Chapter 18:

Eragon PoV

He looked around him. Arya lay limp in his arms, her breathing hitched and pained. He had slipped his shirt over her before he had exited the dungeons, she may have been mangled, but he wanted to maintain her dignity. He entered an alley, looking into the darkness he studied the space for a moment, then crept inside and began to chant a spell that would bend any light around them. With hushed steps, he crept towards the walls of the city, carefully avoiding any unnecessary soldiers. When the moon was in the middle of the sky there was a guard change, so as they had done once before, he had slung her over his shoulder and climbed the parapet, sliding down the other side. He looked both ways, and faster than he had thought possible ran towards there camp, using trees for cover. To his relief, he felt no presences, and was relieved to find their belongings exactly where they had been before, and the fire burned down to embers. He sat her up against a stone, and whispered gently,

'Awake' her eyes dizzily opened, and she leaned forwards in pain as her back touched the stone. With a frown, Eragon realized the drug must not have worn off, so he whispered again for her to stay quiet.

'Eragon? What? Those men, I was….I was…' her eyes drifted closed again and she slumped forward. He slid his tunic off her body and placed her on her stomach. Carefully examining her back, he saw that most the wounds were easily repairable, but two were deep, and close to her spine. Deep gouges ran around her shoulder blades, and blood was everywhere. He carefully began repairing the damage, and found when her back was finished, her limbs were blood stained. He studied her wrists with anger, and wished he had done something worse to the three men, but he repaired them as well, and soon he could find no mark on her body. The front of her tunic was still intact, but he cleaned the blood off her clothes and body with a spell, and slipped his shirt back onto her. He went to his pack, slipping on a light white shirt. He went back to her side, carefully placing her back onto the stone. He slowly lay down next to her, murmuring a spell that would alert him if anyone came near, or if Arya awoke.

The sound of low buzzing made him start, and he whispered something for the sound to stop. It was morning, and a little bird was perched on his stomach. It chirped, a wonderful sound, it made Eragon smile as the small bird came closer to his face and began rubbing its feathers into his skin. He touched its mind, and for a second, thought he could understand what the bird was thinking, but he sat ramrod straight as he looked through the bird's eyes. His face had a scar, just like Kuthian's. Somehow, it seemed more serious, harsh even. Then he heard it. The little bird's mind spoke to him in a happy tone, and Eragon nearly screamed.

No like sky livers? Eragon sat, stunned. The bird had alien thoughts, yet Eragon understood perfectly, he found himself wanting to reply, so he did.

Not ever had sky liver to talk to. And he smiled as the bird turned his head to the side and spoke again.

Sky livers talk good. Especially when you sing. Me go now. Little birds hungy. Wit h that he flew away, leaving Eragon stunned. He sat up as Arya began to stir. Her eyes opened slowly, and he gently supported her as he offered her a drink. She nearly vomited the first time, but the second she drank the water without retching. He poured some energy into her so she could stand, and Arya looked at him gratefully. He dug a small crater in the soil and quickly scried Nasuada. What he saw made him panic. The tent was in disarray, people were swarming everywhere, and Eragon nearly roared his presence to get their attention. Every one stopped talking as they heard him. And he heard Nasuada calmly say for people to vacate the tent. With that, people faces turned calm and they filed out without comment. Nasuada appeared with a relieved expression before the mirror, and her eyes widened at his appearance. He informed her that he would be arriving in three days, and everything would be explained then. He ended the spell then and turned to face Arya. Her voice shook as she spoke,

Arya PoV

'Eragon, I can hardly stand. Three days?' she shook her head, making his eyes soften.

'I understand, but there is something that I must fix quickly. You can rest today. I know how we can move quickly while you sleep.' he replied, and he disappeared for a moment in a thicket. In a minute, he came back, and Arya was surprised to see him next to a deep black horse. He crooned gently to it, and it nudged him gently. He slowly brought the horse forward, and Arya found herself listening to the sound of eragon's voice. He stopped and smiled at her, oblivious to the fact that his voice was making her feel better. He helped her onto the horse, and as Eragon began to walk away, the horse followed without hesitation. Soon they were running and galloping at a frightening speed across land, towards Feinster.

The horse ran through the night, but by that time, Arya was rested enough to run, so Eragon gave the horse water and left him in a field, close to water. That morning they were more than halfway there, and so they rested for a while, drinking deeply and staying quiet.

'What happened, Eragon? You look so… different.' he looked at her, his expression hard to read. His eyes stayed soft, and he said in a soft tone,

'By nightfall we should be at Feinster. If not I will carry you. I wish not to tell the story more than once, but if you want, I can tell you now.' He shrugged, tearing at another piece of bread. She noticed something then, as he turned his neck. A black etching revealed itself, and Arya gasped.

'What's wrong?' he asked, suddenly alert. She came closer to him, and strained to see past his just see through shirt.

'There is something on your back.' She said, and she was surprised to see Eragon pull his shirt higher up, hiding the tattoo. He said something again about waiting to go to Feinster and stood up, brushing off the dirt on his trousers.

She found that nightfall she was starting to doze off. Her eyes were slipping closed, and she started to run slightly off course. Just as she thought she was going to faint, his arms caught her and he kept moving, running faster. As they city lights came into view, they stopped, tidied themselves, and Eragon gave her energy so she could run the rest of the way. He stood on his toes, an ecstatic smile on his face. She heard him roar,

Saphira! Past the plane, and a mighty roar responded. Saphira appeared as a dot racing across the sky, and eragon's face turned peaceful. She landed with a thud, and Eragon immediately hugged her. For a moment, she yearned for the simple contact, but she quickly shut it away.

I have so much to tell you! Have you been Ok? How are the others? He asked, hugging her tightly. She hummed and nudged him.

Fine little one. The others are all right too, Nasuada handled the problem well. Now, get on my back, show me what has happened. They laughed, and Eragon jumped onto her back, he gestured to Arya to come. With that Saphira launched into the sky, circling as Eragon told her everything.

I really wanted to get the rescue and stuff over quickly, because my ExA is moving slow. Hope you critic, and I value your comments.