Amaya and Murtagh were out of Urû'baen for most of the time because Galbatorix sent them to look for Eragon and to check on the soldiers. Amaya was getting bored easily with all that, even they weren't actually doing much of what they were supposed to.
"Oh, come on! Do we have to?" Amaya said one day when Murtagh told her they have to stay where they were and check is something going on.
"Don't ask me that. Ask Galbatorix!" said Murtagh.
"Right." sighed Amaya "But can we at least go to some town?"
"Why?" he asked.
"I don't know. Go for a drink or shopping?" she said timidly.
"Shopping?" he raised an eyebrow. He caught exactly the word she was hoping he won't hear.
"Umm, I need a dress." she said "It's not like you let me have a life these months!"
"Look." he grabbed her arm roughly, looking straight to her eyes "Would you, please, stop blaming me for everything? It's not like I want you here! So don't talk like I didn't let you or something…because that's not true!"
"Alright. I understand." she smiled as he let go of her "Wow. You're so strong!"
"Shut up." he said.
"Fine." she shrugged "I was just saying!"
"Wait! I can feel someone is coming!" Murtagh said urgently.
"What? Where?" Amaya looked around in surprise.
"Not here, silly!" he rolled his eyes and pointed at the valley in front of them "There! If you hadn't thought about useless things, you would have noticed!"
"Oh, really. Someone is coming." she said "Just humans?"
"Yes. They're trying to get to the Varden." he said coldly "Runaways."
"Should we let them go?" she asked.
"I don't know. Both ideas sound wrong." he said.
"What ideas?" she raised an eyebrow.
"Firstly, we could let them go just because the king would want the opposite, but then we would have to fight them after they join the Varden." he said "Secondly, we could kill them and make the king happy."
"I have another idea!" she said "Why don't we torture them and make them swear in ancient language to never leave the Empire?"
"Yeah, but that would please Galbatorix." he said.
"So?" she said "I don't know about you, but it would make me happy too. It would be fun! And then there is no fear we'll have to fight them some day."
"We'll force them to make an oath." he decided "But we won't torture them unnecessarily."
"You're so boring!" she complained "I can see them coming! That guy is just fucking gorgeous! Can't I have him for a moment, please?"
"No! Are you crazy?" he looked at her "Don't make me use your true name to stop you from acting like a man!"
"Oh, I'm acting like a man?" she got upset.
"Well, I would call you a whore but since no one would pay you…" he smiled.
"I hate you!" she yelled "It's not my problem that you can't find a girl so you don't want me to have a man!"
"Oh, please! You're so stupid!" he said "Real women don't act like that. You would never find a man who loves you. You're one of those girls…ones that everyone wants to have fun with but after they get old, they stay alone."
"I'm not like them!" she said furiously "They are just cheap whores and I'm a magician!"
"Ah, well, it's almost like you weren't a magician." he said "Enemies pass right in front of your nose. Like now!"
"What?" she looked around "Shit! They are here!"
"Come on. Let's get them!" he said and they hurried into the field to catch the people who were trying to run away.
It was easy to convince the runaways to make an oath because no one really wanted to oppose the Dragon Rider; especially not when Thorn landed near.
After they had finished that, Murtagh and Amaya decided to go back to Urû'baen because it was high time to report to Galbatorix. Of course, they were supposed to check a few places more but they agreed they'll try to keep that a secret; the king didn't have to know everything.
Murtagh didn't want to stop anywhere on their way back home. Amaya got upset because of that but she couldn't have done anything about it.
When they reached Galbatorix's castle, it was night already. The king barely listened to them and then told them to go away because he was preoccupied with something else.
Amaya came to Murtagh's room later that night.
"What do you want?" he looked at her surprised. She locked the door with magic and stood there for a moment, not saying anything.
"Amaya, what are you doing?" he asked suspiciously.
"I told you I'm bored. But don't you also want something?" she smiled.
"Yeah, I want you to leave me alone." he said.
