Pollux of Temeria

"If I couldn't escape my fate, neither can Pavetta."

"I apologize, Your Majesty. A knight's oath prevents me from revealing my face until the sounding of the twelfth bell." The Lord Urcheon said a false sense of regret in his tone. His voice was ironically smooth, it sounded young, which contrasted with the rusted armor that adorned his body. Pollux squeezed Geralt's hand twice, a signal she used to let him know to be on guard. She felt Geralt shift his weight into a passive defensive stance.

"Bollocks to that." Eist declared brashly. He approached the man and knocked the helm from Urcheon's head. Pollux's hand covered her mouth as she gasped loudly. A face of a hedgehog, with a long snout, pitted black eyes, and spikes for hair replaced what Pollux thought would be the face of a battered young man. Pavetta's heart rate spiked again, Pollux could feel her worry, but she couldn't pinpoint where it was directed. Her eyes darted quickly back and forth between the knight and the princess.

"Witchers, kill it." Calanthe demanded, fear evident in her quaking tone. Pollux couldn't seem to grasp why Calanthe was panicking. If he decided to fight there is no way he would win.

"No." Geralt said, watching Pollux walk from behind the table and down the stairs.

"Whatever the price." The queen insisted.

"That is no monster." Pollux said, circling the knight who stared back at her, fear evident in his eyes as well. "He has been cursed."

"You've grown soft, Pollux." Calanthe snarled. "You're as useless as the rest of them. Slay this beast." She commanded of her knights. Lord Urcheon easily knocked down two knights before wrenching Pollux into his grasp, placing his sword to her neck. Her eyes widened as she looked at Geralt. The hall grew quiet as everyone stared at the knight threatening one of the most lethal people on the continent.

"Lioness of Cintra, I come to claim what is rightfully mine. Pavetta. By the Law of Surprise." A cry filled the room along with gasps, swords were drawn immediately after the Law was mentioned. He grabbed Pollux's head and yanked it back, now drawing blood. Through all of the commotion, Pollux missed the thunder of paws hitting the floors of the palace. Out of what seemed to be thin air, a massive weight tackled the knight and the witcher. When Pollux recovered from the shock she looked up, coming face to snout with the leader of her pack.

"Fenrir!" She exclaimed wrapping her arms around his neck, fingers curling in his fur. "I thought I'd never see you again." The wolf huffed, as if to say he was glad to see her. She stood next to the wolf, picking a loose sword up off the ground. "Protect the knight." She whispered to the wolf.

Fenrir gruffled a little, before standing protectively in front of the knight. Pollux circled the sword behind her, putting herself at the back of the knight who looked at her in shock. He opened his mouth to ask her why she would protect him. She glared at the man before snarling, "If it weren't for the Law of Surprise, you would be my wolf's dinner."

When Geralt saw the guards advance on his partner, he moved at the speed of light, picking up a sword from a fallen knight after jumping over the table, blocking an axe that had been thrown towards the knight. Calanthe was enraged after seeing the Witchers take the side of the grotesque knight. "Kill all three!" She bellowed.

Pollux aimed for non-lethal incapacitation zones. She swiped at ankles, knocking guards from beneath themselves. Geralt was not so kind however, knocking guards to the ground and driving the swords through the chest and neck. Fenrir was aiming for the jugular of each man he took down. The wolfs snout was bloody and covered in bits of windpipe. One of the guards kicked Fenrir in the temple, causing the wolf to whimper. Upon hearing this Pollux flipped like a coin. She severed the head from the guards neck. Eist had joined in protecting the knight, while Calanthe kicked down guards, grabbing a sword. She charged at Pollux who doged the swipe with ease. Pollux swung back at her mentee with fervor. She was annoyed, and willing to prove a point to Calanthe, who recognized the look in Pollux's eye. She was ready to kill.

"Stop." She commanded. "Stop." Pollux kept her blade up but stopped advancing, and backed towards Fenrir. But through the midst of all of the fighting that was beginning to cease Pavetta cried out, running towards the knight. As they collided his arms wrapped around her lifting her up. Pavetta's tears now poured out of her eyes, she sobbed as her fingers glided across his face. Calanthe glared at the two, hatred filling her eyes. The princess and the knighted talked amongst themselves, before Duny turned to look at Calanthe. He dropped his weapon to the ground, and plead in front the hall.

"The witcher speaks the truth. I was cursed as a young boy. My whole life a living misery untl the day that I saved your husband, King Roegner, from certain death. By tradition, I chose the law of surprise as a Payment. Whatever windfall he came home to find-would be mine." He stared Calanthe down in a desperate attempt to get Calanthe to agree to this moment.

"Oh the stupid bastard." Calanthe growled. "Better you had let him die. And you," She howled turning to Pavetta. "Carousing with the beast that swindled your stupid father!"

Pollux stepped forward, unbelievably livid. "You knew he would come. Didn't you Calanthe? That's why you pushed us to kill him." Her mind was racing. Geralt looked to his partner who's eyes seemed to be red with fury.

"'Tis no swindle. Asking for payment with the law of surpise is as old as mankind itself." Eist said. Pollux nodded in agreement, remembering every Law of Surprise being heeded that she had ever witnessed.

"Don't lecture me, Eist." Calanthe snapped.

"It's an honest gamble, Calanthe." Pollux started.

"It could've been crops or money. Or a child of surprise. He could never have known. Destiny has determined the surprise be Pavetta." Eist said speaking softly.

"When I heard that the King had returned to find a child, I abandoned all thought of claiming the law. I knew no woman would accept me like this." Tears dripped from his eyes, as Pavetta reached a comforting hand out to him. "I waited. I waited until the twelfth bell when the curse breaks. I never intended to meet her. Rather to watch from afar."

"Until destiny intervened and our hearts collided." Pavetta said looking into his cursed eyes.

"And at dawn, I awoke with her in my arms and me like this." The self-disdain evident in his voice. Pollux hated everything about the man, but if Pavetta could see the good in him, and was drawn to him; Pollux could look past it. She empathized with him. Being a witcher was not as easy as people made it out to be. Pollux was ripped from a normal life. She would never get married, never have kids, never be able to settle down. She would outlive her friends and her pack. She watched the world continue to decline into evil and madness. And she hated every bit of it. She hated destiny for putting her into this life, and that's why she rebuked it.

"Who are we to challenge destiny? Life was saved, debt bust be paid, or the whole order of the world falls apart." Eist whispered.

"Honor destiny's wish, or unleash its wrath upon us." Moussack announced. Pollux knew destiny was ruthless. It would release it's wrath if it didn't get its way. Calanthe, however didn't agree.

"There is no us! I bow to no law made by men who never bore a child. Is there not a man amongst you who does not cower before destiny? You, witchers who has known monsters of every fang and claw are you scared too?"

"No." Geralt said. "I've seen mothers lsh themselves raw over the death of a child believing they've crossed destiny, ignoring the stench of the other 50 children in the plague cart. Destiny helps others believe there's an order to this horseshit. There isn't."

"I, disagree. I've adamantly refused to acknowledge destiny. But there is no way I would be a witcher if it wasn't. I've gotten fucked left and right by this. A promise made must be honored. As true for a commoner, as it is for a queen. If I couldn't escape my fate, neither can Pavetta. You know that Calanthe."