Disclaimer: I don't own the Inheritance Cycle.
AN-1: I am sorry for the terribly long wait, but I have several other fics…and tbh, I had lost my mood for IC for a while.
AN-2: I have a P*T*R*N, and if you want to support my writing while enjoying the NEXT TWO CHAPTERS at the same time, then you can do so there.
Tronjheim's beauty struck him dumb for a long moment along with Murtagh as they gazed upon the gargantuan size of the excavated city beneath the mountain, the marble pillars, the embedded jewels and the abundance of gold coiling everywhere painting a tale of such wealth and splendor that even Murtagh, someone who had grown up in Morzan's and Galbatorix's castles was left gaping.
Their arrival into the city was heralded by shouts from everyone in their party along with Saphira giving the loudest roar she could, almost blasting his eardrums due to the sound. People and dwarves alike cheered and clapped, shouts of 'Dragonrider', 'Argetlam' filling the air as he was told to climb and ride upon Saphira.
Murtagh traveled close to both of them, his face hidden by a cloak given to him by one of the humans at his request as they traversed the city. His hands itched to feel his swords in them, the Varden having taken their weapons prior to their arrival, however, the dragonbone sword and the other blade he had taken from Gil'ead were still within his reach, the men not thinking of searching the bags upon Saphira.
"You will walk on foot from here." one of the twins said, his oily voice making him grit his teeth as he got down from Saphira and started walking beside her. Their horses were taken away by one of the men, Snowfire and Tormac, both disappearing into one of the turns. They walked for a long time after that, their way litten up the flameless lanterns that were present everywhere in Farthen Dûr. They came upon a large door, enough to fit Saphira through and then some before the same twin spoke
"Ajihad will meet you now" and ushered everyone but the guards inside before following after them.
They came inside a large two-storied study and his eyes immediately landed upon a dark-skinned figure standing across them, his back towards them. Clad in a red vest with gold designs and a purple shirt, the man exuded an air of command and dignity. 'This must be Ajihad' he realized as the man turned around to meet their eyes.
Strong features and a shaved head made the man even more intimidating up close, his ebony skin and the small black goatee giving him a distinguished look.
The twins immediately scurried underneath the stairs behind the man and stood there as still as statues. Their attention returned to Ajihad as the man spoke, his voice deep and strong,
"Please seat yourselves, Eragon and Saphira."
Eragon and Murtagh sat in the armchairs at the front of the desk, Murtagh removing the cowl from his hood as he did so while Saphira settled behind them, the sound of her claws scraping against the floor loud in their ears. Eragon tensed slightly when Ajihad kept on looking at Murtagh for a few moments, before he snapped his fingers. One of the bald twins immediately rushed forwards and whispered in his ears, Ajihad's frown growing more pronounced by the second. After a nod from the man, the mage rushed back to his position and Ajihad said
"You have put me in a difficult position, Eragon and Saphira, and the mysterious companion. While Brom's trust in you can assuage my worries over your trustworthiness, you and your companion must get your mind examined and searched by my spellcasters here."
Saphira hissed sharply before Eragon and Murtagh both shook their heads.
"My mind is my own, no one will invade upon my sanctuary whatever their purpose.". Ajihad's gaze tightened in response, his frown turning into a bare resemblance of glare before Eragon spoke, "I will not allow anyone into my mind. Brom taught me many things, and the first thing he taught me was that no one should get entry to my deepest thoughts and secrets unless I trust them completely."
Ajihad didn't respond to his words at all, his eyes still trained on Murtagh before his eyes widened minutely.
"Take off your cloak and shirt and turn around!" he ordered, his hand coming up from beneath their view with a sword in his hands, the blade coming to rest on the table. He tensed at the action, his eyes flicking between the twins—who were grinning stupidly at the happenings—and Ajihad's sword before he turned towards Murtagh.
As the cloak and shirt fell off Murtagh's back in quick succession, Ajihad sat up straighter than before, his eyes trained upon the scar running down Murtagh's back.
"Murtagh Morzanson, I knew I had heard that voice before…and you do seem to favor your father in your looks, instead of your wretched mother." Ajihad almost snarled out, his stoic composure finally breaking off a little to show the rage beneath.
