I don't own any of these characters, except the ones that you don't know. Also, towards the end of last chapter, the last ancient word was supposed to mean "To attack the mind and body with". Sorry for that mistake. I'm still doing pretty well though. Special thanks for all who reviewed. I am also building towards a romance, in possibly one to two chapters. R&R!

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Chapter 4 The Miracles and Terrible Powers of Magic

Velkan awoke the next day, feeling thoroughly rested. He got up, and found a fresh pair of clothes waiting for him, neatly folded with a map of the tower. This is convenient. He thought. I'll just go and take a bath, and then see Orphran.

So he went down the hall, and readied himself for a bath. Then, an idea struck him. Wonder if I can make things waterproof. If I could, then I could read while bathing. He took a bar of soap, and put hi hand over it, and said "Skolir adurna."shield from water. To test it, he put it in the water with one hand, and then took it out and lay it in his other hand. It was completely dry. If I can do this, what else can I do? He thought.

He went to get his book, and returned. He cast the spell, and settled down to read. He found many things, mostly continuations of the riders story, and how dragons had come to be. But, he did find one thing that troubled him. In the book, he found that once a spell is released, you cannot take it back, even if it is about to kill you.

Why didn't anyone tell me this? If I had pushed my luck, last night, then I would have been killed. From now on, I'm going to be more careful. And another thing. Why didn't Varinik tell me this, it's almost as if he wanted me to die... or maybe, maybe it was a test. To see how much incitive I had, and how badly I wanted to learn. In any case, I'll find out later. Now I should get out, and see Orphran.

So Velkan got out, and as he was dressing, he had an idea. I wonder what would happen if I used the word for shield, and the word for earth together? Or water and shield, or even fire and shield. The possibilities are endless! Velkan continued this speculation, until he got to the dragonhold, where Orphran was waiting for him.

Hello Velkan, did you have a nice bath? Asked Orphran, in an amused voice. How did you know? Asked Velkan. Our bond grows stronger with each passing day. Said Orphran, We are constantly moving closer and closer into each other's minds.

Your right. Said Velkan, It has only been a few short days, and already I feel as if I would die, if I could not sense your presence.

I am of the same opinion, said Orphran, but now, you should go and eat, I will have my food delivered. Besides, you have your sparring lessons shortly after breakfast. You don't want to be late for that. Said Orphran. You are right. Soon, when we can fly, maybe the king will let us practice together.

Maybe. Now go! Said Orphran.

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Velkan left the dragonhold, and quickly went down to breakfast, where pig bacon, toasted bread, and eggs were waiting for him. He ate quickly, and rushed to the sparring chamber, where Craran was waiting for him. "You late." He said, in a gruff voice. "I'm sorry I-," but he was cut short. "Don't be sorry, don't do it again, are we clear?"

"Yes Craran."

"You will address me as battle master, from now on, is that clear?"

"Yes battle master."

"Good, now did you read any of those books that I gave you yesterday?"

"Yes battle master, I read them."

"Fine then, now I want you to exit this chamber through the door opposite the one you came in, and there you will be able to run around the castle, it is roughly one mile. I want you to run around it in six minutes or less, is that clear."

"Yes battle master." he said. " Well don't just sit there and stare at me, GO!" Velkan walked to the door, and looked outside. He began to run around the castle. He sprinted as hard as he could, but found himself tiring about three hundred meters in. He kept going, though, but could not retain the vigor in his step that he had had in the beginning of his run. Finally, he finished, and collapsed to the ground where he had started.

"Get up, get up. There will be none of that. You failed that exercise, student. I told you to run it in six minutes or less, you finished in ten. The king may think that you are competent as a rider, because of your magic training last night, but I hold higher standards than that fool Varinik. Up!" Screamed Craran. "Now, go on a recovery jog around the castle, and this time, don't jog" As he got up and turned, he thought that he saw a flicker of a smile on Craran's face, as he mumbled something that sounded like "I'd forgot how much fun having a student could be."

He finished the jog, feeling better, and he went over more sword moves. It seemed that every move that Velkan was shown, he mastered. He was just finishing the motions to the double stab slash sequence when Craran came charging at him, and yelled "Defend yourself!"

Velkan was suddenly scared. We'll surely cut each other to ribbons!

Craran made a slash move with his huge long sword. Velkan parried, and heaved his sword with an overhead slash. Craran blocked this, and quickly made a stab motion. Velkan blocked, but was too late. He felt a stinging sensation, and groaned. Angered by this, he forgot about his wound, and let loose a series of overhead attacks. Craran blocked each one, and laughed. "Ha! You'll have to do better to beat me!"

Velkan gave an overhead slash, but then, in one lightning fast move, he drew back, and attacked with an underhand cut. His sword cut into Craran's chest. It may have killed him, if not for his chain mail undershirt.

"Fine, your getting there. Now, if your as good as they say you are, at magic, then you should have no problem healing yourself. Training for today is over." Said Craran, and he walked away.

