Hello everyone! I know this chapter is a bit out of schedule - if I ever had a schedule that is. I ended up rewriting this twice so it took a bit longer. I feel obliged to tell you that the next update will not come for a while. I have exams coming up in three weeks and this project really does go on the back burner when I have a university to compete with. A chemistry degree doesn't come on its own sadly. I will write when I have the time, but I will not make promises. It could well be the next update will take four weeks to arrive, maybe five.
I am still not quite happy with this chapter, yet I feel obliged to roll it out just to make sure I'm not stuck on this for the next three weeks or so. But no more about such sad talk, enjoy this here and now update!
The city of Melian lit up beautifully in the night sky. Maybe Eragon would have visited here some time. However, being set ablaze by Varden catapult fire, now was possibly not the best time to be inside of those walls.
"Someone get on that catapult! Now! It has to be moved back before the enemy manages to set it on fire!" Eragon yelled, chasing frightened soldiers out of what little shelter they had managed to find. By the time he'd turned around a large boulder had already wrecked the wooden construction, shattering it in to so many splinters.
"This is not a siege. This is a slaughter." Eragon remarked.
Saphira swooped down low, raking her claws through the empire ranks while arrows bounced harmlessly off her thanks to a bit of Arya's magic. "Indeed. Soon there will be no more Varden to lay siege. The dwarves appear to be holding up much better, though."she remarked, hinting at the dwarven machines that were chomping away at the enemy walls on the other side of the city.
"Give me a ride?" Eragon asked.
The rider watched his dragon bank and head back towards him. With nimble strength he leapt across the field and gained a hold of the leather straps of Saphira's saddle. With some effort he hoisted himself up as she carried him back towards the city walls. "Where do you want to go?"
"The gates. Nemeya and her elves should have gotten it done by now."
"The fact that Arya joined them wouldn't have anything to do with it now would it?" Eragon grumbled something dark and indignant in reply.
three days prior - Varden command tent
"What?!" the elf and the girl shouted in unison.
Brom tapped the letter. "It says so right here. I'm not making this stuff up."
"Show me that." Illium said, stepping forward. His eyes hurried along the page and lingered a full minute on the signature at the bottom. It was definitely Eragon's. "This is insane." He muttered.
Nemeya had already sunk down on to the ground. "How in the world am I supposed to gain authority over century old elves." She groaned, burying her head in her hands.
"Forget about the elves, they at least know how to behave. The real question is how I can keep two hundred rowdy humans in line."
"Well, it looks to me like the two of you should work together on this one." Brom said. "Now shoo, I have more important matters to attend to than your bickering. These were not my orders and if you have a problem go to Eragon with it." He waved with his hand to indicate they were dismissed.
"I can't do this." Nemeya muttered when they stood outside. "I don't even speak elvish. How do I command people who are a few centuries my senior and I cannot talk to?"
Illium turned to face her, his blue hair dancing lightly in the breeze. "They will respect you if they consider you someone worth respecting and contrary to popular belief, almost all of our people speak the common tongue fluently. That being said, I could teach you the rudimentaries of our language if you so wish."
"I- I would like that." Nemeya conceded. "Could you at least do the introductions please?"
The elf grinned. "This ought to be fun."
"I see them." Eragon said, looking down at the ground. "They are not faring so well."
"Well, what are you waiting for? Go help them!"
Not letting her tell him twice he swept off the saddle again and entered a controlled dive. At the last second he snapped open his wings only to see an archer running straight at him, flaying around a knife. Quickly dropping into a defensive posture he knocked aside the stabbing hand, followed it up with a quick jab to the eyes blinding his opponent and grabbing the outstretched wrist threw him down to the pavement. Dropping down Eragon followed up with a swift strike to the elbow using his knee after which the knife clattered to the ground.
Leaving the groaning man on the ground he unsheathed his swords and quickly pressed on to the small courtyard behind the gates. His friends were holding on, but only barely. Backed into a corner wave after wave of soldiers threw themselves at the highly skilled fighters. While a few of the elves maintained something of a front line Nemeya was shooting arrow after arrow at their assailants. To his surprise the spell casters amongst them appeared not to be doing much of anything. Some distance away Arya was valiantly holding her own with the sword she had taken from the elven forest. Tamerlein it was called. While the green hue of it would suggest it had been made specifically for her it had belonged to another rider long ago. What was worse it didn't suit her by a long shot. On top of that she appeared to be exceptionally slow, her strength and speed not elven but almost… human.
seven days prior - Ellesmera
When Arya woke up she was laying on something warm and unbelievably fluffy. Absently she trailed her fingers across the surface before jolting awake. "Eragon, your wing, I'm sorry."
