"I did it." said Gia casually in the middle of her conversation with Nick that morning. She was again one of the first in the restaurant. Other people were simply too busy with their jobs.
"What?" asked Nick, cleaning some glasses and not paying attention too much.
"I won the bet." said Gia, staring at her glass and nervously shaking it in her hand.
"What?" Nick immediately looked at her in shock "And what is wrong with you? Why you didn't tell me?"
"Relax. I just told you." said Gia seriously.
"Hm, looks like no money for me from you…for a week!" said Nick, calculating unhappily how much will this bet cost him.
"Um, yeah." said Gia quietly.
"Wait, why are you so quiet? You won!" said Nick surprised.
"I'm freaking out." whispered Gia "I want him…his warm lips on mine…his…"
"Ok, ok. No more details!" smiled Nick "Is he that good?"
"He's perfect." said Gia and closed her eyes "His skin is like poison…"
"Oook." Nick laughed "You're overreacting. You're saying he's perfect…yes, I thought so. You're getting addicted to him!"
"That's not helping." said Gia with a sad look in her eyes "I think I love him."
"What? No!" laughed Nick "You don't love him. You just like sleeping with him."
"Yes, but I have some new feeling…something different." said Gia and gave him an angry look "Don't piss me off. I'm not in the mood."
"Sure. If you don't want to talk…" said Nick, immediately getting serious.
"I don't." said Gia and kept drinking. Hours were passing by and Gia just sit there and didn't pay attention to anything around her. Nick didn't try to talk to her because he was busy with more and more clients. Suddenly Gia just got up from her seat and headed for the door, avoiding looking at the people around her. She walked fast to the Galbatorix's castle, feeling nervous. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw Murtagh and Galbatorix in front of the castle. Gia slowly walked to them, unsure will the king be angry if she does that.
"My king…" said Gia, looking at the ground and trying to make her voice sound normal "I just wanted to ask you do you need anything."
"Gia!" suddenly started to laugh Galbatorix "You came here right on time!"
"I did?" said Gia surprised, feeling Murtagh's eyes on her but avoiding to look at him.
"Yes, on time to tell you that I have a task for you." said Galbatorix.
"Yes, my king?" said Gia and looked straight into the king's dark eyes.
"You and Murtagh are going to get some secret information about Eragon." said the king "Our spies were near the Varden and know something, so you have to get that info. I don't want it to end up in wrong minds."
"Sure, my king." mysterious smile appeared on Gia's face "Do we need them for later?"
"No." said Galbatorix and his eyes had a strange shine, just like Gia's "Murtagh will explain you more."
Then the king just headed for the castle and suddenly Murtagh pulled Gia with him. He led her to the castle, holding roughly her arm all the time. When they reached the hall, Murtagh stopped and pushed her against the wall, kissing her passionately. Suddenly Gia pushed him away, looking angry and slapped him. Murtagh looked surprised at her and she looked at the servants who were standing at the end of the hall.
"I didn't let you to kiss me! I'm not your fucking servant so you can do with me what you want." said Gia, trying to look angry. Of course she couldn't wait for servants to get away from there because this entire scene was for them. She knew exactly what she wanted people to talk about. The servants started whispering something between them and finally left.
"Do you think I need to ask for permission?" laughed Murtagh.
"Come here." smiled Gia and touched her lips with her finger. Murtagh slowly got close to her. It was so quiet in the hall now that they could hear just their fast breathing. Gia closed her eyes, resting her head on the wall. Murtagh took a deep breath, his lips getting close to her neck but avoiding the touch. Gia bit her lip and opened her eyes to look at him.
"You…" whispered Murtagh into her ear "You belong to me."
In that moment Murtagh started to kiss her again, pressing his strong body against hers so she couldn't move.
"Is that…what you have to…explain me…about…our task?" asked Gia, trying to catch her breath when Murtagh started to kiss her neck.
"Just shut up." said Murtagh and pulled her dress down a bit.
"Hey! Stop it!" said Gia and tried to push him away but he was too strong for her.
"No!" laughed Murtagh "Anyway what's the hurry? We have time before going."
"Yes…but…" tried to say Gia when Murtagh kissed her again.
"What?" asked Murtagh and moved away from her.
"Just tell me what the king told you." said Gia, fixing her dress.
"Come on, Gia. Don't tell me you're so interested in our mission." laughed Murtagh.
