she exclaims.

    ...

    Ciri "You mustn''t blame yourself... It was an Elder Vampire, I doubt anyone could have done anything, even if you''d resisted its spell."

    Solaire nods, "She''s correct! Nonetheless, you still failed Lady Ciaran!" he says, causing both Sieglinde and Ciri to look at him, the former feeling more miserable than even the time her father had gone hollow.

    Solaire "BUT! All your failure means is that you still have room to improve! Get stronger! Faster! Train harder and devote yourself to make sure you never fail again. THAT, is what Jolly Cooperation truly is!" he exclaims, pointing at Sieglinde with the same bright smile plastered across his face as usual.

    Sieglinde slowly gets to her feet, despite the exhaustion causing her legs to tremble, "But..."

    Solaire shows her his palm, "No excuses! Show that you are truly worthy of serving under Reima, and beside everyone else!"

    Sieglinde nods, her eyes watering behind her helmet, "Yes!"

    A week later :

    Margarita was just about to go and visit Ciaran to give her daily mail, however, half way there she felt an uncomfortable buzzing in her ears, making her slightly dizzy and almost causing her to trip... She rubs her temples and frowns, "Have I been cursed? This incessant buzzing has been happening for days now." she mutters.

    *Buzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz*

    *Buzzzzwwzzzwzzzzzz*

    *Bwwzzzzuk!*

    "H-hello!? Can you*Bwzz*Hear me?" a voice suddenly asks out of nowhere, causing Margarita to jump.

    Margarita "Ah! Yes?" she tries to send across, having finally realised the buzzing had been a mages attempts at forming a mental connection.

    "Aha! Finally*Bzzz*it you Margarita? I am Zudite, I used to attend *Bzzz* Magical Acadamy"

    Margarita''s eyes widen, this... Was bad... This meant that her Golem had been found by this person, someone who hadn''t even graduated yet!?! "Ah, are you affiliated with anyone Zudite? Or is it just you?" she asks, hoping she wasn''t stuck with this person.

    Zudite "I am*Bzz"only magic user in my group, but *Bzz* for certain we''ll be able to help you."

    ...

    Margarita "You''ll be able to help me for certain?" she repeats, thinking that she''d misheard him.

    Zudite "Yes!... Probaby..." he adds, souring the hope that''d opened within Margarita.

 784 The Great Esca-Debate.

    Margarita "Ok... That''s better than nothing I suppose. Do you have a plan... Or any ideas at all." she asks.

    Zudite "Ah... Well, not really." he says, causing Margarita to almost fall down the basement stairs as she descends.

    Margarita "What''s that supposed to mean? I thought you said you could help?"

    Zudite "We can! But I think first discussing your situation with the others would help us a lot."

    Margarita sighs, "Alright, what do you need to know?"

    Zudite "Erm, well... Where your specifically being held, guard posts, entrances, and similar things to that... Probably?"

    Margarita "Probably? Look, if you don''t know what you''re talking about then please converse wit hyour allies before making contact with me... The situation is dire enough as it is without the added distractions." she says, finally reaching Ciaran''s cell. Zudite frowns at having the mental connection cut, deciding to gather everyone to discuss what the plan actually is...

    She looks down at Ciaran who''s sat against the wall, her clothing torn and bloody, she looks up at Margarita and nods, "Found anything?"

    Margarita slowly nods, "Well... Kind of? A novice mage has made contact with me but... He doesn''t seem all that reliable."

    Ciaran shakes her head, "Any help is good help, they''ll have information on the outside... Try to find out their goals and motives for trying to help us before making any deals." she says, knowing full well that people shouldn''t be trusted on their words alone.

    Margarita "Are you... Holding up well?" she asks, obviously referring to her treatment by Vasile.

    Ciaran nods, "Nothing they can do will break me, I''d sooner bite my tongue than become one of his servants.

    Margarita "Good... I''ll try to get some information that might help with our escape, should we choose to use this "Zudite" and his allies ." she says, leaving Ciaran alone yet again.

    Elsewhere :

    Zudite "I''ve managed to get in-contact with Margarita." he quickly says to those gathered.

    Hurtelt "Hm, not as useless as I thought." he shrugs.

    Etredi ignores the Witchers remarks and looks at the young mage, "What''d she say? Anything helpful?"

    Zudite shakes his head, "No... She asked whether we have a plan and broke off the connection when I told her we didn''t..."

    Etredi "That ungrateful b-"

    Tildanird "Maybe she was doing something important that made her unable to speak to you?" he questions.

    Dythi nods, "I think that''s probably what happened, besides, most people wouldn''t want to waste time talking to someone who could offer nothing, especially so in dire straights."

    Etredi "So? We should just come up with a plan then."

    Hurtelt shakes his head, "If only it were so easy..." he mutters.

    Etredi "What''s the problem now?" she asks in fed up tone.

    Dythi nods, "Zudite, can you form a connection with Margarita? It''ll be easier to plan something if we''re all together like this."

    Zudite nods and closes his eyes, "Probably?"

    ...

    ...

    Hurtelt slouches into the chair, "So, Etredi, since you''ve been "Working" so hard lately, any news we should know about?"

    Etredi shrugs, "There''s been rumours, but I''m not sure if they''re true or not... Apparently, someone''s been liberating the cities East of here... Single-handedly."

    ...

    Hurtelt raises a brow, "Where''d you hear this?"

    Etredi "At my work obviously, the Vampires are less tight-lipped around children... One thing that makes me think it''s real though is the fact that they seem to fear whatever is freeing the cities."

    Hurtelt snorts, "Vampires afraid? I highly doubt that."

    Etredi shakes her head, "I swear... Some of them were even whispering about fleeing and trying to hide before "They" get them."

    Zudite "Ah, I''ve done it." he interrupts the conversation.

    Margarita had recieved the mental connection again as she was cleaning a room on the second floor of the mansion. She had been watching the movements of the Vampires outside, noting that the many lesser Vampires seemed to patrol the outskirts at random intervals, and routes. "Hello again."

    Zudite "Margarita, everyone is gathered... We were just discussing ways of assisting you, but first we''d like some information about the mansion you''re in."

    Margarita "I can do that..."

    Zudite "Ah then-"

    Margarita "-But first, I need to know why you are trying to help us..."

    ...

    Zudite "Hm, isn''t just wanting to help someone a good enough reason?"

    Margarita "A good reason, but not enough to risk your lives. Answer me or I''ll be unable to cooperate."

    Zudite sighs, "We were hoping to make use of your talents to open a portal and escape Pont Vanis..." he admits, feeling slightly shameful for trying to avoid her question.

    Margarita "That''s fine... Everyone wants something, it''s whether you admit it or not that makes you trustworthy." she says, going on to explain the layout of the Mansion.

    Dythi "Hm, so we''d need to gain access to the basement to rescue her friend... And the basement is relatively difficult to reach if we assume Vampires will be around every corner. I don''t think we''d even be able to sneak in if we were all invisible."

    Hurtelt "Obviously, Vampires would smell us from a mile away." he says.

    Etredi "Maybe Margarita could get her friend out, and we could help them escape afterwards?"

    Hurtelt shakes his head, "I doubt a sorceress is going to know how to pick a lock, pickpocket, or forge a key. We''d have better luck asking the Elder to unlock the cell for us." he mutters.

    Zudite "Wait... So if we can''t do anything on the ground level, second floor, or third... Why don''t we try just accessing the basement as it is?"

    ...

    Hurtelt "Yeah right, what''re we going to do? Dig there?"

    ...

    ...

    Zudite "Yeah?"

 785 Moles and Moles?

    Vasile "You wanted something?" he asks, rubbing his hands together in anticipation.

    Roisin nods, "You were in Kaedwen were you not? How did you not notice this... Person, who''s currently heading out way, cutting swathes through our kin and reclaiming territory?"

    Vasile growls at the mention of his failure, "You know not what you speak, I relinquished the territory after all of my army were slain... I had not encountered the person you are referring to."

    Roisin frowns, "Is that so? Hm, ignoring that discrepancy for now, I have gleaned some information from one of our sources."

    Vasile raises a brow at this, "Sources?"

    Roisin nods, "Not all Mortals are foolish enough to go against us, and with enough persuasion we can make valuable allies... Ones that are capable of magic."

    Vasile "What is it?"

    Roisin rests his chin on his fist, "It seems we have a group of conspirators in our midst, our source wasn''t able to go into specifics, but we know someone will try to free one of our slaves."

    Vasile scowls, "Could it be mine? Of course they''d come for her! She''s too valuable, special to not be worth the trouble!" he exclaims.

    Roisin shakes his head, "No one knows of her existence, who''d expect her to be captured in Ard Carriagh and turn up in Kovir? No, I think it''s likely one of the many mages that are in our employ."

    Vasile "Then, let''s kill and replace all of them, no need to be merciful to lesser beings." he states.

    Roisin shakes his head, "You may not know this Vasile, but blood from mages is particularly refined... I''d even go as far as to suggest that not even a newborn babe''s blood would match up to it."

    Vasile "Hm, you seem to have been keeping this to yourself." he says with a glare.

    Roisin shrugs, "Mortal''s aren''t cows, overmilk them and they die, that is the reason I kept silent on this matter. I''d prefer if you kept it to yourself as well."

    Vasile "Enough about blood, what are you going to do about the pests trying to free our Chattle!?"

    Roisin "I think you''ll remember that they''re MY Chattle, not yours... Nevertheless, I have made some countermeasures should they try to gain access to the property. I also wish to end them myself, blood from those who''ve lost hope is best served when freshly squeezed."

    Elsewhere :

    Dythi "So, are we sure about this?" he asks them all, feeling quite anxious himself at the plan they''d created...

    Hurtelt shrugs, "I''m not sure about all of us going, is there really a need to bring this runt? Surely she''ll hold us back?" he says, gesturing at Etredi.

    Etredi throws her shoe at him, "Runt!? You''ll be the one holding us back by forcing us to drag your corpse if you continue!"

    Zudite nods, "I doubt there''ll be peace once we rescue Margarita and her friend... Even if we didn''t use this direct route I doubt the sewers would be left unscathed, they''ll likely find this place even if we do our best to avoid it."

    Dythi nods, "Our only real shot is to get there under the nose of the Vampires, rescuing Margarita and freeing her of whatever Dimeritium shackle binds her... Once that''s all done it''s a simply portal out to freedom."

    Etredi "Yeah, how''re we going to get the Dimeritium off of her though?"

    Dythi "That''s where Hurtelt comes in."

    Hurtelt nods, "I''ve managed to create some makeshift bombs, they aren''t good enough to do any meaningful damage to the Vampires, but when strapped to chains, or locks, they''ll be blown to kingdom come."

    Tildanird "My heads starting to hurt... Is that everything?"

    Dythi nods, "All that''s left is to actually start..."

    ...

    Dythi "Zudite, where do we actually start?" he questions with cheeks flushed in embarrassment.

    Zudite walks over to the wall and starts feeling with his hands, slowly moving his palms over the surface with his eyes closed...

    Hurtelt "Yeah, that''s right... You never did tell us how you were going to get us where we need to go."

    Zudite "Well... It''s a combination of knowing the direction of the Mansion, following the direction that makes the mental connection clearer, and going off of a hunch..."

    Hurtelt "So we might not even make it there? Great."

    Zudite shakes his head and moves to the corner of the room, finally nodding and chanting something in Elder Speech.

    Ten seconds of chanting later and the stone his hands are on seem to liquify and meld into the walls of the new hole that''d been created.

    Zudite "This spell allows us to dig a tunnel while simultaneously reinforcing it... With this it shouldn''t collapse on us out of nowhere.."

    Tildanird "Er... Is that it?" he questions, looking at the hole a grown man would have to crouch to go through.

    Zudite nods, "Yeah... It might be a tight fit for you, but that''s why you''ll be at the back." he says, entering the hole and beginning to chant the same spell again.

    Hurtelt sighs and follows, "Hope you guys know what you''re doing... Though, I think being buried alive trumps getting torn apart by an Elder..."

    Etredi steps in and gives them all smug looks, "I don''t know what''s the problem, I''m quite comfortable in here.

    Hurtelt "Yeah, because a hobbit like you lives in shit holes like these-Ouch!"

    Etredi "Yeah, say it again and I''ll kick you again!" she says from behind him, Hurtelt being unable to comfortably turn due to the tight tunnel.

 786 GO-TIME

    Zudite "I don''t think so, I''m not smelling anything..."

    Hurtelt can''t stop the grin from forming on his face, "You must be imagining it."

    Etredi "NNGGHHH! IT GOT WORSE!"

    Hurtelt "Hehehahaha!"

    Etredi "It''s you isn''t it bastard!"

    Dythi sighs and hsakes his head, glancing behind him at Tildanird, "You alright?"

    Tildanird slowly nods, "The smells a bit... I''m fine for now though, as long as this tunnel doesn''t get any tighter."

    Dythi nods, "Let''s hope we get out of here soon..."

    Hurtelt stops abruptly causing Etredi to walk into his back, the pitch darkness not allowing them to see anything that''s not directly next to them. "Hang on... Zudite, I hope you''ve got a way of replenishing the Oxygen, I''d almost forgotten about it... There are many stories of miners suffocating in their shafts." he says gravely.

    Zudite nods, "I''ve been flushing the air since we started, I''d have thought you''d realise that the "breeze" isn''t from the tunnel."

    Etredi "I thought that was just from this fools backside!"

    Hurtelt snorts again but managing to hold back his laugher this time, "Good, at least someone''s got things under control."

    Etredi "And you do?" she asks sarcastically.

    Hurtelt "I was flushing the air in my own way." he shrugs, Zudite continuing to tunnel towards their destination.

    ...

    9 hours later :

    Etredi "Can we take a break yet!? My feet hurt!" he exclaims, causing the rest to sigh.

    Tildanird "Yeah? Well my back hurts, get used to it!"

    Dythi "I don''t know whether we could take a break or not... Tildanird would be forced to stand, and I''m not sure if Zudite can keep using his magic for non-crucial things..."

    Zudite nods, "I''m struggling to dig and flush the air, if we stop now we''ll probably not be coming out... Don''t worry though, I think we''re almost there..." he mutters.

    *Thud* *tap, tap*

    As Zudite casts the spell again pieces of the wall in-front of him fall inwards, opening a small hole into some opening... It''s too dark for him to see, but before he''s able to create some lighting to peer into whatever place they''d accidentally found his friends walk into his back, pushing him forwards and through the wall.

    *CRASH!*

    Zudite unceremoniously falls onto his face as the stone wall crumbles beneath his weight, not knowing what awaits him in the cave he scrambles to get up as the others behind him questions the problem.

    Hurtelt "Zudite? Something happen?" he quickly asks, drawing the trademark Cat School silver dagger that looks remarkably like a Karambit from earth and stepping forth, warily treading atop the rubble that used to comprise the thin stone wall.

    Zudite finally manages to get to his feet, just as peculiar noises cause goosebumps to form on his skin, the sound of running water also tickles his ears and causes him to rapidly chant the spell for light.

    A ball of light forms above him, illuminating the opening... And revealing ancient-looking ruins. The room they''re currently in is shaped like a large cylinder, the middle of which contains a pool of vicious red liquid, judging by the smell... Its blood...

    There''s a single exit on the far side of the room, some stairs leading to it... Strangely, the blood seems to be coming from there, groves carved into the steps allowing it to stream and gather into the pool.

    Hurtelt "The fuck is this place..." he mutters to himself quietly, his voice echoing around the room regardless of how loud he is.

    Zudite "No idea... Must be related to the Vampires though, right? This amount of blood isn''t easy to gather..."

    Etredi, Dythi, and Tildanird slowly come out from the tunnel, warily looking around... Etredi holds a small iron dagger, it likely wouldn''t do anything to any Vampires they come across, but it''s more for comfort at this point...

    Dythi already had his shield and spear ready, preparing to defend against an attack from the entrance of the room...

    Tildanird retrieves some long silver stakes from a bag on his hip, holding them with a toothpick grip just incase anything suddenly attacks them...

    Etredi "Think this is where Margarita''s friend is being held?" she questions.

    Zudite shakes his head, "No... Margarita said it looked like an ordinary basement with cells... Nothing like this." he says gesturing towards the blood pool.

    Tildanird "Shouldn''t we get moving? Whoever lives here might have heard th-"

    Hurtelt "Everyone get down, somethings approaching." he quickly whispers, ducking behind one of the decorative stone outcroppings on the side of the room.

    Everyone else follows his instructions and hides in various places around the room, some better than others... Overall they shouldn''t be immediately spotted.

    The sound of many feet can be heard coming down the stairs, clicking, growls, and chittering noises came from whatever group of creatures had arrived.

    No one was able to see what was happening, but they could hear the creatures walk up and approach the pool, taking loud clumsy mouthfuls of blood to slate their thirst...

    Without warning Hurtelt shouts, "Zudite, LIGHT NOW!"

    Immediately the creatures screech, looking towards the sound but getting blind the next second as light fills the room, they writhe around in pain, covering their eyes with their wings... Not noticing Hurtelt dashing towards them with his dagger.

    Hurtelt had been aware of the creatures race as soon as they starting clicking... Only Plumards make those kinds of noises amoung Vampires, this meant that this place was likely their feeding ground... And, that they''d be staying here for quite some time to rest, time the group didn''t have to spare.

    The light revealed their forms, dog-sized bats with sharp teeth and claws... Hurtelt was surprised that they only numbered around twenty, having thought there''d be a lot more.

 787 Under the surface

    Zudite is mesmerized by this efficient means of disposing of them, only coming to when the first one starts bleeding out... He steps forth and thrusts his palm forwards, a thin stone spear extending from the ground and stabbing one of the Plumards in the belly.

    Dythi had also approached, killing two Plumards in quick succession with his spear as Tildanird steps around and kills a third.

    Etredi cowers behind everyone, frozen at the sudden violence... Keeping an eye on Hurtelt as he expertly kills the enemy.

    There''s only around ten left as the dazzled Plumard survived come to, immediately leaping at Hurtelt and Tildanird.

    Hurtelt cuts one down and casts an Aard at the other charging him, throwing some into the pool of blood.

    Tildanird gets bitten on the arm but stabs the offending creature in the face with a silver stake, delivering a brutal kick to another which tries to claw his Achilies Tendon. However, he hadn''t noticed one of the Plumards leaping down at him from above...

    Luckily Dythi slams his shield into it, knocking it to the floor and pinning it to the ground with his spear, the Vampire screeching and squirming as it tries to escape to attack them further.

    The surviving Plumards that''d fallen into the pool of blood struggle to get out, their mangy fur slick with clotted blood slippery enough to stop the from immediately climbing out. Dythi using his spear finishes them off as the others watch...

    They all fall to the floor breathing raggedly with the obvious exception of Hurtelt who kicks all the bodies into the pool as the others take a rest.

    Hurtelt sighs and sheathes his dagger, "With this the Vampires will probably not notice their dead kin for a while... Plumards are notoriously shameless among them, not uncommonly engaging in cannibalism.

    Dythi sighs as he''s wrapping Tildanirds arm in bandages, "The plan already needs changing, this isn''t where we need to be, or if it is, is too dangerous for us to tread... I mean, we''re struggling with these creatures as it is, and they''re the weakest Vampires..."

    Zudite shakes his head, "No, the mental connect is stronger than ever... We''re almost directly under Margarita I think."

    Hurtelt "Wouldn''t that mean this place is likely under the basement of the Mansion?... Shit. I''d thought just digging a hole into Margarita''s friends cell and collected her would be relatively easy, but now it seems we need to go through here..."

    Dythi "I don''t think we have a choice..."

    Hurtelt shakes his head, "You stupid? Looks at that." he says gesturing towards the stream of blood. "That''s human blood, with this smelling up the place the Vampires wouldn''t bat an eye at you."

    Tildanird slowly nods and smiles, "Thanks... Heh, bat, nice one."

    Zudite "How''re we going to go through complete darkness though? The Vampires may not need light, but we do!"

    Hurtelt pulls ou a vial from the bag on his hip, "See this? This is a Cat potion, it''ll allow me to see, you guys follow behind me and I''ll lead."

    Etredi "W-why don''t you just let us drink that too!?" she asks, stuttering slightly from fear.

    Hurtelt "Have you listened to nothing I''ve said in the past? Witcher potions will kill regular people a hundred times over, the toxins are way too much for you... There''re even potions that are too much for Vampires." he says, patting his bag.

    Dythi nods, "Well, we don''t really have any other option, lead on Hurtelt, I place my trust in you." he says.

    Hurtelt nods, downing the vial in one go and shaking at black veins becoming apparent on his face and body, his skin becoming pale and clammy as he eyes get brighter and more cat-like than they were previously. "Alright, Zudite, hold onto the back of my clothes, the others do the same in a line... Don''t make any loud sounds, or talk above a whisper. Got it?"

    They nod and do as he says, Zudite dispelling the light spell as they begin following Hurtelt as he leads them up the stairs and through the exit.

    *Cork*

    Hurtelt downs another potion as they walk, groaning in pain as the toxins invade his body... Fortunately, the effects of the Blizzard potion are worth the pain, his reflexes, and eyesight becoming much sharper.

    They slowly walk through the hallway, ignoring the side rooms and instead following the grove in the ground that flows with blood... The Witcher can hear Etredi trembling from behind, the strange monstrous sounds of Vampires coming from all around them as the slowly make their way through the ruins.

    The more they walk, the more apparent screams of pain and loud pleading for mercy can be heard. Eventually the group exit the hallway and enter a large cavern, Hurtelt stopping abrubtly as he looks up, mouth agape at the scene laid out before him.

    A huge stone monolith sits in the middle of the clearing with numerous chains hanging off of it, cages hang at the end of them with people sitting inside, numerous cuts covered in what Hurtelt could only imagine to be an anti-coagulant substance. The wounds bleed profusely, dripping down into large stone outcroppings which gathers all the blood into grooves that flow down to the ground.

