Chapter 10

As Brom leaves the clearing to procure some food Eragon looks back at the place where Arya was resting only a few moments ago. The black liquid that oozed out of her body rests in small pools on the ground, causing all of the grass it touches to wither and die. Eragon stares at the liquid in deep contemplation for a moment. 

"Why is it that no one had thought about using the ancient language to remove poison like I just did? Does my knowledge of my old world really give me this much of an edge against everyone else in this world? Well… There is no generalized education, no science, books are only owned by the wealthy… Maybe I need to reevaluate how I use magic.

Eragon walks over to a tree and sits down. "Let's start with what every mage in this world knows or at the very least what they believe to know about how magic works. They wholeheartedly believe that they use stamina as the fuel for magic and not mana. I can't prove that mana exists yet but it makes more sense than stamina. The level of mana a person can store in their body increases their lifespan, which explains why elves, dwarves, and dragons have such long lives. Then, for some reason, humanity doesn't have access to the full alphabet of the ancient language, or at least, they don't anymore since the fall of the riders. Without proper schooling on nature's laws, mages of this world can't make some simple spells that abuse these laws like I can. If I'm not careful, I could inadvertently throw this world into a new age if someone happens to get ahold of my notes." 

Eragon rubs his temples as he leans back against the tree, mulling over his thoughts and plans for the future. Saphira curls up around him, a comforting gesture that he appreciates greatly. They remain there for an hour or so before Brom comes by and hands him a bowl of stew. Eragon eats his meal slowly and meticulously before nudging Saphira awake and standing up. He does some stretches to limber up before sitting in the grass in a lotus position. 

Eragon takes a few deep breaths to calm himself down before trying to extend his mind to all the plants and animals around him. Even though he hasn't been told by Brom to do this, he knows that Oromis would make him do this exercise in the future. Eragon had tried to do this previously but found little success, attributing it to how little practice he has in sensing things with his mind.

He enters a meditative state and focuses, expanding his mind till he can feel the life energy of the nearby plants in about a two foot radius. He calmly listens to the ebb and flow of life in a nearby flower, watching the plant draw in sunlight and water to create fuel for its growth.

It's at this moment that Eragon has an epiphany. "Energy… Mana… Life force… What if magic is all of these things? Magic uses energy in its many forms to fuel spells, the ancient language guiding the energy towards its intended purpose. The body is just a battery for the energy we need to move about while we are awake. It's when someone goes beyond the amount of energy in their bodies that they start to use the energy of the soul, crippling them or outright ending their lives to fuel the spell."

Eragon sighs loudly. "I feel like some kind of scholar, set on unraveling the mysteries of the universe. I need a break from this…"

Eragon stands up from his seated position and stretches his body, his muscles sore from sitting for so long. Eragon pulls out his sword and begins practicing his sword techniques, shifting through the forms with grace and power, clearing his mind of all his worries. Over an hour passes before he finishes his training. Sheathing his sword, Eragon happens to glance to the side and see Arya standing next to a tree watching him. He smiles and waves to her then starts to pack up his things as she walks closer. 

"I would like to apologize for my behavior earlier. I was angry and confused, but that is no excuse for how I treated you."

Eragon looks towards her with a look of understanding. "Like I said before, I accept your apology. You had just been freed from prison where you were tortured for information. While I may not know exactly what you're going through, I can at least sympathize with your pain. But make no mistake… I will defeat Galbatorix. Mark my words."

Arya nods, seeing his determination. "We shall see…" Arya turns around. "It's time to hit the road, it will take quite some time to reach the Varden."

Eragon has a lazy smile on his face as he slings a small rucksack full of his enchanted items onto his back and walks back to camp. There he finds Brom sitting in the driver's seat of the cart after packing up their supplies. He is staring at the control panel with a quizzical look, most likely trying to uncover the mystery of its operation. Eragon's smile brightens as he strong arms him out of the way and presses the button for the slowest speed. The cart slowly makes its way out of the clearing and through the forest. The trees and shrubs start to thin and spread apart throughout the day's travel until they fade away entirely, making room for an endless expanse of sand and cacti.

Throughout the next day, Brom watches Eragon drive the cart through the Hadarac desert. Unable to hide his curiosity any longer, Brom nudges Eragon's shoulder to get his attention. "Eragon, can you teach me to control this cart? I have been watching you press these crystals all day and while I understand some of it, I would like a more detailed explanation." 

Eragon smiles. "Of course dad, you just had to ask." Eragon motions towards the control panel. "This here is what I call a control panel. From here, all the enchantments that coexist on this cart are controlled. While you are in motion, hold the left and right sides like this" Eragon demonstrates how to hold the panel. "Then you hold the left gem with your thumb to turn left and the right gem to turn right. Then you have the five gems over here in a vertical line. These gems control the speed of the cart, the bottom being the slowest speed and the top being the fastest. Then these gems over here control the barrier functions. There is only a physical barrier and a liquid barrier at the moment because making a barrier that guards against any form of magic is quite complex and I haven't really figured out a way to do so yet. These final two gems control the shape of the wheels as I had to make a wheel that can dig into the sand. Otherwise, we wouldn't even be able to use the cart in this desert." 

