Udvum looked around the clearing. There was a stump in the middle, but other than that it was simply a forest clearing.
He was two months into his training, and they had been spent quite productively. The only time he had been able to rest was at night, and sometimes not even then. He had sparred with Arya, doing what she called 'improving by experience,' built his bond with Gulmer, learned how to make a dragon saddle two different ways, learned how to do a fairth, learned magic, and gotten his brightsteel Rider weapons. His axes were called Solusrisa and Soluseitha, which meant sunrise and sunset in the ancient language. When Udvum had asked the esteemed smith Rhunon to craft his axes, she had refused.
"I swore never to make another Rider sword!" She had said. Udvum had looked at her then, and told her simply, "I'm not asking for a sword, I'm asking for two axes." At which point Rhunon had asked him many questions, and crafted his axes accordingly. The finished product was amazing, though the axes were simple. They had orange iridescent brightsteel blades, one each, and slightly curved handles wrapped in orange wire. They had wooden hafts, but they were made of the same wood as Arya's sword's sheath, so they were quite practical for a permanent weapon. They had orange topazes in golden pommels, and each had a golden ring above the handle. All in all, they were orange and gold masterpieces. Rhunon told him something else, though. When she had asked him how he fought, he had said either with two war axes or one battle-ax. When the axes were finished, Rhunon had said they could be combined. She said he need only say 'gath,' and the two axes would be fused together into one battle-ax. Separately, they were Solusrisa and Soluseitha, but the one battle-ax was called Solusbrisingr, or Sunfire. She had said that this would be useful if someone was trying to target one with magic, for he need only combine them and Solusrisa and Soluseitha would no longer exist, so their spell would either fail or kill them.
After that, his training ran quite smoothly. Now, he was in this clearing after being asked to listen to the forest. So, he plopped down onto the stump and reached out with his mind. He felt a flood of consciousnesses, each one different from the last. Even beings of the same species felt different. He could feel flares of pain, pleasure, hunger, satisfaction, thirst, death, birth, heat, and cold, from everything around him. He didn't focus too clearly on one thing, for that would be unproductive. In Farthen Dur, he had often sat in large chambers and simply listened, never focusing on anything more than anything else. He had learned a lot from this, realized that rocks move, and countless other things. He did the same now, listening and watching every consciousness with equal vigor and focus. After several hours, he realized how long he had been sitting and made his way back to his hut. Arya had given it to him as a home until he joined Eragon in the east. She was waiting for him, but the dragons were off training on their own. Udvum had been listening through Gulmer's ears and watching through his eyes even as he had studied the clearing, as Arya had told him to. Now, both he and Gulmer knew what the other had done, how they had done it, and what was going through their minds at the time.
"What did you learn?" Arya asked him.
Udvum looked at her. "Well, some rodents were eaten by a snake, expressing great fear while they were swallowed, some beetles climbed all the way to the top of a very large pine, some falling, some being killed by..." And Udvum explained everything that had happened in and near the clearing in the past few hours. Arya looked impressed when he finished.
"Have you ever done this exercise before?" She asked.
"Only in large chambers in Farthen Dur." Udvum answered. Arya nodded. She then gave him a flat stone used for a fairth and told him to make one. He crossed to a pine tree, looking up and down it, then backed up and sat on the ground. The tree was now at the extreme right of his vision, and he could see the sunset near the center of his vision. He whispered the spell he had been taught, and the whole image was captured in great detail. As Udvum looked back over his work, he noticed that there was the dark silhouette of a dragon outlined perfectly against the sunset. He looked up and saw Gulmer and Arya's dragon, Firnen approaching. When they landed, Firnen touched Udvum's mind. For the next half an hour, Firnen quizzed Udvum on what Gulmer had learned, and Arya quizzed Gulmer on what Udvum had done and learned. They answered every question with relative accuracy, although the distance had distorted certain points in time. After the quiz, Arya told them to take a ride. Then she had contacted Gulmer alone, and Udvum knew not what she had said.
