For Alagaesia: 39. Cracks on the inside

The gentle breeze of the early winter morning had a hint of what was to come: A severe cold wave that would sweep through the land and last for four months. Eragon, sitting under a huge tree by the shores of Leona lake sighed heavily. Saphira was curled up near him shielding him from the biting cold of the wind.

Eragon had just contacted Vanir. Katrina had reached Silthrim only last morning. In all the rushes following the battle of Dras-Leona, which the Varden had come to call 'the black battle' owing to the loss of most of its war leaders including Jormundur, the commander-in-chief of the Varden army, Eragon had not contacted Katrina for the last two days. When last he contacted Vanir, the company had just touched the fringes of Du WeldenVarden. It might have been the sense of security that Eragon felt in the leafy confines of the elf-forest that he forgot to contact Katrina even after Roran had asked once to do so. But Eragon cursed himself for not contacting Katrina daily, atleast until she was safely settled in some elf-city.

A rustling sound was heard from the water that Eragon had poured into the pit that acted as the scrying tool and Eragon turned his attention to the water. A few seconds later, Katrina's face came into view. She had a beautiful smile etched on her face as she faced him. "Hello, Eragon!!", she greeted him. But he could not help but notice the slight disappointment that crept over her features when she could find Roran with him.

"Hello, Katrina. Roran had to go on a very sensitive meeting with Nasuada. He sends his regards and his regret for not being able to see you.", Eragon said.

Katrina made an expression that suggested that she doubted Eragon.

"Eragon, Is he hurt or what? For a while two days ago, I felt an odd sensation like Roran was in trouble. But then the feeling went away in minutes. But please don't hide anything from me for as long as I have this ring on my hand, I will know if something is wrong with him." She sounded concerned and afraid even.

Eragon controlled the urge to say that the ring would work only if Roran wore his too. He didn't want Katrina to worry about Roran anymore that she did now.

"No, Katrina. Its nothing like that. Roran is being promoted to the rank of the general of the Varden armies and the formalities are taking time.", Eragon assured her.

"What?", Katrina asked sharply, "What happened to Jormundur?"

"He is dead.", Eragon said simply and softly hoping that Katrina wouldn't hear him. So to divert her attention he quickly added, "How is Silthrim, Katrina? I have notr visited it personally."

"Eragon. Don't think me a fool to get distracted by your tricks.", Katrina admonished him mildly. "Was there heavy losses in the battle?", she asked.

"Yes, Katrina. Galbatorix has finally realised the threat of the Varden and he launched his most vicious and powerful attack on us at Dras-Leona. But for Jormundur and a few others loss, we overcame his cruel ploy relatively unscathed.", Eragon explained reluctantly.

"Hmm... that explains why the contact was becoming scarce in the last two days.", Katrina spoke more to herself than to Eragon. Then she asked the inevitable : "Do you expect any more of such attacks? Are you all safe?"

"Oh, don't worry about us, Katrina. Everything here is fine now. That was the strongest attack Galbatorix could have launched on us without him or Murtagh in the fray. And I seriously doubt that after our absolute drubbing of his spellcasters, he has anymore as talented to spare." After a pause, Eragon asked, "Leave us. tell about you. How do you feel about Du WeldenVarden? How are the elves?"

Katrina soon delved into the world of fantasies that Eragon knew would have captivated her after witnessing how real the elves were and how different they were from the humans. Yet how similar they were to the humans when looked past their unearthly facade. Eragon didn't think Katrina would have thought of all that within the single day she spent with the elves, but from what Katrina was describing him he could discern that she was really fascinated by the elven world. That thought relieved him from most of his apprehensions: he had feared that the elves would be blinded by their distrust towards the humans. But it seemed that the prospect of a child being born in the confines of an elven city was too much of a joy for the elves for petty things like misguided distrust of the past century to intrude.

After a hearty talk, Katrina bid farewell, but not before asking Eragon to keep Roran safe. Eragon promised earnestly because he couldn't live with himself if something happened to Roran. He along with Katrina were the only family he had left who genuinely loved him; Murtagh wouldn't count for they were doomed to hate each other for eternity.

Saphira huffed out hot air once Katrina bid adieu to them.

'She seems to like the elven homeland thoroughly.', Saphira remarked.

'We should be happy for that.', Eragon said.

'I am.'

The two of them then spent their time in silence reflecting on the past two day's events. They had seen nothing of Arya and Roran during those days. They were both busy recreating the Varden's leadership hierarchy which was largely lost due to the demise of most of the captains. It was Orik that first suggested that Roran take up the position occupied by Jormundur as the commander-in-chief of the whole Varden army.

Orik was source of great relief and joy for Eragon these past days. The dwarf king was always available for him whenever he was short of ideas or company. Unlike Roran, Orik didn't have much to do with the Varden except providing simple suggestions here and there. Eragon too restricted his involvement to a strictly advisory role not wanting to disrupt the military structure of the Varden about which, to be honest, he knew nothing. Roran had become an expert at it despite his stay with the Varden being a mere six-seven months as opposed to Eragon's two and a quarter of an year's stint with the Varden broken in between by his fifteen month training with Oromis.

