Blood of Elves

Content Warning: This following section contains references to torture, wartime violence, and genocide/ethnic cleansing.

“All around her screaming such as she had never before heard grew louder. What must one do to a man to make him scream so?”

Ciri’s nightmare about the Massacre of Cintra reveals much about the young girl’s past trauma, highlighting the fact that before Nilfgaard attacked, she had never witnessed this level of violence. The narration of her dream sequence introduces many images indirectly; for example, rather than describing a scream, Ciri wonders what pain could produce a scream like the one she heard. This indirect auditory image allows the reader to imagine the horror of the war around Ciri.

“If the song says they were in love […] then that’s what happened, and their love will endure down the ages. Such is the power of poetry.”

The audience’s debate after Dandelion’s concert at Bleobheris explores the relationships between history, legend, and truth. The elf who makes this statement is correct in her assertion that the bard’s song is a form of historical record regardless of its factual accuracy; it becomes the truth when people hear it, believe it, and repeat it through time.

“Thanks to you he was not alone. You were a friend to him. You were with him.”

Yennefer is grateful to Dandelion for being Geralt’s friend. Even though she and Geralt are not together, she still cares for him and does not wish him to be alone or lonely.