Percy and Eragon exited the tent and walked back down to the open training area where Saphira could land. Five minutes later, they reached their destination and found Saphira already waiting for them. She was standing up straight with her chest puffed out in a regal stance.

Percy admired her beauty and magnificence. Her gleaming blue scales reflected the light to add a little luster to them. Her strong jaws were set with many smaller horns running along her chin with two pearly white horns stucking out of the top of her head. Scaly, but also feathery, wings sprouted from her back, and all in all, she was very awe-inspiring.

Of course, not as much as Maelstrom but pretty close. He actually felt something in the back of his head that he thought felt like a coo or something and he wondered if Maelstrom was listening to his thoughts.

He felt a brush to his mind, and knowing it was Saphira, lowered his barriers.

"Hello, Percy. My name is Saphira. It is nice to meet another dragon rider." Percy responded with a slight bow and stretched out his mind.

It felt different than how he spoke to Maelstrom. Speaking to his dragon took no effort at all. It was almost like another conscious in his head. Saphira felt like a foreign presence, though not unwelcome or anything.

Percy responded respectfully. "It is nice to meet such a magnificent dragon. Hopefully you'll be able to meet my dragon, Maelstrom, soon too." He felt another foreign presence requesting entry, and going off suspicion, he looked towards Eragon and received a nod.

After letting another through, Percy could actually tell the difference between the separate telepathic waves. Saphira had stronger and regal feel while Eragon had a light, smooth feeling.

Percy responded in his head, "This feels really weird, you know?" All of the sudden he felt a very familiar feeling in his head and didn't even have to open his mind for his dragon's presence.

Percy could tell Saphira and Eragon felt the new mind, and Percy was interested to see that they stiffened noticeably. "I agree with you, Percy. It almost feels like an intrusion, not bad but not exactly pleasant either."

Saphira seemed to gather herself first. "It is nice to speak to you, Maelstrom. One day we will have to fly together." All three of them could feel a nod from the faraway dragon. Saphira spoke up again, albeit a little hesitantly. "I also agree. Percy's mind has a very subtle, dignified air to it, but it seems almost suppressed so it can be looked over. However, your presence makes me think of ... a king of sorts. A noble leader that deserves to be respected and listened to. Just like Percy's but with it out in the open for all to feel."

Both Percy and Maelstrom could feel Eragon's silent agreement and they contemplated in silence for a moment. The only thing Percy could think of was his demigod status which he now knew he shared with Maelstrom when they bonded.

Most people could feel a god's aura and couldn't help but bow down to it. Percy never really cared for any of that and would prefer people didn't treat him differently. However, Maelstrom was very proud and most likely wouldn't mind people bowing to him.

To break the silence, Percy chuckled and said, "Thanks for stroking his ego, not like it was big enough already or anything." Percy knew Maelstrom was glaring at him without him even needing to feel it.

Eragon and Saphira were still adjusting and he really wondered what his and Maelstrom's minds felt like. He inwardly shrugged his shoulders. Not like it really mattered and it would probably help gain respect.

Eragon seemed ready to talk judging by his open smile. He spoke out loud, "Maybe it's because you're more powerful than other riders or something?"

Percy thought about it and replied, "I don't think so. I only know two spells at the moment while you and many other mages probably know many more. Though I am a skilled sword fighter."

That seemed to spark Eragon's interest. "I could help with some basic spell casting and refer you to other spellweavers. Though sparing would be more up my ally."

Percy smiled and said, "Sounds good to me." Eragon casted a spell that apparently blunted their swords before walking away a few paces. Percy walked away slightly and noticed that they had already gathered a crowd. Many soldiers actually stopped what they were doing and were watching them have a conversation. Though now they would get to see a lot more. Percy smiled and waved at some of the villagers and commanders he practiced with, but only received still shocked looks.

Percy guessed he jumped many stations in a couple hours to be hanging out with a dragon rider, one of the most important people in the war. And the skill he showed them was nowhere near good enough to match Eragon's.

