A Bigger Monster - Ch. 2 (Patreon)

Author's Note: Today's post is a little different. One of my Tier 4 Patrons did not have any ideas yet, and so he asked me to write more of a fanfic I'd started a little while back before getting onto Patreon. I had no issues with such a thing considering I chose to start the fanfic in the first place for free.

However, because of that I did feel a bit uncomfortable trying to paywall the new chapter, so I'm instead posting it for the public to see. And for those interested, Chapter 1 is found through the link I've put at the top of this post.

There is no sex in this chapter, but there is some in the first. Tomorrow will probably be a Mass Effect piece so that's exciting~

Warning: If you have not/do not read Chapter 1, this is going to be a very confusing piece indeed heh.

  Vali lounged back in the heated water of the bath tub he was currently in and frowned a bit. Things had gone mostly the same for him as they had for Geralt, albeit with no Wild Hunt chasing them, the ride from White Orchard to Vizima went at a more relaxed pace. Upon arriving in Vizima, Vali had been shuffled away into a set of rooms where he was bid to strip off his armor and clean himself off.

The immortal monster had no reason not to go along with it as far as he could tell. It was what had happened in the game that he remembered oh so clearly despite thousands of years and several worlds of separation between those events and now. There had been times where a picture perfect memory had not been as desirable as one might think, but Vali had never found himself buried under the weight of his recollections like others might theorize.

He had long since learned to organize his mind and his thoughts and he could call up memories thousands of years in the past in the blink of an eye. That’s why Vali was left surprised and a teensy bit disappointed when he was not attended to by scantily clad Nilfgaardian women in his bath as Geralt was. Instead he was left completely alone in the rooms he’d been shown to once the attendants carrying the bath in had deposited their burden and departed.

Now he was soaking, curious to see what else his insertion into events had changed and what was next. More specifically, he was waiting to see if that one attendant Geralt had had to deal with would show up to make sure Vali knew the proper etiquette for speaking with the Emperor before he got to meet with the man. Sure enough, the man did arrive, though he barely spoke of the things Vali expected him to speak of.

The Hybrid was already clean shaven, so there was no need for that little scene. Instead he was directed to choose and put on fine clothes. Vali eyed them all up and down and just shrugged, picking one at random. He was not picky, and to be fair, dark colors were his thing anyways, so he wasn’t at all fussed about the barely different choices.

The attendant directed him towards the door and Vali raised an eyebrow, stopping right in the doorway and looking to the Nilfgaardian man in curiosity.

“Should you not make sure I know how to conduct myself before your Emperor, before leading me to meet with him?”

That got a surprised and altogether derisive scoff from the attendant. “The Gentleman is not going to meet with his Esteemed Grace. I am to take the Gentleman to the Lady Yennefer of Vengerberg.”

Vali blinked, honestly surprised. He should have expected it though, but he wasn’t really putting much effort into calculating and planning right now. He’d been told this was a vacation and had decided to just lay back and enjoy the ride. But being told now by some piss ant mortal that he was going on another ride altogether? Oh no, that just wouldn’t do. Things would change when Vali wanted to change them, not at the whims of some scared little Emperor.

“I think not.”

Before the attendant could reply or do anything more than begin to curl his lips into a sneering frown, Vali was gone. At his age, speed was a matter of desire and to untrained human eyes; he may as well have been teleporting. Finding the study that Emhyr var Emreis was currently holed up in was not difficult. Nor was putting the guards at said door through it and into the room beyond.

Vali stepped over the unconscious plated soldiers and into the room wearing his Nilfgaardian finery and a large toothy smile across his face. Emhyr sat behind his desk, the only sign of his surprise a slight widening of the eyes and a flaring of his nostrils. The nobles or sycophants in the room that currently stood between him and the Emperor were not so reserved, the ladies screaming in fear and the men yelling in anger.

With all their attention on him though, it was not difficult to initiate a mass compulsion that left only the emperor out. “Sit down, shut up.”

They do so, which ends up being rather humorous as none of them are anywhere near chairs. In the end, six asses of varying genders plop down on the cold stone floor, as their owners stare at him in stunned silence. Vali moves through them without another word or even a glance, every ounce of his attention currently focused on the man seated behind the desk.

“Emhyr var Emreis, Emperor of Nilfgaard, lord of Metinna, Ebbing and Gemmera, sovereign of Nazair and Vicovaro. The White Flame Dancing on the Graves of his Foes.”

Vali paused but when the Emperor stayed silent, he continued.

