Issue No 41 - Trapped (under rubble)
I will bring you ruin Chapter 1: Buried
Published: 2023-10-05; Completed: 2024-04-24; Words: 11,585; Chapters: 5/5
"Ciri?" the Witchers shout, her name echoing from the stone walls of Kaer Morhen. "Ciri? You here?" There is no answer.
"Geralt!" Like out of nowhere, Regis has suddenly appeared next to him. "I've located them. They're buried under the wreckage. Over there. We have to hurry!"
"Fuck, Regis, is Ciri alright?" The Witcher grabs his friend by the shoulders, staring at him with wild eyes.
"Her heartbeat is strong. However, the structure of the stones is unstable. If the rubble shifts, she might get crushed beneath it."
Geralt lets go of Regis and starts to run as fast as never before in his life, Coen and Lambert following closely behind. Regis disappears in a cloud of black smoke. Geralt does not know where to, however, he has no time to wonder.
"Ciri? You in there?" he shouts, standing by the pile of stones that was an ancient tower just minutes before. This time he can hear a faint voice. Her voice. Thanks to Melitele, she is alive! With his enhanced Witcher senses, Geralt can hear a soft heartbeat, too. Regis was right, it is strong and regular, but beating fast from panic. The thumping sound comes from underneath the stones, luckily not from where they are piled up highest but from a little to the side. There are still plenty of stones and other debris to be moved away, though, in order to dig her out. It would be a lot easier if they could just blast everything away with Aard, but it is too risky, more stones may come sliding down and crush her. No, they will have to do it by hand, quickly but cautiously. Geralt climbs over the stones and splintered wooden beams riddling the yard to get closer to where Ciri's voice has come from, coughing from the thick clouds of dust in the air that he inhales. Ciri is coughing too. Hopefully, this will not bring down more rubble onto her.
The closer Geralt gets, the more agitated he becomes. In spite of the dust, he can smell it. Blood. And not just a little.
"Ciri, can you hear me?" he calls again when he is almost there.
"Daddy?" Her voice is muffled from the thick layer of debris covering her but Geralt can easily perceive the fear in her voice. Not only her heartbeat is too fast, but also her breathing. Fuck, she is hyperventilating. He cannot blame her. He felt much the same way when he was caught in the avalanche back when they had to cross the Mortblanc pass on their way to Stygga. Being buried alive is an experience he does not wish on anybody. And now his daughter is caught in such a horrible trap right inside their beloved home. What an evil twist of fate. Cursing under his breath, Geralt scans the pile of rubble. If they can move this one large stone slab and the heavy wooden beam it is lying on top of, it should not be too difficult to dig her out as the rest of the rubble is mostly smaller stones that can be easily carried by one or two strong men. They will have to hurry, too, the smell of blood is growing stronger by the minute.
"Ciri, are you alright?" Geralt asks, trying to sound calmer than he is while motioning for Lambert and Coen to come over to help him with the heavy slab.
"I - I don't know. I can't breathe," she pants, "and there's blood everywhere."
"We're getting you out. You'll be okay, my daughter. Just hold on and try to calm down. Lambert and Coen are here to help. We'll be as fast as we can. It won't take long, I promise. Just a few minutes."
Ciri starts to cough again, violently. Damn, let it just be the dust, not blood, Geralt prays to all the gods he knows. But what if her ribs are broken and one of them has punctured her lung— No, he must not even think it, Geralt berates himself. The mental image alone of Ciri coughing up black blood makes him break into a cold sweat. How he wishes Yennefer were here. With her magic, she could easily lift the stones and debris and whatever, they would grab Ciri, Yennefer would heal any injuries in a jiffy, and they would live happily ever after. Why for Melitele's sake did she have to attend this fucking Lodge meeting? Those meetings have never brought anything but bad luck. Fuck them all. Angry at the whole world from worry and at the Lodge of Sorceresses in particular, he grabs the huge stone slab.
"One, two, and on three," Geralt counts. With loud grunts, the three Witchers lift it off the pile of rubble under which Ciri is trapped and, groaning from the strain, carry it a few metres out of the way, then drop it onto the ground. They gasp for air and sweat is streaming down their brows. However, there is no time to rest, not as long as Ciri is in danger.
The wooden beam actually was a heaven-sent as without it, the stone slab would have fallen directly onto the girl, most probably crushing her, but it is impossible to move, not without magic. Perhaps Ciri can crawl out from under it as soon as they have removed the smaller pieces of rubble? The three Witchers get onto their knees and, with all haste, start to dig. More dust rises into the air, but they hardly notice it so focused are they on their task. Ciri barely stops coughing. Now she is sobbing, too.
"Don't cry, Ciri. We're almost there, I promise, just another minute or two," Geralt tries to soothe, but it does not work.
"It's all my fault," she blubbers out. "I didn't want this to happen, I swear. Geralt, I - I think, I killed him."
"Ciri, what are you talking about? Killed who?" Geralt asks, confused. Then it dawns on him. Regis said they were buried, not she. Cahir. Worried out of his mind for his daughter, he totally forgot that his friend was missing, too. Maybe it is his blood, not Ciri's?