Disclaimer: I do not own Eragon. Anything familiar belongs to Christopher Paolini, but everything else belongs to me.


Chapter Three

When Kaiya emerged from the cave early the next morning, dressed in dry clothes, the first thing she noticed was that it was not raining. The sky was a dull gray in color with the sun obscured from view. Jevden and Tesu were talking in low voices, but they hastily stopped once they saw that Kaiya had appeared. She frowned slightly and headed towards them immediately.

"So," she asked casually to them, "what's for breakfast?"

Tesu jerked his head towards the picketed horses and said with a grin, "Whatever you can pull out of your pack."

Kaiya stuck out her tongue at him playfully and walked towards her black horse. In the daytime she could only marvel at the wondrous beast even more. Tesu without a doubt paid many crowns him. "Then perhaps you need a name that is as grand as you are," she murmured to the beast as she patted its silky nose. She thought for a second and finally declared, "I shall name you Raiden." It seemed to suit the elegant horse well, considering their successful raid of King Galbatorix's castle. After stroking her horse for a few more seconds she dug into her bag to find a loaf of bread clumsily wrapped in rough cloth. Curiosity settling within her, she dug in deeper until she came upon a dagger in an elegant leather sheath.

Kaiya slowly tied the sheath around her waist and undid the cloth around her bread to break it in half. Tucking the other half carefully back in the bag, she hungrily bit into it. Then she made her way back to the others. Giant green trees jutted out of the earth every few feet, making the area perfectly hidden from the main road to Urû'baen.

"I see you found your dagger," Jevden observed, eying the sheath around her waist as she made her way back to their small camp. "Do you know how to fight with it?"

Kaiya laughed at Jevden's question. "Father taught me the basics of fighting when I was a little girl. He always thought that a girl should know how to defend herself."

"Your father thought right," Jevden replied with a smile. "And I assume he taught you your exceptional riding skills, too?"

Kaiya nodded, though suddenly she jerked her head up as a shrill sound caught her attention. She knew those horns anywhere. It was the blaring of Urû'baen horns, far off in the distance but just as disturbing. Suppose the soldiers caught up with them? Immediately the bread in her mouth turned bitter. Forcing down the bread, her gaze quickly scanned through the makeshift camp for the item that had caused all of this trouble.

"Where's the—" Kaiya started to say with alarm, but then she stopped. Jevden and Tesu both grinned.

"Never let them out of your sight," Tesu chanted, reciting the same words he had told her the night before. Jevden had been using the large case as a chair to sit on. Winking at her, Jevden said slyly, "There is no better place to keep it than right under your nose."

Curiosity burned throughout Kaiya. Her hands suddenly itched to open the case and pick up an egg to feel its smoothness. She wanted to hold the item that had been fought over for so many years. I wonder how it feels…how heavy it is?

Jevden watched her thoughtfully with his tired eyes. He knew she was interested a great deal about the eggs, but she would never admit it. Then he recalled what Tesu had confronted him about earlier.

"Jev, have you thought about my idea? If we could just get an egg to hatch for Kaiya—" Tesu said in a low voice.

"It is not up to us," Jevden replied sharply. "And I do not wish to involve Kaiya in this further. She should have never joined the group in the first place. She is just a girl."

"Just a girl?" Tesu laughed. "Kaiya is more than just a girl! She is strong, determined, and not a bad fighter. That is what we need in a Rider, and who else could be more trusted for such a position? It will be much harder to find a suitable person, even if we go to the Varden. What will they do? They will choose a person qualifying their needs, not ours."

Jevden hesitated, his dark eyes examining the blonde-haired boy intensely. "I suppose it shall not hurt to try it. Though I must tell you that an egg might not hatch for Kaiya. It depends on—" Jevden suddenly closed his mouth as he saw Kaiya emerge from the cave and look at them. He looked to Tesu and, though frowning slightly, silently agreed.

"Jevden, what's wrong?" Kaiya suddenly asked. She looked at him worriedly and bit her lip. Across his face was a troubled and far-off look. Suddenly she could notice all of the gray hairs in his dulled ebony hair and how ragged and dirty he appeared.

Jevden looked up and gave her a small smile. "It is nothing, Kai. I should go talk to the others. The sooner we leave, the better."

As he stood up Kaiya noticed a scowl across Tesu's face. She frowned, confused at her brother's sudden anger, but did not pay any more attention to it.

The group started off almost immediately and continued riding until Kaiya felt hunger gnawing at her empty stomach. Not once did the sun break through the thick gray clouds that concealed the sky. Soon every part of Kaiya's body hurt from Raiden's constant movements. Every once and a while they could hear the blaring of horns from Urû'baen soldiers, and each time they quickened their paces for awhile. When they finally stopped to eat their meager lunch, Kaiya felt relieved and grateful for the brief break.

When Kaiya first slid off of Raiden she felt her knees buckle from the long hours of riding. Grumbling to herself, she walked and reached into her pack to grab the other half of her bread. Ripping it apart viciously with her teeth, she plopped herself onto a patch of dead grass.

"My legs are sore," she complained aloud after she swallowed the last bit of her bread. Knowing that there were some apples in the bottom of her bag, she struggled in getting back up. Tesu suddenly appeared in front of her and threw a long stick at her. "They're about to be even more sore."

"What's this for?" Kaiya asked impatiently as she turned the stick around in her hands.

"Fighting," Tesu said simply. In his hands he had one for himself. "Father taught you to fight, but that was long ago. You need to practice in order to become better."

