Saphira was flying as fast as possible. Thorn was only about a hundred yards behind her, and both Riders were holding onto their dragons for dear life. Neither dared open their minds even to speak to their dragons. It was going to be a nasty fight, just like before.
Eragon had been on his way back to Du Waldenvarden for more training. He needed to know how he can combat magic he had no idea how to reverse or even get around. Murtagh had been a very quick study under Galbatorix, apparently. Murtagh had found him, and was compelled to bring Eragon back to Galbatorix.
They were somewhere above the vast plains, when suddenly they were above a forest. It was a large forest, but small compared Du Waldenvarden. What struck all was that there had been no trees, then suddenly, trees. There had been turbulence just prior to the sudden change. It could have been magic, but both knew that no magic was strong enough to do this.
Soon, in front of them, for they were still flying at a very fast pace, was a large castle. People bustled around it, and from the looks of it, most were teenagers and young adults. People a few years younger than Eragon to about Murtagh's age. Eragon looked back at Murtagh, and felt mixed emotions all over again. Anger, pain, fear, and hate washed over him, followed by pity and oddly, brotherly love. They were fast approaching the castle. Suddenly, Thorn put on a burst of speed that nobody thought possible. Saphira bellowed as her tail was bitten, more from rage than from pain.
People on the castle grounds looked up, and ran. Saphira decided now was not the time to run anymore, and turning on wingtip, flew right by the somewhat startled Thorn. She barrel rolled as she flew by, and Eragon tried to slash Thorn with the blade he had gotten from the Varden. Murtagh brandished Zar'roc. Saphira executed some loops, to confuse Thorn, but when she righted herself, Thorn was again behind her.
Only a handful of people were left standing on the grounds. Suddenly, bolts of light shot from the ground, hitting both Saphira and Thorn. Both dragons fell, stunned a little. They recovered just in time to slow their decent and land. They continued their fight on the ground; right after their Riders had dismounted and began clashing swords.
Eragon noticed the robed men, and noticed that each held something pointed at the dragons. A few words, and bolts of light raced from the things, and through the air. All the bolts hit Thorn, who fell over, stunned. Murtagh uttered a few words in the Ancient Language, and Saphira was frozen in place. Eragon rushed Murtagh, to break any concentration for magic. It was then that the robed men, one who was old by human standards, noticed the Riders.
Both Riders battled furiously, neither giving any ground. They noted the men, and a few women, remained wary of them, but mostly focused on each other. Neither one was going to let the other win.Dumbledore watched the fight of the two young men. One looked odd for a man, more graceful than any human could possibly be. His wand was held at ready. Both dragons seemed unable to move, though the spell had only hit one. What could possibly be holding the other? Suddenly, the sapphire dragon hissed, and lunged at the red. Whatever was holding it no longer was able to.
The fight between the two men was intense. It would be folly to stop just one. But what of the dragons? They would have to be stunned, before they could think of getting the men to stop fighting.
"Stun the blue dragon, and then stun both men. We'll have no killing on Hogwarts today, if I can help it," he told the other professors.
The others complied. The dragon fell, and then both men did, as the spells hit them. Dumbledore sighed. This was rather an odd occurrence. Dragons were illegal as pets in England, and yet, these two had dragons. How else could they have appeared as suddenly as they did when the dragons landed? And their clothes spoke of a time long gone. Nobody wore armor anymore.
"Take those two men to separate rooms. Keep the dragons stunned. They'll be at each other's throats when the spell wears off. We cannot afford to have dragons fighting on school grounds," Dumbledore said. "I'll inform the ministry of this—incident. Tell the students that all is now under control, but that they're not to leave their dormitories yet."
As the professors complied, some grumbling about the orders, Dumbledore headed to his office. He would send an owl, for sure, but not with all the details. He wanted some answers first. He had a few questions that bothered him.Eragon woke, on a nice, comfortable bed, nothing at all like the beds he was used to. In fact, not even like a bed a king would use. It was springy, and it creaked when he moved. He was sore all over, from the rough ride and the fight. The fight! What had happened?
"You're up, I see. Good. Now Dumbledore can ask his questions," A woman's voice said. Eragon, who had had his eyes closed, opened them. And there was a woman, stern looking, and looking about as ready to pounce as a cat. She held a black stick in her hand, and had it pointed at him. Eragon opened his mind, and realized that he was not in Alagaesia. He wondered if Murtagh was awake.
"Where am I? Where's my dragon, Saphira?" Eragon asked.
"You are in Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Your dragon is stunned, on school grounds near the Forbidden Forest. Ah, here is Dumbledore now. Professor Dumbledore, he's awake," the woman said. An old, wizened man walked in. Eragon caught the fact that the man was aware of mental intrusion. But the odd fact was that the old man did not recoil.