"They're strong." He murmured in an unintentional display of masculinity before pulling her back down.
She smiled. "We have to get up, the sun has already risen.
"I'll survive it." Eragon muttered, nuzzling himself back into the pillow. With an exasperated sigh Arya reached over and pinched his arm. Hard. Though it didn't quite have the expected result, Eragon did turn to face her. "I have been skewered by blades nights on end. Doing that will have very little effect on me."
She cradled his face in her hands. "One day you will have to tell me more about where you came from."
"One day, perhaps." There was a brief pause. "Did you find what you came for? A sword I mean?"
Arya moved away from him and slid her legs over the edge of the bed. She stretched like a cat, putting on a display Eragon found it difficult to tear his eyes from before walking to a pile of clothes – her clothes – neatly tucked away in the corner of the room. From it she pulled a long, green object. Unsheathing the sword she held it out for him to see. "What do you think?"
Eragon's first thought was that it looked unwieldy and clunky on her. "It suits you." He replied.
She must have sensed the hesitation in his reply for this time she asked in the ancient language. "But what do you think."
With a sigh Eragon pulled himself from the tangled sheets and went for his own swords, unfurling his wings to straighten the feathers in the process. Taking just Aurora he moved a few paces across the room and took stance. Taking the hint Arya did the same. "Our blades are sharp, what if I hurt you?" she asked.
"You can't." Eragon replied before dashing in. Arya was a better with a blade than he'd expected and she was fast, but it was clear the sword held her back. Within thirty seconds he had scored very fine lines across her cheek, both of her upper arms and her abdomen. Instead of blocking the next attack he stepped forward and embraced her firmly. "Stop making me hurt you. I can't stand it."
Dropping her sword to the ground she returned the gesture. "What was the purpose of this?"
"I had to be sure." He murmured.
"Sure of what?"
"That sword," Eragon said, gesturing to the green steel at their feet, "belonged to a brute who walked into battle dressed in more metal than all the dwarves could delve in a week. It is too large for you, too cumbersome. Its mass is holding you back and slowing you down. It wouldn't show against regular soldiers, but don't try to face someone who knows what they are doing with that blade."
Arya sighed. "You are right, as always. I'd just hoped-"
"I know." He said, tightening his hold on her. "You should take it with you regardless until I can find a better alternative for you. I'd feel better knowing you had a good blade on you. It is, after all, my sworn duty to protect your life from now on."
The princess pushed him away. "I'm not some damsel who needs protecting." She said, clearly aggravated.
Eragon smiled. "You think I don't know that? It was your mothers request and I don't blame her for wanting to protect her child. Fret not, I won't stand over your bed every night… well, not for that reason at least."
Arya laughed in shock. "You are insufferable."
"I know."
Quickly stepping forward Eragon reached into his pocket, taking out the knife he had been working on for days now. While it was not quite where he wanted it to be yet, he did believe it was ready to be field tested. Rushing ahead of the soldiers he threw the blade into the air and tackled her down to the ground. Covering them with his wings their world temporarily went black, the shouting around them muffled. Then the air was filled with the clattering of steel on stone.
Letting her go, Eragon pulled Arya back up to her feet. The soldiers that had swarmed the courtyard moments ago had successfully been reduced to minced meat. "Well, I think that was a successful test." Eragon said. "Does need some further refining, though. Would you mind?" he said, gesturing to his wingtip that was pinned to the pavement by a thin, razor sharp pin.
"What did you do?" Arya asked, briefly looking at him in bewilderment before reaching down and pulling the steel out of the white feathers.
"Shattering sorcery. I manipulated a large knife in such a way that it would fracture and explode in such a way that it splits into tiny fragments. Very difficult to get right and scratched me up plenty of times. It worked… slightly more enthusiastically than anticipated."
"Well whatever you did, I hope you brought more."
"Why? Do your own weapons not suffice?"
