Chapter 5 (Rewritten)
The next day, as they rode, Brom continued to instruct Eragon into magic and other aspects, and soon the leagues began to pass by unnoticed. His knowledge grew with time and he was now able to use advanced spell like manipulating fire or water. His physical skills were improving and now, Alex was forced to train on his own part of the campfire while Brom and Eragon were working together. It was like the two young men were in a friendly competition. But the fighter with almond eyes knew the Rider still had a long way to go before he could reach his level.
Despite his progression, the adolescent still wasn't able to best the storyteller. The days began to pass quickly, and the little group found themselves in the Spine, making their way to the coast. Following the Toark River, they rode until they were proceeding down its other flank. Then, two days later, they came across a rock ledge which offered a clear view out of the mountains.
"Teirm lays just north of here. We only have three days of travel, no more."
Alex raised his arms in the air and a few joints in his back popped. "That's great because my back and my hindquarters are killing me. It's the reason I hate travelling on a horse's back."
The other two chuckled.
"Don't worry, we'll be there soon."
When the evening fell, they set up camp in the driest spot they could find. During the meal, Eragon pointed out the fact they needed to use false names, just in case of.
"My friend Jeod will not be fooled; he knows my name and I trust him with yours." Brom said after a moment. "To the others, I'll be Neal, and you two will be my nephews, Evan and…"
"Nope, I have my own nickname and I'll stick to it, out of question you give me one."
The storyteller growled but didn't say anything.
It was Saphira who first sighted Teirm. There was a heavy fog which was obscuring the trio's vision. Eragon gasped as the city was revealed to him for the first time. The city was contained behind a thick white wall, its smooth surface broken only by two iron doors at the west and south entrances. The citadel could be seen, rising high above the surrounding northeast section.
"Let's hope the guards haven't received reports of us from the Empire, or the visit could be shortened. Don't panic or act suspiciously."
«We're going in. You should land and find a place to hide. » told the farmer to his dragoness.
«Sticking your nose where it don't belong, again. »
«I know but, if anything happen, Brom and Alex will be here to protect me. »
«Are you sure about Alex? Do you think he's trustworthy? » she asked, uncertain.
«I don't know why but yes, there's something strange about him…I know he's not telling the whole truth about the Ra'zac but at the same time, I feel safe in his presence. »
«Very well, little one. I just hope he will not deceive us. »
«I hope too. »
They continued toward the gate, attempting to appear casual. At the entrance, the guards stood straighter and blocked the way with their pikes. "Wha's yer name?"
"Neal," Brom responded in a wheezy voice, and slouching to one side.
"An' who's th other ones?" asked the guard.
"This'ed be m'nephews; Leeroy n' Evan."
"Yeah, yeah. An yer business here?"
"We's visitin an old friend," supplied Eragon, dropping his voice into a thick accent.
A few moments later, they were authorized to go in the city. The houses were grim and foreboding. After stopping at a local tavern, the trio left with some indications to find Jeod's house. They entered into an herbalist shop belonging to a certain Angela who sat out front with a piece of parchment and a frog in her hands. "Excuse me, could you tell us which house is Jeod's?" Brom asked politely.
"I could," replied the woman, but continued writing.
"Will you-…"
Alex put his hand on Brom's shoulder.
"Wait, let me try. Ma'am, which house is Jeod's, please?"
"Jeod is on the right."
"Thank you ma'am, I bid you a good day."
They stopped before the door the herbalist had shown them, and Brom banged three times. No one answered. Eragon was about to suggest to try the other one but the bald man banged again. There was a pause, then they heard someone rushing at the door. A young woman cracked it open, her eyes red and puffy but her voice steady. "Yes, what do you want?"
"Does Jeod live here?" Brom asked kindly.
"Yes, he is my husband. Do you have any business with him?"
"No, but we need to speak with him. Could you give him a message for us?"
Her head nodded in consent. "Tell him an old friend of Gil'ead is waiting outside." The woman nodded again and closed the door. Eragon commented:
"That wasn't very nice of her."
They waited a few moments and suddenly, the door opened widely. A tall man burst forth and looked at them, speechless. Before he could ask a single question, Brom shushed him with a finger on his lips.
"Do you know a place where we could talk without anyone eavesdropping on us?"
His friend nodded before leading them through the streets until they reached the citadel. Jeod ushered them in a room, started a fire and began to flood Brom with questions. The storyteller's answers were vague and seeing the scowl on Eragon's face, he suggested him to check on Snowfire.
Now that he was gone, Brom could talk freely.
"Alex, I'm trusting you enough to not tell anything you're going to hear to Eragon. He don't need to know about what I'm going to say… not yet."
"Of course, my lips are sealed."
"Good."
During the conversation, Alex learned that Jeod and Brom were hired to retrieve something for someone. The old man was forced to let his friend think he was dead to complete their mission. They talked about a dwarven settlement called Tronjheim. When Jeod suggested to go back there, Brom refused, saying that Eragon and Saphira weren't ready for this. The storyteller decided to send a letter to a certain 'Ajihad' with his ring to prove it was him.
Then, they exited the building and were joined by Eragon. After a meal in a nicer tavern, the farmer decided to go out of the city to check on something. Interested by Jeod's library, Alex followed the other two to eat all the books the merchant had (not literally, of course). Fortunately and strangely, the Alagaësian written language was also exactly the same as English.
When Eragon came back, he revealed he didn't know how to read. Brom agreed to teach him how to. Then, they conversed for a time before the night fell and they decided to go to bed. Eragon and Alex were sharing the same room, with two separate beds. The latter deposed his backpack and his weapons against his nightstand and put his Glock 17 under his pillow, just to help him sleep easier. Five seconds later, he was snoring softly.