Velkan sat, and felt the blood dripping down his leg. He look at it, and groaned. It was a large gash, but had no depth to it. Struggling, Velkan racked his mind for the right magic words to heal himself. "Heill" he muttered, but nothing happened. He continued concentrating, and finally found the phrase. "waíse Heill." Then, he felt a tingling, and his wound was healed, but he felt weaker than ever. Cursing Craran with every name he could think of, he walked slowly to the kitchens. He knocked, and said "Musbank, it's me, Velkan." Musbank opened the door. "Velkan what can I-" He stopped short. Velkan had collapsed.

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Velkan woke up in the kitchen, with a girl standing over him. She had silvery blue eyes, a thin figure, and blonde hair. "Huh?" He said. He was confused. He could remember his training with Craran, and how he had been attacked. He had used magic, but...why?

Suddenly, he felt his stomache, where Craran had stabbed him. It was healed. That's right. He said to himself, I healed myself, and made myself weaker. Because of Craran! He sat up. "Where am I?" he asked the girl, "and who are you?"

The girl laughed. "Not too smart for a rider, are you? Your in the kitchen, you collapsed at the door. As for me, I am Delois. Velkan scratched his head. He remembered the word delois from somewhere. It was part of the ancient language, he knew that, but what he didn't know, was what it meant.

He stood up, still feeling weak. I wonder if I could make myself stronger by using magic? He thought. Lets see, Horperd means reinforce, eke is my, so what do I want to fortify? My magic, strength, power?Maybe if I increase my magic, I could use less energy to do things. It's worth a try, I suppose.

"Horperd eka vanyalí!" He muttered. He felt himself getting even weaker, and he was slipping into a dark abyss. Then, he felt another presence. Orphran. He thought. Then, he felt as if he was being snatched out of the abyss, and his strength was returning to him. Velkan, I was worried. Remember, we share a bond like no others do.

He opened his eyes, to see Delois staring at him. "Are you okay, you were quiet for a while, and then you started shaking."

"I'm fine. It was only the after effects of a spell. I'm Velkan, by the way."

"I know, my father is Musbank, and he said that he knew you." Velkan nodded. "I met him the other day. If you don't mind me asking, who is your mother, does she work here in the castle as well?" Delois face became sober. "My mother is dead. She was a spellcaster for Gallbatorix. She died during a spell experiment. It was her who named me, in the ancient language, after the Delois flower. It is one of the only words that doesn't have it's name changed when translated into the ancient language."

A clock chimed one o'clock. "I'd better go, or I'll be late for lessons in magic." Said Velkan. "You should eat something first." Said Delois, "here, take this." She held out a small package of food. "It's a pack of some of my father's best bread, along with our natural grown fruit. They have more energy than normal food, but take no longer to eat."

"Thank you," said Velkan, feeling himself turning red. "I won't forget this."

"Neither will I." She said, and with that, she left. Velkan watched her leave, and then left himself. Orphran, are you there? He extended mentally. Yes. What were you thinking? Trying a spell like that, with words that you've never used. Your lucky that your not dead.

I know. But I have to become stronger. In battle, someday, what if your not close enough to me, and I have to rely on my own strength to fight. I have to be able to have enough strength to heal myself.

Fine, but from now on, until I have to have flying lessons, and my own training begins, I will merge my consciousness with your own, and we will do everything as one.

Velkan arrived at the room, where Varinik was waiting for him. "Your late." He said. "I know, but I was recovering from having to heal myself."

"Why were you healing yourself?"

"Craran," Velkan said, "Craran attacked me when we were training."

"Well," said Varinik, "I cannot change the past, but I will try to speak tp the king."

"Thank you."

"Now, let us go outside, and we will begin. I assume that you have been practicing , and that you have found many word within yourself." Said Varinik. "Yes," said Velkan, "I know a lot of new words."

"Good, now follow me." Said Varinik. So Velkan followed him outside, and into a forest. They walked on a path, until they came upon a clearing.

"Now,"said Varinik, "tell me, what are the elements?"

"The elements are the natural parts of the world. They are Earth, Fire, Wind, and Water." Said Velkan. "Yes, and no." said Varinik, "The elements are Earth, Fire, Air, Water, and Lightning. I say air, because the wind is only a branch of the power of air. I say lightning, because it is a natural part of our world, and a power source. Few know of this besides the king. I doubt even the elves know it's full power fully. But know this, lightning has properties of light, fire, air, and of sound. It is great power source, but only temporary. For the power of lightning cannot be materialized in battle for long. Only use it when all else fails."

"Master, what s lightning called in the ancient language?" Asked Velkan.

"Lightning, in the ancient language is called Garsingar. But be warned, as I said, use it only when you absolutely have to, for it takes most of your energy, even with Orphran's combined power, it will be terribly taxing on your strength."

I beg to differ. Said Orphran in an undertone, to Velkan. He had to struggle not to laugh, but finally cracked, though he passed it off as a cough.