Arya sneered. "A nullifying spell rests on this city. I don't know where their sorcerers are getting their energy from, but the pool must be massive if they manage to keep this up for much longer. Do you not feel its effects?"
Eragon smiled back at her. "Magic has no hold on me. While that means you cannot heal me when I'm hurt,"
"It also means you are impervious to this sort of trickery." She finished for him, nodding in understanding.
Reaching into his pocket Eragon pulled out another one of his knives and handed it to her. "Get that gate open, our people are dying by the hundreds out there. It appears I have a curse to lift. Be safe my love." Eragon added in the ancient language. He gave her a chaste kiss, leaving the princess flustered as he vaulted into the air again.
While he indeed was unaffected by the magic, it also left him at a total guess as to where the source might be located. To make matters worse he was drawing one hell of a lot of attention to himself which meant that arrows were whizzing by at regular intervals. Atop one of the inner walls he saw someone in armor shinier than usual. Undoubtedly he was an officer, since he was barking orders at the poor souls around him.
Angling down he swept over the ramparts and, knocking two soldiers over the crenellation, landed with blades in hand. The cowering guards barely put up a fight. Soon he had the commander at sword point. "Where are your spellcasters." He asked.
The man spit on the ground. "Ha, as if I would ever tell you that. Your puny little resistance will never take this city. Never. So for all I care you can go burn in hell."
"I don't have time for this." Eragon muttered. With angular precision he began carving up the commander's face. "You will tell me where they are and if you are lucky I might give you a swift death. Refuse to do so I will destroy your mind to find out and your soul in the process. Do you know what that means? That means that there will be no afterlife for you. You will cease to be in every sense. Is that what you want? Is that what you are willing to die – no, to cease existing for?"
At this point nothing but incoherent screaming was coming from the man. "Last chance!" Eragon shouted, allowing his mind to press ever so slightly against his victim's just to get the point across a little clearer.
"Alright, alright! They are holed up in the south eastern tower of the keep! Please!"
One swift strike later a screaming head toppled over the stonework. "Smart man." Eragon said, wiping his swords clean on the fallen man's tabard. "I am headed for the tower. The Empire's spell casters should be holed up in the south eastern tower."
"Do I want to know how you acquired this information?" Saphira asked.
"No, you don't. But I will need you once I am through in there. I doubt the spell casters are the only evil holed up in that rock."
It took perhaps thirty seconds for Eragon to close the distance and smash through the ceiling of the south eastern tower, much to the astonishment of the robed figures that sheltered beneath it. The center of the room was dominated by a large pile of bones emanating a soft purple light, a bit like the hue of his left eye except darker. On cue at least four or five minds tried to violate his own.
The effect was no different from when anyone else tried to do so.
"Talk or you will suffer the same fate." Eragon said, turning to the two magicians who remained standing.
"You shall never!-" Eragon's cut was clean through the man's spine before he'd managed to finish his scentence.
"Talk." He said, pointing the sharp edge at the last remaining magician. Before the last one had a chance to talk the door burst open, knocking out the magician, and Eragon was tackled down by something both very swift and very strong. A grotesque miscreation pinned him down using its razor sharp talons and unleashed an unholy cry into Eragon's face. The air smelled like century old rot. "Saphira, I need you to burn down the damaged tower."
"Will you be allright?" she asked, having sensed his predicament through their bond.
"Bigger just means more places to stick a blade." Eragon replied confidently before taking a firm hold of the slippery purple hide of his foe and throwing it off with force. With a cry it flew out of the open hole in the wall and tumbled down. Not wasting time Eragon picked up his blades and jumped after it. Barely a breath later Saphira bathed the castle in flames. A crackling purple lighting began to fill the air. "Saphira, get away!"
It was already too late. A massive explosion rocked the ground and through their bond he felt her pain as fine shrapnel tore through her wings with incredible force. From the corner of his eye he saw her wingbeat falter. "Are you ok?"
"I'll live. Go kill your monster."
He wanted to tell her to go and find help, but suddenly there were two clawed hands trying to get to his face. "Easy there killer." Eragon whispered as one of them almost grazed his wing. Overbalanced as he was he didn't see the other hook into his armor and before he knew it the creature had sent him tumbling over the ground with a nasty gash in his waist. Not lethal, but it was impairing at least. Eragon was prepared for the next lunge and this time his blades hit home, scoring long slices across the beast's torso.
