Welcome everyone to chapter 4!

Amira's about to get some understanding of this strange world as she has a chit-chat with a hero of ours.

I hope you enjoy and let's get right into this!


Amira ran blindly through the forest, pushing aside branches and bushes that got in her way.

After running a good distance, she figured she was far enough away and slumped against a tree in a tiny clearing. She put her head between her knees and tried to steady her breathing as her mind reeled.

What she had seen in the blond boy's mind…

She saw buildings as tall as mountains, giant and powerful beings, monsters she couldn't begin to imagine, and so many other things she couldn't wrap her head around. It physically gave her a headache just to try and think of it! But she knew one thing for sure:

Amira wasn't in Alagaesia anymore.

And from what she saw, Jason Grace wasn't even a complete human! Apparently, he and the other people who lived in that area were only half-human and their other half was a powerful deity. Never before had she ever even heard of anything like this place; there were no elves in this land, no dwarves or Urgals or Dragons. There were only humans.

Amira curled herself into a ball as she attempted to calm her shaking breath. She wished more than anything in the world, this one and Alagaesia, that Belinda was with her. Or Eragon. Or Arya or anyone really. Amira would even be grateful for Murtagh with her at this point and she hated Murtagh.

She felt a pain on her arm and remembered the cut Jason's golden sword had given her. She spoke the words to heal it but frowned as it was again significantly harder to use the spell, hating the weakness of magical energy here. She finished her spell and leaned her head back against the tree's trunk.

"Hey. You okay?"

Amira's head snapped up to see Jason Grace standing a few feet away, holding her sword. She quickly jumped to her feet and her hand moved to wipe away the few tears that escaped.

"Yes. Please just... just go away. Please..." Amira mentally cursed as her voice shook despite her efforts otherwise.

Jason looked confused but didn't go. Instead, he stepped forward and placed Amira's sword on the ground in front of her before moving back. She nodded her silent thanks.

"If you were okay, then you wouldn't be crying." He pointed out. He moved to sit by the tree she had previously occupied and gestured for her to join him. Despite her suspicions, Amira sat though she retained a good distance between them. Jason noticed her obvious hesitation and a small smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.

"You look like you could use some company." He explained. "Consider it a treat because you did just try to slice me in half a minute ago."

"I- uh, I apologize for my actions." Amira apologized awkwardly. "I have recently been through a very bad experience and am still healing. I remain wary of all I meet."

"Do you mind if I ask what it was?" Jason asked, shifting to sit cross-legged. Amira looked at him in confusion; he was being surprisingly kind.

"I… I was involved in a large battle that finally ended two days ago. At least… two days ago in my world." She muttered the last part so only she could hear but Jason was frowning.

"Two days ago? How long was this battle?" He asked.

"It began hundreds of years ago but was ended by a great man the day before yesterday," Amira replied without thinking and served to make the blond really confused.

""Hundreds of years?" The only large battle I heard of was the war that ended a few months ago and the one before that was a year or two before. Where was this?" Jason wondered confusedly.

"Not a place you would know." Amira shook her head sadly, playing with a strand of her purple hair. If possible, Jason was now even more confused. He was sure he knew of everywhere on Earth. Unless…

"Where exactly are you from?" He asked suspiciously. Amira said nothing, eyes closed. "Then will you at least tell me your name?"

Jason sighed when silence was his answer; he wasn't getting anywhere with this strange purple girl. He tried to think of something to say but thought of nothing that would clarify the situation and wouldn't risk triggering her into an attack again.

Amira reached forwards and grabbed up her sword. She crossed her legs and placed it atop them, running her hand over the flat of the blade. Her heart ached as she remembered why it was forged for her, why the blade had its color: for her dragon. Her blade was forged when she became Belinda's Rider and her heart was hurting at the thought of her partner of soul. She looked up and saw Jason Grace still sitting across from her. She sighed.

"Amira."

"What?" Jason looked up, momentarily caught off guard.

"You asked for my name: my name is Amira." She repeated. Jason finally gave her a smile.

"I'm Jason." He introduced in return. Amira returned the smile slightly, now knowing a name in this strange world. Then she frowned.

"You have not answered my question yet." She remembered. Her grip on the hilt of Arvindr tightened.

"What question?" The half-blood asked.

"Were you in league with Galbatorix?" Amira repeated warily.

"No, I don't know who he is." Jason shook his head. "Sorry if you were hoping for a yes."

The Alagaesian Rider stood, keeping her sword in her hand but relaxing her grip slightly. Jason stood as well, though his actions were wary.

"I was not. Was anyone else in this place in league with the Dark King?" She continued.

"No. He's- look, no one here knows who he is." He told her as he again shook his head. Amira inwardly sighed in relief; at least the threat of the king's followers wasn't there.

"Do you consider yourself an ally to good?" She decided to ask him. Jason raised a brow.

"Of course."

"Do you consider your actions to be those of valor and good worth?"

"I guess, yeah. Where are you trying to go with this?" The son of the sky wondered.

