Chapter 6

The next morning, Brom and Eragon take off just before the sun rises, only eating a small bit of jerky as they walk into the forest. The next five days of travel go by uneventfully, Eragon's training continuing whenever they stop to make camp. Just before the next major blizzard buries them, Eragon and Brom hide in a nearby cave. They had been following the Anora river south and towards the town of Utgard. With the town being a garrison for Galbatorix's soldiers, they decided not to risk getting detained so they gave the city a wide berth. 

They were only a few days' travel from the town of Yazuac when dark clouds floated overhead and unleashed their icy payload throughout the valley. The cave they took shelter in was quite small but it served their purposes. The blizzard raged on for over five days before the clouds finally dispersed, the sun peeking through, illuminating the snow-covered landscape. By now, Saphira has grown to about the size of a large dog and was devouring their meat supplies at a rapid pace. She has yet to link her mind with Eragon's but that doesn't stop him from showering her with love. The two are basically inseparable and Eragon always talks to her about different topics and she appears able to understand what he is saying to an extent. 

Meanwhile, Brom is overseeing Eragon's training in the ancient language and swordsmanship. He still has a hard time coming to grips with the fact that his son is a prodigy unlike any he has seen before. Eragon has such an inventive mind that can create spells that are more powerful and stamina efficient. When they spar, Brom finds himself on the defensive more often then he would like, even to the point where Eragon isn't the only one with bruises each night. 

Another thing that irks Brom is that Eragon appears to not get tired as quickly as he should when casting magic. When questioned, Eragon simply says that during his training, he uses up everything he has by filling gems with his remaining energy after practice which appears to be slightly increasing his capacity over time. 

Brom gives Eragon an incredulous look as he has never heard of anyone being able to increase their capacity through just training. The only way that he knows to increase a person's magic capacity is for someone to bind themselves to a dragon as the riders do. Yet Eragon was doing this training way before he was bound to Saphira. This causes Brom to start having doubts about how Eragon has become so smart and powerful in only a few months. This seed of doubt starts to build in his mind, giving him the impression that maybe Eragon is being influenced by someone or something. 

Brom shakes his head in denial. Knowing that Eragon has had no contact with anyone suspicious because he was watching over him from the shadows his whole life. A pang of guilt creeps into his heart as he now realizes the folly of his actions. They should have just lived like a normal family, enjoying their time together. Instead he left Eragon to fend for himself, his cowardice holding him back from enjoying his remaining time. He can feel it in his bones and in his heart. He sees her in his dreams. Selena beckoning him to return to her side. 

*Booooom!!! rumble*

Startled awake by the sound of thunder, Brom wipes the sweat from his forehead. He looks over and sees Eragon still fast asleep with Saphira curled up on his chest. He takes a few deep breaths to calm himself down before laying back, his body demanding a few more hours of sleep.

…

The storm clears up later the next day, allowing them to make it to the town of Yazuac before darkness descends once more. It is a small town bustling with activity as people mill about the market purchasing any final necessities before the winter fully sets in, the children are mostly absent as the weather is already too cold for them to run about freely. 

Brom and Eragon spend some of their coin procuring food and supplies before leaving the town and heading south east. Unfortunately, they were unable to acquire any horses here as well as they had all been taken by the soldiers at Utgard. 

As they leave, Eragon looks back at the town wondering if he should warn them of the impending urgal attack. He pictures in his head the pile of corpses in the center of the town as described in the books and realizes that he can't save everyone and trying to explain how he knows that they are coming would be a futile endeavor. Brom watching Eragon from the side takes this as him realizing that he is no longer allowed to have a normal life like those villagers. Smiling wryly, Brom wraps his arm around his son's shoulder and leads him off into the wilderness. 

… 

After four day's travel on foot to the south, they find the town of Daret and decide to try once more to acquire horses for their journey. This time their prayers are answered and they find a pair of thoroughbreds that appear to be in good shape. After purchasing the horses, they head south through the central plains. 

Teirm is to the south west from where they are currently but a mountain range lies between them and the town so they need to head south to the Toark river first then head north west towards the ocean. Their journey through the cold countryside is slow but uneventful. The only thing worth mentioning was when a group of hungry wolves tried to attack them but with Eragon and Brom displaying their skills with blade and magic the wolves were slaughtered with no issues. The wolves had been starving for a while as was evident in how little meat was clinging to their bones. They weren't even a good snack for Saphira. 

Over the next few weeks, while Brom teaches Eragon, Saphira continues to grow at a relentless pace. She is now too large to coil around Eragon's neck, not for lack of trying mind you, and has been hunting on her own. They once stumbled upon a dead buck in their path with teeth and claw marks around its neck, the deer was still fresh and was promptly cooked into a hearty stew that filled their stomachs for days to come. 

During their travels, Eragon spends a good portion of his free time coming up with new and interesting enchantments to combine with various items. One such item that he is quite happy with is a defensive item he calls "the shield". It is a small wooden cylinder with a topaz gem that you can press inward and once you do, a translucent barrier appears in a 10 meter sphere around itself, protecting whatever is inside from projectiles and physical attacks. Making it defend against magical attacks would be too difficult as there are just too many options to choose from. 

Then we get to the enchantments that are just for convenience like a back scratcher that you can move with just a thought, a self cleaning spell is added to his clothes, and he makes his shoes more springy and durable. 

