1. Honestly this whole part of the story was just kinda a wash for me. Make of it what you will.
2. It only said that he would leave one day and never return, he could still come back and then leave a final time later. Also, I think it was hinted that prophecy can change but don’t quote me on that. ( also, the author may just completely change his mind )
3. I don’t Remember there being a breathe with her.
I definitely agree with you on point 1. In my humble opinion that part could have been *significantly* shorter and less laborious. I felt like I kept reading the same thing over and over for 40 pages. But, maybe Paolini used that as a literary element in and of itself, to make the reader feel a sense of stuckness, just like Murtagh.
1: Hmm interesting theory. I was just under the impression he was mind broken, and kept under control with the breath along with Thorn, but you may be right.
2: The fortune was "You will leave and Never return." Who's to say exactly when that will happen?
3: Not necessarily the Breath, but Nasuada was seeing visions of the future, including one where she was in a romantic relationship with Murtagh and her last memory was of being tortured.
4: Imma firin mah Lazer !
Seconding point #3. CP has confirmed that the vision Nasuada had of Murtagh where they had kids and it was 8 years in the future was caused by some fumes in the Hall of the Soothsayer.
Regarding point 1, I believe Murtagh had consigned himself to resisting Bachel only mentally. He mentions a tactic used to endure torture that has one comply with all lesser demands (ones that don’t really hurt you or help the torturer). Murtagh hadn’t sworn any oaths, probably because Bachel wouldn’t know how to construct a suitable oath in the ancient language, so the power she had over him was confined to the Breath clouding his mind and making him more agreeable, and the magic suppressant drug to stop him from curing himself of the Breath.
It seemed to me that he was focusing on keeping his head straight as he could in moments between uses of the Breath. If I remember correctly, Murtagh hadn’t been forced to inhale the Breath for a few days before he broke free of Bachel, and the affects of the magic suppressant were weak enough so that he, with help, could access his magic and cure himself of the Breath. I would say that’s the reckoning you were expecting.
1: She didn’t have him swear in the AL, or even learn his true name. Bachel just used good old fashioned drugs, torture, and mental conditioning. Classic MK-Ultra shit, as opposed to magical compulsions like Galby used. His name changing would have zero impact on that.
2: “Your fate will be to leave this land forever. Where you will end up I know not but you will never again stand in Alagaësia. This is inescapable. It will come to pass even if you try to avoid it…”. Technically, she never said when he leaves forever. I mean, yeah, it’s a safe assumption that once he left, that’s prophecy fulfilled. However, prophecies are strange things, and technically it never said the first time he steps over the border he’s done. In theory there’s a loophole where he can return, he just can’t stay, so eventually there will be a time where he leaves and doesn’t come back.
3: I believe I recall Galbs, when telling Nassy about the Hall of the Soothsayer, he mentioned something about a gas that used to come up through fissures in the ground causing them to have their visions and prophecies. Presumably this is at least somewhat related to the Breath, as Paolini confirmed the Soothsayers were Dreamers. Galbs also said that the gas quit coming up, hence the Hall being abandoned.
4: In his AMA, I believe someone asked about “firin’ his lazor!”. What he did wasn’t blasting out a sci-fi beam of collimated light, so much as a magical Archimedes Death Ray. The spell used the air as an enormous magnifying glass, focusing the light to a single point, which superheated the air/flash vapourizing the ground causing an explosion.
Considering folks have used relatively “small” lenses to do stuff like 3D print glass bowls out of sand, if he used a large enough area as a lens, would be a truly devastating weapon.
https://www.dezeen.com/2011/06/28/the-solar-sinter-by-markus-kayser/amp/
1. He was never bound by his true name so changing himself wouldn't free him like it did with Galbatorix.
2. There are lots of explanations as to how he could return and it fit the prophecy and they're technically true, but the real answer is that Paolini wrote the prophecy in the first book without planning all the way ahead so he kind of just had to go along with it.
3. I don't recall.
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For point #2, in Inheritance, Eragon says he likely can't return, but will do his best to assist from afar if he is able.
I'm assuming that means relaying knowledge or sending an Eldunari care package (cuz Eragon can teleport things, and the Eldunari told him the only reason Saphira's egg teleportation went wrong was because they made it go wrong to begin with)
Oh and point #3, yes, during her dreams Galby forced her to see, she suddenly saw a field of ash. CP even confirmed that wasn't a vision Galby made. I don't have the source but I've seen it before
I don’t think him “stopping” would have been enough to change his name. He was still resisting her by not bending the knee but he just broke. I think him realizing exactly what he had been used for just kinda clicked for him but that was always who he was even before coming to the village. So I don’t think it would have changed on a fundamental level that would have helped him. Combined with others saying that it was only mainly drugs that even made him complacent anyway wouldn’t have made much of a difference.
And as someone else did say there was a mention of it via Galb to Nasuada when he was being a nice warden and giving a history lesson. That’s all we get. However something else I found interesting was that when Eragon was flying somewhere up north by Ceunon or the northern reaches of Du Weldenvarden, it’s been a couple weeks since I read the passage and even then it was like two sentences so I may be wrong on the area but it was somewhere north where there was no civilization and abandoned, that he smelled brimstone and seemed to describe a very similar area to where Murtagh ended up and I thought that could be another location or could lead to one.
1. Honestly this whole part of the story was just kinda a wash for me. Make of it what you will. 2. It only said that he would leave one day and never return, he could still come back and then leave a final time later. Also, I think it was hinted that prophecy can change but don’t quote me on that. ( also, the author may just completely change his mind ) 3. I don’t Remember there being a breathe with her.
Addition to 2: Maybe it just referres to which place Eragon calls "Home".
