Edited 6/21/07: I changed a word or two in a few places.

This is chapter 3! I hope you liked the story so far, and that you will leave a review.

-----------------------------------------

Dragon eggs! Wow! Dragon eggs! I felt like I was seven again as a sense of childlike wonder filled me.

I gazed at the eggs, feeling my joy grow. I had discovered them. Me!! It was an amazing feeling.

I walked by them again, even more reverently this time. I caressed each one, as if consoling the dragon nestled inside.

I sobered at that thought. They had much to be consoled for. Their parents, any of their relatives for that matter, were gone. They had sat here, unknowing, for hundreds of years. Can dragons survive that long? I'd heard they were immortal, but I wasn't sure how well they fared in egg form.

But, I knew someone who did. Or, I knew of someone. Eragon. Eragon, and the elves. They would know. Since no one knew where they elves were anymore (except, it was rumored, for Eragon himself), the Shadeslayer was the only hope.

But, how much hope did he bring? I had no way of knowing which, if any, of the stories were true. But it was the only hunch I had.

But, my mind suddenly supplied, was I willing to leave the eggs? What if someone else found them? What if those soldiers find a way in? What would happen? I certainly didn't know anything about magic, how could I protect them? I didn't even know swordplay, for crying out loud!

My resolve wavered. Could I bear the thought of someone else stealing my eggs? Despite the situation, I found myself chuckling at that. My eggs? That was an odd way to think of them.

That thought led me to ponder who this 'Blessed' guy was. If he was known in the olden days, he must be pretty important. But the inscription had made it seem as if when it was made, this man hadn't shown himself yet. What would I do if he walked in here now to find me among his charges? What would I do?

I decided to sleep on it. All things become clear in the fog of the night, or so my brother had always asserted, however confounding it seemed to me. Besides, running for that distance had taken a lot out of me.

I crossed to the center of the cavern. The light dimmed around me, as if sensing my need for sleep. I found a good-sized rock to rest my head on. It wasn't exactly ideal, but it worked well enough.

In that weird void between sleep and wakefulness, I thought I heard a gentle peeping.

The next morning I awoke to the gentle light of the cavern. I yawned, stretched, and sat up, ruffling my hair. It was a mess. I'd need to get a comb eventually.

As I had hoped, my answer had come to me in a dream. My dream was of that day so many years ago when my brother asked me to join him on a journey, or a quest as he called it to spark my interest. I hadn't had that dream in a long time, so I hoped I was right in my interpretation that it meant I should go in search of Eragon.

In the middle of this reverie my stomach growled uncomfortably. I hadn't eaten in a while. How was I supposed to get food now, when my bow law abandoned in Daret? I considered sneaking back to get it, but decided that would not be a good idea. I couldn't risk being captured and interrogated and revealing the eggs. I was no fool; if the soldiers wanted something I knew they could get it out of me. Or send me to someone who could.

The lighted danced in a corner of the cavern. I wearily got up to investigate. Once there, I was shocked to find that a pack filled with food and supplies had appeared. A tablet above it said, when needed, I shall reveal myself.

I was wary of it. Even more magic? Who was the guy that made this place? He must have been very powerful if his spells held out all these centuries.

Caution was overridden as my stomach panged again. I tentatively picked up the pack and opened it. Inside I found a small dagger and an iron sword. It felt very heavy in my hand, but I had a sneaking suspicion that it wasn't going to be very sturdy, or helpful for that matter, in battle. I sorely hoped I wouldn't need to battle anything… or anyone.

Also included was a smaller pack filled with a fair portion of fruits and bread. How it had survived without rotting was a mystery, but I figured it was probably another magic spell. I took a small bite of the bread. It tasted perfectly fresh, as if right out of the oven. I took a thin slice of bread and ate that, along with an orange. They tasted really good to one who had lived on what meat she could catch for so long.

This cinched it; I was going on this journey. It was if everything had been pulled together, all my doubts assuaged in one moment.

I shouldered the pack, which was made of soft leather. It felt strong and durable. I began to walk towards the hallway of sorts that led to the opening. I kept glancing back over my shoulder, looking longingly at the treasures I was leaving behind. With any luck I would return to them soon.

