8 Chapter 8

Two weeks go by in a flash as they meander through the snowy forests towards Gilead. During these last few weeks, Saphira has had a growth spurt, her body now being slightly larger than a horse. She regularly flies ahead of them in their travels but is currently curled up at the entrance to the cave. Eragon specifically made the cave larger so that they wouldn't be cramped and she could move around a bit if she wished. 

Brom has continued Eragon's training, imparting sword techniques and finally finishing off teaching him the alphabet of the ancient language. With the full alphabet at his disposal, Eragon now has free rein to make some of the enchanted items he has been thinking up ever since he came to this world. The first was an anti-scrying amulet similar to the one he receives in the novel. Then he enchanted his bow with Finna Fjandi (find enemy) to make sure his arrows always hit their mark. He also begins the process of enchanting a wooden cylinder to expand into a cart that can move on its own like the cars of his previous life but the enchantments will need to be lengthy and precise so it will take him a few days to complete. 

While part of him is excited to continue his experiments with magic, Eragon knows that the butterfly effect may cause Galbatorix to leave Uru'baen and hunt them down personally. If this happens, he may not be able to cast magic in his presence so Eragon decides to make a failsafe weapon to defeat him. 

One night, while Brom is sleeping, Eragon moves to a corner of the cave and uses his gem detection spell to find enough rubies to fill his palm. He then turns the uncut rubies into a single flat ruby with a concave face. Next, he pulls some silver from the ground, heats it up, and shapes it into a medallion and puts the ruby inside it. With the focal point of his new amulet made, he brainstorms what enchantments to put on it.

Eragon was originally going to enchant the amulet with the spell that forces Galbatorix to feel the pain and anguish of all the people who have suffered under his rule, the same spell that defeated him in the novel. The only problem with this is that after being affected by the spell, Galbatorix basically turns himself into a mini nuke, destroying Uru'baen and making the area uninhabitable for generations. 

Knowing that Galbatorix doesn't have defenses that focus on him feeling emotions, Eragon takes a new approach. He fashions a spell that, in theory, should replace his negative emotions with positive ones. Whether this will work Eragon doesn't know, But he would rather have at least some trump card up his sleeve then none at all. He can always make something better later on.

After completing the enchantment, Eragon places the amulet on a chain and hangs it around his neck next to the anti-scrying amulet and heads off to sleep. 

… 

While traveling to Gilead, Brom finally brings to the forefront his thoughts about Eragon. At first he was just happy to be in his son's life. But after witnessing his prowess in sword and magic, Brom began to have doubts about how Eragon became so strong. 

Just the other day, Eragon morphed a boulder into a large round bathtub and melted snow to fill it with water. He did it as easily as one could breath and with no signs of exhaustion whatsoever. His magic reserves must be many times greater than the elves which just shouldn't be possible because he knows that Eragon is pure human. 

No human has ever had the level of power that Eragon possesses whilst being so young. And while Brom is happy that Galbatorix's defeat lies on the horizon, he continuously has this nagging feeling in the back of his mind that something is terribly wrong here. 

Then, as if some greater power noticed his growing suspicion, Brom's eyes glaze over for a few seconds before he shakes his head in confusion. He looks around for a moment before shrugging his shoulders and starts gathering wood for a fire.

…

It takes them another three weeks before they reach the outskirts of the town of Gilead. The winter chill is slowly starting to dissipate, making way for spring. Eragon and Brom are hiding near the town discussing how they will infiltrate the prison and rescue Arya. 

"Alright Eragon, we have the element of surprise as our advantage. It is likely that Galbatorix still doesn't know about you existing or that I am still alive. What I need you to do is to take Arya and run. I will deal with the Shade and meet back up with you in the east. Have Saphira fly you two over the river. She still isn't at her optimal size for flying with a rider yet but we don't have any other options." 

Eragon looks at Brom with a look of alarm. "You're going to fight a Shade alone? Are you insane Brom? In all of alagaesia's history, the number of people that have killed a Shade can be counted with one hand. I won't force you to let me fight but at least let me make you some enchanted gear. Can you tell me what exactly a Shade is and if they have any weaknesses."

Brom scoffs loudly. "If you think you can come up with a spell that can defeat a Shade in a few hours where other mages couldn't in lifetimes be my guest. A Shade is created when a mage or group of mages bind multiple souls to a single body. It's a very dangerous magic that always ends with the caster's demise. Shades have the strength and speed of a hundred men with a sick and twisted mind that thrives on chaos and destruction. Their prowess in combat and magic cannot be matched by mere mortals. Their minds are a cacophony of sound and images from multiple souls rendering them immune to mental probes. They're not the biggest fans of sunlight, but it's not an actual weakness that can be exploited. Now, let's see how the great Eragon Bromsson comes up with a never before seen magic that can defeat a Shade." 

