[ People do indeed disappear. And he'd believed that was it until he'd landed in Thorne. Realized it was true. That Mal had returned. Even after his domain had vanished in the Horizon, he'd returned, someplace else altogether. What it says, he isn't sure.
Geralt doesn't address the matter yet, lets Kylo speak as he will while he considers. Friendly elements. Like the mage, he presumes. The Duchess, too, perhaps. His expression flickers. Yeah. He remembers. The queen had said, what was it. That her uncle captained the military? There's a stretch of silence that Geralt makes no effort to fill even if Kylo were to add anything else. Truthfully, he does not want to be the one holding political secrets, but here they are. Not that it changes much. No secret will ever top the one he holds for Ciri. ]
And if Thorne is attacked from within? [ Because he knows, better than anyone, that chaos rarely begins from without. He thinks Kylo must realize that, too, whatever it is they're planning on that side of the border. ] Instability does no one good. The Free Cities are not showing restraint out of respect.
[ It's the first time he's acknowledged, a little, of where exactly he stands, despite his presence in Cadens. He's about as much interest in shattering the Singularity as anyone in Thorne. It doesn't matter what that thing is or what omens Thorne believes it holds. Maybe it spells doom, maybe it doesn't. Maybe all that will happen is that there's one less giant rock in the universe. What he does know is that you do not fuck with something that has existed on a world since its inception unless you're looking for trouble. Trouble he wants absolutely nothing to do with.
Beyond that, the Singularity appears to be the only thing shielding Ciri from the Wraiths of Mörhogg. For now. Its interference with her Elder Blood is a concern, but it's at least a concern that can be worked with, alongside Yennefer's help. A concern he can bide his time with while they find an answer. The Red Riders, though? If they discover her, as she fears? No one needs that. Least of all Ciri. He's already trying to protect her from a dozen different things, from a dozen different people, all who will want her the second they realize the power she carries inside her. Every day, it feels like he finds something new. And it worries him, not just for her safety, but because it's been years. Years since he's...since he's taken her in, apparently. She came to this place a grown woman, still on the run, still afraid. Which tells him she's been escaping for near a decade, from those who would pursue her. Perhaps he should know better, than to believe peace can be found for those like her, like him, too different for the world to turn away from. But it's something he can't help wanting to give to her. ]
no subject
Geralt doesn't address the matter yet, lets Kylo speak as he will while he considers. Friendly elements. Like the mage, he presumes. The Duchess, too, perhaps. His expression flickers. Yeah. He remembers. The queen had said, what was it. That her uncle captained the military? There's a stretch of silence that Geralt makes no effort to fill even if Kylo were to add anything else. Truthfully, he does not want to be the one holding political secrets, but here they are. Not that it changes much. No secret will ever top the one he holds for Ciri. ]
And if Thorne is attacked from within? [ Because he knows, better than anyone, that chaos rarely begins from without. He thinks Kylo must realize that, too, whatever it is they're planning on that side of the border. ] Instability does no one good. The Free Cities are not showing restraint out of respect.
[ It's the first time he's acknowledged, a little, of where exactly he stands, despite his presence in Cadens. He's about as much interest in shattering the Singularity as anyone in Thorne. It doesn't matter what that thing is or what omens Thorne believes it holds. Maybe it spells doom, maybe it doesn't. Maybe all that will happen is that there's one less giant rock in the universe. What he does know is that you do not fuck with something that has existed on a world since its inception unless you're looking for trouble. Trouble he wants absolutely nothing to do with.
Beyond that, the Singularity appears to be the only thing shielding Ciri from the Wraiths of Mörhogg. For now. Its interference with her Elder Blood is a concern, but it's at least a concern that can be worked with, alongside Yennefer's help. A concern he can bide his time with while they find an answer. The Red Riders, though? If they discover her, as she fears? No one needs that. Least of all Ciri. He's already trying to protect her from a dozen different things, from a dozen different people, all who will want her the second they realize the power she carries inside her. Every day, it feels like he finds something new. And it worries him, not just for her safety, but because it's been years. Years since he's...since he's taken her in, apparently. She came to this place a grown woman, still on the run, still afraid. Which tells him she's been escaping for near a decade, from those who would pursue her. Perhaps he should know better, than to believe peace can be found for those like her, like him, too different for the world to turn away from. But it's something he can't help wanting to give to her. ]