For Alagaesia: 58. The enemy is a friend

The Leona lake had everything that was beautiful – a shore dotted with trees, a mountainous backdrop, clear water and silence. But it still couldn’t provide peace to Nasuada. Even her horse, Battlestorm seemed distracted. He neighed, probably calling her to join him back to the city. The cold was that unbearable.

But she didn’t care. In fact, the cold was so much better than the constant protection that she was being given in the city. In Dras-Leona, she wasn’t living the life of a ruler but that of a prisoner; with a difference, though – the prisoner who doubled up as decision maker.

For Alagaesia: 57. In the city of eternal twilight

Ellesmera's surroundings were as always old yet welcoming. The huge trees of and around the leafy elven capital had always awed Eragon. And they did now too, the third time he was entering the town. The intricately lined trees that formed huge pathways which weren't obvious at first sight and the mansions built on and of the trees were marvels that no elf or rider could build in one lifetime. They were products of thousands of years of persistent efforts of the elves. The city was eternal. Winter or Summer, Autumn or Spring, the city seldom changed.

The trees were always green and their branches bore flowers and fruits at all times. Eragon touched the trunk of a hulk of a tree and shivered at the coolness of its surface. It was mid morning and yet the feel was that of twilight and Eragon knew it would always remain so: the city of eternal twilight, the leafy city – Ellesmera had a lot of names.

For Alagaesia: 56. Introductions and promises

Early in the next morning, Eragon and Saphira were flying alone in the wild. Their rapture knew no bound. With Arya around they couldn’t share how much happy they were, that a new dragon and rider had joined them, with each other. Arya seemed to take her ridership with a pinch of salt and hence allowing their ecstasy to show in full in front of her seemed inappropriate.

However Arya took her ridership, Eragon and Saphira were just happy to have her as co-rider. With anyone else, they wouldn’t have been this much happy. She was a dear friend to both of them and they trusted in her completely. What more could they have asked for? Everything seemed beautiful in the land. And they revelled in the feeling. It was so long since they had felt such bliss. Ever since Brom’s death or even Garrow’s death, they hadn’t felt this way.

For Alagaesia: 55. Childish

Revelry, it seemed was built into dragons. Ever since the sun had risen, the little dragon had not rested. He jumped around at anything he saw. And he always stopped on his tracks whenever his eyes settled on the sun. The sun held a very important part in dragon’s lives, Eragon knew. Saphira had expressed her wish to fly in the Hadarac for hours on end without aim many times over to him and he had promised her that he would accompany her when she embarked on such a trip.

The Du Weldenvarden was a place of abundance, except for sunlight. And Eragon was starting to hate that part of the forest. Earlier it had held a fascination: the concept of eternal twilight was so spiritual and to tell the truth, it still was fascinating. But for one thing: The little green thing could have been tied down if the sun was shining on them all the time, what with his interest in gazing at the sun and all. With the sun’s absence though, he was acting quite strange, running off behind anything that moved, be it leaves or frogs.

For Alagaesia: 54. The monkey mind

Human mind is a fickle thing. It throws up something at you when you least expect it to. Its working is so erratic that at times you start to doubt if it is even you thinking what you think or if some monster has occupied your mind and was thinking for you. It makes you laugh at the most desperate moment and makes you look all gloomy during the happiest of times. Nasuada was grappling with such a state of her mind.

It was late in the night, when she had reached Dras-Leona half-dead. The cold conditions of the slopes of the Spine had rendered her brain useless and she had come into the city mumbling like an idiot. The first thing she did after she was treated, thankfully with magic(it was fast and painless), was what made her feel as she felt.

For Alagaesia: 53. The coastal town

Defeated. Defeated beyond repair. How would he face Eragon again? What would he say to his cousin? Eragon had effectively left the Varden in his protection and he had failed miserably. A fortnight of Eragon’s absence was all it took for the Varden to disintegrate itself. The best warriors of the Varden were fighting a lost battle atop the monstrous wall of Teirm and their leader was taken captive by the monstrous dragon and its rider.

Lost. He had lost the war. He, Roran, was responsible for the Varden's demise. He had failed. And it hurt. Badly. Roran, who had known no defeat in his short life as a warrior, stared at defeat for the first time and it was bitter.

For Alagaesia: 52. Making amends

She was in a forest of ice. There were trees of ice all around her and there was a floor of ice on which she was lying. But it wasn’t cold as she had expected it be. Rather, the warmth she felt was so comforting that she wanted to close her eyes again and go to sleep. Except certain questions needed to be answered and foremost of them: where was she?

She thought hard. And then it struck her in an instant. She was taken… captured… kidnapped. But this place hardly looked like a prison. It was literally a forest.

Nasuada whipped her head so that she could see her captor. All she could remember was a ruby red surface, when she thought of her captors. And now again she was met with a red wall. But this time she could see that it wasn’t just a wall of red; it was the belly of a ruby red dragon. Thorn. Repulsed, Nasuada tried to move away from the dragon.

For Alagaesia: 51. Green Ecstasy

His eyes flew open. He didn't know how he went into a complete slumber – a rare thing to happen to elves and him. But he had and now something had disturbed him. Groggily, he turned his neck around. He could sense Saphira waking too.

When Eragon rested his eyes on the spot where Arya had slept, he only found an empty blanket.

'Where is she?', he wondered.

He heard a squeak that was oddly familiar and remembered that it was such a squeak that had woken him up in the first place. He turned towards the direction from which the sound originated and found a scene that would stay fresh in his mind for eternity. Arya was staring wide-eyed at the green dragon egg that glowered in the red rays of the sun. The sun's rays falling over her body illuminated her in a golden glow. And the dragon egg was shaking. Shaking violently.

For Alagaesia: 50. Defeated

The enthralling roar was in the air. For every step they took, it increased in intensity calling him to it. Roran had developed a liking to the sea when he had seen it for the first time in Teirm an year and a half ago while escaping from the empire. The sea had signified his freedom. It of course was a sign of freedom – an example of how Alagaesia should have been. A little excited on the outside like the waves that constantly washed over to the shores, but calm and serene on the inside – like the endless water filling the space between the ocean floor and the air; hiding the vicious water currents running deep in the ocean.

Galbatorix had taken away all that from Alagaesia. The land was a mess. The ocean was much better. Hence Roran liked it.

The city of Teirm stood like a silent watch tower standing guard on the shore. Roran was excited with the thoughts of liberating the great coastal city from the grip of Galbatorix and transforming it into truly a watch tower for all of Alagaesia – a watch tower that constantly keeps vigil against foreign forces attacking from the seas.