Luminescent (Inheritance Cycle and Beyond)

Chapter Eight: Luminescent

I watched Arya as Saphira flew off to hunt. We were headed into the Beor mountains, and Murtagh and Eragon had gotten into a fight yesterday which Saphira ended up splitting the two from each other. The two were being stiff with each other, and it was driving me crazy.

As the horses drank from the spring, we were currently stopped at Eragon and Murtagh stiffened and drew their swords. I stood up and brushed the dirt from my dress before walking to where the two boys were.

"We are going to have company. If there's a fight, we'll have to kill enough of them to convince them that we are not worth the trouble," Murtagh said lowly. The group finally reached us, bandits. The leader came forward on his horse and twirled his mace.

"Well, these are better than the dregs we find, and one of them is a girl! At least we got lucky this time. And we didn't even have to shoot them. Grieg will be pleased." The leader said, looking at me with a greedy look. As I stepped backward, Murtagh and Eragon stepped in front of me and blocked the leader's view of me. "Now, as for you two boy's, if you would be so good as to drop your weapons, you'll avoid being turned into living quivers by my men."

"Who are you, and what do you want?" Murtagh said, twirling his sword. "We are free men traveling through this land. You have no right to stop us."

"Oh I have every right, and as for my name, slaves do not address their masters in that manner unless they want to get beaten." I heard Eragon let out a few curses. "Throw down your swords and surrender."

"Tokenbrand, this one is an elf." One of the bandits said, lifting the blanket covering Arya. I let out a hiss and lunged at the man who dared to touch my kin. I was yanked back by one of the slaves, and a dagger went to my throat.

"This one's feisty, she'll bring in lots of gold." I let out another hiss and wiggled, trying to get out of his grasp. "Now sweetheart, don't do that, you wouldn't want to be cut by my knife now would you?"

I stopped moving and glared daggers at the leader who just smiled even more. I saw Eragon nod at Murtagh who slammed his elbow into the nearest slaver before kicking Tornac in the side making the horse rear and kick. I took this as my cue to get out of my slaver's hold.

I stomped on the slavers foot, making him howl in pain before I snapped my head back into his face. The slavers hands let me go and went to his now broken nose. I pulled out my sword from underneath my dress and kicked the slaver backward.

Saphira finally arrived and roared at the men who in turn, spun around and fled our campsite. In the chaos, I saw Tokenbrand's head go tumbling to the ground, well now at least I don't have to waste the energy to kill him.

"Is your brain rotten? Why did you kill him?" Eragon shouted in Murtagh's face.

"I don't see why your so upset," Murtagh said, cleaning the blood from his blade as I walked up to the decapitated body.

"Upset, I am beyond upset. Did it even occur to you that we could leave him here and continue on our way? No! Instead, you turn into an executioner. He was defenseless."

"Eragon." I snapped. "Control yourself, killing him was the best solution, the fewer people who know about you and Arya, the better. You need to start thinking about staying alive, remember? We can't show mercy to everyone we cross, or we'll get ourselves killed!"

Saphira snarled at the Urgals in front of us, attempting to ward them off. Eragon suddenly put Zar' ac back into its sheath.

"The Varden are on the other side of the lake. We have to go through the waterfall!"