“I was expecting a man with such grandiose titles to have more of a backbone. Were you so afraid to be in the same room as me after your men told you what I did Emhyr? You would have met with the Witcher.”

The informal address and crack about his cowardice finally drew a response from the sitting Emperor, albeit still a very measured and calm one. He showed a cunning mind behind that stoic face by attacking the bit Vali had tacked on almost petulantly at the end, first.

“The Witcher was a known quantity. You are not, and I did not get to be a man with such grandiose titles by being stupid and allowing threats to simply enter the range needed to carry out an assassination. Though it would seem such precautions are useless against one such as yourself.”

Almost perfectly timed, his last words coincided with the arrival of guards, running up and yelling as they finally arrived at the broken down door. Vali turned his head slightly to look at them out of the corner of his eye, a slow smile growing across his face as they levelled weapons at him. Finally the Emperor did stand, bringing up an arm and snapping out a single word order.

“Hold.”

The soldiers did so, taking in the strange situation in the room with visible concern but too well trained to even think about disobeying their Emperor. After giving them a simple wink, Vali turned his attention back to Emhyr, smile still on his face.

“A very intelligent move Your Grace. I think I’m beginning to like you. Now, let’s get down to business so that I don’t have to take up much more of your time. You want me to find and retrieve Cirilla Fiona Elen Riannon. And what, did you think I would just do this for you and Yennefer based on my kind heart and her pretty face?”

Emhyr stared at Vali in silence for several long moments before answering.

“I was told you made a promise to the Witcher as he lay dying. If that is true, our desires already align.”

Vali’s grin turned sharp, both literally and figuratively as his teeth elongated slightly.

“Geralt of Rivia asked me to simply find Ciri and protect her. Tell me Emperor of Nilfgaard, why protecting her should include bringing her back here, to you.”

In that moment, the man must have seen something in Vali’s eyes or heard something in the immortal’s tone that clued him into the game being played here, because he settled back down in his chair with just the slightest smirk on his face.

“You will be paid handsomely for her safe return, of course.”

That sparked a bark of laughter from Vali which erased the smirk from Emhyr’s face, bringing back the severe frown in short order.

“I have no need for your currency my dear Emperor, surely that should be obvious. I will require more.”

Now the man was gritting his teeth, though it was very subtle and completely silent. Vali could hear it in his tone though, and knew he’d successfully angered the taciturn Emperor.

“I am ruler over all of Nilfgaard and soon enough I will hold the Northern Realms in my grasp as well. Whatever you might want at the end of your successful mission in bringing my daughter home will be well within my means, I assure you. Now, be gone with you. Meet with my sorceress, learn what has been seen of my daughter, and complete the task set before you creature.”

Ooh, Vali had definitely pissed the man off that was for sure. Still, he couldn’t help but admire the Emperor just a little. The guy had moxy in spades. So instead of any number of terrible fates the immortal may have visited upon a lesser man for daring to talk to him like that, Vali instead smiled, bowed low at the waist, and walked out. He left the compelled nobles sitting on the floor silent behind him. He may have liked the Emperor, but that didn’t leave the man completely safe. Vali was sure they’d have fun prying the eternally silent nobles from their spots on the floor of the Emperor’s study.

-x-X-x-

When he was finally shown to Yennefer’s rooms, he entered alone and silent. This allowed him to sneak up on the woman who had her back turned to him. Her shoulders were currently shaking, and Vali’s brow furrowed with incredulity. Was she really…? He cleared his throat and she reacted by jumping a foot in the air before spinning around.

Yep, his suspicions were right. The dark haired woman’s eyes were wide in surprise, but more important they were watery and those were tear tracks down her face. Yennefer of Vengerberg had been crying. Vali just stared at her for several long moments as she scowled at him and moved away to try and collect herself. He stayed silent, but not out of any sense of decorum. Instead, the monster had to resist the urge of jumping the poor woman now. 

He’d always been a sucker for crying women, and Yennefer specifically looked absolutely made for ravishing after a good cry. She’d never cried in the original timeline, not according to his picture perfect memory. Not even if Geralt rejected her in favor of Triss did she shed a single tear, instead choosing to put on a brave face and persevere. Vali had wanted to fuck the posh arrogant woman before but now… well he wasn’t just a monster because of his immortality or his sharp teeth.

“Right. I suppose you’re here for information on where to begin looking for Ciri.”

Yennefer’s words pulled him out of his thoughts and he turned his attention to her to find she’d dried her tears and cleaned herself up. Now she stood with arms crossed over her chest and her jaw set as she waited for his answer. Vali grinned widely and took a step towards her, knowing before he spoke her response but unable to resist.