Nasuada had more than once praised Roran for his selfless service in the Varden's cause during the last two days. She had equated Roran's political and military prowess to that of Jormundur's which was an honour of the highest order considering the vast experience and the expertise of Jormundur and the mere fact that it was just a day since Jormundur's death.

Roran had sternly objected to the idea of him replacing Jormundur citing his inexperience as reason. But Nasuada had been adamant in her choice, even though it was Orik who had suggested it in the first place. According to Nasuada, Roran was the only choice she ever had as a replacement for the highly accomplished Jormundur. She even said that she believed Roran could take them to victory if not in a better way then at least as much as Jormundur. Roran still wasn't ready to accept Nasuada and Orik's choice and Orrin fuelled Roran's cause further by supporting him saying that Roran wasn't experienced enough to handle such a high-risk job. Arya had surprisingly, supported Nasuada. She had said, "I have watched Roran and all his deeds and I truly believe that he is capable of manning this position more than anyone else in the Varden."

Eragon, of course knew his cousin all to well to doubt the level of commitment he would bring in to the position. Roran was surely a leader of men: anyone who could grow-up around Horst and then lead the man was a great leader. But Eragon couldn't decide whether it would be a good thing to give Roran, the most important post of the Vaden next only to Nasuada's. It was good for the Varden. That he was sure of. But Eragon feared that such a move would endanger Roran's life even more. So he restrained from giving any inputs on that matter citing his family connections with Roran as reason. But he hoped that Nasuada would change her mind and give that position to somebody else. But it was not to be for it was finalised after a long drawn discussion that Roran would be Jormundur's successor as the commander-in-chief of the Varden's army. The announcement was supposed to happen today at the gathering honouring Jormundur.

'He will do fine, little one.', Saphira assured him.

'I hope so.', Eragon replied.

'Where is Glaedr, Saphira? I have not spoken to him since the day before.', Eragon asked after a period of silence.

'He is with Arya.'

'Hmmm.... These days, he has stopped advising me altogether.', Eragon sighed and said.

'Oh, well, you keep no foot wrong, I suppose.', Saphira said mockingly and then added on a much serious note, 'He wants you to take up your leadership position seriously, Eragon. He wants us to make our own decisions. But be relaxed, he will warn us if we try to do something wrong.'

'I only hope, we are doing the right thing about the egg, taking it to the elves at first. He could atleast help us in that.', Eragon said.

'What help do you think, he could provide regarding the egg other than what we know already. He has told us all that he knows about that egg. It is now our job, as the leaders of the riders or rather the only rider-dragon remaining to take the decision on the egg. Fortunately for us, we have Arya. She has much more knowledge in things concerning this than us.'

Eragon fell silent again, reflecting on the beauty of the green dragon egg that was in Arya's care. The egg was in every way as beautiful and as fascinating as Saphira's had been. Thinking of the egg brought back only two things into Eragon's mind: Will there ever be a rider for the dragon in the egg considering that the dragon was obsessed with some unknown long-dead person and if there were ever a rider for that dragon what would Eragon's relation with that rider be. Eragon had given much thought into those subjects already and still was baffled by them. The indeterminable and utterly confusing prospects of both the events kept Eragon interested for the better part of the next hour.

The bells of Dras-Leona rang loudly in the distance. The call for the gathering was being made. The great cathedral of Dras-Leona that had served as the in-city worship spot of the Helgrind-worshippers was now transformed into the meeting hall of the Varden. It provided all the comforts of size for holding a full-scale gathering of the Varden and the dwarves (although in no way an equal or even a comparable hall to the great hall of Tronjheim.)

The last time those bells rang was for the trial and prosecution of Marcus Tabor, the city's tainted former ruler, who had supported all that was ill and evil in the city like the slave trade and the worship of Helgrind. Tabor had been excessively arrogant and vain speaking highly of Galbatorix. Tabor himself had made the job of the Varden easier by abusing the city's inhabitants during his trials.

"These people are my possessions. They shall run to my whims and shall always be loyal as dogs to me.", he had said. The people who had gathered were angered by such talk by Tabor and tried to stone him. Eragon had stopped the stones from hurting Tabor, a deed he did with much reluctance for he felt that Tabor deserved such abuse. But for the sake of courteousness, he had stopped the people from killing Tabor themselves. Tabor had then been hanged publicly.

"You shall run away from this land that you try to win over, dragon rider. And you shall remain away from it never to reap the benefits of all your work here." Those had been Tabor's last words. Eragon didn't care about such curses anymore. He had gotten used to it. He simply seemed destined to leave Alagaesia. But he couldn't see how and he didn't care to brood over it amidst all that was going on around him.

'The gathering will soon begin, little one. Let us go.', Saphira said. Eragon nodded and walked to her and climbed onto her saddle.

'You will soon need to make a new saddle for me, Eragon. I am outgrowing this one.', Saphira said. Eragon acknowledged her but didn't offer any reply. His mind was filled with thoughts about Roran.

'Do you think the people will accept Roran as their leader, Saphira?', he asked after a while deliberating about the prospect himself.

'Haven't you seen the respect they have for him? They respect him Eragon, much more than you or me. We are outsiders for them. People who have to be admired from a distance. But Roran is one of their own. A brave fighter and strong leader.', Saphira assured him.

'But will that be able to overcome Roran's late arrival in the Varden's setup? He is afterall new to the Varden.'

