Chapter 11: Respect your Elders

Age 29

The end of my search for the past few days drew closer in front of me, as I and Kratch walked up to the top of the small hill it stood upon. Looming over the surrounding wilderness, well hidden by the large oak trees surrounding it, Edur Ithindra would have been almost impossible to find on my own. My footsteps rang out quite clearly, as the grass was replaced by a poorly preserved stone trail, leading up to the tower. Floating beside me, Kratch seemed to get agitated the closer we got to our destination, as his tailed seemed to stiffen and occasionally twitch in the air.

"I do not wish to question your sanity, of which I myself have little but are you certain you wish to proceed forward. You do know what, or better yet who lies inside that tower you are so purposefully walking to?"

"That I do Kratch, that I do. One of the most interesting individuals I will ever expect to meet, that's for sure" I replied, leaping over a fallen log barring the path.

"Oh yes, interesting indeed, and as mad or even more so than you or I. Yet he is ancient, older than you, me, and even the very land we walk upon. Caution should not be amiss when dealing with such beings. Even I and my brethren were reluctant to approach him in the past" he replied, disappearing from the air and reappearing lazing around on my shoulders.

"He may be old, mad, and even dangerous, but his wisdom is not to be underestimated. He knows more than all imperial magicians of the empire combined, dwarfing even the king. In fact, I would not be surprised if his knowledge of the obscure surpasses even that of the wisest elves or the riders of old."

"Knowledge that seems to draw you like a mouse to a mousetrap. You seem to know much of him, despite never before meeting him. Careful that your naivety and premature belief in success do not bite you in the back later on" Kratch warned, as his ears twitched in the morning rays while his ever-present Cheshire grin seemed unnaturally strained.

"I will make sure to heed your warning. I have heard of him from a trusted source and have read of him and his influence in many scrolls and tomes. There was a particular group of scholars who seemed to monitor him and one other with extreme detail, gathering scraps of knowledge on everything they could find about them. Knowing this, all it takes is to establish a proper approach from the start and slowly work from there onwards."

"The proper order of things is often a mystery to me. There is no time left to discuss your decisions further for we have arrived. Let us hope you were not wrong to be so confident" spoke the cat, disappearing from my shoulder and reappearing by my side, floating a few feet of the ground.

He was right, for the stone path covered in moss and weathered by time had ended, and we found ourselves in a meadow in front of the ancient tower. Standing tall in the light of the morning sunshine, it towered above the trees around it, projecting its large shadow onto the grass we were walking upon. Just as described in the books, several small garden patches could be found to one side, where a variety of different vegetables grew from the ground.

Sitting on the porch of the tower, leaning against a large boulder that must have fallen due to its poor condition was the source of Kratch's wariness and my curiosity. A relatively short old man, with an extremely large grey beard, which fell from his face and lay across his legs.

Dumbledore would be proud. Gandalf too.

Smoking a long wooden pipe, made of what seemed to be carved oak wood, as he looked upon one of the flowers blooming between the rocks. The wrinkles in his slightly yellow and almost parchment-like skin would appear and disappear, as his head tilted slightly to the side. While we had not encountered any manner of magical wards or protections when approaching the tower, I had the nagging feeling that he was expecting our arrival.

"Pleasant morning today, isn't it?" he questioned, blowing out a long plume of smoke into the air.

"Aye, the sun shines brightly while the birds chirp in the trees. My name is Vidar, son of Gorm, and this is my companion Kratch."

It was useless and even impolite to hold back our real names in front of this man. He would either already know them or find out anyways during our stay here. Lying to him would not help in establishing good first contact.

"Tenga, son of Ingvar. Most of my visitors stumble upon this place, while you walked down the path. You are not lost like others, so why come here?" He grunted, still not looking up from his object of fascination.

"I was curious to meet someone who questions and searches as I do."

"You search too?" he questioned, for the first time looking up from the flower and staring at me directly with his piercing blue eyes. After several moments, they widened as a small grin appeared on his features. Soon he began to chuckle as a loud laugh escaped his mouth.

"Finally, someone with some semblance of a head on their shoulders, and a brain inside of it! I can see it in you, unlike in so many others. Only a few find the way, some don't recognize it when they do while some don't ever want to.

