Free Riders
Author's Note: Eragon is not mine. Char, Blaster, and Saranya are. Comment as you see fit.
Chapter 29: The Road to Gil'ead, City of Soldiers
"How long will it take to get to the Varden?" Eragon asked.
"Several days," Brom said. "Might take one extra day than normal if we were to skirt around Furnost, for I am certain that information of us has reached them."
"And what about our supplies and water?"
"Eragon, there is one thing you should learn about the earth," Brom said. "Even on bare ground, there is always water below the surface. Anyone learned in magic could summon it from the depths and refill any watering hole they make so long as they have the power."
"And you know this from your mentor?" Eragon asked.
"Yes, Eragon. My mentor and teacher taught me about a lot of things that I do not have the right to tell you yet. I am not certain you will get to meet him, but you might have that opportunity to if fortune smiles upon us." Brom slapped his hands together. "Now, I have taught you a lot about what the ancient language does and how to pronounce most things, but you are not able to continue without a little bit of grammar. Saying something just one tiny bit wrong could give you unexpected results.
"Take for example a kind of shielding spell. If you were to say skölir instead of sköliro when attempting to shield someone, you would be turning them into a shield instead of shielding him."
"So, it is more complex than you let on," Eragon sighed. Brom merely nodded in agreement. "Just when I thought things couldn't get more difficult—"
"Don't worry," Brom replied. "It's no different from verb conjugation in our language. My only issue is that Blaster's not going to be able to learn of this for a while, but I have faith in that he will not be so pressed to try to conjugate on the fly."
"But you said he was far ahead in his lessons."
"Not far enough to learn this." Brom smiled. "Besides, with the type of magic he seems to possess, I doubt he'd need to learn this before he returns."
"If he returns," Eragon added.
"Have faith in him," Brom said. "He wasn't made a General for nothing. He'll be fine. Now enough about him…"
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Sara grumbled as she searched the ground for food. She was amazed to see a herd of wild bison on the plains and pounced. Almost instantly, she saw one that was thinner and shaggier than the rest, and it didn't take long to find out that the bison was the oldest and weakest of the group. Sara nabbed the bison and, in one quick, snake-like jab, the bison's neck had snapped, killing the animal instantly. Two beats of her wings and she lifted the dead animal into the sky to have her meal in peace.
It had taken them a week to get to this place. The first day, Blaster picked up another chestnut, but hadn't named him because he couldn't choose a name. The previous day, they had reached a tributary of the Ramr River. Today, they were continuing north towards Gil'ead, the small mountain Marna off on the other side barely visible to the northwest. Sara didn't question Blaster's tactics since they never stopped to check the prisons in any of the small towns they came across. Every night, Char would "ping" on Blaster's wrist computer to the north.
Murtagh, though he didn't know much about who Char was, knew that, if there were any place in Alagaësia that Char could be, it would be in Gil'ead. Mainly an outpost for the Empire, Gil'ead was home to a number of barracks, each with hundreds of soldiers. Even Sara knew that getting into the city would be a cake-walk compared to getting out.
Sara saw the two men at a campsite they had made for the night. Murtagh had made a small fire with the tufts of grass, leaving Blaster to check his wound for the third time that day. For the past week, the wound had healed at an alarmingly quick rate compared to those inflicted on Garrow. The second night, he explained that he had an alien gene that allowed him to recover quicker from his injuries. Today, the injury was healed enough to the point of only having a thin white scar about an eighth of an inch wide and two inches long.
Blaster looked up from what was left of his wound as Sara hit the ground, pleased with herself. The dead bison at her feet was soon skinned and some of the meat taken off so that the two men had meals. Sara finished off the kill as Murtagh cooked some of the meat. She savored what flavor there was and began to listen in on the conversation between Murtagh and Blaster.
"…-ying that it is an important development," Blaster said. "I was actually able to hear Char's thoughts for the first time in forever, but that was only because she usually projects them instead of me having to go into her mind to dig them out. She's being tortured to the point of nearly being killed. All because someone found her with Sara's egg."
"And there is an elf there?" Murtagh asked. "I don't know about you, but if it is true, then that elf is the first that Galbatorix has captured. He's probably trying to prod her for information too through some surrogate. And, if it came down to rescuing one of the two, I doubt you would leave Char behind."
"You're right on that," Blaster said. "I would likely choose my fiancé over an elf if I had the choice. But, I'm not going to leave an elf in captivity, and I would choose to save the elf if Char was better off. So, what I am asking you is this: Will you accompany me to Gil'ead and help to save both Char and this elf she keeps talking about?"