'If they don't then it is a loss for them.'

'Saphira, its not just them. It is the whole of Alagaesia that will suffer from the consequence. I, for one, truly believe none can do justice to Jormundur's position as much as Roran.'

'They have but no other choice than to accept him, Eragon. They know as well as you and I that Roran is the most capable of all of the Varden to lead them.', Saphira spoke of reality.

'But Saphira, these people have deluded themselves into thinking that only people with vast experience with the Varden will be able to man such a role. Especially, the council of elders.', Eragon spoke of the alternative reality.

'Don't speak about those power-hungry wolves to me. I still remember how they berated the race of dragons and the honour of Arya just for political benefits.', Saphira thundered in his mind.

'What is to say that they won't do so again today. This afterall, is about them. Giving the position of one of their own to Roran. They won't take it easily. And the fact that we didn't consult them on making this decision will anger them further.'

'If we had consulted them, they would have torn the Varden to pieces with a suggestion of their own. They will try to make their own puppets, the leader of the Varden. The cowards that they are. They won't dare to take that position for themselves.'

'But that doesn't make them untrustworthy of the people. The people still love them. We can't disregard them as mere council members. Many people are ready to stand by them.'

'Let us not break our heads on matters so unpredictable and insignificant as the rantings of the council of elders.', Saphira said trying to bring some harmony into the already troubled mind of Eragon.

Eragon fell silent thereafter trying to calm down his mind. He tried concentrating on the small and beautiful deposits of snow on the ground below them. But his mind kept coming back to Roran.

'I am afraid for his safety, Saphira.', he said just as they entered the city walls.

'Roran is more than capable of looking after himself and the affairs of the Varden, little one. If I may, let me say that he is even more talented than you in overcoming the odds stacked against him.'

Eragon smiled slightly at the truth of those words. He knew all too well about Roran: he would do everything that was asked of him and will go on to do those things that surprise and escape everybody else. Eragon didn't know if he had to be proud for Roran or fear for his cousin's life. If there was somebody who could stand up against Galbatorix and deny the evil king the pleasure of victory without the magical prowess of riders and elves, it was Roran (alongside Nasuada).

Saphira glided down towards the balcony of the Cathedral and landed softly. Eragon got down from her back and stood a little way away from her. Saphira snaked her neck towards him and locked eyes with him: his deep, unfathomable look and her intense, meaningful look.

'Never fear for Roran, little one. He is the bravest, strongest and cleverest man, I have seen around here. Be happy for him. He is destined for greater things.'

A fond smile lit up Eragon's face as he scratched Saphira's chin in acceptance of her words. He heard movement behind him and the next second, his smile was gone. Caution took its place and every emotion was drained out of his face. His face became hard as stone. As much as Eragon hated the habit, it wouldn't go away. He had changed and he had to live with it. Eragon could feel the hurt Saphira took at this change but his dragon kept her word and never asked him to change his manners or admonish him for his secrecy. He cursed Galbatorix to rot to death for causing Saphira this much pain. He would take whatever ill-effects, his captivity had on him, but he couldn't see Saphira suffering due to it. But he dared not speak a word of comfort to her lest she bring up the matter of opening up his deepest fears and secrets to her, which he wouldn't - couldn't - do if only to stop her from losing her temper and flying off to Uru'baen to kill the evil usurper.

"Shur'tugal", Blodhgarm who had come from the hall of the cathedral said, "They are awaiting you."

"Let us go, Blodhgarm-elda.", Eragon said in reply and the two of them walked into the hall.

Nasuada, Orik, Orrin and Garzhvog were seated on the raised platform at one end. Arya and Roran stood on their right side just below the platform. Eragon's guards stood opposite to them on the left side of the platform. The council of elders stood next to his guards. Eragon could see the people of Carvahall among the gathered crowd. Angela was in the crowd staring intently at the ceiling of the cathedral. Curious, Eragon took glanced at it too. All he could see was some old worn-out painting. What was interesting in it? Only Angela could tell and understand.

After a sweeping glance at the said setting, Eragon walked towards his guards and stood with them. He then, acknowledged the other leaders with a gentle nod of his head. With everyone present, Nasuada rose from her chair and walked forward to a central position on the dais.

"We are gathered here to celebrate the life of a man who dreamed of days like these: the days when great buildings such as this will be used to conduct gatherings aimed at bringing harmony to the land rather than ridiculous religious offerings born out more of fear than of love. Jormundur was a very well-known and much respected elder in the Varden. For me, he was a trustworthy advisor in affairs of war and a good friend with whom I could discuss matters of political importance without any reserve. More than everything else, he was the one who brought me up when I was a child. My father, as the leader of the Varden, couldn't wait on me always and whenever I was alone Jormundur stayed with me and looked after me. I learned from Jormundur about war as much as I learned politics from my father. But as talented as he was in matters of battle strategy, he never wished for war. His deepest wish was to give the new generation, a home where they can live without fear of Galbatorix. A home where there shall be no more wars; a land where there shall be harmony and happiness all around. At this hour when we remember him, let us reaffirm to ourselves that we would achieve what he dreamt of: Alagaesia free of Galbatorix" Thus spoke Nasuada: eloquent, honest and touching.

