Spellweavers, Rebellion, and Ligan's Blood

Disclaimer: Don't own. Don't sue. Thank you.

Nasuada and Arya looked at the group of elves standing before them. There were seven. A female elf with silver hair and grey eyes flecked with gold stood in the center. They all exchanged the traditional courtesies. Nasuada hoped she had gotten the words right. None of the elves had indicated that she had. The female elf introduced the rest.

"I am Arliss of house Mindiola. These are Miranda," (a female elf with black hair and golden-brown eyes) "Lebranti," (a male elf with silver hair and deep blue eyes) "Lirano of the late Evandar Konungrs house," (a male elf with black hair and pale green eyes) "Derran," (a male elf with silver hair and grey eyes) "my daughter Analien," (a female elf with silver hair and dark brown eyes) "and Aerister" (a male elf with black hair and blue-grey eyes). "We have been sent here by queen Islanzadi to help you in your struggle against the empire. She is sending several elves, including my mate Nari, to guard Eragon Shadeslayer, Saphira Bjartskular, Ardis, and Kazul. They will join you on any skirmishes or raids the Varden should have with the empire, as will my spellweavers and I. Finally, Islanzadi promises to send an army of elves soon after the riders return. These she sends and will send to show her good will to the Varden. Please accept them," Arliss told them, her voice powerful and imperious. She and the elves around her seemed to emanate a power as great as Arya's.

"The Varden accepts Queen Islanzadi's generous help. I and the Varden are grateful that your queen fights alongside us," Nasuada responded.

Lirano answered this time, "The elves would never side with Galbatorix. We will fight alongside the Varden and Surda because we share a common enemy. After the fight, we shall still remain your allies unless you should do something that makes us change our minds. I am sure that you won't." Nasuada shivered. Lirano's pale eyes were rather disconcerting.

"As I am sure that the Varden will never do anything to anger the elves," Arya told the elf. "I am sure Lady Nasuada will attest to this."

Nasuada nodded. Lirano looked pleased.

"Arya and I will show you to your chambers. They have been prepared near Surda's greenhouse. Angela the herbalist enjoys these places, and Arya finds them a satisfactory compensation for Du Weldenvarden. I hope you will too," Nasuada told them. She knew the elves would never be thrilled in places that weren't Du Weldenvarden. She turned, and the elves followed her.

She left them in their chambers. None of the elves raised any objections. Lebranti, Lirano and Aerister had actually seemed pleasantly surprised. Arliss and her daughter Analien hadn't seemed to find anything objectionable, but Nasuada was certain she had seen Miranda and Derran look slightly put out by the arrangements. Nasuada sighed. Elves were hard to please. She hoped they would be beneficial to Du Vrangr Gata. Carlo had certainly helped Trianna raise the magicker's skills beyond what Eragon had done before the Battle of the Burning Plains.

As Nasuada rounded the corner, she bumped into Talson.
"I am so sorry, Milady," he began, looking flustered as he climbed off of her. "I just heard that there were elves here, and I had to see them myself. I wouldn't bother, of course. Elves have always fascinated me. I am sorry if I caused you any discomfort."

"You didn't, Talson. The elves are just getting used to their chambers. You might glimpse them tomorrow," Nasuada explained warmly. She walked away, smiling to herself. She liked Talson. He was kind-hearted and extremely useful despite his understandable nervousness. He had, after all, been stranded on Vroengard most of his life. He wasn't bad looking either. He was certainly better than Carlo and as helpful training the Varden and Surda.

She knocked on Orrin's door. She had to tell him about the elves and get reports on what was going on in Uru'baen. The Varden's and Surda's agents in the empire's capital were planning to burn the palace, all the noble's loyal to Galbatorix's houses, and the military warehouses and barracks. They were to kill only soldiers and magicians and everyone else alive. Nasuada hoped that the noble's slaves and servants would join them. She had no idea how wrong everything was destined to go.

