Chapter 26

Eragon cancels the scrying spell and starts to pace around the room, his anger at his own stupidity clouds his mind. 

"I am so stupid. I should have helped Murtagh earlier. Now Galbatorix is going to torture him along with Thorn, his dragon. Now he will be an obstacle between me and Galbatorix." 

Eragon sits down on the floor and breathes slowly and evenly to repel the rage. "Calm your mind, Eragon… You need to focus. Because I didn't help Murtagh in time, I will have to fight him in the future. There must be a way I can help him, like making a spell that can break oaths that use your true name. Speaking of which…" 

Eragon tilts his head, wondering what his true name would be. Would he even have one, him being an interloper to this universe. Eragon contemplates this for a few minutes before shrugging his shoulders and leaving the forge. Returning to the Dragonhold, he finds Saphira curled up on the floor, her breath smooth and tranquil as she sleeps. He smiles slightly at the sight before walking over to a table littered with his notes and experiments, diving back into his research with renewed vigor. 

…

Another four days pass as Brom and Ajihad hatch a plan to deal with the twins swiftly and without recourse. To defeat the twins with minimal casualties, certain conditions must be met. Firstly, they must either restrain or remove their use of magic as they are some of the most competent magic users in the Varden. Secondly, it must be determined if Galbatorix has given them any boons that may protect or strengthen themselves. And finally, they must be lured into a secure location and dealt with in complete secrecy, for there is no telling how many spies exist in the Varden at this point in time. Only Brom, Ajihad, Eragon, and Saphira are guaranteed to be on the Vardens side. 

With Brom's help, Eragon is able to make a new spell that will stop all sound in a room. In theory, it should stop the twins from casting spells verbally. Hopefully, they don't know how to cast with their mind as they have no way of stopping such spell casting. Determining the location for the battle was the easiest part. With Ajihad's permission, within Ajihad's study, Eragon sets up a barrier that will seal the door with a simple command word, locking everyone inside until the barrier is disabled or runs out of energy. The only flaw in their plan is that they were unable to determine if Galbatorix had strengthened the twins with some unknown spell. 

With all the preparations completed, Ajihad has an attendant summon the twins to his study. Eragon, Brom, and Saphira stand before Ajihad's desk, doing their utmost to appear unsuspecting. 

Barging through the door, the twins see the lineup of individuals in the room, giving each other a very quick glance before walking forward. Seeing them, Ajihad stands from his desk. 

"Good, you have arrived. Now I wouldn't disturb your work with good reason but our young rider has received a vision that depicts a horde of urgals assaulting this very city. I would like your opinion on the feasibility of such an attack." 

The twins visibly flinch when Ajihad says army of urgals. They look at each other and give an almost imperceptible nod. Luckily, Eragon noticed this and sealed the room, then he casts the spell that blocks all sound in the room. The twins only get a few words out before their voices cut out, canceling the spells they were about to cast. 

Realizing the danger they are in, they each pull out a dagger from their waists, the older brother charging towards Eragon whilst the other leaps over the table to stab Ajihad. Before getting anywhere near Eragon, a gout of flame erupts from Saphira's maw, covering the man in a torrent of fire. Just before reaching his skin, the fire diverts around him, his charge remaining unhindered as he closes in on Eragon. 

Waiting for his arrival, Eragon stands in a ready stance with his sword drawn. Once he gets close enough, Eragon moves with blinding speed, delivering a thrust towards the elder twin's heart. Just before the blade would pierce his flesh, it is diverted to the side by his barrier. Unbenouced to the elder twin, the enchantment of Eragon's sword starts to suck mana from his barrier, causing one of the sapphire gems in the blade to glow brighter than before. 

With a triumphant, crazed look on his face, the elder twin stabs his dagger into the right side of Eragon's chest, his manic look turning into shock when he sees his dagger glance off Eragon's armor, not even leaving a scrape.