"But enough of that. Now, we will complete some exercises. But only use the elements to fight me." Said Varinik. Velkan took his place across from him. "Good. Now I want you to take a leaf from a tree, and set a small spot in the middle of it on fire. Then I want you to control it, and make sure it does not go beyond the leaf, and burn you."

"Yes master." Then, he took a leaf off of a tree, and held it in one hand. "brisingr." He said. Then he held the leaf in his hands, and concentrated on making sure that the flame stayed in the middle. He kept it up until Varinik told him to relent. "Next," he told Velkan, "You must summon a sphere of water, and freeze it. The phrase you will use is adurna -"

"Kendritha." Velkan cut in, "I know, I found it in a book last night."

"What else did you find?" asked Varinik, suddenly serious. "Um, I found Kendritha, that means 'to freeze', Horperd, that's 'to reinforce', and Ballimith is 'to attack the mind and body with." Said Velkan, suddenly nervous.

"Well, that was no ordinary book. It was written by myself, over one hundred years ago, before my people disowned me." Said Varinik. "Your people, do you mean the elves? Why did they disown you?" asked Velkan. "It contains many magical terms, and words. Did you understand it all?"

"Well," Velkan hesitated, "I only read the first couple of pages before bed, last night, but yes, I understood what I read."

"Good, but back to the exercise at hand." They worked at exercises similar to that for thirty minutes. Finally, Varinik said "Good. You have seemed to have mastered those elements. Now, I know that your probably wondering if I am going to ever teach you about lightning. I will, but not today. Now, prepare for battle."

Without warning, Varinik attacked "thrysta vindr!" A burst of air was sent, but Velkan was too quick. "Skölir! Stenr reisa Jierda!" He yelled, and a shield protected him from the air. A large stone, the size of a chair was sent towards Varinik, but the 'jierda' spell crushed it pebbles that pelted Varinik from all directions. "Garjzla Knífr" light knife. Yelled the elf, and a white light flashed. Velkan had only seconds to leap out of the way. He combined two words to make one phrase, I forgot about that.

Well, here goes nothing. "Stenr moi jierda" He yelled, and some nearby boulders were immeadietly ground into a fine dust. "Adurna" he muttered, pointing his hand at the ground where Varinik stood. Varinik didn't seem to notice, he was too busy groping around. "Jierda" He sent into the dust, just missing Velkan. "Thrysta vindr" said Varinik, and the dust flew up high in the air. He looked at Velkan, and was about to cast a spell, but Velkan was too quick "Kendritha." The ground that Varinik stood on froze, and he slipped."Brisingr stenr! Reisa!" Said Velkan, and a nearby stone glowed red hot, and rose in the air. He quickly directed it to where Variniklying, and held it above his head. "Yield." He said, and the duel was over.

"Good, said Varinik. Tomorrow we will meet here again, and practice more with the elements. It is clear to me, Velkan, that you are a natural spellweaver. Tonight, read through that book, and find as many terms as you can. But before you leave, answer me this. How is it that your spells do not make you any more tired than eating?"

"Well sir..." and he told him about his experiment in the kitchen, and about Orphran. "Well, now, that was a good spell indeed, and you do surprise me, I didn't think that you would have tried this sort of thing after only two days. But I caution you to keep this experimenting to a minimum, after all it can be dangerous. Dismissed."

Velkan went to the dragonhold, and stroked Orphran. I could have died today, if it wasn't for you, thanks.

No problem, but remember now you are stronger in magic, twice you defeated Varinik, you should be proud.

I know, it's just that I wish I could be making this much progress in my physical training.

Is there no spell that you can think of,that could help you?

Not at the moment, I'm going back to my quarters to freshen up, and then I'll walk around the castle, and see who I meet.

Very well. By the way, your not trying to run into anyone buy any chance are you?

What are you-

Like, say...Delois

I-

Because I warn you that if you get to close to someone, they may eventually break your heart.

How would you know? You've been alive for all of three days.

Remember my advice. And with that, Orphran put a barrier around his mind.

Velkan went to his room, and washed off the fine layer of dust that had accumulated on his skin. Just as he was leaving, he noticed a slip of paper on his dresser. He picked it up. It read:

Dear Rider Velkan,

It has been decreed by the king that you have tomorrow, Saturday, and Sunday

off, to do as you please. In addition, you have all of the following Saturdays and Sundays off as

well. You are welcome to visit the city of Urû'baenso long as you are in by sunset.

Sincerely the Noble house of Gallbatorix.

Wow, two days at the week's end to do what I want. He thought. Then he got an idea. And I know exactly what I'm going to do with those days as well. And with that, he rushed out of the room.

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This is probably my longest chapter yet. Still working on that romance. Thanks to reviewers!

Also, I made up the word Garsingar. Besides, I don't think that lightning is even an element. My next chapter will be short, but meaningful. As always, R&R!