Udvum mounted Gulmer's saddle, at the base of his neck, and tightened the leg straps on it. Gulmer took off, and they sailed out over the cliff. Udvum had a moment of disorientation as he saw the drop, but recovered quickly. The sunset accentuated Gulmer's orange color until he seemed to glow. Suddenly, Gulmer began twisting, turning, diving, spiraling. At first, Udvum was surprised and was allowed to be jolted around. After a second or two, though, he righted himself and stayed steady in the saddle with practiced ease. Then, a red dragon flew from the trees far below, and a black-clad Rider sat atop him. The dragon was much bigger than Gulmer, and the Rider obviously much more experienced. Udvum pulled his axes from their loops on his belt, Solusrisa in his right hand and Soluseitha in his left. The red dragon flew like an arrow toward Gulmer, who pulled up and flew overtop. The Rider tried to cut at Gulmer's underside, but the orange dragon was too high up. Gulmer twisted around, now chasing the red dragon, and flew with his superior speed to overcome the other dragon. He flipped over, so Udvum was closer to the red dragon's Rider, and Udvum swung his axes at the other man. One was deflected, but the other got through. The other Rider dodged the second, just in time, and the dragon brought its head up to bite at Gulmer's neck. Gulmer bowed his neck out of the way and bit the red dragon's head, one of his teeth sinking into the dragon's eye. Gulmer then flipped back over, so he was flying upright under the red dragon. Udvum felt a constant flare of pain for his dragon as the red dragon's claws sank into Gulmer's chest. Udvum untied his leg straps and leaped from Gulmer's back, grabbing the red dragon's tail. He then took a risk, throwing Solusrisa at the dragon's left wing, even as Gulmer scratched at the right. Udvum then shouted, "Gath!" and Solusrisa appeared next to Soluseitha, fusing itself with the other weapon and forming Solusbrisingr. Udvum chopped the red dragon's tail at the half point, and fell with one of the pieces. Gulmer swept under his falling Rider, and Udvum landed perfectly in the saddle. The two dragons flew side-by-side, but the red dragon had some difficulty what with its missing tail and broken wing. Udvum jumped onto Gulmer's wing, and the other Rider jumped onto the red dragon's wing. A blood red sword was in his hand, and he swung it savagely toward Udvum. He took the strike on the gut, but managed to cut off the other Rider's leg. He tumbled from the red dragon's wing even as Udvum chopped it off. The red dragon, missing one wing and the other broken, tumbled from the sky, unable to catch himself, let alone his falling Rider. For the entirety of the battle, Udvum wondered why the two hadn't had consciousnesses he could examine. When Gulmer caught him again, the two flew back to Udvum's hut in the clearing. Arya and Firnen took in the blood, scratches and cuts on Udvum and Gulmer, and immediately rushed to them.
"What's happened?" Arya asked. Udvum quickly explained.
"Gulmer tested me in my ability to keep up with his maneuvers, and a red dragon flew from the trees below and attacked us. On its back was a Rider with a red sword. We had a few passes, and Gulmer bit the dragon's head. Then he broke its wing, and I cut off its tail. Gulmer caught me, and we flew side-by-side. I fought the Rider, managed to cut off his leg and make him fall. Then I cut off the dragon's wing and they both fell. The whole time, I tried to overpower their minds, but I couldn't find any minds." Suddenly, all of the pain and wounds on Udvum and Gulmer disappeared.
"It was a test." Arya said. "If you must know, they were an illusion of the missing dragon and Rider, Thorn and Murtagh. The test was to see if you could beat a rider of equal skill but greater experience, and a dragon of equal skill but greater size. Of course, they are in reality of superior skill, but what kind of test would that be, eh? The most important thing, though, was that you noticed the lack of consciousnesses. That can save your life. Illusions don't have minds. You passed the test, and you should sleep. Go ahead." Arya gave him no time to process the information, but simply walked into Ellesmera, and Firnen flew away. Udvum walked into the cabin, and climbed onto the bed inside. He fell asleep thinking of what would have happened if the real Murtagh and Thorn had attacked.
The next day, when Arya approached Udvum, she didn't start with any training. Instead, she saddled Gulmer. "I've taught you much, and you will return to me, but you need to learn more about your weapon of choice than I can teach you. I'm sending you to a friend of mine. He uses a hammer, but axes and hammers are of the same style and he will be able to teach you some of the finer points. I trust you know where the Spine is?" Udvum nodded. That was where he had gone for the games with the Urgals. "Then go, and find the valley in the north of the Spine. I'll send ahead and have him light a beacon for you to land." Udvum mounted Gulmer and flew off to the west.
They spotted the valley two days later. There was a fire lit on a tower, and Gulmer dove toward it. He landed in a courtyard in the middle of a castle, overlooking a town in the deepest spot of the valley. When he dismounted, Udvum found a strong bearded man with a hammer in his belt standing a few meters away.
"Greetings, Udvum. I'm Roran Stronghammer. Are you ready to learn how to fight?"