He just smiled knowingly at them and turned around, raising his dragon rider's sword. Once they were both in positions, they assessed each other. Percy could immediately tell Eragon based his attacks with quick movements and powerful strikes. Since he looked elf, Percy assumed he also gained some of their speed and strength so he took that into account too.

Now, the crowd around them grew exponentially. The word spread quickly of a villager sparing against the dragon rider and everybody came to watch. Many were giving Percy sympathetic looks and prepared to call for healers.

Percy ignored everyone around him knowing they wouldn't interfere. He shuffled closer and got a shuffle closer in return. He smirked before charging forward. His speed must have surprised Eragon by his look but he recovered fast.

His blow was blocked but he continued with a twirl to the left and swung again. Once again it was blocked but Percy followed through with three more consecutive strikes. The first two were blocked expertly but the third Percy could tell jarred Eragon a little when he blocked.

Percy jumped back for Eragon to recover and have a go at him. Outside the arena was pure silence that Percy assumed was shock. He just pressed a dragon rider and obviously jumped back for Eragon to attack him when he could have continued.

Eragon immediately used the small break to fix his stance and charged. He attempted a lunge with a followed slash to the right which were both blocked flawlessly. Eragon quickly stepped forward with his right foot and stabbed towards his lower stomach but was once again blocked.

Percy cataloged Eragon was quickly getting a little frustrated that even his elven speed couldn't give him an advantage. His next attacks were a flurry of strikes and was able to push Percy back a couple feet, though Percy never lost his balance.

Percy was amazed at the speed Eragon was fighting with and finally being properly challenged. At camp, he never had such a challenge presented to him because he was always much faster than everyone else. However, Percy could tell Eragon had only some professional practice with a blade and could see small things that Eragon could improve on if he had more practice.

Percy, while not having much professional practice, was a natural at swordplay. He learned through necessity and some guidance. Having your life constantly threatened forced him to become the best he could be. He honestly knew he could improve even further but had no one to push him.

However, now Percy found someone. Eragon could help him improve his speed, balance, and core strength even further.

The battle lasted another 20 minutes until Percy finally knocked the blade out of Eragon's hand. Both were panting and sweating profusely in the sun. The crowd around them was even larger and Percy noticed a few elves in one corner, probably gathering information on him.

Percy smiled and stuck out his hand for a handshake. "Great fight. The main points you should work on is locking your wrist on your strikes and keeping focus. I noticed only a minute in that you no longer focused on your fluidity of strikes and went more towards power and speed. While this could take out many opponents, it could prove detrimental to you if your opponent can match your strength and speed."

It took a moment for Eragon to gather his wits. He still seemed a little shocked ... just like the crowd. 'Well, oops.' Percy thought. He may have gotten lost in the moment and totally did not mean to outshine their greatest hope in front of them.

Hopefully his smile and good sportsmanship attitude would fix everything. He always was a good people's person.

Eragon smiled too and gave him a handshake. "Thanks, you are extremely talented." He pulled Percy closer and added in a quieter voice. "Too good to be fully human though."

Percy stiffened a little at that. He was human, just an enhanced human ... part human, part god ... yeah. Well, that was the best he was going to come up with.

They pulled apart and Percy kept his smile that basically said, 'Well, who knows?' Eragon almost scowled, but he probably understood that they just met and Percy wasn't going to tell him his entire life story.

"So," Percy began. "Now that your lesson is over, you want to give me mine now?" He would have said to teach him magic if they weren't surrounded by gossipers and possible spies.

Eragon nodded his head with a smile. "Sure thing but we'll probably have to meet with another for more in depth lessons."

With that, they made their way through the crowd, shaking people's hands and thanking them for their praise at such an amazing spar. Many asked who Percy was, and he just replied his name and that he was Eragon's friend. There probably was a better way to introduce Percy but that was the best answer they could come up with on the spot without drawing too much attention to Percy.