Yet you, I can feel it in you too. The desire to find an answer, and the knowledge of the necessary sacrifices on the path to it. You will not run like they, going back to live in the dark. A fellow wanderer on the quest for something greater! You must be or you wouldn't have come here!" he exclaimed, gesturing wildly with his pipe, dropping some cinders of ash onto the grass.

My shoulders sagged, as it seems I passed an unknown test of this bizarre character. A common interest has been found. It was all smooth sailing from here.

"Not all those who wander are lost" piped in Kratch, for the first time since our arrival, twirling in the air beside me, his smile wide and marginally less strained than before.

"Indeed, little cat, you speak the truth. Yes, I definitely like you, far better than that gloomy black one. The others are savages, unable to comprehend the smallest details around them. It is fantastical, that after so many years I find another like me. Even she did not see as clearly as you when she came to me."

"I am not little, thank you very much" Kratch mumbled to himself, before doing what appeared as an irritated spin, floating upside down in the air. That much was true, for Kratch was definitely almost twice as large as a normal house cat.

Perhaps it was his grey and purple fur, which seemed to float and twist with him?

"It seems we have a common interest to know more, Tenga son of Ingvar. There is much I know and much I don't. Perhaps we can help each other in the search for the answers to our questions. It could be beneficial to the both of us, no?"

"Of that, I have no doubt, young elf. None have been as bold as you in your approach but there is truth in your words and no hint of lies. I could use some additional hands in my home, for it no longer stands as proud as before.

We will see if you will be able to truly enter the light such as I once did, for there is much you young one, yet have to learn" proclaimed Tenga, who seemed to almost tremble with excitement at finally finding 'worthy' company, after what seemed centuries of solitude.

"If you would, I wish to ask a question before we begin, mainly for the benefit of my companion. I have heard that you happen to kick at cats. Is that true or just lies that drifted into my ear?"

Kratch's eyes widened as he abruptly stopped spinning in the air, slowly turning his head at me with obvious incredulity, then glancing back at Tenga with even more caution than before. A soft yowl could be heard from him as his fur began to spike upward. Tenga's mouth twitched up for a brief second, before returning to a neutral expression.

"Only those who deserve it. Though by looking at your companion, I don't think I will. Much like you and me, he is, which is not a fault in my eyes." Tenga spoke, rising from his sitting position.

"Why you, breathing disaster! Why by all of my nine lives would you ask such troublesome question?" Kratch demanded, his fur standing on end as he floated in front of me. No doubt he was mad at me for risking to make his life difficult when in the presence of the old hermit.

"Oh, just something I heard somewhere that I was curious about. You shouldn't worry too much, or you might cough out a hairball while you're at it. It all worked out fine and I have the closest thing I can have to a competent mentor for some time" I replied in the most nonchalant way possible, grinning from ear to ear.

"Competent, my tail! People who kick at cats are in no way competent, nor morally sound! You best find me a good piece of juicy liver for lunch, or I will leave you to spend your time with this violent old man all on your own. Curiosity killed the cat you know." Kratch harumphed, going back to his spot on my soldiers.

"Ah, but satisfaction brought it back. Let's go, we do not want to keep our host waiting" I said, turning back towards the direction of the tower, as Tenga appeared in the doorway.

"Don't just stand there! Come in, the day is young, and we have much to do still. If you want to stay, you have to work. There is no such thing as a free lunch. Not even for a fellow hermit like you." Tenga shouted to us from the porch, before going back inside.

Walking up the steps and entering the interior of the tower, I could not help but spend some time marveling at the interior of the abode of one of, if not, the most powerful beings in the land. The warm and pleasant smell of parchment and paper permutated the air, evidently coming from the multiple bookcases and scrolls laying all over the floor.

"Don't touch anything lest you move it from where it once was. These scrolls are the doors to answering my questions, and yours too" Tenga warned, making an awkward path towards the kitchen area, smoothly shuffling through the piles of parchment piled around.

Just like in the novel, the fire came to life as he walked past, without a single sound of any spell coming from him. Kratch immediately disappeared from my shoulders, reappearing on top of one of the ancient wooden chairs standing around it. Not even batting an eye, I slowly inched my way towards one of the compendiums of the ancient language that lined the walls, hoping to take a glance at the literal repository of knowledge hanging in plain sight.