Roran taught Udvum everything he could, and by the end of his combat training, Udvum was twice as skilled with his axes. He still couldn't beat Roran regularly, though. Even after Udvum completed his training, he stayed in Palancar Valley another month. His days were spent sparring with Roran, riding Gulmer, practicing magic, and getting fit. After the month was up, Roran decided that they would spend an entire day sparring, for Udvum may have to spend a whole day fighting at some point. About a third of the time, Udvum was able to beat Roran, but the rest Roran won. At the end of the day, Roran approached Udvum.
"You can use magic, yes?" Roran asked. Udvum nodded. "Do you know how to teach me? Eragon tried, but it didn't work." Roran picked up a stone and said, "Stenr reisa!" but the stone didn't move. Udvum tried to remember how Arya had taught him to use magic. He hadn't thought himself able at the time.
"Do you know how to reach out and touch someone else's mind?" Udvum asked.
"Yes, but how-"
"Then try reaching out with your mind, but don't look for anything living. Look for something that isn't a consciousness, but a presence." Udvum advised. Roran closed his eyes, reached out with his mind, and touched Udvum's. Udvum pulled away, and sent Roran an image of ignoring living things. Soon, Roran's face lit up.
"Now cast your spell." Udvum said quickly.
"Stenr reisa!" Stone, raise! And the stone resting in Roran's hand shot up half a meter into the air. Roran opened his eyes, saw the stone floating above, and laughed. Udvum had never heard him laugh before.
"You may want to drop it. It's got to be draining your energy pretty fast, inexperienced as you are." Roran looked angry for a moment, then understood.
"Yes, yes." But the stone didn't drop. "How-"
"Retreat back into your own mind! Break contact with the magic!" Roran did. Finally, the stone fell back into his palm and he slumped to the ground.
"You're a wise man, Roran." Udvum said. "Once you know without doubt and with absolute certainty that you can hold the stone aloft without being completely drained of energy, try something else." Udvum found a slightly larger stone than Roran had lifted, and said, "Stenr reisa!" The stone lifted steadily two meters into the air. Udvum looked around, then said, "Ganga fram!" Go forward. The stone moved a few meters away from Udvum, before he said, "Ganga aptr!" And the stone came back toward him. Then, "Thrautha!" Throw. The stone flew two dozen meters and clattered into the wall of the castle.
"Once you know that these spells won't kill you, try them. After that, find a torch and tell it 'Brisingr,' and it will light."
"Thank you, Udvum."
"And thank you, Roran." Udvum walked to the room he had been assigned and fell asleep.
The next day, Udvum flew back into Du Weldenvarden to find Arya. After a league or so of flying, Gulmer had to land and walk past the wards that gave The Warded Forest its name, and then they flew off again. When they landed in the clearing on the Crags of Tel'naeir two days later, they found that Arya was already there with Firnen.
"Kvetha, ebrithil," Greetings, master, Udvum said.
"Kvetha, Udvum-vodhr." Arya replied. "Are you prepared to join Eragon in the east?" Udvum frowned.
"I am not ready, ebrithil." He protested.
"Then let us test you again." Arya drew her green sword Tamerlein and attacked Udvum. He drew Solusrisa and Soluseitha just in time to block the sword. He wasn't nearly as fast as any elf, let alone a Rider elf. He ended up defending desperately, never able to land a counter. Suddenly, he had a flashback of a time like this, fighting an Urgal. He had been uttering phrases in the ancient language for the entirety of the battle, and now the edges of his axes were protected and he wouldn't wound Arya. When the time was right, Udvum hooked the edge of Solusrisa around Tamerlein and buried the point of the weapon into the ground. He then stepped through with Soluseitha and leveled it next to Arya's throat. There had been a time when Udvum wasn't fast enough to do that against an elf.
"How did I do that?" he asked.
Arya produced a mirror from somewhere. "See for yourself." Udvum looked in the mirror and gasped.
His face was thinner than he remembered, as thin as a human's. His eyes were a bit more angled than he thought, and had turned from gray-green to the bright forest green of Firnen's scales. His blocky dwarven nose had turned into a thin, delicate affair. His hair and beard had darkened, verging on the deep, midnight black that many elves displayed. The most surprising change, though, were his ears. What had once been typical, almost flat-topped dwarf ears now sported short, rounded tips. They weren't the long, dagger-like points that Udvum had seen throughout Ellesmera, but shorter and softer, as if he were a half-breed.
"I-" he stuttered, "I'm an elf!"
