Meeting of the Minds

As Eragon and Saphira woke the next day, the Eldunari had new information to give the pair. "As you two slept, we found out quite a bit. First off, we think that we have gathered enough about the language to make you competent in it's use. We could either overload you and push it into your subconscious, or go with the slower plan from before. What is your decision on that matter Eragon?" He replied, "If it becomes necessary that I be proficient on my own, please overload me. But I would rather avoid that as it sounds… rather unpleasant. So, for now at least, let us stick to the plan we first came up with." The Eldunari made the thought equivalent of nodding their heads.

"Next, we found several of these strange humans in the city, which we found to be called Lesko. This town is clearly run by a trade guild by the name of the Debau Company and there are no lords to rule it. The town is run by merchants. However, there are several surrounding towns, though smaller in size, that are run by lords. More than a few of these towns contain these strange individuals as well. Though some seem more human than others. But the forest itself contains the largest concentration of these entities. Some seem to be human with animalistic traits, while others seem to be animal with humanistic traits. But the number seems to constantly shift, as we can never get a solid number. We estimate that the overall number of both should be somewhere around a hundred or so."

Saphira asked, "So where do you feel we should start our search Ebrithilar?" The Eldunari pondered this for a bit before responding. "We feel it best to begin in the small village of Nyohhira to the north, where there are a few of these strange people. The town is small enough while being surrounded by forest to go unnoticed by the surrounding area. Also, the more animal than human entities seem to not routinely visit this part of the forest. We feel it better than asking questions in a large town such as here in Lesko."

Eragon responded, "True. Better to ask a possibly absurd or dangerous question in a small town, cut off from mainstream society than to show our ignorance in a large town. So, are we off to Nyohhira?" Saphira growled her ascent. "To Nyohhira we go."

While in the air, Eragon asked the Eldunari, "Ebrithilar, did you ever discover any new information as to whether or not they were related to Elves?" The Eldunari seemed to radiate a slight embarrassment as well as anger. "We could not. While it is clear that when observing an ant, you can not immediately tell it is an ant due to it never thinking of itself as such, with enough information, one should be able to correctly identify what one is observing. Yet we could neither prove nor disprove such a theory of Elfhood!" Eragon recoiled at the sudden aggression from Umaroth.

"I…Is there anything else we should know Ebrithilar?" Umaroth noticeably calmed down before speaking again. "There is. You may want to change the markings on your gold and silver coins to the image you see. They seem to be rather important in this area. We found more than a few merchants worried about such things. Purity seems to be rather important as well." Eragon though it over for a minute. "So, was this coin you've shown us of rather high purity?" Again, the thought version of a nod. "In that case, I can gather from the ground the materials needed for a few coins, should we run out of coin. Though, should we run dangerously low, I may need to borrow your strength Ebrithilar." They responded simply, "We will help when needed, Eragon." They paused for a bit before responding again. "Oh, we almost forgot, another accepted coin looked like this." Before Eragon's mind were two coins. One was the same as before, a coin with a marking of the sun. But the second had a person's face on it. "The first was called a Debau. The specific designation is contingent on whether it is gold or silver. The second is called a Trenni and is always silver. The only other gold coin in the area looks like this and is called a Lumione."

Eragon, only recently involved in true economics, started to feel his head spinning at even the beginning of hearing so many coins. "Are there any other coins we should know about?" The Eldunari began flooding Eragon with several bronze coin types until he told them to stop. "I think we should wait for the bronze coins until we get to the village. We can decide on one or two when we get there." Saphira just chuckled as she flew.

While the forests thinned somewhat as they flew into the mountains, they remained dense enough to hide Saphira. Eventually she landed in a clearing not too far away from the village called Nyohhira. "I saw the village back there, below us. I flew higher on the mountain so as to hopefully avoid startling the wildlife too much." Eragon nodded and dismounted. "That should do Saphira. I don't think we should be here too long, but I want you to keep your mind close so you can see what we see. That way I don't have to explain later if or why there may be changes to the plan. In any case, be safe Saphira. I'll never let you live it down if you are caught unawares by one of these strange beings." Saphira blew smoke at him. "Just you be careful. I never get into trouble when you're gone. But you always find yourself on an adventure when I'm not around." Eragon rolled his eyes and left for Nyohhira.

…

It had been about ten years since Lawrence and Holo had set up the Spice and Wolf Bathhouse. Their daughter Myuri and Col had left on a journey. Or rather, Col had left and Myuri stowed away in some cargo. Holo had wholly taken to her journaling that Lawrence had suggested as a means to quell the fear of his impending passing. While she should still have another forty years or so with him, Holo was still worried about what she should do. But today, that worry was the last thing on her mind.