    Hurtelt could spot a few human-looking people with goblets in their hands, collecting fresh blood from the grooves and imbibing from them.

 788 Stairway to Heavanpire

    The only exit he could see is a spiraling staircase that follows along the walls, ascending to a place out of his vision, "All of you stay very, very quiet." he whispers into the ear of Zudite who''s immediately behind him, them doing the same like you would in Chinese Whispers.

    Fortunately, it doesn''t seem like the hallway they''d exited from had high traffic, the other hallways which seemed to contain replacement slaves for those stuck in cages should they die. Hurtelt''s ears prick up when he hears the two Higher Vampires discussing something...

    "Mabon, you hear what Vasile is on about lately?" one of the two vampires with pale skin and black hair asks the other.

    They shake their head, "Depends, you talking about Lord Roisin threatening to kick him out? Or that Mortal he''s obsessing about."

    "The mortal... Vasile talks to himself you know? Like a madman, he speaks of the Mortal like they''re not from this world. But that''s wrong isn''t it, his mind must be rotting."

    "Don''t let yourself get heard saying such things, they won''t kill you, it wouldn''t be the first time one of us was torn apart and scattered for uttering such things." he says under his voice, though Hurtelt could still pick it up.

    They continue talking as Hurtelt ignores the rest of their conversation, trying to think of a way to get through all of the Vampires and up the stairs...

    Hurtelt "Psst, Zudite? You know any illusionary spells?" he quietly asks.

    Zudite "Hm, I do... What do you want me to do?"

    Hurtelt "There''s a hallway directly opposite the one we came out from about 15 fathoms in-front of us... I need you to make an injured man run into it, once you''ve done that we''ll need to move fast... Tell the others." he states, Zudite nodding and relaying the plan to Etredi, Dythi, and Tildanird.

    A few moments later a loud shout draws the attention from the two conversing Higher Vampires, they look over and spot a bloody naked man sprinting into the hallway at breakneck speeds.

    "Seems we''ve got another runner..." one of the mutters blandly.

    The other growls, "You''d think these cages would be enough to hold them, Lord Roisin should massacre the incompetents that created them."

    "Should we go after them? We got punished when we ignored it last time, the mortal wandered into some Fleders and got torn to pieces, damn fools went into a bloodlust and had to be put down."

    They stand and reluctantly start heading over, disappearing into red mist which flies into the hallway the illusion had run.

    The stairway is incredibly long, spanning the room multiple times and ascending at a slight incline, making it long then it really had to be... Hurtelt imagines it was made like this to be aesthetically pleasing instead practical use, this wouldn''t surprise him consider all the other things he''d seen down here.

    They skim the wall as they walk, making sure to keep low in-case any Vampires come and start looking around, or god forbid, find the dead Plumards they''d dispatched earlier.

    Hurtet freezes mid-step as he hears someone heading down the stairs, whatever it was must be heavy as the staircase reverberated with every step... He quickly turns and looks at Zudite, whispering "Something''s coming, we need to hide."

    Zudite "Ah, but we''re on a staircase, there''s nowhere to go." he quickly whispers back.

    Hurtelt''s eyes dart around in search of something that could hide them, there''s a cage holding a corpse hanging quite close to the staircase, but it wouldn''t hold everyone, and an intelligent person would immediately be able to tell they weren''t a prisoner... There! One of the holes the Plumards were using to travel around the place... He ducks low and crawls into it, finding it to be a tight fit but doable regardless.

    The others slowly follow him, Zudite, Etredi, Dythi... But as soon as it comes to Tildanird, they realise he''s far too big to fit inside.

    Hurtelt "Quick, the cage... Zudite, can you unlock it?"

    Zudite shakes his head, "No... I''d need to be able to see the lock to do anything, even then it''d be difficult." they quickly say, the steps getting closer and closer.

    Hurtelt "It looks rusty, try and tear the door open, quick!" he says.

    Tildanird nods, cautiously walking up and feeling around for a while before eventually grabbing the cage to pull it closer to the staircase, taking a firm grip on the door and trying to open it. His muscles strain and veins bulge and become visible as he tries his best to open it...

    *CLANK!*

    It finally breaks open, and luckily the sound of the lock breaking was somewhat suppressed by the shouts of pain and terror by the slaves in the other cages.

    Tildanird climbs inside and sits down in a posture that masks his skin as much as possible, the cage dangles slightly away from the staircase, causing him to get goosebumps from the fear of falling, but he manages to retain his composure just as a creature appears at the top of the stairs.

    It had green warty skin with spines on its hunched back, strong looking limbs with long claws attached at the ends of them, it''s head had two large fanged sproutings from its mouth and two bulbous growths protruding from its skull.

    Hurtelt "A Garkain... Keep quiet, it isn''t all that smart but it might be able to smell or hear us." he says, the others falling into silence.

 789 Mutual Destruction

    The footsteps of the creature seem louder than life as it walks down the stairs, everyone''s heartbeats even start to mimic the sound, though, that isn''t the case as it finally reaches their hiding spot... Everyone but the Witcher were struggling to keep their breaths quiet as adrenaline fills their veins, pushing them to act out, fight or try to flee... Only the vague hope of the beast not noticing them keeps them stiller than the stone and steel surrounding them.

    *Sniff, Sniff*

    The Garkain takes in large, loud breaths through its nose as it slowly comes to a stop, it''s foot resting beside the hole the group were hiding within...

    *Sniff, Sniff*

    Hurtelt grips his dagger tight, ready to spring into combat at any second...

    *Sniff, Sniff*

    Etredi slowly swallows her saliva, making sure that it''s not audible...

    *Sniff, Sniff*

    Dythi lightly positions his feet so he can move in an instance...

    *Sniff...*

    Zudite frowns, not daring to chant a spell in-case it hears him.

    ...

    ...

    *Thud!... Thud, Thud*

    The beast walks off, having apparently not noticed anything of interest to it, though, the group only breath sighs of relief when it finally reaches the bottom of the staircase and enters a hallway.

    They climb out of the hiding place and Hurtelt slowly bring the case closer, opening the door and helping Tildanird out.

    Tildanird "Thanks... I thought that thing would notice us, thank god it didn''t."

    Hurtelt "We''re lucky, the thick scent of fresh blood masks us... If it were a Ghoul, Siren, or Fiend we''d all be found and dead right now. Vampire''s are especially attuned to blood, allowing us to remain hidden."

    Zudite "That''s great, but should get going before anything notices us..."

    Hurtelt nods and starts leading everyone up the stairs again, luckily no one else seems to be coming down, allowing them to relatively peacefully make their way up... That''s around where their luck ends though.

    Suddenly something dashes from a nearby hole, grabbing Etredi and pulling her into it, she screams and uses her nails to resist being pulled in any further.

    Etredi "AHHH! H-HELP! IT''S PULLING ME IN!" she shouts, utterly terrified, her fingers becoming bloody as she does her best to resist the creature that''d grabbed her.

    Hurtelt leans down and grabs her hands, but the awkward position makes it difficult for him to pull her out himself...

    Etredi "AHHHRRGGHH! My leg!" she gives a pain shout, the creature digging its claws into her leg to get a better grip on her.

    "Huh?"

    "ARE YOU OUT THERE? HELP US! I DON''T WANT TO DIE!"

    "PLEASE SAVE US, I BEG YOU!"

    Hurtelt scowls, and looks behind him, "Damn! Zudite we need light, our covers blown, help me get Etredi out!"

    Zudite nods, quickly creating a light orb that reveals their position to everything in the room, the Slaves, Plumards and other Vampires on the ground floor.

    Tildanird bends down and quickly grabs Etredi now that''s he''s able to see, managing to finally pull her out with the Hurtelt''s help. However, he grimaces when a Plumard with its claws pierced deep in her calves is pulled out as well. It looks up at them and screeches, the light dazzling it long enough for Tildanird to stomp and crush its head.

    Dythi "Guy''s we gonna run, now!" he shouts, as Vampires begin running towards the staircase in pursuit of them.

    Etredi tries to stand but stumbles to the floor, her calves too wounded for her to do anything...

    Hurtelt "Tildanird grab her, we need to go!" he says, beginning to run up the stairs, the others following him.

    The slaves continue to shout for their help, pleading that they''ll do anything to be freed, inadvertently drawing more Vampires to pursue the group.

    Zudite "All of you shut up! You''re going to get us killed!" he shouts, afterwards chanting a spell which causes a part of the stairway behind them to tremble and crack before collapsing.

    "DON''T LEAVE!"

    "SAVE US!"

    "IF YOU WON''T HELP THEN DIE!"

    Hurtelt scowls at them as he runs, "Fucking ungrateful bastards!" he says, dropping low while swiping at the neck of a Plumard that sticks its head out of one of the many holes in the room.

    A few Vampires try to hop across the broken bridge caused by Zudite, falling to their deaths as they fail to make it all the way... A few do make it across but the group had already gotten to the top of the stairway.

    At the top the group is greeted with another long dark hallway, this time not looking as ancient as the place they''d escaped from... The stone bricks look relatively new, and the air itself smells somewhat fresher... Sound of the raging vampires continue to come from behind them, but Tildanird notices the two large heavy stone doors that were currently open...

    Tildanird "We should close this!" he shouts with Etredi still on his shoulder, getting nods from the others as they all gather behind one, pushing it with all their might but still not getting it to move.

    Zudite "Hold on!" he says, casting a "Grease" spell on the door which allows them to slowly move it without friction from the door and the floor preventing it.

    They do the same to the other side, closing just as the Vampires reach the top, banging against it just as Zudite dispels the Grease spell...

    The dull thuds of Vampires trying to breakthrough can be heard, but the group are relatively sure they won''t be able to get through...

    Hurtelt "Vampires are strong, but you''d need at least two Higher Vampires or an Elder to get through that." he says, beginning to walk through the hallway.

 790 Boss fight?

    Dythi "Is this too tight?" he asks her gently.

    Etredi "D-don''t treat me like a child... But yes, it''s too tight." she adds, her cheeks going red.

    Tildanird "I didn''t think we''d make it out of there... Think there''s any more Vampires ahead?"

    Hurtelt shrugs, "Probably, hopefully, it''ll be one we can deal with though, there''s isn''t really anywhere to escape if we come across a Higher one... Zudite, we getting closer to Margarita or what?" he asks.

    Zudite closes his eyes for a moment before reopening them, "We''re almost there... She says that she''s heading to the basement to meet us..."

    Dythi "Are we even in the basement though? Sure this place looks different than the ruins, but what if we''re walking into a trap or something?"

    Hurtelt "Well, if we are, we die... It''s a simple as that." he says, raising a brow as they start walking past empty prison cells.

    Zudite "Looks like we''re on the right track... Margarita''s friend should be down here."

    Hurtelt nods, retrieving a vial from his bag and drinking it.

    Dythi "What''s that one supposed to do?" he asks curiously.

    Hurtelt, "Hopefuly you won''t need to find out... It''s my last one, but since we''re nearing the end I suspect I won''t get another chance to drink it." he says ominously.

    The group continue to walk for a few minutes, eventually they find themselves in-front of a cell holding a bloody and bruised woman wearing rags, her platinum blonde hair and piercing golden eyes making her look like a captured princess...

    Zudite "Miss, we''re friends of Margarita, we''re here to rescue you." he says, kneeling down to speak with her.

    "Hehehe, I knew I''d find some pests looking for this mortal, Lord Vasile was sure you''d be coming for her." a voice echoes from down the hallway.

    Hurtelt immediately drops into a low stance, his Cat-school dagger at the ready...

    A man with long greasy black hair steps into view of Zudite''s light, his aristocratic clothing giving him the appearance of a typical corrupt noble... He gives a wide grin, showing the fangs in his mouth as he opens his arms to greet them, "Welcome to my lord, Vasile''s domain. I''m sure you''ve received an adequate welcome from our shrine below, but it seems they were lacking in some aspects... Mainly the one where you''re still alive... Allow me to fix this issue." he says, his face turning beast-like and large claws forming on his hands.

    He dashes forwards, slashing them at Hurtelt who steps to intervene, casting an Igni sign which blasts the man with flames, obscuring his vision and allowing Hurtelt to dodge their first strike, taking the chance to give a long cut to their side.

    *BANG!*

    Dythi is knocked heavily against the wall as the Higher Vampire backhands him. Immediately turning into red mist and appearing behind Hurtelt.

    Hurtelt casts a Quen shield but it''s broken as he''s forced to the ground... He pushes against the Vampire chest while quickly stabbing it in the guy many times as it tries to bite his throat. Tildanird runs and stabs two silver stakes into it''s back, causing it to rear up and unleash a roar of anger.

    "Pathetic worms! I''LL END YOU!" they shout, kicking Hurtelt who''s on the ground in the ribs and sending his body flying into the group, knocking them all to the ground...

    Hurtelt spits blood which smokes as it hits the ground, he gets up ignoring the pain and confronts the Vampire again, holding his ribs from the pain.

    They clash again, the Vampire faster than before and managing to slash deep wounds into Hurtelts chest... The Vampires claws aren''t affecting by the blood, which causes Hurtelt to scowl, he''s clearly not going to win this fight, which means something drastic has to happen to achieve victory...

    Hurtelt "Fucking blood sucker! You and your entire race are nothing but parasites!" he exclaims, the Vampire roaring and charging at him...

    He blocks the claw heading for his throat, but doesn''t back away... Instead jumping at the beast tries to bite down on him, positioning his shoulder where his neck was.

    *CRUNCH!*

    The Vampire bites into Hurtet''s clavicle, breaking the bone in half and drinking heavily from his blood, Hurtelt groans loudly in pain, but manages to stab the Vampire in the neck just as the Black Blood potion is starting to take affect.

    The Vampire holds its wound and starts coughing, black veins becoming apparent on its face as its affected by the Witcher toxins... Hurtelt uses the last of his strength to slam the beast against Ciaran cell, falling to the ground breathing heavily afterwards...

    Ciaran who''d been watching all of this happen takes the chance to get involved, getting ahold of the Vampire neck to hold it against the bars, grabbing the Silver Dagger still lodged in its neck and tearing its throat out.

    She isn''t finished just there however, she uses the Cat-school dagger to cut, cut, cut, and cut, until the only thing still connecting the Vampire head to its body is its spinal cord... Ciaran doesn''t hesitate to bring the knife down on that as well, finally decapitating it as the others watch on in awe...

    Dythi "Shit, Hurtelt! Are you alive!?!" he exclaims, leaning down and examining him.

    Hurtelt coughs a couple times and nods, "Yeaaahhhh, I''m fucked up though..." he mutters weakly.

    Etredi "You did great... You actually managed to beat it." she says, clearly amazed by Hurtelt''s earlier actions.

    Hurtelt "N-no thanks to you squirt... It wasn''t only me though..." he says, nodding his head at Ciaran.

    Ciaran shakes her head, "I only slaughtered a beast, what difference is there to this and a pig?" she says with a dull expression.

 791 End of the path

    ...

    Etredi "Yeah... Tell that to all the innocent people it slaughtered, I''ve never personally heard of a pig capable of that." she states.

    Ciaran shrugs, "Pigs where I''m from weigh a few tons and are covered in metal plating..." she mutters, giving the still squirming body a punt.

    Zudite shakes his head, "We need to get going, who knows when more are going to turn up... Where''s Margarita anyway?" he says, closing his eyes to ask her through the mental connection.

    Dythi "Come on... Let''s get you up..." he says, helping Hurtelt to his feet after doing his best to patch him up. "Argh!" he blurts as he rapidly looks at his hand.

    Hurtelt "Ah... Sorry, my blood is still quite acidic, try not to get any on you." he says with a truly apologetic expression.

    "Ah! You''re finally here!" a voice asks from the darkness, Margarita stepping out of the shadows and running up to Ciaran.

    Margarita "I managed to slip away for a moment... It seems my trust in you all wasn''t misplaced." she says with a smile.

    Ciaran nods at her, "Thank you for your help thus far." she says, giving a slight bow.

    Margarita "It''s nothing... I only wish I could help the others." she mutters.

    Zudite "Right, Margarita we''ll need to remove your Dimeritium restraints before we can leave here... Could you show them to us?" he asks.

    Margarita nods, gesturing towards the collar tightly fixed around her neck. "I''d appreciate if you could remove it... I feel like a dog wearing it."

    ...

    Margarita glances at the others, not hearing a response from them. "Is something wrong?"

    Zudite "Err, well... Yes?"

    Hurtelt "We''re fucked. I''d have thought you''d be restrained by chains or something similar... Not a collar, I only brought explosives to free you." he says, inwardly cursing at himself.

    Margarita frowns, "Then... We''re stuck..."

    *MOOOOORRTAALLLLLSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!*

    A roar erupts from what sounds like above them, shaking their eardrums and causing immense pain to all of them.

    Etredi "What the fuck was that!" she exclaims, still holding her ears.

    Margarita goes pale, "It''s Vasile! He must know something up when one of his underlings didn''t return..."

    Zudite "There''s nowhere to run! Behind us is blocked and infested with Vampires, and we can''t very well leave through the front door!"

    Hurtelt "F-uck... Fuck it! We should just try and remove the damn collar, we''re dead if we fail anyway!"

    Margarita nods, "There''s no other way... If I survive we might be able to escape." she says with a determined look on her face.

    With Dythi''s assistance he hobbles towards Margarita and stretches the clay thin, wrapping it a dozen times around one part of the collar.

    Hurtelt "Dythi, cover us with your shield..." he says, as he shoves one hand under the clay covered part of the collar, maneuvering his fingers until they rest in the Quen sign... "You ready for this?"

    Margarita nods, "Q-quickly, there isn''t much time!"

    Hurtelt doesn''t ask anything else, lighting a flame atop his finger and putting it next to the clay while he simultaneously casts Quen with the other.

    *BANG!*

    The explosion wasn''t large, but due to how concentrated the blast was, it was definitely strong enough to blast off the collar of Margarita...

    "ARRRGGHHHHHHH!" two voices shout in agony... Once the smoke clears everyone is able to see the results of their reckless hail mary.

    Etredi looks away and vomits over Tildanirds shoulder, the sight in-front of her too much to hold her stomach...

    Dythi "H-holy shit."

    Zudite "I-I think I''m gonna be sick..."

    Dyhi''s shield had blocked the explosion from doing any harm to Hurtelt and himself, but that was only true for what was hidden behind it... Hurtelt''s hands were, to say it politely, gone. A more accurate description would add the fact that they weren''t entirely gone. Hurtelts right hand still retained his fingers, they just didn''t have any skin or flesh... The only thing left of them was bones, bloody ligaments and patches of flesh that''d managed to survive the explosion.

    His left hand wasn''t much better, even with his utilising Quen to try and protect it and Margarita, it was gone entirely, leaving only a bloody wrist.

    Margarita wasn''t much better, the Quen shield had blocked the majority of the explosion, but some still got through, horribly scorching the left side of her neck and face, her left ear was also completely blown off.

    Hurtelet "Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, FUCK! SHIT!" he shouts in agony, no amount of training or mental strength could stop him from shouting curses.

    Margarita crouches on the ground cradling her face for a moment, pain shooting from the burnt receptors in her flesh...

    *THUD, THUD, THUD*

    "YOU DARE TRY TO STEAL FROM ME, I''LL DEVOUR YOU!" A voice screams from down the hallway, getting closer and closer.

    This brings Margarita back to her senses, she stands and starts chanting to create a portal... She didn''t have enough time to contemplate where they''d go, only wishing to go someplace safe.

    In a flash of light the portal opens, Tildanird carrying Etredi and Zudite race through it without another word.

    Before Margarita enters she looks over her shoulder and spots a titanic creature destroying the hallway as it charges them...

    Dythi struggles to carry Hurtelt towards the portal fast enough evade the creature, Hurtelt forcing himself out of his grip and stepping forth the confront the beast, without hands and covered in horrible injuries.

    Hurtelt "YOU WANT SOME YOU FUCKING FREA-!" He''s cut off and Vasile digs his claws into the Witchers belly and literally tears him apart.

 792 True Judgement!

    Unfortunately for the Vampire, Hurtelt''s body has been completely loaded up with Black Blood potion... Tearing the man apart did nothing but splatter the entirety of his body''s content of blood onto him, making Hurtelt more like a suicide bombing than one would expect.

    Almost immediately Vasile''s body began to smoke, large blisters forming on the Vampires skin as some of his flash literally melted off as a result. This could completely stop the raging beast however, Vasile continuing to slowly walk towards them with it''s claws ready to strike...

    *THUD!*

    Ciaran suddenly leaps through the air and delivers a hard kick to the Vampires face, usually this wouldn''t do all that much, but he''d already been tweaked by Hurtelt''s suicide attack. Her foot sank into the burnt and disfigured flesh on Vasiles head, the abrupt sharp pain causing the beast to rear back and scream in agony, the sound of which almost bursting everyone''s eardrums.

    Dythi and Margarita had already stepped through the portal, not leaving anything to chance. Ciaran scowls at Vasile as she stands next to the portal.

    Ciaran "I promised I would kill you, and I intend to see it through to the end... Goodbye, for now." she says ominously before hopping in the portal, it closing behind her with expert timing.

    Vasile leaps at the empty space where his target had been, his senses still blurred from the black blood... One thing was for sure however, his target had escaped...

    "NOOOOOOOOOO! RETURN HER! RETUUURRN HEEERRRR! I WILLLLLL ENNNNNNDD YOU MORTALLLLLSSSSSSS!" he roars, shaking the very foundations of the mansion.

    Sitting within his office, Roisin scowls at the walls vibrating due to his fellow Elder''s wails of anger and despair. "Fool, this is the last time I allow such insolence!" he exclaims, standing and leaving for the basement.

    Ciaran passes through the portal and stumbles slightly as she steps out into some sort of ruins? Stone rubble surrounded her along with burnt patches and ash. She glances around and spots Tildanird, Etredi, Dythi, Zudite, and Margarita...

    Zudite "Hurtelt... He... Sacrificed himself for us." he says with a forlorn look...

