Luminescent (Inheritance Cycle and Beyond)

Chapter Fifty-Four: Brilliant

Once the elves had cut themselves free of the ropes and moved out of the way, Saphira landed in the courtyard before the gate. I hopped off as Eragon yanked on the buckles of the straps that held him and Elva in the saddle. The two quickly came down from the saddle as the elves gathered around the entrance to the citadel.

Alethea flew from my shoulder and grew to a larger size as I looked wearily at the two giant black doors, which met at a point high above. They seemed to be made of solid iron and were studded with hundreds, if not thousands, of spiked rivets, each the size of Eragon's head. Don't tell him I said that.

Spear in hand, Arya ran to the sally port set within the left-hand door. The port was visible only as a thin, dark seam that outlined a rectangle barely wide enough for a single man to pass through. As Arya neared the door, the strip sank inward a half-inch, then slid to the side with a rusty scrape. A pair of owlish eyes peered out of the dark interior.

"Who are you, then?" A haughty voice demanded. Bad decision. "State your business or be gone!"

Without hesitation, Arya jabbed the Dauthdaert through the open slot. I then heard the sound of a body falling to the floor. Arya pulled the lance back and shook the blood and scraps of flesh from the barbed blade. Then she grasped the haft of the weapon with both hands and placed the tip of it along the right seam of the sally port. This is our moment of truth.

"Verma!" A fierce blue flame appeared between the lance and the gate. Even from several feet away, I could feel the heat on my face. Arya's face contorted with strain as she pressed the blade of the spear into the gate, slowly cutting through the iron. Sparks and drops of molten metal poured out from underneath the blade and skittered across the paved ground causing me, Eragon, and the others to step back.

"Looks like our plan is still undiscovered." I looked at Eragon for a brief second before looking at what he was referring to. Thorn was still busy with the shadow-Saphira and Alethea. They disappeared from sight, but the crash of breaking masonry and roars could still be heard.

Elva sagged against Eragon, she was shaking and sweating as if she had a fever. I rushed to her and put a hand to her forehead.

"Is it getting to be too much?" I asked. "Do you want me to carry you?"

She shook her head.

"I'll be better once we're inside and away from ... that." Elva replied, motioning to the battle that was being waged behind us.

When the fountain of sparks and white-hot metal ceased, Arya kicked at the sally port until—on the third kick—the door fell inward and landed on the body of the gatekeeper. A second later, the smell of burning wool and skin wafted out. My nose wrinkled at the smell as did several of the other elves.

Time to see if Dauthdaert can live up to its reputation. Arya tightened her grip and stepped through the hole. Whatever wards Galbatorix had placed on the citadel, the Dauthdaert should allow her to pass through them without harm, even as it had allowed her to cut open the sally port. But there was always a chance that my father had cast a spell the Dauthdaert would be unable to counter.

Eragon and I gave each other relieved looks when she made it through without problems. Then a group of twenty soldiers rushed toward her from down the hall. Eragon drew Brisingr, but I held an arm out to stop him.

Wielding the spear with the same proficiency as her sword, Arya fought her way through the men, dispatching them with impressive speed.

"Why didn't you warn her?" Eragon exclaimed. Elva joined us by the hole in the gate.

"Because they won't hurt her." Her words proved prophetic; none of the soldiers managed to land a blow. The last two men tried to flee, but Arya bounded after them and slew them before they had gone more than a dozen yards down the immense hallway, which was even larger than the four main corridors of Tronjheim.

When all of the soldiers were dead, Arya pulled the bodies aside so that there was a clear path to the sally port. Then she walked back down the hallway, placed the Dauthdaert on the floor, and slid it back out to. Eragon caught the sliding weapon and looked at Arya with a frown.

"Do you feel anything?" Eragon called. Arya shook her head.

"As long as we stay clear of the gate, we should be fine." Eragon handed the spear to Blödhgarm, who took it and entered through the sally port. Together Arya and the fur-covered elf went into the rooms on either side of the gate and worked the hidden mechanisms to open it.

The clanking of chains filled the air as the giant iron doors slowly swung outward. Once the gap was wide enough for Saphira and Alethea, Eragon told them to stop and the doors

ground to a halt.

Blödhgarm emerged from the room to the right and—keeping a safe distance from the threshold—slid the Dauthdaert to another of the elves. In that fashion, we entered the citadel one by one. When only me, Eragon, Elva, Saphira, and Alethea remained outside, a terrible roar sounded in the northern part of the city, and for a moment, the whole of Urû'baen fell silent.

"Time's up, we need to move quickly," I said as Uthinarë, one of the elves tossed the spear to Eragon.

"You next," Eragon said, handing the Dauthdaert to Elva. Cradling it in the crooks of her arms, she scurried over to join the elves, then pushed the spear back to Eragon, who grabbed it and ran across the threshold.

He tossed it back over to me, and Alethea climbed onto my shoulder so we could both touch the lance as we ran through the mangled entrance. I rolled it back to Saphira who fumbled with the lance, struggling to pick it up between the tips of her jaws. At last, she got it between her teeth, and she leaped into the large corridor, scattering the bodies of the soldiers.

In the distance, Thorn bellowed and flapped furiously, racing toward the citadel. Speaking in unison, Arya and Blödhgarm cast a spell. A deafening clatter sounded within the stone walls, and the iron doors swung shut many times faster than they had opened.

"That should hold them for a while," Arya said.

"Not for that long, we still need to move quickly," I said, looking at the open sally port.

"Mal, you've been here before, can you lead us to him?" I tightened my grip on my dagger and nodded. "He must know we're here. All of us."

"He does, and he finds it amusing," I commented, cocking my head to the side.

"What is there to be amused about?" Eragon asked in confusion.

"Alethea and I came to him, rather than him having to hunt us down," I replied through my scarf. "It would seem that he still doesn't know my identity."

Behind us, outside the iron gate, there was a loud crash as Thorn landed in the courtyard. He uttered a roar of frustration, then something heavy struck the gate, and the walls rang with the noise. Elva put a hand on the lance, and we started the slow process of getting through the hallway filled with traps.