So, I'm home sick today, so I figured I'd send out the next chapter early, as a super special treat. A warning: This chapter is too ridiculous to be believable. What I did was open up the glossary of the book and look up all of the creatures/people and all of the towns. It was fun, but the chapter is pretty much ridiculous in that regard.
The First Wave May Be The Smallest (Tamara's chapter)
Tamara gulped as her eyes met Murtagh's glaring stare. "He looks mad," Brittany said wonderingly.
"Oh, yeah," Tamara realized.
"What went on at Uru-baen?" Brittany asked, turning to Tamara suspiciously.
"Well, our conversation was interrupted, so I had to stab him in order to get him out of trouble. But I didn't exactly tell him that was what I was about to do," Tamara mumbled, looking down.
"What?!" Brittany exclaimed while Brom failed at controlling his laughter.
All Tamara had to offer was, "Um, oops," before Murtagh's army was upon them.
After the two armies merged, there was no time for conversation as everyone was drawn into the battle. Tamara was faced with an incredibly large and incredibly ugly soldier, whom she sent sprawling with a kick across the face. She then stabbed him mercilessly in the back. She caught Murtagh gazing longingly at her, and she knew why; after all, when you kick someone who's a lot taller than you in the head and you're in a knee-length skirt, it's bound to reveal a tantalizing amount of thigh. She smiled flirtatiously at Murtagh, before turning away, disgusted with herself. Tamara chopped off the head of a soldier who was trying to do the same to Rosalia and immediately found herself faced with two soldiers. Even though she was an adept elf, fighting two large, brutal soldiers was no picnic, especially with one sword. It was impossible to gain an edge on these two soldiers, and soon, the two soldiers became five soldiers. She simultaneously raised her sword to meet a soldier's and ducked low. The soldier who had attempted to stab her in the back instead stabbed his friend. Tamara swiped the sword from the dead soldier's grasp and said cheerfully, "Swiper, no swiping!" She twirled her newly acquired sword threateningly as she whirled to meet the soldier who had just killed his comrade. With a yell, he raised his sword in a fury, but Tamara caught his sword in between her two swords and raised his sword so that she wasn't in danger of being stabbed. She then grabbed his wrist and flipped the soldier over her head (no easy task, even for an elf). She straddled him and pulled a knife out of her boot and sliced his throat. Tamara glanced up as a third soldier charged at her. She tossed her knife into a fourth soldier that attempted to kill her. At last, she drove her sword upwards through the fifth soldier.
Temporary exhaustion took her over and she played dead for about five minutes. Finally, an exasperated Nalia stated, Stop playing dead and fight!
Gah, life sucks, Tamara moaned. With a groan, she raised herself off the ground and dusted herself off. Slightly dazed, she glanced around for her friends. Her eyes fell on Murtagh, who wasn't technically a friend, but she still liked him. When she saw where he was heading, she groaned. He was heading straight towards an oblivious Brom, who had too much to worry about without having to deal with a slightly insane Dragon Rider. Tamara knew that if something happened to Brom, Brittany would never forgive her for the rest of their lives, and since they were immortal, that was a long time. Tamara hastily searched for a distractions and she found one. With a sigh, she muttered, "I seriously need help," and then she darted off, luckily not getting sliced by any stray swords. "Eragon!" She screamed breathlessly. Eragon turned towards her. Murtagh, who happened to be passing Eragon, looked over at the sound of her voice. She jumped on Eragon and wrapped her arms around his neck (which was awkward because she was holding the sword she had gained from the soldier in one hand and the knife in the other; she had sheathed her sword) and kissed him hard. Even though she had no feelings for Eragon, she still managed to make the kiss look romantic. Very sweaty, dirty, and bloody, true, but very romantic and sexy. When they parted, Tamara chanced a glance at a gaping Murtagh. His eyes were filled with tears, and he slowly turned and headed towards Thorn.
"Way to go, Tamara. Way to go," Brittany said.
Tamara shrugged. "If it wasn't for me, you'd be faced with a dead fiancé."
"Where did you come from?" Eragon asked Brittany.
"Over yonder," Brittany said, pointing towards the Spine.
Tamara looked around and sighed. "How screwed are we?"
"Very," Brittany replied grimly. "Let's take to the air," she suggested.
"Murtagh's up there," Tamara whined.
"Don't worry. We won't hurt him," Brittany said.
"After all, you've already done that," Eragon snarked.
"Hey, I was only helping you get Arya's attention," Tamara replied before calling Nalia to her. The three dragons landed with a gigantic whoosh. The Riders mounted their dragons, who instantly took flight.
The wind was picking up and made it impossible to talk without shouting, so they were forced to mind-speak.
You know what's weird? Brittany stated.
What? Both Tamara and Eragon asked.
We're in this large battle against Galbatorix's army, except we're missing one important factor: Galbatorix himself.
That is a bit odd, Tamara mused.
I wonder why…Eragon pondered.
I think I know a way to find out, Tamara said.
And what way might that be? Brittany asked suspiciously.
