Hey people. I thank those who've sent reviews yet again. To those who've cared, who've continued to support me over the years, this chapter is for you.
-Chapter 26 -Begin-
Pain. That's the first thing she feels. Pain, then biting cold. She's vaguely aware of Eragon, not in the back of her mind, but the front, as it has always been. She tries to concentrate... but it's hard. So hard.
Something is wrong, she knows it too well. But she can't move. Can't act. Can't think. Something inside her burns, and the temperature drops once more. She shivers uncontrollably.
"Brightscales!"
She can hear someone. ...Who... she's not sure. But it is not her Eragon, and she can't bring herself to care what the little thing has to say.
...Eragon. Yes. She can still feel him. He's... entwined. Arya... the name running through his head. Arya... joyfully... lustfully.
Something inside her stings, deep in her chest. Deep... familiar... stronger than ever.
She wants to curl up. Forget this... forget it all. Forget all the pain. But everything is heavy. The air is thick. She tries to breathe... why can't she breathe...?
She sinks... sinks into darkness.
...A moment of awareness. Something flares within her. Someone is calling her. She cannot remember the name...
Freezing darkness... she fights it. She wants to remember... but doesn't know how.
Something pushes against her, prying at her mouth. She fights it... but the force is too great. She feels something slide down her aching throat.
And then... there is the moment of sweetest relief... Or, at least, this is how she remembers it, as her body then catches aflame. Everything burns, BURNS!
The fire reaches her muscles, and her limbs begin to spasm. Her tail lashes out, smashing against someone then continuing in a screeching arc against the walls. As her head lurches forward, her stomach tightens and she empties its contents to the floor.
Then, again, there is biting cold, and everything is dark once more.
Danger!
She knows it deep within. Inexplicable, but undeniable.
"Don't take another step..."
Then there is a flash of burning blue... and her mind relaxes. Just like she knew of her peril, she now knows that she is safe.
...There is a presence in her mind... or is it hers at all? It touches her. Encompasses her. Loves her. She aches suddenly, and she wants to meet it. This person that she knows and does not know. She feels hope... hope for the first time in so long.
But then the presence fades, and she cries inside. And when the darkness comes once more, she does not fight it.
I know you.
Something rings in her mind. She has felt this before. It is a voice, and not a voice. Soothing and loving and something else she does not know.
I feel you, deep within that shell. Your brothers have hatched, yet you stay...
Her mind pushes... struggling for what is yet so very instinctual...
...Mother.
Yes... I am your mother. I was the one that carried you, that birthed you. You are the only female to come from me... the only one. And you... are like me. There was something missing from them, your brothers. Something... I know. So why do you awaken? Why do you not hatch?
She struggles to understand this question... these thoughts. There is a moment, then she has a thought of her own.
...Not yet...
Not yet? Why...?
...Not yet...
The rock is empty, save for me. There is more than enough food in these lands... your father almost overhunts now... what could you be waiting for?
...Not yet...
...Why... my Saphira... why...?
The little dragoness did not answer. Merely sunk into her thoughts, into the warmth, the comforting presence that was Mother.
Vervada did not understand. It vexed her, pained her. This was the one... she knew. The one that would follow her like none others could. But why would she not hatch?
And then, the little dragoness let out an almost silent, but crystal clear thought.
Him.
I don't know why she's so obsessed with you.
The little dragoness did not answer.
She senses... something. I don't know what... I can't really explain it either...
He tries though. It's a rush of meanings, emotions... not-understandings...
They pass by her. It is all too quick for her tiny thoughts to grasp on to. But he is a good teacher, and he senses this. The next wave comes much more slowly. However, she just jumps from one concept to the next, like a kitten chasing a butterfly, or a child grasping for pretty lights.
He sighs, but tries again all the same.
You are a strange one... little Saphira... I think I like it though. It's a little early to say but, you remind me of Vrael...
Heh... he's probably going to scowl at me for that... though... he might just smile.
...Yes, I think he will.
She feels his gaze upon her again, though she does not understand it either. She feels an iris shaped flash of white light, diffusing into the blue-that-surrounds-her yet is a part-of-her.
Are you the one? The one that will join me?
Like always, she does not answer. But he chuckles all the same.