"THAT MAN IS NO FATHER OF MINE!" Murtagh shouted as he turned around, slamming his hands down on the table before he glared at Ajihad, his eyes wild furious in a way that made Eragon reconsider his opinion of the usually calm man.
"Be that as may, you will get your memories checked by the spellcasters and after that, we may trust you."
Murtagh just scoffed and sat back in the chair, his views on Ajihad's words clear to everyone before Ajihad turned towards him, his eyes first going to Saphira and looking at her intensely before he turned towards him.
"You look very different than the reports we received and the posters of you posted throughout the Empire." he commented after a few moments.
"Had a clash with Durza, this was the result," he answered, causing Ajihad to look at him with surprise and admiration before his eyes turned to his sword.
"I met with him too, many years ago, I almost stabbed him in his heart but his blade came up a split second before that. Instead of cutting out his heart, I left a scratch on his blade and stabbed him through his throat instead." His eyes turned towards his blade before he looked towards him and asked "How did you escape him, did you kill him?"
"No" Eragon shook his head. "He was bitten in half by Saphira when she took him by surprise, he just dispersed into black smoke."
Ajihad sighed at that as his gaze turned somber, "He is one of the vilest things to ever walk this land. To think a Rider, even one as mad as Galbatorix would consort with the likes of a Shade." Eragon winced at that, since, despite the lack of spirits running through his being, he was a shade in all but name.
From then they talked of his perilous position with respect to everyone's wishes and views regarding the newest and last free Rider in Alaegasia. After that Ajihad asked for a detailed account of his journey from the moment Saphira's egg came into his hands to their short fight at the gates of Varden. Eragon skipped the events of Gil'ead, having no wish to broach his metamorphosis and the Eldunari.
Throughout it all Murtagh kept silent, his expression carved from stone as he gazed at a corner. Ajihad expressed his sorrow at Brom's death but when Arya's rescue and her presence in Tronjheim came up, he brightened up considerably.
"That is fortuitous indeed, Arya's capture had soured our relationship with the Elves. Queen Islanzadi had cut off all communication with us and not one of our attempts to send a physical envoy to Du Weldenvarden has been successful. Hopefully, this will remove the absence of Elves from our fight against the tyranny of Galbatorix."
Ajihad spoke of the agreement they had come to when the egg was stolen from Galabtorix years ago, that should the egg choose a human rider—contrary to what the elves wished for, their fear of Galabtorix prejudicing most of them against human riders—Brom would train him or her and of he was dead before the egg hatched, the elves would train them in Du Weldenvarden.
"The elves will expect you to complete your training in the arcane and the ways of a Rider with them, for we don't know how much Brom taught you," Ajihad spoke lastly, causing Eragon to think back on all the lessons Obara-Elda and Jormun-Elda had given him since that day in the glade.
Then the topic of the dwarves came up, and how he represented two most abhorrent things to many of them, as a dragon rider and as a human dragon rider.
'Because these people couldn't forget dragons eating their cattle thousands of years ago, and Galbatorix is a precedent for how every Dragon Rider of the human race is going to act.' he thought to Saphira, his anger only succeeding in causing her to laugh, her chest rumbling at his predicament.
"What do I do now?" Eragon asked after Ajihad told them about the formation of an Urgal army in the Beors.
"Now?" Ajihad spoke, "Now there is nothing but wait for the Urgal army. Tronjheim hasn't been found yet, but it is only a matter of time. Until then rest, for you have covered a great distance in a week. Your skills in magic and weapons shall be tested and after that, we will decide what you will do."
"What about me?" Murtagh asked suddenly, almost causing Eragon to punch him at the scare he gave him.
"You will be imprisoned until we can guarantee the safety of the residents of Farthen Dûr and you allow the twins into your mind" Ajihad responded sharply. Eragon didn't even argue, knowing that despite being dead for more than a decade, Morzan still was a name that evoked terror in the hearts of many. And as disgusting as it was, Murtagh will always be viewed as Morzanson before he would be seen as his own man.
Murtagh just nodded in acceptance and sat quietly after that before Ajihad turned towards him and raised Zar'roc from beneath the table.