The creature tried to get up again, bleeding profusely from the two wounds but it appeared to be having a rather difficult time keeping its organs inside its body and didn't even make it halfway back to the rider before collapsing. Just as Eragon thought the danger had passed another grueling howl filled the air. And another. And another. On the rooftops around him a small army of the eyeless slimy creatures gathered before vaulting down on him in an attempt to overwhelm him. "Saphira, there is more than one of them." He said, desperately fighting off his assailants.
"What?" She replied worriedly. "I will get Brom to send soldiers to you."
"No. These creatures, whatever they are, move too swiftly. The nullifying spell wasn't meant to hinder the elves, it was there to ensure these things wouldn't have any real competition. Find as many of them as you can and spread them throughout the city. Who knows how many of these things Galbatorix has hidden in the alleys." Eragon answered, shuddering as he felt one of the slimy hands touch his wings.
"But what about you?"
Eragon smiled maniacally. "Oh I'm going to burn these fuckers to the ground." Eragon fought for all he was worth and for once found he actually had a challenge in defeating these beasts. When he'd finally dispatched of the last miscreation he was utterly exhausted and more than lightly wounded. In fact he wasn't quite sure if the lightheadedness came from the heat of battle or from the loss of blood. When he emerged into the open streets again he saw Illium running by, charging ahead of his men.
Three days prior - outside the Varden command tent
Nemeya sighed, having just heard the news of their new 'assignment' herself. "a few of the men signed over to you used to be under my command. Shall I introduce you to them?"
Illium made a mock bow. "Lead the way, milady."
"Say that again and we will see exactly just how immortal your race is." She muttered before curtly striding off in northern direction. Illium laughed as he hurried after her. He was led to a collection of tents at the far end of the camp, bordering the dwarves. "Ritell, Crail! Get out here!" Nemeya yelled.
After a brief minute of rustling and shuffling two disheveled men emerged from the dirtied canvas tent covers and saluted her. Illium groaned next to her but was quickly silenced by a quick jab of her elbow that would have made any lesser man double over in pain. "Gather the men please." She informed. It took a full ten minutes – and a lot of swearing – but eventually the whole rag-tag band of bandits had formed up in front of them. "Do you want me to do it?" she whispered to the elf.
"I don't know. What do you think?" he replied nervously.
She glared at him. "Don't put this on me. These are your men now."
"But they are humans." Illium whined.
"Well, so am I, do you have an issue with that?"
"I- that's not the same."
Nemeya shighed. "Because I'm different? Sure." She hissed. "Guys! Listen up!" Without hesitation she pushed the blue haired elf forward. "This is Illium. As you are no doubt aware, Illium is an elf. He is also going to be your new commander."
A roar of protest rose from the men. "Silence!" the blue haired elf yelled at the top of his lungs. Surprisingly the unruly group actually quieted down. "I realize how… uncomfortable the situation is right now. In three days we will stand in front of enemy gates while death rains down on us and you are afraid that I will prove unable, inferior to the leadership you have grown accustomed to. I will not lie and say I don't share that same fear. Additionally I am aware of the many tales and folklore humans share that say elves are creatures of evil; that we stalk through the night and steal your children, hex your wives and drink their blood at full moon. I hope in time you will see that those tales are not rooted in truth. However, if we are to survive the days to come, we must first shed our fear of it. I have made a promise to a dear friend that I will give my all to make this work. All I ask is that you will do the same if not for me than to save your own life."
There was some murmuring and it wasn't quite clear if Illium's little speech had met with agreement or not. Eventually one of the soldiers spoke up. "You can take that promise and stick it."
"This is going to be a very long day" Illium muttered. "You, step forward please." The elf said, pointing straight at the guilty soldier.
To his surprise, after Illium and his cohort of trusty followers had passed, he saw the girl Brom had been harboring ride after them as well. It was Ajihad's daughter, Nasuada. Although it had never been more than rumors, she was supposedly to be the next in line to inherit the throne of the Varden. "Eragon," she greeted him from her steed, "are you alright?"
Eragon looked at his bleeding body. "No." he replied after a moment. "But I will survive." She nodded her head at him before riding off to the front line. Eragon watched her go and was sure she would make a fine commander one day.
Barely had nasuada left or Angela followed, wielding one of her exotic pole arms. She took a brief look at his miserable form before smiling at him and darting after the young woman. "Remind me to kill her when the wounds on my abdomen have healed."
