Shadow of a Shade

Chapter Twenty-Five

It took them almost an hour to get everything put out, and another two to find everyone who had run into the forest to hide. Addiane allowed her pain and terror at what had happened to slide to the back of her mind as she threw herself into finding injured townspeople and healing them as much as she could. 

"Anyone else?" She called as she turned away from a little boy whose arm had been burned. He scampered back to his mother.

Murtagh shook his head. "I don't think so. Eragon was doing a head count, I'll go ask him... in a moment."

Addiane sighed as he walked over to her. She knew what was coming.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." She looked down at her hands.

Murtagh frowned a little, watching her.

"If you hadn't shown up again when you did, I think she would have killed me."

"We don't know that. But she very well could have." He nodded, pausing. "But I look out for my little sister."

Addiane looked up, smiling a little. "You did pretty well, yeah. That was a good shot."

"I got pretty good a few years ago." He glanced at the group that was slowly forming. "I'm going to go find Eragon before people start bothering me, if you don't want to deal with it either you could check the carpenter's body... I doubt he's alive, but we might be wrong."

Addiane nodded and her brother walked away. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, then went over to Fisk's body. She knew even from a few paces away, he was very dead, but she knelt next to his body anyway, resting her hand on his forehead and gently closing his eyes.

Not knowing what else to do, but not wanting to deal with everyone she could tell was standing behind her, Addiane rested one hand on his forehead again and one hand on his chest, just above the wound that had ended his life. Closing her eyes and tilting her head down a little, she began to softly sing a traditional Daret funeral song.

It was one that she had learned when her adoptive family's grandfather had died. All the children in the family alive at the time had sung it at the funeral, sending their father's father off properly.

Addiane gently swayed back and forth with the tune of the song, hearing some people behind her singing along quietly. A woman sat next to her, she assumed it was the man's wife, crying silently.

When the last note rang out over the group, the woman sobbed and hugged Addiane. She froze in surprise, but hugged back quietly after a moment.

"Thank you, you didn't have to do that..."

"It's the proper thing to do." Addiane promised her quietly. The woman nodded and stood up.

Eragon and Murtagh were standing nearby when Addiane stood and turned around.

"Did we lose anyone?"

"No villagers, everyone is accounted for." Eragon shook his head. "The Skandians are gathering to do a count and we asked the traveling market to do the same."

"Are the dragons alright?" Addiane frowned. She could reach Nyriem, and he was fine, but she didn't know about the others.

"Both fine." Murtagh nodded. "Thorn is fuming that he couldn't help, but what is a fire-breathing lizard going to do against fire?"

"Well he'll get over it eventually. None of them are hurt, that's the important thing."

"Eragon!"

The three Riders turned at the sound of their leader's name, peering over the crowd. Gilan was running towards them with Stig on his heels.

"Everyone accounted for?" Eragon asked when the two had reached them and stopped, both panting a little.