Obviously the people loved it and they cheered. "Be at peace, Jormundur", the crowd murmured as one. The love that the whole of the Varden had for the less spoken yet hard-working Jormundur was on full display as most faces in the gathering were sombre. Arya, Orik and Falberd spoke of their experiences with the commander of the Varden's army and the virtual leader of the council of elders. People heard all the speeches and stayed calm. Whatever morale-boosting words the leaders said, they cheered for that moment only to fall back to a grave mood. It didn't help that Falberd spoke ill of the elves supposed 'inability' to save the commander when they had the chance.

'It is all politics to him. He plays it like one does a game.', Saphira commented bitterly when he finished his speech. People even seemed to accept his views, if their nods were any indication. Eragon looked at Arya with a pleading look, asking for her forgiveness for the complete ingratitude of the Varden: shs had practically given her life up trying to protect Jormundur from certain death. But she didn't seem to take hurt or rather she hid her hurt so well that her expression remained completely unchanged. Eragon now knew that Arya wasn't emotionless or carefree about the comments made on her but she simply knew how to hide her emotions and cares, a trait taught by her royal lessons and perfected under the torture she faced under Durza.

Eragon felt obliged to speak in praise of Jormundur. After words of praise from Arya and Orik who theoretically weren't part of the Varden, he felt compelled to speak out about the commander himself. And Jormundur had been a worthy ally if not a close friend of Eragon's from the very day he reached the Varden. So when Elessari finished her speech praising Jormundur: a speech that had as many subtle hints of elf-hating as there was words of praise for Jormundur, (According to her, 'Jormundur achieved a great many things without the magical powers with which certain elves, here at the Varden, have achieved some things.' Again a dig at Arya for no wrong of hers. Eragon had long since taught himself to ignore such subtle yet entirely untrue and dishonest remarks from the council of elders. He couldn't understand why they continuously attacked the elves and especially, Arya when a meeting in honour of Jormundur's memory was in progress; they who were much closer to the man than any of the people at the Varden were ignoring the man's memories in berating the elves.) Eragon walked onto the dais.

"Action speaks a thousand times louder than words. So taught my teacher. I needed to look no further than my comrade-in-arms, Jormundur to find the truth behind those words. Jormundur always spoke less and worked more. Every victory that the Varden has gained to this day since I joined, has to be credited to Jormundur if not fully then atleast heavily. He led the army with such discipline that the enemies had no chance of a fightback when we closed in on them. Such was the intensity Jormundur brought to the field of battle and for that I admire him. As a man, he was honest and simple, qualities that define a great man. I am ashamed that I could not spend as much time in his company as I would have liked. But to make that up, I will strive hard to realise his and the Varden's dream, even more than I do now. Jormundur will live on in legend as the man who invigorated the opposition to Galbatorix even in his death." So saying Eragon stepped down from the platform and resumed his position by his guards. Nasuada nodded in approval of his speech. The crowd as usual clapped their hands and went back to that grave silence.

Songs were sung so that Angvard would give Jormundur the place that he was due in his halls and councils. Eragon found it quite amusing - not that he didn't respect the people's customs - for he thought that God would give all men their rightful place in his kingdom if at all he were as powerful as people made him out to be and that he didn't need cajoling from the people to do the right thing. Moreover, personally, he was losing faith in the concept of God for he had seen and heard of various Gods of the humans and dwarves - both of which didn't match in anyway - to gain his approval of the existence of God. The elven way of thinking was convenient if not entirely believable: your deeds in your own hands.

The remembering of Jormundur ended on a high note with Nasuada declaring that the cathedral would thereafter go by his name in order to commemorate the achievements of one of the greatest sons of the city of Dras-Leona, Jormundur. At the announcement, the people cheered very enthusiastically and Eragon could point out a few of the city's original residents among them. They seemed happy at the change that the cathedral was getting and also at the wholesome changes in the city's administration.

Once the din of the people's cheers had settled, Nasuada spoke again. "The loss of Jormundur has been great. In his absence, we need another person who can lead us into battle as fearlessly and as passionately as him. After a lot of deliberations we have decided that Roran Stronghammer would be the perfect man to lead us in this war against evil." She paused for a while and called Roran who was standing calmly near Arya to the dais. Once he was up there, she continued, "My people, I present you, Roran Stronghammer, the commander-in-chief of the Varden's army."

Roran bowed slightly as one-by-one the people started cheering for their new commander. The genuine happiness of the villagers of Carvahall was evident in their fervent appreciation of the announcement. Eragon was almost glad that the introduction had gone smoothly. When the time for action came, he knew Roran would prove himself, but it was his cousin's unfamiliar face with most of the Varden that had worried him. Now that the people were cheering in one mind for Roran, that fear went away.

When Eragon had thus relaxed - as if that were his cue - Umérth of the council of elders walked from his position beside Vidhya, one of Eragon's guards towards the dais. The people gradually stopped their cheering and concentrated on the man entirely. The respect that he commanded among the people was evident. Eragon wasn't inclined on blaming the people for believing in Umérth and not seeing through his cool manners for Umérth had a charisma about him that spoke of the most righteous and friendly of men. And the time Umérth had been with the Varden was greater even than that of Ajihad. Arya was one of few people who had been at the Varden before the new leader of the council of elders.

