Desert Days (An Eragon Love Story Part 51)

Shrubs and other tiny plants lined the ground. High in the sky the sun beat down upon them making them squint to see. Beads of sweat rolled off their sunburned skin and their tongues ached for water. It has only been three days since they entered the Hadarac Desert and already they were tired. Looming far off in the distance, the Beor Mountains stood keeping them motivated to push forward. Behind them the Ra'zac followed. A few nights ago they fought them off escaping for their lives. That same night Murtagh caught up with them. He saw them in Gil'ead for he was there also. He followed them until he finally caught up. Eragon was glad for his company; being surrounded by girls all the time made him miss Brom. Having another man to talk to kept him sane. Now, each step they took led them closer to safety, but every second they took to rest risked the Ra'zac catching up. During short breaks, Eragon would dig a hole and used magic to pull up the water from deep inside the earth. The cool water filled the little crevice enough

for someone to take a drink. Saphira helped Eragon at times when his strength weakened. At one instance Kiara and Arya had to pitch in because the dry ground did not have much moisture to pull up so the spell needed more strength to complete.

A week passed. The vast mountain range still looked small due to the distance.

"Will we ever reach those mountains?" Asked Eragon, exhausted.

"Do not give up hope, soon enough we will be inside that range safe from the outside world." Arya responded.

Kiara breathed heavily. Lately she became more tired and weak. In the morning she found that she would be really sick, yet by the afternoon she found that she was fine. This seemed to slow them for it was in the early morning and evenings when more ground could be covered due to the fact that the sun was not out. Her sickness confused everyone, including Kiara herself. "What is wrong with me?" she thought.

Starting once more, the company headed off. Throughout the next week, Eragon had Kiara ride on Saphira instead of him. Down below he rode on Brom's horse, Snowfire, while Arya rode on his old horse, Cadoc. Next to them Murtagh rode on his horse. Talking became sparse as they were determined to reach the Varden by the end of the month.

When Kiara did not get better, Eragon got a little worried. Even Murtagh was concerned.

"I do not know what it could be…This sickness is strange to me. Some mornings she is perfectly fine and others she is terribly sick. On the days that she falls ill, by mid afternoon, she seems to be feeling better. Saphira, do you know what is ailing her?" Eragon asked his dragon.

"My first hunch was that maybe Durza poisoned her and it is now taking affect. Yet as I came to that conclusion, I had re-think. You and Arya are not sick like this, so it can't be that."

"Right. So…"

"So, as Kiara rode upon my back, I asked her. She seemed just as confused."

"Dang it. Well, the sooner we get to the Varden the better. I am sure their healers can find out what is wrong and cure her."

"I hope so too."

Another week flew by. The Beor Mountains gradually grew bigger and bigger each day. Behind them the Ra'zac were detected by Saphira. "We are a good day ahead of them and I'd like to keep it that way. None of us are prepared for a fight; we are all too weary from traveling."

To their delight, the Ra'zac stayed behind them. It was already close to the end of the month of August. The progress they made across the desert was quite remarkable; normally it should have taken at least a month and a half to trek, yet it only took them about three weeks.

"The Varden is very close now." Arya said.

"Good because I am tired of this scenery." Joked Eragon. Being near the vast mountains put him in a cheery mood. Next to him Murtagh laughed.

"Make that the two of us." He said.

"Nay! Three!" Arya chimed in.

Together they laughed. Above them Saphira carried Kiara who already fell asleep.

Unfortunately their good luck ended shortly; the Ra'zac suddenly charged forth with unbelievable speed.

The Varden was a day away at this point so they did not turn around to fight. Instead they traveled throughout the night stopping only to pull up water and relieve themselves. They ate while on their horses as best they could. Out of the desert, trees lined their path blocking the sun. The mountains themselves overwhelmed them for they were the biggest in the land. Eragon heard stories about the ranges height, but never did he fathom them to be this huge. Even the Spine looked puny compared to the Beor Mountains.

"Arya, exactly where is the Varden?" Eragon asked.

"Their stronghold is inside the mountain. We are nearly there. Up ahead there will be a waterfall. We must go through there to find the hidden door."

"Wow!" was all he could say.

Murtagh was silent. He always seemed to be thinking about something for his face expression was hard. The closer he got to the Varden, the less he talked. Eragon was unsure why he felt so uncomfortable. At one point he was going to ask him, but thought it best to keep quiet.

As Arya mentioned, the waterfall came into full view. Close behind, the Ra'zac, mixed with Urgals and even worse, Kull, lurked.

If they had waited any longer, they would have been swallowed by their mass. The Kull were just as hard to kill as the Ra'zac. They were basically larger and stronger Urgals. At the edge of the falls, Arya jumped in. Underneath the water she swam gracefully through. Soon she could not be seen.

"Come on!" Eragon hollered to Murtagh before he jumped in. The rush of cold water felt great on his hot skin. With a splash, Murtagh followed suit, reluctantly.

Eragon gasped for air, Murtagh nearby. Arya was no where to be seen. On the rock shore a line of men held spears at them.