They finally made it to Eragon's place and sat down on two single couches across from each other.

Eragon thought for a moment before doing his best to explain some basics of magic. He told Percy what he had learned so far and some tips to help improve his control. Eragon said there were four main points for beginners when dealing with magic and their potential: magical skill, raw power, spell creativity, and Ancient Language vocabulary.

Of course, each one could be more important depending on the person, but in general, those were the four factors.

For example, if you were creative enough, you didn't need as much vocabulary to get your magic to do what you wanted. Some have an insane amount of raw power that allows them to last longer even if they weren't creative or knew a lot of vocabulary.

Eragon also told Percy about some important forms of magic for him to practice.

Mind magic was one of the most important forms of magic a magician needed to learn in both offense and defense. During a battle between magicians, the fight was both physical and mental. Each one had to be able to mentally defend and attack while simultaneously physically attacking and defending.

It was a skill best built with experience, but surest way to build a defense around your mind was to concentrate on one thing to the exclusion of everything else. Of course, in battle that was extremely hard to do, which was what he meant by practice makes perfect.

What Percy was most shocked by was the, apparently, instant killing magic. Percy couldn't even imagine one word without much effort on the magician could kill hundreds, if not thousands, of people instantly if they weren't protected.

After learning what Percy should focus on before getting into the actual spells and offensive magic, Eragon taught Percy the ward to prevent instant death since Percy believed that was the most important. He would much prefer having a fighting chance in his mind then just dropping over dead because someone said a word.

Percy was actually able to cast the ward relatively easy after a half hour of practice and also learned some more common wards over the next couple of hours.

After that, they practiced mind magic where Eragon hit a blockade, literally.

"Alright Percy, now that you have the theory down for the wards, you can ask the other magicians here for more information on that topic while we move on to mind magic. Like I said, mental battles are just as common, if not more, than physical battles. And if the enemy gets in, they will have won the battle if help didn't arrive very soon.

"I think the best way to practice is for you focus on one thing to the exclusion of all else and I will try to gain entry to your mind. I'll go easy at first so you can get a sense for what an attack will feel like and will progressively attack harder. If I do break into your mind, I promise to stay in your surface thoughts until I get back into my mind without hurting you. Sound good?"

Percy nodded his head even if he didn't really know if that was the best way to teach someone. Very little theory was explained to him about this mind magic stuff, and he guessed Eragon had to learn this on his own without theory to help him out. No matter though. He would do his best with what he knew and see how well he did.

Percy closed his eyes and focused on the fun he had playing with the children on the boat. He didn't know if the magician could see what he was focusing on so he couldn't think about his world or Maelstrom. So, having fun playing with children it was!

He thought about the pranks he played on the adults and watching from afar as the children giggled with delight and slight malicious glee. He thought about them playing with the little ice figures he made for them and how they exclaimed with awe as he made them. He thought about all the little ones who looked at him with adoring eyes and couldn't help but softly smile back, even if they couldn't see it.

He felt something brush against the 'walls' of his mind but didn't even 'glance' at it. He focused on the children's laughter as he felt much harder hits against his wall. Slowly losing focus and wondering how his mind wasn't breached yet, he imagined himself on the inside of his wall and was amazed that he could see a wall with spears of light slamming against it.

The blue spears seemed to attack sometimes with great speed but also in big burst of power as if seeing if using different methods would work. Looking at his walls, he didn't even see a dent, not even a scratch!

However, as he looked closer, he started to notice a slight glow to it that distinctly reminded him of the glow of a god when they were battling the titans.

It suddenly clicked that his godly side must give him some type of mind protection against mental attacks. Even with, what he guessed, were Eragon's strongest attacks, they weren't doing anything to gain entry.

Deciding to try and push the attack away, he imagined sending out a burst of energy to drive out the attack. He watched amazed as the blue magic significantly faltered before stopping all together.

