Menoa



The Menoa Tree was a gigantic tree (taking up about 10 acres) in the elven forest, Du Weldenvarden, where the elves celebrated the Agaetí Blödhren, or Blood-Oath Celebration.

It started with Linnëa, an elderly elf maiden, who grew up singing to the trees. She didn't find a lover until she met a young male elf. At first they had a great relationship, until the young elf started to desire for a younger lover. He found one, and for a time, they were also happy. When Linnëa discovered the young elf's treachery, she stabbed him and his lover to death. The elf maiden was so overcome with grief that she sang herself into the oldest tree in Du Weldenvarden, and after three days and three nights, she had completely sung herself into the tree.

Solembum's Advice
While in Angela's herb shop, the werecat, Solembum, told Eragon Bromsson that when he was in need of a weapon, he should look under the roots of the Menoa Tree. When Eragon and Saphira returned to Ellesmera to complete their training, they visited the Menoa Tree to try to find the weapon. Eragon attempted to ask the tree where the weapon was, but it ignored him. Finally Saphira lost her temper and attacked the Menoa Tree. The angry tree held them in place with its roots and asked their names first before she killed them. Eragon begged for their lives, telling the tree he was the last Rider and Saphira was the last female dragon in existence, and lastly of Solembum's prophecy. The tree informed them of a large amount of brightsteel, the metal Rhunön used to forge all the Rider's swords, underneath its roots. Eragon and Saphira realized that that was what Solembum had been referring to in his prophecy. Eragon promised the tree whatever it wanted in return for the brightsteel. The tree agreed, then told them to leave. The tree did not specifically ask for an item in return. However, some have thought that the Menoa tree telling Eragon to leave and to not return was the tree's request. Eragon also felt a strange tug in his gut when the tree gave him the material. Rhunön used the brightsteel to craft a new sword through Eragon, since he had lost Zar'roc during The Battle of The Burning Plains. Eragon named his new sword Brisingr.

The Menoa Tree's interesting question to Eragon was what race he was. Eragon told the Menoa Tree that he was a hybrid of Elf and Human. The tree never encountered one like Eragon before. Before the tree surrendered the Brightsteel, she took something from Eragon that made him feel a tug in his gut. It is possible that the Menoa Tree is keeping a DNA archive of the races of Alagaësia for some reason. She saw herself as the mother of the forest. It is possible also that she saw herself as the mother of the world and would want to keep a record of the races that dwelt there.

The Menoa Tree either had a lot of confidence or was completely ignorant of the state of the world at the time Saphira attacked her to wake her up. Eragon hinted that Galbatorix would conquer Alagaësia and fly to Du Weldenvarden to destroy the forest and the elves. The tree replied for Galbatorix to come, for anyone who attacked her forest would surely die. We may read something in Book 4 along with what happened to the Orcs in the "Fangorn Forest" in "Lord of the Rings". The trees could wake up and take their wrath out against the Empire.