Eragon gives Brom the stink eye before pacing around the clearing, his mind racing to find a solution. Surprisingly, Eragon only thinks for a few minutes before turning towards Brom. 

"They have multiple souls in one body, right?" 

Brom nods at him and he continues pacing for a moment. Suddenly, he stops pacing and grabs a twig from the ground and starts writing words in the ancient language in the dirt. 

"What is keeping the souls bound to the body? If there was a way to untether the souls and send them back from whence they came, the Shade would die instantly. Now I just need to formulate the sentence in the ancient language."

As Eragon is mumbling to himself and drawing in the dirt, Brom is keenly listening in and is flabbergasted that he is already formulating a possible way to defeat the Shade. 

"If we take the word Malthinae (bind or confine) then add Losna (release), we get Losna Malthinae or (release from confinement). Then we give the spell direction by adding the word Waise (Be) we get Waise Losna Malthinae or (be released from confinement). What do you think Brom?" 

Brom scratches his chin. "Well… It could work. But without any references to this particular spell being used on a Shade, we can't rule out the possibility of it not working either." 

Eragon nods in conformation before another lightbulb flashes over his head and he bends down and focuses. He uses his mineral finding spell Finna Deloi (find earth) to find the materials he needs from below the ground. Brom watches as Eragon pulls raw iron straight out of the ground as easily as breathing. The look on his face as Eragon heats up the iron with magic and manipulates it like clay is priceless. He then pulls out some small emeralds from his pack and begins forging a bracer without any tools, relying completely on his magic.

Only an hour passes before a solid iron bracer with a flat emerald embedded on the face and small indented lines in the shape of an asterisk has been forged and is wrapped around Brom's left arm. Eragon enchanted it with the spell Huildr Sverd which means (Hold Sword). The idea behind this enchantment is to lock an opponent's sword into one of the grooves, creating an opening for a counter attack. Eragon also adds the standard damage negation enchantment so that the item drains energy from the gem to protect itself from destruction. 

Brom looks over the bracer with a hint of happiness in his voice. "Thank you Eragon, this is a wonderful gift you have given me. I promise to not die this day as I have so much more to teach you and you have so much to give to the world. Now come on, we have wasted enough daylight. I don't fancy flying over a river in the dark." 

Eragon looks at Saphira next to him. "Can you wait for us to the east of the city?"

Saphira paws at the ground with anxiety. "I don't like this. You are going into a hunter's den with nothing but a stone sword and an old man." Saphira makes a cute story sound. "I will trust you Eragon, but if you get hurt I would never be able to forgive myself." 

Eragon reassures her by patting her side. "Don't worry, we will be fine. We will be in and out before you know it."

…

Eragon spends a few more minutes talking to Saphira before she flies to the other side of the city and lies in wait for a quick getaway whilst they break into the prison. Eragon follows Brom into the town where only a few people can be seen walking through the wet snow covered streets. The prison is located at the edge of the town along a small street where some of the windows to the cells can be seen at floor level. 

Brom and Eragon walk into a nearby alley and use the spell Vard Abr Garjzla (Ward of Light) to bend light around them, rendering them invisible to the naked eye. They proceed towards the prison and sneak in through the front entrance. The guards, being mundane humans, cannot detect the duo even as they walk right next to them. They begin combing the prison looking for Arya whilst always on the lookout for the Shade. 

Surprisingly, they found her quite quickly as she was in a standard holding cell in the first cell block of the prison. Brom checks the room for magic traps but his search comes up empty. He scratches his head and murmurs under his breath "too easy" before unlocking the cell door with a key that they swindled from an unsuspecting guard. Brom and Eragon walk into the cell and see a woman with fair skin marred with bruises wearing nothing but rags curled up in the fetal position in the corner of the room. Eragon rushes over to her. 

"Hey, wake up, we are here to rescue you." 

Whilst Eragon tries to wake her up, Brom is standing in the hallway keeping an eye out for any danger. 

Eragon turns back towards Brom. "Brom, she seems to be unconscious. I will carry her and you keep an eye out during our escape." 

Brom looks at Eragon for a moment before nodding. Eragon then grabs Arya in a princess carry and they start to walk towards the exit. They don't get very far before the door down the hall opens and a pale man in a blue robe walks into the room. His glowing red eyes and fiery hair remind Eragon of some vampire movies from his previous life. On his hip is a slender sword with a large gash on the side. Even though they are under a light bending spell, the Shade stares right at them with a smirk on his face. 

"Well, well, well… What do we have here? Two people with some proficiency in magic trying to take my prisoner. I suggest you return her to her place. If you do, I will make sure your deaths will be painless."

The Shade strides towards them at a leisurely pace and pulls his sword from its sheath. Brom ends the invisibility spell and pulls out Zar'roc. The Shade eyes widen slightly upon seeing the sword. 