Percy mentally smiled before bringing himself back into the physical world. He awoke to see a gobsmacked Eragon.

He tried, he really did. Percy bursted out laughing at Eragon's look and leaned back in his chair as to not fall off and make a fool of himself.

He could hear Eragon whispering breathlessly, "How ... how could you ... but I ... what?" That only increased Percy's merriment until he finally settled down.

Percy let loose one last chuckle before saying pompously, "Well I guess I'm a natural at mind magic. Bow down before me simpleton as my mind conquers all. Bwahahaha!!!" He only got a deadpan look in return as Eragon stated bluntly.

"You should not have been able to keep me out. I know I'm not that skilled in mind magic but I even used a spell to increase the strength of my attacks while also directing me to your weakest point. I didn't even feel your defense waver an inch under a full assault, for 10 minutes!"

Percy just shrugged, not going to tell him it was his godly side protecting him. "Honestly, weird things like this always happen to me. Some good, some bad, but always weird things that don't happen to other people. I've learned to go with the flow and learn from the experience the best I could. You can't change the past, but you can use it to change the future." Which was true. He found rolling with the flow and learning as you go being the best way to go, even if it was much more dangerous.

Eragon stared at Percy in slight surprise and said, "That is a wise philosophy to have." What Eragon didn't say was that, by the way Percy said that, he could tell Percy experienced many of these scenarios and learned that lesson the hard way.

They talked for a little while longer before Eragon was summoned to see Nasuada. On his way out, he told Percy to explore his mind and magic to improve his connection in order to better cast spells.

Percy nodded absentmindedly, already focusing inwards. He thought about all the lessons he just learned but was stuck on a few things. Being half god, he could do 'magic' without any special words or great effort. Even if it only applied to water magic, and based off what Eragon was talking about, the people of this world would already consider him an expert magic caster since he could silent and wordlessly use magic. Percy didn't even know if these people could do magic wordlessly.

Combining that thought with how his godly side affected his mental walls, did that mean he was different from everyone else and didn't need to use words to do magic, other than helping him focus (he took into account the consequences of losing focus while doing magic).

Also, Eragon talked about the Brisingr spell, and the way he described it didn't really sound as powerful as Percy made it on the beach. Which also made him assume that his godly side increased the amount or potency of his magic.

If that was true, then he didn't have to necessarily worry about two of the four main points of magic: raw magic and Ancient Language vocabulary. He could learn a few generalized words to help him focus but his imagination and belief should be able to do the rest.

The other point, magical skill, was just practice and more practice to improve his proficiency in magic. Only time and experience could help with that one.

He already 'found' his magic. It was located in the same place he always felt the pull when using his water abilities. When he mentally touched it, he felt a pleasant tingle across his whole body, almost as if his magic was happy to be acknowledged. He sighed in pleasure as he basked in the feeling.

Focusing, he lightly pushed his magic into his gedwëy ignasia and watched as it light up. Holding his concentration, he willed a small flame to appear in his hand with a whispered, "Brisingr."

The flame that appeared in his hand was completely different than the fire blast on the beach. If that attack represented the aggressive and unrelenting aspect of fire, this small flame reminded him of Hestia and the hope and feeling of acceptance that came with her. This flame was one to warm and protect. To be a light in the darkness for one who lost their way.

Percy could feel his magic almost agreeing with him and ... rejoicing in its own way, strangely. He willed the flame to rise up in the air and watched as it slowly moved its way up. He tried to make it go faster but noticed right away it started to flicker and immediately brought his concentration back to keeping the flame still and bright.

It slowly went back to normal as Percy sighed. So there was a limit, which was to be expected. This part must be the magical skill. He may could do spells easily, but controlling them was a different matter. He could probably expertly control water spells but that would more than likely be because of his father's domain.