'What has that poisonous weed planned now?', Saphira seethed. Roran moved away to let Umérth take his place at the forefront of the dais. Umérth scanned the people surrounding him with a smile etched on his face. But his eyes lingered on Eragon, Arya and the elves for a longer period of time and the quiet disdain that crossed across his face at that time wasn't lost on Eragon. Umerth cleared his throat and started thus:

"My brothers, sisters and friends, I stand before you with a plea to Nasuada on behalf of you. You chose me for a reason and I have every intention of standing by your choice and voicing your thoughts. I shall lend voice to the thoughts of all you, as you have ordered me to. I shall not care about the consequences the request I place, may bring upon me for the Varden was formed for the people and what is the use of it if it has stopped serving the wishes of the people?

Let me voice that thought which passed through all your minds just after you knew that Roran Stronghammer shall be your new commander-in-chief: why not somebody more familiar with the Varden's ways; more experienced in the Varden's setup."

Eragon's heart boiled in anger as Umerth went on with his absolutely senseless yet eloquent speech. He closed his eyes willing himself to stay calm even as the urge to pick up and throw Umerth away ate at his patience.

The people had stopped their cheers completely and were intently paying attention to Umerth.

"My friends, I don't have to tell you what the elves and their kind mean to us. We all know of them: powerful, mysterious and distant. They keep to themselves much as they did when they hid somewhere secretly even as we here at the Varden suffered the consequences of Galbatorix's rule. They never let us near them to such an extent that we nearly forgot that there were beings other than humans and dwarves. And they don't let us near them even today when they have come out of their hiding to reap the benefits of a hundred years of the Varden's struggles. They don't trust us. When they don't why should we?

And see what they have done in the last two years.. They have stolen our rightful property. This powerful man, this rider, Eragon Shadeslayer rightly belongs to us. We retrieved the egg that is now the dragon Saphira and look where he stands now. In the midst of the few elves that are here at the Varden. How have the elves repaid our help? By whisking away our rider to their side. We have grown afraid of him as much as we are of the elves. He has become one of them.

My friends, please don't think me jealous for what I said and what I am going to say. This is the truth and I am glad to die for speaking the truth rather than to live the life of a noble by giving you false assurances.

About two years ago, we asked Eragon to swear fealty to the Varden to show his commitment to us. But he didn't oblige. He tricked us. He swore fealty to Nasuada, the newly elected leader of the Varden. How elvish was that behaviour of his? A testimony of early elven influence on him. And remember what he has done with that fealty. Nasuada let him go to the elves as soon as he became her vassal. And I have heard about various matters where he has rejected to abide by Nasuada's commands openly. Nasuada lives with it. She can't do anything about it. What can she against such power? The poor leader. I pity her.

And now. what is happening today? Eragon, with all his clout, has ordered Nasuada to give the second most powerful position in the Varden to one of his own family. To Roran Stronghammer" Umerth paused at that. There was utter silence in the crowd. People were eager to hear more.

Eragon had lost all sense of place and time long before then. He had grown numb out of anger. But only his natural instincts kept him from rushing to the dais and beheading Umerth. For the first time in his life and most definitely, the last, Eragon was glad that he had endured so much torture under Galbatorix. If not for that experience, if not for the self-control he had developed during that period, if he were the Eragon that he was two months ago, Umerth's head would now be under his feet.

'Let. Me. Tear. Him apart, Eragon. That puny good-for-nothing.', Saphira screamed. Eragon had silently asked her not to do anything that would prove Umerth right in the eyes of the people - which now included even scratching the fool for his words. He had gotten into the minds of the people. He had played very well with words that even touching him would now prove him right: that they - Eragon, Saphira and the elves were misusing their power to control the Varden unethically.

Eragon admired the self control of Roran, Arya and the elves for they had not done anything to Umerth till then. Roran was seething to strike Umerth, he could say. Judging from Arya's posture, he could say that

Roran had attempted to do something brilliant(in other cases, rash). She had stopped him. Eragon had never seen such expressions on the elves faces. They were all openly showing their disapproval. Only Arya was unmoved. Her expression mirrored his and from that he could say that she was in the same mood as his.

Umerth scanned the crowd with a hawk-like look. Then he continued: "My friends, Eragon's family is taking over the Varden. This is supposed to be a people's movement. I won't let him dictate us - not even if he decides to take my life for this open challenge. I respect Eragon for all his deeds. He has killed a shade and helped kill another. He has fought wars for us. But as much as I respect him, he doesn't have monopoly over the Varden.

We have heard noble tales about riders. They have supposedly maintained peace over these lands. But all the riders that I have seen have been the complete opposite of the descriptions that we have been led to believe. These riders. They simply think we are mice to be crushed and ruled. Galbatorix did that over a hundred years ago and he still does that.

The first step of making us the mice of Eragon Shadeslayer, my friends is this: putting his cousin on the most powerful chair of the Varden. What credibility does Roran Stronghammer have than little heroic acts that every soldier in the Varden is capable of and the fact that he is the cousin of the most powerful man around here? Think friends, why should Roran be given this post and not one of you? You who were born and brought up in the Varden? Think. That is all I ask."

Umerth walked down from the dais as politely as he had walked up it. He didn't even care to look at Eragon or Roran as he crossed them. He simply held his head high, like he had spoken the truest of truths and went back to stand by his fellow-council members.