“Well, I’ll certainly need a lead or two to get started, but if you’d like I could also comfort you. You seem to be grieving my dear.”

Her face hardened further and her eyes turned angry at his callous comment but he continued unabated, stepping closer still.

“I can do this thing with my tongue that will have you screaming to the high heavens in no ti-“

She cut him off with a raised arm bristling in magical power and a biting response.

“One more word, one more step, and I will blast your head from your shoulders monster.”

Vali couldn’t help himself. The threat honestly didn’t sound fatal, even if he knew there was potential for trouble from Witcher-universe magecraft. He stepped forward, eyebrow raised in challenge towards the dark haired woman. In response, Yennefer lashed out and did in fact tear his head from his shoulders with her anger-charged spell of power. In the process she also ruined half the room behind him.

Vali’s head fell unblinking to the floor and turned to ash. The rest of him did not. Instead, his body was merely rocked back a step by the force and then centered itself. Moments later his head had regrown and he was smiling at the shocked woman. Yennefer of Vengerberg’s face was in that moment synonymous with a goldfish as she gaped at him, mouth opening and closing wordlessly.

“Good show love. I don’t let just anyone get away with blowing off my head though, so we’ll have to be the best of friends from now on. Only my very good friends are allowed to destroy my head without consequences after all. Once you’ve managed to put your eyes back in that pretty little head of yours, tell me all you know about our dear Ciri’s location.”

The sorceress was not so easily calmed down, stepping back from him and almost stumbling over something behind her as she seemed to finally remember how easily he’d destroyed the Wild Hunt in White Orchard and realized just how afraid of him she was. It would seem that for a time her grief and anger over Geralt’s death had overwhelmed that fear and caused her to lash out at the most convenient target. Namely, him. 

“W-what are you?”

Vali rolled his eyes at that. “Immortal. Inhuman. Monstrous. Take your pick love, but let’s get on with it. I made a promise to your dearly departed and I was also just asked by an Emperor to fulfill that promise by bringing him your girl. I can’t do that, if you don’t tell me what I need to know, and I would hate to rip it from your gorgeous mind.”

And that got her to take another step back in increasing fright. Still, as Vali stood unmoving and didn’t seem likely to attack any time soon, Yennefer finally began to calm down and after a long moment she nodded. 

“Right. Yes. Ciri has been sighted several times recently. I need you to go to Velen, that’s where the trail is most promising. Make that your first stop and meet with an agent there to learn more of what he’s found. Ask for a merchant named Hendrick at the inn at the Crossroads. He is the Emperor’s man.”

Vali inclined his head in acknowledgement and after a moment, perhaps a little surprised at his sudden silence, Yen continued.

“In Novigrad there are little more than rumors of Ciri’s presence. However if you can get in touch with a woman there named Triss Merigold, tell her about Geralt’s death and your mission, and she may be willing to help you.”

Despite knowing the answer, he still asked, smiling as he leaned towards the dark haired sorceress.

“And what, my dear, will you be doing while I run around?”

“I shall sail for Skellige. There was a magic explosion there recently, blew half a forest down. I believe this had something to do with Ciri. Once you’ve learned something, join me in Kaer Trolde once you’ve learned something.”

Vali nodded, turned to leave, but couldn’t resist turning back to Yennefer with a raised brow and a question on his lips.

“I do have to wonder why you did not contact Geralt sooner. It’s quite… tragic, the way yours and his story ended isn’t it?”

Ah, the anger was back and Vali grinned as Yennefer’s back straightened and she turned to square off in front of him. However, whatever she might have said in the heat of that moment, she managed to hold in. Instead, her stormy expression suddenly became a pleasant smile and she raised her hands not to attack him, but to cast something else.

“I know you do not have a horse. Allow me to help you on your way to Velen.”

A portal formed out of a swirling vortex behind him, but Vali just smiled. “While I appreciate that, I am without armor or swords. They were taken from me when I first arrived here.”

Her pleasant smile turned vicious in an instant and her next spell was a blast of concussive force that sent him right into the portal behind him. Vali had seen it coming, of course he had. He laughed as he flew out into humid air, landing directly in a swamp and ruining the Nilfgaardian finery he’d been clothed in. As he sat up, he continued to laugh as the portal before him closed up in the wink of an eye.

Even if he’d let it happen, known it was coming, he fully intended to get back at the sorceress for that. The little minx would be made to answer, one way or the other by the time he was through with her. Still, he rather liked how cheeky the characters in this grim dark world were proving to be so far. It was quite enjoyable.