Hi guys, it's me again. Getting this and other chapters uploaded within the next few months is going to be a trying endeavor however i will continue to write and post whenever i can. This chapter deals with Elainae's transformation so i hope you enjoy. as always i implore you to R&R and if you want to pm me that's fine. please no flames, i know that i might not conform to set timelines etc etc but this is my first fanfic so bear with me.
Chapter 4 - set a fortnight after E&A's encounter with the spirits in Brisingr.
It was dark and overcast when the words reverberated inside her mind. "Elly we have come to you," they exclaimed in mysterious echoes. With a sudden burst of energy and a will to clear her head, Elainæ climbed out of bed, got dressed and, carrying her sword, made her way to the sparring fields.
An hour had passed since Elainæ had completed each individual level of the Rimgar and yet the multitude of voices inside her head hadn't ceased their constant ring. Moving towards the middle of the field, Elainæ dove into a roll as an imaginary enemy had managed to sneak behind her. With a swift backward sweep of her sword, the foe fell to the floor with a severe abdominal wound. Time after time the enemies assaulted her. And time after time still, she moved as delicately as a forest lynx and with the deadly potential as an eagle to evade the onslaught and successfully strike down the opposition. Engaging in imaginary combat gave Elainæ the opportunity to create multiple scenarios around herself and transferred fluidly from slices to jabs in a series of techniques previously unknown to her and possibly all of the races. Her imagination grew to a climax as she dived over an enemy and decapitated him mid-air, only to watch his imaginary head fall to the earth. At this peak the voices in her head had ceased their cries and her mind was left uncluttered; she wondered how long the voices had been gone for as the cloud of battle had freed her mind of all thoughts and she couldn't remember the exact moment the voices had left.
Lights appeared on the horizon and Elainæ was stunned to realize she had been awake for so long. Her thoughts were soon to be disproved though, as the lights began to grow and swirl around each other like a snake made of stars. Her heart was gripped by fear as the emotions and tones emitted by these lights were the same that had clogged her head only hours before and she was at a loss to think of why these things had wanted an audience with her.
She stood tall and rigid as the leader of the lights that she now knew to be spirits approached her. The colors it radiated depicted curiosity and Elainæ was astonished at the communicative ability of beings of pure energy. The leader began to circle her and one by one, so did the other spirits until her area of vision became a blur of flashing and multi-colored lights. Soon, the lights consciousness' reached to hers and began to feed her memories of its recent sightings. Among the most prominent was one that consisted of Eragon and Arya.
Reflecting on the memory Elainæ realized that they had been circled like herself and had come to the conclusion that the memory of the joy that the pair emitted was obviously serving as a sign that they meant no harm.
The lights suddenly abated their circling as again the leader of the group approached her. The spirit was different somehow as its colors depicted a deep and everlasting fire and its consciousness was vaguely familiar.
"Elly," it pronounced her nickname in a barely audible tone.
"F-f-f-father?" she managed to stutter, "How?" she continued.
"My forte always was sorcery" he explained. "I found a speck of pure energy floating in the battlefield just after I was mortally wounded and my dragon was slain. As I lay there, my eyes set upon that speck of energy as it floated out of my dragon's mouth. I knew then that her entire source of energy had been placed in that single speck. I poured myself into it. All my energy, the entire mass of energy I had stored in my sword hilt and in the diamond studded ring I had acquired for being a part of the council of elders. Although the spirits that were created as a part of this transformation are completely free, I remain a subdued part of their consciousness, only slightly persuading their course and altering their sight briefly. Over the years of turmoil and war I remained prominent in their minds so as to getter as much remaining energy as I could from the fallen wyrdfell, wild dragons and dragons and riders."
Stuttering, Elainæ could not comprehend the actions her father had taken and the words that prevailed in escaping her mouth were: "wow, that's... umm... incredible."
"Yes, and now, as a gift to you so that in the future you may help the entire expanse of Alegaesia, the spirits would like to bestow onto you a gift like no other and give you their entire expanse of energy. In return you must take them into yourself and let them find shelter in your mind."
"They want me to become a shade!" she exclaimed in horror.
"It is not what you think. I have spent nearly an entire century on the wording of this spell and the adaptations of the words. My companions and I have consulted on the lore of shade hood and we have decided that the spell will let you retain your own consciousness and will not make you a stain upon the world like their siblings."
"I am unsure," she stated, "after the acts committed by Durza. I am loathed to present myself to the world as his kin."
"The spirits assure me that they have no wish to control your body, they only wish to seek shelter in you so that they may live an eternity in a person of great promise. If you wish, I shall guide the procedure and pass the remaining steps to you when it is my time to leave."
"For you, my father. You seem to trust these beings and I trust you. Yes, I will participate."
"Very well," he said "we shall begin."
Once again the spirits began to revolve around her. A guttural drone began to emanate from the spirits and a whir from the speed they were travelling filled the air. Ancient sounds and syllables were being uttered from the spirits. They sang in unison as knowledge of what they were saying filled Elainæ's mind. She began to sing along as one by one the spirits were absorbed into her body. She felt enormous amounts of energy pool within herself as he became one with the spirits. As the ceremony drew to a close and only one spirit remained, Elainæ saw the faint outline of her father ascend from the spirit and pass into the void. Words echoed in her head "I am proud of you. My darling Elly." with that, the final spirit passed through her flesh and she lay on the ground exhausted. She felt different but cared not as a dream-trance encased her thoughts. Uttering a spell that came to her by instinct she covered herself with the earth around her and made it so that she drew oxygen from the soil around her to respirate. She then fell into a heavy trance as she envisaged her mind being circled by valency belts of the spirits, creating a mind of extremes strength. The dream faded away into another less important dream and so on until she no longer remembered them.
If there are any time-based anomaly's then please inform me and i will try to fix them in the most plausible way i can think of.
As always, thanks for reading and please review if you have the time. If by small chance you are a regular reader then my heart goes out to you.
Du Domia abr Threyja