"Lawrence, I can't quite put my finger on it, but something has been bothering me since last night. Tis as if someone has been inside my head and I don't like it." Lawrence wiped the sweat from his brow and looked at her, confused. "What do you mean? Do you think you just drank too much at the meeting last night?" Holo stomped on the floor. "No, you fool! I mean it feels as if there is someone else inside of my head! I can't determine what is causing it, but I do not like it. Tis unlike anything I have encountered before. It aggravates my instincts." Lawrence knew better than to underestimate Holo's instincts. "Do you think there is danger coming?" he asked seriously. "I know not if tis real danger. But I do not feel the presence was ill meaning. But it still annoys me! But another thing."

At this, Lawrence looked up because Holo's face changed from annoyance to caution. "I smell something big in the air. It smells of power greater than my own. It seemed to carry multiple scents, but there was no mistaking the size of one of them." Lawrence lowered his head and voice as he asked, "How big do you think? Is this another incarnation?"

"I know not if tis another incarnation for sure. I have never smelled this before exactly, but the scent of power in unmistakable. This just sets my instincts ablaze it does!" Lawrence thought for a little while. "Well combine the power you couldn't mistake with the odd presence in your mind you felt earlier, and this can't be coincidence. Please let me know if any unusual travelers are approaching Nyohhira."

"There does seem to be a traveler coming now. But his scent is coming from the wrong side of the village." Lawrence was nervous about that as the 'wrong side of the village' meant that they descended the mountain instead of climbing it. "Did they come from the same direction as the 'big…' something?" Holo shook her head. "No. I was just able to detect them this morning when the cold air descended from the mountains and brought the scent of this man with it. The powerful scent came from that direction." She pointed up and to the left. "This newcomer is coming from there." She simply pointed up at an angle. "However, I cannot say for certain that the two are not connected."

Lawrence didn't like this. Holo's instincts were rarely ever wrong. But the sheer amount of uncertainty she had was what worried him the most. She almost seemed like cornered prey. Even if the predator wasn't hungry, the prey would still be frightened, nonetheless. But what preyed on wolves? Lawrence didn't want to voice these concerns as it might make Holo self-conscious as well as afraid. And she seemed at her limit as it was.

Just then, a knock on the front door sounded and broke the trance the two seemed to be in. Holo looked uneasy. "That is the traveler I spoke of." Why did he come here? He would have had to pass by everything else to get here so fast. Lawrence pondered all this and more as he walked to the door to greet their new guests.

Lawrence opened the door to a fair skinned man, seeming to be in his mid-twenties. He had brown hair and a piercing gaze that seemed to somehow carry no malice, but simply authority. The young man reminded Lawrence of Keiman and Eve. They were two people who, while young, had seemed used to a battlefield and were unphased by big deals as they commanded their forces at hand. This man seemed to be made of the same steel. Just as he thought this, Holo came up behind him in her robes, grabbed his sleeve, and spoke to the guest cheerfully. "Hello traveler. I apologize for my husband just staring at you so awkwardly. We simply find it unusual to have a guest of your demeanor at this time of year. Are you a noble of some sort?"

While Holo was playing the part very well, he could feel her hand shaking as she clutched his sleeve as if it were life itself. What on earth was this man? At Holo's questioning, he spoke, almost as if unsure of what he was saying. "While I am in charge of a few things, I wouldn't say that I'm a noble. I come from a far away land beyond the sea, and sadly know little of the lands customs here." Lawrence saw an opening to ask his own questions. "If you come from across the sea, then how did you come to find our little bathhouse? Surely you had to stop by Kerube or another port town."

The stranger seemed to falter a bit. "I did, but the town was a bit bigger than I had hoped to encounter first. I prefer to become knowledgeable about an area through smaller locations than ask silly questions in big towns." This seemed counterintuitive, and Holo tugged on his sleeve as if to say she knew he was lying. "How did you learn the language? You seem quite proficient for someone from a far away land." At this the newcomer started stumbling over his words.

"Books. I like to read a lot. I have books from many countries and have learned many languages. This is one language from a book such as that. However, I have never used it before out loud, so I am somewhat poor in actually speaking it properly." Lawrence could tell he seemed nervous. But Lawrence was more worried about Holo. "Do you plan on staying at our bathhouse sir?" At this, the young man looked up with a spark of hope in his eyes that almost faded earlier. "Yes, I think I may at that. What are your prices?"

