For Alagaesia: 80. The ultimate sacrifice

Would someone turn their perfectly purposeful life into animal existence knowingly? The answer to this question was trivial in the sense that it would be so unanimous that the asker would think why they posed it in the first place. But it won’t be the case if the question was posed to Nasuada, the former leader of the rebellion against the evil ruler of Alagaesia. This was the thought that played out in Nasuada’s mind every night before she went to sleep in the makeshift bed Murtagh had made for her.

For Alagaesia: 79. A golden act

‘It isn’t over Eragon! Not yet! Take my strength. You promised me that we won’t take defeat lying down,’ Saphira’s renewed plea rang in his mind. Amidst the torrent of pain caused by the crushing of his bones by the air - rivalled only by the pain he had felt in the dungeons of Uru’baen when Galbatorix used Elva to gain access into his mind - Eragon somehow managed to respond to his dragon.

For Alagaesia: 78. Mismatch

Just when he thought he had secured an unthinkable victory, Galbatorix’s dread turned to an evil smirk. Yes, the air-spear hit the king squarely on the chest and yes, blood was oozing from the wound. But Galbatorix was laughing - his usual maniacal laugh.

For Alagaesia: 77. Slaying a demon

Eragon thought he knew all about fear until they left the comforting confines of Du Weldenvarden. The smug confidence was, of course, because he had survived being exposed in mind and body to Galbatorix himself. The mad king had taken him to the brink of insanity and death many times when Eragon was his captive.

For Alagaesia: 76. Destiny comes calling

For days after the rather unpleasant meeting with Arya, Eragon reverted to staying put in the Crags. Saphira too did not bother him this time around. She was still quite angry on Arya for breaking Eragon’s hand as she did.

‘Don’t fight with her over it.’ Eragon warned her. ‘You know how she is. And what I did is sure to have made her angry. I am actually glad that she vent her anger on me rather than on someone else.’

For Alagaesia: 75. The torture of being in love

Now that he thought about it, it sounded kind of stupid. What had he thought of gaining by declaring his love to her? It was true that she left him no other option. He was pushed into saying it. By her. Still, he had known all along that it would take just one more attempt to push Arya away from him forever.

For Alagaesia: 74. The declaration

He had to resort to a violent mental push to bring Roran back from wherever he was caught in. And the moment he came out of his stupor, Roran screamed; the scream of a man who had lost his grip on sanity.

Eragon could do nothing but hold his cousin tight, the hopelessness of the moment eating away his resolve. Gradually, Roran’s screams turned to whimpers before he violently pulled away from Eragon and ran towards the railing of the balcony.

For Alagaesia: 73. Sighting Hell

With a hood pulled over his head, Eragon walked through the streets of Dras-Leona slowly making his way towards the castle. His arrival at the city gates dressed and made up as an ordinary human had caused a ruckus before he contacted the elven guard posted there by mind and convinced him of his identity. He had requested that his identity be kept a secret for the sake of sanity during the dark times. The elf had accepted his argument and had let him pass.

For Alagaesia: 72. A meeting with the traitors

The forest around the palace was suffocating. Thorn and Murtagh had left her in a portion of the vast ruined palace which seemed less sinister than the other portions. The place had only been in ruins for twenty years. But it seemed like it had been absorbed into the wilderness far earlier than that. The other way to think of it was comparing it with Eragon – the dragon rider’s birth coincided with the fall of the palace and its lord. When seen from that angle, it only felt right that the palace had changed a lot because in these twenty years Eragon had grown into some sort of a guiding light to Alagaesia’s populace.

For Alagaesia: 71. Euphoria of losing

He had thought that it was just another ordinary day until he heard her lilting laughter. The innocence and glee in her voice and face told him only one thing: search for a way to stop time from advancing and watch this moment over and over again till the green trees turn brown and the mountains are ground down to dust. It all started that day two weeks ago, when they left Silthrim. It was Saphira who suggested that they commence aerial combat training now that Indra and Arya had learned to fly together.