"It's madness," Murtagh said.
"Madness?" Blaster's voice got that dangerous tone to it. "Madness is going into battle with a sword that should never be wielded due to its age. Madness is facing a thousand enemies yourself and trying to kill every last one of them yourself. Madness is going in behind enemy lines to save one man from a gristly fate. I'm sorry to disagree, but this plan isn't madness. It's full on insanity. But it might be crazy enough to work if we have a game plan."
"Okay, what's the plan?"
"Using the night as cover, Sara will fly the two of us in, and we will drop from above. From there, we will sneak into that castle, get into the dungeon, save Char and the elf, and then get out of here."
"Do we have a place to get Sara to pick us up?" Murtagh asked. "Because, if we don't, I suggest we use the banquet hall at the top. All we have to do is have Sara rip off the roof and fly you three out."
"I'm not leaving you behind," Blaster said. "I will not allow you to risk capture because Sara will be bearing too much weight."
"But how will she be able to take off?"
I have been wondering that too, Sara added. Are you going to be using your powers?
"I have magic that requires me to concentrate, but not use any words to use it," Blaster said. "With it, I can make us all lighter than air on Sara's back and she can fly without being hindered. That is how we will all escape."
"And you are certain of this?" Murtagh said.
The chances of something going wrong between here and there could have devastating ramifications, Sara added.
"I am aware of the risks, but I believe having at least some sort of plan will allow us some sort of order" Blaster said. "If I can, I could give them a distraction."
"How so?"
"With this." Blaster pulled out an egg-shaped object with a pin in it-a grenade. "Drop this on one of the barracks and you'll get a good chunk of the other soldiers something else to worry about. I have several more that we can drop, giving them multiple distractions."
Why? What does it do? Sara asked. Murtagh asked the same question a few seconds later.
"This little puppy has some minerals mined from the soil that, when given a spark, make a big boom," Blaster said, smile on his face. "Sure, this thing will cause some casualties, but, if soldiers are the only ones killed in the blast, then it would just be like casualties of war. I don't like to kill innocents, but if you wear the armor and bear the sword, then you should know the risks of the occupation."
There was a pause as it sank in. Finally, Murtagh said, "This has got to be the craziest idea I've ever heard. Since we are still about two days out, I will think about it, but it might work."
Night fell about an hour later. In the firelight, Blaster blocked his blade, then asked for Murtagh's sword so that he could protect it for a sparring match between the two of them. Murtagh agreed, but only if the blocking spell could be reversed. Once the blades were ready and tested, Murtagh attacked.
Blaster side stepped an overhead swing and went to swing at Murtagh's gut, only to have his blade stopped by Murtagh's sword. Murtagh parried another jab, hoping for Blaster to over-extend and lose balance. Unfortunately, Blaster didn't over extend, but instead feinted right and swung left. The move nearly caught Murtagh off guard, but he ducked and swung at Blaster's knees, the former jumping over and barely missing the blade. Just as Murtagh stood up, he brought up his blade, right to Blaster's neck. Blaster had likewise stopped his blade a few inches from Murtagh's heaving chest. Though the two were winded, they were evenly matched, though Blaster could have used his super speed in order to win.
"Your master Tornac was a good swordsman," Blaster said, lowering his blade. "If any were to face him in combat, they would be facing a worthy opponent. He might even be able to open a school."
"He's dead." Murtagh lowered his sword and walked away.
"I am sorry for your loss," Blaster said. "I hope it was a noble death, fighting to the end instead of being struck in his sleep."
"Oh, it was," Murtagh said. "But it happened rather recently, so the wound is still quite tender. I do not wish to talk about it further."
Blaster didn't press the issue as they ate dinner. Sara made idle conversation, still trying to find a way to trust Murtagh since they were unable to breech his mind's barriers. Knowing Brom might know what to do in this situation, Blaster thought to contact him as soon as he was done in Gil'ead. For now, he would just have to trust this strange man and hope for the best.
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Two days after their first skirmish, Blaster and Murtagh were just outside of Gil'ead, waiting for night to fall. Murtagh, aware of the guard rotation, wanted to do the extraction as close to the rotation as possible to minimize the amount of fire they would most likely take during their grand exit. All Blaster required was that they were able to inflict as much damage to the barracks as possible.