In the corner of my vision, I could see Tenga almost imperceptibly glancing in my direction. No doubt this was another of his self-made tests to see the type of individual he was dealing with. Those that would feel unsettled he would disregard as boring and unpleasant to interact with. It was those who showed little surprise and not a hint of wariness to his feat that he would be paying close attention to.

With what I deduced as a faint nod of approval, Tenga continued his way into the kitchen, beginning to dig around in one of the cupboards to fish out what seemed to be various tools and utensils used for masonry. Why he kept them in the kitchen, I do not know, but it seems he had found a job for me to begin to earn my keep whilst staying at his abode.

"This is what you will need for the work I have for you. Go up the staircase to the roof and begin repairing my tower. Do not stop at any of the floors in between, what lies inside is not yet for you to see. No itty-bitty spells or magic allowed" he instructed, as he walked up to me and dumped the tools in my hands.

"No magic?!" I exclaimed. Why would a powerful magic user like him stop me from using any magic to fix something in his home? Did he not trust me yet?

"No magic. You thought I would be unable to see past your fickle illusions, little elf? Your tricky kind like to meddle and dabble with spells you do not understand. So, no magic for you. Not yet. Repair my roof without them and we will see about teaching you something new" he grumbled, staring at me whilst dragging his hands through his beard.

"I have a feeling you are exploiting me, Tenga but very well, I will repair this roof of yours. When will I be able to learn then?"

"Bah, you younglings need to work while the ancient rest these old bones of ours. Work in the morning, magic in the evening. Go and impress me. Physical work builds character. Don't cheat for I will know."

"What about him, shouldn't he work if he is living under your roof as well?" I said, pointing to Kratch who seemed to purr with happiness at the heat coming from the fire. Upon seeing my plight, he continued to smile, his grin growing even larger than before.

"Right you are. No slacking allowed. Your companion will be responsible for the mice that live in my house. Eat them or make them flee, I do not care, for they only disrupt my work and displace my scrolls. As for you, go, the work will not complete itself!" Tenga exclaimed, gesturing with his pipe which he began to refill with an unknown herb I had not seen before.

Slightly miffed by the unfairness of it all, I began making my way up the spiraling stairs of the tower. That lucky cat, able to warm himself by the fire after our escapade in the night.

Not that I was really troubled. My work, while not easy, was definitely achievable.

While it would take slightly longer to complete without magic, my plundered and acquired knowledge of masonry should help fix this roof faster than the old hermit expects. Not to mention my enhanced physique, able to carry large amounts of bricks and tiles easily. Reaching the top of the tower and looking over the destroyed bricks and caved-in roof, covered in vines and eroded by poor weather, I could not help but sigh.

Rolling up my sleeves and cracking my knuckles, I got to work.

Today would be a long day, of that I have no doubt.

Age 29- Three weeks later

It had already been almost a month since our arrival at Edur Ithindra as time slowly trickled by. Each day I would wake up at the crack of dawn and proceed to begin work on repairing the crumbling roof of the once majestic elven tower. The process was long, as each stone first had to be chiseled into shape, it tiles forged in a red-hot fire made with my own hands before it could be placed on top of the roof. Slowly but surely, my efforts began to appear.

It ain't much, but It's honest work.

Tenga would occasionally appear, no doubt ensuring no magic was used for the process. If I was correct, he had discovered or devised a spell similar to my mage sight to see any remains of magic use in an area. With each passing day, he seemed slightly more jubilant, more energetic. He was still raving mad, often mumbling, and bumbling to himself for hours on time, working in the garden below, but evidently more enthusiastic than before.

Perhaps due to the new company, or maybe because of the many philosophical and theoretical conversations we would have, I do not know.

And yet his wisdom was visible amidst the crazy, as was his ability to question everything he thought off, found out about, or saw. After my work or as I named it quota each morning was done, we would sit down at the table and engage in many different conversations. He would talk about anything and ask wild questions haphazardly, with no real pattern or logic, while I would answer to the best of my ability. Sometimes he was satisfied, other times he wished for details upon details to understand my reasoning.

As our discussions progressed, I began to learn more not only about Tenga but of his knowledge of the Ancient language and magic as a whole. He would refer to spells, discuss their applications and spell formulas even I would first scratch my head at. he would talk about how he discovered a way to alter the very matter of space from looking at a pot with water, or how to grow a tree from a petal of a flower.

