Eragon

Author : Christopher Paolini
Prologue:
Shade of fear
Wind howled through the night, carrying a scent that would change the world. A tall Shade lifted his head and sniffed the air. He looked human except for his crimson hair and maroon eyes.
He blinked in surprise. The message had been correct: they were here. Or was it a trap? He weighted the odds, then aid icily, “spread out; hide behind trees and bushes. Stop whoever is coming . . .or die.”
Around him shuffled twelve Urgals with short swords and round iron shields painted with black symbols. They resembled men with bowed legs and thick , brutish arms made for crushing. A pair of twisted horns grew above their small ears. The monsters hurried into the brush, grunting as they hid. Soon the rustling quieted and the forest was silent again.
The shade appeared around a thick tree and looked up the trail. It was too dark for any human to see, but for him the faint moonlight was like sunshine streaming between the trees; every detail was clear and sharp to his searching gaze. He remained unnaturally quite, a long pale sword in his hand. A wire thin scratch curved down a blade. The weapon was thin enough to slip between a pair of ribs, yet stout enough to hack through the hardest armor.
The Urgals could not see as well as the Shade; they groped like blind beggars, fumbling with their weapons. An owl screech, cutting through the silence. No one relaxed until the bird flew past. Then the monsters shivered in the cold night; one snapped a twig with his heavy boot. The shade hissed in anger, and the Urgals shrank back, motionless. He suppressed his distaste - they smelled like fetid meat - and turned away. They were tools, nothing more. The shade forced back his impatience as the minutes became hours. The scent must have wafted far ahead of it owners. He did not let the Urgals get up or warm themselves. He denied himself those luxuries,...
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