Deciding to practice more with his small flame, he poured all his attention to manipulating the flame. By the time Eragon came back, his control over flame was beyond extraordinary for a beginner, though not that Eragon saw when he came inside. Percy didn't want to break his new friend or make him even more suspicious of Percy's origins.

~~~Eragon~~~

Eragon slowly made his way to Nasuada's office as he contemplated the enigma he just left. Everything about Percy was one surprise after another. The crazy thing was that Percy seemed to be oblivious to everything he did. It was just like he said. He went with the flow and did his best to stay in it.

First of all, Percy's sword fighting skills were beyond extraordinary. While Eragon was fighting him, Percy looked like he was barely even trying. The way he graciously moved after every block and strike spoke volumes of his skill and experience. That amount of skill was impossible to get while living a life as a hermit in some unpopulated mountains.

Additionally, his body's fighting ability alone was noteworthy without even including his skill. His flexibility, strength and speed were on par if not greater than his own. Judging by the amount of effort he used, Eragon was leaning more towards the latter.

Next, Percy's natural skill in magic was simply unbelievable. Eragon was 99.9% sure Percy had never used magic. This conclusion was based on the way Percy responded to Eragon's lessons. He seemed to be genuinely interested and confused on the most basic principles of magic. Principles that anyone could figure out on their own within a day of practice.

However, what preoccupied Eragon's mind the most was trying to figure out how Percy kept him out of his mind. He started out slowly breaking into his mind in order to do a gradual takeover. However, he immediately hit some type of wall.

He'd felt other minds before but had never encountered what he felt as a 'physical' but mental wall, even in the most advanced mages. Elves and other magicians felt like they had a bubble around their head that allowed them to detect invasions, which then allowed them to defend and attack before their defenses were breached.

Percy, on the other hand, had a straight up brick wall. Eragon threw every attack possible at it, but the wall still stood proud and tall. He was pretty sure it was laughing at him at some point ... He shouldn't be too surprised if it did though; it was Percy's wall.

Then came the retaliation. This, however, was very familiar. The only aspect that was different was the amount of force behind it. Just like other mages, magic was used to push the invader out with a strong push, just like Percy did.

However, their strong push was like a five year old trying to push over an adult compared to Percy's. While he was caught by surprise, Eragon still would have been pushed out even if he had expected it, though without the headache that came with it.

He decided he would definitely have to keep an eye on Percy. Not because he suspected Percy was against the Varden, but that he was definitely hiding something major.

He was brought out of his thoughts as he reached Nasuada's door and quietly knocked before hearing a muted 'enter.'

Opening the door and heading inside the spacious office, he was directed to sit across from Nasuada by the wave of her hand.

Sitting quietly and thinking that he knew what this was about, he waited for her to start the conversation.

She shuffled a few more papers, signing here and there, before pushing her work aside and giving him her full attention.

"I got your request to go with your brother to find his girlfriend. While I would normally have reservations but still let you go, I cannot do this currently."

Eragon frowned and slightly tilted his head for Nasuada to continue the explanation.

She sighed deeply before saying, "As you know, we currently have a very powerful unknown in the headquarters of the entire resistance. One that could cause great devastation at any point in time. Even if he wasn't a skilled swordsman, his dragon alone would cause fear amongst the people, not even including the damage it could cause." She raised her hand as she saw Eragon about to interject.

"I know you don't believe he would do that, but, as leader of the resistance, I have to take every possibility into account. Can you say 100% for sure that Percy poses no threat whatsoever to the Varden, whether intentionally or unintentionally?" She paused for a second and waited for Eragon to answer. All he could do was shake his head and agree with her. 