"Are you sure?" she pulled her dress down a bit, exposing her shoulders.
"Amaya, please, just go." he said coldly.
"Do you really want me to go?" she let her dress slid down and she stood there naked in front of him.
"Yes, I do!" he looked at her for a moment indifferently and then looked away.
"The king would be pleased with your answer." she said, picking her dress up from the floor "I forgot slaves are not supposed to have fun."
Murtagh looked up at her furiously and got closer to her in a second. She just looked at him provocatively. He grabbed her arms and pinned her to the door, making her to drop the dress from her hand. She smiled as he started to kiss her neck.
After few moments he moved away from her and she laughed.
"What's your final decision?" she asked, playing with her hair.
"You're not going anywhere now, bitch." he said, whispering something in ancient language and taking off his shirt. Amaya realized he is using magic on her and in a second she found herself flying through the air straight onto the bed. She laughed even harder.
"Touch me." she whispered as he got on top of her, pinning her to the bed. He pressed his fingers to her lips gently and then moved his hand down her neck and across her stomach. They kissed passionately.
Amaya was lying on the bed next to Murtagh, trying to catch her breath. She noticed a sword on the table next to the bed and she grinned.
"What?" Murtagh looked at her.
"Umm-hmm." she looked at the sword and back at Murtagh. He still looked at her confused.
"Don't touch Zar'roc." he said, but she didn't listen to him. She already took the sword in her hand and raised it in front of her face.
"This thing is the reason why you have that nice scar on your back?" she pressed the sword to her body; the cold blade made her shiver.
"I told you not to touch it!" he tried to take the sword but she took it in her hand again and sat up in the bed before he could reach her. They were sitting on the bed and looking at each other until Amaya smiled.
"How does it feel…?" she asked, pressing the blade to her left forearm. She gasped as the sword made a thin line of blood.
"What the fuck are you doing?" he looked at her in shock.
"Wow. That's was intense." she said, healing her forearm "That's a special sword!"
"Just give it back to me." he said "Or I'll make you."
"Make me!" there was a naughty grin on her face again "But no using magic or my true name, please!"
"Alright." he grabbed her arm in a second and pushed her down. She didn't let go of the sword but Murtagh was much stronger than her. As they fought, Zar'roc cut Amaya's skin in four places.
"Okay, okay!" Amaya gasped "I give up."
"I won." he smiled and took Zar'roc, placing it on another table that was closer to his side of the bed. He helped her heal the cuts.
"Yeah, you did." she said "I hope you didn't torture anyone with that sword…because the sensation it sends through the skin…that's a sweet torture…just fucking awesome! Well, only if you don't cut too deeply."
"You're sick." he said.
"I know." she smiled "But I can't help it. Oh, and I still think it's better that than trying to kill yourself to prove you're stronger or win some stupid bet! Especially, when they are not supposed to heal it with magic after…that's just not fun. It's called Trial of the Long Knives, right? I heard someone talking about it long time ago."
"Yeah, but that's not for fun…it's too see who's willing to suffer the most for their people. It's a custom of some tribe or something like that." he said.
"You see, even more stupid! Why to suffer for people who'll turn their backs on you as soon as they get a chance?" she said "It's pointless to suffer for anyone…"
"You're right." he said.
"Yeah, and all those people who say they love you and care about you, they don't really mean it …because you are the one who can best take care of yourself." she said bitterly "They'll just find an excuse why they weren't there when you needed them the most."
"Have you ever been in love?" he asked.
"No. There's no such a thing as love!" she said "It's something people invented! They say they love their country, and then they join the rebels! They say they love their wives, but they cheat on them! They say they love their friends, but they betray them!"
"Who betrayed you?" he looked at her curiously.
"People did." she laughed bitterly "I just want everything to come back at its place. I want those rebels defeated. I want the Empire free and happy. Maybe then there would be such a thing as love."
"What about your family? Don't they love you?" he asked.
"Oh, they care…but I don't." she said "I don't want to talk about it."