Tamara ignored her and blocked both Brittany and Eragon from her mind and began a mental search for Murtagh. She knew she'd found him when she felt like she'd run into an iron wall. She sent vague messages to him until he finally lowered the barriers of his mind. We need to talk now, Tamara said.
Then talk, Murtagh replied coldly.
In person, Tamara added.
Why? We have nothing more to say to each other, Murtagh snapped.
Oh, I think you'll want to hear what I have to say, Tamara taunted.
Fine. We'll meet in the woods, Murtagh said.
See you in a bit, Tamara replied. They dropped the connection. Despite his cold words, Tamara knew Murtagh was genuinely curious about what she had to say.
Nalia took Tamara to a small clearing in the trees. Murtagh and Thorn were already there. "What's this all about?" Murtagh asked coldly.
"Why isn't Galbatorix present at this battle?" Tamara got right to the point.
Murtagh frowned. "You know perfectly well that I can't tell you that."
"It's just a simple question, Murtagh. I'm not asking you to give us his head!" Tamara exclaimed. When Murtagh didn't answer, Tamara pressed further. "Has he gone grocery shopping or something?"
"Why do you still have that?" Murtagh asked.
"Excuse me?" Tamara demanded rudely. Murtagh pointed to the necklace he had given her. Tamara sighed. She didn't think it was the best time to have this conversation, but she spoke anyway. "Because I never believed that you had turned," she said softly. "Was I wrong?"
"No, Tamara, but, if you never believed I had turned, why did you stab me?" Murtagh demanded incredulously.
"You know why I did that," Tamara sighed.
"I'm surprised Eragon's not here, standing by your side," Murtagh said.
"Eragon?" Tamara asked, genuinely confused.
"Yes, your new lover," Murtagh scoffed.
It took Tamara a second to comprehend what was going on in Murtagh's head. When she finally realized what he was talking about, she started laughing.
"What's so funny?" Murtagh asked.
"I'm sorry, Murtagh," Tamara gasped. "I forgot how incredibly stupid you are."
"Excuse me?" Murtagh asked.
"I kissed Eragon in order to make you so insanely jealous that you'd forget about killing Brom," Tamara explained.
Murtagh gaped. "I feel like a complete idiot," he grumbled.
Tamara laughed, but she soon turned serious again. "Time is short. We must speak about the matter I came about."
"I told you: I can't tell you anything," Murtagh replied.
"You are ten kinds of stupid!" Tamara sighed. "You're not comprehending the fact that we both want the same thing. If we kill Galbatorix, then you're be free from his power," she whispered.
Murtagh sighed. "If anyone asks, we never spoke," he said.
"Of course," Tamara smiled.
"Galbatorix has more than the fifty thousand soldiers he sent," Murtagh said quietly.
"Makes sense. How many more?" Tamara asked.
"Well, including the fifty thousand, the total's closer to a million," Murtagh said grimly.
Tamara stared. "Please tell me you're joking."
"I'm afraid not. He plans on sending them out in waves. He'll arrive with the last wave, so that he can see the destruction of the Varden," Murtagh explained.
"I didn't know there were that many people who supported him," Tamara said.
"He has more than people in his army. He has also an army of Shades and other spellcasters, rebel elves, rebel dwarves, rebel Urgals, Werecats, Fanghur, whom he took from the Beor Mountains, Ra'zac and their Lethrblaka, Shrrgs, sorcerers (male and female), Urzhads, and the last dragon egg has hatched to a Rider named Galzra," Murtagh finished.
Tamara cleared her throat. "What are Fanghur, Lethrblaka, Shrrgs, and Urzhads?"
"Fanghur are dragon imitations; Lethrblaka are the beasts the Ra'zac ride on; Shrrgs are great wolves, and Urzhads are great bears," Murtagh explained.
"Oh, god," Tamara whispered, sinking to the ground. "We're all going to die."
Murtagh didn't quite know what to say to that, but he said quietly, "I was ordered to call off my troops at nightfall."
"We may not last that long. We only have ten thousand soldiers," Tamara said quietly.
"I'm sorry," Murtagh whispered.
Tamara nodded. "I guess we should return to the battle," she whispered.
Murtagh nodded. "When this is all over, perhaps we can go back to the way things were."
Tamara smiled weakly at Murtagh's pathetic attempt to be optimistic. She threw her arms around Murtagh's neck and sobbed onto his shoulder.
Murtagh tried his best to comfort her. "I may not be able to fight for you, but I don't have to be fighting. I'll just fly in the air and pretend to be important."
Tamara laughed weakly at his lame joke. "Go on, Murtagh. I'll see you around, I suppose." Murtagh nodded, mounted Thorn, and left.
Tamara reached out with her mind. Brittany, Eragon. There's a clearing in the woods where I want you to meet me. Brittany, bring Brom with you.
Why? Brittany asked.
Because he has the map, and, trust me, we're going to need it, Tamara replied.
Soon, she was joined by Eragon, Brittany, and Brom.
"What's up?" Brittany asked.
