Eragon rummaged hastily through his pack, making sure he had everything he needed and then threw it carelessly against the wall of the tent. He stood still for a moment, beads of sweat already forming underneath his armor from the slightly humid weather, and glanced down at his sapphire sword, which sat in its sheath at Eragon's side. This would be the first time he used it in battle and he hoped that it would serve him well.
Two days had passed since they had met with the elves and today they would fight.
As he stood there, the weight of his armor suddenly seemed heavier than usual, like he would not be able to bear it in battle. But then Eragon realized that he had used the armor numerous times and it had not failed him yet. He was worried, though. Today was the beginning of the end and he hoped that tomorrow would bring a brand new beginning.
"Eragon." Arya's head appeared the flap of the tent and Eragon turned to look at her. "It is time," she said seriously.
He nodded and put a hand on the grip of his sword. She entered the tent for a moment, and took his hands in hers.
"Are you worried?" she asked as they rested their foreheads against each other.
"Yes," he answered honestly.
"As am I."
"You?" he said teasingly, wiping a stray hair away from her face. "Worried? That is certainly unusual."
Arya grinned slightly, but said nothing in reply. Instead she gently kissed him, her lips resting simply against his for one last moment of peace.
"Let us go," she murmured and slowly they pulled away. He sighed, bringing one of her hands up to his lips and gently kissing it, before nodding. Paying his small, messy tent one last glance he let her lead him out of the tent.
Crowds of soldiers were making their way through camp, trying to evade the scores of small tents that littered the ground. Many wore heavy suits of armor, clinging to their bulky swords as they trudged through camp. Some, however, wore only a simple breast plate and helmet, carrying a large shield and a small dull-looking blade. Eragon looked at these men with a frown; it was inevitable that they would not have enough armor for all the men, especially with the number of soldiers that were fighting, but he still wished that they could've mustered a bit more for them all.
Arya gripped his arm and pulled him swiftly though the crowd. He fell slightly behind her, slipping through the crowd of soldiers. She moved swiftly and stealthily through the throng and he struggled to keep up. Her thin but protective elven armor covered her body and her raven hair was pinned up in a tight bun. Her long sword sat firmly in its sheath on one side of her body and a small dagger sat on her other.
Despite all of her protection, Eragon couldn't help but worry about her. He knew that she was a magnificent warrior, even more so than him, but he still knew that there was always a chance she wouldn't make it off of the battlefield. He shook his head wearily, trying to push those uncomforting thoughts out of his mind.
A few minutes later, they reached Nasuada, Murtagh, and Orik at the head of the camp. Saphira, Eridor, and Thorn all stood a few feet away, staring at the impending army of elves coming there way with interest. Eragon walked quickly over to Saphira, placing a hand on her neck. She purred gently in response and he smiled lightly back at her. Slowly, she raised her eyes to the sky and Eragon looked up curiously. A huge golden dragon flew majestically directly above them and dived sharply to the ground. The crowds of people looked on in wonder as Glaedr landed gracefully in front of the other dragons.
"Amazing," said a voice next to Eragon and he turned to find Roran shaking his head in disbelief. "I can't believe it. Four dragons altogether… How can we lose?"
Eragon smiled and pat his cousin on the back. "We can't, can we?"
"There's just no way," Roran said, grinning ear to ear and putting an arm around his shoulders. "Four dragons to one—the odds are against that slimeball of a king!"
Eragon laughed, suddenly feeling very encouraged by Roran's words. He glanced quickly over at Murtagh, who was staring at Oromis with both amazement and respect. He turned back to his cousin and motioned over towards Oromis and Glaedr.
"Come," he said, "I'll introduce you."
Roran smiled even wider and clutched his hammer tightly. "Thank you, Eragon. It will be an honor to meet him."
"Ebrithil," Eragon said as he reached his master and Glaedr.
"Eragon," Oromis said, smiling weakly. "Ready for battle, I see."
"Of course," Eragon replied with a grin.
"Ah, Lady Nasuada, it is truly wonderful to see you again," Oromis said as Nasuada appeared suddenly at his side.
"It is wonderful to see you as well, Master Oromis," she responded, shaking his hand in a professional manner.
"Ebrithil," Eragon said, and he turned to Roran who stood awkwardly next to him, "I would like to introduce you to my cousin, Roran Stronghammer."
"Roran," Oromis said, smiling warmly at the young man, "it is an honor to meet you."
"And it is an honor to meet you as well, sir," he responded quietly.
"And this," Eragon said, turning quickly to Murtagh, "is my brother and fellow Rider, Murtagh, Rider of Thorn."
Oromis turned slowly to face Murtagh and observed him quietly for a moment. Murtagh stood there in slight discomfort as he glanced unsurely between Oromis and Eragon.
"Murtagh," he said, putting a hand to his lips in traditional elven greetings and smiling sincerely, "I am so happy to finally meet you."
"Thank you," Murtagh murmured, smiling widely at the elf. "I am honored to be in your presence."
Out of the corner of his eye, Eragon noticed Arya heading towards the oncoming elves. He nodded to Oromis and followed her.
Islanzadi stood tall and proud, her hand on the pommel of her sleek, long sword and covered in the same elven armor Arya wore. It was an odd sight for Eragon, who was used to seeing the Queen in her long traditional dresses, but the resemblance she bore to Arya was magnetized tenfold as she stood ready for battle. Daylor stood on one side of her wearing an unreadable expression and Garrik stood on her other side, smiling appraisingly at Arya, who fitfully ignored him.
"Are you ready?" Islanzadi asked as Eragon, Oromis and Nasuada joined them.
"I believe so," Nasuada said, staring ahead at the large elven army that stood before them.
