World of Empires
Sorry for the long update time, My computer screwed up bad...
Chapter 2 Arya's nightmare
Eltor ran through the forest, jumping through bushes and trees. He knew that the empire's soldiers were now on hot pursuit. He saw a clearing ahead of him and then suddenly a dog barked-a dog specially trained to detect people.
He ran even faster than he ever wanted to run, he ran like the wind, he needed to get to a village or city where he could find his position, he needed to know where he was. The shade had teleported him to the keep of Galbatorix but he needed to know where exactly that was.
He ran out of the forest and into the fields of corn. He lay low, waiting for the dog to come and it did. The dog came running towards Eltor. Then Eltor muttered something in the ancient language and the dog froze, it could not bark any longer.
Eltor ran again, not as fast as he was crouched low so the soldiers could not see him. He looked behind him; the soldiers were not well disciplined. Instead on continuing to search for Eltor, the soldiers decided to have fun with the dog that could not move. They were laughing and punching the dog. Eltor got away… with the object he wanted.
Roran looked into the vast countryside. "Where is Gil'ead?" asked Roran. He expected Eragon to not answer or to give a very brief answer. However Eragon did not even look up. Instead, Arya raised her head and spoke.
"Two years ago, whilst carrying the dragon egg I was ambushed by Urgals and the shade Durza. They tortured me and poisoned me; however I was only bait to lure Eragon, the rider to Gil'ead so he could capture Eragon. His plan did not work. Although Eragon took the bait he along with Brom rescued me successfully and set me free."
"You were imprisoned there aswell?" asked Roran. He was also curious about the events. Maybe that was why Arya reacted in a way when Eragon scythed Katrina and found she was in Gil'ead.
Arya and Eragon were extremely confused on why Katrina would be held in Gil'ead. They thought they were dealing with a few Ra'zac not the empires strongest fortress swarming with the empires best soldiers.
"Eragon, do you still remember the route you used when you came and rescued me?" asked Arya. She had no chance to remember as she was actually unconscious and was poisoned when Eragon took her out and back to the campsite.
"Vaguely, It was two years ago but I think I know the way me and Brom went," replied Eragon. "Sapphira, do you still remember the route we took when we rescued Arya?"
"Yes, I do. But the route we went was the long route as we were evading the Ra'zac. Perhaps there is a quicker and shorter route."
"Do you still remember what Gil'ead looked like?"
"Who doesn't? A massive dark gloomy castle with eight fortified towers and millions of soldiers at the gates."
"Can we fly there? Do you know in which direction it is on?"
"Yes I do. Tell Arya and Roran to pack their stuff up, we're flying there.
So Eragon did just that. "What!? We are going to fly again?" shouted Roran. He obviously did not like flying, during the previous two flights he was green all over and seriously looked like he was going to be sick.
The three of them got up and flew off in a south-easterly direction- where Gil'ead was. After around half an hour it got dark but they had made it to the fortifications of the mighty keep. The three of them waited outside to discuss the plan.
"Ok, first of all Sapphira throws some fire down the corridor killing all the soldiers there. Then me and Roran go and rescue Katrina while Arya, you stay behind us a little and hold the enemy soldiers off," commanded Eragon. Everybody nodded and slowly they creped just outside the walls and nobody saw them.
"Sapphira, NOW!"
"My pity goes to all those about to burn."
Sapphira breathed a long channel of fire down the long corridor. In the distant they could hear the screams of soldiers being burnt to death.
"Go, Go, Go," said Roran quietly. Eragon and Roran moved in with Arya behind, constantly watching their back. They moved silently through the wide corridors. Three soldiers then appeared from another corridor and charged at them whilst three others from behind.
Roran parried an attack by one of them and struck the blow back. He then picked up the sword he dropped and chopped his head off. He showed no mercy as the long squirting of blood continued. Eragon never even bothered to use the sword that the Varden gave him. He used magic to freeze them and then again used magic to knock them out cold.
Arya behind them was not suffering problems either. The three soldiers were young and when they saw Arya they saw a brilliant chance for pleasure. They learnt their lesson; never underestimate an elf, female or male. As one of the soldiers tried to grab here she stabbed him in the back with a dagger.
The two edged on her, swords drawn. Arya took out her long sword and slashed at them. They were better trained than she thought but on her second blow she knocked one of them and picked up his sword. Now it was one on one. Only Arya had two swords whilst the soldier had one.
Arya slowly paced herself forward and slashed with one sword and the soldier parried it. The two swords were drawn in a deadlock but Arya swung her other sword at the soldier's waist. He silently fell….
"Is everybody ok?" asked Eragon nervously. He looked around and saw Roran was fine, looking bolder than ever. However Arya was shaking, her entire body was shaking and she looked extremely pale and scared.
"Arya, are you Ok?" asked Eragon, his voice sounding clearly worried. Arya's teeth were now clattering very hard and Roran and Eragon thought she was suffering a mental breakdown.
"Sapphira, wait outside the keep, I think Arya is mentally ill."
"Ok, if any soldiers come Ill have to leave though."
"I am alright," proclaimed Arya. She was breathing slower now and the shaking cooled down. Suddenly she did the most surprising thing. She randomly hugged Eragon tightly.
"Eragon, I am so scared, this is the place where I go in my nightmares, I never wanted to visit this dungeon ever again, and I am scared that I will be imprisoned in this hellhole again." She was now crying in fright.
"Arya, look at me, I will protect and defend you against all those that try to take you, there is no reason to fear, even if you are captured I promise that I will come and rescue you, no matter what the cost," said Eragon with determination and Roran and Arya knew he meant it.
Arya nodded and walked along with the two men. "Sapphira, It's alright now, Arya's fine now."