"Huh." Gia rolled her eyes "It's not funny and it's not something you can play with."
"You're changing your mind quickly, I see." he said.
"We can't mess this up! Actually I can't mess this up!" she said nervously "The king will kill me. I killed one of his maids and if I fail…"
"That's your problem. You weren't thinking." simply said Murtagh.
"And don't think I'm sorry." said Gia and gave him an angry look.
"Fine, then let's go. I'll tell you everything on the way." said Murtagh, sure that he wants to get away from Galbatorix now, even for just a few days.
"So, if you're so afraid of the king, why don't you quit your job?" Murtagh asked while they were traveling to the small town where Galbatorix's spies were.
"It's not like that. When you have a talent, you have to use it to do the good things, you know." smiled Gia and made her horse to go faster. Their horses, black like the darkest night, were running fast through the green trees, breaking weak grass and branches under them. It seemed like all wild animals heard them coming and moved out of their way. The forest was so peaceful but still keeping something mysterious, making Gia nervous so she slowed down her horse.
"Good thing?" Murtagh raised an eyebrow.
"Yes, because we are going to win. We're going to keep our country safe." said Gia proudly.
"Safe?" asked Murtagh "With Galbatorix? Huh."
"Everything would be fine if those rebels just disappeared." said Gia bitterly.
"But they didn't do anything…and Galbatorix just lies and kills innocent people." said Murtagh.
"They are rebels! They made their choice and they deserve to die!" said Gia, raising her voice "Maybe our king is not perfect, but no one is! Do you really believe people are innocent? Oh, come on! Don't be so naïve!"
"What did the rebels do to you?" asked Murtagh. He found Gia's anger really amusing.
"They chose the wrong way. They want to destroy the Empire! You're so annoying." said Gia, frustrated.
"Wait, I think I get it!" laughed Murtagh "You simply hate people because they hate you!"
"Huh." Gia rolled her eyes "I don't care what you think!"
"Umm, you do, but never mind." said Murtagh "But if you hate people, do you like the elves then?"
"No." said Gia and narrowed her eyebrows "They are pathetic little perfect creatures who hide all the time…fucking cowards."
"Hm, you hate them because they are more beautiful than you?" laughed Murtagh.
"Hey! If you're so damn smart, why are you king's servant against your will?" she said and smiled. He didn't say anything. It seemed like a dark shadow covered his face for a moment. At first Gia was happy that she stopped him from asking more questions, but after some minutes of silence, it started to feel awkward.
"So since Thorn stayed at Urû'baen I guess you won't try to do something stupid." said Gia quietly, waiting for Murtagh's reaction.
"Fuck off." said Murtagh angrily.
"Now let me guess…you can't live without speaking to your dragon." smiled Gia "Don't worry, you'll survive. You have me!"
"With Thorn I can just cut the mental connection when I don't feel like talking." said Murtagh and looked at her "What can I do to make you stop talking?"
"Hey! It's not fair!" she said "And it's your fault anyway…you started the conversation."
"Yeah, right. My fault." said Murtagh "Why did Galbatorix send you to go with me, anyway?"
"Because I'm the best person to make sure you don't fuck up everything." Gia smiled.
"That's what you think!" he laughed "I think he sent you to go with me because he didn't want to see more of his servants dead!"
"Ok, will you stop bothering me with that maid over and over again?" she rolled her eyes "It's not funny anymore!"
"So you did kill your boyfriend, lover or whatever he was to you?" he gave her a questioning look.
"I didn't!" she said, her eyes shining like fire "I don't want to talk about it!"
"Come on, I want to know more. What happened?" asked Murtagh.
"Nothing!" said Gia angrily "But don't worry, I won't kill you."
"Huh." laughed Murtagh "Like you could."
"Do you think I couldn't?" she was now furious and stopped her horse. He stopped too and got down from the horse, gently touching the animal's neck.
"Yes…actually I'm sure you couldn't." smiled Murtagh at her.
"Don't piss me off." said Gia, walking around nervously.
"Ok." said Murtagh "Let's make a deal. Try to win a fight against me with magic…if you win, you get anything you want…if I win, I get anything I want…what do you say?"
"Fine." said Gia, looking at him provocatively. Murtagh just smiled at her like nothing is going on. That made Gia even more confused and nervous.
"Ready?" laughed Murtagh, looking straight into her dark eyes.
