Chapter 9: Undying Passions
Murtagh had slept terribly that night, his dreams kept on returning to Nasuada, Orrin and Orson. One particular nightmare scarred him the most.
Mister, mister Orson said to him. Don't be sad, she never loved you.
He is right Murtagh Orrin then said. She is perfectly happy with the way things are.
Murtagh said to the dream Nasuada But I love you Nasuada, why didn't you wait for me?
Why would I love a man who burnt my flesh and stood by as that tyrant held me captive?She asked him.
I could do nothing else, he knew my true name!
Nasuada said It doesn't matter. Between us there was nothing, you have done terrible things with the tyrant. I could never live with one such as you.
The family left him and Murtagh's eyes opened, bringing him back to reality. Was that dream true, did she never love him? Is she better off now than she would be had he married her? Frustration and grief overtook him as he squeezed his eyelids shut and formed fists. So hard did he clench his fists, his nails dug into the palms and fresh blood flowed. Murtagh wished there was a way, any way for him to switch places with Orrin if only for a day. However there was no way, he was destined to live without Nasuada, the woman he loved more than any other.
After eating their fill at the castle, all the riders and dragons flew above the city, heading to the arena. It was close by, only taking a few minutes of flight for them to reach the massive structure. Thousands of feet high stretched the coliseum, the sides must have been a quarter mile long. When they flew above the arena, thousands upon thousands of spectators from all races could be seen in the seats. Quickly they landed in the center, roars of cheers from the audience echoed throughout the coliseum.
A servant ran up to them saying "You will all be seated there," he pointed to a huge section of seats where no one sat. Thanking him, Eragon and the rest flew to the area and made themselves comfortable. Because of all the extra open seats, the dragons were able to comfortably situate themselves. From where they sat they were much lower to the arena's floor, which would give them a great view of the performance. In front of them sat Orrin, Nasuada, Orson, Orik, his wife, Roran, Katrina and their children. Once all the riders and dragons were comfortable, Orik and Roran came to greet them.
"Eragon!" they both said to him, Orik and Roran hugged him, but they then soon backed away.
"Ten years it's been! And you've managed to bring back four riders!" Roran said.
"I'd rather much be in your situation though. I hear you have three children," Eragon said to him.
"No Eragon, you don't want children," Orik said. "At least not yet, you have too much babysitting to do anyway with those riders! You are going to live a long time Eragon, it's something you shouldn't worry about."
Roran then said "How has he been treating you Saphira?"
Same as always.
"I'm sorry to hear that," Orik said. "Only jesting Eragon!" It was then that Murtagh approached Roran and Orik.
"Hello again cousin Murtagh!" Roran said to him.
"Finally the entire family is reunited!" Murtagh said to him in return. At that moment, Eragon noticed one man enter the arena. Eerily he looked just as Eragon looked like thirteen years ago, before Saphira had hatched for him.
"It's about to start," Eragon said to them all, upon which everyone returned to their designated seats. Next to Arya he sat, Saphira and Firnen right behind them, their great heads resting between them. Somehow, the sky became dark instantly, filled with stars; the arena was now filled with trees and grass, with a clearing in the center. Everyone in the coliseum grew silent, anticipation welled up within them all.
How is this possible? It's still morning and trees just grew in the arena?Eragon asked Arya.
Somewhere there are magicians creating illusionsArya answered him.
And so the performance began, starting with Eragon's finding Saphira's egg in the Spine. Later, more and more scenes unfolded as Saphira hatched, Brom leaving Carvahal with them and their early adventures through Alagaesia. Magically, the lines the actors spoke could be clearly heard as if the audience was standing right next to them. Every scene had a different look and feel, the sky above them changed from day to night and night to day on a whim. The arena's environment changed every time they went to a city or a different natural area. More and more scenes were shown just how they happened all those years ago. As the actor Eragon did his very best to save the actress Arya, the real Arya grasped Eragon's hand and lay her head on his shoulders.
I had always known it was difficult to do what you did then Eragon she said to him. But now I better understand what it was you went through. You crossed the desert and outran kull for me?
In the ancient language he thought to her And I would do so again if you needed it.
And so they lay there, content to watch the rest of the performance in bliss. The battle of Tronjheim was astounding, the illusions of blood and war were nearly identical to the real conflict. Soon after the fight, the death of Ajihad took place and Eragon noticed Nasuada shaking where she sat. The actors of Saphira, Eragon, Arya and Orik then journeyed through the Dwarven cities and made their way to Du Weldenvarden. There, Oromis and Glaedr taught Eragon and Saphira their many lessons, while Vanir sparred with Eragon daily. During the Agaeti Blodhren, the actor Eragon went through his physical transformation into a more Elvish being.
