A triumphant return that turns to disaster
Eldar's POV:
Last night the queen asked me to come with her because her daughter will be back at Ellesméra with a dragon egg. The whole town gather to celebrate the return of their princess and will be reunited to try to hatch the egg to become the next dragon rider.
I am at the queen's side and we have now been waiting for the arrival of the princess and her procession for more than an hour. The queen is surprisingly nervous. Although her face is expressionless her fingers can't stay still and she keeps rubbing the sides of her cloak.
This surprises me because from what I understood it has been several decades since the queen has seen her daughter and in addition she comes back with an egg.
When they finally deign to show themselves, the crowd lets their joy burst out and forms a guard of honor so that the princess and her procession can join the queen. The crowd brushes against the princess as she passes by and she finds herself right in the middle of all this crowd. I can't help but imagine myself in his place, which sent a shiver of revulsion through me.
The princess looks a lot like her mother, she is as tall as her, she has the same beauty, the same hair and a substantially identical face, but younger and with green irises that are not really round, her irises are thinner . This gives her look an impression of a feline retina, she holds the famous dragon egg in her hands. Behind her are two elves and a human.
When they arrive in front of the queen, they engage in their usual theatrical greetings and that's when Oromis and Glaedr come to land behind us.
'Glaedr has a gift for making a theatrical entrance…' Egan joined me too because he didn't want to wait stupidly and preferred to take advantage of the wait to go to sleep in the shade of the trees. I sense Egan's amusement but he doesn't answer me, he focuses all his attention on the egg the princess is holding.
The princess and her group are completely frozen in surprise, which makes the queen, the council and Oromis smile.
Arya's POV:
Despite my nervousness, I salute the queen as tradition dictates. My mother and the council return our greetings and at that moment Glaedr and Oromis arrive and welcome us too. It's been a long time since I've seen the Dragon Rider duo, and I feel a smile bloom on my face as Glaedr's spirit caresses mine in welcome.
That moment of tranquility seen fite shattered andthe panic overwhelms me when I see another black dragon coming. With the distance I first thought it was Shruikan but he is much smaller than him. However, he is almost as tall as Glaedr (he must be 2/3 of his height), he comes to rest behind a young elf placed right next to my mother. His presence generates no nervousness in the council and the young elf caresses the dragon as a welcoming guide before observing us again.
…
" How is it possible ?"
My mother answers with a smile: "You are not the only one to have found a dragon my daughter and I did not need to survey all Alagaësia to achieve it. »
Before I could answer Brom exclaimed, "You found a dragon egg? We thought Galbatorix didn't drop any eggs. Where did you find it? »
….
Brom faces the queen with an angry expression:
"You had a dragonrider and left us to fight alone?" It's a betrayal! Do you know how many companions I lost? How many of my friends are died during this struggle? The help of a dragon rider could have avoided making so many sacrifices! »
My mother then lost her smile and stared at Brom:
"Beware of your language Brom, your status as a dragon rider does not exempt you from the respect you must show to a sovereign. I have not betrayed anyone, this dragon rider is not my subject just as he is not under the authority of Oromis. »
WHAT ??? A neutral dragon rider!? How could he avoid passing under the authority of my mother and the last representative of the council of dragon riders?
Brom lowers his voice, but he remains just as aggressive.
"Who is he to be entitled to such a status? »
The young elf standing to the queen's right watches us but is now completely tense. I don't know how I could have missed his presence even with my current stress. He is quite unique...
Brom turns to me and glares at me angrily.
"How could the elves keep such a secret. You told us that you didn't have any dragon eggs, that the only ones that you know of are held by Galbatorix! If we had known that there were still dragon eggs in our camp, we would not have taken such risks or sacrificed so many people to save the one you hold! »
His tone is accusatory and he stares at me with the same expression as if he were looking at one of the traitors of his caste.
"How dare you accuse me of such behavior Brom?" I took as many risks as you during all those years that I supported your faction! »
Before he could reply, my mother intervened.
