Chapter 56 – Sir Urien

For the third night in a row, Sir Urien felt that strange presence around them.

"Are you sure they are on our side?"

The herbalist stopped her inspection of the foggy night sky and went to sit by the fire with him.

"Pretty sure."

It didn't raise much confidence, but he decided to trust her.

"What are we waiting for?"

"For Bachel, of course."

"How does she know she is supposed to meet us here?"

"She has her tricks. The ones Tenga taught us. She was a candidate to Soothsayer, after all, right?"

Whatever tricks Bachel had, they must be flawed, because Sir Urien was tired of waiting, and the perspective of his impending death only made it worse.

The wait, however, was over in the morning, when the werecats started to get in formation around them, moving slowly in their feline form. The snow fell in abundance, clouding the view of the horizon.

"What are they doing?" Sir Urien asked as he helped Angela to pack up their belongings.

"Preparing to fight. She is near."

The hairs on the back of his head stood up and his heart felt like beating outside his chest. That was it. The day he was going to perish.

"What should we do?"

"Don't stand in their way." Angela gave him a warning look as she piled their bags together near a tree.

Sir Urien stood in the clearing, hearing the hustling in the snow and the trees, where the werecats positioned themselves. He grabbed the hilt of his sword and watched Angela conferring with Solembum and another one he figured was their leader. She pointed at Sir Urien and it made him frown.

"All right," she approached him. "There is something I didn't tell you."

There were a lot of things she didn't tell him, he figured, but he was interested to know what that would be in particular.

"What?"

"Conversation is not all I wish to do."

"Obviously."

Angela gave him an annoyed look but kept going. Snowflakes dangled from her curls.

"I will distract her. The werecats will locate the object that's important to her and they will grab it. After that, we run."

Sir Urien squinted his eyes and looked confused.

"That's your plan? Really?"

Angela seemed excited to finally do something other than waiting.

"Yes! Simple and easy. Distract, grab, run."

It was a ridiculous plan.

"What object is that?"

Her eyes traveled away from him, and her hands formed the shape of a circle.

"I don't know. Maybe a gem?" Then she changed the shape to a square. "Or a magical artifact?"

Sir Urien was appalled. No wonder he was destined to die, he had followed a madwoman into the forest!

"You don't know? Seriously?"

The herbalist shrugged.

"We will know when we see it."

He rolled his eyes and took a deep breath.

"And what should I do in this distract, grab and run plan of yours?"

"Distract. And definitely run. Follow my lead."

"Fine." Angela stood by his side, looking north where they were expecting Bachel and her minions to show up anytime now. "You said you can't tell me how it will be, but can you tell me when?"

She looked at him as he kept his eyes focused on the horizon.

"Somewhere around grabbing and running."

He gave the tiniest nod and swallowed.


Eragon stood on the north wall, facing the city below. He tightened his cloak around his body as a shiver ran all over him. Two days before he and Saphira had arrived in Ceunon, with the difficult notion that once the conflict with Bachel was over, and if they survived, he would watch his master's Eldunarí being destroyed. Also troubling was the fact that Arya was always at risk of attempts against her life. It didn't matter how experienced she was, or that she had a dragon as a companion, or that Elva, one of the most mysterious and powerful beings in the world had sworn to watch over her. Somehow, trouble still found Arya, as she had a target on her back. Perhaps, that was expected, being her a queen. Still, she seemed to be on an unlucky streak.

"We will keep the citizens safe, master. I assure you."

Renir's voice cut through the cold wind to make him turn. Eragon smiled to hear his even more pronounced accent in the common tongue.

"I believe you, Renir."

The elf bent his head in gratitude.

"Will you tell me what happened in Ellesméra?"

"I suspect you already know."

"Only what the world knows, that Queen Arya took her throne back from those vicious traitors."

"They weren't so vicious after all. You should see their faces when they saw us two together, with swords in hand. They fought well, nevertheless."