Much betterArya said to Eragon, who couldn't help but quietly chuckle. After the rejection scene, Arya scooted in closer to Eragon, he placed his arm around her. Later, the actor Eragon and Orik flew on the illusion Saphira to the Varden in Surda. Afterwards the Battle of the Burning Plains was fought, with Roran and Carvahal villagers joining in as well as the urgals and kull. The fight between Murtagh, Thorn, Saphira and Eragon then commenced with Murtagh's claim at the end. Soon afterwards, Eragon Roran and Saphira traveled to Helgrind to save Katrina. There the battle against the Ra'zac was won and Eragon stayed to do what he did with Sloan. More scenes unfolded, the escape from the empire with Arya, the Dwarven politics, the revelation talks Eragon and Saphira had with Oromis and Glaedr and the forging of Brisingr. The battles of Feinster, Gil'ead and Belatona followed. The death of Glaedr and Oromis was done exceedingly well Eragon thought. Afterwards, the capture at Dras Leona and the great battle there followed. Interestingly, when the actor Eragon and Saphira went to Vroengard and entered the Rock of Kuthian, only dragon eggs were within.
How could they not add in the eldunarya? Firnen asked. Come to think of it, Glaedr's eldunari hasn't even been brought up.
It's one of the rider's greatest secrets dummy! Saphira said to him. They couldn't be shown in the performance or the secret would be out.
Ah yes that is right! Firnen said. I got caught up in the moment is all.
Soon the final battle commenced, which was even more full of action and insanity than any others before it. When the actress Islanzadi was killed by Barst, Arya shuddered and shivered next to Eragon. She never saw the event in person and so it was clear to Eragon that this scene had a profound effect on her. The scene changed to the confrontation with the dark king and the fights that took place there. Lastly was the display of Firnen and Arya as the queen and the departure of Eragon and Saphira. The true name exchange was not discussed, however everything else was true to history.
As the last scene ended, the skies cleared, showing that a young night was upon them. Loud cheers and shouts echoed greatly throughout the coliseum. All the main actors who had participated walked to the center of the arena. The one who had played Eragon was signaling to Eragon himself in a way saying that he wanted him and the others to go down there.
Raising his arm off Arya he said "Come on then." Pointing to Murtagh he also said "You too." They all got onto their respective dragons and landed in the middle of the arena.
Eragon went up to the one who played him and was surprised to realize that he was an elf.
"Your acting was fine, but there was one flaw I noticed" Eragon said to him.
"What is that Shadeslayer?" he asked Eragon.
You don't ask enough questions Saphira said to him. If anything is going to get him killed one day, it's his curiosity.
The actor laughed saying "The director tells me what to say and I say it. You should talk to him not me!"
Eragon shook his head saying "It was fine the way it is! One little mistake like that doesn't ruin it, this was well worth the trip!"
"Thank you Shadeslayer!" the actor said to him. Eragon began to walk away from him and headed towards Arya. Though she was talking to the actress that played her and they looked exactly the same. Instead of risking a potential awkward situation he went over to the man who played Galbatorix.
At the time Murtagh was conversing with him and said "You have no idea how much I want to punch your face in right now."
"Why is that," the man asked.
Instead of Murtagh answering, Thorn did instead saying You look just like the tyrant did and Murtagh never got a chance to punch him when he was around. Punching you would be the next best thing I guess.
"I will take that as a compliment," the actor said. "That means I must have played my part well."
"Very," Murtagh said smiling then went to talk to the one who played himself.
Eragon then spoke to him saying "It was a job well done, for a moment I had thought the evil king was back among us!"
"Thank you kindly Shadeslayer!" he said back to him, a smile then formed on his lips as the man got an idea. "As a grand finale Shadeslayer, you should spar with Arya Drotning and Murtagh! You have your swords strapped to your sides! It would be glorious!"
Eragon was about to refuse, but Saphira said That is a great idea! They will surely do this.
"Excellent!" the fake Galbatorix said. "I shall go tell the others this!" As the actor went to Murtagh, Eragon sighed as he drew Brisingr and blocked the edges of the sword. Sheathing his sword again, he made a large blue flame high in the air to represent his life in this fight.
Why did you sheath your weapon little one?
"To give the audience a little more entertainment, you'll see" Eragon said back to her. Arya and Murtagh then blocked their swords and made flames of their own as all the actors left the arena. The three dragons wished their riders luck and flew back to where they had seated before. Murtagh, Arya and Eragon stood in a triangle fifty feet away from each other, there were no teams, it would be every warrior for themselves.
