Evergreen

A/N: I never finished my last Eragon fic. The plot was too complex and I wanted to do a romance, so I decided to write a Nasauda x Murtagh fic. There aren't a whole lot of them, you know. Anyways, it takes place after Eldest. I hope it turns out right, because I kind of like this fic.

Disclaimer: I don't Eragon or any of CP's Charecters.

Prologue:

Clash of Wills

There was no moon that night, thus the world was consumed in a cloud of hungry darkness. Even the inner walls of the palace, lit by flickering torches, seemed to hold more shadows that usual.

Nasauda shivered.

She looked up from the papers and searched the shadows. She thought she heard something stir in the darkness. Then her eyes picked out the faint silhouette of a man. She glanced at the door. Where were the guards that were supposed to be guarding her safety?

Nasauda fingered the hilt of her ruby dagger. She suddenly felt very alone. Eragon had left days ago to help Roran rescue his fiancé, and Elva was with helping Angela with a new project.

"Who's there?"

The figure shifted stiffly again. A man stepped into the light, sword in hand. Nasauda almost fell over as the light fell over his face. It was Murtagh.

"What are you doing you doing here, Murtagh?" Nasauda asked, somewhat calmly. They had been friends once, before her father's death. And if it weren't for the twins, they might have become something more. Now he was just an enemy.

A slave to Galbatorix.

"What do you want?" she asked again, although she already knew why he was there.

There was a dark look in his eyes and also a deep unwillingness. He gripped Zar'ock's gleaming hilt until his knuckles were white. He was trembling uncontrollably against the strain. "I don't want to," he said hoarsely. His voice was shaking.

"Then don't," Nausuda said. "You don't have to, Murtagh. I know you. You're stronger than this."

"I have to," he whispered. He raised Za'roc to eye-level, trembling against the struggle of Galbotorix's will. Nasuada recognized the struggle. Murtagh was struggling in the same manner as Elva when she fought her bindings.

Then he gave cry of pain and lunged at Nasauda. She dodged it, and thrust her ruby dagger at his ribs. Murtagh knocked it away with a single blow. Then he pushed her against the wall and stuck.

Clank.

Zar'roc's deadly tip had just barely missed Nasauda's throaght by a hair. Only the force of Murtagh's will had saved her, but the strain was killing him. He made a choking sound, trembling and muttering words that Nausauda did not understand. He said them more forcefully. The air moved and the torches dimmed. Then all at once he gasped, dropped Zar'roc, and he collapsed.

Down the hallow corridors, urgent footsteps could be heard. Nasauda took a deep, shaky breath. Arya and several soldiers burst into the room. She saw Murtagh lying unconscious at Nasauda's feet and muttered something in the ancient language. "Are you are hurt?" Arya asked.

"Don't hurt him," Nasauda said as the soldiers surrounded Murtagh.

Arya pulled her away gently. "Are you hurt?" she asked again, this time more urgently.

Nasauda wasn't listening. She was too busy watching as one of the soldiers cautiously bent down to check Murtagh's pulse. She hoped he wasn't dead, despite the miserary that he was bound to. The soldier frowned.

"Nasauda!"

"I'm fine," Nasauda said quietly. Then she turned to the soldiers. "Is he alive?"

"Barely."

"What a mess," Arya groaned. "What happened?"

Nasauda told her what had taken place between them. How he had tried to kill her on Galbatrox's orders and failed.

"We should kill him while we have the chance," Arya said grimly.

"Absolutely not! Arya, he just defied Galbatrox's orders—"

"He tried to kill you," Arya said smoothly.

Nasauda crossed her arms stubbornly. "But he didn't. He told me he didn't want to and he didn't. He kept muttering under his breath. I think he was talking in the ancient language, but I'm not sure."

"What did he say?"

Nasauda repeated his exact words and when she was finished Arya looked a little surprised. After a moment she said, "Murtagh was ordering himself and his dragon to obey only according to their free will. I think he used the power of his true name to break the oaths. I'm surprised it worked. It almost killed him."

A wave of sudden relief filled Nasauda. "Which means he's good."

"If it worked," Arya reminded. "We can't be sure until he wakes."

"Then we'll wait."

"You do realize how complicated things are about to get, don't you? If you thought politics were tough, having Murtagh in our custody will only make them worse."

Despite the situation, Nasauda found it in herself to smile. "I think it will be worth it having another Rider on our side."

A/N: Read and review!