Chapter 1

I sat in a clearing in the forest, waiting for prey to wander in. My stiff fingers remained locked on my bowstring. The only sound was my quiet breathing and the sounds of birds chirping at one another in the branches.

Finally, a young buck wandered into the clearing and I hid behind a tree. I closed my eyes and reached with my mind to the animal. It had pleasant, empty thoughts of an animal. It yearned for a mate.

Sometimes, my ability to see into the hearts of living things startled me. I tried to refrain to do it as it was an invasion of privacy. But I couldn't help it. I did it unconsciously.

I gritted my teeth and seized the animal's mind. The buck froze; its eyes wide with fear. Its terrified thoughts pounded into my head. I quickly raised my bow and let an arrow fly into its skull. The death was instant so I didn't feel much pain.

I approached the carcass and took out my knife. I was about to gut it when the ground shook. Something large had landed behind me.

I whirled, loading an arrow as I turned. A blue-green dragon eyed me, its tail waving back and forth. I grinned at the dragon and lowered my bow. Hello Turquasa, I greeted the dragon.

Elvana, she responded.

I turned my back on her and gutted the dead animal. Turquasa rumbled behind me, her excitement echoing in my mind.

Once I was done, Turquasa roasted the meat and I divided the meal. Turquasa was a wild dragon and had flown back to Alagaesia not too long after she hatched. All anyone knew was that the dragons leaved in some unchartered land, away from everyone.

This wild dragon was my only friend. She didn't find me terrifying or strange. There were a few people that were kind to me but no one was a true friend like Turquasa.

It wasn't just the great power I had inherited from my mother, Elva. It was that my powers reached far beyond that. I was told that I had the same magic capabilities as a dragon, which not even an elf can match.

I had the same violet eyes as my mother but mine had the vertical slit of a pupil that belonged to a dragon. I also had the same sigil on my brow which is the same sigil that identified one as a Rider.

I summoned a ball of fire and the flames danced upon my hand. I could most magic without using the words from the ancient language and I could summon fire easily and without the energy tax magic usually took.

So, you know today is Elvana?

Turquasa's question interrupted my thoughts and I nodded. Today a dragon egg was going to be delivered to Palancar Valley, for this year's Rider ceremony. Every year, an egg is brought to one of Alagaesia's five races to see if the egg will hatch for one lucky person.

Then that person would be sent to the elf Rider Arya to train. After that, I think they were sent to the land where the dragons make their home.

My mother had said that the famous Eragon trains the new Riders but I was sceptical. He was a tale of legend and no one has seen the Kingkiller for twenty five years.

His bravery and strength sound too good to be true. Even though the Lord of Palancar Valley is his cousin, which I also don't believe, I still don't believe he's real. I would have to see it to believe it.

I cleaned up our meal. Can you give me a lift there? I asked Turquasa.

She snorted. Since today is a special occasion, I will kindly give you a ride to the edge of Carvahall.

I knew that the wild dragons looked down upon the Riders. They thought that the Riders' dragons were tame and not free like they should be.

I rolled my eyes and gathered my things which wasn't much. I quickly climbed onto Turquasa and clamped my legs on her sides. She leapt into the air and the world tilted and turned in all directions.

We soared above the Spine and not too far away, I spotted Carvahall with its simple stone houses. Smoke rose from some chimneys and faded into the air.

I had casted an invisibility spell so we wouldn't be seen. No one had known about Turquasa's presence and we liked to keep it that way. It would have been easy to spot her shimmering turquoise scales in mid-day.

I admired the scenery while I could. The colours were bright and vibrant and were almost an eyesore. But still enjoyable to look at. According to Turquasa, I also had the vision equivalent to a dragon.

There was a pattern to all of my abilities but all of my ponderings bordered on more and more ridiculous and impossible to consider.

Turquasa quickly descended and I kept a relaxed but also strong grip on her scales. She landed as quietly and softly as she could, but my bones still had jarred with the impact. All nearby prey fled from her.

I smiled and jumped off her back. I put a hand on her nose and she hummed a little. I knew that it took a lot of trust from Turquasa to let me touch her. Wild dragons usually only went close to humans or any other race if they had to and couldn't avoid it. Trust was also a big issue with myself. I didn't trust anyone except Turquasa.

Farawell, I told her.

Farawell, Dragonheart, she said back and flew off.