Chapter 1: Chapter 1 Subdued

Alone, her greatest fear was being alone. The emptiness was killing her, she would reach out for him and find nothing but hollow blackness where his consciousness once was. Was he alive? She shuddered at the thought. It was the same thought that had beed worrying her ever since he was taken from her. An invoulentary tear pooled at the corner of her eye and trickled to her ear. She stared at the cealing of the empty room and attempted to swallow, which only made her throat stick and pull with its dryness. Her tongue was so sticky against the large wad of cotton stuffed into her mouth, which was secured in place by a strip of cloth wound tightly around her mouth. He had to be alive, Galbatorix was too smart to kill the only thing she truly cared about in this world. Why kill what can be used? Latching onto that question gave her the hope she needed to ignore the sores on her wrists and ankles caused by the too tight manacles. Her thoughts were interrupted by a loud clang and blinding light that flooded the room form the now open doorway. She reflexivly attempted to lift her head to see who had entered her stone cell, but the leather harness prevented her from moving even a hairsbreth. It was probably the guard come to give the daily alloted water, or was it weekly, monthly? She had no idea as it was impossible to judge the passage of time in the windowless room. a hand entered her vision holding a dripping rag, which was then pressed to the strip of cloth binding her mouth. She bit down on the cotton and began to suck. A few drips of warm, bitter water ran down her throat before the cloth was removed. It left her unsatisfied and even more thirsty than before. She whimpered as heard a cup being filled with liquid, the scent of pure, clean water flooded her nostrils. She closed her eyes at the sound of gulping soon followed by a satisfied sigh reverberated throughout the room. Usually now was the time a blade would be pressed to her throat while the gag was removed just long enough to allow a hunk of stale bread to be shoved into her mouth, but no blade was drawn, and noone moved to remove the strip of rancid cloth from around her lips.
After several more minutes of silence, there was a rustle of cloth as her jailer stood and slowly walked twards her. She shuddered as he entered her field of view, it was Galbatorix. His alluring musk assulted her sences as she hardened her face into a stony mask, mentally preparing herself for the trials that undoubtedly awaited her whenever the tyrant deemed it necessary to visit her himself. He leened closer to her until his breath was hot against her cheek. "Eclipse," He spoke in a near whisper, his voice deep and soothing. "Stop doing this to yourself, end your suffering. You have my word that you will be released and rejoined with him. Serve me and you two will never be seperated again. You will be rejoined with your precious eggs and carry out your duty to the dragons. We will rebuild their race together and it will be more magnificant then ever before."
Eclipse again marveled at how beautiful his voice was, it was not hard for her to imagine how he was able to convince nearly anyone he took the time to speak with to serve him withought thought to their own safety. But she was Burthur Varda, a guardian of eggs and newborn dragons, the last of the nest guardians, and she would not be swayed. Death would take her before she would allow the dragons to become Galbitorix's puppets. She glared at him with an intensity that would have frozen water, his smile was smooth and mocking. "I would remove your gag so we could speak like civilized folk, but you continue to be so unruly. My guards informed me that you killed another of their comrads when they were attempting to feed you." He leaned in closer, his beard tickiling her cheek. "One more incident with your shouts and ill have the cotton replaced with a ball of crushed glass." His closeness revolted her, she felt sick to be so near to one who had caused that which she loved so much pain. "And," he continued, straightening and squaring his broad shoulders, "you will not be fed until you pass out from hunger." He continued twards the door, then halted. "Oh, I nearly forgot." Turning on his heel he strode back to the stone block she was strapped to. Reaching up he secured a piece of string to the celing. "Reguards from down below." And with that he patted her on the shoulder and turned to leave, stopping in the doorway only to look back and say in an iron hard voice, "When I next return, be sure to have an answer to my liking, or you will regret it deeply." Then he left, the door clanking shut behind him. Her body relaxed as the lock clicked into place, but his stench still hung heavy in the small room. Turning her attention to the string Galbitorix had secured to the celing directly above her she could make out something hanging from the end of it. Straining her eyes in the darkness terror suddenly gripped her. Hanging from the string was a finger, long and black, with a wicked looking razor sharp claw and a little tuft of fur sprouting from the base of the stump. A drop of blood dripped onto her forhead, the scent was unmistakable, Kahn. A savage cry rose in her throat and she screamed, the gag muffling it to a strangled whimper. Writhing her bocy she continued to scream as more blood dripped from the freshly severed finger and tears streamed from her eyes. A shout formed in her throat but came out as only a muffled grunt. Exhaustion soon took caused her to stop fighting her binds and she fell into an uneasy sleep, blood still dripping from the finger.