She nodded her head in approvement before continuing. "Now, if we had his word that he would fight for the Varden, then we would probably not be having this conversation and you'd be on your way now. Alas, that is not the case. Have you made any progress on convincing him to join?"

Eragon slightly looked away. Over the past couple of hours, he had totally forgot what he was supposed to be doing. Though, he could definitely say he made a friend, and friends usually fight together. So Percy may be more inclined to join.

He was broken out of his thoughts when he heard her sigh. "You forgot to try and convince him didn't you?" Eragon shot her an indignant look.

"If you want to get all political about it, I have been bringing him closer to the our side by becoming friends while also making him indebted to me by teaching him magic. Though he may think it as repayment for helping me in the swordfight." He saw her narrow her eyes at him and he wondered what he said wrong.

"Yes, about that sword fight of yours." Uh-oh. "Not only was fighting in front of a crowd a stupid move for multiple reasons, but the people seeing their greatest hope in this war lose probably made their moral falter. You are very lucky Percy made many good impressions with the people in the two days he was here, which honestly is a little suspicious, and also showed good sportsmanship at the end. Then you have to think about possible spies learning about your fighting style and getting a chance to attack you while you were distracted. For all we knew, that could have been Percy's plan from the very beginning."

Eragon ducked his head slightly, knowing he should have thought about these things. Well, he decided to take a note out of Percy's book and learn from his mistakes while going with the flow.

"I'm sorry Nasuada. I should have thought more about how others would have perceived my actions and will make sure to do so in the future." When Eragon looked up, it was to see a slightly surprised Nasuada, and he wondered if his calm and logical thought caught her off guard. He mentally chuckled knowing that if he did that out loud he would most assuredly be targeted by her glare.

She gained a contemplative look before speaking. "Good, see that you do. Back on topic, I'm sorry to say but I can't let you leave until we know Percy is not a threat in any form. We need to know who he fights for and if he's with us, can he can defend himself?"

Eragon nodded his head. "I can talk to him after this to see if he would be willing to fight for the Varden. On the topic of whether he can defend himself," he chuckled to himself. "He can definitely defend himself mentally and physically. I don't know about magically, but I bet after some practice he could at least learn the basics." Judging by her now raised eyebrow, she wanted an explanation.

So, he explained more in detail about the sword fight and his opinions on it. He went on to talk about his magic lessons and how Percy seemed to soak them up. He especially emphasized his heavily reinforced mind.

Nasuada actually had an answer as to why no one used a 'brick wall' for their minds defense. Most minds have formless defenses because the mind needs to be able to push and pull where needed to fight back against an intruder. A wall would need a 'gate' to open to let someone in or, consequentially, push someone out. In essence, the mind would have to open itself up to attack back, which would then give the opponent a great advantage to have an open target straight into the mind.

However, Percy didn't open his gate when he pushed Eragon out, which only made Percy even more unique. There was no doubt in Eragon's mind that it was Percy's first time defending his mind, which only left being a natural at mind magic.

Nasuada and Eragon pondered in silence together until Nasuada slightly shook her head with a sigh. "We could sit here all day thinking this over and come no closer to learning more about Percy. I especially stand by my previous statement, that as long as Percy's allegiance is undecided, you cannot leave Surda unprotected."

Eragon nodded his head with a sigh. Thinking about it logically, she was correct and wise to make that decision, even if they didn't believe Percy would work against them.

Eragon said his goodbyes and headed back to Percy. Being blunt worked for him last time, so hopefully it would work again.

