#the eldunari

[thearunadragon]

Eragon being chosen by the Eldunarí to do some slaying stuff like-

This has been inspired by some dragon rocks and this image:

[alagaesia-headcanons]

I will always be so sad and angry that Eragon never recognized how horribly the elves treated him and that no one else helped protect him from it either. Oromis is so insidiously and inexcusably cruel to him and Eragon truly deserved the chance to escape that and see the damage he caused, and also to then beat Oromis into a bloody pulp. And Glaedr too, honestly. He's mostly gone unscathed in my past rants, largely because at least his personality isn't so insufferable, but he ain't shit either. He's fully complicit in all of Oromis's vile abuse, and adds to it himself in certain places. They more than earn Eragon's ire, but they all constantly belittle him and insist that they inherently know better than him about everything, and poor Eragon believes them, so he doesn't fight back. No!!! Every misgiving you have about them is true, and not only should you stand your ground, but you should also start maiming them!!!!!

Oromis's mannerisms are respectful, kind, and gentle, but they in no way indicate his actual feelings. It just serves as a guise, while their actions demonstrate that both he and Glaedr don't have a single shred of respect for Eragon. They don't trust him, they don't put faith in him, they don't care about his wellbeing, and they have so much contempt for him. And they do all that while they take everything from Eragon, demanding he sacrifice himself constantly, and not always just in the interest of beating the Empire! In some cases it's solely an expression of their resentment of him or a way to cut away at the parts of him they don't like.

And Eragon gives them everything, so earnestly and generously. Then they give him jack shit. They only give him whatever suits their intention to use him as a weapon, and even in that, they pick and choose things to withhold according to their disdain for him. Contempt is all he gets in return for his trust and loyalty.

And it makes me sad how Saphira isn't there for him in this. In her defense, she's very young and they harm her also by prioritizing her utility to them over anything else, which she sadly does not recognize either. But beyond that, the elves and Oromis and Glaedr specifically treat her far, far better than they treat Eragon. She's in no way responsible for their actions, but there are places where she enables the abuse. Most often through overlooking it, but sometimes when Eragon rightfully balks at their mistreatment, then turns to Saphira for her input, she tells him, "I trust them and I think you should be deferring to them."

Eragon is so earnest and compassionate and he deserves care, both in the form of other people caring about his wellbeing, and also through the chance for him to learn how he can and should care for himself. Yet at the end of the series, he's so conditioned to accept manipulation and abuse and I just want my poor boy to have a chance to rest and HEAL 😭

[twinterrors29]

it would be interesting if a Jedi's kyber crystal was a more literal embodiment of their soul, the way that dragon's eldunari are in the Inheritance Cycle

they use their kyber to build their sabers, which is why it's such a huge taboo to lose or destroy them, but they keep the true nature of their kyber secret, and use the planet of Illum as their cover for 'retrieving' kyber, while the Temple there is mostly ceremonial for testing if an Initiate is mature enough to be trusted to carry their soul externally to their own body

retired and deceased Jedi pass their kyber down in the form of their saber to their lineage descendants, to carry that knowledge and experience into their futures once their mortal body is no longer capable of looking after them

Sith, however, still bleed their own souls, or else steal a Jedi's kyber to make use of their strength in their own weapon against the Jedi's will

during the Clone Wars, Grievous knows exactly what he's doing as he collects Jedi lightsabers, and delights in taunting Jedi with the tormented souls of their fallen compatriots

the lightsaber that Obi-Wan passes down to Luke contains Anakin's true soul, since Obi-Wan managed to take it from him before he could bleed it himself

[applejuucee]

I need people to talk about the Inheritance Cycle with I'm going to go insane

[modern-inheritance]

Did Glaedr ever get phantom pain on his missing leg?

Oh my god–

DO DRAGONS IN THEIR ELDUNARI GET PHANTOM PAIN?!?

[dia-viller]

Eldunari used Eragon against Galbatorix

Galbatorix used Murtagh against the Varden

(They were like puppets in their hands all the time)

[gangseyboi]

The eldunari could show eragon murtagh’s little ceunon adventure but they couldn’t be like hey dude i think murtagh is heading to the place we told him not to and uhhh mayhaps you should go help him out

[eldunari-ignasia]

"[...] And since the soul cannot be torn from the flesh, you must resist the temptation to try to take your partner’s soul into your own body and shelter it there, as that will result in both your deaths. Even if it were possible, it would be an abomination to have multiple consciousnesses in one body." - [Glaedr, Eldest 441]

Since I first read Eragon more than ten years ago, I've been making characters to fit into the world. The most recent of these is a young woman named Immogen! She's definitely an odd duck and the POV character for the fanfic that lives rent free in my head.

[ace-and-ranty]

Eragon plays the “Chosen One” trope straight in many ways, but I do really like the way Paolini goes at it.

Eragon is the chosen one, but not just by vague destiny or magic. He is the chosen one, literally, because Saphira chose him, and Saphira is the chosen one because Galbatorix chose her (to be the last female dragon). So a nice bit of the villain creating his own downfall.

But, also, Saphira didn’t choose Eragon because she thought he was the best suited to defeat Galbatorix. She was a baby! The magic that binds dragons to humans is much more like soulmate magic; it finds the right match for the dragon. Saphira chose Eragon because she loves him. That’s all the reason he is the chosen one, is because Saphira loves him.