Over time, I grew to understand his ramblings which became clearer by the day. When I was free, I would often join him in his study of the many scrolls or compendiums of the ancient language, as we sat in front of each other in rickety wooden chairs by the fireplace. While he would grumble to himself, no doubt musing on one of his many questions, I would read his many scrolls and compendiums, trying to decipher the puzzling mess of knowledge and information they contained.

On certain days, when my tower repairs went faster than expected, I would go out into the forest to train with my new acquisition, the spear, Niernen. While I was initially skeptical and wary of Tenga's reaction to it, he passed by without giving it much notice, only mumbling something about flowers and thorns. Over time I came to improve and develop my own fighting style with this new weapon, derived from my original swordsmanship skills. It would take time, maybe years, but learning to fight with spears was now a must.

It was Kratch however who seemed to enjoy the most his new circumstances of living. With little to no work to do, as mice seemed to not live in the ancient tower, he would spend days lazing in front of the firepit, feasting on the fresh liver I would provide him after my short outings to hunt. Occasionally he would disappear for a few hours to go stroll in the forest, no doubt to have fun spooking the small critters that lived inside of it.

Over the course of the past weeks, I had managed to uncover and guess more of not only his backstory but also his strange abilities, previously not mentioned or found in any other werecats. What he implied during our first meeting seemed to be the truth, as I had never seen him adopt a human form during our stay at the tower. Whether this was because of his madness or some other reason, I do not know.

From my many questions, and his few, relatively vague answers, I discovered that his teleportation was in fact a by-product of this effect. Unable to have two forms, he had, at his insistence, taken the best from both. Able to use magic in mysterious ways, he was in fact not truly teleporting, but merely traveling through shadows, limited by imposed range and their amount in his surroundings. His ability to float seemed to arise from his inner magic responding to his call, satisfying his natural feline laziness and unwillingness to walk on the ground like most other 'boring' creatures. While mysterious, creepy, and mad, much raw power he did not possess, and hence would be unable to do much in a fight.

The days passed by as I finally completed my work repairing the roof of the ancient tower. Crafted with my own hands, I had taken Tenga's instructions to heart, aiming to make the final product as impressive as possible. While my masonry and wood crafting skills were not exactly that of a master craftsman, and neither was it as beautiful as it could have been with the use of magic, I was nevertheless proud of my efforts.

With my repairs of the roof so close to completion, I had worked well into the evening in order to finally finish the task. Dusting my hands and clearing up any leftover wood chips, I stood back to admire my handiwork as I heard Tenga walk up the stairs behind me.

Shuffling past me he began to examine every brick and wooden support I made, occasionally running his hands over the stone walls, while audibly mumbling something imperceptible which I could not hear, despite my enhanced senses. After a few minutes of scrutiny as he shuffled around, examining my handiwork, occasionally glancing back at me, he eventually stopped and began to walk back down the stairs.

"Not as terrible as expected elf, but not as impressive either. Tomorrow I will have you begin working in the garden. Come, a meal awaits you for a hungry stomach has no ears" he grumbled, descending down the twisting stairway.

And so, I soon found myself sitting on a log outside the tower, Kratch feasting on some rabbit liver to my side. Sitting in front of me, across a small campfire was Tenga, who was once again mumbling to himself whilst sipping on some stew he made for dinner. We were for what seemed like the tenth time eating outside, as Tenga had yet another question about the moon or the stars shining upon us.

Bored out of my mind with my silent companions, I decided to lighten up the atmosphere. Focusing my will and constraining my thoughts to only a single image inside my head, I cast one of the few spells I could without the ancient language. Immediately, small lights resembling fireflies appeared in the air and began to slowly fly around the meadow, breaking Tenga away from his ruminations as they captured his full attention.

"Tenga?" I asked, hesitant to distract him from his thoughts.

"Hmmm?" he droned out, not looking away from a small white light that slowly drifted closer to him.

"Tenga, why do you want to know everything when you know that that is impossible?"

"I don't need to know everything, young elf, I just need to know where to find it, when I need it. It's important to never stop questioning, for curiosity has its own reason for existing."

"Yet how will this knowledge benefit you if you do not use or share it but learn it simply for the sake of knowing it?" I continued, digging deeper, hoping to uncover more of this mysterious character.