Uru'baen

Luce sat on her bed. She was telling Iormungr, who was in the dragon hold, what she had learned from Lenori. The dragon thought for a moment before saying,

This is indeed bad. I don't know why Galbatorix would do this though. Unless…

Unless he thought he would gain something from it, Luce finished.

You said he was angry at Tabor last year, right?

He went to Dras Leona to frighten him.

That's what I meant.

Luce understood where this was going.

So you're saying he wants to gain control of the city himself by marrying me to Mort. Of course, he'd have to kill off the Tabors in line before him. And he's marrying Murtagh to Lenori in hope that they'll have children who could possibly be new riders.

Luce shuddered at the thought of Murtagh and Lenori having children.

Exactly what I was thinking, Iormungr replied. It is a plan worthy of Galbatorix.

I suppose I'll tell Murtagh the news in the morning, she thought. Luce had only been asleep a few minutes before a beam in the ceiling came down at the foot of her bed.

Murtagh awoke as he heard a shout from outside. He opened his door and saw a fire raging in the halls. Servants and slaves were running everywhere. He grabbed a soldier's arm and demanded to know what was going on.

"Don't you know, rider?" the guard sneered. It was Menander.

"No, I don't," Murtagh replied.

"You mean to say that the king didn't tell you that the Varden had planned to attack the palace tonight. We're to round-up all the Varden's agents and soldiers. The king decided it would be better to let them attack when he could benefit from it," the guard told him.

Murtagh thought of how like Galbatorix that was. He didn't care how many people got hurt destroying the Varden and Surda. If he had to let them attack and destroy, he would.

I think, Human, that they are only attacking those loyal to Galbatorix, Thorn put in.

What makes you think that? Murtagh asked.

They fire is controlled. Only the palace, the noble's castles, and the king's own warehouses are burning. So farm the only people the Varden have killed are soldiers and magicians of Galbatorix, the wine-colored dragon explained.

Have they killed that many? Murtagh asked. He didn't even bother to think how Thorn knew so much already. The dragon must have been able to see everything from the hold.

Not many. If what the maggot-ridden guard said is true, than everyone was prepared for an attack tonight, Thorn told him.

"Well, don't just stand there gaping. Go help us," Menander yelled to him. Murtagh nodded and ran.

Arlena turned over on her side and awoke. She smelled smoke. (A/N: Tehe. That rhymed.) She was currently lying in the bed of Elra Andrickai. Since his mistress had been sold to Galbatorix, he had decided that she should replace Belinda. At least he was clean. Elra had four obsessions: cleanliness, food, horses, and women. Those were also the only things he spent money on. Arlena's mind darted back to the smoke smell. Who could've stared a fire?

She leapt out of the bed and ran to the door. She felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Where are you going, lass?" Elra Andrickai asked.

Arlena turned and kneed him in the groin. She was not dying because of him. She opened the door and saw that the hallway was filled with smoke. She ran to the window. Thank the gods Elra slept on the ground floor.

Luce leapt off of her bed.

Luce, Murtagh yelled in her mind, the Varden are attacking. We have to go help the soldiers!

She didn't dare disobey. She knew what Galbatorix would do if she did. She pulled on her leggings and boots and belted her sword. It had been Murtagh's sword before he got Zar'roc. She touched Iormungr's mind.

I've left the hold. Go search the palace. I've heard there's fighting everywhere, her dragon told her. Luce wasted no time obeying. She ran into the hallway. A beam crashed down right above her head.

She yelled, "Risa!" to stop it. It stopped an inch from her head, and Luce lowered it to the ground. She heard a movement behind her. She drew her sword and turned, slashing the Varden agent behind her who had been ready to cut of her head. He fell to the ground. Because he had been belly-cut, Luce stabbed him through the heart to keep him from suffering a slow and painful death. With a start, she recognized him. It was Amer, the man who had taunted the guard who had taunted Murtagh the day Iormungr hatched. She felt sick.

"Coward, taking on a fallen man," another male voice yelled. She whipped around and saw a man with a flaming arrow notched. He was pointing it right at her.

