Chapter one - Eve

Murtagh stared around his room in surprise. It was reasonably large, and a plate of turkey, potatoes, and an apple stared at him from a table in the corner. Without hesitation, he strode over to the food and gulped it down hungrily, noticing a goblet of wine, which he disposed of quickly.

After the meal, Murtagh relaxed, flopping down on a comfortable feather bed. After about three minutes, he jumped up and started pacing. It didn't feel quite right, after sprinting across the Hadarac Desert with Eragon, to be able to fully relax. He needed something to do.

A knock made him jump, and then bow his head respectively as Ajihad entered the room graciously. "Hello," He said curtly.

"Greetings, Murtagh," Ajihad replied formally in his rich voice. Murtagh braced himself for a long speech, but what Ajihad said was surprisingly simple.

"I am disappointed that you will not let the twins enter your mind, but until you do, you will stay here. I will send in servants to bring you clothes, food, books from the library, and whatever else you please. If you decide to surrender to the twin's probing, tell the servants, and they will see to it. You are not, however, to abuse the servants, try to escape, or cause any kind of trouble. Do you agree to this?"

"Yes, sir!" Murtagh exclaimed, his eyes widening. He had never expected this, to be treated as a King almost. However, there was the drawback of not being able to leave. "Am I allowed to have visitors?"

"Of coarse!" Ajihad permitted, bowing his head. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have important matters to attend to," he turned and backed out of the room, leaving Murtagh in a daze.

He was expecting a servant, but it still startled Murtagh when a soft knock echoed through the room. "Come in," he called, and the door opened.

A girl stuck her head in. "Murtagh?" she whispered. Something about her cautiously quiet manner made Murtagh clench his fists uneasily. After receiving confirmation, the girl hurried into the cell, shutting the door silently behind her. "We are supposed to be quiet in the halls, you know, it's so that we don't disturb anybody who is trying to sleep."

Murtagh could only stare. The girl, while not ravishingly beautiful, looked precisely as a human being should look. Black curls bobbed around her pale face. Odd shaped emerald eyes rested above cheeks that were neither hollow nor flabby. Her cheekbones were high set and her chin was sharp- her nose had no bumps, it was perfectly straight and not too long or too short. She looked to be about sixteen or seventeen.

"I'm Eve," she said, tugging subconsciously at a strand of curly hair. When he didn't reply she tried again, "Er, I'm here to collect your dishes and ask if you need anything…?"

"Of course!" Murtagh spluttered, turning and grabbing his dishes from the table.

"So, uh," Eve said conversationally as Murtagh attempted to stack his plates together. She made his bed hurriedly, making the covers perfect again. "How do you like the room?"

"It's fantastic," Murtagh ravished. "Much better than I expected, I was thinking somewhere along the lines of a wet little cavern where I'd have to compete with rats for a bit of cold bread and cheese, to be honest."

"Tut tut, you don't realize how high the Varden's hospitality level is," Eve contradicted him. She took the plates from him. Then she burst out a question Murtagh had a feeling she had been dying to ask ever since she had entered the room. "Is it true that you were traveling with a dragon rider?"

"Yes," Murtagh admitted. "He's annoying birk a lot of the time, though," he added, and Eve chuckled appreciatively. "His dragon, Saphira, is positively the most beautiful dragon I've ever seen."

"Oh, is she really?"Eve asked, her eyes lighting up. "I've always dreamed of seeing a dragon, do you suppose I could go see her?"

"I'm sure Eragon wouldn't mind. You could just say you want to make his bed!" Murtagh joked, sitting on the bed she had just made. Eve narrowed her eyes and hit him lightly in the arm.

"Well, it's been a pleasure, Murtagh," Finally came out of her mouth. "Unfortunately, I have to get back to the kitchens. I'll be bringing you your meals, do you have any food you don't like or are allergic to?"

And that was how Murtagh met Eve.