"You have a Rider's blade… It will make a fantastic gift to lord Galbatorix. Especially when it's covered in your blood." 

Brom holds his sword in a defensive stance and gives a brief glance towards Eragon. "Go, now! I will hold him off and join you shortly." 

The shade scoffs. "Quite confident for an old man. Let's see if you can back up your words."

The Shade lunges forward at speeds beyond mortal men and engages in a sword fight with Brom. Brom tries his best to block and parry the Shade's strikes but his speed and power far outclass his own now that his body is weakening due to old age. 

The clashing of steel against steel rings out through the prison while Eragon carries Arya towards one of the cells that have a window to the surface. He shouts Deloi (Earth) and turns the wall into a makeshift stairway to the surface. He climbs out of the hole and immediately pulls out a wooden cylinder similar to the one that created the barrier during their fight with the Razac except this one has a picture of a car on it from his previous life. He throws the cylinder off to the side and once it lands it starts to unfold and expand at a rapid pace. A few seconds later and a wooden cart that slightly resembles a minivan with no roof that can easily house six people is in front of him. He hoists Arya into the cart and activates the barrier function before running back down the hole to save Brom. 

While Eragon was bringing Arya to safety, Brom and the Shade were in a back and forth battle. Brom's many years of battle knowledge versus the inhuman strength of Durza. The fight quickly devolves into a battle of stamina as the Shade's attacks start to wear him down quicker than he anticipated.

As Durza makes a fast overhead swing downwards, Brom holds up his left hand and activates the enchantment on his new bracer. The blade slashes across the bracer before slotting into one of the grooves and locking in place. Durza's eyes widen as he tries and fails to pull back his sword before getting grazed by Brom's sword along his side. His look of confusion shifts to one of cunning glee as he grips his sword with both hands and pulls back hard, pulling Brom with him.

It was at this point that Eragon returned through the hole to help him. He runs up behind Brom and prepares to cast the spell that he invented to defeat the Shade when the sword gets freed from the enchantment causing Brom to get hit by a sword swing, carving a deep cut along his left arm. Luckily, the bracer weakened the blow, only causing a shallow gash along his forearm. 

Even though Eragon is not technically himself but a reincarnated individual in Eragon's body, he still feels intense anger upon seeing Brom hurt. This anger clouds his mind making him forget about casting the spell so instead he pulls out his sword and shoves Brom out of the way. Brom stumbles to the side and nearly slams his head into the metal bars of a prison cell but he manages to grab the bars to hold himself up just in time. 

A new battle begins with Eragon now confronting the Shade with the swordsmanship he learned from Brom. The smile that was on Durza's face the entire time he was fighting Brom slowly fades and turns into a scowl after three minutes of exchanging blows with Eragon. Eragon's training is finally getting its chance in the limelight as he is going toe to toe with a being that far surpasses humanity with only his body and a stone sword. Eragon has trained his body to the peak of humanity and even slightly beyond, making him nearly equal in strength to the Shade. Their swords create sparks in the dimly lit prison as stone scrapes against metal, a dance of death with only one victor. 

After a resounding clash, Durza backs away for a moment. "What a capable young man. Why don't you just surrender and join Galbatorix? With this level of strength, anything you wish would be given to you and you could live a life of luxury, free from the responsibilities that weigh you down." 

Eragon backs away for a moment, sweat pouring down his face, takes a few quick breaths before looking Durza in the eye. "You want me to give my life and soul to that treacherous king? You needn't worry about me Durza, the mad king will perish in due time. But first… Waise Losna Malthinae!!!" 

Durza lunges forward as Eragon starts his chant but fails to stop him in time. Once the spell takes effect Durza stops moving and clutches his heart. A strange glob of light starts to leave his chest cavity before he forcefully grabs it and shoves it back in. Soon enough, multiple globs of light start oozing out of his body and he is scrambling to keep them inside. 

Not leaving anything to chance, Eragon extends his blade towards Durza's chest, piercing his heart. Durza's eyes lock onto Eragon and for just the briefest moment his eyes soften and his mouth forms the words "thank you" before the souls trapped in his body explode outward, completely obliterating his corpse. The souls that look like orbs of rainbow colors scatter in different directions before disappearing from sight. 

Eragon, heavily panting as the fight took most of his stamina, has just enough left in him to grab Brom and pull him towards the stairway he made. After unceremoniously throwing him into the cart next to the unconscious Arya, Eragon hops into the driver's seat and activates the driving enchantment, a very complex spell that uses magic that is drawn from the large topaz that is the centerpiece of the foldable cart to forcefully turn the wheels. There is also a small control panel that resembles a steering wheel with multiple topaz gems for buttons. The gems act as buttons for activating a multitude of different enchantments. The cart moves swiftly out of town and towards the river to the east. Eragon connects to Saphira telepathically and tells her to follow them towards the river where they plan to cross over.