Warning: spoilers ahead for The Witcher season 3 volume 2.
The ending of The Witcher season 3 volume 2 has raised many questions.
Will Henry Cavill be in season 4 as Geralt? Who are the Rats that Ciri (Freya Allan) is now in cahoots with? And a query that’s on many fans’ lips – who is Falka?
To that first question, if you’ve been following the news closely, you’ll know that Henry is being replaced by Liam Hemsworth from now on, who’s currently prepping to take on the lead role and is ‘very excited’.
Now, as to the identity of Falka… strap in, because the history of this character is fascinating to say the least.
Firstly, let’s break down how she was introduced in the second half of season three.
In episode six, the mage Stregobor (Lars Mikkelsen) – who Geralt and Yennefer (Anya Chalotra) previously thought was the mastermind behind an evil plot – defends the sorceresses against the elven forces being led by queen Francesca (Mecia Simson) during a grand and bloody battle at Aretuza.
As Stregobor taps into fire magic, which is forbidden by the Brotherhood in the world of The Witcher, he says to their foes: ‘Falka will be waiting for you.’
This isn’t the first time Stregobor has mentioned Falka, as in season two he conjured a fiery Falka figure, played by Scarlett Maltman.
In season three episode seven when Ciri is alone in a desert in Korath, struggling to survive in the heat and with lack of food and water, she starts to see apparitions of various people including her mother, her grandmother and a mysterious woman she hasn’t met before.
It turns out that the third woman is Falka (Hiftu Quasem), who explains her history to the princess and how they are alike.
‘I should have been queen, but when my father denied me my royal destiny, I decided to rally the common folk. And with their help, I took back what was rightfully mine, in the only way I knew would send an unforgettable message. Blood and fire,’ she tells Ciri.
In the end, Falka says, she was tied to a stake and burned alive, as Ciri admits that when she heard stories about her, she was described as a ‘demon’ and a ‘cursed elven monster’.
She gained her reputation for being an evil ‘demon’ when she killed her father, as well as her two-half-brothers Heltmult and Denhard alongside her father’s second wife.
Following the rebellion, she was condemned to die on the stake. In her final moments, she cursed everyone present, saying a child bearing her blood would cause them all to suffer.
Falka tells Ciri that in the end, it was ‘easier’ to cut her ears to look like pointy elven ears and become what she was ‘already accused of being’.
In the lore of The Witcher, Falka was the daughter of Redania’s King Vridank and his first wife, Beatrix of Kovir, who launched a rebellion to claim her rightful throne as the first-born child of the monarch.
Later on, when Ciri is striving to find a way to save the life of her unicorn companion Little Horse, Falka encourages her to use fire magic despite it being banned and to forgo all of her closest connections, including those to Geralt, Yennefer and Jaskier.
Despite appearing to become almost consumed by the forceful nature of the fire, Ciri refuses to do so and says that she relinquishes her powers.
Later on when Ciri meets criminal gang the Rats, she tells them to call her Falka, adopting a new rebellious identity as she ventures out on her own without Geralt, Yennefer or Jaskier to look out for her.
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Elsewhere, Geralt and Yennefer have heard through the grapevine that Ciri has been captured and taken to Nilfgaard to rule alongside her father Emperor Emhyr (Bart Edwards)… but as viewers know, a fake Ciri was crowned instead.
Yennefer is back with her sorcerer sisters as they plan to build a better for future for the world, while a recently-recovered Geralt is on the road with Jaskier and their new ally Milva (Meng’er Zhang), a talented archer, as they seek out Ciri once more.
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The Witcher is available to watch on Netflix.
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MORE: Liam Hemsworth begins work on The Witcher season 4 – and he’s ‘very excited’