"I am returning the blades to you, but I would suggest you don't carry Zar'roc with you in the city. This blade has not created good memories, and it will paint you in a negative light to be seen carrying the blade of Morzan."
Eragon accepted the red blade and strapped it to his side before doing the same with the purple one. "Let them what they think, this blade has saved my and Saphira's life more times than I can count. If someone has a problem, they can take it up with me." his tone broke no argument as he stood up from the table causing Ajihad's eyes to tighten as he nodded once.
"Now that Brom is dead, I think this ring should be yours. He will want you to have it." Ajihad said as he handed him the sapphire inlaid ring of Brom, the jewel having the same symbol as the one Arya had on her shoulder. Nodding in thank, Eragon slipped the ring on his right pointer finger before he stepped back. His eyes moved to Murtagh and he squeezed his shoulder, receiving a nod in return before he turned as Ajihad shouted for Orik, the amiable dwarf they had met at the entrance of Farthen Dûr. After shouting at him for his insubordination, Ajihad assigned him as the guide of the Dragon and Rider.
Two days later when he woke, it was to an incessant knocking against the door of the cave they were in. Yawning widely, Eragon stood up and walked towards the door after strapping his swords to his hips. Opening the door, he found Orik standing below him, the dwarf's fist a few inches from his groin. Both of them looked at the fist for a few moments before Eragon coughed and steeped a little back while Orik cracked up, laughing so hard that he almost fell on the floor.
"Good Morning to you too Orik" Eragon huffed, not finding the thought of getting hit by a dwarf's fist there funny in any way.
"Ah...Good Morning Eragon" Orik gasped out as he finally stood up,
"Come now, I will show you the training fields. There you will test your blade against the finest warriors of Varden and then your magical proficiency will be tested by the Twins."
"No need for that Orik," Eragon said as he woe his shirt and climbed over Saphira. "I already know the location of the training grounds since Saphira saw them yesterday. If you want you can come with us."
"No!" Orik shook his head so fast that for a moment Eragon worried it might break. "A dwarf's feet are supposed to be on the ground. I will come upon my legs, you go and fly to the grounds."
Huffing out smoke at him and leaving the dwarf coughing, Saphira ran out of the cave and landed upon the Isidar Mithrim, her ivory claws not scratching the great gemstone beneath them in the slightest.
'Why do they call it a Sapphire when it is not blue like my scales?" Saphira questioned, turning around her neck to look at him with a large blue eye. Eragon just patted her head in response and sent his amusement and confusion both to her, causing her to hum a little before she leaped from the Great Sapphire. Spiraling down towards the marble floor beneath them, her wings flared out at the last moment as she flew towards the edge of Tronjheim where the Varden and the Dwarves trained. He flew over the people living in the great city, his ears almost deafened by the cheers which rose up from below them at his passing. Saphira immediately rose up in the air, knowing his increased hearing was unaccustomed to such loud noises yet. Moments later, she landed at the edge of the large fields which acted as the training area.
Their arrival caused a mass silence over the soldiers in front of them before a harsh voice barked "Get back to training you lackwits! The arrows and swords aren't going to kill an Urgal by themselves!". Immediately everyone returned o their work, arrows being launched at rucksacks, pikemen training in marches, and the infantry practicing in combat with swords and axes.
A giant of a man moved towards them, his muscles built more powerfully than Horst and Roran, with a giant greatsword strapped to his back, the blade almost as long as the man himself!
"I am Fredric, the overseer of these sorry lots." the man said, his thumb pointing towards the soldiers behind him.
"Eragon, Rider of Saphira." he said in response, his hand moving forward to shake with the giant' offered one. An attempt to crush his bones was made, one Eragon more than matched with his grip, causing Fredric's expression to tighten before he said "You here to train? Ajihad sent word to make you fight the best fighters we have."
Eragon nodded in response and moved into the field while Saphira moved a little backward. Fredric unsheathed his monster sword while Eragon unsheathed his own blades. He was about to block the edges when Fredric looked past him towards someone, his expression growing stormy.