"Line the front," Islanzadi called back in the Ancient Language to the army behind her. Quickly the elven soldiers filed past them and lined up in neat rows in front of the Varden soldiers.
"That should do it," Islanzadi murmured, examining the army that stood waiting behind her. "Now we march."
But as Eragon began to board Saphira, Islanzadi's attention zoomed onto Murtagh, who stood quietly next to Thorn, his hand resting on the red dragon's side. Her eyes narrowed, knowing that she was looking at the son of her mate's killer, and she took a deep uneven breath, showing a vulnerability that Eragon had never seen in her before. It remained silent for a few awkward moments before her lips twitched into a small smile.
"You look nothing like him."
Murtagh inhaled sharply, his eyes meeting hers, and he spoke quietly, "I had hoped you would think that."
Her smile was sincere as she put her hands to her lips. "I am pleased to finally meet you, Murtagh, and your dragon, as well. Eragon and Arya have both told me much about you."
Murtagh grinned. "Good things I hope."
"Only good," Islanzadi replied, chuckling lightly.
"In that case, thank you, Your Majesty. It is with both humility and honor that I stand before you."
"And I say the same to you."
Murtagh took a deep breath, obviously taken aback by her words and bowed slowly. "Thank you," was all he said.
"Well, then," Nasuada said, smiling apologetically as she broke the moment, "I believe it is time to go. Trianna," she said, turning to the pretty sorceress who had appeared next to her, "are the others ready?"
"Yes, My Lady," she said, eyeing the elves in awe. "They line the back and sides of the army, just as you asked."
"Good," Nasuada replied, "then we are ready to leave."
Islanzadi nodded quickly to Daylor and the regal elf lifted a small horn to his lips and blew. At the sound of the horn the elves began their march, the other soldiers following behind them.
And then Eragon was strapped tightly into the saddle on top of Saphira and they were flying. Swiftly they circled the army below them, each flap of Saphira's wings bringing them closer to their destination.
This is it, he said to Saphira. The final march—the final battle.
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Dark clouds surrounded the castle and, even though it was barely noon, gave the gloomy city a twilight effect. The dragons had been flying over the clouds, trying to stay out of sight as much as they could, but Eridor had quickly slipped through them for a moment to observe the city directly below them. Arya shook slightly from the cold water that had come from the clouds, but her armor protected her from getting drenched.
It looks like it is going to rain, Arya remarked to Eridor, not knowing what else to say. It was odd to think that in only a few minutes they would be in battle. They awaited only the go ahead of her mother's voice and then they would strike the large city below them
Yes, it certainly does.
Do you think you are ready, Eridor? she asked, making out barely any of the city just before Eridor dove back up through the cloud.
I do not know, he murmured. This armor is quite amazing, though, so I am sure that I will be alright.
Arya broke into a grin; ever since Eridor had first donned the special dragon armor earlier that morning he had not been able to stop talking about it.
Yes, she chuckled, that armor will protect you from anything and every—
Suddenly, her mother's smooth voice entered her mind.
Go now, was all she said.
It's time to go, Eridor, Arya said, turning very serious.
And with a deep growl Eridor dove through the clouds. Next to them, Saphira, Thorn, and Glaedr dove with equal speed and soon they were flying directly above the city.
Murtagh, Oromis' voice filled all of their minds, take the east of the city and stay as far away as possible. Arya you take the north, Eragon you take the west, and I shall take the south
The four dragons both veered towards their respective positions, forming a circle around the dark city of Uru'baen.
Arya narrowed her eyes in surprise at the sight below them.
Hundreds and hundreds of Empire soldiers stood a top of the castle walls, waiting with their swords and spears and arrows for their enemy to arrive. Outside of the castle, thousands of soldiers stood in front of the main gate at the southern part of the city and inside the city, thousands more awaited them.
So they were expecting us, Arya murmured.
This changes nothing, Oromis said. Follow the plan and keep to the sky.
There are a very limited amount of Empire soldiers protecting the eastern gates, just as expected, Murtagh informed them.
Their mistake, Eragon said, and our gain. The western gates are heavily guarded, though.
As are the northern gates, Arya replied. But not nearly as much as the south.
Arya turned in the saddle to look behind her. The black mass that was the Varden army stood solemnly about two hundred yards from the head of the Empire army. The two armies faced each other, as still as stone, waiting for the first move to be made. In front of her, she spotted a small, almost unnoticeable group of Varden soldiers nearing the eastern gate. Her mouth twisted into a smile—they could easily impenetrate the city from there.
Huge catapults separated the Empire army into two parts and a great number of ballistas lined the castle walls, waiting to strike the oncoming dragons. When it came to weapons, the Empire had always had the advantage, but Arya did not worry about it too much—they had the power of three great dragons and ancient magic on their side, all of which had yet to fail them.
A loud horn sounded below them, but it was not that of Daylor. In the blink of an eye, a huge wooden ball was hurled from one of the catapults towards the Varden army. It landed with a horrifying crash, inevitably striking down a few of the Varden soldiers.
Daylor's horn blew and the Varden army surged forward to meet their enemies.
It had begun.
A/N: Cliffhangers suck. ;D
Important Anouncment: Thanks to jackbyang7 for pointing out that I should probably enable my story for anonymous reviews. I don't know why I never did, I guess I never noticed that it was disabled. So all you anonymous readers can now review!!
I'm so sorry about the wait! Real life got to me…. But school's over now and I have the whole summer to write. I said I'd finish this story before Brisingr comes out and now I'm sure I will. And I know I said that the battle would begin this chapter, and it technically does, but unfortunately you'll have to wait another chapter for the real action to begin.
Thanks so much for reading and please, please, pretty please remember to review!!