Chapter 6: To Name a Dragon

A/N: Just a short note, I've taken the liberty of rearranging a few things to make my own story make sense. First of all, elves and Hylians are of the same skill potential. Secondly, I figured that if Link was able to defeat Ganondorf, King of Evil, he would stand a fighting chance against even an exceptional elf. If I think of any more I'll let you know. Now, on with the story.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Instantly, Arya drew two short, curved swords and spun forward in Link's direction. The first thing he noticed was her speed. She was incredible! Link was able to parry her attacks without too much difficulty, but her speed matched that of his own, which astounded him.

To Nasuada and Orik, their duel appeared to move like lightning. Both of their mouths were wide open in amazement.

Link found a break in Arya's offensive and quickly countered it into his own aggressive attack. Now she was the one doing the parrying without time to attack. Neither of them seemed to tire. Arya did have one advantage, however, and that was mobility. She wielded nothing but two short blades, while Link was carrying the Master Sword in his left hand and his large Hylian Shield in his right. Parrying was made much easier for him, but his attacks didn't come as quickly as Arya's, as she could link several attacks into one with her more flexible fighting style. He was forced to rely more on defense.

The duel raged for hours upon hours, literally. Nasuada and Orik, who had at first been fascinated with the duel, had now become bored out of their minds. Jörmundur joined later to watch the spectacle, which provided some refreshment to them after hours of staring at two pointy-eared people fight.

Link noticed a bead of sweat drop from Arya's brow. She was tiring. Link was certain he was as tired as she, but he still had plenty of juice left.

Link was the first to make contact with skin. Arya made a quick horizontal swing, which Link dodged, and then he maneuvered to her left and made a quick brush across her shoulder, and then blocked a second attack with his shield. The blade had not affected Arya's skin, of course, but in battle would have proved to be a small encumbrance.

Arya was angered by his quick move. She charged on with renewed vigor, determined to bring him down.

Suddenly, Link felt something in his head. It was strange; it almost felt like a presence. It took him a minute to make the connection, but as soon as he felt that presence, it was like Arya saw every move Link made before he did it and countered it. Link was suddenly overwhelmed. He fought to get the presence out of his head while concentrating on the duel, but to no avail. It didn't take long for Arya to defeat him. She knocked him to the ground and held the tip of her short sword to his throat. Link only disliked her more for the arrogant look on her face afterward.

Link heard clapping. As he stood up, no thanks to Arya, he saw Orik, Nasuada, and Jörmundur applauding. He had not seen Jörmundur come in. Of course, he had been much too focused on his fight with Arya.

"Excellent!" said Jörmundur. "The best swordplay I've seen in years!"

"You'll be an excellent ally to the Varden!" said Nasuada.

"Eragon would be impressed," said Orik. Everyone agreed, and then grew solemn. Link suspected they worried for their hero.

"Link, sit," said Arya, somewhat winded. Link sat on a rock in front of her with distaste. Not only was she a better fighter than him, but also she was arrogant and rude.

"You are an exceptional fighter," said Arya, although no emotion showed. "It is time to teach you the ways of magic. I suspect you felt a… presence in your mind before I defeated you?"

"Yes," said Link gruffly.

"That was I. I used magic to enter your mind and cause you to lose focus. Magic is much more complex and at the same time much simpler than you would think," Arya explained. "Magic requires mental concentration, and the first thing you should learn how to do is to speak with your dragon. I doubt it is old enough to speak back to you, but you might be able to find out its gender."

Link nodded. "How do I do it?" he asked.

"It is difficult to learn to do at first, but once you know how to do it, it will get much simpler very quickly. I want you to reach out with your mind and touch your dragon's consciousness," said Arya.

"How do I do that?" Link asked.

Arya sighed impatiently and put her index fingers together. "Just try."

Annoyed, Link closed his eyes. Remembering the feeling he experienced when his dragon first hatched, Link tried the same thing he had that morning. It took a moment, but suddenly, he felt something. He could tell his dragon had stopped prancing around and had realized Link was trying to communicate with him. Link finally found the will to penetrate its mind. He felt a sense of playfulness. He dug deeper. It was there that Link experienced the feeling of determination and strong willpower. Link realized that when this dragon grew up, it would be a fierce warrior. He also felt very masculine emotions that denoted it was a male.

Link began to withdraw from the dragon's mind when he heard something in his head.

Link.

Link instantly knew it was his dragon talking to him, and also that it was male, for it was a masculine voice in his head.

Link.

"Arya, my dragon's talking to me," said Link. Arya shook her head.

"Is it saying your name?" she asked. Link nodded. "It is merely learning your name. Did you discover its gender?"

"Yes, he is male," said Link. Arya breathed a sigh of relief.

"Is that a good thing?" Link asked.

"Yes," said Arya. "If the Riders are to return, we will need a mate for Saphira; she is the only female dragon of the three that have hatched. If Saphira dies before she is able to lay eggs, the entire dragon race will diminish forever."

"So, you're saying my dragon will have to be Saphira's mate?" Link asked. Arya nodded.

"Why not Thorn?" Link asked. Arya rolled her eyes.

"You know why not Thorn. He and Murtagh are loyal to Galbatorix," she said.

"But there's got to be some way to turn them," Link said. "I don't understand why Murtagh would just betray Eragon like that when they were such good friends."

"Link, perhaps you do not know this, but Galbatorix knows both Thorn's and Murtagh's true names. When one knows a person's true name, or rather, their name in the ancient language, they have complete control over them. Once he learned their names, he forced them by way of magic to swear fealty to him. They have no choice. The only way to release them from this spell is to either kill them or Galbatorix himself," she explained.

Link held his head in his hands. He still had no idea how their world worked.

"Now that that is understood," she said, "we must pick a name for your dragon."

"A name?" Link asked. "How am I to come up with one?"

Arya motioned to Jörmundur. He had apparently brought a book with him. The cover read: The Dragon Riders. It appeared to be a history of the Rider legacy. Arya opened it to the last page, which listed several dragon names.

"Here are but a few: Bid'Daum, Saphira, Jura, Hirador, Galzra, Briam, Gretiem, Roslarb, Shruikan, Vanilor—"

"Vanilor sounds good," said Link. Arya stared at him for a moment.

"Link, you do not just choose a dragon's name at random. This takes time, thought, and inspiration."

"I didn't choose it. Vanilor did," said Link. Arya looked at the green dragon, who was holding his head up in a seemingly proud fashion.

"Well, if that's what the dragon wants, then that's what it is," she said with finality, closing the book. Link looked to Vanilor, who came to him. Link tickled his friend under the chin and gave a small smile.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

A/N: Finally, a name for the dragon!