    Etredi immediately goes pale, tears beginning to stream down her face as she futilely attempts to wipe them away. "W-what? N-no... He''s around here somewhere r-right? Even without hands he''ll be alright... I can feed him..." she says, clearly in denial.

    Dythi shakes his head, "I saw it with my own eyes... He gave his life to save ours."

    Etredi "No! You''re lying, he''d never do that... He hates us!" she exclaims.

    Tildanird "There, there..." he says, trying to comfort her.

    Zudite slowly nods, sniffling slightly but still managing to retain his composure, "I''m Zudite, he''s Dythi, Etredi, and Tildanird... The one who''s no longer with us was called Hurtelt."

    Ciaran nods, "I thank you all for assisting us... This Hurtelt, he was a Witcher?" she asks, receiving affirmations from them. "If it makes you feel any better, there has never been a Witcher who has died of old age... In one way or another, they''ll all meet their end at blade, claw, or maw... Atleast this way, Hurtelt managed to preserve your lives."

    ...

    Dythi nods, "I see... That settles my mind, if slightly. I''d rather have him still with us though..."

    Ciaran "Unfortunately, this is the way of war... You will lose comrades, there is no doubt about that. It''s whether you survive long enough to see the end of it which is what really matters."

    Zudite "Miss Margarita... Is something wrong?" he asks, having not heard her for a while, glancing over at her staring wide eyes at the ruins.

    Margarita slowly and robotically turns, "I know where this is now..." she mutters, fear clear in her voice.

    Dythi "Are we still in-danger?" he asks warily.

    Margarita nods, "You... Could say that... This, was... Aretuza, the former home for myself and dozens of young magic users." she says, walking over to the side of the small island they were standing upon and looking over the cliff, seeing more rubble of the former institution peppering the ocean.

    Ciaran frowns, "Is this not deep within Nilfgaardian territory?" she quickly asks.

    Margarita nods, "It is."

    Zudite "Ha-hang on, do you have something against Nilfgaard? I don''t think it matters much anymore since the Vampires have destroyed mostly everything."

    Ciaran "My countries relations with Nilfgaard are hostile at best, if the Vampires haven''t wiped them out yet, they may try to capture me, and you in association.

    Dythi "Hm, it''s probably fine, I doubt any country could defend against the Vampires, let alone a divided Empire like Nilfgaard."

    "STOP RIGHT THERE CRIMINAL SCUM! YOU''VE ENTERED PROHIBITED TERRITORY VIA UNREGISTERED PORTAL USE!" a voice shouts from the bridge connecting the small island to the continent.

    The others look over and spot a man wearing black and gold armour with around seventy soldiers behind him...

    Immediately Margarita starts channeling another portal, only to find it fizzle and fail to cast.

    "WE''VE ALREADY SET UP WARDS UPON YOUR ARRIVAL, YOU''LL NOT ESCAPE THE JUDGEMENT OF THE LAW!"

    Dythi "We''ve done nothing wrong though!" he shouts, dropping his weapons in resignation.

    "YOU''VE TRESSPASSED ON RESTRICTED PROPERTY, NOW GET TO YOUR KNEES OR I''LL NEED TO APPREHEND YOU PERSONALLY!" he continues to shout.

    Etredi "Just leave us alone, you don''t know what we''ve had to go through to get here, and you still want to punish us!"

    "SILENCE LITTLE GIRL, WE''LL RETURN YOU TO YOUR PARENTS AFTER WE''VE DEALT WITH THESE CRIMINALS!"

    Etredi "I''M NOT A CHILD! I''M FOURTEEEEEEN!" She shouts.

    ...

    Everyone goes silent, not believing this girl who looks under the age of ten would really be fourteen.

    "LYING TO AN OFFICER OF THE LAW IS ILLEGAL, TAKE HER IN TOO!" he commands as the soldiers start advancing on them.

 793 Ciaran the merciful...

    ...

    Just as one of the soldiers grab Tildanird a shadow collides with them, Ciaran delivering a hard kick to their helmeted head, knocking them unconscious.

    Ciaran glances at the group behind her, "I apologise, but I can''t allow myself to be captured." she states, her loyalty to Ichor, Reima, and Solaire above whatever gratitude and companionship she felt towards her rescuers.

    Dythi shakes his head and retrieves his weapons, "Don''t worry about it... I''d probably be executed as well... Kovir''s neutrality isn''t looked on well by Nilfgaard." he states.

    Margarita sighs, her injury was still burning with pain, but now she was almost forced to act with them. If not she''d probably be cut down. She raises her hand to the sky and acts as if she''s grabbing something, whispering a chant and dropping her hand, causing a purple lightning bolt to strike a Nilfgaardian soldier in the chest.

    The soldier hit drops to the floor and immediately start having a seizure, the electricity running through his muscles stopping his heart and all brain activity.

    With their sudden hostile actions the commander raises his hand and gestures towards them, shouting, "ATTACK THEM, KILL THE MAGE!"

    Tildanird runs to the back and rests Etredi on a rock, her legs still too injured for her to move without help. "Stay here, I''ll help the others." he says, grabbing his silver stakes and running into battle.

    Only a few soldiers actually head towards Dythi, Tildanird, and Zudite... The larger group was hell-bent on immediately getting rid of Margarita, as per their commander''s commands.

    If this were any ordinary scenario, Margarita would have easily been killed here, unfortunately for the Nilfgaardians, Ciaran wasn''t an ordinary person.

    Her ragged clothing only allowed her movement to go unpeded, she leapt high, dodging a sword thrust and grabbing a man''s helmet, twisting their head with a sickening *CRACK!*, afterwards taking their sword and moving onto the next.

    Margarita was amazed by Ciaran''s movements, her speed, ferocity, and brutality singlehandedly keeping the sixty soldiers away, allowing her to concentrate on her magic.

    *CRACK!*

    *SIZZLE!*

    *POP!*

    Her spells would kill one, if not two soldiers at a time... She would have used the more powerful ones at her disposal, but the pain still wracking her body impeded her from doing anything other than simple incantations.

    Ciaran was like a tornado of steel, having "acquired" two long swords from the soldiers and using them in tandem to decimate the enemy.

    The commander of the soldiers got a first-hand account of this when her blade disabled his ability to procreate with a quick stab. The man gave a "THE LAW!" before he passed out from shock.

    Zudite was having difficulties trying to deal with the soldiers approaching him, he hadn''t even fully completed his education, and was only well versed in non-combat magics... He summons stone spikes from the earth to pierce his foes, but they break on the enemies armour, leaving him defenceless.

    Luckily Dythi was nearby, blocking a sword thrust with his shield and piercing the enemies throat with his spear, "Target their necks and faces!" he commands, blocking two more attacks from the advancing soldiers.

    Tildanird wasn''t doing all that bad in comparison to Zudite, his stakes were more than able to pierce thin pieces of armour due to the ice-pick grip he held them in and his sheer strength. He wasn''t all that skillful and received numerous cuts for his troubles, but he was more than able to defeat a few of these soldiers.

    Ciaran continued to cut swathes through the enemy ranks, even a simple kick of her managing to dent the thickest parts of their breastplates, liquifying their internal organs and easily crushing bone. "You''re commander is dead! Retreat or die with him!" she shouts, hoping to save the trouble of killing them.

    Unfortunately, the soldiers don''t listen, the number disparity seems to only invigourate them and charge in recklessly, even despite how many had been cut down already.

    "THEY''RE TIRING!"

    "AVENGE SIR OGLIVIAN!"

    "I WANT A RAISE!"

    A few shouts could be heard from the remaining soldiers as Ciaran stepped forth to deal with them. One tries to stab her, but she easily deflects it, slamming her other blade into the man''s neck, the sword hits a vertebrae and snaps due to how much force she''d been putting through it, luckily there were numerous weapons littering the ground... She ducks under a spear thrust, picks up another sword, and backflips away.

    "Er, I think someone said something about retreating?" one soldier asks.

    "SHUT YOUR MOUTH AND FIGHT ROOKIE!" another screams from behind them, pushing them into battle with Ciaran, only for her to jam her blade into the unfortunate new soldier''s eye. The blade continuing and exiting the back of his skull, *ding*''ing against the back of the helmet.

    Ciaran "You waste your lives." she states, spinning and throwing the sword at the soldier who''d pushed this one into battle. It doesn''t spin like you''d expect, instead heading straight on like an arrow...

    *SHEEEK!*

    It hits the man''s stomach just under the breastplate, grinding as it passes through the chainmail and piercing his entrails. "HHUUURRGHHH!" they shout in pain, dropping to the ground she Ciaran finishes them off.

    Soon enough, there isn''t a single Nilfgaardian left standing... A blood soaked Ciaran digs through the corpses to find the best-maintained blades as if she''d not just murdered almost a hundred men. She combs over the commander and finds that the man had a relatively well-kept blade, even if she disliked the Nilfgaardian sun on the pommel.

 794 I feel Elder and Alder

    Seems that the Elders had given the Village territories to lower-ranked Vampires like Bruxae. Killing them was easy, but getting the villagers into states where they could manage themselves without their Vampire overlords was annoying... He''d had to install an Alderman in ever Village he visited, the Vampires had killed the previous ones as they wanted all the authority to themselves.

    It''d been around a week since he''d left Ichor, he''d spent every waking moment flying through the north and cleansing it of Vampires. The city he''d just left was called Pont Vanis, a port city belonging to Kovir that was relatively hard to cleanse compared to the others... It had a vast sewer system that allowed the Vampires to retreat into it after He''d killed the Elder managing the city...

    Flashback :

    The Elder was a woman with pale skin, trademark yellow irises and black sclara... She actually wore chainmail as wings burst from her back, the Vampire flying up to confront him in the sky, baring her fangs as she spoke... "Stop. You are the one claiming our territory and killing our kin?" she slowly asks.

    Reima nods, "Yeah, what of it? You Vampires didn''t take into account the "Mortals" you killed and enslaved, why should I?"

    The woman scoffs, "We are above you all, even our lowest race is above the frail inhabitants of this world."

    Reima slowly nods, "Uh huh, mmhmm... So, will you be the one to tell me where an Elder named "Vasile" would be?" he asks, picking his ear.

    "That fool? Why would you be looking for him?" she starts with a glare.

    Reima shrugs, "He''s taken something of mine, and I intend to get it back... If you answer me truthfully I might not eat your soul." he says, presenting a hand with red and black mist enveloping it.

    "Eat my soul? ARROGANCE! Killing a few of my kin seems to have emboldened you, let me fix that!" she shouts, transforming and charging Reima...

    *CLANK!*

    *Flash*

    *CUT!*

    A quick parry with his silver blade against her claws before teleporting behind and bisecting her allows him to easily end the conflict... This particular Elder doesn''t seem to have the regenerative qualities that Morwenna had, all Vampires are unique so this Elder probably had a different ability, one she didn''t get to use since, well, she''s dead...

    Flashback End :

    Unfortunately, he wasn''t able to acquire any information about Vasile, apart from the fact he was a "Fool" and didn''t have a good relationship with the other Elders. He''d started to wish for Quelina to design a Veritaserum that works on Vampires, though, even if she did manage to make one, he didn''t doubt there''d be a Vampire with the unique ability to resist toxins.

    The Vampires in Pont Vanis seemed to have sensed their Elder''s death, escaping into the sewers before he could stop them... In all honesty, he was tempted to just fill the sewers with magma and leave it at that. The only thing stopping him from doing just that was the fact it''d probably kill all the slaves kept by the Vampires.

    It took a couple hours for the Abyssal Servents to kill or capture the remaining Vampire, the time would have gone quicker if he''d assisted them, but memories of the Depths had him stay well away.

    After stealing the souls of the Higher Vampires he did what he''d done many, many times before... Gathering the survivors and creating a Democracy, quickly leaving afterward for the next city... Lan Exeter.

    While he was flying over, he could immediately spot that something was different about this city... It wasn''t the beautiful sights, snow blanketing the architecturally impressive buildings, nor was it the fact the Vampires already had the port working, with boats coming to and fro from wherever they were heading... No, the thing that had him raise a brow were the huge population of Vampires inhabiting this city.

    Even on the outskirts, Plumards could be seen flying after unfortunate wildlife that''d strayed too close to their territory... Not only that, but he could also sense something rather powerful lying underneath the tower itself, though, he wasn''t sure exactly what it was.

    Deciding that it''s better to see than to believe, he starts slowly descending upon the city, his dragon wings folding behind him as he lands in the middle of a busy street. The humans and other mortal races around him immediately duck their heads and go about their business, the Vampires however, did not.

    "You, what''s your identity?" a Katakan stomps over, so confident in their leader and their kin that they don''t even bother to retain human form.

    Reima raises a brow, "I was sent by Lady Morwenna to send a message to Lord Vasile." he says.

    ...

    The Katakan eyes him for a while before slowly nodding, "Vasile, last I heard he resided within Lord Roisins manor that overlooks the city." they gesture up towards a hill that has a lone building sitting prominently atop it.

    Reima nods, "Ah, thanks... Brother... Bountiful blood to you." he says awkwardly and leaps in the air to fly towards the manor.

 795 Where theres Witches theres Bit****

    Shaking his head of these thoughts he knocks on the door a couple times and waits, it opening a few seconds later by a woman in a maid outfit.

    "Yes master?" she asks.

    Reima momentarily thinks of Quelaag in a similar outfit but forces himself to focus, "I''m looking for Lord Vasile, is he present?"

    ...

    "L-Lord Vasile?... Excuse me for a moment, I need to speak with someone." she says, shutting the door and speed walking towards the Elder on the top floor.

    Reima taps his foot impatiently with his arms crossed, wondering if he really needed to go about it like this to find our where Vasile was... He knew the Elder Vampires definitely wouldn''t talk, their heads so far up their asses they''ve become the new symbol for infinity.

    If this doesn''t work and the Elder doesn''t talk, then he''d interrogate the subordinates... He could think of a few tortures that''d make even a Vampire cringe.

    *Creaaak*

    The maid opens the door again and bows, "Apologies for the wait master, I will lead you to Lord Roisin." she says, gesturing for him to follow her.

    Reima follows with a nod, not bothering to even glance at the Vampires in the manor glaring at him the entire way.

    The maid opens the door and Reima steps through as she closes it behind him, the vampire apparently named Roisin sitting behind a desk with a neutral look on his face.

    Roisin "Come, sit." he says, gesturing towards the chair.

    Reima could already tell this was a trap, but he wouldn''t put it past this guy to do the villain troupe of explaining your plan before he kills you.

    Upon sitting down a mechanism activates with a loud sound, *CLUNK!*, Reima finds his hand that''d been on the armrests locked in place by what seem like Dimeritium restraints...

    Roisin grins, "I''ve heard much about you already... Did you not think I''d be aware of someone slowly freeing territory? You were too predictable, I saw through your actions and, have won as a result.

    Reima slows his heartrate significantly which manages to make his face paler as he attempts to act terrified, "Ah, oh no... Please don''t hurt me, I promise not to do it again..."

    ...

    Roisin "Youknow, you are not as fierce as I''d thought... Maybe the reports about you were false, without your mortal magic you seem to be less than even a coward."

    Reima "Ah, please, mercy... I''m but a weak human..."

    ...

    Reima was getting a bit tired of acting scared, this dudes monologuing is a bit too long...

    Roisin sighs and slumps in his chair, "Regardless, I want to know what your plans were, who you are, where your allies are, and why you requested to meet Vasile... If you answer all of these satisfactorily, I''ll give you a swift end." he states.

    Reima "Ah... Please... I have a wife and children."

    Roisin bursts into laughter, covering Reima''s face in spit...

    Reima somehow manages to restrain the urge of tearing the Vampire a new one and sighs, "V-very well... As long as you promise a quick end... I''m from Nilfgaard, I was taught that freedom under the Empire is the best situation the world could find itself in, and so, I wanted to extend this freedom upon other countries. I was so close, but you Vampires invaded... I needed to get rid of you before I could bring my plan to fruition. As for allies? I have none, I work alone. Lastly, I wished to meet Vasile to end him, I''d heard he was the leader of this city."

    Roisin scowls at that, "That fool? Leader of anything? I can''t tell if you''re trying to be funny, or are simply unaware." he says, wondering when Nilfgaard started producing Witchers.

    Reima "Erm, I really don''t know lord... Perhaps you could enlighten me to the folloy of my plan before my end?" he asks as pitifully as possible.

    Roisin grins widely, "Then, I will. Just to show you how foolish you were to challenge us. Listen, Vasile is a failure as an Elder, he is strong, but also mad. His actions endanger our race more than you ever could, making your actions counterintuitive... You will die based on a foolish assumption." he says, taking in the despairing face Reima had put on for him.

    Reima "I-is Vasile e-even here?" he asks, trying his best to force out tears, but only moistening his eyes.

    Roisin smirks, "No, I banished him days ago, none of us Elders have seen him since." he states.

    Reima frowns, breaking his act with a sigh, "Is that so..."

    Roisin raises a brow at the sudden change in attitude but doesn''t worry regardless, deciding to see if the information Reima had provided was accurate. He walks up to a device on a table and activates it, causing it to start whirring and summoning a hologram of someone.

    "HmmMmh?! What is it nor Lord Roisin? I''ve got a lot on my plate right at this mom-Ah!" she exclaims, pointing at Reima, somehow able to see through her blindfold.

    Reima sends a glare at the woman, feeling as if she was the most traitorous scum on the continent... "Hello Phillipa." he says dully, causing her skin to visibly pale, even through the hologram.

 796 JoJ-owned...

    Roisin gives her a confused look due to her reaction to his guest but pays no mind to it, "I''ve captured someone who suggests they''re from Nilfgaard... Witchers aren''t all that common, so I was hoping you would be able to add some validity to some information he''d given." he says.

    ...

    Phillipa shakes her head, if this man was from Nilfgaard then perhaps she had mistaken him with another Witcher... "Erm... The obvious thing is to check what Medallion he has-" as soon as she says this a Wolf Medallion climbs out from under Reima''s armour, shocking her.

    Reima grins, having revealed it via Telekenises, "What''s wrong Phillipa? Not liking what you see?"

    Phillipa tries to calm herself but finds her heart still beating rapidly, "N-no, you don''t f-frighten me at all..." she looks to Roisin, "T-this man is R-Reima Ludvig, King of Ichor." she states.

    *CLANK!*

    The Dimeritium shackles holding Reima''s arms down shatter as he free''s himself, "Thanks for the intro, I''ll be sure to visit you, Phillipa." he states, standing. "I could kill you now, but where''d be the fun in that? I think ripping out your bitch tongue would be a start." he looks to Roisin who''s shocked at the fact he''d been duped. "And you, so you don''t know where Vasile is huh? Then you serve no purpose for me." he says, teleporting forwards, grabbing the Vampires face and shooting out of the window behind him.

    A gold aura envelopes his body as dragon wings erupt from his back, he flies at mach speeds before slamming the back of Roisin head into the ground a few miles away from the Manion, completely destroying the stone underneath and nearby trees.

    Reima doesn''t stop there, he stands above Roisin and starts pummeling him with numerous punches, shouting "MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA!" after the number of punches enter quadruple digits he finishes it, "MUUUUDDAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!" he delivers one last punch powered by Elder Blood Magic, causing space itself to tear from the force of it.

    Reima "Heh, I''ve always wanted to do that." he mutters.

    The ground beneath Reima was nothing but magma at the end of his ultra-combo, even though he hadn''t used his aura on it at all. Even after this, he could still feel Roisin alive under the magma...

    Reima reaches in and grabs the pile of bloody flesh and prepares to eat the soul... Only to find his hands had started slowly turning golden... "As baller as this looks, I''m not going to be ANOTHER STATUE!" he shouts, slamming down his arms and breaking them off, watching as the severed limbs completely turn to gold.

    Afterwards Reima sits crossed legged while floating above the Magma pool he''d inadvertently created, thinking about the information he''d acquired... Vasile had been banished and was nowhere to be found, and apparently even the Elders had no idea where he was. Not only that, but it seemed that the Vampires hadn''t acquired Nilfgaard? Something he''d been led to believe due to how Roisin reacted to his answers... If Nilfgaard was already under their control, there''d e no need to call Phillipa to confirm it? Or maybe he was just overthinking things.

    On the subject of Phillipa, it seems she''d joined hands with the Vampires, something Reima couldn''t really believe... From what he knew, Phillipa was a prideful and loyal person... Towards her sisters at least. The Vampires had attempted to enslave all of humanity, this included Sorceresses... So, she''d probably had to bargain with them to retain her freedom if she had been caught. Though, Reima could think of one thing that could bring her to their side... Radovid.

    Elsewhere :

    Vasile had been raging ever since those insects had stolen his property, he truly believed that woman held the secrets of this world and perhaps many others... But it was useless now, he knew finding her would be an immense task, especially since his kin had abandoned him.

    Roisin had been furious after he''d destroyed the underground shrine holding the ancient monolith, he hadn''t thought it was that big an issue, but his banishment gave a contrary story. Being banished by Vampires wasn''t similar to how Mortals banished people... Vampires were eternal, and they had only a few rules, banishment was the worst punishment one could be dealt among their race... This was especially so against an Elder, it meant that he wouldn''t be able to enter any Vampire territory and if he did he''d be hunted by his kin... Which meant the Elders would likely eat him.

    Vasile hadn''t been in the right state of mind since losing Ciaran however, he raged across the continent destroying villages and towns, eventually calming and using his unique ability to charm to gain information on the place his obsession had apparently been from... Ichor.

    With her escape, he thought it likely that she would return there. With that, he set his sights on Ichor and travelled around the Dragon Mountains to gain access to the back of it without having to deal with the annoying guards and security system the technologically advanced city had created... The patrols were also easily dealt with via his charm, Prospects were incredible due to their immortality, but they had no resistance against being mentally manipulated...

    With Vasile''s strength, speed, abilities, and skills, he eventually managed to slip inside Ichor after days of preparation... However, he needed information to find his target, and the best place for that would always be the drinking holes of mortals...