With the audience's entertainment in mind, Eragon bellowed "BRISINGR!" Blue flames erupted from his sword that were so intense, the blade was blasted out of its sheath from the sheer force. Surrounded by a blue inferno the sword flipped about fifty feet high, then buried itself in the ground ten feet in front of Eragon. He walked to the blazing sword, grasped the hilt and as he pulled the sword out he swung it behind him and ended the spell.
"Prepare yourself Dragonslayer and Kingsbane! You will receive no mercy!"
Murtagh drew his sword Zar'roc and simply swung it once saying to them "I never would expect anything less than your best brother and queen. For you will need it, I will hold nothing back myself. I will not look like a fool in front of the fairest queen of the Empire."
Arya then drew Tamerlien from its sheath and swung it around in several elaborate strokes. To them she said "All the better, I enjoy a good fight."
All the combatants stared each other down, waiting to see what would happen first. To Eragon's great surprise, it was Arya who made the first move. She sprinted for him, yelling in a frenzied fervor and attacked him with several ferocious slashes. Being forced into the best of his defense he blocked ever blow she attempted to land on him. It was a style he had never seen her use, she was a berserker and he could not find out why. Murtagh soon came to them and Zar'roc came down vertically towards Ayra, which met Tamerlien horizontally. Seizing his chance, Eragon swung Brisingr horizontally in order to slash them both, but both Zar'roc and Tamerlien blocked his strike. Zar'roc then came down horizontally at Eragon's left side which he attempted to block, but Zar'roc retreated immediately to block a slash from Tamerlien instead. Eragon then attempted to stab Arya as Murtagh tried to slash her. Amazingly, Tamerlien smacked both Brisingr and Zar'roc out of the way and Tamerlien smacked Murtagh on the shoulder.
Murtagh cried out and stepped back for a moment, Arya then faced Eragon again and again resumed her sword swinging frenzy at him. Eragon could not hope to prevail against her while Murtagh was still in the fight, so he planned on fighting defensively and take him out first. Arya's strategy baffled Eragon, she was bound to tire more quickly than him, it was a risky style that he never expected her to use. Zar'roc then returned and slashed at the legs of both Arya and Eragon, over which they jumped. Carefully Eragon jumped away from Arya and jabbed at Murtagh, but Brisingr was slammed so hard by Zar'roc that it was knocked out of his hands to his left.
Quickly, Eragon said "Kuasta!" and Brisingr started to fly back to him, but Murtagh smacked Brisingr to the ground when it almost reached him. He then put both of his feet on Brisingr, holding it there and was about to attack Eragon, but Tamerlien came out of nowhere and Zar'roc had to deflect it. Then, Arya realized what Murtagh was doing and charged at Eragon while Murtagh still stood on top of Brisingr.
Oh that's real fair you two! Forming an alliance like that!Eragon thought to himself as he ran from Arya and Tamerlien. He repeated the word Kuasta many more times, each time Brisingr inching closer and closer off of Murtagh's feet. Eragon then formed a plan to take Murtagh out, he ran at Murtagh as Arya still chased him, Zar'roc was raised over Murtagh's head. Once more he said "Kuasta" and Brisingr flew underneath Murtagh's feet so quickly that Murtagh lost his footing. Eragon was now close enough to attack Murtagh, who was still repositioning and Brisingr made contact with his chest, sending Murtagh flying. At the same time Brisingr hit Murtagh, Zar'roc hit Eragon's leg.
Now lying on the ground, Murtagh looked up in the air to find that his flame was gone and swore under his breath, leaving the fray. Looking up himself, Eragon saw that his flame was two thirds the size it originally was. Judging by how Arya was attacking, Eragon suspected that one hit from her would finish him. Not surprisingly, Arya's green flame was still burning as brightly as ever.
Tamerlien once again slashed at Eragon in moves even faster than their previous fight. Eragon blocked every strike barely in time, waiting for her to tire so he could finish her. For a fleeting moment Eragon looked into her eyes, in them he saw immense frustration. It seemed she was fighting something besides him as well, like she was trying to conquer something else. Maybe her victory in this fight was her way of conquering something within her, something she desperately wanted to eradicate.
Eragon had no time to wonder however, the fight was the hardest he ever had to go through. Brisingr blocked Tamerlien as it reared towards his side, then he blocked a blow to his right leg, another to his chest, smacked away a stab, and Eragon leaped away from a horizontal swipe all within five or so seconds. Though determined she was to win, Eragon was just as determined and he would wait for as long as he needed to in order for her to tire and then he would finish her.
