Contains spoilers for this episode and earlier episodes.
Geralt takes a monster's severed head to Istredd and asks him to examine the broken monolith outside Cintra. Their descent into the chasm produces no ordinary nest. Istredd's records instead suggest that the monoliths can connect worlds, allowing unfamiliar creatures to cross. Their conversation also tells Geralt that Yennefer survived Sodden. The investigation is interrupted when Ciri's cry reaches them across the distance and the strange activity around the site returns. Geralt urgently asks for a portal back to Kaer Morhen.
Vesemir explains that Ciri's Elder Blood could help create new witchers. She agrees to give blood on condition that she becomes the first new candidate. Triss tries another approach, entering Ciri's memories through magic to understand her ancestry. The vision turns frightening when figures inside it respond to their presence and a prophecy surrounds the girl. Ciri returns shaken and still wants the mutation. Geralt arrives before Vesemir can inject her, ending the attempt before its potentially fatal consequences.
Yennefer turns back to find Jaskier and discovers Rience torturing him for information about Geralt and Ciri. Without magic, she uses alcohol and his own flame to burn his face and free the bard. Later, cornered and desperate to recover her power, she answers the hut's call. The Deathless Mother offers a bargain: deliver Ciri to a shattered doorway near Cintra.