I was cold and covered with dirt but that didn't stop me from what I had to do, which wasn't that important to begin with. I was digging, well it really wasn't digging because I wasn't using a shovel but I was still moving the earth to make a hole, so it could be considered digging. I was digging a tunnel to the outer wall of Galbatorix's palace in Urû'baen. It was dangerous, and life threatening but it had to be done. Anyway all the troops that guarded the palace were out fighting on the Burning Plains and Galbatorix was probably focused on that battle so he would be out of it. The only guards in the palace were the elites but I doubt if they would be able to see someone that was invisible. Caren and Mattias were the ones inside, they were the ones with the invisibility liquid that they had concocted. They were the ones going into Galbatorix's vault and stealing as much gold and jewels as possible, and if it existed the last dragon egg, but that was a myth.
So here I am telling the dirt to move out of my way so I could make a tunnel, the only escape route. "Thrysta," I said compressing the dirt and rock against the wall of the tunnel. The ancient language was a language of power, all the elves spoke it, they wove magic from their tongue. Finally I hit the outer wall of the palace. "Thrysta," I said compressing the dirt and rock above her. "Risa," I rose the dirt out of the top of the tunnel and spread it around, disguising it for a large gopher hole. I jumped back into the tunnel and sat down in the dirt. I wasn't the most powerful witch, so that little power I exerted tired me. I closed my eyes and breathed deeply.
I opened my eyes in just enough time to see Caren and Mattias jump into the hole almost on top of me, their rucksacks filled with enough gold that it was spilling out. Caren pulled me up and together we all ran for the entrance of the tunnel. We hopped onto our horses and cantered as fast as we could. It was exhilarating, the wind was blowing my brown hair wildly. I turned to look back and there was no one there. We weren't being followed, that invisibility liquid must have worked.
We rode for about two hours, following the Ramr River to its end. We could see the fighting in the distance, both sides. The red tents of Galbatorix's troops and the worn down ramshackle tents of the Varden's troops. We made camp, setting out our bedsheets and making a fire. They collected wood, and all I had to utter was brisingr.
"So the liquid worked," I asked.
"Well yea it worked, or else we wouldn't be alive with all these goodies," Mattias replied laughing.
Caren was categorizing the loot, the gold crowns were put in one pile, the gold rings were put in another pile, the necklaces in another. The objects that weren't gold were put in different piles. Mattias pulled out a large emerald oval and lifted it up to the light. The light green veins running through it made the emerald glow.
"Can I see that," I asked.
"Why, you didn't help us?" Caren said taking the stone from his brother.
"Who do you think dug the escape tunnel?" I asked getting mad, they weren't going to leave me out of my share.
"We didn't need an escape tunnel, there was no one to escape from." Mattias started laughing then he gestured to Caren to toss him the rock.
"Stop, you're going to break it." I stood up, pushing my sleeves to my elbows, I reached for my sword.
"Oh, the little girl wants to fight." Caren said in a baby voice.
That was it, I was not going to take it, how could they do this to me, I saved them from a lone Ra'zac, and they go and repay me with nothing. They got up taking their swords out and circling me. I stood still, taking in all that I could see and hear, taking note of their weaknesses I pulled up my skirt and tucked it into my belt so I wouldn't trip. Luckily I was wearing cloth britches.
I unsheathed my sword, it was light and thin enough to slip between a pair of ribs, but stout enough to hack through the thickest of armor. Caren and Mattias were terrible swordsman, but they didn't know my skills to they thought they were better than me. I stood still, and in one swift move they both lunged at me. I circled around them and they almost stabbed each other.
"I could have used magic but the is too easy," I stated laughing. Mattias's blade came at my right but I deflected it in enough time to duck, so that Caren's blade wouldn't cut my shoulder. I could see the anger in both their faces, they were probably wondering why I was beating them.
"She's part elf," Caren panted. I laughed that wasn't true but I wanted them to believe it.
"Letta," I said stopping them in their tracks. "This was fun but I have to go, and I'm taking the green stone and some crowns."
"You can't go." Caren said struggling, but he couldn't move.
I walked over to the pile of gold and grabbed the stone, I walked over to my black stallion Liduen and put the stone in a saddlebag. I walked back over to the pile and grabbed a few copper, silver , and gold crowns and put them in my money pouch on my belt. I untucked my skirt and rolled up my bed sheets. I tied them to Liduen, all the time watching Caren and Mattias face's grow from anger y to furious. I laughed at them and waved them goodbye before riding south, toward the Varden's tents.