Brom is once again flabbergasted by how complex the enchantments that Eragon can make. To have so many enchantments work together seamlessly is a remarkable feat. Seated in the back, Arya listens in on their conversation and is also very impressed by Eragon's prowess in enchanting. Even the elves would struggle to create an enchantment of this caliber. The fact that someone with only a year's worth of training in the ancient language can accomplish this is a miracle in and of itself. 

Brom leans forward with an expectant look. "Eragon, your skill with enchantments is phenomenal. I can clearly see that your creativity is your strongest asset. While I will continue your training for the foreseeable future, you are charting unknown territory as no one that I know of could make this cart in a few weeks as you did. If you can make enchanted items powerful enough to defeat Galbatorix then go right ahead."

Eragon wraps his left arm around Brom's shoulder. "Thanks dad. I promise you that I will devote myself fully to my works so that one day I can kill the mad king with an enchantment so powerful, he won't know what hit him. For now, I will continue training in swordsmanship. Maybe we can also work on my mental defenses and social etiquette. I don't want to embarrass you when we meet the Varden." 

Brom gives Eragon a devilish smirk. "If you are so eager, Let us get right to work starting with your mental defenses. I will be directing a mental probe towards your mind and you must defend yourself by keeping a clear mental image in your head." Brom's smirk turns serious. "Let us begin" 

As Brom creates a mental probe, Eragon focuses his mind and pictures a jet black gem for his mental defense. Brom, seeing that Eragon is ready, stabs towards Eragon's mind with his mental probe, the dagger of energy impacts Eragon's mind and is deflected by his barrier. Eragon winces in pain as he feels the dagger run across the outside of this mindscape. After a few blows, Brom puts more of his strength into the attack, testing Eragon's fortitude to its limits.

The dagger that had been stabbing Eragon's mind turns into a lance that impacts with tremendous force, causing his eyes to roll back into his head and causing him to nearly lose his grip on his mental defense. Not wanting to be beaten, he focuses his mind even harder than before, creating a mental image of Saphira in his mind that is so clear and flawless, that when the next lance of mental energy collides with it, it glances off with next to no pain on Eragon's part. 

Brom's eyebrows raise in confusion, having felt his attack hit a wall more impenetrable than any he has ever felt before. He tries twice more and is shocked to see Eragon not even reacting to his attacks anymore. With a slight smile on his face he stops his assault. 

"Well done, Eragon. Your mental defenses are incredibly strong. I guess it makes sense for you to have a strong mind when you are so adept at enchanting." 

Eragon nods his head. "Thanks dad. I will continue to train as diligently as I can."

Brom smiles warmly as he begins to drill basic etiquette into his mind. The next few days go by in a blur as the last remaining vegetation is left behind them and the ground begins to turn to sand. They continue their journey through the desert, an endless expanse of sand that will provide Eragon no sense of discovery other than 'oh look another shrub' or 'that pile of sand is slightly higher than the rest. 

Every day, Brom draws water up from underground with a spell so that they can stay hydrated within the blazing heat of the desert. While Eragon is sweating profusely as he must stay in the cart, he comes up with a new enchantment for the cart. During one of their stops for rest, Eragon works on adding the enchantment to the cart. It takes him a few hours but his hard work pays off when he activates the newest barrier function, the temperature barrier. This barrier stops heat from entering an area around the cart, causing a slow cool down of the interior. Eragon could have made the barrier a full blown AC with temperature control but decided against it.

With Brom driving the cart at full speed throughout their journey, the miles fly by in a blur. On the sixth day after their escape from Gilead, they finally see in the distance the great rocky expanse known as the Beor Mountains. Throughout the day they continuously get closer, changing their perspective of the mountains as what looked like small hills become towering mountains that pierce the clouds. Once Brom has a good look at the mountains, he angles the cart more to the south east, the cart scraping through the sand at rapid pace. Meanwhile, Eragon glances to the west and sees a small dust cloud heading their way. At first he doesn't really pay any attention to it before he remembers a specific part of the novel where a group of slavers intercept Eragon and Murtagh during their journey. 

Eragon bolts upright. "MURTAGH!!!" he shouts in his mind. "I completely forgot about him. I was supposed to meet him in Dras Leona but I went straight to saving Arya without going there. I'm so stupid. How could I have forgotten about him?" 

While Eragon is smacking himself in the forehead repeatedly, Arya notices the dust cloud getting closer to them. Her elven eyes, being sharper and more acute than humans, can clearly see the group of humans in the dust cloud riding towards them on horses. 

Arya turns towards Brom. "Brom, we have company. A host of riders from the west."