Let Me Be Your Wings

Chapter 10

The Journey to Du Weldenvarden took less than two weeks to complete. At the forests' edge, they were welcomed by a host of four male evles. They were all tall, thin, and muscular with almond shaped eyes and angular shaped faces. They were, of course, very fair and walked with such grace and elegance that it looked more like they were walking on air. Arya did not seem very comfortable, even among her race, which struck Eragon as odd. He figured she would be happy to be returning home, but instead, it seemed she had traded one fear for another.

They were very fortunate that they arrived safely to the great forest and the rest of their company relaxed once they were safely beneath the canopy of trees away from the open where prying eyes could see them. "You do realize that you and I will be the first humans to have seen Ellesmera," Gwen whispered into Eragon's ear. She was sitting on his shoulder as they entered the elf city of Ceris. More elves greeted them with jubilant visages as beautiful music rang throughout the woods.

"I know, and thus far I am enjoying Ceris. If Ellesmera is anything like this, albeit, much grander of course, then we are in for a real treat." He said, as he saw a host of merry elves beginning to dance in a circle, their laughter overpowering the music. The sound was unlike any sound he had ever heard before and it suddenly struck him that this was the first time he had heard a laugh from an elf. Arya never acted in such a manner that he never really thought about such things. Now that he had heard their laughter and seen them dance, he began to feel light and merry himself as their song became seductive.

"This is wonderful." Gwen said, the music having a similar effect on her. That evening, they were spoiled by the elves' hospitality. They enjoyed freshly baked bread with warm honey, assorted berries and nuts, vegetable soups and salads, and crisp red wine. The dwarves did their best not to complain about the lack of meat and ale as they elves did welcome them with open arms.

The next day, their dwarf escort began to prepare for their journey back to the Varden. Eragon was disappointed when he learned that he had to give up Snowfire for another raft. One of the dwarves offered to take good care of the horse while he was away. Eragon turned to face the company of elves and stepped onto the raft. Compared to the evening before, Eragon felt a little gloomy again. Gwen noticed his foul disposition and said, "Cheer up. Everything will be fine. You'll see."

After several days beneath the trees, Eragon began to feel constrained once more, itching to fly with Saphira. The elves agreed to let Eragon and Gwen fly upon the dragon telling him to contact them frequently to prevent them from getting off course. For the second time, Gwen enjoyed another exotic ride upon the dragon. Saphira had grown a lot since Gwen had met her that night in Gil'ead. She was now a queen of the sky.

The elves continued to let them fly for the remainder of their journey, that is, until they became less than days walk to Ellesmera. At that point, Eragon was eager to walk in order to see the city much better. The trees began to thin out more and more allowing the sun to peak though, warming the air around them. It actually took Eragon a while to realize that some of the trees were morphed seamlessly to create houses for the elves to live in. Unlike the dwarves who carved their stone houses, the elves had sung to the trees to create theirs. It was magnificent to behold, taking his breath away.

Suddenly, they were surrounded by a plethora of tree houses and it occurred to Eragon that they must already be in Ellesmera. The four elves at the front led them around the city for a while until stopping before a vast tree with a vine wrought door inscribed with delicate letters. It was beautiful indeed. "Wait here so that I may introduce you to the Queen," said one of the four elves. They did not wait long before they were summoned into the great hall.

It was long and dotted trees and elves of the court, leading up to the throne where the Queen was sitting, a white raven perched on a wooden staff in her hand. The woman had dark eyes and hair much like Arya, and held her head high with authority. The scene was almost alarming in a way, but Eragon dismissed the thought as he made his way across the room with his companions. As soon as they all stood a few feet before her, the Queen softened her gaze and stood up with her arms outstretched and ran over to Arya. "O my daughter, I have wronged you."

Eragon's jaw dropped. Gwen was not as shocked as Eragon, but she was still quite surprised at the announcement. Saphira, interlinked with Eragon, shared a similar emotion, but Orik looked a little irritated. The Queen displayed much relief at the sight of her daughter as she continued to embrace and apologize to Arya. Arya kept her composure and calmly accepted her mother's receptive behavior. Not long after, Arya began to introduce her companions. "Mother, I want to formerly introduce to you Eragon Shadeslayer and Saphira Brightscales. Along with them is Gwenivere, the Princess of Alagaesia and Orik of the Durgrimst Ingeitum clan."

Queen Islanzadi paced over to her guests. "So, the rumors are true; Alagaesia has been blessed with another rider, and one who bears a powerful name. Welcome to Ellesmera. The same to you, O dragon. The two of you have brought hope to our land. " The Queen then stared down and the miniscule woman sitting on Eragon's shoulder.

"Good heavens!" The Queen shrieked. "Is that really you, Gwenivere?" The girl nodded at the Queen.

"It is your majesty. My father did not kill me at all-he was unable to since my mother placed a spell on me that protected me from him. Alas, he managed to shrink me instead."

"I am thankful that you are alive, though, I am sorry to see you in such a state. Perhaps there is someone here who can help you." The Queen reassured her. Gwen dipped her head and said her thanks. "I hope that you will enjoy your stay here nonetheless."

Finally, she addressed Orik. "How fares you, dear dwarf?" Orik inclined his head.

"For not being underground, I am doing quite well, your majesty."

"I assume Hrothgar sent you here as an ambassador?"

"Aye, that is correct."

Islanzadi took a deep breath and said, "A good portion of Eragon's training will be kept secret from all of us, but I will see to it that you will witness what you can in order for you to have something to report back to your King." Orik thanked the elf queen.

"I hope you will find it comfortable enough here in Ellesmera." She said to him before ascending her throne. Once introductions were made, the Queen then inquired about their journey. Eragon began, stating how he had found Saphira's egg in the Spine. As he had already relayed his tale more than once, he had no problems stating it before the Queen and her court. When Eragon finished, Arya chimed in to tell her story. Finally, Gwen told hers. Hours later, the Queen stood up and said, "Enough, you must be tired and hungry. After hearing of such evil things, let us now dwell on thoughts of celebration. My daughter has returned, a dragon and her rider have appeared, Gwen is alive, and an honorable member of King Hrothgar's family has arrived. I will see to it that we celebrate in the proper fashion!"