CLANG!
"Come on brother, is that all you've got?" Roran taunted, blocking a slash from Eragon on his shield. Eragon grinned, knowing that if he had hit any harder, he would have crushed the shield. His blade was guarded, but due to his elvish strength, he was really holding back. "You sure you want me to go harder, Roran?" he asked, ducking under a swing from the hammer. "You won't be able to stand for a week." "Bring it on!" he said, swinging his shield at him.
Eragon started a complex series of maneuvers, driving Roran back as he frantically dodged and parried. Eragon caught a gap, maneuvered the blade in, twisted, and sent Roran's hammer flying. A quick flick of the wrist, and Brisingr was resting on Roran's collarbone.
They both stood there panting, then started laughing hysterically. This continued for a minute until Jarsha ran up to them. "Master Shadeslayer, Master Stronghammer, Lady Nasuada requests your presence." Eragon sheathed his sword, and nodded. With a quick line in the Ancient Language, Roran's hammer was in his hand. He tossed it to Roran, and said, "Thank you Jarsha." Jarsha ran off, and the two started towards Nasuada's pavilion.
It was extremely trying to be the Queen of the Varden. She had to never show weakness, always be at the pinnacle of strength, and maneuver around the Council…. She was just glad that she had Eragon and his cousin in the ranks. No one would question such powerful warriors, and as they owed their allegiance only to her, it made her a much more powerful figure. Just as she was thinking this, the two arrived.
"What can we do for you, My Lady?" Roran asked as they both bowed. Nasuada grabbed her papers on her desk. "We have recently been receiving reports from many of our spies that during the nights, many people have been hearing what appeared to be the sound of a faction of soldiers on the march, however, when investigated, no signs whatsoever exist that there was such an occurrence during the night. The soldiers in this area only march during the day, according to our records. Do you think you could shed some light on this subject?" she asked. Just as Eragon opened his mouth to make a reply, a large, pressurized THUD reverberated throughout the entire camp.
Shock instantly registered on Eragon's face. He knew that sound almost as well as he knew himself.
That was the sound of a dragon's wing beats.