Eragon couldn't gauge the situation before him because all his attention was on Saphira. She was angry beyond control. Umerth had played his political game far too emotionally and he didn't know the consequences of Saphira's anger. He had thought that she would just push him down on the ground and then let him up. Eragon had to send in all his love for Saphira to try to calm her down. The job was incredibly difficult for he himself was inclined on crushing Umerth for the kind of talk that he had just made. It wasn't the stupid allegations Umerth laid on Eragon that hurt him, but the consequences of those ill-thought out words. Those words had all the power in the world to cleave Varden and the whole campaign against Galbatorix in two.

Saphira scrapped her legs on the floor on which she stood: the huge balcony of the Cathedral, creating devilish sounds. Eragon was about to give up his bid to control Saphira when Glaedr suddenly took control of the situation and spoke in some weird image, sound and smell based language to Saphira that he could hardly understand. But gradually, Saphira calmed down to the relief of Eragon.

'Eragon. Clearing this obstacle is wholly in your hands. Nobody else can bring peace to the Varden now.', Glaedr spoke calmly. There was an undercurrent of irritation and anger in his voice that spoke of the real impact of Umerth's speech.

Eragon surveyed the situation around him. Nasuada was glaring at Umerth. Orik had his face covered by his large hands. Orrin looked around with an empty expression on his face. Garzhvog was grunting in disagreement. Angela for once seemed struck by surprise and horror. People were silent as in graves except for a few murmuring voices and odd glances at him or at Roran or at Arya. The people of Carvahall were arguing with those that were close by them: no doubt, defending him and Roran. Roran had his eyes shut tightly and his fists clenched at his sides. Arya had a sad look in her eyes when she locked eyes with Eragon. She had given up hope. He had too except for those words from Glaedr. Glaedr's words rung in his ears still. He could only wish that he would get some idea to prevent the Varden from tearing itself in two.

He waited. For what he didn't know. It seemed that the whole of the Varden was waiting for something to happen. Nasuada, who had done nothing but glare at Umerth from the moment he finished his speech, stood and said, "My People. I have just one thing to tell you. All that Umerth, who until five minutes ago, had my respect, spoke was for his personal benefits and had purely political intentions. I promise you, that I shall abdicate my position as leader of Varden if Umerth could show me one person more capable than Roran to lead our army in these dark and unforgiving times. My people, you have Roran Stronghammer fight. You know how he defeated a Urgal in hand-combat risking his life just to see that his mission didn't go awry.You have seen him lead men into battle. You know how good a leader he is. He killed the traitorous twins who tricked my father and your beloved leader, Ajihad to his death. He has had to go through fifty lashes just because he didn't want to leave the fight against Galbatorix. He won us Aroughs single-handedly. What more do you need in a man to be capable of leading us into battle? Eragon and Roran being related has had nothing to do with Roran's appointment just as Eragon's help had nothing to do with Roran's successes."

The people didn't react in any way to Nasuada. They heard her for sure because a few were nodding their heads in approval of her words, but the vast majority remained unmoved. Umerth's poisonous words had had such a lasting impact on them. Moreover, she spoke the facts bluntly unlike Umerth who had made up nice sounding sentiments to support his speech. Such kinds of speeches were usually Nasuada's forte. Yet this time she didn't seem capable of embellishing her ideas with those illustrative analogies that she usually used - maybe her mood was a reason. She was too angry to build up on ideas. Her words were raw and true. But that wasn't what the people needed. They needed some miracle to prove Umerth wrong. Else they seemed to have made their mind up on standing behind the council of elders and causing a civil war within the Varden.

"My lady, this relates to me. Let me have a word with them", Roran moved politely forward and asked.

"You may speak Roran", Nasuada said. Her voice carried guilt. She felt responsible for pushing Roran into accepting the position, it seemed.

Roran got on the dais with a calmness befitting that of a ocean and turned around to face the people. His eyes gleamed with energy. "I don't know what Umerth has found wrong in me.", he said, "And I don't wish to foray into analysing his allegations." He paused for a while and then said, "I didn't want to accept this position when I was first offered. I knew problems would arise if I were to be given such a high post in the Varden. The last thing I wanted was infighting in the Varden when we are so close to Uru'baen. So close to achieving our dreams of a hundred years and honestly for me: a dream of two years.

But the leaders convinced me that I was the apt choice for the post. I didn't want to disobey them. So I am here, as your commander-in-chief." Roran stopped speaking and swept a glance at the people. Then he said in a strong and powerful tone, "My people, I promise you that I will rather die than let us lose this war against Galbatorix."

So saying Roran walked down from the platform. Eragon could now perceive the situation with so much clarity than before for the burning anger that had overcome him when Umerth was speaking had all but died away except for a strong desire to punish the man for his badly thought-out speech which had no other intention than his own political gains. Now he could see that the Varden was divided in two in supporting both parties. A situation that he had feared. A situation that Umerth would never have imagined when he spoke ill of the elves, Roran and him. But Eragon couldn't quite understand how the people still believed in Umerth's words for although short, Nasuada and Roran's words should have pushed all doubts from their minds.