Long minutes drove by as sweat dripped from both warriors, until Arya eventually slowed. It was a slight drop in speed, but Eragon had noticed it. She was beginning to tire and in time Eragon would have a chance to win. Though he kept his defensive tactic, not willing to risk opening himself to her, less she would win instantly. He waited, waited for her to be unable to defend herself after playing offensively the entire time. And so Arya slowed and slowed, until Eragon saw an opening.
Time seemed to slow down as Arya brought Tamerlien down on Eragon in a vertical slash at his left shoulder. Eragon jumped to his right to dodge the blow, then jumped again towards Arya's left side. There, he swung Brisingr at the back of her legs which hit them so hard that Arya was launched off her feet and landed on her back. Not slowing, Eragon reversed his grip on Brisingr and stabbed her again in the heart.
Sheer pain coursed throughout her body as Brisingr met her chest, forcing out from her a loud cry. Arya's eyes widened at the man who stood above, both of them breathed heavily, though she more than him. Try as she might, she could not even touch him and soundlessly he had defeated her. Ever since she said that they should move on, she had been trying desperately to cast her feelings aside. The duel reflected her attempts at this, no matter how she fought against her feelings, she could not touch them.
Eragon sheathed Brisingr, then crouched over her, his hand now above her chest. "Waise heil," he said. And Arya felt an itching sensation as her cracked ribs were mended back the way they were before. He did the same for her legs, then gently grabbed her free hand and pulled her on her feet. Once up, she said Eragon's true name, his body was shaken, and then Eragon said several sentences in the ancient language. All spoke of Arya's character, her devotion to duty, who she was, her personality, all of it. One more sentence Eragon spoke, and it was a description of her feelings for Eragon, a passion that would never leave her for the rest of her life. As he finished speaking, Arya's entire being was shaken and reverberated, for he had spoken her new true name.
She was astounded that Eragon had known her more than she had known herself. He knew her better than even Firnen did! And so her face accelerated towards Eragon's, but backed away immediately. Again she moved her head towards him, but then backed off, this time she moved back further. A third time she moved herself at him and her lips touched his lips, she gave him a passionate kiss then broke off immediately. With great fear she looked all around her at the thousands of people who had seen her do this. Everyone now knew, it was something she had wanted to keep a secret from everyone else. Her eyes grew misty as tears threatened to take over her, but before she could shed a single one Eragon spoke.
In a gentle and soothing voice he said "Forget them Arya, forget everything." Eragon slowly approached her and as if in a trance, she to him. Their lips met again as they shared their undying passions, not caring who watched. They knew not how long they did this, but these moments were the best both had in their life.
"Slow down you two!" both heard someone say. Arya and Eragon were somehow laying on the ground of the arena. Eragon's shirt had been removed, exposing his athletic form, Arya's hands were on his pants and she had started to unravel them. His hands were on her, which had started to unravel her leather leggings. The voice had woken them up to reality; they had no idea what they were doing. Both looked up to see it was Murtagh who had spoke, Saphira and Firnen were close by, each gleefully humming.
Speaking again he said while grinning at them "This is the worst place for that riders, you need to be alone." He helped them both up to their feet, Eragon placed his shirt back on and they both got on their dragons. Leaping from the ground, the dragons sped off to Nasuada's castle, along the way the two riders conversed.
Cautiously, Eragon asked her "Do you still think we should not do this? It's not too late, we can stop now if you wish."
Arya was shocked that he would ask that now after what had happened. In a cheerful voice she said "Don't you see Eragon? We are in each other's true names, we are a part of each other. I fear we are already devoured by this Eragon, no matter what we do. And when we separate, there's no telling when we will see each other, if ever we will again. If there ever was a time, it would be now."
Joyfully he said to her "You have no idea how long I've dreamt for you to say that." She smiled to herself, happier than she had been in her entire life. Firnen and Saphira hummed tunes as they all thought of what could be.
Soon they reached the castle, Arya and Eragon ran up the curved staircase together in glee. Through the nearest door they crashed into a room, then shut the door behind them. They fell onto the bed, embraced one another and resumed their sharing of passions. Nothing would stop them now, not their duties, not their distances, nothing. This was their destiny and together they shared loves greater than any couple had for centuries. During this, a mind brushed against Arya's.
Firnen?she exclaimed.
Join your mind with mine fully, partner of my heart, trust meFirnen said to her.
Without speaking back, she and Firnen's minds fully became one. Arya then was not only sharing passions with Eragon, as Firnen she was fighting against Saphira with mighty claws and teeth, pouring out passions to her as well. Now that her mind was Firnen's she knew that it was Saphira's idea to do this and had likely joined her mind with Eragon's. It was a beautiful experience, with riders and dragons all becoming two beings bonded together. They exhausted themselves in pure love, their cries of passion sung by them all throughout the gentle night.
