The Curse of Love || The Witcher

Chapter Five

The witch took a deep breath. She almost seemed relieved at Geralt's willingness to hear her story. This was probably the first true interaction she had had with anyone since she had been cursed.

Her eyes focused distantly. "I have known Kallis for centuries now, though, back then, I knew him only by reputation. His reputation as a healer was quite extensive in the city. It seemed as though he could cure anything. Everyone flocked to him, awed by his power and knowledge. And for a while, perhaps, he deserved the adulation. He saved many lives. I myself was living in the city not far from his workshop. I moved to the city because I wanted to experience the world, meet the people in it. I was content in my life.

"But then people started disappearing. No one seemed to notice but me. It was beggars and strumpets that went missing after all. People that no one would miss. I was the only one that connected the dots, that figured out it was Kallis that had taken them. I tried to go to the authorities, but they just laughed in my face. Kallis' reputation protected him more than anything else. It was the word of an elf against that of a highly respected healer.

"Frustrated and naïve, I figured that if no one else would help me, I would just solve the problem myself. I went to Kallis' workshop in the city. I don't even know what I thought I could do, what I thought he would do when I confronted him. I suppose I thought I could convince him to stop, with either logic or threats. I told him that I was on to him, to stop what he was doing, and go back to healing. Or else. But we both knew I didn't have it in me to follow through with any threats. He laughed me off. He knew. He knew I just couldn't bring myself to harm him, even after everything he had done. He told me to run along before he got really annoyed. Embarrassed, I did as I was told. I didn't know it then, but I was lucky he didn't just kill me outright. I guess he didn't see me as any sort of threat.

"After that, I didn't know what to do. So I did the only thing I could think of. I went to the people. Most didn't listen, but I spread the word so far and so fast that people had no choice but to take notice. Public opinion started to sway and with it, Kallis' foothold in the city. Sensing this, Kallis took greater notice of me, of my threat to him. But he couldn't touch me. Not anymore. Not without raising suspicions.

"Then one day, when his business was drying up and people started treating him with caution rather than adoration, he vanished. No one knew where he went. Not even me. But I knew he was still out there. I knew he was setting up shop somewhere else, that he would never give up on his work. I had to find him. I had to stop him."

"Why? Why go after him? The city was safe, it seems to me. Why put yourself at further risk?"

Objectives were simple to a witcher. Once a task was undertaken, the course was linear—find the problem, solve it, and collect the reward. What happened outside of those circumstances was of no further value. And was sure to bring nothing but pain and suffering. Aela, it seemed, was the perfect example.

"Because he was going to torture and kill innocent people," she answered as if it were a nonquestion. "I couldn't stand by and let him do it. Not if there was anything I could do to stop it."

Geralt had been like that once, had done what he could to help others. Jaded though he may have been, he had always stood up for the innocent; always placed himself in the path of evil. He had fought alongside loved ones to shape the world, to save it. Ciri had—

No.

Geralt shut the thought down before it could complete itself. What he had once felt, once cared about, didn't matter anymore. It had only ever ended in devastation. He was done with caring. All he cared about now was finishing the next task and moving on.

Unaware of Geralt's internal struggle, Aela continued her story. "Years later, I heard rumors of a miraculous healer. I followed them far to the South. Kallis had found a new hunting ground. As soon as I had confirmed that it was him, I alerted the authorities. It didn't matter. I received the same welcome I had before—a door in my face. And by that time, Kallis discovered my presence. He disappeared again.