Now that Eragon could think without anger cluttering his thoughts, it seemed that the council of elders had always intended to culminate the day with that speech from Umerth. They had attacked the elves subtly all through the meeting, playing with the people's love for Jormundur and using it to slowly get them to hate the elves. Eragon knew that the people had no liking for the elves earlier since they had had nearly no contact at all with them.

'Jormundur would be ashamed of the council that he headed, were he alive.', Eragon said furiously to Saphira.

For a while then, Eragon stood in anticipation, waiting for Saphira to tell him that it was all a bad dream that he was having and that Jormundur's remembrance was to take place soon. But that reply never came.

"I really appreciate Roran Stronghammer for those brilliant honeyed words.", the one voice that would break all of Eragon's wishful thinking (that the whole event was a dream) said, "With those words he has proved that he is capable to deceive others not only with that hammer of his but also with his tongue. Woah!! What words!! He would die before we lose!! Hah, I would have believed him if only I didn't know of the inside matters." Umerth paused at that and blinked once. Then he continued with more vigour than before: "And I see that many of you have been deceived. I can't stand to watch my friends, brothers and sisters being deluded into the wrong side of the truth. The sight kills me from the inside if I don't stand up against this atrocity. Listen to me my friends. Roran here, is a puppet of his cousin and Eragon? who is he?" Umerth stopped and raising his voice to a new high, he said, "A puppet of the elves." A pause. and again, "See? The elves want to rule us. So..."

He was cut off by the angry roar of Saphira. She flew down into the cathedral breaking down the entrance, as she entered. There was mayhem all around. People ran away from Saphira in fear. She didn't have to send out flames from her maw; her eyes were enough to burn Umerth down. Umerth was shaking from head to foot in fear. Eragon ran forward and stood before Saphira before she could do as she thought: tear Umerth's head and throw it to the vultures. She tried to circumvent Eragon but he resolutely stood in her way. After a while, finding no other alternative, Eragon cast a spell on Saphira to hold her still in a place. Only then did her attention fall on him.

She glared at him and said, 'Let me go, Eragon. I want to smash the fool.' Arya ran forward towards Saphira, which Eragon felt as a bad idea.

"Arya, No!", he called after her. But she didn't mind him. She ran and standing by Saphira feet she touched her. Saphira glanced down at Arya and said, 'What have you to say? Let him live? He doesn't deserve to, Arya.'

"I know, Saphira. But certain people who don't deserve to, have to. Atleast for the sake of the sanity of the Varden.", Arya replied softly, as a mother does to a child.

Seeing Saphira getting stable, the people calmed down gradually. Saphira's anger cooled down considerably in Arya's presence. Eragon didn't know why, but he felt Arya could check Saphira's emotions better than he. Probably, it was because, he himself was angry at Umerth and being intimately connected to Saphira, he couldn't hide his anger from her as much as he liked and cajole her into calmness.

"Thank you", he mouthed to Arya. She nodded at him once.

It seemed that being threatened by Saphira wasn't enough for the council of elders for Falberd said, "Look, my friends, when we exposed him, he is letting loose that beast of his on us..."

Those were the very words that had broke Eragon's resolve to ignore the magician of Galbatorix while he was a prisoner. Hearing such a thing from one of the Varden was simply too much for Eragon. He seethed in anger and his hands flew straight to his belt to which Brisingr was sheathed and tied. Surprisingly, Saphira wasn't as hurt as him and she tried to stop him from hurting Falberd for speaking the most ill-thought out words of his life.

His hands shook in his effort to control his anger. But Falberd, unaware of all of this, continued to speak ill of him and Saphira.

"This pair has had no respect for us from the very day they came to us seeking refuge. They were cowards who couldn't fight the empire of their own..", Falberd was saying when Eragon heard him no more. Anger overtook him in every sense of the word. But he felt strangely clear. Like when Galbatorix was trying to ravage his mind using Elva, like when a great multi-coloured dragon had come to his rescue. But this time it was different than that, in that there wasn’t any dragon offering him help. It was just him. Something that he had laid dormant in him awoke.

“That. Is. Enough. Falberd.”, he thundered in the ancient language. The entire hall fell silent at this. Every set of eye was fixed on him.

“We have heard enough of your politics.”, Eragon continued in the ancient language speaking both through his mind and his tongue, so that everyone could hear and understand and know that he was telling the truth, “Can’t you see what it is doing? Can’t you realise that it has gone beyond power-politics? Can’t you see that your poisonous words are cluttering the minds of the people and threatening the very essence of our struggle against Galbatorix? Or has the greed for power eaten into all your sanity and made you the next Galbatorix?

Let me tell you, why Galbatorix is as he is. That man was a dragon rider. A fierce and true dragon rider. But when his arrogance cost him his dragon, he was consumed by the sorrow and let him be directed by a shade. Every bit of honour and sanity that was left in him was burnt down by the hunger for power. The rest of his story, I don’t have to tell you. It is legend of the darkest kind. Look into your heart and see what you are becoming. You will be ashamed of yourself. There should be a sane side to you or else a leader like Ajihad wouldn’t have kept you as his advisor.”

