"Today we are crossing the Az Ragni," announced Blodhgarm over breakfast. Eragon choked on the sip of water he had been drinking and some of it came out of his nose. Arya looked vaguely disgusted. "B… b… but we have another three miles to cover before that," he spluttered.
"Yes well Lady Nasuada had Angela scry me to tell me to tell you to hurry up as they can't attack another city without you and you need to achieve this mission of yours quickly and neatly."
"And why didn't Nasuada contact me about this," Eragon asked sniffily looking rather put-out.
"I'm afraid I cannot answer that Shadeslayer," replied Blodhgarm respectfully.
"It is fine little one," said Saphira. "I can carry you all a day early."
"Ahh well you see we need you to carry the bags Saphira," said Blodhgarm looking rather scared for the first time.
"What about boats?" asked Arya.
"We will use them for the people as we would need people to steer the boats anyway if they were packed with luggage. That would take up three and two for the horses bearing in mind each of you would need to be accompanied by at least two spellcasters at all times. No it would be much quicker and easier if we ride in the boats with the horses and Saphira carries the luggage," explained Blodhgarm.
"Fine," muttered Eragon.
I shrugged.
"Where are the boats then?" Arya asked.
At that moment the other eleven spellcasters ran into the makeshift camp carrying the five boats. Each was two metres long made from a continuous plank of wood and had roughly shaped benches in it.
1 hour later…
I was sat on Saphira's nose watching Arya and Eragon behaving like idiots again as the elves ran around packing the luggage onto some of the boats and herding the horses onto the rest. "Should we help them?" I asked Saphira mentally.
"No this is funny," she replied.
"You're mean," I told her playfully swatting the bony ridges above her eyes.
"I'm a dragon," she told me.
I chuckled and leaned back against her forehead. "Yes," I agreed. "Yes you most definitely are a dragon."
1/2 an hour later…
I laughed yet again as Eragon yet again fell into the water with an almighty splash. This was the third time. I was already seated in my boat with Arya and a spellcaster whose name I didn't know. Saphira was packed and ready to fly. All the other elves were also ready to go. We were all waiting for Eragon. He was refusing help from all of us and was seemingly determined to make a laughing stock of himself before he would admit he needed help.
"This is the last time," he growled and tried again to get into the boat before it promptly rolled over tipping him out with it.
"Well that's a new one," commented Saphira dryly. He sat dripping wet upon the banks of the river next to the boat which was rapidly becoming a hated foe.
He eventually said, "I'm not very good at this am I?"
"No," I admitted.
"No," said Arya blankly. "Maybe you should stick to riding."
I glared at her. What had been her problem these last couple of days?
"What?" The midnight-tressed elf continued to play it dumb. Some time I would wheedle it out of her though. She couldn't pretend always.
Eventually, after Saphira had grown increasingly impatient and in the end picked Eragon up by the scruff of his neck and deposited him into his boat; him grumbling and swearing all the time, we crossed the river and carried on on horses leaving the boats by the river for some lucky hermit to come across. We plodded on for what seemed like hours round various hills, streams and the occasional animal. Suddenly a large bird swooped down from the sky and raked its claws through my hair.
"Aaaagh," I cried feeling hot blood drip down my cheek. I promptly fell off Ilian who whinnied as the bird swooped again and landed on a nearby branch.
"Lily!" yelled Eragon and swung down from his horse, who had halted in terror, and ran over to me.
The bird took off again at his yell and Saphira growled loudly and chased it through the sky.
I held a hand to my head and when I pulled it back down it was red with blood. "Ow," I said, suddenly registering pain as the adrenaline wore off.
Arya and the other elves calmed the horses while Eragon tended to me.
The pain was not as bad as the wound looked. Then again head wounds bled more than others and often looked worse than they were. This one ran a steady stream of hot, wet, dark liquid down my face and dripped onto my clean tunic. I grimaced as he pulled at the cut in order to determine what spell to use. He smiled grimly and said, "Looks easy enough to fix- waise heill should do it."
This didn't placate me. "I'll never get the blood out of this. Where's Vanish when you need it."
"Trust you to be worried about your clothes," he chuckled. "And what's Vanish?"
"Never mind."
He said the incantation as Blodhgarm hurried up and reported that Saphira had caught the bird.
"Where is she?" I asked as Eragon said, "All done." I felt relief as the pain faded from my head.
"In a meadow about 50 metres away from here," Blodhgarm replied.
We hurried across the banks and turns and were greeted with the sight of a dragon pinning a tiny, in comparison, falcon to the ground.
"It's a spy," she growled in our heads.
"From who," asked Arya harshly. I jumped and felt Eragon do the same next to me. Neither of us had heard her follow us.
"I don't recognise him," she said.
Arya closed her eyes for a moment and then gasped, her mouth forming a perfect O. "It's a Shade," she whispered.
"What!" said Eragon raising his voice. He too invaded the mind of the bird and nodded when he saw it.
"Who created it?" I asked.
"I'm not sure but I don't think it was Galbatorix," said Saphira.
"Huh?"
"I grew used to Galbatorix's mind during my eggdom and I would know the touch of his mind on anything. This thing has felt the touch of a Shade and knows that this Shade's mind has not been touched by anything else."
"So this is the only spy it has," resolved Eragon.
"Not necessarily," countered Arya. "Saphira how many other birds have touched this ones mind?"
"49," she replied.
"See, he was obviously using this one as a spokesman and captain of the rest," she concluded smugly. Eragon scowled.
I nodded. "We obviously have to be more careful now."
"We can't watch every bird in the sky," reasoned Saphira.
"No but we can set up a ward to detect them," I said thoughtfully.
"I'll do that," said Blodhgarm running off.
And I was left with a worried Rider, an annoyed elf and a dragon who was eating a bird…