Last of the forsworn
Disclaimer:All reconisable charaters belong to Paolini.
Eragon learns the reason why Galbatorix was so succesfull and gets a new master...
Walking through the burning plains Eragon was shocked by the sheer amount of death he encountered. Dwarven and human bodies covered the burning plains in huge masses. There were too many to bury. With great sorrow both friends and foes were burned. Dwarves and Humans burning. "Its been this way before" whispered a voice in his mind. Eragon was shocked.The voice passed through his mental barriers like they were not in place. Eragon raised his hand in preperation to do magic and spread out his mind. He found only one mind. A mind that was hidden behind walls of steel. Arya approached him. "What do you mean?" asked Eragon nervously. He did not like the idea that Arya could break into his mind with that sort of ease. Arya stared. "Argetlam.." she began uncertianly. "Did you mind speak with me?" asked Eragon. "No, I did not" said Arya her voice with a hind of a trill. "I came to tell you the elven spell weavers have arrived."
Eragon met up with the twenty spell weavers who were standing next to The Vrang Grata. Some of them were smirking slightly. "They obviously applaud our spell weavers grammer skills" thought Eragon dryly. "Your name makes no sense. All it does is explain your ignorance" said an elf Eragon reconised as Vanir. "Yes, but it sounds beter" said Eragon. "Eragon" said Vanir smiling broadly. "Thought we would find you here, with these spell weavers of your class" he said mockingly. It was well done. His tone and face looked only slightly mocking welst his eyes blazed. "Finally brave enough to stop hinding in your little forest I see" said Eragon with the same mockingly polite look he usally reserved only for Vanir.
Arya gave Eragon a warning look. The eldest and by far the most powerfull of the spell weavers stepped forward. He addressed Eragon in the ancient language. "You would do well not to mock our race" he said. "Would that be the same race that hides in a forest for eighty years from one human?" asked Eragon still looking mockingly polite. Murtagh's speech had quite an effect on him. It made him ask himself how weak the elves must be so that thirteen riders can crush all the other riders as well as several elvish armies. The thing that disturbed him most was that the elves knew how he could make himself as strong as Galbatorix. They didn't tell him. At first he thought that Oromis thought that it would scare or scar him. Then he realised what it truly meant. The elves were to scared to use it. "Cowards!" thought Eragon furiously. "No matter how badly it scared or scarred someone ,if it rids the world of Galbatorix it should be used!" Eragon was so lost in thought that he barely heard the eldest spell weaver say "Something strange has happened , while we were approaching we felt a spell activating. According to our rapports it happened around the time that Eragon and Murtagh started their battle. We have concluded that the spell activated because of Eragon and Murtaghs fight.We also learned that the spell covered the entire Human Empire. Whoever set the spell must have been incredibly powerfull." Eragon and Arya looked up sharply. They knew of only one person powerfull enough to produce that big a spell. "Let us discuss this further in my tent" said Arya nervously. She did not want to frighten Du Vrang Grata.
"The spell activated when two dragons started fighting" said Vanir a few minutes later in Arya's tent. "We think Galbatorix laid it down to warn him if there were any dragons riders who would fight him." Eragon smiled. "Vanir ,who many dragons riders are alive?" "Three" said Vanir looking oddly at Eragon. " So logically" said Eragon soundig slightly like Oromis "If there are any fights between dragon it will either include Galbatorix or Murtagh who will tell Galbatorix everything he discoveres." "So pray tell me. If there are any fights how can Galbatiorix not know about it?" asked Eragon reverting back to mockingly polite mode. Several of the elves paled but Vanir continued "Who else has the power to raise that kind of spell?" "That is what we need to discover" said Eragon smiling. "Nice debating" said a voice in his head. Eragon looked around nervously. None of the elves looked as if the broke into his mind. Worriedly he turned around. He had enough of these elves, and he was hearing voices. He started thinking this was not going to be a good day.
"What is troubeling you little one?" asked Saphira when he entered his room. "We discovered that there is a chance that there is person who is both incredibly powerfull and who is interrested in us is out there somewhere and someone is breaking through my mental defences as if they do not exist" answered Eragon.
"Do you think the two are connected?" asked Saphira ,clearly unshaken. "Probably" answered Eragon. "Saphira we now have three people who can kill us easily, hunting us.Why are you not worried?" "The voice spoke to me too Eragon" she answered looking exicted. Her tale thrashed up and down. "It was a dragon Eragon!" "Yours may have been but mine was human" said Eragon too tired to think. "Eragon, you hear but you do not listen." Thought Saphira angirly. "If a dragon talked to me and a human talked to you then it probably means it is a rider who is coming to us!And we both know that there is only one rider who we have not met left!" "Oh no!" said Eragon and whispered a name softly. "Galbatorix"
The next day Eragon approached Roran nervously. The shock of the previous night was great but the urge to help Roran was greater. Roran was pacing around his tent with a hammer in his hand. Eragon smiled slightly. He heard that Roran had decided to rescue Katrina with a hammer. He himself had complied with the idea. In hounour of Roran's quest and also because he no longer had Zarroc Eragon had leant Htrothgar's hammer. The dwarver had aggreed that he should use it to bring death to all those who served the one who killed the dwarven king. Eragon was going to do his best to do so.Twirling Volgrond slightly he and Saphira approached Roran.