"That will be either one Silver Trenni or three quarters of a Silver Debau for a week's stay." The traveler relaxed a bit. "Here you are sir. Where shall I find the rooms?" Lawrence looked askance at him. Sir, we only expect payment after your stay unless you simply insist on paying early so you can leave quickly. Also, what should I call you sir?" The man looked up with a trace of pride on his face for the first time since beginning the conversation.

"Eragon." At this, Lawrence ceased his interrogation, and again became the master of his bathhouse. "Your room will be this way. Is there anything I can help you with sir?" Eragon thought for a second. "Are there any taverns where I could get some food?" Lawrence was completely thrown off. If this was a business negotiation, he felt he had just lost. "Sir, here in Nyohhira, all of the bathhouses are the taverns. We serve most everything you could ask for and most is included in the price of your stay."

Eragon smiled and held his hand to the back of his head, "I apologize for my lack of knowledge of the area and your customs. Few places do this where I'm from, and bathhouses are not too common." Lawrence smiled back. "Ah. In that case, let the masters of the Spice and Wolf Bathhouse show you a proper welcome to the land." At this, Lawrence took their strange guest to a room leaving Holo behind to ponder what she knew to be off somehow.

"Is there anything I can get for you mister Eragon? We have a decent selection of wines and ales as well as a few options for food before dinner tonight if you are hungry now?" Eragon shook his head. "I think I will save the wine and food for dinner. If it is not too much trouble though, could I have a jug of water please? And a basin too?" Lawrence felt he had thought ahead and asked, "Should I heat it up for you sir?"

Surprisingly, Eragon shook his head. "No thank you sir. Cold water is all I shall need." At this, the odd young man named Eragon closed the door, both figuratively and literally on any more conversation, so Lawrence returned to Holo.

She was still standing in the same place as before. "Holo! Are you alright?" Lawrence asked, alarmed, but in a hushed tone. "He… He smells of that beast I spoke of. Tis not him specifically, but tis no mistaking the scent on him. He also lied about many things. He does not prefer our small village, and he lied about not being a noble. He lied about how he knows our language. Yet he oddly was not lying about his origins. But yet, despite all his avoidance of the truth, he did not smell hostile at all. Even I cannot cover the smell of my intentions." Holo finally moved to embrace Lawrence with her head buried in his chest. "I am so very confused and unsure." He looked down at his wife, unsettled. "I will see to it that we get to the bottom of all of this Holo." For the first time ever, Lawrence was the one who seemed surer of the situation than Holo. At once, he began to doubt how sure he really was.

"Holo, let me handle as many interactions as possible with Eragon. I just need you to listen and smell. And if you sense that powerful… thing, let me know right away." Holo nodded weakly, but tightly clung to Lawrence's arm afterward.

…

In the room, Eragon contacted Saphira. "You heard and saw everything, right Saphira?" Saphira replied immediately. "I did. That girl seemed to fear you the moment the door opened." Eragon scratched his head. "I even tried to search her mind, if only on the surface, but her fear was so completely focused on a scent that I couldn't break the barrier." Saphira's emotions piqued at this. "I must have missed that. Did you get a scent that you could relay to me, or was it simply that you knew it was a scent at all?" Eragon answered by transferring the sensation of the scent across their mental link. "Anything at all Saphira?"

"It's… Me. She's scared of me? But, how? I should be out of range of even most Elves' range of smell when it's not magically enhanced. Only proper beasts of the forest should be able to sense me! But this is a strong enough sensation that she clearly smelled me before you even arrived! Eragon, she is not what she seems. However, from her reaction, take care not to scare her further."

Eragon was shocked by her assessment. "Ebrithilar, what do you think? Any suggestions on how we should proceed?" The Eldunari thought for a while before a knock came to the door. It was the master of the bathhouse, Master Lawrence, with the water and basin. "Is there anything else I can get you mister Eragon?" Eragon probed the surface of his mind before he spoke and was surprised to find a concrete understanding of where Saphira was and that Eragon himself only carried the scent. "Uh, oh, uh no. Sir. That will be all I need at the moment. When will dinner be served though?"

Master Lawrence seemed skeptical in his response. "It will be at sundown." And he left the room. "They certainly are weary of me. However, Master Lawrence seems to be more cautious of me from what his wife thinks, and less his own understanding." The Eldunari stated their thoughts rather plainly. "We feel that this Holo is the one we seek. With her mind so guarded, we couldn't tell for certain, but Lawrence clearly is not the one we seek. However, he does seem to know what she is. Eragon, you must find a way to settle their nerves around you, even if you must reveal yourself and Saphira. Ask about their travels, how much they know about countries beyond the sea. Offer tales of our lands as well. But keep it centered on HUMAN tales. It seems that no one believes in Elves, Dwarves, or Urgals here."