"I can also supply her with a solid lick if you would like." Saphira mused.
The image of Angela, covered in dragon drool, made Eragon laugh uncontrollably. So much, in fact, that the barely scabbed wounds on his body tore open again submerging him in pain. "I'll just sit down here and wait for the world to stop spinning." Eragon replied, still laughing, as he sank down to the ground.
"You should get some help. You are not exactly in a safe location."
"Well, then find Arya." Eragon murmured before leaning back and closing his eyes.
Nemeya and Illium fought side by side, battling their way up towards the entrance of the keep. The elf managed to deflect an arrow with his blade mere moments before it would have bored into her shoulder. "Thanks." She said, firing an arrow back at the battlements and taking out the archer. "You should teach me how to do all of that fancy blade work one day."
"Lessons in elvish and sword fighting? I'm beginning to think you may like me."
Carefully she lodged another two arrows and unleashed them on her foes. The elves she had in tow were keeping up admirably. Better than her in fact, but she had to keep up appearances. They were supposed to follow her guidance after all. "You have no idea." She murmured.
Illium perked up "What was that?"
"Nothing." She replied curtly.
"We will have to scale the battlements if we are to press our advantage." Blödhgarm, the 'leader' of the elven detachment informed her. Strangely enough he had been the first to agree to their new commander, much to the chagrin of the other eleven. He and Illium had been the only ones to see the reason behind this new scheme Eragon had devised.
Presuming that they… the resistance, the elves and the Varden, were to win this war, there would have to be guidance to fill the gap Galbatorix would leave behind. Maybe this had surpassed their human counterparts, but Islanzadi, as well as Eragon both knew that the only way to get there, was together. That meant that humans, however prejudiced would have to listen to elves and in turn they, however much more experienced, would have to listen to humans. Even if Nemeya wasn't the most experienced one, she would have to set an example for those to follow. The same task befell Illium. It was not just their project, it rested on the shoulders of the two-hundred-and-fourty-three souls that rested in their hands.
The obedience would have to become absolute, regardless of race, age and power. That in and of its own seemed almost an unmanageable task, but Eragon and the elven queen dared pray that hopefully, in time, they would come to respect each other enough to do so. "Do you and the others have enough left in you to pull that off? Reliably I mean?"
The elf with the purple-blue fur nodded in reply. "I can do it."
Nemeya thought about the two more warrior-like of her new charge. "Take Laufin and Yaela with you. I will try to cover you as best as I can." While the two elves frowned at her words, they didn't fight her decision and took position behind Blödhgarm. It was a strange sight to see the three elves climb the walls like spiders, but after destroying whatever it was that had hindered them – undoubtedly Eragon's work – they had worked a few miracles of their own. At this point Nemeya could only hope that the elves would continue to stand by their word and victory would come to them soon enough.
"What on earth did you do to yourself?" Arya asked, sitting down beside her fallen lover.
Eragon pointed down the dark alleyway. "You will find some fifty of Galbatorix's creations down there. I thought it best to dispatch of them before they could inflict any real damage on the rest of you. I'll be fine, just give the poison a while to wear off."
"You are drifting, Eragon." Arya said.
"So worried, you must think you are about to lose me. I am not dying, Arya. You are not getting rid of me that easily."
"Eragon." She said, cradling his face.
"I am not dying." He reiterated in the ancient language. She seemed at least somewhat reassured by that. In the distance he could see the castle, where the banner of the empire now drifted down on the currents of wind. Atop the northern tower a suspiciously unmistakable elf with blue hair flanked by a human with long hair and a bow slung over her back raised the ostensive red and white flag of the Varden. "Would you look at that. I think we won."
"It would appear so." Arya replied, leaning her head on his shoulder. "Teach me." She said out of nowhere.
"Excuse me?" Eragon asked.
"You are better at what you do that I am." It was clear it took effort for her to say that. "You are better with a blade, better with your dragon, I would even dare say better with a bow even though you don't use one. If there is something out there that can hurt you this bad, I need to know how to save you. I must know how to save you, Eragon."
"Then it shall be so." Eragon said, taking her hand in his own. "I shall train you and Firnen the way Icarus has trained me. Well… maybe not quite the same way. But I warn you, the path is grueling, it is difficult, it will contain horrors that will change the way you think about me. Are you sure you are willing to make such a sacrifice?"