    His eyes flickered to a sign with "Papyrus and Toriel Comedy Club" on it, him entering inside casually, albeit a bit stiffly.

 797 Laughing Sto-ake...

    Upon entering he was greeted with the dim room of the club, lights only shining upon the stand where SnowDrake was currently telling jokes. The bar sat off to the side with people occasionally walking up and purchasing drinks from what looked like a fire elemental bar-keep...

    Not really knowing how to act in such a place Vasile slowly walked over to a empty table in the corner of the room and sat down, keeping his head low while focussing his hearing on the tables surrounding him...

    "This trouble with Vampires is really quite something isn''t it?" one monster says to another, using their tenticle to take a drink from their glass.

    "Indeed, good thing the King is around to save us, he even managed to get my daughter out of her rut." the other says, their fat pig-like form towering over the table.

    "That''s marvelous, I''m sure Ironia will be a front runner in journalism soon enough-"

    Vasile shakes his head with a scowl, changing his focus to another table, again, there was no good information aside from learning that the word "Jolly" had more uses than he''d initially thought.

    The Vampire continues this for a couple hours, never looking up or even approaching another person... A furry female that looked half-human half-cat had tried to sit with him but a glare had sent her scurrying off.

    Fortunately for him he''d found that a good place for information had been from a group of masked individuals, they resembled the others that patrolled the town and he was sure they had some sort of authority, this was confirmed in his mind when they started speaking about various things an ordinary person wouldn''t typically know about their country...

    It seems their King was personally going around and clearing Vampires from the captured territories, a fact they were cleary proud of. Aditionally, it seemed they regarded the Vampires themselves as a pest to be dealt with, an attitude that was ironically shared by Vampires towards humans.

    After another hour of listening to them, Vasile had finally heard some information on the person he''d come for... Only for it to completely ruin his plans... Ciaran, his obsession had apparently not returned, and was assumed to still be held captive.

    Vasile gripped his fist so hard that he could probably make diamonds with the pressure, he slowly calms himself down though, causing trouble and fighting this whole city of strange individuals would be troublesome. He gets up and starts heading for the door, only for a spotline to swing down and point at him, bathing him in light and making him the centre of attention.

    The staff leave once Vasile is on the stage and behind the microphone stand, Sans stands next to him with his everpresent grin...

    Sans "Don''t worry bud, just tell a couple of jokes and you can leave, I''ll even throw in a couple vouchers." he says quietly so the audience doesn''t pick it up.

    Vasile grits his teeth and glares at the skeleton, "You will release me, or I WILL TEAR YOUR HEAD FROM YOUR BODY!" he shouts, quickly losing his temper as he realises the situation he was in.

    ...

    "HAHAHAHAHAH!"

    "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

    "Oh! Who is this man!?! So funny!"

    "HA! WHAT A REACTION! I ALMOST FELT SCARED FOR A MOMENT THERE!"

    The crowd bursts into laughter after a moment of silence, the fiersome aura emitted by Vasile had definitely scared a few, but as the first person started laughing the others relaxed, feeling that Vasile''s reaction was part of the act.

    Sans continues grinning, looking up at Vasiles livid face, "Hm, you''re a natural bud, got anymore material?"

    Vasile looks upon the crowd laughter at him and can feel his body unconsciously starting to transform, his pride had never been damaged as much as this... Did these people not know that he would EAT THEM!?

    Sans "Hey, bud... Before you start making trouble, I''ve gotta warn you... Do you wanna have a bad t time?" he says, the left eyehole of his skull flashes with a glowing blue eye, causing Vasile to halt his actions in surprise. He''d not felt this kind of pressure since he''d first become an Elder by defeating his predecessor, it almost felt like the world itself was closing in around him.

    Vasile growls and shakes his head, throwing the microphone on the floor and stomping out, all the while getting jeered at by the audience.

    Once outside he looks up at the sky and roars in anger, walking up to the hotel across the street and punching the wall, if it hadn''t been reinforced it the attack woud''ve collapsed the building... Luckily it only left a large create with splintering cracks spreading from it...

    Vasile "Mortals dare mock ME?!?" he mutters to himself in fury, breathing fo a moment before turning... Noticing that all the people nearby were watching him cautiously.

    Then... They shrug and go about their business, ignoring Vasile as if he''d not done anything wrong... Vasile was incredibly confused by this, walking into an alleyway while quickly looking into someone''s eyes as the walk by... The person following him in the alleyway as if it were natural.

 798 A New Challenger!

    Vasile looks over his temporary servant, "Mortal, you are now my slave... What do your companions call you?"

    "Varteand my lord." they say, eyes glazed over as they bow to Vasile.

    Vasile slowly nods, "Hmm, what is your occupation?"

    Varteand "Spy."

    ...

    Vasile grins, revealing his fangs, "A spy? Working for this country?" he asks, hoping it wasn''t one of those Nilfgaardians...

    Varteand nods, "I am loyal to my King Reima Ludvig." he states, not looking as lifeless as he did to the other questions.

    Vasile scowls, "What of your loyalty to ME?" he asks, using his power to exert his will over the man.

    Varteand can''t look away from Vasile, pain starting to wrack his mind, "Ah! I-I serve o-only you my lord, King R-Reima is secondary!" he says, holding his head to try and alleviate the pain slightly.

    Vasile nods, "Good. Now! Tell me what you know of the woman known as Ciaran!"

    Varteand is about to speak but is interrupted by a voice coming from further inside the alleyway...

    "Heh, I did warn you didn''t I?" they say, the only thing visible to Varteand in the darkness being a glowing blue eye.

    Vasile "YOU AGAIN?" he growls at the skeleton who''d apparently followed him.

    Sans stands into the light and shrugs, "I would have come sooner, but everyone else bombed on stage after you... Not just your jokes are funny, you''re looking pretty funny too." he says, gesturing towards Vasile''s glowing yellow eyes with black sclara.

    Vasile "I wasn''t going to kill you, all bones with no blood... But you''ve forced my hand!" he says, looking to Varteand, "KILL IT!"

    Varteand quickly nods, "Yes my lord!", retrieves a dagger from some hidden place and starts sprinting towards Sans. The spy was perfectly capable of combat, even if Chaos Servants and Prospects outclassed him in every way, however, he''d still been trained by the best fighters the continent had to offer...

    He leaps and brings the dagger down towards Sans skull, hoping to pierce it and kill the monster... Only for Sans to throw a bone at him with a determined expression...

    *Thud...*

    Varteand and Vasile look at the floor where the bone was now lying... The bone had hit the spy in the face and bounced off, doing literally no damage whatsoever, in-fact it did more damage to their psyche due to how pathetic the attack actually was.

    Vasile "SEIZE HIM, DON''T LET HIM ESCAPE!" he shouts, not wishing to dirty his hands on this apparently pathetic being.

    Varteand nods, sprinting into the alleyway where Sans had entered but not spotting him... He figures the skeleton must''ve run further into it, and doubted its stubby legs could run faster than he could.

    Vasile watches as his servant leaves, slowly walking towards the intersection... But stopping when he sees something odd.

    Sans walks out from the opposite direction to where he''d walked, as if he''d teleported to the other side. "... Eh, this wasn''t my stop... I''m quite a bone head aren''t I?" he says, looking away from Vasile as a *Du-Du-Chee* comes from somewhere the Vampire wasn''t able to locate...

    Vasile "So you''ve returned to meet your maker?" he says, deciding to show this whelp his true form before he tore it to pieces.

    Sans watches as the Vampire falls to his knees, his flesh bubbling and expanding until he transforms into a horrific monster. "Hey, bud? You''re looking a bit blue." he says, raising his hand as his eye flashes yellow, a blue aura surrounding Vasile...

    *Dink!*

    *Cue Megalovania*

    Vasile looks up from his half-transformed state and growls out in a distorted voice, "W-what is this!?" as he''s effortlessly lifted into the air by Sans.

    Sans "Didn''t think I''d have to do this again, I guess the "Stakes" are too high." he says, lowering his hand, causing Vasile to shoot towards the floor at quick speeds, sharp bones erupting from the ground in-order to intercept him.

    Vasile roars and struggles to get this blue aura to release him, to no avail. His wings rapidly flap upon the discovery, allowing him to redirect himself out of the path of the bones. The attack isn''t over however, he starts falling sideways towards the alleyway building, more bones erupting from there too!

    The strange attack was too sudden which allows Vasile to get scratched by one of the bones, the Vampire quickly dashing backwards as the blue aura wears off to look at his injury... The pain coming from it not feeling like anything he''d experienced before.

    The monstrous Vampire looks down at his arm, noticing the wound that should have already healed was smoking with a blue aura covering it... Far from healing, it seemed to be opening up on itself, getting worse. "What is this? WHO ARE YOU?!" he roars, causing the nearby buildings to tremble.

    Sans shrugs again, "Just your friendly neighborhood skeleton, as to what "This" is? Well, you''ll just have to find out." he says with a wink as strange things appear behind him... They''d resemble a small dragons skull were it not for their glowing eyes similar to Sans and the whispy energy escaping their currently closed maws.

    Vasile had clearly had enough of this fool, launching himself at Sans faster than most Superhumans could see... His claws pass through the skeleton which has the Vampire grin in victory, looking down at what should be a pile of shattered bones... Only to find Sans stepping backwards awkwardly, as if he was about to fall over, one of his slippers falling off...

 799 What a Ghara-sham...

    The "Gaster Blasters" behind Sans suddenly make a whizzing noise, indicating that they were charging up... Vasile tries for another lunge at Sans but ends up getting blasted in the face by multiple lasers, at first he tries to resist the impact, but after a couple moments of the blasters firing he tries to back off, realising that the same peculiar wounds were accumulating.

    The firing squad ends and reveals Vasile with scorch marks covering the entirety of the front of his body, all smoking with the familiar blue aura. It was incredibly painful, even for an Elder Vampire like Vasile who''s already experienced many centuries of pain...

    He grips his face and stands straight, looking to the sky and roaring in agony, just as Sans gestures towards the Vampire...

    Many bones explode from the ground, impaling the Vampire numerous times, the accumulated damage causing every breath Vasile takes to release blue mist.

    Sans grins, "Heh, first time I''ve seen a Vampire get boned."

    Vasile "AHHHHHHHH! I''LLLLLL ENNNNDD YOU!!!!" he shouts, struggling to remove the bones and instead turning into red mist, the blue aura following the Vasile regardless of his bodies current state.

    Unfortunately for Vasile, Sans Gaster Blasters were more affective against immaterial foes...

    *PEWWWWWWW*

    And just like that, the red mist was annihilated, soul and all... Vasile was no more.

    *End Megalovania*

    ...

    ...

    Sans looks around at the damaged alleyway and shrugs, walking out of view and taking a shortcut back to his Comedy Club.

    Elsewhere :

    After killing Roisin and liberating Lan Exeter Reima immediately headed for Novigrad, all of his leads were gone and Vasile was still somewhere in the continent, so he decided that the largest city would likely contain some information he could use... That, and he was hoping to deal with Phillipa before she caused any more problems for him.

    Reima ignored the Redanian cities that were currently occupied by Vampires, there''d be no point in freeing them until Radovid was dead... He didn''t want to go through the effort of freeing a bunch of territory for a douchebag who lets a shitty religion murder people for no reason.

    Not long after flying past them he spotted the city of Novigrad... Finding that it didn''t look as damaged as he thought it would, really, it seemed as though the Vampires hadn''t even attacked the place. If it weren''t for the fact he could see Vampires entering and exitting the city gate he''d have thought they''d managed to push them back.

    He passes by a few Vampires leading a large line of children linked by chains, but ignores them for now... He wouldn''t get anywhere if he tried to fix every problem he comes across, especially since time was of the essence wherever Ciaran was concerned.

    At the gate he was stopped by a guardsman who wore a badge containing a hand with a blood drop in the middle of it... "Halt, reveal your face and present any identification." he states.

    Reima raises a brow, glancing around at hte other people passing through without interruption. "May I ask what this is needed for?"

    The guard sighs, "Why do peasants keep asking so many questions, just do as your told or give me a reason to run you through!" he exclaims, clearly not enjoying his job.

    Reima waves his hand, raises his head to look in the man''s eyes while utilising a combination of Axii and legilimency, "What''s the reason for this stop, and on who''s orders are you operating under?" he asks quietly so people nearby don''t hear him.

    The guard nods knowingly as if he''d been presented a bribe, "None who pass without showing their eyes are allowed in the city, as you may already know, Witchers have been outlawed. Any who''re found will be burned at the stake with any who assist them." he says, surprising Reima as he''d not really thought about how Vampires felt towards Witchers, though, it made sense they''d wish to hunt them all down.

    The guard continues, "This badge I proudly and willingly wear represents the clan Gharasham, the strongest clan of our Vampire overlords." he states.

    Reima slowly nods, "Hm... I''m not the Witcher you''re looking for." he says while waving his hand as if he were casting a Jedi mindtrick.

    "You''re are not the Witcher I''m looking for."

    Reima smirks and walks past, inwardly imagining himself wearing Jedi robes... The city streets were different to all the others he''d been in, well worn stone roads that looked on their last legs, fauna and decorations dotted about... Clearly this was a rich town.

    The only thing that spoiled it were the many homeless begging on the side streets he passed, he guessed they were probably not allowed on the main road which forced them on the side ones, this led to all the side roads near the gate being chock full of homeless people begging for food.

    Unsurprisingly, there was a complete lack of non-humans in the city, this being the "capital" of the Eternal Fire meant that all of them had probably already been burned alive if they''d not left already. Reima was already starting to reconsider freeing this shit-hole, feeling that they deserved to be ruled over the creatures they claimed to be so superior to.

    Regardless, he continued walking, expanding his Observation Haki to look for any trace of Phillipa, or indeed the Elder that controlled this place... He also kept an eye out for Radovid, believing he''d be hiding someone within it after the Vampires invaded.

 800 Creed of Assassins

    Most of the group were incredibly tired by the ordeals they''d been through to get thus far, Etredi was still injured and had to be carried by Tildanird, slowing their progress away from Thanedd.

    Margarita had exhausted herself casting a hastily made makeshift portal and immediately afterwards engaging in combat, the others questioned her on whether she could make a portal or even knew a safer place than right there they were...

    Of course, as an old sorceress she knew many areas that the Vampires wouldn''t tread, most being situated far away from regular society. She''d told them that it''d take around a day for her to recover enough to create a portal to take them all there, leading them to have to travel along the coast to find a safe place to rest.

    The mages who''d detected the initial portal being open would obviously still be aware of their presence, even more so when they''d find a large portion of their men murdered on Thanedd.

    Fortunately, though the group managed to find a small cave along one of the many coast cliffs decorating the continents shores. With that, they set up camp, they didn''t have any sleeping bags and were forced to use the spare clothing they had on hand, they''d traveled away from the north so the temperature wasn''t too bad, even if the ocean wind did occasionally blow through the cave.

    Ciaran had been sleeping enough within her cell and decided that she was fine for a few days, leaving the cave and moving in the direction of distant rising black smoke, indicating that a village or small city would be located there... She might be in enemy territory, but that just meant more opportunities to serve her country. Hopefully her absence would be ignored if she brought back some valuable information, she''d never gone against Reima''s orders before and felt shameful to have failed, even if she''d been unwillingly taken.

    It wasn''t long before she came upon a small town which she soon learned bwas called Caelf, it was situated between Gors Velen and the capital city of Cidaris which happens to share the same name, making it a valuable place to rest for tired merchants. Obviously, as someone well versed subterfuge, Ciaran took advantage of this, walking around and pick-pocketing an easy-looking target before using the coin she''d acquired to buy some "Favours".

    She learned much from her efforts, learning about the various merchant companies, nobles, and recent events. Most interesting to her was the fact that the Vampires seem to have formed some sort of alliance with Nilfgaard, none of them even attempting to harm the Empires interests... Most of what she heard were rumours and gossip unfortunately due to merchants and low-nobles not being privy in the internals of the state, much less what goes on within Emperor Voorhis meetings.

    Ciaran ducked out at around 2 am, using the information she''d gleaned on the city and it''s layout to find the city''s leader''s residence, Earl Lalcaero was apparently given charge of this city after Nilfgaard had annexed it. He was known to be a kind and wise man that no one would think to harm... Seemed like he''d live a peaceful heathly life, that is, if he wasn''t on Ciaran''s radar.

    A shadow throws itself silently over the wall of a large mansion, the heavily armed guards outside the estate not noticing a thing... Ciaran slinks close to a window which has dim light coming from it... Taking a peak inside she spots the Earl being "serviced" by a maid, after "finishing" the maid gives a farewell and leaves, closing the door behind her... Not noticing the shadow glaring at them through the window with lethal intentions.

    As if the window had been recently oiled, it makes no sound whatsoever as Ciaran picks it and pushes it open. The wind blows through the window and gives the sweaty Earl the chills, the man looking over and frowning at the open window.

    Lalcaero "...Now, how did that open?" he wonders aloud, reaching over to the candle on his bedside by finding that it''d been blown out. Shaking his head he gets up and walks towards the window, ignoring the fluttering curtains either side of it...

    With a sigh he shuts the window, but somehow still feels the chill, aswell as goosebumps... Realising that what he was feeling isn''t natural at all he goes to call for his maid, but has a hand clasp over his mouth, causing him to give a muffled scream while trying to fend off the intruder.

    Ciaran''s strength far exceeded the man and allowed her to keep him still, holding him in place as she whispers into his ear, "Silence, or I will end you." she states, no hint of hesitation in her voice.

    The man''s struggling slowly ceases, realisaing that his life was now in this woman hands, the hand releases slightly, allowing him to speak, though, Ciaran remained prepared to shut him up if he attempted to shout.

    Lalcaero "W-who are you? Who sent you?"

 801 Digging too deep

    Ciaran shakes her head and doesn''t answer, instead walking him over to a chair and sitting him down, continuing to remain behind him. "I will ask some questions, and your survival depends on how truthful you are... If I find you''re a liar I will butcher you, your maid, aswell as anyone else who lives within this estate... Do you understand?" she says simply, as if she''d not just threatened to erase this man and everything he cherishes.

    Lalcaero quickly nods, "Y-yes... I-I understand..." he says, defeated.

    Ciaran "What is Nilfgaards relationship with the Vampires?"

    Lalcaero "I-I don''t kn-" *CRACK* he slowly looks behind him and spots that the back of the wooden chair has been utterly destroyed, leaving only splintered remains... Ciaran dusts off her hands and looks him in the eyes, "Continue."

    Lalcaero starts profusely sweating at this, "I... F-from what m-my colleagues have s-said, it appears that t-the Vampires d-don''t want the Empires t-territory..."

    Ciaran nods, "And the agreement between Nilgaard and the Vampires?"

    Lalcaero "I-I think t-the Emperor has a-allied with them... I receive reports of people who''re required to give blood..." he intends to end his answer there but feels his mouth go dry when Ciaran glares at him... "T-The Emperor has started c-creating a s-strong military force... I-if we are allied with the V-vampires then the target m-must be in the nor-"

    Ciaran "-Ichor..." she mutters, frowning, she''s objected before when Reima refused to just annihilate Nilfgaard... Saying that the problem had been Emhyr Var Emreis and that he''d been dealt with. Clearly that wasn''t the case if an invasion force was heading north. "Where is this force currently?"

    Lalcaero "F-from what I know, it should have r-reached the south of A-Aedirn by now..."

    Ciaran frowns, that''s a problem, if Margarita isn''t able to create a portal near Kaer Morhen she''d likely miss the battle... She probably wouldn''t even be needed, but she refused to leave it to chance as the invasion force would likely have the aid of the Vampires.

    Nodding to herself Ciaran decides to end it here, "One last question... Do you like my emereald eyes?" she asks gently.

    ...

    Lalcaero "Ah... Lady, you''re eyes are go-"

    *CRACK!*

    Ciaran brutally snaps his neck, not willing to leave a witness alive, much less a nobility of the Empire that was about to try and invade her home. "Wrong answer." she states, disappearing out of the window.

    It isn''t until morning that someone notices the Earls corpse, church bells ring to awaken the guards who immediately start scouring the city for the killer, even if they have no idea who committed the crime.

    The mages attempt to Divine who''s responsible, but find that "They" don''t exist, or shouldn''t. Leaving them confused and without answers.

    Ciaran "Are you able to create a portal yet?" she asks with a hard look.

    Margarita slowly nods, "I am... Any idea where we should go?"

    Etredi "Somewhere I can get my leg fixed!" she says loudly, gesturing at her bloody bandaged wounds.

    Dythi nods, "Etredi needs medical attention, who knows if her wound''ll get infected."

    Ciaran nods, "Margarita, can you transport us to Kaer Morhen?"

    The sorceress shakes her head, "Unfortunately, I''ve never been there... We''d likely end up inside a mountain if I tried."

    Ciaran frowns, "Then, Ard Carraigh?"

    Margarita nods, "I can do that, but will there be any help there? You said it''d been destroyed didn''t you?"

    Ciaran "I need to reach Ichor immediately to relay some news, they will be able to treat Etredi there."

    Tildanird "It''ll take a week to get there on foot from Ard Carraigh, do you think Etredi will last that long?" he says.

    Ciaran sighs, "She''ll have to, we aren''t going anywhere else." she states.

    ...

    The group give eachother reluctant looks, sure the place Ciaran wanted to take them was apparently safe and had medical supplies, but they weren''t sure Etredi would last the journey... That, and it was obvious she had another motive for wanting to go there.

    Dythi "We don''t really have anywhere else to go, do we..." he mutters.

    Margarita nods, "Let me prepare myself, I''m still a bit drained from yesterday, but it should be alright." she says, closing her eyes and beginning to chant in Elder Speech.

    Tildanird looks at Ciaran "I don''t know if we can trust you, but I believe you won''t let Etredi just die like this..." he says with a conflicted look.