The council members had no answer to him for he had spoken in the language of no lies. They put their heads down and stood silent. Maybe their courage had failed or they had realised their mistake. Either way, Eragon would take it for he had no wish to reconcile with them or to pardon them for their behaviour. They had gone far too much in their attempt to regain their lost power over the Varden. They had tried to disgrace Arya, Roran, the riders, the elves and him. But above all they had tried to humiliate Saphira. Eragon would never forgive them for that.

He then glanced around the room. Everyone in the hall were silent. Arya was watching him intently. So was Roran. Nasuada and Orik were looking at him in awe, he could say. Even Angela's full attention was on him.

"Humans, elves, dwarves and Urgals of the Varden.", Eragon called, "I am not a orator to charm you with my words. But I shall not lie. I cannot. For I speak to you in the language of no lies." Eragon then spoke in the ancient language thus: "My only wish ever since I became aware of my legacy has been the peace of this land. I have not wanted war; it has been thrust upon me as it has been on you. I came to the Varden because I heard that the Varden had the same purpose as me: bringing peace to Alagaesia. It was only much later that I discovered that Brom, the founder of Varden was my father. And since then, I have felt a responsibility to protect the Varden. The Varden is a legacy of my father. Why would I want to wreck its very essence by taking over it?

The Varden is all about the people that compose it. We don't have lands to protect and nurture. It is people that make up the Varden. People and the peace among them. But peace, my people, doesn't stay in places where people don't trust each other. Trust will be the only thing that will hold us together during these dark times. If we don't trust each other, then we are doomed.

I may be young by years spent on this earth. But I have seen and spent time with all the races on this land. I have seen the most evil and the most noble of beings on this land. I have faced the most powerful forces this land has ever seen and I have witnessed the frailest minds. Believe me when I say this: humans, elves and dwarves are not so different from each other except for the distance they maintain from one another. They don't trust each other. The day they trust will be the day Galbatorix meets his doom.

I am a human by birth, an elf by appearance and a dwarf by law. I only wish for all my kin and kith to be united. Is it too much to ask? My people, let it be known that whatever I do is for you and your good."

The people seemed dumb struck. Not a soul dared to utter a word. Eragon wasn't even sure if his speech had any effect on the people. But he felt relieved. He had explained himself and if the people still didn't believe him, then he was not be to blamed for it. His eyes fell on Roran and an urge to speak overcame him again.

"Look into your minds, people, and decide for yourself if Roran is the best choice for being your commander-in-chief.", Eragon said looking at Roran, "I am proud to be Roran Stronghammer's cousin. It never has been and never will be the other way round. He is special. You are lucky to have a man like him leading you into battle."

So saying Eragon walked away from the hall, his head held high and eyes looking straight. He heard Nasuada ask the crowd if anybody still had objections about Roran's appointment and heard no response for the query. Everyone, by way of some unspoken consent, ignored the council of elders and they on their part were as silent as they could be. Eragon was satisfied at this outcome. It was as good a result as could be achieved after the horrendous minutes when Umerth spoke. Honestly, before he started speaking or even when he spoke, he had no idea where all these would lead. If it would create further damage or would it mend the strained state of the Varden, he hadn't known and hadn't thought about. All he wanted was to tell the truth to the Varden and make them understand that he was indeed speaking the truth.

'Little one, where did that come from?', Saphira said. Pride was evident in her voice.

'Aye, Skati. I am proud to have been your teacher.', Glaedr said. Eragon was humbled and stunned by Glaedr's lavish praise. As he walked further towards the empty streets, he heard soft footsteps behind him.

"Eragon-vor", Arya's sweet voice followed her footsteps. He turned around to face her. She had the same neutral look that she always had in her eyes.

"I want to thank you for saving the work of my life, Eragon. I had feared for a while that it was the end. That the Varden was finished. That infighting was inevitable. But you Eragon, with your words, turned everything around. I shall take pride in being your friend."

Heat rose into Eragon's face. He struggled to control his happiness and embarrassment at Arya's kind congratulation.

"Erm... yes... Arya... Oh, Thank You. Thank you for considering me your friend.", he stuttered and managed to say.

"Whoever said you weren't my friend? Did I ever give you that impression?", Arya spoke rather too openly for her usual self. But at that she seemed to understand where his thoughts went and all of a sudden all her light mood went away.

"I will see you soon, Eragon.", she said abruptly and rather awkwardly and turned to go. Eragon didn't want to end the talk that had begun on such a positive note in such a incomplete way. But he didn't know what to say to her to finish their conversation in the same bright way that it started.

So he asked her the second thing that came to his mind in her presence, the first being the ever-growing desire to shower his love on her, "Arya! When shall we leave for Ellesmera?"

She stopped and turned towards him. A strange little smile played on her lips, like she exactly knew why he was asking such a trivial question to her.

"Once the fortifications are complete.", she said and walked away. Eragon stood watching her fair figure until she turned around a corner and he lost view of her. Then he sighed heavily both in relief and in yearning.

Author's Note:

A rather dialogue-filled chapter. But I liked the concept behind it. The council of elders looking to gain power through nasty means. And Eragon crashing their plans. To be honest, I liked this chapter much more than the last one where I had planned only two things in the plot: death of Jormundur and fall of Dras-Leona. But this chapter was planned much more elaborately before months. In fact, it was way back in October 2010, when I planned this. Hope you liked it. And what about Eragon and Arya's relationship. Its taking a turn. Don't you think?