Alex carefully left the room, not wanting to wake up the other person present in it. The sun had just risen but the young man was completely awake and ready to begin his day. He tiptoed down the house, passing by the others chambers. Closing the door as gently as possible, he made his way to the gate. Soon, he was in a small forest, not far from the city but enough to not be found accidentally.
The swordsman put himself into position and began slashing everywhere around him, using different combos and mixing them together to kill imaginary enemies. The sword in his left hand was only a blur, cutting the hands, shields and heads of the foes present in his head. For him, he wasn't in the forest near Teirm but in an open field, with Urgals everywhere. The flow of time had stopped in this place, there was only him, his sword and his opponents. Alex wasn't thinking anymore, he was only relying on his instincts and his knowledge of the manipulation of the blade. Minutes passed by before he was interrupted in his training by an unknown voice in his head.
«What a strange sight to see that early in the morning. »
He stopped what he was doing and turned his head around to find who had talked. There was a small boy, no older than twelve, observing him, a few meters away and with a short sword in his right hand. There weren't many people who could speak telepathically. Something wasn't right about this child.
He gave him a fanged grin.
The young man shivered. Yeah, there's something very strange about him.
"What are you doing here, little guy? You should go back inside Teirm, these roads can be dangerous."
«You shouldn't worry for me, I'm perfectly able to defend myself. »
Before the young man could open his mouth, the herbalist he met yesterday walked from behind a bush. She had a bag full of herbs in her hands.
"There you are! One moment I'm looking away to find a new frog and the next, you're not following me anymore."
She then turned her head at Alex and looked a little surprised. "Now, I know why you left me as soon as you could. We couldn't talk freely yesterday because Brom and your friend were present but now that we are alone… I'm sure a talk with a magic-less human is something that sound interesting."
Alex's eyes widened in fear, his right hand moving to his holster on his leg but it was empty. He swore under his breath, remembering he had left his handgun under the pillow.
"Oh, you shouldn't worry!" Angela winked at him. "We're not going to denounce you to the Empire. It wouldn't be in my interest, I'm more intrigued to see what path you'll follow."
"How? What gave away the fact I'm not from here?" asked Alex, still on guard.
"Your clothes, firstly. Secondly, I couldn't sense your presence and only an expert in magic could pull something like this, I doubt you're capable of such a feat."
The herbalist whispered a few words, low enough to not be heard by the young man, and waited. A few moments later, she sighed. "Thirdly, the fact you can't be affected by the Ancient Language. Nobody should be able to do that, not even Galbatorix."
"What did you try on me?"
"Something simple, I used a spell to put a weigh on your body and force you to kneel down but it didn't work. My energy was depleting but for naught."
A smile slowly appeared on her lips.
"You had my curiosity but now, you have my attention. Who are you?"
He frowned, still on guard despite Angela's friendly behaviour. "What make you think I can trust you to give away my identity, my story? I don't know anything about you…"
"Distrustful, still? This attitude will take you far young man, we can't trust someone just because he said something we wanted to hear… seems like I'll have to prove I'm worthy of your trust." She sighed. "I'm a friend and I have no ill intent against you or your companions. I just want to sate my curiosity."
Even if he didn't understand all the words she said in Ancient Language, Alex guessed the general idea in her phrase and slightly relaxed. She was bound to her promise so telling her a few details about him wouldn't hurt, at least, that's what he hoped.
"You were right when you said I'm not from around here. I travelled to this land, thanks to this." He put his right hand under his shirt and took out the necklace with the crystal on it.
"This thing created a portal from my world to yours."
The herbalist took a hesitating step, not sure what she was seeing was real or not. "Can I observe it?"
"Sure." He replied, taking it off from his neck and handing it to her.
She walked to him, whispering a thanks before taking the object between her fingers and admired it. Words in Ancient Language left her mouth as she scrutinized it in all its details, she gasped before whipping her head up to him, a strange look in her eyes.
"How did you get your hands on this?"
"I took it from one of the Ra'zac but they had another one on them, they used it to flee from my planet to Carvahall."
"So, Galbatorix found them... and you mean you managed to use it?"
The swordsman shrugged, as if stating the obvious. "Why yes, of course."
"But –how, I mean… it shouldn't be possible, except…" For probably the first time in her life, she seemed lost. "Just exactly, who are you?"
"A simple human, just wanting to get revenge for an injustice, nothing more."
"I- I have to go, need to research something. I'm sure we'll see each other again someday." It was on those words the woman gave him back his pendant and left, walking quickly toward Teirm.
Alex tried to reach a hand to stop her. "Angela, wait!" She ignored him, rapidly disappearing between the trees and the sound of her feet against the ground fading away. What did she meant by asking this? Of course he knew who he was, the eldest son of a small family of four, raised by his mother and his father, both coming from the working class. He had nothing that made him stand out from anyone else, a nobody.
The swordsman raised his head to the sky and slightly frowned. He had forgot to keep track of the time and now, it was almost noon. He pondered on if he was going to take a break to eat something or keep training, Solembum interrupted him in his train of thoughts.
«Before leaving, there's something I have to tell you. When the time comes, and you'll know when, you'll have to make a choice. You'll must choose between two lives, save one or the other. Whatever you decide, it'll change your future, both with good advantages and bad ones. »
Before he could ask what he mean, the boy ran away.
Everyone was speaking mysteriously today, leaving his head full of questions and no answer to them.
At the moment Alex was finally alone, he exhaled loudly and sheathed his broadsword. Yep, after all the time he practiced, he still needed to improve. As if it was impossible for him to reach his maximum and beat the Ra'zac. Looking at the sea, a grin appeared on his lips. He still had a few weeks or months before confronting again the monsters, it's more than enough time to train harder.
Finally, he decided that lunch could wait and keep his body in shape was a better thing to do until the closing of the city.