"Well,cousin the hour of vengance has come" said Eragon after greeting Roran. "Today we avenge our father, Brom and all the others these foul beasts have killed!" he said smiling and raising Volgrond above his head. "And we rescue Katrina" said Roran breathessly. Eragon smiled and gestured for Roran to climb on top of Saphira. While they were flying Eragon started wondering about something. Oromis had told him that they should never wipe out a race simply because would do it to them given the chance.Yet that was what the riders did to the Ra'zac. "Yes, but we were just following orders" whipered the voice in Eragon's mind. "Saphira did you hear that?" asked Eragon filled with fear. "Yes" she answered. "He told me to look out for the third door." "What?" asked Eragon unbalenced. "The dragon told me to watch out for the third door" said Saphira. "Why ,what did he tell you?". "Saphira, I do not think this is Galbatorix who is speaking to us" remarked Eragon feeling as if a huge weight was lifted from his chest. "Yes, but the person is stil very powerfull" said Saphira which brought the feeling back. So in a worried state of mind Eragon reached helgrind.
Eragon and Saphira were looking down at Dras Leona when Roran suddenly said "Please, we need to go get her!" There was so much woory on his face that it shocked Eragon. He wondered if he loved Arya that much. It will not make a differance he reflected sadly. Saphira had recently described Eragon's attempts to woe Arya as "that of a overly horny human brought up with good manners." Strangely it actually made Eragon laughed. Eragon looked between the four peaks of helgrind. Eragon saw that in the middel of the mountain there was a massive steel door that lead downwards into the mountain. Eragon had to give Galbatorix credit. The door was very impressive is somewhat violent. It had lots of pictures etched into the steel of men dying. Eragon cocluded that, to the Ra'zac it must have looked beautifull. Eragon was beggining to wonder how they were going to enter through the door when Saphira flew toward it at a tremendous speed ,hind legs raised.
Saphira went through the door folding the metal as if it was cloth. She then had only four seconds to stop herself from hitting a solid stone floor. They looked around and there was a single tunnel leading forward. Eragon stared. The tunnel was altered with magic so that he could not widen it. "Of course, he thought "Galbatorix will want me to have to face the the Ra'zac without you Saphira." Saphira looked sad ,but said simply "Be carefull and look out for the third door" before flying off. Eragon drew Volgrond. Roran readied his own hammer. Together they went into the Ra'zac tunnel.
They have walked for a long time and had seen no sign of the Ra'zac or of any doors when they suddenly entered the base of helgrind.It was beautifull. The center was a circle of black tiles with red tiles that were positioned to look like flames. In the center was a painted black G. It propably simbolised Galbatorix Connected to it with yellow tiles were four sky blue circles with a black peak in the center. The four peaks of helgrind. Galbatorix had built a shrine to helgrind. But why? Eragon learned why in a few seconds. Stepping smartly out of the shadows came the Ra'zac with several black robed men. The priests of helgrind. Eragon sensed that some of them were magical. Behind the Ra'zac were three doors.Two of the doors were, open and more soldiers were marching in through them. Eragon pointed and the doors slammed shut. That unnerved some of the priests. Clearly they had never seen magic without words. "Readyyyy...to die human?" hissed one the Ra'zac. Eragon's answer was both swift and severe. He yelled "Brisingr!" and a large jet of blue flame shot at the Ra'zac. Several of the priests fell dead.They raised wards but they did not have enough energy in their bodies to stop the magic. Eragon felt a mind approaching. A crude and caculating mind. He swung Volgrond just in time to stop the Lethrblaka from killing Roran. The trap was well laid.
The Ra'zac let loose several arrowws at Eragon and Roran but Eragon's wards stopped them. The Ra'zac drew their swords. Eragon tried to kill the Lethrblaka but they flew above him. Roran was taking on five warriors at one time. Two more lay dead next to him. The priests rose their hands-and fell dead. Not bothering with anything special Eragon had simply overwhelmed their wards. After that he ran to help Roran. The Lethrblaka flew low and blocked him. If Eragon was fine he could have killed them with magic or simply over powered them with Volgrond. But the Ra'zac dulled his mind and made it difficult for him to defend himself. Fortunately it helped Roran. He had backed into a wall and was much further away from them as the other soldiers. While Roran went beserk and swung his hammer with great strenght the enemies could barely hold their swords up. Eragon could not go on like this. He was finding it more and more difficult to concentrate. He knew sooner or later the Ra'zac would find an opening in his defences. He suddnely heard Saphira "The third door." He ran to the third door and summoning up what remained of his strengh smashed it open with Volgrond. Fresh air flew over Eragon. His mind cleared. He looked at the Ra'zac and smiled. He pointed and said one word. Brisingr!
Roran was tiring when he saw the Ra'zac exploded in flames. Eragon approached and with no problem at all dispatched the rest of the soldiers. "Come ,let us find Katrina." Said Eragon. Roran smiled for what felt like the first time in years.
The walked down the pathway of the third door.The hallways were strewn with human bones. They came to a door with runes on it. "Prison" said Eragon. "What are we waiting for?" cried Roran and slammed the door with his hammer. It held. Barely. Eragon smiled and when Roran struck again he added his magic to the hammer.The door shattered. Roran ran in and immedietly carresed Katrina. "Why is she just hanging here?" demanded Roran. "She is knocked out" Eragon answered before freeing her. Roran then proceded to carry her back to the summit of helgrind while Eragon looked out for anyone who looked threatining. They reached Saphira without inciddent . Roran was too happy to notice Eragon and Saphira look at each other. The voices saved them. "Yes,but will we do it again?" asked the voices clearly amused. Eragon and Saphira both shuddered. The voices sounded louder. As if they were coming closer.
Back at the Varden camp ,Eragon noticed that they had been busy. At least half of the bodies were burned. Orik approached him. "How did it go?" His voice was stil gruff. The death of the dwarf king hit him hard. "Fine" said Eragon handing Volgrond back to Orik. "Where is Angela? We need her help." If Angela knew how tho help Katrina it did not matter. For at that moment a massive green dragon flew over the burning plains with a black clad rider on his back.