    Ciaran doesn''t answer and just looks towards Margarita as the portal open, stepping in before everyone else.

    Elsewhere :

    Within a buried shrine that''d previously been liberally flowing with blood, a tall stone monolith sits patiently, red runes pulsing on the surface as red light dimly shines from cracks in the surface of it...

    *Pak! Pak! Pak! Pak!*

    The sound of someone digging with a pickaxe reverberates above the ancient object, the red lights pulse as if they were anxious to be reached soon...

    "Boss, where do you think this leads?" one of the peasants mining asks.

    The leader shrugs, "Dunno, that there God didnd''t say nuthink after he killed dem Vampeers and saved us... If I had to bet, I''d say gold!" he says with a grin, "Now gitcha back minin'' we got work ta do!"

    "Y-yes boss." they say, continuing to chip away at the stone rubble, men behind him constructing wood reinforcements so the tunnel doesn''t collapse atop them and dwarves scooping the loose stone and soil into a bag before transporting it outside.

    "I hope we reach the end soon, my back can''t take much more of this."

 802 Zigizigi Dickstrum

    His stay within the city hadn''t been all that bad, aside from the "Kill all Witchers on sight" rule, if he were honest he''d say it was more welcoming than when the Eternal Fire ran things... Reima assumed the place used to stink of rotten, burnt flesh. Now it only smelled of sewage, death and decay, which isn''t dreadful when you get used to it.

    It wasn''t like he didn''t have company either, not long after he''d entered the city one of Sigismund Dijkstra''s goons had noticed him and reported his whereabouts... Only problem with that being, they''d mistaken him for Geralt.

    When Reima turned up at Dijkstra''s bathhouse the man immediately drew his sword and started questioning him, assuming Reima to be an assassin disguised as Geralt.

    The situation was quickly cleared up after Reima beat the man and his men to a pulp, Dijkstra even complemented Reima saying that his fists felt like Geralt''s... Once they got talking Reima realised that Dijkstra actually owed Geralt a favour, and tried to call him here in-order to smuggle him out of the Vampire infested city, the rule against Witchers clearly on his mind.

    Reima wouldn''t usually deal with people like this, but upon him mentioning his plan to kick the shit out of Phillipa Eilhart the gang-leader was all onboard, having assumed the sorceress was long gone.

    With Dijkstra''s spy network along with the other surviving gang leaders, any information that even give a hint to Phillipa''s wearabouts were quickly relayed... Eventually leading them to small store just outside the city walls, sitting on the heavily travelled road next to the vast forests nearby.

    The storeowner was apparently under the employ of Dijkstra, and the shop itself was mainly used as an information distributor... Reima couldn''t help but chuckle when he heard that the herbs they were supposed to be selling almost never got bought, forcing Djikstra to throw out all the rotten herbs and restock it with fresh ones.

    Once the duo arrived at the store the clerk quickly shoved papers into their hands and politely shoo''d them out, not wishing for Dijkstra to stay any longer as to not ruin the facade business they were running.

    Outside Reima took a look at the papers he''d been given, seeing multiple drawing of a hooden woman with only the lower half of her face visible... Black hair, freckles, smug smirk... Yep, this was Phillipa.

    Dijkstra "Definitely ''er, I''d be able to spot her smug fuckin'' grin from a mile away."

    Reima "Hmm, well, at least we know she''s around here.. Any idea''s?"

    Reima shakes his head, "I''ll be the judge of that, you must''ve heard stories about me right?"

    Dijkstra nods, "I have, thought they were all drivel of men manipulated by magic... Judging by how redicules the stories they told were, I''d say your but a half-assed mage." he shrugs.

    Reima "Hmm, you can believe whatever you want, I just wanna know where Phillipa is hiding."

    Dijkstra "Fine, it''s you''re deathbed mind you. I''ve received reports that large group of homeless in Novigrad have a started disappearin'', "How do you know this?" I hear you ask? Well, a few of those dirty beggers happen to have been MY dirty beggers."

    Reima "Dijkstra, I don''t care, just tell me where they are."

    Dijkstra shakes his head, "My scouts have reported strange sounds coming from the woods north of Novigrad, screams, whimpers, and all that sort. I ignored it until one of my men found dismembered arms and legs, all drained of blood... One of them with my gangs tattoo. You want Phillipa? She''s probably in the forest with those fukin'' Vampries."

    Reima nods, thankful that this gangster hadn''t gone on another monologue or started telling another story. "Ok, thanks." he says, preparing to leave to take a look.

    Dijkstra "Ah, before you''re off, I''d appreciate if you could bring back my men alive, that is, if you yourself manage to survive. I doubt you''ll be able to manage Phillipa and the Vampires alone." he remarks, a smirk finding its way onto his face. Regardless of the favour he owed Geralt, getting Reima to pay for some men to assist him would be good business indeed.

    Reima sighs and gives a shrug, not saying anything as he leaps towards the distant forest, leaving cracks in the ground where he''d previously been standing.

    Dijkstra falls on his ass staring wide eyed at the spot, holding a hand over his heart as it drums in his chest, "The fuk was that? Why ''as Geralt never done somethin'' like that before!" he exclaims.

    Reima quickly falls towards the forest, wings erupting from his back in-order to facilitate a gentle landing... It wouldn''t do to alert the Vampires to his presence just yet, Phillipa might just teleport somewhere else if she heard he was coming.

    ...

    He glances around the relatively normal-looking forest, despite how uninteresting it looked, he couldn''t help but feel that something was wrong. After a minute of observing, he finally realised what the problem was... It''s too quiet...

 803 Searing Passion

    Far into the forest he could hear something break, followed by lots of movement presumably made by a large creature. Extending his Observation Haki and running after it, he soon catches up just as the comparatively small Garkain was about to escape into some kind of burrow, leading far underground.

    With a quick blink, he appears behind the beast and grabs its foot, completely stopping it from going through the hole...

    It snorts, squeals and shrieks at him, turning around and attempting to claw at him... Reima just blocks the claws and tears its soul out nonchalantly, storing its corpse to prevent it from being found...

    With the beast dead he looks at the hole it''d tried to crawl into, pushing his Observation Haki to follow where it leads, but not managing to reach the end before his Haki reaches its range limit.

    Reima sighs, this was probably the place, but he''d rather not waste time looking around for a secret exit that could very well be in the opposite end of the forest... "Time to utilise "that" ability huh?" he mutters to himself as his body shrinks and scales start growing to replace his skin...

    Soon enough, the only thing left is a dog-sized winged lizard with black scales and bright turquoise eyes. He glances down the hole but doesn''t see much, a bend in the hole preventing him from seeing anything further.

    With nothing left to do he crawls inside, folding his wings to prevent them from getting caught and slowly making his way inside, utilising his claws to drag himself through narrow parts of the tunnel.

    After a couple minutes of this he starts hearing faint sounds of crying, screaming, and shouting, all obviously from terrified individuals, men and women included. This must be where people had been hearing the sound from, assuming there were more than one of these tunnels, it''d create an echo effect through the entire forest... Was it purposely designed this way?

    Regardless of their intentions when creating this, Reima was determined to destroy whatever operations they had down here, as well as capturing or killing Phillipa should she be down here...

    Soon enough, Reima finally reaches the end of the tunnel, it stops at the roof of some kind of large hallway, peaking down into it Reima could spot many chained people in ragged clothing being lead by a Vampire... Men, women, and children were all present, no specific race seemed to be prioritized as there were elves, humans, dwarves, and halflings here...

    Strangely enough, the people themselves had strange aura''s about them... It felt almost, artificial? Reima wasn''t really sure what that meant, but he was determined to find out after he''d found Phillipa.

    He decides to ignore that for now, and instead swaps his focus to other areas... Somekind of living quarters for the Vampires that held many fineries? No. A machine designed to flay the skin from mortals put inside it...? No... An Alchemy lab?... Maybe?

    Ignoring the almost vomit-inducing skin peeler Reima transformed back into his human form and started heading towards the Alchemy lab he''d managed to find, keeping his Observation Haki active to prevent wandering into any groups of Vampires accidentally.

    There were a few close calls, forcing Reima to turn himself invisible after spamming spells that''d remove scent, presence, magic, etc... But eventually he reached the Alchemy lab.

    There wasn''t anyone inside currently, Vampires seemed to avoid this place for some reason... Might be the garlic? There were numerous bundles of dried herbs hanging from racks on the ceiling, and a single cauldron bubbling away in the centre of the room, the ground around it stained with what could only be previous failures.

    From the looks of it, whoever operates this place had only left for an hour or two, the cauldron had almost dissolved the herbs that were inside it, meaning that they''d either forgotten about it, or would be back relatively soon.

    Reima "Hm, might''as well wait for them to return..." he mutters to himself, sitting on a chair and cloaking himself in the stealth spells again.

    ...

    40 minutes later he could sense a magically powerful presence quickly walking towards the lab, they burst through the doors to the lab and walk towards the cauldron, tossing in some herbs they''d managed to acquire in their haste.

    Phillipa stirs the liquid inside the cauldron, waving her hand over it while chanting Elder Speech... After that''s done she sighs to herself, "Almost ruined this batch... Damn Vampires don''t understand Sage from Savory." she mutters.

    Reima silently steps behind her and retrieves a block of Dimertitium from his Folded Space, using his aura to melt it while utilising telekenisis to shape it into a bracelet with an opening...

    Without warning he grabs Phillipa''s arm and puts the searing bracelet on her wrist, closing the opening to prevent her from being able to take it off. He covers her mouth with his hand as she suddenly starts screaming, the flesh of her arm horrifically burning as it makes contact with the metal.

    Reima "I wonder what you''re making Phillipa." he whispers in her ear, waving a hand and creating a ward to prevent any sound from escaping the room before letting her go.

    Phillipa continues to wail, tears would''ve been streaming down her face had her eyes not been removed...

    Reima taps his foot impatiently as Phillipa continues to scream and wail while trying to take off the bracelet he''d given her, accidentally tearing off the melted flesh as a result...

 804 Hand Job

    Reima "You done?" he asks bluntly.

    ...

    Phillipa looks towards the sound of his voice, the Dimeritium restricting the magic she''d been using to see without eyes. "Y-you, you''re sick... P-please he-al my arm, before it has to be s-severed." she says, not wishing to have her arm amputated due to infections.

    Reima shrugs, "Well, I might? It depends on whether or not you tell me the truth."

    Phillipa "I-I will! P-please help me!"

    Reima "Then, why are you helping the Vampires?" he asks the most important question first.

    Phillipa "T-they gave me an opportunity for revenge, in return they wanted my knowledge of all forms of magic.

    Reima raises a brow, "And you told them?"

    Phillipa "No... I d-did not trust that they''d not kill me a-afterwards. I only told t-them about basic forms o-of magic."

    Reima slowly nods, "So, did you manage to get revenge?" he asks, curious if Radovid was still alive.

    Phillipa curls her lips unconsciously at the thought before forcing herself back in a pitiful state, "Y-yes... A-actually, this potion w-was for him." she says, gesturing towards the cauldron.

    Reima crosses his arms, "Wait, Radovids here?" he asks in surprise, not expecting to get a two for one deal.

    Phillipa nods, "I-I can lead you to him..."

    Reima grins, "Sure." he says, unequipping the silver blade from his back, not having a reason to sneak around the place any longer.

    Phillipa stumbles towards the cauldron after feeling around for it before scooping out a healthy amount into a large vial, using a cork to stopper it. She continues to pitifully walk towards the door, glancing at Reima as she expects him to follow.

    Reima held no pity for her, sure she was blind but she''d done a lot to deserve such a fate, she''s lucky to remember this underground structure so well that she remembers its layout, otherwise Reima might struggle to actually find Radovid.

    They exit the lab, Phillipa using the right wall to walk straight and know vaguely where they were going...

    Phillipa "S-should you not use a spell to conceal us? The Vampire who owns this place is very powerfu-"

    Reima "Shut your mouth and lead me to Radovid." he states, ignoring the angry huff she gives under her breath.

    Obviously, they''re soon spotted by a group of Higher Vampires who start shouting obscenities at Phillipa, calling her a traitor and oathbreaker... Reima just watches as she''s berated, her pitiful form satisfying Reima''s more sadistic side...

    Eventually the Vampires had had enough of just verbally assaulting the Sorceress, one leaping at her, intent on getting a taste of a Sorceresses blood.

    *SLAM!*

    The others who''d seen this take a step back in surprise, not having expected their comrade to be incapacitated so quickly...

    Reima using the dark hand on the limp body of the Vampire and tears its soul out, getting horrified reactions from the Vampires watching...

    "M-MONSTER!"

    "U-unholy!"

    "JERRY NOOO!"

    ...

    Reima "You guys serious?" he points to himself, "I''m the monster?..." he shakes his head and summons the staff of Morwenna. "Slap these guys for me." he says to the staff, tapping it on the floor and causing the many hands to starts flying towards them.

    Reima watches with rapt interest as the Vampires attempt to evade the hands, some turning into their true forms in an attempt to overpower them... He can''t help but laugh when the hands finally catch them though, four hold their limbs in place while a few others begin brutally slapping them. The hands that had the power to pulverize a slab of titanate were clearly a match for this pitiful Vampires...

    *BANG!BANG!BANG!BANG!BANG!BANG!*

    The almost melodious sound of flesh being torn by the sheer force of the many hands impact rings through the hallway... By the time a minute had passed all that was left were broken and bloody piles of flesh and bone, writhing on the floor.

    Reima looks down at them and holds his hand out, the staff of Morwenna quickly reforming... Now covered in blood and grey-matter. "It''d be cool if I could use the Dark Hand on these things..." he mutters, unconsciously using the technique with the hand that was holding the staff...

    Much to his surprise, the staff itself started glowing the wispy black and red of the dark hand technique...

    Reima "Huh, this is... Cool?" he says, his voice almost cracking in surprise. He taps the floor with the staff and command, "Take the souls of those Vampires."

    The staff separates and the hands fly towards the piles of flesh, there were more hands than bodies, resulting in multiple hands trying to take the souls of one Vampire, resulting in what Reima could only describe as a tug of war...

    Fortunately, souls are incredibly difficult to break, much less destroy... Leading to the hands forming some sort of compromise and delivering the souls to Reima together. It took longer than if he had just done it himself, but this could be useful if there were many incapacitated Vampires around him while he was occupied with something else... His fight with Morwenna being one such example.

    With that done, he stores the corpses of the Vampires and glances to Phillipa, "Lead on." he says, ignoring the questioning look she sends in his vague direction.

 805 From the skin of your teeth...

    They make a turn on the right when Phillipa almost falls over after losing the support of the wall, a few more Vampires try to attack them but they''re cut down like the rest...

    The duo reach the end of the hallway they''re currently treading and are greeted by a heavy-looking metal door, many locks keeping it closed.

    Reima "You aren''t holding Cuthulu in there are you? That''s the only thing I can see needing that many locks." he says semi-sarcastically.

    Phillipa "I don''t know what this "Cuthulu" is you''re referring to, but these locks aren''t meant t-to keep things in... They''re meant to keep the V-Vampires out..."

    Reima observes what''s in the room with Haki and frowns, that''s fucking disgusting... With the things within, he could see why the Vampires would need this kind of door to keep their more savage and beast-like kin out, the many deep scratches and blood spatters covering this area is a testament to that. "Is Radovid in here?" he asks, having not been able to spot him within the room .

    Phillipa nods, "He is." she states as she steps forwards and starts slowly and clumsily unlocking the door. After a minute the last *click* can be heard, Phillipa tries to push the door open but doesn''t achieve anything, stepping back and looking towards Reima before gesturing at the door.

    Reima shrugs, giving the door a light kick with slams it open with a monumental sound, almost tearing the thing off of it''s heavily reinforced hinges.

    Phillipa would comment on his brutish actions but the smell from within the room punches the both of them in the face...

    Reima shakes his head, his great sense of smell acting as a weakness at this moment, it truly smelt worse than the depths ever had, and that''s saying something... Odd disgusting smellss he''d never thought possible waft in his face as the warm air from the room escapes.

    Doing his best to ignore the smell he steps inside, glancing at the sights that disturbed his eyes... There were many people chained to the walls, they were all naked but that wasn''t what bothered Reima the most... It was the fact that all of them were missing all of their skin, they resembled the anatomical sculptures you''d see in a science class...

    Bleed slowly seeped from their wounds and collected beneath them, being sucked into a small drain and taken somewhere... It seemed they were still being fed due to the amount of faces and urine also present beneath them, the Vampires didn''t seem to care about the waste being sucked into the drain with the blood.

    This is probably the reason he couldn''t identify him, Radovid''s face was completely skinned, leaving nothing but raw flesh beneath... His eyes were completely crusted over with dried blood, but he twitches as Phillipa approaches.

    Radovid "K-kill me" he mutters in a low tone, no strength left in his body to produce much sound at all.

    Phillipa can''t help the sadistic grin that forms on her face as she walks up and smears the potion she''d made on his body... "No, you denied me death, so I''ll do the same for you..." she says.

    Radovid slumps, despair taking hold as the incessant pain continues to wrack his body... He just wished for this torment to end, ruling the world with a grand empire had completely escaped his mind.

    *Slash*

    Reima walks up to the other skinned people and waves his blade, decapitating them with a swift mercy not many others could provide. There wasn''t much he could do for them, he didn''t even think that Anastacia and Reah could heal such injuries, their Miracles copied similar cells structures and recreated it... With their skin completely gone, there was no hope for recovery in his educated opinion.

    He then walks over to Radovid, Phillipa standing and attempting to push him away, her lack of sight making her actions awkward... "Don''t kill him! HE NEEDS TO SUFFER!" she exclaims, her hoarse throat put to task yet again.

    Reima steps forwards and backhands her, sending the blind woman to the ground in a heap. "Yo, Radovid." he greets in a tone not suitable for the situation.

    Radovid lifts his head to face the voice, not recognising it but feeling hopeful that this person might end him. "Mmmm?"

    Reima "Youknow, a lot of people despise you right? You took the role of the North''s leader to combat Nilfgaard, but invaded Kaedwen to absorb their territory and people... The strategy might have been required, but many innocent people were killed due to your actions. I''d not care if that was the end of it, but you used that disgusting religion to keep the populace in check. Liberally burning people at the stake to make sure no upstarts would even think of challenging your rule." he says to the skinned man hanging from chains, "I am Reima Ludvig, King of Ichor... do you remember your actions against me?" he says ominously.

    Radovid tries to shake his head, but finds no strength to do so... "N-no."

    Reima nods, "You attempted to kidnap my woman in-order to threaten her father who happened to be the Emperor of Nilfgaard at the time... For this attempt, your life was already mine. To be honest, I was slightly scared you''d die before I could reach you... But it seems today is my lucky day." he says, Humanity starting to form under his feet and crawl towards Radovid...

    The skinned man doesn''t even have the strength to squirm as the tentacles of humanity pierces his flesh and invade his body, causing him to rapidly mutant and corrupting his soul.

    Reima "From now one, you''re mine." he states.

 806 Mind Bending Situation...

    However, by the time she regains her bearings enough to stand, the pained gurgled groans had already ceased...

    Reima "From now on, you''re mine." he states.

    Phillipa falls two her knees, realising that she''d missed her opportunity at revenge, she felt that the torture she''d put Radovid through wasn''t enough, and due to this, she''d unintentionally given his life to someone else. "You bastard... H-his life didn''t belong to you." she mutters.

    Reima glances back at Phillipa, ignoring the new Abyssal Servant sinking into his shadow, "You''re wrong there, even if it didn''t, you belong to me now aswell... In the end, it''s my right." he says, expanding his Observation Haki in-order to find where those who''d not yet been skinned were being held... Even if he couldn''t save the unfortunate souls in this room, they still had a chance.

    He bring his hand up, the gesture coinciding with Phillipa being dragged to her feet via Telekinesis, "Curse me all you wish, but I still have things to do here, and, many questions to ask you." he says, walking towards the door.

    Phillipa doesn''t follow, instead just facing the place Radovid had been chained up, mulling over the roiling emotions of anger, resentment, sadness, and for some reason, loss.

    Reima "Will you walk on your own? Or do I have to assist you?" he asks.

    Phillipa shakes his head and follows the direction of his voice, touching the wall and using it to direct herself where she needs to go. She follows her captor as they make their way through the underground hallways... Occasionally she''d hear sounds of combat, the slicing of flesh as Reima decimates the Vampires they come into contact with.

    It never lasts long, only a couple seconds at most before the sound of blood splattering against the floor signals the enemies end. The Vampires were actually fortunate in this situation, the Elder who''d been leading this operation had been drafted to go invade Ichor with the rest of the Nilfgaardian army... Phillipa knew that alone, an Elder wouldn''t stand a chance against Reima, but perhaps with an army behind them they''d manage to take him down?

    A couple hours after Reima had "killed" Radovid they''d reached the pens that held the majority of the captives, almost all the Vampires had been killed on the way, only the cowardly Plumards managing to escape from the burrows leading to the surface.

    Reima looks through the metal bars holding the many people dressed in bloody rags, "Hello?" he asks, grabbing some of their attention, "I am Reima Ludvig, King of Ichor, I have come to liberate you, and offer a home within my land." he says, grabbing the bars and bending them with ease.

    He opens a portal to the front of Ichor, the people walking through it, Reima assisting some of the weaker ones with telekinesis. As soon as they pass through the portal they''re greeted with healers and government officials that work for Asgore, once they''re seen to, determined to be healthy and checked with Veritaserum, they are given an identity and registered as citizens of Ichor...

    There were a few people in the group that seemed to have been experimented on, it wasn''t too extreme however, the Vampires only managing to grow small scales on a few people... Reima assumes this is probably because anyone who had a big reaction was not able to live all that long.

    Reima doesn''t waste any time and grabs Phillipa before teleporting to the Painted "cells" of Ariamis... He tosses her unceremoniously into a cell before conjuring himself a chair, Hinky popping in with a cup of warm tea for him. "Thanks Hinky." he mutters, the House Elf squealing in happiness before disappearing again.

