Chapter 39: The Blizzard
POV: Adam
The blizzard struck Kaer Morhen with fury that transformed the ancient fortress from sanctuary into prison, wind howling through mountain passes with voices that spoke of winter's determination to reclaim territory that humanity had dared to occupy. Snow fell in quantities that erased the landscape beyond the windows, reducing the world to gray-white void that seemed to extend infinitely in all directions.
Trapped. We're all trapped together until this passes.
Adam watched from the great hall's main window as the storm buried familiar landmarks under drifts that would require days to clear, weather conditions that made travel impossible and outside activities lethal. The temperature inside the keep dropped despite massive fireplaces working at full capacity, stone walls conducting cold that no amount of burning wood could completely counteract.
Three days minimum. Probably longer.
The fortress that had felt spacious during normal operations suddenly seemed cramped with five people who weren't accustomed to extended cohabitation, personality conflicts emerging as cabin fever settled over inhabitants who usually solved problems through movement and action rather than patience and endurance.
Witchers work alone. Forcing them together for days tests everyone's tolerance.
Lambert's bickering with Eskel intensified as boredom replaced professional purpose, their sibling-like relationship devolving into arguments that would have been amusing if they hadn't been accompanied by hands moving toward weapons. Vesemir maintained order through authority that felt like controlled intimidation, his presence reminding everyone that some conflicts weren't worth pursuing.
Even witchers get irritable when confined. Good to know they're human in that respect.
"Tell us a story," Lambert demanded during their second evening of forced confinement, his voice carrying the desperate edge of someone seeking distraction from circumstances beyond his control. "Something with action. Violence. Preferably involving things getting killed."
Story. He wants a story.
Adam's mind raced through possibilities that might entertain professional monster hunters without revealing knowledge he shouldn't possess. Movies and television shows from his previous life provided source material that could be presented as embellished personal experience.
The Aliens plot. Creature that hunts hunters.
"There was a contract," Adam began, settling into narrative rhythm that had served him well during other deceptions. "Remote facility, researchers going missing one by one. The survivor described something that hunted them through the corridors..."
The story that followed was Ridley Scott's masterpiece filtered through witcher sensibilities, the xenomorph transformed into supernatural threat that even professional hunters might struggle to address. Lambert's initial skepticism gave way to genuine engagement as the tale progressed through revelations that made conventional monster hunting seem straightforward by comparison.
Perfect predator. Creature that exists only to hunt and kill.
"Acid blood that dissolves weapons," Eskel said when Adam finished, his voice carrying professional assessment rather than simple entertainment. "That's... disturbing. What killed it?"
"Fire. Lots of fire. And explosive decompression that sucked it into vacuum."
Creative solutions to impossible problems. The witcher way.
Ciri's smile suggested she recognized elements from stories told by Cintra's court bards, but she played along with narratives that provided communal bonding through shared imagination.
Entertainment. They need entertainment to maintain sanity.
[Experience Gained: 100 XP - Crisis management, group cohesion]
[Relationship: All Witchers +5 each]
The second night brought horrors that couldn't be addressed through storytelling or group distraction, Ciri's screams cutting through winter silence with sounds that spoke of terror beyond normal nightmare experience. Adam woke to find their room covered in frost that had appeared without natural explanation, supernatural cold radiating from her unconscious form.
Elder Blood. Her power is manifesting during sleep.
She thrashed against bedding while her body temperature dropped to levels that should have been fatal, ice crystals forming on her skin while magical energy discharged through systems that weren't designed to contain such forces. The Kindred Spirits bond hummed with shared agony that made Adam's chest ache with sympathetic pain.
Stabilize her. Use the connection to bring her back.
Adam triggered Healing Touch while drawing warm water from their washbasin, gentle warmth flowing from his hands into her frozen skin while soothing presence worked through their shared bond to provide anchor against whatever visions were tormenting her sleeping mind.
Wild Hunt. She's dreaming about the Wild Hunt.
The images that bled through their connection were fragmentary but terrifying—spectral riders on skeletal horses, reaching for her with hands that promised transformation into something that wasn't quite death but definitely wasn't life. Prophetic visions mixed with memories of Cintra's fall, creating nightmare landscape where past trauma merged with future threats.
They're coming. Eventually, they're coming for her.
"I'm here," Adam whispered, his voice pitched to penetrate whatever realm her consciousness had been dragged into. "You're safe. I'm here."
Ciri's eyes opened with sudden clarity, green irises reflecting candlelight while she processed transition from nightmare to reality. Tears froze on her cheeks as supernatural cold slowly faded, leaving only normal winter chill and the warmth of his presence.
Terrified. She's terrified of her own power.
"I'm losing control," she whispered, her voice carrying fear that went beyond simple concern about magical training. "What if I hurt you? What if I hurt everyone I care about?"
Promise. I need to promise something I might not be able to deliver.
"I'll help you control it," Adam said, meaning every word with desperate intensity that came from understanding exactly what uncontrolled Elder Blood could accomplish. "Whatever it takes, whatever the danger—I'll help you master this."
I love you. The words need to be said again.
"I love you," Ciri said, her voice carrying honesty that made pretense impossible. "Despite everything that's wrong with me, despite the power that makes me dangerous—I love you."
"I love you too," Adam replied, discovering that speaking the words aloud in circumstances this dire gave them weight that casual declarations couldn't achieve. "Especially because of everything that makes you who you are."
Maximum trust. Maximum love. This is as close as we can get before something fundamental changes.
[Relationship: Ciri +5 (now 150/150)]
[Status: MAXIMUM TRUST/LOVE achieved]
[Note: Next threshold requires deeper commitment]
The blizzard broke on the third dawn with sudden clarity that transformed gray-white void into landscape sculpted by wind and snow into forms that spoke of winter's artistic ambitions. Kaer Morhen emerged from the storm buried under six feet of accumulated precipitation, its ancient walls rising from drifts like monuments to human persistence in face of natural hostility.
Clear skies. Finally, clear skies.
Adam stood on the battlements beside Ciri, both of them breathing air that felt clean after days of recycled warmth and accumulated tension. The view from the fortress walls revealed world transformed by weather into something that belonged in fairy tales rather than tactical assessment.
Beautiful. Dangerous, but beautiful.
Below them, the witchers emerged from confinement with relief that spoke of people whose sanity depended on having space to move and problems to solve through action rather than patience. Lambert immediately began organizing snow removal efforts with enthusiasm that suggested physical labor felt like liberation.
Three days. Three days of forced intimacy that revealed more about these people than months of normal interaction.
But looking at Ciri's profile as morning light painted her features in gold that competed with snow for brilliance, Adam understood that some confinements produced benefits that freedom couldn't achieve.
Stronger. All of us stronger through shared adversity.
The bonds forged during winter imprisonment would serve when spring brought challenges that required cooperation between people who'd learned to trust each other through circumstances that stripped away pretense and revealed character beneath surface appearances.
Ready. More ready than before, though still not ready enough.
The road ahead stretched through landscape that promised beauty and danger in equal measure, leading toward whatever tests would determine whether love and determination could triumph over forces that seemed designed to separate people from everything they cared about.
Together. Whatever comes, we face it together.
Some storms passed, but the changes they created lasted forever.
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