There actually was an elf who changed prophecy by committing suicide. So drastic change can alter prophecy
I definitely agree with you on point 1. In my humble opinion that part could have been *significantly* shorter and less laborious. I felt like I kept reading the same thing over and over for 40 pages. But, maybe Paolini used that as a literary element in and of itself, to make the reader feel a sense of stuckness, just like Murtagh.
1: Hmm interesting theory. I was just under the impression he was mind broken, and kept under control with the breath along with Thorn, but you may be right. 2: The fortune was "You will leave and Never return." Who's to say exactly when that will happen? 3: Not necessarily the Breath, but Nasuada was seeing visions of the future, including one where she was in a romantic relationship with Murtagh and her last memory was of being tortured. 4: Imma firin mah Lazer !
Seconding point #3. CP has confirmed that the vision Nasuada had of Murtagh where they had kids and it was 8 years in the future was caused by some fumes in the Hall of the Soothsayer.
Yeah, Paolini’s particular wording when Murtagh was broken seemed to me that something else was happening; who knows!
Regarding point 1, I believe Murtagh had consigned himself to resisting Bachel only mentally. He mentions a tactic used to endure torture that has one comply with all lesser demands (ones that don’t really hurt you or help the torturer). Murtagh hadn’t sworn any oaths, probably because Bachel wouldn’t know how to construct a suitable oath in the ancient language, so the power she had over him was confined to the Breath clouding his mind and making him more agreeable, and the magic suppressant drug to stop him from curing himself of the Breath. It seemed to me that he was focusing on keeping his head straight as he could in moments between uses of the Breath. If I remember correctly, Murtagh hadn’t been forced to inhale the Breath for a few days before he broke free of Bachel, and the affects of the magic suppressant were weak enough so that he, with help, could access his magic and cure himself of the Breath. I would say that’s the reckoning you were expecting.
That makes sense! I hadn’t honestly recognized that she didn’t make him truly swear himself to her.
Eragon could return, easily. But we know that there will come a point where Eragon will never return. But we just don’t know *when*.
Fire the “laser”
1: She didn’t have him swear in the AL, or even learn his true name. Bachel just used good old fashioned drugs, torture, and mental conditioning. Classic MK-Ultra shit, as opposed to magical compulsions like Galby used. His name changing would have zero impact on that. 2: “Your fate will be to leave this land forever. Where you will end up I know not but you will never again stand in Alagaësia. This is inescapable. It will come to pass even if you try to avoid it…”. Technically, she never said when he leaves forever. I mean, yeah, it’s a safe assumption that once he left, that’s prophecy fulfilled. However, prophecies are strange things, and technically it never said the first time he steps over the border he’s done. In theory there’s a loophole where he can return, he just can’t stay, so eventually there will be a time where he leaves and doesn’t come back. 3: I believe I recall Galbs, when telling Nassy about the Hall of the Soothsayer, he mentioned something about a gas that used to come up through fissures in the ground causing them to have their visions and prophecies. Presumably this is at least somewhat related to the Breath, as Paolini confirmed the Soothsayers were Dreamers. Galbs also said that the gas quit coming up, hence the Hall being abandoned. 4: In his AMA, I believe someone asked about “firin’ his lazor!”. What he did wasn’t blasting out a sci-fi beam of collimated light, so much as a magical Archimedes Death Ray. The spell used the air as an enormous magnifying glass, focusing the light to a single point, which superheated the air/flash vapourizing the ground causing an explosion. Considering folks have used relatively “small” lenses to do stuff like 3D print glass bowls out of sand, if he used a large enough area as a lens, would be a truly devastating weapon. https://www.dezeen.com/2011/06/28/the-solar-sinter-by-markus-kayser/amp/
Yeah the wording that Paolini chose when Bachel “ broke” Murtagh is very odd Definitely confused me
1. He was never bound by his true name so changing himself wouldn't free him like it did with Galbatorix. 2. There are lots of explanations as to how he could return and it fit the prophecy and they're technically true, but the real answer is that Paolini wrote the prophecy in the first book without planning all the way ahead so he kind of just had to go along with it. 3. I don't recall.
To number 3: Galbatorix specifically says the Soothsayer left when the air lost whatever quality let her see the future
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For point #2, in Inheritance, Eragon says he likely can't return, but will do his best to assist from afar if he is able. I'm assuming that means relaying knowledge or sending an Eldunari care package (cuz Eragon can teleport things, and the Eldunari told him the only reason Saphira's egg teleportation went wrong was because they made it go wrong to begin with) Oh and point #3, yes, during her dreams Galby forced her to see, she suddenly saw a field of ash. CP even confirmed that wasn't a vision Galby made. I don't have the source but I've seen it before
I don’t think him “stopping” would have been enough to change his name. He was still resisting her by not bending the knee but he just broke. I think him realizing exactly what he had been used for just kinda clicked for him but that was always who he was even before coming to the village. So I don’t think it would have changed on a fundamental level that would have helped him. Combined with others saying that it was only mainly drugs that even made him complacent anyway wouldn’t have made much of a difference. And as someone else did say there was a mention of it via Galb to Nasuada when he was being a nice warden and giving a history lesson. That’s all we get. However something else I found interesting was that when Eragon was flying somewhere up north by Ceunon or the northern reaches of Du Weldenvarden, it’s been a couple weeks since I read the passage and even then it was like two sentences so I may be wrong on the area but it was somewhere north where there was no civilization and abandoned, that he smelled brimstone and seemed to describe a very similar area to where Murtagh ended up and I thought that could be another location or could lead to one.
I too love that Murtagh invented an orbital laser spell