Luce's stomach settled as she yelled, "Letta ora thornessa!"

It fell to the ground harmlessly. The man charged at her, his sword now drawn. Luce settled into a crouch, ready to do battle with this man.

Murtagh leapt into the fight. He slashed through the Varden's agents. He didn't look into their faces; for fear that he would recognize someone whom had fought at his side during the battle of Farthen Dur had overcome him.

He heard a mage beginning to mutter a spell that would take his life. He turned and yelled, "Letta hjarta alfrs!" The man fell over dead.

Shruikan, Thorn, and Iormungr battled soldiers and magickers outside. The men fought bravely, despite their fear of the dragons. All three had pierced in their wings, though they had managed to dodge any that would have proved fatal.

Luce had finally cut the man. He too had been belly-cut. She would've cut him threw the heart to save him pain too, but the tone of his voice when he had called her a coward still rang in her mind. She looked down at him.

"Are you going to run me through too?" he asked quietly.

"It would save you a great deal of pain, you know," she told him

"I don't care," he replied.

Luce turned and walked away.
"You don't want this, do you?" the man asked.

"How did you know?" she demanded, turning on her heal.

"You are yet another rider he has forced to serve him. Go," he said.

Luce obeyed him.

He looked after as she turned the corner. He prayed that his younger brother would find him before his wound killed him. He just wished he'd had the energy left to heal it. He decided he had fifteen minutes before it took his life. It would be painful, but maybe his brother could take the information he had with him to the Varden. He reached out feebly to him. To his intense relief, his brother Derek answered.

"Bonstan," Derek yelled as he rounded the corner.

"Derek, my life is leaving me," Bonstan told his ten year-old brother. "These scrolls are essential to the Varden. They contain information that will prepare them for what Galbatorix is intending to do. Take them, my dagger, my arrows, and my money. Buy yourself a fast horse. You should make it Ride hard. I have faith in you."

Derek nodded and took his brother's things. He ran through the halls, careful to avoid soldiers.

Arlena ran through the streets. There was fighting everywhere. Three dragons flew across the sky. Flashed of black, red, and green would come down from the dark cosmos to slay a man. The slave realized that the Varden must have started the chaos and the fires. Funny that only the palace and noble's houses were burning. She was glad that Elra's house was near the wall surrounding Uru'baen and that all the soldiers had gone to fight the Varden.

Derek ran through the streets. So far, no one had noticed a small, ten year old boy carrying a sack and a bow that was too big for him. He was near the wall. He bumped into a skinny girl of about eighteen with short light brown hair. He stared up into her face.

Her face was pleasant with ordinary features, Derek decided. He liked her big blue eyes. She had a slave's mark on her shoulder. She seemed to be trying to get out beyond Uru'baen too.

Arlena looked down at the ten year old boy. He looked so scared. He was carrying a huge adult's bow and a large sack.

"Why don't you go through the gate first?" she asked him sweetly. "I'll follow behind."

The boy nodded. He dashed through it quickly. Arlena went to follow him, but a hand grabbed her shoulder.

She turned, half-expecting to see Earl Elra. It was a soldier.

"I got an escaped slave, Menander!" he yelled to a fellow soldier.

"Take her to the barracks. I think she'll be the first one we've caught tonight." Menander shouted back.

The soldier forced her through the crowed streets and into a cage. He locked the door and turned back to the fighting. Arlena sat down and sobbed. She was going to be in so much trouble.

Derek looked behind him. The girl was gone. He peaked through the gate and saw a soldier pushing her through the streets. He knew she'd been caught. He would've tried to rescue her if he hadn't promised Bonstan he'd go to the Varden. He knew he couldn't help the slave, but he could still help his brother's friends and allies.

Luce felt the floor beneath her give way. The fire had weakened it by burning the mortar that held it together. She caught hold of a beam. It snapped. She landed on the floor. A Varden soldier saw her. He raised his sword to behead her.