"No," Arya laughed, "you're a Rider. All Rider's go through a similar transformation, whether dwarf, human, or urgal. The transformation has already enhanced your speed and strength considerably, and will continue to do so until, in a few months, you are the equal of an elf. When you meet Eragon, however, he will speed up the transformation so that, instead of a few months, the process will be complete in a few hours. In fact, you'll be accompanying me to meet Eragon right now." With that, Arya mounted Firnen. Udvum remounted Gulmer and they both took off. They passed over Du Weldenvarden extremely quickly, faster than Udvum had ever flown Gulmer before, and they reached the edge of the woods before the day was over.
Did you notice that I looked like an elf? Udvum asked Gulmer. He snorted, and, to Udvum's surprise, fire flew from between his teeth.
Of course I did. Gulmer's mental voice had gotten deeper as his physical size had increased. He was now as large as Firnen had been when Udvum had first beheld him, whereas Firnen had nearly doubled in size. Udvum reached out toward Firnen's mind, and asked him the same question.
I noticed much during your time training. Your transformation was hardly foremost. Udvum spent a few seconds processing the answer, and when he did, he reached out for Firnen's mind again.
What was foremost? he asked.
How quickly you came from being unable to use magic to a quite adept magician. Udvum cocked his head.
How quickly was that? he asked.
Quite. Especially when compared to how slowly Eragon learned magic. And Firnen rumbled deeply and loudly in what Udvum could only imagine was a laugh. When sunset came, Gulmer and Firnen started to angle downward and slow down. When they were close enough to the ground, the two dragons reared up and flapped hard, landing as lightly as possible.
When they made camp, Udvum noticed that Arya had pulled out her mirror again. She whispered a scrying spell, and Udvum could see another elf in the mirror. Udvum heard the name 'Eragon,' and the words 'dwarf Rider,' and finally the words 'on our way. I left Bodrorm in charge.' Udvum fell asleep shortly after, knowing that they would probably meet Eragon the next day.
I fact it was two days later when they spotted Eragon. He had flown from his Rider fortress on the legendary Saphira Bjartskular, named for her bright scales. At first Udvum didn't see them, for Saphira's blue scales tended to blend into the sky at that distance. Then he saw what appeared to be a bluejay flying toward them, and he had reached out with his mind in order to calm the bird once it saw the dragons. What he felt, though, was no bird. Even at the distance they were at, Udvum felt an immense presence, bigger even than Firnen's mind. Near and around and within that presence was a second, and though it felt like an elf, it didn't have the strange musical property that elves' minds did. The blue shape in the distance had sped up, then, and soon Udvum saw the great size of Saphira Brightscales. She was twice as large as Firnen, which made her at least four hundred meters in length. On her back was an elf, or at least he appeared to be. When Udvum touched his mind again, it was distinctly human, though his transformation seemed to be complete. When the huge Saphira reached them, she turned and flew alongside.
Udvum attempted to communicate with Eragon's mind, but he felt a flurry of words and images between him and Arya, so he decided to wait. Firnen and Saphira were communicating as well, and Gulmer was just as hesitant to come between them.
What do you think they're talking about? Udvum asked of Gulmer.
I caught something about two eggs between Saphira and Firnen, his dragon replied.
Aye, I felt the same between Eragon and Ebrithil Arya Svit-kona, Udvum said, using both the ancient language word for master and an ancient language honorific for a wise elf woman. After a few moments, Arya laughed and Firnen roared with delight. Soon, a fortress came into view, made of stone and steel and gems. Outside the structure was a town, also made of stone, that looked big enough to house giants. As the three Riders drew near, Udvum realized that it was in fact large enough to house dragons. The fortress itself was large enough that several hundred Saphiras could fly inside with room to spare. Each structure in the town was large enough for two dozen dragons could fly easily. Udvum could walk into any of the doors and the top of the doorway would be a hundred meters above his head. Both he and Gulmer were so awestruck that they didn't notice that Saphira and Eragon were trying to contact them. Finally, Udvum heard four shouts in his and Gulmer's minds.
UDVUM! Arya and Eragon shouted.
GULMER! Saphira and Firnen shouted.
Yes, Ebrithilar! Udvum and Gulmer replied.
Eragon spoke to Udvum personally. Arya tells me you trained with Roran. How is my brother? At first, Udvum was surprised at the realization that Roran and Eragon were brothers, but then he recovered.
Quite well. He is an exceptional warrior and will make a fine magician.
Magician? Eragon seemed confused.