"Does that have to do something with your true name?" he asked.
"No!" she got upset "Would you, please, stop mentioning my true name? I know it has some stupid words in it but still it doesn't have to do with anything!"
"How many people did you kill?" he asked.
"I don't know. I'm a magician. I don't count." she said nervously "It doesn't bother me because they were all endangering my life on one way or another."
"Right." he said.
"Is it true all I heard about your life?" she suddenly asked "About your father and Galbatorix and everything?"
"Depends what did you hear." he shrugged "People say many things."
"Is it true that you were actually on the side of the Varden?" she asked.
"I was at no one's side!" he said annoyed.
"Okay." she said "Sorry. I didn't mean to upset you."
"Murtagh." he heard Thorn's voice in his mind.
"Thorn?" Murtagh asked surprised. Thorn usually didn't really talk to him so suddenly.
"Want…Amaya." the dragon whispered sadly.
"I think Thorn is getting better and better…older actually. He talks more to me." Murtagh said to Amaya "I think he wants to see you."
"He wants to see me?" she was surprised.
"Yeah. You were the first person who didn't cause him pain, actually." he said quietly.
"But he didn't try to talk to me while we were flying together. And it's been just a day since I saw him." she said "Wait, if I'm the first person who didn't cause him pain…you caused him pain?!"
"Umm, not intentionally." he said "Galbatorix caused him pain because of me."
"Oh, well. Let's go to see him, then." she said, looking for her dress.
"Thorn!" Amaya ran to hug the dragon as soon as she saw him. Thorn just stared at her with his big sad eyes.
"Amaya." Thorn suddenly said.
"Yes?" Amaya patted his leg.
"You have to come with me." he said nervously.
"Why?" she looked at him in surprise "Why don't you go with Murtagh?"
"I can't go with Murtagh!" the dragon shook his head.
"Thorn…" Amaya didn't know what to say.
"Come on! I'm hungry! I want you to come hunting with me." he said.
"Wow, don't eat me!" Amaya smiled "But, you see, I'm not a dragon and hunting is not really something I can do. I think you should…"
"No!" Thorn roared and Murtagh gave a questioning look to Amaya.
"Fine. I'm coming with you even I don't know what I can do for you." she finally decided.
"You'll help me capture the animals with magic! Just get on my back!" Thorn said nervously "Now!"
"Now?" Amaya looked at him suspiciously for a moment. Then it seemed like Thorn was saying something to Murtagh that made them both nervous.
"Amaya, go!" Murtagh said urgently, almost pushing her on Thorn's back.
"What is going on?" she asked as she got on Thorn's back.
"We'll explain it to you later! Now go!" yelled Murtagh.
"So it's not about hunting, is it?" Amaya asked as Thorn rose in the air.
"Umm, yes and no. I'm still going to hunt but I wanted you with me… because of something Shruikan had said." said Thorn.
"What did he say?" asked Amaya.
"He said Galbatorix had in mind to get rid of you! He said something like...you're not useful at all…he expected more from you…" Thorn said.
"What?!" Amaya was shocked "Fuck! What am I supposed to do?"
"That's why I took you with me…if Galbatorix thinks I need you, he'll change his mind…at least I hope." said Thorn.
"Thanks." said Amaya "Not useful? How does he mean not useful? I did everything he wanted…well, almost everything!"
"Maybe it's not about that…maybe he thinks you and Murtagh are getting too close…and that you'll try something against him." said Thorn "Maybe Shruikan lied. However, if he didn't lie, then Galbatorix is talking about us now. "
"Why didn't you tell me that immediately?" she asked.
"You would panic, he would find out about our plan…it's simple." he said.
"Oh, right." she said and Thorn smiled.
"Would you now concentrate on magic, please? My stomach is empty!" he said "There are lots of animals down there and I'm trying not to scare them or I'll have to hit trees to get to them!"
"Sure." said Amaya, concentrating "Give me a moment."