"My questions are helping me to decide whether to trust you or not. You did attack me." Amira reminded.

"Well, you attacked me first." Jason countered with a shrug. Amira took a breath and decided that she would trust him unless given a reason not to, needing more information about this world. "So… who are you exactly?"

"I was going to ask you the same but since you said so first…" Amira placed three fingers on her forehead in the traditional Elvish greeting and bowed slightly. "Eka eddyr aí shur'tugal un aí fricai."

"Huh?" Jason gave her a questioning look and Amira realized he was asking what she had said.

"I am a Rider and a friend." She translated.

"My turn I guess. I am Jason Grace, son of Jupiter, consul to demigods, Pontifex Maximus to New Rome, and a demigod of the Prophecy of The Seven. " He announced, returning her bow.

Amira didn't understand a word he said but still, she pretended to. Then Jason tilted his head in thought.

"What's a Rider?"

At first, Amira was confused as everyone knew who the Dragon Riders were, then she remembered that she was someplace else. She opened her mouth to answer him but was interrupted by someone calling Jason's name. Her reflexes kicked in and she quickly grabbed Arvindr again as she spun towards the direction of the voice. Jason placed a hand on her arm, lowering it slightly.

"They're just my friends. You can trust them." He told her, recognizing the voice. Amira nodded slowly but she still wasn't sure. After all, in a world such as this, she didn't know anything or anyone.

"You say I can trust your friends yet I barely trust you. So why should I place trust in those I do not know?" She asked cautiously. Jason shrugged.

"They're good guys, I promise." He took his hand off her shoulder and put it by his mouth. "I'm over here, guys!"

His sudden shout startled Amira as she wasn't expecting the action. She could hear the voices coming closer then noticed Jason wince. She looked down and saw a long scrape across his forearm. It wasn't bleeding but it was red and looked painful.

"Was I the cause of your wound?" Amira asked, gesturing to his arm. Jason looked at the scrape.

"Nah. A branch whipped me earlier." He explained. Amira stabbed her sword into the ground and held out her hand. Jason raised an eyebrow.

"If you allow me, I can heal that for you." She offered. "To make up for my earlier attack, I mean."

Jason was curious how and so he nodded and held his arm out. Amira took his wrist in her hand and placed her Gedwëy ignasia above the scratch before muttering her spell of healing. Her palm glowed its silver light once again and Jason's eyes widened as the wound began to heal. But Amira ignored him and tried to concentrate.

Like before every time she tried casting that spell in this new world, it was significantly harder. It seemed like it was just that one spell of healing though, the magic she used during her battle didn't require such strength.

The wound eventually faded and the faint scar it left disappeared so Amira released the spell and Jason's wrist. Her shoulders slumped and her breathing was slightly deeper than normal. Jason grabbed her arm to steady her.

"That was incredible. H-How did you do that?" He asked, clearly impressed. Amira shrugged lightly.

"Magic." She replied simply. Jason frowned but nodded, still impressed.

Three people then suddenly entered the small clearing, two girls and one boy, and Amira started. She was surprised by their sudden appearance and mentally scolded herself for not being more aware of her surroundings.

"Hey, guys." Jason greeted as he moved his hand from Amira's.

"Jason Grace, what the Hades happened to you?!" One of the girls demanded in greeting. Jason tilted his head in an 'I don't understand' expression. "We were playing capture the flag then suddenly there was lightning and glowing lights everywhere and when we found you, you were fighting her-" She gestured to Amira, "-then you just ran off!"

"It's not my fault Pipes." Jason tried. "Yes, I did end up battling with Amira but I -"

"Who?" The dark-haired boy interrupted.

"Me," Amira inputted. Five pairs of eyes turned to her and she suddenly felt uneasy as she didn't usually like being the center of attention. "My name is Amira."

"Oh yeah," Jason remembered. "Amira, these are my friends: Annabeth, Percy, and Piper. Guys, this is Amira."

He gestured to each in turn and Amira took a second to take in the sight and details of each of them:

Piper had darker skin and brown hair that was cut choppy and unevenly with thin strands braided down on the sides with several feathers added. Her eyes seemed to change colors repeatedly as she gave Amira a wary look.

Annabeth had curly blonde hair with an odd gray streak in it. She was tall, fit, and looked very athletic. Her eyes were an intense shade of gray.

Percy was handsome, Amira would admit that. He had messy black hair and like Annabeth, had a gray streak. Like Jason, he also had a strange mark on his arm but Amira couldn't see it clearly. His eyes were a beautiful shade of sea-green.

"We should head back now guys. The campfire should be starting about now." Annabeth announced. S the five started off, Amira following behind the small group. While walking, Percy asked Amira,

"I guess the million-dollar question is if we can trust you. How do we know that you're not an evil spy or something? You did attack Jason after all." He pointed out.

"As I told Jason Grace, the reason for my attack was because I feared he may have been an accomplice of a former enemy of mine. As for my trustworthiness," Amira repeated the Elvish greeting. "Eka eddyr aí shur'tugal un aí fricai."