Just an hour after darkness fell, Blaster ordered Murtagh to mount up. The two of them would be dropping off Sara right onto the rooftops dressed in black suits Murtagh had picked up at a small village store. From there, they would drop to the dungeons, find the girls, find their weapons, then high-tail it out of there as quickly as possible. If there were any hitches in the plan, which included one of the two getting captured mid-rescue, the other would leave as quickly as possible. If a rescue was possible after that, then they would go with Plan B and perform the rescue before continuing on.
Sara took to the skies and began to circle around over Gil'ead. Blaster, finding his first target, pulled the pin on one of his grenades and launched it at one of the barracks. It fell through the roof and exploded, blowing out glass windows from the nearby buildings. Blaster launched another grenade and blew up another barrack. By this time, arrows began flying, but Sara was still high enough to avoid the arrows that were aimed in their direction. Two more grenades and chaos had been sewn into the ranks of soldiers as they tried to find out who had attacked them and how to defend from the devastation.
As if on cue, the archers withdrew, ordered by their superiors to help their fallen comrades. Few remained on the rooftop Blaster and Murtagh were to land on, but they were easily dispersed by a flash-bang, a cylinder grenade that did nothing but render their enemies temporarily blind and deaf. Sara flew in low and the two dropped to the roof, barely clinging to the slate shingles. The two went through an open window and landed in the banquet hall.
Wooden tables and chairs filled with half-eaten meals remained. Torches hung on the walls between shields. Over on the one side was the door to the dungeons. Blaster gave the "forward" hand signal, and both he and Murtagh went over to the door. With a nod, Murtagh strung his bow and knocked an arrow. Blaster flung open the door and Murtagh searched for guards. Finding none, he nodded to Blaster.
The two slowly made their way down the stairs, trying to be as quiet as possible so as to not walk into a patrol. Thankfully, the route to the dungeons was eventless. The iron bound door swung open on well oiled hinges, and the two crept in to find rows of smaller iron bound doors. One by one, the two searched for Char's cell, and possibly information about the elf. They were about halfway down the little hallway when they heard the steady rhythm of steel-shod boots on the stone floor.
Blaster cursed and turned around, drawing his pistol, which had a silencer on it. He never liked the silencer, but, if he wanted to keep quiet, he would have to use it. Taking aim, he knelt down and looked right down the sights until the soldiers were in view. The first one held everyone up and looked at both Blaster and Murtagh, thinking about what was going on, before charging.
The silencer did its job as each shot fired from Blaster was muffled. Of the dozen soldiers, only about four remained with the bullets and arrows. Two more were struck by arrows and the third shot right in the head. The last one raised his shield, but Blaster shot at the exposed left leg, causing the soldier to tumble. Blaster held up a hand and approached the downed soldier.
"I have a few questions for you," Blaster said in a dangerously calm voice. "If you fail to answer, I will make you suffer. If you give me the wrong answer, I will hurt you more. Now, be nice and let's get the questions answered. Do you understand?" The soldier nodded, but clamped his mouth shut. "Now, where is the woman with the odd clothes and the elf?" The soldier's mouth remained shut. "You know how I said you would suffer if you failed to respond? I am going to place a piece of dirt in your chest. I'll make it red-hot and make sure it doesn't cool until it comes out of you, burning its way to your toes. Be comforted, for if it were a grain of sand, it would have been a slower process."
Blaster picked up a grain of dirt and, with a word, got it glowing red. It didn't burn him, but he knew it would burn the soldier. He got closer and closer until, finally, the soldier snapped.
"Don't put that in me," he cried. "The odd girl is third from the end on the left. The elf is in the second from the end on the right."
"Good," Blaster said, stopping his hand. "They will have had weapons with them. Where would they be?"
"I don't know," the soldier said. "Maybe in the guard room, but I'm not sure." Blaster got closer. "I seriously don't know!"
Blaster stopped and let the hot dirt grain drop to the ground. "I believe you. Therefore, you are free to go. Just, get yourself a good shrink." He touched a finger to the soldier's head and said "Slytha." The soldier fell to the ground almost instantly.
"Did you kill him?" Murtagh asked.
"No, merely put him to sleep," Blaster replied. "Though, if he is awoken by his superiors, then I think he would have wanted me to kill him. But let's get the girls and get out of here."
Will they get out in time? Are the girls still alive? Will Eragon be admitted into the Varden? Find out next time on Free Riders.
I will see about updating again today to make up for the lack of a chapter on Friday. Plus, with my new job starting on the 8th, I will be updating either really early or really late Tuesday's from now on.