With the conversation completed, Eragon poured a bit of water into the basin and cast the variation scrying spell which allowed him to contact Queen Arya. Just as he did, he could have sworn at that instant, he heard Holo gasp from his room before a bowl shattered. "Eragon, I didn't expect you to be the one to contact me. Is something wrong at Mount Arngor?" Eragon grimaced. "No, Arya. I'm afraid something has come up on my end actually." Her features tensed. "While we have not found what we were searching for, we did find something rather odd. Could you search any and all of the records from your original people who settled in Alagaësia? If any knowledge exists about them, please let me know." Arya responded quickly as ever. "Argetlam, you should know as well as I that the ancestors of the El…"

Eragon quickly hushed her with a motion before casting a quick silencing spell. "I deeply apologize your excellency. I simply realized something that was rather troubling. I think the subject of my conversation might actually be able to hear our conversation." Arya looked disappointed. "Why didn't you shield the room before summoning me? I thought you had learned better." Eragon responded calmly. "When we first arrived here, we discovered there was no magic, no Dragons, and little of much use to the Order. There are none of the other races known to Alagaësia either besides human. And with the masters of the bathhouse I am staying in currently on the first floor, I thought I was safe." Arya's expression softened a bit. "So why did you suddenly stop me?"

"Honestly, it was because I pieced together everything that I knew and made a guess. Just as I made contact with you, I am positive I heard the female owner, Holo, gasp and shatter a plate or bowl downstairs. And when I first arrived at the house, we found that she had smelled Saphira at a longer distance than even Blödhgarm can smell. She could smell her on me and was terrified. While magic does not seem to flow through people in this land quite the same as home, there are quite a few interesting people living here. They seem to be human, but apon inspecting their minds, they seem, animalistic in nature. It's as if they truly are animals who became human. Possibly even the reverse. Even the Eldunari among me can't make heads or tails of it. They seem to possibly be a cousin of Elves, but we can't determine that for sure without breaking into one's mind and taking the information by force just yet. We believe Holo to be one of them."

Arya thought for a moment and responded. "As for your earlier question, you know as well as I that the ancestors of the Elves beyond the ocean are a mystery. As for this woman, Holo, treat her with care. If she does possess magic, she could be a dangerous foe." Eragon shook his head. "All of us agree that she is not dangerous as she is. She is far too afraid of what Saphira is. If she has power, Saphira alone could probably protect us all."

"What do you need from me, Eragon?" He responded with, "If you could at least take a look into any records that involve Elven ancestry of any kind that would be appreciated. And if we find out the information we seek without further terrifying the poor girl, what do you think we should do?" Arya thought long and hard. "If she turns out to be of Elven heritage, present her with an egg. If nothing happens, then nothing happens. But should she become a Rider, Holo may become a powerful asset to us." Eragon nodded. "If that is all, I shall take my leave to look into the Elven ancestry you asked about."

Eragon nodded one more time and ended all the spells in the room. He also cast an unspoken spell to strengthen his hearing. When he did, he heard Holo talking to Lawrence. "While I think I have come to my senses about this newcomer, I am still uneasy. I heard him talking to someone up there in his room while no one else could be sensed. I heard a second voice clear as day. And then all sound just stopped! And I could have sworn he heard me after I smelled great power coming from him. I do not like this. We need to find out more about him." Eragon cut off the flow of magic after this. He looked out the window to see it was approaching sunset. He decided to do the rimgar until dinner.

At dinner, Holo looked right at him and asked, "Was it just me, or did I hear a second person in your room not too long ago?" Eragon tensed. He didn't want to reveal everything right away unless he had to. "No, but I do like to talk to myself a lot. Maybe that's what you heard." With her hearing, Eragon knew she would not take that well. What was making him uneasy though, was how she would periodically glance right at either Saphira's direction, or even more unsettling, the small pocket space hovering right behind him. As they spoke of Eragon's past and the histories of Alagaësia, Holo seemed to be getting more and more frustrated until she finally burst like an overfull waterskin.

"If you're going to talk to us, could you at least do so without seeming to have a secret, mental conversation before you even so much as utter a word! Honestly! I get better conversation out of songbirds!" Eragon froze. "Th… That's not what I'm doing."

It was Holo's turn to freeze before her entire body went limp, except for just enough strength to keep her standing. She looked in stunned silence at Lawrence before uttering these terrifying words. "Lawrence, it was him. He was just now lying."