Without preamble, Tamara told them what Murtagh had told her. When she was done, Brittany was the first one to speak. "Holy shiitake mushrooms," she gasped.
"We need more soldiers, which means we'll have to do some scouting. I was thinking I would go scout with Nalia while you guys stayed her with Saphira and Edoc'sil."
"That makes sense," Brom said, pulling out the map.
They unfolded it to look at possible locations. "We need the elves," Tamara said.
"Go to Du Weldenvarden," Brom agreed.
"Carvahall?" Brittany suggested.
Eragon shook his head. "Pretty much all of Carvahall is with us now."
"Ceunon, Therinsford, Narda, and Daret. Don't bother with Yazuac," Brom said.
"Teirm," Eragon added.
"Bullride, never heard of it," Tamara muttered to herself.
"Worth a shot," Brom shrugged.
"Kuasta, Dras-Leona, Belatona, Feinster, Melian, Aroughs. What about Eoam?" Brittany asked.
ERagon shook his head. "They're on an island. They couldn't arrive fast enough."
"What about the rest of Surda? Most of our troops are from Aberon. What about the other towns?" Tamara asked.
Brom nodded. "Absolutely."
"Furnost?" Brittany hesitantly suggested.
"Yes," Brom said.
"Hey, that's right by Telulalah Lake," Tamara pointed out.
"Orthiad and Dalgon?" Eragon suggested. Brom nodded.
"Burtagh?" Brittany asked.
"Yes," Brom stated. As they pored over the map, Brom said, "Don't bother with Tarnag. The dwarves there refuse to help Dragon Riders."
"Okay. What about Galfni and Hedarth?" Tamara asked.
"They wouldn't make it in time," Brom said.
"Did you get all that Nalia?" Tamara asked.
Yes, young one, Nalia replied.
"We'll leave at dawn," Tamara replied.
"It'll probably take you about a week. Send those that know the way here right away. We'll be able to last longer that way," Brom said.
As Murtagh had promised, he had his troops call a temporary cease-fire, and they retreated into the Spine.
At the Varden's camp, Tamara approached Trianna, who was the leader of the Varden's group of witches and mages, Du Vrangr Gata.
"Can I help you?" Trianna asked wearily.
"Um, yeah, we haven't formerly met. I'm Tamara," Tamara introduced herself.
"I know who you are. What do you want?" Trianna asked.
"You're the leader of Du Vrangr Gata, am I correct?"
"Yes, you are."
"How are we doing magically?" Tamara asked.
Trianna shook her head. "Not good. All of us are magically exhausted. I've been forced to order my people to hide and cast the spells. Luckily, Murtagh didn't bring any magicians with him or we'd be in even worse trouble."
"Damn. Well, Galbatorix will send out his magicians. You need to safeguard your magicians," Tamara said. "This isn't over," she added, leaving.
Quietly, she checked on Rosalia, Consuelo, Maria, Bella, Aquila, Aquala, and Linnea. She left them to themselves and offered to stand guard and make sure Murtagh didn't break his promise to leave them alone.
At Murtagh's camp, Murtagh, who was pretending to stand guard, began to sing softly. Hello there. The angel from my nightmare. The shadow in the background of the moor. The unsuspecting victim of darkness in the valley we can live like Jack and Sally if we want where you can always find me, and we'll have Halloween on Christmas. In the night, we'll wish this never ends. We'll wish this never ends. I miss you, miss you. I miss you, miss you.
At the Varden's camp, Tamara began to sing. Where are you? And I'm so sorry. I cannot sleep, I cannot dream tonight. I need somebody and always this sixth strength darkness comes creeping on so haunting every time, and as I stared I counted. Watching all the spiders catching bees and eating their insides like indecision to call you and hear your voice of treason. Will you come home and stop this pain tonight? Stop this pain tonight. Don't waste your time on me, you're already the voice inside my head. Don't waste your time on me you're already the voice inside my head.
Murtagh: I miss you, miss you
Tamara: Don't waste your time on me you're already the voice inside my head
Murtagh: I miss you, miss you
Tamara: Don't waste your time on me, you're already the voice inside my head
Murtagh: I miss you, miss you
Tamara: Don't waste your time on me you're already the voice inside my head
Murtagh: I miss you, miss you
Tamara: Don't waste your time on me you're already the voice inside my head
On the brink of dawn, Tamara was quietly saying goodbye to Brittany.
"Don't tell Murtagh where I've gone," she said.
Brittany nodded. "Please hurry," she pleaded.
Tamara sighed. "I'll try, but I'll still be gone a while. I'll send some of the nearby villages to you directly. The elves will know the way as well. Try to stay alive until then."
Brittany nodded. Tamara mock saluted her and then flew off with Nalia into the sunrise.
Ok, the song was Blink 182 "I Miss You." Hee, do you remember Telulalah lake, from like, chapter eight? In Perdu, chapter one, Telulalah lake get's another mention. It's sort of an inside joke with us. As always, there's a preview of the next chapter (Certain Death – that sounds ominous) on our profile.