"Letta hjarta alfrs," she muttered. The man fell forward, dead. His sword narrowly missed her neck. She rolled out of the way just in time. She picked up her sword and ran towards Murtagh, who was fighting soldiers across the hall.

Together, the two riders felled the Varden's soldiers and magickers through blade and magic. It made them both feel sick. They would've have both rather fought on the men they were killing's side, but they would go insane if they admitted that to anybody but themselves. It was a cold, terrible that was hardly worth being spoken. At last, all the Varden in Uru'baen had either been killed or lucky enough to escape. No prisoners had been taken alive, and only one escaped slave had been caught.
Shouts of, "Letta du brisingr!" and "Adurna!" rang out to quench the rapidly spreading fire.

The palace had been saved, but many nobles had lost their homes. The warehouses had been emptied to prevent the fire from burning the goods, and the soldiers had been fighting the rebels instead of using the barracks. They would still have to be rebuilt.

Luce was not at all sad to hear that Elra Andrickai and his two spoiled daughters had been victims of the fire, though she was rather sad that the Tabors had survived.

Thirty-one soldiers had lost their lives by the Varden and Surda's fire, magic, or blades. Still, Galbatorix considered this a triumph for the empire.

Both subservient dragons and riders thought this was a severe mix-up of priorities.

Shruikan went to the slave barracks. He was displeased for his master that only one out of seven escaped slaves had been captured by the soldiers. He looked down at the one who had been captured. He stared at her face. She looked like Cora, his old rider.

Shruikan felt Galbatorix's hold on him lessen. The slave was now looking at him. She looked terrified.

Do not worry, the black dragon told her. The king will be reasonable.

Shruikan knew this wasn't true, but he wanted to comfort the slave. He felt a bit like he was comforting Cora when he did this.

She didn't look comforted; she only looked more frightened. Shruikan realized that to her 'reasonable' probably was a term she normally heard applied to the number of lashes she was to receive or the chores she was to do in a day. Shruikan was willing to bet that neither one of these things usually turned out to be 'reasonable'.

The guards and soldiers all turned to the sound of footsteps. The king of the empire was coming towards them. His expression was solemn. Solemn expressions never boded well for these men.

"I have heard that no less than sevens slaves escaped last night," Galbatorix began. "I have also heard that four of them were from the palace. My palace. This is the only slave you have caught. She belongs to Earl Elra Andrickai, who perished in the fire." He looked down at the slave's face. A strange expression crossed it.

"What is your name, girl?" he questioned.

"Arlena, your majesty," she told him.

"Respect. Good. You are named after your mother, I suspect?" the king continued.

"Yes," Arlena answered. How does he know? She thought.

The king then inquired, "Who was your father?"

"I don't know your majesty. My mother died bearing me, you see. She never told her fellow slaves who my father was," Arlena explained.

"Was she a slave of Elra Andrickai?" Galbatorix asked in all innocence.

Arlena nodded.

"Men," the king began, "your mistake is not so terrible as I first thought. Now, who caught her?"

Arlena watched as her captor raised his hand.

"Well done," the king told the soldier. "You shall be promoted from private to corporal."

As he walked away, he told Shruikan, I believe I have found one of Ligan's bloods.

So, how did you like that chapter? You'll find out what Galbatorix meant later. The scrolls Bonstan gave Derek were important too. Arlena was one of four slaves mentioned in Chapter Five: Slave's Gossip and Swordplay. Two of the others were Shaheen and Belinda. I was just reminding everybody in case they forgot who Arlena was.

As for the ancient language, "Letta hjarta alfrs," means, "Stop his heart." Alfr means him so I put an s on the end to make it possessive. "Letta ora thornessa," means, "Stop this arrow." "Orya" means "arrows" so I took off the y to make what I hope is the singular of arrows. "Thornessa" means "this." I know most people think it means "snake", but I'm pretty sure there's one phrase in Eldest where it's used as "this". I assumed orum meant "snake" because the phrase was "Se orum thornessa havr sharjalvi lifs." I thinks Paolini does this weird thing where he puts the adjective behind the noun.