"So, young man, I've reported you to the ministry for owning a dragon, though why you and the other young man were fighting is beyond me. Would you care to explain?" the old man asked.
"I want to see Saphira," Eragon said. "And what do you mean, reported me for owning a dragon? I don't own Saphira. I'm her Rider, but I don't own her," Eragon tried to explain. He sighed. "It's a very long story, made all the more confusing because I'm not from around here. I'm from a place called Alagaesia. To be more specific, I'm from Carvahall, in Palancar Valley." Then Eragon spent the next hour or so describing his adventures. "I was on my way for more training when Murtagh, the Rider of the red dragon, Thorn, spotted me, and chased me. One second we were over plains, the next, forest."
"Interesting indeed. Here, drink this," the old man, Dumbledore, said, pulling out a flask. Eragon eyed it suspiciously. "It's just some pumpkin juice. Drink it, I know you must be thirsty."
Eragon drank, never really having drunk pumpkin juice before. He noticed two flavors, though. "It's not just juice," Eragon said, and then the Veritaserum took effect.
"State your name," Dumbledore said.
"Eragon," Eragon replied.
"Is the story you related to me earlier true?" Dumbledore asked.
"Yes."
"Do you own a dragon?" Dumbledore asked.
"I don't really own Saphira, my dragon. I'm as much hers as she is mine. I am her Rider, and she is my dragon," Eragon said.
"Hmmm. Is Galbatorix as evil as you say?" Dumbledore asked.
"Yes, he is. He allows slavery, he tortures and kills, and he rules with an iron fist. His bond with his second dragon is an abomination, for the dragon did not choose him. He forced the bond between them using black magic. He destroyed his own order, and pushed the dragons to the brink of extinction. He'll be responsible not only for the extinction of one intelligent race, but two others as well!" Eragon said.
"Is the other young man, Murtagh, is he really under Galbatorix's control?" Dumbledore asked.
"Murtagh swore an unbreakable oath in the Ancient Language of loyalty and to serve Galbatorix. That alone puts him under Galbatorix's control," Eragon said.
Dumbledore then administered the antidote to the Veritaserum. Eragon shook his head.
"You put something in there, didn't you? To make me tell the truth…" Eragon asked, accusingly.
"We are, in effect, in a state of war. Though the Muggles don't know it. Nor do we want them to. I had to make sure that you told the truth, so that the enemy doesn't strike here, at the students," Dumbledore said.
"I understand. I probably would have done the same, if I were in your position. You said you reported me for owning a dragon? What happens to those who own a dragon?" Eragon asked, somewhat afraid of the answer.
"The dragon is usually taken away, and there is rather a large fine. Muggles are not to know about the existence of magic, not in our world," Dumbledore said.
"Muggles?" Eragon asked.
"Non-wizarding folk. You can use magic? Show me," Dumbledore said.
Looking around, Eragon decided that he would light the candles in the room. Muttering brisingr, he lit every candle in the room. Then, he extinguished them with a separate spell.
"I can do more than that. I can heal and fight with magic," Eragon said. "For my magic, the magic of Alagaesia, it takes the same amount of energy to do a task magically as physically. So lighting all the candles in this room is no problem. Magicians die from overextending their strength. And some die from trying to do the impossible."
"I see," Dumbledore said.
"Please, sir, if I could go see Saphira? My dragon?" Eragon asked.
"We simply cannot allow her to wake. Not with the other dragon there, and its Rider. I do not want to be responsible for any deaths right now. If what you said is true, and it has to be, because I used the strongest truth potion there is, then we may be in greater danger than we had thought. If our separate worlds were to combine, do you know what could happen?" Dumbledore asked.
"Worst case scenario, Galbatorix recruits more powerful allies, finds a Rider for the last egg, and we're all doomed to die under a tyrant's hand," Eragon said bitterly.
"How old is Galbatorix?" Dumbledore asked.
"Over a century. Riders have long lives due to their bond with the long lived dragons," Eragon said, aware that Dumbledore was not a man to lie to.
"So, he could live till for a few more centuries? That's a long time for a land to be under a single ruler," Dumbledore said.
"It is," Eragon said. "What are you going to do with Murtagh and Thorn, now that you know that they work for an evil madman?"
"I'm not sure. They'll have to be closely watched, at the very least," Dumbledore said. "I'll send another owl to the ministry with full details. We'll decide what to do then."
Eragon decided that the wisest course would be to accept what was said, and to accept what will happen. He hoped for the sake of this world that the two worlds wouldn't combine. He also hoped that Saphira would be okay.
