Prologue

Alerak crouched in the green undergrowth of the forest, just next to a dirt path. He was a boy of 16, more mature and experienced than many years before. He shivered at the thought of his memories. They weren't good memories and he had no intention to relive them. They haunted him though in dreams and mind. There was no escape for him.

Before the age of 10, he had lived with only his mother, a beautiful young woman with long brown hair and bright, curious blue eyes. Her name was Elia. His mother had kept him cooped up on a small farm just a few miles away from the town of Illean. The town was located just north of Surda. It was quite peaceful there which was why his mother chose to live there. His mother did all the shopping and he was stuck with the actual farming.

Alerak had enjoyed the farming on most days and he was thankful for the food it gave them. He always liked the food he grew anyway. He wasn't allowed in the town by his mother, however, or near any other human. The reason was because of a secret his mother had kept hidden from the world. He was the son of Galbatorix, the evil tyrant king who ruled over the land. He had taken after his father's looks and Elia had feared that others would notice this as well, and so she kept him hidden from the world, even his father.

Later, around the age of 8, Elia had told her son about his parentage as carefully as she could. She never knew how he would have reacted. He never thought about it much then because he was still a child to the world and was ignorant about what went on in it. He took it to heart to remember the secret and carry out what his mother started. He promised to stay hidden. Everything changed at the age of 10...


Alerak shook his head, shaking around black hair that grew down to his shoulders, trying to get rid of the memory. He always relived the memory until the end, but thankfully something snapped him out of it. He glanced around quickly and stepped over a branch that had fallen onto the ground. He pushed a bunch of leaves out of his way as he stepped into a lush little clearing. He took in a breath then let it out slowly as he felt the heat from the sun dappling through the leaves above.

Alerak's eyes scanned the clearing carefully as if he expected something to jump out at him. He stepped forward into the tall grass slowly as he continued to survay the clearing. There was a small pond on one end and a fallen tree on the other. Rocks scattered the grass like bugs. One rock was even a golden color. He furrowed his brows at that. Golden? That didn't seem right.

He stepped forward and kneeled down by the gold rock curiously. He tilted his head as he cleared away leaves to get a closer look. It had a strange, smooth and shiny surface, glittering in the sun. He had never seen anything like it, and it made him confused. He racked his brain for an answer and his thoughts drifted to stories his mother told. This wasn't a rock, he finally decided. It was an egg. A dragon egg.