~~~Percy~~~

Percy looked up as Eragon came inside and nodded his head in greeting. However, he became slightly more serious when he saw Eragon's face. He looked like a man on a mission.

"Hey Percy," he began. "I know this is really soon but have you given any thought on joining the Varden?" Percy looked at Eragon in surprise. While he expected the question sooner or later, to ask on the same day he was told was quite soon.

He looked away in thought, needing to make sure that anything he said, he lived by. He already knew he wasn't going to join Galbatorix, so he pretty much had three more options to chose from.

He could be neutral and watch over the battle without interfering, however, that was immediately discarded. It wasn't in his nature to be neutral, and he owed Eragon for teaching him many essential skills in this world.

The next was becoming allies with them. He wouldn't swear allegiance, but he would swear to fight with them and help win the war. Doing this, he could still learn what they had to offer him while also fighting against the despicable king.

The last option he could think of was joining them. Now, that option could had many benefits and consequences. However, he saw more detriments in this option. At the meeting, he felt that Eragon was more of a tool for the humans in that group, which he very much disliked. Percy wasn't a tool. Never was and never would be.

Also, he would have to follow every order given to him. For an army commander who made the orders and was the one people looked up too, following orders was decently hard for him if he didn't fully agree with them. Which was guaranteed to happen sooner or later knowing him. He adamantly refused to become a tool or a soldier to be ordered around.

Finally looking up to see a slightly worried Eragon, he softly said, "Well, I can tell you that I won't ever fight against you guys. Knowing what Galbatorix does to win disgusts me and I don't want any part of that. The main question I'm going over is whether to join the Varden or ally myself to them.

"After going over my options, I think I've decided to ally myself with the Varden. The main reason being that I am a very independent person. I don't want to be forced to follow orders that I argue heavily against. I want to help you fight this madman, but I'm not going to give up my freedom to do it. So, allying myself to you guys seems to be the best option."

Percy smiled a little and said, "Now, what's with the sudden questioning?"

Eragon seemed to shuffle slightly before responding. "My brother's girlfriend was kidnapped by Ra'zac," he paused seeing Percy confused look. "They are cloaked creatures with a beak, black eyes, and no eyelids. They are cunning and cruel individuals with strength and speed on par with elves. Their breath can paralyze humans and are impervious to mind attacks. Their only weaknesses that we know of are magic, light (which burn their eyes and stun them if powerful enough), and swimming."

Percy nodded as Eragon continued. "I plan to go with Roran to rescue her. However, not that I don't trust you, but you are, or were, an unknown in this war. Nasuada wouldn't let me leave before you decided what you were going to do. I think she will be satisfied for being allied. However, it is the others who may make a fuss. Though, I don't really care what they think. I'm leaving tomorrow one way or another."

Percy smiled and nodded his head exuberantly. "That is my way of thinking. That's why I only want to be allies, not working for them. I'll help them fight and follow some orders, but I won't do anything I wouldn't normally do. I'm not trying to change your views or anything, but they need you to fight for them. However, that doesn't mean you should give up who you are to do so."

Eragon was slowly nodding his head at the end of Percy's speech. He smiled softly before saying, "I agree. Anyway, I need to relay the news to Nasuada and talk with Roran before heading out in the morning. Feel free to use this room as your own while I'm away, and if you need anything, I would recommend talking to Nasuada. I bet she would be more than happy to help or give you more reasons to stay." He added a wink at the end and Percy chuckled. Percy may have not worked with politics very much, but he at least knew basic strategies.

Eragon left to go do his business while Percy stayed behind.

"I believe you made the right decision." Maelstrom said. Percy nodded his head and went back to meditating and immersing himself in his magic.

While Percy directed the flow of his magic to different parts of his body, he thought about his relationship with Maelstrom compared to Eragon and Saphira's. Maelstrom had been connected with his mind non stop since they connected and regular looked through Percy's eyes.

After asking Eragon a few questions about his and Saphira's link, Percy came to the conclusion that most, if any, don't have as strong as a connection between dragon and rider. Percy remembered when he and Maelstrom tested their mental limits and found that if the other was willing, they could actually 'take over' the others mind and control their body, feel the same feelings and basically become the other in every sense.

It was definitely a new and interesting experience to take over a dragon and vice versa. He chuckled when he remembered Maelstrom's actions when he became Percy. He tried to walk on all fours and was growling in frustration the whole time whenever he tested walking on two legs.

Percy slightly lost concentration when he felt a strange feeling ripple across his magic. The feeling surprisingly felt familiar. A feeling of comradery like when a friend comes over to visit after a long time, and you've been looking forward to it. He wondered where the feeling came from?