    He looks to Phillipa who''s already huddling against the rock enchanted with a warming charm and frowns, "So, now that you''re comfortable... I want you to tell me everything you know about Vasile, and his captive, Ciaran." he states.

    Phillipa scowls at him, "I know I am already going to die, why should I tell you anything?"

    Reima "Because if you don''t I will simply tear the information out of your head." he says ominously.

    ...

    Reima sighs, "Very well, I was hoping to just give you to Yennefer so she could deal with you... But if you''re going to force my hand." he says, lifting her with telekinesis and levitating her close to the bars... Placing a hand on her face and muttering "Legilimency."

    Immediately, a flood of memories assaults him... He''d not actually used Legilimency that much, apart from practicing it on willing participants, now that he was against someone who definitely didn''t want her mind breached, it was a lot different than he''d expected.

    Magic is all about intent, so, if your intent is lesser than someone else''s, it will not work or be significantly weaker than you''d expected... While there are some things that bypass this like formulae that direct their own Psedu-intent, mind magic isn''t like that.

    He''s confronted with Phillipa''s emotions, her anger and hatred for himself and Radovid, her resentment that he''d taken what she thought was rightfully hers. With sheer magical might, he barrels through these meaningless barriers, causing Phillipa''s head to shoot upwards as a migraine renders her speechless.

    With the emotions out of the way all that''s left is the relatively organized pool of information... Phillipa is a sorceress, so it isn''t surprising that her mind is like this, she''d been unable to cast spells if it was cluttered. This, only made it easier to sort out the things he wanted to know, specifically, anything about Ciaran and Vasile.

    Unfortunately, it appears that Phillipa knew almost nothing about her apart from her role in Ichor... The latest information she had was the fact that Ciaran had been captured, Vasile seemed to be keeping Ciaran a secret.

 807 Returned

    Reima couldn''t help but frown when he sees the assistance she''d given to this "Alaric" as they experimented with people. Reima reckoned he''d rather be skinned alive than have his eyes explode in their sockets, or his skeleton to grow so much that it pierced his own internal organs... Truly, Phillipa deserved to die for her role in all of this.

    Nonetheless, her close contact with this person had allowed her access to the Elder''s "gossip", mainly the fact that Vasile had been banished after touching something he definitely shouldn''t have. Reima was already privy to this however, forcing him to dig deeper for anything that may be useful.

    Eventually, he found something... Phillipa had picked up a rather poorly constructed mental connection over in Kovir, the Vampires had requested her aid in putting such things up in order to prevent magic users from doing anything against them.

    She soon learned the connection was between one of her old colleagues, Margarita and a novice mage. It seemed Phillipa wasn''t completely heartless, as she''d only given small bits of information to the Vampires in-order to keep them off her back. Not specifically stating that Margarita was involved.

    Margarita''s attempt at escaping Lan Exeter was successful, something Phillipa was apparently happy about...

    After compiling everything Phillipa knew about the situation, it was obvious to Reima what''d happened... It seemed Ciaran had escaped with Margarita and the unknowns who''d assisted them.

    He stops the legilimency which allows Phillipa to drop to the floor, mentally exhausted and twitching due to the fact Reima had accidentally damaged some of her brain functions with his forceful retrieval of information.

    He breathes a sigh of relief at the fact Ciaran was probably still alive, thinking up rewards he could possibly grant to Margarita for her help... Only problem now was, where to find the-

    *Pop!*

    Hinky "MASTER! Lady Ciarans has arrived with some strangers!"

    ...

    Reima smirks and pats the Elf''s head, "I see, thanks for notifying me Hinky. Would you mind taking me to them?"

    *Pop!*

    The group had just arrived in Ichor after an arduous journey... Monsters were more numerous than before due to there not being any patrols to eliminate them. If Ciaran wasn''t with them there''d be no chance of actually getting through, Tildanird silver stakes weren''t long enough to pierce the vitals of any large creature like a Chort, Dythi had but a steel spear, Zudite, and Margarita didn''t specialize in combat spells either, both only knowing enough to defend themselves against human threats.

    They were quickly ushered into the Two Gods Church and greeted by Anastacia, Reah, and the small number of scribes that''d been brought on to see if they could truly learn Miracles.

    Anastacia cast a Miracle onto Etredi which seemed to bring her back to life, her pale skin becoming pink and lively, her infected leg wound expelling all the puss contained within before zipping itself up, leaving not even a scar.

    Etredi "Ah, I''m healed! THANK YOU!" she exclaims, lunging forwards and hugging Anastacia who can''t help but blush in embarrassment.

    Anastacia "Y-You''re welcome... I only cast a small spell-"

    Zudite "Wow! What was that! Can you teach me!?!" he almost shouts, looking at her with sparkles in his eyes.

    Reah folds her arms and grins, "Only those completely loyal to our Lord are capable of such spells. You''d first have to pledge your life to our God King before we''d even consider it."

    Margarita looks in wonder at Etredi''s leg, most Sorceresses could use healing spells, but even they wouldn''t be able to achieve the results she''d just seen before her... It made her thankful that she had no talent in the healing arts, these people would make any effort she put towards it feel utterly wasted.

    Dythi "God?" he mutters, hoping this wasn''t like an extension of the Eternal Fire... A religion he thoroughly despised.

    *Pop!*

    "That''d be me." a voice says from behind the group, causing them all to jump in surprise. They turn and see a man with almost sparkling long silver hair, a faint scar on his right cheek extending to his right ear, and clad in dark, bloody armour...

    Reah "My lord! You''ve come to visit us!" she happily chirps, ignoring the plebians and skipping up to him. "Is there something I can do to assist you?"

    Reima sighs, "No, I''ve just come to talk to Ciaran." he says, looking at her.

    Ciaran immediately drops to a knee to kneel before Reima, shocking the others present who''d never seen her act even slightly subservient... "I apologize for my absence, it was out of my control but I will receive any punishment you wish to give me."

    Reima frowns down at her, grabbing her shoulder and forcibly standing her up, confusing her...

    Ciaran clenches her teeth and prepares herself for whatever punishment she was about to receive, closing her eyes as Reima steps in closer... Only to feel his arms wrap around her in a hug.

    Reima "I''m glad you''re okay Ciaran. I''ve been searching all over for you, from here to Kovir to Novigrad... seems like I didn''t have to worry though." he says in a sincere tone.

    Ciaran slowly nods, not really knowing how to respond... "Sorry for trouble I''ve caused, it won''t happen again."

    Reima lets go and grins, "Of course it won''t, if those bastards try this again I''ll throw them into the sun." he says, the others not being able to tell if he''s joking or not.

 808 New opportunities

    Zudite "Ah... Are you a Witcher?" he asks, his expressing turning somber from the previous excitement he''d shown.

    Reima nods, "I am, why?"

    Zudite steps forwards and hands him a dagger, a curved one that is sharpened inwards and resembled a cat''s claw...

    Reima looks it over, and hums, "School of the cat dagger? I wonder where you got this?"

    Zudite "It... It belonged to a friend of ours who sacrificed himself to hold off an Elder Vampire for us. I was wondering if you knew them. They were called Hurtelt..." he says, the others nodding with him.

    Reima "I''m sorry to say I don''t know anyone from the Cat School... There are a number of Witchers living in Ichor though, speak to them and they might know something." he says, handing back the dagger to Zudite.

    Ciaran "Reima, I spent some time investigating while I was away and uncovered something you''ll need to hear immediately, I think the council should know about this aswell." she says.

    Reima nods, "Alright... Hinky? Can you call everyone to the War room?"

    Hinky "Yes master!" the exclaim, surprising those who hadn''t noticed them beforehand and popping away.

    Reima looks at everyone else, "I''ll ask this before I go... What do you all intend to do now?"

    ...

    Dythi "I... Don''t know. I think I just want to find a place to settledown, I think I''ve had enough excitement for one life." he says.

    Tildanird nods, "I think I want to stay in this place... As long as you''ll allow me?"

    Reima nods, "If you want to become a resident of Ichor, you''ll need to go through the proper procedures, Veritaserum questioning, identification, and a few other boring things." he says, looking at Zudite and Etredi. "And you two?"

    Zudite "I... I want to continue my studies, Lady Margarita, I was hoping you''d take me on an your apprentice after everything was done..." he says hopefully.

    Margarita sighs, "I don''t even know if I''ll stay here, let alone take on students again..."

    Reima "Well, if you''re willing, I wouldn''t mind helping you set up an academy... Hmm, maybe just having you teach in Hogwarts would do?" he mutters to himself, "I''m sure Yennefer, Triss, and Keira would like the company anyway."

    Margarita "Ah, they''re all here?"

    Reima nods, "They are, Yennefer and Keira are both permanent members of Ichor... I''m still not sure about Triss though, we''ll see."

    Reima looks at the last undecided person, "So, what do you want to do?" he asks.

    Etredi feels herself freeze upon being asked this... She didn''t really have anything in mind, she''d managed to make do as a makeshift spy while working in the Vampire brothels... She was 14 years old but due to her being a dwarf she looked much, much younger, Vampires preferred younger virgin girls blood which put her in their favour... She was thankful for her dwarvan heritage, even if it did force her to shave her beard every now and then. "I... I don''t know?"

    Reima "Well, you''re still young... How about you join Ichor temporarily as a citizen, you''ll attend school until you''re 16, and then you can decide what you want to do, whether you wish to leave or stay." he says, not wishing to confine her here if she''s got something else she needs to do.

    Etredi slowly nods, "I-I think I want to do that..."

    Reima nods, "Good, Reah, Anastacia, can you handle these guys for me? I''ve got other things to attend to." he says, grabbing Ciaran and blinking away.

    Margarita "Ah... What was that?" she asks, wondering if she''d just witnessed the fabled "Elder Blood" in action.

    Reah "Ignore that, I think you all need a bath... And some new clothes." she says, glancing to the nearby scribes her get the message and start escorting their guests to the public bathhouse.

    War room :

    Reima and Ciaran appear in the war room, the former immediately taking a seat in largest more ornate chair in the room after casting a scourgify to clean the blood from the Vampire''s he''d slain off from himself.

    Soon after people start trailing into the room, Asgore, Undyne, Geralt, Yennefer, Ciri, Quelana, Risryn, Iorveth, Solaire, and Harry. There should be more present, but they were either busy with something or assumed they''d be relayed the information and outcome of the meeting afterward.

    Upon entering the room everyone notices Ciaran''s presence beside Reima, most congratulating her on a safe return.

    Solaire "Aha! You''re finally back Lady Ciaran, I''d thank the gods were we not utterly incapable of finding you." he says sarcastically.

    Ciaran nods at Solaire, "I am at fault for losing the pendant our Lord had made for me." she states with a neutral expression.

    Solaire "And you''re at fault for returning safely, so it evens out in the end... After this meeting, I think you have someone you need to see, Lady Sieglinde will be ecstatic upon hearing of your return."

    Ciaran nods, "Depending on the outcome of the meeting, I will do so." she says, changing her focus on Reima to see if he wanted to start the session.

    Reima taps his armrest, "Alright, let''s begin."

 809 Offence is the best defence

    Ciaran steps forwards and addresses the room, "As you all know, I was recently captured by a Vampire by the name of Vasile and held captive, fortunately, I met the Sorceress Margarita who with the assistance of some others, helped me escape.

    Our first portal was made in desperation, resulting in us being left on the ruins of Aretuza, the magical academy on the Thanedd island. After a violent confrontation with some Nilfgaardian soldiers, we found refuge in a cave before Margarita was well enough to use another portal... With this I took the chance to investigate the nearby city of Caelf, and uncovered something rather dire...

    Nilfgaard has allied with the Vampires and rallied their army, which is now heading for Ichor as we speak." she states, causing everyone in the room to frown.

    Quelana "Hmm, maybe my sister was right? They''d not be able to annoy use further if they were all ash."

    Asgore "Do you know what their forces specifically are?" he asks, resting his elbow on his armrest and his chin on his fist.

    Ciaran shakes her head, "All I know is that they intend to destroy us, they know of our capabilities and are likely bringing a number of Elder Vampires to increase their chances of victory."

    Reima shrugs, "The only troublesome thing is the Elder''s, I doubt Nilfgaard have anything threatening other than them... Sure, they''ve got mages, but most of them are weak and forgettable."

    Solaire nods, "Quantity of Quality is their strategy, one that doesn''t work all that well when considering the lives that''ll be lost."

    Iorveth "So, what''s the plan? Just muster all our men and meet them on the fields of battle?"

    Reima hums, "No... I was thinking of just dealing with them myself-"

    Quelana "What?"

    Geralt "No way."

    Yennefer "Absolutely not."

    ...

    Reima sighs, "You guys know I''m supposed to be in charge around here right?" he mutters.

    Yennefer leans forwards, "Of course we know, I just refuse to let you go off on your own to fight an army and potentially many Elder Vampires!"

    Geralt nods, "You''re powerful, no doubt about that, but I doubt they''d be coming to fight us without a plan to deal with you."

    Ciri "I don''t know, I think Rei can handle it... It''s not like they know everything about him, even if they did, what can they do against their own men being turned against them?" she says, reminding everyone of Reima''s use of Humanity.

    Solaire "I agree with Miss Ciri, our friend is more than capable of handling some petty thieves hoping to steal what we''ve built."

    Undyne "Ooohh! These talks are getting me FIRED UP! Asgore! Let me go fight them!" she exclaims.

    Yennefer sends a look at Geralt who just sighs and shrugs... "Looks like we''ve been outvoted..." he says quietly to her, receiving a glare inturn.

    Reima "Hmm, alright... Do you know where the army is currently?" he asks, wondering how much time they have left.

    Ciaran "Last I heard they were in Aedirn, taking into account how quickly a large scale army travels... I think they should be between Vergen and Ban Glean." she says, slightly unsure as she had no reference to what the army was actually comprised of.

    Reima raises a brow, "That far? They must''ve been planning this for a while then, probably before I killed Emhyr..."

    Ciri "Atleast he got what he deserved... Becoming a doormat." she says with a smirk, a few others in the more chuckling at the thought.

    Reima claps his hands, "Then, I think we''re in agreement... I''ll go stop the army, you all should prepare the troops in-case something unexpected happens, be ready for an attack at any moment, and don''t relax until I return... Understand?" he says, the others nodding and exitting the room and leaving on Reima, Solaire, Ciaran and Ciri left inside.

    Solaire "Are you sure you don''t wish for me to come my friend? I''m sure it''d bee jolly good fun." he says.

    Reima shakes his head, "I need you here in-case the Vampires try a backdoor attack while I''m out... WIth you and Regis I doubt there''ll be any problems."

    Ciri "I''d want to come, but I know I''d be in over my head... Getting punted by an Elder Vampire hurts..." she mutters, rubbing her chest where the scar still rests.

    Reima "If you were paying attention you might''ve been able to dodge it... Regardless, I need to thank you for picking up the slack while I was gone, I doubt Asgore would still be standing if it was just him doing all the work."

    Ciri shrugs, "I couldn''t really sit back and do nothing could I? I''m assuming you''re going to leave immediately?" she asks.

    Reima nods, "Yeah, no point wasting time... I just wanna get this over with and sit in a jacuzzi or something."

    Ciri "You better come back in one piece then." she says, stepping forth and giving a peck on his lips before turning to Ciaran, "And you, have two people waiting for you." she says, grabbing her and flashing away.

    Reima looks at Solaire and grins, "Sorry bro, I''m sure we''ll have another chance to fight an army off together another time." he says, fist-bumping him before blinking away.

    Solaire "Of course my friend! Go and teach those fiends not to get too close to the sun!"

 810 No-fair Lothaire

    He looks over at one of his fellow Elder Vampires that''re flying over to him... "Alaric, have you done what I asked?"

    Alaric nods, his silver hair following the motion and he gives Lothaire a weird look, "I have... But I still wonder what the purpose of this was, you said they were traitors, but upon closer inspection they were nothing of the sort... What are you planning Lothaire?" he asks, curious.

    Lothaire shakes his head, "Hmph, you''ll see. Be sure to be ready when my plan comes to fruition, I doubt you''ll see anything quite like it again, even in our eternal lives." he says.

    Alaric scratches his face, "I don''t know what implanting explosives into unaware fools bodies will do, but I will follow your lead in this regard." he mutters, "I''m slightly parched, shall we get a drink?"

    Lothaire shakes his head and waves him off, "No, I''ve had quite about enough for today."

    Alaric nods, "Suit yourself." he says, flying down to the "blood-bags" they''d brought or caught.

    Lothaire glances behind him at the Elder''s that''d accompanied him to help bring down Ichor once and for all... Sliske, a pale bald brooding bloodsucker that only slept or drank... Sorina, a woman with short blond hair, pale wrinkly skin, and a penchant for sudden unreasonable violence... Jagger, a handsome man with pale skin, long flowing black hair, and moves like, well, Jagger...

    It''s fortunate they all belong to the Gharasham, this prevents any internal conflicts that may happen between them... Of course, as extremely old beings, there are bound to be problems with one another, but belonging to the same family prevents it slightly.

    Other than the Elder''s that''d been brought, there was a notable human who Lothaire knew would be of some help... The Commander known as Stairrde Strickut, a man who''d been touched by master and given another chance, with master''s help he should be unmatched in the battle to come.

    Lothaire looks towards Ichor and grins as a man wreathed in flames with dragon wings flies towards them, stopping a few miles away from the army itself... Reima Ludvig.

    The army below was already aware of his presence, the mages already casting weak-looking spells at him as his glowing form resembled a target in the sky.

    Lothaire glances at the formation of the army, making sure everything was in place before the confrontation... He''d thought Ichor would let them reach the city before defending as they''d done many times in the past, but apparently, King Reima thought he could handle the situation himself... Foolish.

    Reima looks down at the army, a morbid urge to submerge the lot of them ina tsunami of Humanity... He slowly slaps away some spells shot at him from the mages, pointing a finger at them and silently casting "Bombarda Maxima"

    A bolt is shot off, but is intercepted by an Elder Vampire with white hair who comes out of a makeshift shack...

    *BOOOOM!*

    The explosion from his spell makes the air tremble as a shockwave almost knocks over some of the more frail soldiers, the smoke clears and reveals that the Elder Vampire is completely fine, not a scratch on him besides some of his clothing torn.

    Reima glares at them, utilising his Observation Haki to see within the shack that he''d come from, to see if there were anymore Vampires hiding within... His fists clench and he feels rage boil within him, the shack was filled with many female slaves, all with fang marks covering them and signs of abuse... It appears they were being used as pleasure slaves as well as food sources for the Vampires.

    Reima "Fucking bastards, you''ll wish you''d killed yourselves instead of coming here!" he shouts, preparing to cover the place in fire. Only to be interrupted by a familiar face.

    Lothaire "I''m afraid I can''t let you do that, friend." he says with a vicious grin.

    Reima scowls, "Lothaire? Fucker, you''ll go against me even after I saved you!?"

    Lothaire shakes his head, "Who said I was saved?" he says.

    Reima''s glowers, moving his head to the side as a claw stabs the spot he''d just vacated, he grabs the arm and squeezes hard enough to crush all the bones in it, a sick but satisfying crunch ringing out through the area... Reima glances at the person who''s tried to attack him, looking on in confusion as he sees Lothaire''s face, even though he can still sense him in the same place he''d been before.

    Lothaire chuckles, "You like my trick? My colleagues always said I was worth ten people, who knew my ability would manifest to suit it!" he exclaims, eight shadows splitting off from his body before materialising into clones of Lothaire, all with similar smirks.

    Reima leans forwards and has his wings shoot towards the clone behind him, the wingtip piercing its chest and causing it to burst into smoke which returns to Lothaire. "What? You think I wouldn''t? Now I get to kill you TEN TIMES!" he exclaims, blinking behind Lothaire and swinging his sword blade at the three positioned together.

    *SPLATTER!*

    The main Lothaire manages to dodge by using the two other to block the strike, both getting cut in two in the process, turning to smoke... Once it returns to Lothaire however he simply summons three more clones.

 811 Vampire-Dog Fight?

    Even without its legs its still a foe to be reckoned with, Reima stabs it in the gut before kicking it to get some distance, glancing at Lothaire who''d transformed into his own true-form, all of his clones following suit...

    The Vampire who''d grabbed him growls, "I am Sliske, prepare to die mortal!"

    Reima "Yeah, I''ll remember to put it on your tomb stone, cunt!" he shouts, thrusting his hand forwards and unleashing a spell he''d had difficulties in the past casting... Soul stream!

    A blast of light explodes from his hand as a massive laser envelopes Sliske who fails to avoid it, a large smoking body shoots from the laser and falls to the earth, accidentally landing on an unfortunate Nilfgaardian soldier.

    Reima looks at the three other Vampires who''d also already transformed, Sorina, Jagger, and Alaric... Not that he''d know their names, these particular Vampires choosing not to identify themselves for him.

    He''d not even blinked twice before the three Vampires all flew towards him at quick speeds, if he wasn''t capable of using Observation Haki he''d no doubt struggle to keep up with all of them at once... Fortunately, he hadn''t slacked when training this particular ability.

    *CLANK!*

    In a flash Reima has blocked the six claws slashing at him with his Silver Sword, the blade looking so quick that only a glint could be seen. Channeling Armament Haki into his offhand, he punches the chest of Alaric. The strike is fast and skilled, but he''s surprised by the phenomenon that happens before him.

    Alarics chest opens, allowing Reima''s fist to go through him and strike at nothing, the hole closing when the Witcher pulls his hand back...

    Reima "Creepy thing-looking fuck!" he exclaims, deflecting another claw while kicking forwards at Alaric, utilising his aura to unleash a fiery explosion from his foot.

    *BOOOM!*

    Alaric isn''t able to avoid it last he had the last attack and is thrown backward, the smell of burnt flesh invading the air he passes through.