"Alright, I guess I have no choice but to trust your judgment," Eragon said.
"I'll go send that owl. For your safety, and for those of the kids, you may not leave this room as of yet. I want no fights, for these are hard times," Dumbledore said.
Eragon said nothing. He'd been trying to ignore the surface thoughts of the old wizard, but it seemed that he wanted Eragon to read his mind, on one particular matter. From what Eragon inadvertently gathered, an evil wizard named Voldemort had once reigned terror on the wizarding community. Then, he just disappeared, and now he's come back again.
Eragon groaned when he was left alone. He did not need another powerful enemy. Who was Harry Potter, though? Eragon felt that the boy would be key to the future, in this world and perhaps, if the worlds combine, both. Eragon swore under his breath, cursing his real brother. He hoped that they could contain Murtagh, because once Murtagh got free, he'd be after Eragon.
Oh, Saphira! Can you hear me? Eragon called out, to nothing. Eragon could only feel that she was living and breathing, and that was it.
Dumbledore told professor McGonagall the gist of everything, as she had left the room as soon as he had walked in. Eragon had been put in an empty classroom, as far from the main stream of students as possible. That man had been strange for a man, his features slightly angled. And he could read minds without any effort. Dumbledore had tried to push the information about Voldemort onto the newcomer, so that if the time came, he could prepare himself. Dumbledore was a very good judge of character, and he felt that Eragon was trustworthy. He even told the truth, when he could have easily lied!
Dumbledore hoped that the Ministry of Magic would listen to him. Sometimes it took hard proof for such a group to listen. Dumbledore had no hard proof, except the dragons were not of any breed one knew, and that the two men dressed like Muggles from the Middle Ages. It would do no good to soften the story. If the worlds mixed, he would be liable to tell the whole truth. Dumbledore fervently hoped that the worlds wouldn't mix.
Dumbledore went straight to his office. He wanted to send the owl right away. Time was a wasting, and if Eragon was to keep his dragon, he'd better hurry. He'd have to tell the students that the rooms that the two men were kept in were off limits. Not that it'd stop all of them, but at least he could say that he did what he could to ensure the safety of the students.
Eragon sat in the empty room. It was rather a large room to be a bedroom. What was it used for, originally? Eragon shook his head. Not a good time for such idle thoughts. But what was he to do? He smiled. They'd have put every kind of spell on the door so he couldn't get out. No matter. He'd just wait. He'd learned patience long before Saphira had come along.
Eragon waited, for a few hours. He was hungry, and in a somewhat sour mood, due to his inability to contact Saphira, especially when she was within range of mental communication. He wanted some advice from his best friend. He looked out the window, to the grounds and the forest beyond. Saphira and Thorn had been moved to into the forest.
"Saphira, we'll get out of this. Oh, how did we get here? Why? There are so many questions unanswered. Hopefully, Galbatorix will not find a Rider for that last egg. Hopefully we can rescue it!" Eragon said, unaware that some people had come into his room.
"Who's Saphira?" One man, to the right of Dumbledore asked.
Eragon turned in surprise. Unconsciously, he'd put up barriers around his mind. Not exactly the best thing to do in a land where enemies can be anywhere. "Saphira is my dragon," he replied.
"Scrimgeour, this is the man I was telling you about. He came from a different world," Dumbledore said.
"Dragon? Aren't they illegal as pets?" a woman asked.
"Saphira is not a pet," Eragon growled. "She's a part of me, and I'm a part of her."
"Surely this is not a time to discuss the issue of having a dragon," Dumbledore said. "We are here to see if it is in any way possible to send Eragon and his, ah, adversary back to where they came from."
Eragon hid his frustration at not being able to speak to Saphira. He'd have to deal with it. "Back to Alagaesia. It's only one land on an entire world. The only known land known to any civilization we know," Eragon said. "If the worlds combine, it may be the entire world, or just Alagaesia. We don't know."
"Either way could be disastrous. Galbatorix could join forces with Voldemort—" Dumbledore started. Scrimgeour and the others shuddered in fear, and most protested when he said it. "Though, from what you said, that doesn't seem likely. The other way around isn't likely either, not unless He-who-must-not-be-named is tricked. And Volde—"
"Dumbledore!" Scrimgeour said urgently.
"It's just a name. You don't see Eragon shuddering in fear at the mention of the most vile and evil person of his world, do you? Anyway, he's not likely to be tricked," Dumbledore said.
"So I need to go home. But I don't even know how we got here! One minute over plains, next, forest!" Eragon exclaimed. "Can't do something if you don't know how."
"Unfortunately, that is only too true," Dumbledore said. "Then we may not have any other choice. We'll have to wait for the worlds to finish combining."