"My daughter didn't know, neither did we... Eldar and Egan appeared at Du Weldenvarden only a few months ago and then we thought it was an attack and even attacked them. After realizing our mistake, I spoke with Eldar and he confessed to having lived on an island with Egan. He explained to me that they came to us to meet his people and live with us. He asked for the right to remain politically neutral and to be able to remain free of his choices. If we had refused his offer he would have left to find another home where he could have remained free.
We made sure of his goodwill. Once certain that they came in peace and without any bad intentions, I agreed to let them live among us. »
This news amazes me! My mother is my mother is intelligent and bossy ! I never imagined she would willingly leave an elf out of her jurisdiction and control.
"So Dragon laughed…. Brom cupped his head between his palms, an obvious sign of pain.
This time it was Glaedr who intervened
'They refused to be associated with this title, Egan's draconic magic, the black dragon activated to prevent anyone from associating them with dragon riders. They use another title and I'm sure you know which one.'
Brom looks at his masters… "Glaedr is serious? They are what they are… Prince or not, there are responsibilities that come with it! How could you let this happen? How could you leave him out of our control? If he doesn't need training then he'll come with me to help with the war effort! »
I saw my mother whisper in the dragonrider's ear and saw him go from tense to furious.
The young elf replied to my mother in a language that I never thought I would hear from such a young elf: "We are not going anywhere and we have no orders to take from a human. With that statement he turned to his dragon and walked away.
Brom, furious walked up to him and said, "Stay here kid, we haven't finished talking!" The moment he put his hand on his shoulder and forced him to turn around my mother stood up angrily and the black dragon leapt forward but before he could reach it, it was something else that stopped Brom and took everyone by surprise. A blade of wind materialized on Brom's neck revealing a trickle of blood.
Eldar fixes Brom with an intense and luminous green gaze, as if enlightened from within and says "You are definitely all the same! You dragon riders…"
He spits out that title with so much venom that anyone can understand the contempt he feels for Brom right now. No need to understand the language, just observe his expression and listen to the tone of his voice.
He continues in a calmer voice: "We have been designated as traitors to your caste, we are not allies and we are certainly not under your orders! We owe you nothing and want nothing to do with you. Stay away from us and everything will be fine. Threaten us again and this time I'll let Egan devour you. »
Brom can't understand what he just said but remains frozen because in addition to a blade of wind against his throat, a black dragon right in front of him growls with its mouth open in an attack posture.
A silence falls and only the indignant oaths of my companions are heard. Turning around I realize that Glenwing and Fäolin are on their knees, the swords of two guards are pointed behind their necks and keep them quiet. They must have wanted to step in to help Brom. What amazes me the most is the behavior of the inhabitants of Ellesméra. They were a few moments before jovial and festive but now, no smile is visible, they are all serious and now look at my companions with anger, some even have their weapons in their hands.
I turn around when I hear my mother talking. She has a hand on the shoulder of the young elf and says "Brom is an ally, even if he was rude and disrespectful, he does not deserve to die... Let him go Eldar. I'll make sure that he has understood the message and that he leaves you in peace. »
Eldar tries to display a mask of neutrality but his eyes display his anger and they are bright…even his lips are too tight for anyone to be fooled. He looks at my mother for a few seconds then nods. He turns back to the dragon and the blade of wind disappears.
Brom watches the elf mount the black dragon and now that he is no longer threatened with imminent death, he cries out in fury.
"It's not over my boy, you have obligations! I guarantee you will hear from me again! »
As the black dragon begins to move menacingly towards Brom it is Oromis who intervenes this time.
"Brom, that's enough, you've done enough!" Even a friend can't afford to be so disrespectful! Neither the queen nor I intervened, you have no right to be an authority figure here. I taught you better than that Brom. Go back and look at what you were about to do! »
Brom turns around and I follow the movement automatically before understanding Oromis' words. The crowd is clearly hostile towards Brom and some are even in attack posture. The nearest guards even drew their swords towards the one who moments earlier had been welcomed as a friend and a war hero.
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Author's note:
(diabolical laughter) I know that I make the dragon riders appear in a very bad light when they are nevertheless the ones who fight for the oppressed but I do not see how they could have remained calm and accepted that the one they were waiting for refuses to fight alongside them. Moreover its consolidates the neutrality of Eldar and Egan.