    Jagger roars at having all his attacks easily fended off, his anger only increasing when Reima sends Alaric flying. He slashes his claws at Reima, even when he''s too far to actually hit with them, the air in-front of his ripples though, as air blades are sent at Reima at quick speeds.

    Reima blocks one of them with his blade and an Armamant Haki infused fist, but is still hit on the leg, sending molten blood splattering through the air as a laceration opens on it. Reima ignores the pain and blinks behind Jagger, stabbing the Vampire through the heart and twisting the blade to cause maximum damage...

    Alaric flies back up which leaves him, Sorina, and Lothaire left to defeat Reima, something that''s not looking all that great...

    Reima flourishes his sword, grinning as the wound on his leg closes itself before their eyes, causing them a great amount of irritation as they believed such an ability only belonged to the Vampires. "You fucking pansies want some more? Come get it!" he shouts.

    Sorina growls, "DARE MOCK US? DIE!" she exclaims as gross tumorous growths start growing on Reima''s sword, her previous clashes against it had allowed her to leave some of her cells on the sword itself... The growths crawl up the blade and attempt to climb onto Reima''s skin as the Vampire charge him while he''s distracted.

    Reima shakes his head at how shit this ability seemed, casting Chaos Blade and breathing his Silver Sword in Chaos Flames, reducing the growths attached to it to ash and slashing a few blades of fire towards the approaching Vampires.

    Lothaire sends a few clones to receive the attacks to protect his comrades, managing to stop all of them except one which cuts a deep black scar into Alaric''s chest, causing him to roar in pain.

    Reima clashes against Sorina again, slipping his blade in between her claws and cutting half of her monstrous hand off, the seared close wound slowing the rate of regeneration. He continues the momentum by sending an Armament Haki infused kick at her head, breaking her neck with a sick crack and knocking her out of the fight.

    With that done he teleports behind Alaric to avoid the many charging Lothaire and cuts the Vampire in two, separating his upperbody from his lowerbody in one slash. He figured whatever ability to manipulate his body he had, he wouldn''t be able to split himself in two to avoid this strike... He was correct as Alaric is sent plummeting to the ground like a fat-monstrous version of Darth Maul.

    Lothaire glares at Reima and Alaric''s plummeting body, realising that he''s probably not going to survive this battle... Regardless, he believes his master will succeed in his place. "Once you kill me, will you take control of the world like we had done?" he asks, attempting to stall for time...

    Reima raises a brow, "I might as well if you lot are going to serve it up to me on a silver platter, after your invasion, there''s no one left to complain!... Aside from Nilfgaard." he adds.

    Lothaire nods, all of his clones mimicking his actions as he prepares to clash against Reima for what he could only assume would be the last time... "Die!" he and his nine clones shout, charging Reima.

    Reima "You first!" he remarks in response, channeling Elder Blood Magic into his blade, causing the Chaos Flames to turn turquoise as he prepares to kill the piece of shit Vampire once and for all...

 812 Daddy eating your meat...

    A huge cloud of smoke erupts into the sky... Though, it doesn''t originate from Reima and Lothaire''s clash... Both had backed off upon hearing the sudden unexpected sound, looking over into the distance where they could barely see a plume of smoke rising from the horizon...

    Reima squints at it, trying to see what''d caused it and if it was dangerous or not... Whatever it was, it was clearly powerful enough to cause an explosion that could be seen for miles, judging by the height of the smoke, and how long it''d taken for the sound to reach them, it must be incredibly far from where they currently are...

    At this moment, every Vampire on the continent gets shivers and goosebumps, all experiencing feelings of dread, doom, and fear...

    Lothaire himself can feel cold sweat creeping down his back as something primal seems to be calling to him... He gulps his saliva and glances at Reima, noticing something from the ground attempting to take advantage of their distracted state.

    A large red projectile head''s straight for Reima who blinks to the side to avoid it, looking over and spotting a Nilfgaardian soldier with a glowing red arm pointed at him.

    *Whistle!*

    *CRASH!*

    From the corner of his eye he notices Lothaire disappear as a large shadow passes through... He looks over to where the Vampire had landed and blows the dust away with an Aard, gaping at what was before him...

    A huge stone monolith with runes covering it had completely crushed Lothaire like a giant spear, big and pieces of the Vampire littered the area due to the force of the attack literally causing his body to explode.

    Clearly, Lothaire wasn''t going to get up anytime soon, even his clones had all burst into smoke... Reima is incredibly confused at this... Wasn''t this supposed to he his final confrontation against the Vampire? Once he was done he''d go home, sip martini''s, fuck like rabbits and live "Happily ever after"?...

    A plume of red mist shoots from the horizon where the smoke was, making it''s way to the monolith before reforming into something Reima hadn''t seen before...

    It resembled the true forms of the Higher Vampires he''d come across before, with one exception... It was neither bulky, nor large... Instead it was sized similarly to the average size of a human, looking more like a Xenomorph than anything else.

    Its wings didn''t move as it floated above the monolith and looks down at what was left of Lothaire, the bloody pieces of flesh littering the place. The Nilfgaardian army didn''t move, the commander with the glowing red arm keeping them still to see what this creature would do, would it help them or assist their enemy?

    "You were right to fear me! For your betrayal, I WILL DEVOUR YOU!" he shouts, diving down and grabbing the flesh before stuffing it into his mouth, loudly chewing and slurping the juices... Lothaire''s flesh seems to sense the danger, it trying in vain to wriggle away from the new arrival, though, still getting eating regardless.

    Reima isn''t really sure what to do here, that dude just ate his opponent, which is... Good? Right? But it''s still a Vampire, so unless he agrees to not harm other races they''ll inevitably have to fight. He waits until the Vampire had completely devoured Lothaire before asking him anything, it''d be best to start on the right foot, and he''d never enjoyed it when someone interrupted him when he was eating... "Er, yo?"

    ...

    The Vampire slowly turns, it''s eye-less visage licking its lips clean with a tongue a few times too long... "What is it, Mortal?" they ask, apparently not bothered by Reima''s glowing body and dragon wings.

    Reima "Who are you, and what do you intend to do now?" he asks, getting straight to the point.

    ...

    The being stands, their height reaching 7.5ft as its wings extend to their fullest reach, "Me?... I am DRACULA, GRAND ELDER OF ALL VAMPIRE KIND, AND STRONGEST BEING ON THIS PLANET!"

    ....

    Reima sighs, "Another Dracula huh?... Feels like this troupe is getting overused."

    Dracula growls at him, "Another!? SHOW ME THE IMPOSTER USING MY NAME!" he roars.

    Reima "Er, no... I was thinking of... A book! Yeah, a piece of fiction." he adds, hoping to calm this guy enough to actually talk to them. "So... Dracula, What are you intentions now that you''ve apparently escaped whatever prison you were being held in?"

    ...

    Dracula "The links to our world are gone, it is time for us to make this world ours, which means... ALL MORTALS ARE NOW OUR PROPERTY!" he points at Reima, "YOU WILL SERVE ME, OR DIE!"

    ...

    Reima "Ah, for fuck sake! Why are you guys so fucking annoying! "Take over the world" this, and "Enslave all mortals" that, where''s the originality!?! How about you start a coffee shop or somethi-"

    *BOOOOOOM!*

    Reima isn''t able to react to the unexpected attack, the Grand Elder shooting towards him at ridiculous speeds and stabbing his claws at him... Reima had barely blocked with Armament Haki, but was sent THROUGH a mountain regardless!

    He explodes out the other side of the mountain, colliding with a few others before finally regaining his bearings and stabilizing himself. He looks above the mountain he''d just been sent through and spots Dracula flying towards him at crazy fast speeds.

 813 DONT MESS WITH THE SUN!

    The Vampire slashes its claws against at Reima, the attack way faster than any other Elder''s had been before, Reima manages to deflect it but is unable to recover enough to deal with the other claw... He blinks behind the Vampire and stabs at its spine, the blade piercing his back before they burst into red mist and reform a few meters away.

    There was a large wound on its chest from where Reima had stabbed it, but after it smokes for a moment it quickly seals itself, leaving behind unharmed flesh.

    Dracula "Your silver amounts to nothing, you can only hunt our lesser kin... Tell me, have you ever manged to killed one of us?" they ask, not expecting an answer.

    Reima snorts, "Yeah, I have. Morwenna, Roisin, and Mira to name a few." he states, readying his sword for another clash.

    Dracula scowls, his beast-like face contorting in anger. "I know not who those fools are, but I see not lies in your words... Whatever you used to end them, I am sure it won''t work on ME!" he shouts, roaring at Reima and causing shockwaves to shake the area.

    Reima simply covers himself in Armament Haki, ignoring the strain and effort it takes to encompass his entire body... The waves do nothing against his spiritual armour, if he hadn''t used it the attack would''ve likely only ruptured his ear drums, which his body can heal in a number of seconds.

    *Flash!*

    Reima appears in-front of the Vampire and slams his foot into it''s mouth as it continues to roar, causing it to bite it''s own tongue off. The creature is launched away and hits the same mountain it''d sent Reima through, another similarly sized hole to the last, causing the mountain to crumble in on itself due to the many collisions against it.

    Reima retrieves the Staff of Manus and points it to the sky, manifesting hundreds of Crystal Souls spears which he ignites with Chaos Flames, sending them shooting towards the Vampire as it tries to recover.

    Reima then blinks behind the Vampire after storing the Staff of Manus and retrieving a different weapons... The Staff of Morwenna. He commands it to hold the Vampire in place after enchanting it with Crystal Magic Weapon.

    The hands shoot out and grab the Vampire as it tries to turn into mist to escape, the Crystal enchantment allowing them to grasp incorporeal entities. Reima blinks away as the barrage of Chaos Crystal Soul Spears slam into the target, their weak homing ability being enough to allow most to hit the Vampire.

    When the spears collide with Dracula they pierce his flesh before exploding into thousands of tiny flaming crystal shards, utterly annihilating it''s body.

    The Staff of Morwenna reforms in his hand as he swaps it out for the Staff of Manus again, pointing it is the red mist and casting Soul Stream, light explodes from the staff shooting through the area and blanketing everything in light.

    ...

    After the light fades Reima looks at what''s left of Dracula, frowning when he notices the individual cells quickly reconstituting themselves.

    Dracula "GRAAAAAAGGHHhHHHHH!" he screams as his head is rebuilt first, the rest of his body reconstructing itself so fast that to the average person it''d look instant.

    Reima scowls, his attacks earlier had been some of the strongest he had... Without going above his "limit" obviously, he didn''t plan on taking this fucker out with a suicide attack and knew he still needed to weaken them more if he was going to use the Dark Hand on them.

    While Dracula is reconstructing his body Reima thrusts his hands forwards and opens a small portal... to the centre of the sun...

    *BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!*

    The nuclear fission powering the son immediately causes a nuclear explosion to escape the portal, hitting Reima as he closes the portal. This was all he wanted from it, if it left it open any longer all life on the planet would have been eradicated.

    Already everything in sight was set ablaze from the nano-second the portal had been open... Reima could hear explosions where the Nilfgaardian army was but ignored it, needing to focus on controlling the rampaging energy now contained within his body.

    His skin was bulging as the energy tried to escape his body, but he continued to restrain and attempt to control it... Dracula was scared shitless by what''d just happened, his body had almost burned to ashes in the instant the portal was open, and his opponent was glowing brighter than the sun currently was.

    Reima isn''t even able to shout the trademark Dragon Ball move as he finally thrusts his hands forwards and unleashes the energy at his opponent as they try to escape.

    A beam of pure light erupts from his hands with envelopes Dracula and brightly illuminates everything it passes, even the otherside of the world gets brighter due to this attack as it streaks across the sky, likely doing irreparable damage to the ozone layer...

    Reima huffs in exhaustion as the attack ends... He himself had been blinded by it, but using Observation Haki he could sense what''d happened to Dracula... The entirety of their body had been broken down at the molecular level, leaving only a soul floating there, trying to retrieve it''s individual atoms to recreate its body from the atmosphere...

    Reima just blinks next to it while grabbing the soul with the Dark Hand, feeling like he could use a lie-down...

 814 Deal with the Devil

    During his attack, he had felt something "click" within himself, but he wasn''t sure what it was... Another thing that had his mind wandering was the signs of explosions within the Nilfgaardian ranks...

    To be honest, they look like the results of suicide bombers, the explosion looks to have been caused from within their own bodies as everything around the crater was entirely covered in blood.

    He waves his hand and uses the Dark Hand with the Staff of Morwenna to collect the other Elder Vampires souls... He hadn''t forgotten them, and wanted to make sure they wouldn''t heal and escape.

    "YOU BASTARD!" A voice shouts from the Nilfgaardian army, the man with the single glowing red arm had apparently survived...

    Reima sighs, summoning a single Scytheclops from his shadow and sending it to deal with him, not feeling up to killing this idiot right now.

    The Abyssal Servant runs up to the Nilfgaardian commander and tries to stomp on them...

    ...

    When the sound of the man getting crushed under the giant''s foot doesn''t reach Reima he glances over to check what''d happened, noticing that his Scytheclops was in two pieces on the floor, the man''s glowing red arm shaped into a giant energy blade...

    Stairrde Strickut "You monster! You think you''ve won?! NO! MY MASTER FORSAW ALL OF THIS!" he shout as the blood of the suicide bombers behind him begins to glow...

    Fro man eagles eye view if you look at the battlefield you''d be able to see that the blood splatter wasn''t actually random... Instead, it resembled a mark... The mark, of Gaunter O''Dimm.

    All of a sudden, the sounds of burning tree''s, shouts of pain, howls from burning animals and everything else stopped. Even the breeze itself had halted itself, Reima looks around warily, still breathing heavily from the earlier battles.

    *Clap, Clap, Clap, Clap*

    The sound of clapping Reima remembers hearing inside the ominous shrine where he''d previously saved Lothaire and met Gaunter O''Dimm makes itself known behind him. The clapping itself seeming louder than anything else due to the entire lack of any other sound.

    Gaunter O''Dimm slowly walks through the air as he steps towards Reima, a huge grin on his face. "Well, we meet again, King."

    Reima scowls at him, "Whaddya want?" he says, retrieving his blade and gripping it tightly.

    Gaunter raises his hands and shows his palms, "Hold on a moment, so much aggression... I''ve just come to talk, you know I can''t do anything to those I have no business with, you''re a smart man after all."

    *Flash!*

    A burst of turquoise light on the ground reveals Ciri who''d obviously tracked him via the pendant he''d given her.

    Ciri "Rei!? What the hell''s happening!? Time''s stopped!" she shouts, obviously panicking.

    Gaunter O''Dimm "Ah, the star of the party has arrived... I was wondering when you''d turn up." he says.

    Reima descends towards the floor while restraining his aura, landing beside Ciri while still glaring at Gaunter O''Dimm... Ciri isn''t the only other person not frozen in time however.

    Stairrde Strickut, the Nilfgaardian soldier with the glowing red arm walks beside Gaunter as he lands on the floor, "Master, everyone has failed." he states, kneeling with respect to him.

    Gaunter O''Dimm doesn''t stop smiling, "Oh, you must''ve been mistaken about my intentions for this little charade, those creatures were never meant to kill him." he says.

    Reima "So, you''re responsible for planning this attack? And unleashing Dracula?" he asks, the dots starting to connect in his mind.

    Gaunter O''Dimm slowly nods, "In a way, yes... I have to say, It''s been a while since I''ve felt this strong... It''s not every day you get a ritual sacrifice of such scale!" he exclaims, gesturing towards the mark made of blood decorating the battlefield.

    Reima "You still haven''t answered my question... What do you want? You said before that you can''t do anything to someone you don''t have business with?"

    Gaunter O''Dimm nods, "You''re correct, but here''s the kicker!" he says, as a burst of flames deposit a piece of paper in his hand which is displays to them. "I have business with one, Cirilla, right here."

    Ciri "W-what!? I''ve never met you before in my life!"

    Gaunter O''Dimm "I know, but who says you need to meet face to face to conduct business?" he says, flicking a Remi gold coin as her.

    Reima "Ciri, don''t-" he starts just as it''s too late, having read the paper in the being''s hand.

    She catches it unconsciously and looks it over, realising it was just an ordinary coin...

    Gaunter O''Dimm laugh, "Hehehehahahaha! With that, our deal is done. As stated here on the contract you signed, you would sell your soul for one gold piece. I hope you don''t mind if I collect it now, do you?"

    Reima "Ciri, when did you sign a fucking contract?" he quickly asks her.

    Ciri "N-never! I''ve not touched paper aside from doing your... Paperwork... Surely a contract can''t be formed as haphazardly as that!?" she exclaims, realising that she''d been tricked while she was signing papers in an exhausted and sleep-deprived state.

    Gaunter O''Dimm "You can''t blame a sly businessman for pouncing when he sees profit, so, that''s that Miss Cirilla. You will come with me willingly, or I shall have to be forceful."

 815 Dance with the devil

    Reima "You won''t, touch her and I''ll cut you from your neck to your ass." he threatens.

    Stairrde Strickut stands and looks furiously at him, "You watch your mouth when speaking to master!"

    Reima scowls and summons the Staff of Manus in his right hand, tapping the floor which causes a viscous black hand made from humanity to grab the Nilfgaardians leg. "You''re out of your league, shut your mouth while I talk to your Master." he glares at Gaunter O''Dimm, "What are your intentions? We''ve not knowingly wronged you, and yet you still make actions against us."

    ...

    Gaunter O''Dimm grins, "You see, that''s where you are wrong... While yes you''ve not knowingly offended me, your very existence is the antithesis to mine, a thorn in my side. It''s unfortunate you have to be dealt with, I''m sure we could''ve done much together." he says, snapping his fingers and causing a man dressed in fine clothes with ginger hair and beard to appear before them, a curved sword strapped to his hip... "I''d like for you to meet a friend of mine, Sir Olgierd von Everec.

    Olgierd stumbles forwards and quickly looks around, gaping at the fact time seemed to be frozen, "You... You finally appear before me again, demon?"

    Gaunter O''Dimm nods, "I know you''ve been looking for me, so I wanted to offer a chance to remove the small curse you''ve been inflicted with... All you need to do is kill those two for me." he says gesturing towards Reima and Ciri.

    ...

    Olgierd nods, not even asking any questions about the reason these people deserved death... He draws his sword which glows with red runes as crimson light surrounds him. He swipes his sword at the black arm extending from the floor and refusing to let go of Stairrde Strickut, the man nodding in response.

    Reima frowns, truth be told, he was slightly intimidated by the fact this guy could literally stop time... It didn''t seem to work on he and Ciri, probably because of their Elder Blood, if this was true then it''d mean that Gaunter O''Dimm was probably the being mentioned in Nalenthi''s journal. This also meant that Gaunter himself was weak against magic using the Elder Blood.

    He looks to Ciri, she already had Seath in her hand, ready to battle against these people, the Gleam Cloak wrapped around her neck and protecting her shoulders. "Ciri, you already these two, I''ll get the bald cunt with the shit-eating grin." he states, managing to get a small smile from her before she goes back to a determined neutral expression.

    Ciri "Just these two? I feel like you''re underestimating me." he says jokingly.

    Gaunter O''Dimm "I suppose you wish to fight then? Are you sure? I can tell you''re still tired from earlier." he says with a huge grin on his face.

    Reima "Shut up and fight me!" he exclaims, launching himself at quick speeds at Gaunter, the demon disappearing and reappearing a few hundred meters in the air...

    *Flash!*

    Reima blinks behind him and sweeps his silver sword at him after channeling it with Chaos Blade and Elder Blood Energy, causing turquoise flames to explode from it.

    Ciri ignores the fight going on above them and drops into a low stance, readying her sword while glaring at her two opponents... She didn''t know who either were, nor their abilities, so shed decided to go on the defensive until she knew for sure... That being wouldn''t bring them here if they weren''t able to assist him.

    Olgierd steps forwards confidently while flourishing his blade, "Alright lady, I''d go easy on you were this no-"

    *Flash*

    ....

    Olgierd''s arm flies off as Ciri flashes behind him and cuts it off as it''s flourishing his blade, taking him completely offguard... He looks down at the stump then back at Ciri who''s sending a smug grin at him. "Hm, seems I''ve underestimated you... No matter." he mutters as Stairrde Strickut tosses the severed arm still holding the sword at him, Olgierd holding it against his stump which causes it to heal before Ciri''s very eyes. "You''re not the only one with tricks." he states, red energy exploding from him as he dashes towards Ciri attempting to run her through.

    Ciri was surprised he hadn''t been bothered by his arm being severed, even more when he''d easily fixed the wound... She deflect the blade while stepping backward, though, not fast enough as Olgierd slams his shoulder into her, knocking her to the floor.

    He stabs down at her but she disappearing in a flash of Turquoise light behind him, stabbing him through the heart with Seath, twisting the blade to cause more damage to his internal organs.

    She wasn''t confident at the strike doing anything of value after seeing him easily heal his earlier wound, this is further confirmed when Olgierd tries to turn around to slash at her, both of them clashing in a contest of strength, Ciri to hold the man in place with her sword in his chest and Olgierd trying to twist his body to wrench the sword out of her grasp.

    Ciri twists the sword to the side and allows the sword to cut it''s way from the man''s body, she feels an ominous feeling behind her and flashes away, realising she''d almost forgotten about her other opponent... The Nilfgaardian soldier with the strange glowing red arm.

 816 Half a man > Havin your third leg cu

    She blinks a few meters away to avoid them, but has to blink against when she finds that they continue to follow her... Olgierd lunges at her with his sword, stabbing at the position she''d just been.

    Ciri had blinked backwards and allowed Stairrde''s red projectiles to hit Olgierd in the back, they pierce the man''s back and explode out of his chest, continuing to follow Ciri... She slashes a couple times at the projectiles, sending out Moonlight projectiles from her sword, but they are unable to stop it...

