Beatrix was uneasy sitting on the saddle as Bryony, her dragon, glided through the skies. She didn't show it, though, for she had to practice not showing her emotions. Her hand touched the sword at her side, as to reassure herself. Her blade was, as always, loyally hanging in its sheath ready to be draw. Bryony's silvery white scales shined brighter than the stars, nearly blinding Beatrix as they reflected the sun's light. Bryony had spent all her spare time making sure she would look her very best. After all, she had said to Beatrix, I need to create a good first impression.
They flew over the clouds, high up in the sky. If they looked hard enough towards the ground, they could see a brief outline of what appeared to be mountains and cities. However, when they overflew what seemed like a camp, near a city, where battle cries could be heard. Probably a siege, Beatrix concluded. Let's hope no one saw us, responded Bryony, gaining even more altitude. Beatrix agreed, it was probably the Varden and she wanted to keep her existence a secret from them for as long as possible.
This is the place to be, she thought to herself and to Bryony. The dragon gave a grin in agreement and did an elaborate maneuver, a twirling backflip. Beatrix tightened hold on the saddle straps with her legs, but her arms were free at her side and her black hair a wild mane trailing behind her. They stabilized in the air once more, an easy feat since there were no particularly strong gusts of wind, and they joined their minds. In that moment, they were one. Beatrix could feel Bryony's muscles move like they were her own, the air beneath her wings as they glided. She slowly pulled away, separating their identities and extricating herself from Bryony.
She was once again brought to her thoughts, leaving Bryony completely in charge of adjusting their path as to make the winds propel them forwards and therefore make the trip less tiring. It was so peaceful, flying. It was what being free felt like. She remembered when she was much younger, when she would be upset with her father she would fly up to the sky with Bryony. It was releasing, she would take comfort from her dragon as they became one, her worries and anger drifting away with the wind. Beatrix was lucky she had Bryony, she didn't know how she would get along without her.
She was sure that to the King and rejoining Alagaësia was the right thing to do. Besides, it was time for all the land to be brought into a period of peace once more, it was time for this war to end. Even from the scraps of information she had managed to gather from the scrolls in the library it was obvious that Galbatorix was going to annihilate the Varden sooner or later. Beatrix and Bryony would only give a nudge to tip the scales completely, and then later help restore Alagaësia to its former glory and start a new era. A fresh start, a blank scroll.
We are nearly there, Bryony said. Beatrix could feel her dragon's excitement and nervousness, which matched her own to the same level. She started fiddling with her necklace, a delicate silver chain from what hung a clear light blue pendant, inheritance from her mother. She reinforced her mental shields, making the entrance of anyone but her dragon nearly impossible. She hoped it would be enough to keep everyone outside her mind, it was always a particularly painful to have one's mind forcefully invaded, and there were very powerful people.
Beatrix adopted a neutral countenance on her face, preparing herself to face one of the (if not the most) powerful ruler ever in the history of Alagaësia. Bryony dipped her wings slightly, getting closer to the clouds yet not quite drifting under them, so they continued to hide them from view. Urû'baen was coming to view in the horizon, where Ilirea once rest. Her heart fell at the thought, she had read such marvelous things about the elven city in scrolls and heard so much from the visiting elves. And yet, she would never see it.
Shaking the thoughts aside, Beatrix looked forwards towards the thousands of arrows flying at them. She didn't bother to protect her and her dragon, she knew her wards would not allow them to be harmed. She prepared herself for the landing, for even though Bryony tried to be gentle, it was always the roughest part of flying. They landed near the gates, the ground shaking a little with the impact. Even though Bryony very experienced, yet with experience comes size, and with size comes the difficulty of being agile. The dragon was already bigger than a house, her teeth were as long and wide as Beatrix's arm, and the ground shook whenever she landed.
As they did so, Bryony let out a thundering roar, one that shook the castle's windows and would have deafened Beatrix if not for her covering her ears. The guards that were previously shooting arrows at them had been thrown to the ground, such was the force of Bryony's roar. It was not challenging, it was more of an annoyed and insulted sound than anything else. Still, it would instill fear in the minds of the bravest men. Beatrix swiftly jumped off the saddle and onto the ground, dust rising up. "We come in peace," she loudly announced, her voice coming out as hard and annoyed.