Eragon smirks at the elder twin as they continue to exchange blow after blow on each other, neither getting hurt by the other's attacks. Wanting in on the action, Saphira charges at the elder twin, swinging her claws at him with ferocity. The barrier around the elder twin continues to hold but the look of desperation in his eyes tells Eragon that he is reaching his limit. The silence of the room is disconcerting considering the flurry of activity within. 

Realizing that his time is up, the elder twin gets some distance from Eragon and Saphira before reaching into his robe and pulling out a small object. Eragon's eyes widen in shock as he sees a stick grenade, like the German ones from his former world in the elder twin's hand. Eragon watches as he twists the cap off the bottom, pulls the string, then throws the grenade at Saphira. 

Eragon grips his sword as he runs with all his might towards her. The grenade bounces off Saphira's chest and hovers in the air in front of her just as Eragon gets in range. With a deft swing, Eragon cuts the grenade in half just below the cap, severing the fuse from the gunpowder inside. 

An exhale of relief leaves Eragon's lips as he lay there. The elder twin is rooted in place, flabbergasted that the young rider was able to stop the magic explosive. Seeing how destructive the grenade would have been from Eragon's memories, Saphira snarls, rearing her head back and bathing the elder twin in flame. The fire is diverted for only a moment before whatever spell was protecting him shatters, the flames covering his body. He silently screams in agony as the fire eats at his flesh, turning him into a charred corpse in seconds, his body falling to the ground lifeless. 

Eragon starts to lift himself off the ground just as a shockwave collides with his body, sending him skating across the ground for a few meters. Saphira stumbles from the shockwave but her size helps keep her from falling over. Eragon shakily gets up from the floor and looks towards Ajihad and Brom, only to see a small crater in the ground and the individuals in question sprawled out on the floor. 

Fear grips Eragon's heart as he runs over to Brom, hoping that he survived the blast. That fear becomes a crushing sadness as he sees Brom's body. Everything below his hips has been reduced to a bloody mess of meat and bone, his torso covered in small wounds from the grenade. Brom still appears to be alive as he stares into Eragon's eyes. He moves his lips but the room is still under the effects of the silencing spell. Eragon cancels the spell then tries his best to heal him but knows in his heart that it will never be enough. Brom slowly lifts his hand and grabs Eragon's hand. 

"Eragon… Don't worry… It's already too late… For me…"

Tears flow from Eragon's eyes like a river as his healing spell slowly sputters and dies. He looks into Brom's eyes with sadness and regret evident in his features. "I don't want to lose you like this. There is still so much you have to teach me." 

Brom slightly shakes his head from side to side. "No… You have surpassed me a long time ago… I am proud to have you as my son… Take my ring… And head to the elves… You will find a new teacher there…" 

Brom's breathing becomes erratic and shallow. He is clearly fighting with all his being just to stay alive long enough to speak his last words. 

"Take care of each other… And stay out of trouble… I love you… … …" 

Brom's eyes glaze over, his breathing stops, and his hand that was grasping Eragon's falls to the ground. Eragon cries his heart out, screaming at the sky to bring back what he has lost. Saphira sits down next to him, draping a wing over his shoulder in an effort to comfort him. 

It's at this moment that the barrier blocking the door is blast open from the outside, a contingent of guards storming into the room followed by a woman in a long blue dress. She scans the room, a dangerous glint appearing in her eyes as they alight upon the charred corpse of the elder twin. Meanwhile, the guards rush to Ajihad's side, giving Eragon and Saphira a wide berth, finding him only slightly injured and disoriented from the explosion. Shaking his head to clear it, Ajihad looks over and sees Eragon crying over Brom's body, a hint of sadness in his eyes for a brief moment before his expression hardens and he turns towards the guard next to him. 

"Lieutenant, get everyone out of here except for the rider and his dragon." Ajihad stands up and walks up to Eragon, placing his hand upon his shoulder. "Take your time lad. Brom was a great man, you should be proud. I will deal with the rest." 

Eragon doesn't even respond to his words. His eyes are lifeless, staring into open space. Ajihad leaves the room along with the remaining guards. Seeing the woman who entered earlier, Ajihad starts to speak to her about something but Eragon no longer can hear the outside world. Despair holds him in an iron grip, his sadness overwhelming his mind, trapping him in his inner world. 