Amira was so used to being around elves and Riders who knew the Ancient Language that she again forgot that none of these people would know what she said.

"What does that mean?" Piper asked, ducking to avoid a low branch.

"I am a Rider and a friend." Jason translated, remembering what Amira told him before. Amira gave him an impressed look and he smiled back.

"What's a Rider?" Annabeth asked with a raised brow but Percy interrupted what Amira would have said.

"What I want to know is who that enemy is? Gaea and Kronos are gone so who was the bad guy this time?" He demanded

"Not a being you would know," The Alagaesian told him honestly.

"Maybe we would. This world is full of surprises after all." Percy retorted with a raised brow. Amira felt her heart clenched at the reminder that she was someplace completely different from her homeland.

"Jason Grace has already informed me of your intentions." She told him, her usually gentle voice getting harder as her annoyance grew.

"But maybe one of us is a traitor? The others would want to know who we're working for." The dark-haired demigod countered. Amira gritted her teeth; this boy was starting to irk her.

"Even if I told you who my enemy is, it would not matter for he is now dead." She told him. Percy frowned.

"Wait, how can you work for someone who's dead?" He wondered. Annabeth face-palmed.

"She means that you could be working for them before they died but didn't surrender after." She explained before turning to Amira. "But seriously, who?"

Amira sighed, realizing there was no escape from the question.

"His name was Galbatorix. He was known as the Black King and was being fought against in a war until he was killed two days before now. We fear, however, that one of his accomplices might have escaped and may still be a threat. I did not want to take chances." She relented. Annabeth nodded slowly at the younger girl's explanation, completely confused.

"Okaaay… Well, you were right that none of us heard of him bef- wait, did you say war?"

Amira was about to nod then paused. Did she want these strange people to know about her and Alagaesia? Maybe… maybe after she learns more about this place.

She was tugged from her thoughts when something tickled her nose and caused her to sneeze. As a natural reaction, she bent over as she sneezed, ducking her head and sending her purple hair flying over her shoulders. She then whipped her head back to see the four staring at her hair as if just barely noticing it.

"Your hair is… purple." Piper stated with surprise in her voice.

"I am aware. I have had it as so my entire life." The young Rider agreed slowly, tucking a few strands from her face behind her pointed ear.

"That's... it's really pretty. Is it dyed?"

"Um… no?"

"So you mean to tell us that you were born with purple hair?" Annabeth challenged as she crossed her arms.

"Yes. I was born in a place far away and so I am unlike those here." Amira half-lied.

"What kind of hereditary genes do you have to make your hair an entirely distinguishing and unorthodox tone of color?" The blonde questioned.

Amira blinked blankly.

"I do not understand anything you said." She confessed.

"Did someone in your family have the same color hair?" Annabeth clarified. Amira looked down slightly.

"I do not know. I had never met my parents; I was raised by my Aunt and my Uncle throughout my life and neither had color such as mine. But they too died and I after joined The Ri-"

Amira was about to say she joined the Riders where Eragon cared for her but she managed to cut herself off in time; she didn't want these people to know of her world quite yet.

"Joined the what?" The daughter of Athena urged but Amira shook her head.

"It is of no importance or relevance."

Annabeth looked suspicious but dropped the subject. Amira inwardly sighed. After that she sort of just zoned out as they walked, trying to think of a way to return home.

"Wait a sec… Amira, look at me." Startled by the sudden command, Amira glanced up to Percy with her eyes slightly widened

"Whoa!" He exclaimed.

"What?" Jason asked.

"Her eyes are purple too, bro! That's so weird!" Percy reported.

Amira was suddenly feeling very self-conscious from the attention as Annabeth, Piper, and Jason were now staring at her. She unconsciously grabbed a strand of her hip-length hair and twirled it around her finger. Piper broke the silence.

"Why do you like purple so much? Your hair, your eyes, your sword; they're all purple. How come?" She asked. Amira felt herself getting irritated by all the questions.

"As I said before: the color of my hair and my eyes are natural and I cannot change that." She frowned. "Arvindr, my sword, is the same color because that is how it was made. Swords like mine are made as they are for a reason. Green, red, blue, purple; I did not choose the color."

"How come they're colored?" Jason wondered. Amira pressed her lips together and rolled her eyes.

"Because that is how they are made!" She exclaimed. "My sword was made for me when I joined a group with my friends and in return, they received swords as well. We each were given a color and none of us questioned why. Is that an answer you deem understandable or do you four have even more questions you would like to ask?!"

The two boys and girls' eyes widened at Amira's sudden outburst. They gave each other looks before turning back to the purple-haired girl

"Okay, geez, we'll stop asking questions. But you didn't have to blow up like that." Piper relented, voice offended.

Amira didn't bother with an apology as it would have been a lie. Percy gave her one last glance before continuing to lead them from the forest.


And that concludes the fourth chapter of A Strange and Different Land!

Thank you all for reading and I hope you chose to continue the story. Please feel free to leave a review. Criticism, advice, complements or corrections are welcome.

Have a good one and I'll see you later!