Saphira sent him the reason for the commander's anger, causing him to sigh and turn towards the Twins or as the Eldunari had told him yesterday, the most likely ones to be spying for Galbatorix. It was only the lack of proof and his own disobedience of Ajihad's demands to have his mind checked that stopped him from speaking anything because as Jormun pointed out, the Varden will sooner kill him and Saphira than trust even a possible rogue rider who was already on thin ice, with only a dead man's word keeping him alive.
"You were told to stay away from the training area." Fredric snarled out, his body looming over the Twins. "Get out of here before I throw you out!"
The Twins only smirked at him with arrogance and gave him a dismissive glance before they turned towards Eragon.
"Ajihad wishes for us to teat Eragon's proficiency in magic, and we can't do that if you have tired him out by banging metal." Fredric looked almost ready to gut them where they stood when Eragon sighed and walked towards the Twins, shaking his head at the giant man beside him.
Scowling at the magicians, Fredric moved away when the Twins turned towards him and asked together
"Have you given the invitation of joining Du Vrangr Gata any thought?"
"No, I am not going to bind some organization, and especially without some counsel," he said politely, bowing his head a little.
The Twins scowled at him before one of them removed a ring from his finger and told him to levitate it. Grasping the well of power within him, he focused on the ring in his palm.
"Rïsa!"
The ring immediately floated off and came to stop at the height of his eyes. The Twins smiled at him before he felt pressure come upon the ring, forcing it to sink till it was level with his chest. His eyes flashed purple in his rage and he put more power into the spell, causing the ring to shoot up once again. From then it became a game of tug of war with the twins pulling the ring downwards and Eragon pushing it upwards, his power more than a match for the two mages.
When both of the Twins were sweating compared to a barely present sheen on his forehead, they stopped resisting his efforts and let the ring float upwards without resistance.
"Manipulate that water in as many shapes as you can.", the right one said, his finger raised towards a barrel of water kept nearby.
'They want to learn your knowledge of the Ancient Language' Saphira said to him, her physical snarling easily telling of her views.
'Let them try, if I can maintain my concentration, I should require much fewer words than they intend for me to use.'
"Adurna Rïsa" he said, the water rising at his command before he used the ancient name for water once more, using it as the focal point to shape the mental image of water into an arrow. His power did the same physically, the unformed blob of water forming into an arrow near-instantaneously. After that, it became increasingly easy to change it into a sword, a snake, and a necklace, all made of liquid water given form by his mind.
When he finally let the water splash on the ground, Saphira sent him the image of the twins scowling at him mightily, no doubt infuriated by his success. From then on he was made to manipulate the earth the same way, break a rock, heal a cut…all of which he did without any difficulty.
"We are impressed Rider, you truly are a powerful mage. However, there is one more task that any competent magician should be able to accomplish." the left one said as he handed him the ring they had used at the start. "Summon the essence of Silver and we shall tell Ajihad that you are proficient, otherwise he shall have you train under us to bring you up to the task of being a Rider."
"What the…?' Eragon thought as he imagined the nastiest ways to kill the things in front of him. The twins were smiling widely, their eyes shining with glee before a voice shouted.
"STOP!"
"-ihad that the Elf has woken up!"
Arya immediately shot up, her hand ready to break the neck of the woman in front of her before she dry heaved at the side of the bed, the residual effects of poison making her terribly weak for the moment. As the spinning room came to a stop, she made out the woman standing in front of her to be Trianna, the resident sorceress of the Varden.
Raising a hand to stop the sorcerer from coming to her aid, Arya took some deep breaths and strengthened her mental barriers before she stood up. Her body was weak from her weeks of starvation and dehydration, but it was still more powerful and faster than anything a human could boast of.
Trianna gave a pitcher of water and brought her swords and leather breeches to her. She drank the water quickly, the liquid soothing her parched throat, memories of a Dragon-Rider rescuing her, talking with her, and healing her came to the forefront of her mind. Within moments she was out of the room with her sword and bow at her hips and back with an apple in her hand. With swift steps, she walked towards the training area, intent on regaining all the lost strength and getting into shape as soon as possible.
The first thing when she came to her destination was a blue dragon sitting on the ground. Her eyes almost welled up with tears as the physical proof of their years of work sat in front of her, the majestic beast spanning around 50 feet from her snout to the tip of the tail. Her eyes then sought out the Rider who rescued her from Durza, despite being a Shur'tugal for less than six months.