She kissed him. "I am sure." The princess said, before putting her head back on his shoulder again, watching the Varden celebrate their victory atop the castle walls.
Eragon sighed, leaning his own head atop hers. "I feel tired, Arya."
She brushed her hand across his cheek. "Then sleep. I will be by your side."
There we are, lots and lots of POV changes - I hope it wasn't too terrible. Again, it's not my best work but I must soldier forth in the name of this story. Now the part most of you live for - I hope - the replies to your reviews. Again - they mean the world to me. God speed everyone!.
ronnambi - I will have to read that story then some time. I truly wonder what you have come up with as it does not seem to be the easiest pairing to write. If you have any questions I will try to answer to the best of my (limited) ability.
Hell Dragon Slayer - First - you spelled it right. Second - you are forgiven. Third - we already heave Elemental Dragon Slayer (Eddy), so I'm now going to give you your own name as well. How about Heggy? I am only happy to see your ranting as you put it and you truly don't have to oblige yourself to write every chapter. Of course I wouldn't mind if you did, quite to the contrary in fact. Each time I get these kinds of long reviews I get really happy just to see what people think content wise as its from these reviews I can learn the most. It really means the world to me to see you put all of those thoughts to paper (screen) and right now I'm telling you don't let anybody ever stop you from doing so. Ever.
Carnivore Does - Well, this is the first time I've seen anyone review before they read the work I posted ;p. I can only hope it lived up to expectation.
Eddy - Yes, I plan to paint the walls a beautiful color of red- err... Yah. I'm planning to kill Arya somewhere in the future so they need to have banged before I do that. See ya later!
The Bass Beast - Well, reviews are there for the specific reason of putting your thoughts to paper and that's exactly what I want to see you do there. Since you asked, I will give you a very mild spoiler. There is a new 'power' coming (more like lore) very (next chapter) shortly. I could talk for eons on the subject of death. My perceptions on it differ greatly from the norm as I've found over the years. I believe that - even scientifically - there is enough evidence to make something akin to a spirit or a soul plausible. Not certain, not eliminated, but plausible. From there on out it's simply what you choose to believe since nobody has a clear answer on it. I choose to believe that death is not the end, but at the same time I know that as you say, many would kill for an opportunity like Islanzadi had.
Tamerlorde85 - you will find out a lot more about that next chapter. No spoilers ;).
Mad hatter - man you have been here so long. I just feel obliged to reply every time now. I'm not going to spoil, but I am going to tell you this. People will die in my story, but they will do so on my terms, on my timeline, for my reasons. Just to name a few, which were already to be expected. Brom will die, but also Islanzadi, and Hrothgar... and Nemeya.
Stubbsie8 - It means more to me than you know to hear you say that. Both about the criticism and about enjoying the story. I can only hope that you will keep helping me to improve!
Tylerlilibeth04 - Did it really seem too hurried? Maybe so ;p. I just really wanted to get over that hurdle because too much romance and too little action makes for a dull story and nobody wants to read a dull story. Probably a bit of planning oversight on my part. Thanks for sharing anyways!
Vizual-Era - Well, you favorited me so the game is over now. I might as well stop uploading at this point ;p. I'm not too sure about E/A babies, but I have already written the ending to this story (sitting in a file on my desktop) and I think you will like it. I really think you will. Rest assured though there will be plenty more of romance and I might just hint at their first child by the end of this story. Maybe I will even rewrite my ending for you.
Reaping Shadow - Let me guess; I'm tied with rainxoxo for first place? I'd choose him over me in a heartbeat. I get the feeling he actually thinks ahead from time to time where I'm just making it up as I go along xD. Speaking of him, it'd actually mean the world to me if he reviewed on this story... oh well, a man can dream I guess. You are right to critise me on the subject of Eragon's healing. Quite honestly if I gave Eragon that too, he would simply be god-like and having a demi-god stomp over every problem in the story also doesn't make for very good reading material. I'm walking a very delicate balance and as such basically decided to make Eragon a bit of a glass cannon. Indeed you are right to say that was lazy of me as it probably was ;p. The remaining 24* (keep in mind Icarus was also one) spirits will come into play again soon and when it happens (next chapter) I hope to see you there again!