Eragon's voice was emotionless, which made Renir step a little closer to his friend and master.

"So, what is the problem?"

Taking a deep breath, Eragon was reminded of his situation with Arya. And the fact that Bachel almost killed her again. He blamed himself for not seeing it coming, and he blamed Elva, for not performing her part on the deal. Before leaving, they had an honest talk, and Eragon threatened to end their pact, which made her desperately beg for him to reconsider. In exchange, she would become Arya's shadow and protect her with fierceness. If Arya didn't like it, she didn't have the disposition to say it. Eragon suspected they were becoming close, maybe friends. They were so close, that it seemed to Eragon that Arya knew why Elva was away when Niduen attacked. He thought he saw some complicity in their eyes.

"Where should I begin?"

Renir creased his brow in concern.

"We will win this. I know it!"

"When did you become such an optimistic, my friend?"

"When did you stopped being one?"

They stared at each other, and Eragon saw an undying faith in his eyes. Faith in him and Saphira. Faith that they would overcome the first real challenge since the Order had been reestablished.

"I'm sorry. You are right. We will win this." Eragon put a hand on Renir's shoulder. "But that not my main concern right now."

"Arya?"

Eragon could laugh at how transparent he could be sometimes.

"Always her, huh?"

Renir shrugged and sat on the edge, looking at the citizens that rushed to their homes to escape the snow that started to fall.

"We worry about things that are beyond our control," Renir started as Eragon sat down beside him. "And what is more beyond our control than other people? I should be the one to know, I was the one who asked you to send Avelina away from here."

Eragon let the silence make Renir's words almost lose meaning as he debated if he was ready to tell him about the last weeks, and how everything was fine until it wasn't.

"Arya and I…" Eragon began his narrative, but suddenly he didn't know where he should start. Maybe by the part that hurt more. "We lost a child. Arya had a miscarriage in the summer. I didn't know."

Renir's eyes showed how much that information was grievous, especially for an elf, who revered children as sacred.

"I'm sorry, master."

Eragon nodded, taking the sympathy with kindness.

"We are no longer together as well."

Shock took over Renir's expression.

"Because of that?"

"No. It was for her protection on my part and by political motives, on hers. And now, we are supposed to be healing. I don't know how to heal without her. I'm used to healing because of her."

"Wow. I have to say, I'm impressed." Renir's careless disposition made Eragon frown and look at him. "You two make all the other relationships seem boring."

A smile fought its way out, and Eragon found himself laughing at his own misery.


Sir Urien didn't know if Bachel was careless or only arrogant, but her party was composed of no more than twenty magicians. They all wore black cloaks with the hood covering their faces. Such a cliche!, he thought.

Bachel was in the front, speaking with Angela. Sir Urien was an attentive listener for the first part of their conversation, but after the werecats started to move, he channeled all his attention on them. Somehow, they had made themselves almost invisible to the human eye, moving carefully under heavy snow, as Sir Urien noticed. The magicians kept their focus on their master, without noticing the felines surrounding them on the trees and behind the piles of snow.

"Enough!" Bachel's voice echoed through the forest and it made him look at her. "You say you don't want to cause a conflict, but here you are with an army of werecats and a knight!" She pointed at him and his spine went stone cold.

So, she had noticed the werecats. The only one who did. But it made sense, Angela had said that she was the most powerful magician in the world. Her tricks must work after all.

"They are here to ensure my safety. And because you are disturbing their living space."

Bachel scoffed. Without the glowing eyes and hands, and with her feet firmly on the ground, she didn't look so terrifying. Just a middle-aged lady with crazy gray hair.

"Their living space? Since when the werecats have a home?"

"Since always! Alagaësia is their home, and you are disturbing it, Bachel!"

Angela and Bachel looked like two sisters, bickering at the dinner table. Bachel was feeling more and more annoyed as the conversation progressed, and Sir Urien suspected that Angela was doing that on purpose. In order to find the artifact, Bachel would have to use it. He decided he would help.