'And isn't that wonderful? Princess of Elves rescued by a human rider less than six months old'
She found him instantly, his crimson-streaked hair and purple eyes giving her a pause for a moment before she saw the Twins standing in front of him. She saw them place a ring in his hands and heard their request, igniting the already smoldering pit of anger within her.
"STOP!" she shouted, stalking forwards towards the suddenly terrified vermin. Her eyes snapped towards them and she snarled "Shame on you for demanding something from a new rider which only a Master can do!" she felt her brows crease together, and peripherally she was aware of the awed and admiring look the RIder was giving her.
"Arget!" she barked, a shimmering replica of the ring appearing next to the one in Eragon's palm and the twins scurried away hurriedly, their robes flapping around them.
Drawing her sword she turned towards Eragon and found herself taken aback momentarily at the intensity of his gaze upon her. Steeling herself she looked around at everyone gathered, before she walked back and spoke, "Draw your blade Rider, and we shall see how much Brom taught you, and how much you need to learn."
To her surprise, Eragon unsheathed both of the blades present with him. The purple and red swords no doubt made by Rhunön-Elda for RIders of the old. Both of them blocked their edges and for a moment no one moved, her emerald eyes trained on his purple ones as they both waited for the other to make a move. She was surprised by his patience…but taking that for the hesitation at a fight against a woman, she felt her ire grow as she rushed forwards at a human's speed.
She went for a diagonal slash, something which would have opened up her enemy from hip to shoulder, only for Eragon to move his body enough to just dodge the blow. He brought his sword up towards her face, the blade gripped backward in his hands, only his speed was more than enough to exceed a human by leagues.
Her eyes widened in shock, and it was only decades of training that enabled her to angle her blade downwards, allowing her to make Eragon's blade slide against her blade and then duck underneath his arm.
She turned around, her eyes finding the pleased smirk on his face, and the shocked look of those around her. Before she could think anything else, Eragon almost flew off the ground with a single jump, his swords coming at her chest and legs both from different directions. Now moving as fast as she was able to, Arya easily spun out of the attack and launched a flurry of strikes toward the grinning human. Her blade was incessant in its movement, but so was Eragon.
She launched an overhead strike, only for Eragon to parry the blow and stab her chest. She moved towards her right and spun around to slash at him with her left hand instead of the right she had been using. Eragon jumped back from the blow, but he wasn't fast enough to avoid it completely, her sword having caught him on his wrist. The red sword fell down from his fingers as he hissed at the sudden pain, glaring at her with his purple eyes. Now armed with only one blade, Eragon looked warier of her, his sword held tightly in his fingers while he stood with his sword arm in front of his body.
This time he initiated the bout, his blade coming down whistling towards her neck with impressive speed, but Arya was able to raise her sword to block the blow.
However, when the blades came in contact, Eragon's blade shattered her elven sword into pieces…and went forwards unimpeded towards her face.
She closed her eyes instinctively, waiting for the pain to come, but the only sound which reached her ears was the sound of her blade's pieces falling to the ground. She opened her eyes to the sight of Eragon's sword stilled a moment away from breaking her head, and his purple eyes looking at her with worry and fear. Both of them were panting from the intensity of their spar and for a moment, Arya found herself quirking up her lips in a facsimile of a smile before Orik shouted
"By Gûntera! That was the most amazing spar I have ever seen!" Immediately the world came rushing back to her senses and Eragon lowered his blade before removing the edge-blocking spell from it. As he went off to recover his other sword, she looked stoically at the hilt and crossguard in her hands, the beautiful leaf-shaped blade now nothing more than shrapnel.
She had dreamed of stabbing Durza's black heart with this very weapon, a weapon she had used since her the day she had taken the Yawë. Now it was broken, just like her dream.
"Arya, I am sorry for breaking your sword. I should have minded my strength better." Eragon apologized, breaking her from her thoughts.
Nodding slowly, Arya gathered the remains of her sword and dropped them into the hip-pouch she wore before she stood up, only to come face to face with the last female dragon in existence.