Chapter 17: Eragon Returns
"Well, how could you have not noticed?" asked Alice, exasperated. She paged through the inventory records with a sigh, scanning the untidy figures and lists.
"I'm sorry, Lady Alice," wailed the pale-faced nurse, wringing her hands. "I just didn't anticipate that we would run so low so qui-"
"You failed to anticipate we'd run out of disinfectant during a war?" drawled Alice, fighting to keep her voice level. "No, actually on second thought, we wouldn't have enough to keep a village healer's hut sanitary, with these amounts." She snapped the book shut. "Fine. Put through the order tonight, and with some luck fresh supplies will arrive with next week's supply train." The nurse curtseyed clumsily, taking the inventory book back and nearly dropping it. "And I want you to go through the rest of the inventory, all of it," she continued sternly.
"All- Everything, my Lady?" gasped the nurse. The storerooms were spread across three tents.
"Everything." Confirmed Alice unsympathetically. "Every ointment, every bandage. That is your job, isn't it? It should have already been done, properly. I want it counted and catalogued, and on my desk by tomorrow night. No later! Note down any other shortages you might pick up on too, and make recommendations for how much needs to be ordered in next week's supply intake." The nurse looked positively miserable at the amount of work ahead of her. Alice barely avoided cursing out loud. These cloth-brained nurses would be the death of her. This woman was supposed to be in charge of the inventory, and she was acting like Alice was being unreasonable!
"You will get this done?" demanded Alice, steel in her voice.
"O-of course, my Lady." She replied hastily, shrinking slightly from Alice's tone. "B-but, what will we use for disinfectant..."
"Nothing," sighed Alice, "We have nothing to properly clean the floors and beds and disinfect the sheets until mid next week. We'll use soap and water but... If we want to stop infections spreading, I'll have to devise a spell..." she subsided into muttering, a frown creasing her forehead as a dull pounding started up in her temples at the mere thought of using magic again. Before she lost it completely she gave one last scowl at the trembling woman and swept off in a mood.
The day had been full of complex workings saving the lives of her patients, and though it was getting late and all she wanted was sleep, now she'd have to work late devising and testing a new spell to prevent infection from spreading.
The past week had been a nightmare in the healing tents. Just eight days ago she'd given the book to Jeod to decode, but she hadn't had much time to dwell on the exciting things they had learned so far from the book. The first half was pretty much decoded, but the second half seemed to have been spelled in an entirely different way, and the meaning of the words were hard to decipher. The double encryption, through frustrating, was also exciting; clearly, whatever the book was hiding was of crucial importance that it stayed away from unfriendly eyes.
But fresh skirmishes and ambushes near the Varden encampment had sent a flood of wounded her way, and she'd had her hands full keeping up. Each night she'd visited Blödhgarm, or he'd visited her, and their conversations were like a breath of fresh air. Being in his presence felt like sheltering in a patch of still water in a turbulent stream. She could think around him, and his wry comments put her troubles in perspective. But she hadn't seen him in the past three nights: Saphira had returned and he had a duty to keep track her in the absence of her rider. It made her a little sad that he was also too busy for her now - she knew he would have laughed at her getting upset at a silly woman over a cleaning product.
Alice walked into her cramped office and sat down at her desk, spine cracking. She sighed and got to work, pulling out some of her journals which detailed spells about airborne and waterborne diseases. As she dipped a quill into ink, she glanced at the curious sundial-like device that sat at the corner of her desk, which told her it was almost seven hours since midday. It was about the size of her palm, round and flat, with twelve numbers arranged around the outer edge, and a light-weight delicate hand which moved with the passing of the sun. In the centre was a small ruby that held the hand in place, and supplied it with the minimal energy required to move it. It was an ingenious contraption.
Blödhgarm had made it for her, from materials he'd picked up around camp. He'd simply shrugged when he gave it to her, saying he'd been bored, but Alice could tell by the small crinkles at the corners of his eyes that he was thrilled she'd made such a fuss about it. He'd even refused to tell her what the spell enchanting the device was, telling her (with a smirk) to figure it out herself.
Since then she had been wracking her brain to reply in kind, and give him something he didn't understand, a puzzle of some kind perhaps. Elves were notoriously good at puzzles, but if she could stump him even for a minute... she'd pay good gold to see the look on his face...
"...Aaaa-lice?" Angela's sing-song voice jolted her out of her daydreams, and she blinked, rubbing her face.
"Angela..."
"Mmmm... being productive, I see, as usual..." Angela remarked, nodding pointedly at the blank parchment in front of Alice, and the quill suspended above it coated in dry ink.
Alice grimaced and put the quill down. "What brings you here, then, other than to make snide comments?"
"Ohh, tetchy... touchy." Drawled Angela, sitting on the edge of the desk. "I raised you better than that."
"You barely raised me at all." Muttered Alice, annoyed at being interrupted while... well, thinking.
"Shush now," said Angela fake-crossly, "I have good news, actually. But if you're going to have that attitude..."
"No, no, tell me!" said Alice, perking up.
"Eragon has arrived back, not one hour ago." She announced. "It seems that Arya's retrieval was successful."
"Oh, wonderful," said Alice, standing up excitedly. "Where's my coat...?"
"Are you really going to just jump up and pester him now?" asked Angela, surprised. "The boy barely got back, and him and his dragon, you know, might want some time together after their separation."
Alice hesitated. "Really?"
"Their souls are linked, you know," said Angela waspishly. "You try dividing your soul and travelling in the opposite direction to one half of it sometime, see how you feel at the reunion."
Alice considered for a moment, then shrugged and continued pulling on her coat. "I'll just take a stroll over there, maybe he's still up." She said, more to herself than the witch. "If not, I won't bother him."
She was several steps towards the door when Angela said innocently. "Give my regards... to the elf." Alice stopped briefly, midstride, and her cheeks tinged pink. Then she shook her head at the witch's foolishness and stepped out into the cold night air.