Sleep well, little dragon-princess.
There is silence once more... then-
...Not join you.
...This is the first time she feels sadness.
He says you're like me...
This is a new voice... and she shies away. But he continues rambling anyway, and she is soon drawn back to his bright spark of light.
I don't know how he got that. In his defence, he is your father but... you're not even formed yet. I can't imagine why... you've been with ...Vervada for a year now. Many of your brothers hatched in half the time... but you're still not ready...
An exasperated sigh. You ARE an oddity. But perhaps that's a good thing.
...But I seem to be getting distracted. I have something to do, little one...
She feels a tingle of something, it itches pleasantly for several moments, then it is gone, leaving an odd sense of finality in its wake.
... And now you're one of us. Shur'lekka. A bonded dragon.
The silence remains.
Of course, now we have to wait for you to find a partner. It just so happens there is a new set of recruits coming by tomorrow... but... I don't think it's time just yet. Forgive me if I'm delaying you, for I'm sure you could grow as fast as you need, but I'd rather you didn't hatch quite yet. Your mother grieves... and I cannot wish any additional pain upon her.
Fifty years...
Fifty years, since you left my grasp...
It doesn't feel so long, yet it feels like forever.
The silence is stronger now. Within, Saphira, for she knows what she is now, curls tightly. The touch on her shell, what is part-of-her and not-part-of-her, is familiar, but it is not Him. So she shrouds herself. Waiting... through the touch of so many others who are not what she seeks, and waiting.
I still look to the sky sometimes, half expecting to see you. Wind-blue-talon... is what I look to see. I know I will know you. ...But I also know you will not come. I can feel it better now. Your wait. Your patience. Or rather your hope. You hope for something, wait for it because you know it will come... You've sensed it, like me...
I wish I knew what it was... understood it better than the nagging at the back of my spines, stronger than a feeling in my chest. But you must wait, I understand that.
And when the time comes, whether it be a year or a ten thousand, I will welcome you home...
Hush little dragon don't you cry...
This one is very different. He is... in pieces. She does not understand.
He laughs at that. But swiftly comes another thought. Curiosity. Why did you remain? They spirited away the others... to little effect, I admit, but you were left behind. Half buried in a nest... you're ingrained with dust... a heavy layer of time.
...But still warm... but so quiet too...
Curious little dragoness...
Another mind. This one contacts her without noticing. Like it is a familiar thing with no familiar anchor. She studies him... curiously.
I am not yours...
The mind is sharp, but jagged. Torn. It closes off from her. And she does not feel it again for a long time, and by then does not remember it.
Her blue-tinged darkness quakes. She bounces softly within... but she ignores it all. She feels something else... home...
For the first time, she calls out for mother.
There is a spark of green, and she feels herself move away. Away from home. She fights it, but the magic is strong, determined. She ends up in the middle, away from the one who had carried her.
...But then she feels someone else. Someone new. There is an aching within her... Is it him?
The person scoops her up... and she presses out immediately. It is! Almost instantly, she can feel her form solidifying. It is time to hatch.
...Why won't it happen? She presses against everything... but she has been asleep for so long... it's hard to wake.
But she clamps her teeth, only just aware of their existence, and fights with all her will.
And she prayed that he did not leave too quickly.
The sound of ringing is the final push she needs.
It reverberates within her, forcing her muscles into action. She calls out, and scrapes against what-is-no-longer-her with her newly discovered claws.
It does nothing, and for a moment she feels despair.
Where was mother, in a time like this...?
But she is a dragon, and sorrow does not hold her for long. She calls yet another time, and rears up, smashing her entire weight against the shell. It rocked forward, undamaged, but she is not discouraged. She does it again, and again, over and over until something finally gives, and she and the shell fall. She is cushioned, but she shell begins to splinter. She smashes against it one last time, and something comes loose.
She sees the outside, something not just blue, and it astounds her for a moment. She wants more, and her head pokes out, followed swiftly by the rest of her as she pulls at the hole with her forelegs.
...She feels damp, a very new feeling, and she takes a moment to lick the tasty goo off herself. She is still hungry though, and she looks around for something to eat, not sure of what that could be, until a sound distracts her.