    The glowing red projectiles were still connected to Stairrde''s hand, leaving a long red trail that writhed around as the front pursued Ciri... She blinks next to Stairrde himself and attempts to behead him, only for the man to block the strike with his sword, the blade having glowing red runes on it. He gives a shout and sweeps his arm at Ciri, causing the long whip-like lengths attached to the projectiles to fly towards her.

    Olgierd who''d been pierced by the projectiles was dragged along with it, the length of red magic threading through his sternum.

    Ciri casts the Lingering Flame Pyromancy before blinking away again, the Pyromancy releasing a high fiery explosion a few moment later.

    Stairrde dispels the energy projectiles which also dematerialises the trails, he throws his hand above him and covers himself in red energy as the explosion washes over him.

    Olgierd himself had finally been freed from his allies strange magic, but was left point-blank next to Ciri''s Pyromancy... "Ah, fuc-"

    *BOOM!*

    Ciri watches the explosion from afar but isn''t quite done yet, she channels her Elder Blood Energy and creates a glowing turquoise ball of swirling energy, throwing it into the smoke once it''s ready.

    She takes her eyes away for a moment to examine the sky, notices huge spheres of magma descending towards the earth... Shaking her head she decides to trust that Reima has it handled, focussing back on her own fight.

    A few seconds later her spell activates, imploding and causing everything near it to be sucked in... The area was soon visible as the spell sucked even the smoke remaining from the explosion in, the ground below it uprooting and being compressed into a ball.

    ...

    *Thud*

    A heavy ball of compressed materials hit the ground once the spell is done... Ciri frowns as she spots a small red shield surround two men... Well, one and a half men.

    Stairrde Strickut stands up and glares at Ciri, glancing beside him at Olgierd who was left without legs. "Can you still fight?"

    Ciri "You still want to fight? Perhaps I should cut your third leg!?" she shouts, throwing a Great Chaos Fireball at him, it hits the floor and the horse leaps over the lava left behind.

    Just as Olgierd passes by her and attempts to behead her from atop his horse she blinks away, above Olgierd...

    *Slash!*

    The spectral horse continues running as Olgierds headless bodies tumbles off of it''s back, Ciri lands with a thud and bring Seath down again, cutting off the headless torso''s arms to prevent the man from piecing himself back together again.

    She glances towards where Stairrde Strickut is and starts sprinting towards him, leaping in the air and disappearing in yet another flash.

    *CLANK!*

    Stairrde turns and blocks her sword as she blinks behind him, managing to push her back while utilising his demonic arm. She blinks another coupe times while peppering the man with strikes, most are blocked but she manages to slip her blade through his guard, stabbing him in the shoulder and forcing him back.

    He roars in anger and throws his hand up, creating another red shield that completely covers him... Ciri steps forwards and stabs it, attempting to pierce the shield but finds it''s incredibly resistant to damage, like a Quen shield that doesn''t dissipate.

    *Clank! Clank! Clank!*

    She continues whacking away at it to no avail, eventually deciding to just channel Elder Blood Energy into her sword... She stabs at the shield yet again, only this time upon her sword making contact with the shield it completely vanishes, Stairrde''s demonic arm disappearing aswell.

    He roars in anger and pain as the arm Gaunter O''Dimm had given him is dispelled, the wound that''d been sealed by it opening and beginning to sprew blood from it. He haphazardly swings his sword at Ciri in an attempt to retaliate, but she easily parries and severs his other arm, sending a spinning back kick to his face which breaks his neck with a loud *CRACK!*.

    Ciri takes a moment to catch her breath before looking down at the body, tossing a small fireball to reduce it to ashes before returning to Olgierd''s body... His head shouting obsentities at her as she cuts the pieces into smaller and smaller chunks to make sure he had no chance to piece himself back together. "I wouldn''t have to do this if you didn''t try to kill us." she states to the man''s head, feeling slightly sick as she continues to mutilate his body.

    Olgierd "You can try all you want lass, but I can''t die! Believe me, I''ve tried! You should just kill yourself now, do you really want to be hunted by an immortal all your life? Especially when that Demon wants your soul so badly?"

    Ciri "I think you''ll find that my boyfriend has a few things that might kill you." she says.

    Suddenly, a turquoise light explodes above them, brightening everything for a moment before it disappears, leaving nothing behind.

 817 Gaunt Gaunter getting gouged by gouts of flame

    Gaunter O''Dimm himself hadn''t actually attacked yet, causing Reima''s nerves to fray the more time his opponent goes without making a move...

    Gaunter O''Dimm "What''s wrong "King"? Can''t comprehend being helpless in the face of something greater than yourself? It''s ironic isn''t it? Experiencing how you make other mortal men feel?..." he says in a tone that reveals no exertion at all.

    Reima "Helpelss? Says the person running from me! Why don''t you fight instead of fleeing like a coward!?" he shouts, blinking behind him and stabbing his blade into the place where Gaunter had just been, glancing to the side at where he''d just reappeared.

    Gaunter chuckles, "You want me to act? Very well..." he gestures to the sky where a meteorite could be seen falling towards them. "I wonder how you''ll deal with this? Be careful, your woman is still fighting below us." he adds ominously.

    Reima scowls, ignoring Gaunter and teleporting next to the meteorite while conjuring the gravitational Elder Blood spell he and Ciri had learned from Avalach''s journal. He uses his aura to suck all the heat away from the meteorite before throwing the turquoise orb into it...

    *Crack!*

    Once the spell activates the metorites surface being cracking all over as the stone comprising it starts getting compressed... The previously huge meteorite in a matter of seconds was reduced to the size of a large boulder, which was just small enough for Reima to fit into a portal.

    The portal lead to the Harry Potter world and the boulder flew through it at crazy speeds before hitting the planet... It hadn''t lost any weight from the compression, and the damage it''d cause had actually increased due to it. Reima shut the portal before it actually collided with the planet, but needless to say, if there had been anything that''d survived the nuclear warheads, it was definitely dead now.

    Gaunter appears next to Reima and casually walks side to side mid-air with his hands behind his back, "Well done... However, I''d like to see you do that again... Only, better!" he says, gesturing towards the sky where 10 meteorites could be seen.

    Reima stabs at Gaunter but the man disappears again, "You fucking cunt! You better not let me catch you, or I''LL TEAR YOUR SPINE OUT THROUGH YOUR MOUTH!" he roars, channeling his aura into his hand with Armament Haki before blinking next to the first meteorite and punching it.

    *BOOOOM!*

    He blinks next to the others and does the same, ignoring the ache in his muscles from the constant exertion. In a matter of moments, all that was left of the meteorites were a rain of magma which Reima aborbs to regain some energy back.

    When Gaunter appears in-front of him against Reima blasts the demon with a soul stream, but feels like self-destructing himself when man appearing behind him. "Hm, quite a unique use of magic you have there."

    Reima twists around while still firing the soul stream, cutting the clouds in the sky that''d not instantly evaporated from exposure to the center of the sun in half.

    Gaunter clicks his tongue at Reima after dodging his attack which only infuriates him further. Reima uses the Elder Blood Telekinesis to grab ahold of the demon, and is intrigued to find his body beginning to release plume of red and black smoke in response to it.

    Gaunter growls at him, "You''d better stop before I get serious, "KING" Reima." he states, but Reima ignores him, using his telekinesis to try and crush Gaunter, causing more smoke to escape from his body.

    Reima "I''ve found your weakness, you aren''t running away this time!" he shouts, slamming his hands together to enforce his will further... The telekinesis seems to work and Reima watches as Gaunter rib catch literally implodes, his ribs piercing his internal organs and then out of his back, causing blood to splatter.

    Reima had thought that this was the end of the battle as he put his hands together to make a crushing motions... Only for Gaunter to release a monstrous roar and explode with red energy that comes out of his body like a tsunami. It fills the sky and almost turns the entirety of it red from the sheer quantity alone.

    Gaunter O''Dimm "I''ve played with you enough! YOU WILL KNOW WHY ALL WHO KNOW MY NAME PERISH, AND WHY PEOPLE WHISPER STORIES OF MASTER MIRROR AMONGST THEMSELVES IN FEAR!" he exclaims, holding his hands out and causing red energy to slowly starts expanding across the horizon.

    Reima tries to blast him with barrage of Chaos Flames but scowls when it spots that they''d been frozen in time, he changes his tac and pushes Elder Blood Magic within them, their time resumes as they blast full speed towards Gaunter, forcing him to dodge and disrupting whatever spell he was attempting to cast.

    Gaunter O''Dimm "It''s too late! I AM GOD HERE!" he shout, as clouds start gathering out of nowhere and crackling with red lightning.

    Reima "Shit, where''s Solaire when you need him!" he exclaims as lighting begins to shoot towards him, it isn''t like natural lightning, however! When it misses it follows him, forcing him to constantly move to dodge the thousands of bolts that explode from the clouds.

 818 Giving the devil his dues

    It''s fortunate he was able to cover his entire body in Armament Haki, otherwise he really wouldn''t have a defense against this kind of attack. To be honest, he''d thought Gaunter O''Dimm would have more powerful attacks than this, a being capable of stopping time should be able to do a lot more than this. Though, judging by how his peculiar magic interacts with the Elder Blood, it wouldn''t surprise Reima to find that he was immune to being directly influenced by it.

    This would also explain why Gaunter was forced to use other methods like summoning lighting towards him, Gaunter''s magic had indeed summoned it, but the lightning itself was natural.

    Reima uses the Quen sign to cover himself with a shield, but finds the quantity and power of the lightning bolts is gradually able to break it, forcing him to fall back on something else... He thrusts his hand forward and utilises the Dark Hands secondary ability, a wispy red and black shield forms in-front of himself, it ripples as lightning bolts collide against it.

    The barrage of lightning seemed never ending, and with Reima tired from his previous fight he needed to try and maintain as much energy as he could. He twists the Dark Hand Shield to the side to begin deflecting the lightning away from himself to avoid taking the brunt of it, fortunately it seemed that after the bolts were deflected they weren''t able to continue homing in on him.

    Seeing his attacks lose their effectiveness Gaunter changes his strategy and mutters to himself in a strange language, causing the wind around him to swell and increase in intensity.

    The clouds shooting lightning down at Reima were also caught in the swirling wings, slowly being channeled to where Reima was.

    Reima observed as Gaunter started to form a tornado, but wasn''t sure how it''d actually hurt him... Regardless, he would stop it as it could prove a danger to Ciri who''s fighting on the ground.

    *Flash*

    He blinks in-front of Gaunter and throws a Great Combustion Pyromancy with Elder Blood Magic, causing a large explosion of turquoise flames to be shot at Gaunter.

    With no way to block this the being was forced to dodge, disappearing and reappearing a kilometer away, no longer controlling the winds due to him having to cancel it.

    Gaunter O''Dimm "It seems there''ll be no recourse here "King", we''ll be fighting for every with time frozen around us, why not surrender and serve me? I might even spare your woman." he says, his eyes visibly glowing red with black veins starting to become apparent on his skin not all that disimilarly to how toxins affect a Witcher.

    Gaunter gives a pain grunt and hits Reima in the face with his palm, red energy erupting as it makes contact and blowing them both away from each other... Reima glances at his blade which is now covered in the demon''s blood, and notices that his attack didn''t seem to be fatal.

    Gaunter O''Dimm "Fool, no matter how you wound me, I cannot be killed! That is why we will fight forever!" he exclaims, holding his wound in pain.

    Reima snorts, "You know how many Immortals I''ve dealt with? I''ll just torture you into you wish you were dead!" he shouts, the thought that he himself was acting like a villain crossing his mind.

    Gaunter O''Dimm "You are an ever bigger fool than I thought if you think you can break me! I have lived for millennia, experiencing pain that you would never conceive of in your pitiful mortal mind. Just because you were able to attain some strength does not make you worthy of it!" he says he conjures wind blade to start assault Reima at every angle.

    Reima easily blocks them but glances upwards just as Gaunter compresses water in the atmosphere and sends huge shards of ice shooting down at him. Fortunately, ice wasn''t all that big an issue for him to deal with. Using his aura he appears next to one and causes it to melt, using telekensis on another and sending it flying towards Gaunter.

    Reima''s earlier successful attack seemed to have dramatically weakened Gaunter, but it was obvious the being was regaining his strength quickly, the only thing that harmed him was the Elder Blood, which coincided with was Nalenthi''s journal had said.

    Their fight continued for a couple more minutes that''d felt like hours to Reima, Gaunter manipulated the elements around him in a vain hope of hurting Reima, most attempts failing spectacularly, while Reima got the opportunity to occasionally land a strike on Gaunter.

    The being body was looking more and more ragged as Reima''s Elder Blood infused weapon caused more wounds. Eventually, Reima even managed to bisect Gaunter, but looked on in disbelief as they pieced themself back together with ease.

    The battle reached its climax when Reima cut Gaunter''s head off and diced his body into a thin mince before using Elder Blood infused Chaos Flames to reduce what was left to ash.

    Reima could only scowl was Gaunter reappeared a kilometer away looking like nothing had happened...

    Gaunter O''Dimm "The pain you inflict on me will achieve nothing!... But, I know a way to harm you." he says, looking down at Ciri while raising his hand.

    Reima''s eyes contract as he senses the beings strange magic shoot towards the earth under Ciri, attempting to form it into spears that''d skewer her. Shaking his head he decides that there''s probably only one way to actually kill this thing for good, as not even his Dark Hand was able to affect it...

    *Flash!*

    Reima blinks next to Gaunter while holding them in place with his telekensis, he stabs his sword in his chest and wraps his arms around the demon...

    Gaunter O''Dimm "LET ME SHOW YOU PAIN!" he shouts as his magic flares to force the earth below CIri to skewer her...

    *Flash*

 819 Gaunter is null and void

    He wouldn''t allow this demon to bring their fight to Ichor and kill all of his friends and family while they''re frozen in time. So, he made a split second decision, to grab this fucker and teleport him to the one place that''d be able to destroy him if Nalenthi''s journal was correct...

    Gaunter tried to resist the pull, using his magic to try and force Reima off of him or possibly disrupt his actions. But Reima simply pushed more magic into it, eventually being the victor in the struggle and disappearing in a burst of light.

    *Flash*

    Reima and Gaunter O''Dimm appeared in a strange place, it looked like space with one exception... There were no stars, well, that was not strictly true...

    Around the two were tiny turquoise spheres that must''ve been infinite... As far as the eye could see there were these tiny Turqouise orbs, Reima wasn''t actually sure how he was able to see at all around here, as there was not light being emitted by anything.

    Not only that, but there wasn''t any air either, they were in a complete vacuum.. If Reima''s body wasn''t already monstrously powerful, he had no doubt that his blood would boil while his body would puff up and explode. Fortunately, he was able to hold his breath for a time he''d not discovered, as it was so long it was annoying to test it.

    He turns his attention to his passenger, Gauner O''Dimm... He hadn''t noticed it due to his awe of the things surrounding him, but the demon appeared to be screaming his lung out... Not because of the vacuum, but because this was the place of his power... The void.

    Reima was actually confused... This place wasn''t cold at all, in-fact, temperature didn''t seem to exist here in a form Reima could recognise. This brought up questions as to how the White Frost came into existence in the first place... If the void wasn''t cold, then how did the void cause the white frost?

    His questions would remain unanswered for now, as he needed to remain focussed on the task at hand... He''d let go of Gaunter O''Dimm who thrashed around like a madman, trying to grab hold of anything, clawing at his face, neck and any other visible skin he could reach.

    The pain the being appeared to be was excruciating, even when he''d pierced this person''s heart and burned all his flesh from his bones, he''d not got the same reaction he was seeing now.

    Blinking in this place was... Strange, space and time didn''t seem to operate how it usually did so he ended up blinking a huge distance away from his target, he blinked a couple more time and gradually managed to get to where he wanted to be after much trial and error.

    ...

    He gives Gaunter a kick which sends them both flying in opposite direction... He wasn''t sure if the demon was dead yet, but judging by how their skin was beginning to flake off and dissipate, it wouldn''t be all that long from now.

    Reima continues to watch as Gaunter''s body disintegrates, the person themself continuing to soundlessly scream and claw at their slowly disappearing body...

    Reima pulled out a gameboy to wait out the demons slow dramatic death, but found that anything not covered by Elder Blood Magic in this area simply ceased to exist... He''d not covered the device in magic as to not harm the circuitry, but his mistake had turned into a boon at helping him understand this place.

    Regular items disappeared when introduced to the void unless protected by Elder Blood Magic, or Void Energy if he was going to accurate about it. Dead flesh reacted similarly, but when Reima pulled a soul from his storage, it remained for a moment before dissipating like how Gaunter O''Dimm had... If at a slower pace.

    Shaking his head and deciding to experiment with this place further at a later date, he looks on at Gaunter O''Dimm''s body which had been reduced to a skeleton, still somehow managing to scream without organs or muscles.

    Rema extended his arm while channeling the Dark Hand, but was still unable to take this being''s soul... If it had a soul, Reima still wasn''t sure if it did or not.

    Without anything unexpected happening, the skeleton finally vanished. Gaunter O''Dimm was dead.

    Reima couldn''t help but feel this was anticlimactic... He''d only encountered Gaunter twice, as the main villain of the story shouldn''t there be like a saga where he had a time limit to defeat him or some other bs like that?

    He shakes his head, he''d had existential thoughts on his existence a few times in his new life, whether or not he was just the protagonist of someone''s novel. He was an intriguing idea and one that wasn''t all that impossible. But, judging by how he''d lived his life thus far, he reckoned it''d be a pretty poor book if it was a novel, he was satisfied with the thought that if they existed, the author of his life would atleast receive some hateful comments for it.

    Reima takes another look around the place before finally blinking back to the battlefield to see if Ciri was alright, and whether everything was back to normal.

 820 Accidental rio

    Reima looks around and spots the Nilfgaardian commanders corpse on the floor nearby, it''s neck bent at an awkward angle with both arms missing. Turning he spots Ciri sitting on a lawn chair she''d presumably brought out from her Bottomless box, sitting next to her was something Reima had thought was a scarecrow at first glance... But upon closer inspection he quickly realised that wasn''t the case.

    Ciri had skewered Olgierd''s torso onto a cross, attaching the arms separately on the ends of it with his head at the top... It looked incredibly gruesome but Reima wasn''t phased, he himself had done much worse to many others in the past.

    Reima "Er, Ciri? What''s with the modern art?" he gestures towards it.

    Ciri smiles at him, "He wouldn''t stop talking so I played around a bit." she says, slowly getting to her feet and walking towards him. He jumps at him and takes his lips, Reima not refusing her sudden and slightly inappropriate for the situation kiss.

    The two stayed locked in each other''s embrace for a couple minutes before Ciri finally lets go to breath, Reima keeps his hands on her waist as he continues to look into her eyes.

    Reima grins, "No trouble with those goons?" he asks, already knowing the answer but wanting to hear it from Ciri herself.

    Ciri "None at all, I was more worried about how you were handling... That guy literally stopped time and was responsible for what happened to our ancestor." he says.

    Reima "We won''t have to worry about him anymore, I watched as he died... There''s no chance that he''s going to come back like Goku or Superman."

    ...

    Ciri "Goku?"

    Reima shakes his head, "Ignore it, I''m tired... I think I wanna drink." he mutters, wondering when was the last time they''d had a party. "Hinky!?" he calls, the elf popping in and looking at him expectantly. "Gather some House Elves and loot anything usable from the battlefield. If you find any survivors just take them to the prisons, don''t bother healing their wounds either... Let them suffer..." he says, glancing at the artillery that Nilfgaard had brought, while yes, most are currently either on fire or reduced to ashes, some could still be repaired and made useful. "Ah! Also, could you tell anyone available to meet at San''s club... Drinks are on me."

    Hinky quickly nods and pops away to gather a veritable army of midgets to loot the many, many horrifically burned corpses.

    Ciri pulls his arm off of her ass and back onto her waist while giving him a glare, "Not in public." she quietly says.

    Reima "It''s a bit late to start acting self-conscious Ciri." he snarks, getting his side pinched in response.

    They walk up and take a seat close to the stage, the club''s lights were all on making the place look more like a restaurant than a comedy club right now... The sound of light footsteps signals San''s arrival... He steps out from the backroom and looks at the duo, "Eh? Didn''t expect to see you two here... I''d tell you we''re close but Undyne would have my skull if I did. So... Welcome?"

    Reima "Don''t get your slippers in a twist Sans, I''m just here to drink and rest... I hope you don''t mind if I invited some friends?"

    Sans shrugs, "More business for me but... If your friend Kuretz comes, try to keep him quiet. Last time he ruined three acts by shouting at the new comedians."

    Reima nods, stands, and walks over to the bar to help himself to some drinks... As the store hadn''t opened yet the barman wasn''t there, allowing Reima to just help himself... Of course he paid, for what he took, he wasn''t a complete ass hole...

    Eventually it was time for the club to open, the lights dimmed as the staff got ready to receive customers, and the comedians came in through the backroom to prepare their material.

    "Reima, Ciri?" a voice asks, causing the duo to turn.

    At the door were many, many people, apparently Hinky had taken his order "Invite anyone available" literally... It looked as if the entire town had shown up, almost everyone he knew from Hogwarts, Lordran, Raslan, the underground, and the continent was there... He felt pretty overwhelmed at the fact all of them were staring at him with intensity. The reason for this was probably the fact that everyone had heard about him going off alone to face the Nilfgaardian army.

    With him just sitting back casually enjoying a drink in the comedy club most weren''t sure whether they were told the truth or not.

    Regardless on whether their King had just defeated an army single-handidly, there was something more important than that... The fact that the elf had said "Drinks were on him".

    Grillby had been peacefully cleaning some glasses when a stampede of humans, elves, dwarves, monsters, and wizards charged him, all shouting out their various orders... Clearly, this was going to be one of "those" nights.

    Sans had been watching at the side to see the turn out for today, and had almost grown eyes just so they could roll out of their sockets. THE COMEDY CLUB WASN''T EVEN BIG ENOUGH FOR ALL THOSE PEOPLE!