"Why do I have to become better?" Kaiya questioned with a sigh after she had gotten up. To answer her, Tesu lunged at her with the stick.

"Hey!" she cried. In a flash she blocked his attack and tried to hit him in return. Tesu avoided it with ease and hit her in the side hard.

Fury swelled up inside Kaiya as she felt a burst of pain. After stumbling backwards slightly, she ran towards him and tried to strike him again. While Tesu managed to hit her many times, she could barely manage to touch him. Jevden watched nearby, his back leaning against the trunk of a large tree. Others observed thoughtfully and chuckled when Kaiya got a face full of dirt.

Soon she could feel painful bruises where Tesu continually hit her. Already she had a rip in the knees of her black pants where she had plunged to the ground of several occasions. Legs and arms completely sore from use, she gathered all of her energy for one last attack. As Tesu charged forwards, Kaiya spun around and hit him square in the back with all her might. Tesu whirled around instantly and, though Kaiya tried to avoid it, hit her across the stomach.

She fell to the ground backwards with a slight thud. "Ouch," she muttered, rubbing her stomach. Staggering back up, she said to Tesu, "All right, I think that's enough bruises for one day."

Tesu nodded in agreement. "Then we shall continue tomorrow." Kaiya groaned at this, but managed a nod. Then she limped over to Jevden.

"That last attack of yours was good." he commented quietly. Kaiya gave him a weak smile, "You think so?"

"Yes, I do. With a little training you could be a decent fighter."

Pride welled up within her at his last comment. "Then… could teach me?" she asked timidly. Jevden stood up straight and looked at her for a few long seconds with a strange gleam in his eyes before finally murmuring, "Yes."


From then on the days seemed long and endless as they traveled south to the town of Furnost. Jevden and Tesu sparred with Kaiya every day, whether in the afternoon or before settling down for the night. As the days went by she could keep up with Tesu, though she was far from matching his abilities.

Although had no encounters with any other travelers, every night someone would keep watch for any unwanted visitors. While soldiers wouldn't be much of a problem as long as the numbers were low, Urgals were a dangerous threat. Kaiya could remember hearing much of Urgal attacks when she was back in Urû'baen. But Kaiya did not worry a great deal of Urgal attacks. She thought that they should be worried over Galbatorix's forces. How very wrong she was…

Jevden gave a deep laugh as Kaiya tried desperately to avoid Tesu's constant attacks. It was their tenth day since the escape, but they still had a little while to go until they reached Furnost. While it would take a normal traveler an average of twenty days, they were making slower timing. Besides the fact they had a slightly large group, they also had to stay away from the main roads.

It was midday and they had been fortunate enough to find an area that had trees surrounding it at all sides. After eating a quick lunch, Kaiya and Tesu had immediately begun their daily sparring.

Kaiya jabbed desperately at Tesu. He immediately blocked it and started attacking her. She blocked his first attempt, but the second sent her crashing to the ground.

"Hey!" she cried, rolling over on her stomach. Suddenly she felt under her a large imprint, and she looked down curiously. A deep and large print was there."What's…this?" Kaiya murmured. Something nagged at her mind, though she couldn't say what. Quieted grunting could be heard all of a sudden. A soft buzzing…coming closer.

"Urgals," Kaiya whispered hoarsely. An explosion of the horrid creatures streamed into the area, snarling and grunting. Kaiya gave a screech as she heard an arrow fly past her head. Utter confusion passed through the rebel group, and everybody was yelling orders, diving for their weapons.

Fumbling for her dagger, she dodged all Urgals in a desperate attempt to reach Jevden and Tesu. Ahead of her, she could see Jevden draw his sword and lunge for an Urgal. His mouth was forming many harsh commands for Tesu, though Kaiya couldn't hear his voice over the noise.

An Urgal suddenly appeared in front of her, his face twisted in an evil grin. His long horns were menacing, and blood stained his hands. A dagger cannot kill an armed Urgal. Jev, Tesu, help me!

Before she knew it, she had dodged past the Urgal with amazing speed. An outraged snarl came from the Urgal and he jabbed his blood-covered sword at the girl.

Pain spread throughout Kaiya, though she did not stop. Looking down numbly, she saw a long cut on her right arm. A cry escaped her and she clamped her other arm over the wound. Wetness seeped through her fingers instantly.

Tesu had gotten on his horse. The case was under one arm while his other grasped the reins. Jevden was yelling at him angrily, telling him orders that no one could hear.

"Jev!" Kaiya called weakly. The words seemed to stick in her throat. Her whole body shook as she tried frantically to reach them.

"Get on your horse!" Tesu bellowed to Kaiya as he spotted her.

"What? Why...where are—?" Kaiya cried in confusion. Blood dripped down her arm and onto the trampled grass. Her head was spinning…

"Get on the damn horse, Kaiya!" Tesu screamed. Eyes wide with terror, she scrambled onto Raiden wordlessly. Blood everywhere… so many Urgals…

"Jevden!" Kaiya shouted. The man turned around and gave her a sympathetic look. "You must leave immediately! Go… take the eggs far away from harm." He stabbed at an Urgal and then choked out, "Do not come back to this damned place."

"No," Kaiya whispered. Tesu dug his heels into his horse harshly and bellowed, "Hya!"

She turned Raiden around and nudged him with unshed tears in her eyes. The horse bolted forward after Tesu, leaving the screams of pain far behind them.