Stepping close to Angela, Sir Urien removed his sword from the sheath and stood guard by her side. Bachel watched his movement and her eyes glowed with fury.

"You think you can beat me with a sword?"

"I am not a man to think, but to do," he said in his grunt-like voice. "And you are an annoying little bug. Why don't you stop you blabbering and fight me?"

Angela stiffened up by his side but didn't say anything. Bachel on the other hand made a signal with her hand and one of the magicians drew his sword to fight Urien. It wasn't much of a fight, for the knight finished the man with two strikes of his sword.

"If you're not going to use magic, then I believe you are in trouble," he said in a challenging tone, whipping the blade to splash the remaining blood on the snowy ground.

Bachel, as Sir Urien realized, had a serious problem with containing her rage. It was a leverage they could use; Angela should tell the Riders. He hoped she would tell the Riders after he died.

Her eyes glowed more intensely and her fists too. As she raised her hands to attack, her robe opened in the front and they could see a shiny purple stone attached to her hip. It was the size of a fist.

"It's a gem," Angela whispered not exactly to him. Her words made the werecats move fast. "Her belt! Go!"

Between the magical attack that was coming his way and the magicians falling to the ground torn apart by claws and teeth, covering the snow in red, Urien's notion of time was severely compromised. It didn't help that he was thrown away several feet as Bachel's magic hit him on the chest. It was a painful spell, meant to harm, not kill. Before he lost his senses, Sir Urien saw the world bending strangely, it was like the sky was rippling around him, and the ground had waves just like the ocean. One second, he was on the ground in the middle of a clearing and the other, he was lying down in the castle's courtyard. And then, he saw Edd, waving to him from a distance on his horse, inviting Urien to ride away with him.

Days and days of waiting just to end in a split second, so peacefully. How ironic was life? And how easy dying seemed.


Eragon and Renir readied themselves to go down the wall and spend the day in a conference room with the other Riders when the horns sounded from the castle. The bannermen waved the red flags all around the wall. The pair had no choice but to run as fast as possible to the courtyard.

"Intruders! In the castle!" The guards shouted, making the pair hurry their steps.

When they got to the courtyard, they saw something very unusual.

"Angela?" Eragon was surprised to see her there, surrounded by Solembum, of course, and… "Maud? What are you doing here? And who is that?"

Solembum in his feline form protected Maud, who had something in her hands, a purple gem, by the looks of it. Angela held an unconscious man in her lap as the guards ran to catch him. They tried to arrest Angela, but Renir stopped them.

"Oh, hello, Shadeslayer. Fancy seeing you here. It was about time, don't you think?" She seemed distressed as the guards took the man inside. "Careful, he hit his head pretty hard!"

Eragon offered her a hand and pulled her up.

"What happened, Angela? Are you all right?"

She dismissed his concerns with a hand and went close to Maud, opening a pouch she retrieved from her side bag so she could put the gem inside. Then she gave the pouch to Eragon.

"Here. Bachel's whole energy supply. Use well." Angela shook the snow off her clothes and was startled when Saphira landed in the courtyard. "Saphira! You scared me to death. Go by my tent sometime, will you? I knitted something for you."

Without any explanations, the herbalist went away with the werecats on her heels. They got mixed with the crowd that gathered around, and soon they disappeared.

"You make sure to stop by her tent soon, Saphira. We need answers. Although, I wonder what she could have knitted that fits you."

Saphira chuckled.

I am in need of a pretty scarf, after all. I hope she got it in my favorite color.

"Blue?"

Green.

Eragon laughed. "Right."

Renir grabbed his sleeve and pulled him toward the castle.

"Come, master. Sir Urien needs you."

Sir Urien. When he had learned that name before?

Elva's sword teacher. And the man from your vision.


A/N: A small chapter to get things going and to wish you all a Merry Christmas. Enjoy the holidays with your loved ones and be safe! Please, be safe!

I will come back next week, to finish 2020 well. See you then!