Upon nearing the gate, I realized that I had made a critical oversight: the doors had firmly closed behind me. How would I get them open?

I berated myself. IDIOT! That is so like me to make a mistake like this! What is wrong with me??

Given this reaction, I was more than shocked that, upon my arrival, the gates promptly opened again with another whoosh. I fervently promised myself that I would learn as much as I could about the nature and abilities of magic as soon as I had the chance.

Smiling to myself, I stepped outside into the bright sunlight. But even the sun's rays did little to dissipate the chill in the air. Winter was fast approaching. I shivered and pulled the pack tighter around my shoulders. I didn't know what good it would do, but it felt better that I was doing something.

Despite that, I was exhilarated. I had found myself an adventure, and one that seemed of vital importance. I was beginning to formulate an idea, though it might be delusional. I thought that if Eragon, the Varden, and the rest of the resistance effort knew about this, we could build a whole new army of Dragon Riders. And with them, we could overthrow Galbatorix, and maybe, just maybe, save my brother from the horror of the Empire's army. It was a slim chance, certainly, but definitely a possibility.

With that thought lightening my heart, I set off. I decided that I would head south, staying in the Spine as much as possible, until I reached Surda. The king had attacked Surda, only to find the Varden waiting for him. If anyone knew where the Varden were, it was the Surdians. Who knows, the Varden might still be there!

Using the sun as my compass like my brother had taught me, I turned southward. As I ascended higher and higher into the foothills, each hour brought colder and colder weather. Before long I was forced to stop and build a fire to keep myself warm. I was also hungry, so I took an apple out of my pack and ate it. I also decided to eat a pear and another orange, because I was worried that the fruit would rot now that it was out of its magical seal.

As I was putting out my fire, I heard the sound of snapping twigs coming nearer and nearer to my campsite. I assumed it was just some animal, foraging for food. Nonetheless, I readied my dagger.

After a time, the sounds stopped. I relaxed, but didn't sheath the dagger. I did put it down momentarily, though, to re-wrap the food and put it back in my food sack. I turned my back for a second to close my pack when I heard the snapping sticks get closer together and another, horrible-sounding sound.

It sounded like a deep screech, with a little bit of a peep mixed in. I whirled around, groping for my dagger while keeping my eyes firmly fixed to the direction of the sound.

Out of the underbrush came a bounding, stumbling creature. It was mottled grey, about the color of a peregrine falcon. It had stringy, multiple-branched wings, with the branches connected with a thin, leather-looking membrane. As it got closer, I saw that it had long claws on its feet.

Coming behind the creature was an actual falcon, screaming angrily and dive bombing the frightened animal. It was then that I noticed that the creature was holding a limp body in its jaws. I guessed that it had stolen the peregrine's prey.

The creature barreled straight towards me. Frantically, I found my dagger, slicing my finger open in the process. I cursed, resisting the urge to suck on my wound as the adrenaline pumped through my veins. The creature skidded to a halt next to me, then swiftly changed course and slid to hide behind me, shaking.

I had to feel sorry for the poor thing, especially because it certainly didn't seem to be capable of hurting me, not with the depth of its fear. The falcon screeched, diving once again. I ducked my head and at the same time flailed my arms in the air.

I felt a resistance from my one arm, and then a warm liquid trickling down my arm. I looked at it and saw fresh blood flowing from my dagger. The falcon was soaring away, holding its foot oddly.

I felt bad, having cut it. It was only doing what came naturally to it. But I hadn't meant to hurt it, and that couldn't be helped now.

The creature started to tentatively come forward, interrupting my thoughts. I watched as it slowly walked up to me and stopped in front of me. It looked up at me with soulful eyes and dropped its meat at my feet.

I bent down to pick it up. That was nice of it, to leave the meat for me. I had the strange sense that it was trying to thank me.

I looked at it, and it cocked its head to one side. It was then that I noticed its lizard-like head, the spiny back and tail. I saw its flaring nostrils and actually studied its wings.

I stood up quickly, causing it to back up a few steps. This odd looking creature was a dragon hatchling.