"Yes." said Gia through her teeth. She whispered something in ancient language and sent a small black ball of magic on Murtagh. He just moved away with a smile on his face, letting the magic hit the tree next to him.
"Is that it?" Murtagh teased her. Gia closed her eyes for a second, her lips moving fast and whispering another spell. She hoped he won't realize what she is trying to do. He didn't even move, waiting for her next attack. Finally Gia yelled something in ancient language, her whole body shaking. Murtagh was just standing still and some seconds before Gia's magic could reach him, he simply said one word. Gia stared at him at shock because he stopped her attack, holding the magic cloud still in front of him. Then he released it on her. She managed to jump aside and avoid it. Murtagh made a step forward, whispering something. His eyes were fixed on Gia who suddenly felt pressure in her chest. She gasped, trying to catch her breath but it wasn't possible. She panicked, not knowing what to do. After some seconds she fell down on her knees, looking around with wide eyes. Then she saw a bird falling dead from the tree. Murtagh was now standing in front of her and stopped the magic. Gia felt like her whole strength left her and she was just breathing hard, tears filling her eyes. Murtagh looked at her and then moved away, turning his back to her. She noticed he's also trying to catch his breath, probably because he did something more than he was supposed to.
"Well…you won." said Gia after some minutes of silence.
"Yes." said Murtagh, looking at the horses. They were now not so close to Murtagh and Gia, probably got scared of magic. Murtagh sighed and Gia looked first at him then in the direction of the horses.
"Shit!" said Gia upset "You could have killed them!"
"But I didn't." said Murtagh.
"Are you out of your mind? I know the king showed you things, but you can't control it so good yet!" she said, feeling her strength recovering completely.
"I know what I'm doing!" he yelled angrily.
"No, you don't!" she said "But oh, well, doesn't matter. You won, so what do you want?"
"We have to go." he said, his face serious "I want to get there in time."
"Umm, sure." said Gia surprised.
During the rest of their trip, they didn't say a word to each other. Every time Gia looked at Murtagh, he seemed like he is thinking hard about something and she just didn't know what to say. The night already took over the town when they reached it. The streets were dark and the only light was coming from the windows of small houses. Gia and Murtagh stopped and left their horses in front of the one large tavern. Everyone looked up at them when they entered. It was too visible they are strangers in this town. The tavern was full of light and it smelled like beer and humidity. There were many wooden tables but it was hard to find the empty one. Gia looked around a bit. The floor simply looked disgusting, covered with dirt and probably never cleaned. People now started to whisper about the newcomers. Gia could feel their eyes on her and she nervously looked around.
"They must be king's men…look at their clothes…" whispered one man to another.
"They could be dangerous…" said another man. After some moments all went back to normal. People stopped talking about Gia and Murtagh and just continued drinking and partying.
"What now?" asked Murtagh "Do you know who we are supposed to meet?"
"We wait." said Gia quietly "They should be here any moment. The king always tells them to come every day in case he needs them."
"Ok." said Murtagh as they sat at the only empty table in the darker corner. Minutes were passing by; they were just drinking and still not talking much. Suddenly the door opened and everyone looked in that direction. Four men came in and some of men in the tavern immediately greeted them; they were obviously locals. One of the men that came looked around the tavern and Gia immediately got up from the table with a smile on her face. The blond guy smiled too and came to their table.
"Hey!" he said happily and hugged Gia, lifting her in the air.
"Hey!" she laughed as he let go of her. Murtagh stared surprised at them. There were so many questions in his mind and he even thought how to get rid of the guy if he has something with Gia. But she just kept chatting with the tall guy and he was gently touching her hand. Murtagh could feel his heart beating faster and faster. The guy was really good-looking and strong. His short blond hair was looking perfectly and his dark blue eyes shined when he spoke to Gia. He was wearing some old brown clothes but still it looked better than the clothes of other people in the tavern. Murtagh realized the guy must be rich or something because of the way he was acting with Gia and because he looked so proud and self-confident. Then the guy hugged Gia again and Murtagh couldn't stand anymore not to know what is going on. It was too loud in the tavern to hear what he was saying to Gia. Suddenly Murtagh got up furiously, almost crashing the table. Gia turned around and looked at his eyes that shined like a fire and his rigid face.
"Oh, sorry. I almost forgot." said Gia "Murtagh, this is Zion…my brother…and Zion, this is Murtagh, a Dragon Rider."
