"To fly through the skies of wonder
To glide through the void of thunder
Once there was a dragon born
Under the shade of a tree forlorn
Over the hills, over the years,
Darkness rose, creating fears
One would never be so kind
To always look and somehow find
The line that bonds the whole of us
The line that separates the whole us
We are only mere people
We are only mere creatures
But if we bond together
We will be strong forever
So thought Eragon, Rider of Riders
An elf of light, an elf of intelligence
He took a risk, bold and unheard
To dive into a brand new world
He stared into the deep vortex
The dragon's eyes so complex
With a battle against time
To save the elves from unforgettable crime
And so the Riders were formed
And a top Eragon's head a crown adorned
Forever destined to rule with us,
The dragons lived, as it was a must
To fly through the skies of wonder,
To glide through the void of thunder."
Virgil finished his poem with a smile, earning a praise from Arya. He had spent long moments memorizing the text and writing it had taken long enough. Arya had given him information on what the first Eragon looked like, so that Virgil's poem became complete with a drawing of the first Rider holding his dragon in his arms. The dragon resembled Ren, Arya had said, but there were a few differences too.
Their flight to Ellesméra was delayed by a storm and strong winds, as well as lightning that lit up the trees once in a while, extinguished by the rain moments afterwards. So Virgil and arta remained in one tent while waiting. That was when Arya said she'd found a weakness in Röex's scrying wards. She had said, "I will scry him later."
And so he waited. Once, he said he would show her his rose picture, and tell her about the dream. He took out his scroll from the saddlebag outside the tent, in the shelter of Fírnen and Ren's wings. He took it out and went back to the tent to find Arya scrying Röex. Because Arya had been the one to say the spell, the spell could show Virgil what he never saw before. She could also show the dragon, as she had once seen the egg. The scrying spell included hearing, and they heard Röex chanting spells. The spells were spells of growth. As the dragon ― Virgil could not tell if it were male or female ― got bigger, so did Virgil's apprehension.
Arya and Virgil watched the bowl filled with rainwater as its surface showed them the dragon's size. It was half as tall Ren's shoulder at first, now growing a foot taller. Now it was about three fourths of Ren's height, but less muscular. Then Röex said, "Good girl, Lovissa. No, I think I should call you Rakr. Rakrhelgr." The dragon, apparently a she-dragon, hummed. Her eyes were red, even more red than Thorn's eyes in Virgil's paintings. They had catlike pupils and their eyelids were a flushed orange.
Arya ended the spell. What spell it was, and how she used it, he did not know. But Virgil knew better and simply asked, "What does helgr mean? I've seen the word, in Dagshelgr, but I forgot what it meant. Rakr is mist, I know, as I asked Ren whether he would like it as a name or not."
"Helgr is hallowed. So Rakrhelgr is hallowed mist. I wouldn't approve the name for an orange dragon, but Röex chose it, and I would not spend time thinking of a better name for out potential enemy." She rubbed her forehead. Then the younger Rider asked again. This time he lost control and said, "What was Röex's weakness? How did you scry him, when the words dream stare alone couldn't work?"
"The spell was complex and not told to inexperienced Riders. Not even all elves know of it. You must promise not to ask again, for it is a dangerous spell and could bring you to your death." Arya said the words and ended in a clear dismissal of the subject.
He understood. Virgil once heard tales of a magician that killed himself using a spell that was too difficult for him, such as bringing the dead back to life.
Ren and Fírnen were dripping wet when they came out. The rain had ceased dropping its cold load of water. The sun was still dim, as clouds still covered the sky.
Virgil chuckled as Ren had once complained to him about the name of the sky. He agreed, though he found it more amusing than worth launching fury everywhere.
Then Ren got up and stretched like a cat. The dragon ran his tongue over his lips and began to walk over to him. Virgil was about to hug his dragon before saying,
Goodness, you're dripping wet with rainwater.
That I know.
Let me dry you.
And so he thought up a spell to turn the water covering Ren into steam without harming the dragon. An inexperienced magician would have simply said 'heat the water' which would have hurt the dragon's scales. So he said instead, 'turn the water on my dragon's scales into steam, but do not do any harm to the dragon!' and watched as the ancient language did its work. The water vanished instantly from Ren's hide, making him even more sparkly.
Thank you.
Virgil did not reply and simply smiled. You look funny when wet. I say we go for a swim someday.
Swimming? No, not now, but we should when we can.
Perhaps I could cast a spell to keep a pocket of air around us so I can breathe underwater. In a way, I mean.
That's a good idea. That way you can see better too.
Perhaps so.
They took flight again. Through the skies they flew, and this time Virgil chanted as he flew. He chanted,
"Once there was a wolf, a wolf who had one eye
Howling at the moon, for the moon would never lie
The wolf with one eye , glared at a star
And howled, 'How could you have done this, show me who you are!'
For in a season he lost many things
His mate flew away on silver wings
His cubs had died, knocked out cold
Under the paws of a wolf of gold
The golden wolf, with an evil gaze
Glaring at the one-eyed silver, setting him ablaze
The silver said, 'Wolf, you coward, let us fight,
I will bring you down with all my might!'