In response the gate was opened by a handful of guards. Their faces were pale and their eyes wide with fear. As she walked by them she gave a small smile, one that not quite reached her eyes but still made her seem less scary and intimidating. "Thank you," she said before approaching the door. She held her hands towards the door and muttered, "Mor'amr," making the door swing right open. The sound of her steps echoed throughout the room. In the middle of it stood a man with long facial features, shoulder-length dark hair, and dark eyes. Galbatorix.
Beatrix and Bryony stood in front of him, silence dominated the room until the king said, "Welcome, dragon and rider. I am most pleased by your visit," Bryony gave him a short nod, while Beatrix responded, "I am Beatrix and this is Bryony. We have come from a land across the seas to join your campaign, and to end this ongoing war. But I should warn you, I will not pledge my life nor Bryony's to you in any way. I will swear in the ancient language to serve you in all military, political, or otherwise war-related topic. I will have a choice, however, on how to do it and what to do when the war is over."
"My dearest, why would I agree on that? What if I disagree on your conditions?"
"Then Bryony and will leave Alagaësia, or we will even help the Varden. We will make fine additions to your army, and nice trophies at that.."
Galbatorix hesitated before he said in a smooth voice, "It would be very unfortunate for it to be that way. But," he added, "I will have to search your mind first."
"Very well, but I will shield from you what you need not to know."
The king stopped once again, his displeasure apparent in his face. He must have thought of something, for his expression became one of neutral. He gave a curt nod. Beatrix swore as she said she would in the ancient language, her words flowing out easily, the words dancing together like the most beautiful song. Galbatorix looked pleased, a slightly malevolent smile spreading through his face. Beatrix felt her minds being touched, first a light probe then a full on push. She slowly lowered all the barriers in most parts of her mind, mostly memories and a few important things she knew. However, she kept walls up protecting her most private thoughts, the ones that composed her. It was those thoughts that made her who she was, it was those that once someone knew of them they knew her true name.
His mind slithered through hers, much like a serpent slithers through grass. He did subtly try to break into her private corners of the mind, but she only protected it the more. Bryony helped strengthen the walls, for she knew it was the way to protect Beatrix. If Galbatorix knew her true name, he would make her do his bidding and make them his servant forever, and Bryony would do anything for that not to happen. After examining every accessible part of her mind thouroghly, the king's consciousness slowly retracted back towards his own mind. Beatrix immediately put all the layers of barriers around her mind back up, closing everyone out but Bryony.
When she was done, she looked at Galbatorix in the eye once more. His smile widened. "Murtagh," he called. A young man with a serious face and fierce gray eyes that were framed by the locks of his long dark brown hair entered the room. As he got closer, Beatrix and Bryony noticed he was clean-shaven, well tanned, fit, and muscular, suggesting he was very strong. He's a handsome one, he is, Beatrix commented to her dragon. All she received in response was a snort. As Murtagh, she thought he was called, walked towards them, she noticed his gedwëy ignasia. So he is also a Dragon Rider, thought Beatrix. Hegave a stiff bow, his face remained serious, yet there was a hint of curiosity in his eyes. Beatrix gave a small courtesy and Bryony bowed her head slightly, not in respect or submission, but as a sign of acknowledgment.
Galbatorix said, "Take Bryony and Beatrix to their accommodations." Murtagh turned around and led them through the door he had come from. They walked through several huge stone hallways, large enough to allow Bryony's passage, before they encountered a staircase, which they ascended. Murtagh entered the fourth door to the right of the corridor, the place where they would stay in. It was a simple room, fancy yet slightly barren. There was a canopy bed, an empty desk, a beautiful rug, and a couch. The shades of the window were open, allowing the room to be bathed in gorgeous sunlight.
"Where will Bryony stay?" asked Beatrix. Murtagh answered cooly, "She will stay in a separate house, near my own dragon." She took a sharp intake of breath, then let it all out. "Alright," she said. She took the saddle bag from Bryony's saddle and set it down on the floor. The dragon softly caressed her face with her snout. Beatrix stroked her cheekbones. I'll let you know everything that happens, said Bryony. Beatrix just nodded in response. It always saddened both of them to be parted, they believed a rider and a dragon should always be together.
Murtagh started leading his and Bryony's way towards the dragons' house, when he stopped before leaving the room. He turned towards her. "Why?" he asked, eyes a bit narrowed as if she were a problem he was trying hard to solve.
"Why what?"
"Why did you come here? Why did you not continue to hide?"
"Hiding is for cowards. I came here to prove that I am not one–" like my father, she was going to say, but she stopped herself. It was too much information that she had already given out. "Not one," she finished.
He looked at her eyes for another moment, then without another word he left the room.