Hi everyone, so, I've decided to start another Inheritance fic. It only seemed fair since my other fandoms had two going at the same time. Anyway, this version has several other Riders, hence the title, one of which is Brom's daughter who is paired up with the child of his dragon, Saphira. Complete AU. Hope you all like it.
Disclaimer: I only own the plot and any OC's, such as Brom's daughter, who appear. The world and it's people belong to Mr. Paolini
Enjoy!
She ducked underneath a parked wagon and watched the manor house. In her arms she cradled a bundle that she had found in Morzan's garden. She was glad that the red Rider was gone. The servants were saying that he was hunting an old enemy, and had been for twenty years. She had a feeling that it was her father, Brom. According to him, they had been apprentices together under one of the elder Riders of old. She knew all of the legends and the truths surrounding the order. And what really happened during the fall. She even knew about the egg that her father and his scholar friend stole from UrĂ»'baen five years after she had been born. He needed to disappear and took her with him to Carvahall along with Selena, Morzan's wife and Brom's lover. The only thing she didn't know about her father was where his dragon was. She didn't remember seeing it the five years he worked as an agent and she didn't remember seeing it anywhere around Carvahall.
She focused on her surroundings as soldiers ran past the wagon she was under. Over the last two years, she had been working as a spy in Morzan's household. She had been passing through the garden when she had noticed a strange stone. It was a part of the garden she was new to as she had just been ordered to start keeping it. Morzan's son didn't like having her in the castle, claimed that she reminded him too much of his lost mother whom he had known for four years. She had been missing for sixteen years. The last she had seen of Selena, she had been kissing her father goodbye in the dead of night, right after giving birth to her son.
Once the soldiers were out of sight, she crawled out from under the wagon and through the gate. She had supplies and a horse waiting for her. It was a three month journey back to Carvahall from Morzan's castle and now she had a strange stone to conceal. It was going to be a rough journey.
He paced his living room floor. His daughter, Briar, had not contacted him like she had promised to. It had been two years and he grew more worried by the day. He had sent word to the Varden and asked them about her as she had chosen to go to them when she had turned seventeen. The first year, they had been able to talk through an enchanted mirror one of the spellcasters had. But over the last two years, he had not heard from her. He was worried that she was dead. "She may resemble her mother, but she has my eyes and gods know she acts like I did when I was young. I shouldn't have let her go alone. That was stupid on my part." He reached up and pulled down two scabbards. One was aquamarine and shimmered between sapphire and aquamarine. On the blade and the scabbard was etched the symbol which read Undbitr. The other was crimson and bore the rune which read Zar'roc, or Misery. He had taken it from Morzan's body when he had killed him, in payment for Saphira's blood five decades before. It was a poor exchange, but worth it. Sighing, he put the blades away and returned to pacing and worrying.
She tumbled into the creek as she tripped over a rotten log. She was one month from Carvahall and her father. The journey had been hard and she knew that she was being looked for. She sat up and pulled herself and the stone from the creek. She had abandoned the horse a few weeks ago, knowing it would look too suspicious if she were to ride into the valley. She would be easily spotted. She took the stone from its wrappings and checked it for damage. It had fallen out of her bag when she landed. As she pulled the wrappings away, she noticed she was pulling dirt away to. Curious, she started to wash the stone. As the dirt came away, she saw that the stone was aqua with black lines running across it. Her eyes widened in shock as she realized what she was holding. It was another dragon egg! She had gotten away with another dragon egg. The only ones anyone knew about were the ones Galbatorix had in his castle, a green one and red one. There had been a blue one, but that had been the one her father had stolen. She had seen it once, when she had been given the chance to touch it, to see if it would hatch for her. It didn't and so had been ferried between the Varden and the elves for the past decade and a half. She knew the egg in her hand had to have been laid within the last decade. Otherwise, her father would have known about it.
Carefully, she wrapped the egg in its blankets and stashed it in her pack. She needed to get to her father. He would know what to do with the egg. She started walking again, her head spinning. Murtagh had to have known about the egg. There was no way he could not have known. From what she could see, he had taken his father's place as Galbatorix's most loyal servant even though he didn't have a dragon of his own. From what she had experienced, he didn't need to a dragon. He was a shrewd tactician and always won mock battles against the remaining five foresworn. It was hard to tell how well he would fare against his father. No doubt it would make him proud.
She was glad that she had left when she did. Too many of the soldiers were starting to notice her. She always noticed them watching her when she went to the market or was working in the gardens outside the kitchen. One had even tried to force her into an empty bedroom. She had kicked him in the fork and got away. She was never punished and guessed the man didn't want to be embarrassed that a potential conquest had taken him down. Which was good for her because then her cover hadn't been blown.
Hours later, she found a small thicket and made camp. She took out the egg again and stared at it in awe. She still couldn't believe she had found an egg. The only reason she had taken the stone was because she thought that it contained information. It had felt hollow when she tapped it and the color had been slightly different from the other stones in the garden. She never would have guessed that Murtagh had been hiding a dragon egg. She wondered if he had even known.
"You must have been really lonely, poor thing. Well, now you are safe. I'm going to take care of you. Once we get to my father, we'll make sure you stay safe. I promise." She whispered to it and then laid down, eating a cold dinner of biscuits and dried meat. It seemed like she had just barely closed her eyes when a loud squeak pulled her back to wakefulness. She drew her dagger and groped for her bow. There was nothing. She put her weapons down and tried to go back to sleep. Another squawk ripped through the air, this time right in her ear, and she bolted upright. She looked at the stone in the faint moonlight that was filtering through the trees. She had laid down next to it, protecting it with her body. And now, it was rocking violently. She swore and made up a small fire, something she had sworn never to do, but she needed more light than the moon was providing. Three more squawks filled the air and she cursed, looking around for trouble. The only trouble was right next to her: the egg. She looked at it and noticed cracks along the black lines. "Oh, that's just great." She hissed under her breath. A few minutes later, a piece of the egg fell from the top and an aqua head popped out and mewled a little. Her heart melted and she started digging out some of her dried meat before pulling the rest of the egg away. The dragon flopped into her left hand. The only sensation was ice and fire running through her veins to her head where they met with an iron ring that drove her to unconsciousness.
He shuffled back to his small house, his tale done. He had hoped Briar would have been there to hear it. She had heard it several times before, but he felt she had needed to hear it. He wasn't sure why either. Maybe it was because he missed her and Eragon seemed like a son to him. The boy was always around when she wasn't. She had been kept hidden for her own safety. He sighed and opened the door. It was dark like he usually kept it, but something felt off. He closed the door and reached for his sword. He grabbed it and drew it and went farther into the house. There was no one in the main room or his bedroom. He looked in the cellar before turning towards Brair's empty room. There was a figure on the bed. The person looked like they were curled around something and a sagging pack was hanging from the bedpost. He stepped forward quietly. Not recognizing the person, he swung the sword down. There was an angry squawk and his blade crossed with a dagger.
"Dad!"
So there's the first chapter. May not update again for a while. My books are in storage for another month and a half until I go back to college and I will need them for reference. But, I may also update sooner. Not sure yet. That's what I love about AU's. Anyway, yes, Briar and the new Rider are the same person just in case there was any confusion.
So, I've decided that Briar's dragon is going to be a male, but I need names. I wasn't very imaginative with the other names I've come up with. He's aquamarine, with more green than blue since his father was green, with black talons and spikes. I would be grateful for the help.
Thanks for reading and please review.