Her head whips around, and she sees... something. It looks familiar, like from a half-remembered dream. She can feel her mind opening up to possibilities. Though she does not know words, she understands concepts very well. It looks at her, and she at it, but her interest fades, and she returns to her search to ease the ravaging HUNGER!
It distracts her again, and she smells it, but it does not smell like food. But then it reaches and presses its hand against her, and everything changes.
It is him!
Joy pours through her heart, and a great sense of contentment comes over her. He, for that is what he is now, quickly lies on his soft-him-nest, and she wanders over to him.
She wants to understand him, but she does not know how. She reaches with her thoughts, finding him, and is pleased at how easy it is. She touches his mind, her curiosity is insatiable, but then there is suddenly a great distance between them. She scowls in annoyance, and then moves closer, brushing against his leg. She can access his mind accurately again, and she begins looking, seeking to understand, but at the same time so very happy to be with him.
He reached again, and his hand smooths over her head. Her back arches unconsciously, and she returns to her body with its annoying needs. She presses out with her mind again, telling of her hunger, and wishing he understands.
He does. He moves away, and she leaps in joy on his nest and she chirps eagerly. Then, from the corner of her eye, she sees something. It is great and big and far away and a little bit blue, like her. It, too, is familiar, though she does not know why. However, she is distracted again as he returns.
He offers something to her... she smells it curiously, and it smells good. She snaps it up, not chewing, just swallowing. She pressed against his hand, requesting more. He gives it, and she feels the hunger abating.
It is not long till her stomach is full, and she almost purrs in increased contentment. She padded over to him, nuzzling him and curling against him. He does not move, and she feels bliss. A great weight comes over her, her energy suddenly expended, and she soon falls asleep.
Him.
It is him, finally. In her dreams, she is with him once more. She sings, and he pulls her close.
Him.
Something swells within her, and Saphira opened her eyes.
Where was she? When?
It is a treehouse. But it smells. It smells like rotting. She closes her nostrils, cutting off the putrid stink.
"Brightscales!" Someone ran before her.
Brightscales... Yes, she'd been that. Saphira Brightscales, they'd called her.
What was this one's name?
It was so hard to remember.
And then she feels it again.
Him.
Her mind connects with his, sweet, blissful, like the first time, and she can feel him accelerate, moving towards her.
He was Eragon. He was her partner. He was her friend. He, she would give her life for. He was the one that she had given her h-
He was here!
When she sees him, it is not like the first time. He is worn, he is lost. But when he sees her, she sees so much, and she feels more still. In a blink of an eye, he is hugging her, pulling her so tight she would not have imagined he had the strength, and crying.
She knows what has happened. She can feel how broken he is, how shattered and torn. And she cries too.
And then he shifts, his body lit with blue flames. He doesn't care, he only hugs her tighter. And she acquiesces; drawing him into her grasp of limbs and wings so she can nuzzles him more than she should.
She seems him properly now... as he has become when heat and anger and love take over. He stands like a man, but he is almost naked, sheets of cloth over his bottom half all that remains of his clothing. He is armoured from head to toe in emerald scales, layered thickly on his outer sides, and thin on his softer edges. A thick line of barbs run down his back and onto a long tail, which is now wrapped around her limbs as he hugs her. There are spines on his forearms and elbows, and one less finger on each hand. The lower ends of his legs have small spikes as well, coming down to an armoured foot with one less toe each, but built with claws and a talon just below the ankle. He has wings, large and multi-jointed but folded against his back. He has a spread of backwards-facing spines where his hair had been, and lowly angled horns stretching further back. His head was extended like a dragon's, pointed and with sharp teeth. His neck was a little longer, his ears larger, but not remotely human anymore, extending backwards to a sharp point. He had ridges on his eyebrow, extending into two smaller horns (like hers, she noted). His eyes were green and his iris thin and sharp, not humanoid anymore, and showing his distress.
He cried green-tinged tears, for minutes... hours... she couldn't say.
Eventually his form wavered, and his elven body finally collapsed into a fitful sleep, but she did not stop crying.
Hers, however, were tears of joy. He had returned.
As long as she was with him, and he with her, nothing else mattered.
They were home.
-Chapter 26 -End-