"The answer is simpler than you first think, young elf. Among the blind, the one-eyed man is king, and I will be the one who will open the eyes of the savages. Only me, for I was the one who saw what they did not and questioned when they wouldn't."

"To see the world in a grain of sand, and heaven in a flower" purred Kratch, finishing off a rabbit juicy liver and proceed to grin contentedly.

"Hold infinity in the palm of your hand an-" I spoke up, remembering the poem I once heard somewhere a long time ago.

"And eternity in an hour. A good saying, for the mark of wisdom, is to see the miraculous in the common." finished Tenga, putting away his empty bowl and bringing out his pipe.

"Aye, my mother used to tell me that what matters most is often invisible to our eyes" I stated, as an image of our small cottage in Ceunon flashed in my mind.

"Then she was a satisfactory one, unlike most others. There is much to observe in this world of ours whether it is the great green trees with falling leaves or the cold white snow in the mountains. In the sky, there are the white puffy clouds that float aimlessly while in the water there are scaly fish that swim in all directions. The squirrels, the birds, the deer, and boar, not to mention the wor- "

"Yet even the wise cannot see all ends, Tenga. What makes you think that you will be able to?" I interrupted before he would go on another long tangent in our conversations, as he did many times before.

"It is rude to interrupt, young elf. As for your question, there are many ways to skin a cat, is there not?" the elderly hermit stated, gesturing with his yet unlit pipe, a bit miffed by me butting into his speech.

"Please do kindly refrain from using such vulgar language in my presence again" droned out Kratch, as his tail twitched with irritation.

"And what if the answers you get to are not to your liking? Will you stop your questions then or continue regardless of whether your methods are morally ill, without no real justification?" I pressed.

"Better a cruel truth than a comfortable delusion. As you very well know, for I see it in you as well, young elf, there is nothing either good or bad, and only thinking makes it so" Tenga replied, blowing out small puffs of smoke from the pipe he lit with an unvocalized spell.

"I think I begin to see your reasoning, old one. There is much still that I do not fully understand, or what makes sense, but that is due to change in time" I mulled, thinking of what the man has told me.

"Makes Sense? What fun is there in making sense? In a mad world, only the mad are sane. And I certainly, believe I told you before, we're all mad here." intoned Kratch, rising from the log and doing a twirl in the air before settling back down.

"Indeed, all the best people are. It is only because our intelligence isn't understood by the others, right Kratch?" I asked as I began to scratch him behind his ears.

"Exactly. Ah yes, this is good. You may continue" he lulled, curling up closer on the log as I continued to weave my fingers through his fur.

"Be silent you two! I have yet to see what I came here for, and you are muddling my thoughts, distracting me from my question" warned Tenga, as he turned back to watch the moon, once again mumbling something under his breath.

We went silent for the night was pleasant and not a single cloud was visible in the sky. Time was passing quickly, and all I could do was but use it to the best of my ability.

By my estimations, in two years Arya would join the Varden, leaving Du Weldenvarden behind for the next 70 years. I would have to speed up some of my plans up, but for now, I can rest easy for I am right where I needed to be.

And so, we sat there around the dying fire, an ambitious elf, a bumbling old man, and a weird werecat, basking in the moonlight as small white lights twinkled around us, lighting up the surrounding dark meadow.

Life is a journey. Time is a river. And the door is ajar.

Best walk through it while you can.

Author Notes:

"If you look back at all the teachers that you liked, I am sure you will find they were very entertaining"- Bill Nye

There we go, another chapter is complete. This one was a troublesome one to both formulate and write.

It was a nightmare writing Tenga's character, hope it was good enough for a character with like 16 lines in the books. Do tell me if you think I could have done something better.

Vidar has someone to learn from, or at least try to do so. Best he stays on his toes around the old man.

There was one other thing I had to clear up in this chapter, and that was Kratch's power level.

Never could have thought that a cat would be suggested as a literal god, able to insta-kill Galbatorix.

Certainly not. Kratch is mysterious, for he is a werecat, but not omnipotent.

Galbatorix and his Eldunari can still mind rape him, not to mention kill him with magic, as he has no wards around him.

He does have some magical abilities, but they are limited by his own nature and mentality.

He is a first of all a cat, with cat-like behavior, albeit a bit mad, but hey, what can you expect?

Thank you for all your comments and reviews. They are all greatly appreciated.

Cheers, see you till the next update.