Synopsis

Just days after the Siege of Feinster, Nasuada was attacked by another member of the Black Hand. Her savior was not her vassal Eragon Shadeslayer but rather a strange newcomer who flew in on a winged horse. She had the dark skin of the Wandering Tribes and the same mystical eyes as Elva's, and claimed her name was Niaomi Dragonseer and that she had come to help the Varden in their quest to rout out Galbatorix.

Nia called in her brethren - Nathan, Nicholas, Renata, and Rosaminda - to help extinguish the looming threat of the king's mage network, and in the process revealed an amazing fact: all five were Riders who hailed from Alalëa, the ancestral island home of the elves. But even more shocking was their parentage, as Niaomi and her brothers were revealed to be the children of Niom Ajihadsson, the older brother of Nasuada, and Leafë Dröttningu, the elder sister of Arya.

Fleeing Du Weldenvarden as a thief in the night, Leafë was erased from all elven records as she traveled back to Alalëa. Many decades later, Niom also washed upon the island's shores after being dragged out to sea while his sister helplessly watched and then saved by the dolphin Niüle. Upon his arrival, the young man found a dragon's egg in the sand, which hatched for him. Thus Niom became a Rider with Vanilor as the partner-of-his-mind-and-heart.

He and the desposed elven princess soon fell in love, bearing the triplets and living in relative peace until the day another human washed onto Alalëa. She was the former Lady Belinda of King Galbatorix's court, having been forsaken for becoming the lover of Beloth the Wise. The Rider had managed to escape the Battle of Doru Araeba alive due to the dying efforts of his dragon, hiding out in the forests by the Ramr River until Belinda stumbled across him while riding one day.

It was love at first sight for the two, but it was not to last as Liress, the leader of the Black Hand, caught the pregnant Belinda preparing to run off with Beloth. Despite the two being twin sisters, the mage quickly summoned her king, who discovered the other Rider's location and had him imprisoned. In exchange for the life of his beloved and their unborn children, Beloth agreed to craft Galbatorix a series of belts meant for him and the future Riders of the remaining dragon eggs.

He was soon executed after his task was complete, and Liress managed to send her sister off, who carried with her several other belts that Beloth had made in the past. But Belinda had been poisoned previously with Skilna Bragh, and died soon after giving birth to Ren and Rose. The twins were raised by Niom and Leafë, who acted as their god-parents, and they along with the triplets grew up together as close friends.

Of the five, Nia in particular was strange. Though Vanilor had not bestowed a Dragon's Kiss - a star marking like the one Saphira had given to Elva - upon the girl, she still bore one upon her brow. It was eventually discovered to be a symbol of her birthright, as Niaomi was destined to become a Rider. The decree was made by the gods, who had ceased to interact with the mortal world after what occured with the Grey Folk until they were finally pushed to do so by Galbatorix's evil reign.

And so they chose Nia to be their blessing, giving her the gift of the elements, which allowed her to tap into the energy of the earth and perform great feats of magic without being barred by the ancient language. She was given a yawë fricai for each of the ten elements to act as a bondmate and instructor. The young woman had mastered each one a decade later, yet still had not found her dragon egg. However, Niaomi had a vision of how to find it.

But with this vision of splendor came one of despair, a doom that was promised to befall her parents if she was to follow her destiny. Fearful and disillusioned, Nia stayed silent on the matter until the children's sixteenth birthday, where it was made clear that her brother Nate had grown bitter in belief of the fact that he and the other three were never to become Riders themselves. Seeing how much he desired it, his sister took precautions to allow them all to find their dragon eggs.

She had envisioned a cavern entrance in the fiery bowels of Mt. Istalri and planned for her parents to accompany them, but Niom and Leafë were barred from entering. The five were forced to procede without them, and after many perilous trials in which each had to face their greatest fears come to life, they met the Progenitor. It was this ancient member of the Order that had hidden away the eggs that were to become their dragons, and she bid them to travel north of the Spine for their training.