He kicked and growled, the golden too strong,
The power in the silver's flame not enough to hold for long
The golden had killed, his cubs all dead
Because of this terror, the silver fled
He ran to the rivers, he ran to the trees
Rejecting horror and wanting peace
He knew that one day, the golden would fall
For he had brought harm to all
And so one day, when the silver was braver
Stronger and smarter, more that ever
He challenged the golden to a terrific fight,
Lit up by the forest's firelight
The silver fought for all he needed done,
The golden only doing it for none
One on one, the epic battle
Ended with victory for the wolf of metal
The silver looked at his enemy
Revenge now dead in a catastrophe
If only the golden never hurt his heart
He would never need to murder from the start
But he had avenged his sons and daughters
With nothing more than the great slaughter
The beast was dead, and all cheered
For to the fold, many had feared
His mate from above, his cubs too,
They were happy with what the silver could do."
The poem was about a famous fable of Carvahall, about the story of a one-eyed wolf.
The wolf was named Shino, who had silver fur that shine in the moonlight. He had left his pack in search for the perfect mate. He was an average wolf, without the best fighting skills, but not the worse either. He was good at hunting, and brought down several small mammals for meals when he was alone.
Soon he found a she-wolf named Rakri, who was white. She had very long fur in the winter and, even after she shredded her fur, she looked beautiful, like an angel herself. And she took a liking to Shino and mated him, and for a long while they were happy.
They had many wolf pups. In those moments, everything was perfect. Their pack was feared and they had wide territory. They became a happy little family.
But one day, a ferocious lone wolf named Aro slew Kawa, Shino's oldest and most loved son. In thus, Shin almost went mad at the loss. He only lived through it because of Rakri's soothing. The other wolf pups, Hiro and Ava, we're distraught.
The lone wolf only left traces of scent, claw marks, and golden fur. Soon they learned that the wolf was named Aro and that he lived without a family.
Their next encounter with Aro was just as unpleasant, if not more. Aro killed Ava and scarred Shino's left eye. Half-blind, Shino returned to his den with his only female pup in his jaws, dead. He mourned both wolves, not caring that he had become a cripple himself.
That night, Shino had a dream that he saw Rakri, a pair of silver wings sprouting from her back. She said to Shino, "Do not worry, my love, we will see each other again. Remember that, and all will be well." And so, Rakri flew to the skies, fading away from Shino's tearful right eye.
Shino met Aro again, and the golden wolf attacked his den. This time the golden wolf was successful in killing both Ava and Rakri. Ava had been thrown into a stone wall easily, the impact shaking her enough for Aro to finish her with a blow to the skull.
Rakri, however, put up a fight. She had said, "Why are you doing this? You had no right to kill out pups!" and Aro had said, "I do this for my sister, for she was murdered by a ruthless wolf."
And then he ended Rakri's life by clawing at her chest.
Her last words rang in Shino's ears. Shino... do not worry, my love, we will see each other again. Remember that, and all will be well. I...love...you.
The despair of losing four family members within a few months was too much for him, and so Shino ran away from home. The wolf lived alone once more, and that was the night he howled at the moon and the stars. That was when he howled for who was responsible for his pain to show itself. He had not been answered, however. He lived on, training to fight with a limited visibility. He became a combat wolf, and the time came for him to challenge Aro.
He returned with his fur reflecting the moonlight. He called loudly, "Aro! Show yourself, Aro, you murderer, and we will see if revenge is really worth it! You have had your vengeance on your sister, now I will have mine, or you will have yours more satisfying. Let us fight, Aro, and see who is the stronger!"
Aro had showed up with wolf blood splattering his fur. He leaped at Shino, but the silver wolf had better reflexes and rolled away. They fought as furiously as if they used swords. They used their claws as daggers, their teeth as spears.
With his leg badly injured, Shino leapt one last time onto Aro and finished the battle with a bite to the neck. And so, he had his revenge. His fur flashed like metal and he growled into Aro's ear as the wolf was dying, and he said, "I have avenged by family. Now you can join your sister, but you join her a killer yourself. You have created more pain than the wolf that killed her, and so all of wolfkind fear you. Now you will die, remembered as a black-hearted wolf."
Shino lived on as a feared lone wolf. But with his eye and hurt leg, he decided that it was time he joined his family. He passed away out of old age, and was remembered by his birth pack as the bravest wolf of all, braver than even a dragon.
Virgil remembered one night, when he was five and Ismira six, Roran had told them the story. He said that what Aro was wrong to kill for his dead sister, unless whoever he killed had been responsible for the crime itself. Ever since then, Shino had been a hero to Virgil. He smiled.
Then Arya warned, "Look, we are almost there. I shall inform all of the elves of our arrival. They will wait for us in Tialdarí Hall, even Alanna and Evarín."
They circled a small clearing. There were two elves there, along with four horses. Each elf rode one horse and led another. As they landed, Virgil and Arya exchanged greetings to the elves, who had dismounted from their graceful steeds. Even Ren complied to do the same ritual. Then Arya introduced the two elves to Virgil and Ren. "Virgil, this is Lifaen and Narí. They will escort us to Tialdarí Hall."
Ren spoke to Virgil. Are you ready, partner?
I am.
Note: Wolves! I know it took up most of the story, sorry guys. I just felt like I needed to do this tribute. A tribute for Detective Conan's ShinRan pairing, Shino as Shinichi, Rakri as Ran, Ava as Ayumi, Hiro as Mitsuhiko, Kawa as Conan Edogawa, and Aro as Tooru Amuro. Sorry again guys ^^
In response to Brisingr and a guest, I will write in either Eragon or Saphira's POV in the next chapter. I might bring Murtagh back in the story too, as the Riders need all the extra help they can get.
Also, to my other review on eggs being bonded, I'm sorry but I don't understand what you mean.