Chapter 25: Revelations from a Dead Man
Link and Eragon were in the sky, and urged their dragons to fly faster than they ever had. Time was of the essence and caution was not. They flew right over Lithgow, Cithrí, and Melian without fear of being revealed. If they won the following battle, there would be no need to conceal their dragons. If they lost, they'd probably die anyway.
They were over the Burning Plains within two hours. Link could tell that Vanilor was getting slightly weary. He guessed that Saphira wasn't winded yet since she was older and more experienced. He encouraged Vanilor and urged him on more.
In another half hour, Vanilor was panting and wheezing. It was dark when they had left Aberon, and it was as if someone had blindfolded them now. Link motioned to Eragon to set down. Eragon agreed, as Saphira was now somewhat tired as well.
They swooped down, ready to land. They realized that they were straight over Brom's tomb.
They spiraled downward quickly but in a controlled manner. They touched to the ground and Vanilor collapsed. Link dismounted his saddle and laid a hand on Vanilor's head to comfort him. Vanilor's breaths came in short gasps. He was truly exhausted. There would be no way for them to continue in the same night.
Link voiced his concerns to Eragon.
"Helgrind's right there!" Eragon cried, pointing at the wicked spires. "We could be there within the hour!"
"Vanilor is drained," said Link. "There's no way for him to keep flying like this. He'll feel better when he gets some sleep, and we'll continue first thing in the morning."
Eragon relented and allowed Saphira to land. They set up camp without too much difficulty due to their enchanted armor.
Once camp was set up, they were silent. Both of them were nervous for the coming battle, Eragon more than Link. Eragon was shaking like a leaf. Link threw rocks in the fire aimlessly to keep his mind off the impending conflict.
Suddenly, Eragon realized something. They had made a terrible mistake. He told this to Link in frantic panic.
"What do you mean?" Link asked.
"We forgot to find my true name!" Eragon cried.
Link slapped his forehead in anger toward himself. He had specifically laid out the plans in his mind to go to the library right after getting their armor. There was no guarantee that they would find it there, but there was a slight chance. Now they would most likely have to go back.
"How could I have been so stupid?" Link cried getting to his feet. "We'll have to go back immediately."
"No…" said Eragon distantly.
"What?" Link asked.
"Let's stay here," he said.
"What are you talking about?"
"Something's telling me we should stay here," said Eragon.
"And what might that something be?" Link asked.
"I don't know," said Eragon. "It's this strange feeling…."
He suddenly turned and ran in the opposite direction. Surprised, Link didn't know how to react at first. He decided to follow his fellow Rider, bewildered at his sudden outburst.
When Link caught up to Eragon, he had stopped at Brom's tomb. He stared down through the crystal into Brom's face, which hadn't aged a tad since Link had last seen it. Link marveled at the tomb, which had been miraculously created by Saphira on a whim.
Still perplexed, Link waited for Eragon to say something. When he didn't, Link just stared at Brom as Eragon was. It was a very long time before Link gave up. Eragon was obviously not going to say anything, and he wasn't getting anything out of staring at a dead man, so he returned to the campsite.
It seemed like an hour before Eragon returned. He had a solemn, humble look on his face. He didn't say anything when he sat down.
"What was that all about?" Link asked.
Eragon waited a moment before speaking. "Brom spoke to me."
Link was taken aback. "What?"
"He didn't rise from his grave or anything, but he spoke to me like I would speak to Saphira, or you would speak to Vanilor. He revealed many things to me. Things that he couldn't have revealed to me in life."
"Like what?" Link asked.
"He told me how you knew what we had to do to defeat Galbatorix," said Eragon.
"How could he know that?" Link asked skeptically.
"Because he told you."
Link fell silent. He knew it was true. Nothing prompted him to doubt it. He truly didn't know how those things came into his head at a random time, but now it was clear.
"He also told me my true name."
"So we don't need to go back?" Link asked.
"No, we don't," said Eragon.
Link didn't ask Eragon for his true name. That was something sacred and personal.
After that, there wasn't a lot of talking. A few tidbits of conversation followed, but they weren't significant in any way. Both of them were still putting off the nervousness for the upcoming fight that would decide the fate of Alagaësia.
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A/N: I don't know what's wrong with me! Work has been nuts these past few days, but I've had plenty of time to update this. I am truly sorry for the long wait, again. I'm again sorry for the shortness of this chapter, but there was no other way to do it. Please R&R and accept my apology! The next update will hopefully be soon.