…

Walking up the endless staircase, Nasuada carries a tray of food. She reaches the Dragonhold and sets the tray down next to Eragon, a look of concern in her eyes. Eragon is seated crossed legged and has his eyes closed. His breathing is calm and even, as if he was just meditating. The only problem is that he has been like this for the past five days, completely unmoving and unresponsive. Nasuada looks over at the rest of the trays around the room, the food having been eaten by Saphira instead of letting it go to waste. She bows to Saphira, getting a nod in return, then sparring Eragon one last glance before leaving the room. 

Saphira moves closer to him and curls her body around him. She has tried time after time to access his mind but something is blocking her. Once she gets into a comfortable position, She sighs heavily before trying to fall asleep. 

…

Upon the vast open plains of Eragon's mindscape, a storm of apocalyptic proportions is raging unabated. A deluge of rain floods the plains, turning the once vibrant grass into a murky sludge. Within the clouds, lightning streaks to and fro, never landing upon the ground. 

Laying in the grass on the top of a hill, Eragon is crawled up in a fetal position, his sadness feeding the storm. He stays in this position for what feels like an eternity before he calms himself down and stands up, the wind tries to throw him around but he stands his ground. 

Beyond the sadness is pure rage. He hates himself for not saving Brom in time. He hates Galbatorix for facilitating his death. But most of all, he hates that the only father he has known is now gone. 

The anger builds up to a crescendo, the lighting in the clouds increases in volume and lights up the night. Eragon, in a fit of rage, screams at the sky with all his might, causing thousands upon thousands of lightning strikes to impact the ground simultaneously, causing the earth to quake in protest. 

With all of the built up energy gone, the clouds start to dissipate, the sun piercing through the gaps. The wind dies down and the rain ceases, revealing the destroyed plains. But surprisingly, little sprouts start to grow from each impact crater. Trees start to grow at a rapid pace, soon making a verdant forest. The overabundance of rain is soaked into the trees and ground, returning the grass to its previous vibrant state. 

Eragon watches his inner world change for the better, a weight being lifted from his shoulders. He turns around and sees a tree of epic proportions on the highest point of the hill. The tree is easily hundreds of meters tall, its branches already growing leaves the size of airplanes. 

Curiously, a small golden orb grows in the canopy above him. He can't really tell what it is until it starts to fall towards him. A golden apple the size of a large pumpkin falls down and just before it would crash into the ground it stops, hovering in the air within arms reach. 

Eragon grabs the golden apple and studies it curiously before having the sudden urge to eat it. Hesitantly, he takes a large bite out of the apple. When he does so, the apple glows brighter before breaking into tiny fragments of golden light that enter his body. Eragon falls to his knees and clutches his heart, a strange sensation flooding his senses. As the sensation courses through his body, he feels some kind of change in his soul. Without the relevant knowledge, he can't truly determine what the apple did to him. He does admit that his mind feels more at peace than before. 

Once the sensation fades, he stands up and walks to the base of the massive tree. With a single thought, a gravestone appears at its base. Eragon meticulously carves words onto the stone, a solemn yet hopeful look in his eyes. 

Here lies Brom

Who was a dragon rider

And a father to me

May his name live on in glory

Even as his eyes are filled with sadness and loss, Eragon can still smile, proud of the fact that he had the best father he could ask for. With a heavy heart, Eragon turns away from the grave and walks forward before vanishing from his inner world.

...

Sorry for the shorter chapter, I have been pretty busy IRL.

I was wondering if you readers would be alright with me doing some small Q&A sections either at the start or end of the chapters.

I have been taking your feedback into account while also being true to the vision of the novel I want to make. 

If you have any suggestions for ideas that I can add into the novel moving forward, I would like to hear them. Its because of you that I have gotten this far in the novel in the first place. 

Thank you all for reading my novel. Stay Awesome!

Undeadwizard7