"Nice to meet you!" smiled Zion while Murtagh looked surprised at him and Gia.
"Ok, so it's them." said Gia quietly, looking at the three guys that came with Zion and now were sitting at the one of the tables with others.
"Then we're going out now. Tell them to follow." said Gia. Zion nodded and went to them. Gia just gave a sign to Murtagh to follow her out of the tavern. This time they came out unnoticed; no one bothered to pay attention to them.
"You have a brother?" Murtagh asked while they were waiting in the dark.
"Yes." Gia rolled her eyes "Is that a problem?"
"No." said Murtagh "But what he has to do with all this?"
"He's helping me sometimes to do the job better. This time he pretended to be a friend of these guys so after they disappear,it will be easier to explain it all. No one will know what really happened." said Gia "And don't worry. My brother doesn't know anything about what kind of information we came for. He was just here and since the king was planning this for a long time..."
"Good." said Murtagh as the three guys came out of the tavern.
"So…" one of the guys tried to say but Gia gave him a sign to stop talking. She looked at Murtagh and got close to the guy who wanted to speak, probably their leader. Gia looked deep into his eyes and concentrated on getting into his mind. Murtagh didn't even wait for her sign, he was already checking their minds by himself. The guys removed all mind barriers so the job wasn't hard at all. After some moments Gia smiled, satisfied with all she saw.
"It was a pleasure to work with you." said Gia with a wicked smile on her face and whispered something in ancient language. The guy looked at her in horror and dropped down on the ground, dead. The other two guys stared in shock and wanted to run, but Murtagh killed them before they could even move.
"Perfect." whispered Gia, getting closer to Murtagh. Finally they started to kiss passionately when Zion got out of the tavern, looking surprised at them. Gia smiled and Zion looked at the dead guys on the ground and sighed.
"And who will clean the mess?" asked Zion quietly "Someone could come any moment."
"Well, do something." simply said Gia, putting her arms around Murtagh's neck and kissing him.
"Was this all necessary?" asked Zion after he hid the bodies to take them away later.
"Yes." said Gia "If they had stayed alive, they would have put us all in danger."
"So where are you two going now?" asked Zion.
"Actually I was about to ask you do you know a good place to get a nice room." smiled Gia.
"Well, I believe I know what you're thinking…" laughed Zion "There's one nice castle at the end of this street. They have the best rooms in whole town…maybe even in whole country. It's expensive but like that was ever a problem for you."
"Sounds good…" said Gia and looked at Murtagh who just nodded "We'll go there."
"Ok, what did you loose this time?" laughed Zion.
"Umm…" Gia bit her lip "Nothing."
"Oh, come on. You usually don't ask for anyone's approval." said Zion and pulled her closer to him, whispering "Did he do something to you?"
"No!" Gia looked at him, annoyed "He'd be dead by now if he tried something…"
"Gia, I'm your brother! You can't fool me." whispered Zion "He's a Dragon Rider…Galbatorix's Dragon Rider…you can't do anything against him and you know it."
"Um, yeah…right…but I think I'm in love with him." said Gia quietly.
"You? In love? Again?" Zion laughed "Are you serious?"
"Yes." she said.
"Fine, but be careful with him. And just be careful, ok?" said Zion "I don't want you to get into any more trouble…this guy is not likehe was."
Don't mention him." said Gia bitterly "And stop saying stupid things! I have to go."
"Ok, see you then." smiled Zion and hugged her.
"Bye!" smiled Gia as he was leaving. Murtagh and Gia went to take their horses and then walked till the end of the street where they saw the castle. It looked impressive; with large windows and terrace. There was also a nice park in front of it, and red roses were going up all way to the terrace. It seemed like a shadow is covering the castle, because there was no light coming from inside. There was just one torch that was lightening the entrance.
"It looks empty." said Gia "Probably people don't travel around that much and don't have money to afford it."
"Perfect." smiled Murtagh as they entered the castle, leaving their horses in front of it.
"Hello! How can I help you?" asked the red-haired woman with a smile on her face.
"We need a room." said Murtagh.
"Sure!" said the woman "I have one just perfect for you. What's your name?"
"Forget about the name and give us the key." smiled Murtagh, giving the money to her.
"Yes, of course!" said the woman, giving him the key happily. Gia and Murtagh hurried down the dark hall.