(Okay, not that destiny and magic are completely absent in here. The Eldunari sending Saphira to Eragon, expecting that he would be the right person for her, was definitely Destiny Destining.)

[everythingloveandanimated]

Spoilers in explanation below

I’ve wondered that too, but I think a big reason is the Eldunarí didn’t want Eragon and Saphira putting themselves in mortal danger to save them.

Bachel tortured Murtagh for information on Eragon, Saphira, Arya, Firnen, and the Eldinarí, but he didn’t have any special information. Eragon would have intimate information on them and Mount Argnor and would thus be tortured so Bachel could acquire it.

So I think it was the Eldunarí’s way of protecting the future of the Dragon riders.

However, I’m pretty sure that when Eragon hears that the Elidnarí knew but didn’t notify him, he’s going to be very angry. Especially considering he wants to repair his relationship with Murtagh as friends and brothers and wants him to have a better, happy life. Plus, Murtagh and Thorn have already taken some very heavy blows because of Eragon and Saphira (being tortured for their failure to capture Eragon and Saphira for example).

Unfortunately, I think Eragon wouldn’t have been able to get there in time to save Murtagh and Thorn. By the time he got to Nal Gorgoth, their ordeal would be over or, so the best he could do would be to escort Thorn to Ellesmera where they could heal. Or, he would get there the day they broke free.

If he couldn’t make it, he could’ve warned Arya and she would’ve been at Nal Gorgoth fairly quickly. But again, depending when in the ordeal she would’ve been notified is going to affect the time of her arrival. She could be there just as Murtagh broke, or she could get there while they are thralls, or she could get there as they are laying waste to the village.

Also Bachel would’ve loved to get her hands on her, and if she succeeded, it’s Gil’ead all over again but worse for Arya.

TL;DR the Eldunarí were trying to protect the other two dragon riders in existence. They risked Eragon and Arya getting captured and tortured and having all their secrets revealed. They probably calculated by the time help got to Murtagh and Thorn it wouldn’t make much of a difference.

(Bonus: I don’t know if the Eldunarí would be this cruel, but it could also be a “I told you not to go there and you did anyway, so here’s the consequences of your actions” kind of thing.)

Murtagh question!! (Minor Murtagh spoiler)

Ok so why didn’t the Eldunari tell Eragon that Murtagh was in danger? They said they oversee so many things. So they decide to show Eragon Murtagh making Mr. Stabby but then do nothing when Murtagh is literally dying alone in a cave?

I guess the Eldunari may not like Murtagh, but they know Eragon cares and wants to see his brother

[arielta]

Giggling at work thinking about Eragon feeling a lil bit weird talking to a bunch of eggs in the eldunari room so he just puts stick on googly eyes on 1000+ years old dragons

[gemtail]

After seeing a whole map of the world Alagaesia is in, I know for sure now that there is no way in hell that Galbatorix could have wiped out all dragons. Elea has enough room to where I would not be surprised if there’s other races of dragons. In fact, I would not be surprised if there’s some living riders who are alive but couldn’t fight because of age or something. I would not be shocked if Oromis and the other elders arranged for young dragons and riders to run away with another elder rider with a backup set of eggs and a few eldunari just in case something happened to the ones stashed on Vroengard. And then either along with the complicated spell that hid the Rock of Kuthian or a separate spell, the dragons then made it so that nobody would be able to remember them and that they would not be able to return to Alagaesia until its safe. I’d imagine it would have been only a handful of young riders who weren’t able to fight. Maybe only two or three… or there was a decent amount but the journey killed half.

[applejuucee]

Forsworn's Dragons concept. Their names stripped and Eldunari liquifying inside.

[magicandmundane]

Hey wait a sec. Didn’t Galby’s wards around the city block all magic that he didn’t permit? Because I remember something about the Varden trying to aim catapults with magic and the spells went awry because of the wards and their own warriors got hit. And then they had to move anyone who needed to be healed (like Baldor and his hand) outside the city walls because their healing spells weren’t working inside the king’s wards. That’s not invisibility magic. I mean, maybe his wards specified that if the magic involves Eldunarí then don’t touch it because we can’t have any of those getting trashed instantly for being protected by magic. He can deal with getting his hands on those later, but for now he can’t have them crashing to the ground upon entry. Anyway, maybe I missed something, too, but idk. 😂

@magicandmundane I was still thinking about the problem that you mentioned, i.e. the fact that the Eldunarya that Eragon and Saphira brought inside the walls of Uru'baen should have ceased to be invisible like Eragon and Saph did. It's really weird. I reread the part about it but I can't find anything that explains.

Maybe they had so much energy that they could cross the magical barriers and remain invisible? But then why not provide that energy to Eragon and Saphira as well?...

[modern-inheritance]

For a future story

The elf picked at the grass by her knee. If Murtagh knew any better, he’d say she looked almost uncertain. “…They ask about you two, you know. Pretty often.”

“The elves?” Murtagh suppressed a snort. “I’m sure some of them would love to get their hands on us.”

“No.” Arya shook her head. “The Eldunarí.”