The Heart of Alchemy - A Witcher Eskel FanFiction

Chapter 14 - Clear Words

The blade moved in a straight line across his throat, making a faint, scratching noise. Eskel briefly ran his thumb over his cheek. The shaving on the edges of his scar required special care, but through years of practice, he didn't need much time for the procedure. Satisfied with the result, he cleaned the blade in the washbowl and folded the razor.

Someone knocked at the door. Eskel wiped his skin with a towel and opened. Even if he hadn't heard the soft footsteps on the stairs, the sight of the person standing outside wouldn't have been much of a surprise. Triss.

She smiled at him, beautiful as ever. "Good morning, Eskel. How are you?"

Eskel opened the door slightly further to let her in. "Good. Better than yesterday." Eskel grabbed his shirt and pulled it over.

"I'd like to check again if your body has further degraded the poison, if you allow..."

"Sure."

Eskel sat down in the chair beside his bed. Triss put one of her magical amulets over his head and softly chanted a spell. As she put her hand on his chest, just above the heart, the soft glow from her fingertips went through his skin into his body. Eskel was now used to the tingling sensation of magical probing. In the last few days Triss had repeatedly subjected him to this procedure. It was not unpleasant - quite the contrary.

However, Eskel once again wondered if these frequent checks were really necessary because he felt notably better. But since he didn't want to offend Triss, he said nothing and let her do it.

"The poison has apparently completely disappeared from your body. I cannot feel it anymore and the amulet isn't reacting at all. You made it, Eskel." Triss pulled her hand back with a smile.

Eskel buttoned his shirt. "I also feel much better. It's about time for me to get out of this room ..."

He got up and reached for his jacket. After three days in bed, recovering from the aftermath of the poisoning, he now wanted to leave as quickly as possible.

"Careful, Eskel. You still have to recover. The poison had already done a lot of damage. It will take a few more days for your body to fully regenerate," Triss warned.

"Don't worry, I'll take care of myself. But if I have to spend another day in this bed, I'll go insane."

When he and Triss walked into the great hall, Lambert was there mending one of his shirts. He was sitting on the wide bench by the dining table, his feet comfortably resting on a chair. A long tear drew through the white fabric of the shirt, which lay on his lap. He apparently closed it with only little patience and skill. When he heard Triss and Eskel, he looked up.

"Oh, look at that! Someone raised from the dead!" Lambert put his sewing work aside, stood up and hugged Eskel. "Nice to see you on your feet again, brother. Being half dead, you've looked even scarier than you normally already do."

"Well, you'll have to endure my sight a little longer," countered Eskel, who returned the hug. "Is Thalia in the lab?"

For the past few days she had only visited him briefly at his bedside. Apparently she was very engrossed in her work and spent most of her time in the lab of Kaer Morhen. During her visits, she had always been quite restrained - possibly because Triss had been there every time. Perhaps Thalia felt unsettled by Triss's presence. It was obvious that she had great respect for the sorceress. But Eskel had not meant to be rude to Triss by asking her to leave.

The sorceress had been with him almost constantly for the past few days to monitor his condition. As much as he valued her company - he was glad to escape the constant chatter now.