Aye. Magician. I taught him to tap into the flow of magic. He lifted a stone a meter into the air last I saw him. Udvum sent Eragon the memory of Roran's success.
I tried to teach him myself... Eragon was grateful and disappointed at the same time. You have my thanks, Udvum-vodhr. I should like to see his progress myself at some point. And Orik? How is his Majesty doing?
He possessed quite confusing feelings the last I saw him. Gulmer hatched for me, and he wept. He sent me with his greetings. Is it true that King Hrothgar adopted you into Durgrimst Ingeitum?
Aye, Udvum. That he did. Eragon suddenly stiffened. Something's near. A dragon relative. A Deloiblaka! Eragon said. Deloiblaka meant earth-flapper, but Udvum had never read about or heard of something like that. Suddenly, a brown dragon struck Gulmer in the chest, and he flew upward. Udvum looked down and saw that the dragon was covered in earth, and that there was a large hole in the ground below. The dragon wasn't a dragon, though, but rather a large brown bird of sorts. It had feathers instead of scales, but still had a long neck and tail. Its beak had jagged teeth sticking from it, and its tail had a barbed ball at the end. As Udvum watched, the tail flew up and wrapped around Firnen's tail, the barbed ball acting as a weight. When the Deloiblaka pulled its tail back toward it, Firnen was hurled toward the ground, spinning and lurching, trying to keep from hitting the turf. Udvum saw Saphira dodge a few strikes from the Deloiblaka before Gulmer's ascent slowed and he started to fall back down. Udvum tried his best to stay in the saddle as Gulmer spiraled out of control, and he realized that the orange dragon was unconscious. He sent images and words across their mental link, but nothing could get through to his friend. Finally, after Udvum sent Gulmer a picture of them slamming into the ground and dying, the dragon stirred. Udvum kept sending images and words, until Gulmer woke up. Just a dozen meters from the ground, Gulmer spread his wings and pulled back into the sky. Udvum let out a pent-up breath, looking around for Saphira and the Deloiblaka. He found them, flying side-by-side and spiraling around each other, each trying to gain the upper hand. Even as he watched, Eragon jumped from Saphira's back and landed on the Deloiblaka. He raised a blue sword into the air and it ignited with blue fire. Saphira turned over under the Deloiblaka and kicked at it, claws raking down its chest. In return, the Deloiblaka raked at Saphira with its talons. Saphira bit at the Deloiblaka's neck, and it was distracted completely from Eragon. Eragon started to swing his flaming sword, but the Deloiblaka flipped twice, and Eragon fell from its back, dropping his sword. Saphira was forced to disengage in order to catch her Rider, but the Deloiblaka followed her. By the time Saphira caught Eragon, the Deloiblaka was close enough to bite at her tail. She roared and spun around, letting the Deloiblaka slam into her. They bounced off each other, but the Deloiblaka's hollow bird-like bones let it recover more quickly. Udvum pulled out Solusrisa and Soluseitha, and began to loosen his leg-straps. When Gulmer was close enough to the Deloiblaka, Udvum jumped from Gulmer's back and up onto the Deloiblaka. When he was off Gulmer's back, the dragon flew below the Deloiblaka. Udvum ran along its length, yelled, "Gath!" and was soon holding Solusbrisingr. When he reached the creature's neck, he jumped from it, falling toward Gulmer, and chopping off the Deloiblaka's head as he went. Even as he fell, he shouted, "Vrangr!" and Solusbrisingr returned to Solusrisa and Soluseitha. Vrangr meant 'wandering,' and made Solusrisa and Soluseitha wander from each other. Udvum landed perfectly in Gulmer's saddle, with his axes at his sides and the Deloiblaka falling behind him. Udvum put his axes back in their wooden orange rings on his belt and tightened the saddle leg straps. Udvum then looked around, but couldn't see Saphira or Firnen anywhere in the sky. He looked toward the ground, but could only see Saphira, flying close to the ground while Eragon looked up from her back. Firnen was nowhere in sight, though. Gulmer dove toward the ground, leveled out, and landed in the long yellow grass. It was long enough that, when Udvum dismounted, the top of the grass was two meters above his head. He reached out with his mind, and felt a small, weak presence in front of him. He ran forward. He knew that it was Arya, for it felt exactly like her. But Firnen was missing. Udvum continued to run toward the consciousness, trampling and pushing and breaking grass, until he came into a large runnel that had been cut through the grass by something large. At the end, he saw Arya kneeling next to Firnen.
And he wasn't moving.