Eragon sees the ancient language more as a computer program than an actual alphabet. The freedom to craft any enchantment he can think up attests to that.

Then came the fateful day where Saphira learned how to communicate with Eragon using her mind. 

…

One day, while Eragon is writing out some spell ideas in the snow with a stick, he feels a thought tendril extend towards his mind. At first he guards himself against it before quickly realizing who it is and lets them through. 

When Saphira's mind links with his, they share an intimate bonding moment that only a rider and their dragon can experience. Thoughts and emotions are shared between them, a euphoric sensation flooding Eragon's senses. He turns around and walks through the woods, finding Saphira only a short distance away from him by locating her through their link. She looks deeply into his blue eyes that shine just like her scales, a feeling of happiness flowing from her mind into Eragon's. 

From that moment onward, the two of them spent every waking moment talking to each other with their minds and sharing all of their life experiences. Saphira has a hard time putting words to her thoughts, instead opting for emotions and memories to convey her intent. Eragon replies in kind, hesitantly sharing the memories of his previous life, making sure she knows not to reveal his secrets. He could have made the promise binding by having her speak an oath in the ancient language, but he decides against it as he would rather trust her unconditionally. 

…

Breaking through the tree line, Eragon and Brom finally see the imposing walls of the city of Teirm. It has taken them a month and a half of trekking through the snowy countryside all the way from Carvahall to arrive here. 

Eragon reluctantly has Saphira stay in the wilderness by herself while they enter the town, but not before he makes her a small shelter by using magic to shape the ground into a small cave and filling it with spare blankets so that she can rest inside comfortably. 

They are questioned by some guards at the gate but after finding nothing suspicious about them, they are ushered into the city. They walk through the snow covered streets towards a rather large building near the center of the residential district. 

Brom proceeds to knock on the door where a butler answers the door. Brom tells him that he has business with Jeod and to tell him that Brom is waiting at the door. The butler nods before shutting the door in their face. 

They wait for only a few minutes before the door swings open once more and they find themselves being ushered through the hallways of an expensive looking manor. They are led to an office where an older man sits behind his desk that is covered in books and papers and smiles upon seeing Brom.

"Brom, I thought you were dead. It's so good to see you." Jeod stands up and wraps Brom in a hug. 

"It's good to see you too, my old friend. How is business these days?" 

"Ah, you do not want to know. My shipments keep getting raided before they make it to their destinations and my wallet is starting to run dry. I will be bankrupt soon if something doesn't change. But that's enough about me, have a seat and introduce me to this young man behind you." 

Eragon walks up to Jeod with a smile and shakes his hand. "I'm Eragon, sir. Eragon Bromson." 

Jeod who was smiling all of a sudden has a look of shock on his face. "Bromson!!! As in this old coot? My god, I never thought I would see the day. You're telling me this old grizzled fool actually managed to conceive? To be completely frank with you most that know him think him sterile." 

Brom had just sat down in a nice chair after many grueling weeks of travel through the harsh wilderness and was not prepared in the slightest for such a hurtful remark. He clutches his chest as if he was stabbed. "You know I am right here don't you? And besides, there was never a woman who could capture my heart like Selena." 

Jeod has a look of understanding. "Ah, Selena. Never met the lass but Brom was completely smitten with her from the first time they locked eyes. Truly romantic." 

Brom raises an eyebrow at him. "How would you know? You weren't there." 

that is how all love is. Well… except for arranged marriages like my own. Though I won't complain, I love my wife dearly. I'm sorry we got off topic. It's a pleasure to meet you Eragon, I am Jeod Longshanks. Scholar by trade, merchant in my spare time. If you need knowledge on secrets long lost to time you come to me. Now come, sit down and have some tea. I'm sure we have much to discuss." 

Brom explains to Jeod what happened after they attempted to steal Saphira's egg. How he chased the thief and killed Morzan then gave the egg to the Varden. He then went on a rampage, killing two of the Forsworn, Galbatorix's accomplices in his rise to power, and arranging the deaths of another five. He left Eragon in the care of his uncle Garrow in Carvahall and eventually decided to settle down there and keep an eye on him. 

This is where Eragon takes the lead in the story and explains how he found out that Brom was his father and how he discovered he was a magician and forced Brom to teach him. Jeod has a hearty laugh at the thought of anyone being able to force Brom to do anything. Eragon explains how Saphira's egg appeared out of nowhere while he was hunting and immediately brought it to brom. It then hatched and they decided to head towards the Varden for protection from Galbatorix until such time as Eragon is ready to face him. 

"What a remarkable journey lies before you young Eragon. Once you remove that betrayer from his golden throne I would like to write your story, immortalizing your journey for the future generations." 

Eragon holds his head high and speaks in a condescending tone. "I guess I can allow you the honor of writing about my future deeds. That fool of a king shall meet his end by my blade." 

Brom face-palms and sighs loudly. "Don't let this go to your head boy. It will be years before you have even the slightest chance to defeat him. And to prepare you for when that day arrives, I will train you into the greatest rider to ever exist. Now, there are still a few hours of daylight left. Go and explore the town for a while, I need to talk to Jeod alone." 

"Of course Brom. I will return by nightfall." 

Jeod turns to him. "Don't leave the city. The guards close the gates at dusk and don't allow anyone entrance until the morning."