As the five new Riders emerged from the cavern, they found their home besieged by Liress and the Lethrblaka, who had followed a sudden burst of energy and found the island, making their way onto Alalëa despite the protective barrier that ensheathed it and the surrounding waters. Niom and Vanilor fought off the Lethrblaka valiantly as the children began packing to leave for Alagaësia per the man's instructions. But Liress did not stay to fight the older Rider, following them instead.

Noticing her approach, the twins decided to lead their aunt astray while the other three packed to the glen that served as their mother's diamond tomb. Liress sent Kuniva, her golden snake familiar, to take the two blondes captive while keeping them trapped within the glen. However, Renata and Rosaminda showed remarkable profeciency with the weapons they'd been gifted with earlier and defeated Kuniva. Angered, the black mage decided to take matters into her own hands.

Just as she was preparing to crush her oldest niece unconscious, the triplets arrived with the pegasi and Flair. The phoenix distracted Liress, giving them enough time to land and free Ren from her grasp, so she hypnotized Nathan into joining her side. While the twins held him back, Niaomi began attacking the enchantress in hopes of breaking her hold on the boy. In response, Liress prompted him to protect her, and so Nate began fighting his sister.

With Nick having tasked them to be defenders as well, the twins began assaulting the Black Hand anew. Spotting an opportunity as her sister tried to land a blow on the serpentine mage, Rose alerted Nathan to his mistress's plight, distracting him long enough for Nia to bring him down and allowing his beau to free him with a kiss. Before Liress could make another move, Nicholas enacted his plan, signalling Ion to use his electricity to rip a hole in the barrier and allow them to escape.

The thunderbird kept the enchantress imprisoned while the five rejoined the rest of the bondmates, who directed them over Leafë. As it turned out, she was casting a spell to remove Liress and the Lethrblaka while also strengthening the barrier - a spell that would cost the elf her life. While all her children vehemently protested this sacrifice, the Black Hand suddenly arrived onto the scene with all the bondmates held captive by Kuniva just as Vanilor let out a pained roar.

Niaomi took off immediately, diving into the ocean and having Niüle take her to where her father and his dragon struggled against a Nïdhwal that had been summoned by Liress. With Vanilor clutched in its inescapable grasps, Niom chose to stay and share his fate. Even as his daughter's promise to save him, his wife was ready to cast the spell, and so the gray dragon slayed the Nïdhwal and ensured the permanency of their entrapment as his Rider said his good-byes to his family.

And with that, Leafë cast the spell "Alalëa", sending her children, their dragonets, and the bondmates all to Alagaësia whilst simultaneously casting Liress and the Lethrblaka back whence they had come. But even after the elf's sacrifice, Liress still posed a threat to the five, who managed to avoid and escape her grasp long enough to get to safety in the Spine, where the Progenitor Ruby and her dragon Vervada hid for the sole purpose of instructing the next age of Dragon Riders.

After revealing their parentage to Nasuada, Arya, and Eragon, the five explained all that had taken place through a reminiscence in which Nia as the Seer looked into the Mists of Time and Space to their past through her bronze naiad mirror. She along with her brethren explained how after being deemed ready by the Guardians of the Mountain, they had journeyed to Du Weldenvarden so they could receive swords before coming to join Eragon with the Varden.

He and Arya scanned their minds to ascertain they were telling the truth, but while Eragon was leaving Niaomi's, the Mists dragged him with her into a vision. Whilst traveling through the Mists, the two Riders shared a touching moment and almost a kiss as well before they arrived in Galbatorix's castle. Assuring Eragon that know one could see, hear, or feel them, Nia said the reason why she'd been brought here was the girl who entered the room: Mahogany, daughter to Liress...and to Brom.

Mahogany, known as Maggie for short, was a maid despite her mother's status because the king did not want her existence to be discovered. While cleaning the study, she herself discovered the brown dragon's egg. Murtagh quickly arrived and brought both the girl and the hatching egg to Galbatorix, who revealed himself to be her father and turned her from a maid to a princess. But when she refused to tell him her true name, he stole it from her mind.

And so our tale continues with the question of Maggie's parentage left unanswered. Eragon has gained new comrades in the five Riders of Alalëa, but Galbatorix has managed to find the Rider for the last dragon egg. Now, as the Varden and their allies march forward, dragons will meet in an epic battle for their lives and for their freedom...