Disclaimer: I have no affiliation with the Eragon books or Movie, at all!!! I only wish I did. There are a few characters in this story that are fictional.
Chapter 4
No sooner had Eragon and Saphira touched down, when Brom arrived, sword drawn, an intense loathing piercing his eyes.
"Eragon, help get the civilians to safety!" he yelled. "I can handle this for now, have Saphira take the injured back to the city."
Without hesitation Eragon dismounted adjacent to a burning wagon. Saphira swung her tail, sending embers flying into the Ra'zac and the debris scattering to a safe distance from the rest of the caravan and civilians. Eragon smoothly ducked a flaming chunk of wood and cast aside another to gain access to an elderly woman, pinned under the wheel of a flaming wagon. Using the dragon's aid and a little magic, he had the entire family free and on Saphira's back ready for flight in moments.
"Fly smoothly, Saphira," he reminded.
"You do not need to tell me such silly things, young one. I will return when they are safe with their clan," she replied, briskly soaring toward the city.
Brom, who had been holding his own against the Ra'zac and pulling a few more trapped or stranded humans and elves alike was in dire need of help, and quickly becoming overpowered. The young rider felt this, long before his friend came into view, thoughtlessly he began to make his way to the fight. Brom had been pinned underneath a Ra'zac and was just centimeters from still raging flames.
"Brom, roll to your left so your out of the way," Eragon shouted.
"Get back to the people, boy, they are you're priority."
"No!" he replied stubbornly and repeated his order.
As Brom rolled to his side Eragon pulled an arrow from his quiver, aimed and pierced the Ra'zac. Brom quickly got up, dusted himself off, and made his way to the troughs for horses, either, leaving or arriving town, in an attempt to deal with the remaining fire. He'd been slightly injured and knew magic would be a risk and had lost sight of Eragon. He could rely only on instinct to squelch the fires. Most of the travelers were now safe and he needed to tend to his wounds, so reluctantly he half walked, half stumbled to the embankment and tried to call to Eragon or Saphira.
Less than five minutes later Eragon and Saphira appeared in the sky above him and with great pain he raised himself to meet the pair, dragon and rider, as they landed only a dragon's tail length from him.
"Brom, you're hurt. Where? We must get you to a healer, I've tired myself with the injured and I have learned what my physical limits are. I won't risk myself and you." His voice wavered slightly as he spoke this last.
"It's nothing serious, my boy, just a tired old man, who can't take as much damage as he once could. Help me onto Saphira. She'll know where to take me." Saphira smiled down at Brom.
"You're not so old, dragon rider," Saphira comforted.
Eragon helped Brom onto Saphira's saddle and was about to take Brom's spooked horse and meet them at the gates of Ellesmere when they all heard a clamoring from one of the burnt and overturned wagons.
"Did you hear that?" they young rider asked Brom.
"I'm sure it was just the tortured wood settling, my old house used to make that sound all night," he said with a laugh.
Eragon strained to make the final adjustments to secure Brom, who had grown weak, when there was a crash and the woosh, smack, of an arrow hitting it's target. Eragon was nearly to the ground before Saphira caught him on her talon.
"No! Oh, please no. Stay with me rider. Stay with me. I stayed with you. now you must stay with me." Saphira was horrified.
Brom had gathered his strength and eased his wounded body off the dragon catching a glimpse of someone hiding behind some broken plywood and brush. Grabbing Eragon's bow he shot down the archer where he stood, walked over taking the rest of the arrows with him in case he needed to identify a toxin and pulled himself back onto Saphira.
"Hurry to Ellesmera, before you lose your strength, Saphira," Brom urged, and they flew, Eragon dangling nearly lifeless from his dragon's talons.