"Ok, Eragon, I'll be waiting outside in the forest clearing."
The three of them continued and Eragon could not help but grin, he had just been hugged by the girl of his dreams whom, only a few months ago had rejected him. Hope flew high in him and his ego was very high.
The sound of a bell was now heard and it was obvious that they had been detected. Within seconds hundreds of troops poured down onto them. Eragon and Roran slew many, slashing and stabbing. The troops were defenceless against them. Arya was doing well also, the men that came at her were much older and attempted to kill rather than rape her.
She dodged cuts and stabs and attacked for herself. However she was too much outnumbered and she got slashed in the leg. She came down with a tumble on the floor, the soldier who slashed at her plunged the sword down on her. She looked up and closed her eyes. When she opened them she saw Eragon slaying many foes and then he spoke to Roran.
"RORAN, HOLD THE SOLDIERS OFF! I NEED TO HEAL ARYA!" Roran nodded and did just that, however it was much harder as he was surrounded. "Arya, your going to be alright," stated Eragon. He healed her using magic and Arya got up again. Eragon then used Magic to ward Arya, just in case something similar happened again.
The three of them fought on being much more cautiously. Now much more troops were advancing on them and they were surrounded. "Fire!" Eragon muttered in the ancient language. As quick as lightening the soldiers burst into fire, screaming and shouting and colliding with each other to put out the flames. The three of them waited as one by one the soldiers fell. When the last one fell the three of them moved again.
"Eragon, we are moving downwards, I think when I was kept here I was put in a really low dungeon, I think we are really near where Katrina is," stated Arya, sounding much more confident and less frightened now.
Eragon simply grunted and Roran nodded and they were moving slowly forward, looking to see if there were any traps of any kind. The passageway was clear, which was good and the three of them moved forward and reached a very dark and deep dungeon. Each cell in this dungeon was very poorly kept and it looked like that nobody had inhabited this place for around a century. In one of these cells was Katrina, looking very pale and thin. She had obviously been fed very very little.
"Katrina, are you alright?" asked Roran sounding very sad and caring. He had not seen her for two entire months and it was obvious he missed her. "Eragon here will use magic and get you out, hang on."
"Oh Roran, How I've missed you. Listen to me; this is a trap, leave at once. Leave me to be," warned Katrina with deadly urgency. Before Roran spoke another voice spoke.
"Ah, Eragon shadeslayer and his cousin." All three of them turned around and saw the infamous face of one they knew, Durza. They were all shocked to see him; after all it's where Eragon got his title from.
"Your dead," murmured Eragon. Arya meanwhile suddenly grabbed his hand; it was obvious she was very scared of Durza, after what he did to her.
"Correction shadeslayer, I was dead," he smiled and clicked his finger. Fifty Ra'zac and one hundred guards surrounded them. They were all heavily armored and they all drew their swords and spears.
"Perhaps shadeslayer, I might even be titled by my people as a riderslayer," he laughed even more now, his lips curled and it was a horrible sight to witness. His laughter then dropped to a simple, bitter smile and had the look of pure evil.
"Durza you bastard, how did you come back alive? How did you persuade Galbatorix to bring you back from the dead?" asked Eragon with a look of extreme anger on his face. He hated Durza, especially after what he had done to Arya and himself. He remembered the scar on his back, the scar which had nearly cost him his entire destiny; his life.
"Language, shadeslayer, language," continued Durza. He clicked his finger again and the soldiers edged in. They moved slowly forward, none of them actually wanting to be the one to strike the first blow. Then one of them charged and screamed at the same time. Eragon blocked his blow and sent it right back, in his face…
"Sapphira, we have a problem. We have been ambushed by Durza."
"Eragon, I cannot help you, I'm outside the castle walls, just rescue Katrina and go, do not bother to attempt a fight."
"Ok, Thanks Sapphira, I will try to be as quick as possible."
More and more eased up on them so the three of them decided to form up in some sort of circle, a defensive circle. "Roran, get Katrina out, me and Arya will distract Durza and the soldiers." Roran nodded and so did Arya. Arya and Eragon leaped forward cutting and stabbing. Eragon's makeshift sword was nowhere near as good as Zar'roc but for now it was good.
Eragon looked to his right for a split second to see Arya stuck by a sword on the leg but protected by the ward. He knew that Arya was in no harm at the moment, but did Durza know how to get rid of the protective ward? During the fight Roran had gone unnoticed and bashed down the dungeon door with his hammer. Durza and all the soldiers were too preoccupied to even notice. Roran and Katrina gave a brief kiss before they ran out of the exit.
Eragon saw too and said to Arya, "Arya, We need to leave, we have what we want, and we cannot face all these soldiers. I could use the killing spell but it would cost too much energy." Arya nodded and gradually they began to back off, not the sheer weight of their enemies but to their own will so soon they could break out and run.
Eragon spoke to Arya to her mind telling her when to break off the fighting. When they did they ran as fast as they could through the corridors looking for the main entrance. Eragon ran and ran, running at hell speed. He saw the entrance and saw blue scales high in the air. He ran through the entrance hall followed by many soldiers. He leaped out of the main entrance but somebody grabbed his ankle. It was an unknown soldier.
Eragon muttered a few words and the Unknown Soldier froze, unable to move, paralyzed. He ran again and saw that his sword was lying on the floor, but he did not bother to catch it. He called to Sapphira and they flew high in the air but less than ten seconds in air Saphira said something that Eragon would not have wanted to hear for the rest of his life. "Erm Eragon, where is Arya?"
Eragon looked back and heard laughter and also a scream. "You bastard Durza, I will kill you for real this time. Arya, I promise to you I will get you out alive and kill that bastard in revenge…"